#status unknown trio

[lonelyslutavatar]

pov: you're third-wheeling with your slutty boyfriend and his evil best friend

[rizsu]

he's married ?! nanami kento.

sum. he's easily the top most handsome guy within his job. his relationship status is unknown, so what happens when his co-workers ship him with a female worker?

nanami is well known within his company. tall, insanely fit, and an attractive voice. it's not uncommon for men and women alike to find themselves thinking about him often. what's not common is knowing about his love life. no one knows anything and he would've kept it that way. but when push comes to shove, and you're shipped with someone who's not your beloved, nanami will make it known that he's not only taken but married.

in the coffee-break room there are three guys. now, there's nothing unusual about this — no, no. they're just three guys that are co-workers... except there's a twist. they aren't your regular co-workers, they're your uncommon trio of male gossipers and nanami just so happened to be their newest victim.

"shh, shh! he's here," guy one, tichi, whispers to the others, raising his eyebrows and pointing his chin to nanami's position.

the other two take a quick glance, nodding their heads when they've seen nanami's back faced towards them. it's a perfect moment to strike up a conversation, especially since it's just four men here.

guy two, tacho, shuffles his feet to the empty space near nanami. he pretends to open a sugar packet, fiddling with it as his eyes peep over nanami's shoulder. his heart skips multiple beats when the man himself turns around.

"morning to you, tacho," nanami greets, nodding his head before he turns his attention back to his cup of coffee.

"y-yeah, morning!" he stutters, awkwardly smiling in return. he turns his head to the other two in the background, mouthing the word 'help' to them. unfortunately, they do not give the aid to their friend. instead, tichi fakes a series of coughs and guy three, toeny, gives him a confident double thumbs up. there's no hope, tacho sighs.

it's a silent moment between the men — only the sounds of coffee brewing and a spoon coming into contact with the mug can be heard. tacho's mouth itches him, he happened to remember his group's recent conversation about nanami. he must ask — even if it costs him a mutual co-worker.

"so, nanami," he begins, waiting for nanami to give him the undivided attention.

nanami doesn't face him, but he hums in response. tacho doesn't mind this as an answer, so he continues, "i was wondering if the rumors of you being with the new worker, yeri, are true?"

there is one big lie in that question: there are no such rumors. it's just a theory the trio has been gossiping about every night. nanami's been helping out yeri for quite some time, one can only think that they have a special connection going on.

"that is bullshit," nanami gives a firm answer. nothing more, nothing less.

tacho's stunned, he blinks a few times to recollect himself. "oh — so you're not with her?"

nanami doesn't answer yet, but the two in the back give their unwanted reactions. tichi clicks his tongue three times, shaking his head in disappointment at tacho's second question. it's obvious dumbass, he thinks. toeny, on the other hand, presses his lips in a thin line, pretending to read a magazine that's been on the counter.

nanami reaches into his pocket, whipping out his phone. the trio's confused until nanami speaks.

"i am married man. this is my wife," he educates, pressing the power button to show you as his lockscreen.

he collects three gasps, internally nodding at their shock. that's right, i'm gladly taken.

"all this time you've been... MARRIED?!" tacho's voice heightens, he drops his spoon in shock. it's unbelievable yet somewhat believable.

nanami breathes out a 'yes', raising his arm to show the wristwatch. "she bought this for our five-years anniversary recently. it's quite expensive, going over four-thousand," he brags, emphasizing on key words.

he's been waiting for the precious day where someone indirectly asks for his relationship status. the day has come and he will spend it bragging about his beloved.

nanami doesn't give them a chance to speak, he carries on with his bragging, "she's a very lovely woman. all my bentos are made by her and she writes little notes for each. some may think it's childish but that's bullshit! they just haven't experienced the love of a woman. matter of fact, her most beautiful moments are when she's freshly awake. the smile she gives me is nothing but angelic."

his speech doesn't stop there, but it did for the trio. his words went in one ear and out the next. nanami's blabbering about his wife immediately set a blank face upon tichi, tacho, and toeny. they're jealous and also surprised.

"the way a woman can change a man will never not be amazing," toeny whispers, blankly gazing at nanami's ongoing speech.

[mikrokosmos]

The Gothic in Classical Music History (1760s-1920s)

Intro Back in high school I fell in love with two things; classical music, and Edgar Allan Poe. I’ve always loved Halloween, October, spooky things, ghost stories, horror and slasher movies, etc. And I always loved finding classical music that was also spooky, or dark, or evocative of the same eerie experience of a cold and foggy October day. Thinking about these memories made me want to put together a short list of Gothic Classical music.

But what do I mean? There is no true “Gothic music” as in a specific movement in classical history, because the traditional Gothic refers to literature. Not all art movements have corresponding trends in all mediums. Even so I thought it would be fun to say, if there was such a thing as Gothic music, what would that include?

18th Century

John Henry Fuseli - The Nightmare (1781)

Music of the 1760s-1790s, corresponding with the first wave of “Gothic Novels” in the English language. Some names in this era include Horace Walpole (The Castle of Otranto), Ann Radcliffe (The Mysteries of Udolpho, The Italian) and Charles Brockden Brown (Wieland). The closest we have to music of this same era would be in the Sturm und Drang style. Sturm und Drang (Storm and Stress) was used to describe music written in a minor key that was restless, agitated, intense, emotional, and more extreme than the typical expectations for restraint and lightness/clarity, music that aristocrats in powdered wigs and velvet and lace could relax with. Strong changes of emotion and more emphasis on subjectivity, reflected by sudden modulations and pulsing rhythms.

The most famous piece that I associate with Sturm und Drang is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “little” g minor Symphony no.25, K.183 (1773). It is famously used in the opening of Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (1984). It is a fun piece, and that opening movement is full of fire, and probably the young Mozart having fun (he wrote it at 17. If you ever want to lower your self esteem, look up what music Mozart wrote at your current age.). Another major work would be Joseph Haydn’s “Farewell” Symphony no.45 (1772), written in the very unusual for the time key of f# minor. And of course, even though he comes later, anything Ludwig van Beethoven published in a minor key has a lot of muscular passion to it, and his early/classical era of the 1790s is no joke. Check out the final movements of his Piano Trio no.3 in c minor and his Piano Sonata no.1 in f minor, or his most famous early sonata, the Pathetique.

But if the Sturm und Drang style and Gothic genre also emphasize the disturbed and the psychological, we can include programmatic works that do the same. Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni (1788) has an incredible moment in the finale. The sociopathic hedonist is confronted by the ghost of the man he murdered in the first act, who possesses a statue and confronts Don Giovanni with his sins. Don Giovanni doesn’t repent, so he is dragged into hell with a chorus of demons. Always a good reminder that Mozart wasn’t the eternal child who wrote pretty melodies.

19th Century

Caspar David Friedrich - The Abbey in the Oakwood (1810)

Music of the early 19th century corresponds better with Gothic fiction because Romanticism in art brought greater interest in the supernatural, in the subjective, in emotional reactions to the universe… major names in fiction include the poetry of Lord Byron (Darkness), Mary Shelley (Frankenstein, The Last Man), and Sir Walter Scott (The Bride of Lammermoor). Greater emphasis is put on the anxiety of the unknown, supernatural fears beyond our control.

Of all Franz Schubert’s songs, Erlkönig (1815) best exemplifies the Gothic (and this is a bold claim because I only know about a fraction of Schubert’s extensive song output). In it, a father and son are riding on horseback. The son is sick with fever. As they ride, the son cries out that he can hear the Elf King calling out to him, some evil spirit or demon that wants to take the son’s life. The father tries to calm him down, but the Elf King gets closer and closer. By the time they reach home, the son has died. Was the Elf King real? Was the son hallucinating from fever? How literal should we take this text? The ambiguity of subjective experiences and how we interpret and understand reality is a major theme in Gothic fiction.

Many famous German operas lean into the supernatural and magical. In this period we get Carl Maria von Weber’s Der Freischütz (1821), considered to be the first Romantic opera. In it, our main character Max who needs to win a shooting contest so he can be allowed to marry his lover, Agathe. He is given a gun that can shoot magic bullets by another forrester Kaspar (who has his own plans). Kaspar tells Max to meet him in the “Wolf’s Glenn” in the woods at midnight for more magic bullets. In the Wolf’s Glenn, Kaspar calls for a spirit, the Black Huntsman Samiel, to help him curse the other characters, offering Max’s soul in exchange. Making deals with demons/the devil was another fascination in Romanticism.

Legends of a diabolical nature were springing around great musicians. At the end of the 1700s, Giuseppe Tartini wrote his most famous composition, the “Devil’s Trill” Violin Sonata in g minor which is full of virtuosic passages. Tartini claimed that the Devil appeared to him in a dream, and that he sold his soul in exchange for the Devil to be his servant. He handed the Devil his violin, and the Devil “…played with such great art and intelligence, as I had never even conceived in my boldest flights of fantasy. I felt enraptured, transported, enchanted: my breath failed me, and I awoke” Source

Similar stories came about with violinist Niccolò Paganini, who astonished the audiences of the early 19th century with his (for the time) otherworldly technique, dazzling them with scales and leaps and scratches the likes of which you can hear across his 24 Caprices for solo violin. A young Franz Liszt was at one of Paganini’s concerts and he was enthralled and inspired to become the “Paganini of the Piano”. He too would dazzle audiences with his percussive intensity, glittering arpeggios, and dreamy modulations to possess women with the spirits of hysteria and other dated misogynistic diseases. Cliche to say but before Bieber Fever, before Beatlemania, there was Lisztomania.

The sense of Faustian bargains comes through in the pieces Liszt wrote after Goethe’s Faust. The Faust Symphony (1857) includes a movement for Mephistopheles, the demon/ the Devil that bargains with Faust. The Mephistopheles movement has no original theme, but takes and corrupts the themes of Faust and his lover Gretchen into a mocking tone. Later on, Liszt was inspired to write a tone poem “The Dance in the Village Inn” or Mephisto Waltz no.1 (c.1862). He also wrote it for piano around the same time. The story has Mephistopheles taking Faust to a wedding in a village and playing the violin so madly, the partygoers are intoxicated by the music and go off dancing in the woods. Emotions taking over and making one act irrationally was another fascination in Gothic fiction.

Liszt would go on in his later years writing a few more Mephisto waltzes, with a lot of forward thinking harmonies and piano writing, unfortunately not as popular. Mephisto waltz no.2 (1881) has moments that make me think of Debussy, and the third (1883) has glittering and ethereal moments. But the best example of Liszt’s interest in the Gothic would be his earlier concert piece Totentanz (1949), or Dance of Death (Danse macabre). In it, the piano and orchestra play out variations on the Medieval chant Dies Irae, always reminding us of the inevitability of death. The variations depict skeletons dancing wildly all while the Mephistopheles at the piano unleashes his seductive tones.

The Dies Irae chant goes across our pop culture, with one famous iteration being a synthesized version of passages from Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique that Wendy Carlos wrote for Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining (1980) after Stephen King’s novel of the same name. And it was Berlioz’s symphony that enchanted audiences in 1830 with new, titanic sounds beyond what orchestra music had been before. In the story of the Symphonie fantastique, an artist has tried to overdose on opium after feeling rejected by unrequited love, but instead he has a vivid drug induced nightmare where he is sentenced to be beheaded via guillotine, which was still a traumatic living memory for the Parisian audience. He then sees himself among ghosts and monsters during a witches’ sabbath, the lovely woman’s beautiful theme is distorted into a grotesque mockery, the Dies Irae comes back among the cackling. It was a new degree of imagination expected from the audience. Later, Berlioz would depict demons in Pandæmonium (the Capital of Hell in Dante’s Inferno) at the end of his Damnation of Faust.

Through the mid to late 19th century we get authors of Gothic literature such as Edgar Allan Poe, Elizabeth Gaskell, Emily and Charlotte Brontë, Nathaniel Hawethorne, and Victor Hugo. We also get two more operas that have Gothic themes. First is Richard Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman (1843). In this opera, a ship on the North Sea collides with the Ghost Ship of the Flying Dutchman who is cursed to sail the seas forever, but is allowed to come ashore once every seven years and if he can find a wife, he will be freed. I’m sure you can guess how this opera ends. The overture is often played in concert for a condensed version of Wagnarian thunder and romance. The next important opera is Giuseppe Verdi’s Macbeth (1847), because Shakespeare was being revived and translated in different languages across Europe and Verdi loved his plays. In the opera, Macbeth comes across a chorus of witches that foretell his success and downfall. He is too ambitious and goaded by Lady Macbeth, plans to take the throne through deception and murder. Lady Macbeth is later haunted with phantom blood on her hands which only she can see. And Macbeth succumbs to his inevitable fate.

We also get two significantly “Gothic” pieces of orchestra music. They are both tone poems, which also reflects the concert goers’ tastes. The one that has always been a quintessential “Halloween classical” piece is Camille Saint-Saens’ Danse Macabre (1875), opening at the stroke of midnight (softly evoked by the harp), a violin shrieks out the tritone (the “Devil’s interval” which the Romantics thought meant was cursed by the superstitious Medievals, really it was an idiom for “hard to use in music”) and introduces ballroom music along with the clacking bones of skeletons dancing in the graveyard (evoked by the xylophone). The skeletons dance through the night until the rooster crows at dawn.

The other great Halloween concert piece is Modest Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain (1867) which depicts another witches sabbath, this time on St. John’s Night, a major holiday in Slavic Eastern Orthodox culture. Walt Disney’s Fantasia (1940) would help bring this poem to life with an animated phantasmagoria of ghouls and skeletal horses and other demons flying around the mountainous demon Chernoberg.

[Here I want to give a quick shoutout to Cesar Franck’s Le Chasseur maudit (The Accursed Huntsman), a tone poem about a Count who doesn’t go to church one Sunday, and instead rides around to whip peasants for his own amusement, so demons drag him to hell. Not nearly as famous a concert piece as the others mentioned in this list but it has colorful orchestration so you should check it out.]

The initial idea for Fantasia was for Disney to repopularize Mickey Mouse by writing him into an animated version of Paul Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. The original poem by Goethe was a classic that Paul Dukas set to music in 1897. In it, we hear the Sorcerer leave his Apprentice to clean the floors of his workshop. The Apprentice uses magic to bring a broom to life so it can do the chores for him. The Broom mindlessly pours buckets of water all over the floor, and the Apprentice isn’t good enough with magic to stop it. He chops it up into pieces with an ax, but they regenerate into several brooms which go back to marching water in. The Sorcerer returns to clean the mess and scolds his Apprentice. This charming tale has a darker and more diabolically fun tone in Dukas orchestra.

20th Century

Harry Clarke - Illustration for "Masque of the Red Death" (1919)

In the same exact year of Dukas’ tone poem, we get Bram Stoker’s Dracula. At this turn of the century other major names include Gaston Luroux (The Phantom of the Opera), Robert Lewis Stevenson (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde), Henry James (The Turn of the Screw), Oscar Wilde (The Picture of Dorian Gray). At this time, there are a few more pieces that continue trying to evoke Gothic subject matter. One comes from Gustav Mahler’s Symphony no.7 (1905), sometimes dubbed “Song of the Night”. Two of the symphonies five movements are titled “Nachtmusik” (night music), the first is more in line with Gothic anxiety and spookiness than the second which is more like a serenade. But the most Gothic movement is the Scherzo which sits in the middle of the symphony and is like a Viennese ballroom full of dancing corpses and skeletons as waltz music decays with them.

A surprising example (at least, because of how relatively obscure it is) comes from Claude Debussy with parts of an opera based on Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher that he worked on between 1908-1917. Not too much a surprise on the one hand because French translations of Poe’s work became popular and influential. On the other hand Debussy is more known for evocative sound pictures, unique musical colors, and subtlety. Perhaps he was drawn to symbolist and psychosexual interpretations of The House of Usher, the same interests that preoccupied him with his only finished opera Pelleas et Melisande. Roger Orledge reconstructed the opera and tried to stay true to Debussy’s style, so what we do have is passable and as shadowy and vague as his other orchestral masterpieces.

Maybe the hardest work to recommend (but I do recommend regardless, give it a chance) is a Modernist song cycle for chamber ensemble. Arnold Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire (1910) uses freely chromatic atonality to give a demented color of psychosis experienced by Pierrot, personified version of a stock character for old Commedia dell Arte plays, a clown who over time became the “sad clown”. Maybe a precursor to the demon from Stephen King’s It, or the demented clowns and jesters that laugh at the madness of the cosmos across Thomas Ligotti’s short stories.

This was only meant to be a small overview of works that could fit my own view of the Gothic in music. There are more examples I could include, so as a hint toward today, I’ll end with a piece that was written about a century ago, yet sounds as if it could have been written today. Henry Cowell’s The Banshee (1925) is a short piano piece, so if you can, at least listen to this one. Instead of playing with the keys like you’re “supposed to”, Cowell asks the performer to drag their fingers along the wires directly. This creates disturbing reverberations and scratching sounds that tingle the back of your neck, that feel like the otherworldly cry of a Banshee.

Happy Halloween.

[sailorgoon13]

Sebastian Sallow

Basics:

Full Name: Sebastian Sallow

Nickname: Seb, Sebby, or whatever clever name Ominis comes up with

Gender: Male

Date of Birth: 18 November, 1874

Heritage: Scottish

Blood Status: Pure Blood

Wand: Yew, Dragon Heartstring, 11", Slightly Yielding

Appearance:

Hair Color: Chestnut Brown

Eye Color: Rich Dark Brown

Skin Tone: Fair

Height: 5'11"

Body Type: Athletic and lean. Agile

Style: White button-down shirt and green tie. Suit jacket, in shades of dark green or silver. When not at Hogwarts he wears something practical and relaxed. He isn't one for fashion, just as long as he looks like he tried then it is an accomplishment

Features: Freckles!! His hair falls effortlessly over his forehead in waves. The natural, slightly unkempt style of his hair reflects Sebastian's casual confidence and rebellious spirit

Personality:

Traits: Charismatic, Determined, Optimistic, Fearless, Protective, Complex

Likes: Knowledge, Dueling, Quidditch, Forbidden Magic

Dislikes: Failure, Authority, Uncertainty, Injustice, Goblins

Hobbies: Crossed Wands, Quidditch, Breaking into the Restricted Section

Fears: Anne dying, Being sent to Azkaban, Ominis and Y/N hating him

Family and Friends:

Father: Unknown

Died when he and Anne were young

Was a Professor

Mother: Unknown

Died when they were young

Was a Professor, as well

Siblings: Anne Sallow (Twin)

Was always Sebastian's best friend

When she became cursed, it hurt Sebastian more than it hurt her

Friends: Ominis Gaunt, Y/N

Magic:

Special Abilities: Mastery of Unforgivable Curses, skilled duelist,

Boggart: Solomon

Patronus: Beagle

Polyjuice: It would have a deep, ebony color with swirling wisps of silver or green and would look like a syrup or a molasses. Smell smoky incense and the faintest trace of something sweet and floral. There is a sharp tang of bitterness with a lingering sweetness, like the taste of ripe blackberries.

Amortentia: Old books, Smoke from a campfire, Salty sea air and Cedar

Backstory:

Sebastian and his twin sister Anne grew up in the Scottish countryside, under the guidance of their parents who were esteemed professors. From a young age, their parents instilled in them the value of knowledge, curiosity, and the pursuit of truth. Sebastian admired his parents deeply, wanting to have their optimism, open-mindedness, and boundless eagerness for learning.

Tragedy struck when a lamp in their cellar, tainted with an undetectable toxin, claimed the lives of their beloved parents. Orphaned, Sebastian and Anne were taken in by their uncle Solomon Sallow, who lived in the secluded village of Feldcroft. However, their relationship with their uncle was strained; Solomon, a stern and unforgiving man who was also an ex-Auror had clashed with Sebastian's refusal to accept Anne's situation.

During this time, Sebastian found peace in the companionship of his friend, Ominis Gaunt, who he met in their first year at Hogwarts. Along with Anne, the trio would often retreat to the hidden sanctuary of the Undercroft, where they practiced spells and played Gobstones, shielded from the prying eyes of the world above. Ominis, like Sebastian, harbored secrets and shadows of his own, forging a bond of trust that endured more than most.

As Anne's condition worsened, Sebastian's desperation drove him to the forbidden arts of the Dark Arts, seeking a cure that eluded even the most skilled healers. When Solomon intervened, tensions reached a boiling point, resulting in a fateful confrontation that shattered their already fragile family.

Despite the turmoil, Sebastian found comfort in his friendships, including one with a fellow student, MC. Their bond, forged in the pain of their fifth year, provided Sebastian with a glimmer of hope in the darkness that threatened to consume him.

Amidst the chaos and upheaval of his adolescence, Sebastian found refuge on the Quidditch pitch, channeling his inner turmoil and anguish into the fierce competition of the game. Joining the Slytherin Quidditch team as both a Beater and Keeper, he found fleeting moments of freedom and purpose in the rush of wind and the thunder of the Quaffle.

Academics:

Best Subject: DADA

Favorite Subject: DADA

Favorite Professor: Hecat

Worst Subject: Astronomy

Least Favorite Subject: Divination

Least Favorite Professor: Onai

Student Life:

Despite his penchant for rule-breaking and his involvement in dark magic, Sebastian was a dedicated and studious student. He excelled in his classes, particularly DADA and Potions

His rebellious nature often landed him in hot water with the faculty. His frequent detentions for sneaking into the library's Restricted Section became a badge of honor

To find a distraction from all of his inner turmoil, he joined the Quidditch team and found it to be a good way to release his emotions

**All screenshots are mine, collage is mine but pictures used were found on Pinterest**

Template: @hazyange1s

[wherevenusholdssomeofficespace]

Why the Llama Incident works

The noodle incident is a trope done in A LOT of shows (PNF has a whole TV tropes page dedicated to its noodle incidents). Technically getting disowned and raised by ocelots is a noodle incident in pnf... we never do know what gets him officially disowned and how he ends up in the care of the ocelots). The noodle incident is meant to just showcase that this character has a history of some sort.

Generally speaking, explaining a noodle incident is a bad idea because the unknown has infinite potential. The intrigue is part of what makes it interesting. People can come up with ideas that are absolutely out there themselves. Usually, coming up with something that will live up to the hype is impossible because the hype of the event has built it up to impossible levels.

Emphasis on the usually.

They literally called it a llama incident. They knew what a noodle incident was, and were purposefully playing with our expectations that it would be an unrevealed event. And, as I said before, PnF has already dealt with its fair share of noodle incidents that go unexplained.

And as a noodle incident it served its purpose. Generally a noodle incident will provide context on what the status quo is without spelling out the details. In Rollercoaster the Juggling Monkey's noodle incident tells us that this is not the first time Phineas and Ferb have had a Big Idea (in fact we never do get what Phineas and Ferb's first Big Idea was). In Milo Murphy's Law the Llama incident tells us that Milo and Melissa were getting into Murphy's Law shenanigans long before Zack came into the picture. Showing us that they're so familiar with each other that situations that might require more context to another person doesn't.

Now bear with me as I go on a bit of a tangent that I promise is related.

The main cast of Milo Murphy's Law is a trio, and one of its members is defined by being the new guy. Zack is kind of an audience surrogate. Melissa is Milo's childhood friend and Milo has lived with this all his life. Generally, they don't need to explain anything to each other, nor do they need to explain anything to their class who is already at least passingly familiar with Milo. But they do to Zack.

I don't necessarily think MML NEEDED the audience surrogate character per se. Quite frankly I think audience surrogate characters are rarely necessary. You can always just start with a group of friends and fill in context via implication. I think it's just significantly harder, because you run the risk of alienating your audience by not allowing them to get settled in what is going on or having your characters talk about things like they don't already know what is going on.

But I don't think its at all an inherently bad storytelling method. I personally find outsider POVs delightful, and a good audience surrogate character is an outsider POV, at least at the start. Zack being new to the whole Murphy's Law allowed him a story about choosing to engage with the hazardous kid, winning him loyal friends and a set of skills he never would have dreamed of before. We get to see him grow, and we wouldn't have seen that if he was Milo's friend the whole time.

On the other hand he also has a bit of a wild background, as the former lead singer of a locally famous lumberjack themed boy band. Which gives Milo and Melissa the chance to join a band. Or for Milo to have a real birthday party. A change in status quo provides opportunities for growth and change, for the whole cast, which is useful in more overarching stories... like MML. It's not NECESSARY of course. Zack could have been a classmate that had always kept his distance before he accidentally got tangled up with Milo and decided he was cool. But there's nothing wrong with him being straight up new either.

And at the most basic level, Zack's complete unfamiliarity provides a nice contrast to Melissa's familiarity and Milo's day to day life. Zack is starting from 0 while Milo has been dealing with this every single day of his life.

So Zack isn't going to know what the Llama Incident is. And while noodle incidents being unexplained is fun for the audience, it isn't going to be so fun for someone who is constantly living with people who know what this Llama Incident is. Of course they could have told Zack the noodle incident off screen, it would have made for a good gag to cut into the story with Melissa and Milo finishing telling Zack the story. But instead, we are treated to an episode that has Zack really beginning to slot into his life as Milo's friend.

Back to the main point.

MML is one of the only shows with enough sheer chaotic energy that it could actually pull off making a group of seemingly unrelated references into a cohesive genuinely interesting story. The whole show is things that could feasibly be noodle incidents, which makes it easy to get a baseline for what could have happened. Milo uses stuff in strange ways all the time, getting tangled up with weird animals and ending up in strange situations. There's no REAL reason to feel like we're missing out on too much. It sounds like a normal Milo situation, just with only him and Melissa... and the fact they keep bringing it up.

And really, if you think about it, its just Planned in Advance Meapless in Seattle. Meapless in Seattle was meant to be a bunch of unrelated clips meant to be a noodle incident of sorts. We wouldn't know what exactly would go down in that fake episode. But they managed to bring everything together into a really fun episode that made sense and honestly lived up to the hype. (At least for me). I mean. They somehow made it work. That's a feat in of itself.

The episode "Llama Incident" starts out implying a completely different noodle incident. We never learn how the kids end up on that branch. That's not important. That stuff happens all the time. Is the Llama Incident more interesting than the other stuff Milo gets into? Not particularly, but it DID involve him using more stuff he didn't normally use.

And the Llama Incident is told in the format of a story. Changing up the format of the episode is always a good way to make an episode feel fresh. I mean, look at The Remains of the Platypus. It's just an episode told backwards but its delightful chaotic fun. Or Delivery of Destiny. Really the only difference is the day follows the perspective of a delivery guy, but we get all our normal plot beats. But both are some of my favorite Phineas and Ferb episodes. If you remove their gimmicks they're pretty basic. Phineas and Ferb build a cheese themed amusement park, and Doofensmirtz's plan is only slightly more novel with brainwashing Perry. Phineas and Ferb building a ride and Doof juicing city hall are pretty typical of them, but Paul's semi-outsider POV (and being one of the closest characters we get to having the full picture of the story we the audience see), makes it feel fun and fresh. It makes the Llama Incident feel special. Even if it isn't my favorite unique episode format, it's still something fresh and fun.

So Milo and Melissa sort of tell the story a bit out of order, because they forget what pieces Zack would and wouldn't have context for or would or wouldn't find interesting. And, again, it's told as a story to Zack, so he asks questions. It's told while they are hanging from a branch, where they cut back to every once and a while to remind us that hey, the group is in the middle of a whole other Murphy's Law incident. We're getting two for one today.

But through the episode we get a bit of a Zack character arc. We've already established that Melissa and Milo are used to this, even if you weren't aware the way they were casually rating it at the beginning of the episode should tell you all you need to know. But Zack isn't completely used to this yet, so he's just nervous. He spends the episode using the story as a distraction, but being genuinely invested. In the end, the story acts as an inspiration to Zack, and he's able to help the group get out of the situation. AND for his trouble, he gets his own mysterious incident to reference. After half a season, he's truly part of the group now. He will continue to grow of course, trying to become braver and cleverer, and he's already made strides since the first episode. But even if Zack isn't really any less part of the group before or after its still a significant moment in Zack's character arc.

And then the Llama Incident comes back the next episode. The date was memorable to Milo, even throughout all of the other chaos in his life. And sometimes that's just how life is. And he uses his knowledge of the event, the way it stuck in his mind, to save him, Dakota and Cavendish from Pistachion's in Missing Milo. What we thought was going to just be a noodle incident, a running gag that functioned to establish just how used to this stuff Milo and Melissa were, turned out to be a plot point. To be fair we didn't NEED to know what the Llama incident was for Milo to choose to go there. We didn't need to know about the Llama Incident to know it was typical Murphy's Law shenanigans. It could have just been more out of context llama stuff. But now we the audience are in on the joke, so when Cavendish and Dakota express confusion, we can revel in the fact we know something they don't. Especially about two characters who themselves were slow revealing information about themselves to us... sure by that point we know their deal but at one point they were as mysterious and out of context to us as the Llama incident. And now we know what the Llama Incident is, and what their deal is.

The Woodpecker incident also is vaguely referred to later with the woodpecker whistle. We may not know the full story there, but it is still satisfying to see Milo's adventures giving him the skills and tools to deal with bigger, actually hostile, threats.

And at the end of the day, even if the Noodle Incidentness of the Llama Incident is ruined, it was immediately replaced with the Woodpecker incident. Which admittedly is never mentioned, but it doesn't need to be. The point of the Llama Incident was to draw attention to a specific incident to make a gag out of it. But they have incidents all the time. And we're privy to most of them. We sometimes get references to other incidents that we never fully get the context for. But we don't need context. We know how it'll go anyway because we have a whole show of effective noodle incidents.

[bellsolciere]

Diamond Chateau - Koi Diamond

Koi Diamond is the leader of the authority, it's unknown her current status in the authority, but she attends events and only is quiet, if any gem tries or dares to defy her order, they would see the fury and immense power of her

Powers:

Light and Darkness Manipulation - She can control Light and Dark Energy easily, without really a sort of effort

Physical Cut - She can easily cut anything she wants, her power as a queen allows her to do so much more than what is expected

Judgment Aura- This aura allows Koi to punish any gem the way she wants, the amount of limits are unknown since there are only few gems that received certain punishment

Elemental Manipulation - Her immense power allows her to control other elements

Hologram Creation - She can create holograms easily and with huge capabilities and functions

Spectral Conjuration - She can make spirits made of light and dark to do whatever she likes, she does that to spy on gems

Crystal Manipulation- She can manipulate minerals and crystals without effort

VA: Priscilla Patrick

White Pearl, Black Pearl and Pumpkin Pearl

The 3 Pearls are the top-tier Pearl the authority can have, they have a huge level of power and influence, Pumpkin leads the trio of pearls, Black Pearl is very quiet while White is very oponent

This is the beginning of a new era

(Reblogs are appreciated)

[winxbutbetterimo-ovo]

Alfea Overview v2

i drew out a layout for Alfea i will use for specifications of my overview. did i make alfea a smidge taller? Yes but oh well, anyway lets begin.

The Alfea College for Fairies is a girls' boarding school in Magix for Fairies and the oldest (established 9000 years before the start of the story) and most prestigious educational institution for fairies. 

The education in Alfea lasts 3 years, one for each Fairy Form in the journey of an aspiring full-fledged fairy. Base form, Charmix, Enchantix.

The Alfea students are mostly in training ages 16-18 (unless they have been held back a grade like Stella, so in her case, 17). Fairies here learn how to control their power, fight evil, learn new spells as well as learn how to be their realms' queens and guardian fairies. In this way, Alfea is a little like a military boarding school for the elites.

In the Past

The Alfea Champions were an ancient trio of legendary fairies who were believed to be the most powerful fairies in all of Alfea History. Their feats have been known to be passed down through generations, immortalised in statues that stand in the Alfea Museum, and had been recorded in Legendarium. Ress of the Flame, Chevonne of the Water and Farcelia of the Wind. They were real fairies, but it has been so long that their legends outlived their actual story of their lives.

When Mavilla was headmistress of Alfea, owning and exhibiting the strengths of one's Fairy Animal was considered a vital part of a fairy education. Everything taught was a reflection of the contents of the Tome of Nature. Eventually, Mavilla changed this. 

Alfea used to have a crest which was a curved golden "A" on a purple and blue flower with a golden outline at the top of the school gates, just above Alfea's gate. The "A" of the crest is also seen on what used to be the school's uniform, consisting of a burgundy long-sleeved and knee-length dress and mary janes. The neck part of the dress has white lace and a dark burgundy loop.

At another point in time, Eldora was the keeper of the Alfea Greenhouse and taught floral magic.

School years

First Year

Freshmen fairies learn how to master their own source of power, as well as their base fairy form, and learn basic spells they can use in their daily life and in battle if necessary. Metamorphosymbiosis, Potionology and Survival Training are part of the first year curriculum. Fairies also learn how to explore diverse environments in the Simulation Room as part of their survival training. 

Second Year

Second Year fairies have the goal of earning Charmix. Their classes include, magic invocation, magic self-defence, applied convergence and cognitive analysis class, where fairies learn technical incantations, and spells requiring accurate pronunciation.

Third Year

Third Year Classes include, History of Magic, and those who achieve Enchantix will participate in Battle training to hone their skills. The fairies also have a final thesis, also earning Enchantix is more like an extra credit thing.

Graduation

After earning Enchantix, the basic fairy education is completed and they will graduate with Honours and receive the titles of Guardian Fairies of their respective homeworlds on the Day of the Gift. Without Enchantix, the girls still graduate, but they don't become guardian fairies. In this case, they return to their home world and can decide if they want to work towards being a guardian fairy by being an apprentice to one until they earn their Enchantix, or they can do something else. Alumni can also decide to extend their studies and do their masters here at Alfea in any Subject already offered, being mentored by any of the current staff

Winx After Graduation

They taught for a short period of time, before choosing to take their masters here in various subjects in addition to being substitute teachers from time to time.

Architecture and Layout

Outside

The Alfea Natural Park, which is a refuge for Fairy Animals, is found in the forest. It is unknown if parts of the forest close to the school belong to the school or not, but they are also used for classes and tests.

There is a bus stop where students, guests, and staff members can take buses from and to Magix City and to other places in Magix.

Protective barriers meant to keep non-magical creatures, non-fairies, and bad weather out are seen many times in the series.

The School Gates are the only access to the school compound. They consist of a large pink archway with two wing-like doors that move to open or close the gates.

Its campus is a large castle with pink walls and blue roofs built around a courtyard.

Ground / First Floor

Most of the Classrooms are found on the ground floor around the central courtyard. The side buildings have corridors through which the classrooms can be accessed and it has stairways from which the upper parts of the school can be accessed.

Namely: On the East Wing, Applied Convergence Classroom, Technical Incantations Classroom, Magic Invocation Classroom, Magic Defence Classroom, and on the West Wing, Potionology Classroom, Metamorphosymbiosis Classroom, and the Survival Training Classroom. Each classroom also acts as storage for whatever items the subject requires.

The School Kitchen, where Chef Sfoglia works, Students may also be assigned to do the cooking as chores or as punishment. Located in the West Wing

In the North Wing, The Entrance Hall is a large room found opposite the School Gates, and it is accessed by a set of grand stairs.

The Cafeteria / School Hall is a large room found on the ground floor. It has a large dome of glass as its outer wall and there are long tables where the students have their breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It has a special tier for staff members. Parties and balls are often held there and during such occasions, the tables are removed to make a place for the festivities. It is found below the Headmistress' Office and behind the Entrance Hall, in the North Wing.

The West Wing also contains The School Infirmary where students are treated in case of health problems and injuries. It is composed of an office and a resting room with many beds. It is managed by Nurse Ofelia and her assistant.

The West Tower is where the Magic Archive of Alfea is found. Precious and rare books and scrolls about many things can be found there and the school's Codex used to be kept there. A Pixie, named Concorda, is the keeper of the Secret Archives.

The first floor of the east tower contains the Applied convergence Classroom which also acts as the School Amphitheater for formal gatherings required by the Headmistress or otherwise. the students sometimes attend the school assembly and it is also where general meetings are often held, especially in crisis times. There is a table with chairs around it where staff members sit. Exams may also be held there.

The Central Courtyard is a large open space at the centre of the school. It contains:

Benches where students can sit and spend their free time. The Well, with underground tunnels that connects Alfea to the other magical schools, and contains various rooms and obstacles to go through in order to obtain the Star of Teamwork. It functions as a gathering area for celebrations such as the beginning of the year and graduation ceremonies are done. It also serves as a landing space for Red Fountain ships.

Around the sides are the Gardens of Alfea. A place where students can relax and study and even practice their abilities with the accompaniment of nature.

And around the back is an open space mainly used for classes with a practical component.

Second Floor

The student Dormitories (enchanted to be bigger on the inside). Located in both the East and West Wings.

The North wing’s first floor’s ceiling is very high, taking up 2 floors, and therefore technically there is nothing here.

The Simulation Room is where virtual simulations take place. It can also be used to teleport people to other locations. Professor Palladium is the one who is in charge of the Simulation Chamber.

There is technically nothing here in the West Wing because the Archive Room Ceiling is the tallest in the entire school, taking up 4 floors. (Tho it can still be accessed from here as well but the platform is small so people usually dont.)

Third Floor

The student Dormitories (enchanted to be bigger on the inside). Located in both the East and West Wings.

The History of Magic Classroom in the East Wing Tower

And in the North Wing, the staff and Faragonda’s offices. Outside of which there is a small seating area.

There is technically nothing here in the West Wing because the Archive Room Ceiling is the tallest in the entire school, taking up 4 floors. (Tho it can still be accessed from here as well but the platform is small so people usually dont.)

Fourth Floor

The student Dormitories (enchanted to be bigger on the inside). Located in both the East and West Wings.

The Dance Studio/Gym in the East Wing Tower.

In the North wing, Faragonda and the Staff Quarters. Only accessible via the offices.

There is technically nothing here in the West Wing because the Archive Room Ceiling is the tallest in the entire school, taking up 4 floors. (Tho it can still be accessed from here as well but the platform is small so people usually dont.)

Fifth Floor

Only contains the Viewing Decks atop the two Towers of Alfea. Only accessible by Flight or Teleportation.

Basement

The basement of Alfea is sprawling. It contains what will become Musa’s Music Cafe, the Alfea Museum, the Hall of Memories (formerly: Fairy Animals), the magical Entrance to the Alfea Greenhouse, the Library (containing the Research Lectern with Miss Barbetea as its Librarian) with its Restricted Section, and finally the Hall of Enchantments (It contains the hall of infamy, where the portraits of all the enemies of the Magic Dimension can be found, the entire history of the magical universe and contains the Heart of Alfea), only accessible through the Headmistress’s Office.

The rest of the images here include a Key, a Compass and a small sketch i did to plan out how many floors Alfea actually has.

Finally staff:

Headmistress Faragonda (Applied Convergence)

Miss Grizelda (Magic Defence/Applied Convergence)

Professor Palladium (Potionology/Survival Training)

Professor WizzGizz (Metamorphosymbiosis/Technical Incantations)

Professor Avalon (s3 new) (Magic Invocation)

Professor Daphne (s6 new) (History of Magic)

Chef Sfoglia, In the Kitchen

Nurse Ofelia and her assistant. In the Infirmary

Pixie Concorda, the keeper of the Secret Archive

Miss Barbetea the Librarian

Knut the Janitor (s2 new)

Dorm Assignments

The students use all three levels of the student dorms. And where they go rotate every three years. So if you joined the school and are assigned to the second floor dorms, you stay there until u graduate then the freshmen after you will take over it.

Once again all dorms are enchanted to be bigger than they seem.

For the Staff, (All dorms are enchanted to be bigger than they seem from the outside)

Faragonda and Grizelda (daphne in future) Share a dorm, the North Wing, central Dorm.

Palladium, Wizzgizz, Avalon share a dorm, the North Wing, East (left) Dorm

When the winx become teachers, they will insist on sharing a dorm, the North Wing, West (right) dorm.

The non teaching staff usually have a built in dorm at wherever they are working, so Miss Barbetea has a room in the library, and Nurse Ofelia and her assistant share a room in the infirmary and so on. Their rooms are also enchanted so they are bigger on the inside.

Sketch Dump:

[demifiendrsa]

FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH - Release Date Announce Trailer

Japanese version

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the second game in the Final Fantasy VII remake trilogy, will launch for PlayStation 5 on February 29, 2024.

The game will be available in the following editions:

Physical – Across two game discs; includes a reversible cover, and the preorder incentive of the digital “Midgar Bangle Mk. II” armor at participating retailers

Standard Edition ($69.99)

Deluxe Edition ($99.99) – Includes Mini-soundtrack CD, artbook, and SteelBook case.

Collector’s Edition ($349.99) – Includes large, highly detailed collectible statue of Sephiroth, Deluxe Edition contents, along with digital DLC items including downloadable content “Summoning Materia,” allowing players to summon the Moogle Trio, and the “Magic Pot,” along with equipment, like the “Reclaimant Choker” accessory and the “Orchid Bracelet” armor. The Collector’s Edition will be available to pre-order in limited quantities from the Square Enix Store.

Digital – Includes the downloadable content “Moogle Trio Summoning Materia.”

Standard Edition ($69.99)

Digital Deluxe Edition ($89.99) – Includes digital Mini-soundtrack, digital artbook, and digital downloadable content items including the “Magic Pot” Summoning Materia, “Reclaimant Choker” accessory, and the “Orchid Bracelet” armor.

Digital Deluxe Edition Upgrade ($20) – Can be purchased to upgrade previously purchased Standard Edition, adding Digital Deluxe Edition contents*

Final Fantasy VII Remake and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Twin Pack ($99.99) – Offering great value during the pre-order phase, the Twin Pack includes Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, available at launch, and the full game download of Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade which will be available to play as soon as the Twin Pack is pre-ordered.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Digital Deluxe Twin Pack ($119.99) – Includes Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade full game download plus all Digital Deluxe Edition contents.

■ About

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the highly anticipated new story in the Final Fantasy VII remake project, a reimagining of the iconic original game into three standalone titles by its original creators. In this game, players will enjoy various new elements as the story unfolds, culminating in the party’s journey to “The Forgotten Capital” from the original Final Fantasy VII.

After escaping from the dystopian city of Midgar, Cloud and his friends set out on a journey across the planet. New adventures await in a vibrant and vast world – sprint across grassy plains on a Chocobo and explore expansive environments.

An Expansive World

As the party searches for Sephiroth, you will explore the beautiful, expansive regions of the world and open up new areas to discover. Dig deeper into the world of Final Fantasy VII with rewarding side content and mini-games, plus various unique forms of transportation to navigate the world.

An Evolved Battle System

Combine strategic thinking with thrilling action combat alongside your comrades, including newly added characters. Deepen their relationships to unleash powerful team-based combos.

Beyond the Walls of Fate

In this standalone adventure for fans and newcomers, Cloud and his comrades venture across the planet, their fates unwritten, making each step outside the dystopian city of Midgar fresh and mysterious.

■ Story

For years now, the Shinra Electric Power Company has been providing the world with energy at the expense of the lifestream, the “river” whence all life flows and whither it returns.

After storming the company’s headquarters and engaging in a series of battles for the ages, Cloud and his companions leave Midgar behind and set out for the wider world. Once in the grasslands, they hop aboard chocobos and embark on a journey with an unknown destination.

Meanwhile, Zack—beaten and battered from his fight against an army of troopers—hobbles across the wastelands into Midgar with a mako-poisoned Cloud on his shoulder. Though he has managed to escape death for now, the ominous rift in the sky gives him little reason to rejoice.

That is hardly the only threat facing the world, however. The Shinra Resistance Committee, backed by Wutai’s interim government, declares war on the company; figures shrouded in black robes carry with them the corpse of Jenova, a veritable calamity from another world; and the Weapons—fierce and monstrous guardians of the planet—have recently awakened.

Amid this chaos, Sephiroth has set his plan in motion, thus ensuring myriad fates intertwine and are birthed anew.

■ Characters

Cloud Strife (voiced by Cody Christian in English, Takahiro Sakurai in Japanese)

“There’s no point in wasting our time worrying about fate if we can’t change it.”

An ex-SOLDIER: first class, Cloud came to Midgar to start a new chapter of his life as a mercenary. At the invitation of his childhood friend, Tifa, he accepts a job with Avalanche. Together, they confront Shinra, ultimately leaving Midgar behind in pursuit of Sephiroth and the truth─a quest which will lead them to defy destiny itself.

—Weapon: Sword

He fights by switching between modes specializing in mobility and offense. A single swipe of his huge sword can knock several foes off their feet at once. Some of his abilities also allow him to take the fight to the air.

Barret Wallace (voiced by John Eric Bentley in English, Masato Funaki in Japanese)

“This is the planet we’re talkin’ about! Y’all know she’s gonna pour her heart and soul into this fight!”

The leader of an independent Avalanche cell, Barret spearheads an operation to take down Shinra’s mako reactors. He pays a hefty price for this, however, when the company retaliates, and his comrades die in the crossfire. Armed with the memories of his lost friends and the newfound knowledge of Sephiroth’s plans, he departs Midgar in hope of saving the planet and safeguarding a future for his daughter Marlene.

—Weapon: Gunarm

What he lacks in speed, he makes up for in both sturdiness and strength, converting his anger toward Shinra into raw firepower. He employs a variety of ranged attacks, from rapid-fire salvos to powerful explosions, which allow him to strike foes high in the air or across the battlefield.

Tifa Lockhart (voiced by Britt Baron in English, Ayumi Ito in Japanese)

“Ever wish you could just snap your fingers and forget the worst stuff?”

Though a loyal member of Avalanche—an underground organization that opposes Shinra—Tifa nevertheless questions the group’s extremist tactics, struggling to reconcile her cause with her conscience. This internal conflict reaches a fever pitch when her group’s actions effectively lead to the fall of the Sector 7 plate. Racked with guilt, she leaves Midgar in search of a new path to tread.

—Weapon: Gloves

She strings together swift combos while utilizing a variety of martial art techniques. Her ATB fills quickly, allowing for the use of multiple abilities in rapid succession. She also boasts several skills that deal more damage to airborne or staggered foes.

Aerith Gainsborough (voiced by Briana White in English, Maaya Sakamoto in Japanese)

“Just look at it all… A living, breathing planet. Even after everything we’ve done to it, it’s still going strong.”

A flower seller who lives in the Sector 5 undercity and the last remaining descendant of the Cetra, a people known for communing with the planet. Shinra takes her prisoner in their efforts to reach the Cetra’s foretold “promised land,” but Cloud and company come to her rescue. She escapes Midgar and embarks on a journey into the outside world of which she has long dreamed.

—Weapon: Staff

Utilizing the power of magic, she casts spells from a safe distance and launches attacks that home in on her foes. She can also conjure beneficial wards and warp between them, as well as restore the party’s HP with her limit break.

Red XIII (voiced by Max Mittelman in English, Kappei Yamaguchi in Japanese)

“I may be clad in fur…but that doesn’t mean I’ll purr.”

Red XIII is a beast with a flaming tail, crimson fur, deadly claws, and the ability to speak. Cloud and company help him escape Professor Hojo’s clutches, and he decides to join them on their journey. His species is known for their long life spans, and he is no exception. As this Cosmo Canyon native is the eldest member of the party, he offers its members words of wisdom from time to time.

—Weapon: Collar

He sets upon foes with an unrelenting assault, laying into them with a beastly ferocity. Guarding against incoming attacks will feed his Vengeance gauge. Once it is full, he can unleash his inner beast, but sufficient skill is required to maximize its potential.

Yuffie Kisaragi (voiced by Suzie Yeung in English, Yumi Kakazu in Japanese)

“If I win, you get the honor of serving yours truly!”

A member of Wutai’s elite corps of ninja operatives, Yuffie infiltrates Midgar on a mission to steal the “ultimate materia” from Shinra. Her plan ends in disaster, as she fails to claim the materia and loses her partner Sonon in the struggle. Just as working alone begins to take its toll on her, however, Cloud’s group comes into the picture.

—Weapon: Throwing Star

Using her throwing star and ninja skills, she excels at both long- and close-range combat. Elemental ninjutsu allows her to exploit enemies’ weaknesses without relying on spells. She also keeps opponents on their toes with a variety of aerial attacks and tricky techniques.

Cait Sith (voiced by Paul Tinto in English, Hideo Ishikawa in Japanese)

“Alright, everyone! By popular request: a fortune or two to steer you true!”

A wisecracking, feline-shaped robot often seen poised atop his big moogle pal. One of the Gold Saucer’s most popular mascots, he is well loved for his fortune telling—a service he also offers to Cloud and friends. His adorable appearance also belies access to a surprising amount of insider intel on Shinra.

Sephiroth (voiced by Tyler Hoechlin in English, Toshiyuki Morikawa in Japanese)

“Don’t be afraid. It’s not death—it’s a homecoming.”

A former SOLDIER: 1st class of legendary renown, he is said to have died in the line of duty in Nibelheim five years ago. This is proven untrue when he appears at the Shinra Building and absconds with a research specimen known as “Jenova.” He now toys with Cloud at every opportunity, seeking to change the course of destiny and rule the planet.

Zack Fair (voiced by Caleb Piece in English, Kenichi Suzumura in Japanese)

“I dunno—hopes? Dreams, maybe? Something like that! So long as we’ve got those—and hold on tight and never let go.”

Zack may have worked with Sephiroth as a SOLDIER: 1st class, but he trained under a different operator, and it is from this man that he both learned to take pride in his work and received his iconic buster sword. After a grueling battle in which he overcomes the odds and cheats death, Zack returns to Midgar—where he hopes to see his love Aerith—with a mako-poisoned Cloud in tow.

■ System

The Evolved World of Final Fantasy VII

In this game, players can freely roam across lush grasslands and rugged wildernesses, all while enjoying a wide variety of quests and mini-games. Face off against the threats that await you by teaming up with your comrades and unleashing powerful new synergy abilities.

Combat

Action and strategy combine in thrilling combat, now made even more exciting thanks to the addition of new team-based abilities.

From flashy, action-packed fights to slower, strategic battles, this game offers ways for players of all persuasions to enjoy combat.

World

The world is divided into several regions, with each one offering different environments to explore and experience. Where you go and how you get there is up to you.

■ Combat: Basic Systems

Fighting

Press [□] to perform a normal attack. Dealing damage will also fill the ATB gauge needed to use abilities and spells.

Commands

Open the command menu with [x] to enter Tactical Mode, which slows down the passage of time. Devise your strategies in the moment or register commands as shortcuts and use them as your intuition deems fit.

Abilities

Equipping weapons and setting materia will grant access to a wide range of abilities. Using these abilities requires you to expend charges from the ATB gauge, which fills as time passes or whenever you deal damage.

Magic

Magic materia can be set in weapons and armor to enable the use of spells such as Fire and Cure. Casting spells consumes both ATB charges as well as MP.

Unique Abilities

Press [△] to activate a character’s unique ability. Some of these abilities do not require ATB, but instead take time to charge.

…And More

■ Combat: Summons

Summons

Setting summoning materia will grant access to the power of the gods. A conjured deity will follow the player’s lead and fight enemies automatically, but you can also instruct them to use special abilities. Before they depart the battlefield, summons will unleash one final attack powerful enough to wipe out any foe.

Odin

A horse-riding swordsman who brandishes an enormous blade known as Zantetsuken. He gallops toward foes and sends them flying with a single, sweeping slash.

Alexander

An enormous, armor-plated weapon that towers over even other summons. No ordinary foe could possibly withstand an assault from its entire arsenal.

■ Combat: New Systems

Synergy Abilities

Powerful attacks in which two characters team up to turn the tide of battle. More abilities will unlock as you increase the party level—a numerical expression of how closely-knit your team is—and deepen the affinity between party members. Fill the synergy gauge by using unique abilities and prepare to unleash a synchronized assault!

Cloud / Sephiroth: “Double Helix”

Sephiroth unleashes an elegant flurry of strikes, and Cloud does his best to follow suit.

Aerith / Cait Sith: “Kitty Cannonade”

Aerith imbues Cait Sith’s moogle with magical energy and unleashes a ranged attack.

Yuffie / Barret: “Ninja Carbine”

More Barret and Yuffie lean into their shared prowess and unleash a ranged attack.

…And More

■ World: Chocobos

Chocobos are the adorable feathered friends of the Final Fantasy series. In this game, once you catch a chocobo in the wild, you can call it at any time in that region, and it will offer you special assistance in traversing its home terrain. You can also customize your chocobo’s equipment to create a steed that’s suited just for you.

Chocobo

Hop aboard your chocobo to explore the world with ease. Try sprinting if you’re in a hurry to reach your next destination.

Mountain Chocobos

Using their mighty talons, these chocobos can climb up and down steep slopes that bear special markings. Even if a destination seems inaccessible by foot, you might be able to get there on chocoback.

Sky Chocobos

These chocobos can take flight from gliding ranges and soar across peaks and valleys. Take to the skies and nothing will stand in your way.

■ World: New Forms of Transportation

In addition to chocobos, this game features many ways to get from one place to another. Take your friends on a buggy ride through the wastelands or do some seaside sightseeing aboard a wheelie… Put these various vehicles to use as you explore the world!

Buggy

The buggy, which can be ridden across sandy terrain, can also drive through shallow water and travel faster than chocobos. Buckle up and take the party on a wild ride through the vast desert.

Wheelie

In the seaside resort of Costa del Sol, you can ride around on a wheelie, a two-wheeled self-balancing vehicle. Tour the town at your own pace, all while taking in the beautiful scenery of this land of eternal summer.

■ World: Minigames

Not only stories and battles, but all kinds of unique elements of fun await players.

Enjoy the numerous minigames available across the game’s world.

G-Bike

The “Spinning Slash,” which uses a large sword to reap enemies, and the super-accelerating “Nitrous Boost” are just a few of the many things you can do in this bike game. Fight off the relentless gun-shooting participants and win the battle that goes beyond just speed.

Chocobo Races

A fierce race to test your chocobo riding skills. Break the balloons that appear along the way to use various techniques. Deepen the bond with your chocobo and aim for first place.

3D Brawler

Manipulate 3D polygons and take on your opponent in a one-on-one match. Avoid your opponent’s attacks and deliver a powerful punch. If you have powerful limit moves that you can unleash by continuing to land hits, victory will surely be yours.

■ Messages from the Development Staff

Yoshinori Kitase, Producer

“Final Fantasy VII Rebirth has been set for release on February 29, 2024. This second installment of the Final Fantasy VII remake project will feature elements from the previous game, as well as greatly enhanced features such as the vast world map to explore and synergy abilities with party members. The story will unfold more dramatically than ever before, with a rapid pace of major twists and turns. We know fans are dying to see one scene in particular…

“Final Fantasy VII Rebirth can be enjoyed on its own as a standalone adventure, with the party leaving Midgar to explore the wide world beyond. But for those wishing to deepen their understanding of the story, a recap of the previous game will also be provided.

“We hope that both fans and those who have never played Final Fantasy before will enjoy this game.”

Naoki Hamaguchi, Director

“We are finally able to announce the release date to all of you! We have been working tirelessly on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth since the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake, and we can’t wait for you to experience our labor of love. In this title, Cloud and his friends, who have fled Midgar, will be setting out on an adventure across an expansive world of untold adventure in pursuit of Sephiroth.

“While the main storyline is bigger and more ambitious than the previous game’s narrative, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth also embraces the concept of ‘free exploration,’ with compelling stories, fun mini-games, powerful monsters and so much more to find throughout the world map. We hope you will explore this world in great detail, as nearly 100 hours of adventure awaits.

“We hope you will take this new Final Fantasy game experience in your own hands to enjoy.”

Tetsuya Nomura, Creative Director

“This is the second title of a trilogy, and covers between the start of the journey outside Midgar to the midpoint of the original Final Fantasy VII. If Final Fantasy VII Remake was an introduction to the world and a preparation for this journey, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth serves as an illustration of the incidents that started the journey, an exploration of the people tied to it, and the journey itself, heading toward its climax. Many elements were carefully selected for this title and because this is a series, we have the unique opportunity to review and incorporate feedback from the previous title, such as by increasing the number of characters. I am sure that the bar for the next work will be raised even higher now that we have included so many spectacular elements in this work, but even so, the entire team continues to work diligently and without compromise on its development.

“There is also the looming question of what fate awaits. Whether you have experienced the original title or will embark on this adventure with fresh eyes, we hope you will face the ending of this work on your own terms.”

[jozor-johai]

So do you think Dany and Jon are just two Heads of the Dragon? and if so, who do you think is the third? my money's on Bran as like, the Ice Representative to balance out Dany's fire and Jon's Ice/Fire dealies.

Thank you for this ask, sorry it took ages to respond.

Say that we know (or we think we know) that two "heads" of "the dragon" are Jon and Dany—insofar as we even think we understand what that phrase is supposed to mean (an assumption that I think is worth questioning as well, but that's not a task for now).

Here's what I love about this question—the issue of "who/what is the 'third head'" comes up as a literal question in a religious sense when Arya is talking to the Sailor's Wife in Braavos. There's a statue to the god Trios, and the Sailor's Wife can't tell us the purpose of one of the heads:

Three-headed Trios has that tower with three turrets. The first head devours the dying, and the reborn emerge from the third. I don't know what the middle head's supposed to do.

GRRM is definitely referencing the concept of the "three headed (dragon)" when he invented Trios; the imagery is too central and too specific for that not to be the case. What's fun, of course, is that we're all asking ourselves the same thing—what (or who) is that middle head?

I like your suggestion about Bran. It's a pretty unorthodox idea, because most people assume/expect that the three heads of the "dragon" must be Targaryen or at least Valyrian... but I don't think one needs Valyrian blood to ride a dragon, so as far as I'm concerned Bran is an option. He's a cool idea, too, because of his attachment to the North, the far North, and maybe even the "Ice" concept, like you say. Bran's also a powerful skinchanger—or, in training to be one—and there's not a doubt in my mind we're going to see some dragons get skinchanged. GRRM has been asked about that idea before and he's gleefully dodged answering it.

That would also be interesting because it's worth remembering that Jon is technically not canonically a Targaryen (yet), or even a contender to be a "head of the dragon" (yet). We think we've figured it out (and we probably have) but it's still technically a mystery. In that sense, then, if I was going to lean on the comparison with Trios, I would say: perhaps by now we should have met the first "head" —the "death" head—and we should have met the last head— "rebirth" head—so we should be missing this middle head whose purpose we don't know. However, we think we've figured out that Jon is the marriage of Ice and Fire, so maybe he's the "unknown" middle head—and then Dany is, on one side, the "rebirth" head (of fire?), and we should have met the "death" head (of ice?) already, but we don't know who it might be. Perhaps it's Bran!

If I'm being honest, I personally haven't thought too much about solving the third head of the dragon issue. It's clear to me that some key piece of the puzzle is being intentionally obscured from our view, so it feels like a fool's errand to be confident in solving it at this point. I realize that's a lame answer, but it's the truth—I try to approach these things beginning with how they work in the story and how they work with the symbolism at play, so without being sure how the "three heads" are even supposed to work I haven't tried to solve this mystery.

If there are truly three people who are going to be the "three heads of the dragon," I think the rules of good storytelling limit our options to characters that were introduced in AGOT. If we limit that to POVs—which is not necessarily a valid assumption, but I think is likely—then that's only Tyrion, Bran, Arya, or Sansa. I'm torn on the common "Tyrion Targaryen" theory... I don't really like it, but it would explain why he's included as a POV in AGOT and why he makes the shortlist for possibilities here (among other things). Bran would be a much more interesting option, though.

The thing is, I'm ultimately not convinced the "three heads" are going to work like we expect. Yes, it's said that Aegon, Rhaenys, and Visenya were the "three heads," but who knows if the common understanding of that is true? Plus, the person who presents the idea to Dany of the need for "three heads" to ride the three dragons is Jorah... who I don't think knows shit about dragons. So my mind is wide open when it comes to possible interpretations of the "three heads of the dragon."

[queen-ofsunflowers]

I'm having so much fun revising and refining my Kingdom Hearts/Once Upon a Time crossover. There's been a lot of ideas popping in and out of my head.

Emma constantly being confused by Heartless, Nobodies, Keyblades and all of it but just going with the flow of it. Eventually, it all gets explained to her by Riku while the group is heading to Neverland.

Lea gets his Keyblade during the Neverland arc, so when the gang returns it surprises the shit out of them. Fast forward to the Snow Queen arc when he's throwing said Keyblade at Elsa's ice wall because he's too frustrated since his flames won't melt it.

Werewolf!Isa/Saïx. That's where the scar comes from in this AU.

The thought of Cursed!Lea and Isa being dog dads to another famous pair of Disney dogs is also playing in my head.

Snow losing her status as Princess of Heart because of what happened to Cora. Unknown to them, she had passed on the Light long ago when Emma was born.

So the Dark Swan arc leads to some issues. Being the Dark One conflicts with the Light inside of Emma's pure heart. It makes her physically and mentally ill to the point that it might kill her. After finding this out, Hook decides to take on that burden from her to save her.

Princesses of Heart being able to sense Darkness. That said, they have trouble being around the Dark One because of the amount of darkness said person with the title holds. One on instance, Kairi gets physically sick. Belle seems to be an exception, but in reality she just got acclimated to it so it doesn't bother her anymore.

Once the Curse breaks, the Keyblade Wielders find themselves struggling to summon their Keyblades again. By the end of Season 2, Sora, Riku and Roxas are able to summon their Keyblades again.

The Destiny Trio each have two hands ;)

Roxas's cursed counterpart is another one of Regina's sons, leading him to be fiercely protective of Henry. (Curse or not, he still sees him as family).

The family tree of Radiant Garden's royal family is something since Kairi is its princess in this AU. Not only does that make Ansem the Wise her father (a pretty crappy one tbh), but she also gets two older brothers. Two brothers that abandoned her for ten-ish years and so much worse stuff, but at least one came back before the Curse was cast. (Ienzo. It was Ienzo--)

That's all I got for now. More to come as it appears in my head.

[lonelyslutavatar]

Is it bad that I want to see Anabelle give your post lonely Martin a makeover? Like "Yes, you're depressed, and the way you look has changed a lot because of the shit you've been through and that *sucks*. But also, we're going clubbing, and I'm getting you clothes that fit in colors that work for your current complection. We're making that pussy Pop, Mr Blackwood-Sims"

(Martin goes home after 30 minutes in the club, but his tits look amazing in the new top)

cue 90's style makeover scene

[sassy-man-apocalypse]

Omg finally getting around to talking about this okay

JRWI WARRIORS AU!! clans , tribes , rogue groups and location info beloowww ^_^^^^^^ im cryazy

IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE TELL ME I AM SSOO HYPED I LVOE THIS AU WITH ALL MY HEART

CLANS

Roseclan — The Black Rose Pirates

Status ; Missing?

Alignment ; Unknown.

Rapidclan — R.A.F.T Navy

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Belief in Starclan.

Riptideclan — The Riptide Pirates

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Unrecognized by Starclan. Unknown.

Goreclan — The Suckening

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Mostly Against Starclan.

Havenclan — Prime Defenders

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Loose Belief in Starclan.

Rockfallclan — Wonderlust

Status ; Active.

Alignment — Belief in Starclan, though weak.

TRIBES

Tribe of The Deep Lake — The Trenches

Status ; Somewhat Active.

Alignment ; Belief in the Tribe of Endless Hunting.

ROGUES

Starslayers — Godslayers

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Against Starclan.

The Fangs & The Ravens — The Fangs & the Daemons

Status ; Somewhat Active?

Alignment ; Against Starclan.

Shadow Stalkers — Vampire Hunters

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Shared Opinions.

The Discarded — Amalgams

Status ; Unknown.

Alignment ; Unknown.

Rockstar, Catnip and Forager — bitb trio

Status ; Active.

Alignment ; Unknown.

LOCATIONS

The Wishing Pond

A small Pond located in the very far left top corner of the Territories, who's water flows gently into a small river surrounding Riptideclan's marked territory. It serves the same purposes as the moonpool, though at certain times of the year, the water glows a strange golden purple, allowing medicine cats and leaders alike to make a wish to the cat residing inside it.

The Flowing Cascade

Three small, protruding rocks on the cliffside of a waterfall. Situated in the very middle of the Territories, this waterfall continues to flow, spreading across the forest in a multitude of rivers such as the one leading to the Wishing Pond. These rocks serve the same purpose as the Fourtrees, granting three clans to have a meeting every full moon. Riptideclan, being unacknowledged by Starclan, Is not invited — though they've managed to sneak in on occasion. All three other active clans take part in the gathering, though Goreclan is always reluctant to do so.

The City

Lavenderpaw's birth location. Not much is known about it, though he says it is very far away and everything is quite different from the Territories.

Burnt-Down Place

You could once find a twoleg village in his empty location, which has now been burnt to the ground by a forest fire. There's nothing left but a few empty carcasses of what once were twoleg nests.

Twoleg Place

A small town located near Goreclan. The Fangs and the Ravens are often found stalking the streets of such, and Clan cats tend to avoid overstepping their territory.

The Overhill

A bigger twoleg place situated right on top of the hill rockfallclan made its camp next to. Disposes of its trash by throwing it inside the river its settled next to, which then ends up inside the clan's camp, rendering it filthy.

???

A large twoleg nest filled with various cages and equipment of unknown origin. No twolegs roam this place anymore. Some of the Discarded still use it as a nest, especially to hide themselves from the weather at times, though it is not filled with enjoyable memories.

[fairykazu]

𐙚celeste — “love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind.”

pairing : kazuha × gn! reader, scaramouche × gn! reader

summary: a new and upcoming soloist was coming into the world of tevyat. but wait... isn't that one of the triple stars?! y/n was apart of the trio band called "triple stars" with aether and lumine. but due to mysterious reasons, they left the group with no explanation. however, they have come back with a new name: celeste

genre(s): close friends to lovers, rivals to lovers, idol au, slowburn

warnings: kms/kys jokes, angst, cursing, angst, mommy issues, stalking, false rumors, name uses they/she pronouns, name is gender neutral but is feminine aligned, any person used as y/n is not canonically what they look like! soon will be added as series progresses

status: hiatus; irregular updates

playlists: scarlet & scara

vidia’s quip: quick note! y/n is implied to be feminine or at least, transfem! sorry to my transmasc or male audiences! also purple - scaramouche pov, red - kazuha pov, white or default color - name credits: (star divider credit @bunnysrph)

profiles: the silliest stars | childe hatepage + yoimiya

⋆｡°✩ 1ST ALBUM: the stars in the sky represents us part i. track 1. omg celeste comeback?! ⋆ interlude. scarlet and celeste track 2. the twin stars' surprise ⋆ interlude ft scaramouche. getting slandered on main track 3. slandering on main means to apologize after / what is he on?! ⋆ scaramouche's reprise. W rizz, kuni! ⋆ track 4. besties meetup! ⋆ track 5. knock knock! whos there? interlude ft kazuha. the tweets ⋆ track 6. a date or not a date? that is the question ⋆ track 7. to the recording room! ⋆ track 8. leaks & celeste's mystery man??? ⋆ track 9. upcoming rumors

⋆｡°✩ 2ND ALBUM: the aligned fate orchestrated by the constellations part i. track 10. unknown number?? ⋆ track 11. worried ⋆ track 12. deluxe album out! ⋆ track 13. scaramouche x y/n trending??? ⋆ track 14. are you afraid of me? track 15. tba track 16. tba track 17. tba track 18. tba

⋆｡°✩ TWO MINI ALBUMS scarlet's route: scarlet leaves in the celestial night ⋆ includes: 10 tracks, one boyfriend, a thank you card, one freebie and highschool dreams achieved wanderer's route: purple midnights with the moon ⋆ includes: 20 track, a thank you card, one freebie, one boyfriend, hurt/comfort, and well, scaramouche is his own warning

⋆｡ EXTRAS 00. starlight anew - celeste visuals + album 01. melodramatic - scaramouche visuals

fairykazu © 2024 do not repost to other sites without permission, share, translate or rewrite without my permission. all rights are reserved !

taglist: @pyrrhicgaze @d4y-dr3am3r @murderisokayforme @aeongiies

@florakis @luvnoya @mellowknightcolorfarm @elikyeet @4leyn3

@imkaaayy @xiaosonlybeloved @kavxikitty @jayxncya @sakiimeo

@theblueblub @whipped-for-fictionals @ynverse @eunchaeluvr

@rifran @meowmeowmau @sweetstrawberrybabe @keiiqq @lalalaloveallmydays

send an ask to be added to the taglist!

[tenderleavesbob]

This is an accidental continuation of this. I have no idea where this is going.

Ganondorf waited, and Ganondorf watched.

He had already thrown himself into battle before his full power returned. With the return of the last part of his soul, it was tempting to blaze forward and crush the Hylians. They had successfully defeated the time sorceress and thought their victory complete. How quickly the Hylians allowed themselves to fall to distraction: weak, fickle, so unworthy compared to Ganondorf's people. The Hylians survived not due to their own strength but the strength of Hylia's favor and Hylia's beloved weapon.

Hylia's weapon. Her child soldier.

Ganondorf wondered if he was old enough to shave.

Hylia's child had fought on the battlefield alongside the hero. Ganondorf's spies reported that she presided over the celebrations now. It seemed like she was a better warrior than a sorceress or priestess like her ancestors of old. Her rulership skills were unknown.

Just thinking of her and her family's casual dominion of the land filled him with rage. It boiled inside him, threatened to overflow and fill all of Hyrule with his hate and fury. Ganondorf wanted to take his blade and cut down her line's arrogance.

Thoughts of Hylia's child soldier bid him pause. The memory of that tiny statue in the sorceress's disturbing temple, of the small child all those centuries ago who played a role in his initial defeat. He had not known that small child was part of a bigger plan, that he was just one tool of many wielded by the Goddess. The other child soldier who fought alongside Hylia's Princess and the Twilight Princess. The young warrior who split his soul into pieces to trap him. The child captain.

All had baby fat still in their cheeks.

Before he was forced back in a move the Hylians foolishly believed was his defeat, Ganondorf saw multiple heroes on the battlefield. Children. All of them. This era's hero was the eldest of the trio, smooth-cheeked and small in Ganondorf's eyes. The Gerudo would barely formally recognize him as an adult at his age, and Hylia's child had him leading her armies.

It was all too easy to remember the Civil War. That was probably not even a memory to the Hylians, but Ganondorf remembered. He remembered how the Hylians looked at the children of his people and called them dangerous. He remembered them raising their swords and never discriminating against children or adults. He remembered the crimes they committed against children and the names given to those children.

It seemed as if the Hylians viewed their own children in a similar light. Or perhaps just these children.

First things first. Ganondorf owed the White Sorceress a visit. It was past time to reclaim the Triforce of Power. Then he could pay this child soldier a visit, too.

[resquices-of-godhood]

A bit of world building to start working on the lore, shall we?

Caution: wall of text ahead!

THE WORLD:

The world of this headcanon has roughly the same proportion of land to water as Earth and is separated in three main continents, currently referred as (names pending):

The land of the old faith

The continent of technology

The unknown territory

For the longest time, only the first continent was known to the gods and bishops, as originally all crowns came from the land of the old faith. Some, as they were defeated, lost territory or had their current bearer killed, started looking over the oceans and migrating away from the seemingly never ending wars, though those were a minority. Most were subjugated, went into hiding or starved from lack of devotion as the wars went on.

The continent of technology was only been made known to the bishops of the old faith when the new bearer of one of the migrating crowns came into The land of the old faith to stake a claim, after having dominated uncontested most of the other one. After some battles and negotiations, both sides decided to keep the status quo, with the small coastal settlement of the new crown bearer being the only settlement away from their land of origin allowed so long the treaty lasts. That happened less than a millenia before the events of the game.

The unknown territory is, as the name implies, a mostly unexplored continent by the time of the defeat of TOWW by the Lamb. It's only known to the inhabitants of the continent of technology at the time, remained untouched by them due to the change in priorities of their leading Bishop to managing and developing the existing claims instead of expanding into new ones.

Besides the three major continents, archipelagos and islands are spread all over the oceans of the planet, as well as the ice caps that may or may not hide more continents. This information is currently unknown, however, as there were no real efforts or reasons to explore such hostile environments in depth.

The crowns:

The crowns are, for the most part, remnants of the ancient deities that existed before the old gods that had been transformed into powerful, sentient artifacts by the late god of artifacts, later turned into the eldritch crown, or Chemach, though not all of them. Some spawned straight as crowns instead of gods as new concepts gave space to new domains, some where created completely artificially by the Chemach after receiving her crown as her insanity took over her mind, and some have even more obscure and eldritch origins. All crowns have their own will, though those derived from the ancient gods retain stronger will and some of their personality.

Each crown represents no less than one domain, but most have at least two. Those with a single domain embodies them completely and do not share it with any other crowns, while those with two or more take on aspects of domains, often sharing them. As an example, here is a list of known crowns with the knowledge domain and their sub domains:

Purple crown: knowledge (wisdom) and war (strategy)

Eldritch crown: madness (obsession), knowledge (forbidden knowledge) and creation (relics)

Gray crown (AU): technology (invention) and knowledge (information)

Crowns tend to influence their bearers behavior. Continuing with the knowledge trio, they all share the same need of accruing knowledge to a degree, but each act differently about it, besides the other domains' influences.

The purple crown is the most passive, as it doesn't make its bearer go out of their way to acquire more, but will require them to preserve any new knowledge found and never willingly destroy any, regardless of how dangerous to the faith of its cult. Hiding knowledge is acceptable, however, so long as it is preserved one way or another. Shamura had several hidden libraries for this very purpose. It also pushes the bearer to solve issues in fights, be it a simple battle of wits over negotiating a treaty to an all out war against an offending party.

The gray crown instills a need to hoard any and all knowledge the bearer comes across, even making it uncomfortable to go for too long without looking for anything new to learn. It holds a huge repository of information already acquired between its two known bearers and it is rumored that if it doesn't have knowledge about something, either it doesn't exist yet, is impossible to exist, or is dangerously eldritch, even to gods. Besides that, it also pushes the bearer to always come up with new solutions for new problems, or to optimize old ones, through new inventions. They way the bearer goes about such inventions is highly dependant on their values and morals, however.

The eldritch crown is the most active, whispering dark and forbidden knowledge into the mind of its bearer, while also demanding that new relics are made whenever possible. The madness aspect doesn't add much, instead intensifying the depths to which the bearer dives into the depravity of such dark secrets.

Some crowns also mess with the bearer in other ways, though not directly changing their behaviors further. Continuing with the last example, the three knowledge crowns also share the tendency to root themselves into the bearer's brain, though only the eldritch crown does it regardless, while the other two only do so if the bearer's mind start to fail one way or another.

An example of a single domain crown would be the ocre crown of time. There's no other crown that has time among their domains, nor can they effect time directly.

All crowns confer at least one ability per domain to their rightful bearers (example: the red crown being death and judgement, it confers the ability of touch of decay and judgement to its bearer, the later being the ability to decide one's fate in the afterlife), general divine abilities (ability to perceive the divine, like the Mystic Seller), as well as even more general ones to any bearers (mind reading, divine curses, conditional immortality, etc), gods or vessels. These abilities remain even if the bearer loses its connection to the crown somehow, though in a weakened form, and are known as Resquices of Divinity or Resquices of Godhood.

Crowns also change their bearers physically to their preferences (like Heket's and Narinder's extra eyes, Shamura's, Kallamar's and Leshy's extra limbs or Kallamar's and Heket's mouths).

Crowns can starve and "die" by lack of devotion, though they can survive on fervor or sin for a little bit as an alternative, but they aren't as effective devotion and are just as limited, if not more so, specially without a bearer. They can be brought back if handled by the god of artifacts or the bearer of the eldritch crown, as all crowns aren't truly alive, more like sentient machines that require fuel to get going, but can't self start. Selective few crowns require different or no sustenance, the eldritch crown being one of them, self sustaining itself through its dark knowledge, given that there are no evidence that the "followers" Chemach created can generate devotion.

They can shapeshift into tools and weapons to better help their bearers, though not all bearers rely on their crown for such things.

Crown bearers:

Crowns can't do much of anything on their own, so they need bearers. A crown bearer is someone connected to one of the crowns, receiving their powers and influence upon their being. There are 6 types of bearers: false vessels, crown vessels, infant gods, ascending gods, bishops and fully realized gods.

A false vessel is someone who took another bearer's crown without the proper procedure of transfer to a vessel. They receive limited power from the crown for the duration, but without a real connection, they don't retain any Resquice of Godhood. They don't remain long as a bearer as the rightful one retrieves the crown as soon as they are able, specially when the crown has been stolen, adding a side of smiting to the poor sod dumb enough to commit such a crime.

A crown vessel is the lesser of the true bearers. Not really divine, they are instead mortals selected by a more developed bearer to be their spokesperson, leading their main cult in their stead. The connection to the crown is minimal, with only the most general powers granted. Most vessels find that they no longer need to sleep or rest, as well as some minor physical changes to better reflect their patron (like fangs on herbivores serving carnivore patrons, for example), though that's not the case for all of them.

An infant god is someone that just came across and chose to wear a crown without a bearer, regardless of how that bearer lost their connection to the crown (crown vessels taking on their former patrons being the most immediate situation, a crown of a god killed by another being the most common). While it is theoretically possible to relinquish a crown's connection in favor of another mortal, there's no historical evidence of that ever happening at the time TOWW has been defeated. Infant gods immediately start being transformed by the crown in preparation to the ascencion process, receiving the preferred characteristics of the crown in question during the first few months, as well as more subtle and internal changes for the first 5 years of Godhood. They no longer have to eat or rest at this point, though many still indulge in these base needs as it helps enduring the process.

Ascending gods are the bearers that retained the connection to the crown for long enough for their bodies to be ready for the ascencion process. During the next 10 or so years, they start to develop minor shape-shifting powers as their bishop form starts to manifest. During that period, they start to grow in size, becoming larger than the vast majority of followers, their powers grow and start finding themselves less and less attached to the surrounding mortals. It's a pivotal part of the development, where most would be deities lose themselves to their newfound godhood, slowly forgetting who they used to be in favor of the god they are becoming. It is not a permanent change in mindset, but one difficult to come back from, specially if the ascending god decides to embrace the transition wholehearted.

Bishops are the ones that finished ascending, and basically all gods at this point refers to themselves as such unless having to refer how far along the process they truly are. They attained their monumental size at this point, and most just prefer to remain in this form. No longer bound by mortal needs, they focus mostly on accruing more territory to gain more devotion, and as such grow in power. For the most part, only the few that choose to recover, or not let go of, their mortal values and morals break from this cycle of expansion in search of more power, though gods that have been crippled, bearers of crowns that self sustain or the rare deity that is not overly self absorbed end up stagnating the expansion of their territory. It's at this stage a crown bearer may start appointing vessels to focus on other goals, as well as creating avatars, both of their bishop or mortal visages, to interact remotely with other things or beings. This is also when, for the next century or so, they go through the last stage of their change by developing, and then controlling, their eldritch form.

Fully realized gods are the ones that finished the whole process of becoming a god. Now in full control of their eldritch form, they are as far from their mortal self as they can get. Though there is no upper bound for a deity's power, dependant mostly on how much devotion one can gather, their growth as a god has finished. In all other aspects, they are no different than bishops.

Crown cults:

Bishop cults, crown cults, divine cults or vessel cults refer all to the same thing. They differ from "regular" cults because they are lead by, and centered around, a crown bearer. They are the main cult of any one bearer, where they spend the most time and effort developing and caring for, like a farm.

Much like a farm exist for sustenance, the main function of the cult is to sustain a crown by accruing and harvesting devotion and other divine resources, allowing it to grow in power.

Most bearers end up with other more autonomous cults spread out over their territory providing extra devotion under self plocaimed profets, but at the heart of it all there will always be one single crown cult.

Pantheons:

Pantheons are groups of bearers working together, cooperating to their shared goals by protecting or providing for each other. Most pantheons in the past had at least one leading deity, one provider deity and one fighting deity, those three pillars creating the basis upon which other bearers could contribute to, though sometimes the roles overlapped.

Taking the old faith as an example: Shamura is the leading deity, Narinder the fighting one and Heket the providing one, though they of knowledge is just as capable as a fighting deity.

Some pantheons last a long time, but most ended up imploding as the natural greed of the crowns and the self absorbed tendencies of the bearers started to put the them at odds with the rest of the group.

Multiverse:

Yes, the AU has a multiverse packed in. Not only it shares and overlaps with the cult of the lamb lore (and as such is parallel to the other AUs by default), it also has a local cluster of realities that are more intertwined, where slightly different events lead to wildly different results, and those results end up bleeding to the main AU. That's how the goat ended up in Lamb's time-line or how Webber's skull came to be in the cotl verse, for example.

This is relevant for future events in the AU, though not too much for now.

[finisnihil]

hi mootie just wanted to know ur thoughts on a jingluo tgcf au bc now i know we both have thought of it 🤑 i’d honestly love to hear ur thoughts and ideas on it bc they r SO HUALIAN CODED ITS CRAZY!!!!!!!!

HIII BELOVED MOOTIE I WILL HAPPILY GIVE THOUGHTS OKAY SO

First of all I LOVEE your casting of Dan Heng as Shi Qingxuan and Sushang as Lang Qianqiu???? Like not only does it call back to the OG trio after boarding the Luofu but that also fit so well??? Dan Heng may not have the same personality but his two forms fit the mechanics of Shi Qingxuan's two forms and he fulfills the roles of Shi Qingxuan's character in the Blackwater arc (Blade as Blackwater would fit bc Jing Yuan and him collaborate to take down Phantylia its so good omg). Sushang on the other hand is like Lang Qianqiu: young, capable but impulsive, and constantly battling pressure from those in her ear (her mom in this case). I can so see a murky falling out between them as Sushang had such a favorable opinion of Luocha when he first boarded (even wanting to take him to tea and storytelling) but we never saw her reaction to him being arrested yk? I can totally see the tragic master/student dynamic there. You're so genius for that I want to study your brain (a high compliment I assure you)

Anyways ONWARDS your clocking of Xie Lian and Luocha is SO on point especially with the fall of Xianle. Luocha's backstory is unknown rn but it's been basically confirmed that it's related to the Purity Palace relic set. If you haven't read it, it's like beat for beat Xianle's fall, with the people gaining the attention of an Aeon (implied to be Yaoshi) and suffering insanity (Mara) for it, being driven insane until a figure known as The Maiden and her "devil" knight lock all those afflicted in the church and burnit all down. If Otto's (Luocha's HI3 counterpart) lore can be referenced in this, he would've been from a pretty influential family matching Xie Lian's royal status.

Getting into this, idk if they'd be Jun Wu but Yaoshi VERY MUCH fits White Clothed Calamity. If Luocha is an Emanator his relationship with Yaoshi would match Xie Lian and Jun Wu so well???? Like Yaoshi ascended out of the desire to see death and suffering eradicated only to accidentally perpetuate it. That would match so well with scenes like where Xie Lian is stabbed repeatedly in the temple, albeit with a different motive like "to eradicate suffering/death those who can must take it on for others (futher Jesus parallels)" or something like that. In end the suffering of the people is ended but perpetuated onto Luocha as a consequence yk?

Also just little details too. Like Luocha likes wine (he gifted us some when he departed the Express) so the scene of Xie Lian drinking in the graveyard would fit him so well. Destroying his mind and his power source that makes him "valuable" just to escape his exteme emotions for a little while and falling into a grave, just lying there, unable to die. Ruoye could be the divine body of Tazzyronth, an entity that ascended from extreme loneliness that bonds with another lonely being and wanting to protect him.

Anyways ONTO JING YUAN AS HUA CHENG BECAUSE HELLO??? WHO'S COOKING, I NEED THE RECIPE!!!

Firstly, Jing Yuan being somebody who uses masks/personas to navigate situations/problems and Hua Cheng literally changing his appearance to suit his needs. The vulnerability of shedding that mask even under fear of rejection (which translates so well to Jingluo).

But especially that Jing Yuan's luck is like tit for tat with Hua Cheng??? Always ending up in bad situations but getting out unscathed. Hua Cheng is born under the Star of Solitude, having good luck but doomed to bring calamity unto those around him. Jing Yuan is the same with the HCQ being a good example, he himself being relatively uninvolved and not being too hurt in the chaos but being left alone because everyone around him was caught up in it. Also him being prepared to die fighting to Phantylia like Hua Cheng was prepared to die during the parade but both being caught and consequently, forced to continue living even though it's harder???? AMAZING I NEED SECONDS!!!!

OH AND the umbrella symbol being present in both??? They're like mirrors fr.

Anyways this is pretty long so i'll stop there BUT YEAH JINGLUO TGCF AU GO BRRRRRR