#that being said I think it’s the Achilles thing because 1)

[ennn]

Re: “Rio's goal is to kill Agatha so she can be with her forever”

My brother in Christ, if Rio's ultimate goal this series was to kill Agatha we wouldn't have gotten past the first episode.

Okay okay, I get how it can be confusing because Rio literally says she wants to see Agatha dead in episode one and tells Agatha she'll let the Salem Seven (who do want Agatha dead) know where she is.

But it is noteworthy that Rio tells Agatha what she is going to do and when the Salem Seven are expected to arrive. Rio is usually surprisingly fair in how she deals with Agatha.

Rio has always met Agatha at her power level

In episode one, even assuming Agatha was protected by Wanda's spell and Rio couldn't harm her there, once it was broken Rio went "full analog" – to quote Hahn – with her knife, the only magic she used being the wind blasts.

Guys, that's not a serious murder attempt, that's foreplay to them. Violent, bloody, sexy foreplay.

Also Rio has healing powers. That's a thing they have very clearly shown.

To be clear, my read is that Rio can't actually kill anyone before their time ("You can't kill me, it's not allowed") just hurt them really really badly until they maybe choose to die ("I can make you wish you were dead"). Which you could argue equals killing I suppose, just slower.

But this is Agatha Harkness: all she really needs to survive is a bit of time to scheme and manipulate and do her usual girlbossing, gatekeeping, and gaslighting – and I think Rio also knows this. Agatha keeps surprising her, for better and worse.

Yes, Rio gets BIG MAD in episode 8 because Agatha says possibly The Worst Thing to her but the first part of their confrontation is technically physical torture, not murder attempts.

I know it sounds like I'm splitting hairs here but my point is that having Agatha dead isn't Rio's ultimate #1 goal. It's not so clean and easy.

There's something to be said about how the wounds Rio inflicts speak to how Rio sees herself hurt by Agatha emotionally in the relationship i.e. death by a thousand cuts, the severing of her Achilles tendon.

There’s probably something also be said about the relationship a being like Rio has with physical pain. Trees feel pain. Everything living does. Rio mocks Agatha for dulling herself to it using dark magic.

But I digress.

Anyway, note: it's only after Agatha gets magic back that Rio starts throwing magic blasts – and even then she seems to be holding back.

These two are possibly the worst two witches to fight each other directly like this because Agatha can't absorb Rio's magic or she'll die. She has to actively block or avoid all hits. And I bet this isn't something Agatha is used to dealing with considering she had no issues taking Wanda's magic.

And Rio is aware of this because she’s just lobbing quick little green blasts Agatha's way. It's not a torrent of magic like what Agatha is gleefully unleashing.

It's also the Watsonian (in-universe) explanation as to why this fight is so short. Because you literally can't straight up fight Death. Rio is a hard counter to Agatha's special siphoning ability just like how Agatha was a hard counter to Wanda's magic (insert your scissors-paper-stone visual of choice).

Rio doesn't want Agatha dead, she wants Agatha to want her

It's clear that Rio is grieving when Agatha dies. This isn't the outcome she wants. They're also both crying during the kiss it's great.

Rio wants what Agatha specifically tries to deny in the deal Agatha proposes: she wants to keep pursuing Agatha, to keep seeing her, provoking her, to be shocked and surprised by her. To keep loving her but also, to keep hurting her.

Because Agatha also hurts her right back. And Agatha knows she has Rio constantly on the emotional backfoot, that Rio – despite centuries of hatred thrown her way – still humours her more often than not and what levers to push.

I don't think this can happen with Agatha dead and gone.

To be fair, we don't know what the rules are in this world's afterlife. The only insight we get into Rio's job is her scene with Alice and that still leaves a lot of things unanswered: Does Rio just escort souls to a destination or does she have more control beyond that, like a domain? Can souls refuse to go with Rio? How do ghosts happen?

I had previously assumed Rio needed to allow it but Schaeffer says that her vision in that moment has Agatha's using an evolved form of the power to take Rio's magic by touch.

And with that, it's telling that it's Agatha who ultimately ensures that she dies (with the "calculated risk" of becoming a ghost), siphoning Rio's death magic energy.

Agatha embraces death, embraces Rio, but she also doesn't – Rio's clever witch got away again.

[valewritessss]

Say what you want about thinking Percy only remembered Annabeth because Hera left her in his memory but for the love of everything just let people have their romantic little headcanon

[starry-bi-sky]

I'm slowly becoming obsessed with the childhood friends au and it's mostly bc of something you said in the tags of an ask lol. you mentioned that they weren't soulmates they were something better. that they were two balls of yarn they batted around until they were intertwined, that they chose and continue to choose to be as close as two souls can be.

it's so poetic, the idea that fate has nothing to do with it. they looked at each other and said this is it, that's the one. It makes me think of so many different quotes but here's just a few. Hozier "lay me gently in the cold dark earth, no grave can hold my body I'll crawl home to her (him)" or like patroclus saying that if Achilles were to die that "all things soft and beautiful would be buried with him" and poor Danny grieving so long and so hard because "what is grief if not love perserving?" when you're in love with someone, that person is the lighthouse of your universe and to lose them is to be thrown to a tempestuous sea.

and thinking of their reunion makes me feel a little crazy too cause I see what you've been plotting and it just makes me think of how their relationship is going to be at first. like here's a person that you love so deeply and it's been so long since you've seen them and you've both changed since. will they click back together seemingly effortlessly? attached at the hip for a bit because they're both/or one is scared of being separated again? or will there be some friction for a while while they try to realign their pieces to fit together, to figure out what's different and what's practically the same? "you are a language I am no longer fluent in but still remember how to read"

sorry for rambling, I love them your honor.

🫵 DONT YOU DARE APOLOGIZE FOR RAMBLING I LOVE GETTING RAMBLING ASKS. AND SAME.

There was this one sound on tiktok that I heard that reminded me of them, and I just went and found it, and it goes: "I would recognize you in another lifetime entirely in different bodies, different times, and i would love you in all of this. Until the very last star in the sky burnt out into oblivion." and the first time i heard it i literally thought "this is CFAU Danny and Jason"

AND YEAH THEY JUST. I love devoted characters, i love when characters are so deeply devoted and loyal to each other its like you can't imagine them being anywhere else but at each other's side. That wasn't wholly my intent when I first came up with CFAU last fall, but god I am not complaining about how it turned out. My favorite part of the chapter 1 rewrite is making sure Danny's devotion to Jason was reciprocal.

god those quotes. they're so accurate too. yeah. i thought about this au once in the context of a soulmate au, and just couldn't get behind it. It made their whole dynamic felt cheapened, like of course they're soulmates; it was destined. When no, it wasn't. They made it that way.

(If the two of them were somehow transported to a universe with soulmate marks, they would not have matching symbols. That's okay, Danny and Jason don't need them to be. They'd pick up a tattoo gun or a pen and make their own. They wouldn't call it a soulmate mark, just a them mark.)

("Why should I share my soul with some schmuck I don't know? I want to share my soul with you.")

yeah. their reunion is. ! about as exactly as intense as it needs to be :]. They've both changed so much, and they're both scared of being separated again. Jason purposely stayed away from Amity because he knew he couldn't keep away if he didn't. Being back together again is like having a piece of them returned.

SPEAKING OF QUOTES. Here's one:

I don't believe in the death that you're bringing The reason I'm living is you Wherever you go That's where I'll be Even if death tags along, I don't mind It's still you and me I'll never leave you alone

"Death's At My Door" - The Outsiders Musical

[shadows-flames-and-ink]

Before I start, I just want to say that I have nothing againts the PJO books. They've been my comfort series since I was 10 years old.

That being said, I've always had a deep interest in dark!Percy and dark!Percabeth. I can think of a few things in particular that could've gone down differently in awesome ways;

1. What if Percy found blood/poison control in the first series? We could've had him, not only invulnerable, but tearing monsters and titans apart from the inside out. Like, imagine if he was deuling Luke/Kronos, then he sees Annabeth get hurt, so he just reaches his hand out, and we read about watching pure fear enter his eyes, as ichor slowly drips from his weak spot, then after the "supernova" light stuff of the curse, his entire body falls apart. The Olympians find Kronos absolutely mutilated, and the prophesy becomes whether or not Percy will take his chance to burn Olympus himself and kill the gods, ending the abusive cycle without risking the people he cares about. Plus, then Annabeth would get to build her real dream city, without the guidelines of the obnoxious gods. You can't look me in the eye and tell me Annabeth, with all her hubris, wouldn't consider the chance of limitless possibiliteis with godly materials to be worth taking. She would totally be down for burning the gods with him.

2. What if Annabeth was taken to CJ instead of Percy? The entire fandom acknowledges Percy would go beyond dark if that happened, but immagine the specifics! Jason, Piper, and Leo arrive at camp, hearing legends of the Titanslayer, the boy who was once the kindest of them all. Clovis shows them memories of Percy being a big brother for the younger campers, being the best friend to everyone, adorably romantic and sweet with Annabeth... and then they meet him. Without Annabeth, his tie to the mortal world after the Achilles Curse, he feels nothing, numb to the world. He spends his days in the training arena, his nights hunting monsters in the woods. He can't be killed or fought, so what does that make him? They would call him a god, but even gods bleed. He hears about Jason, Piper, and Leo going on a quest and comes along without question or invitation, slaughtering everything between him and what he hopes is his reunion with the love of his life, including the giants, which brings me to...

3. What if Percy weaponized ichor? We know he can manipulate godly fluids, but what about really using it? He's fought countless gods and titans, so what if he kept some ichor, even just enough to make a knife. He can tear down giants by himself; a demigod using a god as a weapon works, we know because of when he bashed Terminus againts Polybotes face.

PLEASE comment or reblog your own ideas, I would love to see what everyone else thinks.

[howlingday]

So who would rank as the best fighters in Rwby that don't have magic? So no Maidens,Salem,Brother Gods, the Tree or Opzin. Anyone else including the Curious Cat is a choice. (I'm saying the cat counts for this list because even though it's magic we at least have a clear understanding of how his powers work.)

The best fighters? Hoof... That's a tall order, especially since I'd have to look over all the candidates I can remember. But I'll narrow it down to TEN characters, in order to appease the [tumblr] gif limit.

General James Ironwood: Simply put, you don't become the headmaster of a huntsman academy by being weak or stupid, because this commanding officer is definitely neither... relatively speaking. Granted, one could argue against his battle tactics as a military general, but I think when compared to other huntsmen, there's not a lot of characters you can say that require an ambush by almost a dozen people to take down! So yeah, General Ironwood is definitely an intimidating character to start off with.

Ruby Rose: Yeah, I know, I know. Ruby's the main character, so of course she's gonna be on this list! But to be fair (to be fair), she's EARNED her place as a main character. The series starts off with her easily thrashing goons, followed by her heading off to Beacon Academy two years early for her skill against such an impressive foe. And she's only grown ever since. Given time, I can totally see Ruby being the hero who saves Remnant and looks good while doing it.

Neopolitan: Barring magic is one thing, but some characters never needed magic to be overpowered. One such character started off as a generic sidekick villain who bailed Torchwick out. Then she comes back later that same Volume to style and beat down on RWBY's heaviest hitter. Heck, Neo would've ended Yang if it wasn't for Raven showing up! And while Neo doesn't have magic, she does have an overpowered semblance that makes her a nuisance at first and a crisis by the end! Tell me, dear reader; what happens when you put a girl whose semblance called, "Overactive Imagination" inside of a FAIRY TALE?! I'll tell you what you get- YOU GET A NIGHTMARE.

Pyrrha Nikos: Ooh, boy, now this is where things get sad. Pyrrha was the best fighter in Volume 1-3 solely for the fact that she was the one fighter EVERYONE knew about. Pyrrha was getting wins BEFORE the series started and she started racking up wins afterwards against Grimm and other students, too. Sadly, this poor, young Achilles was not truly invincible, for her tender heart was what got her killed... And also an arrow to said tender heart.

Cinder Fall: And speaking of arrows to tender hearts, I should give credit where credit is due, and it's overdue for Cinder Fall. First up, let's look at Cinder WITHOUT her magic. Her semblance, Caress, increases the temperature of things she touches, burning and even melting them. Heck, she was even throwing fireballs BEFORE the Maiden powers were hers! Not to mention she was throwing down with Professor Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon and definitely the oldest man on the planet! She managed to outwit and outpace a man with centuries of experience. She then went on to kill the best fighter of the roster at Beacon Academy and steal her powers, only becoming wounded by Ruby's silver eyes. And this was all BEFORE she became the Fall Maiden.

Tyrian Callows: I want to admit something. I have a certain bias both towards and against Tyrian. Towards him, he's one of my favorite villains simply for the sheer lengths he'll go to in order to please his goddess, regardless of who he has to kill and how many. Against him, while I will admit he has some of the best fights in the series, his best fight is also the worst in the entire series. Story-wise, that is, because for some reason the other two combatants got way stupider than they should have.

Qrow Branwen: And speaking of fighters getting dumber than they should, here comes one now! Qrow was our introduction to what a REAL huntsman was like. And he did not disappoint! ...At least, when he first showed up. When Team RWBY were struggling against Tyrian, Qrow came in and fought him to a standstill. If Ruby didn't put herself in danger trying to help, Qrow could have won the battle and even been a big help later. Then again, for as skilled as Qrow may be, he's also got some personal issues that make him more of a hinderance than a boon.

Blake Belladonna: Thinking on it, Blake might be the best fighter of Team RWBY, besides Ruby. She has probably the most versatile weapon of the group, neither limited by range nor function, and watching her fight is always entertaining because, well, she's an agile-build fighter who uses airborne attacks to both maintain distance and to build momentum for closing in with killing blows. While Weiss and Yang also have their uses as support and tank builds, Blake feels like the only other fighter who actually has experience fighting.

Jaune Arc: Big surprise, we have the big man himself, Jaune Arc on my list. To the surprise of no one. No, but seriously, Jaune is someone to be praised for his combat skill, especially since his story is about how he literally showed up with 0 skill. I've seen people meme him as "Dark Souls style" and I can't argue. Where everyone else is over the top with their combat, Jaune manages to stay relatively grounded by comparison. No jumping or magic; just pure human strength, and what strength he has! Though, I will say that his usual style is more akin to tank/wall tactics. He's strong enough to take hits from heavy hitters, protecting his allies from heavy, crippling blows, and his semblance keeps himself and others in the fight.

Now, who else do we talk about... Oh, right! Since you brought them up...

The Curious Cat: For this, let's explain how their power works. Simply put, the Curious Cat's power mostly resides in their ability to possess creatures in a weakened state. Ruby was the intended target of this possession, having been forced by the Cat to avoid ascension while becoming physically and emotionally weaker over time. In the end, however, Ruby did ascend, and the Cat was forced to change their plans to possess Neo, who had also recently become emotionally vulnerable. Tactically speaking, the Cat is dangerous simply for their ability to take over and use the powers of another which, as stated previously, is overpowered to MAXIMUM. Once Neo had outlived her use, the Cat then made themselves more powerful by changing their body into something more combative. Combative enough to push Team WBY and Jaune to their limits. It wasn't until Ruby, who found new purpose and strength within herself that she was able to overcome the "Furious Cat" with the aid of her team.

So... yeah.

[corvidae-corvus]

Captain Marvel/Billy Batson Headcanon #1, #2, and #3:

I have some Headcanons that are stuck in my head.

So I've been thinking about myths and how Superheroes are the modern myths. Like Greek Mythology. It's just that Superheroes are the new age "Gods" that people worship.

These are stories about heroic deeds and unparalleled evil. So then I start thinking about Captain Marvel and he has a lot of Gods' powers and he's their champion. And it got me thinking about a solo cap story about a modern kid or a kid from the future that becomes the champion just in a universe where our Superheroes (from DC) aren't real people and instead comic book characters, really old Comic book heroes that have been turned into myths. Maybe in this universe Superhero comics stopped being created. And so Billy Batson in this world is chosen to be the champion and the gods he gets aren't soloman, Hercules, Achilles, Zeus, Atlas, and Mercury but instead, they're DC comic book heroes.

Billy with the Strength of Superman, (some DC heroes that starts with H idk) etc etc. it's just gotta make the word Shazam. Or something. And black Adam is the big bad obv, and more and more villains are introduced or something. And we can see Billy interact with these "new gods" cause Superman is a modern day mythos and I just think it'd be cool that Superman is one of the superheroes that he has access to his power. Like a little reference to the fact that Superman inspired Capt Marvel and stuff.

Second "headcanon" I have is that Captain Marvel isn't as strong or stronger than Superman. Wait hear me out please 😭

Ik that this is basically canon in some comics but I'm more so talking about fanfic and fanon Billy. I love the idea of Billy being stronger than Supes but if we think about it a little more. I think both can work. See the gods that are Billy's patrons are based on rl myths we know. I've seen people on Twitter talk about how a lot of modern superheroes are stronger than Greek and Roman mythologies specifically. And basically how Superheros are the modern myths. The strongest thing that's ever lifted is like a mountain (someone said something about Atlas holding the heavens and how that's different or the fact that Superman held it too blh blah blah ignore Atlas) and that's because people back then don't have our modern understanding of space and FUCKING MATH. Basically people kept making stronger and stronger characters.

I also thought of this because of the most recent Captain Marvel comic the 2023 one. How Billy was arguing with the gods and how they were fighting for control of the Captain's body. How they were so desperate to make themselves known to the people of earth to show themselves off basically. To have people worship them again like they used to. I haven't finished the comic I stopped after black Adam was introduced (I need to read it again) anyways that is what I like. The gods arguing and being egotistical. The gods are mad because humanity doesn't worship them anymore and they want Billy to advertise that his patrons are the gods. The patrons are not as strong as Supes. They are ancient beings that cannot keep up with the modern era. But they're still powerful. So after Billy and his patrons have an agreement or whatever Billy agrees to talk about his patrons more often or whatever. This makes more people become more aware of the God's existence and causes a world wide talk about religion (Billy seeing the shit storm he caused: yikes... *Flies away*) and well they get more powerful. Billy becomes more powerful. So Billy gradually becomes more powerful his biggest strength is his magic. Like he's not as physically as powerful as Superman or Wonder woman but he's waayyyy more powerful than people think. Like he curb stomps like 70%-90% of the DC universe. Maybe more maybe less idk much about DC. But add magic into the mix? Yea he's stronger than like 90% of the verse. (Cause he's the champion of magic duh) And actually having Captain Marvel rely more on magic when he's subduing a mind controlled Superman would be like super epic. And then after he's reached his max strength and speed and etc. (Mercury is NOT faster than the flash in this AU yes he does not like the flash family he's jealous) We introduce GOD OF GODS CAPTAIN MARVEL!!! (can you tell I hated that they went NOWHERE WITH THAT THEY JUST STOPPED CONTINUING GOD OF GODS CAPTAIN MARVEL I'M SOOOO PISSED OFF) The old gods fucked off or something idk and REMEMBER BILLY IS THE CHAMPION OF MAGIC WITH THE POWER OF THE GODS!!! Of course he's the champion of every god that has ever existed too!!!! Human gods and alien gods. gods that have existed before and will exist in the future. Most of the more powerful gods dgaf about Billy but some care and some of them are powerful ASF. And Billy gets new patrons. Yes they are the gods from Captain Marvel GOD OF GODS I WANTED MORE OF THEM FUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!! And so now Billy is more powerful or as powerful as Supes and Diana.

Have Billy grow stronger and stronger gradually. I want big leaps in power too.

This leads into my other headcanon is inspired by Kingdom Come Captain Marvel/Billy Batson. That Billy is a wild card. Billy exists outside of fate. In this Headcanon fate says that a champion will be born before Black Adam's return. Fate chooses Billy, but in doing so is leaving the fate of the world in Billy's hands. Billy can control his own destiny and fate. And he can interfere with other people's fates. That's what makes him so dangerous because the moment Billy is born in the world, the universe starts to change. It starts to become crazier and more magical. It no longer follows a path. Now with every major decision that Billy makes it causes so much change. It is always important. Always makes a wave throughout the universe. The threats start to get crazier and there's a danger that's bigger than the universe expects. Something Magical.

Billy is the catalyst for this change. And if you were to write the DC world like a complete story then I'd make it so the end of the DC era ends with a Captain Marvel Antagonist. He would be the beginning and end of DC. At least in my AU. Or how I'd write Captain Marvel.

Like you're gonna give a character the title Champion of Magic, God of Gods and not have him become basically the most powerful being in existence!? BRO C'MON.

Anyways that's my headcanons and AU's and Opinions on which direction people should go with Captain Marvel/Billy Batson's character.

[embarrassinglastwords]

the results are in!

with 314 votes these were the top 10 stsg moments people can’t believe are canon (top 10 based off of the ones i listed lmao) this will be long but i did say i was gonna make a post of the results so -

10: in last place with only 1.9% - their names complimenting each other + Geto’s robes being called “gojo-gesa robes”

i included these together cause they are similar imo. both being based around the other.

9: “the only one i have”

the iconic quote with 3.2% that is so misquoted cause of that translation that i’m pretty sure people ignore that that’s actually what he says rather than “my one and only”💀 (myself included but for the sake of the poll i did the accurate translation)

8: the light novel in general

maybe i’m biased cause of my user but only getting 3.8% of votes surprised me lmao.

i mean i just think about “Even if everything was different now, there was still one thing- from that very moment it all started- that had never changed” as well as “Geto Suguru It was a name that the Jujutsu tech organization feared…but to Gojo Satoru, he was—“ all the time

i posted more quotes from it here

7: with 7.3% (nanami surprise appearance) we have their official songs stated by Gege.

Shame On Me being Gojo’s

and Come Back Home being Geto’s.

6: 8.9% of votes for this insane moment from the newer chapters after Gojo’s resurrection lmao

him and Kenny are fighting and Gojo offers to fight on Dec. 24th (Geto’s death anniversary) with Kenny replying “How romantic”

this legit made me scream when the chapter came out… anyways

5: i almost didn’t include this moment because i was sure it was gonna win because of how often it’s brought up but i’m glad to see i was wrong💀

but still in the top 5 with 9.6% is Gojo recognizing Geto by smell in JJK0… i have nothing to add to that cause like. what.

4: with 10.5% we have Gojo’s last words to Geto being “3 words” as stated by Gojo’s english va! (which i also mentioned in the post linked above)

(that being paired with the light quotes above and “such embarrassing words” and it being words they had “never said to each other before” … we all know what he said…🙄)

3: with 12.4%, the one that made me spiral and realize Gojo is probably done for, Gege himself saying “one cannot exist without the other” about Gojo and Geto…

so either Geto is miraculously gonna come back or they are sharing a death anniversary lmao

2: at 18.8%!

the infamous vol 0 quotes that are 100% parallels because the entire movie is.

Gojo, to Yuta in reference to Rika: “Love is the most twisted curse of them all” (idk why i said 'worst curse' in the poll lmao)

Geto as he dies: “At least curse me a little at the very end.”

bangs my head into a wall… okay and number 1!!

1: at 23.6% is the stsg moment. “My six eyes tell me you’re Suguru Geto but my soul knows otherwise! Hurry up and answer, who the hell are you?!”

not only was seeing Geto the reason for him getting sealed but he went against his own power, his own technique which makes him the strongest, to listen to his soul. and to quote Song of Achilles (which i made a joke the other day about stsg being modern day achilles and patroclus) “He is half of my soul, as the poets say.”

okay this was the first poll i’ve done like this besides some random funny ones on my other blog and i can’t believe it got 300+ votes. maybe i’ll do more in the future if i can think of some topics.

[yanderefarm]

Dude the pathetic Emil stuff that’s being posted is so good he’s moving up in my favorites. Idk why torturing the other boys makes me sad but when it’s Emil or Achilles I’m all for it‼️‼️

-🪐 anon

1. pretty boys go brrrrrr

2. i think its because there's something to break with both of them. everyone else just loves you!! (i would include ajax with achilles and emil too here bc his thing that makes him fun to break is his homophobia).

but achilles is stoic and calm and always acts cool and collected even when he loves you so much. breaking him means breaking down that stoicism and making him show his emotions

emil is the king and he has the persona of a tyrant ruler even if when it comes to you he'll let you do whatever you want. if you're breaking him you're making him say i love you or bow down to you. not to mention it's more justified because his actions.

meanwhile everyone else just loves you so much and wants to make you happy and for you to love them back. it feels a lot meaner to kick this pathetic little thing that only knows to love you.

that said im not against either way i like being mean to fictional guys who live in my head. i just think it makes sense why you prefer those two to bully

[lumityfication]

ranking my favorite percabeth scenes (in pjo only not hoo) because i need to get this off my chest

(disclaimers that this is def pretty percy centric but that’s bc pjo is from his pov, i haven’t reread hoo recently enough!! and ik the first scene im mentioning is also very popular but i feel like we can always be talking about it more. this is my ramble i can do what i want)

1. for me my favorite scene in any rick riordan book will be when annabeth takes the knife for percy in TLO and then when they’re on the rooftop afterwards. she’s literally his achilles heel. he didn’t tell her where his weak spot is but she took the knife anyway. Get back no one touches her. him letting her feel the spot on his back. You’re cute when you’re worried your eyebrows get all scrunched up. sorry i’m crazy

2. when they got paired up for war games in BOTL and percy said “nice” and annabeth just said “your armor’s crooked” and fixed his straps. I think about it so often

3. annabeth sitting with percy at the poseidon table in BOTL. She was sitting next to me. i mean Right next to me. him saying he liked the fact that she broke the rules to sit w him. the other campers looking….. they’re besties your honor

4. when they’re doing the cabin inspections in TLO and annabeth is cleaning up her stuff in the athena cabin and she’s like This whole thing with beckendorf and silena makes you think about what’s important. about losing people that are important and percy short circuiting and thinking abt how he could only focus on the earrings she was wearing. i hold them in my hands

5. percy’s panic when he thought annabeth was going to go with the hunters of artemis. he literally just got her back he was so scared that he’d lose her for real this time … the way he stutters makes me spin in a circle really fast like i just love the ttc angst pushing them into realizing what they truly mean to each other

6. underrated SOM moment is after scylla and charybdis when it’s just percy and annabeth in a little lifeboat before arriving at circe’s island, and when percy snaps at annabeth and she apologizes hes like i can’t resent her we’ve been through so much together there’s no point in holding a grudge…. my babies!!! (SOM percabeth is just too underrated like to me it’s when they really start to understand each other, what makes them tick, what the other has gone through, it puts them on the same page which sets up their dynamic in the rest of the series)

7. when annabeth is passed out in SOM and they have the fleece on her and percy whispers “you’re a genius” to her because he promised to tell her that if they made it out alive 😭😭

8. percabeth in the attic in TLO getting the great prophecy and reminiscing and then locking eyes and percy remembering another time they were alone together when annabeth kissed him in mt st helens. crazy scene it’s CRAZY

9. annabeth’s reaction when percy shows up back at camp after being at calypsos island. he was the bravest person i’d ever known… he’s…. HES RIGHT THERE!! is just SO ICONIC and her hugging him so fiercely :(((( he literally crashes his own funeral and annabeth being mad at him but also clearly incredibly relieved makes my heart ache even if it’s silly. such a tragedy that we don’t get annabeths pov in pjo because i would have loved to know how she was feeling in the like two weeks where she thought percy was gone

and then there’s obvious ones like the underwater kiss, “a kiss for good luck it’s kind of a tradition right”, mt st helens, aphrodite looking like annabeth, giving up immortality, and pretty much everything percabeth in TLT i feel like is discussed so much too bc of the show lmao

anyways girls when they reread pjo and notice even more little percabeth moments every time they read it 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫🤯🤯🤯😭😭😭😭😭😭

[captainmera]

What are the fairy types??? I love IBWR and I would eat your world building if I could <3

There is three categories of peculiars: Erebus, Beast and Fae.

Fairies belong with FAE types.

Fae has, in the UK, these peculiars: Fairies, Spriggan, Nymph (Theodore would call them a Huldra or skogsrå), and Giants.

FAE: Fairy like by looks but often the most "human/regular" looking out of all peculiars. Usually it's the ears or size that gives them away. Their powers are often just seen as either what peak-human-power would be (like strength, skill, etc)

Peculiars can be from all walks of life. They can have any religion, gender, background and race. It doesn't matter.

QUICK FACTS:

Faries are, in a largely Christian society anyway, associated with the seven sins.

They are also easily spotted by their stark colour coded looks.

The shades vary a bit on the scale, there's no set colour of "Pink" for example, but if you look at them and think "ah that's pink" it's probably pink.

A fairy can get a child of any colour of the parents' eye colour. So if it's a pink fairy father, but a green-eyed regular mother, the baby could be either a pink or green fairy - or a regular!

But it's usually the eye-colour that determines it.

Or, wild card - night fairies just kind of come out of nowhere and it's a 1 out of 500 chance of that happening. They're rare.

FAIRY FLAWS:

Fairies have something called a fairy flaw, this is where the seven sins thing come in.

In folklore, fairies are said to be so small that they can only hold one feeling at the time! (like Tinkerbelle from Peter Pan). This is obviously not true! Not only are they human sized, but they feel just as any other mortal person.

The reason fairy tales say that about fairies is based on their fairy-flaw.

So what is the flaw about?

Well, every fairy has an Achilles heel feeling they just can't seem to temper or control. It's the emotion that consumes them and it is very difficult for them to get out of that feeling.

You could say that about a regular-person too, some regulars just feel a certain thing very intensely. But it makes the general public feel better to point at fairies and say they're not perfect - just look how petty they are!

Also, it is true that all fairies just.. naturally struggle with this one emotion they have. For some fairies, it can take a lifetime to find a way to work with it. But most fairies just try to avoid feeling it at all, which.. as you can imagine.. causes an endless cycle of rinse and repeat - you cannot stop yourself from feeling something. That's not how emotions work. And if you try to repress something, it will come back ten folds.

Which, then, just further feeds into the prejudice being true.

FAIRY PERKS (gift):

Fairies are naturally gifted. It can be anything; writing books, making shoes, mathematics, music, you name it.

You know how, sometimes, you meet someone and they just got IT, with seemingly no effort at all? That's fairies.

They pick something up and off they go. You spend your life honing your craft and in waltz this newbie and does in an hour what you worked your whole life for.

Everyone admires them, except the people in the shared field who feels like they've been cheated.

Fairies are almost always excluded from talent shows, being chosen as representatives, etc, because the unionised opinion is that: Albeit they are brilliant at what they do, and probably the best in the room, it's a gift and it's unfair and nobody really wants to include them.

This also means that if you hire a fairy, the standards go up. Fairies can face work environment bullying or praise, it depends on the individual space. But it's always a gamble, really, if their gift is welcomed or not.

It does give some fairies a sense of "I'm better than all of you anyway!" kind of attitude, sometimes, anyway. But it's easy to see why.

No fairy is the same, of course. Fairies often have discourse about whatever or not their perks and flaws are something to be proud of or not. Which, gets really difficult, for the purple and green fairies sometimes.

The issue here is, also, that Fairies fade if they don't get to do what they love, get to exercise their gifts. And sometimes, most of the time, they

FADING:

Fading is just a fancy word for depression. Because regulars make the rules and they don't think it counts as "real" depression, since it almost always involves their perk/gift.

Fading looks like any depression. Sometimes involving substance abuse.

The things that DOES make it a bit different though is that their colours fade. They bleak and their hair and eyes colour turns white, or at least their colour bleak so much that it turns pastel-almost-white.

A faded fairy is cause for concern as they are most likely going to commit suicide. The only cure is rehabilitation where they get encouraged to pursue their heart's desire and exercise their gift.

Sometimes, the reason they fade isn't because others has made it difficult. Sometimes it's because there's just... No space for their gift. It might be a gift that is just simply inaccessible to them. Whatever because they're in the wrong class of society, because they don't have the money to get a degree that allows them to pursue it, etc.

NIGHT FAIRIES:

These are not categorised as a fae-type, but they are fairies. They are categorised as an Erebus due to their dangerous nature.

They are almost always mellow and flat in their expression. They like being in solitude, they are - on surface anyway - to the victorian public... Seemingly evil.

They work just like any other fairy. Except, that, well.... they do not have a flaw.

And that's the only danger they pose. That's literally it. People just don't know what's up with them. And it makes people uncomfortable that they have a gift (that often exceeds even other fairies talents) without carrying the restraints of a flaw.

They just don't emote like everybody else, they're basically just autistic coded people - the autistic creature if you will.

Night fairies are deemed dangerous because, to the victorian scope of knowledge and cultural/religious reference, you don't look like that, is a fairy ontop of it with no flaw to boot, and there's not at least SOMETHING spooky going on.

Fae-type fairies, unfortunately, does not like them much. As their lack of a flaw makes them, well, there's just grounds for being resentful apparently.

The Erebus sub-culture enjoy them quite a lot though. They're the baby brother of the Erebus types.

Most Erebus, when meeting a night fairy, is going to feel for them the way they would feel for any other Erebus. Which is a look of comradery that other peculiars just don't have. And because Erebus types are pretty tightly knitted in comradery, they're aware of one another's struggles. Meaning that they are aware Night Fairies are technically the least threatening peculiar there is, but no other peculiar is going to side with them. So most Erebus types just rope in these defenceless outcasts because it's just not fair.

And Erebus knows all about it not being fair.

So yeah! Night fairies are the least dangerous or powerful peculiar, slotted in with the most powerful and dangerous of them.

it's like the bullied kid is placed amongst the jocks and the jocks are good guys actually.

The night fairies do struggle socially though. Despite their seeming disinterest, they are not heartless or unfeeling. They just struggle to emote and have a hard time with being overstimulated. Which is why they turn to their gifts to cope, leading them to often far surpass any other fairy.

Erebus types are, like, kind of aware of this and often just include them on sight. It's a thing. Most erebus are brought up with the notion that you don't mess with night fairies.

Some erebus, though, have cruel intentions and take advantage of their lack of social skill, often hiring them for their gift and misusing it.

Night fairies also, unfortunately, if they are gifted in something that involves social things - like music, and they are expected to perform in front of crowds, it can be means to cause them to fade.

Sometimes, having a gift isn't about making a buck on it. Sometimes it's simply because it's nice for your heart. And that's the essence of night fairies - they just love what they do. It's everyone else who's got a problem.

AND THAT ABOUT COVERS IT, I THINK???

I'm sure I missed something. There's some peculiar culture stuff that's a little too much to get into. And doesn't really serve much purpose other than be-riching the world I've created and alows me, the authour, to imply cultural codes and social systems in the world without having to always spell it out.

Oliver, for one, is going to be aware of these things. While Theodore is not.

[mythiearts]

This bit is at the Palace, when achilles let patroclus see him train (if he had let pat fight him another day)

We were sparring, he had let me mock fight him, although with blunt weapons so we didn't accidentally hurt eachother. The rules were that if he connected the tip of the blade to my chest then I lost, and if I managed to connect a blow to anywhere but his arms then I would win, he was winning 4-0. Today we had chosen a set of daggers, what we used most of the time, easily my favorite weapon due to having an excuse to be in close quarters with achilles, he had agreed because he "wasn't as good with them and needed practice" "lies" I told him "your good at everything", I felt myself going red from it already. He laughed like the sun was shining from his face. He squared up and I hunkered down a bit, still unsure of my stance, he smirked at me and the moment it took for me to recenter my thoughts was all he needed to dash over at me and strike, i hardly managed to catch his blade the moment before it hit my chest, bad thing was, I caught it with my hand going up into the blade, it worked, but now my hand was sore, maybe it was a good idea to use blunt weapons after all. I released his dagger, I caught his next blow with the flat of my blade and he moved and struck again, I barely able to deflect it before he struck again, we continued on like this until I noticed an opening and feigned striking higher, as I ducked to avoid a hit and jabbed for it he moved around to my back, "fast as ever" I said, not realising it had left my mouth until he replied "well I have to be known for something, no?" While I spun around to him, panting, he had barely broken a sweat, 'I have never seen him tired from this' I thought to myself, then 'I have never seen him tired' I realised he had me up against the palace wall, he was looking at me with his weapons at his sides, mine still being in my hand, clearly he thought i had given up, we were an inch away, I could do it, I moved my blade forward and barely touched his stomach, he looked down, confused and then looked up with a goofy smile that made me melt into one of my own "4-1" I said, smirking "I was distracted still 4-0" "your fault" "fine" he said with mock annoyance, "fine" I said, pretending to be all posh, releasing us into a fit of childish giggles. I walked away thinking "I distracted him?"

[palindrome-mystery]

I know I'm late to the game but I started reading Percy Jackson and the Heroes of Olympus and am now about half way through House of Hades and am constantly being thrown off by how mean people are to Nico.

Not action-wise, people are more or less cordial to him, but thought-wise they are complete jerks. The characters thoughts about Nico are always like he's creepy, makes them uneasy, and the poor geriactric teenager has done nothing to deserve that. He's just existing and people are hating on him.

Percy wanted to "wring the kids neck" for not telling him he knew who Percy was when he had amnesia, even though at that time Percy knew about Hera/Juno's exchange student plan and Nico telling him would have ruined the Greek/Roman plan from the start. And Percy had also been frustrated at Nico for "not crawling away faster" from the Titans after nearly dying in the bronze jar and waking up from a death trance. Have some compassion!

Frank wanted to drop kick him into a canal because Hazel breathed in poison. He was more mad at Nico than the actual monster for what reason?!

And Percy and Annabeth had (seemingly unintentionally albeit) spread rumors about Nico to Piper and Jason. Annabeth told Piper she thought Nico had a crush on Annabeth from the time she helped rescue him and his sister, and that tainted Piper's view of him a bit thinking Nico might be jealous of Percy. And although the PJO series is only from Percy's perspective so possible unreliable narrator at that time, but there was no hint Nico had a crush on Annabeth in those books so Annabeth speculating that seemed weird. (Nico did blush quite a bit during a convo with Juniper the Nymph and Percy in book 5, but that was probably because of Percy... I may not have gotten to that part in the series yet but I've seen enough fanart to know who Nico had a crush on at that time).

And Percy had told Jason he didn't know where Nico's loyalties lie?! Like the kid tricked you ONE TIME to get Hades to tell him about his life pre-memory-wipe and who his mom had been. Nico had said multiple times (with various levels of distress) that Hades had promised not to hurt Percy and let him go but the kid didn't know about making people swear on the River Styx to bind a promise at the time. He then went against his father, busted Percy out of Underworld jail, got him to the River Styx to get the invincible Achilles curse, and stayed in the Underworld to try to get Hades to join the battle of Manhattan because Percy told him to even though Nico had told him how scared he was of his dad because he had JUST betrayed his dad for Percy 2 minutes ago! AND THEN NICO SHOWS UP TO THE BATTLE OF MANHATTAN WITH NOT 1 BUT 3 GODS! Nico convinced not only his dad Hades, but also his step-mom Persephone and step-grandma Demeter (both of whom did not like him as Hades's affair child) to join the battle! AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE HIS LOYALTY LIES PERCY?!

I've seen the fanart and know things get better for Nico eventually, but can these "heroes" treat the poor geriatric teenager with just basic kindness?!

[winterrrnight]

omg congrats on 100 my love! i’ve said it once i’ll say it a million times- you deserve all of them and so many more ♥️ i’m so proud of you!!

that being said!! can i request ‘before the coffee gets cold’

28 with drew PLS PLS PLS

thank you soooo much raye!!! you mean the whole world to me, and you've been a supporter since the beginning <3 i love you sooo much <3

our convo about me wanting to open a book shop + coffee shop really striked to me and i thought to include that au idea in this request! I hope you like it 🤍

coffee hearts

PAIRING: drew starkey x gn!reader

SUMMARY: you own a 2-in-1 book store and coffee shop, but you're usually working at the coffee shop side. a new customer who catches your eye because he loves to read books becomes a daily customer at your place, and you find yourself falling a bit more for him every single day.

WARNINGS: fluffy

EDITH SPEAKS: this is for everyone who wishes to bond with someone over their love of books. I promise you, someone is out there who's obsessed with reading and fictional worlds just the way you are, who will read with you whenever you want, who will listen to all your book rants. It's only a matter of time <3

PROMPT REQUESTED: "you need to know that I've grown to care for you. Deeply."

100 followers celebration (now closed) || navigation

You were cleaning the counters, quickly wiping your cloth against the marble to rid it of its stains. It's only been just an hour since you opened up your shop, so there aren't many customers. It's all very relaxed at the moment, and you have enough time to prepare the few desserts you were thinking of earlier.

The ringing of the bell cuts through your thoughts and you look up to see someone walk in front the bookstore section of your shop. You smile at him as he reaches you; now standing opposite you. You can't admit but think he's kind of pretty.

"Hello, how can I help you?" You smile, getting your notepad and pencil quickly.

"Hey, could I get a hot mocha with a strawberry scone?" He says. You nod as you write it down on your notepad. When you look up again, you notice he's holding 'A Little Life' in one hand.

"Looks like you're in for a ride," you giggle, gesturing to the book in his hand.

"Oh my god is it actually as depressing as everyone says? I thought they all were just exaggerating," he says, and you giggle a little harder at his words.

"Yes it is! But it's also one of the most beautiful book I've ever read. Reading it is definitely a roller coaster of emotions, but it's all worth it," you smile at him. He returns you the smile as you leave your place at the counter to go and prepare his coffee. Instead of sitting down at one of the tables, he decides to sit on the barstool right in front of your counter.

When you turn around, you weren't expecting to see him sitting there. You feel your cheeks heat up a bit at the quick eye contact you make, immediately returning to your work. Once you've made his coffee and placed his scone on a plate, you go ahead to hand it to him.

"There you go," you say, wiping your hands on your towel as the aroma of the coffee and the scone rises up and mixes in the air surrounding you two.

"This looks absolutely wonderful, thank you," he says, before diving in. There's so much you could do at the moment: prepare the desserts you wanted to in advance, get some coffee going for the afternoon rush, or just help your friend who works at the bookstore section of your shop while you're free, but instead you decide to stay here with this unknown person who suddenly is the only thing on your mind.

"What else do you like to read?" You ask, your elbows on the counter as your hands prop up your face.

"Classic literature, mostly, but I do like to read some of these uh... popular books every now and then," he smiles, biting into the scone.

"Well, if you're looking for popular book suggestions, I would love it if you can read 'The Song of Achilles'. Another roller coaster of emotions. It had me sobbing at 3 am in my room," you laugh reminiscing your memory of crying over a book which stole your heart with its perfect love story.

"I've heard so much about it! What's it about?" He questions.

You take in a deep breathe, ready to give him a detailed synopsis about everything in that book. "Its about two lovers Achilles and Patroclus..."

↶ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊˎ-

Since then, this guy, whose name you learnt is Drew, has been coming to your coffee shop almost every single day. You've memorised his order by heart, and you have it ready just a few minutes before his daily arrival time. You always find yourself awaiting for him, taking a peek outside the window every few minutes to see if he's there or not. When your eyes do spot him, they light up like the stars.

"Hey," Drew says cheerfully, as he walks inside and gives you a big hug from his side of the counter. You notice him keep a book next to himself on the counter, and you almost squeal when you look at the title.

"You got The Song of Achilles oh my god!" You yell, trying your best to contain your excitement but failing miserably.

"I haven't started reading it yet, but I'm so excited for it," he smiles at your giddy reactions, your eyes wide and the most beautiful smile etched on your lips. "But there's something I want to give to you."

You watch him curiously as he pulls out another book from his tote bag. It takes you a second to figure out the title on top, but when you do, you realise it's 'Pride and Prejudice'. There are coloured tabs sticking out of the margins of the book, the book is a little torn at the edges indicating it's been used well, and it's also a bit thicker than its original thickness, and you realise it's because of all the post its and notes he's attached in the book.

"You told me you've wanted to read to Pride and Prejudice for so long now," he says softly, "so I got you my annotated version of it. I hope it tells you a lot more about me, things not many people know." He smiles, moving the book closer to you. You remember one of your conversations with him in which you casually mentioned you've never read Pride and Prejudice but have always wanted to, and your heart flutters thinking how he remembers such a little detail.

You look at the book; actually, scratch that; you look at the treasure in front of you with awe. Drew's annotated copy of Pride and Prejudice is sitting in front of you, and it's too tempting to just start reading it right now.

You believe annotations can tell you so much about a person, things tucked so safely in their soul which are only revealed at rare moments. And to have Drew's annotated copy with you, you know you're in for a big ride.

"Drew this is, wow," you whisper, holding the book so carefully in your hands, as if you're worried it's so fragile it will fall apart right at the moment. "Thank you," you look up from the book to see his deep blue eyes looking back at you.

He ever so gently says your name, in a way which makes your heart rush a million miles per hour, and takes your hand in his. "I've never given my annotated copy of any book to anyone ever before," he says. Drew swallows the big lump in his throat before continuing. "You need to know that I've grown to care for you. Deeply. That's why I want you to read it."

You cannot believe what you're hearing. You feel your heart brimming with emotions, and in just a span of a second you wrap your arms around him, pulling him so close to you.

"This means so much to me," you smile, pulling back from the hug. "Thank you Drew."

He only smiles at you, and when you're called from inside the kitchen from one of the chefs, he follows your figure going away as if he's found his whole world in you.

↶ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊˎ-

TAGLIST: @runningfrom2am @ragingsammie @maybankslover @totalswag @madelynie @chenslucy @ietss @elle-mp3 @viawritesstuff @wallsdreams

[babyrdie]

Hermes and divine horned babies

If I had a nickel for every time there was a myth involving Hermes with a divine horned baby, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice

I was supposed to be finishing my Artemis and Apollo WIP, which has been incomplete for days, but here I am with another Hermes. I think I'm going to have to draw Hermes again because twice I chose the worst possible framing and pose for him, because in this position 1) chlamys covers him a lot 2) his arm covers too much chlamys

Moving on! I had drawn this Hermes with Dionysus before (I posted it yesterday, more specifically), but I took the opportunity to be inspired by the Hymn to Pan. When I read it months ago, I thought it was cute how Hermes, upon seeing Pan, didn't feel at all bothered by his unusual appearance and was happy to see him. He picked him up and took him to Olympus and the gods were happy, especially Dionysus (who, by the way, is a deity often associated with satyrs). So, besides the similarity of being Hermes and a divine horned baby, putting this drawing of Dionysus back here for the connection between him and Pan as well.

Yes…I've been training how to draw babies because I had never drawn one before Achilles. How did you find out?! Certainly not because I have already drawn Thetis with baby Achilles, Hermes with baby Dionysus, now Hermes and Pan and I am still considering drawing Apollo with baby Hermes.

Pan's design is a bit of an obvious thing, I guess? In his Hynm it says that he was already somewhat "developed" in terms of fur and had goat-like characteristics, so that's what I did. A bearded baby. But it also said he was a happy, noisy baby, so he's giggly instead of the calmer face I did in Achilles and Dionysus.

As for my Hermes, in the drawing with Dionysus he's normal, but in the drawing with Pan you can notice that his face is a little strange because he's actively making an expression instead of just existing. Like, not blatantly weird, but his eyes don't quite follow the change in expression right? As incredible as it may seem, it's supposed to be strange. I swear this time it wasn't exclusively the fault of my serious problem making expressions in digital drawing!

I wanted him to look a little unnerving, the kind that gave off a slightly untrustworthy air, like a nod to Hermes' association with cunning. That's why I decided to make his petaso shadow his face, I chose facial features that gave him a more "mischievous" look and I drew eyes that, regardless of his expression, still looked a little strange. In short: I wanted him to have an appearance that, when he smiled, seemed a bit artificial to give him an air of untrustworthiness. Also, about the tooth gap visible now that I made him smile, this was intended to resemble a hare since it's one of the animals associated with Hermes.

[i-who-has-never-had-a-name]

Books I will never read

1. Anything by Haruki Murakami, but especially Norwegian Wood.

I've read Kafka on the Shore halfway through and stopped. Also that one handjob scene....no. why. He's a huge misogynist who I do not want to support. I've heard about that one scene in Norwegian Wood with the father's picture...yikes. I like literary fiction the most, which means I want well-written characters meaning all of them should be well-written and have a soul, yes even the female ones. I saw that one picture of pseudo intellectual Harry Styles being in bed reading Norwegian Wood...at this point why? Why do we not question this? I sometimes wonder if this is all an inside joke I'm not into.

2. Any CoHo/Emily Henry/Tiktok romance book

No explanation needed. I'm in a happy relationship and I don't have a son with big balls.

3. Any splatterpunk book (Eric LaRocca's books, Playground)

I like disturbing books, I have nothing against brutal/disgusting scenes and such, but it has to have a purpose. You cannot write such sick, twisted things just for shock value, because you are a writer and should at least be a good one. Splatterpunk writers don't care about that. They write the most sick, twisted things that a human could come up with. It's not revolutionary but tasteless shock. Those people don't love literature, they love gore. It doesn't help that the vast majority of those authors are men and that they let their female and their younger characters experience a lot of pain. They get away with their blatant sadism and sexism by categorizing it as "splatterpunk".

4. That Icebreaker book

Not just bc it's a tiktok romance book, but specifically bc it reminds me of that one tiktok named Kierra I think who was widely sexist and rude and evil to a hockey player's wife just bc she said she didn't want her to make anymore sexual comments about her husband and the father of her child. Wild. You should definitely look into it.

5. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Torture Corn really. Straight women writes queer male characters are tortures them. We've all seen it, really.

6. Any self help book

Pure Scams. It is capitalist propaganda that your problems are based of your material conditions but are purely isolated from the rest of the world and as long you buy my book in which I give you a list of what to do, you won't be happy. When you give me your money, you'll be happy, really!

It definitely doesn't help that most of those authors are white, male and rich.

7. Books with queer male romance written by straight women

I'm not saying straight women don't have the capability to write well-written male queer characters, I'm just saying that there's a pattern...

I've come to this conclusion after reading the beloved "Song Of Achilles". There's a lot of critique I have with this book, mainly it's portrayal of queerness.

8. Any Books by J.K Rowling, including Harry Potter

Transphobic asshole and not that good of a writer.

9. Tolstoi's works

I'm sure he is great writer. Sometime when I'm old and grey I'll try reading War and Peace. But now, I'm too dumb for that.

10. Any of those celebrity authobiographies

I have my own life. I truly don't care and if I do I'll just watch some YouTube video instead of wasting my money. They're so painfully ghost written. Hate ghost written books, they can be so soulless. You can't really get an objective look at things bc the books are obviously biased. Look at that Prince Harry biography. You feel bad for him bc his wee-wee got frostbite without him actually addressing his partaking in the iraq war.

[jeannereames]

If you could change or insert one aspect of the common pop culture picture most people have in their heads when they think about ATG what would it be?

I'm going to jump this in the queue because I can answer it swiftly, but also because I have TWO things that are personal pet peeves.

FIRST: That "historians" keep insisting Alexander and Hephaistion were "just good friends" in the face of obvious evidence to the contrary.

SECOND: Alexander called Hephaistion his Patroklos (to his own Achilles), and they used this comparison frequently throughout their lives.

So, let’s take on the “Fake News,” shall we?

The notion that "historians" keep insisting Alexander and Hephaistion were "just good friends" in the face of what would seem clear evidence to the contrary is over 50 fucking years out of date.

Are there “historians” out there who say that? Sure. But they tend to come in two flavors: 1) people who aren’t specialists, Hellenists, or even historians,⸸ or 2) Greeks.* Since Badian, Green, Hamilton, and Schachermeyer (et al.) took over Macedonian/Alexander studies mid-century, few specialists claimed Alexander and Hephaistion couldn’t have been lovers, or Alexander couldn’t have been attracted to men. Even Hammond cagily acknowledged it.

Yet—TBH—I don't think those who repost that meme really care. They just want a convenient strawman/whipping horse to make them sound "smarter than the experts."

You don't. You sound as if you haven't read much about Alexander since about 1975. Historians who have died of old age by now said Alexander and Hephaistion were probably lovers.

But that raises another problem: the implication that anybody who might argue they aren't lovers must be an old, white homophobic dude. Again, this is wrong.

The current discussion centers more on source problems, and separates Alexander having male lovers from Alexander and Hephaistion being lovers themselves (not the same thing, actually). Those making the best argument for caution are young, very much not homophobic (but absolutely brilliant) women (e.g., Sabine Müller). Follow the link to see a picture of Sabine, if you don’t believe me. I don't agree with her, but you can't shoot down her argument by screaming "Homophobe!" at the top of your lungs. The points she raises are all good ones and any responsible (and smart) historian will take them seriously.

As for the Alexander-Achilles/Hephaistion-Patroklos pastiche… yeah, sorry, no.

I realize this torques off folks, as it’s become a mainstay of queer culture surrounding Alexander as a gay icon and owes more than a little to Miller’s The Song of Achilles.

Busting it probably makes me sound like a Grinch.

BUT…the facts just don't support it. Yes, Alexander compared himself to Achilles--but not as much as to Herakles and Dionysos. Not even close.

How do I know? I COUNTED THEM. Facts ... not impressions.

After all, looking closely at what the sources (not impressions) actually say about Hephaistion is how I came to the conclusion the man was a lot more important than heretofore recognized. 😉

Again, as I’ve said elsewhere, Alexander did compare himself to Achilles. That’s not in dispute … it just wasn’t as frequent or common as modern fans like to pretend. And Hephaistion was compared to Patroklos only twice. There’s also a problem with WHO made those comparisons: chiefly Arrian. Again, I’ve talked about this elsewhere, so won’t go over it again.

Yes, I made the comparison myself in Dancing with the Lion: Becoming. But it concerned one circumstance near that book’s end (not giving spoilers), and isn’t something they harped on otherwise. That mirrors how it appears in our sources: it’s limited, and situational.

“Patroklos” was not Hephaistion’s nickname. Wish folks would stop claiming it was.

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⸸ Just because somebody is tagged “historian” on a History Channel special—or his own private blog—doesn’t mean they actually have a PhD, or even a Master’s, much less one in ancient history, Classics, Classical archaeology, or ancient art history. The number of idiots on Tik-tok yapping about how Alexander thought this or did that—and clearly know jack shit—routinely stuns me…even while it doesn’t. Dunning-Kruger Effect all over the damn place.

* Greeks must often work within the confines of official narratives in order to secure jobs and funding, which can limit what they say on certain topics, from who’s buried in “Philip’s Tomb,” to the Greekness of the ancient Macedonians, to any possible homosexual “taint” staining Alexander’s greatness. This may swim against the current of academic discourse outside Greece, even by other Greeks. The Greek Ministry of Culture and Sport has softened on some of these topics in recent years, especially as LGBTQIA rights have gained better traction in Greece.