#the fey confuse her so much and she's trying her best

[controlledchaosetc]

Who's your current favorite oc, and what's the most unhinged thing about them?

My current favorite OC because I'm finally getting to play her after multiple failed games is Blossom Summers, a cotton candy pink tiefling born with one arm, dresses like Victor Frankenstein, and is about as dedicated to discovery as him. However, absolute sunshine baby, bubbly as hell, and will talk for hours about whatever has peaked her interest. I literally practiced a cross between a German and Russian accent for like a month to use for her character because her first language is Infernal.

(Art by @sleepyforestbeast)

Most unhinged thing about her is she's going to blow herself up one day and is fine with it, and technically already has twice.

First time was when she was going to prove her theory that lightning could revive someone dying and decided to test it on herself! She set up a lightning rod during a thunderstorm on top of the roof of the wizard college she was attending, drained all life from herself, and then by sheer luck a lightning strike revived her while giving her horrible burns and blowing a hole in the roof.

Second time was during the opening of the first failed game where she was introduced to the party through a loud explosion. The party rushed over and found her trying to put out her wagon that was on fire while her hand was mostly blown off. She was fine with it though, chalking it up to "well it was probably going to happen someday".

Runner up to most unhinged thing is she's technically invented electricity but doesnt see any other purpose for it yet than making a defibrillator.

[warningsine]

The funniest show on television is Girls5Eva, which transplanted from the backwoods of Peacock to the mires of Netflix for its third season. While a lot of shows have taken off after landing on Netflix — You, for instance — Girls5Eva, from the data available publicly, didn’t get many viewers on the platform. I’m no expert on the mechanics of streaming, but I have one radical explanation for why this is happening: There are simply not enough episodes of Girls5Eva available to watch. On Peacock, the show had two eight-episode seasons. Netflix has given it an additional six. That means that Girls5Eva has aired, in total, only 22 episodes, about the same number as a full-season order of an old-fashioned network sitcom like 30 Rock, to which Meredith Scardino’s series is deeply indebted (Scardino wrote on 30 Rock; Tina Fey is a Girls5Eva executive producer). Over a three-year period? This is simply not enough!

Sitcoms are built for mass production and consumption, with dynamics between characters designed to generate an endless stream of story lines, and it can take a season or two to fully gel. Girls5Eva is lucky enough to have a distinct sensibility and a strong cast from the start, but it hasn’t had the space to work through all the possible material. There’s so much to mine in flashbacks to the girl group’s checkered early-aughts past, in Wickie’s failed solo career, in Summer’s wackadoo Christian upbringing, in Gloria’s fraught lesbian drama, and in Dawn’s attempts to find her own way as a songwriter (plus the larger meta arc of Sara Bareilles coming into her own as a comedic actor). Season three, in which the crew goes on tour around the country, tries to cover so much ground it’s like a distance runner sprinting at her vO2 max. The overarching plot — they want to perform at Radio City Music Hall — encroaches on all the fun along the way, rushing past a guest appearance from Cat Cohen, the reveal of Wickie’s real backstory, and an intricate Harry Styles parody. Sitcoms should be about all the fun everyone is having along the way, and we’ve lost that.

But there is another and perhaps more important reason that we need longer seasons of Girls5Eva: holidays. Network sitcoms, airing on a traditional schedule, have the opportunity to set episodes around the holidays near which they would air; think of the Thanksgiving episodes of Friends, The Office’s Christmas episodes, 30 Rock’s impeccable use of Leap Day. In my ideal universe where Girls5Eva has 22-episode seasons, Netflix would also abandon the binge strategy and air those episodes weekly, but that’s not a necessity. You could still drop them all at once, which gives me the opportunity to revisit the holiday episodes as those holidays occur throughout the year. If you need convincing, here are my suggestions for some holidays the Girls5Eva might celebrate:

Christmas (duh): Dawn tries to write a Christmas song; Wickie reveals a longstanding feud with Mariah Carey (she claims one of the items from her riff rolodex appears in “All I Want for Christmas Is You”; Mariah does not know her).

Thanksgiving: The girls try to book a gig at the Macy’s Parade (as Peacock actually had the stars do, to the confusion of my parents watching at home) while also atoning for their past sins at the event (revealed in flashback).

Valentine’s Day: Gloria revisits a past relationship with Taylor Lautner (she was his dentist).

Tax season: Summer reveals she hasn’t been paying taxes for years (thought you were covered if you already paid your church).

Presidents’ Day: Dawn tries to write a song about Lincoln being sexy, inadvertently offends a gay activist group.

Pride month: Return of Bowen Yang’s lip-sync influencer.

Cuffing season: Big for Gloria.

The Feast of San Gennaro: Big for Dawn (why is the show so all-in on Sara Bareilles being Italian??).

V-E Day: Wickie and Dawn’s husband, Scott, discover their mutual fascination with the Eastern Front: “I spent a lot of time touring post-Soviet states, okay!”

Casimir Pulaski Day: Gloria has beef with Sufjan Stevens.

[asteria-edalyn]

The Story of Kunning Palace 命转皇后/宁安如梦

Started watching the canto dub with eng subs when it came on tvb!! I’ve wanted to watch it for a while but I didn’t want to get another streaming service to watch it. On episode 17 now and I couldn’t resist making a post about what happened so far lol. Please don’t give me spoilers!

I love Ning Er so much. She’s clever, and she’s trying her best to change things, but she doesn’t know everything from her past life and things have changed so she’s having to act on the fly! And I love seeing how she uses her wits in these moments! And how she outsmarts her opponents!

I love the dynamic between her and Xie Wei. The brat and teacher power dynamic? But she’s just as clever as he is? And he’s constantly like, how/why do you keep showing up when shit goes down?? She infuriates him but he’s also sooooo fascinated and charmed by her and he wants to protect her.

So this probs real obvious but I’m gonna put it down here anyway. Xie Wei is the missing Xue Ding-fei and he and the current Xue Ding-fei swapped identities so that he could be sneaky and undercover.

I… don’t think the male cast is very good-looking tbh :”) Zhang Zhe’s probably the most attractive to me. I guess Xie Wei is hot when he’s being all smug and domineering and shit. Also I love how Zhang Zhe (and Ning Er, but more so Zhang Zhe) had been going “You’re working for him too??” like, constantly and getting more and more incredulous but he can’t react cuz he’s undercover lmao.

I feel like this is the start of the second arc, like we’re leaving the palace, the stakes are higher, but maybe I’m wrong. More hilarious moments: when Zhou Yin-zhi tells Xie Wei Ning Er has been kidnapped and internally he’s like: What?? Why??? How??? WHY like girl is gonna make him go grey. And also when she tells Zhang Zhe she told the rebels they’re cousins but they’re in love so they ran away to elope is HILARIOUS. He’s like, why would you tell them that?? But tbh it was a good plan to get them to stop questioning her. And then the rebels acting increasingly awkward around them. Love that the auntie ships them. She’s like, ah young love.

It definitely appeals to me that Xie Wei is so clever but also fucked up. Like not necessarily in a bad way, but man has been through A LOT, since he was like 6. And he’s been plotting and scheming and deceiving for so long, that’s gotta have an impact on his personality.

I have so many fav moments when Ning Er out-smarts her enemies or comes out with the upper hand. A cute recent one is basically the whole “getting the second half of the letter” plot, but specifically when the bank notes reveal her little turtle drawing. So cute!! It’s like she’s saying, hi 👋🏻😙 and then when he shows it to the others and they are just so confused because they don’t have context for the turtle??

Okay wait wait before I end this post I wanna talk about what intrigued me so much about this show in the first place. I’ve always loved reading time travel fix-its, seeing how things change or stay the same, what characters do with what they know and i thought it'd be so interesting for a story to start like a time travel fix it fic, but because the audience doesn't have the established "canon", it's revealed slowly through the story. And then this show showed up on my tumblr and I was like ??? wth this is exactly what I was looking for

Anyway that's it for now!!

[what-gs-watching]

"It's not my fault you're like, in love with me."

So while I was trapped in the house for days on end because of ridiculous weather, I kept whinging that I just wanted to get out and see the new Mean Girls. My sister was not surprised at all to hear it, assuming I would have gone the day it came out. 

Because I’m old, old enough that the original movie came out when I was a teenager and it was a big fucking deal. I remember going to the theater with my bestie and being completely obsessed. We all wanted to be Lindsay Lohan at that point, 2004 was a crazy time, and we were incredibly impressionable. So, Mean Girls was everything.

To be fair, it definitely wormed its way into the culture. My sixty-something mother-in-law knows ‘fetch’ and my metal headbanger favorite dude friend appreciates that on Wednesdays, we wear pink. Millennials get it. I’m honestly not even sure how many times I’ve seen it. If my life depended on it, I could accurately quote most of it.

So, I was excited to see the new one, and a little weary. 

But it was cuuuuuute, y’all. I purposely didn’t read anything about it, so I was slightly surprised that it was basically literally the same story, but I guess that makes sense. The whole schtick is that it’s a musical now, so I can roll with that.

One thing I will say though, it’s hard for musicals to make perfect sense. You lose some of the story by trying to flatten it into a catchy number. So it didn’t feel as comprehensive or fleshed out  as the original (which sounds insane because Mean Girls is just a story about girls being bitches, but still). 

I also really appreciated that they kept a good bit of the classic lines that everyone wants to hear. You have to have “stop trying to make fetch happen, it’s not going to happen” and “Yo go, Glen Coco!” it’s literally not Mean Girls without that. (LOL at the explanation though that 'fetch' is slang from an old movie.)

They did strip out some of the weirder aspects, leaving out the gym coach hooking up with one of the kids, which was sketch to begin with, even in 2004. And Karen trying to make out with her first cousin, which, yikes. So ya know, progress. 

But it did feel like they took some of the bite out of Regina. Like, I got that she was supposed to be mean, but there weren’t a ton of actions to reinforce that. Or even a ton of interaction between her and Cady. The frenemy-ship wasn’t fleshed out as much as I wanted it to be. 

On the bright side though, I didn’t expect the actress they chose for Regina. Body positivity, gang! And the cast was a lot more diverse. 

But, no one is ever gonna best Lohan at the role of Cady. Sure, New Cady was cute, and she did her best but honestly, she did not have the same kind of presence or charisma. But I’m probably biased as hell. Like I’ve said before, I just want Lindsay Lohan to get her life back together. 

ALSO, this is just me complaining, but I absolutely do not fucking understand fashion right now. Like, I just…I can’t. It’s weirdly 90’s, and it wasn’t cute in the 90’s originally and it’s not cute now. I was not in love with Cady’s “makeover” and that was one of the funner aspects of the original. Which could just be me projecting because I wanted to wear all of the shit that they did in 2004 but I was not that cool, gang. So now I’m the old guy who wants gen Z fashion to get off my lawn. It’s not their fault, but it’s still confusing. 

The point is, it was a fun way to spend two hours, and I love that Tina Fey and Tim Meadows reprised their roles. I will love anything Tina Fey does, forever and always. And she loves Mean Girls so much. So I’m going to, too. And I might bump “Revenge Party” because who doesn’t love a party that ends with a head on a spike? 

Did we really need this movie? Maybe not. But I suppose we can let the zoomers in on the fantasticness that is Mean Girls. Y’all can have a piece of the crown too, I guess - it’s just plastic, after all.

[merryfortune]

Weed Eater

Written for the FE Flash Fic Friday on Dreamwidth

Prompt: MLM Ships

Title: Weed Eater

Ship: Dedue/Dimitri

Fandom: Fire Emblem Three Houses

Word Count: 1,432

Rating: T

Tags: Alternate Universe - Gardenverse, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Blue Lions Route

   There was a type of folk considered fey amongst the people of Duscur. Not spoken of often because it was so unusual, even they considered the talk of the Flower Eaters to be but a poorly remembered myth. This, too, was a legacy that Dedue embodied, too, for better or for worse. It was considered as unlucky as it was beautiful.

   He still remembered the confusion and the elation, when he was a young child. Still small and innocent and naive to the ways of the world and he expressed his love with how any child would: with wild flowers freshly picked.

   “Mama, Mama, look what I can do!” he had cried out, happy and joyous with a big smile on his face. He was what? Four?

   The look of fondness on his Mother’s face turned in an instant as Dedue showed her what was in his hands and it was not a trick of light. As he uncurled his fingers, the flowers that he unveiled were not from the garden but from him.

   “Dedue, my love, you must never show this talent of yours to anyone, understand?” his Mother warned him as she accepted the little, yellow flowers Dedue had produced from his palm. “And you must always avoid anyone who would want to eat them.”

   That was even unluckier. To be a Flower Eater. That was a curse far greater and heavier than the one which Dedue had upon him as a Flower Grower - or Florist, as he would come to hear amongst the mainland of Fódland. Turns out they were in tune with different bits and pieces of Duscur lore, filtered through inaccuracies. A long, long tale which had changed every time it had been spoken between two people. 

   Much like a school rumour, actually. 

   Deduce did his best, at the Officers Academy, to be as detached as possible but people talked. Even to him. Though he did his best to not talk back. 

   He minded his own business. He kept to himself, to the greenhouse, and no one was none the wiser to Dedue’s status as a Florist. People knew he had a green thumb but no one suspected that there was something more to his talent and gift with plants was nothing more than the innate knack that certain gardeners had.

   No one except Dimitri and Dedue had his own suspicions about what exactly Dimitri was.

   More than a friend, a house leader, a lord or a prince. There was a great darkness inside of him as well but Dimitri did his best to obscure it underneath a well-controlled and amiable persona. This extended far and wide to being close and personal.

   However, Dedue didn’t want to talk about Duscur traditions or lore with Dimitri. Though, sometimes Dimitri would pry about innocuous things. Food, fashion, geography. The most surface level things so he could try and be close with him but Dedue was ever a brick wall. 

   Though a watchful one.

   Maybe he was channelling his Mother, her spirit and her memory, too much but he saw the signs. Dimitri was exactly the type of person she used to warn him about. The Flower Eater. No Fódland name for it, as far as Dedue had heard, anyway.

   They were characterised as the tragics, the obsessives, the ones who were always hungry for… something. Be it flesh or… be it flowers. 

   Dimitri was exactly that person and a little quip that he let slip confirmed it in Dedue’s mind. To anyone else it would have been funny but Dimitri wanted to eat the weeds. They had been assigned to gardening related tasks, like pulling weeds, by Professor Byleth to help. 

   And it only worsened from there, Dedue would observe from Dimitri’s side.

   He was a very different person. 

   To everyone bar Dedue.

   He had always sensed that one day Dimitri would snap. That he was hungry in a way that civil society could not provide as it went beyond a need for food but for vengeance. For blood and flesh and… flowers.

   After everything that had happened. Edelgard’s assault on the Academy. His separation from Dimitri and the allies that he had amongst his Blue Lion classmates, Dedue shuddered with recollection. There was still much to be done, such as restoring the Holy Kingdom, clearing the name of the Duscur people, and more. 

   “I’m … I’m happy to know you are still alive, Dedue,” Dimitri grovelled to him. “And that you are real.”

   “Yes, I’m real.” Dedue replied.

   He let Dimitri touch him. To confirm his warmth, his heartbeat, his breath. 

   Though much of Dimitri’s sanity appeared to have returned to him as he got catharsis from facing Edelgard or returning to tutelage in Professor Byleth’s stead, and yes, of course, Dedue’s return to his side as vassal. There was still more to be regained, if it could at all, and an underlying fragility despite Dimitri’s present calm and serenity.

   There was still more that Dedue could do for Dimitri.

   He waited until an appropriate time. He had never disclosed this to anyone. His family had known but no one else knew. So, Dedue waited for a calm, blue night when the moon was big and full and the purest white. He invited Dimitri for a late night walk to the gardens. Just them and their companionship. Nothing more, nothing less. 

   Standing by the gazebo with his hands behind his back, gazing out over the lawn, “Can I tell you a secret?” Dedue asked.

   He was finally ready to open up. He watched as Dimitri visibly perked up and for a moment, Dedue saw a flash of Dimitri’s seventeen year old self in the world weary and one-eyed face that he now bore. It made Dedue’s heart falter but he steeled himself.

   If he was correct, if Dimitri was a Flower Eater like he thought, then his Mother’s wisdom was too far gone on him. Dedue had doomed himself the minute he pledged allegiance to Dimitri in gratitude for saving him. 

   “Please, go ahead.” Dimitri told him.

   “I want you to know this.” Dedue said.

   As he had grown older, it had become less easy to hide his condition. As a child, it was a painless magic trick, like a sleight of hand, to produce these flowers from his body but as he went through adolescence, that was part of his body which changed. He had to shave them off like he would the whiskers on his chin, sometimes it would even hurt when these pretty, dainty little yellow flowers would bloom. 

   Dimitri watched, mutedly amazed, as Dedue showed him this legacy of Duscur, too. 

   They lived in a world, amongst people, who conjure lightning and fire, control the winds, and yet this simple little thing elicited such oddness and mystery. It was strange. 

   Dimitri caressed the petal of the flower, he followed the natural arc of it with his finger. It was soft, he noted. All whilst Dedue told him bits and pieces from his Mother’s fairy tales. How his siblings used to be jealous of him because he had a gift that they did not and that was unfair. 

   Dimitri listened intently.

   “I had no idea that such people existed.” Dimitri said, quietly awed. “I must be quite fortunate to have you by my side then.”

   “Yes, about that…” Dedue murmured.

   He plucked the flower and his fingers reacted as though he had given himself a paper cut. There was a thin line of red on his palm, like a scratch, and an involuntary twitch amongst his fingers. He offered it to Dimitri but when Dimitri tried to accept it with his hands, Dedue glared. He kept going. He offered to feed it to Dimitri and Dimitri, confused, did open his mouth.

   Dimitri chewed thoughtfully. Dedue had never once wondered what the flowers he produced would taste like. He had never seriously thought that he would encounter a counterpart to his own condition but Dimitri’s expression.

   “I like the taste of it.” Dimitri whispered. His lips quivered, like he was holding back an involuntary smile. Colour, ever so slightly, was added to his cheeks, too, that he could not interfere with. 

   Dedue blinked. He was actually taken aback to hear that considering… Dimitri was not known to be an auteur of taste or otherwise a gourmand. But it did flatter him to hear so. Even if it did affirm in Dedue’s mind that Dimitri was as every bit as tragic and obsessive and hungry as Dedue was promised when he was warned of as a child. 

[cerastes]

Ouuugh, continuing to knock it out of the park with these characters. Always loved characters who are solely referred to as a title or epithet, and god the replacement of ones eyes like Istesas rules.

Did she have much inspiration from concepts or characters from Arthurian legends, or did the fey connections and "lady of the lake" thing just happen to be a fun coincidence?

Looking forward as always for where everything you're setting up goes, an effective god like character who just exists to hand out weapons that always lead to greater tragedy or destabilization of things absolutely slaps.

Thank you! I'm happy to hear you enjoy these, haha.

Istesa does in fact have a lot of Arthurian influence, yes. It's one of my favorite mythos, and the Fae have always been fascinating to me, especially when you consider the complete whiplash anyone would have when going from the modern, incredibly infantilized views on the Fae, to their old, outright brutal and callous origins. It always seemed fun to me to think that even back then, our ancestors were coming up with stuff like "yeah there's these very theatric and whimsy creatures that will try to prank you with such knee-slappers as enslaving you forever or turning you into a sentient bush".

The Lady of the Lake angle is sort of an evolution of a concept I've always wanted to play with: For the longest time, I had this idea of the Lady of the Lake being just one of the many titles of the Lady, and that she's more or less a weapons merchant that spends her time managing her business in the shadows as usual, until a great hero is in need of her. So she'll set out and deliver the legendary weapon to its rightful hero, by hand, so that they may mete our their destiny. If you're not a great hero and you come across her, you may get your hands on one of her formidable wares... For a very, VERY high price, and not necessarily one that involves money. Can't be handing out Caladbolgs and Tyrfings out like candy, you know?

Imagine you're an adventurer and you meet this woman in sunglasses and a suit, she's carrying a big case, she looks at you, and goes "hey, I'm in a bit of a bind, help me out here", and you're like, sure, so you go on a small adventure through dangerous lands into the territory of a despot. Throughout the quest, she never once opens the case, but is formidable nonetheless. Then, when you finally make it close to the despot's fortress, and you get ready for the fight of your life, the climax of this quest, she simply says "alright, we're here", and points at a crappy hut by the side of the river. You're confused, but you follow her as she opens the rickety door. Inside is a poor, young child wearing rags. She slams the case in front of the child and opens up the locks, revealing the most wonderful longsword you've laid eyes upon. She hands the sword to the kid, and then signals the way out.

"We're not going to topple the despot?", you ask.

"Nope," she says as she lights a cigarette, "Not our villain to defeat. Just came here on a delivery."

"And why didn't you use the sword throughout our battles?"

"Not my sword to swing. That's his."

Then she refuses to elaborate on anything else, thanks you curtly, and disappears the first chance she gets. Six months later, you're in the middle of the wilderness, the morning sun wakes you up, you step out of your tent, and notice a familiar case waiting for you outside. It has a letter attached. "Thanks for the help back then. For you." Inside the case is the single best weapon you've seen in all of your travels, it feels comfortable and natural, it fits your style of combat perfectly, there is no weapon in this world that could be more closely customized to you, specifically you. This is your weapon.

That sort of concept. Then, I thought, "damn, if someone or something could actually do things like this, it would be scary if they did that, but for villains", but it wasn't really a breakthrough of a thought, since a lot of villains... Do have that kind of service or advantage, some sort of scientist or wizard. Then came the follow-up thought:

"What if the Lady of the Lake straight up had no sides, she just made incredibly powerful, history-changing weapons and artifacts for the express purpose of shaping history to be 'interesting', to be 'chaotic', because in the future history books, it will be incredibly interesting, maybe even entertaining, to read about these chaotic times. What if the Lady of the Lake wasn't good or evil, she solely sided with whoever side made history look more interesting in the future, so she could, one day, sit down with a nice drink, on a comfy couch, and read the most wonderful tragedies and upheavals, content with the knowledge that she had a hand in the penning of these stories?"

I thought that would be terrifying and I loved it, so Istesa was born.

[rosecreates]

God installing mods was both the best and worst decision ever because now I am sitting on 7 fucking playthroughs

Here's the list:

Nimue (Durge; High Elf; White Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer) - Romancing Astarion

Raven (Lolth-Sworn Drow; Swords College Bard) - Probably romancing Minthara

Ez'ria (Githyanki; Great Old Ones Warlock) - Romancing Lae'zel

Bea (Half-Drow; Necromancy Wizard) - Romancing Gale

Lusine (Mephistopheles Tiefling; Paladin of Selune) - Romancing Shadowheart

Fortuna (Fairy {Modded Race}; Lore College Bard) - Undecided, maybe Astarion

Elrayne (Seldarine Drow; Light Cleric of Eilistraee) - Romancing Karlach

My preference for white-haired women strikes again woops (also my preference for Elves/Elf adjacent specially Drow. 5/7 (I count Fortuna cause...Fey) of these ladies are Elven just different flavors kjfgbjkgb)

I won't make them all into OCs no matter how much I kinda wanna because handling this many would be insanity.

Besides Raven and Nimue some have a bit more defined backstory than others though.

Bea is just a goofy necromancer lady who is maybe a little bit of bimbo and also trying so hard to ignore the way everyone stares at her with suspicion all the time. Also her friends are skeletons. She has no actual friends. She's an orphan and she just went ":D here's my skeleton undead friends-" cue some woman screaming in horror and she's just confused because she just wanted to show her friends :(

Fortuna left the Feywild many years ago to become a Tymora-worshipping (because Fortuna went 'You're Lady Luck? Obv Imma worship you! I vibe with you so hard!') bard in Baldur's Gate who is living her best life and is uh. EXTREMELY pissed about being implanted with a Mind Flayer tadpole. You know how Dolly Thrice throws a fit when you don't free her? Yeah. Yeah Fortuna is basically like that.

Elrayne was born on the surface and highly sheltered in a Eilistraean enclave so she didn't really understand the reality of how Drow are viewed and what other Drow have done until she hit maybe like 50 years old and she was kidnapped and tortured for being a Drow before being rescued, which is where she got the scars she has currnely (mind you she is at least 200, I hear that its only in the last century treatment towards Drow has gotten a LITTLE better, but apparently during BG2 Viconia was literally gonna be burnt at the stake for being a Drow so UH). And later on when she went on her first undercover mission in the Underdark when she was 100 and got found out and its where her eyes were damaged and the mask she wears is basically a magic artifact that lets her see better. She's not totally blind but its really hard to see without the mask. She hasn't gone on any undercover missions since but she HAS still traversed the Underdark many times to help Drow who do want to be better. She's basically in a really bad position where she tries really hard to show others Drow aren't evil and is just trying to do good but when so many of her race give a horrible rep to them and she faces all sorts of discrimination she's having doubts in Eilistraee's goal and wondering if its really worth all the suffering as even whilst she redeems one or two Drow every so often there are thousands of other Drow. And just a few bad apples can spoil the bunch you know? And changing the surface's mind isn't easy.

[imsosocold]

Thank you so much for your answers :D :D :D In both cases Manfred being a father would really really make the guilt worse, wouldn't it.

In the Yogi AU I just had this very vivid image of Miles visiting his father and them each putting a hand together against the glass, and of that one scene in Dumbo you know with him visiting his mom, and Manfred seeing this and being like "damn. This is going farther than I thought it would. Why am I having Emotions." I wonder if Miles goes to the police at some point to try and confess to the crime? Would Manfred try to prevent him from doing so, potentially leading to harsh arguments, or does he try to tell himself he doesn't care and if Miles wants to go to prison then Manfred certainly will indulge him? Franziska would certainly be very mad at Miles for doing something like that...

And in the Miles AU, do you think Manfred would try to stop Gregory from going to the Feys? Because Gregory doesn't really need him to do so, and I'm not sure how Manfred would prevent him. I think it's more likely he'd just try to convince Gregory the Feys are frauds and such pitiful supernatural nonsense won't bring him closure. Does the truth come out at any point? Or does Miles's death remain forever unsolved? If Phoenix still goes on to become a defense attorney (which I think most likely than not, and not just because of the "honoring Miles's memory" thing; I love a good "Phoenix is Elle Woods" meme as much as anybody else and will make the joke ad nauseam but being a lawyer just suits him so well, he's got a HUGE hero syndrome and that is the ideal outlet for him), does Gregory take him under his wing? Does Phoenix intern at Edgeworth Law Offices rather than Fey & Co.?

I think that in the Miles AU Gregory's perceptive, beyond his devastating grief that is, would be interesting... because Yogi would insist he is innocent, wouldn't he. I wonder if Gregory goes to hear him out. I cannot imagine him defending him, but just... trying to get closure maybe? And Yogi insisting that he's innocent, he didn't do it, and insisting to Gregory's face that "you're a defense attorney, you've got to believe me, I didn't kill your kid" and Gregory being torn between "he's behaving exactly like all my clients" and "he was the only one who could do it, the gall he has to lie to my face"... I can see him investigating obsessively, looking for the third option... and Manfred catching wind of what he's doing and on one hand he feels for him but on the other hand this cannot go on. Gregory cannot be allowed to find the truth... quite the pickle, as another prosecutor would say x)

Anyway hhhhh sorry about the ramble your ideas ignited something in me. Thank you so much for answering and have a nice trip!!

Don’t ever apologize for rambling, I love that my idea made you happy and even inspired you!  Yes, Manfred’s greatest weakness is that he’s a family man at heart ( forever thinking about the anime only episode where Manfred, at Franziska’s demand, takes her and Miles to fucking build-a-bear and IHOP, the  highlight of the Ace Attorney series.)  For the Yogi au, the scene with with Gregory and Miles is… so…good…the best thing I’ve eaten today! Manfred would tell himself he doesn’t  care if Miles incriminates himself, less trouble for him, but Manfred would stop Miles every single time, assuring him it’s not his fault ( which is one of the few truths Manfred has given Miles) and that Miles shouldn’t waste this opportunity of life Gregory gave him. Which is meant to be encouraging and to inspire Miles but just makes him feel even more guilty and undeserving of everything he has :(.  Franziska definitely would be confused and concerned and upset, even more so when she learns Miles’s behavior isn’t just something she can fix with her whip or her father. It’d probably drive her deeper into her career as a prosecutor. For the Miles au, I imagine at the start, when emotions are fresh, Gregory would absolutely hold no sympathy for Yogi, especially considering the attack in the elevator. Manfred would definitely be influencing Gregory negatively as well, perhaps even being the one to prosecute Yogi in court. But as more time goes on and the feelings of pain and guilt and wrongness don’t go away, Gregory probably start to question the events that occurred and inevitably Yogi’s potential innocence. For the Fey stuff, I think Manfred and Gregory would be practically codependent at this point, and Gregory thinking Manfred, who’s been there for him ever since the loss of his son, would give him the best advice regarding his actions, including attempting to contact a spirit medium to get closure.  Manfred naturally would be like “ no no no no they’re all shams trust me bro the man who’s entire lineage is chained down by the living concept of karma don’t do this please” in all his cool, calculated charisma.  ( Though Manfred does individual investigation with the supernatural himself… Frankenstein au, anyone ?) I love the idea of Phoenix working with Gregory instead of Mia, and I think that, due to both of their determination and skills, the truth WOULD come out eventually. Of course, that’d open a whole new can of worms, especially with how close Gregory and Manfred are. I hope you enjoyed anon, thanks for the interest and asks. My main journey is going back to the place I was born in an attempt of healing. It’s been fun so far though I nearly passed out multiple times from all the walking I’ve been doing lmao.

[its-all-honey]

The Umbrella Academy Season 3 ☂️

i last week finished watching the third season woo !! i used to be so obsessed with tua after watching season 1 that i even ended up getting all the volumes of the comics 😅 after watching season 3 i also reread all the comics back to back in like one sitting lol (spoilers for both the show and the comics coming up 🫣)

im gonna try my best to not make this sound super confusing when i talk about both season 3 of the show and volume 3 of the comics lol ------------------------------- the comic ---------------------------------so i went into season 3 having not previously read the 3rd volume of the comics meaning i had no idea what would happen, though i did know that the idea of hotel obsidian/oblivion was based off the comics BUT!! i found that the 3rd season of the show practically had nothing to do with the comics other than the title 😭 the plots of the show and comics across all seasons and volumes are both very different and season 3 was the most unlike its corresponding comic. one of the main differences being that the sparrow academy are only introduced at the end of volume 3 of the comics so i honestly dont know where the whole storyline for the 3rd season of the show came from i personally found the plot of the 3rd volume of the comic quite confusing and hard to follow as the perspectives and locations kept changing a lot so im actually rather glad that they chose not to portray the events of this comic in the show. that being said, i did like how each of umbrella siblings had their own storylines/adventures that they were on. probably my favourite storyline in the comics is vanya's ongoing recovery from volume one of the comics and also the pairing of five and allison which happens throughout the comics. i also like that luther and diego's rivalry is present across the comics. ------------------------------- the show --------------------------------- in the show, i find the characters to be much more likeable and more full of personality compared to the comics so season 3 did not disappoint in that respect. it was cool to see aspects of the comics continue to be translated into the show for example allison's reluctance to use her powers is a big thing in both medias AND IM SO GLAD THAT KLAUS FINALLY GOT TO USE THE FULL POTENTIAL OF HIS POWERS IN THE SHOW 😭😭😭 all the other character progression among the umbrella siblings is great as well!!! (we love senior citizen five) i liked the sparrows though some of them did not get much screen time and a few of their powers were a bit lame in my opinion 💀 (marcus and alphonso i am looking at you, sorry not sorry) i love love LOVE fei tho she is sooooo coool and christopher being just a random floating cube is so silly to me plus if you think about it, um some woman gave birth to that?!?!?!?! seeing sparrow ben just get subtly accepted by the umbrella siblings was so sweet like they were lowkey all just so happy to see ben again even if he's different. OH AND SPEAKING OF ACCEPTING!!!!! VIKTOR HARGREEVES 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 madddd props to the producers/writers of the show for giving elliot page a trans character and doing it in such a good way ❤️❤️❤️❤️ im so obsessed with all the different sibling reactions to viktor (also vanya in the comics has short hair sooooooo) ok so a few things i didnt like so much was first of all, luther and sloane romance felt really forced to me and a bittttt weird but ive seen people say that luther was in his himbo era during season 3 so honestly i'll let it slide. secondly there's lila who i disliked in season 2 but then she shows up with stan and i loved stan he was so silly!!!! BUT THEN lila is suddenly actually pregnant😭???? idk man, it gotta hella crazy. um thirdly (this is gonna be a really hot take but hear me out), i know its the whole point of the show and its a reoccurring thing that happens but all this end of the world/apocalypse business is kindaaa boring now 🧍 i guess it does happen differently in each season so its not completely repetitive everytime and i must say that this time was actually my favourite end of the world lol hopefully, the finally season will resolve everything nicely but only time will tell i suppose 👁️👁️. im actually gonna shut up now though because this is getting so long and while i could go on and on about tua im gonna have to stop 😭

[lowstakesdilemma]

Braving the elements, all alone.

Hi, I hope you're having a beautiful day!

I'm new to tumblr, recently moved here from reddit, where I spent my days as a lurker. I thought to myself: let's expand some horizons. Tumblr seemed like a cozy place to share my ideas, so here we are.

Along with the decision to move came the inspiration to make some ttrpg characters, and in a fun way: by making a character for each song in my ever-growing Spotify playlist. I know I won't cover them all, but if something strikes me as interesting, I want to explore it. If I get the chance to improve my awful drawing skills, that's a nice bonus.

I don't know whether to make a separate post explaining all this, so for now let's just do the introductions here: this will not be a blog about optimizing dnd characters. 5e is a system very close to my heart (which sucks considering half of my players hate it passionately), so most oc's I post will likely be made using its framework (no homebrew, but all the official books are fair game), but as with pretty much all character ideas, they are fairly universal and can be adapted to many other systems. Additionally, I probably could optimize them - I'm not opposed to min-maxing, after all, but I think it's very liberating sometimes to actually try making sub-optimal characters. If you're good at the game (besides roleplaying, I'm just talking about combat here), it should pose an interesting challenge.

Gods, this post is so long already.

But we're finally getting to the actual topic. Today's song, for no particular reason, is The Darker The Weather // The Better The Man by MISSIO. I won't post the song lyrics, I'll just assume you either don't care or looked them up. If, in any of these posts, the song is on your playlist, please let me know, I won't feel as lonely in this sad world.

Our adventurer is Vishara, the Kalashtar (not really) Wizard. Let's start with her

Backstory

Vishara comes from a long lineage of warlocks living in the snowy tundra, employing the help of fiends and fey to fend off the freezing temperatures. From a very young age, she was the target of jealousy among her siblings, being treated by their grandfather as a prodigy, while rejecting the idea of selling her soul for power. She began studying the school of evocation, wanting to sever her family's dependence on the devilish magic. Once mother found out, she sent her away to study magic in the big city, protecting Vishara from her relatives.

At the academy, Vishara turned out to be a mediocre wizard at best, clearly showing the potential unique to her blood, yet not utilising it. The teachers were confused, but turned a blind eye to it, and let her pass a few years out of pity. She didn't care, and spent countless nights cramming the spell formulas, memorising the names of great wizards and witches. She made some friends, who recognised her for her kind soul, and after a few misadventures, forged a tight bond. Their group became known in the nearby villages as The Wands of Loyalty, beacuse even though they could physically be snapped in half like twigs, their camraderie proved unbreakable.

After obtaining the diplomma she wanted, Vishara said goodbye to the Wands and went back to her family home, having honed magic potent enough to melt the ice endangering any travelers. As a parting gift, the Wands gave her a robe with cantrip formulas written on it, and a few basic spell sigils woven into the fabric.

The journey was long, and even though Vishara could protect herself from harm, her frail body was tested to its limits. Upon finally arriving, she saw the family stronghold empty, devoid of life, and filled with corpses. She rushed over to her mother's room, only to find it empty and suspiciously clean, with the only thing out of place being a weird amulet she always saw her mom wear.

With a storm of questions boiling in her head, and no answers in sight, she was struck dumb, unable to form any response. That's when she felt it. The creeping chill. She heard the whisper, one her grandfather taught her to listen to, promising power, and information. A lonely spirit, just like her. Drawn to her inner flame, wanting to corrupt it. This was how Vishara met her new mentor.

Mechanics

Vishara is not really a Kalashtar. She could be anything from a human to an elf, it doesn't matter. We choose the Kalashtar race to represent Vishara's mentor - the being attached to her, the literal devil on her shoulder (well, it can be a fey or undead, but the point still stands). It protects her mind from outside interference ("it's occupied, dammit! Find your own mortal to possess!"), but sends her dreams of death and bitter cold, warning her that they will come true if she doesn't accept the deal, blah, blah blah. If the DM's cool, the Mind Link ability might also be the spirit, and we have to ask them to convey a message to someone. Pretty cool, right?

For stats, using the standard array, I'd pick something like this: 8 STR, 10 DEX, 12 (13) CON, 15 (17) INT, 14 WIS, 13 CHA. Vishara is a wizard, first and foremost, so the intelligence is a must. It can be a bit lower if you want to roleplay the 'bad wizard' thing, but we do want to help our party, not hinder it. The wisdom getting a 14 justifies our refusal to dabble with infernal powers, and possibly opens up the way to becoming a cleric, which might be appropriate. The charisma is our bloodline, and of course setting up a possible giving-in-to-temptation moment and multiclassing to warlock. The physical stats represent the fact that we're a wizard and we'll die from an average slap to the face.

As a character

Possible plot hooks for the DM: - A letter arrives, signed as Vishara's mother. - The remnants of her family come, seeking revenge, thinking it was Vishara that killed their relatives - The tundra is getting colder by the day. Someone should investigate, it may be a curse - Who made the first deal in the family? What was it about, and did it condemn all their children to being soulless? -A member of the Wands appears, they need help. Now.

As an NPC

Possible quests to give: - Escort her to a temple in the middle of the tundra, maybe lift the curse? - Vishara attacks the party, thinking it was them that killed her family. Who sent her on the party's trail? - The nearby magic academy has lost it's headmaster in a tragic fireball-related accident. Nobody wants to take up his mantle, so the staff hires the party to find a graduate for the position.

Loot: - The coat with spell formulas written on it. It can be just a fancy spell focus, or maybe a multi-spell scroll, or just a coat with Glyphs of Warding. What's their trigger? Who knows.

The song relevance (imho)

The first thing that comes to my mind when listening to this song is 'loneliness'. The way the singer pronounces "Distant", and the music backing him, is just... surreal, evoking a scene of drowning in an ocean, slowly, as your vision grows darker and darker. I know the opinion of "edgy character bad", but it's such a shallow take I won't even try to refute it here. I'll just say, complicated characters make for compelling stories, and tragedies complicate things really well. The surrealness also plays nicely into Vishara's dreams, which this passage could be all about.

The pre-chorus sets the scene just as well, giving us an easy setting for most of Vishara's story.

The chorus breaks the subtlety, shielding itself with only a metaphor from being taken literally, word for word. It's filled with anger, and hope at the same time, which isn't that easy to pull off for one, and makes for great material in the gym. Determination. Theoretically we don't need to make a character to say this part to (like I did with the devil), but it's just such a perfect quote for a warlock in the making, that I couldn't resist. I love the class so much.

The second verse is less connected to Vishara, but, interestingly enough, I think the third and fourth lines are fantastic characterizations of her to-be patron, who (at least in my version) latches onto this mortal not to hurt them, but to connect to them.

Alright, that should be everything. If you made it this far, let me just officially say: feel free to use anything you found here in your games.

May you and your friends' calendars align!

[grigori77]

Critical Role, Campaign 3 Episode 48

Oh gods, that ridiculous surfer has become a doubly ridiculous skatepunk. Gods help us. I love how this is the worst but also one of the best skit characters Sam does, it's guaranteed hilarity. Look at them all, nobody can keep a straight face ... awww ... Ashley's mimicking of his: "Ma'am ..." I love it ... and it's catching too ...

Reminder for the TLOVM season 2 finale ... of course we've already watched it ... GODS it's so frickin AWESOME ...

Essek tee? Oh my gods ... "Hot boy!" Yes. Yes indeed. Let Matt haz teeshrrrt ...

Okay, here we go again, and ALREADY I'm worked up ... IS FEARNE ALIVE?!!! IS SHE?!!! TELL ME MATTHEW!!!

Laura: "Orym's teeny, he can hide in people's legs."

Matt: "Fearne, make a death saving throw." AAAAAAAHHH!!! NO!!! A FAIL!!! HELP HER!!!

Sam ALMOST fucks the stealth roll ... phew ...

FCG casts Healing Word ... AT FIRST LEVEL? Oh! Thank you ... 11 hit points ... SHE LIVES!!! I can rest again for a moment ...

Is Chetney SERIOUSLY gonna try and THROW HIS VOICE?!!! With a horn?

Oh yes, I like Imogen's plan much better. Do that.

A MOVING stealth check? Ye gods ... oh no, this sounds like a mishmash ...

Shit ... now Ruidus Fake Version is gone it's a lot harder to find the way through ... and now they're being chased ... SHIT!!! HERE IT COMES!!!

Gnarly dragon thing napalm attack! FUUUUUUUUUCK!!!

31 point of fire damage? Oh fuck ... oh no, is Fearne down again? Laudna's down? Who's down? I'M SO CONFUSED!!!

ANOTHER stealth check? COME ON!!!

Chetney has to make an Arcana check ... OH THANK FUCK!!! It worked ... BOOK IT PEOPLE!!!

Are they gonna chuck themselves down this drop like the guys in Lone Survivor? Seriously?

Thank the gods for Feather Fall ...

Marisha: "I ... I ate Orym!" Liam: "You ate me?"

The towers ... oof ... watch where you're going guys! Another crazy great roll from Orym saves the day.

Go fast or go sneaky? The dilemma of the situation ... and now everybody's doing the mud trick from Predator.

Whoooooo ... FUCKING beautiful stealth rolls this time ... it can't find them! Yes!

Matt says "Thread the needle" in the funniest way ... XD

It's further away still ... drop the stealth and just PEG IT!!! Okay ...

Laura (to Sam, angrily): "Did you guide me?!" Sam (genuinely shocked): "Did you ASK ME TOO?!!!"

Not the fucking Iron Tithe again! FUUUUUUUCK!!! They just chuck EVERYTHING THEY CAN in ... phew! It worked ...

Matt: "Make an intelligence check, Imogen." Sge rolls ... Laura (exasperated): "I'M REALLY DUMB!!!"

Oh no ... they just went in a FUCKING CIRCLE!!! And now here it comes again ... oof ... HIDE!!!

Thank fuck for those fucking cloaks ... TOTALLY like that bit in Return of the King ...

The forest is LITERALLY fighting its own fire!

Imogen sends Morrie a desperate message ... NO RESPONSE?!!! SERIOUSLY?!!!

DO NOT INVOKE OTOHAN RIGHT NOW!!! SERIOUSLY!!! We DO NOT want another Eshteross!

Why is this big ugly bramble thicket suddenly do ominous? We ARE NOT going into THAT shit. Not in the Fey Realm.

That fucking thing's coming back AGAIN!!! ARGH!!! And another stealth check ...

Whoa ... NANA MORRIE IN GIANT BIRD FORM TO THE RESCUE!!! Liam: "Very kaiju!" Travis: "Let's them fight!" FUCKING SWEET!!!

Fuck ... and they're going into the thicket. While THAT'S going on behind them ... and Imogen is SERIOUSLY gonna shoot off a LIGHTNING BOLT right now?

I will admit, that is fucking AWESOME. Ashley: "That was COOL!!!" Sam: "You scared the woods!"

Oh shit! Morrie's DOWN?!!! Crap ... Fearne: "She's fine, she's killed bigger things than that!" She sounds a little TOO desperate to believe that ...

Oh man ... what the hell is THIS freaky arse place? Oh wait ... is THIS the gate?

Freaky cyclops thing? Oof ... what even IS THIS THING? Yuck ...

Terrosh the Lidless Slumber? SERIOUSLY?!!!

Oh no, he's a rhyming fool! That's never good ... they immediately try to come up with words that can't be rhymed to fuck with him. Oh ...A TOLL?!!!

The porcelain thimble? Oh yeah ... and FEARNE is now PISSED.

Marisha brings back the timey wimey wobbly wobbly "time is a weird soup" thing. Laura: "We have to SAY THAT?"

NO!!! NOT MISTER'S GUN!!! Fearne: "You wouldn't dare ..." Oh shit!

Laudna's abysmal rhyme ... and Bespin's journal? Nice ...

FCG does a rap ... and gives up some gingersnaps! NICE!!!

And now the shitty horror dragon is back again! Fuck!

Chetney's mini rocking horse!

Imogen gives up one of the cloaks with a truly AWFUL rhyme ... Liam: "Have we found Bailey's achilles heel?"

Time is RUNNING OUT!!! GO GO GO!!!

Fearne gives up a skeleton key ... which is not ad good a gift as HER!!! Wait ... Sam: "Are you giving him your body?!"

All right ... now what? And ARE THEY still all together?

Oh ... they're still together ... phew ... in ANOTHER jungle. Blue sky ... THAT'S a good sign ... but WHERE are they? Liam's right, they could be on Tal'dorei!

The Hellcatch Valley or the Oderan Wilds ... well then, they're at least on the right continent ...

"Illusions ..." Yes. Indeed.

The Taloned Highlands ... plateaued farmlands ... nice ... this is VERY picturesque. The Highland Bluffs ... nice.

Sruwargas ... okay ...

Whoa ... so Imogen and Laudna are HOME!!! Pretty much, anyway ...

"What's in my hole?" SERIOUSLY, Sam? That is one of the worst flask jokes you've EVER DONE ...

Why is Imogen SO dead set against going home?

Imogen's dad ... whooo ... this is already sounding like a complicated relationship. FCG starts pressing and Imogen is getting REALLY defensive about it ...

Fearne: "I know, I understand, parent shit us the worst."

Ashton: "I can hit him. I'm really good at punching parents."

No time, anyway. Need to replenish ... maybe get away from the gate, though.

Orym: "We're all still covered in Oil of Ofey." XD Ashton's all greasy, it's making it hard for him to hold onto his hammer ...

Evening drawing in, time for a short rest, while Laudna performs Find Familiar to get Pate back. Using "the Bloated remains of a ground squirrel". CHARMING.

Laudna: "What was it like being eaten by that thing?" Pate: "Not gonna lie, it was a new one."

Ashton has a fuckton of "raw Italian ingredients" in the hole for FCG's cooking. XD Adorable.

Matt has Liam roll a D20. Shit. ANOTHER ONE. Middling. TWO MORE? And now Marisha. TWICE. Matthew, WHAT THE FUCK?!!!

We're all still wondering what Imogen's deal with her dad is ... OOOH!!! BACKSTORY!!! Imogen and Laudna origins ... sweet.

Laudna (to Imogen): "Do you think he was afraid that you might ... follow in you mother's footsteps?"

Travis bouncing his rolls off of Taliesin's arse ... Taliesin: "I'm all out of buttcheeks!"

Ruidus is not in the sky. But then IT'S STILL EARLY. Idiots.

Imogen messages Planerider Ryn. Yes. What day IS IT?!!!

Somebody else is going after the Shadowfell Key! Nice!

Ryn: "You must have made an impact." Imogen: "Oh, it's DESTROYED."

"SHIT!!!" And then the message cuts off ... Imogen: "I'm sure she's all right." Really? With your current luck?

How long would it take the airship to reach them? Hmmmm ... oh, that's a crappy roll ...

13 days to the Solstice ... not TOO bad, then ...

Orym has a third nipple?

Laura: "Condoms?" Travis (as Chetney): "These aren't big enough." XD

Imogen caves, agrees to go home so they can meet the skyship in Gelvan. So there we go, then. Time for BED.

Oh shit. The Fey bodies in the Hole. Yeesh ... send them back? For the gatekeeper to EAT?!! Hmmm ... a little present as a "thank you". Yeah ...

Chetney is going "on patrol". In other words wolf out and find something to maul. Lovely.

Orym and FCG heart to heart ... awww ... and also hmmmmm ...

FCG: "I got the urge, a few times today, to really kill Chetney." Orym: "Hmm ... I think that's natural."

Orym's prime directive ... :(

Sounds of slaughter ... and a howl ... yeah ...

Matt calls a break at a naturally restful spot for once ... interesting ...

Watching the TLOVM trailer now means playing Spot the Scene since we've already finished it ... XD

Sam: "Beef dick." Matt: "WAY too late on the draw, Samuel."

Oh man ... THEY LOST A WHOLE DAY while they slept? Gah ... THAT'S what all that rolling was for ... fucking Fey Realm ...

YES!!! Check Morrie's okay! Imogen messages her ... AND GETS A RESPONSE!!! She sounds ... fine. Enough. So to speak. Still deeply unsettling too.

FCG messages Xandis. Day and a half to go before they arrive. Okay, then.

Jovan? No. GELvaan.

Chetney messages Ryn. Except of course HE DOESN'T. Meanwhile Matt's still being sneaky ... Laura: "Why does he KEEP ROLLING?!!!"

Matt uses flowery descriptions to say IT'S A TOUGH ROAD. XD Matt Has them roll constitution saves ... and now half the crew have a point of exhaustion? SERIOUSLY?!!!

Pate does the scouting. Travis: "Loudest drone ever."

Day draws late ... is it safe to camp?

More horse girl talk? Really?

Carry on for a few more hours ... Laura rolls so-so for survival so they call it a night.

Imogen checks in with Ryn and Sam INSTANTLY runs over her. Asshat. XD It's funny ... but there's STILL no response ...

Is she alive? Is she dead? Oh boy ...

Debating if doing the dream bond thing again is worth it ... it's LUCID dreaming, Samuel, not VIVID.

Imogen messages Keyleth before bed. Okay, here we go. "The Rift is in danger." Ooooooh ...

Sleepy time. Chetney: "I start to disrobe." Oh gods ...

Owl's Wisdom. Sam: "Hoo hoo!"

Imogen's going to try and home in on Ryn in her dream this time, with Laudna and FCG in tow. AND Chetney ... okay ...

Fearne: "I'm playing a relaxing pan flute." Matt: "Delightful. I love it."

Another weird dreamquest, then ...

Chetney sees a tux. The others just see another floaty globe ...

Oof ... crappy roll. Now Laudna's just spinning listlessly ...

Automatons. BIG ones. Hmmm ...

FCG (to Chetney): "Adjust your cummerbund." Laura (to the tune of the Bond Mission: Impossible theme): "Chetney ... Pock-O'Pea ..."

Okay ... what are they building? Or BURYING?!!! Hmmmmm ... oh ... AH!!! They need more power ... AND they're bring smarter and trying to HIDE parts of it too ... hmmm ...

Oh shit! Is that Otohan? Insight check ... 20! Feels safer ... but not exactly ... hmmm ... maybe it's Ryn?

Ryn is PETRIFIED!!! FUCK!!! Not dead, but still not in any kind of good place ...

FCG checks out the automatons ... oh yeah, these things are DEFINITELY for combat. Hmmm ... wait ... they're FAMILIAR to them ... whoa ... are these things aeormatons? Like FCG?

WAKE UP!!!

No! Thul's in FCG's head! AAAAAAHHH!!! Now Matt orders wisdom saves all round ... FCG znd Chetney both fail! Shit!

Punishment? WHAT?!!!

They both wake up SCREAMING ... 36 POINTS OF PSYCHIC DAMAGE?!!! FUCK!!!

FCG now has a brassiere. Fearne: "Yeah, pretty sure that's Chet's."

Yeah, seriously, I'm sure those things are aeormatons like FCG. Which means they're SUPER BAD NEWS if they end up having to go up against them ...

Sending signals between the Planes ... this is zlk getting very From Beyond ...

Power. Yeah, it always comes down to POWER.

Is the group in The Shadowfell doing any better? Can they find out? Hmmm ...

Imogen: "We've got 11 days to raise an army." Yeah ... yes, they DO need to find a way to get back in contact with Imogen's mum.

Keyleth? Oh yeah! That's right, Laudna never got to meet Keyleth, did she? That might've crossed the streams on them ... XD

To Gelvaan! Yes!

Dimension Shifting ... hmmmm ...

XD The return of FCG's emotion wheel.

What the hell is Sam digging out of his Hole? Why is he like this? Really, we need to know ...

FCG worries that if they get close he might REVERT to his "old self" ... hmmm ...

They get a long rest ... but FCG and Chetney still wake up with a point of exhaustion. Yeah, that's about right. Oh, so they're hungover, then?

Imogen tries to "open her thoughts" to perhaps do the same projection tracking thing Otohan does. It doesn't work. Hmm ...

Carrying on, then ...

The city of Gelvaan. So Imogen is home, then. Nice, quaint, rural but not too provincial. Very beautiful. Ah ... a shadow? In the sky? OH!!! Oh yeah, it's just the skyship.

Heading to Master Faramore's place, then. Through town.

Oooh ... Laudna is clearly NOT going unnoticed here ... hmmm ... oh, I love that Ashton IMMEDIATELY decides to play bodyguard for her, that's so sweet. :3

The Faramore estate ... here we go ...

Cute little half elf girl ... Cynthia? Okay.

Big guy, early middle age, ruggedly handsome ... oh, THIS is daddy, then ... okay ...

Apparently they are a "motley crew". Well YEAH.

Ashton is already down to fuck shit up. I love him so much. XD

Oh, so STRAIGHT to the hard truths then? Okay ... oh, do this was like a whole other life that he didn't even know xhe had, then? So her mum lied to her dad too ... this is sounding more tragic all the time ...

Imogen: "I know I left in a very troublesome way ..." Meanwhile I'm watching Marisha through this whole conversation and there's SO MUCH quiet, haunted, nervous concern in her face ... she really is just CHANNELING Laudna tight now.

Fearne Calloway. Queen of tact as always.

Imogen: "These ain't tall tales! Momma's in trouble!"

Flora? Oooooh ... awwwww ... that's so sweet ...

Laudna pets Flora. Then has a hay fight with FCG. :3

Yeah, her dad's just going home. They follow. The place us exactly the same, apparently. Imogen's watching the sky, waiting gor it to change. Imogen (under her breath): "Run." Oof ...

A locket? Hmmm ... inside there's a fingerprint in the metal ... that's strange ...

Apparently the town are still a bit ... off about what happened. But he's trying to apologise, af least. But he's not a very open man, clearly ... so ... looks like that's it ...

Fearne: "I bet you were the cutest little baby." :3 Yeah ...

No, really ... DO NOT steal Flora, guys ...

The skyship is, apparently, MAKING A SCENE with its arrival. They tell Imogen to hold her head high as she goes through. As they should ... and here we go ...

And now she's starting to cause a stir ... hmmm ... Matthew Mercer, are you setting something up here?

Matt: "All the campaigns, STILL against the elderly!"

Quite the big talk-up! Nice one, Captain Xandis!

And Imogen HAS TO Fly onto the ship. Laura: "I know, waste of a spell." Matt: "Not at all!"

Into the skies again, then. Off to the Hellcatch Valley, and ... there's something starting to show in the sky ... Matt: "And that's where we're gonna call it a night!"

Travis (about Imogen's dad): "Hey! He wasn't a dickbag!" No. No, he wasn't ...

[shaelashaela]

Before You Were Born, ch. 15

[reading time] 5½ mins.

A cool breeze whipped past us, ruffling the grass around the fairy circle. Rayna and I looked down upon the formation with some trepidation. It would only be the two of us, after all. I hoped it would be enough. From here, the waiting entrance to the fey world seemed plain and unassuming. Most people would have no idea it was even here.

Rayna broke the silence. “Well, Sylvie. You can’t procrastinate anymore. What’s the plan?”

I didn’t really have a plan, but I couldn’t tell her that. “We go in, quietly. We find Ixion. Hopefully we can surprise him and restrain him. I don’t really want to kill him, even after all he’s done. If we’re successful, we can turn him over to the royal knights. I know the detective said he wanted to make an arrest, but I don’t think the police would have the slimmest chance of holding him.”

“I guess this whole thing is riding on our assumption that he wouldn’t believe we’d come after him. What if he is waiting for us? Worse, what if it’s a trap?”

I dug the toe of my boot into the dirt. “It’s a possibility. We’ll just have to be cautious.”

Rayna stood and watched while I pulled a few of my father’s tools out of my bag: a set of gold rings, one for each finger on my left hand; a long, white cord of silk rope that I wound around my waist; and a belt pouch loaded with the most potent reagents I had on hand.

She put her hands in her jeans pockets. “I don’t suppose you’ve got anything that might help me… I dunno, do something? I feel a bit lost.”

I fiddled with tightening the straps of my belt. “Not without a bunch of extra training. Use what you know. Use the drills you practiced. You should be able to tap into magic more freely once we’re on the other side, so be ready for that.”

I turned to head for the ring of mushrooms, but she caught my hand in hers and pulled me back around to face her. “Sylvie?”

I looked into her beautiful eyes. The cinnamon hue was tinged with fear, and I had no idea what to say to comfort her.

She continued. “Look, it’s pretty obvious we don’t know what we’re doing, and there’s a really good chance we’re going to go in there and get… get killed. Hell, I don’t even know why I’m still following you—no, that’s a lie. I know exactly why.”

“Rayna…”

“Please, let me say what I need to say. Sylvie… I don’t know if you feel like I do, but I really think I’ve started to fall for you. I needed to tell you that before we quite possibly go to our collective doom.”

My mind and my heart raced in unison. I didn’t expect such a blunt confession. Did I feel the same way? It was hard to put into words. I definitely felt something for her, but I knew she meant romantic feelings specifically. I couldn’t say if I’d ever felt that way about anyone. What did it feel like? I remembered my mother. I knew exactly why she looked at Rayna with disapproval. She wanted grandchildren. She would be upset if I involved myself with another woman. Be it man, woman, or whatever, though, I’d never felt the way she described feeling about my father. What should I do?

I didn’t realize that I was lost in my own head. Rayna’s eyes fell to the ground after a long silence. “Oh… sorry. That was foolish.”

Now I’d hurt her feelings, and that felt like having my own heart crushed. “No! Not foolish at all. I’m sorry. I’ll try my best to explain later. It’s… complicated.”

She simpered. “Okay.”

Her voice overflowed with skepticism. Not that I could blame her; I had no way to guarantee that “later” would actually happen. I shook the confusion from my mind. As much as I wanted to comfort Rayna, this was no time to be distracted.

I turned my attention back to the unassuming circle on the ground. Without further hesitation, I leapt through the ragged edges between worlds.

All around us, tall trees with bright golden flowers and grass the colour of the ocean waves covered the landscape. Even the marsh water was crystal clear and reflected the sunlight. I could smell the sweet aroma of nectar and heard dragonflies buzzing to and fro. After so many decades away from my home, I forgot what an assault on the senses it could be compared to the human world.

Rayna ran her fingertips lightly along one of the broad, purple leaves of a shrub. “This place is gorgeous. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

I looked over at her, but I saw a different form of beauty. She was radiating with the magic of the fey realm, so much so that it dripped off of her in splashes of silver light. The raw power she could muster here surprised even me. She probably couldn’t see it herself, though.

“It’s taking a bit of adjusting even for me,” I replied. “When I was a child it was just normal, but now it’s like walking into the sunlight from a dark room. Burn this place into your memory, though. We’ll need to return here to get back to the city.”

She glanced back at the other side of the fairy circle. In this place, it was a ring of stones carved into the shapes of small mushrooms, a purposeful bridge placed here.

“That was an easy crossing. How do people not just stumble through all the time?”

I shrugged. “Some do, if they wish it. Even though it’s not hard to push through, it does still require intent. I imagine that’s how so many humans still live in denial of it all.”

She nodded and raised her hand to her face to admire a small, iridescent butterfly that had alighted on it.

I was agitated and would brook no delay. “Come on, let’s get moving. The house is this way.”

Moving across the marsh physically went much slower than my scrying session. We had to pick our footholds carefully so that we didn’t sink into the ground. All the while, the sun slowly crawled across the sky. It felt like hours passed, but that was likely a combination of my impatience and the tedious work of hopping from one patch of sodden grass to another.

I took a moment to observe our surroundings. Great grey mountains towered to the east, distant and majestic. To the west, the marsh collided with a vast forest. Even further out, almost out of sight, I could see golden spires rising above the trees. Was that Rosehold? I’d studied maps of my homeland my whole life, but it was very different trying to get my bearings from ground level. I buried my curiosity and focused on moving forward.

We drew closer to the house I’d seen before, and it was as dilapidated as I remembered. I could see no lights or other signs of inhabitance. Now that we were crossing the swamp, I felt keenly aware of how exposed we were. Anyone who was inside would be able to see us coming from quite a distance. Perhaps it would’ve been smarter to wait for nightfall? Wait… what was I thinking? I was an alchemist. I could make cover for us!

I stopped Rayna when we got to the next solid patch of grass. “Hold on. I have an idea on how to mask our approach.”

She watched patiently while I fetched a few chemical reagents from my belt pouch along with a polished disc of calcite. In the past, my father forbade me from working the weather, since it was impossible to do without irking your neighbours (for several miles around, no less). Thankfully he didn’t stop me from studying the practice, though. I said a few rites over the still water of the marsh while sprinkling in a drop of mercury, a pinch of diamond dust, and a few balsam fir needles. Then I dropped the calcite in with a satisfying splash.

After a handful of seconds, nothing changed, and Rayna peered over my shoulder. “Is something supposed to happen?”

“Give it some time…”

The water’s surface puckered. Then it happened again, and again, one after the other until rain drops formed and fell upward into the sky. I smiled, relieved. I wasn’t sure that I’d be able to recreate that particular spell from memory. Soft clouds formed rapidly all around. A dense, grey fog clung to the ground and grew to rise above our heads. Unfortunately it also chilled us and dampened our clothes.

I laughed, genuinely pleased with myself. “It worked!”

Rayna slowly twirled around in a circle, surveying the misty shroud around us. “Not exactly subtle. You think they’ll get suspicious of a sudden fog rolling in?”

“Perhaps. But they still won’t be able to see us.”

“Well, we can’t see either. We need to keep our bearings, or we’ll just miss the house entirely.”

She had a point there. I forgot that we still needed to see so we could find our way to the dilapidated building. I thought I knew which direction to go, so I led us further into the roiling mists. The fog was thick and suffocating, and I felt a growing dread fall over me. Despite the cover I’d provided us, not knowing Ixion’s location either unnerved me. I imagined his sinister face suddenly emerging from the shifting fog, and my knees shook.

I didn’t want to lose my way in the fog, so I grabbed Rayna’s hand, and together we walked in what I hoped was the right direction.

[system-contact]

It wasn’t until the door opened that Fei felt the adrenaline start to taper off. Oh, what a relief, it wasn’t empty. And the nun, he could tell right away, she looked just like the ones in Nisan, stood before them with a gentle voice and half-blind eyes crinkled by age. Fei exhaled, “Oh, I was worried you guys weren’ t—” He paused enough to heft John in sideways through the door, “open.” He could feel just by the jostle of his limbs and head that he didn’t have much awareness left, and what he did have was not gonna last long.

But, really, with how dark it was, would John even realize when he conked out? There was something really creepy about the darkness, though Fei tried to ignore it. Fuses blow, right? He nodded, “Uh, but really, no problem. Where do I put him? I think he was stabbed, and he’s been bleeding a while. I did what I could but,” Fei bit his lip and shrugged a shoulder in defeated apology. He hadn’t had enough time to rest himself to do much more. Not that the gesture meant much in the dark to a blind old nun.

Actually… wait a minute.

“Okay, well, you’re on the earth. So, cool it.” Fei quirked his lips in a mix of confusion and maybe perhaps empathetic impatience, and crossed his arms. Admittedly, different regions called the planet different things, but Earth was one of them. “Maybe we can still help you—” He didn’t have time to continue. Between Bart speaking and the man firing back just as fast, Fei looked between the two, trying to get at least one side to ease up. Oh no, it was already like having two growling cats in the room.

Billy blinked, a little lost for words at what would have been the ramblings of a madman in any other situation. You know, if they hadn’t gotten the fast and loose recounting of their planet’s history only just so recently that none of it felt solid yet. That tended to put things into a very strange perspective. “Another… world…” He looked at Fei, eyes suddenly wide and confused. “Are you sure you’re okay? Perhaps you should lay back down.”

Rico shook his head. “Yeah, sure, simple enough. But it doesn’t answer everything.” He walked up, leaning down to stare John in the eyes, making his full size very apparent. “So, answer the kids’ questions. Name and what you remember. And keep it clean.”

How did a blind old nun get around in the dark without a candle? No one helped her? Or was she the kind of blind where she’d learned to navigate without her eyes? Yeah, maybe it was that. Yeah. Her footsteps were hobbled, but she seemed fine. He was just on edge from running here and definitely feeling a man bleeding out in his arms. Not only a man on the verge of death to begin with, already distressing, but maybe the only person who could get what he was going through.

Still, he could feel the creaking and bowing of the floorboards and couldn’t help but think the place wasn’t in the best shape to begin with. Maybe that’s why he felt so weird here. Everything here felt uneasy and heavy.

“Uh, Sist—” Were they called that here? He furrowed his brow, looking around as his eyes adjusted. “… do you think he’ll have the lights on soon? I really wasn’t able to get a good look at how deep it was, but it’s really bad.” He looked down at John, the man’s features slowly coming into shape as the darkness grew normal. Eyes were fluttering, skin was pale— way too pale. Crap. He adjusted his hold on John and felt the wet stain of blood growing outward through his clothes, and every once in a while he’d manage to hear a drip in the dead quiet of the building. The smell was getting thick and metallic.

Maybe he could find a way to light up the infirmary, whenever they finally got there, because they might not be able to wait for fuses.

He wobbled along, making his way down the sidewalk while clinging to Fei's side. Pain was beginning to dull back down into a cold and tingling numb again -- that old familiar harbinger of unconsciousness to come. It wouldn't be long now, would it? At least he'd be dying next to a mate. No, he couldn't afford to think like that. He remembered the pilot on the shore of the Thames, the visions that he'd been given through contact with his desiccated bones. He remembered the lesson it had taught him.

Don't give in... To the last. Bloody. Drop. Otherwise, why did you bother in the first place?

Then he felt like he was about to slip. The whole world seemed to take a tumble out from under him, and there was now another arm under his legs. He was facing up toward the stars, and his hair was swung back out of his face for a cold breeze to flow against his skin. That was when his brain caught up to what had happened, and his sluggish head lifted back up to look at Fei in a dulled state of shock.

It was a very foreign feeling, being lifted up with such ease. One of his legs kicked just a bit in uneasy adjustment. The last time that had happened was on a dare at his fortieth birthday, and this kid wasn't nearly as big as the Lord of the Dance, was he? "What? You lifted me alone? Strewth!" was what he aimed to say aloud, but all that actually escaped was, "Wha...? You... Strrth..."

John's face gained a new hue of confusion and frustration for every gibberish continental title tossed his direction. Ignas? That was a boy's name, not a country. Terrane? That was just a word for the lay o the land? And Elru? Nothing he'd ever heard of before, just a funny sounding word. He let out a very tense sigh, shaking his head and answering plainly, "England. On Earth. Which. Isn't. Here." "This has gotta be some sort of wind-up." Bart shook his head, but found his gaze locked with the other blond, who shot him a sharp glare. "You don't get it, do you?" John narrowed his eyes and leaned forward a little, his attention no longer on trying to avoid Billy's wipes. "I'm from another world. That simple enough?" He knew it wouldn't be, in the end. They always had so many questions after he dropped that morsel of information.

John's hand barely stayed over his wound as he was held in Fei's arms, crimson beginning to seep from between his fingers. He was having a hard time keeping his head upright after so long of holding it there, but the rumble of the kicks to the door successfully kept him mostly alert, his eyes fluttering back open after beginning to drift shut. The lights were all out, and the blinds were drawn, but that wasn't how he'd seen it just half an hour ago... He took in a couple of difficult breaths, then said, "Swear it was...open before."

There was a delay after the kick, filled with pregnant silence. Then, with a low creak, the doors slid open, and an elderly nun leaned her head out the door. She looked perfectly awake, for how dark the building behind her was. "Hello, young man," she said in a saccharin voice. Her cataract stricken eyes looked downward at John, who had just begun to look her way. "In need of help? Come with me." She waved while pulling the door open wider for them to enter the dark corridor. "My deepest apologies for the dark. Our fuse blew. Dear Aston is in the basement working on it as we speak."

[purrincesskittens]

Star Eyes, Zuko is mistaken as Water Tribe.

Gift for @muffinlance based off this post and this one

......................................................................

It was night when they found him. A quick examination showed blood on the back of his head. As they pounded on his back someone noted his eyes. “Gold eyes.” They called. “Are you fire nation?” The boy lifted his head and the light of the lantern caught his eyes reflecting back at them. “Of course I am.” The kid snarls. “Star Eyes.” Someone breathed. Shit this kid was one of theirs. “Could be the child of a war bride.” Was suggested by someone. “At least he’s not a fire bender.” There was a laugh that was quickly interrupted by the star eyed boy himself. “Yes I am.” “Well that was.... honest.” 

Star eyes were only something seen in the water tribes though. Even if this kid was a fire bender he had to be water tribe. More then likely the result of a woman stolen from her tribe during a raid and raised as Fire Nation since he looked enough of the part. But he was young, probably just recruited or practically forced into joining the military. There was a easy way to figure out how dangerous this kid was or rather how much more dangerous he was considering he was a fire bender. 

“Have you ever killed someone?” Hakoda asks crouching before the boy lifting his chin in one hand so the boy had to look him in the eye with those gold colored star eyes. “What? No ... I don’t think.... No.”  The kid seemed confused the blood on the back of his head suggested a head wound but this kid was young probably just assigned to a ship only to get knocked overboard by either by a storm or by another soldier. Those eyes probably didn’t make him popular or the fact that this kid’s eyes kept sliding away from Hakoda’s own suggested he may be a fey child. 

“What do we do with him?” Somebody asks as they watch the kid cough up water, curling and uncurling his fingers against the wood of the deck his eyes cast down. “We keep him for now. His mother is probably Water Tribe war bride if he is star eyed. Have Kustaa check him over and if he survives we figure out what to do from there." Hakoda announces to the crew. They took care of their own and until they figured out who his mother was and could turn him over to her family if she had any left the crew of the Akhult would take care of him for now. Half Water Tribe and the child of a war bride was still Water Tribe and like hell were they going to turn him over to the Fire Nation to continue using as a weapon.

Kustaa later informed him the boy had hypothermia as well as potentially severe head trauma it was hard to tell right now. The kid mistook him for his uncle. Which uncle they weren't sure. It's possible the boy's mother had a picture of her family she either managed to take with her or she drew herself or he could be thinking Kustaa was his father's brother. The escape attempts didn't help some of the crews opinions on keeping the kid but considering he was raised as Fire Nation and was in a strange place so its expected that he would try to escape although climbing the mast was something Hakoda really wished he didn't do along with scaling the side of the ship.

Kustaa had mentioned the boy called for his mother while delirious along with begging his father for forgiveness pledging his loyalty to him and pleading no to the man which didn't paint a pretty picture of the man or gain much favor of the fire nation in the crews opinions. "Tell me about your mother." Hakoda suggests sitting up on the mast beside the boy. Glowing gold eyes blinked at him. "I remember trailing robes. She favored long sleeved robes with delicate embroidery. She had long hair I remember her brushing mine when I was little. I would sit in her lap and she would brush my hair talking to me about theater or turtleducks or plants. Different things she liked. I think I would sometimes tell her about my day or what I had done recently I don't remember clearly its... faded almost. Fuzzy. I barely remember what she looked like."

Hakoda frowned the boy was water tribe he had to be with those star eyes of his but why wouldn't his mother tell him about her people, her home. Maybe she couldn't? Maybe the boys father was so controlling he made sure she never spoke of home to their son? Then the boy said something that made him rethink everything he knew about the kid. "Uncle said my hair is alot like hers. Or it was. I don't even remember why I shaved it." The kid frowned obviously struggling to remember rubbing his head with one hand. The head wound had left him confused he didn't rember his name or much of anything recent but he remembered he had been burned for cowardice supposedly or partially for that but what did the fire nation consider to be cowardly? Kustaa suspected the boy's own father burned him based off what they gleaned from fever dreams and night terrors.

“What did she look like?” Hakoda questions softly holding his breath hoping he was wrong with the hunch he had. “Elegant, beautiful, she had long straight black hair that was so soft and amber eyes with flecks of true gold in them she wore long sleeved red robes with elegant embroidery. The sleeves would bellow and she would hide me in them when I was little.” The boy continued to talk about his mother someone he remembered fondly although all the details suggested the hugs, the turtle duck kisses and every else stopped when the boy was small. Something happened to his mother and Hakoda was beginning to suspect it may have something to do with the boys true parentage. But how to suggest it to the kid without breaking the poor things mind? The whole crew already suspected he was spirit touched as the water tribe liked to call those who were different mentally the earth kingdom called them fey and not all of the earth kingdom where kind to them. 

“If I promise no one on this ship will hurt you and we won’t turn you over to the Earth Kingdom will you stop with the escape attempts?”Hakoda asks when the boy falls silent picking at the grain of the wood under his hands not meeting Hakoda’s eyes. The kid blinked up at him startled. “Okay.” Getting the kid down the mast was surprisingly easy after that and a few more rules were hashed out before the kid was sent to see Kustaa again and the crew was gathered. “The boy’s mother was fire nation. He remembers her more clearly then anything else.” This drew murmurs from the crew some wanted to toss him over board then since he wasn’t the child of a war bride. “But he’s star eyed he has to be Water Tribe.” Toklo says tilting his head in confusion. “Exactly. We know he seemed to have issues regarding his father and Kustaa suspects he may have been the one to burn the kid. I learned his mother also disappeared or may possibly have been killed when he was young.” This gained more murmurs from the crew. 

Panuk pulled in a sharp audible breath. He had figured out what Hakoda was getting at. “Does any one here know where they were about 16 to 17 years ago? If they were around the Earth Kingdom or the colonies anywhere?” Their chief had to ask if none of the men on this ship was the boys father he would have to send messages out to all the others in the fleet see if anyone remembered if maybe had met a pretty woman in the Earth Kingdom or in the colonies and spent a night with her. If the kids mother was Fire Nation and he was star eyed that meant his real father had to be Water Tribe. His mother had to have married or started a new relationship soon after and the boy looked fire nation enough to pass him off as her husband’s but the husband probably suspected what with the star eyes. There was silence followed by an uproar. “You can’t be serious?!” Aake shouted in outrage. “I’m not judging anyone but the boy is water tribe and with his mother gone we most definitely are not giving him back to the Fire Nation so we need to figure out whose he is. We take care of our own.” Hakoda soothed the crews ruffled feathers listening as the men scrambled to remember where they were and what they were doing all those years ago.

Slowly they managed to clear the majority of the crew those who couldn’t remember were left struggling valiantly to justify why they couldn’t possibly be the boys father while their youngest two crew members watched with glee obviously in the clear themselves due to their age. Once Kustaa cleared the boy Hakoda set him to work and had to add no breathing fire to the list of rules. Toklo and Panuk made friends with their newest crew member over laundry and the boy was very shouty about women’s work. And then the issue over the kid not having a name he remembered came up. Names like Siqinq, Kallik, Cupun, Tulok, Yuka and Tulugaq were tossed around. He is pretty sure they settled on Tulok simply because they already have a Tuluk and Toklo on board and that name is almost a combination of the two plus it had a star meaning behind it. The boy just wanted to fit in.

Reds were changed for Toklo’s blues and the boys hair shaved to regrow properly after Kustaa managed to break it to the kid that a real father wouldn’t abuse his son, biological or not. They picked up Bato who sympathized with them for wanting to keep the star eyed child, teach him his real culture, and find his real father but the kid was still a fire bender. A fire bender on a WOODEN SHIP!! The boy, Toluk looked like a kicked polar puppy being denied sleep in the hammock he was used to and his usual snacks when ever he wanted. They still had a lot of work cut out for them when the kid thought he would be killed over a bending accident because he didn’t fully remember he needed to mediate to control his fire. His memories were still patchy at best. So Hakoda ended up with his temporary foster star eyed child sitting in his cabin breathing with a lantern holding a dog.  

The kid liked sea prunes proving he was Water Tribe at heart. He was good at using his fire bending for non evil purposes even if he protested it. He proved he shouldn’t be left alone in port either by himself or with his friends. He gained a piercing, two rusted swords, a theater scroll and a cabbage? No one seems to know about the cabbage. He can cook as it’s proven despite how spicy his cooking is and nearly gets kidnapped by prostitutes. Sex workers were not on the list of people Hakoda thought he would have to fight for custody of Tulok with. He nearly gets himself kidnapped by a Earth Kingdom solider they are allied with who seemed sure their boy was then dead prince of the Fire Nation. Never mind that the prince was dead and their boy was star eyed. The solider was surprisingly unfazed by the heat of the kids cooking. He didn't end up kidnapped despite his best efforts.. The kid really needed to stop climbing the mast. “Prince Zuko?!” Hakoda’s kids seemed to also mistake Tulok for the dead prince. 

“That’s the Prince of the Fire Nation, dad he chased us all over and tried to capture the avatar numerous times. His sister did capture Aang.” His kids argued trying to convince him that their new foster brother was some evil prince. The kid in question for his part had more headaches then usual and just seemed more confused and angry. He remembered something. A little sister named LaLa. It takes a while but after watching their new brother and listening to the crew, “His name is Zuko, he is the prince of the Fire Nation, his father is Fire Lord Ozai does no one care about that?!” Sokka asks in outrage staring as the kid in question does laundry like its a perfectly normal thing for a prince to do. “His mother may be fire nation but his father sure isn’t.” Panuk comments dodging a wet shirt thrown by their resident fire bender.  This earned laughter and calls of “Good for her!!” And “She could do a lot better!” Followed by “At least a water tribesman would treat her right!!”. Sokka groaned in frustration and confusion. 

“Why is my nephew wearing blue, convinced Ozai isn’t his biological father and that he is water tribe?” General Iroh the Dragon of the West questions calmly. Tulok seemed to recognize Iroh and even called him Uncle and recognized some of the crew but he still didn’t have complete clear memories although his headaches grew worse until Kustaa told him it didn’t matter if he remembered or not he was water tribe and nothing was going to change that spirit touched or not. “He is star eyed you can’t possibly tell me the fire nation has star eyed kids that’s a water tribe thing only.” Iroh considered it briefly before dismissing it. His nephew looked similar to a young Ozai, so Ozai had to be his father even if he wasn’t much of one and his nephew deserved better then Ozai. But surely Ursa couldn’t have had an affair while married to Ozai it was impossible. Iroh tried to do the math off the top of his head of when Ursa and Ozai married vs when Zuko was born. “Look the obvious answer here is that the boys mom met with a Water Tribe beefcake and had a one night stand that lead to the boy. It’s the only thing that explains why his supposed father hated him so much and why he struggled with fire bending and is star eyed.” Bato explains grinning. “Beefcake?” Hakoda and Iroh question. 

Azula finds this all far to amusing. “That just means I’m the rightful heir after all. You can stay here with your little water tribe family and I can be the next Fire Lord after Uncle.” Somehow things get worked out that their star eyed fire bender’s fire nation sister will be staying with them along side her two scary friends and the kids supposed Uncle will become the next Fire Lord once they take down Ozai. The kid is still confused and there are still gaps in his memories but they aren’t giving him back now he is their’s and the fire nation can’t have him. They still call him Tulok since the fire nation does consider the sun to be a star after all. He seems to like it better then Zuko. He still does their laundry still wears beads in his braids in red, blue and one gold. In all that’s happened no one thought to alert the rest of the fleet about what they learned leaving them in for one heck of a surprise when they reach Chameleon Bay where the rest of the men from the fleet scramble to try to remember where they were sixteen-point-nine years ago. 

[gravity-barbie]

How did the Sparrows control their powers? Were some powers more difficult to manage than others?

I haven’t really considered it that much and I can really only guess, but here are some quick thoughts I have on them all, listed from who I think had the easiest to hardest time dealing with their powers.

Jayme

Jayme’s power seems the most tame, I don’t think she ever struggles to control it, and I doubt it’s caused her much angst beyond maybe being jealous that she doesn’t have a particularly brutal power- Though I could see that genuinely being a real issue for her.

Her power is weirdly most similar to Allison’s in that it’s not that hard to avoid if you know about it, but once she’s used it she’s won. We see she doesn’t get the chance to use it on Ben during their spar, so she could of potentially ended up in situations like that often where her power was pretty much rendered useless and she had to rely more on her wits, her character description did say she was ‘smart and sharp as a knife’.

Marcus

So apparently Marcus and Luther have the same power, Marcus is just better at using it. I like to imagine that both of them had to work really hard just to get to a point where they don’t break everything they hold or seriously injure people with basic physical contact, though as neither of them are cautious about getting rough with people I don’t think either had any major power related accidents.

Marcus is superior now because of his speed and technique (which I choose to believe he got through his own dedication rather than Reginald just training him better), but considering how clumsy Luther’s powers make him, I assume that’s something Marcus did struggle with at one point as well.

Sloane

Sloane seems to have the best relationship with her power out of anyone, she’s at the point where she can just have fun with it, using it to sit on her bedroom roof for instance. Seeing as she seems to be a pretty sensitive person I assume she didn’t have any childhood trauma associated with her power if she’s so comfortable with it now.

Like her umbrella counterpart Five, Sloane also has a lot of physics knowledge so I do wonder if she also needs to do the same kind of calculations and things as him to best use her powers, I don’t think thats really implied but it’d make sense and flesh her out.

Alphonso

Alphonso is interesting for being the only sparrow that isn’t in peak physical condition. Alphonso’s appearance implies that besides the pain his body still experiences the effects of any hit it gets, which I assume would take a toll and really wear him down overtime and could definitely be the cause of that sluggishness of his, and maybe even his need for an inhaler.

I don’t think he could accidentally use his power, since it looks like he needs to consciously activate it (and struggles to do so when exhausted), so I’d say he has an easy enough time managing his power, though he might of had a hard time developing the stamina and concentration he seems to need to use it effectively.

Fei

I’m a little confused about Fei’s power honestly, specifically where her vision is concerned, all the scratches over her eyes seem to indicate that her birds were the ones that blinded her, but throughout the show she’s always perfectly in control of them, they don’t seem to have free will.

I have a half-baked theory that she blinded herself. Something along the lines of her being so overwhelmed when she starts to see out of all the different birds eyes that she has some kind of mental break and blinds herself in a panic while trying to make it stop. But it could also just be that there was a time when her birds had more agency but she’s tamed them overtime.

Anyway, Fei seems to be in (I’m assuming physical) discomfort when her birds are hurt, which is a pretty big weakness. It was probably quite a burden trying to keep them all relatively safe mid-battle, which could play into how she became so calculated.

Christopher

So Christopher’s actual power, that ability to induce this paralysing fear, tends to get overshadowed by the fact that he’s a cube, which doesn’t even seem to even be relevant to his power. But yeah, he appears to be incredibly powerful, he’s able to incapacitate half the umbrellas (including Viktor) seemingly effortlessly, and he’s strong enough to temporarily contain a kugelblitz, so I assume it’s not easy for him to hold back which could of been a problem for him when it comes to things like sparring with his siblings.

If nothing else I’m positive that his inhuman physiology would of caused him a lot of angst throughout his life even if he’s comfortable with it now.

Ben

I am so curious about how Sparrow-Ben ended up with such better control over his powers than Umbrella-Ben. It could be a dominance thing, as number one this Ben was trained to be in charge and maybe that carried over towards the monster inside him. Umbrella-Ben also seemed to have a much lower tolerance for causing people pain, so maybe sparrow-ben and the horror were more in sync as opposed to umbrella-Ben fighting against it, which could of made dealing with it easier.

Regardless I still think Ben must of worked really hard to get the control over his tentacles that he has.

[writingbywatson]

Genshin Boys With A Dense Crush (Part 2)

Here is part 2~ so, the reason why I didn't include Bennett and Razor is the fact that I can never write for them, like IDK why but its just very hard for me. So yeah, sorry about that. Part 1 (Albedo, Childe and Diluc)

Chongyun

Dense + Dense = more dense

It was painfully obvious that Chongyun likes you but for some reason, he can’t quite figure that out for himself

But everyone around them knows

Xingqiu is actually on the road to writing a book about the two of you

Xiangling, Xinyan, Hu Tao, and Yan Fei are betting on how long until Chongyun realizes his feelings

Chongyun doesn’t know why he likes to see you every day, wants to have meals with you, and why he gets uncomfortable when he sees you with another person and smiling at them

Maybe it was the work of g-

“Oh I like them” -Chongyun one day when he woke up

He consulted his best friend Xingqiu about this and Xingqiu just placed his books down and said “dear archons finally, it was getting very painful to watch”

So the two started planning a cute little confession scenario

Somewhere Xinyan and Yan Fei are crying because they lost the best but Yan Fei is arguing that betting was illegal and has no ground in the law… Yan Fei, you betted with your conscience please stop

Anyway!

The pair of best friends decided to go with a simple type of confession because less is more in Xingqiu’s books

It was going so well, a cute dinner and all of that

“I like you Y/N, can we be more than that?”

Oh is that Xingqiu, Xiangling, Xinyan, Hu Tao, and Yan Fei spying on both of you from the bushes? Why, yes indeed.

“You want to be best friends Chongyun? But don’t you have Xingqiu as your best friend already?” - you with your ever so innocent voice and expression

Chongyun is frozen in place

Xingqiu, Xiangling, Xinyan, Hu Tao and Yan Fei are betting again this time how many times will Chongyun get a friendzone

Kaeya

Someone revive him

He can’t take your dense nature anymore

This is Kaeya after all everything he does allude to something so WHY WON'T YOU GET IT STILL

“Oh, Kaeya? You like someone!? Can you introduce me to them?” - you asking excitedly upon hearing his and Rosaria’s conversation

Kaeya was pretty sure he was describing you

Rosaria is holding back her laugh, she can't breathe… SOMEONE SAVE HER

“I love them but this dense attitude is too much!” - Kaeya as he slams his fist on top of Diluc’s bar

“Have you tried wooing them?” - Diluc as his wiping a glass down, he's so nonchalant about this situation LMAO

“HAVE I TRIED?” - Kaeya sounding very offended

“How about getting a white bed sheet and painting “will you marry me Y/N” on it?” - Rosaria

“Yeah, they leave me no ch-”

“Sit down, don’t embarrass yourself like a child” - Diluc pushing his brother down to sit

“HOW WILL I GET MY FEELINGS ACROSS THOUGH!”

“Just confess, normally… like… a normal person” - Diluc

Kaeya decided that in two days time he was going to confess to you, two days because he needed to make sure it was perfect

But the moment he saw you laughing with some random guy all the planning was thrown out the window

“Meet me in front of the church when the sun rises” - Kaeya to you when he passes by you at the corridor of the headquarters

When you arrived, he made you stand at the flight of stairs in front of the church while he went down

He kneeled with his right knee touching the ground and he pulled a very neatly folded white sheet from his pocket

He unraveled it and wrote, “WILL YOU MARRY ME Y/N?”

But even before you can react a thunderous shouting can be heard and a chuckle

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!? I SAID CONFESS NORMALLY!” -Diluc

Thoma

I’m going to try but still little info on this new pyro husband

Thoma is a very understanding boy

He likes you so much that he's willing to wait

But damn has he been waiting long

He decided he was going to confess to you today as well!

“Y/N! I like you!” - Thoma

“I like you too! You are like my best friend!” - you

Every time this happens Thoma stress eats.

Ayaka is giggling because he has never seen her friend like this

He's trying his best for you to like him, he cooks for you, takes care of you, guards you, protects you…

WHAT IS HE DOING WRONG!?

“You know the festival is ongoing” -Ayato as he watches his sister’s friend mop around like a puppy who has been kicked. “Why don’t you try confessing properly and straight-forwardly there?”

That gave him an idea

He dragged to the talisman-wishing thing and told you that you two should make one

When the both of you were done, you should each other what you made and to your surprise, Thoma made a drawing of the both of you holding hands

“It’s not us being best friends forever” - he clarified

“It’s me hoping to spend many more years beside you as your lover.”

Venti

Barbatos aka Venti the Bard has been singing a lot of love songs lately

Especially when you were in the audience watching

He always likes your smile especially when you were watching him

So when the two of you were strolling around near the church of Monstad

He decided that he was going to confess today

Years of being alone and he finally get what Vanessa told him about meeting the right person

“Y/N, I love you-”

“Aww, Venti, I love you too!”

“Really?!” - Venti very excitedly

“Yeah! I love you as a friend! We’re like besties!”

Dvalin felt that

Andrius felt that

Hell even Vanessa felt that from Celestia

“Oh I got to go, bestie, I have something to do! See you tomorrow!”

Lately, the winds of Monstad have been depressing?

“I don’t understand! I thought they liked me back!” Venti his chugging his alcohol while Diluc looked at him in irritation

Diluc wants to kick him out but Venti is Monstad’s archon so he decided against it

“Venti! There you are!” - you

Venti hears your voice and because his drunk his happy instead of upset

He throws himself at you in an attempt of a sloppy hug

“Y/N! I love you~”

“I love you too, we are fr-”

“NO! I LOVE YOU LIKE A SIGNIFICANT OTHER I LOVE YOU! THAT TYPE OF LOVE THAT IF YOU ASK ME TO FIGHT MORAX I WOULD!”

Xiao

When Xiao first had these feelings he was confused

He lived a long life and this was the first time in his life where when he sees someone his chest becomes constricted and warm

“Xiao! Do you like traveler!?” - you excitedly

Xiao felt a tightening in his chest not that good type but am i being stab right now type of tightening

His answer would usually be along the lines of no and he can’t have relationships with mortals

He usually has a lot more patience with you compared to others but hearing you say that he looks good with someone else just made something in him snap

He didn’t mean to shout at you nor did he mean it when he said you should leave him alone

That’s why he's waiting for you at Wangshun Inn, his loneliness grew into worry when after 2 days you weren’t back yet

Upon eavesdropping around he also found out that no one has seen you and your last known location was Mt. Hulao and he immediately began to worry because that place was prohibited to humans

“Are you looking for someone?” - Mountain Sharper appeared behind Xiao as he reached the top of Mt. Hulao. “Are you looking for a mortal perhaps?”

“How did-”

“-That mortal is pretty noisy, they don’t stop talking and they know you.”

Oh, the warm feeling in his chest is back because they were talking about him which means that they weren’t angry at him!

“Where are they!?” Xiao would realize and I swear to you his ready to break every amber rock around Mt.Hulao

“Calm down, they are currently collecting Qingxin flowers”

Right on cue, “XIAO!? IS THAT YOU!?” he heard your voice from behind him, when he saw you, he immediately rushes to you and hugs you

“What are you doing here!?” Xiao would ask, his voice was raised only because of relief

“Oh, I got lost! And Moon Sharper here saw me, we ended up chatting and I guess I forgot the time, he shared so many stories about y- WHY DO YOU LOOK LIKE THAT ARE YOU HURT!?”

“I’m alright… I just… I m-miss…”

Moon Sharper is just looking at this scene and he knows he's about to spill the hottest tea next time the adeptus (idk plural form okay) have a dinner party

Xingqiu

At first glance, it might look like that he isn’t affected at all

But internal his boiling

WHY WERE YOU SO DENSE

IF IT WEREN’T FOR HIS CLAN'S TEACHING AND WHAT NOT HIS PROBABLY ABOUT TO ASK YOU FOR A FIGHT

“You’ll make a great husband someday Xingqiu, I know it! Your future wife would be so happy!”

“I want you to be my wife though”

“What was that?”

“NOTHING!”

He knows he needs to move so he can win your heart but how can he when you were dodging every advance he makes

What is more frustrating is that YOU ARE NOT EVEN DOING IT ON PURPOSE

As an author he wants to experience romance first hand, so he tries to be romantic about it but this was frustrating

He decided to pull his last technique from his sleeves

He lent you a very romantic book and between one of the pages he inserted a paper that read “I wish for you to be my muse.”

If that doesn’t work Xingqiu is going to ask you to fight him

Zhongli

Zhongli, Rex Lapis aka Morax has lived thousands of years

Yet this is the first time he encountered someone so dense at first he taught you were just kidding and pretending but when he described what he likes in someone which was pertaining to you

You simply said “WOW THEY SOUND WONDERFUL AND YOU MUST REALLY LIKE THEM BECAUSE YOU SOUND SO IN LOVE” at his face with genuine awe, there was no sign of you being flustered and whatnot

Hu Tao was there to witness this and the younger female had a good laugh when she witnessed this

Zhongli is now praying to Guizhong for help and patience

He first wondered if the reason for such behavior was because you dislike him but it wasn’t the case because you would always smile when you see him

Which makes his knees very weak

In heaven, all the dead gods are laughing at him

He has lived for so many years and yet he doesn’t know what to do because he wants to spend years with you

But a part of him says this isn’t right because his an immortal and you were a mortal, someday him being a former god would drive an enigma in the future

That’s why he was also hesitating on his part

“Zhongli, look-look! A merchant from Monstad gave me a Cecilia!” - you snapping him from his thought, he's a tall man so you had to tip-toe to put the flower in his hair

“There you look even prettier now!” - you smiling up to him

As you were withdrawing your hand, Zhongli grabs it and places it in front of his lips

“I love you Y/N”