#then they justified the trident with 'it's for laughs'

[mobolanz]

Man...

[lightshcwer]

liam choked out a laugh at hannah's remark, then brought his elbow up to cover his face when it turned into a coughing fit. after a moment, he sighed. "oh, fuck. that's... yeah. i mean, he has no reason to be this jacked for a little chitchat with the fishies. though i have no idea what else he does, maybe it's justified after all", he frowned, trying to recall to the best of his ability. his eyes widened slightly then he beamed at hannah. "poseidon, right! he's the king of sea-ish, though... right? isn't he the one with the trident? no, wait... that's.. triton? i have no clue, but i'm sorry to say i'm an enabler. so, i'm not the one you're gonna wanna turn to if you want me to stop your ramblings", he smiled. liam couldn't keep his eyes off of her. all he could do was hope that he wasn't being downright creepy about it, but he spent every second trying to keep the dopey grin he felt coming on at bay. girls liked mysterious. at least, that's what his brother said. since when was he following dating advice from jackson of all people? he had no idea. but he had nothing else in his arsenal, so he would have to try something at some point. "you're telling me i can call a phone number, really?" liam could barely take himself seriously. "okay, sorry, i had to. you handed it to me." he paused, let a few beats pass between them as he debated whether he should answer that or not. "uhh... i like thrillers, horror. crime stuff, mostly. not necessarily true crime but just... police drama and whatnot. i'm not against a romance when it's involved in the overall plot, but i don't like it being the point, y'know? like, it being all there is", he shrugged. he quirked up a brow at her mention of mario kart. "that's... a bold claim. really bold claim, miss hannah. who do you play? just tell me that and i'll know if you're full of it or if you're a real one. there is a wrong answer, here."

"hey, fair enough but i just think there's nothing wrong with being different from the rest. though, i have to say that he's entirely too muscular. i mean, does that sound weird? i just would've imagined a man who talks to fix as someone a bit smaller." she paused for a moment, "though, i guess posiden was perceived as a big guy and they're probably wanting him to have the same vibe. sorry, i'm rambling now. you're welcome to tell me shut up at any point." god, she was embarrassing herself. hannah was convinced that he didn't care what she was talking about in his moment and she was definitely ruining the fact that he said he'd take her number. he didn't seem to hesitate though and even slowed down to take his phone out and in response, she stopped along with him. her eyes watched his fingers moved over his phone screen as she spoke her number out loud. "and you know, you don't have to just...use that for emergencies. you can text or call whenever." she spoke softly. she hoped she wasn't too forward or that she didn't sound too desperate. as they stopped in front of the table, she started setting up the display, glancing over at the man every now and again as he spoke. "well, i can recommend books. i read all sorts. what are you normally into?" she questioned, pausing as he mentioned hobbies. "nothing wrong with wanting to get out of the house. though, i may have to take you up on some video games. i think i could totally kick your butt in mario kart. i'm basically a pro."

[onecanonlife]

Tommy is dead. The server reacts.

(word count: 1,732)

---------------

“What have you done?”

His voice is a reedy whisper, thin with horror and the realization that he is too little, too late. He doesn’t expect the sound to carry over the lava, but a response comes soon enough.

“He wouldn’t stop talking. And he killed the cat.”

Dream’s voice is even, calm, almost a bit defensive, as if he truly believes that he is justified in his actions. Sam swallows down his mounting nausea, places his trident against the floor to steady himself. The lava crackles, hisses, bubbles, orange and glowing, and he can’t cross it. Not now. Not when the security threat remains unresolved. Not when any wrong move on his part could very well mean Dream’s escape.

But he’s already made the wrong move, hasn’t he? Made the wrong move, and Tommy has paid for it. Has been paying for it, this whole last week. He kept him in there, kept him locked in a box with Dream even though he knows very well how it would effect him, kept him locked in with the reasoning that it was temporary, that he would let him out as soon as he could, that he couldn’t risk Dream’s release for anyone, even for Tommy.

But it’s not temporary.

Tommy was sixteen and loud-mouthed and bright-eyed when Sam last saw him, when he said that this would be the last time, that he was going to put his past behind him and look to a new start. Tommy will always be sixteen and loud-mouthed and bright-eyed, and locked in a box. There will be no new start. No seventeenth birthday. No triumphant return, no shining hotel. No tricks, no scams, no pranks.

Tommy was sixteen and loud-mouthed and bright-eyed. Tommy is dead.

He can’t even get his body.

He can’t even get his body.

Sam stands on the edge of a curtain of lava, staring into the orange glow that hides a monster in a room that is now a child’s pre-made coffin, and he wonders if he is a monster himself.

***

“He’s fine.”

It’s the only thing to say. The only truth. The only possibility. Sure, the message is there, glaring up from his communicator in bright yellow letters, but it’s not real. It’s a joke of some kind, a trick. Something to fake everyone out. Maybe Sam’s in on it, too. Tommy must be going crazy in there, to think that this would actually be funny, but it sounds like something he would do.

“Tubbo,” Ranboo says, and then stops. Nothing else. His face is pale, though things like that are hard to tell, with him, considering that half his face is always pale. But he’s gone an ashy-grey sort of color, and it doesn’t look great.

“He’s not dead,” he says, and laughs a bit. “Tommy wouldn’t just die like that. That’d be ridiculous.”

Tommy’s death would never be so meek. Tommy’s death, when it happens, will be a spectacle, a dramatic showing with speeches and explosions and the sun rising at just the right time and haloing his hair, because TommyInnit deserves nothing less than the best death scene. Women wailing and the like. So Tommy is not dead, because if Tommy were dead, that would mean that he died alone, in the company of no one but his murderer, that he died scared, trapped in a small space with no way out, that he died without Tubbo by his side.

“Right,” Ranboo says, and his voice is doing a peculiar thing that Tubbo can’t quite work out. “Yeah, of course. Do you wanna—do you think we should go check it out? Go stop by the prison?”

“What for?” he asks. “Sam’s not going to let us in. He didn’t even when I built a dick on top of it.”

And here is another thing: Tommy can’t be dead because it was never supposed to be Tommy first. Tubbo has tried to live without him, and he found it very hard. So Tommy is not allowed to die before Tubbo does. That is the rule that he keeps locked up in his heart, because Tommy would be upset if he knew about it. But it’s a rule that Tubbo intends to follow, so Tommy can’t be dead.

That would be against the rules.

“Just to see?” Ranboo tries. Tubbo’s not sure why he’s being so insistent about this.

“Nah, we’ve got a hotel to build,” he says. “C’mon.”

Ranboo follows along behind him. His feet drag, like he’s reluctant. But Tubbo has long since given up on understanding why Ranboo does the things that he does.

***

He’s dead.

She should be glad about it. This is what she wanted. Tommy dead, punished for all the pain and suffering he’s caused everyone else. No longer able to start wars, to cause harm, to blaze his way through the server and leave a path of destruction in his wake.

Tommy is dead. She should be glad about it. She is glad about it. She’s even smiling.

There is a message from Jack. She doesn’t check it.

Tommy is dead, that blue-eyed, wide-grinned boy who followed along on his brother’s coattails. Tommy is dead, that fiery spirit crushed and his overbearing, fast-talking voice silent. Tommy is dead, that loyal friend, the protector and defender of all that he called his, the fighter, the scammer, the boy who loved with all of his heart and then some.

Tommy is dead. Dead, dead, dead. There is no coming back from dead. Dead is final. Dead is an ending. Dead means it’s all over. Tommy is over. Tommy is gone. Tommy will never grow old.

It’s what she wanted. She should be glad about it. She is glad about it. She’s even smiling.

Niki brings her hand to her mouth to check. It’s a smile. A smile, for sure.

Her fingers come away from her face wet.

***

It was an empty castle already, but it feels emptier now. The different between a possibility and its lack, they suppose.

Tommy was never supposed to die. They can’t fathom it, somehow. Can’t fathom that it’s real, that Tommy will never grace these halls again. They’d finally begun to fix things, begun to work toward redemption, well and truly. And now Tommy is gone.

Eret grips their communicator tightly in their hand.

“I’m sorry,” they murmur to no one at all.

It was never meant to be echoes in their head, over and over and over again, an apology that means nothing but so much scattered dust.

***

He closes his eyes. Breathes. In and out.

This happens. People die. They die, and they leave, and he’s left behind. That’s his life. That’s how it is.

It still hurts, when it happens. He’s still learning how to make it not hurt. Still learning how not to be angry, that people find it so easy to abandon him. That people find it so easy to go where he can’t follow. Wilbur first, now Tommy, and he doesn’t have anyone left, really.

But it’s fine. It’s alright. He can manage on his own. He always has.

Fundy decides to go to bed early.

***

He takes a moment to breathe. To process. To absorb.

To regret, for what might have been.

The voices in his head call for blood, as they always do, but he will not give them the satisfaction. Not this time. The blood he wants most is not readily accessible, and he will not put himself in the position of confronting the favor owed. Not now. Not like this. Not ever, if he can help it, though he knows that these sorts of things always take their due, always steal their pound of flesh.

“I know, chat,” he says. “You can all shut up, I know.”

It doesn’t appease them. He wasn’t expecting it to.

Tommy is dead. Tommy is dead, and their relationship with it. Any tentative attempts toward repairs have been left to rot, to burn on the funeral pyre. Theseus, fallen from the cliff at long last.

The story was always going to end this way. No one can stop the Fates from severing the string.

He stands with a groan. He is not built for this weather, for this cold, and it is a wonder that he keeps being drawn to it, time and time again. It is a balm, he thinks, but for what, he doesn’t know. For nothing, at the moment, as the voices threaten to crowd out all the rest. But he can’t deal with them right now.

Phil has his own house, now, and a bridge to connect the two. A bridge over still water, such that Tommy will never cross. He should not feel the way he does. Tommy betrayed him. Tommy used him. Tommy discarded him, so he tossed him aside in turn.

But once they were called brothers. Does it mean anything, in the end?

Phil is standing in the middle of the floor, ruined wings on full display. His face is blank, his communicator held loosely in one hand.

“Phil,” he says.

“I failed him,” Phil says. “I should’ve been there for him, and I wasn’t.”

Technoblade has no comfort for the truth.

But he has comfort for his friend, for his friend who is perhaps his father but is definitely family, so he stretches out his arms and catches Phil as he falls, falls and falls and screams, and it is good, he thinks, that the wings are already ruined, because Daedalus tried to catch his son and failed. It is good, he thinks, that the wings are already ruined, so he cannot try again and ruin the rest of himself, too.

***

He nudges the body with his foot.

“You shouldn’t have killed that cat,” he murmurs. The body does not reply, and he sighs.

Tommy’s face is beyond recognition. The blood coats his knuckles. He hopes that there’s enough water in the sink to wash it out before it sets. He hates it when the blood sets.

He didn’t mean to go as far as he did. That doesn’t mean much, in the end. This will work just as well.

He is a god, after all. He is a god, and he will have what he deserves, and more besides.

“Don’t worry, Tommy,” he says. “I’ll make a believer out of you yet.”

[mindpoisonhoworiginal]

The Dinner

(The story takes place around 17th century, Hob has already known who Dream is)

It seemed like they had already discussed how tonight's dinner should go a thousand times, but Hob was still worried. Not so long ago, he should have bitten his tongue then, he said a few words about Morpheus in the company of his aristocratic acquaintances and they immediately wanted to see his mysterious friend at their dinner.

To be honest, Hob hoped that Morpheus would refuse the invitation. But as soon as he told about the dinner, the King of Dreams accepted the invitation and justified Hob's question "Why?" by saying that he was interested in communicating with other people besides Hob.

And here they are both at the threshold of a huge house. It seems to be the house of Adamson's family, no other way. Hob is terribly nervous, he is sure that they have definitely forgotten something, but he can't remember what exactly, and Morpheus is standing next to him with an absolutely imperturbable look, well, as usual.

The huge door of the house is boiled .

"Well, it has started," - thinks Hob.

...

Amazing. Two hours of dinner have already passed, although there was no "dinner" yet, but Morpheus fit perfectly into the atmosphere. Hob doesn't know what contributed more to this, the fact that Morpheus, in general, looks like a real aristocrat and has the same perfect manners, which even Hob can envy or the fact that Morpheus could easily support absolutely any conversation, and it seems like his friend talked for SO long for the first time. In any case, Hob was glad that everything was going smoothly, although he was still haunted by the thought that they had forgotten something after all.

Morpheus: Thank you for inviting me to dinner, it's very kind of you.

Lady Adamson: No thank you, Lord Morpheus, for coming to us, Sir Robert has told us so much about you.

"In reality Hob mentioned him twice"

Lord Adamson: Really, we would never have believed that you were from Greece.

"The fact that Morpheus will be a lord from Greece, they decided quickly."

Lord Adamson: You have absolutely no accent!

Hob: Lord Morpheus, has been living in England for quite a long time and-

Hob was saved from further explanations by the ringing of bells, which meant that "the very" dinner was finally ready. And they sat down at the table.

Hob *whispers*: Honestly, I didn't expect you to fit in so well. Morpheus: Thank you, my friend. I told you you were worrying in vain.

Lady Adamson: Help yourself, dear guests.

"Well, apparently today will really be a great evening after all" - thinks Hob.

Suddenly, all the conversations at the table were interrupted. And everyone stared at Morpheus, including Hob.

Morpheus takes all the food with a spoon, and somewhere he takes everything with his hands. With one knife, he tries to cut a piece of meat, it seems that he does not succeed much, and having already noticeably soiled his hands, he wipes them on the tablecloth.

The owners hesitate to say anything to Morpheus, only look at the Hob in bewilderment.

"Jesus Christ."

That's what he didn't tell Morpheus. The new dining etiquette, damn it.

Hob whispers to Morpheus: Darling, maybe in order to properly taste the meal you will use a fork?

Morpheus: A fork?

Hob points to the cutlery that is to the left of Morpheus' plate.

All of a sudden, Morpheus starting to laugh. And his laughter cannot be described in words. Hob is delighted, but the host of the house are horrified.

Morpheus *still laughing*: Ah, Hob, you never cease to amaze me, you've always been so funny. For people to use Poseidon's trident as a cutlery! Only you could have thought of such a thing, my friend!

By the faces of the owners, Hob understands that the situation has finally got out of control and it seems it's time to retreat.

Hob: Lord and Lady Adamsons, if you'll excuse me and my friend, we need to step back and have a word.

Morpheus: There's no need for that, my dear friend, I have to go now. Thank you for a wonderful dinner and for a good time.

Morpheus leaves the house.

"Thank, gods, he used door" - this is the only thing that Hob can think about right now, as he realises that he will have to explain the Adamsons what the hell did just happen.

The next day.

Morpheus: Was I able to impress your friends, Hob Gadling?

Hob: Oh yeah, you sure did, dear friend.

Hob doesn't know if he managed to convince Adamsons that everything that happened at the table is how people eat in Greece, or now they think that Morpheus was raised by wolves, in any case, Hob will remember that dinner for a long time.

(me again with my little silly stories about little silly Dream. Read somewhere, that fork were commonly used in England only around the beginning of 17th century, so the idea that Morpheus didn't know what fork is, came to my mind. And If I were him I would mix up fork with trident as well)

[sayruq]

As much as Arya might adore Jon, if he actually tried saying something about Sansa's forced marriage she'd go feral lol. She has a mind of her own and isn't afraid to call Jon out if need be (ie in Arya I when she tells Jon off about Joffrey having Cerseis arms as well)

Concerning Bran he stood up for Sansa and is a protective sibling so yeah I'm not going to entertain the possibility he would be OK with what happened to Sansa. And if they were.... well I said it before but she would be 100% justified in turning her back on them then

this is an unpopular opinion but arya is more likely to not believe sansa than anyone else in the family. look at how she's been rewriting what happened at the trident (she now thinks that sansa chose joffrey's side) and her reaction to sansa's marriage which starts out with arya in disbelief and ends up with arya wondering if it was true that sansa was in league with a lannister.

"I forgot, you've been hiding under a rock. The northern girl. Winterfell's daughter. We heard she killed the king with a spell, and afterward changed into a wolf with big leather wings like a bat, and flew out a tower window. But she left the dwarf behind and Cersei means to have his head." That's stupid, Arya thought. Sansa only knows songs, not spells, and she'd never marry the Imp.

It made her feel queer to leave out Polliver and the Tickler. And Joffrey too. She was glad he was dead, but she wished she could have been there to see him die, or maybe kill him herself. Polliver said that Sansa killed him, and the Imp. Could that be true? The Imp was a Lannister, and Sansa . . . I wish I could change into a wolf and grow wings and fly away.

plus arya's continued resentment of sansa and this scene

It wasn't the first time he had talked of killing the Mountain. "But he's your brother," Arya said dubiously. "Didn't you ever have a brother you wanted to kill?" He laughed again. "Or maybe a sister?" He must have seen something in her face then, for he leaned closer. "Sansa. That's it, isn't it? The wolf bitch wants to kill the pretty bird." "No," Arya spat back at him. "I'd like to kill you."

i don't think that arya will attempt to kill sansa but the winterhell storyline felt like d&d checking off a list rather than something they invented and were interested it.

also from the very beginning you have arya projecting on sansa and assuming the worst and even after being taught to see the truth by syrio and the kindly man, there's no indication that arya is currently looking back at her relationship with sansa and seeing it in a new light.

i'll remain suspicious of jon but arya feels like the sibling who'll do more harm to sansa.

[foryouthegays]

It ends today. [Dream SMP] summary (not liveblog because im tired, but i’ll try to include more good lines and moments)

word count: 3,638

ill be writing the timestamps without : things because im lazy, theyll all have 5 numbers, so the timestamp at an hour, 12 minutes, and 4 seconds would be 11204. you’ll figure it out. 

total death count by techno or his dogs: 25. doesn’t count fall damage deaths or wither deaths

(04045 Quackity) (04055 Ponk) (04115 Tubbo) (04225 Ponk) (04315 Tubbo) (04320 Quackity) (04500 Ponk) (04535 Ponk) (05929 Tubbo) (05150 Tommy) (05245 Tubbo) (05340 Tubbo) (05450 Tommy) (05450 Tubbo) (05830 Tubbo) (05845 Quackity) (05950 Tommy) (05950 Tubbo) (10045 Callahan) (10140 Tubbo) (10140 Quackity) (10145 Ponk) (10450 Jack Manifold) (11025 Jack Manifold) (11945 Tubbo)

sellout pog: 001925, 11710, 14235, 21115

good laugh times: 04511 05055 05315

good quotes: (004240 NO ONE KILLS ANIMALS LIKE SAPNAP!!!) (05335 LOOK AT YOUR COUNTRY FALL, TUBBO!) (10000 IT WOULDN’T BE A FINAL BOSS IF I DIDN’T HAVE STAGES!) (11150 WOOOO THE MONOTONY OF LIFE POGGG) (12115 the real government is the friends we made along the way) (13035 sapnap strikes me as the guy to kill Santa Claus)

do do dooo/ other stims: 00736, 01150 bruuuhhh, 002420, 15203

other:

(sap and techs “convo” at 05530 is fuckin hilarious i highly rec watchin it) (05950 TECHNOPLANEEE)

summary:

He starts the stream in his base with Philza. They talk about viewer counts and their plan for the day, while making gear, potions, and other materials. Techno makes fireworks, and shows his statistics in the server, which are as follows:

Animals bred - 1,494

Armor pieces cleaned - 0

Banners cleaned - 0

Barrels opened - 107

Bells rung - 9,500

Cake slices eaten - 6

Cauldrons filled - 0

Chests opened - 13,963

Damage absorbed - 83.70

Damaged blocked by shield - 83.50

Damage dealt - 163799.30

Damage dealt (absorbed) - 113.90

Damage dealt (resisted) - 0

Damage resisted - 118.90

Damage taken - 10198.80

Dispensers searched - 13

Distance climbed - 10.51 km

Dsitance crouched - 8.01 km

Distance fallen - 94.48 km

Distance flown - 808.59

Distance sprinted - 300.17 km

[mobs]

Bat - killed 2

Blaze - killed 693

Cave spider - killed 64,513

Chicken - killed 2

Cod - killed 4

Cow - killed 369

Creeper - killed 1,213

Donkey - killed 2

Drowned - killed 54

Elder guardian - killed 1

Enderman - killed 161

Endermite - killed 4

Evoker - killed 2

Ghast - killed 102

Guardian - killed 6

Hoglin - killed 13

Horse - killed 150

Magma cube - killed 542

Pig - killed 2

Piglin - killed 96

Pillager - killed 127

Pufferfish - killed 1

Ravager - killed 3

Salmon - killed 7

Silverfish - killed 3

Skeleton - killed 312

Slime - killed 40

Spider - killed 234

Squid - killed 16

Vex - killed 6

Villager - killed 6

Vindicator - killed 17

Wandering Trader - killed 2

Witch - killed 7

Wither Skeleton - killed 2,615

Wolf - killed 1

Zombie - killed 927, was killed 1 time

Zombie Villager - killed 12

Zombified piglin - killed 189

He talks about how the 2,615 Wither skeletons killed feels low, but does the math and thinks it’s fine. He moves on, and continues brewing Invis potions. He makes black and red fireworks for several minutes. 

00845 Dream scares Phil by logging in right behind Techno, and they join a voice channel together. Dream gives Techno several stacks of TNT, and Dream finally tells Techno his ‘special plan.’ 

Dream says that they have to go early, and destroy it 30 minutes early. Dream tells them of a spy, and how L’Manburg is going to show up exactly at 3:00, instead of getting there early. 

Techno asks Dream what he needs from him, and Dream essentially says that Phil shouldn’t listen to the conversation, and tries to make Techno leave Phils call. Techno declines, and they continue their conversation in the house. 

01100 Dream explains that he can’t set up redstone, because it’s too easy to destroy, and that he’s going to have to set up the machines while the battle is happening. He tells Techno to stall the battle for twenty minutes, and Techno argues, saying that the risk is too one-sided for him and that it would be too easy for Dream to betray him by not setting up the machines. 

Techno agrees after Dream brings up the dog army and the withers, and Techno says that he was only complaining to see how unreasonable Dream actually was. 

Techno asks Phil for more potions, including speed, strength, and regeneration, and he keeps talking about the Turtle Master potions, and quickly runs to the Vault to get the skulls. 

Dream mentions Ender Pearls, and Techno agrees that they would be useful. On the way to trade with Orphan, Techno goes down to Tommy’s former room, calls it the Traitor Pit, and breaks the prime log. He starts to leave, but changes his mind, and blows up the Traitor Pit. 

He leaves the past behind him, and goes back up to trade with Orphan. He gets more pearls, and then continues brewing potions. Phil gives Techno his trident again, and wonders aloud if he should bring Phil. 

On one hand, Phil only has one life, but Phil also has a grudge against L’Manburg, and Phil insists he come along. 

Techno gives Phil the only remaining Totem of Undying, and several Wither skulls. Techno tells Phil to not be in the main battle at first, and to hide, be careful, and to only spawn Withers when Techno sends the signal, shooting the fireworks into the sky. 

They go over their inventories and Ender chests, Techno gets more weakness arrows, and Dream and Techno use the sellout bell one last time. 

While outside, Techno mentions that Phil tore down Tommy’s cobblestone tower, and Dream almost blows up Tommys’ former house, but Techno stops him, saying that it might be Ghostburs. 

Dream also gives Techno and Phil obsidian for building, and Techno gives Dream his TNT back, saying it wouldn’t be useful. He also gives Phil a God Apple, and tells him to (02245) not risk his life for him. Dream counters that, mentioning that Phil could risk his life for him, and Techno refuses to let Dream continue. 

Techno also brews a Slow Falling potion, one of the rarest potions on the server. Dream talks about his status as a homeless person, and Dream does not accept it, and tells Techno that his main goal is to make everyone homeless, because blowing up L’Manburg would make everyone there live without a house. Techno calls himself ‘Anti-House.’

After crafting an unenchanted Netherite axe, they leave. Dream follows him to the Dog Sanctuary. 

02939, right before leaving the Nether, Techno chants: 2, 4, 6, 8, who do we appreciate?? Not the government! GOO!!!! And splashes Invis potions on himself, Dream, and Phil. 

They enter the Overworld to find Sapnap close to the portal. Techno tells him that He’s actually TommyInnit, and runs to the portal before Sapnap can process that. Dream and Phil follow, and they make it to the Dog Sanctuary. 

03200 Dream is surprised at the amount of dogs in the cave, and Techno starts talking about the plan. He says that because L’Manburg has a law against killing pets, they won’t be able to do anything to stop the army from killing them. Dream calls him evil after he reveals that he’s going to splash the dogs with both strength and invis, and they move out with a pack of dogs following. 

Dream shows them an obsidian network above L’Manburg, and says that he’s going to make TNT Dispensers on it. Dream leaves, and they get into position. 

03700. Techno joins the L’Manburg VC, and starts yelling at them, calling them idiots and asking where they are. They tell him that theres still 24 minutes until the war starts, and Techno starts encouraging them to come back, but then remembers that he’d have to hold them off while Dream sets up, so he tells them to take their time and wait until the scheduled time. 

Tommy sees the obsidian network, and shoots Phil. Techno and Tommy start arguing. Techno calls himself a liar, but justifies it by mentioning the 1v30 he’d have to do. 

Tommy takes his first death, falling from a pillar trying to reach Dream. 

Tubbo shoots Techno, and the dogs start chasing him. Techno splashes the potions on them, and watches as the war starts. He calls the wolves ‘The Dogs of War,’ and quickly kills both Quackity, Ponk, and Tubbo. 

Tubbo drops a Trident, and Techno wonders if it’s his. He keeps fighting, and quickly remembers that Sapnap is known for his animal killing. 

He continues killing, but decides on a compromise. If they back off, he won’t kill them as he blows up the country. They disagree, and Techno eats a God apple before shooting the fireworks into the sky. 

04430 Philza deploys the Withers. The Citizens yell about the Bees, and Techno continues his destruction. He stores the new trident in his Ender Chest and organizes his inventory, adding some Wither skulls and soulsand for later. 

Five Withers storm L’Manburg as the country fights back, and Techno tries to find Invis potions. He raids houses and makes more Withers, and L’Manburg is left to fight nine Withers as Techno restarts his Laptop. 

Running back into the action, Techno realizes he’s been using normal arrows this entire time, and puts the fireworks in his offhand. He meets Phil in his house, and Phil gives Techno another Invis pot. He finds a book, called ‘Do Not Read,’ in his Inventory, and Ranboo asks for it back. Techno gives the book to Ranboo, and tells him to flee, that he doesn’t have anything against him, and to survive the war in safety. Ranboo runs. 

Sapnap yells that another Wither is down, and Techno jumps back into battle. He kills Tubbo again, and Dream messages ‘destroy l’mantree’ to him. Techno asks which tree that is, and starts moving to where he thinks it is.

In the background, Tommy starts to plan. He says that, (05040) ‘we’ve got to kill the Withers first, and then we can fight The Blade.’ 

Phil scoffs at that, and Techno keeps going. He finds an ender chest and repairs his armor with XP bottles. 

Techno continues killing, and Dream finally tells him where the tree is. Before he can make it there, Dream sets off the TNT canons, and destruction rains from the sky as L’Manburg cries out in confusion. 

05335 He finds Tubbo in the middle of the country, and yells, “LOOK AT YOUR COUNTRY FALL, TUBBO!” Tubbo falls along with it, and doesn’t respond as Techno shoots him, once again, with a firework rocket.  

05355 Tommy climbs onto a bridge and begs Techno to not shoot. 

“You didn’t have to do this! The thing about the discs, Technoblade, is that they were for me! We could’ve had a government, and- ”

“I don’t care about the discs, Tommy! I was upfront with you from the start, the government has to go!”

“Technoblade, you are selfish!”

“Selfish?! You’ve used me from the start, Tommy! You’re wearing my helmet as we speak!”

“Technoblade, you said we betrayed you! You said we were the ones that betrayed you!”

“You betrayed me like, twelve times!” 

“Technoblade, look at me. Look at me, right now. You said you hated governments, you said we were the ones that betrayed you. You were the one who killed Tubbo when JSchlatt told you to! You were the one who betrayed us, out of all-”

“I was peer pressur- You betrayed me, like, yesterday! You used me as a weapon! You’ve never thought of me as a friend, Tommy, you’ve just used me from the start. You saw me just as The Blade, that’s all I was to you, The Blade, a weapon, well guess what?” Techno pauses, and his voice is tense as he continues. “I’m choosing what I fight for now, and I’m going to destroy the government, Tommy! You all die!”

He fires the fireworks towards Tommy, killing him and Tubbo with the same shot. 

He watches as the TNT falls from the sky, and finally, Tommy asks to speak once more.

“You were our friend, and you know what?-”

“Tommy, you never thought of me as a friend, Tommy,”

“Listen to me!”

“I listened to you for weeks, what did you do? You went back to Tubbo, the guy that exiled you, that chose his country over you,”

“People are above the government!”

“I’M A PERSON!” 

“You ARE, Techno, and so are we! The reason the discs- they were stolen from me! Nothing-”

“Discs aren’t people!” 

“Nothing was taken from you! You’re selfish! You destroyed the people for your own self gain! You’re selfish!”

“All of these problems are because of your government,” Techno starts, “Your government has caused all these issues. I believe in freedom, Tommy!”

“You- You don’t believe in freedom! When you were peer pressured, that wasn’t freedom, that’s you following what the government told you!”

“Bro, Tommy, that was like four months ago, ok?”

“IT WAS! LET’S NOT FORGET ABOUT THE PAST RIGHT NOW- Tubbo! Tubbo he killed you!”

“He’s the president, get him OUT of here!” Techno shoots at Tubbo, who hides behind some stone, “He’s wearing YOUR helmet!”

“And you killed him!”

“Yeah, because he’s the president! 

“But even when he wasn’t the president, you killed him as well.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

“You’re as bad as the government, Technoblade.”

“Hey, remember when I was sitting there, alone, against the whole government, and you and Wilbur just sat there on the sidelines, and watched? Did you step in? Did you step in? Were you guys the ones who stepped in and said, don’t worry, Technoblade, we know you’re in a high pressure situation, but we’ll fight the world for you, Technoblade? NO! You guys watched- You know what I did, yesterday? When you were surrounded by thirty people, the whole world was against you? I walked in. I was willing to fight all of them for you, Tommy. I would’ve been there. 

That is the difference between us.”

“We spent HOURS together-”

“DON’T speak to me of loyalty!”

“You were my friend, and you betrayed us!”

“You never thought of me as a friend!”

“The- The thing about this government, is that it didn’t interfere with you!”

“It did!”

“No, it didn’t! The discs were stolen by Dream-”

“I don’t care about discs! I care about freedom! The government! We can’t have freedom with the government!”

“You have your own freedom, just let people love what they love, man!” (lmao homophobic techno confirmed? /J :LKJFDSLKFJ)

“Tommy...I used to think like that, Tommy. You know what they did to me? They hunted me down! The whole Butcher Army, and they executed me! I tried being peaceful, Tommy, but the government made it clear that we could not coexist.”

“And so you spawn Withers??? All you do is repeat history, but worse.”

“YOU GUYS brought this upon YOURSELVES, I was willing to live in my cottage and be chill, and just farm turtles, but you guys made it clear-”

“Technoblade, you can’t just go back to your cottage after you blow up the government! That’s not how this works, actions have consequences!”

Techno shoots at Tommy and Tubbo, killing Tubbo. “Actions do have consequences, Tommy, and THESE are the consequences!” He splashes potions at his feet, and chases after Quackity. He kills him quickly, and Quackity yells about how he has to face the consequence of his former actions. Techno told him that he had changed, and the Butcher Army refused to let him live his life, but Quackity says that he had to face his punishment.

Tommy calls Techno a tyrant, and is almost immediately killed as Techno launches himself into the air and uses the slowfalling potions to aim, and fire. 

10130 Someone (I can’t tell who, help) asks why Phil is there, and why he hates the government, and he responds, “Since I was forced to kill my own son, you idiot!”

Tommy asks Techno where the L’mantree is, and Techno reveals that he doesn’t actually know what that is, but that Dream wanted to blow it up earlier. Several people start screaming, mourning the loss of their tree, as Techno celebrates. 

Techno runs out of fireworks, and decides that their destruction is over. He notices that no one is fighting back, and asks if everyones just given up.

“What is there left to protect?”

Techno laughs, and Niki speaks for the first time. “I burnt the tree.”

Techno compliments her, and looks over the destruction. 

10350 “WELCOME,” he says, “TO THE YOUNGEST ANARCHY SERVER IN MINECRAFT!”

Jack Manifold challenges him, and they fight. Techno runs out of potions, but still manages to win. Manifold takes too long to pick up his items, so Techno spawns another Wither. At this point, there’s four Withers roaming the former country. 

Techno decides to kill the Withers to get Nether Stars, and while looking for a place to shoot, he finds Eret watching the chaos. He asks if he supports government, but answers the question for them. “There’s no need to risk your neck for a country you’re not even a part of.”

Eret then says that they’re just there for the Nether Stars, and Techno laughs. Techno kills a Wither, and Phil takes the star. 

Techno starts talking about how he wanted L’Manburg to be a chunk error, and decides to get rid of the water so the TNT can work. He mentions that he has the Trident back, and that he’s probably not going to ever get the Axe of Peace from Tommy. 

Dream continues blowing the country up, and Techno gives Phil his trident back. Techno tells Dream to nuke the entire area, but finds out that Ghostbur is close, and frantically makes him stop. He then remembers that Ghostbur is a literal ghost and can not die. 

Hbomb tries to tell Techno to blow up Manifold Land, but Techno refuses, saying that it isn’t really a country, and is instead just one person. 

Ghostbur arrives, and starts looking around the crater. Techno leaves to find a bell to be a sellout. He tells us that if he gets 5 million subscribers today, he’ll set up the second monitor. 

They talk about timezones and relax after the chaos. Techno attempts a triple kill but fails, and Manifold declares war on him. Techno threatens his house, so Manifold decides to not do that. 

Sapnap punches him, and Techno starts to spawn a Wither, but Sapnaps’ efficiency V Netherite shovel is enough to make Techno run in fear.

12320 Tommy gets struck by lightning. SO LONG, THESEUS! EVEN GOD HATES HIM! -techno

Sap tries to kill Techno with a Channeling trident, but Techno takes no damage and almost spawns another Wither, but decides to fly away instead. Sapnap goes mad with power, and tries to kill Ponk with tridents and wither roses. Techno sings the Manhunt music as Ponk runs from Sapnap and BadBoyHalo.

After exploring the wreckage and joking with the survivors, Phil and Techno go to their own VC and go back home. Philza is jumped by a baby zombie, but Techno manages to kill it and save him. 

13515He ties the stream together by chanting ‘2, 4, 6, 8, who do we appreciate? Philza minecraft!! yeah!!!!’

They go inside to reorganize their chests, and Techno realizes that he still has two stacks of Wither skulls. Techno and Phil agree that the Withers they used were enough, and they talk about how the battle went. 

Phil gives Techno the Totem and the God Apple back. 

Techno also implies that if Phil dies, the destruction would be far, far worse, and his life is worth more than anything that had happened beforehand. They are best friends ur honor. 

While ranting about the government, Technoblade reveals that he still has the anvil used to execute him in his ender chest. Techno covers Tommys old home, and tears down the signs they used as a checklist. 

Looking at Em, Techno remembers the dogs he didn’t use to fight, and Phil brings up a Stasis Pearl Chamber as a way to teleport all the dogs back at the same time. They quickly build it, and Techno starts running to the remains of L’Manburg. 

He makes it to the dog cave without any trouble, and makes all the dogs stand. Philza teleports him back, and the dogs take some fall damage as they land with him. He puts the dogs into the house next to his, and Phil says that he’s going to build a kennel later. 

Phil reveals that Ghostbur was not happy with the whole ‘blowing up L’Manburg’ thing, and that Friend had died, and now, Ghostbur wants to be brought back to life. Phil is hesitant, and he doesn’t know if his memories will stay, if he could handle it, and other variables. 

20320 Techno finally shows Carl again, but doesn’t show where he’s hidden. He uses the intermission screen to hide his location from even the viewers, but Carl is fine. He puts him back in the display stable, but then moves him back, fearing his life. 

20630, Techno jokes about the Turtle Shell Helmets and it’s adorable. please go watch it. he then talks about the Sad-Ist animation for a few seconds, and talks about the fanartists in the community. He mentions making a playlist of animations and animatics, which would be really cool. 

He ends the stream ringing the sellout bell. 

[mrsjadecurtiss]

What do you think of Robert? What are your opinions on him, do you think that if the war never happened that he'd still go down this self destructive path?

I think Robert was fundamentally not made to be a king - He has the charisma and the looks and is an able warrior, but his negative character traits are indulged and enhanced by his position and led him down an almost unavoidable path.

Robert is someone who above all wants to enjoy and live an easy life:

"You need to come south," Robert told him. "You need a taste of summer before it flees. [...] Flowers everywhere, the markets bursting with food, the summerwines so cheap and so good that you can get drunk just breathing the air. Everyone is fat and drunk and rich." He laughed and slapped his own ample stomach a thump. "And the girls, Ned!" he exclaimed, his eyes sparkling. "I swear, women lose all modesty in the heat.[...]" The king laughed happily. Robert Baratheon had always been a man of huge appetites, a man who knew how to take his pleasures. - Eddard I, aGoT

"Robert wanted smiles and cheers, always, so he went where he found them, to his friends and his whores. Robert wanted to be loved." - Sansa IV, aCoK

He has just enough of a moral understanding to at least know when he is doing wrong and to even feel bad about it at times, but not enough to actually change anything about himself.

The rage was gone from him now; in his eyes Ned saw something sad and scared. "I should not have hit [Cersei]. That was not … that was not kingly." He stared down at his hands, as if he did not quite know what they were. - Eddard X, aGoT

Robert desires to have an easy life, he wants to be loved, he wants to have fun, but he does not want to deal with the hard and unpleasant things. In times of crisis, he wants to take the easy way out, and he prefers to avoid uncomfortable truths.

Lord Tywin stared at him as if he had lost his wits. "[...] When I laid those bodies before the throne, no man could doubt that we had forsaken House Targaryen forever. And Robert's relief was palpable. As stupid as he was, even he knew that Rhaegar's children had to die if his throne was ever to be secure. Yet he saw himself as a hero, and heroes do not kill children." - Tyrion VI, aSoS

"Well, now I know Jaime's dark sin, and the matter can be forgotten. I am heartily sick of secrets and squabbles and matters of state, Ned." - Eddard II, aGoT

"Most likely the king did not know," Littlefinger said. "It would not be the first time. Our good Robert is practiced at closing his eyes to things he would rather not see." - Eddard IV, aGoT

He feels most comfortable when he is surrounded by people who love him and know how to handle him/want the best for him, and steer him onto the right path in a way where he can still feel good about himself.

"These are difficult times. I need good men about me. Men like Jon Arryn. He served as Lord of the Eyrie, as Warden of the East, as the Hand of the King. He will not be easy to replace." - Eddard I, aGoT

In an environment that works against him, or goes against his wishes even if it is for the better, it creates a destructive energy in him. He cannot stand dissent to his wishes because it robs him of a pleasure he desires, and creates unwanted conflict. He also cannot handle constructive criticism because it makes him confront unpleasant truths - he always wants the easiest path with the least tension. If he is presented with a situation that strains his limits as there is no amiable solution to a difficult/disturbing problem, his reaction is a toxic one; turning to rage and violence even towards his own child.

Not for the first time, he wondered what he was doing here and why he had come. He was no Jon Arryn, to curb the wildness of his king and teach him wisdom. Robert would do what he pleased, as he always had, and nothing Ned could say or do would change that. - Eddard II, aGoT

He may act against what he knows is right, because it is the easiest route; like when he has the wolf Lady killed to please Cersei:

“A costly pelt,” Robert grumbled. “I want no part of this, woman. You can damn well buy your furs with Lannister gold.” [...] "We have a wolf," Cersei Lannister said. Her voice was very quiet, but her green eyes shone with triumph. It took them all a moment to comprehend her words, but when they did, the king shrugged irritably. "As you will. Have Ser Ilyn see to it." - “Robert, you cannot mean this,” Ned protested. The king was in no mood for more argument. “Enough, Ned, I will hear no more." - Eddard III, aGoT

"I am sorry for your girl, Ned. Truly. About the wolf, I mean. My son was lying, I'd stake my soul on it." - Eddard VII, aGoT

And when Ned reprimands him about Daenerys he will not hear dissent, even though he knows deep down that it is wrong:

He gave the king a long cool look. “Would [the man who spared Barristan] were here today.” Robert had shame enough to blush. “It was not the same,” he complained. “Ser Barristan was a knight of the Kingsguard.” - “Whereas Daenerys is a fourteen-year-old girl.”

[...] “Not another word. Have you forgotten who is king here?” - “No, Your Grace,” Ned replied. “Have you?” - “Enough!” the king bellowed. “I am sick of talk. I’ll be done with this, or be damned."

[...] “I will not be part of murder, Robert. Do as you will, but do not ask me to fix my seal to  it.” For a moment Robert did not seem to understand what Ned was saying. Defiance was not a dish he tasted often. Slowly his face changed as comprehension came. [...] “You are the King’s Hand, Lord Stark. You will do as I command you, or I’ll find me a Hand who will.” - “I wish him every success.” Ned [...] laid [his badge of office] on the table in front of the king, saddened by the memory of the man who had pinned it on him, the friend he had loved. “I thought you a better man than this, Robert. I thought we had made a nobler king.” Robert’s face was purple. “Out,” he croaked, choking on his rage. “[...] Go, run back to Winterfell. And make certain I never look on your face again, or I swear, I’ll have your head on a spike!” - Eddard VIII, aGoT

“Gods have mercy,” he muttered, swallowing his agony. “The girl. Daenerys. Only a child, you were right . . . that’s why, the girl . . . the gods sent the boar . . . sent to punish me . . .” - Eddard XIII, aGoT

Robert is a man who always wants it easy, he wants his demands to always be fulfilled, to be loved and have fun without dealing with the bad things; but an important theme that is repeated over and over in asoiaf is that you can only act good if you are willing to face the bad that may come with it, and if you cannot live with the consequences, your action might not be justified.*

Bran thought about it. "Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?" - "That is the only time a man can be brave." - Bran I, aGoT

"Sacrifice . . . is never easy, Davos. Or it is no true sacrifice." - Davos VI, aSoS

"The blood of the First Men still flows in the veins of the Starks, and we hold to the belief that the man who passes the sentence should swing the sword. If you would take a man's life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you cannot bear to do that, then perhaps the man does not deserve to die." - Bran I, aGoT

Ned stood, gently disengaging himself from Sansa's grasp. All the weariness of the past four days had returned to him. "Do it yourself then, Robert," he said in a voice cold and sharp as steel. "At least have the courage to do it yourself." - Robert looked at Ned with flat, dead eyes and left without a word, his footsteps heavy as lead. Silence filled the hall. - Eddard III, aGoT

This is why putting him on the throne was poison - all the power in the world, and noone who would dare go against his wishes. It indulges all of Robert's worst traits, and buries anything he had inside him that was salvageable.

Ser Barristan Selmy spoke up. "Your Grace," he said, "it is not seemly that the king should ride into the melee. It would not be a fair contest. Who would dare strike you?" - "Ser Barristan is right. There's not a man in the Seven Kingdoms who would dare risk your displeasure by hurting you." - Eddard VII, aGoT

I am surrounded by flatterers and fools, the king had insisted. Ned looked down the council table and wondered which were the flatterers and which the fools. He thought he knew already. - Eddard IV, aGoT

And Robert knows it - he knows being a king isn't for him, that he doesn't enjoy the actual work that goes into governing, that he doesn't have the personality for such politics or to deal with the people involved, and that he would much rather spend his time enjoying life and doing what he loves...

"Look at what kinging has done to me. Gods, too fat for my armor, how did it ever come to this? [...] I swear to you, I was never so alive as when I was winning this throne, or so dead as now that I’ve won it." - Eddard VII, aGoT

"I swear to you, sitting a throne is a thousand times harder than winning one. Laws are a tedious business and counting coppers is worse. And the people … there is no end of them. I sit on that damnable iron chair and listen to them complain until my mind is numb and my ass is raw. They all want something, money or land or justice. The lies they tell … and my lords and ladies are no better. I am surrounded by flatterers and fools. It can drive a man to madness, Ned. Half of them don't dare tell me the truth, and the other half can't find it. There are nights I wish we had lost at the Trident. Ah, no, not truly, but …" - Eddard I, aGoT

Robert groaned with good-humored impatience. "If I wanted to honor you, I'd let you retire. I am planning to make you run the kingdom and fight the wars while I eat and drink and wench myself into an early grave." - Eddard I, aGoT

"Let me tell you a secret, Ned. More than once, I have dreamed of giving up the crown. Take ship for the Free Cities with my horse and my hammer, spend my time warring and whoring, that's what I was made for. The sellsword king, how the singers would love me." - Eddard VII, aGoT

And yet he doesn't do anything about it and keeps staying at the position he hates - he does not want to deal with the uncomfortable consequences that would come with upsetting the status quo, or making changes to his own personality and going through growth, or confronting ugly truths about himself in a productive way, etc etc.

He does make a talk of changes at times during aGoT, and seems to have a sense of responsibility about his Job, but as it is his desire for changes came too late, and what responsibility he felt mostly served to paralyze him in place.

"The sellsword king, how the singers would love me. You know what stops me? The thought of Joffrey on the throne, with Cersei standing behind him whispering in his ear. My son. How could I have made a son like that, Ned?" - Eddard VII, aGoT

"I'm still young, and now that you're here with me, things will be different. We'll make this a reign to sing of, and damn the Lannisters to seven hells." - Eddard VII, aGoT

In a way Joffrey is to Robert what Ramsay is to Roose: an exploration of the inherent flaw in their way of life, demonstrated in the most extreme case. In Joffrey's case, it shows what happens to give someone unlimited power with noone daring to oppose them.

Do you think that if the war never happened that he'd still go down this self destructive path?

It's a little unclear which war you mean, so I will briefly touch on several points:

There could have been ideal circumstances where he might have worked out as a king, if he was surrounded by people who know the perfect way to deal with him and make him work past his flaws (intuitively doing the work of a modern therapist), but the average life is not ideal and grrm shows the realistic fate of a man like Robert.

I think by the time Ned arrived it was sadly too late to change - maybe if the Lannisters didn't exist, or this or that event hadn't happened, but Grrm shows that most of what lead to Robert's downfall was in the end caused by himself. Cersei kills him because she came to despise the man he was, and for good reason as he abused her during all her marriage - and while he has some scenes of feeling bad or even apologizing for it, he never made any attempts to actually change the terrible way he was treating her.

If Robert's Rebellion never happened, he would have probably made an able enough Lord of Storm's End; delegating his "boring" administrative duties to his advisors and maester, enjoying the privileges of highborn life, and having just enough responsibility to feel like the alpha male of his society yet not enough to do as lasting damage as he did for the throne. He would not have been the best Lord, but sadly there are many worse in Westeros, since the entire dynastic ruling system is inherently flawed. If he would have been a better person depends on who he is surrounded with, if circumstances would have motivated him to change, or if perhaps his position of power and outward influences would still just have indulged him into the man he was in aGoT. Ultimately, there are a lot of butterfly effects leading to different results that i’m sure have been explored in many fics.

"Love is sweet, dearest Ned, but it cannot change a man's nature." - Eddard IX, aGoT

This was the boy he had grown up with, he thought; this was the Robert Baratheon he'd known and loved. If he could prove that the Lannisters were behind the attack on Bran, prove that they had murdered Jon Arryn, this man would listen. Then Cersei would fall, and the Kingslayer with her, and if Lord Tywin dared to rouse the west, Robert would smash him as he had smashed Rhaegar Targaryen on the Trident. He could see it all so clearly. - Eddard VII, aGoT    

What do you think of Robert?

Since i am someone who frequently enjoys morally grey and villainous characters, despite his many negative traits i have a fondness of Robert; I think he is an interesting character and very human in his flaws, and there is a lot of melancholy to his story that makes me somber about him even if it obviously does not excuse his bad actions. I also think he has a great character design that's fun to draw and some fun boisterous scenes, and some of his positive qualities remind me of people i know.

*Stannis is an interesting character as Robert’s brother, as he is the opposite to him in this regard, as well as in many aspects of their personality and even their outward presentation (like how Stannis crops his beard short to contrast Robert’s wild one)

[asknarashikari]

Very crackish minific idea: Canalo meets Mei and Reika. Cue Ryoga and Rintaro getting along for once as they try to stab the prince who is harassing their precious girls

Canalo... you had one (1) fucking job...

“So... you take the front, and I’ll take the back, and these two will take care of the sides.” Rintaro said shortly, his eyes narrowed as he glared at their shared target.

“Alright.” Ryouga stated, offering his hand for the other to shake. Rintaro took it and shook it once. “It is settled. We will have a truce while we four deal with this cur.”

“O-Oi, we didn’t agree to have any part of this...” Touma said, as the Swordsmen of Water and Time drew their respective blades. “Hey Kento, back me up here- What the hell?”

“What?” Kento asked, looking innocently at his boyfriend as his sword thrummed with electricity. “I agree with them. Guy’s hitting on our girl, we should scare him off. By force.”

Touma gave them all a dumbfounded look. “Geez... of all the things for you to get agree on, why did it have to involve bloodshed?!” he exclaimed. “Can’t we just... politely ask him to leave?”

“It is justifiable bloodshed,” stated Ryouga bluntly. “No cur is going to lay a hand on Reika...” Ryouga’s protectiveness would be adorable, if he wasn’t swinging around a giant trident that allegedly got sharper over time.

“And as if that wasn’t bad enough, he’s gone after our Mei, too.” Rintaro said. “Touma, I know you prefer to take a more diplomatic approach, but in this instance... I think the violent route is permissible.”

He pointed at the pair of women who seemed as confused as they were disturbed by the man pursuing them. Reika had her hand around Noroshi, and she had subtly placed herself between him and Mei. Touma’s heart cracked at the sight of Mei’s clearly uncomfortable expression and, despite his best efforts to keep his anger in check, he was starting to see red- and the reason why everyone else was so keen on dismembering this sorry man.

“Alright... fine. I’ll take the right.” Touma acquiesced, conjuring Rekka into his hand. “But no lethal injuries. Just... beat him up a little.” 

The three other swordsmen smirked. “It would be my pleasure,” said Ryouga with a feral grin.

~five minutes and one horribly one-sided fight later~

“Only you would be idiotic enough to pick a fight with other swordsmen, tyra!” laughed the human-sized tyrannosaurus that walked up to the scene, causing everyone to stare at it in shock.

“Oh, Tyramigo, just leave me be!” he whined. 

“No can do, tyra. Have to bring you back to Oto-chan.” He said, then unceremoniously tossed the man onto his back by grabbing him with his mouth. 

He bowed to the swordsmen in apparent apology as the man feebly mumbled complained about being handled roughly. “I’m sorry about Canalo, tyra. Maybe he’ll learn not to be an idiot anymore after this.” And with that, the dinosaur took his leave, with the novelist, his editor, and four swordsmen still gaping at him.

“Was that...” 

“We all saw the same thing, right?”

“A talking dinosaur robot...?”

“And I thought the Kikainoids were something...”

[thebluelemontree]

I’m sorry, @anabel7631​ but there are some very incorrect assumptions here. Lady did not die because Sansa lied.

"Joff told us what happened," the queen said. "You and the butcher boy beat him with clubs while you set your wolf on him."

"That's not how it was," Arya said, close to tears again. Ned put a hand on her shoulder. "Yes it is!" Prince Joffrey insisted. "They all attacked me, and she threw Lion's Tooth in the river!" Ned noticed that he did not so much as glance at Arya as he spoke.

...

"They were not the only ones present," Ned said. "Sansa, come here." Ned had heard her version of the story the night Arya had vanished. He knew the truth. "Tell us what happened." -- Eddard III, AGOT.

Sansa had already told the truth of what happened to her father the day Arya went missing. That’s how Ned knew immediately that Joffrey was lying and confirmed it with Joffrey’s tells. Let’s be real. Ned is the only adult in that room that even remotely cares what the truth is. Robert will admit on his deathbed that he knew all along Joffrey was lying too, yet he did nothing. 

Sansa doesn’t lie about placing the blame on her sister or Mycah or Nymeria at this moment. The most dishonesty she exhibits is saying she didn’t remember or see what happened:

 His eldest daughter stepped forward hesitantly. She was dressed in blue velvets trimmed with white, a silver chain around her neck. Her thick auburn hair had been brushed until it shone. She blinked at her sister, then at the young prince. "I don't know," she said tearfully, looking as though she wanted to bolt. "I don't remember. Everything happened so fast, I didn't see …"

"You rotten!" Arya shrieked. She flew at her sister like an arrow, knocking Sansa down to the ground, pummeling her. "Liar, liar, liar, liar."

The reason Arya is calling Sansa a liar is because she could not have known Sansa had already told Ned the truth. This is the first time all three of them are together since Arya had run off. When she was found by Jory, they were ordered to go directly to the king and queen. Sansa is guilty of failing to support her sister when she is being interrogated; however, this is still a patriarchal society, and she is being asked to speak against her future husband who is also the crown prince. Sansa tries to mitigate the pressure from both sides by attempting to take a neutral position. Ned never blames her at all for this. Again, Ned already knew what the truth was and he can see that clearly Robert and Cersei don’t really care what Sansa has to say anyway.

Cersei was already gunning for a wolf skin no matter what. She knew Lady had nothing to do with any of this by all accounts, but one wolf was as good as any other. You think Cersei’s history with Lyanna Stark both “stealing” Rhaegar from her as well as Robert obsessing over her since day one of their marriage, PLUS the prophecy of someone younger and more beautiful coming to take all she holds dear doesn’t have something to do with Cersei wanting to punish a Stark girl? Any Stark girl? Take that wolf skin trophy and strip her rival Sansa of her power and protection? This has less to do with Joffrey and more to do with Cersei’s insecurities and need for petty vengeance against a Stark scapegoat. 

It’s not only Cersei making her crazy demand to kill Lady. Robert’s response is to just walk away from innocent parties being killed (passively giving his consent) because he doesn’t want to be harangued by his wife. This business is all a big buzzkill and he just wants to get back to having fun. We already established that Robert knew full well that Joffrey was lying. Ned begs him to spare Lady, but Robert just fucks off. So Cersei’s authority as queen stands, which even as Hand, Ned can’t defy it once Robert co-signed. The only thing he can do is put Lady down himself so Cersei can’t have her trophy.  

That, obviously, still has a negative impact on Ned and Sansa’s relationship as a breach of trust since Ned volunteered and avoided talking to Sansa about it afterward. This was a decision Ned came to regret later when he wondered if he had made a big mistake in killing Sansa’s dire wolf. 

Sansa doesn’t have to regret anything about Lady’s death because she was in no way responsible for that happening. Does she still owe Arya an apology for some of the mean things she did say and the times she didn’t stick up for Arya when she should have?  Absolutely. Is the onus still on Sansa to make the first moves in repairing their sisterly relationship? Absolutely. Arya doesn’t hate Sansa at all. She was justifiably angry and hurt, but she doesn’t hate her. They will definitely resolve those past issues and reconcile. 

Even though Sansa tried to take the neutral position, that doesn’t stop Joffrey from refusing to see or speak to her for a long time. She had nothing to do with Joffrey’s injuries but he shows contempt for her all the same. While Sansa is “in love” with the person she thinks Joffrey is or wants him to be, we have to remember this is still a patriarchy. Sansa has been raised to be deferential to her husband. Joffrey’s cold displeasure leads Sansa to alter her view of what happened after the fact and misplace the blame on Arya for a good while. Joffrey is still her betrothed, so she has to rewrite the narrative because the idea of spending the rest of her life married to a liar and a cruel bully is psychologically intolerable. I’m not saying this part is a good thing at all. Sansa is in the wrong for blaming Arya and Ned to the point of fully excusing Joffrey and Cersei. She is burying her head in the sand and refusing to deal with the truth, which she has known all along because she told her father.  

Sansa will voice that truth when she is warning Margaery and Olenna of what kind of person Joffrey is.  

A shiver went through her. "A monster," she whispered, so tremulously she could scarcely hear her own voice. "Joffrey is a monster. He lied about the butcher's boy and made Father kill my wolf. When I displease him, he has the Kingsguard beat me. He's evil and cruel, my lady, it's so. And the queen as well."

It’s not regret over what other people did that Sansa needs to express. Its dealing with the fact that the reflags were there early on but she couldn’t accept them. Arya had been right to dislike Joffrey and the queen, but Sansa didn’t listen. She thought Arya was crazy and just wanted to ruin things out of spite. In this reversal of positions, Sansa is trying to warn another girl, someone she will view as a sister, about her abusive ex. 

Sister. Sansa had once dreamt of having a sister like Margaery; beautiful and gentle, with all the world's graces at her command. Arya had been entirely unsatisfactory as sisters went. How can I let my sister marry Joffrey? she thought, and suddenly her eyes were full of tears. "Margaery, please," she said, "you mustn't." It was hard to get the words out. "You mustn't marry him. He's not like he seems, he's not. He'll hurt you."

Yes, there is a dig at Arya. Change doesn’t always happen in a smooth progression. Sometimes there are flaws, missteps, and micro-regressions; however, she also thinks “how can I let my sister marry Joffrey?”  

Once Sansa eventually experiences rejection by Margaery and the Tyrells, she will come to understand a bit more of how Arya must have felt when the support of her sister was withdrawn. It’s not conscious thought process, but she is having experiences that should make her more appreciative, mature, and understanding of Arya. ASOS is where Sansa’s thinking on Arya really starts to take a shift toward the positive.  

If Lady was here, I would not be afraid. Lady was dead, though; Robb, Bran, Rickon, Arya, her father, her mother, even Septa Mordane. All of them are dead but me. She was alone in the world now.

We have to keep in mind, until Winterfell is sacked and Bran and Rickon are reported murdered, Sansa believed Arya was at home safe. Now everyone is dead. 

King Joffrey looked as if he wanted to kill someone right then and there, he was so excited. He slashed at the air and laughed. "A great sword must have a great name, my lords! What shall I call it?"

Sansa remembered Lion's Tooth, the sword Arya had flung into the Trident, and Hearteater, the one he'd made her kiss before the battle. She wondered if he'd want Margaery to kiss this one.

Her remembering of the Trident has gone from Arya being the aggressor to Arya being the hero that disarms the aggressor. That’s a total 180 in Sansa’s view of Arya’s actions, where Sansa is now justifying them as an appropriate response.

Then if you just do a search on Sansa’s mentions of Arya in ASOS, AFFC, and TWOW it’s all positive stuff. It’s all good memories, but Sansa thinks Arya is dead and they’ll never see each other again. When the sisters reunite, Sansa will be overwhelmed with gratitude that someone else in her family survived. She’s thinking of Arya quite frequently and the relationship they used to have, so Sansa will be more than willing to do the work of getting back to that relationship. She is primed to have that heartfelt, apologetic conversation to lay the rocky past to rest. The first step in being able to analyzing her own faults is accepting the whole truth and understanding Arya’s point of view and how she must have felt. That’s all there. She’s shown she has done that. ^^^ All that’s needed is for them to meet face to face and be able to hash it out. 

So no, I can’t agree with your assessment of Sansa’s characterization when what you’re basing that off of is fundamentally wrong.  

[technobladetimestamps]

Oct 18 Stream Timestamps

Timestamps from Technoblade’s “the aftermath (Dream SMP)”

Link to my youtube comment with all of the timestamps x

Timestamps with hyperlinks below

01:23  calling the chat out / hit 3 mil and then got 8k subs deleted / 3 is better than 4 03:30  justified in killing Tubbo but was letting Tommy let it out of his system 04:29  festival intel / weapons test / need to go to the nether to get stacked 06:01  sellout timer / good at roleplaying bad at not selling out / airstrike 14:49  the nether / “I hate this dimension already” / cough bc he’s speaking to much / “Maybe I’m allergic to cheese and my life will be terrible” / hard to read chat / goals: blaze rods, gold, ghast tears 19:01  the festival was a victory / “Do you think there’s fire...in this dimension” 24:54  wants stacks of gapples so he isn’t afraid to use them / hoarder  27:25  orphans killed his parents / Technobackstory 32:07  “What do you think about recording an audiobook?” / “It’d be a terrible audiobook cause i’d be coughing” / groupchat promo 33:10 adhd advice? / “I’ve got no idea how to handle adhd man” 36:34  happy sellout timer gasp 39:52  calling zombie piglins brothers 46:27  “Could not take down Manberg without you guys / doesn’t usually care about blast furnace since he can go afk 50:12  rage donation / “I can’t plug my channel” / sad voice 51:11  youtube advice / “Being a minecraft youtuber is like playing youtube on easy mode” 54:45  “Read it and weep losers” 1:01:59   Blaze rods increase particles in fireworks / King’s Avatar character / Technoweeb 1:04:57  “Is there a way I can personally reach you?” / “No.” 1:06:02  “Web novels pog” / TBT2 / would have to edit out slurs / multitasking / happy sell out timer gasp 1:09:16  “He’s flexing the healthcare” / “Good luck on the tournament. Unless I’m in it, than bad luck for you” 1:15:26  they’d never let him team with Peetzahut for MCC 1:16:12  favorite president / can’t choose bc they’re probably all problematic / President Garfield / trying to remember the name of a president 1:22:07  almost left the ghast tears behind / sad laugh 1:30:11  “Establish the ultimate villain arc with Dream” “Perhaps” / MCC dream team team balancing / “Yeah cry about it” 1:31:52  “Only pain, misery and governments are in the overworld” 1:33:14  “Thanks for helping me procrastinate” / “What would be the first crime your family assumed you committed” “Nice try cop” / “The IRS won’t arrest you for joking about tax fraud on air right” / apology vid for tax fraud / at least his upload schedule won’t change in jail 1:34:47  would go to minecon if his friends go / “What friends” “That was uncalled for” 1:37:03  internal clock in sync with the sellout timer 1:45:14  could fight Manberg alone with this much gold 1:47:35  “You missed cobblestone” / but like he actually needs it / “Use fortune” “What on the cobblestone?” 1:51:58  “I will look into. And by look into it I will promptly forget in 5 minutes 1:56:24  sorta bullying Freya by calling her below average / “Ever heard of less is more Technoblade” “Yeah that’s how my upload schedule works” 2:00:07  Explaining The King’s Avatar  2:03:33  “Was that your dad? Cause guess what’s this sword’s named” “I’m basically a saint” / didn’t get jbaited by the joe mama joke / can’t sell out 2:04:39  can’t sell out / King’s Avatar anime is sponsored by McDonalds / “I’m not your dad” / slow falling potions / phantoms disabled / “Tommy has phantom membranes...We’re on great terms right now” 2:09:56  “It’s a drop bear” / “They’re playing skyblock” 2:17:31  “Just because I hate the government doesn’t mean I hate having a good outfit” 2:18:25  looking for Fundy to flex the trident on him / “Asking for a friend” / “Trident hunting” 2:20:05  it’s not sellout time but it is sellout sign 2:29:12  “Can you dupe tnt? And if so will Dream ban you for it?” 2:32:10  “Blitz come back!” “I don’t think it’s happening” / “I know from the potato war that pumpkins are trivially easy to find”  2:34:54  “Fruits of our labor” / selling out 3 minutes early / would play Phasmophobia if the sleepy boys ask 2:41:27  reading a very weird dono / “I’m stuck with these eyes that have seen your message for the rest of my life” 2:43:22  “Why are people spamming smoker? I have never smoked” / “Oh you mean the smoker item” 2:45:11  “Peer pressure is a dangerous thing. Techno killed a man because of peer pressure”

[eujazmine]

all gifs from christianscody !

JAZMINE HARPER - TV TROPES

manipulative bastard

The Manipulative Bastard is the master manipulator of people, in essence, a character who manipulates others through their emotions, perspectives, psychologies and any other way they can get them dancing to their tune. This is the guy or gal who gets off on playing head/mind games—clever and dangerous and lacking comedic overtones (usually). She always has a plan ready, but rather than do any work, the Manipulative Bastard prefers to play on other characters' emotions and mental states and then watch the victims destroy themselves as they waste their energy on fighting against fake dangers or their friends.

are we surprised? with a lack of loyalty to others, including her own family, jazmine will gladly step on others and use their weaknesses to her advantage to get what she wants. she’s been a manipulative bastard since she was a child, ever since she first discovered how much her mist control could control the perceptions of others. observant and resourceful, jazmine has no qualms using her talents to gain unauthorized information about others and using it for her personal gain. she views people as her pawns, and her selfish way of thinking gives her little guilt about physically or mentally forcing others into submission. this is a trait she’s picked up from her own father, which we will delve into in the next trope.

daddy’s little villain

mention of emotional abuse tw

She's the daughter of an Evil Overlord, who shares her parent's ambition, cunning, and cruelty. She could be anything from a simple Spoiled Brat to an Overlord in waiting. She's also likely to be a Princess (since even villainy is improved with that), although she will still prefer wearing black or dark colors over pink. 

jazmine’s mortal father can largely be thanked for the way she is now. from as young as she can remember, he was training jazmine to be a powerful force in both the demigod and mortal world. while he raised her to think she could accomplish anything she worked toward, she was mostly a pawn to satisfy his thirst for power. he didn’t care much for her as a daughter; mostly for what she could do for him. she started to recognize this during her formative middle school years, consequently turning her childhood role model into her worst enemy. when she started rebelling against him and acting out, he sent her away full-time to a camp on the other side of the globe. since then, the issues only progressed, eventually leading to a falling out in which she hasn’t seen or spoken to her mortal family in many years. 

this upbringing has fueled her desire to constantly be the best in her fields of expertise, which is partly why she quested for years in hopes of some type of recognition. with the heavily hidden hope that she could one day rub in his face that she had succeeded without him, all her life she has fought to try to ‘prove her worth’ to others despite being the daughter of a minor goddess (or titan). because her father only loved what she could do for him, she places everyone in two categories: the puppets, and the puppeteers. 

and she will never be the puppet again.

broken ace

He's tall, charming, strikingly good-looking, well-spoken in five languages, and classically trained in even more instruments. But inside, he's an ugly, writhing mass of self-hatred and Parental Issues. Expect him to have at least one bizarre trait or ability that should not be overlooked, as well as an unhealthy attitude about love, life, and humanity in general. He most likely doesn't have anyone that loves or respects him for what he really is. This may be justified. This character is usually male, but not always. Also, he may just be a perfectionist crumbling under his own standards. The chief difference between the Broken Ace and the usually female Stepford Smiler is that the Stepford Smiler wants to appear normal at all costs, often to the point of hurting herself emotionally (or because she's sociopathic). This guy has the same setup, but is more talented and wants to be the best, loved by all, and accepted.

although the timeline wasn’t as accelerated as she had hoped when she was a child, jazmine was making waves in the world of deities before her last quest against zeus had occurred. now, as a semi-retired quester, she is captain of the football team and starting to make a name for herself in the mortal fields of business and sports. despite the air of nonchalant superiority that she constantly tries to present, she is in a constant state of despair. right when she starts to undergo some development in her relationships with others, they leave, and she is constantly failing her own impossibly high standards. she’s crumbling, and at any point she is ready to run away again.

ice queen

Much like a Tomboy, the Ice Queen is a major character archetype which is somewhat hard to define. Her signature characteristic is that she is cold; the ambiguity comes from what "cold" means. She has a cold heart, a frosty demeanor and very often a resting bitch face; she attracts but will never be wooed. The Ice Queen is considered dangerous to love because she will not (or cannot) love back. She's not much for friendship either, preferring to be alone. Situations where an Ice Queen "thaws" and learns to enjoy the company of others are so common that they have their own trope.

she’s cold and takes no shit. she holds people at a distance, even those that could potentially be considered friends. she doesn’t believe in unconditional love, and she believes that most affection direct toward her is generally a ruse to get her guard down. she’s unnecessarily rude to others, almost relishing in the negative reactions at times, but to her, she’s just keeping it real.

the trickster

A trickster is a character who plays tricks or otherwise disobeys normal rules and conventional behavior. The Trickster openly questions and mocks authority, encourages impulse and enthusiasm, seeks out new ideas and experiences, destroys convention and complacency, and promotes chaos and unrest. At the same time, the trickster brings new knowledge, wisdom and many An Aesop. Even when punished horribly for his effrontery, his indomitable spirit (or plain sheer foolishness) keeps him coming back for more. Tricksters can be anything from gods of chaos, bedeviling heroes for a few laughs, to master manipulators who use cruel ploys and sadistic choices. They can also be heroes (or more likely Anti-Heroes) who make up for a lack of strength or bravery with manipulation, planning, or just plain cheating. The trickster is often a Master of Disguise and may have magical or super-powers. They're often found Walking the Earth.

although this description was much more relevant when she was younger, jazmine has a penchant for drama and chaos. she genuinely has fun engaging in pranks and tricks, and she gladly lifts a symbolic middle finger to authority in any chance that she gets. in middle school, she was nearly expelled from a mortal school because of all her tricks, and she spent a sizable portion of her adult years before eonia traveling and engaging in casual mayhem. when she isn’t getting revenge or fulfilling a paid request, she generally has fun toying with others.

deadpan snarker

A character prone to gnomic, sarcastic, sometimes bitter, occasionally whimsical asides. The Deadpan Snarker exists to deflate pomposity, point out the unlikelihood of certain plans, and deliver funny lines. Typically the most cynical supporting character. In most cases, it is implied that the snarker would make a good leader, strategist, or consultant given their ability to instantly see the flaws in a constructed plan. More often than not, their innate snarkiness is the only thing preventing the other characters from comprehending this for themselves. In other cases, the Deadpan Snarker resorts to sarcasm because they're the Only Sane Man. Tends to be shot a Death Glare when they go too far (and probably isn't without one of their own, either). Note that due to the definition evolving, the "Deadpan" part of the title has gradually become The Artifact and a deadpan delivery is no longer a necessary part of the trope.

jazmine is no stranger to delivering biting remarks coupled with foul language. she’s quick to point out flaws, opting for the brutally honest approach more times than not. she’s aware that her language can hurt others, but she finds it easier to escape the frivolities and get to the point. depending on the person, she exaggerates this trope by trying to draw out a bad response from them, mostly for her own entertainment. people already view her as heinous, so why not embrace the reputation, right?

survivor guilt

death mention tw

You might be the Last Of Your Kind or someone else made a Heroic Sacrifice for you or you lived through a Restricted Rescue Operation, but whatever the reason, you're going to feel a massive sense of guilt. 

although the quest with adelphie and celeste was technically a success, with the trident successfully being returned back to poseidon, the team had faced major losses. adelphie had lost her life, and celeste had suffered debilitating injuries. physically, jazmine suffered the least, and it’s a guilt that she continues to carry.

aloof big sister

to the majority of the hecate family, especially @rostameu

He's smarter, stronger, faster, more talented, and more refined than the hero, and — just to add insult to injury — he's probably sexier, too. His only problem seems to be moving his face out of that expression of bored, dignified disdain. And he just happens to be the elder brother of one of the main cast, which often gives them a raging inferiority complex. Will most likely double as the Ineffectual Loner and Noble Demon, thereby running the risk of becoming an Ensemble Darkhorse. May or may not be evil, strictly speaking, but is almost guaranteed to fight against the protagonists at one point, and spout off Cryptic Conversation to prove how much better informed he is. May or may not be a Stealth Mentor and/or consider his younger siblings annoying. Often an integral part of a mysterious organisation, and may be the Enigmatic Minion or even a Hero Antagonist in that case.

OKAY, so the running joke with jazmine is that she dislikes her siblings, which is very true tbh. i’m not going to speak for rostam and say most of that stuff actually applies, but jazmine is very cold toward her younger brother and views herself as much better in every way. with loner tendencies, disdain toward her brother, and shady side hustles, she matches this trope very well, and it was only fitting to add a trope about disliking siblings to jazmine’s task. and yes, she’s technically one of the youngest right now but hush.

[agentrouka-blog]

Arya and Weasel - sending your inner child off into the woods

Weasel is an orphaned, traumatized girl of around two years of age whose story is absolutely heartbreaking. We meet her in A Clash of Kings and she accompanies us for the span of three Arya chapters, which takes place over just about a month, most of which takes place off page. 

We meet her at the end of Arya III, she has her first interaction with Arya in Arya IV and then tags along with Arya, Lommy, Hot Pie and Gendry in the woods until she runs off into the unknown at the end of Arya V.

I’ll follow the story and try to give some sense of time and location to justify my time estimates, simply because GRRM chooses to be so vague. 

Gods, Arya’s chapters in ACOK are among the very finest in the entire book series. 

Warning: Long. As always, excessive use of quotes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOK, Arya III (chapter 9)

Yoren and his gang have been traveling the Kingsroad since King’s Landing. She beat Hot Pie bloody in Arya I and they had a tense encounter with goldcloaks looking for Gendry in Arya II. Now they change course westward of the Kingsroad close to the beginning of the chapter.

“We’re not far from Gods Eye,” the black brother said one morning. “The kingsroad won’t be safe till we’re across the Trident. So we’ll come up around the lake along the western shore, they’re not like to look for us there.” At the next spot where two ruts cut cross each other, he turned the wagons west. 

Here farmland gave way to forest, the villages and holdfasts were smaller and farther apart, the hills higher and the valleys deeper. Food grew harder to come by.

They spend an unspecified amount of time, likely about two weeks, traveling and living off the land. Enough for two days delay to still matter but long enough to form habits, see landscapes change, have hunting adventures.

Outside a holdfast called Briarwhite, some fieldhands surrounded them in a cornfield, demanding coin for the ears they’d taken. (…)

The next day Koss came racing back to warn Yoren of a camp ahead. (…) “Might be one side, might be t’other. If they’re hurt that bad, likely they’d take our mounts no matter who they are. Might be they’d take more than that. I believe we’ll go wide around them.” It took them miles out of their way, and cost them two days at the least, but the old man said it was cheap at the price. (…) 

Arya saw men guarding the fields more and more when they turned north again. (…) At one place, she spotted a man perched up in a dead tree, with a bow in his hand and a quiver hanging from the branch beside him. (…) 

A day later Dobber spied a red glow against the evening sky. “Either this road went and turned again, or that sun’s setting in the north.”

Weasel’s tragedy begins when her village is put to the torch. The blaze is enough to light up the night sky from half a day’s travel away. Judging from what we see in Arya IV, the violence was likely unspeakable.

By dawn the fire had burned itself out, but none of them slept very well that night. It was midday when they arrived at the place where the village had been.

It’s butchery and desolation. Yoren goes to investigate the destroyed holdfast. 

When they finally returned, Yoren had a little girl in his arms, and Murch and Cutjack were carrying a woman in a sling made of an old torn quilt. The girl was no older than two and she cried all the time, a whimpery sound, like something was caught in her throat. Either she couldn’t talk yet or she had forgotten how. The woman’s right arm ended in a bloody stump at her elbow, and her eyes didn’t seem to see anything, even when she was looking right at it.

I knee-jerk assumed the woman to be Weasel’s mother, but that is never explicitly stated in the text. For all we know, they aren’t related at all. They are not shown to interact, and even if the woman was Weasel’s mother, she is too far gone from her severe injury to be coherent, let alone care for the child. 

 She talked, but she only said one thing. “Please,” she cried, over and over. “Please. Please.” Rorge thought that was funny. He laughed through the hole in his face where his nose had been, and Biter started laughing too, until Murch cursed them and told them to shut up. Yoren had them fix the woman a place in the back of a wagon. “And be quick about it,” he said. “Come dark, there’ll be wolves here, and worse.” “I’m scared,” Hot Pie murmured when he saw the one-armed woman thrashing in the wagon. “Me too,” Arya confessed. He squeezed her shoulder. “I never truly kicked no boy to death, Arry. I just sold my mommy’s pies, is all.” Arya rode as far ahead of the wagons as she dared, so she wouldn’t have to hear the little girl crying or listen to the woman whisper, “Please.” She remembered a story Old Nan had told once, about a man imprisoned in a dark castle by evil giants. He was very brave and smart and he tricked the giants and escaped . . . but no sooner was he outside the castle than the Others took him, and drank his hot red blood. Now she knew how he must have felt. The one-armed woman died at evenfall. Gendry and Cutjack dug her grave on a hillside beneath a weeping willow. When the wind blew, Arya thought she could hear the long trailing branches whispering, “Please. Please. Please.” The little hairs on the back of her neck rose, and she almost ran from the graveside.

I almost inserted a long paragraph about the textual parallels to Lyanna and Sansa here. But I refrained because this is merely meant to document Weasel. 

The woman and the child (and the murdered men I didn’t include in my quotes) are Arya’s first direct confrontation with the vicious of this war. She and Hot Pie are so humbled in the face of it, they forget their original enmity, their posturing. They become children again. They admit their bone-deep fear. 

The human suffering is an unbearable horror and Arya, understandably, tries to block it out and get away from it. 

So this tiny little girl Weasel has just watched every person she has ever known being murdered by scary, angry strangers and then spent that night and half a day among the charred ruins and the bodies. Hungry, thirsty, scared. No one shows up to comfort her until another stranger picks her up and carries her away. 

It goes on:

“No fire tonight,” Yoren told them. Supper was a handful of wild radishes Koss found, a cup of dry beans, water from a nearby brook. The water had a funny taste to it, and Lommy told them it was the taste of bodies, rotting someplace upstream. Hot Pie would have hit him if old Reysen hadn’t pulled them apart.

We’ll return to this lovely image.

Arya encounters wolves as she relieves herself in the woods at night. They do not harm her, but she is clearly shaken by everything that has happened. 

The crying girl travelling alonside her and the wolves prowling the woods. Two sides of Arya.

She tells Yoren she doesn’t care. She just wants to go home. The chapter ends on:

“Go to sleep, boy. Hear me?”

She did try. Yet as she lay under her thin blanket, she could hear the wolves howling . . . and another sound, fainter, no more than a whisper on the wind, that might have been screams.

Followed by a lovely thematic transition at the beginning of Davos I.

The morning air was dark with the smoke of burning gods. They were all afire now, Maid and Mother, Warrior and Smith, the Crone with her Pearl eyes and the Father with his gilded beard; even the Stranger, carved to look more animal than human. The old dry wood and countless layers of paint and varnish blazed with a fierce hungry light. Heat rose shimmering through the chill air; behind, the gargoyles and stone dragons on the castle walls seemed blurred, as if Davos were seeing them through a veil of tears. Or as if the beasts were trembling, stirring . . .

Arya is about to enter the warzone for real.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOK, Arya IV (chapter 14)

We open not too far from where we left Yoren’s merry band. They have reached the river flowing straight south from the Gods Eye. 

It seemed a peaceful place . . . until Koss spotted the dead man. “There, in the reeds.” He pointed, and Arya saw it. The body of a soldier, shapeless and swollen. His sodden green cloak had hung up on a rotted log, and a school of tiny silver fishes were nibbling at his face. “I told you there was bodies,” Lommy announced. “I could taste them in that water.”

He tasted them in the brook, this is a river. Usually brooks flow into rivers, not the other way around. But not too much travel time can have passed for Lommy to make that remark. A day? Two days?

We get a location.

It was midday when the others returned. Woth reported a wooden bridge half a mile downstream, but someone had burned it up. Yoren peeled a sourleaf off the bale. “Might be we could swim the horses over, maybe the donkeys, but there’s no way we’ll get those wagons across. And there’s smoke to the north and west, more fires, could be this side o’ the river’s the place we want to be.” He picked up a long stick and drew a circle in the mud, a line trailing down from it. “That’s Gods Eye, with the river flowing south. We’re here.” He poked a hole beside the line of the river, under the circle. “We can’t go round west of the lake, like I thought. East takes us back to the kingsroad.” He moved the stick up to where the line and circle met. “Near as I recall, there’s a town here. The holdfast’s stone, and there’s a lordling got his seat there too, just a towerhouse, but he’ll have a guard, might be a knight or two. We follow the river north, should be there before dark. They’ll have boats, so I mean to sell all we got and hire us one.” He drew the stick up through the circle of the lake, from bottom to top. “Gods be good, we’ll find a wind and sail across the Gods Eye to Harrentown.”

We don’t know what hour the sun sets but it’s early autumn in Westeros and I’m guessing they’re about 7 to 8 hours from the south shore of the God’s Eye, at wagon and donkey travel-speed.

We have our first mention of Weasel among a heartbreaking instance of Arya’s remaining faith in humanity.

Hot Pie was being silly; it wouldn’t be ghosts at Harrenhal, it would be knights. Arya could reveal herself to Lady Whent, and the knights would escort her home and keep her safe. That was what knights did; they kept you safe, especially women. Maybe Lady Whent would even help the crying girl.

Sadly, we don’t hear who has been taking care of the little girl since her mother died. Arya makes no mention of it.

They reach the deserted town.

The black brother left ten to guard the wagons and the whimpery little girl, and split the rest of them into four groups of five to search the town.

There are no boats, they decide to spend the night at the holdfast. Lots of descriptions of the holdfast and the town. No mention of the little girl. Seriously, who is minding this little toddler? 

When the food was ready, Arya ate a chicken leg and a bit of onion. No one talked much, not even Lommy. Gendry went off by himself afterward, polishing his helm with a look on his face like he wasn’t even there. The crying girl whimpered and wept, but when Hot Pie offered her a bit of goose she gobbled it down and looked for more.

Ah, at least someone is feeding her. Thank you, Hot Pie. Weasel is hungry, she wants to live.

Hot Pie went off and let her alone and Arya curled up on her pallet. She could hear the crying girl from the far side of the haven. I wish she’d just be quiet. Why does she have to cry all the time?

Getting some sister parallels in here.

Jeyne Poole had been confined with her, but Jeyne was useless. Her face was puffy from all her crying, and she could not seem to stop sobbing about her father.

"I'm certain your father is well," Sansa told her when she had finally gotten the dress buttoned right. "I'll ask the queen to let you see him." She thought that kindness might lift Jeyne's spirits, but the other girl just looked at her with red, swollen eyes and began to cry all the harder. She was such a child. (AGOT, Sansa IV)

Don’t like others crying around you when you’re scared, Stark Sisters, do you? There’s a Robb parallel, too.

"Rickon needs you," Robb said sharply. "He's only three, he doesn't understand what's happening. He thinks everyone has deserted him, so he follows me around all day, clutching my leg and crying. I don't know what to do with him." He paused a moment, chewing on his lower lip the way he'd done when he was little. "Mother, I need you too. I'm trying but I can't … I can't do it all by myself." His voice broke with sudden emotion, and Catelyn remembered that he was only fourteen. She wanted to get up and go to him, but Bran was still holding her hand and she could not move. (AGOT, Catelyn III)

They tend to have other characters reflect their inner emotions. That crying, overwhelmed child that they are trying to ingore: themselves. 

Arya, likely through warg power, wakes up to warn the others of the imminent attack. Amory Lorch’s riders are putting the town to the torch. Arya is watching from the holdfast parapets.

Something bumped against her leg, and she glanced down to discover the crying girl clutching her. “Get away!” She wrenched her leg free. “What are you doing up here? Run and hide someplace, you stupid.” She shoved the girl away.

No room for soft feelings when you have to function to survive.

Lorch is not inclined to spare Yoren on account of being with the NW. They attack and throw torches, the barn has a secret tunnel and Yoren orders them to escape. But the barn is already on fire.

As they were running toward the barn, Arya spied the crying girl sitting in the middle of the chaos, surrounded by smoke and slaughter. She grabbed her by the hand and pulled her to her feet as the others raced ahead. The girl wouldn’t walk, even when slapped. Arya dragged her with her right hand while she held Needle in the left. Ahead, the night was a sullen red. The barn’s on fire, she thought. Flames were licking up its sides from where a torch had fallen on straw, and she could hear the screaming of the animals trapped within. Hot Pie stepped out of the barn. “Arry, come on! Lommy’s gone, leave her if she won’t come!” Stubbornly, Arya dragged all the harder, pulling the crying girl along. Hot Pie scuttled back inside, abandoning them . . . but Gendry came back, the fire shining so bright on his polished helm that the horns seemed to glow orange. He ran to them, and hoisted the crying girl up over his shoulder. “Run!”  

In this moment of absolute mortal danger, Arya decides to take charge of the traumatized toddler to ensure her survival, stubbornly, violently even. Just like Yoren did with her. Hot Pie would have left her. Ouch. Gendry soon takes over, luckily. 

The open trap was only a few feet ahead, but the fire was spreading fast, consuming the old wood and dry straw faster than she would have believed. Arya remembered the Hound’s horrible burned face. “Tunnel’s narrow,” Gendry shouted. “How do we get her through?” “Pull her,” Arya said. “Push her.” “Good boys, kind boys,” called Jaqen H’ghar, coughing. “Get these fucking chains off!” Rorge screamed. Gendry ignored them. “You go first, then her, then me. Hurry, it’s a long way.” “When you split the firewood,” Arya remembered, “where did you leave the axe?” “Out by the haven.” He spared a glance for the chained men. “I’d save the donkeys first. There’s no time.” “You take her!” she yelled. “You get her out! You do it!” The fire beat at her back with hot red wings as she fled the burning barn.

Even having grabbed the little girl and knowing there is a path to escaping, Arya cannot simply flee. She hands over the charge of Weasel to Gendry and proceeds to save the lives of the three captives from the black cells. Because Arya doesn’t just let people die. Not unless she wants them dead herself. A force of nature.

She gets the axe from outside in the battlezone, walks back into the blazing barn, throws the axe into the wagon and dives down to safety. The chapter ends thus:

Arya rolled headfirst into the tunnel and dropped five feet. She got dirt in her mouth but she didn’t care, the taste was fine, the taste was mud and water and worms and life. Under the earth the air was cool and dark. Above was nothing but blood and roaring red and choking smoke and the screams of dying horses. She moved her belt around so Needle would not be in her way, and began to crawl. A dozen feet down the tunnel she heard the sound, like the roar of some monstrous beast, and a cloud of hot smoke and black dust came billowing up behind her, smelling of hell. Arya held her breath and kissed the mud on the floor of the tunnel and cried. For whom, she could not say.

So that went from dire to catastrophic.

I love how this chapter was structured. It starts out quiet, the unease builds in the empty town, they create a moment of respite eating dinner in the perceived safety of the holdfast, but even there they have doomed themselves by lighting the cookfire. Then it escalates, the howling of the wolves, the phony negotiations, the blaze they saw in the distance the chapter before now comes to them, and everything sinks into cacophony, until the last second of dubious escape. Arya’s helpless tears are such a well-earned release of panic and tension. There is no safety, only momentary escape, only confusion. It’s monstrous.

She cries, like Weasel cried.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ACOK, Arya V (chapter 19)  

We open to Arya high up on a tree observing a village on the Western lakeshore. 

Someone’s there. Arya chewed her lip. All the other places they’d come upon had been empty and desolate. Farms, villages, castles, septs, barns, it made no matter. If it could burn, the Lannisters had burned it; if it could die, they’d killed it. 

They have been traveling in the woods a while since the night of the blaze. Arya remembers them returning the next night, burying Yoren and joining up with three survivors. The route is North along the Western lakeshore.

Cutjack opened the door at Gendry’s shout, and when Kurz said they’d be better pressing on north than going back, Arya had clung to the hope that she still might reach Winterfell. (…)

To the east, Gods Eye was a sheet of sunhammered blue that filled half the world. Some days, as they made their slow way up the muddy shore (Gendry wanted no part of any roads, and even Hot Pie and Lommy saw the sense in that), Arya felt as though the lake were calling her. (…)

North along the shore, past a number of deserted rural settlings. 

At the end of the day she would often sit on a rock and dangle her feet in the cool water. She had finally thrown away her cracked and rotted shoes. Walking barefoot was hard at first, but the blisters had finally broken, the cuts had healed, and her soles had turned to leather. The mud was nice between her toes, and she liked to feel the earth underfoot when she walked. 

This process will have taken some time. A few weeks.

From up here, she could see a small wooded island off to the northeast.

While the Isle of Faces is not truly small, there is no mention of other wooded islands on the lake. This would place Arya less than halfway up the western shore of the lake. This would match the wagon travel speed of a few weeks from the kingsroad to the holdfast on the south shore. They are slow because they avoid roads, trudge through vegetation and mud, and because they are encumbered by injury and a toddler.

The food situation is not great.

She had broken her fast on some acorn paste and a handful of bugs. Bugs weren’t so bad when you got used to them. Worms were worse, but still not as bad as the pain in your belly after days without food. Finding bugs was easy, all you had to do was kick over a rock. Arya had eaten a bug once when she was little, just to make Sansa screech, so she hadn’t been afraid to eat another. Weasel wasn’t either, but Hot Pie retched up the beetle he tried to swallow, and Lommy and Gendry wouldn’t even try. Yesterday Gendry had caught a frog and shared it with Lommy, and, a few days before, Hot Pie had found blackberries and stripped the bush bare, but mostly they had been living on water and acorns.

The kids are on their own. Kurz the poacher was kind to them and gave them some survival training. But he died four days after they set off from an infected wound. The other two adults abandoned them directly after. Echoes of Dany with Drogo and the khalasar. Up and gone when he died, leaving behind the weak and the slaves.

Maybe Tarber and Cutjack figured they would stand a better chance without a gaggle of orphan boys to herd along. They probably would too, but that didn’t stop her hating them for leaving.

This is horrific. Four children between 14 and 9 years old, plus a little toddler. Sneakily abandoned by the two remaining adults. The Hansel and Gretel vibes are strong. Like Hansel and Gretel, they will be captured looking for food. Like Gretel, Arya will free them using cooking as a weapon, eventually. But that’s for later.

Very much of Arya’s chapters echoes Dany, actually. All from opposite sides. The violence, the abandonment, the eventual enslavement, the starving. The comparison to sheep. It all shows the bottom side of Dany’s war at Drogo’s side, and her travels through the desert with the baby dragons. Even Vaes Tolorro mirrors the Gods Eye town. Food and rest, and visitors that will lead them to another large settlement, eventually. But back to the kids in the woods.

Arya rejoins the others and we see Weasel again. 

At the sound of her voice, Weasel came creeping out from the bushes. Lommy had named her that. He said she looked like a weasel, which wasn’t true, but they couldn’t keep on calling her the crying girl after she finally stopped crying. Her mouth was filthy. Arya hoped she hadn’t been eating mud again.

“Did you see people?” asked Gendry. “Mostly just roofs,” Arya admitted, “but some chimneys were smoking, and I heard a horse.” The Weasel put her arms around her leg, clutching tight. Sometimes she did that now.

So Weasel is all cried out. It’s been a month or so since she lost her family after her village was set ablaze, followed soon after by another such violent, fiery attack. She went from a stationary life in a vilage with her family, meal time, bed time, cuddles and playing, to a life of being scared, confused, hungry, dirty and constantly on the move. 

Like Arya, Weasel stopped crying, like Arya, Weasel doesn’t mind mud in her mouth.

“If it’s a fishing village, they’d sell us fish, I bet,” said Hot Pie. The lake teemed with fresh fish, but they had nothing to catch them with. Arya had tried to use her hands, the way she’d seen Koss do, but fish were quicker than pigeons and the water played tricks on her eyes. “I don’t know about fish.” Arya tugged at the Weasel’s matted hair, thinking it might be best to hack it off. “There’s crows down by the water. Something’s dead there.” “Fish, washed up on shore,” Hot Pie said. “If the crows eat it, I bet we could.” “We should catch some crows, we could eat them,” said Lommy. “We could make a fire and roast them like chickens.”

I love these kids. They are hungry and grumpy and irritated and listless, in their way. They have no clue what to do and injured Lommy is the most anxious of them all. His leg was wounded and infection is setting in. He is the most helpless, and it makes him the most annoying of them. Yield, he says. Yield.

Like Yoren did to her, Arya contemplates hacking off Weasel’s hair. Matted, tangled. Like a bird’s nest, perchance? 

A lovely parallel highlighting the role of privilege, with another taumatized orphan cared for by a Stark daughter:

Alayne smoothed his hair. Lady Lysa had never let the servants touch it, and after she had died Robert had suffered terrible shaking fits whenever anyone came near him with a blade, so it had been allowed to grow until it tumbled over his round shoulders and halfway down his flabby white chest. He does have pretty hair. If the gods are good and he lives long enough to wed, his wife will admire his hair, surely. That much she will love about him. (TWOW, Alayne I)

Arya is trying to care for this child, for her inner child, but she does it listlessly, no practice, no plan. She doesn’t talk to Weasel, at all. Numb.

“Whoever it is, you should yield to them,” Lommy whined. “I need some potion for my leg, it hurts bad.” “If we see any leg potion, we’ll bring it,” Gendry said. “Arry, let’s go, I want to get near before the sun is down. Hot Pie, you keep Weasel here, I don’t want her following.” “Last time she kicked me.” “I’ll kick you if you don’t keep her here.” Without waiting for an answer,  Gendry donned his steel helm and walked off.  Arya had to scamper to keep up. Gendry was five years older and a foot taller than she was, and long of leg as well. For a while he said nothing, just plowed on through the trees with an angry look on his face, making too much noise. But finally he stopped and said, “I think Lommy’s going to die.”

Ah. 

Gendry is the “adult” in the group and he’s definitely going through his own “Rickon in tugging on my leg” phase, and presenting Arya with a variant of an offer Dany gets from Xaro in Meereen later: Abandon this doomed, starving lot and take your chances elsewhere. Unlike Dany, Arya is not actually responsible for any of these children, not even little Weasel. Unlike Dany, she is not even close to tempted.

“I’m sick of carrying him, and I’m sick of all his talk about yielding too. If he could stand up, I’d knock his teeth in. Lommy’s no use to anyone. That crying girl’s no use either.” “You leave Weasel alone, she’s just scared and hungry is all.” Arya glanced back, but the girl was not following for once. Hot Pie must have grabbed her, like Gendry had told him. “She’s no use,” Gendry repeated stubbornly. “Her and Hot Pie and Lommy, they’re slowing us down, and they’re going to get us killed. You’re the only one of the bunch who’s good for anything. Even if you are a girl.”

I am cutting out the following super hilarious exchange around revealing her identity, along with the horrible description of the village with the gibbet and the “SS rounds up the villagers for questioning and deportation” imagery.

Gendry gets himself captured and hauled into the warehouse with the other prisoners. Arya will leave no one behind. Arya will defend her pack. 

Lommy and Hot Pie almost shit themselves when she stepped out of the trees behind them. “Quiet,” she told them, putting an arm around Weasel when the little girl came running up.

Hot Pie stared at her with big eyes. “We thought you left us.” He had his shortsword in hand, the one Yoren had taken off the gold cloak. “I was scared you was a wolf.”

She has her arms around Weasel, trying to comfort the child, keeping in touch with the last of her innocence. It’s her final interaction with Weasel. They thought she was a wolf. She will be. 

Hot Pie glanced at Lommy, at Arya, at Lommy again. “I’ll come,” he said reluctantly. “Lommy, you keep Weasel here.” He grabbed the little girl by the hand and pulled her close. “What if the wolves come?” “Yield,” Arya suggested.

Iconic, badass quote. Heartbreaking context. Their rescue mission is unsurprisingly doomed before it truly gets going. Hot Pie “yields” at the first instance and Arya receives a terrible blow to the head. They take Needle. They are made to lead guards to Lommy and Weasel. 

The man with the torch searched around under the trees. “Are you the last? Baker Boy said there was a girl.” “She ran off when she heard you coming,” Lommy said. “You made a lot of noise.” And Arya thought, Run, Weasel, run as far as you can, run and hide and never come back.

Hide, inner child. Run and hide, like Nymeria. Like the wolf.

So that is the last we see of little Weasel. 

Realistically, she will be dead within days. Exposure, poisoning, injury, starvation unless she has absorbed enough from the others to gather enough bugs for herself. Or eaten by wolves. Plus the fear, the feeling of abandonment. It’s a grim picture. It becomes unbearable when you try and picture any toddler you know in the place of Weasel.

I am going to headcanon hardcore that Baby Weasel is going to be found by loving people and taken away to safety, wrapped up warm and fed and gently raised. Alternatively, she is kindly raised by the giant wolf pack. And somehow not freezing to death. *hands over ears* Lalalalaalalalalaalalala!

We end the chapter with one more death, one that we will see avenged four books later:

“Can you walk?” He sounded concerned. “No,” said Lommy. “You got to carry me.” “Think so?” The man lifted his spear casually and drove the point through the boy’s soft throat. Lommy never even had time to yield again. He jerked once, and that was all. When the man pulled his spear loose, blood sprayed out in a dark fountain. “Carry him, he says,” he muttered, chuckling.

The echoes are beautifully done.

"Well," she said, "I don't know how you'll get there, then." "You'll need to carry me." See? thought Mercy. You know your line, and so do I. "Think so?" asked Arya, sweetly. Raff the Sweetling looked up sharply as the long thin blade came sliding from her sleeve. She slipped it through his throat beneath the chin, twisted, and ripped it back out sideways with a single smooth slash. A fine red rain followed, and in his eyes the light went out. "Valar morghulis," Arya whispered, but Raff was dead and did not hear. 

(TWOW, Mercy)

On the one hand, it’s poetic justice. On the other, it screams out that Arya is basically a child concentration camp survivor but the war is not over. She has had no peace, only ever more hiding, no play, only ever more working, no recovery, only ever more killing. She is in exile, still. But she will return home. And she will one day recover. But she will never ever forget.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In Arya VI, she chooses a new name herself for the first time. The concentration camp vibes are strong. Just read the chapter.

“Some farmer’s whelp, are you? Well, never you mind, girl, you have a chance to win a higher place in this world if you work hard. If you won’t work hard, you’ll be beaten. And what do they call you?” Arya dared not say her true name, but Arry was no good either, it was a boy’s name and they could see she was no boy. “Weasel,” she said, naming the first girl she could think of. “Lommy called me Weasel.”

Lommy and Weasel. Injured and young. No use. Dead and gone but not forgotten.

Ramsey names his dogs for the girls he killed. Sansa and Jon each want to name her future children for the family they lost. Arya names herself for the women and girls she cared about. Weasel. Cat. Nymeria, Nan. Even little Beth Cassel. Her kill list is one part of her. But the list of names that truly matters is another. She takes up their cause not in a hope for a peaceful future with personal happiness like Jon and Sansa but in the here and now, within the broiling whirlwind of injustices. But the very first name is for the little girl, for herself, essentially. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In conclusion:

Little Weasel is, to me, a personification of Arya’s inner child, as she struggles with her loss of innocence and the abandonment by adults. Because she shows up when they encounter their first hardcore warcrime scene. Arya tries to ignore her wailing and pays little attention to her, but attaches her to her hopes for help from Lady Whent and her Knights. She doesn’t take charge of Weasel until their adult caretakers, such as they are, become unavailable by way of being horribly murdered in battle. She is not really equipped to care for her, but she tries and she is determined not to abandon her. When she has disappeared, Arya doesn’t despair, she wishes her well, she has some remnant of faith and she attaches it to Weasel. Off into the wild, to escape certain death, perchance to survive, like she sent off Nymeria. 

It is no accident that Arya names herself Weasel when she enters the concentration camp hell that is Harrenhal, and it is a truly briliant stroke that her only direct memory of Weasel after that is when Arya enters service in the House of Black and White in AFFC, Arya II, which seems more empowering but draws up many comparisons in her mind to Harrenhal. The inner child has run off, but her spirit remains hovering over Arya, never quite fading. 

[multisfabulis]

Savior of Monsters

Word Count: 1776

TW: Major character death

You ever have an idea brewing around in your head for who knows how long until you finally gain the confidence to bring it into existence? This fic is that in a nutshell.

So I've had this idea of writing the Asgore fight in his POV for almost 4 years and it only came about because I was listening to one of the many ASGORE songs up on YouTube one day and the visual of his hand shaking as he's about to strike Frisk down came out to me and it was over. The reason it took so long for this fic to even exist was because I didn't have much confidence in myself as a writer back then and it was because of me posting my original fics I slowly gained that confidence to finally write this.

A LOT of this dips into headcanon territory and it's not written in an RPG-like format because I honestly do not know how I'd write that without it seeming clunky. Either way, I hope you enjoy reading this!

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     The shimmering light of the barrier filled the room. Asgore stood facing the human, dreading what he would do next. He really didn’t want to do it, especially to a child that seemed to be the spitting image of Chara. But if monsters had any hope of leaving the underground and going to the surface, then he had to do it. So…

     “Human…” They had a sad expression on their face. “It was nice to meet you. Goodbye.”

     He bowed his head and drew out his crimson trident. He trained it on the human, causing them to draw their own weapon. It was a dagger, adorned with several pockmarks on the hilt and a dull blade. He remembered it belonging to Chara whenever they would help him with gardening. Memories of that time began to rush into his head but he forced them back.

     They stood there in silence. Then he raised his trident up slightly, wanting the human to deliver the first strike. They shook their head and he knew at that moment he’d need to force them into attacking him.

     Large fireballs appeared on both sides of the human and homed in on them. They barely managed to dodge them but not before the flames licked their body. He repeated the motion he did earlier to try and goad the human into attacking him. They gave him the same answer.

     Waves of smaller fireballs swarmed them. They ducked and weaved through the fire, the flames leaving scorch marks on their clothes. His hands trembled for just a moment, realizing how close he was to burning them. He burned the six children before them and the guilt threatened to eat him alive at every waking moment. This was for the sake of monsterkind but nothing could justify the loss of six innocent souls who had simply fallen down and came to him so they could leave. He didn’t believe it did at the first child and he certainly didn’t believe it did now.

     Smaller waves of fireballs attempted to block them in for giant hordes of fire to come swallow them whole. His breathing got shaky as the blaze moved closer and closer to them, beads of sweat forming on their brow from the intense heat. The human was luckily able to leap out before they were incinerated but it was too close for comfort. Yet they still refused to fight back.

     It was then he had enough and swung his trident. If using his magic wouldn’t work, he may as well physically strike them. The prongs of the trident hit the blade of the dagger, the human parrying the blow before finally thrusting the dagger into his abdomen. The pain was insignificant at best but the expression on their face was one of remorse.

     It reminded him of the time Asriel and Chara tried to bake him a butterscotch pie and ended up poisoning him instead. Chara had laughed the entire time he was sick but he knew they felt guilty. It was after the ordeal was over they apologized to him and the look on their face was almost the same as the human’s now. Was fighting this child who looked like one of his own his punishment for failing them?

     That was when the fight really began. He’d hurl wave after wave of fireballs at them and they’d try to dodge them each and every time. Even as the flames left more and more of their mark on them, they managed to skirt past the greater danger. The only way they’d attack him was when he’d do it first. It made him feel more like a villain than he already was.

     This fight, along with the previous six, were nothing like the ones he had with humans before, the time they and monsters lived alongside each other. He had just been crowned king, if only because monsters were in need of a powerful leader to aid them in the war, and he tried desperately to push the humans back. No matter how many he’d strike down with his furious might, their comrades would save them by slaying many more monsters. He watched countless brethren crumble to dust and the wind carry their ashes to a place far beyond his comprehension. He hated humans for driving him and the survivors of his kind into the underground. It was only through the passage of time and his time on the throne his hatred of them had dissipated. Then they had killed his remaining child, Asriel.

     He and Toriel had been so lost in their grief over losing Chara that they hadn’t noticed him leaving with their body. It was when he came back as another monster entirely they realized what he had done. After setting his sibling down, he crumbled to dust, a sight Asgore never wanted to see again. How could they? Wasn’t it enough to have killed most of his kind and forced the rest into hiding? They had to kill his son, his sweet boy, and for what? He became so enraged that he declared war on humanity and vowed to destroy all the humans in an act of vengeance. Not just for him but for every monster whose lives they’ve worsened because of their actions. Any human that fell into the underground would be shown no mercy.

     Now he was tired. Tired of waiting, tired of killing, tired of his kingdom looking to him for hope and having to pretend he’s their savior when he’s not. He made that declaration in a fit of inconsolable anger and he wishes he could take it back. He doesn’t want to kill anymore. How many more innocents’ blood will stain his hands until the war is over?

     The room was now filled with smoldering embers and cinders. The light from the barrier left the room engulfed in a faint orange glow. They stood facing each other, trying to catch their breath as they waited for the other to make their move. He called upon rings of fireballs that took over the whole room to overwhelm the human. It was at that point they cried out in pain from their inflicted burns.

     Damn it, Asgore, what are you doing, he berated himself. He only meant for the fire to graze them, not actually hurt them. Were they just too exhausted to get out of the way in time? As the flames were extinguished, the human fell to their knees, clutching their shoulder and their dagger tossed aside.

     This was his moment, as much as he was dreading it. He walked over to them, trident in hand and eyes focused on the ground. He needed to do this. The kingdom’s pinned their hopes and dreams on him. If he were to fail this now, after everything he’s done to get this far, they’d be forever hopeless. With a heavy heart, he turned the prongs of the trident down, raised it high in the air, and---

     They looked up at him and a memory flashed in his mind. His rosy cheeked, doe-eyed child, Chara, handing him a pink, hand-knit sweater with the words “Mr. Dad Guy” embroidered in yellow thread on it. It was the first and only gift they gave him and it was a treasure he cherished deeply. His hands shook as tears pricked the corners of his eyes. He couldn’t do it. They were too much like Chara and killing them would feel like he’d slain his own child.

     The trident clattered on the ground as he dropped to his knees. He failed. He failed as a father, as a king, as a savior. The human would escape this place and monsters would be doomed to live in their underground prison. He didn’t know which was worse, living on as a broken man or dying as a failure to his people.

     He finally looked at the human. Parts of their clothes were burnt or had scorch marks and some of their face was covered in soot. They were still holding on to their shoulder but they seemed just so tired. Their journey would soon be over. All they’d need was to take his soul and cross the barrier.

     He began telling them his story. His declaration of war, what he planned on using the souls for, how his family became irreparably broken, everything. He never wanted power, wanted to hurt anyone. All he wanted was for everyone to have hope and to see his wife and kids again. He begged, pleaded, with the human to take his soul and leave the underground. A child such as them didn’t deserve to be here any more than they already were so this was best.

     Yet they were merciful. They kicked the dagger away and shook their head vehemently, refusing him. He was utterly confused on why they were choosing to stay here and suffer than live happily on the surface. Did they enjoy their time here in the underground and didn’t want to leave the friends they made? He may not have understood but a glimmer of hope welled up inside him.

     “Human… I promise you…” He reached out a hand towards them. “For as long as you remain here… My wife and I will take care of you as best we can.”

     They could sit in the living room, telling stories and eating butterscotch pie. They could be like a family. Was this what it felt like to have hope again? To be given a new chance at life after trudging through the darkness for so long? They stretched a hand out and had a hopeful expression on their face.

     It quickly turned to one of horror as he felt tiny pellets stab him all at once. In all his years of seeing others disintegrate, now it was his turn to become dust. He was foolish to hope after all the sins he’s carried out. This was the right and just judgment for a monster such as him.

     He should feel sad over knowing he’d be leaving things unfinished, without any closure. Yet it was freeing to have his burdens be lifted off him as he crumbled to dust, his ashes scattered.

[cecaeliana]

            CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT QUESTIONS

long post below the cut

001. When is their birthday?

February 2nd ( or, dependant on the Mal, roughly four or five days after Mal’s birthday )

002. Do they do anything to celebrate their birthday?

Usually, there’s a party. But it used to be that this party was held in competition with Mal’s birthday party, so was vying for guests and needed the most numbers, but now she’s not doing that, she’d settle for a gathering of her closest friends (her crew) and maybe she’ll give herself a whole day off work, if someone can talk her into it.

003. Does your character like coffee better, or tea?

Coffee, it’s all they had on the Isle so she never really got accustomed to tea.

004. Do they prefer being alone or with others?

She prefers to have a crowd around her, people to talk to and show off in front of, but when it comes down to it, she’d always prefer to spend her time with a couple of close friends rather than a huge group.

005. Are they in good health?

Relatively. Uma is a fairly healthy individual, especially once the barrier comes down, because then she has access to her own divine nature and that protects her from most things that would get to a normal human. She is, however, like most Isle kids, somewhat small for her age from the early malnutrition and lack of expose to sunlight. So, better than most.

006. What sense do they most rely on?

Sight is probably the most important, in terms of relying on it to get things done, but touch is something she relies on for comfort especially. and when she’s in her cecaelia form her tentacles are more receptive to touch, as with an octopus. they help her navigate, especially underwater.  

007. Is your character an optimist or a pessimist?

Uma is a realist, first and foremost. Or that’s what she’d say, she’s actually pretty optimistic.

008. What is their favorite fairy tale?

Cliche as it is, the original version of the little mermaid, where the mermaid’s feet cause her physical pain and then the prince marries someone else so she throws herself into the sea, still in human form, and turns to sea foam. Yep, that one.

009. Do they believe in happy endings?

No, because there’s no such thing as a happy ending. Endings are sad, that’s how endings work. And if you reach a point where you feel like you’re going to live ‘happily ever after’ you have to remember, there’s always more work to be done and eventually one of you will outlive the other.

010. Do they believe in love at first sight?

Not really. Love has to be allowed to grow. You can’t love someone you don’t know. Because then you’re just in love with the idea of them and all the messy bits underneath are just going to put you off.

011. How would your character court the person of their dreams?

About as subtly as a brick through a window. Uma is never subtle, so she’d likely approach them and ask them out, or maybe she’d try and get some info out of them first about things they like.

012. What makes your character embarrassed?

Being reminded of Mal’s nickname.

013. Have they ever been bullied or teased?

Yes. So much. the Shrimpy nickname stuck. And people clung to the idea that Maleficent was ruler of the Isle and therefore Mal could do no wrong, so if Mal wanted them to ostracise Uma and call her names, then they would, for fear of suffering the same fate.  

014. Detail one secret shame your character feels.

She feels ashamed that the whole of the Isle wasn’t always her priority. She always knew she wanted to get her crew off the Isle, but that was as far as her plan went and she’s ashamed of the thought that if she’d gotten the trident and bargained her way off the Isle with her crew at the end of Book 3, she’d have left and not looked back just like the Core 4 did.

015. Are they most likely to fight with their fists or their tongue?

Both. She’ll insult you to take your guard down and then punch you. Insults thrown whilst fighting are just par for the course with Uma.

016. What is their choice of weapon?

Sword. Or, against a magical opponent, magic.

017. When does your character think that violence is justified or deserved?

So much of the time. Way too much of the time. She’s trying to be better, but sometimes her first instinct is still to do something violent to get her point across and make people listen to her.

018. Your character wakes up to find that war has been declared. What do they do?

Gather her people around her, and then probably go out and fight. It would depend on the war and the nature of it. If it’s a landgrab from another kingdom, she might not bother, but if it’s a magical being attacking with intent to destroy the kingdom, she’ll get involved.

019. If they could have a superpower, what would they choose?

She kind of already has superpowers, so if she had to add something on top of what she already has, she’d probably take the ability to control plants so she can make crops grow on the Isle. If she had to lose all her powers and retain just one she would probably choose to retain shapeshifting.

020. What are their hobbies?

What’s a hobby? Uh, no, she enjoys singing, swimming and sailing. They might not necessarily be hobbies, but they’re the closest she gets.

021. How do they display affection?

Touches. Little touches on the arm, a hand in the hair. She likes to touch the people she cares for. Also protectiveness, so standing in front of them, throwing her arm in front of them. Joking around with people, rolling her eyes, punching them lightly in the shoulder.

022. What is the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen?

The sunlight filtering through the clouds as the disappeared when the barrier was brought down, filling the Isle with light like it had never seen before. or. Harry’s eyes.

023. What do they consider beautiful in others physically?

She considers most people beautiful in their own right. But soft hair and pretty eyes are very nice. A strong jaw.

024. What do they consider ugly in others physically?

This is really hard. Uh, completely bald heads maybe? I honestly don’t know.

025. What do they consider beautiful in others personality-wise?

Loyalty. Fierceness. Freedom of Spirit. Confidence.

026. What do they consider ugly in others personality-wise?

Self-depreciation/Self-hatred. Dishonesty. Bigotry in any form. Bullying.

027. What is their idea of perfect happiness?

she doesn’t know, or isn’t sure what exactly would make her perfectly happy. but she feels happiest surrounded by her crew and out on the water. so probably at the wheel of her ship, with her crew around her, safe in the knowledge that the isle is functioning, is growing, is a safe and happy place to live. that her work is done.

028. What makes them laugh out loud?

she’s actually quite fond of laughing and she never tries to hide her laughter if it’s something funny. so, sarcastic comments, jokes, people doing stupid stuff, people saying stupid stuff, people falling down or getting hurt (but not seriously injured)

029. What sort of sense of humor does your character have?

it’s quite a sarcastic humour, she’ll make lots of sarcastic or sassy comments.

030. Do they believe in the afterlife?

it’s hard not to believe in the afterlife when your great-uncle is literally the lord of the dead. she knows about the underworld and the afterlife and she knows it’s a very real, very literal thing.

031. Are they superstitious about anything?

don’t kill albatrosses. don’t do it. but otherwise, no, not hugely superstitious.

032. Does your character believe in ghosts?

yes.

033. Do they keep their promises?

as a sea witch, she has to keep her promises. a promise is a soul debt. uma takes promises very seriously.

034. What’s their view of lying?

she hates lying. she hates being lied to. she would always prefer the honest truth, even if it hurts. she does, occasionally tell white lies like “i’m fine”, but about anything more important than that, it’s a no-no.

035. What is the most important rule your character lives by?

if you want something, you have to work for it. no-one gets anything for free.

036. How honorable is your character?

fairly honourable. but she isn’t above trying underhanded tricks to get what she wants.

037. If your character saw someone drop a large sum of money and knew that they could probably take it without anyone noticing, what would they do?

probably take it. depending on who’d dropped it. if it was someone she knew, she’d probably return it. but finder’s keepers is the isle way of life.

038. What bad habits do they have?

not sleeping. swearing. speaking with her mouth full. skipping meals accidentally.

039. What do they think is the worst thing that can be done to a person?

damnatio memoriae. completely erasing someone’s existence from the world.

040. What is their obsession?

the isle of the lost and turning it into a liveable place. she is a workaholic.

041. Are they comfortable with technology?

pretty comfortable, but she prefers the old fashioned methods like letter writing and taking notes by hand than using a tablet or laptop.

042. What is their greatest achievement?

the barrier being brought down. while she’s not technically responsible, it was her plan and her actions that helped to change mal’s mind, so she’s taking credit.

043. What will they stand up for?

the little guy. the underdog. she’s a huge proponent for those in need, those less fortunate. she’ll stand up for freedom and fair treatment.

044. What disgusts them?

people in positions of power that use them to improve their own lives instead of helping other people. sexism. racism. classism. homophobia. etc.

045. Does your character have any chronic medical conditions?

mild depression.

046. How do they handle getting sick?

she powers through it, pretending like she isn’t sick at all.

047. What was the last medical problem your character had?

malnutrition as a result of living on a garbage island for years.

048. Do they have any allergies?

not that she knows of

049. How does your character feel about growing old?

the length of her lifespan makes growing old seem like something of a non-issue for her. she’s more concerned about other people growing old around her while she remains relatively unchanged.

050. How does your character feel about their own mortality?

given that she’s almost immortal, it’s not something she has to consider now that she’s free from the influence of the barrier. but she hopes that by the time it comes around, she’s done something worthy of getting into elysium.

051. If they knew they would die tomorrow, what would they do today?

make a list of all the jobs that still need doing and give it to someone she trusts to carry on her work.  

052. What is your character’s worst flaw?

her pride and inability to compromise. she’s incredibly stubborn about her plans, possibly to her own detriment. her need to always be in control.

053. What is your character’s greatest strength?

her compassion and her ability to see the world for what it could be instead of what it is.

054. Does your character want power or authority of any kind?

yes. it’s important to her to have power and authority always. it’s why she’s self-titled queen of the isle, it’s why she’s the captain. she struggles with relinquishing control and with trusting other people.

055. Is your character an introvert or an extrovert?

an extrovert.

056. Has your character ever struck someone in anger?

yes. though with time she comes to regret the action, she has definitely lashed out at both friends and enemies in blind anger.

057. Has your character ever killed anyone?

yes.

058. What is your character’s idea of a perfect day?

uma’s idea of a perfect day is a day out at sea with her crew, sailing the world and singing sea shanties and having a good time together away from other authority or people who hate them. just them, free and happy.

059. List several phrases your character is fond of uttering. Where did they pick them up?

what’s my name? is her favourite phrase, use to keep her crew in line, to boost herself up, and to make sure everyone knows who she is and that she’s in charge.   ( descriptor ) party, table for one (pity, loser, etc). picked up from her time in the shop. we ride with the tide! her crew’s mantra. a reminder that they will always be moving forwards.

060. What is your character’s attitude toward education and learning?

she enjoys learning, but she finds most educators boring or pointless. she’s much rather teach herself stuff. but she also wants everyone to receive a good education.

061. Does your character prefer adventure or safety and security?

adventure! she wants to see everything and travel the world and go on wild adventures.

062. What sort of legacy does your character wish to leave behind?

a good one. a big one. she wants to be remembered, but she wants to be remembered for helping people, for doing something good for the world and her people.

063. How well does your character handle difficult people?

it depends on the kind of difficult, but pretty well, usually. she will always assess a situation first, but she’s very good at adapting to whatever is needed from her in the moment.

064. In what ways does your character annoy others?

she’s demanding and controlling. so she annoys people by constantly needs to reassert the fact that she’s in charge, and she’s the most important person in the room.

065. Is your character better at leading or following? Which do they prefer?

leading, always. uma hates following, she can’t stand it.

066. Does your character prefer city life or being out in nature?

being out in nature, specifically, the ocean.

067. Does your character believe in fate or destiny?

she knows that the fates exist, that some parts of your story are prewritten, but she’d like to think she could change it on a whim, that she isn’t tied to anything specific.

068. How strong is your character’s sense of responsibility? What kinds of things trigger it?

very. she feels responsible for a lot. seeing people in need triggers it more than anything, seeing someone hurt or hungry is something she can’t stand.

069. What about your character is heroic?

a lot. she fights for what she wants, she fights for other people, especially those who maybe can’t fight for themselves.

070. What about your character is cowardly?

she doesn’t like getting too involved in her own emotions. especially the good ones and she doesn’t want to lose people, so she distances herself from them to avoid getting hurt.

071. How kind is your character?

fairly kind. she struggles with it sometimes because she’s never been taught kindness, but she’s trying.

072. In a Dungeons & Dragons game, which class would your character be? (wizard, fighter, bard, priest, ranger, etc.)

a druid, but a water druid specifically.

073. In a novel, what plot role would your character fill? (hero, anti-hero, sidekick, villain, etc.)

anti-hero. she’s a hero, but her methods aren’t heroic.

074. What is your character’s favorite game?

she doesn’t really play games. also she’d be a pretty bad sport at any game she didn’t win, so maybe uma is banned from game nights and doesn’t have a favourite.

075. Is your character ticklish?

not really, thanks to shape-shifting any part of her that was ticklish now isn’t.

076. How do they express anger?

loudly. it takes over her whole body, she goes tense and snappy, she gets loud and shouty, and even though she doesn’t like it and would like to change, she can get physically violent.

077. How often do they cry? Over what?

pretty much never. she tries her hardest not to cry. but she’s more likely to cry over very emotional things rather than pain. so she’s more likely to cry because a loved one got hurt, or because of her own feelings than anything else.

078. How emotionally stable is your character?

she’d like to think that she’s emotionally stable, but she can actually be quite volatile, she’s just very good at hiding her mood swings.

079. How easy is it for them to read the emotions of others?

very, ursula spent uma’s entire childhood teaching her about how people convey emotion through their bodies as well as their words and voices. she’s very good at discerning emotions.

080. How easy is it for others to read your character’s emotions?

she’d hope pretty difficult. she does her best not to fall into any of the usual traps, but she still has certain tells, so for someone who knows her, it becomes pretty easy.

081. Is your character religious?

a complex question, because she knows that gods exist as she herself is related to them, so she has to believe in gods, she can’t deny their existence, but she also knows that they’re not the omnipotent, omniscient beings they’re made out to be, they’re flawed and selfish and she gave up on asking for their help.

082. What are your character’s sleeping preferences?

sleep. any sleep. she actually doesn’t sleep very much, she can stay awake for days at a time and when she does sleep it’s only really in short bursts.

083. What is the first thing they say and/or do when they wake up?

check how long she’s been asleep for and what time of day it is, to calculate how long she has before other people are awake, or to see how much time she’s lost.

084. Describe your character in one word.

Hero.

085. Describe your character in three words.

Revolutionary. Stubborn. Ambitious.

086. How would your character describe themself in one word?

Queen.

087. How would your character describe themself in three words?

Queen. Captain. Witch.

088. Is your character quiet or loud?

Loud. So very loud.

089. How vocally expressive is your character?

very. she’s always ready to talk or argue her point. and she’ll always tell you exactly what she thinks.

090. How bodily expressive is your character?

in the middle. most of the time her body language is closed off, but she does like to show off.

091. What type of music does your character like?

she’s not really had much chance to listen to music yet, but female singers are her clear favourite.

092. What emotion does your character evoke in others?

loyalty, for the people who are with her. anger, in those that aren’t. fear.

093. What is your character’s goal in life?

to free her people and to make their lives better, to make their homes liveable and their land usable.

094. Name three things most would not expect your character to be able to know.

economics. the law. how to be good.

095. Name three things most would not expect your character to be able to do.

dance. hold her temper. bench press a car.

096. How do they move and carry themselves? What energy do they project?

uma is very confident in her movement. she walks with her head up and as if she expects everyone else to move out of her way (she does). she doesn’t make herself smaller or back down. she’s always an intimidating presence.

097. How well do they adapt to change?

uma is very adaptable. she’s very good at adapting, but that doesn’t mean she always likes it. if it’s a change she’s campaigned for, she’s all for it, but otherwise? she’s going to need serious convincing.

098. Does your character like animals?

yes. especially sea animals.

099. Do they talk to inanimate objects?

other than maybe swearing if she’s bumped into something? probably not.

100. Does your character dream? If so, what do they dream about?

she does dream, she often dreams about her crew, or her ship, or the depths of the ocean.

[seadivine-moved]

@menxgerie​ asked all the character development questions

yes, below the cut are 100 character development questions. 

001. When is their birthday?

February 2nd ( or, dependant on the Mal, roughly four or five days after Mal’s birthday )

002. Do they do anything to celebrate their birthday?

Usually, there’s a party. But it used to be that this party was held in competition with Mal’s birthday party, so was vying for guests and needed the most numbers, but now she’s not doing that, she’d settle for a gathering of her closest friends (her crew) and maybe she’ll give herself a whole day off work, if someone can talk her into it.

003. Does your character like coffee better, or tea?

Coffee, it’s all they had on the Isle so she never really got accustomed to tea. 

004. Do they prefer being alone or with others?

She prefers to have a crowd around her, people to talk to and show off in front of, but when it comes down to it, she’d always prefer to spend her time with a couple of close friends rather than a huge group. 

005. Are they in good health?

Relatively. Uma is a fairly healthy individual, especially once the barrier comes down, because then she has access to her own divine nature and that protects her from most things that would get to a normal human. She is, however, like most Isle kids, somewhat small for her age from the early malnutrition and lack of expose to sunlight. So, better than most. 

006. What sense do they most rely on?

Sight is probably the most important, in terms of relying on it to get things done, but touch is something she relies on for comfort especially. and when she’s in her cecaelia form her tentacles are more receptive to touch, as with an octopus. they help her navigate, especially underwater.  

007. Is your character an optimist or a pessimist?

Uma is a realist, first and foremost. Or that’s what she’d say, she’s actually pretty optimistic. 

008. What is their favorite fairy tale?

Cliche as it is, the original version of the little mermaid, where the mermaid’s feet cause her physical pain and then the prince marries someone else so she throws herself into the sea, still in human form, and turns to sea foam. Yep, that one. 

009. Do they believe in happy endings?

No, because there’s no such thing as a happy ending. Endings are sad, that’s how endings work. And if you reach a point where you feel like you’re going to live ‘happily ever after’ you have to remember, there’s always more work to be done and eventually one of you will outlive the other. 

010. Do they believe in love at first sight?

Not really. Love has to be allowed to grow. You can’t love someone you don’t know. Because then you’re just in love with the idea of them and all the messy bits underneath are just going to put you off. 

011. How would your character court the person of their dreams?

About as subtly as a brick through a window. Uma is never subtle, so she’d likely approach them and ask them out, or maybe she’d try and get some info out of them first about things they like. 

012. What makes your character embarrassed?

Being reminded of Mal’s nickname. 

013. Have they ever been bullied or teased?

Yes. So much. the Shrimpy nickname stuck. And people clung to the idea that Maleficent was ruler of the Isle and therefore Mal could do no wrong, so if Mal wanted them to ostracise Uma and call her names, then they would, for fear of suffering the same fate.  

014. Detail one secret shame your character feels.

She feels ashamed that the whole of the Isle wasn’t always her priority. She always knew she wanted to get her crew off the Isle, but that was as far as her plan went and she’s ashamed of the thought that if she’d gotten the trident and bargained her way off the Isle with her crew at the end of Book 3, she’d have left and not looked back just like the Core 4 did. 

015. Are they most likely to fight with their fists or their tongue?

Both. She’ll insult you to take your guard down and then punch you. Insults thrown whilst fighting are just par for the course with Uma. 

016. What is their choice of weapon?

Sword. Or, against a magical opponent, magic. 

017. When does your character think that violence is justified or deserved?

So much of the time. Way too much of the time. She’s trying to be better, but sometimes her first instinct is still to do something violent to get her point across and make people listen to her. 

018. Your character wakes up to find that war has been declared. What do they do?

Gather her people around her, and then probably go out and fight. It would depend on the war and the nature of it. If it’s a landgrab from another kingdom, she might not bother, but if it’s a magical being attacking with intent to destroy the kingdom, she’ll get involved. 

019. If they could have a superpower, what would they choose?

She kind of already has superpowers, so if she had to add something on top of what she already has, she’d probably take the ability to control plants so she can make crops grow on the Isle. If she had to lose all her powers and retain just one she would probably choose to retain shapeshifting. 

020. What are their hobbies?

What’s a hobby? Uh, no, she enjoys singing, swimming and sailing. They might not necessarily be hobbies, but they’re the closest she gets. 

021. How do they display affection?

Touches. Little touches on the arm, a hand in the hair. She likes to touch the people she cares for. Also protectiveness, so standing in front of them, throwing her arm in front of them. Joking around with people, rolling her eyes, punching them lightly in the shoulder. 

022. What is the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen?

The sunlight filtering through the clouds as the disappeared when the barrier was brought down, filling the Isle with light like it had never seen before. or. Harry’s eyes. 

023. What do they consider beautiful in others physically?

She considers most people beautiful in their own right. But soft hair and pretty eyes are very nice. A strong jaw. 

024. What do they consider ugly in others physically?

This is really hard. Uh, completely bald heads maybe? I honestly don’t know. 

025. What do they consider beautiful in others personality-wise?

Loyalty. Fierceness. Freedom of Spirit. Confidence. 

026. What do they consider ugly in others personality-wise?

Self-depreciation/Self-hatred. Dishonesty. Bigotry in any form. Bullying. 

027. What is their idea of perfect happiness?

she doesn’t know, or isn’t sure what exactly would make her perfectly happy. but she feels happiest surrounded by her crew and out on the water. so probably at the wheel of her ship, with her crew around her, safe in the knowledge that the isle is functioning, is growing, is a safe and happy place to live. that her work is done. 

028. What makes them laugh out loud?

she’s actually quite fond of laughing and she never tries to hide her laughter if it’s something funny. so, sarcastic comments, jokes, people doing stupid stuff, people saying stupid stuff, people falling down or getting hurt (but not seriously injured)

029. What sort of sense of humor does your character have?

it’s quite a sarcastic humour, she’ll make lots of sarcastic or sassy comments. 

030. Do they believe in the afterlife?

it’s hard not to believe in the afterlife when your great-uncle is literally the lord of the dead. she knows about the underworld and the afterlife and she knows it’s a very real, very literal thing. 

031. Are they superstitious about anything?

don’t kill albatrosses. don’t do it. but otherwise, no, not hugely superstitious. 

032. Does your character believe in ghosts?

yes. 

033. Do they keep their promises?

as a sea witch, she has to keep her promises. a promise is a soul debt. uma takes promises very seriously. 

034. What’s their view of lying?

she hates lying. she hates being lied to. she would always prefer the honest truth, even if it hurts. she does, occasionally tell white lies like “i’m fine”, but about anything more important than that, it’s a no-no. 

035. What is the most important rule your character lives by?

if you want something, you have to work for it. no-one gets anything for free. 

036. How honorable is your character? 

fairly honourable. but she isn’t above trying underhanded tricks to get what she wants. 

037. If your character saw someone drop a large sum of money and knew that they could probably take it without anyone noticing, what would they do?

probably take it. depending on who’d dropped it. if it was someone she knew, she’d probably return it. but finder’s keepers is the isle way of life. 

038. What bad habits do they have?

not sleeping. swearing. speaking with her mouth full. skipping meals accidentally. 

039. What do they think is the worst thing that can be done to a person?

damnatio memoriae. completely erasing someone’s existence from the world. 

040. What is their obsession?

the isle of the lost and turning it into a liveable place. she is a workaholic. 

041. Are they comfortable with technology?

pretty comfortable, but she prefers the old fashioned methods like letter writing and taking notes by hand than using a tablet or laptop. 

042. What is their greatest achievement?

the barrier being brought down. while she’s not technically responsible, it was her plan and her actions that helped to change mal’s mind, so she’s taking credit. 

043. What will they stand up for?

the little guy. the underdog. she’s a huge proponent for those in need, those less fortunate. she’ll stand up for freedom and fair treatment. 

044. What disgusts them?

people in positions of power that use them to improve their own lives instead of helping other people. sexism. racism. classism. homophobia. etc. 

045. Does your character have any chronic medical conditions?

mild depression. 

046. How do they handle getting sick?

she powers through it, pretending like she isn’t sick at all. 

047. What was the last medical problem your character had?

malnutrition as a result of living on a garbage island for years. 

048. Do they have any allergies?

not that she knows of 

049. How does your character feel about growing old?

the length of her lifespan makes growing old seem like something of a non-issue for her. she’s more concerned about other people growing old around her while she remains relatively unchanged. 

050. How does your character feel about their own mortality?

given that she’s almost immortal, it’s not something she has to consider now that she’s free from the influence of the barrier. but she hopes that by the time it comes around, she’s done something worthy of getting into elysium. 

051. If they knew they would die tomorrow, what would they do today?

make a list of all the jobs that still need doing and give it to someone she trusts to carry on her work.  

052. What is your character’s worst flaw?

her pride and inability to compromise. she’s incredibly stubborn about her plans, possibly to her own detriment. her need to always be in control. 

053. What is your character’s greatest strength?

her compassion and her ability to see the world for what it could be instead of what it is. 

054. Does your character want power or authority of any kind?

yes. it’s important to her to have power and authority always. it’s why she’s self-titled queen of the isle, it’s why she’s the captain. she struggles with relinquishing control and with trusting other people. 

055. Is your character an introvert or an extrovert?

an extrovert. 

056. Has your character ever struck someone in anger?

yes. though with time she comes to regret the action, she has definitely lashed out at both friends and enemies in blind anger. 

057. Has your character ever killed anyone?

yes.

058. What is your character’s idea of a perfect day?

uma’s idea of a perfect day is a day out at sea with her crew, sailing the world and singing sea shanties and having a good time together away from other authority or people who hate them. just them, free and happy. 

059. List several phrases your character is fond of uttering. Where did they pick them up?

what’s my name? is her favourite phrase, use to keep her crew in line, to boost herself up, and to make sure everyone knows who she is and that she’s in charge.   ( descriptor ) party, table for one (pity, loser, etc). picked up from her time in the shop.  we ride with the tide! her crew’s mantra. a reminder that they will always be moving forwards. 

060. What is your character’s attitude toward education and learning?

she enjoys learning, but she finds most educators boring or pointless. she’s much rather teach herself stuff.  but she also wants everyone to receive a good education. 

061. Does your character prefer adventure or safety and security?

adventure! she wants to see everything and travel the world and go on wild adventures. 

062. What sort of legacy does your character wish to leave behind?

a good one. a big one. she wants to be remembered, but she wants to be remembered for helping people, for doing something good for the world and her people. 

063. How well does your character handle difficult people?

it depends on the kind of difficult, but pretty well, usually. she will always assess a situation first, but she’s very good at adapting to whatever is needed from her in the moment. 

064. In what ways does your character annoy others?

she’s demanding and controlling. so she annoys people by constantly needs to reassert the fact that she’s in charge, and she’s the most important person in the room. 

065. Is your character better at leading or following? Which do they prefer?

leading, always. uma hates following, she can’t stand it. 

066. Does your character prefer city life or being out in nature?

being out in nature, specifically, the ocean. 

067. Does your character believe in fate or destiny?

she knows that the fates exist, that some parts of your story are prewritten, but she’d like to think she could change it on a whim, that she isn’t tied to anything specific. 

068. How strong is your character’s sense of responsibility? What kinds of things trigger it?

very. she feels responsible for a lot. seeing people in need triggers it more than anything, seeing someone hurt or hungry is something she can’t stand. 

069. What about your character is heroic?

a lot. she fights for what she wants, she fights for other people, especially those who maybe can’t fight for themselves. 

070. What about your character is cowardly?

she doesn’t like getting too involved in her own emotions. especially the good ones and she doesn’t want to lose people, so she distances herself from them to avoid getting hurt. 

071. How kind is your character?

fairly kind. she struggles with it sometimes because she’s never been taught kindness, but she’s trying. 

072. In a Dungeons & Dragons game, which class would your character be? (wizard, fighter, bard, priest, ranger, etc.)

a druid, but a water druid specifically. 

073. In a novel, what plot role would your character fill? (hero, anti-hero, sidekick, villain, etc.)

anti-hero. she’s a hero, but her methods aren’t heroic. 

074. What is your character’s favorite game?

she doesn’t really play games. also she’d be a pretty bad sport at any game she didn’t win, so maybe uma is banned from game nights and doesn’t have a favourite. 

075. Is your character ticklish?

not really, thanks to shape-shifting any part of her that was ticklish now isn’t. 

076. How do they express anger?

loudly. it takes over her whole body, she goes tense and snappy, she gets loud and shouty, and even though she doesn’t like it and would like to change, she can get physically violent. 

077. How often do they cry? Over what?

pretty much never. she tries her hardest not to cry. but she’s more likely to cry over very emotional things rather than pain. so she’s more likely to cry because a loved one got hurt, or because of her own feelings than anything else. 

078. How emotionally stable is your character?

she’d like to think that she’s emotionally stable, but she can actually be quite volatile, she’s just very good at hiding her mood swings. 

079. How easy is it for them to read the emotions of others?

very, ursula spent uma’s entire childhood teaching her about how people convey emotion through their bodies as well as their words and voices. she’s very good at discerning emotions. 

080. How easy is it for others to read your character’s emotions?

she’d hope pretty difficult. she does her best not to fall into any of the usual traps, but she still has certain tells, so for someone who knows her, it becomes pretty easy. 

081. Is your character religious?

a complex question, because she knows that gods exist as she herself is related to them, so she has to believe in gods, she can’t deny their existence, but she also knows that they’re not the omnipotent, omniscient beings they’re made out to be, they’re flawed and selfish and she gave up on asking for their help. 

082. What are your character’s sleeping preferences?

sleep. any sleep. she actually doesn’t sleep very much, she can stay awake for days at a time and when she does sleep it’s only really in short bursts. 

083. What is the first thing they say and/or do when they wake up?

check how long she’s been asleep for and what time of day it is, to calculate how long she has before other people are awake, or to see how much time she’s lost. 

084. Describe your character in one word.

Hero.

085. Describe your character in three words.

Revolutionary. Stubborn. Ambitious.

086. How would your character describe themself in one word?

Queen. 

087. How would your character describe themself in three words?

Queen. Captain. Witch. 

088. Is your character quiet or loud?

Loud. So very loud. 

089. How vocally expressive is your character?

very. she’s always ready to talk or argue her point. and she’ll always tell you exactly what she thinks. 

090. How bodily expressive is your character?

in the middle. most of the time her body language is closed off, but she does like to show off. 

091. What type of music does your character like?

she’s not really had much chance to listen to music yet, but female singers are her clear favourite. 

092. What emotion does your character evoke in others?

loyalty, for the people who are with her. anger, in those that aren’t. fear. 

093. What is your character’s goal in life?

to free her people and to make their lives better, to make their homes liveable and their land usable. 

094. Name three things most would not expect your character to be able to know.

economics. the law. how to be good. 

095. Name three things most would not expect your character to be able to do.

dance. hold her temper. bench press a car. 

096. How do they move and carry themselves? What energy do they project?

uma is very confident in her movement. she walks with her head up and as if she expects everyone else to move out of her way (she does). she doesn’t make herself smaller or back down. she’s always an intimidating presence. 

097. How well do they adapt to change?

uma is very adaptable. she’s very good at adapting, but that doesn’t mean she always likes it. if it’s a change she’s campaigned for, she’s all for it, but otherwise? she’s going to need serious convincing.

098. Does your character like animals?

yes. especially sea animals.

099. Do they talk to inanimate objects?

other than maybe swearing if she’s bumped into something? probably not. 

100. Does your character dream? If so, what do they dream about?

she does dream, she often dreams about her crew, or her ship, or the depths of the ocean. 

[thaneirstaer]

03

03:  A memory from your character’s career

The assault of Fort Yasha and the capture of General Tobias “Nuttnibbler” Flaubert.

This is another big ass post

 “We followed him out of Magenhold, we had seen him in Jusi, he’d get his forces integrated into the city. He was beginning it here, and he would patrol between a nearby fortification of Fort Yasha, we wanted to take this piece off the board. He left in the morning and we followed suit, we took our horses and let Tala lead by the nose. She followed him and his vanguard of thugs from over 100 feet off. We waited the thugs and we realized they were parting ways from Tobias, he was heading on horse back to the fort he had motioned for one of them to head in a separate direction. 

We felt the adrenaline but we hesitated, why was this one sent off alone? So we followed them for a time, we would only lose our chance ONCE Tobias caught wind of our attempts, not before. He was a coward, he’d lock Yasha down and we’d have no hope of apprehending him. We knew Tobias wouldn’t leave the fort without his bodyguards, so we waited patiently on the road, his bodyguard returned with an entourage. A mage, a half dozen guards and a cart, with a massive, locked and sealed prison box, secure prison transport, we were ready to apprehend before. Now we were ready to kill as fog rolled in.

They hesitated and stopped the cart, they had an idea we were there, but they wouldn’t live to tell of the Nameless. Zalrich opened fire from his Thunder cannon as I brought thunder about me, the eldritch energy scorched skin and hair. It was painful, but it’s power let me get as close as I could to the enemies. The burst of thunder knocked about four guards as I blocked their blows, as the bone snapping and flesh tearing of Tala was heard from behind me, I laughed beneath my helmet and pointed backwards.                                          Boys, you’re fucked now

My blood boiled, I smelled it, Magic. The wizard was already turning one of the fallen guard’s into a warped, water based monster, with the body of a large serpent, but the torso of a man, it had it’s own massive trident and swung against us wildly. It was fresh though, Tala tore apart it’s flesh before it could regret coming into being. I had the mage, this elemental witch, humanoid only in shape I battered her with my hammer before spinning it and launching it into it’s skull, the crunch as it’s body turned to water was satisfying. Their ilk had been experimenting on kidnapped children and non human races. My only regret was I could kill it only once.

My shield and armor negated the others, Tala and Zalrich tore them apart has Khoury knitted our wounds. The artificer turned his attention to the locked cage as Tala enjoyed her time with the last guards. No witnesses. The locks fell away as our own General, the Rebel’s military leader, General Flare, a golden and silvered dragon born. He was looking roughed but aside from some sores he was ready to help. He thanked us and informed us the guards spoke of meeting up with folk from the fort, so we cleared the road and got ready, I made the request to not damage one of their armor sets. I only regretted that they didn’t get a fair fight, we stripped them and I donned their armor, Tala took Zalrich’s wand and we began the most maddened idea we ever did, we prepared to infiltrate Fort Yasha.

Zalrich took the form of another rebel leader with magic disguise and we rebound Flare’s hands. Khoury took the form of a mouse and hid in Zalrich’s bag of holding. Somehow we deceived the guards, Zalrich freed himself from the prison in the fort and Tala and I made our way to NutNibbler. He demanded to know who I was, and what had actually happened to the patrol, after a few minutes I smiled, knowing Zalrich was in the next room with Flare and Khoury.

                 Well I knocked him out and took his armor, like this

I called my hammer to me and bashed him across the face, Tala tried to grab him but the snake got free of her and fled to his office, calling for help. She charged into the room after him as I held his knight bodyguard, Flare and Khoury dashed in after the chase, Zalrich covered me before Tobias’ real bodyguard appeared, a massive skeletal serpent, it nearly killed him in a bite and he pulled back to Tobias’ office. Flare gave me a blessing as I slammed Tobias’ desk against the door.

                       Hold them off, but don’t throw your life away 

The party hunted the coward, a werewolf, a halfling with magical speed and an elf in the form of a panther chasing closer and closer. The Bone Naga unleashed a blast of lightning, blowing a hole in the door and nearly through me, my body ached as I pulled back down the stairs and rushed after my friends, Tobias knew there was an escape and he was leading us right to our own escape.

Tala mauled an unfortunate mage that tried to slow us and Khoury pinned the fleeing general, we needed him alive. For now. We made our way out of the underground portion to a stable, got to horses and made our way towards town. From here we relied on agents who were allies of Tala to escort the general into city as we made our way to our inn, where he would be for us to interrogate.

Khoury was not one for this and Zalrich kept him outside, Tala was going to kill him, I knew this, but she was only going to once we got what we could from him. I remember the look on his face, I pleaded with him, surely there’s an ounce of remorse and regret in his heart for all the children he hurt, for all the evil he did, the comrades he betrayed.

                             “  The ends justify the means”

I pressed his spike mace into his chest in anger, before dropping it on the ground and looking at him with a modicum of satisfaction. He thought he wouldn’t get touched, he thought himself invulnerable, that being so important meant he would not suffer death. Gods above I didn’t say it, but I loved watching Tala rip his throat out.”