#wOW that got long i am sorry

[hood-ex]

I have seen you talking about Dick & Dami's relationship and Dick & Tim as well,but what are your takes on Dick and Jason actually?

Like how you wish their relationship should be portrayed today and where are them missing when it comes to making those two acting like siblings?

Do you think in the past their dynamic was better?

How Dick views Jason and how Jason views Dick?

This is difficult to answer because there are like 8 different stages to Dick and Jason's relationship with various dynamics. They also view each other a bit differently depending on which stage we're talking about.

The way I would like their relationship to be portrayed today isn’t necessarily possible thanks to Jason’s integration into the family and acceptance of the no killing moral code. For me, their ideal dynamic is portrayed in Outsiders #44-46. And I know people are gonna find that regressive as hell but, tbh, that dynamic is far more interesting than the kinda awkward thing they have going on now.

Although, I don't mind that they acknowledge their brotherhood in a serious manner now. Like before they'd kinda be like, "Eh... I mean... we were adopted from the same guy but... brothers? Eh..." And now they're more firmly in the, "We're brothers," camp. So that development is interesting.

Character progression wise, it wouldn't feel right for for them to be super close in the way that, say, Dick and Tim are (unless we saw a lot of trust and relationship building between them), but at the same time, there is part of me that kind of wants them to have that older sibling bond (except Jason is closer in age to Tim than he is to Dick sooo actually let's just leave older sibling things to Dick and Cass... not that Cass is much older than Jason though so LOL this is why Dick has to lone the oldest sibling thing by himself... which is funny because Dick is technically no longer the oldest sibling, he's a baby brother now... except Dick and Melinda's relationship really hasn't progressed much sooo you could say they share blood but don't consider each other family yet, in which case, Dick is still the oldest... I mean, regardless, Dick is the oldest sibling of the Waynes... god why did they have to make all of this so difficult 😫).

[ssreeder]

HEYYYY

it’s been so long since i’ve said hello and IM SO SORRY I SUCK AT TALKING TO PEOPLE

but i thought it be cool to tell you that i’m finally rereading liab!! i’ve been wanting to do it for a while now since it’s been two years and it be nice to get a little refresher on everything lol

IM SURPRISED HOW MUCH I REMEBERED!! like i’m imagining it basically the same as i did two years ago cause ur so good at explaining settings and stuff

ALSO I FORGOT HOW MEAN YOU WERE TO THE BOYS!!! LIKE I KNEW WHAT HAPPENED BUT IVE BEEN SO USED TO THEM BEING SAFE WITH THE LATEST CHAPTERS

i’m almost to the forest lesbians so i’m happy :)) i missed them a lot

just wanted to say hi and thought it be cool to let u know <33

OMGGGG HIIII!!! (don’t worry I also suck at talking to people I’m the worssssstttttt)

YOURE DOING A REREAD?!?! how fun!! I’m so excited!! Im glad you’re remembering stuff because PHEW if I didn’t have a massive cheat sheet I’m sure I’d forget stuff haha!

I was SUPER cruel to the boys for a LONG time, but at least they get some fun now and things are finally looking up for them haha it only took idk…. A MILLION words haha

thanks for sending me this ask I always love when people say they’re re reading haha <3

[mildfevermystery]

Chika SSR #1197 and SR #2242 [Transparent, Edited/Extended] ※ Credit is appreciated but not required.

[dent-de-leon]

Listening to "Bedtime" from the Little Mermaid soundtrack and just,,,, thinking about how Taliesin said Molly was based on mermaids and not having a soul but Ariel gets her happy ending in the disney version and Kingsley gets a happy ending with the Nein and just,,,,

Taliesin Jaffe how dare you do this to me on this, our pride month

AH yes I love that Mollymauk is Taliesin's interpretation of a mermaid so much, it's so fascinating and tragic and bittersweet. Also, I just listened to the song and it's lovely. Makes me very nostalgic.

But yeah, that clip of Taliesin explaining his initial pitch for Molly still just breaks my heart. His acknowledgement that, "Mermaids are fucked," because they supposedly exist without a soul, "Empty" and eternally doomed from the start...it's just so tragic. "I want a body where the soul left, and the body just kept moving. Whatever was in there got pulled out, and went to the Raven Queen. And they just kept walking, like a mermaid--no soul....just someone who was a total blank slate."

And while he does get the fairytale happy end and get to live on with his loved ones, I think Tealeaf's narrative very closely mirrors the darker aspects of Hans Christian Andersen's original version. Especially given the premise of a being without a soul--someone who was supposed to be forever Empty, yet still became whole--

And one of my personal favorite mermaid parallels: A deal made with a witch for an impossible dream. Offering up a vital part of yourself in exchange for a false hope that can never truly be. To me, it echoes both Lucien's own family bargaining away their child to a hag--as well as Lucien later offering himself to the Somnovem. He might not have known Azrahari always planned to keep him as one of her puppets--"My beautiful boy...I had hoped to make you mine one day. What a perfect specimen you would have made. Oh, how you would have been merry with laughter and dance..." But he always lived in fear that it was a possibility.

His parents abused both him and his siblings, were willing to offer up one of their two remaining children to a witch for some fantasy; they passively stood by while they forced Lucien to lure victims to a deadly hag as a mere child--marks who were often bandits, murderers, and monsters as surely as the witch. Abandoning Lucien to them and Azrahari both. Azrahari, who promises she can finally make Lucien happy, return him to those childhood days of song and laughter and dance, if only he would let her carve out his soul--

Again and again, Lucien is promised happiness and safety at the cost of his own freedom and autonomy. The witch can take all his pain away, he just has to surrender all his willpower to her. Exist forever as a hollowed out, Empty shell, her glassy-eyed cadaver of a doll to puppet and put on display.

And the Somovem can make all of his dreams come true, can make his fairytale Once upon a time and happily ever after a reality, he just has to submit to their thrall completely. And, like with the Little Mermaid, it will also come at the cost of unimaginable pain. A girl who can dance beautifully, but every step feels like shards of glass in her feet. The pain of her transformation never leaving her. The Somnovem promising Lucien the whole world, and when he asks what it will cost, they decree, "Pain and pain and pain. A dear price for a man, a pittance for a king, and nothing to a God, cosmically ordained."

And while the Little Mermaid longs to meet her love, she also mourns the fact that, while mermaids live far longer than humans, they have no immortal soul. No eternity or gods or heaven awaits them. They merely fade away, dissolve into seafoam and cease to be. (Just a body without a soul, an abandoned vessel. Hollow. Empty.)

I don't think it's a coincidence that's the fate that awaits all mermaids--and that when Lucien dies, his soul is scattered into dust across the Astral Sea. "It's one thing to be in a different body, it's another to have your very essence scattered. Your very immortal soul divided into pieces, like so much confetti. I believe you seemed to fall for one of those pieces that stuck behind..."

To me though, a parallel that really stands out is the narrative culminating in a decision where you have to either kill someone you love or turn that blade on yourself. Hans Christian Andersen's Little Mermaid is granted a last gift at her darkest hour--a way out where she doesn't have to fade away into nothingness. A chance to live on with her family beneath the sea--a family who loved her enough to barter with the sea witch for one last chance at her freedom. And all it will cost is a dagger through the prince's heart.

But of course she can't bear to go through with it. She tosses the witch's dagger into the sea and falls after it to her death, choosing to sacrifice herself instead of the person she loves. And Mollymauk? When faced with the reality that he could only save the Nein by tearing apart Lucien--and himself along with him--he doesn't even hesitate.

He digs his claws into his own wound and lets himself fall to pieces. He never once thinks of self preservation, tries to barter or plead or find a way to save himself at the last moment. He knows either the Nein will survive or the Nonagon will--and perhaps through him, a part of Molly, even just a piece--but he chooses a painful, agonizing death over Lucien's warped perception of godhood and eternity.

All Mollymauk has ever wanted was to live--in spite of how harsh and cruel the world always was to him. He still wanted nothing more than to walk Exandria and fill that clawing Emptiness with joy and love, have just one more day out of the grave to live and feel and be almost real. And still, he chooses to offer up himself if it means sparing everyone else. When Matt narrates Kingsley's nightmares of Cognouza, he emphasizes that to Tealeaf, "It was worth it. It was worth it." As long as it's to protect the people he loves, letting himself pay the blood price will always be worth it--

"Looking out from within your prison, pushing against your invisible bonds--when your heart found the strength, giving all that you are to help those who gave you purpose in return. It was worth it. It was worth it...The moment you gave yourself and broke your prison. The lights, so many around you free to move on. The warm catharsis of letting go..."

Like the merfolk of the original tale, when Mollymauk sacrifices himself, it's not just death that he faces. It's total oblivion. Offering up all that he is. And he does it gladly.

But when the Little Mermaid sacrifices herself, she is welcomed by warmth, and light. Given a chance to earn an immortal soul through good deeds. And by the same token, when Mollymauk tears apart both the Nonagon and himself, he falls back into the Moonweaver's welcoming embrace. Given another chance by both her and the Wildmother--divine, higher powers that looked at this supposedly "Empty" vessel and saw a warm, bleeding heart. A "forgotten fragment" that was loved so much--and loved so fiercely and selflessly in turn--they became real and whole.

“Light gathers around the body, the magic attempting to reach out into whatever space holds the souls here in the Astral Sea, as so many go scattering outward now to search for one. A fragment of one. Or is it a whole one? If souls can grow from but a piece…”

I think it's both terribly tragic and heartwarmingly bittersweet that Mollymauk's ending echoes the Little Mermaid's own--a gutting sacrifice that leads to hope and a new beginning. A second chance and a soul made whole. Being saved and held together by the very love you sacrificed yourself for. It's also suitably a very romantic end to me, which fits Tealeaf perfectly. And the fact that the character who was inspired by mermaids goes on to become a pirate king...I do wonder if Taliesin did that on purpose, because I think it's adorable--

Anyway, I love Mollymauk, and all the Little Mermaid parallels, and wish we could listen to Taliesin talk about mer inspired Molly more. Also, this bit of character building makes mer widmauk one of my favorite au's--

[blurglesmurfklaine]

hi hello tell me more about spiderman davey.

SO GLAD YOU ASKED AHHH

*miles morales voice* Let’s do this one last time:

At the end of the year of his Junior year in high school, students with the highest science and math grades get invited to a field trip to see Oscorp or whatever the newsies equivalent of that would be (I don’t have all the answers unfortunately) and Davey goes and gets bitten by a spider blah blah we KNOW the deal

The summer before Senior Year is uneventful, just hot lazy days spent saving for college, working at Mr. Jacobi's bodega-slash-deli with his best friend Jack Kelly (who have been inseperable since the sixth grade) (if Davey has been secretly in love with him for as long as he can remember THAT IS HIS BUSINESS), Oh, and branching out into vigilantism, saving the city from imminent danger and petty crime, figuring out his new powers, etc. ya know, the ush.

The fall semester rolls around and Davey's friends have made their opinions on the friendly nieghorhood spiderman very clear. Katherine loves anything her dad hates, on principal, and thinks the articles he writes trying to paint him as a villain are distasteful. Race thinks Spider-Man is badass. Charlie admires the heroics. Most surprisingly, though, Jack isn't his biggest fan because "I kick some guys ass for beating on Charlie and I could get sent to juvie. He does it and he's a hero?"

Davey tries to stay neutral about it all because duh he's spiderman and no one can know. When Oscar and Morris push him around he obvs COULD take any of them to the floor but he wouldn't because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself. (Jack, after Oscar pushes Davey into the lockers: TRY THAT AGAIN AND YOU'LL BE SEEING THROUGH A BLACK EYE BIIIITCH)

One day they're at Mr. Jacobi's. Davey is at the register while Jack stocks up. Davey's spidey-senses go off and he asks Jack to cover for him for a bit. Jack is wary because Davey's been... off and unusually disfocused, flaky these past few weeks, but he's come to expect it. So he agrees. Davey goes off to fight some super down the road or smth and in his absence, Jack gets robbed.

Davey returns to work to see a stranger pointing a gun at Jack and swings into action (literally) and saves Jack as Spider Man.

Spider Man leaves before Jack can properly thank him and wouldn't you know it Davey is suddenly back on the scene and "Oh my GOD you got ROBBED?? Are you oka--WAIT THE SPIDERMAN SAVED YOU?"

And suddenly Jack has changed his tune when it comes to Manhattan's fave super hero.

Which. If Davey's being honest, he doesn't mind hearing Jack gush about him at length (even is he doesn't know it's... him). Davey kind of likes listening to Jack's ravings of "Oh he was so funny, actually. You'd think someone like that would have an ego but he was actually so humble?? God, and he's TALL--the pictures I get of him for The World don't do him justice." He doesn't mind it.

At first.

Because as we all know, when Jack Kelly puts his mind to something he will NOT shut the fuck up about it and he has been dead set on trying to meet spiderman again so he can "thank the guy properly". In fact, Jack's dumbass has been so distracted by his infatuation with spiderman that he's been walking into traffic, taking wrong turns on his walk home and ending up in dicey neighborhoods, and thank GOD Davey's always with him to prevent disaster because--

"Wait a second. Are you TRYING to get into trouble so spiderman will come and save you again?"

"ppppssshhh whaaaat? No! That's stupid--"

(that is 100% what Jack is doing.) (It doesn't work. For obvious reasons.)

And Davey laughs in disbelief like "I can't with you. Be safe on your shift. I'll see you tomorrow." BUT HOHOHOOOOO my boy has PLANS and you will NEVER GUESS who the fuck shows up to Jack's shift at Mr. Jacobi's that evening? Yeah it's spiderman.

Jack thanks him and they get to talking "Thanks for what you did. Not every day the guy you spent the last six months shit talking saves your ass."

Davey Jacobs can't stick up for himself at school, for fear of being found out. Even before that, he could never find the nerve to fight back to the Delancey brothers, or to tell Jack how he really felt. But with when he puts the mask on? Hoooooo boiiii he has the freedom to be the version of himself he;s always wanted to be: he's witty against these idiot villains and charismatic with the people he saves. So with his newfound courage he says:

"Not every day I save someone as handsome as you."

And that's where Davey went wrong because if Jack was annoying before, he's INSUFFERABLE now, and their lunch table can't go a single day without Jack bringing up his date that wasn't a date with spiderman and Race insinuates Jack might have a little crush and Davey snaps: "Can we please just shut up about that stupid bug?"

and it's Race, who is a little shit, so he smirks. "I though you liked old spidey?"

"in moderation."

and now Davey is jealous of himself. which is totally fun and enjoyable and not miserable at all.

Despite wishing he had the strength to be the person he was behind the mask without it, Davey finds himself visiting Mr. Jacobi's as spiderman more and more often, just to hang out with Jack. He loves it, because he loves Jack. But it's also sort of sad in a sense because he realizes in the half a year he's spent being spiderman, he hasn't had time to be a kid. To spend time running the school newspaper with Katherine. To sit on the rooftop of Davey's apartment with Jack and watch the city below them and talk about their future--about the apartment they're going to get together one day, where Davey will write for one of the local newspapers and Jack will fill the walls with his art.

And as much as he loves spending time with jack as spiderman, he can't help but mourn the loss of the little he gets with him as Davey. He can't help but notice the growing distance, and it's all his fault. HIs grades are slipping, he's losing his best friend, and honestly, he isn't even sure he's really making a notable difference in the city. And even though Davey's wearing a literal mask, Jack has always been able to see right though him.

"What's wrong?"

And Davey tries to lie. "Nothing."

"You know, you remind me of my best friend."

"How so?"

"He's a terrible liar, too."

And Davey lets it out--in his own, vague way. "I just... I've got the--powers. The suit. The mask. But underneath it all... I don't feel like much of a hero. When I go home tonight, I'm still going to be just an idiot kid who is way in over his head."

And that's when Jack takes spiderman by the hand and leads him to the alley behind the deli. "I wanna show you something."

and Davey's breath catches in his throat at the mural before him--spiderman with a million colors dancing around his silhouette. And Jack takes Davey's gloved hands. "You might not agree, but this is how New York sees you. How I see you." And Davey is SO overwhelmed he tries to run away but Jack grabs his hand, pulls him close, slides his hands under the bottom of his mask--

"I--" Davey tries to protest.

"Don't worry," Jack assures him. "I ain't gonna take it off, I just... If I don't do this I'm gonna regret it for the rest of my life."

And then Jack slides Davey's mask up to his nose and kisses him.

"Well don't you just look like the cat that caught the canary," Katherine says to Davey at the courtyard the next morning. "You finally tell Jack you're in love with him."

Davey rolls his eyes. "Sure. And I also found the holy grail this morning before school."

"Okay, strike one for me. No to the feelings. You finally tell him you're spiderman?"

"I mean, I've thought about it, but at this point I think it'd do more harm than--" and then Davey realizes. He looks at Kath, who looks just as surprised as he does.

"Hoooooly shit. I mean... I thought--you're always running off, and at the football game when that sand guy--no one could find you, but you're actually--!"

He claps a hand over her mouth. "Don't tell Jack."

and tbh that's all that I've got BUT other misc stuff I figure:

Medda would be the Uncle Ben character (which PAINS me, but could also tie in to Jack's waryness of spiderman??)

Jack works for The World as a photographer, but after developing his crush convinces Pulitzer to let him take pictures of spiderman

There's a Big Bad B-Plot but idk what lmao

ANGST!! Davey being sad about Jack being in love with SpiderMan but not with Davey because my boy would overthink the SHIT out of this

A conversation between SpiderMan and Jack where Jack brings up Davey "Davey's my... We're best friends." "And... that's all?" (is jack BLUSHING???) "I uh, it's not like that. We... I love him to death, but he's been so. Weird lately. Pulling away. I wanna talk to him, but. He ain't like me. He's smart. He's going to college. He's the greatest guy I know, but... guys like me don't end up with guys like him." cue more Davey overthinking

Katherine, after finding out, becomes Davey's "guy in the chair"

Katherine and Davey get secretive bc. hero shit. and Jack thinks they're secretly dating "You know, Davey... If you and Kath are in love, you can tell me" Davey: ????? "What gives you that impression?" "You two are always sneaking off. It's pretty obvious." "I--no. it's not like that at all--" "Well it sure seems like that" "Why do you even care? Aren't you going steady with the bug guy?" "His name is--" "You don't even know his name! You don't know the first thing about this guy and you're mooning over him like some fanboy." "Yeah, well I know he's there when I need him!" "What's that supposed to mean?" "Don't act like you don't know. Like you haven't spent the last few months prepping to leave me here, while you're over in princeton or yale or wherever the hell you're going off to." "The fact that you think I could ever go on without you-- Jack how do you not know..." "Not know what?" "Nothing..."

Eventually Big Bad would find out Davey's identity and use Jack against him and there's a Big Battle at the end where Jack has to watch spiderman get the crap kicked out of him and the mask slowly falls off and when Jack realizes it's Davey he just LOSES IT

I have no idea how this ends :)

THAT'S ALL I GOT FOR NOW FOLKS

[phoenix-flamed]

Alright, let's see if I can get this all written out. Please bear in mind that this headcanon is written with general Anabella, Clive, and Joshua in mind, rather than based on any specific muses/portrayals -- so don't worry if you don't agree! Naturally, these subjects are going to vary based on interactions with individual muses of aforementioned characters, and based on the headcanons attached to those muses and their personal stories. But this will give insight into how my Elwin thinks, feels, etc., and why he makes decisions he does, be it for better or worse.

Considering this headcanon is going to be talking about my muse's relationships with his family members, which includes Clive's relationship with Anabella -- reader discretion is advised.

This is probably going to be a very long post, which I profusely apologize for.

Let's start with my Elwin's relationship with Anabella. Canonically, we aren't told much about their personal relationship, at least not from Elwin's side. Much of what I pull from for my headcanons regarding their marriage is the bedroom scene at the start of the game and how they interact during it, and Anabella's final confrontation with Clive and Jill, as well as little context clues throughout the game of things that Anabella either says or does.

My Elwin didn't have a necessarily "bad" marriage with Anabella. They were arranged to marry, both as the two eldest children of their respective branches of the Rosfield family, and, due to their close blood relation, as two of the most likely candidates to produce the next Dominant of Phoenix after Elwin's father had passed on. But at least in the beginning, they didn't dislike each-other.

He did care deeply for Anabella, though it wasn't necessarily full-on romantic love, or if it was, it wasn't necessarily the same type that he felt towards the two he had been in a relationship with before his marriage to her. (Obviously the depth of his feelings towards specific Anabella RPers is always subject to vary, depending on the Anabella RPer's headcanons, chemistry between our muses, and how the other mun feels regarding the two!) But he, if nothing else, loved her as a friend and a partner, and he trusted her, even if there were so many things they didn't agree on all across the board. She was not only his wife, but the Duchess of Rosaria -- his fellow ruler, his equal. It was his understanding of their relationship that the two should work together and fulfill their duty as the current heads of the ruling family, which was to faithfully look after for their people.

It was also their duty to teach their children of their family's legacy that would then be passed on to them as well, and to lead them by example of how to serve their people for when their own time came to take over.

When I say that my Elwin was "afraid" of Anabella, please bear in mind that it isn't fear of what she can do to him physically. Elwin wasn't, deep down at heart, an overly confident man, although he hid it well. Beyond his most trusted friends and his brother, the only other person he had shown his "real" self to was his wife. He trusted her enough to let his guard down and take off his mask, so to speak; he trusted her enough to be vulnerable around her, if only in glimpses. As a result, whether she chose to use them against him or not, she knew his weaknesses -- she knew where to wound him with her words and get into his head or appeal to his emotions. She knew how to manipulate him, and conversely, she also knew how to soothe and reassure him.

They were, in short, opposites, but two sides of a coin. And in this respect, and this respect alone, they did fulfill their roles as equals in power.

However, for all of their disagreements on how the duchy should be run and what the future should hold for it, and many other political matters -- the biggest divide between them, at least on Elwin's part, was Anabella's reaction to Clive's "rejection" by the Phoenix, and her resulting poor treatment of him. He didn't, and still doesn't in the post-Phoenix Gate verses, understand how she could base his worth as a person, and his worthiness of her love, on something beyond the child's control. Clive had done nothing wrong; if anything, their firstborn did his very best to do everything right, in order to prove his worthiness to everyone, but especially to her, and to earn her love. To see Anabella continue to shun him as a "failure" despite his efforts broke Elwin's heart each and every time, made all the worse by his father knowing of the rumors started by the other nobles of the court. In Elwin's viewpoint, and whether true or not, these rumors were likely an attempt at disrupting their family's relationship by targeting what could be perceived as the "weakest" part of their marriage. Whether it be for the end goal of planting a seed of distrust on his wife's side, or taking a swing at Anabella's pride and the importance she holds for things like status, reputation, appearances, and most of all her personal duty of birthing the next Dominant of Phoenix... he isn't sure which it might be.

But doubling back to that mention of my Elwin's "fear" of Anabella, this is another instance, and perhaps an even bigger one, where it comes into play: it's the fear of how deeply Anabella's words are hurting Clive, and a fear that with a single wrong move, Elwin could cause Anabella's attitude towards the boy to worsen. In short, it's a fear that his wife may redirect her frustrations or anger or discontent with her husband out on their child, who has himself done nothing wrong beyond being Elwin's son too.

Maybe it's because he sees so much of himself in their eldest son, right down to the fact that they are both "ordinary men" rather than Dominants, and thus have to work hard to make up for the inherent shortcoming in terms of power when compared to a Dominant -- but my Elwin is undeniably incredibly attached to and protective of Clive, even if he has a difficult time of outwardly expressing it. That is his baby, his first ever child, and he can't stand even just the thought of him being hurt in any capacity, be it directly or indirectly.

The subject of Clive and Joshua is an incredibly complex one for Elwin, and it's made even more complicated by his and Anabella's unsteady relationship, which I'll elaborate more on that specific part in a bit.

But first. As much as Elwin may have aspired to overthrow the traditional order and dismantle the societal hierarchy to ensure equality for everyone, including Bearers -- he was still the ruler of a nation, and he was still part of a royal family and lineage. Because of this, no matter how much he may have wanted to just do and say whatever he wanted, whensoever he pleased, the reality was that he couldn't. Even if he didn't give a damn about the opinions of his fellow nobility, and even if he didn't feel like he needed the support and favor of the court, he was still very much a servant to the people of the duchy. During the banquet scene, when Joshua asks why the Phoenix is always born into their family, Elwin explains it's because they, the Rosfields, have been chosen to uphold a duty to the people of Rosaria, which is to share the power granted to their family by the Mothercrystal's Blessing with all of them -- and the way that they have been chosen to do that is through the Phoenix first and foremost, and by using the magic that comes along with it for the betterment of all.

This was a duty that my Elwin held extremely close to his heart. He had been raised and taught and so wholly immersed in this mentality, that the Rosfield family was meant to use their power to serve and protect and guide Rosaria, and that the Dominant of Phoenix was more than just the rightful ruler of the duchy, but was also the symbol of hope and strength for their nation as well.

This isn't to say that he had ever viewed Clive as inferior or as a failure for not awakening as Phoenix's Dominant, or that he only cared about Joshua because he is Phoenix's Dominant. It's the opposite; he loves his boys unconditionally. But he also considered their family's duty of serving their people as something to be proud of and aspired to, whether it be through the Eikon of Fire's power or through swordsmanship and the life of a soldier.

Before the Night of Flames, he didn't understand that both Clive and Joshua needed reassurance on a more personal, emotional level from their father, or that there actually is a distinction between expressing his love for them as his sons versus expressing his love for them as heirs to the Rosfield legacy -- and that these two sentiments, while co-existing, are separate from the other. In his mind, the roles that the two of his boys each played are not what define them or their worth, no, but they were something for the two to each hold their head up high over. They are, at the end of the day, Rosfields, and it was the Rosfield family's traditional duty to carry out this obligation to Rosaria, as it had always been in generations before.

The same way that Elwin adhered to tradition in this sense, as is incredibly fitting for the Archduke of a nation referred to as the "Bastion of Tradition", he also tried to navigate his relationship with his children in a way that supported and encouraged their growth in their devotion to their people. Especially when it came to Clive being a part of the ducal army, and with them having been the ruling family, he felt that he must straddle the line carefully between expressing his love for his eldest son while avoiding showing favoritism or preferential treatment towards him versus the other soldiers. If the message he was trying to convey was that everyone deserves to be treated as equals, then shouldn't members of the royal family(including Elwin himself) be treated as equals with the common man?

He didn't want to be a hypocrite, nor did he want to unintentionally cripple his eldest son in terms of personal growth and strength, nor weaken others' opinions on Clive with the impression that Clive had been handed his esteemed position rather than earned it. In his mind, Clive very much deserved to be respected and admired for his unwavering devotion, perseverance, tenacity, and strength. But Elwin still tried to respect and love him as a person as well, which was why he did things -- or rather, didn't do things such as force Clive to join their fellow soldiers during celebratory events like the feast held at Phoenix Gate.

He knew full well that Clive was full of talent and promise. He saw it in every aspect of the boy -- from his demeanor, the way he regarded and treated others regardless of their status or position, his skills in combat, the quiet compassion he extended to people, so on. He wanted others to see it, too, especially Anabella. Because at the end of the day, there was also the fact that both Clive and Joshua were Rosaria's future, and he wanted his wife to see for herself that the future of the duchy -- and perhaps more -- were in good, capable hands.

This was why, for as many times as my Elwin had confronted the Duchess about the boy's capabilities, he did ultimately make the mistake of encouraging Clive to prove himself to her. He believed that he, even as the young man's father, was incapable of changing Anabella's mind and her harsh opinions about their firstborn son, despite his praise for him and reassurances to her of his skill. If she wouldn't listen to reason, he surmised, then the only alternative was for Clive to outright show her.

Should he have pressed the matter more relentlessly on Clive's behalf, and gone to greater lengths to curb Anabella's harsh, undeserved treatment of him? I personally believe so. By urging Clive to prove himself to his mother, and while Elwin's intentions were good, it was more likely to backfire than to succeed -- especially because of Elwin's turbulent relationship with Anabella. In short, whether he had intended to or not, he had put Clive in a position where he was being pitted against Anabella, and both of their sons were regrettably caught in the middle of the tension between their parents.

The fact that Elwin was so frequently away from Rosalith to attend to business, be it on the political front or on the battlefield, didn't help in the slightest. It ensured that no, he couldn't be there to defend their son each and every time the Duchess started in on him, treated him with contempt, or altogether refused to not ignore his existence.

When it came to Joshua, their youngest son was at a disadvantage with regards to forming a bond with his father. Joshua just happened to have been born during the onset of the conflict with Kanver, when Kanver decided it wanted its independence. As we find out in the Ultimania book, this entire situation lasted for around eight or so years, and at the beginning prompted Dhalmekia and Rosaria to enter an alliance, so that they could work together to stop Kanver from obtaining its goal. Towards the end of the conflict, things had escalated into full-blown war, with Dhalmekia and Rosaria fighting against Waloed after Waloed stepped in to stand against Dhalmekia in particular.

Both Rosaria's history, along with its "present" time, was filled with conflict and struggle. Before the Kanver situation, Elwin had to deal with the Northern Territories and Silvermane choosing to try to invade Rosaria in the wake of their Mothercrystal's death and the loss of more and more of their lands at the hands of the Blight. There was the issue of the Blight in and of itself, and finding methods to protect the duchy from the creeping devastation. Then there were the political relations that needed to be upheld across Storm, and all of these factors were just the tip of the iceberg in terms of responsibilities. They all ensured that, in short, both the Archduke and the Duchess had their hands full, and Elwin was often the one that had left Rosalith to accompany his men onto the front lines.

He missed much of Joshua's young life, and because of that, missed so many vital moments and opportunities that would have given him the chance to forge a deeper connection with the boy. He by no means meant to neglect Joshua, or to abstain from getting close to him emotionally, and he did try to reach out to him. But because he didn't know him in the same way that he had known Clive when Clive was little, because he hadn't been granted the same time and opportunity to get to know Joshua, to learn his needs and understand his thoughts and feelings, and at least to some degree watch him grow through the years -- Elwin struggled. But he did love Joshua, and he never considered Joshua's only value to be as the Dominant of Phoenix. The child was his son first, and the bearer of the Eikon of Fire second.

His decision to take Joshua to Phoenix Gate to have him carry out the tradition of communing with the Rosfield family's ancestors for guidance in the upcoming war with the Iron Kingdom was not a decision made lightly. It was also not a decision that he wanted to make, but it was ultimately a choice between his duty to Rosaria and his love and protectiveness as a father. The fight against Waloed's army, and Dhalmekia's abandonment of the fight -- and subsequent forced retreat by Rosaria -- highlighted one very important problem for Rosaria, in terms of strength and defense: unlike most of the other nations of Storm, they didn't have an Eikon fighting at their side.

His father, the previous Dominant of Phoenix, had passed away so many years prior due to sudden illness, leaving them to have to fight their battles after that point on their own. And even with Joshua's awakening as the next Dominant, Joshua was far too young during that time to go to war with them, leaving them at an extremely great disadvantage. Even Elwin, for as skilled and strong of a fighter as he was, for all of his prowess with a blade, was still just an ordinary man, and his strength would never be able to hold up against that of a Primed Dominant.

And so he had to make a heavy decision, one that he would continue to regret long after The Night of Flames had taken place: despite Joshua being a child, and despite the boy's susceptibility to illness, Rosaria needed the Phoenix with its army on the battlefield, as well as to gain that valuable insight from their ancestors -- because the Dominant of Phoenix was the only one who could enter the Apodytery and perform the ritual to commune with them. Even against the Iron Kingdom, who presumably had no Eikon of their own given their grim views towards Eikons, the Phoenix would give them a much-needed advantage, because remember, Rosaria has been struggling against the Iron Kingdom on and off for centuries by that point for control of Drake's Breath, and each time they've fought, Rosaria has been forced to retreat.

Unfortunately, because of this situation, it also meant that Elwin had to ignore his wife's pleas for him to reconsider when it came to Joshua, and had to ignore his wife's attempts at appealing to his better sense and emotions as Joshua's father.

Now, this leads into another glaring matter:

Elwin loved his family with all of his heart. He really, truly did. However, in the end, without fail, he always prioritized duty to his people, and the people of Rosaria in general, over the needs of his family. It wasn't right, no -- but it was what he believed at the time was right, regardless of his personal feelings. He was, after all, the reigning Archduke, and it was his obligation as both ruler and as a Rosfield to serve and protect and care for his people, no matter the cost. It was what he knew, what he had been shown, what he believed was a necessary sacrifice of a good ruler.

I think I managed to cover everything that I wanted to cover? Uh. You're one hell of a trooper if you've managed to read all of this.

[steakout-05]

holy shit

[howthesleeplesswander]

another random starter for @jackdup bc Rhysie demanded a silly, fluffy thread to let him love on his sweetheart 🥺💖

“...and then, if you can believe it—y-you know what she says to me?” Rhys’s slurred voice echoed in the vastness of his office. What had started as an evening chat with Timothy had led to more drinks than he could handle with any amount of grace, hence the tirade that was still going strong after ten minutes. He gestured wildly as he paced in front of the plush armchair where Tim had settled. 

“She looks me right in the eyes and says, ‘With all due respect’—and like, okay, listen Brenda, I-I wasn’t born yesterday, first of all, we alllll know what that saying actually means, so ya’ know? I don’t really care what stupidness you follow it with; that’s already a biiiig strike towards me not caring! A-anyway—then she says, ‘With all due respect’—” and this time Rhys mimicked a higher pitched, haughty tone reminiscent of the software developer from the morning's infuriating meeting, “—‘You must have the coding skills of a brain-dead bandit if you don’t understand how big this project is. How have you even made it this far in life with such a tiny, smooth brain?'” He was definitely paraphrasing now, but he’d blame the booze for that. 

Rhys threw his arms wide, and his eyes rolled so hard that he almost tipped backwards. “I was a Hyperion programmer for years! You think I don’t know how much work it takes to implement something like that? I mean, I dealt with plenty of programming overhauls for the Loader Bots, and you know how many more of those there are than janitorial bots in HQ?"

Here he paused briefly, squinting into middle-distance as if actually attempting to count in his head. "I-I mean…I dunno exactly, I have spreadsheets n' shit for that, but like—it’s gotta be millions, at least! A butt-load, is what I’m saying! One one-thousandth of that is hardly a big ask, but nooo, Brenda was all like—”

But before he could continue his barely-coherent rant, the world lurched around him when he spun on his heel. Rhys tripped over himself and stumbled directly into Timmy’s chair—and while he miraculously caught himself before hitting the floor, he still fell halfway on top of Timothy in a flurry of flailing limbs. By the time his head stopped spinning enough to process which way was up again, he was awkwardly perched semi-on Timmy’s knee and semi-on the armrest. One hand clung to the back of the chair like a lifeline.

“Haaa—whoo, wow, alright, Iiii am…way too drunk right now.” And he was supposed to be the big, cool, head-honcho-of-Atlas. Rhys laughed at himself, free-spirited and floaty. “Whyyy did you let me get so drunk?? I have an earnings call at ass-o’-clock in the morning, you’re the woooorst.” And yet he buried his face in the crook of Timmy's neck and nuzzled him affectionately, so how effective was his whining, really?

[qqqqqqqqqqq0]

i've been having some trouble falling asleep lately

[boxwinebaddie]

same nervous anon from earlier anddd i graduated!! idk why i was scared i was totally fine lmaosl im the queen of overreacting. anyways im officially a graduate and i got SUMMA CUM LAUDE HELL YEAH

hello, baby!!!!! first of all, i just want to say...

cONGRATU-FUCKING-LATIONS, MY LOVE!!!!!

graduating is no easy feat, seriously. i am so fucking proud of you, i was so excited to finally have enough time to answer this because i am so happy that my face hurts from SMILING SO BIG!!!! :DDD

you did the damn thing!!! like i know that at points it was really hard, but you powered through it and i am so excited for you to start this new chapter of your life and see what life has in store for you. <3

i am glad your culmination went smoothly because hooooly fuck, chaperoning the culmination from my school was HELL ON EARTH, hoooooly shit. parents are so entitled and so mean to me like yeah, okay maam, i'm sorry that you are sitting in the fourth row and you wanted to sit in the front row, SO DID EVERY OTHER FUCKING FAMILY HERE TOLD, like i don't care how much you donate to the school???? i didn't make the damn seating chart, yell at the WALL!

it was...oh my god. i still get flashbacks, bro.

but AGAIN I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

and congratulations to all my friends in school or not, whatever you are doing, and however well or not well you think you are doing, know you are very loved and i am very, very proud of you.

sorry, i haven't been around...again, if you were dying during finals week, so am i because i am GIVING THOSE FINALS when teachers decide to rage quit and take their vacations early like??? thanks so much, legend! it's not like i...you know...have never ran your class before and i have to comfort nervous students WHO AREN'T MINE?

but yes, mwah mwah mWAH! i love you guys, i posted a very lame ask meme finally after 73093740934 years and i'm sorry, but because i am so busy i may go dark randomly and come back. the posting is slow goings and i am worried about how stressful working summer camp will be ( though, i am stoked for the structure ) but if you're on the struggle bus, its the hello kitty bus and i'm driving.

which unfortunately is not great news...

because i can't drive.

anyways! cheers! mazel! <3333

-uncle nina, grinning ear to ear

[petrichorium]

Happy anniversary of the time I wrote 20k words in a week and got ghosted by the artist who was supposed to make art for the fic lol

[torifuckingspring]

spent three years gaslighting myself into thinking i was a lesbian and not trans and bisexual bc it was easier now im depressed and obsessed with queer media

[march32nd]

thoughts on me being back on tumblr ????????????

[intertexts-moving]

favorite tumblr trend lately is like people posting satire or bait or jokes that are extremely obvious if u stare at them for like more than five seconds & then every single reply is taking them dead seriously.

[steelycunt]

did not forget about the last two prompts btw...still doing them 2morrow at the latest...sorry >:-)

[iveneverbeenmorestressedinmylife]

please elaborate on where you would have taken hunter's arc!! i am so frustrated that they gave him no time to grieve and didn't even let him confront belos in the end

Godd, you and i both anon, you and i both. Where do i even start.

Aaahh first of all obligatory disclaimer: this is all hypothetical talk and I don't hold anything against the toh crew they did their best with what little wiggle room disney gave them. Well ok theres actually like one or two things i hold against them but we will get to that.

So. Hunter. Its honestly so frustrating how little he does and how little he learns about himself after like. Labyrinth runners? Like we and king see the golden guard graveyard. He doesn't. We see the Caleb statue. He doesn't. We never learn anything more about Darius' mentor and besides like a nudge and a wink the fact that Gus knows that he is a grimwalker simply doesn't get brought up. Most of these are obviously things that the crew would looove to elaborate on but they weren't allowed to which. Tragic. Disney robbed us blind.

But what DOES Hunter know?? Well he knows a few things and they are all horrifying! Caleb, Phillip, Evelyn, witch hunters yada yada yada. Is he ever given any screen time to grieve or scream or cry? Nope!

Aaauughh in my humble and 100 percent biased opinion...the hunter episodes that i Truly Unabashedly Loved with all my heart and soul and i have rewatched like a bazillion times since then are 1. Kings tide, 2. Hunting palismen, 3. Eclipse lake and 4. Hollow mind. What do these episodes have in common? Well Hunter acts like a little bitch in them. He is determined to win, he is capable, he is unhinged. Honestly i was very casual about toh before hunting palismen aired. Like i genuinely didn't care all that much before Hunter showed up 😭😭 but the MOMENT the show dangled a little shiny fucked up bitchboy before my eyes i was a goner. Well past the point of no return and with no desire to return to the way things were.

At the end of the day my stance on Hunter's characterisation throughout the show is that i wanted him to be more fucked up... I wanted him to cling desperately to the ideas Belos beat into his head, i wanted his desperation to be palpable and intoxicating.!!! That happened in the eclipse lake episode and ive simply never gotten over it!! Suuuuuch a good episode. Also i know that getting more friends is definitely better for him in the long run but i wanted him to be like a little feral cat,,, i wanted him to have more weird rivalry-fueled misadventures with luz before getting acquainted with the hex squad and when he did meet the rest of the kids i wanted him to be more mistrustful... God i wanted luz to keep making him fail on his missions resulting in punishment and abuse by Belos. I wanted him to misdirect all the blame onto her since he obviously can't blame his beloved uncle now can he. I wanted him to be mad!!! I wanted him to start biting!!

But whatever thats again a lack of screentime. We barely got to see hunter in his gg era which was a crime, i loved his gg era. At the end of the day maybe im simply asking for too much. Hollow mind happens (amazing episode 10/10). He calls invading belos memories "sacrilege" which has simply never left my mind. The moment the memories he sees don't allign with the propaganda belos has forced into him, his first instinct is to angrily call himself an idiot because obviously being wrong about mindscapes would make more sense than his emperor and uncle lying to him, right???

The first moment he dares to so much as imply that he might be doubting Belos integrity his worst fear becomes reality.

Now at this point i would be SO happy if he begged a little for forgiveness. But whatever its an ok point for him to leave. It makes sense, his only family threatened his life. He runs away into the woods while having a panic attack. Poetic cinema, ten out of ten no notes.

Honestly when hollow mind aired i was SO sure that flapjack would lead him to the bat queen. It makes sense doesn't it? Damaged palismen, damaged grimwalker. Made of the same materials, breathing artificial life into their magical bodies. I was so so so sure. Buuut he went to hexside intead. Works for me i suppose. Labyrinth runners is one of those hunter episodes that just didn't really click for me as much as i wish they would. But it was great nonetheless! He got to kick some ass which was lovely and also graye got to psychologically torture him which was excellent. And then the season finale happens and what was his role again? Oh literally nothing?? Ok. Whatever. Then thanks to them, he gets retraumatised again and then in for the future he is allowed to be grumpy and grieve for a whole five (5) minutes before everyone takes it personally which. Lmao. And then in the finale he just. doesn't do anything.

Have you ever watched any of the smurfs movies? The smurfs and the lost village perhaps but honestly most of them could work for the point im trying to make. Have you seen Smurfettes arc? Isn't it GOOD? Doesn't it feel EXHILARATING when she gets the chance to stand up against the man who created her for a Specific Purpose, proving him wrong and showing off how much control she has over her own life in the process? Well Hunter never got any of that sadly. One day he learnt that he is literally a Clone instead of a Real Witch and he just never really reacts to that horrifying revelation kskskska. And he doesn't play a role at all on the fall of his uncle, the man who has literally killed and rebirthed him for CENTURIES again and again and again. He doesn't even get to vengefully step on his gooey corpse after luz is done with him kskskssm. Im so fucking mad. :D

Now im kinda getting into unpopular opinion territory again but i was so scared this would happen when the blushing between him and willow first started rearing its uninteresting head...i immediately went oh no. They are gonna give me a silly romance plot instead of some actual emotional impact / reaction on the fact that his life literally fell apart overnight. The thing is i really really don't like the way they handled huntllow. Sorry not sorry but i was so desperate for any crumbs of earned character development that the stupid ''will they won't they'' thin they gave me felt like mockery. Hunter got zero time to adjust to his new reality but he got a romance that i really really didnt want him to get. And the thing is ive read fics and seen fanart about them and its cute! Ive actually enjoyed fancontent about them!! But in the actual show? The timing feels so wrong skskks. Giving hunter a love interest feels like such a weird priority considering the fact that he just learnt that he is a reanimated corpse created by the man he called family to be used as a weapon. Im not trying to rain on anyone's parade but i really really wish things could have played out differently.

God another thing that has been driving me insane!! They play up this "half witches" thing with hunter and willow as a point of camaraderie and it makes sense...i was actually looking forward to any possible interactions between them before asias first aired because of that parallel. But well. Theres like a huge difference between them. Willow grew up thinking she was weak only to find out that oh she was super strong and a prodigy all along actually! Which good for her! But Hunter grew up feeling weak and useless, getting abused by the man who made him and then he just found out that surprise! Actually you are not even half of a witch. Like. I can't be the only one who thinks thats tragic, right???? Right???? If i was hunter and willow tried to play the ''i understand how you feel' card on me i would get so mad, no offense. But of course this is toh and as much a s i love it (which is a whole lot i assure you) the characters aren't allowed to be maladjusted, not even a little bit nooo. Everyone has to act like they have dozens of hours of therapy under their belt which i don't mind on characters like luz or willow or gus who have lead relatively normal lives but really fucking annoys me when applied on Hunter who's spent his entire life getting physically and emotionally abused out of his mind, working himself to death and interacting only with his genocidal maniac of an uncle who is somehow both neglectful and obsessed with him at the same time. Like thats the one (1) thing i blame the toh crew for. They kinda give me the impression that even if they had more screen time they wouldn't allow hunter to explode the way he deserved.

My other complaint and i swear I'm almost done is the fact that the moment they took his gg status away from him they went really out of their way to make him out to be some sort of loser?? Like people making fun of him left and right or him just acting really silly all the time and stuff like that...and sure some of it comes off as endearing I won't deny that but. Idk. I never do handle it well when people don't seem to respect my favourite characters. It makes me sad for reasons i can barely explain but hunter was raised as a soldier and as a powerless boy who was constantly fighting off assassination attempts and enemies a lot older than him. God knows he had to fight hard for any semblance of respect or safety but the moment he leaves the emperors coven they immediately rob him of that. Idk it doesn't seat well with me. Like its so upsetting??? He already has so little left,,,giving him space to become his own person shouldnt come at the cost of the little power he was ever allowed to have. Idk. But yeah i dont like the way they turned him into some sort of loserboy towards the end in an attempt to make him more endearing withouth having to actually put him through the painful process of building a new identity for himself. Its just rubbing me the wrong way.

Ok and to actually answer your question: what would i actually want hunters role in the finale to be? Well. In a perfect world he would be allowed to kill Belos himself. But thats kinda unrealistic i suppose considering the fact that at the end of the day luz is the protagonist of the show and in shows like these the protagonists tend to get the final fight. Like im not going to lie, i liked the finale well enough. Out of all the scenarios they could have gone with, a king-eda-luz team up was honestly one of the best things they could do. This show started with them and it ended with them and that was beautifull! Makes sense! But skskksks throwing hunter on the sidelines with camilla, amity, willow and gus feels so funny to me. Like i mean no disrespect to any of the other characters but the stakes for hunter are so ridiculously personal????? Didnt he deserve to have one (1) moment. One scene where he gets anything resembling a proper ending for his character arc??? But noooooo what hunter gets is a schoolyard crush and zero closure. Im so mad on his behalf, he deserved so much better.