#was like. no???? that's just not the truth?? lmao

[crystallinecardinal]

“The strings are wrapped around you,” or, a discussion about Truthless Recluse, Pure Vanilla, and an idea of an awakening

One of the things I’ve been hung up on ever since finishing A Game of Truth and Deceit’s story is the fact that the things Truthless Recluse says does not feel exactly in character for Pure Vanilla. I’m sure this is the point. You’re supposed to get that feeling out of hearing him, Gingerbrave even directly points it out.

So, other than the corruption, why the so sudden change? Why is he suddenly turning against everyone? And most importantly, how is he supposed to get out of it?

Or, a CRK analysis/theory of sorts regarding Beast-Yeast episode 7, as well as how episode 8 might go, split into sections below the cut.

1 - An Introduction

I will start off by saying that before this update came out, I was one of the people adamant that Pure Vanilla was not going to end up corrupted. Not because I didn’t want anything bad to happen to him, but because I couldn’t see a reason why.

For as much as Shadow Milk could break him, dig into his biggest fears and insecurities and make them appear real, there wasn’t a reason to me for him to suddenly turn against everyone on his own— not when those around him had consistently helped him, bringing him out of what might have been the worst dips of his bad mental state. Not unless Shadow Milk was able to really manipulate him into it.

Then again, I knew what Shadow Milk could do. I knew he could control the will of other cookies (seen with the faerie cookies), and disguise himself in another form (see: every time he impersonates the Light of Truth). I also knew Pure Vanilla would be vulnerable to him, both with the bad mental state, and by the fact that the first time they encountered each other, he was already struggling. The right strings being pulled could just make him snap.

And then, I saw Truthless Recluse. And I lost my mind.

So, the point of all this. I had been TERRIFIED before this update how Pure Vanilla would fall. I thought he’d have his sense of self broken, all his emotions toyed with, sure, but I wasn’t ready for a FULL CORRUPTION. Then I got to thinking: it’s been a pattern this happens, right? In the Ancient vs Beast chapters, they encounter each other, fight in some way, and the Ancient somehow loses their connection to their respective Light. They only awaken after, picking themself back up from the brink of defeat. And we already know Awakened Pure Vanilla exists, so that leaves the question: how do you help him? How does he come back from where he is now? How does he awaken if he’s already been “defeated?”

That’s what I’m here to discuss.

2 - The Spider-Man meme problem

So! Fortune Teller. That guy.

Almost everyone I saw took one look at him in the trailers and KNEW he was Pure Vanilla. Had to be. The voice was the same, appearance the same, motifs the same, the character design was a pretty big giveaway. If it walks like a duck, talks like a duck, yknow. It’s probably a duck.

And that presumption was right! Fortune Teller is Truthless Recluse, and by extension, Pure Vanilla.

How can that happen, though? If Pure Vanilla talks directly to Fortune Teller, how can they be the same? Luckily, the game decides to answer this question on its own!

So, if this is a space the future of the past (the present) and the future of the present (just the future) can both exist… that means Fortune Teller, and by extension, Truthless Recluse, are likely from the future. Not only because we’ve seen PV walking around in the present, but because we KNOW how TR talks about PV like he’s dead, as well as because of a fun little quote from Shadow Milk!

“In the end, you will become me.”

This is what I’m going to be building the rest of this off of. Stick with me here.

3 - What’s that, puppet boy??

Lies. Manipulation. Deceit.

These are the things Shadow Milk lives for. But any good snake, any good spider weaving a web, knows that the best lies have a hint of truth to them. This is what I intend to dissect.

It feels... a bit strange to think that Pure Vanilla could become someone like Shadow Milk. And yet, the signs are already there. He isn't honest with himself, tells white lies in the hopes that it may make someone feel better rather than the cruel truth, and his mental state is already in a horrid place. Of course, none of these are particularly bad things, they're human, and I can't blame him for any of it. But they're also all undeniably things that could lead him to snapping. What's the point doubt is all that's left? What's the point that he delves into the comfort of the lie of fantasy? What's the point that reality is too much agony to bear? Is that not how the Fount of Knowledge became the Master of Deceit, finding that cookies enjoyed the sweet lie more than the cruel truth?

“In the end, you will become me.”

And so, he just might.

So, consider. If present and future can both at once in Shadow Milk's domain, if Fortune Teller is not merely an illusion, then who's to say Truthless Recluse isn't who Pure Vanilla is destined to become?

The best lies have a shred of truth. This is our (hypothetical) truth. If nothing changes, if Pure Vanilla falls to Shadow Milk's games, lets himself be broken, plays the role he's had laid out for him ever since he was young (once again, if we choose to take that as truth and not an illusion), then his fate is sealed.

"Despair follows in your footsteps... A river lies on your path. Cross it, and you will face unfathomable dread. Turn back... Turn back before it is too late. Turn back before the cold flames of doubt swallow you whole."

That river is fast approaching, if it hasn’t already.

4 - Finding truth, breaking strings

Let's circle back to one of my first points.

"Then I got to thinking: it’s been a pattern this happens, right? In the Ancient vs Beast chapters, they encounter each other, fight in some way, and the Ancient somehow loses their connection to their respective Light. They only awaken after, picking themself back up from the brink of defeat. And we already know Awakened Pure Vanilla exists, so that leaves the question: how do you help him? How does he come back from where he is now? How does he awaken if he’s already been ‘defeated?’"

Is episode seven not still following the same formula, yet iterating on it in its own unique way? Pure Vanilla comes directly into contact with Shadow Milk, and tries to defend himself the most he can. However, he's a lot more vulnerable than the others this time around— after all, lies and truth cannot exist without the other. They're not entirely opposites. After having his sense of self shattered, Pure Vanilla falls from the Spire. Somewhere, he loses his connection to his Light of Truth. Enter: Truthless Recluse.

We know Pure Vanilla will eventually be awakened (see: dev commentary), so how does he leave the state he's in? How do you come back from falling so far?

This is where our "Truthless Recluse is a future version of Pure Vanilla" idea comes in handy! To put it simply: he hasn't become him yet. Not in reality. The present Pure Vanilla has fallen somewhere deep, deep down, into the darkest abyss... And has yet to come back. It sets a perfect scene to trick those closest to Pure Vanilla to believe the lie wrapped in truth of his ‘death,’ doesn't it?

It also solves our characterization problem from the very beginning of this post. I never said he immediately becomes Truthless Recluse. Given that in this interpretation, TR is what PV will eventually become, it provides a reason for Truthless Recluse to say the things he does, and act the way he does. Maybe Pure Vanilla wouldn’t have said or done those things, but to Truthless Recluse, that part of himself has long been dead.

So. Where does Pure Vanilla find his truth?

It could be a lot of things. However, one of the main things I've seen reiterated is just how much Shadow Milk toys with the mind. Right now, Pure Vanilla likely believes his entire life is a lie. Not once has he had free will. Since birth, he has been a marionette on strings, a plaything for a being beyond everything he ever knew. Every action, every decision, it was just part of an Oscar-worthy performance. Everything he may have once defined as himself is null.

And even worse: there's no one to drag him out of it this time. White Lily is gone, off on her own mission. Gingerbrave and his friends have Truthless Recluse to deal with. The Light of Truth is silent. Everyone, everything he may have depended on isn't there. It's just him, the Other-Realm, and eyes that have been watching for his entire lifetime.

To get out, he has to break the strings. Just as he once awoke from his prison when he needed to confront his past, he can do it again. But this time, it isn't going to be while he hides under another identity, it isn’t going to be while telling himself a lie. Outsmart the snake, remember, remember, remember. Hold onto the love, the care, the things that are true. No amount of deceit can change how he once felt. They say the heart is true. Maybe that's the key out.

To put it more simply: no matter what it ends up being that causes it, he needs to realize himself that he is in charge of his own destiny. The truth of the question "who am I" is "whoever you want to be." It isn't an question that can be answered by someone else. You only become fully truthless, only fully wall yourself away from everyone if you choose to do so. It isn't fate.

And so, in the end, I think Pure Vanilla will awaken. By proxy, if my entire idea here were to be true, Truthless Recluse would cease to exist. Paradoxes are funny that way. There's no way for that ending to exist if it's no longer the future that lies ahead.

5 - A conclusion

I have absolutely no clue what's coming in episode eight. I'll say that upfront. I have no clue, and it terrifies me. I love Pure Vanilla, I want him to make it out of this, but I know he won't make it out unscathed. The tragedy could stay, it could just be for this episode, it's unclear. We just have to wait until episode eight goes live.

Regardless, I want him to struggle. I don't think it makes sense for him to get out of this easily. Not when he considers himself pathetic, not when he can't trust the voice of the Light of Truth, not when he's been questioning himself. Let that doubt sink into him. Let him rebuild himself, piece by shattered piece. It makes for an emotional story, and makes me like Pure Vanilla even more as a character. Maybe that's just the Omori fan in me, but I love delves into characters' minds like that.

It may not be anything like what I've discussed here, but I'm very excited to see what Devsisters does. This is all I'm going to be thinking about until then.

[svearehnn]

sunlight in burgundy pt. 3 | azriel x reader

Summary: You swore you would never let your heart open to another fae again, but it seems that a certain shadowsinger is deadset on changing that.

a/n: sorry it's been so long! the depression hit lmao. anyways, here's more of azriel and our little traumatized reader. hope you enjoy this cute little slow burn!!

warnings: none, just fluff

part one | part two

Weeks had went by and you found yourself wandering the library, fingers coasting the weathered spines of books as you passed. A hazy film covered your eyes as you hid in your mind, thoughts passing through in the blink of an eye, swirling. The silence of the library was usually a comfort, but today it highlighted the incessant buzzing in your head. There was no freedom from the memories that haunted you. Your breath hitched, caught in your throat as delicate fingers slipped from the books and wrapped around your torso in a tight hug. Tears welled in your eyes but you dared not to let them fall.

“I thought I’d find you down here.” A voice sounded from the darkness and you whirled around, eyes wide. The fae lights flickered as the figure stepped into view, shadows dancing, blue lights pulsing. You took a deep, shuddering breath, chest tightening and releasing as you realized who it was.

You nodded curtly at Azriel, arms clasping skintight around your torso. He smiled softly at you, hazel eyes glinting with a worry that dissolved in seconds. “Dinner is ready. You might want to get there before Cassian eats everything.” Your lips downturned softly as you shook your head. Although you had deigned to join them for dinner once already, fear still coated your lungs at the idea.

“I’m not hungry, but thank you for coming to find me.” His brows furrowed, shadows reaching out to you. Azriel pulled them back to his side. He stepped closer, so close that you could smell the distinct scent of him: mist and cedar.

“Are you alright?” You nodded swiftly, much too quickly to be the truth, lip bitten between your teeth.

“Yes, I’m fine, thank you,” fell from your lips in a murmur as you blinked away the silver in your eyes. He nodded himself, hesitantly, slowly, as though he didn’t believe your shallow words and your trembling voice.

“Would you like some company?” Azriel questioned, his voice softer than you’ve ever heard before. You so badly wanted to say yes, to give into your selfishness and enjoy the comfort of another fae, but you couldn’t seem to find the words.

“I, uh, aren’t you hungry?” You asked awkwardly, shifting on your feet, toeing the carpet beneath you. The burgundy sweater covering your skin felt overwhelming and itchy as you treaded treacherous waters. He chuckled softly.

“Not really. I can eat later.” You nodded gingerly, voice caught in your throat. A shadow curled around Azriel’s ear, no doubt whispering secrets you would never be privy to. He chanced another step forward and your heart rabbited in your chest, but you didn’t move. “Have you found another book to read yet?” You shook your head with a one shouldered shrug. Azriel’s shadows darted away in what seemed to be excitement, weaving through bookshelves, running along the spines just as you had been doing.

“Let’s go sit. They’ll find something for the both of us.” He started walking, a glance behind his shoulder to make sure you were following. Fae lights dimmed behind you as the ones before you glowed bright, awaiting your arrival. He led the both of you to a small nook in between shelves where a couch and two chairs sat proudly in the feeble light. Azriel settled on the couch and you did as well, snuggling into the opposite side from him. The two of you were quiet for a moment, you staring off into the distance, eyes heavy with that familiar haze, his own dark gaze focused on you. You felt his eyes, felt the heaviness in his throat as thought he wanted to speak, but didn’t know what to say or how to say it. Luckily the shadows returned before you had to find out.

They billowed into the nook, two books enveloped within the darkness that they delicately placed in both of your laps. One curled in your hair, twirling it, eliciting a giggle to fall from your lips. The sound was unfamiliar to your ears–you hadn’t laughed in centuries it seemed like.

“You have a pretty laugh,” Azriel spoke, his voice just a whisper within the silent library. You felt your cheeks heat, no doubt dusted with a saturated blush that couldn’t be hidden. A breath stuttered through your lips and you picked up your book as a distraction. You opened the spine, the scent of almonds and old paper washing over you. With an unsteady heart, you took a chance and glanced over at Azriel only to find him already looking at you with a faint smile on his lips. You sent a timid smile his way before burying your nose in the book, reading the words yet not digesting them.

Your mind was no longer occupied by the trauma it was trapped in earlier, but rather, hazel eyes and saccharine words engulfed your thoughts. You buried deeper into the couch, shifting closer to him unconsciously as your steel-walled heart seemed to crack open just the slightest bit.

Shadows flitted along your covered skin as you read, weaving through your hair and fingers, turning pages for you every once in a while. Their soothing touch made your body feel heavy, eyelids fighting to stay open, words blurring on the page. At this point, you knew you should head back up to your bedroom and slip under your satin sheets and thick duvet, but you couldn’t get yourself to move. The library was cozy, the shadows comforting, and against your better judgement, the male beside you made you feel safe. What was the harm?

You let your eyes flutter shut; book relaxed in your hand before completely falling shut into your lap. Your breaths evened out, head lolling to the side. Warm arms wrapped around you, pulling you into a muscled body. You jolted, but Azriel murmured words of reassurance and soon you feel asleep with your head on his shoulder and his arm wrapped around you, thumb tracing delicate patterns into the fabric of your sweater. Darkness encompassed you and you reveled in the fact that for the first time in a while you felt safe. You felt secure, and you knew you would wake to sunlight filtering in through ornate windows and possibly the comfort of the male beside you.

[anamericangirl]

My favorite part about the libs thinking Elon did a Nazi salute is imagining that he really did.

Just think about that for a second.

You mean to tell me Elon walked up to the podium cheering like a dork, laughing, said shit about putting the American flag on Mars, acted like a big kid

And then went "My heart goes out to all of you ALSO BY THE WAY HEIL HITLER LMAO SIEG HEIL"

Like?????????????

Exactly lol. Like yeah the whole world is basically watching and they think he legitimately went up there and pledged allegiance to Hitler lmao. 🤣

But the truth is that’s all they’ve got. They have to blow it out proportion and over analyze it to keep the nazi narrative alive.

They think anytime anyone raises their arm it’s a Nazi salute which means they failed history lol

[satsuha]

i don't know man 6-2 makes me feel a bit crazy because on the surface it's funny that nahyuta is being an asshole to apollo for no reason while also pretending not to recognise him and apollo just accepts it without much of a fuss BUT LIKE

nahyuta's in a situation where he cannot risk getting anyone involved with him lest they become even more leverage that ga'ran can use against him so imagine how he feels when he sees yet another member of his family again but can't even afford to feel happy or relieved at apollo's safety... i think nahyuta correctly concluded that if he showed apollo even the slightest bit of evidence that he was in trouble then apollo would just not be able to leave him alone. he also must have known... that he wouldn't be safe even if he went abroad. like i'd bet anything that the reason he became an international prosecutor at all was to escape khura'in's justice system in any way he could but he quickly finds out that he isn't able to break free of ga'ran's clutches that easily...

and apollo's already years past given up on dhurke coming to see him so seeing nahyuta is like. a slap in the face that he never expected. he can't even blame nahyuta for all the resentment and loneliness he felt throughout the years so he's just stuck in this awkward stalemate where he feels like he should be happy but there's too much there that was unsaid and unresolved and on top of that nahyuta's making no effort to help him on that front so... lmao

and despite that apollo still helps dhurke and everything that entails and before we even start seeing more of the truth of nahyuta's situation in 6-5 we get THIS line:

it kills me. it kills me!!! at this point in time apollo hasn't even seen nahyuta at all since 6-2 and he's still saying something like this. after nahyuta has done nothing but be rude and dismissive to him ~14 years since the last time they met. this is like apollo's equivalent of the "I cannot lose you to the Twilight Realm, too..." line TO ME... god they're so bad at showing that they care about each other that it literally does not show until they get to the verge of death but my god do they care!!

[expelliarmus444]

If texting were a thing in the 1890s pt 9

Sebastian: i need you to be really honest with me about something Sebastian: you are the only person i trust to tell me the truth about this Ominis: saying that after threatening to duel me is sick work, but alright Sebastian: okay Sebastain: do you think i have a big butt Ominis: are you serious rn Ominis: im so sick of ur shit Sebastian: no pls im serious Sebastian: MC keeps telling me i have a bubble butt. i asked her what that meant and she said its nice and big for a guy Sebastian: im not sure if that's good or bad Sebastian: well is it Ominis: how would i know Ominis: i've never seen it Sebastian: how??? Sebastian: wait nvm Sebastian: ok wait where r u Ominis: library Sebastian: come to the room Sebastian: i need you to feel it and then tell me Ominis: absolutely the fuck not wtf Ominis: you're mentally deranged fr Sebastian: no this is so serious to me pls Sebastian: i feel like a cow with a big fat behind. i need to know if its too big or adequately sized Ominis: im blocking u Ominis: Sebastian just asked me to feel his posterior Ominis: i think im gonna lose it MC: LMAO WHAT Ominis: he said you call him bubble butt and now he feels like an obese cow Ominis: i told him that i wouldn't know bc yk, useless eyes. and then he told me i need to feel it so i can honestly tell him if its too big MC: HAHA IM CRYING SORRY MC: omg that's soooooo funny MC: HAHAHAAHA Ominis: u two really do belong together huh Ominis: laughing at my suffering MC: sorry sorry i will hush it MC: idk why he thinks it's offensive??? i told him its cute and i love it Ominis: well apparently he heard "hey fatty, you with the cow shaped ass, you're big as fuck" Ominis: idk something to that effect MC: lol Ominis i'm crying at the potions table rn MC: he's so dramatic haha, as if that'd be a problem MC: even if he were plump all around, i'd still love him Ominis: yeah yeah yeah whatever enough of the love stuff ew Ominis: well when you learn the recipe for a potion that will help me completely erase the memory of my best friend asking me to grab his ass from my brain, send it my way

[miwiheroes]

Dropping Byler Evidence Every Day Until Season 5

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁ Day 18: Mike's Bedroom Scene . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁

Everyone knows this scene, everyone here LOVES this scene (or they better love it). It's so ripe for analysis in every single way, not even just for byler, but for things that happen later on in the season. I think shots like this are extremely thought out. They chose a wide angle shot to show you Mike's bedroom for a reason. They also showed you this bedroom right after seeing El's, to show the contrast between their two lives and how they view each other.

I've already talked about this contrast between their two rooms and the fact that Mike has nothing from El in his room in this post.

1. Rainbow Letter + Closet

I want to talk about something else before the glaringly obvious queer coding first: and that is the fact that El has her own stationary specific for writing Mike's notes, while it is canon that Mike just writes his letters to El on some scrap pieces of paper, showing the unequal amounts they are putting into their relationship:

Anyways, back to El's letter to Mike having literal rainbows on it. For El, this is some clear foreshadowing for her being in the rainbow room, and we can all agree on that right?

So if we can agree on that, then I think we should agree that it could also be true this is queer coding for Mike. It's the first thing you see in this scene, even before you see a shot of Mike himself. Also the fact that the next shot of the scene is Mike next to the open closet with the light on, kind of implies or foreshadows his story being tied to queerness for the rest of the season.

Having the light on in the closet is also to draw your attention toward it. I've talked before about how often in film it is to use light to mean truth, meaning this would imply that being in the closet is the truth that Mike is hiding, since a lot of this scene is taken up by the fact El's lying to him. So what does he have to hide? The set designers utilise light in this scene very carefully, which I will touch on in the later sections <3

2. Posters

This is such a famous piece of evidence that I feel like I don't really need to say anything here lmaooo, like we can see in multiple different shots that instead of having posters of literally anything else on his walls, he has posters of men. Specifically buff men (or a dragon if u wanna be pedantic guys).

This seems so on the nose that it has to be queer coding, just like the scene where Mike goes to the wrestling gym while on his search for a DND replacement for Lucas, and stuff like this has been used on many different queer coded characaters in media for a long time.

I've heard people argue that there is also a girl character in the Conan the Barbarian poster, but honestly, if you watch the film you would know why this is not a great thing to say or equate women to lmao... Basically this film does not shy away from the fact that men in this time period treated women like property so I'd be careful saying that.

If you want to go past talking about the fact this CtB poster is just a poster of a buff man, I'd say that it could symbolise Mike's need to be normal and fit into the "male role" in society that we saw in S3. To be honest, if I saw a guy with this poster, I'd.....run, girl RUN

So anyways, not only is there one poster of a buff guy, there is another. The one on the left is a poster designed by Rick Ruhman, whose other posters can be seen in the show, like in Reefer Rick's house. Buff dragon poster you'll always be famous <3

This is two instances already of Mike being associated with buff men, um, and to be honest that should be enough, but it's funny that there are two other instances of this happening in the show. Another is literally in episode 1 of S4, where Mike goes to the wrestling gym, and another is when he mentions Superman in relation to El for some reason, rather than calling her 'Supergirl' like Argyle does 10000 times.

This is a pattern, everyone. And can be compared to the fact that other male characters who were around the same age as him have posters of women surrounding them in different scenes.

In Steve's room: he was 17

In Lucas's scene with the other basketball guys: he is same age as Mike

3. His Noticeboard

thanks to @runninguplenorahills for this very good photo haha

First of all, want to establish that the lamp is placed next to this notice board on purpose, in order to draw your attention towards it, just like his closet earlier on (and later, you shall see). So you are meant to view this notice board as having little hints on it.

And there are! Not just towards his queerness. and they are pretty much confirmed to be foreshadowing for some of the plot points in S4, so other stuff in his room could also be foreshadowing , but for his queerness too.

These Garbage Pail Kids cards clearly foreshadow some events of S4. I think Heavin Steven may have something to do with Steve literally biting the head off of a demobat, which makes sense, or it could be about him randomly pouring his heart out to Nancy in the caravan. Evil Eddie obviously foreshadows that everyone thinks Eddie is the head of an evil cult and has murdered a woman, which is what's happening in the card. Live Mike is either a reference to Eddie playing his guitar later on, or it could be a reference to Mike's monologue where there are many lightning strikes at the most interesting times... Finally, Mad Max's card shows a brain being outside someone's head, foreshadowing her mind visiting Vecna's mindscape and her being braindead by the end of the season.

Also on his notice board are:

Escape Fun City: reference to California

Pizza Sticker: foreshadowing his time in the surfer boy pizza van and the pizza place.

Will's Drawings: obviously showing that he places more care in Will's drawings than El's letters which I talk about on one of my previous posts. He also still has Will's drawings in his basement.

So how is this byler evidence? Well, I really think this proves just how much thought and care went into making Mike's room foreshadow some later plot points, because the audience can hardly see what's going on here, but it still foreshadows stuff. This leads me onto....

4. The One Way Sign ;)

This one is a classic, and if you don't know this already, then I guess you must be new here hello

I just want you guys to think for a second about the intentionality of this. And I want you to imagine people setting up his room for filming. Because it wasn't just created out of nowhere, people genuinely thought about each decision. Imagine this just being written off as a coincidence, because let's lay out some facts here:

A light has been set up in Mike's closet

That light has been pointed so that it is a beam towards Mike

The closet door has been opened for no practical reason

A one way sign has been ordered, put on the wall in this specific spot.

A one way sign does not foreshadow any other plot points in S4.

I am baffled when I talk to people and they don't think this type of stuff is intentional. It's a blink and you miss it hint, yes, but those types of hints are supposed to be subtle so that when you look back on them, they make a lot of sense.

Overall, this shot of Mike's room is the perfect introduction to his character this season and makes the most sense. There is no other way that he could have been introduced in S4, in my opinion. It's subtlety is only for people who care enough to look, but it heavily queercodes him nonetheless. Just because they're small, doesn't mean they are insignificant.

[thelonelyshore-if]

i love this if so far! the new stat screen is so fun btw big fan.

i get to torment ravi with a high weird sweetheart preschool teacher mc who is smiling so sweetly but slowly getting sick of his shit. mr. singh will NOT be receiving any stars this evening on account of being an asshole. freak for freak relationship only one of them is significantly better at actually talking to people. how this man interfaces with the grieving successfully is beyond me. i love him. my beautiful princess with a disorder. we shall have an autumn wedding.

Thank you so much!! I'm still really excited about the stats screen so tysm for the feedback I'm glad you like it c:

And oughhh this is incredible. I love freak 4 freak relationships with Ravi they delight me. Totally normal MC that kiss him despite the fact that he's like that are great of course but I love it when a MC matches his freak, even if it's a different type of freak!!

Also the truth is he wishes he didn't have to interact with mourners at all but he manages thorough a combination of extreme masking "i am a normal human being i promise there's nothing wrong with me :))" and the fact that most people in town assume that the local mortician is probably a bit of a weirdo just like......inherently lmao. So they don't think too much of it when he's strange and offputting.

[achillesuwu]

Truth your brain like I trust it 😤 but also you can always proofread it after posting it tbh it’s what I do sometimes, I just post it and then when I’m in the mood I proofread it or else I would never post it lol it’s also alright to just go to sleep and come back to it tomorrow !

Also Arthur is so lucky he got the most powerful sorcerer as a bf 🤚 any kink-cursed related he got he can actually get it back lmao

@dollopole IMAGINE IF ARTHUR GET A CURSE AND NOW HAS A TAIL, A DOG TAIL.

And did you know in every movie they have to CGI the wolve’s tail because they are so happy to do such a good job that their tail are waving ? WELL SAME THING BUT WITH ARTHUR EVERYTIME HE SEES MERLIN LMAO like it’s still 99,9% of the time but when he sees merlin there is no stopping it

[rainia]

just discovered that apparently there’s workplace a gossip who’s been spreading all kinds of shit?? dude. Dude. 1) this feels like the kind of thing that happens in movies wtf and 2) honestly what does a person gain from this 😭 we are all underpaid here,,,, why would you just go around lying for fun 💀

[juniemunie]

[Abandoned by the Lightners, his heart became cracked with hatred.]

Hitting a lil' too close to home?

[stompandhollar]

reminding everyone that the in-universe problem with The Doctor and The Master isn’t “ooo horrible nasty enemies who hate each other and don’t get along and fight all the time but are also in love”

the problem is that they get along. the problem is that they can’t stop themselves from falling naturally into a rhythm of riffing off one another and enjoying the other’s company. THAT is the problem. the problem is that it works and that’s the thing that caused all their issues. they like one another. they just click.

[daftmooncretin]

fellas is it gay to lovingly caress your captains face as you remove his memories because you don’t want him to cry anymore. (he’s crying because he flirted with leonardo da vinci’s robot girlfriend too hard and she blew up fyi) just before this a mutual friend told you he pitied you because you had no capacity to love.

[vaguely-concerned]

fun detail I only put into context after seeing the post-fade jail romance scenes with all the companions: lucanis is the only one where rook is surprised when they realize he's there as he starts talking, because they didn't hear him come in haha. (Bellara and Neve knock before entering, like relatively normal people fhsda. Harding's scene starts in medias res but from the staging my vibe is that she and Rook entered the room together. Taash walks into the room ahead of Rook. Davrin comes in through a door left open for him -- Rook is standing with their back turned but they clearly expected him, they just smile a bit and don't seem surprised. Emmrich of course takes you to the Grand Necropolis for the top goth hookup since Mary Shelly fucked on her parents' graves, the man quite simply never misses.)

lucanis has also closed the door behind him without rook noticing. old assassin habits die hard I suppose lol. he totally still accidentally jumpscares the others without meaning to all the time because he moves around quietly when he doesn't think about it, I know this in my heart. I wonder if he was just... looking at them for a while before he spoke up.

[peace-hunter]

tfone au where OP is created as the last of the primes but way after them, a sparkling born at what were thought to be the last days of the war against the quintessons, the beginning of a new generation of peace after eons of war. a child meant to be loved and raised knowing nothing of war nor sacrifice.

he's kept mostly out of the spotlight by his siblings, who don't wish to expose him to everyone's optics so young, and want to wait until the war is done and over to properly introduce him to their people.

except of course the primes are betrayed and murdered by sentinel, the war is lost and everyone who knows and cared for the truth is either banished or outright killed in order to suppress it.

and the high guard, the ones the primes trusted the most, the ones that were supposed to protect them, the ones who failed in their most important duty, have to make a choice. to take the last prime, their last hope, with them to the surface, a hostile environment where there's little to no supplies and where they'll be hunted down by both sentinel and the quintessons as the biggest threat to their regimen.

or hide him in plain sight. place him where sentinel won't think to look for him. one more sparkling among many. and hope it will be enough to keep him alive. pray to primus that he'll protect his last child long enough for them to come back for him when it's safer (even if most of them have already lost their faith on him when he allowed the rest of his children to be massacred like that)

they almost lose their resolve when they realize they will have to take the little one's cog away in order to make him blend in with the rest of the newborns (and oh do they burn with murderous intent when they see what sentinel has done to their people but it's not the time yet-) but in the end they decide an impaired little prime is better than a dead one.

and so in the chaos of thirteen dead primes and a sudden energon crisis, a little sparkling who very few mechs really knew about and even fewer had seen completely vanishes. and in the depths of iacon a mech in charge of a new batch of newborns scratches their helm in confusion as they realize they must have miscounted the first time.

optimus prime is quietly erased from any official records by sentinel, written off as dead when they find a sparkling's frame mangled beyond recognition after an attack on the base of those rebels that insist on being a thorn on his side. killing the sparkling hadn't been precisely in his plans, he probably could've found some use for it after all, but he's not particularly upset about it either.

and orion pax grows up with an ache on his spark that tells him he's missing something far more important than a t-cog and dreams of gentle and loving hands, cradling him against the frames of mechs he cannot recall the faces of.

[notimeforlaugh]

once I promised phil as a tourist dad

here he is

[b4kuch1n]

simulated earth (it does not matter)

transcript