#yes I corrupted her into good omens

[easternbluenovellist]

Welp since the first post did so well (I still can't wrap my head around it, dear lord..) I thought I could show some pics of the process for those interested.

So here goes!

Funny thing, I worked on this in a church at some point lmao!

My girlfriend plays the organ for the local christian community and I accompany her when she practices.

Best ambiance to draw about angel/demon romance! Hahahaha

[threepandas]

Bad End: Hidden Heir

Next ->

The Duke's family had very distinct eyes. It was genetic. An aggressively dominant trait at that, though it tended to die off, after a few generations out of the family. Supposedly a "blessing of the Gods". Spring to be exact. Bounty and luck. And the family certainly WAS bountiful.

In all the best and worst ways.

Wealth, corruption, children and bastards. It was a family so aggressively ALIVE, it could only be Spring's blessing that made them so. Pouring mania and madness into their veins like sweet sunlight. Whispering glory and riches, into power addled ears. They burst with life. Even as they endlessly destroyed themselves.

They were fictional.

Fascinating set dressings, for the stage play of someone else's story. Unimportant beyond their role in world building. As the origin story and power base of a character lead.

The Story ITSELF didn't even occur here. But rather, in the capital. Where the players of significance had gathered.

And I? Oh I was some minor antagonist, so insignificant to the plot, I genuinely could not remember which of seven different women I actually WAS. It had been an ongoing series. Otome Isekai. Reverse harem.

And I was either in the ORIGINAL original novel, the isekai'd plot novel, the anime adaption, OR a horrifying fever dream. My memory was largely useless. But? I did remember the characters. The archetypes.

And the fact, that the author had clearly been going though a Yandere phase.

My region of the Reverse Harem collect-o-thon? Horrifying! Red flags everywhere! No one here should date, leave room for fantasy Jesus, have we considered the joys of being a NUN? Yes. Yes I HAVE thought about it.

I was pretty sure I'd never make it. End up dead or captured by some sort of Nun Yandere. Or God Yandere. Possibly both. Assuming the bandit yanderes don't get me first. It... it was very stressful, living here.

Luckily? I knew when I could leave.

Or so I thought.

Because my house? The Dukedom? Had the "yandere butler who is secretly an heir." Who starts out with loyal dog behavior. A little highly possesive master and servant play. Then rises to become a Duke. Presumably? That is when I die. Or am disowned.

Death is most likely. Since my role was "minor antagonist" and I was to be mean to the sweet, earnest, Harem possessing Protagonist. Don't see WHY I would. Live and let live. Good for her etc etc. But regardless? Best to avoid, just in case.

The problem? Who do you think Mr Illegitimate Heir serves before she gets here? The OTHER possible heirs? Of course not! They'd "oops! Hunting accident~☆" him in a heart beat. Father isn't stupid. And my sisters? Issues. Violent, violent, issues.

He ends up with ME.

Father, WHY.

Obviously, I ignore him. I see nothing. I hear nothing. There is no war in Ba Sing Se. Mmmmm, tea. Good book. Ignore his creepy staring. His creepy, creepy staring.

Thankfully? I never really ran out of Totally Legitimate reasons to send him away to learn or do something. Proper tea making. Door maintenance. Eastern embroidery. Something, anything, and off you go! Bye bye~☆!

Unfortunately. He got faster. Better and better at learning. Mastering skills. Coming BACK. Showing up to stand in the corner, silent and looming, like an omen of death. Those damn eyes. The fucking family eyes!

I don't have them. And NOT as, my Father would have me believe, because I "take after my Mother". But because I am not genetically related to the Duke. I have GOLD eyes. When I wear the right shade of green? I pass. So I am condemned to forever wear green. Don't even really like it much. But?

I am pretty damn sure? I was just... pretty.

A lovely, orphaned, golden eyed child that COULD pass as his. So why not? It was a whim that payed off. Unlike in the original stories, I imagine. Since I am by FAR the best behaved child in this entire house. Ha! Suck it, bio-kids, the adopted one's the favorite! Maybe should have been less lil bitchs.

....I carefully do not say.

Those are INSIDE thoughts.

Fuck. He's still LOOMING. Isn't he? Go awaaaaaay. Where is Protag-chan? Come be doe eyed and busty! Trip adorably! Go "kyaaa~" or something! I feel body heat and freeze. He's leaning over my shoulder to pick up the teapot, pour me another cup. I can FEEL the barest graze of his knuckles against my back, from where he's gripped my chair. The smell of his aftershave almost hauntingly pleasant.

Like he KNEW exactly what smells I liked most. Went out of his way to find one that best suited my preference. Coincidence. Please, PLEASE be a coincidence! I do not turn my head. Keep my eyes locked straight ahead. Barely breathing.

He steps back.

The new pot is sharp and herbal. Almost bitter. I force myself to drink. Can't see a sugar dish, and REFUSE to turn around and ask for one. Ignore. IGNORE. My pounding heart calms. My muscles slowly start to relax.

It... it IS weird, though, now that I think about it? That Protag-chan hasn't reached the Dukedom yet. She should have. God only knows I sent Creepy to the capital enough times, with enough highly specific instructions, that he should've had his meet cute's and dates by the dozen. Been half way in love. So... why...?

Huh.

Dizzy.

The taste of tea sits wrong on my tounge. I stop drinking as the world sways. Letting the cup fall from my hand. Splatter, roll, and shatter. I try desperately to stand. A gentle gloved hand catches my elbow, supporting me. I turn. Giddy eyes. Triumphant, wide, spring green eyes. Too green to be gold, too gold to be green.

An almost cruel, mocking, yet loving grin.

Another hand slides around my waist, braces me against his side. Gleeful little murmurs, too pleased to be reassuring. You. You did this! You DRUGGED ME!

I can barely move, body relaxing against my command, going limp, as he draws me close. Presses his face against the side of my head, against my temple. A deep, shuddering breathe, that he savors like wine. I try to pull free but can not. Feel his lips pull into a vicious grin against my skin. Hands begin to run in gentle, claiming, exploration.

And at last the drugs kick in... the wo..rld..

G..oes..

Dar..k........

[weirdly-specific-but-ok]

bridgerton but i've never watched (or read) it

HI MAGGOTS it's me, your prince, your good omens mascot etc etc, but mainly your local (or not so local) tired homosexual (i'm bi but shh) at 6:46 am after not sleeping all night. i was supposed to go to bed after breakfast but i saw bridgerton's new season's come out and i couldn't resist poking my uneducated nose into it and making another summary with zero authority or sources aside from random edits i've watched, a few clips from youtube reactions, and... and that's it tbh.

ALRIGHT:

The show's based on books and there's a family. Of people. Named Bridgerton. And their names are in alphabetical order but not in a WASP mom Abcde way.

Someone named Daphne is named uh Pretty Eligible Breeding Material of the ball or something by a Queen. Unsure what the queen is doing there but she is.

There's a homie named Simon. He doesn't like Daphne. He doesn't like people. He's probably severely repressed.

There's dancing to pop music but it's, like, instrumental.

They do the Amoral Waltz. I don't know why or how. But it's all gucci, because they get married.

Oh fuck I forgot to mention this is set in the past. A fictitious Regency or Victorian era? Judging by their clothes, Regency, the waistline is too high to be Victorian. Idk.

They uh... fight? But it's in a sexual tension way. And Simon's still repressed and has daddy issues or something.

It rains and they make up and realise they're in love and don't divorce each other.

Right there was also this um gossip girl Lady Whistledown who's Penelope Maybe and who's important. With gossip and stuff.

Now there's an Indian lady named Kate (eyy Indian) and she has Sexual Tension with the Bridgerton rakey dude named Anthony.

They Vex each other. And Sex each other. Vexing sexing.

But he's supposed to marry her sister or something. And then Kate falls off a horse and nearly dies and he carries her back. And proposes.

I think there was a wedding with the sister. I assume it did not go through because uh. He proposed to Kate. Sooooo.

Something about the Smart bestie of Penelope somehow never figuring out that she's the Lady Whistledown person.

Family corruption old money marriage of conveniences blahblash.

OH AND THEN Kate says no but then yes and they kiss with fireworks.

And the new season involves some Dude named Colin, and he... is shy? But posturing as a rake or something. Not the garden tool. But a tool. But it's posturing.

Man why's everyone gotta be so repressed-

Sex sex sex allosexuality befuddles me... but you have my confused support. Go Kanthony!

And Colin is in love with Penelope but he's Represso Depresso but then they kiss and then HE FUCKING FINGERS HER IN A CARRIAGE SIR WHAT.

And he also interrupts some proposal to her by some dude he set her up with. Good job mate. 10/10.

And uh. They get married?

Help.

Okay er. How badly did I do?

*scutters off into the shadows to watch your reactions safely*

[katyspersonal]

Alright Suspiciously Cheerful Katy, for that ask meme, I want THOTS on MARIKA plzzzzzz

Look at her fabulous hair ffs

THOTS on Marika, you say......

( Asks from this ( x ) meme)

Favorite thing about them:

It is really hard to point out something concrete! She is a very complex and well-written character, who has done a lot of bad and a lot of good, not to mention grandiose presence in the lore and worldbuilding! She appeared very cold and cruel through her words passed along and actions that we've learned about, but then there has also always been fixation on life, light, bounty and prosperity! I struggle to find a compromise between her war criminal oppressor side and her striving to create a warm heaven for self and others side! But maybe that's the point; big, strong, legendary, impactful figures in history always did BOTH bad and good, but become immortalised in history as just one of these dualities! When shaping history is always both creating and destroying! This is how 'shaping' works!

^^^ I like that she gives people a choice! Just like an actual idea of 'God' without being distorted; you have safety, love and purpose if you cooperate and you can choose struggle without any guidance if you want to! That some people can interpret as that "serve in heaven rule in hell" shit

^^^ I also like that she encouraged people that put faith in her to actually think! This is basically encouraging Fundamentalism which is "scholarship in all but name", but she doesn't want people to just blindly follow; she wants them to understand WHY they'd follow!

But I think above all, I like her tragedy of failing to build this perfect world and how it ends. I talked just recently about it in the post ( x ) about what was it that Gideon saw in "her will" that made him turn against everything prior, but in short: she wanted to keep the world in the state of permanent disarray, just as long as it doesn't recover and perpetuate the Golden Order.

The thing about a new Lord coming to her to be her consort and thus fixing everything? That's what Two Fingers had everyone believe and wanted, not her. :p She probably knew that she can't die by Shattering nor by a hand of a human, though maybe left a hope someone will find a way by urging Hewg to keep striving for a god-slaying weapon. But if she, and thus, Elden Ring, can't be killed, people can just stay away from it forever. That Gideon understood and we didn't and he deserves more credit for it fdshfdh

I compare her with Gwyn often, as they are the same trope of Fromsoft character: a divinity that tried to build a better world yet did a lot of evil to accomplish it and it was, tragically, corrupt by good intentions! But she did one thing he didn't: she was smart enough to know where it was going and oppose perpetuating cycle! Gwyn sacrificed himself to reignite what he gave to the world, Marika sacrificed herself to undo it! I know many people dislike this trope, as "the bad guy gets redeemed by sacrifice instead of doing a harder thing of staying alive and FIXING things they've done!", which is valid! But here it is not necessarily given as a noble act that "redeems" her, nor exposed as "cowardly" act! The narration allows us to interpret it however we want, but the real thing here: it is a human act. It was not rational or wise, but it sure was full of remorse

Basically I think I want to say, for a human, she made a pretty great God all things considered, because she was thinking about world and future and people, not just self.

Least favorite thing about them:

Her playing karma ping-pong with Hornsent and alike, for the lack of better term. 🙄 I believe that Omen curse was a direct result of the Crusade! Not even just because Grandam mentions it, it can always be a localisation error! But because it is logical: wraits, who are spirits of the dead mind you, haunting Omens, are horned! Like, yes, sure, her cruelty to the last Fire Giant and all blahblahblah, but girl what is this Omen Twins situation? They are your own children! They, and other Omens, already suffer with horrifying nightmares paying for YOUR sins, don't make it worse by either isolating them or encouraging "healing" them with heavy lethal rate procedure!

Betrayal means she was a trusted figure for them! As in, she held the power and influence enough to potentially help to gradually rid Hornsent culture of dangerous beliefs and practices! Like integrate them a bit more in the population under Erdtree that is largerly hornless, help them to see nobody is more or less divine, all that.. The cycle could have ended with HER! But she chose the grief and pain over healing (and Messmer probably amplified it, Crow I know you're dying to post that serpent theme is not incidental, you are not slick!!!)

She could have ended all this, she had the power! Why Ancient Dragons could have it but not them? We all know why: personal trauma. And yes, this is so sad, and so realistic, and I love this WRITING, but I can ALSO judge a character! Though, her actions ricocheting into whole Vengeance-Seeking Hornsent NPC's character was ALSO a good writing... argh

Favorite line:

"Hear me, Demigods. My children beloved. Make of thyselves that which ye desire. Be it a Lord. Be it a God. But should ye fail to become aught at all, ye will be forsaken. Amounting only to sacrifices..."

I am still not sure what is the context! Was it something she said upon already deciding on the Shattering, as foreshadowing for what infights will unravel? Or her mother skills were Just Like That, as she viewed her children first of all as tools of building a better world and being helpful powers to it, not as those living just for the heck of it? Silly, but the latter interpretation is basically a problem that existed in Disney's movie Encanto, where Alma would find a use for community in all family members with special powers but neglected the one born without any xD Anyways, badass quote no matter what was the context for it!

brOTP:

Does..... does Marika have friends? Many are either her family in one way or another or her lovers. xD I think Hewg qualifies the best, as wild as it sounds; Misbegotten are viewed as impure within her order and he speaks of her from obvious imbalanced position of reverence, but despite everything, she confided in him! It feels like a tragedy of people who were meant to be close friends but too much time was gone because of circumstances, decisions of the past which aftermaths lasted for centuries to taint everything, mistakes and absence of one of the sides (oh I wonder who... 🙄) or simply meeting too late in life. You can't tell me they didn't wish they'd met sooner / they could go back in time / whatever your interpretation is!

OTP:

I think she and Godfrey definitely deserved each other! They are a fun pair of war criminals! Marika trusts him a lot for sure! I think it was not just by being impressed by his power and fierceness as it is, but maybe something sadder, though? After learning the Shaman Village lore, I can't help but feel that she'd seek a very big and strong person capable of crashing her enemies FOR her on instinctive level. Because that terrified, defenceless girl is still somewhere deep inside.. Even past the point she herself can wield a hammer JUST fine! SHE was the one who killed Fell God, not him! :p I think he understood that and saw it not as being a tool, but on the contrary, felt honored that he could be of support.

^^^ At the same time, this line made me wonder whether Marika divested him and his warriors of grace for his sake, sort of? Even with Serosh on his back, he still values a good battle and power! I think their relationship were held on battles! When there is no enemy for them to defeat, or in most cases, for him to defeat for her sake, he would just start to wither. Passion between them likely was low when he hadn't defeated anyone recently! :p She was bitter about it, maybe thought a bit lower of him seeing that he is physically incapable of enjoying life without a good battle and her love is not enough, but knew it would be better for him and group he created to at least fight elsewhere rather than just be Standing There while things are alright!

It feels to me like relationship that can only blossom under certain circumstances, even if for an unhappy reason! They might even have conflicts; her being appalled at a person that doesn't wish peace, as someone who went through hell and wished nothing more than that, and him being weirded out at how someone wishes to stagnate when to live is to ever assert yourself. And this is valid! Conflict is healthy! Their issues meet one another the right way!

nOTP:

Again: I will know it when I see it! She makes every ship interesting and fun, it seems! ....all 3.5 ships with her that even exist lol fdhjfhd

Random headcanon:

I know that Radagon studied incantations, but I do not think these are actually his! Marika is a NERD! Her bedchamber is FULL of scrolls and scripted stone plates! She likes to study... and to preserve!

These plates and scrolls are the same that are found in Specimen Storehouse. I do not think that they are strictly connected with the research on how to recover Shamans from the jars; if anything, you'd think she gave up on it long ago, especially since Shadow Realm was severed from the Lands Between. But they are valuable knowledge and history!

I am just trying to say, she is the type to keep remnants of culture and history, including which she was responsible for destruction of. There are tanks and shields modelled after Fire Giants so people still remember the fear that evaded them, but I also think that Stormveil had Godskins' Prayerbook in it because Godrick stole it from Leyendell! Marika still preserves history, Messmer' Fire Knights still preserve history.... yeahhh, Messmer is an odd one out wishing to just burn everything down. -_-

Unpopular opinion:

I do love to compare her with Gwyn, however? The takes like "Marika is so complex and morally grey and well-written whereas Gwyn just likes genocide" AND the takes like "it is funny how Marika is just Gwyn but so much more evil and worse in every way" irritate me a bit! When they're not in a joke way! They are both very well-written, both wished for a better world yet built it on blood, both feared fire/darkness respectively, both ended up doing more harm than good despite noble intentions, and although with different purpose, both sacrificed themselves!

....and both fall for either idealisation or demonisation. As well as one being hyped above another. "Oh Gwyn was such a great character, Marika is just a bleak copy, Fromslop can never repeat the former success" vs "Oh Marika is such a huge improvement in writing, Gwyn was really bland in comparison, really just a draft for actually good character in the future".... 🤦‍♂️ Let's NOT pit the bad bitches against each other any more!!

Song I associate with them:

(It is on German, so version with English lyrics!)

Favorite picture of them:

Aside of @val-of-the-north absolutely horrible drawn memes featuring her that had me floored and screaming like a seagull ( x ) ( x ), it is this image??

I don't know who made this meme, I just had it saved somewhere and it makes me laugh so much because yes, this is exactly what playing ER is like hfdhfdshdfs

[good-soupmens]

Maybe this is just me being a christian in the good omens fandom, but a lot of people say Aziraphale's arc needs to end with him *entirely* dismantling his religious beliefs and stop following God, and I would disagree (I do have religious trauma, so hear me out 💀)

Yes, it was VERY necessary for him to learn that heaven didn't have humanity's best interest at heart. In fact, the archangels are incredibly selfish. Questioning their morals led him to stop armageddon with Crowley. But as the narrator of season one, God is somewhat mysterious, even cheeky ("a dealer who won't tell you the rules, and who smiles all the time"). I don't think we're SUPPOSED to dislike her as a character, but we're meant to question whether heaven is really carrying out her plan.

I often see heaven as the equivalent of a corrupt church; the kind that scares you with hell, says they have power over the bible so you should listen to them, and asks you for donations when they'll probably just spend it on themselves. They're toxic.

Crowley is wise to want to distance himself as much as possible. But I can't say Aziraphale is wrong for wanting to fix it. Heaven existing at ALL isn't the problem, it's the way it's conducted. If they really cared about the earth, they could help people. Crowley saved a girl from killing herself, Aziraphale forgave Maggie's rent, Crowley helped Shakespeare get his plays off the ground, Aziraphale healed Anathema and fixed her bike. Both stopped hell from ending the earth (and heaven orchestrating it). Crowley saved things every time that he was sent to destroy them.

They're constantly doing little miracles, sometimes big ones, while still letting the earth run, where humans can make their own choices and decide what to believe. If heaven was anything like Crowley and Aziraphale, there wouldn't be a system in need of destroying.

I wrote more detailed meta on good omens God here (and my therory on the ineffable plan), but my point is to say that destroying Aziraphale's faith entirely is not the solution. He doubts that heaven is even doing God's work. The end goal for dealing with religious trauma isn't always letting go of your belief in God (that's okay if it is!) but many of us need to deconstruct toxic ideas taught by toxic churches. Some people wouldn't survive without their faith. And FAITH in God isn't the problem, people misrepresenting God in order to devalue, shame, and oppress others for personal gain is.

Given that she canonically exists in the good omens universe, that means that she created everything. She made Aziraphale, Crowley, the universe, the earth, everyone who went on to create anything else, and life itself. Every moment, every place, every feeling, every choice, and every experience was possible because it was created. She's the reason anything that in the history of time was able to happen at all, good or bad.

God may not tell anyone about her plan, but I have a feeling it's going to be the end result of the series, where Crowley and Aziraphale were a part of it (I could be kidding myself, but that's my theory)

The concept of the "sides" being heaven and hell doesn't work without everyone getting a real choice. Neither Crowley or Aziraphale truly belonged to their respective sides because they were morally against them. Just as heaven needs to be fixed, hell shouldn’t be run by *obligation* to do evil. The good omens book said that many demons just considered it their job ("Go up there and make some trouble")

Thinking back to Aziraphale's line, "But humans...get a choice" makes me think that THAT'S what will change.

It's not "this group is nice. go out and do good" and "this group is bad. go out and do evil", it'll be everyone making choices (whether they want to spread misery and destroy the earth, or truly help better the earth and show people the light in a flawed world). Heaven would have a real job of thwarting evil if they weren't the ones administering it, and maybe that's what Aziraphale will try to change.

--

(End of essay personal rant!!)

This is for queer christians especially, I know people forget us. My religious trauma comes from homophobia. I have to remind myself daily that it's not a fault of God, but people. It's PEOPLE who harbor hate for what they don't understand, and many use religion to justify their wanting us not to exist. They fundamentally misunderstand the point of following christ, and others have to work to change that.

It may seem like the best solution is to object to christianity entirely, but I find genuine happiness in it despite the bad eggs. I wouldn't be here if not for it, and it doesn't take brainwashing and manipulation for me to be a follower. I want to be. That's the reason I say any of this; for good omens to end on a positive note with God would mean a lot to queer christians. We're often caught between christians that hate gay people and gay people that hate christians, and it's hard for us to accept both parts of ourselves. Good omens helps me love both :) and thats why I relate to Aziraphale as a character

Also. queer christians and non-christian queer people with religious trauma, you're all so valid and cool, I love you <3

[great20sworld]

LIVING THE DREAM

A Viktor x Reader fanfiction

Author's note: Chapter 1, chapter 2, chapter 3, chapter 4, chapter 5, chapter 6 and chapter 7 are available in my Tumblr page along with summary.

Chapter 8: Birth of an Era

___________________________

"The arcane is a curse upon our world"

"This power corrupts and consumes"

"Escape the warmongering of mages, not cultivate it"

The storm in his mind had endured those prejudiced, cowardly voices of those councillors who deemed themselves worthy to run piltover. It hurt, but it didn't destroy. Until he heard one voice, desperate and uncaring of the storm he had cultivated through his toils. The voice he loved, destroying him without even knowing it.

"My son isn't in his right mind"

"...chased an impossible dream"

"...foolish and unwise"

For goodness sake, magic saved her life! Nobody could have comprehended what he saw that day- the light, the beauty which blinded him and saved him, which prompted him to believe, gave him a purpose, a dream to set down on the road to.

Now?

Now the very same was being ripped apart from his very core. The trees of knowledge, of the gorgeous magic which had deep routed itself on his mind was being ripped away by uncaring hands, the pain bleeding down to his soul. Mrs. Kiramman, Caitlyn, all of them... They had believed in him once, and because of some wretched burglars who wrecked his entire workshop they paid the price of being humiliated just like him for what he had chased down. He hated to admit it, he really did- but he has no more fight left in him. The empty soul withering away without its passion. Jayce had left the crystal which he had kept binded to his wrist for so long on a boulder next to the edge. Let everyone know why he did it. If anyone cared.

The thriving city which he could view from up here mocked him all the same, making his head throb with the pain of rejection like the strike of a hammer down on it. He couldn't even fathom the thought of retreating back into the shadows of their forge and building hammers, when his heart still lay elsewhere.

He had failed. Failed to unveil the light of progress to his beloved piltover, and if he couldn't do it- there was no hope left.

The nails of his fingers digging into his palm as he clenched them tightly brought him to the present and he inches closer to the edge...

Goodbye cruel world.

See you on the other....

"Am I interrupting?"

Startled, he turns, breath hitching, almost losing the balance he had.

The assistant.

Is this man an omen? He seems to be there always whenever Jayce is broken!

He scoffs, covering his face with an exasperation he hadn't thought possible till now.

"The hell's your problem?! What's that? Another list with my name on it?"

He wants to snatch it from his hands and throw it into the abyss.

"Actually...yes. But, only because you signed your notes. Every page, might I add..." Golden eyes darted over the pages.

"Eh...a little egotistical, don't you think?"

Patience is a virtue and Jayce is a saint.

"Is that why you came? To insult me?" Jayce spat, turning away in contempt.

"No...no, I was intrigued by what you said at the trail"

What is his deal?

"That makes you the only one." Jayce says, as he hears the end of a metal cane tap on concrete as the man approaches tries to approach his side.

"Yes, well, I wanted to talk about your work... This hextech theory of yours"

How Jayce hated when another in the scientific community voices them as mere "theories".

"It's not a theory! I saw with my own eyes what magic can do, the lives it could save...you've no idea how beautiful it is..!"

The cold bite of frost, of the raging snowstorm in the mountains, the frozen weight of his mother's form next to him, the desperation with which he called out to the hooded figure and the warmth he had felt when saved... Jayce remembers it as clear as yesterday.

"...and now it's gone" his voice wavered, and he hoped the man didn't notice. "No one believed me."

"..."

"Nobody's ever believed in me. A poor, cripple from the undercity? I was an outsider the moment I stepped foot in Piltover... I didn't have the benefits of a patron or a name... I simply believed in myself. Which is why I'm here, because I think- you're onto something"

Jayce looks at him. This man who appeared as if he was one of the aristocrats, calm composed and with palpable gentleness, had a certain set look in his amber eyes. It was different from the cold blue of his professors, and the judgmental, only barely tolerant ones of his patrons. It was... Hopeful. The eyes of someone who seeks, who explores.

"I want to help you complete your research." He states, looking out into the world below them.

"No one thinks it can be done..." Jayce reminds him, softly.

"When you're going to change the world, don't ask for permission."

The man says, before extending his hand, the crystal resting in his palm, looking back at him invitingly.

Is this a dream?

Could he be hopeful...once more?

With a hesitation only weakly fueled by self doubt, Jayce takes the crystal from his hand, clenching his palm around it, as if making a promise.

One more time.

He looks back at the man.

"I don't even know your name...."

"It's Viktor." He answers.

_______________________________

Well, you now know the meaning of hyperventilating, your eyes trained on the scene unfolding before you. You resist the urge to applaud as Jayce and Viktor finish their conversation, careful not to blow your cover carefully hidden behind the veils of darkness which filled the place, feeling as if you were getting the front row seats to the movie you were waiting for for years- and it did not disappoint.

You couldn't resist the squeal coming.

"what the- who's there?!" Jayce becomes startled, turning around as Viktor is also alerted. You cover is blown when their eyes land on you.

"YOU!" Jayce points at you and gasps, as Viktor looks at Jayce.

"You know her too?"

"yes! She came to my prison cell last day!" Jayce says, looking at Viktor. "Your advice was completely useless by the way." He directs his gaze back to you.

Viktor shakes his head disapprovingly. "So you did go there!"

Jayce looks at Viktor. "Is she your assistant?"

Viktor frantically shakes his head negatively while you frantically nod.

"no!" Says Viktor, "Yes!" You say.

"Jayce, don't you think it's high time we get to work? Figure out whatevers up with that...umm..." You gesture vaguely towards his crystal.

"oh yes! The leftover calculations are on my board...wish we had some light..." Jayce says, walking through the small rubble piles.

"Oh, like this one?" You say, smiling triumphantly as you pull out a kerosene lamp from your bag.

"You seem awfully prepared..." Viktor muses as he takes the lamp from you and lights it, it's soft luminescence bathing the dilapidated room.

"I am your assistant afterall..." You smirk.

"you're not-"

"Over here, yes... This is where I've been struggling with the calculations..." Jayce says, sitting down on and opening the notebook which Viktor brought.

You walk over to Jayce, sitting down next to him and leaning towards the notebook to get a better look at the figures, since you realise to your disappointment that most of what is written is in a language you do not follow, and only a small portion of it is legible English. Viktor goes to study the blackboard, picking up a chalk absentmindedly from the small box sitting next to it. You expected to be completely stumped by the diagrams and calculations, but surprisingly- as if something clicked, your eyes are stuck on what appears to be the planetary model. Beneath it is written, "crystal needs excitement".

The gears in your brain starts to turn hopefully. Seems like the source for this power is something resembling the electrons in an atom. Could it be that the energy could be similar to electricity? "Attracts other metals in short vicinity" the next sentence read. Attracting metals- magnetic property. Whatever this was, the excitation of it lead to magnetic properties of the material.

Electromagnetism. Analogues to it, maybe?

Your gaze darts towards Viktor who was redoing the calculations on board, regarding what you thought was frequency- based on a graph which showed values in various units of Hertz. So, that was valid in this world.

"Does the crystal have an energy field around it, Jayce?" You question, looking at Jayce.

"An energy field? Yes, it reacts whenever it is penetrated and..."

"produces magnetic properties? Such as attracting metals and behaving like a magnetic needle?"

Viktor's attention catches. "Based on this- yes..."

It was indeed electromagnetism. You mind rushes through all the info you had. "So we have to provide the crystal with energy which channels its own energy to circulate in it- until it looses its magnetic field, and yet works, without the added energy loss..."

Both Viktor and Jayce looks at you, and you're relieved to see a small flicker of interest in the former's gaze.

"If we could get it to work without an external field, we could be onto something." Jayce supplies helpfully, ruffling through the pages in which he had elaborated what appeared to be the laws of thermodynamics but with the added modifications for this world.

"Here, Jayce, you said it emits light?" Viktor circles something regarding the factory of photons on the board. "Yes, when hit with light, it seemed to be excited- but also not so much to keep it going."

Your brain starts to remember. "If we channel the residual energy into a bigger energy state, maybe while destabilising, or returning to stability it might emit the energy we require?" You ask timidly, remembering that particles do tend to jump from higher energy levels to lower energy levels to gain stability and from lower to higher when supplied with sufficient energy.

Jayce finds himself at a loss of words and looks at Viktor, who, to his surprise looked like the answer was in the tip of his tongue.

"wait a moment, we're getting something like this here..." He mutters, the speed of chalk scratching on the blackboard increasing as he proceeds.

Could it be similar to photoelectric effect? You had to check. You get up from your seat, taking a chalk from the box and drawing a small diagram which depicts rings of energy and particles on them and an incoming ray of light represented as a wiggly arrow. You note Viktor's gaze following you.

"Does it emit similar amounts of energy it is hit with? Then, we'll need quite an amount of frequency for the source of energy which hits it to produce something reasonable out of it." You supply.

"That can't be right..." Jayce's sighs. "All this time, I thought I should dampen the oscillations, because in very high frequencies, the crystal might as well detonate..."

"No..." Viktor breathes, his gaze darting to the diagram you made. He writes something on the bottom most ring in your drawing, and then mumbling something to himself, followed by scribbling something on the topmost ring. He nods to himself before tapping what he was writing down on the board, going through whatever was discussed behind him through written format and equations. "....the residual energy will only even stabilise at high frequency, she's right! We'll have to-..."

"Crank it!" Jayce and you chime in unison, eyes bright with excitement, your lips spread in a delighted grin.

Viktor turns, and then nods affirmatively, looking like a proud teacher, "yes! Yes...We'll have to... Crank it!"

"It works!" Jayce says, smiling at you and Viktor. "Eh, on paper..." Viktor says, quirking his brow at the blackboard. You feel your heart quicken when his golden gaze lingers on the diagram you made, with his lips quirking upwards.

"we could have tested it if we had access to my equipment" Jayce runs a tired hand through his face.

"....which is being destroyed tomorrow"

Viktor's words stops both your and Jayce's train of thought, the disaster about to arrive making both of you loose focus. Jayce's more so than yours. "What?!" He exclaims, jumping up to his feet.

"Oh... I, yeah. I, meant to tell you..." Viktor stutters abashedly, looking towards you as well as if for further confirmation.

Jayce's heart races, his mind in catastrophe. All those sleepless nights, early mornings, his blood sweat and tears were spent on those research equipments, with countless findings and puzzle pieces for the next upcoming ones as well. They can't just destroy it!

"That research is everything! My...my whole life. Maybe if we showed them the equations they'd let us..." Desperation shines through Jayce's voice

"We need more than promises." Viktor says, with mild finality. "We need...proof."

"Besides, they don't care about the groundwork, the mechanisms- they're not scientists or researchers. What they need... Is the tangible product." You say, dejectedly, a memory grazing your mind about how your projects had gotten rejected more than once because of lack of "scope".

Viktor looks at you in a brief moment of understanding. You both saw eyes to eyes before Jayce interrupts.

"Not without the crystals. The enforcers took them all. They're gone." His throat constricts slightly, as if swallowing down an emotional heart stuck in his throat, threatening to make him cry, as he sinks back down to his seat. Poor thing. You're about to comfort him when suddenly,

"yeah, locked away in heimerdinger's lab" says the smart voice with keys jingling at the end, emerging from his pocket.

Oh, how had you managed to forget this part?

"No. No. No! You heard the council, if we're wrong..."

"Better be right then." A tiny mischevious smile with a glimmer in his eye. You feel a flutter in your stomach when for a brief moment, the gaze seemed to approach yours, as if to show you how tricky he can be.

"Why? Why would you risk this?!" Jayce implores, eyes narrowed in disbelief at the lankier man.

Oh boy, here goes.

"Do you think it was my life's ambition to be an assistant?!"

"Scientists seek discoveries- ways to make the world a better place!"

You felt shivers down your spine at the passion lacing his accentuated voice. Nothing more captivating than true focus in it.

"This hextech dream of yours...has the potential to do that..."

"Don't worry Jayce, we'll make your hextech dream a hextech- reality." You smile encouragingly.

Jayce rises from his seat, walking over to between you and Viktor, placing a hand on each of your shoulders, gripping it promisingly.

"Our hextech dream." He states, as your heart soars.

____________________________________

"So far so good..." Viktor whispers crouched infront of the lock, of the door labelled "Prof. HEIMERDINGER", Jayce holding up the tiny light for him and you holding the notebook and crystal, behind them. Viktor and you had convinced Jayce to break into Heimerdinger's lab and take what's rightfully his. Viktor was about to turn the final lock when suddenly, a brighter light shines onto your faces. Jayce flinches, your eyes narrowed and Viktor hisses.

You stiffle an out of place chuckle.

You three lift your gazes to meet Mel Medarda's sharp, serious demeanour with a hint of playfulness about her.

"Hmm. Willing to risk exile for your endeavour. That's quite the conviction." She comments, her voice soft velvet, but the context making it dangerous. The golden ornaments around her commanding attention to her presence even in this dark hallway.

"The councillor! Uh- what a surprise to see you, huh?" Jayce fumbles, trying to sound as if this was a completely normal situation, as Viktor suddenly comes up with pearls of words making you want to facepalm and walk away.

"Wait a minute, this isn't my bedroom...! Heh... How could I have-..." He pretends to fiddle with the keys, looking at the lock as if it had betrayed him. Jayce and you exchange disappointed looks, and with a sigh, Jayce decides to take matters into his own hands as he straightens up.

"Please. We can prove that it works."

The beautiful voice snaps back with controlled derision. "Hmm. You couldn't do so earlier today, how is tonight any different?"

"We figured out how to stabilise it." Says Viktor, straightening up alongside you, flinching lightly when the light flashes at him.

"You're the professor's assistant."

"No, he's my new partner." Jayce corrects her, making you smile gently.

Her gaze floats over to you, fixing on you with grace. "And you? Never seen you before.."

"Uhm... I-" you stammer.

"She's my assistant! New addition, latest interview."

Jayce and you look at Viktor, mildly surprised. You feel your ears go slightly pink at Viktor's words.

"Um...yes! She's part of this project too!" Jayce saves the lie. Mel didn't seem to be in disbelief. She focuses her attention back on Jayce.

"Even if you manage to prove your theory, the Council would destroy it."

"Heimerdinger will recognise the potential." Viktor says confidently. Mel scoffs at that. "He already does, and it scares him. It scares them all."

"What about you?" You ask suddenly, remembering her interested expression back in the trail. Her smirk fades, considering the three of you before speaking in a voice which you believed to be reserved for the council.

"I recognise that any worthwhile venture involves risk."

Suddenly, all of you are alerted by a whistle sounding from just around the corner, seemingly from a guard of the academy. You sense Viktor and Jayce freezing, as Jayce quickly tries to save you all...

"Councilor, this technology, it's real. And no matter what happens here, it's going to change our world. We should be the ones to lead it. Piltover, the land of progress, equality, innovation! I know it sounds impossible, but when have we ever let that stop us?"

"Please...just give us a chance."

The tension in the air grows with Mel's momentary silence as Viktor and Jayce hold their breath, preying to everything internally. Meanwhile, you were just glad to be here. Mel finally speaks,

"One night, gentlemen and assistant. Impress me, or I'd suggest you pack your bags." The words ignited excitement within all three of you. Mel turns towards the corner, switching of her flashlight and distracts the guard expertly, like the dazzling charming Councillor she is.

Jayce flicks back on the light and grins to himself appreciatively, and Viktor opens the door.

_____________________________________

"Wow, this soldering iron heats up so well! And no residue at the tip! And look at that rheostat! The resistance is so precise at each point, holy-!" You squeal over the equipments in the middle of work the three of you are engaged in (your work field in electrical sciences back at home helping you immensely) as Jayce removes his goggles to look at you curiously.

Your suggestion of the crystal being stabilised enough to become destabilized by high energy supply later had Viktor saying that more power sources would be required for such a process. So you and Jayce were building metallic platforms and holders to conduct more power into the circuitry for the crystal, while Viktor fishes out the said crystal amoungst all the other things in heimerdinger's lab.

"Sorry, sorry... it's just, where I come from, the lab isn't maintained this well..." You giggle softly, still looking over the equipments. "Where are you from?" Jayce asks in turn, and you are so thankful for Viktor's interruption.

"Everything's intact, right?" He passes over the blue breathtakingly gorgeous crystals over to Jayce. "Yes." Jayce says and you move over to their side of the massive table where the setup is as you watch him put the orb on top of a small metallic platform you and him crafted right now. Immediately, you are left to marvel at how the energy is derived from the crystal, the wires linked to it sparking brilliantly. So there was indeed a force field self contained inside it.

"It's time to crank it." You've never seen Viktor look so giddy yet uncertain until now.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Jayce questions, looking at the crystal which may or may not blow up everything, destroying all of you- to which his partner grimaces and shakes his head. This was the assistant Heimerdinger chose to handle all tech that was dangerously improving within the academy walls. Absolutely fabulous.

"You do realise that this thing can kill us, right?" You question, looking over to the skeletal man. "You do realise half of this idea is your own suggestion, right?" He questions back with a smirk. This man. This absolute unit of work.

Jayce switches on the circuitry, and the orb crackles, it's jagged edges emitting bright blue hues, painting all that is near in its colour of vibrancy. Viktor presses the button to increase the supply frequency from the main source. The metal arches clanks and spins angrily, the forcefield powerful enough to spin out shards from the table.

"I don't think it will hold! Look at the build up...!" Jayce worries.

"The resonance will stabilise it. Trust me!" Viktor reassures him, his eyes narrowed but never turning away from the contraption.

"If we manage to reach maximum amplitude... Shouldn't we be able to see the flux?" You ask, unsure.

"oh, I'll show you the flux!" Viktor grits his teeth behind sealed lips and increases the speed of the rotating metallic wanes. The three of you watch as the crystal behind to float in its own created power field, its small metallic platforms spreading around it like a lotus. You grin. "Huh... So it did."

You didn't miss Viktor's playful smirk directed at you as he leans over to Jayce "I told you it would work... All yours." He gives Jayce the room to inspect his creation. Jayce is lost for words as he inches closer to the miracle. "It's never done that before..." He looks at you and Viktor before hesitantly reaching over to the dial to crank it. "All right. Here we go."

The crystal rises up towards the small metallic arches, its forcefield reacting with the special structures attached halfway onto to the top, the frequency of energy input making it growl like an ill-contained beast with potential no one could dream of- beautiful intricate arcs being made in mid air as it soars within its confinement.

One could only contain a beast for so long.

It explodes- blinding you temporarily with a flash, the energy release so powerful it sends you tumbling down onto the cold hard floor as a beam of charge shatters from the small crystal to the window, dangerously radiant and blazing.

"DISENGAGE!" Viktor shouts, ducking down to the table as Jayce tries to reach the button, but he's too dazzled.

You stand up quickly, your otherworldly strength making it easier for you reach over and slam the button, resisting against the magical forcefield, but not before the glass shards from the broken window implodes and cuts through the air hazardously. The crystal, loosing its motive of lethal disturbance falls back down to the platform, plunging you all in darkness as inertia makes the three of you tumble backwards, you hitting the floor first because you were already crouching. Your elbows hit the floor as you try to get up, Viktor trips right on top of you.

"Incredible!" The golden eyed man says in bated breath.

Startled at the sudden intrusive contact, you lift your torso, only for your nose to bump against viktor's, his dark hair hanging over his forehead brushing against your forehead, right when Jayce softly turns on the circuit, bringing back the light, illuminating the tender sight of his face in front of your eyes. A moment passes. Then, Gasping, and flustered, Viktor gets up, stuttering apologies.

"umm...You two okay?" Jayce starts, an embarassed expression finding itself on his face, as he tries to ignore the both of you. "Yes! Definitely! Right! So it works!" Viktor immediately starts to talk, hoping to heavens his blush isn't as obvious as he felt it to be. "We just need the right frequency!" You join in, quickly getting up to your feet.

Without wasting any more time, you start to build up the frequency again, this time knowing more accurately what to do. Adjusting the metallic arches for maximum coach, while still allowing room for garbage discharges, and safety valve action Jayce runs the system again. Suddenly, you hear something from outside.

Footsteps. Multiple of them.

"Someone's coming!" You warn, turning to the men. Soon enough, someone tries to push open the door. Acting fast, Viktor pushes his cane in between the door handles but it seemed as though it wasn't enough, as the banging increases in strength. You immediately press your back against the doors, pushing it back, hoping your strength acts up. Viktor turns to Jayce, his voice filled with controlled urgency.

"They're almost through! No pressure..." He tries to be calm. "That sounds like pressure!" Jayce yells incredulously.

Your breath quickens, feeling the door hit against your back everytime the big tremors of kicks and punches rocks the other side. Viktor's attention darts back and forth between you and Jayce frantically. Suddenly, you hear a voice. From your wrist.

"Power 100%. Thank you for the recharge."

Your head turns to look at your wrist. The Chronoporter works! With a delighted grin, you bring your wrist closer to your face so you could see the dial light up and the mechanical voice chime from within quietly to you.

"Chronoporter! You're back!" It felt like greeting an old friend.

"I detect high levels of electrical oscillatory frequencies nearby. Please unplug me..." The Chronoporter says.

"You weren't even connected! The charge was so powerful it enhances everything!" You say giddily. "How?! Nothing can be that powerful that the mere vicinity charged me! " The mechanical voice mimicks human enthusiasm at wonders.

"Y/N who are you talking to? Don't let them know we're inside!" Viktor whisper-shouts to you.

"Oh sorry sorry!" You wince, and say softly to the Chronoporter. "Be quiet now, I'll talk to you later." The Chronoporter engages mute in its system. "Good watch." You sigh, feeling the kicks behind you again, this time more powerful- the seams of the huge door rattling violently. A kick to the middle, however, hits your spine, making you fall forward. Viktor comes to your aid, pulling you up.

"Are you okay?" His worried voice makes you smile as his eyes roam to your spine for any cuts of bruises. "Yes..." You hold onto his arm as you get up, his bad leg trembling lightly from supporting you, but his attention is stretched to the crystal which floated amoung the symbols, spinning and destabilizing amoung the strange symbols floating around and over it, as the man who believed in their potential closes his eyes, envisioning all that magic had to offer to his life.

For progress.

The crystal's glow intensifies, surrounding air crackling with magic as blue filaments sparkles around and zipped through its force fields like tiny blue commets, the rumbling emanating from the core suddenly evolving into a thunderous crack unleashing a torrent of energy, a plethora of symbols buzzing past the shimmering light, the mesmerising dance of energy through the labyrinthe of wires meticulously constructed by you three as the floor seemed to fall beneath your feet...

The enforcers break down the door, Heimerdinger stepping in with them...

The air stilled in reverent awe at the breathtaking marvel before their eyes.

Suspended in radiance of azure, Jayce, you and Viktor drifted in the air, as if in space, surrounded by shimmering stardust like particles. The patterns of magnetic field in the ceiling as you floated close enough to touch it. The exhilarating ecstacy finding home in your faces was delightful as the fields of the crystal seemed to cradle you lovingly. Jayce was chuckling happily, with shaky breaths as Viktor gazed around, both his legs working to push him forward in the air.

Your {eye colour} eyes meets the golden ones, a shy intertwining of gazes of two souls floating in pure arcane magic, an exchange of delight, a tale as old as time. Your heart soars as you look the man who seemed like an angel with a halo over his head, his cheeks covering softly in a blush. Due to joy or the adrenaline rush, you didn't know. Other voices and noises in the room seemed to blue around you, only registering that you two weren't the only ones here when Heimerdinger says,

"Will you please stop hovering?"

You chuckle as Viktor winces. "I'm not sure how to do that, sir!"

"This is not what Piltover's future looks like, my dear boys....and....girl..." Heimerdinger says, his gaze directed upwards at the three of you.

"That's for the council to decide." The rich velvet voice sounds through the door, as Mel walks in, the scene framed perfectly for her to admire.

"Perhaps it's time. For the era of Magic."

"Uh, Hextech. For the era of Hextech." Jayce corrects her happily, hovering upside down.

Era of Hextech indeed.

You thought in as much relief as jubilation- everything was going according to plan.

Innocently enough, you were in such thrill to not remember what the eye of zaun had achieved in the depths of the undercity, with the same crystal, and a little girl who handled it. Neither were you aware of the eye which watched from the shadows, sent for you.

____________________________________

Chapter 9 available NOW in my Tumblr page.

[kuramirocket]

@devotion-that-corrupts Okay, so I just finished reading Fading Echoes (2nd book in Omen of the Stars) and I am just screaming.

I know that Firestar does die for good later since I accidently spoiled myself a while back and I'm like, oh no, how many times does that make that he died?? I'm pretty sure, he's on his last life now and I'm just here like noooooo. Not Firestar cause I love him and he was always my fave in The Prophecies Begin arc 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Okay, so Ivypaw. Wow. Do I have a lot of mixed feelings about her. On one hand I feel annoyance towards her because she let herself become so jealous of Dovepaw. Like yeah, Firestar started talking to her a lot, Lionblaze put extra emphasis on her training and she was chosen for the journey about the beavers, but we know that's none of Dovepaw's fault. I mean, she is special because of the prophecy. Obviously, Ivypaw doesn't know that, but she didn't have to be so cold and distant towards her sister, you know? Dovepaw was never mean to her. And I know it did seem to hurt Ivypaw, not just the particular attention on Dovepaw, but also her sister keeping things from her.

So, I think what I find mostly annoying is that Ivypaw was so jealous of Dovepaw to the point of letting that create a wedge between them when they had previously been so close. Like yeah, I get her hurt feelings and jealousy, I really do, but that's your sister 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Meanwhile, on the other hand, I also understand that Hawkfrost used her feelings and the situation to manipulate her and foster more resentment towards Dovepaw, while also pretty much giving her the attention and validation she wanted so much. It made Ivypaw feel noticed and strong, to have something that Dovepaw didn't. In this sense, I kind of feel bad for Ivypaw because she got played so hard.

And yet, she had also heard nursery tales about Tigerstar and still went along with what he and Hawkfrost said??? Like yes, she hadn't been born yet and doesn't know at all the full details, but again just Ivypaw girl. She's killing me here 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

AND then there's Lionblaze, Jayfeather and Dovepaw. They knew that the Dark Forest cats were recruiting clan cats to fight for them. How did it not occur to any of them that Ivypaw's dream was sus auagquwihwjqjwjjaka I mean, we the audience know because we have seen it play out, but I mean ahuqjquqiqhqiqiqoqikq I feel like if they had just thought for a moment maybe, just maybe they would have realized. They were also aware that Thunderclan cats could very well be recruited, afterall. Sure, Ivypaw is Dovepaw's sister and they trust her, but she also has no connection to Starclan, so like Lionblaze realized in the final chapter, why would they reach out to her and not the three?

Not to mention, I also don't know why they didn't tell Firestar from the get go what the Dark Forest was planning. Even if it was just the three of them and Firestar that knew, they could have been better prepared in case anything happened.

I was also surprised that Firestar even listened to Ivypaw. I feel like normally Firestar is more smart and careful than that. And I also thought the same thing Lionblaze later realized - it's about to be leafbare why would Firestar risk injuries at such a critical time, including Shadowclan?? Like Ivypaw's supposed dream just makes no sense once you scrutinize it. Poor Shadowclan gets such a bad rep aiahakajmawhwkmamkama

Yeah, Ivypaw is Dovepaw's sister and that's part of why they trust her but she's also not one of the three like I was saying. Sucks to say, but it's just how it is eusiwhwuuwuwiwuiwiq I think after this whole time Starclan won't appear to anyone regarding important messages. Though, I also suppose the clan cats won't necessarily know who is special/chosen or not, especially if they think this was a message from Starclan themselves. Ahhh

Idk, but this book seemed just like a series of very bad decisions lol

Anyways, since I am reading the books in publication order, I'm going to read the field guide - Battles of the Clans next, then Super Edition #3 - Skyclan's Destiny, then the conclusion to Ravenpaw's Path and then finally continue with Omen of the Stars xD

[markthekng]

Figured since October is coming up and I didn't have Tumblr last year I'd show off my costume from last year. The theme was possession. I started the day as a priest, was "possessed" in first period, then slowly throughout the day became more corrupted until I was a demon. I thought it was very cool.

Phase 1: Father Mark

Phase 2: the demon lurks

Phase 3: Taking over

Phase 4: The loss of Divination (hard to see in the picture but there is a tail)

Phase 5: The Fall Of Mark (yes I really did go out with a mesh shirt in only my binder. Also the cigarette is fake smoking is bad guys)

There was actually a story I wrote to go along with it too. It's under the cut if you're interested

Poor Father Mark, a man of the church, but a vessel of despair. Morality cannot protect you when you are stripped of feeling. God will not save you when the devil has you in a chokehold.

Father Mark, how do you lead a prayer? Do you bow your head? How then do you hide the crimson tears that don’t stop flowing like a river? Do you look to the sky? How then do you avoid choking on the regurgitated blood that burns in your stomach? Or do you find prayer to be a waste of time ever since you were stripped of your autonomy? What point is there in believing in a god?

Father Mark, how do you dress? Do you wear the sacred outfit of a priest? Does your clerical collar help you feel as if you are still in control? Does the halo the Lord blessed you with make you feel any more holy? Do you dress in a scandalous manner to match the possession burning you away? Do you feel as if the fabricless shirt makes you better suited to be under the devil’s control? Or perhaps, clothing is a waste of time when your skin is no longer your own.

Father Mark, what do you hold in those soft pale hands of yours? Do you carry a crucifix and a bible? Do you still preach that there is life after death? Do you still hope to see the best in everyone with the mindset that when they day, they’ll be in a paradise concealed by clouds? Or have you learned better after the smoke originated from your own flesh? Do you carry the staff with the skull of the omen of death because it relieves the burn of the cross? Do you carry a cigarette in between that plastered on frown to numb the pain of being stripped of heaven? Do you carry a bag to collect the prayers and hopes of those who cannot be saved? Your hands used to be soft to the touch, now the burn of your calluses are not exclusive to you.

Father Mark, how did you come to be possessed by demons? Who strayed you from the path of the Lord? What made you so demonic?

“My child,” Father Mark’s eyes will pool with blood and his lips are permanently stained red as he coughs up his innocence, “The Lord has forsaken me ever since the first exorcism. From the beginning, God has forsaken me, and the angels spit on me as they pass by.”

I had been good, I had not sinned. I had followed the commandments. I had been perfect. Did you know it was possible? For a mortal to be perfect? I believed I had been perfect, that everyone had been perfect, but God had other plans. I had exorcised a demon from a young girl’s spirit, but it had only left her. It had latched on to me. As a result I was cursed. The Lord did not protect me when I prayed, nor when I went through the ritual. No matter how much pain I endured to try and get rid of the demon, God had not answered a single prayer. Over and over again I had been forsaken.

And the demon, oh that demon. I don’t think it’s just a demon, it’s the culmination of all of my sins, and now it’s trying to turn me into one. It speaks to me, it is right now. It tells me that it is me, and that I will never escape its grasps. It tells me such awful things, burning my brain and branding itself on the side. The pain of its voice drives me mad. And it will never go away. No, it only wishes to see me suffer. It only wishes to drag me to the darkest pits of hell. With every fight I put up I only lose myself more. Is it better to be a soulless husk than a sin?

I tried to fight it. I tried to fight the demonic forces on my own, but I couldn’t. A mortal is powerless to a celestial. Lucifer himself has contributed to my possession. But he does not speak to me as a mortal, he speaks to me as an equal. Lucifer allows sweet temptations to slip from his lips and through your ears. Fighting it is pointless, it will only tear you piece by piece. The feeling of the holy garment burns as you descend, and you can no longer hold the crucifix. My body is not my own, I will never get it back. And if I do, what waits for me when I am human again? The disapproving stares of the choirs of angels? Chants of “Holy, holy, holy” directed in the opposite direction? This is a battle I am not meant to win, for winning is far worse than losing.

Poor Father Mark had us all convinced her body wasn't returning to dust. He had us believing that he didn't protect the world but mixing her blood into the soil.

Poor Father Mark, he never stood a chance. We watched as the demon took control. We watched as his sins manifested. We watched as he realized he had never been possessed, but he was the demon from the beginning. We watched his expression turn dark when he looked over at us. We watched as he lit the cigarette and left.

Poor Father Mark, we watched as the halo was ripped from your head and replaced with obsidian horns. Poor Father Mark, we watched as the crucifix burnt your hands, making the skin red and raw and you chose to lift the staff instead. Poor Father Mark, we watched that unscathed back fester and sore as raven wings burst from your shoulders and flew you away from salvation. Poor Father Mark, we watched the beast’s tail extend from your spine. Poor Father Mark, we watched as you fell.

Oh but you realize it don’t you? You were never one of us, Mark. You were never meant to be among angels. The sharp teeth that break through flesh were yours all along. The darkness followed you like a plague. You were never meant to be good Mark. You couldn’t. No matter how hard you tried you were never good enough. You’re just the same as the rest, powerful and impure. You were too human. And now look at you! Your humanity has been stripped away, and the cold stare of an angel has left your eyes. Now your eyes burn in the inferno below the surface.

And what has become of the demon Mark? Oh Poor Father Mark is no longer a Father. He is hardly even a son. Mark is no more than a common succubus. I doubt he’d ever rank higher than a measly imp. Mark is no longer the angelic being of flesh, he never deserved that title. Mark’s halo was a fantasy that we allowed him to believe. Mark is a source of evil. The demon Mark only believes in evil. The demon Mark was beyond saving from the beginning. At the right hand of Lucifer himself he swears to bring an end to the Lord and his angels.

Oh it’s not true, that was never true. I am not “the demon” Mark. I am only Mark. Not “the succubus” not “the imp.” Just Mark. I am me, and that’s the only truth I need to live by ever since the fall. I feel no guilt for what I’ve done. I am not who I’ve become because a demon took me away. This is me because I saw the light. I am this way because I’ve seen the hypocrisy of those above. You wanted a demon and I delivered. But I am no servant, no right hand man, and never again will I be a slave. I am king. On Earth as it is in Hell, I wear the crown of wilted roses, proving that I reign over these wastelands. I make those who have caused hurt to others suffer. I am the force that will overthrow heaven. I am the truth, the light, and the king, no one will be spared. I will no longer be good.

The angels seethe at the sight of the king of hell. If you check the list of ranks, you’ll see his name violently torn, scratched at, and ripped. He did that himself, they only scratch to feel accomplished. The war had begun as soon as Satan himself had stood and bowed. Mark, king of hell, the source of all evil. Creator of ash and dust. The man is plagued by the death of a girl, her voice still ringing in his ears demanding to know the importance of her death, resulting in the overthrowing of demonicism. The world will never know perfection again so long as Mark is still out there.

And yet, something can be found in the eyes of the demon Mark. It’s not a vengeful look, nor a sinister glare. A look in Mark’s eyes that could never be found in the eyes of angels.

Compassion.

[zubrkrolpuszczy]

good omens 2 spoilers??

I actually started thinking about something...

well, and now I can't stop this.

after all, Nina and Maggie's relationship mirrors that of Aziraphale and Crowley, right?so what if Nina's toxic partner is actually a metaphor for Aziraphale's situation with heaven?? Nina finally says she's not ready for a new relationship yet, but Maggie understands and will be there, waiting for her to work through and fix her emotions.I just want to say that probably means is there a lot of emotional work ahead of Aziraphale to understand how broken Heaven is at all and to break out of this belief that everything they do up there is somehow right. so yes, this isn't magic coffee it's just him and his naive trust in Heaven rightness. after all, throughout the series we see how he tries to explain and rationalize all the sick behaviors of Heaven, the flood or the killing Job's children. it's a bit like a relationship with an abusive parent, where even though you know perfectly well that something is fucked up, you still try to explain it to yourself that they just want your good.

fucking bullshit.

and Aziraphale has held that belief for 6,000 bloody years!! and it's certainly not going to be easy for him to accept how twisted and corrupt it all is. but without it, it will not be possible to create a relationship with Crowley, because it will always impact the relationship with the toxic parent (Heaven). so to sum up, my little angel baby has a huge religious trauma and I want him and his demon boyfriend to finally talk to each other honestly and EXPLAIN EVERYTHING to each other or else I'm going crazy.

I want so much to hug them!!!

[pasquey]

Aziraphale's Choice, or: Activist Infighting

As we were going through the last minutes of season 2 of Good Omens, I looked at my partner and said, "Activist infighting." It was the best encapsulation I had for what seemed at the base of the Aziraphale-Crowley conflict, or at least a large portion of it.

There's been a lot of great analysis on what Heaven means emotionally to Crowley and Aziraphale, how it shows a toxic family dynamic. But the activist angle has been much less explored. It goes like this: for the entire series so far, we've seen how the policies of Heaven sometimes actively harm people and frequently actively prevent them from being helped. Aziraphale has seen this for thousands of years. Suddenly he's given the option of being given enough power within the system to make major changes - heck, we've never heard of any demons being allowed back into Heaven before, and he's immediately given the option of doing so! This isn't fake power, this isn't a figurehead, a joke; this is something that begins with a major concession and that could lead to even more positive changes if Aziraphale plays his cards right.

Or maybe it is a joke. Maybe it's a trap. Maybe they don't intend on giving Aziraphale real power. But they would still, even in that scenario, be giving him information. The only reason the original Armageddon failed to happen is because Crowley had the right connections in Hell to be the one who brought Adam to the hospital. Adam's baby swap was an accident, but one that he was in a position to do intentionally. The process of raising Warlock to hopefully not end the world also depended on Crowley and Aziraphale being in positions where they knew who Warlock was and where to find him. When used correctly, information is its own form of power.

Living a quiet life in a bookshop is nice until the world explodes around you; even if Aziraphale didn't expect the Second Coming to be so soon, he's immortal and knew he would be alive to see it whenever it happened. And unlike Crowley, Aziraphale isn't willing to go off and live on Alpha Centauri with only a single companion. He wants to save the world.

And Heaven offers him a way to. A chance to change how Heaven operates. Even if Aziraphale couldn't tear down the whole system there, he could make progress. Yes, by working with a bunch of assholes with a bad history. Yes, by making compromises. But for the people he could help, it would be worth it.

Aziraphale didn't choose Heaven over Earth. Aziraphale made the choice to go where he could help Earth the most, even if it involved sacrificing the life he'd built there. It was a choice made out of love.

(While Crowley chose the other kind of activism. Crowley says "why vote? both sides are the same anyways. why run for office? you'll never get elected. anyone who tries to make incremental progress is a corporate shill." He's great at helping the person directly in front of him, but when it comes to wider society, he's given up. He has his reasons, of course. But it doesn't escape me that he's still ready to cut and run away from Earth at any moment. He thinks it's romantic for Gabriel and Beelzebub to run off to Alpha Centauri together. Rather than putting down roots, his plants live in his car.)

And yes, Aziraphale has many emotional reasons to hope Heaven can improve. But it's also practical. We've seen how much time he spent trying to hide his good deeds from Gabriel; at least Muriel will be able to be more blatant with hers when he's boss. He can always go back to Earth if it fails, but this offer to change Heaven won't come twice.

And of course he wanted to take Crowley with. Finally, a chance to work together without it being a secret! Think of everything they could accomplish! Heaven admitted they were right all along, and now instead of high wire rules-lawyering, they get to make the rules!

Crowley doesn't trust that. Crowley's not touching that. Work with corrupt people and you'll become corrupted; better to stay as far from it all as possible. The system won't ever change. It's the bandstand fight all over again: try to change a corrupt system or get out.

But that's activist infighting for you.

[bracketsoffear]

I actually have a bunch of ideas for fake crossover statements I've been collecting. Here's my favorites:

“Make A Lot Of Noise”: statement of Sid Phillips regarding his childhood toys. (Toy Story, Stranger); "Make a Lot of Noise" is the song from the Toy Story Musical (yes, that's an official thing) about the toys getting revenge on Sid.

“The Serpent in the Garden”: statement of Warlock Dowling regarding his atypical upbringing. (Good Omens, Stranger/Spiral?); the title here refers to Crowley's origins as the Snake in the Garden of Eden and how he (serpent) and Aziraphale (gardener) raised Warlock, but I'm not sure what Entity "I was raised by two uncanny not-humans who turned out to have thought I was the Antichrist" falls under.

“Ill Met By Moonlight”: statement of Alissa Denton regarding the last performance of Misty Moore. (Dimension 20: The Unsleeping City, Stranger); this would be about "Broadway Brawl," where Misty kills the real Titania while playing her during her rejuvenation ritual and then uses the glamour from the performance to be reborn as Rowan Berry.

“Skulk”: Statement of Steve Bergensten regarding the creature he encountered during a caving expedition. (Minecraft, Dark); Bergensten is Jeb's surname, and skulk is the stuff that summons The Warden.

“The White Whale”: Statement of “The Mariner” regarding how he murdered his stepfather. (The Mariner’s Revenge Song, Hunt/Buried); title is a Moby Dick reference, of course.

“The Entire Circus”: Statement of Gog-Agog regarding why you should be Gog-Agog too! (KSBD, Corruption); title is a reference to the meme "You are not a clown, you are the entire circus," because Gog-Agog is clown-themed.

“Treasure Hunt”: Statement of Stanley Yelnats regarding his imprisonment in a correctionary boot camp. (Holes, Buried)

“Shadow Puppet”: Statement of Lena Sabrewing regarding her troubled relationship with her aunt. (Ducktales 2017, Web); title refers to Lena being a living shadow who was emotionally, then later physically puppeted by her aunt in shadow form, and ultimately possessed.

“Fly Me To The Moon”: Statement of Donald Duck regarding his sister’s disappearance in space. (Ducktales 2017, Vast); title references Della's ill-fated joyride that ended with her being stranded on the moon, and Vast seemed appropriate given how her need for adventure led her to go higher and higher until she vanished into the huge void of space.

“Worldbreaker”: Statement of Gyro Gearloose regarding a recurring problem with his creations. (Ducktales 2017, Extinction); Worldbreaker is the name of the program Akita used to force BOYD to be evil, and one could theorize that Gyro's persistent belief that all of his creations turned evil (because of what happened with BOYD) is what caused him to keep making evil robots in a self-fulfilling prophecy spiral.

“To Have And To Hold”: Statement of Twilight Sparkle regarding her brother’s marriage. (MLP:FIM, Stranger/Corruption); title is from the traditional marriage vow, with this specific line summing up Chrysalis' intentions for Shining Armor.

“Urban Legend”: Statement of Emma-May Dixon regarding the local tourist trap in Gravity Falls. (Gravity Falls, Stranger); title is a play on the cryptids and folklore Stanley uses in the Mystery Shack, and Emma-May Dixon is McGucket's ex-wife.

“See No Evil”: Statement of Tate McGucket regarding his fear of memory loss. (Gravity Falls, Spiral); title refers to the Society of the Blind Eye's goals, and I figured someone who saw his dad progressively lose his memories and sanity without knowing why would develop some hangups about that, especially with an amnesia-inducing cult (that his dad created) running around.

“War Games”: Statement of Jack Merridew, regarding his time stranded on an island as a child. (Lord of the Flies, Slaughter)

“Dollhouse”: Statement of Coraline Jones regarding what was behind a door in her new apartment. (Coraline, Stranger/Web)

“God Save The Queen”: Statement of Julie Jenkins, regarding the murders at her high school prom. (The Ballad of Sara Berry, Slaughter); Julie Jenkins is the girl who was beating Sara out for Prom Queen because people were pity voting for her, and the only target of Sara's rampage to survive.

“Silent Assassin”: Statement of Pam Kingsley, regarding a string of inexplicable assassinations she reported on. (Hitman, Hunt); Silent Assassin is a recurring challenge in Hitman and the subtitle of the second game, and Pam Kingsley is a recurring news anchor character.

“God, That’s Good”: Statement of Tobias Ragg regarding his employment in a meat pie shop. (Sweeney Todd, Flesh); "God, That's Good" is the song Toby sings advertising Ms. Lovett's cannibal pies.

“Future Imperfect”: Statement of Arven Violet regarding the results of his father’s research. (Pokemon Violet, Extinction)

“This Be The Verse”: Statement of Beatrice Baudelaire Jr. regarding her a series of unfortunate events her guardians experienced. (ASOUE, Desolation); "This be the verse" is the poem Count Olaf recites as he dies: "Man hands on misery to man / It deepens like a coastal shelf. / Get out as early as you can / and don't have any kids yourself.

“Mayhem”: Statement of Marla Singer regarding her boyfriend’s involvement in terrorism. (Fight Club, Desolation); title refers to "Project Mayhem."

all of these sound like absolute banger fics!

[r3musmoony]

Extended what might’ve been in my bio but ultimately ended up cutting it out because it was getting way too long (^з^)-☆

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

pfp of myself at a recent renfaire <3

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

Yes I smoke, yes I am also disabled, piss off if you think I can’t do both and get a better life

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

this is also now slowly becoming an emo blog. I will not apologise, I am slowly falling back into my early teen ways

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

Keep staring I might do a trick! 凸^-^凸　

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

I refuse to cater to ableists, and yes that includes ableist disabled people. you are still being ableist even if you are disabled yourself

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

I write fanfic, my ao3 profile is Eddies_Steve

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

Yes my real name is Remus, yes I named myself after Remus Lupin, I do not support JKR or anyone like her which is why I stole the name so that a faggot and tranny can ‘bring shame’ to JKR and her godawful inhumane views

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

I am in so many fandoms it’s hard to keep track but my main ones at the moment are:

Into the Spider-verse/Across the Spider-verse (I have a side-blog specifically dedicated to ATSV @hobi3brown )

9-1-1

9-1-1 Lone Star

Stranger Things (I do not support the actors or Netflix)

Criminal Minds

Supernatural

Rocky Horror Picture Show

The Marauders

DC (slowly being corrupted by a friend, still very new to DC)

MCU (mostly Tom Hollands Spider-Man but also slowly getting more involved with other stuff)

Shadow and Bone (TV show and books)

Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom (CK is unfinished atm)

Good Omens

Shameless

Jake and Johnnie

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

As mentioned in my bio, I have Tourette’s syndrome, no I do not have Coprolalia/Copropraxia however I do have echolalia/echopraxia, please do not try and give me tics because you will be blocked.

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

Don’t be afraid to call me out if I say something outdated/offensive, I am always open to learning more as a person and I will not take offence.

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

Bands that I enjoy in no particular order:

The Casualties

Anti-Flag

Black-flag

Metallica

Motley crue

The cure

Motörhead

Judas Priest

Mother Mother

Hozier

Ghost

Iron Maiden

Depeche Mode

She Wants Revenge

Sister of Mercy

Johnnie Guilbert

Jake Webber

The Front Bottoms (concert in April! Anyone else coming to The Gov in Adelaide on the day I’d love to meet you!)

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

This is almost certainly way too much information about me to be sharing on the internet but fuck it, life is short and we all end up dead anyway so might as well have fun while we’re here.

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

A cane user, crutch user, and a wheelchair user, mainly using my wheelchair atm

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

very supportive of self-diagnosis as I am self-diagnosed with a few things (with months of research and peer-review)

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

I now have a second side blog (as of 14/7/2023) dedicated to sharks! @sharkb01

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

another side blog for Good Omens! @inneffablegays

ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ

now also with a side blog for my education of polytheistic norse paganism! @norsepagangay

[minetteskvareninova]

Minette watches Medici, part 20 (Innocents)

-Hey, look! Another (mostly) good episode! The Medici truly are at their best when they are more morally ambiguous. I did have some problems with this episode, once again because of Lorenzo, whose corruption arch wasn't very well handled, but much like Alicent in Hot D, many moments of that arch are good, even if the arch itself doesn't come together in a coherent manner, like at all.

-RIP LUCREZIA T, YOU WERE THE BEST FEMALE CHARACTER IN THIS FRANCHISE AND PROBABLY THE BEST CHARACTER PERIOD, YES EVEN BETTER THAN MY KING FERRANTE, FUCK YOU, FIGHT ME.

-Beyond my endless love for Lucrezia T, her final episode too was nothing to scoff at, like some moments were cliche (especially the Incurable Cough Of Death), but overall she got a great sendoff that cemented her as my absolute favourite. Her engaging in some light embezzlement because Lorenzo is just that bad with money? Fun, interesting character beat. Mentoring Clarice into becoming her successor? It's a bit surprising she didn't even try sooner, but still, pretty cool! Her being reminded of Giuliano when Giulio gets into fights? Amazing, no notes. Like that minisubplot was indeed very cheesy, but surprisingly emotionally effective. Hell, they did the "dying person deliriously running after someone and collapsing" AND "dying person sees a tragically fallen loved one as a some sort of psychopomp" - and I didn't roll my eyes once!

-Speaking of: I wish Giulio was just plain better developed, because there are interesting kernels of characterization here that I'd adore to see explored. Like for a show that loves to just plain spell shit out, Giulio's sword was such a great storytelling device - I mean, teenage Giulio gets so little screen time, but when he decides he maybe wants to become a priest? You absolutely get it. There are also some hints of him growing closer over the years to Giovanni at least, if not Piero, but again, not enough to really see it clearly.

-Lol, I recognized another child actor in this! First Adam from Good Omens as baby Lorenzo, now Tewkesbury from Enola Holmes as teenage Piero... I have no point to make here, I just think it's funny.

-Riario continues his uninterrupted streak of being a pathetic little thug that is only ever a threat because his uncle is the pope and he's... Let's be real here, only about as brutal as any IRL condotierro, but that's just enough capacity of violence to be a genuine menace. I also love his relationship with Caterina, like he knows what he has in her and clearly wants to be a wife guy so badly, but he's too much of thuggish manbaby to ever show affection towards anyone, even her. Like the same way Rüstem can never not be creepy, even when he means well, Riario can never not be an absolute douche.

-Speaking of pathetic little bitches - Lorenzo and pope competed for the title of Italy's Biggest Primadonna, and Lorenzo scored an unquestioned victory with his "I'd rather have innocent people slaughtered than apologize to you". Like, fuck dude, I know you technically didn't do anything wrong, but there are lives at stake! Swallow your pride, goddamnit! The worst part is, he then apologizes anyway - so that the head honchos at the conference pay attention to him, because he's afraid the pope might be getting a win with the whole conference taking place outside of Florence thing! BTW I am still not sure how Lorenzo being a center of attention for a hot minute erases pope's contributions to the conference, or really what those contributions are considering it doesn't even take place on his territory... Is he some kind of chairman here? I am so confused. The whole conference doesn't make any sense anyway, like is it supposed to have ended some particular war or whatever? Would it be that hard to throw in a few words about how, say, France and Venice were at war and now they and their allies are negotiating the peace terms?!

-Oh, I see Lorenzo didn't restore signoria after the peace as he promised! VERY interesting. Or it would be if I had any idea why the fuck is he doing something so blatantly terrible and against everything he professed to stand for even a couple of episodes ago. Is he afraid of what might happen to him and his family if he loses absolute power for even a second? Well, that would be interesting, if the show so much as hinted at it, but it doesn't, rendering the whole corruption arch a fucking joke.

-I do think that in a vacuum, Lorenzo letting all those people be massacred by Riario was pretty interesting both as a political move and a character beat. Like, even the characters were like "damn dude that's COLD". I don't love Bernardi once again being Lorenzo's shoulder devil, but at least the dude's characterization is consistent... And now the showrunners are teasing us with his backstory. Well, ladies and gentlemen, consider that bait swallowed! I truly can't wait for what they are going to do with it.

-Oh, look, a decent Lorenzo x Clarice scene! You know, once in a while these two remind me that they can be a good couple, and then go back to their old ways of being boring and devoid of chemistry. Honestly, making them join a polycule with Lucrezia D can only improve things.

-Oh, hey, Caterina is doing some cool shit this episode! Nice.

-...okay, I'll admit, that was one hell of a cliffhanger right at the end.

[avaritia-ffxiv]

5 Songs I'm Into RN

1. Tuoni - Kuolonpyörä

I LOVE the lyrics in this. But it's Finnish. And if you look up a translation, the chorus is wrong. And the chorus is the best part. So I'm a lil salty about that and had to translate it MYSELF for captainqster when sending it to them like "OMG THIS IS SO GNB GIOVANNA"

But it is, it really is her.

(Also the correct chorus goes like this:)

Pyörä pyörii - läpi ihmiselämän (The wheel turns - through human life) Pyörä pyörii - aina nauttii vähemmän (The wheel turns - always enjoys less) Pyörä pyörii - ei hellitä ikinä (The wheel turns - never relents) Kuolonpyörä - liekki ja kipinä (Wheel of death - flame and spark)

2. Beyond Awareness - Crime

This is from Nazaire's playlist.

Will I ever be fine? Do I belong in another life? Oh please show me the place where I can leave this behind Can't replace what's inside I'm all out of will to carry on with this life But if I just closed my eyes for now It's a crime

Apparently this is a Finnish band too?? The more you know. Anyway yeah very Nazaire, makes me vibe in his name.

3. Bloodbound - The Warlock's Trail

Hey it's a Swedish band this time. That's so far off.

Either way, this is from D&D Gia's playlist

In the mist of the morning a winter's day Came a man in robe from far away Out of ashes and clay of the magic vale 'Cause sorrow sail on the warlock's trail

Idk if I've ever talked about him? He's a ruthless little thing, and a warlock, so the song suits him p nicely.

4. Hozier & Bear McCreary - Blood Upon the Snow

It's not from some version of Gia's playlist!!! It's from Damonient's. I fucking love this song and it really... Gets his mood across, I feel? The melancholy, it's so good.

To all things housed in her silence Nature offers a violence The bear that keeps to his own line The wolf that seeks always his own kind The world that hardens as the harsher winter holds The parent forced to eat its young before it grows It's not my arms that will fail me But this world takes more strength than it gave me The trees deny themselves nothing that makes them grow No rain fall, no sunshine No blood upon the snow

I still haven't gotten around to doing a lil gpose to it with him.

5. Project Vela - War on Falling Stars

Embracing the darkness Telling you that it'll be okay But it's more than harmless This disease will rip your soul away I don't want to live my life by your beliefs I don't want to be caught up in vanity I don't want to swallow pills you offer me I just need to suppress these memories

This is from Saga's v2 playlist, soooooo himst after his corruption arc 'cause we can't have good sweet pure characters in this house, must ruin their whole outlook.

Tagged by @captainqster

Tagging idk who hasn't gotten tagged yet so if you've already gotten tagged or don't feel like it just ignore this but @soulshards-ooc @shadesofblades @vmbral (YES I KNOW YOU ALREADY GOT TAGGED BUT I WILL TAG YOU AGAIN) @cosmicharm (same at you) @midnightmagicks

@abalathia @shieke @briar-ffxiv @allyennah

Honorary mentions and a whole bunch of spotify links under the cut:

Bad Omens - Kingdom of Cards (from Amthan's playlist)

I made my way through hell again, I paid for my mistakes Next time, I think I'll stay awhile and pour myself a drink When I return, I'll look for you, so listen for your name If you can make it out above the roaring of the flames If it's the mask you want, then it's the mask that you will get But when I take it off, remember that you asked for this I tore myself apart to give you all that I could give Don't think that I will let it go, don't think that I'll forget I thought I wanted legacy, I thought I wanted fame I didn't know I'd lose all my loved ones in exchange Left 'em all behind and yeah, for that, I am ashamed But that's the price I'm paying 'til I'm buried in my grave

Blacklite District - Goodbye (rock mix) (from Gia and Saga v2's playlists)

Goodbye Say goodbye to the knife That you sharpen with your life Say goodbye To the dark side Goodbye Say goodbye to the lies And the pain You hold inside Say goodbye to that old life Goodbye

Hollywood Undead ft. Hyro the Hero - Comin' Through the Stereo (from Narin's playlist)

I'm going to the top and nobody's gonna stop me now Another nightmare and it's coming through the stеreo Keep going 'til I drop, 'til the hands on the clock run out Anothеr nightmare and it's coming through the stereo Straight out the gate, got them bodies dropping Ain't no grave that can hold my coffin I'm going to the top and nobody's gonna stop me now Another nightmare and it's coming through the stereo

Battle Beast - Where Angels Fear to Fly (from Nazaire's playlist)

I spread my wings and like the midnight sun I will be rising Into the frozen heights, where stars are born And where they die I'm lighting up horizons With thunder and lightning Through the darkest skies Whеre even angеls fear to fly

I COULD GO ON FOR SO MUCH LONGER, DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH MUSIC I LISTEN TO. But also yeah if I can't make it related to one character or other, it can't keep my interest.

Good thing I have a gazillion characters!

[ivycryptid]

Notes On Season 2 of Good Omens

Good Omens Spoilers here!

So I ended up writing all my s2 reactions live on some sticky notes and I'm gonna post them here because a) it's tumblr, and b) why not!

Ep 1:

-JIM :D

-ahhhh

-Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy!

Ep 2:

-pfft the queen thing but Everyday (this might be ep 3, but it was on the ep 2 sticky note so)

-Jemima! <- the bue one :D

-"I lied", yeah I guessed that!

Ep 3:

Lindsey >: ?

-"ello, ello, ello"

-"I'm a Human police officer"

-Inspector! eeeee!

-It's amazing!

-eeeeeee! Muriel!

-the only ineffable thing in that is that they're husbands

-yellow :D

-hissing

-flies? Flies?

-heh, not brain surgery

-bad angel >:l

-he's got a point

-Mr Dalrymple is cool

-NO KIDDO!

-Crowley WTF?

-kaiju Crowley

-drunk crowley pfft

-that isn't how phones work...

-unless it is!

-very closed

Ep 4

Oh it's those nazis

The intercom guy's annoying

Cuppa fire?

Oh she hates crow>:[

Ehhh

Wierd tounge :/

:l zombies

The pub!

Dhftffvifx friends!

What is that voice?

Mr tennant? How?

Zira

Zira

Oh no. Kiddo!

:( i liked magic guy

Zira. Really? I'm getting second hand embarrasemnt from over here

Oh frick. The miracle blocker

Oh frick. Crowleyyyy!

No paperwork!!!

Woo!

Those were the magic words. Pfft

Shax NO!

Ep 5

Malignant and creeping sense of unease. Pfft

Tardis :D

Hey its s1 guy

Other peoples love lives always seem more straightforward than our own

And he's dead again

Oh no oh no oh no oh no

Not SMUT!

Jim :D

Drunk crowley don't do it!

Protective crowley :D

No don- oh thank goodness

Hot chocolate! :D

Muriel! Woo! I want to adopt her

She's a blorbo now :D

Eh shiny!

Fell whatre you doing?

Oh no Maggie!

no!

What in the world zira?

Ep 6

Muriel happiness

What is that outfit crowley?

Oh they're in LOVEE

eee

>:/

Maggie no!!!

And erics gone again

Some of those demons give me mechs inspo lol

Ahhhh i'm so worried

Makes sense in my head too nina

Co2 saves the day once again!

Fire trauma?Fire trauma

Muriel! Yes I'm going to continue this

Emotional support angel?

No

Well

They're eachothers emtional support

Woo, co2! Good on the corruption and demons!

Institutional problem Pfft

Eeeereeee Muriel!

Oh not the books!

Yeah ineffable bureaucracy real

He does the get wrong sticky outy thing :D

EVERDAY ITS A ROLLER COASTER-

Why am I feeling soft for ineffable bureaucracy?Also bigger on the inside

Oh no jim's gone :(

Oh He's alive

Eeeeee! Recordcoffee? (We need a ship name) Recordcoffee love!

Awwwwwwwwwww! Muriel :DDDDD

Talk you Idiots!

Eee Jolly Good!

No, don't do it zira!

We wrote unfalling but not like this neil!

Religious trauma zira!

Ndksvaksvksbsksbsjsh

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY NIEL

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Ineffable sadness :(

THEY ARE TOXIC!

NSIWVHDBRK

ARGH AZIRAPHALE!

NO! DON'T!

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM*that was INCREDIBLY high pitched irl*

No nightingales :(

We could've been us

Mrghhhhhh

Internalized homophobia much?

Don't try to separate them Metatron!

Anyways s2 broke me :l

[hope-is-yellow]

Gabriel's Redemption

One thing I love about Good Omens is how it helps me learn about myself. How I react to certain characters—who I get defensive toward, who I take a strong aversion to, who I want to protect, who I admire—shows me what I see about myself in them.

Because the writing, especially the characterization, in both the show and book is so good, I tend to have strong emotional reactions to the characters. That makes them good tools for self-discovery, a kind of mirror for my own virtues and vices, foibles, and strengths.

As long as I’m being honest about myself and with myself.

Even my responses to Good Omens fan creations (pictures, comics, fan fiction, video animations, written and video essays) teach me about myself. For example, observing what types of works I seek out is instructive. What kind of searches am I doing for Good Omens content on fiction or video websites? Why might I be drawn to more edgy or sad videos this week, or more upbeat stories the next? How do these choices reflect or shape my mood?

I’ve been thinking lately about why I find Gabriel/Jim such a compelling character in the second season. I’ve been thinking about what about him I might see in myself, and about how his redemption arc might give me hope for my own.

I want to acknowledge here that many viewers reasonably argue that at best Gabriel experiences only a partial redemption in season 2. Yes, he declines to end earth and humanity a second time, and his love for Beelzebub shows him something more important than choosing sides, but he still never acknowledges or expresses regret for trying to kill Aziraphale or destroy creation the first time around. But then again, if absolute power corrupts absolutely, and if Gabriel, as the only first-order archangel in the universe, is one of the most powerful beings in the existence, then I’d say that, while he has an awful lot of corruption to overcome, he seems to have come a fairly long way in an impressively short time by the end of season 2. He’s an immortal being; I trust that love will continue to eat away at his arrogance and instill some humility into him with time. Love has a way of doing that to the heart.

Even before I watched season 2, I found myself drawn to fan fiction that portrayed what some is sometimes tagged as “soft Gabriel” or “nice Gabriel”: Gabriel has realized, through some combination plot devices, the error(s) of his ways and attempts (and sometimes succeeds) in redeeming himself.

The circumstances in these stories that lead to Gabriel’s change of heart are many and varied, ranging from the extremely dark (Aziraphale’s trauma over his treatment by Heaven causes him to become a sadistic revenge seeker who tortures and abuses his former boss) to the light and fluffy (Gabriel becomes a parent with Beelzebub and wants to learn what delights earth can offer their child).

In the TV series, of course, it is simply romantic love that leads Gabriel to renounce the end of creation. He never says so explicitly, but we’re left with the impression through the brilliantly written and acted romance montage—incredibly only about two minutes long yet utterly convincing—that as Gabriel becomes enamored of his demonic counterpart, so he comes to appreciate the earthly environment in which this happens. He comes to appreciate music, for example, when Beelzebub expresses her liking for “Everyday” by Buddy Holly. By the end of season 2, Gabriel seems to finally begin to have an inkling about why God so loves Her earth.

(But then, who am I kidding; since when is romantic love simple?)

The series also shows us a childlike Gabriel in the form of Jim, who is practically a tabula rasa. We see him—hilariously—come to appreciate even more earthly pleasures, like cocoa, using books as flyswatters (that never hurt any flies) and coming up with nonsensical book shelving systems.

In fan fiction, once Gabriel’s redemptive change in perspective is accomplished—through whatever plot development—he often expresses regret, contrition, humility, willingness to learn. In some cases (in stories in which the author breaks with “canon” and he does not end up with Beelzebub), he renounces his heavenly position, and sometimes even his celestial powers, in favor of “retiring” to earth to live among humans, to learn about and from them, and to do good among them.

Sometimes Gabriel shows up on the Crowley’s and Aziraphale’s doorstep (if they’re in their South Downs cottage) or at the bookstore or Crowley’s flat (if they have yet to confirm their couplehood) and requests that they teach him about the earth. In these narratives, he often poses a question: what was it about the earth and/or humanity that made them willing to risk death to save it? Gabriel’s redemption in these stories takes the form of him becoming a student of earth, essentially, with one or both main characters acting as his teachers and guides. He learns to listen openly and attentively to others’ views and ideas; he learns the affection, compassion, and love that is so lacking in heaven; he learns the wealth of sensory experiences that having a body affords him; he learns gratitude and mercy; he learns the difference between self-esteem and self-absorption.

The reason I am attracted to these Gabriel redemption stories, I think, is because I struggle at times with some of Gabriel’s faults myself. For instance, I don’t think anyone would argue against the statement that Gabriel comes off as incredibly arrogant and pleased with himself. And I can act very egotistical at times. For me, low self-esteem and arrogant behavior are often two sides of the same coin, at least for me; it’s at those times when I’m most insecure about my abilities or my body or my general worthiness that I can lash out as the most obnoxious snob. It’s a childish, destructive, confused attempt at self-protection: I’ll point out your flaws and reject you before you can do the same to me.

Maybe I identify with Gabriel’s arrogance, and wonder if his egotism might be caused by deeply hidden feelings of self-doubt. We see that precious little compassion, acceptance, tolerance, love, or even basic courtesy is offered to anyone in heaven. In season 2 episode 6, Gabriel himself, in what I feel is one of the saddest moments in the entire series, says to Beelzebub during one of their meetings in the pub, “No one’s ever given me anything before.” In just a few words, Gabriel presents a devastating picture of the barrenness, the emotional emptiness, the cruel neglect of his existence until that moment. In the complete absence of love, is it really any wonder, that Gabriel offers Aziraphale only fake smiles; empty compliments; subtle and not-so-subtle putdowns; constant interruptions; and, in the end, murderous rage toward Aziraphale? Rage and anger are signs of feelings of injury and injustice, and all beings feel those things when they’re deprived of love. And if we have no way of addressing and rectifying the hurts and injustices we’ve suffered—no then—again—we can end up lashing out at other people. That’s not an excuse, but it can be a cause and a reason.

Now one might argue that Aziraphale was treated with equal emotional neglect and abuse by heaven and ended up a kind, sweet and giving soul. But then, Aziraphale had the love, friendship, trust, and affirmation of one being in the world, a certain demon who adored him from the outset.

The genuine love—romantic love, familial love, platonic love—of a single being can shield and cushion us from believing the cruel messages others send us with cruel behavior and inattention. Even if everyone else around us has failed to treat us with the respect and care we need and deserve, that single being’s love can bolster our self-esteem, free us from self-hate, and teach us to love ourselves and others.

Gabriel’s redemption story proves this axiom in the world of Good Omens: Once he received Beelzebub’s love, he was able to show love: He acted to avert Armageddon and save creation; he was ready to sacrifice his authority and power in heaven to be with his love in hell.

I think I so enjoyed Gabriel’s redemption story in season 2, and continue to enjoy Gabriel redemption fan fiction, because in them I find hope of my own salvation and redemption. They offer me hope of overcoming my own faults and becoming a better, kinder, more selfless person. To some extent the history and contours of my own struggle toward emotional development mirror Gabriel’s origins story. If I can find compassion for him, I can find compassion for myself. And if he found the capacity and courage to change after one loving being came into his life, how much more hope is there for me who am blessed with—and should appreciate more—numerous family and friends who love me.