jotiko

[jotiko]

one time i visited a cemetery and this one dude's grave had THE sexiest male angel statue i've ever fucking seen. like. he was nude except for a sword and helmet. he had nipples. you could see his entire bare thigh. what a baller move to put an ancient athenian's wet dream on top of your eternal resting place. i think about him a lot.

[jotiko]

Obvious

Hans stares at Henry and thinks about his feelings.

Once again, a joyful carefree laugh rang out through the tavern - Henry was loudly recounting some old story about his little adventures back in Skalitz, when he used to hang out with Matthew, Matthias and Fritz. Hans scoffed but couldn't bring himself to voice the thought that flared up in his mind - compared to Henry's adventures with Hans, these were nothing. He could not let his surge of jealousy ruin this happy little moment - a rare moment of Henry being at ease.

Hans hadn't always known this side of his friend (he trained himself to use this word only - both to accustom himself to having a close friend for the first time, and to stop his mind from wishfully assigning more intimate terms to Henry). Their early interactions were shrouded in mutual animosity at first, then in begrudging tolerance, and only after that damned hunting incident did things change. His mind wandering back to the heroic rescue of himself, Hans smiled softly; that joy, that wave of relief upon seeing Henry swooping in... Granted, his mind greatly amplified the heroism of the moment: Henry's clumsy swings seemed precise and swift, the mismatched grimy gambeson was obligingly cleaned up by his imagination into a suit of knightly armor.

And yet there was a part left untouched, unmodified by his romantic mind; the moment when time itself stood still to ensure that Hans would carve that image in his heart; the exact moment of victorious Henry coming up to untie him. A splash of fresh blood across his face, its color dulled by a coating of dust. A faint bruise on his jaw, already forming but not yet announcing its presence with pain. And then there were his eyes. God, those eyes, filled with tired determination, bearing into Hans' face as if it took effort for them to convince the mind that Hans is indeed alright. That image of Henry, battered and out of breath, a picture of resilience, so exhausted and yet so powerful... It came to him in many dreams since then, evoking feelings that he first thought were admiration and respect. These days Hans knew better, although he sometimes wished he didn't.

Even now, the memory sent a shiver down his spine; it has never failed to do so. Hans thought of the hunting incident as the origin of his feelings, but it was something else that forced him to realize their nature - a smile. When Hans first saw Henry's smile - a real one, genuine and pure - his heart galloped; it did not make sense. Much later, after dismantling that initial confusion thought by thought, Hans cursed that smile for making him face the feeling and yet time and time again he would try to bring it out.

That was why he held his tongue tonight, unwilling to interrupt Henry's happy reminiscing; despite having had quite a few mugs of ale already (or perhaps due to this fact), Hans mustered all of his lordly benevolence and generosity and held off his sarcastic commentary, letting Henry have his fun. And it was absolutely, positively not because he wasn't paying attention to the story anymore, instead staring at Henry's smile. That special kind of smile, only manifesting when ale erased all tragedy from his life...

Henry looked in his direction and, once again, Hans quickly averted his eyes. Never one for subtlety anyway, Hans always found it harder to hide his interest once ale was involved. He was grateful for the chilly weather tonight that forced Henry to layer his clothes; it hasn't been long since Hans had accidently stumbled upon his friend at a local forge - flushed, sweating, wearing a simple blacksmith's apron. The sudden memories of those arms and chest made his neck and face grow hotter, and Hans looked around to check if anyone at the table noticed.

Honestly it was quite a miracle that nobody has caught on to how horrendously Hans was smitten with that peasant. Granted, he most definitely was choosing to believe in such a miracle since the mere thought of the alternative was enough to shake him to his core; the alternative of other people knowing his secret. Worst case scenario meant losing his title, his close ones, losing Henry; he couldn't imagine the embarrassment of being found out. And yet-

"Let it rest, can't the young lord look at a lovely girl anymore?"

Godwin's loud exclamation brought Hans out of his thoughts. Confused, he turned to Godwin only to be met with a pointed look and a slight tilt of the head. He followed the priest's direction and realized that his comrades' eyes were on him - they noticed Hans staring at Henry and the alehouse maid he was flirting with. Before the knot of panic could settle in his throat, however, Godwin clapped his back cheerfully, announcing loudly as ever:

"Such beautiful woman is bound to catch the lad's eye!"

Godwin's inflection on the word "woman" finally registered in Hans' mind as a hint that it was. Jumping at this opportunity to explain himself, Hans blurted out something about Henry "being lucky to snatch up the prettiest girl" and then hurriedly stumbled outside to "get some air".

It wasn't until later that night, that Hans mustered up the courage to approach Godwin; the priest was on his drunken way to the inn when Hans hesitantly called out.

"Earlier at the tavern-"

Godwin shushed him, instead reaching out to pat Hans' shoulder with a knowing smile.

"Keep being so obvious and he'll realize sooner or later. He's not that stupid."

He went on his way, leaving Hans standing in the middle of the street, his face a lovely shade of pink - either from mortification at Godwin's perceptiveness or from his unvoiced acceptance.

[jotiko]

forever grateful i was simply too lazy to let the makeup industrial complex get its hooks in me. I was just like im not doing all of that. in fact. im doing none of that

[jotiko]

If it comes from parents who model the behavior they want to see, then this is good parenting.

The problem is that many parents don't model this behavior. Many parents are authoritarian and rule by fear. Many parents take advantage of the fact that they're bigger, they control the finances, their power is upheld by society, and their children are dependent on them. And they complain when their child starts treating people the exact same way.

[jotiko]

lovebirds | modern au

[jotiko]

one of the very few things i do feel bad about is preaching to Hans about poaching while my own pockets are filled with poached meat and hides

heavily headcanon that Henry has very little care for his own wellbeing if caught, but even the thought of any harm coming to Hans because of poaching is unbearable to Henry

[jotiko]

the moment Zizka decides to adopt these dumbasses

Godwin has already adopted them and is currently actively regretting his life choices

[jotiko]

i don’t know how to explain to you people that no matter what a country’s government is like i do not and will not support the US indiscriminately bombing that country’s civilians and i don’t know why that’s a controversial take tbh

[jotiko]

Underrated Henry of Skalitz moment is when you're signing up for the tourney in Rattay the first time and he's like "I'm Henry!" And hops up on his toes "of Skalitz!"

[jotiko]

"How does their story end?"

[jotiko]

Companions combat animation by Jessica Simard, DA:tV gameplay animator, currently senior animator at Larian Studios.

[jotiko]

Something about KCD1 Henry after knowing KCD2 Henry is magical. I think there's actually a very well planned out character construction. The people of Skalitz and several Nobles treat Henry with a certain level of- either deference or definitely understanding. (So many people knew about him, I SWEAR.) Radzig encourages him to learn swordfighting and so does the random travelling knight that passes through Skalitz. Though Martin never explains it, he is clearly friendly with Radzig, claims to have known King Charles, fights incredibly against the Cumans. When Robart asks Henry to guard the battlements, Henry asks whether it is an order, and then explains he will be happy to help because he owes it to him- no peasant meekness in him, doing not because he was told by a man of greater ranking, but specifically because he is grateful. He is clearly in shock after Skalitz, and Lady Stephanie recounts her own woes- and its like, he learns very early, I think, that focusing on other's pain, other's troubles, is a great way to distract himself.

It is no wonder that he learns a bit of everything under the sun, that he seems to have no concept of certain people being born for limited roles, that he views authority as something to be respected but not held sacred- that he's willing to negotiate and talk peer-to-peer to God himself in his prayers.

Henry's incredibly original mentality for the time, and how he comes upon it organically, is... chef's kiss.

So I definitely do see what you're saying, and you actually brought up something I really love about the way KCD2 in particular is structured and the way that Henry himself is also crafted from the ground up.

Now, I don't know that I necessarily agree that all and sundry in Skalitz knew about Henry's parentage. The more people that know about a secret like that, the more likely they are to let it slip, and it's not like Radzig would have benefited in any way from people knowing that he has a bastard son. I also think that Henry is received kindly by so many people because he's Henry, the guy who does odd jobs for everyone and helps out left and right (even when he's a lazy layabout, that's just who he is at his core, you know?). I already grew up playing with swords and shit in this day and age, I think if I had grown up in the Middle Ages when they didn't have internet or literacy for the masses I would have spent even more time playing with swords. And Henry has a good bit more exposure to swords than most (though of course while Radzig encourages him, Martin clearly is trying to discourage him).

I would also argue that his ability to breach boundaries isn't necessarily something that was taught to him / part of how he was raised. Honest to god, I think that's just his personality with a healthy dash of naivety thrown in for good measure. Henry is good at adapting on the fly to changing circumstances and he is a deeply principled person at his core. He likewise cares very deeply about the people in his life that matter to him, hence being willing to break the rules to go bury his parents. He clearly did grow up a little bit irreverent, but that also just feels like part of his personality, cheeky little shit that he is. When Skalitz burns Henry is freed from the three states of man in a big way, and it lends him this wonderful flexibility that he most likely views as both a blessing and a curse (while Hans envies him deeply for it).

That's one thing I really love about what they did in KCD2. Henry not only exists simultaneously in all these different states, so does the other person that we can play as: Godwin. He's a noble, he was a priest, and he exists, first and foremost, among the peasantry, in part on account of his time in war. It's clearly where he feels most at home!

[jotiko]

Hansry week day 2: first time💞

(full version on my n/s/f/w twt/x account)

[jotiko]

Hansry week day 2: First time

[jotiko]

✨Hand touching ✨

[jotiko]

The agony of thinking you’re finished doing the dishes only to turn around and to your horror: the pot.

[jotiko]

Non omne peccatum est peccatum coram Deo - kcd2 comic

please ignore that medieval letters probably looked very different lol

I hope you enjoyed