#and this is all without even talking about her unique connection with the Force and how Order 66 practically shut it off

[thechaoticfanartist]

I think Grim seeing the ruins of the Jedi Temple was her breaking point actually.

And it's not like she was suddenly going into Sith mode or something. Grim has known about Order 66 for the entire time she's been in Star Wars. She's had that weighing down on her for literal years. She's always been afraid of that happening - which is what led to her not telling anyone about it. (Which I already wrote an essay on so I'm not going to get into that in this post.)

Grim has been constantly hit with failure to change things again and again even before we get to Revenge Of The Sith. She is failing over and over. And eventually there reaches the point where she's away with Obi-Wan and Anakin for a long time. And she's lost track of her progress on The Clone Wars but she knows they've left Season 6 territory and that Season 7 happens at the same time as Revenge Of The Sith during the Seige Of Mandalore Arc - something that she has no point of reference to figure out exactly how close it is. All she knows is that Order 66 is approaching and it is approaching fast. So all of her usual worry and fear has just gotten worse and worse. In fact it's very noticeable to Obi-Wan and Anakin (although neither of them know why, and Obi-Wan can only have his suspicions because she won't talk to him).

On the way to the ship Grim was brimming with joy. Anakin and Obi-Wan both noticed the sudden shift in mood of the young padawan.

Since the Outer Rim sieges had pulled them away from their home Grim had been swirling with fear. She seemed to be anticipating something awful was going to happen. Now her stress and fear had nearly instantly dissolved.

- The Clone Wars Gets A New Victim, Part III: The Rain, Chapter 30: A Reunion.

And while yes this is describing Grim being incredibly happy, it's a sudden shift in her mood. She hasn't been like this in a while. She's been anticipating the execution of Order 66. She's been incredibly afraid this entire period of time between Chapters 29 & 30.

And all of this is likely a couple of months before Revenge Of The Sith even starts. And when Grim does get to the news she instantly begins to panic again because she's absolutely terrified of Order 66.

So anyways. We get to Revenge Of The Sith. Grim's fear has never been worse. Again she fails to change things. There are only days left. She's desperate. In fact she's so desperate she even contemplates killing Anakin to stop Order 66.

For the slightest moment Grim considered that she could stop Anakin’s turn to Vader right here and now.

She could shove him off this roof and he would fall to the ground dead.

- The Clone Wars Gets A New Victim, Part IV: The Storm, Chapter 35: Checkmate

She hesitates to kill him though because she still sees him as her brother. And yes she is absolutely fully willing and attempts to do so without hesitation the next day - but you also have to consider the extreme circumstances. And we'll get to that.

We also see Grim in a pretty dark place mentally in this scene. It's implied that she was going to attempt suicide while on that rooftop. She's already at the edge of her rope here. The only reason she doesn't kill herself in that moment is because she can still feel the light.

So. Already not a good place for her. And this is just the day before Order 66.

So then it does happen. And she spends the entire day up until that moment terrified of it. She's convinced she's going to die. So then Order 66 happens and she jumps (dramatically falls) off a cliff.

From this point she's just completely broken. She almost lets herself die, then decides not to, only to regret it because she feels she doesn't deserve to be alive. She's all over the place and is a grieving mess. She's just lost everything after years of trying to stop it. She literally gave up her entire universe and past life, and now it's all been for nothing.

Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Grim get to the Jedi Temple, and she sees what happened. And she's seen it before, but seeing it in real life is completely different, especially because she now actually knew these people. They were her family. And now they're dead and she knows who killed them. And she's known the entire time.

So that's her breaking point. Because she knows, and had known for all these years. And now it's happened. And it wasn't just that Anakin did this. Because she knew that. It's because Anakin did this and they were friends. He was her brother. It's not fictional. It's not even just the fact that it's real. It's personal. For her it's become personal.

And grief and pain can so quickly become anger. So she snaps. And she gets so lost in her emotions she's trying to justify what she's saying because otherwise she's just as bad as Anakin.

And it was all just too much for her.

[ciciyup]

Pack Wolf X Fem! Reader who doesn't reciprocate his feelings headcanons.

Summary: In their wanderings, they find their imprint as soon as they see her for the first time; However, she doesn't seem to feel the same way.

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Sam Uley:

Seeing you for the first time, he would have almost involuntarily gotten down on his knees if it hadn't been that they were in a public place and you were accompanied. It was something unique, something he didn't expect, but there you were, and Sam felt the need to get close to you no matter what. Him approaching you to talk about whatever as an excuse to get to know you wasn't rough enough; he needed to see you again.

As soon as he brought up any kind of topic he noticed how incredibly kind you were when you addressed him, but he also noticed how you didn't even seem to be feel the same. There was no spark in your eyes, no accelerated breathing, no special something that seemed to unite you. You were supposed to be soulmates, weren't you? You were supposed to be perfect for each other, so why as time went on did you seem to treat him like any other normal person? Why wasn't there "that" something in your eyes when you looked at him? Sam had imprinted himself on you, he knew it, everyone knew it, but they also seemed to notice his constant attempts to be closer to you, his constant silent pain.

You treated him well of course, you were friendly to everyone on the reservation, you were sweet to Sam more than he could ask for, but he still didn’t seem to be strong enough with his advances for you to see him the way he was expected. Even after explaining his secret and about the imprint, you seemed to try to feel a connection with him; you spent time by his side, you did everything you could, but the feeling just didn’t seem to be there. No matter how hard you tried you couldn’t feel the connection and as time went on you began to wear yourself out and try to find something that just wasn’t there. Finally explaining to him that you couldn’t go on and giving him a clear rejection.

Even though your rejection seemed to hurt him much more than expected, he decided to suffer in silence, prioritizing your feelings over his. Sam would become understanding and calm, not losing his temper, even though he knew how painful it would be, knowing that imprinting shouldn't be forced. Though promising that if only you wanted him, he would be there for you, a good friend or brother, even a companion. Imprinting would involve prioritizing your well-being above all else, so Sam would do everything he could to make sure you were happy and safe, even if that meant keeping his distance so as not to make you uncomfortable.

Though Sam would try to be understanding, the pain he felt was indescribable. Even though you hadn't cut him out of your life completely, just being so far away from you would be hard to handle, starting to feel internal conflict due to the intensity of the imprint itself, having moments where it's hard for him to deal with the lack of reciprocity, seeking support in his pack or those closest to him to handle his emotions.

If you allowed them to stay close, even without a romantic bond, Sam would try to be a reliable friend, being there for you when you needed it, a shoulder to cry on, someone to tell your problems to; whatever you wanted, he would do it. Acting quite mature and empathetic, focusing on what's best for you, even if it meant giving up his own feelings.

Paul Lahote:

Being someone with an explosive temper, Paul probably wouldn't handle rejection well. Trying to get close to you intensely as soon as he meets you, mistaking your lack of reciprocation for shyness or fear towards him, as if you weren't looking at him confused enough since you barely know him and he already seemed to know you all your life. Even though you treated him friendly, he could immediately tell that there didn't seem to be that emotion in your chest upon meeting him, leading to frustration with the pack, following him on the way home, trying to reassure him and explain to him that it would take some time and you would finally agree. It didn't.

Despite his frustration, the instinct to protect you would be greater, as seeing you every few days wouldn't be enough to calm him down, frequently showing up to make sure you were okay, even without you asking, which could seem invasive.

Over time, Paul would have several changes in attitude; The great irritability would be clear to everyone in the pack, and the growing, unstoppable pain would lead him to have fits of rage at anyone who crossed his path, though he would avoid taking it out on you, deciding to walk away, which only made it worse by being away from you. He would feel hurt and disoriented, not being able to understand how it was possible that you didn’t feel the same; you were made for each other, he had imprinted on you. Why was nothing happening? Why was it different with you when you were supposed to be the perfect match for each other?

You tried, you seemed to try many times, more than you could imagine, wishing you could feel the same so that both of your suffering would end, but it wasn’t like that; you couldn’t manage to feel anything and you couldn’t force yourself any further.

Although Paul was unconditionally devoted to you because of the imprint, he would also begin to realize that forcing your feelings was not only unfair to you, but painful to both of you. Trying to stay away and trying to figure out how to handle the situation. Even though Paul was stubborn, he wasn't completely insensitive. His loyalty to the pack and its values would drive him to show respect for your feelings and be a silent support for you. Understanding that imprinting didn't mean control or obligation for you, he would start to act more understanding and respectful, prioritizing what you wanted. Still, he couldn't help but care about you, protecting you whether silently or not from any danger, be it supernatural or human, trying to do so discreetly so as not to make you uncomfortable.

With time and the help of Sam or the other pack members, Paul could accept that their bond cannot be forced. Choosing to be close to you as a friend or support in your life if you so desired, and if so, he would remain as someone protective and loyal, focusing on your well-being and happiness. Although rejection would not be easy for Paul, as he would feel a void in not being able to live the fullness he expected from imprinting, he would learn to accept it with resignation and maturity and less impulsiveness. Even without reciprocation, Paul would continue to feel a connection and be willing to do or be whatever you wanted without expecting anything in return.

Embry Call:

He had always heard about the stories of imprinting and its importance; most of his companions in the pack already had their imprints, although he understood it, he never really understood it, until he met you. It was a very strong pass on the ball, making his companions ask him to go get it, being the closest, and at the edge of the water there was you, who quickly grabbed the ball that was hitting your feet to give it to its owner.

The first contact was different, very different from what Embry had imagined; everything seemed to stop after seeing you, the waves of the sea and the noise of his companions playing seemed far away and took a backseat; everything was reduced only to you. Approaching somewhat nervously, not knowing how to act, he managed to have a brief chat with you, internally hoping that you would agree to see him again. Yes, of course he had noticed your great lack of emotion or bright eyes; It wasn't how his companions had told him in their own experiences, but Embry wanted to believe that maybe it was different with you, maybe it would take a little longer.

Although he approached it with patience and understanding, he would still be confused after not noticing any change in his advances towards you without achieving anything, trusting more than he should, with a silent hope that, with time, you could come to feel something for him. However, he would never act selfishly to force this possibility.

Embry would begin to experience an internal struggle during the following days. Sure, he felt a deep and unbreakable connection towards you, but, on the other hand, the lack of reciprocity on your part would cause him emotional pain. Although he would not be upset with anyone, much less with you, the feeling would squeeze his chest tightly. At those times he would try to seek help from the pack, trying to understand and deal with his pain, some of them even trying to advise him or encourage him to focus on your needs instead of his feelings so he wouldn't suffer so much.

In the face of your rejection, Embry would react immediately; the pain was inevitable, but the imprinting would lead him to accept this reality, putting his personal feelings on the back burner. Even if you didn't feel anything towards him, Embry would dedicate his life to protecting and supporting you, your well-being being his priority. Behaving gently, making sure not to cross boundaries that would make you feel uncomfortable. Being close to you when you needed him, acting as a calm and reliable guardian. He would try to establish a friendly relationship with you if you wanted it. Trying to understand your interests, your passions and the things that made you happy, adapting to your needs. Probably looking to spend time with you casually, so that the pain of separation in the bond that united you didn't hurt him too much, but at the same time he would try not to suffocate or overwhelm you. Trying to maintain a fun and relaxed attitude to make you feel comfortable and maintain a good atmosphere.

If you were to express at any point that you needed space or didn't want a close relationship, he would accept it, even though it would inevitably hurt him. Embry would completely respect your wishes and feelings, as well as your boundaries. Imprinting would guide him to be patient and understanding, willing to wait or just accept whatever you decided. Even if you didn't feel the same way, it would be hard for Embry to stay completely away because of the bond. Trying to be close in indirect ways, helping you without you realizing it, or making sure you were safe.

Although Embry would accept anything you asked him to be or do, he would act with great devotion, dealing with his own pain with dignity, striving to be positive in your life. The situation would be somewhat complicated and painful, but his character would allow him to find ways to cope with it without ceasing to be faithful to the bond that has been created, putting your happiness and well-being above all, only wishing the best for you, even if that meant seeing you with another person.

Quil Ateara:

At first, he might not fully understand why he was attracted to someone in particular, as it wouldn’t be something that happened consciously, but rather something instinctive. Seeing you for the first time only makes him feel confused and disoriented; he knows that he is something strong, something unique, needing to be closer to you.

His protective and caring nature would come to the fore, making him inclined to do everything he could to get closer to you and interact in some way. His pack mates would explain this to him as the poor boy seemed to still be just as confused, though unable to answer their questions as to why you didn’t seem as interested or why you didn’t seem to view him with the same affection and devotion as he had when they had first met; perhaps Sam would step in explaining that it would all be a matter of time.

While Quil would be understanding because of their bond, he would quickly become aware that you didn’t feel the same way. He could tell just by looking at you; When he arrived, There wasn't that emotion when I saw it, even if it had only been a few hours since you'd seen each other, noticing your gestures and your efforts to try to find something that didn't seem to be there, that tiredness of continuing to try something you couldn't force and that sudden distance.

This initial rejection could make him feel hurt, even if your actions weren't intentional. The pack members would be a constant support for him, but he would experience the pain internally. The impression is a powerful thing; this would make Quil put aside his regrets and feelings in order to understand you, beginning to respect your wishes and not force a relationship; however, his emotions would still be intense. He would become more attentive and protective, trying to help you in any way he could, trying to gain your trust without rushing things. He would show himself as a close friend or even a brother, doing things you liked, showing a more relaxed part of himself so you wouldn't feel pressured or uncomfortable. His desire to take care of you might be something that expresses itself in less obvious ways, such as making sure you're okay in everyday situations or trying to make you feel special.

If you were to continue to reject any attempts at closeness, whether romantic or emotional, Quil could go through severe pain due to imprinting. His nature would push him to fight for you in whatever ways necessary to even have some sort of relationship with you, even if it was minimal, but his respect for your own boundaries would keep him in check. Acceptance would be difficult, but over time, Quil could learn to live with the deep connection he feels towards you, without trying to pressure you. Making it clear to you that he would be there for you if you wanted it, like a brother or a friend, taking your health and happiness as a priority, and if you were to continue not wanting any interaction with him then Quil would accept it, prudently staying away, even trying to take care of you silently, since the bond would not let him go away completely.

Although he would approach the subject with enough maturity and patience, the pain would still be there and would not go away completely, affected by the events and why it had not worked out as expected with him regarding the imprint. He would leave room for you to make your own decisions without interfering and accepting what you wanted, but even deep down wishing that one day you could feel the same as he felt for you.

Jared Cameron:

He's confused. The imprint was supposed to be an unbreakable and deep bond, something that makes you feel like the person you're imprinted with is the only one who can fulfill your deepest needs, just as the other person should feel, in a way, the same, practically incomplete if the other wasn't there. What had gone wrong? You make him feel a great desire to protect and care for you, but in the face of this the reality check comes faster than he could prevent, realizing that you don't actually share the same feeling.

His astonishment was inexplicable, since it was incredible how in one moment he was playing with his companions and in the next seconds he saw you and everything seemed to stop. The experience was transformative and overwhelming, but it also came with the weight of understanding that you didn't feel the same. Jared can realize it, perhaps not quickly enough to notice it the first time he sees you, trying to deal with his own feelings in between, but as the days go by and as he gets closer to you, he could tell. He understood it immediately; He couldn't force you to love him on the same level. It seemed to hit him like a bucket of cold water, trying to process it as maturely as he could, but with it came frustration due to the unbreakable connection he felt and the lack of reciprocation from you; it was a constant, throbbing pain that he never imagined feeling.

The imprint bond would make him understand in part that he couldn't rush or force your feelings, just as his own personal integrity would make him understand and cope with it. He would make him respectful of your space, being kind and calm. Adopting a supportive stance, hoping that, in time, you would come to understand and accept the connection between you with or without a relationship in between.

Jared would feel a strong need to protect you due to the imprint. Driving him to be close, more than you would want. Despite his desires to be close to you, Jared would be aware of his limits, avoiding being evasive, but intervening discreetly if you were in danger. Even though the imprint makes him feel like you are his “everything,” he would understand the need to not be dominant or possessive, given that you don’t share the same feelings. Even though your rejection was already expected by him, when it comes, it seems harder to digest than he had imagined. Knowing that this was what you wanted, Jared would respect it by putting aside his thoughts and feelings to please you, trying to balance his desire to be close to you with the need to give you space and time to process what was happening.

Over time Jared would learn not to idealize this in a destructive way, even though the bond makes him think that you are the person he is meant to be with, he also understands that nothing can be forced. And even if you weren’t ready to feel the same or directly didn’t want anything with him, Jared wouldn’t pressure you, but he wouldn’t stop being there, waiting patiently.

Seth Clearwater:

When he first saw you, the world seemed to stop. The connection was instant and overwhelming; the imprint completely transformed him. Of course, he had heard of his pack mates and often saw them with their mates, but this seemed to be something much more intense than Seth could have imagined. You become the center of his universe, not just as a potential mate, but as someone to protect and care for no matter the consequences. The intensity of the feeling overwhelms him, but also fills him with hope and happiness.

Being sweet and genuine, Seth would not force his presence in your life, but would instead seek to approach you in a natural way. Starting with a few casual one-liners about the day, following it up with a few topics that led him to ask for your name, as well as his presence and humor, would have him confidently asking you to see him again. The following days he would show his kinder and more generous side: helping you with small things, making you laugh and spending time by your side as someone unconditional.

Over time, Seth would notice that, although you appreciated him and enjoyed his company, you showed no signs of feeling something deeper. Perhaps he would have noticed it much earlier, but he wanted to lie to himself believing that it was just a matter of time. Although his advances continued to be noticeable, you seemed to no longer enjoy the more intimate approach, which led you to confess that your feelings were not the same as those he had for you. This would be devastating for Seth, since the imprint was not something he could control or diminish. Despite this, Seth would not allow himself to blame or pressure you, understanding that everything should be free and mutual.

He would begin to go through an internal process of sadness and acceptance; his innate kindness would keep him focused on what was best for you. Although it would be painful for him to observe how you did not feel the same, he would commit to staying in your life in the way you wanted. In private he would lean on the pack, who comforted him and gave him advice, especially Leah, who would understand his pain due to her own experiences, helping him deal with the emotional burden.

Seth would continue to be a part of your life if you wanted him to be, and if not, then he would accept it with great internal pain, but accepting of your wishes, watching over you from the shadows. He would never impose his feelings on you or expect you to reciprocate, seeking the best for you. And if you wanted to cut contact completely, then Seth would accept it without complaint no matter how much pain it caused him, putting your feelings before anything else.

Despite the pain, Seth would maintain his hopeful nature by looking for ways to adapt, learning to handle his unrequited feelings and channeling them into something positive. He would dedicate himself to protecting you from a distance or focusing on strengthening relationships with his family and pack. Over time he could learn to balance his imprint with his own need to move on, although the connection would never completely disappear.

Jacob Black:

He had always found the subject of imprinting strange and even aberrant; seeing how his companions seemed to abandon themselves so that someone else could practically take them as if they were their own to do with as they pleased was simply something Jacob didn't seem to or wanted to understand. Everything changed when he saw you; he now understood what everyone was talking about. He feels the powerful pull of imprinting, an unbreakable bond that reconfigures his world around you. His senses sharpen, his heart beats hard, and the need to be close to you becomes overwhelming. In that instant you become his absolute priority, overriding any other connection or concern.

Jacob would look for ways to approach you naturally, using his charisma and sense of humor as tools to gain your trust. He would try to become a close and constant friend in your life, willing to listen to you, support you, and protect you from any danger, even if you weren't aware of the extent of his commitment.

Over time, Jacob would probably manage to become an important figure in your life. He would accompany you in your everyday problems, offering you solutions or simply his presence. His actions, driven by imprinting, would be selfless and focused on your well-being. However, as the relationship progresses, he begins to notice that although you appreciate him and feel comfortable, you show no signs of developing feelings towards him. Although you try hard to give and surrender to him, you know that you cannot match his commitment; despite your constant attempts, you just don’t succeed.

Once you confess to Jacob and give him the clear rejection, he would experience an emotional storm. His pain would not come from the rejection itself, but from the inability to fulfill what he perceives as his purpose: to make you happy. It would make him rethink and ask himself if he is doing something wrong or if he is meant to live with those one-sided feelings. Even though he wants you to see him the same way, he wouldn’t try to pressure or manipulate you due to imprinting forcing him to prioritize your desires and well-being over his own. Even though you didn’t feel the same way, Jacob wouldn’t be able to emotionally detach himself. He would continue to care for you, making sure you were safe. He would try to find comfort in friendship, focusing on being a support in your life without expecting anything in return.

If you wished instead to have no relationship with him at all, wanting to cut off contact, even though he would feel deeply hurt, Jacob would respect your decision. Having to fight his own instincts to not constantly seek you out, even going so far as to feel great constant pain and guilt, would lead him to isolate himself from the pack and his friends, constantly morphing to release pent-up tension and emotions, feeling unable to explain his suffering or find comfort.

Even though others in the pack couldn’t fully understand the pain of an unrequited imprint, they would offer comfort and support; Even Sam would try to guide him to handle his feelings so that the bond wouldn't be so painful.

Jacob would learn to deal with frustration and pain, taking comfort in secretly caring for you if you didn't want him around, and if that wasn't it, then he would settle for being a good friend in your life. Despite the lack of reciprocity, the bond wouldn't fade. The imprint is eternal, and although the pain might soften with time, he would always feel a special connection to you.

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[mya-valentine]

Headcanon: Tengen Uzui With a Fourth Wife

Tengen Uzui is already used to having a dynamic relationship with his three wives, so when a fourth wife comes into the picture, it’s all about finding harmony. His new wife is someone who perfectly balances the group with her own unique flair and personality, bringing something fresh and exciting to their already dazzling bond.

Tengen values strength, beauty, and flamboyance, so his fourth wife is no exception. She’s confident in her own right, whether through combat skills, intelligence, or a captivating presence that complements Tengen and his wives. She might not be as flamboyant as him, but she carries a quiet confidence that commands attention.

His fourth wife likely took time adjusting to the polyamorous relationship, but Tengen, with his charm and care, made sure she felt welcomed and important from the start. He’s a master at making each of his wives feel special, ensuring none of them ever feel left out. His love for her is as vibrant as for the others, and he’s very intentional in showing that.

Tengen’s other wives—Hinatsuru, Makio, and Suma—are immediately supportive, treating her as a sister from the beginning. Each has their own bond with her, creating a strong foundation of mutual respect and friendship. They all work together seamlessly, whether on the battlefield or at home, and there’s no jealousy between them because they trust each other and Tengen completely.

Tengen loves doting on his fourth wife, often showing off with grand, flamboyant gestures. He takes her on special missions, out on luxurious outings, or just enjoys making her feel like royalty, as he does with all his wives. He frequently calls her "my jewel" or some other extravagant nickname, making sure she knows how much he adores her.

When they’re all together, Tengen’s fourth wife brings a calming or stabilizing influence, helping to mediate between the bolder personalities of his other wives. She’s often the one who helps soothe any tension in the household, though she also knows when to let loose and join in on their playfully chaotic dynamics.

Tengen is a fiercely protective husband. While he knows all his wives are capable kunoichi, he still worries about them. His fourth wife is no different—he’s proud of her strength but always keeps an eye out, ensuring she’s safe on missions. If she’s ever in danger, he won’t hesitate to throw himself into the fray to protect her.

Despite his flamboyant and larger-than-life personality, Tengen is deeply attentive and observant when it comes to his fourth wife’s needs and emotions. He knows when to shower her with affection and when to give her space, always keeping their relationship in balance. He enjoys having private, intimate moments with her, where they can talk and connect on a deeper level without the distractions of their busy lives.

Tengen loves to show off his fourth wife’s beauty and skills to others, often boasting to his fellow Hashira about how amazing all his wives are. He especially enjoys fighting alongside her, knowing that together, they create an unstoppable, flashy force.

At the end of the day, Tengen’s fourth wife fits seamlessly into his unique family. She brings her own strength, love, and individuality to the group, making their bond even stronger. Tengen loves and cherishes her just as much as his other wives, and together, they live a vibrant, harmonious, and of course, flamboyant life.

.

.

.

Masterlist

[ewingstan]

I do wonder how much the perception of cape culture in the fandom would have changed if Wildbow hadn’t made the story so Brockton Bay centric.

The story of Worm (and Ward to an extent) has alluded to the fact that Brockton Bay is notably an exception when it comes to cape violence and brutality, with Taylor shocked that a Ward she met had 3 fights in 6 months. And how several Wards and Rime had no idea what she was talking about in regard to “counting coup”.

We see this with Victoria too, when she’s shocked about the Majors not seeing any action in 6 years and Tristan being overwhelmed with the amount of violence in the Fallen Raid despite being a hero for a few years himself. Foil also mentions how most of her career was really calm until March would occasionally poke her nose in things.

Mal posted some Ward updates! While I understand her pov, I do disagree with her:ilebow has also stressed, pre-Ward, that Brockton Bay was not indicative of the wider cape scene as a whole but rather a domino of things going wrong due to outside factors.

If Wildbow had extended interludes to show the dynamics of other, average, cape cities or had Taylor be in a city where things were so much calmer that she found it disturbing… well, it’s hard to say how things would change, but I think it would have made it far more clear that Taylor and Victoria’s life experience should not be applied across the board.

Or maybe nothing would have changed. Just spitballing an idea based on your let’s read so far.

Brockton Bay may be exceptional to an extent. But maybe just in the sense that it had so much happen to it before it was abandoned. Madison and Ellisburg only needed one bad day. Several countries in Worm were just straight-up destroyed.

The Bay may have been a notably large hub of nazi capes. But they were part of an internationally-connected network of capes with similar agendas. Hell, the Fallen mostly operated outside of Brockton Bay. Most of the exceptionally violent groups like the Fallen, the Slaughterhouse Nine, Heartbreaker, the Teeth, etc. were roaming problems. Yes, Brockton was unique in that it was hit by all of them, but the world was full of those types of groups. There were similar groups of enough importance on a world stage to get an invite to the cauldron meetings that we only get the barest details of.

But the most important thing is that the low-level fights Victoria's specifically nostalgic for was itself always worse than she's remembering. It wasn't a bunch of kooky characters clashing with straightmen heroes. It was a bunch of very desperate people trying to survive in a system that found them either expendable or better off dead. Even without all the specific things that hit Brockton Bay, Rachel probably would've ended up in the birdcage. Victoria would've kept relying on Amy to fix up the crooks she broke, assuming she never ended up accidentally killing someone. Both of them would continue living under the crushing responsibility and isolation that came with their cape personas. Vista would've ended up as maladjusted as a marketable celebrity child soldier would always end up being. People like Dinah and Lisa would keep being hunted for their skills by more powerful forces. The Taylors of the world would keep getting bullied, the Mr. Gladlys would keep looking away. The rot would be same.

[dichenlachmandaily]

Spoilers follow for Severance season two episode seven, “Chikhai Bardo.”

No, “Chikhai Bardo” isn’t a bottle episode. Instead, Severance gave us something even better: answers. Tragic but legitimate answers. The latest episode confirms Gemma (Dichen Lachman) is alive and being held against her will on one of Lumon’s severed floors, having gotten there, as we see through flashbacks, after being marked by one of the company’s doctors (Robby Benson) at a fertility clinic. The episode bounces around the highs and lows of Mark (Adam Scott) and Gemma’s relationship — their meet-cute at a university blood donation drive, their surprisingly enjoyable dinners with Devon and Ricken, her miscarriage — interspersed with scenes of Gemma’s captive life following a car crash implied to be staged by the company. Inside Lumon, Gemma’s life is overseen by a nurse (Sandra Bernhard), who marches her through a rotation of severed doors and into rooms where her various Innies are forced to endure scenarios with Benson’s doctor that range from the annoying to the traumatic.

When Gemma’s mad dash of an escape plan — knocking the doctor unconscious and briefly reembodying Ms. Casey on another severed floor — fails at episode’s end, she seemingly resigns herself to a prisoner’s existence without parole. Lachman believes her character still has hope of being released and reuniting with her husband when the experiment concludes. “But they’re always changing the rules of the game for her,” she says. “They just keep moving the goalposts.”

As someone of the belief that Gemma was brain-dead and living as a subconscious entity, it was lovely to see her alive despite the awful circumstances surrounding her existence. When I read season one, I had that theory too. I didn’t quite understand what was happening. I was like, Has her brain been affected and they’re trying to rebuild her?

Did you know Gemma would get her own stand-alone episode when you first started filming Severance? I definitely wasn’t aware in season one that this would happen. As the scripts for season two started coming in, I was like, Oh, okay. I’m not in this episode, and I’m not in the next one. Did I do something wrong? Then Dan Erickson talked me through how it was going to play out. It was really exciting. At the same time, I felt a lot of pressure. I didn’t want to let the fans down. This is obviously something they’ve been waiting for. I was really scared.

What scared you the most?Having to jump between lighter and darker moments, and the scope of it was so large. Knowing we’d have a very limited time to do it and then doing the flashbacks on film. I know Jessica Lee Gagné, the director, had always envisioned using film and it was her goal. When I started my career, we used to shoot on film all the time, but then digital became the preferred medium because it never ends and there’s more freedom. With film, there’s only so much; you could run out in the middle of a scene. You don’t want to make a mistake because it’s an actual, physical thing an image is getting printed onto.

The big connection we get this episode is when Lumon’s doctor spots Gemma at a fertility clinic before her car accident. His eyes linger on her for a beat, but Gemma and Mark don’t clock him in the waiting area. Oh, you got that?

Not the first time!I’m so glad.

Can you tell me a bit about how this scene was staged?Jessica has been integral to setting the tone and mood of Severance. She’s phenomenally talented and has such a unique eye, but she’s really good at doing things subtly. That scene had a lot of technical stuff. One of the great things about that moment is that even though the shots, framing, and camerawork are really technical — more than I’ve ever done in my entire life on any show — it always goes back to how they can keep it real and grounded among all of that chaos. There was a lot of stuff they had to do and capture so the audience could have that little moment, which is so subtle, so I’m impressed you picked up on it. I just remember focusing on what Gemma was feeling and us talking about the mood and temperament.

Given what we learn about this doctor throughout the episode, what did you infer about the motivations behind Gemma’s staged death? Did this man target her specifically because of a weird infatuation, or is a fertility clinic just an ideal location for Lumon to scope out potential subjects? That fertility clinic is a place where they have access to people’s biometric data. I suppose it’s the perfect place to zone in on a target. The whole world they live in is filled with Lumon employees, businesses, and stuff like that. I have my own fan theories, but I think what you said — a place where they’re getting people’s blood and their DNA — is probably the best theory.

The other person Gemma interacts with is Sandra Bernhard’s nurse. How would you define their relationship? Are there any sympathies there? In my mind, her nurse has been there for a while. Sandra brought an incredible warmth to that role, even in playing a captor. She brought almost a motherly feeling to it even though it’s still very cold, controlled, and oppressive down there. Maybe it’s just her eyes. Or maybe she was working on something with the character that I wasn’t aware of, but their dynamic is really interesting. I think she has compassion for Gemma. She’s just doing her job, but there’s a humanity to her.

Inside those rooms, Gemma’s Innies are forced to play out different scenarios: A dental patient getting work done, a passenger in a crashing airplane, and a wife at Christmas forced to write thank-you notes. The doctor inquired if Gemma felt “despair” after leaving any of them. How do you view what this experiment is trying to accomplish? I think it’s leaning into something that’s happening within our culture, which is that we don’t want to experience anything unpleasant. To some degree, I totally understand. In season one, you have the birthing center. That’s one of the most painful things you could experience in your whole life — I would know. What if you could delegate that experience to someone so you didn’t have to go through the pain? Even though, as a human being, there’s some ownership of that. Going through it and having a connection to the child is so beautiful. But we kind of want to get on a prescription of not having to suffer. If you think of it from a pharmaceutical point of view, it’s like, “We’re just taking it up a notch. You hate going to the dentist? We’ve got you. We’ll send somebody else, but you’ll still be going to the dentist.” Or having the fear of flying. I know Dan loathes writing thank-you notes — not because he’s ungrateful but because sometimes it’s so hard to figure out what to say to express your gratitude. I’ve done this before when I’ve worked on a movie: I’ve written 80 thank-you notes to all the crew members and they all start sounding the same. You lose your creativity, and you’re struggling to figure out a way to say “thank you” in a different way so that if someone reads someone else’s card, they’re not like, Oh, this isn’t personal. It says the same thing.

So you don’t view this technology as being strictly malicious in intent? Yeah. It could go further, of course. That’s the thing with technology: The intention is always to make someone’s life a little bit easier. Then it becomes integrated into our life. Everything is a double-edged sword. It’s our job as human beings to try and find the balance. We’re in a world where we have AI and robots. We’re creating a world where we don’t even need to exist, in a way. What’s really cool about the show is it gets people to ask themselves about their relationship to technology or their relationship to having contrast in their life. You don’t get to experience pleasure, joy, or something that tastes really amazing if you don’t get the sad moments, too. When you’re severed, you don’t have contrast. The weekend isn’t as good because you’re perpetually experiencing only the good things. Those good feelings just become feelings and are not special anymore.

You get one of the best lines of the season when Gemma is being examined by that doctor after visiting some of the rooms: “Can you please just talk like a normal person?” She’s saying what viewers are thinking, and it made me laugh.The whole language is a bit culty. They have their own way of communicating. The words they use are so bizarre. I tried reading that line in many different ways and played with intensity. It was stretching me as an artist. I’ve never had the opportunity to explore and collaborate as much as I did on this show. I could have said “Can you please just talk like a normal person?” 15 or 16 times, maybe more, and every time it would’ve been a little different.

Did you get the sense Gemma had tried to escape before? There’s this comment Mr. Drummond gives the doctor midway through the episode about how she once tried to break his fingers. It struck me as very fight-or-flight. Yes. I picked up on that same line when I was reading the script. Jessica and I talked about it a lot. I think every now and then, Gemma has been like, Screw it. I’m going to go for it. I don’t care if I have to hit him over the head or break his hand. Then there are days where she feels like it’s pointless, but then she’ll get pushed and pushed harder and she’ll try again. She’ll never be able to escape. Her tolerance level will go back to baseline, and it’ll build up and she’ll try again.

We’ve seen how people involved in the severance program can be driven to madness; Helly tries to kill herself in the first season. Where does Gemma find the strength to continue on in this prison of a life? Based on the scenes she has with the doctor just before she hits him over the head, I feel like there’s been some promises made: “Oh, you just have to do this and that”; “Look, it’s for your own good”; “Now you just have to get through this.”

How many takes did you get to whack Robby with a chair? Was it oddly satisfying?You know what? That’s something we didn’t do as many times as some of the other scenes. It wasn’t too complicated. Robby is such an amazing person. He was lying on the floor for hours, just so dedicated to this role he was playing. The man is a machine. I felt really bad. I’m like, “Oh, Robby, I’m sorry.” It was just about getting the chair at the right angle so that we could sell it, because obviously I couldn’t hit him over the head.

At one point, Gemma directly asks the doctor what will happen when her Innie “sees all of the rooms.” What do you think will happen?Gemma thinks that when she’s done, she’ll get out of there and be free. That’s what she wants. Ultimately, toward the end, she resigns herself to being there. When she comes out of the elevator, knowing her escape plan didn’t work, she feels so broken. Well, that’s it. I’m never going to get out of here. That’s why she has to be picked up off the floor by Sandra’s character. In my head, when she’s tried to escape previously, she’s probably fought them all on the way out. Like, What am I doing back here? But when she falls to the floor into a puddle, calling Mark’s name, it’s just like, I can’t anymore. There’s nothing else I can do.

You previously portrayed a multiverse-programmed character in Dollhouse, which shares a few creative parallels to Severance. Your work in Altered Carbon also explored how consciousness can be “resleeved” into different bodies. What makes you excel at portraying so many distinctive personas in one human? Maybe I willed it into my life because I love exploring these concepts, I love science fiction, and I absolutely feel like it’s somewhere where my creativity thrives. I feel so blessed that I’ve gotten to do it in different eras. Altered Carbon is hundreds of years in the future, where severance technology has completely changed the way people live and given them the ability to live forever. Dollhouse is more contemporary. Severance is this timeless era. It’s quite strange and weird.

[byeomso]

Silly question:

Which of the three (ory, kore and moshi) would be most likely to have an overblot? Have you ever thought about what it would be like?

MoSi and Koré are the ones with the highest chance of having an Overblot, but Koré would probably hold out the longest. And because of that, when it finally happened, it would be way more intense and destructive.

She would stop holding back her magic and start using it freely — so freely that it would even bring her plushies to life, like the Cerberus she always carries in her arms.

Don’t forget that her Unique Magic lets her transform into any creature based on her emotional state. So in an Overblot, she could turn into something huge, wild, and powerful, like a true force of nature.

“But what does Persephone have to do with this?”

Not much, if we’re talking about traditional mythology.

But this Koré is based on Persephone from Silly Symphonies, considered Disney’s first more “realistic” human character. In the short, she interacts more with animals than with plants — which fits perfectly with Koré’s connection to creatures.

Now picture that scene from How to Train Your Dragon 2, where the Alpha controls all the other dragons. Koré would be like that — but in the middle of chaos, using the creatures around her as an extension of her power.

Her Overblot would happen after taking on too much, trying to help everyone and forgetting herself in the process. She cares so deeply about others, but is often overlooked or neglected by most people.

In the end, what she really wants is simple: to be free to be who she truly is, without carrying the weight of everyone else on her back. Not to mention the high expectations they place on her, which makes her very stressed, but she never talks about it.

And when she returns to normal, she cannot forgive. Koré has asked for forgiveness for so many things before, and this time, she refuses. Not out of selfishness, but because it shows how unforgiving she is, It shows how much she needed some release.

After the Overblot, Koré starts to talk more than she thinks, refuse things she doesn't want, give her raw opinion and even be sarcastic with people more openly (she was only with close friends, But I barely saw them) She starts to take better care of herself and even dedicates herself more to S.T.Y.X.

[dancing-dawn]

for the ask game. please put him under the microscope

[to all my other sskk+kuro mutuals - love ya, have a little treat from me mmmwah!]

Why, my darling loving literary versed and slightly unhinged friend, you have my eternal gratitude for blessing me with this opportunity to analyse our bastard son. This ask just brought the brightest smile upon my face, because it was so unexpected but also, oh, how my soul has been craving it without my knowledge. I shall make a fair warning here: all of this is going to be my pure and unblemished opinion, since I have read 0, and I mean 0.00 Kuroshitsuji analysis (unlike, yk, for some other cursed by fate morally gray and doomed by the narrative characters for whom I have read every single instance of meta knowledge that can be found on this blasted site). So this shall be fun! Hopefully I can do him justice with my measly understanding of the source material and longtime hyperfixation.

Favourite thing: Ok I feel the need to be very insightful here and analyse the complexity of his character and why he’s such a unique and lovable protagonist besides being an absolute insufferable little shit but, honestly, it’s his character design for me. The way he’s drawn in the manga and espeeecially in the latest volumes where Yana’s art style has grown and flourished so much - it’s magnificent. Such a simple yet striking design, with the glowing engraved with runes purple eye beneath the eyepatch and the very simple boyish blueish hair which oh thanks god he doesn't look like your typical anime protagonist with crazy hair (it also helps to drive the appearance of just a normal little boy who's driven into a world of pure madness and forced to grow up and essentially come on top of the underground “mafia” because of his heritage)

Second, his asthma. As crazy as I may sound. The connection I feel to him because of his lung problems is as limitless as the sky. I adore asthma representation in media, it’s very important for me and I feel that his was portrayed very respectfully and serves to paint the full picture of his story.

Third, all the goddamn chess metaphors to his name. I love the chess symbolism to SHREDS!! And everything related to his personality to stem from that yes.

Least favourite thing: MMmmmmm some of his earlier outfits imao, I can think of some especially atrocious ones from the anime (the colors are NOT helping). But don’t get me wrong - I also love a lot of them. Especially those from the dreamscape, yk what I'm talking about.

Favourite line: I just realised I don't have one???? Preposterous, gotta go on a deep dive gimme a sec…

“I prefer to have my nightmares with open eyes.”

Oh that's a sick one I like it! Coming back to check Ciel quotes I'm being reminded this boy has some terrific life philosophy and I love him for it.

brOTP: Ok it’s a bit weird to call it a “brotop” but in the sense of which platonic interactions I love the most of course I need to say between those of our main duo. Ciel and Sebastian have the most complex and interesting dymanic, possibly out of any characters in media outside of kuro too, I just don't feel confident enough to analyse it here because honestly it's hard even for me to put into words.

OTP: I feel like the story of Black Butler is best told without any romance, so I’m gonna say none.

nOTP: For plot and current manga development reasons, as tragic as it is, I need to say Lizzy/ Ciel (both in fact). I love Lizzy, so so much. She became very dear to my heart the second her backstory and real character was revealed in Book of the Atlantic. Her love for Ciel is tragic in many ways. It makes for a dramatic interesting story but I still feel sympathy for her.

Random headcanon: He would soon reach a point when he'd start wanting to tear himself from Sebastian's care - maybe just to spite him, maybe to prove to himself he's as physically weak as he's perceived, but he will start making his own tea or trying and failing spectacularly to make his own desserts and little things like that.

Unpopular opinion: uuuuh gonna skip this one i can't think of anything perdonami perdonami

Song I associate with them: Easy. So easy in fact that I searched for the song the second I opened this document and it’s been playing nonstop for an hour while I write this. I have so many fond memories of this song because I discovered it very early into my Kuro obsession and at first I didn’t even realise it’s not an “official” character song, it just fits so so well. I remember this song carrying me through my uni prep art courses when I was feeling so stressed and close to throwing up, I always put this on repeat to calm me. I barely even remember what the lyrics mean and yet I still feel a very intense connection to it.

Favourite picture:

I shall not and need not elaborate further thank you :3

[percheduphere]

LET’S TALK ABOUT EXPLORING LOKI & MOBIUS THROUGH THE LENS OF QUEER EXPERIENCE

Thank you for this request, @nabananab 

Before I dig into this juicy ask, I think it’s important to note (however obvious the fact maybe) that an individual’s unique engagement with art is an inherent and integral part of art. The intention of the artist and the sociopolitical influence of culture, while important in our interpretation of a work, are not the sole source of drawing the work’s meaning. We are all artists in one form or another. I consider myself one of the pen, and nothing is more important to me than art giving someone a sense of emotional connection. I should hope other artists would agree, and for this reason I am an ardent believer in art taking on a life of its own once it has been created. The creator’s word, while it matters to some degree, does not supersede an individual’s relationship with the creation. Our histories, our desires, our fears, our likes, our dislikes, indeed our infiniteness as fragile human beings, allow us to create an elevated, spiritual interpretation beyond the confines of original intent. With art, there is no such thing as “reaching” or “reading too deeply”. 

I leave this message with all of you as we look at these beloved characters through the lens of queer experience. 

LOKI 

Culture influences what we see and hear, which in turn influences artistic portrayal. Setting aside Norse myth, Marvel’s Loki is a classic example of a queer-coded villain (later canonized as a queer antihero). Deception, daggers, sexual temptation, transformation, and magic are all culturally tied to the “immoral” facets of femininity. Just as a strong, independent woman untethered to the control of man is deemed a “wicked woman”, a man demonstrating gender ambiguity and like qualities is similarly judged. Only masculinity is viewed as pure and good, and this no doubt was—and continues to be—a key force in white, western colonization’s destructiveness. It all but crushed our rich global history of divine femininity, gender diversity, and romantic and sexual expression. 

Asgard, as Marvel portrays it, is without a doubt a masculine-dominant warrior society. Only two women feature prominently: Queen Frigga and Lady Sif. Whereas Sif embraces her masculine qualities and fits in easily with Thor and the Warriors Three, Queen Frigga embraces her feminine powers, though her authority is submissive to the All-Father, Odin. Her influence is most heavily seen in her adopted son, Loki, with whom she shared and taught magic in hopes that Loki might “feel some sun on himself” despite the “long shadows [Thor] and [Odin]” cast. The magic that Frigga gifts Loki, however, attracts scorn. The subtext here is that Loki’s specialness, his individuality, comes from feminine powers despite presenting as a man, and a gender ambiguous one at that. Unlike Thor and Odin, he is not masculine. While strong, he does not exhibit Thor’s brute strength. He is cautious, thoughtful, another feminine quality, whereas Thor’s courageousness often veers toward foolhardy and brash.  

Thus, if Loki cannot be loved and accepted as he is (a queer person of another race), he will force love and acceptance through the power of the throne. Kings oft inspire fear, coercing subjects to love them whether they wish to or not. But we know Loki never truly wanted the throne. The throne is a mere distraction from, perhaps even a poor replacement for, what he truly wants: genuine love and acceptance that cannot be bought. Unfortunately, Loki believes he will never get these things, which is why, when Mobius questions him, Loki’s desire for control (Loki, King of the Midgard; Loki, King of the Nine Realms; Loki, King of Space) can never be satiated. Mobius challenges Loki for the exact purpose of revealing this to him. What do you really want? At this point, Loki does not have the words to form an answer. In S2E5, Syvlie raises the question Mobius originally asked in S1E1. It is then, after experiencing Mobius’s friendship and the other relationships that come to being as a result (including Sylvie’s), that Loki can articulate his answer. 

Loki’s othering, even before the discovery of his true identity as a Jotun (an allegory for a villainized foreign race), creates a lonely environment in which Loki’s potential for goodness is quashed by centuries of resentment, bitterness, and jealousy. His attempts at masculinity take the form of violence, all of which are, as Loki admits in S1E1, “part of the illusion; the cruel elaborate trick conjured by the weak to inspire fear.”  

Loneliness and the desire for love and acceptance are a universal human experience, but they are felt far more acutely within our intersectional queer communities. 

MOBIUS 

His fascination with Loki is compelling because there are many things we can infer about its reasons. The first, most obvious explanation is Mobius’s “soft spot for broken things”, which is in some ways tied to his qualities as a compassionate, forgiving, and supportive father. A secondary explanation is a wish for partnership. We know from S1 that Mobius’s friendship with Ravonna spanned eons. We later learn in S2E6 that he and Ravonna started out as peers, hunters. They were partners on the field, but where Mobius “failed” because of his humanity, Ravonna “advanced” because of her ruthlessness. This change in relational dynamics left him partner-less. Finally, a third, less obvious reason is Mobius’s desire to express himself in ways Loki does so effortlessly. That desire may come from the suppression and repression of his own softspoken queerness in order to survive the fascist culture of the TVA. 

Mobius is captivating for many reasons. Whereas Loki is a textbook example of culture viewing “queerness as evil”, “queerness as flamboyance”, “queerness as stylishness”, “queerness as loudness”, “queerness as sexual promiscuity and deviance”, “queerness as chaos”, Mobius very much aligns with the image of a straight-passing, repressed queer individual. This is an identity that does not get as much attention or presence in artistic media as it deserves, for there are many who need this representation to reflect them. He is not stereotypically queer by any means: he is not colorful. He is not stylish, flamboyant, or loud. His sex appeal primarily derives from the viewers’ attraction to his personality, though it certainly helps that Owen Wilson is quite handsome.  

Combine these three reasons, and it becomes easy to see how a character (or person!) like Mobius might fall in love with a character (or person!) like Loki.  

There is a certain amount of beautiful irony in how Loki and Mobius affect one another and consequently their identities. Mobius, feeling compassion toward an individual who has been brutally othered and oppressed, seeks to free Loki from the confines of his narrative, as determined by the “Time Keepers”.  The only feasible way to do this is to bring a variant of Loki out of the timeline and into the TVA. Mobius then provides Loki with the opportunity to change by: acknowledging Loki’s strengths, giving Loki the chance to use his strengths in productive ways, praising Loki when he does well, listening to Loki, believing in Loki, calling out Loki, and accepting Loki as he is, with all his history, without judgement. Mobius does not try to force change like Thor or Odin. Rather, he creates an environment in which change could happen naturally. This kindness and, indeed, what becomes unconditional love by the end of S1E4, allows Loki to embrace his authentic queerness with self-love and use his feminine powers for altruism rather than masking them with self-hatred and masculine rage. 

FREEING LOKI 

In S1E1, Mobius is enthralled with Loki’s hijinks as the handsome, charming, devil-may-care, D.B. Cooper. This minor escapade in Loki’s life, which was likely only intended for laughs by the writer, reveals something interesting about Mobius: Loki’s mischievousness, his magic, his cunning, are all quite endearing to him when no real harm is being inflicted. That is, Loki, when not under duress, is someone to be admired when he’s being himself. We admire in people what we wish we had in ourselves, and this, at times, may lead to powerful attraction. 

Loki, for his part, does much the same for Mobius. The environment (the TVA) which allowed Loki to thrive is also the same environment that has abused and constrained Mobius. 

The heat that Ravonna presses upon Mobius, however, changes his tone with Loki himself. When Loki asks Mobius why he “[sticks] his neck out for [him]”, Mobius provides Loki with two options to choose from: “A. He sees a scared little boy shivering in the cold, or B. He will say whatever he needs to say to get the job done”. Option A, while insulting, has compassion layered beneath the barb. Loki, an expert at cloaking truth with meanness, sees through this and indirectly chooses what he believes to be true in the cafeteria scene: that Mobius feels sympathy for Loki’s painful childhood. The subtext of this acknowledgement is that the true means to the end is reversed: Mobius doesn’t need Loki to catch the Variant on the timelines. Mobius needs the Variant to free Loki from the timelines. The Variant is an excuse and another agent of poetic irony: when Sylvie unleashes the multiverse, she literally frees Loki of his predetermined narrative. 

The conceit of S1E1 is that Mobius intends to use Loki for the “good” of the Sacred Timeline. It is important to remember that characters, while not real, are meant to mirror human complexity. Multiple, seemingly conflicting things may be true concurrently. In S1E2, we see in Mobius’s conversations with Ravonna that he deeply believes in Loki’a capacity to be a wonderful person and wants him to have the opportunity to change. His enthusiasm for these things outshines his desire to catch Sylvie.  

And, because the Variant is Loki, because Sylvie is Loki, because, as she says, “[they] are the same”, Mobius’s own freeing of Loki, his unconditional love for him, cascades from Loki to Sylvie. Sylvie would not be free to live as she pleases if not for Mobius’s compassion for Loki in the first place. 

In S1E4, Loki reveals the TVA’s sham. Mobius’s sense of self becomes fragile alongside his sense of partnership with Loki. But because of our sociopolitical culture’s influence on capitalism, the creative voices of the Loki series self-censures what could be (what is) a queer romance. This self-censureship makes itself known in Mobius’s own self-censureship. His jealousy and heartbreak cannot be spoken directly. It must be spoken through the words of a woman, someone who presents as the opposite sex. Through a looping memory of a scornful Sif telling Loki, “You are alone and always will be”, Mobius makes known the nature of his feelings for him.  

BUT WHO WILL FREE MOBIUS? 

In the same cafeteria scene in S1E2, Loki asks Mobius if he’s ever ridden a jet ski. Mobius’s response is demure, saying him riding one would “cause a branch for sure”. The jet ski gives the audience another clue as to what Mobius seeks in life: something fun, thrilling, and reckless. Yet Mobius sets aside his desires for what he believes is for the good of the TVA, and thus humanity. This suppression and repression of authentic selfhood mirrors the queer experience of living within a heteronormative culture, especially one with religious doctrines that equate pleasure with sinfulness.  

Because Mobius extended his heart, his partnership, his love (symbolized by twin daggers hidden in his locker [a closet]; notably a male phallic symbol of which there are a pair [partners]) and was soundly rejected, Mobius retaliates with the loneliness he himself feels. This loneliness may be interpreted as an allegory for the loneliness of being closeted as opposed to the loneliness of being out but othered. 

Ultimately, Mobius’s love for Loki shifts from selfish desire to unconditional love when he chooses to help Loki save Sylvie. In S1E5, it is conspicuous that after delivering Sylvie safely to Loki’s side, Mobius’s partings words are, “Guess you got away again”, to which Loki replies, “I always do”, which echos the lover’s trope of “the one that got away”. 

[It drives me absolutely bananas that I can't find the specific gif I need when I literally saw it multiple times earlier this week but didn't need it THEN]

Owen’s acting choice is interesting here. He laughs, smiles, then looks down before looking up again, his eyes shifting from fondness to what feels like longing. Mobius extends his hand, a sensible choice for someone who believes his love is unrequited and is unsure of how Loki defines their relationship. Loki, appreciating what Mobius has done for him, closes the distance with an embrace and thanks Mobius for his friendship. 

In S2E1, upon Loki’s time-slipping into the war room, whatever apprehensions Mobius had about physical contact was wiped away by the collapse of the TVA and the memory of Loki’s hug. In this scene, it becomes clear to Mobius that Loki is panicking. He makes the executive decision to use his physical contact as a grounding force, relocates Loki to a quiet environment, asks after Sylvie with no bitterness in his voice, then prioritizes Loki’s physical well-being. Perhaps, in Mobius’s view, his love is unrequited, but there is nothing in place to stop him from expressing that love more freely while honoring Loki’s feelings for Sylvie. This regard, which may be construed as platonic, may also be viewed romantic, courtly love. 

The fight between Loki and Sylvie in S1E6 sets the stage for Mobius to receive Loki and become a refuge for heartbreak.  

S2E2 and S2E3 has Loki’s and Mobius’s temperaments when it comes to investigating flipped. In S1, Mobius was focused on the mission and often had to reign in Loki. In S2, Mobius is more casual, more willing to take his time and enjoy the sleuthing as it unfolds, while Loki administers pressure to stay focused. The question is why? 

In S2E2, Brad attacks Mobius’s sense of self. He points out how weird it is that Mobius is not at all curious about looking at his timeline and stresses that the TVA, and everything in it, isn’t real. Brad calls into question Mobius’s reason for staying. Knowing that the answer is Loki, we can surmise through the queer lens that Brad also corners Mobius into potentially outing himself in front of the object of his affections, someone he believes does not return his feelings, and whose knowledge of those feelings may threaten their friendship. This is a traumatic experience for queer people in the real world, and this extra layer of emotional conflict adds depth to Mobius’s violent response.  

Mobius influenced Loki in a myriad of ways. One that has not been discussed yet is an appreciation for focus and order. Loki, in turn, has cracked the door open for Mobius to explore pleasure. We can speculate that, in his own way, Mobius is testing what happiness could look like living a life between the TVA and the timelines. For him, this means cocktails at the theater, cracker jacks, and exploring the World’s Fair, all of which are pleasurable on their own but are even more so with Loki’s company. His queerness, once again, is quiet, mundane, but playful in its own right, and finally brave enough to explore. These scenes suggest that Mobius is indeed happy at the TVA and, as we see in the finale, this happiness is solely rooted in his relationship with Loki and the emotional intimacy they share together. 

Loki expresses concern for Mobius, noting that he has “never seen him like that before.” Mobius, interestingly, deflects every concern by absurdly blaming Loki: “He got under your skin”, “I was following you!” The psychological undercurrent here is that Loki is the reason why Brad got under Mobius skin. Loki is the person that Mobius will follow.  

Loki takes Mobius’s distress in stride, responding in a way the Mobius normally would. However, Brad’s question piques his interest, and his own care for Mobius prompts him to gently challenge Mobius’s lack of interest in his own timeline. Mobius’s reason for avoidance is, “What if it’s something good?” 

In S2E5, it’s interesting that “good” in this narrative is defined as a heteronormative fantasy of a house, two kids, and (possibly) a puppy and a snake. The “good” in Mobius’s original timeline, however, is imperfect. There is a partner that is missing (partners being a recurring theme in the series, particularly in S2E3), pronounced gone not once but twice. The entire scene between Don and Loki has been discussed at length by many, so there’s no need to reiterate it here. However, let’s bring our attention to Mobius’s avoidance of this “good” because this avoidance resonates with another queer experience. 

The TVA, for Mobius, is the place where he studied, saved, and developed a close relationship with Loki. The fear of the “something good” is the fear of being confronted with something Mobius “should” want more than the TVA, and therefore “should” want more Loki. The fear is wanting something (or feeling pressured to want something) other than a queer relationship with no children. The question of “choice” is impacted by what is considered the “norm”. 

S2E5 very pointedly focuses on the concern of choice, especially Mobius’s choice, in the bar scene between Loki and Sylvie. “Mobius should get a choice now, no?” At this point, Loki’s regard for Mobius has finally caught up with the romantic nature of Mobius’s feelings for him. And Loki, living his own queer experience, is also afraid of his true desires like Mobius. In being part of the intersectional queer community, the psychological need to guard against disappointment is high and commonplace. Desires are easily disappointed by the expectations of oppressive social mores. This survival tactic manifests itself with our hope and heartbreak with mainstream media, Loki the series being among them. 

But Sylvie, the harbinger of true and absolute freedom, takes on the role of supportive ex and challenges Loki to answer Mobius’s question in S1E1: “What do you want?”  

In this, Mobius and Loki’s individual relationships with the TVA are identical. It was never about where (the TVA), when (time works differently at the TVA), or why (the timelines). It was about who. It was about each other. The TVA represents a liminal space which became home by virtue of the people who brought love into it. The TVA is code for Loki and Mobius when each speaks of it. 

Again, the artists behind the media must self-censure. In this, Loki also self-censures while giving the truth. “I don’t want to be alone. I want my friends back.” It cannot be denied that Mobius is Loki’s first truest and closest friend. “I don’t want to be alone. I want Mobius back.” Sylvie appreciates and validates this desire, but also points out that showing the TVA is something that cannot be unseen. The implication of this response suggests that Sylvie believes that Loki’s friends will feel compelled to join the TVA out of moral pressure. She reiterates the true lives that are being lived, and Loki, loving his friends, loving Mobius, elects to not take that away from them. “You are just fine without the TVA.” 

Yet, Loki must choose an act of profound selfless love to save everyone. In doing so, he saves and frees Mobius in the way Mobius saved and freed him. The tragedy and, once again, poetic irony is that they both would have chosen each other. In giving everyone freedom, the true freedom of Loki and Mobius is sacrificed. This double-standard reflects in our reality between those who identify as cis and heterosexual and those who do not. 

When Mobius looks at his timeline in S2E6, he does so for one reason: that timeline survived because of Loki’s sacrifice. He must honor that sacrifice and see what Loki protected. Mobius appreciates what he finds, but he doesn’t belong there. It is not what he ultimately longs for. And there must be worry, shame, in recognizing he would prefer to give up the house and two children if a life with Loki were a viable choice. 

We all experience loss in our lives. Loss without a goodbye is also commonplace but is another pain that is more acute within the intersectional queer community. I speak of missed opportunities for happiness due to external forces. I speak of loss of self. I speak of loss of friends and family and home. I speak of death, losing a loved one without a goodbye, because same-sex lovers are not considered next of kin, an impossibility without marriage. Marriage echoes back to Don, who has no spouse, and Mobius, who has no partner. 

[ratgrinders]

So I read this interview of Brennan Lee Mulligan post-Junior Year (really interesting btw, I recommend everyone check it out!!!!) but I wanted to talk about a couple questions that interested me in it regarding the Rat Grinders:

I love the Rat Grinders and how they're just this dichotomy...Talk to me about leaning into not just that they are the opposite of The Bad Kids, but their corruption, because they were really sweet as the High-Five Heroes before they followed Kipperlilly down this path. Brennan Lee Mulligan: There's an interesting question there. I think that for a lot of it, there were hints, and most of the things we've seen of their sweetness are contextual from bits of writing, little things, investigations. But I think that you can see… It's both. There are elements that they were not always like they are now, but the seeds of what they are now are there in the past. I think that when you look at the High-Five and then eventually becoming the Rat Grinders. There's an indication there of Kipperlilly's focus because yeah, the High-Five Heroes is sweet, but it's also sort of a indication that Kipperlilly is pushing them towards, for lack of a better word, do we have something that we're about? The Bad Kids get their name because they've all been given detention on the first day and it's connected to their story. Whereas you get the sense from the High-Five Heroes that it's not actually describing anything. It's like the person being like, "Our inside joke is going to be high-fives." And you're like, "Well, everyone high-fives." So there's an indication there, for me at least, that Kipperlily is trying to make a comradery right away that is not actually there. It's not based in something that happened to them.

So a confirmation that Kipperlilly naming them all the "High-Five Heroes" on the first day is her trying to "force" a sense of comradery, and also possibly an adventuring identity? Like how the Bad Kids already have this strong group cohesion and "story" because they were all given detention on the first day of classes, and Kipperlilly's trying to create something like that without it having a strong basis.

This seems indicative of a couple things to me, like Kipperlilly having a naturally strong, pushy personality that maybe overrides her other group members, or that she has a certain idea in her head about what makes an adventurer. She wants all the gimmicky stuff like a cool party name and inside jokes, but even then on the first day is trying to force it without having earned it. She's enamored with the idea of an adventurer in terms of them being the hero of their own story, and in her head how good of a "story" you have is directly linked to how good of an adventurer you are.

It also makes her opposing the name "Rat Grinders" later interesting, lol. Rat Grinders is obviously WAY more based in something unique to their party and an inside joke on what they actually do. Maybe it was just because she didn't appreciate her sense of control and her name being undermined.

How do you think they're going to diverge now that they don't have Kipperlilly leading them? Brennan Lee Mulligan: I think that the future of that group is very… I think I leave it to the players, but as you're saying with Kipperlilly, her leadership of that group to me, the moment that is the fundamental, very critical to the season and understanding it I think, is that killing of Lucy Frostblade. Where that is the moment where power and the opportunity for power is chosen over all else. The participation of everybody in that, that the other Rat Grinders came in and that they killed Lucy Frostblade, is the ultimate like, "Oh, we can understand wanting to have the status that The Bad Kids have. This was not worth that. It is not acceptable. Even if you really want to have something, you can't kill an innocent person who is also your best friend to get it. That is evil." And so I think that that's really the turning point for them.

And talking about Lucy being her best friend, and the killing of Lucy Frostblade as the point of no return. I imagine that after killing Lucy the Rat Grinders were deep in the sunk-cost fallacy, that "oh, we've just done this horrible thing, there's no turning back now". Like the text messages the Bad Kids found in Ruben's house.

Canon leaves it slightly unclear the order in which the Rat Grinders were shatter-starred, and just how culpable they are for their actions while under their influence. I'm going to assume that Kipperlilly was the first one, "willingly" taking one (for a given definition of "willingly", as I'd argue she had still be subjected to a year and a half of manipulation and grooming by Porter. She may have been sound of mind, but she never would've done this without Porter encouraging her or validating all her worst aspects). Then, she and Porter worked to kill the other Rat Grinders, an unwilling ritual that put them under the thrall of the rage god. Lucy was the last holdout, and was killed with the assumption that she would come back like they did, but she instead "stuck to her guns" and stayed dead.

I'm also going to interpret the shatter-star as an element of divine manipulation that drives people with rage to do actions they wouldn't do normally, but which are ultimately based on a kernel of truth. Think Adaine in the mall fight, "What would Adaine do if all she ever thought about was rage?" and Siobhan talking about the forest of Sylvaire being destroyed in the search for her mother. We know Adaine would never use such an excessive amount of destruction, but we see the underlying motivation to her actions.

So when the other Rat Grinders killed Lucy, they weren't exactly "sound of mind" as they were under the influence of the rage star, but they were still themselves, they still made the conscious choice to choose power over everything else. The rage star only elevated it to murderous heights; they never would've murdered her without its influence (in fact, I'd argue that the expectation she'd come back is why they did it in the first place), but the motivation still stemmed from a selfish want for power they all shared.

I think, too, that there's a thing with them, there's sort of a you can't have it both ways. The strategy that the Rat Grinders employ to get powerful is to do this grinding. Eventually, they get leveled up also by these powerful monsters that are being killed, they're allowed to join in with, but fundamentally it's like you can't have your cake and eat it too. Kipperlilly as a villain to me is very focused on, "Ooh, I can get by with the letter of the law and not the spirit. There's a better way to get powerful as an adventurer other than going on these important missions where you can probably die." That's the other thing, too, is you look at The Bad Kids, the Bad Kids run into that Corn Gremlin fight, and two of them die. They took a huge risk to save the school and stop something bad from happening, and the Rat Grinders never take that risk. So even as Kipperlilly is like, "Why aren't I getting what they're getting?" It's like, you're not making the choices they're making. Obviously grinding rats in the woods is a safer way to gain levels and the reward for doing it the safe way is you've never saved the world.

And with this last bit, Kipperlilly wanting the accolades of adventuring but without having to risk her life for it. It's interesting that Brennan mentions Kipperlilly avoiding "missions where you can probably die", because I've theorized before that part of the Rat Grinders' motivation for sticking to grinding is them not wanting to risk dying!

This is where genre conflict comes into play for me, because in a normal world I'd argue it's totally acceptable and fine for teenagers to do everything in their power to avoid Literally Dying. However, Spyre is not a normal world and runs on DnD conventions, where Aguefort trains them to be murderous "violent wanderers" who enact their will on the world, sometimes fatally. Death is also comparatively cheaper here when adventurers specifically have an easier time getting revived. The Rat Grinders may protest all they want about the standards of the genre that encourage crazy, violent, fatal behavior, but they're always going to be in the wrong genre and their protests are doomed to failure.

And "having your cake and eating it too". Her adventuring party never took those risks, so they don't get the rewards for saving the world.

[estuaryghoul]

Ghoul Summoning Lore

The ghouls come from Hell, obviously. Copia was never really sure of the process, at least before he starting leading the band. He was only a Cardinal, he didn't ask questions (lie, he always asked questions lmao). Turns out the process was rather horrifying, especially once he realized Terzo had been right about how /human the ghouls are. Imperator always said they were animals, less even. Terzo's infatuation with them disgusted her. But she was wrong.

They took them as children, Copia learned. He was still unsure of of who They were, but that didn't matter. They were brought to a place in Hell known as The Factory, manmade, at least hypothetically. Here they are trained. Forced to walk upright, be obedient, silent. Master their elemental instrument, but supress the element. They are kept tightly bound (magically), their minds a total fog. The Factory feels like a dream, but also an unending cycle that lasts aeons.

There are two kinds of ghoul, ministry and band. Three if you counted Phil, enigmatic bastard. The ministry are moulded to become Sister's vision, practically inanimate objects. They cannot speak, cannot think, can only obey orders. They help with menial tasks around the church. There are not many, but it's hard to tell. They all look and act the same. Blank. Their eyes have no light, it never used to bother Copia, but once he began leading the band, seeing how lively they truly could be, it was like being surrounded by moving corpses. Probably the creepiest part about them, besides their silent appearances behind you, was their... room. It wasn't a bedroom, more of an old storage room or armory or /something. It was a windowless hall where they were kept when not at use. They would stand in silent, orderly lines. Like a room of mannequins. Looming eerily in the darkness, the only movement the tracking of their dull eyes as Copia passed through. He knew they only watched out of obedience, waiting for orders, but it was creepy as fuck. He avoided that hall.

The band ghouls however, while he was lead to believe they were the same, were very different. Sister said they were like animatronics on stage, just objects pretending to be human, but even she knew that was a lie. They had /personality. They didn't stand silently and unmoving while waiting for band practice to begin, instead silently looking at one enough, tending to their instruments, even messing with each other. Some of them would even playfully ignore Copia's instructions, averting their eyes and flicking their tails slyly. Honestly it was kind of like hearding cats when they got bored, though a visit from Sister or one of her Board was quick to straighten them out. Still however, they could not talk. Hisses, small vocalizations, growls, yes, but words? Nothing. Only the backup singers could "speak", whispery voices that sounded like an eery mimicking of human speech without Copia's voice over it. But still, unless they were singing, they could not speak.

Music has life, soul. It is an expression of one's self, a way to connect unique to itself. Perhaps that affects the ones playing it, writing it. Perhaps the soul must be freed more than the opressor would like, for the tool to be used. Phil didn't like to speak clearly, preferring to answer questions with questions, long-winding riddles, opaque references. It was a puzzle to speak to him, which Copia secretly enjoyed. He didn't treat him like he was stupid, wouldn't hold his hand to lead him to an answer. If you wanted to understand, truly, you must think for yourself. Phil would provide pieces, you must put them together yourself.

Phil himself was an outlier. If one didn't know, they would assume he was a member of the human staff. The only thing that gave it away was the ghoul mask he wore, just like the others. Copia had never seen his face, but he had heard the long pointed mask was based off of it, though that was legend that Phil pointedly would neither confirm nor deny. He was Imperator's right hand man, the band manager, a connection between human and demon. He was the first to be summoned, before The Factory, before the band. A crossroads demon, the story went, who Imperator managed to trap. Bound to an eternity of service to the church. He was the only ghoul allowed to speak, but that did little for him. Everything he said, heard, did, saw, was subject to be reported back to Imperator. She owned him, he was her spy. Nobody trusted him, not even her. Copia thought this was bullshit however, Imperator had left him with the ghoul while she worked far too many times as a child, and he had grown attached to the curt bastard. He has taught him chess when he was six, by ruthlessly beating him over and over until he learned to strategize. Always encouraged him to read, expand his mind, ask questions. Even when talking to that long-ago child, Phil was not clear. He didn't dumb down his sentences, didn't make his puzzles any easier to understand. It was rewarding to have a conversation with him, Copia felt. When the pieces finally clicked, it felt like winning a game. He was the only one who felt this way. Sister was eternally frustrated with the lack of clarity from her so-called spy. His forced nature as an earpiece was dangerous, no doubt. Many things made it back to her that others would've preferred to die in secret, but when things mattered, when Copia asked questions he shouldn't have... Somehow the answers were cleverly twisted when reporting to hide his secrets. Phil pretended not to care about anything or anyone, but Copia was almost certain he at least has a soft spot for him and the band. Yeah, maybe he had a hand in ruthlessly killing them off when Imperator's whims changed, but just maybe...

[oakheartedmuse]

Lily Evans defined by life, not just love:

A woman of strength, light, and action

okay. so, i’ve been thinking about this a lot, and i decided to write it down for the sake of my own sanity. forgive me if it lacks a bit of coherence. here it goes:

Much has been said about Lily: as a mother, wife, best friend, member of the Order, and how her love is the foundation of the entire saga. We all know that it was her love that saved Harry and allowed the whole story to unfold. But there is a question that lingers: who is Lily beyond the roles she is inevitably placed into? Who is Lily for herself? I know there are many discussions about the need to portray Lily as a flawed character with her own will. Unfortunately, Lily was constructed to always be tied to a man—whether her husband, her best friend, or her son. But today, I want to talk about Lily as a person, about Lily as a woman.

When I write my stories about Lily, I always try to portray her as a living character. And I don’t mean "living" in the sense of being physically present —of course, in my stories, she isn’t dead— but rather in the sense of someone full of vitality. Here, I’d like to bring in some testimonies from the characters who knew Lily to support my perspective.

One of the first accounts we have of Lily's image comes from Hagrid, who tells Harry that his mother was one of the kindest, most talented people he had ever met. Hagrid even says that some of the greatest wizards he knew were Muggle-born and asks Harry to keep his mother in mind. In other words, Lily, as a person, had a natural talent. We see this even when Harry buys his wand, and Mr. Ollivander tells him that his mother had a wand suited for charms, indicating that Lily already had a predisposition for great magical talent.

In my opinion, the fact that someone is born a wizard does not automatically mean they are highly gifted in magic. Lily’s talent suggests something deeper: she had a profound connection with magic and, even more so, with life. Lily had a lot of life within her. She had a greater dimension of magic, a deep connection with it. Unintentionally, she even performed ancient magic—something barely studied even by the most knowledgeable wizards. This only reinforces how deeply connected Lily was to the magical world, in a vivid way, not just through predisposition.

When I talk about "vivacity," I mean this fluidity of energy within a person, the ability to see life as something vast and rich. Sirius also possessed this; despite the adversities he faced. Even in the most difficult moments, such as when he was locked in Azkaban or at Grimmauld Place, Sirius had this vibrant energy that pushed him forward. And Lily, like him, possessed this vivacity that made her life radiant, a force that always propelled her forward.

However, Lily's vivacity was not restricted to the fact that she was a witch. It was directly tied to her humanity. Above all, Lily was an extremely human person, but at the same time, she had a brilliant facet of humanity. She knew how to recognize beauty in small things, in moments of genuine happiness. An example of this is when Harry describes the scene of Lily, arm in arm with James at their wedding, alight with happiness. Of course, it was their wedding, and both would naturally be happy, but the fact that Harry specifically highlights how Lily was particularly illuminated by happiness indicates her unique perception of life and how she could transmit this to others – even through pictures. Being filled with happiness is something profoundly human, even though humanity's destiny is often far from that. This only shows how exceptional Lily was—more full of life and humanity than most.

Another point that highlights Lily's vivacity is that she was a righteous person. She had the courage to tell James directly about his mistakes without worrying about possible repercussions. She also confronted Snape, telling him that she did not agree with his association with the Dark Arts and that she could not support his choices because her perspective was different. This act of standing her ground, with her own opinions, is deeply connected to Lily's vivacity. Many other wizards or muggles would have chosen to remain silent. An example of this is Remus, who, although also brave and just, often distanced himself from this vivacity due to the circumstances he faced. He preferred to wait in silence, unlike Lily, who would not hold back.

And once again, I’m not referring to Lily as a member of the Order because it is clear that all members followed Dumbledore’s orders. If he said something should not be done or should be delayed, people would obviously follow. But I see Lily as someone who, perhaps, would be troubled by certain orders. She would follow them, no doubt, but her vivacity would cause a disturbance regarding what she believed was right.

(Here, it would be interesting to discuss the different notions of justice and how they were perceived in contrasting ways by Lily and Sirius—but that is a conversation for another time.)

Returning to the books, we have Slughorn’s testimony, where he tells Harry that Lily was one of the most brilliant witches he ever taught. She gave him an aquarium with a flower that turned into a fish. She was charming, lively, and captivating. Lily had an energy that not only made her live intensely but also made everyone around her feel her vivacity. One can imagine that people at Hogwarts wanted to be near Lily because of this energy she radiated. Yes, she probably suffered for being muggle-born, but those who did not harbor prejudice against her certainly saw in her a symbol of joy. This becomes clear in the last book when we see Lily as a child, swinging on a playground. She had this vivacity from an early age, pushing her own limits without worrying about getting hurt or facing consequences. I’m not saying she was reckless, but rather that she was open to challenges.

I believe that Lily's vivacity, this vibrant energy flowing through her veins, made her more than just a student or a young woman at Hogwarts. It led her, at 18, to volunteer for a secret organization fighting against Dark Wizards—a completely subversive act. Yet, Lily did not hesitate, and this decision reflects her vivacity, her sense of justice, and her desire to fight for a better world. She put her body and spirit into battle to make a difference, to try to build a fairer world, even knowing the dangers she faced.

The analogy between Lily’s vivacity and her willingness to fight for a better world is clear. Fighting for a world that is trying to destroy her is a sign of someone who is truly alive, who has something within them that drives them forward. Ultimately, this is also a demonstration of love.

To conclude, I would like to emphasize that Lily’s love is directly connected to her vivacity. Lily was not alive because she loved, but rather, she loved because she was full of life. This life, this pulsating energy, made her see the world as something worth fighting for, and this nurtured her with love—not just for the world, but for her family, her friends, and especially for Harry.

In conclusion, Lily Evans Potter was, is, and always will be a symbol of love, courage, determination, and, incomparably, of life.

| a canon compliant meta for @lilyfesthp ♡ |

[freakenomenon]

Why do you like Ellen so much? /Genq

jesus christ this is a loaded question uuhhhh well. first of all. when i first drew ellen after reading the story and watching her playthrough. my immediate thought was "shes the nicest, i like her the most" and " i feel so bad for her " which. is generally the most you can get out of someone these days when talking about ellen. but because my stupid autistic ( not in a derogatory sense, i am autistic ) ass couldnt just fit in and leave it at "poor ellen!!" my brain latched onto her. and then i realized, shes the only character ( in the game ) that they didnt go out of their way to make an even more terrible person. which made her unique from the others. i found that interesting. and then i started noticing all the holes in her character. at least in the game. picking out, plucking away and putting my criticism of her treatment in the game, especially with how they handled her assault story, really kind of. made me attach to her? because, while i did find a lot that i thought was rather unnecessary.

i found it much more fun for me to explore the obscure bits of her character and flesh them out more. which made my attachment to her even stronger. and after finding out about the manual, i found more aspects of her character that i resonated with. its hard for me to explain, but ill put it in bullet points.

im black myself, and even within the flaws of harlan ellison trying to make ,, SOME kind of statement back them with her character as a black woman. i think that aspect of her ( growing up in "the ghetto", having to deal with racism even as a little girl, having nobody to attach to in the end except for the people who dont even view you as a person outside of your body and skin color. ) made her more. relatable to me.

her sexual assault story was something i latched onto, finding solace in a character who also struggles with attachment due to sexual trauma. and i found it cathartic to be able to project my hypersexuality onto a character who i view as,, kind of in the same pit as me

she struggles with her arrogance, ego, being blunt and often times being rude or offensive without meaning to be. and even sometimes with the intention of doing so without realizing the level of what you're saying. and struggling with social connection in general despite being labeled as one of "the best friends a person could have" which i also resonated with, as an autistic person.

lesbianism. not even gonna sugarcoat it here i want this woman BAD. i dont know man something in my brain saw this older woman with emotional attachment issues who would definitely not treat me the best and began nesting and laying an alien parasite between the slimy spots of grey matter that grew into a monstrous beast that would take over my body and force me to draw her putting cigarettes down peoples throats. I NEED IT. I NEED IT IMA EAT IT AHHHHH. i also just think shes really pretty, thats my wife we are married and she loves me and not you she loves ME.

I DONT KNOWW. I DONT KNOW MAN, THE AUTISM JUST LET HER CHOKE ME WITH THE CREVICE OF HER ELBOW AND IM STILL HERE MAN. I CANT BREATHE MAN.

i also feel like its important to note that even within male / man focused books, shows, movies, media in general. ive always been more drawn to the female characters. no matter how expanded on their stories are. so that also probably played a role in my attachment to her. i. feel like even all this isnt enough to express how much i like her and why. i just. hhghgdsjhgfdghjhgf eelleeennn,,,,,,, thats it thats the tldr; ellen

[melmedarda]

I don't know if you received this question before or not, but what do you think Mel & Kinos relationship was like? We don't have much clues, not sure if we'll see him in the next acts or not, (i hope we do, need his design D:) but if you could assume things about him, what would they be? How do you think his relationship is with Ambessa? What do you think his reaction was towards Mels banishment?

Most of all, What do you think he'd do if he was by Mels side this season?

Hello lovely!

I haven't gotten this question before, but I've been thinking about it for a while! I wrote an entire fic about their relationship (everyone go check out "knife wounds" on ao3). I like to think he and Mel were very close, with a dash of codependency. In a family that worships death and lauds bloodshed, Mel and Kino believed in diplomacy and statecraft. I think this shared belief strengthened the bonds between them.

Kino's a charmer. He's suave and he has to unique ability of making anyone he speaks to feel like the most important person in the room. He's got a wicked sense of humor, and because he's so likeable, it's easy to trust him. But like the fox, he's cunning and strategic, and there's a calculated current beneath his friendliness. He's always two steps ahead, analyzing people while he talks to them, considering where this connection might benefit him.

He, like Mel, is a wonderful orator and comports himself in a sophisticated manner. Though not completely hung up on looking immaculate, he does take care to dress in a way that befits his station. He does look effortless in whatever he wears, he's got that perfect frame and manner that Mel's always envied. People tend to underestimate him because of his carefree attitude, but that is their downfall.

His relationship with Ambessa is tumultuous, but there is love, there. As much as Ambessa can love her children. Kino prefers not to join her on her war campaigns, which has long been a point of contention between them, and can cause fights. But there is love.

After Mel was banished, Kino felt the weight of her absence. He misses her deeply and feels lonely without her. She'd always understood him best, but now they can no longer be part of each other's lives. It was them against the world, at one point. And now they were forced to be parted at their mother's orders. He argued with his mother for sometime after that, telling her she should have disowned him as well. But Ambessa always said, "One does not exile an heir." And Kino always felt guilt, because it felt like he was more important to his mother than Mel was.

If he was with Mel, he would protect her even at he cost of his life. He believes in family before all. He hasn't been able to be a brother to Mel for over a decade, and he would never forgive himself if something happened to his younger sister and he wasn't there to protect her. He'd never forgive Ambessa either.

Thank you for sending this in Clover! It was alot of fun to answer!

[unhetalia]

any headcanons for alfreds relationships and/or friendships and/or toleranceships with other nations?

Honestly I tend to have a few different versions of one relationship depending on my mood, and for every Alfred ship I like (England, Russia, Germany), the other two relationships have to change with it.

For England, it's the most complicated, because I either have him and Alfred as endgame, or I frame their relationship as father/son, which a lot of people are understandably confused about.

For me, it's pretty simple: these two will always be important to each other in a way that is completely unique from their relationship to anyone else. Don't want to spend too long on them, but their father/son relationship tends to be close, and you can't avoid one if you want to be around the other.

In their endgame universe, things are fraught for a long while, and this tends to be the slowest burn out of all the 'ships. However, Arthur does not let Al out of his sight easily, even if their relationship isn't the most friendly. This relationship basically needs a post of its own, but "complicated yet as always, filled with love" might have to sum it up.

Ivan and Alfred start working together after the Cuban Missile Crisis, when Alfred is forced out of hiding civilian life in order to prevent all-out nuclear war between their countries. They hate each other, at first — Ivan thinks Alfred is selfish for abandoning his government despite disagreeing with them, Alfred thinks Ivan is a coward for not leaving, but eventually they grow to really understand each other. They're together by 1980, and in public AU, Ivan really helps Al when he's ostracised by his people.

If they're not endgame, Ivan is in love with Alfred and he either carries on a charade of hating him in order to be in his space and to make it so Alfred's at least THINKING of him, or they're just... colleagues. Which is sad.

I always have Kiku as being quietly in love with Al, but unwilling to do anything about it. Sometimes, their friendship is unimpacted, and they're close, but sometimes I like to have Al more lonely, and Kiku's feelings will lead to him distancing himself from Alfred. When they're close, Alfred tends to have a bigger group of friends - Taiwan, nyo Philippines, South Korea, nyo India - but when they're not, it usually means I'm craving for a loneloer Alfred. I guess this means his friendship with Kiku leads to his friendship with these others, somehow.

Belarus is (alongside Tony), Alfred's best friend. Alfred isn't scared of Belarus, and Belarus is surprisingly a really good listener - she doesn't get impatient when Alfred talks about x topic for too long, and will even ask (practical) questions. They're not touchy feely, but the two of them accept the other as they are, and both of them need that.

Matthew is another one that needs his own post — I default to a Matthew that both resents his brother yet loves him to the point of obsession. Alfred is oblivious, and always forgives Matthew when he lashes out.

Mexico is their older sister who blatantly favours Alfred (further adding to Matthew's issues). She and Alfred have similar life trajectories - violent revolution and rejection of the traditional "Nation works for government." Matthew's the complete opposite on both fronts, so she just finds it hard to connect with him. Mexico is incredibly independent and can go years without seeing either of her siblings, so she's not in the picture very often, and is not really the type you would talk to about your problems or feelings.

France and Alfred are very close, and I've spoken about that a few times, so I won't go on (/tagged/re: face). There's a lot of mutual respect there.

Scotland adores Alfred, and Alfred adores him right back, and he treats Al completely different to Arthur's other colonies. Northern Ireland and nyo Ireland are similarly close with Alfred, and it's only Wales who does't actually care for Alfred at all and doesn't approve of him.

China is fond of Alfred but mostly in a distant way - he's mostly concerned with his siblings and himself.

Cuba loathes Alfred because he believes if Al had done his job, his people wouldn't have been impacted the way they were. Most people who dislike Alfred are in the same boat. These include, surprisingly, Spain and Portugal, who both see Alfred as irresponsible and "not doing his duty right."

Similarly, there's a subsection of England's colonies/ex colonies who resent Al. Anguilla, Barbados, Bermuda, Gibraltar, Falkland Islands. (Canada).

If you have any characters you want to ask about in particular, please do!

[themarydragon]

I have not seen (or maybe I missed) any comments or thoughts you had about Veilguard. Anything you would share with us?

I've had 4 complete playthroughs and I'm sitting and thinking about exactly what I want to do for #5 before I do my deep-dive, note-taking, re-read the books, Gwen's worldstate (Pillars of Creation) playthrough.

I actually loved it. Prepare for giant block of text.

Was it without flaws? Absolutely not. Its Bioware. They'll be pallbearers at my funeral, ya know? But I try not to dwell on the negatives because I honestly never thought we would actually get this game and it's 1000% better than nothing.

But the high point for me are the things we always bitched about in the old games getting fixed. The different backstories MATTER in the dialog. Elves know things human don't, there's unique dialog choices for the origins that give you different relationships with the companions. Remember how much we bitched about Lavellan asking "who's Mithal?" Not this time! (Unless you, the player, don't know and need the option) Now we have a Watcher!Rook talking shop with Emmrich!! Is it perfect? Of course not! Satisfying? Fuck yeah! It also means it's the very first DA game I finished, immediately started over, finished, and immediately started over. And each playthru was different enough to keep me completely invested.

The 3 classes feel different. Rogue and warrior play completely different, even on story-mode difficulty. I had a learning curve, going from warrior to rogue, that I hadn't had in awhile.

All the classes have at least one mechanic that feels FUN. Shield bounce OP.

Skipping over the story bits I WILL be fixing (spoilers for Pillars but you know the Varric reveal is getting fixed, and where the fuck is Hawke), there were some really tasty lore bits. The connection between the Tevinter gods and the Evanuris was something a lot of us had guessed, but I didn't QUITE get right. The evanuris/elf origin gives me a lot to think about RE: force ghost Leliana, or Cole, or the saving Wisdom quest for Solas in DA3, or SANDAL, etc etc.

But the Blight. The Blight!

We knew it was connected to lyrium and the titans, and that did not disappoint. Making it Madness instead of evil? The Blight having been sealed away with the Evanuris before implies it is sealed away with Solas now (Blighted Lavellan as bioware canon?) and your captured companion getting healed gives HUGE implications for the titans and the Wardens.

Can the titans be healed? Is that what Lace and Valta did? Can a titan bond with a dwarf and have their madness healed? Since Lace can dream AND have titan powers, is she evidence one of the titans has been reconnected with their dreams? Is it the titan where her rage manifested? THAT heart is HER heart? Maybe! The fanfiction options are endless. If the Blight is titan madness, what does even one 'healed' titan mean for the wardens, for the Song? For the Calling? New flavor for why they are Called to the Deep Roads, and why embracing the Blight = extended life!!!!!!!

And the zones. Nevarra? Worth the price of admission. Running around Arlathen, also great. The titan/mountain in Lace's missions? Jaw dropping. I played on my too-old PC and then switched to XBox and my mom would sit on the couch and watch and I would take her on tours and I got to explain this whole world I've had living rent-free in my head, to my mother, and I CANNOT begin to tell you how great that feels.

The ending Battle setup was so good, honestly. I get a little choked up watching my allies fall in to fuck shit up with me. Everybody getting a little moment of badassery also super great. Vorgoth wrecking the juggernaut is just *chef's kiss*

I could keep going, believe me.

I've been kicking around posting my fav romances but I've got 2 left (the spouse has multiple playthroughs, too, and I got the benefit of watching his choices play out) and I can't choose between Neve and Bellara and I don't want to go too deep into detail without weighing in on my girls. I adore them all.

But the best? its Davrin, btw. Davrin is incredible. 10/10 no notes gonna smooch again. Emmrich also top-tier and Taash the surprise "oh shit I didn't think I flirted that hard but LETS FUCKEN GO" to round out the top-3. My whole first Rook was DESIGNED to smooch Lace and honestly it was not as satisfying as watching her with Taash. (Get there faster, Lace) Same argument with Lucanis, it just felt unrequited to me, esp with how hard he & Neve flirt (comparatively, too). YMMV of course, we all go for different things in love and life.

Anyways yeah I loved it. Finishing my ME fic(s) before I go asshole deep into my DA universe extensions.

And no I won't go off about the things I hated because life is too short to focus on the bad. That's why I write... to fix the shit I didn't like. As always, Bioware gave me plenty of things to write about.

[stillsolo]

🚩🚩

send me a 🚩 and i’ll share my unpopular rpc opinions and hot takes.  bonus points if you include a specific topic to talk about, like follower count, softblocking, graphics, etc.

wow, okay!  this took me a lot longer to answer than i would’ve thought. nobody sent in topics ( which is okay! ) but without direction, my laidback attitude about everything ended up hurting me in the long run lmfao   but now i’m here!!  better late than never, eh?  tagging others who also sent in something, mainly because i’ve realized i’m chill and got nothing more to say than this it seems  @fifthdimensicn @lightburnsyou @techniiciian ( thank you for sending something!! )

i’ll preface this by saying i have nothing against anyone.   i am just a massive childhood star wars nerd, who basically learned english through the canon/legends movies, games, books, and writing fanfic etc.   so, i’m rather well read on star wars and have a tendency to be uhhh. autistic lol  stringent, for want of a better word, about the universe lore.   overall, i don’t care whether or not people agree; this is just a topic i lowkey struggle to understand yet see far too often.   why people willingly step into this paradox is beyond me!

anyway, if your muse is canonically a force-null in star wars, yet you create a serious, fleshed-out jedi verse for them, then i can’t help but think you don’t actually love your muse as much as you think you do.

of course, you’re totally allowed to have fun—i am not against fun; i’m actually all for breaking and bending verses to my will—and i understand getting bored with the same verses you’ve played in for years and years.   but when this reinterpretation becomes a serious endeavor—like, you’re really out here recontextualizing the entirety of star wars, including its characters, regardless of how ooc it would be to do so, just to fit this verse??   that’s where you lose me lol

for clarity: force nulls are simply people who are not outwardly force-sensitive, aka an individual who cannot consciously sense or interact with the force.   so, think han solo, padmé amidala, or even captain rex and the clones etc.   these are people who stand tall without the force, relying instead on their resourcefulness, resilience, and humanity.

i know the arguments.    i’m well aware some would argue that han and padmé could be considered “lowkey force-sensitive” in their own way, and i’m actually very inclined to agree—to a point.   these two do exhibit qualities that some might attribute to a higher-than-average midichlorian count: padmé’s marksmanship and her negotiation skills; han’s brilliant piloting and uncanny luck that often defies logic.   but yeah, that’s also the whole damn point—they’re exceptional because they lack the force, not in spite of it.

here, lemme use padmé as my primary example because i already know the concept of han being a jedi sounds absolutely absurd lol ( or at least it should if you know him at all 💀 )

let’s imagine a world where padmé is suddenly a jedi, wielding the force with all the grace of a trained knight.   it’s a pretty popular verse i’ve mostly seen outside of rp—and it’s utterly baffling to me.   sure, it’s an interesting twist, but it’s also a strange one.   why?  well, in my honest opinion: in making padmé overtly force-sensitive, you strip away everything that makes her outstanding.

she is extraordinary precisely because she isn’t outwardly force sensitive.  her ability to connect with people, her unparalleled empathy, and her deftness at negotiation are what sets her apart.  outward force sensitivity would rob her of these defining traits and generally diminishes her skillset—because the ability to sense emotions, to read others with an almost prescient understanding—is not a unique power, but rather one of the many force-given gifts jedi possess.  if padmé could sense others’ thoughts, how would her talents at diplomacy and empathy stand out?  just like that, what once set her apart would be merely an extension of the jedi arsenal.

the same applies to han!  this is why i’ve never written a force-sensitive han solo and likely never will.   his disbelief and distrust in anything he can’t see or feel for himself is paramount to his disposition / mentality as a character.   in the movies, he’s your taste of hard cynicism; he’s introduced as a reality check right after luke and ben’s floaty nonsense about the force.   ya feel me?   han solo is remarkable not because he’s imbued with mystical powers, but because he doesn’t have them.   he survives, thrives, and outsmarts the galaxy without supernatural powers to lean on.   to make han force-sensitive would be to strip away the very core of his character.

all in all, these characters, these force nulls, are extraordinary because they don’t rely on the force.   they are exceptional in spite of it, and i don’t really understand why anyone would make a concerted effort to take that away from them.