#ashton answers things

[utilitycaster]

The thing about Ashton is while I have grown incredibly frustrated, there is something, again, terribly real about how they're behaving and how (I assume) they're feeling. There's something horrifying about learning you have endless possibilities for who you could have been in your head, and yet having to live in the one where your parents nearly killed you and your friends abandoned you for dead and you were right about your prediction that your new friend would sacrifice themself. It's just...the solution is not trying to undo the past (impossible) nor find whoever will tell you you're most special regardless of their other positions.

[shorthaltsjester]

Imogen Temult, Exaltant Hope of the Red Storm

Heroes and Monsters by Penny & Sparrow // Critical Role Campaign 3

[laterkatersays]

callowmoore finally gets mentioned, by name, on a 4SD and then Ashley Johnson refuses to answer a question about Fearne and Ashton because she's still waiting to see where things go, like they haven't already cuddled every night for the last week (including one time on top of a dragon), made out underneath a blanket, kissed in public in front of all of their friends, had canonically very loud sex that was overheard by every member of Bell's Hells and the Mighty Nein, and made plans just before leaving for the final combat to take mushrooms together (when Ashton said "I would do any fucking stupid thing you were ever down for")

girl, what exactly are we waiting for?

[danwhobrowses]

I'm not sure how much good this vent will do, I'm not even sure I want to post this vent after my last one, but I'm writing it just so it's out of my head and into words because it seems once again fandom has chosen to send vitriol Ashton Greymoore's way.

What for? They talked to a 'specter' of the primordial titan within them, through their connection to the earth, the natural flow of creation and destruction. They ask what will happen to the world, it responds that it'll endure, they ask what of the people, it responds that the strong will survive and the weak will be remade into something stronger, to which Ashton replies they think they understand. To fandom this means that Ashton is becoming a fascist, that they have a 'Make Exandria Great Again' attitude for wanting the Primordials back, that they need to be beaten up or 'get what's coming to them' in order to change their mind, and I can only sit here and stew and wonder if this hate is really well-founded? Ashton is among my favourite characters in C3, I get frustrated by them at times too but if I think about it a big percentage of my frustrations is more towards people disliking them than me disliking things they do, or Matt setting up scenarios that doesn't do them any favours towards the fandom that hates them. Some of these are knee-jerk reactions of course, but for others it does feel like they have it out for Ashton, and I don't wanna engage with that, which makes it quite lonely when most of the fandom hones in on it.

For the most part I can understand how the whole 'the weak will be remade' bit can be taken badly; it's definitely iffy, but every other plan we have is also very iffy. The Release Predathos option literally involves unleashing an entity that wants to genocide the gods, the Maintain Status Quo option ('option' the status quo imo is impossible, in my mind the Gods can stay but the dynamic will still have to change) maintains a relationship where the gods pick and choose who they feel deserves help, using their power to covet more power, strongarm and demand loyalty, and overall choose fellow gods over mortals when the chips are down and not owning up to it. We should also remember that entities can speak in riddles, 'remade into something stronger' doesn't necessarily mean death; it could mean to adapt and grow, to become strong enough to bear and overcome it as many of the PCs of Critical Role have done with their hardships and trauma. It's worth reminding that the sad truth is that people will die whatever outcome happens - the aim is always to lessen the amount but if the Gods leave it's a power vacuum, if we linger too long it's a Calamity, and if the Gods stay it's a holy war on a more wild and less organized scale - and that Ashton isn't saying they approve of such death, merely that they think they understand. The commune doesn't tell Ashton which way to go; it only tells them that the world will endure, there will be change and it will change people, trees will still grow, the wind will still blow, the waves will still flow along the coasts of the sea, and people will survive. I know the interpretation can differ from people thanks to Matt's patented vague or riddle-mounted choices in phrase, but I also think if it was the Wildmother who told Orym or some other follower that 'nature is a cycle, everything must adapt to change or else it'll die - this world will change, but it will also survive' nobody would be calling Orym a fascist, people would accept it because the Wildmother's domain is nature, and nature is not always kind.

While we're mentioning Orym - and because this is gonna come off as critical I must preface that I like and enjoy All of the Hells, that's not changed - I also gotta call it out here because it does very much feel like the people who hate Ashton hate them for the reasons they love Orym. Both are stubborn, they're diligent in their personal code, they care deeply for their friends and would give their whole being just to keep them safe, they believe in the Hells' power and greatness more than each member does and more than they believe in their own, but Ashton gets the hate mainly because these fans agree more with Orym on the god stuff. What confuses me though is how these same haters can despise Ashton for being consistent but love Braius, the literal Devil Worshipper who secretly is on board with the Chase Away plan only so he can help the Devil rule the world, the compulsive liar. Where's Braius' scrutiny? A world under Asmodeus will be a far worse 'survival of the fittest' scenario, why does Braius get a pass in all this stuff huh? Because he's funny? Seems people ignore the whole morality talk when they're discussing Braius' dedication to Exandrian Satan.

I find it irksome too that even the group seem to criticize Ashton reaching out to Primordials too - as if that wasn't what we wanted them and Fearne to do anyway. They don't dislike the gods simply because they're a 'great entity', it's because they're a great entity that holds power and doesn't use it equally or fairly; they pick and choose who to help, a lot of the time in Ashton's experience for their own self-service, but they won't prioritize mortals over another god no matter who cruel or heinous the god is being, and the following of these gods are so intertwined with politics that most religious motivation also ends up being political. Ashton has no connection to the gods, they reached out and got nothing, an Angel looked at them and made them feel like nothing, but they do have a connection to the Primordials; from the Earth Golem to the Titan Empress they're literally a vessel of, they experienced something significant in their connection to the Earth, so I don't like how that they're almost mocked for having it. In addition, Ashton's behaviour during this commune differs because of that connection, but also because the titans are a natural flow; they don't demand or test or politic or prejudice, and despite being a Great Entity in its own right it never made sure Ashton felt small for their own satisfaction, they asked a question and got an answer, it's the same reason Ashton has disdain for most political leaders but likes and respects Keyleth, Allura, Kima, Pike, and (eventually) Percy despite also being people in power. To call on Orym and the Wildmother as an example again; Orym's an Air Ashari, the Ashari are guardians of the Elemental Planes - made from the Primordials - not tied to a god, but nobody criticizes his connection to the Wildmother despite both not being a follower and his culture being more tethered to Primordials and their descendants. I'm not saying it's all correct for Ashton to want things to go back to how Primordials ruled, but we must remind ourselves also that we only know a story written by victors when it comes to the Schism - a story which could very easily have been altered and edited to make it feel more justified for the Primes and mortals to actively genocide all the Primordials, the native species and creators of this world, and desecrate their remains to make weapons, soul anchors, and cities - the specter didn't say 'fuck em, all mortals should die' after all, if they believe mortals would survive then they must be at the least tolerant of mortal existence. Why is it okay for god followers to say they wanna keep the world with the gods they have a connection to (and I'm not saying they aren't) but Ashton is out of line for wanting to have a world which has something active that they also have a connection to? It seems rather unfair to allow one side to have and the other to have not, picking and choosing because our audience's bias has spent more time with the gods, Ashton wanting something they can connect to doesn't feel all wrong either, the Eidolons still exist with faint worship hiding away so they're not smited by the gods, why can't faith exist so they're not in hiding? I sincerely doubt the Punk Rock that is Ashton is asking for the Primordials to fill the Gods' roles the same way the Gods have been running things either, they want to break the throne remember? There needs to be a balance in ideals and practice of course, and in an ideal world there could even be a more fluid and all-inclusive Exandria where gods and Eidolons live harmoniously with mortals without hierarchy and class systems, I think Ashton could happily live with something like that, they did say the world needs 'a little chaos' to call back to Matt hinting that the current world doesn't have enough.

Which leads us to those wishing violence upon Ashton - and I really don't like that. People who say 'hitting them over the head is the only language they understand' seem to misinterpret Ashton as if everyone around them have been on their hands and knees begging Ashton to reconsider and them ignoring valid points and pulling a Leroy Jenkins. In reality, nobody is actually talking to Ashton about it, a lot of the frustration with Bells Hells right now is that they aren't talking to each other, even about the end goal! Ashton has valid reasons for their thinking, so being violent isn't gonna change their mind; undermining, dehumanizing and trying to effectively bully anyone let alone someone with chronic pain and low self worth will never truly convince them to your way of thinking. All people understand the language of violence, but that language is not used justly, those who truly wish violence upon Ashton don't want it in hopes it'll force Ashton to change their mind, they want it for their own satisfaction of seeing them in pain; so they can further push them away from the rest of the group and go 'that guy's not one of us', make it so the people Ashton calls family after a lifetime of loneliness, confusion and abandonment - the people they promised they won't abandon, and have kept true on that promise even at their lowest - make them feel small and worthless, and force them into box where they can't be themselves, and I hate that people would want to treat them that way. Ashton IS capable of listening; they've stepped back and trusted the other Hells to do their own thing even when it's ridiculous like staging a play where they pretend to be Ludinus to trick Unseelie emissaries into thinking that he attacked them, they listened to the gods even when they didn't have to like they promised they would and despite it being very personal they held themselves back for the benefit of the group, and if the group talked to them calmly where they were all allowed to healthily discuss the pros and cons, the ideals and compromises, and the risk and reward of all plans that have been proposed then they would listen, and they would try - you don't need to slice bread with a broadsword.

Will Ashton 'get what's coming to them'? Maybe, but what is that exactly? We only assume to know the full vision of what Ashton wants to act on. All of Bells Hells are gonna face the consequences of the choice they make on Ruidus - when they finally make one that is - in and out of the world they live in, so won't that apply to everyone? So what for Ashton? do people want Fractures 2.0? Does everything Ashton wants in life have to blow up violently in their face? Family, Closure, their best friend's safety, why does 'what's coming to them' have to be something aggressive and harmful? People change through positive reinforcement and good experiences too! Caduceus Clay would remind you that it's love that makes people. Don't mistake this rant as me wanting Ashton to be exactly as they are now, I too want to see growth from Ashton and we ARE seeing it happen; I see it in small instances where they think twice about rash actions and try not to fly off the handle, when they sit just to listen or understand or to defuse tension, and that when they're going somewhere or doing something they let the group know in advance, those who think Ashton hasn't changed since ep. 1 aren't paying close attention, but that doesn't mean that they don't still have more ground to cover. I believe that Ashton grows the most through kindness; when they're treated like a person and not a blunt instrument or a nuisance, and I hope what's 'coming' for Ashton isn't rejection, bitterness, and isolation, but acceptance, empathy, and for someone - if you know me you'd know who I'd want it to be - to convince them that they are worthy of living, that they're special not because of their powers or blood or because they have died and been put back together again (honestly, it does irk me a little that both Keyleth and Imogen chose that for titles and to brag to the Matron, I know it isn't intended this way but sometimes it feels like saying 'your best defining quality is that you've died a lot') but because while they have every reason to hate everything they still chose to be kind to those who deserve kindness, they have a good heart and they mean well. Are they perfect? No! They're in their 20s very few people irl have their lives together at even twice that age, but I want them to have good things in their life; things that help them feel happy and safe and like they can still feel comfortable in their own skin without having to appear more 'palatable' for people who've already decided that they don't like them. I want them to know that they've always deserved to live and they still deserve it now, I want that not just for Ashton but for all the Hells, and hopefully they'll all live to have it.

And most of all I want the people who hate them to be wrong about Ashton Greymoore, and I want Taliesin to prove them wrong.

[annemarieyeretzian]

last shipping ask for you i'm sorry, but am i nuts or is braius deeply in love with teven? i think he has a huge crush on him and is trying to make him jealous by flirting with everyone.

anon never apologize for sending asks I obviously Have No Life and love them.

I think (and as always my opinions are what my mom likes to say: “free advice, worth the price!”) braius is overawed by teven and would do anything for him. I think he has a huge crush on him. I think he has a huge crush on everybody! or like, is definitely dtf with anyone/everyone. the fact that sam told hannah he wanted braius to “out-sexy dorian,” our resident flirty bard, is CRAZY. sam showed back up and went “flirty bard? bet. this one has horns and lay on hands, bitch.”

while of course I think that’s sam being a bit of a troll (in the most affectionate way possible!!! he obviously loves robbie So Much) I also think it’s like. remember when beau and yasha were about to get together and sam was like “THIS HAS TAKEN TOO LONG” and had veth do her level best to get in the way? yeah. I 100% think sam is making the most of his high cha character to get everyone who’s not together anymore(?) (imodna) and not together yet (ashton x fearne, dorian x orym) to fucking Get It Together one way or another. and if he can sleep with a few of them on the way, great! sam chose violence and I fucking love it.

[astralleywright]

it's telling that the best examples of bad behavior people can actually think of for Bells Hells in the endgame are like, "rude to a guy who just tried to smite their friend out of existence", "sarcastic comment to a betrayer god we're treating as sincere", "thought crime," and "thing i just made up about them not wanting to help Ruidian immigrants." or trying to twist things like them not wanting to leave behind their friend/friend's friend who's there alone after being possessed by an evil god into them being entitled. you don't actually have shit on them i fear

[screechingfromthevoid]

I love the way Dorian and Ashton both talk to the Arch Heart.

Because Ashton is hell bent on dragging them down to their level. Ashton wants every bastard with a superiority complex to feel a boot on the neck for just a moment. It doesn't matter if that person has more money, more magic, or infinite power. They would be no where without the people they're standing on. The workers they exploit, the libraries they study, the worship they receive. All that power comes from the collective, the little guy. And Ashton wants all of them to come down to earth and fucking see who they've been using for the first time.

While Dorian is still stuck on the narrative that mortals are their children. You don't give birth to things that are not of you, or are completely different than you. Dorian keeps hearing "we're like you". He keeps hearing about the fear of mortality and the bonds of family. He knows that the gods and mortals are the same. And he's hell bent on reminding them that they are equals. If they weren't the same species: how could they come so close to godhood? How could a mortal become a god? Dorian speaks to the gods with no reverence, no policing of his tone. Because as they sit at the Arch Heart's table, with fake food and fake wood and fake bounty, they are equals. They are both in the same position. Dorian Storm does not think himself a god. He just knows the Gods are the same as them. Him and the Arch Heart both create and revel in beauty. Of course one gave to the other. But everyone must have a teacher. And there will always come a time where the teacher and the student can play a duet in such harmony no one can decipher who once taught who.

[kindahoping4forever]

?

[ashton-ryder]

🙌Chompers, because we all wish they were slower

send me ‘🙌’ for me to praise one of my mutual’s oc’s.

They're dumb as rocks and that's the best thing Ash and I could ask for. 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♂️ as long as they don't gain a new brain cell, Ash feels like they can be dealt with.

[utilitycaster]

I want to hear your thoughts about Orym and Ashton's latest conversation, if you don't mind. Ugh, I can't find the post, but you wrote something along the lines of Orym often wanting to move on from things too fast, to gloss over problems that BH actually need to sit and process over. Him telling Ashton to "not spend time grappling with their demons bcs he needs their hands free to fight" sounds just like it and as sweet as that forehead kiss was, the rest of the talk feels like a soldier pep talk (which very in character).

I do think that's kind of what Ashton needed to hear, though.

So I have to disagree that it's what Ashton needed to hear; I think it's absolutely what Ashton doesn't need to hear. I think this post of mine is relevant.

The thing that got through to Ashton previously was Chetney essentially saying "if you can't keep your shit together enough not to hurt other people, you should leave," but Chetney, notably, still grapples with his demons, or at least his werewolf, concurrently with working with the group.

Again, the thing with Orym is that he is dealing with loneliness and grief, and distracting himself from those by focusing on a mission actually is pretty productive, because Will is irrevocably gone and will not come back so dwelling on that will only hurt. But Ashton does, in fact, need to wake up every morning and say "I see you, self-loathing, and you're going to be there and I'm not going to do stupid things simply because I don't like myself" but that is, in my opinion, an ongoing grappling with demons. Ashton needs to be told "we care about you, and don't fuck it up" but probably should not be told that they need to be there to fight. Again thinking about Chetney as sort of an opposing approach to Orym, but the "hey, if you want out, you can talk to me" and "you're here, that's a start" is far more important than, as you said, the soldier pep talk. Obviously Ashton should not be made to self-flagellate - truly, one cannot self-flagellate one's self out of self-loathing - but "you're allowed to have your demons along with you so long as you do not give into the worst of them" is a much better message than "push that down for now, we need you to fight." A soldier pep talk is not the right approach.

[lukemichaelcalumashton]

MONSE. you sweetheart! It's ashton. I've read your vibe and I can tell you are the sweetest soul around. A hug from you might fix me, or get me to actually release music. Happy april fools, stay sweet! 

Ashton

Oh my god, Ashton! YOU are a sweetheart

I'm booking a flight to LA right now so we can hug and we all can get the single you promised us in march (it's okay if it's a day late!) but also so we can mutually fix each other, being squeezed in those giant arms is all I need

Say hi to the boys for me and happy april fools to you and them!

[chenfordswopez]

Bianca DeSousa & Lucas Scott

Bianca DeSousa

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them | actual love of my life

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

best quality: smart, great friend, funny, sweet, loyal to the people she cares for

worst quality: going after Drew while still with Alli (but it’s ovo more his fault for saying yes haha)

ship them with: Drew, Marisol

brotp them with: KC, Fiona, Clare, Marisol, Audra, etc

needs to stay away from: Katie Fucking Matlin

misc. thoughts: My angel queen <3

Lucas Scott

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them (love might be a stretch tho haha) | actual love of my life

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

best quality: his artistic soul and despite everything, I do think he’s a good guy.

worst quality: his way with women

ship them with: Peyton

brotp them with: Nathan, Mouth, Skills, Brooke

needs to stay away from: Derek ovo, Dan

misc. thoughts: For all issues, I like him. But the way he treats women, especially Brooke, is something I am not on board with.

[the-whispers-of-death]

boy oh boy i have Stone on the brain you have no idea what your ocs do to me

I think I do know, considering I'm obsessed with them.

They all have their own charms. Sarabi and Stone are both traumatized & their birth families want nothing to do with either of them, Kali seems like he's only a joker but he actually is his parents' parent (does anyone really believe that his parents are hard-workers if they just let their son who already has a full-time job in the Corps also be responsible for the ranch they started?), Nala is just Dad™, Simba is lovable goofball Dad, and Ladder is just a tech goddess who drinks too much coffee and likes to piss off people who are bigger and taller than her (Stone).

[annemarieyeretzian]

people getting all angry at ashton saying “it couldve been any of us” and literally the next day we have Imogen making acquaintances with predathos and chetney and orym making deals with a fey hag lmao that’s what they meant, he wasn’t trying to push away responsibility for the shard shitshow😂

anon I'm so sorry I didn't see this now until but like literally exactly I am kissing you on the mouth and showering you with rose petals, etc.

[astralleywright]

the assumption that Imogen (and previously Ashton) never recieved any assistance from the gods because they didn't pray "correctly" is interesting to me. is there some specific procedure for acceptable prayer in Exandria? if you don't do it right is it like texting the wrong number and the Gods just don't get the message? or are they just putting cries for help that don't follow their formatting and content guidelines at the bottom of the pile lmao

[ashtonisvibing]

jackie. i feel like this is a very very basic answer, but this is the first character that came to mind fadshfljk. its the vibes i think

[vibrates at a frequency that the area around me starts heating up] oh yeah that's super cool yeah