#augh. family dynamics kill me...

[satsuha]

sorry i'm having intense wyrmclan leader brainrot again. i was thinking about this chart i made and i really..... mourn the interactions we missed between certain leaders...

would've LOVED to see yukimura and yoshitsune interact, i feel like they paired yuki with shingen as a sort of "old meets new" but yoshitsune pushes that dynamic even further ?! at the same time yoshitsune is so... youthful that i feel like she would match yuki's energy really well... this goes for nobunaga as well 🥹 i like how energetic and spirited the wyrmclan girls tend to be then you have mitsuhide who's at the polar opposite end of the spectrum

also no surprise that i really wanted to see seimei and ieyasu interact directly (they're. in the same room in a couple of stories but don't address each other) because it's just really fascinating to me how opposites they are... i don't think seimei would treat ieyasu very differently from how he treated euden but maybe he has more respect for him since ieyasu hasn't yknow fucked up badly at something yet...

seimei and yuki has really nice potential too like yuki does mention seimei in her story but since hers is about learning from the other leaders i would've loved to see seimei in a reluctant mentor role... i guess it feels too similar to his dynamic with kuzunoha?

i also just find it really fascinating how you can. very clearly draw a line between the leaders introduced in the first two events and the latter two because ieyasu, mitsuhide and nobunaga all seem to have had somewhat cushy lives and had no major incidents regarding their ascension to their leader roles meanwhile seimei accidentally gets his entire organization killed and almost offs himself trying to fix things, yoshitsune is betrayed by her brother and almost dies until she gets TURNED IMMORTAL against her will, shingen staged a coup against his father (and brother?) and yukimura's mere existence caused conflict between two clans and also grew up forcibly locked up by her own family. like the tonal shift between a clawful caper (mitsuhide event) and cursed connections (seimei event) is still so insane to me??

but i think that's why some relationships like shingen and yoshitsune, seimei and yukimura are so interesting to think about for me because they have somewhat similar situations but ended up as very different people... shingen and yoshitsune in particular are really nice to think about because they were both caught up in an inheritance struggle but while shingen was someone who fought for his title because he believed his father (and by extension brother?) to be unworthy of it, yoshitsune only takes the title as a means to an end once her brother's bloodline ends...

i also just like the idea of seimei viewing ieyasu as this kind of idealized wyrmclan leader who is doomed to fail. like it's definitely projection on his part but ieyasu doesn't seem like he's ever been in any real danger or struggles and seimei is simultaneously envious and condescending about it... but that's also why i find it so interesting that they both have no ambitions to become shogun but it feels like for ieyasu that's because he has a bigger dream but for seimei it's because he's content where he is now...

AUGH sorry i'm insane. i'm insane about the wyrmclan leaders but i'll shut up. for now

[believed2beseen]

Sweet sparkles, don’t even get me started on Candyman, I have never seen an adaptation misuse a song that badly-

Candyman is a song that builds hype for Wonka, both in-universe and out. It was written to make a myth out of him, to make you question what a person who could make all those wonders would look like and how he would behave and make you marvel that he even exists at all, ‘the Candyman’ reads like a divine epithet, it all really compliments the idea that in this world, Wonka’s impact is felt throughout the world, but despite this, the man himself is as enigmatic as his work is influential. How do you kill all that mystery? Kickstart your musical by having that song sung by Wonka, who proceeds to reveal his entire motivation.

Broadway seemed really intent on doing away with ‘Wonka the Myth’ as a concept to the point where it’s stated in Charlie’s song about him that most people have forgotten about Wonka’s creations and only older people buy his candy. I’d go as far as to argue this introduces a plot hole, as the whole world is supposed to go crazy for the Golden Ticket Contest specifically because the factory is both beloved and enigmatic.

THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYINGGGG AUGH

That's why I think it'd be such a good substitute for Amazing Fantastical History; both songs hype up this mysterious figure that we don't see until the big reveal. What Broadway did in making Wonka go into disguise and meet Charlie in the first act did everything I FEARED London was gonna do in THEIR version. It kills all mystique of him off the bat, gives Charlie's family much less screen time, and you could tell, you could TELL this was a deliberate action made for those people criticizing the musical for not wanting to get to the factory right away, which I think is a TERRIBLE critique to have. We NEED to show off Charlie's dynamic with his family, we NEED to show why Charlie deserves his name being on the marquee, we NEED this necessary time to show that this show has heart underneath it, but people don't want to think about that and just want spectacle.

And I haven't thought about that plothole before either? Only old people eat his candies? Then how come all five winners happen to be children?? Hell I eat the dude's gummy clusters every now and then does that make me a geezer

[wasyago]

i loveeee gillion and jays friendship and feel it is not talked about enough, any thoughts about them and their dynamic ?

yesssssssssss bro they're so good

like, again, haven't finished listening yet, so i might be wrong about things, but. they have so many similarities, but they're different, but they get each other, you know?

they both grew up in highly militaristic environments, with Jay's family being The Ferins with a lot of honor to uphold, and with Gillion being trained by the elders who had too much to ask of him. and they know how it feels to have this pressure, to have someone you despise expect something of you, to not be able to say no no matter how hard you try. jay becomes a pirate and stands up against her family, not because she hates them but because she wants them to be better and to understand that there are good people on both sides. gillion gets exiled for doing what he was taught and he learns that there's more to it, that there are two sides to his prophecy of equal value.

i just think there's something there. how both gill and jay were taught that people or pirates are evil, and how they both become "evil" only to find out that they were taught wrong. and how jay makes an effort to not be like her family, to not just claim the other side evil and kill it, but to try to understand and make peace. but gillion still thinks navy is evil. and how gillion stood up to elders and overcame his fear and was able to believe in himself and speak his mind. but jay still falls into this trap and is unable to respond to her family. and how both gill and jay see this in each other and try to support and help, because they trust each other so much... gill being there and helping when jay's grandma called, jay telling gill that accidents happen and they still love and care about him, just. augh.

and that moment in the block where gill let jay shoot him because he believed in her and he knew how hard it was for her to go against the authority like that. (which now thinking about it, maybe wasn't the best choice. like, giving your friend trauma over shooting and killing you when they couldn't do otherwise maybe wasn't the best play, but hey, it happens)

and how gillion always trusts jay in decision making, "tell me how to fix it and I'll do it" type of deal. and how jay always trusts in gillion's devotion and strength, no matter how stupid it is. how jay knows that gillion is gullible and often very vulnerable mentally, and she doesn't take advantage of it and instead makes sure that gillion knows she's on his side. how jay keeps teaching gill things and explaining what he might be confused about. like, legit, my favorite moment from the block arc is them walking in the dessert and jay casually in the background explaining to gill what a bear is. like, its the sweetest thing ever and ever, they're not in a situation with bears, there's no need to do it, jay just shares random facts with him and i LOVE it.

and that moment after jay's (first?) dream about being burned by the sun, where gill immediately comes running and sits beside her and tries to figure out what hurts and how to help. so sweet.

they're just. so friends i dont know how to explain it. they're siblings. they're gossip girls. they're a menace to chip. they're chilling. i can just imagine them talking and sharing facts about undersea and oversea. i can imagine gill waking up from a nightmare and coming to sleep by jay's side because she's safe. i can imagine jay going to hug gill when she feels anxious. i can imagine gill and jay sitting in comfortable silence while jay is tinkering and gill is doing something of his own. i can imagine them swapping foods when one doesn't like theirs. i can imagine them casually holding hands when they go somewhere. i can imagine them getting weirdly obsessed over a book and always referencing it and making inside jokes that no one understands. they're like lilo and stitch to me bro. im gonna go cry now.

[inhonoredglory]

i dont know if you partake in any of the doctor who comics at all - i certainly dont. i like keeping my sanity safe (its a mess of strange stories and paradoxes from what ive been able to tell. as are most comic series). but recently there was one that elaborated a bit on rose and the metacrisis’s life post journeys end, and its one of the few pieces of media we have for them. i didnt care enough to read the whole thing, the only interesting part to me was apparently they had a little girl named mia, and ive been thinking abt that dynamic nonstop since. cant decide how realistic it is for them, but on the otherside augh its so sweet. anyway, i just wanted to ask how you feel about rose and the metacrisis in general, and whatever that entails. curious abt ur thoughts on them!

- armin anon/lesbian anon/whatever you feel like calling me lol

OMGG my anon (of many names lol)! OK first off, I drafted some of this way back but forgot to add on and post, so in the words of our beloved Doctor,

🌹 But onto the DW comics and Meta-Crisis/Rose!!

I only recently started reading the comics, starting with the ones about Gabby Gonzalez by Nick Abadzis, and I have to admit:

They make me yearn pretty fucking hard to run away and travel with the Doctor. There's some killer art by Elena Casagrande that feels so much like the Doctor we know and love (that kindness, that earnest love.... god!! my heart and soul!!).

But I warn ye (any readers of this post), DO NOT TOUCH Volume 2 by Robbie Morrison. He takes Ten blatantly out of character, making him out to be an arrogant bastard who belittles his companion and is flippant in the face of suffering. (Morrison watched too much Eleven, methinks 🙈)

I haven't read the Rose/Meta-Crisis comic yet (part of the Empire of the Wolf series), but I did see the important panel from that series, showing Rose's daughter Mia:

I think the Meta-Crisis settling down to have a family with Rose is pretty in-character and very much what the Tenth Doctor would have wanted, as much as it hurt him.

Because Ten fundamentally felt unworthy of Rose.

💔 The Doctor's Trauma

Rose was strong and compassionate and amazing, and Ten had done so much, seen so much, experienced so much tragedy and guilt. He's a man wrecked by PTSD, depression, shame, and self-blame. He felt like it wasn't fair to her that she'd sacrifice her life to someone who would go on living and changing and becoming a different person, while she grew old and died in a world without a home and away from everyone she knew.

He didn't want her to become like him, homeless and without the love of friends and family, because to be him is to be alone. And he didn't want that for her. Because he wanted her to be happy, not just momentarily, but for the rest of her life.

Ten is a man who loathes taking life, and it weighs on him every time someone sacrifices who they are because they love him.

It's no surprise Ten's entire decision about the Meta-Crisis took place after Davros massively guilt-tripped him into thinking it was his fault that all those people died. (It wasn't.) But Davros played on Ten's depression and trauma, manipulating Ten into thinking he had done unforgivable things to the people he loved. (when in fact those people died because they were inspired to be selfless like him, or were killed someplace beyond the Doctor's reach)

I've actually been doing a lot of research on Ten's trauma (including invaluable insight from Judith Lewis Herman's famous book Trauma and Recovery). This journal article about Major Depressive Disorder speaks so deeply to Ten's character, especially post-Time War and post-Davros:

"Guilt promotes altruistic behavior via acting out reparative tendencies, whereas shame reduces altruism by means of increasing social and interpersonal distance."

This explains so much about Ten's choice to sacrifice his own happiness and ask Rose to take his Meta-Crisis as her life partner. He's pushing her away, isolating himself. He's rejecting the people he loves the most because he's in a very, very dark place.

🖤🤍💜 An Asexual (Meta) Reading

There's so many reasons that Ten felt he couldn't give Rose the life she wanted (his trauma, his values). There's one angle I've been sifting around in my head in the past couple years, and it's more of a headcanon than anything: For me, because of the way the Doctor's character has been established since 1963, the Doctor's own asexuality is an almost meta-conceptual reason why the Doctor in general can't have a "normative," family life.

He couldn't say "I love you"—not because he didn't love her. (He loved her more than he ever loved himself.) But also because he knew what saying those words would mean: the expectations, the responsibility, the behaviors he felt she deserved to have from him because those words carry so much weight in human culture. All those things he could not give her.

But the Meta-Crisis could. I personally headcanon that the Meta-Crisis is not asexual like the Doctor. (Just like John Smith may not have been asexual either.) The point of both John Smith and the Meta-Crisis is showing how much they differ from the Doctor—and I think sexuality is one of those differences. It's why it was so easy for John Smith to imagine a traditional life, why it was so easy for the Meta-Crisis to promise his entire world and his entire self to Rose on that beach.

🌹 The Meta-Crisis and Rose Tyler

Which brings me back to the Tentoo himself. He was born in battle and he can die, but what does that exactly mean for his life with Rose? It's fascinating because to imagine the Doctor feeling mortality and knowing he cannot cheat death anymore—that's a horrific, terrifying thing.

There are actually two Big Finish Audios that explore this traumatic realization for the Doctor, and what that does to him. (They're both one-shots from Jackie's POV and narration, and you can listen to them here: Part 1, Part 2).

It makes Tentoo lean into his Ninth-era darkness, a ruthlessness to villains driven by the fear that he cannot protect Rose because he is not indestructible. But luckily for him, there are people he loves around him (Jackie and Rose) who keep him from that darkness.

Additionally, the Big Finish stories lean into the fact that Tentoo and Rose aren't sitting idly by. Both of them work for Torchwood and are growing their own TARDIS to continue to defend the Earth.

They don't settle down into a domestic life, at least not right away, and I think that suits them both. We know how much Rose didn't want the life of eating chips and watching telly. But listen to what RTD's Doctor Who has always tried to say: How deeply important the everyday things are, how much the Doctor, for how amazing they are, craves for a life of simplicity and the stupid little things that define humanity.

Because here's the key: It wasn't the everyday things that bothered Rose. Like she told Mickey in "Parting of the Ways":

ROSE: But what do I do every day, mum? What do I do? Get up, catch the bus, go to work, come back home, eat chips and go to bed? Is that it? MICKEY: It's what the rest of us do. ROSE: But I can't! MICKEY: Why, because you're better than us? ROSE: No, I didn't mean that. But it was. It was a better life. And I don't mean all the travelling and seeing aliens and spaceships and things. That don't matter. The Doctor showed me a better way of living your life. You know he showed you too. That you don't just give up. You don't just let things happen. You make a stand. You say no. You have the guts to do what's right when everyone else just runs away

Rose didn't hate the domestic, everyday life. She hated how life had no meaning.

She hated how people let things happen to them, without challenging anything or standing up for anything. She didn't want to travel as much as she wanted to live, to be something and do something with her life.

And that's the magic of Doctor Who, particularly RTD's era. Because you can be amazing and you can have meaning even without the Doctor, but the Doctor shows you how.

You stand up for what you believe is right and you choose to give meaning to what you do in life. You don't need to travel the stars to do that. You can make choices that give your life meaning right here and now. You can believe in something. You can find meaning in your place in the universe. You can give your enthusiasm and time to something that is important. Meaning and purpose comes from how we see the world, and that change in perspective is what Rose finds with the Doctor.

If Rose is with someone who can fill her life with meaning, who inspires her to see life as a beautiful adventure, then it really doesn't matter what she's doing with them. In The Impossible Planet, Rose was completely willing to settle down with Ten to "find a planet, get a job, live a life, same as the rest of the universe." Why? Because she'd be with him.

ROSE: This lot said they'd give us a lift. DOCTOR: And then what? ROSE: I don't know. Find a planet, get a job, live a life, same as the rest of the universe.

If I imagine Tentoo as a dad, I can't help but imagine him like Tennant himself. Kind, giving, selfless, and loving. I think Tentoo would be so afraid of letting someone hurt his child, because he hasn't had a family in so long, and he isn't the same man he was in those ancient days when, as a completely different man, he had a family.

He's a man still afraid of himself, still keenly aware of the inhuman things he's capable of. I think this fear would drive Rose and him closer together, like it did when he was Nine. But Tentoo is more self-aware now, more willing to grow and change and be different. Because he's the Doctor who was given a second chance, to live the life he thought he'd never have with the person he loves. He wants to be different to make this work.

I also think Tentoo would be the Doctor who passes on his title after he's gone. Not that I like to think about Tentoo dying one day, but let's be real: Where would his TARDIS go? As a half-human, I think Tentoo could imagine Mia taking on the role of Defender of the Earth when he and Rose have passed on. She would have been there to see it grow, and she would have been there when Tentoo and Rose first stepped out into the stars with this brand-new TARDIS. Because of his mortality, I think it would make Tentoo more open to sharing the secret, sacred things of his Gallifreyan people with the family he chose to start. He's not alone anymore, he has someone to share it with, someone who will pass it on after him and keep the world safe in his stead.

Which is all to say, I think it's a gift that Rose has the Meta-Crisis. Because when Ten regenerated and became, as he said, a completely different man, she was able to stay with the person she fell in love with and explore what that life was like, to have him with her for all of her life, and all of his.

[leftoverbriocheloaf]

hello, can i request #7 for the fic thing? :)

(on another note, your fics are always amazing!! i love how you portray ranpoe and their dynamic)

Thank you so much augh you're so sweet <333333

And of course! For this one I'll put the summary first <333

________

“Are you insane?”

“No,” Ranpo scoffed, offended. Who was this guy to question the legitimacy of his ideas? “I’m very sane, thank you very much.”

“Well, you don’t sound it,” the assassin hissed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Ranpo wanted to argue, and he definitely could have, but unfortunately, they had a time limit.

He did, however, continue to watch in amused fascination as the man went through what looked like the five stages of grief in all of ten seconds. Honestly, he hadn’t thought this would be so entertaining. Maybe he should have tracked someone down to fake his death earlier.

“So,” the man tried, leaning back onto the shoddy wooden table. It was the only piece of furniture in the room, because that was what you got for three copper at an inn these days. Well, there was the bed too, but neither of them were touching that. “You want to hire me to… what?”

“To kill me, obviously,” Ranpo groaned. Apparently, even the best of assassins was still dumber than he was. Well, that was stating the obvious, but still. He hoped that taking all of that effort to track down this one in particular wouldn't go to waste.

“I’m– I’m sure you can find something to live for…?”

Maybe he found the wrong guy. There's no way this was Montresor, the man who was considered the most dangerous assassin on this side of the continent. Ranpo could hardly envision him talking back to someone at the market, much less murder dozens in cold blood.

But, obviously, Ranpo was never wrong, so this had to be him.

Maybe his awkwardness was an act?

It would make sense, but Ranpo could tell that wasn't right. Either way, it worked. If making him seem downright pathetic was "working." Ranpo was sure nobody but himself would have believed that this scaredy-cat of a man was an assassin. And he wasn't trying too hard to blend in either. Though Ranpo wasn't sure if he could have, being six feet tall with bangs long enough to reach the tip of his nose. 

The man was still talking about alternatives, "You could, um, travel? Or change professions?"

“Are you dumb?” Ranpo asked, snorting when the assassin looked offended. “I don’t actually want you to kill me. Just to pretend you did.”

The man scrunched his nose in offense, "I don't fake my kills."

"Now's as good a time as any to start, then."

"I'm not letting some trespassing—"

"Are you really talking about trespassing? That's like the least of your crimes."

"—pompous wannabe detective change my job description!"

"Hey! I'm an actual detective, mind you."

Montresor raised an eyebrow, and Ranpo huffed.

"Would a wannabe know that you're currently trying flee the city because your most recent kill caused more of an upheaval than you thought it would? Or that you're having trouble because of the increased security and carriage inspections?"

The assassin's glare turned cold, and Ranpo smirked, "See? I have a solution for both of us. I get you out—"

Ranpo clapped.

"—And you take me with you."

_____

Yayy!! Honestly I've wanted to write an assassin au for SO long as well as another fantasy so this is kind of a mix of that? Poe (montresor) is an assassin and Ranpo is a prince who's at risk of being assassinated (by someone else lmfao). He needs to find out who's ordering the assassinations without putting his family at risk, and to do that, he's decided to fake his own death. Real smart of him, I know. But he basically wants to take advantage of the time immediately after his "death" to see who starts to get cocky or acts out of line, but he can't risk anyone figuring him out.

So he and Poe go on a roadtrip to the Guild county to get him out of the city, and they agree to part ways when they get there. But eventually, Ranpo realizes that maybe he doesn't want to leave Poe behind,, hehe

Thank you so much for the compliment and I hope you find this AU interesting <333

[us3rnam3-r3dact3d]

SWEETHEARTTTTTT THEYRE HEREEEEEE!!! ooohhhh I'm so excited they're one of my favorite listeners I can't wait to see them in action. I'm glad they're starting to see slivers of who darlin really is, or at least what they've been through,, more people are being made aware of quinn in a way that feels a lot more compassionate than the canon 😭😭 their circle is slowly but surely expanding!! I eat up the found family trope every. single. time.

and yess !!!! even if I don't like colm he's more than just a drunk deadbeat!!! give me what made him a detective!!! give me the fire, passion and dedication to his job that made him a gambling alcoholic and (perhaps) inadvertently made him abandon his young son!! LMFAO

I knew you were gonna make quinn crazy but holy shittttt seeing all of his offenses (that they know of iaauhshsvs) just laid out like that is so fucking wild, and it's not even that outlandish bc ppl like this really do exist.

I was imagining SH and colms convo in like a film noir setting,,,,augh,,, give me two rugged detectives who put their differences aside to track down a maniac and you've got a fan for life

"hey kiddo" SO DO I LOOOOOOK LIIIIIIKEEEE HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMMMMMM

the victims looking like tank,,,,, ooohhgg the victims looking like tank,,, I'm still unwell

iam So Scared and So Excited

guys,,,,, we're really getting into it now buckle up bitches

-🦀

ME TOOOOOOOO I love Sweetheart so much. Truly one of my fave listeners. They mean so much to me frfr. They’re gonna get some cool action in this story, don’t you worry Crab Anon. Sweetheart is an observant, people-centric person. That is why they couldn't be a cop in the long term. That is why they took care of the kid who robbed Geordi's instead of turning him in. That is why they are perfect for this situation. They're more concerned with the person being affected by Quinn than any other factor. I wanted to make sure that more of the info that's shared about Quinn is in Darlin's control than it was in canon. I established early in the story that the 10-19 has a secretive, protective air about them when it comes to Darlin'. David hadn't even told Angel their name for fuck's sake. I wanted to honor that established dynamic as the story moved on. Darlin's privacy, especially when it comes to the situations in which they have been victimized, is paramount.

I also don't love Colm! When I was first conceptualizing him, I was very much "fuck this guy forever." It was actually the wonderful @romirola who helped me establish a bit further his complex relationships with addiction, his sense of duty, and Milo. I've always endeavored in this story to complexity and deepen my interpretation of the characters that have been set out in front of us. Colm is a perfect example of that. I am personally very very anti-cop and American justice system, and Sweetheart and Colm are planned to be parallels that discuss the issues in the legal system both for those that participate in it and those that are affected and policed by it. This story is, of course, a 911-style procedural focused on first responders. That commentary is meant for a more Law and Order crime procedural (one that is preferably not blatant cop worship) which might come later on. We will get a bit more of that in this story, at the very least, so I hope that adds a nice layer for ya'll!

I try very hard to keep Quinn's crazy somewhere between the distant, unrealistic but theme-appropriate cruelty of his Redacted canon self with what we see in actual humans. There Are people like him out there in the world and it is scary as fuck. I am so glad that his actions aren't reading as corny or unrealistic for the world I'm building.

SO glad that the noir vibes came through!! That is THEIR genre, after all!

The way that that song has been on my Milo playlist since the moment it dropped dude.

The victims look like Tank. And Quinn is carving their tattoos into all of their faces. Killing them over and over again.

We're just having fun being goofy over here its all light and chill

[jerreeeeeee]

there's nothing inherently wrong or unhealthy with a platonic relationship being the most intimate and important in someone's life (whether that person is also in a romantic relationship or not). this has been said before but people still treat it like its true. ESPECIALLY that a prioritized platonic relationship belies “codependency” even though no one would bat an eye at the exact same dynamic if it were romantic, because of the idea that a prioritized platonic relationship is somehow immature/unhealthy and something to grow out of/move on from.

the idea that the twins just go, well, you've been the person i felt safest loving and trusting in my entire life, our souls have been bound by fate and magic and our love for one another is one of the strongest bonds in the multiverse, transcending death and unimaginable loss, the motivation behind everything we’ve ever done, but since we're both in romantic relationships now and the story is over, the reasonable and in-character thing to do would be to split up and have separate nuclear families because that's the "healthy thing" (read: expected thing). there's no other form of a domestic happy ending than a marriage and typical nuclear family. you're everything to me, my entire world, my heart, see you later.

ok this got too long i'm putting it under a readmore.

(also why i don't really like the idea that taako adopts angus. "parent" is not the only important, loving role an adult can play in a child's life but people feel that need to shove everything into a nuclear family. also taako has too much going on to be the good parent that angus needs anyway. and magnus and lucretia are right there (separately, to me; they don’t have to be partners—romantic or platonic—to ‘coparent’ together). but this is another post <- this is actually a fan fiction i’m writing, kind of)

i just find that frankly silly. i truly believe that the twins live together for the rest of their lives and are always each others' most important person (before anyone kills me i do think barry is there too. they also both love him so much. capacity for love INCREASES there’s no need for a replacement or a “moving on” it’s an addition). there's not any reason they wouldn't live together other than that it’s not “normal?” but why would they give a shit about that. their prioritization of one another isn't the unhealthy thing about their relationship. they do have other stuff going on that's actually codependent, but i think they eventually work past it and come to have a healthier (yet no less close) relationship. actually this post was originally just supposed to be about those codependent tendencies but i felt like i needed to compensate by clarifying that there are only a very specific few things abt their dynamic i find unhealthy and that by and large they’re fine, actually.

the main thing is, as is so succinctly put in this post—they aren't able to communicate about big, important decisions. not to say they never communicate about anything, i think they actually do communicate effectively about a lot of things—warning i’m going into a complete tangent here—i see a lot an idea that they’re not siblings who hug or really verbalize affection at all which is crazy to me (<- personal opinion alert) like they’re closed off and distrusting (taako more than lup, but she’s certainly not exempt from their trauma) to other people and the world at large but they have always always been each other’s exception, each other’s utmost safe place, the one person they could be absolutely comfortable around, who they never have to be afraid of. that’s one of the things i find so compelling about them, that they trust each other with their entire selves. they have no reason to ever feel defensive around each other. oh to be known so entirely and intimately and never feel ashamed or afraid of judgement or abandonment. augh. so i do think they hug.

also—i don't think they "don't know how to be a person without each other" like that's certainly not true for lup and i don't really think it's true for taako either. they have their own distinct personalities and identities they just also both inform each others’ lives. they're an integral part of each other's identity the way your family or best friend or partner or most important person in your life is but again i think that's fine.

but back to the topic at hand anyway they DO hide their misgivings from each other when it comes to huge shit with world-changing, life-threatening consequences lol. when it comes to, like, turning herself into a lich, or leaving to recover her dangerous magical artifact, lup feels like she needs to be entirely decisive and confident for taako, and when it comes to his sister turning herself into a lich, or proposing a dangerous magical artifact plan, taako feels like he needs to be unflinchingly supportive and loyal for lup. and those both backfire obviously. because they trust each other so completely that they don't trust each other enough to not trust each other. weird paradox.

but really its not a lack of trust in each other its their own insecurities projected onto each other. lup second guesses herself but feels like she can’t express that uncertainty so she’s alone with her doubts which increases the pressure and stress and creates a feedback loop that only makes her more insecure. and taako feels like he doesn’t have anything to bring to the table other than backing up lup and is afraid doubting her would hurt her which means he never has an opportunity to find out he does actually have good ideas and that lup would listen to him constructively. but it manifests in lup “not trusting taako” to have her back even if she doubts herself and taako “not trusting lup” to take criticism even if his idea is good.

and honestly i think the solution to this just comes with… not being in those lifethreatening situations anymore. the universe was saved and they have normal (magical fantasy world) lives. so now when they’re hiding things from each other the stakes are a lot lower. and when the stakes are lower they’re able to express uncertainty because they don’t feel that extreme and terrifying pressure anymore. lup doesn’t have to make impossible decisions and stick to them despite any doubt because she doesn’t have the survival of entire worlds on her back anymore. taako doesn’t have to always agree with lup and uncritically support her every choice because he’s not the only thing holding her together from oblivion anymore. so they're able to express doubts and nothing falls apart and they're actually stronger for it. and they’re already doing so much work on fixing their relationship just from being separated and kinda grieving for a decade too, so they eventually work past that.

and also because they have to face those insecurities and their consequences. lup got trapped in umbrella limbo for a decade and taako had his life destroyed. if lup had been able to overcome her need to put everything on her shoulders and expressed uncertainty, if taako had been able to overcome his blind loyalty and expressed doubt, would they have gone through with the relics? would they have even gone through with the lich plan? they realize only afterward that they should’ve talked about it, and so they learn from their mistakes.

another tangent—isn’t it so crazy how, by any standard, lup should be the strongwilled, passionate, heroic protagonist and taako her cynical, pragmatic, yet loyal sidekick? and yet he’s the protagonist and she the supporting character in the actual narrative? so subversive and intriguing. i cant believe this was all masterfully and purposefully written. anyway. (<- in the in-universe metanarrative version of the story, lup [and honestly, probably davenport] is the tragic ghost who haunts the narrative and lucretia & barry are the morally gray protagonist foils, and tres horny boys are supporting characters/comic relief who go on to have their own semi-important b-plot arcs that ultimately serve to further the protagonists’ arcs. btw.)

back to the twins. i also think they don't only grow post-canon, i think they grow a LOT during the century, because in the beginning, they're coming from a life where they have been not only the most important people in each other's lives, but the ONLY people in each other's lives. and now they're suddenly faced with more people, which they handle fine individually, more or less—lup is faster to warm up to the others, but even though taako's attitude is very much that he only cares about him and his, he is capable of expanding the people who are "his" (eventually). but they've never had to bring other people into their dynamic with each other before.

i don't think either of them are possessive, their relationship is built on deepest mutual respect and love and trust and "possessiveness" is kinda antithetical to that, but they can both be jealous on occasion. although there is a difference—lup is the only one who will outwardly display jealousy (and maybe a better word than jealousy would be insecurity), again because of the dynamic earlier: taako must always support whatever decisions lup makes without question. so when taako dies one cycle and all of a sudden merle and magnus and everyone else grieve him too, lup perhaps feels a sense of ownership over grief (not over taako himself, but over loving taako, just because no one else ever really has before, and she’s never had to think about the possibility that he might love other people too) that she initially may not challenge but does eventually let go of, because it's actually a good thing that other people love him now, and bringing new people into their family doesn’t make their love for each other any less. and taako has a similar experience but tbh i think its a little easier for him bc, like, who wouldn’t love lup, and lup loves other people way more freely than taako does (still not super freely, its a low bar). not that lup thinks taako is unloveable OBVIOUSLY (taako does think he’s unloveable tho) i just think they have different attitudes abt it, like they both have the moments of “but you don’t love them like i do!!” which is true, no one loves them like they do, but taako’s more willing to let that shit go bc he just doesn’t care as much what the others do as long as they don’t fuckin bother him about it. like lup sees the others equate (as she sees it, but oc they’re not actually grieving At Her) their (comparatively shallow) grief to her world-shattering loss of her twin brother, best friend, only family, soulmate, silly rabbit, and she gets angry about it, but taako’s reaction is more like, “ok they’re stupid. who cares.” meanwhile and more importantly, all of a sudden lup is falling in love with barry, but taako's not one to throw a fit or demand that he's the only one who can love lup nor the only one lup can love. she’s made her decision. he just gives barry advice and lets it quietly hurt and draws distant, because he has a deep seated fear of abandonment that is now, for the first time, clashing with his unshakable trust in lup. and their relationship irrevocably changes but maybe not for the worse, because taako has, for the first time, doubted lup, a disruption to their typical (codependent) dynamic. but, of course, in the end his fears are unfounded and lup pulls him back in, because their capacity for love increases—of course lup still loves him just as much and yknow what, so does barry, and so does the rest of the crew. so he doubts and fears and is proven wrong. and so they grow and change, and their world increases from two to seven.

but that doubt doesn’t really go away for a long time, exacerbated and strained the more lup keeps secrets (especially with barry) until it reaches a head when lup finally doubts taako and does truly abandon him. but again, of course, never on purpose and never forever, they find their way back to each other despite everything and, again, come away stronger for it. the idea that the twins’ relationship is never as close again after story and song is so fucking tragic and heartrending but really i just think its unrealistic. because the rift between them is what caused their pain in the first place, of course they wouldn’t just shrug and move on. they would do anything for each other, including a lot of difficult emotional work and healing. for a little while they do have to deal with the reality that they’re not as close as they were. but they can be again. it just takes time and effort.

but anyway just to drive my point home—we mostly see taako's side of it since he is the protagonist in the real world narrative, but lup is always, always positioned within that narrative as the most important person to him. (and even then, lup says as much for taako! she loves barry of course but she loves taako so much he’s her heart!!) when thb see their lives after the hunger in paloma's prophecy, taako sees himself cooking with lup. she's textually representative of healing and joy in his future, and she's the main character present in his epilogue too. she's his greatest loss and his greatest love, positioned in exactly the same place as julia and merle's kids. there are a myriad of love stories going on in balance and a myriad of love stories involving taako that are all beautiful and significant in their own right but i really do think the main one in his life is lup!!

well all that to say they’re my favorite little critters ever and i’m studying them under a microscope forever. how do you end posts

[biromantic-nerd]

Happy Wincest Wednesday!

I'm actually asking an explicitly non-wincest question for once. I've been seeing a lot of talk about Sam/Rowena and Sam/Eileen lately, and it makes me wonder: what are people's favorite ships besides wincest? When you venture outside our corner of the fandom, what relationships are you looking at?

Also: if your answer is an incest ship, I also want to know your favorite non-incest ship. I already know half of us are down bad for shipping the boys with John or Jack. My goal here is more to discover what I don't already know.

- @schizosamwincester

Hi! Thanks for the question! ❤️

Okay so I am not very far into SPN because 1. I have memory problems and have to rewatch it + 2. seeing spoilers for the later seasons has me nervous, like, I am NOT emotionally ready to experience all that!! So my point is: I haven't gotten to Rowena or Eileen or Jack yet, though I've seen cute posts about them. I'm almost to the end of season 5. ....But.... 🫣 Well. I'm scared! (Plus I need another rewatch.)

But I really love the idea of Sam/Jack. That's his mom!!! He's an adult and a baby and that's his sad hurting mom who loves him through it all. Jack just wanting to flip the roles and take care of his mom? Oooh I love the idea. I think it's a very fun pair. But we'll see when I get there because sometimes unrelated parental/child relationships are strictly platonic for me and I just don't vibe with the shipping of them for whatever reason. But I think I also will be down bad for them.

Sam/Cas is EVERYTHING! I LOVE them!!!!!! Sam 'has so much faith'/Cas 'losing faith'? Angel/the boy with demon blood? Autistic4autistic? Dork4dork? Soft+fierce4soft+fierce? I can go on forever. They are AMAZING! Sastiel is so so so so good. I got a teeeeny bit biased before I started watching bc a dear friend ships Sastiel and I was always like '😳 👀 oh?' whenever I saw their posts. But then seeing them together as I watched convinced me i LOVE them aaa the handshake alone..... iconic! Soft and yet alienating to Sam yet Cas is WELCOMING and tender and Sam is distraught and yet still in awe oooooooooo. Sastiel is so good. (Of course I think all flavor variations of Wincest+Sastiel are good. Whichever way you spin the dynamics.) Sastiel my beloved ❤️

I also love the idea of Sam and minor characters. He has such chemistry with everyone that the smaller roles are really fun to ship with him. And tbh the way Sam LOOKS and SPEAKS with people? 🥺 Augh. It's easy to imagine people falling for Sam. Or having blatant sexual tension like him and Patrick the witch lol.

Sam/Jess is a classic and to me so so so good. The original. The icon. There is a lot of depth that can be explored even with how little screentime we get of Jess. She cares so much and Sam was going to marry her and they just seem really supportive of each other and proud of each other and aaa! Plus, and I cannot stress this enough, they are so pretty together. Model duo.

Sam/John is interesting to me but not usually as much as other pairs. I don't seek it out but then I'll see posts and go 'oh? 👀 nice' Usually I prefer Sam/John with Sam/Dean too. A wincest triangle with Sam at the middle. However Dean/John is interesting too so I am for sure for the Sam/John + Dean/John + Sam/Dean dynamic.

Sam/Mary is in theory a bit interesting to me. I don't know yet what she's like when she comes back. But the concept of Sam/Mary. Sam whose family has idolized Mary and Sam who feels like his 'evil' condemned her. She's an idol. She's a second chance would've-could've-should've shot at happiness and a safe life. She's 'supposed to' love Sam with all her heart and hopefully in a way John+Dean can't because THEIR hearts are more than a bit broken from losing Mary. So sure a bit interesting.

Now the concept of Young!John/Sam?? OOOOH I love that. Sam finding forgiveness in his young father who hasn't yet told Dean to kill him and hasn't yet died to save Dean (which in a way Sam blames himself for bc he thinks Azazel is his fault) and how gentle and kind young John is towards them even despite the strange circumstances. Now I also think this dynamic is delicious with Young!Mary. I truly love the way Jared acts with the 'you're so beautiful' and it screams awe, it is so full of platonic love and admiration. And I can see young Mary watching Sam/Young!John. I think Sam/Young!John + Young!John/Young!Mary would be INCREDIBLE!!!!!! Having Sam and Mary be adjacent to each other, overlapping in John and the threesome dynamic, but just not quite together. THAT is so so good to me. However I also enjoy the idea of just all three of them together on purpose. Sam with BOTH of his young parents. Ooo it is just! Sooo interesting to me! Young Mary before she dies and Sam has less grief+guilt about 'causing' it (but of course sometimes his guilt and grief are WORSE bc oh man she's so wonderful, so young, so full of life and she doesn't get to KEEP that; it's cut short and aaa) I haven't actually seen this yet in a fic or post but like. Ooooooough the concept of Sam and at least one of his young parents captivates me

[andbrokenmemories]

full murderbot thoughts post

Alright! Finished with Book 7 of Murderbot, System Collapse, and collected my thoughts on the series.

Maybe one day I'll do one last round-up to read novellas and maybe write a Properly Structured Review Innit, so for now this is gonna be the messy notes version of this. Let me give a paragraph or two of review-y thoughts, here, though. Set the stage and all.

So: I liked them a lot! I wouldn't ever say I struggle with sci-fi, but I think in practice I struggle with sci-fi. For other genrefic novels, tropes i Enjoy the Consumption of can usually keep my interest alive long enough; like, Black Sun and Fevered Star didn't light me on fire, but there was a lot of dynamics and play within the space that I could consistently enjoy and keep. Chewing down the line on. real strawberry lace fiction. real gummy worm fiction

Sci-Fi usually struggles more with that, I guess. Or, rather, I don't enjoy genrefic sci-fi for sci-fi's sake? There is, i think, a needle to thread of Good Spec-fic, of "oooh literature on a Weird Way of Existing". that style can keep me hooked, and Murderbot Diaries manages that with all the intricacies of the SecUnit experience. and also you can just have a lot to say! and murderbot has a lot to say! overall 8.5 out of 10. book 1 is a 9 out of 10 (yippeee strained relations distrust etc); book 2 is an 8.5 out of 10 (ART good); book 3 is a 7 out of 10 (i dont really remember those people); book 4 is an 8 out of 10, book 5 is an 8.5 out of 10 but i think it'd be a bunch higher if i didnt find the middle a bit bloated; book 6 is a 7.5/10, book 7 is an 8/10. loose thoughts from my journal from here on. spoilers for the whole series begin in earnest.

I like murderbot diaries the most when its reasonably omniscient, dynamic feeling, with a bunch of pieces moving around; and when those pieces are the psychology of murderbot as it navigates shit. i popped the fuck off when at the start of the long one [that's Network Effect] we got an interlude of murderbot interacting with mensa and her family and Caring and augh. ouagh.

WE HJAVE TO PUT ON THE BEST DAMN TALENT SHOW THI S COLONY HAS EVER SEEN!!!! [this was right when i got to the documentary part of the last book lol]

what if the other sec units went stereotypical serial killer robot and murdered all their handlers. like yes i get an argument against that that goes down the line of “and then we wont be able to extract from the situation and everyone gets killed in retribution” but, also, i feel like early in this series there was a lot of text talking about how sec units don't actually. think like that. in real life. I dont know, maybe i havent adjusted to a Thematic Choice where actually that was unreliable narration, but i find my brain getting caught up on that every time. like comparing how murderbot talks about how sec units think early in the series to later on. bwah.

anyway [in regards to the end of Exit Strategy] something very unique but kind of hash tag relatable about an extended sequence of a character reconstructing their memories from base principles, all sortakinda drunk. seeing all those cute and Telling and I See How It Is moments, which i derived a lot of value from, really fun capper to a book. good times. and then they hit 100% and the microwave goes Ding and they sit right up in bed and go Damn. That was stupid. I'm leaving.

when the panopticon surrounds you on every level and you have a lot of time to think on your self and your connection to your self and gain access to every system that makes you up and makes you you and all you can manage to acheive with it is the recreation of the panopticon within the self. and being without the panopticon is uncomfortable and foreign and strange. when the character does not allow the narrative to woobify them. 😍

ships you can talk to (who talk back only in concepts) are a gender by the way. that first scene [at the end of All Systems Red] of Murderbot working out its take on the all of it to a ship who can't really talk back, and was more or less the default “easily Manipulated bot pilot” that we just kind of sidestep each time going forwards, but like. was also the Same Thing as Mbot in not having anyone to really talk this out with. we are both on the same level. we, two, have not been taught to sell our class, our people out to the humans; we can be Niceys to one another. you can seek that out and find it. there are glimmers and moments like that throughout the whole series going forwards. which kind of makes hanging out with the humies boring unless they're one of the like 3-4 that i feel have an Interesting Social Dynamic with murderbot

following on from that, i immediately started visualising ARTs feed-self as a Kirby Endboss mass of glowing, dazzling, flowing dials/lenses/clocks towering over everyone else. with speech bubbles violently louder than everyone elses. Like that was how my brain went “how would the graphic novel get this Concept of ‘I could squish you like a bug with one instant of thought you are nothing to me you little it/its freak’ across". and its good. its good

[in regards to Network Effect, and trying to sum up my whole feelings on 2.0]: Whoops! Your clone headmate you made underbaked on purpose came out with ADHD and joié de vivre and is kicking its feet up and down in its partition watching comfort media while you go through the shit that made the Expanse expand. that made the signal is. that made the Space [face/off-style pause] Dead

So, what're my big takeaways with the whole series? Everyone trying to Do Therapyspeak on Murderbot and it usually Not Working is nice. There is something wrong with you, and that's not like a puzzle to be unraveled, but the perspective the text then takes on everything else. this world isn't, like, Fascinating and realized with any special flair, but you get to have moments where Murderbot exposits how fucked shit is to other people, or judges a situation it's bitter about as people around it get Fucked Over, and it's just like. It's a fun level of fucked up, in a way, sure, but it's also those moments of like. Ah. Murderbot does not set out to be protagonist-ly about this world, to be deeply critical, to wikia-mode about it all. Only to be constantly drawn to such anyway, to being Bitter and having to exposit to make certain points land because it needs certain points to land because. shrugs, gestures. The World. All of it. but then we go back to like “Hey do you think you have trauma maybe?” “FUCK you” and it's consistent and that's all chewy in a way I find nice. It's nice. We're having a niceys time. smile emoji

[laroched]

some thoughts i had about patrick jane during the first two seasons of the mentalist, all compiled into one chunk of feelings; 4/17/24.

patrick jane you will always be famous ... the way such a sleazeball guy like him can go from being arrogant and completely full of himself to a kind, soft, and very gentle person years later ....... AUGH. but then there's this dichotomy when he gets wrapped up with red john where his previous self sort of comes out again (he becomes arrogant, entitled, reckless, even high key uses what happened to his family as an excuse for his behavior -- like telling anyone who stands in his way, "he killed my wife and child, he's mine") and it's so interesting !!! and when the team, especially lisbon, sees this behavior from him it's kind of a slap in the face bc let's be real, jane is ... not like this. yes, he's more out there in terms of investigations but he can usually be reined in, he's always humorous and light-hearted, and while he toes the line - and usually steps outside of it - he's not intensely reckless to the point of enduring jail time (cough 2x6). he's not violent and dark and certainly not possessive, but red john brings the worst out of jane every single time. jane is no stranger to breaking laws, but tapping the office of the guy (bosco) who took over the red john case is pretty insane! and then jane doesn't even learn anything from doing jail time, in fact he helps solve the current case (+ makes allies in jail quickly). convincing him that he is entitled to everything red john, no one can ever make a point to him, he can be reckless with no consequences-- then ... red john literally fucking has his lackey murder bosco! and three other agents! and when they catch the lady working for red john and jane asks why she bothered killing bosco when there was no need to - "oh, he thought you'd understand. red john wanted me to do this so you could have the case back. it's what you wanted, too, isn't it?" CHILLS !!! and the look on jane's face because he understands that this is his fault, too. red john is the only person that can ever teach jane a lesson, they're intrinsically connected through blood. their dynamic is just ... PHEW!

[jaguarys]

Sup!

Les Légendaires question. Let me ask you about Les Légendaires.

What is one scene that stuck with you? Like really stuck with you, lying in bed thinking about it, kind of stuck with you.

Mine is the time Danaèl tried to transform Halan into à hellion. It was such à visceral moment for me to read, because he really was going to do it. The gang stopped him, but he would have done it.

What I love about this moment is that Danaèl's fury came from the fact that Halan send his men to their deaths and they actually gone through something that can be considered worse than death. That shows à wedge between Danaèl and the rest of Les Legendaires, because he was a silver falcon. He served a crown. He was once the same as these soldiers, and even now he's still loyal to the king, saving the world is his priority, but he's still loyal.

The fact that he probably sees himself in them, fiercely loyal, devoted and trusting, only to later be betrayed by those who you served (people of Alysia for Danaèl/Halan for the soldiers). Only he can sympathize with them in that moment and the fact that his friends, his family can't hurts. It hurts him so much.

And that's without going into his "Saryn died because of me. She turned into a hellion because of me. I couldn't save her" trauma that doesn't help his situation at all.

So in conclusion: Halan is the character I hate the most. And Danaèl is not well at all.

YES YES YES love. Danaël is absolutely rabid about protecting the people around him, and he's also got some Very Strong Complicated Feelings about the Faucons d'Argent. Even once he leaves them, they've really influenced his mindset and his mentality towards those around him.

And then Saryn just... compounds that. Multiplies it by 10. And don't get me started on his reaction to the Faucons in vol 2. He's the kind of person who's going to hold on by the fingernails to the people around him.

I say Danaël's the best of the group, but that certainly doesn't mean he's perfect. He's a surprisingly ruthless person. He's pragmatic, I think. He's not naïve, even if he might seem it, and he's realistic to the dangers of things (think his plan to kill Shimy when she's Anathos' target).

AS FOR YOUR QUESTION.... that's such a difficult one. I think, ultimately, the volume I've spent the most time awake at night thinking about is Gryf's Origines. In my reread I'll admit that it didn't hit the same as when I was 10, but all the same I'm just. AUGH. He.

But lately... I dunno, vols 13 and 14 have really been Haunting Me. Jadina's replacement, her interlinking with the tree, the others' reactions to her death. The identity issues rising from the fact she’s not Jadina, not truly. Jadina mourning herself. The development of her relationship with Ténébris.

Her conversation with Adeyrid at the end is really interesting to me. Orchidia’s dynamics & the rigidity of being royalty is so fascinating. I really liked Jadina pointing out that Adeyrid was just passing on the same restrictions she’d had to deal with, and how Jadina couldn’t forgive her for that. Just….. her <3

[erstwhilesparrow]

Can you tell me more about this vampire hunter pretending to be domestic? 👀

i can!! i very very very much can!! :D

so. first thing you need to know is that this is an AU of an AU and i've entirely lost the thread. the second thing you need to know is that this AU of an AU is the lovely @cohnal's doing. it read one of my fics and went, "hey, what if [Much Beloved Character] met these guys." and i went, "AUGH. FUCK. YEAH. HELL YEAH."

under a cut due to Paragraphs. o/

o/ !

so. the background information is that there's this little gang of three vampires who've been living together for a long time. they're super close, and have most recently been living in a big old house somewhere that could reasonably be described as 'on the edge of town.' they've been getting a little reckless lately with their feeding, killing people they probably shouldn't and attracting attention when they didn't before. so one day, a vampire hunter comes to town.

the hunter -- we will call him owen -- by virtue of being a hunter, is already a little on the edge of things. his work mostly keeps him alone and separate from others. this is an interesting contrast to the vampires, who have of course been exiled from life but very much behave like family with each other. it's winter, and owen gets trapped with the vampires in their big old house.

the 'pretending at domesticity' was a thing in my original fic -- the vampires sometimes put blood in bowls and sit around the dining room table drinking it as if it's soup; one of them curls up in front of the fireplace and thinks about how if she looks very sweet the others might carry her upstairs like a child to her room -- and it was at least in part about... playing with this image of 'family'? none of the three vampires stays in the 'parent' or 'child' or 'sibling' or 'partner' role for very long in relation to the other two. it's supposed to be a little bit off, a little more mutable, a little of both [hey this set-up looks familiar] and [hey wait that's not supposed to happen].

and the thing my brain has snagged on re: owen is (1) figuring out how he responds to this, as someone who has no family or other long-lasting connections, and (2) where he ends up fitting into this dynamic? because. look. he's trapped in a house full of vampires. his whole job might be killing them, but he's not walking away from this one. i like the idea of him turned more than i like the idea of him drained of blood and dumped in the snow.

so. guy trapped in a house with something family-shaped but not in the traditional sense. the image of him fitting alarmingly well into that family-shape. the image of him bristling with weapons and tension still sitting down at the table to... eat? the image of all of them, three vampires and owen, settling in front of the fireplace as if to share drinks and stories, and that's where one of them sinks their teeth in his neck to make him turn.

[dykexenomorph]

Bela Re8, Karlach Bg3, and\or Isobel Bg3 for the ask game!

not upset just wanna complete the set 👍

this got kinda long so im putting it under a readmore LMAO (character asks!!)

BELA DIMITRESCU:

HOW I FEEL ABOUT HER: HOW can i put this. she is everything to me. i think about her daily.shes my right hand arm. MAN. shes my everything. all of this but she doesn't even make the top ten in my list of favorite resi charas LMAO

WHO DO I SHIP WITH HER: well nobody. sorry for being lame it will happen again LMAO

NON ROMANTIC OTPS FOR HER: IM SORRY IM SO LAME I JUST LIKE HER FAMILY DYNAMIC. BELA HAS NO FRIENDS SHES A LOSER WHAT DO U WANT FROM ME MAN

UNPOP OPINION ABOUT HER: i dunno how to put it but i think the way i generally see/interpret her (and the other two sisters) are so blatantly different from what fanon is (or at least what it was BEFORE i gave up on the re8 tag) tht its my most unpop opinion? if tht makes sense idk its late and im tired

SMTH I WISH HAPPENED IN CANON: I SO BADLY WANT MORE CONTEXT FOR THE WAY THE DIMITRESCU'S OPERATED AND TREATED ONE ANOTHER. like YEAH they were killing maids and being generally dykeish and cruel in that castle but how were they sustaining this. what like. day to day things did they do. were the sisters close or did they just see each other as competition or what!!! im so curious about them it hurts AUGH

KARLACH CLIFFGATE:

HOW I FEEL ABOUT HER: AUGAUGATGALHGALJSFSDLAJ !!! hope this helps :D

WHO DO I SHIP WITH HER: my DURGE!!!!!!!!!!! (real answer though is probably minthara or shadowheart. i love the idea of minthara ALSO going back to avernus w karlach and wyll to help her fix her engine :3)

NON ROMANTIC OTPS FOR HER: WYLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they have THE dynamic of all time <3

UNPOP OPINION ABOUT HER: the way people baby her is SO stupid and ridiculous. this is a woman who fought in a demon army for TEN YEARS. she saw what happened when elturel fell and did nothing because she was worried about what it'd mean for herself. YES she is a kind, giving, and heroic person NOW, but she hasn't always been (even if her reasoning is understandable). if i see one more person act like she can't understand or cope with some of the more morally questionable things the party encounters along the campaign im going to lose my mind

SMTH I WISH HAPPENED IN CANON: dunno if this counts but i wish we could do more in terms of touching her (for lack of better way to phrase it) in act 1. like let me be silly and use mage hand to high five (or whatever else) her. let me and wyll dump cold beer in her mouth like some sort of shitty frat party. idk its very silly but i want more goofy interactions w her where tav + the party try to find stupid ways around the engine issue!!!!!

ISOBEL THORM:

HOW I FEEL ABOUT HER: NOBODY LOVES HER MORE THAN I DO AND I MEAN THAT SO GENUINELY. ISOBEL THORM THEY COULD NEVER MAKE ME HATE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WHO DO I SHIP WITH HER: im not answering this. come on now. lets get a grip. (aside from the obvious answer i also like her + dame alyin + shart. tht trio is everything to me <3)

NON ROMANTIC OTPS FOR HER: does jaheira count? they were stuck for SUCH a long time protecting last light together in the shadow curse, they had to have ended up being good friends i think?? i think about it ALL the time

UNPOP OPINION ABOUT HER: its hard to have an unpop opinion when nobody thinks about her character as anything other than an accessory for dame alyin. i will give u an unpop opinion when u can give me literally ANY non-alyin related opinion this fandom has about her LMAO

SMTH I WISH HAPPENED IN CANON: GIVE ME MORE SOLO ISOBEL INTERACTIONS PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. I WANT COMPANION ISOBEL. I WANT AN ISOBEL-CENTRIC QUEST (NO ACT 2 DOESNT COUNT LEAVE ME BE). WHY DO I ALWAYS LOVE CHARACTERS W THE LEAST AMOUNT OF CONTENT

[soup-for-ghosts]

Roland or Frederica for the ask meme?

I shall do both to the best of my abilities!!!

Frederica:

First impression

she seemed nice! big fan of mages. also she’s pretty :]] not a fan of arranged marriages though

Impression now

I LOVE HER SO MUCH. SHE IS MY WORLD. morality route was my first and MAN was it an experience. she’s just… such a good character… it’s difficult to put all my thoughts about her together, but I just love her so much… everything with her family history and the roselle….

Favorite moment

her route for taking back whiteholm is my favorite of those three so far (I still gotta play benedict’s but I don’t think he can beat the battle on the bridge and the stuff with roland, cordelia, and avlora on the boat), and her reluctance to fight her family vs her anger at how cruel and unfair they were to her her whole life is just… an interesting struggle. and how she eventually resolves to do whatever she must, even if that means killing her own flesh and blood… ultimately she’s opposed to killing anyone, no matter who they are or why, and I like how, despite everything, she tries so hard to be kind.

Idea for a story

again don’t have much for this one ach… I did write this though, but it’s mostly serenoa focused. she’s there though

Unpopular opinion

hard to know what classifies as an unpopular opinion with such a small fandom…

Favorite relationship

her and serenoa for sure, but her and roland is also one I like.

I could write an essay on serefrede but I think the game does that well enough for me pf- it’s called “morality route” /j

as for her and roland, I just like their friendship. again you can totally tell morality was my first route but they’re just… really nice friends I think. terrified to play the utility route.

difficult for me to describe my thoughts on them right now, it’s been a while since I last played the game and I haven’t finished liberty and utility routes

Favorite headcanon

not sure on this one, number one for all tristrat characters is drawing them with scars though

Roland:

First impression

his introduction was very silly and I was immediately so fascinated by him and what his deal could be….

Impression now

screaming indefinitely 👍

chapter 5 was when I REALLY started getting into the game, and at every twist and turn I always felt so bad for roland… one of my favorite lines in the game is “though victorious, roland sobs quietly, saddened by the losses made in his name” (quoted to the best of my memory).. it’s such a good line… liberty route’s gonna kill me I think

Favorite moment

his confrontation with gustadolph in the golden route for sure. it felt like his character arc had really been building up to that moment, and he realizes how revenge just feels like an empty concept now. it isn’t about revenge anymore, and he proves that by trying to reason with gustadolph, albeit that fails… but he tried. it’s just so… gah… so good…

another, smaller thing, is the many instances in which he tries to pass his kingship to serenoa, most notably at the end of golden route. he tried several times in different instances… it’s so… man. again, so not ready for liberty route.

Idea for a story

I got nothing sorry

Unpopular opinion

see above - -‘

Favorite relationship

him and serenoa!! the brothers of all time and they don’t even know it… their friendship is so important to me. serenoa’s one of the few people roland really jokes with, and he returns the jests as well… the choice before the tournament is a really good indicator of their dynamic I think… serenoa always trying his best to reassure and comfort roland… even after everything… they care a lot about each other and it’s very clear… the golden route reveal is so… augh… again! I reiterate for the third time! terrified for liberty route!

him and cordelia are also really good… and the previously mentioned him and frederica

Favorite headcanon

see above-

[leagueofidiots]

Hello i am also a stranger and not involved in the rp you speak of

What's your favorite ships/friendships/dynamics/etc in the rp? And maybe some hcs you wanna share?

Hello random stranger who I don't know

I'm so so obsessed with Spinner/Dabi of course... Four years and they only just now admitted they might be gay for each other that's crazy work. Their wedding will be beautiful. They should like. Start a family or something idk idk. The parallels between their trauma and their responses to it... augh. Also I find it very cute that Dabi's been almost exclusively wearing his hoodies for the last year or so

The StainAngel/DabiRei/Shu dynamic is going to be off the walls they're so funny together. Dabi and Stain bounce off each other so well in scenes they give me horrible brainrot

And Jin and Stain of course <33 I always forget we're the only ones based enough to ship them I think everyone should get on board with it. They're gonna hurt me so bad when we start ruining their relationship (●´□`) /pos In the meantime though they're very cute they deserve an au where they are just happy and chilling methinks

And ofc Dabi and Kurogiri have been going longer than time itself /j I have to mention them. Goths for life

Okie okie headcanons time yaaaay

(Recovery arc) Kurogiri and Dabi are usually up because Kurogiri's making sure Dabi doesn't die and Dabi's bad at taking care of themself. Spinner's also usually awake "playing video games" but A.) he can't stand playing them because they make him think about Tomura and it freaks him out B.) he's too anxious to sleep so he's lowkey watching everybody too

Teehee Stain's literally refused to be around anyone outside of "work" or give anyone any personal information of his since before he killed his parents and he wasn't out before then so he's literally never had anyone use his chosen name for him I've been keeping it in my arsenal for ages it's gonna be so good when he's chill enough I can whip it out Chizome pls pls pls hurry up with your friendship arc /j

Tomura has used his gamer piss bottles for waterboarding purposes and he will do it again. Okay silly intermission over

All for One is extremely jealous that Ujiko gets to fuck his little and he doesn't. He makes Ujiko record their sex tapes and he puts them with the rest of their little collection of patient files. Also he designed their retirement home

Imma be so fr what do I even say for Kurogiri... Kurogiri my darling angel I have said so much about you already. Mwah. Kurogiri has horrible hoarding tendencies if JinJJ makes it anything it is going to make Sako marble it and it'll just have a massive tub full of marbles of shit it's never gonna use ever again

[crossnamara]

yooo i just finished episode 9,,, and i think this is the statement i have the most thoughts about?? idk if i'll be able to articulate everything though, fuck uh so — i do actually believe robert meant well. like i know there's no way to know with the limited information but i do think he was just trying to protect julia from whatever got her mother. that's the impression i got. and i love that !! i love it when people do fucked up things cause they care about someone and i love complicated family dynamics ughhhhhhh kill me /pos — of course rayner was pentecostal. i hate protestants /lh — the hearts in jars fuck hard. i'd want that in my room — lol my dad was in a weird cult-like society but he got kicked out before i was born — sacred geometry oof. my mom's really into that, personally i don't think it's real in the capacity many people believe it to be but yeah. it's hard for me to take seriously — maybe weird but this felt sorta comforting to listen to. like yeah it was all fucked up but just the idea of that guy killing all those people to presumably keep his daughter safe… swoon. i love killers and i love men who are good fathers please just one chance i could give it to him so good ughhhh what who said that uh yeah that's like. everything i can articulate well enough rn?

NO YEAH OH MY GOD ROBERT MONTAUK MEANS SO MUCH TO ME. AUGH ESPECIALLY ABOUT THE OTHER STATEMENT HES IN BC THE GUY GIVING THE STATEMENT IS SUCHHHH A CUNT OH MY GOD.

but yeahh,,,,, he gets so so so much more interesting with later context too. and julia gets another also fucked up father figure. i love julia

THE HEARTS IN JARS FUCK SO HARD. AND THIS CULT SHOWS UP AGAIN. THERE ARE MULTIPLE CULTS BUT THIS IS ONE OF THE MAIN TWO :D