#cait riddle

[nottriddlethis]

um

hello

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS YET

[riddlebanshee]

Arcane season 2. Hopital.

[caitchercatlady]

Now, this is the definition of fanservice!

OMG I DIDN’T THINK THEY WOULD ACTUALLY DO IT!!!!!!!

[ssour-apathyy]

. . . ⇢ ˗ˏˋ taking care of you

hockey player!vi x basketball player!caitlyn x cheerleader! reader, established relationship, reader is sick, medicine is taken (orally), use of y/n

word count; 1,305

summary; after they learn that you're under the weather, your girlfriends decide to take care of you

a/n; y'all this is my first time writing in like 8 years and it was completely on a whim. written in my flu-riddled, drugged up state so this is likely trash but we move

Caitlyn was the first to notice.

She had her suspicions based off the fact that you were painfully slow at responding to your texts the entire day, but as the cheer squad entered the court to perform their routine one member down, she knew something was wrong.

In the four years that she had known you, you had never been missing. Be it practice, a game, or even just scheduled time for the squad to goof off, you were there. Always.

Worry settled deep into her gut. She tried to focus on the game, she really did, but after she fumbled her third layup of the second quarter, she realised that your absence was affecting her more than the thought.

── ⟢

She kept her head down as the team exited the building, bag slung half-hazardly over her shoulder, and nobody dared to question what's going on with her. As soon as Caitlyn pushed her way through the double doors, Vi pushed herself off the nearby wall and approached.

"Hey, are you good?" she asked carefully, bringing her arms up to softly grasp onto the taller girl's biceps so she could check her over.

"Have you heard from Y/N?" she countered, ignoring Vi's question.

"Ah" the red head hummed knowingly, glancing up at Caitlyn with a small smirk. "So that's what's going on. Missed your good luck charm?"

Caitlyn huffed in response, lightly shoving the other girl's shoulder. "Shut up."

Vi just chuckled and moved to wrap her arm around Cait's waist, slowly guiding her in the direction of her car. "I did, actually. She's sick, got the flu or something."

Caitlyn's eyebrows furrowed and her feet stopped, looking down at Vi in a mix of confusion and worry. "Sick? Why wouldn't she tell me that? I--"

"Relax, cupcake" Vi reassured, gently tugging her to get them moving again. "She only told me after I got done with practice. Didn't want to throw either of us off our game, especially since yours was important."

With a small grumble, Caitlyn slid into the passenger seat as Vi got behind the wheel.

── ⟢

You rolled over with a groan, pulling the bedding further over your head to try and protect your eyes from the bright light spilling into your bedroom, lest it worsen your headache.

All day had been one long continuous stream of; sleep for 20 minutes, wake up because you couldn't breathe, cough up a lung, sip some water, repeat. Painkillers had only weakened the headache, never fully getting rid of it, and so you would lay there and mourn the days of being in good health that you took for granted.

Your mom took a seat at the edge of your bed, pressing a kind hand to your shoulder over the plush duvet. "How are you feeling, sweet pea?" she asked softly, and took your instant groan as your response. "Well, if you're feeling even a little better, you have two visitors."

You perked up just a little at that, slowly lifting the sheet away from your head so you could squint in the direction of your doorway. Your girlfriends stood patiently, Caitlyn being the picture perfect definition of concern, as Vi tried to give you a small wave from around the two grocery bags in her arms.

You moved to sit up, your mom lifting your pillow to lean against the headboard for your comfort, as you gave the two girls a small smile. They carefully stepped into the room, standing a little awkwardly by the foot of your bed as your mom stood up and headed for the door.

"I'm going to make soup. I'll bring some up for the three of you when it's ready." She smiled at the chorus of 'thank you's, and closed the door behind her.

The second the latch clicked, Caitlyn was sat by your side and cradling your face in her hands like you were the world's most precious artefact. "You poor baby" she cooed, eyes roaming over your face as she checked your temperature with the back of her hand. "You're burning up, Y/N. Why didn't you tell us you were sick earlier?"

"Probably because she knew this would happen" Vi teased from where she was emptying the bags out onto your desk. Cait just rolled her eyes and peppered kisses across your face, mumbling a small "be right back" before quickly leaving the room.

"So, I'm pretty sure we brought about half of the store with us" Vi started, stepping to the side and swinging one arm out to gesture at your desk that was now covered in various different snacks and drinks. Your eyes widened slightly and you let out a small laugh of disbelief, which caused her to grin.

She lifted up a bottle of Gatorade and raised an eyebrow questioningly, to which you nodded and patted the space beside you on the bed. Vi carried the bottle over with her, placing it onto your nightstand before climbing up to sit against the headboard next to you. She wrapped one arm around your waist and pulled you into her, manoeuvring you to sit between her legs with your head against her chest, strong arms holding you gently as she rests her chin atop your head.

Caitlyn comes back not long after with a cold, damp flannel in her hand. She picks up the medicine from the desk, and sits down next to you both, pressing the fabric to the hot skin of your forehead. You close your eyes and let out a small sigh of relief, relaxing back into Vi.

"We brought the strong stuff" the taller girl starts, her voice gentle as she uncaps the bottle. "It's nasty, but it works, so you've got to take it, okay?"

You grimace and turn your head away from her in defiance, shuffling a little in Vi's hold. The two girl's eyes meet in a silent exchange of words, and Vi ever so carefully guides your face back towards Cait with a hand on your cheek.

"C'mon, sweets" she murmurs in your ear. "Don'cha wanna be good for us? Hm?"

Damn it.

Your face flushes a little at that, although if anybody asked then you would say it's the fever. With a little huff, you open your eyes to see Cait holding out the spoon of medicine expectantly, and part your lips. She feeds you the liquid and you swallow immediately, releasing a little gack noise at the awful taste as Vi coos and cuddles into you.

"There you go. Good girl" Caitlyn praises, handing you the Gatorade so you can wash it down. She puts the medicine back onto the desk and grabs a couple of snacks and other drinks, setting them onto the nightstand before climbing onto the bed to join you both.

She curls into your side, resting her head on your shoulder as Vi boots up your TV and flicks through the movies listed. "Anything in particular?" she questions softly, pressing a kiss to the crown of your head.

"Wicked" you reply quietly, already feeling your body grow heavy with sleep in response to being surrounded by their warmth. The way Vi is holding you so securely against her, along with Caitlyn's legs intertwined with your own, one arm lazily draped across your stomach, making you feel so safe and secure.

She presses play on the movie and discards the controller to the side, the three of you cuddling further into each other than some would say possible.

And that's how your mom finds you later on, when she comes to check if you're ready to eat. Three sets of soft snores barely audible over the sound of 'I'm not that girl' playing through the speakers. She smiles to herself as she carefully closes the door over on her way out, leaving you to rest peacefully, knowing that you're being taken care of by your girls.

[rottenpumpkin13]

You're a new Shinra employee who gets lost in the building while looking for a microwave to heat up your lunch. You encounter AGSZC/Turks/execs during your search. Describe their various levels of helpfulness. 😀

Cloud: Tries to be helpful but also accidentally makes it worse. "You're looking for a microwave? I can help! Follow me." He confidently leads you down three different hallways, up a flight of stairs, and past several doors he shouldn't have access to but somehow does. After about fifteen minutes, you realize he's lost. He won't admit it. Frowning at the directory map like it's a philosophical riddle. "Strange. I could've sworn it was near the gym..." Eventually, he just sighs, tells you "sometimes we have to accept our circumstances" and walks away. You never get to heat up your lunch and now you've suffered -20 confidence.

Sephiroth: Useless, but in an elegant way. He stares at you like you've just asked him to explain quantum physics, then his gaze drifts into the distance as if contemplating the meaning of existence itself. "A… microwave?" You repeat the question. He considers it deeply, like he's never once in his life had to think about the existence of a microwave. Which, to be fair, he probably hasn't. "That is beyond my expertise. Try the cafeteria." You check the cafeteria. There is no microwave. The lunch lady cackles at you. You return to the hallway, and Sephiroth is gone. Vanished. Never to be seen again.

Reeve: Extremely helpful, but there are consequences. "Oh! A microwave? Okay, follow me!" He personally walks you to the break room, making small talk, and waits while you heat your food. You are grateful. Finally, someone normal. Then you turn around. Cait Sith is standing there. Staring at you. Grinning. "Yer wee lunch smells like somethin' a chocobo dragged in!" You nearly drop your food. You wonder if you were drugged. "Hope ye enjoy it, pal! Wouldnae be me first choice, but hey, some folks got no taste!" You leave in terror.

Reno & Rude: Different approaches, same chaos. Reno goes "Oh yeah, there's one in the Turk lounge. Follow us." They do lead you to a microwave. However, it is very clearly stolen from another department, has a questionable stain inside, and occasionally sparks when it runs. Reno tells you "It's got personality." Rude tells you "Don't worry about the weird noise." Your lunch explodes one minute later.

Tseng: Too busy for this nonsense but actually helps. You approach Tseng while he's reviewing documents. He listens patiently as you ask where the microwave is. Then, without breaking stride, he calls someone on his PHS. "Elena, please escort an employee to the nearest kitchen facility." He hangs up. Elena appears out of nowhere. She walks you to the break room, smiling the entire time, and leaves before you can even thank her.

Rufus: Too rich to care. Rufus blinks at you like you've just asked him where to find peasant food. "A microwave? I've never used such appliance in my life." You confirm. He sighs, rubs his temples, and just gestures vaguely toward the hallway. "Ask the help." You do not find the microwave. You do not find the help. You do, however, find Darkstar, who follows you for the next hour and politely begs for some of your lunch.

Hojo: Dear god, why did you ask him? You were desperate. You made a mistake. "Hmph. You require heat? Intriguing. Perhaps you should consider alternative methods of molecular excitation. There is a reactor chamber on the lower levels that could perform the task at a much more efficient—" You run. You don't stop running. You eat your food cold.

Genesis: Turns this into a critique of your food choices. He gasps when he sees what you're holding. "You're going to eat that?" You explain that yes, you were planning to. He looks disgusted. "Absolutely not. Do you want to die before Act V is discovered?" Then he picks up your lunch and throws it directly into the trash. "Come. We're going to the cafeteria. I will not let you disgrace yourself with that excuse for a meal." You have no choice but to follow him. You do, however, end up with a very fancy lunch.

Zack: Has zero patience for this and decides to improvise. "A microwave? Pfft, who has time for that?" Before you can stop him, he grins, holds up a hand, and casts Fire. Directly at your lunch. Your lunch ignites. "—oh!" He frantically pats it down, nearly burning his hands in the process. The entire hallway now smells like charred failure. "Okay, okay, so that didn't work—but it was a cool idea, right?" He ends up buying you something from the vending machine as an apology.

Angeal: Has made it his life mission to find you a microwave. The moment you ask, Angeal gives you a serious nod. "A hot meal is important. No one should have to eat cold food." Then he dedicates himself entirely to the task. You have never seen a man take a quest this seriously. He interrogates security guards. He questions other SOLDIERs. He even asks Lazard about the corporate policies on employee kitchen access. "Shinra should be providing more break room amenities." Lazard disagrees and points out the several microwave incidents that have happened at SOLDIER alone. Angeal and Lazars start going at it, arguing. You stand there awkwardly. You require help.

[jinxfixeseverything]

10/26 The Establishment (chapter 10)

Notes and disclaimers: Story is JINX/FEMALE READER. Most chapters contain SMUT and or FLUFF, there is LIGHT ANGST in a few.

Important notes: Jinx is canonically bisexual in this story. I do not own any of these characters, I just play with them. 

Warning: Story will contain VERY graphic depictions of WLW, main coupling will consist of two switches to keep everyone happy.  TW: Chapter contains coercive language, but all sex is consensual between two adults throughout the fiction.

I’ll shut up now and I really hope you enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later that evening, you and Vi are at a booth sitting in The Last Drop. “So this is why I’m thinking if I can get like a temporary job on one of the Bilgewater docks, for just a couple of weeks, I can get more than coins together and…” Cait and Jinx walk over at that moment carrying drinks and a basket of nacho looking snacks.

“Thanks, Gorgeous.” Vi says to Cait as she sits next to Vi. Vi wrapping an arm around her waist. “Most welcome, My Love.” Cait replies, smiling warmly at her. 

Jinx slides in next to you, bringing her knee up to her chest and dropping a protective arm around your shoulders.

Vi continues “But do you know how dangerous those warehouses are? They have flesh eating rats as big as your arm. I’m not joking.”

“Why are we talking about flesh eating rats?” Cait asks with a grimace.

“I’m looking to get a job.” You explain. “You don’t need a job.” Jinx interrupts, with a grumble, taking a swing of her fireball. “How am I going to pay for stuff like this without one, Heimerdinger? Riddle me this.” You retort.

“I’ll get it.” Jinx replies, shrugging one shoulder nonchalantly. “You’re not gonna keep paying for stuff.” You tell her seriously. “Well then I’ll just take it.” Jinx fires back. “Guys.” Vi interjects. “Why don’t you start training as a warden at the…” “You are not becoming an enforcer!” Jinx says vehemently, hitting her hand on the table.

“What’s wrong with being an enforcer?” Vi says defensively.

“Have you forgotten our entire childhood?” Jinx scoffs.

“Hey, we’re working really hard to make a difference now and you know that.” Vi reasons, irritation in her voice. Cait sips her mocktail silently, her eye darting between the pair at every exchange.

“And wardens can just do night duties anyway.” Vi explains. “It’s too dangerous!” Jinx counters raising her voice.

“Can we just… change the subject?” You ask rubbing a hand over your face. “I’ll just, figure it out.”

An awkward silence falls over the table. Vi slowly turning her glass. Jinx arms now folded across her chest looking away from everyone.

“So!” Cait finally speaks. “Anyone for a game of pool or darts?” No one answers. “I think I’m gonna put some music on.” You say standing. Jinx shifts her legs to the outside of the booth to let you by, still not looking at you. While you’re picking a new track on the jukebox, you are approached by a woman. She’s tall with an edgey blonde haircut, dressed in tight black leather and studs. “Hey, Cutie, buy you a drink?” She offers. “No, I’m good, thank you.” You smile politely and continue to look through the jukebox tracks.

“Wanna dance?” She asks, stepping forward almost touching you.

“No, I don’t think my girlfriend would like that.” You say in a warning tone. “She’s the jealous type.” You chuckle.

Your eyes reflexively dart over to Jinx against your will and yes of course she’s watching. Trying to look nonchalant you begin reading track listings to yourself. The woman follows where your eyes flickered to, Jinx sitting in the booth with Cait and Vi. Jinx has her eyebrow raised and makes a little salut to the woman.

”Jinx is your girlfriend?” She almost laughed. You didn’t reply, ignoring her mirth as you continue to pick a track. 

“Well, good luck. Enjoy your night, Cutie.” The woman tells you, taking the hint and backing off. You pick a song and head back to the table, shuffling past Jinx back to your seat.

“What the fffffuck did she want?” Jinx questions, irritation in her voice when you return, squeezing by her. “Jinx, don’t start.” Vi says, her voice weary.

“She was just… asking me where the bathroom was.” You say sitting down, trying to move on from the topic. “Uh huh.” Jinx said, not believing you at all. A silence fell on the table.

“Tonight is turning into a bit of a bust, isn’t it?” Caitlyn chuckles awkwardly, trying to lift the tension. “Well make the most of it while my girlfriend is still in Zaun.” Jinx said, snarkiness in her voice. Swigging at her fireball again, looking away from the table.

It was your turn to be irritated. “What the hell do you mean by that?” You ask her. She doesn’t look at you. “Hey.” You say softly touching her arm. She looks to you, her tone nonchalant but her eyebrows furrowed. “I’m just saying, once you get your little coins, you’ll be out of here, right?”

The last few days slowly click into place as she says that. She thinks you want the funds to move on. But that wasn’t the case at all. You wanted them so you could stay, take her out, spoil her. Cait and Vi sit awkwardly. Watching you both. “Excuse us.” You say, addressing them. “Can I talk to you, outside?” You ask Jinx. “Here we go.” Jinx says slumping off the seat, looking miserable.

“We’ll be right back.” You say to Cait and Vi, putting a hand on Jinx’s back to guide her along, which she shrugs away from. “Take your time.” Cait says softly. Vi quietly clasps her fingers together in front of her face.

Once outside the street is busy and loud. “Down here?” You ask Jinx, gesturing to a side street. She drags her feet and follows behind, looking at the floor.

You reach the back of the establishment. Jinx slumps back against the wall, placing one foot back against it. Arms folded. Her face is throughly dejected. She looked so sad, you just wanted to hug her and kiss everything better.

“Spill it then, when are you leaving?” She finally asks you. Music from the bar gently thumps in the background.

“Pj, I’m not leaving. I want coins so I can buy you things and take you places. I love… being here, with you. I don’t wanna go anywhere, not without you. Do you understand that?” You say stepping forward and lacing your fingers to hers. She still doesn’t look up. You close the distance between you. Cupping her face, bringing her eyes to meet yours. They are dark and sad, it almost breaks your heart.

“Hey. Do you believe me?” You ask, needing her to say something.

“I don’t know.” She answers honestly, exhaling. “Everybody I care about always leaves.” She continues. Her tone sad and raspy.

“What can I do, so you can believe me?” You ask, looking into her eyes.

She sighed deeply “I don’t know, time will tell I guess.” She says looking down again. You wrap your arms around her neck and pull her in for a hug. You feel her arms around your waist holding you tight.

“I don’t want to you be sad.” You say holding her close.

“Just keep doing this and I won’t be.” She tells you, nestling her face into your neck.

“I meant what I said. I’m crazy about you, Powder.” You tell her, trying whatever you can to get through.  “Don’t. Don’t say my name. It feels too real.” She requests. Trying to pull away.

“Good! I want it feel real.” You tell her holding her, not letting her pull out of the hug. You move to kiss her. She tries again to pull away but the second you kiss her she melts into your arms. She holds the material of your clothing in her fists, pulling you in tight, like she never wants to let go.

You spend a long time holding and kissing each other. “You feel a little better?” You ask her after the kiss, hugging her close. “I think so.” She answers.

“Good. Let’s head back in.” You say smiling a little, taking Jinx’s hand and starting to lead her away. You walk a few steps and feel her tug you back swiftly, pulling you to the wall and placing her arms either side of you against it.

“I haven’t finished kissing you yet.” Jinx says with a half smile, leaning in again. You chuckle almost shyly and accept more kisses, placing your hands either side of her face. You feel her tongue enter your mouth and kiss her back with the same enthusiasm for a few moments. Starting to feel heated you breaking the kiss to tell her. “Let’s go back inside before they start looking for us.”

Jinx captures both your wrists, holding them against your chest, pinning you. “Shhhh.” She says before kissing you again, more forcefully this time, silencing any protests. After a few minutes her grip on your wrists start to feel uncomfortable. You break the kiss, squirming your arms for her to let go. “Pj.” You whine. She lets go of your wrists. “Sorry.” She whispers against your skin, as she starts roughly kissing and nipping her way down your neck, becoming handsy, feeling for a way under your clothes. Jinx gets like this some times, kind of carried away, you’ve noticed it’s usually when she’s feeling insecure about something, her touch feels more possessive and rough, but with some gentle correction she calms down. “I need to feel you.” Jinx says breathlessly against your neck as she starts to button your pants. “Not here, Pj.” You tell her, worried Cait or Vi would come around the corner at any minute.

“You feel so good, I can’t control myself.” Jinx says putting her hand into your pants and stroking you. You were soaking wet from her roughhousing during the kiss. “Fuck, you’re so wet, don’t make me stop.” She pleads, continuing to rub your wetness and kissing your neck.

You wrap you arms around her neck, her fingers teasing you, she was driving you crazy. “Fuck it, ok.” You say, with that she kisses your mouth and feel her push two fingers up all the way inside you. You let out a groan at the sudden and forceful intrusion. She takes you roughly against the wall. You soon feel the pressure building inside you. It won’t take long if she keeps going this hard. “Slow down.” You command her, not wanting it to be over too quickly. She stops and presses her forehead against your shoulder. Her body racked with tension, you can feel her restraining herself. She lets out a shaky breath. Then begins moving her hand again, slower this time. You moan loudly with each thrust, hoping the noise from the bar covers it up. You move your head forward to kiss her but each time you do she pulls her head back a little, just out of reach. Jinx smiles whenever you can’t reach her, running her tongue over your lips. “Little Bitch.” You say jokingly, out of breath. “One of us is getting fucked against the wall in an alleyway, I’d say you’re the little bitch right now.” She teases, finally kissing you back.

“Do you think they are ok?” Cait asks Violet, concern in her voice.

“I don’t know, they’re either figuring it out or fighting about it.” Vi says. A hint of sadness in her voice. “Oh I hope they don’t break up! They’re so perfect together.” Cait says, alarmed at the possibility. “Should we go check? Maybe we can help.” “Yeah maybe, it’s been a while. Jinx is a hot head, she might say something stupid she regrets. Let’s go see, I don’t want Jinx to be on her own if it’s gone south. You know how she can get when she’s upset. ” Vi says standing.

”Yes. I certainly do.” Cait replied with apprehension.  They leave the bar. “I’ll go this way.” Vi says pointing across the way. “I’ll check over here.” Cait says motioning to the side alley. Cait walks down the alley, feeling like she can hear your voice. She peers around the corner.

Neither of you notice Cait, frozen in her tracks as Jinx finger fucks you against the wall, teasingly pulling back her head so you can’t reach her mouth to kiss her.

Cait turns around quickly, flustered, eyes wide. “Why is it always me?” She mutters to herself walking back down the alley, half traumatised. “Did you find them? Because I’ve checked...” Vi says walking up the alleyway to meet Cait.

“Yes! They’re good! Let’s go, Love!” Cait says linking arms with Vi leading her away.

“They’re ok? Are you sure?” Vi asks with concern.

“I’m positive, let’s leave them to it.” Cait hastily replies pulling Vi with her back to the bar.

“Fuck, babe. I’m gonna cum.” You tell Jinx as you try to grip the wall behind you to stead yourself. Jinx doesn’t let up pumping her fingers in and out of you. Finding nothing to hold you wrap your arms around Jinx’s neck and cum loudly, pushing yourself down onto her fingers, riding out the orgasm.

Jinx chuckles throatily. “Never done that here before.” She says kissing you. You kiss her back but quickly pull away for more air.

“It was gonna happen at some point, there are a lot of alleyways in the lane we haven’t done it in yet.” You joke, gripping her wrist to pull her out of you.

“I wasn’t done but ok.” Jinx quietly pouts, as you remove her. “Yes you are!” You inform her, laughing with astonishment, buttoning up your pants. You lean into her thin frame and peck her pouting lips twice.

“Come on, you, before they really do come out looking for us.” You tell her leading her back to the bar hand in hand.

You push open the door and Jinx wraps her arms around your waist as you walk into The Last Drop, stumbling in like a four legged monster. You both chuckle and you feel her squeeze you tight.

“Where the hell have you two been? We were about to send out a search party.” Vi says relaxing in the booth with her arm around Cait’s shoulders, as you approach.

“Talking.” “Fucking.” You both answer at the same time.

Your mouth gapes open and you slap Jinx lightly on the shoulder. “No we weren’t! Don’t tell them that!” You say lying with utter embarrassment. Sitting down in the booth opposite Vi.

Vi screws her face up with disgust, while Cait looks a little flushed. “Whatever you say.” Jinx replies, amusement in her voice and expression as she flops down next to you, placing her elbow on your shoulder. Not even trying to hide her smile. “Stop saying things to try and gross your sister out.” You reprimand.

“Mission accomplished.” Vi grimaced. You all laugh.

[ofgarnett]

Cait finds the envelope tucked between the iron gates of the mausoleum just after dusk, its lilac perfume drifting oddly through the marble‑cold air. She spends the day, thinking up a response. Finally sits down to pen it as the sun sets.

Dear Jaya El-Amin, Second Sage of Phial, Dubai - Titles are currency only if we both agree to spend them. For now, “Cait” will do. I know the El-Amin name, and I know what “Second Sage of Phial” is supposed to mean. What matters to me is what you choose to do when the books are closed and the ingredients run dry. Garnett keeps its gate swung wide for any witch who needs a steady hand - sharing what we know is how we repay the craft that shelters us. But you’re not just looking for a seat at the common table; you’ve addressed your request to me, and that sets a higher bar. Before I consider offering you my time - answer me plainly. 1. Why now? Your family’s future has worn your name for years; only today do you shrug it off. Tell me what line was crossed, what bone finally snapped, that set you hunting power for yourself instead of prestige for them. 2. Whose blood is on your ledgers? Spare me any soft phrasing about “unintended casualties.” List the lives, the curses, the bargains that turned out worse than you predicted. I need to know how you measure ruin - and whether you flinch from it. 3. What frightens you more: impotence or solitude? One of them will stalk you here. Choose which companion you can outlast. 4. How do you define 'within'? You say you want workings that draw on self rather than reagents. Describe the seat of that self: blood, body, mind, soul, ancestral echo? If the answer is “all of the above,” explain your hierarchy when they disagree. 5. Whom will you fail if I refuse you? Names, not abstractions. I want to picture the faces. Understand, Jaya: Garnett, me especially, welcomes the hungry, not the entitled. Convince me your hunger is your own. I await your reply. Caitlin Siltshore Leader, Caretaker, Garnett Coven

She folds the page once - clean, decisive - then lets a bead of dark red wax pool over the join. A pinch of salt, a brief sting for blood: a hush that deafens eavesdroppers and knots liars’ tongues. The wax sets beneath Garnett’s sigil, hissing softly as the spell takes hold. Should she be doing this? When her last cautionary tale still burns so bright? Cait sends the letter.

When: 2 weeks ago @ofgarnett

Dear Caitlin Siltshore, My apologies for the lack of a title in addressing you, I am unaware of the internal structuring of American covens, and do not know if any of the titles from my own coven apply. You do not know me, but you may know of my family. The El-Amin's position in Phial is one that appears to be unshakable, but trust me when I say that it is not as secure as it may look. While I am my family’s chosen heir, I will not be accepting that position, and will instead be focusing on expanding my magical knowledge and ability. I wish to learn new magic, the kind that draws from within instead of relying on ingredients and potions, something that I believe the Garnett coven is well-suited for. I am sure you are very busy, but if you are at all willing to take a student and overlook my previous coven connections, I can be on a plane within the week. If you need further credentials of my previous experience in magical academia, I can provide them, but I would prefer to do so in person, as any form of communication more high-tech than a letter is currently too risky. Best, Jaya El-Amin, Second Sage of Phial, Dubai

The letter itself is neatly written, the dark purple ink unsmudged, with no words crossed out or misspelled. It gives the impression of something that was typed out beforehand, as if to practice getting it right. The paper is expensive, and smells vaguely of lilacs, although on the blank, empty side of the page, there is a dried and pressed goldenrod flower embedded into the paper itself. The envelope is sealed with gold wax, the address of Siltshore Mausoleum written just as neatly as the letter itself in gold ink.

[genericpuff]

The Elephant in the Room - Queer Erasure and Westernization in Lore Olympus (and all its horrid stepchildren)

This is one people have been asking me for a while now, and I've been waiting for the right inspiration to hit, as is required for my ADHD hyperfixation-fueled rants. After recently watching a video that did an objective review of Cait Corrain's Crown of Starlight, I felt now was the time, because Crown of Starlight effectively proves exactly what Lore Olympus - and other Greek myth interpretations like it - has issues with.

And I want to preface this post with one question - why do we keep getting these Greek myth adaptations written by queer women that still wind up perpetuating toxic heteronormative culture?

Buckle up, because this one's HEFTY.

In that aforementioned review of A Crown of Starlight, there were a lot of points that came up about how Cait wrote the female protagonist - Ariadne, wife of Dionysus - where I immediately stopped and went, "Wait, this sounds awfully familiar."

It should be mentioned briefly for anyone who's unaware - Cait Corrain is an author who was recently (and still) under fire for using sock puppet accounts on GoodReads to intentionally sabotage the ratings of other debut authors, many of whom were her own peers or from the same publishing imprint as her (Del Rey), and most of whom were POC. I mentioned in that previous essay that I just linked that Cait Corrain is a fan of Lore Olympus and decided to give it 5 star ratings from these alt accounts, not just de-legitimizing the reputation of the books she bombed, but also the ones that she praised (including her own book, because of course she had to leave an obvious calling card LMAO). I felt it necessary to tie Cait into my discussion of white feminism in LO and its fanbase because people like Cait are exactly who we're talking about when we dissect the intent and consequences of LO's writing - much of its brand of "feminism" seems to only be catered to a specific kind of woman (i.e. white women who fetishize queer people/relationships) and seem to encourage/embrace violence towards women if those women aren't "behaving correctly" or just aren't fortunate enough to be white and rich - and so Cait choosing to give Lore Olympus 5 stars in her hate-raiding and even have it visibly in the background of her headshot photos was... not exactly disproving my argument that these are the types of people LO caters to and encourages, to say the least.

But then I watched Read with Rachel's "Did It Deserve 1 Star" review of Crown of Starlight and it cemented my assumptions and concerns regarding Cait's intentions and influences even more.

As a brief tangent, I've read A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Claire. It very obviously is using Lore Olympus as its blueprints, but it's not super obvious that if you didn't read Lore Olympus or weren't aware of it, you probably wouldn't notice. It's still not a great book on its own, it's riddled with writing problems, but at least it can call itself its own thing to some degree.

Crown of Starlight is just blatant Lore Olympus fanfiction pretending to be original, even down to its marketing (which I'll get to shortly) but swapping out Hades and Persephone with Dionysus and Ariadne, and setting the entire story in space. Why is it in space? There doesn't seem to be any actual necessary reason for this, it just is, go with it. I'd be willing to accept this because changing up the setting of pre-existing stories can be fun (god knows I loved the premise enough of Lore Olympus being a modern day Greek myth retelling that I had to go and make my own version of it that's still in that modern setting) but as RWR says in her review:

"... we're told that it's the 'island' of Crete, but then we talk about commbands, airlocks, [holo-shields] and it wasn't really written in a way that I felt meshed 'Greek retelling' and 'sci-fi' in a cohesive way."

Needless to say, Crown of Starlight unsurprisingly suffers from the same problems Lore Olympus does, where it will try to "subvert" the original myths by changing their setting and characters and then doing absolutely nothing interesting with them to justify those changes.

To really drive my point home that Crown of Starlight is undoubtedly Lore Olympus fanfiction, Lore Olympus was literally used as a comparison point in Crown of Starlight's marketing which is a fair tactic to use to advertise to a specific niche or demographic, and while some have argued that Cait isn't technically the one to come up with that marketing jargon, it's made much more clear that she used that comparison herself when writing and pitching the book because it is quite literally just Lore Olympus with a different couple in space, right down to the main female protagonist being part of a purity cult. And of course it wouldn't be a bad Wattpad romance if it didn't have our main female protagonist Ariadne talking about how inconvenient her MASSIVE BREASTS are and of COURSE Ariadne is a poor innocent uwu babygirl who needs a man to come in and rescue her from the evil purity cult and of COURSE it hints at them eventually having raunchy sex just for it to wind up being milquetoast bondage and of COURSE it all just winds up taking traditionally queer characters and stories and turning them into this sanitized Disney-esque plotline where the boy and girl were always meant to be together and nothing else matters except their love-

And that, at its core, really just screams "this is bad LO fanfiction". From the stylization of the book's writing which never outgrew its "adorkable fanfiction writing" phase-

"Realizing that I'm being gaslit by my entire world doesn't make it easier to deal with, but hey, at least I still have some part of my soul!" - an excerpt from Crown of Starlight quoted from RWR's review timestamp 13:03

-to the "creative" choices made to turn Ariadne into a chastity cult girl whose resolution is obviously going to be to have what's implied to be dirty raunchy sex just for it to be like... the most tame level one bondage stuff;

-to the classic "she breasted boobily down the stairs" focus on Ariadne's body and breasts and sex appeal that's being kept in check by that pesky purity club.

And that's really disappointing because I had seen people say, "Yeah, Cait did an awful thing and deserves to be removed from her publishing schedule, but it's a shame that that book was written by Cait because it's actually a really good book!" because now it's just making me even more sus of people's Greek myth adaption recommendations (I'm still mad at BookTok for convincing me that A Touch of Darkness was worth reading). All I could think while listening to some of the excerpts quoted by RWR was that if I didn't know about Cait Corrain and read Crown of Starlight blind, I'd undoubtedly assume it was being written by a heterocis guy... but it's in fact being written by a queer woman.

And this is where I segue into talking about the root of this problem, where the calls are really coming from - Lore Olympus and its erasure of queer identities and relationships, despite also being written by a queer woman who should know better.

I could think of no better character to help carry this essay than Eros.

Unlike many of the characters in LO that Rachel has managed to straightwash by changing their motives entirely or straight up changing their identity from the source material (ex. Zeus, Apollo, Crocus who was turned into a flower nymph, Dionysus and Achilles because they're both literally babies, the list goes on), Eros has largely remained the same on paper who had zero reason to not be queer within the story.

Eros is still the god of love in this, he's still a guy and presumed to be an adult, but we NEVER see or explore him having relationships with anyone other than Psyche, aside from a brief mention of organizing orgies in the beginning that's used as a quick joke and then promptly never mentioned again.

Just like with Crown of Starlight and A Touch of Darkness and all these other "dark romance" stories, it's that brand of "pretends to be sexually liberating but isn't actually" writing, where they'll briefly mention orgies or sex-related things and then beat around the bush or avoid involving them entirely like a kid at Sunday school who doesn't want to say the word "penis".

(fr out of all the corny and awful slang for genitals I've seen used in stories like this, "a certain part of my anatomy" is definitely one of the most boring and stupid, like for god's sakes Hades you're both adults and at the beginning of this comic you thought she wanted to bang in the kitchen, why are you suddenly talking like a 7 year old boy LOL)

All that aside, while Eros might still be hinted at being queer and sex-positive, it's only as vaguely as possible so that the story can quickly move on to focus on him and Psyche or, better yet, Hades and Persephone. When Eros isn't deadset on finding Psyche, he's being the gay best friend for Persephone, who he has NO right having a friendship with when he introduced himself by intentionally getting her as drunk as possible with the intent of dumping her in Hades' car as per his mom's command. It's brushed off later as "well Aphrodite maaade him do it, for Psycheee!" but Eros still agreed to potentially put Persephone in danger over a relationship that had NOTHING to do with her and was also mostly his fault in its fallout (which Artemis calls him out for, but of course, like all the other times characters have called out the actual issues in the story they're inhabiting, they get brushed aside so that Persephone can talk about Hades):

Now, the Eros and Psyche plotline is one I've talked about before here and not the focus of this essay so I'll keep this tangent brief, but it's absolutely wild to me that Rachel took a story about a woman going to the ends of the earth to prove her love for someone whose trust she broke (a common theme in a lot of Greek myth stories, such as the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice) and turned it into... woman of color gets turned into a nymph slave for Aphrodite to 'test' Eros, a test that isn't clear at all in what it's trying to achieve, and wait hold up, didn't Eros actually fail that test by kissing Ampelus while completely unaware that it was Psyche-

This is just that episode of Family Guy where Peter justifies emotionally cheating and eventually physically cheating on Lois because "well you were the phone sex lady the whole time so no harm done!", isn't it? (×﹏×)

Anyways. It's all very convenient that the comic will hint at queer rep just to either have it be a constant question of whether or not they're actually queer (ex. Morpheus) OR to have it be promptly swept under the rug to make way for other characters/plot points. It's like when mongie tried to be "inclusive" by writing a stereotypical vaguely Asian character with no specific ethnicity just to get angry at her fanbase for calling her out on this that you can't just call a vaguely Asian character "representation" of anything (because Asia is MASSIVE and covers so many different ethnicities and languages and cultures).

Eros is only as gay as he needs to be to fill the role of "gay best friend" for Persephone.

Krokos is no longer a male lover of Hermes but a flower nymph created by Persephone because... apparently we can't dare imply that Hermes would be into anyone besides his unrequited childhood love, Persephone.

Achilles is introduced as a baby even though it makes no sense in the comic's own timeline where Odysseus is presumably already a well-known hero in Olympus, so much so that he was invited to the Panathenea.

Apollo is turned into a flat-out rapist who's only concerned with getting Persephone at all costs and when that doesn't work, he tries to get ANOTHER flower nymph (Daphne) who's actually genuinely interested in him (contrary to the original myth, there's that "swap it subversion" Rachel is known for) to cut her hair so she'll resemble Persephone more because we can't have a single plot point not resolve around Persephone.

Despite there being loads of genderbent characters already, Morpheus is supposedly the only one we're supposed to assume is specifically trans and not just a gender-flipped version of a Greek myth character. Why? Not because Rachel stated so explicitly, not because the comic has actually explored her identity as a trans woman, but because the readers just assumed it in good faith and Rachel was clearly fine with taking credit for trans representation that's only there via assumption (and only confirmed via her mods in Discord, which is... not how you establish canon information in your comic, Rachel.)

Hestia and Athena are part of a chastity club, until uh oh how convenient that they're secretly in a relationship with each other even though it further vilifies them and their morals, particularly Hestia who was promptly called out for being a hypocrite for taking Persephone's coat gifted to her from Hades while secretly being in a relationship the whole time. Not only does the Hestia and Athena relationship manage to commit queer erasure - of two gods who are considered icons in the aroace communities - but it also makes the only two lesbians in the story come across as assholes AND ON TOP OF THAT ALSO manages to somehow invalidate queer sex and relationships as being legitimate due to the even deeper implication that breaking their chastity vows "doesn't count" because it's not a male x female relationship. It's the 'ole poophole loophole all over again.

And then there's Artemis, who has MORE REASON THAN EVER TO BE IN THE PLOT but keeps being conveniently ignored. Her finding out about Hestia and Athena doesn't get any more screentime than her going "oh you're in a relationship, okay" , we never see her question the true intentions of TGOEM or what it means to her, we never see her have any opportunity to carve out her identity beyond just being Apollo's twin sister (it tries to at times, but then immediately goes nowhere with it, amounting to just poetic word salad), and she really just comes across as what a lot of people assume aroace people to be - alone and standoffish, because obviously someone who's nice and a good person would be in a relationship, there has to be a reason they don't want to have sex or fall in love, and that reason obviously has to be that they just hate everyone and want to be alone forever (￢_￢;) Then again, like many of the queer characters in LO, I don't know if I can definitively call her aroace because it's kept as vague as possible, and - going by Rachel's answers to these questions way back in her Tumblr era - apparently people can't be gay and ace at the same time-

There are undoubtedly loads more examples that I could cover here but that goes for practically any essay I write about LO - the more you peel it apart, the more you start unearthing some really questionable and frankly mean-spirited stuff. Queer people feel largely ignored in LO, alongside many of its derivative offspring such as A Touch of Darkness and Crown of Starlight, and it really speaks to how so many people - queer women, no less - have somehow managed to bastardize and sanitize what were traditionally very queer stories with queer characters. It's like these people think "olden times" and can only get as far as "women were slaves and men were rich assholes". Like, yeah, okay, that was the case for many cultures, but not all of them, and for some of them it wasn't as clear cut as that, many had misogynist power struggles in them while also still celebrating women and queer people in their own way. Greek myth is full of stories of women being forced into marriage or being made the victims of assault, but many of them are supportive of women and their struggles, unlike works like LO that somehow manage to be less feminist and sympathetic to women and queer people than these works from thousands of years ago.

This is another topic that's surely meant for another post, but it really speaks not only to the straightwashing and whitewashing of Greek myth, but also the Westernizing of it. That's not to say Rachel Smythe and Cait Corrain and Scarlett St. Claire are intentionally trying to whitewash another culture's works here, but if you're raised predominantly on Western media, you're undoubtedly going to absentmindedly adopt ideas about society that are primarily molded around Western beliefs .

And this is apparent in LO, while Rachel is from New Zealand, you can tell she grew up on a lot of Western media and its influences are sorely showing through LO's worldbuilding, character designs, and narrative choices. That "modern setting" that I mentioned before is much less Greek and a lot more adjacent to The Kardashians which lends to the theories that most of the media that Rachel consumes is American. Rather than actually going to the effort of doing her research on Greek culture, she seems to just prefer defaulting to the easiest assumption of how modern society is across the board - a generic Los Angeles clone with big glass skyscrapers and pavement walkways. She rarely ever draws food or clothing from those time periods; despite this story being about gods she's spent so little time on the people who passed on the stories about those gods, the mortals, and the gods themselves rarely feel like gods, rather just like Hollywood celebrities covered in body paint. The clothing feels very generic and uninspired with often very little Greek influence, even though Greek clothing is designed around Mediterranean living which you could do a lot with, to such an egregiously Western degree that Hades and Persephone's wedding was Christian-coded. The food... well, there ISN'T any because as we've seen, like the stereotypical American child, Persephone apparently only wants chicken nuggies and Skittles for dinner, so we never see her eat; and not only do we not see Persephone eat, but Rachel weirdly tries to use Persephone's vegetarianism as some kind of anti-capitalist characterization when much of the Greek diet is predominantly vegetarian. It's NOT HARD or uncommon to be a vegetarian in Greece!

(it looks like they're literally all eating the same thing so IDK what Hera is referring to here, it looks like they're all eating toast and lettuce LMAO)

All that's to say, much of LO - and the books like it that I've gone over here - are written with this idea that every culture - including the one that it's trying to adapt - was subject to the same ideas that Western culture lives by in the modern day - that being a vegetarian is "counterculture" in every culture, that the notion of sexual purity is enforced in the same way it's enforced in the Western education system (cough Christianity cough), that queer or otherwise "unconventional" relationships should stay inside the bedroom and not be seen. As much as Rachel claims she wants to "fight the patriarchy" and "deconstruct purity culture", all she winds up doing is reinforcing it through a Westernized lens, which is, as I've talked about before, very indicative of right-leaning white feminism and what it embraces and promotes - being a "good woman" who follows the rules and willingly becomes part of the system that's oppressing them because that's what "good women" do. Women who are confidant in their sexuality are evil and should be shunned for being "sluts". Women who are in relationships with other women "don't count" as real relationships the same way heteronormative relationships do, and cannot be trusted because they're likely trying to spread an agenda that's designed to brainwash heterocis women. Women should only aim to achieve marriage and their entire personality has to be built around their true love. Women are allowed to be kinky, but only as kinky as roleplaying the exact same gender structures that puts the man in a position to dominate a woman, and it should always and only ever be with her first love who she marries immediately, no one else.

This is exactly what the critics are getting at when they hold LO - and its creator - accountable for the messages it's been sending for five years to its audience of middle aged women and young girls. Having a demographic is fine, if this were just a comic for girls it would be fine, but it becomes a lot more problematic when that demographic is being fed toxic power fantasy stories based on a culture that's being gentrified and sanitized of all its original messaging and characterization right before our eyes. It feels blatantly misinformed from the very beginning in its intention to be a "feminist retelling" of Greek myth, because somehow Lore Olympus manages to be less feminist than these stories drafted and written by men from 2000+ years ago.

I opened this essay with a question: why do we keep getting these Greek myth adaptations written by queer women that still wind up perpetuating toxic heteronormative culture?

I think cases like these really highlight how deep the heteronormative brainwashing from childhood onward goes. That, despite these writers being queer or women, still manage to reinforce the same ideas and tropes and harmful predisposed notions that were designed to be used explicitly against queer people and women. These are things that we can't ever stop challenging, and asking, and truly deconstructing, because it runs deep in many of us who grew up on popular media even as innocent as Disney. Learning about more complex social concepts like sexism and misogyny and queerphobia doesn't automatically absolve us of those very same biases that have been both blatantly and subtly ingrained into us since childhood. All that said, Rachel being bisexual does not mean she's not capable of straightwashing; Cait Corrain being a queer debut author with a POC main character didn't stop them from targeting other POC debut authors at their own imprint; being part of any minority group or identifier does not automatically protect you from perpetuating the cycle that you, too, likely had enforced upon you at some point or another in your life. The fact that these creators and writers are still perpetuating that cycle to begin with is indicative of why it's a cycle at all - it takes work to break on a subconscious level because those cycles are specifically designed to target and hijack the subconscious.

At its worst, do you really think Lore Olympus can claim to be a feminist retelling that's "deconstructing purity culture" when the creator herself admittedly never fully identified or understood sexism until her mid-30's and has the audacity to say her audience is "harsh" on the female characters that she constantly vilifies through her own narrative?

"I feel like female characters in general, people will be a little harsher on them and sometimes way harsher on them, and I used to be like.. before I started writing the story and like making a story I was like yeah, sexism is not that bad, and [now] I was like oh it's bad. It's quite bad [laughs], so like, I don't know, I feel like the female characters in the story don't get so much of a pass. But this isn't consistent across the board, it's not all the time" - Rachel Smythe, in an interview with Girl Wonder Webtoon Podcast

If Lore Olympus truly was just a series meant to be for fun "no thoughts head empty" drama and spice, that would be fine. I've said it time and time before on this blog and I'll say it again: I wouldn't have an issue if Rachel was just writing a story exclusively revolving around heterocis men and women. I'm just frustrated and tired and annoyed that she keeps lying about it, and doubly so that this comic and its creator who claim to be "feminist" have inspired other people in the same headspace to continue to perpetuate that cycle through works that are clearly inspired by LO and never challenged the things LO promoted - violence towards "unconventional" women, violence towards POC, and erasure of queer people. And worst of all, for writers like Cait Corrain, it's more than just writing a really bad book with really bad messaging, it's going so far as intentionally targeting those same groups of people that are regularly vilified in works like LO - people who are just existing, who don't pose a threat to anyone, but had the misfortune of becoming the target of a white woman's insecurity.

I don't know what the answer to this problem is. I don't know what form the solution will come in, if any, to address the ongoing issues with Greek myth adaptions that are being sorely written through an "America as the default" point of view and praised for "rewriting the script of Greek mythology", quite literally cultural appropriation happening live right before our eyes all for the sake of cheap entertainment. Maybe it'll take the failings of works like Crown of Starlight to really get people talking about it. But so long as the roots of these works - such as Lore Olympus - are still being protected and marketed en masse by the same kinds of people who don't see the issue in Americanizing other cultures and their stories, then Lore Olympus and Crown of Starlight will not be the last ones to cause harm to the source material - and the cultures that source material is born from and a part of - they're taking from.

I opened this post with a question, and I'm going to close it with another to really leave it as food for thought. That question comes from another video that I'll link here for you to watch at your convenience that spends even more time diving into and discussing the nature of works like this that have seemingly attempted to "deconstruct" the very dogmas that they still wind up reinforcing all the same.

Does the romance genre have a white supremacy problem?

(yes. yes, it does.)

[fdblaize]

okay okay so imagine if giopara gets caught in a hexplosion and vanishes from the face of the earth okay? a few months pass by already and there's still no sign of him so viktor starts investigating and eventually discovers that jayce was whisked away into an au. so he follows and when he gets there jayce is happy??? not like the usual face he wears but like hes genuinely smiling and shit, just like when they were at the academy together but more. sees him bantering with younger viktor and teasing cait and bonding with ximena. they still head back to the og verse together but its awkward affffff. viktor thinks jayce was happier in the au and is riddled with guilt and jayce thinks he emotionally cheated on viktor by being happy in the au and is riddled with guilt. they dont talk about it. they fuck tho. do you se—*gunshot*

[constantfragmentation]

It's bugging me...

The inconsistencies and a lack of detail and continuity in S2. S1 was all about the tiniest details.

Don't get me wrong, the animation is gorgeous, BUT --

The underwater scene is where Jinx lets Silco go.

He was RIDDLED with bullets. Yet, not a mark on him?

Why is his damaged eye closed? I thought he didn't have an eyelid. Artistically, I think having his lifeless eyes glazed over would have been more dramatic, considering it's Silco. Nah, he just sinks like Jack to the depths of the Titanic.

How deep IS the Pilt River?? I'm assuming that's where she 'buried' him.

The whole first act is so damn rushed.

No one seems to wonder what happened to Silco? He was only the main person holding the Underground together by the strands of his pomade hair. His death is a BIG deal, yet it's glossed over. No one questioned any of it???

Sevika is just, okay, let's move on like it's another day (granted, Zaunites are probably predisposed to be like that, but that doesn't make for good storytelling if you're not letting the audience in on anything), and chatting it up with Jinx as if they just bonded. I didn't feel that happen. I like that they low-key ripped into him post mortem, because that feels natural but what got them in that room together DOESN'T.

I want to know how these characters FEEL. You got that in spades during S1. But S2 is just expecting you to assume or they would attempt to take the time to use what would be great writing and evolving these characters.

Caitlin is hurting, I get it. But she went full Commando Psycho mode. Girl, everyone has lost parents, siblings, etc... She doesn't even flinch when Vi tells her Enforcers killed BOTH her parents. She's lost a beloved sister... but Cait is affronted when Vi shirks from becoming an Enforcer. Let's just forget what PIltover did to Zaun for generations and to LOADS of people.

Vi? Oh girl. What happened to you?

Jinx is a bit better but not much. I don't buy Silco's death was a zap to the brain to chill her out a bit. She's still my Chaos Queen but unless there is something to explain some shit in the following episodes, I'm going to be really ticked at the lack of care in characterizations with who are the supposed leads in this story.

Jesus Viktor. That's it. That's all I got.

Well, I did LOL when he woke up and gave Jayce the "bye Felicia" in 2.2 seconds.

We don't get to know what Ekko is thinking since all this shit went down? As far as he knows, Jinx is dead and to learn to she bombed Piltover?

The music videos substituting for the plot are REALLY bugging me. It's lazy writing. The music was used well in S1 to ENHANCE the scene (well, except for giving Imagine Dragons an animated cameo). Here, it's used as exposition, but it's not nearly good enough.

Useless characters and side-characters. Poorly executed plot devices. Uninteresting plot devices and trying to use the S1 parallels for characterizations.

S1 took time to introduce and flesh out these characters, even the side-characters.

We only had Vander for 3 episodes but he was a HUGE character. Marcus, Mylo, Claggor, Benzo, Grayson, Finn.... all were interesting and played an important part.

Jayce continues to be blah. So I'm not bothered.

Ambessa looks to be the new villain but it's not hitting with me. Plus, there's zero foreshadowing on some stuff in her arc that would have been useful last season.

I like Mel but I'm waiting to see what happens with her.

Hermydingding going all Mission Impossible. Just stop. Does he not give two furry fucks about what happened to his fellow councilmembers and Piltover?

I feel like RIot is trying to shove way too much into one season and sacrificing good story-telling to do it.

I miss the details.

So far, I'm really underwhelmed with this season.

[xenodile]

You can't trick me into watching Arcane because I played League of Legends for years and know where all these characters came from. You can't sell me realistic nuanced drama about fucking JINX of all characters because I was there for her champion release and she was just The Jonkler For Women. I don't care about whatever tragic bisexual backstory you came up with for Viktor, I know he becomes Cyborg Skeletor shooting death rays out of his third arm. Anything between Cait and Vi is retroactive queer baiting because Riot made those two in 2011 and 2012, and Riot wouldn't explicitly say they had a queer character until Neeko in 2018.

Warwick used to be a bounty hunter cursed by Soraka because he seduced and tricked her, and Singed literally has no backstory, he's JUST an asshole chemist whose name is an anagram of design because he was the first character they made for the game. I don't need a show telling me Jayce is a shithead, I had to deal with that fucker in top lane for months when he was new, I already hate him.

I am NOT watching the League of Legends propaganda cartoon that Riot keeps sinking money into to divert attention from how their company was/is as riddled with sex pests and misogynists as Blizzard.

[albinokittens300]

THE TRAILER MAN. THAT WAS WILD.

Okay beginning with some things we notably DID NOT SEE:

-Viktor or Mel. Like not a single frame of them. I saw someone found that some version of Jayce was in there, shown by his cuff with the gem on it. But no Mel or Viktor. Interesting. I don't think Viktor and Mel fans should worry...just be hype because they are keeping whatever spoiler-y thing they are involved with a secret. At least with Viktor. There is a slim chance still of Mel being dead but. Not huge. I am sure anything they could share of her would be spoiler riddled as well, so they aren't.

NOW ON TO WHAT WE DID SEE-

-JINX GOT A NEW LOOK. I LOVE IT SO MUCH. HER FACEPAINT. THE CUT SHORT HAIR. The veil (?) thingy. Man she looks AWESOME. Was genuinely wondering if she'd get a new look and am SO Happy about it.

-MY BOY EKKO! SO much Ekko in this. More Ekko than I expected, but I am so thoroughly here for it. Him on his hoverborad, and getting caught by Vi was just *cheifs kiss*. He also seems to have some kind of Piltover-like outfit change too? I mean we know he goes there at some point this season by the shared clip...so makes sense. I am LOVEING the manbun look on him too.

-Oh yes not to mention he's been PAINTED UP Jinx style. Like...she really isn't subtle is she XD? The scene where is is talking about letting things go to move forward you can also see in the corner Jinx's blue hair. And that is on top of that sentiment really making sense for him to say to Jinx.

-It does make me curious why they wove that in with a shot of something happening to Heimerdinger though...is something gonna happen to the small fluffly old man? Maybe. The trailer is out to maybe make us think so.

-Vi looks to be having he worst time for most of this trailer. Which isn't a shock, from what we've heard. But her in from of the mirror hurt me so bad. Can I just hug her? I feel like hugging her. There is a bit of hope seeing her working with Ekko, that lifted my heart a little.

-VI V. WARRICK (probably VANDER) AHHH I AM NOT READY HELP.

-Cait, my girl, I hope you get through this revenge phase quickly please. I love you, I get your feelings. Talking about ripping laughs out of peoples throats is not the best approach to dealing with these things.

-That said cooperation between Caitlyn and Ambessa is...interesting. Very interesting. Makes sense with the 'you will have vengeance' line. But am very curious the way that will play out and how long Caitlyn is gonna take to catch on that working with Noxus might not be the best thing ever. Cause yea I do think that partnership isn't gonna last long.

In general, I am so hyped up. I want Novemeber to be here like yesterday.

[like-wuatafauq]

Ppl who want Caitlyn and Vi to have angry sex confuse me. They deserve softness, i doubt either of them would want to bring any roughness into the bedroom anytime soon, given what they’ve been through. Anyway Caitlyn better kiss away where she hit Vi. When her grief starts to settle and her anger dissipates, you know that she’s going to be riddled with guilt

Honestly I agree with this soooooo much like I'm sure they can get freaky later GO LESBIANS or whatever but fr. Like they need so much softness and also, I think it's the fact that Caitlyn has an actual reasoning to her reaction, that i could see them having makeup sex even if its soft sex (not that it's an excuse for abuse I'm not trying to say that's okay, especially in wlw communities in real life how butch women tend to be the ones who get abused because it's less likely to be caught) but I mean in this fictional scenario where her lover's sister is the cause of her mom's death and how she keeps not taking a shot because of Vi like of course she's gonna be angry and think hmm maybe Vi is just like everyone else etc.

But I definitely think they need softness,I think ppl probably say rough make up sex or something bcuz that would seem likely and more acceptable if the couple was just having heated arguments but what them two have isn't just heated arguments, it's pain, it's deep hurt. And I definitely agree only softness can heal that, like I wouldn't want to be violent to my partner after having to deal with the world already being violent. Like a girl's gotta breathe, ya know?

I could, however, see it as them arguing and having a rough kiss or rough makeout and then taking a breadth and slowing down and having the rest be soft plus having Caitlyn kiss Vi up while apologizing or something, good god Cait plz make it up to her. That poor woman didn't even fight back she just took it.

[styusha-10]

Sherlock Holmes was an otherworldly creature indeed. I am no man of superstition, although I vaguely remember my grandmother’s tales of daione sìth. Holmes did not distinctly resemble any of the fair folk, these light, ethereally beautiful golden-haired men and women, and yet somehow he gave the same impression. His smooth, almost catlike movements reminded me of cait-sìth and, in all honesty, during investigations he often was the very picture of a predator pursuing the prey or cat playing with mice. I could easily imagine him in the highlands of my homeland, windy and boundless, as to my mind he had the soul of Scottish winds, but I also understood perfectly well that there was no place for him anywhere except in London, hustling and bustling and pulsating with life, crimes and mysteries.

He was not completely detached from the human world, basically having an excellent understanding of human affections, related to the motives of crimes, such as love or envy, though his knowledge clearly came from prolonged observation rather than from personal experience. He was wise enough to seek my aid when something eluded his understanding, which I prefer to consider as a sign of trust on his part.

He was too theatrical or too aloof at times — traits that I mostly attribute to the eccentricity inherent in genius. He also aged much more slowly than me, but this could easily be associated with our slightly spreading ages and his lack of habit of taking anything too personally, which I am often guilty of. Although in the decade we knew each other, I turned almost half gray, and he remained largely the same, except for a couple of new wrinkles and heavier bags under his eyes.

His voice was the voice of a siren or ben-varrey and he had a natural gift of instantly capturing the attention of everyone in the room with the help of said voice and some kind of internal magnetism, which made people instinctively trust him and obey him.

And yet my favourite of his many noble traits I dedicated myself to immortalise was perhaps his benevolence. With such a mind, such power, it would be too easy to use it for evil, something we had unfortunately seen too many times. His gaze on me which I felt quite often was never heavy or insolent and had not ever bothered me. Clients — those at least who seemed nice and did not irritate him immediately — he treated with kind patience, amiable interest and generous if sometimes mannered hospitality, being rude not out of intention to offend, but simply out of his energetic, eccentric nature.

“I am afraid I have accidentally enchanted you, my dear friend", he suddenly said, somewhat sadly and apologetically, one quiet evening on Baker Street. “That kind of devotion that you show to me cannot be expected from any man under normal circumstances.”

“That kind of devotion,” I thought to myself ruefully later that night, “has nothing in common with sidhe’s enchantments.”

This is my first attempt to capture Jeremy Brett's magnificence, and I feel like I haven't done him justice, so there will probably be other takes. Also first attempt in publishing something on Tumblr and nearly first — in writing in English, so feel free to point out any mistakes.

Following a long and good fandom tradition, I consider Watson to be Scottish, hence the writing of almost all the creatures mentioned in Scots.

The cat-sith, whose existence I learned about unacceptably late and did not change anything much, is hunting in the Scottish wastelands. It has an unhealthy addiction to corpses, so it is recommended to distract him with games and riddles, as well as warmth. Doesn't remind you of anyone? However, while writing, I mostly thought about the classic sidhe, adjusted for, uh, almost everything.

I don't know myself whether he is a magical creature, think what you want. To be honest, being portrayed as a magical creature seems unfair to Holmes as a character — part of his charm for me is precisely the fact that he is human, an outstanding human being.

[jaijeijayjei]

First Crushes and Flying Pigs Pt. 2 - Fic

Caitlyn learns some unbelievable news. Happy news, but unbelievable nonetheless.

Relationships: Mel & Caitlyn, Jayce & Caitlyn, Mel/Jayce, (sorta?) Mel/Caitlyn

Word count: 779

Chapter 2/2

Rating: General Audiences, no warnings.

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/63702241/chapters/163407988

Caitlyn let out a low whistle at Jayce’s new office. A huge glass dome interlaced with intricate metal designs spanned over the office, flooding the space with natural light. An iron wrought mobile of the solar system with artistic models of the planets inlaid with precious metals was suspended over the high ceiling. Built in bookcases with precious texts adorned the far wall behind a stately mahogany desk. Several failed Hextech prototypes were proudly displayed throughout the room, a testament to years of research and endurance. 

“Being a Councilor certainly comes with perks,” Caitlyn remarked. 

“Sure does, Sprout,” he winked at her carrying in a box of his personal belongings. “And a lot of responsibilities too,” he sighed as he glanced over his desk at the legislation he had to review and the reports he received from Marcus. 

Caitlyn nudged his shoulder, “You’re a voice for the people, now, Jayce. It’s about time the council had a new member unafraid of radical ideas.”

Jayce let out a laugh, “That sounded suspiciously like a compliment.”

“Letting the fame get to your head already?” she joked. 

“As if you’d let that happen,” Jayce replied fondly. 

“Anyways, after working overtime yesterday I managed to clear my calendar for this evening,” he said with a cheerful smile while unpacking his things. 

“Going to visit your mother?” Caitlyn inquired while tracing her hands over a piece of machinery.

“...Actually,” Jayce said slowly, with enthusiasm creeping into his voice. “I’m going on a date tonight.”

Caitlyn paused. “A… a date? With who?” 

“Mel and I are having dinner,” Jayce said proudly. “I got us a reservation at that new restaurant on Bluewind Court!”

Caitlyn thought this must be a prank, but Jayce only kept looking at her, eagerly awaiting her reaction. 

“You’re serious?”

“Yes! Can you believe it? I finally asked Mel out on a date, and she said yes!” 

“Oh heavens! Is Councilor Medarda alright?” Cait exclaimed with a worried pout. 

Jayce looked at her quizzically. “What? Cait, did you hear me?”

“She must have had a severe head injury! Did she not?” 

“Haha, very funny,” he deadpanned

Caitlyn gasped, “Oh I’ve got it! You must have discovered a magical love spell and used runes to enchant her!” 

“First of all, not how runes work, and I know you’re just jealous. I’m going on a date with your celebrity crush,” Jayce said smugly. 

Caitlyn rolled her eyes with a smile. 

For all her teasing, she was happy for Jayce. She knew he had been head over heels for Mel ever since she gave them a chance that fateful night. She’s had to listen to him happily ramble about his every little interaction with her for years, perhaps now he would finally take a step forward in their relationship. 

She still thought it was a little unbelievable though. Jayce Talis, her older brother figure who had no friends at the Academy, an incredibly cheesy brand of charisma, and would practice pickup lines in front of the mirror… was going on a date with Mel Medarda. “Well Caitlyn, the world works in mysterious ways I suppose.”

He pulled out two jackets from a hidden closet in the wall. “Green or black?” 

Caitlyn chucked, “Green. The black makes you look like a schoolboy.”

“Thanks! Now, any words of wisdom for me?”

“Make sure not to sit by the door. She might try to make a run for it.”

“Cait!”

~~ Some Time Later ~~

Caitlyn nearly spit out her tea when she read the headline. 

Councilors Talis and Medarda, Caught in A Scandalous Entanglement - What Could Mel Medarda Be Plotting? 

She skimmed over the article, rolling her eyes at the typical pretentious and sensationalist writing, riddled with disingenuous claims and outright lies no doubt. She felt empathy for Mel, having been the target of such dishonest journalism herself. 

Her eyes rested on a blown up image taken through the window of Mel’s apartment. Jayce was pictured laying across a chaise while resting his head on Mel’s lap, his eyes closed and a contented smile on his face while Mel’s fingers tangled themselves in his hair. The angle obscured Mel’s face but her identity was obvious, and the quiet intimacy of the scene was crystal clear. 

Although she wished it was in better circumstances, she was glad to see Jayce is very much in love and has found someone he felt safe with. It was unsurprising that after seven years of longing their relationship quickly blossomed, settling down roots in both their hearts. 

Caitlyn sighed, thinking of how protective Jayce is over his loved ones and how he would react upon seeing this article. “Those insufferable gossips better brace themselves!” 

[ladydeath-vanserra]

I think it'd be so interesting if there were different fae/folk creatures in each court that you don't really find in other courts. like. for example. despite many celtic nations having some folklore that overlaps, they still have many that are their own

ex. The Morrigan is STRICTLY an Irish Goddess. Considering SJM bastardized and vilified Ireland, why is Mor in the Night court?

ANYWAYS

ok so I consider a lot of the spring court related to Scotland. Why? dunno. it's just a vibe. tho I believe that Ballad of Tam Lin is also a scottish folk ballad if I'm remembering correctly

okokokokok so while the Cat-Shìth CAN be found in Ireland, it is a lot more prevalent in Scottish Folklore, especially the Scottish Highlands

the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland is VERY likely Based! on! the! Cat! Sìth!!!!!!!

Tamlin having to deal with the irritating riddles and nonsense from the Cait-Shìth and having to try to get them to leave him and his people alone via music and his damn fiddle ok thanks 😭😭😭

ANYWAYS THE SPRING COURT HAVING CAT-SÌTH

@bookishfeylin @kateprincessofbluewhales