#im thinking like. jack and gates in black sails s1

[majimaisms]

majima and kashiwagi as the captains of the two biggest rival families in the tojo throughout the 90s......... i need to think about this

[beanabouttown]

black sails au inspired by this post (which everyone should read, not just because it explains the concept of the au i’m about to propose, but because it’s objectively a brilliant piece of writing)

“I always liked the idea of a system where every time you use magic, it’s a transaction. It requires something of you. Casting a little illusion only costs you a memory, but you don’t get to pick the memory, and the next time your sister asks if you remember that time at your fifth birthday—you won’t. You can charm the girl you like, but it’ll carve out a chunk of your thigh muscle. Tie your shoelaces with magic, and lose a tooth. Make something appear, and the magic will take the color of your hair. Raise someone from the dead, and you’re bartering away your own life.” (via @notbecauseofvictories) 

(also inspired by my conversation about this au with @autisticthatthouknowestthine) 

james tried to raise thomas from the dead but it didnt work (bc obviously, thomas isn’t dead) - but james assumes it's bc his life isn't worth as much as thomas

im thinking the reason he doesn't try and raise miranda is bc she sacrificed her own life to destroy charlestown

gates has a bunch of memories missing but he's so affable and personable that people just think that he's met so many people and done so many things that he's forgotten, not that he consistently keeps using magic and getting memory penalties

james refuses to do magic normally bc he's terrified of loosing a memory of thomas

after he tries to bring thomas back he's terrified there are memories of thomas hes missing

thomas used to deal in small acts of magic and say "we can always make more memories" also he'd journal extensively and write inscriptions in all of james's books just to leave his fingerprints everywhere

randall is Like That bc he used magic to kill the men beating him and nobody, himself included, knows what he lost

when they're stuck in the doldrums, everyone is going to flint 'why don't you just magic us out of this?'

e.g. john "flint made the doldrums" silver

john"flint is the only man alive who can do magic w no consequences" silver

james "can i risk it can i risk it can i risk it can i risk it can i risk it can i risk it can i risk it can i risk it" flint

the end of s3 is james telling silver why he refuses to do magic now

also. he might be saving up. maybe.... if he does enough good...... if he starts the war...... then his life will be worth thomas'

the most terrifying thing for the men is that flint does everything he does without magic

he's a force of will

the world bends around him and he's either what's left after an act of magic so powerful we cant comprehend or he really is Like That

like people pick up on the absence of Something that is the loss of thomas but dont know what it is

also the "the only thing im ashamed of is not doing something to save him when i had the chance" is james talking about how miranda had brought up the thought of losing his memories of thomas and failing to free him when james was contemplating using magic to get him out of bethlem

silver gives up his leg to save the crew in 2x10. instead of sleight of hand-ing the keys to the chains, he unlocks them and loses his leg

silver uses misdirection magic all the time, makes people forget the discrepancies in his stories

and uses magic to strengthen existing bonds between him and other people that he then uses for his survival

and has through observation found out what kind of magic carries the lowest cost

he's lost his inhibitions

a la the "i see an opportunity i take it i literally cant help myself" speech to max in s1

so bc his inhibitions are lowered he uses more magic, gradually turning him into the thing-not-to-be-trusted that he is in s3 and s4

teach gives up all his memories to last long enough to save jack and anne in 4x03