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does anyone else have this gaping torturous cavity ripped into in their chest forever or is it just me

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She thinks I'm cute!

Amaya and Janai from The Dragon Prince

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So we got a poem this time for 6x03 (transcription for easier use)

Great Cap’n Skall on the map did scrawl, a journey by river and sea. From the isles without name her legend she claimed sailing north, she called herself free. Through forests and flowers, past the uneven towers, our great captain adventured ahead. To the east were the fields autumn’s bountiful yields but Skall did not hunger for bread. Skall hungered for glory, she wanted a story they’d tell it long after she died. So with winter wind’s blowing she sailed north, forgoing a man who’d have made her his bride. Alone in the cold, yet ever so bold Skall made her mark on the map. That northernmost hook is in every book and yet what became of the cap? What’s one mark on the world? Her sails unfurled there was so much more to behold! And oh, winter wailed as east she sailed into waters so deadly and cold. Then came the ice, and trapped in its vise the great captain spent her last days. And while she found peace she wished that, at least she’d told him she loved him, always.

A proper analysis post will follow, but this is just for posterity's sake

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hahah hey dragons. politely asking you to listen to the latest release from epic the musical, specifically "Monster" :)

Oh hell yeah

[ODYSSEUS] How has everything been turned against us? How did suffering become so endless? How am I to reunite with my estranged? Do I need to change? I'm surrounded by the souls of those I've lost I'm the only one whose line I haven't crossed What if the greatest threat we'll find across the sea Is me? What if I'm the monster? What if I'm in the wrong? What if I'm the problem that's been hiding all along? What if I'm the one who killed you Every time I caved to guilt? What if I've been far too kind to foes But a monster to ourselves? What if I'm the monster

Definitely Snake Boi Callum (and Harrow / Viren?) vibes in the best way. I think it makes me think of my OG protagonist Ally the most though, just because of how much I like exploring monstrosity / a loss of sense of self in my work

And if I gotta drop another infant from a wall In an instant so we all don't die [ODYSSEUS, ALL] Then I'll become the Monster I will deal the blow And I'll become the Monster Like none they've ever known So what if I'm the Monster Lurking deep below? I must become the Monster And then we'll make it home

X

Her eyes crinkled. “I appreciate the thought, but… My people think I’m a failure, and yours think I’m a monster. Neither of them are quite wrong. I can never do the right thing when it matters.”

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Posting the full doodle pages and sections of it cause i have a favorite and we all know who it is

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I want one thing from the remainder of this series post-s5 and it’s for Rayla to have reduced/lost her fear of water and Claudia to have developed one

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176.

Soren has a dragon that he's had since he was three.

It's one of the few genuinely happy memories he has from his childhood. Most days he struggles to remember any at all—so much of it was posturing and conflict and useless efforts to win his father's pride. It was not the simplest childhood, certainly not the happiest, but Rexy is still in his quarters, and when Soren looks at him, he thinks of games and laughter and the warmth of his mother's arms against the winter cold.

He's still pretty fond of him, even now. He's dusty and old and beat to shit, his left eye loose, his dye faded, and Soren's not going to pretend he doesn't pull him down sometimes to defend him from invisible armies (a perfectly normal twenty-eight year old thing to do, thank you), but Rexy's definitely seen better days too, and Soren thinks of the twins that are supposed to be arriving any day now and thinks it might be time for a little bit of a makeover before Rexy goes back into the fray.

"That's so sweet," chuckles Callum, as he examines the loose stitching at Rexy's ear. "But I gotta be honest, Soren, I dunno that he's gonna make it even if I do fix him. Kids can be really rough."

Soren doesn't doubt it. Callum and Rayla's little girl is barely eighteen months old and she's a terror to anything in the castle smaller than her. "I still think it's worth trying," he says. "If he goes down, he'll go down in battle, and there's no nobler end for a toy."

"True," snorts Callum. He fiddles Rexy's loose eye and tugs it free. Soren tries not to wince. "You've had him forever though. I know he means a lot to you. Are you sure you wanna let your soon-to-be kids tear him up?"

"Mm." Soren shrugs, a little sentimental, a little heartbroken, but resolute all the same. "I don't really have anything else to pass on," he says quietly. "I've been thinking about it for ages, and I—" He huffs. "I just think that Rexy'll watch over them the same way he watched over me. Does that make sense?"

Callum laughs good naturedly and nudges his arm. "Yeah," he says. "I get it." He glances at Soren from the corner of his eye then, and Soren can feel the way Callum studies him, his mentality, his readiness to be a dad. "Are you okay?"

"Mm," says Soren again. This time he shifts uncomfortably, because the through is terrifying almost more than it is exciting. "I just want to be a better dad than mine was."

Callum smiles and pats his arm. "You've got nothing to worry about there, bud. You're going to be just fine."

"Big assumption," snorts Soren.

"Call it more of an observation," says Callum. "You've done the work. You're always doing the work. That's half the job right there. The rest is just love. Isn't that right, Rexy?"

He raises Rexy then and pitches his voice up an octave. "Don't worry, Soren, I'll keep you in line."

"Good gods."

"Get used to it, man, funny voices are like ten percent of the job."

Soren swats at him, and Callum dodges it only to almost fall out of his chair. "So you'll fix him?"

"I'll do my best," says Callum with a chuckle. Then, more genuinely, he adds, "You're nothing like your dad, Soren. You're going to be fine. Rexy will make sure of it."

Soren barks out a laugh. "I'm sure he will."

(And he does).

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And My Father's Love Was Nothing Next To God's Will by Amatullah Bourdon

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I HAVE BEEN LAUGHING AT THIS FRAME FOR 5 MINUTES

"MY GIRL!!"

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Callum is so gentle and soft at the core. Like this man has a “I love my best friend and my baby brother means everything to me. They are my whole heart and world” voice 😭😭😭

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the S6 puzzles are gonna be fun!

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Spoiler puzzle for the 6x02 episode title - three words, each correlating to the picture. We also know the S6 episode titles tell a story of their own with "Startouched" being the title of 6x01.

Here are some potential avenues for each one!

First picture options: heart, light, together, reunion, reconciliation

Second picture options: war, battle, attack, divide

Third picture: mushroom, healing, a collection of mushrooms is also called a cluster or troop

Light Divides and Heals maybe? Love Wounds Healing? Hearts, Wars, Healing?

the good news is that we will be getting the actual title tomorrow

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a/n: bc king atticus (ez's grandfather) invited claudia to sit on the throne and i haven't stopped thinking about it

The first time Claudia sits on her throne as queen—after the spat they'd had about her having one (that Ez had won)—and settles, dress rustling by her feet, she laughs.

Ezran quirks a brow. They've been married for under a month, and while he knows her quite well (she's been his high mage for quite some time, and his partner the past year and a half), well... Claudia never quite stops surprising him. It's one of the reasons he loves her.

"What?" he asks at last.

"Nothing." She goes to hide her smile with her hand, eyes strangely dewy. "I assumed I'd think more of my father, but... I'm thinking of yours—your father's father."

Ezran's brow furrows deeper. "King Atticus?"

It's been twenty-five years since he passed away, only knowing Ezran about six months. Ez has no memory of him—even Callum doesn't have much—and unlike with their mother, there's no melancholy there. Harrow had been determined to be a better king than his father; it seems to run in the family. (One day, the children he and Claudia have will want to surpass them. It seems fair.)

"Mmhm." Claudia tucks her black hair behind her ears, more trailing down her shoulders. She looks so pretty like this it's almost hard to concentrate (newlywed bliss, as Soren would say). "He invited me up on his throne when I got in trouble for doing dark magic. I even offered to fix it for him because it was so uncomfortable. A child's pride, huh?"

Ezran steps closer, leaning over and resting his hand over hers on one of the throne's arm rest. "Most children are too well meaning to be prideful, don't you think?"

She brightens a little, the mistiness fading from her eyes. "Maybe."

"You've always wanted to help people," he says, squeezing her hand. "And that's what you'll be able to do as queen." He kisses her forehead right below her crown and then pulls back, smiling gently. "How does the throne feel? Comfortable?"

Claudia's lips twitch. Her gaze is steady when it meets his and he knows she means it. "Just about."

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NOT A HEART

HERE WE GO!!

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176.

**Reminder that the crack quartet can only ever happen years and years into the future when everyone is a fully consenting adult**

Opeli sees it happening early.

She has known Ezran since he was born. She was the one who anointed him on his name day, and she's been guiding his leadership since he took his father's crown and watching over him for longer still. She knows what he is like, and she knows what boys are like when they fall in love, and she knows, almost immediately, when Claudia catches his eye.

It's a shock to her as much as it would be a shock to anyone. It hardly makes sense: Claudia, the traitor, the witch, the mage that almost brought forth the end of the world, with her bone-white hair and her bloodied hands, and Ezran, her youngest ward and noble king. She almost can't fathom it.

But it's something she should investigate. Something to bring up with Ezran, probably, and something she should bring up with Claudia for certain, because Ezran's safety is paramount, and it's not a good look at all for him to start courting a pardoned criminal. Opeli believes in him and his judgement, but her concern around Claudia is not unfounded. To be so close to power is a dangerous thing, and even if Claudia means him no harm, his reputation hangs precariously in the balance.

(Hypocrite, she calls herself. How rich of her to be concerned about Ezran's reputation for his burgeoning relationship with Claudia when she's been gambling so wantonly with her own. No matter—)

She puts her foot down when she catches Ezran helping her tidy the barberry hedges. He looks very pleased to be doing it. It's not at all his job to do so but he has been seen helping in the kitchens and in the stables too, and this is not out of the ordinary for him. It's Claudia that strengthens Opeli's resolve: it's that quiet little smile and that barest hint of a flush and the way Claudia lets her elbow brush his as she clips away stray branches, even as the spines in the hedge catch against her sleeves.

"Opeli," greets Ezran happily. "What are you doing out here? I thought you and Soren were supposed to go and oversee the harvest in the vineyards this morning."

Opeli keeps her face determinedly straight. "We've been," she says evenly. "They're going well over there. One of us will check in again this afternoon. I wanted to have a word, actually.'

"You're welcome to it, as always," says Ezran, but Opeli shakes her head.

"With Claudia."

Claudia blinks. Ezran furrows his brow.

"We talked about this," he says, a warning in the pitch of his voice, but Opeli offers him a (wan) smile and insists.

"I don't distrust your judgement, Your Majesty," she says carefully. "It's just a word."

Claudia meets her eyes, and to her credit, doesn't waver. She touches Ezran's elbow and nods. "It's fine, Ez," she says quietly. "Just a word, right?"

"Yes," promises Opeli.

Ezran glances between them warily, but nods all the same and sets down his secateurs. Opeli waits until he's out of earshot before she turns to Claudia, her lips pressed thin.

A pause passes between them. Claudia does not look away.

Opeli clears her throat. "I don't want to pry," she begins, "but you and His Majesty have been... rather close since your pardon. My loyalty is to him and all things aside, there are other things that must be considered. I have to ask: is there something I should know?"

Claudia sets her jaw. "That depends," she says quietly. "Is there something I should know about you and Soren?"

Opeli's heart thuds heavily in her chest. Her face warms. Her throat closes up. Something like panic wells between her ribs because no one is supposed to know, and surely Soren wouldn't have said anything, and yet—

"He didn't tell me," says Claudia. "He's my brother, and I know him better than he wants to believe."

Opeli bites back the cold in her chest and wills herself to be calm, to be collected under Claudia's stare. "And Ezran might be king, but he is still one of my wards," she says levelly. "I don't believe I have to tell you but he's lost enough."

Claudia wrinkles her nose stubbornly. "So has Soren," she points out.

Opeli bites back a scowl at that. "Yes, I know," she says sharply. "He came to me to work through it. He mourned your mother, and your father, and you when he deserved more than what any of you could give him and I'd rather be dragged through the mud myself let him lose anything else. What can you tell me about whatever it is that's going on here?"

Claudia ducks her head at last, and Opeli tries not to feel too much satisfaction in it. But when Claudia looks up again, there is only honesty in her eyes.

"He's safe, Opeli," she murmurs. "I don't have it in me to betray any of them again, but him most of all. And if I did—" She snorts and shakes her head. "Ez is kinder than I deserve. I'll owe him that debt forever and I would die before I let anything else happen to him. I know you don't trust me but—you have to trust that, at least."

"How can anyone possibly trust that at face value?"

"You can't," says Claudia. "But I—" She cuts herself off, but she does not need to finish the sentence for Opeli to know how she'd wanted to end it. "You know what it is," she says. "You know what it feels like."

Opeli says nothing for a moment. She looks away. "Perhaps I do."

"Then you know I could never hurt him," says Claudia. "Not again. The same way I know you would never do anything to hurt Soren."

Another pause. Another breath. When Opeli looks back at Claudia, she is staring at her shoes helpless in the same way Opeli is when it comes to her brother.

"We understand each other, then," she says primly.

Claudia nods. "Yeah," she says. "We do."

Opeli nods back. "I'll leave you," she says. "And I'll send Ezran back to you when I find him."

Despite herself, Claudia cracks a smile. "Thank you," she murmurs. "And—" Here she pauses, and Opeli waits, wondering what else there is to say. "Your secret's safe too," she says at last.

"That is much appreciated," says Opeli, incling her head. "You've done lovely work on the barberry hedges, by the way. It must help that the spines are not as sharp as they seem."

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Absolutely drives me wild that one of rayla's first and most significant scenes is "Your Let Him Live but You've Killed Us All" given the direction this series is going

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No wonder he loves that toy