#But I think he's also aware of his own mortality and vulnerability at that point even if he doesn't show it yet | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

asfateentertwines · 11 months

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idk if you like this ship, but Nocorro headcanons?

Hi sorry for the delay, I went on a Nocorro tail spin for this

Neteyam hides his feelings for Spider when they're young because he is worried about his moms feelings but has always been gentle with him and secretly enjoyed his company

They got along but just weren't overly close

Spider always was jealous of Neteyam for being everything he couldn't be - Na'vi, loved, strong, respected, etc. But always admired him just as much

Their relationship would start secret - on the downlow for the sake of their own anxieties - and would start due to their common denominator - Lo'ak

As his big brother and his best friend respectively, they always seemed to be the ones at the end of his messes. For Neteyam, it was cleaning them up or talking him out of it and for Spider, it was tagging along before inevitably just trying to keep them both alive

It's my thought that Lo'ak is the one that considers Spider's humanity the least and sees him the most as just Spider, even moreso than Kiri, and so he accidentally gets him hurt a fair amount - hence, Neteyam has to patch him up

This time is where they bond a lot - venting, mocking one another, but also eventually devolving into the fear, insecurity, etc they each feel

They would be the couple that goes through all of the 'new' stuff (i.e the awkward and honeymoon phases) by themselves while no one knows yet about their relationship so that by the time they get together publicly, everyone thinks of them as the old married couple of sorts

They equal one another out in a lot of ways and meet one another's insecurities - each is everything the other wants with the added consequences they didn't see coming

While it takes vulnerability that neither is prepared for, they come to be the same space for one another they each need and become a big part in one another's healing

They're both emotional protectors to the other as no one ever filled the roles for them and for once, they both get to be someone's priority

Its the story of the oldest son and forgotten child

They're two sides of the same beat up coin

Neteyam is protective and takes after his mom in being a guardian but is more reserved and takes social cues into account - he is aware of his mates vulnerability and protects in a lot like how his parents do - meanwhile, Spider is just fucking feral

It takes a long time to teach Spider that he can't just go in like he has nothing to lose - there's a lot of self-worth arguments

However, this comes to head with neither being sure where they stand to announce the relationship. I imagine it wouldn't come out until it had to

in canon, this is the RDA capturing Spider

The RDA taking Spider is what ends with their relationship becoming public

Neteyam has to see his parents as mortal and imperfect while Spider is faced with the doubts on his self-worth and position in the family

Neither knows how to proceed but they fight like hell with something more to fight for than the original canon offers

Neteyam loses it when Spider is taken, he goes feral, fighting with all of Neytiri's spirit, and relies heavily on his parents and the childish belief that they can somehow fix it

I don't think he would realize there's no fixing it until they're with the Metkayina and Ao'nung is courting him

He would lose it, acting more and more like Lo'ak while being lost in his own internal whirlpool of self-doubts and questioning

If war didn't make him grow up then this does

He doesn't think he'll get Spider back until he sees him on the deck but at this point, he's just blindly following Jake - he's unanchored and confused and it is still Lo'ak who ultimately is the reason Spider comes home

As for his fate, I think Spider would have been closer to him. Neteyam would have grabbed him on instinct and been ducking lower to guard the more vulnerable of the two and missed the shot

Them getting home is like recovering from a breakup though

Spider spent the months more convinced than ever that he is unwanted and left astray

But he is also more aware of the emotional manipulation and more at peace with his dynamic with the Sullys so Quaritch doesn't have as much success with him

Despite his doubts festering, it's a sort of resignation that the things they felt for him isn't enough - not that they don't exist

Neteyam would have given him hope that he is a part of the family and made him feel something worth cherishing

Then the RDA comes and it's the resignation that everything is over and he's not going home

He's a lot more grim here

But the upside is that Nocorro is a lot of healing

They're with the Metkayina and helping one another remember their value - Spider in the family and Neteyam as his own person

They both need to be reminded that they're worthy of loving and that's what the months following ATWOW is filled with

Consequently, it's also how the duo become legitimate threats to the RDA

The protective rage they both feel with what was taken from them means they're ruthless - they become a lot more empowered to protect their homes and focus on building some place safe for their family

Ultimately they are a very love and family driven couple with the other slowly becoming their other half, they operate like an extension of themselves with a level of understanding no one else would have

Post-war would take a long time for them to settle but I think they both have similar desires again in just having a loving, safe place for their family to grow and to heal together

Honestly this couple is just very soft and very old married couple, like think the gays from The Last of Us that die together bro

#spider socorro #avatar the way of water #neteyam te suli tsyeyk'itan #lo'ak te suli tsyeyk'itan #headcanons #nocorro #miles spider socorro #neteyam #avatar #ask #yay I got asks #honestly tho they love eachother #its the kind of love where things just click into place #no one else can understand the pressure and the loneliness the way they can #or more acurately - no one else tried

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spagyricqueen · 8 months

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Thoughts on Dadstarion

Well, here we are, writing random musings on a concept I was only peripherally aware of until recently.

I recently watched the full cast Q&A panel at MCM Comic Con London. One brave soul directly asked Neil Newbon about this concept; what he thinks Astarion would be like as a dad. Don't get me wrong, I'm on the #dadstarion bandwagon, here. But I already knew what his answer would be the moment the question was asked.

So I have some notes.

First of all, asking the actor who played the character wouldn't gain any insight into this. At least, not the kind we're naturally fishing for. As he put it, he did his job, he played the role as written, and he has no head canon for the character, especially not with the same fervor that we - the audience - does. The better person to ask would be the writer, but even then the scope of their answer would be limited to the canon work.

He (and the rest of the cast chimed in as well) followed up with thinking Astarion would make a terrible father. And I have to agree, to an extent. Let me explain:

If we take the character at face value, the man is traumatized and has too many demons to work through. What we see of him throughout the game is a man who is only interested in self-preservation, doesn't understand his own feelings, and cannot allow himself to feel close to others.

This fundamentally changes if you 1) show him kindness and compassion, despite his murderous tendencies and 2) help him deal with his "little problem" of Cazador and setting him free, even if it means cursed as a mere spawn forever. Putting him on the path of healing rewards the player with a satisfying ending for him in the epilogue. This is especially true if you romance him (which, personally, I feel is the most rewarding outcome - if you're into him and all).

He is a dynamic character with the power to change. While, yes, he would be a terrible father on the outset, he has the opportunity to grow and learn to be a better person.

That said, the way I have been crafting my little redemption epic for him is based around the concept of his evolution and healing. Fun fact: the idea was originally meant to just be another dhampir story. But somewhere along the line, as I pondered the general through line for such a story, I felt there needed to be something else before we could get to that point.

So while, yes, he became a little more compassionate at the end of the romance storyline in the epilogue, I inserted a new challenge in his life (I made him blind) to explore how he would handle being forced to depend on kindness of others, learn to trust others (especially Tav), and grow into a stronger person in spite of his condition. To develop empathy, and also find strength in oneself through adversity and great challenges. All while also granting the character's wish of curing his vampirism and returning to a mortal elven life.

That isn't to say this mortality is without consequence, but it is what helps him to learn vulnerability and empathy, and I feel it sets the stage perfectly for the impending fatherhood he is about to be faced with (in my story). Patience, compassion, empathy, and strength - and now I think Astarion will be an absolutely wonderful father. And I can't wait to share it.

#dadstarion #astarion #baldur's gate 3

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cursedvibes · 1 year

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what do you think kenjaku think of death?

I think overall they have a very realistic understanding of it, including their own death. They also seem to see it or the threat of death as an opportunity for change.

It is basically your last opportunity to change something about your life. Even if you didn't have the courage, opportunity or idea before, when confronted with it, you can take action and be it just by choosing how exactly you want to die. Ideally, you would find the will to fight and find something to believe in and work towards. In that sense death is an opportunity and a source of strength. For sorcerers even more so than regular human, although Kenjaku apparently discovered that even non-sorcerers let out a burst of cursed energy before their death, which I think ties into this idea.

You see it with Yuuji too. What started all this was that Yuuji and his friends were put in danger and instead of just giving up and letting himself get eaten ('what happens happens' as Tengen might say), he chose to swallow Sukuna's finger as a last resort. The development he had up until recently, where he just ate the fingers and planned to die to kill part of Sukuna, would fall into the category Kenjaku distastes however. Gojo/Megumi gave him a purpose and deadline for his death and he just single-mindedly worked towards it. With Sukuna (and Megumi) gone, he has more opportunity and is forced to take action. While Kenjaku is talking to Tengen in this chapter, I think their words were also partially said with Yuuji in mind and another reason for why I think Kenjaku never planned for Yuuji to stay Sukuna's cage (I mean, all their plans in the last chapters would've also never happened if that were the case). He was just the initial push Yuuji needed. That threat of death that pushed him into action...and also had the neat side effect of making Yuuji acquainted with Sukuna's cursed energy.

Besides all that, what I find refreshing about Kenjaku is that contrary to other "immortal" characters in media, they aren't delusional about their own limits and mortality. Yes, they were defeated by the six eyes three times, but they also survived the encounter each time. Other more stereotypical characters might see this as a reason to get cocky and think they're untouchable, but not them. They don't even try to fight Gojo, they just leave it all to Sukuna. The other thing is, that they don't have this irrational fear of death. Take Orochimaru for example (to whom Kenjaku has been compared by Akutami before), he sees himself as immortal, he thinks nobody can beat him, but he's also incredibly scared of dying. So much that he denies it and tells himself it is impossible. Kenjaku doesn't plan on dying, has no wish for it, but so far they haven't shown extreme fear of it. It is a necessary part of life and they are aware that it could happen to them at some point too. They recognize that Yuki could've killed them if it wasn't for Anti-Gravity System and they know Gojo could do the same any time, even if that doesn't stop them from throwing cocky remarks around. I think it sounds like Kenjaku didn't even try to fight the six eyes in the 1500s. Makes sense because what would be the point. They lost twice to the one in the Heian era, killing them obviously doesn't do anything, so might as well just leave and try to find another strategy.

They don't want to die, but they have no delusions that death will come for them eventually, even if it might take thousands of years, and that struggle against death is also what makes life more meaningful. You even see it in their cursed technique. No matter how it actually works, giving up your body and transplanting your brain can never be easy and without lethal threat. They make themselves incredibly vulnerable in the process. The fight against the six eyes, which they barely survived, also ultimately helped them get closer to their goal and understanding what they even want to accomplish and how to do it.

Death makes their long life more invigorating to them than being like Tengen, who might never die, but is also motionless, passionless and just lets the currents of time push her around, putting up only the bare minimum of struggle against any serious threat that she faces. Knowing that they could die, pushes them to pursue their ideals even stronger and enjoy the time they have.

#asks #jjk spoilers #jjk 222 #kenjaku

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despairing-disaster · 1 year

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HOOOOO lord, that episode.

Honestly, I’m kinda kicking myself for procrastinating and then deleting my drafts for my final guesses on the secrets because I actually did suspect Arturo for the motive that wound up being correct. I noticed at the beginning of the chapter that Levi didn’t bring up any sisters and I had other suspicions for David (and I’ll get to that) which only left him. But honestly, as much as it seems everyone else thinks differently, I think this episode actually made me go from ambivalent to actively liking Arturo. I feel like we got to see a side of him that was more human and vulnerable. He’s so cold and harsh and dehumanizes everyone else around him, but he still had enough of a heart to feel guilty about what happened to his sister, as if he totally lacked remorse, he probably wouldn’t have reacted as strongly as he did. Veronika and I are very much on the same page when it comes to him at this point tbh.

But going back to the subject of guessing secrets, I’m gonna just loosely and messily rattle off my remaining thoughts without much organization, because I do wanna at least get my remaining theories out there.

First, I’m still convinced David is lying about who’s secret he has and less convinced Teruko is actively lying about not knowing hers as opposed to just not caring or wanting to acknowledge/consider it.

It could be possible that David is a remorseless murderer, but there is contradicting information on that front. Honestly, he’s just a mass of contradictions all around. He says he hates murderers, but expresses joy at the thought of Arei’s killer being punished. He shared his motive with the intent of alleviating tension, but gave a cop-out answer and refused to be honest when pressed. But that latter one gets to me in the sense that so far, in terms of who could have the manipulation secret, David is kinda the only person who’s outward behavior has seemed actively manipulative thus far. I already brought up some of his inconsistencies, not to mention the look he had on his face when talking about how naiive and trusting Arei is, two traits that someone with a habit of using others would immediately take note of. Plus, Ace is both a major league chickenshit who is very acutely aware of his own mortality and physically unable to keep his mouth shut half the time, so if he is being sincere in saying he knows David’s secret, he probably wouldn’t have kept his mouth shut this long if he was a murderer.

“But Laz,” I hear you say, “what about the suicide and self harm secrets?”

Good question, to which I say, let’s talk about Hu and Veronika.

I am pretty dead set on the sh secret being Veronika’s and it has to do with the specific phrasing of it: “You took on your talent to distract from your incessant need to harm yourself for fun.” At this point, we know Veronika has a peculiar relationship to pain and boredom. We know that she enjoys both witnessing and seemingly experiencing suffering and fear but not boredom. Anything is better than boredom. And self harm can include a lot of things, including reckless behavior that could potentially put one’s health or life on the line. It could be possible, then, that she had a history of reckless behavior, or even more directly self-destructive things, because she was incredibly desperate to feel something.

That then leads me to Hu, who is in possession of the secret in question. With some things she’s said so far-- that her secret makes her “uncomfortable” without any indication it’s more severe than that, that you can’t tell if someone is struggling just because of how they look on the outside, and that she doesn’t think her secret will be relevant to the class trial-- it could be assumed she has the history of suicide. Granted, she could also be the manipulator, but as I said earlier, even if she actively interferes in a lot of conflict in the chapter, she doesn’t interfere the way David does. When things happen, Hu is typically quick to shut things down. She doesn’t try and sway people one way or the other, she doesn’t seem to pry beyond what’s necessary, and most of what she does is reactive while David, in some cases, has been a lot more instigatory, like with his pressuring people to fess up despite being closed-off himself. I know that there could be more stuff going on behind the scenes, but shit, there’s a lot going on in the scenes themselves in someone else’s department. And while the two aren’t always connected, there is considerable overlap between people who struggle with SI and people who struggle with SH, so if Hu’s secret is a history of suicide, then maybe she could be keeping the secret she got, which I assume to be Veronika’s, to herself out of a sense of personal understanding.

As for the family and poisoning secrets, I’m still convinced the dead people got each other’s. It’d probably be a royal pain in the ass to factor them in to what already seems like it’s gonna be a wild trial with a lot of information to keep track of and they both seem to fit each other nicely. We know about Xander’s family from the hidden quotes and bonus episode as well as Min’s bonus episode revealing how she got the title of ultimate student: a competition. So I didn’t include them in my thoughts.

That just leaves Levi as the remorseless murderer, but even with everything I’ve said thus far, I’m not sure what to say on that front. I have nothing to defend the idea beyond the fact that he’s been consistently secretive in regards to his past since the prologue and while he’s very clearly calm on the surface, there’s a lot brewing beneath it. We saw as much when he snapped at Ace in the first trial. But again, like I said with David, it seems like there’s contradictory information, namely in the sense that this is about a remorseless murderer and Levi seems extremely fixated on the idea of being a good person and, in my opinion, seems like there’s things in his past he wants to make up for. But there’s also not a lot to indicate he could have any of the other unconfirmed secrets as well.

And I’m not certain about any of my thoughts (except the one’s on Xander, Min, and Veronika. I’m dead set on those for better or worse) but I’m excited to see what’s in store, because at least one of these is about to be confirmed right/wrong real soon. I could probably type out more, but my hyperfocus broke, and when that shit happens, whatever’s in my drafts usually dies in there, so I’ll just leave this as is for now.

#danganronpa despair time

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queen-beefcake-sqx · 2 years

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I’m going to regret this I’m sure but....

tl;dr - TGCF shouldn’t be read as a character-driven novel, but as a situational story akin to a fairytale or parable.

Before you read this: I have an awful memory and may have totally misremembered something. This is also almost all stream of consciousness, however much I tried to format it. Please take this take with a grain of salt and be aware I am totally speaking from my own perspective on this story.

Okay I wasn’t going to drop my two cents but I’m dropping my two cents on TGCF’s narrative because I think better when I verbalize my thoughts and I don’t see a lot of people talking about TGCF from this angle so here we go: (spoilers for the entirety of TGCF btw)

A bit of background on me - I’m a Literary Arts major who did a Choose Your Own Adventure thesis, and I like making narrative-heavy games in my free time. Narrative flow and narrative structure is something I think about a lot.

I’ve been seeing a lot of criticism of TGCF as a story, which I get if you’re reading it expecting a typical novel narrative flow. There’s a lot of gaps in information in TGCF, and the characters are definitely flatter than other novels because of it. Many of the conflicts we encounter in TGCF are in media res - problems that began before Xie Lian’s third ascension - and MXTX gives us very little to work with as far as characterization until we get the first flashback scenes in Book 2. Even then, we have a lot of telling instead of showing that happens in regards to side characters and their backstories during these conflicts.

TGCF is a disappointing novel if you’re expecting something character-driven. That is not something it is successful at. The reason I think TGCF fanfiction is so appealing is because there’s a lot of blank space to flesh out and play in. That said, I think it’s unfair to say it’s a bad story purely because the characters are flat. Because TGCF isn’t a story about characters. It is a story about situations. It’s a fairytale, a parable, a warning about idol worship and devotion. And from that angle it’s VERY successful in my opinion.

Fairytales set up situations that must be overcome, with the main character having the perfect traits (or perfect companions) to leap that hurdle (or not). Cinderella has a fairy godmother who grants her the ability to meet the prince, as long as Cinderella continues to be pure and virtuous and punctual. Anansi the Spider is greedy, hoarding his wisdom in a clay pot, until his witty son proves Anansi isn’t the only one with good ideas. The boy who cried wolf is childish and playful, leaving himself vulnerable when his cries are no longer a joke.

These characters are all very flat, but their situations serve a purpose still. They’re lessons. Cinderella teaches a lesson on how the virtuous can come from even the lowest backgrounds. Anansi the Spider teaches us that there’s a little wisdom in everyone. The boy who cried wolf teaches us that constantly lying is a really, really bad idea. Their stories are successful in setting up a situation that we can apply to our everyday lives that helps us guide our morality.

So what’s TGCF teaching us, then? Well, a couple of things, but there’s a few big ones I’d like to focus on —

First, Xie Lian’s entire story is a cautionary tale about idol worship and human suffering. We are witnessing the third ascension of a once beloved god who is now considered a god of misfortune - how did this happen? He was considered so virtuous and unable to do any wrong to the point that when he is unable to accomplish something or refuses to act in a way that compromises his morals, his people turn on him. People only see the god, forgetting he was once mortal.

Books Two and Four encapsulate Xie Lian’s biggest lesson - that no one person can hope to end all suffering, even a god, and that putting a person on a pedestal places unachievable expectations upon them.

The rest of the books deal with two different but tangential lessons — devotion means seeing the best in people, regardless of their flaws; devotion also means inevitable destruction when you are not valued to the same degree.

Consider arguably the most famous quote from this whole book — “To me, the one basking in infinite glory is you. The one fallen from grace is also you. What matters is you, and not the state of you.” What matters most is not the person you are in fringe cases of duress or adulation, but the person you are most consistently in the moments in between.

Book Three is a textbook gauntlet of moments like this. Each situation we are presented with are meant to be foils to Xie Lian and Hua Cheng’s relationship: Shi Qingxuan, Quan Yizhen, and Bai Jing each trust someone dear to them (Shi Wudu/”Ming Yi”, Yin Yu, and Ling Wen respectively) who betray them in some way, and yet they remain incredibly devoted to their person. These stories show the way devotion can destroy a person, and yet those destroyed continue to believe the best in the one they idolized, for better or for worse. (We could spend all day discussing my emotions about all of these relationships because oh my god each one is really its own cautionary tale.)

(Also, we’re ignoring Feng Xin and Jian Lan for now - I don’t remember their narrative well enough to loop it into this analysis at the moment, and I just got home from work. I’ll revise this later).

Hell, while I’m here - that moment in Book 4 where Xie Lian is speaking with ghost fire Hua Cheng? The “I’ll never let them know I’m still here” conversation? That’s also a great moment emphasizing that Hua Cheng is aware of these lessons more than anyone else — Hua Cheng is aware of what devotion does to a person, how destructive it can be, and refuses to let Xie Lian carry the burden of knowing what Hua Cheng has done for him.

It’s obvious that Yin Yu carries grief for what he did to Quan Yizhen, and even Ling Wen gets her little moment of subtly implying remorse for her actions (“Let it go, your highness” fucking kills me every time). We never see He Xuan following the Black Water arc, but it’s easy to infer he’s the one who delivers the wind master fan back to Shi Qingxuan as his own way of showing remorse for what happened. (On top of a lot of good meta that has already been written about how much crueler He Xuan could have been to Shi Qinguxan). Hua Cheng refuses to do that to Xie Lian, who has already shouldered innumerable grief for his former failures — grief that Hua Cheng has had a front row seat for.

What sets Hualian apart is that Xie Lian never saw Hua Cheng as a stepping stone to his goals, regardless of form. The ways that Hua Cheng is destroyed are of his own volition, willing sacrifices on Xie Lian’s behalf. Which in my opinion all makes sense when you consider that Hua Cheng is an orphan who never had ANYONE else care about him, as far as we can see. His fall from the wall can easily be read as a suicide attempt — he is already ready to throw his life away before meeting Xie Lian, and suddenly here is this person who offers him kindness and a purpose. And Hua Cheng takes that purpose to its logical conclusion, giving his life over and over and over again. It is only at the end when Xie Lian returns his love and devotion that his sacrifices can finally stop.

(also, re: Hua Cheng being a total cunt - to me, it’s the most obvious thing in the world for him to be cruel to the people he is cruel to, and one day I’ll reread the novels fully with that take in mind and explain to everyone exactly why. Additionally, I don’t think any of the lessons being put forth by the novel are “Only good people deserve good things” and I think that’s wildly antithetical to the above point of “Don’t put people on pedestals”. Like this novel is about human failings, despite being focused on “gods”, and part of that is that even people with flaws deserve kindness.)

Look, this is already too long and rambling, and I don’t have the energy to pull out the book right now and get sources for the kind of in-depth character analysis I’d like to do (especially for Hua Cheng, who I know complicates a lot of the morality in the novel, I know). And to be clear — I’m not faulting anyone for disliking TGCF at all. I fully expect there’s a lot of people who won’t agree with this meta at all.

But please, consider — How many of you were the golden child growing up whose parents were disappointed when you started slipping later in life? How many of you have said something that has irreparably ruined a relationship, despite otherwise being a good friend/partner? How many of you have tried to fix a problem only to make it worse?

I was not pulled into TGCF because of the characters. I was pulled in by the scenario the story set up, and as I read I stayed invested because the situations the characters continued to find themselves in mirrored problems I’d witnessed in real life. I’ve never seen the fall of a god, but I’ve witnessed beloved friends ostracized from friend groups for failing to take the “right” side. I’ve seen the disappointment on people’s faces when I acted less than virtuously, when I was petty or lazy. I’ve seen small problems spiral among the rumor mill and had my name caught up in them when I’ve tried to set the record straight. TGCF gives me several easily imprintable characters for living through a world where those moments turned out better, eventually — where maybe I or my friends could have had a happy ending.

And to me? That makes an amazing story.

#shut up sadie #sadie writes analysis #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #I am shaking because I haven't eaten in several hours but I had to hammer this out to be free of my hyperfixation #heaven official's blessing

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ray-ray-writings · 4 years

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A Dedicated Pig-Technoblade

#3 and 47 from this prompt list! Check out my masterlist here! This is in the DreamSMP Au. I

This is a Technoblade x GN reader!

So in this AU I am making it so that your cannon lives are shown on your left wrist. And if someone types something in chat or if someone joins the server, it appears as text on your right arm until you dismiss it! If you are confused feel free to ask me any questions!

Part Two! Part Three! Part Four!

Y/N finally meets the one that everyone has been walking on eggshells over.

Y/N’s POV

I will never forget the gasps, murmurs, and then tense silence that followed the notification that everyone received on their right arm. Technoblade had joined the SMP. I didn’t understand why it was such a big deal though. Of course I had heard the stories. The horrors that he had done. The fights he picked and won. The amount of blood that had been shed at his hands had earned him the title of “The Blood God”. But when push comes to shove, he’s just another mortal man.

Everyone was a little freaked out and on edge because of the new addition to the server. I mean, Schlatt had just banished Techno’s family, his two brothers, from the nation that they created and fought for. Everyone knew that family was everything to Techno and if there was one thing Techno would do anything for it was his family. He would literally go to hell and back if it meant that his brothers and his father were safe.

Finally after a few minutes of everyone holding their breath, I scoffed, rolled my eyes, and went on with my work, cleaning up the election decorations. All eyes turned to me “Y/N” Niki hissed, “Do you not understand what just happened? He could be anywhere” I let out a joyless laugh as I looked at my best friend, “You really think he’s going to come here right away? With nothing on him? With his brothers on the run? You think he’s going to worry about coming here, where it would be a 1 vs…” My eyes scanned the crowd doing a quick mental count, “15 plus? Come on Niki, think with that big brain of yours.” I claimed, a little annoyed, as I took down a banner.

Niki let out a shaky sigh but nodded and continued helping me. “You’re right,” I chuckled at her response and bumped her shoulder, “You know I always am”. Soon, everyone went back to their own tasks, forgetting the news we all had just received. ‘See Mr. Pig Man Blood God’ I silently thought to myself, ‘You’re not as scary as you may think’.

*Time skip*

A week and a half had gone by since Technoblade had joined the server and no one had seen him. Like I had predicted, he immediately had searched and met up with his brothers and had stayed clear of the main part of the server. That being said, I should have known that he would rear his pink head at some point…

When I first joined the server, I had made myself a small farm for food. Well of course everyone found out about it and wanted a part of it. So my small farm grew and grew. When Niki built her bakery, she needed a steady supply of well… supplies. Sugar, wheat, eggs, milk, and all that. I had plenty and I was more than happy to give her what she needed in exchange for baked goods. So once a week I would haul boxes of supplies across the SMP from my farm to her bakery.

Everyone was aware of this and so on these days everyone would stay out of my way. Which is why I was so surprised to slam into someone while carrying a box of eggs to the bakery.

I let out a huge gasp as the sound of eggs cracking filled my ears as I slammed into someone. The box fell out of my hands as raw egg covered my hands and body. “What the hell!” I cried out, looking up to yell at whoever had just crashed into me. I was momentarily stunned. There in the flesh, right in front of me, stood the Blood God himself, Technoblade. My surprise didn’t last long as I remembered why I was angry in the first place.

“What the hell are you doing here? It’s bakery day, sure you didn’t know that, but you should have taken the hint not to be here when you didn’t see anyone walking this part of the Prime path!” I shouted at the pink haired man. Techno’s brown eyes widened as I verbally attacked him. “And now I’m covered in raw egg! This is not pleasant! It’s gross and sticky and cold and I do not enjoy it! You are sooooo lucky I have a change of clothes at the farm and that my chickens laid a lot of extra eggs this week or else you would have had to explain to dear sweet Niki why she wouldn’t be able to open her cute bakery this week.” I hissed out.

“I’m sorry,” Techno began with a raised eyebrow, “Do you not know who you’re talking to?” He questioned with a deep voice. I let out a loud scoff at the audacity of his question, “Of course I know who you are, Mr. Blood God,” I mocked. “So. You do know who I am and what I am capable of.” I scoffed at his smug words. “I said I did, didn’t I? And frankly I couldn’t care less about you and your reputation. You’re just a guy. A guy that has ruined my day because I now have egg all over me!” I complained, wiping my hands on my pants.

I reached down and began picking up the box and the eggs and egg shells that had fallen on the ground.“You know, I could kill you with no hesitation?” Techno claimed as he crouched down, moving his face close to mine. “I’ve done it before to many others. They blink and my sword has entered their chest. I’ve probably slaughtered more people than you’ve ever met in your life,” Techno mused, a smug smirk tugging on his lips.

I looked up from my box with a blank expression on my face, “Am I supposed to be scared of you? Is that supposed to scare me? Make me shake in my boots?” I questioned, my eyebrow raised. Techno’s smirk slowly slipped off his face. He quickly stood up and stared at me in shock, “Didn’t you hear me? I could kill you!” He explained. I rolled my eyes and also stood up. “So could another human. Literally anyone else. So could a fall from a huge height. So could a dedicated chicken. You’re not special.” I stated, turning on my heel and began walking back toward my farm.

“So you’re really not scared of me?” I heard Techno question as he began to jog to catch up to me. “Haven’t I made that clear? You may have scary stories and legends surrounding you, but when it comes right down to it, you’re a man. Well, part pig, part man, but a man and mortal all the same.” Techno let out a scoff, “Technoblade never dies,” he claimed. “But you could. You have three cannon lives just like the rest of us.” I concluded.

Techno silently followed me as I moved through the barn, replacing the eggs that had cracked when we collided. After I filled the box once more, I set it down before stepping into the bathroom I had built. “I’ll be right out. Don’t touch anything.” I commanded. Techno gave me a mock salute before looking around the barn once more. I closed the door and quickly cleaned up. I took off my egg covered clothes, washed my hands and body before putting on the clean clothes I kept here.

I found Techno where I left him. “You ready to go?” I questioned softly. His eyes trailed from my horses back to me as he gently nodded. I made my way back to the boxes before picking the egg box back up. “Is this going to?” Techno asked. I looked over and found him pointing at the last box needing to go to the bakery. “Yeah, but you don’t have to-” I was cut off by Techno picking up the box. “Let’s go” He said walking out the door. I let out a laugh before following him, being sure to close the door behind me.

The two of us made small talk about anything and everything on our way to the bakery. Techno told me all about Wilbur and Tommy’s constant squabbles and I told him all about everyone’s wariness ever since he joined the server. Techno helped me put everything away, which caused me to be done a lot sooner than I usually get done. The two of us left the bakery and made our way back outside. We began strolling the prime path and subconsciously came to a stop where the two of us met.

Our conversation died down and the two of us stood there for a moment, just staring at each other. I finally cleared my throat, “Thank you for helping me today. I really appreciate it.” I thanked, running a hand through my hair. Techno mirrored my actions with a shy smile on his face, “No problem. It’s the least I could do.” There was a slight pause before he spoke again, “Hey. Listen. I’m sorry for threatening you earlier. It’s just… Everyone I’ve ever met has been terrified of me and when you weren't… It really threw me for a loop. So… thanks. Thank you for giving me a chance.” I let out a giggle at his vulnerability, “It’s no problem…. Maybe when this is all over and you and your brothers are welcome back into L’Manberg, we could hang out more.” I offered. Techno gave me a soft smile and a gentle nod, “Yeah. I’d like that. A lot.”

“Techno!” A voice whisper shouted. The two of us jumped at the sudden interruption and turned to look at who had called the pink haired man’s name. It was Wilbur. “There you are! Where have you been?!” He questioned, marching up to the two of us. Techno made a gesture to me. Wilbur’s eyes shifted to me. I gave him a smile and a wave. “Hey Wilbur. It’s great to see you” Wilbur’s eyes softened as he gave me a smile, “Hey Y/N. It’s so good to see you too. We’ve got to go. Techno was supposed to be on a spy mission, but I see he got distracted…” I laughed at his words and nodded. “Something like that,” Techno claimed, rubbing the back of his head a blush.

“Well it was great to see you Wilbur. Tell Tommy I miss him and that I say to stop trying to decorate with things that aren’t his, yeah?” Wilbur gave me another soft smile and nod, “Will do Y/N. Tell Niki I miss her?” I returned his smile and nod. I then turned to Technoblade and gave him a smile as well, “It was lovely to meet you. I really hope this is over soon so I can show you my weapons collection.” Techno’s eyes lit up and he nodded. “It was amazing to meet you too Y/N. And I would love that. So much.” I giggled at his response and nodded. “I knew you would. Bye guys.” I gave them both one last smile before turning and headed back to my farm.

As I was leaving I overheard the next part of Techno and Wilbur’s conversation. “So… Y/N huh?” “Shut up.” “Who knows, when this thing is all over maybe you’ll get together and have pink haired, Y/E/C babies… Oh I would be the best uncle and-” “I’ll give you a five second headstart.” “Oh come on Techno-” “Five” “Please” “Four” “Tech-” “Three” “You know it’s-” “Two” “Oh come on” “One” “OH GOD! RUNNING!”

I let myself look over my shoulder at the two. Sure enough Wilbur was sprinting down the prime path as fast as he could, but Techno was right behind him. “Get over here!” Techno shouted after Wilbur. “NO!” I let myself giggle at the two’s antics. My eyes focused on the two for as long as I could, but soon enough the two were out of my view and my ear shot. Oh I can’t wait until this is all over.

There you go! I hope you enjoyed! And I hope I did the anon that requested this justice! If you did enjoy, be sure to leave a like! And maybe even a reblog or reply telling me what you liked about it! Until next time!

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yostresswritinggirl · 4 years

Note

Can I get a request where Xiao has a Adeptus! s/o and how the relationship would work? (Small little side note: I imagine it might be a bit of a slow burn too)

I was gonna pick an angst prompt but I had to hold back, considering he might not come with angst u_u Let's hope he and everyone enjoys this enough that he manifests for my next set of pulls ywy

Catch Your Breath

Xiao x Adeptus!S/O in Headcanon form (masterlist)

Background

You've long known Xiao ever since he ascended to be one of the strongest Yakshas, a part of Rex Lapis' unit that you tended to the most. Because you are still under the guidance of Skybracer, you are not meant to fight in the battlefront, but to assist your fellow adeptis and the mortals who needs you.

You and Xiao became close upon the defeat of the Lord of Vortex Osial and the unending manifestations of his rage, which came to haunt near your domain, making it easy for you to detect the demons and alert everyone of the dangers that were to rise.

Somehow out of them five, you felt more attached with the humanistic yet feral Xiao. While you mingled with them five in assurance that they were still sane and stable, he resonated with you more due to his form resembling your being better.

And his strength and restraint came into par when he saved you from Menogias' rampage, of which he himself had to stop together with Bosacius.

Your days after that were filled with nightmares over the loss of a great Yaksha and your near-death experience. You still continued your duties of observing the demonic activities but your held reservation and distance when interacting with the Yakshas, Xiao was especially aware of this.

Finally one day he worked up the courage to enter your domain and approach you, and after several coaxing you finally broke down with all your fears and restless nights poured onto him. And he was silently consoling.

After that Xiao started coming over every night before you were settling to rest, finding his presence always managing to chase away your nightmares, and it would be a thousand years later that you'd come to realize that he had been eating your bad dreams to make sure you rest well.

In time you both ended up becoming each other's pillar of support during the archon war and even after that timeline, you still find (and needed) the comfort each other brings.

The relationship only ever started when he found out about the implications through his observation of Verr and her husband, realizing that he too longs for a similar fate with you.

Thank goodness you felt the same way, even if it took thousands of years of hiding.

Skybracer and the Guardian Yaksha

After the death of Skybracer, you took on his role and domain to honor your mentor. You may not be as strong or suitable to make the same sacrifice as he, yet you held your own fairly well in protecting Liyue, enough that the humans from the distant Harbour knew and kneels to your presence.

This might be why Xiao despises the pilgrims that stubbornly seek out the adepti in their domains, because he knew of how pressuring and adamant they can be on their desperation. And the inability to grant them divine blessings gnaws at you at each rejection you had to offer.

He has a special connection to your Domain too in the sense that he is hyperaware of those that enter and leave your area. When he senses intrusive humans entering, he would be by your side immediately to confront them if they so wish to be stubborn under his presence. Most of the time you had to calm him down yourself, because not a lot of humans that dare look for you understood the connection between you two.

In all honesty, barely anyone knows the nature of your connection with Xiao besides those that are extremely to you two.

With the war long gone and Osial's dark manifestations temporarily ceased, both of your work were cut significantly. Your nightmares had stopped half a thousand years after the leave of the last Yaksha, but you know well that Xiao now had to fight with internal demons he himself cannot escape.

Whenever he was on the verge of breaking, he immediately comes to you and drops into your arms without a second thought, your energy and comforting touches enough to pull the binds away from his soul. And it is only there that Xiao would fall into a very rare slumber that you dare not disturb.

Unlike what many others would think, Xiao's love language comes in the form of physical touches. This could be because of your background together that had gone eons ago even before the great scarcity of Yakshas. He feels safer and more composed when your presence washes over him, and whenever you hold his hand, instead of stains of bloody wars it was washed away by your gentle grip.

He feels very clean and pure when with you, melting at every soft touch you offer and gravitating to your fleeting hand before he knew what he was doing. In your domain Xiao is the most vulnerable and honest. His guard is gone and his arms are uncrossed, it only intertwines when it surrounds itself around your form.

He spoke of the flute that saved him once, by the Anemo Archon. And upon this knowledge the two of you started divulging into the art of the wind instrument, finding that it does indeed have a grounding effect on him. Upon your urges, Xiao ended mastering the skill and honing it whenever he needs it. This doesn't mean his trips to you lessened, but his visitations would be accompanied by the tunes of his flute to grace you with the performance as a thank you for accommodating him.

Surprisingly (yet also not) between the two of you, Xiao has a better grasp on the standard of romances because of his exposure to the mortal realm, and he guides and experiments with the bases under your consent together. Soon enough his keen eyes had come into fruition upon your both masteries on passing up as a true couple in human standards.

To demonstrate this, you both had a date with your illuminated garments reduced to the simplest form of casual wear local to Liyue. Which you then used to stroll around the Harbour without being static on an area for too long. You met Madame Ping and Ganyu on the road, and they both wished you luck on your leisure after catching up.

While you are content with the way things are until your prolonged mortality finally lets you rest, Xiao had been thinking about traveling Teyvat to see the beauty of it alongside you. The Traveler had been very successful in influencing him lately, and soon enough he shall offer the question.

It is then that you are to decide on your next course of actions, which would ultimately advance your relationship.

Honestly almost went overboard again on this. I was honestly very tempted to sleep but I got scared Xiao might really just not come *cries* I'm about to whale at this point.,,

@kookieyachi @struggljng @bunniesrorange @anormalguyreader @zelos-simp @legionqueensav @snackgod @rxsalinee @cala-ran @wind-wheel @lilydewi22 @yellowflowre @traveler-lumine @nonniechan

#genshin impact x reader #genshin impact #Xiao #Xiao x reader #exile.flower #exile.goblet #genshin impact headcanons #sojourner specials #gender neutral

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st-hedge · 3 years

Text

Okay friends I think it’s time for a calamity au summary. Point by point

This is as brief as I can make it so I’m going to miss out on some side notes and relationships and that kind of thing. I feel like I forgot out some important things so I’ll come back from time to time to edit but for now I feel it’s comprehensive and brief enough. Still, it’s pretty long so it’s under the cut

Edit: u can refer to the ancient era as the calamity au or ancient era au. I use them interchangeably

Calamity au is not one specific era, rather it is lore that I made with one specific change: what the calamity is and how it “functions”. Instead of being a reoccurring reincarnation of ganondorf, the calamity is its own creature, a manifestation of pure evil and hatred that derived from Demise. To explore this change the au focuses on the ancient era (when the entity known as ‘calamity Ganon’ was created) and the botw era (when Ganon was finally split from the calamity)

The ancient era is pretty much just my box of ocs at this point. This is the era when calamity first manifested after Demise was “destroyed” as a consequence of skyward sword. The calamity was weak and did not have a physical form to appear in the mortal world. To regain its strength and to enter the world it needed a host. For it to latch onto a host the calamity needed for that person to have hatred, fear, or anger strong enough for it to create a bond

In the ancient era the Triforce trio were very good friends and together they had one goal: seal away the calamity before it could manifest in the world. As they confronted the weakened calamity over and over again it tried to latch onto them. Zelda never allowed it to close enough to latch onto her, link was almost a victim but he simply did not have a shred of hatred strong enough within him for the calamity to use it. However Ganon was caught in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was betrayed by people very close to him (won’t spoil who yet but this has nothing to do with either link or Zelda) and that betrayal left him so vulnerable and terrified that he was just an open doorway for the calamity

Calamity Ganon was created and the being wrecked destruction across hyrule before being sealed by link and Zelda and of course in the brief moment that Ganon could lock the calamity within him, he also used the Triforce of power to complete the seal. However, ganon could not be separated from the calamity and he was sealed in the abyss with it

There was nothing that either link or Zelda could do and they had to accept Ganon’s ‘death’

The calamity had Ganon and the Triforce of power in its possession and used him as a host over and over again, never letting his physical body die and simply pushed his conscious mind aside as the calamity continued to return era after era. Over and over again Ganon saw his old friends in different lives and each time he was their enemy

In the botw era Ganon was about to finally give up his struggle against the calamity as he had little strength left. However there was a second force beside him trying to push the calamity back and it encouraged him to fight harder. He was not aware that it was Zelda’s presence and together they were able to force out the calamity, finally separating Ganon from the entity. Neither Ganon nor Zelda were aware who the other presence was and this occurred before link even reached the castle. Link found Zelda alone and they were so grateful it was over they didn’t question what happened

About 5 years later Ganon has somewhat recovered and he is trying to find the weakened calamity to finish what was started 10,000 years ago in the ancient era. However this time he does not have link and Zelda beside him or the sheikah technology that would help him track it down. He would need the slate to use the towers to narrow down where to look

However this changes when by a complete accident link stumbles on him. Ganon recognises him by the master sword and immediately tries to push link away without an explanation to avoid bringing him into the calamity mess. Link does not know who Ganon is as he does not recall the story of calamity Ganon once taking the form of a gerudo man, he is just curious who this stranger is (he does not know his name yet) Then Ganon sees the sheikah slate on link’s belt and knocks him out cold, taking the slate and leaving link behind

Link manages to chase Ganon down but does not try to take back the slate. He tells him that it actually belongs to a friend and Ganon can borrow it but then link will have to follow him to make sure that it’s returned. Of course Ganon tries to get rid of him in every way possible but repeatedly fails

Eventually link finally realises who Ganon is when he takes back the slate and notices that it recognises this gerudo voe as ganon or ganondorf and the memory of the story that Urbosa had told him about the calamity returns to him. He tries his hardest to feel enough hatred for Ganon to confront him with the master sword but he sees nothing threatening about him - he is just a broken looking man standing with his last bit of strength. Instead he asks him who he is and what has happened. Afterwards he chooses to help Ganon track down the calamity

Things turn for the worst when link is confronted by the calamity in its weaker form alone and it is able to latch on to him due to all the hate, fear, and anger that has accumulated within him throughout his lifetimes and the hatred he feels toward the calamity itself. And that’s how link becomes the calamity

With Zelda’s power diminished, Ganon has to face the calamity alone and hope that he can free link without putting him into the same purgatory that Ganon has experienced for the past 10,000 years

#calamity au #summary #au summary

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twinsarekeepers · 3 years

Text

The more I reread the PJO series, the more clear it is to me that Annabeth isn’t white.

(I know y’all are going to be in my mentions like “oh but she has blonde hair and grey eyes she can’t be black or brown” and I KNOW! I know RR saw her as a white girl when he was writing the books. I am aware of that fact. It just so happens that I can see a ton of my own experiences (specifically related to being a brown woman) in the way she’s perceived by other characters.)

So, like, in the first book, she was so mad at Percy because he got a quest even though he knew particularly nothing about the demigod world (and everything he did know was stuff she taught him) and she had been working basically her whole life to get one. I mean, seriously, she was more equipped to lead a quest because she’d literally lived on streets before. (And I know they banned quests after Luke’s and it was a special circumstance so they had to give one to Percy but it’s so clear that he has no idea what’s going on and that he agrees to bring Annabeth along because he knows he’ll need her intelligence and expertise to complete the quest).

And, like, she is literally the most educated, knowledgeable person on the Argo II, ffs she’s LITERALLY the daughter of Athena, but her intelligence is constantly questioned. (And I know it’s because RR was like “oh it’s because she’s blonde” 🙄 Istg, I’m going to strangle that man in his sleep). But, who is the most educated demographic in the US and are still constantly overlooked and their intelligence insulted? Black women. I just—RICHARD, IT WAS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU IM GOING TO SCREAM!

The other characters see her as this strong, tough warrior, but she literally cries in every book. That’s not to say she’s not strong or tough or a warrior, but she is also soft and gentle and that’s extremely overlooked by not just the characters, but the fandom as well. The way she holds Percy’s hand in times when he’s stressed out and assures him when he’s feeling like he can’t do something. The way she comforts characters who are in emotional pain like Juniper and Silena. When Piper first got to camp and Annabeth showed her around and tried to make her feel at home. Even when Drew was being mean to Piper, Annabeth didn’t take sides and instead mitigated the tension. She cheered Hazel up after her fight with Jason. Frank came to her for advice and she was very considerate of his feelings and comfort. She was intuitive enough to figure out why Leo acted the way he did and than she defended his actions to Frank. These are all things that she does that are vulnerable and show her heart but most of the characters still view her as scary and intimidating.

And they see Annabeth as strong enough to just handle emotional turmoil all by herself. Like, y’all remember when Percy was kind of surprised that Annabeth needed a hug in BOTL? (Why? He’s seen her cry before. He’s seen her need comfort before. What makes him think it would be a one time thing?). Or when he didn’t tell her that he was worried about her? (He really said “stay here and protect Nico and Rachel”. And then in his head he was like, “I didn’t tell Annabeth but I was worried about her too.” MY GUY?? WHY WOULDN’T YOU TELL HER??) Or how about when she was literally sobbing on the ground after seeing Luke turn into Kronos and Percy, Rachel, and Nico were just … standing around, talking. Percy literally tried to pick a fight with her in that moment. Like, wtf was that?? (I mean, he tried to be a little bit more gentle with her when he was telling her to get up and leave but at that point, the damage is done, dude, you’ve already kicked her while she was down).

This connects to how she’s stripped of her femininity. The fact that she’s canonically good at weaving (a traditionally feminine task) and it seems to be forgotten by all the characters and even the fandom. The fact that she enjoys wearing dresses and makeup and jewelry but Percy finds those things awkward on her (I made a post about that here if y’all want to read it. The Richard stannies found it though so beware the notes). There are so many instances in the books where she so obviously fits into a traditionally feminine role but they’re glossed over or ignored. As a South Asian woman, I know how this feels.

Okay and then on Circe’s Island, when Circe said something like “oh and that HAIR!” and Annabeth was like “what’s wrong with my hair?” …. That’s a micro aggression if I’ve ever seen one. I just know if Annabeth was a white girl with type 3, loose ass curls, Circe would not have said that shit.

And all of the reasons we think Percy is not white ALSO APPPLY TO ANNABETH. Like, she went to through all the same stuff that Percy went through in the mortal world. She literally said as much in the beginning of TLT.

Annabeth is just so clearly not white to me. And the fact that RR didn’t see how so many of her experiences lined up with a black or brown woman’s will actually be my villain origin story. He really wrote “she’s oppressed because she’s blonde” with his whole chest. Great job in proving how much of a rich, white man you are, Richard.

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mythicamagic · 3 years

Note

Enemies to Lovers - Sesshoumaru is injured - "Lean on me" prompt

AN: Because there’s a lot of prompts to get through I probably should have/could have spent more time on this one due to the heavy subject matter buuut since in the anime Sesshoumaru only gets 11 episodes to recover from the loss of his arm, I don’t feel too guilty XD

Warning: body trauma

---

Inuyasha's wench had found him around an hour ago. Unlike Rin, she'd deliberated approaching for a few moments. Unsurprising. They were still foes after all. Crimson eyes remained burning, glaring listlessly at her face.

She'd seemed to silently decide something, determination steeling her expression. The yellow nekomata he vaguely recalled belonging to the slayer was her sole companion, who growled at him warningly not to try anything. As if he would.

The miko carried a large cumbersome bag, so he assumed she'd been headed somewhere before running into him within the forest.

Kagome cleaned his wound as best she could, before binding it to try and stop the excessive blood loss. She'd then approached with the beast, proceeding to kneel beside his bloody form. Sesshoumaru remained where he was, reclined against a tree and settled at its base.

Kagome winced, arm secured around his waist after having removed his armour.

"I can't just leave you like this. Lean on me. I'll take your weight enough to move you onto Kirara."

Sesshoumaru turned his head, gazing at nothing.

His lips moved, speaking too softly for her to hear.

"What?"

He repeated himself in a tight voice. "What is the point?"

Kagome stiffened against him. Her heart thudded quicker, fear brushing his senses.

Sesshoumaru allowed his hazy red eyes to dull into empty gold, staring right at the woman.

He could survive a missing arm. Had adjusted his fighting style enough to manage.

But the Killing Perfection could not survive the loss of a leg too. His body would save him from blood loss, but his spirit lay broken, irreparable.

Kagome swallowed loudly, resting a hand on his upper thigh. His leg ended below the knee.

"T-this… it's nothing for you," she mumbled quietly. "You're going to be okay. You'll find a way to walk again."

Sesshoumaru chuckled dryly, resting his head back against the trunk. "Why do you care, wench?" he flashed sharp teeth at her. "We are not allies. Leave me."

"I won't," Kagome moved closer, grabbing a handful of his hankimono. "Listen, I might not be your friend and you've tried to kill Inuyasha more than a few times, but…" her hand shook. "But you're the strongest person I've met. If you fall, then what hope do the rest of us have?" she questioned softly. "Despite myself, I admire people like you and Kikyo. Always so crazy strong."

Sesshoumaru scoffed, gripping her hard by the hair and forcing her head down to look at the stump of his right leg. "Do I look strong to you, miko?" he hissed in her ear.

Kagome braced her hands on his available leg, twisting in his grip to look at him.

Sesshoumaru stilled.

Unshed tears lay in her eyes.

"Yes," she muttered with conviction. "So long as you don't give up now."

Sesshoumaru stared. Inky black hair slowly fell limp around his fingers. He settled back against the tree.

Kagome straightened, winding an arm around his waist again. "At least come with me to find shelter. You can't stay like this out in the open."

Sesshoumaru remained dead weight. He did not see the point in trying.

He could not hope to recover from this.

Kagome tugged and heaved at his body, his mass much too big for her to hope to move.

She sighed with frustration, blowing air at her bangs. "I'll tell Inuyasha about this," she grumbled.

Sesshoumaru blinked, sliding his gaze back to her. "I would kill you before you managed to leave."

Kagome smiled a little, patting his shoulder. "That's better. You look a bit more like yourself when you're threatening someone."

He wanted to snap at her. To snarl and bite the soft looking skin of her neck, frighten her enough to leave.

He was tired. A part of him felt content to die after his pride lay in such shattered tiny pieces.

And yet…

And yet a part of him, instinctive, strong and indomitable, refused to lay down and perish. It appreciated her continued efforts.

The thought of him hobbling about so pathetically was almost too much to bear, but Sesshoumaru closed his eyes, realising very wretchedly that this meant he did not in fact wish to die.

"We can do this," Kagome was muttering, trying to angle him enough to lay on Kirara, who pressed in close, offering assistance.

Sesshoumaru stifled a sigh, making a silent choice. He begrudgingly leaned against her, shifting his remaining leg beneath him.

Kagome gasped, "that's it!" she encouraged, helping him into a crouching position before he fell forward onto the beast. Kagome adjusted his leg, ensuring he was steady, before nodding for Kirara to stand.

Sesshoumaru did not pay attention to their surroundings, the forest passing in a blur.

If he'd just been quicker, the bull demon who had humiliated him would have perished sooner. The beast had produced a second weapon out of thin air, axe cleaving through muscle and bone. All he could do was pull back- lest he lose his entire lower half.

He felt no pain. Surprisingly, everything remained numb. His flesh was cold and clammy, and he lay as if outside of his own body.

Sesshoumaru closed his eyes, lapsing into unconsciousness.

---

The scent of rain stirred his senses.

Sesshoumaru turned his head, finding himself laying down upon a strange futon that resembled a squashed cocoon. The nekomata lay behind him, keeping him warm.

Sesshoumaru blinked. The miko had found them shelter. He soon located her sitting at the mouth of the cave, looking out at the rain while a fire lay in the centre of the cool space.

When she noticed he’d regained consciousness, Kagome rose and offered some water from her strange water container.

She’d changed clothes, donning more unusual clothing Sesshoumaru was unfamiliar with. Her pants clung to her form distractingly.

“How are you feeling?” she asked, hovering close.

He tsked, passing back the water after taking a swig. “Like I have one leg and one arm. How do you think I am feeling, mortal?”

She winced, “shitty.”

“Indeed,” Sesshoumaru lay back down, staring at the cave ceiling soberly.

“Do you want something to eat?” a crunchy noise rustled from her pocket as the woman produced a rectangular bar of some kind.

He couldn’t keep the disgust out of his voice, eyeing a picture of the food on its strange packaging. “What is it?”

“A peanut butter and chocolate energy bar,” Kagome winced. “Look I don’t know how to hunt-” he scoffed, “-so this is the best I’ve got. Sorry, your Highness.”

Sesshoumaru sneered, “you may keep it. I do not eat human food. Least of all bizarre creations such as that.”

“Fine but it's your loss.”

His expression became blank, noticing her wince and start apologising for the wording. He wasn’t listening anymore though. The initial shock was beginning to wear off, and now he was more than painfully aware of the shooting pains running up and down the remainder of his leg, from stump to upper thigh. Sweat began to bead on his forehead, refusing to show his discomfort.

“...You’ve used a human arm before,” Kagome said carefully, sitting beside him and crossing her legs. “And what looked like a dragon one. By that logic, you could attach a demon leg to yours, right?”

Sesshoumaru slid his gaze to her, silently thankful for the distraction. The coming agony would be something he’d already dealt with due to the loss of his arm. Phantom limb pain was a real bitch.

“Yes,” he managed, before taking a steadying breath. He managed to arrange his features into something smirking and lofty. “Are you implying you will fetch me a new limb, little miko? How very generous.”

Kagome’s eyes turned flat. “I’m not about to go out and lop off some poor demon’s foot just to help you. But...if…” she said slowly, “if I’m attacked- which happens often because of the jewel shards- maybe I’d…”

Sesshoumaru dropped his smug expression, frowning softly.

The rain continued to pour, pelting the ground hard. It was a sobering reminder that if she’d left him to the mercy of the elements, he’d be in a much worse state.

He ran careful attention over her features. “Why?”

Kagome’s deep blue eyes held his probing stare, not a flicker of deceit in them. “I don’t know,” she admitted softly, “things can’t go back to normal for you right away- or at least, they shouldn’t. You should take the time to recover. I don’t know how the hell you managed to come after us so quickly after losing your arm. It likely wasn’t healthy for you.”

He arched a brow. Repressing every single fibre of the experience and any feelings about the fate that had befallen his left arm had worked wonders for his recovery. Granted it made sleep difficult at times, but none had ever had the audacity to lecture him about his decisions before.

“But- I also don’t want you to be vulnerable to attacks or starvation,” Kagome kept rambling. “Giving you a leg won’t solve everything but it’ll help- ah, are you burning up?” she noticed a bead of sweat roll down his temple, reaching out automatically.

Sesshoumaru snatched it mid-air, pushing up with a burst of speed and yanking Kagome down, simultaneously rolling atop her. Her back hit the ground, punctuated with a squeak from her startled lips.

Silver hair hung down, creating a curtain that blocked out the rest of the world. Those blue eyes widened, breath hitching. Their lower halves pressed intimately together, stomachs meeting as Sesshoumaru leaned closer, using his hand to brace his weight above her. A fire burned within the back of his throat, ancient, tattered pride stinging. He found that he resented her slightly. Resented her for seeing him so weak. It hadn’t mattered when Rin had found him wounded. A battered child had no relation to him. But this girl, Kagome- was an enemy. She should not have seen him thus.

“Do I seem so very vulnerable to you?” he asked in a hushed voice, mouth inches from hers. The fire crackled, rain pouring. Her breathing sounded a touch quicker, heartbeat loud in his ears. Drumming.

Against all logic, he felt her body relax beneath his. She even smiled a little, “no,” she muttered.

“Is something amusing?”

“I’m just glad you proved me wrong. I’d rather you kept acting like a jerk than look so...defeated like you did earlier,” Kagome gave a nervous giggle, gesturing between them, “uh...if you could let me up now though that would be great.”

She tried to rise, but he let more of his weight sink down upon her soft, warm body. “No, I do not think I will.”

Kagome gasped, drawing a knee up and inadvertently opening her legs, allowing him to fit snugly against her. If he hadn’t lost a limb several hours earlier that same day and wasn’t experiencing agonising, blinding pain, Sesshoumaru had to say, the feeling was enough to make him...consider something previously thought impossible between himself and humans.

As it was, he hissed a breath through grit teeth, the stump licking phantom flames of blazing fire around the wound.

“Sesshoumaru? Sesshoumaru!”

He shuddered, trying to prevent himself from crushing her beneath his weight, arm shaking.

It hurt. It suddenly hurt like hell- and nothing was working. No distraction could take him from the blistering, lonely, maddening sensation that holy fuck his leg was missing. He wanted to do something as meaningless as wriggle his toes and he could not-

Suddenly, her arms were around him. Pleasant fresh scents assaulted his fractured senses, citrusy and clean. Kagome pulled him down while rolling herself, flipping their positions.

“I don’t have anything for the pain,” her voice strained apologetically. She quickly moved off him, but Sesshoumaru wasn’t paying attention anymore. He panted, temples pounding. His body shook, pain shooting through the nerve endings in the remainder of his leg.

Something cold and wet lay over his marked forehead. Cracking the burning suns of pained golden eyes open, he watched Kagome adjust the cold compress, before checking his leg.

“You heal quick, but you need new bandages. M-maybe that’ll help until I can go home for painkillers,” she muttered, grabbing her bag and digging through it.

Sesshoumaru panted softly, seizing the fretting miko’s wrist.

“Your...scent,” he grunted.

“What?”

If he were sober he’d never request something so undignified, but Sesshoumaru kept talking, somewhat delirious now that all sense of shock had worn off. “Come here...again. I want your scent.”

Kagome’s shocked features were lost to him as the Daiyoukai hissed, squeezing his eyes shut.

The scent of citrus returned after a moment. Soft, curling locks of dark hair brushed his nose as Kagome gingerly embraced him.

Sesshoumaru wrapped an arm around her shoulders, burying his face into the black fall of citrus-scented strands. He lost himself to instinct, gripping onto the stable, pleasant sensations that took the form of Inuyasha’s wench. She let out a tense breath but soon relaxed against him, verbally assuring Kirara when the nekomata growled.

For the second time that day, Sesshoumaru unwillingly lost the battle for consciousness.

----

She was gone by the time he awoke in the morning, but the nekomata remained. She growled and hissed softly whenever he looked at the beast for longer than necessary. Kagome left a note, explaining that she’d be back soon.

Sesshoumaru had little to do except wait. The pain had become a continuous throb, which was easier to deal with but equally as irritating, exhausting him.

When Kagome returned several hours later, she produced wrapped pieces of cooked chicken from her bag, cheerfully explaining that she’d returned home. Sesshoumaru turned his nose up slightly at the food.

“I would have preferred the bird...raw.”

“Wait like freshly dead?”

“Alive, favourably.”

Kagome gaped, leaving the lunchbox with him. “That's terrible!”

Sesshoumaru stared at her flatly, opening his mouth and drawing out his tongue, transforming his features into something more monstrous and canine while placing the food into his mouth and eating it in one quick snap of his jaws. “Demon,” he muttered pointedly.

She rolled her eyes and let him finish his meal in peace.

---

They fell into an odd routine of planned visits for several days, talking about the strange things she brought back from home. He came to learn she was from the Future, of all places. They discussed its advanced technologies while she bandaged his leg.

He suspected the miko felt some sense of responsibility for him now. The thought set his teeth on edge, mildly humiliated.

When he brought up the subject of his vassal, ward and steed, Kagome shrugged and told him they’d been accepted into Inuyasha’s group for the time being. They worried about his continued absence and Inuyasha complained about having to share a space with Jaken, but bared with it. Not one person knew about his situation except Kagome, for which he was thankful.

By the end of five days though, Sesshoumaru needed to move. He began by pulling himself along the ground via his hand and knee, which proved awkward but not impossible. Next came standing, which- after many failed attempts- he finally managed to do, gripping onto the cave wall.

Walking was impossible, of course. And by the time Sesshoumaru realised the very sobering truth that he’d have to hop everywhere the rest of his life or walk with the use of a cane or crutch unless he could grab a demon leg- he wondered why he’d bothered moving at all.

“You’re standing!”

Dulled golden eyes slid to the miko, who stood at the mouth of the cave. In her arms was a large sack faintly marred with blood, and he could tell from the wrinkle of her nose exactly what it was. Surprise slammed into his gut.

“Miko-”

Kagome set the bundle down, hurrying over and steadying him when he tipped too much to one side. “Are you alright? You should be resting-”

“Give me the leg, miko.”

Kagome fell silent, eyeing his stump. He’d stopped needing bandages two days ago. She didn’t protest, merely looking at him carefully. “Are you sure?”

Sesshoumaru leaned against her, allowing her to help ease him down into a sitting position. He briefly touched her cheek, gliding a thumb there and watching it redden. His heart thudded with gladness. “I am sure.”

She nodded, soon bringing the bloodied sack over. She explained that he’d gotten lucky, as while the first two demons they’d faced in a group of three had been too large and bulky to fit his build, the third had been smaller. Inuyasha had been extremely disturbed and suspicious when she’d asked him to hack their leg off once all three were dead.

“It’s not been easy, avoiding his questions, you know. He’s tried to follow me here more than once. I managed to convince him that this leg was for my weird Grandpa.”

Sesshoumaru blinked, finding himself watching her instead of studying the leg as it was revealed to him. The miko had been astronomically helpful and considerate in all the ways one could to a demon lord. His chest felt strange. Warm, upon realising the extent of her actions for his sake.

“Well, do you like it?”

Sesshoumaru jolted, focusing on the red-scaled leg laying before him. From its scent, he knew it to be from a lizard demon. Not his first choice, but this was no time to be picky. Sesshoumaru grabbed it and pressed the severed end to his stump after aligning it. He didn’t so much as flinch as muscle and bone wove together, the process over in seconds. Kagome gaped with amazement.

When he moved to stand, she quickly assisted, pulling him to his feet. Sesshoumaru took a step and staggered, looking downwards.

Ah.

Kagome’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh. Oh no...it's too short isn’t it?”

The height was off by a few inches.

He made to reply- before stiffening, scenting salt. “Why are you crying about it, foolish woman?”

“I-I’m sorry,” she waved it off, some tears escaping down her cheeks before she roughly brushed them away. “I just wanted it to be perfect but now you’re kind of...tilted.”

Despite the situation, a smile tugged at his mouth. A noise bubbled up from the back of his throat, escaping as a quiet laugh.

Kagome froze, tears clinging to her lashes.

“It is fine, miko. More than...fine.”

Sesshoumaru held onto the wall for support, feeling the bite of putting weight onto the leg, his stump flaring. It would take time for his body to adjust. Despite this, his warrior heart filled with purpose again, powers working to heal him. Just having the ability to walk after having it stolen away renewed his spirits.

Kagome watched him with a smile, occasionally offering aid but largely keeping her hands off. He could sense various soft emotions rolling off her in waves. Admiration, relief and something else. Something he could not name. It remained untouched and unnamed long after he left the cave behind one afternoon.

He had no writing utensils to leave a note, instead carefully tearing out a segment of his sleeve, leaving the red and white flower symbol of his family crest for her to find.

---

Kagome panted hard, catching her breath and folding down into a crouch, gripping her bow tight.

“Are you alright, Kagome?” Rin asked, closely followed by Shippo as they approached from Ah-Un, having kept away from the random attack on the village. Thankfully the hoard of boar demons had finally been dealt with, but Kagome’s nerves were shot to hell after racing around so much, trying to protect villagers.

“I-I’m fine, guys, thanks,” she smiled, looking between them both. The orphans had bonded quickly, and she felt a surge of warmth, happy they had a companion their age to talk with. It had been two weeks since she’d last seen Sesshoumaru since his disappearance, and while she loved having Rin around, it did make her worry. Sesshoumaru always returned to his group. Where had he run off too?

Maybe he went to find a better leg, she thought, taking the children’s hands and walking towards Miroku- who was helping up an old man from where he’d fallen. Perhaps he needed time to get used to walking on what’s essentially a prosthetic.

For humans- such a thing took up to one year. Demons really are something else.

Kagome’s lips curved, picturing the burning, determined gaze of the Daiyoukai.

Or rather, Sesshoumaru is something else.

“Kagome, look out!” Miroku yelled.

Jerking, Kagome sensed a lone boar youkai barrelling towards her through the forest, knocking trees aside. It was quicker than anticipated- and despite Kagome grabbing the children and trying to run out of its way, it charged straight for her, grunting, throwing its head wildly.

People were screaming her name, but they were too far away. Kagome twisted her body, pushing the kids aside and in order for her to take the brunt of the hit-

Red light exploded to life, consuming the boar demon before it could reach them. Hide and blood were caught up in the attack, leaving Kagome mercifully free from the boar's flying carnage.

She panted, shaking a little and gazing at the steaming remains of the demon. A pale figure floated to the ground, landing elegantly.

“Lord Sesshoumaru!” Rin cried happily.

“Lord Sesshoumaru?!” Jaken’s distant yell could be heard.

Kagome straightened, heart doing a funny thing in her chest. She immediately looked at his leg- finding him clad in white hakama pants and black boots. The same as always.

Blue eyes widened. He appeared completely unchanged. Somehow, he must’ve found an inhuman demon and took their leg so that he could masquerade as his usual self.

His tiny group circled around him joyously, while Kagome’s friends gathered together a little ways away. Inuyasha’s ears pinned back to his head with displeasure.

Jaken hopped up and down. “Where have you BEEN, mi lord!”

“Nowhere."

“Tch, bastard,” grumbling, Inuyasha raised his voice a touch. “Hey- you could at least thank us for babysitting your damn group while you were probably out doing power-hungry shit.”

Sesshoumaru’s gaze slid over the Hanyou dismissively, stopping on Kagome. Her breathing hitched.

“I am not here to thank you, Inuyasha.”

Kagome remained frozen as a shadow fell over her face, his head of silver hair blocking out the sun. Golden eyes replaced the burning circle in the sky, blazing and intent. Slit pupils pinned her in place.

She was vaguely aware of her friends exclaiming in surprise and alarm, thinking he meant to harm her. The sound of Inuyasha drawing his sword was enough to make her mutter ‘sit boy’ absentmindedly, paying no attention to his subsequent impact with the ground.

Sesshoumaru raised a hand, resting pale knuckles against her cheek in a slow drag down to her jaw, skin cool, clashing against her warmth. White lashes lowered, becoming half-mast.

“You’re okay?” she breathed.

“Hn, I merely needed some time,” Sesshoumaru’s low rumble melted her insides.

She cleared her throat, cheeks tinging red because of his proximity, his dark youki brushing her senses, his touch- his everything. Reaching into her pocket, she produced the segment of his clothing, the pattern of his clan. “Did you want this back-?”

“Keep it,” he closed her fingers over it, catching her eye. “You have my loyalty for what you have done for this one, miko. Keep it,” he said softer.

Kagome nodded slowly, opening her mouth to ask more-

Firm lips slanted over her own. Stiffening, she became deaf to her friend’s even louder exclamations of surprise, Miroku quietly voicing his awe, impressed.

The miko inhaled sharply through her nose, feeling Sesshoumaru’s mouth move, brushing against her own in several lingering kisses. Blushing, it took a moment for Kagome to get over her stupefaction. But then she pressed a little closer, kissing him back perhaps a little nonsensically. But it felt right. Her toes curled at the feel of him.

A low groan rumbled in his throat and his lips softened against hers, mouth parting to brush his sinuous tongue against hers.

Kagome shivered and wondered if he could hear how her heart hammered in her chest. His palm felt steady upon her back, arm encircling her waist. When they finally pulled away, their lips lingered close.

“What...what was that?” she breathed, cheeks flushed.

Sesshoumaru’s lips quirked, “that was this Sesshoumaru conveying my deep sense of gratitude, miko.”

“Funny way of thanking someone, but I’ll take it,” Kagome’s eyes glittered. She could think about the consequences of such an action later. For now, she was content to hold his gaze and keep his secret safe- for however long the prideful Daiyoukai needed.

#sesskag #sesshoumaru x kagome #sesshoumaru #kagome higurashi #sesskag fanfiction #enemies to lovers vibes

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rosafione · 3 years

Text

"Come Closer."

title; How Far Will I Fall, 'Till You Catch Me In your Arms

pairing; xiao x reader

desc; you never really lacked the guts for these kinds of things, but before everything else, you valued his feelings, and most of all, his consent. in the end, it still takes two to tango.

a/n; xiao drabble xiao drabble xiao drabbleee now, he might be ooc, im not sure, but this is mostly just an hc if you guys are close— to an extent muahahahahaha

Time was at a standstill for a certain young adeptus.

For someone who's lived a millennia, you'd think two months would only feel like a second. Before, Xiao would not deny the frequency of those moments— of loneliness, and melancholy; Of time spent watching the Guyun Stone Forest and awaiting his time to strike.

Every day that passed was one spent with his guard high, back then.

And yet now, those moments seemed as if they existed in a far different time. A time before the Traveler plunged Osial into the ocean, stripping them of their adeptal duties and eliminating a cause for Liyue to seek their guidance.

Though possibly the greatest disparity from that time could be that.. It was a time before you— before he had you by his side.

You were a mortal, one he considers to be above average, yet a mortal, nonetheless. You still had times where your humanity catches up to you, and you are left vulnerable in the hands of the evil that lurks among the lands of Tevyat.

Xiao met you at your weakest; But he watched you grow into your shell.

It wasn't as if he regarded you with any special fondness. At first. You were no different from any other mortal that walked Liyue— a fragile creature he was tasked to protect, and a being he needed to steer clear off, lest he harm you with his adeptal energy. (Death from the sheer force of it was no stranger to him. He does not want to carry another human's death on his shoulders.)

Xiao had a complicated relationship with the mortal realm. It was not disdain he harbored for humans, only vigilance and curiosity.

Their realm and the adepti's were two worlds apart.

What differed you from the mortals is that you crossed that distance. And somehow, you stood before him, right in the in between.

He wonders how you do it; You've always been unyielding in his presence. He knows you are aware of his prowess, but every time he looks at you, there is nothing but fondness and adoration he sees in your ancient gaze.

You offered him Almond Tofu almost every day. It makes him anticipate your troubles, yet you do no else other than indulge him in small chats, and silly escort commissions into the mountains or the forest. At times, you'd just watch him feed on your offerings.

He knew it was a bribe, the Almond Tofu. You did it almost everyday— Until you didn't have to.

At some point, Xiao stopped denying your presence. He's warned you enough— He respected you enough to know that you were an adult, and you could think for yourself. And though the moments you'd offer him were memories worthy to look back on, he dares not seek you out.

But he didn't have to. You always came to him first.

His relationship with you only grew from there. It was no earth-shattering occurrence, that's for sure. It was a parasite that he didn't know had been rooting itself into his being so deeply that he cannot bring himself to part with it.

Though if not a shocking event, it was still a crushing revelation.

"Good day, Xiao."

The lady-in-charge, Verr, seemed to be searching for something before her gaze flitted back to his. "No Y/N today?"

"Y/N is off to the harbour for a few days," he'd answered instinctively as he walked to the usual table prepared for him near the kitchen.

"And you didn't come with?"

His slit brows raise in confusion. "Why would I?"

"Oh dear, my apologies. I just figured—" a bashful chuckle leaves her— "Since I see you guys together all the time."

He frowns at the memory. It was a realization that started his resolve to put some distance, yet it was also the beginning of your.. lengthy travels.

When your few days became a few weeks, his resolve easily yielded to his eagerness in meeting you once more.

Time used to pass by swiftly, but nowadays, a year spent with you feels as if he had already spent half of his life.

He sighs, shaking his head at himself. "Reduced to just standing around. How absurd."

"If you think standing around was such an absurd concept then why do you still reject the idea of travelling with me?"

The familiar voice wills him to rip his gaze away from the scenery.

He knows it is yours— your steps, your scent, your weight, your presence. Xiao feels you the moment you stepped into the inn. Yet he does not move, run, nor show any sign of the buzz that vibrates from inside his chest.

Yet when he sees you, you are beautiful, safe. Ephemeral.

He forgets every aching minute he's spent in the eight weeks you were not in his vicinity.

Time runs again.

Still, everything about you is slow; The way you walk carefully to his side, the way you drag your fond gaze from his, to the scenery before you.. The way your hair flows and dances with the evening breeze.

He knows. The wind has always favored you.

"Ever since meeting the Traveler, all you've talked about is travelling," he chose to say.

"With you."

"What?" he frowns.

"I mean that yes, all I've talked about is travelling—" you chuckle bashfully, averting your eyes away from his— "That is, travelling.. But with you."

His eyes widen, then hardening with a purse of his lips, before he turns to glare into the distance. "My answer will not change. I cannot leave Liyue."

"And my reply is the same," you sigh. "The place does not matter. As long as we'd be together."

It is a sensitive topic, and an inevitable taboo.

There was a line neither of you should ever cross— a line he's put there himself, and one he disdains all the same.

Silence ensues. It is a frequent occurrence, ever since you first brought up the prospect of adventuring. Stubborn and troublesome. Xiao finds himself needing to track back in conversations just to figure you out.

Mortals were such complex creatures.

And yet it was so easy for you to read him like an open book. Or so he assumes. You always knew how you'd deal with him. Even Xiao knows that it is no easy feat.

"You're always like this," he grumbles.

You do not answer, and he settles for the tranquility, all the tension leaving his body; And for once, after two months, he felt as if he could actually breathe.

He wonders how much longer he'd be stuck in this area of torment and bliss. Wonders how much longer he'll continue to drag you into it.

Wonders when you'll snap and just leave him all together.

He frowns grumpily at the thought.

"Can I?" you ask.

Xiao looks into your eyes— swirling hues that didn't return his gaze, far focused on a lower part of his face. His lips, he realizes. Your gaze had been focused on his lips.

The epiphany wills a streak of crimson to rise to the tips of his ears, and his own focus is stolen away by the pink appendage that wets your lips.

"Your question is incomplete," he says instead, feigning ignorance.

Shaking his head, Xiao crosses his arms and forces himself to concentrate on your eyes. Only on your eyes.

Maybe then, he wouldn't get so distracted.

"Regardless of how your question would go, I don't understand why you need my opinion," he huffs, grumbling. "It's your body. You would know it best."

You press your lips together. A gentle, bashful smile spreading on your face as a fond look emerges in your eyes. "My apologies," you chuckle. "It was the wrong question to ask."

He faces you to narrow his eyes at your suspicious behavior, but he's far too distracted by the way your hand lifts, trailing from the side of his neck to gently cup his cheek, and his breath hitches, eyes widening.

Warmth radiated from your touch. Xiao knows better than to reject such touches any longer when with you. So he leans into it, presses his head closer to your palm, closing his eyes and exhaling in surrender.

"What i meant to ask was," he opens his eyes to look at you.

Your gazes clash. They meld and melt into each other as you slowly raise yourself closer and closer — or perhaps it was him who'd been leaning down.

The hand that traces the tattoo on his right arm, as well as the other that caresses his face with an aching gentleness, reels him in. enthralls him. It lures him into succumbing to your presence, and his body goes through that familiar feeling of softening under your touch.

"May I?" you whisper.

Suddenly, you are leaning in more eagerly— more determined, as if with a clear intent in mind. He thinks he understands your words enough now, swirling in his mind, goes through consideration, and the one practical response he could muster with his focus in a jumble is to deny you permission.

He gulps soundly; He can't bring himself to.

Xiao thinks this is it, watching you move in as he struggles to keep his eyes from fluttering shut. He thinks it would be this moment— this moment in which he dooms the unspoken rule between mortals and adepti. Dooms the contract he's worked so hard to fulfill in service of Lord Morax, now Zhong Li. He'd doom your friendship, or whatever it is you've offered him up to this point.

Yet even then.. Even then, he doesn't say no.

He stays quiet; Waiting. Wanting.

It's funny— the mortal language, how one could switch out a letter, and a word would seem that much different.

It was true, nonetheless.

Xiao waits. Xiao wants.

He wants the closeness, the intimacy— the affection you provide. He wants your lips to meet his just to know if it is as soft as the rest of you is. He wants to see if a kiss— curious, like a child— truly lives up to the countless tales told by the experienced. He wants to know.. If you will give him those answers.

His amber eyes meet yours. He does not breathe, as if doing so would scare you away. As if doing anything would give you a response he does not want to give.

It is enough. Your noses bump for a second, his eyes fluttering closed; Your scent wafts from beneath his nose, crisp burning incense, molded into the fresh smell of the forest that is brought about by the wind.

He curves into you, a single thought shaking him to the core, making him tremble - so utterly pathetic.

'Please..'

Your lips do not meet.

And suddenly, there is too much air between you and him.

Xiao opens his eyes to see you trailing back, fidgety— you looked like a walking contradiction, twitching fingers trying to cross the distance, gaze darting between looking away or staring regretfully at his lips.

There was a crimson hue staining your cheeks, he noticed.

"Why.." he whispers, then catches himself.

The inside of his chest strains from all the emotions he has to keep hidden— all the emotions he has to keep denying.

Disappointment. Loneliness. Exhaustion. Desperation.

Xiao wants.

You couldn't believe you almost kissed him.

It was a heavy violation of contract— not that you two had ever agreed to one, but it was an unspoken compromise. It was a truth you both knew, yet continued to ignore.

So that this— whatever this was, could survive.

Archons, you almost laid it all to waste!

(Either way, any decision would still leave you with regrets, had you continued or pulled away.)

"Ah, would you look at that!" you laughed out loud in a panic, perhaps to cover up the tense atmosphere. "I did it again! I asked a question without completing it, yeah? Guess it's a really bad habit on mine!"

Xiao does not answer. You spare him a look. And you wish you hadn't.

He looks dejected, disappointment and frustration showing through his slit eyebrows and wide eyes.

As if your choice was a surprise to him.

As if he wanted you to continue.

As if.

You couldn't deny you wanted it, too. Whatever he could give you. And, more.

You mentally scold yourself, knowing you're already stretching Xiao's patience with your friendship as it is.

You have to remind yourself that Xiao is immortal, and no matter how humane he may seem, you cannot trouble him with matters such as the turmoil in your heart.

It's really hard to say anything, when all the thoughts that circle in your head is how wonderful he is. How amazing he makes you feel. How he is all you've ever wanted for the whole year since you've realized you'd developed a certain affection for him.

"Sorry, Xiao," you say, throat tightening with bubbles of emotions threatening to spill. "I should.. Go away, for some time."

( And the first thing Xiao thinks is to dejectedly reply 'Again.?' )

"No," he says all too quickly, detaching from the banister.

"No?" you echo, confused. "N-no what?"

"Stay," he says, but it is not a command. Not from the adeptus. It is a soft request; A wavering plea that reaches to you soul.

"Where?" you ask. 'How far?'

"Here," he whispers now. "With me."

You push your luck, craving just a bit more patience from Xiao.

"Close?"

You could see Xiao consider. His eyes showing his heart, but his silence showing his mind.

He gives in.

"Close."

That day was the nearest you've peered, held and embraced Xiao's soul, moving closer, and softly leaning your forehead on his, clenching onto the white fabric of his shirt as he loosely wraps an arm around your waist— under the watchful eyes of the night sky.

There is still a distance that Xiao dares not cross.

And for now, maybe it's enough.

#genshin ff #genshin drabbles #xiao x reader #genshin xiao x reader #genshin xiao #genshin angst #genshin fluff #yes im tormenting both reader and xiao #yes im also crying #WE NEED THESE ONCE IN A WHILE #pining #mutual pining #MAYBE IT'S ENOUGH TMT

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nitewrighter · 3 years

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What HCs do you have about the religious affiliations of the teen titans?

Starfire probably has the the most straightforward faith out of all of them. She worships X'hal, who... it isn't really a fair comparison to say X'hal is Tamaranean Jesus. There's a lot of variations in how different Tamaranean sects worship X'hal. For some sects the analogue might be closer to Buddha, for others, X'hal is kind of an elevated hero-god where her mortal origins as a liberator are more emphasized, and for some, there's a heavy martyrdom aspect. As a Princess of Tamaran, Starfire kind of makes a point not to lean too hard into any hyper-specific interpretation of X'hal. She meditates on both X'hal's mortal origins and the aspects of her divinity, and how passion and compassion allow normal Tamaraneans to experience the divine in their own ways. Starfire's also aware that religion and politics can get messy fast, so for her, the sacredness of X'hal is also like... a bedrock for the sacredness of Tamaran's own cultural traditions, such as the authority of the the throne, and the weight of such actions as a challenge for the throne. Starfire is one of those rare people whose faith isn't there to reinforce her own biases, but to open her perspective and make her understand the weight of her own actions.

Technically (ha) Cyborg's Baptist, but neither of Cyborg's parents were particularly religious. Still, religion was important to them as a social function--keeping in touch with family members and the community in general, fostering connections that let Victor Stone's athletic career thrive. After Cyborg's accident though, Victor and Silas more or less dropped out of their local church altogether. They still got a bunch of food and casseroles and visitors weighing down on them mourning Elinore, and basically all the social exhaustion of that (combined with Silas plunging deeper into figuring out Victor's funky motherbox capabilities as part coping mechanism part 'What the shit is happening') saw a very fast exit from the community. Cyborg's own motherbox capabilities have kind of... blown his mind. It's kind of hard for him to fall back into the motions of that faith. There's still an affection and a nostalgia for it, but also like... I don't think he'd really get back into it unless his dad did, and there is no motivation for it on Silas's end.

Beast Boy is functionally agnostic. He's seen some weird shit with the Doom Patrol and he honestly has an absurdly high threshold for like... earth-shattering reality-bending shit compared to the other Titans. Rita had some Christian leanings but not really, so she didn't really force it on Gar all that much. She just raised him to be "an upstanding young gentleman" which like... stuck about 60%?? Beast Boy's faith can be boiled down to like...

Beast Boy: *mouth full of vegetarian chow mein* Why don't we talk about how King Shark is the son of Shark God? Are there other gods like Shark God? Is there a Crab God? Do you think Crab God and Shark God are cool with each other?

Robin has a really interesting blend of different faiths between some Romani folk practices of his parents, Bruce being interfaith, Kate being Jewish, some weird quasi-Buddhist stuff from Bruce's training, and a whole hodgepodge of different folk faiths that different members of Haley's Circus had. I don't know if it's fair to say he believes in a higher-power... at the end of the day, he's a boots on the ground guy. He's gotta look after himself and his team, and if there's a higher power, sure, whatever, that's great, but that's not something that can solidly figure into team logistics.

Raven. Hoo boy. Where to start with Raven. So like... in the comics, the monks of Azarath basically see Azar, the weird semi-immortal mystic old woman who guided them to Azarath, as kind of a god unto herself, but in the 03 show, there's like no mention of Azar at all. My personal interpretation is that... while Azar was this highly sacred and revered figure in Azarath, Raven actually got the most accurate, vulnerable, and honest look at her: An immortal who fucked up, who knows she fucked up, and is now desperately scrambling to prepare Raven as the last defense all of reality has against Trigon. And within Azarath, Raven had to keep up the appearance of this great reverence toward Azar to keep the rest of Azarath from falling into complete despair. So like... Raven is simultaneously aware of like... the power faith has, but she's also disillusioned with it. She's also repulsed by the cults of her father preying on the vulnerable. Ultimately, Raven's respectful towards virtually all religious beliefs--and she does see the force and merit in a lot of different ritual elements of them. She's not one of those assholes who's going to shit all over your faith because of her own trauma. Azarath raised her with a lot of hardcore compassion but... faith in general is something that gets her anxious. She believes in her friends. And like... as scary as it can get sometimes... at the end of the day, that's enough.

#Teen Titans #Koriand'r #Garfield Logan #Victor Stone #Dick Grayson #Rachel Roth

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mybg3notebook · 3 years

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Gale: Hypothesis and Analogies – Part 1

Here, I compile several hypotheses that are pretty common to find around, expressing my opinion on them and showing what EA has given us so far to justify them or not.

Disclaimer Game Version: All these analyses were written up to the game version v4.1.104.3536 (Early access). As long as new content is added, and as long as I have free time for that, I will try to keep updating this information. Written in June 2021.

Disclaimer about interpretations of Real Life concepts: I’m not a fan of bringing real life issues into plain analogies/allegories in a game which intention in doing so was not made explicit, but the fandom seems to like this aspect and therefore I would like to share those opinions here as well since some seems reasonable despite not being of my taste. This topic may be sensitive for some people. Be aware of it.

Hypothesis: Gale was groomed

Concept

Grooming is building a relationship, trust, and emotional connection with a child or young person (and sometimes their family as well) to lower the child's inhibitions with the objective of sexual abuse. Grooming allows offenders to slowly overcome natural boundaries long before sexual abuse occurs. On the surface, grooming a child can look like a close relationship between the offending adult, the targeted child and (potentially) the child’s caregivers. The grooming process is often misleading because the offender may be well-known or highly regarded in the community. As a result, it’s easy to trust them. Although grooming is more common among children, it may happen with adults too, especially in work environments.

Stages: First, perpetrators may target and exploit a child’s perceived vulnerabilities: emotional neediness, isolation, neglect, a chaotic home life, or lack of parental oversight, etc. They work to gain the trust of parents/caregivers to lower suspicion.

Once the perpetrator begins to fill the child's needs, they may assume a more important role in the child's life. Perpetrators utilize tactics such as gift giving, flattery, gifting money, and meeting other basic needs. Tactics may also include increased attention and affection towards the targeted child. The perpetrator uses isolation tactics to reinforce their relationship with the child by creating situations in which they are alone together or by cultivating a sense that they love and understand the child in a way that others, even their parents, cannot.

Once emotional dependence and trust have been built, the perpetrator progressively sexualizes the relationship. When sexual abuse is occurring, perpetrators commonly use emotional manipulation; they make the child believe they are the only person who can meet their emotional and material needs. The child may feel that the loss of the relationship, or the consequences of exposing it, will be more damaging and humiliating than continuing the unhealthy relationship.

Behavioural consequence

The consequences on victims of grooming tend to be very different depending on the victim's age, personality, and psychology, but some broad leftover traits or behaviours can be summarised as:

They are too eager to please and have a great avoidance of angering others.

Big desire for privacy: they know others will not understand what they lived.

The victim becomes withdrawn, or they may seem troubled by something but unwilling to talk about it. Alternatively, their emotions might become more volatile.

They tend to be unaware of the abuse for a long while even after the relationship ended.

If they are aware, they tend to display shame and embarrassment for what happened.

They can suffer abandonment issues depending on the way this relationship ended.

They tend to develop difficulties to maintain relationships.

This situation tends to be particularly invisible or dismissed for men and boys due to social norms about masculinity.

Inside the context of BG3

First, it's important to estimate Gale's age. More or less the fandom agrees he is currently (1492DR) in his early 30s. Mystra returned in 1479DR (read the post about "Mystra and her Chosen ones" for details), so Mystra may have lured Gale into serving her as Chosen when he was around 17 years old (this depends on every player’s perception of Gale’s age)

This gives us a good estimation of the context: When Mystra returned thanks to Elminster—who gave her most of his Silver Fire—she immediately started to strengthen her network of Chosen ones and to work on repairing the Weave to its original state. Due to this unique context, Gale may have been observed by Mystra as a precious asset: a very young wizard who could not only control the Weave but compose it: a great skill to repair a still weak Weave. Furthermore, in the novel Dead Masks (1491DR), it is stated that the best way to cast a spell with a weakened Weave is to "twist" it instead of using it for tapping into the Raw Magic. In this book it is not clear if this is a skill that only Chosen ones have, but it has a strong similarity with Gale's skills.

Although we don't know much about Gale's childhood, if he was neglected or not as a child to be more easily lured by the Goddess, we can agree that it's most likely that Mystra has been watching him as a potential candidate since a child. Gale explicitly says: "I’ve been in touch with the Weave for as long as I can remember". And as far as Forgotten Realms lore goes, Weave and Mystra are the same. We also know that this is a common behaviour of Mystra who has been watching precocious, skilful wizards before choosing them for her goals: for example, Midnight.

When Gale reached an age that could be considered a "(very) young man", she seduced him, using his passion and love for Magic to lure him. She offered him a deep connection with her and with the Weave: with Magic itself. After seeing Gale's passion for magic, it is understandable that he—as a teenager or a young man—must have been dazzled by her and her proposal. We know that, in the novel Elminster: a mage in the making, she offered to Elminster exactly what he wanted the most: power to make his revenge possible . By the end of the encounter, Elminster became “charmed” by her despite hating her throughout all his life, turning into her devotee. This situation can be interpreted as another example of how Mystra works: she seems to lure her potential Chosen with the promise of giving them what they are most passionate about.

Once Mystra slept with her Chosen, and imbued her divine essence on them, she left them to their own devices, making them wait for her commands. In Elminster’s and Sammaster ‘s case, both were put under tests, being forced—by their own drive to please the Goddess—to develop more magic and personal skills to serve her. In the process, both developed an obsession for her. Elminster's seems to be less self-destructive than Sammaster's, but the latter could be understandable since he always suffered from madness. My point is, the pattern continues with Gale: driven by this obsession of wanting Mystra close, to please her, Gale tried to control an ancient magic, and failed, being abandoned by Mystra due to this mistake.

Gale, according to this interpretation as a victim of grooming, is still stuck in the process: he wants to please Mystra, wants to right his wrongs, even though in some scenes he seems to have been over her, in others he still seems to be very attached to her (it's hard to know which is the most accurate since it's EA and Gale was rushed), he keeps all this trouble in private because he knows nobody will understand.

Unlike an adult who realised he was victim of grooming, Gale seems to be still not over that relationship, showing many of the behavioural consequences:

Gale is a person who is always eager to please and avoid confrontations. If there is no choice he will use violent means, but he will always push for diplomatic approaches [1,2]. This trait seems to favour this interpretation.

He has a strong sense of privacy to the point that he is considered "shady". A lot of that desire for privacy may come from the fact that he knows no one will understand the unique relationship he had with a bigger entity. This can be seen by choosing the meanest options during the Weave and the Loss. Despite his many troubles, he remains secretive, acknowledging that "some things can't be spoken".

He is completely unaware of having been a victim of such power imbalance. He doesn't see abuse in it, and he is not performative about this fact, since he is very private on the topic until very late in game.

Nobody can deny his abandonment issues (which are even explicitly pointed out in the dev's notes) [20]

We can infer, by all the information given, that Mystra has been his first (and presumably only) relationship so far, giving a possible hint that he may have decided not to enter another relationship again or may have felt apprehensive about it (even though I personally think this impediment is mainly caused by the “orb”).

I don't completely subscribe to this interpretation because I don’t think Mystra’s main goal has been sexual abuse, but the creation of servants and devotees that allow her to expand her power. To do so, she uses sex as part of the “ritual” that transforms certain mortals into Chosen Ones. The way in which this is indirectly explained in the novels makes me remember the concept of Zeus and his abuse of mortals: he spreads part of his divinity in the form of demi-god offspring. In Mystra’s case, she seems to leave part of her divinity in the Chosen one that slept with her: the “seed” of semi-divinity.

However, it’s not clear if sleeping with her Chosen ones is a procedure she always does. Her daughters may have inherited her divinity when she conceived them while possessing a mortal body, but other female Chosen Ones seemed to be out of this process. Ed Greedwood also has a constant discourse in his novels where he explains that magic is “better” understood or much easily wielded by females because “they are connected to their emotions” and another stereotype of this kind. What seems to be clear is that Forgotten Realm lore hides as much as possible its queerness, and when it comes to Mystra, this habit of sleeping with her Chosen seems to apply (or at least make it more explicit) only to male mortals. So in short, her main goal was to catch another useful mortal to her group of Chosen Ones, and to do so, she lured Gale with all what she could offer. I also believe gods are gods, and they are immensely overpowered and entitled to do whatever they want in this fantasy world. They don't follow mortal rules, so they may have little scruples to do anything they see necessary to achieve their own goals, no matter if the consequences of their actions affect children, teenagers, or adults.

Mystra in particular has been a very neutral goddess (due to her many rebirths), not particularly cruel as an evil deity could be, but not completely selfless either: she has conceived her daughters using a mortal vessel who previously gave her consent but without knowing the consequences of giving birth each year for a decade while containing a goddess inside. Mystra also profited off of Sammaster's madness (some Harpers who wrote Sammaster’s reports suspect she could have been able to cure him): she may have actively decided not to in order to let his genius madness increase her realm of power/magic. Therefore, Mystra may have had little scruples to use a very young Gale enamoured with magic to turn him into another Chosen whose skills could fix the Weave given the context that it had been severely weakened after the Spellplague. So the grooming is not completely misplaced in my opinion.

Gale's Chosen selection process is not different to what we can read in the book of the Cult of the Dragon, where Sammaster became obsessed with Mystra after sleeping with her and developed metamagic as a consequence to impress her. Or in the novel Elminster, the making of a mage, where Elmister originally despised Mystra and every magic user. However, after being in her presence, he fell for her charm, and never could get over his "love" for her, suffering a lot of painful circumstances to just be a "good devotee" and serve her.

Mystra is written in most novels as the living allegory of the beautiful "mean" woman who will always ask for more from her poor captivated men, but she will never be completely satisfied, no matter how much they sacrifice. She acknowledges the effort, but she is always asking for more. Only with Elminster she actively tried to save him from the Hells, showing, for a change, that her Chosen can be a bit more than mere pawns in the big game of divine power. However, it's important to highlight that the last rebirth of Mystra has changed her: in the novel Dead Masks some of the Seven Sisters explicitly say that Mystra has turned paranoid, asking each of her Chosen to do missions that the others cannot know. She has become more secretive and cryptic than ever.

Mystra's actions seem to have worse connotation if we think that she can have visions of the future, as she had when she decided that Sammaster had to be her Chosen: she had foresaw the death of another Chosen and she wanted him to fill that vacuum before the event happened. So she may have foreseen Gale’s actions in his naive way to impress her. Maybe she wanted him to do it, so she could have a new piece of magic in her realm. But this is mere speculation, we will need the full release of the game to have the answer.

As I explained, despite not being a fan of it, the interpretation of grooming is not a bad one. It fits mostly if it's applied to a teenage boy, and probably it would have been taken a bit more seriously and less prone to jokes inside the fandom if Gale were a female character and Mystra a male God.

Hypothesis: Gale has abandonment Issues

Concept

Abandonment issues arise when an individual has a strong fear of losing loved ones. A fear of abandonment is a form of anxiety. It often begins in childhood when a child experiences a traumatic loss. Children who go through this experience may then begin to fear losing other important people in their lives. Some individuals continue to fear abandonment as they grow older. Although it is less common, abandonment issues can also sometimes begin in adulthood.

The loss often stems from a trauma, such as a death or divorce. Emotional abandonment, where a parent or caregiver is physically present but emotionally absent, may also give rise to abandonment issues later in life. It is not clear what makes one person develop this fear, since not all humans who have experienced similar losses do it. Trauma — potentially from abuse or poverty — may play a role, as may the level of emotional support that a person receives following a loss. These issues can have a significant effect on a person’s life and relationships because they fear that the other person will leave them at any moment.

Behavioural signs/consequences

Being overly eager to please ( a “people pleaser”)

Pushing others away to avoid rejection

Jealousy of the partner or the others when in a relationship.

Trouble trusting their partner's intentions.

Feeling insecure about their relationships.

Codependency

Need for continuous reassurance that others love them and will stay with them

Persisting in unhealthy relationships

Inability to maintain relationships: or moving quickly from one relationship to another or sabotaging them

Inside the context of BG3

I'm not going to explain this in great detail since it's spread in most of the posts I’ve done about Gale's analysis. What it's clear is that Gale has a constant fear for abandonment once he starts caring for Tav as a friend or/and lover, and this fear makes him prone to do things of poor taste. This fear seems to make him look for acceptance that only through a night of intimacy can give him. This information is apparently in the book he read, making us guess that his experience with relationships is rather poor if nonexistent. Dev's notes also reinforce the idea that Gale fears abandonment:

Gale: It is my truth, finally revealed. It is this folly that led Mystra to abandon me completely. I can only hope you won’t abandon me as well. After all we’ve been through. After the night we spent together. Surely we can brave even this side by side Dev's note: Solemn. Full of yearning, his news will not lead to him being abandoned by the player.

Gale: Loyalty is such a… such a very rare commodity. Dev's note: The reference to loyalty foreshadows Mystra leaving him.

So far in EA, we can see that Gale checks some behavioural consequences of this fear: he is always eager to please, approaching Tav with courtesy and jovial manners, only displaying his most acidic side to a Tav whose actions are evil. In that case, Gale cares little if Tav leaves him. With the Loss scene we can see that it is hard for him to give his trust to others, pushing them away because they would not understand the grave mistake he made. His trust demands constant progression from the Stew scene, to the Weave, to the Loss scene. If he is romanced, he asks several times if Tav is thinking of the Weave moment. When Tav asks him this question, Gale will deflect, always asking back to have Tav’s answer first before giving his: it could be interpreted as Gale looking for constant reassurance in the blooming relationship.

However, in my opinion, the best situation that shows his abandonment issues is during our meeting with Gandrel. Gale disapproves of handing over Astarion, by telling Tav about an anecdote of a dog turning old and mean: how his friend got rid of the animal just because it was an inconvenience. This is very curious since Gale's mistrust for Astarion is not a secret: he stated many times that Astarion is a danger to the group, and his wickedness causes him to strongly dislike him. The reason for this is quite obvious if we see both lists of approvals: mostly what one approves the other disapproves. Despite all this, Gale strongly judges Tav for handing Astarion over, and his disapproval for doing it shows that Gale is not lying on the matter: the meta-knowledge is trustworthy information.

This can be understood better when Tav defends Astarion against Gandrel: Gale approves twice of defending him. If Astarion is not in the group when meeting the monster hunter, the first approval happens when Tav recognises that Astarion is part of their companions/friends (therefore, Tav is showing care for their group). The second approval happens when Tav reinforces their loyalty to Astarion insisting that they won’t give his location (this is a clear display of loyalty that Gale acknowledges as rare. See the post of "Gale Hypotheses- Part 2", section: "Proposition to Cheat" for more details). Although Gale will explicitly question this decision, he secretly approved it (the approvals we saw are meta-knowledge: only the player sees them). Considering the undeniable context that Gale deeply dislikes Astarion, we may interpret this as Gale seeing in Tav a loyal person who will not abandon someone they care for, even if that person endangers them. Loyalty is something that resounds deeply in Gale due to his abandonment issues.

Another detail on this matter can be seen during the party. If Tav arranges spending the night with a companion and then asks (non-romanced) Gale the same, he will answer:

Gale: You are all too quick to abandon the one you promised yourself to. It’s not a quality I admire.

This line shows that first, Gale is not interested in casual sex; he needs the connection that the Weave provides and Tav’s explicit, previous romantic interest in it. Second, when Gale is romanced but Tav sleeps with someone else, Gale will not interfere in that affair, but he may not like it (due to his, I suppose, jealous comment since he doesn’t display an approval penalty for this). However, he seems to equate loyalty with commitment, understanding that affair as a fling but believing he still holds the romantic interest of Tav, hence his proposition the next day. More details in the post of "Gale Hypotheses- Part 2", section: "Proposition to Cheat".

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Sources for both parts:

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ( 5V)

Some concepts were summarised from: https://melcrowecounsellor.com www.d2l.org/child-grooming-signs-behavior-awareness/

This post was written in June 2021. → For more Gale: Analysis Series Index

#bg3 meta #bg3 gale #gale #gale of waterdeep

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