#CS&Co.!

[justjudethoughts]

No thoughts, just Anthony Lockwood in dialogue with this Narnia quote:

"For this is what it means to be a king: to be first in every desperate attack and last in every desperate retreat, and when there's hunger in the land (as must be now and then in bad years) to wear finer clothes and laugh louder over a scantier meal than any man in your land." -King Lune, The Horse and His Boy

That is all. Continue with your scrolling.

[hannahhook7744]

'I Tried Carrying The Weight Of The World, But I Only Have Two Hands; Hope I Get The Chance To Travel The World, But I Don't Have Any Plans' Edits;

Bill, Katie, Zach, Max, Emma, and Killian (with a painting and the Peter Pan book added in).

Lily, Emma, Katie, Bill, Zack, Max, and Killian at the disastrous last dinner.

Killian and Ingrid.

Killian and Emma.

Killian, Emma, and Neal.

Cover.

Teen Emma Swan Moodboard.

Teen Amensiac Killian Jones.

Teen CS.

[mechanisedbastardart]

🐇Introduction🐇

🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰

About the artist🐰

𖦹 Name: Damien

𖦹 Age: 15

𖦹 Nationality: Scottish and Welsh

𖦹 Pronouns: They/them

𖦹 Birthday: September 1st

𖦹 Im a hellenic pagan

Art Mediums🐰

𖦹 Digital art

𖦹 pencils

𖦹 Pens

𖦹 Paints

𖦹 Moodboards

𖦹 Photography

Kinds of Art I Do🐰

𖦹 Offerings

𖦹 Fanart

𖦹 Original art

𖦹 Photos

𖦹 Devotional art

Fandoms🐰

𖦹 PJO

𖦹 Good Omens

𖦹 TMA

𖦹 Sherlock & Co

𖦹 The Umbrella Academy

𖦹 Castle Swimmer

𖦹 Greek Mythology

Other Socials🐰

𖦹 Discord: the.throat.of.delusion

𖦹 Tiktok: catchmeatthedamsnackbar

𖦹 Snapchat: damieneatsmold

🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰

<Updated 4th October 2024>

[teamhook]

Captain Swan Event

Hello, CS crew!! I come today with an event idea that has been tossed around in the discord server I run. (originally used for a different event >> CSMM) Okay, the new event  (Captain Swan Co-Storytellers Collaboration) would consist of groups of 3-4 people working together to write a captain swan story.  This is not a one person writes one part and passes on the document and so on until it reaches its end. No, this would be the ultimate team effort in an ensemble of amazing writers! Of course there are details to be ironed out but I wanted to know if anyone here was interested to join. I will share the form to get an idea of who is interested and for a way to contact anyone that wants to join in on the fun. As soon as I can I will reach out to you.

ENSEMBLE FORM

Gonna tag some people I know and I'm sorry if I don't tag everyone. If possible reblog. Thank you lovelies!

@allons-y-to-hogwarts-713 @andiirivera @anothersworld @apiratewhopines @artistic-writer @batana54 @beckettj @bethacaciakay @bixisarusher @branlovestowrite @brooke-to-broch @captainodonoghue @carpedzem @chasedancer17 @cocohook38 @courtorderedcake @darkcolinodonorgasm @deckerstarblanche @demisexualemmaswan @djlbg @donteattheappleshook @dovelyheart @elizabeethan @gingerchangeling @gingerpoliglot @holdingoutforapiratehero @hollyethecurious @hookedonapirate @hookedonaswanprincess @hookedonhiddles @ilovemesomekillianjones @imlaxdris71 @itsfabianadocarmo @jarienn972 @jennjenn615 @jonesfandomfanatic @jrob64 @justanother-unluckysoul @k-leemac @karlyfr13s @kday426 @killian-will-do @klynn-stormz @kmomof4 @kwistowee @kymbersmith-90 @laschatzi @lassluna @let-it-raines @lfh1226-linda @lonelyspectator12 @mariakov81 @motherkatereloyshipper @officerrogers @ohmakemeahercules @onceratheart18 @pirateherokillian @purplehawkcaptain @resident-of-storybrooke @revanmeetra87 @sailtoafarawayland @sals86 @scribomaniac @searchingwardrobes @seriouslyhooked @shardminds @shireness-says @snowbellewells @sotangledupinit @spacekrulesbians @spartanguard @stahlop @superchocovian @swanslieutenant @tehgreeneyes @the-darkdragonfly @thejollyroger-writer @thepirateandhisson @therealstartraveller776 @thislassishooked @thisonesatellite @tiganasummertree @tomeandflickcorner @ultraluckycatnd @veryverynotgoodwrites @wefoundloveunderthelight @wellhellotragic @whimsicallyenchantedrose @winterbaby89 @xarandomdreamx @xsajx @zaharadessert @myfearless-love @cosette141 @grimmswan @fleurdepetite @hookmecaptain @once-upon-a-pirate-ship  @undercaffinatednightmare @4getfulimaginator2022 @nachocheese-itsmycheese @booksteaandtoomuchtv @iverna @OUATadmire

[reichi-orchidland]

His blue eyes were as innocent as the sky

Since my last Laurent try got some attention, I will post some more from my old photo shoot <3 Photo by tulfotografie (ig)

[bigmilk-13]

No Time To Die just started playing on my Spotify and I was like

😯🤯

IMMA ADD NEW FLORIAN LAFAYETTE-MEADOWS LORE

so basically he was a CSIS agent the WHOLE time, undercover at V.I.L.E, joined by giving the harddrive filled with information about any criminals and projects the organisation has. Hecs accepted into V.I.L.E because he's a conman and trickster, so he tricked them into paying a load of money for the harddrive.

THIS WHOLE TIME HE'S UNDERCOVER, AND THE FIRST TIME HE SEES CARMEN HE HATES HER BECAUSE HE JUST KNOWS SHE'LL MESS UP HIS MISSION!

anyways, she tells him that V.I.L.E killed his father and yah-

*cue bigass mental breakdown*

He disappears, doesn't give CSIS the info from V.I.L.E because THEY NEVER TOLD HIM HE WAS GOING TO BE FAKE-WORKING FOR THE ORGANISATION THAT KILLED HIS DAD??

and Carmen's worried, the whole of Team Red is.

Julia has a whole different backstory, she's an MI6 agent working for Interpol, then ACME

but you must be thinking, "oh my god! but isn't Roundabout the head of MI6!?"

Yah, but before him is Alan Blunt, the head of MI6 in the Alex Rider book series. Then V.I.L.E does some stuff and puts Roundabout as head, after Julia is at ACME working undercover and Roundabout doesn't know about that.

Also Roundabout is her father.

Yay?

Anyways, I'm getting off track.

Jules finds him, and turns out he made his own team and all. He contacts CSIS and is told to have Team Red join his team, Team Purple, as an individual kind of team, but just so they can keep an eye on what she's doing and help her if they can.

Of course, they don't tell Florian that- so he doesn't tell Carmen and she disagrees. They get into a fight and Florian meets with CSIS again saying that she denied their request at cooperation.

CSIS told him to go undercover at V.I.L.E again, to go back and say that he was taken away and tortured (they had to get rid of one of his fingers to make it believable, which is why he has 4 fingers in his left hand) but he never gave away anything.

He goes back to V.I.L.E and well, they don't trust him.

So, they do the usual.

They brainwash him.

Oops, well he's not undercover anymore- is he.

He meets Carmen at another caper, again on different sides. She had no idea what's going on and why he's on V.I.L.E's side, but doesn't say anything. Loses the fight with him and runs away.

Carmen tells Jules, who was told everything by CSIS. She reveals that she's actually an MI6 agent and explains the whole thing to Carmen.

there's so much more but I think I'd have to write a fanfic about the Florian Lafayette-Meadows CS&AR OC au.

[isabellaofparma]

What would we be together? So much harm. Yeah. It's a mess. It's a mess. Couldn't work. It wouldn't, would it? No.

[maesonc]

Holy shit this thing was screaming hot back in the day.

It’s significantly less dangerous today b/c Co 60’s got a pretty short half life (5.3 years) But damn grandma Cobalt here would have wrecked you back in the day.

Ever seen a bare radiation source? My absolute fave hazard marking. Ominous and concise in all the right ways.

[blizzardstarx]

@castiels-destiny

main four (sketches) are down!! Misty as her nightmare fire werewolf form, Fang as his dragon-wolf form, Dagger as her werecat form (yeahhh i draw her as a regular cat) and Paradox as her ShapeWing form. i might cut off the extra paper on the left because theyre not centered 😭😭

also the mug was an inside joke as Dagger would knock over the teacher’s mug in the earlier pages, and everytime it was replaced she would do it again, then when the new school was built and they were all principals basically, Dagger tried knocking over Paradox’s mug but it didn’t work as Paradox enchanted it lmfaooo

so Dagger broke the enchantment in this drawing and Paradox is laughing

[justjudethoughts]

So, I did the math, and assuming TSS takes place in 2013 (when it came out), then the Problem started circa 1963.

C.S. Lewis was born in 1898. He published the Narnia books from 1950-1956.

So, canonically, The Chronicles of Narnia should exist in the Lockwood and Co universe.

I have been given dangerous knowledge.

(Celia 100% read The Lion the Witch and The Wardrobe to Jessica when she was little, and she was absolutely obsessed with it and kept her mom's beat up childhood box set, and then Jess would read the books to Lockwood at bedtime, after their parents died. His favorite was Prince Caspian, but hers was always LWW)

[eggshell4bones]

my fav thing about there being snow is i can Avoid responsibility more and let everything pile up for my future self to deal with mmmmmm

[shakshukagirl]

its student council election time rn (i didnt even know we had one) and people who are running are sending their campaign posters to every group chat to get people to vote for them and its funny because 1. i cannot understand how anyone would want to run for that like why would you do that to yourself and 2. the posters are so funny they're all very graphic design is my passion

[1withestars]

🛸⋆☆˚.⋆ nct dream as a significant other (headcanon)

| implied idol!dream, implied fem!reader, fluff, very cute in general

mark

would stare at you with much adoration but breaks eye contact immediately if you caught him in the act

would write songs about you and record them with a smile on his face cs you’re all he thinks about while recording it

would literally contort his body to get the perfect angle while taking a picture of you

would get cuteness aggression towards you

would give crazy tight hugs

would be the type to have a hair tie around his wrist

would love gossip sessions with you

would ask you to braid his hair

would love giving you back hugs

would share earphones with you

would play the guitar for you, knowing the sound of it calms you more than anything

would be really shy about the first kiss but pecks you everywhere once he starts getting comfortable with it

renjun

would make you custom things using his own hand drawn illustrations

would love resting his head on your shoulders if you sat side by side

would love to do your hair

would offer to do your nail

would love dressing you up and buy you outfits

would dedicate his pieces to you

would co-parent a stuffed animal with you

would sing you to sleep

would gently hold on to your clothes when walking around

would gift you stuff for no reason

would wipe your tears when you cry

would ask you about your day every day

jeno

would hold your hand and not want to let go. he just loves holding hands (your hand)

act of service KING. talk less do more typa guy

would pull you by the belt loop on your pants

would pout if he’s sulky

would rub your tummy at random times

would be the type to tickle you for fun

would hold your hand when he’s driving

waist grabber

would persuade you into coming with him on his bike rides/exercise sessions

his eye smile shows when he finds you cute

would give you massage

would send you his entire fyp but makes sure beforehand that you aren’t annoyed by it

haechan

would get shy if you do aegyo (intentional or not)

would like it if you sat on his lap

would be a hugger and love to be hugged

would love getting his hair played with

would provoke you cs he likes seeing you get worked up

would sometimes get shy when you tease him and avoids your gaze

would cook you breakfast in the morning

would let you paint his nails

would love kissing your neck

would carry your bag when you go out with him

would let you sit on his lap while he plays computer games

would give you curated playlists with different vibes

jaemin

would sneakily take pictures of you

would have an exclusive instagram account for you and post the pictures he took of you there

would stare at you with the most loving eyes and wouldn’t shy away if you caught him (continues staring at you)

would be pretty possessive

would casually flirt cs he loves seeing you get flustered

would get cute matching stuff

would love sniffing your neck

would do the corniest things together

would pamper your face with soft kisses

would play the piano for you

would set a candid picture of you as his lockscreen

would give you piggyback rides

chenle

would giggle like a madman if you tickle him (he’s so very ticklish)

would still get competitive if not more

would give you head pats

would love having you sit on his lap so he could back hug you and rest his head on your shoulder

would play with the accessories on your hand (ring, bracelet, hairtie, etc.) and fidget with it

if he was watching nba and the warriors won, he would hug and shake you like crazy

would nuzzle his head anywhere on your body

would cook for you, sometimes with you

would record himself playing the piano and send it to you

would match shoes with you

would feed you anytime anywhere

would love backhugs

jisung

would unintentionally stare at you with a very intense gaze of love

his gummy smile comes out whenever he finds you cute

would be the type to enjoy burying his face into your neck

would lend you his hoodies/zip-ups cs he thinks you look cute in them

would love kissing your forehead and hands

would share earphones with you

would teach you how to play games

would link arms while he plays mobile games

would rub circles on your knees/back

would be the type to ruffle your hair

would tie your shoelaces

would text you good morning and good night texts

first post!! very very new to tumblr and honestly i was quite lost writing this cs this was my first time writing a hc BUTTTT i hope this reaches the right audience :)) have a great rest of your dayyyy (interactions are greatly appreciated!!)

[lmaowhatt]

it takes time - three

summary: actress y/n I/n has recently skyrocketed into stardom after her breakout film 'castaways' alongside sarah cameron, kevin hart, chris evans and chris hemsworth. weeks after the movies premiere, she drops her debut single, further cementing her place in the spotlight. as millions of people around the world begin to notice and idolize her, struggling with her own demons, she catches the attention of rafe cameron, among others. however, not everything goes as smooth as they both would've hoped. and they soon figure out.. it takes time.

main masterlist | series masterlist

two - three - four

december 21, 2024

everythingyn

everythingyn y/n, accompanied by co-star rafe cameron and friends at 'hellraiser' premiere, as well as co-director, john b routledge making a couple appearances. bts pics were also recieved by fans who attended the premiere!

user jj and kie? kill me now theyre so cute.

user i will die on the cameron siblings supremacy hill.

user finest group of friends to EVER strut this earth.

user tuh. jj come home the kids miss you😔

➯ jjmay On my way!

➯ user BYE

user yall my friend said that backstage or whatever, rafe and y/n werent near eachother at ALL..

➯ user they must be really good actors then😭😭

user john b, one chance! sarah, can you fight?

➯ sarahcam yes i can

user i feel like theyd be so fun to hang out with if i had a man cs if u think im seventh or ninth wheeling😭

user love this❤️

user DJFVNIRJBV

➯ user real

user why is topper.. everywhere like pls😭

truth was, the more sarah tried to get you and rafe close to eachother, to talk at the very least, the more the two of you found it awkward and distanced yourselves. you had spent the majority of the time at the premiere beforehand with jj, pope, kie and cleo, while he spent most of his time with sarah, john b, and topper. its her brother, can you blame her? why topper was there? no one knew.

you were mid conversation with jj when sarah came over once again with a beaming smile. "sarah, no." you immediately shook your head, glancing around at the fans that had turned up especially early, presumably wanting to capture pictures of whatever they could gossip about. "what? i cant smile at my bestfriend?" she jokingly crossed her arms over her chest, raising an eyebrow. "not when i know theres something you want," you point an accusatory finger at her.

you chuckled when she let out a heavy sigh, "okay, maybe." she said with a soft smile. "just a hug with you and rafe before you start, pleaseee." she begged, as she held your right hand with her left. you widened your eyes in agreement, tossing your other hand slightly into the air. "fine," you let her lead you towards rafe, where he glanced between you and sarah with a soft nervous? smile.

you offered him a tight lipped smile, opening your arms as if reaching in for a hug. he did the same, bending down and wrapping them around your mid-back as you wrapped yours around his neck. "sorry 'bout her," he mumbled into your ear. a slight chuckle left your lips, "its expected dont worry." you rubbed you hand up and down his back before patting it as if beginning to let go.

rafe noted the signal, also rubbing his hand up and down your back for a moment before backing away. the two of you stayed close, greeting some of the fans that had arrived early before saying a quick goodbye and retreating back to your original small groups. you sucked in a breath through your teeth as jj laughed, wrapping an arm loosely around your shoulder.

"y'good?" he mumbled as he watched cleo and pope innocently bicker as they tried to fix his hair with kiara laughing behind them. "yeah. i d'know what sarahs doing but as long as she doesnt push it." you shrug, watching as most paparazzi as well as a couple interviewers made their way to the designated area at the carpet, the horde of fans growing behind them.

he heaved out a sigh, wrapping both arms around neck in a warm hug. "whoa, hi there." you laugh. "whats this for?" you mumble, wrapping your arms around his waist as the two of you rocked slightly side to side. "im proud of you," he placed his chin on top of your head. "you tell me that all the time j," you laugh, however, you decide to stay in the hug for a while more.

"yeah, i know," he said softly, pulling away only slightly to face you. "but i want you to know i mean it, and thank you for keeping me by your side," he jokes, you laughing as he pulls you back into the embrace. after a short moment, you pull away. "thank you jj. love you." you smiled as he reciprocated, smiling down at you. "love you too, buddy." he kisses your forehead.

he nodded at the carpet, "go ahead, take some picture and let us know when you want us to join you." jj patted your shoulder, lightly pushing you towards the carpet where rafe was also approaching. you gave him a kind smile, glancing to where you previously were to see jj and kie, as well as pope and cleo smiling and cheering for you.

you laughed quietly as you and rafe wrapped an arm around eachother, taking a couple picture before some members from the rest of the cast, as well as john b and his co-director came over to also take pictures. after a couple more moments of posing for the cameras, john b gave you the all clear to call jj and the others over, so you did as he called sarah over. they all rushed up to you and rafe, hugging the both of you as a small greeting as if the nine of you hadn't greeted eachother before.

the nine of you got into random places, posing for pictures for some minutes. after a couple shots and different poses, everyone dispersed as you, john b and rafe moved on to the short interviews. your eyes first landed on a woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties, anxiously holding a microphone. you smiled politely at her as you approached. "hi," you extender your hand out for a handshake, one which she nervously accepted.

"hi," she stuttered back. "sorry.. my first time doing an interview." she shrugged lightly, to which you nodded. "dont worry, i dont bite." you laughed. she sighed as you stood patiently, "wanna get started?" she asked as she held a flash card in her hand. "whenever you're ready, dont worry." you held a hand out, silently saying that it was her call.

she inhaled slowly, exhaling after a moment. "okay- this was your first journey into a horror/mystery film compared to your breakout role in the comedy, castaways," she paused as if asking for your approval, to which you nodded. "how challenging was it to manage the intensity and dynamics between your character and rafe camerons compared to castaways?"

you furrowed your eyebrows with a smile, pointing a finger at her as you raised your head in thought. "good question," you spoke into the mic she had moved closer to your face. "well, it was way more different in this movie. i feel like on set, whether we were filming or not, you could feel the sort of– tension? if thats what it could be called." you paused, gathering your thoughts.

"but compared to castaways where the tone was light and carefree both on and off set, yeah it was definitely challenging. this film defenitely required a lot more focus and deep diving into my character, but i was lucky to have a good- good co-stars who have been in projects like this before to help me when i struggled." you glanced at rafe, who was at the other side of the carpet, also engaged in an interview.

the interviewer nodded along as you answered her first question, then trasitioning to her next. "speaking of, what was the first major difference you feel that set in when transitioning from four co-stars to one main costar?" you nodded, raising your eyebrows with a slight surprised face. "whoever writes your questions needs a raise," you joked, erupting a laugh from the interviewer.

you paused for a moment as you thought about your answer, "but, the first major difference i felt was the change in atmosphere. i feel like with multiple costars, theres sort of a family mood that sets in compared to with one main costar." you paused. "with one, its much more intimate, but it also allows for more exploring into your characters and their backstories to make sure you understand the complexity of the entire plot." you spoke into the microphone with a small smile, "but i think it also has to do with the type of project you're working on."

"okay, good answer." the woman complimented to which you smiled with a small nod of your head. "heres a simpler question. did you have a certain routine you followed to get into your character while on set?" you fixed your hair as you thought about how to answer the question while also reminiscing about your days on set.

finally, you shook your head. "i wouldnt say i did. if anything, i would have my headphones in, listening to my playlist while in hair and makeup. but, to be honest, the music wasnt the same vive as the movie" you laughed as the interviewer smiled at you.

she tilted her head, switching grips on her microphone. "any artists we would know?" you nodded with a small smile, "hopefully," you crossed your index and middle fingers with a small laugh. "a lot of frank ocean, the weeknd, brent faiyaz, bryson tiller... a bunch of that type of music. and of course my baby, maddy beer." you blew a kiss to the camera, letting out a soft smile after.

the interviewer smiled at you and nodded, bringing the mic back to her face. "well, i believe thats all for this interview. thank you and good luck on your next," the woman smiled politely. you reached your arms out to pull her into a hug, "you did good," you smile as you pull away. "thank you," she mouthed. you waved a small goodbye towards her before walking a couple feet away to your next interview.

finally, after the entensive amount of interviews, where the questions were repeated for the most part, you shook the hand of the last interviewer, who for some reason had a habit of looking down your body, you not succeeding in hiding the disgust on your face. you walked away from the line of interviewers, looking around to find literally anyone you knew.

"boo!" jj grasped your shoulders from behind, to which you jumped. "jesus," you held a hand to your chest. "dont–" you shoved his chest, "do that jj." you concluded with a small laugh as he shoved you back lightly. "howd it go?" he asked you as the two of you walked away to find your friends. "eh.. it went good. i liked the first girl. she was nervous but shes good at her job." you smiled as you waved at random fans or people from set.

you sighed as the two of you went behind the carpet, "d'know about the last guy tho, bit of a creep," you shrugged. jj nodded along at your words, hand on your mid back as you moved around people. "well, at least its over," he joked with a small laugh. you reciprocated, laughing as the two of you approached kiara. you smiled excitedly, wrapping your arms around her neck with a small squeal as the two of you rocked back and forth giddily.

"im gonna go find jb," you removed yourself from the hug with kiara, turning to jj. "might wanna wipe the lipstick off better next time," you motioned to his jawline with a teasing smile. jj rolled his eyes, wiping the back of his hand along his jawline. "you idiot," kie moved around you, smacking his hand off his face to help him wipe the lipstick off. "have fun," you quipped as you made your way around people to look for john b.

rafecameron

liked by sarahcam, youruser, popeh and 1.3 million others

rafecameron life.

user the scream i scrumpt

sarahcam the way u copied my caption and im not on here..🙄

user TWO pictures of her? on purpose? very rare.

user let me B A N G BABY.

user why is this man reading shakespeare to noelle😭😭

youruser well someone did me wrong

user he has a kid?

➯ user yes

➯ user no thats sarah and jbs daughter

user is that THEE james bond?

jbr get a load of this bald specimen

➯ rafecameron thats it im shaving your hair off

➯ sarahcam please do.

➯ jbr hello?

user we got family drama going on guys!

barrylyman i get a feat? sick.

*liked by creator*

user the way shes FIRST? the arm? someone pinch me

user WHO took my clothes

popeh im insulted

➯ rafecameron you know i love you bae

user help hes so girl dad

user rafe! ass or tits?

➯ user BRO WHAT?? LMAO

➯ lmaowhatt hes a tits man for sure

user help y/n is so unproblematic.

your phone

sarahs phone

a/n: sigh. also, according to chat gpt barrys last name is lyman, it doesnt really fit him but im running with it. we all know hes practically married to rafe canonically so its okay. a/n pt.2: next post might be on christmas day because i want to spend time with my family and friends tomorrow and i hope you all do as well! a/n pt.3: i also wrote the interview questions and answers myself. ill let you know i was very proud of myself😭

[randomnameless]

I second the point about Earl Grey - how can Fodlan be an Earl Grey Masterpiece (tm) compared to, say, that silly Engage game, if we have an evil cult of evil racist supremacists who are behind everything wrong (tm) in the world?

Due to Supreme Leader bias or pandering, the devs still wrote the benevolent dragons and their influence to be BaD and needing ReFoRmAtIoN because, uh, reasons - even in VW which is, imo, one of the reasons why this route is so flawed and needed Rhea to die off-screen for the route to ultimately end - which makes the story look really off : if Agarthans are the reason why everything goes wrong in Fodlan (because random people can't even be asses to each other, as Nopes demonstrated, everything was engineered by Agarthans!), why are the Nabateans, depicted as benevolent and helping humans - if not reacting strongly when people try to kill them even if the plot takes great measures not to give them to much light - universally decried - as in, their legacy (the CoS) cannot continue to exist in the way it was at the beginning of the game (you know, when Agarthans and their allies wrre wrecking shit up) and must be "reformed" under Billy's guidance?

Fodlan points at the CoS being "BaD" because characters who diss them are never challenged, because the CoS itself never gets a chance to explain why they do X or Y or the game weirdly frames it as wrong (remember Caspar being upset because people who, uh, tried to rob a site and killed unarmed students are executed???), and ultimately, is always "ReFoRmEd" or "changes" for the "better" at the end of the war.

So, despite showing us all the relative benevolent things they do, given how the narrative pisses on them at every second, the treatment of the CoS is seen as peak "morally earl grey" - when, imo, it's just nonsensical writing made to pretend two lords have a point.

On the opposite end of the spectrum - bar Supreme Leader's skewed priorities in FE16 - we have nothing remotely positive to say/read/discover about Agarthans, they're racial supremacists, they commended a genocide - even if Epi frowns a bit at Thales' methods, he still wants to save and calls Nemesis'n'his Elites "allies" while calling the Nabateans "spawn of the abomination" or "wretches"... -

So we end with one faction the game depicts as "Trust me they BaD even if I always show the inverse" and another as "shown and told to be BaD" - that's where the logical fallacy from the Earl Grey falls apart : if one faction is told to be BaD despite showing things they do that are GoOd, the opposite faction should... also be kind of the same, or at least, not be told and shown to be BaD, right?

I get trying to make Fodlan more interesting and escaping the binary writing of the games and setting by having HC or fanfics giving more meat to Agarthans...

But in the canon material, even if Nopes wasted its WoH paralogue on depicting the Agarthan PoV out of everything they could have came up with, the Agarthans we see (Cleo, Myson, Thales, Kronya Epi, Solon, etc) are relatively one-note and way more nefarious to Fodlan and its people than whatever the Nabateans are presumably doing.

But hey, the Earl Grey veneer regarding the CoS (and Nabateans, because as a race they must be wrong Supreme Leader said so) really took its hold on the fandom (special mention to Rhage!) - It used to annoy me but now I laugh at it, when some people, let it be on YT comments or whatnot complain about the game not showing the dark side of the CoS or the Nabateans doing things that'd make the conflict less one-sided : while they understand the framing of the CoS and Nabs is artificial and hammered without any substance, instead of wondering why this is so artificial, they have the inverse reasoning : the game was afraid of making Rhea/the CoS look bad by not showing the so-called atrocities the totally not biased characters say about them -> believing the totally not biased totes reliable characters over, well, what they can play and see and read in various flavour texts as a player.

"Why don't we see the CoS being more racist and/or forbidding contact with outside, leashing out Gilbert's brother for trading with Albinea?"

Maybe because the person who says the Church promotes isolationism is full of crap and doesn't even know what he is talking about? Even in his end support blurb ?

I'd also say this also is a result of Nopes - which felt, on that regard, a bit more "well-written" than Houses since they dropped (but not totally, it's a Fodlan game after all!) all pretenses of "telling us the CoS is BaD" - Claude and Supreme Leader piss on the CoS ? Fine, let them do their stuff, but AG will have NPCs, characters and supports (Dedue'n'Cat) contradicting everything the other two routes are parroting/saying.

Of course the characters will never be challenged on that front, and Dimitro exists because this is still a Fodlan game - and yet the less "hypocritical" side of the writing is shown in this game : in Golden Shower, we're left wondering for reasons why the CoS needs to be eliminated, Claude's faulty reasonings can be poked with a spoon (even if no one uses any in his army, save for Barney's ominous lines) and it just comes as a one-sided hatred and tantrum an asshat is throwing because, uh, why not, coupled with racist stereotypes and a big dose of "I'm going to remove the outdated customs of that land I'm invading with my army" stench.

Supreme Leader? Does Supreme Leader things, backstabs the CoS - who lent their help when she asked them to lol - and while we witness an assassination attempt from the CoS in this route, well, it's against her, the main instigator of this war, something even Larva spells out! This route ends with the CoS making the big sacrifices to get rid of the big bad (Thales) this path first identified, ignoring Supreme Leader in the process.

So in those two routes littered with various "but Church BaD trust us" we end up with people questionning the Lord who is depicted as a petulant shit head, and... the CoS having a big sacrifice/heroic moment at the end to defeat the bigger foes, the Agarthans.

-> Nopes ends (maybe against its initial will as a game centered on Agarthan narrative?) on a better appreciation/note/feeling for Nabateans and the CoS, despite having two routes siding against them.

Compare with Houses, who always removes Nabateans/Rhea of the picture (except in SS's S support) and brings "reforms" to the CoS - because it needed some, even if we will never know what they are or why those reforms were needed.

If by playing FE16 some people got the feeling Nabateans and Agarthans were, uh, as bad as the other because Supreme Leader said so, those same people might have been frustrated playing Nopes because, hey, in Nopes, the game is more or less telling you that, no, Nabateans try to help protect and save Fodlan, when the Agarthans are hell bent on destroying it and everyone who isn't them!

Mind you, Claude's route made some people feel bad for Nabateans/Rhea/the CoS, because of his insistence that they must be destroyed because "reasons" when all of his assurance that they have to be destroyed comes from thin air and we're shown AND told they aren't... doing the things Claude accuses them for.

Nopes ruins the Earl Grey veneer FE16 built to demonise the CoS, so by extension, if Supreme Leader's priorities have to make some sense in FE16 (funny how Claude can be called an idiot or moron, but Supreme Leader might just be called 'misguided'), the Nabateans have to be a least a bit bad, or really really bad so siding with the Agarthans isn't completely bonkers.

Ergo : For the Agarthans to be a "viable" option to ally with, their common enemies, the Nabateans, must be demonised, even moreso than what FE16 and its subsequent fandom/fanworks tried to because Nopes hammered again that Nabateans are protectors/siding with humans who don't want to fight/war for "reasons".

Tl;Dr : some people cannot accept that their "Earl Grey" masterpiece is pretty straightforward, and all of this "earl grey" exists in their own fanon because they do not like what the canon is telling, and refuse to make the difference between fanon and canon.

I keep thinking about how people want the Agarthans to be victims. Not so much that people are saying they did nothing wrong, but a lesser evil compared to Rhea and the Nabateans. I'd ask myself why people would want such a thing, as even in the route where you side with them they're made out to be evil that will be exterminated, but I wouldn't have to think about why that as. The answer is simple, they validate Edelgard's killing of Rhea.

And, really, it fits with stuff I've seen since the game came out. The people claiming that despite Silver Snow and Verdant Wind being routes where big reveals to the lore are given to the player they, alongside Azure Moon, lie to the player and that Edelgard is the only one to tell them “the truth.” Or that said lore pops out of canon once the player decides to side with Edelgard. They want to ignore that the same route not only paints Edelgard as a liar often enough that a chapter titled “Lady of Deceit” begins and ends with her lying to her army, but also reveals that Edelgard herself knows that her source was an Agarthan puppet yet she is still clinging to that narrative. They'll claim it's all a matter of what the player believes to be true and tell people to disregard the game's creators saying that they built Fodlan to support the story of Silver Snow, and that while Flower is about believing something else, how that leads to not only mowing down everyone who stands in your way because of those beliefs but also ends up with tyranny and oppression under the path of supremacy.

Or we'll get people who ignore that Claude's route talks about how we need to let go of misconceptions we may have about others by getting to know them, and how Claude's misconceptions about the Church may have been caused by the Agarthans feeding him info to turn him against Rhea. No, instead Claude is a manipulative schemer who should have killed Rhea as his final boss after learning about her past and how his ancestors profited off the slaughter of her people, and that Golden Wildfire is who Claude really is and his good route.

Because people want to believe that Houses is this morally grey game, where everyone is a hero from their POV. But let's look at that. As mentioned, Claude's POV blaming the Church is ultimately framed as him having misconceptions, and once he got to know them he realized that Rhea didn't have to be his enemy in achieving his goals. Not only that, he realizes the Agarthans tried to manipulate him like he says they did to Edelgard, and ends up taking them out before finishing off Nemesis. Dimitri's POV is based on his survivor guilt and belief that he needs to live for the sake of avenging those who died. He grows out of this thanks to Byleth teaching him he needs to live for the sake of the living and for himself, all while taking the Agarthans out by complete accident while Edelgard's ideals are presented as demonic while Dimitri's beliefs make him a savior. Meanwhile, Edelgard's POV is based on what her father told her despite her knowing he was an Agarthan puppet. She can't be swayed her path as she tries to lie and manipulate those around her, and the world supports the route where Byleth leads the Black Eagles away from her influence (making it so that the Black Eagles are the only class who can get their story-related character development joining any other class). It's either that, or you ignore the world building to walk a path that is based around hadou, which has negative connotations especially when contrasted with oudou, which is what Dimitri's route is supposed to lead to.

You can ignore this growth if you play Hopes, but Hopes is supposed to show how much of an influence Byleth has on their class and is not supposed to replace that experience. Shez can't give Dimitri or Claude the character growth they would have gotten to see the problems with their POV, nor can they stop the Eagles from supporting Edelgard. Shez just seems to go with whatever the lord says, adapting to the route being played, and as such enables each lord's behavior. Not to mention that Shez is hinted to be from Agartha himself, and even then the Agarthan POV doesn't paint them in a positive light.

So, really, what are people saying when they want the Agarthans to be the sympathetic villains rather than the game wanting us to feel sorry for the Nabateans? That they feel the game not doing so is a flaw despite the Agarthans being so racist that they view everyone else as non-human animals and therefore it's okay to experiment on them? That we should support their genocide of the Nabateans because Edelgard said things used to be better despite the reveal that they're the ones who gave mankind Crests while making themselves out to be gods? We should still think that the Church are the bad guys when the Agarthans are the ones behind the experiments, Duscur, the death of Claude's uncle, and so much more? Or that Nemesis was a good king who was demonized by history rather than the power-hungry asshole he's depicted as, the only real misconceptiont here was that he ever was a hero in the first place rather than the tyrannical bandit he actually was.

In the end, it's just people not wanting to let go of their own misconceptions about Fodlan. They don't want to see Fodlan for how it really is. If anything, Houses can serve as a deconstruction of the idea of Death of the Author. It's a game with some very direct messages, but the routes where the player diverges away from those messages (Flower and the entirety of Three Hopes) it leads to bad endings because, at the end of the day, Fodlan was built around those messages. It was built about the need to see people for who they really are rather than who we think they are, as Edelgard being revealed not to be the heroine but rather the villain is the twist of the game who needs to be removed from power. Also that people supporting each other is a far better outcome than everyone being left to fend for themselves, especially when the people at the top use their power to benefit others. But it's up to people to do that themselves, to figure things out for themselves rather than fall into the trap.

Otherwise, we're left with people defending the likes of the Agarthans.

[isabellaofparma]

You can't bully people into reacting a certain way. You're not Ryan's guard dog.

+bonus