#I have no idea what she’s talking about I am as straight as a ruler

[eros-vigilante]

issues w/ the octopath fandom, racism, and ableism

whats from the source

octopath does some racist bs quite frequently.

cotc (the mobile gacha) has an entire storyline filled with anti-indigenous and racist tropes.

the mainline octopath games have yet to design a traveler with curly hair, and frequently whitewashes the tan and dark-skinned characters in official artwork (compare these with the real ones; here's partitios official cotc splash art). ochette's hair especially is straight-as-a-ruler and silver. also worth considering eye colors. partitio is sad because his concept art had only one design where he's white and a couple even had dreadlocks, and yet his splash art refuses to match his sprite colors.

the beastlings... i'm white and have done more research on the tropes in cotc since i play it more, so while i did have thoughts of my own while playing, here is a better post i found that lists off all the bad choices about them.

also worth mentioning kaldena. one of the few dark-skinned characters in the game is a villain (and also has straight silver hair). other people have also broken down what choices in temenos' story around this were bad better than i could. i can't find a post with a quick search so if you want to reblog this to talk about it i will reblog/link it.

ableism. while i am a big fan of the autism-coding in the franchise, it's still true that there are a lot of jokes made in the games at the expense of osvald and cyrus (moreso cyrus). it's setting accurate for people to be mean to autistic people, but you're still supposed to laugh at "i guess cyrus isn't actually that smart!" which pushes the idea that autism affects intelligence and maturity. i think overall the autism representation is great (pspsps my essay) but it's definitely the source of some awful shit i've had to read people say about cyrus and osvald.

edit 1: friend reminded me of something i forgot that i only learned after talking to it about it a while ago: therion's story is actually really really weird in how it tries to frame cornelia and especially heathcote as helping therion when what they did is enslave him.

whats from the fandom

fanart whitewashing. there is a lot of fanart of therion and partitio with pale skin tones. there is fanart of olberic and ochette with significantly lighter/barely tan skin tones. i'm not going to find any to link because harassment and arguing is not the point of this post, but if you've looked through fanart you've seen it.

here's their skin tones blended. even with the highlights included, they're not white. i get it, their splash art is very ambiguous from the colorism, so if you weren't using the sprites: here's your new references.

ableism directed at cyrus and osvald. i've seen people complain about osvald's personality writing and then cite ptsd and autism symptoms, so many people call cyrus stupid, an idiot, or imply he is not mature. people assume/default hc that he is bad at adult activies. he is a thirty year old professor. it is his job to be mature, good with children, smart, etc. this is infantalization of an autistic character. it's a default assumption that the autistic man is below-average at adult functions.

infantalization of ochette. there are hcs and portrayals of ochette to be far less responsible and mature than she is in canon. she is the protector of her island, it is a theme of her story that she was forced to grow up more mature than everyone else. yes, she is funny, cheerful, energetic, but some fandom portrayals of her reduce her to just that, like she's a puppy. always being irresponsible, impulsive, etc. this matches to her dynamic with castti going from the sweet found family of their crossed path into "castti is the mother who needs to rein in this wild child"- and also consider how it looks to portray the only (consistently portrayed as) dark-skinned character as wild when she is responsible and mature in her story. similarly to cyrus, people tend to default to hcs that she would be bad at normal adult activities just because she has 'childish' traits.

what do you want me to do about it

eyedrop skintones from sprites or go darker for the guys who aren't white. consider changing their hair up, like using the concept art design for partitio. drawing characters of color differently from canon doesn't solve the racism in the game industry, but it is good practice for drawing poc and representing them more accurately.

don't... insult the autistic characters. there are things cyrus is canonically bad at that have nothing to do with his autism, like singing, but don't act like he's bad at everything that's not part of his interests. real people act how osvald does due to trauma. neither of them are two-dimensional in personality, they're written with nuance and a range of emotions outside of Being Autistic.

respect ochette more. are you portraying her as only silly or the savior of her home, or both? would someone who hasn't played ot2 know that ochette has overcome challenges based on your portrayal of her, or would they think she's a comedy relief?

learn about racism. learning about what kind of racist tropes are common in media and games helps a lot with recognizing it in other places, like the beastlings or kaldena. and most of all, learning about racist stereotypes and tropes makes you less likely to perpetuate them unintentionally.

putting the cotc racism essay down here so i can say that it has spoilers for Bestower of Power if you're a cotc player. it's different from the post i linked at the start; way more focused on just the anti-indig stereotypes in the villain's design.

the last thing i want to say is oh my god i love talking about this stuff so much. if you are confused about ANYTHING i talked about or want to talk about it more, or add your own experiences, or ask for recommendations, i love that shit. i made this because i believe most people who are really active in this fandom don't do this kind of stuff maliciously, and would benefit from just having a chance to talk about it. for some reason i am very into explaining/taking apart bigoted language, where it comes from, what it means etc. Please

[chaosverseline]

Imu sama as monkey d luffy great grandmother

I had a crazy idea

It a mixture of a lot of one piece theories regarding luffy’s family.

First off , Instead of imu sama being luffy’s mom.I am making imu sama as luffy’s great grand “mother”.

Why?

Because here is how it works,

Imu sama is the immortal ruler of the world government (pronouns are them and they. despite this they prefer female fashion),But secretly yearns for freedom , but can’t because of the responsibility of running the government.

Quoting from a Reddit post, “To make it simple: Imu ……..related to ya boi Joy Boi and because she is a a ruler she Needs to act like one in front of everyone….”

Imu sama may not be able to experience “full freedom”. however ,when they did have free time ,they would traveled around the world and go sightseeing in a disguise.

During this they met a young man named……….

……..xebec d rocks.

Yes that rocks.

But during this time ,rocks isn’t a pirate yet.

Or maybe he was just starting out .

What happens between imu and rocks was what started out as a friendship ,Then to lovers and yeah they banged.

Resulting a adorable baby girl ,The princess of Mary geoise. For now, we call her “Yriaf” for simplicity sake.

After Yriaf birth, rocks loves his daughter but still left to continue his pirate career.Which made imu bitter and harbor a grudge against pirates.

Imu and xebec broke up and went on to their separate ways,Imu takes Yriaf with them,But allows xebec to call from den den mushi ,writes letters and sent presents to their daughter ,Using a cipher pol agent (who swore secrecy )to deliver the mail.

Yriaf grew up to be a kind and benevolent woman despite being the princess of Mary geoise. She disliked the attitude of the celestial dragons and slavery. She treats people like her equal and tries her best to free the slaves and help treat/heal/nurse the injure/sick ones until they are healthy to go home or stay with her (she would pay them with wages)if they don’t have a place to stay.Sadly, she was banned from buying more than six slaves per month by imu sama

Imu sama didn’t do this to be cruel,They are worried about Yriaf getting the wrong people’s suspicions. Imu sama honesty didn’t like the whole slavery system ,But the majority of the world nobles wanted this and imu have to go along. otherwise imu will become unpopular and risk getting deposed or worse case scenario,Getting Killed.

As much power imu has,Imu can’t protect Yriaf if all the world nobles voices their disapproval (Kinda like Garp’s situation ).

because of this ,Imu is strict with their daughter.Eventually Yriaf ran off to her father’s ship to get some fresh air from the royalty business. There she met her father’s crew and develop a relationship with one of the crew mates. Rocks is fine with it,after a long shovel talk.

Imu sama,However…… is a total different story.

Imu straight up disapproves.

But there is nothing imu can do, Other than sending cipher pol assassins to watch but not kill the crew mate who caught their sweet daughter’s eyes.

Yraif marries the crew mate,Whose name is Edward Newgate,Yes that Newgate.

Their child would eventually be known as crocodile.

Yes that crocodile.

Then imu noticed changes in rocks as the years goes by,How by each passing year,Xebec getting even more crueler and unhinged, starting to have bloodthirsty ambitions thanks to his devil fruit that messed up his brain, until imu can no longer recognized the man they had used to loved.

For now,Xebec’s sanity is barely keeping together thanks to his paternal love for their daughter .But imu is not taking any chances if one day xebec snaps and cause irreversible harm to his own crew and potentially to imu’s family. Besides,Imu is still mad about xebec choosing career over them and the lack of child support other than toy stuff animals and unhealthy snacks. Yes ,imu can be petty like that.

So imu hires a hit on xebec, saying xebec is a terrorist threat and a crazy manic. Then sends a message to the elders to inform the world government of this dangerous individual.

Battle of god valley happens and imu takes back Yriaf. Gives her a decision to either take crocodile and never met up with Edward again or hand the custody of crocodile to Edward and forbids yriaf from meeting them again, save for one day per 5 years. Imu allows for calling via den den mushi for during the whole time but that’s it .

The princess chose the 2nd option and tearfully waved good bye to her love and child.

Years pass, crocodile left the white beard pirate crew and joins the revolutionary. Also get knocked up by monkey d dragon.

When Imu founds out , they are not pleased , But At least they gotten a great grand child out of it.

His name is ……

Monkey d luffy.

Pure Chaos.

[dorkybooktrash]

Enchanted to meet you

I am very scared to do this but I will be uploading this to AO3 now along with here. This is not betaed and its my very first complete piece im uploading ever.

Hope you enjoy!

Xaden x Violet

Based on Enchanted by Taylor Swift

The youngest princess of Navarre was going to a ball. It wasn’t her idea, no, this was all her mother’s doing. Queen Lilith Sorrengail was desperate to get rid of her youngest child. If it was because she was 20 and unmarried, or because of her perceived weaknesses, no one but Lilith Sorrengail knew, though Violet had an inkling.

Princess Violet Sorrengail of the Kingdom of Navarre was a small girl. She was 5’2, with brittle bones, multiple injuries in the past and hair that made her stand out in any assembly. Her hair, she was told, was a product of the fever her mother had contracted when she was pregnant with Violet. The silver part of her hair spanned around half of the length and could not be removed. If she cut it, it grew back. This made it difficult to blend in and that was all Violet wanted.

Her father had died two years earlier, from a weak heart, they said, though they all knew it was from grief. Her brother Brennan, the crown prince, had died six years ago, and had taken such a toll on her father, and Violet herself, that he had gotten weak and sickly in the years following. Now her mother was the sole ruler and her sister, Mira was the new heir. Violet was simply the spare.

Being the spare had it’s perks; she was generally not paid attention to, which meant she could spend all her time in the library of the palace. This was her favourite place in the whole world, her solace and the last thing she had left of her father. Well, that and her favourite book, The Fables of the Barren.

Now that solitude was coming to an end.

Violet tuned back into the conversation she was supposedly having with her mother, though it was mostly her mother telling her what the next week of her life would look like.

“You will travel to Poromiel and you will be nice and charming and you will make sure they remember you. We need them to sign this agreement, do you understand?” The Queen looked at Violet expectantly. Violet nodded, though she knew that the agreement her mother was talking about had nothing to do with why she was sending Violet. If she wanted the signature on that agreement, she would have sent Mira, as this was part of her duties as crown princess.

This was about selling Violet off to some older aristocrat, because her mother didn’t believe anyone in need of an heir or, well, a working body, would choose her. The queen had never forgiven her for coming out wrong. According to Lilith, she would only bear defective heirs, as she called it, and no one wanted that. This was also why she was being sent to the Poromish ball. If her mother wanted her to marry someone high on the food chain, she would have hosted her own ball in search of that person.

This was what she had done with Mira, when she became the heir. Now Mira was married to Drake Cordella, the cousin of the heir to the Poromish throne, Syrena Cordella. The two of them had hit it off immediately, which is surprising considering that their first meeting had included Mira’s knife at Drakes throat. Apparently he liked that because only three weeks went by before they were engaged. Queen Lilith was not happy about the fact that he was only a cousin, but it was the closest she could get to the Poromish throne, as both heirs were women, and gods forbid there were no heirs from that marriage.

“Good. You leave tonight. You are dismissed.” The queen said, looking back down to the papers on her desk. Violet stood from the chair and left the room, running straight into her sister.

“Mira, what are you doing here?” Violet asked, surprised to see her sister here. Mira was supposed to be getting ready for her own diplomatic mission, though she was going to Tyrrendor, the third kingdom on the continent. Tyrrendor was a sore spot for their mother. They had rebelled against Navarre 20 years ago and had afterwards created their own kingdom, immediately striking an alliance with Poromiel. Her mother had been forced to make nice with Tyrrendor in the 20 years that followed, in order to keep the peace on the continent, despite the small size of the new kingdom. Because of the deep-seated hatred Violets mother had for the country, Mira was the go-between for relations between the two.

“I came to see you, Vi. I’m not going to Aretia after all, so I thought I’d help you get ready for your trip. I’m coming with you,” Mira said. Violet frowned. Tyrrendor were usually very good at keeping their appointments with their neighbours, so for them to cancel, something urgent must have come up.

“Wait, why? What happened?”

“Oh, they said something about having to go to some ball in Poromiel, so I figured I would go with you. Drake will be coming too, so he can see his cousins. I know he misses them.” Violet smiled. She did like Drake. They had become great friends since his marriage to her sister, and he was one of the few people who treated her like she wasn’t made of glass. Him and Mira had taken it upon themselves to teach her how to fight and strengthen her body, and now she was very proficient with knives, while also becoming stronger, which helped lessen her injuries, though she was usually in a lot of pain after a training session with the two of them.

“That sounds amazing, but… How did you know about that? I was literally just told.”

“Mum told me right before you went in there. Sorry about that by the way, I know she was in a pissy mood, but I tried to make her change her mind. It didn’t go well, as you can guess.” Mira frowned, looking like she wanted to do everything in her power to keep Violet out of the politics of the crown.

“That’s okay, Mira. We both knew this day would come eventually. Though I must admit, I thought she’d be more forthcoming about it. She didn’t even mention marriage once, just that I had to charm them and make sure they remembered me.” Violet was puzzled, because usually her mother wasn’t someone who softened the blows she dealt.

“Yeah well, maybe she’s growing a conscience,” Mira said, though she couldn’t hold her snort in. “Let’s go pack. I need to make sure you have everything you need.”

***

Violet was gaping. There was no other word for her expression, as she looked at herself in the floor length mirror. Her and Mira was in a guest room in the Poromish palace, getting ready for the ball, and Mira had orchestrated the perfect outfit.

Her hair was in a variation of her usual braided crown, except this looked more rustic, with her hair creating slight bangs and accentuating the strands that fell on either side of her face. The circlet in her hair was her normal crown, made up of golden leaves – simple but elegant and her makeup was done to bring attention to her attributes – her eyes and her cheekbones.

The real showstopper, and the reason she was gaping, was the dress. The dress was sleeveless and with a tight corset-like bodice in a black satin. The bodice was adorned with gold and silver stars of different sizes, creating constellations that went across the gown. The skirt was black tulle, full and slightly see through, though with all the layers, it was impossible to see what lay underneath. There was a small train behind her, but nothing that would get in the way while dancing. Her shoes were simple black with gold glitter and Violet didn’t think she’d ever looked so much like the princess she was.

“Mira… I… This is...” Violet was officially speechless and thankfully Mira put her out of her misery by coming up behind her and hugging her.

“You look beautiful, Vi.” Mira hesitated. “Listen, I know mother doesn’t have big plans for you, but even if you leave this place with no more than you came with, I want you to enjoy this. I want you to find the person you want, and not who mother wants for you. Don’t think about those old farts she wants you to pursue. Anyone would be lucky to have you as their partner, and if they don’t see that, then they don’t deserve you.” Violet could feel the burning in her eyes that normally preceded tears and turned to her sister.

“Thank you, Mira. That’s all I want, and it means a lot coming from you.” Violet smiled. “Now stop before I start crying and ruin your masterpiece.” Mira laughed and they left the room.

***

King Xaden Riorson of Tyrrendor hated balls. He had hated balls all his life, and usually ended up drinking in a corner with his right-hand-man Garrick and his cousin Bodhi. Truthfully, the only reason he wasn’t negotiating a trade agreement with the crown princess of Navarre right at this moment, was because the Assembly had forced him to this thing, in an attempt to find him a wife. He knew who they wanted, and he would rather walk across a parapet 100 meters in the air, than marry Catriona Cordella. The woman was unhinged, in his opinion. She had been pursuing him since before his father abdicated six years ago, and he had been just as interested in her then and he was now.

He went to the ball, simply to appease the Assembly and to get them off his back. Thankfully, Garrick and Bodhi were with him, along with Imogen and Liam. The four people were his closest friends and also served as part of his counsel.

They were currently in a corner of the ballroom in the Poromish palace, with a drink in hand, talking to the crown princess of Poromiel, Syrena, and her cousin, the crown prince of Navarre, Drake. Xaden hoped to the gods that Cat wouldn’t find them here.

“So, Drake, where’s your wife? Usually where one of you go, the other is not far behind.” Garrick quipped. Xaden chuckled; it was true. Drake and his wife, Mira, had been joined at the hip since their engagement six years earlier. When Mira travelled to Tyrrendor, Drake was always with her, and this, along with Xaden’s friendship to Syrena, had created a friendship between the couple and the king of Tyrrendor.

Drake laughed and said, “her sister is with us, so they’ll be entering together. You know how it is, when a royal visits a new place.” Xaden frowned. He had heard stories about the younger princess, but he had never seen her. Rumours were, that she didn’t leave the palace, because she was sick. Even when Xaden visited the Navarrian court, he had never seen her. The mysteries surrounding Violet Sorrengail were many and she was often a topic of conversation whenever her sister visited Riorson House.

Mira spoke dearly of her sister and the training that she and Drake were giving her. Apparently, she was a violent little thing, and something in Xaden wanted to see that for himself.

“She’s here? Why? Normally she doesn’t leave the palace, does she?” Imogen asked Drake. Imogen wasn’t one to participate in gossip, so Xaden was surprised when she continued. “I thought they said that she was too frail and ill to travel?”

Drake smiled. “She’s not as frail as her mother has made her out to be. Especially not since we started training her. She’s become quite adept at her knife throwing.” Drake had a proud expression on his face now, and was about to continue, when the crier spoke up.

“Presenting Her Royal Highness, the Crown Princess of Navarre, Mira Sorrengail!” Drake looked up at the doors at the top of the stairs they had all descended and started moving towards them when his wife appeared. She was wearing a beautiful bloodred gown and her hair was in her normal windswept style. Mira didn’t need to make an impression, her presence did it for her. She beamed down at Drake when she saw him standing at the bottom of the staircase, and together they moved to one side to allow her sister to enter.

The room hushed when the crier once again opened his mouth: “Presenting, for the first time ever, Her Royal Highness, Princess Violet Sorrengail of Navarre!”.

The doors opened and time stopped. Out came the most beautiful woman Xaden had ever seen in his life. She was small, tiny really, and Xaden thought she might not even reach his collarbone. But her presence was powerful. Whatever Mira and Drake had taught her had paid off, because the savage look in her eyes as she stopped at the top of the stairs screamed warrior. As she started the descend, he was drawn to her. He didn’t even notice he had started moving until Liam put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. That didn’t stop his eyes from following her down the stairs and into her sister’s arms. Xaden’s lungs had seemed to stop working and it was all he could do to stay standing in the light of her beauty.

He vaguely heard his entourage speaking but he couldn’t look away from the smile now grazing Violet Sorrengail’s lips. It was a real smile, one reserved for her sister and her brother-in-law and all he could think of was how much he wanted that directed at him.

                                                                              ***

Violet could feel eyes on her. They burned into the side of her face, and it was all she could do to stay concentrated on what her sister was saying.

“I am so proud of you! Okay so there are some people that you need to meet before we can start enjoying our evening, but when that’s done I want to introduce you to some of my friends. You’ll love them, I’m sure. Okay let’s go!” Mira took her arm and started walking her towards the dais on one side of the room and Violet looked over her shoulder to smile at Drake who took his place on the other side of his wife.

Thus followed the longest two hours of her life. Mira introduced her to royals and aristocrats, who were all more interested in flattering her sister than talking to her. Yet, Violet kept the smile plastered to her face, the one her tutor had taught her to use around important people. She forced laughter when necessary and faked the smile, until finally, the time came to meet Mira’s friends. The first friend Violet met was Syrena, who she clicked with instantly. Mira once again dragged her around, though this time she actually enjoyed herself, until at last they came to a group of five people, standing in a corner of the ballroom, with drinks in their hands.

Violet’s heart skipped a beat and started up a quicker pace. In front of her was the most beautiful man she had ever seen. He was tall, well over 6 feet and clearly well-muscled, if what she could make out of his form underneath his outfit was to be believed. She dragged her eyes over him, unable to stop herself, until she met his eyes. His eyes were liquid black, with little flecks of gold in them and she couldn’t help but notice that they matched her dress perfectly. His face was chiselled and beautiful and he had a scar bisecting one of his eyebrows. His lips was tilted into a smirk, and it was at this point that she realised that she had been staring. She blushed fiercely.

“Vi, this is Xaden Riorson, the King of Tyrrendor, and his entourage, Garrick, Imogen, Bodhi and Liam.” Mira said with a satisfied smile on her face. “Everyone this is my little sister Violet.” Violet curtsied as she was introduced to the people in front of her, feeling horrified that she had been staring at the King of Tyrrendor.

“Please to meet you,” she said meekly, her cheeks still flaming. Xaden Riorson stepped forward, gave her a bow and kissed her hand.

“The pleasure is all mine.” He looked at her like he could read all of her secrets in her eyes and continued, “You look as enchanting as your sister said. May I have this dance?”

Violet prayed that this would be the first page of their story. “It would be my pleasure.” She smiled.

[gay-jesus-probably]

I feel like Zelda does not recognize that her actions have consequences, which is. A very bad attitude for a leader to have, and seems to extend VERY far back in the Hyrulian royal family. You're also very right about them seeming to think that Ganondorf was too far beneath them to do any real harm. They thought they were being clever, but they failed to recognize that he can be very dangerous if he wants to be. This is entirely in a "good for her" way towards Ganondorf btw. So basically I am shaking Zelda by the shoulders and screaming "WHEN WILL YOU LEARN!!! WHEN WILL YOU LEARN THAT YOUR ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES!!!!"

Oh my god, right??? I mean, I'm not surprised, that kind of shit is just par for the course with royalty. They're literally born into a position of absolute power and authority, and told that they deserve it because they are fundamentally better people than literally everyone else, and all these lesser people exist only to serve them. That is the philosophical bedrock that a monarchy is built on. And in the LoZ universe it's a thousand times worse, because now we're also talking the divine right of kings (divine right of princesses in this case i guess), except it is canonically true. The literal canon says that the Hylian royal family has actually descended from a goddess, and that means they get to rule the world forever, and anyone who disagrees with them is pure evil to be crushed.

I mean, don't get me wrong aesthetically I love a good fantasy monarchy, that's just an inherent guilty pleasure of the genre. But I like them being done well. I don't want my fantasy royalty to just be the beautiful well mannered people that wear fancy clothes and sit on thrones. I like them being written as a person in a mandatory lifelong political position, and taking their duty as head of state really fucking seriously. Yeah, they're rich and powerful and live in a cool castle, but the trade off is that literally their entire life is dedicated to the betterment of the kingdom, regardless of what they actually want to do. That's the deal. You get anything you want, but you don't get to be your own person. If you don't want to do the job, then you don't get to have the privilege that comes with it. Honestly, one of the best examples I can think of off the top of my head is Riju; she's the unelected leader of the Gerudo and took the throne as a child... and took her responsibility really fucking seriously. She's been an exemplary leader in all her apperances, and she's clearly dedicated to the idea that being the head of state means serving your people above all else. She's dedicated her life to the wellbeing of the Gerudo, and that makes her an incredibly good person; she's more than earned her position and the benefits that come with it.

...And then we have Zelda, who isn't so good at this. Honestly, I'd say her main problem is just straight up entitlement; not really surprising given her environment. I mean for fucks sake, just look at how the civillians in TOTK treat her; I'm still absolutely horrified by that one sidequest where a research team misheard her instructions, thought she told them to go exploring in their underpants, and instead of refusing or even questioning the situation, they actually fucking did it. Every single one of them stripped naked, and set off to do their job in the manner the Princess had asked them to. A job that included going into monster dens. Now of course this is all silly, because naked people are funny, but if you actually think about it for five seconds, it's actually not funny at all. A group of civilians believed that their ruler ordered them to throw away their weapons, remove all their armour, strip naked, and walk into a monster den. This is outright said to be suicide. And they were actually going to fucking do it, without a single complaint or word of question. And the game's actual response to this is just "wow, it's so great to see how everyone's so devoted to our princess! this is a really heartwarming story". No game, I do not consider it heartwarming that a group of civillians were immediately willing to throw themselves to a pointless, agonizing death for no benefit other than Zelda's amusement. Not that she actually told them to do it, but the misunderstanding spiralling that far says so much about the state of Hyrule, and how much accountability Zelda is being held to. Which is to say, literally none whatsoever. Even when the fake Zelda is raising hell across the country and actively ruining lives, the only response from her apparent victims is to get worried that they haven't been showing Zelda enough devotion which is why they must have deserved this torment, so the only response is to dedicate even more of their lives to her service! Nobody questions her, nobody even gets angry or scared that she's seemingly hurt them. They just grovel at her feet.

The point I'm making here is that Zelda has spent years in an environment where literally everyone tells her that she is the most important person in the world, she deserves all the power, respect and riches, and she could never do anything wrong. That would go to anyone's head, and let's be real here... the game never even suggests that Zelda's tried to get people to take it down a few notches. She isn't worried about the mindless worship, she's perfectly okay with her country being a goddamn suicide cult. And you can see the entitlement coming across in her actions during the game - she has the four sages swear that their entire races will dedicate themselves to serving the Hylian royal family, and specifically their still-unborn descendants will take up the role to do her dirty work. She thinks it's perfectly reasonable to ask people to sell their unborn children into her service, and there's nothing ethically dubious about making demands of people who haven't been born yet, with two of them still being children when they're ordered to take up arms. And I realize it's a serious situation, but the game doesn't acknowledge this as being a morally grey action; the new sages are swearing to dedicate their lives to the glory of their god-ruler, how could anyone find that alarming?

And her treatment of LInk is particularly infuriating, because let's remember her, the last time she sees Link is immediately after he's been gloom-fucked by Ganon. His entire left arm is dead, and his beloved weapon is destroyed. She saw it happen. He absolutely could have just died right after she was yeeted back in time, because again, he was mortally wounded and in an extreme amount of danger. And even if he did live, he's just had his entire arm ripped off; after everything he's gone through, it would make perfect sense for him to finally hit a breaking point and decide he can't stand to fight anymore. My man's literally died before, and now he's lost his dominant limb, how could anyone be expected to keep going after that? But Zelda never even considers that Link might not be able or willing to fight for her. She treats it as a given that he's perfectly fine, and will do exactly what she wants even if she isn't there to order him around. It's not like he can think for himself, that would be ridiculous. Link is denied any and all agency; he can't even form his own opinions about the main plot or influence it in any way; everything was decided several thousand years ago. He's just here to do as he's told.

It just... all makes me think of that one memory in BOTW where Zelda runs away from Link, and when he catches up to do his fucking job, she greets him by angrily declaring that obviously she's the only one with a mind of her own. That was supposed to be her being way the fuck out of line, and abusing Link to deal with her own frustrations. But apparently TOTK... decided that she was right. Zelda is the only one with a mind of her own. Link's just here to follow her around and swing the sword when she tells him to.

It's just so fucking bleak, I hate this story so much. I love the gameplay, but I'm having a miserable time with the plot, every new development just makes me more frustrated and upset. I'm working on the fifth sage thing right now, and gotta say, absolutely fucking hate how Mineru refers to Link as just Zelda's Human Weapon. Like thank you furry goat lady, I realize that Zelda chose me to be her personal bootlicker, but I sure as hell didn't consent to any of this, and nobody has asked me if I'm actually willing to put my life on the line for this woman yet again.

At least BOTW fucking asked me if I was willing to risk my life to stop the Calamity.

[branwendaughterofllyr]

That’s such a good point about always asking ‘why?’/ ‘what for?’ when it comes to a theory’s narrative relevance — what it would mean for the story, what point would it make etc. It’s why I could never get my head around people being so dead set on a T4rg restoration as a positive endgame when we have all this legitimate reasoning for their downfall pre-AGOT, why they are distrusted, why their ideology is deeply suspect, and so on. It’s counterintuitive to me that the narrative would essentially return full circle to that regime, a T4rg on the throne, when they’ve been presented to us in such a specific, abusive and uncomfortable way. It devalues that pre-AGOT story, IMO. Bcoz it’s not enough to be ‘not like other T4rgs’ for me, the active association is too damning, too telling of what someone’s interests really are. But it’s like you said, people get deeply attached to one obviously biased pov and so disregard the wider, layered narrative that GRRM is trying to create through multiple povs that prompt us to question those who seek out power and if they can ever be truly justified in what they do to attain and/or maintain it.

It drives me wild that so many people don't ask "then what was the fucking point?" when talking about the ending of ASOIAF. The Targaryens had like two-three good rulers, all of whom ended up making some really horrible choices in the end that nearly burned the whole continent to the ground (This IS a Jaehaerys I hateblog). It's crazy to me that so many people that Fire&Blood is positive for the Targaryen Restoration when it's basically just a full length book's worth of "look at these bitches! Who put them in charge?" (the dragons). And then have Dany basically go "yes, fire and blood is a valid way to rule, my ancestors did nothing wrong" makes me highly skeptical of her chances.

And the PoV for trap for Dany is amazing, because as of ADWD, none of the enemies she has gone up against have been sympathetic (I mean, I think MMD is, but a lot of people don't) or even povs. Which lets her fans sit there and say "no, look, the people's she's up against are clearly terrible and she's the hero in this scenario." Which is going to shift drastically when she goes up against the Starks, who have no reason to love her and vice versa. How can Dany declaring that Starks and Lannisters are both the usurper’s dogs and therefore equally evil and her enemy not make everyone sit up and take notice. Yes, Dany going “Eddard Stark and his heart of ice are responsible for my family’s downfall” is absolutely going to win over Jon “I just want Ned Stark to be proud of me” Snow and Arya “I will cut anyone who says shit about my parents” Stark. I foresee no future conflict there!

The theories about the three heads of dragon having such traction make me laugh, when the choices Dany presented with are “fire and blood” and the literal and metaphoric planting of trees. She has to chain up her dragons because they are inherently at odds with creating a better future, but she chooses the path her family has walked again and again to the detriment of everyone else. Dany’s refusal to learn from her family’s mistakes and arrogance, is what dooms her to meet the same fate as the rest of them. The idea that “if I look back, I am lost” is her madness mantra makes so much sense, since if she looks back at the path of destruction she and all the other Targaryens have left in their wake, she might falter and reconsider, so she plows ahead straight to her doom, is ugh, such good writing.

(And it works as a foil to the Starks, who are so haunted by their pasts and the past of their families, they can never untangle themselves from it, even when they try to disappear into another identity)

So what does it actually mean for the narrative, if Dany didn’t actually live in Braavos? Does it change where she’s headed at all? What point would it serve if Tyrion is a secret Targaryen? What point does it serve if anyone is a secret Targaryen? Does it change the fact that the Targaryens burn themselves to the ground based on a flimsy prophecy one of them was arrogant enough to to believe, and no one checked the deteriorating madness of their head? That the Targaryens have set themselves over literally everyone else, to the point that they would rather practice incest than marry those beneath them? And the heroine of would-be Targaryen restoration doesn’t question any of this, and just says that it’ll be different this time! Because she has the magic nukes again!

And it’s brilliant because it really is all about “the hero of the other side”! Of course everyone likes to think that they are the hero, and it’s easy to fall into believing the same when you spend so much time in a character’s head. It is much harder to try and bring together all these different PoVs to try and figure out the broader narrative. And because Dany is so seperated from the rest of the characters, is easy to dismiss all the problems she has in coming to Westeros because none of the other characters really know her, and it’ll be different once she’s there, because she’s different, when it’s been set up that pretty much every POV character has a reason to keep a Targaryen with dragons at arms length and in reality, Dany has nothing to challenge those reasons.

It’s great writing, but it clearly has and still does go over some people’s heads, which is comepletely fair because ASOIAF is, in fact, a LOT. But it so often comes from the same people who dedicate immense amounts of time and energy to the series, and that’s when it becomes funny

[creatorbiaze]

short story; Vizerxa's Goal

A cloaked Draconic leaned on a tall oak tree near the edge of a cliff, watching the sunset over the ocean on the horizon. A red haired Origin stood beside her, watching the odd being. The two had met up with Soliel, the Phoenix King and final member of their trio, for one of their rare meetings. The Avian had left an hour ago, leaving the Origin Ruler and Fallen Draconic alone.

"... Vizerxa, do you mind if I ask you a question?" the Origin asks, looking over at the crimson eyed being.

Vizerxa glances at the Origin, unmoving and expressionless as always. "... alright, Vurxe Ceriex. What is it?" She replies, voice quiet and monotone; an unchanging part of the mysterious and reserved Draconic.

"..What is your ultimate goal? What did you do everything for?" Ceriex asks, choosing her words carefully so Vizerxa won't be able to answer as cryptically as normal.

Vizerxa hesitates for a few moments before sighing. "...To be remembered, I suppose," Vizerxa shrugs, "what's the point of living if you'll just fade away, insignificant to everyone you've ever known?"

Ceriex didn't quite expect such a straight response, half thinking that Vizerxa would have just remained silent like she normally did for questions like this. "Can you... elaborate?"

"...You know how Draconic Spirits, and spirits in general, work, correct? ..We lose our mortal life to whatever kills us, and we exist in either the Afterlife or a Realm that almost intersects with it, where the Living and Dead live side by side. There's two things that can kill a spirit; what took our mortal life, and being forgotten," Vizerxa explains, finally looking at Ceriex fully, though her expression is as deadpan as always.

"That Second death is what most of us fear. Specifically, being forgotten. I am the same. I have no reason to fear death itself, but... when you're Forgotten, it's slow and agonizing. You know why you're dying. You know why you're slowly fading. Not enough people remember you; you're unimportant and still losing significance. Once it starts, nothing can stop it. Even if you make a new legacy, you're Fading. Eventually, you won't even be visible, even to yourself. Subtly, every day, every moment, you're losing yourself, forced to watch the world continue perfectly fine without you," Vizerxa stands up fully, stepping closer to Ceriex. She rests her hand on the Origin Ruler's shoulder, suprisingly Ceriex slightly. Vizerxa rarely initiates physical contact.

Vizerxa's eyes look... dull... as she keeps talking. Empty and utterly exhausted, just like her voice. "We are insignificant, unimportant, and completely meaningless in the fullness of this Megaverse. I know that. But... it's terrifying still, isn't it? The idea that you'll lose your life to a painfully slow and miserable end because you failed to make yourself even slightly important."

For the first time, Ceriex realized how incredibly tired the Draconic in front of her was. Vizerxa looked almost... defeated. Nothing about her was what you'd expect from someone who had a reputation like Vizerxa's.

Salha's Grim Reaper, the Usurper of the longest reigning tyrant of any Realm, the Bringer of Tragedy who wades through oceans of blood... was nothing more than a frail and paranoid being who had nothing to live for except the fear of her death.

"I don't care what my fate is, as long as that isn't how I die," Vizerxa murmurs, closing her eyes and turning away from Ceriex. She put her hands in her coat pockets, bladed tail swaying idly as she walks away, footsteps silent as always.

[kindheart525]

Snowcone’s mom had been a lot more supportive of her after the Gala debacle. It was like a dial had turned in Twilight Sparkle, like she was actually trying a little harder now. It seemed especially so after they met Snowcone’s Nana and saw what could happen if somepony like her didn’t have the right support.

But of course things weren’t entirely perfect.

Twilight still said the wrong thing sometimes, more than she should. She was quicker to own up to it but it didn’t stop Snowcone’s trauma from being set off. There was a lot of work left to do.

Snowcone loved her mom, she really did. But still there was that fear, that she’d never truly understand her. That one or both of them would say something, do something, that would ruin anything good that they had. That she’d end up alone just like her Nana did.

“Your Nana seems to be settling in really well!”

Twilight seemed to be reading her daughter’s mind as she brought this up, casually making conversation as she organized her library for the umpteenth time.

“I bet you’re glad to have somepony who gets what you’re going through.”

Snowcone was glad to have her Nana around, but just because she had the same condition didn’t mean they got each other all the time. They were individual ponies with different experiences after all. Not to mention her Nana had six or so decades on her. They weren’t a monolith.

“Yeah, I am.”

She answered simply. But she still had some worries.

“Though I guess it’s taking Mother some getting used to. A lot’s happened to both of them, they really don’t get each other at all. Mental illness does that to you.”

Snow quipped, trying to laugh off her worries with a joke. She really wasn’t sure if she wanted to get into this with her mom.

“You’re probably right, they’ll have a lot to work through. I think they can do it though!”

Twilight didn’t completely take the dismissive “all you have to do is try” stance but she still didn’t really grasp it. She was naive in her confidence that everything would definitely be solved; no amount of willpower could cure a mental illness.��

“Not how that works Mom...”

Snow grumbled through her teeth, feeling like she would snap if her mom said anything more. But she stopped and tried to calm herself down. She just wanted to be honest.

“They’ve drifted apart so much, it’s not gonna be easy at all. Mother has no idea what Nana went through. You have no idea how I feel! Sometimes you say things that make me wanna rip my mane out!”

She stopped before she could get ahead of herself.

“But I don’t want you and me to end up like Mother and Nana. I don’t wanna end up like strangers. I just...want you to understand me.”

This was the most emotionally honest Snow had been with her mom in a long time, she was surprised at herself.

Twilight had stopped organizing by now. Books were still scattered all over but she ignored them, turning towards her daughter and giving her her full attention. She gazed at her sincerely, guiltily even, as she listened.

“You’re right Snowy...I really don’t get it at all. I’m so sorry I make you feel that way. I need to be better about that.”

Snow was almost shocked as the words came out of her mom’s mouth. Never in a thousand years did she imagine she would own up to her mistakes so explicitly. She wasn’t meandering, she wasn’t making excuses, she was just straight up admitting it. Actually apologizing.

“Well...thank you.”

Was all she could utter out.

“You know me, I’ve always been so focused on the little details. So obsessed with being perfect, with my studies, my friends, you name it. It’s like anxiety. How I became the Queen of Equestria, I don’t know!”

Twilight laughed, but then scooched closer to Snowcone as she became heartfelt again.

“I keep myself up at night worrying about the kind of pony I am, if I’m a good friend or ruler. I’ve never been very good at talking to other ponies, I have to check myself all the time. But I haven’t been thinking enough about how I am as a mom. And because of that...”

Twilight began to tear up, her voice quavering with emotion.

“I’ve failed you, Snowcone. I should be putting the same work—no, more—into making you feel loved as I do everything else in my life. I would always tell you you needed to try harder but honestly...I’m the one who should be doing that.”

Snow could see how broken up her mom was about this, more than she’d ever seen her really. She wasn’t about to coddle her and tell her it was all okay when she had said some messed up stuff, but she did have some advice to help her.

“Maybe you should get a therapist.”

Twilight couldn’t help but chuckle at just how blunt Snowcone was. She didn’t beat around the bush at all. But she was absolutely right.

“Yes I should, and I will. I promise. I want to be a better mom to you and I’ll do whatever it takes. Anything at all. I want you to know that I really do mean it.”

Snowcone didn’t say anything, there was nothing else to say. So she just leaned into her mother’s chest contently, soaking in the feeling. Her mother wasn’t perfect but if she knew anything, it was that she was loved.

“Thank you, Mom. That really means a lot to me. I love you.”

She felt her mom’s wings wrap around her as she leaned in as well, into a secure embrace.

“I love you too, Snowcone. I hope you always know that.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Previous: Follies Next: Steep Valley

Background and Books by EStories

[p-artsypants]

I really love your Teen Titans stuff, especially your one shot Wasteland. I don't have any ideas to offer for your blurbs but I'll straight up absorb any form of robstar you create.

Awww! Thank you so much!! You know, Wasteland is pretty old at this point, but I still think it holds up well! Who doesn't love a 'sharing body heat to keep warm' fic???

For you, Bestie, I offer a taste of the fic that will be #70!

Blurb #21

“Well Mike,” said Robin, “looks like I’m up next. Why don’t you relax for a moment while I get a proper suit on.” 

“Do you have anything that’ll fit?” Cyborg asked. 

Robin’s face darkened. “I have something for just this reason. I’ll have to take measurements to get larger suits made. Star, you should hydrate after your battle.” 

“Alright, I shall go with you.” She nodded. 

While Mike talked with the other Titans, Starfire waited patiently for what Robin had to say to her, since he wouldn’t recommend her to come inside unless he wanted to speak with her in private. 

Once they were inside, he asked, “why didn’t either you or Mike use your starbolts? If it’s a fairness thing, that’s fine. I’m just curious.” 

Starfire stopped walking, and Robin fumbled when he noticed. “Star?” 

She swallowed thickly. “I am sorry.” 

“Sorry? For what? You didn’t do anything wrong! I’m just wondering.” 

Starfire held her fists to her sides and said, very low, “Tamaraneans do not usually possess the ability to shoot bolts as I do. My sister and I are the only ones.” 

Robin stood up straighter at that revelation. “Really?” 

“Yes. I…I do not know if Mike is aware of this ability. I am…apprehensive to share.” 

“I can understand that. How did you and Blackfire get to be the only ones that can do this?” 

That’s when Starfire broke down. She started crying, and after Robin recovered from his initial panic, he quickly pulled her into a hug for comfort. 

“You don’t have to tell me,” he protested. “It's obviously a sore spot. Don’t worry about it.” 

“No,” she sniffed and pulled away from him. “I apologized because I have wanted to tell you, but…it is hard.” 

He took her hand. “Then, why don’t you tell me while I get the suit on. We can talk more about it later too. But if we’re gone for too long, Beast Boy and Cyborg will pester us about it.” 

She nodded in understanding. Maybe she’d tell them one day as well, but right now, it was hard enough to share with Robin, who she trusted implicitly. 

He led her up to his room, where he pulled a changing screen out from his closet and began to dress. 

She sat on the bed, cross-legged. 

“Whenever you’re ready,” he assured, the sound of fabric rustling behind the screen. 

“My cousin mentioned that I went to train with the Warlords of Okaara. Blackfire and I did this together, as we are…of noble blood on Tamaran. Leading an army is our duty.” 

Robin peaked around the screen. “How noble we talkin’?” 

She shyly twisted a piece of her hair. “My father…is the Grand Ruler? And I am second in line to the throne after my brother?” 

He gaped at her. 

“I am sorry I did not mention it.” 

“Uh…it’s okay. I guess. So you went to train…” 

Her shyness was replaced with sadness. “Yes. As you have experienced now, first hand, we Tamaraneans absorb energy from UV rays from the sun. While away, another race of aliens were on Okaara and took interest in my sister and I. These were the Psions.” She bowed her head. “They…experimented on us. They pumped us full of UV rays for weeks, trying to see how much it would take before we—“ she swallowed harshly, not finishing the sentence. “In the end, I was able to expel that energy through my hands and escaped, and then rescued my sister.” 

Robin peeked out again, staring wide eyed at her. 

“It was only a few weeks after we returned home that I was taken captive by the Gordianians. I was with them for many years. That is why I know so little about Transformation.” 

“…when did you say you started training?” 

“I was eight. The experiments began when I was but 10.” 

Robin finished dressing, and then walked around the screen. 

“You look very handsome,” Starfire offered a smile. 

Robin didn’t react to the compliment, only sat beside her, and touched her hair gently. It was like seeing her in an all new light. 

That was why she was so naive. That was why she acted so childish. She had no childhood. She had been a prisoner. She had to relearn everything. 

“Robin?” 

“Sorry, I got caught up in my thoughts. Thank you for telling me. It means a lot. I certainly feel like I understand you better.” 

“Yes?” 

“Yeah. You…you’ve been through a lot, but you’re so positive all the time.” 

“It is…I have spent many hours being sad and angry. I did not like it. In comparison, most things are not so bad. So I remain happy.” 

She was right. What was an escaped criminal in comparison to being tortured? What was it like to wake up in a home, safe, and know that whatever the day brought you was better than where you started? 

“No one is allowed to get mad at you for being cheerful when they’re in a bad mood anymore. I won’t allow it.” 

“That is not necessary, Robin.” 

“No, it is. You are allowed to enjoy your freedom.” 

“When you or our friends get upset with me, it is paltry compared to the anger of the Gordianians. Truly, it does not bother me.” 

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “You are far stronger than most humans, you know that?” 

“Yes? Most humans can not lift a car.” 

He shook his head slightly. “Emotionally strong, Star. Most people in a similar situation would come out bitter and hateful.” 

“Like Blackfire,” Starfire supposed, “though, she was rather bitter before the Psions, so I don’t think that is an apt comparison.” 

“At any rate, I like you the way you are. If you ever need to talk about this stuff, just let me know. I’m always here to listen.” 

A pretty blush covered her cheeks. “Thank you, my dear friend. And now, I shall show an Earthen sign of gratitude.” She kissed his cheek. “Is that correct?” 

His face also colored. “Yes, in this case, it’s correct. I wouldn’t go around kissing people for minor things.” 

“Because it is too affectionate?” 

“Right. In our country, it’s more romantic.” 

“Oh, I see. Thank you for explaining that to me.” She smiled, and then kissed his cheek again. 

He blushed harder. 

“Are you prepared? Shall we go meet our friends?” 

He stood, adjusting his cape. It was longer than he was used to. That might be a problem. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

I'm going to try to share 70 blurbs from my WIPs and unfinished fics to celebrate reaching 70 posted fics! To help with this endeavor, please feel free to send me a word or a fandom you know I write for, and I'll share the blurb. IDK if I'll get 70 prompts, but let's try it! Send as many as you want!

[tiny-wooden-robot-fics]

Against the Tide - Seventeen

Rating: Explicit Pairing(s): Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez x Original Female Character, Silvio Ricci x Original Female Character Characters: Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez (Bleach), Silvio Ricci (Ikemen Prince), Olivia DuBois (Original Female Character of Color) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergent, Pirates and Princes, Slow Burn, Action/Adventure, Worldbuilding, Angst, Some Subtle Racism, Sexual Tension, Political Subplot

Previous Chapter: Sixteen | Next Chapter: Eighteen

Chapter Masterlist

Summary:

"You must've come straight here," Olivia remarks, as Grimmjow sits up to make room for her.

"I always do," he answers, that grin still on his face. "Knew you'd come lookin' for me here, too."

"Am I that predictable?" She mock-pouts, crossing her arms over her chest.

It makes him laugh, and he pulls her closer, tucking her under his arm. "Nah… I just know ya." He looks down at her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as she leans into him. "Well? Ya have a good talk?"

Read on AO3

Their diplomatic discussion takes place at a tavern Olivia remembers but has never set foot inside of. She sits on one side of a table near the back, Silvio next to her. Jarron Barnes sits alone on the other side, casually shifting his gaze between the two of them. 

Silvio speaks first. “So what’s your plan?”

“First and foremost, we stop paying taxes to Clario,” Barnes answers unhesitatingly. “It isn’t fair that you take our resources from us, turn those same resources into profitable merchandise, and still tax us for goods and services that we could provide for ourselves if we were able to keep those resources. Clario is rich enough with all the other islands it’s feeding off of - you don’t need to make money off us.”

He makes a good point, Olivia thinks, even as she keeps her mouth shut and waits for Silvio to respond. As the only legitimate diplomat with authority present, this is his show. She glances over at him. 

He appears to be deep in thought, mulling over what Barnes has said. Finally, he looks up. “Alright, so condition one: no more taxes paid to Clario, and you use that money to provide for yourselves the goods and services Clario is providing now. Is that right?”

Barnes nods. “Medicine, science, and technology have advanced on Vora just as much as they have on Clario in the last twenty years,” he explains. “We’re caught up to you now - what we once had to rely on you for, we can now do for ourselves.”

Silvio acknowledges this, albeit a little reluctantly, with a nod. “What else?”

“That being said,” Barnes continues, “money still needs to be regulated and controlled. So Vora goes back to having a governmental system of its own in place. Maybe not a monarchy, but something that lends itself more towards a democratic approach. One where the people have a lot more of a say about what happens.”

This time around, Olivia does speak. “What exactly do you mean?” 

Barnes turns his attention to her. “What you said started me thinking, you know? Maybe having a succession of rulers from a line of nobility twenty years ago was what Vora needed at the time. But now, I think it needs something different. Maybe what it needs is a group of people ruling, not just one person. People with different life experiences, who can all bring something different to the table. That way---” He pauses. “That way no one person with singular life experience is responsible for making decisions that impact an entire country full of people. No one person has to take the blame - or the fall - if something happens. If a decision is made that negatively impacts the country as a whole.”

His words shock her. It isn’t at all what she’s expecting him to propose, and she’s at a loss for words. 

Silvio looks at Barnes shrewdly. “How would you decide who rules, then?”

Barnes hesitates, but only for a split second. “I won’t lie to you and say that I don’t want to be one of the ones chosen,” he admits candidly. “I still do, because these are my ideas and I’m the one who’s taking action to implement the changes. And to some degree, I think I should have a say in who else is part of that ruling group - along with the rest of the country.”

“So you won’t just be choosing a group of your friends?” Silvio raises his eyebrows questioningly. 

“No,” Barnes replies indignantly. “After all,” he adds with a glance in Olivia’s direction, “I’m trying not to behave like a spoiled child with a grudge.”

“Oh, so you do listen to me on occasion,” Olivia grumbles. “Nice to know my words don’t just go in one ear and out the other.” 

This makes him laugh. “Well then, I guess you won’t be surprised to know that I’ve been thinking of recommending you to be a part of that ruling group.” 

She isn’t sure she’s heard him correctly. “You what now?”

“I was thinking of recommending you,” Barnes repeats. “Of course, there would have to be elections, and the people would have to want you to… but I would want your name in the running.” 

She scowls at him. “Why the hell would you want that?”

Her ire seems to genuinely confuse him. “Because I think you would be good for it,” he answers matter-of-factly. “Not only do you have a history and a relationship with both countries, you were raised by a politician and a diplomat. You have all the knowledge of politics and the formal education to be good at it. And,” he admits grudgingly, “believe it or not, I think you’re good with people. You could help us navigate the early stages of re-establishing our own government and serve as a bridge between two countries if there’s a need for negotiations.”

Olivia feels like her head is spinning. She stares at him, mouth agape, unable to formulate a single response to anything he’s said. 

Silvio is quiet, looking at her to gauge her reaction. When it becomes clear she isn’t going to reply, he speaks. “And how will you go about choosing the other members of the ruling party?”

“Simple,” Barnes shrugs. “Like I said before, elections. It might take some time, but I think it would be worth it to be able to gather a group of qualified people who can speak for the rest of the citizens. Speak from a place of varied experience,” he adds. “So there needs to be diversity in the group.”

“Well,” Silvio starts after a moment, “I have to admit that I wasn’t expecting much in the way of your intelligence---”

“Oi,” Barnes interrupts. 

“---but your plan is a surprisingly sound one,” Silvio finishes. He glances over at Olivia, who is still reeling from Barnes’ previous suggestion of making her a part of the ruling party. “I still think she was right - you should come to Clario and present your case to my father. Tell him everything you’ve told me, and make it an official formal proposal.”

The other man leans back, heaving a sigh. “And how do I know that once I get to Clario, you won’t have me arrested and put in jail?”

Silvio considers his question. “Well. That I can’t guarantee, especially on account of the fact that you’ve been looting and burning my - and other people’s - ships. You also kidnapped the family member of a Clarion diplomat and conspired against the government. That doesn’t look good on paper, you know.” 

Barnes scowls.

“But,” Silvio goes on, “the punishment might be less severe if you can assure us that this won’t go any further with the threat of war, and that you will graciously turn down any attempts to elect you as a member of Vora’s new ruling party.” 

Barnes’ scowl deepens. “That isn’t fair,” he protests. “These are my proposals. Why shouldn’t I be involved?” 

“If you’re really after this for the good of the country,” Silvio counters, “why should it matter whether or not you’re actually a part of the ruling group? As long as your ideas are being implemented and you’re given credit for them - to the betterment of Vora - wouldn’t it be fine?”

The Crown Prince of Clario has Barnes over a barrel, and he knows it. He stubbornly keeps his mouth shut.

“Well,” Silvio goes on, when it’s obvious Barnes doesn’t plan to answer him. “In five days, I plan to return to Clario. You have until then to think about it.” Without waiting for an answer, he pushes his chair back from the table and leaves.

“Is he always like this?” Barnes asks, after he’s gone.

Drawn out of her thoughts by the question, Olivia turns to look at him. “What?”

“Is he always like this?” He repeats the question, his tone no less surly for it than the first time he asks. 

“You’ll have to elaborate on what you mean by ‘like this,’” Olivia laughs. 

Barnes shakes his head. “Dismissive. Unyielding.”

“Well, he is a prince,” Olivia points out. “The Crown Prince, to be exact. And on top of that, he made some valid points. You looted and burned ships. You kidnapped me. If your proposal wasn’t so solid, he probably would have had you arrested as soon as you stepped off the Sea Queen.” She pauses. “In fact, I think that’s what his intention was before I ran into him and convinced him to hear you out.”

“Hmph,” Barnes mumbles. “Well then. I guess I can give thanks where thanks is due.” 

“What are you going to do?”

He huffs out a breath. “Why do you care? Like you said, I kidnapped you. You’d probably be happy to see me in jail.”

“Not necessarily,” she counters. “And I care about Vora.”

Barnes shrugs, still sullen.

“Well,” Olivia says, rising from her chair, “I do think you should think about it. Think about what’s best for Vora. If you really care about it, put your own ambition aside to do the right thing.” Much like Silvio, she doesn’t wait for an answer. She doesn’t think he would give her one anyway.

--

“I had a feeling you would come here,” Carine Hudson remarks with a smile when she opens the door and finds Olivia standing there. “The question is, did you come to see me, or are you looking for someone else?”

Olivia smiles back. “Can it be both? I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too,” her former governess replies, enveloping her in a bone-crushing embrace. “Letters are nice, but they aren’t nearly enough of you.”

The woman who was responsible for much of Olivia’s early formal education still speaks to Olivia in that warm, friendly tone she remembers from so many years ago. And looking closely, she realizes that perhaps ‘Old Lady Hudson’ isn’t quite as old as she always imagined her to be. Looking at Carine with adult eyes, Olivia would guess that she’s only a few years older than Grimmjow - that the older woman was likely only about twenty when Olivia’s family left Vora twenty years ago. 

“Come in,” Carine implores her, stepping aside to let Olivia cross the threshold. 

And there he is, just where Olivia expected him to be, stretched out on Carine’s sofa. His boots are near the door, and he’s lying on his back. When he hears Olivia’s voice, he turns his head. “There you are,” he says lazily, his mouth curling up in a grin. 

She isn’t sure why she suddenly feels bashful under that gaze. Perhaps it’s because her governess from so many years ago is eyeing her closely, a soft smile on the older woman’s face as she watches the brief interaction between her former student and the man she is so obviously smitten with. “I’ll go make some coffee,” Carine says after a moment, leaving the two alone.

“You must’ve come straight here,” Olivia remarks, as Grimmjow sits up to make room for her. 

“I always do,” he answers, that grin still on his face. “Knew you’d come lookin’ for me here, too.”

“Am I that predictable?” She mock-pouts, crossing her arms over her chest.

It makes him laugh, and he pulls her closer, tucking her under his arm. “Nah… I just know ya.” He looks down at her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as she leans into him. “Well? Ya have a good talk?”

“I guess so,” she sighs. “It seems like Barnes is finally starting to see reason.”

“That’s a good thing, yeah?”

She nods her agreement. “It is, but…” She trails off, unsure of how to broach the subject of Barnes’ plans to recommend her as part of Vora’s new ruling party.

Ever observant, Grimmjow notices her hesitation. “Somethin’ botherin’ ya?”

“Not bothering, exactly,” Olivia murmurs. “But Jarron Barnes says he’s going to recommend me for the elections. If his proposal is accepted by the King of Clario, he wants me to be a part of Vora’s new governmental party.”

He absorbs this for a moment. “Meanin’, you’d come back here for good?”

“Maybe… although it sounds more like I’d be splitting time between here and Clario,” she says thoughtfully. “Acting as sort of a go-between for getting Vora back on its own two feet and negotiating between the two islands.��

“And what does Lady Olivia think about that?”

She pinches his arm lightly, laughing. “Stop that - it sounds weird for you to call me that.”

Grimmjow shrugs, but he’s laughing along with her. “Just thought I’d try it out, see how it tasted on my tongue.”

“Well?” She raises an eyebrow at him. “How does it taste?”

His answering look is smoldering. “I’d say I like the taste of this better,” he answers, wiggling a single finger into the space between her thighs.

“Grimm!” She hisses, covering her face.

He just chuckles. 

“To answer your question,” she goes on, when he’s withdrawn his hand and her face has cooled a little, “I can’t lie about how exciting the prospect of it all is. To be a part of a new era of life for Vora? To be instrumental in giving the people of Vora the chance to govern themselves, to show the rest of the world what they can do when they stand on their own two feet.”

Grimmjow nods in understanding. “So… ya gonna do it?”

“I don’t know,” Olivia says truthfully.

Carine re-enters the living room at that moment, setting a tray of coffee and mugs on the table. 

Her former governess peers closely at her. “Do you want to do it?”

Olivia looks up at her in surprise. “You… heard all that?”

“Yes,” Carine laughs. “All of it.”

“Oh god,” Olivia gasps, remembering everything that’s been said. She buries her face in her hands. 

Grimmjow just laughs again. 

Carine inclines her head to one side, an amused grin on her face. “You seem to forget that this one here has been coming to see me for years now, and there isn’t much he hasn’t told me… including the latest developments between the two of you,” she adds meaningfully. 

“You didn’t,” Olivia groans, her words directed at the man beside her.

He shrugs. “Spared her the details, but yeah.”

“So,” Carine smiles, setting her mug down. “Now that we’ve got that out of the way, tell me: do you want to be a part of Vora’s new ruling party?”

“Part of me wants to, but the thought of being in any political situation also terrifies me,” she admits softly. “It’s…” She trails off, casting a quick glance at Grimmjow. His blue eyes are on her, the soft little smile on his lips encouraging her to continue. “It’s the reason I ran from Silvio’s marriage proposal, and the reason why Jarron Barnes’ suggestion of me being involved makes me so uncomfortable.”

“What scares you so much about it?”

It’s a question Olivia has often pondered the answer to on her own. “The responsibility,” she replies. “Knowing - firsthand - how many lives can be affected by a bad decision. I may not have understood it completely at the time, but I still remember how it tormented my father to leave Vora. To hold the fate of the entire country in the palm of his hand. People don’t forget things like that,” she adds. “Not if what Barnes says is any indication of how they feel.”

“But you won’t know that for sure until you’ve talked to other people,” Carine declares. “Yes, he may have the right idea in wanting Vora to have its independence, but I don’t think he’s the right person to carry that through… and I wonder if he’s embellished just how many people feel as vehemently as he does about what happened in the past.

“I don’t disagree with any of his reasons for thinking you should be involved,” she goes on. “You’re intelligent. You have empathy for others, and can listen without bias. You were taught to be open-minded… to put yourself in other people’s shoes and try to see things from their point of view. Your parents and I made sure of that.”

“What about them, though?” Olivia asks fretfully. “I’d be leaving them. I’d… also be leaving the life that I love and the freedom that comes with it.” She looks at Grimmjow again. “I worry that it would start to feel stifling. That I would start to feel stuck.”

Carine stands, crossing the short distance between them and kneeling down in front of Olivia. She takes the younger woman’s hands in her own. “You, my dear, are more than capable of finding a way to do all the things you want to do, and more. I firmly believe that, and I think this man here does, too.” She casts her own glance at Grimmjow. He nods in agreement but says nothing, letting her continue. “You wouldn’t be doing this alone, and I think if there’s any part of you at all that wants to do it, you should do it on your terms. It’s the only way you’re going to be happy.”

The words, Olivia realizes, are exactly what she’s been needing to hear without knowing it. As they sink in, she somehow feels much lighter. “I really have missed you,” she says quietly.

Carine pulls her up into another embrace. “I’ve missed you, too.” 

Previous Chapter: Sixteen | Next Chapter: Eighteen

Tag List: @chrissie2003 @kryptoniteforsale @pamakali

[recapcrew]

Week 32 Transcript

Video

Intro

Extra extra, read all about it! Welcome to the Empire’s Recap, and today we will be going over the chaos and drama of our (somewhat) respected rulers!

This week Sausage takes the stage as the star of the show, and I'm sure we all know how that goes…

Sausage

News from Sanctuary shows reports of new spores sprouting around Sunny, courtesy of some strange inter-dimensional magic from Pearl’s side of the universe. Sausage doesn't mind, because it's not something that he has to clean up, unlike the sculk splattered around Sanctuary.

The sculk clean up mission leads Sausage to the map room, which is a bit outdated at this point!

Magic updates the map and an issue comes forth - a very Sausage issue. He’s running out of space to build! An expansion is on the way.

After he cleans up, he checks out the newly-encased Hermitopia, where he's confronted by an angry Sheriff. He's found guilty of selling custom weapons in the black market - he was just doing his arms dealer arc! It's totally fineeeee…

[JIMMY] Anyway, anyway, you’re coming with me!

[SAUSAGE] Yeah?

[JIMMY] You’re going to jail, bud!

[SAUSAGE] I’m going to jail?! What am I going to jail for? I’ve been a good boy!

[JIMMY] No, you’ve been—Sausage, alright, let’s not pander round the facts. You’ve been selling stuff—

[SAUSAGE STUTTERS]

[JIMMY, POINTEDLY] In the market—

[SAUSAGE STUTTERS] Uhm!

[JIMMY] Down under here!

[SAUSAGE] I don’t know what you’re talking about there is no market, pshhh

[JIMMY] Sausage—

[SAUSAGE] You’re crazy, this man’s crazy.

[JIMMY] Sausage, I’ve already exposed it. Its down there, I saw your stuff, Scott basically threw you straight under the bus.

[SAUSAGE] I can’t believe this.

[NARRATOR] The Sheriff is willing to let him off if he does community service - that is, help him build the extension to Tumble Town. Sausage isn’t confident in his ability to survive jail so he quickly agrees.

[JIMMY] You know, I’ve been building little hotel buildings, for people to come stay a night at Tumble Town.

[SAUSAGE] Ok?

[JIMMY] Maybe you could build one for me, and we’ll let this… go under the rug.

[SAUSAGE] Ok, ok, that sounds good! ‘Cause you know what, I’ve never been to jail before and I don’t think I’ll last two minutes in jail, y’know. Maybe with the handcuffs I might handle that ok, but I don’t know about behind bars.

[JIMMY] I don’t have any handcuffs. No handcuffs. Zero.

[SAUSAGE] Scott told me about some handcuffs, I don’t know…

[JIMMY STUTTERS] No—don’t listen to him.

[NARRATOR] Sausage builds, and turns this new Tumble Town project into a legal weapons shop/vacation home. His Tia Maria sews him a new outfit to get into the mood. It's a banger outfit, complete with a gun.

…Is it a good idea to give Sausage a gun?

He has crossbows already, and checking in on the underground market reveals one of them was actually sold! He doesn’t exactly shut down the operation, given that he starts selling them more legally in Tumble Town - they're cheaper this time!

He's gotta take inspiration for his builds from somewhere though, right? It turns out he built it in another life, so just to make sure he can, Sausage uses the Staff to teleport himself into that reality. It's for science, he promises! Bubbles doesn’t seem to be pleased, however, when she catches him hanging out in the wrong dimension. Oops?

Outro

And with that, join us next week for more chaos and shenanigans! Thank you for watching, liking, and subscribing, and thanks to everyone helping with the project, check them all out below!

[reallybadrebelsheadcanons]

Hera: No offence Sabine, but you don’t exactly give off heterosexual vibes...

Sabine: What? *splutters* How dare you??? I am the as straight as a ruler! I am the straightest person ever!

Hera: ...

Hera: I have a link to your Spotify and your number one most listened to song is Girls by Girl in Red.

Sabine: Yeah okay.

[ikigaicoeur]

𝔞𝔰𝔱𝔯𝔬 𝔬𝔟𝔰𝔢𝔯𝔳𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰🪐

This was in my drafts from so long but i wasnt ready to post it😭. So here you go my first astro post❤

This might or might not resonate with some people because its completely based on observation of people around me.

🍒 Leo mercury, if afflicted, will literally dry text when the topic doesn't revolve around them but gets mad when their friends aren't hyping them up whilst they type their drama in the groupchat. Getting ignored might threaten their self esteem.

🍒 Discussing some important stuff in the groupchat:

That one gemini placement: *randomly sends out of context memes*

🍒 Underdeveloped or afflicted capricorn venus really likes the idea of toxic relationship¿ They tend to attract manipulative people who clouds their definition of love.

🍒 Saturn in 4th, saturn/sun aspect are the person who always have the "plan B". Like you can always expect them to have a way out of a troubled situation. Ideas are always racing in their mind when they're in home or alone. Its fascinating how my friends who have this placement started an online business during the pandemic.

🍒 3rd house gemini/ venus in gemini always sounds like they're flirting. No babe its just the way they talk.😭🦋

🍒 Uranus in 12th house might get so unexpected dreams they never even thought about that will turn into one of their biggest fears.

🍒 People with chiron in the 11th house, please. Adopt me😭. Y'all are literal angels. You will go to any extent to help your friends. But always be aware of the people you trust, are they reciprocating the love?💌

🍒 Venus in 6th house, do you get the sudden urge of getting that perfect hourglass body and randomly starts looking up for workout videos?

🍒 Pluto in the 3rd or pluto/Mercury aspect lowkey are the best advice giver but you aren't ready for that. They'll not say what you want to hear. They'll come straight to the point, might even hurt your feelings in the process of explaining.

🍒 Venus conjunct north node are always on the hunt for love, but when they get it, they start to question everything, like "am i even worthy of love"? (opposing South node)

🍒 I've noticed that the transit of your 12th house ruler might affect your dreams. For ex: 12th house ruler transiting the 8th house might dream about death, some kind of transformation or even sex. Transiting the 5th house, dreams about your s/o or even doing any fun activities. The aspect to the planet matters too.

🍒 I have seen people with jupiter in 1st house being really skinny and all of them have afflicted jupiter. They're also the people who never easily gains weight. Or the complete opposite.

🍒 Venus in 8th people can be the "you before me" type. They're ready to share everything with you if they love you even if it means them being empty handed.

🍒 Weird observation but people with prominent venus, asc/venus aspect, ascendant in venusian degree are the one who gets obsessed with cosmetics and makeup at early age. All of my cousins have these placements and idk why my 6yr cousin asks me for that branded lipstick on her birthday and the other tries to apply nail paint when she's just 4.😭

🍒 Earth placements loves to watch romantic movies.

🍒 5th house stellium people are those cool famous kid in school.

🍒 Lilith in 11th house person might meet envious people who tries to backstab them.

🍒 Fire mars in a chart with earth placements probably loves to challenge themselves. They know they're exhausting their body but just cant stop. It gives a big hit to their ego and self esteem if they didn't complete the task.

🍒 Pluto/moon aspect can either control their emotions very well or literally outburst. There's no in between

🍒 People with Moon/Neptune hard aspect gets confused with their emotions. They can't quite find out what they feel or why they feel. They can sense someone's emotions but doesn't know how to react in that situation.

— ℑ𝔨𝔦𝔤𝔞𝔦𝔠𝔬𝔢𝔲𝔯

[twistedmusings]

My Kind of Human

Ramshackle stayed silent throughout the night, the moon and stars shining light into each room. 

All except one. 

I swear on my askbox that I am working on requests but this idea popped into my head and now it won’t leave and people always tell me to find a niche and I think my niche is angsty smut. And in this niche I will dwell ò uó. Aside from that, I’m very asexual so if my sexy scenes are bad you are more than welcome to roast me.   Reader is [G/N]  Warnings: Lemon soda (smut), possessive Malleus, bareback, dub-con and our good ol’ dragon boy just putting you under a spell so he can have you all to himself. 

“Do you have someone special, Tsunotarou?” 

Malleus stops walking as he looks down at your frame, your eyes staring up at the sky while you both are sitting down at the step of Ramshackle. 

“Special?” 

“Yeah.” you sigh as your eyes remain fixed on the stars, “Someone special. Like someone you wouldn’t trade for the world.” 

His first thought is his Grandmother. She had taken over the role of ruler of the Valley of Thorns and had let him grow in a somewhat normal fae childhood. He had heard many stories of children being forced to take the throne early on in their life and how damaging that decision turned out to be not just for the country but for the child as well. He was glad that his Grandmother remained steadfast and strong. There was also Lillia. Lillia, despite his constant antics, was always a guiding hand for Malleus in things he did not understand. Even now, Lillia would lend an ear whenever Malleus had a question about social interaction. Whether he would get a straight answer or a joke, that was just up to the older fae. 

“I have some people I consider that important.” Malleus looks up with you, “How about you, child of man?”

Your eyes remained fixed on the stars. 

You nod, “I do.” 

He laughs, “Is it your first year friends? I am sure Sebek would be glad to hear you say that.” 

“He would yell in my face before telling me he felt the same, you know how he is.” 

You two share a giggle before letting silence take over once again. “But it isn’t like that. The way I love Ace, Deuce, Jack, Epel and Sebek is different from what I’m talking about.” 

Malleus watches your eyes shine under the bright stars, some of them being reflected on your irises as you tilt your head and lean back to let your legs stretch out. 

“I’m talking about a person who you can’t live without, you know?” 

“I’m afraid I might need a bit more of an explanation.” 

You shrug, “I can’t fully explain it without sounding crazy but…imagine you one day find yourself completely alone. There is not one single person who understands what you are going through nor do they bother because they might believe that it is too hard to comprehend. You find yourself so alone that you start getting used to that loneliness.” 

The way your eyes sadden are not lost on him, copying your movements and leaning back so that he can stretch out as well. With how you are both positioned, your fingers are almost brushing. 

That wouldn’t do. 

You continue talking, not paying attention to how Malleus places his hand over yours. 

“But one day someone comes in and changes everything.” 

He lets himself feel the fluttering in his heart, having lost himself to this feeling a long time ago. The way his heart would beat faster when you smiled, when you laughed, how you would approach him without fear. From what Lillia had said, this was something akin to falling in love with someone. When asked who it was he was falling in love with, Malleus simply shook his head and avoided answering the question. 

What he felt for you was not for anyone else to know. 

“They just ‘get’ you.” you smile and close your eyes, “Everything thought you have, they somehow complete it. Long distances become shorter when you are with them and for a brief moment time just...stops. You find yourself yearning for this person and wonder if they think about you the same way, to the point of losing sleep. You want to be to them what they are to you.” 

You tilt your head towards him. 

“Am I making any sense?” 

Malleus nods and sits up, “More than enough.” 

He stares into your eyes, your color reflected back on his as he instinctively leans closer towards you. You were building up to something, he could feel it. The feelings you described, they were identical to the ones he felt for you. It hadn’t been that long since you came into his life but he couldn’t see himself not popping by Ramshackle dorm every night to share these talks with you. Malleus wasn’t necessarily that attached to you when you two first talked but the more you sought him out the more he opened himself up for you. 

Your conversations, your little adventures, your attention. 

It was all slowly consuming him and making him realize that you were no longer a human but his human. 

The question slipped out of him faster than he could think of it. 

“Who do you speak so highly of?” 

You turn to look at him, your body leaning towards him as well that he allowed himself to dwell in his imagination for a few seconds. His own body covering yours as you wrapped your arms around him, pulling him closer and asking him to take you with him the moment he graduated from this place. 

“It’s kinda what I wanted to talk about with you tonight.” you sit up with him and grin excitedly, “Remember what I told you about Crowley trying to find a way home for me?” 

He would answer your plea, taking your hand and kissing your palm before his lips made his way up your arm. 

“Well...he finally found it.” 

Malleus is pulled out his fantasy as he blinks twice, your smile shining just as bright as the stars above despite the awful revelation you had just given him. 

“I’m going home, Malleus.” 

You used his name. A part of him hoped that you would use his name when you two were in a much different and more favorable situation but you had just used his name to stab him in the heart with your wonderful news. 

“I was just saying all this because--I can’t believe I’m telling you this--before I came here I had these feelings about this person. They are everything to me but I was almost afraid to admit it? And this distance just...it just solidified what I felt for them.” 

He has to stop himself from reaching out to you and grabbing your wrist, thinking that the moment you got too far he would lose you forever. 

“Crowley says that I am going to be able to go back next week. So I’m just preparing myself to tell them everything I felt.” You turn to him and hold out your hand to help him stand up, one of the many things that Malleus loved that you did solely because he had an excuse to touch you. 

“I think a part of me just wanted to share this with you because I trust you. We’ve talked like this for so long that I think I just...tell you everything.” you smile sheepishly, “Which I hope you don’t mind, I did just spring it out of nowhere.” 

You were leaving him. 

“Tsunotarou?” 

You were leaving him for someone else. 

“Malleus?” 

You were leaving and he couldn’t stop it. You had these sorts of feelings for someone else and he couldn’t stop it. You opened him up and you were going to close him as if you were able to make the decision without any repercussions. You weren’t theirs, you also weren’t yours, you were his---

A hand shakes him from his thoughts as he focuses in on your eyes, his heart melting when he sees panic in them. 

“What’s wrong? Are you okay? What did I do?” 

He shakes his head and smiles as he takes your hand so you both could stand up. 

“Nothing.” Malleus pats your head, your size difference being made apparent to him even more than before, “I guess this is goodbye?” 

“No need to make it dramatic.” you lean into his touch, like a pet to their owner, “I’ll find some way for us to keep in contact. And if there isn’t--well then I will make one.” 

“I feel the same.” 

Malleus looks down and digs into his school jacket, smiling when you make a comment about this being a goodbye present. He puts a finger to his lips before pulling out a spool of thread, the top of the spool decorated with a sharp needle. “Give me your hand, child of man.” 

You nod and smile, doing as he told. “Is this going to be a blood pact of sorts? You don’t seem like the type, Tsunatarou~” 

He chuckles, “It is just a customary practice in the Valley of Thorns. Something that I believe will make our connection unbreakable.” 

Malleus brings your finger closer, the tip touching the spool as he expertly pricked your finger. You hiss for a second before smiling as you wave your finger. “Strangest friendship ritual ever, but it is very you so I will gladly partake in it…” 

A feeling of vertigo overtakes you as you lose your footing, your eyes closing as you feel yourself fall to the ground but finding yourself pressed against something warm. 

“...Mal--?”

You try to look up at him but gasp softly when your legs are swept under you, Malleus picking you up bridal style as you feel your eyelids growing heavier. Almost as if it was a chore to keep them open. 

“A true unbreakable connection.” 

Malleus opens the door to Ramshackle quickly, looking behind to see if he would need to take care of any pests that had made their way to the old dorm. Without any in sight, he closed the door, the lights on Ramshackle’s doorstep snuffing themselves out as the smoke drifted up into the starry sky. 

-------------

“Fgnaaa~!” Grimm yawns as he floats towards Ramshackle, yawning as he rubbed at his tired eyelids. 

Hands roaming up and down your torso, slowly undoing buttons as your hands rested on his wrists. Sloppy kisses shared between two amateurs but in between said kiss there seemed to be a forced passion, a need for the person above you to communicate how much he had wanted you. He had been caught stealing some food from Monstro Lounge and Azul had put him to work just like before, it had been a redo of what happened in Octavinelle all over again. 

Wanted wasn’t the right word, needed was the way to describe how he was feeling. His mouth traveled from your lips to your neck, your mouth opening up to let out a soft moan but being quieted down by his fingers slipping inside so they could rub against your tongue. You could barely keep your eyes open but with how you were looking at him, it almost made him believe that you were the one that initiated this. 

“Hnng?” he looks to see the lights in Ramshackle are all off, his head tilting in curiosity. When did you start going to sleep this early? 

Legs parted, eyes looking away, your chest rising up and down as his fingers pressed deep inside of you to rub and prod at whatever he found. He used his other hand to turn your face, your eyes meeting as he whispers a couple of words. A veil is cast over your eyes as he feels you open up like a flower for him. Hips grinding down to meet his fingers, arms opening to welcome him closer, his name falling from your lips making him eager to finally show you how he felt about you.

Grimm opens the door and yawns as he makes his way to the kitchen, licking his lips as he imagined what you had cooked for dinner that night. However, the only thing he finds are three deluxe tuna cans and a note that certainly wasn’t in your handwriting. 

Your hold on him is tight, legs wrapped around his waist as he sinks deeper and deeper into you. Hands in his hair, going up his horns and then traveling down as he bit at the juncture between your neck and your shoulder blade in order to keep himself from pushing all the way inside. But your warmth was calling out to him, inviting him to push deeper and deeper until all you could feel was him and him alone. 

Even with the magic affecting your brain. 

“Don’t feel so good. Going to sleep early.” Grimm sits down on the counter and frowns as he opens one of the cans and starts munching down. 

“Say you love me…” 

You gasp as you feel him push your whole body up with his first thrust, the bed creaking in protest in your ears but no sound being heard outside of your door. 

Were you sick? Grimm takes a giant bite and hums as he thinks. With him being this tired he would immediately go up to the room you two shared together and cuddle himself on your chest but if you were sick…

“I love you! I love you I love you--Malleus--!” 

The sounds were all mixing together. Your moans, his groans, the protests from the bed and the wet slaps of his body meeting yours over and over again. You were so full, all the way up to  your throat that the words he so desperately wanted to hear were spilling out despite you not remembering thinking of them. You were thinking of nothing. Every time you tried to think about what you were doing a sharp pain would stop you, instead keeping you attentive to the pleasure the soon to be ruler of the Valley of Thorns was giving you. 

“You are mine, child of man. Body and soul...all of them mine!”

“Silly human. Getting sick like that. They should be taking care of themselves.” Grimm shakes his head as he keeps on eating the tasty treats you had left behind. If you had left something this good for him, he guessed he could forgive you. 

Your toes curled as you felt something warm gush inside, lips covering your own and drinking up all the sounds you were making. He whispered something into your ear but you couldn’t quite make out what he said. Something about heirs and a kingdom. Was he telling you a story? He pulled away to look into your eyes, your brain moving your hands so that they would cup his cheek. Your comfort seemed to stir something inside him as he brought you closer, your arms now wrapped around him as you rested your forehead on his shoulder. 

Ramshackle stayed silent throughout the night, the moon and stars shining light into each room. 

All except one. 

[buttterknifeee]

How long is forever? - Teen Titans x Aquagirl!Reader

Masterlist

Request: "Hello, May I request an episode insert in the Teen Titans episode 'How Long Is Forever?'"

Summary: Starfire takes a trip to the future... only to find out that you and the other Titans have disbanded. Will she find a way back to the present, or will you live an unfulfilling life forever?? (from S2 EP1)

Pairings: None

Word Count: 3919

A/N: Hey!!! sorry this took a while, it was super hard to write it due to most of it being in Starfire's POV. Most of the episodes in the series are centered around specific titans, so if you have an idea for an Aquagirl centered episode, feel free to send it in!!! (theres also a grand total of one cuss word in there)

Aquagirl’s Room - 2004

“Where is it? Where is it?” you mumble, tearing your room apart. You were looking for one of your CDs that you were in the mood for listening to. You threw your clothes into the air, looked under your bed, and even checked inside of your fish tank, holding the water containing a few tropical fish above you until you gave up. You sighed, finally checking the clock. You realized that you’ve been in your room for an hour and you haven’t even said hello to the other titans. You quickly change into your suit and head to the living room.

You stretched as you walked in. “Hey guys-” you stop in confusion at the scene in front of you. Starfire was standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, holding a bunch of necklaces and boxes and babbling something about “Blorthorg”, Beast Boy and Cyborg were brawling for a video game remote, Raven was reading silently and holding up a pair of nail clippers (?) telepathically, and Robin….

Anger bubbles up inside of you as you realize that he was in front of the stereo, blasting music. From your CD. You cross your arms as you march up to the Boy Wonder.

“Hey Rob, whatcha doing with my CD?” You say. “What, was Kelly Clarkson too quiet for you?”

Raven adds, “Yeah Robin, could the music be a little louder? I can still hear myself think.”

He glares at the two of you “I don’t listen- I only turned the music up to DROWN OUT ALL THE YELLING!!” He refers to the two boys. Cyborg now had Beast Boy in a headlock, holding the controller triumphantly.

“Whose turn is it now, tough guy? Whose turn is it now?” Cyborg taunts the green teen.

“Knock it off! I can't work with you two acting like idiots!” Robin yells.

“Work?? The only “work” I see you doing is stealing my stuff!” You snap.

“Great. More yelling will definitely stop the yelling.” Raven says, a sarcastic smirk on her face.

The three of you glared at each other, Cyborg and Beast Boy were still fighting, and one of Starfire’s necklaces broke, its beads tumbling onto the ground.

“STTTOOOOPPPPP!” the alien princess screamed. You stared at her in surprise. She took a deep breath and recomposed herself.

“ Friends must never behave this way, and especially not on Blorthog! Do you wish to invite the Rekmas?” she said.

“Gesundheit?” Beast Boy said, confused by her vocabulary.

“On my world, ‘Rekmas’ means ‘the Drifting.’” she explains. “The point at which close friends begin to drift apart, and their friendship begins to die.” She frowned. You immediately felt bad for all the yelling you did.

“Aw, come on, Starfire.” Cyborg comes to her side.

“We are so not Rek-whatever-ing.” Beast Boy reassures her.

“We're getting on each other's nerves a little. Big deal.” Raven says.

“Fighting’s just a part of life. As long as we resolve it, we’ll be fine.” You say.

“Yeah. This is just typical roommate stuff. We're not going to drift apart, Star. I promise. We'll all be friends forever.” Robin declares

“Forever?” Starfire asks. Before you could answer, Robin’s T-communicator beeped. The communicator was flashing red, and he turned to you and the others.

“Titans! Trouble!” he says. You all rush out of the Tower and into the city.

You find the “trouble” in the Jump City museum. It was a man wearing black and gold armor and a goatee: Warp. He was monologuing to a bunch of guards that he had frozen.

“I didn't journey back in time one hundred years to squabble, I came to steal.” You see him reaching for one of the clocks. “The Clock of Eternity. Valuable in the past, priceless in the future.” Robin steppeds forward, throwing his birdirang to knock Warp’s hand back.

“But for the present...you'll keep your filthy hands off it.” He says, announcing the Titans’ entrance. The man turns to the six of you.

"The Teen Titans. This is a treat. I read all about you in the historical archives. And now, you're all history!” He fires his laser at you all.

“Titans! Go!” Robin yells as you scramble to dodge his rays. He blocks Warp’s rays with his staff, but at the last shot the staff breaks, and he backed up. Starfire blasts her starbolts at him, but the bolts ricochet off of him and hits her, sending her to the ground. You and Beast Boy attack him now, a stream of water lifting you into the air by your feet. You put your hands in front of you and a jet of water blasts out of your hands, heading straight for Warp. He held his hand us as the water made contact with him, and froze the water. The ice traveled up the jet of water and onto your hands, encasing them in the long shard of ice. You fell, the weight of the ice dragging you down. You winced as you saw Beast Boy meet a similar fate, his animal form frozen in ice next to you. You struggled to free your hands as Cyborg and Raven both went down. Robin gives one last attempt to take Warp down, running towards him.

“You cannot defeat Warp. I am from the future.” He says, throwing disks towards Robin. He dove to the side as the projectiles exploded. “And your relics are one hundred years out of date." He grabs the clock and presses a blue lens from his armor. Suddenly, a blinding white portal forms in front of him. Your hands were still stuck so you had to squint.

“Ta-ta, Titans. I have enjoyed our time together, but I've got a very bright future ahead of me.” He sneers, stepping through the portal. You finally pull your hands out of the chunk of ice just in time to see Starfire slam into Warp, sending the two of them into the portal.

“Starfire!” Robin yells, trying to dive in after her, only for the portal to close and him to fall on the floor. You pull him up from the ground and look around. Starfire was gone.

Titan’s Tower-2024

Starfire couldn’t believe what was going on. After tackling Warp, she ripped off the lens on his suit and ended up in Jump City, 20 years into the future. She found Cyborg alone in the rotting Titans Tower, hooked up to a large battery. He explained that the day she left, the Titans fell apart, and disbanded soon after. He told her that the others can help her get back to the present, telling her where to find you, Beast Boy, and Raven.

She found herself at a circus whilst looking for Beast Boy. There in a cage, sat Beast Boy, changing into various animals. She approached the cage as he turned back into his human form. He was now a pudgy old man, with a great deal of hair loss. He looked at her with wide eyes through the bars.

“No way! It's you. But how?” he asked, peering at her with his wrinkled eyes.

“I require your help.” Starfire said.

“What kinda help?” Beast Boy asked.

“The future is not as it should be. We must find Warp. I will free you from this--” Beast Boy stopped Starfire from continuing her sentence.

“This cage isn't to keep me in! It's to keep those maniacs out!” he explained in a panicked tone, referring to a group of kids. “Look. After the Titans broke up, I tried the whole solo-hero thing. Got my butt kicked, a lot. So now, well…”

He turned into a chicken briefly to illustrate his point. “ Besides, I'm in the showbiz now.” Starfire could tell he wasn’t happy with where he was, but there was nothing she could do. She left Beast Boy and went to find Raven.

She found Raven in a room in a broken down building. She was standing in a pure white room, wearing a white cloak to match. Her back was facing Starfire when she arrived.

“Raven?” she squeaked, inching into the room. “Raven, it is Starfire, your friend”

“No such thing.” she groaned, her back still facing Starfire. Starfire’s eyebrows furrowed.

“Please, Raven I-”

“Just another figment. Don’t even look.”

“You must listen! I am here because-” she pleads, but Raven stops her.

“I’m never coming back! Go away!” she yells, Starfire backing up in fear. “It has to go away. Just like before. Just like all the others.” Starfire frowns in realization. She must not think I’m real; she thinks it's all in her head.

“Your mind.” she says softly, approaching the cloaked woman. “Without friends, you must have--” Starfire was about to touch Raven, but her familiar dark shield formed around her. She gasps, then eventually leaves the room in defeat. There was one last person she could try talking to. You.

She walked by the Jump City beach, the same place where you got your powers all those years ago. Suddenly, you rose out of the ocean, the water around you carrying you onto shore. Your face was stuck in a permanent glare, different to your constant smiles as a teen. You were taller, definitely had a few wrinkles, and you were wearing Atlantean clothing. Starfire flinched at your sudden arrival.

“Aquagirl! how-”

“I don’t go by Aquagirl anymore. I am Queen (y/n), ruler of Atlantis. And word gets around when one of your old teammates who had disappeared 20 years ago is roaming Jump City again, even at the bottom of the ocean.” You say coldly, eyeing her as she shrunk at the sight of you.

“What had happened to you, my friend?” she asked.

You sigh, recalling your memories. “After you disappeared and the team disbanded, I vowed to never be as soft and vulnerable as I was then. I moved to Atlantis, and was eventually appointed ruler.”

“Oh my, that sounds terrible!” Starfire exclaimed. “I need your help my friend-”

“No.”

“No?”

“No. It’s not terrible, I am quite fine just the way I am. And we were friends 20 years ago; things have changed.” You turn your back to her. “I must get going; there’s much I need to do.” Starfire stares at you in sadness as you walk back into the ocean, the water swallowing you up and the waves lapping like normal.

Starfire trudges through the snow-covered city, when a laser blast knocks her back. Her eyes raise to meet with Warp’s, his weapon aimed at her.

“What’s the matter, dear? Have I come at a bad time?” he snarls, opening fire once more. She dodges his shots and fires back, but the starbolts simply bounce off his modern armor. She tried to hit him close up but he held up his hand and ice formed around her midair. The large chunk of ice containing Starfire drops and shatters, leaving Starfire on the ground, shivering. She glares at Warp, who now has deeper wrinkles on his face.

“You have become so old,” she notes, still on the ground.

“That's what happens when someone steals my vortex regulator.” he says, holding out his hand. “The regulator, if you please. I really must get back to my future.” She stands up and takes the lens out from her belt. She couldn’t let him leave, especially when she’s stuck in a future like this. She held the disk next to her and warmed up a starbolt, as if to hold it hostage.

“If you ever wish to see your future you will repair the damage you have done to my past!” she yelled, anger bubbling up inside her. The villain laughed.

“Damage? Silly girl. There's nothing wrong with your past. One cannot damage history, because history cannot be changed.” He held up the clock and continued. “I went back in time to steal this because history says it disappeared. And history says it disappeared because I went back to steal it. Past, present, future. It's all written in stone, my dear.”

Starfire stood in disbelief dropping her glowing hand. No… this can't be the future we’re destined to live. Such terrible lives… she thought. Warp walked up to her shocked state and took the lens out of her hand.

“And nothing you do can ever change it.” he scoffed. Warp prepared to blast her when he was knocked into the alleyway by an unknown figure. Starfire snapped back into reality and looked around for you had knocked the villain back. A dark silhouette lept forward and threw Warp against the end wall of the alley. They threw disks at the villain, the area around him exploding. When the smoke cleared, Starfire could see that Warp had used a force field. He released his shield only to be met with the mysterious figure dropping down towards him. He stared straight at Starfire.

“Another time, perhaps.” he said. Before the shadowed person could reached him, he dropped into the ground. The person who had tried to fight him landed right where Warp had been, and as they straightened up, Starfire inched forward to see who it was.

“It’s good to see you again.” the person said. Starfire could recognize that voice from anywhere, and apparently, anytime.

“Robin?” she asked.

“I haven’t used that name in a long time.” he said, finally stepping out of the shadows. He looked nothing like the Boy Wonder she knew. His traffic-light esque uniform was replaced by a black suit with a blue bird on the front. He still wore a mask and he now had long, black hair.

“Call me… Nightwing.”

Starfire found herself in Robin’s (or Nightwing’s) base. She looked at a glass case of his old uniform, a feeling of melancholy washing over her. She was glad that he was ok, but the Robin she once knew was now nothing more than a mannequin display. Nightwing wrapped a blanket around her with a small smile.

Nightwing finally spoke. “So I’ve heard you’ve been looking for help.”

Starfire sighed. “There is nothing you can do. There is nothing anyone can do. The past cannot be repaired, the future cannot be altered, no matter how wrong it seems.”

“So it’s impossible.” Nightwing determined from her rant, walking towards a bunch of computers. “Good. If memory serves, we've done the impossible before.”

Nightwing’s words had surprised Starfire. None of the others had said anything as hopeful since she’d arrived here. A small fire of hope blossomed inside of her.

“I held on to this,” Nightwing says, pressing a button from a device. “...just in case.” Starfire’s eyes widened, realizing that it was a T-communicator. The communicator began to flash red, and to Starfire’s delight, so did her neck piece and wrist guard.

At the bottom of the ocean, you sat on a throne, talking to your advisers. As they left, your seashell necklace began to flash red. You looked at it in surprise, recognizing what it meant: it was an emergency signal that Robin had put in your necklace while you were still in a team. Even after 20 years, he had never used it until now. You began to get up from your throne when a group of your advisors came back, swarming you with scrolls and questions. You sat back down, a bitter feeling in your throat.

Beast Boy’s belt had flashed red whilst he was performing a trick in his animal form. He quickly jumped back into human form. He observed his belt for a moment before stepping back, hanging his head.

Cyborg's robotic eye flashed red as he sat alone in the Titans Tower. He immediately got up and started towards the door, only to be stopped by the wires keeping him alive and stuck inside the tower. He looks back at the power source.

Raven still stands alone in the room, her back facing the door. The brooch of her cloak flashes red, and without looking at it, she covers it with her hand.

Starfire and Nightwing venture to Jump City museum, where they find Warp, fixing his time travel suit. He wields the lens that he took from Starfire to his suit, whilst talking to himself.

“Tick-tock.” he laughs. “Just a few more seconds, and I shall finally--” his sentence was cut off by Nightwing knocking the tool out of his hand, revealing him and Starfire’s position.

“The future will have to wait.” Nightwing says, extending his staff. “You just ran out of time.”

Warp growls and fires laser beams at them, causing them to split up to avoid getting hit. Starfire shoots her starbolts at Warp again, despite them getting deflected by his force field. Nightwing however, jumped down on him again, using his staff to crush one of his lasers. He turns to face Nightwing, but Starfire lands a hit on his back with her starbolt. He tries to laser Starfire but has to dodge Nightwing’s staff attacks that barely strike him. He fights quickly and with fury, eventually knocking Warp flat on his back. The two heroes step close to him to inspect him. But Warp grins, and uses his second laser to blow a hole through the roof, snow and rubble falling onto Starfire.

“Star!” Nightwing yells, but Warp blasts him back with his laser. Warp runs over to the tool he dropped and started repairing his suit again as Nightwing helped Starfire up. Suddenly, he was blasted back by a familiar blue ray. Starfire and Nightwing turn to see Cyborg, his arm cannon smoking, but being able to function without any wires.

“Boo-yah” he says with a grimace.

“Cyborg!” Starfire exclaims, flying over to the half robot. “You are repaired!”

“Glad you could make it,” Nightwing says, joining them.

“Wouldn't have missed it. Now who said y'all could start without me?” Cyborg said as Warp stood back up.

“So sorry,” Warp said, holding up another device. “Perhaps I should finish you first!” Before he could use the device, he was attacked by a green lion, Beast Boy. Warp looked at the lens he was repairing, now crackling with electricity. In anger, he pointed a laser at him, but a jet of water shot up from the floor. You ran into view, a trident now in your hand.

“Heard you guys needed help!” you yell, a hint of a smile peeking out from your stoic face.

Before Warp could fall to the ground again, he is overtaken by magic, and thrown into the side of the wall. Raven materializes, still wearing a white cloak.

“Nobody hurts my friends,” she said, reminiscent of the first time you met her.

“Dude, that is so unfair,” Beast Boy whines, comparing his bald head to Nightwing’s flowing hair. The six Titans turn to see Warp, who has managed to create a wormhole, despite his suit being damaged.

“It seems my time has come,” Warp said, preparing to walk through the wormhole. Nightwing threw a birdarang at Warp, Warp throwing his own disk to intercept it. Starfire watched in awe as the birdirang sliced through Warp’s disk and hit him in the chest, right where the lens sat.

“Uh?! No! NOOOOO!” the six of you watched in horror as Warp regressed in age until he was nothing more than a screaming infant.

“Ok, I am not changing any diapers.” Beast Boy said, staring at the baby.

Cyborg looked at Starfire. “We gotta get you home. Come on!” he pointed at the wormhole, which was shrinking. He took the lens from the suit and put it in his arm cannon. He fired at the wormhole, making it bigger.

“Im redirecting the wormhole.” Cyborg said, turning to Starfire. “Starfire! Go!” She steps towards the portal and looks back at her friends. Their lives seemed so lonely and.. dissatisfying. Is this life they were destined to live?

“Please, must this really be our future?” She asked. The rest of you looked at her silently, sadness in your eyes. “Is there nothing I can do to change it?” Nightwing stepped up and looked directly into her eyes.

“I'm sorry, Star. There isn't time.” Nightwing said. He placed the clock that Warp had stolen in her hand and his other hand on her shoulder. He gives her one last smile before stepping back towards the other Titans, beckoning her to enter the portal. Starfire took a deep breath, and walked into the portal.

Jump City Museum - 2004

“Ta-ta, Titans. I have enjoyed our time together, but I've got a very bright future ahead of me.” He sneers, stepping through the portal. You finally pull your hands out of the chunk of ice just in time to see Starfire slam into Warp, sending the two of them into the portal.

“Starfire!” Robin yells, trying to dive in after her, only for the portal to close and him to fall on the floor. You pull him up from the ground and look around. Starfire was gone.

“Oh my god,” you whispered.

Beast Boy stared at the place the portal was. “Um, where did she-?”

Another portal opens with a brilliant flash between Beast Boy and Cyborg. Starfire falls out, curled around an item. You all rushed towards her.

“Dude!”

“Whoa!”

“Star! What happened?” Robin asked as the portal behind her closed.

“History said it disappeared.” Starfire said, straightening and revealing the clock warp had just stolen. “But history was wrong!”

The boys stared at her dumbstruck but you laughed, diving in for a hug.

You stood with the other titans as Starfire recounted her story. You covered your mouth in awe to find out what happened to you and the others in the future.

“Then Nightwing handed me the clock and I entered the vortex.” she finished.

“Woah,” Raven said, shocked by the recount of Starfire’s story.

“Bald?!” Beast Boy yells, grabbing at his hair. “You're telling me I'm going to be bald?!”

“Gosh, Star, all of our lives seem so terrible,” you say, thinking about what Starfire had said about you. You were a queen (which was cool), but you were also a cold hearted bitch (super uncool). You didn’t want that to happen, and more importantly for you to no longer be friends with the other Titans.

“Guess you were right about all that Rekmas stuff,” Cyborg said, slightly concerned.

“I don't want us to drift apart. Does it all have to happen? Isn't there anything we can-” Robin worries out loud, but Starfire stops him.

“Our friendship has already changed Warp's past. I believe it can also change our future.” Starfire says with a smile.

“Yeah I mean, the original reason we “broke up” was because of Starfire disappearing, and since she’s here now, we aren’t breaking up!” You chimed in, grinning at the other Titans.

Raven picks up the broken necklace with her telekinesis, stringing them back together.

“So… is it too late to do this festival-of-friendship thing?” she asks.

Starfire’s eyes sparkled. “Oh, it’s never too late!”

You all put on the bulbous necklaces Starfire brought in the morning.

“HAPPY BORTHOG!!!” Cyborg cheers.

“I thought it was Blort-Hog,” Beast Boy wondered.

“Okay, I feel like a wind-chime.” Raven groans.

“A very cool wind-chime,” you winked.

Starfire put the last necklace on Robin. He raises an eyebrow at her.

“So… Nightwing, huh?” he asked.

“Don’t even think about it bird brain,” you yelled from across the room, causing him to blush. You all burst out into laughter. The tower stayed cheerful the rest of the night.

[groovypalacewobblereagle]

Dany antis:

We have to understand that Mirri was devastated over her town and the abuse she suffered. To empathize. She’s a “hero” therefore, for killing a BABY.

We do NOT have to understand that Daenerys was devastated over the loss of her husband and child. She does not deserve empathy despite her losses. She’s “evil” for killing a grown woman who killed a baby.

We have to understand the culture of wealthy grown educated men who have subjected human beings to slavery for hundreds of years.

Oh, but they weren’t alive for hundreds of years! We can’t hold that against them!

But we also can’t deny them the benefit of the excuse that they’ve done this for hundreds of years.

We do NOT have to understand the culture of a teenage girl who is a Khaleesi of the Dothraki, who kills the wine seller for trying to kill her and her baby.

Because she killed him painfully. We don’t care that Varys suggested killing her with the tears of Lys, and remember that the victim dies an agonizing death. We don’t think about the morals of a painful death when the intended victim is Daenerys.

The same applies to when she crucified the slavers. We’re going to insist she did it indiscriminately, even though we know she didn’t kill a single woman who would have had less power, or child who would be entirely innocent, nor did she kill random civilians, they were all nobles. All slavers. But there are innocent slavers! Innocent slavers are definitely a thing.

The people who make laws that are not up to modern standards, like Daenerys, are evil.

But the people who follow those laws, like Ned beheading a man for running away from the dead, or Jon who beheaded a man for refusing to follow an order, or Robb who threatened to hang a man if he didn’t join the war against the Lannisters, aren’t.

Daenerys may have warned the slavers she would show no mercy if they didn’t free the slaves and pay them reparations, but she should have given them a trial even though they own the system.

It’s true they were all slavers, but if she was punishing them for being slavers, she should have killed all of them. The fact she didn’t kill all of them shows it wasn’t about justice, so she’s evil.

But she was also wrong for wanting to kill all of them, and Jorah talked her out of it. The fact he had to talk her out of it shows she’s evil.

And then when Daario tried to talk her into slaughtering them Red Wedding style, and she refused, that’s also proof she’s evil because Daario represents her evil nature.

We can empathize with the slavers! Because we might have done the same thing! We all like to think we’d stand against slavery, but if it’s our culture we might not. And we might stand by while our friends torture 163 children to death to spite an abolitionist.

We say we empathize with the slaves, too, but it’s more we sympathize with them. We understand that they are victims. We don’t see ourselves in their place. We don’t empathize with the anger the parents of those children felt. They follow Dany blindly. They don’t understand choice. That’s why they follow her.

What we CANNOT empathize with (because we know we would NEVER) is a teenage girl who walked along a road lined with the corpses of children who were tortured to death to spite her. We know a GOOD ruler would be stalwart in the face of such horror and hold a trial. Because even though the slavers own all the systems in existence in that city, there’s no way a trial could have caused the death of lesser evil instead of greater. Trials are foolproof!

She should have killed them all or tried to have every one of them examined by witnesses who are profoundly biased. We cannot empathize with that.

Dany’s attachment to the Dothraki shows her savagery. The Dothraki are rapists and slavers and she lusted after her husband when he made that speech and so it doesn’t matter how she tried to fight rapists later. They are all terrible. The Khals are monsters and she loved one, so that shows she’s a monster.

Also, she’s evil for killing the Khals.

She was wrong for sacking Astapor and Yunkai but not staying to rule them. She made it worse because poverty is as bad as slavery and the freed slaves are not able to build their own society, and she should have known that. She was wrong for not staying and ruling them.

She was also wrong for staying in Meereen and ruling it because that makes her a colonizer.

She agrees to allow adults to sell themselves into temporary slavery, and that’s wrong, because voluntary indentured servitude is as bad as generational chattel slavery-except when it’s in Westeros! The rulers in Westeros are rightful, but Daenerys was trying to enslave them by having them bend the knee! She was using the privilege of her father’s name, and it’s different when the Starks do it.

Dragons are evil. They serve no good purpose and she’s evil because she has dragons.

Also, Jon should have a dragon.

When Arya met the Lannister soldiers, and Ed Sheeran, that was to show how she realized that they are not all bad. This shows that sometimes enemies are good. This will show that we should empathize with enemies. That Dany is bad because she doesn’t even though she agrees to help the Starks, whose father supported the man who murdered her brother, and was not disturbed by the murder of her niece and nephew. Who would have killed a baby, had he known Jon was her nephew. Who would have killed her.

This does not apply to Daenerys and her armies, of course. The North was one hundred percent right to treat her with hostility.

Daenerys considered killing Tyrion when she met him! This shows that she is willing to kill people just because they are related to enemies! She’s evil!

Even though she named Tyrion her Hand. Even though she agreed to aid the North with no strings attached once she saw the army of the dead. Even though she accepted Varys into her service when he’d tried to have her murdered. Varys being part of the plan to sell a teenage girl into sexual slavery was not evil because she turned that to her advantage.

Dany was wrong for even considering killing Tyrion despite the fact that she didn’t and ultimately named him her Hand.

She was wrong for killing the Tarlys even though they were oathbreakers who killed their own friends and attacked their liege’s home. Even though the punishment for oath breaking is death. Even though they refused to bend the knee in exchange for keeping their lives, lands and titles, which is standard procedure in Westeros. Even though they refused the Wall, where Tarly sent his eldest son.

She didn’t kill them for oathbreaking or murdering her allies. She killed them for not bending the knee! Even though she only attacked them after they did that, and she did not harm Jon when he refused to bend the knee, she allowed him to mine her dragonglass, and offered to provide men and resources to help.

Sam was not wrong for hating Daenerys for killing his father, even though he was an oathbreaker, an abuser, and threatened to kill Sam. Even though he said that nothing would give him more pleasure than telling Sam’s mother that her son died. Even though Sam knew of Dany’s great deeds from Aemon. It’s understandable that he would still mourn his father. Even if his father was a monster, we have to empathize with his anger.

YET Daenerys is dead wrong for calling out Jaime for murdering her father. Her father was a monster! How dare she feel anything about his murder! She had no right to object to Jaime’s presence at Winterfell, even though he tried to kill her on the battlefield and said straight out said he wasn’t sorry for all he’d done and would do it again to protect his family.

She was wrong for restoring the family name of the man who killed her brother and cheered the brutal murders of her niece and nephew. Because she only legitimized Gendry for personal gain, even though he could have done the opposite of joining her, and tried to take the throne himself.

She is wrong if she is good to the family of her enemies because she is self serving, and she is wrong if she’s not good to them because it’s not their fault.

The Starks are not wrong for judging Daenerys by her father’s actions even though she came to help save them. Sansa is not wrong for wanting to evict children from their homes because their families were traitors.

When the Starks are suspicious of the family members of those who’ve harmed them, it’s fair. They are being smart.

When Daenerys is suspicious of the family members of those who’ve harmed her, it’s proof of her being paranoid like her father.

When Sansa told Jon that the free folk should join their fight against Ramsay, that they owed it to him because he’d saved their lives, that was smart!

When she told Arya “you should be on your knees, thanking me,” she had every right to assert her accomplishments.

YET, Daenerys was very entitled to want the North to fight Cersei with her in exchange for her helping them defeat the army of the dead, even though Cersei was their enemy too, and she sent them a letter saying “come bend the knee or face the fate of all traitors.”

It was not wrong of Jon to tell the North he bent the knee to save them, even though she said she’d help before he bent the knee.

It’s Dany’s fault the Night King got a dragon even though the wight hunt was Tyrion’s idea and Daenerys did not like it. Even though Jon told her, “I don’t need your permission. I am a king.”

Dany held Jon prisoner even though he had to stay to mine the dragonglass and he stated that he did not need her permission to leave. That’s what being a prisoner means, right?

Daenerys went mad because her family was fraught with incest. This does not imply that Jon will go mad, because his mother was not a Targaryen (even though his mother’s parents were related). Generations of inbreeding unequivocally mean madness, but the ramifications of those generations are undone if one guy at the end of the line produces a child with a woman whose parents were also related. That’s how genetics work, right?

Daenerys is a colonizer. Even though she didn’t have any goal other than destroying the slave trade in Essos. She only did that for selfish reasons even though Yunkai trains bed slaves and neither Meereen nor Yunkai added to her military might. Even though she never forced her religion or language on them. Even though she renounced power over the cities when she left, so that the people could choose their own leaders.

The Starks were never colonizers! Even though the earliest Starks were First Men, who committed genocide against the Children of the Forest. The First Men called themselves the First Men, they did not acknowledge the humanity of the Children. Therefore, the Children were not human.

The First Men destroyed the Children. The Starks built a Wall to separate the dead from the living, but left thousands of living and Children of the Forest at the other side of it. The Starks destroyed the other families, established power over the area, established their religion and language as the official religion and language. The Starks became the Kings of Winter by bringing to heel, and sometimes extinguishing, other families. That’s fine because the Starks are good. That’s not colonizing! The Starks were always good! They killed the warg king and his sons and beasts and then married his daughters. That’s not rape, that’s marriage!

The Targaryens who adapted the Westerosi religion and language and did not in any way repress other religions or languages, were the oppressors.

Dany hardly did anything in the Long Night. Her armies and dragons did not thin out the dead army, making it possible for Arya to kill the Night King. Two dragons can only do so much against an army of 100k. Even though Dany’s army also was over 100K.

YET, she burned MILLIONS in KL (even though the population of KL is under a million and even though I just said she could not have possibly taken out much of the dead army.)

When Daenerys didn’t weep and wring her hands over her abusive brother’s death that was evidence of her turning “mad.” Even though he abused her, sold her, and pressed a sword to her belly and threatened to cut her baby out of her body.

When Sansa smiled as Ramsay screamed, being torn apart by dogs, that was not a sign of anything bad. He abused her!

When Daenerys crucified the slavers even though a trial would have yielded nothing, because they had owned the entire system, that was a sign of her being a villain.

But Varys wasn’t wrong for trying to poison her before she did anything wrong because he sensed what she would do! Instinct > Trials. Unless the “instinct” is Daenerys’. Then it’s paranoia, even when the people she suspects of plotting against her are plotting against her.

When Arya killed two men, baked them into a pie, fed them to their father, slit his throat, smiled faintly as he died, cut off his face, then killed every one of his bannermen, with no knowledge of whether those men had been there at the Red Wedding, or whether they’d spoken against it, that was not a sign of her being a villain. Because if it’s a Stark, we understand complicity.

Besides, Arya is not a ruler. Only rulers do harm. Not explorers! Explorers who believe “I’ll never know her, she’s not one of us”, have never done anything bad in all history. Happy Columbus Day, btw.

[theres-an-impulstor-among-us]

I know you haven't really done many prompts for Empire SMP, but having seen Jimmy's perspective today, I really want to see him just talk about everything that's against him and I think it would be really fun to see him just breakdown with Pixl.

Lore-wise, Jimmy really has gone through the ringer.

he really has T_T someone pls save him

...

Pixlriffs is working on setting up some more candles around the vigil when he hears a noise from behind him. Immediately alert, he spins round, already pulling out his sword, but he freezes when he spots a figure half-limping towards him.

As he rushes towards the figure, he realises with a jerk that it’s his closest ally. “J-Jimmy?!”

The ruler of the Cod Empire is dishevelled and clearly exhausted, and instead of his normal cod mask, he’s wearing the brown llama mask that Pixl remembers giving him a few weeks ago.

Pixl reaches out to steady his friend, holding him by the arms. “Jimmy, what on earth-?!”

“Gosh, your empire is… is really out there,” Jimmy murmurs, his words slightly slurred. “In the middle of a desert. I’m so hot…”

With that, he collapses against Pixl.

“Jimmy!” he gasps, propping his unconscious friend up.

He manages to lift Jimmy onto his back and hurriedly carries him over to his home. He lays Jimmy down on his bed and hesitantly removes his friend’s mask.

He’s shocked to see a fairly fresh cut on Jimmy’s face from his left temple to the corner of his left eye. It’s not still bleeding but it looks untreated. Maybe from the last day or so.

Forcing himself to ignore that for now, Pixl fetches some water and an ice pack, the latter of which he applies to Jimmy’s forehead. Immediately, Jimmy lets out a quiet sigh and stirs slightly, though he doesn’t wake.

After about ten minutes of gently tipping sips of water down Jimmy’s throat, Jimmy’s eyelids flutter.

“Hey,” says Pixl quietly, giving his friend a soft smile. “Can you hear me?”

Blinking groggily, Jimmy frowns. “What happened? Where am I?”

“In my empire,” says Pixl. “Do you not remember?”

Jimmy lifts a hand to his forehead. “My head’s a little fuzzy.”

“I’m not surprised; you were pretty dehydrated. Do you have any idea how long you were wandering around in the desert?”

“No, not really.”

“Well if you walked all the way here from your kingdom, it’s a wonder you didn’t parch to death,” Pixl responds. “Why didn’t you use your elytra?”

“I wanted to walk as long as possible and then when I eventually tried to take off, I realised I didn’t have any rockets,” says Jimmy sheepishly.

Pixl chuckles. That’s so Jimmy. “Right, I see. Why would you want to walk all the way here, anyway? We didn’t have a meeting or anything, did we?”

“No, I…” Jimmy hesitates. “I just needed a break. And I wanted to see you. And I needed to be several thousand blocks away from everyone else.”

“Really?” Pixl frowns. “Are you okay?”

Jimmy hesitates again, before deciding to tell the truth. “Um… no. I’m not okay. A lot of stuff happened yesterday and I’d really like to curl up and cry right now.”

Pixl gives his friend a sympathetic look. “Tell me about what happened.”

“W-Well…” Jimmy sits up in the bed, taking a deep breath. “fWhip covered my nether portal in cobblestone so I told him to come over and clear it up but he used tnt to blow it up and then when I told him to fix the hole in the ground, he blew a bigger hole under the first one and then Scott and Gem showed up and I was hoping they might be on my side but apparently Scott actually helped fWhip make the cobblestone thingy so then I got really mad and hit fWhip with my sword but then he killed me and stole my Codfather mask and I begged him to give it back but he just flew off with it a-and I don’t know how to get it back now cuz Scott said I keep starting things I can’t finish and that even with my allies, I couldn’t hope to beat fWhip but I need that mask back Pixl I can’t-.”

Sensing Jimmy’s rising panic, Pixl quickly grabs Jimmy’s shoulders to stop his friend. “Hey hey hey, shh. It’s okay, Jimmy. Shh.”

Jimmy lets his breathing settle, clearing his throat as his voice cracks. “Wh-What’s wrong with me, Pixl…?” he whispers. “Why am I such an easy target? Is this all because I stole stuff from Sausage so early on? Do I deserve all this?”

“No, Jimmy,” replies Pixl immediately. “fWhip is being a bully, and bullies always have their buddies backing them up so they feel stronger. First it was Sausage, now it’s Scott.”

“I just… I just don’t understand. I thought Gem and Katherine were my allies but Gem is now fully on fWhip’s side and Katherine pretends she’s on everyone’s side but she always seems to back up the person who isn’t me. Who do I have on my side?”

“You’ve got me, you’ve got Joel, you’ve got Lizzie.”

“I do trust Joel and Lizzie, and you of course, but… I-I’m just kinda expecting everyone to leave me if another alliance offers something better. And I wouldn’t even blame them.”

Pixl pauses, casting a brief look at the walls surrounding him. “...well, I’ll never leave you.”

“I-I don’t think you can realistically promise that,” Jimmy responds dejectedly.

This reinforces Pixl’s resolve. “I’m doing it anyway. You need an ally you can always count on, and I will be that ally. No matter what, Jimmy, I’ll stick by you. I know my empire is a long way from yours but if you ever need backup again, send me a message and I’ll drop whatever I’m doing and fly straight over.”

“Really…?” Jimmy stares at him with hopeful eyes. “Wh-Why would you do that for me? Aren’t there better, stronger empires out there you can ally with?”

“Frankly, yeah, there are. But I don’t care. It’s not all about power.”

Jimmy scoffs.

“It’s not,” Pixl repeats. “Power gets you through a war, sure, but wars aren’t the only things empires have to deal with. You’re a kind and fair ruler to your subjects, Jimmy. Villagers, animals, everything. You always go the extra mile to ensure their comfort and safety, and in this world, that’s a rarity. Power really isn’t the only thing that matters. It’s one of the biggest, but that doesn’t mean you should be counted out just on lack of power. That’s why you find yourself a powerful ally, right? And I like to flatter myself that I’ve built up a pretty powerful empire here. Maybe not fWhip-level powerful, but strong enough to defend us both if a certain tnt-crazed empire comes calling.”

Jimmy gazes at him. “Would you really put your empire on the line for my fights?”

“Of course.” Pixl gives him a kind smile. “That’s what allies do.”

“...Pixl, I…” Jimmy can hardly muster any words to express his emotions. “I-I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything. All we need to do is take care of each other and we’ll be okay.”

“Pix…” Jimmy is almost completely lost for words. He’s never had someone show this level of dedication towards him before, especially considering they haven’t known each other very long. “A-Anything you need, Pix, anything at all, just ask.”

Pixl’s smile falls as his eyes flicker up to the scar on Jimmy’s face. “Actually… I do have a question. How did you get that scar on your face?”

“Huh?” Jimmy’s hand automatically moves to touch the jagged line on his forehead. “Oh. This. A, um… a piece of debris from fWhip’s second tnt explosion got me. Nearly got my eye, actually.”

“It looks bad. Untreated.”

“Yeah, I… I’m not so good at first aid and I did ask Scott and Gem if one of them could help me clean it but they refused.”

Pixl’s eyes widen. “They what?!”

Jimmy nods sadly. “They made some excuses and left. Scott said it didn’t look that bad and I could deal with it myself. I looked at it in the river and I also didn’t think it looked that bad.”

“Gosh.” Pixl shakes his head disapprovingly, a deep frown on his face. “That’s… That’s so terrible.”

“I-I’m sorry,” whispers Jimmy.

“What? No, not you. I can’t believe Scott and Gem would leave you when you were clearly hurt. Do you have a first aid kit back in your base? And your food situation: do you have enough food? What’s your diet like?”

A little taken aback by the sudden questions, Jimmy hesitates. “I’ve, uh… been eating fish, mostly. Cod Empire, you know.”

“Any potatoes? Carrots?”

Jimmy shakes his head.

Pixl scrutinises him. “Right, okay. Jimmy, you’re gonna stay with me here for a while.”

“A-A while?”

“A few days. You’ve been through a lot lately; you need someone to take care of you. I’ll get that wound treated for you, show you around my empire, and make sure you get some nutrients in your diet. Do you have a potato farm?” Before Jimmy can reply, Pixl continues, “Nevermind, I’ll get you enough potatoes to either get started or improve it, whichever. You need to keep drinking water, though; you’ll get dehydrated really fast in the desert.”

He pauses as he registers the smile on Jimmy’s face. “What?” he chuckles.

“Nothing.” Jimmy averts his gaze, though his smile remains. “Just… thank you. I can’t tell you how much it means to me to have you on my side.”

Pixl smiles back and squeezes Jimmy’s shoulder.

“I’ll always be on your side, Jimmy. Always.”