#IT WAS THEIR CAVE SCENE(TM)

[undying-lilies]

I love it when Star Wars is my favorite characters having emotional conversations in caves

[zahri-melitor]

Look out, it's time for the Potted Fanon History of the one, the only...BRUCE WAYNE!

Bruce, 8: His parents were shot dead by [Someone/Joe Chill/the Mafia] outside the theatre in Park Row where they just saw Zorro. Kneeling in blood, pearls, etc etc.

Bruce, 8: Jim Gordon was the cop who responded to the scene and took care of Bruce.

Bruce, 8: Alfred takes custody of Bruce and they live in the Manor together.

Bruce, 12-16 (optional): Bruce attends school with people like Oliver Queen and Lex Luthor (at a boarding school), or Zatanna and Harvey Dent (at a regular Gotham school). Bruce is known as the cryptid who hides in the library reading forensic pathology textbooks in his free time.

Bruce, 16-18: Bruce finishes school and embarks on a Secret World Training Tour. Highlights of the Tour definitely involve the League of Assassins and probably several nameless monks. Bruce may have an intense homoerotic relationship with Minhkhoa Khan. The following individuals may be namechecked but are unlikely: [Shiva, David Cain, Henri Ducard, Richard Dragon]

Bruce, World Training Tour Edition: Bruce will first meet Talia at this time, and they may get married/conceive Damian. Do not look at the timeline too closely.

Bruce, early-mid 20s: returns to Gotham, is reminded that he is scared of bats. "Yes father, I will become...a Bat!"

Bruce, early-mid 20s: has encounter with An Individual (name varies, solidifying to 'Red Hood' these days as everyone's hung up on Jason) in the ACME Chemical company vats, the other person falls into the chemicals. The Joker is born hahahahahahahHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Bruce, mid 20s: meets Superman and Clark Kent, they simultaneously figure each other's identities out. Shortly after they form the Justice League with Wonder Woman.

Bruce, mid 20s: Bruce goes out for the night to see Haly's Circus when it visits town. Graysons fall, Bruce sees crying kneeling Dick Grayson and immediately imprints on him and takes him home.

Bruce, mid 20s: Dick Grayson becomes Bruce's Ward (TM). Dick also becomes Robin. They swear an Oath (TM) by candlelight to "fight together against crime and corruption and never to swerve from the path of righteousness!" (Actually I don't think the words of the oath are that well known but I couldn't help myself)

Bruce, mid 20s: has many undetailed adventures with Dick. I cannot reinforce how big a blank hole this period is.

Bruce, early 30s ish: Bruce runs into Talia and sleeps with her again (as written by people who CAN count to 10)

Bruce, 30s: Dick gets injured during a fight. Maybe with Joker, maybe with Two-Face, quite possibly with no details. Bruce tries to ground Dick for his own good. Bruce and Dick have a big fight over Dick being an adult now and you can’t tell me what to do. End result: Dick is no longer Robin and moves out (to Blüdhaven). Bruce immediately sulks.

Bruce, 30s: Batman parks his Batmobile in the middle of Crime Alley and comes back to find the tyres being jacked. The teenager attempting this then hits Batman with a tyre iron. Bruce, missing Dick yelling at him, is immediately charmed and takes Jason home and proceeds to instantly adopt him and make him Robin.

Bruce, 30s: Bruce learns about classism from Jason. Bruce Wayne, a man with the biggest charities running in Gotham, years of criminology experience and who travelled the poorest parts of the world in his quest for training, had never contemplated that poor people commit crime because they’re poor and the laws are against them. This rocks his world.

Bruce, 30s: Bruce fails to call Dick to tell him about his new adopted Jason!Robin. Dick comes over to have a screaming match with Bruce in the Manor/Cave about this. These will be a regular feature of Jason’s entire time as Robin.

Bruce, late 30s: Felipe Garzonas occurs. Bruce accuses Jason of killing Garzonas. Bruce will shortly feel intense guilt for this.

Bruce, late 30s: Jason runs away to Ethiopia and is blown by the Joker in a warehouse. Bruce arrives just out of time, to find Jason's body. He is devastated and blames both himself and Jason. He takes Jason's body back to Gotham where there is an autopsy. Joker just disappears with no trace.

Bruce, late 30s: gets more and more violent in his despair over Jason's death. Tim comes to him to explain why Batman is going off the rails and offers to be Robin.

Bruce, middle aged (don't look too closely): Bruce accepts Tim as his new Robin, however insists they are Just Coworkers. He may still be suicidal at times. He probably calls Tim 'Jason' by accident. He insists he never wants to be close to another child again.

Bruce, middle aged: Bruce comes face to face with Bane, who Breaks His Back (TM). Bruce then recovers. This is a very important moment, however any details of the recovery or who was Batman in the interim are unknown. Good job, Gotham healthcare services set up by Thomas Wayne!

Bruce, middle aged: Bruce becomes worried about Tim's parents (as he's reluctantly become attached to Tim). They are never around, which is how Tim manages to be Robin. They are definitely neglecting him. They might be abusing him! Bruce either fosters Tim because of his terrible neglectful parents OR Janet dies and Jack ends up in a coma and Bruce fosters Tim. Either way, Bruce becomes Tim's guardian.

Bruce, middle aged: there's a new crime lord in Gotham called the Red Hood. Batman must track him down. Bruce discovers that this is Jason. Jason begs for Bruce to kill the Joker to avenge his death and Bruce refuses because He Has A Code. Bruce throws a batarang at Jason's neck and slits his throat.

Bruce, JLA edition: at some point Bruce made some Protocols, or possibly some Killer Robots, just in case someone else on the Justice League goes evil. The rest of the Justice League find this out, due to this situation going wrong and the plans being activated by something. Everyone on the Justice League gets very upset with Bruce.

Bruce, middle aged: at some point Bruce adopts Dick and Tim and Cass. Details of when or where are scanty. They're his kids now. Everyone moves into the Manor (except Dick, who visits from Bludhaven every weekend to see his siblings).

Bruce, middle aged: Talia drops Damian off on the doorstep. Bruce now has a (biological) son! Unfortunately Ra's Al Ghul wants to steal his body. Damian must be protected.

Bruce, middle aged: dies. How does this happen? What are you, a cop? Fortunately Bruce being ultraprepared for anything including incipient death, he has left extensive notes about who deals with what when he's dead. Dick gets custody of Damian (but only Damian). Tim gets Wayne Enterprises.

Bruce, middle aged: returns from being lost in time (not dead). Thanks, Tim. No I will not return to being the main Batman in Gotham or take back Wayne Enterprises, it's time for me to travel the world and create Batman Incorporated in every nation on Earth!

Bruce, middle aged: eventually returns home and moves back into the Manor. Damian is now his Robin. Everyone else may still be living in the Manor, may have moved out because of Sad Conflict Drama because Tim feels like he's Just A Coworker or Cass is In Hong Kong. Dick may or may not return to Bludhaven now.

Bruce, middle aged: begins to reconcile with Jason, because he finds out about Jason's Pit Rage and trauma. Jason promises to use Rubber Bullets or to just shoot people in the knee, and says he will patrol Crime Alley because nobody else understands it and the people inside it like him. Bruce is just fine with this.

Bruce, middle aged (Damian edition): Damian dies. Bruce is extremely distraught about this due to his trauma over Jason and immediately works to hunt down a way to resurrect Damian.

Bruce, middle aged: meets Duke and seeing another teenager who is trying to fight crime, immediately brings him home to foster/adopt.

Bruce, Good Dad edition: at some point Bruce has Seen A Therapist and gotten Therapy. He is now completely au fait with the latest things you read online about complex PTSD and is sorry for the hurt he has ever caused any of his children. He goes around talking his children down from disassociation and panic attacks and nightmares. He wraps them up in weighted blankets and watches TV shows You Like with them. He has a new Ace, who is a Therapy Dog for Trauma. When someone has a bad night the entire family sleeps in his giant bed as a sleepover. He is completely focused on the mental health of his children.

Bruce, Bad Dad edition: Bruce has punched Dick/Jason/Tim/Damian (choose whichever set you want) in the face and accused them of not following orders. He has rages and demanding expectations on everyone. Multiple of his children can no longer put up with it any more. He does bad things to them and says it's for their own good.

Bruce, currently: Bruce is a Good Dad! Everyone is either living at the Manor or stays over after patrol regularly. They have regular movie nights. Bruce is actively running Wayne Enterprises. If he sees an unattached teenage vigilante anywhere he might adopt them and bring them home too! He looks after all the associated Gotham vigilantes and does not know what money is worth. This is hilarious as he tips 3000% or whatever on every purchase.

Bruce, currently (alternatively): Bruce is a Bad Dad! After failing his children nobody wants to be near him and he needs to apologise to all his children so they forgive him. Bruce has left Damian for Dick to raise all by himself (that's ok, Dick is really Damian's adoptive dad) and Tim to struggle with the pressure of being a high school dropout CEO of Wayne Enterprises. He is fighting with Jason over the One Killing Rule and won't compromise, even to kill the Joker, despite Jason desperately wanting that proof that Bruce loves him more than he loves the killing rule.

Bruce, currently: Bruce is dating one of Selina, Talia, Clark or Minhkhoa. Whichever on this list he is dating, he would never ever consider getting with Selina and/or Talia again (delete whoever necessary).

[guiltypleasureswriting]

Day 27: Written Apr 14, 2024

CW: Suicidal ideation sorta, references to child abuse, canonical-ish treatment of house elves

When Regulus found the locket, he was ready to die. He was ready to die if it meant the Dark Lord's fall and because he didn't have anything to live for.

It took a lot of time to convince Kreacher. Kreacher believed in the right of purebloods to reign, he didn't understand why Regulus was willing to betray his family. His people.

Regulus did his best to explain without giving away too many secrets but he knew Kreacher saw through him. Of course he did. It was Kreacher who comforted Regulus after Sirius left. After being disciplined by his mother. After he betrayed James and broke every one of their promises.

Eventually, Kreacher gave in.

It took a month to create a replica Kreacher thought could fool the Dark Lord. Then Regulus wrote his last message to his Master, places it in the locket and tucked it into a pocket of his robe. He sat through dinner with his Mother and Father diligently and silently. Giving now hint that this was the last time they would see him. He wasnt sad to be leaving them. He knew they never truly loved him.

They deserved to lose their legacy.

He wished his parents a good night and left the room without looking back. When he locked his bedroom door, he said. "Kreacher." There was a crack of elf apparation.

"Yes, Master Regulus."

"It's time."

"Yes, Master Regulus." He took his hand and then they were on a large rock jutting from the crashing waves.

Regulus felt along the pocket with his wand. Beside it and the locket was a photo of him with Barty, Evan, and Pandora in sixth year, Sirius' Black family ring, and a pocket book of the poems of muggle Oscar Wilde from James. With Regulus still hanging on to Kreacher's calloused and wrinkled hand, he had everyone he loved with him.

He took a deep breath of sea air and then apparated them into the mouth of the cave.

beginning | previous | next

We're going back in time with this one. This encouraged the motivation a bit more so we're gonna go through The Cave (tm) scene in the next couple days. I apologize. (No I don't)

@zn0v1a

[rarepears]

Consider: in the caves instead of accidentally killing lqg sj and him cultivate a baby sy. Now sj is pestered by lqg because he will “take responsibility” and yqy is coming by to give him sad eyes even more frequently! Not sure if sj would keep baby sy or throw him at lqg like your fault your kid. Airplane in the background is Losing It TM

Okay, no it would be far far more hilarious if it was Shen Yuan and Liu Qingge in the caves and the baby is Shen Jiu - a baby Shen Jiu with all his memories and grudges still in tact.

And Shen Jiu is absolutely infuriated that Liu Qingge is his father now. He would rather be an orphan than acknowledge a body snatcher and a brute as his parents! Or so he complains in his head every time he's denied more tanghulu before dinner.

Insert scenes of Shen Jiu bullying Luo Binghe and Liu Qingge just going, "Ah, he inherited Shen Qingqiu's old personality..." (Yeah, Cang Qiong sees baby Shen Jiu's temperament as proof of Shen Yuan being the real Shen Qingqiu, just without his memories.)

-o-o-o-o-

But most importantly!!!! The caves gain a reputation of causing male cultivators to cultivate babies after Shang Qinghua ends up with an OG!Shang Qinghua baby!

(As for the other "parent"? It's thought to be Yue Qingyuan who was just passing by, but Shang Qinghua wonders if it's Mobei-Jun who had rudely interrupted Airplane's cultivation seclusion by teleporting into the caves.)

OG!Shang Qinghua, unlike Shen Jiu, is a real baby.

And so we get funny-awkward trio of Mobei Jun and Yue Qingyuan (unknowingly) battling each other for better "father" title of the year.

[Read more in #Liu Qingge thinks that he's the father of Shen Yuan's cultivation baby (aka Shen Jiu in baby form) au]

[jq37]

Welp, Jaysohn continues to be a murder-machine. Sybils neck getting snapped was very upsetting. Thank the Blue for Mother of the Year Tula. Good to see they're continuing the trend set by the Gunner Channel and adopted a "beautiful dog". And Tula's some kind of revenant or at least a flavor of undead. Next weeks RP episode is gonna be a beast.

Sorry this is uber late--my laptop is in the shop so I've been slow to answer messages. I'm gonna make this really quick ahead of next ep:

(1) Tula raised some TERRIFYING kids which honestly checks out cause she is also TERRIFYING in battle. And that's before we even knew she was also undead!

(2) Love a weird ass D&D dog. I rank Meatwolf after Aurora Nebbins but before Grandpa Dog.

(3) Your prediction about the RP of the next ep was spot on. Man I don't think I've ever heard Brennan yell like that at the table before! But MVP Rashawn for that emotional gut punch. They play sisters so well together. Also, special shout out to Erika for standing her ground being the stodgy old person with a bad attitude instead of just caving right away bc I know ERIKA knows the problems with what she's saying but that doesn't mean AVA is willing to admit it right away and you need an opposing force to get banger scenes like that.

Anyway, I am Super Concerned about where we're headed! Nuclear Fallout terrified me in real life! This season is super good but I'm Suffering(tm)!

[dyinglikeastar]

Ghostbat: A Bruce Wayne/Minhkhoa Khan Ship Primer (part 2)

"I need your help." — Bruce Wayne

Part 1

So, part one covered most of their backstory and the events leading up to Ghostmaker's introduction in Batman #100. I gave a brief summary at the end of part one about what happened when Ghostmaker came to town, I want to dive into that a little deeper just to give the full picture of just how unhinged Bruce is at the moment. If part one was an ode to Minhkhoa, part two is going to focus on Bruce because there are some pretty juicy bits that, in my opinion, just make the ship that much more interesting. Spoilers ahead, if anyone is wanting to avoid them.

Bruce Wayne

So the thing is, Bruce is kind of going through it. Well, Bruce is always going through it, but this time Alfred is dead and thanks to the Joker stealing all his money during Joker war and the government being on his ass about it, Bruce is literally a millionaire instead of a billionaire broke. So, in order to save money/be more efficient/be more connected to the people of Gotham, he leaves Wayne Manor and the batcave behind to live in a brownstone in the city. That means now he has to depend on mini caves and caches throughout the city, Oracle, and actually reaching out to The Family (tm) when it comes to fighting crime. He also can't just blow shit up anytime he wants and have it replaced anymore. <sad face>

Oh yeah, he also has neighbors now. The Batman has neighbors. My dude is truly going through it. No Alfred, no Batcave, no endless supplies of money, no Selina. Just a guy and his closer-than-appears-in-mirror impending mental breakdown. (If this ship primer turns into a Why I Think Bruce Wayne Is Having a Mid-Life Crisis essay, no it doesn't.)

But seriously. Ghostmaker comes to town, tranq's him, locks him in a room to kill or be killed, thinks, "Hey, what Bruce really needs is to be traumatized more, specifically regarding the deaths of young teenage boys..."

Kills a whooooole bunch of people, which, you know, Batman is usually kind of...opposed to?

And they fight for about a minute, then Bruce gives him the old It's Too Easy To Kill speech and pouts at him and the big bad simp Ghostmaker folds like a cheap suit lmao

Ya'll are embarrassing fr. Not five minutes after he escaped the room where Ghostmaker locked him, Harley, and Clownhunter in until one of them killed the other, Bruce is like baby wait pls don't go lmao EMBARRASSING.

Anyway, you could call Bruce's general attitude and personality in this new arc character growth and maturity and learning or you could take my route and be like healthy behavior? From Bruce Wayne? It's a red flag for me. Asking for help? MY Bruce Wayne? Just doesn't add up.

No but seriously, I am literally loving Tynion's Bruce. He is so vulnerable and yet still very Batman. It's weird to see him reaching out and asking for help tbqh, but due to current circumstances it makes complete sense and good for him for not being a complete idiot about it. Still, this is a ship primer and it does seem to be one specific character he prefers to reach out to and it makes me lose my miiiiiiind.

These panels in particular make me want to chew my own face off. Bruce isn't able to use his comms to tell Oracle where he needs a pickup, so he just starts blowing shit up, of course. And of course, he does it in morse code and of course Minhkhoa picks up on it.

AND THEN.

This bitch just jumps out of the damn building assuming Minhkhoa will catch his ass.

Which he does, obviously, because that's his baby girl he's an awesome, very skilled crime fighting super hero.

Now, I don't know what Minhkhoa's voice sounds like, but what I do know is that, "Oh would you have?" was spoken at least three octaves higher than his usual voice like a hysterical wife. I just love that scene SO MUCH. Bruce just flinging himself out of a building, knowing Minhkhoa is going to catch him. Chef kiss. 10/10. Fuckin perfection.

Also, Babs doesn't seem to like or trust Ghostmaker, which is totally fair, but listen, Bruce ain't having it.

I literally feel like I'm overdosing on Bruce Wayne ADMITTING HE NEEDS OTHER PEOPLE. Whew. What's that, though? You want more examples of Bruce being vulnerable and trusting and needing his Khoa more than anyone else? I got u, I got u. During the Fear State arc they're dealing with Scarecrow and all his minfucky bullshit and who does he want? Khoa.

YEEEEEAHHHHHHHH THAT'S THE GOOD SHIT. Bruce Wayne saying I need your help. Holy shit. Yes. Good.

And who, you ask, does Bruce literally trust with his mind? Like, who does he trust to literally look inside and walk around his own goddamn mind and help him unscramble his compromised brain?

Just the clinical psychopath who's tried to kill him on more than one occasion <333

And who is it that helps figure out what kind of fuckery was going on and brings Bruce back to the land of sanity?

Yeeeeeeeah. :)

And if I could just scooch in here with a little bonus Khoa love, look at him. Wanting to learn empathy, wanting to understand Bruce better. And Bruce teasing him! God I hate them when will they kiss

So yeah, for those playing along, that makes three or four times that Bruce Wayne has uttered the words "I need help," without having some kind of emotionally repressed brain explosion over it. Let's see. He:

Asks Minhkhoa not to leave Gotham, to stay and help him with the city.

Doesn't explicity ask for help, but does jump out of a building, trusting that Minhkhoa will catch him.

Straight up asks Minhkhoa for help when he realizes his mind has been compromised by Scarecrow.

And in issue #121 we see this:

Which leads to Bruce asking Minhkhoa (again, yes he's asked him more than once) to take over leadership of Batman Incorporated. Dick told us that he asked once, years ago, and it didn't go well, but this time Minhkhoa acceps and becomes the new leader and also starts training Clownhunter (instead of killing him! Character growth!) which brings us up to date.

And with that, I shall leave you with a couple of screenshots of Minhkhoa and Bruce being both 8 year old boys and old marrieds:

Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope someone at least can share in the level of unhinged I am over this ship right now and please feel free to share and spread the gospel of ghostbat. ♥

[sweatyfuntrash]

“Lemon drops.”

“Huh?”

“We were eating sour lemon drops, not gummy worms.”

“…ah.”

(Spoilers for chapter 17 under the cut)

Oooooooooh my gooooooooood

WHAT WAS THAT?? WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT??? WHAT?

Okok, so first there’s the Creature(tm) that was… something. Amazing design, loved the mushrooms bestie but— I mean, I can say it right? They’re a bitch. Fuck off with your truth swamp boi I’m not interested.

Then there’s Matthias… IF THATS YOUR REAL NAME. Look, I said it once on the discord, but I’m saying it again, I don’t trust Matt as far as I can throw ‘im. Once i organize my thoughts, maybe I’ll do a solid theory but rn im just going ‘>:(‘

And then there’s Lia… That scene… Jesus, my attachment issues are acting up. As someone with a very limited circle of friends, just the thought of someone leaving makes me ✨very anxious✨ (but I won’t force them to stay, im more of a brooding ‘oh everyone is better without me’, not a ‘IF I CANT HAVE YOU NO ONE CAN YANDERE MODE’ dw) so that hole scene hit a little to close to home :). Of course, I fixed her college and told her the truth but h o l y s h i t that hurt like a bitch. Homophobic chapter fr.

As always, amazing work from the ILW team. The scene in the cave was spectacular, if not insanely creepy (and kinda unsettling, that siren kept giving me the chills), so much lore was explained— MOSS IS BACK!!! OMG MÖSS IM SO HAPPY I MISSED YOU SO MUCH WHOS A GOOD ZOMBIE?? YES YOU ARE YOU AR—

Sorry got a bit carried away.

10/10 as always, amazing chapter, thank you everyone that’s collaborating with this project y’all are the best and I hope your pillow is cold tonight :D

[jtl07]

jt (finally) watches warrior nun - s1 e8 (pt 2?)

Okay so I’m dashing this off before this energy runs out but I had a further thought about s1e8 because for some reason I’m having a hard time moving on to e9 and e10?? idk why bc I definitely want to get to s2 I just … have no compulsion to watch the last two episodes of s1 it’s strange mostly around anger and fear (and yes, I am now thinking about Yoda and his whole “fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering” line which if I can do this right, will circle back to this line. Will I get there? Read on to find out lol).

So I’ve been rambling for a while now in my commentaries about Beatrice and her anger. There is just so. much. anger. in her. (I feel like anger and grief kinda run this show, or at least this season thus far) And it’s kinda fitting that the Sister Melanie story that she reads (and thus prompts her revelation) is one born from anger.

Yeah, I know she sidesteps Ava summary of the story as Sister Melanie “tapping into her rage” rather as her tapping into “something elemental in her soul” - but that doesn’t not mean she wasn't rage - rage is just as elemental as any other emotion.

It's just that anger gets such a bad rap - especially when it’s presented in/performed by people of color, not to mention a woman of color. I know lived experiences are unique, but as someone who’s lived that kind of experience - Asian, queer, female, raised Catholic, and a military background - anger was something that I know now is what kept me alive. It was the only way I could move past the trauma I had been dealt when I was younger, the only way I could find some sort of independence as a young adult. Anger was the only way I knew how to move in and keep remotely safe in the world - a world that had done so much to control and stifle me; a world where the only way I found I could provide value, the only way I could I could prove myself worthy of anything, was through obedience and loyalty and sacrifice.

So to see Beatrice angry in this episode, to see her snapping - even though it was at someone who hasn’t hurt her (i.e. Ava) - it was a bit therapeutic.

But not because she let herself get angry at Ava - but because she let Ava see the fear that was fueling her anger.

I wrote in my e4 commentary about how her anger is fueled by fear - how she calls out Lilith in the middle of a mission (fear of the OCS - her home, her family - being taken away from her), how she sends Camila away with the others so she’ll be the only one to retrieve the shield (extreme obedience and risk of self-sacrifice to prove her value). And I feel like that’s true here too. After Ava asks if she wants to talk about it, Beatrice immediately sidesteps, angrily focusing on the “moral” of the story - because if she doesn’t, she has no value to the Warrior Nun; if she doesn’t, she has to acknowledge the pain and fear that’s been driving her all this time.

And that’s the gift Ava gives her. I found myself comparing these Avatrice scenes re: Sister Melanie to that cave scene with Mary and Ava in e6. Why? Because both Beatrice and Mary take out their anger on Ava in those scenes - and Ava does not stand for it in either scene. She shoulder throws Mary, calls out Bea. When faced with other people’s anger, Ava does something really unique: she gets them to reflect on what’s driving that anger, that fear.

Anger and fear aren’t inherently “bad” things - it’s when we don’t acknowledge them, when we paint those feelings in a negative light and stuff them away that the problems start. And really, that’s what happens - case in point: after Beatrice saves Ava in s2, when she lets her “emotions blind her to the mission” (i.e. her fear of losing Ava), she basically goes into self-flagellation mode because she sees that as a Bad Thing TM (and yknow what? The Bad Thing she was really fearing still happens anyway).

But you know who’s given into fear and done beautiful things? Ava. Especially when saving Bea. I'm thinking of when she saves Bea from Sister Crimson in s1e7, then saving Bea from the wraith sin s2 - scenes beloved in the fandom, ones where Ava just goes with her fear, and anger, lets those emotions fuel her and the halo to do brilliant things.

And I couldn’t help but think that maybe why Bea hates her anger, her fear so much - because fear is really a sign of want. For Beatrice, she wants to keep her family safe, she wants Ava to live; she wants to be saved, wants to be seen as worthy of saving. But to want is selfish, to want is needy, and Beatrice can’t be seen as either of those things - can’t see bear to see herself as either of those things.

But Ava, gosh, she comes back to life feeling everything, doesn’t she? And how she lives makes everyone else also feel everything too. I don't think their emotions were ever "blinding" them - I think those were moments when they could truly see what was important.

Okay I think I’m all energy-ed out now. We’ll see if/when I get to e9 lol

[amxrany]

And At Last I See The Light - A SebeSil Tangled AU

Had this AU stuck in my head for awhile

Where Silver as Rapunzel

Sebek as Flynn Rider/Eugene

Lilia as Mother Gothel

And Malleus as Pascal (I don't regret this at the same time I want him to feel included too)

!! Giving you guys a little heads up but long post up ahead !!

So we start off with the basic plot of Tangled where a magical flower that heals people sprouts out, which will be used by Lilia to stay young, but the flower gets taken because it was used as a cure for the ill Queen (who also happened to be pregnant). After that, the Queen gives birth to a baby with silver hair (number one reason for this au: imagining silver with long hair), which possesses the same healing powers as the flower. Lilia discovers this while sneaking into the castle one night, but it loses its powers once cut off (look i don't wanna make it lose its color like the original okay I like Silver's hair color 😭). Of course, we don't forget what happens where Mother Gothel kidnaps Rapunzel and takes her to a tower, to raise as her own. Which Lilia does to Silver as well (come on this might be possible with chapter 7 yknow 👀). The Royal Family was devastated with the disappearance of their son, so every year on Silver's birthday, they release sky lanterns in hopes for him to see and use it as a way to find his way home.

While Lilia wasn't a bad parent (except for his cooking, in which the birds have to sneak some berries to Silver so that he has something to eat), he is very protective of his son, but that doesn't stop Silver's curiousity from rising about the lights that always appear during his birthday . Since his 18th birthday was approaching, he decided to ask his father if they can see the lights in person. But Lilia refuses, saying that the outside world is too dangerous for someone like Silver (oh boy the amount of gaslighting in the original), which discourages him at first, but he gets comforted by Malleus (I've been giggling over Malleus as Pascal I'm sorry ya'll it's just too funny not to pass up). Later, we are introduced to Zigvolt (there is a reason for this just trust the process), a thief who works under Azul and was tasked to steal the lost prince's crown together with the Leech twins (yes I am bringing the fish mafia here because why not). It was a success but the guards found out which caused Zigvolt to separate from the twins, with the crown in hand, and seek refuge in the tower. Silver knocks him out though, hides Zigvolt in the closet in which he shows to Lilia as proof that he can take care of himself. But Lilia won't budge at all, so Silver decided to send his father on a trip to find the perfect gift for him.

Once Lilia was away, Zigvolt awakens tied to a chair with Silver's hair. This is where the bickering between the two starts (of course SebeSil won't be complete without the fighting), save Malleus from their fighting. But they come up with a compromise, Zigvolt will get the crown if he takes Silver to see the lanterns. They both escape the tower and start their little adventure in the outside world. They first visit a small pub, where thugs try to get Zigvolt caught (ya'll know those scenes where Eugene sees his wanted posters, but they keep fucking up his nose, yeah do that with Sebek but fuck up his eyebrows) but Silver's Disney Princess TM charms come to the rescue, since he ends up unintentionally charming them into helping them escape once the guards came in. But what they didn't know is that Lilia came back early, with a gift in tow, but the tower was empty and soon he finds the hidden crown. It doesn't take long for Lilia to notice what was going on, so he goes out to find Silver and along the way he teams up with the Leech twins.

Back to our main boys, they get into more trouble with the guards once again, which leads them to nearly drowning in a flooding cave. Thinking that he was going to die, Zigvolt reveals his first name to Silver, which is Sebek (see what I did there). But Silver reveals that his powers could help them find an exit. After nearly escaping death, they reside in the forest for the night, but Sebek was injured while making their escape.Silver then wraps his hair around Sebek's wound, sings the incantation and boom it's now healed, which scares Sebek once again cuz holy shit we got hair that glows and heals people. I just want that part to be the start of Sebek falling for Silver, but he doesn't realize it yet.

After that, they actually start talking about their lives (omg no bickering for once), how Silver's been stuck in the tower all his life with only Lilia and Malleus as his companions and Sebek's family being ridiculed due to his parent's marriage which lead to him stealing for a living. Of course, Sebek asks Silver as to why he keeps his hair obnoxiously long, Silver then explains about the magic of his hair, how the incantation he sang earlier was a way to trigger it, and cutting his hair off makes him lose the power. After hearing about Sebek's story, Silver's only way of comforting is by hugging him, reassuring him that even though he has no idea on how to comfort someone, he's willing to listen (causing Sebek's feelings to act up). But good things don't last long as Lilia overheard everything, but only appeared when Sebek was away, he then hands the crown to Silver telling him to use it as a way to test Sebek's loyalty.

Fast forward to morning, Sebek wakes up first to see a breathtaking sight of Silver sleeping with animals surrounding him. Not wanting to wake up the sleeping beauty just yet he leaves the area to find food, in which he gets caught by one of the guard's hunting wolves, Jack (and yes the wolf boy shall now become Maximus in this au). Silver then wakes up to the commotion (let's just imagine that Silver doesn't have his sleeping curse in this au, but he's still a deep sleeper) , and once again the Disney Princess charms go into action as it stops Jack from trying to eat Sebek and just go to Silver for some headpats. Jack then joins them on their journey (under the condition that he'll get headpats if he wont send Sebek to jail) as they encounter more people all the way to the kingdom (use this as an opportunity for our two main leads to fall in love with one another). As soon as they reached the festival, they had a blast. Hanging out with the townsfolk, braiding Silver's hair to make it at least shorter and Sebek talking to fellow men, and the moment Sebek sees Silver playing with the children, that's when he knew, it was love. When Sebek and Silver dance together with the townsfolk, Silver starts falling for him too (just seeing the guy being himself made him fall even deeper). As they were going to see the lanterns they encounter a painting of the royal family, in which feels familiar to Silver, especially the baby looks a lot like him. They get on a boat (leaving Jack and Malleus behind, but I have a reason for Malleus) and sail to see the lights.

And now let's go to my favorite scene in the original movie which gives us the iconic song "I See The Light". LIKE JUST IMAGINE THE TWO OF THEM DUETING THIS SONG IT'S JUST SO 💘💘💘💘, and maybe throw in a little kiss in the end, which leaves the two of them flustered. But that brings them to confess their love for one another (with a lot of screaming from Sebek of course), the two stay in the shore for awhile, just savoring the moment. Once they got back on land, Silver gives back the crown as part of their agreement. While Sebek was trying to return the boat back, he encounters his colleagues, the twins. Sebek tries to negotiate with them by offering the crown, but they beat him up and tied him to the boat to get him arrested and make Silver think that he left him. They also try to capture Silver as well, but Lilia comes to the "rescue" and drags him back to the tower.

The way the townsfolk looked at him like he was familiar and the baby in the painting all made sense now, Silver now realizes that he was the "missing prince" the kingdom was looking for. Silver then confronts Lilia about this discovery, which made his father come clean, about using him to simply stay young forever. This leads to the two of them fighting, with Lilia succeeding easily. Meanwhile with Sebek, he was able to escape from the boat with the help of Malleus, Jack and Silver's animal friends as he rushes back to the tower. Upon reaching the tower, he finds Silver bounded and gagged which gave Lilia the opportunity for him to stab Sebek from behind (a fatal one too can't forget that). While Sebek is slowly dying, Lilia tries to drag his son to a new hiding place but Silver keeps fighting him off, saying that he will willingly go if he heals Sebek first. Lilia reluctantly agrees as Silver immediately rushes to his aid, crying how he didn't mean for all this to happen. While healing him, Sebek realizes that Silver has to be kept prisoner due to his powers, he uses the opportunity to say his (supposedly) last words as he cuts off Silver's hair. This causes Lilia to start aging rapidly as he doesn't have any powers to feast on anymore, and turns into dust while falling off the tower.

Silver starts crying even more because he wasn't able to save Sebek, but his one of his tears still held the healing power, which landed on Sebek's wound, saving his life. They once again savor the moment with a kiss and reunite with their two animal friends. Silver also reunites with his real parents in the kingdom, but a lot of begging had to be done to pardon Sebek from his crimes. But hey at least they got their happy ending now ✨.

[i--antimony]

tuez

yayyy

listening: release radar: i get it now (sammy rae) (wauuughhhh. emo. i miss my partner) come over (cat's pajamas) stuck (scene queen) nerima (raspberry pie) never me (penelope) beirut (rob blivion) rule #34 (fish in a birdcage) bourgeoisieses (conan grey) milk town/mr carter (nep) doppelganger - lullaby (ethan bortnick) my baby loves to dance (kenya grace) horror night (starcourt) (@delta-orionis, you will like this one)

some from last week that i forgor to note down: tiny human (elohim), some type of skin (aurora), chukotka (otyken), training season (dua lipa, chloe caillet mix), georgian spirit (equbeats), online (twrp), someone else (kenya grace)

aaaand formentera/formentera ii again.

podcasts: wtyp on the francis scott key bridge collapse, and jim gordon must die podcast of all time

reading: i started reading 'bunny' by mona awad because it came up as a recommendation in libby when i was returning mdzs. i am going to be valiant and give it one more chapter but i do not like it. it feels like its trying very hard to emulate a certain type of vibe that i already don't find super appealing in fiction so the trying-vibe of it makes it even more uninteresting to me. the premise is a girl at a mfa program in nebulous New England Private Liberal Arts School(tm) which like, fine, dark academia or whatever; there are four (five?? i literally cannot remember which, lol) other girls in her cohort who are a weird clique and call each other 'bunny' and are rich and sheltered but harboring a Dark Secret Club. sure. the first few chapters ooze 'not like other girls'-ism, the 'bunny' characters themselves feel flat and like caricatures in an unappealing way, main character's other friend ava also is a caricature in a boring way, just very uninspiring. like i said i will give it another chapter or two but if it continues to bore me i will return it.

i finished the scum villain extras! very charming.

watching: keeping up to date with dunmeshi, yay, and also been continuing to watch endeavor with a friend. it's good! i love a mystery show! it is impossible to watch without subtitles though because they are So British. relatedly i am going to terf island for two weeks in june (london and then edinburgh) so if you know any recs for food, places, etc i am all ears!

playing: this weekend was going to be 3 dnd games in a row ... then monday was postponed to next monday ... but my sunday group, which is normally every other week, has decided to play next sunday as well bc we skipped a few weeks ... so Next weekend is the 3 day dnd combo lmfao. i don't mind too bad.

making: pottery!!! some bisque came out and i am soooo chuffed (<- endeaver tv show britishism rubbing off on me) this will be its own post with more images because i want to @ the inspiring artist, jbbartram-illu on tumblr (shop); i am obsessed with the cave painting mugs from a few months ago that immediately sold out so i was like fuck it i wanna make my own. and i am obsessed with my lil fat horses. i put amaco ancient jasper on the inside and just a matte clear on the outside. hopefully it is matte enough. i also put little hands on the handles and now i want to make some more cave painting mugs that are just the hands, i could cut out some templates to sponge underglaze around maybe...

my beautiful cracked-the-code bowls and two maybe teacups, post-trimming:

and also trying a new glaze technique: bisqued underglaze and then liquid latex over top! that way you can slather a background on and just peel it off after without painting around the details. im ngl peeling off the latex was soooo satisfying. background is laguna celadon froth.

i've also glazed my citrus juicer, just a plain warm yellow color, looking forward to that :3

glaze: mother's day gift (planter, it's. fine. idk. she'll like it i hope), and also some fixed stuff! didn't bother taking pics, the black eye bowl from feb 6 tuesdaypost is now food safe on the inside because i sanded down the kiln medium bit that got stuck in there and re-glazed it. i also tried to fix the bowl from march 12 tuesdaypost by just lightly sanding the inside and slapping some laguna celadon froth over it...it looks exactly the same now, just with some sort of float-like blue splotches lol. no pictures of it but eh. might give it away, we'll see.

eating: Spicy Clam Pasta With Bacon, Peas and Basil Recipe (NYT): tasty. idk about 'spicy' but definitely yummy.

misc: definitely in a weird spot brain-wise...the anxiety and tummyache link/feedback loop is very real for me now, so i am going back on an extremely low dose of ssri about it, and even though i have been on this med before in much larger amount i am still experiencing aaa about it. i keep going between "going back on this is a good idea" and "or i could just keep taking ~10mg of cbd every other day bc that felt like it was doing something, even if it was just placebo i had a noticeable difference in mood" so like. bluh. idk. i wish i could just Know what the best course of action is instead of having to fuck around and find out. such is life. i am literally taking the world's babiest dose rn (breaking the starter pill in half) so it will be fine. as long as i dont get bad side effects im willing to do a few weeks on it and see what happens.

[bi-demon-ium]

every day i think about show!mr benedict meeting books!mr benedict.

like. okay show!mr benedict is having the most crisis of his life. like a) that's him?????? that man is him????? because books!mr benedict like. he Has It Together. he's intelligent, brilliant, kind, compassionate, he knows his limits, he knows who he is and he has confidence in himself. he knows what to say, he takes care of people around him but also is taken care of and has his own support network. he's definitely had his fair share of Horrific Shit happen in his childhood, but it's very different Horrific Shit and overall he's like. pretty much emotionally stable and in a good place. his relationship with his brother is--well. it's got its own problems, but it isn't eating him up inside because it's nowhere near as personal. he's pretty much like. fine? and he's like. he's a cool old grandpa. not only has he lived long enough to be like eighty something or whatever, but he's like, cool. he's brilliant and confident and kind and he knows what to say. he isn't just "good at pretending he has his shit together for the sake of children" he actually has his shit together. he can do mildly questionable things for the right reasons and not beat himself up about it, even if he genuinely hates it had to happen and is sad about it (see cave scene) and he can have compassion for his child self and the kinds of assumptions baby books!nicholas made about other people/adults/life. meanwhile show!mr benedict kind of barely has it together at all, because the man's been through like way too many traumas in a row, some of which were deeply deeply personal and left him with just. crippling guilt and low self esteem. he's just trying his best but sometimes he snaps at people then feels horrible about it, he blames himself directly for the emergency and everyone who got hurt because of it, his relationship with curtain is just an entire can of worms, etc., and he's much younger (still not exactly young young, but in comparison to calm old experienced grandpa benedict in the books, he's young) and less experienced and just. really, really trying his best. so he's kind of a disaster and a mess, emotionally speaking, and there's this kind old man who has it TOGETHER and it's ALTERNATE FUTURE HIM, I GUESS.

b) please show!mr benedict is like. the epitome of "gifted kid(TM) who grew up way too fast" and he pretty much tries to step into the role of The Dad / The Calm Leader and even when he's obviously a mess, falling short, like. he does let himself be supported--talking to them, that is--but ultimately, he tries to bottle it up (or rather, scream in the woods and then be like "okay! clearly i am fine now" ldigjfghH) and not burden them all too much with it, and even when he does, like. they're not perfect, either. looking at you, s2!number two. (not that it's her fault, but you know.) so like. anyway, what i'm saying, is like. show!mr benedict having someone else to be the competent adult. the only paternal figures this man has ever had are probably the glenns, and we all know how that went. so like. god. show!mr benedict needs a hug so fucking bad. and like. books!mr benedict could almost be like a dad, like. someone he can talk to and not worry about trying to seem strong, not trying to keep it together, someone it's okay to burden, someone who's experienced and knows what to say... like when your'e always the one people go to, when you always try to be the person who knows what to say.... here's someone doing that for him. and like, this is literally him, albeit a weird alternate future him, so like. what secrets could he even try to keep? want to keep?

although god also show!mr benedict desperately wanting to like. make books!mr benedict proud of him, wanting to seem like. worthy. like. telling him about his brother and expecting condemnation, because clearly this nicholas benedict--this. this superior nicholas benedict, who's actually kind and selfless, who's actually brilliant and competent and knows what he's doing--this nicholas benedict wouldn't have made that mistake. this nicholas benedict wouldnt have abandoned his brother. maybe he'd failed to save his brother, but only because they'd never met, not until it was too late. nicholas had been given that chance, and he'd wasted it, he'd squandered it, and how could mr benedict not resent him for that? perhaps kindly, sadly, but nonetheless, resent him. but like. books!mr benedict knows what to say. all those things i just so desperately want someone to tell show!nicholas--it wasn't your fault, you aren't crazy or paranoid or jealous--like. here's someone who can tell him that! someone who can give him a hug and say this wasn't your fault. and like. someone maybe nicholas will believe, eventually. someone who could help him heal the way he's helped the kids (just as books!mr b as helped the others all heal, too, so i guess he's adopted his past alternate self now lgkjfgh)

my point being show!nicholas desperately deserves to experience The Mr. Benedict Effect™

....anyway meanwhile books!mr benedict is looking at this really traumatized young version of himself and going "oh boy. this kid is fucked up"

[leafiebeanie]

❔️ and💗 for the ask game???❤️❤️❤️❤️

thanks for the ask! (and for reminding me that my ask box was disabled oops hahhahaha) (b ᵔ▽ᵔ)b

so for ❔, i've been working on a kyotan fic where kyo is an orca hybrid and tan is a fisherman who fishes frequently in the orca's territory (very dangerous!! but there's a lot of fish and other sea creatures) bc he just cant catch enough to feed his family in the Safe Zone aka the areas just slightly beyond the reefs

the village folk keep telling tan not to fish near the orcas bc there are rumours that the orcas like to sink ships and foreign entities due to their territorial nature

but ofc tan simply smiles through their repeated warnings and continues to fish in the area to put food on the table for his dear family

one thing leads to another, and one day, tan slips into the ocean while fishing and is pulled under by the strong currents

after that, he wakes up and finds himself in a mostly dry cave with a mysterious lump of seaweed and a broken piece of steel from what seems to formerly be an anchor by his side

*whispers* he's rescued by kyo but he doesn't know that until later in the fic xD

kyo actually saved him bc he thought tan would make a nice meal, but tan was definitely all lean muscles and bones from working hard everyday

so he keeps tan in this little cave hidden from the shores while taking care of tan secretly at night, leaving behind what he thinks humans eat and definitely not what humans can eat

tan is of course confused and wants to leave the cave, but he didnt manage to swim very far from the entrance of the cave before being stopped by the wall of debris surrounding it

so he returns to the cave to rest and recover before trying again the next day

some dumb shenanigans ensue when kyo and tan finally meet xD

like when tan wakes up just a tad bit too early one day and catches a glimpse of the tip of a dark tail slipping into the water

he thinks, aha! this must be the creature that keeps leaving behind weird inedible stuff in the cave each day!

so he makes a decision to wake up a little earlier the next day to see whether he can catch the creature in action or not

i havent gotten far with the plot yet so yeah hahhahahah

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

and for 💗, its a scene from another WIP kyotan fic hahahahha, the deity AU with byakko!kyo and sacrificial bride!tan

there's this awkward bath scene (and more) i really want to write, where kyo is desperately trying to deny and repress his budding feelings for tan, but tan keeps doing the little things he always does as The Perfect Big Brother TM, such as giving kyo a full body grooming session while in tiger form (normally a mortal most definitely wouldnt dare to get so close to a powerful deity of protection, of defense, let alone dare to touch the deity's fur so nonchalantly)

and tan is oblivious to kyos feelings bc he doesnt see him that way (yet), and more so of a, "awhhh the all powerful deity is actually living quite a lonely life of solitude, i should keep him company for a while", after he gets over the scare of tricking a deity as strong as kyo xD

so! kyos taking a bath, and tan decides to join him midbath, to which kyo freaks internally and chooses to excuse himself first, but not before his heart races uncontrollably and he makes a sputtering fool of himself in front of tan (who thinks kyo's just having one of /those days/ and needs some cheering up, so he follows kyo relentlessly throughout the whole day, making kyo even more flustered xD)

[brucenorris007]

A head canon: Diana Prince was, as a child and adolescent, a little shit.

Hear me out:

Young children are, by nature, chaos incarnate. They will consider saying or doing absolutely anything because they haven’t got a firm grasp on rules or propriety; often they’ll skip the ‘consideration’ step altogether. Throw in superhuman strength and endurance and, well... have you met any little children? There’s no way in Hell that Diana didn’t skimp on her learning most days to roll around in dirt. And probably try eating it at least once.

Now, yes, the Amazons have demonstrated that they were, by and large, equipped to handle Diana’s upbringing; yes, she clearly grew up into a magnificent and awesome Amazonian warrior princess. 

And all had been going well, until someone let slip, within earshot of the princess, that Diana was effectively immortal. 

You try and tell me Diana didn’t immediately let out the loudest awed gasp while staring at her little hands.

The “Mom, watch this!” energy would’ve been cataclysmic; Diana knew no fear until her first experience with war. And Themyscira is isolated from the rest of the world for the precise purpose of avoiding conflict and the disease of mortal men. And again, Diana’s functionally immortal; her adolescence lasted for decades.

And thus began the long series of Hippolyta’s heart attacks.

Where do you think Diana learned patience from?

I would pay in homemade pizza to see some such scene:

Hippolyta in the BatCave due to Reasons and she overhears Bruce lamenting how Tired TM he is, watching his eight kids run around fighting and pranking each other, and the Amazon Queen lays a commiserating hand on his shoulder and says “Dear boy, let me tell you stories about Diana when she was young.”

From stage left–where she’d been admiring and listening to Damian tell her about BatCow and remembering the Kraken she once brought home–Diana, unflappable and determined against all odds Diana, charges at a dead sprint from the opposite end of the cave, eyes goggled and sweating bullets, to stop her mother in a fucking panic.

[destinysbounty]

zane and nya for character opinion bingo

ZANE

Oh god blorbo supreme. The original blorbo. This nindroid can fit so much trauma in him. I could rant about him for a million years. Im like this close to giving into temptation and making a 20-minute compilation of all my favorite Zane moments (listen, the party pooper scene lives in my head rent-free at all times). Oh god he needs so much therapy, and no, locking your trauma in a digital puzzle box does not count as therapy.

Some people characterize him as some emotionless and boring lawful good. Some people characterize him as an uwu wholesome softboi. But in my opinion, the most correct interpretation is Dorky Suburban Dad.

Think about it. He wore a button-up and khakis to the beach. He dresses up in a full scuba skin-suit whenever they have a party in their own damn hot tub. He once wore a sweater vest with snowflakes on it. On their lil desert road trip he entertained himself by reading about regional trivia, and delighted in sharing this trivia with his friends. He loves playing board games, especially chess. He likes to make ice puns. He loves cooking. He's the closest thing they have to a responsible adult. When he became the team leader in season 5 he kept everyone pumped with all those silly little sayings like "one team one dream!" He apparently loves detective fiction. He thinks that walking like a pirate with a peg-leg will get people to respect him. He loves astronomy and, according to Lloyd, "knows the solar system better than anyone". Whenever someone is upset he's always there providing a comforting smile and a pat on the shoulder. He spent 5 minutes debating the morality of making an ice ramp for a slug. He doesn't understand pop culture. Zane is a dorky suburban dad and you can't change my mind.

He's also a fashion icon. For example, when he died, the ninja all became a total fashion disaster in his absence. We all saw it. None of them matched. Like did you see Kai's horrendous lil fight club costume? Jay's atrocious tv host suit? And Cole just straight up wasn't even wearing a shirt anymore. And even when they came back together, their ninja suits still didn't match! And sure, it was meant to symbolize how disjointed they'd become in the wake of his loss, but STILL. The fact that their CLOTHES of all things were out of wack indicates to me that he's the only one on the team with any fashion sense.

And let's not forget the moment from Seabound where he decided to wear the breathing mask despite not needing oxygen because "I like how it completes my attire". And his Snake Jaguar costume!!! And his titty-out look in The Island! And not to mention how the Detective Zane outfit is a LOOK. He rocks the hell out of that trenchcoat.

This is all to say, Lego needs to release the forbidden bikini Zane content or I'm gonna break in and find it myself.

NYA

Ohoho, the fandom does Nya SOOO dirty. Especially since she's not as outwardly affectionate as Jay, so a lot of people interpret this as her being more callous and unloving towards him. She A) has a metric ton of childhood baggage, and B) expresses her affection in different ways! Jay might say 'I love you' with words more often, but she shows how much she cares through acts of service and quality time and whatnot.

Also. Hot take but Nya has some of the most compelling character arcs and subplots in this entire goddamn show. Teaming up with Dareth to spy on Chen? Overcoming her gifted child syndrome in season 5? The X Cave fight in season 7????? Struggling to keep the resistance alive even when all her friends were dead, doing everything in her power to keep Lloyd from losing hope even though they were the only ones left???????????? The entirety of Seabound??????????

The show definitely blunders often in terms of the whole sexism/performative feminism thing, for sure. Looking at you, Skybound. But she also has a LOT of character arcs where her being the Girl^TM isn't even at all relevant. Season 5. Season 7. Season 9. Season 10. Season 11. Season 15.

Anyway Nya is amazing and she deserves better from the fandom, and I will die on this hill. Nya didn't singlehandedly destroy hell itself just to be reduced to some shallow Designated Love Interest.

[ness-plays-wizards]

Lucious Route Chapter 4 (1-5)

Last time on the Lucious Route, Liz had another dream about hanging out with Lucious and I’m starting to have a sneaking suspicion that only is Lucious also having these dreams, he’s also aware that they’re kind of half-canon while Liz isn’t, which is just greaaaat /s. Also Hugo’s here and Liz and Lucious are about to jump him for information, which is either going to work or crash and burn.

So Liz and Lucious watch Hugo approach the portrait of Claudia, the former princess of the day kingdom and Lucious’s ex, and

I’m sorry, but is anyone else really distracted by how anachronistic Lucious’s outfit is? I wish I had a better word than anachronistic because I truly do not have a time period that I need all the outfits to be in, but it just feels so aesthetically off.

Like what is this?? Why’s he wearing a zip-up hoodie AND an oversized tracksuit jacket? Are those track pants??? What the hell is that flannel doing? It would honestly be fine without the tracksuit! Are you a magical time-displaced prince or the unhinged tertiary side character of a Disney channel show that starts out as a recurring character and eventually gets bumped up to main cast? I think I just made Lucious sound more interesting than he actually is..

Anyway, Lucious starts getting all uppity about Hugo potentially defacing Claudia’s portrait, but Liz warns him to be patient and promises they will intervene if he tries to damage the portrait. For some reason, none of this commotion attracts Hugo’s attention, although it would really be funny if he went “i know you’re here by the way yall aint SUBTLE” halfway through this scene without even looking up.

Hugo’s song (because apparently this was a song and not a really weird monologue) ends at the moment I think it will NEVER end, and it’s revealed that it unlocks a secret door. Which has GOT to be the most inconvenient key out there. Imagine if you had to password protect something with a perfect live performance of Bohemian Rhapsody. I would simply chew cement.

(all of this was just from part 1 of 5 btw guys)

Liz and Lucious follow Hugo into a luscious forest, because if there’s one thing these past few routes have loved, it’s sticking magical biomes in the weirdest places of the Labyrinth. Liz keeps tripping over tree roots, I guess to show how Quirky and Relatable(tm) she is and also to have a Gratuitous Love Interest Catches Her When She’s Falling Moment.

One where Lucious is leaning VERY close btw, like how does that HAPPEN-

They enter a creepy cave and I just have to pause real quick and admire the background.

Like DAMN that is a good background /gen. 

They come across Hugo monologuing to himself, because I guess they couldn’t just give him a friend to create a dynamic duo so that he doesn’t just look like some weird guy monologuing to himself? Anyway, the defeat of the Minotaur (whenever the hell THAT happened, I don’t even fucking remember which route that was-) is causing the Labyrinth’s magic to get funky because for some reason, the magic was tied to the minotaur? Seriously? All because someone fucked-[REDACTED]

Anyway, Hugo wonders if he should let Lucious leave the Labyrinth now that Caesar’s curse has been broken (WITH STILL NO EXPLANATION AS TO HOW THAT HAPPENED IN THIS ROUTE BY THE WAY), which I have to quibble with for a moment.

The way Hugo’s phrasing it, he’s tying the breaking of Caesar’s curse to a Lucious’s potential freedom, implying that there’s some cosmic significance (for lack of a better word) to the way Caesar’s curse was broken. Like if its important enough for a time guardian to compare the two, it implies that the Baroque curse was broken for all the Baroques, even though that’s not what happened. It just broke for Caesar. Future Baroque generations WILL still carry the curse, if I’m not mistaken. So that begs the question: why is Caesar important to this? He’s not even the first Baroque to break his own curse. This is a question that I’m sure could have interesting answers, but unfortunately I think the most likely one is “because he’s an otome boy” and the writers said so.

Or I could just be reading too deeply into things, who knows.

Anyway, back to the regularly scheduled... this.

So Hugo ponders which timeline he should allow to exist and reveals he knows Liz and Lucious are there with a line that is significantly less funny than my earlier joke. Liz is somehow surprised that Hugo noticed them, even though they’ve been the most unstealthy fuckers I’ve ever seen. THEN the fucking Taffy/Remy hybrid shows up.

So then Hugo reveals that the Taffy hybrid is using Dragonkin magic, which isn’t a surprise to me because I’ve already sussed out that its Remy in disguise. (Wouldn’t it be super funny if I’m wrong and it’s not Remy tho? Lmfao). He also namedrops “Felix” and “Lacan” who are probably more Dragonkin and one of them is probably the weird blonde dude in Liz’s dreams. Taffy-Remy KNOWS Felix and Lacan and wonders why Hugo knows them. 

So just to summarize the next few series of events here, Hugo starts trapping Taffy-Remy in here while monologuing that he won’t let him resurrect the dragonkin because they’ll end the world or something. Liz decides to save Taffy-Remy, because she hasn’t yet figured out that it’s fucking Remy, and the chapter ends.

I wonder what Alfonse and Caesar are doing back in the palace rn.. I’ve just imagined Lucious, Alfonse, and Caesar sleeping on a single mattress on the floor Scott Pilgrim style. They all took a bath together last chapter, y’all can’t tell me it’s not at least in the realm of possibility.

Queued for October 18