#It ended sort of poorly for Leo but as of now I think he’s still kicking about.

[vanhelsingapologist]

soo question; how is leo dilisnya kicking in your campaign? I’m perplexed as to why and how you managed that HAHA

UHHH COS SPOILERS (????)

We uhhh heisted the Wachterhaus and found the box of bones. We took them because the plaque was like “this is my mortal enemy die die die die -strahd” and that sounded like a surprise tool that could help us later.

But when we pulled them out they were like. Sinewy. Held together by tendon. It was established with Doru that vampires could be starved for years and years so reasoning quickly became bones = possible vampire.

So for fucking fun we drip fed the bones blood and it worked. He started to regenerate over time until we had one mad as hell vampire thrall with gaps in his memory and a massive 400 year old, Strahd-shaped chip on his shoulder. I’m semi-certain it’s based off I, Strahd lore but I am not 100%.

I hope this helps HAHAHA

[matrixxsystem]

Terrapin Soup Chapter 1

This is my story on Ao3 ^^ He'd been putting this feeling off as long as possible. He tried everything he could think of to get these sort of thoughts to stop. But a childhood accident in where he tasted the blood of his brother made something in his mind change, like a switch he couldn't turn off despite his best efforts. 

He craved it. 

No matter how much food he ate or drinks he drank it was never enough to make that hunger go away. Eventually. When Leo was 12 he caved to those urges, one episode when everyone had been stressed and just one poorly placed word from snapping, he lashed out during training. The rest of his family knew he was a biter, in a playful manner of course, they all fought dirty when rough housing with each other it's just how brothers are. They'd all been playing, and the oldest Raphael was always one to push his brothers wanting them to push themselves even in a nonconsequential game. But after a week of bad luck Leo couldn't hold back like he'd been these past few years since the hunger started. 

He bit his brother. 

And not just a playful bite either, teeth piercing flesh and a scream of pain that echoed throughout the city.. Of course as soon as he came back to his senses he regretted it, he cried and cried trying to fix his mistake. And his brother easily forgave him, he always did. But the guilt never went away, even in the present when he glanced to his brother and saw the dents in his arm where small teeth had punctured he felt his heart sink.. And yet, when he remembers the taste.. The hunger only gets stronger.

He tried everything to get that feeling to go away, weather it was eating till he threw up, sleeping as long as allowed, hitting himself any time the thoughts came back, training till he ached, eating uncooked meat to imitate the feeling, which of course getting sick from. Eventually he even tried biting himself. And though it hurt like hell it seemed that drawing blood was the only thing able to satiate his hunger, if only for a little while. He couldn't tell his brothers, there was no way to explain this in a way that wouldn't end with him being quarantined somehow or being kept from his brothers and isolated further. But something about tearing flesh from meat filled his head with a sort of high that made everything else fade away.

The first few nights Leo had been going out to try and take him mind off his thoughts, something he started doing more and more often to avoid his brothers asking questions. He found himself online, using his phone to scroll though media sites where people could ask things anonymously and receive advice from others. He didn't want to admit anything with his name tied to it, but this seemed like a good way to test the waters. No one else had posted what he was thinking but there were lots of things similar or equally concerning at least. So he made his account and sent out his one and only post; 

hcr/ Intrusive Thoughts Etc

NotoriouslyPrimary420 Asks;

Do you ever just.. I mean I know this is exactly the place to ask "Do you ever think (insert unthinkable things)" But I still feel weird asking. To be blunt, cannibalism has been on my mind. And yeah I know its bad or whatever, and I wouldn't ever go hurt anyone or anything like that, and I know its not exactly normal either. But like, you ever just.. Want to? I had an incident when I was younger and much more feral then I am now where I kind of snapped for a second when I was play fighting with my siblings. Like some kind of instinct took over that wasn't really me and I bit the absolute shit outta one of them. Now I felt bad of course, and I didn't try to take their arm off or like actively eat em, again, I'm not crazy here. But that kinda feeling that made me wanna bite them hasn't gone away and its been years- 

I love my family, more then anything! They'd never hurt me like that and I'd never willingly hurt them, and it was never held over me that I lost it that one time. They were never mad at me or anything and I knew what I did was wrong so it's not some kind anger towards them, but its not for anyone else. It's just for people like me. Which.. It's really hard to explain what "like me" means in the context but like, I have a very certain trait that defines me, and this feeling I get only really applies to those who are the same in that very specific way, I've never looked at a stranger and wondered how they tasted the way I do with people like me. And I've been trying everything over these past few years to get the feeling gone, I mean I've gotten sick so many times because I tried eating things I shouldn't that I thought might help, like raw stuff and just eating till I couldn't anymore (which I've stopped cause obviously it didn't help) And eventually I got to a point where I was hurting myself because that seemed to be the only thing that made those urges go away. But they still came back!!

Even more recently I found something that helps more, but its.. Unethical? To say the least, its not something I'm exactly proud of but its not hard drugs and no one has to know. My family has no clue cause I think they'd be scared if they knew I had these feelings, and it's not like they could help me. If anything they'd only start keeping their distance probably afraid I might snap and do something.. And honestly, I'm scared of that possibility too. But I can't do anything about it! Again, I'm not gonna go hurt anyone or do anything illegal, I'm not a bad person. I just.. Don't know why I'm like this. Any advice that doesn't revolve around "seeing a doctor" would seriously help.

It wasn't till the next night he brought himself to check what kind of responses he might've gotten. And to his surprise it was a lot of kindness towards his situation, no one seemed upset with him but rather reassured him that as long as he didn't act on those urges it was fine to have them. That people of all kinds struggled with things like that. He had a few messages too, but he was still surprised to see that no one had decided to reprimand him for his honestly. There was one however the caught his eye.. Someone who seemed to share his thoughts. That spoke of a troubledchildhood being taken in by just someone they called their "teacher" and his methods of training were well.. Drastic. They didn't go into detail but from how it sounded Leo could tell he'd done things he wasn't proud of either..

As those days turned to months then soon years the wraps on his limbs, that he demanded stay on at all times, got longer and longer until they stretched from his wrists to his shoulders to cover the self awarded marks. One particular night, he left the lair, sitting on a roof far off towards the other end of the city. Just so he was out of range from his brothers internet tracking tech so he could find something, anything, to help him get rid of these pangs. And he did, finally, it was his last hope to save face, and more importantly his sanity. A noodle bar not far in Chinatown that served what could be considered.. Unappetizing to others. And just his luck, they were open late. He quickly gathered his disguise and went on his way. Praying this would be enough. He touched down in an ally not long after, now in the center of Chinatown. The friend he'd met online still talked to him, usually when he went out to clear his head, which was nearly every night now, he found himself talking about his day and listening to his friend about theirs. And over time slowly opened up to each other about their thoughts and feelings, the ones they felt couldn't be shared with others.

He glanced to his phone and hesitantly stepped out. As he thought, no one paid attention to him. He made his way to the ramen shop as his phone directed him, lifting the hanging fabric to go in and take a seat at the counter. No one else was sitting there which he was thankful for. An older man behind the counter looked at him for a moment before shrugging and handing him a menu. "You're out late aren't you? Most young men your age should be in bed for school tomorrow!" He chuckled and turned back to continue his clean up, hoping to have a friendly chat. Leo tapped the counter getting his attention, and pointed to his choice. The man raised an eyebrow leaning over to read what he picked. "Not much of a talker eh? That's alright, I've enough words for the both of us haha. Ohh terrapin soup eh? That's a good one! I use my family's recipe for it you know? It's an acquired taste for sure but once you try it you'll always come back for more!" Leo tapped the counter again, placing money down after, enough for the meal and a small tip. The man made another face but just nodded and took the money. "Alright alright, why the stoic silence hm? You act like you're trying to hide from someone, like in one of those old Yip Man movies haha" He turned his back to Leo and within a few minutes turned back with a full bowl. Leo hesitated for a moment as he watched the smoke rise, was he really about to do this..? He couldn't just bite himself forever.. Or risk snapping again and hurting one of his brothers... 

He had to. 

He took a breath as he raised the spoon to his mouth, trying to quiet the voice inside his head screaming that this was wrong, and took the bite. At first it just sat there, nearly burning the roof of his mouth, but he wasn't about to waste it. He finally managed to suppress all the muscles fighting back and bit down. 

Something clicked in his mind as he felt the first bite hit his stomach, like the warmth of your parents making you hot chocolate on a freezing winter day and feeling that spreading to the end of every nerve, to the tips of your limbs and sending a familiar rush of calm straight to your head almost like a high. Like going all day without water then taking that first sip that brings you back to life, it was finally being able to breathe after being out of breath your whole life. Or finally seeing the colors after years of a world in grey.

For the first time in years, he felt normal, no immense weight in his chest or anxiety vibrating in his hands begging him to do something he knew he couldn't. Just peace and quiet. It didn't take long for him to down the rest of his meal, and when he did he tapped the counter again for attention and signed a 'thank you' to the man. He didn't want to speak and have his voice be something to recognize. He took a pen from its holder and wrote "I'll be back this time next month." and slid it to him with another small tip. The man just smiled and nodded taking the paper and pocketing the money. "Of course, I'll see you then" It was pretty common knowledge that turtle meat wasn't exactly legal in the US, it was a moral grey area and sure buying and selling it weren't allowed but who's to say he knew what he was getting? And who's to say what that tip was for? No one, that's who. He got home using his portal swords, having told his brothers he was going for a walk, and would be back sometime later that night. He made some excuse for himself, along the lines of, "I made a friend the other day, in the.. Mystic hidden city, and we're gonna hang out tonight so don't wait up for me!" He seemed a bit.. On edge before leaving, Mikey of course told the other brothers as they were sitting around that he thought Leo was on a date. What else could make him so nervous? The others at first didn't agree but once Mikey explained how he'd been seeing Leo act more and more strange, that his mind had clearly been elsewhere lately.. It was very possible he met someone. 

After that night when he came home, it was the happiest his family had seen him in months! And once a month, like clockwork Leo would sneak out, stay out for most of the night. Then come home the next morning like nothing happened. His brothers decided not to mention it, but after a full year of his nightly escapades they couldn't just ignore it anymore, if he was seeing someone they wanted to know! And wanted to meet whoever it was. They never thought to follow him, since he always portal-ed away not long after heading out, but the next time Leo went out Donnie had an idea. It wasn't right to snoop, but they waited for Leo to bring it up for months! And he hadn't said a single word about it other then he was gonna go see his 'friend' but only left it at that! No one just goes to see a nameless faceless 'friend' once a month for the whole night for over a year! They tried asking him about it too but he wouldn't say anything, or tell them what him and his friend did that night. But none of their friends around had seen him either, he wasn't going to get pizza or talking to April about it, even when they asked the Hidden City's Police to keep an eye out for him they never reported back, it was as if he just vanished for a night, and as excited as they were for Leo to be happy, it worried them that they had no idea what was really going on.. Part 2

TS Master Post

[yellowspiralbound]

Okay so for a while after The Lightning Thief musical release I really wanted them to keep making musicals (now I'm glad they didn't) but to this day I want songs based in HoO. Here are my favorite ideas, some with more thought than others:

A Nico reprise of Good Kid sung to Percy where the premise is basically "Hey remember how no one ever wanted you and how if anyone should have understood me it should have been you but instead you pushed me away and dismissed me as a bad kid?" It could be during when he told Percy he had a crush on him too - one of the lines could be something about someone you loved from afar seeing you as just another enemy when you're just a "good kid with a bad run."

A duet between the crew of the Argo II and Nico in the jar would be phenomenal - Nico starts, begging someone to save him and he slowly gets drowned out by the crew wanting to abandon him. Hazel has a cadence part that calls for saving him and she could do like an operatic high note to get them to shut up and listen to her. Just,,, the possibilities for an absolutely heartwrenching song in that scene are basically endless

Hazel could have a song while she dies. It ends in not-quite-silence. Like, horror movie silence where they use a high pitch or a tune specifically designed to inspire fear. There'd be a reprise when she comes back to life but it still ends the same way because she just went from one war to another.

A song that Sammy sings to Hazel about "undying [insert word here: love, devotion, etc.]" that Leo has a reprise of later.

Frank has a song about the Stick called St(ick)yx or something where he compares the Stick to Achilles' heel because it both keeps him alive and is his greatest weakness.

Idk what it would be about but there would definitely be a song called Panda Pillow Pet. Possibly with some sort of chorus like "I don't know who I am but I'll be okay as long as I've got my panda pillow pet"/"It's just me and you, my panda pillow pet"

Leo has a song as he flies Gaia into the explosion. It starts with him talking about how he's burned everything he's loved to the ground. Gaia reveals his mother's death was her doing (I know its not book accurate timing wise but ✨️drama✨️) The song ends with a verse along the lines of "Do I even want this cure to work?" followed by a bang a la Dead Girl Walking Reprise from Heathers. Perhaps even a line about how he's "had two lives already; do I even deserve a third?"

Thalia and Jason have a duet - think The Mother We Share by CVURCHES

A HERA & ANNABETH DUET

A percabeth duet that starts in Arachne's web and ends in hell

Hypothetically, there would have already been a song about Zoe's death in a previous musical and Bob would have a reprise of it ending in "tell the stars I say hello" this is immediately followed by a poorly recorded version of Escape by Rupert Holmes. Not the full thing, but just that and nothing else as the elevator rises.

A Last Day of Summer reprise following the final battle - Dionysus gets Percy's name right this time. He sounds exhausted - borderline sorrowful, not angry.

A duet between Reyna and her father's ghost

I want a solangelo song because I love them. I'm thinking Will has a few lines in a song during the Battle of New York and there's some kind of call back. "I've lost more lives than I've saved - don't make yourself the first blood shed today" Nico has no idea how to react to being cared about and his verses reflect this. [spoken not sung, interrupting Will's verse about keeping Nico alive] "why do you care?" "...why wouldn't I?" "You need a soldier ready for action. Right. Stupid question." "No!"

You can probably tell I'm bad at comedy lol. Anyway feel free to share your song ideas because I LOVE THEM.

[cabinofimagines]

Falling Face First

bro i’ve never written poly and there was a request for Lercy so yknow i have to at least try :( anyway here’s Leo being a simp and the reader also being a simp but hiding a little better than inferno boy.   - day

pairing: Leo x gn!Reader x Percy

warnings: I mean it’s poly so??? Fluff omg so dangerous, swearing too but that's the norm for me

requests:

imagine being someone who roller skates and dating Percy so going to the skate park for dates + Could I request Leo with a reader who really wants to learn roller skating but is scared to try, since they know they’d be bad at it at first and they’re scared of people judging them for falling/being bad at it? I’m kind of in this situation at the moment 😅 + poly!Lercy aswell, ugh i can't <3 <3 <3 so cuteeee

You shivered and turned into the warm embrace behind you, feeling their chest rumble as they held you. You could hear Leo’s whining still, unfortunately. He was reluctant to come back to the very spot he made a fool of himself in front of his boyfriend. It seemed like he wasn’t aware that his poorly planned scheme actually pushed Percy into your lives, but you were too cold to explain that to him.

Instead, you reveled in the warmth that came from the tall man, his chin resting atop your head as he spoke, “Leo I don’t know why you’re so hung up on that one moment.” He laughed, “there’s plenty to get hung up on!”

Leo cracked a smile at Percy and waddled over in his skates, sandwiching you in a circle of warmth. Leo felt like a fireplace, warming you up after walking home in the snow, and Percy was comforting, like a couch after a long day of work. Oh my gods, did you just compare one of your boyfriends to a couch?

Percy pulled away first, grinning widely and stomping in place, “C’mon! Before the amateurs get here!”

You and Leo separated, Leo giving him a incredulous look, “I’m an amateur, babe. What are you talking about?”

Percy tugged Leo’s hand into his own, gripping it tight, “Sweet, now I have an excuse to hold your hand.”

You scoffed and held Leo’s free hand, bringing both of their attention to you, “You need an excuse to do that, Jackson?”

Leo chuckled, “You guys, there’s more than enough of me to go around”

You smirked when he lost his footing briefly, increasing his grip on your hand to avoid falling. He never got any better at skating.

 - - -

i.

The cold wind nipped at your nose causing you to bury your face in the scarf you had wrapped around your neck. You definitely were not built for this snowy weather, but you were excited to skate and show up Leo’s egotistic ass. Well not entirely egotistical, but he definitely thought he would be better at skating than you despite having never gone skating before.

When the idea was originally brought up to Leo as date night sort of thing, he was a bit too enthusiastic and said you should go to one rink in particular—even though that was much farther than the one you were thinking of going to. Although you were glad, he wanted to go, you were curious as to why he was set on the rink uptown near the Queensboro Bridge.

“I’ve just heard a lot of great things!” He stammered, fiddling with his camp beads, “Very big, very… icy.”

Turns out it wasn’t just because it was very big and very icy, but because Percy Jackson frequented the skate park not far from this rink. Leo had concocted this scheme of throwing himself in the path of Percy to grab his attention and in turn, you as well.

You hated how much you looked forward to how it would turn out. If it went badly, you could laugh at Leo’s hopeless attempts at flirting. If it did work, well…

So, you sat there, freezing your ass off and tying the shoelaces of your skates. You decided to keep your head down and let Leo do all of the pining, it was what he was good at. He was always the one to shoot his shot first and joke about it if he was rejected, he got too ahead of himself when you actually said yes and nearly rejected himself.

Leo hadn’t put his skates on yet and was looking around for his love interest rather obviously. You were just about to reprimand him for paying too much attention to someone who wasn’t his partner when he hurriedly rushed over to you.

“Shit shit shit he’s actually coming, oh my gods I don’t even have my skates on. He’s gonna think I’m stalking him!”

You laughed loudly and watched your boyfriend struggle to tie his shoelaces, “He’s not going to accuse you of stalking him when you’re just tying your skates, dummy.”

You laughed and glanced around the mostly empty rink, seeing couples skating hand in hand and siblings racing each other on the track. You wanted to skate a few laps before the kids got there and to get used to skating again before you had to help Leo. It wouldn’t do him any good if you were getting used to it while he was flailing about.

“I’m gonna make a few laps, okay?”

You didn’t wait for his reply and stepped onto the ice, pushing off and doing your best to remain upright. It would definitely take you a minute to get back into the rhythm of skating but teaching Leo wouldn’t be that difficult. If he’d let you help him, that is. Just as you were turning the corner at the very end of the rink you spotted a tall, dark-haired guy standing in front of Leo holding his hands as he led him forward on the ice.

You really couldn’t leave him for 5 minutes without him getting into trouble.

You hurried over and nearly knocked the pair over much to their surprise. Upon closer look you realized that Percy Jackson was here just as your boyfriend planned and he was more than happy to assist Leo in skating.

Percy looked up at you with a breathtaking smile, “I was wondering where you might’ve been!” His attention went back to Leo who was overplaying how bad he was at skating, “Leo basically fell flat on his face as soon as he stepped on the ice.”

“Did not!”

You hummed and took one of Percy’s hands away from Leo, seeing him flush at the contact, “How about we share Leo? You take one hand and I’ll take the other, so he doesn’t fall on his face again?”

Leo huffed, “I did not fall flat on my face!” He paused and watched as both you and Percy took his hands, interlacing fingers and feeling how cold both hands were against his own warm ones. He couldn’t lie and say that you weren’t smooth about including Percy in on your plans, but he would still take the credit that Percy came over to help him first. So, he saw it as a win on his part.

Percy’s mind was spinning at the interaction though. He was always attracted to both Y/n and Leo, but when they started dating each other, those thoughts never did stop. He wondered if it were possible to date both of them at the same time. Would they be open to that?

He almost missed the mischievous look Leo shot your way and the smile you sent back, the message behind it though clear to the couple were up for interpretation in Percy’s eyes. He made up his mind that today wouldn’t be the last time he went out with these two and he’ll be going out with them more frequently.

ii.

Much to your pleasure, Percy didn’t say his goodbyes after helping your overzealous boyfriend learn how to stay upright. He stayed and talked to you long after Leo mentioned that he needed to sit a down for a bit, accompanying you on your trips around the ice rink. 

You could understand why Leo had a crush on him now, he was too perfect to be real. Of course, you’ve talked to him before, but then it was only in terms of the ongoing war and no real bond had come from that like it had with Leo, though you wish it had now.

He talked animatedly about his little sister, Estelle. He must’ve taken 15 minutes to tell one story completely, but it didn’t matter much to you. You were admiring the twinkle of affection in his sea green eyes and were ashamed to admit that you wondered what it would be like if he looked at you with the same twinkle.

You were so busy looking at him that you didn’t notice a rock on the ice in front of you, although he did. He reached out and grabbed your arm, pulling you to him gently and quickly so you wouldn’t fall over.

“You good?”

You could only nod and give a small smile, your eyes drifting to his lips breifly before coming to your senses. You didn’t want to scare him.

He seemed to notice though and was reluctant to let you go, feeling his face warm up; whether it was from the cold or the interaction he didn’t know for sure.

You cleared your throat and jabbed a thumb over your shoulder at Leo who was doing a horrible job at minding his business, “I’m gonna go check on Lee, he might want some hot chocolate or something to eat soon.”

Percy, finally coming back to his senses stammered out quickly, “I’ll go save us a seat at Astoria’s!” He wasn’t sure if you heard him, but he went anyway, hoping to collect his thoughts if he was away from you for a while.

You fumbled over to Leo who tried to meet you halfway, practically falling into you. His wide grin was infectious and you soon you were doing the same.

“Shit Percy is so cute, dude.”

“See? I told you!”

“My gods you didn’t tell me his eyes sparkled, this is important information Leo.”

“Must have slipped my mind when I was trying secure him as our boyfriend, my dear.”

You took a breath and helped Leo back to the bench so you could both take off your skates and return them. Leo was hungry for Percy content and kept pestering you on the way over, “Well?! What did he say? Was he talking about me? Did he talk about how bewitching my eyes are?”

You scoffed and moved to help him unlace the skates before moving to your own, “Of course he did, who wouldn’t talk about your eyes, babe? He said you had a cute butt too.” 

Leo leaned back on the bench with a quiet gasp, “I knew it.” he mumbled before smiling widely, “But for real, tell me what he said!”

You both stood, intertwining your hands and moving toward Astoria’s. You filled Leo in on the things Percy said, well what you could remember anyway. You were too focused on his eyes to remember every detail.

You were only a few steps from Astoria’s when it finally clicked in Leo’s mind that you weren’t headed home, “Hey wait, why are we going in here--” He made eye contact with Percy who grinned and waved at the pair.

“Why didn’t you say we’re grabbing hot coco with him? I’m not mentally prepared for this.”

“Chill out! Aren’t you supposed to be cool boy supreme or something like that?”

“Right, right.”

The bell on the door chimed as you walked in and headed to the table in the back. Percy looked all too cute bundled up in his blue scarf and puffy jacket, he sat in the middle of the booth so that Leo and yourself would be on either side of him. Which you didn’t mind entirely.

Leo messed with his curls with a small smile, “Hey Perce, I didn’t know you liked hot chocolate.” He blinked at how dumb his own statement sounded but decided to stick with it.

Percy chuckled and leaned forward, resting his head in his palm, “Yeah, yeah I do.”

There was a weird pause and you let out a loud sigh, “Well, sit down already Leo!”

He slid in next to Percy, his eyes looking up at Percy like the tall male just gave him his favorite candy. It was obvious that Leo had already fallen hard for the son of Poseidon and you knew it wouldn’t be long before you followed suit.

After getting some of the best hot chocolate in New York, conversation flowed easily. Leo got to see the sparkle in Percy’s eyes that you were so infatuated with, and you got to see the lopsided smile Leo always seemed to put on his face. It’s a wonder that you all didn’t become close during the war, but with circumstances being what they were, you could understand why it wasn’t a priority to play icebreakers.

“So...” Percy spoke after a short pause.

Both Leo and you leaned in unconsciously to hear what he had to say next, eager to keep talking to this boy for the next 5 hours if he’d let you.

“We should meet again soon?”

You cocked your head in confusion, “Huh? What are you-- are you saying you wanna go out with us again?”

Leo looked toward the flustered boy with interest, “Did you have fun with us today? What was your favorite part-- ow!”

You gave him a look, bringing your foot back to it’s former place. You were pulling for a certain answer and Leo was diverting from him giving it. You’ll apologize for kicking him later; if you remember.

Percy glanced worriedly at Leo but answered you a little nervously, “Yeah like maybe, I don’t know... tomorrow?” After a shocked silence overtook the table he added quickly, “I mean you guys don’t have to and you might already have plans but I have to go soon because my mom made pasta and--”

Leo made a bold move, resting his hand on top of Percy’s and giving a reassuring laugh, “Percy, we’d love to go out with you again tomorrow.”

Percy’s eyes shifted to Leo’s hand and he tried hard to fight the ecstatic grin that wanted to crawl onto his face. He made a quick glance up at Leo’s pretty brown eyes before letting out a happy chuckle, “Cool! We can meet here tomorrow at noon?”

You nodded and shared a victorious look with Percy, “Yeah! Sounds great.”

Another pause, but this one was full of joy from each one of you. Although you could sit in his presence for a few more hours, you remembered that this boy had some pasta to inhale at home.

“Percy, do you need to go? You said your mom was making pasta tonight.”

His eyes widended at your words and looking towards Leo who had moved his hand and scooted out of the booth so he could get out, “Yeah uh, yeah uh I gotta go but--” He slid out and turned to face the table before leaving, “I had an amazing  time guys and I can’t wait to see both of you tomorrow. See ya!”

And he was gone. 

Leo went to say something but you beat him to it, wrapping him in a hug and kissing him firmly on the mouth, “I have never been more grateful for your dorky ass!”

He decided to ignore your remark and relish in this moment for now, both blissfully unaware of the sea green eyes that watched outside the shop. 

Percy had turned back to glance at the couple one last time and saw a scene that made his heart swell up in affection. He grinned and looked away, a silent hope that tomorrow was the start of something new in the back of his mind.

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(a/n: bro i’m deadass about to cry bc i wanna date both of them now)

[glassworkspiderlilies]

lily blooded

Piofiore no Banshou | Dante/Liliana, Nicola | AO3 Summary: There is worry that goes around, when Liliana Adornato, raised a church girl all her life, becomes Liliana Falzone, thereby officially moving into the Falzone manor and taking up the position of a mafia wife. She settles in just fine. Notes: spent five hours typing 4k words in one sitting and had an enormous amount of fun...love the falzone boys. :’)

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.

There is worry that goes around, when Liliana Adornato becomes romantically involved with the young Falzone Boss. After all, she was raised a church girl through and through, pious and idealistic, seemingly untouched by such violence that the mafia is so often exposed to or the cause of. Even those who do know her history of run-ins with the mafia worry at least a little, because it’s one thing to be caught up in their problems or under their protection, and another to be the lover of one of the most prominent Family’s Boss.

Liliana can be described in many ways, but they all boil down to the same thing—polite, well-mannered, pious, gentle…if one must offer up a flaw, then it is probably that she can work herself too hard for those she cares for, and that she can be kind to a fault. All in all, she is not the sort of girl that one imagines entangled with the mafia. Though the rest of the Falzone family are used to her presence—and enjoy it—even they will consider her something of the Family princess, a delicate girl to be protected, even more so because she is their Boss’ precious lady.

It is something of a surprise when Dante Falzone and Liliana Adornato are married in springtime, and she becomes Liliana Falzone. Oh, there was never any doubt of their deep affection for each other, but marriage is simply more binding, especially when one marries into the mafia.

Nevertheless, the wedding is celebrated with joy, and Liliana officially moves into the Falzone manor and takes on the position of a mafia wife—the lady of the Falzone Family, a woman with even more status and position than before—

And she settles in just fine.

.

The Falzone soldati are surprised when they walk into the training rooms one day to see their Boss and his Lady in front of the targets. There is a gun in Lili’s hands, and Dante is standing behind her, helping position her arms and correcting her posture. It would be something out of a romance novel considering how he is practically cradling her to teach her, but the soldati see the absolute seriousness in both of their eyes, and they understand that this is not some mere whim of either of theirs.

It makes sense, for a mafia wife to learn to shoot a gun. But even so, it is a shock seeing the weapon in Lili’s hands, when they are so used to her cheerfully passing out plates of dolce or taking flowers from the Boss with a radiant smile.

But she does not cut much of an intimidating figure, even with the sheer focus on her face, and she yelps when she fires the gun, stepping backwards into Dante’s chest. It’s something of a relief that this incongruent thing does not seem to change her at all.

Dante chuckles a little, but repositions her.  

“You’ll get used to the recoil,” he says, and Lili laughs a little, looking at her shaking hand.

“I’m used to the sound, after everything that’s happened,” she says ruefully, “But shooting one yourself is very different, isn’t it?”

Dante looks troubled.  

“I still hope that you’ll never have to use one. But you’ve had to take my gun on at least two occasions and shoot on one, so…while I’d much rather protect you personally, or have Nicola or Leo do so, I will concede to the fact that it is much better for you to know how to shoot than not.”

“Thank you for agreeing to teach me, Dante,” Lili says warmly.

He sighs and gives her a wry smile.

“I didn’t expect you to ask for this,” he admits, “But you never fail to surprise me.”

Lili giggles, holding up the gun again and narrowing her eyes at the target.

“I love you, Dante,” she says simply, “So I’m prepared to stand by you, and that means the Family too. I don’t want to be a burden.”

“You are never a burden,” Dante says emphatically, a little pink from her declaration, and Lili smiles.

“Well, I’d like to be able to protect you, and the Family, at least a little bit,” she amends, “Just as you all protect me.” She tilts up to press a brief kiss to the corner of his mouth before she faces forward once more. “Can you show me again, please?”

Dante clears his throat, a little off balance from the kiss, then wraps his hands around hers again to assist her.  

The soldati make their presence known after she fires the next shot, and the Boss and his wife greet them but continue with their own practice as the men begin their own. After an hour passes, Dante and Lili finish up and end their session for the day. She is only to shoot when either he, Nicola, or Leo are present until she becomes more proficient, and she waves cheerfully as she departs the room.

The soldati don’t think overmuch about this new development other than the fact that it does seem like a good idea if she can train herself to be a half decent shot. In their minds, Liliana is still that sweet church girl, even if she is now the donna of the Falzone Family. So long as she can hold a gun without shaking, that’s enough in their minds. When she’s hardly seen in the training rooms again, no one thinks less of her for it.  

But something that they come to learn more fully in due time is that Liliana Falzone nee Adornato does not do things by halves.

Some months down the line, she and the Boss walk into a fairly populated practice room. They are greeted respectfully and space is made for them at one of the targets.

“I’m sorry I haven’t been able to practice with you much,” Dante apologizes to her, as they take up their positions.

“Don’t worry, you’ve been so busy,” Lili replies soothingly as she loads the gun with ease. Dante watches her and raises an eyebrow, but Lili merely smiles. “Nicola taught me a lot, and you know I’m cleared to practice by myself now.”

Dante hums, but she smiles at him, innocent and serene.

“I think I’ve improved a lot!” she chirps, facing the target, “I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Look!”

Without hesitating, she fires off three shots in rapid succession, and the soldati are taken aback by both her accuracy and fluidity of movement. One hits the bullseye, the others hit fairly close. The room is silent, and Dante claps slowly, at which Lili smiles bashfully at.  

“I practiced more at night, when the room was empty…it’s a little embarrassing to be watched when I’m doing poorly. The thing is, I’m actually aiming for the outer ring,” she confesses, “If I aim for the center, it has the opposite effect. I don’t think I can say I’m a good shot given that, really, but…I do okay, right?”

Dante blinks, then barks out a laugh.

“So this is what Nicola meant,” he says, “When he said you’re maybe the best-worst shot he’s ever seen.”

Lili turns pink, then even pinker when she realizes all the soldati have stopped to stare.

One by one, they incline their heads in respect.

“Donna,” they chorus, and though she continues to blush furiously, their Boss looks pleased.  

.

Dante is very young, for a mafia Boss, and so he’d had to fight harder than others to cement his position. He’s treated with respect now, but his youth is always apparent when he attends meetings with other clans or business associates. He knows that he is still often being watched for weaknesses, and questioned silently as to whether he is truly good enough to lead the Falzone Family.  

Dante is used to all that by now; in childhood, it’d been a burden. Now, he has the support of many, and leads with confidence and determination.

But he worries for Lili, now that they are married. Wives are expected to attend certain functions; as his lover, she’d been exempt from such things, but now that is no longer true. A dinner meeting with some longtime associates has been called, and it will be the first time Lili is attending something like this as his wife.

“I’m nervous,” Lili admits to him the night before. “But I’m ready, too.”

Dante kisses her forehead, and shows his appreciation slowly and sweetly. They rise late the next morning, but the dinner meeting is the only important thing on the agenda today, so they take their time getting ready.

Lili is stunning in her navy and silver gown, matching with Dante’s suit. Crystals wink at her ears and neck, and a bit of lipstick reddens her lips. Nicola smiles widely when he sees them, and Leo gasps in appreciation.  

“Furrow your eyebrows a little,” Nicola suggests, poking the space between his own to demonstrate. “It’ll make you look more intimidating. Your natural face is a little too innocent.”

“I can’t help it,” Lili protests, the consequent scrunching of her eyebrows merely making her look cute, “It’s my face!”

“Yes, I suppose you don’t have Dante’s natural scary disposition at all,” Nicola sighs, “We’ll have to develop your expressions next time or they’ll eat you up.”

“Nicola,” Dante admonishes. “She’s fine as is. Stop making her more nervous.”

Nicola winks.

“Fine, fine. Then knock them dead some other way.”

“I thought the point was to establish better relations,” Lili blinks, and Nicola laughs.

“In the mafia, sometimes it’s one and the same,” he says cheerfully. “In any case, have fun!”

Lili gives him a confused look, but Dante tells her not to pay attention to him and they depart.

Nicola needn’t have worried, in the end.

True, the meeting starts off a little rocky—all of the associates return to their roots, consciously or not, and eye Dante and Lili for their youth. Dante has been tried true over the years, but Lili is fresh blood, and Nicola was right—she looks innocent, despite the darker style she is dressed in. Though she bears the stares of four middle-aged men and their regal wives admirably, they are like sharks in water, ready for the first hint of weakness.  

All the women are mostly quiet throughout the dinner itself, but everyone loosens up afterwards, when they enjoy dessert and drinks and cigars. One of the wives offers to pour drinks, and while some of the men decline in favor of cigars and all the other women do, Lili is not given the opportunity to do so.  

“Drink up, Signora Falzone,” the instigator says, “I chose the whiskey myself—it is not often we get the opportunity to drink such quality liquor in such good company.”

“Thank you, Signora Rossi,” Lili says smoothly, putting the glass to her lips as everyone watches, discreetly or not.

She drinks, her expression unchanged as the liquor hits her tongue, though her eyes widen a little as she swallows.

“Oh! It’s wonderful,” Lili says, smiling, “I’ve never had whiskey like this before. May I ask the brand?”

Madam Rossi looks a little mollified and shows her the bottle, though she pours more into Lili’s glass with a subtly mischievous look. The madam drinks as well, though less, and the other wives sip digestivos or wine as they begin to chat about various things, and Rossi continues to refill Lili’s glass throughout the conversation.

Dante does not fail to notice, but Lili puts a hand on his knee to let him know she is okay, and so he does nothing. The other men watch out of the corner of their eyes with interest, but say nothing either.

By the end of the night, half the associates and their wives are drunk, including Madam Rossi. Though Lili has had the most alcohol of all of them, she is practically still sober, if a little sleepy.

Signor Vallone, one who had simply smoked cigars and not drunk at all, laughs heartily in the lobby as their cars are prepared.

“Looks can be deceiving, indeed!” he says, shaking Lili’s hand merrily, “I’ve never seen anyone drink Signor Di Lucca or Signora Rossi under the table like that. That was fine entertainment in of itself.”  

Lili demurs, and one of the other wives—Signora Albanesi, who had simply enjoyed one glass of wine—steps forward to say her goodbyes as well.

“It was a pleasure meeting you, my dear,” she says warmly, “Perhaps next time, you will recommend us your favorite drink instead, yes?”

“Of course, Signora,” Lili says, smiling back.

Everyone splits with good-natured farewells, almost as though they were simply friends parting for the night and not partners linked by criminal activities. The atmosphere is markedly different than it had been at the beginning of the night—true approval is not so easy to earn, but Lili has certainly garnered the fondness of the group in the course of a few hours.

She snuggles against Dante in the car, and he presses a kiss to the top of her head. She tilts her face up for a proper kiss, and Dante chuckles before he obliges.

“You taste like whiskey,” he says, amused, “And I’m impressed, myself. I know you can outdrink me, but it’s something to be able to drink more than Signor Di Lucci and Signora Rossi.”

“I did enjoy the whiskey,” Lili admits, “And she just…kept pouring. I thought it would be rude to refuse. But I still like the white wine we drink together best.”

Dante smiles.

“Shall we open a bottle when we get home?” he teases, and Lili giggles.

“If you’d like. I think I can handle one more,” she says, meaning the bottle, and Dante laughs.

.

“I know you hate these kinds of functions, Dante,” Nicola says amiably one afternoon in Dante’s office, “But it’s important to keep up appearances sometimes, too.”

Dante sighs, thanking Lili as she sets down two slices of strawberry crostata and a cappuccino for him, as well as a single slice and an espresso for Nicola, who thanks her as well.

“I have far better things to do than to sit down and play card games for hours on end,” Dante grumbles, sipping at his coffee. The frustrated lines around his eyes soften for a moment as he drinks, but then he frowns again. “These guys are getting quite friendly.”

“They’re doing it for appearances too, of course,” Nicola replies reasonably, sipping his own espresso. “They’re politicians. But you’re right—they’re getting quite persistent, aren’t they? You do business with newbies once and they start getting too comfortable.” He pauses to take a bite of crostata. “They’re probably asking so often because they’re aware you hate gambling, too. They want to feel superior in some way or another, since you have the upper hand in all the other ways that matter.”

Dante sighs as he leans back in his seat.

“When?” he asks.

“Next Friday.”

Dante’s frown deepens.

“No. I have a meeting with lobbyists that day, and that takes priority over some politicians who want to play cards to boost their ego. Nicola, you go. You’ll have more fun, anyway.”

“Yes, Boss. But I will say—if you don’t show your face at least once, then they’ll only grow more persistent. It’s not me they want to see, even if I am your Underboss.”

Dante sighs deeply and says nothing else, choosing to focus on his dessert instead.

“Um…” Lili pipes up, having taken an armchair in the corner of the room with her own plate of crostata and a caffe latte. “Why don’t I go, then? With Nicola, that is.”

Dante and Nicola turn to look at her, blinking in surprise.

“It’s actually card games, right?” Lili asks, looking between them a little nervously, “That’s not code for anything?”

“It’s just card games,” Nicola confirms, “Though they might talk business, of course, and money will change hands one way or another.”

“I can play cards,” Lili continues, emboldened by the fact that neither have said no outright, “I could go with Nicola as a…I don’t know, additional representative. I know mafia wives don’t usually participate in such things, but…well, would it help?”

Nicola’s eyes are bright, having played cards with Lili before and knowing her skill firsthand. His lips curve into a wolfish grin, and he looks at Dante eagerly, who glances back at him with a raised brow.

“I don’t like it,” Dante says bluntly, but Lili simply waits, knowing that it comes from a place of concern.

It is also still not a refusal.

“I don’t know that it would help,” Nicola admits, “But it doesn’t mean nothing, either, that the Boss’ wife attends in his place. It would certainly be interesting—there’s no way they would complain at such a development because of that. And I think Lili could do very well.”

Lili smiles, and Nicola smiles back.

“I’d like to assist in any way I can,” Lili states resolutely, “After all, I’m part of the Family, too.”

Both Nicola and Lili look at Dante, just a little pleading, and eventually he sighs and relents.

“I don’t like it,” he repeats, looking at Lili, “But if you want to go, you can go. Nicola—”

“I’ll protect her with my life, Dante,” Nicola says, a hand over his heart, “I swear it.”

Dante sighs again, and finishes his crostata in resignation.

He’s not home when Nicola and Lili leave for the meeting, but he’s just arrived back for a few minutes when they return, merely a few feet away from the door when it opens again.

Nicola is laughing, and Lili looks a little embarrassed as she tells him he’s overreacting, but both light up when they see Dante walking back over to them.

“Dante!” Lili exclaims, hugging him in greeting. “Welcome back.”

“Hello,” he says, kissing her cheek, “I should be saying that to you. You’re both back earlier than I expected, though.”

He looks between Lili and Nicola, the latter whom is brushing a tear out of the corner of his eye from laughing so hard. Dante raises a brow, and Nicola grins, gesturing to the salon.

“Alright, what happened?” Dante asks, as Giulia goes to prepare refreshments.

“Go on,” Nicola says encouragingly to Lili, and she hesitates before she opens her pocketbook and drops a few hefty rolls of cash onto Dante’s lap.

His eyes widen.  

“Dante, it was incredible,” Nicola practically crows, accepting a cup of coffee from Giulia, “I haven’t seen anyone hustled that much in a while. Those arrogant politicians…seeing their faces fall…it was magnificent. I don’t think they’ll be pestering the Falzones to attend their card table again so soon.”

Dante raises a brow, and Giulia stays to listen to Nicola retell the entire story in detail. Lili had simply played well—far better than anyone had truly expected. The young woman sips her coffee demurely throughout the tale, embarrassed still at Nicola’s praise and gleeful amusement.

“I wasn’t trying to…to hustle them!” she eventually protests, blushing.

“That’s what makes it even better,” Nicola says. “I know you said you’ve never lost at cards, but it is simply delightful to see someone else suffer the consequences.”

Lili sniffs, ducking her head, and Dante gives her an amused look.

“Anyway, that’s our politician problem solved for now,” Nicola hums, “After how much they lost, I think they’ll think twice about trying to get a leg up on the mafia.”

Dante folds his hands, thinking.

“On the contrary,” he says slowly, and Nicola’s eyes brighten as he immediately catches onto his thinking, “The next time they have a card game, I think we should all go. I’d like to see Lili play myself, and it never hurts to remind politicians just who they’re dealing with.”

Nicola starts laughing again, and Lili stares at Dante with her mouth slightly open.

“Good work today,” he says, smiling, and respectfully drops the money back into Lili’s lap.

To the victor, the spoils, after all.

.

If there is one thing that Lili truly hates still, it is the torture. But she is a mafia wife now and will not interrupt, though nor will she watch the proceedings. Sometimes she is left ignorant that it is happening at all, out of respect.

Yet in this too does she have her role.

Sometimes, for the ones that don’t crack even after hours in the cells but hold information important enough to keep trying, it’s Lili who goes to visit the prisoner afterwards. She goes alone, with medical supplies and water, tears spilling from her eyes. The better prisoners tend to think she is some angel. After some time, they confide in her, confessing their sins and regrets, and in time, the information they no longer consider worth their life.

Sometimes, they are even let go, after their threat is weighed and considered. The prisoners gape when they find out their angel is actually the Falzone Boss’ wife, and more often than not they will pledge their devotion to her—and thus the Falzones, for kindness is near nonexistent in the mafia. It is a double edged sword, in the criminal world, but it has its uses.

But sometimes, the prisoners truly have rot in their hearts. Those types see Lili as some stupid maid who doesn’t know better and isn’t worth anything. They attempt to take advantage of her kindness and body, lunging for her like the snakes they are as they spit the truth of what they’d done viciously, wanting to hurt her.

She’s quicker than she looks, flinging herself back with a little scream, and Dante and Nicola file in, always having waited outside.

Lili runs to her husband, burying her face in his chest as he holds her.

The prisoners are always surprised, but the terrible ones don’t always understand who she is quickly enough. They snarl and spit dirty words, but she is still the one who tended to them—they are speared by her gaze when she half turns and looks at them with her teary eyes, disappointed and damning.

“How could you?” she whispers after learning the depths of their sins, and that’s when they truly feel like scum.

Lili does not watch when the worst ones are executed, though she hears the screams anyway.  

At night, despite knowing what occurred earlier, she wants Dante to touch her. He does, lips and fingers cool then hot on her body, reminding her what else he is capable of. He is good with his hands, and he is still the man she loves. Dante just a little apologetic that he cannot keep her away from all brutality, but he cannot be apologetic about the decisions he must make. Lili was never under any illusions when she married him—she just cannot help this sympathetic part of herself, even as she understands. Dante knows that, and loves her for it, too. There is a certain sense of gratitude he feels, when she asks to make love even after these situations, that she doesn’t feel disgust or shy away from him instead.  

Dante, she whispers against his lips, Dante, I love you.

She is unbearably precious in his hands, flushed and adoring, just as he must look to her.

Lili, he murmurs back, Liliana, as I love you.

She sleeps peacefully in his arms after, nothing but affection between them, their limbs tangled with each other’s.

Dante counts his blessings, and presses her close.  

.

A few years go by, and though everyone knows that Dante Falzone is married, not everyone has met the rumored Liliana Falzone. Though she does attend various functions and oversee some things in Dante’s stead, as a whole she is kept out of the spotlight, for both of their comforts.

Sometimes, however, people get to meet her in unexpected ways.

The new associate from outside the city Dante is meeting today is shocked when Lili arrives with him, looking angelic on his arm. She has an interest in the business he is offering, Dante says, with an indulgent smile at her, and the associate thinks that she looks like an easy target. Both the Falzone boss and his wife still look very young, and he must be an idiot to bring his wife to such a meeting.

And even more of an idiot to leave to take a call, not matter how supposedly urgent it is.

Signora Liliana smiles pleasantly and makes small talk, while the associate answers in a bored, dismissive manner. But after a while he realizes with a start that her questions are growing more pointed, and that she is probing into his boss, and his relation to a string of issues in Burlone that have resulted in the deaths of a handful of Falzone men.

The associate starts sweating, then rises from his seat, intending to bolt—

Only to freeze at the sound of a gun being cocked.

“Please, sit down,” Liliana says, still entirely amiable, “I’m not a very good shot, actually. I’ll mean for the wall and hit right between your eyes if I’m not careful, and I do so hate unnecessary bloodshed.”

The man slowly sits back down, trembling a little. Signora Falzone is not particularly intimidating in the traditional way, but it is that beautiful, gentle smile at odds with the weapon in her hand that is frightening in its own right. It is evident she is not bluffing, and that she knows perfectly well what she is doing.

Dante returns shortly, raising an eyebrow at the scenario before him.

“Is everything alright?” he asks lightly, though his eyes are entirely knowing as Lili puts her gun away.

She smiles beatifically at him.

“Yes, of course,” she says smoothly, gesturing for him to continue the meeting, “Everything is under control.”

.

.

.

Lili sets the bouquet down on the grave, then leans into Dante’s side. He puts an arm around her waist, tugging her a little closer for his own comfort. They stare at the names etched onto the stone for a while.

“Thank you,” Dante says, “For coming with me, every Wednesday.”

Lili puts a hand on his chest and leans up to press a brief kiss to his lips.

“I like to,” she protests, leaning her head against him. “I…would have liked to meet them, your parents.”

“They would have liked you,” Dante assures her, and Lili smiles again. “My mother in particular would have been delighted.”

“Oh?”

“How could she not be?” Dante chuckles, and Lili blushes a little. “And even though my father was not predisposed to show his feelings…he would have been very proud of you, Liliana.”

“Just as he would have been proud of you, Dante,” Lili replies.

They smile at each other, and share a brief kiss before they depart.

They opt for a walk through Falce before they return to the mansion, spending the last hours of the early morning in leisure. Around them, the district is starting to wake up; shopkeepers are coming out to flip their signs or set out their wares, men and women on their way to work or beginning their errands.  

“Buongiorno!” they call, as Dante and Lili walk by arm-in-arm.

“Buongiono!” Lili greets back, as Dante nods in acknowledgement.

More and more people greet them as they continue down the streets, some of them making quick conversation with Lili. They do not linger due to Dante’s presence, and it is not that they ignore him either, but it is evident that Liliana is the one who has truly made their acquaintance, and whom they feel at ease with. She does not roam about as often anymore, so while she is not necessarily a rare sight, she is always a welcome one.  

As the sun rises higher in the sky, shopkeepers call out to market their wares.

“Signora Falzone! I have freshly baked bread, come have a taste!”

“No, no, come look at my fresh fruits, Signora Falzone!”

“Signora Falzone, how about some flowers for the home?”

Lili demurs all of them with firm but good-natured ease, and Dante watches with amusement.

“Next time, perhaps. We really must get going,” she tells them all laughingly, and Dante inclines his head in polite farewell.

They go on their way, though the friendly calls and greetings continue; Signora Falzone permeates the air like a prayer.

Liliana walks on with her husband, as the streets of Falce hail the name she wears with ease.  

[thedragonemperess]

What's your personal opinion on why Elite Force was so bad? Since I've ranted about that a lot and started the 'elite discourse' tag.

Introduction

I don’t think it was really bad. Yes, it was terrible compared to Lab Rats and Mighty Med (of which both deserved more seasons since they both set up so much and than threw it all away), but it wasn’t too bad. Why it was bad, though? They undid all character development, overlooked some of the best characters, and so much more!

Chase

There’s a lot wrong with Chase. First of all, they undid all of his character development and reduced him to a self-centered smart guy. (I’m not gonna say a mini version of Donald because he’s really more like Douglas, but they really just threw away his character.) And for character archs. When AJ made his list, he put Chase at the bottom. A good thing to point out is that this list was based off of the number of powers each person has and the number of powers each person has alone. So lets count how many powers they all have:

Kaz: Pyrokinesis and Flight Oliver: Cryokinesis, Flight, and Super Strength Bree: Super Speed, Vocal Manipulation, Invisibility, and Super Agillity Chase: Molecular Kinesis, Force Fields, Super Intelligence, Super Senses, Laser Bo Generation, and the Commando App (technically Super Strength as well, but that’s only Spike) Skylar: Flight, Super Strength, Super Speed, Acid Spit, Regeneration, and 21 other abilities (10 after the whole thing with Bree, but that still leaves her with the most) CHASE SHOULD BE #2 ON THAT LIST!!

And even if this wasn’t based on only their powers, he’d still be at #2!!

Then we have the Arcturian. The Arcturian Space Rock will kill you if you make direct contact with it, key word being direct. So Bree, being NUMBER #3 on the list (did I mention they overlooked her abilities, too, with the exception of one throw away line?), decided to touch it. After a series of events, she gets superpowers from it.

Bree got superpowers.

Because she was insecure about her bionic powers.

THIS WAS CHASE’S ENTIRE ARCH FROM THE BEGINNING!

And he wasn’t only insecure about his powers, he was insecure about his appearance, self-worth, and a ton of other things.

This arch was engineered for Chase, and they threw it away in favor of Bree.

Skoliver

Skylar and Oliver was the main romance of Mighty Med. Oliver had a crush on Skylar and Skylar was a lesbian didn’t reciprocate. This didn’t stop Oliver from trying to get with her, though. But the difference between Oliver persevering in Mighty Med and Olvier persevering in Elite Force is that in Mighty Med, he did it in a healthy, respectful way. In Elite Force, he became a stalker!

He watched her in her sleep, recorded her without permission, had a pretend version of her that he was dating, and more.

They turned a really nice thing from Mighty Med into something terrible just so that they could put less time into coming up with actual jokes. (The writers of these shows never really handled healthy relationships and comedy well, if Adam and Chase’s relationship says anything, but you would think [I’m only saying this because its Disney] they would put more effort into a romantic relationship.) The worst part about this is that they got together somewhat in the end of Elite Force.

Reese

Reese existed as a way to lead us to the finale of the show. She also existed as a love interest for Chase. She had the potential to be Elite Force’s Marcus or Experion, but they just didn’t do it right.

The Lab Rats’ relationship with Marcus was built over the course of two seasons, which let both the audience and the characters get to know him. Sure, we knew he was evil before everyone else, but how evil he truly was changed up until Douglas’ plan was finally revealed. He was also really close to a lot of the characters, so that makes it really painful.

Experion was one of Skylar’s close friends, almost like a brother, and we saw that play out on screen. He was only there for a short amount of time, just as Reese was, but he was already in a predetermined relationship with him. Reese had literally only met Chase that day, meaning that connection just wasn’t there.

(Also, was Reese just there to degay Chase? Because that’s what it seems like.)

Representation And Other Things Of The Sort

Lab Rats was a show that had a family in which half of it was married into. Shows have done this before, yes, but this showed the kids really just excepting it and not getting mad at their respective family. This was also a mixed family, which watching now that I’m older and really understand the importance of it, is really nice. Especially as a mixed person myself.

As for Mighty Med, and I’m starting with family again, it had a father figure who, more or less, actually cared about his kid(s) and was active in their life. It also showed him, a person of color, in a position of power. Skylar, who is a woman of color, was a badass who wasn’t boy crazy. She didn’t care about boys and the one time she did chase after someone, it was an introverted girl whom she wanted to be friends with which is pretty gay but whatever Disney. She was pretty freaking powerful, too, even without her powers.

Now for Oliver and Kaz, they were geeks. That’s a recurring fact in the show. It’s also something that is constantly saving all of their butts and was the main thing that got them their jobs. They weren’t picked on or made fun of for it, that was just who they were.

And unlike Lab Rats, Mighty Med showed a healthy relationship between brothers. Additionally, Gus was a really weird kid, but no one ever made fun of him, either. They treated him like they treated everyone else. He even ends up as one of the popular kids a few times.

Elite Force really just threw that all away in favor of (what became) a bunch of bratty kids in a pent house together.

Backstory

Mighty Med ended off on a cliffhanger, with Mr. Terror escaping, Oliver and Kaz obtaining superpowers, Alan meeting his father for the first time, and Horace using his last revival. Not to mention, Mr. Terror is Oliver’s mother and was supposed to be Horace’s wife.

And then they completely forgot about all of that and destroyed Mighty Med, killing all of the people in it in the process while also forgetting about Mr. Terror completely?

As for Lab Rats’ ending, it was actually pretty fitting and satisfying, all things considered. Adam, Bree, Leo, and Chase split up after defeating Giselle, Adam and Leo going back to the island to help the students with the big change (an update that let them control their abilities, hence no need for them to be teachers anymore) while Bree and Chase joined the Elite Force.

But why Chase and Bree? Sure, I guess the fandom Chase, but we did care about Leo more than Bree if we’re looking at it from that stand point. Now if we’re looking at it from a logical, in-universe stand-point, it makes no sense. Bree and Chase were the smarter, more experienced of the four, so they should have gone back to the island, while letting Chase and Adam join the Elite force.

Also, Leo has just become a mentor, which was what he was striving for since the start of the season. He was always being overlooked, and now, when he finally gets his moment in the spot light, its taken away from. That just really bothers me.

What Was Good About Lab Rats: Elite Force?

Quite honestly, not a lot. But considering the target audience, it was pretty good. Having two well received shows come together into an, albeit poorly set up and attempted, spin-off where they can have their own battles and story lines together is pretty cool and different. There are some flaws, like how Mighty Med logic and Lab Rats logic really don’t intertwine, but you have to keep in mind that this is a kids show.

It also showed Douglas being a pretty good father, which is really nice. Sure, he’s their birth father and/or creator, but it also shows them mending their relationship.

There were some smaller things, too. AJ’s introduction, Skylar and Bree slowly become sisters, and Chase and Kaz becoming friends were all really fun to watch. (The characters growing relationships with each other, period, were fun to watch.) The villains had good motives, and the small cameos from other shows (Bob and Crossbow [she’s more of a piece of what Mighty Med used to be, but I’m counting it]) were really fun to see. The plot could definitely be better, but it was still pretty good. And, as much as I hate to admit it, the show was genuinely funny. The amount of times I’ve spit out my water while watching this show is surprising.

Conclusion

Was Lab Rats: Elite Force as great a show as the source material? No. Was it all we thought it would be at the time? That depends on how old you were when it came out. It was, and still is, a fun show to watch, though. Yes, it would have been better if it never happened and the shows continued separately, but I’m glad that we at least have an answer to what Mighty Med and Lab Rats alluded to in their finales. Am I upset about Elite Force’s finale? Yes, and I will probably die mad about it, but we didn’t have as much time to get to know the characters and connect to them, so is it really that much of a loss? That’s up to you. Is it a fun show to watch? Absolutely.

[animebw]

Binge-Watching: Beastars S2, Episodes 7-9

In which I identify a bizarre shift in the show’s priorities, the call for integration grows louder, and there is suddenly a lot of gay subtext.

Over 9000

I’ve been struggling for a while to sort out my thoughts on this season. Something’s felt off about it ever since the start, even beyond the loss of the central trio that was core to season 1′s success. And I think I’ve finally figured out what’s going on: in season 2, Beastars has completely inverted its genre. Season 1 was a shoujo romance through and through, with all the drama and worldbuilding and themes centered around the tangled love lives of a scarce few central characters. Season 2, on the other hand, has shifted gears into a full-on shonen battle anime. Legoshi’s storyline this season is essentially just a training arc preparing him to square off against increasingly tough opponents, right down to a “Oh, I can use my limbs instead of my jaws to fight!” power-up that feels straight out of My Hero Academia. And in typical shonen fashion, the scope has balooned outward to spend time with the countless side characters hovering around. This is no longer an intimate, tightly woven story driven by romance and relationships; this is now a sprawling, increasingly action-packed story exploring the entire world and everyone in it. 

And look, that kind of genre shift was always going to be weird. Selling an audience on Kimi ni Todoke and then turning into Gintama would be a hard sell no matter how well the transition was handled. But even by those standards, Beastars really did not pull this off well. It shoved the romance off to the side, it sidelined the relationships that defined it, and it made so much of the first season’s emotional development feel pointless or stalled out. It didn’t just change the kind of story it was telling, it did so at the expense of the story it already told. And that’s without taking into account how confusing some of the worldbuilding still is (Seriously, what the hell even is the Beastar?) or how awkwardly the editing this season has been. Too many episodes just feel like a loose collection of random manga chapters thrown together with no regard for cinematic flow or cohesion, and in come cases, it feels like we skip important events altogether. Like, why do we not show the moment Legoshi gets captured by the Leo gang? One moment he’s free and clear an chatting with Gohin, and then the next time we see him he’s already being roughed up in a warehouse with no indication how he got there. It can be hard to pinpoint what good story flow looks like sometimes, but when it’s done poorly, it’s really obvious. And too much of how the second season is put together is very noticeably off in very distracting ways.

Separate, but Equal?

Still, putting that aside, there’s still interesting things happening in this season, even if they could be structured and integrated better. This set of episodes in particular raises a very interesting conundrum: at the end of the day, carnivores still have the potential to do serious harm to herbivores. Is it worth integrating the two groups when it puts one of them at such risk? Sure, we apparently have the medical tech to restore limbs that have been ripped off (how that works, I don’t even want to know), but that doesn’t change the fact that holy shit you just ripped someone’s arm off. This isn’t like the real world, there is serious risk involved with integrating these social groups. And it’s a fair question to raise if the outcome is worth that risk. Certainly, Juno believes carnivores and herbivores are better off separate. And plenty of concerned parents are scared enough to try and segregate Cherryton all over again. But there are just as many people who believe integration is worth the risks regardless, that carnivores and herbivores are better off together, learning from each other, being part of each other’s lives.

And what’s particularly fascinating is that in the case of Cherryton’s students, so many of the loudest voices calling for integration come from herbivores who’ve already been put at risk by carnivores. The anteater who gets his arm ripped off is understandably freaking out by carnivores in the moment, but he quickly returns to sympathizing with the panther who did it and promising to still be his friend (Which, by the way, that panther breaking down in tears when he realizes he’s being forgiven was so fucking powerful, oh my god). Els has every reason to hate carnivores for killing Tem, but she’s so determined to keep the drama club together she just about makes herself faint from screaming (”We get to see the good and bad! Isn’t that what clubs are for?!”) And in a shocking twist, it turns out that even Tem fully accepted the bear who ate him, refusing to let his fear overcome his desire for connection. Riz wasn’t even stalking Tem to kill him, but Tem encouraged him to embrace his true carnivore self regardless, and that’s just what he did. Far from being scared out of integration, these herbivores’ brushes with danger only seem to convince them even more that integration is important. And there’s something really powerful about that sentiment. Where Beastars is taking it, I’m not sure but I’m definitely interested to see how it all plays out.

Kiss from a Rose

Actually, you know what the most unusual thing is about all these herbivores sticking up for carnivores? The fact that so many of them are absolutely dripping with homoeroticism. Like, good lord, this season plunged headfirst into the gay subtext pool. Riz and Tem’s final conversation feels like a love confession, the cheetah and sheep who shop for clothes together in episode 8 are absolutely girlfriends, and I swear Juno was two seconds away from smooching Haru during their conversation. Hell, Legoshi and Louis’ reunion is somehow the most romantically charged moment of the entire season. Dude straight-up asked Louis to run away with him like they’re the protagonists of a BL manga. And my god, Legoshi not being able to control his wagging tail was priceless. It’s so weird, because the first season was incredibly straight even with the intense emotions between Legoshi and Louis. But now that Legoshi and Haru’s romance has been left by the wayside, it feels like the show it taking every opportunity it can to hint at love blossoming between same-gender characters. Will it amount to anything? Who can say, really. At this point, I have no idea what to expect from Beastars. All I can hope for is a finale that makes this season’s awkwardness seem worth it. Don’t let me down, show!

Odds and Ends

-Legoshi, you are lucky as fuck no one walked in on you drinking everyone’s water bottles.

-I do appreciate how the reveal that Riz is the killer isn’t played for too big a surprise. We could pretty much tell it was him from the silhouette in episode 1, so there’s no need to do a big song and dance about it.

-I am very confused what Pina’s deal is. Why get involved with the Riz situation just to do nothing about it and let him stew in rage? I don’t have a feel for him at all.

-Yeesh, the bears are drugged to lose strength? That’s not cool.

-”Maybe I’m growing old...” skdjfhdsf god dammit Legoshi stop being me

-”Don’t worry, I’m always risking my life for the sake of slacking!” HARU I MISS YOU PLEASE COME BACK INTO THIS SEASON

-OH GOD NO NOT THE CROCODICK

-”Punishment isn’t always the road to peace. The world isn’t that simple.” I like Gohin a lot.

-YO HOLY SHIT HE GOT DEM MOVES

-”The school needs you now.” Jesus, Legoshi, stop pinning all your hopes on Louis. You’ve got what it takes to be a hero too.

-”I had a go at channeling the equipment’s feelings.” WHO ARE YOU PINA

One session left to go. See you next time for the end of season 2!

[juniaships]

Actiontoongorlz's Top 8 Canon x OC Ships 💖💖

I've been looking at OTP/Couples memes for a while and decided that it's time for me to make my own! For an extra surprise I'm not putting Ben Tennyson x Jora Holiday on this list because I focus too much on them anyways & I want my other OCs & their loves to have the spotlight for a change. The timing couldn't be more perfect as we're close to Valentine's Day!!! If you don't support canon x oc or find my ships displeasing then move along because this is a Happy Place! 😁😁 Again these are couples that I consider my personal OTPs in regards to canon x oc. That and making more content with my ships in general! Be warned the text is long and contains spoilers for certain shows and such!!

Clarify: these are my own ocs so there's not going to be anyone else's oc/canon. I might have to save that for another post in the future! 💚 But yeah these are characters that I came up with :]

Alright I'm done ranting, let's get started!

1. Sonic x Lani: I never quite gave much thought into this pair as I should so I promise to do something with them in the future! I promise! What I appreciate about SonLani is that there's little drama, like everything is super chill because both parties are chill. It's not a big deal and they don't need grand gestures to show how much they care about each other. Unlike Preboot Archie with its carts full of poorly written romance and strangely OOC moments on Sonic's end, SonLani had a lot of time to grow, while keeping his established personality in check. They actually communicate with each other, and stick by each other thick and thin. Lani loves Sonic for who he is & has no plans on changing him. Likewise Sonic has someone he can rely on when things get tough; not to mention he can really be himself around her without going all "iLl sLOw dOWn fOr U." Plus the ship name I gave them is a huge nod to the games ^_^

2. Jason x Vanessa: A recent pair due to Vanessa being a new creation but I'm honestly in love with them right now. In-universe they are regarded as the prime example of 'Opposites Attract' in Odyssey. They didn't get along very well in Jason's first couple of months in town due to his hardheaded self and her aloof demeanor. But through events such as Blackgaard and Novacom they gradually learn to trust one another. They see each other in a different light, Vanessa realising that Jason is a lot more thoughtful than he lets on, and Jason discovering her hidden fun side and kindness. Vanessa provides challenges and a sense of normalcy Jason can enjoy away from spy business. Meanwhile Jason fulfills her thirst of adventure & simultaneous desire for a peaceful life as well as spirituality. They're a equals, regarding each other as such and not to mention the BANTER! Hard to believe a former nun can keep up with a secret agent both physically and trading barbs XD. There's also the Forbidden Love factor of Vanessa being the duaghter of Regis Blackgaard, Jason defending her because he KNOWS she is nothing like her old man. Their friendship and romance overcome so many obstacles. I can honestly say that if Vanessa was canon she'd be the type of person Jason would like to be with especially over Jillian Marshall *gags*

3. Kaysha Wallace x Leo Hamato: Now here's a ship that I want to get more into 😁😁 Honestly I love the idea of this pairing: the serious leadee x bubbly spirit! Kaysha is very perky yet understands Leo's feelings on shouldering so much responsibility (she being the oldest child in her family). She's very willing to support him because she doesn't want to see him get all weary from burden. Likewise Leo can be himself around her, and teach her to be more responsible. He doesn't doubt her potential and sees her as an equal even during those periods where she was not on par with the other ninja. Kaysha shows Leo it's okay to relax and let other people help him out and not shut everyone out. When Leo expresses his ability to give her a safe life she simply laughs it off; the way she sees it him simply there in her life is enough. The most interesting facet is their dynamic varies between shows, so you'd see different scenarios and reactions as well as similarities and differences in their romance subplot.

4. Artie x Rhodanthe: Another couple I seriously need to give more attention to, they're meant to be is the foil to Shrek and Fiona in several ways. Artie and Rho may come from different social classes but they're both searching for a purpose to prove their haters wrong. Artie lacked confidence while Rho was overconfident believing she didn't need help. Together Artie learns to stand up for not only for his kingdom and loved ones hut also for himself; Rho's pride gets tempered by Artie's kindness and willingness to compromise. Another thing I like is that Artie has someone who loves him for him not because he is attractive and of royal blood. Likewise Rho has someone who respects her in spite of her social standing & shares her beliefs in making life easier for the poor & outcasts. While both lacke the physical prowess of Shrek and Fiona they rely on each other's resourcefulness and strategic thinking to get by. Unlike Shrek and Fiona they don't get married at the end of their focus movie, resolving to figure out where to take their relationship next. They still have their own life goals and don't want to rush into a relationship which sends a pretty good message. However they have their disagreements - in fact they got a huge argument that became a plot point in Shrek Forever After - but through it all they rediscover the things that made them fall in true love with each other. I'm really loving the subplot I have planned where they forget their memories and slowly fall back in love again.

5. Finn x Alma: Surprise! Yes8 I have a Cars OC (that was originally a fanon Disney Princess) who is the niece of Tow Mater in my verse and she enters a relationship with Finn McMissile. The thing I love about this pair is that it allows Alma to use her skills to flourish, treating amd healing injured spies. She's also into travel and adventure so she can pretty much keep up with Finn. Likewise Finn realizes she is more than just a pretty face or a one-off fling but someone with the passion to face challenges head on; Finn seems to love a good challenge! But overall they'd make a nice pairing, Finn showing Alma the world and Alma showing Finn some of the more simpler things in life.

6. Alexander Paine & Qiu Jin: Well well well look at what the cat dragged in? If it isn't our first villain pairing? XD Just kidding only one half is a genuine villain. What makes this couple so unique in that their storyline goes way back to before the events of the show, he being a agent and she a mechanic. They loved each other deeply, even to the point of starting a family, but forced apart due to some troubling events. When they do get back together it's not so much a bittersweet reunion as Paine became a full villain and Qiu Jin had spent years in&out mental institution before being released There's visible pain & regret, Alexander desperately wanting a semblance of what they once had. He seeks power not just for himself for to heal her. But Jin refuses to go along with his schemes wanting nothing more than to move on and see their children. Jin is a huge Mortality Pet for him, but his own selfish desires for power is a major obstacle their love can't overcome. It's the more bittersweet of my pairings but an important one nonetheless.

7. Bruce Wayne x Nicola Holden: Ok the Brooding Guy/Gentle Girl trope is a mixed bag these days but I really like this trope in regards to Brucola. Like with Artie/Rho, Bruce and Nicola come from different social classes but has that same compassion and drive to help others. Nicola is someone Bruce can trust but at the same time she lets him know there are boundaries (aka don't use my weaknesses as a contingency plan). I also feel like Bruce needs a sort of normal love interest, while he has canon normal girlfriends most of them were pretty boring. At least with Nicola she has has a life outside being a love interest her own goals and motivations. She also loves Bruce for him, not because of his money and good looks. It's a generally healthy dynamic built on honesty & empathy. Another reason why I find this pair adorable is that it actually matches with the rest of the Trinity; you know, like how Superman is with a journalist and Wondy is with a soldier/agent. Nicola & Bruce having different ways of pursuing justice while still sharing similar moral codes. It helps that Nicola is actually a hero rather than an antihero/villain/straight villain (Bruce dating a villan would only make him look like a hypocrite). Nicola sees all facets of Bruce's life and makes the choice to stay; provides some much needed light not just in his life but also the rest of the Batfam. In turn Bruce has another connection to the normal world that is willing to be in his life and see him genuinely happy. They're mature adults who ground each other and build each other up.

8. Optimus Prime x Malina Lovelace: Okay is it just me or do I think TFA Optimus Prime needs more love? What's funny is that at first Malina didn't like the thought of being outshined by newcomers in her superhero career. Spending time with Optimus makes her realize that there's more to being a superhero than fame. Optimus doesn't look down on her, and is more than willing to work with her and appreciate her work. She becomes touched by his friendliness and aceepts him and the other Bots. At the same time Malina reminds Optimus that it's okay to make mistakes and move on, and that it's okay to cut toxic people out. I even wrote a noncanon ficlet where Malina calls out Sentinel and Blackarachnia for the way they treat Optimus. OptMalina is a romance built on respect despite the obvious differences. Not to mention they have each other's back, and they learn about each other each time. And just like with KayLeo and BatRose there's different continuities which means unique versions of the Optlina pair. The Bayverse *chortle* and Prime versions are a few I'd love to explore in the future!

Miscellaneous

- Chad Charming x Soraya Nedakh: Essentially snobby rich kid who learns to be self sufficient and see past appearances through a positive influence. Soraya helps Chad to understand that being royalty isn't just pretty clothes and parties but actually using that status to help others. And Chad actually has his views challenged: Soraya doesn't back down easily.

- Jetta x Zane: The concept of JettaZane (or A Touch Of Snow/IceMagic) is that the robot teaches the human what it's like to be human. Jetta started out as an extremely cold person and a loner, but her time with Zane - the literal ninja of ice - gradually melts her heart & she becomes more caring and accepting. So the robot programmed to be human helps the human raised to be a cold machine unlearn her toxic traits and reclaim her humanity. Also Pixane is kinda boring imo, like they're only together because they're both robots. Not very compelling if you ask me.

- Brian Crown x Kelly Arbol: The wellmeaning goofball and the beatnik poet are something I rarely see much of, but that pretty much sums up their ship. Brian may be a bit self centered but he has a heart of gold and through Kelly's influence he becomes more confident in being a worthy successor to his dad. Meanwhile Brian respects Kelly in and out costume and teaches her how to have fun. Not to mention Kelly interacts with someone outside her circle, which is a welcome change from the trope of only dating someone within your circle.

- Janus Lee x Lenora Rose: Another pair from the same show as Paine and Qiu Jin, there's not much to say on them other than it's one of the most tragic couples. Lenora died a long time ago due to circumstances beyond her & Mr. Lee's control and it's her death that was the catalyst to his gradual descent into evil. As the show goes on we see glimpses of their life together and realize that Lenora is more than the Ghost, she was someone with her own dreams and motivations. She and Janus were outcasts who found companionship in each other, and were able to build a life together using their hard-earned resources to help others. Even in the last few months of her life she didn't go down without a fight, wanting her legacy to be one of love and hope. It's her memory that may be the key to redeeming Mr. Lee in the future of A.T.O.M.

- Ben Florian x Paige: Again not much else to say but they're the antithesis of Mal x Ben. One thing that bothers me about Mal & Ben is that they are supposed to be equals when it's pretty darn obvious from the scenes they were not. With PaigeBen it's clear that they ARE equals who respect each other. Ben's agency isn't reduced to just love interest, he has someone he has good communication with and wants to see him succeed. Paige has someone who shares her interests and see her more than just that One American Newbie. They LEARN to work together without love potions involved. Plus we haven't had a commoner Disney Princess in a while so Paige fills in as someone who works her way into high status then uses that status to help others with Ben at her side.

That's enough of my Canon x OC OTPs! I hope to explore them more throughout the year :) I work hard to flesh out my OCs and their romantic storylines as if they're real 💚😌

I do have KayLeo week planned for Feb 14 to Feb 21 so don't be shocked when I start posting rottmnt stuff or art of Kaysha! Anyways these are my personal ships that I enjoy despite the lack of content I made of them, so hopefully I have the creative juices flowing to make more stuff! Final note I'm working on a platonic oc x canon meme to show that love doesn't have to be romantic. A

[theeeveetamer]

Alright y’all I’ve been watching more Project Runway.

Idea: Leo is on another season after his first (I don’t think he wins his first season, but he was good for ~D R A M A~ so they like to bring him back for All Stars and such).

Oh, and Takumi is one of the models for this particular season. I know that they only have female models to keep everything fair but let’s pretend for a moment. Best part? Leo doesn’t know about that until the first model fitting. Takumi keeps it majorly on the DL, partly because the show-runners want to surprise Leo for the ~D R A M A~ and partly because he really likes fucking with his boyfriend.

So they get to the workroom and someone is like “Hey Leo my model’s name is Takumi, weird coincidence, huh?”

EXCEPT THAT IT ISN’T

Oh, and of course since the models are assigned “randomly” Leo and Takumi don’t get paired up. Leo spends the entire first half of the season glaring over at whichever contestant got paired up with his boyfriend. The other designer even calls Takumi his muse and damn it! That’s Leo’s thing! That’s their thing! Nobody else gets to call Takumi their muse!

Leo actually does kind of poorly at the beginning, too, since his head is just not in the game. He’s in the bottom a few times, and mostly just “safe” otherwise. He and Takumi also aren’t allowed to talk outside of the work room, and when the models do come in Takumi is always busy getting fitted and it’s just so cruel to bring his boyfriend so close and not let them spend time together.

Then he was about to be eliminated, but the producers refused to let the judges vote him off because they needed some ~D R A M A~ and the next week they were doing a special challenge that he (and Takumi) needed to be around for.

And, let’s pretend for a second that marriage equality isn’t yet a thing in this AU...

You know Season 12 Episode 4? With the bow ties and raising money for marriage equality? Basically, that challenge happens, and it lights such a fire under Leo’s ass. He gets in the Top Three with an absolutely stunning outfit that’s kind of a take on traditional Japanese wedding attire. Takumi is also out on the runway during judging because the designer he was paired with also managed to make a pretty stellar garment.

The judges get to Leo and ask him what his inspiration was, and he mentions that Takumi used to joke about how he won’t marry Leo unless he was able make the clothes himself. Of course, Leo took this as a challenge and not only learned how to make western wedding clothes, but Japanese wedding clothes as well. For this garment he decided to take those skills and make something inspired by that mixing of cultures.

And then as he’s telling this story he starts getting choked up, because he’s been in love with Takumi for how many years and they still can’t get married? Takumi is on the other end of the runway trying to hold back tears, too, until he finally just can’t take it anymore and runs over to hug Leo.

After a few moments of them being absolutely adorable, the judges mention that all of their favorite pieces form Leo have had this sort of inspiration behind them. He tells them, completely seriously, that it’s because they’re inspired by his better half, and gods now Takumi is crying and his makeup is running and did Leo really just say all of that on national television?

Leo wins the challenge, obviously, and as a reward they let him trade models with any other contestant (originally this was not going to be part of the reward, but after that display? They just had to let them team up! It’s such good Television!) and Leo, obviously, decides to pick Takumi as his new model.

After that? He crushes the competition.

[foegold]

people be wanting to know about a lil blue bastard. this ones long as hell so its under the cut jsdhfg

Your character wasn’t an adventurer, what livelihood would they lead?

farmer! he’d just keep living the way he’d been living. it’s the sort of life he imagines he’ll return to one day, after he’s seen and done enough. ‘enough’ is a really arbitrary end goal though

Who in the party would your character trust the most with their life?

who in the party wouldn’t he trust with his life tbh. in the most literal sense he’d trust Eli with it just because he knows Eli can bring him back from dying in some stupid and ill-advised way

What are your character’s core moral beliefs?

frogs are good, try to be nice to people but if they’re mean to you first then at least a few bets are off, the rich should probably be eaten. killing is sometimes necessary but maybe try some other stuff first

What relationship does your character have with their parents and siblings?

he doesn’t have any siblings, and his relationship with his mom and recently present dad is. a little weird, and not all the way comfortable, and not like really bad, but just confusing? it’s confusing. at least he’s had more transparency from his mom recently than just about any other time. it’s a start

Does your character have any biases for or against certain races?

he trusts other tieflings a little quicker than other races but its not really saying much because he’s not smart and if you’re good at talking and sound like you know what you’re talking about he’ll just believe you. he doesn’t have the good sense to second think it without prompting

What is your character’s opinion on nobility? On authority?

so far just about every interaction with nobility has been messy or bad or scary or all three so right now the opinion is “not great”. also thats just too much money. whaddahell would you do with that much money.  he’s generally uneasy with authority figures at best, and flat out paralyzed by them at worst. he’s easy to bully when he doesn’t have anyone backing him up and he knows and hates it

Describe your character’s current appearance: clothes, armor, scars they’ve picked up along the journey, etc.

he cycles through an assortment of sweaters but the one he wears the most is the heart sweater he got in Wunjo that’s been altered a few times in the last few months. he do keep collecting those scars tho, before starting adventuring he had a handful of minor scars just from working around the farm with the animals and the equipment and from romping around in the country. now he’s got all sorts, but the most prominent ones are: the thin scar on the left side of his face, starting just below the eyebrow and curving gently below his eye (the last time Leo would leave a mark on him); the twisted angry scars across his torso from being mauled by a giant undead horse(?); and the fluid, patterned necromancy scars slowly spreading across his back, creeping along inch by inch

What location encountered in the campaign has your character felt the most “at home” in, or just generally liked the most?

besides his own house, Roman’s house has been the nicest! its warm and theres soup and friends there. there was a run down little ranch house somewhere at some point, but he’s not so sure anymore that he didn’t just dream about fixing the place up with his best friend

What deity, if any, does your character worship? What’s their opinion on other people’s worship?

he doesn’t have a god he actively worships, but he’s peripherally aware of the god in the mountains that’s responsible for some of the most brutal storms in the region. he doesn’t care much about religion but hes got the same amount of concern most people would have about evil deities and what their followers do

If your character had time to pick up any artisan’s tools, game set, instrument, etc., what would it be?

probably woodworking! its handy, it’s useful for living out in the country where you have to either make the tools or furniture or fun items to put on a shelf you want, or go out of your way and also spend money to get them. maybe an actual alchemy set and/or poison kit but 1) playing with poison just a fun hobby for him and Xan to get into when they have the time and the plants for it, and 2) man he wouldnt follow the instruction manual anyway so whats the point

What aspect of your character’s future are they most curious about? (If they could know one thing about the future, what would it be?)

will his friends be okay? will he be okay? is there an FAQ for tieflings learning that they’re much closer to fiend lineage than they originally thought? that would be convenient and helpful. is john gonna figure out more about the little men named ‘adam’ that’re allegedly everywhere?  if he could know one thing about the future, he’d like to know if everything will end out okay. if things will turn out as nice as he’d like them to.

What colors are associated with your character?

looks at the camera like im on the office

blue, white, and black are the big ones but im trying to pepper in a few other colors. reds and yellows are a close second

Who in the party would your character prioritize rescuing, in dire circumstances?

everyone sits squarely in the #1 spot on the rescue list

that aside john and roman are extremely high priority, they’re not the sturdiest and if something looked at them too hard they might keel over. baster and xan come next, he knows baster’s a shit brick house but he keeps seeing bad things happen to her and really hes just had Enough of it. eli’s a little lower priority because they can heal themselves if they’re in a tight spot, and then blu considers himself least concern. he knows he can get thrashed around some and still survive, he’d rather take a beating and know he’ll walk out of it than let someone else take it and wind up dead

Is your character the most swayed by ethos, pathos, or logos?

pathos, it’s easy to make him feel for u. legit any of them work though as long as you talk it up good enough he’ll believe you and if there aren’t any glaring conflicts between what you’re selling him and his base morals then it’s relatively easy to get him on board

If your character was granted a single use of Wish, what would they use it for?

idk probably something really simple that he put all of .5 of a second of thought into. hes not smart and doesnt have good foresight so he’d probably ask for a frog or smth unless there was something very much more pressing and present

What is your character’s favorite spell? If they don’t use spells: what is their favorite personal weapon/combat maneuver/skill/etc.?

favorite(?) spell is life transference. it hurts a bit but it keeps his friends safe so it’s worth it. invisibility is up there too, its fun and easy to steal from stores when ur not visible

How does your character feel about keeping secrets from the rest of the party?

he doesn’t like lying and also lies really poorly. he’s usually just honest from the get-go, its easier and feels better. if he has to lie its through omission, bold faced lies really just dont work

What type of creature in the world is your character the most intrigued by?

all sorts....bro the world is full of animals and lots of them like to be pet

When they were a child, what did your character want to be, or think they were going to be, when they grew up?

he thought he’d grow up and be a farmer like his mom, the adventuring thing was extremely unplanned and impromptu. he hoped he could be a kind and brave person though, the way Canna described his dad.

The player character to your left admits that they’re passionately in love with your character. How would your character respond?

random roll says it’s Roman, he’d probably laugh because the only reason that would happen is because the party is fooling around with potions again. Roman’s very married and very in love with his husband and makes sure everyone knows it all the time

If somebody (an NPC, someone from their backstory, etc.) your character trusts/loves asked your character to do something against the party’s best interest, who would they side with?

that doesn’t seem like a very viable circumstance, the only npc thats important enough that he’d listen to for something like that is his mom and she actively encourages him to take care of himself and his friends, and lets him make his own decisions about what he’s doing with his life, so

What unusual talents does your character possess?

idk if its all that unusual of a talent but he got really good at stealing and pickpocketing and he can do a sick flip. also does some black magic sometimes

What does your character’s name represent to them? (Or: why as a player did you choose your character’s name?)

it’s his name, u kno. bluebell is his middle name, but Canna called him bluebell growing up and he latched onto it a lot more than arden, and he thinks its a nice name, and a nice flower, and it sure would be nice if people would stop laughing when he introduces himself as “Blu”,

(blu was originally a stand-in name until i named him something else but it really grew on me and it fit him so! it didnt change, he just got other names too)

What major arcana tarot card best represents your character?

The Moon. 👀

What is your character’s relationship with magic? Are they scared of it, wish to know more about it, indifferent to it?

he’s def scared of magic sometimes, especially his own. he also really wants to understand it better though, and be less scared, or at least control it better. imo it’s a healthy fear, theres been lots of magic mishaps 

How did your character learn the languages that they speak?

he learned common and infernal from mom! and he’s learning draconic from xan. it’s a nice downtime activity, sit down with ur best friend and homie and learn a new language just for fun

[a-cai-jpg]

if you’ll stay with me, we can rewrite the rules of the universe

"does she have to go away? can't they just live together happily?" - director son, melo is my nature

there's an idiom in chinese that i think about a lot.

天下没有不散的酒席

the first time i heard it, it was season 2 of a drama i loved as a kid--three years old, sitting too close to an old, heavy color television, my cousin warm by my elbow, and my grandmother's voice drifting in from the kitchen.

(it's a technicolor memory, filtered a little yellow with age.)

season 3 of this drama is something i try to never watch.

first of all, they changed the cast, and even though leo ku is a beautiful man, he couldn't replace the legend, alec su.

(we don't talk about the new female lead.)

second of all, shit hits the fan and the character i loved the most becomes the character i hated the most.

third of all,

the idiom becomes true.

(there is no such thing as a banquet that never ends.)

see, the drama is about two girls who meet each other in historical beijing and become sworn sisters despite being polar opposites of each other. where one is gentle and demure, the other is reckless and brash. one of them (guess which?) happens to be the long-lost daughter of the sitting emperor. the other girl promises to help her reach her father. after a series of unfortunate events, the emperor crowns the wrong girl as princess. season 1 is about the fake princess sneaking the real princess into the palace, their struggles with palace life and figuring out a way for the emperor to recognize his real daughter without executing his fake one, and them falling in love--one with the 5th prince and the other with a son of a palace official.

eventually, the misunderstandings are addressed, and the emperor realizes he loves both girls too much to have harm come to either of them, so he recognizes both as his daughters. more things happen, but eventually, the two girls get married, and it's happily ever after.

BUT.

but they decided to make a season 3.

(in hindsight, it makes sense, because the non-blood related princess could have never lived a happy life caged in the palace, but it's nice to dream ok)

season 3 ends with the non-blood related princess and the prince she marries (my childhood crush) leaving the palace for good, and thereby giving up the throne, to live in yunnan. many, many years later, a carriage arrives at their tea field, and it's the emperor visiting them during the last years of his very long reign.

even writing this really poorly-articulated synopsis can bring me to tears. it's not an ending i can watch without crying.

(i can still see the ending in my mind's eye. the scarf around her hair, the basket of tea leaves by her side, the sound of children laughing and the carriage rolling to a stop. they see erkang first. yongqi and xiao yanzi greet him and their laughter is wild from happiness. but then erkang lifts the curtain to the carriage, and the emperor steps down from the coach.)

(the moment yongqi drops to his knees and says 皇阿玛 is usually when i start bawling.)

(the end end is them riding the carriage together, singing, and the words 全剧终  appear on screen, and you can almost fool yourself into believing that the carriage just continues on until they are back in the palace, ten years into the past.)

i like endings where everyone stays in one place.

senior year of high school, i watched a drama where the ending was a group of friends, who had bound together to conquer evil, literally all going their own ways and the main character dying, and i was so traumatized, i cried for three hours, shakily typing up my english essay through a curtain of tears until 6am in the morning.

when i finally went to bed the following night, i rewrote the ending in my head.

maybe because i was so tired, or maybe because the pain was too raw and not something i wanted to face, i managed to convince my sleep-addled brain that the drama actually ended with the female lead gathering the remnants of the male lead's soul, finding an elder in the snow-capped mountains (which is the setting where the drama leaves us), bringing him back to life, and the two of them returning home, where their friends have gathered to welcome him back.

this remains my most successful daydream yet (nightdream?), because i can still see the fabricated scenes play out in my head, the imagined emotions on the actor's faces, the ghost of a soundtrack playing in the background.

there's still a very, very large part of me that likes for everyone to stay in one place. 

but maybe it's getting used to reality, or maybe it's me viscerally feeling how difficult it is to stay in a place for too long, i've slowly started to accept people dispersing.

i used to not understand those scenes in dramas where old friends who have moved away come to visit the main character for just one afternoon, because in my head, i would always think wow, i would've had them stay. my friends would've stayed the week.

but see, time doesn't move in a way that lets us stroll in the past for a very long time. now, i'm grateful for the hours taken out of a night to meet with familiar faces and make plans for a future we know might not happen. i swallow the faint wrenching feeling when we bid goodbye, and continue my own solitary journey home, and through life.

but in the end, we move through the world alone and with nothing.

there's still a very, very large part of me that likes for everyone to stay in one place, but i'm guilty of leaving.

you'd think after four years, i'd be used to not knowing what home is, but i'm still a little scared of going away.

i don't know what i'll do with my room when i do. i don't know what to do with the posters on the walls (magazines cut-outs from high school still posted above the living room desk that has long not been mine), or my mountain of books that spill into every room in the house, or my keyboard sitting heavily above my bureau, or my guitar stashed by my closet, or my upright.

i don't know when i'll play my upright again, and that thought in itself really hurts.

i used to do this thing where i count the number of hours i'll be able to spend time with another person. i used to do it with my grandparents and it's honestly the most painful exercise of all time.

i try not to do it now, and as i write this, i'm actively pushing the process out of my mind, because i know i'll be able to calculate the number of hours left i can live in this house.

in my final story for my creative writing project, someone says this to the main character, "You were banking on us to preserve this idealistic vision of the past--to stay the same--so that when you got tired of being an adult, you could return home to us. But, we were growing too. Maybe we were growing in tandem with each other, but out of sync with you."

this is a line buried in the text among many other sentences that i think are a lot more beautiful. but, this is the line that took me over two weeks to write. for the first time, i tried to put the anxiety and regret i felt for four years into words. 

(that sort of reckoning is akin to pulling out your chordae tendineae through your esophagus and wrestling them into something worth presenting to the world.)

see, i want to experience the world, get to know foreign lands over the period of a couple of years, call the hidden corners of large cities home, visit mountain tops and build a life there, but i don't want the world to change.

part of it is because if it does, i'll never get to know the world. the japan i'll see in the future will never be the japan i saw last year and the japan i missed this year.

part of it is because life is a long, tiresome process of getting used to the new. as i grow up and out of this two-story condo, i am constantly having to digest this larger, more nuanced picture of the world. but, sometimes i get tired and i want to fall back on something familiar.

sometimes, that something familiar changes, and you're left utterly, completely alone.

i'm more used to this process now. i'm no longer so bothered by it that i balk at the idea of my parents moving.

i still feel unsettled when i think about the coming four years and the years after that and the notion that really, this bed i'm sleeping in is not going to be my bed anymore.

and this time, it seems like it will be permanent.

i was watching this variety show with a singer i like very much yesterday night, laughing and crying, and wrote this next bit in chinese.

i'll translate it here.

hua chenyu is a very peculiar existence in my heart.

i don't particularly love his voice, but i view his music as a sort of standard for all pop music. he has changed a lot since 2013, when he first debuted, but he still has this aura of aloofness, maybe because of his single-minded obsession with music.

but, when i saw him lift his head to look at his college bandmates on a large screen, over a webcam, the love and happiness in his slightly reddened eyes were indisputable. in that moment, the look of nostalgia and wistfulness in his gaze suddenly made me think that he's grown up a little, aged a little.

(this following part i wrote in english)

they performed a song they used to play a lot in college over some sort of webcamming interface.

but, see, there is a difference.

i used to think that it didn't matter how far away my friends were from me, because technology has taken distance and shrunken it to a few lines of text or a phone call. but, there's something irreplaceable about the voice of a person you love without the tinny grain of the mic, about the warmth of another someone next to you that you can lean against. 

sometimes, we are lucky and for a few years of our lives, we have someone who can understand the messy scrawl over a few pages of our stories. sometimes, we are lucky, and that someone takes up chapters and arcs.

(isn't that a very nice thought.)

(华晨宇在我心中是一个很神奇的存在。我并不是特别喜欢他的声音，可是我就是会以他的音乐为目标，为典范。他从2013年 刚开始参加快男到现在 变了很多。但他一直有一种拒人于千里之外的感觉， 也许是因为他对音乐的执着。可是当我看见他抬头看着在屏幕上的大学乐队成员。。。他泛红眼里的爱和快乐是不可忽视的。在那一瞬间 他眼中的留恋突然让我觉得他好像长大了一点，老了一点。)

(i'm like weirdly proud because i couldn't have written this two years ago. see, reading in a different language really helps you learn that language. too bad my students never LiStEnEd.)

(i realize i talk about this creative writing story a lot. it's because it is my story. the story of me and my largest 心结. something like that.)

(maybe i'll post it one day.)

(or maybe not.)

song rec: kevin oh - mortifying love

glossary: the first drama mentioned is 还珠格格 (princess returning pearl erkang = son of the palace official, married to the blood related princess yongqi = 5th prince, one of the most tragic existences in chinese history xiao yanzi = the princess returning pearl, the non-blood related princess, married to yongqi 皇阿玛 = in the qing dynasty, princes and princesses who were sons and daughters of the emperor had to call their father by this greeting 全剧终 = the end the second drama mentioned is 古剑奇谭·(legend of the ancient sword) 心结 = literally, heart knot. i don’t know how to translate it, but i liken it to the freudian concept of a fixation...? 

[robertisbisexual]

I see all these will sonny Paul stuff on your blog and have no idea what happened. What’s the story there? Who’s who? Who forgot about who? I’m sorry this is just me being so confused! X

Welcome to a crash course in gays of our lives anon [because days doesnt know what a bisexual is or a wlw tbh]

also NEVER APOLOGIZE i love talking about Paul and Will and sometimes Sonny.

So

Will is the blond man, Paul is the Asian man, and Sonny is obviously the remaining man.

Will and Sonny were the big ship back in the day and represented a lot of firsts in terms of queer rep in daytime soaps.  And for the most part they had a pretty good relationship [theres the whole Will not coming out right away and managing to knock up Gabi thing but ultimately their trio parenting is very cute and I like their family so \ o/ ]

Now Chandler [the blond man in all the gifs i reblogged] decided to leave and they recasted the character. It was... a choice that some liked and some didnt. I didnt really have strong feelings on it because I barely watched at that time and I never really cared about Wilson all that much.

But you see days is a soap that LIVES on love triangles [if you dont have some sort of relationship drama youre probably only gonna be on screen one day a week tbh] and so eventually they brought in Paul.

I am very Paul biased and I aint sorry about it.

Paul was introduced as a closeted major league baseball player in Salem for a fancy surgery and we eventually found out he was [in a retcon i believe] Sonnys first love but they broke up cuz he wouldnt come out etc etc. It caused some drama llama because days is gonna days.

Eventually Will banged Paul for the scoop story on him being a gay man and cheated on Sonny to do so and then when Sonny and Will were i think broken up and definitely not in a good place period the show decided “lets murder will and let the viewers see it from his POV”

It did not go over well. Like not even with just fandom it went over bad everywhere because Will was a legacy character people watched grow up and is a child of two of the most important families in Days history and it was... the worst. just a dumb dumb thing [side note he was kinda murdered by Ben, current days heartthrob fgdsdsgdf]

So in the wake of that Paulson rose from dead Wilson ashes. And people loved it! Like ok sure not all wilson fans loved it because shippers and monoshipping but the general audience loved the the sl and Paul.

It lasted ... years. like the build to them getting married was LONG.

And then we found out Chandler was coming back because the only thing days loves more than love triangles is bringing someone back from the dead. So surprise Ben didnt actually kill will because a magic days potion thing saved him? just made him seem dead? idk its confusing.

Ben crashed a wedding and yelled about Will being alive and even tho Wilson weren't even together when Will died and we’d spent years now watching Sonny fall big time loe in love with Paul the SECOND he heard Will was alive it was like Paul whomst?

A buncha angst happened, paul looked sad alot, and they found Will alive only Will thought he was EJ [his step dad, its a long story] and had no memories of anyone. People convinced him to move back to Salem and to try and remember and in a big ass disservice to Sonnys character the writers made him a lil turd bucket who dumps Paul and then just sorta assumed him and Will will be together.

Except amnesia Will had only one goal in his newly discovered new/oldlife: to get smashed into next year by beautiful Paul.

This man literally divorced [idk how you need to get divorced when youve been declared legally dead and Sonny was literally about to get married a few weeks prior but whatever days you do you] sonny for a CHANCE at that sweet sweet paul action.

Paul was VERY hesitent about Will because he still loved Sonny and even if Sonny didnt want to be with him he didnt want to hurt Sonny. IMO the writing for Sonny here is awful tbh and they made him both way to aggressive in his attempts to be with Will and cold in his treatment of Paul. It was like a light switch got flipped from “loves paul” to “loves will” and there was no inbetween [this is an issue they duplicated with Will months later and it was imo just as poorly done]

What came next was Paul and Will growing closer and fallin in love and I WOULD LITERALLY DIE FOR THEM but like even the most diehard horita shipper knew that eventually will x sonny would happen.

And not too long after Will and Paul shared the i love yous and basically moved in together etc etc Will started his journey of recovering his memories and Paul was CLEARLY nervous about it but supportive and helpful because hes just a soft good human tbh and Will repeatedly told him nothing would change [but we knew rip]

Except as soon as Will got his full memories back he had that light switch flip himself and literally seconds after having memories back was like “time to dump paul“

except dumbass paul with a heart of gold literally tackled someone out a window of a mansion to save Wills mom from being hurt and ended up paralyzed because apparently days only knows how to write men of color out by paralyzing them [ because they LITERALLY just did this exact exit with another character not even a year before this but i digress] so Will felt guilty and stayed with Paul, though not too guilty because he kept making out with Sonny in public places and getting reamed for it by Pauls brother Brady.

Then Paul ... figured it out? Or Will finally fessed up I cant really remember tbh I sorta blocked it out because it was ...not well written. Anyways they broke up and literally a day later Paul was like ok bye dad and brother im moving back to san fran for fancy medical treatment see ya whenever and just left lmao without even saying goodbye to anyone else.

and now we’re at the point where days clearly has no idea what to do with only 2 gay men and no triangle because all they've done since Paul left is that Sonny was blackmailed into marrying guest character Leo, also a gay man, who they thought they’d killed months before [and paul helped them cover up I believe because he's perfect] but surprise you didnt and now you gotta be married and stay apart because... reasons.

And then Leo finally left and they were free of that only now Will has a brain tumor as a side effect form the magic serum stuff that gave him his memories back but they’re only ever on like one day a week and I gotta be honest its so boring anon.

I miss Paul and also Will's personality and I wish they’d both come back.

and that’s what you missed on glee.

[royal-writer]

Challenger

sometimes you gotta put a bitch in their place

-

“I can’t believe this is who you hire for experts, Asher.”

Pretending that he had not overheard the whispered fury of the man’s voice, Amon settled himself on one knee before the dead body. Who could blame the old man for his words? He’d thought the very same thing when he’d begrudgingly employed these over-exuberant strangers in his territory to reclaim his manor. Then it had been a hopeless cause that he dared to believe could be solved so that he could return to his estate once more.

It took time to understand their character, and each of their strengths. As individuals maybe they had their niche, but were otherwise small cogs. Together, they formed clockwork; each piece of the puzzle put together to make something more spectacular. Stronger than before, when they could actually function as a coherent team.

Reaching for the man’s gaping mouth, the nobleman carefully removed the crushed petals of the bloom left behind by the assassin. It had already began to wilt; making the edges brown, but the color was still sharp and vibrant elsewhere. A spiraling hue, from pink to red and orange hues the further out from the center its petals stretched. Lengthy yellow pollinating anthers in the center had already collapsed as the flower began its decaying process.

“I haven’t paid them a single coin, I swear,” one man hissed back to another.

Ignoring the rising tone of bickering, Amon grimaced to himself. He turned a glance over to the paladin who had taken a knee closest to him, but he didn’t seem to catch the gesture. Abernathy was grimacing prominently as he studied the deceased’s wounds; clearly made by some sort of blade judging by the slash and stab marks.

“Careful what you touch there,” a deep rumbling voice warned from behind.

Caught off guard, Amon looked over his shoulder at the younger man staring down at him. The lad crossed his arms tightly before his fine expressively colorful sleeveless outfit and stuck out his chin with youthful arrogance.

He snorted. “If you’re concerned about the planets toxicology rest assured: it’s harmless.”

One short, fuzzy haired elf leaned over the corpse uncomfortably in his space. “Ooooh. It’s pretty. What is it?”

Leaning away from Ravamora, Amon cleared his throat and uncomfortably straightened his jerkin. “It’s a Brimstone Phoenix. They’re a very rare flower, only growing in volcanic ashes in a few places in the world.”

“What’s one doing why out here?” Penimra wondered aloud on all of their behalves. “There’s no volcanoes around here for thousands of miles. What sort of custom tells you to shove rare flowers in some dead guy’s mout,h anyway?”

“I think it’s some sort of cult sign, not some sort of honor, Pen,” Adela gently whispered, her eyes round and wide.

“Or ritualistic, in some manner,” Abe agreed softly, staring into the departed’s clouded green eyes. “It is an identifying calling card though. Have any of you seen any other bodies like this?”

Three of the four men huddled around them shook their heads slowly. The fourth; and youngest of them with his arms still crossed, merely pouted like a sulking child. He unfolded his arms to ruffle his long wavy hair absently with a hand, the startling cyan color of his glowing eyes moving over each of the party members. The freckles on his deep chocolate skin shimmered faintly like miniature stars scattered across his body; a trait of clear angelic bloodlines.

“This would be the second I’ve heard of, actually. First I’ve seen, but the Fentonwithers’s further out of town called in the constable a few weeks back about a strange dead body.”

“We need to pay them a visit,” Sulhadur declared, quick to stand.

“Speakin’ of pay,” coughed an older one, wringing his hands. “We ah… We don’t really have the means to fund you upfront-”

“The mayor should though-” another quickly jumped in.

A comically well-timed screech of cawing laughter escaped the resident crow, and Amon flinched at the ghastly sound. Adela shrank back a bit sheepishly, trying to shush K’varr from his dark humor. All of the surrounding townsfolk looked startled from the sudden volume compared to previous whispers.

“Paynet will not be necessary,” Pri’cha reassured them gently, clasping their small hands together. “Nee have the gratitude, and that is thanks enough. Pelor will shine Their light upon us for our deeds, and that is fortune enough.”

“See granddad,” one man quietly murmured, nudging an older folk. “They’re just helpful travelers; no pay necessary.”

“There’s always pay to be had, boy,” the old man coldly replied, his sharp eyes meeting Amon’s as he glanced quizzically up to the whispering pair. Embarrassed to be caught in conversation, the younger of the two gossiping men turned away, but the elder held his eyes like a challenge.

A twisted feeling curled in his stomach, and Amon turned away. There was something familiar and malicious about the man’s approach that rubbed raw an old stinging wound.

Standing up to brush off her slacks at his other side, Essätha let out a heavy sigh. “How far’s travel on horseback are the Fentonwither’s?”

One of the men rubbed their hairy chin. “Only a couple hours; shouldn’t be a long trek. I wouldn’t go out past dark mind you, just to be safe.”

“We’ll be fine,” Sulhadur assured the man. Amon almost had to laugh at the calm enthusiasm of the Dragonborn. Out of the whole of the party, only himself and Sul lacked the power to see well in the dark, and he was boosting so proudly they’d be fine?

The young Aasimar; pushing back his wavy hair so his striking eyes and the angular lines of his face were easy to view, stepped forward with an air of importance. “There should be room in our barn for the lot of you-”

“A barn?!” Penimra shrieked, mortified and balking as he interrupted. “I’d rather risk the rickety wagon ride!”

“We could probably accommodate some of you,” the young man irritably countered. The warlock high-elf instantly inclined himself in the well-built man’s direction, but his eyes moved to train directly upon Essie with a smile full of teeth and smoldering eyes.

“A fantastic rare beauty so fine should not be designated to sleep with the riffraff, after all.”

The absurdity! The tasteless form! Amon’s jaw locked; his stomach twisting at the nerve of the man. Such poor manners; coquetting before a corpse.

To the relief of his rising blood pressure, Essie took a meek step back and out of the range of the man’s body as he leaned into her orbit. She cleared her throat respectfully, tilting her head.

“That’s very kind of you, but as part of the riffraff, I am inclined to stay with them.”

“My apologies!” The man sang, raising his hand with a short laugh. “I meant the animals in the barn ma’am, not your fine compatriots here. I understand that Yuan-Ti prefer the warm, do they not? I haven’t met any in person.”

He could see the immediate reaction in Essätha’s posture at the mention of her heritage. She shrank further back, her lips in a tightly forced smile. It was as fake as the man’s attempts to play cool his intentions.

“Leave her be, Leo, we got other priorities.”

The Aasimar shrugged nonchalantly, turning to follow one of the other men. “I’m available, if you change your mind. I will happily lend my warmth to a cold blooded babe anytime.”

His ears were ringing. Amon’s teeth locked, grinding, a muzzled dog ready to rip off the restraints and bite. The innocence of the man’s playful wink as he blindly ignored the discomfort in Essätha’s posture had his head pounding with the beat of his racing pulse. She didn’t look just uneasy and insulted now; she looked humiliated and miserable.

Was he overreacting? He planted his feet, trying to assess the need to see blood and feel throbbing pain in his knuckles from hitting the man square in the jaw. He couldn’t think straight. All he wanted to do was hurt, and be hurt.

He’d insulted and hurt Essie’s feelings.

Amon glanced to her, looking for something. Approval?

She was staring off to the side, weary and clammed up.

It was a challenge for her heart. A poorly executed one, but still an opposition.

The nobleman swallowed the rolling anger that threatened to claw out of his throat like a battle cry. It was a battle worth having.

Reaching out for Essie’s hand, he cleared his throat. “Are you alright…?”

The relief in her smile undid him. She reached for his hand, speaking softly, “Yes. Unsettled, but okay. Thank you, m’lord.”

She stepped closer. While the buzzing background noise of debate and questioning continued between some of the gentleman, Essätha slid his arm around her waist to press into the open space at his side. It was enough to labor his breathing, her hand overlapping his, her hip pressed to his own, the smell of honey and flowers in her hair.

He caught sight of the Aasimar; eyes darting from the man he was speaking with towards them, scowling.

Feeling a peculiar swell of pride and confidence, Amon pressed Essätha a little tighter into his side, whispering softly in her ear, “Is this okay?”

“Mmmm,” she hummed gratefully, leaning her head against his collarbone.

“Do you want me to go speak with him? You deserve an apology.”

“Thank you, but no, m’lord. This is fine.”

Grimacing, the Aasimar was quick to turn away.

A small victory. Amon relished it regardless, resting his chin lightly atop her head while pretending to tune back into discussion. He was still fighting to find his own worthiness to earn her love. He wasn’t going to let Essätha slip out of his grasp without at least putting his best forward and hoping that, in the end, she choose him, for he’d already chosen her.

[rwdestuffs]

How the show fails at being bad at power escalation.

Generally speaking, Power Escalation is what happens when you have a villain that has to be overpowered in order to defeat. So, by virtue of the heroes increasing their own power level, they can then defeat them.

If the series continues, in order for the next big bad to feel like a threat, the creator(s) typically introduce a new threat that is even more powerful than the heroes. This can eventually lead to the heroes going from Martial Arts to firing beams of energy that can destroy planets, or a show about people with magical ninja powers going to gargantuan avatars that can level mountains, to even something as simple and straightforward as a gang of pirates with a few interesting abilities turning into a series where having the power to destroy a mountain is normal. It basically becomes an absurd escalation of power that makes it harder to get invested because the series is likely to repeat the same formula until it becomes too crazy to follow the levels of power that the characters are throwing around.

In layman’s terms, it becomes: We just overpowered the big bad! Now we gotta do the same with the new big bad! We gotta get to a higher power level!

Now, rw/by is a show that succeeds at avoiding this for the wrong reasons. This isn’t like a franchise that started as a man trying to defeat undead foes with a magical breathing technique that eventually evolved into people wielding invisible ghost beings that punched things really hard and fast. This is a show that started as a group of schoolkids trying to save the world to……… a bunch of schoolkids trying to save the world on the road!

Unlike Jojo, which avoids this problem completely by starting each new part with a new protagonist (video detailing that here) in a new setting, rw/by fails at this because the villains remain at the same or similar power level as the heroes.

This creates a problem because they mentioned that Semblances can evolve. We have yet to see that sort of evolution in the show proper. Ruby’s semblance hasn’t evolved from super speed (or rose petals (whatever the f*ck that means)) to teleportation. Blake’s semblance hasn’t evolved  from making shadow clones to making tangible clones. Yang’s semblance hasn’t evolved from turning physical pain into power into using preexisting pain into physical power. Nora’s semblance hasn’t evolved from lighting absorption into non-physical energy absorption. Ren’s hasn’t evolved from Emotion Masking to invisibility. Qrow’s hasn’t evolved from Bad Luck to probability manipulation. Raven’s hasn’t evolved from making portals to people she’s bonded with to making portals to anyone/portals to any location that she’s seen before. Emerald’s semblance hasn’t evolved from illusions to straight-up mind control/physical constructs.

In short; the characters’ powers have yet to evolve.

But you might have noticed that I didn’t include Weiss or Jaune on this list.- That’s pretty straightforward. Weiss learned how to summon, and that was an interesting jump in power. Unfortunately, that ability became completely negated and useless when Vernal destroyed her knight.

As for Jaune……… He just recently unlocked his semblance. There’s no real narrative reason for his power to escalate as of yet. Maybe in Volume 9, but we’ll see. But by that point, everyone else’  semblance should have also grown.

There isn’t even a growth in strategy. Jaune is as hotheaded as he was before, Yang’s fighting style only added kicks to her arsenal, and that’s about it. Weiss has completely forgotten how to use her rapier when Volume 5, and that’s a nerf.

Nerfing characters to make the big bad seem more intimidating doesn’t work. It doesn’t make the big bad look powerful, it just makes whichever character you decided to nerf look stupid.

Imagine for a moment, that a bad guy is about to sneak up on an innocent, and Spider-Man can’t get to him in time. In a normal situation, Spidey would use his webbing to disarm the bad guy, and deck him for trying to hurt a bystander.

But let’s say that Spidey instead tries to run towards his foe, and doesn’t make it in time. That doesn’t make the new bad guy faster than Spider-Man, it just makes Spider-Man seem stupid. Unless it was mentioned earlier that Spidey had run out of web-fluid and didn’t have enough time to reload, that scene would just make Spidey look like a total moron.

That’s what the current series feels like. Instead of the bad guys actually feeling like a threat, it just feels more like the good guys are just getting stupider.

Unlike having bad Power Escalation in the sense of “The big bad beat the city-block busting hero because they can bust entire cities,” it’s bad in the sense of “The big bad beat this character, because said character somehow forgot how to fight with their weapon.” There’s nothing at stake, and it makes the characters hard to root for when they make multiple stupid decisions after stupid decision.

Weiss once used her Glyphs to unleash what is effectively Death of a Thousand Cuts on a White Fang goon back in Volume 2. That hasn’t shown up again. She doesn’t even bother trying against Vernal in Volume 5, where it could have been a viable option. And even if it failed, it would showcase the difference in power that the two combatants had. It would showcase Vernal as a clear threat if one of Weiss’ better fighting moments in Volume 2 proved ineffective, and it showcased exactly why Weiss tried nothing but summoning. Would the summoning still prove to be useless?- Yes, most likely.- But at least then, it wouldn’t look like Weiss dropped a few levels in the intelligence department just to have Vernal beat her.

The very little power Escalation that we do get doesn’t even work properly. Despite being completely new to the whole idea of fighting, Oscar somehow manages to defeat Leo in a single shot!- That’s the villains getting knocked down a few power levels, not the heroes rising a few levels in power.

Escalation works in the sense of characters rising in power. Not a character being nerfed to ‘showcase’ another character’s progress. Imagine if Vegeta managed to beat Goku only because Goku forgot or couldn’t go Super Saiyan Blue!- Not only would that not be a victory in Vegeta’s favor, it would be a stupid way for Vegeta to win and a direct insult to his fans who want to see him surpass Goku.

Power escalation doesn’t even have to work in the way of characters getting stronger!- It could also work in the sense of creativity, but even that isn’t utilized as much as it should be. Imagine if Blake could use the momentum from her Shadow Clones to get in some extra speed for an attack. Imagine if Yang used the knockback of her weapons for a quick boost of power. Imagine if Nora developed a technique that would create a small tremor to shake the ground to  disorient her opponents. How about Ruby using her speed semblance the same way comic speedsters do, and using it to create tornadoes? How about Weiss being more creative with the variety of Glyphs she’s got like we saw back in Volume 2?- While weapons themselves are dangerous, it has the potential to be even more dangerous depending on who is using them.

Take Okuyasu from Diamond is Unbreakable, for example. Having the ability to swipe things out of existence is deadly and dangerous. But because Okuyasu is an idiot, he doesn’t use it to it’s fullest extent. He’s still creative with it though, like how he uses the ability to erase the space and air between himself and his foe to close the distance between them and get in some melee strikes. While that is creative, it’s not dangerous, because if Okuyasu was smart enough to realize that he could just erase his opponents’ heart(s), well…

(Look, I wanted at least one image in this post, and this was the most natural place I could find for it)

Or take Chazz Princeton (Jin Manjome in the original dub) against his brother Slade (Chosaku in the original dub) from Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. Chazz using weaker monsters in creative ways so that he ultimately wins (spoiler?- It’s been over ten years since the episode debuted in the English dub (Dailymotion link)).

In a series about a card game can show off creative ways of using monsters that would be normally considered ‘weak’ and ‘unusable’ to win (Chaos Necromancer and Relinquished was in the well that he found for the restrictions that he had, what were the original wielders of those cards thinking?- Did they not have the required ritual for Relinquished or something?), a show about fights with interesting transforming weapons, super powers that are manifestations of the soul, and so many other things……… can’t be bothered to have the characters get creative with their movesets.

Where are the moments where Raven or Qrow use their bird forms in combat?

I mean, they showed a few faunus creatively using their faunus traits in combat situations, so why can’t the other characters do the same with their powers and weapons?

Ilia uses her color change to blend into the shadows (even though that really shouldn’t have worked for so many reasons), that bat guy (Yuma, I think was his name) used his wings to move around faster, that spider-lady pulled a Spider-Man and ensnared Blake with her webbing, and (most notably) Tyrian incorporated his tail into his attacks. I can understand faunus like Blake, Velvet, or Sun not using theirs (as they’re more or less useless in combat scenarios), but why can’t there be more characters like this?

This is what I mean when I say that rw/by avoids the Power Escalation trope poorly. Instead of the new big bad using different tactics, or having a different fighting style, the end solution is always the same: beat, cut, slash, and stab the crap out of them until they either surrender or are dead. Typically it is the heroes that need to change tactics, learn a new technique, or gain more power to defeat the big bad. But they just use the powers that they already have to defeat the big bad no matter what. There’s no change in tactics, nor is there any notable growth in power. They just beat them because they’re the Protagonists™.

[joannalannister]

Ladies in Waiting

@blenderbender1811​ submitted:

Your blog made me realize what a serious dearth of female friendships and ladies in waiting there were in the series, especially when by all rights they SHOULD exist. So here is my list thus far. Some of them are existing characters but some are straight up inventions for the campaign because otherwise I’d basically be using every female noble character in the books (because GRRM doesn’t have nearly as many noblewomen around).

It looks really cool! 

I also included a little bit about brief personality sketches, their main duties (since ladies-in-waiting often have at least one prominent job) and a tiny bit about how each region views ladies-in-waiting. I decided that most of the ladies-in-waiting situations for the campaign would be ladies in great houses, with other noblewomen having the possibility of having some, but not necessarily guaranteeing it (so we don’t have to deal with every noble daughter ever ending up someone’s lady).

I should probably also note that the campaign starts about a year or two before the events of the series, just to give the players some breathing room to get used to the campaign before the action of the series starts. It’s not a strictly canon compliant game - it’s largely based in book canon, but I’ve added elements from the show, video games, etc. that don’t contradict the books outright as well as thrown in a few twists to prevent my players from just looking at the canon and spoiling what will happen (assuming their actions don’t drive the plot out of whack anyways which knowing them they very well might). 

I see ladies-in-waiting as being very Andal in origin. It fits in with the Andal ideas of culture and court. However, unlike knighthood, it’s not bound in rules to the Seven and ladies-in-waiting have practical uses like acting as secretaries or running messages, so I can see the concept spreading to the Isles and the North (albeit, in smaller numbers). Kind of like tourneys - they started with the Andals, but you don’t have to BE of Andal origin (or the Faith) to have them around.

CROWNLANDS: 

The main women who would have ladies-in-waiting in the Crownlands would be the Queen (in this case Cersei) and any little Princesses (Myrcella). Since Myrcella’s only like 7, her handmaidens are more like either play mates or babysitters depending on how old they are. I figure that the Royal family should probably have the most handmaidens/ladies-in-waiting out of anybody…which means they have a LOT because Margaery brought a butt load with her as part of her Tyrell retinue (and since some of them left post-wedding, I’m assuming they’re not meant to be her maids when she’s Queen necessarily). Cersei’s are mostly from the West, and the West is well represented in Myrcella’s group as well, but since they are royalty, their ladies are more spread out.

Cersei Lannister’s Ladies-in-waiting

 - Bernadette Lannister: I can’t leave out Bernadette the maid. ;) She’s either a cousin (from one of Joanna’s siblings) or a Lannister of Lannisport, I haven’t decided yet. Possibly engaged, very good at keeping Cersei’s secrets. Mostly runs messages and spies on any potential rival ladies Cersei doesn’t like.

 - Senelle Lanny: From a smaller house in Lannisport, smaller distant Lannister cousins. She’s shrewder than Cersei would like, and she can be bought to spy on her lady (which, as we know, ends poorly for her). She’s Cersei’s current Chief Lady, so many of Cersei’s personal servants report to her, which she passes along to Cersei if its important. 

 - Jocelyn Swyft: Jocelyn is small and bony, but a kinswoman to Kevan’s wife, so Cersei got stuck with her. Thankfully, at least she’s quiet. Her primary duty is to help find what Cersei wants and have things fetched for her, like having servants bring her bath water or setting out her clothes.

 - Dorcas Lantell: Another distant cousin from a tiny Lannisport house. Dorcas is a good bit older than Cersei and her children are grown now. She helps Cersei day to day with her own children when Cersei is otherwise occupied (such as making Tommen toys) and helps Jocelyn have things fetched. She’s clumsy, but well meaning. 

 - Alysanne Lefford: Lord Leo Lefford’s wife, likewise older. She’s come from the Golden Tooth to serve Cersei (and hopefully ingratiate her family to the Crown) at least until she and her husband have children. An eye for colour, it’s her job to help Cersei choose her clothes. 

 - Elyana Sarwyck: With her oldest brother away in the East, her father sent her to court to earn prestige for the Sarwycks. She’s a capable manager and steward, and so she largely spends her time helping supervise the servants and get things done the way Cersei wants them.

 - Gwyn Marbrand: Addam Marbrand’s sister - she was probably brought to court when Cersei married Robert. She largely keeps to herself (which is just fine with Cersei). She’s industrious though and does a good deal of needlework for the Queen. 

 - Melesa Crakehall: Here as a favour to her mother-by-law, Genna Lannister, Melesa is still young at court. She’s not quite evened out her own place yet but she works with determination not to humiliate her goodmother. She helps keep Cersei abreast of the news from the latest riders come to court. 

 - Jeyne Wendwater: Born just south of King’s Landing, Jeyne is young as well. She’s still a bit starstruck by the capital, and Cersei’s long since decided she’s insipid and timid. She does her best to please the Queen every day and by night, she plays the harp for her upon request.

 - Marya Rogers: Marya hails from Amberly in the Stormlands, she’s a hardy girl. Friendly, if a bit one to fawn, Marya’s a firm negotiator. As such, she’s trusted with overseeing purchases for the Queen and her retinue. 

 - Amaena Chambers: A woman about Cersei’s age, but unwed (and the hideous scar on her face from a childhood illness doesn’t make that more likely to change), Amaena is severe and serious. Her father is growing ill, and so Amaena may be returning home sooner than she might think - but until then, it is her duty to keep an eye about for anything strange or improper around court, particularly from those Cersei dislikes. Amaena is skilled in Valyrian though, and she has served as a translator for Cersei when dealing with people from the Free Cities who only speak High Valyrian. 

 - Lyanne Waterman: A northwoman, Lyanne is a long way from home and the newest . Her father sent her here hoping that the warm southern climate might make her healthier - and on the condition she would serve their overlord, House Manderly’s, interests at court. Not exactly the hardiest girl, nor the most cunning, Lyanne means well. She ensures the Queen’s horses are taken care of, and tries to stay out of the Queen’s way otherwise.

 - Aisling Belmore: Aisling is very practical and organized. She’s got a decent idea where everything is and keeps a decent eye and ear out for court, so she keeps the Queen’s schedule set for any given day.  

 - Lena Tudbury: Overly detail oriented and a bit fussy, Lena likes everything to be just so. She’s a bit hard to deal with when it comes to setting things up because she is very picky. She’s got a neat hand, though, and so when Cersei allows other people to write her letters, it’s usually Lena. 

 - Heather Waynwood: Ambitious, sneaky, and just cheerful enough to fake sweetness, Lady Anya’s niece may prove a force to be reckoned with. She and Aisling were gifts from Jon Arryn to the queen, and thus far Heather’s making herself a comfortable little network to help with Waynwood wishes. Thus far, her most consistent job is to style Cersei’s hair, but she hopes to make herself useful in other ways as she proves herself.

***

Myrcella Baratheon’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Rosamund Lannister: Well, this one is canon, so this was probably obvious. She’s a cousin from Lannisport. When she gets older, she will serve as the princess’ body double in times of crisis and attends her as per her desires. 

- Myrielle Lannister: Another young cousin. She’s crafty but sunny and, for a young child, she’s got a very straight hand that suggests she’ll be good at sewing and embroidery when she gets older. 

- Joanna Swyft: A gift from uncle Kevan - most people mean dolls when they gift their grandnieces with playmates, but apparently he meant a new little lady. Joanna is sweet but a little shy, which means she usually has to be corralled into Myrcella’s braver exploits. That said, she’s extremely trustworthy when it comes to the princess’ secrets.

- Tya Westford: Less a lady, more a hostage. Her father’s been sent to the Wall, and Tya’s been brought here as a ‘watch your step’ towards her mother’s good behaviour. Thus far, her mother has complied beautifully, a picture of loyalty. Tya is like most children her age - a little rambunctious, playful, fairly good natured, but still learning. Thus far, she seems very good at learning to ride. 

- Vilessa Rambton: Meek, quiet, and obedient, Vilessa is the most eager to behave for Septa Eglantine. Mostly, she just wants to not get in trouble. Given her more tractable nature, some suggest her best place would be passing along the princess’ messages rather than anything requiring her to take charge. 

- Cerise Roote: Cerise is 14, a little over twice the age of her little charge. Until Myrcella is older, she’s essentially a babysitter for the younger girls - keeping track of their schedules and where they’re supposed to be. Cerise is a loyal, protective, quiet, and caring lady, but she’s also a bit distant (probably due to the age difference) and fierce when pushed. 

- Alyssa Melcolm: Alyssa is a year or two older than Myrcella and is one of those kids who can’t wait to grow up. She looks forward to going to dances and wearing pretty dresses and marrying a handsome nobleman. For now, she likes to pretend and make things pretty. She’ll likely end up either sorting Myrcella’s wardrobe or painting for her when they get older. 

- Alona Staedmon: Myrcella’s youngest lady, a few months younger than Myrcella, she’s desperately homesick for Broad Arch. She doesn’t dislike the princess, but she wants to go home. As such, she’s still quite withdrawn. She does like music though, so perhaps those lessons would draw her out. 

- Unella Manning: Upbeat, excitable, competitive, and daring, Unella is always coming up with things to do. She thinks of new ideas at a mile a minute. She doesn’t mean to wear people out - she just wants to play! Unfortunately, her antics distract her from most lessons more often than not. Perhaps if Septa Eglantine could turn them into games.

- Merianne Mertyns: Merianne likes to learn! She’s not very good at art, but she’s taken to heraldry and history very well. She’s a bit boring for the other girls since she would rather read or people watch than play the sort of games that her friends want, but at least she can come up with a good story for them. 

- Gisella Gaunt: Gisella is, bluntly, a little bit of a priss (not to mention a suck up to any authority figure she sees). She gets very grouchy if the other girls do something she thinks is dirty or boring or beneath them. Since she’s about 9, she thinks the other girls should listen to her since she’s one of the oldest. Needless to say, the other children don’t like her very much, though the adults tend to because she’s organized, neat, and (on the face of it) very well behaved.

- Bessa Blount: Bessa is big fun. She likes to sneak food and sparkly objects and little trinkets she finds around that look interesting (like coloured pebbles she finds while walking the Red Keep). She’s always getting in trouble for picking at things and scraping up her hands - she’s indignant. She just wants to know how they work! 

- Maerie Rykker: Maerie is an artistic little girl - she’s enjoying learning about poetry and art and sewing. She’ll be a proper little lady, that one. She’s still learning the ins and outs of courtesies, but she’s enjoying it. It’s hard though - she wants to play but also wants to be a lady. It’s hard to resist a ball game though - it’s only passing a ball around to each other, surely something that fun isn’t so bad?

- Joy Hill: Joy was sent to Myrcella hoping it would be easier for some smaller lordling or knight to make a match for their son. Serving as a lady-in-waiting is a respectable position until then and the Lannister connections will surely catch some small noble’s attention, even if she’s baseborn. That said, she’s under very strict instructions to keep a reasonable distance from Myrcella (as much as she can while still doing her duties) because she is a bastard. She’s still a very lonely girl. 

***

DRAGONSTONE:

Dragonstone is bleak and poor, so I figured they probably couldn’t supply too too many ladies. But when you add in different Reach and Stormlands connections Stannis and Selyse have, I figured the number would be about average for most of the south - around 5. Shireen has fewer because of the greyscale - I figure if Stannis is having a hard time arranging a match for her because of it, other nobles probably wouldn’t be jumping at the bit to have their daughters serve Shireen either.

Selyse Florent’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Amber Grandison: Amber is a skittish, superstitious, very timid young lady. Dragonstone is not helping. She’s probably going to get worse dealing with the very severe ruling family here. Until she can return home, she passes along messages (often between Selyse and Stannis). 

- Leria Chyttering: Leria is just as stern and severe as her lady. She’s older, with her own grown children, and she’s been with Selyse longest. She’s done her best to ensure her lady gives Stannis the son he wants, but so far her advice and research has proven fruitless.

- Alona Celtigar: Alona is a pragmatic and humourless women on her best days. She’s a hard worker though and when she works on Selyse’s schedules, they’re always prudent and well thought out, with enough time to move from one to the other. Even if she doesn’t have much time for much amusement, the place is certainly organized.

- Rona Sunglass: A pious woman from a pious house. She wants to help and to her, that means reaching out to the Seven and praying for their help to give Stannis and Selyse sons and for Stannis’ work on the council. She, ah, may not be having a fun time of it once Melisandre makes the scene, but right now she helps Selyse dress and fetches things for her and prays. 

- Violet Celtigar: Violet is Alona’s sister. She’s less humourless but far more withdrawn. The constant weariness of Dragonstone gets to her too. She’s not one to speak up and she generally lacks confidence - which she takes out on people who cross her and rank below her.

- Melara Crane: Selyse’s aunt, she came to Dragonstone with Alester. While she’s hardly exuberant, the fact she’s a bit of an optimist might still make her one of the sunniest people on Dragonstone. She’s stuck up and ambitious, but generally well meaning, and she’s done her best to mitigate the frustration her niece feels about not having given her husband any sons. 

Shireen’s Baratheon’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Alannys Tarly: Alannys is the Tarly’s middle daughter. She was sent here hoping the stricter, more disciplined environment would curb her wilful behaviour. She’s not cut out for Westeros’ ideal lady’s temperament - she’s fierce, stubborn, and indeed wilful. Thankfully, she’s also brave, protective, and hard working, so she’s not been completely written off as a potential 'lady’ yet.

- Jonquil Peasebury: Jonquil is still sorting herself out at Dragonstone. Newly arrived, she’s still learning the lay of the castle and the people there. She’s very curious and inquisitive, but also apprehensive, owing to her lady’s greyscale and the general gloom about the place. 

***

THE NORTH:

The North’s courts are small and practical, not big and grand like in the South. Plus the ideas of honour and morality are slightly different up North than in the South. I figure for the sake of the 'small, mostly practical’ court, I’d say the average around here is 3 ladies. Catelyn might eventually see about bringing up a few Riverlands ladies for her daughters, but right now they’re still a bit young. Besides, the girl’s ladies are more like play mates than assistants right now anyways.

Catelyn Tully’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Jonelle Cerwyn: Jonelle is confident, decisive, and companionable. Unfortunately, her appearance has ensured that Westeros’ marriage market has kept her single. For now, she uses her abilities to sort Lady Catelyn’s schedule and offer what help she can with the lady’s children. 

- Elaena Glenmore: A good deal younger than the others, Elaena is very hopeful about the betrothal her father’s currently negotiating with the heir of House Forrester. She’s looking more and more to Lady Catelyn as a role model for how to rule a household. She’s also primarily responsible for any correspondence Catelyn entrusts with her ladies. 

- Jathany Norrey: Jathany is an awkward, uncertain thing. She’s the daughter of the head of House Norrey, but Winterfell is another level of formality. She tries her best, but there are elements of courtesy she doesn’t understand and other elements she’s forever forgetting (like that it’s not 'the Lannister’ it’s 'Lord Lannister’ for example). She’s more helpful when it comes to having Catelyn’s horse tended and passing along what Catelyn tells her to pass along. 

Sansa Stark’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Jeyne Poole: Jeyne is the steward’s daughter. Vivacious, proud, and a little mischievous, Jeyne’s very excited to serve as one of Sansa’s ladies - it’s just like the songs! The perfect lady with her perfect ladies. She and Sansa can usually be found somewhere gossiping. 

- Beth Cassel: Beth is a bit younger than Sansa, but she admires the older girl and tries to imitate her to the best of her abilities. Beth’s still learning her way around a needle, but she likes to tell stories and sing with the other girls. 

- Alys Karstark: A bit fiercer than the others, and a bit older, Alys has taken on a bit of role as a leader among Sansa’s ladies. She is ambitious and loyal to her family, but a courtly friend. 

Arya Stark’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Rowena Umber: Rowena is Lord Umber’s littlest daughter. She is responsible and creative, though not so wild as Arya. She likes to come up with elaborate fantasies when she and Arya are playing. She’s a bit flighty, but reliable when Arya wants her.

- Lyanna Mormont: Stern, blunt and no-nonsense, especially for a child, Lyanna is diligent in the responsibilities she’s given. Fierce when crossed and a bit sarcastic, Lyanna is a loyal and prudent friend.

- Eddara Tallhart: Eddara is a playful, energetic little girl who would sooner ride or throw a snowball than be bored in lessons. She and Arya get into a lot of trouble together. She doesn’t mean any harm, but sometimes she gets carried away.

***

THE REACH:

Okay, the Reach is huge, heavily populated, and the centre of court life and chivalry in Westeros. With so many extra people (and by extension, extra children), and so much focus on acting like a 'proper lady’ it’s no wonder Margaery (and probably by extension, Alerie) would have a huge retinue. Olenna is no longer the wife of the lord or a daughter of the ruling lord, so I haven’t given her any. At least not yet. I know she used to have at least one because it ties into backstory but right now she’s a blank.

Alerie Hightower’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Salanna Ashford: Salanna’s come to serve Lady Alerie as an out from staying at home where talk was starting about a potentially dangerous betrothal, just to get her out of the house where it’s too expensive and the family gets along too poorly to keep everyone around. A position doing Lady Alerie’s hair offers her a way to potentially find a betrothal more to her liking…and maybe settle a few scores against her family.

- Alys Beesbury: A cousin by marriage, Alys came to Alerie’s service to seek advancement for her own Tyrell brood. In addition, her connections to the massive Frey clan via her sister Beony, she keeps Alerie abreast of whatever news comes from the Twins about the various houses connected to the Freys.

- Olene Caswell: One of the daughters of Lord Caswell, Olene was offered a position due to the strategic importance of Bitterbridge. A lively girl, younger than most of their ladies, she’s very helpful when it comes to planning frolics and games.

- Rose Mullendore: Alerie’s companion since childhood, Rose is the only one to remain from when Alerie came to marry Mace. Her husband was lost in Robert’s Rebellion and none of her children lived past toddlerhood. Serving Alerie is likely the only thing keeping her emotionally stable, because surely repressing her grief is the best way to deal with these personal tragedies. 

- Corrine Cordwayner: Corrine is a deal older than most of Alerie’s maids. She’s seen all her children either married, buried, or in suitable positions that she feels she can take an appointment with the Lady of Highgarden to have something useful to do. And if people around her dismiss her as a lady-in-waiting and unimportant, well, that’s their mistake for underestimating an old woman.

- Obara Hewett: The eldest daughter of Lord Hewett, about 25 years old. Obara is learning from Alerie how to serve as a wife and lady. She seems very mellow and easy to get along with…so long as the subject of the iron born isn’t brought up, where she becomes very sharp indeed.

- Elyn Tyrell: Yet another cousin by marriage, Elyn is several years older than Alerie. She is a skilled steward, and she tends to keep the servants in order serving as Alerie’s Mistress of Keys (basically a lady’s steward). She tends to be approachable, but firm and in charge - a deal moreso than the ideal Reach woman might be. 

- Mya Sloane: Sly, witty, and clever, Mya is also among the friendliest (and youngest) of Alerie’s ladies. As yet unmarried and childless, her father was hoping she could find an appropriate match at court. While Mya plays lip service to her father’s desires, she’s having far more fun learning about and taking part in the intrigues of court life for Alerie and Olenna than she suspects she could being married. 

- Tansy Oldflowers: An old family with a potential claim to Highgarden (albeit, an unlikely one - their’s comes through a bastard line), Tansy was offered a position to secure alliances. A shy woman from an ambitious family, Tansy is far more an Oldflowers creature than Alerie’s and they have her seeking positions and judgements in favour of the Oldflowers family even while they’re making friends.

- Teressa Norcross: Appointed by the Tyrells as a 'watch yourselves’ to the Florents, the Norcrosses accepted an offer to send Teressa to court. Teressa is far more impulsive and slightly more hedonistic than the Reach might want. She steps lightly around her mistress, hoping she won’t be seen as more Florent than Tyrell as she tries to use both to her advantage.

- Charlessa Redding: A small house desperate to move up in the world, it was extremely exciting when the Reddings managed to pull strings to have Charlessa appointed to Lady Alerie’s service. She didn’t expect to fall hard for her. Between that and her family, Charlessa will do anything to keep her position. She’s dreading the day her family might announce some betrothal and force her return, and has done her best to subtly nudge potential suitors to other ladies instead. 

- Cella Graves: Another strategic appointment. The shield islands are critical for the Reach’s defence, so keeping them loyal to the Tyrells is of the utmost importance to them. Cella is significantly younger than the others, and is still a bit awkward in her place. She looks forward to learning from Alerie, but has yet to learn a lady’s confidence.

Margaery Tyrell’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Megga Tyrell: Megga is boisterous and joyful. She tends to accompany Margaery everywhere on excursions and enjoys dancing, sewing, gossiping, and is eager for romance. She is desperate for love, and often sends Margaery’s messages…along with hearing intel from Tyrell agents. 

- Alla Tyrell: Alla is shy, gentle, kind, and musical. She is also easily frightened. Easily an innocent girl, not prone to outbursts and more likely to cry or run when faced with confrontation than get angry or defend herself. She’s most comfortable at home with her friends and fellow ladies, where she can sing and play the harp rather than play at the game of thrones. 

- Elinor Tyrell: Elinor is developing leadership qualities - she is brave and smart, but haughty the way older children sometimes can be with younger ones. She is a bit of a flirt and looks forward to when she is a woman wed and has her own household. She is also surprisingly well read and often has something to discuss that she learned in a book.

- Alysanne Bulwer: Aly is an active and playful child. She spends most of her time playing games and learning the basics of courtesies and ruling. Her brother is sweet, but too unhealthy to expect to take a lordship, so she expects that she will be in charge of Bulwer should anything happen to her father. Thankfully, her father is in perfect health…

- Janna Tyrell: Margaery’s aunt, and the only one of Olenna’s children to inherit her political acumen. She’s not overly enthused about her husband, Jon Fossoway’s, work, seeing him as not particularly skilled at politics. Theirs is a marriage best kept out of the political arena. Meanwhile, she dotes on her niece, helping to groom her into a shrewd and savvy lady and feeding her all the choice gossip about court (especially about their rivals). 

- Taena Merryweather: Taena is an older woman with a young son. She serves to instruct Margaery in Valyrian and acting as her agent. She desires advancement for her son and the prospect of him becoming a squire or ward at Highgarden is too good to pass up. 

- Alyce Graceford: A few years older, Alyce serves as an older sister figure for the younger girls. Anything they’re curious about but don’t want to ask their mothers or Olenna about, they tend to ask her. She is particularly skilled at courtly courtesies and subtly mockery, ever on the lookout for weaknesses she can bring to her lady. She’s also newly betrothed though, and who knows how a marriage and later on, children, will affect her relationship with Margaery.

- Leonette Fossoway: Garlan’s new wife from Cider Hall, Leonette has taken to accompanying her goodsister. She’s very perceptive and sweetly witty, being prone to worrying over others. She enjoys teaching the younger girls about hawking, playing music, and poetry, areas she herself enjoys while she waits for children.

- Meredyth Crane: The master-at-arms daughter, Meredyth came to Red Lake to be with her father after her mother died of a wasting illness. She’s the apple of her father’s eye and may have an eye towards Willas Tyrell. She knows it probably won’t happen, but she’s known him forever and surely there’s no harm in looking? Until then, she spends her time making jokes and telling stories, hawking and TRYING to arrange Margaery’s wardrobe - it would be easier if she spent less time riding and wearing out her clothes. 

- Sera Durwell: Sera serves Margaery while she is on an ambitious husband hunt. She is desperate to secure her position because of a secret she’s harbouring - she’s actually a bastard. Her mother used to serve as one of Olenna’s ladies and for her service, the Tyrells have covered up her origins and called her a Durwell (who most likely have been bribed to keep their mouths shut). As Margaery provides her security, Sera clings to this job with all she has. 

- Mira Forrester: Mira is DEFINITELY a far way from her home in the Kingswood. Her mother, from the Reach, used old connections to send her daughter to Highgarden. She wants her to learn the ways of a southern court (perhaps planning an ambitious marriage match for later). Mira is enjoying her life in Highgarden, but if push comes to shove, she is her family’s creature first, not Margaery’s.

***

THE VALE: 

The Vale is where the Andals and their ideas of courtly life first showed up, so I can imagine the Vale wanting more than just the average number of ladies. Unfortunately, the Vale also seems to have a lot of old names who are strapped for cash, so I’ve given Lysa six. Enough to be more than average, but only by one.

Lysa Arryn’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Morgana Wydman: Brought into Lady Lysa’s service a few years ago, Morgana is very serious and dour, with a bit of a morbid sense of humour (possibly brought on tide of grim news during the Rebellion). She keeps to her ladies’ messages and takes great care not to be overheard by Robin, lest Lysa find out. 

- Carolei Redfort: Carolei is a sly woman who focuses largely on using ceremony to her advantage. Using the details of courtesy and ceremony to get what she wants, Carolei can be extremely pedantic - but she is detail oriented, well suited to helping arrange meetings and activities. 

- Ursula Elesham: Ursula is ambitious and clever, with an interest in reading about the arcane if you believe rumour. She did her best to advise Lady Lysa about her fertility and since then has done whatever is asked with regards to little Lord Robert. As such, she often has the Lady Lysa’s ear - though you can’t get something from nothing from Ursula. If you want her to pass something along to Lysa, you had best have something to offer her. 

- Anya Templeton: Anya is significantly younger than Lady Lysa. She is an idealistic, compassionate, wise girl who tries to be understanding. In many ways, she reminds Lysa of herself and Lysa can’t decide if she likes her or is horrifically jealous of her relative innocence. As such, Anya is currently terrified of Lysa’s inconstant attitude and behaviour towards her and tends to keep as much of a distance as she can.

- Perra Hunter: Probably the most mature and sensible of the group. Perra tends to ignore the others schemes and drama and complicated relationships. She just hangs back and picks up the pieces when they fall. She tends to put together Lysa’s schedule and appointments, trying to keep things somewhat in order. She also is the one who keeps Jon Arryn abreast of what is going on with his wife and her ladies, at least as much as she is able. 

- Jalona Moore: Jalona is a shy devotee of the Faith. She enjoys connections to her uncle, Ser Mandon Moore, but that is one of the few things she enjoys, as Jalona is very morose and sometimes despondent. She tends to serve as Lysa’s prayer companion and keeps to traditional pursuits such as embroidery, knitting, and singing.

***

DORNE:

Dorne’s not got a huge population, but then they also only have Arianne as a daughter of the Prince (and her mother’s long since left). I’ve mostly just translated her friends from the books into her ladies-in-waiting. Plus I threw in Elia because that’s the role she plays in TWOW, might as well get her started (Sorry, Arianne!)

Arianne Martell’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Jynessa Blackmont: Jynessa has been sent to cultivate relationships with Sunspear for when she and Arianne rule in their own rights. Jynessa is a tad more responsible, but she’s also slightly more fanciful and vain. The two of them work together scheming and they often talk about matters concerning Dorne. 

- Myria Jordayne: Another heir sent to cultivate relations in Sunspear, Myria is a good deal quieter. She prefers to study and learn about Dorne and investigate than plot or hang around. Perhaps this is because she is several years older and can’t stand as much breathless melodrama anymore, and so she tends to stay out of Arianne’s games.

- Jayne Ladybright: A new attendant to Arianne, Jayne is made of far milder stuff. She’s not shy, but she’s not as mischievous, ambitious, or wilful as Arianne. “Relaxed” is a good way to put it. She prefers to do her duty to the best of her ability and enjoy pleasant times as they come. She’s got a sensible head on her shoulders though, and so she can be very helpful when it comes to day to day responsibilities. 

- Sylva Santagar: Sylva has been one of Arianne’s closest companions since they were small. Sylva is loyal, funny, perceptive and always eager to go along with Arianne’s ideas. Recently, she’s become worried for Arianne’s place if her suspicions about her father’s relationship with her brother are true. Sylva will do anything to help Arianne keep her place.

- Elia Sand: A young cousin, Ellaria and Doran are hoping Arianne might be able to instruct Elia in acting more like a lady. So far, it’s not working. Elia is precocious, wild, adventurous, and too curious for her own good. It’s a wonder she hasn’t broken something important yet. She doesn’t mean to cause trouble, but she has a hard time thinking ahead. Arianne despairs of her role teaching Elia and wishes Tyene were her lady instead… which probably isn’t helping matters, no.

***

THE IRON ISLANDS:

The Iron Islands are broke, bleak, and super serious. Ladies-in-waiting are probably more used for practical reasons. And in Asha’s case, they’re probably expected to work on and help on her ship. Due to the population, money issues, and cultural differences, I’ve just given 3, like in the similarly practical North. Alannys is recovering from her cough on Harlaw, so her ladies have probably gone back home. Meanwhile I imagine Gwyn and Sona are much closer to the Ironborn’s traditional idea of what women should be, so they probably spend most of their time going 'ASHA NO’.

Asha Greyjoy’s Ladies-in-waiting

- Gwyn Goodbrother of Hammerhorn: Gwyn is probably a little too easily scandalized to belong to Asha’s crew. She believes in traditional roles for ironborn women - spinning flax for sails, weaving canvas, running homes and having children. Just because women SOMETIMES went on raids does NOT mean it’s their proper role, Asha. Needless to say, Asha tends to ignore her. Which is fine with Gwyn (no it’s not, it chafes her to no end), because she’s fine with going over the ship’s ledgers and at least keeping Asha’s affairs in order. Grumbling under her breath all the while, I’m sure.

- Sona Harlaw of the Tower of Glimmering: Sona is the quieter one between herself and Gwyn. She’s not physically cut out for raiding, and honestly lacks the bravado she’d need to do it herself. As a 'normal’ lady in waiting Sona would probably be sewing and weaving, singing, and generally being out of the way. On Asha’s ship, she’s more like to use those to help keep a rhythm for oars or to repair sails. She has little in common with her lady, being much more demure, and so she tends to stay out of Asha’s way and follow whatever orders she’s given while trying to gently nudge her towards more traditional ways of ladyhood (good luck with that). 

- Yara Kenning: Yara is probably the only one of the three ladies who’s enjoying her time in Asha’s service. Or Asha’s company at all, really. She thinks this is all a great lark and she’s along for the ride. A bit of a troll and generally okay with learning to raid and sail, she fits in a lot better with the crew than Sona or Gwyn ever have. And if she’s keeping her own affairs secret along with Asha’s, well, you’d better just keep your mouth shut, hadn’t you?

- Ella Welkerton: A thirteen year old girl called a lady-in-waiting as a euphemism. She’s a hostage to her mother’s good behaviour after a failed revolt and everyone knows it. Normally charismatic and friendly, Ella’s still a thirteen year old girl who’s never been away from her mother for long before, never mind being on a ship crew. She doesn’t necessarily object to it, but the crew intimidates her. Asha’s ordered hands off, but that doesn’t make it easier. Already a pious girl, Ella’s sought solace from the Drowned God now more than ever. Nothing kills the crew’s interest in annoying her more than pious bleating, so that’s a plus. 

Essos: I don’t really see Ladies-in-waiting being much of a thing in Essos? Female attendants, yes, slaves,yes (sadly) but not ladies-in-waiting as such. At least, not by that title. I imagine when Viserys bought Dany her Dothraki attendants, it was to befit her station as a Westerosi princess in preparation for his 'triumphant return’. If the players don’t somehow throw Dany off track, Missandei will become one later.

Daenerys Targaryen’s Ladies-in-waiting are Jhiqui, Irri, and Doreah, as per canon, with Missandei coming in later (along with a video game canon character called Udemi).

The Westerlands, Riverlands, and the Stormlands don’t currently have Ladies (as in, a woman married to the ruling Lord) and no female children of the Lord currently living there. It’s possible (even probable) other members of their families may have ladies-in-waiting but I’ve not charted them out yet. Renly and Edmure might get ladies-in-waiting around if they get married or have children any time soon. For reference, the Riverlands and Stormlands would have about 5 ladies and I haven’t yet decided the Westerlands number. I can’t imagine them not throwing in an extra or two just because they’re rich and they can. I’m not sure if there would be AS many as in the Reach because they’ve not got the same focus on courtly life, nor the same huge population. If you have any thoughts, please let me know. I’m thinking around 7 might be average for the Westerlands?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I think that you’ve done a really great job here. I like how you tried to sketch out their personalities and sort of fill in the blanks that GRRM left. I also liked the Lannys and Lantells of Lannisport ;)

I’m not sure that there would be a predetermined number of ladies-in-waiting for each region, or even a strong guideline, but I do agree that the Reach probably has more ladies in waiting on average. One of the things to keep in mind is that, as far as I understand it in real life and maybe somebody will correct me if I’m wrong, a lady in waiting became part of the household she was serving and so the households with higher incomes could afford more ladies, which is why wealthier places like the Reach or the Westerlands would tend to have noblewomen with larger retinues, while in poorer places like the Iron Islands, there doesn’t seem to be a very strong tradition of ladies in waiting. 

I think that other factors that might determine the number of ladies in waiting are the lady herself (Cersei is very misogynistic and seems to have few ladies in canon), as well as the prevailing political situation. 

One small correction - your in-laws in ASOIAF are called your “good-[relationship]”

For example, Marg is Cersei’s good-daughter, and Harys Swyft is Kevan’s good-father. Some examples in the text:

To be sure, a good-father is not the ideal hostage

"On the morrow I want you to pay a call on my good-daughter," Cersei said as Dorcas was dressing her for bed.

So I think maybe what you mean above is that Genna would be her good-mother? 

Anyways, this all looks amazing! Excellent work! Thank you for sharing it with me 💕

[kbrown78]

My Thoughts: Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab

I wasn't crazy about This Savage Song. The side characters were flat and the nothing happened for the majority of the book. There was some potential though and I had heard that Our Dark Duet would be a really good finale, but I was still skeptical. Despite the bar being set low, this book repeated the mistakes of the previous book, and created several new issues. This book was disappointing on so many levels, and I'll delve into why. This review will contain spoilers for This Savage Song as well as Our Dark Duet.

World building: In This Savage Song the readers know that there are three types of monsters, but somewhere in the beginning a fourth monster is introduced, termed the Chaos Eater. This monster is mostly a shadow that immediately makes people violent to the point of murder. It's perspective is written like poetry to reflect that it's there but not whole. It's victims have mirror shards in their eyes, but that's about all you learn. I was also hoping to learn more about the origins of the first monsters, but this goes unanswered, which was a big problem I had with the world building. This is the last book, but so much was left unanswered. These were problems that could be forgiven in This Savage Song because a few were answered and because their was another book to fill in these blanks. There are other cities, and for the first few chapters from Kate's perspective, all we learn about Prosperity, the city she currently resides in after fleeing Verity, is that it is wealthy and their problems are much deeper and slower to show themselves as opposed to Verity's slew of violence. That's all we learn, there are several other cities that we know nothing about. Speaking of Verity, there is group of people that worship the monsters, called the Fangs, which is something that fits with this world but it wasn't mentioned before and they are just used as tool's to show how evil Sloan and Alice are. Back to the monsters, the Sunai, like August, harness soul's through song, but over half way through the book, August can use his music to soothe a soul. This kind of came out of nowhere and we only see this one other time. It's something I really would have liked to be explored more, which can be applied to every thing in this section.

Characters: All of the characters in this book were one dimensional. I even had problems with Kate and August. Kate has been set up as this tough girl who doesn't need anyone, and from what I've heard of Schwab's other female characters this is an archetype that she likes to use, but it made Kate kind of annoying. There were things I liked about her, like her wanting to go back to Verity to stop the Chaos Eater, and her trying to help the Compound by calling them out on their incorrect thinking, and she was never cruel, just a bit cold. That coldness is what made me feel unattached to her, so when her death came, I just shrugged it off. This might also be due to the fact that I could tell either Kate or August was going to die, but I'll get into that in the Writing section. August was kind of interesting in This Savage Song, because of his desire to be human. In Our Dark Duet, he took 4 steps back. After consuming Leo's soul at the end of This Savage Song, August is now hearing a voice in his head that tells him to act like a monster because that's what he is. There is one good scene that addresses this conflict, but other than that August spends the majority of the book coming off as a moopy douche. Sloan also gets his own POV, but this adds nothing to the plot or his character. He was an evil creep in the first book and he is an evil creep in this one. All the readers see of him is killing girls that look like Kate because that's his fetish and just enjoying killing a bunch of people. There isn't any sort of complexity to him, he's just evil because he's evil, which is as flat as the rest of the characters are. There were so many characters that had no personality, I couldn't even remember who's who. I wasn't sad when Kate left her “friends” in Prosperity because I didn't know anything about them other than what Schwab briefly told us, so I didn't care. When Rez died, I saw that coming and felt nothing. I wasn't even upset when Henry was taken, and he's the leader and father figure for August. Soro, the new Sunai, had an interesting origin story, being manifested through a suicide mission, but ended up being a Leo 2.0 until, literally the last 2 pages of the book. I really wanted Soro to die, especially after a scene where she just decided to kill a sinner that August was trying to heal and did it in a way that manipulated August into letting Soro, and was kind of disappointed that Soro lived. The one character that had real potential to be interesting was Ilsa, but she was just shoved away until she was needed to kill Sloan and the Chaos Eater, which resulted in her own death. What a waste! It was cool getting to see her true form, with horns and wings of fire, which make her sound like a holy terror, but we know she can be a sweet person. Overall the characters were incredibly bland and I just couldn't feel any attachment to any of them.

Relationships: It was important to establish how bland I find the characters before reviewing their relationships. Kate was very much an outsider looking in with every social group she was a part of, so the only close relationship she had was with August, but this was in part because she didn't want any friends. August I guess had friends, more like comrades, but because he used the excuse that he wasn't human he never tried to attach himself to any of them. August and Ilsa's relationship was cold and non exitstent this entire novel, and unlike in the previous book, August didn't seem to want to communicate with Henry nearly as much, so that relationship was dead. I'll briefly talk about Sloan and Alice's “view” of Kate before getting to the main relationship. Sloan was just obsessed with killing Kate, but we're given no reason as to why, so the whole thing becomes unnecessary and very creepy. Alice is Kate's Malachi, and also named after her mother, who was an important figure in Kate's early life. Alice is also obsessed with killing Kate, however, since the 2 have never encountered each other it's a little unclear as to why Alice would such an intense desire to kill her. Alice is also obsessed with killing August, which is made clear by the several traps she lays for him throughout the book, and I assume that is for bragging rights. Now to Kate and August. I think Kate feels more attached to August than him to her, because she spends more time thinking about him. When the 2 finally do meet up again, August is very cold and berates her, in the same paragraph, for being stupid and coming back to Verity and then not caring enough to stay in Verity and help fix it. Dude, your just mad she's calling you out on your bullshit behavior. It's this dynamic that makes the kiss scene a little jarring. They are clearly the only person that can break through the other's walls, but did we need to suddenly have them kiss. I personally think they worked better as a platonic couple than a romantic one. Before the final battle, August and Kate briefly hug with the expectation that one of them is going to die. When Kate does die August holds her briefly, than the audience is rushed into the epilogue. This was probably supposed to feel very angsty, but it was way too rushed and I didn't like the characters enough to feel anything for how this relationship ended.  

Writing: It will be hard to distinguish what I want to review in the writing section instead of the dislike section, but I will try. First the pacing. This book was an easy read and that made it go by quickly, but until the last 80 pages of the book, the plot just drags. So the plot was either very slow or very fast. I also want to say that it was hard for me to keep tabs on this book, because of how flat everything was, and it all remained the same. This book is 510 pages, and I could fit all my notes onto 2 pages. In terms of diversity, I could be forgetting some of the side characters, but all the main characters were white and hetero. This didn't bug me until Schwab introduced Soro. Soro is constantly referred to as they, I think to show that Soro is supposed to be gender fluid. I admit I haven't read a gender fluid character before so I don't know if that is the correct pronoun to use or not. Suddenly introducing a gender fluid character to have some diversity felt very forced and unnatural. I do love books that have diverse characters, like Six of Crows or Beauty Queens, but the author needs to make this diversity feel normal and natural to some extent, and I don't think Scwab achieved that with this particular book. I know in the Shades of Magic trilogy, there is more diversity and maybe it's done better in that. There is some exploration of morality and remorse. Kate is remorseful of what she did at the end of This Savage Song, but this is only talked about a few times. That was the issue for all of these concepts, they are only briefly explored and nothing really comes of it.

Dislike: Everything I talked about above could be put in this section. The characters were either bland or annoying, there were many holes in the world building and the plot, there were good concepts that were poorly explored. When we first see the refugees from the north, the first thing August and his group do is insult them. Like they are scared because they want to live but their world has changed very quickly, don't be an ass to them. I also didn't like how crimes and their consequences were so black and white. It's good if a few characters have this world view, you stain your soul so now you have to die, but for everyone to consistently have this view makes the world much simpler than it actually is. There was in fighting at the Compound, which is a realistic problem when trying to rebuild society, but this is only brought up twice, and Henry somehow solves it both times. The readers see August still juggling his humanity, which is even more difficult now that he posses Leo, but we only get a few scenes where he really questions what he is doing. One is during a fight with the Fangs, where he is deciding between revenge versus forgiveness. Nothing comes of it. The other scene is where a man has a stained soul but he is remorseful for what he did, and August just decides to reap him anyway. There are 2 things I want to acknowledge in this scene. One is that just because a person does a bad thing, does not make them a bad person. What if you killed someone in self defense? August or Soro would still reap you. This could be expanded to you don't have to be human to have humanity, but it takes Soro and August a long time to figure this out. The other thing this scene made me wonder is, is it just murder that stains a soul. Every time August reaps, it's from a murderer, but there are other horrible crimes that won't result in murder, or in you directly killing someone. This book had good idea's, but boiled them down to the bare bones which made the book too simple. This book was also fairly predictable. Random characters dying, saw that coming. Kate dying, saw that coming, Sloan suddenly being able to harness the Chaos Eater, saw that coming, even though it didn't make any sense. The only 2 things I didn't see coming made the story all the more disappointing. It's an easy read, and that is probably the best thing I can say about this book.

Final Thoughts: This duology did have great potential to be thought provoking and a new spin on the dystopian or post apocalyptic genre, but it missed the mark far more often than it hit it. Everything about this book is too simple and flat, it might be a good series for when you hit a reading slump but it's not something you can sink your teeth in. I might give Vicious a chance, but it has moved further down on my TBR because of my experience with this series. If you enjoyed it then that's awesome, I personally didn't.