#alt season 5 finale

[gale-gentlepenguin]

Okay, but could you imagine.

Season 5 finale, Bug noire beating the bricks off Monarch. But in the middle of the fight, Adrien shows up. Riding on a Sentimonster Cat named Rebel.

He confronts Monarch and tells him he knows and that he needs to stop this. But Monarch pulls a dirty move and Commands Adrien to stay, before sending an akuma his way. Forced to accept it, he becomes Prince Akuma, with all the powers of Previous akuma, though unfortunately he isnt wearing the ring so he cant gift additional powers, but he doesnt care. Monarch uses this as his chance to recover.

Bug Noire is fighting for her life trying to plead with him.

Monarch catching his breath and telling Ladybug that his family will finally be reunited.

BUT THEN! Marinette gets a flash of a nightmare and stops. Saying she gives up. She detransforms because she cant bring herself to hurt adrien.

Monarch yells out that he won and commands Adrien to take the miraculous to him.

But he wont budge.

Monarch orders him with his ring, but... its not working.

Adrien is resisting! And with all his strength he breaks akumatization.

Falling to his knees. He says.

"Im sorry I hurt you Marinette... my lady."

Monarch is shocked as everyone in the room finds out hes Chat noir!

Monarch yells at him and charges at Marinette. Adrien is tossed aside. Being called an ignorant child.

Marinette realized chat noir's ring was missing. But transformed into Ladybug anyway.

Monarch wondered where the cat ring was, and adrien says his phrase.

A rock version of the theme song starts playing and they fight as one, beating the bricks off of monarch, until they knock his miraculous off.

Gabriel yells that he is destroying his family. Gabriel revealing that his birth is the reason his mother is dead, and his actions are what are killing him now.

"You are nothing but a monster."

Adrien is frozen in sorrow. Was his father right? Was he a monster?

Thankfully Ladybug called out all that bulls*** and revealed that it was all his fault. And that HE could have fixed things multiple times but his greed blinded him.

"Dont blame him for destroying something when it was all you."

Marinette reveals the clips and Gabriel realizes the monster he truly is all before turning to dust

[lionbearfox]

SO excited to hang out with this fucking weirdo (affectionate)

[thepatchycat]

I’m glad you’re safe (and I’m so, so sorry)

…

(Sketch-only version under the cut)

[mournings-stars]

all i've ever known

part 3 and second part of the prelude "little songbird" to my orpheus and eurydice angst fic "doubt comes in"

includes: heaven lucifer ofc, a little lore, some blending of greek mythology, still a little ambiguous but not really, luci is still a hopeless romantic, lots of fluff warning: yall may hate me in the next chapter (which may also be the final one)

part 4 (prelude pt. 3) part 5/finale (semi-alt ending)

tags: @lxkeee @viannasthings @majonla

Peace in Heaven brought peace on Earth, everyone knew it. Which was why, usually, there was no discord among the angels.

Today, however, there had been. You went down to Earth because of it, hoping to escape the lectures that ensued after the other Virtues learned that you let Lucifer help you change the seasons. Only lower ranking angels seemed to be truly upset, but the talk of balance, respect, and entitlement had started to make your mind go numb. You were confident in upholding your virtue. You were never prideful, you didn’t boast, you always looked for what you could do better. You’d never cheated, and you didn’t think of this as such, but it was becoming a debate. 

You had no reason to listen to any of the younger angels, but once the sky started to change you knew the conversation had reached higher up. The sky darkened, and you knew it meant the other Virtues were arguing. When thunder rumbled, you knew the arguing had reached the Ophanim. It started to rain, the Cherubim must know too. 

You thought to get home before chaos could erupt on Earth, but the moment you took to the sky, lightning struck. No matter where you went, it was nearly impossible to dodge and as the storm grew stronger, you knew that you weren’t strong enough to outrun it. You needed to hide, finding somewhere to cower and cover your ears as you hummed a song to try and soothe the Earth. 

But nothing worked — nothing would work when things were just as bad in Heaven. 

“This is ridiculous,” Lucifer told Sera and Emily, the youngest of the Seraphim, who was always by Sera’s side, as they sat in a meeting room. “The seasons have always been this beautiful—“

“We all know you think Humility is beautiful,” Emily said, laughing to herself as Lucifer raised a brow. 

“Virtues were made to be beautiful,” Sera said, looking at Emily pointedly as the other two Seraphim snickered. 

The meeting was interrupted by Temperance, bursting through the doors despite warnings from other Virtues. “There’s a storm on Earth,” she said, panicked. The Seraphim looked at her, confused. “Humility is missing—“

Before she could even finish, Lucifer was standing to leave. Sera stood as well. “You can’t fly in the storm if it’s that bad,” she told him. “Humility can control elements. It’s what Virtues do—“ Even they heard the thunder when she said that, making them all pause. 

“We can’t control this,” said Temperance, and Lucifer didn’t need another reason to leave, flying down as fast as he could. 

It was worse than when you tried, Lucifer avoiding lighting left and right as he looked around The Garden. He called your name, but it was drowned out in the sound of the storm, which just kept getting worse. There was no stopping a storm when it was born from all of Heaven in debate, which meant you must’ve been waiting it out. 

And that meant he had no idea where you’d be; you knew Earth better than he ever could, how could he possibly find you — how could he possibly find somewhere to wait this out—?

A golden leaf caught his eye, whipping in the wind. It shimmered despite the lack of light, heading in a deliberate path. He followed after it, swerving and dodging the storm and fighting against the winds pushing him in opposite directions. 

The leaf led him to a small cave, warm light flickering from within. As soon as he entered, the leaf turned to dust and he made his way toward the glow of fire. 

He called your name. “Are you there?”

He heard the sound of footsteps. “Lucifer?” He couldn’t help the smile that came when he realized you recognized his voice. It widened when you walked over to him, glad to see you weren’t harmed by the storm. “Goodness, you’re soaked.”

He laughed at your concern, “I’m alright–”

But he followed you as you took his hand and led him deeper into the cave. “We should get you warmed up.” You sat him down. “I’d summon you a blanket, but everything is so out of balance, I don’t think I could even do that.”

“Is that why you didn’t create a portal?” He tried to summon a blanket when you nodded, but his powers were just as confused as yours, gold sparking from his fingers and creating a blanket of moss all across the cave. 

“This is very beautiful… and soft,” you attempted to compliment, “but not exactly the blanket I was thinking of.” Your reassurance was met with laughter, making you smile as you asked, “Is that why you came down? Because I didn’t come back up?”

“Temperance was worried,” he said awkwardly, holding his hands over the fire. He wasn't going to tell you that he was worried, too. It wasn’t his place, but he couldn’t help the concern that came the moment he heard you were in a storm even you couldn’t control. 

“I see…” You nodded slowly. “You shouldn’t have come—“

“You might’ve been hurt—“ He quickly stopped himself, looking over at your coy smile and sighing. “I was… concerned; Temperance isn’t the type to panic.”

“Yes, of course.” He gave you a pointed look and you continued, “Temperance losing her… temper is always cause for concern.“

“Very funny,” he groaned, making you laugh to yourself. 

There was a long pause before you said, “Thank you for worrying about me.” Then, “I’m glad I don’t have to wait this out alone.” And you were glad you’d be waiting it out with him. You couldn’t deny that you enjoyed his company, even if it caused the lecture that led to this in the first place. 

He smiled as he removed his robe, the sopping wet garment making him colder than he needed to be. Luckily, his suit was dry. You waved your hand when you noticed him shiver, a warm breeze circling through the cave and making him sigh. “Thank you.” You gave a smile.

“How did you know to send a guide?” He asked, referencing the golden leaf. 

“If someone says our true name, it’s like a call,” you explained. “I couldn’t hear you, but I knew someone was out there and needed help… There’s a reason we don’t give our names to everyone, but it can be useful.”

“Why me?”

You shrugged. “It felt right… you feel very familiar—“

“Do I?” He grinned, a look on his face that made you shake your head. “I thought the same thing,” he then said, laughing to himself. “Like we should know each other.”

You smiled very gently, looking over at him from across the fire. “I’d like to know you.”

“Would you?” There wasn’t any teasing laced in his question, if anything, he seemed surprised to hear that from you, so you nodded. “I’d like that, too.”

And suddenly, bright and warm, sunlight seeped into the cave, brightening the mossy surroundings and illuminating the small area. You both frowned, standing and looking out from the entrance. The storm had stopped, only a light drizzle falling from the sky as the sun beamed down on you. In the distance, you could see the rainbow that came after every storm, telling you it was truly over. 

“How odd,” was your observation, making Lucifer chuckle. You left the cave, flying up into the gentle rain to look around. The world felt calmer, and the winds were singing the song they always did, circling around you and heading on their way. The plants were still thriving, not a single one broken or hurt. It looked as if the storm never happened. 

Lucifer watched as you went to the burrows and hollowed tree stumps, checking on animals, soothing them if they were frightened, or bringing them out of hiding to show them it was safe. He couldn’t help but smile; so much care went into your work — you didn’t even think of it as work, he could tell by the way The Garden brightened as you continued to check on it, how winds and birds sang, how animals followed you. They could all feel the love you had for the Earth, and when you sang, he could feel it, too. 

You sang a very quiet tune, the same one to change the seasons, but it only made the gentle winds help to dry off a poor animal you were holding, which you lovingly showed to him, calling him over and letting him hold the animal, too. 

And since that day, Lucifer was much more forward. He was sure of how he wanted to know you now, and he only hoped you felt the same. He held up on his promise of gifts, even giving you replicas of the flowers you made while fall took them away. If you said you missed hydrangeas and he’d create one for you by the next time you met, encasing it in a glass jar where it blossomed endlessly, along with any other flower you mentioned. 

But your meetings were few and far between. You had to prepare to change autumn to winter, and spring after that, leading to you spending most of your time in your greenhouse, creating new flowers or practicing frosting them over. You found yourself creating flowers you knew Lucifer would like, setting aside several to give to him. 

One day, after several hours of work, a pale yellow bird came swooping in. You recognized it, laughing as you said, “Hello, little songbird,” and picked one of the many flowers you set aside for Lucifer to hold out to the supposed bird. “What do you think?” With a soft poof the bird transformed into the angel you suspected. Your wings fluttered. “What a surprise!” You smiled as his red cheeks tinted gold. 

“You don’t actually seem all that surprised that I’m here,” he said, taking the flower from you and sticking it into his lapel. 

“Were you hoping to surprise me?” Before you could take your hand away, he took it gently in his, kissing the back of it as he always did when he greeted you now.

He looked up at you and shrugged. “Maybe.”

You quickly took your hand away from his as your cheeks shined, making him stifle a prideful laugh. “Well, I’m happy you’re here — does that make up for the lack of surprise?” You asked as you went back to your work, now burying seedlings in golden dust. You didn’t tell him the many flowers set aside were for him, hoping to space them out so you had a reason to see him more often. 

“That’s even better,” he answered surely, the gold of his cheeks growing before he cleared his throat. “I thought you might like some company — of course, Sera said to leave you alone.”

“And you’re not listening to her, because…?”

“I wanted to see you,” he said simply, looking around the greenhouse and spotting the flowers you set aside. 

His visits to the greenhouse became more frequent, sometimes aiding, sometimes distracting, but you enjoyed them either way. After turning autumn to winter, his kisses on the hand became brazen, then casual, kisses on the cheek as he held your hand. His visits, though still spontaneous, became scheduled and prepared for. He’d make you dinner some nights, or come over for lunch, where you gave him the flowers you set aside and asked his opinions. 

There were days you went down to Earth together, flying and playing in the snow. You’d throw snow at one another, or race each other through a beautiful blizzard. Your wings were made to handle the elements, so you often won, but he was quick to make a portal appear in front of you and send you back several feet so he could have a lousy win. But as a prize, he simply asked for a kiss on the cheek, which you couldn’t deny, shielding it with your wings as you did. 

There was a day when a blizzard became too hard to see through, so you went to that same mossy cave you did before, the only place where it still felt like summer; the warm breeze you created having never left. 

On the mossy cave walls, you traced your hand along it and watched as flowers blossomed wherever you touched. “I can’t wait for spring,” you told him. 

“I’m sure it’ll be beautiful,” he said, watching the flowers you made bloom. “It always is.”

You smiled, cheeks slowly becoming gold. “What flower will you collect this time?”

“I’m not sure yet,” he told you, and he told you that, because he couldn’t tell you that Sera forbade him from doing so, saying he’d become a distraction by being so forward, yet not outright trying to pursue you. 

So when spring did come, and you witnessed the first bloom alone, you collected a small bouquet before heading back to Heaven and straight to Lucifer’s doorstep. You knocked, waiting patiently before he opened the door, smiling immediately. “It’s you!”

“It’s me,” you laughed, holding the bouquet out to him with fluttering wings. “I brought something for you, since you weren’t there to distract me…”

He was speechless, wings fluttering behind him as he looked at the bouquet in awe. He carefully waved a hand around it, encasing it in glass before snapping his fingers and transporting it to his office. 

He looked up at you and said, “thank you for the beautiful gift,” hand taking yours as he leaned in. 

But he didn’t kiss your cheek. Instead, he placed his lips tentatively on yours as his fluttering wings involuntarily lifted him from the ground. 

You were too shocked to do anything before he pulled away and said, “I’m sure you have important work to do.”

“Your work is far more important than mine.” He laughed, squeezing your hand before he let go. “I’ll see you at the Celebration, right?”

“I couldn’t miss it.”

And just a few days later, another Seasons Celebration came around. It was the same, angels rejoicing; singing, dancing, indulging in heavenly spirits. 

And, again, Lucifer arrived late, but he went straight to you. You let the pale bird he’d taken the form of whistle a tune that you hummed along to before he appeared, smiling as he offered his hand to dance. 

Maybe it was the confidence alcohol gave you, or you attempting to crush the nerves that stopped you from doing anything when you went to visit him, but you took his hand and pulled him forward, planting a very deliberate kiss on his lips. He didn’t waste time, hands going to your waist as he kissed you back. His arms circled around you, wings shielding your faces and privatizing the moment as your hands went to his cheek and shoulder. 

“Finally,” muttered Patience, making you laugh before pulling back. 

“Come home with me,” Lucifer blurted breathlessly before his brain could even stop his mouth. He cleared his throat, pausing for a moment, in shock of what he just said. The other Virtues were snickering, Sera looked appalled, and Emily choked on her drink — all while your hands simply fell and brows raised in anticipation of seeing what he might have to say to fix that. He shook his head to get his thoughts in order and quickly remembered Sera’s warning, adding, “Would you like to… For dinner…?” as he moved his hands to your hips, then your hands to make sure he wasn’t coming on too strong. 

“For dinner?” He nodded as you quirked a brow at him.

“Or whatever you want,” he said just as dumbly as his first suggestion, his composure leaving him as his eyes flitted between yours, a small smile coming to his lips. 

“I want to dance.” His smile widened. You lowered your voice and asked, “How about you take me home after that?”

His hands went to your face as yours gently held his wrists, his thumbs stroking your cheeks. “Whatever you want.”

[crispycreambacon]

[Image Description in the Alt text]

— Lyrics —

And once I'm in your shredded skin

There ain't nothing that this puppet won't do

I'm gonna make one hell of a me

Out of the pieces of you!

— The Substitute's Song, Shane Madej —

Happy anniversary to one of the best episodes of Puppet History ever!!! And happy birthday to this little blue holographic menace :}

Seriously floored by how deliviously devilish and catchy this song is??? And of course, the Hologram/Subsitute made for a delightful villain. I have a feeling the Season 5 finale won't be the last time we'll see this bugger... <- is coping. is absolutely coping.

This art piece is actually a little bit old 😭 It was drawn during my Semester break when I was trying to get a hang of drawing on the computer. However, I kept forgetting to post this, and eventually, I just went "Screw it, I'll post this on the Season 5 penultimate episode's anniversary"

I'm still proud of this one not gonna lie! Considering it was one of the first illustrations I've drawn on the pooter, it came out pretty good. Thank you to everyone involved in Puppet History for making an absolutely wack-a-mole hell of a show 🫶🏽

[beansprean]

Oh, there he is.

My Familiar’s Ghost part 44

Masterpost

(ID in alt and under cut)

ID: 1. Shot of Nandor from the rear as the lights to the break room suddenly click on, the table with the dead female vampire in front of him. He whirls around in surprise, eyes wide, and chokes out, ‘G-‘ 2. Close up at last of vampire Guillermo standing in the doorway, the hall dark behind him, arm retreating from having flipped on the light. His skin has lost color, his cheeks are tinged blue, his eyes are a deep orange with slitted pupils, his hair is slightly mussed, and he is wearing the same blue-striped button down that his ghost has been stuck in this whole time. Blood, new and old, stains his collar and all down his front, more smears on his neck and flicks on his face and chin. His expression is impassive, gaze steady on Nandor. Offscreen, Nandor manages to continue: ‘Guillermo!’ 3. Close up of Nandor on the same beige background as the walls of the break room as he turns, eyes shining, a small, hopeful smile twitching onto his face. In the background, a memory of ghost Guillermo fades into view, teary and desperate, crying 'Please! Please find vampire me! Please don't give up on him!' Nandor breathes out in relief, 'You're-' 4. Repeat. Nandor drops the smile for a nervous grimace, tucking in his chin and holding out one hand, palm out, towards Guillermo as if to halt him in place. He says, 'Hold on, before you say anything, let me speak, please!' 5. Reverse shot of Guillermo again in the same position, gaze steady on Nandor. He furrows his brow a bit and raises one in confusion, lip slightly curling as if in disgust or disbelief. Nandor continues from offscreen: 'I know that you have been very angry with me, and I forgive you for that. I even forgive you for letting that Eric guy bite you.' 6. Full body of Nandor in profile, his shadow stretching out long and dark behind him. Darkness behind him, light ahead. He is holding his hands out palm-up and staring at them pensively, sadness and regret taking over his expression. Nandor says, 'Despite my reservations on the matter... Guillermo, I... If it had to be anyone... I wanted it to be me. I know that is what you wanted too, and I may have taken it for granted that you would wait until I was ready to...to let you go. ...I regret not being your sire. If I had known the lengths you were about to go to...' In front of Nandor on the lighter side of the panel are three faded flashbacks of Guillermo in sepia tone from times he asked to be turned: A disappointed frown as he holds his collar open in the pilot episode; a desperate plea, hands out, bundled up and flushed from the cold, from the wellness center episode; and a teary, grateful smile, rosary bunched up in his hand, from the season 3 finale. /end ID

[foxufortunes]

From: unknown number you’ve been invited to a monsters ball lucky you rabbit

Finally, the fic is out, A Monsters' Ball the pro-exy team MSBY Black Jackals (ft Andreil and some rabbits). Details like team line up and positions, alt jerseys, layers and some backstories beneath the cut.

So, our team line up and some details (and yes, I do have a colour coded spreadsheet to keep track of all this, which Neil and Sakusa constantly mess up by being the wrong year for their age bc they're babies, but ages are rough because no everyone has a declared birthday/age) with some art breaks between:

#4 Captain Meian Shuugo - 29, backliner, 5yrs MSBY, 5yrs college, from one of the country's best high school teams, 1 season as captain, trying really hard to be mature and not find everyone's antics funny, eternal rival to Hirugami Fukurou, captain of the champions, the Alders.

#20 V.Captain Hirugami Shouko - 26, backliner, 2yrs MSBY, 5yrs college, from another top high school, middle child of 2 pro-exy players (two of the earliest adopters before it got big, probably ppl who went to uni with Tetsuji and Kayleigh), younger sister of Alders captain Fukurou, joined the Jackals out of desire to say fuck you to her older brother.

#2 Amani Kanoka - 23, striker, rookie MSBY, 5yrs college, from a private all girls high school that became the best in the country, known as the Queens of Exy, very shy, has a lot of confidence issues, that she handles by being the best on court.

#5 Nathaniel Wesninski - 24, striker, MSBY rookie, 1yr Baltimore Wildcats, 4.5 yrs EAU Ravens, 0.5yrs PSU Foxes, joined the Foxes after only a year playing in a nowhere team but was quickly poached by the Ravens at Christmas that year and was a regular member the team the next year under his real name, very flighty, big fan of secrets, no idea how to handle the Jackals' chaos (they're like the Foxes but without the trauma).

#12 Bokuto Koutarou - 24, striker, 1yr MSBY, 5yrs college, one of the top 5 strikers in Japan in high school, another top high school team, ultimate himbo, might have committed tax fraud, has a word of the day calendar he's trying really hard to use properly, known for super sharp angle shots and for just bodying people and the ball.

#15 Sakusa Kiyoomi - 22, striker, rookie MSBY, 5yrs college, championship highschool team several yrs running, one of the top 3 strikers in Japan in high school, collegiate MVP, Team Japan 2016 squad, Team Japan U19 rep, grumpy baby, very into properly folded handkerchiefs, do not touch, preferably do not interact outside of court, speak to him via his adorable cousin or not at all unless saving him from bugs.

Halfway through the team stats, time for some art. The Away Colours! Maybe the racquets change to white too, idk I couldn't be bothered to recolour them though.

Ok, back to the second half of the team:

#3 Andrew Minyard - 25, goalkeeper, 2yrs MSBY, 3yrs USC Trojans, 2yrs PSU Foxes, best goalkeeper and rookie awards during his rookie season, didn't really tell anyone his plans after university just kind of vanished, only told a handful of people he'd signed for a team, Neil thought he was dead, he has a motorcycle now because city traffic is awful on his sports cars and the stadium is walking distance, sometimes plays defensive dealer.

#6 Inunaki Shion - 26, goalkeeper, 4yrs MSBY, 3yrs college (dropped out to go pro), middling high school only competed nationally once, the vodka aunt of the team, here to get people drunk, instigate drama with the monsters and then sit back and laugh, actually very soft on the youngsters, tolerates stupid nicknames like Inu-san and Wan-san (never get tired of that being translated Mr Dog and Mr Woof).

#9 Adriah Tomas - 27, backliner, 1yr MSBY, a transfer from European leagues, surprisingly fast for his size, just happy to be here, comes across as a bit of an airhead, but is usually right next to Inunaki instigating chaos and then pretending he doesn't understand the language enough to know what happened.

#10 Oliver Barnes - 30, backliner, 2yr MSBY, Team USA 2016/2012 Olympic squads, transfer from America, big friendly softie, dad of the team, actual dad of a 5yo girl, starting to consider retirement into coaching so is happy to spend the end of his elite career with these idiots.

#13 Miya Atsumu - 23, offensive dealer, 5yrs MSBY, Team Japan 2016 Olypmic squad, Team Japan U19 rep, from a top high school, considered the best dealer in Japan in high school, signed straight from high school, a particularly offensive dealer, easily doubles as striker, all rounder (all Jackals are all rounders but the dealers in particular), demanding and thoughtless jerk but not trying to be nasty, can come across as arrogant but is the first to accept his own mistakes.

#21 Hinata Shouyou - 22, defensive dealer, MSBY rookie, 2yrs playing street exy in Brazil, middling high school team on the rise, player backliner in high school despite wanting to be a striker, but learned to play all positions in Brazil, sometimes move position based on what team they're facing, general ray of sunshine, obsessed with exy, does meditation and yoga in the sunrise preferably on a beach.

Ok, team done, have some more art because yes, I did layer these team pics up slowly from the base dri-fit layers to the armour/padding to the jerseys.

The Jackals provide uniform everything from base layers to padding to anything like compression sleeves, knee/arm pads and everything else. Armour is provided by them to ensure it's up to regulation and team standards, the Jackals require some kind of shoulder padding (most of the team has detachable shoulder pads, while Bokuto and Sakusa who prefer more shoulder rotation and just more coverage respectively, where seperate bicep/shoulder pads). I've talked more about armour on older wip posts, but they're based on lacrosse chest pads. Brief version: strikers were shorter, around the vitals, backliners generally are longer on the sides to protect the ribs, goalies have more coverage because duh, and dealers wear whatever they like. Every single one has either hollow rigid or extra padded piece over the centre of the chest because, especially in younger players, a ball to the chest can stop your heart.

And there we go!

[bylrlve]

Warning! Potential spoilers for Stranger Things 5!

To recap, Alex received this dm on 13/2/23, seemingly confirming mileven breakup

She received this message on that day, which states that mileven are still together and happy. However it’s also instantly debunkable bc they’re absolutely not going to do the Hopper-Mike feud bs again. That is beyond clear.

On this past Tuesday, 20/2/23, she received a second message outright stating Mileven breakup.

Finally, on Wednesday, 21/2/23, she received this message full of pretty plausible statements, with mileven breakup included as fact. Interesting.

This person claims it’s all fake, with no rationale or alt info - what, is Will not important now?

Worth noting: Millie is currently doing promo for Damsels, so she’ll be out of commission re: filming for a few weeks. Early March is probably when she’ll come back, but Finn will be be busy with his Ghosbusters 2 promo.

Two conclusions:

1.) there will be no mileven scenes filmed for a few weeks. Filming schedules are very tightly planned to accommodate other actor commitments, so it doesn’t seem like this posed a massive issue. Hm.

2,) Millie will likely be doing any scenes she has with Sadie and Caleb, aka Max and Lucas, when she gets back. As this message says.

This person is probably just smart and well-informed enough to figure this out, but it’s interesting.

There has been some very intriguing activity on a stranger things set a few days ago - red UD ligthing, castle Byers.., and Will Byers. Will’s plotline for season 5 seriously looks like everything us Will stans have been dreaming of in terms of plot relevance, emotional catharsis, etc. This pic dropped yesterday, and the spoiler acc seems to have confirmed it’s Will:

Lastly,this also dropped today:

(Credit to @1987byler on twt)

Very strange framework, here. If the goal is to set up Will being rejected gently by Mike, but understood and accepted, why not focus on that? Why not have Vecna say ‘you’re afraid he’ll be disgusted by you. You’re afraid he’ll see you as the disgusting, broken boy you are’ or something like that? Elsewhere in the game, it’s being reported by players that Will is being taunted about how his friends are all ignoring him, and how Max fits into the group better than he does. This is canonically a sore spot for him - not so much the Max part, but the general point. So why not emphasise his fear of Mike’s rejection, rather than his hurt at Mike picking El over him?

Maybe because, if this is carried into s5 and we get scenes of Vecna taunting Will about Mike choosing El, it’ll be certain that Mike will indeed pick Will. Maybe this is a means of hinting that?

(Side note: at this point in the time line, El was really just a concept to Will. The one time he met her, it was for barely a minute as a delirious, dying child. By s4, it’s very clear that they’re close and loving. I’ll hear no critique of him for apparently not wanting her to come back - it’s very obviously Vecna twisting things, as he did with Max in s4 to make it seem like she actively wanted to murder Billy.)

Also worth noting: the best Mike can say about the girl he supposedly loved at first sight, after a whole week with her, is that she’s ‘cool’, ‘different’, ‘awesome’. Very lacklustre. Compare to how Lucas would describe the comatose max to a newcomer in s4.

Finally: Will quite literally utilises a never-seen memory of Mike and him in Castle Byers as his happy menory, his safe place. You know,like the Snow Ball and those other memories of good times with Lucas that Max clung to in s4?

Credit to @will80sbyers

This post by @nebulousfishgills reports Vecna saying that Will is ‘the key’, manipulating Will’s memories, and directly saying “You���ll finally matter to someone, Will.” Byler kind of has to be endgame, right? For this to make any sense as a narrative? ‘We can still be friends’ won’t cut it, not if, as the messages Alex is getting make out, Will is still so achingly in love post-time jump that he’s staying by Mike’s hospital bed after everyone else leaves and kissing his forehead (a). Not if they’re still emphasising that Mike is his safe place, his home, his light, in (technically) pre-season five promotional material.

All of this is… interesting, to say the least.

I’ll leave off by sharing the posts made by the wonderful @solgmorell on the set leak (x) and the VR byler stuff (x, y).

(a)

ETA: two of the previous dms Alex has gotten state that Will struggles with his friendships with the other party member this season due to being closeted. This game touches heavily on Will’s feeling disconnected from his friends, at least partly bc of his sexuality…. One is above, the other is here:

[elluia]

Choose Your Legends 8 ended with lots of surprises, and it's time to celebrate!

I've seen concerning amounts of salt and bashing on the games involved or not, so this will be a positive post! I'm tired of the fandom's dumb takes and toxicity so let's praise everyone for the amazing scores and stories that unfolded during this vote!

First let's start with the link to all the official CYL art since Year 1 of FEH, enjoy the trip down memory lane!

https://fire-emblem-heroes.com/fr/sp/illustrations/

(I nabbed that chibi Soren right away, bless Kita Senri)

CYL 8 Male winners:

🥇1: Alfonse | A beautifully deserved win for our well-written OC lord who keeps the story of Heroes entertaining with his crazy one-liners and unhinged plans, with more tender moments with his family and friends to soften him. I hope we get to see him grown-up like Legendary Veronica.

🥈2: Felix | I love seeing non-lord characters emerge from the voting. His voters have shown their supports 4 years in a row and it paid off! Especially nice win because Felix has been shafted by IS with a silly seasonal and an ok god-sword pre-TS unit.

CYL 8 Female winners:

🥇1: Bernadetta | Just like Felix, her voters lost to circumstances (aka the surprise Gullveig sweep), so I'm glad for them! Plus her post-TS personality should force the writers to tone down the moe nervous trait that flanderizes her character.

🥈2: Female Robin | She's finally free to be in the common summoning pool as herself, not Grima! She has too few alts to her name, and she marks the first time both genders of an avatar have won CYL, so good job!

About the Engage non-sweep, don't get disheartened! The votes for Engage were equal to Three Houses, but they were split between A LOT of fan favourites for both genders, while the FE3H fans rallied one last time for 1 male and 1 female representation, without competition from their lords. It's a respectable result, and the bashing on Engage is disingenuous and undeserved.

I've seen the top 5 from each game and I'm happy to see Finn up there for Thracia and Mae for Echoes. I hope to see Linoan soon, and other alts for Berkut and Rinea. People rallied for Athos to get in the game already, for Lloyd to have new art, for Seth and Titania to get the stats they deserve...

Fan favourites like Lyon or the Black Knight still score high. Azura received love. Even Elincia who's already been very lucky in 2023 got in the top for PoR and RD! I love to see people rally for a Sentinel Nephenee too.

We continue to see Leo and Takumi side by side, chilling in the male top 20 like BFFs. It's adorable.

This CYL8 follows in the steps of CYL7 with no main lords, only favourites and avatars.

Next year I hope to see Jugdral and Elyos win, but for now I'm happy with the 4 we have 🥰

[leafofkudzu]

Hey there! I hope everyone's back-to-school season has been going well, whatever that entails for them! The first Saturday of October is fast approaching, which means it's time for another art party hosted by my build, Verdant Shield [VS]! There was no poll for this one because I'm testing out a few suggested locations, the first of which is Vigil Keep!

For those who have no idea what these art parties are, they're an idea carried over from Final Fantasy XIV - in-game get-togethers for artists/writers/creatives of all types to hang out, chat, and create together! Grab your character of choice and dress them up, then find someone else whose look inspires you, and create! Afterwards, everyone posts their creations in a shared tag (ours is #VSArtParty) so others can see, interact, and share! Tl;dr - the 'goal' of an art party isn't to be drawn, but to draw others, and share with the community!

Details for location and /squadjoin information below the cut!

Location Details:

One of the most easily-accessible Order Headquarters, Vigil Keep is full of big open areas, but there's one specific spot just a bit Northwest of Vigil Keep Waypoint that's caught my eye as a staging area, as follows:

It's nice and open, but also has a lot of little walls and boxes and scaffolding to climb around on if you're the kind of person who likes to lurk. And also, it's completely F2P accessible and enemy-free! Also, though you're by no means obligated to do so, if you're indecisive about which character to bring to these, you should consider bringing your Vigil-affiliated ones! Thinking about this has made me realize that all mine are on an alt account though.... ;-;

Time & Squad Details:

As always, we'll be having 2 parties - one on EU servers and one on NA servers - with an hour break in between. People with accounts in both regions do tend to hop immediately from one to the other though, so don't be afraid to show up early!

The first party will be on EU servers and begin at 9pm Central European Summer Time (aka 3pm Eastern Daylight Time or 5 hours before in-game reset). I’ll be hosting on my EU alt account, so to join either /squadjoin or whisper Ashelin Falstaff for an invite.

The second party will be on NA servers and begin at 7pm Eastern Daylight Time (aka 1am Central European Summer Time or 1 hour before in-game reset). This one I’ll be hosting on my main account, so to join either /squadjoin or whisper Yui Kaiho for an invite.

Closing Words:

Next few parties will likely be me experimenting with new locations, so if you have suggestions for places to try out feel free to let me know! Also, there's a non-zero chance that next month's party will be Halloween-themed, so prepare yourselves for that!

Thank you so much to every person who comes out to these events, both regulars and those just checking things out are what make these so special and memorable! Here's to another fun party - I'll see you all next week! ♥

[cityzenshark]

If S2 doesn't improve the story focus...

Decepticon fan speaking here. I love them, I want to see them getting the limelight, but Earthspark isn't their show. It's about the Terrans and their relationship with the Malto family. There are over a dozen other media where your favourite classics get their spotlight but this show might not be one of them. We have to accept that.

However, EarthSpark's big problem is its disregard of its own main characters to the point the audience care more about the side characters.

Long ramble ahead.

.

From Season 1, Earthspark has the tendency to disregard their own main characters for the sake of already existing ones. Thrash, Robby, Jawbreaker, and the parents are big victims here.

Thrash, despite being the other first Terran, gets little to no development. He only had one focus episode that shifted his positive view of Cybertronians yet it didn't affect his characteristic or the family dynamic whatsoever. He could've been involve in other episodes focusing on the triplets, specifically with Nightshade, like Twitch with Hashtag, but he doesn't. In the end, his canvas is just like his paint job -- empty white.

Robby could've get 4 episodes about him only for 3 of them to be shifted to Twitch & Wheeljack, Starscream, Mo. Never mind the Wheeljack episode and "Prime Time" but "What Dwells Within" is the worst of them all. Now it appears Season 2 is heavily focusing him after S1 dismisses him multiple times.

Starscream, I'm sorry what you've been through, but that episode should never be about you. Robby is sick, the Terrans got rocky with other due to the lost link which triggered Hashtag's trauma of getting possessed, and then they lost their LIFE SOURCE WATER. Earthspark wanted the audience to side with Starscream so bad they put him in the pity light instead of laying out hints of his past in previous episodes and allow the viewers to decide for themselves. The dude's a millennium old soldier, not another Terran.

EDIT: The same case goes for Grimlock. As bad as the dude has gone through in "Home", he's also a millennium-old soldier. He knows he's going through PTSD but Jawbreaker doesn't. JB is a newborn. Instead of celebrating JB when he finally got his alt mode, the moment made viewers hate him because it focuses on Grimlock's point of view.

[IMPORTANT NOTE FOR JB FANS: DO NOT GO TO TRANSFORMEMES SUBREDDIT!! RECENTLY, A USER THERE CAUSED TERRAN HATERS TO POP UP AND WISHING J.B TO DIE A HORRIBLE DEATH BECAUSE HE ACTED LIKE AN OVEREXCITED KID]

The parents... Oh dear their potentials are wasted soooo much. Ignoring Dot's relationship with Megs, they've become mere placements to remind the audience that Robby & Mo aren't poor orphans.

Dot being a veteran is to make her relationship with Megs sound plausible, that's all. Meanwhile Alex's profession in Cybertronian history is only relevant in the pilot episode and he only told the most basic one in lore. They never fuss about the cybersleeves, they seem available all the time but not really, they're ignorant of their children's activities, completely fine with them becoming child soldiers. Dot could've been the one to beat Mandroid to pulp in Prime Time like the Mama Bear she's described to be but no - let the nine year old beat him with alien powers. Alex could've played a bigger role for the Terrans to know about Cybertronians in general; for Nightshade especially by being the one who enables their intelligence and tinkering skills - not just leading them to finding their alt mode.

The show should've made Mo the same age as Robby. You can't ignore that they act like twins more than Twitch & Thrash despite the 5 year age gap. For a nine year old, she has high emotional intelligence yet so inconsiderate and naive at the same time in certain episodes. Pick one personality, please.

Finally, why oh why didn't they fix her face and head size? It looks a lot worse now.

TLDR; don't be surprised by the sudden change in character of the Cons. Earthspark doesn't respect their own main characters except Twitch. So let us heed Season 2 with low expectations.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

that ending would have convinced me the show shouldn't have ended gabriel's story on heroes day

Thank you.

I like battles that have the main theme blaring in the background

[familyagrestefanblog]

You know, thinking about it. In the Paris special it was a pretty selfish dick-move from Hesperia to show up and ask for Ladybug and Chat Noir's help to redeem ToxiGriffe

And yet he never offered the same thing in return. As if Ladybug and Chat Noir DON'T need help with Monarque. As of Hesperia couldn't have been asked to at least TRY (maybe even with good ToxiGriffe helping out too) to also help his evil version see the light.

It's irrelevant that Hesperia "didn't necessarily know" that his other universe self (our Gabriel) is Monarque, neither did Ladybug and Chat Noir initially for their counterparts and yet they put in the work.

And concidering that this is exactly were Marinette failed so bitterly against Gabriel in the season 5 finale, this is so not a nitpick. Gabriel Agreste could still be alive now and the Butterfly save in the Miracle Box.

Adrien didn't HAD to be an orphan now.

Marinette tried talking Gabriel into redemption the way they did with ToxiGriffe, only massive problem was that Hesperia came into our universe BECAUSE he himself couldn't talk them into it. It had to be their own counterparts.

So the same logic proceeded to apply to Marinette of course. She tried taking a place that wasn't hers so of course it failed spectacularly. But in the end, she only saw herself in the need to try and fill that place because Alt Gabriel fucked off without trying to help first.

He really just showed up in our universe, asked for help for his own problems, and then left Ladynoir to their own evil grown up butterfly, huh?

Jep, that man absolutely was a variation of Gabriel Agreste...

[ampresandian]

My (unofficial) PJO season 2 episode 5 script part 2/4 (part 1)

Images of script and copied text (bc I'm lazy and don't want to write out alt text) under the cut, just in case I didn't tag enough spoiler warning or people aren't interested <3

(this part specifically is the siren scene just in case that's important to you)

Annabeth Tries to Swim Home

ABRUPTLY: INT. QUEEN ANNE’S REVENGE – DAY

PERCY wakes up with a start, breathing heavily. ANNABETH is right beside him.

ANNABETH: Percy! Percy, you were having a nightmare. 

He tries to calm down. 

ANNABETH (CONT): Come on. We’re approaching the island of the Sirens. 

They climb the stairs out onto the deck. The heavy fog and low clouds keep it gray and dim as they make their way to the mast. Percy ties Annabeth to it. 

PERCY: Is that okay? It’s not too tight?

ANNABETH: It has to be tight enough.

PERCY: Right. It’ll hold. 

He finishes tying his knots, and gathers two scoops of candle wax, rolling them into earplugs. 

ANNABETH: Don’t untie me. No matter how much I plead and beg. 

PERCY: (nodding) I won’t. Promise. 

Percy puts the wax in his ears, and all sound cuts out immediately. After a moment, we can hear the low thump of his heartbeat, and the whisper of waves against the boat. 

Craggy rocks emerge from the fog as they sail closer to the island. Percy watches Annabeth, who seems fine at first. 

Suddenly, she begins reacting to the music. She begins to struggle, clearly distraught. 

ANNABETH: (SILENT) Percy!

He looks away from her, uncomfortable with her misery.

The boat continues through the fog, remnants of old wreckages floating in the water. Percy looks thoughtful, a hand twitching as if to reach for his ear. A low hum can be heard, under the waves and beat of Percy’s heart. 

He looks back at Annabeth.

ANNABETH (CONT): (SILENT) Please, Percy! You have to let me go. Please!

PERCY: (AUDIBLE) I’m sorry.

ANNABETH: (SILENT) I thought you were my friend! Let me go!

Percy looks away again. He closes his eyes, upset.

He looks back at the mast, now empty, the ropes on the ground with Annabeth’s knife. 

PERCY: (AUDIBLE) Annabeth!

Annabeth can be seen swimming towards the island. Percy jumps in after her. 

PERCY (CONT): (AUDIBLE) Annabeth!

Percy is desperate, trying to keep an eye on Annabeth and avoid obstacles. Annabeth is entranced by the island, still shrouded in fog. He dips below the water again and again, coming back up to find Annabeth, further from the ship each time. He gains on her, little by little. 

PERCY (CONT): (AUDIBLE) Annabeth!

Annabeth is nearly to shore. The black sand of the Sirens’ beach can be seen. Percy is finally close enough to grab her, catching hold of her ankle and pulling her back out to sea. 

ANNABETH: (SILENT) Percy! No! Let me go!

Annabeth struggles against him as they sink into the water. Completely submerged, she falters, seeming confused. 

Percy pulls them down, but Annabeth begins to struggle again, needing to breathe. Percy looks around, desperate again, before concentrating. 

Suddenly, bubbles converge upon them, and the two teenagers are enclosed in an underwater bubble. Annabeth gasps for air. She meets Percy’s eyes and begins to sob (AUDIBLE), her head buried in his shoulder. 

PERCY: (AUDIBLE) It’s okay. Just hold on. I’ll get us back to the ship. It’s okay.

Annabeth nods, her sobs beginning to subside. Percy begins to navigate their bubble back towards the dimly visible hull of the Queen Anne’s Revenge. The ship has drifted away, out of range of the Sirens’ voices.

They surface, and a rope ladder drops down the side of the ship. Annabeth climbs up, followed by Percy. Again, it is silent except for his heartbeat and the lap of the waves. The sun has appeared, the fog receding behind them. 

Percy looks at Annabeth, but she stares out to the horizon. Eventually, she looks back at him. 

ANNABETH: (SILENT) It’s safe.

Percy removes his earplugs, and all sound returns. 

PERCY: Hey. Are you okay? (winces)

ANNABETH: I didn’t realize how powerful the temptation would be. 

PERCY: What did you see? 

ANNABETH: (pause) I rebuilt Manhattan. It was beautiful, full of Greek pillars and rooftop gardens that never wilt. And... my parents. They were together again, and happy to see me. (another pause)

PERCY: It sounds beautiful.

ANNABETH: (sigh) Luke was there too. 

It becomes tense. 

ANNABETH (CONT): We started over. I rebuilt the world, and everything went right this time. 

Percy: So... When Luke said you could start the world from scratch. That really hit home, huh?

ANNABETH: My fatal flaw, Percy. That’s what the Sirens showed me. It’s hubris.

PERCY: Pride?

ANNABETH: Deadly pride. Thinking I can do things better than anyone. Better than the gods. 

PERCY: Do you?

ANNABETH: You don’t ever think about how messed up the world is? What if we could start over--no war, no homelessness. No racism. No useless homework or standardized tests. 

PERCY: That sounds pretty good.

ANNABETH: I mean, the West is good. It represents a lot of the best of humans. But sometimes it’s so hard to ignore the bad stuff, you know? And then, like, what if Luke’s right? If it was all torn down, could we do it better? 

Percy looks confused. 

ANNABETH (CONT): You don’t ever think that way? Like you could do a better job running the world? 

PERCY: Um... I don’t think so. That sounds like kind of a nightmare. 

ANNABETH: (with a soft laugh) Lucky. Hubris isn’t your fatal flaw. 

PERCY: What is, then? Doesn’t every hero have one? 

ANNABETH: I don’t know, Percy. 

They pause, contemplating. 

PERCY: So, was it worth it? Do you feel wiser? 

ANNABETH: (considering) We have to stop Luke. If he can still tempt me so easily... Well, I won’t be the only one. 

Percy nods. They float in silence for a moment. 

PERCY: Annabeth... The reason you hate Cyclopes so much. The story about how Thalia really died. What happened?

ANNABETH: The night Grover escorted us to camp, he took some wrong turns. The worst one was into a Cyclops’ lair in Brooklyn. 

PERCY: Wait. There’s Cyclopes in Brooklyn?

ANNABETH: Tyson lives in Manhattan and you’re surprised there’s Cyclopes in Brooklyn?

Percy holds up his hands in defeat.

ANNABETH (CONT): Anyway, he tricked us. The Cyclops split us up in this house, it was like a maze of corridors, Percy. And he could mimic anyone, sound just like them. Just like... (trails off before continuing) He lured us, one at a time. Grover was running to save Thalia, and Luke too. Thalia thought she’d heard me yell for help. And I was only seven, and alone in the dark. I just kept running.

Annabeth stops talking, looking out across the sea again. Percy takes her hand. 

ANNABETH (CONT): Eventually, I found the main room. The others were there too, tied up. The Cyclops was getting ready to eat them. He saw me. Spoke to me. He would’ve killed me. But... I managed to get Thalia free, and she saved us.

PERCY: Wow. That’s pretty brave, Annabeth.

ANNABETH: I really didn’t do much. And we barely got out alive.

PERCY: Still. You were only seven, and all alone. That’s plenty brave in my book. 

ANNABETH: (shaking her head) I still have nightmares about it. And I still can’t like Cyclopes. It was his fault we took so long getting to camp. It gave all the other monsters time to catch up to us. If we hadn’t gotten stuck in that house, Thalia would be alive today.

Thunder rolls, far off. 

PERCY: (trying for levity again) Maybe she did meet a hero’s fate.

Annabeth playfully hits his arm. Camera focuses on her face.

(PART 3 | PART 4)

[mournings-stars]

little songbird

part 2 (prelude) to my orpheus and eurydice angst fic "doubt comes in" — i'm not entirely certain i'll make this a full fic but if yall like it i might end up adding another part (would still be a prelude since part 1 is technically the end unless anyone requests a spin-off-esque addition)

part 3 (prelude pt. 2) part 4 (prelude pt. 3) part 5/finale (semi-alt ending)

includes: heaven lucifer ofc, a little lore, some blending of greek mythology, i don't think there are any warnings besides fluff and luci is a hopless romantic but also the relationship is ambiguous right now, still dramatic just dramatic greek fluff (also I made angels have golden blush because they have gold blood)

When you first met Lucifer, you’d just finished your duties on Earth and were going to come back to celebrate. As a Virtue, your job was to persuade the seasons into change — you sang a melody you’d taken from nature itself, soaring over the clouds and riding the winds until autumn fell over the world and you went back home until nature needed your persuasive help once more. 

But as you were going up, he was coming down. You came face to face, stopping each of you in your tracks. 

You’d heard of him, of course; Lucifer, the Morning Star, with his wondrous creations and unattainable dreams, but you never thought you’d see him in person — it always seemed like he was too busy working to ever come down to Earth. 

Yet here he was. 

You moved out of his way. “Sorry. I didn’t see you coming.”

“No worries at all.” He gave you a very charming smile, making you smile back reflexively. He took off his hat, tufts of blond hair falling in his face as he took your hand, bowing as his wings lifted him higher. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Humility.” He kissed the back of your hand and your small smile broadened. “I can’t believe we haven’t met yet.”

“You know who I am?” 

“Of course.” He pulled a blooming purple flower from his lapel, twirling it in his fingers. “You’re the one that made this.”

You didn’t know what to say, heart thumping against your ribcage with a swell of pride that he, a Seraph — and not just any Seraph — Lucifer, knew and coveted the small flowers you made blossom in a world that was filled with bigger, much more beautiful things. 

“I collect a new one every spring,” he continued, watching your reaction with a smile that he couldn’t help. Your eyes widened, hand gripping his without realizing you were even still holding it. “I came to collect a few of your golden leaves this time.”

“My leaves?” Was all you could think to say as your wings and heart fluttered with pride. You quickly dropped his hand when you felt your wings behind you, suddenly very aware of his presence and gaze. “I didn’t paint the leaves.”

“No, but you persuade nature to make them,” he laughed, tucking the stem of the flower into your hair as he did. “Who knew Humility would be so humble.”

“It is my virtue,” you said quietly, taking his hand to stop him from fussing with the flower he gave back to you. You opened his palm, brushing your hand over it. His wings fluttered the same as yours. “But thank you for your kindness, Lucifer.”

“Honesty,” he corrected as a golden leaf appeared in his hand, shimmering in the light. He stuck it into his lapel, where the flower had been, and grinned. “Such a generous gift and I don’t even know your true name.” You laughed at his tone, hinting for you to keep talking to him just as you were going to leave, and properly introduced yourself. “It suits you,” he said, “someone who creates this beauty,” he deliberately didn’t look at the scenery, “should have that beautiful of a name.”

“Aren’t you kind,” you said with a raised brow, knowing he was flattering you; calling you beautiful without outright saying it, you could easily pick up on his intentions. 

“Too kind for your liking?”

“I didn’t mean it like that!” You said quickly. “I was only joking—“

“I know!” He laughed, soothing your sudden embarrassment with a zealous, maybe overly so, hand on your cheek. “Who knew an Angel of Virtue would be so virtuous,” he joked again, laughing and stroking your cheek with his thumb before he dropped his hand. He was certainly overzealous, but you couldn’t say you minded it. “I should stop teasing you — go on, I’m sure you have important work to do—“

“Your work is far more important than mine,” you blurted, then wanted to slap yourself across the face. “I mean, my work isn’t any more important than yours — I’m sure you have more important things to do—“ he continued to let you put your foot in your mouth, watching you try to make sense of your words with a doting smile and fluttering wings. “—I mean, if you’re staying, I can stay, too—“

“You want to stay with me?” He concluded with a grin and you blanked, shaking your head at yourself as a golden glow dusted your cheeks. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he laughed, knowing teasing a Virtue like this was both cruel and profane, “if you’d like to stay, please do… but if you have work to do, I’m sure we’ll meet again.”

You looked around, thinking that perhaps nature could use a little more of a push toward fall. The winds could be a little sharper, and the grass a little duller. 

“I’ve always wanted to hear your song,” Lucifer said, seeing the wheels turn in your mind and taking his chances. “If you think Earth could use a bit more help…”

You thought for just a moment longer before offering your hand to him. “You can help if you’d like.” He took your hand, and you rose higher above the clouds, listening closely for the soft melody that nature sang, before flying in the direction the wind took you and singing…

A simple melody. It was a song you knew well; there were no words or swells to make you know what came next, just an endless melody that the winds would sing as they carried the seasons through Earth.

And Lucifer knew just what to sing along, bringing the endless melody a harmony that made it feel so complete. He guided you beneath the clouds so you could see how the seasons changed — and then it came;

Summer rain. 

A tell-tale sign that your duty was complete, though it always came some time after you left. Now, you got to experience the misty rain and watch as animals came out to play. 

Lucifer laughed, wings going over the two of you to shield you from the rain. “Look at that…” He peeked between a pair of wings, reveling in the beauty you’d created together. “As usual,” he said, “a job well done.”

The next time you met was at the Season’s Celebration in The Garden. It was moved a week later to celebrate the summer rain, but it was a quarterly tradition. The other Virtues brought their specialties, but the highlight of the festivities were the heavenly spirits distilled by Charity and Chastity; not a single angel came without taking a bottle for themself. 

Cherubim played music, Seraphim danced, and the Ophanim made an appearance when they could, but the center of attention was on the seven Virtues and their drunk, lively dancing and cheering. 

The seven of you danced in a circle, glasses raised in the air with a flush of gold on each of your faces as you sang along jovially. 

The celebration lasted all day and night, animals coming to join you as wildflowers surrounded the seven of you. Butterflies, chipmunks, rabbits, and the like came out of hiding for a last experience before hibernation and migration. Birds came down from the sky, one in particular flitting around the circle and each of the Virtues before finally stopping in front of you. Pale yellow with red cheeks, tweeting at you until one of your fellow Virtues spoke. “It wants you to sing!” They laughed drunkenly, taking another sip from their glass. “We should all sing,” said another as you let the bird perch on your hand. 

It was the song of nymphs, muses, and winds; a sirenic song that each of you knew well. The plants in The Garden blossomed bigger and bigger and the bird in your hand flew to the middle of your circle before a cloud of white puffed around it. 

“Oh, it is you!” Laughed Chastity as Lucifer appeared, laughing along and twirling her as she said, “I didn't think you’d ever come to one of these.”

“How could I resist after such a beautiful change in the seasons?” He said cheerfully. “You lovely Virtues have outdone yourselves this year.” He then laughed, turning to Chastity, “and It’s always nice to see such heavenly creatures so drunk.”

“Flattery gets you nowhere,” said Temperance. 

“Certainly not with you,” said Lucifer and Temperance laughed at his jesting, the rest of them seeming to understand much more than you did, how to take teasing like his. 

“Flattery gets you everywhere,” insisted Chastity, and Diligence and Kindness laughed like they’d never heard anything funnier. “What’s so funny!?”

As the other Virtues started a loud, joking conversation, you met Lucifer’s eyes. He smiled, then looked at the music still being played and went to you. “Shall we?” He offered you his hand, wings fluttering behind him and making that same shimmering gold wash over your cheeks. It made him smile as you took his hand. 

“Patience is a much better dancer than I am,” you said as he led you to an open area. 

“But I want to dance with you.” And the moment your own wings fluttered behind you, he knew you just wanted him to confirm that. “Maybe you’re not as humble as I thought,” he whispered, making sure no other angel heard his taunts. He then changed the topic, hand reaching up to brush across your cheek. “You kept my gift.” 

“Of course I did.” You took his hand, using it to twirl under his arm as his wings lifted him higher than you. Yoy gave a very playful smile. “A gift from a Seraph should be coveted.”

“Oh, I see,” he laughed, shaking his head at you and your teasing. “You misunderstood me.”

“Did I?”

He nodded, a small half-smile on his face. “I wasn’t returning your flower as a ‘gift from a Seraph’—“

“You weren’t?”

“No, and you know that. That’s why you gave one back.” You laughed, a coy look on your face that made him shake his head as you looked at the golden leaf he still had stuck to his lapel. 

The two of you danced with all of Heaven watching as you spun, flew, and swayed to the music. He didn’t overstep, and he wasn’t overly forward with his gestures, but he was deliberate. He held you against him, but did it gently. He held your hand, but made sure you put your hand in his first. He lifted you with a smile and met you in the air, leading you back down as others joined in. 

Their laughter and chatting made it so that your conversation was much more private, giving Lucifer the chance to whisper, “How many gifts do I need to give you before you do understand?”

You hummed in thought. “I haven’t decided yet.”

But Lucifer had decided, since the moment he experienced your first time changing the seasons, he was going to love you; however you ended up loving him — a friend, a colleague, he didn’t care as long as it meant that he knew you. He didn’t even expect anything from you. You’d done enough; your ways of changing the seasons brought him out of his cold and lonely workplace that he’d never realized was so cold and lonely until he experienced your summers and springs; filled with warmth and community. Angels never ventured to Earth so often before you, and he could easily understand why. 

How someone could take on the job of multiple angels and the outcome be something so much more beautiful than he’d ever seen, he had no idea, but he was in awe every time he saw your humble work. He’d watch from Heaven, seeing the way you did things. It was the same as any other, but you didn’t indulge in pride as you did it. You did it for the good of the Earth, rather than bestowing a gift. 

He held the utmost respect for you. 

Though, Sera was certainly tired of hearing about that respect, because just a week ago, when you first met, she was the one to urge him down sooner. 

“You’ll never meet if you wait this long,” she said, brow raised as she stood behind Lucifer at the golden gates, watching from the clouds. “Humility is very kind. You could say hello,” she pressed. 

“Does Humility have a name?” He asked curiously, continuing to watch as the clouds changed. “It seems so rude… just saying Humility.”

“I’ve only ever known Virtues by what they represent; that’s how they introduce themselves,” she said, shrugging. Lucifer hummed, nodding and continuing to keep his attention on the clouds. She gave him a nudge, “You could ask.”

“You must want me to leave.”

“I want you to stop longing like this.” Lucifer laughed. “Go on.” She gave him a gentle push, making him have to open his wings before he fell. “Just don’t come on too strong.”

“Right…” He took a deep breath, smoothing down his coat. “I can do that.”

[gunterfan1992]

Episode Review: "Destiny"/"The Winter King" (Fionna & Cake, Eps. 5–6)

Airdate: September 14, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Jacob Winkler, Sonja von Marensdorff

Directed by: Ryann Shannon (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

One of my favorite moments from Adventure Time comes at the very end of season four's "The Lich" when we are introduced to "Farmworld" for the first time. When the episode aired, this reveal was positively huge, adding as it did a brand new reality to the already complex world of Ooo. The show would go on to expand our understanding of Farmworld in the season five premiere "Finn the Human"/"Jake the Dog" and the season seven episode "Crossover," but even with all those episodes, I never could shake the feeling that there was so much more the series could have done with Farmworld. You can thus imagine my surprise when I learned that Fionna and Cake of all people would be journeying to this strangely normal alternate dimension!

"Destiny" picks up with Fionna, Cake, and Simon landing in Farmworld, roughly 10 or so years after the events of "Crossover." Following the destruction of the Farmworld crown, things returned to their (post-apocalyptic) normalcy, and Ice-Finn (or, as the people in Farmworld call him, "The Snow Man") has grown into a strapping Man-Finn who is busy raising three children (his wife, it seems, has died). One of Finn's kids, Jay, overhears Fionna, Cake, and Simon asking around about the Farmworld crown, and so he steals them away to meet his father. Once Man-Finn discovers what it is Simon and Co. seek, however, he bids them to leave. Going against his father's wishes, Jay sneaks Fionna, Cake, and Simon to the crater where the Farmworld Bomb had detonated, where they all discover the charred remnants of the crown. At this point, Jay reveals that previously when visiting the crater, he had discovered one of the crown's jewels. The final act of the episode is a sees Fionna, Cake, Simon, Man-Finn, and Jay square off against the Destiny Gang and Scarab, who we learn has been trailing our heroes this whole time. After securing the jewel from Big D's turncoat daughter, Simon fuses it with Prismo's remote, zapping himself, Fionna and Cake to another reality just as Scarab stabs(?!) Man-Finn in the head.

First and foremost, I must stress that "Destiny" feels very much like an episode of the "original" Adventure Time. This is likely a result of the Farmworld setting: as a world, it is overflowing with an absurdist energy and out-there characters (e.g., Big D!) that I intimately associate with the adventures of Finn and Jake. And let me know emphatically state: This is not a bad thing. Not at all. I love how the producers have been able to weave the Adventure Time "feel" into something new. It is like meeting an old friend after a long time apart (only for that old friend to get stabbed in the head by a space-god).

OK, but seriously… did Farmworld Finn die? I hope note. If he did, that would mean that Jay's actions were directly responsible for his father getting killed. That's pretty dark. And considering all the bad dads in the Oooniverse, it would be nice if one of the good ones was allowed to live a (relatively) happy life.

Airdate: September 14, 2023

Story by: Anthony Burch, Adam Muto, Hanna K. Nyström, Jack Pendarvis, Kate Tsang

Storyboarded by: Iggy Craig, Graham Falk, Jim Campbell, Lucyola Langi, Nicole Rodriguez

Directed by: Steve Wolfhard (supervising), Hans Tseng (art)

After zapping away from Farmworld, Simon, Fionna, and Cake teleport to a reality ruled by the "Ice Prince"—an alt-universe Simon Petrikov who has somehow managed to avoid the madness that plagued Ice King. Simon quickly tells his fellow Petrikov the group's goals, and the Ice Prince gallantly agrees to help them by duplicating his own crown. Things are going swimmingly until the evil "Candy Queen" swoops in and snatches away both Simon and the Ice Prince. Fionna, Cake, and Ice Prince's guards dart to their rescue, brutally (but humorously) massacring dozens of hideously mutated candy citizens. Fionna and Cake rescue Simon and the Ice Prince, but once Fionna and Ice Prince share a kiss, the awful truth is revealed: Ice Prince is not some gentleman who overcame the madness of the crown through sheer will. No, he was a self-centered "wad" who used magic to deflect his madness onto the poor Candy Queen… who, as we quickly learn, is just an alternate universe version of Princess Bubblegum. Thanks to fairy tale logic, Fionna's kiss breaks Ice Prince's magic spell, which causes his crown to lose power. He subsequently crumbles to dust and everything he has created melts away.

So far, of the episodes we've gotten, I think "The Winter King" has been my favorite, largely because of the way it explores Simon's psychological character.

One thing that made Ice King’s story so tragic was how Simon, in his original form, was fundamentally a good person, buried deep within the mind of an outwardly "evil" wizard. "The Winter King" neatly conveys the opposite of this situation by showing us an Alt-Simon who, while outwardly "good," had long ago squandered his sense of morality for selfish gain. Not to get too analytical, but all of the good/bad talk reminds me of what the psychologist Carl Jung called the "Shadow." Put in simplest terms, the Shadow is a part of the unconscious human psyche in which repressed, rejected, or unrecognized aspects of the Self are contained, far from the light of conscious thought. The Shadow tends to seal away attributes of the Self that we wish to downplay or dismiss, making it "the home of the suppressed monsters of our inner world," in which "the energy of [our] dark side" bubbles (to quote Christopher Vogler). Furthermore, the Shadow exists as the inverse of our conscious Ego (meaning that, as Jung put it, "when one tries desperately to be good and wonderful and perfect, then all the more the shadow develops a definite will to be black and evil and destructive"). And because it is unconscious, the Shadow eludes easy detection. Nevertheless, its contents can often be ascertained by keeping an eye out for psychological “projection,” wherein a person denies their own foibles and instead recognizes those defects in others.

Now consider this topic in relation to "The Winter King." Let us start with Ice King, a hyperbolically crazy and "evil" wizard. I would argue that Ice King is a textbook of Simon's Shadow made manifest: He is everything that Simon consciously does not want to be brought to the surface in its entirety. The tragedy of Simon is that, while he doesn't often talk about it, he knows deep down that Ice King, while corrupted and warped by the crown, was an aspect of himself. In fact, this entire series feels very much like Simon’s journey to fully recognize his own Shadow.* And the fact that he starting to do this despite it being a painful process is, in my opinion, the clearest evidence of his ethical/moral character. Conversely, Alt-Simon is not like this. When presented with his Shadow, he does not choose to begin the painful recognition process. Instead, he projects it onto an innocent person; he builds up an elaborate "nice king" persona while literally condemning someone for his own sins. It is important to note that psychological projection is a pretty normal occurrence and thus not a surefire marker of "evil" or anything like that. What makes this instance of projection so bad is that Alt-Simon does this fully aware that it will cause someone to suffer for crimes they did not commit. Alt-Simon is like the "pious" archbishop who burns the "evil witches" at the stake all because he cannot come to terms with his own inner demons.

Now that is messed up!

But you know what isn't messed up? The voice acting in this episode. I do not say this to be hyperbolic: "The Winter King" may very well be Hynden Walch's finest performance to date. Her take on the Candy Queen is truly horrifying in a decidedly blursed way. So fundamentally different is her performance that at first I thought it was someone else! Also stealing the spotlight in this episode is Brian David Gilbert, erstwhile writer for Polygon and maker of many a wacky YouTube video. Gilbert's Ice Prince exudes the perfect amount of over-the-top flamboyance and faux chivalry. Both Walch and Gilbert get a song apiece in this episode, and both do a stellar job. (As an aside, have we ever had a true-blue PB song? Does the Candy Queen's song count?)

Oh, and as a quick aside: "The Winter King" features a few short scenes set in Fionna's non-magical world that follow Marshall Lee and Gary Prince as the latter tries to bake something that will earn him greater renown. Going into these scenes, I thought I would have found them a bit dull, but they were quite endearing. It's obvious that these scenes are a way for us to explore how Marceline and Bubblegum got to know one another, but from the parallax angle of a genderbent world, and I am here for it!

Final "Destiny" Grade: A

Final "The Winter King Grade": A

* My Prediction: Simon will attempt to become the Ice King, only to realize that a full-on transformation is not just necessary but ultimately dangerous. Recognizing one's Shadow does not mean you become synonymous with; it simply means that you know it's there.