#and i agree but i don't think (if it is jon) that that's a level of communication he's capable of currently

[gammija]

given the way Sam phrases it, i dont think the email was signed off "Best regards, Jon", i think it was more-

From: jon@oiar.gov.uk

To: samama.khalid@oiar.gov.uk

Subject: [random name]

Body: [address]

- and that that's the most 'jon' is able to communicate

(for now)

[lo-fi-charming]

so i've been keeping up with TMP as it's airing, which has been fun, it's actually really nice to experience this kind of story weekly since i came into TMA late and listened up to the s4 finale in like, a month or two. i've been enjoying the new characters and statements, and while i was worried i'd have trouble actively listening (my attention span/executive functioning can be really variable when it comes to podcasts), it's been surprisingly easy for me to actually listen to each new ep the day it drops publicly

all this to say im enjoying the show! but i've found myself feeling increasingly frustrated with a couple things i keep seeing when it comes to discussions of it

to me, it seems... there's been a pervasive reluctance to take TMP as what it is. and i do understand that. it'd be stupid to pretend TMP doesn't exist exclusively because of TMA and that show's success, that it's a successor that was pitched as being similar. it's a story being written by the same people (plus guests), in the same universe (roughly), going for about the same tone and maybe themes.

i just feel like it's a bit of a shame, though, that so many folks seem unwilling not to carry TMA with them when they're engaging with TMP

i don't know where or when it was said, but i swear there was a comment made by jonny and/or alex about how TMP will have some commonality with TMA in terms of world-building, but also, people who listened to TMA first may find themselves theorizing in the wrong direction because we're judging things based off what is no longer concrete, reliable information; things are going to work differently in the world of TMP, and since we have preconceived notions on what is relevant or how things work, that's going to influence how we engage with information presented in TMP if we let it. and that's not even considering the fact that they've been explicit in conveying the idea that TMP was written so you can experience it fully without having listened to any of TMA at all!

i'm very much someone who tries to engage with media on its own terms, largely taking things at face value until i'm given reason to suspect otherwise. that's something i'm trying my best to still do with TMP, even though obviously, i've also listened to TMA and am basing some of my thoughts and personal theories on what we know from that

but that's what i mean to say i guess, it's something you have to actively choose to do. and it feels like, just based on what i've been seeing in fandom spaces, that a lot of people are having a bit of an odd time with TMP because of a reluctance to do that?

i think the easiest way to explain what i mean is to point to a general acceptance, already on the level of fanon it seems, to interpret the computer voices as Our Jon and Martin (+ Jonah/Elias, maybe). now obviously we have the actual real world reason why their voices are present in TMP, because of course jonny and alex were going to come back as voices in the show in some way. and i 100% agree it's a perfectly logical conclusion to then interpret their inclusion as being related to Jon and Martin somehow. i'm personally very into the theory that it is in no way them - not in any way that matters - but specifically their voices that have been stolen (by the Web?) as a means to help spread fears in other realities. but that's really not how i've been seeing people play with the concept? it seems largely 1:1. and again, i totally understand where people are coming from with that - especially when you consider how it can be a super fun concept for horror and angst, or even just the fact that folks want an excuse to carry their favorite characters into this new show and still play around with them. i promise i don't mean to bring this up as a means of making anyone feel bad or like, chastised for interpreting things a certain way and playing in the space!

it's the biggest example of what i mean though, and was a huge point of frustration for me when we were first being presented with TMP. it's not just that i don't want the voices to be Jon and Martin proper (i am very into their Ambiguous End, i believe it's best to leave that as a space for fans to play in); in all honesty, i think it's kind of a shame and maybe even a bit boring (im sorry!) to be engaging with TMP this way

and it's not just stuff like that - i've been seeing a fair amount of people expressing frustration and feeling disappointed with how TMP is hitting, but i mean, i feel like that's inevitable when you're going into it expecting More TMA? i saw at least one person basically say "ive been waiting for it to make me feel the way TMA made me feel, and it hasn't yet", and i really just feel like that's setting yourself up to be dissatisfied! beyond the fact that we're only 5 episodes in and the story has barely gotten a chance to happen yet, a huge element of this new show is that it's being approached as a largely collaborative effort, it seems, with lots of guests coming in to help shape the story and more writing and plotting influence that isn't jonny

obviously it's fine to not be super into that! undoubtedly it's a question of taste. but you do have to acknowledge that that's the case and adjust your expectations accordingly, or else you're not going to have a great time

i really like TMA, i had a great time with it, but even if TMP is a sequel to its parent podcast, it's not the same thing - and personally, i don't want it to be! i do hope that's a sentiment that is able to be more widely felt by some fans as we gain more distance from TMA while TMP is airing. i just think more people would be able to enjoy it that way, and come up with more interesting theories and interpretations of things! but those are really just my own personal thoughts

[david-talks-sw]

I will say: at least Leslye Headland has a clear idea of what she's going for. I don't agree with her criticisms of the Jedi, but I'm actually so glad that she's done so many interviews to elaborate on her POV.

Compare that to Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau's press tours. Clearly, Headland focuses much more on explaining lore stuff, whereas they only comment on surface-level things.

Especially when it comes to the Jedi, like...

Filoni will ask a question. "Are the Jedi so perfect...? Is attachment really so bad? Have they maybe lost their way? Was Anakin really to blame...?"

And like, asking questions is nice, I appreciate that you're trying to get your viewers to ponder... but you gotta tell a coherent story behind it. Like, at some point your narrative needs to land somewhere on that thesis. What's the moral of the story, here?

Headland makes a statement: "The Jedi are flawed. Here's why I think so."

Okay. Cool. I disagree, but at least you've laid out your arguments and now there's an open discussion. Cheers.

Again, the show isn't perfect (see my two previous posts) but I love that at least there's a point to it all and that Leslye Headland is so vocal about it. Reminds me of how George did it.

With stuff like Ahsoka, you can extrapolate a point from it... but it's really vague, so you really need to do the legwork.

[agentrouka-blog]

What made you first interested in Jonsa? I really want to love Jonsa. Which may sound strange. But hear me out. I’ve read all the metas and from a metatextual level I really agree with and believe in Jonsa. But I have trouble actually enjoying it and I think maybe it’s because so much content seems to focus on Jon pining over Sansa. I’d much prefer to see things from Sansa’s perspective where she sees the hero in him and sees that maybe all the songs aren’t lies after all as opposed to him “winning her over.” I feel I have been inundated my whole life with stories of outcast men pining over beautiful women they see as out of their league and “winning them over” and I honestly find the trope tiring because it’s so male perspective focused and doesn’t give Sansa the agency of choosing her lover, instead, making her something to be won or earned. If you have any suggestions for Jonsa content that focuses heavily on Sansa’s point of view, on her falling for Jon first (or at least falling for each other at the same time without realizing it) I’d love to hear them! And I’d love to hear what makes Jonsa appeal to you on a personal non-meta level!

Hi there!

I too draw a difference between Jonsa as a theory and shipping it for entertainment.

I've drifted quite a bit away from what you describe as "content", which is fanworks, art and fanfiction. My tastes are very narrow and that puts me outside the target audience for a lot of what is being shared by creators. Plus, I get a great deal more personal enjoyment out of just interpreting the canon text. I enjoy what the couple represents in the narrative more than I necessarily enjoy immersing myself in different non-canonical variants.

And there's a lot of variants. You have two similar but also very different canon-sources (books and tv show) and within those two sources very different takes on the couple. For as many "Jon pines for higborn Sansa" approaches you get an equal amount of "Sansa jealously pines for her brother's oblivious best friend" modern au's. What we enjoy in recreational reading is extremely personal and subjective.

That said, for fear of disappointing you, I don't particular enjoy the "Sansa falls first" scenarios because what I like about the couple especially is the idea of Sansa finally being appreciated for who she is. Canon offers us plenty of examples of Sansa extending affection and crushes on other characters. They are never truly reciprocated, and they join in on a theme of Sansa going unappreciated for her qualities by the world around her. She is disregarded, mocked, criticized, belittled, humiliated. So much so that a large part of the fandom considers this to be justified and educational for her. She has given up on being loved for herself, but she will not sacrifice her values as a consequence. So someone falling in love with her is to me a very compelling and cathartic validation of Sansa as a person. Of course, this only works if the person falling for Sansa is actually attractive to her and embodies the things we know she has been looking for all this time. But specifically the idea that Sansa falls first fails my personal taste because it contains a sense of lacking reciprocation that we've already seen multiple times in her story. She's been not-loved-in-return a lot already.

I do enjoy the concept of Jon being loved by Sansa, too, because it validated aspects of him he usually keeps close to his chest. Things that touch on his specific mixed sense of identity as a nobly-raised bastard. He has soft sensibilities, a romantic disposition, pedestrian dreams of family and home, and highly idealistic and emotional ideals surrounding leadership that center on duty and honor. But he is generally not appreciated for those specific things. He is appreciated for his brains and his abilities, his bravery, his pragmatism, his loyalty to his friends and duties - but not for the boy who wants to be Lord of Winterfell with a lady wife and babies, who wants to be a hero from the songs, Florian the Fool, Ryam Redwyne. It's a lovely and very specific recognition of a very private part of Jon, to be loved for his secret soft self.

But it's not my primary focus because unlike Sansa, Jon still receives a lot of validation and love in the source material. It's just not the specific kind he wants. So that makes it comparatively less compelling to me.

That doesn't mean that Sansa primarily falling in love with Jon isn't an equally valid thing to enjoy! It's just that I can't make you any good recommendations on this subject specifically because it's not my specific favorite flavor of jonsa.

I wish you good luck though!

[magpod-confessions]

https://www.tumblr.com/magpod-confessions/756480160686063616/alright-ill-say-it-and-i-mean-this-as-someone?source=share

I'm the anon who originally sent this in, and I'm sorry I just can't agree with what some of you are saying! How is Martin manipulative? The Lonely stuff? Because I wouldn't think trying to pull strings and keep things low-key to help protect his friends should be considered manipulative.

Also, Georgie is nice for the most part, then sporadically later in the story, she becomes really cold towards Jon. If anyone would like to show the progression of that to me, I'd welcome it, because like. Otherwise it just felt like a random cop out to further isolate Jon for no reason/ out of nowhere.

And people pointing out characters that had no speaking role, aside from maybe once (Rosie) are kind of.... Proving my point?

Jon's self hate shouldn't be considered comparable to every one else dismissing his problems.

Also don't worry, I hate Tim, too. But he's also kiiind of the only guy on "the side of good" who is on the same level of assholery that the woman "on the side of good" are.

Like, i dunno if I didn't make it clear, but I wouldn't be so bothered or raise an eyebrow if Basira, Melanie, Daisy (to a lesser extent because again, her arc is lovely, and actually is such a dynamic character), and Georgie were explicitly bad guys like the Elias, or The Fairchilds, or the Lukas family or anyone else who dealt heavily with the Entities. Unfortunately, these are supposed to be characters we root for, they're the good guys. So, yeah, it's a little hard for me to stomach 90% of them being unlikeable bullies towards another victim of abuse (note that I said another, as I do know they're all victims here) who is also Elias's primary target of manipulation!

Also, is it not a little lame to give all the girls the same personality (asshole who hates Jon and gets manipulated by Elias and takes it out on Jon more than any other character).

[spiteful-crow]

You know how I made this post ages ago?

I actually think I got it... I don't know if it makes 100% sense, but I will try.

To understand it, we gotta go at the very beginning of the game, to Sherlock and Jon's first convo:

In this scene, Sherlock is unsure if the journey was worth the effort, because Mycroft believed nothing could be gained from it and his brother's words have gotten to him. Not only this, but he is sick and he likely senses that there is more to the journey than it seems. Jon, on the other hand, is certain that it's gonna be worth it.

If we assume for a moment that Mycroft was aware of how they felt as they took off - that Sherlock was still unsure about the journey even as he undertook it, and that Jon, on the other hand, was very much sure that it was the right thing to do, then from Mycroft's perspective, it would look like Jon was pushing Sherlock to do it. Of course, Sherlock wanted to visit Cordona as well, but it was likely Jon's influence that convinced him to actually get on a ship and do it. That's how it would look to Mycroft.

And since Mycroft humours Sherlock A LOT when it comes to Jon, he addresses Jon like one would address an actual person, whose influence has pushed his brother to do something he'd later come to regret.

He not only "I told you so"s Sherlock, he scolds him for not listening to him but to Jon. From Mycroft's perspective, it's Jon who is the instigator - he is the reason Sherlock is there, and he wants to know why.

Of course, this is only the superficial level. "Is he worth it?" is a very loaded question and Mycroft looking at Jon while he poses it is very intentional. He not only holds Jon partially responsible, he is also a little resentful, because Sherlock has, yet again, chosen to listen to his imaginary bestie over his brother. Is it far-fetched to assume Mycroft is jealous? Of course, Mycroft knows Jon isn't a real person, but the relationship Sherlock has with him is very real, and Mycroft is too smart to underestimate the influence Jon has. He doesn't have a body, but he has Sherlock's trust - something Mycroft has not. Not treating Jon like a real person wouldn't improve his relationship with Sherlock at all. Of course, Mycroft plays along! He is also smart enough to know Jon isn't just a piece of fiction - he must be aware that Jon is a part of his brother.

Jon, on the other hand, well... "Mycroft's nonsense still rattling around in your head" haha, yeah, Jon doesn't agree with Mycroft at all. He also asks Sherlock why Mycroft is there, because he is upset by the insinuation that he isn't worth listening to. They are two opposite forces in Sherlock's life, and in these two conversations, they both try to convince Sherlock that the other is wrong. Like the devil and the angel on one's shoulder.

I think we get a good glimpse in how their lives have been before Cordona - Sherlock always torn between reason (Mycroft) and emotion (Jon), but somehow always picking Jon's side. Yet still, Mycroft's influence over Sherlock is apparent as well, and the more he matures, the more Sherlock becomes like his brother. But the way there frustrates Mycroft a lot, because no matter how much he loves Sherlock, he can't get to him.

The whole "was it worth it?" question being posed at the beginning and at the end, but we don't get a direct answer. We can answer it for ourselves.

[sweetaprilbutterfly]

I will not wait for the release of the finale (although not all, but I know from leaked what will happen) to pass judgment on House of the Dragon and it is DISAPPOINTING SHIT.

Even when there was the first season, I didn't expect anything from hotd, the 1st season was normal, there were interesting characters, but in general the plot is simpler than in GoT.

I read about Dance of the Dragons in Fire & Blood and treated the changes as normal, because the general plot was more or less close to the book. But with the release of the 2nd season, the book became less and less with each episode and the characters don't resemble themselves, not even like themselves in the 1st season.

Like what have they done to Alicent😭:

“The city is yours, Princess. But you will not hold it long. The rats play when the cat is gone, but my son Aemond will return with fire and blood” versus “When he’s gone, I will see to it that our guards throw down their arms and open the gates.”

Quote source X

Book Alicent would kill show Alicent for what she does in season 2. Alicent betrayed herself and her family for the "love" to Rhaenyra, this is so stupid and this is not Martin, but some kind of comedy or soap opera.

And I don't understand why Condal is so attached to the prophecy and why he so wants Rhaenyra to be Dany 2.0, when book Rhaenyra is better and more interesting than the show one and he will not change her fate, she will still die, although they will probably change how it will happen.

After the leaks, I'm no longer Team Green, I'm Team Aemond, even though the writers messed him up too, but I hate it when showrunners try to make someone "bad" on purpose to everyone hate. They could never make me hate you Aemond.

HBO needs to remove from the credits that it is based on the book by George R. R. Martin, and write that all this is the work of the mediocre Condal and has nothing to do with the books.

Condal and Hess and the other screenwriters should get a lot more hate than D&D. Condal & Co. are the worst showrunners in the world, to have a completely finished book material and to do what they did is just something incredibly terrible.

For all its faults, Game of Thrones was phenomenal and even seasons 5 and 7 (the worst GoT seasons in my opinion) are better than what Condal and Hess did in season 2.

The asoiaf fandom is so weird. After the final of GoT, the rating on imdb and other platforms collapsed, and here HotD already in the 2nd season abused the canon so much and the majority approves of it??? Yes, I'm one of those people for whom the finale of GoT is normal, but I still can't come to terms with the fact that Arya killed NK, it should have been JON and I don't agree with Jon ending, but in general the season is better than 5 & 7. So I hope all those who so unfairly condemned GoT will rightly condemn HotD and collapse the rating, and maybe the leaks will reduce the rating of the show.

The hotd cast are great, but I don't think I can watch season 3 after this shit, there's no hope of it getting any better.

Condal really wanted hotd to be like GoT, but it didn't work out, it's very far from the grandiose level of GoT, GoT was and will be the best no matter what.

[puppiesandnightlock]

LINK: Cause you're a nightmare that i've not been dreaming of

Summary: It's all come down to this one event. Their friends have planned out the perfect moment and all Damian and Jon need to do is say the words. Easy as pie.

ft. Jason and Roy as chaperones, road trips, Ferris wheels, and some really cheesy fireworks confessions

“Alright, Squirts, listen up, for those of you who don't know me, my name is Jason and that’s Roy.”

Jason was turned around in the driver's seat, going over introductions. The man next to him had a trucker cap on and was wearing a dark red tank top, showing off the full sleeve of tattoos running up his right arm. 

He waved, propping his chin up next to the headrest on the passenger’s side. “I’m going to do a quick roll call, just to make sure we are not missing anyone. Once we get that, we’re good to go.”

A cheer went up, and settled quickly as Jason began naming people. Damian offered an earbud to Jon, who took it, settling back and shutting his eyes.

Skylar and Akira were scribbling onto the sketchbooks they’d brought, Kathy and Maya were behind them, dictating what they thought should go on it. Colin was avidly asking questions to the driver's seat.

“We’ve got a four hour drive, and we’re only making two pit stops, this is the last offer i’m making before i start the car.” 

No one got up and the car started the radio being flicked on and soft music filling the car as they started on their journey.

Within thirty minutes, Jon had conked out against Damian’s shoulder, still with the shared earbud in one ear, the other in Damian’s. The boy himself was half asleep, head leaning on the glass of the window. Colin had propped his phone up and was playing a random downloaded movie, Akira and Skylar sharing a random game of tic-tac-toe. 

After the second hour and a half, they were beginning to get rowdy. Jon was arguing with Akira about some inane topic that was probably not legal, Colin was playing keep away with Damian’s phone and backpack, Maya was hissing at them all to shut up as Kathy had fallen asleep in the midst of their chaos somehow.

The car screeched to an abrupt halt and they all yelped, grabbing onto another or a part of the car. Roy turned to the back, Jason tapping his fingers impatient on the steering wheel. 

“Alright, that’s much better. Colin, give the bat brat his stuff back, Jon and Akira, both of you are wrong, it’s much easier to do the third option. Keep the noise to the minimum if you would all like to stay alive on this trip, because my husband is much less nice than he seems, contrary to appearances.”

“Yes sir.” Six kids chorused back at him. 

“Not a brat.” Damian grumbled. 

“Kind of are.” Jon poked his cheek. “What’s with the Bat part though?”

From the front of the car, Jason snorted. “Oh boy, now that’s a nice story.”

“Jason, please don’t-”

“You all know Batman, right?”

They all nodded, the tips of Damian’s ears burning red and he attempted to hide himself in Jon’s shoulder.

“Baby Damian was obsessed with anything Batman, for some unknown reason. Every single one of his toddler pictures have him in some kind of Bat reference, and he had this little bat hoodie with ears he’d wear all the time, and put the hood up and would say “I’m the Bat!” in this tiny little squeaky voice.”

The car had gone up in laughter, and Jon had put an arm around Damian, whose face was now burning in embarrassment. 

“Shut up, oh my god.” The plea was muffled, and his older brother paid absolutely no attention to it, continuing on.

“Went on until he was maybe eight, and then he got back into it because of a show that would play on cartoon network? And I don’t think it’s ever returned to that level but there is no one in this family who does not call him a nickname without adding the bat.”

“That’s adorable .” Jon said, Damian groaning and attempting to disappear. Skylar agreed with the sentiment, Colin, Akira, and Maya attempting to quell their laughter. Kathy was sneakily snapping a picture of Jon and Damian in their position, since the words that accompanied  had been less than platonic.

It tapered off into a quieter buzz, most of them being occupied by a phone balancing on the drivers headrest and playing a random movie.

By the time they arrived at the Brandens’, all of them were either sleeping or half-asleep. Before Jason could stop the car and make the announcement, Maya hissed ”Wait!” silently and urgently.

In the backseat, Jon and Damian were curled into each other, Damian on Jon’s shoulder and Jon’s head on top of his, hands loosely intertwined.

”shit, SHIT, someone take pictures!!” Six phones were promptly whipped out, all taking care to turn off the flash and taking pictures from different angles. 

“Send all of those to me,” Jason instructed, turning off the car. At the motion, they stirred, everyone in the car whipping around to give some sense of normalcy as if they had not all been cooing over them.

“Oh.” Jon sprang away from him. “Sorry, sorry, did I crush you?”

“I’m not as weak as you innately believe me to be.” Damian grumbled, ears flushed pink as he looked out the window, their hands still resting together. “I’m perfectly fine.”

“oKay, on that note, we’ve arrived. Please disembark from the vehicle in an orderly fashion, and do not slam any of the doors or you will have a very unpleasant return.” Roy got out first, opening the driver’s seat door for a very pleased looking Jason.

They clambered over each other to get out, sighing dramatically as they all stepped out. “Freedom!” Colin shouted, jumping up and down a few times.

“My legs went numb.” Akira muttered, holding onto the side of the car. Skylar patted their arm sympathetically, backpack jangling.

“This is pretty big.” Maya looked at the surrounding farmland appreciatively. “How much of this is your folks?” 

“Bit farther down, I'll take you by the boundary line sometime, there’s a nice little place me ‘n Jon would go play as kids.” Kathy pointed to a place in the unseeable distance, coming a bit closer to her.

“That sounds nice.” Maya said, trailing off into a silence until Jon came running out of the car and slinging an arm around Kathy’s neck.

“Ooh, i have missed this place. Our treehouse still up?” 

“All of our hideouts are alive and kickin’.” Kathy said, “You should take your boy down to one of them sometime.”

Jon looked around, before dipping his head down and mumbling, “Not my boy.”

“Not yet .” Kathy poked him in the stomach, and as he doubled over, ruffled his hair, dashing off with a laugh.

“HEY!” He took off after her, the two of them laughing. Damian came up besides Maya, watching them chase each other.

“You know, I don't think I've really seen him act like this.” Maya remarked. Damian only smiled, mind flooding with flicks of moments and the sound of childlike laughter.

“It’s not something he had much reason to be like, I suppose.”

“It’s cute.” She nudged him. “Puppy-like.You like puppies, don’t you?”

“It is… endearing. ” The last part was much quieter. “It feels wrong. But right, at the same time. The feeling is…new, yet curious. And not entirely unpleasant.”

“You two will figure it out.” Maya smiled, pushing his shoulder a bit. “I’m gonna go and get ready, we’re going out to the fair today.”

“Okay.” He brushed his hair back, watching his small group of friends, eyes trailing after Jon’s form, his laughter keeping the soft smile on his lips. 

“You know, I think we have a history of this kind of thing.” A voice came from behind him, wiping the smile off of his face in place of a scowl. 

Jason came up behind him, Roy playfully putting the hat he was wearing onto Damian's head. 

Stupid older brothers.

“So I heard.” Damian drawled, turning to look pointedly at the both of them. “Tutoring, boy on the wrong path and a nerd. Except I was just better, not a nerd.”

“Fuck you, i was a cool nerd.” Jason crossed his arms. “Had an A in P.E. and everything.”

“You were also a scrawny little shit who carried books everywhere, had glasses for a short amount of time and could quote Jane Austen at the drop of a hat.” Roy set his chin on Jason’s shoulder. “Sorry, babe.”

“Well, you married this nerd.” Jason sniffed, before turning to Damian. “ You were like four, you can't tell me shit.”

Damian scowled. “You’ve simply come along to antagonize me, haven’t you?”

“That, to intimidate your friends and future boyfriend, and because ask yourself, would any of them have been any better?”

“Richard would have.” 

“Dickhead and Wallance would have played showtunes the whole time, been sickeningly in love, and would have shown all of your baby pictures and embarrassing stories within the first five minutes of the drive, especially if he saw you and Jon.”

“Whatever.” He huffed. “Will you both be escorting us to the fairgrounds?”

“Yeah, and we’re leaving in thirty minutes, so change if you want to, baby bat.” Jason took the hat off and ruffled his hair, causing Damian to squawk and swat at him, before glaring at them both and leaving.

They all met back up in front of the car, dressed in a new pair of clothes and eager. It was about 12:30 by the time that they managed to make it to the grounds, seeing as they’d left early in the morning.

“Okay, ground rules before I unlock this car.” Jason and Roy turned around, and everyone but Damian snapped to attention. 

“You have our numbers, I have yours, and if all else fails, you have a Damian. I don’t expect you to actually stay with us, but please try to stick together, if not a buddy system or something. Try not to get banned, maimed, or sick within the first four hours.”

He turned off the car and grinned. “Oh yeah, and have fun.”

That startled a cheer from them, and the doors unlocked, everyone filing out of the car. They elected to stick together as one big group until they found something that would separate them, Jason and Roy following behind before stopping at a concession stand and losing sight of them.

“Okay, so Colin, Kathy and I are gonna go check out the roller coasters,” Maya said. “Akira and Skylar are at the booths and Damian and Jon…”

“Are playing the games.” Jon finished.

“And I’m going to kick your ass, Kent.” Damian smirked.

“I’d like to see you try.” Jon shot back. Colin and Akira mimed gagging, the other three rolling their eyes.

“Take your weird flirting away from here, go, shoo.” Kathy pushed them away, both boys flushing as her words caught up to them.

As they left, their hands swung between them, just barely touching. They all shared a looked, the thought of absolutely hopeless running through their minds.

“I can't take this anymore.” Maya sighed. “I give, what time are those fireworks?”

This was driving them both insane . Jon glanced down, Damian’s hand brushing up against his for the millionth time. He wanted to reach out and grab it, but how would the other react?

He’d done it before, but now it felt different . He wasn’t leading him anywhere, and he wasn't gonna do the platonic hand holding thing he and Kathy had researched in middle school.

His eye caught on a shooting game, and grinned. There we go, he could challenge Damian, they’d chill, and bam, awkwardness diffused. 

“Hey, D, betcha I can get a higher score.” He pointed to the game, watching as Damian’s gaze went directly to the plush puppy hanging on the side of the booth.

Perfect.

“You’re on, Kent.” 

They raced to the game, slapping down their payment. The worker at the booth seemed rather amused by their playfulness, starting up the game.

“What the hell?” Jon squeaked as Damian began shooting with an insane accuracy, looking over to the side to grin, still getting the target.

“This is unfair !” He pouted. Plan foiled . 

“Tough luck, J.” Damian pointed to the plush he wanted, shoving it at Jon. “Carry. Let’s go find another thing for me to kick your ass at.”

He huffed, accepting it anyways. The booth worker laughed, shaking their head. “Wow, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you’re whipped.”

Jon sighed wistfully. “If only he knew that, too.”

He chased after Damian, the both of them challenging each other to various games. Jon managed to win a small kitten, presenting it to Damian, who looked away laughing.

“I’ve already won several, Jon. I don’t think you should add more.”

“You should win something for me, then.” He said, half playing. “Then you'll have less.”

“Okay.” Damian looked surprisingly serious, taking his hand and pulling him down the aisle. “Your wish is my command, my Prince.”

Jon flushed at the sincerity, giddy at the hand-holding. “Would this make you my Knight?”

“I suppose I would.” 

“Then, onwards, brave Knight, and pick your prince the most delightful of plushes.”

After a few minutes, Jon had a white puppy plush that he affectionately named Krypto. They fell back into the silence, dropping off the rest of the plushies at the car, before looking at the sky.

“It’s sunset. The fireworks will be starting soon. We should probably find the others.” Jon said, the puppy plush still under one arm. The kitten he’d won for Damian was peeking out of the bag the other boy had over one shoulder.

“Probably.” Damian threaded his fingers with Jon’s, swinging them idly between them. It had seemed completely natural, and suddenly, something clicked.

He needed to do something about this, and he needed to do something about it now. It was terrifying, the very thought, but if he really thought about it, nothing they’d done for weeks, months by now, really qualified as strictly platonic. 

Damian was blunt, unclear with his emotions, and a jumbled mess on the inside of his cool, put together and prickly persona. 

He could do this. Anxiety would not best him.

They met up in front of a picnic bench by the ferris wheel, the sun dipping deeper and the dark night coming to overtake it.

“All of you gremlins accounted for?” Roy asked, Jason besides him as they shared cotton candy.

“Yes sir!” Akira and Skylar had a large bag of kettle corn between them, Colin sneaking handfuls every few minutes.

“You guys empty every booth or what?” Maya grinned, Kathy poking her in the side to subtly motion to their intertwined hands.

“Dami here kicked my ass in almost everything.” Jon grumbled.

“Could have warned you against that.” Jason grinned, also taking note. “Anything interesting happen? Life changing developments we should know?”

“No.” Damian scowled, following his gaze and attempting to hide their joined hands. “What are we doing now?”

“Well, I think the ferris wheel is still open. We could catch that before the fireworks begin,” Colin began, everyone catching on.

“Yeah, sounds like fun!”

“You two should go ahead of us,” 

Damian and Jon were ushered onto a cart, and strapped in before they could say anything, being shot thumbs up and teasing grins. 

“What the hell?” Jon squawked as they were lifted into the air. “Jesus Christ, you swear the world was going to end if we didn’t get on this thing.”

“We’re friends with imbeciles.”

“Oh, have I been elevated to not-an-imbecile?” 

“Ugh.”

Damian shoved him playfully, and the silence settled in. Suddenly, they were much more aware of the atmosphere, high up on a creaky metal wheel, spinning them into the darkening night sky.

“The stars are nice. You can’t see them this clearly from the city.” He said quietly. Their hands found each other again, and tentatively, Jon leaned his head on Damian’s shoulder. 

“I’ll bring you down here again, we can go stargazing and you can tell me your smart people stuff.”

“It’s basic astronomy, Jon.”

“There are a bunch of things that I don't have the patience to memorize.”

Damian laughed, resting his head on Jon’s. “Hey, Dami?”

Jon’s voice came in a shaky whisper, his hand growing clammy. This had been building all day, and Jon was sure he’d explode if he didn’t say something soon.

“Yeah?”

“Gotta tell you something.”

Damian lifted his head up, and bit his lip. “I have something to say to you as well.”

“You can go first.” Jon squeaked, looking down and suddenly finding the railing of the cart extremely fascinating.

“Wouldn’t you prefer to go?” the pitch of Damian’s voice began rising and he coughed, willing it back down. “You began, of course.” 

Shit.

“Ah, um, okay.” Jon breathed in. “So, we’re like, friends, right? And uh, gonna be real, at first, I don’t think we like each other much? Well, i mean, i definitely liked you, or like, the look of you which explains a lot when we think about cause holy shit i was a douche-”

Damian’s quiet laughter startled him from his ramblings, and with pink cheeks he looked up, seeing the light of the ride shine on his face, ears tinged pink. 

“You are…very cute.” 

Jon made a noise that in any other situation, would have severely wounded his pride, but right now the words were playing on repeat in his mind. 

“That-that’s not fair!” He whined, taking his hand from Damian’s to use both to cover his burning face. “You can’t do this to me!”

“I think I can.” Damian whispered into his ear. “Might I pick up where you left off?”

Jon only nodded, still hiding his face in his hands. Damian shook his head, just slightly, and shut his eyes. 

Okay. Don’t chicken out, Wayne. You’ve been waiting. You can do this.

“Hm. You were correct, with your earlier statements. We did not like each other very much. But we’re friends now, and every new thing that I find out about you draws me closer. A bit back, I believe that my affections may have begun to stretch a bit further than, say, strictly platonic.”

He paused, exhaling and attempting to quell his thoughts in a way that made sense. Jon lifted his face from his hands, eyes wide and hopeful.

Jon was dreaming, right? Was this some kind of dream?

"Judging by your poorly thought out speech, I was wondering if you might return the sentiments. Of course, it's perfectly acceptable if you don’t, i do not wish to force you into something or make you feel obligated-"

He was the one rambling now, but for the love of all that was holy, Damian could not shut himself up . He had one hand rubbing the back of his neck, the other still resting in his lap. The ride came to a stop at that moment, a whistling noise signaling the start of the fireworks began sounding. They were at the top, swinging a bit.

Jon grabbed his free hand, giving an affectionate, “Damian, shut up .”

Damian clicked his jaw shut and Jon cupped his face with his other hand. “I’m going to kiss you now.”

“Okay.” he whispered, shutting his eyes. Their lips met as the night sky burst into an array of color, hand in hand. Damian’s arm went around Jon’s neck, and his hand dropped to the smaller boy’s waist, bringing them closer together.

It was clearly inexperienced, but as they broke apart, stupid grins on their faces, that couldn’t have mattered more.

Jon leaned down, forehead resting on Damian’s, the sky still exploding behind them as the wheel cracked, signaling their movement.

“If that wasn’t clear, I really like you.”

“I ‘really like’ you too.” Damian hesitantly leaned up, pressing his lips to Jon’s again in a chaste kiss, pulling away and covering his mouth, quiet laughter escaping him.

Jon caught it, pulling it away from his face and into his own. “I keep telling you to stop doing that; it’s adorable and you shouldn’t hide it.”

Damian huffed, looking away but squeezing his hand gently. They got off the ride, walking towards the hill where the rest of their friends and Damian’s family were seated, gasping over the fireworks. They came up behind them, quiet enough not to disturb them. Jason noticed them, however, sending a subtle wink and smirk their way.

They were all seated under a tree, and Jon leaned against it, sitting down and opening his arms. Domain leaned back against his chest, Jon’s folded hands resting on Damian's stomach as the show went on. 

Once it began winding down, the others took notice of their presence, and their positioning. Upon asking the question, Damian pulled Jon down by the collar of his tshirt and kissed him, letting go just as quick. 

A cheer came up between all of them, whoops and jeers being thrown playfully at them. “Operation Damijon is a success!” 

The two chose to ignore that last statement, settling into each other. They had their friends, each other, and a blossoming relationship.

Really, what more could they ask for?

[thatpodcastkid]

Magnus Archives Relisten 20, MAG 20 Desecrated Host

Father Pruitt from Midnight Mass but if he was still an old man. You agree, reblog.

My MAG 20 analysis, spoilers ahead!

Facts: Continuation of the statement of Father Edwin Burroughs regarding his claimed demonic possession. Statement given May 30, 2011.

Statement Notes: A hallucination sequence is one of the best modes of horror. The inability to distinguish between the real and unreal aspects of the vision combined with the symbolic imagery and attempts to determine the cause of the hallucination itself often means the audience experiences the same level of fear and confusion the character does. However, I very rarely see them done well in non-visual mediums. The best example I can think of is the dream of Percival Glyde in The Woman In White. But this episode is really effective in that. You don't understand anything that is happening, you're just stuck on the ride with no hope of getting off, and Father Burroughs is in the seat next to you. If you know of any other really good dream or hallucination sequences in horror narratives, tell me about it in the notes.

I also noted how whatever was possessing Burroughs really reveled in his guilt. I discussed this in the Part I analysis, but the conflation of guilt and fear as two sides of the same coin is an incredible choice, especially in a religious story. You are guilty because you are afraid of your own actions, you are afraid because you did something you should be guilty for. You are afraid of being found guilty, you are afraid of punishment, you are afraid you will never stop feeling guilty.

Entity Alignment: This is another mixed bag episode. This definitely seems like a lot of effort to make Burroughs afraid and/or just to kill two people. I briefly wondered if Burroughs could be involved in some kind of ritual, but the overall events of the episode don't feel directed or focused enough. If there was goal aside from torturing Burroughs and his victims, I couldn't determine it.

The line from Genesis "Behold, thou hast driven me out" obviously invokes some Eye imagery. I did note how much of religion, particularly Catholicism, centers around viewing and reveling in the majesty and horror of God/a god. Religion's ability to unwittingly turn people into voyeurs of their messiah connotes it with the Eye. Furthermore, the previously mentioned focus on guilt and the horror's apparent delight in Burroughs suffering associates with the Eye as well.

Burroughs isolation heightening his fear does tie in elements of the Lonely, while the smiling imagery is reminiscent of the Stranger. Of course, the hallucinations and loss of control of one's mind associates Burroughs with the Spiral, and the cannibalism associates him with the Flesh. But if I had to pick a true second to the Eye as the main entity associated with this episode, I would have to go with the Web. Burroughs is incapable of making any choices. The demon controls his actions, eliminating his independence and manipulating him. Even if it is not really a possession but some other manipulation of his psyche, it prevents Burroughs from acting independently.

Character Notes: Breekon & Hope mention! In spite of my earlier doubts, their involvement does signal some kind of ritual. Usually, they're only involved in deliveries associated with high level entity action, such as the coffin or Jon's lighter. I don't recall this stole being mentioned in any other episode, but if Breekon & Hope delivered it, it must be relevant somehow.

Another reason this episode might be affiliated with a ritual is that Gertrude was apparently the last person to read it. In her final days, she was primarily focused on stopping rituals, which indicated this case was particularly important.

When will my Martin return home from the war.

[annabelle--cane]

Sending that ask reminded me of another one I was meaning to ask. I remember a while ago when Jonny and/or Alex said they didn't like Jon very much (I think? I can't remember it very well) and I saw some people be kind of shocked over that and say that that led to bad writing. Looking back now, I might be misremembering some context, but I also don't know that disliking your characters necessarily is a bad thing and wanted to know what you think, if you have an opinion on it.

off the top of my head, the closest either of them have gotten to saying they don't like jon was in this bit of the s2 q&a:

Alex: “Are the writer and actor Jonathan Sims, and the Archivist Jonathan Sims, at all alike or do the similarities end in the shared name or voice?” Jonny: I mean, I don’t think they’re super alike. Like, a lot of his, a lot of his aspects are small aspects of my own personality turned up to 11. Alex: I just think you mined the bits of yourself that you don’t particularly like. Jonny: I mean, yeah. Alex: And then, and then just built a personality around them. Jonny: No, I mined the bits of myself that are useful in a horror protagonist.

and if memory serves me I think the thesis of that bit of fan commentary back in the day was that basing a character loosely on himself led jonny to be overly self-deprecating-by-proxy, so he made the narrative/other characters come down too harshly on jon. it's an approach to criticism that always makes me feel a bit icky, I already dislike critical approaches that are primarily about the author's psyche and imo leveling it up into saying "this guy's self-worth is too low for him to write a good story" about an author who is still like. alive and online. is a huge and just plain weird overstep. and even beside that, this argument still supposes that the characters behaving badly towards jon is a writing flaw, and that's simply not a take with which I have ever agreed.

I have definitely seen fiction before where the creators clearly grew to dislike a certain character and started writing them Weirdly, where they would act out in ways that weren't consistent with their earlier characterization, or unfortunate things would happen to them that they didn't expect the audience to sympathize with, or their extremely reasonable viewpoints would be dismissed out-of-hand, but I think that writers can dislike their characters without it having bad ramifications as long as they're self-aware enough about it. for an example, alexander j newall kind of infamously didn't really like martin until the end of season four, but he is still a sympathetic character with a really solid arc.

[goodqueenaly]

How much do the Golden Company know about Aegon? There is reference to Illyrio's ever-changing plans, and there seems to have been a deal in place for a long time, given that it was Myles Toyne that had guaranteed Golden Company support. And yet, for all Illyrio's talk of contracts writ in blood, it would be stupid for him to let anyone at the Golden Company know Aegon isn't Rhaegar's son.

It certainly appears that the (for now theorized) truth of Aegon's Blackfyre heritage, with all the accompanying strategizing, has not trickled down to, say, the Tristan Rivers level:

"Which plan?" said Tristan Rivers. "The fat man's plan? The one that changes every time the moon turns? First Viserys Targaryen was to join us with fifty thousand Dothraki screamers at his back. Then the Beggar King was dead, and it was to be the sister, a pliable young child queen who was on her way to Pentos with three new-hatched dragons. Instead the girl turns up on Slaver's Bay and leaves a string of burning cities in her wake, and the fat man decides we should meet her by Volantis. Now that plan is in ruins as well.["]

That said, there was at least one member of the Golden Company who seems to have known the truth - Myles Toyne. Harry Strickland refers to Toyne entering into a "secret pact", a reference which aligns closely with Illyrio's teasing allusion to contracts writ in blood and Jon Connington's thought that "[t]he plans that he [i.e. Varys] and Illyrio had made with Blackheart had been known to them alone". Myles Toyne, scion of a family with a long history of resentment toward House Targaryen, himself perhaps having served in the Golden Company under the last of the Blackfyres, may well have figured a Blackfyre restoration would best serve him, his band of exiled Westerosi, and the spirit of the Golden Company; there was, at least, some personal motivation Myles appears to have had to agree to the Aegon plot with Illyrio. (Alas for Jon Connington, who therefore never suspected that his much-loved Myles was likely fighting to restore not his dead love Rhaegar's son but a descendant of the Black Dragon.)

Do I think Harry Strickland probably knows about Aegon being a Blackfyre? Yes. Strickland's knowledge of the existence of Toyne's "secret pact", coupled with Strickland's own longstanding familial loyalty to the Blackfyre cause and his position as the Golden Company's commander, all suggest to me that Harry is best positioned of anyone within the Golden Company to be entrusted with the knowledge that Aegon is, in whatever manner, descended from Daemon Blackfyre. If Illyrio needed the military support of the Golden Company, he may well have figured it was a necessity, if not a particular desire, to bring Strickland into the conspiracy. (Again, the secrecy emphasized by Varys to Jon Connington might have worked both ways here, keeping the Rhaegar-loyal Jon as much out of the Blackfyre loop as Jon himself thinks the Golden Company's men might have been toward Aegon-as-Rhaegar's-son; if Jon didn't need to know, Strickland certainly wasn't about to disillusion him.)

Do I think anyone else within the Golden Company necessarily knows? Eh, too little to say. The officer corps of the Golden Company certainly knew, before Jon Connington introduced the boy anyway, about our Aegon's cover story as Aegon Targaryen, son of Rhaegar and Elia, but whether they understand this only to be a cover story is still unclear. There are any number in that officer corps who don't appear to have any ancestral connections to the Blackfyre cause (e.g. Lysono Maar, Black Balaq, or Gorys Edoryen), and still others who, while Westerosi, may or may not know or care about restoring the Blackfyres. I'm not saying any of these could or could not have been let in on the secret, only that there's too little, I think, to say right now.

[dspd]

Thinking about Sri Lankan Jon & Polish Martin thanks @cult-of-the-eye for that hc in lieu of the TikToks talking about how terrible British food is, especially the ones poking fun at the floppy chips and curry take away bags. Especially the questions about whether it's even hot food or only lukewarm and why everything looks so fried greasy yet limp.

Thinking about how much of their post good cow conversation consists of arguing over what food tastes best like...Martin remembers how he started tearing up from the smell alone when Jon brought level 7 vindaloo for lunch. Meanwhile, Jon says he likes the crunch and firm texture of Martin's pickles but they could use some herbs when Martin makes pickles with extra dill just for Jon as a birthday present.

After they part ways with Basira, they devolve into heated bickering after Martin confesses he likes the fish n chips shop a couple blocks from the rear entrance of the Institute and Jon goes on a wild rant about how the curry chips there isn't even curry.

"It's brown gravy, Martin! Brown gravy!!" Jon is speeding up, stomping a little as little clouds of dust declare the last steps he's made. "I looked in the back once when the guy was in the bathroom and they don't even have coriander! It's paprika! They add a tiny bit of paprika to change the color!"

Martin's stuck between defending a perfectly good junk meal and agreeing because it is just brown gravy but it's delicious and he likes looking at the way Jon's ears turn red when he's pissed and ranting.

"Well," Martin hedges, fighting to keep an open, earnest face, "it definitely tastes like most curries I've tried since I've moved to London."

He works hard to keep from bursting into giggles as Jon seems to grow an inch in his indignation, turning to face him in a manner that might be menacing if he hadn't watched the man stare down a lion fifteen hours or days or whatever time ago. Jon's face is thunderous and a couple of his extra eyes have open to glare alongside his original ones.

Then he breathes and settles.

"You have no right to judge." A playful smirk plays on Jon's face as the extra eyes fade away.

Martin raises a brow.

Jon glances at the space between them and takes a small step away.

"You think cabbage water is delicious."

Jon's barks a laughs and starts running, his bulky backpack slowing him down as Martin gasps, only half affronted at the jab over his cabbage rolls, and tries to tear after him, clacking as his camping kettle clatters and clanks again the small cooking pan tied to his own backpack.

[levaagrace]

The thing about JMart isn't that I think it's toxic or poorly written or came out of nowhere or any of that. Cause I don't. At all. When I take a break from drinking haterade, I do agree with a good few points people make regarding their relationship in season five. I don't want to, but I can give Martin little a grace. As a treat. When people aren't acting like he's morally in the right for every action he takes.

Because, though I think there is some veracity to not attributing malice in Martin's actions, the actions he does take DO show disregard for Jon's... everything. Because, though I do agree that they both take steps to purposefully not fall into the same habits, Martin adamantly refuses to believe Jon is trying. At all. And why do I think that? Why do I, in my heart of hearts, think there's no way for either of them to get any better when it comes to moving forward in their relationship?

Martin flat out tells Jon that he believes, in a world without the horrors they face, that they wouldn't even be able to stand each other. That Jon's best-case-scenario, the scenario that he's tied up all his hope into, the very idea that they could've been doing normal things as normal humans instead of whatever they became, was so far-fetched as to be something Martin had to bring him down from.

"No, Jon, we're both too unlovable on a fundamental level and wouldn't even find each other worth speaking to in any other world."

That's, essentially, what I hear when I think of that scene in the penultimate episode. Actually, I don't think Martin includes himself as being unable to be loved, cue the "I am Martin Blackwood" scene, but as I said I'm giving him grace in thinking he's not, as usual, putting all their problems on Jon.

This isn't even bringing in the 'trauma-bonding' mention, but that's also a sticking point for me when thinking about whether or not the two of them SHOULD even attempt to salvage a relationship with each other post-series, whether somewhere!else or not.

All the trauma they went through needed to MEAN something, to Martin, so he placed their relationship in that role. So the question begs, when adding in that quote above, what would've kept them together after Martin's 'kill Jonah, pull the lever, save the world, kiss the Archivist' dream scenario? The one he legitimately thought he was going to accomplish mere hours later? Without either of them needing to rely on the other in a world gone mad, without either of them needing each other to be sources of comradery when everyone else in the world can be, then why would Martin even stick around?

Nothing, according to Martin.

Course you could say that both of their insecurities would mean neither of them would see themselves as worthy of being with anyone else but each other. But that's not sustainable a foundation to build anything on. Especially if, god forbid, they go to therapy and develop any form of self-worth not tied to each other or their places in the apocalypse. Eventually something will give and I don't think many of the 'relationship growing pains' they went through will be that easily forgotten. Or forgiven.

Here's the point where I would point out how all the issues they had actually are mostly issues MARTIN caused by not listening to Jon when he said anything about anything at all, but as I said. Grace. So I won't. Just know, though, that the 'hurdles' they went through are uneven, in my eyes, at least, and I won't say no more.

I suppose, when it comes down to it, what I'm trying to say is... telling someone you love them. Means nothing. When you think that loving them. Can only be the result of total and complete psychological, spiritual, emotional, ethical, physical, and mental destruction of the very fabric of your being.

But yeah.

[findafight]

Controversial headcanons/opinions! That are mostly about Steve now that I read them back.

1. Stancy’s biggest roadblock is Nancy’s inability to admit she’s wrong/makes mistakes.

2. Jancy’s biggest roadblock is Jonathan’s parentification. Jon loves Will, but some of his devotion to him is tied up in that - something I think fandom tends to overlook. We’ve already seen that Nancy either forgets or underestimates how much the Byers rely on Jon and I would not put it past her to view him looking after Will on the same level as her having to look after Mike & Holly.

Even once it’s revealed and they talk about it, it’s going to open a rift between them.

3. Joyce doesn’t give a shit about Steve and never will. Hop gives a shit reluctantly, in a mostly professional capacity but will be haunted with guilt if Steve dies.

4. Karen Wheeler is a shitty person and if the Duffers wanted me to think different maybe shouldn’t have teased her considering sleeping with a kid her daughter’s age. Also doesn’t give a shit about Steve, but is better at hiding it.

5. Billy, while being in the closet and brimming with self hatred, did not have a crush on Steve - he wanted the weird codependent yet weirdly void of sexual tension friendship that Steve would go onto have with Robin.

The fact that Steve hated him and was constantly ignoring him or pushing back at him was part of the appeal. That and the fact Steve’s a bitch - Billy thought that was hilarious.

6. Steve intelligence wise is average and actually has a fairly broad general knowledge - he just has difficulty with the terminology and isn’t great at explaining things to other people.

7. Steve’s kids are Dustin, Max, Lucas and Erica. He will absolutely protect the other three, but any presence he continues to have in their lives is a by-product of the other four.

8. Mike has a on again/off again crush on Steve and it’s part of the reason he turns into an angry cat around him.

9. We will meet Vickie’s entire family before we see the Harringtons on-screen.

10. Jon would *not* react well to Stargyle happening - he refuses to believe Steve is queer, assuming he’s just messing with Argyle/trying to get revenge on Jon for cheating with Nancy (for added tragicomedy, this is how Steve finds out about that).

11. Eddie likes ABBA. I have no fucking idea why fandom seems to think that he’d hate it and has me genuinely questioning how many people in fandom have met an actual metalhead. I know he’s a pretentious douche, but *Jesus*.

12. Whatever else happens between them, Robin will always hold a grudge against Nancy for not knowing who she was when they were first introduced. Steve has the excuse of being a popular kid who was ignorant of his surroundings at all times. Robin is the person who could swipe Valedictorian out from under Nancy but chooses not too. See also, Barb and the handful of grudges she has with Nancy regarding Steve.

omg so many anon! let's do this. long post so I'm going to add a readmore!

Yeah I mostly agree? The inability to let Nancy apologize or be wrong I think really sets back her growth as a character no matter what, and it's really pronounced with stancy! It is something that could be resolved but I do not think the show will do that. Steve wasn't the person Nancy needed in s2, but maybe he is now. Idk there's better stancy meta out there haha There are issues they have I'd love to see addressed but. doubtful they will. Idk if nancy will end up single (like I think she should) but I also don't know if they're actually going to follow through on stancy revival in s5 or just leave jancy as is.

2. Jonathan's parentification!! Absolutely agree. He needs to work through his inability to move on and look to the future for himself. His focus is on Will, who needs more of an older brother from him than another parent, especially now Will is closer to the age Jon was when everything started. Jon is defined by his family, and them needing him. But we sort of see in s4 that Will is growing up, El is too, and they don't need him in the same way Will needed to depend on him in earlier seasons, and Jon is spending time smoking with Argyle, but not actually dealing with what he's feeling.

this is room for Jonathan to develop character-wise, but it's also so interesting how his parentification has been an issue with Nancy! Like she wants to be a priority, but Jon can't do that, because he hasn't figured out how to 1) focus on himself and his wants 2) let himself look at the future as something that isn't looming but something to look forward to!

God I would love to see him figure out what he actually wants and how to balance that with his loyaty to his family in the show! or read a jon focused fic where he gets to deal with these things.

3. Joyce doesn't like steve :'| why would she? he's just some guy to her that Jon didn't like and who used to date her son's girlfriend. Steve's not on her radar at all she doesn't give a shit about him lol (I should write more of the joyce doesn't like steve fic)

4. uhg yeah I think I've already posted about alternatives to the stupid Karen side-plot where it's like. random pool middle age affair man, flirting with mr. clarke, or just her making moves on her own husband to show she wants to make changes in their marriage and the fair being a little date for the wheelers or SOMETHING to make her not creepy and actual have it mean something to her character? or just. not! include! any karen plotline at all!

5. billy is interesting because i would say there might be some one-sided sexual thing happening between him and Steve, and Steve hating and ignoring him would totally egg him on with whatever was going on in his brain. idk if he wanted it actually actionable but was probably going for some weird and very intense pscho-sexual homoerotic relationship. maybe not what could be described as a crush but certainly not whatever stobin has going on (though if he had lived stobin would have also pissed him off lol)

6. Yes! steve can understand a lot if he's given time to understand it. like he's just not a genius or talking fast, and he asks clarifying questions so he (and everyone else) knows exactly what's happening. maybe that might look like he's getting left behind but he's making sure everyone is on the same page, which is actually an important part of plans and sharing info. I'd also say he'd probably have pretty good head for strategy!

7. Dustin, Max, Lucas and Erica are absolutely steve's kids! thank goodness we got Steve and Max content in s4, but I'd love to see more of Steve and Lucas and Erica! I do love Steve with El too, because I think they should and could have a great dynamic, but that's all fanon, unfortunately. Mike and Will having some kind of relationship with Steve are just byproducts of Steve being friends with the others.

8. Mike and his mortifying crush on steve is so precious to me. He'd be so mad about it. It'd be so funny. to me. not for him. but for me :)

9. Harrington parents will remain an unsolved mystery haunting the fandom forever and always. We will know the names of Robin's grandparents and their pets before we see or hear anything more than Mr. and Mrs. Harrington.

10. I am obsessed with this idea. I love stargyle sort of coming out of nowhere for other people. My favourite. They can bond over having great hair and being a chauffeur for children not related to them. Jon side-eyeing this so hard even tho maybe he's been focusing on Nancy and their relationship when steve and argyle are having their Bonding Moments. The confrontation of Jon accusing Steve of getting with Argyle to mess with him, Steve going "what the hell. why would I have an elaborate polt to mess with you that included pretending to be queer? and kissing a man? multiple times??"

and Jon blurting about how of course he would to get back at jon for cheating with Nancy and steve just stopping. and trying to clarify. and Jon digging himself deeper. ooooooh. something to think about and expand on?? 👀👀👀

11. it was the 80s and disco was way out of style but also. who doesn't like ABBA. don't trust anyone who doesn't like at least one ABBA song. suspicious. Eddie would be vocal about his hatred for Progressive Rock though.

12. Robin and her grudges!!!! omg yes if robin was holding herself back from being valedictorian she'd be Pissed that Nancy didn't know who she was. like at least know your rivals! that in combination with the barb thing and all the steve things. Robin's not letting it go. I love her pettiness she's so funny and great. Queen.

[gaslighter-of-gods]

I have a theory about the statements.

So the statement have themes. For the first episode I thought it was Frankenstein because he says only parts of him are there (I think he just means he's not who he was in life and the Frankenstein's monster thing might be a red herring) so I think it could be about the myth of Orpheus and Erydice, with her wanting to see her lost love one last time. Tying into the second statement being a warning would also make sense with this theme of not going underground (meaning the undeworld) .And I do not know how but flowers undeground just screams Persephone to me, like it's not too obvious of a reference but it's there. I think they have unknowingly alinged themselves with some entity and we'll get to hear their story later on. As for the Orpheus and Erydice reference it works on a second level if Jon and Martin are in the computer talking about their own doomed love story, with Martin saying "I couldn't not see him again. I had to try." and Jon answering about how he shouldn't have tried and follow him to the "underworld" (ep200), while at the same time warning Sam not to follow on their footsteps. This is what happens when you get involved with the magnus institute. Not to forgetting that Martin already saved Jon from the underworld once (the coffin).

Oh my god I just realized! A canary is a songbird like Orpheus is a singer!!!! Canaries should stay above ground. We start with two statements because they are linked in some way.

For the second statement I thought it was based on the portrait of Dorian Grey and it still might be but it would also make sense to be the story of Pygmalion and Gallatea, I briefly thought it might be the story of Narcissus because of how obsessed she was about the way she looked, but then I remembered that they only agreed to tattoo her after she said she was an artist. So in some ways she asked them to bring her artwork into life and they did and they gave her that "ability".

The third statement is about the myth of Daphne and Apollo. Samuel is being chased throughout the whole statement. Running from his love but in a different way. He is actively being turned into a tree. He wants to see the sun, "I so much want to see it again. I want to be warm again". Apollo is the god of sun. At first we can see an invesrion of the roles of Apollo and Gaia (in some versions Zeus but in this case it's definately Gaia) that is supposed to save Daphne. That continues to the roll of Samuel and Maddie. Also Jasmine (according to google) means gift from god as if turning into a tree is a gift to him so he doesn't have to run anymore. At the end he seems so himself. Turning into a tree and bathing into the sunlight.

So the first one is associated with Hermes (at first I considered Hades but I think that's incorrect) the god that hepled Orpheus go into the Underworld that also associated with the alchemical sign for Mercury, quicksilver which alchemists thought trancended life and death.

And the second one that is associated with Aphrodite (because Pygmalion made offerings to her altar for the statue to come to life) was that is the sign Venus, that is represented with copper (acording to google there is copper in blue pigments, I don't anything about tattoos).

I think the third is both associated with the symbol for earth for Gaia that represents stability and stillness and the the sun for Apollo that can represent light and divinity.

I don't think they are doing a horror Percy Jackson thing, I think that how the gods have different domains and are associated with specific things so will the fears but I could be completely wrong.

[laurellerual]

Arya Lady of Harrenhal during the Long Night

At the bottom of my inbox there's an anonymous message from months ago that says “could you do Arya with Nymeria during the long night? Fighting together?”. I haven't replied yet and the reason is that when I think about this scene, the image of GOT 8x03 pops up in my mind. Will Arya fight through the Long Night, sword in hand? I'm not that sure.

Then the other day I came up with this idea that I proposed to you in a survey: “Winterfell falls, the northeners have to escape South, Harrenhal is the main citadel, Arya as lady of Harrenhal during the Long Night”. And I must say I'm surprised with the result. It won "I see where you are coming from, and I like it" with 33% of the votes.

But many, rightly so, have chosen "I'll wait for you to elaborate", so here we are.

A role

So Jon and Dany are the ones with the army and the dragons, Tyrion is the smart one with the experience and Bran is the one with the magical powers (sorry I'm simplifying, just to summarize). It's not hard to imagine that they'll find their place in the White Walkers storyline.

And Arya? Use the valyrian steel sword she doesn't have to slay the undead? Will Jon allow her to be on the front lines? Is Arya really stupid enough to think she can do it?

She will be at most 12/13 years old and the only sword lessons she has received are those of Syrio, she is not a great swordswoman, especially if she has to face adults on a battlefield. The things that the FMs are teaching her don't seem suitable for this kind of situations. I guess she could contribute by warging Nymeria and leading her pack, but if that is the case it wouldn't be necessary for her to be physically there.

Whatever this role is it must be relevant 'cause Martin counted her among the five key characters, one of the first to be created and then decided to waste a lot of ink by telling us about her.

Harrenhal

I start with the assumtion that the Battle for the Dawn will take place in the Riverlands, that it will not be possible to stop the White Walkers at Winterfell and consequently there will be an exodus of people from the North to the South. If you don't agree or you want an explanation about it, you can read my last post: Harrenhal during the Long Night.

And which of the main characters has a strong relationship with Harrenhal?

Thematic connections

The girl has a long and complex relationship with her mother's native land and a strong thematic connection with water that you surely have read about in other metas. Most of the major events in Arya's life take place here.

Not only the Red wedding, meeting Jaqen, the Weasel soup, the separation from Nymeria, but also Mycah's death in which she realizes for the first time that her father is not as powerful as she thinks, that the injustice of the world is deeper than she thought and that especially for the nobles the suffering of the smallfolk is totally irrelevant.

Harrenhal is the castle of which she becomes the ghost. And she really is the ghost of Harrenhal, standing in front of that Heart tree, probably like her late aunt years before, as she hears a voice from the trees reminding her of her real name.

Useful knowledge

Arya knows these lands directly, crosses them, lives them, knows their inhabitants, their opinions and sides in the war. It isn't a theoretical knowledge but a practical one. As Jon Snow recalls "The map is not the land, my father often said".

But it's even more intimate than that because Arya dreams of those lands every night, she sees them through Nymeria's eyes. The wolf is currently the only undisputed ruler in that lawless place. Do you remember the image of Harrenhal tormented by the tremendous howl of the wind and wolves outside the walls?

Arya also knows Harrenhal on all its levels. She physically scrubbed the floors of every floor of every tower and she scoured all the walls in search of an unguarded gate.

She has experienced the classes and roles that exist within the castle and its management. She had to deal with armigers, cooks and blacksmiths. She has worked her way up the chain of command from the humblest of servants to cupbearer and lord's messenger.

Skills and leadership

In the books we see her many times in positions where she is the person who has to make decisions, lead a group, organize little plans.

One of the main themes of her journey is justice, mercy, power and its abuse.

Then there are more or less direct parallels such as the one between Arya and Aegon the unlikely or the list of things that would make Aegon/young Griff a good ruler according to Varys.

Let's see some quotes in the books that tell us about these aspects of the character:

The one thing Arya could do better than her sister was ride a horse. Well, that and manage a household.

His father used to say that a lord needed to eat with his men, if he hoped to keep them. “Know t

he men who follow you,” she heard him tell Robb once, “and let them know you. Don't ask your men to die for a stranger."

Arya had loved nothing better than to sit at her father's table and listen to them talk. She had loved listening to the men on the benches too; to freeriders tough as leather, courtly knights and bold young squires, grizzled old men-at-arms.

Whenever her father had condemned a man to death, he did the deed himself with Ice, his great sword. “If you would take a man 's life, you owe it to him go look him in the face and hear his last words di lui,” she 'd heard him tell Robb and Jon once.

Can I be lord of a holdfast?

And here I stop because there are many others. If you are interested in this, there are meta only on this topic around tumblr.

An interesting that that connects Ned's teachings and those of the FMs is the concept that power and service are closely related.

Now let's see what FM training consists of: the ability to blend in with people, listen, gather information, learn many languages. We can add her natural ability to make friends and allies of all kinds.

This seems like the perfect package to manage a castle full of frightened people from all over the world (there will be people arriving with Dany as well), from every social class, every side of the war, who have nothing in common but the hope to survive.

Disconnected thoughts and possible parallels

This would be a very poetic situation that completes the parallel with historical Nymeria by placing Arya at the head of a group of refugees fleeing their destroyed home. In addition to giving her the possibility and the power to carry out the reflection on justice in a place that has seen so much injustice.

It's also funny how Lady Whent is introduced with great expectation right into Arya's chapters, where she thinks she can ask for her help. Yet she will never meet the Lady of Harrenhal.

And isn't it funny how she decided to name her direwolf after "some old witch queen in the songs"?

From the Alys Rivers wiki page: In 132 AC during the regency of Aegon III, a number of broken men and predatory outlaws began to gather at Harrenhal under the rule of a sorcerous witch queen. Mmmh interesting… this sound familiar, the Brotherhood without banners?

There is also Sharra, another witch queen of the Riverlands from the Age of Heroes.

Conclusions

In this place where Shagwell the Fool sang about Weasel soup maybe in the future there will be songs about Arya and the ten thousand wolves.

Thanks for reading. Mine doesn't want to be a theory that speaks of the character's endgame, but of its role during the Long Night. Let me know if I've given you something to think about, if I've convinced you, if you have other ideas on what this role might be. Or if you want to write a fanfiction with this plot.

Edit: I just discovered an old thread with a similar topic. I haven't read it yet, but I'll leave it here for the record.