#chetney is a show off

[sylvanfreckles]

No. 17: Icy Deep

Part 17 of Deck the Hells

Fandom: Critical Role Rating: G Warnings: none

Summary: When the Bell's Hells are forced to cross a frozen river with no bridge, Chetney uses the opportunity to share a few things he learned during his time in Uthodurn. It doesn't go well for him. (Read on AO3)

...

“Oh, boy. I can’t say I’m the biggest fan of this,” Dorian remarked. His hand tightened on Ashton’s shoulder as they took another slide-step onto the frozen river. Fearne, in the form of some kind of tiny, adorable rodent, squeaked in agreement from the crook of his elbow.

“Considering you’re not literally made of stone, I don’t give a fuck what you’re feeling,” Ashton griped back.

“Don’t worry! The ice will hold!” Laudna said. She’d dropped to all fours to spider-crawl across the ice, distributing her insignificant weight as much as possible. Imogen, flying, was struggling with hauling FCG over the river so they didn’t have to risk the journey. And Orym, of course, had cut a wide swarth around all of them to cross on his own (he’d said it was to keep a lookout upstream, but Dorian was pretty sure it was because he was enjoying sliding around on the ice. He thought he’d seen a halfling-sized form doing backflips upstream, but that made him too dizzy to focus any more closely).

“You’re such a worry-wart,” Chetney added. He slapped Dorian’s backside as he passed, then slipped nimbly between him and Ashton. “Need to work on your balance, blue boy!”

Dorian rolled his eyes but didn’t rise to the gnome’s teasing. Particularly since he’d been crossing this way to stick close to Ashton just in case—he wasn’t sure Imogen would be strong enough to lift them if the ice broke, and he could at least levitate the earth genasi if the worst happened. Otherwise, he probably would have clicked his boots together and flown across the river.

The ice groaned under Ashton’s foot, and they froze. “Fuck.”

“Easy,” Dorian murmured. “We’re okay.”

“I know we’re okay,” Ashton snapped, without any real heat in their voice. “Fuck,” they whispered again, sliding their foot a little closer before taking the next step.

“Take your time. There’s no rush.”

They slid another few feet forward.

“I don’t know if this swims,” Ashton muttered, gesturing to their body. “Hasn’t really come up before.”

“We’ll be fine.”

Fearne squeaked in agreement and scrambled up Dorian to cross over his arm to Ashton’s shoulder. She could have easily run across the ice in this form without any danger but had chosen to stick with them for moral support. Or blackmail material. One never quite knew with Fearne.

“We had frozen rivers like this near Uthodurn,” Chetney called. He stomped on the ice and gave a satisfied nod. “Sturdy.”

Dorian shuddered. He could swim, and he was pretty sure his reflexes would be good enough to leap out of the way if the ice broke, but it wasn’t something he wanted to test. “Please be careful, Chetney.”

“What, with this?” Chetney leaped up and down, slamming both feet into the ice. “This ain’t going nowhere!”

“Not funny, old man,” Ashton warned.

“I bet it would even hold my better half.”

“Chetney, no!” Dorian called out the warning, but it was too late. Chetney was already transforming, his larger werewolf form nearly twice the size of his usual gnomish one.

“See?” Chetney gave a wolfish smile and stomped on the ice again. “Nothing to…uh-oh.”

The ice cracked.

Dorian panicked.

He did the first thing that came to mind, and cast levitate.

On Ashton.

“What the fuck!” Ashton, now a foot off the ice, swung their arms and legs through the air helplessly. “Let me down!”

“Sorry, Ash,” Dorian was already making his way toward the spot where Chetney had dropped through the ice. “Gimme a minute!”

Chetney was clawing at the edges of the broken ice, fur already weighed down with water. The water was quickly freezing in his fur and along the edges of the hole.

“Chetney!” Dorian dropped to his stomach and stretched across the ice, reaching toward the werewolf with one hand. “Change back, then grab my hand!”

Claws hooked into his hand, breaking the skin, dragging him toward the hole.

“If you do that, we’ll both go down,” Dorian argued. “Chetney! Drop it!”

The wolf snarled. The other claw was coming around as animal fear replaced the normal intelligence in Chetney’s eyes. Dorian steeled himself, bracing against the ice as best he could.

“Enough, Chet!”

He looked up to see Imogen floating next to him, hand outstretched. The world wavered for a split-second, and the fear that had been clenching his heart started to relax. Dorian let out a sigh of relief and looked back to see Chetney’s ears droop as his grip on Dorian’s wrist loosened.

“Don’t let go,” he called out quickly. “If you change back, we can pull you out.”

“And I’ll fly you to the other side,” Imogen added. “No more icy deep for you.”

Chetney whined but complied. The icy fur receded, leaving behind a small, water-logged gnome. “Sorry about that.”

“We all make mistakes,” Dorian replied, hauling Chetney out of the ice. He was relieved when Imogen immediately grabbed his arms to fly him over to the bank, since the hole had destabilized the ice around it.

The last few minutes replayed in his mind, and he dropped his forehead to the ice with a groan. Ashton was never going to let him live this down. He looked back over his shoulder, only to find that Orym had lashed a vine around Ashton’s waist and was towing them toward the riverbank like a particularly ill-mannered kite. Ashton had folded their arms, brow furrowed in a scowl, but Dorian thought he caught a hint of relief in their posture at not having to walk the rest of the way across the ice.

He lay like that for a moment, stretched out on the ice, inches away from the hole Chetney had fallen through, until an insistent squeaking caught his attention. Dorian looked up to find Fearne, still in her rodent form, climbing up his arm to press her cold rodent nose to his cheek.

“All right, all right,” he laughed, scooping her up into the crook of his arm and slowly shifting onto his knees so he could stand back up. “Let’s get this over with.”

[sea-buns]

I understand not wanting your party members to walk into a lake and drown themselves but also Laudna has the fuckin WORST bedside manner lol. Yes, your much-needed long rest was just interrupted in a creepy abandoned town where you know weird charm-shit happened and the LAST thing you need right now is for anyone to lose focus. But also "Can you not wait? You can wait 5 minutes." talking to someone who has waited months and doesn't know if their loved one is even ALIVE and has confessed to you how much he misses them and how much it hurts and they could be outside breathing alive right now—

And on the surface, it looks like Chet is enabling a bad decision when he says "You probably heard Dorian. He's probably outside." and yeahh, okay, maybe he is a little bit. But right after that he's about to protest with something about Orym and it's like yeah. ORYM said he heard something. When has there been a time when ORYM heard something, and it wasn't real? How many times has Orym heard something and it's saved our asses? Before Chet is being hit with his own need to check out the lake, he's giving Orym the benefit of the doubt. And while he is an enabler by nature, he's keeping his voice soft rather than his usual, over-the-top "let's fuck around and find out" energy that he brings to dangerous situations like this.

You can't have everyone in the group treating a dilemma with the same amount of sympathy and care. What makes the BH so fascinating to watch is the variation in responses and different ways they interact with each other. You need a balance of someone who will take the cold, unyielding stance against something that is so obviously a trap, and someone that is aware of the risks but willing to speak up for that person and humor them when they're so clearly struggling.

I have a lot of feelings about Laudna and Chetney's instinctual responses and I think both stances are fascinating and they've both shattered my heart to pieces

[piratespencilart]

Werewolf in a hoodie. :)

[ID: Digital art of Chetney from Critical Role. He is a large white anthropomorphic wolf with red eyes and many scars. He is wearing a dark blue hoodie and has his hands in the front pocket. End ID.]

[britcision]

Ngl I’d be more sympathetic to the lack of Essek but fucking Caduceus isn’t even there

[lion-sensei]

I want to watch critical role but it’s a reward for doing work so I have to do work first :(

[yencirilla]

unfortunately it's still not really talked about by a lot of the cr fandom, but the fearne chetney relationship really is one of the sweetest dynamics of the group. i know people write it off as just a one night stand, but they genuinely care about one another. fearne asking chetney about his family early on in the campaign, chetney continuously checking in on fearne/asking about her nana throughout the campaign. chetney making fearne's toy first. fearne trying to steal back the sword chetney had. chetney going after fearne after the shard, asking if she's okay. fearne choosing to cast stoneskin on chetney with a kiss instead of just touch. chetney picking fearne a flower, fearne showing off chetney's toy to oltgar and complimenting it. i love them <3

[somewhatsentientspellbook]

I want Imogen to go the absolute fuck OFF at Liliana the next time they meet. I want her to show her mother what Otohan did to Orym, to Fearne, to Laudna, to Chetney, and to FCG.

I want Liliana to grovel because Imogen has grieved more for relationships that have existed for a few months (a few years in Laudna's case) than she has for her own mother.

I want her to finally choose which side she's on.

And I want them to end it once and for all if she chooses wrong.

[lyuenger]

** Authors note. Obvious C3E91 spoilers.

[[ update, thanks to @ReaderOfDragons sending me an invite I'm now on AO3, and it's posted! I did make a few changes/updates/fixes - so read it there for the updated/better version ]]

Also, my first fan fic (and I don’t have an Ao3 invite yet, so I’m sharing here). The moments after played in my head, and the players didn’t act it all out, so I figured I would share tge version in my ''mind palace'. I’ll be sharing more art soon, now that my main job is on summer break.

Note that it switches perspectives. Also, pasting it here messed with my formatting (but I think I fixed most of it).

Faithful End

Chet couldn't hear the sounds of the metal clanking around him, only the ringing in his ears, as he stood in shock and disbelief. The air tasted of blood, sweat and red earth. Quickly his world snapped back into focus and he began to survey the battlefield. What remained of Otohan was charred and strewn about near the freshly made crater on the cave floor.

Orym.

Orym lay still and limp, covered in blood (surely both his and his foes), his sword in the nearby dirt.

A slight rise of his chest showed he was still alive, somehow.

He's alive.

Ash..

A quick look to where he had finally fallen at Otohans blade showed Imogen and Laudna rushing to aid him.

Chet rushed to Orym, knelt down, and fumbled in his pockets until he touched the cool glass of his last healing potion. He uncorked the bottle, pulling the limp Orym up and cradling him into position. “You did good, my boy.” He quietly croaked, as he carefully poured the red fluid into his mouth.

Orym’s chest rose, filling with air, and fell again as he started to exhale, then cough. Green, tired eyes opened and looked up into his own. Chet sighed in relief.

******

Orym coughed, the metallic taste of iron and the familiar herbal taste of a healing potion filled his mouth.

He hurt.

Everything hurt.

He just wanted to sleep, but he felt someone gently holding him, stroking his hair. He lazily opened his eyes, and saw the blue eyes of Chetney looking at him with concern.

Otohan. I have to kill Otohan and get everyone back safe.

With a new burst of adrenaline flowing through his veins he quickly, albeit unusually clumsily, pushed onto his feet. Intense green eyes, framed by the fresh blood that smeared his face, darted around.

There was an odd stillness on the battlefield.

Laudna and Imogen were clutched together.

Shaking.

In fear?

No. Crying. They were crying. Sobbing.

He lowered his eyes and saw an empty glass bottle abandoned near Imogen.

Alert green eyes shifted slightly, resting on Ashton. He was sitting next to them, face buried in a large stoney hand. He couldn't make out his words, but he knew Ash… “Fuck. Shit. Piss.” Surely.

His eyes shifted once more and discovered a newly formed crater, and the charred and bloody remains scattered around the red and now sparkling earth. The sight caused his heart to skip, until he recognized the features… Otohan.

Oh thank the Gods.

He hadn’t believed they would survive that fight, but his friends had pulled it off. He closed his eyes and worked to catch his breath… slow his heart rate. It was over.

It would be okay… he gave himself a moment to let the adrenaline subside, and opened his eyes again.

The sparking red soil caught his eyes now. Pieces of metal? Where did all the metal pieces come from?

The gears in his head began to put the information together, but it didn’t seem to want to click into place. His shifting eyes scanned the cave once more and fell on Fearne. His Fearnie…

He watched those big eyes of hers filling as she stepped into the crater bent down.

Wait, what happened… why was she so upset otohan was dead? Why were the others so upset. They won, somehow.

At least this fight. He knew it wouldn't be their last.

He scanned the cave again checking on his friends. Immogen and Laudna were looking pretty battered and drained, but not quite as rough as Ash. Then again, Ash always looked pretty rough. Chet (who had moved over to check on Everoa) looked real rough, but he had went down hard. Luckily FCG had helped him.

FCG. Did he escape? He had been running…

Movement caught his eye, and he looked over in time to watch Fearne stand, clutching a large metallic chunk… what remained of FCGs smiling face. The eyes were cracked and FCGs smile was now disjointed and crooked, but it somehow still felt… warm.

“Letters?” He heard the words croak out of him, as he looked into Fearne’s and then Chets eyes. He read their faces. Tight, with wet eyes. Feeling his heart shattering, he knew.

“No. Nonononono.” The words softly left his lips. Fearne, barely holding back tears, rushed to him. Her comforting arms gathered him up and Orym buried his face into her.

****

Ash woke up, feeling like he had been ran over by a dragon, but that was nothing new. He always hurt. Although he didn’t always feel this weak.

Having friends, with concerned faces, helping him up was new though. So he sat up, and then stared wide eyed at scraps of metal that had settled across the ground.

Why was there metal on the floor?

That color…

The same color as… The color of FCG.

He scanned the room, quickly taking in the destruction. The crater. The remains.

Why?! Why did he do that. We talked about that.

He knew that damn automaton was going to sacrifice himself one day… he had hoped he would get through to him, but no.

No one gets left behind.

But Letters was gone.

His friend was gone. Gone.

Bits spread everywhere across the cave.

He tucked his face into his hand.

“Fuck.

Shit.

Piss.

Damn it.

You self sacrificing litt….” The words that escaped his mouth registered in his brain, and his eyes flew wide with panic.

Wait.

Orym. She got Orym. I have to help Orym.

Eyes darted to where he had seen him fall, and saw Chetney holding him as he set down an empty glass bottle. Orym’s tiny body shuttered as he coughed awake. Ash felt his body exhale in relief.

Orym will be okay. He's a little guy, but the toughest guy I know.

He's okay.

He's okay.

He took a deep breath in an attempt to steady himself, wiped his eyes, and looked around the room again. So many metallic scraps littered the rusty red floor.

“Fuck. Shit. Piss.” He muttered angrily to himself, and punched the ground in frustration.

He vaguely took in Ferane running to Orym and Chet, and the other two witches clinging to one another for another moment before jumping up and rushing around to look for something.

He stood dumbfounded and unsteady, leaning against his hammer and lost in thought, until his eyes caught on an unnaturally bright glint of metal in the cave wall.

No one gets left behind.

The words echo in his head on repeat, but all that escapes his lips is “Fuck.”

He takes several slow strides as his feet lead him to the rocky wall near their exit.

The piece of metal, a distinct shape…

The coin. That. Fucking. Coin.

That fucking coin that he always trusted.

What a lot of damm good it did him.

He jammed his fingers into the rock around the metal, gripped firmly and yanked. The rock crumpled away easily and he palmed the coin, staring at it for a minute before slipping it into his pocket.

“We have to make this count” Chets scratchy voice stated matter of factly. Ashton looked over to see him snatching up the backpack.

“Right.” Ash muttered to himself, and he moved to help the others gather anything they could.

***

The blood and dirt covered halfling wiggled out of Fearne’s arms, so she reluctantly set him down gently, making sure he was steady enough on his feet before fully letting him go. His eyes darted around the debris littered on the ground. He knew, deep down, it was futile, but he helped them gather all the pieces they could.

Fresh Cut Grass.

His body may have been weak from exertion and damage, but Orym’s perception didn't fail him. He could sense Fearne following near him, as he maneuvered towards a shiny chunk that had caught his eye. He wearily crouched and picked it up, turning it over in his small hands carefully, avoiding the sharp edges. Familiar slash marks arched across it. Like blades of grass reaching for the sun, or swaying in the wind. Tiny, calloused fingers, stained a brownish red with the soil and dried blood, carefully caressed the recessed lines in the smooth metal.

Letters.

He closed his eyes and hugged the piece of metal tightly to his chest.

FCG.

Faithful Care Giver.

FRITA. Fuck.

What am I going to tell FRITA…

Unconsciously he gently rubbed the moons on his shoulder. The physical pain taking a backseat to the anguish that burned through him. It was not a new feeling. He didn't like it. He would rather feel the physical pain.

It should have been me…

Letters should be with FRIDA, and I would be with Will. And Dad.

Oh Dad, I failed.

Again.

This is too big, and I'm, I'm too li….

A firm hand gripped his shoulder, breaking him away from those spiraling thoughts. He glanced up, first to the hand, then up Fearne. Her expression was full of concern, her voice soft, warm, and comforting, “You okay?”

He didn't think he knew the answer to that yet, and he knew he couldn't talk without falling apart, so he simply flung himself around her in a tight hug. If she could feel the tears soaking into her skirt, she didn't say anything.

*****

Fearne was barely holding it together. FCG was gone. She had never lost anyone she loved like that. But her best friend needed her, so she focused on him. Orym was a hardened soldier, the Savior Blade of the Tempest. He fought steady and bravely. He was a little guy, but so strong and agile. She had never seen anyone do so many sit ups, or wield a sword with such grace and control.

But his heart was fragile, having already been broken, and not yet fully mended.

Not that it ever could be. Some wounds never fully heal. She was starting to understand that. Her heart began to crumple under the weight of their mutual loss, compounded by seeing the pain in Orym’s face. She could feel his rough, gasping breathing as he clung to her.

She couldn't fix their broken hearts.

So she gently rubbed small circles onto his back instead, pushing away the sad thoughts, and focusing on comforting him.

I can't fix this, but I can remind him that he's not alone.

Orym suddenly jerked his head away from her to look down the cave entrance. She could see the damp (and blood and dirt stained) spot he left behind… Although her clothes were already quite soiled before that. Chet had also glanced over his shoulder at the same time. They must have heard something.

Quietly but firmly Chet informed them “We have to move, we won't be alone here long.”

She watched Orym nod, his face now stern and determined.

A soldier's face.

Orym slipped the hunk of metal he had been gripping into his bag as Fearne lifted him, easily swooping him up and onto her shoulders. Man was he light! And so drained, his grasp weak as he held on. Being so drained from the fight, she was sure he couldn't move as fast as they needed to. And they needed to move fast. They needed to find a safe place. They all needed to rest.

***

“Let's go!” Chetney growled.

“On it!” Ashton raged and punched the wall where the exit was.

“We still need to find the …” Laundna’s frustrated statement was cut short.

“Found it!” Imogen exclaimed, briefly holding up the staff FCG had been carrying. Laudna stopped her search with a sigh of relief, and they made their way to the others.

Smart.

Imogen was smart. Orym had known for a while that she was leadership material. They would need the staff for it's ability to teleport everyone. Soon. Too bad it needed to recharge first. Not to mention, someone would need to attune to it.

Because…

Letters.

Letters was gone.

I failed. I failed Letters. I wasn't enough, even with the powers Nana Morey gave me.

Orym felt a firm squeeze on his leg, grounding him. Fearne kept one hand gripped firmly on his leg to make sure he didn’t slip off and she rushed down the tunnel.

He held onto her with as much strength as he could muster, as the remaining Bell’s Hells fled for their lives. He looked at his friends, all beaten and tapped out, but pushing themselves past their limits once again. Helping to steady one another and make sure everyone was keeping up. Orym hugged Fearne’s head tighter and nuzzled it a little. He had great friends. Weird, but great.

I couldn't save FCG, but for now I need to focus on getting the others home.

Home safe.

Alive. Somehow.

Dad and Will wouldn't stop fighting, and neither will I…

[cringefaecompilation]

let’s talk about fearne getting mad!

fearne does not like being mad. she doesn’t like complex emotions in general. she likes being happy and she likes to see her friends happy. when dorian left, she hated the thought of feeling sad about him leaving.

this best shows off in episode 34 when she was killed and went to... somewhere. she shrugged off her own death, but was devastated when laudna and orym died and she had to choose which one of them to save. she didn’t want to. the thought of choosing herself and losing either of them would have killed her, and fcg gives her the coin so she doesn’t have to make that choice. and try as she might, she can’t save both. the coin said tails. laudna dies.

so she blames the coin for it. she is upset with fcg, but she pretends that the coin doesn’t exist until fcg uses a spell to make it more evident. and then she proceeds to talk about destroying the coin or getting rid of it even after laudna is brought back. and speaking of when laudna returns, fcg keeps using the coin and scaring her away! and fearne gets pissed when they do this and almost refuses to cure him because he was cruel to laudna.

and then when ashton and her reclaimed a shard everyone pushed her to take it right after she was told that using it would cause her to blow up and trying to make it sound like a good thing that she should have it. but she says no, it’s ashton’s shard. they should have it! they’re a titan, not me!

fearne is scared and uncomfortable, but she thinks she’s doing the right thing right up until she isn’t and ashton is almost killed due to them going off a hunch. and we see how her rationale works in episode 78: this is all ashton’s fault, no, it’s their stupid hammer’s fault, no, it’s all the harness’ fault, that caused all this, i have to destroy it so everything will be okay again.

and chetney confronts her and she again realizes the truth that they’re both culpable for their actions in this but she’s still upset whenever they mention the harness. she says she’s angry at ashton, and i think she genuinely was, but it’s not as angry as she is at herself and the harness that almost got him killed.

and it’s not nearly angry enough for her not to be horrified when they say that they deserved to die so she would be happy. so she takes something that she was told time and time again would kill her and reminds her of something that she has tried not to be like to protect her friends just so she can make sure her friends are all happy. because if they’re happy, she’s happy.

[intergalacticwanderer]

Some additional fun aspects of the blood curse of binding that Chetney showed off last night:

Both standard and amplified uses of the blood curse take away the target's reactions (which can be useful for helping teammates get out of trouble).

When amplified, there's no size limit on the target being bound, and the effect will last up to a minute (with the target making further saving throws).

The curse specifically reduces the target's speed to 0. The players handbook states "If a flying creature is knocked prone, has its speed reduced to 0, or is otherwise deprived of the ability to move, the creature falls, unless it has the ability to hover or it is being held aloft by magic, such as by the fly spell."

This means that, technically, if Chetney could get within 30 feet and there was a failed save, he could make a flying dragon fall out of the sky.

[utilitycaster]

Fighter Breakdown Tracker, episode 3x78

Welcome to what was originally an opportunity to talk about the myriad wizards (not Myriad wizards, a separate concept) of Campaign 2 that occasionally gets co-opted into other things when the thought arises. Anyway, obviously the main event was the Barbarian Breakdown and, relatedly, the Party Breakdown, due to their Communication Breakdown, giving Allura Vysoren specifically her 19th Nervous Breakdown, but I've already talked a lot about Ashton. How are the fighters doing?

As a reminder: characters are included on the basis of 1. are they a fighter, 2. are they remotely relevant to this campaign, and 3. do I have something funny to say about them. I cannot stress enough how important item 3 is in the decision process; do not make requests, my muse speaks to me and that is how the characters (and, to be honest, classes) are chosen.

Cassandra de Rolo: Yes! According to the Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting (not reborn) she's multiclassed into fighter! Anyway that plan to go to the ziggurat went well, huh? totally normal and great. I like to think that due to her rogue levels she saw Fearne march down the ziggurat steps and just peaced out and has been chilling in Pike's little cabin ever since. 4/10: normal "is the world ending" concerns but otherwise she's having maybe the best day anyone on the Whitestone War Council can.

Jarett Howarth: he's specifically avoiding Bells Hells because motherfuckers keep teleporting from Marquet and not bringing any fusaka. This, plus normal "putting the Pale Guard on a war footing and also there's a really mad goat lady in the garden" bumps him up to a 6/10.

Orym: my serious thoughts about the space made for Chetney, FCG, and Imogen to step up aside I honestly think the semi-joking narrative of Orym going off in a huff and working out his feelings quite literally via the power of elaborate bodyweight calisthenics of the sort that grant you 20 Dex and 10 Str would be good for him. Allow yourself a little pettiness, Orym; it's good for the soul. 5/10 because I don't fucking know; we'll see next game.

Ariks Eshteross: I hope he's at peace and buried next to his love as requested; I still haven't gotten around to making those cookies actually and frankly I've had much more of an eye on the gunpowder tea shortbread. 0/10; I like to think he has found true rest.

Bertrand Bell: These motherfuckers have not visited the grave of their namesake at ALL. Traipsing around the Raven Queen's temple - literally everyone but Laudna and FCG has wandered over to that corner of the city - and NO ONE has taken a moment to pause and reflect. He died as he lived: everyone kind of setting him aside for more important matters except for followers of the Raven Queen. 8/10 because hopefully he was entertained by the raven show that got put on but also, come on man you couldn't stop by at all?

FRIDA: I have to imagine things in Vasselheim are wild and it's going to be missing FCG hours, but at least they're in great company! 5/10; they're a pretty even-keeled robot all things considered but the situation is pretty tense.

Otohan Thull: My sole regret about how great this episode is and the fact that we're dropping into the Fey Realm for a bit to have some much-needed time to regroup is that we are likely delaying their richly deserved demise. Anyway everyone's beloathed Palpatine knockoff is unfortunately super unflappable; another reason why they are boring as shit and why I very much want Bells Hells to make the bridge a little bit bloodier on the way up. 3/10.

Percival Friedrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III: Here's the thing. All things considered, his personal position is stressful, but not terrible. The ziggurat did not blow up; Gwen appears to either have not told him about her Delilah incident or did so in such a way that he didn't realize what was going on; he doesn't seem to have noticed the break-in into his parents' bedroom yet; Allura was reassuring re: Whitestone likely being safe (although...it's on a ley nexus so watch out!); and he got to deliver the line "ever since I met you, I knew you were destined for stupidity" which is actually how he specifically blows off steam. On the other hand, every single window in the castle has been destroyed, Allura had to leave, and I just checked and confirmed that Pike does not have the mending cantrip. Maybe one of the local clerics does? Maybe one of his kids does? Maybe Vilya or Ebenold does? Maybe Grog's in town and can be convinced that the role of the Grand Poobah etc etc is fixing windows? 6/10.

[mimymomo]

It’s truly astounding how the people belittling Fearne’s feelings and growth the most are Fearne fans themselves.

Fearne/Ashley made it explicitly clear that she didn’t want the shard. She stated that it multiple times and went even further to explain that it scared her and TOLD ASHTON that she believed they should take it. They willingly went along with Ashton’s plan because she believed it was the right thing to do but as time went on, she grew more and more concerned but still believed in Ashton who kept telling her it it would be okay, downplayed the consequences (saying his death would be a funny story to tell and that’s all as if them dying wouldn’t be horrible and affect Fearne/the others because they genuinely can’t believe that his life is worth that pain) and said that she promised him.

Fearne said multiple times that Ashton didn’t manipulate her. Ashton wasn’t hiding their intentions from her — he told her the plan, they knew (some of) the risks and Fearne said she went aligns to hit because she thought it was the right move. You’d think Ashton had a gun to her head by the way the fandom is talking about the whole thing!

Yes Ashton was pushing and they never should have kept Fearne from telling the group the truth but she made her choice and it was a bad one out of love and care (and no Ashton did not manipulate her feelings/attraction to them to convince her: Ashton did not and still does not know the full extent of what Fearne felt towards them and when he kissed her, she had already agreed to the ritual and the kiss only made her really second guess).

Now am I saying that she’s equally culpable as Ashton? NO!

Am I saying she owes Ashton an apology? GOD NO! And thank god Ashton told her she didn’t owe them anything, he put her in such a bad situation and that was 95% on them. THEY FUCKED UP BAD AND DESERVED ALL THE TONGUE LASHINGS THEY GOT!

But the way the fandom presents the issue is as if Ashton was this maniacal, evil manipulator who preyed on Fearne solely because she was too good to say no instead of viewing the whole situation as it really is: a man who is fucked up asking someone they trust to join in on their stupidity without fully realizing how much danger, trauma and suffering he is going to put her through.

We can acknowledge that Fearne made a mistake by being complicit and used Ashton plans with the shard to justify (run from) her not having to take it due to her own personal beliefs and fears and use that acknowledgment to further show her growth as a person who will never let herself get thrusted back into that position again. That she can’t blindly trust and follow someone’s self destructive path if it’s gonna lead to her being hurt. This is a good thing! Let Fearne learn and grow from this! That’s what the whole Chetney discussion is about: no one’s blaming her, Ashley’s not dodging anything or protecting Taliesin/Ashton — this is Fearne being honest, taking agency, calling out her actions and growing.

Fearne messed up and was complicit in going along with the plan AND she has every right to be upset with Ashton for what they did and she deserved her apology are two statements that can (and should) coexist!

I’m so tired of people vilifying Ashton and making him come off as this terrible and evil individual when that’s not what this was. They aren’t. And then saying that he was throwing a pity party when in reality they’re coming to the realization that his behavior is his own fault and they can’t keep running and blaming others for the actions he takes and then apologizing and taking responsibility and ownership for what happened and saying they want to be better in the future.

The same fandom that worships the ground Percy steps on despite all the bs he put VM through, actually tried to argue that Essek — a character who due to his own hubris stole a priceless and ancient artifact that was essential to his country’s religious identity and nearly started a whole ass war — wasn’t a war criminal because the Geneva Conventions didn’t exist in Exandria (yes this actually happened to me at one point), seems to be unable to handle Ashton without any sort of empathy or understanding. A character who has been mentioned to be broken (physically mentally and emotionally) with crippling self worth issues who needs to be better in not only how they show they care, but in loving and caring for himself.

These past 2 episodes were so good but gosh some of the reactions have been aggravating

(Maybe I would accept people saying Ashton was manipulative more if they weren’t demonizing him in the same breath and acting as if they’re only only questionable bad egg in Bells Hells…)

[ariadne-mouse]

Outfit Change!

Chetney: something warm and comfortable, a soft velvet tracksuit in cool purple/blue/green, casual but also able to protect from the elements, maximum stretch and durability. Removable hood. Knitted sweatbands from Deanna.

Imogen: a floor-length flowy dress with long fitted sleeves pointed to the finger, sheer to show off lighting marks on skin, embroidered. Underneath it a leather body piece+corset, and over it a leather overcoat that's cropped and fitted at the waist with a hood. Coat sleeves removable.

Deanna: a stretchy form-fitting green bodysuit with a corset overtop

FCG: a dark blue duster inspired by FRIDA's jacket

FRIDA: repairs to their beloved emerald green duster, adding FCG embroidery to the inside

Fearne: a Rococo-style outfit with poofy sleeves, silks "all over", corset with laces and "boobies up to here". Legs revealed (ham-forward look). Long tippy finger jewels. Knitted accessory from Deanna.

Laudna (bonus!): matching corset

[sparring-spirals]

This is. Such A Conversation. Chetney's own turning being phrased as a trial, as a gift, as something he braved and came through. Speaking with respect towards the entire community he was in, while understanding that it could very easily have gone a different way for him. (Showing off the pride that it didn't. That he kept his sense of self, he didn't lose himself, he survived. He won.) The way Chet still views the werewolf-ing as both a curse and a gift, the parts he takes pride in. the strength! the power! the connection to his primal instincts! the legacy of his own capabilities!

And Chet finishing off with: But I don't want to hurt anyone in this group.

[annemarieyeretzian]

keyleth turning into a bird and flying off and chetney hollering “oh, show off!” and then asking “…was that her?” and imogen affirming “mmhmm.” and chetney saying “oh, thank god. I thought I was yelling at a random bird.” 😂

[elementalladymallorie]

Ashton: Lets make a scene.

Chetney: Council Woman Temult, After you.

Imogen: Keep your head up high.

Ashton: If they so much as even twitch, they're on the ground.

This crew is so ride or die for one another. And so willing to show each other off, and lift them up.