#forget about the fact he dies at the end this is the canon one

[thefanimator]

I know it probably was not intended this way but I imagined Nancy just bridal-style carrying Quentin. this image is stuck in my mind. taking up rent.

[hello-eden]

Dcxdp #24

I have two ideas for Danny reincarnated as Jason Todd.

 The first idea is Danny getting his Memories Back after the Lazarus pit. Talia tries to manipulate him and he believes her for a hot minute but he gets caught up in learning a bunch of new things but it kind of forgets. I never see Danny very motivated by Revenge. None of his loved ones were her so he sees no reason for Revenge. Danny just one day forgets he's supposed to be mad at Bruce as well as the fact that he's dead and just calls him. The conversation carries on for at least 20 minutes back and forth before Danny remembers that he's supposed to be dead. He ends the call once he realizes but the damage has been done. After that call he's just decided that any chance of prank or Revenge is impossible anymore and keeps calling. no one would be able to trace the calls because Danny is not that stupid but once the cat's out of the bag Danny's just too busy to care. I don't think he'd even come back to Gotham until like 2 years after Resurrection. The entire bat family is like holy shit we weren't hallucinating and Danny's like did you think you were.

The second idea is normal Canon happening until Jason almost dies again but they wake up from what should be life-threatening just like the afterlife is too much paperwork. He gives zero context. anytime someone asks he keeps making vague pensions of the fact that the afterlife isn't fun if you're managing the place and leaves it at that. I think they would find out later but Danny being vague about it just brings me much joy.

[unlikelypandahologram]

Reasons to ship every single version of MegOP

since Very Dumb Discourse™ exists about whether or not certain versions of this ship are valid, this is going to be THE most positive post about all versions of MegOP. refer back to this post for reasons to ship your favorite version of MegOP if anyone gets weird about it with you. now let us begin!!

G1: goofy '80s faction dads fighting each other in a denny's parking lot every week LET'S GOOO, that shit is fun as fuck. orion pax also totally had a celeb crush on megatron before megatron ruined that and shot him and his pals 😔 and there's a lot of angst you can add with megatron becoming galvatron and optimus coming back to life to see how much he's changed!

BW: it's the sheer fucking comedy gold factor of a newly minted college graduate and a terrorist dinosaur IMMEDIATELY singling each other out on a prehistoric rock and deciding to call their daily gang slap-fights the BEAST WARS, what iconic drama queens LMAOOOO. also, megatron made his final body in BM look like optimal optimus SPECIFICALLY to fuck with him, and that's just...incredible

UT: the fact that megatron CANONICALLY acted like a grieving widower over optimus after he died in armada is. amazing. never forget their absolutely insane obsession with each other that they can never EVER give up on played a direct part in unicron nearly ending the world <3

Bayverse: this is the one continuity of all fucking things that gave us the lore about megatron being prime's lord high protector. absolute galaxy brain writing from the tie-in comics. also these two would ABSOLUTELY have the messiest, nastiest, most brutal hate sex imaginable, and that's beautiful. <3

Animated: optimus being a rookie washout underdog and megatron being a super scary much older warlord is a really interesting and underrated fresh take on their dynamic! lots of fun to be had with exploring what their relationship would be like after megatron finally acknowledged him as his archnemesis, lol. also...age AND size difference ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Prime: do i even need to say anything, i'm pretty sure that one flashback still of orion and megatronus being friends is responsible for birthing a million shippers for this pairing alone LMAOOOO. the bitter ex-boyfriends energy was TRULY off the charts in this show, it's a damn shame megatron never appeared in RID15

Cyberverse: same bitter ex-boyfriends energy but this time with dates at maccadams. megatron also dies encouraging optimus to beat the unhinged alternate dimension megs AAHH THE ANGST

IDW1: they're both depressed gay war criminals in this one who CONSTANTLY live in each other's heads rent-free and that's amazing, lmfao. also, megatron becoming an autobot means this is one of the VERY FEW continuities where it's not nigh impossible to figure out a way to give these two a happy ending together in fanon

IDW2: space date space date SPACE DATE. they were falling together and everything. megatron also LITERALLY tells optimus to open himself to him...to give him the matrix...yeah megs my dude i'm sure that's the ONLY thing you wanted from optimus "opening" himself. toootally positive, lol

G1 Marvel: megatron was SUPER fucking pissed and weird as shit about the time optimus died over a video game. it counts

Dreamwave: their first fight had megatron urging optimus to join him AND they disappeared together in a space bridge explosion once which is like, a fanfic-esque setup for them to be alone. also i'm pretty sure this is the continuity where optimus accidentally gave megatron a lobotomy, so...uh...potential for angst is to be had

SG: mirror universe!! evil crazy villain optimus with noble goody-goody hero megatron has so much potential for absolute chaos. bonus if you also bring in the normal versions somehow through multiverse shenanigans <3

KP: the only way this version of prime can redeem himself from the creepy underage human girl bullshit is if he gets a good hard dicking from megatron. next

Prime Wars: huge "ex-husbands go on a road trip with their disgruntled daughter" energy here. megatron also LITERALLY says "oh optimus, if only you could see me now" <3

Earthspark: again...need i say why? they're pals and working together from the get-go, what's not to ship??

Skybound: optimus literally wears megatron's arm. truly beautiful <3

TF One: it's not out yet but give it time. the entire movie is going to be about orion and d-16 being madly in love and tragically breaking up, baby!!

[trashcanlore]

My Chemical Marriage

The chemical wedding is an allegory used in alchemical writings to refer to the union of opposites, particularly a union that produces a new and improved product, the Rebis. 

One popular version of the allegorical wedding takes place between the Red King, the active principle (sulfur) that shapes the material and passive principle of the White Queen (mercury). However, this allegory can refer to the union of sun and moon, silver and gold, or even body and spirit. 

The Rebis refers to the end product of the magnum opus, and is typically depicted as a hermaphrodite.

The child of the chemical marriage is sometimes called the philosopher’s child and fun fact, is associated with the myth of Orion and his three fathers (Jupiter, Mercury, and Neptune). The myth is very different but I can’t help but think of the Simurgh. 

Though the chemical marriage allegory is very much referring to marriage and procreation, etc, in the context of Genshin, it’s used more to refer to a union of opposites, or a collaboration between two types of being, which will be elaborated on later. Of the four examples I will be going through, only two of these relationships have any kind of (canon) romantic associations attached to them. Basically what i’m trying to say is that this is definitely not about ships please don’t eat me.

It’s a well established trend in the history of Teyvat that there have been many god-king-like beings associated with gold or the sun, who had some kind of relationship with a knowledgeable and moon-associated woman, who then dies tragically during the god-king’s quest to Change The World. 

And now, in thematic order, I present the doomed pairings: 

Imunlaukr and the princess of Sal Vindagnyr

Imunlaukr is an outlander, destined to wield the Snow Tombed Starsilver sword to “shatter ice and snow.” The wiki cites a stanza where this name is used as a kenning for a sword. Imunlaukr tried to save Sal Vind from the catastrophic ice and snow caused by the Skyfrost Nail hitting an Irminsul tree, but he failed. Sal Vind had a princess who was also the daughter of the priestess of Vindagnyr, and was “born beneath this white tree” (Frostbearer). She is described as being “bright as the moonlight,” and had the gift of prophecy, painting her visions as frescos on the walls of the city - you can see them in the room where you find the Starsilver sword.  

Guizhong and Zhongli

According to the Stone Tablet Compilations: Vol. I, Rex Lapis descended to Liyue. This isn’t the same descending as Descenders, and it has been argued that a better translation would be ‘demoted,’ but this has similarities to the way Deshret and Remus are described as founding their kingdoms. Rex Lapis is also called Deus Auri, the Golden God, and in the Dialogue of the Desert Sages description, it says that “transformation into gold and Mora is the sole province of Deus Auri.” Guizhong’s moon connection is on the weaker end, but she is strongly associated with glaze lilies, a flower that only blooms at night, like the Nilotpala, or Lunar, lotuses. She gave Zhongli a stone dumbbell, the Memory of Dust, which contains her “wisdom.” Zhongli is still unable to unlock it, and before Guizhong’s death, she told him to forget about its contents.  On a more superficial note, Zhongli and Guizhong have a color scheme that will also be part of the pattern discussed here- black and gold and blue and white.

Remus and Sybilla

Sybilla was the former “envoy that protected the silver tree,” but she had lost her “mind and form.” However, she still retained her gift of prophecy, and told Remus about his destiny to found Remuria (and its inevitable downfall). Sybila’s loss of her physical form and mind is reminiscent of the Aranara stories about how Seelies were cursed to lose their body and intelligence if they fell in love with a human.

After making an arrangement with Remus, the silver tree that Sybilla was protecting transformed into a golden ship, which according to The History of the Decline and Fall of Remuria , was called Fortuna, and with it, Remus “descended” onto Meropis.  Together with Sybilla, Remus created Phobos, the Great/Golden Symphony. Phobos is the name of one of the moons of Mars, the red planet. Combined with the Primordial Sea-derived ichor, it would allow his people to shed their physical forms and transcend their prophesied doom. Sybilla even sacrificed her life to make the symphony possible, but she wasn’t completely dead in the end, and her lack of “persona” led to the Symphony going awry. 

And MOST IMPORTANTLY, the Golden Troupe of Remuria used a magical technique Rene called the “seal of chymical marriage,” and which I think was used to seal the Primordial Sea. Rene would later attempt to reverse its power to Evangelion-ify the people of Fontaine.

We don’t know what Remus or Sybilla actually looked like, but the color scheme of both the Remuria based artifact sets are white/blue/gold and black/blue/gold. 

Decarabian and Amos

Decarabian was the god-king and founder of Mondstadt approximately 2600 years ago. He created a wind barrier to protect his people from the storms outside (and from Andrius), and in an effort to keep his people safe, micromanaged their lives, even banning certain kinds of music that could incite rebellion (Song of Broken Pines). Interestingly, his goal to protect his people is described as a ‘dream’ multiple times in item descriptions.  The Scattered Piece of Decarabian's Dream: He tried so hard to make his dream come true, and so the fragments of that dream are still mighty.

Fragment of Decarabian’s Epic: If it were not for the song of freedom that shattered the city in an instant, Decarabian's dream would have gone on forever.  I wonder if this is meant to be another incidence of the literal power of music, like Remus’s symphony, or the Source Song.  |Decarabian had a human lover named Amos, although from her perspective, he did not understand her or her mortal love, or even the (lack of) devotion of his people. This reminds me of Scylla telling Remus that as a Usurper, he is cursed to love humanity. But maybe not understand them, which would be both of these god-kings’ downfalls.  Though Amos was human, she also seems to have had prophetic dreams: "I dreamt of ocean waves and sand, of lush forests and land." "I dreamt of boars playing in berry bushes, of a towering spire." These words she spoke to the God King in a soft tone, but they were left unheard. (Amos’ Bow) Eventually, she would join the rebellion against him, and attempt to assassinate him. Amos also fits into the blue and white color scheme, and has a feather ornament similar to Lumine in her hair: 

And we come to the piece de resistance. The ultimate example. One of the weirdest things in genshin lore (in a good way). I present:

Whatever TF is Going on With Deshret and the Goddess of Flowers

In The Lay of Al-Ahmar, Deshret is described as a “son of the sky,” with abilities that earned him the reverence of the tribes in the desert. One of his titles, Al-Ahmar, is Arabic for “the red one.” Deshret dreamed of creating a utopia for humans, and the final manifestation of that dream was the (failed) Golden Slumber, where like Remus, he attempted to separate his mind from his body. God-kings and their hiveminds…. Deshret received assistance in the form of access to forbidden knowledge from the Goddess of Flowers, also known as Nabu Malikata. The title Nabu refers to the Babylonian god of wisdom, who is associated with the planet Mercury in Babylonian astronomy. The title ‘Nabu’ has the same linguistic root as the Arabic ‘nabiyy’ (نبي) and Hebrew ‘navi’ (נביא), meaning prophet.  According to Arama, the Goddess of Flowers was a survivor of the Seelie race. After her exile, she wandered the desert, where her blood turned into streams of water that allowed gardens of water lilies to grow, which in turn birthed the Jinn. Additionally, wherever she stepped, purple flowers called Padisarahs, described as “bearing semblance to the moon,” bloomed (Flower of Paradise Lost). Together with Deshret, she founded Ay-Khanoum, meaning "[City of the] Moon Maiden.”  In addition to being known as “the red one,” Deshret is also known as the “Lord of Sand.” Combined with the Goddess of Flowers association with both water and mercury, I consider their respective titles to be a reference to Ibn Umayl’s Silvery Water and Starry Earth, a 10th century alchemical text. The ‘silvery water’ refers to mercury, or quicksilver, and the ‘starry earth’ is sulfur. This text is also referenced in the refinement materials for Dialogue of the Desert Sages, where this time the mercury-looking material is called “exalted earth.” The mercury-sulfur theory of metals was popular in medieval Islamic alchemy, and it refers to the idea that all metals are formed in the earth out of a combination of these two elements.   Like Sybilla, it’s implied the Goddess of Flowers sacrificed her life to help Deshret fulfill his goals.  Secret Keeper’s Magic Bottle: "I shall fashion you a bridge to allow you to slake your deepest wants. But you must fear not the crystalline sapphire nail..." "I will deliver you unto higher knowledge. But as I have warned, you are fated to lose much in this exchange..." "Nevertheless, hide my lesson in your heart. Remember the punishment that once was inflicted on the fallen envoys of heaven." "Know this: if there is to be hope in this world, it will be found kindling within mortals most ordinary." Wreathed in darkness, she guided her dearest friend toward the path to understanding all there was to know about the skies and the abyss. Using her body as a conduit and offering the oasis in trade, she let the dazzling radiance consume her to see his deepest desires be made manifest… It’s not clear exactly when she died, as other sources of in-game info attribute her death to the “malice of the burning sun and yellow sand,” as well as imply her death was part of a larger plan she had (Oasis Garden weapon mats). That being said, the Flower of Paradise Lost description states that after she performed this exchange, she was never seen again. As for the color scheme mentioned earlier, we don’t know what Deshret or the Goddess of Flowers looked like. Our only hints as to their human forms are the Gilded Dreams TCG card/artifact design, and a throwaway line in the Sumeru Archon Quest where Nilou says her stage costume is inspired by legends about how the Goddess of Flowers dressed.

As of 4.7, we also have the Flower of Paradise Lost TCG card, which may depicted the Goddess of Flowers. The color scheme is purple and white, but the woman in the art is wearing a dress that looks similar to Guizhongs (delulu). The crown on this card has little wings, which are reminiscent of the winged helmet Mercury is sometimes depicted as wearing. 

The defining feature of the chemical marriage is that the metaphorical union produces something greater than the sum of its parts. Sybilla and the Goddess of Flower’s sacrifices allowed the fulfillment of plans that were intended to create new worlds, something I would consider greater than the combination of god and Seelie minds. Another common thread in these transactions is wisdom, or lack thereof, with both Goddess of Flowers and Guizhong offering wisdom, and Sybilla saying that she no longer has hers - although that didn’t stop her from becoming part of Phobos. This theme of wisdom also has alchemical significance, since the philosopher’s stone is the lapis philosophorum; the 'stone of wisdom'. I’ve written a theory about the philosopher’s stone and Descenders and alchemy, including the chemical wedding motif, in the Narzissekreuz Ordo questions: you can check it out here. Two points that I want to carry over to this theory is that a) there is evidence to suggest that the philosopher’s stone and a Descender are the same in Teyvat and b) the ability to successfully change Fortuna (fate) is directly linked with Descender status.  I’m not saying that Deshret and Remus were trying to become Descenders, but there are clear thematic parallels with their goals, and Rene’s goals. Additionally, these four examples are not the only time a union resulted in world changing consequences. Records of Jueyun recounts the story of the traveler from afar and the seelie: At a far-flung moment in the distant past, the ancestor of the seelie met a traveler from afar, with whom they swore an oath of union witnessed by the three sisters of the Lunar Palace. Just thirty days later, a sudden disaster struck. The seelie and their lover fled into exile as the world collapsed around them, fleeing until the terrible calamity caught up with and seized them. Their cruel punishment was to be separated from each other for eternity and to have their memories wiped without a trace. The book goes on to directly connect this union with the curse of the Seelies that Arama mentions: The graceful but heartbroken seelie and the sisters grew more sullen and withdrawn with each passing day, to the point where their wondrous forms withered away, leaving fragments of their former selves scattered in the mountains and ruins, where they turned into tiny little life forms. They had forgotten so much, lost so much, and been stripped of their voices and wisdom, yet they continued to sing the same songs of grief. Because of this, still harboring a shred of the deep love they once had for their long-lost lover, they will act as guides to travelers who stop in the mountain mist, seeking to retrace their memories of an ancient story in long-abandoned ruins, disused makeup cabinets, and now-undecipherable poetry. Moonlight Bamboo forest has another version of the story, where the three moon sisters loved the “stars of daybreak,” and after some kind of cataclysmic event, only one (dead) moon remained in the sky. Mitternacht’s Waltz also described a sword shattering one of the moons: Two of the three bright moons that caused the perfumed sea of the primordial universe to shine and stirred up the beasts of the Arianrhod Realm were shredded by a sword that tore the horizon asunder, left in smithereens too small even for the mystical sight of the Prinzessin. Ever since the Narzissenkreuz quests, I am very suspicious of all swords mentioned in lore.  If we put all these themes and narratives together, another possible metaphorical union emerges:

Since the dawn of Genshin lore, there have been various theories regarding the duality in the designs of the twins, with some also suggesting that they are two separate halves of one being. However, I’d like to propose the opposite: if the twins follow the path of their fellow black/gold and blue/white predecessors, then it seems likely a fusion that is also a sacrifice is in the future for our protagonist.  There are other similarities between the twins and the god-king/seelie pairs. The twins have sun and moon symbolism on their clothes, constellations, and swords: Aether’s has a star (sun) shaped hilt  and Lumine’s a moon. The Traveler is frequently described as being ‘golden’ (ex. Golden Nara), and Liloupar says that they remind her of Deshret.   The Traveler is already a Descender, but they definitely don’t seem to have the strength or knowledge to exercise their world-equivalent Will yet - and maybe their sibling who has been spending time in the Abyss and has learned the “truth of this world” can help. In that case, the knowledge of the Abyss-aligned twin would fulfill the role of the Seelie knowledge in this pair, helping the Traveler complete their power-up. But what about Paimon, the emergency food? She's the dove, representing the spirit and- [is dragged offstage]. 

P.S. I didn’t know where to fit this in, but I think Before Sun and Moon is also referring to a chemical wedding. Sun -> sulfur and gold, Moon -> mercury and silver. The title could be an incomplete phrase, and actually be something like “Before Sun and Moon joined.”

[pakhnokh]

Wei Wuxian not knowing about the Lan Forehead Ribbon in "House of Gentians"

What LWJ says in this part is the HoG-verse assumption regarding WWX not knowing the meaning of the forehead ribbon. The idea/opinion is mine, it's how I see it based on my reading, so it might not be true! But this is the setting for HoG nonetheless.

Please take into consideration that this is me explaining the technical behind the scenes of my thought process to make these pages. I base my work on the novel and what is written there only. This is not me trying to explain the novel, but only what I, as a creator of an AU, thought that I can use for it to work.

So please, read till the end and if you have your own insights to share, do it!

So what is the explanation for Wei Wuxian not knowing the meaning of the ribbon and finding it out in canon? We have 2 versions.

Novel version (also Manhua and audio drama): WWX doesn’t know the meaning of the forehead ribbon, and the cause is unknown. He learns about it from the Lan juniors in his second life.

Donghua version: The source of information about the ribbon is the Lan rule book, and WWX copied that part wrong. Only in his second life, when he flipped through LWJ’s notes, he found the mistake and the correct meaning written by LWJ.

I believe donghua had its own reasons to bend the plot this way (especially since censorship laws would forbid presenting the meaning of the ribbon so straightforwardly fearing the possibility of hinting on wangxian relationship, so showing it as one second shot of a notebook with tons of text was a good choice on their part to both deal with the censorship and still maintain the main idea).

HoG-verse follows the novel, therefore it does not assume that WWX knew, or could know the meaning of the ribbon from the Lan rules. We don’t even know if it’s IN the Lan rules. According to the novel, WWX had to copy about four fifths of the entire Lan rule book, see here:

And we do know that WWX remembered quite a lot of the rules, as he says to Jin Ling in the temple:

(In fact WWX is shown as someone with good memory, especially of things he read. He excels in his class in CR showing that he knows a lot of stuff compared to his classmates, he remembered phrases he read once from Wen Mao’s book,and he remembers the Lan rules he copied many times).

I also don’t think he has “selective memory” cause the only times WWX was shown as forgetting something (as far as I recall) is the times he was feverish (Tulu Xuanwu cave, forgetting the song the LWJ played to him) and devastated/not caring about what’s going on around him (after the massacre on Nightless City, after his Shijie died, didn’t remember LWJ saving him and confessing to him).

In both cases, he eventually remembers. He remembers by himself the song LWJ played in the end of the novel, and about the events of Nightless City, when LXC tells him about what happened, he admits that his memory is clouded:

Meaning he eventually recalls the things he forgot. This is opposed to his reaction when he finds out about the Lan ribbon from the Lan juniors. It’s really something he hears for the first time. If WWX really copied this from the rule book and forgot, he should’ve remembered it at this point, but he’s too surprised, excited and embarrassed.

PLUS, if WWX had copied the meaning of the forehead ribbon from the Lan rule book, I don’t think he would forget it. He always thought the Lans to be strict, boring and uptight, so such a “juicy” piece of information would by no means go unnoticed by him. He’d use this info to tease the hell out of young LWJ hahaha…notice how he is surprised that the Lans could have a romantic side:

ANYWAYS this is just to show that the donghua version isn’t exactly possible in novel-verse.

In fact, in the novel, WWX does know only one meaning of the forehead ribbon, or maybe its purpose:

Maybe THIS was what he read in the Lan Rule book, but it’s still not as in the donghua, where he eventually came to know that the ribbon is supposed to be given to one’s fated other. If this knowledge about the ribbon being a tool for self-regulation was what he learned from the Lan book, then he is still left in the dark because he suspects there is another meaning to the ribbon and he just doesn’t know it:

According to these parts, it doesn’t seem that WWX knew and forgot, but that he really didn’t know the whole story behind the ribbon. Again, his reaction is very strong:

Again, this is different from him realizing that his memory was clouded after the events of Nightless City. This is REALLY something he NEVER knew. Anyways back to the conversation with the juniors, where WWX finds the truth, LSZ tells that:

Apparently this meaning of the ribbon is something that was passed down the generations. We don’t know if it was passed down by script or orally, or both, but it is something that has turned into a custom for the Lans.

And since it is a major custom in such a major sect such as theirs, I believe that it was known among other sects too.

There’s the opinion that this meaning of the forehead ribbon was known to Lans only, but I personally don’t think so, because the Lans themselves had no problem of telling about it to outsiders.

Recall the text I added before where JL says to WWX that he learned its meaning:

And also, LSZ and LJY have no problem revealing it to WWX, who they still think is Mo Xuanyu at this point.

Also, in his first life, back on Phoenix Mountain, it seems that LXC was willing to tell WWX the meaning:

(ok this is personally my head canon but I think that LWJ stopped LXC from revealing the meaning of the ribbon because he kinda lowkey wanted WWX to continue touching/asking to touch it, and was afraid that by learning what the ribbon means, WWX would feel ashamed and stop. I mean, if I was LWJ and my crush would constantly touch or ask to touch the object that is supposed to be given to my fated other I’D DEVELOP HOPES AND THINK WHAT IF THIS IS FATE??? And eventually I’d want it to become true. :’) )

Anyways back to the matter at hand, the Lans seem to have no problem telling others what’s the meaning of the ribbon is. I also don’t think that taking one’s ribbon off has an immediate sexual association. IT CAN HAVE, AND IT IS, but it’s not the main idea of it, in my opinion. It’s an object that’s supposed to be given only to the other’s beloved no matter in which situation. Meaning, that the moment they are together, or wed, the moment they know they love each other, then it gives the fated person the validity to touch the ribbon. If it had a solely sexual association then I guess this scene wouldn’t happen:

LWJ enters a wine shop without his forehead ribbon, and WWX plays with it. You can say that this is them acting SUPERRRR shamelessly, but I really believe there’s nothing so scandalizing about it. LWJ feels comfortable giving him the ribbon because they are finally together. WWX accepted his feelings, and therefore, LWJ can take it off and give it to him, and (correct me if I’m wrong) nowhere is it mentioned that it’s something that’s supposed to be done only at the couple’s private chambers.

(That’s also why I felt confident enough to have LWJ remove his ribbon and tie it on WWX in front of everyone at the inn, even though it DID have a strong meaning of letting go of self regulation, but in my eyes this was possible also because WWX is his beloved one, even though his feelings aren’t returned yet.)

ANYWAYS it seems that the Lans have no problem telling about the meaning to outsiders, because (in my eyes) there’s really nothing TOO sensitive about the fact that the meaning of the ribbon is that you can give it only to your loved one. I don’t think it’s THAT grave to be kept a secret from the world. On the contrary, in a world such as theirs, which is built on honor and respect to customs and traditions, I guess it’s important for others to know about such a custom, if only so that they’d know not to touch the ribbon accidentally or on purpose, to avoid offending the Lan member. (I don’t know if it’s true but in my eyes the Lans make this ceremony of giving their ribbon to their loved one on their wedding hehehe so yeah, I do imagine that if outsiders attended a Lan wedding, they’d see this custom happening).

And as I believe happened in all periods of our real world, that there were books and records written about history, cultures and traditions of peoples, the same exists in MDZS verse. I believe that there would exist books and records about the history and customs of different sects, and I think that it's not impossible that the meaning of the Lan forehead ribbon is also mentioned briefly somewhere in a book about the Lan Clan/Sect, or elsewhere.

And this finally brings me to this page of HoG that LWJ asks Wei Wuxian this question. WWX wants to know the meaning of the ribbon for the first time, after so many times of touching or wanting to touch it.

I think that younger LWJ didn’t even KNOW that WWX doesn’t know the meaning of the ribbon. Hell, in his eyes it could have been just another malicious prank done by this shameless boy who has no respect. Maybe only later did LWJ realize that WWX really didn’t know the meaning.

Hearing WWX’s question finally being asked, LWJ isn’t ready to answer him yet. He gave him the ribbon, yes, but it was something he did as a statement to his Shishu and others. As I mentioned before, he didn’t give WWX his ribbon during their wedding, nor after it. Because he knows that WWX doesn’t return his feelings and that this marriage isn’t really out of love.

That’s why he isn’t willing to answer his question right away. Instead, he just teases WWX by answering with a question of his own. And since WWX brought their past, with how he touched his ribbon and was rejected, LWJ also brings his perspective on the past - like, how could you do all that, and not even know what’s the meaning of what you do?

LWJ was a student with WWX in cloud recesses and heard how he answered all questions correctly and fast. WWX was outstanding compared to his classmates, showing that he did some reading. LOL as I was making this there was this picture of WWX’s room running on twitter, and I really loved that private library/study corner he had there with tons of books.

It was clear that WWX did read about the cultivation world, including random sects’ history, traditions etc. This is where I’m sure that such a book would exist about the Lan Sect too.

And LWJ asks him if he didn’t read anything about the Lans as he was reading about all other sects. What’s the answer to that? In HoG-verse, I guess WWX missed this information somehow. He really didn’t know the meaning of the ribbon from any source, and he still doesn’t know.

BUT HE’S GONNA FIND OUT I PROMISE HEHEHE SO….there you have it! This is HoG’s version of dealing with the forehead ribbon matter, where WWX stayed alive and dared raise the question before HGJ himself.

ANOTHER IMPORTANT NOTE

I need to clarify one more thing, guys. This isn't me stating an idea about the novel, this is me sharing my thought process in order to make my AU work. Let me explain:

Even if the info about the Lan ribbon is written in the rule book, I couldn't be sure about that because it isn't specified in a clear manner. The only certain source for that is the donghua, which, as I'm sure you can understand, I can't use since it made many changes to the original story. I couldn't be sure if the info about the ribbon in the Lan rule book is a canon possibility or a donghua way of dealing with the plot. So, I DO NOT OPPOSE the idea that the info is in the Lan rule book! But I just needed clear evidence to work with.

LWJ was not about to answer WWX's question in that instant. He wanted to ask him back - just how come he didn't know?

So imagine me having to think about the text (and believe me I put a lot of thinking hahaha), I couldn't make LWJ say "Didn't you copy it in the rules? How could you miss it?" because again, I couldn't be 100% sure it WAS in fact canon that it's written in the rules.

So I made the decision to make him require about WWX's studious character which does 2 things:

based on my assumption that some knowledge about the Lan ribbon was available to the public because it seems to me that the Lans themselves are surprised that WWX doesn't know. imagine that this is like others know not to offer alcohol to the Lans so to not offend them. I'm sure that some basic knowledge about the ribbon was available to the public too, again, from courtesy reasons.

LWJ asking WWX this is my way of making it show that his character DID notice and DOES acknowledge WWX's intelligence. their studying in Gusu days was a chaos of LWJ avoiding WWX or giving him the cold shoulder. >This< LWJ however takes that unfortunate past experience and by this slight sarcastic reply shows WWX that he in fact noticed and appreciated WWX's smart and studious character.

So once again I stress out the fact that this is me creating this idea (which can be untrue!) out of technical reasons to make not only the AU in general work, but also THIS SPECIFIC moment of LWJ answering WWX without telling him the meaning.

[awesome-opossum-after-hours]

AT au where instead of Betty, it's actually FINN who sacrifices himself and makes the wish with the crown.

I've seen some au's about Simon doing this, but we're forgetting the secret third option I guess?

now obviously, the loss of Finn will have an impact on most, if not all of the citizens of Ooo. but I'd like to think that Finn's intention is to make this wish, not just for the safety of one person, but to keep all of Ooo safe and free from any more chaos. I've seen some shows where the hero "dies" on the end (though in this case, there'd be the idea that he IS still conscious and able to watch over everyone), and honestly it can be a great ending if played right.

here's how it would go down: Finn, Simon, and Betty are being digested by Golb. they're at the point where Betty and Simon have both returned to their sane, pre-Mushroom War selves and are having their reunion. Finn notices that the crown has reset, and also taking notice that he's not being "digested" because he hasn't changed all that much. he realizes that he has the chance to make a wish, make a true difference in Ooo and ensure the peace and safety of all his friends, something that he's clearly wanted through the whole series. he sees how happy Betty and Simon are now that they're reunited, and begins to put on the crown. when the tunnel opens up, he tells Betty and Simon to leave. he gives them some brief things to tell his friends and family on his behalf. he also tells them to finally get married, and to go on with their lives together. (I'd like to think he also, in Finn fashion, jokingly tells them to name their first kid after him :) )

after some coaxing, and tears, they finally give in and leave Golb. Finn makes his wish, which is "I wish for the power to keep Ooo safe", and merges with Golb in the same style Betry did (idk what he'd be called- maybe "Golbfinn"? a silly name kinda like goldfish lol). Jake would be torn, but I feel like he would also be a bit proud of Finn after a bit of grieving. as Finn said in the episode before (in canon), he used to be all about violence. and now, he's keeping the peace.

Gunther still gets the crown in this universe bc that's just funny

in the little Come Along With Me montage, we'd see the other characters rebuilding the tree house, along with the rest of Ooo that had gotten destroyed. I think they would start to worship Finn actually, he would become the hero that everyone would tell stories about, the stuff of legends. we'd also get to see the Petrigrof wedding! it also flashes forward to about a year or so later, we see that they do, in fact have a kid. a little girl named Fionna, who grows into her namesake and becomes hero- material herself.

:)

[skymagpie]

I recently read "The Last Guardian" and I am absolutely delighted by it, I feel like when it comes to Khadgar content this is a huge "must read" because the whole book is just so good-natured despite the fact that this sets off a never-ending series of deeply traumatizing events for Khadgar.

Here's some things that canonically happen in this book and that I just found so endearing or fun:

The Kirin Tor literally sends Khadgar off to Medivh because Khadgar kept wandering the halls of the Violet Citadel at night and being so nosy that he caught his professors on drinking binges, sleeping with students or trying to summon demons. Medivh knows that they sent him here hoping he dies because he knows too much.

Khadgar rambling and babbling and being delightfully awkward

Khadgar forgets how to talk when he meets Medivh and makes some strange sound to which Medivh asks Moroes if "the lad is ill."

Medivh having scheduled times for breakfast, lunch and dinner and keeping to them. Also he and Khadgar are just eating porridge with sausages for breakfast every day when he is around.

Khadgar having his inscription set with him that he carries all neatly packaged and tidied up, even though he is this scruffy dirty looking teen boy.

Lothar and Medivh both have this dad relationship with Khadgar, but Lothar is like the cool supportive dad who would take you to a soccer game and would support you at pride with the wrong flag.

During this particularly deep conversation about time and space, Medivh encourages Khadgar to have a bit of wine, Khadgar gets a little tipsy and then Medivh encourages Khadgar to live a little and try to levitate e mug with his magic even though he has been drinking - naturally it ends with Khadgar cleaning the floor afterwards.

When Medivh falls into a coma after their demon encounter at Stormwind, he entrusts Khadgar with handling his mail and Khadgar spends most of his free time sitting next to Medivh's bed and reading him the mail - especially the funny parts.

In the same situation when Medivh wakes up, he sees the startled Khadgar on the floor (after a vision of Sargeras) and softly asks him why he didn't ask Moroes to set up a bed for him there if he wanted to stay in his room.

Khadgar goes very quickly from "Guardian! There is an ORC in the tower!!!" to "Garona is my friend :)"

Khadgar and Garona spend a lot of time rebuilding the library after Garon thrashes the place in order to save Khadgar's life. They make a makeshift woodwork station in the stables outside Karazhan.

Khadgar has like a lowkey puppy crush on Garona and this is actually innocently cute.

Khadgar and Garona on the road when they flee from Medivh is such a nice sequence because they protect each other (from the orcs and humans who would hurt the other one) and also about the fact that they feel betrayed by Medivh. Also Khadgar just wants her to like and trust him 😭

Lothar gets Garona to wear the Stormwind armor by telling her that it matches her eyes and that Khadgar will wear it - and then Khadgar also tells her it matches her eyes and she looks good in it. Lothar using elementary school level tactics to get them to wear the Stormwind armor is so funny.

I just feel like this book was really fun and the pacing of the story was great between building up Medivh as an antagonist who genuinely cared for Khadgar, solving the murder-mystery around him and had the right amount of just daily domestic stuff between Khadgar and him and Khadgar and Garona. Not to mention the excellent parallels between Medivh losing his youth and waking up as an old man and Khadgar losing his youth while also going through what is a very sad coming of age story for him.

[connan-l]

I sometimes see people wondering when Reiko died exactly and how old her daughter was at the time of her death, but we do, in fact, already have a little bit of an answer to this in canon.

Now this is something that is only implied, but in the very first chapter of the manga, during the conversation Natsume has with Nyanko-sensei the first time he reveals his true form and right before our first Reiko flashback, we have this line (that was cut off from the anime):

[NATSUME: She [Reiko] may not have been able to relate well to others... Not many people even remember her, since she died so young. Not even her own daughter...]

[NATSUME: 確かに祖母は人とうまくつきあえなかったらしい 彼女を憶えている 「人」はほとんでいないんだ 娘だった母でさえ記憶にないくらい若くして亡くなっていて・・・・・・]

This is the official English translation, while the fan translation has this:

"There aren't that many people who remember her. She died so young that even my mom, her daughter, probably didn't remember her..."

This leaves some more uncertainty in the phrasing, but the meaning is basically the same. The original Japanese, "母でさえ記憶にないくらい若くして亡くなっていて" is a bit closer to the fan translation in a literal sense, except in Japanese there is no "probably"; Natsume sounds pretty certain his mother didn't remember Reiko.

So, if "not even her own daughter" remembered Reiko, it's fair to assume that she must have died when Takashi's mom was still a child, and a really young one at that.

(I suppose you could maybe make an argument that Reiko could have still died when the daughter was older, but then something happened that made her forget? But that doesn't seem likely to me.)

Now, this was the very first chapter written 20 years ago, back when NatsuYuu still wasn't supposed to become a long series with much of an overarching narrative, so maybe it's something that could change later. Midorikawa has definitely retconned some details in her story before. But for now that's still one of the only crumb of information we have about this.

Which, if this is correct, then it's very sad because that means Reiko only lived with her daughter for a handful of years at most and never even got to see her grow up. And given we know the grandfather wasn't around and Reiko was a single mom, then the daughter probably spent most of her childhood without her parents, and barely knew anything about either of them (or, well, nothing at all in the father's case).

Which also begs the question as to who raised Reiko's daughter after her death then. We knows Reiko had no family, and no one know anything about the grandfather, so there was no relative, even distant ones, to look after her like with Takashi.

Did she just end up in the foster system/an orphanage, or did someone specific took care of her? If so, does that mean there was a person close enough to Reiko that would have taken care of her child like this? Did the daughter just carry the Book of Friends with herself all this time? Did she knows what the Book of Friends even was, or anything about her mother's abilities? During the eastern forest arc, Takashi says that his mother didn't have any spiritual powers, but then again he never met her or know anything about her at all, so who knows how much that can be true.

Regardless, there's something particularly tragic about the idea that each generation of the Natsumes grew up as isolated orphans who barely knew anything about their family.

[grollow]

What are your opinions on the pale king?

Oh boy. Uhm. This feels like a massively loaded question considering that I know that Pale King-related discourse is very common in this fandom but I'm feeling brave today so let's go. Prepare for a long reply, anon, hope you're ready for Ashe to actually write their headcanons on main.

Well first off, I think the fandom does the character a grievous injustice the majority of the time, which is exceedingly frustrating considering that he’s one of the few characters in the game to have any nuance at all. The majority of the fandom either goes out of their way to demonize him (by far the most common sentiment, which is infuriating), or they make him way too sympathetic and/or try to excuse/write off/defend/redeem him for the horrible things that he’s done in the events of the game. Both of these stances ignore that the character is layered like an onion and deserves to be treated as such.

I’m gonna address the demonizing thing first, because it’s more common in fanfiction which is where the majority of my followers found me, and is also where the mass of my experience can be found. Demonizing PK as “ruthless, evil baby killer” ignores the fact that he was put into a no-win situation as king of a kingdom that was entirely reliant upon him (whether by his choice or not is unclear, canon makes it obvious people are inclined to follow wyrms but we do not know for sure if this is something he wanted or just incidental). His own dialogue and actions show us that everything he did, he did with a heavy heart. He did not do these things to be cruel, he did not do these things thoughtlessly, and he certainly did not do these things and forget about them.

PK in essence was presented with next to no options to defeat an enemy that was willing to stop at nothing to get what she wanted; she was willing to kill countless people, with no thought for what all she harmed and damaged along the way. He was king and responsible for those people’s lives. He had to do something.

We don’t know what he knew going into the vessel plan. Based on Monomon’s studies, and the Pale King’s own, we can assume that he probably tried other options. We have wingmoulds and kingsmoulds to show us that he absolutely was experimenting with void before he reached the conclusion of sacrificing his own children. He had to have come to the conclusion that this was the only option that he had. Based on the seal on the Abyss, it’s one that he regretted, found disgusting, and if you take his death in White Palace to be from guilt (which I do), it’s one that he never forgave himself for. “No cost too great.”

Vessels by design are supposed to be empty. I do not think this design choice was to be cruel. I think he tried to design them not to feel not only to protect them from Radi but also to protect them from experiencing what he was asking of them. And I truly, 100% believe that by the end, he realized he’d failed. That Hollow was not empty. He just had no other option, his grand be-all end-all plan was relying on their success.

(Note: My headcanon is that World Sense is PK’s apology to Hollow, in his own way. I also headcanon that PK foresaw Hallownest being saved in one of / all of the endings, and all of them involved Hollow having to be sacrificed. I believe that he died of guilt for doing what he thought he had to.)

So with all of this in mind, though: How can you demonize him for a choice that he made, that was a no-win situation? Is it a wrong choice? Probably. Were there better options? We’ll never know. What we do know is it is not one he made lightly. He knew his acts were monstrous. He did not go into these decisions thinking himself a hero. He locked himself away afterwards and it ate away at him slowly. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. He lost everything in an attempt to save his kingdom from dying to the Radiance. Whether you like him or not, you have to acknowledge the fact that he did think that his plan would save his people. That his end goal was a good one.

(And I will not get into arguments about colonizing / conquering / etc. I do not think this is usually a source of discourse, but when it does come up, it’s usually in defense of the Radiance, who is as guilty as he is of the same damn shit. @ruthlesslistener wrote a post on that subject that I’m sure I’ve reblogged. There’s no point in me repeating it.)

So with that in mind, you might be asking yourself, “So are you not a PK apologist?” And the answer is no. He’s done fucking horrible shit and I am not sorry at all for him. I do not pity him. I do not think he deserves forgiveness. I do not think he deserves to be redeemed. There’s a big difference between understanding the reason a character does something and agreeing with it. Most of the time, when people try to redeem him, it is either erasing the whole baby pit thing (either by time travel or just simply saying it Never Happened), or altering Hollow’s perception of that act (as if they are the only one who was hurt by that act). In the case of the former, you are no longer writing the Pale King. You are writing a wyrm shaped guy. The choices he made exist for a reason. Wiping them out, without good cause, drastically alters his character. I understand people think he has a cool design/character motif, he does. But that’s not even the tip of the iceberg of what makes him an interesting character.

He isn’t a villain.

He isn’t a hero.

And he would not want you to redeem him. He sure as fuck didn’t try to redeem himself.

Let him be morally gray. That’s what makes him a fun character to write and an excellent plot device to include. Let him be complicated. He deserves at least that much.

[vulnonapixes-dc-corner]

I know that Genderbending isn't a real thing anymore, but I thought it would be fun!

Tim is my favorite batbro, so I started with him.

I chose the name Dorothy since it has the same ending as Timothy and a similar meaning. Other favorites were Tiffany and Theodora.

(Timothy: Gods Honor

Dorothy: God's Gift

Tiffany: Manifestation of God

Theodora: God's Gift)

As for her story/Timeline, I decided to throw a few things from Canon and Fanon together.

Her first memory was of her going to the circus when she was 4. Her parents had just come home from a business trip and wanted to spend some quality time with her. There she met Fanny (Female Dick) and saw the incident that killed Fanny's Parents.

She spent a few years in therapy after that.

Her hyper fixation with Batman and Robin when she was 6 after one of her live-in Nanny told her about them saving her from a robbery.

She just wanted to thank them.

At 9 years old she realized that Batman and Robin were her neighbors Bruce Wayne and Franziska Grayson.

This realization also started her career as a Baby stalker.

(The only reason why she was able to sneak out every night was because she played the role of the good and gentle rule-following Daughter to her Caretakers.)

She was 13 when she blackmailed Bruce into taking her as Robin after Jennifer (female Jason) died and Fanny wouldn't come back to Gotham.

Their relationship was rocky and cold in the beginning till Live decided to fuck her over.

At age 14 she had been captured and tortured by the Joker for a few weeks, resulting in her becoming Joker jr for months.

She only snapped out of it after her mother died and her dad went into a coma.

Despite popular belief and the fact that they spent most of their time aboard, she was close to them.

Daily phone calls and the writing of letters were their way of communication.

The Titans Tower incident happened when she was 15. (Her time as Titan started with her time as Robin)

At age 16 Lilith (female Damian) appeared and Bruce died. She became Red Robin and went on a wild goose chase to bring him back.

She laid down the mantle of the red robin and became crow after accepting Lilith as her family member/as robin.

Now to her relationship with the batfam:

Alfred: doting grandad vs granddaughter who has no sense of time and keeps on forgetting to visit.

Bruce: she still sees him as her boss, whilst he is the most parental girl dad to her.

Fanny: still looks up to her despite the feeling of hurt she still feels about her actions. Fanny just loves her little sister a lot but doesn't know how to apologize.

Barbara; she was her first celebrity crush and still adores her. Barbara enjoys spending time with her and they bonded over the whole "Joker ruined my life" thing.

Jennifer: they are surprisingly good. Dorothy used to look up at her and saw her as "her Robin". Jennifer apologized and all but begged for forgiveness after she broke out of the Pit madness.

Stephanie: Exes turned best friends. Their dating was just a try to name the close relationship that they had.

Cass: they are platonic soulmates. Twins from different parents.

Dara (female Duke): She sees her as the little sister that she always wanted. Dara wants to study her /jk. They often talk about comics and video games.

Lilith: She pittys her after having to deal with the league herself and tries to help her. Lilith hates that but has some respect for her after she brought her father home.

[bonefall]

Now this had me thinking... Would Willowpelt die in the same way as canon (although to another creature im assuming since bb!badgers aren't as dangerous as they are in canon)? If she's getting kept around longer, maybe Cricketclaw is the one who sacrifices herself instead? That sounds like a fitting way for her to go, considering she couldn't protect her own siblings?

I feel like I should add a TM to anything that I'm working on in my drafts that has significant progress and is blog-plot-relevant, that will explain something exactly like this LMAO

Forgive me I am, at heart, a bear that eats half a salmon and then forgets I had a fish at all

Willowpelt's brush with death is staying, and is actually a bit plot relevant in Firestar's Quietus! I have a very specific scene which is actually totally written out-- actually fuck it, I'll just post it here

Context and narrative purpose of this scene:

Firestar is informed of a boar on the territory, and gathers a little scouting patrol to try and figure out what sort of hog it is.

VERY IMPORTANT SEGWAY. Because of how Willowpelt gets bitten here and Firestar loses a life saving Sorrelpaw, they all end up in the Cleric's den where Ferncloud is telling a story both to practice her new job as upcoming Educator and to comfort everyone.

The fact Willowpelt is not dead is how I get Littlecloud away from Runningnose and Firestar

Runningnose has a hunch, in this moment, that goody two-shoes little Firestar might be the perfect person to help Brokenstar, and teases the visions and revelations he's about to have

Establishes that boars are the new Big Bad Beastie of BB

Presents Sorrelpaw's epilepsy and demonstrates how it is a danger to her safety

(this is a lot of buildup but this is actually pretty short lmao)

So anyway before I let you go on to the readmore and a preview of Firestar's Quietus, no one takes Willowpelt's death here, and Willow is going to hang on for longer. I wanted to make sure I have a good amount of cats to kill off in the carnage of the White Hart's destruction.

Wherever Cricketclaw dies, it will be for a purpose. Either to show how bloody the TNP conflicts are, or in a greencough epidemic because I'm trying to make sure those aren't just "Kill a bunch of randos offscreen" disease anymore.

WILLOWPELT'S BOAR

The patrol is Sandstorm and Sorrelpaw, Willowpelt, Longtail and Sootpaw, and himself. It's just supposed to be for scouting, hence why the apprentices are coming along.

Unfortunately the hog has other plans, lunging out of a bush and going for Sootpaw

Willowpelt jumps in the way and gets bitten instead

Sorrelpaw acts quick, slashing its sensitive nose, drawing its attention and bolting as fast as she can

RIGHT as she crosses the Thunderpath, her body goes limp and she falls to the ground

She is having an absence seizure, and fallen flat on the road

The hog is hot on her heels, bowling after her, when a monster screeches to a halt out of nowhere

The hog is frozen in the headlights, Firestar bursts into action to pull Sorrelpaw out of the road

(i hear your heart beat to the beat of the drums) BUMP BUMP

The boar and Firestar have been hit by, have been struck by, an automobile

When he sees StarClan, they're about to greet him with love. But their faces turn to shock and fear, the scenery becoming sinister and trees falling down.

A fifth oak tree is crashing down towards them. Firestar stares at it, dumbstruck.

Just before it strikes him, his eyes snap open

Firestar resurrects with a burst of energy, dragging Sorrelpaw off the road and into the safety of a fern on the ShadowClan side

The humans are coming out of the car to examine the boar they struck, but Firestar doesn't have time to consider that or his vision.

Littlecloud's head pokes out of the foliage and he springs into action, checking them both for injury. Breathless, Firestar points behind him and rasps, "Willowpelt!"

Littlecloud nods and bolts across the road.

Runningnose saunters out from a different angle-- one where he would have been able to see the road. Everything that happened.

His gaze is unsettling as ever, pausing, eyeing the leader up and down.

He starts tending to Sorrelpaw, then mumbles,

"Brave of you."

"It's what any leader would have done."

"No. It's what you always do."

Firestar doesn't know how to respond to that, but he's glad Runningnose isn't staring at him anymore.

But continues, "You will learn terrible things in the days to come, Firestar, and StarClan will not answer the questions that find you. If you seek the truth, meet me by the mothermouth on the night after the next gathering."

Sorrelpaw is leaning up now, her eyes dazed and confused, as if she's trying to figure out what happened.

[saintchaser]

i think that we often do forget that the black brothers were not inherently good people; they were more or less morally grey, more or less leaning towards the good/bad side. it's hard to fully unlearn beliefs of your family (and i think that many people resonate with this statement, whether we are talking about fictional characters or real, fully-fledged people), and i think that morally grey characters are far more interesting than people who are inherently good or evil.

sirius black

many people (including myself) would say that sirius is leaning more towards the lighter end of the spectrum, given the fact that he actively tried to unlearn his family's beliefs, he ran away from home at the age of sixteen and decided to move in with people who were recognized in the wizarding society as good people, he joined the order as soon as he finished hogwarts, and, even after the unfortunate ending of the first war, he decided to join the order again and stay inside a house that was never a home for him, to ensure the safety of himself, the order, and harry, too. his last act was the attack at the ministry where he found himself, despite the fact that he was supposed to stay inside grimmauld place, and where he died.

however, we cannot deny that sirius, too, had slip-ups. one of them was the prank (to review what happened, essentially, he told snape how to get past the whomping willow, therefore revealing remus' secret to him). in this situation, sirius shows recklessness and a lack of thought towards the consequences that his actions could have towards not only himself, but severus snape and remus, too. his behavior showed a lack of altruism, and a lack of consideration for the people around him, being willing to put them in danger for whatever may have been the reason.

another one would be swm (snape's worst memory), where james is a part of the action too, but the tormenting of snape was unjustified (j&s started the fight, and snape responded) and ended badly. now, i am in no way a defender of severus snape's, but both j&s and him were acting based on either boredom (the aforementioned) and a need for revenge caused by the actions that had happened against him (the latter).

in canon, we are also shown that he does not exactly think the words he says, and the effect they have on people. (“You're less like your father than I thought.” — GoF). i think that sirius had no right to say this to harry, who was just trying to make sure that sirius would be safe. what we need to remember is that, by the time of the action of GoF took place, sirius was still on the run, and the ministry was still looking for him; it would have been dangerous for both him and harry (and whoever might have joined them) to go out of hiding and go meet up somewhere near hogwarts (hogsmeade). harry's response to sirius' request was logical, and sirius' response was reckless and not well-thought.

regulus black

we do not have enough information on regulus to fully state on which side of the spectrum he finds himself on. however, he was known to have held the same beliefs that his parents did and to be an open voldemort supporter (The Slytherin colours of emerald and silver were everywhere, draping the bed, the walls and the windows. The Black Family crest was painstakingly painted over the bed, along with its motto Toujours Pur. Beneath this was a collection of yellow newspaper cuttings (of voldemort), all stuck together to make a ragged collage.)

therefore, to some extent, we can safely assume that he held the same beliefs as him (and, implicitly, his parents). the voldemort collage might have been on the wall for either research purposes or an act of devotion (this interesting perspective has been added by @/werewolfenthusiast) we cannot be sure; however, i am inclined to think that it might have been a mixture of both.

furthermore, i think the fact that regulus only started actively betraying and going against voldemort only after voldemort's actions had direct consequences on him and the ones he loved — kreacher, and this is shown in two acts; (wording taken off the hp wiki)

After becoming a Death Eater, Regulus began to consider abandoning Lord Voldemort, partly because his master mistreated and intended to kill the Black family's loyal house-elf Kreacher whilst setting up the security measures for one of his Horcruxes.

One day, Voldemort asked Regulus for the use of his house-elf, Kreacher and Regulus eagerly accepted as he wanted to please his master. Voldemort used Kreacher to test the defences around his locket Horcrux, leaving him to die afterwards. Kreacher was able to escape using house-elf magic and told Regulus of what had happened. Regulus worked out that the locket was a Horcrux and was the reason behind Voldemort's immortality. This was the deciding factor in Regulus's defection.

therefore, regulus has been shown to feel remorse and to start to realize the lenghts lord voldemort would go through only when his family (implicitly, his house-elf) were targeted. however, by researching horcruxes and trying to destroy one of them, regulus (un)willingly helped the wizarding world towards voldemort's fall.

all in all, the black brothers are two complex characters who, to some extent, held their family's beliefs and values. whether they had actively tried to unlearn them (sirius) or their betrayal was slow and silent (regulus), and neither of them can be fit in the category of inherently good or bad people.

[poisonousroxstar]

Imagine:

Platonic Yandere Spider-man/Miguel O'Hara with a Mami!Spider!Reader

Plot Summery: Platonic Miguel O'hara with a spider-person that's like Mami from Madoka Magica (the TV series mainly) This Contains: ‼️MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE MADOKA MAGICA TV SERIES & ACROSS THE SPIDERVERSE‼️ Major character deaths (reader death/character death), angst, yandere themes, violence. Not proofread. Note(s): Although the show focuses around magical girls, this is meant to GN!! I just loved the movies (watched them both for the first time) and had to write about it!

Miguel would be a very protective and controlling yandere. He's afraid something will happen to you, as it has many times before. You're not sure when it happened, but Miguel grew extremely attached to you. Perhaps you've been with him for an incredibly long time, or maybe your kind and friendly yet brave facade have warmed his walled heart. Either way, Miguel has become very overprotective. He refuses to let anything happen to you.

That said, your skills, magical abilities, strategic mindset, and leadership skills make you one of his best. So oftentimes, but reluctantly, he'll send you off on missions to ensure the steady flow of Canon Events in different universes, as well as other tasks. You're extremely efficient in your role, and while it does sadden you to watch it happen, you trust Miguel's judgement. He doesn't put you on missions he knows you won't be able to handle, and you're almost always guaranteed to not to encounter any other magical girls/boys on your missions.

Miguel knows you need Grief Seeds to cleanse your Soul Gem after using your magic, but that doesn't change the fact he hates when you go off to go hunt down witches. It terrifies him actually. He knows you're more then capable, but that doesn't erase the fear, so he'll oftentimes either accompany you or have someone go with you just to be safe. He will also pester you to use your Grief Seed when you need it, and probably hordes a bunch just in case.

Miguel knows about witches, how they're really magical girls/boys who had their gems corrupted. How they're just used and discarded by the incubators. And he knows how fragile your mind is. So for that, he makes sure to control the information that gets fed to you. 

Miguel despises Kyubey and has tried, and failed at, getting rid of him. Not only does he know that Kyubey is using you, but he's jealous that you're so attentive and kind to it. How you care about it like a close friend. If only you knew, but Miguel won't ever dare to tell you the truth of Kyubey. He just tries to keep you away from him as much as he can.

The only peace he ever has is when you're enjoying a wonderful teatime together, preferably (almost strictly) when it's just you and him. The delicious tea, desserts, and your pleasantness is a fresh breath of air for Miguel every time. It's the only time that he's ever felt so… at peace. So content in this little bubble you both share. For just a moment, he can forget the ripping multiverse.

It's moments like these that make everything he's doing and has done worth it. You're a lonely person, so having a constant like Miguel in your life is absolutely welcomed. Miguel is also a lonely man, even if he doesn't say it aloud. You're both alone, but you have each other. And for Miguel, that's absolutely perfect.

Miguel really loves you. He absolutely does, although it can be hard at times for him to express it. Just know he loves you so much. And hopefully nothing happens to you, because Miguel wouldn't be able to handle it.

Angst Below Cut

If you do end up meeting your tragic end, however. Miguel is broken even more. He worked so hard to make sure you were happy, safe, and that your Soul Gem was clean. He did so much, but it wasn't enough to save you.

If you died, it's likely the shock at meeting a witch who actually counters you is too much of a shock for you to act in time. If Miguel is with you during this, then no doubt his instincts kick in before yours does. But it's too late, your head is in the jaw of the witch, your Soul Gem is shattered, and your body is devoured. The look of devastation on his face is heartbreaking, but it is quickly replaced with a need for revenge. He's not thinking clearly when he goes to attack the witch. All he wants is blood. And he will get it.

If you eventually learn the truth about magical girls/boys, how they're destined to be witches, and how Miguel had been withholding that knowledge to you, you break. And you go on a rampage, killing countless spider-men/women in your path in effort to save the innocent, having lost your mind to insanity. Miguel tries to calm you down, tries to reason with you, but it's no use. You're not listening, and worse yet you're trying to kill him too.it doesn't help that, while your mind is fracture, you're still a strategist. If Miguel is forced to kill you, he would never forgive himself. He'll never forget crushing your Soul Gem in his hands, and watching as your body went absolutely limp. He feels disgusted in himself.

If you become a witch, Miguel can't bring himself to kill you. He can't do it, so he locks you up in one of his cages instead. A part of him knows that you're not there anymore, that you're just a monster now. But the rest of him either denies this reality, choosing to instead believe you're still ib there, or simply can't bring itself to finish you off. He watches as your witch form behaves in such a similar kind and inviting manner, although he knows the wickedness behind its welcoming ribboney arms. It hurts.

In either of these scenarios, Miguel doesn't get a happy ending. Either situation just scars him badly, makes him colder, more irrational in his anger. He'll never be the same, not without his baby.

[writing-frenzy]

Mob Protag Ichigo and the Puppet Master (UraIchi Isekai Idea :3 )

So yeah, for anyone who's read my first idea with the Kurosaki Fam Isekai, they'll know all the stuff that has inspired this and that I've already mentioned an idea with a Mob Character!Ichigo and a Puppet Master Benihime (AKA Urahara Kisuke)

Let us set the scene :3

How will Ichigo go to a fantasy world, especially with how he is? Well, as Ichigo was growing up, one of his sisters was really, really sick; they weren't sure if she was going to make it tbh. Ichigo did all he could, but being a little guy, there wasn't much he could do. One day, he came upon a weird being who said they could grant wishes; Ichigo immediately asks if they can make his little sister healthy. The being said yes after a moment, but it will cost him a peaceful afterlife. Ichigo takes the deal, the being is admittedly touched by this child's goodness and unselfish desire, because for such a sweet child, they know of death and the loss it brings already. So the being actually doesn't twist the wish like so many others he does, letting the children live out their natural lifespans in peace.

All is well, until a 17 year old Ichigo saves his other sister and her friend from dying to a truck. Our World's Divine Being is like; damn, you still had way, way more life span and time than you should have to had died now... but since you have a contract, I can't just let you survive :/ eh, I'll use it to at least give you perks to survive your reincarnation in that hell hole. (not to mention how they too are actually touched, they're a sucker for loving families)

Ichigo: wut

Godly Being: *throws a book series and some powers at him* Wish you luck out there!

After feeling just a bit violated and like someone was digging around in his head and blood, Ichigo wakes up in an abandoned house in some modern looking steampunk like city. Looking around he doesn't have much but some basics for survival, weird as heck items, and a book series. Not much to do, he reads the series, which answers a whole lot of questions even as makes Ichigo scowl like a thundercloud.

See, this is a very, very dark fantasy like series, it's gonna have all the canon Bleach fighting and gore but with magical surprises and such, with a very, very bittersweet ending. It's kinda like a modern setting meets with a very eco-friendly way because the world will crush those it sees trying to abuse it (mother nature don't play around here) so it's kinda steam/water/wind/solarpunk. Don't know who I want as the OG Story's protag to be, maybe Rukia or one of the Karakura Kids, but it follows them in a world were contracts/pacts/deals with spiritual beings is over everything; it can be with weapons, it can be with bloodlines or any such. Not all pacts and such are unequal, some in fact are real and true bonds, the pact bound loyal to their contractors to obsession... others, it is is very much a thing of slavery and torture, which can go both ways depending on what was exactly contracted.

Ichigo goes about trying to figure out his own contract/pact thing, which while so long ago, is just something he has never been able to forget, seemingly inscribed onto his very soul in a way. He knows he was picked because his soul was the most compatible for the spirits the being wanted for him, and he already knows its going to change his body as well, but it still confuses him.

(maybe something like;

A mix of holy power and darkness that would find most be consumed,

Flames properly controlled that can reach the moon,

Cut it from the sky and devour it if so desired,

But yet all one wants is to protect their own wary lost and life tired,

For One such as you a power so great is to be entrusted,

It will find you, change you, leave your life chain broken and rusted,

In Time it will be shown if you can make this power your own,

But already, your fate has sown.)

(LOL, this is Ichigo, he's gonna break his fate and make friends with his Hallow and Ossan, because I love the idea of the three together again in this au :3 later tho)

But yeah, so Ichigo is figuring things out, especially with controlling his body once more because his strength went a bit wonky, but I also like the idea of a different weapon Ichigo if that makes sense? Like, he will still be an op power house, but the thought of him using spells and martial arts makes me grin evilly? Like, with his Hollow more bonded later, he can make claws come out to rip soft bellies apart and such. And Ossan just insists he learn a bow for those times he needs long range and such, even if he gets a bit despairing when Ichigo occasionally gets too frustrated and just throws the damn arrow (all three in Ichigo's head are quiet whenever the move proves highly effective, which is always.) Oh, but now I can't help but think of Childe from Genshin Impact's fighting style :D maybe instead of blades though, Ichigo switches to a hand to hand with bracers of some sort covering his arms that are hard as fuck, easy to move around in because of magic.

But ah, getting sidetracked again, this all comes later down; for now, Ichigo is still figuring shit out, avoiding protagonists and co because yeah, people not protected by plot armor tend to die really, really messily around them and he still can't do jack right now (doesn't mean he doesn't do what he can, even if its just simple things like helping the elderly, making sure kids get home safe, or even knocking out some regular thugs harassing some ladies.

Ichigo, despite all his scowls and looks, still draws people in with his kindness and protective nature in this dark, lonely otherworld.)

Its as he's helping someone shopping, this sweet little lady who goes on and on about her sweet grandbaby, that Ichigo goes to the Urahara Shoten for the first time; not much gets his attention, besides the fact that the protagonist has only been here once or twice in the early chapters for some odds or ends, this place being some mixture of candy/pawn/tea shop.

But then something in the shop resonates with him; with his very soul. Looking around, Ichigo tells the sweet grandma he'll be right back, and call him when she's done, to which she gives a cheerful reply before Ichigo goes off, looking high and low before he finds a strange book and block with it, like a set. Picking it up, it just feels so damn right... till he looks at the price tag and cringes. While he has odd jobs here and there to help him out, it's just enough money for him to live with since he doesn't have to worry about rent with his questionable abandoned house, covering his food expenses and the public bath fee.

"Find something you like dear customer?" is said from behind him, which makes Ichigo jump like a few feet into the air, clutching his book and block set to his chest, before turning to the one who startled him.

And so thus the first meeting with Urahara Kisuke, Geta-boshi as Ichigo likes to call him. After a bit of back and forth between the two, Ichigo admits he can't afford the book and block set, too which Urahara merely hums, eyes oddly shadowed from his hat as he considers that. one thing leads to another and somehow Ichigo not only gets the set but even a steady job at the shop, even if his paycheck will be cut because of said set. And sure, Geta-boshi is sus as fuck, but Ichigo doesn't sense any ill will from the man, not too mention the man even helps him with understanding the book, a soul book as its called, which strengthens souls and their contracts, enabling them to get a growing weapon called an Asauchi that transforms with the soul. Its not bad.

On Kisuke's part, he is actually pretty intrigued by Kurosaki, this youth who carries the potential of a predator but the heart of a protector, actually reacting to the soul book and Asauchi Kisuke had made more for curiosity and boredom then to actually make a functional weapon. Not to mention just how much fun it is too mess with Ichigo, the boy shows he has a clever mind and a strength that just seems to constantly grow more and more. Kisuke is actually considering just how he can possibly use this youth for his goals, wondering if he can be the chest piece he needs to finally topple the king in this game between Puppet Master Benihime and Greater Lord Aizen.

Ichigo does know about Puppet Master Benihime from the story, they were a neutral character only focused on making sure the world would not collapse, no matter the amount that would be needed to be sacrificed in the end. But in the story, it only ever showed Benihime herself, never even mentioning that she was actually contracted, and 100% loyal to said contractor, so Ichigo has no clue about just how scary his mentor is at first, besides when the man actually did finally spar with him and Ichigo couldn't even get a hit on him. In this world, these two have a bit more time, a bit more room to act, and with it they bond, much to Kisuke great surprise even as he still plans to use him.

So things happen, things are reveled, discoveries are had, and Kisuke goes to Ichigo, confirming that he knows.

And then he kneels before this youth; he kneels and apologizes, thinking and knowing in his soul he's done something unforgiveable, thinking he won't be forgiven and fine with that as long as Ichigo still lives well... only for Ichigo to actually forgive, just like that, just because he could tell Kisuke meant it, scowling still but most of all accepting.

Its a good thing Kisuke was already kneeling because that alone would have made him bow just from the sheer acceptance and warmth Ichigo just seems to shine with. Ichigo has no idea just what he's done, who's utter loyalty and trust he has secured, and Kisuke will kill, die, and live for this boy, he just has to say the word. Even with all the people Ichigo has gathered, from villains to protagonist, people who are loyal and true if to no one else but him, Kisuke feels blessed he can be included, can be trusted even over the others to always remain at Ichigo's back and protect it no matter what.

In return, Ichigo looks up to Kisuke as both a mentor, ally, friend, and after an interesting dream, a damn annoying crush he can not get rid of, going strong for years (no longer a crush then but let him deny it for a bit). Parts of him wants to devour this man whole, never share him with the world, but Ichigo is such a being of freedom he could never dream to rip such a thing from someone else. (Kisuke being Kisuke wouldn't mind if its Ichigo tho >:3 All Ichigo has to do is ask, and this man would give him the world, Benihime right behind him.)

I feel like this story would be a slow burn but not if that makes sense? like, there is a tension from the very beginning of the story to Demi-romantic/sexual Ichigo's awakening of shit, so that's what that feels like (Fight me on this, I will defend it to the grave Very Demi!Ichigo)

But yeah, so far that's it for my Bleach Ideas :D hope you enjoyed them and stuff.

[arrixlive]

!!RANT!!

Am i the only one that’s getting tired and annoyed with the show Detective Conan?? Bc it’s been getting on my nerves for like the past few months now, and I’m just so fucking done with it.

1) First of all, the show has been going on for almost 30 years now (keyword almost actually 28 i think) and it’s only been a few months in the series (even tho there are over 1100 episodes which actually means that almost every episode is a day, taking off 2parters and collected episodes, also excluding the movies. Which means it’s technically been around 2 years and/or more)

2) The relationships are starting to get on my nerves as well platonic/romantic and just the complex relationships between side characters and/or Rivals, Like Kaito Kid & Conan. The romantic relationship between Ran and Schinichi is starting to feel absolutely creepy, useless and boring, especially considering Conan is Kinda her brother now, Ran loves Conan as her little brother, while he is technically her boyfriend (see how that is kinda off putting😃)

(i can make an intire post on the Ranshin relationship another time, if people want my opinion)

The characters that suddenly come in and all just start hounding on Conan/Shinichi is also getting really fucking annoying, it’s like it’s starting to turn into a harem but only for… fans…?? Does that make sense? Bc we know Canon is ShinRan but the creator is starting to put A LOT of Coai into the movies and series, and I’m like.. dude… I have no issues with shipping different characters, but that the creator is putting it INTO THE literal anime is kinda annoying, it’s like he’s creating Drama and love triangles on purpose, even tho the anime had NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT??

(Haibara, Sera, Ran, Ayumi and another girl, forgot her name tho. All these characters have interest in schinichi/Coan)

It’s just annoying how Gosho keeps ruining duos and relationships. Like i love the the Kaito kid episodes with Conan, they’re just my favorite, but Gosho pretty much just added Amuro into the loop for no reason?!? Like i just don’t like Amuro (never did, but i didn’t go out of my way to ignore him, he’s important to the story) but adding him into a Rivalry that’s been going on for so long, and has its own special ring to it and special rules between two people with a double life, that only trust each other, when their life depends on it, it just ruined my intire love and experience for the episode.

3)The end?? I literally cannot see a good ending to this show. The only reasonable answer, in my opinion would be: Conan moves back to America and pretty much just loses contact with the others, or he died (doesn’t add up in the end either) and everyone forgets him over time, so schinichi can come back. There literally is no good ending to this show, even if people figured out Conan was schinichi (in fact i think that is the worst ending)

I should probably explain more but I’m kinda in a rush and I’m probably gonna edit this slightly later, but this is already long so if ya have any questions I’ll try to answer and make a post about it, to be more clear

[achaotichuman]

Hii again! I'm the anon who rambled about Andras and sorry! I just saw how long my ask came out and I would like to blame the fact that I was sleep-deprived, but that would be a half-truth, because I tend to yap when I'm really passionate about something ahahaha and YES! I completaly agree! Feyre literally never mention him again, like he was never important (as if his life wasn't, even though it changed hers completaly) and she never think of him, how SJM never makes him appear even as a thought of one (the first dare I say) of the lives that Feyre took. And yes it's a nice hc (a very angsty one for sure) to think how things could've gone with Feyre and Tamlin, but like you said thats not how canon went and it's really something I will always be bitter about, because how it did Tamlin (and Lucien! And their relationship!) dirty and as I said: I will never forget nor forgive, I'm sorry.

Sometimes it seems as SJM has a plot twist ready or is building up to reveal how everything was a plan of Rhysand or something more sinister, but I really don't expect anything from her, like the bar is not only low, but it's nonexistent basically. Aaaand, thank you for your kind reply! If it's not a bother I would like to come back sometimes to share some rants/opinions! Thank you again and sorry for this new ask! I hope you're having a good day/night! ♥ (In the meantime I truly believe that Tamlin and/or Lucien have made something to remember and to never forget Andras and all the sentinel that sacrificed themself for their court ♥)

Yes! To all of this! I love it!

When I finished Silver Flames J was convinced Sarah had to be doing something with Tamlin and the SC because there was too much a trail for healing/redemption for her not to utilise it. But when I go back and read passages, it more or less just looks like SJM did a shit job of writing an actual abusive relationship rather than laying out a path for Tamlin to be redeemed. It seems to me she sees nothing wrong at all with Rhysand or the IC, and any form of redemption has to end with the villainised person grovelling for forgiveness which honestly sickens me.

Tamlin and as you said Lucien and their relationship and Andras were all done so so dirty. I personally headcanon that Spring has a statue of Andras and the gardens of spring are all flowers that were planted in honour of the sentries that died for their lands. (Which is also a sorta angsty headcanon as when Spring is left for dead and its just Tamlin, the statue and the flowers he’s a “high lord of a graveyard” but thats a plot point for my fic as well)

Andras deserved to be honoured rightfully and he never was. SJM’s writing pisses me off so much.

Thank you for sharing this wonderful rant! Please come back with more rants, hcs and everything else inbetween, I would love to hear them!! You have a great night/day too!!