#hope this answered your question anon ^^

[letsgoricciardo]

Dries doesn't speak French??

no excuses for why this took a week to answer 🫣

I assume you're coming from this post?

to be clear, he does speak french (and quite well, for a learner). it's just that I had always assumed since he and Laurens are belgian that french would be their first language, but now I don't think it's the case anymore.

Laurens is fluent though, it's clear from the way he speaks with the rest of porsche 6 and he even has picked up some slang/turn of phrases and filler words. he doesn't make a lot of mistakes or translation errors.

for Dries to be fair I'm only coming from the Le Mans pesage interview. I would say he's also fluent in the way that he clearly understands the questions and doesn't have to think about it a lot before replying. but he makes some grammatical mistakes that just wouldn't happen if french was his first language (un/une for example (= nouns have genders)). I would even say he's more comfortable with english than french (probably just because he uses it more).

they also both have quite a strong 'germanic' accent which is why I think their first language was either flemish or german (or both). but again, coming from belgium they probably learned french at school when they were younger which explains their proficiency. now it's just hypothesis but either Laurens picked it up better, or he's just using it more in general.

[moshaeu]

I've never heard of a haunt/anchor AU before, if you're interested it would be lovely to hear you explain it or tell where I could learn more about it 👉👈🥺

this really came about from a number of my favorite tropes (supernatural + power couple + hurt/comfort) so the au isn’t super concrete nor does it have a name…

i’m sure a similar concept exists out there somewhere but for the rundown here:

[illusioncanthurtme--art]

im curious, why do you like fiddlestan?

i like them in theory (all the pain potential, jeez!) but i feel like i'm missing something very obvious

Oh boy, you’re about to open pandoras box with this one -

I’ve liked fiddlestan for a LONG time, almost a decade now, (EXHIBIT A!!!), and honestly, I’ll admit that the ship is mostly based on speculation. So maybe you’re not missing something obvious, maybe I’m just delusional. I can’t speak for everyone, all I can do is explain why I like it: because it’s deeply rooted in several layers of irony. 

It’s ironic because fiddleford spent the better part of a YEAR dealing with fords nonsense. (And I KNOW, it’s not all bad, but really, especially if you read journal 3, that poor man was put through a LOT. He was definitely taken advantage of, at LEAST a little.) And after grappling with the acceptance that your longtime friend and unrequited love will never return your feelings, having lost the man to some crazy otherworldly nightmare machine, who shows up?? But his TWIN BROTHER who’s HUMBLE and KIND and TEN TIMES MORE DOWN TO EARTH?? It’s ironic, because they don’t know each other, yet they both have years of history with the same person who’s wronged them, and, they can make out about it!! THEY CAN FUCK TO SPITE HIM!! Stan stole his brothers name (and committed multiple crimes under said name), stole his house, and stole his research partner!! And… it's ironic because it’s Grunkle Stan and old man Mcgucket. That needs no elaboration.

(these are all my personal takes/headcanons! Like I said, this ship is based solely on interpretation, so I’m sure a lot of fiddlestanners like fiddauthor too. There’s like a billion different ways to interpret this ship.)

Also -

Their personalities are surprisingly similar when you stop and think about it!! You put those two in the same room, and they’d come up with some highly devilish scams together. They both have moral codes that are a little… ambiguous. And… I can’t believe I’m gonna pull this out as *canon fiddlestan documentation* but these are the kind of crumbs we’re working with here: MABELS DREAM IN THE SOCK OPERA CREDITS!!!! Although it’s not something that actually happened, and it’s just a reference to statler and waldorf, they are IN CHARACTER!! I think this is how they would actually act together if they were friends!! Just two old dudes, hanging out together watching tv, making fun of whatever they’re watching. If you’re in the room, you might get roasted too. Just a couple of old farts. It makes me so happy to think about. 

No fiddlestan rundown post would be complete without the fandoms EXTREME STRAW GRASP at Old Goldie and the Flame Retardant Raccoon. Soos calls mcgucket a “prospector guy,” amongst the other obvious comparisons you can make between fiddleford and goldie. Goldie is something stan used to like a long time ago, but he’s all old and fucked up now, best to throw him away and forget about it. BUT, as it turns out, there’s still good in that old thing after all. SO LETS GET MARRIED IN VEGAS!!!! It’s an extreme stretch, but… It’s a fiddlestan trope that they, at some point, have a crazy night of fun+romance in vegas together.  And I personally like to think that they return when they’re older+happy and tie the knot for reals. The raccoon speaks for itself - it’s one of the ways you can compare stan to a raccoon. And of course, mcgucket's raccoon wife. 

This is where it starts to get a little angsty, and if you “get all the pain potential” then you may have already given this some thought - but why does stan treat fiddleford the way he does if they used to love each other? The whole “UGH, this guy” comment in land before swine, looking all uncomfortable around him in fight fighters, choosing the spot furthest from where mcgucket lotions himself at the pool, and the “possum breath” comment in the last episode (and fiddleford actually has the mental clarity to look perturbed after he says it). Stan is hurt!!! He’s upset!! If they used to be a Thing after the portal incident, something must have happened between them for fiddlefords mental illness to get the better of him, and for him to choose to erase both stan and ford from his memories. I, personally, think that it was deep rooted internal homophobia (being raised in the south, that runs deep), and being scared for getting too close to stan. They were getting too comfortable, and that scared him. What about his family? And tate? His son can never meet stan. He can never let his wife know. And all the paranormal fuckery incidents leading up to this that already weakened his mental state, the portal incident, already having zapped his brain a few times, would have sent him over the edge. So I’m thinking they would have gotten into a fight of some kind, and fiddleford would have stormed off. Thus leaving stan having to live in a town with the person he USED to love, who doesn’t remember him at all!!! What!!!!! That sucks!!!! Only upside to fiddlefords memory erasure is that it makes it easier for stan to pretend nothing ever happened. But it’s still not easy. Also, if word ever got out that old man mcgucket used to be his boyfriend, he would never be able to live it down. So he compensates by being an ass towards him. Fuck. 

But then!! If fiddleford has the chance to heal!!! (say… maybe… when the twins are on the stan o war II) then stan would come back to gravity falls and see fiddleford looking like the person he knew thirty years ago!!!! WHAT!?!?! CAN’T RUN FROM YOUR PAST FOREVER, CAN YOU!?!?! And you KNOW fiddleford would remember what happened with stan. How long can stan keep himself in denial?? And now we’re opening up the can of worms: how the FUCK does this information reach ford?? That your brother used to canoodle with your research partner and might STILL BE?? That has so much potential too. 

Ok I wasn’t expecting to write those last two paragraphs but it’s A BIG PART OF WHY I LOVE FIDDLESTAN!!! It’s a crazy fucking rollercoaster ride!!! This thing has so many angles!!! And that’s just MY fiddlestan interpretation - I’ve seen a lot of different takes on the sort of story that would transpire between these two. But no matter what you’re cooking, It’s always a LOT. 

There’s probably so so much I didn’t touch on here. If anyone else wants to throw in their two cents as to why they like fiddlestan, please, add something!!!

[casscainmainly]

"My long-held belief that Duke and Luke should not get along" <- could you please elaborate on this? I'm fond of both and I collect your thoughts and analyses like they're rare trading cards so I'm ready to be all 👀🫳🍿

First of all anon this might be my favourite ask ever, I've been dying to write my thoughts on these two so THANK YOU. Secondly my belief that Duke + Luke wouldn't get along actually stemmed from WFA, I was super annoyed with Luke giving Duke the pep talk in ep 76 because they have no relationship!!! Then I started thinking harder and realised they are a really interesting pair. In case anyone hasn't noticed I'm fond of giving Duke relationships where he's annoyed with the other person so 😭 this is very on brand.

The thing about Duke + Luke is they are, on the surface, similar - they are Black members of the Batfam who operate mostly independently, 'separate' from a legacy as Signal/Batwing (though I will deconstruct this later), devoted to their family, have a strong sense of justice, and view crime-fighting as a business. But I believe at their cores they are fundamental opposites - and it's this hidden opposition that makes me think they wouldn't vibe with each other. I'm focusing on We Are Robin Duke and Batwing Luke, though I will also refer to Duke's Signal days + Luke in Detective Comics.

(This is going to be a long post because this is lowkey my Luke + Duke thesis 😭)

Introductions

Duke and Luke were both introduced in the New 52, actually in the same year (2013!). What's really cool about their intros is that you already see how different they are. We first meet Duke in Zero Year, where he's fishing in the subway and then attacked by a gang; we then get the famous scene of him solving crosswords by Bruce's unconscious body. When Bruce tells Duke and his family to leave, Duke refuses, telling him they can't leave Duke's grandma and that all it takes is one riddle to free the city from Riddler's influence.

By contrast, we first meet Luke in the spotlight as he's wrestling for MMA in Batwing #19. He's been wrestling to get Batman's attention, refusing all job offers from his dad to do so (and thus creating some juicy father-son tension). In Batwing #20, we see he has two degrees from MIT, lives in a fancy apartment, and is really tech-oriented; his cover story for Batwing is that he's travelling the world.

Already, there are a couple things that already firmly separate them:

Class: Duke is from the Narrows whereas Luke is rich

Connection to Batman: Duke stumbled across Batman and gained his attention quite organically, whereas Luke was actively begging for Batman to notice him

Agency: Duke's actions were motivated by the extreme circumstances of Zero Year and a desire to help rooted in his material environment, whereas Luke's is a more internal, abstract wish to help (pointing to their class differences again)

Gotham: Duke refuses to leave his city, whereas Luke immediately packs up and travels the world

Intelligence: Both of them are fiercely intelligent, but in different ways - Duke loves puzzles and riddles whereas Luke is more inclined towards engineering and technology

And these differences only grow as they get older!!

Maturity

Duke is 16 (in my head, canonically it's vague but he's between Damian and Tim so 14-17) and Luke is 23. This age gap is honestly not that big, but I think it would feel big to both of them. And what's worse is that Duke is quite mature, but Luke is said to be immature:

Batwing #23

I don't think Luke is actually immature, but it's a recurring theme that other characters perceive him as unwilling to grow up; and I genuinely do think Batwing, for him, is kind of an adventure at first. Now compare this to Duke, whose circumstances disallowed him being childish. He had to grow up because his parents weren't around anymore, and he became quite jaded as a result. Even after he's mellowed out in his Signal days, I still don't think he could tolerate working with someone who comes off as light-hearted as Luke does. Duke would be annoyed by how he perceives Luke doesn't take things seriously, and Luke in turn would be annoyed when Duke inevitably criticises him for it.

Arc

Following on from above, their arcs are actually in total opposite directions. We first meet Duke alone and disillusioned with everything, putting his whole being into finding his parents. Then, through We Are Robin and Robin War, he begins to understand what Robin means as a symbol and finds community, leading to his brighter personality in Signal comics. Luke, however, begins very light-hearted (as seen above), with a huge respect for Batman and the Bat symbol. Once his family starts being torn apart, though, he becomes increasingly aggressive, more isolated, and in a much darker place. Compare a narration box from the last issues of both:

Batwing #34 / We Are Robin #12

These encapsulate their journeys: Duke learns that he doesn't have to act alone, whereas Luke struggles with accepting all that has happened since he put on his suit. Being a vigilante improves Duke's life, whereas it essentially ruins Luke's. This is why I don't think that WFA ep made sense!!! They have nothing in common in terms of the vigilante experience, and I think they would frustrate each other because they have such different conceptions of what the vigilante life is!!!!!!!

Batman and Robin

Okay so I said that Luke + Duke aren't legacies; even though Batwing is one, Luke doesn't actually talk to David Zavimbe, and his Batwing is not spiritually connected to David's really. But Luke and Duke both do take inspiration from other Batfam members - Batman and Robin, respectively.

Batwing #25 / Batman (2011) #45

Luke is the rare Batfam member whose motivations don't spring from tragedy - he's inspired one night when Batman saves him and he jumps in to help. Luke's love for Batman is wrapped up in Bruce himself, as a person rather than a symbol; he genuinely thinks Batman is awesome and wants to help people under his name.

Duke is the exact opposite - Robin is not a person for him but a symbol, and a symbol that can be spread to many people. It's also intimately tied with Duke's relationship to Gotham, because Batman is "on the gargoyle" and Robin is "on the street". Importantly, Duke says to Darryl that "I know you work for him, but you're us". Working for a singular person is in opposition to this 'us' that Duke believes in.

Luke, though not exactly an employee, literally wanted to work for Batman, Inc. Batwing is in many ways a 'job', an alternative to the corporate life Lucius wanted for him. Duke would, I think, take huge problems with Luke's philosophy as a whole. Separated from Gotham, attached to Batman as a person rather than as a symbol, Duke just literally wouldn't understand where Luke is coming from. And Luke, too, doesn't seem to respect Robin as a mantle (this is after someone mistakes him for Batman in Batwing #34):

I think Luke views Robin as firmly a kids' role, a sidekick for Batman; that would annoy the STUFFING out of Duke. I actually could write a whole post in itself about this incident and Luke being mistaken for Batman but that's for another day. The point is they are attached to the Batman and Robin legacies which in themselves are already vastly different, but Duke is kind of anti-Batman and Luke is a little anti-Robin, so they would not mix.

Family

One thing they do have in common is a deep love for family. But even then, their familial relationships are extremely different: Duke has a wonderful relationship with his parents, bolstered by the fact he lost them for a while, whereas Luke has a contentious relationship with his. Duke in some ways idealises his mom and dad, while Luke is sharply aware of his parents' shortcomings.

Batwing #20

Now this wouldn't be an issue normally, but Duke canonically has, like, a problem with judging other people's families. It's a really consistent (and somewhat hilarious) trait of his:

We Are Robin #5 / We Are Robin #5 / Gotham Nights #8

The Dre comment ("you're a mob kid?") is particularly telling. Because Duke has such a good relationship with his parents, and because he's shaped so much by them, I think he sees children as reflections of their parents/families. It's hard for him to see someone completely divorced from their family - you even see this a bit in Batman & The Outsiders, where although Duke understood Cass' disagreements with Shiva, I don't think he really got the nuances of what that felt like for Cass.

Luke's relationship with his father is complex and contentious. They love each other, but Lucius' desires for Luke just don't match what Luke wants, and Luke can't tell him about Batwing either so it's a constant back-and-forth. This secrecy is another thing Duke wouldn't get - I've made posts before about Duke and honesty, and it's a huge value of his. It's significant that as soon as his mom is healed she finds out about Signal; dishonesty is not really a factor in Duke's life, whereas it is Luke's central conflict. Luke's entire thing with his dad and his alter ego is something Duke has never had to deal with, and I think Duke would just be like 'tell him?? and make up??' and Luke would sigh so loud and hard.

Personality and Authority

But all of that aside, I just think their personalities wouldn't mix! Duke is a jaded teenager whose overt honesty and resistance to authority often give off a bad first impression (see his first encounters with Black Lightning, We Are Robin, Damian, even the Bruce train scene...). People do warm up to Duke quick, and once you love him you adore him, but there's a hurdle to becoming close to him that you have to leap first.

Luke, on the other hand, is affable and immediately likable. He's popular in school (as Russell mentions in #25), has experienced college social life, and is open and friendly. I think in an initial meeting Luke would find Duke off-putting and rude, while Duke would find Luke shallow and annoying. Luke is an extremely confident person, as shown in both Batwing and Detective Comics (particularly the latter). I think Duke would take this confidence as him being stuck-up, especially because Luke is rich.

Their class differences also separate their reactions to authority. Luke doesn't take authority at face value - he disobeys Bruce basically as much as Duke does. However, given his upbringing he isn't that anti-authority. Compare Luke and Duke's attitudes to cops:

Batwing #25 / We Are Robin #2

The Luke narration box is after the cops shoot him and accidentally make him kill his best friend 😭😭😭 like if that had happened to Duke his inner voice would NOT say that. This is another example of how their different upbringings and personalities cause them to have DRASTICALLY different outlooks on things. Batwing also sides with Batwoman when she kills Clayface in Detective Comics, something I think Duke would not do (he would've sided with Cass) so their ideologies often put them on opposite sides.

FINALLY, and least importantly, Luke is not a reader. This is a recurring thing and it's so funny:

Batwing #21

That's Tam telling Luke to "read a book". I think this exact interaction would happen with Duke taking the place of Tam, where he'd just be super annoyed that Luke doesn't enjoy literature. Honestly I think Duke might remind Luke of Tam in a lot of ways, since Duke is Bruce's golden child just like Tam is Lucius'. And that would annoy Luke, like he can't escape annoying younger siblings even as Batwing?? Bruce liking Duke more than Luke, even when Duke doesn't even care for Bruce's approval, would send Luke's blood pressure through the ROOF.

Conclusion

Um anyway I'm so so sorry this was so long but that's why I think Luke and Duke wouldn't get along!! It's mostly that they have such different outlooks on literally everything and their personalities clash. Anyway, if anyone bothered to read til the end here's your reward!! A little edit of what SHOULD have happened in WFA ep 76:

[strobbylemonade]

ok I’m literally in love (I’m.so normal I’m so normal I’m so n)with how u draw Dante/dante scars. how did u decide on the scars. what are the scars. where are the scars from. pleapslepelaplalslplpeewlpelepleplsplsplpeleplaplspleplepleplapplplplelapl

i MIGHT have gotten a little carried away with this but yeah! i'm not very good at anatomy but i tried my best. (edit: second page is meant to say guido not gubo T-T)

transcript:

[image 1] > Yi Sang told me it'd be useful to also log my injuries in my notes, in case I ever get incapacitated and the Sinners need to know which injuries are old and which ones are new.

> The Sinners do a surprisingly good job at keeping me safe, so most of my injuries are scratches and bruises from the pain seizures I get while rewinding. I broke Heathcliff's nose during a particularly bad revival (and then I had to rewind that too. Not fun).

> Obviously the biggest exception is when I jumped in front of Ishmael's harpoon. It hurt like hell, and it still itches all the time, but... it's nice to have evidence of some of the pain I've gone through, even if nobody else sees it (or even acknowledges it). Evidence that I've actually... done something, for someone.

> Ishmael stops me from scratching at my shoulder, or else it might pop open and I'd have to get her to patch me up again... [image 2] <Agh, my back!> > Apparently I used to have some pretty expensive body augmentations [top surgery, hysterectomy] that were undone right before I joined the company.

> Faust offered to redo the ones that she could for free since Limbus Company didn't allocate a lot of resources to LCB at the time.

> It's worth noting these weren't wiped by the K-Corp ampules back when I got melted by Kromer. I remember Dongrang saying something about how the ampules worked on what the recipient thought of as healthy. I don't feel particularly unhealthy with them, so I guess that's why they stayed?

> I think Faust likes stars. I think I do too.

[image 3] These are the stitches that keep my body separated from my new head. Some of them popped when Guido gripped me. Yi Sang had to redo some of them; he has more... sensible patchwork than Faust

[image 4] > Feeding tube port.

> Faust's replaced it for me twice now, once after Kromer and the other after the Pallid Whale. I can eat with my clothes on but it runs a higher risk of infection, so I usually eat alone in my room... if I remember to.

> Faust says I've lost a concerning amount of weight, so she's been knocking on my door every morning to check if I've eaten. The Sinners really seem to enjoy eating, but I can't relate.

> Rodya tried to feed me beer through it once. It turns out I can't get drunk, but I can get alcohol poisoning!

> Seriously though, who designed this head? Why'd they add flames but no way for me to eat normally? It's pretty stupid.

> ...Yi Sang says he suspects I was the one who designed it.

[llamagoddessofficial]

[Phases out of the darkness]

You talk to far more people than you anticipated. Surprisingly, you get answers out of all of them.

[dreamweave01]

I just found this AU for a few days and is now really really (two really's) invested??? My God this separated AU is so fresh and unique?? (no offense to other separated AU creators, i love them sm y'all have no idea how many tears were shed reading them all <3)

Anyways i love the fact that the boys were yoinked from different timelines with majorly different experiences (and baggage ofc) and would love to know how that affects their dynamic with each other and their newly (re)acquired parents. And i wonder if Drax and Big Mama were the same in their own timeline? Like were they good with them, indifferent or straight up villainous?

Thank you for your time! <333

Omg thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying it, this au has had a lot of trial and error XD

There's a bit that's changed with how they act around each other actually.

Mikey was obviously very excited to have his brothers back, but his biggest issue is trying to learn how to have brothers. He lost his when he was just a baby turtle tot after all, raised as an only child his entire life.

Now he has three severely traumatized siblings. It's a very new family dynamic for him, and he feels that he has to be the one to help them through their issues. He's the "okay" brother, the one that doesn't have demons inside, and his self-assigned role of family therapist is a lot more draining than he ever lets on.

Leo was very ready to jump into a family again, very eager for a second chance. To any unsuspecting persons, he's still the fun-loving face man (albeit older and with less energy than when he was younger.)

But he blames himself so much for everything that happened in his timeline, and he never lets himself lean on others when he needs it. It's his fault his family got hurt, so it's his job to make sure that never happens again. Even if it hurts him.

He was a little hesitant with Draxum and Big Mama at first (especially Big Mama) given his history with the two. He didn't know if the two had gone good in Mikey's timeline, but the second he met them, it was clear that they weren't the villains of his childhood anymore. He's quickly learned to see them as much as his parents as Splinter is.

Donnie is really really hesitant with trust. It took him months to learn to trust his new family, and even longer to learn to trust anyone else. He stays closed off, emotionally detached, because he's learned that's the best way to stay safe. If you don't care about them, then it won't hurt that much when they stab you in the back.

He's slowly learning that his family won't abandon him, but some scars are harder to heal from than others.

Now the person in Donnie's family that took him the longest to get attached to would definitely be Draxum. Donnie kind of gave the poor guy the cold shoulder for a while, would never be in a room alone with him, avoided talking to him. It was really frustrating to say the least, but eventually Draxum earned Dee's trust.

Raph for the longest time was always on edge around his brothers. Everything he did was controlled, he thought about his every move before he made it. He was so terrified to hurt them again that it took forever for him to finally relax around them, a part of him still believing he's the bloodthirsty monster the Kraang made him out to be.

When it comes to the parents, Raph's gotten very attached. He wasn't so sure about Big Mama for the first couple of weeks, but it became clear quite fast that she was a kind and caring mother who loved her sons all equally.

Baron Draxum and Big Mama started out as villains, yes. But Michelangelo was able to help them change their ways.

Now, they are two very supportive parents along with Splinter, and the three have become very important figures in the turtles lives.

Of course, this is just in Mikey's timeline.

In Donnie's timeline, Draxum was killed by the Shredder. It was the same in Raph and Leo's timeline, just with the Kraang instead.

Big Mama on the other hand became a bit of a recluse in Donnie's timeline, was taken down by the Kraang in Raph's, (no one is really sure if she survived or not) and in Leo's timeline, she was a bit of a wild card, but eventually played the hero card to help out the Resistance.

[fafodill]

I know this never actually happened in canon, but if Molly were to kidnap persuade Severus to stay and eat after an order meeting, how would that go down? How would Molly attempt to mother-hen a heavily resistant Sev? (His little belly needs filling 🥺).

Canon!Molly would absolutely struggle with Severus. She's a real mother-hen, can be quite overbearing and is very vocal with her affection. She's also very tactile.

All the things Severus would dislike.

So we have to imagine here a Molly who's very stubborn (which she is but not as much towards people she dislikes) AND capable of adapting her actions and attitude towards one person. This kinda makes her out of character but let's accept it for the sake of the scenario:

First of all, Severus would never stay unless he was forced to. Molly wouldn't be able to convince him. It would be because Dumbledore ordered him to OR if he was wounded/bed-ridden and had no choice. I like the wounded scenario but for simplicity let's imagine Dumbledore ordered him to eat with them from now on.

He'd put on a sour face all the while. He'd be unpleasant enough just to ensure this wouldn't happen again and she/they just leave him alone or ask him to piss off. He'd hate being treated like a project by Molly and being under scrutiny.

He doesn't like these people and don't want to spend time with them (because he's a bit of a cunt) but also because being mothered would actually tickle his mommy issues.

Because come on, having a loving mother? Who provides? Who takes care of him? Oof... Eileen couldn't.

But despite his sour face, Molly would persist. What might happen?

One good thing about her is that she had 7 children, so she knows how to deal with pouting faces. Severus is nothing new to her (tho she's a tad appalled to see a grown man like him acting like he's 12).

At first she'd be pissed at how much he's bickering with Sirius. Then after a while she'd accept that 1) they both can't help it and 2) despite the chaos it's actually doing them some good because at least they're talking and expressing other emotions than depression (and they channel their anger at each other). It would still get tiring and she'd do her best to not let them in the same room for too long.

She wouldn't try to chat with him too much either (I mean she will, quite a few times) because he's not a talker and if you force it out of him you'll just get insulted.

I think that with time she'd ask him to help in the kitchen (to prep the meals of for some finishing touches). Or ask him to make the coffee or after-dinner tea. Keep him busy every time he looks like he's about to snap at someone or leave.

It's Severus, you have to take your time with him. Gently force him into a new routine.

About the food, she'd try to ask him what he likes and if she can cook something for him (because she likes to please people) and he'd always say no. She'd even ask about his childhood meals and get such an icy answer that she would instantly drop it. But she's stubborn so maybe with time she'd just stop asking and just... look, because she's also experienced with sulking and private children. So she'd look at his expression while he eats, if he gets a second serving, if he looks a bit interested in a second slice of pie (he won't say it but he will look at it) and take the opportunity to just give it to him.

With time she'd figure out what he likes and if he's about to leave she'd pack him some food and just shove it in his hands and as he argues she'd throw her hands in the air and say 'then just toss it when you get home, I don't care!' (she cares, but if she shows she does it won't work).

The real problem is with the other Order members. Severus cannot help himself... many of them he doesn't like and he won't be able to stay out of petty fights. He says things and doesn't care if it's cruel or cold and I'm sure he'd kill the mood quite a few times. It's part self-sabotage, part old grievances, part being a cunt. And with time it's going to get tiring for everyone if he stays and just annoys or angers people.

Tho in a scenario where he's wounded and has to stay at Grimmauld's, maybe Molly would corner him and scold him about the war effort and that -yes- everyone is very impressed and grateful for what he's doing but that this is community and it's also important to take care of the morale by being civil towards each other and that if he keeps being so unpleasant then she can just give him his meal in his room and be done with it.

And they both know part of him would like that. But that it would also read EXTREMELY childish and he's way too proud to accept it.

So he'll start making an effort.

A tiny one.

And then you can build on that.

[amaltheas-garden]

What's your take on Dany being a misunderstood villain in the books? How much likely is it that she won't be the Mad Queen and will not get dark dany?

To answer your second question, dark Dany is almost a guarantee for the books. One of the most unique aspects of Dany's characters is that she is a woman fulfilling the role of an almost exclusively male archetype: the corrupted hero turned villain. She begins the story as an underdog we want to root for, she comes from a great noble bloodline and her family has been terribly wronged (from her pov), and she decides to use the power she does gain to do good. Her character arc could end right there and she'd go down as one of the best written heroes in the fantasy genre. However, her story does continue, and we see her grow increasingly frustrated by her own lack of abilities in enacting the change she wishes to see. We watch Dany make compromise after compromise until she's had enough and decides to embrace her fire and blood side if it means gaining enough power to exert control over her society and mold it how she sees fit. Even if her intentions began noble, the endless pursuit of greater and greater power, represented by the growing size and danger of her dragons, will be what corrupts her. It's impossible to think that grrm, the guy who's favorite thing to write about is the corrupting nature of violence and the negative impact the exertion of unrestrained power has on the perpetrator, would write a series about how thee most powerful character was actually justified in her pursuit because... she wants to do good? My interpretation of Dany's "fatal flaw" has always been a need to control her surroundings, stemming from the horrific abuse she endured as a child and later wife, and why I think she does have genuine compassion for the enslaved people of Essos; what could be a worse fate than not controlling your own life? And this is where her love of fire and dragons comes from. Dany describes fire as a cleansing force that makes her feel powerful and new, and the dragons are manifestations of her desire for ultimate freedom. While her dragons are quite small and Dany is still coming into her power as queen, we see more restraint in how she fights her battles, how she negotiates, and how she governs, all while wishing her goals of widespread societal change could happen right then. Now that her dragons have grown large and powerful and restless, we will likely see a Dany with far fewer qualms about using them to get what she wants. And after this goes well for her, her restraint will begin to dwindle. After all, if she can use dragon power to instantaneously get what she wants and change things for the better, why should she approach conflicts any other way? But as we've seen with Cersei, fire is a wild, uncontrollable substance that spells destruction wherever it touches. Dany's enemies have all been one note cartoon villains in how evil they are, and every time one gets taken down, it only bolsters our (and Dany's) belief in her righteousness. I think this is very intentional on grrm's part, as part of his whole gimmick and why people like his writing is his incredible ability to add a level of nuance and even empathy to the most minor and despicable characters. I see no reason why that quality should be so utterly lacking in the characters of Essos if not for the fact that grrm very much wants us to cheer Dany on as she crushes her enemies, only to pull the carpet out from under us when suddenly she is face to face with Westerosi characters we know very well, and would prefer not to see die by dragonfire. Season 8 might have been shit, but Tyrion's speech was on point. In short, Dany's desire to exert control via an uncontrollable power will be her downfall.

As for the first question, by "misunderstood villain" I'm assuming we're talking audience perception, in which case... yes and no. I think Dany is a perfectly understandable misunderstood villain because grrm makes a point to show every step of her character's evolution in the transition from frightened girl to possible savior, and finally a tragic villain. Some readers reject the "villain" characterization altogether, and there's really no way to validate one interpretation over the other until TWoW comes out (lol). I will say, I do think most hero-Dany analyses have tunnel vision when it comes to her and an unwillingness to see the writing on the walls, for what a lot of us see as a very slow, well thought out, and GRADUAL corruption arc.

[paper-mario-wiki]

Do you purposefully speak in prose?

yes? no.

no?

i actually don't know what this means. prose is normal speech. prose is defined as a normal speaking pattern. doesn't everybody speak in prose?

[lokh]

what do you think toshiro's version of laios would've been like if he was still with the group during the shapeshifter shenanigans

there have been a few speculations in the tag and among the fans and they are all very good SO i am going to take this opportunity to insert a bit of my shipping bias as i like in my interpretation LMAO agdsfgdfgv

i noted that in actuality shuro seems to have a very good grasp on laios' character??? this is most obvious in the manga later on but even seeing how he criticises laios in their fight... iirc nothing he says is actually untrue or wildly exaggerated, and while he does express frustration over something he feels like laios Should have control over (noticing his cues), he is also aware that laios isnt being malicious and that hes Just Like That. what i mean to say is that while i think his version of laios may seem more pushy and in-your-face, i dont think it will be overwhelmingly so. if its post-fight, i think the idea of laios (and marcille) being willing to do anything to get falin back made a big impression on him, as well as the idea that they need to eat and rest in order to succeed in their goals, so those aspects would be prominent in his version. he seems pretty observant, so i think for the most part the physical traits would line up, but i think there would be specific things that stand out to him that would appear strangely striking on his version of laios (like. idk something about his eye colour or the subtle contrast of his armour and chainmail. he seems to have a weird sense of aesthetics if extras are anything to go by lmao). if hed actually been paying attention all those times laios had gone on about what the hell ever, then it might be even MORE hard to tell apart his version since he would also have a good grasp on what laios should know. so either his version of laios is pretty difficult to pick out, OR despite the character being accurate his appearance is too. stylised lmao (exaggerated features or something) OR!! they just get him to pull out his monster gourmet guide thing and are able to tell from there. iirc everyone was surprised at its appearance so its possible toshiro had also never seen it before

IN MY IMAGINARY SHIPPING SCENARIO............ lets say that his laios isnt able to be picked out immediately and that the monster guide thing also doesnt immediately occur to anyone. what the real laios Specifically notices is how close this other laios keeps getting to shuro. and hes like. ??? why is he getting so close to him, theres no way i get that close to him??? but no one else seems to be picking up on it as weird, so hes having a small crisis like do i REALLY get that close to him???? and now that hes on the outside he notices shuro subtly leaning away and he feels both a wave of shame and..... protectiveness??? (JEALOUSY??????) and he immediately steps in and grabs him like Hey!!! cant you see hes uncomfortable???? weve been through this already!!! and like. ok i cant believe im doing this again but i need to separate this into different endings

a) the whump route: i dont think shuro ever envisioned Actually Telling laios about his frustrations outside of being basically cornered into it. has he ever spoken up against what was expected of him?? has he ever been confrontational???? i think part of what held him back from expressing his frustrations, along with the cultural norms, could be fear of what the reaction would be. if he had done the same in any other aspect of his life (his family, his inheritance), i think he would expect disappointment, disapproval, more proof that he doesnt add up to expectation. to be honest i dont think he Truly believes that laios is the type of person to react like this. but it was strong enough to prevent him from acting and i think would be projected onto his image of laios. maybe fake!laios says something dismissive like Well if it really bothered him hed say something right? what, he cant even stand up for himself? cmon, shuro, prove that you cant handle it just like everything else. and thats pretty much the fastest giveaway that it isnt really laios. of course this would be a HUGE tonal departure from what the actual episode/chapter was, so:

b) the dumbass route: both laioses break into fisticuffs, and, yes.... barking. and so they speedrun the entire encounter as the shapeshifters true form appears and, after laios points out that thinking too hard about others versions of you can tear apart groups and peace of mind, they pointedly do not speak of it again. they think about it though. a LOT

c) the normal route: both laioses argue normal like and the group ends up being able to tell them apart because the fake laios goes on a little too long about how theyre all here for falin and everyones like ok its not like he DOESNT love his sister but.......... the rest of the scenario probably goes like canon, though then i would want to see what everyone Else thought of shuro

[askblueandviolet]

MASTER POST

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[daughter-heir]

Does the WoT show still have all the weird bio-essentialism wrt sex/gender and magic?

Hi - yes it keeps the saidin is for men/saidar is for women thing. It seems like they’re trying to brush over some of the issues that poses in the show. Like a lot less focus on the battle of the sexes stuff that gets very annoying in the books. I trust the writers enough that I could see the issues with it being addressed in a meaningful way later on though idk how

[tragedry]

If Ashlyn were to get injured in any way, whether it be in ballet, Phantom World, and she decided to hide her injury, how do you think Tyler would react?

Or how would Tyler react if he almost lost Ashlyn, anyway? (Something similar to the train, but worse)

these are two different situations in my mind, so let me answer them separately cause i think tyler's reaction would depend on the severity. (he'll still worry regardless)

for the first one, i think ashlyn would just forget to mention it cause they've experienced even worse situations, so in her mind, getting a small injury (say a scratch during ballet practice) isn't a big deal.

tyler, obviously being used to taking care of taylor's many injuries (tay spends her time tinkering and can be so focused on her work that she hardly notices any cuts or bruises in her arms, so it's up to ty to fix her up) just clicks his tongue at her in mild annoyance for not telling him earlier, but overall he'd be pretty fine with it.

if it was a near death experience, that's a different story. personally, it would have been great if we saw ashlyn falling from the train in tyler's pov bc i KNOW his reaction would be *chef's kiss* unfortunately, we didn't get that or much of how they talked afterwards, but that's what my brain is for, and i have a lot of ways to picture how tyler would react to witnessing ashlyn's near death experience:

my favorite one is the way his usual anger and loudness just falls silent as instinct takes over and he jumps in just in time to save her. then when he knows he's got her safe and sound, comes all the fear, anger, and worry all tumbling out of his mouth in one big shouting match. bc the idea of losing ashlyn terrifies him, and the only way he knows how to fight fear is through anger. and ashlyn knows this, knows that he's not mad at her, but at what could have almost happened to her had he not showed up in time. and it's moments like this when she realizes that he cares. he wholeheartedly cares about her. and his anger isn't a dig at her shortcomings, but rather his own way of showing his concern. especially when she knows for a fact that tyler only ever gets this angry on behalf of those he holds dear.

funny enough, i plan on writing a fic centered around ashler having a talk™ after the train incident...

[mxtxfanatic]

Hii, I really like your metas, and I was hoping to ask you a few questions concerning the Lans.

Does Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen know of Lan Sizhui's origins in the novel?

Who forbade Lan Wangji to bring Wen Yuan into the Lan Clan? Was it Lan Qiren, Lan Xichen, or both?

Although Lan Xichen was not the one to lead the Lans during the siege, did he at least know about them going? Since he was clan leader that time, did he approve of their participation?

Did Lan Xichen and Lan Qiren take care of Lan Sizhui? Were they close to each other?

Many fanfics depict the Lan Clan as the clan who finally treats Wei Wuxian right, and all the characters seem to greet Wei Wuxian with open arms. Is it truly like that in the novel?

Thank you, and I hope you have a nice day!

Oooh, these are a lot of questions, lol. Let's go down the list:

Does Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen know of Lan Sizhui's origins in the novel?

It's never directly confirmed, but I think there's strong evidence that this is the case, as Lan Wangji leaves for the Burial Mounds directly after hearing about the success of the first siege, only to return with an injured child he is adamant about keeping. Anyone can put two and two together.

Who forbade Lan Wangji to bring Wen Yuan into the Lan Clan? Was it Lan Qiren, Lan Xichen, or both?

Of the two, just Lan Qiren, which also gives more credence to the idea that he knew where Lan Wangji picked up the child from:

After [Lan Wangji] sobered up, a scar the same as the brand mark Wei WuXian received in the cave of the Xuanwu of Slaughter appeared over his chest as well. Lan QiRen seemed both upset and angered, but he never ended up scolding him for it. No matter reproach or punishment, he’d had more than enough. With a sigh, he no longer opposed Lan WangJi’s decision to keep Wen Yuan.

—Chapt. 111: Wangxian, exr

Although Lan Xichen was not the one to lead the Lans during the siege, did he at least know about them going? Since he was clan leader that time, did he approve of their participation?

Yes. He's the clan leader, so of course he would know, and he's also the one to give the news to Lan Wangji. Just because he didn't personally lead the Lan doesn't mean they went behind his back to participate in the first siege.

Did Lan Xichen and Lan Qiren take care of Lan Sizhui? Were they close to each other?

There's no evidence that either Lan Xichen or Lan Qiren had any hand in raising Lan Sizhui. The only one Lan Sizhui ever claims had a personal hand in his upbringing is Lan Wangji:

Hearing [Wen Ning] speak of Lan WangJi in such a respectful tone, Lan SiZhui felt even closer to him, “HanGuang-Jun treated me as if he were my brother or my father. He even taught me how to play the guqin.” Wen Ning, “When did HanGuang-Jun start looking after you?” After some thought, Lan SiZhui responded, “I cannot remember either. It was probably when I was around four or five. I do not have many memories of the things that happened when I was younger, but when I was younger, I doubt HanGuang-Jun was able to take care of me. I think HanGuang-Jun had been in secluded meditation for many years back then.”

—Chapt. 84: Loyalty, exr

Lan Sizhui sees the other two in the same way the other Lan disciples do: as a beloved clan leader and a respectable teacher. He shares no extra intimacy with either of them, and neither they with him.

Many fanfics depict the Lan Clan as the clan who finally treats Wei Wuxian right, and all the characters seem to greet Wei Wuxian with open arms. Is it truly like that in the novel?

I mean, anything can happen in fanfics, lol, but in the immediate aftermath of the main story, only the Lan juniors (and the wandering cultivator from the beginning who joins later) treat Wei Wuxian with open arms. However, the extras take place not long after the main story ends, so there's always room for a change in feelings in the future.

Lan WangJi turned to Wei WuXian, “Wait for me.” Wei WuXian, “How about I go in along with you?” Lan WangJi shook his head, “He will be angrier if you go in as well.” Wei WuXian thought about it and agreed. Whenever Lan QiRen saw him, it was as if he was a flickering candle about to have a heart attack. Even his breaths became heavier than usual. Wei WuXian felt he should do him a favor and save him the exasperation by getting out of his sight.

—Chapt. 114: Banquet Extra, exr

Wei WuXian knew that the GusuLan Sect valued this aspect of things quite heavily. Whether or not they let him attend the sect banquet was basically whether or not they acknowledged his status as Lan WangJi’s partner in cultivation. Lan WangJi definitely pressed Lan QiRen over and over again to gain him such a right.

...

Looking at the entire hall of ‘mourning clothes’, Wei WuXian pretended like he couldn’t see the looks of surprise or even hostility from the others, commenting in silence, Is this a sect banquet? It’s even graver than a funeral.

—Chapt. 115: Banquet Extra, exr

After [Wei Wuxian] strolled around a bit, he spotted a few juniors walking together. Just as he was about to greet them and snatch them away to have some fun, however, something changed on Lan SiZhui, Lan JingYi, and the rest of the juniors’ faces the moment they saw him. They spun around and proceeded to leave. Wei WuXian understood. He ventured to a somewhat more secluded piece of woods. He waited for a while, and the kids from back then finally snuck out again. Lan JingYi, “Senior Wei, we did not ignore you on purpose, but Sir said anyone whoever talks to you will copy the Lan Sect’s rules from top to bottom...” ‘Sir’ was the honorific by which all disciples and cultivators of the GusuLan Sect referred to Lan QiRen. Any mention of ‘Sir’ meant him and only him.

—Chapt. 116: Banquet Extra, exr

[mimikyuno]

are you the "if it's immoral irl, it's not okay to enjoy in fiction", "everything is allowed in fiction, because it's not real life", or the non-secret third thing? :thinking: emoji

i started typing the reply to this ask like 10 times bc i wanna be very careful about how i word this but basically i’m picking the secret third option lol

i have noticed that the debate around issues like this has become more and more polarised and black and white online which is uhm. not good. neither of the first two stances presuppose to actually tackle the alleged taboo topic from a critical perspective. like, why is X topic considered immoral? by whom? why did the author include this taboo topic? how is it presented in the media i am consuming? am i supposed to enjoy it, or feel repulsed by it, or something else? does this problematic topic have a narrative purpose? if so, is it presented well? is the narrative glorifying this topic? no?

some potentially triggering topics discussed under the cut

like, look at rgu!! the show has so many taboo topics (incest, grooming, csa, amongst others), and all these topics are brought into the plot to expose how the patriarchy oppresses and exploits kids and women to maintain the power balance. these topics were discussed and tackled graphically, but it was not in vain. it made rgu a very hard watch. after watching the episode where akio assaults utena, i literally felt so sick i started crying. i am still glad the show tackled these topics. did it always do so perfectly? no! is it then romanticising these topics and saying it’s “okay”? also no!!

this ask is about ave mujica episode 11 and my comments on it so here we go. i genuinely think it was a great episode - the parallels to tomori’s backstory episode (tomori open and showing us from her pov, uika/hatsune acting for us on stage), the acting, directing, stylistic choices, and overall settings and script were brilliant. i think that hatsune being related to sakiko adds so much depth to her character and her obsession with sakiko. it was always sick. the episode before the reveal, the authors made sure to show us how toxic and twisted uika’s obsession with sakiko is - she stole her stage clothes to make a mannequin and slept next to it, wrote obsessive lyrics fantasising about confining and weakening her. and sakiko was shown being uncomfortable with this and having to put on a cold facade to take responsibility for uika’s feelings.

and imo, ep 11 made it clear to me that hatsune/uika is just. so lost. “what is this obsession if not love” is the conclusion she came to. bc sakiko represents everything that uika has never had, everything that was taken from her just bc of who she was born to. she saw sakiko as this ideal princess in a castle, and that princess was kind to her. saw her and showed her love. but hatsune was pretending to be someone else. i remember reading an interview by the director of avemuji just a few weeks ago where he mentioned that uika was the only character who written without a real life inspiration; she’s a person whose whole identity is a mask, her character is more of a concept. and what better way to explore obsession and twistedness and lack of identity and alienation than by having her be the bastard child of a rich man belonging to a rich, powerful family, rejected since birth, living with a sister and a mother and foster father and feeling so different from all of them, obsessing over the legitimate grand daughter of the father who is hiding you like a secret?

the thing is it’s been annoying me how everyone is kinda losing their minds about this reveal when it was 1. hinted at, and 2. uisaki was never a cute wholesome ship lol like just till yesterday the whole fandom was joking about hatsune kidnapping and possibly harming sakiko. does that mean people who were joking about it think that it’s okay irl? i have been in fandom for like over 15 years now and im telling you a few years ago ave mujica would have already been cancelled for having hatsune be yandere-coded. but now toxic yuri is great but only when sanitized and readily available for consumption by as wide an audience as possible (yes im blaming tiktok and capitalism). BUT LIKE. man this show is so good 😭 and the reveal makes sense and was hinted at and it adds depth to the character 😭 and uisaki was always toxic 😭😭 and the show has shown us sakiko is not that comfortable with hatsune’s feelings anyway like 😭😭😭😭😭 AND THE INFORMATION WAS PRESENTED TO THE AUDIENCE TO MAKE US UNCOMFORTABLE!!! to make us go “OH SHIT THIS IS MESSED UP!” SO WHY ARE PEOPLE SO UPSET 😭😭

do i ship uisaki now? personally no, i’m just rly hoping for hatsune and sakiko to have a heart to heart and for sakiko to accept hatsune as family and heal the fucked up shit the togawa’s have going on. have hatsune finally become herself. but it just rubs me the wrong way that people are treating this reveal purely from a shipping perspective and assuming that bc hatsune has this unhealthy attachment to sakiko, then the show was condoning incest like literally no 😭 the past few episodes have been sakiko IGNORING hatsune’s existence and hatsune literally stopped existing in the narrative outside of sakiko’s gaze while sakiko chased after mutsumi 😭😭 PLEASE

i have sm to say about uisaki but this was about fiction so i’ll reiterate: secret third option (media literacy and critical thinking skills) 🥸