#idk honestly this is a lot more complicated than I thought it would be

[serenanymph]

wip intro - beast

A single feather drifts from within the boy's bloodied cloak to the ground, floating, dancing on the wind. Pitch black, stained red, exactly like the ones Crys had seen earlier on the trail. Silence. The world holds its breath, both of them staring at that feather on the ground, a single second stretching out into eternity. “Oh,” the boy says weakly. “Shit.”

GENRE: YA high fantasy

POV: third person, multiple, present tense

STATUS: book 1 on hold (final draft), book 2 ongoing (first draft)

FEATURES:

found family and large casts

queer characters of various flavors + background romance

sarcastic one + ray of sunshine one

chill lesbian + disaster lesbian

undead creatures!!! cool magic!!! shapeshifting!!!

a Journey

discrimination, eventual rebellion, lots of blowing stuff up

telling each other to practice self-care while not practicing self-care

and a protagonist who doesn't really fit the 'hero' or 'chosen one' role

SYNOPSIS:

There are monsters in the woods.

Beasts have been at war with humans for centuries. The children of Katas himself, they are shapeshifters, magic wielders, and the source of the Witchrisen that has been plaguing Kosei since time immemorial.

For Crys Averwell, a human boy from a backwater village, there has never been any reason to doubt the old legends. However, when he stumbles across a wounded crow-boy in the woods whose wings have been brutally hacked off, everything he knows is thrown into question.

On the flip side, Icarus Kal-Nira is wingless, weaponless, and stranded miles and miles away from home, with no way to get back. If he wants to survive, he's going to have to trust Crys.

Quite unfortunately, that's the easy part - because when the entire world hates Beasts, a single ally won't be enough to grant an edge. And as time goes on and threats increase, it's only going to get harder for Crys to hide Icarus's existence from his village...

POV CHARACTERS

Crys Averwell - 16, human, archer. sharp tongue and even sharper wit. walking personification of "I'm fine", needs sleep and therapy but is getting neither because I keep putting him in Situations

Icarus "Ink" Kal-Nira - 17, Beast (Crow), dual-wielder. ray of sunshine and genuinely the nicest person to ever exist. giant golden retriever energy. Trying His Best

Dahlia Reistveil - 17, human, daughter of a tavern-owner. Crys's childhood friend. often seen as the Mature One, but underneath all that she has a boatload of her own Issues

Beatriz Das-Reille - 16, Beast (Crow), Icarus's sort-of-but-not-really-little-sister. fast flier, wields a rapier, and is made up of only anxiety and more anxiety.

taglist (lmk if you want to be +/-): @sapphos-scientist

feel free to browse through the gen tag in which I reblog everything from inspiration to resources, and occasionally actually post something! I'll probably make a proper long page later on and sort out the tagging system, but until then you just get this.

[campbell-rose]

Alastor Redesign

Omg there’s like over 70 people following me – guys I'm o///O flattered and flabbergasted. 

Anyway, onto today’s main event, Alastor. I hate Alastor’s og design, I hate his twig waist and his shoulder pads and the way you can’t see his antlers next to his ears, and his bow tie ugh viv please and his HAIR what even is that??? Not even mentioning that nothing about his design is really like a focal point. There’s no one thing that’s particularly interesting. At least before this he had that cathedral window looking cross on his undershirt that I found interesting. Nothing about his says he’s from the 1930’s other than dialogue. 

I wanted him to be in greyscale because that’s the coolest aesthetic, and colored photos weren’t a thing until way after the 30s. Recently I saw jjk, and Jogo’s teeth threw me because at some points I thought he was just straight up toothless. But then when I started this design, that colored tooth look spoke to me. Initially his teeth were yellow to look gross like he never brushes them, but then I was like ‘ayo wait, he’s literally a cannibal’, thus his vibrant red teeth to really pop against his greyscale. Initially his undershirt was white, but I feel like that was too much contrast and white is typically innocence, so by instead having a deep red it shows he’s just straight up bloodthirsty underneath his formal appearance. I also considered it being black, but then he looked like a pastor, and I wasn’t too much of a fan of it. The idea of the red on his design is that it leads your eye down his design to take it all in, with his face being the focus. I gave him glasses because I like the way it obscures his eyes a bit and I imagine they do the anime thing where they glow and hide his eyes. I liked Viv’s idea of sinners having marks where they died, and I slicked his hair back to show it off very prominently. His antlers are larger, I gave him cute lil deer ears. Also, under his suit he is lowkey buff. I feel like a serial killer should at least look physically capable of taking someone down not whatever the fuck viv’s nasty twig men can do. Like, in that comic with the cute sheep girl, when Alastor goes demon mode his body looks so snappable I just wanna like grab his waist in my hands and break it like a twig. I also tried to keep his design simple as if this were for animation, I know pinstripes are complicated and so are antlers but other than that I tried to keep his design basic. 

If I were to rewrite him based solely on the pilot, I honestly wouldn’t change a thing. Alastor is a decent character, his voice actor gives him life, the radio filter is cool, and nothing he did made me want to break my screen (ANGELDUST). The only thing I'd change would be his position in hell. Like, viv’s hell is so wack and I hate it, she’s got the princes, then the goetia and the overlords and then sinners and blah blah, it’s a lot to keep track of, not even mentioning the rings and circles thing. I think Alastor should have had dealings with hell as a human, maybe he routinely did sacrifices or something, and he made a deal with the archdemon Alastor and when he died like... uuhhhhhhh. Maybe through connections he’s gained more power? Idk, I just know I hate the idea of his dying and then having like the bestest most powerful demon powers despite not being hellborn. It’s got this mary sue stench. I’ll figure it out, maybe, who knows. 

I’m not gonna start rewriting since there’s nothing to go off of and alter yet, so that’s gonna have to wait until the show actually drops before anything concrete happens lol. 

Also the sheep girl is a sinner that reoccurs in the show now so sorry I don’t make the rules, you can’t give me a cute sheep girl and try to take her away, I’m gonna redesign her and shove her into the plot as someone looking for redemption at the hotel

[nekropsii]

what do you see in equius ?? genuine question i don't mean to sound rude but to me she's just really offputting. she gives me such creep vibes that i can't seem to get over and every time i read a page with her it just gets worse..... like when i first read nep & eq's chats i was sitting there wondering if this was outright abuse or at least bullying of some kind??? it felt like it idk.......

but honestly i do wanna see an equius liker's opinion on him because i can't understand it like at all and i'm probably just missing something that all the equius likers saw and i didnt LMAO

Well, considering I’m an Alpha Trolls Enthusiast and have been for, like, a decade, as well as having Horror as a Special Interest since age… What, 3? I’d say I personally have a pretty strong stomach for Weird and Offputting in fiction, lol. Stronger than most. Equius isn’t a very palatable character at all, I’ll be the first to admit that - a lot of the characters I enjoy the most in Homestuck aren’t very palatable… But I find ‘em real interesting, personally. The fact that they aren’t palatable adds to the intrigue for me, and poor execution tends to be a total weakness of mine. Again, Alpha Trolls Enthusiast for a decade straight.

I have a post here that talks a bit about my reading of Equius, I’d recommend giving it a read. I see Eridan and Equius as being very similar characters - not necessarily due to their shared hemoloyalty, but because they’re both teens falling down online pipelines. They’re very prevalent Kinds Of Guy that no one wants to talk about.

But people talk about Eridan plenty even to this day - he was even a fandom favorite for a while, being the fandom’s first Prettyboy Sad Gay Anime Prince long before Dirk… So he doesn’t reel in as much interest for me as the chronically overlooked Equius.

If there’s anything to know about me, it’s that I love a good underdog.

Equius-Likers, from my experience, are very aware of his issues. It’s part of the draw. Enjoyment of him tends to be an analytical fixation. I haven’t met a single Equius-Liker that hasn’t had some very complex thoughts on him. They’re just kinda quiet about it. Fitting.

Unfortunately, I’m Aranea But Real, so. No quietness here.

Your response to Equius is valid. It’s also intended, I feel. To specifically address the bits about concerns of his relationship with Nepeta not being healthy… I mean, it’s not abusive, but it’s definitely more complicated than fan art would lead you to believe, as always. “Complicated” is to be expected from a Moirallegiance - remember what they exist for?

Nepeta is very much so in control of the things going on, and their relationship is pretty equal, all things considered, so I wouldn’t be worrying too much about that. She very distinctly does not lack agency here - Nepeta is the one who has a leash on Equius, not the other way around. Equius is mean, because that’s the way she is to… Everyone, more or less, but she’s not of any danger to Nepeta. They have a fine Moirallegiance. 1,000% more functional than whatever the fuck Karkat and Gamzee had going on.

Anyway. I think Equius is neat, and has both missed and oft overlooked potential. One of the very few characters I’d be 100% down to have seen more content of in the comic.

Once again, check out this post. I still think it’s decent. Maybe you will, too.

[incorrect-spideytorch]

So, I’ve been thinking a lot about spideytorch lately (as I am one to do) and a question popped into my head:

What is the most important spideytorch comic panel?

There’s a ton of great options in my opinion, but I think there also is an answer (at least for me) so now I am going to subject all of you to my thought process. Get ready for a way to long post breaking this down.

The most obvious starting point has to be this classic

Johnny Storm is going full house husband for Peter Parker, I mean c’mon! add in the fact that he’s in his undies and the way that he’s leaning over peter… yeah this is a classic. This might be the most famous spideytorch panel out there, but I don’t think it’s the most important one.

Another classic (but more antagonistic?) one takes place, of course, at the usual place.

To me this is peak identity shenanigans and the stuff that fanfics are made of. The betrayal, the heartbreak, the complications that go into the conflicting way these two view identity, oh boy I could talk about that shit for hours, but as an individual moment, it doesn’t really crack most important for me, it needs a bit more affection (they’re very bad at affection sometimes).

Another panel that came to mind very quickly for me is this set.

Johnny literally only had to say his name and Peter knew exactly what he meant and what he needed. This is top tier levels of communication, both between them and from the creators to us. I think this is another one that I could talk about for hours. That being said, it doesn’t feel important enough to me.

A friend in the spideytorch discord server posed this panel as the most important spideytorch moment in the comics.

I’m just gonna put their quote in cause it’s great. “I think this is one of my favorite panels cause Johnny was just speaking generally and Peter was like ‘oh my god! Actual wise words form johnny’ but also, I love that this was a more important moment for Peter than Johnny.” I must say, this entry is extremely important to spideytorch and gave my choice a run for its money. I don’t have a huge reason for not making this one the most important, other than personal taste. For their relationship, this is a key moment and sets them on the path to actually being friends (at least on Peter’s end), but idk it just wasn’t doing it for me.

Another panel I was reminded of thanks to this submission was this moment.

It’s not quite as impactful as the past one by a long shot but I do think it’s important. After being rivals for so long, to see Johnny give a genuine heartfelt compliment to Peter is fantastic (haha). This feels like the other half of the previous set of panels. There we had Johnny encouraging a stranger and here he’s encouraging his friend.

Some other friends in the discord server suggested the moment that Johnny invites Peter over to watch his sex tape (yes this is canon).

(Not pictured, Peter swinging away and saying he needs to take a cold shower). Now I’m not saying that the most important spideytorch moment needs to be serious, but I think this moment might be too unserious to claim that title. This moment was huge for the fanbase because holy shit did, he actually say that, but for their relationship, I just don’t think it was as important as it was to us.

Now I do want to knock out a few honorable mentions that I would hate to miss.

First, this look given to Spidey by Johnny, I mean yeah, he’s in love.

And to balance the lovesick flirty scales I must expose Peter as well.

Next, this heartbreaking moment that basically admits to the audience that Peter’s world becomes chaos when he loses Johnny. That shit hits.

Of course, the moment that gave us the ship name.

A panel that lives in my head rent-free because honestly marvel what were you attempting to convey here other than the fact that Peter really wants to have hate sex with Johnny Storm?

To take us outside of our duo, this quote from Ben Grimm (EDIT: it’s was Peter’s clone Ben Reilly, which honestly only adds more drama), because honestly same.

And of course, I have to include the panel which showed us the first time (on page) that Peter told Johnny he loved him AND gave us canon proof that these two have “date night,” many a fic writer was fed well.

And how could we forget! THE USUAL PLACE! Literally any panel mentioning this is top tier because its so good, like the core of the fandom honestly.

Lastly, before moving on to my own more serious contenders I have to share this parallel that @sciderman shared because I love it.

Now to my serious contenders for the title of most important spideytorch panel (please remember this is all my opinion and I mean no shade). This will be a top 5, but just know some of these rankings are pretty flexible (even flexible with some panels from the beginning), and this question should not be taken as seriously as I am taking it, I am fully aware of that.

Number 5!

So, I know that I discounted the sex tape scene earlier because I didn’t think it was serious enough and it didn’t do enough for their actual relationship, but I had to include this one I’m sorry. A lot of this is personal taste but the implications here are *chefs kiss* The first time I saw this panel was actually on Pinterest with the caption “wait a second, did spider-man and the human torch have sex?” which says it all for me.

Beyond that, this moment also shows how they reach out to each other when they have problems. Strange children show up in Peter’s life and the first person he calls about it is Johnny. Again, this is not the most serious, but I love it. This moment shows the banter of their relationship, how they care about and rely on each other, and also potentially reveals that they’ve had sex. There’s a lot to take in.

Number 4!

I will be honest with you all, this moment is here almost entirely because Ben’s quote lives in my head rent-free. Everyone around them sees how they feel about each other besides them. When they were rivals others could tell they actually liked each other and when they became friends others could tell that it was deeper than that. I think I especially love this panel because it conforms that we’re not crazy for thinking there’s something there but also because Ben specifically cites the way Johnny looks at peter. That is very specific and says a lot. I can’t imagine Ben would say this if the looks Johnny gave Peter were purely platonic, and just ahhhh, there’s so much said here just in one line from Ben. There was of course the Ben moment earlier, which I also love, but something about this one, the more specific phrasing of it I think just shoots it up my rankings a lot.

Number 3!

If you’ve been following me for a while I don’t think this is a surprise at all, I have already done a very in depth post about this panel so I’ll keep my thoughts brief. Red Skull knows that hurting Johnny will hurt Peter, Peter’s Spidey senses go off FOR JOHNNY, and we are given so much angst potential, I love it.

Number 2!

This one is probably a more popular choice than my number one, and I totally get it. The excitement and joy bursting out of Peter when he finally realizes that Johnny is here, he’s real, and he’s alive really gets me. Plus, the added context to the uniform comment being that Johnny literally left Peter his family and his spot on the team in his will. The amount of pure love in this moment and its larger context is abundant, platonic or romantic, it’s there. I feel like everything I could say about this panel has probably been said before, but it is definitely worthy of being the most important spideytorch moment, even if I have one that beats it for me.

Number 1!

For those of you who don’t know, this panel comes from Peter visiting Gwen’s grave and talking to her. That fact alone breaks me in half but then the things he says to her shatter me. Every spider-man fan knows how much Gwen’s death broke Peter, it destroyed him to lose her. Just the fact that Peter admits Johnny brings part of him back is amazing (haha) because that is a hug feat. But then he shatters me even more with his final sentences. After Gwen’s death, we often get a peter who spends too much time as Spidey in order to avoid having to cope with Gwen’s death as Peter, but also as a way to cope with the loss (he’s a complicate man). Spideypool also gets a lot from that arc because of Wade’s reaction to Spider-Man not holding back as much and becoming less of a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, and that’s true. The fact that Peter feels like he’s becoming who Spidey is supposed to be again when he’s around johnny is huge! But then! He corrects himself. He’s not Spidey again, he’s Peter. The real person, the man behind the mask, comes back. And then you get the final correction. He’s not just peter again, he’s *Gwen’s* peter again. He is the him that existed with Gwen when he’s with Johnny. That speaks volumes and breaks whatever parts of me are left. How am I expected to read this and not think that Johnny and Peter are soulmates?

Now, I will acknowledge that this is much more of a peter moment than a joint spideytorch moment, much like the moment suggested by discord friend earlier. If that disqualifies it for you as the most important spideytorch panel, I get it. However, for me that doesn’t matter mainly for one key reason. So many classic spideytorch moments show a lot of Johnny having feelings for Peter or making a move on Peter. There have been a lot of times when I’m trying to get a friend into spideytorch, and I feel like I have to clarify that its not as one sided as it seems. Johnny is much more out there with who he is and doesn’t hide his feelings very well (except maybe from himself). So, when we get any spideytorch moment that hones in on peter’s feelings and love for Johnny, that feels so huge to me. This moment alone proves that it isn’t one sided, Peter has deep feelings for Johnny, even if he’s not sure what they are yet, he knows that what they have is special, he wouldn’t be telling Gwen about it otherwise. While it may not be as famous of a spideytorch moment, its an important one, and for me it’s probably the most important one.

Anyway, this has been a way too long post about this topic but if you made it to the end thank you so much! I would love to hear other people’s thoughts on this topic so feel free to share those. Also, just a reminder that these are my opinions, and I am not in charge at all so don’t take it too seriously (unless you want to).

If you’re interested in hearing me, go more in depth on any of these panels (or any other spideytorch panels) shoot me an ask because I could honestly talk in depth for a while about most of these panels and I would love to do so. Thank you again for reading this way to long post and good night spideytorch nation.

[ddlcbrainrot]

i’m just saying more people should make use of the angst factory that is sayori’s and mc’s friendship

Imagine you have a childhood best friend that you’ve lost touch with, and suddenly you two start hanging out again. You two start spending a lot of time together again, and things are like nothing has changed between you. All that time apart was not enough to strain your friendship, and you think to yourself “ wow even after all this time she still is the same sweet girl i’ve always known”.

Only for you to find out that she’s actually been suffering for as long as you’ve known her. And you didn’t realise a single thing until it was too late.

All the mixed emotions of concern for your friend, guilt of your ignorance (you’ve known her for forever, how couldn’t you tell?) but also the realisation that the person you’ve thought you knew better than anyone was more or less a facade. Now, i’m not saying that Sayori’s cheery personality is all fake, but i imagine MC would have to question where the facade starts and where it ends (did he even know her at all?).

All this and i’ve still haven’t said anything about Sayori’s POV of their friendship, which is just as - if not more - angst inducing.

I think the key factor to understand Sayori’s POV is the word indirect. Because most of the hurt she experiences from MC’s actions is in fact indirect. Even in the game she talks about how his actions were not actively malicious, but they indirectly caused her pain. And yeah, it is because of her feelings for him, but even if we ignore that their friendship alone still caused her indirect pain.

I see a lot of people be like “MC is so mean to her in their base game” which honestly? have you ever been in a long term friendship? idk if it’s just me but the way they interacted seemed like how any childhood friends would. Because no matter how mean your childhood friend is to you, you know they don’t mean any actual malice. It’s basic logic that the person who has been with you since childhood doesn’t actually think of you as just some dumb clutz. But depression isn’t logical. And that’s exactly why Sayori is actually affected by what on any other circumstance would be playful teasing between lifelong friends. It’s actually an issue that, while complicated, could easily be addressed if Sayori communicated to MC her feelings on the matter. But since Sayori is so focused to keeping things the same, how they’ve always been so he doesn’t worry, she doesn’t voice this at all.

I’d like to add that even though Sayori goes out of her way to make sure MC doesn’t find out about her depression, there must also be a part of her that is hurt by his lack of knowledge on the matter. MC in act 1 repeatedly says he knows Sayori better than anyone. Imagine you are Sayori, your friend insists he knows you, fully knows you, and yet he can’t seem to notice this very vital part of you. Again, he is hurting her indirectly, and frankly because Sayori is herself keeping this part of her hidden. It’s a double edged sword, really.

When Sayori does tell MC about her depression however, MC quite frankly responds in a pretty bad way.

I don’t think i need to explain how his response isn’t at all what you should say, i think enough people have done so already. But i will say it makes sense for him to respond that way. I think a lot of people, especially people who are online, have seen so many post or videos about how to handle these kind of situations, so it’s easy to forget that not everyone is that well educated on the subject of mental health (and it makes even more sense for MC in particular to be so clueless on the subject, since men’s knowledge on mental health is literally non existent bc of society’s own view of men as emotionless, but that’s a rant for another time). I think he reacts as a normal teenage guy would tbh. And that is he says the wrong thing.

And as he finds Sayori in the end of act 1, since he doesn’t know of Monika’s influence, he thinks his ignorance costs his best friend’s life.

[butch-reidentified]

do you think it’s possible for a lesbian to be somewhat attracted to a trans woman (who passes well) if the only place she sees the tw is online/in videos/in pictures? i’m gender critical and i believe attraction is based on sex, but if somebody strongly resembles the same sex and you’re only seeing them from a physical distance, wouldn’t it make sense for somebody attracted to that sex to be able to find them attractive? (not referring to pursuing a relationship with them)

its almost 4am at the end of a long work week, and I'm still recovering from covid, so I hope this is coherent lmao

ik this will be controversial but I urge people to really mull over this before reacting in anger, though I really do understand the impulse:

honestly, as a (former) neuroscience researcher and someone still deeply passionate about neuroscience who likes to read neuroscience journal articles in her spare time... I think it's fucking complicated and there's a bit of intellectual dishonesty on both sides. the TRA side claims you can (only!) be attracted to someone's internal identity or ~gender feelings~ while the gc side claims that there is NO circumstance in which a person could pass well enough as the opposite sex to be perceived as attractive by someone whose orientation includes that "passing" sex.

and yet, I've had the experience of being at an lgbt bar or club and seeing someone I thought was a cute masc woman initially, only to realize it was an androgynous or slightly effeminate-appearing gay man - and many many lesbians I've told this to have shared similar experiences with me. I know a male transitioner online who is really cool and calls himself a eunuch rather than a woman or anything, and while I don't find him attractive, I have to admit that in the ~100ish photos I've seen of him (incl many candid full body ones taken by other people), I've not been able to "clock" any distinct male characteristics. maybe that would be different in person, but we live on totally different continents so idk.

I've known a TON of trans people irl, likely far more than most people on radblr or anywhere. this is partly because Florida has the second highest # of trans people in the country, and partly bc of where I went to college, and partly because my life is just strange like that. but I'll admit I've known a couple mt"f"-transitioned folks who I truly had no idea were male for quite some time - physically or behaviorally.

the reality is that your brain only knows what it perceives, and if it perceives a male as a female without your knowledge, and your orientation includes females, then it could be possible to feel attraction. however, I'm preeetty damn sure that would not persist beyond learning that person's sex is male, at which point you'd probably suddenly start noticing whatever male traits you were able to overlook initially. but I don't think it makes rational sense to claim that it's never possible to experience "mistaken" attraction for a period of time. there are known cases of historical women who lived as men who were flirted with by straight women who believed them to be male, for instance.

this is one of those situations where the truth (what I've said above) could be twisted and deliberately misinterpreted by the opposing party, which I believe to be why so few, if any, are willing to acknowledge this. but it's a question I've pondered a lot and this is the only logical conclusion I've reached. and it simply is not rational for anyone to act like anything I've said here implies that homosexuals can/should be open to dating/sleeping with the opposite sex. anyone who could come to that conclusion from this response needs a seriously intensive review of reading comprehension.

like I said I'm not fully awake so I'm sure I could have made my points here more clearly and I'm sure I'll get retaliation from people who want to nitpick my wording or whatever, like usual, but o well.

[mugentakeda]

thoughts on Zhao ? are u as shocked as I am that Iroh never ended up killing him with his own bare hands ? do u think he was bummed he never got to ?

HONESTLY?!!!!! we have a complicated relationship. i really like zhao as a villain and i say that so very honestly. i think people make him out to be a lot stupider than he really is but at the same time he really is stupid in the way that evil men are always stupid. i think hes extremely despicable and hideously vain and his vanity clouds his judgement and causes him to make rash decisions.

this is all stuff we know about him already though its just that somehow that makes him come off as less scary to fans somehow?? but theres nothing scarier than a big loud man with a temper when youre a teenager with trauma from a dad like ozai. that agitation he so easily draws out of zuko is familiar to me.

i think that the way he makes himself seem SOOO above zuko while simultaneously licking ozais boots to get more power makes him even more ridiculous. and in an ironic way yeah because of all that i think hes a moron but unironically no i dont think hes stupid at all. it doesnt take a stupid man to work your way through the viper nest thats the fire nation high court. i dont think it takes an idiot to find wan shi tongs library and somehow manage to slither back out alive despite clearly lying to wan shi tongs face under his own roof. i dont think it takes an idiot to deduce who the blue spirit is. however it DOES take an idiot to think that killing the moon spirit to be rid of waterbenders when you come from a literal island nation in the tropics and your military relies heavily on its navy and you LITERALLY are using an armada to launch this grand attack

but then however comma yeah i do honestly agree with the popular vote that him going out of his way to harass and intimidate zuko is very slimy and strange and based on zukos immediate attempt at evading him this is something that has been going on for a While and the fact that iroh didnt notice or whatever really bothered me. Maybe its just because im an older sibling and i take that shit serious whenever kids are discomforted in the presence of specific adults (specific Men really) but whatever. i honestly doubt bryke wrote zhao with #that kind of weirdness in mind but that doesnt change the fact that hes a slimeball and iroh shouldve mollywhopped him right in his fat forehead. thats just what i personally wouldve done though like idk. like he is definitely the kind of adult i would keep a specific eye on because bitch!!!! hes just very unusual as hell and when youre a guardian looking after a kid then you need to keep an eye out for shit like that seriously

(one day ill make a post discussing how much more at ease zuko is in the presence of only women btw. One Day.)

and yes i DO wish that we got a missing scene or whatever with iroh and zuko after zhao Literally blew zuko and his whole ship and everything he owns up. like do you know how infuriating that is. waited until iroh and the crew were down the road to get zuko alone in his fucking pjs. a whole group of grown ass pirates doing all that with bombs for revenge over one bratty 16 yr old. i DO wish we saw some of irohs rage during the siege bleed back and forth from "anger over the moon spirit being killed" and "anger over you also nearly killing my fucking nephew" just as well anon.

and the fact that zhaos ambitions were centered on making himself more powerful and admired and he was doing literally everything to get zuko out of the way to make that happen when zukos reasons for capturing aang were so much more desperate and sad (not that that makes it ok but yall know what i mean). Like its just sooo aggravating and thats when i stop caring about how cool Zhao The Conqueror is as a villain and when i start wanting to pummel him with a cartoonishly large hammer

[bingoboingobongo]

141 reacting to their s/o getting out of danger like Jack Sparrow. All flailing arms and convoluted escape plans that just seem to work. I watched Pirates recently and I thought it'd be funny.

task force 141 + jack sparrow!reader

Characters: Simon "Ghost" Riley, John "Soap" MacTavish, Kyle "Gaz" Garrick, John Price, Alejandro Vargas, Rodolfo "Rudy" Parra

Warnings: none

A/N: i realize now that we have completely given up on the holiday theme but oh well christmas passed anyways

simon "ghost" riley:

alright so the first time ghost was assigned to work with you he wasn't really sure what to expect

of course he had heard whispers around base about you're um.. out of the box approach to escapes and he wasn't exactly sure how to feel about it

part of him was assuming (and low-key praying) that they were nothing more than rumors that way he wouldn't have an extra thing to worry about and part of him kind of wanted it to be true because he was curious about how it would play out

that being said he's honestly just hoping you don't get into a situation where you have to pull out one of your infamous jack sparrow-esque plans

because of course that would mean that something has gone horribly wrong

that being said it is the military and so of course something goes terribly wrong

somehow you manage to get separated from the group and taken by enemy forces

which means that now ghost has to go rescue you

however you can imagine his surprise when he's on the way to sneak into the base and hears what can only be described as pure chaos going on

there's like twenty different fires going on and a lot of gunfire in what should have been a peaceful base

and in the midst of it all is you sprinting towards him, an insane but also vaguely panicked grin on your face as you flail your arms at him in an attempt to signal for him to run the other way

you manage to hotwire a car and drive out of there and meanwhile ghost is sitting in the passenger side super confused about what happened

once you're safe you explain to him what happened

along with your escape plan which you think is twenty layers of genius and he thinks is way too complicated and easily could have been cut down to like three steps

that being said it obviously worked and after that point ghost wasn't too worried about your little self-contained movie escape plans

he trusts that you'll figure out a way to escape safely and as long as the mission isn't affected he's fine

john "soap" mactavish:

alright so i can see soap as being a big fan of pirates of the caribbean so obviously he's gonna be a big fan of your whacky plans

it doesn't take him long to figure out the connection and when he does he definitely uses it to give you a new nickname

like sparrow or smthing like that (idk man i haven't watched the films)

that being said he's only ever heard about your methods through stories

either from you or from others

which is why when the two of you are stuck in an enemy base together he can't help but be more excited than scared

i wouldn't be surprised if he already has a plan of his own ready to fall back on in an emergency

but he definitely wouldn't say anything so he can be a part of your misadventures

and he's absolutely shaking with excitement as you explain it to him

obviously when it gets down to it not much goes to plan and it ends up being mostly panicked improv

but that's honestly fine with him and he thinks it's more fun that way anyways

afterwards he won't stop raving about it and how fun it was too

even if he sustained more than a few injuries because of it

kyle "gaz" garrick:

alright so honestly kyle doesn't know how to feel about your escape plan antics

on one hand the military side of him is saying "no do things as simple as possible" but also he loves hearing the sound of your voice, especially when it's filled with so much passion and excitement like it is when you tell him your escape stories

the thing is your escapes usually end up with you in the infirmary for quite a while when you return and he's not so much of a fan of that

but he is a fan of spending the day talking and laughing with you as you wait to be released

so yeah it's a pretty mixed bag of emotions

ig in the end he's happy that your plans make you happy, but he wouldn't ever partake in one

and it's no offense to you or anything but he just doesn't want to take the unnecessary risk

that being said he admires the way you manage to get yourself out of even the stickiest of scenarios through your little schemes

and one of the things he loves about you is your smarts

even if you utilize them in questionable ways

john price:

alright so im sorry but price definitely despises your little escapades

i mean mans is old he has had enough of this in his younger years

also he's a military captain so his job is to take care of his soldiers

so seeing you pull out your little plans with all their extra side quests and questionable steps makes his poor old man heart beat a little too fast for his liking

i mean honestly his top priority is your safety

and so he isn't necessarily the biggest fan of you taking unnecessary risks

also everytime you do it you pretty much give him a mini heart attack

he'll always try and get you to reconsider a simpler plan even though he knows you'll most likely stick with your original one

but what can i say he needs to do his due diligence

he's always praying that you make it out safe though

also if you're ever in a situation where you're stuck with him and need to escape just know that he absolutely will not allow you to pull up with some crazy convoluted plan

alejandro vargas:

alright so alejandro is sorta a mix of ghost and price

like on one hand he is a leader and he needs to reduce risk which isn't usually the same goal as your plans

but on the other hand he's been working with you long enough to know that you can usually handle yourself

usually he'll try and advise you to go with the simplest route possible

but he also won't go out of his way to convince you to do things his way either

he knows what you're capable of and as long as you walk him through your plan whenever possible he trusts that you can pull it off

he's usually there to make sure nothing goes to awry though

and if things do start to get hairy he's quick to intervene and make sure you're safe and sound

because like price safety is the biggest thing that he worries about with your plans

rodolfo "rudy" parra:

alright so honestly rudy loves your plans

like he treats you like you're some legend and he'll have you tell him all about the adventures you've gone on while trying to escape

and he's also your biggest supporter because he'll go around telling your stories to everyone else

remember those whispers ghost heard about you?

yeah those came from rudy

(also ignore the logistics of that obviously it would be weird bc you'd be with rudy and ghost but maybe it's not weird for you idk man)

all that matters is that rudy is there for you and he will sing your praises

that being said if he's watching you enact a plan in real time he can get sorta stressed

it's sorta like watching a car crash but not in a horrific sorta way

it's like watching you and not doing anything is stressing him out big time but also he's so curious to see how it plays out he won't move unless you're like about to die

okay maybe the car crash metaphor doesn't make sense idk

but basically you're sorta like a legend to rudy

[mobblespsycho100]

Spoilers for dungeon meshi manga from chapter 45 and onwards,,

I've been thinking about a hypothetical scenario/alternate timeline where Kabru somehow becomes the dungeon lord and how that would work out. This is all just my silly lil thoughts, feel free to add on / give feedback and such because I'm honestly rotating this idea in my mind now

Since his main goal is "to prevent a tragedy like Utaya from ever happening again" I would think he would do a good job of sealing the monsters at first, maybe the layout of the dungeon would become like the early levels of maturity for dungeons.

Easy monsters at the top levels, more dangerous ones at lower levels. Though the entrance might be harder to traverse also, because he would want it to be difficult for the monsters to escape and spill out of the dungeon which would inadvertently make it so that adventurers would have a hard time going inside the dungeon and raiding it in the first place. Which does feel contradictory, because that would mean people would have a harder time conquering and defeating the dungeon, but it would also be in line with what he wants kind of.

But then there comes the question of his inner / subconscious desires , or the more complex desire that he wants short-lived races or even more specifically Tallmen... or even more specifically Laios, to be the one to conquer the dungeon (he doesn't want the elves/Canaries to interfere and take over because they just keep short-lived races in the dark...). What if since the demon grants even subconscious desires, it kind of backfires and the monsters end up becoming too difficult for most people other than Laios to beat. Like what if they kept reviving unless you were to cook them and eat them. that would be a bit fucked up I think

An even more angsty option could be the demon / winged lion trying to trap Kabru in his own mind or like create this perfect reality where Utaya still exists, Kabru's birth mom is still alive. And I don't think Kabru would be easily manipulated but if it becomes like this really realistic fantasy where everyone's still alive and thrives and he might go a bit mad from the pressure and end up making the dungeon layout even more complicated and dangerous to protect fake Utaya... or maybe not. but . most of this is just me thinking out loud.

I think Kabru's strength mentally is really good but he also gets pressured and stressed pretty quickly when lots of stuff starts happening. and it doesn't help that his knowledge on monsters/defeating them isn't as great as Laios either so ... he might end up making monsters more similar to people than anything. which would be contradicting my previous point of him accidentally making it so that only Laios can beat the monsters with relative ease... but again I am just spitballing ideas here so

yeah. idk how to end this post. theres probably other posts that explain this kind of hypothetical/au in more detail but I just thought it'd be a neat and interesting thought exercise

[pashminalamb]

So when I said a ditzy girl for Sae I meant someone clumsy and dense! I feel like a lot if what I’ve read is a more sound person but I want someone that bugs him and he’s annoyed with But still falls for & it irks him that she’s so oblivious? Basically someone he falls for first! I love the other ideas you’ve picked for him too. I would LOOVE a false south sequel honestly, idk what would come after and if he’ll miss her but I’ll literally eat up anything :p I HAVE MORE IDEAS FOR SAE TOO LOL

Omg sorry for the third note lol but I had an idea for a prompt with Sae: 1. Accidental pregnancy - I know he’s too careful for this but still I wana see how he’s react. 2. A divorce with Sae - you tried but he hasn’t changed and it’s time to end the marriage .. maybe they have a kid to complicate things? 3. Childhood friends Sae had a thing for but bc of the falling out with Rin, she’s disgusted by him - basically unrequited on Sae’s end. Ok that is all for now LOL

Sae is arrogant as he is rational, and sometimes he would find your behavior illogical, wondering why you were smiling around him or why your expression broke from being serious to a lovesick little puppy when he came into your sight. It doesn't make sense for someone to be so happy around someone else, not to mention your rushed actions that seemed rash and done without a thought. There were times when you frustrated him, test tube slipping out of hand and falling to the floor or days where you'd forget your pencil case or notes, wanting to borrow things from him instead. Going on car rides annoyed him when you sang the lyrics all wrong and wondered if anyone had ever told you about your voice cracking or the fact that your words sounded similar to gibberish than the lyrics that were written and released. His actions soon turned loving, a passive expression on his face yet hand moving to place the seatbelt across your torso when you forgot about it; placing your order at a coffee shop, remembering the things you were allergic to and watching the barista make your beverage, his sight not moving an inch. his actions are subtle but caring, while you were oblivious a cheerful "thank you" coming from your lips as you took the coffee from him, the milk foam making a mustache. "Is there something on my face?" you asked, watching him stare at your lips intently. leaning forward from his laid back position he grabbed a tissue, one hand holding your face while the other wiped away the remains on your upper lip. "Can't take a ditz like you in public or anywhere." he muttered, making you pout. Yet, he still remembered your coffee order and held your hand to cross crowded roads. 1. Accidental pregnancy - Sae would take responsibility for it, understanding that it took two to tango and he was responsible just as much as you were; first tries to calm you down when you begin to panic and cry, shushing you while caressing your head while rocking you back and forth. He'd be distant at first since pregnancy and child birth are new concepts to him, but knows that it is totally worth it when he feels the squeeze of his baby around his finger; realizing that he was ready to sacrifice things he hadn't ever thought of for the sake of the little one in his arms. he'd be a good dad tbh 2. Divorce with Sae - He treats it like a joke when you bring it up, brushing it off his shoulder with a 'Mhm Hm... you'll be here in the morning anyway-" Until it wasn't when your things were missing in the house including the keys to your car that were on the table. He tries calling you to fix things but you don't knowing that things would be the same and he would never change. Signing the divorce papers is something he is reluctant to do, not wanting to put you out his life until you showed up, standing with a clenched jaw. 'It is not working out, Sae.' 'I have tried to provide with you with everything you want and need, yet it is always you, you and you. My life in line for your career. I can support you, but I won't give any more of my life for something that you're obsessed with.' After signing the divorce papers, he still visits the building where you have your new life, staring into the dimly windows of your house; sometimes even coming to your workplace during the day but always turning to leave when the lady at the reception called out to him, asking if he wanted to visit you. 'No thanks.' is all he would say, opening the glass doors to leave

3. Childhood friends falling out - You were there the night Sae had shattered Rin's dreams, watching them in the playground. There were times when you thought if your decision for cutting off ties with him were done on an impulse. 'How could you say that to him? Do you know how hard he has been working to make you look at him?' you yelled, each word becoming louder than the last. 'With that kind of hard work, he belongs in a fucking third grade football team. With what he has shown during the time I have been gone, he doesn't deserve to set foot on the world field. If there were other players here, he would be crushed; consider it a blessing that I did it for him.' he said simply, turning his back to you. 'You are not the same.' you said, voice turning into a whisper. There were times when you had accompanied the duo, watching them play and sometimes keeping up with them a smile on their faces still burnt into your memory. 'People change. Yet the two of you have remained the same.' he said. 'Pathetic.'

Venomous words were exchanged that day, neither did the two of you do anything to repair it; your bond deteriorating day after day until you had become strangers. It wasn't until one day when you had been assigned to interview him that the two of you had seen each other again. Trying to take as much of a relaxed position as possible, you finished the questionnaire, grabbing your things to leave. "Thank you for your time, Mister Itoshi." you said, turning to leave when he caught hold of the sleeve of your coat. "Coffee." he said, eyes trained on your quizzical expression. "Let me take you out for one." he said. Despite time, it was easy to tell that this wasn't going to be ordinary outing but one where you would skip time and know everything about him, learning to understand, accept, forgive and forget. One evening... where you would no longer be strangers.

[goldrushenthusiast]

I’m gonna be honest, while TSATS was very fulfilling in terms of Solangelo, I feel like it kind of disappointed in…everything else?

Like I had so many hopes for this book! And while that may be a factor as to why it was a let down, I’m still gonna share them.

More Lester/Apollo content! More anyone else content!! We did get a small snippet of letting us know he’s ok (I think) but it would’ve been nice to have more of him, especially considering the prophecy mess and his own complicated relationship with Will. I felt like there were a lot of golden opportunities to at least mention him and the impact it all had on Will that weren’t taken advantage of.

More revenge, or commentary, on what happened to Nico with Cupid. Now, what we did get is ok, and I’m not criticizing that, but that kind of thing can really mess a person up. The fact Nico didn’t tell Will about it, and the fact that that whole thing was just…another part of his trauma? I’m not sure how to put it, but it seemed blander than it should have been.

More other ghost content! For heavens sakes, they’re in the underworld! I get the whole thing with not being spotted by Hades, but come on. Nothing about Jason’s ghost, that weird thing with Bianca (which is saved for #4), or an opportunity for anyone else who’d previously died was used. How cool would it be to see Micheal Yew’s ghost, and how that would help Will? It’d be great, and it felt like the underworld was just another place when it would have been better if they thought about the fact people they knew that were now dead there, were there.

BIANCA!!! BIANCA, BIANCA, BIANCA! I thought the whole grey part that Rick advertised, or at least part of it, would have been about Nico’s time in the labyrinth and Bianca’s death. It wasn’t. That’s kind of it for how I wished Rick would have shared more about her death and how it affected Nico, but now the whole ghost-remanent thing. Honestly, it was kind of weird. I liked the idea, I thought it was nice, but also, it was kind of weird. I just didn’t like it.

Other campers? I get that they had to wait a while to go to Tartarus, but we barely got to see any of their normal life at Camp Half Blood. We didn’t get to check in on Drew, or Meg, or anyone else from any of the series besides Will’s siblings. I thought it was kind of a letdown tbh.

Last one, and the most unrealistic, I thought it would have been cool to either touch on the fact that other religions exist and have Nico and Will meet Alex and Magnus. Not just because both relationships are queer, but kind of because, but also because we don’t know much about them now. Idk. I just hoped for other characters from other series, ig.

Anywho, sorry if this was so negative! I still liked the book a lot, but I just wish there was more. Of everything. As always, feel free to debate in the comments, or remind me of things I’m forgetting that would have helped.

[mollysunder]

Jinx's Maybe New Gun is Weird

Jinx is likely due for one more weapon upgrade. Where she turns in her gun for the Zapper Gun. In the context of Arcane, Jinx's Zapper Gun is an interesting weapon. It's a shock pistol with a nice hex crystal at the front that STUNS enemy combatants rather than shooting them with the gun she has during the first season. A gun that straightforwardly just kills people (and birds). And I'm just like... why?

I can understand that she could lose the pistol she has in the next season (Hell, Legends of Runeterra is hinting at it. The alt text for this card says: "Okay, okay, this may only work once, but trust me, it’s gonna be a blast!" - Jinx). But she chooses to replace it with a fancy stun gun? Jinx is a gunsmith, she makes her own weapons, so if she lost her regular gun, why would she make a more complicated and significantly less lethal (unless you have a heart condition) weapon? It's not like Jinx is afraid to kill or hurt people. Which makes the Zapper gun such a weird and deliberate choice, and the biggest question before the new season starts really is why.

It'd be easy to just assume maybe it's a desperate short notice weapon she made on the fly when she's on a lot of people's shit lists and needs to make moves. But again, the Zap gun's more complicated and frankly more delicate to make, so she'd need time and space for it, which she won't have a lot of. So what's with the restraint?

My first thought was that Sevika got to her and put her on a strict leash to do specific missions next season and Sevika wanted to reduce the chance of friendly fire. But that would require Sevika to actually control Jinx in some way which is unlikely. No one in the show can make Jinx do anything, you can't really threaten her, and to just force her means you need to be able to have enough expendable resources to ATTEMPT to threaten her with violence, and Jinx doesn't have a healthy fear of death, so really, she has to want to do it.

Could it have been through an shaky team up with Ekko to sabotage Piltover in the coming conflict? Ekko doesn't immediately go for throat like she does, so maybe it was a compromise to reduce the potential kill count. But Ekko would have to be desperate to work with Jinx. Sure they shared a moment on the bridge, but his crew would literally need to all be dead before they let her in. Ekko would NEED to be in dire straits to temporarily work past the harm she caused him and his people.

Maybe Singed offer her refuge, maybe along with Viktor? It's one of the more far fetched thoughts. Singed isn't very compassionate, but he isn't a sadist either, he's more intensely apathetic to the world outside of his work. Maybe he takes an interest in the way the Shimmer experiment affected her physiology and wants to keep her alive to observe her. Watch how the mutation survives through her maybe.

My most far fetched idea would be she creates the Zapper Gun for Warwick. Jinx has already killed enough of her family and she doesn't want to kill her dad that came back to life, no matter how monstrous he is. Maybe Jinx would want to only incapacitate Warwick till she can get him somewhere safe with her but not only won't he calm down but the scent of blood drives his anger and bloodlust. Jinx could be trying to reduce remove any chance stimulating his bloodlust.

These are all shots in the dark honestly, maybe her electric gun with be fantasy weapon extra deadlier than a normal sufficient gun, idk.

[curatoroffiction]

Hi! Idk if you still write about Obey Me! Characters anymore or not but I just read your fic about Mc on their monthly and I absolutely fell in LOVE with it! I was wondering if you could do one where Mammon kind of takes care of Mc while they’re pregnant? I just think it would be a cute idea to see Mammon go into devoted partner/parent mode :)

I actively write for Obey Me and Twisted Wonderland, actually! Thank you for asking!

If you're ever wondering what my status is for taking requests, you can find my status updated on my "Masterlist/Rules" post, which is pinned on my blog. I've now added a link that I'll keep updated on the latest posts I make for that status. Also, I've done a few AFAB pieces recently, but I also am comfortable doing AMAB pieces as well if any readers are curious!

That being said, I hope you enjoy this! It was a little more outside my wheelhouse, but I wanted to make it fun and engaging as much as I wanted to make it comforting and heartwarming. It falls a little outside your request, but it sparked a muse and I ran with it.

Content Warnings:

AFAB Reader

Gender Neutral Reader

Pregnancy

Established romance with Mammon

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "So what's this gonna be like?" Mammon, arms wrapped around your shoulders, looks to Solomon from over your shoulder.

As the resident expert on humans and demons, and having an extensive history of oddjobs, many of which were medical, Solomon made the most adept medical professional for your current situation. You and Mammon have decided to start a family together. That doesn't come without its own complications, but Solomon made it easier.

It also helped that he helped you fuck with Mammon a lot.

"Well, as the baby grows inside of me, it'll eventually start growing a brain, and probably by about the second or third trimester, it'll start trying to fight me for control of my body." You hardly keep a straight face, but it gets worse as you and Mammon see Solomon sagely nodding along. You almost break and laugh right then and there.

Mammon's face turns from disbelief to shock at the sight of Solomon agreeing and he looks to you with the most gentle and nervous horror. Like he feels responsible for what you're about to endure. It's so hard to keep a straight face as he's losing it, so you half-cover your mouth and close your eyes, nodding to reaffirm what you've just said.

Mammon steps back, releasing you from his comforting hug as he tries to digest this information. He realizes he's about to lose it in front of you, so he excuses himself. "Uh, I just realized I left our.. Our pregnancy bag! Back in the car! Yeah! I'll be right back."

You can tell he's freaking out. It takes all of yours and Solomon's strength not to crack until Mammon's gone. ---

Once he's gone, you two just lose it. You laugh so hard that tears form in the corners of your eyes. Solomon has to hold himself up against his table.

Between hushed laughter, Solomon wheezes out; "I didn't think he'd actually believe it"

"I never thought you'd go along"

"How long do you think we can keep this up"

"Honestly depends on whether Belphegor wants to spoil the fun or not."

"I hope we can keep this going forever."

"It'd truly be the gift that keeps on giving." ---

Mammon, texting his brothers;

Mammon: [APPARENTLY HUMAN BABIES PILOT THEIR HOSTS WHEN THEY GET SMART ENOUGH]

Levi: [Wait, wait what??]

[YEAH, LIKE THOSE ROBOTS FROM YOUR SHOWS]

[WAIT WHAT]

[YOU KNOW- THE ONES THAT PEOPLE GET INSIDE AND PILOT??]

[YOU TURNED ___ INTO A MECH?]

[YEAH]

Lucifer, interjecting: [That doesn't sound right.]

Belphegor, who knows damn well this is not what happens when humans have babies, is opting to stay silent, because this is significantly funnier than calling Mammon out for being stupid. If the entire group can believe this, it's even better.

Beelzebub, worried: [Are they going to be okay?? What's going to happen when the baby's in charge? Are we going to have to watch them?]

Satan: [I'm looking through my human pregnancy and prenatal books right now and I'm not finding anything about the baby taking over its host?]

Belphegor, who won't stand for your baby being treated like a parasite, only interjects to explain: [Parent. Not host. Parent. The parent carrying the baby.]

Satan, not understanding: [That's what I said?]

Belphegor: [___ isn't a host, they are the parent. Stop calling them a host like the baby is some kind of tumor.]

Lucifer: [Mammon. Please explain? Why do you think that the baby is going to pilot ___?]

Mammon, who still is losing his collective shit: [___ SAID IT THEMSELF AND SOLOMON SAID IT WAS TRUE, AND I'M FREAKING OUT. SOLOMON SAID IT WAS NORMAL AND WOULDN'T BE HARMFUL, BUT WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH HUMANS]

Beelzebub: [I wonder if the baby will like different foods when its in control. I'm excited to meet the baby.]

Asmodeus: [Oooh, I can get the baby's preferences for when we're getting their room ready, and deciding on clothes! What a great evolutionary trait!]

Satan: [I want to see if we can learn what books it likes. Then we can stock up on lots of them before they arrive.]

Mammon: [HOW ARE YOU ALL STAYING SO CALM?!]

Lucifer: [You said they said it was normal for humans, yes?]

Mammon: [Yeah??]

Lucifer: [Then there's no need to worry. You started a family with someone from another realm, so now you get a crash-course in their biology. Did you not think there would be differences between you two?]

Mammon: [BUT THIS IS WEIRD, RIGHT?]

Leviathan: [I'm actually with Mammon on this one for once.]

Mammon: [THANK YOU]

Lucifer: [Whatever may come, you're the one they chose. Are you going to prove yourself as their 'Number One', or are you going to fail them?]

There's a long pause in the chat as everyone awaits Mammon's reply. It takes him a moment as he's still freaking out but now he's upset because Lucifer is right. You chose him. He's your number one in every sense of the word. If he can't handle this, then does he deserve to be your number one?

Mammon: [I'm still freaking out but you're right. I've got a family now. I've got to stay strong and be the man they know they can rely on.]

Lucifer: [Good.]

Asmodeus: [Where are they?]

Mammon: [Oh shit I ran out of there I've gotta go back] ---

Mammon returns, sheepish, way outside of his element, and feeling like he's in over his head, but he refuses to ever let you down. He dips into Simeon's room, since you're both at Purgatory Hall for the check-up with Solomon, and he steals a bouquet of flowers from a vase in the angel's room. He dries them off on his shirt and brings them to you. When he arrives, he asks Solomon to give you two a moment together alone.

When Solomon's gone, Mammon hands you the flowers and looks away, his face hot with embarrassment. "Whatever happens, I'm here for ya'. I'm not goin' anywhere. Sorry if I seemed freaked out before, I just, this is new to me. But I'm here. And I ain' goin' anywhere. Even if y'get mad, or the baby hates me!"

You feel your heart soften from his warmth. That same love and devotion that melted your heart when you first got to know this demon. He's still as determined as ever to be strong for you. You smile warmly, moving to hug him, resting your head in against his shoulder. He softly massages into your back - A comfort he's been doing more as the pregnancy has been giving you backaches. "The baby's not going to hate you, Love. They couldn't. You're amazing."

You can feel the heat in Mammon's body rise as he gives you a soft squeeze, careful of your torso as he buries his face in your neck. "No you are.. There's so much new ground we're treadin', an' you're just so strong in the face of it all.." He rarely lets down his walls to admit his fears, but when it's just you, he's not ashamed to admit he's afraid. He knows you know his strength. "I just wanna prove to ya' that I'm here for all of it. I'll be your rock. Alright?"

You move to warmly peck his face, causing him to softly pepper your cheek with pecks, until you two meet in the middle in a warm, gentle kiss. You two savor the contact for a moment. When you part, you softly murmur "… Thank you. I love you."

Mammon smiles big, grinning as his love for you swells in his chest. He hugs you close. "We're gonna have a baby!" He picks you up, doing a small celebratory turn in a circle and gently setting you back down as you laugh, hugging him back just as warmly.

"We're gonna have a baby."

"Fuck, I love you.." You can see small tears forming in the corners of his eyes as he says this to you, his hand softly cradling your face. You laugh happily with his mushiness, cradling his head to you, tugging him into another kiss, which he warmly returns.

Mammon's love for you is overwhelming, and no matter what the odds you face together, he'll be there to fight right beside you. ---

Bonus Scene:

Belphegor, texting Solomon;

Belphegor: [So like, how long is this gag gonna go?]

Solomon: [As long as ___ can keep a straight face. I can go forever.]

Belphegor: [I'm in.]

Solomon: [They're going to be so happy to hear that.]

[teabookgremlin]

i have been having so many thoughts recently about van and her relationship to her appearance. are these thoughts coherent? not particularly. am i going to try to make them somewhat coherent to share with you all now? yes. will i make any sense or say anything that hasn’t already been said? that remains to be determined

i first really started thinking about this when i started my fic feel like me again but honestly it had been floating around in my mind since we got our first look at adult van and the debate over if she was butch enough began (she is btw that is not up for discussion here and not the point of this post). anyway lets get into some of my thoughts.

first i wanna talk about her hair. i know recently people have been pointing out how before the wolf attack we most commonly see van with her hair tied back (with the exception of just a few occasions) and how after the wolf attack it is always down (except for during doomcoming but then her scars are covered by a mask). it’s very clear that her hair becomes a shield for her, using it as a way to hide her scars. even as an adult it’s never up and we see it hanging in her face a lot. especially back in society it makes sense to me that van would want to hide her scars somewhat, i mean her whole thing is trying to live in a past where none of the bad shit happened. as for before the attack, her hair being pulled up often, first of all same, i do this and for me its bc i’m sick of my hair and just haven’t gotten around to cutting it yet. it could be similar for van or she just prefers it out of her face. i feel like it’s unlikely that she wouldn’t have cut it if she wanted to as she already presents pretty butch and presumably is not overly bothered by people clocking her (kind of drawing this from both her appearance and that she is so much less concerned with being caught by the others than tai is) but there is still the possibility that she just doesn’t want another thing about her to scream dyke as she is living in an american suburb in the 90s. 

onto her scars specifically. i love how she stops covering them after tai tells her that she’s beautiful. i’d imagine that van is not someone who is used to compliments on her appearance (or at least not ones that are affirming to her). i also know that a lot of us have headcanons that her mom is shitty to her about her appearance (or at least i do and i’ve seen it in a few fics) so hating how she looks would have become internalized and the scars would just make it worse. and there’s how she storms out at the suggestion of a party, hiding off in the woods until tai comes, bringing a solution and way to support her. and she clings to tai as they first walk out at doomcoming, holding her arm, kind of tucking herself against/behind her until the kiss. in this moment van is shown that she is still desirable despite the scars and this is just further affirmed when tai asks to see her without the mask and calls her beautiful. and going forward she doesn’t directly hide them anymore, even as an adult when in society, where facial scarring would get her more attention than among a group of teenagers who all know exactly what happened and are too busy trying to survive to care about appearance.

this is all i’ve got for now but i certainly think that there is so much to talk about concerning van and her appearance both because of her scarring and because a complicated relationship with presentation is not uncommon among lesbians. idk i have lots of thoughts but putting them into words is hard so feel free to add on your own ideas and happy van vednesday

[creature-wizard]

Food for thought...

Christianity is witchcraft. Hear me out. There are many sets or different types of followers and beliefs in Christianity where people assemble to pray

The Latin word for assemble is convenire

Where the word coven comes from coven is not a witch made word, so these different sects of the church are just different covens, and a prayer is just a spell. I mean a spell you call upon your deity or deities for help, and you don't need ingredients for all spells, and some ingredients are used in prayers too.

So basic different groups = covens and prayers = spells so Christians practice witchcraft too...

Every now and then somebody tries to pull this gotcha, but... uhh... it's honestly kind of silly, y'all.

"Witchcraft" as most people understand it to day is a modern construct, much of it influenced by modern speculations of what pre-Christian religion was like in Europe. People like Margaret Murray believed that the conspiracy theories about witches going around during the early modern witch panic were inspired by actual practices of numerous cryptopagans.

Now the thing is, the witch conspiracy theories were shaped by the belief that witches, or more specifically practitioners of malefic magic, were Satan worshipers; and therefore everything they did would be a mockery of Christianity in some way. Witch covens are literally a Christian invention.

Conflating pagans and witches is also a Christian thing. Actual pagans didn't regard themselves as witches. There were, of course, pagans who practiced various forms of folk magic, but the same is also true of Christian societies. It's worth noting that folk magic wasn't really considered witchcraft by Christians most of the time, and actual pagan societies didn't really approve of people they believed to be working malefic magic, just like Christians.

Also, claiming that a prayer is "just a spell" is just plain incorrect. Spells are done to directly affect change in the world somehow. Prayers can be used for this, but that's not their only use. There are also prayers of praise and prayers of penitence. And, idk, is straight-up petitioning a deity really something that qualifies as a "spell"? I tend to think a spell requires some sort of technical work on the part of the practitioner.

So yeah, "Christianity is just witchcraft lol" might sound funny at first, but it's an ignorant and hyperreductive take. Stuff's a lot more complicated than some of you folks realize.

[starry-mist]

S6e12 thoughts:

The brief flashback…okay we didn’t get the Charah and Rex meet cute, but I have conceded that aging Charlie down would be far more challenging than it was to just throw a wig on Mayko to bring back Sarah’s s1/2 hair.

The “hostage” situation somehow took even less time than I thought it would.

Holy crap. That nonverbal communication between Charlie, Sarah, Jesse, and Rex in the first scene. Just, wow. But in particular I loved Charlie’s quick thinking, the way he indicated to Sarah where Rex was with just a glance, her barely-perceptible nod, and the takedown. The takedown was a thing of beauty.

I love the subtle reassurances between Charlie and Sarah, again mostly with their eyes, but also with the tiniest hint of physical contact, and the brief moment when Charlie’s mask slips with the “you didn’t know that…I didn’t know that” lines when Sarah is talking about how she was never in actual danger.

A house scene! Yay! They were so cute and flirty. I will extend it with fic. (I’m also developing a headcanon based on all of two scenes as to why Sarah didn’t like working with Det. Porter, which might make it in.)

I picked out the killer right away, but my suspicion as to motive was incorrect (I figured it would have something to do with Gabriel being trans, so the “actually I kidnapped my daughter and he found out” kind of came out of left field.)

Sarah working to exonerate the guy who held a knife to her throat, because of course she would, because she’s Sarah. Ugh I love her so much.

Charlie…not that I’m complaining, but is there no dress code for him anymore? Because the number of undone buttons just to expose that extra little bit of chest hair…again, not complaining, but he’s gone totally feral.

And Charah once again with the workplace PDA. I am forever here for it. (I would be especially here for it leading to a baddie targeting one or both of them thanks to knowing their weakness but I am a complicated light whump/heavy angst-loving being.)

Next week’s promo:

I want to be excited for the travel to Toronto (which might actually be filmed more in Hamilton, IDK) but it looks like Charlie and Sarah will likely spend a lot of it separated and I don’t know how into that I am. I’m doubting the wife is really the “bad guy” (my money is on Stuart from Letterkenny who we saw in the promo.) I’ll be happy if they end the episode with Charah in the big city together for a scene or two but I’m not going to get my hopes up.

Also, honestly, how many best friends does Sarah have now? Because it’s starting to feel like a lot…