#like it could be like. she chooses saves him / he breaks free bc of her and that's the reciprocal motion

[raayllum]

Was thinking it over that Callum giving up info/doing dark magic to save Rayla in 5x08 is indeed the equivalent of her leaving in Through the Moon (“As long as we love each other, as long as we protect each other” “I was trying to protect him” / “I knew I had to be strong alone” + Callum not telling her about what he did / “All that talk about how love makes you stronger, but the second that elf girl in pain, you completely lost yourself” “I have to be strong, no matter what, and if you said even one word to me, I wouldn’t - couldn’t be”). 

And Rayla is still set up to be the one to save Callum from brainwashing/his imposed ‘destiny’ in S6, probably tying together her arc regarding sacrifice and her well, refusing to sacrifice Callum even for the good of the world. Which means also having to save her - from death, from Aaravos, and subsequently risking the world for her as well - is still on the goddamn fucking table I am Losing my mind

[the-dumpster-fire-of-life]

Popping up in your askbox for the second time today oh boy- I really hope you don't mind me requesting again aaahhhh feel free to pick and choose one if you wish, no pressure at all! 🎔 Alright, this is actually not a romantic request but general hcs for the band! I'd love to see your take on how the band would be around their fifth member that is pretty much the most shameless and open person out there. The reader's not afraid to make snarky remarks on stage and interviews, will make a fool of themselves if needed, will wander around in undies like "one of the boys" (I hate that phrase but idk how else to explain it, I have to pull out my english is my second language card). Basically a chaotic free spirit of a person! Prefferably female reader but you can make it neutral too ^^

Have a great night Lana! ♡

(Jello! I love this idea and this is sorta me in my DR also! Sorry if this took a long time to put out, enjoy and have a wonderful night!)

Chaotic And Carefree Reader

Bill Kaulitz

He is most likely surprised on how open you are

And shameless

He thinks you are just like Tom

So it's no wonder you guys have all been friends since you were kids

He is happy you find it very comfortable with him

You often steal his shorts and wander around in a bra

He's so used to it he doesn't blink twice

Will ask you sometimes if you're okay with him being around you while you're not wearing a lot

Is surprised you don't give a shit but just shrugs it off

You're like his sister that clung onto his back so he doesn't mind

He finds your behavior in interviews so funny

You just pop outta nowhere with the craziest shit

Is collapsing into your side and giggling into your shoulder at your comments

He asks a lot why you say just whatever and you responded like it was nothing

He fears a scandal and doesn't say too much in interviews so he is slightly worried when you just put everything out there

Finds it quite normal on how open you could be about anything

From relationships, too hookups, to compliment's, insults, everything and anything

He's laughing as he tells you to stop insulting people in interviews but is laughing so hard he can't breath

The type you have to double over and take a minute

His laughs go silent

You have saved his ass quite a few times by making a fool outta yourself

You don't mind though but he feels as if he owes you

So get him to pay up or steal his shit because when he owes you he will let you get away with murder

You don't fear a lot of shit and just are you and he admires that

Will let you go about your style, laugh while you snark interviewers and disrespectful fans

When he needs someone to insult someone or just to make a snarky comment he calls you on what to say

Tom Kaulitz

He's still the playful asshole he is

So as you walk around in just a bra and underwear, not giving a shit, he doesn't blink twice

He will throw a flirty comment just for the hell of it and seeing you flip him off

You guys just have a game on who can piss each other off

But he truly doesn't mind when you hang out with him just in shorts and a bra like nothing

Some people have put you two in a dating scandal and you guys laugh at it so many times while just saying you're comfortable being like that around him

He doesn't mind it, neither do you so you guys don't get the issue

But tbh you guys found it funny to trick press with a dating scandal bc they started but whatever

He often times forgets you're not his sibling

It's most of the times when you guys are beating each other up and someone breaks it up saying

"Tom, you can't hit her! She's a girl!"

He doesn't give a shit and will fight them and you just to show them just because you're a girl, does not mean you can't fight

You and Tom probably tag team the person for doubting you

Tom and you don't use the phrase "one of the boys" rarely, if ever because you're truly best friends who are comfortable

He and you are assholes when making snarky comments

You guys are just alike that people need to be careful on what they say because you can make a joke or comment out of everything

You and Tom can't stop, it physically pains you both so much

He eggs you on when you make comments on stage or in interviews

He even joins in and you both can make someone cry, not that you mean to

He legit has to beg you to get him out of a situation by making a fool of yourself

You don't care what people think and would do it for free but you just wanna see him suffer

Georg Listing

Georg does not give a shit what you wear around him

Also doesn't blink twice when you walk in exposed in barely anything

He just says hi and goes about his day

You guys make up snarky comments to add to your collection like the assholes you guys are

Arguments between you two get so back but you somehow end up being best friends again the next hour

You have a confusing, funny and asshole-y relationship

You guys are the duo to be absolutely ruthless to each other

You say what's on his mind every single time you open his mouth

Will elbow you but is secretly laughing behind his hand

Loves seeing the faces people make out of surprise at your comments

He is also egging you on so much

He just enjoys the show you put on entirely

You say everything and anything and he just shrugs and goes along with it

You could say something horrid and he's like

"Damn. Why's that kinda true though?"

You act so open, shameless and comfortable around him he also often forgets you are not his sibling, much less a guy

He finds it weird to see you act like a actual woman

"Who the fuck are you and where's (Name)?"

"It's me, Georg."

"No, it's not. (Name) dresses like a homeless person, you have more than a shirt on. Can't fool me."

Don't try him because he will actually have a whole ass wrestling match with you

You guys are throwing punches, kicking, the whole nine yards over some bullshit

Gustav Schäfer

You say what's on his mind every single day of your life

He whispers you what to say when he can't and just laughs when you do

Gives you at least a shirt to put on when you wander around in underwear

He's comfortable around you but he doesn't want some creep that sneaks around to see or get pictures of you like that

You guys make fun of people so much that Gustav and you can't help but make comments

You guys look like the kind duo but are actually ruthless

He loves that you don't care what people think about you when you say shit

He admires that and is always supporting you when you do

You're very chaktic but he's there for the ride

Doesn't hold you back from your comments and is just standing there and agreeing with you

Gets you the dirt on people to use in your insults 100%

You guys are my favorite duo I gotta say

Laughs when you make a fool outta yourself on purpose

He doesn't have you save him by making a fool out of yourself

He also doesn't care what people think

He also says comments and is shameless about speaking his mind

He has strong emotions and does not conceal them and will say whatever with you

You guys can go on a whole rant for hours about insults and the person your insulting is just staring at you guys

[bennett-mikealson]

Tyler vs Klaus

It's Been a Hot minute since I've been on tumblr so imma choose violence with this post bc the hypocrisy will always be crazy to me.

So it's OK for Klaus to harm Caroline knowing his hybrid bite would kill a vampire but when Tyler simply shows his werewolf face he's worse than Klaus. I really wanna break down the comparison of them both regarding their situations with Caroline bc from Tyler's pov Caroline as betrayed him on multiple occasions while Klaus has harmed Caroline unprovoked.

1st Tyler situation: Masons Death

Caroline spent a good chunk of season 2 building a new bond with Tyler; gaining his trust when he became a Werewolf. So much so that she even tells Tyler that a Werewolf bite could kill a vampire after she finds that out from Damon. Tyler then finds out from Jules that Caroline was lying to him about knowing who killed Mason (HIS UNCLE) and when confronting Caroline about how she's broken his trust he pushes her against a car and you can see his werewolf side start to takeover but it doesn't. Why? Bc he knows that biting her would kill her. Tyler was able to control himself while being a new werewolf so that he didn't kill Caroilne after she betrayed him but Tyler's the bad guy bc he pushed her against a car. REALLY???? And even after Jules and her friend had Caroline in that cage even if he did hesitate for a second he still took her out and even left Mystic Falls with jules bc he didn't want to harm anyone. He only Came back bc he found out his mother was in the hospital; Why? bc of Klaus.

2nd Tyler situation: Caroline sleeping with Klaus

Once again a betrayal on Caroline's part to Tyler. Tyler spent most of their relationship in competition with Klaus bc of Klaus. Klaus used Tyler's sirebond against him so Tyler left Mystic Falls turning over 100 times and almost dying so he can be free and enjoy his relationship with Caroline. Klaus Killed Tyler's mother and Caroline knew how much pain that put Tyler in bc she was there comforting him at his mother's memorial while he cried in her arms. Then after they broke up Caroline had sex with Klaus and Caroline's once again in conflict with Tyler. Tyler finds out She slept with Klaus and instead of respecting Tyler's wishes to leave him alone Caroline continued to push him to his point of rage showing werewolf side once again. Not attacking her tho. Some would say it was bc Stefan stopped him but I don't believe Tyler would of harmed her to begin with bc if he was able to control his werewolf side when he just started his journey after Caroline betrayed him before why wouldn't he be able to again. But most stans don't see that and instead resort to saying that Tyler's abusive and he had no reason to he mad when they know that if the roles were reversed and Tyler did something like that to Caroline they would freak in rage. What's even worse is that after some time died down and Tyler was still in his feelings Caroline tells him to get over her sleeping with Klaus and Said that she wasn't going to continue to feel bad for what she did.

That was so girl boss you are Caroline. 😐

Now let's get to Klaus,

1st Kluas situation: Bite number 1

Klaus used Tyler's sirebond against him and forced him to bite Caroline on her birthday so he could then save Caroline to seem like some hero. Mind you Caroline has done nothing to Klaus to deserve being put through that pain.

2nd Klaus situation: bite number 2

After Kol is killed and Klaus is locked in the Gilbert house he bites Caroline and stabs her with a lamp after she told him she didn't want to be with him (something he already knew bc she's told him on multiple occasions she didn't want him).

These are 2 situations of Caroline doing little to nothing to Klaus but Klaus harms Caroline knowing he would kill her but he's not held to the same standard as Tyler. He not abusive but Tyler is?

Make it make sense

Tyler has never bitten Caroline. In fact in situations of rage stemming from Caroline betrayals to Tyler he has managed to control himself both times bc he knows that he could kill Caroilne; But he's the bad guy for showing even an ounce of deserved rage to Caroline after she backstabs him. How is Tyler showing Caroline his werewolf face after she does him dirt worse than Klaus purposely biting Caroline while knowing he could kill her?

Either we not watching the same show or Stan's are just letting their biased views cloud their judgment.

And I thinks it's the 2nd option 👀

[astralleywright]

Any or all of Ashton, Ludinus, and Fy'ra Rai!

did Ludinus already! so i will do Ashton and Fy'ra and Fy'ra first bc it will likely be less deranged:

First impression

I admit, I was mostly kind of surprised about the introduction of a guest character into an 8 episode miniseries, especially bc it seemed like they kind of knew her already? Also "wait that's Symmetra!!"

Impression now

SHE'S SO COOL. she's a very serious, honorable character done PERFECTLY, where you can truly feel the weight and meaning of everything she says. Serves as such a good contrast to the other Crownkeepers especially while still being a believable part of them and loving just as fiercely. I've never respected anyone more. please come back

Favorite moment

truly impossible to choose between her conversations with Dorian in EXU and "No, I have a sister to walk besides."

Idea for a story

NEED her to meet BH and specifically Ashton so bad it makes me look stupid. I think her calling him her sibling like she did with Dorian would fix him

Unpopular opinion

She deserves better than the Wildmother's bitch ass

Favorite relationship

AS MENTIONED ABOVE, her dynamics with Dorian and Opal are amazing. and also that relationship with Ashton that exists solely in my head

Favorite headcanon

Idk if its a headcanon as much as a want, for her going with Opal being enough to maybe someday free them both. For that love to save them.

LOVE FY'RA SM. Ashton time

First impression

haha i like this guy's vibe i think they'll be one of my favorites in BH :)

Impression now

Favorite moment

IMPOSSIBLE TO CHOOSE. I will say the second look into his mind by Imogen and FCG and his talk with Laudna in ep 49, simply because those are the moments I officially became insane abt them, and then somehow became even MORE insane about them even though i had not previously believed that was possible. Oh and everything leading up to, during, and after shardgate. Everything after and before that too

Idea for a story

WHAT HAPPENED AT HEXUM'S MANOR REALLY. What did they do in between then and meeting FCG. MEETING FCG. Will they go to the Hishari site. Will he meet with Abbadinna again to ask about it. Ashton

Unpopular opinion

me at everything he's been saying and doing since the Downfall break

Favorite relationship

LAUDNA. Impossibly close race for their relationship and Imodna for my favorite of the campaign. AND HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH FCG AND MOG.

Favorite headcanon

if they had better life outcomes there's a good chance he could have been a wizard! they love to read and are so curious and really seem fairly knowledgeable about the world around him given the seemingly dismal state of access to knowledge in Exandria.

[fencecollapsed]

had a dream a few nights ago where i sent you an ask about your ccrp severance au saying i would love to hear more about emma and paul's relationship in this au bc i'm intrigued by what you've mentioned about it so far and anyway i just realized i never actually sent that ask outside of that dream so feel free to make my dreams come true lmao

ooh yes hello I can make this dream come true! my pleasure, in fact!

Severance AU Paul and Emma have more of a tense relationship than they typically would, given Emma is ideologically opposed to a fairly major aspect of Paul's life.

I think Paul being severed was very nearly a dealbreaker for their relationship. Emma was not happy when she found out. Paul was very defensive. they had a big argument about it, and this was when Emma told Paul about Jane - how she was severed, too, and the chip malfunctioning was what killed her. that softened Paul a little, and in turn he confided about his experience with severe depression and his belief that the severance procedure might have saved his life. this also softened Emma a little.

they came to a tentative understanding of each other and agreed that neither of them wanted to break up over this. as it stands they're walking a bit of a fine line, though. Paul is convinced working a severed job is good for him and Emma wants to change his mind and turn him against CCRP. she pushes the matter more than he appreciates, and he's very stubborn. they like each other a lot, but this is a bit of a sticking point for them currently. it could easily blow up and ruin them if they don't get on the same page.

there is good in the fact they bicker about it though. Emma forces Paul to confront the implications of severance and start seeing his work self as a person who is suffering. Paul forces Emma to see the complexities of why someone would choose to do this at all and how misinformed they truly are going into it.

it's a little tense and complicated! they're trying to keep it as breezy as possible but just inherently, with this baggage, they can't help how complicated it is.

[lemonhemlock]

Hi hope you're having a good day / night from where you are 💛

I'm curious what do you think Daeron and Alicent’s relationship was like because I see some say that Alicent probably didn't care much about her youngest son, and that's why She sent him to Oldtown personally I feel like that's not completely true because in westeros it was common to send your son's to be a Lord's ward and Daeron was 12 i think when he's sent away so he's not a baby by westeros standards lol

Also what do you think would have happened if either Daeron or Aemond lived ?

hi & thanks! hope you are doing well, too🍒 honestly, this "alicent doesn't like daeron / is ashamed of him" narrative is pure fanon, thought up by people who maybe don't really understand the medieval ward system. fans are free to imagine what scenarios they want but there's no support for that in the text. as i've said before, sending daeron to oldtown is not a punishment.

if either daeron or aemond survived, then it complicates the succession after the dance bc it would go jaehaera -> daeron/aemond -> aegon, son of daemyra. i've argued before that it makes no sense for the greens to disregard jaehaera. she's their elizabeth of york and also has a dragon, which is not a given for targaryen princesses (check out how many of jaehaerys' daughters did not have dragons). she's important. there's more in my jaehaera tag, as well as my thoughts on giving her a mental disability as a narrative get-out-of-jail-free card.

anyway, with a surviving green targaryen male, there's no way aegon the younger gets to ascend, save for the complete military obliteration of the targtowers. but now you have conflicting claims between the greens. jaehaera becoming queen is in accordance with andal law (a daughter comes before an uncle) but she's also a child and vulnerable. she's the only remaining targaryen girl and has also lost both of her brothers who could have served as her future husband. so imo it would make sense to marry her off to her surviving uncle.

now, this gets further complicated by aemond's relationship with alys and his betrothal to the unnamed baratheon girl. whether he married alys or fathered a child with her is not presented as historical fact by westerosi historians. the show will obviously have to choose one option because aemond can't exist on screen in a state of quantum uncertainty. but that doesn't change the FACT that it's left ambiguous in the books. anyway. if he got married, it's a marriage without documents and witnesses, so the legality of it is up in the air. how a fic writer exploring this scenario chooses to resolve this is up to them, but they should bear in mind that the nobles / allies of the greens would not easily accept a bastard nurse as their queen / the prince regent's wife. again, ship what you want, but romance =/= political wisdom & stability. imo the politically savvy choice in accordance with targaryen customs in the asoiaf universe would be to just marry jaehaera and compensate the baratheons in some other way for breaking the betrothal.

ofc with daeron it's all easier bc he's unmarried

in addition, if we're already altering the ending so much, it's important to note that there is no reason for alicent to die here. GRRM nerfs her via westerosi covid only bc he wants a clean slate moving forward for aegon iii's rule. but it's a deus-ex-machina ending for her arc. she's nowhere near death age and is not sickly.

[typewriteringalaxy]

if dathan and miramir are godparents of ben?

I can't put into words how much I love this idea! Let's see how it would fit in with the lore established in previous asks (and expanding upon it bc you know I won't miss this opportunity to ramble!)

1- Peaceful AU, Padmé and Satine don't die:

It's 19 BBY and Maul has imprisoned Satine after she's been deposed by the Death Watch—along with her young son, Dathan, whose existence and the identity of his father she's kept secret for obvious political reasons, but the latter of which Maul would probably find through the Force and maximise his revenge. Let's say that with Korkie, Bo-Katan and the rest of Kryze's clan help, Obi-Wan manages to save Satine and his son. Satine could not reclaim the throne under those turbulent circumstances, and her saviours would all advise her to seek safety away from New Mandalore. Given her personal understanding with Padmé and also Obi-Wan's friendship with her, I like to think she'd be the first they'd think to trust—and that trust would beget trust so we'd have the two couples of badass and pregnant politicians with their Jedi Masters illicit lovers fighting the galaxy's corruption and hiding their secret children. I also like to think in that context that Anakin would be surrounded with enough assurance by Obi Wan etc so as to not fall to the Dark Side. Dathan Kryze (-Kenobi) and Luke & Leia Amidala (-Skywalker) and Miramir grow up together with the dynamics already analysed.

So, going full peace, say one day princess Leia meets galaxy-renowned scroundel Han Solo after a diplomatic mission goes awry. Miramir, perhaps her handmaiden/bodyguard in following their mothers's footsteps, initially tries to discourage Leia from getting involved with an untrustworthy man the likes of Han Solo, as she prioritises the young Amidala's safety—and she's content bc she mistakes their antagonism for real dislike. Dathan, however—let's say he was with Leia in that mission—sees their aggressive flirting for what it is and backs his childhood friend up. When 19yo Leia speed-marries Han and gets pregnant, he and Luke support them. Miramir just swallows her objections for the most part, an I-told-you-so ready on her tongue every time Han and Leia quarrel.

Given all that, it'd make perfect sense for Leia to choose Dathan as her son's "godfather"—and Ben's name makes all the more sense if Dathan picked it, as the nickname his mom calls his dad. Dathan would dote on Ben—but in this scenario, Ben would already have plenty of people doting on him and teaching him things, from the Force to piloting to diplomacy. Perhaps Dathan would press Han a little into being more present for Ben, or facilitate some father-son bonding on the Falcon when Leia and her side of the family are at odds with Han. Dathan's an enabler all around lol.

Miramir, however, would become Ben's "godmother" later by marrying Dathan. In this scenario, where the previous generation has triumphed over evil and receives hero worship, Sabé's faith in Amidala(s) would only be stronger, and in peace she might even have more time to raise and shape her daughter. It'd take a while for Miramir to even realise that she's suffocating in the path set out for her and even longer to break free and find herself. Dathan might've had a crush on her since their childhood—and their disagreements over Han and Leia's romance could've made some sparks fly between them too—but they'd officially get together in their early thirties and then have Rey. Therefore, the canon age difference between Ben and Rey would still apply.

2- Satine dies, Padmé lives AU

Following the positive scenario of this ask more closely, a Dathan Organa (-Kenobi) would perhaps be more sober as a character, shaped of the loss of his mother and raised in a foster family. He'd still support Leia (Amidala), though perhaps less fervently, and naming Ben could hold much more emotional weight. Especially if Alderaan is destroyed in this AU, the Amidalas would be his last family, and Ben in particular. So he'd treasure his "godson" and be less forgiving of Han's negligence as a parent in favour of his smuggling career—perhaps even to Leia's, even if her duties were more noble. On the downside, Dathan might inadvertently drive any existing wedge between Ben and his parents further.

He and Miramir might even be matchmade by Leia or Padmé as Ben's "godparents" (given the distance between the planets they'd grown up in, the Amidalas and by extension Sabé and Miramir on Naboo vs Dathan on Alderaan, and the fact that Miramir might not always accompany the twins and meet with Dathan: different schedules, different ages etc.) Miramir, sent by the Amidalas (the Amidala family, not to be confused with the Amidalans) as Dathan's bodyguard right before Alderaan's destruction, starts developing feelings for him, which, despite her stoic exterior, get noticed by the women around her. But Dathan's closed off after his monumental loss, and after reuniting with his biological father (perhaps knowing him for the first time as such), he might seek consolation in training in the Jedi ways (emphasis on the detachment of their dogma). Leia would make him "godfather" of her son in an attempt to keep him involved in the world of personal attachments and bring him closer to Miramir—two birds with one stone.

They both love Ben, and that love brings them closer, or at least gives them opportunities to interact. Miramir initially would care for Ben as just another Amidala—and leave him behind along with the rest of them when she goes to find herself, be it by joining the enemy or adventuring solo. But Dathan, who's lost so many family members, wouldn't stand for it, and he'd demand of her to be a good "godmother". And he'd be convincing—not only bc of her feelings for him, but also her memory of being somewhat (or very) neglected by Sabé growing up in the stead of her duties. (Though her feelings for Dathan would be a catalyst in her returning to the "good side", if she had gone "evil" in her finding-herself arc). That would be a point in common with teen Ben grappling with a similar situation. They'd help him—and when they'd get married, he'd be their star wars equivalent of their ring bearer.

3- "Canon" AU: Satine and Padmé are dead, the twins are seperated, Obi-Wan is on Tattoine etc.

Now onto the least positive scenario, in which after Padmé's death and Anakin's fall to the Dark Side, the twins are seperated at birth: Luke on Tattoine and Leia adopted by the Organas, where Obi-Wan had already entrusted his son. (Obi-Wan has done an extra child delivery in this AU). Assuming Sabé knew where Padmé's children ended up, she might send Miramir to Alderaan and have her be raised as Leia's bodyguard while Sabé herself would join the Anidalans.

Ben as mirathan's "godson" would combine elements of both the above AUs—Miramir being vehemently against hanleia initially bc she's raised with the purpose (ordered by her mother) to keep Leia safe, but Leia still makes her "godmother" to Ben bc she and Dathan are the closest people to her and to matchmake them. The one who had a crush first would be Dathan, who might just gradually pull Miramir back from her rebelling against Sabé's wishes by joining the enemy (helping the First Order come into existence?) in the name of caring for their "godson" and the strength of his feelings. Or, Miramir joins the Empire before Ben's birth, Dathan would be the sole "godfather" etc.

One difference that I consider major in this AU, however, is that Padmé, Anakin, Obi-Wan etc would be dead by the time Ben was growing up. It'd be just Leia, Luke, Han and mirathan. So I think mirathan could be instrumental in keeping Ben from the Dark Side—providing him a Force-sensitive role model that cares more about him than the principles of the Jedi/the adherence to the Light + someone with understanding what it's like to have parents that care more about their duties than you personally and maybe also the lure of the enemy. So Ben might spend a lot more time with them and grow up close to them—and Rey by extension.

4- Mandalorian Dathan AU?

If Bo-Katan had raised Dathan out of spite or love to Satine (or both), it's doubtful that he'd have a connection to Luke and Leia, or that he'd even know he's a Kenobi. Only if Miramir was Ben's "godmother" would Dathan become his "godfather", and the chances of that grow slimmer. Still a fun AU though!

Oops I wrote another essay. Hope you enjoy the mirathan theories, dearest anon, and I'll wait for your thoughts on them or on anything else you'd like💕

[seanicornspoice]

Surprised myself by writing an extremely meta character study abt Mytho, who is apparently my favorite of the main cast haha.

It's not everyone's cup of tea, but it's abt names and roles and identities and what exists for Mytho beyond 'happily ever after' (disclaimer: it's also extremely Mytho/Original Tutu-centric, though she is only mentioned)

Check it out if that sounds like your thing hehe!

Long rambly thoughts & spoilers, both for the show + the fic, under the cut (warning, might not be fun for those who enjoyed the og show's ending):

I think with the themes the show was trying to tell, it's impossible to allow Mytho self-actualization beyond his role as a prince and how he contributes to a 'happy ending'.

As a narrative device (the McGuffin we're collecting, the corrupted innocent to be saved, the shining prince who defeats evil and asserts what is good), he is brilliant. He works well as a motivation for the entire main cast....while having very few desires himself

As a character, I think he doesn't get the same narrative of breaking free from his destiny/role as the other characters.

Perhaps that's intentional, as the only true fictional character, he's first presented as a blank slate that others project onto (even Ahiru arguably), and when he starts to gain his own agency, this is quickly overshadowed by the Raven's blood, which calls into question how much of it is really his own wishes vs the influence of the Raven.

Even when his heart is (mostly) returned, there is very little time spent for him to reflect on his identity and the person he is after his new experiences. Immediately, he is Mytho no longer, but the Prince and all further action taken reflects as such.

He defeats the Raven bc princes defeat monsters and live happily ever after. He chooses Rue bc princes choose princesses at the end of the story.

His act of choosing Rue, to me, speaks less of his own agency, and more of him fulfilling his role. As the archetype of the prince, his choosing Rue is her happy ending, confirming she is worthy of love and happiness as the embodiment of essentially everything good and kind in a story.

However, it makes me wonder if Mytho would have still made this choice had he considered his own wants and desires, simply beyond doing what is 'right' and 'good'.

Very rarely does Mytho get the chance to express desires free from external influence, or from the role of the prince who loves everyone and will always protect the weak and helpless.

It's interesting to me (and certainly my bias) that more often than not, so many of Mytho's choices of his own volition are tied back to Princess Tutu.

His request for Fakir to repeat the part abt Tutu disappearing. How he keeps trying to seek her out and get closer to her/know her better. How he is awakened from Kraehe’s forceful shard snatch bc of Tutu’s dance. Even Fakir comments that Mytho wanting to regain his heart is probably bc Tutu is the one returning it to him.

For me, Princess Tutu is at the centre of Mytho's story and agency, and his self-actualization is tied to her, be it as Mytho in present day or Siegfried of the past.

Tutu embodies hope, but it goes much deeper than that for Mytho.

She literally represents both a shard of his heart, as well as genuine desire on his part. We are told explicitly that very existence of Ahiru's transformation into Princess Tutu represents Mytho's own desire to have his heart returned to him.

His love for her, what she means to him, for me, I can only see Tutu as the very core of Mytho's own free will.

For him to love her represents freedom from his role and the story.

Princess Tutu, the original tragic minor character, was never meant to have a happy ending. The Prince will never, could never, choose her, that's simply not what his archetype would do.

Choosing Tutu is selfish and impure, it serves no one but Mytho himself.

However, in choosing her and choosing to love her is where he is most human. It is not a love earned through hard work or sacrifice, as the stories go; it is simply his own wish, his own desire, to meet someone so dear to him.

I think it's impossible for Siegfried, the Prince, to choose this path.

As his archetype, as his role, he will never act selfishly, he will protect the weak and helpless, he will reward the good and punish the wicked. It makes perfect sense that Rue is chosen as his princess; there is no one else who has suffered more, who deserves this ending more than she does.

You could make an argument that Ahiru perhaps also deserved this role (though the strength in Ahiru's arc comes from bringing hope as herself, as a duck, without needing to be a princess at all), but again just like Rue, she will be chosen as a princess to a prince, not as Ahiru to Mytho.

Mytho is rarely seen as himself by anyone, and even rarer still is he understood by anyone.

Even Ahiru, the most vocal champion of Mytho's agency and happiness, does not necessarily understand him, whether it is as herself or as Princess Tutu. Likewise for Fakir, who is intimately familiar with the heartless Mytho, but does not understand or know Siegfried.

To want to be known and understood are not things Princes wish for. Princes fight for the greater good, for their princess, and are beloved by all. Why would a Prince need such a mundane, ordinary thing like that?

But that's exactly why it is so crucial for Mytho.

To be known and understood as he is, for someone to meet him on his level, is to make him whole and human.

No longer an archetype who will always do the right thing; instead, to become someone good and kind who is also selfish, whose wants may not always align with the greater good, who will try his best to bring some light to the world anyway.

And again, it comes back to Princess Tutu.

This selfish love is what makes him human, this unreasonable longing and wanting and loving brings him down from selfless perfect Prince into a mere human who simply loves, cares for another, consequences be damned.

When I wrote this fic, I realized that the part of him that is Siegfried would Never abandon Rue or the story. He embodies his archetype too strongly to even consider that for a heartbeat.

As I thought some more, I realized his names bound him too tightly to external forces (as Siegfried, the Prince; as Mytho, the blank slate) and with a soft spot for names and identity, I realized for Mytho to reclaim himself and be free from his role, he had to be allowed to choose a completely different name and path.

Long story short, that's how Swan came to be.

It's a little embarrassing bc this is not at all how I usually write fanfic. I honestly never imagined myself to be this sort of writer. I rarely challenge or want to change characters on such a fundamental level, outside of fun shipping things.

However, for me, it felt like the best way to write him, and the most interesting narrative to explore.

What does it mean for Mytho, only meant to exist as a pure archetype, to choose to live as a human?

I think I'll be writing more about Swan, along with his journey to find Tutu/self-actualization. He's such a wonderful character, and I realize while my viewpoint may be biased/flawed, I hope I can do him justice.

If you read this far, WOW, congratulations, gold star for you. Hope you have a lovely day!

[fllagellant]

Hearts of Stone ponderings bc I miss Iris and I miss Olgierd . I wish there was a way to allow Iris to live . Not just within her art , within the fragmented memories she has left , within the hauntings of O’Dimms creation . But actually let her live again

She knows Olgierd was cursed , and it seems as if that curse also bled into her . She still loves Olgierd , and knows that he still loves her , but O’Dimm set out to ruin his life , and via an extension , ruin hers .

As beautiful as the scene of letting her move on , letting her pass away and watching the world she build within her art disappear and take her with it , to retrieve the blue rose Olgierd gave to her to return to him , a task he believed to be so utterly impossible that it never should have happened , and watch her accept her passing and letting go , it doesn’ t feel fair .

Olgierd , from the curse he suffers , cannot die , cannot bleed , nor can he truly feel . After being alive for so many years , after so many times he should have died , nothing means anything anymore . No feeling is strong enough anymore for him to pay it any mind . It’ s not that he’ s emotionless , we see him show emotion quite often . And it’ s not like he enjoys this callousness he has developed , he cannot find joy in anything anymore , even if it once did . So , at the end of the dlc , if the player so chooses , you can free his soul from this terrible form of immortality . He can feel again . He can bleed again . He is Olgierd again .

So , why can’ t Iris have this too ?

“ her body is rotten “ “ she appears as a wraith in the waking world of the continent , she only looks like herself in her paintings “ ahhh , so she DOES have a form she can use that is technically her body is what I am hearing . There could be another path with Iris . Difficult , yes , of course yes . A fight here , another game of search and collect , a dialogue path you cannot miss , the true Witcher 3 Experience . But I want it there .

Iris still lives in the long abandoned Everec estate . Both in the waking world and in her paintings . O’Dimm knows he , most likely purposely or maybe accidentally , has allowed the curse that Olgierd suffered to seep into a curse of her own . Not to mention , watching your husband attempt to appease this unknowable godlike figure to keep him and you safe , only for it to completely tear him apart is painful for Iris to deal with . She is trapped here because of O’Dimm .

She is an artist . She lives through her art . She lives in her art . She is fully consumed by her art . Why can’ t this be the ground work for allowing Iris to join the land of the living and let her be Iris again ?

Why can’ t she be the one presenting Olgierd with the blue rose ? Why can’ t she be there to witness the banishment of O’Dimm , or even offer her newly freed soul in a wager to save Olgierd ? Why can’ t the two of them thank Geralt ? Why can’ t she agree to a ritual to bring her back ? Why can’ t Geralt ask her ghostly protectors if they know any methods to help Iris ? Why can’ t they use the symbolism of her art keeping her alive and go further with it ? Why can’ t they allow her to step out of the painting with Geralt , more colourful then the world around her , fingers still gripping that blue rose , and for the first time in years and years , it pricks her finger ? Why can’ t her body that lay in the Everec manner break down into dust and drift through the air to her , giving her back her body in a strange and beautiful sense ? Why can’ t she gasp , remember how air feels in her lungs ? Why can’ t she cry , thanking Geralt for letting her move on , and the painting they stepped out of begins to melt , the paints pooling under the canvas and easel like it was thinned down , revealing a blank canvas beneath ?

It doesn’ t matter if she is dead . Because she is not . She is still so terribly alive , so beautiful alive , that she can still be brought back . She won’ t be the same . But that is to be expected . Neither Von Everec will be the same after what has happened to them . But god , can’ t they be different together ? Why can’ t they remember together ? Why can’ t they be together ?

[mell0bee]

CR asks: 1 & 17 if you're feeling spicy; if you're not, 9, 14, 25, 39 (feel free to pick & choose)

i took so long to do this because i had all the questions answered and then tumblr crashed and deleted it all :( but here we go (also thank u for the ask!!!)

9- Location in Exandria you'd like to see in a possibly canonical one-shot/EXU but with non-main campaign characters (as in Song of the Lorelei/The Darrington Brigade)

vasselheim!!! i doubt it will be a major location again for a full campaign because it was featured so heavily in c1 but an exu type deal could be so cool!!! i thought that vasselheim was SO underutilized in c1. when i was first watching it i was Big Sad that the no arcane magic thing was played for laughs, you could easily center a whole campaign around that idea. i wanted to see more of it during c1 and obvs after exu calamity i want to see more of it Even More. theres just so much to learn about it after the context of exu calamity. like i want inside information about the political system. i want to explore how decisions get made there. and like bro do u want a story about Hubris??? oh yeah??? you like critical role so are you perhaps a Hubris Enjoyer??? perhaps of the Magic User Variety?? imagine a wizard or a warlock trying to hide their magic in vasselheim. it basically writes itself. imagine a high-ranking cleric as a pc. or a noble. based on what's happening in c3 do you think they have like. an Old Secrets Protection Board? and perhaps some Scholar Spies trying to break in? idk man there's so much you can do there and i would like to See It Please Thank You

14-Describe the art you would most like to create or commission if talent/money were no object.

i have like 7 animatics in my head that i am not talented enough to make but honestly. this whole jester-focused animatic set to folding chair by regina spektor. it’s really good in my head i swear. also a post c1 animatic set to dodie's cover of blackbird which has been in my head since i finished c1 god i have actual brainworms

25-What class do you most want to see Matt play if he is in a future EXU campaign as a new (not Dariax) PC?

artificer. primarily bc as much as i love him, matt’s pcs tend not to be my kind of character. at least in cr oneshots he’s got a thing for the Generic Edgy Protagonist Boy type which i’m sorry buddy but like. no thanks. and based on artificer/engineer type npcs he’s played i doubt he will go for that archetype as a pc. matt loves some Insane Scientists and so do i, easy S tier character trope, so whether he plays it straight or goes for the more unhinged type like most of his npcs im down 100%. also i had a whole rant here abt how much i love dariax and i hope that matt continues to step out of his comfort zone for pcs because for me personally i think it works really well!!

39- favorite parental figure NPC?

I HAD A WHOLE RANT HERE ABT HOW MUCH I LOVE MARION LIKE I THINK I WROTE LIKE 300 WORDS. the gist of it was how i love that she is very much an imperfect parent which we can see in jester now, but she’s still a good parent!! she’s still trying!!! she’s got her own trauma but she’s trying!!! idk that is v important to me. also i love how she is a sex worker and is not shamed for it at all. and that she has agoraphobia (sp?) and its treated as like!!! fine and not irrational at all!!! idk man idk how matt and laura did such a good job with such a respectful and grounded portrayal of a character like marion but they DID also parent trap ftw

spicy answers under cut, just keep scrolling if u dont want to see my mildly lukewarm takes. thank u.

1- Character you don't particularly like, but will defend vehemently when people dislike them for the wrong reasons.

(also this is the only answer that saved lmao)

sadly i cannot think of any other characters so i have to talk about Mr. Warcrimes McTreason. i like canon essek okay though i do think he is Overhyped, but fanon essek is so annoying lmao which makes me not particularly like him. on the other hand i think people not liking him bc they don’t think he deserved redemption are Wrong. as a redemption arc it was like. Fine. not everyone can pull a zuko and like. whatever. and idk i think that redeemed heroes should be a little morally dubious. as a treat. i guess in a way i am glad that aeor arc essek doesn't get to actually be morally gray bc the fandom would be insufferable but Hot Take i am a Gray Morality Enjoyer i think that More protags should be war criminals actually.

17- You know that post that's like "I wish you could filter in ao3 on 'attitude towards a canon event'?" In the world of imagination, you can! What's the event or attitude?

*gestures vaugely at kingsley* to be completely honest i was pretty sad for a few moments there that they succeeded in rezzing molly, was tentative when whatever the end of 140 was, and i’m so happy kingsley is a thing. i think that people who wanted molly back have Missed The Point Entirely. molly needed to stay dead and talesin knew that (thank you talesin) (also not to mention fanon molly, who is infinitely worse than fanon essek. god can you imagine that. again thank you talesin.)

[humanoidtyphoons]

been thinking about the importance of gaimon, especially in light of sanji. and how this affects luffy, and events leading up to arlong park.

when baratie crew say to luffy, take sanji with you, luffy says no. never mind that luffy had already had his mind set on sanji being his cook. he says to the crew, instead, i need to hear this from sanji himself. you can't just hand him to me like this. this needs to be his decision.

like i feel like luffy instinctively knows people's hearts, in a way? he believes in people's determination in their dreams, and i think he wants people alongside him so he remains motivated for his own. he respects that conviction. he wants this person to travel with him, bc their dream and his dream can align, if it's mutually beneficial in trying to explore the world.

but still, he's pretty selective about how he chooses his crew. even tho luffy offers it to both gaimon and usopp. like sometimes i want to be 'luffy considers this person interesting, so he wants them to be part of his crew'.

kindness is not always the motivating factor for how he chooses a crewmate, but it is for how he picked zoro, sanji and usopp. he witnesses their acts of kindness, and that seals it for him. for nami, the second he finds out she's a navigator, he wants her to be part of his crew.

and i just. it's interesting that he doesn't really listen to zoro and nami's refusals -- bc i think he senses that their conviction isn't strong enough. there's no real reason why they should refuse, in some sense? like, the way that they protest (initially), it just doesn't seem that good? they're just protesting bc they're stubborn, but guess what, luffy is even more stubborn.

but the fact is, maybe, that nami and zoro don't really have a reason to refuse, other than they don't want to do it. and that's not good enough for luffy. they have no real reason why they shouldn't/don't want to go with luffy. there's no reason why they can't achieve their goal alongside luffy.

with gaimon, he's touched by the offer, but he refuses bc he wants to be the guardian of an island he's loved for 20 years. that's his new dream, and luffy respects that.

if sanji had refused, bc of his debt to zeff, i kind of wonder if luffy would have let sanji be?

of course, what happens is that the baratie crew try to drive him off anyway, bc they're like. come on sanji, explore the world. find the all blue. be an even greater cook.

but sanji's guilt to zeff is what keeps him on, and want to stay by zeff's side, until zeff himself is like. no, it's fine, go. go! and sanji is thankful for the opportunity, but also thankful to zeff, for everything up to this moment.

and then comes nami, in the arlong park arc. and luffy is adamant that she's still part of his crew. and she denies this, says that she's been working for arlong this whole time, that everything that happened on the going merry was a lie, bc she only wanted to achieve her goals.

(never mind that she did cry, as she sailed away from them in baratie, saying she'd hope they'd meet again, after she was done with arlong)

i just think. luffy can instinctively perceive this dishonesty -- tho that's not quite the right word. the conflict, the deception. arlong is an obstacle, but the fact is, if it wasn't for arlong, nami would still be part of the crew. she genuinely wants to be a strawhat, it's just. her history with arlong prevents this.

so nami pushes luffy away, but the thing is, it's just laced with desperation, she want him safe, she doesn't want him hurt. but it's also, not the truth -- she wants coco village to be saved, and she's at her wit's end, and she can't really voice this until she's at her lowest. bc she thought that she, nami, could do it singlehanded, bc she thought that arlong wouldn't break a promise, wouldn't imprison her like this, until she realizes that arlong never intended to free her.

like it's great that luffy really doesn't interfere until nami asks for help herself, bc he knows her heart, and he knows his crew's heart, and that's why he gives nami his strawhat. she is his strawhat crewmate.

and luffy gets that. if it wasn't for arlong, nami would be travelling alongside him. so he defeats arlong, frees the village, and now nami has no real reason to not continue travelling with the strawhats.

i just think. luffy understand's people's convictions -- he was uncertain with nami's conviction when he first meets her, alongside buggy -- and sometimes, luffy realizes that he has to defeat people, and destroy those convictions.

and gaimon is important, as is koby, and why luffy never offers koby a place in his crew -- bc koby wants more than anything to be a marine -- because luffy likes and respects dreams, and he admires that determination and how people achieve it more than anything else. sure, koby wants to be a marine, but why should that stop him and luffy from being friends?

it's just interesting that gaimon is such a minor character, doesn't really have a dream in the scope of usopp or luffy, but he finds a new dream anyway: to protect this island that he is now the guardian of, and luffy doesn't try to sway him. he hears the conviction, feels that determination, and just lets the offer go, accepts the refusal.

anyway, i get why gaimon is cut from the live action, but i think it's an important moment for luffy's characterization in the manga. and i do want to mull over this some more when i meet jimbei, tbh?

[magicofthepen]

self-indulgent, unrealistic wishlist for future War Room stories:

lean into the whole “Leela and Narvin are stuck fighting on different sides when they really want to be together” thing. leaving secret messages. sneaking away from their respective missions to briefly see each other—knowing how bad it could be if Gallifrey catches them, but being unable to avoid taking the risk. would love to see “forbidden relationship energy, but in Gallifrey’s excellent platonic-romantic ambiguity way”

make Leela and Narvin’s conflicting loyalties hurt. Gallifrey already delivered on point 2 from this post about my War Room ideas (hell yeah), but I still want my heart broken with scenarios such as “Rassilon/other Time Lords putting Leela in a situation where she has to fight against the Resistance—oh god, Worst Case Scenario, she’s ordered to help with a plan that would kill Narvin if successful—but if it fails, Rassilon will kill Romana. so now what does she do??” or “the Resistance putting Narvin in a situation where doing a thing that would kill Leela and/or Romana (because Leela is a soldier of Gallifrey, and Romana is on Gallifrey—or just because if Leela dies, there’s a chance Romana will be killed too) would save countless lives. and prioritizing a friend over the universe got him in this mess, how can he do that again? how can he not?” (obviously they’d all have to survive somehow, but I’d love to hear them go through that pain, bc I love putting fictional characters in angsty Situations.)

center the next boxset on Getting Romana Back. have Leela (and Narvin) develop proper plans to try to do that (that may or may not work). now that they both know they’re not alone, it would make sense for Leela to be galvanized into properly scheming to free Romana, with Narvin’s help via Forbidden Meetings.

do a “meanwhile, here’s Romana” episode. Leela was gone for a boxset and before she came back, the narrative cut away to show a bit of what she’s been going through since that separation. I think they should do something similar for Romana—in her case, they need to show what the vault dimension is actually like and what exactly she’s going through, so we understand her mental state when she gets out (also. get her out of there eventually please). personally I’d love a Romana-centric episode where she’s trapped in flashes of the past—trapped in her own past, ideally, so we can bring the other main characters in, and maybe show new scenes of the past that fit between or within earlier episodes. properly explore her mental state—her guilt and self-loathing that drove her to try to commit suicide-by-Dalek on Unity. do I have a proper plot for this episode concept? no, not yet, but I’m sure you could find one—whether it’s something going Wrong in the vault dimension, things breaking down and Romana getting lost in the past as Leela and Narvin try to get her out (and so it ends with her rescue)…..there are options! But I think we need to see what she’s going through, and the setup of her being stuck in an archive of the past inevitably lends itself to a story about confronting her own past, facing her own grief and guilt about the past. (ultimate self-indulgent wishlist item is this leading to an exploration in later episodes of how to forgive yourself and choose to keep living…..)

Micallon episode, somehow. or Rayo can leave Micallon temporarily for Reasons, if that’s easier. I just want an episode with Rayo and Leela please! they didn’t get to say goodbye to each other, it’s not too much to ask! and I want my headcanon about Rayo and the Apothecary connecting to the Resistance (via Narvin) and creating a safe house on Micallon for people who want to escape the War to be canon. it feels like that was what they were setting up in Dissolution, and I’d love to see Narvin and Eris and Rayo as a Team, working to resist the War in different ways…..and then Leela somehow managing to steal some time with her kid who’s all grown up, who she never thought she’d see again. (I know Narvin said 70-80 years have passed, but I assume that’s for him and Eris because they’re running around the universe, and that much, much less time would have passed on Micallon—like much less time seems to have passed for Leela.)

this is very much a “what if War Room catered to me, personally” post, I’m not expecting or realistically hoping for most of these things, but like. what if

[the-bau-quinjet]

hiii! i don’t know if you have done this but can you do a hotch x reader where they get kidnapped by tobias instead of reid? xx

4 Months

Warning: Criminal Minds level violence, drugs, torture, rabid dogs

Word Count: 3562

a/n: I decided to switch up some of the specifics, just to make it a bit more fun to read. I hope you like it :) Also, we're pretending Rossi was there bc he is really the father of the group and it fit better than having Gideon 🤷‍♀️

Masterlist

"JJ, we have to split up." You barely looked back at her, missing the nervous expression on her face as you ran toward the cornfield. "I'll take the field, you take the barn."

You slowed to a brisk walk as you neared the cornfield, raising your gun in front of you. You couldn't help but think about how pissed Hotch would be if he knew what you were doing.

You shook off the thought, knowing he would do the same if the roles were reversed.

Spotting movement, you moved farther into the corn, trying to spot any signs indicating which way Tobias went. A bent corn husk was the last thing you saw before the world went black.

-

"He's not a witness. He's the unsub." Hotch's eyes went wide as he realized you and JJ were there without backup. "Call JJ, now." He instructed Morgan, taking out his own phone to call you.

Hotch's eyes met Morgan's as both calls went unanswered. No words were exchanged as everyone ran out to the SUVS, putting on bulletproof vests as they went.

Hotch was nervously tapping the steering wheel the entire drive to Hankel's house. He couldn't stop replaying your last conversation.

"Y/N, you and JJ go talk to Hankel. Find out if he saw anything." Despite his stern expression, you could tell his eyes were smiling at you.

"Sure thing." You nodded, mouthing 'I love you' before turning to JJ.

That's it. He didn't even have the chance to mouth it back. JJ would've seen, and even though the team has theories about your relationship, you haven't confirmed anything yet.

He pulled into the driveway, running up to the house, gun out before anyone could stop him.

Prentiss followed Hotch, Morgan and Reid took the left, Rossi and a local cop took the right.

They tore through the house, clearing it with fierce determination, but came up empty.

"It's clear." Rossi called, joining Hotch and Prentiss in the living room. "Where are Morgan and Reid?"

Hotch spared a glance out the window, discovering the barn likely being cleared by the missing agents.

Everyone ran out of the house, arriving outside the barn just as Morgan and Reid lead a distressed JJ outside.

"What happened?" Hotch questioned, glancing over JJ's shoulder into the barn. Clearly you weren't there, but he needed to hope.

"We split up. Y/N went into the cornfield... I had- I had to shoot them." Her voice was detached, eyes glazed over.

"The dogs." Morgan clarified, leading JJ to a paramedic.

"Dammit. The house is clear. No sign of Y/N or Hankel." Hotch ran a hand through his hair, trying to clear his mind. The worry was nearly overpowering, but it wouldn't help find you.

The sheriff approached, removing his hat. "A deputy two towns over gave directions to a man matching Hankel's description. He's headed for a hunting lodge."

Morgan nodded to Prentiss. "We'll check it out."

-

Your head was pounding. A vile scent reached your nose, causing your eyes to flicker open. You flinched at the closeness of the man in front of you.

"Tobias..." The name slipped out in a whisper.

"They're not here. It's just me now." He stated, calmer than you would've expected.

"Who are you?" You asked, trying to portray a fake sense of calm.

"I'm Rafael." He pulled out a revolver, adding a single bullet to the six chambers.

"No. You don't have to do this." Your heart ached, fear gripping your body as he aimed the gun at you.

"It is my duty to enact God's will." He said, right before pulling the trigger.

-

Hotch pulled back into the driveway, leading Garcia into the house.

"His computer setup is in there. If there's even a hint of where they might've gone, I need you to find it." Hotch gestured to the back room.

Penelope nodded. Carrying her own computer bags, she followed Derek into the depths of the house.

"What've we got?" Hotch questioned those remaining around the table.

"He knew he could throw us off, pretend to be looking for a hunting lodge." Emily spoke quickly.

"We've got piles of information, journals, notebooks. We're still sifting through it all." JJ added, shirt still bloody from yesterday.

Just then, Reid rushed in from another room. "The walls in the bedroom, they are covered in the latin phrase 'honora patrem tuum', honor thy father."

"Garcia, look for anything you can find about his father." Hotch gave out orders, but his focus was elsewhere. What was happening to you?

"Over here!" Morgan called from outside.

The team ran around the house to see Morgan opening a cellar door. Nodding slightly, Hotch and Morgan made there way inside.

"Tobias Hankel, FBI." Morgan shouted, receiving no answer.

They quickly found the dead body of none other than Hankel's father. Even the new information did little to calm the worry brewing inside of Hotch.

-

"Confess your sins." He ordered.

"My sins? I don't have any sins." You did your best to hold back the tears, trying to figure out who you were talking to.

"Everyone has sins. Confess, and you will be forgiven." He stared you down, waiting for a response.

You simply shook your head, mouth slightly agape. The smell was getting to you. You couldn't think straight with the pain in your head.

"I- I don't know what-"

"YES YOU DO. CONFESS." He hit you, whipping your head to the left.

-

"Hotch, he took drugs to escape. Dilaudid cut with a psychedelic." Emily relayed the information her and JJ got from Tobias's sponsor.

"We've got something too. The dates in his journals don't add up. He was talking about his father as if he was alive months after he killed him."

"His father beat him, preached about sin." Emily replied, putting the pieces together alongside Hotch.

"Split personality. Profile the father. He could be the key to finding Y/N." Even just saying your name he felt his heart clench.

-

"Who are you?" You questioned him as soon as he walked through the door, trying to figure out who you were dealing with this time.

"Tobias." He moved about the cabin almost nervously.

"Who was here before?" You knew Rafael, but the other personality was a mystery.

"My father." Definitely the most violent. He was who you had to look out for. "I'm sorry if he hurt you."

Tobias looked over you newly forming bruises before pulling off his belt.

"No. No what are you doing?" You felt your heart rate increase as he wrapped the belt around your arm. You could barely register the words he was saying, something about escaping from the pain.

"Please. I don't want it. I'm fine." You begged, tears brimming your eyes. He ignored your pleas, injecting the drug into your bloodstream.

Despite how much you hated it, you felt the relief he was talking about. The pain was gone, even if just briefly. You thought about your time spent with Hotch. It didn't feel like long enough. You wanted more. You had so much you wanted to do with him.

"Aaron..." You mumbled his name between kisses. "They could see us." You did little to stop him, despite your words.

"We should tell them." He whispered against your mouth, holding you close. "They would be happy for us."

You sighed blissfully, forehead pressed against his. "Really? You know they've got a pool going to see when we'd finally get together. Who do you think had money on 4 months ago?" You laughed into his neck, pulling him closer.

"My bet's on Rossi. He knows us both too well." Aaron smiled, a full genuine smile.

"You're probably right, but just to make it interesting, I'm betting Reid. He's too observant not to have noticed." You squinted at the window, knowing Reid was staring at the closed blinds on the other side.

That earned a laugh, one you could feel in his chest pressed tightly to your own.

"I love you." He kissed your head, content to hold you for a little while longer.

"I love you too." You leaned ever farther into him. "We can tell them when we get back from this next case."

"Deal."

-

"Get in here!" Reid called from the computer room, pointing to a screen where you were being broadcast. You were handcuffed and tied to a chair, clearly beaten.

"Pick one to die." The voice of Tobias could be heard, despite him not being visible on the screen.

You shook your head, staring into the camera. You wanted to plead for Hotch to save you, but you knew it wouldn't be fair. He didn't need that on his conscience.

"Choose one, and I will free another."

You shook your head again, trying to think of a clue you could give the team. "I won't let you hunt them like a poacher."

"Now. Or I will kill them all." He threatened, lifting you from the ground.

"I'll pick who lives." You stuttered, breaths coming fast and short. "The right screen."

You were forced to watch as he turned off the camera, leaving the screens to show the heinous murders he was about to commit.

Suddenly, Rossi was talking to you through the screen. The sight of him nearly brought you to tears.

"Y/N. This isn't your fault. None of it. You can't blame yourself. We will find you, but I need you to be there when we do."

You knew exactly what he meant. You were already blaming yourself, despite Rossi's father like relationship with you, it was hard to believe him.

It did give you the strength to remember the team though. You needed to see them, all of them, again.

-

"He's back!" Morgan called everyone in to view the screens again.

"Confess your sins." They watched as he beat you.

You cried. You begged him to stop. You begged Tobias for help, but nothing worked.

Hotch felt his heart break even more with every word.

Suddenly, you were on the ground, still tied to the chair. You were seizing, Charles Hankel watching as it happened.

The screen went dark, causing Hotch to punch the desk.

"Dammit." He shouted. He didn't care if his worry was beginning to poke through the surface. He needed to find you and he needed to do it now.

"The timestamp." Emily's voice drew him out of his head. "There's only a few minutes between the time of death and when it was posted. He's got to be close to the crime scene."

Finally. Something that felt like progress.

-

They watched the screen as you appeared again.

"Choose one to die." It was Rafael this time.

"I can't. I can't do it." Your face betrayed every emotion you were feeling inside.

"Pick one." He stated again.

"Me. Kill me." You nearly begged.

"You said you weren't one of them. Your team has 7 other members. Choose one of them to die."

You shook your head, fear gripping you once again as he pulled out the revolver.

"Choose." He connected the gone to your forehead, resting it there.

"No." He pulled the trigger, watching as you flinched.

"Choose." You shook your head, tensing as he pulled the trigger again.

Hotch felt his heart in his stomach, internally begging you to just say a name. He couldn't watch you die, not like this.

"Choose." He pulled the trigger yet again at your silence.

"I won't do it." You held firm, knowing you had limited chances.

"Choose one to die."

You opened your mouth, panting as an idea came to you.

"I choose... Aaron Hotchner." Your heart ached even saying it, but you needed to give him a clue. "He's a classic narcissist. Thinks he's better than everyone. He'd go to his grave knowing he was wrong." You winced internally, trying not to give away your plan.

Hotch left the room, trying to understand your words. The two of you had just argued about the definition of classic narcissism.

"I think you're wrong." You laughed at his amused expression.

"Yeah? Or do you just like making me exasperated?" He questioned your motives, pulling you closer as you laid in bed together.

"Maybe a little bit of both." You shrugged, leaning up to kiss him. "Promise me something?" You asked, a nervous expression on your face.

"What?" He looked at you with so much concern, you felt your heart beat a little faster.

"If... If I die, you can't blame yourself." He opened his mouth to protest, but you kept going. "I know you Aaron. You'd take it to grave thinking it was your fault. I can't let you do that. Not when I know you blame yourself for Haley's death." You felt your heart break for him and the pain he had been through. "Promise me." You were nearly begging.

"I promise." He whispered, his throat tight at the idea of losing you.

He was brought back to the present by the sound of Rossi's voice.

"Hotch, you know Y/N didn't mean any of that." Rossi tried gently, unsure of how Hotch was coping with your situation.

"I'm not a narcissist. What's my worst quality?" He looked at the apprehensive looks everyone was giving him. "I'll start, I have no sense of humor."

He nodded along as his team listed his faults.

"None of you said I ever put myself above the team, because I don't. Y/N and I just argued about the definition of classic narcissism." He paced, trying to put it together. "I'd take it to my grave... Grave was a hint."

"What? How do you know?" Reid shook his head, trying to understand the logic.

"I made a promise. It's a long story." He shook his head, trying to clear the memory so he could focus. "Y/N knew I would remember it."

"A cemetary. It's got to be a cemetary." Morgan added.

"No cemeteries on the map." Garcia was typing away on the computer.

"Like a poacher." Reid whispered, staring at the screen.

"Reid?" Hotch looked at him, eyes pleading for an answer.

"That's what Y/N said in the first video. 'I won't let you hunt them like a poacher.'" He said it louder, more excited than before.

"Garcia, any reports of poaching in the area?" Hotch asked, the idea of finding you causing hope to erupt in his chest.

"Yes, at Marshall Parrish... and there's a cemetery on the grounds." She gave them the address, watching as they ran out to the SUVs.

-

"I'm sorry." Tobias said it so softly, you were almost certain you didn't hear it at all.

"Wh- why?" Your eyebrows pulled together in confusion, trying to make sense of it.

"He'll win. In the end, he always does." He rose from the crouched position, slowly injecting you with more drugs.

"Hotch!" You screamed, feeling arms restraining you from behind.

You watched as he went into the hostage situation, unarmed and without a vest.

"Derek. Let me go!" You struggled in his grasp, straining to get free.

"There's nothing you can do, he's already inside." He stated the truth, although it did little to calm your nerves.

You settled down, throat tight with worry. You bit your lip, eyes flitting between the door and windows. You just needed a sign, anything to say he was alright.

The sound of a gun firing stunned you. You were frozen in place, fear consuming you. You had just told him you loved him for the first time this morning. What if you never get to say it again? What if that's all the time you got.

You stared in horror as everyone ran toward the house, only to freeze when a voice shouted everything was fine.

"It's fine." He huffed, carrying the small child out of the house toward a waiting EMT. "Baxter is dead."

"Aaron..." You whispered the name, realizing how powerless you felt when he was in danger. The two of you made eye contact across the yard, a reassuring look in his eye.

"Aaron..." You whispered, blinking rapidly as you slowly came to.

"What about Aaron." Charles. Tobias's dad was back.

"I couldn't stop him. I couldn't keep him safe." You muttered to yourself, not fully understanding the situation.

"Is that a confession?" He asked, voice hard.

"Yes." It was more of a breath of air than a word, but it was all he needed to condemn you.

He unlocked your handcuffs, forcing a shovel into your newly freed arms before dragging you outside.

"Dig." he instructed plainly, watching over you as stray tears wet the ground beneath you.

-

"Clear." Morgan called from one side of the shed.

"Clear" Hotch replied from the other. With the whole team in the small space, it wasn't exactly necessary but it was habit.

Hotch could feel his nerves picking up again as he realized this meant you were still with Tobias. He paced back and forth, feeling powerless.

"Spread out. They have to be on foot." He left without waiting for a response, turning left with JJ to look for you.

-

You did your best to stall, but Charles wasn't the most patient.

"Dig faster."

"I'm trying. I'm trying." You whimpered, movements speeding up ever so slightly. The massive knife in his hands causing your own to shake.

"You're weak. Move." He huffed, throwing his jacket to the ground before ripping the shovel from your hands.

A flash of light in the trees caught your eye. Flashlights. Your team. Aaron.

Your eyes flickered between the man in front of you and the trees, causing him to turn.

You took the split second he wasn't looking to grab the gun from his jacket, swiftly aiming it as he turned back to you knife raised.

"Only one bullet in that gun." He lunged for you, falling backwards after you pulled the trigger.

You dropped the gun, quickly tossing the knife away.

"Tobias?" You cried, moving back toward him.

"You killed me." He seemed surprised, but grateful at the same time.

You felt the tears pouring down your face as you apologized.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry." You grabbed his hand, watching the light fade from his eyes as he asked one final question.

"You think I'll get to see my mom again?"

You barely registered the arms around you, pulling you to your feet. You couldn't take your eyes off of Tobias. He wasn't the one who hurt you. He helped you, or at least tried.

"I killed him." Your breathing picked up, vision blurring.

"Y/N, look at me." You turned to the voice, blinking rapidly to stop the tears.

"Aaron?" You took a stuttering breath, trying to make sure this was real.

"I'm here. It's okay. You're okay. You're safe now." His words were just as reassuring to himself as they were to you. You caught JJ's eye over Hotch's shoulder, quickly moving to hug her.

"Y/N, I'm so sorry. I never should've-" You cut her off.

"None of this was your fault. It was my idea to split up. I'm so sorry." You cried into her shoulder, knowing how guilty she must've felt.

She hugged you back, tears brimming her own eyes at seeing you alive again.

She lead you to the EMT, not commenting on the look you threw over your shoulder at Aaron. He quickly followed you to the ambulance. JJ left you to talk to Hotch, who stayed beside you the entire time the medics looked you over.

"I didn't mean it." You said when you were finally alone, sitting between the open doors of the ambulance.

"What?" Aaron questioned, his mind not following your own train of thought.

"When... When I had to choose. I didn't mean any of it." You could feel the tears coming, but this time you did nothing to hold them back.

"I know. I knew the whole time." You brushed your tears away, looking you in the eye. "I love you so much." He whispered, his own eyes feeling watery.

"I love you too." You leaned into him, relishing in the feeling of his arm around you. You couldn't help but look over at the team, all of whom quickly pretended not to be watching. You huffed a laugh.

"Yeah, I think they're going to have some questions." Hotch smiled, glad to see you happy even if just for a second.

"After this case, right?" You looked back at him, confirming you still wanted to share your relationship with the team.

"Deal." He smiled, arm tightening around your shoulders to pull you closer.

-

You couldn't help but bring it up on the jet ride home.

"So, who had money on four months ago?" You questioned, tucked into Aaron's side on the couch.

"What?" Emily raised a brow at your sudden statement.

"That's when we started dating." You grinned at her shocked expression.

"Dammit Reid." Morgan huffed, handing over the money.

"Don't forget Rossi!" Reid high fived the older man, the two grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

"Looks like we were both right." Hotch smiled into your hair, trying to hide his laugh.

"Yeah. We make a pretty good team." You smiled, leaning into his touch.

"I love you." He murmured, face still in your hair. You turned your face into his chest before responding.

"I love you too."

Permanent taglist:

@averyhotchner @jesuswasnotawhiteman @madewithsebstan

[yourmcu]

V-Day

Pairings: Natasha Romanoff x reader

Summary:

You’re not like most people who enjoys Valentine’s Day. Can a certain redhead change that?

A/n: just a late valentine related imagine for all of u bc I’m incapable of posting this sort of stuff on the exact day. enjoy! (I’m finally using this iconic gif don’t mind me)

Word count: 1,753

Warnings: fluff

The 14th of February is just another normal day for you. You always find Valentine’s Day cheesy, you don’t see the point of celebrating it. That sort of thing isn’t as important as Christmas or Halloween. Not that you're bitter because you're single, you couldn’t care less about that, it just isn’t the occasion for you.

Tony outdone it this year. The compound looks like it was powdered pink and red overnight from all the decorations when you step out of your room. You almost don’t want to know what the main area looks like. Sam and Wanda are probably getting started on breakfast which would consist of everything shaped like hearts.

Your plan for the day is to stay in your room, only coming out for snack and drink refills, simple as that.

“Hey, Happy Valentine’s...” you pretty much tone out every v-day greeting that came your way, rolling your eyes playfully as you sit down with everyone, greeting them with the usual good morning. You expect the compound to be deserted by midday since surely all of them have plans with their partners for the rest of the day, which is perfect. For you. And for them, of course, yeah.

Sam and Bucky made their way to you. “So, Y/N, how are you?” Sam greets. You already suspect that they were hyping you up for something. “Food good, coffee good... sleep well?”

You turn to them with a smile on your face. “Alright, what do you want?”

“Well,” Bucky lets out a breathy laugh. “Sam here was just helping me-”

“That is not what’s happening. What he wanted to say was,” the birdman cuts him off. “We both wanted to take you out to dinner tonight, we can’t settle on who, so we’re letting you pick.”

You blink. They have to be joking. Do they not notice your routine during this time of the year? After socializing with the team you’d grab a day’s worth of snack, head back to your room, lock the door and lose your mind on video games until the next day.

Unhealthy, but it's for one day.

“Only if you want to,” Bucky adds hastily.

“Come on, this is a chance of a lifetime!” Sam insists, wiggling his eyebrows.

“We’ll go to your favorite restaurant.”

“It’s just a friendly date.”

What you fail to notice was Natasha listening to the events happening. Her foot taps against the floor as she discreetly waits for your response, taking coffee sips and bites of food and looking away whenever she looked like she's eavesdropping. No one else is paying attention, everyone has their own conversations.

Inside, she pleads that you’d turn both of them down, just because she’s planning to ask you out herself. They just beat her to it.

“I appreciate the thought but I’m sorry, I have plans,” you shrug. “Why don’t you take each other out instead? Not literally.” You give them another smile and walk out of the room, coffee in hand. 

Sam and Bucky nods indicating they understood. Sam tells his friend that if he had more appeal you’d agree to the date. But they take you up on your advice, already planning a guy’s night.

Natasha almost cheers when she hears the first part, only to spiral when she hears that someone had already asked you beforehand. You're unavailable. She could ask you out any day, but you deserve something extra special. She sees this day as her only chance to confess her feelings for you.

Her eyes trail you as you walk out, turning to Wanda when you were out of sight. “Do you have any idea who asked Y/N out?”

“I don’t,” Wanda replies, a bit distracted. “They’re lucky, I’ve never seen Y/N show interest in anyone since I met her. Anyway, I have to go, Vision and I have a whole day planned...”

Natasha huffs while people slowly file out of the kitchen. As far as she knows, Tony's with Pepper, of course, Wanda and Vision, Steve is probably going to join Sam and Bucky on their night out, and Clint is back at his farm celebrating with his wife.

And you’re with that person, which most likely someone who isn’t on the team otherwise she’d know. She's left by herself to mope.

-

Few hours have passed, maybe three, it’s lunchtime. As you suspected the compound is empty, so you make your way to the kitchen to make yourself something to eat.

Boxed mac and cheese is the only thing you knew how to make.

“Y/N?”

You almost drop your stirring spoon at the sudden voice. You feel embarrassed about your choice of outfit, you feel and look like a grizzly bear while she looks stunning, even if it’s just plain workout clothes.

“Hey, Nat.”

“I thought you were... out with someone?” Knowing you, she might’ve misunderstood when you said you ‘had plans’. You look so cozy she would love to hug you on the spot if she isn’t so sweaty.

You let out a curious hum, turning off the stove. “I was?” You giggle. “Where’d you hear that?”

“I didn’t, just, I assumed you’d be,” she mutters and finishes her water bottle. 

You're now grabbing a bowl for the mac and cheese you made. “I mean, Sam and Bucky did ask me if I wanted to but... y’know, if I’m being honest they’re not really my type.” You pause to look at her who was staring back. “Have you eaten? This batch I made is enough for three people, I think.”

Natasha nods at your offer. “They did say it was a friendly date.”

You stop scooping the macaroni and perk your head up with a grin. “So you were listening.”

“Not like I had any choice, I was in the same room.” Quick save.

“Mmhm.” 

Then there's  a minute of comfy silence as you clean the area you made the meal on, putting the pot away and stuff.

“Why don’t you have a date today?”

“What?”

“Anyone would kill to go on a date with you, Nat.” Is what you say in your head. But instead you say, “Well, you know, I didn’t expect you be here too.”

Natasha shrugs and before she could answer you add, “No one’s caught the notorious Black Widow’s attention yet?”

She chuckles at your words, looking up at you. “Who did you think I’d go out with?”

“I dunno, Steve-”

“God, no,” she quickly cuts you off and laugh,  you laugh along but at the same time sigh in relief.

“Crap, I just remembered I have a game to finish,” you hold the bowl of cheese and macaroni and stick two spoons on the side. “I’m cordially inviting you to my room, you are very much welcome, after you change.”

Natasha tells you she’ll see you there in a bit.

-

“Huh. I just noticed you do this every Valentine’s Day,” Natasha notes as she takes everything in. Your PlayStation's on, your trash bin is almost full of snack wrappings, couple of beers tucked at the side of your bed. “Cozy.”

“Why, thank you,” you say sarcastically, picking up a controller and waving a vacant one at her. “Feel free. Or you can just watch me fail at this game.”

Natasha decides to join the game a little later, now she's lost in thought on how someone like you spends such a day like this, or how beautiful you looked as your eyes dart at every direction of the screen and how you sometimes bite your lip when you're that focused in the game.

It's always the little things she likes about you.

Glancing at you one more time before eating a spoonful of mac, she turns back to the TV to watch how you're doing.

But you're witty, kind and easy to get along with, why wouldn’t you have a date - or why wouldn’t you want a date on Valentine’s Day?

If only you knew how she feels, she’d make sure to treat you well. Like you deserve. She’d take you on dates you’d enjoy every time the 14th rolls by. If you don’t like the holiday for some reason she’d find a way-

“NO WAY,” you cover your mouth and bump your head to Natasha’s shoulder in defeat, making her come back from her trance to look at the big red words on the screen, indicating you lost. “I almost had it!”

Natasha leans into your touch and pats your back. “You can try again.”

You groan. “I definitely will but for now, I’m gonna take a break.”

“Great,” she shifts a bit to get comfy, switching to Netflix and choosing whatever’s trending right now. “I’m just curious but, do you like someone?”

You hum in response, sipping on a beer, not completely processing what she said. “I - yeah. I guess so,” you tug the blanket closer and pout at the movie that’s on. You don’t like romance movies. You always prefer an action or a mystery one any day. “Do you?”

Natasha feels her heart ache for a moment. “Yeah. She’s kind and sweet, goofy but can still seriously kick your ass type.” Your eyes land to her hands. You knew fully well Natasha isn’t straight, she admitted and definitely doesn’t act like it. “There’s just something about her that makes me... love her.”

“She sounds great,” you mumble, starting to get lost in your own thoughts. “I guess I just-” you hesitate, just because the woman you're about to describe is the same one sitting next to you. “I feel bad for her that someone like me likes her.”

“Why would you think that?” Natasha chuckles, shaking her head.

You shrug. “She’s amazing. So out of my league, I’d say she’s so close but so far away but that would be really cheesy and ugly,” you laugh. “I don’t know, she deserves way better.”

Natasha hums. “Sometimes I think she needs to her worth, because what she doesn’t know is, she’s very much amazing in her own way.”

Looking up at her from her shoulder, your eyes light up and you don’t know when it happened, but you just found her lips pressed against yours softly.

Even if it was just a short kiss you feel breathless when she pulls away to look at you again.

“Just so we’re clear, we’re just describing each other like idiots right?”

“Yeah.”

Natasha leans in to kiss you again.

---

oh my god I want a hug

[shameless plug] check out my natasha romanoff ambience here

[bestworstcase]

on ‘villainy’ and varian’s and cassandra’s moral codes

for all that varian’s and cassandra’s villain arcs get compared to death they’re really more different than they are similar, and i think one of the more interesting distinctions is the characters’ moral perspectives on their own actions--namely that varian recognizes his own choices as villainous and consciously self-identifies as a ‘bad guy’ and cassandra not only…doesn’t do that but appears legitimately taken aback when varian says she’s ‘become the villain.’ from this we can infer that varian is transgressing his own personal sense of right and wrong while cassandra isn’t.

and… well with varian i think it’s pretty straightforward: he’s a kid who desperately wants to make the world a better place and make his father proud, but his impulsivity and recklessness and general disregard for lab safety foil his plans and get him into trouble. then one of his accidents puts his dad into what is essentially a magical coma and varian becomes singularly focused on reviving him--and, when he realizes that the king is more invested in covering up the problem than fixing it and his only hope lies with a zealously guarded relic belonging to the kingdom, he decides that the only way to achieve this goal is to start breaking the rules.

so he asks rapunzel--his friend who promised to help him--to retrieve some information the king is trying to steal from him, and then persuades her to help him access the sundrop vault; then when she balks at stealing it he makes it clear that he no longer trusts her and escapes with the flower. at this point he’s in the morally dubious zone; being strategic about what he tells rapunzel to make sure she helps him, spiking cookies with truth serum to sow chaos and get information he needs, and doing things that are crimes on paper but also largely victimless. i think these were things varian could probably rationalize as okay--not exactly good, but no one got hurt and he got what he needed.

except the flower’s magic is gone. he drugged the palace, manipulated rapunzel and broke her trust in him, and committed treason all for something useless because the actual magic of the sundrop is in rapunzel herself. now he’s in trouble, because he needs rapunzel’s help but his desperate measures guaranteed she won’t be willing to help him again. and this is when varian realizes that his only options are 1. give up on saving his dad and turn himself in and hope rapunzel takes pity on him, or 2. accept that no one is going to help him now and do whatever it takes to free quirin himself.

so--mutating ruddiger, attacking the city, kidnapping arianna and threatening her with encasement in amber, building an automaton army to defend him while he works--these are all things that varian feels are wrong, but chooses to do anyway because he doesn’t trust that anyone else will even try to save his father. despite his anger and his rationalizations, at the end of the day varian sees himself as doing bad things for good reasons. (“Believe me, I know/I’ve sunk pretty low” & “I’m the bad guy, that’s fine”)

and when his reasons fall through--when he fails to free his dad--he falls quickly into guilt and despair over having hurt people for nothing. he stews for a year in how unforgivable and ashamed he feels, and even when he teams up with the separatists, he’s doing it in, basically, pursuit of a reset button: he wants to take back what he did. and when rapunzel shows him that he can be forgiven, he can have a second chance, he does have people who are willing to help him and trust him again, he drops the memory-wiping idea and his alliance with the separatists without a second thought--because what rapunzel actually does is give him a way to pursue his goals without sacrificing his conscience, which is what he really needed the whole time.

now, cassandra, on the other hand…

cass is an interesting character in this regard because, while she does want to be a hero, she’s not at all altruistic. she’s consumed by her lack of autonomy and she craves not only control over her own life but also respect from the people around her--her desire to be a hero is very self-interested, at its core. and moreover she has a somewhat fatalistic view of the world wherein some people (not her) matter and some… just don’t. 

moreover cassandra, despite her ambitions of becoming a guard, doesn’t so much as blink at eugene’s or the pub thugs’ criminal pasts--she is suspicious of lance at first, but on the grounds that he’s an unrepentant thief who showed up out of the blue under suspicious circumstances to ‘reconnect’ with his old partner in crime; eugene is also distrustful of lance, for the exact same reasons--and of course she doesn’t think twice about breaking the law herself. literally one of the very first things we see cassandra do is commit treason to make her friend happy. cass doesn’t care about the law, and she only wants to be a guard because she associates getting the job with having her dad’s approval and it’s also her ticket out of lifelong servitude.

on the other hand, cass does seem have a strong sense of right and wrong where people she cares about are concerned. she is constantly putting the desires and well-being of her friends ahead of not just her ambitions (e.g. in beginnings for rapunzel, or great expotations for varian) but also her own safety (e.g. risking her livelihood and home to sneak rapunzel out for the night in bea, or setting aside her misgivings about the sketchy bird people in freebird). 

which is all to say--cass isn’t exactly amoral but the moral framework through which she sees the world is… more complicated than varian’s. she doesn’t seem particularly motivated to help strangers but she’ll move mountains to help people she cares about; she doesn’t care much about rules or laws except insofar as she doesn’t want to get caught breaking them, and she has this hierarchical mindset that some people matter--meaning, they get to make decisions for themselves and have people care about what they need and want--and some don’t, and that she herself is stuck in the latter category despite her best efforts to climb out of it.

which brings us to the subject of the moonstone, and cassandra’s villain arc, and why cass, unlike varian, doesn’t consider herself a bad person.

i think what it comes down to most is this: taking the moonstone is an act of defiance against not only rapunzel but also fate itself. waiting in the wings sets up cassandra’s resigned acceptance of this hierarchical order and her own cosmic insignificance, and then in crossing the line she REJECTS that same order. she’s raging against rapunzel but also against the cultural and legal and destined systems that put rapunzel on top and forced cass into subservience. she is very literally fighting for her freedom against the universe itself.

and when cass was not an altruistic or heavily morally motivated or even particularly law-abiding person before, and when her conscience has always been predominantly oriented around taking care of her friends first and herself second, and when the thing that drove her to this breaking point was her friends spitting that back in her face… well.

it’s easy to say “cass literally tried to murder rapunzel a bunch of times, how can she possibly believe she’s the good guy?”--but rapunzel maimed cass, blamed her for it, and consistently prioritized her destiny over cassandra’s wellbeing; and rapunzel represents the cosmic order that cass is fighting to liberate herself from. and while i know that the -popular- take on be very afraid is “cass is terrified of hurting rapunzel,” i submit it’s actually “cass is terrified of having to fight rapunzel, because she still believes that fate is literally tilted in rapunzel’s favor and she can’t win a direct fight with rapunzel.” that’s why she’s so scared; that’s why rapunzel seemingly deleting the red rocks hardens her resolve; that’s why she marches into corona with maximum drama and bluster and builds a fortress and tries so hard to mess with rapunzel’s head before the battle begins. she’s trying to even the odds. and that’s why, when rapunzel stomps her into the curb, cassandra’s immediate response is “i need an army.”

cassandra isn’t scared for rapunzel. she is scared OF rapunzel.

we do also see cass trying not to harm people she considers to be innocent bystanders; she uses the truth serum on varian bc she needs the incantation, but afterwards she doesn’t even bother to restrain him until after he starts pestering her, she says flat out that she doesn’t want him to get hurt when she fights rapunzel; similarly she is willing to hurt calliope to force rapunzel to comply, but--despite her deep personal dislike of calliope--uses a minimum amount of force and again verbally expresses that she doesn’t particularly want to hurt her, that it’s a means to an end and nothing more. attacking rapunzel? that’s fine, rapunzel is her enemy. attacking eugene? of course, he’s rapunzel’s closest ally. mind controlling the brotherhood? that kills two birds with one stone--eliminating powerful enemies with a vested interest in taking the moonstone away from her and turning them into allies who can level the playing field between her and rapunzel. and when she does finally snap and raze corona to the ground? the people of corona attacked her first. i think cass ABSOLUTELY sees herself as fighting a purely defensive war against people who have or will hurt her.

and this is, of course, ultimately why varian failed to get through to her during ‘nothing left to lose’--he appealed to her sense of morality and her sense of morality shrugged. 

as for the thing that snaps her out of it? the moment that forces her to question whether she’s really as right as she thinks she is? it’s learning who her new friend really is. it’s the shock of finding out that she’s been allied with, confiding in, taking advice from a legendary villain, from a monster she likely grew up hearing stories about. cass takes it as a given that zhan tiri is evil--and if she’s friends with zhan tiri, what does that make her? and even then, cass is resistant to the idea that she might be a villain--“No, no, I’m nothing like you. Just because I’m pursuing my destiny doesn’t make me a bad person!”--which is, ultimately, very telling of her whole mindset. she’s not a bad guy, she’s fighting for her freedom. she’s not a bad guy, she’s protecting herself against people who want to exploit her. she’s not a bad guy, she’s just putting herself first for once.

and OAH generally, i’d argue, is not actually about cassandra trying to reconcile with rapunzel or redeem herself or be a better person, it’s… literally cass trying frantically to prove she’s NOT the bad guy. it’s “oh yeah? you think i’m a bad person? well could a bad guy do THIS? *lies and impersonates a former coworker and gets up on a stage to justify her own actions in front of a crowd*” it’s “a bad guy wouldn’t apologize, rapunzel never apologized for anything, and to prove i’m a better person I’M going to apologize! see? SEE!?”--and then everyone in corona attacks her and she goes “FINE, i’m the bad guy, fuck you all” and wrecks the place.

only then--only in plus est en vous--does cassandra get into a mindset similar to varian’s, of “i am the bad guy but if i can pull this off it will be worth it.” she’s not sorry. she still sees rapunzel as an enemy trying to get her under control again, and the only thing that’s really changed is cassandra acknowledging that she has in fact done bad things too.

and… i would argue that by the end of plus est cassandra… feels some guilt but isn’t sorry. “i’ve failed” and “i’ve done terrible things” and “i tried to prove i was more than everyone thought but they were right”--her anguish is not like varian’s anguish in RR, where he was consumed with despair because no one could possibly forgive him for the things he did. cassandra is upset because she did awful things and failed and she perceives that failure as proof of her own worthlessness. she’s right back to feeling how she felt in waiting in the wings but with a hefty new helping of self-disgust and shame for having been stupid enough to believe she could change anything for herself. 

she’s not sorry. she’s not pleading for forgiveness. she just wants rapunzel to give up and leave her alone--& then, after rapunzel convinces her that she’s wrong, and she does have worth as a person, and she does have a destiny of her own, cass does what’s necessary to clean up the crisis she created and then… just bounces. she gets the freedom she wanted and leaves without a backward glance.

(which. good for her.)

tl;dr: varian’s villain arc explores his moral scruples and what it takes for him to be willing to ignore them, whereas cassandra’s villain arc explores her incendiary reaction to a lifetime of injustices; she isn’t amoral but her sense of right and wrong is, unlike varian’s, very contextual and personal. varian is a pragmatic idealist who wants to be lawful good but is capable of setting his own morals aside in pursuit of a goal he considers to be important enough, and cassandra is one radicalizing incident away from realizing that her grievances are not a unique personal failing but a systemic problem and then leading a class uprising.

[random-kali]

PRINCE WRATH MAYBE THE REAL DEVIL: THEORY

Alright, I was intrigued when I saw a lot of theories about Prince Wrath's true name and if he is indeed the real Devil. So I reread Kingdom of the Wicked for the first time bc I'm freaking excited for the release of book 2. And here's what I've gathered/noticed:

Btw here's the post by @astreia-oniria

Spoilers ahead!

I'm just going to break down what I've gathered in KOTW.

In Chapter 10 of the Kingdom of the Wicked, Emilia asked Wrath when she summoned him:

"What, exactly, should I call you? Oh, Feared and Mighty Seven? General Commander of Hell? Or Prince Wrath?"

And this was Wrath's answer:

"One day you'll call me Death. For now, Wrath will do."

In Chapter 11 this is how Emilia described Wrath:

"...He was death and rage and fire and anyone stupid enough to forget that would be consumed by his inferno."

I've never really paid attention or give meaning to it at first because he's Wrath, a General Commander of Hell and like God of War. And what made me more curious was when Emilia mentioned his 'inferno'. Emilia encountered Envy, Greed and Lust but she never mentioned anything like inferno in describing them.

Then when I arrived in Chapter 37 this is what I've noticed when Emilia saw Claudia in hysteric after her scrying outside the monastery; (The pink texts are Claudia's lines)

"What change did you see?" Emilia asked Claudia.

"Angelus mortis. He's coming and going, and is a cunning thief who stole the stars and drank them dry. He will take you. You're already gone. In the end, you choose. But he's also chosen. I'll mourn. I am mourning. Like leaves on the wind."

"The angel of death claimed you. Changed you. You are here, but not there, there is where you will be, your life is ended. Same but different. For eternity."

"...He's coming. No, no, no. He's here, no longer there, but here. He walks among us, hidden in shadow. Like death." Claudia continued.

"...He is the chosen. He is death. He shouldn't be able to leave-those are the rules. But rules are made for breaking. Like bones. He loves to break bones. I think it's the marrow he's after."

"....and now we'll all burn because he's here and mad, and the gates... the gates... she said to protect the gates. But he's not chained to them anymore, is he?

"He said he's not ready, and he will not move. Time is slipping like water through his hands. But still he waits. He waits and waits. He wants her to choose. He knows she will. Soon. ..."

In Claudia's visions she described the Devil as Death. Emilia described Wrath as Death and Wrath called himself Death. Claudia said that the Devil is free from his chains and could roam around the human world. If Pride truly was the Devil then why is he not in the human world like the rest of his brothers? Yes, we've seen Pride in the end but even then he did not take his true form but rather took Antonio's.

And who among the Princes of Hell loves to break bones and death and could walk freely around the mundane world? Prince Wrath. And who among the princes was the one collecting souls? Is it not Prince Wrath? Tell me if his not because in the end, Emilia found out that Wrath's agenda was finding another soul for his freedom. The

witches are called as Stella Strega in translation Star Witch. Claudia said, "He's a cunning thief who stole the stars and drank them dry".

Wrath was also eager to know who kills all the brides for 'Pride'. He's mad and hungry for vengeance and death. Also, we know that Wrath doesn't just take the witches that was chosen as bride, he gives them a day to make up their mind and choose.

Here's more, when Wrath saved Emilia's life after the Viperidae in Chapter 21:

"...He tilted my head back, parted my lips and poured nectar down my throat. I tried thrashing against the cloying taste of it, so sweet and thick that I almost choked, but I'd long since lost the ability to move on my own."

Emilia described the taste of whatever Wrath gave her as sweet and thick that she almost choked. In Chapter 38, Claudia said something similar about poison:

"...The poison was sweet, I still taste it. Lingering. Stick, stick, sticking in my throat, choking."

I can guarantee that the reason it was sticky in her throat was because it was thick that she was choking.

I thought about the poison Claudia was talking about, in the Garden of Eden, the apple that both Eve and Adam ate was not poisonous so I don't think it's related to that sin in the bible. However, the only thing that could have had a poison would be a serpents. And who has a serpent as their symbol? Prince Wrath.

Remember what Claudia said to Emilia?

"The angel of death claimed you."

Now, in Chapter 41 Nonna said this to Emilia:

"...You've been Marked by a prince of the underworld in a different way."

".... She must have used some spell because suddenly a tiny, shimmering S gleamed back at me. I squinted. Or was that a snake? .... It was the place Wrath's tongue moved across me the night I'd almost died in the Viperidae attack. "

Why would Claudia say to Emilia that an angel of death has claimed her? Emilia has been Marked by Wrath, only by him.

And I wonder why Wrath wasn't making a move to get the Horns from Emilia. My theory is because maybe he's the Devil and he wants Emilia to be his bride that's why he doesn't bother taking it away from her regardless of the 'protection bond' between them. Also Wraths insistence with the blood trade to Emilia. He knows from the start what she'd done, the accidental engagement. I'm pretty sure it's not just because of making her part of his House or requirement of the protection spell. There's something more behind his insistence on the blood trade.

Or there's also a possibility that Pride was the one who was cursed to remain in the underworld because he was the one who stole La Prima's firstborn's soul and thus called the Devil or was mistaken as the Devil. That would explain why Pride could not come to the human world himself. Pride might have been the cursed one but Wrath is the true Devil. There's a theory I read that Pride and Wrath might have an equal power. I mean in the bonus chapter from Wrath's POV, there's a scene in the end where Wrath released a little bit of his power that made the ceiling rumbled.

"We stood there, gazes locked in silent battle, each of us unwilling to look away first. I allowed a bit of the magic I'd been tamping down to break free. It was only a fraction of the power churning through my veins, but the ceiling rumbled. His focus jerked away as dust floated like the ashes of my enemies."

"He'd forgotten who he was speaking to."

"... I could no longer tell if the inferno responded to his wrath or mine."

"I'll keep that in mind, Highness" Wrath said to Pride

This time, I didn't pretend to bow.

These moments really made me think about Wrath being the true Devil. I mean, he released a bit of his power then the ceiling began to rumble. Pride was the first one to break their staring contest because of the rumbling of the ceiling. And the line, "He'd forgotten who he was talking to." I'm certain its not just because he's the Prince of wrath and like a god of War. And lastly, why would the inferno respond to Wrath? This made me think of that time Emilia mentioned his inferno. If Pride could also summon or kind-of command these inferno then that would prove that he and Wrath are equal when it comes to power.

It never occurred to me that Wrath could be the Devil the first time I read the book. I was curious of him yes, I know there's something more to him but never the Devil. However, it changed after reading some theories that it made me think of these little clues pointing on who really is the Devil. I mean, I honestly think Claudia dropped a lot of clues from that scene. It was a foreshadowing of what will happen to Emilia at the end of the book also plenty of clues.

Of course we don't know yet who Pride is and his character so it'll probably be confusing once book 2 is released. But I really think Wrath is the Devil. (If not I think my heart would be broken.)

Here's the other theory by @tea-istic https://tea-istic.tumblr.com/post/649098260223524864/theory-wrath-is-more-powerful-thanequal-to