#she actually has (or had rather) a lute originally

[greyias]

In addition to being stuck on My Time at Sandrock these past few weeks, I've also been distracted by what basically amounts to "blorbo from my head". I was trying out something to see if it would possibly work as a way to run some 5e Waterdeep modules solo so I could pretend to have some post-epilogue adventures with Ari and Gale (long story short: no, it doesn't work well for that, the search continues!).

Despite it not working out for my intended purpose, I did get a little pulled into the story that wound up emerging, and got very attached to the randomized character I was playing.

This is Eliana (or rather, the best representation I could make of her in BG3). She is a level 3, half-elf bard. She has a whole whopping 7 AC, and her spell list consists of such combat bangers like "disguise self", "minor illusion", "faerie fire", and "charm person".

The other three party members are all rangers.

She has a -1 to her intelligence, but consistently rolls a 5 or lower on almost every INT based check (which seems to be about half of the checks she has to make). She introduced herself to her future boyfriend by continually pretending he and one of the other rangers were having an illicit moonlight affair.

Her charm person spell failed once during an encounter on an enemy and she rolled a Nat20 on deception to still convince him to hand over a box containing a potentially world ending McGuffin during combat. She has a rapier but didn't draw her weapon and do damage until like 75% of the way in. She talks to trees, not because it's an inherent ability or she's really into nature, but because it just seems polite at the time. (Sometimes they even talk back... sort of.)

She's befriended a random dire wolf and was nearly murdered by a cute little tabby cat. She disguised herself as the BBEG to interrogate a bunch of cultists who were trying to capture her. She has somehow managed to weaponize the Light cantrip.

Her mortal enemy is a door.

seen here, plotting said door's demise

She is utterly ridiculous and I love her.

So, of course I had to bring this powerhouse into BG3 for an honor mode run.

She did surprisingly well for the tutorial, but then she and Shadowheart forgot to have weapons equipped when walking into the first post-prologue fight and I got a very rude awakening when facing off against the Intellect Devourers. Poor SH died while Eliana ran like the dickens. I tried to alt-f4 to start the encounter over but the game was like "haha nice try" and saved as it was shutting down. After leaving poor SH to her doom, she went and found Gale and Astarion, remembered to equip a weapon, and got vengeance on the little pesky brains and revive my poor suffering cleric girl (who will soon be respecced into a poor suffering ranger girl once we find Withers, as well as the rest of the team).

I'm almost tempted to take bets on how soon this honor mode run is going to end. There is no way they're getting to Act 3 with that enabled. Probably not past the Grove even.

[ambrosiagoldfish]

Heya! Might I request something with a touch-starved Adam? That man definitely yearns for some genuine affection underneath all the “og dick” persona!! Thank you!

Touch-Starved Adam

Adam x GN! Reader

Warnings: General Adam TW’s, Fluffy

Request box: Open

Word Count: 1014

A/n: Thanks for the request! I’m so sorry for such an embarrassingly long time it took, I hope you enjoy! Sorry!!!

This man is 100% the most touched starved Angel in heaven. and he doesn’t even know it.

He knows he feels a constant absence when around people, especially when he’s alone. Genuine affection is just not something he has a lot of. Any winner who meets him sees him as an idol (How could they fucking not -Adam probably), any sexual partners only want just that, sex. Which, don’t get him wrong he LOVES sex but it’s just not the same.

The closest he gets to genuine casual affection is Lute who is, to be completely honest, ALSO touch starved so she rarely initiates any contact herself. But Adam loves any form of casual physical contact from her, fist bumps, putting their hands on each other's shoulder, whenever they shush each other. Adam may pretend to hate it but that little bit of contact has been keeping this man going for these countless years.

This is where you come in. You were a recent human soul to ascend to heaven. You had tried to do your best on earth and this was your reward for good deeds. You was a little shocked, not expecting you’d have been the best during life, but hey! You’re here now so, Yay!

Your excitement lasted a total of 5 minutes before you were crushed under the heels of near 20+ winners screaming something about “it’s him!”, only stopping once your halo was thoroughly crushed.

You picked yourself off the ground and dusted yourself off. You move your neck and pain shot through,

‘Yep, that’s gonna bruise’ you thought before turning your attention back to the crazed fangirl stampede in front of you. Over all the screaming and ogling, you heard a particular name that caught your attention, Adam. You walk over to the crowd, moving past the people. On the other side you see a tall man in white robes and a LED mask. He greeted the fans, took pictures, even signing some people’s… parts that you had rather not have seen. Eventually the crowd dispersed after getting what they wanted from him and leaving you alone with the tall Angel.

You weren’t really sure what you were even doing standing in the crowd in the first place but you were enamored by the man.

“Hey! What are you fuckin’ staring off to space for” the man, Adam you presume, yelled, now right in front of you. “What do you want? Photo? Autograph? Where do you want me to sign?”

You looked sheepishly at him before answering “oh sorry I’m- I’m not with them. I actually have no idea who you are… sorry”

Adam blinked confused before a wicked smile “oh I see well, behold your fuxking eyes, cause I’m the Adam!” He pauses for dramatic effect waiting for the excited reaction he often got only to be met with a confusing silence.

“Who?”

He scoffs “who?! You know, Adam, The original dick? The one that banged a chick a couple times and populated the beginning of humanity. Adam, ring any bells??”

“Sorry I’m not big on politics-“

Adam looked at you with both frustration and intrigue. It’s incredibly rare to meet a soul in heaven to not know who he is, let alone just not know him at all. This caught his attention though. He put his hand on your shoulder and asked to show you around to which you hesitantly agreed to.

The fact you didn’t know about his status as the first man really intrigued him. Which led to him asking you out (albeit with a lot of swearing and dodging the main question he wanted to ask) but ever since you caught on to it, you accepted his offer and you’ve both been together ever since.

Adam always initiated contact with you as much as he could. The feeling of closeness it brought made him much more happy than he would want to admit. But what really makes him happy is when you suddenly touch him without warning.

Considering he has gone most of his life without affectionate touches, his body has grown to be quite sensitive and ticklish, which he hates to admit. But it was the truth. He especially gets embarrassed when you accidentally touch his arm and he jumps, but ends up missing that slightest touch once it’s gone.

Once you found this out you made sure to give him plenty of physical contact. Regular hugs, holding hands, and eventually when he was comfortable enough, you would hold his face when he took his mask off.

That last one was the one that made him feel the most happy. Cause it solidifies your love for him. You both get look at AND get to touch the least observed part of his body than any other has.

Sometimes, after a long day of heavenly duties, all Adam wants is to go home and have you hold him, mask off. Just let you caress his face, give him a light massage as he tells you about his shitty day.

-

Your hands gently squeezed the flesh of his biceps, putting just enough pressure to make the aching muscles go numb with relief. The unmasked man’s face rest against your chest, getting comfortable by the second, his voice revealing the tension now leaving his body.

You continue putting your firm touch to a particular spot on Adam’s shoulder, feeling the knot slowly go away with each kneed of your fingers. Before moving down to the area between where his wings connect to his back.

“Fuxk- right there!”

You smile, putting pressure and massaging the area between his wings. The noises Adam was making could make someone assume some.. unholy things were being conducted. But it didn’t matter what others think.

Once you finished the massage you gave Adam a tap on the shoulder and he scooted up to the headboard , picking you up in his arms, cornering you both in his now tension-free wings like a blanket. You give him a kiss on the cheek before falling asleep in each others arms.

[gothamcitycentral]

Hazbin establishes very strong parallels between Charlie and Vaggie’s relationship and Lucifer and Lilith’s.

Charlie being as to Lucifer, the fantastical dreamer discouraged and rejected by the world around them.

Vaggie being as to Lilith, someone who failed their assigned role and were driven out of ‘paradise’ (Heaven/Eden) by someone they should have been able to trust (Lute/Adam).

In their most vulnerable moments Lucifer and Charlie find them, love blossoming between each pair because they defied the norm, Lucifer and Lilith being rebellious in a world of order and Charlie and Vaggie being kind in a world of cruelty.

Though at the same time, Charlie is to Lilith while Vaggie is to Lucifer.

“This kingdom was something she really cared about. Something I care about.”

Charlie acknowledges she is the last thread of the hope her mother gave to Hell all those thousands of years ago. The responsibility to her home Charlie puts on her shoulders is born from the love Lilith had for it. She is directly following in her mother’s footsteps, truly believing her people deserve better and that they’re worth fighting for.

Then there is their partners, the fallen angels who don’t share their love’s connection to Hell. Lucifer saw sinners as horrible people who wasted the gift he went to Hell for giving them. Vaggie always kept everyone not named Charlie a spear’s distance away, treating them as people she tolerated but never trusted for a moment. Despite what Heaven had done, had done to them, they were still thinking like angels.

(Though, these mentalities would change throughout the first season, Lucifer choosing to support Charlie no matter what and Vaggie accepting the hotel crew as a part of the in-group which she wishes to protect)

Lucifer’s distaste for his people, not fighting alongside Lilith’s rebellion and instead agreeing to the exterminations, seems to be why they eventually split, despite the love they held for each other. In extreme contrast, Vaggie always supporting Charlie is what keeps them together despite bumps in their relationship. Vaggie always chose to believe in and support Charlie and that means the world and more to Charlie, who spent so much of her life unsupported.

The show also juxtaposes Lucifer’s parental love for Charlie with Vaggie’s romantic love for her, most prominently with Vaggie starting the reprise of More Than Anything to express her love as Lucifer did originally.

(They’re also just. Charlie and Lilith being these tall powerful demon women with Vaggie and Lucifer being their short and tiny fallen angel loves)

What becomes interesting is during the finale when Lucifer (very strongly, very tastefully) implies he ate out Adam’s first wife before fucking his second.

This seems to based on sexual interpretations of original sin. However, in Hazbin we are very much lead to believe the Fruit of Knowledge is a literal apple. Given that Lilith is said to have also offered the apple to Eve, I doubt the implication is that Luci had any sort of one night stand with Eve. Rather, I think Lilith, Eve, and him were once, or attempted to be, in a romantic relationship.

(Considering Eve was made to be Adam’s lesser and Lucifer and Lilith shared the gift of free will with her specifically, I do wonder if Eve had fallen in love with the two, but was unable to leave Adam. The Fruit of Knowledge being given to her so she would be able to be free and join their relationship, but ultimately resulted in their separation as Lucifer and Lilith were casted into Hell)

Which certainly has implications about the future of Charlie and Vaggie’s relationship.

I think the show has actually set very compelling parallels between Eve and Emily.

Much as Lucifer shared forbidden knowledge with Eve, it’s Charlie’s actions that revealed the hidden truth of Heaven’s exterminations. There’s the specific ‘free will’ which Eve was gifted, which fits with Charlie’s influence giving Emily the ‘free will’ to defy Sera and act against Heaven.

I’ve also talked before about the possibility Emily was brought into existence to fill Lucifer’s place in Heaven. Considering the protective relationship Sera has with Emily, along with her looks of genuine horror at her acting against Heaven, it brings to mind the idea Sera has been fearful that Emily would fall just as Lucifer did for Emily’s entire existence, and as such raised her to be more likely to never stray from Heaven as Lucifer did. Which could add to why Sera hid Heaven’s genocide from her despite Emily being a high ranking seraphim; she couldn’t risk giving Emily a reason to rebel.

Which would be a very striking analogue between the two. Both living replacements for the fallen, born into someone else’s shadow to take their place, intended to be the more docile and proper version of Lilith and Lucifer, less likely to stray from the roles they were created to fill. Though, of course, we know Eve fell to temptation and maybe-probably-definitely left or tried to leave Adam, and that Emily is walking the edge.

(Emily having ties to both Lucifer and Eve seems relevant with how Charlie and Vaggie each have parallels to Lucifer and Lilith. Perhaps in her fall, we’ll see Emily ‘thrive in Hell’ just as Lilith did, and similarities between Charlie and Vaggie to Eve will pop up the more we learn about her?)

What’s also interesting is that Eve ‘falling into temptation’ (choosing Lucifer and Lilith over her preordained role) is what separated her from them. However, if Emily were to choose supporting Charlie’s dream over her place in Heaven, then her falling would be what brought her to Charlie and Vaggie. Thereby their situation acts as a foil to the previous generation’s.

And Emily supporting Charlie is very relevant. In More Than Anything we get the exchange of:

“I’ll support your dream whatever lies in store.”

“And who could ask for more?”

Because Charlie can’t think of anything more she could ask. Charlie’s idea of love and being loved is so heavily based on support and being supported. It’s a part of the conflict in Hell’s Greatest Dad, that Lucifer is being genuine and Alastor manipulative, but Alastor is the one actually providing Charlie with what she asks of him, which Lucifer never has. Charlie shows her love for Hell by believing in them, that they can improve, they deserve safety, and they have worth. It’s why Vaggie’s love is so important to Charlie, because for a long time, she was the only one believing in her.

And what does Emily do?

“I don’t know-”

“Yeah, let’s give him a chance!”

She supports Charlie! She believes and trusts her and argues on her behalf. She’s the only angel in Heaven to have faith in Charlie’s dream. Having Emily in the position of a fallen angel, falling right into Charlie’s arms, Charlie caring for her and nursing her back to health, with her being someone who very deeply believes in her, would be the same conditions that made Charlie fall in love with Vaggie three years ago.

Then for Vaggie, Emily also has a lot of the textbook traits that she loves Charlie for. The overexcited-ness, the care she has for others, even the way she doesn’t pull rank. And what she hasn’t expressed, that being seeing value in Vaggie where she herself does not, it feels natural that Emily would express that in the way Charlie does upon learning Vaggie’s history. We’ve seen her sense of justice and her horror at Heaven’s actions, so her deeply sympathizing with Vaggie would be entirely expected, and would be a very easy way for Vaggie to catch feelings for Emily.

However, there is this:

Which suggests the direction of a jealous Vaggie. I think that works, at least initially, with Vaggie feeling insecure in her relationship with Charlie after Emily falling and being cared for by Charlie in the way she was all that time ago. Those feelings heavily changing however, at the realization that Emily is crushing on her just as much as she is Charlie and how deeply relatable to her Emily’s circumstances and trauma would be.

Then on Emily’s side, not only would she have very much been thinking and focusing on Charlie prior to her fall, once she does, she lands in a very emotionally volatile situation where Charlie and Vaggie are supporting her so much and caring for her so deeply. It makes sense that this would translate to her developing feelings for the both of them.

(Now, this is a bit less definitive, but with Emily’s design, the long hair and dress that covers every inch of her short of her fingers, and Heaven being a stand in for the imperialist church, I do read the coming-of-age story the show has set up for her to be one of a conservative christian raised girl striking out of the doctrine she grew up in and finding community in the people her home had demonized, or at least an allegory for such. So having her develop romantic feelings for two ‘vile and blasphemous’ women in a very non-monogamous way would be very thematically relevant I think)

I would say this all works great as an analogue to Lucifer, Lilith, and Eve. Eve being in the unfortunate situation of Adam’s wife but finding comfort in Lucifer and Lilith and falling for the both of them as Emily would as a fallen angel being comforted by Charlie and Vaggie. Lucifer seeing Lilith reflected in Eve and caring for and helping her as he did before being parallel to Charlie helping Emily as she did Vaggie. Lilith initially feeling negativity towards the woman made to replace her bond so closely with her new love, only to realize Eve is falling for her just as much as she is for Lucifer and empathizing with Eve’s situation so deeply, just like Vaggie.

Then, there’s Adam and Lute. I already mentioned that they play parallel with forcing Lilith and Vaggie out of their respective paradises. Their dynamics are built on Adam and Lute punishing, and their domination over, Lilith and Vaggie, because they need to know their place: beneath them. (There’s also the interpretation of that Lute had or has romantic feelings for Vaggie, which is certainly relevant) The show is being very clear with Lute being Adam’s successor I feel, with her taking on his position as leader of the exorcists following his death.

Then, her line: “Your brat is threatening the very foundation of Heaven.” Personally, that makes me think of a sediment Adam would feel towards Lucifer. That’s he is the source of every problem, that he stole his wives (ignoring that Lilith left him before even meeting Luci), and that he destroyed paradise, Eden. Now that Vaggie and Lute’s conflict has seemingly come to a close, I think the show will be shifting to a Lute vs Charlie conflict, much as Adam shifted from Lilith to his hatred for Lucifer.

Now, if the show wants to push a Adam-Eve dynamic with Lute and Emily, what I could imagine is Lute protecting onto Emily in a very one sided way, where she thinks Charlie has ‘corrupted’ the seraphim (threatening heaven’s foundation) and she must personally ‘save’ her, which would very much align with how Adam would feel towards Lucifer’s influence on Eve.

Now, we can tell that Lucifer, Lilith, and Eve’s relationship Did Not pan out particularly well. So I think much like how Charlie and Vaggie have succeeded where Lilith and Lucifer failed, Charlie, Vaggie, and Emily is going to be the successful foil to their attempted relationship. Then for Lute, I think it becomes a question of: does she accept the olive branch Adam did not, does she eventually understand that she is doing wrong, does she accept mercy, or does she continue down Adam’s path, digging her own grave as he did; except that unlike Adam, there won’t be anyone to cry for her?

And y’know, the angel and 3 immortal humans versus the demon/half immortal human and 3 angels serves as a nice counter.

[primrosebow]

An open letter to bigfatbimbo.🪽

Reasons why you should write for Adam.

1 -> He is a misogynist (not for long)

Look at his face. He is so weird. I swear. He has been favoritized for far too long, leaving him with the most mind-numbing god complex. Don't you want to stab him to death like niffty? Don't you want to put him where he deserves to be (either underground or under me)? I do. You should too! Because his way of thinking meets it's end where my heels begin.

2 -> He is stupid

He has the emotional maturity of a boiled lobster. He fits into heaven like an orca in the amazon river. He is so unbelievably incompetent it is actually kind of mind boggling. Don't you want to crush him like he's a little bug (either with your fists or your thighs)? Didn't he literally say one of the "biggest issues evet" was math or something? He probably couldn't tell you where Africa is in the world map even if you paid him. Even the fruit of knowledge couldn't give him enough braincells to function as a proper member of society.

3 -> he deserves humiliation

He deserves to have his entire worldview rocked and destroyed, something we can surely provide. His shallow thinking should be promptly obliterated. He has only ever gotten away from beautiful tall strong women because he always had the option of just asking for a different woman. They didn't have the mental fortitude to put him in his place. We are the bearers of the curse (liking repulsive men), and, since there is no "mental fortitude" to begin with, there is nothing for him to break down. We (as a collective) should end him.

4 -> I know what he is

His entire persona is a gigantic act to make up for the fact he cannot appropriatelly cope with losing in general, much less losing the, like, 2 wives he ever had (to THE SAME GUY!! MIND YOU!!!) and if he had more people they were one night stands. Not because he left them, but because people know he is worthless scum and he is good for nothing other than his "original dick" ( eugh. I usually refrain from cursing >:// ). It is the reason for his pride and also the only thing that makes him even remotely worth the hastle of talking to. He is the equivalent of a carnival prize to the people in heaven, scoring him is more of a show of your own endurance rather than how coveted he is. He has been objectified through his own hubris. He should be made aware of that. He should fear the knowledge we posses. It should be used against him.

5 -> he sounds.. like.. . He sounds good.

I watched the series while skipping most of the songs but I genuinelly could not do it when he was singing. No wonder he's in a band or something, I didn't actually pay attention to what he was saying I was paying more attention to the sound of his voice so I don't remember clearly what's up with that. Like he sounds REALLY good. If only he knew how to just use his voice without saying the most repulsive atrocities to be ever uttered by anyone ever. Oh yeah! We can make him incoherent enough for that to happen.

6 -> Lute deserves better

Lute deserves, like, a woman. Not him. She's too gorgeous for him, and, the difference between us and her is that while SHE is dealing with HIM, in our case, HE has to deal with US. Really, we're just saving a beautiful, amazing, stunning, showstopping woman a lot of trouble, and getting an ENTIRE PATHETIC MAN AS A TRADE! WIN WIN! Literally no downsides, I swear.

7 -> he is girl dinner

Don't you just love looking into your fridge and seeing the worthless scraps that built up overtime but somehow taste better now than they usually would have, which is particularly shocking considering it has 0 nutritional value? That would be what girl dinner is, and also an appropriate analogy for what Adam is like! Just roughly ok looking enough for you to not downright call it a biohazard. You will go to bed satisfied after fighting tooth and nail for your dinner (getting him to behave properly) and, it'll be easier the next times maybe! Operant conditioning is a heavy hitter with this repulsive individual, so it might actually get easier! Who knows!

8 -> Pretty please? (´｡･д人)ﾞ

I really. Uh . I really want him if you couldn't tell? Maybe the cannibalism and the fear I want to instill into him got in the way of you seeing my point, but, like, that's just how I love. The highest honor I could bestow on him is wanting to eat him, so, maybe that'll assist in your judgement? I also just really like your writing and would love to hear your thoughts on his idiotic self. AND! AND! Other people also want you to write about him if I well remember the 1 ask you received about him!

I await your response when you are available @bigfatbimbo

If you need more convincing; I can, like, draw him? I'm going to draw him no matter what but like I can cook something up for you in particular who knows.

You did say you were already considering writing for him, so, maybe this can be a final push in that direction for you!

- sincerely, Bow

[gothearts]

Adam design? Any changes for his personality or demeanor?

Oh boy.. get ready for the infodump..

Note: He still has his ridiculous helmet, I love his expressions in that thing so much. So do the exorcists since I think that the mocking element of it is an interesting decision.

In this au, hellborns are not exempt from the annual extermination. Since they don't have souls, they're deemed evil indiscriminately. The only ones exempt are the sins and the Morningstar Family.

The extermination only takes place in the Pride Ring as further punishment for Lucifer and Lilith, watching annually as what they built is destroyed all over again.

(Hellborns with the means typically exit the Pride Ring during the annual extermination. If you can't, well, you're fucked. It's another layer of why what Blitzø is doing as an imp is considered so groundbreaking, but back to Adam)

He is NOT "indestructible" like the exorcists. Like any average Winner, he can be harmed. Therefore, he attacks from afar with his guitar being considered a long-range weapon.

He and Lilith originally split not because he was a prick who ordered her around, but rather, he was eager to please Heaven, and she wasn't.

Lilith was a free thinker from the start, a dreamer, while Adam narrow mindedly focused on what he had before him. This led to a lot of clashes, her refusing to be subservient to heaven, rather than subservient to him.

(I know that's the original story, but I just don't find it as interesting for the route I'm trying to go with a truly corrupted Heaven in this au.)

She would flee the garden and take comfort in the arms of Samael.

This led to Adam feeling bitter. But he ultimately elected to let it go as he was promised companionship with the much more likeminded Eve.

However, in trying to rid Eve of the qualities that made Lilith so disliked, she became naive. A trait that Adam thought was cute at first, but she just... wasn't Lilith.

Eve was a replacement, and it was apparent, but Adam once again let it go because it was the will of heaven, and he'd already failed to keep one bride.

Then Lucifer gave Eve the fruit and unleashed all of the badness onto the world, and Adam witnessed the war that broke out in Heaven, seeing the devastation first hand, reinforcing his notion that Heaven is always right.

Alongside sealing an ever growing hatred for Lucifer. He'd charmed away his first wife and filled her head with delusions, casting her to eternal damnation. He'd corrupted his second wife and used her as a vessel for evil. (That wasn't his intention, of course, but that is the narrative that was reinforced in Heaven's mind to fuel his desire to uplift their "values".) And he'd destroyed the once beautiful gardens he'd called home, casting Adam and his children to the earth, severing the divinity they'd held.

Lucifer truly took everything.

That's why, when the extermination was proposed, he was more than eager to lead the new order of angels to go down and keep Hell at bay.

Michael, the actual leader of heaven's army, refuses to set foot in Hell and was more than eager to pawn off the responsibility onto Adam vs. Having to go down there and face his brother yearly, taking more from him than he already has.

(Michael's guilt will be touched upon later, it's important.)

Adam is the actual lieutenant, but Lute (Luael) is still his sidekick of sorts. Lute embodied his hatred for hell. Exorcists have very little sense of self. Their only purpose, as mentioned in the post on them is to fight, nothing more.

Hearing Adam talk about what Lucifer did alongside other tales of the horrors of hell is what led her to push herself as hard as she did to excel above her sisters. She reminds him so much of Eve due to that frankly naive devotion, and it's another layer of why he initially kept her around.

(Sorry to guitarspear shippers, but their dynamic is going to be inherently unhealthy in this au. Idk if they'll end up together. It depends on how their own arcs pan out as I expand on this further. But as of right now, he fills the void for her, and she's a stand-in for what he's already lost. They are not well 😔 this is also why he eagerly made the deal to sneak Lilith into heaven on the condition that she divorces Lucifer. He would jump on the opportunity to be taken back.)

ANYWAYS.

He's not really crude when he meets Charlie like in canon. Yes, he was kind of funny at times, but I want to take a more serious approach.

He comes off as inherently bitter towards her because she's not only the daughter of the man he hates but a reminder that Lucifer took Lilith from him.

The condescending attitude remains, but instead of just laughing her off, I think he unloads all of those millenia of anger onto Charlie.

He waited until that moment to announce moving the exterminations up purely out of spite.

Trying to hurt Lucifer indirectly by hurting Charlie.

The confrontation with Emily still happens, and I'd imagine it's relatively the same. But it's only after Charlie argues with him that he goes on a tangent on how useless hellborns and sinners are, ending with him declaring that he can't wait to come down again and exterminate them.

And everything after that's still the same.

He failed to complete the extermination, and thus, instead of being reincarnated, he was damned to hell. Which comes as a nasty shock.

He'd spent his entire existence devoted to heaven. He'd done all they asked.

And yet here he is.

It's a harsh reality.

He struggles to acclimate to Hell. But he does end up at the hotel where he'll have to face Lucifer head on in the hopes of working his way up to redemption. (That will be fun to explore later)

SO YEAH

Sorry for the rambling, that went into quite a bit more than his personality, but I hope that explains it well?

Idk, ig I just thought a more nuanced approach to Adam as a character would be interesting. Like he's got every right to be angry at Lucifer, but I want to go the "hurt people hurt people" route. He thinks he's justified in his path to vengeance because these are "bad people" (some absolutely are AJDJSJDJS) anyway. And Heaven does everything it can to reinforce that notion, using him until he becomes a liability with his inability to control his own anger.

[seramilla]

I’m hopping on the Vaggie is Carmilla’s daughter au and riding off that ask where Carmilla has nightmares. But adding to it.

Vaggie has had night terrors ever since her fall. Sometimes she’s reliving the moment Lute takes out her eye and tears her wings away and then Adam yanking her halo away. She’d wake up with phantom pains feeling as though she was just injured. Other nights she’s an exorcist again, slaughtering thousands of faceless demons…at first at least. After she and Charlie got the hotel up and running…she started to see familiar faces. Angel, Husk, Niffty, Alastor…the worst one was Charlie. Over time though they lessened greatly…until she learned the truth about her origins.

The night terrors come back with a vengeance. They were dreadful variations of Charlie and her own mother ripping her wings off for being an exorcist then going in for the kill. And the one where she’s an exorcist she only sees her loved ones as she kills them all with a smile.

Vaggie is more like Carmilla than she realizes. Carmilla has experienced night terrors long before she entered Hell. Thankfully, it seemed to skip Odette and Clara. Unfortunately, Vaggie inherited the trait, and just like her mother, it tends to feed off her guilt -- guilt about the horrible things she did as an Exorcist, lying to Charlie for so many years about her identity, and learning about the origins of herself and other Exorcists; realizing her entire life had been a lie.

Vaggie spent several days after being released from the hospital feeling sorry for herself. She tried to rest during the day, but she'd wake up from a deep sleep and not remember where she was, with memories flashing before her eyes of herself killing innocent humans, Sinners, Charlie, the hotel patrons, Carmilla, and even her sister Exorcists. Her self-consciousness brought to the forefront all the painful things she'd rather forget, and wouldn't let her get any sleep, until Charlie came to bed in the evenings, doing her best to scare all of Vaggie's ghosts away. But they always returned.

Vaggie also remembers feeling the safest when Carmilla had held her in her hospital bed. It's not that she doesn't feel safe with Charlie...there'd just been something noticeably different about being held by her mother for the first time. Some inherent sense of comfort and security that she'd never experienced or understood before. She'd talked about it with Charlie, and while Charlie is no psychologist, she'd helped Vaggie come to the conclusion that a lot of these nightmares are probably her brain processing all the new information that was thrust upon her overnight.

Visions of Charlie or Carmilla hurting her are signs of her own insecurity; everything she'd ever believed in was a lie, so her brain told her that maybe that means the ones she trusted most, her support network, could also cause her the same amount of pain; the same type of betrayal. It takes Vaggie a long time to learn to feel comfortable again in her own skin. A lot of it is with Charlie's help. And also Carmilla's. They help each other a lot, actually. After Vaggie learns of Carmilla's own night terrors, the pieces of the puzzle start falling into place. Just knowing, understanding, that she's not alone, was half the battle for them both. Now that they know, they can help each other recover. And they do.

[bluebird167]

The Little Mermaid AU.

This was actually a rough draft of Heart’s Content which was a straightforward re-telling of the Disney film but I decided to scrap it and try for something more original. Still I wondered what you all would think of it, so I re-read and re-edited it to fit with the new cannon and well..Here it is.

In a kingdom located in Denmark, Prince Alastor prefers to spend his days sailing and exploring rather than at court, despite his advisor Husk insisting that he should focus more on honoring the wishes of his deceased parents by settling down with a nice young lady and starting a family. One day while sailing over seas he hears a beautiful voice singing from fathoms below and commands it to be followed. No one else can hear the voice though but one sailor suggests that what the prince heard may have been a mermaid, specifically Lucifer's daughter for it is said that no one on land or in the sea has a voice as lovely as hers. The sailors then proceed to tell Alastor about King Lucifer who rules over the ocean and the mer-people, and how there was a time long ago when mer-people could be seen rising to the surface but then suddenly, they stopped coming. That the sea king had forbidden them from ever rising to the shore again after he lost his queen. Alastor is intrigued by these stories but Husk just brushes them off as nautical nonsense.

Meanwhile, deep on the ocean floor in the merfolk kingdom, King Lucifer and his brothers and sister in-laws Baron Belphegor, Lady Seras, and Lord Stolas are celebrating the anniversary of their nation's founding by having each of their daughters sing in a concert for their people. The concert is conducted by Lucifer's advisor and court composer, the sea-imp Moxxie and Belphegor's daughter Bee, Seras's daughter Emily, and Stolas's daughter Octavia perform magnificently but Lucifer's daughter is not present for her solo bringing the concert to a halt and enraging Lucifer.

As it turns out, Lucifer's daughter Charlie had forgotten about the concert because she is a mermaid who dreams of life on the land and spends most of her time swimming around the surface, collecting human items that occasionally fall from ships, and trying to learn about the humans. Unfortunately her people do not care for the surface or humans, and often look down on her and mock her for her interests. Calling her “odd”. The only ones who support her are her friends Vaggie who doesn't quite understand her fascination but wants her to be happy, and Blitzo a land-imp who gives her information about the human objects she finds. Or rather information that he's concocted in his own head. As he's telling her that a fork she found is used for combing one's hair and that a pipe she found is used for music, she suddenly remembers the concert and hurries home.

Elsewhere, Adam the sea-wizard and his loyal follower Lute are plotting revenge against Lucifer for banishing them and transforming Adam from a handsome merman to a hideous cecaelia. When Adam notices how head-strong and rebellious Charlie is, like her late mother, he suspects that she may be the key to Lucifer's undoing and tells Lute to keep an eye on her.

When Charlie returns home her father reprimands her for missing the concert and going to the surface, reminding Charlie that humans killed her mother Lilith years ago. Charlie then protests that the humans who killed her were pirates and that she believes that not all humans were like them. However Lucifer is xenophobic toward humans, viewing them as nothing more than savages. He forbids Charlie from ever going to the surface again and she leaves distraught. Lucifer then assigns Moxxie to watch over Charlie and keep her out of trouble, much to the sea-imp's dismay.

Moxxie follows Charlie and Vaggie to a secret grotto where she keeps her collection of human objects. Vaggie comforts Charlie and asks why she's so interested in the surface world anyway. The sea princess then responds that she gets it from her mother and that Queen Lilith always believed that the humans and the merfolk could live together in harmony if they tried to understand each other, so she would visit the surface as often as she could and then tell her daughter about her adventures. Charlie also reveals that her father once supported her mother's dream and even had a special music box made for her to show his support but that was lost along with her mother's life. Charlie then confesses that she secretly wishes to live in the surface world and have her own adventures, and wonders if maybe the humans would be more accepting of her "odd" nature than the merfolk are.

Moxxie is horrified by this discovery and makes his presence known. Charlie quickly pleads with Moxxie not to tell Lucifer about her collection or her secret wish. Moxxie promises not to but tries to convince Charlie to forget her strange hobbies and focus more on music and her singing. The conversation is interrupted when Charlie sees a ship floating overhead and curiously, swims up to investigate. She swims closer to the ship and spies on the sailors aboard who are celebrating Alastor's birthday. She watches the young man play the flute and dance with his cat Kee Kee and the crew, further intriguing her. During the party, the prime minister Zestial tells the prince that he must find a bride and take up his father's crown, then tells him that he is planning to arrange a marriage for him and the duchess Verosicka. Alastor and Husk both protest, insisting that both his father and mother would have wanted him to marry for love. Zestial counter-argues that despite that, the prince doesn't have anyone to love. Alastor tells them that the woman he falls in love with will be someone who's different. Someone who's "odd". Hearing this, Charlie is instantly smitten.

A storm suddenly hits and when the crew cannot steer the ship to safety, Alastor risks his life to get everyone on board including Kee Kee over to the lifeboats, choosing to be the last one to get off. Just as it's his turn, lighting strikes and the ship breaks apart. Alastor is tossed overboard and knocked unconscious. Charlie saves him from drowning and drags him to the shore. The storm ends by morning and Charlie checks to see if Alastor is still alive. When she sees that he is, she sings to him. Alastor begins to stir and the two fall in love.

Alastor dazedly begs Charlie to stay but she is forced to leave when she hears Husk coming. However Charlie vows to find a way to be with him and Alastor vows to find the woman who saved him. All of which is witnessed by Lute and as Adam spies on them through her eyes, he boasts on how he can use these star-crossed lovers to his advantage and that the reason for his transformation and banishment was that years ago, he and Lilith had been arranged to marry but she fell in love with Lucifer, choosing to marry him instead. Out of jealousy and revenge, he arranged for Lucifer to be killed by pirates but Lilith pushed her husband out of the way, taking the killing blow for him. He then remarks that Lucifer’s lovely little princess would make a charming bride.

After Charlie returns home, her behavior makes her father and her cousins Bee, Emily, and Octavia suspect that she has fallen in love. Moxxie tries to convince her that the sea is where she belongs and points out all the wonders of it, but she only dismisses his words and swims off. On land, Alastor is pressured into a dinner with the duchess Verosicka but he quickly realizes that she’s a vain woman only wants to marry him to become queen and rejects her advances. This upsets Zestial who believes in marriage for convenience but Husk proposes a compromise, that they give Alastor some time to fall in love and find a woman to marry before betrothing him to the duchess. Alastor reluctantly accepts but reveals that he’s in love with the one who saved him and wants to marry her but the only clue he has to find her is her beautiful voice and eyes.

At first Lucifer is pleased with the idea that Charlie has found love and asks Moxxie who the lucky “merman” is? Unfortunately Moxxie accidentally reveals that Charlie saved a human and that he is the one she is in love with. Lucifer is furious and forces Moxxie to take him to Charlie's grotto. There Vaggie has surprised Charlie with a small, marble statue of the prince that she found on the ocean floor and the princess gleefully starts to talk about how she'll sneak away to the surface to visit the prince. But Lucifer appears at the grotto and is enraged by her plans. Charlie tries to explain but Lucifer refuses to listen and destroys her collection of artifacts in a misguided attempt to protect her. Charlie swims away to cry and Lucifer is left feeling guilty for his actions but convinced that it was for her own good.

Once alone, Lute approaches Charlie and tells her that Adam has great power which he uses to help others achieve their greatest desires, and that she was once a land creature who dreamed of life in the sea and Adam made that dream real. Charlie knows nothing of Adam or of his past with her parents, and she's so devastated by her father's actions and feels so alone in her own world, that she agrees to go see him. Moxxie and Vaggie spot Charlie with Lute and follow them to Adam's lair. When Moxxie realizes who Charlie is about to meet, he rushes to warn her but Lute silences him and Vaggie.

Adam tells Charlie that the only way to be with Alastor is to become human and he offers to turn her into one for a month and if she can win Alastor's love and receive a true love's kiss from him before the sun sets on the final day, she will remain human forever. But if he doesn't then she'll turn back into a mermaid and be Adam's prisoner. He also demands that Charlie give him her voice as payment for the potion. At first Charlie is hesitate to accept, unsure if she can leave her father, family, and friends forever or give up her voice as it is her last connection to her mother. But Adam manipulates her by saying that she never really belonged in the sea to begin with and no one down below will ever truly accept her. And he convinces her that giving up her voice will be no great loss because she'll be the most beautiful human woman anyone has ever seen and that she will dance more gracefully than any other. In the end Charlie accepts the deal, Adam then takes her voice and locks it away in a nautilus shell, and gives her a potion that turns her tail into legs. Vaggie and Moxxie quickly get her to the surface before she can drown.

They meet Blitzo by the shore and Charlie is thrilled at finally becoming a human while Moxxie is mortified and almost goes to tell Lucifer what happened. But Vaggie and a now silent Charlie persuade him to instead help them as this is the only chance Charlie has at being truly happy. Blitzo finds some discarded rags and cloth to cover Charlie’s body with, just as she’s found on the beach by Alastor. He doesn’t think she’s the one who saved him due to her no longer having a voice but something about her beautiful eyes draw him to her so he decides to take her to the palace, inviting her to stay as his guest.

Inside, Rosie the headmistress of staff and Niffty the maid, take care of Charlie and see that she is treated like royalty. Giving her a suite and baths, dressing her in gowns of silk and muslin, weaving pearls into her hair, all the while Charlie is fascinated by the new world around her. In the evening, a banquet and ball is held in hopes that Alastor will choose a bride but none of the young ladies attending interest him.

When Charlie enters the room, Alastor is astonished by her beauty and invites her to sit with him and Husk at the banquet table. Charlie attempts to impress him by brushing her hair with a fork and blowing Husk’s pipe like it’s an instrument. All the guests laugh at her but Alastor finds her “odd” behavior charming and smiles at her.

Moxxie and Blitzo sneak into the palace to keep an eye on Charlie but the royal Chef Pentious mistakes them for being crabs and tries to cook them for dinner. They retaliate, leading to a brawl that disrupts the meal but luckily Blitzo escapes out the window while Charlie hides Moxxie in her room. After dinner Alastor teaches Charlie to dance and despite her clumsiness, she still moves with grace and charms him even further with her eloquent eyes. As Husk, Rosie, and Niffty watch them dance, they are pleased to see the prince so happy and suspect that love is in the air.

The next day, Alastor takes Charlie on a tour of the kingdom, going to shops and stands, introducing her to his neighbors and good friends, and he is further impressed with how she responds to everything with such an innocent and playful fascination. They end the day with a picnic on the beach which Charlie enjoys but as she watches the tide, she starts to become homesick and dips her feet in the water. Alastor notices that she's sad and understands that she misses her family. He comforts her and opens up to her about how he lost his parents and misses them. To cheer her up, he gives her a present, one of the many artifacts that his father brought back from his days as an explorer and to Charlie's wonder and joy, the gift is her mother's music box. She embraces him and they almost kiss but Alastor backs out, still longing for the "one" who saved him.

As Adam continues to spy on Charlie, he starts to become anxious. He tells Lute that he gave Charlie a month to win Alastor's heart because he knows that the prince is expected to marry another woman by the month's end and is sure that humans never break an arranged marriage. Still, he sends Lute upward to make absolutely certain that the kiss doesn't happen.

As the weeks pass, Alastor and Charlie grow closer. They go horseback riding, they climb mountain tops, he takes her sailing, and she listens to him whenever he talks about how he doesn't want to be king and that he's not sure he will be as good at running a kingdom as his parents were. Not one day goes by where they are not together yet Alastor still does not even make an attempt to kiss her. But while she spends her days with Alastor, Charlie spends her nights dipping her feet in the ocean and visiting with Vaggie who misses her terribly but is glad that she's happy. One night as Charlie comes back from the beach, she over hears Zestial and Husk arguing about Alastor's betrothal to Verosicka and she fears that he may love another. Rosie and Niffty figure this out and comfort Charlie, assuring her that Alastor does not like Verosicka at all and that they truly believe that if he ever married anyone, it'll be her. Meanwhile, Lucifer and his family have been searching the entire ocean for Charlie and Moxxie the remorseful sea king breaks down to his brother in-law Stolas about how he knows Charlie and Moxxie's disappearances are his fault and that he failed them and Lilith. Stolas however assures him that Charlie and Moxxie will be found and that his sister knows how much he loves and tries. Still Lucifer cannot help but constantly say "What have I done? What have I done?"

On the day before the last day of the month, Alastor takes Charlie on a romantic boat ride in a lagoon. A secret spot where his father used to take his mother and he tells her how his father met his mother while exploring the middle east and how different she was from all the other woman he had met before. That she was "odd" just like how his father was "odd" and they fell so much in love that no matter what they faced, no matter what stood in their way, they would always find each other. He then confesses that he wants a love like that and that is why he cannot consent to an arranged marriage. He also confesses that he considers himself "odd" and that he thinks Charlie is wonderful because she's "odd" too. Moxxie takes advantage of the moment by working with Bltizo to create a romantic atmosphere and again they almost kiss, but Lute ruins the moment by tipping the boat over.

Furious at Charlie's close success, Adam decides to take matters into his own tentacles but going up to the surface and appears to a jealous Verosicka, who is sulking over the fact that the prince would prefer a “little mute" over herself. Adam offers Versoicka a solution and gives her specific instructions to follow. That night, Husk suggests to Alastor that "Far better than any dream girl is one of flesh and blood, one warm and caring, and right before your eyes." Alastor takes this advice to heart and realizes that he's fallen in love with Charlie. He decides to forget his dream girl and marry Charlie instead but before he can tell her how he feels, he is approached by Versoicka who is now wearing the nautilus shell containing Charlie's voice around her neck. She uses the voice to bewitch Alastor to forget all about Charlie and marry the "one with the voice."

The next morning Charlie learns that Alastor has decided to marry Verosicka today, much to the joy of Zestial and the confusion of Husk, Rosie, and Niffty. Charlie tries to get Alastor's attention but Versoicka does everything in her power to keep him from seeing her, and when the staff questions him about Charlie, he claims not know such a woman. Heartbroken, Charlie runs off in tears, sobbing by the shore as the wedding ship departs. But Blitzo suspects that something is up and decides to do a little snooping. He spies on Verosicka and sees her conversing with Adam through a mirror, in which they reveal that they've been using Charlie's voice to keep Alastor in a trance and that Verosicka must not let Alastor see his true love or the spell may weaken. Blitzo quickly warns his friends and they devise a plan, Vaggie will take Charlie to the wedding ship, Moxxie will get Lucifer, and Blitzo will stall the wedding.

Blitzo enlists sea animals and Kee Kee to help him and together they disrupt the wedding and attack Verosicka. Vaggie and Charlie get closer to the ship but Lute turns herself into a shark and attacks them. Vaggie fights her, giving Charlie a chance to climb aboard. Alastor finally sees her, bedraggled and on the verge of collapsing, he starts to remember her and rushes to embrace her. Veroscika attempts to strengthen the spell over him but Blitzo rips the nautilus shell from her neck and breaks it at Charlie's feet. Charlie's voice is restored to her and Alastor realizes that she's the one. Tragically, just before their lips can touch, the sunsets and Charlie turns back into a mermaid. It's too late and Adam takes Charlie away, but Alastor is determined not to lose her again.

Lucifer confronts Adam and agrees to take his daughter's place and give him his trident, in exchange for her freedom. Adam agrees, he claims the trident for himself and turns Lucifer into a sea worm to Moxxie's and Charlie's horror. Charlie attempts to take the trident back to save her father but Adam restrains her. Alastor, having found them, shoots a harpoon at Adam to defend her and Lute responds by trying to drown him. Vaggie and Moxxie defend him and Adam attempts to kill all three of them with the trident but Charlie intervenes, causing the blast to hit and kill Lute instead.

Alastor and Charlie reunite at the surface and she urges him to get away for his safety but he refuses to leave her. The couple is suddenly pursued by an enraged Adam who controls the waters to bring them to him. He takes Charlie hostage and starts trying to drown Alastor, all the while taunting him about how once he's dead, he'll takeover not only Charlie's kingdom but Alastor's as well, enslaving both of their people, and pushing the final button by declaring that he'll make Charlie his replacement bride for Lilith. Furious, Alastor reaches for the harpoon he threw earlier and stabs Adam in the chest. In pain, he drops both them and the trident, and the couple use the trident to destroy Adam.

Afterward, Alastor and Charlie swim to the shore where he proclaims his love for her and they share true love's kiss. But then Charlie tells him that although she loves him too, they belong in different worlds and that they can never be together. Alastor pleads with her not to leave him, that they can surely find a way but she tearfully insists that there is no such way. She returns to the sea and is overjoyed to see her father restored to his true form, they embrace, and both apologize for the mistakes they've made. Charlie agrees to go home but asks to have one last look at Alastor first and Lucifer consents. Seeing the way Charlie looks at Alastor and the way he looked at her, reminds Lucifer of how he used to look at Lilith and recalls that Alastor had risked his life to save his daughter just as Lilith had given her life for her husband. Realizing that he was wrong and that he wants Charlie to be happy, Lucifer decides to change Charlie into a human for good, she runs into Alastor's arms, they kiss, and at some point marry, finally uniting humans and merfolk just as Lilith always wanted.

[jubileemon]

Original Man Adam Theory

It's possible that Adam went to Heaven not because he was a virtuous person who abstained from sinning but because of lack of temptation. If we go through the list of deadly sins and biblical account of what happened after The Fall, he couldn't commit any of them. Pride? Of what? He got cowed by God very hard. Greed? Gluttony? Sloth? He is forced to toil away every day for basic sustenance, there is no wealth to hoard, not enough food to gorge on, and if he is lazy, he'll starve to death.

Lust? There is only one woman he can lust over and that woman is Eve. We call that faithfulness in marriage. Wrath? Envy? Again, against whom? The first victim of those is Abel. He does commit every single one of them after death, though.

Rather fittingly, Adam has been shown to possess several of the Seven Deadly Sins from Charlie's time speaking to him. He pridefully boasts about how superior he is at things to people, lustfully talks about how he convinced another angel to sleep with him, mentions that he got annoyed over said angel wanting another one of his band members instead of him (implying he was envious he wasn't her first pick), got angry over one angel getting killed compared to the thousands of demons he kills every year and gluttonously wolfs down a pack of ribs while meeting with Charlie, is the one angel greedily wearing mostly gold clothes (and actually has golden horns as ornaments in his fashion getup), and is too lazy to make an appearance in person, instead using a hologram since he couldn't be bothered to actually talk to the princess of Hell and hear what she has to say. And, again, rather fittingly, because he's an angel, he doesn't see the irony in any of this.

What's even more ironic is Charlie is shown to possess all of the Seven Virtues despite being a demon and the daughter of Lucifer. Again, Adam and Lute are both such petty jackasses that they don't see the irony in this.

In a way, Adam can be seen as a representation of corrupt religious figures: because he's on the side of good, it means he can't be wrong, that he can get away with anything, etc while preaching to others and looking down upon them for their faults, perceived or otherwise. Conversely, Emily represents the virtuous religious figures, being kind, understanding and open-minded to all she meets, yet is quick to condemn legitimate wrongdoing even when it comes from those she previously trusted/saw as good people, even agreeing with Charlie - the Princess of Hell - that Heaven's practices aren't as lofty as they preach.

Ironically enough, that seems to imply Lucifer bringing free will and the creation of hell was. In hindsight, a huge improvement for everybody involved despite appearances. Because evil exists and now people would not be inherently sent to heaven just for preaching loyalty now, people would be capable of understanding evil and choose not to indulge into it. By resisting sin or even learning from the failures, there's now the chance ascended mortals would have a chance of being actually good people who made the right choices even if the process is still far from perfect. Adam is essentially a pampered child coddled from evil, so now he believes anything he does is justified. Has anyone just simply gone straight to heaven without understanding evil, Heaven would be probably just as much of a bad place as hell currently is.

There's another heavenly mortal within heaven's files: St. Peter himself. Despite being Jesus' apostle, Peter was a victim of many evils in life and also made a fair share of mistakes, with his denial of Jesus being one of the most notable. He had to interact with sin and temptation for all his life and likely also making his share of blunders which he repented greatly. But rather than make him a horrible sinner those events actually made him a stronger, nicer, much more complete person. As such when he's a heaven's gate he's presented as a Nice Guy and very reasonable person unlike the sheltered Adam.

But while Adam says that he never made a mistake in his life, Peter double checks if there was a mistake with Charlie's appointment until he finds out she was correct , and then he proceeds. While it's not explicitly stated, this showcases that Peter is capable of admitting his mistakes. Recognizing a wrongdoing and repenting is a crucial part of salvation.

[jynxeddraca]

Hi yes, more Baldur's Gate brainrot. Sorry not sorry.

First of all look at my Tav:

She's adorable yes?

So fun fact I did not at all realize that 'Tav' is the default name given to all custom origin characters. I thought it was randomized and liked it so I kept it. So meet Tav Moonridge y'all!

Tav is a tiefling bard who grew up in the Outer City of Baldur's Gate, lives in the Lower City, basically raised her sister - Temerity Moonridge, and is currently 'on an adventure' that she really didn't want to be on and desperately wants to get back to her sister. I am also picturing her as like 5'2"/157 cm and often described as "willowy" or "reedy".

And now head canons of Tav interacting with the other characters. There are some spoiler-y things ahead.

No one has any idea how or why she ended up leading them, not even Tav. Tav is constantly baffled why anyone listens to her, but accepts it if it means she can talk everyone out of killing each other.

Tav broke Astarion's nose when they met via headbutting him in the face.

Karlach and Tav gossip in Infernal at camp. They never use anyone's names while doing so, but Astarion has a suspicion about which phrase might refer to him. Spoiler, it's Infernal for 'pretty boy' and it absolutely is referring to him.

Tav is a flirt when she's been drinking and kissed Shadowheart (during her first romance scene) and felt awful about it the next morning.

When they found the hat that is located near Alfira, Gale was able to tell it was enchanted but not really sure how. Tav laid claim on it and wears it at night to cover her eyes when she doesn't want Gale to bother her because he doesn't really get social cues and she doesn't want to hurt his feelings by just telling him to leave her alone for a bit. Gale thinks she's doing it because she had a headache or is about to go to bed.

Tav winds down in the evening by using her long tiefling talons nails to essentially fingering out tunes on her lute, without actually plucking the strings, and quietly humming along. She often does this leaning back against a stump or a rock with her eyes closed. She hasn't noticed that the camp tends to get quieter around this time because everyone likes to hear the humming - even if they refuse to admit it. She sometimes does this while wearing the hat.

When Astarion accidentally reveals he's a vampire and Tav ends up offering her neck to him - he ends up concluding that Tav has zero survival instincts. She also jabbed him in the armpit with her thumbnail to keep him from making her a corpse.

Tav fully is aware Astarion's flirting and seducing is him using her - but she thinks he's using sex as a way to secure blood from her willingly rather than his actual plan.

Lae'zel, after having to save Tav's ass one too many times, teaches Tav how to use a sword. Wyll helps out. Everyone learns that Tav is not good with blades and she is informed that she is to stick near Astarion and snipe using her crossbow.

Halsin can pick Tav up one handed and has done so to keep her from rushing into potential trouble without a plan. Tav deeply dislikes when he does this and Shadowheart has compared her acidic looks to him to a disgruntled cat. Karlach calls this 'air jail'.

Karlach will also put Tav in 'air jail' from time to time after her heart gets fixed. Astarion nearly doubled over laughing at Tav's betrayed expression when it first happened.

Astarion constantly thinks Tav has some ulterior motive for letting him drink her blood that she is really good at hiding. He eventually begrudgingly accepts that she doesn't.

[asheanon]

For fun, I figured I'd share a couple bits of trivia and headcanons for my gang and some canon characters specific to "Starlight" (the FFIX x Original fanfic) to #fill the void #from the void once more. 🍃

My Gang:

Though Branson is rather skilled with the lute as well as guitar, when it comes to chords, they most always have to be simplified due to having four digits vs. five.

Mina, despite being mostly inspired by the Luristan newt in design, can do the eye-licking thing geckos do. She can, she isn't notorious for doing it like her siblings, though, who often did it (and still do) simply to mess with people.

Lorien is a left handed violinist. He has earned the goofy little title of "Lefty Lory" in some circles for this reason.

Known for struggling with sleep, it is theorized that one of the many reasons Sal does is because she often travels. Though she keeps track of different times on her cell, particularly her "home" time, the frequent exposure to different times across the cosmos inadvertently take their toll on her.

Canon Characters:

While Kuja's "hair feathers" may not necessarily grow like proper feathers, they do go through molt cycles akin to an actual bird's feathers. They can also be plucked. Anytime he loses them for any reason, he will dress accordingly to hide the fact or lock himself away, nowhere to be seen until the feathers grow back.

Survit (Kuja's silver dragon) earned his name after a rather dreadful encounter with dragoons. Derived from French (given some of Gaia's cultural inspiration and how Kuja inevitably forms some intrinsic interest in said culture once stranded with it) "Survit" translates to "survives."

Though it currently serves no story purpose, Garland is familiar with Ethereals. There are records of them, in their purest form, being used as a source of fuel many millennia ago as Terra navigated the cosmos. Though, they are seen as little more than organic energy sources, given that their purest form bears no sentience (Ethereals not bound to corporeal forms, like Sal, are like space jellyfish, so to speak! A bundle of nerves and energy, easy to interpret as mindless.)

There is some bad blood between Lowell and Lorien. There are whispers that the two had been in a relationship once upon a time. Needless to say, things didn't work out!

[nattosushi]

Baldur's Gate 3 Original Character: Laila Izacke

Basic background

Name: Laila Mariya Izacke

Race: Human

Age: 24

Profession: bard

Religious affiliation: Loviatar

Alignment: neutral evil

Explanation of her name

Laila- I wanted to give her a dark themed first name and I settled on Layla due to it meaning ‘night’. I want the name to have a meaning without it being over the top, so I am not going to call her something like Nightshade. I don’t like the spelling of Layla, which is why I settled on Laila, as I feel that this is the version that is pronounced in a very similar way. It is only after I settled on her name that I realised how similar it sounds to Isela. This then give me the idea that they are really two sides of a same coin. I created them as a possible OC for Baldur’s Gate 3, and they are both bards. However, one is of an evil alignment (due to very selfish) while the other is a much nicer person (Isela will probably be neutral good, the direct opposite).

Mariya- I wanted to somehow have her middle name include Tav but the only other option seems to be Gustava and I just do not like the name. As a result, I choose Mariya as a tribute to Mariya Anastasova, who sang parts of Raphael’s final act.

Izacke- one of the things that I do with my OCs is that I often let their last name be a tribute to the voice actor of their pairing. So in this case, her last name is a variation of Jason Isaccs’ last name. I choose this version because it sounds more fantasy like.

Additional notes

Technically, she is not really a bard, but just someone who plays an instrument and sing. She is not an adventurer and in some version, she will not even travel with the group (ie.not even Tav). She was raised as a rather pampered noble girl who is expected to make a good marriage, as well as being a good hostess for an influential husband. She plays the mandolin because I still want her to sing and even though piano would be suitable, the lack of portability is too problematic. Since Isela already plays the harp, the lute or mandolin is the only alternative. For some reason, I like the idea of mandolin more.

I want her to worship a deity with an evil alignment that is not Bane. Loviatar feels suitable as she is hedonistic to the aspect of doing wild and dangerous things due to knowing that her status and family protects her. Loviatar is also suitable since she is said to be Bane’s consort and Laila might be involved with Gortash. She is possibly drawn to Loviatar because her life is free from any severe problems, so in a twisted way, she would enjoy the experience of such pain.

I spent quite some time debating between lawful evil and neutral evil, especially since Gortash is lawful evil. She is definitely not hedonistic to the stage of enjoying chaos, but I don’t feel that she has much respect for law either. Rather than seeing them as necessary, she regard them as something that is simply there.

I have had OCs that I worked with in regard to all three of the evil alignments, but Laila is the first that is actually being evil and cruel due to simply having a selfish nature. My other three OCs, if they had the chance, would have been able to live fairly peacefully, with their evil on a more minor scale. In addition, all three of them had undergone some sort of suffering to result in a ‘it’s me or them’ attitude. But Laila grew up without any major issues and she simply does not want to be kind due to being entitled.

Biography

Laila is the second daughter (in addition to an elder sister, she would at least have one elder brother above her), which means that not only is she not the heir, she won’t be the first daughter to secure an alliance via marriage. Her family is very wealthy and influential, as well as having been in the nobility for quite some time. Even though her family can be unscrupulous, they are an affectionate family. While her father does intend to engaged her to someone who can bring him advantages, he would not have made her marry someone she hates.

Laila would have had a typical noblewoman’s education, where she was expected to be a good wife and hostess. She probably has an especially extensive knowledge in music due to her affinity for it. Prior to the game, she would be engaged.

Version 1: Laila’s father decided to have her marry Gortash since he would be rather wealthy and influential. In addition, it would have been more acceptable to marry a second daughter to him. Laila would be attracted to Gortash and what happen to them would depend on which Dark Urge I use.

Version 2: this is a cliché but I like the idea of how an evil character can be semi-reformed. This is going beyond the evil’s exception, because she will be nicer. In this version, she is engaged to Wyll, but does not like him at all. Either due to being forced to travel with him due to being ‘Tav’ or just due to meeting up with him and somehow communicating with him, she would end up loving him and become a slightly nicer person. While she is still not that great a person, she is nicer due to wanting to make Wyll happy.

The illustration

I choose red and black because those colours seem to be associated with Loviatar and Bane. Since I already have two Baldur’s Gate OC that are brunettes, and two that are red heads, I decided that she can have black hair. She is wearing multiple rings to represent a possible version of her post BG3 fate, where she will marry multiple times as a way to gain power and entertain herself. I especially put ‘smirk’ in as a keyword, because I want to show her as rather cocky.

[adultswim2021]

Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! #16: “Carol” | December 24, 2007 - 12:15AM | S02E06

You know what I’ve been forgetting to do? Watching the DVD extras as they pertain to each episode of Awesome Show. I’m halfway through the freaking season, goddamn it. If I had been doing this, I would have realized that two of the special bumpers Tim & Eric made for the Snuggler stunt were right under my nose on digital versatile disc. I feel like a fool. 

The reason I was moved to check them out for this episode is that it’s another Carol/Mr. Henderson episode. The outtakes for these sketches are usually really great, especially any sequence where Tim is hanging out at Carol’s cubicle. Those guys are masters of their craft when it comes to Mr. Henderson saying disgusting, humiliating things to Carol. 

Before we get to that, we start off with an okay Brules Rules. I wonder if this was leftover from season one, which had a small handful of Brules Rules throughout the season. This one doesn’t do much for me, but I like he starts off by saying he has a Brules Rules “that you can’t live without if you wanna stay in school”, which is just garbled nonsense that only sounds sorta right. Very good dumb guy stuff from Brule. 

We’ll circle back to the Carol and Mr. Henderson sketch, which recurs three times in this episode. I’d rather talk about it at the end. I wanna talk about Candy Tails. This is a fairly gross product; a fake pony tail made of horse hair that you dip in candy sauce and clip to your actual hair. With a mess like that, you might as well just use your own hair. This has some really funny visuals, like the mom’s eyeballs going cuckoo when she tastes her daughter’s Candy Tail. There’s also Candy Tails for boys, which tastelessly appropriates Jamaican culture in the name of marketing the Candy Tails in a more masculine way by calling them dreads. Later on we see a cartoon show tie-in where cheery horses discuss how happy they are that their tails are getting bobbed so that a wealthy child can suck juice out of it. I forgot about this sequence completely. 

Just like in “Chunky” (the previous Carol and Mr. Henderson episode) we get a Crystal Shyps sketch. I wonder how intentional that was? At one point, Tim & Eric submitted “Chunky” as their worst episode to Adult Swim’s Turkey Day marathon. Doing what feels like an intentional sequel to it seems gratuitous on a sketch show, which for some reason makes me think it might be a coincidence.

Anyway, the director of Crystal Shyps is selling Crystal Shyps merchandise on a shopping network. He has a chunk of fools gold on the table that he’s really proud of, and points out that it’s not for sale. That’s such a hilarious detail. The sketch is about tempers flaring when somebody calls in to abuse him over the air, causing him to smash his own merch. This is a good one, and feels pretty visceral. A.D. Miles smugly smashing one of his own mugs with his hunk of fools gold is so hilarious. This transitions into a little animated sequence called “Space Horse Course to Course”. Respect must be paid to Tad Ghostal. 

David Liebe Hart gets a song with his new son, a doll puppet that he got to replace Chip the Black Boy, his original “son” puppet. Chip the Black Boy was a regular staple of his public access show Junior Christian Teaching Bible Lesson Program. This song has a very pleasingly dumb bit at the end where they go back and forth with a lame comedy bit, they trade the lyrics “I’m the best dad” / “I’m the best son” and then they start bickering “No, I’m the best dad” “No, I’m the best son” as if they somehow negate each other. DLH’s donkey brain at it’s best. I love this song!

Tim’s asleep, so it’s time to wake Tim up seems like it might come from the same season one well of them horsing around at Abso Lutely studios, or the sketch where Tim & Eric are pranking each other. Tim takes the prank in stride: “you got me, friend”. Fans of bein’ silly, take heed! This sketch is for you and your silly heart. 

The main running sketch is the Carol and Mr. Henderson bits, which sorta appear here instead of the normal “Tim & Eric are hosting” segments. It’s very similar to the first sketch, with Mr. Henderson cruelly mocking Carol while they are both seemingly turned on by the abusive dynamic. The extended sequence of Tim berating her at the cubicle is worth seeking out if you are a DVD haver. What made the cut is great, too. I could watch an entire 11 minute Awesome Show that is just Mr. Henderson saying disgusting things to Carol.

In this installment, Carol makes a sexy music video for Mr. Henderson, who immediately shows it to the entire office just to humiliate her. She’s hurt by this, and writes a resignation letter, but when she goes to deliver it she discovers Mr. Henderson watching the tape in private, pleasuring himself. This is set to a touching Aimee Man song. The ending is weirdly sweet: with Mr. Henderson mouthing “I love you” through his office window to Carol on the sidewalk, and her mouthing back “I know!”. They repeat this action over and over again; a Tim & Eric specialty. On their recent Valentine’s Day watch-along they chalk it up to not knowing how to end their sketches. I’m glad they ended it this way. Just fucking wonderful, man. GREAT episode.

EPHEMERA CORNER:

Christmas and end-of-the-year Marathons

I figured I’d just discuss Adult Swim’s Christmas/year-end programming here! There were a few things of note! First, Adult Swim had a couple weeks leading up to Christmas where they routinely played Christmas episodes at midnight (as to not interrupt their regular weekday showings of Futurama, Family Guy, and anime).

On Christmas eve, they aired a Christmas episode marathon. They showed (as per swimpedia):

11:00PM: Futurama: Xmas Story

11:30PM: Futurama: A Tale of Two Santas

12:00AM: Family Guy: A Very Special Family Guy Freakin' Christmas

12:30AM: Robot Chicken: Robot Chicken's Half-Assed Christmas Special

12:45AM: Robot Chicken: Robot Chicken Christmas Special

1:00AM: Stroker & Hoop: I Saw Stroker Killing Santa (a.k.a. A Cold, Dead, White Christmas)

1:30AM: Aqua Teen Hunger Force: Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future

1:45AM: Squidbillies: Rebel with a Claus

2:00AM: Astro Boy: Snow Lion (premiere)

I don’t think Astro Boy was a Christmas ‘sode, but it sure sounds wintery to me. Put on your winter best and (splash) dive in. Speaking of Astro Boy: On Christmas day, there was an Astro Boy marathon.

Then, from December 26 through December 30th, Adult Swim said goodbye to Futurama with one last Futurama marathon. five straight nights of just Futurama and nothing but. Their contract ran out. At this time they started producing direct-to-video movies that they later cut up into 30 minute episodes. The repeats moved to Comedy Central, who eventually produced new episodes. I think they played every episode. On December 31st, they showed the first and last episodes back-to-back. Then it was midnight, and Futurama was done. Adult Swim recently picked it back up, and I believe it’s currently airing now. Isn’t that nice?

That’s it for 2007! Tomorrow we will roll directly into Space Ghost week, covering the 1998 episodes of Space Ghost Coast to Coast. So fire up your HBOMax and/or illegal torrent and/or majorly expensive OOP DVDs and lets get Ghosty. Hey, that’s not bad.

[rainydaymiddleearthimagines]

Hi! Can a request an aragorn x reader one where everyone of the fellowship knows he loves her and she just doesn't realise? Fluff and maybe a kiss in the end? Thank you

Aragorn was by no means stupid. He was quite intelligent really. However, the second you entered the picture the man became a complete moron. He’d trip over his own feet, he’d walk smack into wall, half of the time he couldn’t carry a full conversation with you because he’d literally forget how to speak. Everyone could see it. Everyone but you apparently. Aragorn was in love. He had known you for a number of years, seeing you as the occasional hunting partner seeing as you worked for Barliman in the Prancing Pony.

Aragorn first saw you walking in with a dead deer strapped to your back and actually thought you to be a man at first before you removed your hood. Then he saw your face. Your e/c eyes met his and it was game over. The man spoke with you and discovered that you originally hailed from Rohan but moved after a sickness swept over the land. Aragorn found out quite a bit actually. You were a hunter who frequently supplied food to the inn, you played the lute (very well) and you loved to be around the bar. But more importantly, you loved adventure. According to you, without adventure, many a song would not exist, which by all rites was true. You had a bit of a adventurous soul that constantly wanted to run through fields, so when Aragorn went on a task to help a group of hobbits leave to Rivendell, you naturally decided to leave with them.

Even Merry and Pippin could see the love in Aragorn’s eyes when he looked at you. It was hard not to notice such love. Which is what they had trouble grasping. How were you not noticing it?

The fellowship was formed, you joining them after Aragorn announced that he’d go with them. Was he thrilled to take you on a potentially deadly mission? No. Was he happy that you were going to be right next to him for a long time? Yes. Arwen said that he was acting like a child for not voicing his emotions towards you though. She claimed that if he didn’t speak up soon she’d have to do it for him. Well, this led to Aragorn being irrationally paranoid about leaving you alone with Arwen. Anyone else? sure. But Arwen was a big NO.

You stood in the halls, looking at Isildur’s sword with Boromir. “It’s impressive even if it is broken.” you pointed out. “Indeed." Boromir agreed. You stared at it with this almost sad look. "Do you suppose there is a true heir amongst us?" Boromir asked. You nodded. "Aragorn bares the ring and shares Isildur's blood." you stated. This was a fact he told you after four years of knowing him. He told you after a hunting trip, you had asked why he was a ranger for Gondor. He didn't tell you at first but you asked him why he went by another name. That, he answered. He showed you the ring, the books from Rivendell about his lineage. How he technically switched his name twice and didn't know of his true lineage until he was older. You were shocked of course. You had heard stories of your people hoping to accidentally stumble across an heir. You had done it without meaning to.

Boromir sighed. "You believe this to be true?" Boromir asked. "Did Lord Elrond, a man who once stood with Isildur, object when Legolas claimed this?" you asked. Silence fell over Boromir. Shit, you were right. If Elrond didn't object then it had to have been true. "Do you suppose he'd be a good king?" Boromir asked. "Yes." you nodded. "How do you figure?" He asked. "I've seen Aragorn with people. He understands their struggles, he grasps why people need something. He has resolved many problems, all while dealing with his own. " you stated. Boromir looked at you once more. "...You feel strongly for him?" Boromir asked. You stuttered. "I-I never said-" " you didn't have to, it's rather obvious." Boromir said. You sighed, looking down. "Please don't say anything." You muttered. "Why not voice your feelings?" Boromir asked. You sighed. "I don't want to make him uncomfortable." You muttered.

Boromir blinked. "You mean you do not notice it?" He asked. "Notice what?" you asked. "Notice what?" You asked. He chuckled. "What!?" you asked again. "It is not for me to tell you." He said. "My lord please! I must know now, you treat me as if I was a child!" you whined. He sighed and turned to you. "You want an honest answer?" he asked. "Please." you nodded. "With the way he looks at you, there is a large chance he reciprocates your feelings." He said.

And so you were driven mad by this statement, observing Aragorn's actions to you at a microscopic level. He was touchier with you, often patting your shoulder or head when you did something. He stuck closer to you and often stayed up with you if you could not sleep. Perhaps Boromir wasn't insane for assuming something. Aragorn did in fact have some sort of affinity for you, however you weren't sure in what manner. Was it romantic? Platonic? Brotherly? What was this?'

You sat on a rock, reading a map. Or at least trying to... Your focus was all over the place. You sighed, running your fingers through your hair. You heard someone sit next to you and saw Aragorn. "Trouble with the map?" He asked. You jumped at the sound of his voice. "Oh uhm... I wanted to see if Gimli was right about us taking the path through Moria... He isn't wrong. It would be quicker but for some reason Gandalf seems adamantly against it." you muttered. Aragorn nodded. "There is much danger within those walls of Moria. You seemed close with Arwen, I am surprised she didn't speak with you about it." He muttered. You looked over. "Her mother once took that path." He told you. You looked back at the map. "she mentioned this story, she never mentioned the path that was taken." you muttered. Aragorn nodded. "Are you... close with Lady Arwen?" you asked. "She is my friend. Why?" He asked. "A friend? Nothing more?" you asked. He rose a brow. "Why the sudden curiosity?" he asked. A blush came over your cheeks and he leaned forward, observing the expression on your face.

To hide the embarrassment you raised up the map, blocking his view of your face. He pulled the map down and rose a brow. "Y/n, what's going on?" He asked. You wanted to speak but nothing came out. "Aragorn, it is my turn to watch." Gimli said, trudging over. You got up but Aragorn followed. "Y/n, why are you suddenly flustered? I haven't seen you like this since the first time you met Lord Elrond." Aragorn said. You still didn't talk, walking over to your sleeping area and sitting down. Aragorn of course, slept near you so he sat in front of you. "Boromir mentioned something and I cannot get this out of my mind." you sighed.

Aragorn rose a brow. "What is it?" he asked. "He said, something along the lines of you..." You sighed. "This is ridiculous. Can I please just sleep-" "Y/n, this is clearly bothering you." He said. You looked down. "He said you held romantic feelings for me." you said in a low mutter. He gulped.

Well shit, he expected Arwen to say something before Boromir would. "But that's... Foolish. Right?" you said softly. He looked at you. "Why is that foolish?" He asked. "Aragorn you... you're a king, you have these important titles... I do not fit with your life I-I'm just a woman." you muttered. "You speak as if you are nothing." He said. "I speak realistically because to most, I am nothing." you said. Aragorn shook his head, clearly upset by your feelings. "You are not nothing to me." He said. You swallowed, looking at him. "Aragorn-" "I don't give a damn about your status. I don't care if you're the lowest class possible, you are an amazing woman. You are beautiful, kind, you are someone who is strong and courageous- Y/n how could I not love you!?" He asked. You blinked. "...You... You love me?" You asked. He swallowed.

Aragorn was never very straightforward with his feelings, in fact he rarely showed large amounts of emotion, he typically kept to himself. You however had this effect on him. He'd share everything with you. And right now that was showing. "I love you." He repeated. You didn't move. Your expression didn't change. In fact you seemed motionless. "Y/n?" He asked. You seemed frozen. "...Y/n are you alright?" He asked. You finally leaned forward, gripping him by his shirt and kissed him.

He was shocked of course. The second he registered what was happening though, he put a hand on the back of your neck, pulling you into his arms. You eventually had to pull away for air, looking into his beautiful eyes. "You are not useless. Please know that." He said softly. You hugged his neck, him burying his face in your neck.

The next morning you two were found asleep in each other's arms. Sam looked at Frodo with a grin. "It seems we missed a lot while we rested." Gandalf said. You leaned up with a yawn as did Aragorn. You smiled at him and he smiled back at you. He felt eyes on him though making him turn. "...It seems we have an audience." He said. You looked over. "What should we do?" You asked softly. "Give them something to look at." Aragorn chuckled before he kissed you.

[bouncingkadachi]

Winter Olympics AU

Eyyy it’s that time again so it’s time to daydream about one of my (many) guilty pleasure AUs. (Also go watch the figure skating events! Man, I miss skating.).

Tucked under a read more because, as always, there’s a lot going on.

THE RIDERS

Alwin and Ena -- Ice dancers, only because it would stress Alwin out too much to yeet Ena into the air for jumps. Lifts though? Perfect. Fine. Excellent. They trained at the same facility with Red back in the day. Alwin, originally trained in men’s singles skating, was initially skeptical about switching disciplines since his performance scores had always been a bit shaky. Ena was always an ice dancer, and she was the one who first asked Alwin to try a routine with her (with much wheedling from Red).

Red -- men’s single figure skater, best known for his dark horse showing at the Olympics where he skated off with gold. Best known for the sheer height of his jumps when he was still actively competing. Retired to coach for the kids in his local neighborhood, much to the confusion of his competitive friends, who thought he was squandering his potential. He’s still alive and kicking and currently coaching his granddaughter.

Astrea -- Red’s granddaughter, who was put on skates at a young age for the inaurgural opening of Mahana Village’s one and only ice rink. Since Red’s coaching approach was a very hands-on, do-whatever-you-want-just-have-fun, her first actual teacher was Kayna in her local junior “club”. Carries a dragon-shaped tissue box cover with her that’s affectionately named Ratha. This will be her first Olympics games, but she made it against all the odds.

Avinia -- women’s singles figure skater. Most notable for her well-choreographed step sequences and transitions into spins, so she shines particularly in the free skate. Has a cat named Frostfang and there’s always a patch of him on her equipment (jersey, bag, etc.)

Lute & Cheval -- once upon a time when they were young and stupid Lute said something to the effect of: “wouldn’t it be cool if we did sledding but like, professionally?” And Cheval, equally young and stupid at the time, hadn’t known to contest this notion until it was too late and they had already built a scrappy little bobsled and were doggedly making their way through the local competitions. Their sled is affectionately called Rathi for the rugged little scrapes she’s got on her side from their manhandling of her. Lute is the pilot, Cheval mans the brakes.

THE HUNTERS

Reverto -- somehow managed to become a snowboarder against his will (he hates the cold, man). Somehow still managed to be really good at it too. Somehow, on top of all that, picked up a kid to mentor when a friend of a friend called in a favor. Competes in half-pipe and slopestyle events.

Kyle -- was taught to ski at a young age from his father. However, like most of his brothers, thought the biathlon was too boring and sought greater thrills. Kyle found his in snowboarding, and he’d rather die than admit it out loud but he’s thrilled that he gets to train under Reverto. Competes in half-pipe and slopestyle events. This will be his first Olympic games.

SUPPORTING CAST AND CREW

Lilia -- up-and-coming sports commentator. Despite Lute and Cheval’s best efforts she does not focus on bobsledding. Since she’s training under Simone, she’s learning a lot about snow sports like snowboarding, but she’s also determined to be able to call for figure skating one day as well.

Zellard -- Rutoh Rink Manager.

Additional Shenanigens

Kyle’s mother liked figure skating, which is about the extent of his knowledge in the other sport. It’s because of her that he makes an effort to catch some of the figure skating events in person, because he also knows that his dad likes to get updates on the happenings every now and then, but it’s entirely his fault when he puts his foot spectacularly into his mouth and pisses off the other team.

Simone calls for several different sports, with her specialties being in the snow sports and snowboarding (she blames Reverto for that). She’s been enjoying learning about figure skating alongside Lilia though.

Mahana Village’s singular rink, Astrea’s home rink, was built by Red after his retirement. For his own competitive career, Red trained at Rutoh Rink, which was the current home rink of Ena and Alwin.

[lorebreaker]

OPHELIA - 14, 27, 32

I NEED to know why you picked 14 specifically for Ophelia because you just. you could not have picked a more targeted question.

14: Are there any secrets to their backstory you know, but they don’t know yet? UMM, YEAH. YUP. You could even say Ophelia's entire backstory is just a series of secrets about herself she doesn't know yet. It took roughly 40 sessions for Ophelia to discover what she actually looks like, and another 2 to learn where she derives her sorcerous origin from. She still doesn't know how she came to be infused with an ancient red dragon's magic, since this dragon was felled halfway across the continent before she was even born. But I know that her mom and dad are actually her aunt and uncle, and that her bio mom had a hand in slaying the dragon with her guild while she was just a few weeks pregnant with Ophelia.

27: Are they a liar? Do they lie to the party, or only to others? Do they usually think they have a good reason? Ophelia is a very open and honest character (which is absolutely heartbreaking when you consider the extent to which she’s been lied to her whole life). THE REST OF THE PARTY, HOWEVER… it took one whole literal year for Yvann to tell us she a) is cursed and b) used to be human, and at the start of the campaign my partner told everyone he'd be playing a half-elf bard named Elion when in reality he's playing a changeling named Corbin.

32: If they suddenly lost their class and had to pick a new one, what would they choose? What would YOU choose for them? OOF. Ophelia is a sorcerer, so her class is her identity. I really don't know how losing her innate spellcasting would play out, but she would have a few story-based class options:

Bard - Corbin/Elion is a college of lore bard. He has incredibly big feelings for Ophelia, and I think he would absolutely offer to teach her how to play the lute and cast magic in a way that might be somewhat familiar to her. It's a very cute idea, and one that would involve a lot of time spent """studying""" alone together. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Warlock - Early on in the campaign, Ophelia managed to get an archfey named Hyrsam to sign his actual name on a piece of paper stating that he owed her a favor. If she could find a way into the Feywild and then track him down, she could theoretically demand a mote of his power. It'd be really interesting to have a patron who owes you rather than the other way around!

Druid - One of my favorite npcs in this campaign is a 700-year-old tiefling named Madmarel the Feral. He's a circle of spores druid, and while I don't think that circle would be good for Ophelia, I can see him guiding her to find some familiarity within the Wildfire circle. Ophelia really struggles with the ruinous nature of her fire magic, but Corbin is always quick to point out that fire isn't just destructive--it's also light and warmth. Wildfire plays into that theme perfectly.

Ultimately, I don't know which one she would pick, or what I would pick for her. I know that's probably a boring answer but I really love playing sorcerer and would rather roll a new character than change her class lksdjfkdf

[cosplayinamerica]

Spiderman from Marvel 1602 // Cosplayer: kammospark

Tell us about Spiderman1602, I’ve seen many versions of Spiderman but  thiis is a new one to me! What led you to this concept of this version of Spiderman?

Well I've always had an appreciation for lesser know outfits of popular heroes. Looking through many wardrobes and outfits, the obscure ones always stood out to me, "Wow, I've never seen this one before!" I'd think to myself, and I figured others who know the characters well would love to see them brought to life too, or even people curious about the stories of them would enjoy seeing it. I feel everyone has a love for Spider-Man; he's such an iconic superhero and has so many suits, and even though they can be quite diverse, they still feel recognizable as one of the Web-slinger's costumes.

While I was looking at different Spiderverse characters for inspiration on a new Spider-Man cosplay, I saw Marvel 1602 and it immediately caught my attention; I thought it was such a fun looking design. Definitely away from a modern or futuristic look, it's charm won me over, and I had to put it together. And as a fan of the fantasy genre in general, thanks to many years as a GM from D&D as well as other media, I also enjoy Ren-faires and wanted something to wear to show my love for Superheroes and Renaissance.

When you wore it out to conventions, what was the response? Obviously they knew you were Spiderman because of the mask but were they confused about the rest of your outfit? What were some of their guesses?

Oh people certainly get a kick out of seeing the outfit. Some people have called Me 'Lord Spider-Man', 'Ren-Spidey', 'William Spider-Speare', a lot of creative names for it that never fail to make me smile as much as it does for them. Whenever I wear a Spider-Man cosplay, I always want to try and take pics with as many Spider-Men as I can find, and most of the time it's the other Spiderman cosplayers that recognize who the character really is. I love having people laugh and get excited over the character, it's part of that Con Magic where people just can't help but feel like a kid when they see something that fills them with joy; its my favorite part of this fun hobby, just making someone's day memorable, even for a moment.

Besides conventions , I see you wore the costume to a Renaissance Fair. What was responses there? Was it different from conventions?

Ren-faires in general are a great time! And when I started this costume, I was excited just thinking of the reactions from people and how happy they may be. I've taken 1602 to quite a few Ren-faires: Central Coast Ren Faire, NorCal Ren Faire, and Kingsburg Renaissance of Kings.

The first place I ever debuted it was as CCRF, and I was stopped by about 20 people before I could make it past the first 3 booths. It really does feel like a different environment going to faires. D

uring them, I'd be a bit more 'theatrical' and introduce myself as Peter Parquagh, and try my best to make people smile or laugh. I've gotten the opportunity to meet many wonderful people and people with stunning and gorgeous Renaissance outfits. Kids come walk by amazed that they actually got to see a Spider-Man at a Ren Faire.

One instance, a bard played the spider-man theme song on a lute as he traveled around me. At two different faires my presence was requested by the Queen, and I was escorted to her, one even knighted me! Everyone just has a blast role playing and getting caught up in the fun, the energy is so infectious and delightful! 

Take us through how the outfit was put together?

Well, I cannot take full credit on the cosplay. My mother was actually a large part of it. Growing up, my mom was always really involved and loved making costumes for Halloween for me and my sister. And one of her favorite aesthetics is period piece era fashion and she loves Jane Austen.

As I was looking for ideas for a new cosplay and showing her, she was drawn towards 1602 and offered to do as much as she could to help create it, and she loved helping putting it together. The suit is a handmade outfit following a 14th century cavalier pattern. The design called for detachable sleeves and very baggy slops, but we decided to have the sleeves attached and slim down the slops slightly, to give it a mix of authentic and Spider-man's sleekness.

We went looking online and found this wonderful blue velvet fabric with Fleur De Lis imprinted onto it and thought it'd really help the outfit pop! We had to make sure we kept the fabric in the same direction: it has a difference in shimmer if facing a certain way, and we wanted the Fleurs facing the same way as well, so we tried to be mindful of that. We pleated the red fabric in the front and it was quite stubborn, but we tried our best to make it look similar on both sides of the torso. The back has a spider and has legs that lead unto the front; we cut out red fabric and hand-stitch embroidered on, and was quite meticulous.

Me and my mom kept an eye out online for just the right buttons we wanted for the costume. Something antique and era appropriate but also thematic, and after a while, we stumbled across a web-designed antique gold button set. We also looked for a thick ruff rather than the costumes original thin look. The original costume look also called for the mask to have open eye holes, but I opted out of that, and felt that a traditional mask look better complemented the costume. After that I acquired socks and shoes and then it was finished! 

How did you discover cosplay?

As mentioned earlier, my mom loved making mine and my sister's costumes growing up. She's a seamstress as a hobby, and is so creative and artsy. Halloween was probably my favorite holiday growing up, and I was so happy I got to wear something made with much love from my family. Some of my favorite notable costumes growing up was a knight, an astronaut, and Pikachu.

As I got older, around high school, I still liked the idea of costumes, even bought a cheap Captain America outfit for The Avengers premiere night, but I mostly dropped off on dressing up. I grew up in a very small town, but eventually, after I moved out to the city, I heard about 'conventions' and I was interested and wanted to try and wear something to one. I decided to make a classic Punisher costume, and wore it for the con. It was a small venue, but even then it finally hit me, 'This is a thing people do. People love to dress up, go make friends, bring smiles and show their love for their Fandoms and interests. THIS is what Cosplay IS'. I finally understood what this little hobby of mine was, and I embraced it.

Have you discovered something about yourself through cosplay?

I've always thought of myself as a people pleaser. I'm someone who really only want others to be happy. I'm also someone who loves to share their interests and engage with others about things that we can share and discuss and geek out over.

When I was young, I often felt left out from social circles, due to my often eccentric personality. I found it really hard to make friends, and I am forever grateful for the friends that I have made and been with me for years.

Cosplay has opened up another avenue as far as friends and socializing. My first couple of cons I was initially intimidated, but I have to say that I'm so glad I got into this hobby, for I've met many people with interesting stories and wonderful personalities, and people I still talk to often. It's really helped me feel like I can make good friends and memories, and I'm sure that others have felt similarly and that's something I treasure.

What are your future cosplay goals?

As with most cosplayers I'm sure, I have way too many projects in my head with very little work on a lot of them. I suppose my current goal is to rework the headpiece of a cosplay I finished last year, my Bioshock Big Daddy Doll. The head was massive and too cumbersome so it needs to be redone.

As far as new projects, I would very much like to do a Prince Link cosplay, inspired by the creation of theLostSindar. Another idea would be to do more superhero variants and make a Blue Lantern Flash that 8ve been eyeing for a couple of years.

One thing I definitely want to get good at is working with foam. I am massively inexperienced with foamsmithing, and I strive to learn how to be good at it and learn how to make wonderful things with it. It's just like when I first went to cons; starting off can be a bit scary or even overwhelming before we really get it going, but that exposure to things we really desire is all we need to get hooked and make it our passion.

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