#solving mysteries and rewriting history

[fromperdition4]

Three lads, working together to solve mysteries 🥰

But why does this feel familia—

Oh

[outoftheirdifferences]

"Well, that could have been worse."

star wars: knights of the old republic, vol i.  ∕   sentence starters

"Oh yeah, for sure."

Sitting up, brushing leaves out of her hair, Webby surveyed the debris around them. If it wasn't the best she'd ever come out of an adventure, it also sure wasn't the worst either. And hey, they'd got what they'd come for...

Whatever exactly it was. A relic of Rossiel's history, she had gathered: but while Webby knew plenty about the ancient culture's of earth, she felt like she'd only just scratched the surface of all there was to know about her new friend's people.

She just still wasn't sure she should ask, when it was a sensitive subject for the other girl.

Rather, she shrugged, rubbed the back of her head a little.

"I mean, I always feel like any top secret infiltration that you can get out of without getting almost sacrificed to an undead mummy is a successful one, heh."

[justoneletter]

It a duck blur.

[outoftheirdifferences]

Narrowed eyes narrowed still further at the series of entirely unsatisfactory answers she was receiving. If Webby was any read of tone at all, it sounded to her like her captive was playing dumb... a fair tactic, actually, but not one that the girl had any intention of being fooled by.

She did, however, have every intention of clarifying the point, whether the fox genuinely needed it or not.

"I didn't say eagle, I said Beagle." She put extra emphasis on her enunciation. "As in, Ma Beagle, local crime boss? She's not exactly low profile; any local thief worth her salt must know who she is."

It was the next part, though, that really convinced Webby that the would-be thief was trying to make a fool of her.

"Oh, nice try."

She also wasn't staying in one spot: now her voice was coming from the fox's other side as Webby circled her.

"You can't convince me you don't know who Scrooge McDuck is: I just caught you breaking into his home. You can tell me what you're after, or we can do this the hard way."

In passing she snatched up the mace she sometimes kept lying around, bounced its spiked head against the wooden floor with a satisfying THUMP to make her point.

The rope prevented Zhen from doing anything but letting the dragging continue, she still couldn't fully make out her foe, but could hear the whaping sound of goose feet... or maybe a duck? The thought of being jumped by someone like Mr Ping just felt embarrasing.

She couldn't linger on that thought for long tho as she felt herself be hoisted up by her legs, not the first time she hung upside down, but the first time tied up. She peeked open her eyes again just as Webby turned on the spotlight, temporarly blinding the fox immediatly, even catching her off guard enough that she didn't even keep up with the feign death masquerade.

"Ugh, what kind of torch is that? she asked out, squinting her eyes in reflex.

When the questioning began, her intial idea was to just lie her way through it but none of the stuff she was asked made enough sense to her to piece together some sort of semi-cohesive story.

She sighed.

"Listen, nobody sent me, I don't know any eagles, matter of fact closest one I know is a crane, and I don't know what a glomgold or scrooge is for that matter. Can I go then?" She said with her usual somewhat dismissive, snarky tone while looking towards the source of the voice.

[christinariccidaily]

Day 1485

Might solve a mystery, or rewrite history

[interact-if]

Our fifth edition of the Black History Month Author Spotlight series, features Mila (@milaswriting)!

(Mila’s game Golden is one of the games I fell in love with when I first got into Interactive Fiction, and it feels like such a dream to be able to interview her now! It’s so interesting to interview someone who’s been in the IF community for a while now, and see how stories—and their authors—change and evolve as time goes by too.)

Author: Mila

Hello! I’m Mila, a twenty-three year old woman from the UK. Something readers may not know (or probably do considering how much I complain about university), I crave academic validation. I got 90% on an essay I did this year and I was so proud of myself that I’m considering doing a PhD. We’ll see if Dr Mila ever becomes a thing, haha.

Games: Golden (Fantasy, romance, mystery, supernatural)

Short blurb: You work for The Everbrook. A multi-agency organisation in the city of Lehsa that bridges the gap between the human and supernatural world. You’ve been working there for three years now, and you’re suddenly forced to work with a group of allies to solve mysteries that have landed right in the palm of your hand.

Quote from the interview

I wish I could say I’ve had amazing encounters with vampires, magical beings and werewolves to inspire Golden—but that isn’t exactly the case. I’ll let you know if that ever happens though! I’ve always been a bit of a bookworm, more so as a young adult than when I was much younger, but usually the portrayal of poc characters in media wasn’t always shown in a positive light. Or poc characters, when it came to romance, weren’t given the lead roles where a swoon-worthy romance story was played out. To, sort of right those wrongs, and have other black readers like myself, be able to see themselves in the characters of stories—I created a diverse cast of ROs.

Read on for the full interview!

Can you tell me a bit about what you’re working on right now and your journey into interactive fiction? What inspired the game/story you’re currently writing?

I’m currently working on a fantasy supernatural interactive fiction, Golden. Officially, Golden is five years old now. I released it in December 2020 and was regularly writing and working on it for a couple of years. And then I noticed that as I grew from an eighteen/nineteen year old teenager, the ideas I had for my story were different, thus I wanted to make a few changes. A few changes turned into a lot of changes. And now I’m in the process of a whole rewrite, alongside moving to Twine. 

Covid was in 2020, and that’s ultimately the year I got into reading interactive fiction too. I first read fanfics of an interactive fiction game, then read the original story itself, and got really into the process of the reader being able to make meaningful choices that impact their reading experience. That was a supernatural story too, and that’s how I ended up creating my own. 

When it comes to the changes I’ve made to Golden, the inspiration came from a lot of things. One being my love for mystery, crime and psychology—I wanted that incorporated into the story I’m writing. I love the element of lore and world building, so that’s how I knew the fantasy/supernatural element would be in there. Additionally, my love for found family and complex characters also inspired me to write this story, but to also make the changes I have. Lastly, I’m a hopeless romantic at heart, I adore the stuff! So reading and writing good romance is everything to me. 

How has your identity, heritage/background, upbringing, or personal experiences influenced your storytelling or writing process? OR How does your work feature aspects of your identity / experience?

I wish I could say I’ve had amazing encounters with vampires, magical beings and werewolves to inspire Golden—but that isn’t exactly the case. I’ll let you know if that ever happens though! I’ve always been a bit of a bookworm, more so as a young adult than when I was much younger, but usually the portrayal of poc characters in media wasn’t always shown in a positive light. Or poc characters, when it came to romance, weren’t given the lead roles where a swoon-worthy romance story was played out. To, sort of right those wrongs, and have other black readers like myself, be able to see themselves in the characters of stories—I created a diverse cast of ROs.

B Holden was the first one I created. I already knew they were going to be a werewolf, and I wanted them as a character to be the complete opposite of how a werewolf is usually described and portrayed. Aggressive, animalistic, dangerous—yet, I’d like to think that B is, and comes off as, someone who is the sunshine that lights up a room, someone who’d make you feel good on a bad day, a kind of person you’ll always want around. From my own personal experiences, I’m a nursing student and I’ll be graduating this year and going into a working environment. I think the changes to Golden emulate that, instead of being a student, the MC is navigating the supernatural world themselves and they’re very immersed into it.

What does your writing process look like? Any rituals or habits? Any tips, tricks, philosophies or approaches that have worked very well for you?

Oh! So, the background is that I love The Naturals series and The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, and I got to meet her at a book event in my hometown. And during her talk, she said that she writes with a ‘Writer’s Hit List’. On that list, the writer jots down all of their favourite things that they love about characters, or elements they want their story to have. It’s a bit like a word dump, for example, ‘loves characters that enjoys baked goods’ or ‘loves when character speaks multiple languages’. 

Then you end up with a super long list of traits you’d like to give your characters or factors you want your world to have. And you can get your inspiration from literally anything, so that’s something fun to have. You can add to it when you’re not thinking about writing, and then when you have writer’s block, or just want some inspiration, you can open your notes app and see what you wrote down.

Currently, whilst juggling uni and personal life, on my days off/working from home, when I get a burst of inspiration I usually open up my laptop and write in my bedroom or the living room. And whilst writing, I put on ROs’ playlists that I’ve made on Spotify. My new RO, Ireland Monroe, their playlist has been extremely helpful in motivating me to write.

What’re you excited to tackle/implement/work on next? Or anything you’re looking forward to in the year ahead?

I’m excited about getting this rewrite out! I’ve felt really guilty about keeping readers waiting so long for content from me, or just disappointed in myself that I haven’t been able to produce content as quickly as other authors. I know it’s a terrible thing to compare yourself to others, but sometimes it’s one of those things you can’t help. We’re into February now and I genuinely think that I’m getting better at telling myself to just work as best as I possibly can. 

But, yeah, I’m excited for people to read and see how Golden’s developed with me as an individual. It’s interesting considering the story has grown up with me, and it’s sort of taken its own shape and whispered to me, “I know you want to change me, don’t be afraid to do so”, and now my nerves about that are near enough gone. 

I just want it to be a good writing year overall! So, I’ve got my fingers and toes crossed that the story ideas that play in my head everyday are able to be transferred to screen so others can enjoy them.

If you were to say one thing to your readers, other authors, and/or the interactive fiction community: what would it be? OR If you could change one thing about the interactive fiction community, what would it be?

My advice to readers would be that as writers, we definitely write our stories as an escape and whilst it’s important to write for ourselves, we write with the hopes that you enjoy it too. If there’s a particular scene or character or story that you love, definitely tell that author. It’ll make their day, their week, even. It’s such a wonderful feeling to hear from you guys. And also, just continue to consume the content that’s put out. And just a personal thank you to the readers I have for being patient with me. 

For authors, I’d say to have fun writing. If, in your gut, there are changes you’d love to make to your story, then do so. Remember that, no matter what, there’s always going to be at least one person that loves what you write. Always. So, if it’s motivation you want to continue putting words onto paper (or a screen), then that’s it. I also think it’s fun adding a little bit of yourself into your story.

Any books, music, movies etc. you’re obsessed with at the moment, or which changed your life (or perspectives on something)?

I read The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes and it’s absolutely changed my brain chemistry for the better. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes mystery with a romantic side plot. I love YA murder mystery books, so A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, books by Karen McManus. I also love Taylor Jenkins Reid. And, as its black history month, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé is my favourite black author and she writes queer mystery/thriller books. My favourite of hers is Where Sleeping Girls. 

Music: I adore Billie Eilish (Hit Me Hard and Soft should’ve won a Grammy, I will die on this hill!) Noah Kahan and Sam Barber are artists I’ve really been loving at the moment. Gigi Perez as well, Sailor Song and Fable are songs I can never skip. 

This-or-that segment: (red = Mila's pick)

Coffee or tea?

Early mornings or late nights?

City or countryside?

Angsty or Cozy romances? (Or enemies-to-lovers or best-friends-to-lovers?)  

Steady progress or frenzied binge-writing followed by periods of calm?

Summer or Winter?

First drafts or editing?

Introvert or extrovert? (Gosh, I’m SUCH an introvert)

Plotter or pantser?

Characters or plot first?

Write your own “either-or” pairing: vampires or werewolves? (don’t tell B or K I even asked… I can’t pick between my faves, so I’ll let you guys choose :D)

[sausage-rolll]

I think it's pretty clear that season 2 of Ncuti's era was rewritten at some point and that a big chunk of the original story was lost.

So I thought I'd write up what I believe the original plan was, or at least what I think would have worked better than what we got.

First of all, I think Ruby was planned to still be the companion in this season. Belinda is depressingly underutilised and somehow less relevant to the ongoing plot than Ruby is, despite the fact that she’s the one actually traveling with the doctor. So unfortunately I think she was not a part of the original plan for the story. So in the version I plan to lay out now, she isn’t going to be present.

Now, I just want to stress that me writing Belinda out of this version of the story isn’t because I do not like her or that I don’t want her in the show. It is because I genuinely believe she wasn’t planned to be a part of it until something happened midway through season 1 that led to Ruby’s role in the story being cut down. In my perfect version of the show Belinda would still be a part of it, she would just be a part of a 3rd season (and beyond) alongside Ncuti where she can be actually plot relevant.

Now, with that cleared up, let me quickly lay the groundwork for this alternate version of the story, then we can really get into the meat of potatoes of things. 

It’s quite simple really, only two major things are different.

Ruby is still traveling with the Doctor during season 2 but frequently takes breaks from the TARDIS in order to live her normal life and spend time with family (this allows the events of Lucky day and Joy to the world to happen basically unchanged.) 

The mystery of Ruby’s past and her mysterious and elusive mother is not solved in ‘Empire of Death’ and Ruby is still silently craving answers about everything.

Now let's finally begin.

The Doctor and Ruby, after another adventure in time and space attempt to return to Earth on the 24th of May so Ruby can spend time at home for a while, only to find that… They bounce right off of it? That’s strange… that’s certainly never happened before. The doctor is silently concerned about the implications of this, but makes sure to keep an upbeat and carefree attitude to hide his worries from Ruby. Ruby isn’t necessarily happy about being unable to return home at the time, but just assumes that it’s another quirky “timey-wimey” thing that the doctor can figure out. Overall she’s slightly annoyed but not worried.

The doctor whips out the vindicator and explains that it can be used to triangulate the coordinates to get them back home. Things continue relatively identical to the original version for now. They go to Earth 1952 where they face off against Lux. During the 3-dimensional part, the doctor confides in Ruby that he is terrified he won’t be able to get her home safely, that he’s worried he’ll never be able to save Rogue. And one other thing… something that (I believe) he’s never admitted to Ruby before. He isn’t just a timelord. He’s the last of the timelords. The soul survivor of his species. This pops him back into full 3D. From here the episode continues as normal.

The well happens essentially unchanged.

Lucky day also happens unchanged but is an episode set slightly in the past during a time Ruby isn’t travelling with the Doctor. However young Conrad sees Ruby and the Doctor together in the opening segment with the vindicator which is part of the reason he tries so hard to get close to her during the events of lucky day. He recognises her from his childhood and it drives him mad because that isn’t possible.

The story and the engine once again happens mainly unchanged, however Poppy does not appear this time. (I can’t think of a way for her to fit into this rewrite)

The interstellar song contest occurs, once again, almost unchanged. They finally have enough vindicator juice to force their way back to May 24th and rush into the TARDIS without saying goodbye after hearing Earth's history and how it ceased to be on that very day. Miss Flood Bigenerates and all the cards are set as she, using her own TARDIS (The Doctor doesn’t have the only one, fuck you) uses the vindicator coordinates to also get back to earth. Well after a quick pit stop to pick up one more thing. Flood is dropped off in modern day to break Conrad out of prison while Rani goes to the past to find their trump card. Desiderium the god of wishes.

-

Wish World

John Smith (The Doctor) wakes up in his house. He’s alone as he starts his day. No partner, no pets, just him in an empty house going about his morning routine. It’s not that he didn’t crave companionship, he did. He deeply did. But he was never particularly interested in women and… well there certainly wasn’t any other options. Not in this world.

Not in this world. This perfect little world.

John realises he’s running late for work and rushes out the door, only to be greeted by an unfamiliar face. A girl. Young, short and blonde. She asks John if he was… The doctor? No, of course not. He’s just an ordinary office worker, but if the young woman needed help he’d be happy to call someone, it’d have to be quick though since he was running late for work.

The girl quickly apologizes and mumbles something about her being mistaken before running off… How strange.

How strange indeed. Desiderium’s power… it doesn’t seem to work too well on Ruby. yet another oddity to add to the list. Her oddness was what drew Ms. Flood to her in the first place, not that Ruby would know this . She wanted to understand what made her tick, she needed to understand what made reality bend around her. 

Now from here things continue as normal. John Smith goes to work and Ruby stews in her confusion and false memories.

After work the doctor sits down in front of his TV and watches Conrad's channel. The only channel. But… then something else fizzled into the picture. The stark white background was drowned out in a deep red and Conrad was replaced by someone else. Seeing him made the Doctor’s heart drop. There was something about the man on the TV. He liked him. He really liked him.

He listens to his advice and slowly begins to snap out of his delusions, but before he can, Miss Flood arrives and takes him to the tower.

From here Rani's plan is revealed and the doctor is plunged into a decaying London.

-

Reality wars

From here, things once again happen almost identically to the original, however without Belinda there is no need for the stasis cube.

The doctor and Ruby free Unit from the Wish, confront Miss Flood and Rani and make the plan to infiltrate their tower, take Desiderium and stop the Rani from freeing Omega.

The doctor encounters Rani, keeping them distracted as Ruby goes after Conrad.

Omega appears, killing Rani and Miss Flood escapes.

The doctor forces Omega back into the underverse and Ruby defeats Conrad and returns the world normal.

Everyone meets back up at Unit and celebrates defeating the Rani and the Wish world. The doctor walks over to Ruby who is still holding Desiderium, a nagging feeling eating away at him as he approaches. The two of them talk for a short while and the doctor neutralises Desiderium powers with a wish.

It isn’t foolproof mind you. There’s no knowing what their life is going to be like. Their powers could reawaken at any moment, and even if they didn’t it could still bend reality around it just by existing. But to the doctor it was worth the risk.

Then why was he so scared?

Ruby sees The Doctor’s concern and offers for him to hold the baby. He agrees.

The doctor picks up Desiderium from Ruby’s arms and looks down at the baby.

And his heart stops.

He’d seen this baby before. He’d held this baby before! But where?!

His mind raced trying to grasp what gave him such a suffocating sense of deja vu.

And then it clicks.

Then it finally made sense.

Everything finally made sense.

The Doctor looks up at Ruby and thanks her.

He shouts out into the Unit headquarters that he knows exactly what to do with Desiderium. They would be safe, happy and loved, he would make sure of it.

He runs into the tardis clicking buttons and pulling levers, all the while never letting go of small Desiderium.

He knew exactly where he was going.

He puts Desiderium down for just a second, just long enough to throw on a long, hooded cloak from his wardrobe. He picked it so the young baby wouldn’t get cold. It had a built-in heat regulator that would stop the small thing from freezing. Ironic that it also covered The Doctor’s body head to toe.

He picks Desiderium up and steps out of the Tardis into a cold, dark alleyway.

He would have parked closer but he knew what was about to happen. He couldn’t risk being spotted by anyone lest the timeline unravel itself at the seams, and he’d had quite enough of reality breaking for one day.

As he walked through the dark street looking down at Desiderium, he thought about his time with this face. It was all so nostalgic. 

His mind wandered to Ruby. He thought about how snow and soft tunes of Christmas hymns followed her everywhere she went. How no technology in the universe could track down her past. How Mistro was terrified of her. How Sutekh was curious about her. How Desiderium’s power failed to keep its grasp on her.

She had defeated the very gods. And now he finally knew how.

After a short walk through the snowy streets he finally found his destination. A small, simple church. Snow falling heavily all around him and the sound of singing getting ever so closer.

He gave the small child a light kiss on the head and set her down on the front step of the church before turning around and walking away.

Away from Desiderium. He didn’t even look back. Afterall, he knew she was in safe hands here. 

He knew she would be safe, at the church on ruby road.

He returned to the present with a grand smile on his face, stepping towards Ruby and pulling her into a hug. They had a lot to discuss.

[michimonie]

I'm sorry, bad info it's spook Y zone. Spookyzone. These might be more helpful, lol.

Like father, like son

Like uncle, like nephew

[desamatt]

The Duck Family Tree according to DuckTales 2017!

Some notes:

The characters with gray names (HDL's dad, Daphne Duck, Goosetave Gander, Eider Duck, Lulubelle Loon, Humperdink Duck, and Gertrude Gadwall) aren't 100% confirmed to exist in the canon of DT17, but can be inferred to for various reasons.

The images of the ones I just mentioned plus Pothole McDuck, Silas McDuck, Sir "Black" Donald McDuck, Sir Puft McDuck, Malcolm "Matey" McDuck, and Sir Quackly McDuck aren't from DT17, these characters were never shown physically in the show but I still wanted there to be something to look at.

Grandma Duck is only mentioned in the comics, which didn't have involvement from the creators of the show, but I decided to include her anyway because they said the comics only aren't canon in cases where they contradict the show.

The McDuck ancestors (aka the ones under Scrooge's grandparents) are in order from left to right acccording to the "Solving Mysteries and Rewriting History!" book. The only exception is Countess Agnes McDuck since we have no information of when she was alive, so I made the choice to place her between Eider and Quackly considering her Countess title, how she doesn't seem to know Murdoch and Agnes in the episode she appears, and how Eider appears to be the oldest recorded McDuck.

I accidentally mistyped Dewey's name, it should be "Dewford" instead of "Dewbert."

[outoftheirdifferences]

@askrossiel / from (x)

"Oh, heh, you know what the boys are like. I don't want them to think that we're trying to show them up at their own game... we just want it to look like we happen to be going to do the same thing as them at the same place as them, not like we're following them."

Despite the fact that they very definitely were following them, because Webby had no clue where they were going otherwise. But when they were talking about some kind of battle games, while very clearly trying to keep her from overhearing...

Well, there was no surer way to pique Webby's interest than that.

In fairness to the boys, given how carried away she tended to get in making harmless games like darts into realistic battlefield combat, it perhaps wasn't surprising that there were some things that the triplets would hesitate to invite her along to. Webby was also... not entirely unaware that they could have been talking about something a bit more mundane than it sounded.

Still. It had been a while since she'd secretly shadowed anyone like this; might as well keep in practice.

"Just keep it casual, alright? That should do it."

She said, all the while acting anything but casual. For all Webby's skills, acting innocuous wasn't one of the duck girl's strengths.

[outoftheirdifferences]

"Huuuuh..."

She rubbed her chin thoughtfully as Steven explained how his parents got along, and about Rose wanting to make something new. One thing in particular, she wasn't sure she quite grasped: she got what he meant, that it was who someone was at present that was most important, not who they had been... but as a girl with strong passions for learning and for history, it was hard for her to imagine just getting together with someone and not asking a million questions about the other person's life and backstory and simply everything.

Then again, maybe that was just her being weird again. On top of which, she also couldn't really imagine herself getting together with anyone, full stop, so she really wasn't one to judge.

Of course, the explanations following on from that were enough to put the former line of thought out of Webby's mind almost completely.

"So she... wait... is that normal for gems?"

Someone else might have protested to Steven looking like he was about to start undressing; Webby, however, barely gave it a second thought as she squinted at the gemstone embedded in the boy's stomach. She didn't exactly have Scrooge's practiced eye for valuables, but hers were keen nonetheless: and to her, it looked like it would pass for any other stone of its kind that might have been found in the treasure haul from one of their adventures. She didn't doubt Steven, for Webby was used to mythical and unusual things, but it still took a stretch of the imagination to think that it could be a living being.

"So is she still inside there somewhere? You did say it was just her physical form she gave up..."

Or was she misunderstanding something here?

Steven was waiting until that moment of the story to say so, but it seemed Webby was clever enough to figure it out on her own. And that was cool of her.

"Hehe… Yup.” Might as well be straightforward about it. “My dad, Greg Universe, decided the life of a traveling musician no longer called to him after he met that tall, mysterious pink-haired woman. And the bond they formed was by no means perfect; I mean, they were from two totally different worlds. But they talked, and they made it work,” Steven explained with a fond smile.

“I guess they meshed together so well ‘cause they both left behind old lives to reinvent themselves. And neither needed to know who they used to be, because it’s who they were in the moment that was important. My dad got a job in Beach City at the local car wash, and then the old owner retired, giving the car wash to him. And mom? Well, she grew even more interested in human beings. She thought it was amazing how natural it is for humans to grow and change.

"And…I guess she really wanted to create something new like that. Something like a Gem but could grow like a human. Thing is, she kinda needed to give up her gem to the new thing she created to make it happen like that, which meant, well…basically giving up herself. …I’m not gonna pretend to imagine why she decided to do it like that, but she felt strongly enough about it to go through with it. So, Rose Quartz gave up her physical form to bring me into the world.”

Steven tugged up on his shirt so that Webby could see the pink gemstone in his navel region, pausing a moment to look down pensively at it. “I got Mom’s gem. And her powers with it. It was just a matter of figuring out how to use 'em.”

[nilboxes]

I didn't know who to say this too but i was about to explode thinking about this and you are one of the few people in hsr fandom that i trust to understand ratio so my apologies to be dumping this on you all of a sudden but... I think Ratio's technique is so interesting in a way and speaks more about him than people give it credit for. Like...creating a fake version of himself that aggros the enemy is already very meta of how hsr fandom tends to see him, esp with the number of people that started hating him after that "betrayal" scene in 2.1 xD And it makes me wonder about his voiceline where he says something like "im fine with showing my true self if it helps me teach students/cures patients but i find that doing so is counterproductive most of the time"...wdym "true self" sir...and why are your character details completely devoid of any details from your own pov...and why do you get so evasive when anyone tries to ask about your past (going by that one interview when someone asked him what he was like as a child and he's just like "what a silly question, i was a normal boy")...it seems to me the princess is hiding something...

Thank you for your ask OP! It's really interesting to think about your question, and I'm humbled by your trust! I hope whatever I cook can satisfy you in some way. It's going to be a bit long!!

Let's start by saying I do operate under the belief that we know a lot about Dr Ratio and at the same time we only know what he wants us to know, which I find incredibly interesting to his character.

It can go many different ways. A lot of people use this mysteriousness to hint at the following:

1. something sinister (I am not necessarily saying you are doing this)

2. suggesting that he is more than who he is, like he may be more than who he presents to be (may or may not be evil in alignment but just more)

3. he really just thinks divulging further personal information about him is pointless and he values his privacy as an individual rather than a prominent figure

Let me now unpack the most wrongest [sic] take, number 1, which I find to be antithetical to his character, because Dr Ratio has always been aligned with doing good. He isn't your typical good person, but he is morally pushing for good (eradication of ignorance, people finding and reaching their potential etc), and he rather he reminds me of a very stern but nonetheless kind educator who genuinely demands good be brought into the world through one's aptitude and ability (just like himself) and not relying on others to solve problems for you

Number 2 is a little tricky, since we cannot really confirm nor deny that Ratio is no longer truly following Nous after he realizes he will never be acknowledged, he may be aligned to another Aeon or none entirely! I personally dislike the Mythus/Fictionologist take, because again it is antithetical to who he is as a character. Fictionologists will rewrite history and twists facts in order to create the possibility of uncovering more, but this is akin to something called accelerationism, which is in plain words to incite chaos (bad) in the slim chances that from the chaos a great good might emerge/ be produced/discovered etc, a practice and ideology I feel Dr Ratio as he is characterized now would be extremely against. Now I do subscribe to the fact that Dr Ratio may not be following an Aeon at all or we aren't privy to who they are yet, but this is a possibility that there is a facet to Dr Ratio we have not seen yet and will down the line so...

Number 3 is where I am at now, I really, genuinely think Dr Ratio just thinks of himself as some guy who was gifted with the equivalent of 8 genius brains but it isn't anything exceptional. From how he acts, he feels like some guy who had a rather normal childhood (if not really lonely, which I talk about in my twitter thread here) and grew up to be exceptional except in all the ways he wanted/was taught to want/thought he might want.

So I operate on several headcanons about Ratio just genuinely being so smart in a planet that is presumably the remnants of the civilization in the Laurel Wreath Galaxy where a Philosopher King/Philosopher Union was mentioned. This headcanon is heavily colored by this excellent theory a fellow fan made and I have to admit I can scarcely distinguish between mine and theirs while I turn him around in my brain so do give them/their thread a read too when you can, but I do also subscribe to how Ratio must have been exceptional in a civilization that prizes scholarship and enlightenment.

Knowing this, I presume he grew up with a lot of expectations placed upon him, particularly that of gaining the gaze or glance of Nous and ascending as a genius society member or more! That is a lot to place on an individual, especially someone like Ratio who is very much hinted to have grown up very fast due to his vast knowledge and while it's a stretch to say he was forced into growing up fast, because he def wasn't, he was nevertheless seemingly not really given much opportunities to be a child, as the push for him to start university very early could suggest that his aptitude and potential were so valued that it overridden any other needs he may have. If we wanted to ask about his childhood, he would have very dull things to say too, so to speak. I imagine it wasn't eventful at all, but filled with just studies.

Where am I going with this about his statues? They are called Mold of Idolatry! Idolatry meaning the extreme adoration or love of someone. That Dr Ratio makes the statues of himself never seems like the narcissistic sort, that would imply he holds himself in an extremely high regard to the detriment of others, but Dr Ratio isn't narcissistic, he would be a vastly different character if he was. The key to narcissism is that there is a great need, to the point of detriment, for admiration.

Now, look over to how Dr Ratio presents himself to us in his 1.6 quests. He wears his plaster head as not to be recognized by others, to remain incognito if you will, and is content to sit at the sidelines nudging things along in the background rather than swoop in and take the credit as the hero when Duke Inferno was trying to wreak havoc on the Space Station. His heroic deeds are never realized by the people he saved from being spaced, that is not an action of a narcissistic man who would gloat about saving other people. No, he sees his job is done and he walks away without fanfare, without even so much as seeking a thank you from the people he saved. That's one of the clearest and most well-thought of character introductions/demonstrations in the game and a solid proof that he isn't a narcissist (again self-centeredness is different!)

With that in mind, what does the statue imply?

Dr Ratio operates by redirecting attention not to himself so he can freely move in the background. That it looks like him in funny poses speaks to a silliness I feel he never really gets a chance to let loose too often, so his "art" is his outlet. That it directs enemies to attack that instead of him, I can't help but feel like there's a sense of "look at this 'image of me' others have built up, pour your love/expectations/wants/aspirations (and the extreme opposite of that maybe?) to that likeness of me instead, and let me be free from that to be who I could be without all of that baggage"

tl;dr -- it's not that deep but it is?? I feel like Ratio just wants to be left alone to do his thing and that's what the Mold of Idolatry represents.

I hope that satisfies you, anon! Thank you for your question, since I do have more insights to Dr Ratio now. I think I'll also find a way to condense this into a Twitter thread sometime.

[michimonie]

What do you think of Donald Duck and Minnie Mouse having a brother and sister relationship in any type of story?

I think that sounds adorable and fascinating. I would imagine they would be the type to respect each other, but also take no shit from each other. Also, I could see them gossiping about their partners (but not necessarily in a mean way).

(snippet from "The River of Time", Pete talking to Minnie on the phone, gossiping about Mickey right in front of him)

I'd also imagine that they would ask each other about what their partners would probably like, sometimes (e.g. Donald asks Minnie for help finding a gift for Daisy).

One fun/funny scenario would be someone insulting one of them, and the two working together to get some kind of revenge. I know Minnie probably isn't as spiteful and petty as Donald, but I feel like their dynamic would lead to some interesting kinds of revenge.

When I first saw this ask, I wanted to look through the Young Donald comics because I could've sworn there was at least one story where they worked together. Honestly, there should be more mouse/duck cross-gender, working together stories.

If their personalities/dynamic is similar to Young Donald, he would definitely be the type to drag her into some bs situation and she'd be the voice of reason, constantly being like "please, just LISTEN." Afterwards, they'd both need to work together to dig themselves out of whatever metaphorical hole they're in.

Minnie: I'm never doing this again Also Minnie: You're doing what? Can I come?

Donald: Whew, I've learned my lesson and won't do that ever again. Also Donald: *Immediately does the thing the next day*

Not to say that Minnie would never be the cause of their problems, but if I'm going based on Young Donald, she seems to mainly cause problems for herself (which Donald would be happy to help out with). Either way, it would be an interesting dynamic.

They're solving mysteries... and probably rewriting history, idk. I don't know their schedules. 😂

[keira-snaps]

Might solve a mystery, or rewrite history.

[outoftheirdifferences]

Okay, Rossiel's mood seemed to be perking up again... feeling at least a little better about her mistake, Webby nodded eagerly.

"Oh yeah, the swings are great. That place kinda has memories for me, too, it's where Lena and I went after the first time we were British together."

A long beat passed before Webby remembered that wouldn't mean anything at all to her companion.

"Ah, that's kinda an inside joke, sorry."

Actually, she and Lena had kinda drifted around all the play equipment but the swings that time, if Webby recalled rightly; but that didn't stop them from still being pretty great. Sometimes you just didn't get to everything, particularly when you were still being chased by Beagle Boys at the time.

For all that she enjoyed awkward silences, part of Webby was still itching to ask questions; still, as she started to lead the way, the girl picked a less sensitive topic.

"So, how're you finding Duckburg? You must be making friends here too, huh?"

Her expression remained gentle, as Rossiel tried her best to let Webby know the attempt at comfort was appreciated, and that she didn’t hold any blame against her friend for accidentally brushing close to a painful topic.

The suggested destination was met with another nod of agreement. Some fresh air and the sound of the trees was always welcome, as was perhaps some time on a swingset.

“The park is good. It’s close to where James and Dr. Polendina work, so they won’t be far away if there’s an emergency. Besides, I like the swings.”

[amberastra]

Chapters: 1/? Fandom: The Magnus Archives (Podcast) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Sasha James & Tim Stoker Characters: Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Martin Blackwood, Tim Stoker (The Magnus Archives), Sasha James Additional Tags: Time Travel Fix-It, Secrets, Misunderstandings, Angst with a Happy Ending, Aromantic Sasha James, Canon Asexual Character, Asexual Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Asexual Martin Blackwood, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, except jonah magnus, Queerplatonic Sasha James/Tim Stoker Summary:

Sasha’s colleagues are acting strange (well, stranger than usual), and no matter how reasonable their explanations have been, she’s certain they’re still hiding something, and she’s determined to get to the bottom of it. No matter what it takes.