#the characters are mostly pretty surface level

[lunarrampage]

I'm a big advocate of just blocking and moving on when seeing bad takes about your interests but that's mostly because I rarely travel outside the small circle of artists and mutuals I follow and ohhhh boy after having seen the worst take about a beloved blorbo I suddenly understand everything, it was like a redditer overtook my body and I almost went into a rage as I resisted the urge to "um actually" and type up an entire essay in ops comment section but I persevered. Are you all proud of me.

[tritoch]

I wish people were willing to have a slightly broader or more expansive understanding of FFXIV's women because I think there's so much there in terms of easily-unearthed subtext that no one really thinks about! And I don't mean this in a "people need to re-evaluate their response to the women of Stormblood" way (though I do think that's largely true), I mean I think fandom's understanding even of the women it mostly likes is pretty weak. And you can say that's because the women are underwritten, and I won't argue that they couldn't use more attention from the writing, but that doesn't prevent you from analyzing them the way you can any character in fiction.

Like everyone's always like, oh, Y'shtola and Krile are like your snarky wine aunts, haha. But...Sharlayan is a pretty ossified and patriarchal society from what we see of it in Endwalker and places like the AST quests. Can we open ourselves to the possibility that it means something that almost every young Sharlayan woman we meet, almost all young women in academia, tends to be a little sharp and quick on the retort? The arch and snarky ways in which those two carry themselves reflect in some sense the facts that Krile is almost literally a nepo baby woman in STEM who is barely older than her students, while Y'shtola learned her behaviors from her much older female mentor, a woman who hated Sharlayan academic culture so much she literally abandoned it to go live in a cave.

Or like, Alisaie! Fan jokes and meta frequently buy into her tendency to characterize the dynamic between her and Alphinaud as a jock/nerd, street savvy extrovert vs book smart introvert thing. Except, tragically, Alphinaud's highest stat is 100% Charisma and he absolutely pulled in his student days. All his greatest achievements are diplomatic, and he very easily develops strong friendships with people in every culture you learn about. Alisaie is the determined, sensitive genius who revolutionizes Eorzea by proving the tempered can be healed. She's just permanently carrying a chip on her shoulder that while she and her brother are remembered as the youngest students in Studium history, actually he got in six months before her, a fact pretty much no one else ever brings up once. She's constantly fuming over the fact that he was marginally better than her in certain specific ways in high school, and looking to differentiate them in ways that actually fail to credit her own obvious strengths and accomplishments. I think that's so fun! It's so juicy, and it's equally good for comedy or serious character studies.

Venat is a genuinely benevolent hero who has no compunction sacrificing lives for the greater good. Minfilia is kind and compassionate and clearly on some level actually buys into the narrative of her own unique moral authority. Ysayle is a revolutionary firebrand with almost no concern for the common man, whose death reflects her Javert-like inability to reconcile her own romantic belief in justice with the tragic ways her blinkered worldview (born largely of trauma) let her be easily co-opted by a violent system. But even people who like these characters rarely move past surface-level reads (people who think Venat is just an all-loving mommy figure make me want to fucking die). The fandom is allergic to drawing connections the game doesn't draw, and fails to recognize that FFXIV is a game where characters voice understandings of themselves and others that are wrong about as often as they're right.

You can already see the ways that women like Wuk Lamat and Cahciua and Sphene are getting flattened or losing their shading in fan reception and it's boring. Like I'm not even saying this because you should take female characters more seriously or something (though you should), I'm literally just bored to tears sometimes and if you guys turn Wuk Lamat into another Hot Dumb Jock Lady, I will combust.

[comicaurora]

Just saw the announcement about Heartwood Coven, and I'm super excited!

I know that when you're exploring a genre, either for the first time, or just the first time in a while, sometimes inspirations for new Trope Talks emerge, and as a fan of spaces adjacent to Magical Girl media (Kamen Rider, mostly, but Ultraman, Super Sentai/Power Rangers, and Garo also exist, just to scratch the surface), I honestly find it kind of difficult to think of any tropes in the space that don't just devolve into little trivia factoids, or a 'Yup, that sure is a thing they do!', despite being in the space for decades. But I also know you have a keener eye for media tropes than I personally do.

So, all that is to ask, are there any tropes in that space that have caught your attention recently? This isn't even specifically asking about a potential future video, just in general.

The ingredients for a Sentai/Magical Girl story are very distinctive, especially when compared to other superhero genres!

Comes As A Set! Everyone in a thematic team has acquired their powers the same way, and the powers are very minor variants off of each other - one character might have The Specialest Version where their powers are strongest and their heart is Most Pure, but everyone else will be running at the same power level with almost no specialization. This sounds obvious, but almost no other superhero team does this. Even the X-Men, whose powers are all Being Mutants, come across as a seriously varied menagerie with wildly disparate power levels. Everyone being The Same Thing In A Different Color is pretty unique to this space!

Monster Of The Week: Not the only genre this appears in, but one of the only spaces where it's straight-up down to a science. The big bad of a series like this will only make a real appearance in the grand season finale. Until then, the team will be fighting their lieutenants' minions at a rate of one per episode. The big bad doesn't even usually deign to make the minions themselves, since they're much too busy standing in their recycled animation evil lair. The minions will have unique gimmicks, but will share similar levels of thematic and structural closeness with one another that the heroes do - they'll all be kaiju, or walking evil spells, or disgruntled citizens gifted thematically inconvenient superpowers. Where are these minions coming from? Sometimes the answer is "they cook em up at home" and sometimes it's "they corrupt innocent people so the heroes have to go nonlethal." It doesn't make much difference in the execution, so it's mostly dealer's choice.

So Many Wonderful Toys! These heroes aren't afraid to accessorize, and the merchandising department also says we have to. When the formula needs mixing up, just give someone a new weapon or vehicle or mech or powerup macguffin. And unless you're only giving the upgrade to the Designated Specialest Pure Of Heart one, make sure to bring enough for the rest of the team, because this is a good way to bring in a round of powerups for everyone and give them some new stock animations to reuse every episode!

There's Only One Way To Win And It's Teamwork. My personal gripe with a lot of these stories is that, by nature of the formula, the characters usually end up becoming largely interchangeable in a fight, because nobody is allowed to win before they do the Big Finisher they always use. And if the Big Finisher is "the most specialest pure of heart character remembers their job and blasts them with the Friendship Laser" that means the rest of the gang is basically on minion-punching duty and repeating "no way! my attack had no effect?!" Every fight has to run through everyone's big canned moves, usually one at a time, and since none of them will do any appreciable damage then they'll combine their giant robots or wait for the leader to bust out the Friendship Cannon and the fight will be over. I think this one's genuinely kind of a weakness of the format; it's pretty rare for a single non-leader character to get a day in the limelight or end up having the exact ability the week's bad guy is allergic to. Nobody gets an individual chance to shine unless the writers intentionally break the formula to make it happen.

The Sixth Ranger! You thought your team of five color-coordinated thematically linked cool guys was complete, but surprise! There are more colors/planets/dinosaurs than just the starting five, and some powerfull badass with unknown morals and a frightening reputation has just turned up wearing your team's matching outfit! Because the team comp is so ironclad compared to other superhero formats, this is always very disruptive and kind of a big shakeup that could restructure the whole status quo, unlike in typical superhero teams where individual attendance is optional and it's not a dealbreaker whether or not Wolverine is in this week.

And Your Friend Steve: someone's will they/won't they significant other is constantly hanging around the fights, in or out of a secret identity of their own, and their main contribution is to get kidnapped by the big bad, brainwashed by the big bad, or kidnapped and then brainwashed by the big bad. Outside of their busy schedule their main narrative role is to reinforce the Secret Identity concept that would otherwise risk slipping out of relevance. It's easier to remember your identity is supposed to be secret when Your Friend Steve keeps turning up at fights.

Bumbling Minions, Serious Boss - this is just an observation on my end, but it's quite common for the villain's crew of lieutenants to be somewhat more comedic than the main Big Bad - whether they're just a couple wacky minions or the comedy comes from how flustered they get when they inevitably lose, comedy is derived from them experiencing the wrath of their evil boss after the good guys win. But all this levity drains away as the lieutenants get whittled down and the finale approaches, and even if the villain has seemed clownish in the safe confines of their lair, when they actually go on the warpath and become the main present threat, they stop being funny entirely. Or, failing that, they get usurped by a new, worse villain, and they become the cartoonish lieutenant to the new guy. Villain chains of command get complicated.

The magical girl equivalent of the shonen anime Super Saiyan transformations is Pretty Dresses. The escalating ornate-ness of a magical girl's Pretty Dress corresponds one-to-one to the Bigness and Glowiness of a Super Saiyan's hair and reflects the reality-warping power contained within. Sailor Moon in a lacey bridal gown with gauzey diaphenous wings and a tiara is the kind of threat Goku would save in his contacts as "new sparring partner"

[technically-human]

You're so good at writing Robotnik! Whenever I read your comics I can hear it in his voice 😂 how do you do it? 💕💕💕 (Sorry if I've asked this already)

After how much I struggled to write that Robotnik fic, to see people think I'm good at writing him is a relief, so thank you.

I do have a few rules I try to follow when writing him specifically, but sometimes I draw a comic simply because my brain keeps repeating a specific dialogue in his voice and I need to get rid of it before it drives me to madness.

Basically!

1) this man is not constantly angry. I know it's easy to fall for this trap but you must fight it. He actually doesn't spend a lot of canon time being angry, even when he should. This is a kid's franchise after all, and angry adults are pretty scary. As much as he's the villain, Robotnik is not meant to be scary. He's still very EXPLOSIVE. He will shout a lot, and he's always frowning and he seems to always be one step away from anger, but he doesn't cross that line very often. I can't even say he's grumpy, because

2) Robotnik is basically a kid with a very extensive vocabulary. I'm not trying to disrespect Eggman here, but he throws tantrums, he insults people just because, his mood changes from one moment to the other, his emotions are BIG. I look at my 4 year old niece and I wonder if she's being possessed by the ghost of Ivo or if she's just being a normal kid.

3) he's not very self aware. He thinks he's the smartest, coolest, most impressive kid in this playground, and that results in him saying and doing very weird and ridiculous stuff with full confidence. If other people look at him funny, well, that's just because they don't understand his brilliance.

4) think of this as a game. If you want to present Robotnik with a Serious and Complicated thing and you don't know how he'd react, assume that this man is roleplaying his way out of it. He doesn't fully grasp that other people could have any value whatsoever, so he can treat it all like a game. Oh, millions are going to die? This will be good for the plot, fun. This is one of the funniest rules to break, nothing like forcing a character who Doesn't Care to suddenly care very much.

5) Robotnik's one weakness is humans. Oh he can mostly understand them, on a surface level, we see this mostly in the deleted scenes when he praises Stone to manipulate him or when he makes the fundraiser. Or even back in the first movie, when he pretends to work for the power company. He's not good at it but he THINKS he can play the part of a normal, well adjusted individual. This is very funny to me, but it's also important to remember because it means he's not above playing nice to get what he wants.

6) Robotnik doesn't say what he means, he implies it. I make him say "that's not how this works anymore" instead of "I won't leave you behind again" I make him say "no dying!" instead of "I don't want you to leave me" and I make him say "what's my full name?" Instead of "you're the only person I would ever want to hear my name from" and because I'm a bit of a romantic, most of the time, Stone gets it. But Robotnik doesn't expect him to, which is the only reason he dares to say it.

All of that is very nice, but sometimes it means I'm over here like "Come on, Rob, just say this one thing so the story can progress. Just one thing" and he replies "nu-uh, OOC + cringe + you suck, try something else" and I suffer

[huiyi07]

hey so do you guys ever think about how often Diluc is referred to as the ‘uncrowned king of Mondstadt’ since he’s like the only male heir to the noble families and like it or not, where Jean is the authority of the nation, he’s pretty much the symbolic face of Mondstadt and the values the nation projects— and despite his temperament, Diluc has learned to embrace it wholeheartedly. He’s charismatic, extremely righteous, and he blazes bright and gives the people of Mondstadt a fire that guides them in the dark, quite literally. Like he’s literally Bruce Wayne lmao

But he doesn’t want this, no, and here’s the proof- maybe he did, once upon a time, before everything happened— but he doesn’t really care about wine, he only cares about the winery because of the people in it and his father. He’s righteous but doesn’t give a damn about the rules and the knights of favonius. After what happened to him, he’s clearly a rebel at heart now, not some charming superhero who does everything expected of him, unlike before. In summary, Diluc was someone who was quite literally ready to become an (uncrowned) prince, pretty much royalty in every way except title- and on surface level, he still is, but he throws that mantle away in secret whenever he can.

And then look at Kaeya, his brother who’s always lived in his shadow. It’s easy to see that now, people don’t really project Mondstadt’s values onto Kaeya the same way they do onto Diluc, since lots of people hardly even remember that they’re brothers. And yeah people still think kaeya is reliable and nice, but also because of how Kaeya built his image after Diluc left— an excessively over the top personality that pretends to be sadistic, mean, and at the same time dripping with false charm. So despite that people still find him approachable and nice as expected of a knight, hardly anyone would call him befitting of a prince.

But Kaeya is actually so painfully and authentically ‘princely’ and kind, deep down— the way he deals with children, his fierce loyalty and willingness to protect people at all costs, his self sacrificial tendencies that most often appear for Diluc’s sake. Even the tidbits of lore we get about him scream aristocracy- his ‘ceremonial’ bladework, Alberich family secrets that reveal just how central they are to the kingdom of khaenriah. This is kinda obvious to any player who’s bothered to learn anything about kaeya, but to the characters in game, there are very few that know that side of him.

And whereas Diluc is forcibly projected the title of royalty and secretly rejects it, Kaeya was actually born into it- his family is very important to Khaenriah, and much like how he does with anything related to his past and heritage, he loudly and outwardly rejects anything to do with ‘royalty’. Diluc outwardly rejects what Kaeya shows (a darker, more ‘means justify the end’ nature), and Kaeya tries to hide what Diluc projects (a sophisticated and aristocratic upbringing).

Honestly? It’s as if they were swapped at birth. Kaeya’s real hidden nature, even after everything that happened to him, remains to be so unwavering and people-oriented, while Diluc’s true personality changed drastically over time. Not that Diluc isn’t unwavering or whatever, but Diluc mostly actively rejects relationships and prefers to do everything alone, obsessed with the idea that he doesn’t want anyone to get hurt, whereas Kaeya always, always yearns for companionship and for people to be by his side- solidarity.

Diluc is the poster image of royalty, but his brother who hides in the shadows is a real king. They complete each other, balance each other out, represent the parts that the other hides. I don’t know if hoyoverse always meant them to be that way, but damn they basically represent each other’s parts of themselves that they lost. Yin and Yang, two halves of the same whole.

[hbheavensent]

Beelzebub/Vortex

Boy oh boy they are so deceptively healthy!!! Let's get into it ⋆.˚

For Bee's design, I really wanted to keep her general "overwhelming" look. I've always sorta loved how Beelzebub looks, it makes a lot of sense for the Gluttony Sin to be A LOT to look at. That being said, I took away her fire motif as that is sorta given to too many characters and I changed her colors to match her "formal" look (which I HEAVILY prefer). I also put a little splatter marking around her mouth like she has food on her muzzle, which I think is sorta cute :333 ALSO I wanted to bring in the BEE in her design, esp her Big Fuckoff Demonic form. So I turned her normal tail into a little stinger in both looks and kept the antenna on her ears. I also decided a horrible maw of teeth on the underside of her tummy is a good move, just in general it adds some body horror. Also, naturally, I put some meat on her bones and she will no longer be ✨weirdly fatphobic✨. She can be chubby and still the hottest girl in the room and it's weird that she was skinny in the first place. As for her personality, I still want her to be surface level very pleasant and fun loving. For sure some mean girl vibes and very manipulative as all temptations are. She's the type to get someone high and one they're having a Shitty Time to leave them alone because they're a "buzzkill". Her dating Vortex is a majority because she's bored and she's had other partners in the past. Of all of the sins she's the one that "hangs with the lower class" the most. Once Vortex doesn't scratch that itch for her, she'll be gone pretty quickly without a any real explanation. She's always chasing honey so to speak, a new high. I also wanted to focus in on her making The Pounds in Gluttony for Hellhounds, like I touched on in Loona's post. She not only is the reason for so many orphans/unwanted Hellhound pups, making parents of these kids be in compromised positions and having them addicted to substances, but she also made the shithole that the pups would go to. And while there's something to be said about her making the thing in the first place, she only cared enough to create the idea and not monitor it, why would she? Hellhounds live and die so fast, she's eternal, it's a speck to her despite her having more empathy than most sins.

At the very least, she's not judgmental, she knows that it certainly isn't her place to be. This is also probably a good place to talk a bit about what I'm doing WITH the sins. I'm going with the telling of them being former Angels that fell after The Apple Thing. Lucifer being the only one acting of his own volition to DO The Apple Thing and basically groom Lilith and Eve into a relationship before they even had FREE WILL (why does not one talk about that?? help????) Anyway, Bee was the third to fall and it was mostly due to messing with Earth's Plants and MAKING illicit substances able to be made. * I MIGHT change that, since in The Bible, Beelzebub falls because they go against Adam's wishes but it doesn't make sense with the timeline I'm workin with * The Sins are destined to be what they are the second Sin is created, Beelzebub can't help how she acts as much as Mammon couldn't help picking up a dollar on the ground. It's a compulsion at the end of the day and an eternal punishment that SOME have taken better than others. Bee is a prime example of leaning into it fully and trying to keep upbeat, sure she may never see Heaven again but she's having a hell of a time. Just hope she never gets sober or has a party go poorly because THAT is when it's dangerous. (I plan to showcase this eventually and give her a reason to dislike Loona/Blitz). But there's more Sin Stuff to get into laterer and NOT right now. AS FOR VORTEX, my sweet boy. I always really liked how normal he was in cannon. Just a Good Dude who can be a bit silly, which is exactly the type of guy Bee would go for (this century). Vortex comes from an Actually Together Family in the Lust ring and still works for Verosika as a guard when she's in Hell (currently reworking succubus magic so we'll get there when we get there). So, due to his family, Vortex is accidentally sort of ignorant of how MOST Hellhounds live. Loona has a earring in her ear where her Pound Tag was ripped out, Vortex has a earring there because he saw a bunch of other Hellhounds doing that and only realized after that fact because of Loona WHY Hellhounds have earrings there. Vortex also sorta fell into this relationship with Bee, and he very much sees it more seriously than she does. I don't think Loona talking to him about it would be enough to convince him that Bee is a bad person, sorta has rose colored lenses on for his girlfriend, but this is a DOOMED relationship. For Vortex's look, I didn't change much really- I just realized he looks SO much like Loona. Literally "siblings or dating". So. That sums up what I did with him besides what's literally in the image.

AND as a treat for such a longggg post-

Here's the silly height lineup we have so far

[triptuckers]

on the bottom of the lake - percy jackson

Request: yes! "I love ur writing!! could you write something w Percy helping anxious reader?? I’ve been super stressed lately and idk this show is keeping me sane lmao" Pairing:  Percy Jackson x reader Summary:  you've been stressed and percy knows the perfect way to help you relax Warnings:  reader being stressed, some swearing, anxiety Word count:  917 A/N: I drew so many pjo characters yesterday I cant wait to share them when I'm done with them :) thanks for your request, enjoy!

you don't know if you've ever felt like this. sure, you'd been stressed before. but now you're losing sleep over it. and not a few hours, just nights without zero sleep at all.

you've got a big project you need to do for school over the summer. if you call, it'll be your last strike and you'd be expelled. like it was your fault you had trouble reading and concentrating.

when you arrived at camp half-blood at the start of summer, you thought some of your worries would go away.

the opposite happened.

you saw everyone around you having a good time. they didn't have to worry about some project. they slept peacefully from night til morning.

even if you can't work on your project, you're constantly thinking about it. your mind never rests.

percy noticed you've been stressed and tries to talk to you about it, but you always shut him down. it's enough to think about it all the time, let alone talk about it.

after a couple of days, percy tries again. he really wants to help you, but he don't know why.

'hey, y/n?' says percy.

'what's up?' you say, looking up at him. you're supposed to help your cabin prepare for tonight's bonfire, but so far you're not helping much.

'about your project-'

'gods, will you leave it alone, percy!' you burst out. 'I think about that fucking project all day don't you start about it as well!'

percy takes a step back and you realise it's because of you.

'I'm sorry! sorry!' you say, getting up and grabbing one of his hands. 'I'm so sorry I didn't mean it.'

you feel tears slowly starting to fall.

'hey, it's okay.' says percy softly. he reaches up and brushes a tear from your cheek. 'want to go to the lake for a while?'

you nod. percy leads you to the lake. you close your eyes and let the breeze calm you down. but still the project is on your mind. if you go to your cabin now, you could get some work done.

percy tugs on your hand and you open your eyes to look at him.

'get in.' he says, nodding his head toward the lake.

'now?'

percy nods.

'percy, I don't want to go swimming right now.'

'do you trust me?'

'of course.'

'then get in.'

you sigh. what did you have to lose? maybe a swim would be nice.

'let me get my bathing suit.' you say.

'nope.' says percy, pulling you by your hand as he jumps in the lake. before you can stop him, you're pulled forward by his momentum. seconds later, the water surrounds you.

you want to yell at him for getting your clothes soaked, but you remember you're under water. once you get your bearings, you open your eyes, letting them get accustomed to the water.

you try to swim to the surface, but percy still holds on to your hand and pulls you further down, all the way to the bottom of the lake.

good for him, he's a poseidon kid. you aren't. you can't breathe underwater. surely percy knows that right?

he lets go of you hands and swims to the bottom of the lake.

you're going to have to go up for air soon.

you can see percy sitting down on the ocean floor, gesturing at you to join him. you squint your eyes. it looks like the water is less murky down there.

you let yourself sink down to percy's level. the water is less murky here because there is no water here.

'I didn't know you could do this.' you say, looking around the air bubble you're in.

'pretty cool, right?' says percy, smiling proudly.

'why are we here?'

'I mostly come here when I need to be alone. if you sit here in silence for a while, the fish will come up to you. and I always thought the waves are soothing to look at from down here.'

you look up and watch the waves for a while. sunlight pours through the water, giving it a soft glow.

you move closer to percy and rest your head on his shoulder.

the two of you sit there for a while. and percy was right. after some time, fish start to swim around your bubble.

percy tells you about the lake and the animals and after a while even two water nymphs come to say hello. percy knows them and introduces you to them.

you sit there for so long you lose track of time. it's getting late, so you decide to swim up to the surface.

normally you would have been soaked, but thanks to percy you're warm and dry.

you stifle a yawn as percy takes your hand in his and starts walking towards the cabins.

'thank you, that was nice.' you say.

'one of the bonuses of dating a poseidon kid.' says percy, lightly squeezing your hand.

he notices you hadn't talked about your project at all when you were in the lake. and you look genuinely tired. he hopes you can get at least one good nights sleep tonight.

'want to stay at my cabin tonight?' he says.

you smile and nod. 'yeah I'd like that.'

the two of you head to percy's cabin to get some sleep. and percy had been right, you got a good night of uninterrupted sleep. you dreamt of nothing but the comfort of the lake, and percy's presence next to you.

A/N:If you want to request something, make sure to read my house rulesHere’s the list of characters I write for. Everything that I have written can be found on my masterlist. Please don’t repost my work, as I spend much time and effort on it!! Thank you for reading! Much love, Marit

[vakarianshepard]

One of the many things that makes Garrus so interesting to me is how the society he was raised in shaped him. Turian society is so focused on law and order and justice; he grew up watching his dad putting away criminals on the news. He joined C-Sec because he wanted to help people. He wanted to make the world a safer place, like his dad did. He wanted to uphold the societal tenets he’d been raised with his entire life, and when he got to C-Sec he found out that it wasn’t that simple.

Garrus is driven by a desire to do good; if he can help someone, if he can stop someone from hurting people, why shouldn’t he? This is almost verbatim what he TELLS Shepard in one of his earliest conversations onboard the Normandy! 

I think it’s also important to recognize that he’s been in the turian military, then C-Sec since he was FIFTEEN. Turians have a pretty much the same age/maturity span as humans; Garrus is 25ish when he meets Shepard. He’s spent nearly half his life in an insular military society. It’s apparent where and how he got a militaristic “shoot first” attitude. However, he DOES have a very strong sense of right and wrong. What he “lacks” (and only in Mass Effect 1) is the depth of outside experience someone like Shepard, or even Wrex, has to give context to these decisions. He’s hot-headed and idealistic; Harkin tells Shepard that Garrus “still thinks he can change the world.” Executor Pallin tells Shepard he’s a very good officer, but he needs to be more patient. Garrus himself tells Shepard that’s why he wanted to leave C-Sec in the first place; to get a glimpse of how the galaxy works outside of the rigid structure of the turian military/C-Sec (a turian created and majority turian organization). He wants to learn and improve himself/his skills.

And he does! Depending on Shepard’s interactions with him, he realizes that his pride was getting in the way with Dr. Saleon and resolves to do better! After Omega, he recognizes that his vigilante work as Archangel did very little to improve conditions on Omega, and comments on that himself! Throughout ME2, Garrus wrestles with the realization that the “right” path may not be the easiest one, and that the idea of justice is itself subjective. After sparing Sidonis, he says, “It’s so much easier to see the world in black and white. I don’t know what to do with gray.” If Shepard tells him to trust his instincts, he admits that his instincts are what led to the situation with Sidonis. 

Garrus’ worldview grows and changes a lot throughout the trilogy. He easily befriends Tali and Wrex and apologizes to both of them. With a mostly paragon Shepard’s support (and even if Shepard is a renegade or ignores him completely!) he becomes a trusted leader in the turian government! He goes to his father, and uses the proper channels to get support and prepare for the Reapers. Obviously, he’s taken the lessons learned with Shepard, on Omega, etc, and uses that knowledge to benefit his people! He helps cure the genophage, he helps reclaim Rannoch, he admits that he was wrong! Often people bring up Garrus either: 1. Saying he would’ve considered the salarian deal and/or 2. Supporting Shepard if she chooses to sabotage the genophage as proof of his “wild racism.” These are both surface level and bad faith readings that are far less openly “racist” than views other characters, even Shepard herself, can support. 

In the case of the deal with the Dalatrass, he ONLY says that he would’ve considered it; hardly a ringing endorsement, especially when taking into consideration the massive scope and destruction of the Reaper war. Secondly, in the case of where Shepard chose to lie and sabotage the genophage cure, what’s done is already done. Garrus was not responsible for or privy to that decision, and I personally don’t see how choosing not to condemn a friend at one of her lowest points (after Thessia btw)  for something neither of you can change, is a show of support for real life racism. In fact, I would argue that it’s instead a show of compassion and loyalty to someone who’s been there for him at his darkest moments. 

Mass Effect is a series BUILT on grey morality. As Garrus himself says (paraphrased), when the fate of all life in the galaxy is at stake, you can’t always remain quiet and polite. It’s a game with rich and realistic worldbuilding that informs the context of the conflicts Shepard is involved in.  It is a game set in a very tumultuous time period for its universe. Refusing to acknowledge that is extremely shallow. You don’t have to like Garrus, you don’t have to like Shepard, you don’t even have to like Mass Effect. You also don’t have to play a game with a story/characters/themes that you don’t like. There’s definitely no reason to assign moral weight to VIDEO GAME DECISIONS and act like it’s a moral failing if someone makes a different decision than you. 

Tl;dr mass effect is a nuanced and interesting setting and garrus is a nuanced and interesting character kthx bye

[getouyuri]

ooh any hcs on how jjk characters would propose? or hell, even the wedding? feel like gojo would either give you the sweetest, most heartfelt proposal ever or the most goofy ass, public one that’ll embarrass you for life.  

and p.s. any fanfic recs? ^-^

oooh this is so cute 😭😭 ok I focused mostly on proposals but I added tiny bits about weddings and honeymoons too ^_^ tried my best to make all of these uniqueeee and I yapped a lot LMAO

and hmmm fic recs fic recs… I’ll make that a separate post for fic recs soon cos I have looots :3 expect that next week or so

characters: satoru gojo, suguru geto, toji fushiguro, choso kamo, shoko ieiri, yuki tsukumo

satoru gojo:

• okay this is mostly a joke but he’s absolutely the type to take you out to a nice, expensive dinner, and when they walk outside, satoru remarks on the sky. obviously you look up— and nearly shit yourself when you see that every single billboard in the city has ‘will you marry me?’ splashed on it

• that aside… I feel like there’s many options for him but I’m really set on 2 proposal ideas for him

• the first being, again, a super nice dinner. the two of you spend the whole day out together doing everything and anything, then you end the night with dinner at one of the most high class restaurants in japan. satoru reserves the entire top floor so that it’s just the two of you dining together

• he either drops the ring into your glass (and laughs when you almost choke on it) or has the waiter set the ring up alongside the dessert that the two of you order

• not saying this would be the exact dessert cos this is just an example but satoru’d either place the ring in the middle of the chocolate heart or on one of the petals so that it takes you a minute to realize that there’s a fatass ring in front of you

• satoru peppers in a few humorous comments in his speech but it’s extremelyyyy sweet. and to top it all off, fireworks go off outside. since you’re at the highest point of the restaurant you’re practically eye level with them. satoru just dreamily stares at you the entire time

• the second option is that satoru sends you on some sort of scavenger hunt where his students past and present can be included in the proposal

• you go to each location (where they first met, had their first date, etc.) and at each place one of his students is there to walk with you and give you the hint for the next location

• megumi’s with you for the last one and he guides you to where satoru is waiting with flowers or some sort of display. all the rest of his students arrive for this and, if asked, nobara will vehemently deny that she cried when you jumped into satoru’s arms and said yes

• practically everyone and their mother comes to their super flashy wedding. satoru sends a very cheeky message to the higher-ups and gojo clan elders saying that he’ll be gone for 2-3 weeks having freak nasty sex on every surface of the resort bedroom that they’ll be staying in for their honeymoon

other characters under the cut!!

suguru geto:

• imo there’s also 2 options for suguru

• option 1 is on vacation. the day he picks is about halfway through a trip that you’re already on. he considered doing it the day they arrived but ultimately decided that it’d be best to do it a few days in

• it starts with suguru waking you up with breakfast (that he made himself) in bed. I’m thinking they rent a beach house or some other vacation home instead of a staying at a hotel/resort. it’s much more personal, intimate, and private

• they’ve been following a semi strict itinerary for the trip but today is the one day that there’s no destination that’s set in stone. suguru lets you choose what they do for the day and he’s more than happy to be dragged along to wherever you wanna go. he focuses on catering to you and showering you in affection

• seeing you in your element, having fun without a care in the world, and giving him that pretty smile of yours is suguru’s personal fuel. you’re his person inside and out and he loves every bit of you. this day just further proves that he really and truly wants to spend the rest of his life with you

• the two of you head back to wherever you’re staying for the vacation with plans to watch the sunset. suguru slyly lingers behind after they dress down a bit and you go running out so that he can set up flower petals, glasses of champagne, etc. in their room

• heads out to join you and they chat as they watch the sun fall beneath the horizon. that’s when suguru proposes to you with the most achingly heartfelt speech evaaaa (and i know he has the BEST proposal form my gawd). they go back inside— you’re delighted and surprised by his romantic setup— and spend the rest of the evening together

• option 2 has nanako and mimiko involved, cultleader!suguru or otherwise. whichever timeline or au you wish. there’s 1739182 ways suguru could include them when it comes to the proposal and I can’t decide on one LMAO

• regardless of which option, the wedding is a very private affair with all their family and loved ones. probably a beach wedding (okinawa) honestly. their honeymoon is somewhere overseas

toji fushiguro:

• he proposes with a fake scratch off like this IM KIDDINGGGGGGG

• back to being serious. toji’s a real private person so there’s no fawking way it’ll be some public thing or gigantic grand gesture

• he wants it to be intimate and personal. although some people could consider this ‘unromantic’ or ‘not grand’ enough, he’s defo the type to do a home proposal

• which #i think is very sweet and cute

• toji lets you have reign of the first half of the day; not out of laziness, but because like suguru, he wants to do what YOU want to do. stay at home? cool, he’s down to relax with you. go out somewhere? can do, he’s already putting his shoes on. but the second half of the day is all orchestrated by him

• I’ve said this before but toji is definitely a good cook but hates the process, loves the result, and hates the cleanup. howeverrrr he sucks it up for you and does it all. toji cooks while you sit at the counter. he’ll refuse your help entirely— however, if you really insist, he’ll allow it cos cooking side by side with you is fun and they work well together

• just to switch things up a little and make things special, toji sets up a picnic blanket in their backyard with candles and whatnot. the two of you lounge around on it and feed each other and godddd toji cannot stop staring at you. you’ve always been gorgeous but you’re radiantttt with the light of the stars and the candles in your eyes

• toji proposes before they go back inside. and my god do you enjoy seeing this burly, typically aloof man down on his knee before you and looking up at you with pure adoration. and if he tears up and you see it, he’ll just call you a liar

• wedding would be super casual with not too many guests. howeverrrrr I think toji would go all out on the honeymoon. he’s been saving up for this shit for months and picks somewhere super super nice

choso kamo:

• easily the most heartfelt, tearjerking proposal out of all of them imo. sniffles. and once again I got two options… 😭😭

• I’ll start with the shortest one first. saw this on tiktok likeee a week ago AND WHY DID IT DESTROYMEEEEE this is sooo choso. neither of you know how to ice skate so, months in advance, he starts taking you to a public rink to practice

• they make tons of memories in the process and get super funny/cute pictures and videos of them failing and whatnot. learning something side by side with you is so fun— especially when it’s all for his proposal that you’re obviously unaware of. and the fact that choso puts all this time, dedication, and thought into this is just ughhtkejendms 😭😭

• eventually when it’s Time, choso takes you to a super nice open-air rink. just like in the tiktok, he gets the staff to clear out the ice so that it’s just the two of you. he proposes to you in the middle of the rink and definitely openly cries while giving his speech

• longer ish one and my favorite though is thisss. you, choso, and even yuuji go to your family’s home for a week, whether that’s in japan or overseas. you’re under the impression that it’s a family reunion but little do you know this is all part of choso’s plan

• on one of the days, choso takes you out somewhere close to the house. specifically to that one childhood haunt of yours where you made so many core memories. you recount stories sometimes and it stuck in choso’s memory

• yuuji helps him set up some sort of display. candles, flowers, maybe some gifts— it all covers the area. and your gathered family are all there as well in the background. family is extremely important to both you and choso, and though he ‘technically’ may only have yuuji left, your family is his family too. and all of your relatives have made him feel more than welcome over the years

• again he bawls his eyes out when proposing to you. super adoring speech. yuuji and your family take loads of pictures

• the wedding would be fucking hugeeebrhtkwje both in terms of guests and decorations. choso goes ALLLLL out. and their honeymoon is somewhere where they can explore a lot and be in nature methinks

shoko ieiri:

• with the other characters, you could kind of get a sense that something important was about to go down that day. howeverrrr shoko really throws you for a loop. most of the day is normal; it’s a weekend so they wake up together, lounge around in bed, go get brunch at one of their favorite places, etc etc

• shoko feigns forgetting something at jujutsu high the previous day so the two of you head over there. she leads you to her old dorm room which really, over time, essentially became their dorm. when they were students they were attached at the hip, always hanging out, studying together, and having sleepovers here

• though the dorm room is empty and cleared out, both of you can vividly visualize certain memories. this is the same room they got to know each other more in, laughed themselves sick, shared their first kiss, and more. even though some of the memories are bittersweet cos of what occurred during their student days, they still mean a lot

• while you’re reminiscing shoko fishes a letter out of the otherwise empty bedside drawer and hands it to you. its a letter to you that she’s been composing for weeks now where she essentially details how much you mean to her, all the things they’ve gone through together, and how much she adores you head to toe. she’s always been better at writing these sorts of things instead of speaking them aloud

• once you finish reading it— she wipes your wet eyes and affectionately calls you a softie, her dark brown eyes brimming with warmth— she guides you to one of their old haunts somewhere outside on the campus. you find gojo, nanami, utahime, and ijichi waiting with a few paper lanterns

• you and shoko release some for good fortune, joy, unity etc. and that’s when she proposes. gojo and utahime end up crying their eyes out

• their wedding is lowkey, just family and friends. they have a fall/winter wedding and their honeymoon is spent somewhere with lots of snow… something about that screams shoko idk why. they stay in a cozy lodge

yuki tsukumo:

• for the others I had to think of how they’d propose for a bit but I decided on yuki’s 1. Immediately and 2. With absolutely zero hesitation

• obviously the two of you travel a lot and explore the world. at this point it’s like where have the two of you Not gone. and of course this means you and yuki are very active people

• yuki takes you out for the day. they explore, maybe check out a festival or two, go shopping… they go wherever their feet and her harley lead them. the day is super exciting and fun, and yuki buys you absolutely everything that you want

• towards sunset the two of you go hiking somewhere. yuki’s extra ramped up, excitedly telling you to hurryhurryhurry. you’re more out of breath from giggling at her than due to the exertion of the hike

• they reach a very nice viewpoint where they can watch the sunset and that’s when you see it. yuki roped choso, shoko, and gojo into setting up something like this setup from love island ⬇️

• hanging from the tree are fairy lights, countless photos that you and yuki have taken on their travels over the years, sweet notes from yuki herself along with many from their family and friends… SO FAWKING MEANINGFULLLLL

• she proposes beneath the tree. the two of you love each other to death and have done practically everything together, and there’s no one else that yuki would rather spend her life with. you’re her travel partner and life partner. you’re it for her

• large wedding with lavish decorations and tons of guests. yuki definitely throws some wedding games/activities into the mix. their honeymoon is somewhere tropical 🙂‍↕️

[the-enhanced-project]

‎‧₊˚✧ Introduction ✧˚₊‧

Welcome to THE ENHANCED, a personal writing project that is a rewrite of a very, very old story I was working on a long time ago. I will probably never officially publish this, but I still wanted to get it out to the world somehow, so this blog came to be.

(The plot is really old so expect some cliches T-T)

My plan right now is to write all of act 1 before I start posting so I can keep a semi-consistent schedule of publication, but that's open to change. Once I am ready, chapters will be posted on Friday’s at 4pm EST.

‎‧₊˚✧ About The Author ✧˚₊‧

Hiya!!! I'm Will, a queer, disabled teen author of (mostly) queer disabled characters :) I like to write what I know/can relate to.

You can find my main blog, where I post about the projects I actually plan on publishing, at @write-with-will !

I'm a minor (high school), so be safe when interacting with this blog and my main. I have no qualms against older people following along with this story though, especially since the characters are older. Just don't interact with me in ways a child shouldn't be interacted with and all will be well :).

I’m a boy please pretty please refer to me as such <3

Now that all that is out of the way, onto the story!!!

‎‧₊˚✧ Basic Info ✧˚₊‧

Status - writing!!!

POV - 3rd person

Tense - past

Genre - superhero fiction, urban fantasy

Tropes - found family, team as family, superheroes, superpowers, whump

Other - lgbt rep, poc rep, disability rep (all main characters)

Content warnings - this story includes references to past child abuse, alcohol (the main character works as a bartender), injuries that aren't in a ton of detail, death, past trauma, discrimination, violence, action, and lots and lots of angst

Themes - death, healing, family, platonic relationships, betrayal

‎‧₊˚✧ Synopsis ✧˚₊‧

Anya really, really hates lying to people. Which is weird, considering that when she's not suffering through getting a criminology degree, she has a part time job at the Pacific Northwest chapter of ERGO--an organization that protects and monitors people who were born....different.

The enhanced, they were dubbed, the handful of kids who were born around the world with any kind of 'enhancement'--from being exceptionally strong or fast to having wings. And just like anything new... it wasn't taken very well by the general population.

Anya's newest project should be fairly simple: check out college student Charlie, who they suspect to be enhanced, and to have some unfortunate connections that could be invaluable in the fight for acceptance and safety.

‎‧₊˚✧ Links ✧˚₊‧

(to be updated)

Navigation!!!!!!!!

‎‧₊˚✧ Tags ✧˚₊‧

#project: the enhanced - for any and all posts relating to this project!

#enhanced: character name - for posts about a specific character!

#enhanced: chapters - for the actual writing and chapters for this story!

#enhanced: updates - updates on how the story is going !!!!!! Usually spoiler free—surface level writing stuff

#enhanced: character intros - self explanatory--character bios I post!

#enhanced: lore - lore posts!

‎‧₊˚✧ Tag List ✧˚₊‧

(Interact with this post or ask to be added)

@corinneglass @eon-tries-writing @soulsartuniverse @ark-inkweaving @nykenima |@mymomsaysbobcipher @houndsofcorduff @leahnardo-da-veggie @inspirationallybored @traderotales | @rebelcracker-s @elronthemage @icantthinkofablognameatm @blargh-500 @chaos-ducks | @seastarblue @overwhelmedfernfrond @purple-dinosaur17 @tayrn-everwood

[avelera]

Saw someone say that jayce is narcissistic, and maybe media literacy is dying

I think Jayce has an ego, to be clear. But I don't think it's in any way excessive or pathological and indeed, I think he shows a lot of humility given his actual accomplishments. There's a bunch points I could make make on this.

From a story perspective:

Jayce's character arc is a subverted corruption arc and once it's subverted, it launches Viktor's actual corruption arc. But in order for Jayce's subverted arc to work, we have to believe he has a real potential of falling prey to his worst instincts, so we have to truly believe narcissism is a risk for him.

In addition to that, they had meta knowledge of Jayce Giopara, his League counterpart, to set up an expectation of a corruption/narcissism arc, so many people came into the story expecting Jayce to be an asshole. But this is Jayce Talis, not Jayce Giopara and it turns out, they're completely different characters (who would probably hate each other lol).

Arcane and Fortiche do an incredible job in S1 with their sleight of hand with Jayce seeming like an asshole. On the first watch, at least for me, I think I got the surface level of what they were going for, which is being meh to negative on Jayce, seeing mostly his flaws and mistakes.

Like, one example of Fortiche's sleight of hand is the moment Jayce gets on stage is probably the moment he seems most egotistical, most like he's going to start bulldozing Viktor to achieve his own glory. Except he invites Viktor on the stage, and then when Viktor gives him a clear, "No" he very graciously does not push Viktor any further, and then he goes up there and he does what his wiser mentor asked by not pushing a dangerous innovation before it's ready (I actually thing Heimerdinger was in the wrong there). But they also drop the mug over Viktor's face in what seems like a sign of Jayce's corruption but what later turns out to be Viktor's POV of how the Man of Progress image comes between him and Jayce from Viktor's point of view, even though Jayce is constantly reaching out to him and trying to include him. Again, subverted corruption arc, but it's hidden in the details.

Then, on each subsequent rewatch (of MANY) I began to like Jayce a little more, began to look beneath the surface more, and began to see things from his point of view instead of through the surface level direction and blocking of a scene. And the closer I watched/read the more I began to think, "Wait a minute, is this guy actually kind of a sweetheart and most of the "bad" things he did were out of his control??" Then of course, S2 Jayce's arc came in and blew the doors off my heart, but the basis of that character was there from the beginning.

But there are other things Fortiche/Arcane do to make Jayce seem egotistical but which on closer analysis are just sort of... normal things to do or are common with a lot of people from Piltover?

Preening and fixing his tie in a mirror while Viktor does research seems egotistical, it's a way egotistical characters are often signaled in visual arts. But actually, it's pretty normal to try to look your best before an important meeting or event, and the reason he's doing this while Viktor is working is so Jayce can spare Viktor this headache. Jayce would rather be in the lab too! But he goes out there and acts as the face of Hextech because one of them needs to do it. Don't get me wrong, Jayce could also like to look nice, but I think it matters that he's not seeking out a political career, it is literally thrust upon him and then he rises to the occasion.

Jayce is super duper buff, like insanely buff, in a way that feels like it should lead to egotism, but then we learn it's just a natural outcome of the fact he works with his hands. He doesn't really seem to notice it, or try to make use of it. If anything, he tends to cover up his musculature when not working, he wears his suits buttoned to the throat and wrists. His outfits do accentuate his already insane shoulders, but that's actually really a common look in Piltover, Caitlyn's uniform has the same shoulder pauldrons you'll notice. And his outfits are pretty tight which is really just a gift to all of us (lol) but again, is actually just pretty common in all Piltover fashion, people tend to wear form-fitting clothes there.

Jayce is clean-cut and clean shaven in a way that evokes a lot of pretty boy bullies. It makes his face seem extremely punchable, especially when he's mugging for the camera as the Man of Progress. But personally, I take that look as part of his people-pleasing. This does fall more into the headcanon range, but I'd point out that he's a big guy, one of the tallest in the show, with broad shoulders and what could be an intimidating build. But instead of trying to look intimidating, he leans into his boyishness, he tries to look like, "A nice young man."

I'd argue his look is actually him trying not to look threatening, because when he stops giving a fuck post-Anomaly, he stops shaving or cutting his hair and he looks super freakin' intimidating immediately (and hot as hell omg) but like, now he's a big guy with a beard and shaggy hair and he takes up space and you realize how much he's been avoiding taking up space or looking intimidating before that when he very much could at any time.

Look, Jayce is a good looking guy. I do think he has some ego. He takes care of his appearance, he dresses well, and he works at being perceived a certain way. But the idea that he cares about being the Man of Progress or that he is presenting himself for ego reasons is just... footage not found. I think he's got a normal guy level of ego and even is very humble considering what he's accomplished. And I think people are underestimating how much of his apparent "preening" is actually self-effacing and trying to present a polite, deferent image to others (he often stands with his hands behind his back when speaking to someone of higher rank, for example). The clothes he wears in public are mostly uniforms in S1, either an Academy uniform denoting him as an academic, or the House Talis colors to show him as a member of a House, which is how Piltover society functions. He does dress differently in the lab, but I'd argue not in a flashy way.

Anyway, I just like this guy a lot and got carried away rambling about him. I don't want to overcorrect and say he has NO ego but I would say he has a lot LESS ego than S1 Jayce haters would acknowledge.

[bunni-v1]

Pls the thing with Jamil from your Yuu being wary of scarabia post and why he kept Yuu around like that. Elaborate I’m begging you it’s too interesting of a dynamic before and after. I can pay you in my adoration keep it up here!

🍓Okay so I really haven't touched twst in a long time, but this idea continues to haunt me. I think about it so frequently, and I've been into twst again because of Malleus statue, so I decided to revisit this concept. It's more of a big long ramble, but I do hope you like it <3

TW: Manipulation; Creepy behavior; Power imbalance; This IS written with implied romance (but it's pretty fucked up and toxic); Possessive behaviors; unedited

Info: Jamil x Reader; Angst

Disclaimer: Jamil is an incredibly complex character with very contradictory actions throughout the whole of book four. This is my take on his character, and it may not align with how you view him. It's important to note that the only canon interpretation of his character is what is in-game and official depictions.

Post referenced

Jamil is very aware of you far before you're aware of him. He makes it his job to know who to avoid, and you're very high up on that list. You have a reputation that he's pretty certain you're not fully aware of, and trouble seems to follow you wherever you go. It's not really something he wants to have to deal with.

For whatever reason, though, he does end up bringing you back to Scarabia. In part, this is almost a power play on his part. You make him have a sense of power he doesn't really have with anyone else around NRC, even as vice housewarden. You rely on him, and your naivety is something addicting to someone who craves power. Not to mention he also considers that you could help him sell his story much better.

Kalim abusing the magicless, helpless human from another world would only make his case for upheaval all the better amongst his dorm members. So to start it's all part of his plan, a means of stroking his ego.

However, the issue comes in when he makes a genuine connection with you. You are kind, generous, and understanding with no real ulterior motives -- a genuineness he hasn't really experienced before. Of course, he doesn't actually open up to you much. He keeps you pretty distant, despite how he does his best to play up that warm and welcoming persona. But he does give you crumbs of his real struggle, shrouded in manipulation.

He finds himself... attached. Jealous of any time you spend with Kalim, wanting to keep your attention on him, and desperate to sell the idea of Kalim as a monster to you more than others. It's an odd feeling for Jamil, who doesn't usually care for more than surface-level appearances and feelings. It's just another addition to his ultimate overblot, and he's quite terrifying when he does finally blot.

One of the very first things he does is isolate you from your "friends" (if you can count the tweels and Azul as friends at this point), making sure your attention is on him. He wants you to worship him, he wants that reliance that he craved so much in the time you spent together, he wants to feel powerful. Next to you, he feels so very powerful.

I don't even believe he would do anything violent or too cruel, mostly just worshiping and demanding attention and praise. It's not much different from what you normally go through, though a little less blatantly violent and aggressive. That's what makes it so awful to you, though.

Before everyone else was just blatantly being... evil. Jamil manipulated, lied, extorted, and so much more. You liked Jamil, you genuinely thought he wanted to be friends with you and meant well. He reveals otherwise in your time (sort of) alone with him, and it really shakes you up. It would shake anyone up.

What's worse is you don't have time to process all that terror and anger and betrayal. Everything happens in such quick succession, one moment you're being kidnapped and the next there's a grand celebration. It's all too much for your brain to process, and it only gets the chance to do so when Ace and Deuce -- your safe space -- come to get you.

Your reaction, on the surface, seems incredibly dramatic. Collapsing and sobbing until your throat is so raw you can't make noise, but after the trauma you've endured, it's wholly reasonable. Jamil falls into the former way of thinking, believing you're just being overdramatic and theatrical. You'd been through many overblots at this point, with much more powerful sorcerers... this reaction is a bit much...

After all's said and done, though, Jamil doesn't spare you much thought. Of course, there is a lingering sense of... something. Not quite guilt, not quite regret, just an ache that he doesn't have the time or energy to address himself. He's far too busy dealing with his own reputation and wellbeing to bother you.

Your sobs, though, they keep him up at night. He has dreams where he hears them tear through the silence, and they continue to ring in his ears long after he's woken up. He isn't sure why it's bothering him so much, it really shouldn't, but it does. It's a constant nag at his conscience, just a bug that he swats away when he doesn't want to think about it.

He doesn't have to confront it until he comes face to face with you during VDC auditions. The genuine terror on your face when he looks at you, like he might overblot then and there again, it's sobering. He'd seen that look a million times on his parents faces, horror as they face punishment from the Asim's. It's not a face he'd imagined he would be the cause of -- not a face he wanted to be the cause of.

It hits him hard in that moment just how... evil he was. He knew he was bad. He's fully aware he's selfish and the stunt he pulled was something unspeakable in a lot of ways. Yet, he never thought he would have to deal with someone looking at him like that, someone thinking of him the same way he thinks of his captors.

It's just his luck that he can't avoid you, ending up on the official VDC team and literally living in your space. It's not just you, either, both Ace and Deuce seem to hate his guts with a passion. Grim voices that anger all the time, and Kalim doesn't help the tension with his guilty puppy demeanor. You do end up forgiving Kalim, thanks to Kalim finally making an active effort by himself for once. Jamil won't lie and say it doesn't make him a little jealous, but he also fully understands he doesn't deserve your forgiveness.

He doesn't push or pull, he just allows you to do what you will. It's not his place to push or pull, you are the only person who can decide what you need. He won't apologize unless you seem to want him to by seeking him out, he won't ask for forgiveness unless you seem willing to give it to him. He just allows you to be, which is quite honestly the best reaction you've gotten from any former overblotees.

He, of course, ends up confessing this all to his sister. Heavily edited and censored, for her own wellbeing. Najma tells him he's a moron, but encourages him to make amends with you, or at least try to let you know he's sorry. Without him knowing, she even talks to you about it a bit when you visit the Scalding Sands. There is a notable shift in your comfortability around him after it, though he doesn't know why this is.

He does eventually get the chance to talk to you, though you have to approach him. It's a quiet night when it happens, and he just couldn't sleep and the warm air in the dorm was making his skin far too hot, so he takes a walk and ends up outside of your dorm. His guilt led him there like an idiot, a rare show of vulnerability.

You, who also couldn't sleep, saw him out there and invited him despite better judgment. He accepts, despite his own better judgment, and finally, you talk. He expects anger and hatred, but of course, you cannot manage that even against him. You are understanding and gentle, even with the way you tremble as you speak. He gets to apologize, genuinely, for scaring you and doing the things he did. Explains that he, at some point, was genuine about his friendliness with you. That he did like having you around, but all of that means nothing with what's already happened.

Whether or not you two fix things and are able to be friends is up to you, but you do both get closure.

[bittersweetorpheus]

☆ THERE IS NO SWEETER INNOCENCE THAN OUR GENTLE SIN ☆

The original sin is the fairest: everyone sinks. make the most of the final feast, because for the sinners, the curtain call has come.

☆ CONTENT WARNINGS ☆

Spoilers for 4.0 Fontaine archon quest, pov switches, co-dependency & obsession, hints of soft yandere

“I’m not quite sure when it began, but a prophecy has been circulating around Fontaine: the people will all be dissolved into the waters, and only the hydro archon will remain, weeping on her throne.”

This has become a fact for the Fontaine people, with the water levels slowly rising and consuming parts of the nation. Everyone has different opinions on this- some ignore it, deciding to live in the moment- surely they’ll be long gone before water consumes the whole nation, some believe it’ll be like returning to their origins, and some dread it- how horrible must it be to dissolve into water and possibly lose themselves forever?

But mostly, the Fontaine people have been resigned to it, and gone about their day as normal. The water levels were rising pretty slowly, anyways, so it wasn’t their problem yet. Or it wouldn’t be, if the rising water was still moving at the same pace. However…

☆ 1 WEEK BEFORE THE DUEL ☆

Your awakening is a gentle one.

Or, atleast, it is for about a minute or two before you realize you’re underwater. You panic, scrambling around like a fumbling idiot for another two minutes before you finally get your wits about you and realize that you are, in fact, not drowning and are breathing like normal even though you’re underwater? Unfortunately, along with that realization comes the fact that you… well, where even are you?

You take in your surroundings. Ignoring the fact that you’re underwater for some reason, it’s actually… very pretty. There isn’t a single piece of litter in sight, and you don’t have a hard time seeing, as the water is clear and beautiful. An underwater cliff arches a few miles behind you. The lush ocean ground beneath you splits apart and a trench can been seen below it that splits into multiple different paths leading even deeper under the ocean. The ocean floors and cliffs are lush and foliage is all around you, ranging from huge and tall stocks of plants resembling a mix between flower stems and lilypads to areas with plants the color of autumn leaves. Fish can be seen almost everywhere- crabs that glowed a mesmerizing blue, tiny tidalage, seals splotted in pastel colors, groups of fishing swimming together, and more.

The clear, litter free ocean, bright foliage, and adorable pastel creatures make for an idealized version of an ocean. And, surprisingly, they seem familiar somehow.

Wait…

You give the seals nuzzling you one last pet, and make your way to the surface of the water.

You surface. Huge mountains with colorful foliage surround the ocean. A beautiful city can be seen in the distance, with some ships floating near it. Some sort of bridge can be seen running from the city and through the mountains. It goes so far that it disappears from your line of sight.

Oh.

Oh. Your guess was right. You’re in Fontaine. You stay there for a bit, astonished. You push that to the back of your mind, you’ll deal with it later. But first, did you still have your inventory? You cross your fingers- please, please, please! Archons, you spent so much money getting all those weapons and characters and so much time just farming materials and artifacts. You shudder at the thought of losing all your progress. You’ve already checked the banners, and they’re the same as usual, so you close your eyes, trying your hardest to imagine opening your inventory and-

Huh? What? You are, once again, astonished. You close your inventory and open it again- maybe its just a glitch? Or maybe you’re delirious. You open it again. Nope. Nothing’s changed.

When did you have all these characters- you’re pretty sure some of these characters haven’t even become playable yet. And all these weapons? Wait, how good is your artifact luck? How is this possible? Are you gonna be banned for hacking? Can you even be banned if you’re actually in the game?

You slowly close the inventory once again, still in shock.

Surely this is a dream, right? Yeah! It’s just a lucid dream, even if it feels so realistic.

You decide to spend your time exploring and petting more animals- maybe even meeting some characters! Who knows when you’ll be able to dream like this again.

Yep. Just a dream. You’re just dreaming, thats all.

☆ 1/2 WEEK BEFORE THE DUEL ☆

Dozens of rain droplet streak down the stained glass windows of Nuevilette’s office. Jazz plays, alongside the sounds of a heavy downpour of rain and the ticking of the clocks in the office. He finishes flipping through the files and leans back in his padded chair. He hasn’t been able to do much work these couple of days, always anticipating the familiar feeling of warmth flooding into his body and being guided to do things, but it never came, and with that realization, the rain had started to pour even harder.

Had you finally abandoned him? Had he not concealed his feelings well enough? Were You able to see through his facade? Had You finally noticed his concealed feelings whenever he saw You guiding the ever so immature Furina, or doing exploring the city with Navia? How the corner of his lips would curl down every so slightly whenever You took the warden, Wriothesley, to go ice-briding when You felt bored, one-shot bosses with the Champion Duelist Clorinde for fun, or farmed for talent materials for the magician triplets?

He may not understand humans and their emotions, but even he knows what these feelings are. So, he promises that he’ll stop soaking in jealousy or anger when you fawn over the two Fatui Harbingers or anything of that sort. Just… come back to him. Don’t abandon him. Comfort him like You always do. Praise him, praise his appearance, praise his personality, please come back, he needs You.

But he knows that You haven’t abandoned him. You’re still here, in fact, Your presence is stronger than ever, and the whole of Teyvat is flourishing, almost like its in celebration of something. So, where are You?

Neuvillette sighs, standing from his chair. He’d better check on Furina- who knows what she may be doing without your guidance. As he starts to walk to the door, his long tailcoat brushes against his desk, making a file that was buried beneath all the others fall down, onto the ground. It’s contents sprawl on the floor.

He bends down, picking up the papers and placing them back into the file. As he does, he skims over the contents.

He frowns. Could it be true?

☆ 2 DAYS BEFORE THE DUEL ☆

People are whispering, and Focalor is frozen in place.

The whispering grows louder. She can make out hushed and anxious tones.

“What’s she doing just standing there? How disrespectful.” She hears.

She snaps out of her state of awe, and tries to take grasp of the situation. Unfortunately, in her panic, she says the first thing that comes to mind.

“Imposter!”

☆ 1 DAY BEFORE THE DUEL ☆

“And what do you say to these claims?” Nuevillette asks, snapping ‘The Imposter’ out of their stupor.

“No.” ‘The Imposter’ says.

Nuevillette frowns, “no? I ask that you elaborate.”

“How am I supposed to defend myself if I don’t even know what I did wrong?” ‘The Imposter’ reasons, still not fully processing the situation.

“Hah! Trying to act dumb won’t work here. You know what you did!” Focalor interjects. Truthly, this situation had come to be because of her carelessness and now it had spiralled way out of her control. She can’t take back what she said now, so she’d had to pray for the best. She dug her grave, so she might as well lie in it and hope for the best. I mean, surely it was fine, right? Surely this is an imposter. “If you can’t defend yourself in court, than you might as well duel to prove your innocence.

“I- huh? Alright, then.” ‘The Imposter’ says, not seeing any other choice. “I request a duel, I guess.”

“Very well, your request is accepted. You will be dueling against Clorinde tomorrow at dawn.” Nuevillette says.

People slowly filter out of the court room in anticipation for the day of the duel.

Focalor has a sinking feeling in her gut.

☆ THE DAY OF THE DUEL ☆

Clorinde sits at the harbor, too ashamed to watch over The Creator.

The duel had lasted no more than one or two minutes. The Creator had made no move to fight back, and Clorinde had made quick work of Them. It was only when she had made her way over to Them to end Their life when she noticed the ichor that spilled from Their many wounds. Her heart sunk into her chest. In a panic, she screamed for doctors. She had tried her best to keep Them awake, but They had already fallen unconscious by the time the doctors arrived.

Obviously, The Creator was still alive- who knew what would happen to Teyvat if The Creator, Themselves, Died. But she couldn’t get the image of their unconscious form out of her mind. The sin she’d committed weighed her down like the anchor of a boat.

She sighed, standing up shakily, starting the walk back to the city and…

Wait. Was the water level always this high?

Oh.

Oh. 

[eggonthemoon]

How Mizisua and Ivantill is often mischaracterized.

(this is entirely my own opinions and interpretations of Alien Stage, you are entirely in the right to disagree with any of my points here)

I feel like a lot of the time, people often water down mizisua and ivantill into something shallower than they are:

Mizisua is sweet and healthy because their love is mutual.

Ivantill is toxic and unhealthy because of it's one-sidedness.

That's probably just me oversimplifying it and I could word it a little better, but that's my point here. There's more to the dynamics than what is on the surface.

And I want to talk about it.

First things first though!

None of the characters are raised in normal, healthy upbringings. And thus don't have a normal or natural foundation to base their relationships on

I feel that's super important to recognise here. How can we expect them to understand things like boundaries and healthy communication when no one has bothered teaching them this. They are left to figure that all out on their own.

Which leaves me to my first point:

Mizisua is not healthy!

Not in the slightest even. I feel like a lot of the time, at least in fandom, people will claim that as long as there's no abuse and both parties feelings are mutual then it's healthy. That's not the case here.

Mizi and Sua has a dangerous level of toxic co-dependency with each other. To cope with their hopeless reality, they pour their everything into their love for each other. They become the other's salvation. And in turn when one of them dies, the other is ruined.

Both of them are selfish in their love for each other. Mizi loved and cherished the soft side of Sua that only she got to see, it made her feel special, blessed even. And Sua purposely left Mizi in the dark about the truth behind Alien Stage, so that she could indulge in her and Mizi's blissful days of youth.

Neither of them are in the wrong for that. They only ever wanted to see the other happy but because of that, they didn't get to be truly vulnerable with each other. They were the other's utopia, their escape.

To me Mizisua is not just doomed because Sua died.

To me Mizisua is doomed because they were never afforded the chance to truly grow their relationship into healthy relationship I know they could be. One where they don't have to always be together and where even the rocky patches are allowed to coexist.

But the segyein never afforded them that chance.

Onto my point on Ivantill...

Till doesn't hate Ivan, he in fact cares for him a lot

Lots of people write off how Till feels about Ivan as "he doesn't give a fuck about him" simply because Till doesn't have any romantic feelings for him. That couldn't be further from the truth. In the artbook Ivan's affection rating on Till's page is 70% which is a lot for someone who supposedly doesn't care about him. Personally I think Till is mostly just confused by Ivan's behaviour.

He likes him but does things to make him mad.

He likes him but he steals things from him and then return them to him later.

When Till punched him after Ivan ruined his flower crown, Ivan laughed, enjoying their fight.

Till is smart, a genius even according to his peers. But when it comes to love he barely knows anything. I'm not sure where this was said but apparently his initial reason for liking Mizi is as simple as:

She's pretty.

Maybe those feelings were eventually accompanied by feelings of admiration for her genuine love of singing but it doesn't change the facts here.

Till's love for Mizi was rather shallow.

But much like Mizi and Sua made each other their escape from reality, Till did the same. Mizi became his everything because he had nothing. No happiness, no comfort, just his talent and a "father figure" with big ambitions for him. "Love" was just yet another means of survival. For someone who has endured violence for so long...would he ever begin to even consider the guy who provokes him, steals from him and "supposedly" enjoys violence, to have feelings for him?

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I think Till feels responsible for Ivan abandoning his chance of escape. Till didn't want to leave behind the person he made his entire reason for living but he didn't even once consider that he himself was that to Ivan.

Only when Ivan returned did he understand why.

And that's why I think Till can't stand looking at Ivan. The guilt is too painful. He and the guy might have fought a lot but they were friends. And he took away his one opportunity to escape this hell that is Anakt Garden and Alien Stage.

Till cares deeply about Ivan but doesn't realize that pushing Ivan away only hurt and wounded him more deeply. I think he only truly understood that fact once it was too late.

Till and Ivan both care for each other.

Just not in the same way.

[thydungeongal]

Wow me. What's the actual pitch for playing Apocalypse World?

A surface-level read of Apocalypse World mostly reveals some neat RPG technology that, while cool, is mostly unremarkable. There's moves, there's playbooks, that sort of thing. On the surface it's just injecting a bit of trad RPG structure into freeform roleplaying.

But the actual pitch, the actual reason I would suggest playing Apocalypse World is if you want to experience an RPG that does not operate on a "group of adventurers go fight against adversity" structure (which still is a majority of TTRPGs) but more like "what if there was a post-apocalyptic prestige TV drama following multiple characters and their intersecting storylines."

The thing that often gets lost in discussions of Apocalypse World is that it's very much a drama engine, about the MC looking at the world as a powderkeg and the player characters as major actors there. The playbooks (which are basically classes by another name) really reinforce the fact that the characters are not supposed to be working as a united front against an outside threat, but rather be people at different levels of post-apocalyptic society whose stories will end up intersecting (because the MC is supposed to actively look at the world in terms of "how can I put these people at odds with one another").

To just give a snapshot, among the playbooks you will find:

A Gunlugger, a no-nonsense gun-toting mercenary who is an absolute force of nature in one-on-one fights and can even potentially take out an entire gang by themselves.

A Chopper, the leader of a post-apocalyptic motorcycle gang, whose gang is very much a source of strength but also of conflict, as the members of the gang will sometimes choose the absolute worst possible moment to mutiny or challenge their boss's authority.

A Hardholder, the leader of an entire post-apocalyptic stronghold, whose interaction with the setting happens at such a high level that it will inevitably end up affecting everyone else's narrative.

An Angel, a lone medic who will probably be put in an awkward position between all of the other playbooks, because medical services are absolutely at a premium in the world of Apocalypse World.

Those four are not even the most interesting playbooks (to be fair, I think all of the playbooks are pretty interesting), but they illustrate the point really well: Apocalypse World is a game about people in a messed up post-apocalyptic world, and because of the nature of the world they will almost inevitably end up holding something the others want or being at odds with one another. Once you go in with this perspective and start looking at the individual game pieces, like the individual moves and playbooks and MC principles, you realize that it's all for the purpose of making an explosive story.

[octylish]

Out of curiosity, what’s your process for character design and implementing your inspirations?

ooh uhhhhhhhh honestly i'm not 100% sure how to answer that LOL i typically just go with the flow

though if you really want me to go into deeper depth i can try ??

basically when i want to make a design i already have a few ideas in my head like maybe character archetype or general theming. for instance my oc Buoy's entire deal was combining dogs and sailors together while also being really cute

i thought a more light-hearted approach would suit him since well . that's his entire deal . since the beach influence as beaches are often associated with the summer time and having fun :) and then an aquatic aesthetic would tie in everything together so it'll be cohesive

i also try to do a lot of wordplay? like how "sea dogs" is a slang term designating old sailors who have been at sea for a very long time.

you can see this in a few of my other designs such as my mafioso (forsaken), being a literal loan shark, and my hyperlaser having some elements alluding to lynxes because he is lynx-eyed

other things i consider is how the character would carry themselves. are they active? do they care about how they look? how clumsy are they? how intimidating are they? do they think of themselves seriously?

like for my banhammer design he is completely covered up in armour to protect themselves, treats themselves very seriously and is pretty damn scary, so their design features a lot of spikes and sharper shapes. scythe, on the other hand, is much more relaxed and confident in herself, but shows it off in a way different to banhammer. bh shows it via his bravado and demeanour, while i think scythe is much much more obvious about it and basically shows herself off (i.e. the open shirt, confident smirk)

same thing goes for what kind of vibe i think they should have. you can contradict this with their personality for fun too!! like for sword i think would give off very "heroic and brave" vibes, but that completely shatters the moment he starts talking because he is so naïve and earnest. rocket, in turn, comes off as much friendlier and more clumsy than sword, but in reality carries himself with more maturity (???? not sure how to convey this but yk what i mean)

now for implementing inspirations,

it mostly just boils down to what i think would look cool on them HAHAHA or what little things i can sneak in to wink at the person who notices.

like icedagger already has a whole "winter" aesthetic going on so i just implemented it to his jacket and made it look like a snow angel. subtle things like that are best i think. same goes for my chance design having a lot of gambling/card game/dice elements implemented because 1. its awesome and 2. i thought the original iteration was rather plain

you can convey this however you want, but i found that sneaking it in through the shape/silhouette via clothes or body is most efficient

i DO try to keep the inspirations to maybe 2-3, 4 MAX. too many little secrets and you get the viewer lost. character design is a form of STORYTELLING, and if you can't get your message across on the first or maybe even the second go, then i think it's best to cut out a few concepts. a first-time viewer of your work should be able to understand WHO and WHAT your character IS on a surface level when looking at the design. you can work on the little intricacies later, but first and foremost you need to understand just WHO this character is before designing them

anyways yap session over sorry i like character design a lot