#the thought of love and actually loving is so different its like an enlightenment that i could see so vividly

[iftitah]

have you ever wanted warmest shade of orange hearts on a brain emoji

[abyssalpriest]

God I could and should write a whole fucking book by the end of this life here on Lev and his symbols

ill write it then burn it before anyone else gets a copy. or i wont. im supposed to be helping him this incarnation here to get a better anchor in this plane so maybe it would help more than itd be weird - im just getting from him the energy of "yeah no people already effectively have these things, people on my plane already know me inside and out to an extensive degree, may as well have it here too" you know. fair

[rawliverandgoronspice]

The Dondon Post (or: the bizarre TotK's side content counterpoints to its main quest's immuable binary morality)

Speaking of strange TotK Choices, I think I have one singe post left in me about this game; and it's about the Dondon quest, "The Beast and the Princess".

(and about other stuff too, you'll see, we'll get to them)

More specifically: about how... strange of a thematic point it feebly attemps to make in the larger context of the storyline, and how it seems to be yet another mark of a world that, perhaps, once tried to be more morally complex that it ended up becoming.

Buckle up: it's a long one, and it gets pretty conceptual.

(good gem boys notwhistanding)

The Princess and the Beast

So, a couple of things about the setup. We are investigating potential Princess sightings; but at this point, either because we have already completed a bunch and know the general gib, because we have met a couple of wild Fake Zelda shenanigans, or through the simple fact that we are completing a side quest, we know there's a good chance it won't lead to an actual Zelda information. So when we ask Penn about what is going on and he replies with the ominous "we saw the Princess riding some kind of beast --a frightening one with huge, brutal tusks-- that the princess seemed to control", we get Ideas. Then the sidequest is registered: "The Princess and the Beast".

So. You know me. And if you don't know me, here's what you should know: my brain immediately flared up with the thought there was no way in hell this wasn't some kind of wink towards Ganondorf's renowned boarish beast form, especially given tusks were given so much focus.

My first assumption was: that's a miniboss right? I will get to fight some small boar-like thing that Fake Zelda rides sometimes. Cool! I didn't hold too hard onto my hope that the relationship of Zelda and/or Ganondorf to the natural world, or to each other would be expanded upon, since I had already been burned before, but my interest was piqued.

You have to understand how starved I was for any hint of complexity or mystery or ambiguity at this point. I was extremely eager for the game to throw anything at me that would surprise me, enlighten something pre-established, make the exploration lead to a meaningful discovery or deepening of characters, world or themes (and not just slightly cooler loot, or a bossfight, or a puzzle devoid of emotional context --cohesion and depth is what motivates my play sessions, especially in an open world game that I want to believe is worth losing oneself into). This was about the most intriguing task on my to do list at the moment, and so I plunged in immediately.

After really REALLY misunderstanding what I was supposed to do (I stalked every corner of every forest surrounding the tropical area at night or during blood moons in hope to see something --which was very much the wrong call), I arrived to the other stable, then was guided to the other side of the river where Cima awaits and explains that these creatures are actually a new species discovered by Zelda; that they are gentle and kind and not at all scary ("Dondons aren't beastly, they're adorable!"), and even somehow digest luminous stones into gemstones. They like the company of people and liked Zelda in particular.

I was... I felt two different ways about this conclusion, and I think it's worth to explore both: disappointment and some sort of... "huh!" Hard to describe this emotion otherwise.

I'll get the disappointment out of the way first, because it's the least interesting of the two. While I think the little emotional arc I was taken on was not devoid of interest --I was indeed taken on by the rumor and intrigued by its implications-- I wanted, well. A little bit more. And if the creatures were to be Zelda's pet project, I would have loved for them to be actually terrifying and feisty, and for her to develop an interest for these creatures in particular regardless. It could have been very interesting characterization that veered out of the perfect princess loving the perfect world floundering around her, always bringing her clear, practical benefits from the interaction.

(I have made another post that speaks of my discomfort that Zelda does everything everywhere and everyone loves her for it --I get what they were trying to go for, but it either lacks conflict for me to buy into that dynamic at the scale of several regions, or they went on too hard for my taste, as she is, at once and in the span of a couple of years at most: a schoolteacher, a gardener, an animal researcher, a scholar, a traveler, a military expert, a knower of landscape, a painter, a horse rider, an infrastructure planner, a [...] princess --at some point it begins to sound made up, "Little Father of the people"-esque to rattle the hornet's nest a little bit, especially if it's not shown as either a clearly godly characteristic or, even more necessary imo, a negative trait; another expression of her killing herself at work to compensate for a perceived flaw she's trying to earn forgiveness for, like she did in BotW. But that's another topic, and the clumsiness of her character arc has been well threaded by basically everybody disappointed in the story already.)

But, if I decide to be a little graceful, I'd like to explore my "huh!" emotion, and take it apart a little bit.

I think there's something interesting to have such strong parallels to setting up a story about the relationship between Zelda and Ganondorf ("The Princess and the Beast", like come on guys that's the conflict of over half the series), or at least Zelda and the concept of Evil since Ganondorf pretty much represents it in this game, and then have it go: actually, there was a horrible monster that everyone was afraid of, but Zelda was wise and patient enough to approach it and realize its potential beyond the tusks, what beauty can be brought upon the world if one makes the effort to look for what exists underneath. It says something a bit deeper about the world and about Zelda in particular. It intrigues, at the very least.

Is it a reach? Probably! Is my first interpretation that the quest is actually about "eww you thought Zelda would be interested in *disgusting vile monsters* and not sweet and gentle and human-loving animals that literally shit jewlery when cared for? jokes on you, she never would feel any ounce of sympathy for anything that isn't Good and Deserving" uhhh definitively truer? Probably! But I also don't want to dismiss that the quest made me think about it. If I had completed it earlier, I might have even felt like it was (very clumsy, not gonna lie) setup about the main conflict.

But that's also a good segway into my next section: the arbitrary limitations between the animal and the creature, the monstrous and the human.

And the fact that TotK points directly at it.

A Monstrous Collection

(these two guys are just. doing So Much and being So Valid despite being massive weirdos the game wants us to be slightly repelled by. I, for one, respect the Monster kinning grind and their general Twilight Princess energy.)

So. These two guys. There is so much to say about these two guys. I don't think I have seen the Trans Perspective on Kolton on tumblr, and I would love to get it because. I feel like it's a worthwhile discussion (just, how gender and identity is handled in TotK overall, I feel like it's a very complicated conversation and I have not seen super deep dives and I'd be very interested in hearing more).

Beyond the throughline of voluntary consumption of magical objects to turn into less human creatures being a weirdly prevalent plot point in TotK (Zelda, Kolton and Ganondorf casually transing their entire species for funsies --Ganondorf being particularly relentless with Fake Zelda, mummy/phantom shenanigans, Demon King and then literal dragon), I want to focus on Kilton a little bit.

Kilton is genuinely the only NPC in the game willing to acknowledge the inherent personhood that monsters have (the game does showcase them picking up fruits, mourning their boss if you kill them, being cutesy and happy to identify you as one of their own if you wear the appropriate mask --and that's not even getting into creatures like the Lynels, who seem to really edge on the limit of being a conscious creature with a system of honor and property and many other things). He does encourage us to think of monsters as more than a species whose only worth lie in how fun it is to eradicate them; even more, gameplay-wise, he does give us a reason to interact with them in other ways than just our sword with his museum. He does encourage us to see that beauty for ourselves and then select what we think is coolest/most intimidating/cutest/eight billion ganondorfs in every pose imaginable

The fact that Ganondorf is considered a monster was a great win for this feature in particular, and is very funny, but it's also... A lot, if we dig at it a little more than warranted. Beyond all of the Implications and all of the things of representation and political conflict and values already discussed ad nauseum: when did he stop being considered a human? What does that mean about the flimsiness of what is a monster and what is a creature and what is an animal and what is a person and what is even a hylian, as sheikahs got absorbed into the definition in this game? Especially with the stones taken into account, how profound changes in nature are a huge part of the plot (even when reversed and ultimately pretty meaningless): how easy it is, to make that slip? Who decides when that slip has been made? What is acceptable to hurt without remorse? What is beautiful and worth preserving? What is both at once? What is neither?

And again, in a classic Zelda conundrum (appreciative(?)): who the fuck gets to decide that, when, and why?

The Bargainers and the Horned God

(major shoutout to these big guys for being the sole and only providers of actual depth to the Depths, and for looking cool as heck)

So. Let's move the conversation to the Depths.

Conceptually: what an interesting idea!! And so well executed (initially)!! A mirror world to the surface, dark and hushed and full of unknown creatures; haunted by gloom and sickness and the unknown. Not a first in the series, far from it: from ALTTP to ALBW, and even taking the Twilight world of TP into account, this idea of a Dark World acting as a deforming mirror to Hyrule and revealing many interesting aspects as we get to explore both is always a very interesting take on corruption and envy and fear/weakness and/or some sense of darkness looming under the perfect exterior. I'd argue even the Lens of Truth of both OoT and MM's serve a similar function, both gameplay-wise, but also in terms of theme: not everything is as it seems. In the world of Light, darkness must hide itself; but darkness also possess its own beauty, its own hardships, and will stare back at you without blinking if you go seek for it. It's, in my opinion, one of the series' most compelling conversation about the cyclical nature of fate, the coldness of godhood, and how small one feels in the face of a universe that is more complicated than it initially appears --which is why Courage must be invoked to push forward regardless.

The Depth's otherworldly ambiance is truy wonderful, whether in the plays of light and shadows, the creatures native to the environment we meet there (wish we met more!), the soundtrack, the strange aquatic/primordial plants, the fact that the dragons visit this place and connect them to the outside --invoking ideas of balance and interconnectivity, that the tree branches look like veins. The coliseums, the mines, the zonai facilities and the prisons do seem to poke at many things about what the relationship to the past was to this place; was it ever truly a place? Did it look like this back then? Why was it buried? Why did it come back? But in spite of it all, I think the Depths struggle overall to question or reveal anything about the surface that we couldn't already assume going in (that the only thing congealing there is Ganondorf's gloom, his lonely domain of Wrongness, only shared by Kohga and the yiga --the only naysayers of Goodness and Light, contemptful and blinded by self-importance and rage). The zonite is mined by gloomy monsters --why, what for?-- so any notion of greed and over-expansion that could have been associated to the zonai is now reabsorbed into Ganondorf's general evilness, since it needs to be reminded he is everything and anything bad with the world: darkness and conquest and greed and capitalism and pollution and bad weather and sickness and darkness and violence and war and death and betrayal and fakeness and lies and patriarchy and exploitation. No matter that he never does a single thing with zonite in the game; rather set up elements of conflict that never go anywhere than, for a second, let the foundations of absolute goodness and absolute evil risk becoming shaky --and you coming to this unwelcoming dark place that hates you, killing the miners and taking their resources for yourself is, on the other holy, royal fur-covered hand, utterly legitimate. The resources were once Rauru's after all, were they not?

And this is what I would say, except... except for the dead. The fallen warriors, the poes, and, most important of all: the Bargainer statues.

The Bargainers are, in-universe, godly creatures guiding the fallen to a place of final respite, regardless of moral alignment. The poes are all, fundamentally, cleansed of judgement: they are lost souls whose past reality does not matter anymore, and all deserve that peace regardless. In spite of the heavy paradise/hell parallels drawn in that game, with Rauru/Zelda/Sonia as the guardians of Light where Ganondorf gets to become a Devil-like figure, it is confirmed here that no such thing exists when you actually die in this universe.

It almost feels as if the fabric of Hyrule itself, in a brief moment that refuses to elaborate on its own point, goes: "yeah, whatever is happening here between Light and Darkness, it doesn't actually matter. This conflict is futile and doesn't understand the real nature of being alive, dead, a god, a person, a monster, an animal. The truth lies elsewhere --but you will never be told what it is."

It's: wild.

One of the game's most striking traits of narrative brilliance in my opinion --to the point where I'm wondering whether it's there on purpose or was effectively an oversight since every other aspect of reality breaks its own back trying to reassure us that everything is at its correct place, receiving the appropriate treatment by the universe in a way that is never to be questioned.

Another case of that ambiguity being allowed to exist without being immediately crushed and repressed is the case of the Horned God (interesting parallel to Ganon's actual horns that he develops in this game in case the hellish parallels weren't clear enough already): a demon Hylia sealed into stone and pushed far from humans in a clear case of questionable behavior since, while the Horned God isn't exactly nice, does propose a different philosophy you are not punished for exploring; and yet, a proposal that has seen itself persecuted in a very real sense by the goddess of absolute goodness, patron of hylians, Zelda, and many more. Pushed away from view.

Interesting.

And Yet, Light Must Prevail

Okay, so, after all of this, we're left to ask... What the fuck is up with morality in Tears of the Kingdom?!

What do we trust? These half-breaths in the occasional sidequests that Light and Darkness is just the wrong frame of reference, that nature cannot be this simple, is ever-shifting and can be recalled or reaffirmed by arbitrary forces, and might even not matter at all in the universe's fabric, despite having so much of its lore soaking in the dychotomy? Or... everything else about the game, this insistence that Good must not only be assumed as whatever tradition the kingdom has passed down for thousands upon thousands of years, but remain utterly unquestioned the entire time? That Bad is without cause, graceless and unworthy of investment?

Are the Bargainer's statues the only thing worth listening to, that morality is a fable the living tells themselves --or should we be moved when Darkness destroys Light, when Light suffers to preserve itself and the world --but not when the Other is rightfully slain?

Was Kilton correct to see beauty in the monstrous? Was Kolton onto something when he let go of his previous form because there is no clear distinction between what should receive an arrow to the face and what shouldn't? Or should we rather focus on Zelda losing her human form as a beautiful and tragic sacrifice --but something that never actually altered her nature as a hylian, the descendant of a lineage of Good Kings meant to rule forever?

Is the Dondon good because it always was, or was it worth Zelda's love in spite of the fear it initially provoked?

Either way, at the end of the game, evil is slain. Ganondorf is, not killed, but --like his angry BotW boar counterpart-- destroyed, as monsters tend to be. He explodes over the lands of Hyrule, freed from Darkness; freed from everything wrong, since the foreign menace that embodied it all was wiped out in one fateful sweep of a holy blade cradled in sacrificial love. Nothing wrong remains. The Sages reaffirm their vows to protect the kingdom forward, and a very human --hylian-- Zelda smiles: Hyrule now forever and ever basked in eternal Light.

[regulusrules]

Yo, I saw your post about orientalism in relation to the "hollywood middle-east" tiktok!

How can a rando and university dropout get into and learn more about? Any literature or other content to recommend?

Hi!! Wow, you have no idea how you just pressed a button. I'll unleash 5+ years on you. And I'll even add for you open-sourced works that you can access as much as I can!

1. Videos

I often find this is the best medium nowadays to learn anything! I'll share with you some of the best that deal with the topic in different frames

• This is a video of Edward Said talking about his book, Orientalism. Said is the Palestinian- American critic who first introduced the term Orientalism, and is the father of postcolonial studies as a critical literary theory. In this book, you’ll find an in-depth analysis of the concept and a deconstruction of western stereotypes. It’s very simple and he explains everything in a very easy manner.

• How Islam Saved Western Civilization. A more than brilliant lecture by Professor Roy Casagranda. This, in my opinion, is one of the best lectures that gives credit to this great civilization, and takes you on a journey to understand where did it all start from.

• What’s better than a well-researched, general overview Crash Course about Islam by John Green? This is not necessarily on orientalism but for people to know more about the fundamental basis of Islam and its pillars. I love the whole playlist that they have done about the religion, so definitely refer to it if you're looking to understand more about the historical background! Also, I can’t possibly mention this Crash Course series without mentioning ... ↓

• The Medieval Islamicate World. Arguably my favourite CC video of all times. Hank Green gives you a great thorough depiction of the Islamic civilization when it rose. He also discusses the scientific and literary advancements that happened in that age, which most people have no clue about! And honestly, just his excitement while explaining the astrolabe. These two truly enlightened so many people with the videos they've made. Thanks, @sizzlingsandwichperfection-blog

2. Documentaries

• This is an AMAZING documentary called Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Villifies A People by the genius American media critic Jack Shaheen. He literally analysed more than 1000 movies and handpicked some to showcase the terribly false stereotypes in western depiction of Arab/Muslim cultures. It's the best way to go into the subject, because you'll find him analysing works you're familiar with like Aladdin and all sorts.

• Spain’s Islamic Legacy. I cannot let this opportunity go to waste since one of my main scopes is studying feminist Andalusian history. There are literal gems to be known about this period of time, when religious coexistence is documented to have actually existed. This documentary offers a needed break from eurocentric perspectives, a great bird-view of the Islamic civilization in Europe and its remaining legacy (that western history tries so hard to erase).

• When the Moors Ruled in Europe. This is one of the richest documentaries that covers most of the veiled history of Al-Andalus (Muslim Spain). Bettany Hughes discusses some of the prominent rulers, the brilliance of architecture in the Arab Muslim world, their originality and contributions to poetry and music, their innovative inventions and scientific development, and lastly, La Reconquista; the eventual fall and erasure of this grand civilization by western rulers.

3. Books

• Rethinking Orientalism by Reina Lewis. Lewis brilliantly breaks the prevailing stereotype of the “Harem”, yk, this stupid thought westerns projected about arab women being shut inside one room, not allowed to go anywhere from it, enslaved and without liberty, just left there for the sexual desires of the male figures, subjugated and silenced. It's a great read because it also takes the account of five different women living in the middle east.

• Nocturnal Poetics by Ferial Ghazoul. A great comparative text to understand the influence and outreach of The Thousand and One Nights. She applies a modern critical methodology to explore this classic literary masterpiece.

• The Question of Palestine by Edward Said. Since it's absolutely relevant, this is a great book if you're looking to understand more about the Palestinian situation and a great way to actually see the perspective of Palestinians themselves, not what we think they think.

• Arab-American Women's Writing and Performance by S.S. Sabry. One of my favourite feminist dealings with the idea of the orient and how western depictions demeaned arab women by objectifying them and degrading them to objects of sexual desire, like Scheherazade's characterization: how she was made into a sensual seducer, but not the literate, brilliantly smart woman of wisdom she was in the eastern retellings. The book also discusses the idea of identity and people who live on the hyphen (between two cultures), which is a very crucial aspect to understand arabs who are born/living in western countries.

• The Story of the Moors in Spain by Stanley Lane-Poole. This is a great book if you're trying to understand the influence of Islamic culture on Europe. It debunks this idea that Muslims are senseless, barbaric people who needed "civilizing" and instead showcases their brilliant civilization that was much advanced than any of Europe in the time Europe was labelled by the Dark Ages. (btw, did you know that arabic was the language of knowledge at that time? Because anyone who was looking to study advanced sciences, maths, philosophy, astronomy etc, had to know arabic because arabic-speaking countries were the center of knowledge and scientific advancements. Insane, right!)

• Convivencia and Medieval Spain. This is a collection of essays that delve further into the idea of “Convivencia”, which is what we call for religious coexistence. There's one essay in particular that's great called Were Women Part of Convivencia? which debunks all false western stereotypical images of women being less in Islamic belief. It also highlights how arab women have always been extremely cultured and literate. (They practiced medicine, studied their desired subjects, were writers of poetry and prose when women in Europe couldn't even keep their surnames when they married.)

4. Novels / Epistolaries

• Granada by Radwa Ashour. This is one of my favourite novels of all time, because Ashour brilliantly showcases Andalusian history and documents the injustices and massacres that happened to Muslims then. It covers the cultural erasure of Granada, and is also a story of human connection and beautiful family dynamics that utterly touches your soul.

• Dreams of Trespass by Fatema Mernissi. This is wonderful short read written in autobiographical form. It deconstructs the idea of the Harem in a postcolonial feminist lens of the French colonization of Morocco.

• Scheherazade Goes West by Mernissi. Mernissi brilliantly showcases the sexualisation of female figures by western depictions. It's very telling, really, and a very important reference to understand how the west often depicts middle-eastern women by boxing them into either the erotic, sensual beings or the oppressed, black-veiled beings. It helps you understand the actual real image of arab women out there (who are not just muslims btw; christian, jew, atheist, etc women do exist, and they do count).

• Letters of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. This is a feminist travel epistolary of a British woman which covers the misconceptions that western people, (specifically male travelers) had recorded and transmitted about the religion, traditions and treatment of women in Constantinople, Turkey. It is also a very insightful sapphic text that explores her own engagement with women there, which debunks the idea that there are no queer people in the middle east.

---------------------

With all of these, you'll get an insight about the real arab / islamic world. Not the one of fanaticism and barbarity that is often mediated, but the actual one that is based on the fundamental essences of peace, love, and acceptance.

[bonzos-number-1-fan]

TMAGP 15 Thoughts: Seasoned Hunters

What a fucking episode. No complaints at all. It's just solid gold all the way through and just like gold it's a dense so there is lots to dig in to, and not much point in a preamble.

Spoilers for episode 15, and all of TMA, below the cut.

I really like the introductory office drama portion of today's episode. It's not particularly enlightening, and there isn't anything new in it, but it sets the stage well. Yes, that was a pun. Alice reacted to the news as I knew she would, because she can't help herself. But other than that I really like the mention of Luke playing at The Glad. Magnus stuff always does a really good job of peppering in real places.

This incident was also incredibly short. However unlike last week's episode I think it utilised that time so much better. All of it was a slow build up to one event and was really just three scenes. Set up, hunt, conclusion. Simple and to the point but incredibly effective. Last week's episode felt like too big of an idea bent to fit too short of a time, while this weeks felt like a good story that was given the time it needed and no more or less. Really big fan of the whole thing.

The incident didn't have too much to really get into here. If I were live blogging you would've seen me say "Lady Mowbray?!?!" when the Caterer said "the really high-end stuff". I have been waiting for something aristocratic. The set up is a little cliché but I really like the subversion of Battle Royale instead of The Most Dangerous Game. It's not only an effective twist when the story is from the Caterer's PoV it's a much better insight into the characters were being introduced to. It also highlights something fairly interesting about TMP vs TMA. This incident is one of the most singular in terms of its representation of a TMA Entity but that expectation is somewhat subverted by having these characters hunt each other for another rather than all be hunted down. It wouldn't be out of place in TMA but it is taking a bit of a different approach.

Speaking of the characters though. Fuck Yeah. Lady Mowbray. Finally. I, and probably all of Statement Remains, have been waiting for her appearance since last October when some lucky folks got to meet her bodyguards as part of the ARG. I didn't have her pegged for a badass cannibal but here we are. She really surpassed my expectations. I love aristocratic monster people so I had high hopes and I am still pleasantly surprised.

Celia and Lady M's interaction is really great. I love that we're getting more and more evidence that Celia is clearly more than she's letting everyone else in on. I, obviously at this point, think she's from TMA's universe for a lot of reasons. Lady M not being able to place why she smells so wrong but picking up on her being out of place is just more evidence of that. Celia holding her ground and not taking any shit from Lady M is also incredible. She just listened to how she eats people, gets jumped scared by her, and then instantly tells her to fuck off by way of not giving her a name. She's really living up to the Ripley namesake and I love every second of it.

I will not soon forget that tiny little tease about Bouchard lore either. Actually cruel.

Luke and Alice at the bar wasn't a big moment but it's nice to see her interact with more than just her co-workers. Meeting Luke and he being seemingly normal was also nice, be a shame when he dies.

The final section was phenomenal. I really love it when these shows break format and what a format break it was. So first things first this was recorded on a tape recorder. Significant for likely obvious reasons but unlike the last time these showed up this one isn't an incidental placement like the Institute's one. It was being carried by the woman. We know Alice feels like she's been followed since that incident and this is likely related to it but I don't think it's related in the most obvious sense. There is a very obvious conclusion to draw from TMA knowledge but I feel like that might be folly here. It seems a little too obvious and a little too strained at the same time. The Institute and [Error] being so related to that and in this fashion I think would feel a bit forced, and so this feels more like a red herring to me. Something is going on with them but I don't think it's going to be that.

So Drowning Victim, as she is credited, is super intriguing for a million reasons. Continuing on from that prior thought it's quite possible that the tape recorder and Alice being in the same place is entirely coincidental. It's one of those things that feels like a scheme from TMA context but everything being linked feels too TMA to me for right now. But what she's saying is really interesting. Because with those tape recorders it sounds like a statement. It's not just random mumbling but a fairly coherent narrative. Or a recalling of prior events. Whether the Drowning Victim is the original PoV for that potential statement is hard to say. I doubt it but it would be possible. Another strong idea here is that it is linked to [Error] and her deal might be another archive. Instead of just collection and storage she could be able to force others to relive them through the statements. That's a TMA parallel I think would be a much stronger use of TMA's theme.

Outside of that Alice's interaction with her is so so well done. I think it's really important to show that Alice both has a heart and is able to stop with her attitude when it's really important. Getting to see that when push comes to shove she can step up is going to be something that'll come back around. We all know that everyone at the OIAR is in for a world of hurt and I think Alice is the person the fanbase has the biggest issue with in that sort of context so far. And her singing Nellie the Elephant for compression rate is sort of heart breaking to listen to. Just a really fantastic performance from Billie and people better be nicer to Alice after this. I better not hear her getting any shit for running away either. She gave CPR to a woman who basically attacked her, drowned in the middle of London, died, and then kept talking.

Also, quite note, this episode had five new voice actors in it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Incident/CAT#R#DPHW Master Sheet

Klaus Watch: Wasn't expecting this to return so soon but here we are. This incident doesn't appear on Klaus but what does is this, CAT1RB2373-10072023-########. This has the accompanying note "Dame M" and a location "London, England".

DPHW Theory: 6451 is a pretty reasonable rating for this. Hunting mostly focused on the killing part of it. Some mental compulsion, seclusion, and obviously the predator/prey dynamic. The 1 in Weird is more evidence that 1 is the lowest rating with 0 being the highest. Nothing Weird in this one really.

CAT# Theory: CAT1 has a person in it.

I'm still debating whether to do a post on that theory because part of me does feel like it'd ruin other people's fun. Another part of me thinks that theories as prolific as that deserve to be scrutinised as intently as possible. Although there is a problem with that idea because my DPHW theory that has become the default does seem to be mine and I've not seen any cases of parallel thought on that one. The CAT theory has 10+ individuals all coming to roughly the same conclusion though and I'm not sure if that makes it more fair game or not. I, personally, welcome any challenges to my theories and I know some people who have posted the CAT theory do but that's not the same as them all holding that stance. It's not really possible to single anyone out either as it's not about any single person but the idea itself. IDK, give your thoughts on it.

This one does solidly fit into that theory though.

R# Theory: B sounds good to me. Although it's worth mentioning that there is a hyphen in this header between the rank and the DPHW.

Header talk: Hunt (Aristocratic) -/- Compulsion is interesting for two reasons. First off it being Hunt sort of precludes, secondly Compulsion is a strange filing for this IMO. There was an element of it but it was fairly minor and didn't seem like the thrust of the episode. The Caterer was compelled to be quiet but wasn't forced to hunt the rest of the brigade. He chose that when he realised what Lady M. was getting at.

[duckiemimi]

https://www.tumblr.com/jgnico/729415078056755200/stop-taking-nanamis-words-for-why-gojo-did-what

Hey mimi!! Hope ur having a nice day!! I really love your thoughts and metas its a very insightful!!! And ur fanfics god i hold them so tenderly in my hands each time i read them!! thank you for making them!! And i wanted to ask: whats your thoughts on this ?

i’m so sorry this reply is so late, i’ve been a little busy these days 😭 but i love this post so much! it’s so well-written and well-articulated!

most people in the story don’t understand gojo; the whole point of 236 was to hammer that home. gojo died misunderstood. (well—if you don’t count geto understanding him, i guess. and some of his students try to, his friends, too, but that’s besides the point. most people didn’t. doesn’t mean they were incapable of loving him, though.)

i understand nanami’s sentiments here. to nanami, gojo was the guy who could’ve solved everything, who could’ve prevented deaths, who could’ve prevented haibara’s death. to nanami, gojo was the embodiment of the system. of idle power. it’s a little similar to geto’s point of view in shinjuku: why the hell should he try and sympathize with someone who can do it all? gojo is different. he’s not like us.

really, i believe most of the characters in the story feel this way about him, this attitude of begrudging hope because though he is an enigma in their eyes, he is also a beacon of hope because if gojo exists, then a better world is possible. they see the idea of him before they see him for who he actually is. they see his dictated role before they see him.

but here’s the thing: gojo is readable to us. as readers of the story, we should be able to understand him and what motivates him, we should be able to understand his alienation and loneliness more than anyone in the story. because he is wholly readable and thus knowable, because we see the things the other characters don’t. we should know him by how he was written, not by other characters’ perception of him. that’s subsidiary.

(if anything, other than supplementary information on gojo, the characters’ opinions on him tell us more about them and the world they live in, not about gojo.)

i think this juxtaposition between the perception of gojo and just gojo himself is best shown in his conversation with geto. there, he talks about being familiar with isolation (his metaphorical infinity) and his longing to be understood. right after, nanami chimes in and offers his opinion about gojo. i do think the writing could’ve been done more effectively (after all, the chronology makes the scene a little confusing), but it’s still plainly written for us to read.

gojo’s efforts to better the system shouldn’t be wiped off the board just because nanami said he fought for fun. we know him, we’ve read him, we’ve witnessed him give second chances to kids who’ve lost hope. we’ve seen gojo’s care. i don’t think this is a case of just selfishness or just selflessness. don’t fall into the trap of black and white thinking.

gojo was jujutsu’s pillar. i imagine if you grow up with enough people telling you who you are—what you are, really—you’d start to internalize it and learn your role. to his core, gojo was a guy who never acknowledged his subconscious and what lay beneath it because of this. a mental infinity, a metaphorical infinity. almost there but not quite; he never got to the root of things, whether it be changing the system or figuring out why he was the way he was. he was never thorough. (isn’t that why “geto” came back anyway? because he didn’t “finish the job”?)

but, hey—his given name is satoru (enlightenment). perhaps there’s more to his story.

(or maybe he died in irony.)

[vidavalor]

I just happened upon your blog (right terminology?) and I’m learning a lot. One thing that startled me was your referring to Crowley and Aziraphale’s love (sex) life as a matter of course, something seemingly everyone but me knew about. I was blown away and really wanted it to be true. After all, they’ve had to do without so much—openness, safety, the expectation of future togetherness. It would too unfair if they had to do without physical consummation too. What’s the deal with this? How do we know it’s so? What’s the history? Please enlighten me. Have you written posts about this? I’d love to read them. Thanks

Hello! Thanks for the ask. Nice to meet you. I call it a blog because I'm old and don't know the cool terms but we can call it whatever lol. I have no idea re: how many people who view the show and are able to see that Crowley & Aziraphale are more than friends (because, believe it or not, that concept still shocks some lol) who think that they're already lovers. I do think I'm sort of in the minority, maybe, even if there are a bunch of people who think that they're already a thing. When scrolling through the Ineffable Husbands tag on here, I tend to see a lot more posts that suggest that they aren't lovers and that 2.06 was their first kiss. (Let's hope that it's not lol.)

I guess I would say that if you are thinking about whether or not they might be, consider that Good Omens shows you most of its story out of chronological order in order to give layered meaning to the stuff you've already seen so, just with that knowledge alone, it would be actually pretty surprising if 2.06 was the first time they'd kissed. In S2 itself, earlier on, there's some heavy suggestion that it's not. If you want to read about when I think that happened, go here and I'll link you one more post at the bottom of this response here:

While I like to read all points of view-- I read a lot of aro ace GO stuff as well, even if I don't necessarily see that in my own interpretations of things-- I have thought they were sleeping together since the first time I watched S1 a few years back and S2 just kinda reinforced that for me. I think that, technically-speaking, there's a path to either they still haven't gotten together or that they're long-time lovers. I say that but honestly... it's more like if they somehow do something that suggests that they're only getting together during/after S3, I think it could kinda work but I honestly don't actually think that's the story they're writing. I'm pretty firmly set on the idea that they've been sleeping together for, uh, a very long time at this point. Someone told me the other day via messages that they would burn my house down if I did not finish a sex meta that I promised people so I best maybe get on that and also potentially call the police lol. (I am both flattered and scared?). So, uh, I'll get that up soon... I wrote a couple of longer metas lately about different eras of their relationship that are replies to recent asks on my blog-- I'd probably recommend the one about what they call each other and coded love confessions in 1941, if you're looking to read about them as a couple that's already a couple (even if they would have an anxiety attack at the word 'couple', as Crowley does in 2.06 lol). Will link it below. I'm very flattered that you and others have asked to read more of what I think and I have gotten asked a lot for more sex-related content so, uh, watch this space, I guess? :)

Make yourself a tea first or plan to come back to it as I'm wordy lol:

[fortunatelyenchantingtaco]

Love Gojo post enlightenment because usually its a positive thing. Like whenever someone has achieved higher understanding of the world or whatever, its usually accompanied by being very forgiving or kind or just distancing themselves from the worldly pleasures ya know

Which is just so funny because Gojo in fact became WORSE afterwards. Like before he was annoying but he was also still very much human and more bearable for people around him. Like this is such a drastic difference towards how positively this kind of situation is usually portrayed. Not with Gojo. The better version of him is actually worse for everyone else this is so fucking funny

Like i try not to think about ut cause it makes me very sad and i dont like to be sad but ya know. To Suguru it probably felt like his best friend did die and now there is something else walking around wearing his skin but its coming apart at the seams cause now the skin is too small for something bigger than the world? Fucking hell

I would like my brain to go on vacation i am trapped in a room with these thoughts thanks

[sanderchu]

may i request something where wilbur and reader get into like a MASSIVE fight and reader goes to phils house to calm down and for philza to comfort them. and wilbur knowwws he fucked go when phil messaged him “dude what the fuck did you say” but fluff at the end please? (may you please include the argument scene please ❤️❤️). love your writing have a good day!

The text message

Note: I LOVE THIS TO MUCH THAT I MAY HAVE GONE OVERBOARD A BIT IM SO SORRY and I’m this phil is like a father figure to you 👍 (slay philza we love you around here /p) also this is really bad-

Reader: Fem!reader

[Writing] or hcs

Writing with a slight twist on the fight reason?

Type: angst, fluff (I made the fluff slightly different)

Warnings: yelling, angy Wilbur 🥺🥺🥺 (I’m so sorry-), drunk Wilbur, bad writing cause I had no ideas

Y/n’s pov

Wilbur had just gotten home. You sat there on the couch almost crying until you saw him. He was drunk, a rare sight. Thankfully he didn’t look like he drank that much. “Where have you been?!” It wasn’t late but you still were curious. You walked up to him as he just stood there with shock, “I was out obviously” he sounded like a moody teenager. “I was calling you!” You almost screamed as you showed him the amount of missed calls and unread texts you left him with no response. “Cant I have some funnnn? I’m an adult stop treating me like a kid”, “well your acting like one” he looked at you clearly mad at your comment. “Then stop treating me like I’m your kid, I’m your boyfriend”

“A boyfriend wouldn’t act like this.” He looked offended at you basically calling him just a person you live with. “I don’t understand what your trying to pull but you need to cut it out”, “ME?!” You snapped, his moody self was cutting it with you, “YOUR THE ONE DRINKING WITHOUT ME KNOWING WHERE YOU WERE FOR HOURS WILL, HOURS.”, “WHY ARE YOU SO WORRIED FOR ME LEAVE ME ALONE.” Tears started to form. ‘Out of all off the days why today?’ You thought suddenly feeling the tears actually come down your face. “Well go ahead and cry like you always do.” You wiped your face and got closer to him, “YOU WANNA KNOW WHY IVE BEEN WONDERING WHERE YOU WERE?!”

“PLEASE ENLIGHTEN ME Y/N WHATS SO IMPORTANT THAT YOU HAD TO BE SO WORRIED MAYBE IM NOT YOUR BOYFRIEND BECAUSE A GIRLFRIEND WOULDNT TREAT ME LIKE A MOM”, “I WASNT WORRIED DIPSHIT” without thinking you pushed him back slightly making him stumble as he tried to keep his balance. “I WAS WONDERING WHERE YOU WERE FOR OUR ANNIVERSARY, ITS OUR ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY AND THIS IS HOW YOU TREAT ME” he immediately looked at you with sad and empty eyes. “Y/n..”, “at least someone actually remember” you said as you grabbed your keys from the hook and quickly put your shoes on. You opened the door and before you left, “I hope you enjoy your gift.” You said trying to sound stem without sounding like your crying and slammed the door.

Phil texted you happy anniversary to you and will, he was happy for you both, so you went to him. You drove slowly trying not to crash, thankfully Wilbur’s house wasn’t far from Phil’s so we got there pretty fast. You parked, stepped out, and knocked on his door. Phil and mumza answered it. “Y/n?..” You just stood there as they both looked at you as you held back from balling your eyes out on there porch. Mumza immediately let you in as Phil shut the door and followed behind you. You began to explain everything choking on your words once in a while as you tried not to sound so muffled. Phil excused himself as mumza had all her attention on you.

P: what the fuck did you do.

W: Phil.

P: answer the fucking question.

W: i didnt mean to I just forgot.

P: bullshit you know better, you fucked up and you better fix it.

Wilburs pov

Wilbur paced around his room looking at phils text. He was going to reply but just left it as is and sat on his bed. He knew he fucked up, but he had one idea. And if that didn’t work he wouldn’t know what would. He dialed your number..

“This is y/n, leave a message or a text would be better, *beep*”

“Hey y/n..” he choked on his words for a second, “I know this shouldn’t be the best why to apologize but, I’m really sorry. I know I fucked up and I know what I said was dumb, I’m happy to have a girlfriend like you and it means the world to me to have our first anniversary. Man..” he chuckled, “the day you dated me I wasn’t a jerk like this, I don’t know what came over me, stress? Personal issues? I don’t know but you definitely didn’t deserve that, I’m so sorry. Please come home, I can make it up in any way you want I promise. Just give me another chance darling..please..” he took a big sigh, “I love you..darling.” And with that he hung up the phone and laid in his bed having tears form and silently crying as he covered his mouth with his sleeve. “Y/n..”

Y/n’s pov

You listened to the voicemail as you laid on Phil’s couch. You feel tears come down your face again as you covered your own mouth with the blanket to prevent anyone hearing you. As the voicemail ended you watched your screen fade to black from not touching it. You picked up your phone and sat up, “will..” you opens messages and began to text him.

“I haven’t fully forgave you but I can never stay fully mad at you. I’ll come home tomorrow, we can talk about it tomorrow together..I love you too willam. I miss you <33”

You turned off your phone with a smile as more tears fell from your face, “I love you too..”

——————————————————————

A/n: i ended this on a sorta fluff end, it’s not good ik- I had no plans for it and winged it- it’s bad Ik- uh anyways- there we go :,) sorry again. I really do doubt myself- a bunch- I might re do this I’m going to be honest- unless ppl like it then I probably won’t.

[xceanlynx]

An ace perspective on Only Friends, sexuality, and purity culture.

Look, I'm not very good with meta, but I have to give my two cents here.

I love Only Friends. They've brought a perspective on queer culture that usually falls flat in most Thai BL series. The hookups, the cruising, the expectations of love and care... There are so many nuances they've explored, it really is a breath of fresh air.

But I have to say, as an ace person, I'm quite disappointed with the not-so-implicit moral standard they've set on characters based on their sexual experiences. Argue all you want, there's no way they didn't make it to be as "virgins are good, hoes are evil".

Look at episode one. One of the first quotes that really got to my mind was when Mew told Top that "he is not like Boston" (as in he can't do casual sex). I really got curious about that line. It could mean that 1. maybe he views sexuality differently — maybe he is on the ace spectrum (I was sooo for it); or 2. maybe he just isn't as sexual as his friend, not necessarily ace (also cool); or 3. maybe he views his virginity as a badge of honor, and thus is afraid to lose it to an almost stranger, hookup enthusiast like Top.

With a premise like OF, of exploring queer sexualities, I really thought option 1 or 2 were going to be it, and even if it was option 3, it was going to be a setup for, by the end, Mew understanding that, virgin or hoe, anyone can be good or bad. But then, episodes were being released, and now we only have 1 episode left and nothing really changed. Characters like Mew and Cheum still view sexual experience as a way to measure someone's worth.

There are two examples that I need to show here.

Cheum is supportive of her virgin friend hooking up with Top (when he already said he wasn't comfortable yet), while also shaming Boston for hooking up — of course, he isn't the virginal angel type.

(seriously, what's with this fixation on Mew's virginity?)

Like, boy I know you are still hurt, but what do you mean by saying that?

And there's the Nick situation. They really wanted us to see Nick, the hopeless romantic/stalker as the good guy, while seeing Boston, the one who does not want a serious relationship, as the bad guy. And as we approach the last episode, they might even pull one of the "hoe cures" and make Boston actually want a monogamous relationship with Nick now. (I say MAYBE, I'm writing this before ep 12 airs).

Yeah, Boston is a shitty friend. No one is questioning it. But none of his cruising behavior is the reason why I say that. His biggest mistake was sleeping with Top while he was actively pursuing Mew (if they were dating or not, that's up to you). His hooking up with multiple people, taking pictures of them, and even sleeping with Atom... none of these are mistakes on his part. Maybe not the wisest ideas, but not mistakes. None of these make him bad.

And you may ask, why does being ace have anything to do with it?

Because purity culture is harmful to everyone, sluts and virgins alike. Of course, there's nuance in everything: some may suffer more, and intersectionality also factors here. The ace spectrum is HUGE, with people having polar opposite opinions on sex and hookups. Some hate the idea of participating in all sexual activities, some tolerate it and some actually enjoy them very much. All of them are still ace.

So, when I see a series like OF (which many, many people wanted to see because of its raw, realistic perspective on sex) propagate a viewpoint that the virginal character is superior to the hoes, it really frustrates me.

Sexual experience does not make one mature, wise, or better than anyone else. Just like that, being inexperienced does not make one pure, enlightened, mature, or inherently better than anyone else. WHY DO WE JUDGE PEOPLE BASED ON SEXUAL EXPERIENCE? Sex is just an activity. Some do for leisure, some do for their partners, some do for having children and some don't do it at all. Are all of these people better or worse than the others? ABSOLUTELY NOT.

I'm going to be honest, I wasn't expecting much (or any) representation for aces in Only Friends. It still is a stigmatized orientation, and sometimes it's better to have nothing than to be represented badly. While I was expecting nothing, I really wasn't expecting this morality based on purity. I thought it was going to shine a light on hookup culture, not necessarily romanticizing it but not making it to be a bad thing either.

I don't really have a closing paragraph. I just saw the discourse and agree with basically everyone, but I hadn't seen an ace perspective (at least not one explicitly ace) on all of this. Sometimes allo (non-ace) people think we on the ace spectrum actually want this discourse of "virgin = good" to be popular, and while there may exist people like that, most of us just want to have our humanity not dictated by how many people we fuck.

[neptunes-sol-angel]

📱Love at First Text📱

This is a pick a card reading meant to predict if you'll find someone you're compatible with through online dating, and this will go into depth about the dynamic of your relationship, how it would be if you guys met for the first time, and what the first date would be like. If your pile gets a no, then don't worry, I'll just channel one of your future partners, the dynamic of your relationship, and the first date.

Pick the picture(s) that you're drawn to the most, then scroll down for its corresponding message.

♡ Pile One ♡

Judgement

I'm getting that for this pile, yes, you will get success in finding someone that you're compatible with through online dating. You could've had stingy romantic interests in the past that breadcrumbed you a lot and made it seem like you were asking for time, communication, and dedication in general in showing that they care for you was too much. This person, or these persons were gaslighting you. Connections are a two way street, and partnerships are about complimenting each other and reciprocation, your time and love is so valuable, and you've always had so much to give to your significant others, yet they had no problem just taking it from you, for granted and while leaving you high and dry. If you ever thought the issue was that you weren't worthy enough for their love and that you had to fight in order to get scraps, then that's not true. You were just too much for this person and they couldn't handle that nor did they ever have anything that they could provide for you. They were insecure, hiding behind this arrogance thinking that not acknowledging you would make themselves feel better, but I'm seeing that eventually you put a stop to this and decided to no longer milk yourself dry trying to fill this person's cup and took some time away to heal and refill your own, and I'm so proud of you for that. It's time to put yourself out there again, and give dating apps a chance to find a person that won't play around trying to act like they don't know your worth. I feel like you've made so much progress but still feel a little defeated here and there because the people that hurt you really broke down your confidence, but understand that you ARE the prize, a whole bundle, package, TREASURE CHEST with so much to offer to someone, and there is someone on this earth that can reciprocate that.

The Dynamic

When you connect with this person, this will really highlight how deep your issues with trust is. On another hand, it shows what you've learned in your solitude and the boundaries that you'll place the next time that you get into a relationship. I feel like you're used to drama with people and mistaking their haughtiness as a normal trait to tolerate, this person is more calm and collected, but you may see this as a red flag and assume that they're being nonchalant, so you might discontinue the conversation and think that's the end of it. It might even make you even more discouraged with your journey of hope in ever meeting someone positively meaningful, but this person is going to shock the hell out of you, and swoop you off your feet with the way that they come back and assert that there was miscommunication and seriously leave you astonished with they way that they're actually putting in effort. It's going to be an awakening inside you that feels so warm, because your past partners did such a number on you, that you're in awe when being met. When you guys reconcile with this conversation, you're going to be vulnerable with this person to let them know that you're still hurt from a situation and they're going to understand and let you know that it's okay, because they went through the same thing.

You guys could be culturally different. One is more traditional while the other is modern, both of you are meant to put each other on to new stuff that will challenge your beliefs or enlighten you to things that resonate with your identity better. This doesn't have to be a divine connection, but just know that your ancestors highly approve of you guys being together. You guys really balance each other out even if with your differences, it ironically makes the attraction stronger. You may feel like you're not attractive enough for this person, but little do you know that you absolutely SEDUCE this person with both your personality and your looks, and this could be why they have their guard up too a little bit, because I'm seeing that this person is financially well off. They're not stingy, they're just protective over giving their assets to people who don't deserve it, but once their guard is down with you, they're going to spoil you to death! This connection has so much potential to make it to something long term because you guys are damn near perfect together when it comes to creating a domestic life, this could definitely be the one that you marry and have kids with.

The Date

This is giving me beauty and the beast vibes. I feel like you could've been imagining a lot about what the first date would be. Maybe a fancy dinner date in a nice golden victorian setting, but this isn't why I'm getting beauty and the beast vibes. Don't panic, but the first date won't be anything like that. I feel like somewhere down the line you guys got into a huge argument that turned into a separation that you thought would be an ending, but fate once again is bringing you back together to let you guys know that this relationship is worth taking a chance on. The first date will be made as an apology by either you or them (can be both!). It won't be fancy and reserved, but you won't even care because I see this date being really fun, you guys could go bowling, or a video game arcade like Dave and Buster's or something. It'll be awkward at first, because one or both of you are still pretty tense part what happened, but that's what makes you guys good for each other, because the connection and chemistry will be strong enough that there's nothing that you guys can't work out, as long as you guys communicate with each other. You guys will have a heart to heart conversation and will be so ready to forgive each other because this encounter will make you realize how much you don't want to let each other go. I definitely see this date ending with a kiss. A beautiful union.

**I am open for PAID services such as readings and reiki, you can check them out here ==> 🌌

Before, I gave people the option to tip a minimum of $10.10 for a personal recreation of my pick a card readings, but I realized that it was too complicated so I just added it as an official service on my site!

♡ Pile Two ♡

Judgement

The outcome for this pile is a no, you will not find success through online dating. Now, here's why. I'm getting that you guys are bit lost when it comes to finding what your true taste in partners are. I'm getting a series of disappointments. What you think you might have wanted in a person is not at all what you truly want nor is it healthy for you. I feel like this group has a habit of being drawn to emotionally unavailable people with questionable personalities, it's hard to decipher who these people are as a whole because of their distance with you, but you get attached to them anyway because of your tendency to try to fill in the blanks by creating a version of them that doesn't exist. I feel so much heartbreak in this pile of longing for a solution to your matters with love, but there's this agony, because you don't even know how to pinpoint the problem. The thing with online dating, is that the apps give you the option to choose your partners. I'm getting that there is a lack of experience with finding traits outside of the frogs that you kissed in the past that you feel will work for you. But don't fret, you are not unlovable, so don't give up. The best part is that your person will be coming to you and you won't ever have to chase anyone again because you never needed to in the first place.

The Dynamic

I love this pile because of the outcome and the synchronicities that I'm picking up on. Your future will come to you after a period of healing and a gather of confidence and enough comfort to open your heart again with hardly any fear. You guys could either be in high school, college, or already well off in your career because I'm getting this will happen when you're heavily focused on other areas of your life, I know that sounds like such a cliche, but trust me, it really DOES work out like that. In the past, you could have felt like you weren't desirable but that's far from true, and that love drought that you're experiencing at the moment? Be prepared hun, because I'm seeing that you're actually going to be caught up in a love triangle, where the scenario is you having to choose between two people. I'm strongly channeling Twilight where Bella had to choose between Edward and Jacob because I kid you not, the oracle cards that popped up in this spread was she-wolf and vampire. It sounds exciting on the outside for people not in your shoes, but I see this really overwhelming you, maybe making you feel angst again over the universe sending you something different or crazier than what you asked for. I'm not getting that these two options are bad people, but I do have some specific guidance for this situation. You will strongly have to rely on your intuition on this and going with how you feel, I know because of the past, this could be horrifying for you but you CAN trust yourself. You've did your time and spent so much of it being in alignment and connecting with yourself, getting to know you all over again to know what works and what doesn't. I feel like both of these options are very protective over you, but one could be flighty out of fear of not being enough for you or potentially hurting you, while the other totally simps for you and just wants to give you so much of their love and time. I need to tell you that although, these are not bad partners, it's ok to have standards pile two. Never make anyone feel like you have to lower them to please anyone or feel like you have to ever settle. You do not. What you truly want is out there and meant for you to have. I see you going with the other person, because I feel like you had enough of flighty people, but I feel guided to tell you that you're not wrong for your decision. You strengthen your intuition and ability to make the right choices

for yourself the more that you respect your feelings.

Your Dates with Them

Regardless of who you choose, I see you feeling very protected and warm by them. No more of that coldness that those jerks in the past gave you. These dates will be adventurous and will surprise you and make you feel elated every single time and so blessed with the fact that you're finally being shown the love and adoration that you deserve. I see this creating such a glow in your skin, I feel like this pile has always been bubbly, but the hurdles in receiving love in the past kind of took that from you. But listen, you ARE getting it back, both your power and time by surrendering those that aren't for you and being open to letting the universe do its work. This will truly feel like a happily ever after that your younger self dreamed of, and I love that for you. Hang in there lovebug.

I am open for PAID services such as readings and reiki, you can check them out here ==> 🌌

Before, I gave people the option to tip a minimum of $10.10 for a personal recreation of my pick a card readings, but I realized that it was too complicated so I just added it as an official service on my site!

♡ Pile Three ♡

Judgement

This unexpectedly turned out to be 18+ so here's your warning.

I'm getting a yes for this pile. You will find success in finding someone you're compatible with on a dating app, but this is different. You will definitely find compatibility, but it will mostly be in a sexual aspect. I feel like you're at a point in your life where you just simply don't have the time or space to have anything serious with someone, but I do see you being worried about not getting the most out of your youth. I feel like this pile is in a dry spell. You're craving passionate and fun  rendezvous. New experiences with dating before you settle down, but not just with anyone! You know what you want and the kind of person that you want it from. And you are definitely going to get your wish.

The Dynamic

Someone's mind is going to be blown when it comes to these sexual encounters, at first I thought it would be you, but it's actually the other way around. Heavy bdsm energy here, you could thrive on being dominant and taking the lead in the bedroom, and this person is strongly willing to pass that role over to you. What makes the chemistry here, powerful, is the fact that you feel comfortable expressing your wants and laying down your boundaries, and this person whole heartedly respects it and is content with letting you have that control. They're fascinated by your assertiveness, independence, and your values that they share with you when it comes to having fun. There's never a dull moment with you and you guys understand each other's humor intimately. They love the way that your mind works and your ability to effortlessly please them and you love the way that you can trust them. You don't ever have to worry about this person being deceptive or overstepping your boundaries, like for instance, they'll take extra measures on protection and will never try to conceive with you without your consent. This person completely adores you and you'd never take advantage of that. The respect goes both ways.

The Date

Do I really need to say more? 😂 Every single second that you guys spend with each other IS THE DATE. You'll never be bored with this person.

I am open for PAID services such as readings and reiki, you can check them out here ==> 🌌

Before, I gave people the option to tip a minimum of $10.10 for a personal recreation of my pick a card readings, but I realized that it was too complicated so I just added it as an official service on my site!

♡ Pile Four ♡

Judgement

I got a yes for this group, you will find someone you're compatible with successfully through online dating, but the energy here is so cloudy. I feel like this group is inexperienced in the love department. You may have always longed to be in a relationship but commonly dealt with situations where the love was unrequited or with people who didn't want to give you commitment. You could have also been raised in a strict household to where dating was forbidden. You could feel misunderstood about your situation because everyone looks at your status as where it should be. You could be very young. I'm getting older people around you or even your peers in your age group telling you to be grateful that you're single and to embrace it, which is unfair, because they're speaking from a point of view that you haven't really experienced yet. I'm sorry that your feelings get dismissed by people who aren't in your shoes and I understand how it feels to be impatient with wondering when is something romantic going go ever happen for you. You could even feel discouraged because the options around you are not very good, so this is your greenlight to definitely go for online dating to venture out to find that person that's going to be your match. I already mentioned that you will find success in this, but I'm doubling down on giving you the confidence to try this route.

The Dynamic

There won't be anything that you can't tell each other. This relationship will be emotionally supportive and stable. I feel like this person will be a bit more mature and experienced than you. There will be ups and downs because of it being your first time dating, but you'll be really lucky to encounter your partner because they'll be patient and someone that you can grow with. They will give you space to express your wants and speak up about what you like or don't like, and really make you feel safe because if you're a person that's very apologetic, even apologizing for saying sorry so much, they're going to gently condition you to move past that mindset of feeling like you have to be careful or scared of communicating with not just them but everyone else in your life. This person will really motivate you and make sure that you're loved and cared for and will never make you feel like you're a burden for sharing your feelings. You guys will be an excellent team together, but most importantly, this will be the best start in love for you, because the foundation won't be built on codependency and allow you guys to be independent as you're both complimenting each other as a couple.

The Date

This will take place outdoors, but definitely where water is present. This could be at a beach but I'm also getting this image, of you two spending time together under a gazebo near a lake, maybe going on a ferry, I'm also getting that scene in the little mermaid where Ariel and Eric were on a boat with the song "Kiss the Girl" playing in the background. This person is going to be very attracted to you physically and won't hesitate to reassure that to you.

I am open for PAID services such as readings and reiki, you can check them out here ==> 🌌

Before, I gave people the option to tip a minimum of $10.10 for a personal recreation of my pick a card readings, but I realized that it was too complicated so I just added it as an official service on my site!

[aikoiya]

My Thoughts on the Fierce Deity

I think I see the Fierce Deity as a god of war, battle strategy, wrath, retribution, protection, heroism, courage/bravery, balance, the wild, the truth, music, the forge, death, spirits, tutelaries (specifically kishin), psychopomps, & the moon.

And while not actively a god of food/cooking himself, they are things that he very much enjoys for himself, & as such, he is regularly associated with them regardless of the fact that he does not hold any power over those domains.

He's also a symbol of manhood. Specifically healthy masculinity even though, much like with food, he has no power over such a domain.

A dark god, but in the way that the moon is dark compared to the sun. How a clear, full moon night is dark compared to even stormy days.

A very kind & compassionate deity who loves deeply, but is also somber & melancholic due to the hardships he's had to endure. Is gentlemanly, chivalrous, & polite, if extremely quiet & outwardly phlegmatic or stoic. So much so that he is selectively mute. Even still, he is vicious, even monstrous & merciless, in battle. You wrong those under his protection, expect nature's fury to come down on you.

The fact that his mask is referred to in Japanese as the Kishin no Kamen (鬼神の仮面), which actually lends credence to this as, as I've seen discussed before, in Japanese folklore Kishin (鬼神) are referred to as wrathful deities or demon gods, but you have to remember that the Japanese concept of demon is entirely different from the western or Judeo-Christian concept of demons. In a lot of ways, demon is a mistranslation & a more accurate one would be fae or genii.

The closest parallel that the Japanese have to the Judeo-Christian concept of demons are Akuma (悪魔) meaning devil. This being due to the use of the Kanji for evil (悪). While Ma (魔) is translated into evil spirit or demon in English, I feel that that is due to a cultural bias more so than being an actual indication of the moral tendencies of said spirits. After all, if these spirits were already evil by default, then what point would there be in specifying that Akuma were evil? To make them seem doubly evil?

Rather, Kishin are more so Oni Kami or Ogre Gods. And despite there being many evil ogres in Japanese lore, there are also many benevolent ones. Kishin specifically are based on a type of Hindu god known as Pāla, a.k.a. Protectors, which are depicted as being wrathful & fierce, even being described as scary-looking, but also compassionate & benevolent at their cores. These deities are said to exact just & righteous vengeance on behalf of the practitioners of Buddhism & are known to destroy obstacles on the path to humanity's enlightenment.

Thus being figures of duality & healthy masculinity in a way. As a good man is one who is strong, but also gentle. Is innately dangerous & even scary at times, but knows where he needs to aim it. Has those primal urges, but controls them. Often tough & possibly even stoic, having to do what's difficult because it is right, as well as a distributor of tough love & corrective punishment. However, as a result of this, is often seen as the bad guy & demonized by the shortsighted because of it. I think the Fierce Deity is similar.

However, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that there are depictions of Kishin in which they are known to eat people. At the same time, I do not know the specificity behind this. For all I know, they may eat any person, or they could instead only eat the wicked. I do not know. It requires further research.

Though, per prompting, I may make it so they don't actually eat people, but more so the souls of the most wicked of sinners. This is done to fast-track to process of the soul forgetting its previous life. Now, normally, it's best to let souls do this organically, however it never a good idea to just let evil spirits wander around unsupervised, spreading their On'nen everywhere.

There's also how Majora's Mask seems to parallel Buddhism in many ways.

And, as I've come to understand, in Japan, one wears an oni mask to bring safety, peace, & to avoid disasters.

At least, that's the cultural significance as I've been told.

At the same time, I also see him having several things in common with the Norse god, Týr. Who is both a god of war, but also justice & is depicted as being self-sacrificial & brave as well as being known as a noble & just god by virtue of having sacrificed his own hand to Fenrir in order to hold off Ragnarök. Which would very much parallel my story for him.

Anyway, within Japanese myth, Kishin are minor deities. However, here, Sheikaku is sort of the King of Kishin (remember, Hyrule's religion isn't actually Buddhism or Shintoism, merely inspired by it), so you could call him the Daikishin even though I don't think there is such a thing in Japanese mythos. In this way, he more resembles a Dharma Pāla.

Moving on, notice that when he's called the "bad guy" in MM, it's done by Majora, who is portrayed as a kid who's forcing Link to play a twisted game with them. And kids often see the one who stops their fun as being "bad." Add to that, the fact that Majora is the one trying to literally kill everyone in Termina & calling itself the "good guy" while doing so, I'm just not inclined to believe it. Which considering the fact that those who do bad things often see those who try to stop them or punish them as being "bad," actually makes sense. In this way, if we continue with the child imagery, this would paint the Fierce Deity as the responsible father figure who comes in at the end of playtime to tell the kids to put their toys away. Though, only in a symbolic way.

The Gyorg Mask child even questions if doing the right thing actually makes everyone happy & the truth of the matter is that no, it doesn't. Not everyone's gonna be happy no matter what you do & that's just reality. And this, I think, is the Fierce Deity's true role in MM.

Anyway, I think FD's sacred animals would be dragons, wolves, foxes, moths, & surprisingly rabbits, but he is also heavily associated with hawks, horses, & bucks. And that he was associated with music (specifically wind & string instruments) & nature/the wild which I think would be due to his less hectic childhood where he'd been a boy with a heart of gold & love of such things even if he could also be a bit mischievous at times, maybe a bit shy too. Back then, he'd been far more open, social, & outgoing than he is now. Some of his favorite pastimes are fishing & whittling since he was a little boy as it reminds him of hunting trips with his father, Hebrogar (who is an oc of mine), & his sister, Karina (another oc of mine). Has also always been extremely good with animals.

Interesting thing, he actually had the singing voice of an angel, but initially he was too shy, then later was too traumatized. As such, he mostly utilized his music magic through instruments. Despite this, the voice is the most powerful musical medium as it simply connects with the soul on a more intimate frequency than physical instruments can.

Another interesting thing being a connection to Farore based on this one fanfic I read that was really good! In it, he was Farore's son, so he'll be similar here.

The thing is, the core of the Fierce Deity is that no one told him to pick up the sword. No one pushed him into it. Instead, he chose to of his own accord when he realized that simply talking to the people who wanted to hurt those he was tasked with protecting would end in his wards being hurt or even killed. Thus began his journey to become a protector of Hyruleans & an avenger of wrongs.

As a man, he became known for using instruments to sooth the souls of the departed with the Song of Healing which he wrote & shepherded them off to the Realms Beyond Death in a manner similar to a pied piper. On occasion, he'd also have to fight them (namely the Poe enemies) to calm them down before sending them on.

Thus, making him somewhat analogous to the Dharma Pāla, Yama, the Hindu god of death & judge of the dead who presides over the cycle of the afterlife.

If so, then this might explain why Link is always able to see & interact with the spirits of the departed in one way or another. Why he can see the Poes. Why he can see the Shadow Soldiers upon the rock stacks in the Depths when no one else can. He's fulfilling his own bygone task from millennia gone by.

Fierce's magical elements are Twilight (which can be broken up into both Light & Shadow), as well as Spirit, Wind, Nature/Wild, & even Ice to a degree. He also has a natural inclination towards Music magic due to being a god of music.

I also subscribe to the theory that just like Zelda is the mortal reincarnation of Hylia & Ganondorf is the mortal incarnation of The Bringer of Demise's hatred, I believe that Link is the mortal reincarnation of the Fierce Deity & I'd like to know the story that led to him becoming mortal.

My guess is that he held off Demise while Hylia created the Goddess Sword, but was fatally injured in the process. At which point, rather than leave Hylia to fight Demise on her own, he chose to relinquish his godhood in death so that he'd be reborn as a human & be able to use the Triforce to save Hyrule from The Bringer of Demise. As only non-deities can use it.

At the same time, I see the Bargainer's Statues as being very early depictions of the Fierce Deity that act as "bunshin" for him in the same way that the Goddess Statues act as "bunshin" for Hylia.

However, as a result, this would mean that the Fierce Deity might've had 4 eyes in a similar way to how Rainbow Quartz from Steven Universe had 4 eyes. Which I'm very cool with!

I get the idea that, physical attribute-wise, his true form likely had a similar appearance to Sesshoumaru from Inuyasha, but with different facial markings, 4 eyes, & darker, more tanned skin resembling Impa's from Skyward Sword. Not to mention different clothes. Possibly with a look like a mix of what we associate the Fierce Deity with, but with a Depths Set script, & made to look like the armor of a Sheikah samurai of sorts, maybe with elements of the Mystic set, the Double Helix Sword acting as a Zanbatō.

I also think that he was, at least physically, more similar to TP Link in that he actually had some damn muscles on him & was specifically a hunk, not a twink nor even a twunk. A hunk. Not, like, Ganondorf levels of hunk, rather being more slim or compact in build, but still very muscular.

Anyway, "bunshin" are, again, something based on Japanese folklore. Though, I've heard it be described 2 ways: Bunshin & Bunrei. The first is the one that I'm going with, which is where deities are able to split themselves up into "bunshin" which are sort of regional versions of the 'source' god that govern over specific domains. Think Kage Bunshin from Naruto. Only one is real, but the others are able to accomplish tasks given to them by their source & have a much more limited well of power than the original.

The other, Bunrei, described thr Shintoist concept, process, & spirit produced as a result of said process. In which, theologically speaking, the Kami isn't supposed to be decreased in any way by the act, even functioning the same. It is specifically compared to the act of using a candle to light another candle.

However, I am personally gonna be taking a couple of creative liberties in certain instances & this happens to be one of them. If this were the case in my hc, then I'd have to get a bit more convoluted with things than I'd personally prefer. As such, I'm instead making it more similarly to the Kage Bunshin technique from Naruto. Which I've already gone into above. If this upsets anyone, my apologies, but I wanted to be upfront about the tweaks that I'm making.

Anyway, in this way, even though Hylia & the Fierce Deity themselves have both been reincarnated several times over, their bunshin still exist & are able to watch over Hyrule & the Depths via their statues. Thus, in a way, the statues' bunshin are like siblings to each other & the source god their parent in an abstract sense.

I also theorize that the Fierce Deity created the Sheikah in a similar way to how Hylia created the Hylians. Thus if the naming conventions hold, his true name would start with, or at least have, the word "Shei" or "Sheik" in it. I'm thinking of going with Sheikaku.

The Sheikah & Hylians having come forth from the union between the Fierce Deity & Hylia. Not as actual blood offspring, but as their spiritual children in a sense. The Sheikah actually came about first, then when the first Hylians came to be, the Fierce Deity instructed the Sheikah to always watch over their younger siblings as that is the duty that comes with being the eldest. As such, the truth is that the Sheikah weren't simply supposed to protect only the Royal Family, but the Hylians as a whole.

Similarly, Hylia is based on the Greek term Hylia presina meaning "sunny green" & is likely the ancient Hyrulean word for the sun as well. In this way, if the naming conventions do follow through, then I also think that "Shei" would be the ancient Hyrulean or Sheikan word for moon. Which would make sense because I see the Fierce Deity as having connections to the moon.

Also, the symbols on the Depths Set & the Dark Clumps are ancient Sheikah script. Those who were tasked with not only bringing spirits (non-combative poes) to the Bargainer Statues, but also fighting the Poe enemies on the Surface after the Fierce Deity gave up his immortality, were the Sheikah.

---

Something else I read somewhere that I quite liked was, "The never-ending battle between Zelda/Hylia and Ganondorf/Demise represents Chaos. Link brings order and balance to this conflict every time."

---

Either way, I'd love it if LoZ had more lore for him or made him a major focus of a game's plot.

At the same time, I wonder why there isn't anymore talk of the 3 golden goddesses? They used to be the main goddesses that people in Hyrule talked about. Now, it's all about Hylia & I wonder when this changed & why.

LoZ Cultural Masterlist

[kamidukki]

Hello again, BunAl.

Long post below the cut. Personal and random as usual.

It's been a long time since I last played this game. There was one time when I intended to get back into it but was too put off by how different everything was from what I remembered. I wasn't too keen on re-learning, especially when my Japanese skills were non-existent at that time. For a long time, my library was stuck in lv. 77.

I don't remember exactly what made me re-open it in late 2023 (maybe the hype leading up to the 7th anniversary?), but I did. Then I go to the wiki to check the list of writers I have missed obtaining during my absence. One particular writer gets me obsessed and before I knew it, I started logging in religiously, each day, without fail. Thrice a day, even.

The writer in question ⬇

Essentially, I kept playing because I wanted to know more about Bimyo, and in doing so, my interest was reignited, coming back stronger than when the first time I started. The first screenshot was taken back in early December 2023 to commemorate my leveling up to 100, something I never thought would happen. I grind every day just so I can obtain Bimyo's base/default outfits. If I was overwhelmed by the new mechanism before, I certainly wasn't this time. It all went through like a breeze like sudden enlightenment. I was no longer confused by how things worked, what material should I use, or when.

BIMYOOOooooOOOO!!! <3

I can't really find words enough to convey how much I love his あーた, or more precisely the way his VA (Kobayashi Yusuke) says it. The fact that it is a word more commonly used by women towards their husbands (courtesy of BunAl English wiki) doesn't help. As I read more content, I came to find his personality more and more endearing. I can only hope he'll be featured more in future events now.

Okay, it's all largely thanks to the wiki actually, lmao. But the thing is, I remember visiting it once and leaving still feeling very confused. That's no longer the case this time. Information is readily absorbed and understood upon reading once. Was I really that dumb before...

Anyway, since my understanding of the new system has mostly reached its best, I can definitely say BunAl has done great job of improvement. No more dying, easier grinding, fair gacha, etc. Design and illustrations are beautiful, but that's been the case since the start. (So yeah, I was positively that dumb before).

Well, to conclude this somewhat aimless post, I just want to say how grateful I am for the longevity of the game itself and the continuous support of the BunAl English wiki staff. I'm so glad I returned before something like an EOS announcement could happen. Unlike TKRB, or MHYK/YMKR/TWST, BunAl has always been more on the quieter side for a joseimuke game, so it's always a looming threat for me.

Lastly, another screenshot. Currently stuck at this stage, trying to beat tainted Yuzu.

[oh-for-fic-sake-library]

Anal?

Masterlist

Summary: its fun enlightening people isnt it?

Warnings : mentions of anal (surprise surprise) teasing, swearing, crack fic

A/N:just a funny little drabble based on banter and commeradery. Also i would 100% tease the fuck out of obi-wan i wanna make him blush so bad, and i know i could. I just know it!

"Aren't you excited to get home and enjoy that four letter word?" Cody asked, excited to be heading home for a few weeks' leave. The others took that as a queue for a little guessing game, each offering their own four letter word. love?,Food? Beer?

"Anal?" Everyone paused nd snapped their heads to you. You forwned but kepts chewing your mouthfull of cookie slowly, flicking your gaze between the others.

"A-anal? Y/n? What the fuck? Your a jedi!" Cody broke the awkward silence with a yell, waving at you animatedly.

"Oh What like i cant be a jedi and like anal at the same time?" You said with a scoff rolling your eyes before taking another bite of your cookie.

"Well i? No? But.!?" He tried to find the words to argue his point but you cut him off.

"Exactly. Butts" you smirked pointing to him with a suggestive raise pf your eyebrows.

"Fucking hell!"

"This discussion is very inappropriate" obiwan called from his seat across the room. Desperately trying npt to massaged his temples as he felt another head ache coming. He knew you would rile the others up. You cpuldnt help it it was in your nature, not even being raised in the temple could get rid of your sadistic streak. And by force did they try to teach it out of you.

"Like youve never tried butt stuff?" You grunted at the older man with a light sneer. Not about to be judged by so eone who'd probably played more 'hide the salami' then you ever had.

But the jedi master held firm, trying to keep a stern gaze, but flushed. His eyes gave him away. No, he had never explored to that degree.

"Wait youve neve smashed a girls back doors in?" You pondered out loud unable to fathom the attractive man had never been given the chance to lay some back door pipe.

"Oh my god you havent? Well shit i thought he got it from you?" You exclaimed pointing a thumb in Anakins direction whoch ,and a few of the others chuckle. Anakin frowned for a second and made to ask what you meant, but obi-wan got there first with a sputtering yelp.

"I beg your pardon?! Who got what from me exactly?" Obiwans voice grew high. Offended by the insinuation. Yet still asked just to clarify he hadnt misheard you.

"Well, you know you got anakin when you were young, i gathered he got that cocky adventourous sheet freak vibe from you? But now Im geussing not?" You shrugged

"Wait i give off sheet freak vibes?" Anakin asked from the door, a little too excitedly if you do say so yourself.

"Err yeah.... did you not know that? Like half the temple thinks your a kinky son of a btich... and they think you got it from him" you explained whilst slowly pointing to obiwan, who despite blushing looked completly blindsided. And appalled.

"Jedi have fantasy fucks?"

"Im stil, surprised to find out you guys have sex? Like kriff! You live in an actual temple" You rolled your eyes as the guys spoke out loud, completely confused. It was like they belived jedi were a differe speices. Idiots.

"We're not fucking abstinent. We just dont form relationships. We are free to fuck all we want;i mean damn you can fuck without being lovers. So in other words yes. Jedi women have fantasy fucks. And most of the ones i know;which is a fair few are sort of split into two camps. Obi-wan and Anakin. Some are simps for windu too but err. No thanks i tryto avoid that particular locker room talk"

"Im a fantasy fuck? Thats pretty awsome actually." Anakin laughed puffing his chest with pride. You giggled at him nodding, pleased that he atleast found it amusing.

"Thats the spirit" you praised him with a beaming grin.

"Anakin, y/n can you both just shut up? Please I just? I didnt need to know this type of thing happened in the temple." Obi-wan huffed pinching his brow. Clearly he was getting fed up with the two of you and your laid back attitudes. Honestly why the hell the council had paired you two together in the same troop he will never know. You both brought out the worst in each other.

"To be honest obi-wan, you should be proud, i mean being a temple fantasy fuck is quite something. We are a religious bunch... maybe sacrilegious now?" You teased lightly trying to lighten him up with so e jokes. He really was a stuck in the mud. But then again that stern yet caring disposition was what had granted him the 'daddy' moniker. His reply was a stern grunt of your name, warning you to pack it in.

"What? Im Tying'na make you feel better. No one likes a sad obi-wan. Especially the ladies at the temple" you pouted glearing at him crossing your arms. But he held your gaze, raising a brow.

"Am i a fantasy fuck in the temple" the question came from cody, sitting beside you. You paused for a moment before pointing at him a little.

"You know what? I'll ask around and get back to you on that cody" the conversation seemed to stall their, much to the jedi masters relief. Anakin looked to obi-wan seeing him relax, thanking the stars anal was jot the topic of discussion now. He smirked, he couldnt have that now could he?

"Sooo anal?" He asked, turing his head to you suggestively smirking, before sending you a not so subtl wink. Obi-wan deapanned before ha ing his head. Muttering ' For fuck sake anakin' under his breath.

"In your dreams pretty boy" you uttered smirking back at him enjoying the little tit for tat, and the fact anakin was in a playful mood, whoch was rare nowadays.

"Ah your an obi-wan kind of girl, gotcha" he grinned crossing his arms and tipping back to lean on the wall.the others laughed and began hooting like a bunch of overgrown teens.

"Fuck you!" You cursed glowering at him playfully.

"I just tried, but you turned me down" he coundptered sending the clones into peals of laughter as your face turned red and yo tried to find some scathing reply.

"Anakin stop it!" Obi-wan chided half heartedly. He couldnt help it, deep down he did enjoy seeing the old playfull anakin rear his head. It was rare.

"Oh i think the feelings mutual. Lucky obi-wan y/n~" you flushed brighter and squeaked. The grin on obi-wan's face dropped and he began scolding him. But as usual it fell on deaf ears.

"Thats not fair! Jedi get the force, the sabers, and now anal?!" Cody cried raising his hands in a 'what the fuck' gesture. You threw your head back laughing at the list of jedi perks. Even anakin broke out into a thunderous laugh. Clearly the man had done the back door break in probably to avoid pregnancy; much like you if your honest.

"no one is getting anal; dont you dare give me that look y/n" obi-wan stated making the room break out into a chorus of groans. Yoh giggled though, your pout had caught iphis attention.

"Boring old fart" you snipped slumpjng back into your seat with a grunt.

"Hey! Watch it" he growled snapping his fingers whislt pojntjng at you.

"What ever you say daddy~" you laughed when his composure slipped and his cheeks glowed. You smirked at him. Gotcha! He rolled his eyes waving a hand at you before slipping away from the group with a sigh. By know youd thought he'd learn youd do anything to rile him up. Teasing was pretty much the only fun you got. Well untill you got so e leave and found a little fuck boy.

[historia-vitae-magistras]

Hi! I really loved a post you made earlier about how society is only now returning to a variety of religious beliefs and was wondering if you could talk more about it. Any thoughts on countries taking up their original religions? Magnus and asatru? Rhys or his siblings with druidism?

TW discussions of religion, religious skepticism and fictional depictions of religion in historical fantasy. I feel like they pick up things they themselves remember but the modern human iteration is... Meh. No shade to believers, I did some time with the Nordic pantheon before the Nazis took it over but the modern iterations of almost all European pre-Christian religions are unfortunately mostly constructed between the 18th and 20th centuries. Almost none of it dates back further than revivals during the enlightenment. Would they see echoes of their lived experience in these revivals? Sure. I just don't know if they'd be adherents to the modern form when they can remember at least some of the real thing, otherwise now dead and gone. So I do think there's things in them that survive but they can't quite look at modern paganism as a belief system.

But two parts I think would really feel important to them: a lot of the pagan revivals are about a rejection of the Calvinist themes of Reformation and counter-reformation Christianity that emphasize individuality, created the belief of the elect who are saved by god and stripped Christianity of a lot of its older emphasis on community and mutual aid and responsibility. I think a lot of the pagan revivalism would very much appeal there and in its counter-culture themes.

And second, because I'm a weirdo who uses hetalia to get into really niche topics and practice writing historical fiction I want to publish when I'm grown, I try to stick to what we actually know. I want to replicate the perspectives of history. The fantastical aspects are often just adaptations of what magic was actually believed in, as far as I can adapt from a very limited pool of knowledge. I have written Alasdair carving the symbols we have from some Pictish standing stones and Ogham, a Gaelic form of literacy into objects and sacred trees to make them into portals and protective objects. I have written Arthur's primary contact with their mother as being not when he visits the site of her barrow and the Kirk that gives them their name that was later built on he same site, but after he drowns or is caught in a storm, because we know the Britons of prehistory and the Roman era and even into the early medieval believed water was a kind of portal between this world and the sacred. I gave Rhys their mother's bronze age sword because magic swords are everywhere in every flavor of Celtic Mythology. Arthur keeps Cromwell's head on the mantel partially because he's a stubborn fuck who can hold a grudge for centuries but also because we know that the ancient Celts believed the head specifically to be a very powerful magical object.

Norse paganism as we know it today is based on things like the Icelandic Sagas and the descriptions of the temple of Uppsala by Adam of Bremen. Those are fantastic documents but they only come into being centuries after the end of the Viking age and are written by Christians, usually clerics, and usually men. Our heads are full of images of powerful priestesses, shield maidens and goddesses, but more than a third of human women were starved as children compared to under ten percent of boys. Every Norse grave is different, with only general categories being able to be sussed put based on grave goods, the style of inhumation or cremation and marking ships or stones. We just don't know fuck all about the specifics what the people of this era really believed.

Or with the British celts. We know what the Romans said. That they burned criminals in wicker men, committed human sacrifice, that the Romans slaughtered the druids on Anglesey in Wales. We know the names of their gods when they are twinned with Roman ones or archaeologists find inscriptions. But so many of them are only known by one or two inscriptions. There are only eight for Brigantia and she was the patron goddess for the largest tribe by territory in Iron Age Britain. We know they offered sacrifices of value to bodies of water, we know from medieval Irish sources, also written by Christians, that they had 4 holidays aligning with the seasons and divided the year into half light half dark. But we don't know shit about songs or prayers or even how much the Romans made the fuck up. Which was likely most of it but we'll never know. What the Picts in Scotland may have believed is especially lost, we don't even have most of their language or even sheep counting like Cumbrian.

There's been a lot of push back against terms prehistory and dark ages and rightly so in that they conjure images of a filthy past, people living in their own shit and grim misery. But on a historical level, on an archival level, there really are such things as dark ages and prehistory where we just do not know the details and when discussing and writing religion I err towards what we know the most about, especially where archaeology and history can support each other.

[dragonmuse]

YAY Ivan and Fang! What are their reactions to Lucius dating Izzy and how long does it take Izzy to be willing (and therapized enough) to sort apologize to them? He did it for Eddy, I feel like he'd end up doing it for Ivan and Fang as well.

(you got it!)

It took a few weeks before Fang was thoroughly convinced that Lucius could handle whatever was happening with Izzy. The man seemed none the worse for wear, was if anything beautifully obnoxiously pleased with himself. 

“Do you mind, sweetheart?” Lucius asked, belatedly, nearly a month on. “I didn’t think about that, I’m sorry.” 

“No need,” Fang assured him. They were going through closing rituals, the Swede sweeping behind them as they put up chairs.  “Your choice. Wouldn’t be mine.” 

“Man is a nightmare,” Ivan agreed.  

“Yeah, I can imagine working for him wasn’t fun,” Lucius glanced between them. “I’ll make sure he gives you both a wide berth.” 

That was fine by Fang. It wasn’t that he hated Izzy particularly. The man had been rough, crude and unnecessarily harsh, but no one in their line of work had been particularly cuddly or warm. Certainly Eddy had been just as capable of casual cruelty though she had generally been more fun on the day to day. Easy to hang out with, if not to get to know. Fang had learned more about her in the last few months than all the years working directly under her that was for sure. 

No, Izzy had kept them alive, made sure they all get paid not one dime less than what they were owed, and kept the place ticking over. But he wasn’t going to be your friend while he did it. He didn’t want to know what shows you’d been watching or how your mother was doing. But he wouldn’t use any other name than the one you said you wanted to go by, no matter what he had to print on checks, and he’d gone out drinking with them every weekend, arbitrated inebriated squabbles and usually kept anyone from doing each other permanent harm. 

“He was an asshole,” Ivan summed up when Pete asked him one night. “But he was our asshole.” 

“Yeah,” Fang nodded. “He was an asshole on our side.” 

“So you think he’s...he wouldn’t hurt Lucius?” 

“Don’t think so,” Fang frowned.  “He’d push us around sometimes, but that was just the way we did things. Don’t think he’d try that on a civilian. Never saw him do it anyway. ” 

“Me either,” Ivan agreed. “Might hurt his feelings though.” 

“Can’t do shit about that,” Pete muttered and they nodded along in sympathy. 

It was easy to forget it was happening at all after a few weeks. The bar kept on, Lucius was his usual self, and no one mentioned it. 

Fang was home with a cold the night that Izzy came back to the bar. Ivan had to tell him about it, but the man wasn’t  much of a gossip, so it had to wait an agonizing week before Fang got actual details. 

“Eddy just took him outside,” Frenchie told him. She flicked her brush at him, dusting gold over Fang’s nose. He always liked a little shine and Frenchie liked to anoint him when he stopped by to chat. “The rumor is that his ban’s been lifted.” 

“How solid a rumor?”

“Paper is off the cash register.” 

“Huh.” 

“Right? Is this guy the devil or something? Scarier than Eddy? I don’t get it.” 

“Not scarier,” Fang didn’t even have to think that one through. “Maybe the same amount in different ways.” 

Izzy was fast, but more final. Easy to predict too. Eddy could come at you sideways and you never knew when it would end. 

“Don’t love the sound of that.” 

Fang had no comfort to offer. He wasn’t sure the Revenge folk knew the kind of things he and Ivan had done just as easily as Eddy or Izzy. They seemed to know that they’d worked with Eddy once, but not followed that thought to its natural conclusion. Neither Fang nor Ivan sought to enlighten them on that point.  

It was nice, really. No one was scared of them here except the occasional rough bar patron. They weren’t in a rush to change that. Maybe Izzy wanted that too. Seemed unlikely, but hey, who was Fang to say?

So when Izzy came to the front door on a Friday night a few weeks later, looking ready to run off in the other direction, Fang just took a step back from the door and let him in. They said nothing to each other, strangers in this new strange place. Izzy went straight for the bar, picking the seat that Fang could’ve predicted he would: the barstool in the furthest corner, back to the wall with a few of the room and shadows to hide in. 

Ivan watched him from across the room then caught Fang’s eyes. They spoke into the silence, fingers and eyes and eyebrows. They settled on ‘Fine. Monitor.’  

Izzy sat, Lucius buzzed over to him, fussed a little, gave him a drink that didn’t look like anything Izzy would ever order, then left him there. 

And Izzy just stayed. He talked to no one, but he also bothered no one. He finished his drink. He watched the show. After, Lucius came down and flirted a little with him, brushed a kiss over his lips. Then Izzy stood up and left. 

Fang wasn’t sure if he was more relieved or confused. 

“Guess that’s done,” Ivan shrugged. 

But it wasn’t done. Izzy came back every few weeks. Every time, he just sat down at the bar and had his drink, watched the show then left. It went from being an event that caused ripples of talk and gossip to another quiet regular. There were a few like that, people who came in alone and spoke little.  

It was hard to say when the thaw came. It was probably Pete first, coming down still in makeup to ask Izzy something. Fang caught the moment already in progress, the two of them chatting amiably.  Or maybe it was Eddy herself, grabbing a bottle of water and giving Izzy an acknowledging nod. That turned into a more regular ‘hello, how goes?’ sort of thing, the two of them cautiously talking.

That was weird to see too. Once upon a time, the two of them had been thick as thieves and twice as mean to each other as they were to anyone else. But they both seemed to thrive like that, biting and clawing, teasing too hard, but still making each other laugh sometimes and seemingly reading each other’s minds on occasion. 

This stilted acknowledgement was almost painful to see. A well oiled machine, left to rust on the side of the road, abandoned, rotting and now trying to restart with a wheeze.  But it was running. That was something. 

Then on a very ordinary Friday night, Izzy didn’t leave as the bar closed down. He sat, quiet as anything, so still that Fang almost missed him. He was supposed to make sure everyone left for the night, but the idea of telling Izzy to leave felt insurmountable. They hadn’t exchanged a word in nearly a year now and it seemed bad to break that silence with a request to get the hell out. 

“It’s okay,” Lucius swung through before Fang worked up the nerve. “He wants to talk to you and Ivan, actually.” 

“....why?” he frowned. 

“Because it’s overdue. I’ll take care of the chairs. You want a drink? Think Ivan will?” 

They both got a beer and warily sat at the bar together. A short whispered conversation had produced no idea of what this might be about. They did agree that if he asked them to do anything like work that they would just leave. No need to argue. They could walk away now. 

Izzy turned to face them. He looked just the same and yet entirely different. There was something different about his face these days, some permanent tightness that had unwound. His clothes were all softer looking. He blended in better. Could’ve been anyone in a crowd. 

“You’ve both been....good. About not giving me shit being here.” 

“Why would we?” Fang shrugged. “Free country.” 

“You could’ve,” Izzy looked away. “Would’ve deserved that and more. Was a dick to the both of you.” 

Ivan elbowed Fang a little. Wild disbelief. 

“Uh, yeah. You were. A lot.” 

Izzy nodded. He rubbed his thumb over his fingertips, slow circles. “So. Sorry. For that.” 

Sorry. Could’ve knocked Fang over with a feather. 

“You are?” 

“Yeah, isn’t that fucking hysterical?” Izzy shook his head, not sounding at all amused. “You were good at your jobs. Better than the rest of them. Glad you found somewhere that treats you better.” 

“It does,” Ivan said quietly. 

“The free drinks alone,” Fang said, lifting his beer. “And less near death. Lot less. Been good for the ole body and soul.” 

Izzy nearly smiled at that, “Bit of a motherfucker, isn’t it?” 

It was, actually. Years of living the ‘high life’, thinking that nothing was better than running into danger and coming out richer for it and it turned out that it was far nicer to just stand by a door and gently usher out minors and drunks. It was so much better to go home at the same time every night and not think when you left for work ‘hope I make it home again’. 

“Fucking weird,” Ivan agreed. 

“To fucking weird,” Fang decided, raising his glass. 

Izzy lifted the glass that had the last dregs of some iridescent cocktail. The three of them clanged their glasses together and drank. 

It was still awkward for a while, trying to figure out how to talk to each other, but Fang at least said hello when Izzy came in and Izzy always said it back after that. One night, Izzy asked on his way in, 

“You still collect rocks?” 

“Sometimes.” 

And Izzy pulled out of his pocket a small stone, threaded in silver. 

“Found it on a rooftop. No fucking idea what it was doing there.” He held it out and it took Fang a second to realize he should hold out his hand. Izzy didn’t snap at him for taking the time to figure it out, just dropped the rock in once he did. “Mica, maybe.” 

“Yeah, maybe,” Fang held it up to study. “Thanks.” 

“Whatever,” Izzy shrugged. “Just a rock.” 

Fang held onto it as he watched Izzy take up his usual barstool, leaning in to receive a kiss from Lucius. 

It was not just a rock. Fang added it to the collection when he got home, putting it in a place of pride.