#this took me a while trying to DECIDE

[princeofhags]

I did the thing

[dol--blathanna]

Thinking a lot about Orym choosing a rabbit when asked what animal he would pick if cursed with lycanthropy.

Because, it makes sense. Orym is small, quick, agile, jumps well, and is highly perceptive. That definitely evokes rabbit imagery. But a lot of Orym’s identity is also tied up with being a protector – giving people AC bumps, the shield being as much a part of his fighting style as his sword, even his title: Saviour Blade of the Tempest. He wants to be a “Shield that protects Exandria”; his priorities about saving the gods are less about the gods themselves, and more about protecting the people of Exandria from the unintended consequences and bloodshed of releasing Predathos. And it would’ve been very easy to pick a large, strong predator to try and evoke the sense of a protector – a wolf, for example, an animal associated with loyalty and protecting its pack. Yet Orym chose a rabbit.

And I think that’s interesting, because rabbits are often seen as ‘cute’ animals – but they’re also a prey animal. In fact, they’re a common food source for many animals across several ecosystems: foxes, wolves, wild cats, dogs, birds of prey like eagles or owls, coyotes, stoats, and humans (and that’s just off the top of my head). Rabbits are skittish, easily frightened; to be rabbit-hearted is to be timid or cowardly. They are not generally associated with fierceness or prowess in fighting. Mice and rats are prey animals too, but typically seen as vermin (rabbits are sometimes seen as vermin too, but a farmer could eat a rabbit – they wouldn’t eat a rat). Deer are prey, but they have hooves and antlers that bring a danger to hunting them, for any animal – the difficulties of hunting rabbits are more related to their evasiveness, speed and good hearing than any life-threatening danger they might pose. Rabbits are, first and foremost, prey animals. They are killed and eaten, so that another animal might live.

Which made me think a lot about one of Orym’s other key traits: self-sacrifice. Bait and switch doesn’t just bump up his ally’s ACs, it specifically switches their place to put him directly in harm’s way. Goading attack is meant to encourage enemies to attack him instead of his friends. He literally made a deal with a hag, essentially exchanging his own life for power to protect his friends. How many times has he gone down in a fight? He’s not the only tank – but unlike Ashton (and Chetney, who also uses ‘self-sacrifice’ in his fighting style with his blood curses) he has no abilities to reduce the damage from the hits he takes (barbarian rage and the werewolf form).

(Side note: I think it’s pretty interesting that Chetney, the wolf, has attacked Orym, the rabbit, more than anyone else when losing control. That Orym’s facial scar was given to him by a friend, not a foe).

Of course, Orym isn’t the only character with self-sacrificial tendencies (FCG wins by a landslide), but I just can’t stop thinking about how weirdly perfect it is that he chose a rabbit for his animal. Rabbits are prey animals. They are eaten, so that other animals may live. Orym takes the hits, he goads and switches with his team mates to put himself in danger, he makes a deal with a hag at the cost of his own life. He’s a soldier, throwing his life away for a cause over and over again because Ludinus must be stopped, because Keyleth has put her trust in him, because it’s the only way to protect his friends, to protect everyone, because it’s the right thing to do. Orym is a rabbit. He’s always been a rabbit. That day in Zephrah, it could have easily been Orym who died instead of Will and Derrig – “unfortunate but necessary sacrifices”, as Ludinus viewed the attack. It’s unfortunate they had to die, but it was for the greater good, according to Ludinus. It’s unfortunate that a rabbit has to die, but it will feed a family of foxes, or stoats, or even a hungry human, so it’s acceptable, right?

Orym is a rabbit. He is giving himself to a greater cause that could very easily kill him – he already willingly signed his life away to Nana Morri. Because that’s what rabbits do. They die to feed others.

And the theme of being disposable is present across the entire group, not just in Orym – Bell’s Hells has been called a “party of NPCs” before. Aside from FCG’s death, I’d say Laudna perhaps fits this theme the best: she was literally murdered and hung from a tree simply because she looked similar to Vex, acting as a warning to adventurers she had never met before. But FCG’s death was – rightfully – viewed as a terrible tragedy by the group. Laudna’s decision to remove Delilah, finally freeing herself from her abuser and emphasising she is more, and deserves to be more, than just some disposable puppet – this was rightfully viewed as a very good thing! But Orym seems to be embracing this identity of self-sacrifice instead, rather than this mindset being properly challenged or acknowledged as a bad thing. After all, there’s no time. There’s too much at stake. Keyleth, Bell’s Hells, all the memories of those who have died in this fight, all the people who might die if Predathos is released and kickstarts a second Calamity – they’re all relying on him, right? A rabbit feeding so many animals with his sacrifice. And it’s not malicious compared to the way that, say, Delilah killing Laudna was an incredibly evil, fucked up and unnecessary thing to do. If Orym died to save everyone else, well, at least everyone else would be saved, right? Saving lives is good, isn't it? How could he complain?

Because rabbits are prey animals, and Orym is a rabbit too. Destined to die so that another animal may feed.

Except, that’s not true. Rabbits are more than just prey. They’re highly social, and thrive best living with others. They’re playful, they enjoy running around and kicking their legs just to show their enjoyment. They’re inquisitive and mischievous, even being associated with tricksters in some folklore and stories. They’re also associated with innocence, playfulness, spring, youth – all manner of things, depending on the story or culture. And they’re not helpless, either, even if they might be thought of as such. They can bite and scratch and draw blood quite easily if they want to! In fact, freezing up isn’t their only response when being attacked by a predator, they are known to fight back if cornered. They can sprint quickly, they have excellent hearing and senses of smell, they know how to evade predators.

Rabbits are prey, and they are also survivors. They have their own social dynamics, their own habits and dislikes and preferences. They are more than just a wolf’s meal. And Orym is more than a soldier, too. He’s more than a “necessary sacrifice”, he’s more than just a shield and sword. He deserves more than to die for a cause. He deserves a happy ending, just like everyone else. I hope he remembers that.

Orym is a rabbit. And the message isn’t that he shouldn’t be a rabbit. It’s that rabbits are worthy of surviving, too.

[plasticsandwich]

thank you for over 1k followers!! wrapped up this special gift for yous

[thatgoddamngingerundercut]

and I begin to bloom like a lotus flower once again the Agust D trilogy

[p1x1x]

[littlebittyhollowbugs]

AAAAAAAAAAA I just beat NKG on radiant !!!!!!!!!!

[dimsilver]

☀️

[textingtroublesanswers]

It seems so! Though from what I understand it's not as strong as from an animal or human source, so you end up needing more plant matter and to do more refinement, but people will still grow these hybrid healing plants at home for minor injuries and wounds. I've heard of people growing a variety hybridized with mint since it's very hardy and easy to spread. It just can be a little difficult to get your hands on one of these plants in my time. You either get ones that are more difficult to keep alive but do a better job of healing or you get hardier plants but the healing factor isn't as strong.

Though before all the science was going towards the... whole.... parasite... thing... I'd heard they were trying to see if they could use mushrooms too, seeing as the healing factor seemed to mess with the chlorophyll of plants, but if they can get it to work with mushrooms there's no chlorophyll to effect!

Maybe looking into either avenue could be beneficial!

-🦖

(I love science fiction, I love theoretical science, I love science that may someday become reality, I love youuuuu。･:*:･(✿◕3◕)❤)

Mod B: I'm not a huge fan of sci-fi, especially sci-fi that takes place in space or on other plants, but man do I adore some speculative biology!

Ludwig watches you carefully as you talk, nodding along in certain moments, "Mhm, I see. That is all very fascinating. I will have to look into this myself, maybe I'll manage to start the research process for such plants earlier in this timeline than in your original one. I will have to bring back one of these plants with me when we go to the future." He bounces Maria on his knee a bit, looking around himself for something to write on.

[food-lover9000]

Limited Illustra Order of all the LI’s for year one!

Spoilers for future limited Illustras!

These banner charts are only for the first year but I do intend on making these for the second and third years when I get the time. (Year one is 2024 for global and 2021 for CN)

The dates are the dates when they ran in the CN server so take them with a heavy helping of salt since global is going faster

And the ones in light grey are reruns and white is original/first run

[seagull-scribbles]

ʟᴇᴛ'ꜱ ɢᴏ ᴘᴀɪɴᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴏᴡɴ ᴏɴ ᴏᴜʀ ᴡᴀʏ ʜᴏᴍᴇ,

ᴛʜᴇ ʙʟɪɴᴋɪɴɢ ʟɪɢʜᴛꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ʙʀᴇᴀᴋɪɴɢ ʙᴏɴᴇꜱ

[thebramblewood]

Cool older sister tempting you to the dark side.

[apocalypticdemon]

I am so beyond ready to quit this job. Wednesday cannot come fast enough.

[whimsicalcotton]

apf 20 :O

20 - on a scar

so i ended up setting this somewhere vaguely in the polluted marrow-verse bc How Could I Not w that prompt combo <3

CW for some talk of self-harm

Max won't stop giving her this look.

Chloe's grown used to the weight of her wide-eyed stare — well, sort of — but this feels somehow different. Heavier, hesitant. 

It started midway through their trip. Rachel had called a little earlier in the evening, waxing poetic about her long day and asking if they wanted to pick her up and head out for a bit to de-stress. So Chloe hopped in the truck with Max in tow, and after rescuing Rachel from the dungeon known as Blackwell's dormitories, they’d decided that then was as good a time as any to introduce Max to their tradition of impromptu midnight picnics. One stop at the convenience store and several bags of sweets later, they’ve all settled down in the flatbed, half huddled together and watching the stars between bites. 

Rachel's hoarding a bag of skittles and spinning a tale of Andromeda’s chains when Max starts shivering. Chloe interrupts to ask if they want to head back and is shot down in short order by two different pouts and a dramatic whine of, “No way, I'm just getting to the good part.” So instead she squirms out of her jacket and insists on handing it off to Max, hoping it still carries a bit of residual heat. 

That's when Max starts looking. Bushy little brows upturned in quiet concern, moving to absentmindedly fidget with the jacket collar. It’s something Chloe has come to recognize as a mark of overthinking, a sign that Max is worrying far too much about something more than likely out of her control. 

“Yo, Mad Max,” Chloe calls over to her as Rachel finishes. “C’mere.” She shifts a bit and motions in invitation for Max to come snuggle up to her. Max wastes no time making good on the offer. “What’s with the sad puppy eyes? Whatcha thinkin’ about?”

Rachel moves a little closer too, leans into Chloe’s other side. “I think,” she murmurs, reaching down to run her fingertips over a patch of raised skin on the inside of Chloe’s forearm, feather-light. “She’s worried about these. Am I right?”

Max nods, timid and tentative.

Chloe forgets about her scars, sometimes. She’s used to them. Used to covering them up without a second thought, used to glancing them over, used to ignoring them for the sake of surviving a hot summer day. A good chunk of them are even hidden amidst her tattoo at this point, and she’s learned to ignore what few remain in the open. By now they’ve grown pale and thick with age, not having seen the returning glint of a sharp edge in a long while. Which is a good thing, she supposes; even if their discoloration and visible shift in texture make them almost as easy to spot as when they were fresh. 

“Oh.” She swallows hard, takes a sudden interest in examining the scuffs of her boots. “Don’t stress yourself out about it, Max. They’re getting pretty old. No worries, yeah?”

But Max remains unconvinced. She nestles herself further into Chloe, holds the girl's arm in both of hers and hides her face in the crook of her neck. “M’sorry,” she whispers, half lost to the dark.

Before Chloe can even think of an adequate reassurance, Rachel answers for her.

“Hey, it’s okay,” she offers with a soft smile. “I took care of them.” She turns up to Chloe again, donning a slightly more unimpressed expression. “Most of them. When you’d let me, anyways.”

“Oi, I don’t think now is the time for petty technicals.”

“What, like she doesn’t already know how stubborn you can be?” Rachel counters in a lighthearted scoff. She laces their fingers together, gives Chloe’s hand a gentle squeeze. “My point is, you weren’t dealing with it alone. You had me looking after you.” 

They're quiet, for a minute or two, before Max finds her voice. “G-Good,” she says, emerging from her hiding place just long enough to pull back and nuzzle into Chloe’s shoulder. She presses a soft, cottony kiss to one of the less visible scars lurking amongst curls of inky thorn and ribbon. Then another, then another. “Thank you.”

Chloe bites back a shiver of her own.

[loppiopio]

an imitation of the cheap variety

[stellewriites]

post four of ur fictional crushes

thanks for the tags @glossysoap & @kyletogaz!!

luke crain from thohh, kyle garrick from cod, faith lehane from btvs, and miguel/2099 from sm:atsv

tagging (no pressure): @mikichko @kavekki @gemmahale @syoddeye @spidehpig @edmundpevensiesqueen @kennapotterblack and anyone else who wants to give it a go!!

[soni-dragon]

Never ever EVER buy household appliances with ai in them. Most ridiculous things I’ve ever encountered