#until dawn game theory

[an-architect-of-words]

Why the “Josh was misdiagnosed” theory is very likely incorrect. (Reworded)

Yeah, I know I did a post on this, but I liked my articulation of it better on Reddit, so I’m reposting.

Josh being misdiagnosed has been one of the most popular fan-canons since 2015, but way more indicates that the schizophrenic behavior was caused by Phenelzine withdrawal.

I think the misdiagnosis theory is popular because it’s so tragic and unfair (not that Josh’s story isn’t tragic already). It also allows us to feel more sympathy for Josh while placing some blame on outside characters (the failure of five doctors!)… But the misdiagnosis theory doesn’t have nearly as much supporting it as the withdrawal theory does. All the details we get are telling us that Josh has been depressed since childhood, but developed the schizophrenic symptoms much more recently.

Breakdown

The last drug Josh was on was Phenelzine. The story indicates, from Hill’s text messages (and from a line Chris says about Josh being off his meds) that Josh suddenly stopped taking this medication. Here are some relevant details:

1. BAD HISTORY WITH TAPERING— Josh has a bad history with drug tapering: (Referred on 11/29/2013 after patient's response to drugs tapered badly). The report also mentions that electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was considered due to Josh’s history with tapering.

2. POSITIVE FINAL CONSULTATION— The end of Josh’s report shows that the Phenelzine worked. Josh said that he was doing better, and Hill decided Josh could be discharged. I think this detail is important because— unless Josh was lying— it indicates that the Phenelzine was affective for the condition he had. But it ALSO gives us a reason for Josh to have stopped taking his meds.

The report lists the Phenelzine‘s withdrawal symptoms.

Nightmares

Hallucinations

Catatonia

Shocks

Agitation

Aggression

Slurred speech

Ataxia

Paranoia

Insomnia

Many of these side effects are linked. Hallucinations and catatonia can go hand-in-hand, for example. The scene when Josh is dazed in front of Mike and Sam has some elements of both schizophrenia and catatonia in it. Slurred speech and ataxia are both on here, and Josh definitely shows odd, erratic, and slurred speech patterns. (I think ataxia is more about coordination? But it can affect speech). To be honest, you can point out moments in-game that are symptomatic of most of these.

Finally, we get dialogue that suggests that Josh’s really schizophrenic behavior is new. For example, Mike asks Chris if he’s ever seen Josh behave this way. Chris says he never has. Because Chris and Josh have known each other for around ten years, this question and answer stands out.

Conclusion (TL;DR)

I can’t speak to the accuracy of all the medical stuff in here; that’s a different can of worms. I am just saying the writers did all the following— A) gave a list of drug withdrawal symptoms, B) told us that Josh might have stopped taking his meds, C) made sure to show Josh exhibiting the withdrawal symptoms they already mentioned, D) explained that some of this behavior feels new. Conversely, there’s not much included to show that he was misdiagnosed. We have one doctor disagreeing with Josh on treatment. But we don’t have the same story-in-the-details that we do for the withdrawal theory.

Hill medicated correctly, for what Josh had at the time: depression. The schizophrenic-like behavior only started after the depression meds weren’t tapered correctly.

[criminey-christmas]

i don’t know why i still remember this but back when until dawn first came out, i watched mark and jack’s playthroughs first. when it got to josh having his breakdown when mike and chris were tying him up in the shed, they were both kinda laughing and being like why are you being so weird

then i watched emma blackery’s playthrough and she said how sad the scene was. and i just remember thinking how true that was. we were watching a kid’s mental breakdown; watching his mask fall and seeing what he was actually thinking and going through after losing his sisters. his delusion of power and perception of reality was broken and seeing how quickly he declined mentally was heartbreaking. and it’s only made worse later in the game when we find his transcripts from his therapists and see him experience auditory and visual hallucinations

it’s just interesting how the scene hits completely different to people who have faced mental illness than to people that haven’t

[prince-kallisto]

Cradle Tower Incubator & the Dark Mirror Chamber (Meleanor Dark Mirror Theory)

My dear @snakevsnis pointed out to me the similar vibes between Cradle Tower and the Mirror Chamber, and my mind sparked to life! As I was editing the video in my previous analysis post, I realized several things about the Dark Mirror in the prologue that takes on a new context with this recent update of Book 7 Chapter 6

I believe there are visual similarities in the arrangements of Cradle Tower and the Mirror Chamber, or at least with the composition/shape language of it. In Cradle Tower, the egg goes in the center, with a tall column above and below it. There is there “cage” with glowing green lights

In the Mirror Chamber, the Dark Mirror does have this egg-like shape, with the coffins with green lights surrounding it, with the windows/structure in the background that has a similar vibe to Cradle Tower. And in replacement of the column holding the egg, there is a column of glowing green light going down the center of the Mirror. It even has similar dangling green jewels around the ceiling like the Cradle Tower

But like I said, as I was editing the video of my previous post, I realized something. In the Prologue, when the green flames in the mirror flash as Crowley speaks to it, it is extremely similar to the green flames that Malleus AND Meleanor emit when appearing.

Further more, at the very VERY beginning of the prologue, there is darkness before showing the mirror chamber. However, there is this black fog covering the mirror until Crowley speaks to it. A black fog? Like the one that has notably been appearing in dream world, like when Silver realized his connection to the Knight of Dawn, and Lilia beginning to lose himself him to the darkness after Meleanor’s death. Baul and Lilia also believed that Meleanor Overblotted before her death, due to the rise of this black fog and thorns in the area.

What’s really the cherry on top for me is how a hand reaches out from the mirror after this black fog and the GREEN FLAMES, flames which in this game, have only been associated with the Draconia family. And with a hand that, with a closer look at the in-game assets, looks a lot like Meleanor’s hand if her gloves were removed.

So what does Cradle Tower have to do with this theory? I think the visual similarities are purposeful: implying the exact purpose that Crowley or Maleficia or whoever has in store for the Dark Mirror. An incubator is an enclosed, controlled environment/apparatus that will artificially raise and hatch an egg. If we apply this line of thinking to the Mirror Chamber, assuming Meleanor is trapped inside the Dark Mirror, some part of her has been artificially kept alive in the mirror, trapped until she can released (perhaps when she gathers enough blot?), much like a hatching egg. Because who knows, maybe the Dark Mirror will shatter and be destroyed if Meleanor is released, furthering this imagery of an egg.

And looking at the Mirror Chamber in the prologue again, there is a beam of light going through the mirro, and a green fountain below. The chamber is even in an enclosed area too. A controlled light…water source potentially for humidity…and an enclosed area. Perhaps the Mirror Chamber is serving as a protection, or even as a literal incubator to the Dark Mirror???

ADDITIONALLY, we learn in Fairy Gala that the temperature of NRC and its dorms are artificially controlled with a huge magestone. The more I think about it, NRC and the Mirror Chamber meet all the “technical” conditions for an Incubator. I LOST IT when I rewatched this scene in Fairy Gala, because CROWLEY SPECIFICALLY KEEPS IT IN THE MIRROR CHAMBER, THAT HE FORBIDS PEOPLE FROM ENTERING WITHOUT HIS PERMISSION. IN THE MIRROR CHAMBER HELPPP 😭😭😭 The Magestone is huge too, so it could possibly doubly serve as a magic source for the Dark Mirror.

And further more, dragon eggs can only be hatched with true love. In the Prologue, Crowley is practically worshipping the Dark Mirror or someone in it, his “proud, beautiful flower of evil.” In all technicalities, Crowley has recreated this Cradle Tower at Night Raven College, with controlled lighting, controlled temperature, a water/humidity source, an enclosed area, a magic source, and possibly true love. NSJXJXBSJSJCJXSJB

FURTHERMORE, Book 7 has begun to go into interesting extent of possibilities of technology and magic in the Twisted Wonderland world. For example, Ortho brings up the Crystal radio, and how a silver cap on a tooth MEETS THE RIGHT CONDITIONS to work as a radio, saying they weren’t intended that way, but “it just a coincidence that they do.”. He then elaborates that the mirror in Ramshackle Dorm could also potentially meet the right conditions for a Viewglass. Two examples of things not intended for something, but meeting the right conditions…much like a Mirror Chamber that could meet the right conditions for an incubator.

HELP DOES ANYONE SEE MY VISION??? 🐦‍⬛🐦‍⬛🐦‍⬛🐦‍⬛

[srbachchan]

DAY 5919

StWork, Mumbai May 2, 2024 Thu 12:49 PM

Birthday - EF - Elena Iankova Friday, 3 May .. and all our wishes for a happy birthday

🌹

Yo !

here before time for a very big change .. haha ..

but at work and got a bit of time and BOOM !

got to say the travel from Juhu home to work Marine Drive in 30 mins .. amazing Coastal Road and the Tunnel emerging on Marine Drive , just before its flyover and simply amazing .. !

Super constructed roads, tunnel, neat clean construct .. no traffic jams .. and done ..

Ok just to change the topic .. here is something to know :

Know what is a "mondegreen?'

MONDEGREENS

If you’ve been listening to rock music, you know it’s often hard to make out the lyrics. They sing it their way and we hear it our way.

Jimi Hendrix famously sang the phrase “While I kiss the sky” which was heard by thousands as “While I kissed this guy.”

CCR’s popular song originally said, “There’s a bad moon on the rise.” Many heard it as “There’s a bathroom on the right.”

Deep Purple’s still-popular chorus (known for its timeless guitar riff) “Smoke on the water/Fire in the sky” was misheard as “Smoke on the water/Fire engine guy.”

Nirvana’s anthem “Smells like Teen Spirit” had the lines, “Here we are now/Entertain us.” They were misheard as, “Here we are now/In containers.”

When Elvis Presley sang, “Everybody in the whole cell block”, many heard it as” Everybody in a wholesale frock”

There’s actually a word for misheard lyrics like these.

Mondegreen.

Some mondegreens became so famous that even artistes like Hendrix and CCR sang the misheard versions in their live concerts in a spirit of fun and tease.

It’s not just in pop songs that mondegreens occur. The US national anthem begins with the lofty words, “Oh say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light.’ Some heard them as “José, can you see…”

Occasionally, mondegreens had an interesting side-effect. Joe Cocker sang of a ‘lovely planet’ which was misheard as ‘lonely planet.’ The latter became the name of a well-known travel guide series of books.

No one knows why we hear the wrong thing although there are theories. It’s akin to the game of Chinese Whispers where the original line gets progressively distorted into some hilarious garbage by the time it reaches the last guy.

Mondegreens are not restricted to English alone. South Indians, with limited knowledge of Hindi, were taught patriotic songs in Hindi by zealous teachers. A popular one had the repeating phrase, “Bara tamata.” School students sang it with great gusto. Years later, some of them realized the actual words were “Bharat Mata.”

A popular line from Qurbani song, “Aap jaisa koi meri/zindagee mein aaye/ toh baat bun jaaye” was understood as “Aap jaisa koi…toh baap bun jaaye.” The defective version made sense to many who saw Zeenat Aman gyrating on those lyrics while gaping at Feroz Khan.

Many who weren’t familiar with the hill station between Bombay and Pune heard the Gulaami song as “Haathi ka andaa la” until they realized it was “Aati kya Khandala”.

I have a friend, her name is Geeta. Her family called her Gitu. Throughout her childhood and youth, she thought Rajesh Khanna was singing for her, when he said, ”Mere sapnon ki raani kab aaye Gitu”.

'Mondegreen' sounds French but isn't. In 1954, a writer at Harper’s Magazine remembered how as a little girl she misheard an old English ballad. The actual words, saluting a dead war hero, were:

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭 𝘰' 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘺 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯.

She heard them as:

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭 𝘰' 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘺 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘓𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘯.

And thus was born the word ‘mondegreen’ to signify all misheard lyrics from that moment on.

Turns out, mondegreen itself started life as a mondegreen.

sent to me by a friend .. 🤣🤣

More perhaps later .. or perhaps not ..

Amitabh Bachchan

and some more .. a very pertinent article in TOI ..

[kyri45]

ISAT Sky:Cotl!AU Part 1: The Dock

AKA: How I think a possible sequel could be stroctured, using Sky: Cotl as a base for this AU)

SO! We know that Something happened after Siffrin almost destroyed the world. Something broke in a way, by the presence of Red. And also by the fact that the Daydreaming one can remember more clearly about their sister (they remember her appearance and that she had a bag, all things that are more visual than the abstrac fact that she liked to sing, etc… all this while she didn’t struggle to remember)

So the island is so forgotten, you can barely see it anymore (you CAN, briefly, see it by the end of the game)

… but that doesn’t mean is not there physically, right? Wouldn’t that mean you could theoretically still go there? It would probably kill someone from the amount of headace they would have probably. But something happened, and remembering some of the stuff isn’t as painful anymore.

The story could begin with the gang going to Bambouche, maybe to go see Bonnie’s village. The are rumors about people starting to see the island again, But it seems clouds and fog are in the way most of the time. Siffrin could finally start talking slowly to their family about what he could remember from his home.

This could lead them to try and physically go there to the Island by boat (Shiffrin used to have one, and could properly use it even at a young age, so they maybe they know the basics of navigation?) If you can see the island from Bamb0uche it means it can’t be more than a day on a boat away.

What they land on is something similar to the Isle of Dawn, and as they explore, Siffrin unintentionally activates one of the first murals of the game. (I’m using Sky's old beginning for this, not the one after the Aviary update).

“All are given breath by starlight…”  “The first of us lived in the joy that we would one day return to the stars”

The murals could be written in Siffrin language, and being that Siffrin DOES have Memory of Memories even after the loops ended, he CAN read without pain his language again.

As they venture further, they explore the only things left which are the boats and the remaining dock.

The Spirits

The spirits could be either actual people who are in an unconscious state from being part of the Wish or reflections of them (almost like the Sadness is the equivalent of becoming lightless in Sky) and their memories can help you remember how to say specific words in your language that will help you later unlock doors or simply slowly breaking the Wish.

Winged Lights as Wish/Star levels

As for all the stuff about winged lights, I would like for Siffrin to gain his first “star” here, but in any case, I don’t think they would be able to fight until the end. But each “star” or “winged light” could be used as a way to gain more Wish Craft or XP in a way.

In any case, the Family could reach the main entrance of the Kingdom (the Temple of Dawn), and more star-based riddles are solved to enter the temple. A vision of the future gives them a flash of the Wish and lowers their HP aggressively, but then, they see one constellation and Siffrin realize that he can finally recognize it. The first constellation he can recognize after years...

A short note about the colors

The first hints of the history of The Country could lead them to see specks of one of the colors.

Now, my main theory about colors is that whoever made the Wish for the country to disappear could have made it in a way phrased so that they also took its “Light” away, and being colors a variance of light refracted, that could have caused them from being taken away.

(also because I like how in Sky the following mural says “But then the sky went dark, and our kingdom shattered”)

What it would be REALLY cool to see in a sequel, is how shades of colors are slowly coming back the more you uncover about The Country (kind of like Gris in a way)

From darkness, one color at a time, they could light up the memory of the Country again!

And that’s all for part one! If you like where this is going, please let me know!

[sheep-from-rad]

Stay with me, Sway with me ♡  (SAGAU) Note: This song, I love this so much. This is a request by @mehhiah, sorry it took me so long to tackle this one. Also please, if you have requests put it in the ask box so I can easily see it (also priv messages scares me sorry). Anyway, I’m absolutely involved with this song, I hope you guys enjoy it! LASTLY, MY REQUESTS ARE CURRENTLY CLOSED. Warnings: Semi-ooc (?), Prince Kaeya theory (I really love that one so I added it), bullet type, semi-yandere-ish [Masterlist 1] , [Masterlist 2]

Ever since the traveler breaks the wall that separates their lives from the dark reality about them being trapped in a game, music together with other factors has been a part of everyone’s lives. It’s not uncommon for foreign sounding music to be played everywhere, even in churches. Traveler songs being played together with new ones, old ones getting mixed up and rewritten to fit the new ones. While aware, sometimes you just forget that they are indeed alive and can interact with you. 

    You held the broom in your hands, pressing it close to your chest imagining a microphone, the ones that you can see at concerts and live bars. You put on your headphones, eyes fixated on the task of cleaning your room before the holiday ends. “When Marimba rhythm starts to play…” 

Diluc pretends like he’s not paying attention to the song that you are currently singing. It’s not the same as the songs that he is used to hearing both from the locals and from the Bard god. It has a sensual tone on it and it bears an air of refinery that reminds him of the fallen aristocrats Mondstadts used to have. He doesn’t care about crowns and wealth but being named as an uncrowned king, he can’t help but imagine the two of us dancing in such a song. In, in his arms at the after hours of the tavern to the early hours of dawn. Maybe he’ll steal a kiss or two, that if you let him to. 

Kaeya was having a late night drink when he heard the song that you are singing. It reminds him of that time he and Rosaria got so drunk they decided to climb Albedo’s laboratory but ended up watching Eula dance in the frozen waters (she chased them afterwards and chased them at work). Nobles sure love their fancy dances and he was not safe from Crepus’s dancing lessons as well. He can imagine the two of you dancing in the empty, semi-dim ballroom. Just the two of you, with the rich robes on your body and crown on his head. If he can’t run from his fate, he might just go embrace it if it means embracing you as his own. 

Venti writes a song while he listens to you sing. He is so used to the songs of praise or song of tales but a song that tells about desire is something that is new to his ear. Serenades to exist in Teyvat but they don’t go as far as to tell the most intimate desires. They only go on the surface and barely scratch the realm of what love is supposed to feel. Tomorrow comes the musical revolution and for sure everyone who hears the song of the night will make something of the same liking. He hopes that before you descend, he will be able to write the best song that describes his whole heart. 

Ayato finds himself a little flustered by the song. Inazuma just opened again a long time ago and the only references that he has on such subjects are those written by the locals and tales of his workers. It is safe to say that Inazuma is still in the age of conservatism even though it is now slowly advancing to be able to walk at the same pace as the other nations. He can’t help but stand up and away from his work, thinking about the lyrics of the song over and over. Bards sing about their feelings and poets make poems about the things that entices their feelings, does it mean you want someone to hold you close and bend you on the dancefloor? If so, he wants to be the one to do it. 

Alhaitham was taking notes. Dances are not uncommon in Sumeru but it is also not something practiced freely until the traitorous sages fell from their thrones. Dances and arts in general are still in their toddler days and he is glad that they get references from other nations. He notes the song being sensual, a type of song that only sang on weddings or intimate dates. The type of dance that he wants to share with you. To pull you by the hand and cradle your head possessively while he glare at everyone who wants to get close. It’s not like he’s gonna let someone get close to you. Not the traveler, not the sages, and definitely not Kaveh. That or, maybe he’ll let Kaveh join in

Taglist! @tinandabin | @chihawari |@eccedentesiast-sapphic @jaxielous |@uchihaeirin |@zuri-feather

[iheartpeppino]

Okay, everyone in the Pizza Tower fandom is aware that The Noise was inspired by The Noid, an anti-mascot from Domino's Pizza. But... did you know The Noid has lore? I found this comment on MatPat's Food Theory video on The Noid today; it was posted 10 months ago:

If you can't read it, it says this:

I briefly worked at domino's in the early 90's.. One of my tasks there was dressing up in a 6ft tall Noid costume and dance around on the side of the road. It really sucked. One interesting thing about working there was a poster in the breakroom that gave actual lore for the Noid. It stated that gremlins have plagued mankind since the dawn of time and as time and technology progressed, various gremlins would specialize in messing with various things, like airplanes, cars, etc. Then one day, a "renegade gremlin" named the Noid decided to take specialization a step further by causing mayhem for pizza delivery, and was highly successful at it, until he went up against his arch nemesis, Domino's. It was a professionally made poster that was provided to the store by Domino's, so I figure it's official Noid canon, but I've never seen a copy of it online, nor have I seen anything anywhere on the internet that states this lore.. it's weird.

So, assuming this is true... all the times we've called The Noise or Noisette gremlins is actually spot-on, and not just because a poster in one of Pizza Tower's levels calls them "Pizza Gremlins". The Noid is a gremlin who specializes in messing up pizza deliveries... a PIZZA GREMLIN. Another example of gremlins in popular media is The Gremlins by Walt Disney, which was originally a book written by famous children's author Roald Dahl:

The Gremlins were originally going to star in a full-length film in the 1940's, but it never came to fruition. Here, they were known to sabotage war planes. These guys did show up in books later, and even made appearances in the Epic Mickey video game series.

So yeah, calling Noise and Noisette "gremlins" is correct. Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me if The Doise was also some sort of gremlin...

[dreaminghelaena]

asoiaf characters as youtubers

cersei: she is the CRAZIEST mukbanger ever. always has some new drama to talk about and it’s very very interesting so she has millions of subscribers. you know that meme of azealia banks’ internet feuds list? yeah that’s cersei. she’s beefed with everyone on the platform and never makes any apology videos for it. she’s had the channel since before she gave birth to joffrey and it’s still going strong. she sometimes does sponsorships but only for wine companies

tyrion: he is the vsauce of asoiaf youtube. does a lot of videos about scientific theories and experiments that get a lot of views. sometimes has drama with people but it’s not very often. he did a face reveal once he got to 3 mil and people edited picsart flower crowns onto his head and made it their pfp, so his comments are just filled with those. sometimes does his own experiments but they always end up going wrong

margaery: she does a lot of makeup tutorials!! she makes sure to use easily accessible drugstore makeup products so people can follow along. she has a couple million subscribers and is renowned as the most non-toxic makeup youtuber of all time. tried to collab with cersei but cersei didn’t show up. she also used to be a nail tech so she has a master class on that

theon: OMGGG theon is THE internet gossip youtuber ever. he’ll literally be pumping out videos about feuds hours after they started. some call him shady cause of the types of videos he makes but he doesn’t care cause he’s having fun. he also has a twitch gaming streaming channel and he is the Jerma of his universe there. he sucks at the games and does not know anything about gaming consoles or the best mics/cameras etc so he has to get computer science™ major jon to help him

sansa: sansa is a fashion design major in nyc so of COURSE she is posting lifestyle vlogs. she started the whole channel because she was featured in a few of margaery’s videos and people kept asking for her to make her own. but she is also very careful with her privacy cause she’s scared of someone finding her. she also has a second channel where she posts sims 4 videos and it’s super chill and fun over there

arya: arya’s really into self defense so she mostly posts tutorials and videos about that. she’s super super helpful in the comments but will insult people brutally when provoked. her genre isn’t as popular as the others so she has a couple hundred thousand (very loyal) subscribers. she also has a secret second channel that only has around 10k subs and everyone there gatekeeps tf out of it. she posts roblox and fortnite videos with her siblings that are really funny and entertaining. all of the girls in the comments are thirsting for robb 😭

jon: jon doesn’t post very much but when he does post it’s minecraft videos. most of the time sam is in them and sometimes robb will make an appearance but he has no idea what is going on. jon posts minecraft builds and he has his own smp (is that what they call it????) he’ll occasionally post videos about playing choices matter games like detroit become human and until dawn. sometimes ppl go ??? because during his minecraft build videos he traumadumps in the background instead of just putting on music or smth. he doesn’t show his face tho cause he’s afraid of getting made fun of

myrcella and tommen: ok they have a super secret channel that only has around 1,000 subscribers where they post videos of their cat. that’s all. people in the comments are super sweet and myrcella and tommen make an effort to respond to all of them. their videos only get like 230 views each time they post but they don’t really care they’re having fun

renly and loras: they’re posting relationship vlogs and stuff but they don’t have a filter so sometimes they talk about really nsfw stuff and get in trouble for it. they’re mostly known for their travel vlogs but they also do videos about drama in their lives that is literally insane. like once renly casually brought up how his brother almost killed him during a ouija board game and loras is like “mhm mhm” but all of the comments are ???? margaery collabs with them all of the time too

bran: 3am challenges.

[rayroseu]

kiss me in the summer day gloom, my love

you are all my pleasure, my hope, and my song

i will be here dreaming in the past until you come

until we close our eyes

everytime you kissed me is such a banger songe for every tragedy couple ‼️😭💔

*keysmashes* we... we're already on Chapter 5 of Book 7... ?

I'll miss sketching for Malenoa and Levan purely based on my delusions--- 😩✨ I can't wait for the Lore Drop about them like I TELL YOU MY HANDS ARE SHAKING IN ANTICIPATIONNN (eyes on sight for malenoa non-silhouette reveal‼️‼️) PLEASEEEEE NEXT UPDATE BE RICH IN BRIAR VALLEY LORE I CANT GET ENOUGHFHGHF

Also I really believe in the theory that Malleus parents overblotted! Like no, You cannot tell me there was a human fae war and no one went bat shit crazy-

whether thats Malenoa or Levan, I support either.✨✨‼️‼️ I drew this based on the theory that Levan is the Dark Mirror and this theory that Crowely is Levan but Crowley aims to reanimate Malenoa based on his voice on prologue.

I believe these ones because I also think that if Crowley is Malenoa's husband then his "irresponsibility and lack of care about NRC" (he does take action but its for his benefit than yk the students), is because his loyalty still focuses on Malenoa, not the students of NRC. Additionally, NRC is a magic school for humans, why would he be enthusiastic to improve the kind that killed his wife?

I really think this part is when we'll know the reason for Lilia's dream 😭 Theres so many theories about it but I really believe that he wanted to dream about saving Malenoa. 😔😔

I like to think that the Knight of Dawn is genuinely a good guy and he wouldn't actually kill Malenoa ksjfjsdj 💔💔😭 Maybe he's like Phoebus from hunchback of Notre Dame where he is under the control of immature rulers like Frollo and in TWST, King Henric(?).

And I'm not sure about Silvers Parents reveal like. Game we already know his parent ?? He's Lilia???? Pls tell me thats how you'll wake Lilia by telling him Silver is his son qkdjqdkri

[toskarin]

what are your thoughts on ARPGS? stuff like Diablo, path of exile, Grim Dawn, etc? I remember they got a brief mention back when you were getting asked a bunch about roguelites and was curious since ARPGs are another obvious-but-different offshoot of Rogue

it's a delicate balance for me, because I think that they're a lot of fun, but they're also (by necessity of control scheme) kind of the ultimate skinnerbox game type, which means I end up at odds with the way a lot of them choose to apply difficulty

Torchlight 2, for example, is a game that I still consider to be one of the most fun mindless rpgs out there. it doesn't really have teeth, but if I were to make a list of games someone has to try before they die, it would probably be on that list in spite of my inability to actually figure out why it's compelling

I've kinda settled into "it picked what it wanted to do and just polished it until it was entirely successful at that"

I really enjoy the Titan Quest-descended family of numbercrunchy arpgs in theory, but they often fall into uncomfortably fast combat speed in lategame, which the controls are a bit too imprecise to accommodate unless you're into mobas enough to seek it out

if I start talking about my opinions on larger scale multiplayer in arpgs I'm going to make people very angry at me, so I'll just say that I thought Diablo 2 was quite good and so was most of Path of Exile

overall, it's a genre I'm conflicted about liking

also Lost Ark was bad

[an-architect-of-words]

This may be a long ask because I like to yap lol

Honestly, I feel like one of the most realistic possibilities/best addition they could give us in the remaster is: more clues to find that would provide more insight to the characters and their relationships to one another. I feel like there’s many great opportunities for them to do that with the characters, especially the Washington’s (which I would happily take as a win because they are so interesting to me and we didn’t really get to know Hannah and Beth). First opportunity that comes to mind is when Sam finds Josh’s phone. This is probably me totally being biased because I want more Josh content even though he is the character that has the most lore (sue me) but I feel like we didn’t really get to see him genuinely interact with most of the characters. I mean there were obviously moments that I believe Josh was being genuine, but most of it was definitely a mask *pun intended* and him being devious. They could add some text interactions between him and all other members of the group or allow you to just kind of search through his phone. Because I’m a JoshxSam enthusiast I would geek if they had a couple of flirty messages between the two or texts that show them being what each other needs. Hell, throw in a couple messages between him and Chris where they both talk about their crushes (and more texts between him and Josh in general because friendship goals). I mean the devs used to look through Reddit so they know what the ppl want. Why not make JoshxSam Semi-Canon 9 yeas later LMAO?! I’d also like to know if Josh is really girl crazy or if it’s an attempt at being normal so seeing some brief talk surrounding Josh’s love life or affairs would be rather entertaining to me.

Another cool thing they could do with his phone is have it to where you can go to the photos app and get to see photos he’s taken. They could even have you be able to open his email and find things regarding school or his interest ect. 

Since I mentioned the photo app, They could also add like a scrapbook in Beth‘s room where she writes little notes about the characters to give insight about her relationships to the characters or memories she’s had with the group and her family. All the devs gotta do is add a couple more badly photoshopped edits to the game /lh.

Another thing I think they could do is add a couple more rooms that you can explore, maybe like two or three. One: Josh‘s bedroom, Two: Bobs office where maybe you can find emails on his computer regarding Josh’s psyche, talks of Hannah and Beth’s disappearance/memories of them, some personal journal entries that talk about the dynamic of their family, history of the land and their encounters with the suspicious activity that takes place on the mountain. It’s been a few years since I’ve watched the video game fully so maybe some of this is in there because I think I remember you being able to find police report Melinda made regarding noises. ORRRR im making things up.

This would be an easier way to add some content without actually needing the actors to be there. What do you think? Do you think it is plausible? 

Yap away, Anon!!! Honestly, we all need to get used to reading detailed thoughts again 😂. It’s healthy.

Anyway, I love this!!! I mean, I am a SUCKER for putting pieces together via settings and items. (I am weirdly attached to the fact that you can find one of Bob’s trophies for a film called “Blood Monastery,” because it loops back to Chris finding the monk outfit in the basement). I just geek over anything that makes the world feel detailed and connected. So I love the idea of adding content to Josh’s phone! You’re right; it’s a very easy way to add more lore and fun interactions (absolutely give me texts between Josh and Sam or Josh and Chris!!!).

I also like the idea of seeing Josh and Beth’s rooms, because I thought Hannah’s was VERY well done. You can glean so much about her from her bedroom. Whoever designed her room did a stellar job. Beth is the least developed notable character in the whole game, acting as a bit more of an exposition machine than character at points, so I’d love stuff to further humanize her like what we saw for Hannah.

Anyway, Ballistic Moon DID confirm new footage/story animation (though it seems limited)— along with more collectibles and interactions, so your idea is quite feasible, actually! Meaghan Martin has confirmed she recorded a little bit for the remake, and there have been vague leaks of Jessica. So we will be getting some new voice work/face animations for at least some characters.

In a weird way, I hope it truly is all minor additions. I definitely want certain things cleaned up and emphasized and whatnot, but I’m also nervous that a lot of new content might include things that don’t align with the tone or lore of the original (though, there have been official statements saying the devs worked hard to ensure new content keeps with the integrity of the old. And Ballistic Moon has many workers who’d worked on Until Dawn before).

I think the following things are also realistic:

Adding Emily and Matt’s “extra” chapter back into the game. That really should not have been removed as a pre-order bonus. It’s part of the story.

I think they could recycle some PS3 content for Mike and Chris. Brett Dalton and Noah Fleiss joined the project in its PS3 phase. So they have recorded content for Mike and Chris that was scrapped along with parts of that prototype that didn’t make it into the finished project. Now, I think some things were very much scrapped for a reason. All the characters changed a bit from then as did the tone and beats of the story. But I also think some stuff could potentially be added back even if Brett Dalton or Noah Fleiss can’t/decline to return.

Anyway, these are my thoughts! Thanks for the discussion!

[mightymizora]

Blood and Bone, Bone and Blood

It was ever fated thus. 3437 words, The Dark Urge/Ketheric Thorm, background implied The Dark Urge/Enver Gortash. CW violence, sex, and a lot of father issues.

Read on Ao3

His letter had said that he would bring her. That after the correspondence, the time he spent in the libraries and archives, the long conversations about what might be possible, that it was time to make it so. That they had been blessed in their endeavours, these Chosen of the Black Hand and the Lord of Murder, and the crown was theirs.

Their Gods blessed them all. It was time to claim their reward for their devotions. 

She is a little rough around the edges, says Lord Gortash in his careful hand. But you’ll like her. She keeps one sharp.

*

The Lord of Bones is a fair master to him. He came to him in the darkness, and he made an offer of one more chance for the light.

Shar was the absence. The nothing in the long night. The darkest part of the shadow, the last ragged squeeze of the exhale. 

Myrkul is the entropy, the judgement. The eternal proof of what is dead can truly never die.

He came to him in the darkness, as his mind still searched for the light.

Come join me, undying, his Lord told him in his awakening mind as the lid of his tomb was pulled from its resting place. Meet the eternal promise. I can give you what you desire.

*

They arrive on a cold evening, two figures emerging from the bleak fog on foot. The horses had turned at the edges of the curse, they would tell him later, and she had ripped them open as a mercy. Their footmen had turned on the verges, and she had torn them limb from limb.

They arrive in his halls, he draped in dyed bearskin, her in a plain red cloak. There are whispers in the hall as she lowers her hood, as his servants take their belongings.

Gortash bows to him.

The Bhaalspawn does not.

“I would remind you,” he warns her as he sits forward on his throne, “That in my halls, you defer to me.”

“I obey only the blood,” she replies, her voice dark and heady with the kill.

*

She haunts the floors of the towers on their first night.

He has no need for sleep anymore, he has rested long enough. Her voice echoes in the darkness, chased by the sound of screaming, echoing across the staircases and winding up into the sky.

He stalks the sound of her. Tracks her. He can only assume this is what she wants as she leaves great trails of blood along the wall, exsanguinated goblins and other such expendable creatures littering the ground as she paints her trail. He does not try to keep his feet light. She wants to be pursued; a game of hide-and-seek.

He dips his hands in the blood she leaves, feeling for the warmth blooming that will show that she is near. He follows her voice as it becomes clearer.

“My blood sings to their blood.”

He finally finds her, stripped naked with great gloves of blood half way up her arms, a mask of red on her face. “I will kill them, General,” she says with a delight in her eyes. “I will kill them, and you will make sure they return, won’t you? Blood and bone.”

She is like a child playing up for attention, her eyes wide in the torchlight, her body shivering in the cold. Punish me, she challenges, or make it right. He does not answer.

*

They speak through the plan from dawn until dusk, the crown on the table between them. It is strangely unimpressive to look at, this great prize, this key to dominion. Gortash lays out great scrolls of parchment, calls for food and wine, and he is happy to let him drown in the sound of his own voice. The plan is simple, really, beneath the theories and designs. His Lord has told him what he needs to know. 

“There are some last things to capture,” says Gortash. “Scribe Yanthus can take them down. We must ensure no part of this remains undocumented. We change the world, my friends.”

He raises his glass, but he is the only one drinking. The Bhaalspawn plays with the stem of her goblet. There is blood still under her fingernails.

“I will dine with General Thorm tonight,” she says finally. “He can tell me the history of this place, while you are working.”

“Manva-“

“Enver.”

Her name is a prayer, a plea on his tongue. His is a warning on hers. A moment’s annoyance, anger even, is replaced with a tight smile.

“Well, there is much to be done,” says Gortash, draining the last of his cup. 

*

They dine in silence in his rooms. He eats nothing. He needs nothing. He watches as she picks at a plate of dried fruits, of stale hardtack, of salted meat. She watches him in silence for almost an hour, her eyes set on him all the while, before she deigns to speak in a careful, measured, dark enquiry. 

“Your Lord spares you from death. Is that your bargain?”

She looks over him as she speaks through a mouthful of fruit that stains her lip.

“No.”

“It interests me. What you are given, what you ask for. Enver wears his ambitions every day.”

“And you?”

“I am the true blood of Bhaal. I ask for nothing. I only take.”

She spits a stone from the fruit onto the plate and looks at him. “I heard stories of the Great General of a hundred years ago. Leading the great Dark Justiciars across this land. Bringing the ever night. You were a champion. You served with glory.”

In a moment, her cup is knocked to the table as she pulls herself atop of it. She walks across and kneels in front of him, her hands on him so quickly he cannot stop them. 

“Is this what is left?”

He is struck by her tenderness, this child of Blood. She runs her hands so softly over his face, the callouses of her fingertips catching on the soft, hanging flesh.

“Is this what is left after the final breath? Is this what is left behind, after the bleeding stops? After the end? ”

“You fool,” he replies, his mouth by her mouth. “Death is no end at all.”

*

In the crypt, the candles burned out in a matter of days. He replaced them as he sat at the end of her grave over and over again. He bought the incense. He bought the offerings. He prayed.

Shar’s reward was just, he believed that. Shar’s reward was everything he had asked for. It was the moment of waking before one’s mind flooded with the grief of loss. It was the brief pause between the inhale and exhale. It was the moment when you had cried all the tears that your body could hold, and stillness fell.

He had no need for sleep, for food, for water. He had no needs at all, and she knew that. She did not come for him, because he did not ask.

He lived-not-lived in the gaps between for as long as he could, but that is the thing with grief. You can carve it away over and over, take the flesh from your body, bleed it away, but it lives inside your very bones.

*

She sits astride him and tears into his chest. The pain is an echo of what it could have been, his Lord’s great mercy, and her delight. Her strong hands crack his ribcage. It feels almost good. Right.

“Your blood smells wrong,” she says as she buries her face in him. “Oh, but your heart, Ketheric? It is so beautiful.”

She moves on him, and his eyes roll and what passes for his breath chokes him.

*

He holds her after, as his flesh knits back together and she watches like an awed child. He did not expect her to stay. It feels wrong to hold her like this, in the bed he shared for twenty years in love.

Melodia fit into his arms so perfectly. She would bury her nose into his neck, under his ear, tuck herself under his arm and his hand would find her waist. She would settle her hand so delicately on his chest as if any pressure would shatter him into pieces. 

“You did this for love, didn’t you?” she asks quietly. How old must she be, this reckoning in woman? Barely thirty, if that. The freckles across her nose remind him of Isobel as a child. Her strong jaw. Her pale eyes. 

“I did. I do.”

“You buried your wife. And then your daughter. And then yourself, in Shar.”

“I serve my Lord.”

“I think you serve yourself.”

Her fingers trace down the mark she left. 

She is not so delicate as her hands reach into him again.  

*

She explores the towers without his consent. She rifles through his books, asks questions of Balthazar. She feeds the gnolls, she watches the torturers in the dungeons, she runs her hands through the knives in the kitchen. 

“I wish to know you, my ally,” she tells him. “If we are to be bound together, I want to know you.”

“You are a blade,” he tells her. “You do not need to be anything more.”

*

“Tell me.”

“No.”

She has crawled into his bed again. This time, she has only let the blood from his neck in but a trickle, to weave her fingers in, to play with his black blood. When he heals, she pulls the flesh apart again gently.

“Do you want it? Is that why you ask?”

As her fingers move, so he moves in her. She sets the pace slow. He will follow.

“I will be the last being on earth,” she says. “If Bhaal wills me to quicken, then I have failed him.”

“I asked what you wanted.”

Her eyes glaze. She looks beyond him, and then into his eyes with a tenderness.

“Tell me of the day you first held her,” she demands, her lips by his wound. “Isobel. Tell me of the day she first saw the sun. Tell me of when you loved.”

*

When he held her he.

When he held her.

This body cannot recall it, not fully.

For when he held her, something changed in the very weaving of his veins.

When he held her he was flooded by the light she bore, the light that she was born with, ever radiant, his girl.

Every part of him that was good and just and right passed through into her. Every part of Melodia that was gentle and sweet and kind passed through into her.

When Melodia died, all that he loved lived in Isobel.

When Isobel.

When she.

There is a story of a man who sold himself part by part, and he tells himself that story. It is easier to tell it than to feel it again and again and again.

*

There is an affection there. They think he does not see it, but he does. 

Gortash holds the door for her as if he were the page of a highborn lady, and she steps through as if she is. He watches her as she moves through the halls of Moonrise, smiles as she smiles with that bloodthirst on her lips.

She swaps the ink pot as he scrawls without being prompted, and smiles as he writes and writes and writes. She reads his pages later as he sleeps. He knows from the smudges she leaves, but never tells.

It will be easy to take control over them, when the time comes. He barely needs to do a thing. He knows what that kind of love is capable of, that seeping in of gentleness in passion. If they survive placing the crown on the brain they will destroy each other over all these moments, with just the lightest touch, and as they turn to bone and ash he will endure.

He will endure.

*

The power of the brain has torn through his mind and dropped him to his knees twice already. The stone on his chest is being deflected. It buries itself into his armour, bores itself into the flesh. He can hear its voice in his mind, its mocking voice ripping through his mind.

Chosen of many, it whispers to him, Loyal only to one. You are brittle, breaking apart.

Gortash is on his knees, his hand above him not in defiance, but in protection.

He will endure. He will not fall before these children.

“She will be the all mother!” Manva cries, tears mingled with blood from her eyes. Her stone sits in a blade that she holds to her own throat in a rhapsody. “Her children will sweep through the world. They will be her children, and she will love them all.”

The crown flies from them and bonds to the brain, and the scream of it almost tears his mind in two.

*

That night they feast and he watches them. They are giddy, delighted with themselves and each other. She fills his cup. He tucks her hair behind her ear and she does not stop him.

“And now, we can take our rewards. The city will be mine, General,” says Gortash, “And tomorrow, we will help you claim yours.”

“And what does the child of Bhaal claim?” he asks her. 

She smiles in return. “Everything I am, I hand to my Father.”

*

It still smells of the herbs, of incense and of moss, of the strange sweetness of the flesh suspended from rot. It is still sacred, a hundred years later, preserved for all time with the strongest wards that he now dispels with a shaking hand. How many nights did he sit vigil here, and how much longer has it sat unmourned?

Manva moves the lid of the sarcophagus with ease, as Gortash holds the torch over the body.

The body.

His daughter.

His Isobel.

“Oh, but she is beautiful, General,” she swoons. Her hands reach down to her face, those vile instruments of violence.

“You do not touch her.”

The power of his own voice chills him, and she laughs at him, this degenerate, this poison.

“I cannot make her more dead, Ketheric. What are you afraid of?”

“Leave us.”

“But-”

“Leave. This is not for you.”

Gortash hands him the torch and takes her away. They leave him here, with the silence. That silence. And the fear.

“Lord,” he offers, falling to his knees one last time. “Grant me…”

He will be a supplicant. He will crawl in the dirt. He will push himself into the ground again, for this chance, and all the Lord of Bones asks for is his soul. His body. He prays for hours, awaits the hand of God to guide him, and it does.

As his hands touch her, her eyes open wide. She chokes on the cloth that sits down her throat and he pulls it from her as she gags. She tears away the bindings on her hands in dread panic, but her eyes, her eyes, they are bright and they are alive.

“Isobel. Oh, my love, my love, you are here with me!”

“Aylin?”

The sound of that woman, no not a woman, that creature’s name on her lips is a poison all over again. It seeps through him as her eyes come to focus on him fully.

Eyes that are full of dread.

“She is dead, Isobel,” he tells her. His voice sounds cold, so cold. “It’s me. I’m here. Oh, my girl, my beautiful, beautiful girl.”

The colour is starting to return to her cheeks. “Daddy, no.”

“We will be together now, my love.”

“What happened?”

Her hands, trembling, reach to his face, but stop before they can touch him. She buries her face in her hands and howls.

He wishes he could cry. Perhaps that would melt away the fear on her face as he picks her up, as he holds her to him, as he pulls her from the grave. She is still as stiff as a corpse against him, until he starts to pull her away.

“No-”

“It’s time to come home, Isobel.”

“No!”

He is pushed from her, hitting the wall in a flood of radiant light as she glows white, running past him on unsteady legs. Selune, moon-goddess, first love of his life, has borne down her blessing and her scorn.

“Isobel!”

He tries to run after, but the light seeps through his black blood and stills him, holds him, and he can only watch as she falls out of his sight once more.

*

He takes Manva to his bed. It is not up for discussion. 

“Perhaps I will kill you,” he tells her. “Raise you as my servant.”

“Perhaps I will starve you of your dead, Ketheric. Still the blades, if Father wills it.”

There is no satisfaction, at least in the physical, that he can take here. All the edges of his body are dulled. All of the great joys and the great pains stifled in service to his God.

But there something akin to joy in watching her discovery of his body. In watching that wonder that crosses her as she finds new ways to pull his flesh apart, as he hisses with an echo of the pain of it. She is delighted. She sparks. There is a beauty in it, a beauty that does not remind him of the sweet touch of his wife in bliss, but of the look of Isobel the first day she saw a songthrush, the first time she ate honey, the first time she realised she could say I love you to her father and make him laugh with joy.

There is a beauty in it.

In making her undone with ease, and wondering if Gortash can give her this. 

*

“I must return to the city to do what I do best,” she says. Gortash is waiting for her, and they will leave for Baldur’s Gate that morn. “The streets will run red with blood. We will have our victories. We will have our roles to play. And then…”

And then. She will try to kill them all. She will try to find the way. He will wait, as always, only now the world is his crypt.

She stops what she is doing, placing her pack on the table as she looks at him. She comes to him, sits in his lap again as she did that first night, and he does not stop her from taking his face in her hands.

“I wish they could rise again, those I will kill,” she says as she holds him close to her. “I wish they could rise to kiss me with such care.”

“If that is what you think care is, child, then I pity you,” he says, as his arms wrap around her one last time.

*

She stands before him again. Less defiant this time. New scars, new blood on her face. New allies, who look at her with that same dogged devotion young Gortash wore, the poor, misguided fools. It is a farce. It is obscene.

But if there is one thing he knows, it is that death is rarely the end.

As her eyes roam over him, he sees something stir in her. Recognition, for a moment, before a wave of uncertainty. Her lips part, her eyes are wide, and yet she says nothing.

“I am surprised to see you again, True Soul,” he says. “You are here to assist, and not to meddle, I trust?” He sits forward, and cannot help but smile. Oh, she is helpless. “I would remind you that while in my halls, you obey me - just as you would any other chosen.”

She does not take his meaning, his inference. Her eyes look to the others in the room. She is seeking confirmation, a hint, a purchase. She will find nothing. They are loyal to him.

“I’m sure you will enjoy seeing my justice enacted. You have to take what pleasure you can, after all, in your diminished state.”

She is pathetic. Her muscles shrunk to nothing, the fire in her a mere flicker. Her head bowed. Her eyes bloodless. 

“You know me?” she asks, but it is barely the hint of a question. She knows.

“Better than you know yourself.”

Blood and bone, bone and blood

It was ever fated thus

And as they mingle in the dirt

So the world returns to dust

[prince-kallisto]

*sigh* I have the silliest theory of all time, which is saying a lot considering what I theorize, but I’m trying so hard to figure out Jack’s birthday card

It’s been controversial, to say the least. Because RAFIKI?!? Not to clown on my boy Jack, but even though he’s very smart, he never had this special type of wisdom like Rafiki. He’s very serious, a lone wolf. I thought we would be getting a picture from the Beauty and the Beast wolves, especially considering he’s from the land of Pyroxene, even being childhood acquaintances with Vil

But since I’m getting desperate, I look at the two frames closer

We have Rafiki with the light shining behind him, and Scar shrouded in darkness. Jack is conveniently in between the two, separating the light and darkness

Then Mufasa teaches Simba about how “everything the light touches” belongs to the king. OKAY.

And there’s “that shadowy place” where the Hyenas and Scar gather. OKAY

So…is TWST trying to imply that Jack is the “in between,” or the representation of “everything the light touches?” Like the dawn or twilight (stop don’t think about the vampire movies)?? Jack IS a first year, has white hair, and the first years definitely have a lot of symbolism regarding new beginnings and personal change, and they seem to be setting up their importance in the end game.

I’ve talked more about this anthology cover before, but the first years symbolism change and growth. A lot of them are discovering who they are, what their Unique Magics are…and Jack notably stood against Leona in Book 2 despite idolizing him before. And if there’s still hope for Beauty and the Beast reference, the beast quite literally goes under a transformation, just like Jack’s unique magic that turns him into a wolf. So does Jack being the “twilight” a representation of this transformation?

Still, this seems like a REALLY abstract and roundabout way to reveal Jack’s origins? Which is saying a lot considering Sebek’s and Lilia’s origins being pretty abstract.

The weird thing about this is, even though Jack has white/pale hair like Silver and Kalim, he is NOT a part of the “light trio” which is made up of Silver, Kalim, and Rook (who is blonde), supposedly because they are based of heroes instead of villains. Ironically enough, Jack has a much stronger moral compass and behaviors compared to Rook. And visually, with his white hair, he would fit into the light trio a lot better. But what makes the light trio the Light Trio is how their magic is represented with white glows instead of the standard dark magic that everyone else has- including Jack.

I tried seeing if there were any “sayings” about wolves that Jack may be based on, but the closest thing I could find was one of the Pinterest-esque quotes about two wolves, one being the light and the other darkness 😭 I mean…I suppose if you REALLY stretch it, the “grandfather” explaining the story of the two wolves in this fakelore could be Rafiki, which is why Rafiki shows up in Jack’s artwork.

Rafiki does something similar with grown up Simba, asking Simba who he was, and showing him a reflection of his father. But like the wiki page says, it’s origin is very dubious and is considered fakelore.

But this is driving me crazy because it almost made sense until I realized Jack is basically the embodiment of this meme 😭😭😭

So unless Jack is secretly Rafiki’s wolfsona

WHAT IS TWST TRYING TO SAY WITH THIS?!?

[doublethetheories]

New Symbolism Notes (Panel #0168)

With Ava's Demon being back, I think now more than ever it'd be fun to re-analyse the earlier segments with our new knowledge. This theory is basiclaly just bullet points to get my ass back in the game.

Panel #0168 has been topic for discussion since the DAWN of Ava's demon, but with the context of the last few years of updates, it'd be interesting to take a look back and re-examine this frame's contents.

It establishes symbolism; This post for the most part, will be me recording these connections for public use since they will likel be helpful in the future.

Maggie — Green/Triangle: Association with butterflies. (Confirmed in her cast image; Not much to say here but it may come into play down the line.)

Gil — Diamonds/Blue, he's represented by the fish to the right (as also seen in cast image), but what on earth does it mean that they're in crystals??

Erios — Lime green / Stars, the creature here is bizarre... will they also become a monster of failure? Most of the others are clearly identifiable beings but this one isn't... makes me worried Gil isn't the only one we need to worry about.

Veevra — Crescent, red (connection to scavengers) is represented here by an insect looking creature? A wasp perhaps? (RE: Hivemind theory.)

AngelicPurr — Pink/Hearts, we're seeing them connected to a snake here? I'm curious how that may come into play later, especially with its fangs being bared here...

Also a bonus connection that isn't established here but is consistent throughout the comic is that Pedri is HEAVILY associated with dragonflies, and his presence is almost always proceeded by them. We've discussed this already heavily on this blog so I won't dig into it much more until we have new info on this.

[standard-human]

hey, i just need to get this out there.

matpat has been one of the biggests influences on my life. i remember my first theory very specifically- the bendy theory about max fleisher. and it was good. it was really good. it took my interest in a game, taught me about real history, and made me laugh. but most importantly, it gave me an escape. at that point, my dad and i were living in a crappy one bedroom apartment. he had to work so much, he barely got to spend any time with me. i didnt really have a father figure for a year or two there. but then, heres this guy online who talks about video games i like while making bad jokes and teaching me something. i remember that for a solid month after i watched the rosalina theories, i was obsessed with punnett squares. i learned, i laughed, and i felt like there was something i could go to every week to feel like i was cared about. eventually, my dad got better hours and could hang out with me, but i still kept coming back to the theories. this channel was my happy place. if i was having a bad day, id rewatch the mario series or the fnaf playlists, or sometimes id just pull up the until dawn theory. that was always one of my favorites. now that im older, my dependence on theories has lessened, but i still watch every video. even when i have a bad day now, i go back and laugh at sans is ness. im definitely gonna stick around, but im never gonna forget the father figure of my childhood

so, i guess what im trying to say is this: thank you matthew. thank you so much for everything youve done over the years, and thank you for making my life better. im truly proud to be a theorist.

[levmada]

Hey Gee

Congratulations on 2500 followers! I'm rather new on Tumblr but your blog is already one of my favorites.

If you don't mind, I'd like to request prompt 'Grapple' ="sender manages to pin receiver while play-wrestling" for Eruri please. It's from the fluff list but I won't say no if there is some smut too but it's up to you of course.

Thank you :)

thank youuu! awe🥺im glad!!! i really hope you enjoy this fic then, i had a blast writing it hehe

//canonverse, no warnings, tooth-rotting fluff | 1.0k

“Levi, did you know that the freckles you have are supposedly where you were kissed in a past life?”

Levi groans and yanks the covers up and over his head, instantly thrusting him into a sea of stuffy air. But it's effective in combatting the early morning chill—especially while wearing just underwear—and the ways Erwin chooses to mess with him not even five minutes after opening their eyes.

“It’s too early even for you to be spewing philosophy,” he huffs, muffled under the puffy covers and still raspy. Despite that, Erwin is warm and heavy at his back, like a bear.

“It’s not philosophy,” he chuckles. His warm breath tickles his bare shoulder where he has unfairly stuck his head, penetrating Levi's cocoon.

“Conspiracy theory then.”

Erwin kisses the nape of his neck. “It’s not a conspiracy when the proof is before my eyes that you don’t have any freckles. It’s a problem to solve.”

“Tch…” Levi shivers as heat from his mouth slides down, covering where his neck slopes. “You just had a good dream, didn’t you.”

Erwin whispers, “I have a good dream right here.”

“You cheesy shit.”

Nonetheless, he melts as Erwin’s palm slides down from his sternum and his lips travel around his neck. Being doted on by Erwin will never be resistible.

But then he moves to unconventional places. Like his bicep, and across his pronounced shoulder-blades.

Levi makes an unhappy noise. “In my next life it’ll look like I have chickenpox.”

“I’ll apologize to you in person.”

“I’m touched,” he retorts.

Once Erwin’s kisses begin to tickle, though, he can no longer indulge in his game. Locking his throat against the manic little giggles building up, he playfully pushes back on Erwin's forehead and escapes by rolling onto his stomach.

Erwin chuckles. He's in danger.

“Hold still, Levi. I’m not finished.”

“Ugh.”

Levi squirms under him as Erwin dots kisses down his spine. He's not willing to escape and expose himself to the cold. Not that he actually minds it when Erwin is feeling this playful, even if it's at the asscrack of dawn.

“Did you know where you have bruises are supposedly where someone beat the hell out of you earlier that morning?”

Instinct jabs at Levi that an attack is coming. He ignores it.

Erwin slows to an abrupt stop, and then snaps into action. He bears down more and kisses every spot on his neck, shoulders, arms—anywhere he can feasibly reach.

He gawks as a strangled giggle wells up in his throat—no!

Erwin is so massive there's only one feasible way to get some sort of advantage without using his full strength. His biggest weakness is close combat after all.

Levi begins to thrash, throwing his arm back at an awkward angle and jabbing at Erwin’s side until he lifts himself up enough for him to shove himself back, sending them both toppling onto their backs.

Erwin squawks in surprise as they land bouncing in a ridiculous display at the foot of the bed. He's starting to laugh now, though. In fact he locks his ankles around Levi’s shins, pinning him in place as their arms fight to restrain the other’s.

Surely Levi will win a game of play-wrestling—it's not even his first time doing so, even though the whole affair comes off as an oxymoron in his mind. He has more strength.

Erwin is Erwin, though, and wins by slapping his hand down and tickling under Levi's ribs.

“You shit!” Levi tosses his head away from Erwin's teeth and groans to bury a disturbingly girlish giggle. “Fuck you."

“A win is a win.”

Levi arches his back and manages to get his free arm underneath him. He sneaks this by making it appear that it's trapped.

“A win is a win,” he mocks, and takes a handful of Erwin’s crotch.

He practically coughs in surprise, giving Levi the opening to tear himself free.

It's weird, since this isn't even real fighting, but he never feels this light and powerful.

He spins around, planning to leap again when the full force of Erwin’s weight comes crashing down on top of him, planting him firmly on his back. He's not out of breath, but Erwin's chest doesn't make it easy to breathe. No matter how he thrashes his limbs, Erwin is simply too heavy.

Erwin laughs gleefully, floating around the top of his head. “I didn't intend for things to go this far. But I actually managed to pin you down.”

It sounds like he’s underwater. “Yeah, all you had to do was crush me.”

"What was that?" he teases.

Levi internally rolls his eyes. It’s not so bad being crushed by his massive pecs, but he’s not about to admit that.

Levi continues to beat on his back, defiantly at first, but then growing slower and much weaker.

“Hng. I can’t remember... Everything’s getting dark."

“Levi, you can’t joke about that!”

“I can’t joke, you idiot,” he croaks. “I’m dead.”

“No!” he laughs, a thick and boisterous laugh that Levi loves. He raises himself up a little, and dots kisses all over his face.

“Agh.” Levi tries to dodge from this onslaught and fails spectacularly. “What’re you doing?”

“I’m resuscitating you. It seems like it worked,” he beams.

Levi scoffs, and turns his head away as Erwin traces his pronounced jaw with his lips. Added by the pressure of Erwin’s navel against his crotch, he’s feeling less playful by the moment and more impatient for something else.

“I love seeing your smile.”

Groaning, Levi throws his arm over his mouth.

“You can’t hide. Your eyes crinkle when you smile.”

Levi hides his eyes then, but he's still smiling. “You’re so annoying,” he chuckles softly. His voice cracks. He’s not used to laughing.

“I’ll change your mind.”

“Hm?”

Erwin tongues the defined divots of his collarbones as he rocks forward gently, giving his cock friction finally. Levi truly melts as his teeth make an appearance, nipping at the sensitive skin.

“Mm,” he moans under his breath, squirming his legs apart as Erwin develops more of a a rhythm. Levi sinks his fingers into his hair, turning his head to give him more space. “Smiling gets you this hot and bothered?”

“Yes,” he answers pointedly.

Levi snorts at the absurdity, but he’s unable to fake annoyance for long as Erwin’s lips begin following down his chest.

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