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assriels · 23 days

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gravity

pairing: lucien x reader

summary: falling in love with lucien felt like trying to resist gravity and realizing it’s a futile pursuit. slowly, and then all at once.

word count: 1.7k

warnings: none/mostly fluff!

a/n: i played around a little bit with my writing style and i really enjoyed it :’) also i’m only capable of writing fluff for lucien i think lol

masterlist

banners by @/cafekitsune !

lucien: derived from the Latin root word lux, meaning light.

When you had first felt yourself falling for Lucien Vanserra some odd years ago, you had been keeping a watchful eye on him — per Rhys’s request — upon his initial arrival to the Night Court under the guise that you would help him research ways to persuade the human queens to your cause against Hybern.

Initially, it had been just that. A favor for your High Lord, your friend.

But what had once felt like a vague indifference for the youngest Vanserra brother quickly devolved into a genuine appreciation for him. The more time you spent with Lucien, the more you glimpsed the light peeking out from beneath his guarded exterior.

(You nearly laughed at how aptly Lucien lived up to the brightness belying the meaning of his name.)

It had started with friendly teasing, then secret smiles over piles of textbooks, then not so accidental touches in the quiet of the townhouse. With each evolution of your relationship with Lucien, the more and more you found yourself wanting to be around him, seeking each other out with flimsy excuses that would guarantee a day’s worth of cherished company.

The inextricable desire you had to be near him that was growing exponentially with every subtle glance he stole had made you nervous. Wary, even.

You were an academic – the coveted researcher for the Night Court – relying heavily on concepts you could study, could quantify. Well-evidenced theory informed much of your advice to Rhys and his court, and you were often the first point of contact when anyone had any questions about…anything; your wealth of knowledge was endless.

But Lucien — his undeniable magnetism — was an enigma; you could never quite understand why you’d felt so drawn to him, could never formulate an accurate hypothesis for how easily he could coax a smile to your lips and make butterfly wings tickle your stomach.

But it was becoming increasingly evident that he felt the same indisputable pull that you did. He had spent much of his time in your presence, bringing you tea in the late hours of the nights you spent in the townhouse’s reading room, poring over tomes and texts that you and Amren had thought might be useful. Lucien always made the excuse that he made too much tea and didn’t want it to go to waste.

(Later, you’d find out that he didn’t even really like the tea he brought you every night, only brewing an excessive amount of it because Feyre had offhandedly mentioned it was your favorite.)

He was rarely there to give his opinions, merely lingering to offer his quiet companionship, situating himself in a comfortable lounge chair in your periphery as he perused the pages of his book of choice. More often than not, he’d fall asleep in what had to be a supremely uncomfortable position, untouched tea cooling on the table.

It was in those sweet and fragile beginnings of your relationship with Lucien that you had begun to contemplate the potential cosmic underpinnings of your mutual fondness for each other, and what that could mean for you and your future.

Orbiting each other like stars caught in the same gravitational field, you and Lucien were on a steady course of stellar collision, sure to erupt in some unexplainable astral phenomenon that would certainly result in your doom. Or your salvation.

(It was the latter.)

The same way you could track the trajectory of an apple falling from a tree and calculate the force with which it would hit the ground, you could guess — with near one hundred percent accuracy — how hard you would fall for Lucien. It was a dangerous descent, you knew, but one that you could hardly fight against.

Despite being quite the closet romantic — how could you not be, with the knowledge of endless possibilities at your fingertips? — you had been hesitant to pursue anything more with Lucien, wanting to preserve the innocent, lighthearted flirtations that had come so easily between you. You’d been hurt before, been wickedly tricked into the dangerous downward spiral of broken promises and fleeting loyalty of lovers past. And you’d be damned if you’d let yourself make that mistake again.

But Lucien…

Lucien was all of things your previous paramours had not been. He was kind and gentle and genuine. Funny and insufferably sweet. He was a wonderfully fresh breath of air in an otherwise stagnant atmosphere.

He had his darkness — he’d admitted as much to you himself. But he had never hidden it from you, had even allowed you the privilege of holding the most tender parts of his past in your hands to examine, always providing ample opportunities for you to deny him, decide that you didn’t want all the pieces of his whole after all.

You had never been afraid of the dark, though, not in the literal or metaphorical sense. It was comforting, quiet, familiar. Besides, before Lucien, you had never found a light bright enough to fear the return of the dark.

But when faced with the sheer enormity of the warmth his light provided, suddenly you were afraid of its absence. You wanted only to spend your time basking beneath the sun you had discovered beneath Lucien Vanserra’s ribs.

It was torturously paradoxical, how the more you chased Lucien’s light the more you were plunged into the dark unknown of what loving him would mean, and how afraid you had become. But resisting Lucien’s solar gravity was like trying to defy the very laws that governed the universe you were lucky enough to live in with him: near impossible.

The way he so effortlessly drew you to him, enticed you to trust him, open yourself to him was something that the greatest physicists of your time could never explain. It was a mystery you weren’t sure you wanted solved for fear that once discovered, he’d be taken from you; you selfishly wanted to keep Lucien’s impossibly beautiful energy to yourself.

He was undefinable in his unwavering loyalty and limitless consideration. Lucien’s love for you seemed to be as intrinsically written into his existence with the same certainty that you knew the sun would rise over the horizon every morning. It was with that same certainty that you knew falling in love with him was inevitable, and fighting it was a futile resistance of gravity.

So you had let yourself fall, let yourself dive deep into the unknown, praying – begging, really – to whatever gods that were listening that this wasn’t another funnel towards heartbreak.

You fell with maddening speed and Lucien caught you – having already fallen long ago – with all of the warmth of the sun that his name promised.

If your past self had ever doubted the stability of loving Lucien Vanserra (read: you did), none of that doubt existed in you now. Especially in moments like this: skin to skin in the morning light of the first spring day in the Night Court. Three years since you and Lucien (separate) became you and Lucien (duo), you could hardly believe that you ever considered any other choice but him.

The sun was warm on your back as you lay on your side, arm tucked comfortably beneath your head as you listened to Lucien give you his annual spiel about how the springs in the Spring Court were unbeatable, though the Night Court did have some acceptable weather sometimes. You giggled at his remarkable consistency, love and fondness filling the space between your ribs, momentarily seizing your heart to flutter giddily.

“Okay, Lu,” you responded in mock exasperation. “And then in the fall –”

“Autumn,” he corrected, just to jest further.

“ – you’re going to tell me that the Autumn Court has the best autumns.”

“Naturally.” His grin was blinding as he teased you, pressing a firm kiss between your brows.

You rolled your eyes but gave in, leaning in towards him – always leaning in towards him (that pesky gravity again).

“But I guess your court,” he continued, “has us beat as far as stargazing goes.”

“Naturally,” you mimicked, winking.

His laugh was a resounding bell of warmth and you took the opportunity to drink him in, pale skin tinted pink with joy and the heat of the morning sun. His hair was disheveled with sleep, but he was impossibly effortless in his beauty.

The freckles on his cheeks reminded you a lot of the stars that illuminated the streets of Velaris, and you spent the next few hours of the early morning drawing constellations on his skin and fabricating stories of their origin while Lucien’s own fingers drew matching patterns onto your back.

He whispered cheesy lines about how you outshone all of the stars in your beloved Night Court, and then his cheeks dimpled — beautiful craters of mirth — as he smiled at your feigned incredulity. He kissed you then, and you once again found yourself at the mercy of his gravitational pull, your body arching almost instinctively against his in an effort to satisfy your craving for the feel of his skin against yours.

Lucien – as always – indulged you, snaking a muscled arm around your waist to pull your body flush against his as he whispered in your ear about how he had heard once that freckles were the spots that past life lovers had kissed the most. In an act of petulant pseudo jealousy at the idea that someone had the privilege of loving Lucien before you, you spent the rest of the morning peppering his skin in a thousand kisses.

“No need to be jealous, my love,” he said as you anchored your lips to the apple of his cheek. “I’m certain that in every life before this one, I enjoyed the pleasure of your affections. And I will continue to find you in every one after.”

Maybe that was it. Maybe the undeniable, visceral need to have him, be with him, love him was written into your bones by the infinite previous lives you spent within each others’ orbit. Your devotion to Lucien seemed as intrinsic as the laws of the universe; there was no life in which you did not feel the warmth of his yearning.

You hummed in contented agreement, feeling as though you’ve just discovered the unthinkable as you continued your quest, reveling in the gentle shiver you earned with a well placed kiss to the junction of his jaw and neck. For a brief moment, you made a mental note to thank whatever force – physical, cosmic, celestial – that had bound you and Lucien together.

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grison-in-space · 11 months

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I wanted to make so many metaphors from livestock welfare for that post, but didn't feel like catching the associated snarl of feelings and ideas that people have about animal management and food in response, because that's its own kettle of fish. But while I was looking for an easily accessible concept to tap into, I found something really cool.

Let me talk about farrowing rails for a second. When sows give birth to piglets, it's unfortunately rather common for little piglets to get crushed beneath their mother's weight. No one, least of all sows, wants this to happen, but the sow is huge and has to lie down a lot so the piglets can suckle and especially when they are born piglets are almost cartoonishly tiny. They are also not good at moving quickly and anticipating their mother's movements yet. This means that there are often piglet losses from being squished to death.

So pig farmers often use a farrowing crate to protect piglets from getting squished. Sows go into it before they give birth and come out either at weaning or when the piglets are big enough that squishing isn't an issue.

It has slats that piglets can fit between and move around in, so their mothers can't crush them. It's very effective for increasing piglet survival and decreasing these kinds of crushing deaths. But it's really not ideal for the sow for all kinds of reasons that should be obvious. That's a long time to be confined in a small space.

The thing I'm delighted to find is the existence of this site by a couple of agriculture researchers in the UK, which is focused on providing resources and research on ways to allow sows to farrow (give birth) with much less restriction for the animals. There are recommendations for many kinds of operations and pointers to many kinds of evidence - based systems, complete with plans for how to design each system and a list of what each can accomplish for sow, piglets, and caregiving staff.

Each of the options are set up with contact information for the people who designed it and instructions about how to go about finding a system to suit farmers' needs. There's also research sections explaining how we know what welfare provisions improve quality of life for both sow and piglets, plus lists of assurance schemes farmers can use to market their products as ethical to consumers. It's really cool and well designed, and it makes setting up changes in pig operations relatively straightforward and feel easy to do. It's such a nice piece of communication. I like it a lot.

#livestock welfare #pig farrowing #animal welfare #pigs

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themousefromfantasyland · 4 months

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Was Star really supposed to be Asha's love interest in the beginning of the development of Disney's Wish?

I keep seeing this being brought up everywhere, appearing even on Trivia TikTok videos about the movie, but as far as I know this is coming from a deeply misunderstanding of the development process.

The main idea is that Star-boy was supposed to be Asha's love interest and that At All Costs was supposed to be their love song.

Seeing the concept arts of Star-boy I can see where most people are coming from. I'm also think that Asha and him are definitely shippable.

However, in the Art of Wish, Star-boy was just the third stage of the character development, and on that stage he was meant to be Asha's deceased grandfather reborn. On the first stage he was supposed to be a shapeshifter and on the final stage a ball of pure energy.

You can say they missed the opportunity of having Star stay as a magical boy like Peter Pan, but it's clear that on that stage his relationship with Asha was probably going to be platonic. No romance here.

Then why do At All Costs sound so much like a love song?

Luckily for us, Jennifer Lee, one of the writers for the film and chief creative officer of the Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Julia Michaels, the songwriter for the movie, gave an interview to Variety explaining their reasons.

The song “At All Costs,” sung by Asha and King Magnifico, was important to Lee. The song navigates the importance of the wishes to each of them, and the two are emotionally aligned here. Lee pushed for a song expressing this. “You had to understand what it felt like to hold someone’s wish in your hand. How do we viscerally understand that when you’re with them, you feel like you’re holding someone’s raison d’être?” she says. “You can’t do this in any other way but song.

Since there was no love song in the film, Michaels wanted to write a song that as a standalone sounded like a love song that could be played at weddings. Yet in the context of the film, it’s about the heroine and villain. Says Michaels, “How cool would it be if we wrote a song that if you listened to on its own, it sounds like a love song, it could be something you could play at your wedding, or be a lullaby to your kids, just something really beautiful, but when you watch the film, it’s the heroine and it’s the villain.” She continues, “You realize they’re coming about this both from various points, one from a very selfless standpoint and one from a selfish standpoint.”

Basically Jennifer Lee wanted a song about the importance of the the wishes for both Asha and Magnifico, but Julia Michaels wanted to write a love song. As there were no opportunities to write a love song, Michaels wrote At All Costs to sound like one.

But in the demo, they sing "Love you, as one does", instead of "Promise, as one does"?

Probably Julia Michaels wanted to write a love song, but had to tone it down so as to not confuse the audience. Clearly, it didn't work that well.

Disney is lying!

Why would Disney lie about the development of Wish? As far as I know, there's nothing to hide, no scandals, no controversies.

Jenifer Lee is literally the chief creative officer, the highest ranking position of the creative team within the Walt Disney Animation Studios. She along Allison Moore WROTE the screenplay and she is part of the team that came up with that story. Wish was her brainchild. Why would she need to lie?

Maybe higher ups like Bob Iger and Bob Chapek screwed with the project. That's completely possible. Maybe we learn later some big and super shady controversy in the development of the movie.

But, by the time being, with all the evidences available, Wish seems to be the story she and others of the studio wanted to tell, even if general audiences reacted badly.

And so far, no evidence of romance.

Unless someone comes out with some legitimate evidence of the contrary, Star was never supposed to be Asha's love interest, and everything else is consequence of fans being dissatisfied with the end product and wanting for something more Disney-like.

#disney #wish #disney wish #star x asha #disney concept art #wish 2023

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cecilioque · 1 year

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VOLO’S OUTFIT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE BAD. And here is why I think so...

To begin, we are not talking about the Ginko guild design, we are talking about the “final boss” fit. We all know that Volo’s outfit is dumb, but I’m mad because it was actually thought out and VERY symbolic in the sense that it essentially represented things Volo said/wanted.

I, like everyone else looked at this outfit and went “wow, that is dumb” and then hated on it. Although it is not the most appealing or cool outfit, there was actually a lot of thought that went into it. I could be really over analyzing this, but here is my interpretation.

To begin with, the concept art is a lot more revealing about the intention of the design then the actual game play. On a surface level we see Volo in what I can only assume is a Arceus gijinka cosplay. So the hair, the stars, and color scheme are all elements of Arceu’s design. Cool. Good job especially since Volo had in fact never seen Arceus before.

To fully understand this outfit we have to go back to Hisui and the remains of this so called “ancient civilization”. In the Pokemon world, there is this general idea that the ancient culture was either Roman or Greek inspired. We see evidence in Legends of Arceus by the obvious column heavy architecture and use of Greek Doric columns ( one of the earliest styles of columns used for temples) and in the ruins and temple.

The Temple of Sinnoh is obviously based off of the Parthenon. It’s funny because game freak went as far as to even mimic both Ionic and Doric styles in the Temple of Sinnoh just like the Parthenon. I will go as far to add that the Sinnoh temple is much simpler than the Parthenon due to the fact that it was not embellished with an elaborately carved frieze or any decoration on the exterior for the most part. Bizarre when even the broken ruins have evidence of some sort of ornamentation. It makes complete sense why the game developers chose this style seeing how is is know for being very simplistic. But it also dates it in context. It makes the Temple of Sinnoh the first temple that was build and the others that followed were build as the civilization grew ( thus more elaborate but we can only see the crumbled remains).

I will be ignoring the Snowpoint temple because it is a weird combination of styles and almost seems alien and out of place which very much fits the Regi theme. It is also based on the early game design which was limited and blocky for game space sake.

Ok, heavy Greek and Roman influence. Back to Volo and his obviously Greek and Roman fit. Volo’s name itself means “I wish” in latin and could possibly be a reference to the phrase “volō, ergo sum” (I wish, therefore I am). Very in character since it is the wish for more” and he did everything he could to achieve that.

The actual influence for the design is more Roman in nature. This bothered me because we can see that research and thought went into it, but they just simplified it. And this actually has a point.

To begin with the obvious stuff, we see that volo’s shirt is definitely toga like. It even goes so far to be decorated with a Fibula (brooch)in a way that indicates a higher rank or status. Cool Volo, we get that you think highly of yourself. Color choice is also same as Arceus, but we also know that white togas were also used by senators and high political officers.

Next , the shoes. These are just the basic stereotypical Spirit Halloween Greek god/goddess type of sandals you can get at your local costume shop. This was actually the most disappointing part of the outfit for me. But it makes sense they went with the most simplified and recognizable style. They wanted us to look at this outfit and go “ Wow, Volo has been studying his myths and recreated an outfit”. This is what you could expect someone to create with just a written description of the clothing used during that time.

The necklace is interesting because it stands out so much compared to the gold colors. I am no sure what they were going for here by making it so prominent, but it brings us to an interesting thought. If they necklace does have meaning, it is related directly to the design/shape. The waterdrop could be the Greek symbolism for "tears of grace” or in a sense “gods grace”. The idea that the tears of god water the harvest and provide life. Alternate interpretations could simply be water as a source of life, or a symbol or sadness a mourning. If it is a symbol of of mourning, this might be a clue to why Volo might desire to rewrite the world so much.

Last but not least, the pants. I think we can all decide this is one of the worst parts of the outfit, and to me it is just straight up confusing for two main reasons. For starters, the color green is so prominent when green is an accent color on Arceus. So maybe the color has meaning itself. But if you look at the image above, the color mainly refers to life and “the harvest” (possibly like the necklace). It has a weird connections to life and creation itself, which probably is why it was included in Arceus’ design and makes sense as Volo essentially wants to become the creator of life in a new world.

But this isn’t the part that gets me the most. The second thing that confuses me is the fact that the Greeks and Romans did not use pants. This was because pants were associated with non-Roman/Greek cultures (the Germanic tribes and Vikings) who they looked down upon. On top of that, the Greeks thought pants were feminine and silly. This could also just simply be a design choice because they didn’t wanna draw Volo in a full toga and accidently make him look like Christ. But this leads to my final point of the physical outfit itself.

VOLO’S OUTFIT WASN’T SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD. IT’S SUPPOSED TO LOOK DORKY AND BAD BECAUSE IT WAS FLAWED! This is based on the real world cultures it was based on. And although Volo may have done a lot of research, he still didn’t completely understand ancient culture. It’s bad because Volo made it himself. His outfit was flawed just like his ideology. It is his own interpretation of a culture that he had idolized without truly understanding that this great and ancient culture crumbled. And based off of the architecture of the ruins and temples, it never even reached a prime before it fell.

But Volo thinks its correct/cool/accurate. He is being a fool about it because he didn’t understand the bigger picture and had become consumed with this desire for power and control. This as an idea is really cool and I find it funny that you can also wear the outfit. Its essentially mocking him. If we look at the outfit in this light, the design was a success in getting us to dislike it and evoke this distaste. We didn’t know why, but this is why.

SO IN SUMMARY, OUTFIT WAS BAD ON PURPOSE. It wasn’t thoughtless, in fact there was a lot of research behind it and yet that seems to be thrown out to simplify the design in a way that looks like someone hand made it based off of what they had put together themselves.

But this isn’t my favorite part of the concept art. My favorite part is the hands.

Look at his hands. Why are they in those positions? Wouldn’t it have been easier to create more standard poses? To me the hand gestures here are just too specific. So I started digging around for what they could be on a Art history level. I looked at Non Christian art first and then Christian symbolism within their mosaics, illuminated manuscripts, and paintings. And I found some verrrry interesting similarities. I am not trying to make this religious. I just found some interesting similarities between old Christian art and Volo’s design. Which makes sense if we go back to this Greek/Roman influence because these cultures eventually converted to Christianity. And Arceus is kind of a weird goat god Jesus.

The left hand is where the biggest symbolism is. Basically, this hand gesture has been used to indicate “the hand of god” or the “hand of justice”. Christ sometimes is draw with a similar hand position and could be a sign of the cross, but this would also refer to some sort of divinity. I will also note that Volo is in no way making the classic “blessing” hand gesture.

As for the right hand he is making what I assume is a Greek/Roman orator (speaker) gesture. This would mean that Volo is calling for attention. Note, that I didn't’ compare this to prophets. That’s because orators speak for themselves and prophets for god. And Volo thinks he is god.

Under this context, in the concept art Volo is essentially saying “I am God”. If we add the symbolism of his outfit, it only further solidifies this idea. Volo’s outfit/concept comes together and screams “behold, I am god , the hand of justice. I will be the creator or the new world”. Which is so freaking clever because that’s literally what he tells you.

Sure his hands are switched and lowered compared to actual real world art examples (thank you Game freak for not throwing in actual religious symbols/gestures), but I think the intention is still there. It’s so good that I am mad. So as much as I hate this dumb outfit, I cannot deny that it was well thought out, that the character was well thought out.

To conclude, these are my assumptions. I am not an expert on art history or religion. If you have further insights on this feel free to share. I’d be interested with what others had to add. I the end this could all be wrong and just crazy for overthinking the designs of a pokemon character, but it just seems too intentional to be carelessly thrown together. This is just one possible interpretation.

Though its just more evidence in my mind that a lot of love and care went into developing Legends of Arceus. Despite their limitations and resources.

#volo #arceus #pokemon legend of arceus #legend of arceus #giritina #art history #temple of sinnoh #i can finally rest after typing up this mad assumption #sunny speaks #a special thank you to my friends who heard me ramble about this #and thanks to game freak for actually doing research for their games #its not perfect but an effort was made #pla

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maaarshieee · 1 year

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Ok, my first time requesting but can I request Scaramouche x gn! Reader where the reader is his lover and is cursed to turn to stone, and he tries to find a cure for it.

⎯⎯ ୨ With Me Forever Though Breathless ୧ ⎯⎯

ੈ♡˳ Kunikuzushi/Scaramouche/Wanderer x Gn!Reader *ೃ༄

ੈ♡˳ 2.9k words ┊ Fluff to Angst *ೃ༄

ੈ♡˳ Masterlist | Part 2 *ೃ༄

author's note ˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚

truthfully i was gonna decline this but i just had a really good fucking idea the moment i was about to delete it. sorry if it was angst my dearest anon, but this is all i can think of! I've always thought there's always beauty in the last stage of grief in a writer sense. anyways, what do you think of my post format now? hehe, ty for reading! have a good day/night!! i decided to scrap "beliefs" pt 2 to make a pt 2 of this one instead! i promise pt 2 is fluff and shorter!!

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ cw: implied character death, kinda? reader is alive but also not, reader is geo user, non canon occurrences, made up concepts, mentions of reader having a mother, injury, 3.3 spoilers (archon quest) & wanderer lore (kinda? its more evident in pt 2 though)

Kunikuzushi promised himself two things the day he burnt the straw hut his child friend resided in; rid of these hindrances called emotions and never trust a human once again, to never see one as a companion, just as the same mistake he's done too many times.

After his third betrayal, he was sure that he'd learn from the fallacies of human nature, that at the beginning of his wandering, he'd treat mortals similarly. To never form bonds with the vermin that crawled all corners of Teyvat.

Ignoring the humans that tried to approach in a friendly manner, cursing them away, and disregarding their wellbeing, he wandered alone but often used humans as temporary companions if he ever needed directions.

That continued for many years to come, and his bitter resentment grew inexplicably without cease, only to flourish further into deep hatred. Not only to humanity but to the gods they pathetically worship as well.

And yet when he met you, his resolve crumbled to ashes. Kunikuzushi hadn't meant to leave himself bare and vulnerable for you to take advantage of— Though, you never did such things, it was just a ruse for himself to believe.

Of all the traveling companions he's had so far, you've stuck by his side longer and were more competent in the world of outdoor life. Not to mention that everywhere he seemed to go, people knew of you, albeit only a little. You were eccentric to the people of Inazuma, Liyue, Sumeru— everywhere.

You were similar to him, he mused. Like a feather drifting in the wind, catching the attention of many but your presence was brief as if you were never there, leaving a small imprint in people's memories as you vanish nearly without a trace.

Perhaps that was the reason you've stayed with him for so long, tolerating his arrogant behavior and sharp tongue, countering it smoothly with the same level of riposte. You were truly a human like no other.

Especially when he awakes in the middle of the night, the moon still high up in the skies with ragged breathes and tears staining his crystalline eyes. A light sleeper, you were, so you opt to start the fire once more. A kind gesture to warm himself up from his night terrors, and either walk not too far away to allow himself to recollect himself, or sit somewhere close to him, but also far away enough to not be suffocating in his vulnerable moments.

A cool, tingling feeling spreads throughout his body whenever you do, as well as actions and gestures similar to it. A wave of serenity... The same as he felt when he was back at Tatarasuna. And now, it was too late for him before he'd realized that he yearns for you dearly, much more than he desired to.

Just like that, you've become friends, to the puppet's dismay. The only one who could hold him back from starting fights with your kind, cool his temper bit by bit, and... willing to be his friend, though he never made you promise as he did with his child friend.

One day, you spoke to him with the intention to tease, sitting atop a tree branch whilst he finished setting up your camp for the night, for it was his turn.

"You look down on my kind as if we are insects, correct?" Kunikuzushi let out a drawn-out sigh, prepared to ignore all the words that are about to roll off your tongue, for you often bothered him with baseless questions to pass time. "Why is it you look at me a mite differently?"

Kunikuzushi grabbed the piles of sticks you'd collected beforehand, sat himself down on a log, and began to start a fire, rather irate at the question you asked. "You must've been hallucinating to believe such things." He rebuked, putting a pot over the fire.

Loud shuffling of leaves can be only heard for a while, and he was compelled to sneak a glance at you, only to see you hanging off the branch with your legs, a big wide grin on your face as your continued your observation on him. It made him scoff, muttering; "I hope you fall."

"Hmm, how do I say this..." You hummed in thought, fingers rubbing your chin while Kunikuzushi cooked you a meal. No matter how much he says he hates you, he always insists to cook for you due to your poor cooking abilities. This only became more apparent when you ate burnt meat on a whim, saying 'food is food'.

Jumping down the branch, you took a seat across from him as he passed you a wooden bowl of the soup he made, drooling at the delectable aroma. "You see, back when I was a young bird, before I left my mother's nest to spread my wings and explore Teyvat, I was terrified of insects." You reminisce, expression softening whilst you continued to sip on his soup, the fire reflecting in your eyes warmly, dancing in your irises. Kunikuzushi couldn't bring himself to look away, hands clenching into fists.

"A bird afraid of its own prey?" He mocked with a laugh, a brow raised at your faraway figure, shaking his head once he saw the mess you've accumulated around your lips. "When you're going to start spouting metaphors, think before you speak, else it won't make sense." Kunikuzushi wouldn't help but let out a sigh as he wipes your mouth with a clean cloth.

And you let him, leaning close to him and pouting at his comment, brows furrowed. Deciding to ignore his words, you continued, "And my mother would always tell me that I shouldn't be repulsed by insects! They help spread pollen, eat other pests, and many more, yet I always cried the same thing over and over;

Kill it, mother! I hate things that crawl and dirty!

And my dear mother would sigh with a smile on her lips, looking down at the poor insect. But instead of crushing it, she picks it up and chaperones the innocent bug outside of the confinements of our home, safe and sound."

The puppet stayed silent for the whole duration of your storytelling, and would never admit that he had listened to your every word intently. After you had finished speaking, he asked a rather simple question. "Why?"

And, as such, you gave him that same dazzling smile that makes his breath hitch. "I asked the same question whenever she does it, and her answer is the same as always.

Like insects, they have their own significant duties to fulfill in their short span of lives. Though they aren't as exuberant as a human's life, I just think we all are similar, in a way.

After a few more occurrences like that, I've learnt to admire the beauty within an insect! Its role in the ecosystem, anatomy, and pretty patterns— they're just fascinating!"

Kunikuzushi clicked his tongue when he ascertained that everything you've said bared fruitless to quell his curiosity over the purpose of your storytelling. It was solely what it was, a story you've told to waste his time. (Though he dared not to divulge that it did pique his interest.) "Just what is the relevance of this boring story of yours to your claim of me 'looking at your differently'?" He crossed his arms, waiting for a more befitting answer.

You placed your empty bowl down, staring at him straight into his eyes, cheek on your palm. Kunikuzushi found himself uneased by your watchful gaze. "I just think there's a similarity in our experiences." You confidently stated, "When we first met, your general opinion of me was alike with others of my kind: wretched vermin who is not worth your time. But as minutes turns to hours, and hours turn to days of me being with you, ever so persistent to be your traveling companion, you've grown fond of me, haven't you?"

What a bold claim it was, it even made Kunikuzushi rethink how he felt about you and your constant company. Furrowing his brows, he hung his head, face now hidden under his hat. You simply let out an amused huff, "So much so that instead of squishing me to my death, a small insect, you'd either pick me up and put me somewhere where no other could hurt me or admire me."

As expected, the puppet stood up abruptly from where he sat, turning away from you and straying away from camp, not without saying unpleasantries toward you. "Such a foolish imagination you have. You're nothing but a mere ant I would not hesitate to step on. For now, you are kept alive, for you've proved yourself useful."

You only giggled at his retreating form, shaking your head. You were quite used to his mannerisms at this point, knowing him like the back of your hand.

It was also ironic for Kunikuzushi, for a few days after that night, you had become lovers. And ever since, you've always teased him for his declaration and then after that, he asked the locals of Inazuma about love.

But as you all know, this story will always end in a tragedy. It was just how Kunikuzushi's story was written, and fated to end as if it was merely a tragic drama, similar to the ones you've both seen in traditional theaters during your journey toward nowhere.

It was the day when he committed his 1st betrayal.

Both of you could've made out that fight against a group of rogues unscathed. Unlike him, you were a trained sword user, wielding your blade with utter professionalism and confidence. You even taught him how to properly use a blade, adding to his knowledge of the art of swords alike, both how to wield such weapons and to forge them. The only problem though? One of them aimed for your Vision that hung proudly from your belt, timing it perfectly as you swung, attacking your blindspot, and the sword they held pierced right through your Vision.

Now, while Kunikuzushi was never interested in Visions, he knew that those things were indestructible. The residents of Tatarasuna taught him so, as well as you, the first Geo Vision user he's ever seen. So why did yours burst into pieces of shattered glass, golden elemental liquid oozing out of its golden case and burning your skin, carving and merging onto you?

He couldn't understand and neither did you, standing there in shock. He didn't even hear the rouges leave, running away in fear. With a loud cry of pain, Kunikuzushi watched you fall down to your knees, clutching the area where the unknown substance hardened and slowly became part of you.

It was a phenomenon unheard of, even the elders of Inazuman Villages were bemused by your little situation. Doctors were all the same; useless. There were no records of it ever happening before, which meant you were the first. Hell, even Vahumana scholars from the fabled Sumeru Akademiya who were stationed in Inazuma had no knowledge of it. And as the days go by, the element that you now recognized as Cor Lapis spread throughout your body, slowly engulfing your form and hardening your body, and soon, your organs.

First, it devoured your skin mercilessly, and you cried tears every day, clinging onto Kunikuzushi for comfort even though his skin was just as hard as the Cor Lapis spreading throughout, uncontrollably shaking in fear. It hurt, the pain was nigh endless, the Geo mineral taking more and more of you. And now you were growing sickly due to the high elemental exposure.

Kunikuzushi could see it in your eyes. The pain, the fear, the confusion. All of it, and he couldn't bare to see you like this. The lover that was once full of joy and energy, always having a pep on their step and dragging him to wherever they wanted was slowly fading, the visage of it becoming nothing but a memory as it takes the form of the miserable, pained version of it. So, regrettably, he left you by the time your legs were fully taken by the Geo element, asking for the innkeeper to keep an eye on you.

The last thing he heard was your pleas for him to return, to stay with you in your times of peril, and perhaps your last moments of life. But Kunikuzushi turned a blind eye to it all, for the heaviness in his chest, the tears that pricked his eyes— it all became too much to bear, even for him, who have experienced devastation in every step he took.

He should've been more considerate of how you felt. Sure, he was suffering, but yours were far greater than his, especially now the love of your life left you to rot.

Kunikuzushi had betrayed you, his dearest lover. The one who was adamant about staying by his side. The only one he knew, deep inside his hollow body, that you would never betray him like the rest of them did. Leaving you in the time you needed him...? It was as if he spat on your face, disgrading you.

And on the day he returned, a century and a half had already passed. He had joined the Fatui not too long ago. The names Kabukimono and Kunikuzushi disregarded, now known as The Balladeer, or Scaramouche.

The guilt that swallowed him worsened, seeing you at the heart of the village, a body now completely hardened Cor Lapis. Just as when he left you, you sat on your knees, hands neatly folded onto your lap. The only difference is now your face held permanent pain, forever carved on the Geo element that turned you to stone. The tears that once continuously poured down your cheeks crystallized, glimmering against the sunlight.

The village he left you on had immortalized you as their stone deity. All of them were familiar with your dreadful story, passed on from generation to generation. Similar to the Kabukimono, you've earned your own myth that will soon be recorded in history books. And as he solemnly ate Unagi Chazuke, a dish the village offered for him to eat for his long journey, he listened to the village elder told him the tale of a 'geo god' that hailed all the way from Liyue.

"A deity that emanated from Liyue peregrinated all the way to Inazuma, to settle with their lover. But their lover left them, and they cried day and night, imploring the stars for his return. Their tears perpetuated to flood the lands and sank into the dirt, their heart gradually turned into Cor Lapis, the element they once created with their bare hands, and slowly engulfed their entire existence due to the unfathomable grief of their loss."

And the village has kept your stone body in the middle of the village ever since you've turned stone, for you brought prosperity into their land. Cor Lapis, an element that only can be found in Liyue. Though, yours was unlike no other. It made their dirt more fertile, the quality of the crops became impeccable and they prayed to you to feed onto their greed, always asking for more and more. Rumor has it that the gemstone tears that continued to form in your eyes and fall into the ground, infusing themselves within the land were the cause.

It made him sick. You've shed never-ending tears since his abandonment. Did he hurt you that much? And now they're using your pain and suffering for their own benefit? The only reason why you stayed in the village, being taken care of and treated like a tourist attraction was because of your enamoring myth that was partly true? They didn't deserve the blessing that was rooted in your torment.

They deserved years of suffering for taking advantage of your kindness, even in your statued state.

Soon, the village that selfishly kept your body was nothing but reduced to ashes, leaving nothing but the fertile land you had blessed it. Forgotten, wiped from history. Then, the Balladeer hid you somewhere no one would find you, in the deepest depths of Chinju Forest, where you shone faintly in the forever darkness of the mysterious forest.

It was then and there that he finally lamented. Years of longing for your touch, gnashing guilt, hatred toward the gods for choosing you for the fate you don't deserve— the pain of the universe taking you so soon from him and his undeniable betrayal of you, his traitorous actions towards your endless love. It all took the form of tears as he clung to your hard body, his screams of anguish being swallowed by the trees that surrounded you.

How could he do this to you? To leave you to your own despair when you've never left him in his times of need? To let you experience pain all alone when you've always carried his burdens with him? You were nothing but sweet, the sole candle that lit his life where he had known nothing but darkness.

Scaramouche missed you, so much, and he would do anything, everything to bring you back. Even make a deal to that wretched Doctor in the Fatui. Just to hold you in his arms once more, to kiss your soft lips, and hear you call him yours once again. So he could tell you all the words he could never before, to thank you for your loyalty, to apologize for his betrayal, and tell you that he loves you with all his heart— his entire existence.

But there was nothing left of you, only the wound he had inflicted on himself and your body in a form of Cor Lapis hidden away in Chinju Forest.

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#yaepublishinghouse #scaramouche x reader #kunikuzushi x reader #wanderer x reader #genshin x reader #genshin impact x reader #:;marshie.writes #:;requested #:;oneshots #:;kunikuzushi.scaramouche.wanderer

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ultraviolet-cello · 5 months

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Yo what's up it's me, ya boi, [horrendous infection that knocked me down for a couple days]

Anyway I'll be catching up episodes 3 4 and 5 tomorrow/day after, but for now I just wanna do my thing with ep 6. 6&7 are possibly some of my favourite episodes in Tristamp, so I'm hyped to show off my theories/details about them.

Once again spoilers for Trimax [HEAVY spoilers in this case, we're talking about Legato and Razlo]

TL;DR there's something fucked up with Tristamp Livio and by extension Razlo, and I need more of them all the time.

@tristampparty I'm back in the game!

So a lot of these theories and details will link to episode 7 :]

So of note in this scene is (obviously) Wolfwood's weird red eyes which. Pretty cool ngl. But I do think there's something to be said about the way he pauses and carries the Punisher in this scene; there's a pretty popular theory that Wolfwood gets extremely overstimulated when he takes a vial and the way he pauses and wobbles with the Punisher here is, for me, more evidence for the list.

Also that they won't give this man a CAR. Give him a Thomas or something??? I think it speaks to the dehumanization of Wolfwood by EOM that he doesn't seem to get to use transport like a normal person - always set to wander the desert, because he can survive that! Not like a normal person, of course. Only the Punisher is inhuman enough to do that.

I'll have what he's having [I love that Nightow's wanted poster gets in the magazine despite being. Yknow, 30 $$]

I'll talk about this more when I actually get round to analyzing episode 5, but Roberto calling out Vash's not-being-human and then immediately going "well I'm not risking my life for that" is interesting because he's, well, a reporter. It speaks to his experience that he's not willing initially to chase down something that could be a big scoop. But also,,,, Vash looks like. 20. Roberto is probably about in his 30s-40s, which means he's probably heard of Vash since childhood [Since Tristamp Vash has a much longer reputation history than Trimax/98]. I really wonder what Roberto thinks of that; did the picture not come as a shock to him, or did he already know? Does part of the reason he keeps letting himself be talked into following Vash stem from a lifelong curiosity? Much to think about.

This plant HAUNTS me. Why does she have such a different tank? Used to power the Ion Cannon, maybe, but there's the possibility people adjusted it so she can better power the sandsteamer and that's,,,, There's a complicated relationship between humans and plants (obviously), but little implications like those adjustments make me go !!!! [My friend @millions-dykes has a Plant Engineer oc, Enigma, who focuses on that concept. She's very cool]

LIVIO SIGHTED. Let me get this out of the way quickly, but y'know that panel that is often cited as inspiration for Tristamp Livio's design? Yeah that's. That's Razlo.

Which is really fucking funny to me because it's foundational to Tristamp Livio - love that for him, but trimax Livio specifically does not wield Punishers, and the page that this appears on is when Razlo is getting Livio to tell him he's the strongest (Which then goes into this training flashback montage page which is Razlo-centric). Which again, extremely funny to me.

Not necessarily analysis, but something all iterations of Trigun do great at is a sense of Scale. The sandsteamer is massive, yes, but so is the desert. There's some great shots with the moons later on, which I love as well.

Wolfwood really doesn't try and keep it secret, huh? I mean, in every iteration Vash Knows[TM], but tristamp Wolfwood in particular just,,, doesn't keep the secret. I wonder what other conversations they've had, when Wolfwood realized Vash knew.

Being always able to see Wolfwood's eyes gives him a layer of emotion that I really like - Trimax Wolfwood is a little more reserved, because he's more developed, further layered into those coping mechanisms and repressions that make up his character. Tristamp Wolfwood hasn't quite had that yet, and it's reflected in his design. It's sick as hell

Time for me to be so normal about Livio and Razlo ^_^ so I've built up a bit of a study case on the differences in when Livio or Razlo are fronting [Trimax], and once you start looking into paneling and shit it's Very apparent! Which is cool! And I'm starting to build up one for Tristamp Livio, which,,, well, you'll see. Anyway take note of his movements here - slow, even footsteps and steady guns.

The mask here is. Also a red flag for something being Off. The eye moving independently suggests that either they have some Weirder Than Usual Body Stuff going on, that Trimax Livio and Razlo can do that and nobody comments on it because they're being polite or - My theory - the mask having those electrical components are embedded somewhat in Livio's face. I will explain in just a second.

Livio as a kid being so upset about his parents interests me - In Trimax, Razlo kills Livio's parents because Razlo was formed as a protective alter due to heavy childhood abuse, and Livio doesn't seem too upset by that specifically, more just being,,, alone. I wonder what happened with their parents in this specific timeline, or if Razlo just hasn't presented yet.

Now I've uh. Kinda semi-intentionally blocked out some stuff I've read in the Bible, but I do remember someone being crucified upside down. St Peter that was it! I don't remember anything else but I'm sure people more well-versed in the Bible will have some imagery to point out lol

Legato's outfit seems a touch inspired by that one July flashback in Trimax. Which, given that Tristamp is a leadup to July, is a nice touch!

Legato might be a bit protective of his hair. Can't imagine why.

On a more serious note, it makes sense for Legato to have such a protectiveness around his body and physical appearance, especially if Knives had an influence in it.

sands undertal

I really do wonder what Legato's ability is in this. Like unless they retrieved Vash's arm from the. Wherever it got sucked into when it was amuptated they can't go the 98 route. But the wire explanation of Trimax also doesn't quite seem to fit. Something new, maybe. Could be related to Plants!

I wonder if Vash here is thinking about Rollo. That Wolfwood was willing to kill Rollo out of mercy, and he's going to do it again to Livio. Except this time, Wolfwood knows Livio. Vash doesn't know Livio, but Wolfwood does and it's going to hurt Wolfwood if Vash lets him carry on with this. So he goes to save Livio, and save Wolfwood as well. Similar to Trimax, where Vash kills Legato to save Livio as a remnant of Wolfwood's memory, Vash here could be protecting Livio to protect Wolfwood.

Okay here's where my crack theories come in. So I do think that Razlo is elbowing his way into front about here, not even necessarily because Livio is getting his ass handed to him, but because of the mask. He's probably not fully There, because the progressing fighting style continues in Livio's movements, but the eye changes are. Well, it's Livio and Razlo you can never be too careful.

So Livio hits the mask here and is down for the count for. A Bit. What's important here to me is that the mask does of course have an electrical component. Now, what would that be for? Well, gathering that Livio seemingly has a bit of trouble after this (early episode 7, this is a two parter theory), that the mask is used by EOM to force a switch remotely. After the mask seemingly malfunctions, we get a lot more Razlo-esque movements and traits in episode 7 before Livio seems to come back in and have his little meltdown.

It links in with both dehumanization of neurodivergent people (In this case, a system) and the usage of Razlo and Livio by EOM. Razlo's very often portrayed as Big Scary Murder Alter by EOM for scare factor, whereas when we get a bit more into Razlo's head in the Elendira fight we see a bit more what he's actually like - protective alter groomed into assassinhood by Chapel - and lends more understanding to the character. EOM being able to force trigger a switch would be viscerally horrifying for that loss of autonomy theme in a way that speaks to many neurodivergent people. Thanks for coming to my ted talk????

#cli speaks #trigun #tristampparty #trigun stampede #cli analysis

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snobgoblin · 9 days

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ok I've been sitting on this theory for a while because of a few factors, and also I was afraid that the whole fandom has this unspoken rule that you're not supposed to spoil this thing but Thun said it should be fine if I include a warning. SO CONSIDER YOURSELF WARNED. massive Arcana spoilers ahead. if I'm right. which I'm not gonna make you think I'm right but *I* very much do think I'm right and this was fun to come up with

I'm gonna apologize in advance, I really wish I could articulate this better but it's ultimately just gonna sound like the ramblings of a madman because I've been so in my own head, so please forgive me 😭

anyway. the takeaway: Lucio was never The Devil. he is The Fool. the PLAYER was actually The Devil all along. and the reason Scout still exists despite the player having the body of The Fool is because... that body is Lucios.

now this is the part where I show you some evidence out of order

⭐️evidence for Lucio being The Fool:

first of all he doesn't even share that many traits of The Devil. not any more than the demons anyway- obsession? well, the demons are all obsessed with something, that's kind of their whole thing, and we know they have different associated patrons. material wealth? well, Nadia is wealthy and she's not associated with The Devil. not to mention Lucio wasn't even always wealthy, he grew up in the mountains. you know what Lucio does embody though? recklessness. adventure. inexperience. traits of The Fool

another evidence is like, the whole ritual. I only mapped out those seats we know FOR SURE are occupied and by who (but it's easy to assume that they are seated in numerical order based on this. I left out the speculation for the sake of clarity here and besides the ritual is a theory for another day) ANYWAY. anyway. wouldn't you know it but the sectioning on the table corresponds with the phases of The Fool's Journey (we know for sure that The Devil is sitting at the head of the table, with Morga taking up the other head. to the Devil's side are the Apprentice and Volta, and so on) (I know there's a whole bunch of people not present at the table but again a theory for another day)

AND THATS KIND OF WHAT STARTED THIS THEORY IN THE FIRST PLACE, why isn't Lucio in The Devil's seat. he's in The Fool's seat! he says he was right next to Asra which is where the player would have been sitting and we know the Devil was THERE during the first ritual because he was overseeing it and people bargained with him. he wouldn't be able to sit anywhere but the Devil's seat. Lucio was sitting in The Fool's seat

also, just, some design aspects, such as the colors of the eyes and everything and also, in one if the concept art, Lucio is almost wearing a tunic (like the Rider-Waite card) and also has a feather in his hat that PERFECTLY matches the one on that card (I don't know if I'm allowed to show you that or I would)

this point is a little looser because this isn't something exclusive to Lucio, but people call him a fool a lot. specifically in Dawn of the Grub he says this

also this one's a little bit of a reach but the way the Fool card doesn't have an animal on it and Lucio, when he was a kid, struggled with his identity in relation to animals, like he didn't wanna be associated with beetles but he didn't know what else he was

also I think Asra says that basically Lucio just thought The Devil looked cool and that's why he latched onto him. it's really not much deeper than that. Lucio only THINKS he's tied to the Devil. but Lucio isn't to be trusted especially when it comes to magic. hell, when he visits the Devil's realm his first thought is "I'll have to remember these decorations for the palace" he just has a fascination with The Devil. which is actually part of The Fool's journey

AND I THINK. MOST IMPORTANTLY. Lucios association with dogs. i dont think its a coincidence that hes so aggressively a dog person and I believe that Mercedes and Melchior are representative of the two different interpretations of The Fool's Dog (some guiding, some hurting) because Mercedes is definitely more violent (bit off Melchiors ear) and I won't bother explaining their personalities you probably already know. also Lucios masquerade mask is a dog and also in one ask Nadia compares him to a yapping purse dog

not to mention, Lucios favorite flower is a white rose which is present on the rider-waite card and he also has this thing where he wants to be a hero, which is something the Fool represents (main characters/heroes)

also the devs stated Lucios favorite pokemon is Houndoom. how interesting, a dog with horns... surely that couldn't be symbolic 😉

also this interaction just in general

and like in my first playthrough of Lucios route I kinda just assumed "Lucio switched patron Arcana because the Apprentice used blood magic on him" when people referred to Lucio as The Fool at the end but that doesn't make sense in hindsight, I don't think it's that he switched at all it's just, that's always who he was

⭐️ evidence for the Apprentice being The Devil:

first of all, their power. the power to break chains, the power to break binds. it's said that this is a power unique to them, but why would they have the power to break the Devil's chains if they were not associated with The Devil? that card can mean "escaping entrapment" and the entrapment is sometimes represented by chains. it makes sense that, being The Devil's beneficiary, they would share his power. like Nadias intuition

also, The Devil almost STATES that you have a connection to him

also, this one's more silly but Natiqa says this.........

also, I don't have a screenshot but I remember the Devil might have said something during the ritual like "you're all in your proper seats... and MC, well, I suppose one Fool is as good as any other" <- implying that they are not a good fit and are only there because of their fools body

⭐️ evidence for the body of The Fool being Lucios

ok so Scout is The Fool yeah? that much is obvious I think. even in the concept art book, Scout is pictured next to that card. so then... how does the Apprentice have that body

Muriel says that the ritual was Asras idea

I believe that what happened was Asra wanted to use the ritual to force Lucio out of his body so he could revive the player with it

and I think that Lucio wasn't even murdered, he was just separated from his body, and that the ashes in the bed are not his remains. he did not "die" in bed, he "died" in the ritual room. why would there be ashes there? well, the courtiers are trying to frame Julian, of course they'd plant evidence. and Voltas footprints are in the ashes... it was all a set up

there's also that whole thing of Lucio calling the player a body stealing thief, and the fact that the player had to relearn to walk when they obtained this body but Lucio seems to function with it just fine. because it's his! he's used to it

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

GOD I *know* I had so many more points to make but I think that's plenty. I'll add on in a rb if I think of any more but it's really hard to remember... I hope that makes sense enough because at this point this theory has seeped into the very bones of this game for me and I see evidence of all of this every time I play it. it's so fun to look for BSBFNDBDB and I really just have. a ridiculous amount of analysis based on this but that's for another time BDBFBDND does this make sense? God I hope it does

ALSO ALSO PS please understand this doesn't like, say anything about their morality or anything to me. this doesn't automatically mean "Lucio is good and the Apprentice is bad" I think they're both nuanced, just like the cards

#spoilers #arcana spam #the arcana spoilers #the arcana theories #the arcana

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musicfeedsmysoul12 · 11 months

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I just read a bunch of Owl House Criticism and have to say… a lot does make sense. I still rate the show very high and honestly I blame the pacing for a lot of the issues we DO have with the show. I also think people are taking this way more seriously then they should and some do the complaints feel nitpicky.

One thing a lot of people brought up is Luz’s character and how the first episode showed her casual dismissal of others and their safety occurs. Then there was a few comments on how Vee is right to call her out on running away and other things.

I don’t fully disagree. Luz fucked up big time her first episode where she brought live animals and fireworks to school. It’s just… no. I don’t deny people should have punished her for it. I vote that the Shakespeare play and the cheerleading thing aren’t worth punishment though. Because both are honestly just quirky kid things. She wanted to be cool so she did something she liked to try and impress others. They thought it was creepy and reacted to it. Good reasons for her to be kind of shoved aside by some people. The spiders and snakes though? Yikes.

But to just call her a bad character puts a nasty taste in my mouth because I think she is one that is a good character and whom I think would have been fun to explore. It’s just… she’s kind of a concept that was tried but fell flat.

I think the summer camp thing was handled badly and I would have liked to be explained why they never tried to talk to her about what a reasonable amount of creativity is in her school work. If it turns out they had attempted to do so multiple times but she never listened: the camp is probably a better idea then not. More so given her actions could have gotten her arrested. Honeslty leaning on that idea would have been interesting. Luz being told she had to go to camp or face probation or something would have been an interesting hook.

My friend said she felt therapy would have been better and yeah that’s a good point: but what if they did try and it didn’t work? What if they felt a camp was less expensive ? (Which it probably was.)

I would have liked more evidence that Luz was an outcast. I saw a lot of criticism on this because if you just look at the show face value: Luz does seem like she’s whining about a lot of stuff. Her mom turned out to be like her and only wanted her to not get bullied as Camila did in school. She could have made friends at camp. There’s just so much there that does make Luz seem like a bad person for being upset. And honestly it would be interesting to explore that to, to really pick apart the dramatic ‘me against the world’ mindset of teenagers who see themselves as outcasts. But the show is supposed to be about weirdos and found family.

So: I would actually nix Camila being a nerd. Manny was the nerdy one who loved fantasy, encouraging it in Luz. I would have had him be the one who was more open about Luz’s everything while Camila was more wary and put off. Sure, she could still laugh at the snake skin incident, but I would want her to be less accepting of the other stuff. I said that the first episode reminded me of my mom when I got my diagnosis of autism and she didn’t understand it. I would want to lean in.

Manny and Luz should have been canonly neurodivergent. Camila is neurotypical and she constantly compared her two family members because Manny could mask very well. Luz couldn’t. But I would have Camila struggle to understand that her daughter’s own brand of autism/ADHD is vastly different then her husband’s because it’s so common. I can’t tell you how many time people are like: oh you’re lying about being this cause you don’t act like BLANK.

Camila and Luz then have a conflict which makes it more understandable why Luz is willing to lie to her mother about not being at camp. Because Camila is set up to not understand Luz and possibly she would be pushing her daughter to act ‘normal’ because she doesn’t understand. Again this is inspired by my mom. I have vivid memories of her worrying about appearances and how others think of us, with her pushing me towards things I didn’t like. Some of it was out of concern for me, but there was a huge lack of understanding that drove a wedge between us for a while.

I would then have the idea that Luz is bullied be obvious. Luz would reference it or recall incidents. And I would have them be unpleasent. Being ditched by so called ‘friends’, name calling and mocking. Maybe having her things stolen or random crap dumped in her locker. I would have her be the outcast from the start. I would also address her being a POC person in a small town. Luz could have met Masha or the other two kids: I want a reason why she didn’t connect.

I grew up with almost no friends but people generally didn’t hate me. I got bullied a bit but most of the time I was ignored and happy about it. When I was a kid I was very particular and drove people off due to this. When I made friends I was with other weirdos: some of whom were alone because they were just… I can only call them very weird and slightly disturbing. One of whom was a girl who’d flip on a dime if she liked you or not.

Masha in canon is goth and is there to be the ‘cool goth kid’. I would have had them be dismissive of Liz’s fondness for the Azura series and possibly the type to mock her for liking a ‘gushy girly book’ because take it from this enby: a lot of us go through the phase of shunning anything feminine and romantic to be ‘cool’. I would have a reason why two people who could have totally been friends weren’t.

Luz would be an outcast among outcasts. Just that shade of different.

I want her to have suffered in school. I want her to have to explain that it’s true no one understood her. I want her to be able to look Vee in the face to go: you know nothing. Because Vee only sees a surface and not the full sum of it. Vee who isn’t into Azura and thus gets Masha being: oh you matured cool. I want to hang now. Who goes to Camila who is thankful her baby seems able to mask now.

I want Camila to be able to mistake Vee for her own kid because ‘oh god yes she’s finally normal’. And I want Luz to point this out. I want Luz to point out to Vee the other kids said camp was prison. And that ‘you might have liked it for some reason but can you say I would have? Masha thinks I’m a freak for liking Azura. They told me I was a loser for it.’

I want there to have been a damn good reason more then we got for WHY Luz stayed in the isles.

Not to say I don’t want Luz to feel bad about lying or anything. I just want the whole outcast thing to be more apparent. Luz feeling awful about lying and about resenting her mom who does love her versus the fact she never felt safe in the human realm is an idea worth exploring!!

#the owl house #owl house rewrite #luz noceda #camila noceda #vee the basilisk #toh critical #I guess #more ‘I still liked the show it’s just that this would have been interesting’

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sunlit-haruka · 8 months

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EVERYONE I just saw the new DRDT twitter post, and I have some things to SAY /pos (if you don't know what I'm talking about, you should probably view this post https://twitter.com/DespairTime/status/1703105596134654210 before continuing on reading this one) ... ... ...You back? Awesome !! First and foremost, gonna take a look at the synopsis

This concept is giving major 999 vibes, I love this already I also really like the shorter number in cast, I don't actually see a lot of fangans with shorter cast and I think that's a shame because I think there is a lot you can do with a shorter cast of 10-12 participants (see Danganronpa Lapse). > eleven students are forced to continue a killing game that they’ve supposedly already started. However, no one can remember the past trials, nor the deaths of their missing classmates. This is the main thing that caught my eye, and it definitely explains the shorter number in cast. And with their memory erased and the way this is worded, it feels almost like this death game that these characters are in has restarted. Like, something went wrong with it, and that resulted in the death game restarted using the eleven students still left. And if that is the case, that makes me wonder about the possible connection this death game could have with DRDT. But I will get to that later. > Between the killing game, their lost memories, and the “NG codes” that restrict their actions, how could anyone escape unscathed? So this is also using the NG Codes from Danganronpa 3? Yet another thing I find very interesting. I so badly want to know more about this cast. Which is why they are the next topic of my insane ramblings !!

Okay before I even get into anything, I just want to say mad fucking props to DRDT Dev for these designs and for their art in general. They have genuinely improved so much since the start of DRDT, and it's so cool to see Second of all

> That is to say, this is a story about a person who wants to become the perfect teacher. So hi, I love you very much first of all Go to a damn barber second of all I am very worried for you third of all /lh (Also my first thought when I saw him was that he reminded me of Enju from Ayakashi Akashi, and I think that's funny)

DRDT-Dev has confirmed that this is the protagonist, so I am already very intrigued with him and what his deal is even though we won't find out for a long time Another fun little thing I noticed was that in all of the art so far out with him has him with his eyes closed. I wonder if that means anything Anyway, I love him, and I am also concerned for his safety for something I will talk about later

As for some smaller observations, given how closely these two are depicted, their fire and ice motifs, and their general simialr appearences. I don't think it's a stretch to say that these two could be sibling, or related in some way. I think that's cool

I've seen a few people say that this person could be Elliot Cuevas, Charles' older brother, and I definitely think that's a fair theory to have. Not just because of the purple hair, but also because of the collar around his neck. What is one of the only details we know about Elliot?

His favorite animal is dogs. And that collar (to me at least, looks very similar to a dog collar. Just something to think about

I have nothing insightful to say, this person is precious and I want to give them ice cream If people start theorizing them to be "secretly evil" istg... /lh /hj The rest of the cast (except one) I have nothing to comment on, so let's get to the main question I am thinking about at this moment Does this project have any connection to the lore of Despair Time?

This wasn't something that was confirmed, nor denied by DRDT Dev, so everything I'm about to say could age awfully. But I think there are a few pieces of evidence that could hint to this project having more relevence to DRDT than it comes across at first glance. Three to be exact. Let's start with the first and most obvious one

This man who is looking very smug at me is wearing a jacket with an XF-Ture Tech logo on it, or at least something that looks the part.

We do not have much information on what XF-Ture Tech as it stands right now. All we know at the moment is that it is a profit tech company that sponsored Min's family when she was younger at the promise that she would become the Ultimate Student in 12 years time, and that they also do "a lot of other things"....whatever the hell that shady sentence means. Due to the lack of information about XF-Ture Tech, there is not much else I can analyse at this moment. But this fact alone does seem to connect this project and DRDT in some way. But obviously that's not all For my second piece of evidence, we go back to that teacher character. Because I swear...there was another, albeit hidden, place where a teacher character was mentioned... Oh yeah !

.....Ohhhhhhh righttt... Teacher man, you're in big trouble. In all seriousness, considering how intricate DRDT-Dev's writing is, I just don't think this could be a coincidence at all and if it is I'll be genuinely surprised. I think this teacher character and the teacher mentioned in the about page's hidden text are the same person. Now that does not exactly answer the big question of who is saying this text. It could be the mastermind of this project's death game, could be another participant in this project's death game, hell the possibility that this is the mastermind of the DRDT cast's death game still isn't really ruled out. But the main point is that I think it's a very big possibility that this teacher and the teacher in the about page's hidden text are the same person. And lastly, I would like to go back to what I said in the beginning: > it feels almost like this death game that these characters are in has restarted. Like, something went wrong with it, and that resulted in the death game restarted using the eleven students still left. If we're following the idea that this is a restarted death game, that honestly gives me the same vibes as a reboot of a television show. Which brings me to my point: What if this death game is also being broadcasted? I feel as though it is definitely a possibility given the summary, but for right now there doesn't seem to be much proof of this idea. _ That's basically all of my current thoughts on this project that DRDT-Dev has shown us. If this does end up becoming the next fangan DRDT Dev releases after the completion ot Despair TIme, I am very excited to see in the future what has been cooking

#haru chats about drdt #danganronpa despair time #drdt #fanganronpa #fangan #sorry if this post is clunky or poorly formated #mostly made this to get my thoughts on the table

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twig-tea · 3 months

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City Boy, BL, and when Queerness is "Allowed"

Alright. @stuffnonsenseandotherthings tagged me in a post about City Boy and asked if I'd seen the show, because I hadn't mentioned it. I chatted with them in the comments for a bit and came around to what I want to say about this show.

For those who haven't heard of it, this is a Korean BL framed as "real"; the four actors play characters with the same names as their real names, their social media accounts treat the events of the vlog episodes as real to their lives (both their personal accounts and the show accounts, as far as I can tell), nothing on the channel says this isn't real, and the show is framed as though it's actually happening and is filmed by the actors themselves as slice-of-life, with some 'found footage'-style additions. The season is over, but the accounts still post shorts with the actors acting as the characters, and they still do lives "in character".

First, I've seen the show, and it's very well done. The acting is good, the chemistry is good, the visuals are good, the kissing is good, the story is good. If they hadn't framed the show this way I would have been shouting about it. If you want to check it out, it's on YouTube for free with subs. Check out stuffnonsenseandotherthing's post linked in the first paragraph for more about the show if you're curious.

But I was uncomfortable with the way this show has been made and marketed, and so I've stayed quiet about it.

Here's the thing. In addition to the very real problem that fans have with separating the actor from the character, chemistry from real feelings, and business gay performances from being freed from the closet, there is also something really insidious about the way people are allowed to be gay in play only, but real gay men are often hated on by fandom. The things "straight" (I put in quotes because a lot of assumptions are made all the time about BL actors) actors are allowed to do that gay men are not is infuriating.

Several months ago two of the men who appeared on His Man S1 decided to create a BL together. These are two gay men who were "shipped" by fans but did not actually date in real life. They filmed a vlog in the style of 'what their 1 year anniversary date would look like' (clearly labelled that way, but the video itself was immersive), and they got so much hate that they took down the video and backed away from making any more, and made a public apology. The criticism was that it was "cruel" to the feelings of one of the men acting in the video--infantalizing, insulting, and just more evidence that fans do not understand the difference between reality and performance.

I should say, the main shipped couple from S2 of His Man who did get together also make vlogs--real ones about their actual lives--and they seem to be thriving, thank goodness. They have more subscribers and around the same number of viewers as Cityboy_Log. But they had the power of being promoted by the show they were on partially behind their success, and they get a lot of suspicious comments about whether they are 'faking their relationship for views'. They are affectionate but not performing any heat the way City Boy does, and while they both seem pretty shy and not like they're dying to make out on camera anyway, I'm certain they have to temper what they do and show on camera in order to maintain their paid partnerships and magazine spreads. Ironically the same actions that are getting the actors of City Boy attention are what would likely get SeongHo and JunSeong "cancelled".

Anyway. All this is to say, CityBoy_Log is well done but I worry about it as a concept, and what it's setting its actors up for (and what its encouraging in fans). One change of not using the actors' real names would have been enough to make me cool with it, but it is what it is. If you're going to watch it, please watch it knowing that it's not real, and knowing that Korean gay men would not be able to make it either as fake or real content without being rejected by the audience.

#city boy log #bl meta #typed so that i can stop thinking it #putting my thoughts on main instead of in the comments of your post stuffnonsenseandotherthings #thanks for knocking out of my head what i've been wanting to say about this show

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xiaoshengnu · 2 months

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𝕸𝖞 𝕵𝖔𝖚𝖗𝖓𝖊𝖞 𝖙𝖔 𝖄𝖔𝖚 (2023)

overview : episode no - 24 | genre - wuxia

yun weishan has only ever known darkness. brought up and honed from a young age to become a spy under the mysterious sect wufeng, she longs for freedom. the drama begins as she is sent on a mission into the gong family, the enemy sect of wufeng. if she succeeds, freedom she gets. surrounded by schemes and treachery with possible death looming on both sides, yun weishan must navigate the dangerous waters of the gong family and her own turbulent emotions towards her target, gong ziyu.

l⃣e⃣ t⃣’ s⃣ b⃣e⃣g⃣i⃣n⃣

YALL THIS DRAMA. THIS DRAMA. this drama was simultaneously the worst and best thing I have experienced in a long time. however, if I could only use one word to describe this drama, it would 100% be stunning. the drama is absolutely stunning. from the music to the costuming to the makeup to the actors- this drama's visuals is quite frankly something never seen before in chinese dramaland- its so dark and brooding and so cool. the plot on the other hand...? let's get into it.

o⃣u⃣t⃣ o⃣ f⃣ t⃣ e⃣ n⃣

𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 3/10

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 7/10

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 7/10

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10/10

𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕖 - 6.7

o⃣u⃣t⃣ o⃣ f⃣ f⃣ i⃣v⃣ e⃣

𝖍𝖎𝖉𝖉𝖊𝖓 𝖌𝖊𝖒 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - 💎💎💎💎💎

[ honestly, this drama is pretty unique I have to give it that much. in every way. the characters? the premise? and the style? I think the visuals alone grants it it's five gem value. ]

𝖗𝖊𝖜𝖆𝖙𝖈𝖍 𝖛𝖆𝖑𝖚𝖊 - ✨✨✨

[ despite the plot that is quite literally held up by like two stitches, I would probably rewatch it for the characters, but probably not think too deeply about the drama's construction as a whole because honestly- it would frustrate me to no end. ]

‘keep reading’ for detailed review

𝖕𝖑𝖔𝖙 - 3

okay- hear me out y'all. I know people absolutely LOVE this drama and I am one of them, but I have to admit the logic in this plot sucks ass. like it really sucks ass. recently i heard a youtuber describe the characters as people who thought they were zhen huan but in reality were just a bunch of xia dongchuns and it really made me laugh- and guys... unfortunately, its true. some of the methods that the characters use to scheme and idk "verbally spar" honestly were just so- sigh. so ridiculous.

generally speaking, I felt that the drama didn't really have a "thread" or a central purpose, which I think is mainly a result of the build up to the ending. it failed to answer so many questions and instead made it worse by creating even more. overall, the plot kind of just felt like wading through a gigantic mud marsh with pointless confrontations and plot points popping up everywhere. the scriptwriters gave the drama a super complex framing that they just weren't able to do justice. two powerful sects and two people from completely opposing sides. one is an assassin-spy that initially (?) yearns for freedom and one is the leader of the sect that she is trying to destroy. add to that all the scheming that goes on the gong family. and a lot of childhood trauma. that's a shit-tonne of emotion and plotting to deal with which you can't realistically develop to a good quality within just 24 episodes.

I also got the vibe that the scriptwriters were scared to pin point any of their characters down for the sake of mystery, which honestly instead of making the drama better, really just made it worse. so many characters' motives were constantly doing 180s and big revelations were thrown in without any evidence of it being interlaced with the rest of the drama (I'm looking at you Big Plot Twist At End of Drama). like, the general concept was amazing, show-stopping, fantastic, never seen before, but then came the execution and it all just sort of fell apart.though I did enjoy the plot and watched the show until the end, ultimately I felt that there was honestly just too many frustrating flaws to justify it getting anything higher than 3. I loved the drama all the same though, the concept, the music and cinematography was just insane.

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘 - 7

ugh all the characters in this show where literally sO COOOLLL. they all had such distinctive characters, styles and personalities, it was amazing. honestly, literally never seen before. their tragic backstories were so so heartbreaking. while plot wasn't fantastic, the drama was pretty good at establishing and handling the characters and their emotional attachments to each other. its kinda funny to me that for a drama which marketed romance as it's main thing, the non-romantic relationships were so much better written. I loved yun weishan and yun que's relationship to their master han yasi and the relationship between xue chongzi and xue gongzi. and omg, gong ziyu's relationship to lady wuji? brought me to tears.

speaking of the romance department; I found it really hard to invest in the ships. while I approved of all the pairings and thought a romantic dynamic between them would be very interesting, it did feel like the storytelling was yet again lacking. I couldn't be sure wether I could really invest and ship the romance between shangguang qian and gong shangjue bcs both their motives were so unclear, and neither of their feelings towards one another were never really explored properly? and while I definitely understood yun weishan's attraction to gong ziyu, I didn't really get why gong ziyu loved her and risked so much for her which made some of his actions seem really silly and hard to stand by. overall, for the romance, i think I liked what it had the potential to be than what we actually got.

𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖉𝖚𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 - 10

Y'ALLL. time to talk about my absolute FAVOURITE part of this drama. THE PRODUCTION. the colouring, the lighting, the sets, the cinematography?? the makeup? the music? the costume design?? THE COSTUME DESIGN?? its quite obvious that a huge amount of the budget for this drama has simply been poured into the design, like I've seriously never seen a drama shot like this ever before and it was absolutely insane (though they definitely had to cut down on the cast and extras, the whole drama has this weird kind of empty feeling for a manor that is so rich and famous and so tightly guarded, like yun weishan didn't even get a personal handmaiden) I remember seeing the trailers for this show and literally screaming- the drama itself did not disappoint. I would even go as far to say that I would watch this drama completely just for the aesthetics.

𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 - 7

in my personal opinion, no complaints about the acting, it was pretty great. although it's pretty dramatic at times and everyone speaks at the volume of a whisper, at no point in the drama did I get taken out of the show by the acting. esther yu really slayed in her new assassin role which was so fun to watch especially since most of her roles thus far have been rather cutesy and light- and her marital arts scenes ate- in fact all the martial arts scenes ate in my opinion. I think even the side characters did fairly well, it was all very nice. no complaints.

𝖇𝖔𝖓𝖚𝖘!!

favourite character(s) :

yue gongzi ( who doesn't love an angsty angsty man? he's literally the definition of that teary wet cat meme and I love that for him )

xue chongzi (yet another angsty man- you can see a pattern forming lmao- his arc at the end was literally so heartbreaking. one of my favourite characters from this show fr. )

𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖈𝖗𝖊𝖜 (source mydramalist)

lead actors : esther yu, zhang linghe, lu yuxiao, cheng lei

director : guo jingming, luo luo

screenwriter : guo jingming

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1anxiousbeancrying · 3 months

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I've mentioned in a past post how I don't fully believe vaggie is a fallen angel, at least not yet and I've been seeing a lot of concept designs for fallen Emily and it's got me wondering what fallen vaggie would look like.

I mean it's kind of obvious that Lucifer didn't have horns and a tail While in heaven (this is just speculation) so it could be fair to assume he got them when he fell. I've seen people say that his colour palette could have changed as well but there's not really evidence for this as we've seen angels with darker colours in heaven so maybe Lucifer was always red.

When vaggie was left in hell the only thing that happened is that she lost her wings meaning she couldn't fly back to heaven, and in more than anything we see Lucifer presumably being thrown out of heaven by the elders. I think the elders are the only ones who can make an angel fall. Lucifer also said he wouldn't be able to go to heaven with Charlie, which makes me think it's not just a fear thing but that he physically couldn't go, but vaggie could enter just fine. Which is why I think vaggie hasn't fallen yet.

It could be used in a later season when the threat of heaven becomes more severe. Vaggie officially falling (if she hasn't already)could be used in very interesting ways as it could give vaggie a whole new form like we've seen from most of the rest of the cast. Like a lot of them have demon / angel forms.

Lucifer- we see it in the final episode

Charlie - her horns pop out a lot and we see more of it in the final episode, though I don't think we've seen the full thing.

Alastor- we've seen it quite a lot, specially in episode 5.

Angel dust- while we don't see many big changes when he gets pissed at husk in episode 4, his lower set of eyes get bigger and it looks like he gets taller, I really hope they do more with it.

Katie killjoy- in the pilot in her fight with Charlie she takes on the look of a praying mantis.

Emily - in episode 6 in her first meeting her wings are on her head and she has a lot more eyes

Sera- looks like a giant bird with multiple eyes.

A lot of the cast have secondary forms the only ones where really missing are husk, niffy, vaggie and some of the overlords.

Though I'm focusing on vaggie in this post, if she had a fallen form what would it look like, I think a lot of people would go with the obvious answer and say a moth but I disagree. Lucifer as far as we've seen didn't really change to much. The moth thing could have been what Charlie believed vaggie was before she found out she was an angel because in certain shots vaggie looks like a moth but in others she looks like a bird.

Would she gain the horns from her exorcist helmet? ( I've seen fanart it looks cool) Would her colours change?. Would she be stronger?. Could she even fall to begin with? From what we've seen exorcists don't have the magical abilities of most other angels there more physical so maybe you need massive amounts of power to fall.

Vaggie being an angel in hell but not a fully fallen one , would just be extremely interesting.

#vaggie #hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel vaggie #lute #hazbin hotel lute #lucifer morningstar

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arcadian-litterateur · 4 months

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gally as galileo galilei

masterlist

summary: an analysis of james dashner’s choice to name gally after galileo galilei, and the similarities gally and galileo galilei have.

word count: 560

warnings: talk of trauma, triggers, death, and abuse/manipulation by religious groups

a/n: happy birthday will poulter! this is the first part of my wave of stuff for will's birthday. just a lil observation i made, and ofc, a lot of love for my sweet precious baby, gally.

𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥 in The Maze Runner is named after an important historical figure. Thomas is Thomas Edison, Newt is Isaac Newton, etc…

Everyone acts like these characters got their names randomly, but it's so obvious to me that their names directly correlate to their purpose in the story.

Thomas Edison was an inventor who created unique solutions to problems that had stumped other scientists for ages…Thomas was able to creatively solve the Maze after the Gladers struggled on it for three years. Isaac Newton was smart as hell, and he made discoveries that laid the foundation for many other scientific discoveries. Sound familiar? Newt laid the foundation for the Glade by holding a massive amount of info and ideas. Winston Churchill spent his life trying to gain world peace…much like how Winston tried to make both sides happy and bridge the gap when Gally took over.

With this information in mind, let's take a look at Gally and his namesake, Galileo Galilei. Often called the father of modern science, Galileo made over fifty revolutionary discoveries about science, influencing tons of scientists, namely Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. Galileo discovered the moons of Jupiter, the rings of Saturn, the phases of Venus, and the craters and mountains on the moon. He also proved the earlier theory of Nicolaus Copernicus that the Earth was revolving around the sun. He invented an early microscope. He developed the mathematical ideas on the motion of objects on an inclined plane, the acceleration of free-falling bodies, and the movement of a pendulum. Basically, he was a really cool dude.

Gally was one of the most knowledgeable and foundational people of the Glade, made clear by his position as a Keeper and his obvious love for stability. He wasn't afraid to share his opinion (much like Galileo) and consistently contributed important information and solutions to the Glade. Also, to be a Builder, you have to have at least a basic understanding of physics. Gally obviously understood basic physics concepts, because all of the buildings in the Glade are sturdy and standing. Similarly, math is very important to be a Builder, so as Keeper of the Builders, he obviously had an understanding of mathematics. Basically, Gally is smart. Like his namesake.

But the similarities don't end there. When Galileo tried to bring forth his evidence of the Copernician doctrine that the Earth revolves around the sun, he was labeled a heretic by the church and ex-communicated, and placed under house arrest for the rest of his life. Yeah, for stating his opinions, he was forced out of what should have been a safe place, ostracized, and had to die alone. Similar to Gally, don't you think? Sure, he shouldn't have antagonized Thomas without explaining why, but the truth still remains that he had trauma and Thomas was a trigger. He thought he was helping by pointing out Thomas's role in his memories, and then instead of at least listening, his friends of the past three years immediately sided with the boy they'd known for three days, ostracizing him from the only safe place and family he'd ever known. He was also left to die alone by these friends, much like Galileo.

Yeah, as much as I hate to say it, James Dashner knew what he was doing here, and Gally and Galileo both need to find better friends.

#gally #gally tmr #tmr gally #the maze runner #gally the maze runner #analysis #character study #galileo galilei #gally character study #will poulter #will poulter's birthday #happy birthday will poulter

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mediacircuspod · 10 months

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“The Magic Trick You Didn’t See” is an essay written by an author who is on Tumblr, user ariaste. I think it’s a very well put together argument for “The Book of Life Theory” that has merit. However, I think there might be too much editing going on. I will explain.

I want to start this by being completely honest. I’m not sold on any theories because in the past I was so incredibly wrong about countless theories on Game of Thrones that made complete sense, I swear. But also were me just making up reasons for how the story could go my way. I’m actually really into the concept of “wait and see” because it places me firmly in the seat of “audience” or “consumer” and those are, in my opinion, the best seats in the house.

So I’m not really a subscriber to the coffee theory or the book of life theory or the body switch theory, NOT because I don’t think they’re true or smart or have merit, but because I would genuinely like to “wait and see”. Even if that wait is until 2027. I waited this long for season 2, I’m not afraid of a few years for a good story.

Anyway, go read the very long, but very intelligent google doc, because even if you’re not sure about the theory, it has some REALLY cool meta, and some interesting easter eggs that you might have missed upon viewing the season the first go around, the very long document is HERE.

Alright here’s some highlights. Basically the essay is about how The Metatron could be pulling strings on Season Two with the help of “The Book of Life” for a number of reasons. Corresponding evidence being the lack of God’s narration, Maggie as a character, Eccles Cakes, and a whole lot of meticulous details. I really, really love the format of the essay too, but that’s just me being a nerd about magic tricks and “The Prestige” as a concept and as a movie.

Where I diverge on this theory is simply how liberally it is applied, as well as the use of “bad” to describe certain ways of writing. And this is where my hot take kind of lies; I don’t think Good Omens 2 was bad. On purpose or by accident. I’m not saying my opinion is right, I’m just stating that that is where my perspective comes from. Now. Let’s get into why I like this essay.

It’s so cool. And detailed. And smart. I love reading things that connect dots and describe a persons critical thought process, and wow, this essay is incredible at doing all of that. The sheer amount of information I learned from taking the time to read it gave me a lot of insight about the things I missed on my watch of the season. I found I was a lot more distracted by the Austen-esque pacing than the author of the essay who noticed things like disappearing eccles cakes, how no one else’s power went out during Crowley’s lightning storm and a load of other things. But also, being “along for the ride” made me kind of protective of the story being told. Because Season 2 isn’t the beginning, middle, and end of a story, like season 1 was. It is the “quiet, gentle, and romantic” middle of a plot sandwhich.

In any case, the essay poses quite a few things. The only major issue I have is the idea that The Book of Life can alter will, and not just situation. I don’t think Crowley or Aziraphale are changed by the Book of Life. Their actions seem distinctly them throughout the entire season, which is exactly why the season needed to end on the note it did. Obviously from a story point, we need Aziraphale to go to heaven for what I imagine is the conflict of season 3; The Second Coming. But from an internal perspective, Aziraphale’s character demanded to make that decision. It wasn’t out of character, it was distinctly in character. And yes, he could have been influenced, or manipulated, or hiding something, but he’s been affected by all of those ideas for the entirety of his existence anyway. He’s had 6000 years of The Heavenly Host manipulating him, and he’s had exactly 4 years of being on his own side(openly) with Crowley. He’s going to still be susceptible to their tactics, especially if they say exactly what he’s been wanting to hear for his whole existence. “We were wrong, and you were right.” Metatron really pulled out every stop of the proper apology except for the little dance. We were wrong about you, We were wrong about how to run things, We were wrong about Crowley. You can come back and you can bring him and you can fix everything. Crowley refusing isn’t heaven’s fault, they still offered. It’s Crowley who rejected Aziraphale. (For good reason, but that’s not what this meta is about.) I made a post about Crowley and his relationship to forgiveness HERE, if you were interested.

So maybe things were changed by the book of life, the analysis on the opening credits is amazing, like great job. But I don’t know if they were. But that’s literally just me holding onto the plot of season 2 and shouting from the top of my lungs, “ITS ACTUALLY GOOD THOUGH BECAUSE I LIKE IT AND WHAT IT SETS UP” And who knows, we might be all wrong and what actually happened is that the whole thing was a very detailed dream that Aziraphale wrote down in one of his journals.

#good omens #good omens spoilers #good omens meta #good omens 2 spoilers #good omens 2 #go 2 spoilers #go2 spoilers #crowley #aziraphale #crowley and aziraphale #ineffable husbands #ineffable breakup

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