Hello! Are you still in the Undertale fandom? If so, are you still answering questions about your AU? It's been a long time since I've been here and I had some questions that I was too shy to ask myself 😅

I'm not really in the fandom anymore (of course, I will forever love undertale itself) and all my old aus are no longer in the works as branches of the fandom. a handful of them are like "I'll pick this up and fix it as something better when the time is right." if you ask questions about them in their current state, I dunno if I'll have much to say, if it hasn't already had something said about it a long time ago. the story ended up in this weird spot where I was making all these changes to make it more elaborate but never really finished doing that so I ended up with a whole lot of ideas and not much coherency.

I feel like I don't really want to put my foot in the door about ds too much as an au, like, most of the stuff I could say is like "well, yeah, if you found a post that said that, it's probably true, but it could be different when it's rewritten." it's ok if you ask stuff, but I'm not really working on it anymore and there are a lot of plot holes. I feel like a lot of the stuff I came up with at different times was really silly too, so it'll feel weird answering questions as fact about things that are technically true but not really things that feel legit. if I get to answer questions objectively and sort of tie them into the current state of the characters, or like, talk about their development, I don't mind if you ask things.

(maybe I'm being too hard on it. ds does a great job just simply existing and knowing it's ridiculous. the silly choices work if it's like this. the short comics I made in 2020-ish were great examples of what ds was fun to use for, ahaha)

Why does aziraphale tells crowley he forgives him??? I literally just finished it and its driving me insane

hello anon! hope you're doing okay after that ending!

that's a hell of a question. there are a few different answers, and i think a lot was going on in aziraphale's head at that particular moment, but this is what I took from it:

-this is a dance aziraphale and crowley have been doing for a long time.

there's some sort of moral conflict. aziraphale repeats heaven's party line. crowley asks a bunch of uncomfortable questions. aziraphale doubles down. crowley calls him an idiot. aziraphale forgives him. crowley storms away. pretty much half of their relationship is built on these kinds of destructive patterns at this point--of course they'd fall back into it during the worst fight they've ever had.

-aziraphale is angry.

he's heartbroken, and he doesn't understand why crowley has decided to abandon him in what should be (from his perspective) the happiest moment of their lives since the fall. he's lashing out, and intentionally hurting crowley in the same way he's been hurt. he's not stupid, no matter how much miscommunication is happening in this scene--telling someone "i forgive you" after they've kissed you is going to hurt, and he knows that.

this reading comes mostly from michael's performance. several people have noted that in the moments immediately after the kiss, aziraphale says "I l--" and then cuts himself off. then he goes on a Michael Sheen Face Journey TM and ends up angry, and that's when we get "I forgive you." whatever else is going on with aziraphale in this moment, he's pissed.

-forgiveness is what aziraphale does.

in aziraphale's very first (modern day) scene of the season, we learn that forgiveness is "one of his favorite things." he forgives maggie's rent, and he forgives gabriel enough to shelter him from heaven and hell while he's vulnerable. it's an instinct for aziraphale, for better or worse, whether it's because it's something he thinks he SHOULD do or something intrinsic to him as a person who desperately wants to do good. occasionally, it's even something he does for his own gain. (see: forgiving maggie was a kind action, but he himself admits that part of his motivation was that she always knows how to find his music.) it makes sense that he would fall back on forgiveness as a framework for understanding a mess of complicated and painful emotions. it makes him feel better, forgiving people, and he needs the comfort of that here.

-he means it.

he forgives crowley for saying no. he forgives crowley for breaking his heart. he forgives crowley for always asking 'damn fool' questions. he forgives crowley for kissing him at the worst possible time. he forgives crowley for falling. he forgives crowley for making him doubt. he forgives crowley for being kind, and clever, and ridiculous, and special, and someone he couldn't help but fall in love with, no matter how much it hurts them both.

and unfortunately, forgiveness is the one thing that will always make crowley walk away.

woke up today and the first thing in my stupid monkey brain was i wonder why kazuki took care of rei in the flashback in ep 8. like, any normal person would literally just Leave if they had to live with rei in his trash collecting dumpster of a house. but kazuki didn't. he stayed and he cleaned and he went out of his way to turn that dumpster into a clean and welcoming home. why?

and then i realised like. kazuki probably saw himself in rei. especially right after yuzuko's death, kazuki was probably the exact same as rei. maybe he wasnt as unhealthy or lazy but he definitely would've recognised that listless look in rei's eyes, the way rei was just going through the motions, the empty and uncaring way he carried himself. and maybe kazuki wouldn't know anything about rei's past, but he would be able to empathise with that emptiness.

and maybe that's why he started cleaning. maybe when he saw himself reflected back at him, he realised he would've wanted someone else to step in, to take care of him when he himself couldn't do that. so that's exactly what he did. and in the process of throwing himself into this job, of taking care of the house and of rei, he could give himself something to focus on and to think about which wasn't yuzuko's death and his own guilt and remorse.

and rei, well, he wouldn't understand why kazuki started cleaning. he might know about kazuki's past and his dead wife, but he probably wouldn't make the connections. but what he would understand is the warmth and kindness that kazuki showed him. and he would realise that warmth and kindness felt nice. he says as much in ep8, when he tells kazuki he didn't think much of him until he started cleaning. he doesn't say it directly, rarely shows it even, but he does appreciate what kazuki does. and he likes having kazuki around. because it adds spice to his life which he never had before. and rei may not like spice, he may say he can't handle it, but when it's given to him he'll eat it and he'll enjoy it [ep1]. and the more spice you have, the greater your tolerance becomes, and one day you'll wake up thinking to yourself i want to have something spicy. the more love you have, the greater your openness becomes, and one day you'll wake up thinking to yourself i want to love and to be loved. and you'll do just that. you'll buy the spicy food, and you'll love the people around you.

because food is bland without any spice.

and life is bland without any love.

enchanted became my favorite film a few years ago and i couldn’t shut up about it. recently, a friend of mine criticized it for having the “born sexy yesterday” trope. i don’t believe this to be true but i was wondering how you would dissuade this?

I think, like many Disney takes, it's a very bad reading of Enchanted.

Now, I'll start by saying that, had this movie been picked up by a different studio, and given to a different director, it may have fallen victim to this trope. But luckily Kevin Lima, the director of all time, got his hands on it, and made the movie even better than the original script.

Nothing about the Born Sexy Yesterday trope fits Robert and Giselle's dynamic in my honest opinion.

"The man is unsatisfied with the women on earth; he disregards his equals in terms of love and relationships and quite literally reaches for the stars and plucks a mythical/sci-fi heroine for himself. He molds her into what he wants as she is a blank canvas, then wows her with his (minimal) knowledge on the world."

None of this even remotely sounds like Robert's character (and to imply Giselle's a blank slate is crazy). He was married in the past (and she left him, something he seemingly didn't want), and is with Nancy when we meet him, and wants to marry her. Clearly the man is interested in the women around him. Furthermore, he never once tries to mold Giselle into what he wants. Does he share his perspective, sure, but he isn't trying to change her, and even if he wanted to (he doesn't) Giselle refuses to do so. She starts and ends the film firm in her beliefs that true love, and fairytale endings do exist, and that dreams can come true.

"This character is ultimately a child trapped in a woman’s body."

I could complain for days about how untrue this statement is for Giselle, and how irritated I get when people claim she's childlike/has the mind of a child. Giselle acts the way any grown adult from Andalasia acts. Edward and Nathaniel act the exact same way she does, yet no one calls them childish. Idk maybe I'm in the minority here but I've never found Giselle's personality childlike, and feel like, more often than not, viewers infantilize her far more than they claim the movie does. (this is especially common in fanfiction, which is something else I can rant about for days, but I'll save that for later.)

^ This always goes hand in hand with people claiming Robert's a predator, which couldn't be further from the truth, and I get very frustrated with that argument as well. He's a grown man who fell in love with a grown woman, he is not a predator.

(as a random side note that is not specifically part of the argument, I personally read Giselle as autistic, and while she and I aren't exactly the same, I do see myself in her quite a bit, so when people call her a child, or say she has the mind of a child... yeah I kinda wanna fight. ANYWAY.)

I think it's also important to note, with Robert and Giselle, they are treated like equals the entire film. Robert never sees her as lesser, nor does he treat her as anything other than an equal. He never looks down on her, acts like she's an idiot, and he certainly never takes advantage of her. A common part of this trope is the male lead taking advantage of the "clueless" woman and tricking her for his own sexual gratification. Robert never does any of that. There's never any single moment in the film where Robert uses her naivete to get anything, and certainly not anything sexual. And yeah, you can argue it's because it's a children's movie, but even without sexual content, he never tricks/lies to her about anything??

I feel like people also wrongly assume that Robert falls for Giselle because she's naïve and that's ..? He doesn't even start liking her as a friend until roughly around 40 minutes into the movie, and up to that point, he desperately wanted to get away from her. Patrick Dempsey himself said that Robert doesn't start to really fall for her until the moment she gets angry with him. That's when things shift. And I may be misremembering, but I believe Kevin Lima said that as well. Giselle had gone through a lot of character development by this point, so I'd say claiming Robert just likes her because she was "naïve" is wrong. Yes, their love story progresses very fast, but he's still grown to know her as a person. (they're basically speed running friends to lovers)

The only part of this trope that I would say does apply to Enchanted is the bathroom scene, as that is a moment where she's very briefly sexualized. I can't really defend that, and I won't, but I will say it's certainly far more tame than any other movies that fit this trope, that's for sure.

idk I think if you haven't watched Enchanted since 2007, or are relying on buzzfeed and tiktok comments about the film, then sure, one might say it's the Born Sexy Yesterday trope. But I personally don't agree. Brushing it off as nothing but that ignores all of both Giselle and Robert's character development, and the growth of their relationship, and mutual love and respect they have for one another. And that, to me, is sad because watching them go from strangers to friends to lovers is one of my favorite things ever.

So, anyway, yeah, much like "Ariel gave up everything for a man!", "Cinderella just waited around to be saved", and "Belle has stockholm syndrome", this take suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks, and I think people should pay more attention to what they watch :] (not a dig at your friend btw, I just mean people in general)

It's interesting to learn about identity disturbance with BPD because it really starts to explain everything. If your entire sense of self is held up by external sources (aka your friends! your environment!), then so many other things start to make sense. Like, for example, if your opinion on a character or a movie doesn't match your friend's opinion, then that's two parts of your identity contradicting each other!!! It's literally going to cause you cognitive dissonance! No wonder it's so distressing to me when that happens!!! 😖

Or another example!!! The clinginess omg. You realize it's because you practically have NO boundaries whatsoever. You've practically been begging your friends to inhabit your fucking body lmao. And obviously people can't do that (for one, physics.... but for another, people got their own bodies to deal with lol). So when they inevitably aren't around, it's like the driver of the vehicle you're a passenger in just passed out unexpectedly. No wonder you're trying everything you can to get their attention lmao — they gotta wake up and drive!!!! 😱

It's also really interesting when you start to try to develop your sense of self (in DBT, it seems to be worded as "self respect"? I could be wrong though). Like, you've spent most of your life not knowing who you are or what you want/need. And the SECOND you find that one little decision you can make for yourself? That one little kernel that's you and nobody else? Well, suddenly it's like you've got the crown jewel (XD) in your hands and the world seems to transform into this armada of invaders trying to take it from you. Like bruh. Step away. This is ME i've got here, and I'm not letting her go without a fight lmao. (Narrator voice: but no one is actually fighting her...... lol)

Anyway I feel bad for ppl who learn all this in less-than-ideal circumstances because like... I think a lot of people would probably get confused/upset/angry at the change in behavior (like someone is going from doormat people-pleaser to some sort of Napolean Boneapart world-conquerer type lol). So damn, I'm super grateful because I've been getting needlessly feisty about wanting some autonomy lately, and pretty much everyone I know has been super supportive and encouraging about it???? And that's really neat. 🥰 -feels very loved-

Anyway this has been a Ramble sorry. I just feel really good about things I've decided to do to improve myself lately, and I wanted to share lmao. I still haven't started writing as much as I had hoped I would, but like.... I'm starting to feel like ME, and I'm really happy about it. :)

I mean it’s literally enforced by Yi Sang’s passive in the dongrang fight where he don’t die as long one sinner is still standing

oh i didn't notice that!!!

i love how much yi sang cares about the other sinners. the whole thing about how he was nervous to leave n. corp because he didn't have a home to return to or anyone waiting for him but sang yi tells him that he might find somewhere new to call home. and he does!!! and he has companions to come home to!!! i feel like the passive could really show that, how he can keep fighting on as long as he has someone by his side.

i think abt lesbian nancy wheeler a LOT and personally, i think one of the most compelling pieces of evidence for lesbian nancy is murray analyzing her in 2x06 and saying that she is "afraid of accepting [herself] for who [she] really [is]" and that she goes back to steve because he's safe.

the way i interpret this as nancy repressing any feelings that aren't socially acceptable (by this, I mean attraction to women) and instead being with steve (men) because it's comfortable and easy.

in the context of this scene, murray's analysis of nancy doesn't fit with the conversation. he's shocked that jonathan and nancy aren't together, and he's trying to figure out WHY, because they have the chemistry and shared trauma.

murray infers that jonathan has trust issues from his dad which makes him hard for him to be in a relationship, but nancy being afraid to accept herself doesn't really have anything to do with jonathan.

sure, jonathan isnt as safe as steve, because they don't have a history of dating and he doesn't have the wealth steve has, but pursing a relationship with him wouldn't require nancy to accept herself for who she is.

nancy is noticeably unnerved when murray reads into her relationship with steve so well, showing that even she knows that it isnt going the way she wants it to. this could be read as a hint that nancy is aware of what she really wants (ie, girls), but shes afraid to go against societal norms and would rather fake feelings that arent there.

haha yeah i get it the symbol of the new fishman pirates is a (literal) hollow imitation of the symbol of the sun pirates, so intent on their hatred of the humans that they have stripped away its original purpose. thats cool .

while yeah the popularity of m/m ships is (partially) rooted in misogyny (bland love interests leading to everyone shipping the main characters with the best friends), its also because the majority of fandom is made up of cishet teen girls who really do not care for f/f romance, a concerning amount of them even being disgusted by sapphics. heartstopper's popularity in contrast to most f/f projects failing or being canceled isnt because m/m is more accepted, its that the straight men who fetishize lesbians do it more often in porn, whereas straight women are more likely to consume actual romantic media. you see this in fanspaces where the female characters ARE wellwritten and have chemistry with each other and how m/m still overshadows f/f on the ao3 tags of such fandoms. in this essay i will-

Honestly, a part of me prefers the interpretation that Noel’s feelings for Mischa were one sided, because I think it works better with the overall themes of the show.

Ride The Cyclone is about how it’s okay to live a short life, it’s okay to not have all your dreams fulfilled, it’s okay that what you had is all that will ever be. That life still had meaning. That life was still worth every second of it.

Noel never had a boyfriend. Noel never even kissed a man, at least, in life he didn’t. But he did feel. It’s clear he had a crush on Mischa, and that by itself is a wonderful feeling. Sure he was never returned the same romantic feelings he felt, but I think romance has value on its own.

I think gay kids in particular feel this pressure to prove themselves by being in a relationship, as if being out and single is an embarrassment. Noel says it himself, “Being the only gay man in a small rural high school is kind of like having a laptop in the stone age. I mean, sure you can have one, but there’s nowhere to plug it in.” It’s natural for anyone who feels romantic or sexual attraction to want a partner, but being gay without a partner feels like a double whammy. What’s the point?

But I think romance by itself is the point.

Being friends with your crush is a fantastic feeling, being close to them, feeling seen by them, just knowing them feels like an honor. Even if it’s not reciprocal, the experience of loving someone else is worth it.

Romance, by itself, is worth it.

whats oxaclock like? heehee giggles

*GIGGLE*

Oxy is a very very slow and quiet guy-- moreso in host than out of host-- but he still enjoys company and thus he kinda likes to loom the edges of social circles. It's why most of the drawings of him are always him like... a bit off in the background away from the rest. He gets a bit overwhelmed in large gatherings, and it doesn't help that people are often drawn to him due to his peculiar presence + the fact that his host is a vixet.

He's a generally alright guy, like, he'll try to help you if you ask, and he's not very judgemental or anything like that. He also doesn't fear easily. He doesn't have much of an issue being a brick wall between danger and someone else, if it's in his interest to defend them.

One thing about him though, is that he can make some really quick and really impulsive decisions. For as slow and chill as he is, it's hard to believe some of the things he does are actually his doing. This is moreso his host's doing. But, out of host he has somewhat of an addictive personality, so mixed together these impulsive decisions can rub his brain justttt right, and quickly become reoccuring, habitual decisions instead.

There's some stuff behind the scenes that he does because of this impulsiveness that people would gawk at. That, and influenced by Ching in-host who's two-sidedness leads to some wicked stuff behind closed doors as well, Oxaclock tends to get up to nodogoodery while nobody's looking.

But, that's just one part of him-- a part that he prefers to keep separate from his social life. He also likes to indulge in newfound hobbies. He has an interest in writing, keeps a journal, and he can be pretty funny on paper. He helps write for Ching's acts, and sometimes participates in theatre alongside Ching as well. Often as a test subject to Ching's magician acts.

Overall he's a pretty go-with-the-flow sort of guy, drifting and lingering at the tail end of all the big important stuff that goes on in the story. Communicates often with nothing more than nods and gestures. A perfect guy to just sit and do nothing with, if you need it. But also someone who'll get stuff done if it concerns him... at his own pace ^^;

in your sherlock comparison, who is who?

i align Jack more closely with sherlock and mark with moriarty! mostly jack and sherlock being uncaring and serious, then moriarty and mark being more unhinged and cruel.

but i have scenes from bbc sherlock that i would LOVE to see these two in. like i want the scene where they have tea before the Fall to translate to mark and jack having private, calculated conversations behind closed doors about their Creations, both dressed to impress each other over drinks. or them having a heated showdown in the Pool scene but this time its an ego with bombs strapped to his chest, unknowing of his fate as the two Creators argue. and omg i specifically had in mind moriarty's "im disappointed in you" spiel but its mark being ashamed of jack over some mind game he failed to win at.

i also feel that mark and good ole jim are similar because mark actually has the more obsessive interest in jack, with jack being more apathetic (but slightly deverting from sherlock in that he may reciprocate the interest in mark). like. just the psychological games they play. the mutual fascination with each other. the rivalry. the love? idk of course im overgeneralizing the shitty characterization of the show to apply to characters that have a deeper relationship haha BUT i had my brain rotted with sherlock brainworms when i was 14 and that was the only media relationship i came up with

also i dont think they should kiss because youll never catch me slippin on some pseudo-septiplier bullshit BUT I DO THINK there are very very slight romantic vibes to all this its not septiplier but like. a very tiny bit. a sprinkling. a garnish if you will

(OMORI SPOILERS!!!)

idk if this has been brought up before (it probably has but idc i love this game and i WILL rant whether you like it or not) and if its already super obvious to everyone but me when i first got into the game, but a cool little detail i like about omori is the parallels between aubrey and sunny. specifically, their very similar reactions in an argument under a lot of stress.

sunny had been under a lot of stress on the day of the recital, being unable to get the part right and disliking the violin because of how it took away from him getting to spend time with his friends. under that stress, he ended up throwing his violin down the stairs in the argument with mari. mari, obviously, gets angry (not really blaming her though, it’d be a normal reaction), and sunny, not seeing mari be angry before, gets even more stressed. when she gets in his way when he tries to run, he unconsciously reacts and then as we know, pushes her down the stairs which results in the whole incident. he didn’t want to hurt mari. he never would have wanted to kill her. but he was under pressure and his fight or flight reacted before he could know what he was doing. he just wanted to push her out of the way so he could leave.

aubrey does a really fucking similar thing. she was under stress at the lake. kel’s blaming her and not understanding her, and villainizes her. sunny, who hasn’t left his house in 4. FUCKING. YEARS. suddenly is back out of the blue and had fucking. stabbed her??? out of nowhere during a fight??? goddamn. basil, who she’s already had her issues with, was just screaming for help which is getting her in trouble (and she doesn’t know why he was screaming for help in the first place bc she hadn’t even done anything to him then), is also there, and he’s technically the reason sunny and kel had just fought her in the first place. she’s overwhelmed by all this, and when basil tries to talk to her and gets closer, she reacts and pushes him into the lake. her fight or flight reacted before she could know what she was doing. she wasn't thinking about how he couldn't swim. she didn’t want to push basil into the lake. she just wanted him to go away.

the difference between the 2 of them was that aubrey got so much luckier, with hero coming just in time to save basil. she had her chance to make up for it and apologize to him. she doesn't have to live with the guilt of having actually killed someone. poor 12 yr old sunny never got that lucky.

neither of them meant to hurt someone. neither of them wanted to hurt someone they cared about. they were just under pressure and pushed into a stressful situation. sunny's just ended so, so much worse than aubrey's. (i just feel bad for them both. i love them so much. i want them all to be happy again </3)

(this also feeds into my delusion that aubrey would forgive sunny, at least eventually. bc she did the same thing. she just got lucky. i like to think she'd at least eventually realize that and kind of empathize with him. he never got the opportunity that she got. and what's worse, the poor guy was only 12. </3)

do you rmbr that celebratory ig live the boys did and joe was in the back apologizing for thinking he played bad that day and jamarr had to like reassure him that he was fine? lol and that same game he laid on tee's shoulder to say sorry for the overthrows and tee was like "i love you, its okay" 😭 do you know if there's anything in his chart that might make him have that sort of vulnerability despite the fact he's super confident to the public?

awwww i did not know about that bit with tee!! 🤧 but i did hear ja'marr check him, it was a little satisfying ngl lol!

i think that vulnerability comes from joe having a debilitated moon! 

despite it being a water sign, scorpio is actually a turbulent sign for the moon, who requires comfort and security. moon enters the domain of mars, a cruel, grimy environment compared to the lush garden in Taurus (moon’s exaltation) 

because of scorpio’s stormy nature, i’m sure he finds some of his emotions misplaced, (especially when it comes to his playing abilities) so we see those glimpses of his vulnerability 💌

but!

joe also has jupiter in sag! his strong jupiter will make sure that the right people at the right time will be in front of him to help him navigate the water moon life <3 i can imagine someone telling him it’s okay to be vulnerable out loud, hence our peeks into his inner world <3

3, 14, 19 for Balthazar/Tristian for the OTP ask game :)

3. Do they wear each other’s clothes? (sweatshirt, bandana, necklace, etc.)

Not much, really. In a practical sense, it would be difficult. Balthazar’s a bit smaller and a lot more slight than Tristian, so Tristian borrowing clothes wouldn’t exactly be comfortable. And Balthazar has some terribly awkward wings by the time the two of them are together- his clothes have to be tailored to him to accommodate the wings, and it’s difficult to wear clothes that haven’t been altered. Although it doesn’t stop him from occasionally stealing Tristian’s cloak or robe just in the spirit of mischief (and slowing down the process of getting dressed).

Not clothing per se, but Balthazar enjoys using his own brooches to fasten Tristian’s cloak whenever he helps Tristian get dressed- something to serve as a subtle touch of connection even when they’re apart. Tristian always waits until they’re apart to check what he’s been given. It’s a pleasant ritual to discover it, and it’s a point of comfort to reach for over the course of the day. He always returns Balthazar’s things very carefully at the end of the day.

14. How do their personalities complement each other? How do they clash?

The ways they clash are probably more obvious. Tristian is earnest to a fault and a person with very strong moral principles that he lives by (theoretically), while Balthazar is an ambitious person who often gets what he wants through deceit and trickery. There's a lot of natural tension between them- for a long time after meeting they really didn't like each other at all. Balthazar was quick to write Tristian off as dull and uptight, while Tristian rankled at the callous disregard Balthazar had for others. Tristian is also someone who clings a lot to an ideal of celestial virtue that Balthazar has spent most of his life trying to get away from. Even though the initial hostility faded there's still always some degree of friction. It can seem that Balthazar is too careless or too cold, or that Tristian demands too much without compromise. Always some arguments in there.

As for complementing... really, some of the clashes can be ways they cover each other's weaknesses at times. Neither cold pragmatism nor strong optimism can solve every problem- there's a sort of balance there, in a way. Or at the least a way to keep Balthazar's Machiavellian tendencies in check. And also I guess I'd like to think that their positive traits can influence one another as well- Tristian being a bit more flexible and better able to see nuance in a situation, and Balthazar becoming more open and trusting. Maybe this doesn't really count as a "complementary" thing but also like... the ability to be very earnest with one another. Balthazar is someone who doesn't let his guard down easily, but over time he begins to trust Tristian to understand his experiences without condescending to him about them. While Tristian isn't as obviously closed off as Balthazar is, he still doesn't put himself out there easily and feels a lot of shame confronting things about himself. Balthazar doesn't judge Tristian for any of his choices. He has a lot of empathy for the situation that makes beginning to sort through it easier. (And Balthazar does sincerely love Tristian's flaws, even if Tristian doesn't)

19. How do they feel about PDA?

Not at all self-conscious, that’s for sure. There aren’t a lot of big, dramatic gestures, but certainly there are plenty of small, intimate ones: entwining fingers, leaning into one another, gently brushing hair away from the face, a soft kiss pressed to the hand… It’s about the reassurance of knowing the other is present. It’s also the case that Balthazar is a bit clingy (something that surprises him) and Tristian is somewhat touch starved so…

It's embarrassing to watch, really.

「 @universestreasures​​ | Ahmes / Aichi Sendou」 issued a challenge:  

“Percy?” A young Ahmes speaks as he tugs the older knight’s sleeve, the prince positioned behind him as they both looked down at the humans being dropped off at the palace gates for the annual offering. “Why did Papa say I’ll be getting a human this time? I don’t wanna drink from anyone. He knows that. You know that. Everyone does. Besides, I bet any human wouldn’t like me. I bet I’d cause them to run away.”

(Smol Club Ahmes Aichi establish the deep lore, and when him and Percy Gaillard were close since he and Ashlei were the only friends he had when he got sick before Toshiki showed up)

Across the grand hall, on the lower floor they watch as the humans were escorted by the Liberators. The Jewelers were down there as well, preparing for the ceremony that was to be taking place later that evening. One among them was to be chosen by the prince, the rest would be pawned off to lesser nobles as nothing more than over glorified leftovers. 

Gone were the days of needlessly plucking humans from dark parts of the streets in order to feed. Vampires having been in power for so long now that the humans offered their own, more than willingly, in order to remain in good favor to their supreme rulers.

Each human down there was rather young, but the youngest couldn't be much older than Percival or the prince himself. Normally offerings weren't collected until they contained enough blood to sustain a noble without dying immediately, but that boy down there... The knight could see him discarded by the end of the night. Percival doesn't seem to mind the fact that this was probably going to be the first and only time he'd see most of these... people. 

Perhaps it was due to his history with humankind, but the idea of them infesting the palace like rats made him seethe. But knowing most of them wouldn’t last a lord nowhere near their expected lifetime seemed to make their presence tolerable. To the young knight this was a kindness that they did not deserve. He wanted to watch them all perish in the flames of the Liberators’ judgment, just as they set everything he once knew ablaze in the name of their own holy flames.

He was observing solely to help determine a good candidate for his prince. It was a mission given to him by the king himself, so he was sure to take it seriously.

❝ King Alfred wishes for you to have one on the off chance you change your mind in the future. ❞ Which Percival was reassured would happen one of these days. There was no way a vampire could abstain forever, especially when harboring the power of those with pure, noble blood such as Ahmes.

As the knight watches on, he catches sight of the young boy seemingly trip over himself, his hands weighed down by heavy iron shackles meant to bind an adult.

--Pathetic...

A weak offering. It was nearly an insult to have someone so weak in the offering pool meant for prince Ahmes to choose from. Percival makes a mental note later to seek out the codex marking the details of this years offerings. Whomever decided such a human was a suitable candidate for the prince should be dealt with for such latent disrespect.

❝ Any human should be happy to offer their services to their future king... But it doesn’t matter if a human likes you or not. They cannot run from you, your highness. ❞

Once a Jeweler’s collar was locked and talisman's link established with it’s owner that was that.

A life lived in servitude to their lords. That’s what was expected of those brought back by the Seekers. And if an offering was accepted the villages of the families who had procured them would receive all sorts of benefits; ranging from protection or tax reliefs. To sacrifice the few in favor of the many... Humans were incredibly selfish creatures, worthy of bearing the heavy title of ‘sinner’. Such was the sentiment of the entire Liberator faction. The young knight couldn’t agree more now since watching the ant line of humans as they were forced down onto their knees at the base of the stairs leading up to the pair of thrones at the end of the grand hall.

❝ It is a great honor to receive an offering. It shows the humans submissiveness to your power as one of royal standing. This is only the first of many, you are in line for the throne after all. You can expect many more as you come into power; as human and vampire societies alike will hope to gain your favor. ❞

The display below was sure to be overwhelming to the prince, who was always hesitant about the idea of feeding off humans. But this was but a step towards Ahmes’ eventual rise into power. The young knight’s rust colored hues break away from the commotion below in order to set their sights on his charge. Tonight's ceremony was akin to a coming-of-age celebration for vampires in noble standing... And Percival himself was going to not only bear witness to such a grandacious event he was taking a pivotal part in it. 

To stand by Ahmes’ side and remain there... Such a thing was everything to him, to the boy who had lost everything until Ahmes had become part of his newfound life. So he offers his hand to the prince, signaling it was time to go.

❝ Looks like... they’re being prepared for the ceremonial ritual. Are you ready, Prince Ahmes? Remember: You must choose one. ❞ -