#Idk religion man it's complicated | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

siilvan · 8 months

Text

like real people do

characters: yuri

summary: after a mission goes badly, yuri comes to you to air out his frustrations, and what was a complicated situation ends up becoming something more.

genre: explicit, light angst, hurt/comfort, fem!reader (no desc.)

warnings: cursing, mentions of canon-typical violence, brief mentions of blood/injuries, friends w/ benefits situation, soft dom!yuri, slight possessive!yuri, oral (f!receiving), fingering, lil' hand kink, tattoos <3, unprotected piv, creampies, overstimulation, manhandling, praise, some references to religion, idk yuri's a simp, he's drowning in guilt and pussy

word count: 5.3k

note: this is going to get zero notes, but do i care? no. i'm writing for yuri and forcibly shoving him in everyone's faces until people love him. he's my favorite character and that is going to be VERY obvious here. i have more fics planned. so many. everyone thank @froglights-and-pearls for reminding me of who i am.

aaaand a big thank you to @sofasoap for proofreading this <33

"well, that was a fuckin' bust, yeah?" soap comments after collapsing into a seat, earning pointed looks from the rest of the group as you all boarded the transport helicopter.

gaz slumps down next to him and exhales heavily, shaking his head. "think that's putting it lightly, mate." he chuckles, tapping soap on the shoulder.

ghost takes a seat on soap's other side, rolling his neck to stretch out sore muscles - he took a nasty hit during the mission, his mask partially torn on the cheek and revealing bloodstained skin. you end up sandwiched between price and yuri, tilting your head back to rest against the wall as the adrenaline coursing through you dissipates.

to say that this operation went horribly would be an understatement. you all managed to escape with your lives intact, but the valuable cargo that you were hunting down was lost. you fought to get this lead in the first place, and now you're returning to base with nothing to show for your work other than damaged bodies and morale.

your head rolls to the side, and you end up staring at yuri's side profile. he's hunched forward slightly, a pensive look on his face, brows knitted together from clear frustration.

it’s been a few months since nikolai introduced yuri to the team. after laswell brought up makarov in that chicago bar, everything seemed to move at the speed of light; the invasion of al-mazrah, calling a ceasefire with shadow company, teaming up with farah's forces, mobilizing again before you could even catch your breath... the only good thing to come out of this hectic situation was your newest ally.

yuri was an interesting case from the start. nikolai claims that the two go way back and, after hearing the way he talked about the man prior to your first meeting, you're inclined to believe him when he describes yuri as "one of his best."

his status as a member of nikolai's faction is enough to pique your curiosity - you find out that he's ex-spetsnaz as well, but what catches the entire squad's attention is the offhand comment that the pilot makes.

"he's the only person i know that hates makarov more than you, price."

none of you get the chance to ask him to elaborate, and you've since reached the point where his explanation doesn't matter. yuri fit into the team fairly easily, and trust was quickly built upon after a few missions together. he seemed to understand the enemy just as well as the captain, if not even better. soap made a joke about yuri knowing him a little too well at one point, which he brushed off with a dismissive shake of his head.

the sergeants were the first ones to warm up to him, with price and yourself on their heels. ghost, always wary of anyone new, is a little slower to trust, but after yuri took a bullet in the leg for him, ghost was quick to welcome him into your group.

your lips twitch into a tired smile when yuri glances at you from the corner of his eye, his shoulders dropping slightly upon seeing your face. his hardened expression softens for just a moment, and you mentally celebrate the small victory while nudging his foot closest to you with the side of your boot.

the ride back to base is mostly quiet, save for price updating laswell on the situation over the radio. you're all dejected over the loss, even after price reminds you to not let it get to your heads.

yuri seems especially upset over it, though. you doubt the rest of the team picks up on his mood, but it's clear as day to you.

you've spent a fair number of nights under the man, after all. you'd be ashamed if you couldn't read him by now. the subtle flexing of his fingers wrapped around his gun, the way his pupils dilate as he loses himself in his thoughts, the clench in his jaw - you recognize the signs faster than your own reflection in a mirror.

he's angry. pissed off, actually. yuri doesn't often let his emotions show, preferring to keep up a façade of cool collectedness, but it slips out on occasion.

and when it does, you catch it. you always do.

the chopper touches down on the airstrip eventually, and you relegate yourself to the back of the group as you step out onto the tarmac. price excuses himself to his office while ghost heads off to the medical bay, and the sergeants make a beeline for the showers as soon as their boots hit the ground.

you watch as yuri wordlessly sets off towards the training grounds. it's a habit he has: airing his grievances out on a target.

you, meanwhile, loosely trail behind the sergeants and hop in the shower, rinsing off the grime from the battlefield and willing the loss to wash away with it. you stop by the mess hall for a bit, running into a patched-up ghost, before heading off to your room.

the base that the task force is currently staying at is a bit odd compared to most, in that you have more privacy than normal. while most places offer you cramped barracks or small dorms, the team was given proper rooms in a separate wing. privileges, gaz joked upon your initial arrival.

you're left to your own devices until a while after the sun sets. there's a knock at the door that you almost immediately recognize. you've heard it before, always after night has fallen and the sky is blanketed in darkness.

you trudge across the room and swing the door open, revealing yuri standing on the other side. his gaze stays low, not quite looking at you, but not quite looking away, either. you instinctively move to the side, allowing him to step into the room. the door closes behind him with a soft click, leaving you staring at him as a silence hangs in the air between you.

"need something?" you ask, breaking the silence with a soft voice. his eyes finally flit up to meet yours. there's something swirling in those pale eyes of his, an internal conflict that you've never been able to understand or pull out of him.

"company," he mutters, and you know what he means from that single word.

"destroying a few more targets didn't help, huh?" you chuckle, coming to stand in front of him. you slowly slide your hands up his arms, skimming over his shoulders and cupping his jaw gently. "you look angry, yuri."

he huffs, warm air puffing against your cheek. you can smell the tobacco on his breath. he's been smoking, yet another habit that he tries to avoid showing, especially after you commented on it.

"the only thing that will help is you," he replies, hands settling on your waist. calloused fingertips carefully dig into your flesh underneath your clothes, pulling your body closer to his. "only you can make the anger go away." he adds, thumbs tracing gentle circles into your skin.

you hum, keening at the subtle praise. your palms slide down and press flat against his chest, his heartbeat thrumming strong under your fingertips. you two established a set of rules at the beginning of this arrangement, and you've both been rigid in keeping to them. no kissing, no marking, no "i love you's," no jealousy—

no feelings. this is purely for pleasure, for keeping each other sane outside the battlefield. feelings would only serve to complicate things, and you already have enough on your plates as-is. the rules of engagement were clear, though there were those rare times that the lines blurred.

such as yuri's lips dragging across your sensitive skin after his head drops to your neck. he wouldn't kiss you, he wouldn't suck or bite, but the featherlight trail that he would trace might as well be a mark of its own. you angle your head back, a low sigh falling from your lips. his heartbeat speeds up just barely under your touch, your own picking up speed to match.

you let him walk you backwards toward the bed, the backs of your knees pressing into the edge of the mattress. he lifts his head and leans in close to your ear, his next words mumbled against your skin.

"on your back."

you obey without complaint, pulling your hands away and crawling up the bed, laying on your back and propping yourself up on your elbows.

you watch as he stands at the foot of the bed, his eyes never straying from yours while he pulls off his gloves and drops them somewhere behind him. the gauntlet on his forearm goes next, and you stare with great intrigue as he easily undoes the straps holding it in place and tosses it aside, the hard material carelessly clattering against the carpet. your eyes fall from his, landing on the various tattoos that adorn his hands and forearms, the ink telling a story that you're sure would send your adrenaline rushing.

he sinks to his knees after a second, blunt nails digging into the plush of your thighs as he pulls your body across the duvet towards him. like clockwork, he slides your uniform pants and soaked underwear down your legs before grabbing your thighs and spreading them, leaving your core completely exposed under his heated gaze.

he doesn't give you a chance to blink as he dives in, hot tongue licking a stripe up your slit and sending your head flying back against the bed. you push your hips up towards his face as he laves over your folds, fucking dripping the second his eyes landed on you after showing up at your door, pulling a shameless moan from your lips.

contrary to his usual generosity, yuri entirely avoids your clit as he stuffs your cunt with his tongue, greedily lapping up your arousal before pulling back and making wide circles around the sensitive bud. he teases it with a small flick and dips his head to plunge into your sopping hole again, humming and sending vibrations coursing through you.

you whine, fisting the duvet and squeezing your eyes tightly shut. "fuck, yuri— stop teasing—"

he lifts his head from your cunt and groans, throaty and utterly debauched. "patience," he mutters, heaving one of your thighs over his shoulder and digging his fingers into your hip. "you know i'll take care of you."

you choke on a sob when he flattens his tongue against your clit, circling around it and drawing it into his mouth. he sucks on it before delving into your heat once more, his nose nudging the bundle of nerves and making your back arch off the mattress. the lewd sounds filling the room as he fucks you with his tongue light a fire under your skin, covering your body in a thin sheen of sweat as you moan and clamp your thighs around his head.

he moans into your cunt, hands gripping your thighs as his hips jolt forward, eating you out like a man starved.

"yuri— oh, fuck—" you gasp. "please, please— 'm so fucking close—" you're not sure what you're begging for, what you always end up begging for, but as the coil in your stomach tightens, you can't find it in yourself to think about it any longer.

your jaw goes slack, mouth falling open as his tongue swipes up your arousal, his nose pressing into your swollen clit and dragging a stuttering moan from your parted lips.

"oh my— fucking god... yuri—" you whimper as your cunt pulses and spasms around his tongue, gushing into his mouth with another moan of his name that bounces off the walls of the room. he groans into your wetness and eagerly laps it up, working you through your orgasm as you grind against his face, chasing the sweet pleasure.

after your legs go limp on his shoulders, yuri resurfaces from your cunt, hands massaging your thighs while your breaths come out in pants, chest heaving.

"just like that," he whispers, smearing your slick across your inner thigh as his lips drag across your skin. you look down at him, seeing his steely gaze already trained on your blissed-out expression. "you can give me another, hm?" he asks, brows briefly raising with the question.

his voice has dropped low, his russian accent thick and heavy, words slightly slurring together as he stares up at you. his pale irises are hardly visible around pupils blown wide with lust, and you swallow back a pathetic sound at the sight.

"you can give me another." yuri echoes, more as a statement of fact than a question this time. he knows he's right— you know he's right.

you suck in a breath as two fingers prod at your aching heat, sliding up and down your glistening folds and gathering a mixture of your slick and his saliva.

"fuck, just— please—"

your pleads are cut off by his fingers plunging into you, sinking right up to the knuckle and making you writhe against the bed. they're thick, stretching you open as he curls them inside you, scraping against your gummy walls and teasing that spongy spot that makes your eyes roll back in your skull.

a third digit prods at your entrance after a moment, leaving you moaning and frantically searching for purchase on the bedsheets after he adds it in, pumping three fingers inside you.

"taking me so well..." he grunts, pressing his thumb to your puffy clit and circling it in tight, fast motions.

you buck your hips into his touch, legs shaking as your cunt clenches around his digits like a vice. his unoccupied hand releases your thigh and skates up your side, wrapping around your wrist and distracting you from his ministrations for a second.

he suddenly yanks you towards him, making you sit up and stoop over him. one of your hands lands on his shoulder, holding yourself upright as he continues fucking his fingers into you.

"look at yourself— look at how good you're doing for me." yuri sighs, holding your wrist tight to keep you from falling back. you whine, forcing yourself to tilt your head and stare at where his fingers disappear inside you.

the noises coming from the spot are obscene, lewd squelches accompanying every thrust in and out of your dripping core. you admire your own mess until your attention shifts to him— his fingers, his hand, working you open and sending you to cloud nine.

you've been horribly attracted to his hands ever since he first touched you with them. they're calloused, rough, experienced like you'd expect from someone in the field; but, the ink adorning his skin is what catches your eye. there's crosses on his fingers— holy symbols— and you watch as they drip with your arousal, black ink shining with the wetness coating them and dripping down his wrist.

it feels sinful, like you're fucking in the pews of a church. the rush of it makes your body grow hotter, heat flooding to your cheeks as you bite back a moan.

"take off your shirt." he says, eyes fixated on your drooling cunt.

you manage to tear your hand from his shoulder and slip your shirt over your head, your bra quickly following suit and landing in another small pile of clothes somewhere nearby. yuri's gaze flits up and lands on your breasts, a groan rumbling deep in his chest.

he mumbles something in russian before leaning in, drawing his tongue across one of your nipples and taking it into his mouth. you moan as he greedily sucks on it, your hand cradling the back of his head and holding him close.

it's risky— you two are toeing the line, pushing the rules you established at the start of this relationship.

he moves to your other nipple a moment later and lavishes it with the same treatment, reducing you to a needy, whiny mess. by the time he pulls back from your breasts with a wet pop, there's dark hickeys left in his place.

that's a rule broken.

his head dips back down and his mouth replaces his thumb, hot tongue swirling around your clit as you're suddenly brought back to the present with a loud moan. his hand squeezes around your wrist, reminding you that he only let go long enough for you to strip off the remainder of your clothes. you twist your arm, forcing him to loosen his grip—

he places a few more licks to your clit before wrapping his lips around it, and you moan as the vibrations bring you closer to your second orgasm of the night. you escape his hold only to search for his hand, blindly reaching for it as the pleasure forces you to screw your eyes shut. you fumble after finally finding it, but yuri's quick to help, interlocking your fingers and allowing you to squeeze his hand in a near-death grip.

fuck, this is getting too intimate. he's already broken one rule, and you're just about ready to break the rest. he mirrors your action, holding your hand as you teeter over the edge, your orgasm rapidly approaching.

"so close— 'm so close, yuri. fuck, please—!" you moan, trembling like a leaf in the wind as your orgasm slams into you.

he pumps faster still, letting you ride out the waves of pure bliss until you're whimpering and attempting to move your hips away. yuri lifts his head and hunts for your gaze, locking eyes with you as you hazily look down at him. he pulls his fingers from your folds and hums, satisfied, before pressing them to your lips and cocking his head to the side.

you know what he wants. you take his fingers into your mouth and lave your tongue over them, tasting yourself as you clean your release off of them. he watches you, shifting as his other hand releases yours and reaches for his belt.

"tastes fucking heavenly." he utters softly, sending a shiver down your spine.

he pulls his fingers out and chuckles at your pout, before nodding at the pillows behind you. "get comfortable. we're not done yet."

he sits up on his knees and starts to unbuckle his belt as your tongue darts out to wet your lips. instead of climbing up the bed, however, you reach out and start pawing at his shirt, tugging at it with a small noise of complaint.

yuri lets you undress him, a quiet sigh escaping him as your nails gently scrape down his chest and stomach, trailing over rigid muscle and old scars that he hesitated to tell the stories behind and often disregarded whenever you'd ask about them. you toy with the waistband of his cargos, earning an amused huff and yuri pulling your hands back.

"lay back," he commands in a warm tone, lips twitching into a small smile. "let me take care of you."

your gaze narrows at him, but you comply nonetheless. "thought you came to me for stress relief, not spoiling me."

you hear fabric hitting the floor before he's moving on top of you, caging you in with his hands on either side of your body. "spoiling you helps relieve my stress." he replies, giving you a look as if what he said was an obvious fact.

"lucky me, then." you laugh before cutting yourself off with a sharp inhale as the head of his cock prods at your entrance, dragging through your folds and coating itself in your arousal. his cock sits heavy against your core, a firm weight grounding you in the moment.

yuri grips the base of his shaft in one hand as the other rests next to your head, a tight fist in the sheets. you raise your hips slightly and let out a whine, lifting your arms to grasp at his shoulders as his cock slowly pushes in. a deep groan escapes him as he sinks deeper and deeper inside, your gummy walls fluttering and pulsing around him.

"fuck," he rasps, bottoming out with one final push. "missed this— it's been too long. needed you under me days ago."

you breathe out a moan, tossing your head back against the pillows when he dips down to your neck, panting against your feverish skin. he pulls out, dragging back until the tip just barely slips past your entrance, before snapping his hips forward and burying himself to the hilt.

you're already fighting back a sob as he sets a brutal pace, bullying his cock into your aching cunt, your hands clinging to him anywhere you can find purchase. his shoulders, back, arms— your nails dig into his skin, leaving angry crescent-shaped marks wherever they land. the bedframe creaks under your shared weights, headboard knocking against the wall with each pointed thrust.

after seconds of searching, your hands end up sliding up to his jaw, and you nudge him until he moves from your neck, his face hovering just above yours. your fingertips trace over his jawline tenderly as his forehead comes to rest against yours, your breaths co-mingling. it's too much. you manage to catch his gaze, eyes locking while the tips of your noses brush together. it's not enough.

"what are you doing?" yuri whispers, voice hoarse. he doesn't make any move to pull away; he seems to soften under your touch, if anything.

fuck it.

you surge forward, closing the small gap between you. his movements almost immediately stall once your lips connect and, for a split second, complete terror floods through your veins as the severity of the act hits you.

his hand flies to your face, cupping your cheek and holding you in place as he deepens the kiss with a quiet moan. you squirm under him, your hips pinned to the mattress and flush with his, impatiently seeking out more.

more stimulation, more pleasure, more him.

"we shouldn't be doing this," he mutters against your lips after prying himself away. "the— the agreement—" he adds, though the words die on his tongue as he kisses you again, hungry, like he's been starving up until this point. you try your best to keep up, even as the sheer possessiveness of the kiss easily steals all the air from your lungs.

you break from the kiss only when you're forced to, taking staggering breaths while his hand leaves your face and trails down your side slowly, landing on your thigh once more. he kneads the flesh before pulling your leg to wrap around his waist, allowing his cock to push in that much deeper.

"you deserve better than this." yuri says, pressing his forehead to yours.

with an airy chuckle, you shake your head. "i want you—"

yuri lets out a sound akin to a whimper and a moan, his iron grip on you only tightening when you roll your hips into his. "i'm not— hah, fuck— you feel like heaven… i'm not worth it. i don't deserve it."

you shush him softly, thumbs stroking along his cheeks as you press your lips to his. "let me give you a little peace." you murmur, letting out another heady moan after he starts rocking into you again, his cockhead brushing against that spongy spot inside you that has your back arching off the mattress.

"i only know peace with you in my arms." he replies with a choked sigh. the pressure in the pit of your stomach rapidly builds - between his words and his cock practically rearranging your guts to fit itself deeper inside, you're rendered little more than a breathless, desperate mess pinned underneath him.

it doesn't take much longer for you to reach your peak, barely having the chance to give proper warning before it's washing over you.

"fuck, m'gonna cum—!" you cry, fat tears gathering at your waterline and threatening to spill over.

yuri groans, gravelly, drowning in his own pleasure. "that's it, just come undone for me... show me how good you feel— how good i make you feel." his voice drops, a near-growl lacing his words by the end of the command.

"please, любимая— i need it, i need to feel you..." he says against your lips. "you can do it, i know you can, just one more for me."

that's all it takes to send your next orgasm crashing over you, your legs shaking and mouth falling open in a broken moan of his name. he keeps fucking you through it, hands grasping and kneading at your soft skin hard enough to bruise in the morning, pressing his body flush to yours as he chases his own release.

"good, good... i knew you could do it, my good girl," yuri utters, thrusting sloppily into your heat. "almost there— going to fill you up, nice and full— you've been so good, done so well for me. so proud of you."

he finishes with a guttural moan, pressing impossibly closer to you as warmth floods your insides, some of his cum spilling out of your overworked cunt as he gives a couple more thrusts before stilling, both of you breathing heavily. you stay there for a few seconds, yuri's hands running over your flushed skin as yours run along his shoulders and back, silently basking in the moment.

"i don't deserve you," he says, voice quiet as he kisses a small trail to your ear.

you trace abstract shapes into his skin, smiling to yourself at the way he leans into your touch. "we wouldn't be in this position if you didn't," you angle your head and pepper the side of his jaw with chaste kisses. "we are really bad at following our own rules, though." you add with a chuckle.

he hums, agreeing, and pulls back enough to look down at you. a beat passes before your spent pussy throbs, feeling his half-softened cock start to harden again.

"just one more?" he asks, watching intently as your eyelids droop at the sensation.

"no, yuri— i can't—"

"you can, you've done it before." he reassures you, capturing your lips in a brief, but sweet kiss. "just one more, okay? i promise, just one."

he sits up and drags you along with him, sliding out of your cum-soaked cunt and turning your tired body over as you whine and grumble about it. your front is laid flat against the pillows and your hips propped up, his hands massaging them while he shushes you gently.

yuri presses into you again, his cock sliding past your folds with little resistance and nestling deep inside you with a single push. you whimper from the overstimulation, clit throbbing and legs shaking as you try to hold yourself up.

all it takes to make you moan and bury your face in the pillow is a sharp thrust, his pelvis slamming against the backs of your thighs as he starts a pace you weren't at all expecting. how does he still have so much fucking energy?

"see? i told you— my good girl, my perfect girl, you can give me another one." he muses, rutting into you and savoring each lewd sound that leaves your mouth and soaking wet cunt.

"i can't— 's too much, yuri—" you sob, tears finally spilling over and streaking down your cheeks as he tugs you closer, your tired body sliding up the mattress every time he slams back into you. "please, 'm gonna fall— too weak, too much—" you babble between sniffles and ragged gasps, fisting the bedsheets.

one of his arms circles around your middle and pulls you back, forcing you to sit up on your knees as he holds you to his chest. your head falls forward almost immediately, struggling to keep upright, and his free hand wraps around your throat, carefully but firmly moving your head to rest against his shoulder. he's not choking you, he's not even applying enough pressure to affect your airflow, but it made your breath hitch nonetheless.

"you can take it. just one more, just cum for me one more time," yuri says, dipping his head to press wet, sloppy kisses to your shoulder and neck. "my perfect girl, my sweet fucking girl— want to fill you up, милая. make you drip with me." you wince when his teeth sink in to your skin, leaving painful marks that he soothes with a lick and another kiss, before sucking dark hickeys wherever his mouth can reach.

you frantically grab onto his arms for stability, laying your head back on his shoulder as his hand leaves your neck and travels down your front. it lightly skims over your bruised nipples and makes you shiver, before sliding down your stomach and reaching your clit. he settles two fingers on it, grunting against your pulse as your abused walls clamp down around his length like a vice.

you're dizzy, head spinning as you feel your climax approaching, the pleasure coiling deep in your stomach and causing you to cling to him that much harder.

"yuri... i'm gonna— fuck, please, i wanna cum—"

"i know, i know—" yuri buries his face in the crook of your neck, biting down to muffle the animalistic sounds pouring from his lips. "cum for me, just one more. you can rest after, i'll take care of you, just give me one more—"

you break with a sob, his name falling from your lips like some kind of mantra as your cunt gushes and spasms around his cock.

your body might as well be boneless with how much you're trembling, held up entirely by yuri's arms around you and his own body supporting you. true to his word, he lays you down again, your upper half limply resting on the bed as he grinds into you, barely pulling out before slamming back in.

his pace is frantic, uneven, as he literally fucks you into the mattress, and you don't even have the energy to help him get off like you want to. all you can do is moan and look at him with half-lidded, glassy eyes from over your shoulder, watching as he nears his own peak.

"please, want it inside... please, yuri—" the words slip out, almost inaudible over the sounds of your shared panting, the bed creaking, and the arrhythmic knocking of the headboard against the wall. you'd pity whoever has the room adjacent, if you could even remember any names other than yuri's.

your begging seems to be what finally sends him over the edge, his cum spilling into you again as he lets out a broken moan and a string of curses in russian, your slick walls fluttering around him and trying to milk his cock for everything it has.

he nearly collapses on top of you after a few more thrusts, his body falling in line with yours as he lets some of his weight rest on you. you're both spent, taking in greedy gasps of air as you gradually come down from your highs.

yuri's the first to move, pulling his cock out of you and shifting to hover just above your body, his upper half still comfortably pressing into yours. a gentle hand runs along your side as he peppers your shoulders and the back of your neck with tender kisses, his warm breath fanning over you.

"we, um..." you clear your throat upon hearing the hoarse tone. "we're screwed, aren't we?"

he chuckles, leaning in to kiss the spot below your ear. "yes, we are."

"i think i prefer it this way."

"so do i."

translations:

любимая (liubimaya) - my love/beloved

милая (milaya) - dear/darling

taglist: @sofasoap

#call of duty #cod #cod mw2 #mw2 #cod mw3 #mw3 #mwiii #call of duty x reader #cod x reader #mw2 x reader #cod yuri x reader #yuri x reader #cod yuri #yuri cod #sylph.writes

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bee-ina-boat · 5 months

Text

hi friends :D! i FINALLY finished my concept art for mythos!Jon and im so happy with him- look at him. plese. i spent so long on this

the sketches were all of my initial concept art for him! he's. so fun to draw. even if it did take me a bit to figure out how to do so. i love his hair ;_; <3

overall his design is very inspired roman Catholicism but. like. more fun? idk lol i just vibe with it. might make the tie darker? and the gloves with his cassock might look good with another color? eh! whatev, i might change it i might not- but this is it so far :D!

for context the Magnus Mythos is an au where the fears are gods rather than paranormal entities like in canon- here is my initial post on that if you want to know more! or if you just want to see art of the Ceaseless watcher :3!!! im really so happy so many of y'all seemed to like it ;w; it makes me feel so warm aa ilu all <3

putting all Jon's lore stuff under the cut!!!

highly recommend you read the linked post because alot of this probably wont make much sense otherwise dsjgfdjgfdb-

so, as a young child Jon grew up neutral on religion. his grandmother didn't favor any one of the gods more than the other and that sort of thinking carried over to him for a good while

when Jon was 8, he had a close encounter with a creature born from the Web: a giant spider that would tell you your fate (and possibly offer you a gift) if you gave it a sacrifice

Jon had found an old fable book with a map to it's nest. of course he had no intention of following it, just enjoying the stories inside! but a thief snagged the book from him- and upon realizing what the book led too -took Jon with him as his sacrifice

when they reached the nest after a long journey, the thief presented Jon to the spider. but the spider did not take him, it took the thief- and the little Jon could only watch, frozen in terror, as his captor was eaten by the giant spider.

after it finished its meal, the spider told Jon that his fate was of a cosmic importance, "I'm quite excited to see how this plays out," it said.

naturally this was kinda traumatizing for the child that literally just wanted to read but ok :l

the whole experience brought jon a phobia of spiders, a distrust and fear of strangers, general paranoia, ptsd, and a rejection of the webs power and the concept of fate as a whole

now- its not uncommon for some people to reject the powers of certain gods? some things born from their power are quite unpleasant, so there are steps one may take to protect themselves from the powers of one or more of the gods. (its complicated to explain but i hope that makes sense-)

suffice to say jon does NOT want to be controlled or have his fate decided by anyone or anything like that! being THAT important is scary!!! so he tries very hard to prevent any powers of the web coming near him- and he also tries to keep a low profile so he can live a calm and peaceful life without. yknow. being an important part of the fate of the entire bloody world.

he turns to the cult of the Beholding for salvation. after all, its whole thing is being aware and knowing things, and jon wanted nothing more than to know what wanted to hurt him and what didn't.

moving to London, he joined the House of Magnus, and went from a devotee to a researcher.

he became friends with Tim: a man who turned to the beholding out of his own rejection for the Stranger, and Sasha: a young woman who'd worshipped the beholding and worked at the house of magnus her entire life.

things were great for a while, and then the head archivist, Gertrude Robinson, disappeared.

normally the previous archivist would choose someone to pass the position down to, but her disappearance meant that the current head of the church, Elias, would have to choose instead. and he gave the position to Jon

it was absurd! Jon didn't want the position of archivist- everyone knew about the prophecy and Jon certainly didn't want that much pressure on him!!

not to mention- it became pretty much expected that Sasha would become the next archivist! given her history of devotion, her skills, all the work she did for everyone, hell- Gertrude even mentored her for half her life for god's sake!

Elias's reasoning was that Gertrude had broken the Archivists oath: to always protect and preserve knowledge. he claimed that the Ceaseless Watcher itself had requested Jon rather than Sasha, as Gertrude's choices were not to be trusted. and it was not up for debate what their patron wanted...

so there was no choice. jon was terrified, sasha was devastated, and tim was furious for them both.

the ceremony went on, jon was given the Watchers Crown (the sacred headpiece of the archivist) and then he went down to the archives with tim and sasha as his chosen assistants.

Elias sent down another down with them- Martin, a librarian who devoted himself to both the eye and the web. Jon was not so keen to be trusting a devotee of the web, especially with all the stress going through his head at the moment- so he wasn't very warm to martin.

as the archivist- jon does his best to do the work he was given, frequently requesting help and teachings from sasha as she clearly knew more about this than him. all throughout, he squished any spider he found. and stubbornly refused to give in to any possible notion of him being the one from the prophecy. he couldnt be. he refused it.

but the will of one man is far outweighed by that of a god, and at some point he just might have to accept the responsibility he deep down knows is his...

AAAAAAAAAAA THAT WAS ALOT- if you read this entire fucking essay then just know i love you so so so much and i am hugging you tightly ;_;

thanks for dealing with another round of my brainrot!! im thinking of working on sasha, martin, or the web's design next :3

#my art #myart #religious themes #religion tw #tma #magnus archives #the magnus archives #magpod #tma fears #the fear entities #tma au #the magnus mythos #the archivist #jonathan sims #tma jon #jon sims #jarchivist #digital art #long post

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genderkoolaid · 2 years

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Idr if you're the person who talks about transing the genders of characters that makes people mad (i know it's one of the transandrophobia bloggers i follow but i can never remember who) but has anyone considering transing Persephone? The daughter who gets stolen away by a scary man of death? Who gets mourned so hard by her mother? V genderfluid tbh, being in the underworld part of the year and then on earth the other part of the year (if this isn't you, do you know who it is? 😆)

IDK if I'm the exact person you're thinking of, but I have talked about transing characters gender before and I am happy to do it again!!

I will say, as an obligatory "I am a huge religion nerd" note, that the myth was heavily influenced by the practice of young women being "stolen" from their mothers in arranged marriages made by fathers/husbands, resulting in mothers and their daughters being split apart for reasons out of their control. The story of Demeter and Persephone has always been heavily religious (it's the basis for the whole Eleusisian Mysteries) and I think it isn't right to discredit the underlying cultural/religious themes of the myth and just go "Hades good Demeter bad, that's the Real Actual Myth™". Myths are complicated and varied and very very old, don't take modern reinterpretations as the gospel truth, etc. etc.

Now that being said, it is our right as transmascs to transmasculinify whatever we want, especially ancient stories that have been given countless Feminist Retellings over the years. So we'll just have some fun. And dying-rising myths are so ripe for trans interpretation!

Especially since Persephone's descent is associated with winter, and death, and therefore infertility. Persephone with Demeter is perceived as much more young and feminine, associated with springtime and the fertility that comes with it. She goes from fertile daughter to infertile bride, carried from her mother's feminine realm to her husband's masculine one. Infertility is often seen as the defining failure of failed womanhood, and thus is heavily associated with transmasculinity.

The eating of the pomegranate seeds could be seen as a metaphor for transition (specifically in versions where it is her choice), allowing her to stay in the in-between space between the masculine and feminine worlds. Something she takes secretly, something from the masculine world which keeps her connected to it— it changes her position in both worlds. Very genderfluid, very bigender.

#ppspspsps multigender hellenic polytheists I've got some theology for you #can you tell I have Opinions on myths #especially in terms of how they're perceived with the same lense as biblical literalism. but that's neither here nor there #m.#ask box #transmasc retellings

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callsignbaphomet · 6 months

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@apothecaryforwearysouls

Lmao I don't even know where to start. So Oracle is a paramilitary PMC that has ZERO ties to any government, country or anything really. Like there are no ties.

Oracle has several goals but the biggest one is making sure humans don't obliterate non-humans and vice versa. Aside from that this world, setting, whatever you wanna call it deals with anything and everything paranormal.

Look, my dumbass 14-year-old ass was watching a James Bond movie one day and I thought, "Huh, what if this shit had werewolves in it?" and so Oracle was made. Actually, it was made later during the summer of 2000 'cause my mom's ex had promised we'd have a fun family summer of traveling the island and doing so many fun things. I bought a journal to document it all. Midsummer rolled around and we did nothing and my journal was blank so I took that previous idea and fucking RAN TO THE HILLS WITH IT. 23 years later we have this massive as fuck all world in my brain that I bother everyone with.

Anyway, Oracle started with 3 men. A werewolf, a vampire and a human during the height of the Akkadian empire! The werewolf is actually the man that is now known as Aleksey Malakhov aka Angelus's grandfather aka Jelani's father-in-law/mentor.

He had a different name back then I just forgot and I don't feel like looking through my hundreds of notes and files to find it.

By the way, Aleksey is Sumerian. He's been around for a while now. In fact he was one of the very first werewolves. All 4 of the first werewolves are Sumerian and yes, they are still alive today in 2023. How? Werewolves are VERY long lived but not that long. It's part of the original curse. The first of every breed inherets the curse and has to live with it forever.

Spoiler alert. With Angelus being the FIRST and frankly the only Crossedbreed he is also cursed. He can't die. He just hasn't realized that but Aleksey knows it and doesn't feel like telling his grandson will help in anyway. Is that a bad thing? Probably but he's doing it out of love. Angelus had been suicidal for decades and had attempted suicide so many times he lost count after 200 times. He's doing far better now a days though.

We don't have just werewolves here in Oracle. There are werewolves, vampires, fairies, monsters--shorter list is what we don't have: aliens. Idk it's not my thing. If you wanna say there ARE aliens in Oracle then who am I to say there aren't any.

As I kept expanding Oracle I wanted to add people from different cultures, backgrounds, ethnicities, believes, religions, faiths. We have EVERYTHING here. When I say I have a metric shit ton of OCs I mean it with my entire chest. I want to represent everyone. Easier said than done 'cause I wanna be accurate and respectful and a lot of times that means doing a lot of research and sometimes it gets tedious. I'm just one man behind all of this fantastical nonsense.

Yeah, I mostly talk about Loke, Jelani, Trevor and Angelus because those are my comfort characters and I know them better than I know my own damn self. Not gonna sit here and lie, Jelani's at the forefront for any and all Oracle things. Everywhere I am online I use him as a pfp. He's the mascot if that makes sense. I am extremely proud of this character and I love him so much. He's to Oracle what Pikachu is to Pokemon. Idk if that makes sense.

Oracle doesn't just focus solely on the PMC. There are so many things that make up this setting. There's groups of humans that hate and fear anything that isn't human and want to kill them all off. The most infamous being the Council of the Knights which admittedly has been a thorn on Oracle's side for a few centuries now. We have problematic vampire covens who think of non-vampires as cattle and make shit difficult for others. We have a death cult led by a very unstable woman who created a virus that destabilized actual fucking deities into destroying shit with the help of a deity (actually it's a Concept but that's too complicated for now). There's also deities themselves that every so often wanna start shit. Because of that we have people like the Nyota tribe from Kenya who have dedicated their entire lives to keeping a rogue and exiled Maker imprisoned so They don't start Their stupid nonsense again.

What the fuck is a Maker? There is a hierarchy when it comes to deities.

Iirc it's demigods, gods, and finally Makers. Makers are the gods of the gods. Those are like actual creators, they make the rules and shit but they also break 'em. They're complicated. There is NOTHING above a Maker...except for the Concepts. The best way I can explain a Concept is that they are ideas and the very first Concept is the Concept of Existence. There's the Concept of Evil, Concept of Concequense, Concept of Good, Concept of Nothingness and many more. CoE and CoN are opposing ideas that have been at each other's throats since always.

Concepts intervene in life but they don't at the same time. They also only exclusively communicate with Makers. Only Makers. Jelani has an...interesting role with CoE and some other Makers and by extension with CoN. I can explain that in another post cuz it's a lot and complicated.

So as for what kind of creatures Oracle has? Like I said I wanna add any and all cultures so there's everything to pick and choose from. I've even invented a few. Are there cryptids? Yes! In this setting things like the Mothman, Bigfoot, Nessie, Jersey Devil and just basically all cryptids are just creatures from other planes/realms whatever you wanna call them. Some people use planes others use realms some others use other words. How the fuck did they get from one to ours? Easy. Portals. Portals are unstable and quite frankly scary natural phenomena that happens randomly all over the world. Sometimes creatures and animals get caught in them and get trapped in other realms. Sometimes it's a building, sometimes an entire town gets trapped.

Is there magic? Yes, there is!

Can anyone use/learn magic? Yes! We don't do that stupid "chosen one, only a select few can use or learn magic" bullshit here. Magic is an ability that anyone can learn to use.

Are there rules? Yes!.....I just gotta find that stupid file where I have it and I'll post it if anyone wants to know more about it.

Oracle deals with things of magical natures too as well as portals and planes. There are actual black sites where, and I use this word loosely, "stable" portals lead to other planes that need to be checked every so often. Not many Oracle agents have access to this kind of op by the way. It's really need to know level type shit.

So back to the founding of Oracle. These 3 men, these sell swords got together and went into business together and were like unstoppable. As time went on 3 became 6 then 6 became 9 and then we get to 2023 with Oracle still very much alive and kicking with thousands of agents all over the world with 6 branches spread across the world and 2 training facilities.

If Oracle is 100% independent from any government then how does it pay it's agents and employees?

Aleksey has invested very wisely, owns parts of companies, owns whole ass major companies that generate a bitch ton of money. All of these are made up by me obviously. Part of the profits from those hundreds of companies go into the pockets of agents, assets, and Familiars. It pays for weapons, gear, vehicles, gadgets, ammo, facilities, housing--EVERYTHING!

Look I don't know how realistic that is I'm horrible at math and economics so just go with it.

Wtf is a Familiar?

A Familiar is a person (non-human or human) that indirectly works for Oracle. They give information, keep an eye on certain groups, areas, phenomena and the like. Familiars can be approached by Oracle to join as agents IF they so choose.

There are certain rules that apply to certain characters, places, ideas, creatures and stuff but for the most part I like living things open to enterpretation and flexible.

I think C said it best. Oracle can be described as "weird espionage with a cosmic horror twist". It's got a tiny teeny alternate history to it too.

I hope that covers like the basics of Oracle. If you wanna know something else about the setting as a whole or specifically about Loke in this setting just ask.

#Oracle Corp #Oracle Corp tag #gods i really hope any of this made sense

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devil-angel · 26 days

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❄️ Welcome welcome

Call me Nero. Any pronouns will do but I prefer They/Them. I'm 23 physically, Astrally Idk. Time doesn't exist there.

Mdni. This is an adult page and I don't want kids here. Shoo.

This is a blog for Otherkinnity, astral talks and just generally talking about my soul family and experiences. Occasional witchcraft, religion and folk magic posts may appear as well.

Born a demon, became a cybernetic something, angel aligned machine by choice. Now I'm just vibing and socialising until my time is up. I use Nero from Devil may cry as a mask for ease of communication and comprehension. And I just think he's very gender tbh.

Religion and beliefs are.. Complicated. But for ease of communication and comprehension I'm Agnostic, Hekatean and Satanist.

Soul family introduction under the read more

Disclaimer: these are already recorded beings who chose these masks and names for familiarity and ease of communication. I will not be revealing their true names on here ever.

Vergil:

My souls father, a demon who is obsessed with tea and katanas. Summons storms to break my Internet when he feels like it. Draconic in nature and energy. Tough, intimidating but a softie for those he cares about.

Lady in red

Also known as Hekate, she is... Tough but fair. My devotions to her are akin to priesthood. She's the one who helped me find my family again. My souls mother.

Dante:

Twin brother of Vergil, hellhound in spirit and nature. Annoying as hell and my nemesis since I could form comprehensive thoughts <3. Love him though, best pranking and sparring partner one can have.

Nico:

My cousin through paternal bonds and twin through maternal ones. They're cool as fuck and everyone should follow their blog @burninghorizon immediately

Vitale:

My impulse control and common sense, someone give this poor man a break before he collapses from reeling me in.

My relationship with him? In short married, that's all you need to know.

#Spotify #Fictionkin #Demonkin #Angelkin #Cyborgkin

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skaluli · 11 months

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creator religion symbol oOoOooOOOOooo

idk if what i mean by the sticks thing is clear but you know how some people will make a physical object of the symbol, thats kinda that but makeshift. can be put on/in front/where ever on graves etc. stuff like that. places where you'd put a cross.

middle thing is the most known symbol. you can read.

the "more intense summon symbol" is based on the shit people draw on the ground to summon shit. idk the correct name for it or how to properly design one.

this whatever is me trying to come up with what a "creator" church would look like. (i need to think of a """"religion"""" name. since creators are pretty much just gods so therefore believing in them would have its own name.)

the "but how would people blah" sketch had the idea of the symbol floating but well like it says. how the hell would normal ass people make a floating hovering thing. then i thought maybe the church thing can be in the shape of the symbol from above. the towers being each of the """wing""" pieces and the lower """body""" piece can be like the stairs into the thing. i dont know man i dont make buildings.

bonus random corrupt drawing concept idk :

still figuring out corrupt a bit since they pretty much were a direct recolour of creator. (the main one, the one skaluli (the character) refuses to talk about, that one. god this is complicated.) i know the anorexic body proportions aint that correct, i kinda just winged it. the reason why i might give them that body type is the fact that they just fucking live in the void, they aint eating anytime soon. want them to look like they've just been left to rot, hense the long unkempt hair. maybe had their wings stripped, idk its a work in progress.

didnt mean to go that in detail hense it being a """bonus""". oh well

if you want me to talk about them or anything iitl related just hit me up i suppose???? i dont fucking know.

have a good rest of your life.

#sorry for all the religious bullshit didnt mean to take it as far as it is lmao #sorry to all the architects in the chat for how probably impracticable that building is #just realised i said sorry twice ... sorry #artluli #iitl #imagination is the limit #iitl lore dump #oc #original character #original series #concept art

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thiswaycomessomethingwicked · 1 year

Note

what godforsaken corner of twitter did the comparisons between napoleon and adolf fucking hitler, ye’s new boyfriend, come from? because iirc, one of them spread those good vibes 👌🏼👌🏼 towards jews, and the other gassed millions of them and worked millions more to death ???? like what???

uggh gross.

So, I haven't seen what's on twitter lately, mostly because I've really taken a step back from the platform over the last year or so. It's a cesspit and I hate everyone on it (barring my friends who I love).

However, the comparing Napoleon to Hitler is an old nonsense that's been going on for years and it's a real fucking piss off. It absolutely comes from the fact that Napoleon represents strong, centralized state power and is, obviously, associated with years of war in Europe (who started what, where, and when is a discussion for elsewhere). The supposed analogy to Hitler is drawn by those who literally know only the previous two points about Napoleon.

Aside from, like, Napoleon's reputation (dude's fine), the bigger issue, the more important issue, is how it trivializes what Hitler did and all he represents. It's harmful and hurtful to survivors and their decendents, and all Jews everywhere, and it's an absolute fucking pissoff.

The holocaust and Hitler are not things to throw around as edgy internet points - whether in an attempt to slag off Napoleon (please people, the man has enough shit in his legacy, you don't need to bring Hitler into it), or in an attempt to idk, grant Hitler some edge of "legitimacy" or "he's just like others" or something.

I hate this garbage. Fuck all that noise.

gross gross gross

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

Some stuff on Napoleon and Jews

[Disclaimer: I'm not Jewish, nor is this area of Napoleon's reign a speciality of mine, so I may get things wrong, or not-quite-right. Sincere apologies in advance. Please feel free to add on or correct me if I put my foot in it.]

Napoleon's relationship with the Jewish community in France was complicated, as these things usually are in the late 18th and early 19th century Europe. Especially when undertaken by a child of Revolution and Enlightenment who was still cultrually Catholic (though, his faith and associated beliefs were complex and changed over the course of his life) and grew up within all the anti-semetic baggage that was part and parcel of European life at that time (and still is, in many respects, today).

Note: Historians are all over the place on Napoleon’s views, whether he hated the Jews or not, whether he was purely out for his own gain or not, whether there was any altruism present or not. People are very, very, very heated about the subject - which makes sense. Just like, as a general flag.

Some of the first laws in France that emancipate the Jews came into effect during the French Revolution - so they pre-date Napoleon's assencion to power by a good few years. E.g., the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, 1789, granted freedom of religion and worship, provided that it did not contradict public order.

Napoleon himself kept these laws, building some aspects of them into the Code. In countries he conquered, he emancipated the local Jewish population - all as part of his effort to further spread the French Revolutionary ideals then, later, the French Imperial ideals.

The big thing Napoleon's famous for is revoking the laws that required Jews to reside within ghettos thus enabling them to rent or own property with greater liberty than previously experienced. In 1807, Napoleon passed a law designating Judaism one of the official religions in France alongside Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Calvinist Protestants (i.e., Hugenots). He also opened up previously restricted occupations and broadened the economic opportunities of the Jewish community.

Napoleon had the national Israelite Consistory established which served as a centralized authority for Jewish religious, economic, and community life within France (Napoleon loved centralized authorities). There were regional Consistories as well that answered to the national one. The Consistories were all run by a board composed entirely of Jews, appointed by the local prefect (who would not have been Jewish). So it was a blend of Jewish autonomy and independence yet structured within Napoleon's top-down approach to government (as the prefect would have been one of Napoleon's appointments/his hiring would have been informed by Napoleon's preferences).

An unintended benefit of Napoleon mucking around in Europe was that he broke up many of the existing caste systems simply by steam rolling in and saying "alright, have the Code Napoleon." Through the dissolution of these systems, and the political values/regulations imposed via Napoleon's takeovers, life, broadly speaking, improved for Jews - especially in the Rhineland and other areas of the Germanies and states subsumed into France. As always, though, YMMV and this is brush strokes.

---

However. It's always more complicated than just "only good(ish) things."

As noted, Napoleon was a Christian-acculturated man born in 1769 and this reflects in his approach towards Jews and his policies and the motiviations behind said policies.

Napoleon was keen on creating an integrated, somewhat unified French society and identity, with French language and cultural norms being the dominate traits that people should embody. The concept of national identity was still, broadly, in its infancy in 1800 but he was certainly a proponent of it.** So, while Jews were liberated from the ghettos, Napoleon expected them to assimilate into French society - which he thought meant giving up some of their religious and cultural traditions.

In addition, Napoleon still restricted where Jews could migrate within the French Empire, which was done in tandem with his attempt to end, or at least greatly restrict, Jewish money lending. Again, all tied to attempts to support assimilation.

Money lending had, historically, been one of the few trades open to Jews in Europe (e.g., Venice limited Jews to money lending and selling of second hand items. They could practice as doctors only with a special papal dispensation which required sponsorship from a respected patron - usually bishop or cardinal, sometimes a nobleman or patrician) and Napoleon was concerned, in typical anti-semetic style, that Jews were taking advantage of their customers.

Napoleon was also seeking to try and push Jews into new professions - primarily the trades and agriculture - so there was a focus in his regulations to encourage Jews to pursue farming or artisinal trades, among other things. Again, again, assimilation - but it’s also informed by the fact that France’s economy by 1806/08 was showing signs of slowing down and Napoleon was attempting to stall this. His restrictions on migration, I believe, were revoked in 1811 and the remainder of the restrictions ended when the Infamous Decree of 1808 was not renewed (during the Bourbon restoration).

Another negative impact was the loss of Jewish naming traditions. In his effort to make the world’s largest bureaucracy, Napoleon began requiring people to have surnames. Not necessarily a common thing at the time, and he had certain rules about the names people could choose. For Jews, they couldn’t pick anything from the Torah, nor could they use town names, and these restirctions - along with the entire requirement itself - led to a loss of Jewish naming practices in these regions, at least outwardly. How communities worked to maintain these traditions within themselves is another story.

In addition, while the Jews had far greater freedom to worship than previously experienced, some of the aspects of their relgious life remained regulated - though it was via the Consistory system previously mentioned. The actual day-to-day impact of this on religious and cultural life for France’s Jews, I don’t know. I’m sure someone’s done a study on it though.

(**Napoleon was generally pro-immigration and believed it didn't matter "what side of the Rhine" a person was born on, if they wanted to be French they were French. However, they were expected to assimilate into to French society, to super over simplify his stance. I've a post somewhere in my backlog about Napoleon's immigration stuff. [Insert obligatory disclaimer about applying broad statements and how it's always way more complex and nuanced etc. etc.])

---

On a personal level, who knows what Napoleon actually thought about Jews and what he was hoping to attain as a final outocme of his various legislations. Some of his quotes say he was aiming for full integration to the point where Jews are no longer visibly distinct (clothing, culture, language, food etc.). Some was just more general “I just want everyone to be French(tm) but otherwise, so long as you pay taxes, I don’t care”.

I suspect it was a mix since, in terms of extant quotes, he swings in his motivations, his views, his expectations. There are quotes where he's quite anti-semetic (see some of his comments in 1806) and ones where he's not as bad.

I don’t think he’s every wholly not anti-semetic - even his better statements are still tinged with it. Which, unfortunately, was par for the course of most people at that time. He wasn’t virulent or violent, the way some were (and are), but the broad anti-semetism of the time was certainly in him.

That said, Napoleon valued his appearance of being a liberator and understood the importance of having people On Side, which impacted his regulatory and legislative decisions. I also think he did believe in some of the old values of the Revolution. There was an idealist streak in him that came out from time to time and was, to my reading, truly earnest.

It's also important, for the sake of context, to note that in passing a lot of his more liberatory laws, he pissed off powerful groups. As emperor, he was always balancing different political interests of many parties - both internal and external to France - and this does need to be taken into account. Many of his actions, as they pertain to the Jews, would have been seen by much of Europe at the time as quite revolutionary (even if today we look at it and go "some of this was good, some of this was not good"). So there was some sticking-his-neck-out-a-bit.

Some of the powers-that-be, such as Austria, Russia, England, were opposed to Napoleon's approach to his Jewish subjects, not to mention internal-to-France powers and pressures. It's all a balancing act in a situation that could be a powder-keg.

---

In exile, Napoleon's doctor Barry O'Maera asked about his reasons for "encouraging the Jew so much" (to use O'Maera's words) and Napoleons' response really was a balance of different motives - some good, some YIKES, some anti-semetic, some pragamtic, some a clear carry over of revolutionary ideals etc.:

I wanted to make them leave off usury, and become like other men. There were a great many Jews in the countries I reigned over ; by removing their disabilities [i.e., their legal restrictions], and by putting them upon an equality with Catholics, Protestants, and others, I hoped to make them become good citizens, and conduct themselves like others of the community. I believe I should have succeeded in the end. My reasoning with them was, that, as their rabbis explained to them, that they ought not to practise usury to their own tribes, but were allowed to do so with Christians and others, that, therefore, as I had restored them to all their privileges, and made them equal to my other subjects, they must consider me the head of their nation, like Solomon or Herod, and my subjects as brethren of a tribe similar to theirs. That, consequently, they were not permitted to practise usury with me or them, but to treat us as if we were of the tribe of Judah. By this, I gained many soldiers. Besides, I should have drawn great wealth to France as the Jews are very numerous, and would have flocked to a country where they enjoyed such superior privities. Moreover, I wanted to establish an universal liberty of conscience. My system was to have no predominent religion, but to allow perfect liberty of conscious and of thought. To make all men equal, whether Protestant, Catholics, Mahometans [Muslims], Deists, or others ... [Napoelon then goes on to talk about making government independent of religion and the strong importance of separation of church and state. Napoleon was particularly keen on ridding the Catholic Church of their power within state/civic happenings.] - A Voice from St. Helena, Barry O'Meara, p. 183

[I broke out the paragraphs for easier reading. It's one block in the original.]

As always, with exile memoirs, Napoleon is structuring his legacy and trying to create a specific image of himself. That said, I think this is one of the times where I believe what he said does reflect, more or less, his motives and his thinking back during the height of Empire.

---

Anyway - I hope this helps add some nuance to the Napoleon & Jews thing - though written by a non-expert. And yeah, comparing Napoleon to Hitler is bunk history and people should know that by now.

But I will end by again emphasizing that it is disgusting and disrespectiful, if not outright harmful, to throw Hitler and the Holocaust around as edge internet points. That is the real issue here, not Napoleon's reputation.

The real issue is, always is, the anti-semetism.

#can of worms! can of worms!#anti-semetism #Napoleon bonaparte #ask #reply #anon #history #napoleonic #jewish history #19th century #holocaust mention #shoah mention

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