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pastanest · 1 year

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A/N: if you’re wondering why I’m having to repost this, or why you were perhaps previously following me but no longer are, please refer to this post

Daryl Dixon x she/her!reader

spoilers: set in the Commonwealth, but no references to season-specific events

Material Girl

The front door to the apartment slammed against the wall as you stormed in and immediately threw your back against the door to close it again.

“Daryl, we’ve got to go. Now.”

Daryl stood from where he had been lying on the makeshift bed you shared, a mattress on the floor with a couple of pillows and blankets that you had decided to regard as a sleepover kit to make it seem a lot more fun than it really was. He had previously been throwing a tennis ball against the ceiling and catching it as he laid with his back against the mattress in an effort to piss off the neighbours in the flat above who continually played music at a deafening level, which was a problem he never imagined he would experience again. Alas, the Commonwealth had been the rebirth of first world problems in Daryl Dixon’s life.

Tennis ball in-hand, Daryl approached you with a concerned frown, trying to determine what exactly had you staring at him like a deer in headlights before he eventually nodded.

“Alright, gotta grab the kids.”

He didnt question your motives, he trusted your judgement completely, and if you said it was time to go, he was ready.

To Daryl’s surprise, you shook your head as you bustled past him and began absentmindedly tidying away the few toys you’d managed to buy RJ and Judith with the little money you’d earnt from your job so far. “No, we cant take them out of school.”

Daryl looked at you like you were insane. “Ya aint suggestin’ we actually LEAVE ‘em here?!”

You stared back at him blankly, blinking. “When I said we’ve got to go…”

Daryl nodded. “Go, as in leave this place.”

At that, you scoffed and shook your head. “Absolutely not.”

Daryl watched, utterly baffled, as you returned to his side at the front door. “Then where ‘re we goin?”

And in horror, Daryl watched as a wide grin spread across your face and you spoke a word he had hoped he would never hear leave your lips.

“Shopping!”

It came to pass that you and Rosita had discovered a clothes store down the street that you had not yet explored in your first week of being in this alternative dimension to the world beyond the walls. The two of you had decided you would drag Daryl and Eugene - kicking and screaming in mind, sulking and hanging their heads low in body - shopping, solely to be the audience to your fashion show. It was unlikely you would be able to afford anything, but neither of you cared, it was the principle.

Daryl Dixon never thought he would see the day when he was led by the hand of the love of his life into a clothing store, while the dead were walking the earth everywhere else. It was one of the most fucked up moments of his life, in all honesty, and he could not stop imagining Merle getting kicked out of a store like this for fondling a mannequin’s plastic breasts and then continuing to howl with laughter from beyond the display windows as Daryl actually stood in a clothes store. He and Eugene were pushed into a pair of chairs opposite a row of changing room doors, and then you and Rosita disappeared into the store, giggling like a pair of teenage girls. Still, at least Daryl wasnt alone in his suffering.

“Scenes of this nature are usually inserted prior to events such as a fictional prom or date amongst women in their most highly rated flicks for chicks. Perhaps this insinuates we are the lucky ones, comrade-in-mannequin-arms.”

On second thought, maybe Daryl would rather be sitting alone.

Twenty agonising minutes later, you and Rosita returned to Daryl’s line of sight, and then you both disappeared behind the changing room doors. Daryl shuffled in his seat and straightened his shirt, knowing that if nothing else, this was the part he needed to take seriously. Not that he would ever admit it, but he knew Eugene was right. As stereotypical as it was, getting proper feedback to new outfits and the like was an important thing for partners to give each other. He would also never admit to anyone except you that he had often had dreams of being with you in the old world and doing mundane shit exactly like this, going to the movies, going out for dinner, being dragged on a shopping trip that you both know he’d just be pretending he hated. As much as he isnt entirely comfortable with the social aspect of it all, Daryl cant deny that the sheer joy on your face at being able to experience something you clearly never thought you would again, really was a sight for sore eyes.

And so, Daryl mentally prepared himself to deliver compliments that usually would not be heard by an audience, because this was his chance to publicly declare his affections, in the least obnoxious way possible. The two of you had been together long enough, he was past the point of worrying about you rejecting any kind of compliment from him.

The first outfit was a sunshine yellow dress that took Daryl’s breath away, and he made certain to let you know when he rose from his seat the second you stepped out of the changing room, like a gentleman rising from the table when the lady entered a room.

“Go on, gi’ me a spin.” He gestured to you, and you giggled as spun around, lifting the skirt of the dress as you twirled, and Daryl couldnt wipe the dopey smile off of his face as he wolf whistled at you.

“Aint you jus’ a dime, sweet girl.” He walked up to you and held your hands in his, leaning forward just enough to plant a soft kiss on your forehead.

Meanwhile, Rosita’s first outfit was a pair of baggy green camo pants and a long sleeved black t-shirt, to which Eugene made the very astute observation of her resembling Kim Possible, causing Rosita to scoff and return to the changing room.

Your second outfit was a more multi-purpose one, a nice pair of jeans and a flower blouse that both complimented your figure but enabled you to kick some serious ass if shit hit the fan. A pretty, but still adaptable ensemble. Daryl once again rose from his seat and requested a spin, his eyes very nearly rolling out of his skull at the sight of your ass in those jeans, causing him to clear his throat and straighten his shirt as he blushed, which you definitely noticed.

“Looks real good on you.” He said, and he cannot believe it, but he actually gave two very brief thumbs up as he sat back down. Merle would have literally passed out in the street if he’d seen Daryl do that.

Rosita’s second outfit was a gorgeous summer dress that was flattering, comfortable, and made you call her the hottest milf you’ve ever seen. Eugene blinked at this, nodded, and elected not to say anything for fear of Rosita knocking his teeth out.

Your third and final outside was the money maker, the one that you knew Daryl would like the most, and you were absolutely right. When you had stepped out of the changing room, Daryl had been slouching in the chair with his right elbow against the armrest and his right index finger across his top lip, trying to get the image of your ass in those jeans out of his mind. But when he saw the image of you, decked out in a pair of black skinny jeans, a strappy blood red tank with killer cleavage and a black leather jacket with an amalgamation of classic rock band logos and badges stitched to the back of it, Daryl Dixon very nearly lost consciousness.

At your side, Rosita stepped out in her final outfit: a floor length, slinky and strapless red dress, with equally killer cleavage. Eugene’s spirit had ascended beyond the realm of comprehension for a short time, and he genuinely looked like he had been shot.

Feeling your confidence skyrocket from the way you had stunned your boyfriend, you put on a fake sultry southern accent and said “Tell me about it, stud” before you and Rosita bursted into fits of laughter.

It was then, Eugene’s spirit returned to him, and he cleared his throat. “This is what I believe to be the showstopper to stop all of the shows. Speaking entirely from a statistical standpoint, given the state of the world and its lack of societies as we know it, Rosita, I wish to offer my humble being if we should be the last humans on earth at any point and you wish to repopulate. If you do not wish to continue the species, however, I will respect this with the utmost chivalry, and will remain at your side until the very last sunset. It is not likely we will live to see the very last sunset of our earth’s sun, but I will be at your side until we see our last sunset with what I hope to be much older eyes. Furthermore-“

At that point, Rosita cut him off. “Okay, Eugene, we get it! Go get some air, you’re like a dog on heat.”

Not having the grounds to disagree with that statement, Eugene stood from his chair and left the store, waiting outside like a child who’s been told by his mother he cant enter the store because he cant be trusted not to touch anything. In the meantime, Rosita returned to the changing room to return to the clothes she had arrived in, and you shook your head.

“Those two are one hell of a duo.” You chuckled, then realised Daryl was still staring at you and had not moved. “Hey, everything alright? Earth to Daryl?” You waved a hand in front of his face and when you got no response, crouched down in front of him. This altered Daryl’s view of your cleavage considerably, and he swallowed.

“Ya gonna buy that?” He asked, his voice husky.

You laughed. “I wish! There’s no way I can afford it, unfortunately.”

Still not moving, Daryl responded. “We’ll save up.”

You raised an eyebrow, smiling at him as you recognised the scale of the impact you’d had on him. “Yeah?”

Daryl nodded, then asked another question. “How long ‘til the kids get home?”

Checking your watch, you glanced back at him. “About an hour, why?”

For a brief moment, there was silence, before Daryl nodded, stood up, nodded at the changing room, and finally glanced at you.

“How quick can ya get changed and get home?”

Your eyes widened. “Uhh, 10 minutes, probably, why?”

With one last full look up and down your body, Daryl nodded. “See ya in 10.”

And then, he was out of that front door and on his way home faster than you can say Eugene had passed out in the middle of the street.

#daryl dixon #daryl dixon x reader #daryl dixon imagine #imagine #imagines #fanfic #fanfiction #x reader #headcannon #headcannons

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incorrectklavekatz · 10 months

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The crows as cards cause I’m bored and why not, as usual my asks are open and I’m always happy to answer!!! Possible ROW and CK spoilers??? Obviously SOC spoilers

Kaz: king of clubs, symbolises strength, power and determination, his ambition towards taking down Rollins, and his effectiveness in doing so, as well as his power by the time ROW occurs in him having two people on the merchant council, the queen of fjerda and the wraith on the seas, in play can be useful, but in most cases doesn’t do much if the rest of the hand is shit, he needs his crows

Inej: Queen of spades, I was going to make her and Kaz match but I’d rather give her an individual one, symbolises intelligence, practical and intellectual, plans ahead of time, inej is always the one in the crows to provide insight to their issues, no matter how cryptic it may be at times, and she shows her ability to understand the consequences of all of their actions better than the other crows several times, in play a black queen can change the game if not countered by a red one

Nina: queen of hearts, pretty obvious as it is, heartrender, queen of fjerda, symbolises a powerful woman who is commanding and has a strong presence yet is compassionate, caring and protective of those she loves, her taking the parem to save the others in coming out of the ice court, as well as generally just being there for the crows in their times of need while still being a very independent and strong female character, in play can be incredibly useful for saving a hand

Matthias: king of hearts, symbolises honesty and spirituality, obviously spirituality to djel and his honesty about changing who he was to be a better man, and admitting that what he did was wrong along with coming to terms with how he was raised and how that effected him and how he treats others, also symbolises a kind gentle man, which he became because of Nina, sparing the boy who shot him, in play again not very useful unless the rest of the hand is good

Wylan: Ace of diamonds, symbolises a financial increase and can indicate a message from a new lover, his claiming of his inheritance from his father, and Jespers role in helping him achieve and maintain that inheritance with reading to him, in play can change the stakes of the game and is very fluid compared to other cards in what it can do, as well as changing the suit to how it sees fit regardless of the suit being played, changing to look like kuwei, asking to be beaten up further for dramatic effect etc

Jesper: Jack of Diamonds, symbolises youth, energy and potential, “maybe he was a bullet in a chamber, waiting to be given direction”, it can also symbolise future financial instability, his gambling, and can be used to represent an unfaithful employee, when he accidentally ratted them out to the dime lions, in play isn’t extremely helpful and generally can benefit the person before the player more than the player themselves, heavily depends on the other cards in the hand, much like how Jesper often puts trying not to disappoint others above his own general well-being and mental health

+ Bonus kuwei: ace of spades, mirrors Wylan, symbolises death, darkness and mystery, parem causing death, hiding in the tomb, nobody really knowing much about him, but can also represent new beginnings, fresh starts and rebirth, moving to Ravka and changing his name to fix his fathers mistakes, arguably one of the most important cards in play, can change the game entirely based on its high place on the list of outcomes on rolling the dice or drawing from a deck of cards chance, can also symbolise power, luck and triumph, whoever was ‘in possession’ of kuwei was winning the game

If anybody has any other opinions on this please let me know!! Also I am aware that technically they have all already been assigned cards in the collectors edition art for crooked kingdom but these are my own takes, might do an analysis post on their cards assigned in the official art if anybody is interested <333 also will do any other characters in the SOC duology and maybe some from the SAB trilogy if asked!!!

#I haven’t played card games much recently so if my analysis on how they work in play is off #ignore me #my cards and dice have been confiscated #jesper fahey #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #wylan van eck #wylan hendricks #matthias helvar #nina zenik #kuwei yul bo #six of crows #crooked kingdom #shadow and bone #kanej #helnik #wesper #incorrect klave talks

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glon-morski · 1 month

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FF7 Rebirth Ending Interpretation

Well. That game sure was a ride, huh?

As stated above, I’ll be talking about my interpretations of the ending. Please note that I’m writing this about two weeks after the game came out (for future reference). Obviously, spoilers for the entire game ahead/under the cut.

The main question of the ending if, of course, rather obvious: did Aerith die or not?

Cloud sees her alive and well, but the rest of the party doesn’t and is grieving her death. With how Cloud was set up since Remake and especially throughout Rebirth to be the one with hallucinations and delusions, one would think the answer to the question of “what is truth, what is fiction?” should be obvious, right? But… what if it’s not as clear-cut as the most obvious answer? What if Cloud is the one who sees reality and not his teammates? What if we have (finally, for some) left the “original world” of the OG behind and are now 100% in a different world, similarly to how Remake dangled that option in our face more subtly?

Yes, you read that right. My personal belief is that Aerith didn’t actually die, at least not in the world we see in the ending scene. There is a world where she died, of course. The world of the OG. But this is not the world we get to see at the end of Rebirth, and possibly not the one we will play in Part 3.

Hear me out.

1) The framing of Aerith’s death.

In many other “ending explanation/interpretation/theory” videos I watched on YouTube these past few days, everyone always comments on how we’re “teased” with Aerith surviving before ultimately seeing her die. But in none of them did I see anyone comment or talk about the way this vision of a death is brought about. It’s not the the first thing we see. It’s not that we see her live and then get a fade-to-black or fade-to-white like in other parts of the game. No. Instead, the shift is done in a very telling, very specific manner: the static that indicates Jenova’s interference with what is being remembered or perceived. Whichever of the two is the truth, Jenova is making Cloud (and us) see the other option. It’s not a glimpse at what was or what could have been. It’s all Jenova.

So, having established that, why do I think Jenova is fabricating the vision of Aerith’s death, and not her survival? Well, let’s look a bit closer at both the framing and how Jenova’s interference is portrayed through most of the game.

A) The “mechanism” of Jenova’s memory and perception editing

We’ve seen Jenova (also referred to as Mimic for the particular ability to copy a person’s memories) interfere with Cloud’s memories and his perception of reality many times throughout both games. In Remake, this was mostly in cases when:

- Jenova had to edit memories in the background so Cloud’s fake persona was still believable, for example in the very first chapter where he went “I’ve never been to a reactor like this before” because “the layout depends on when a reactor was built”.

- Jenova interfered with Cloud’s immediate perception to block some things out, primarily any mention of Zack.

- Sephiroth appeared before Cloud.

In Rebirth, it goes a bit further than that. We see Jenova edit Cloud’s memories in real time in Nibelheim when he first remembers Zack. We see Jenova ensuring he doesn’t see Tifa’s scar when she shows it to him a second time in Gongaga, with the implication that his memory of seeing it in Kalm has also been altered, only for everything to be edited back once Tifa falls into the mako. And of course, there are again the appearances of Sephiroth, as well as the frantic editing going on in the ending itself (very reminiscent of Nibelheim, might I add).

Of note here is how it’s all portrayed, which is what I mean by “mechanism”. There might be some discrepancies between Remake and Rebirth as Cloud’s situation changes, but throughout Rebirth itself, there is one definite consistency to every time Jenova messes with Cloud’s mind, be it his memories or his immediate perception. Namely, that we as the player first get a look at reality (whether obvious, brief, or much earlier in the game in the case of Tifa’s scar) before the editing kicks in and we see Jenova interfering, if not outright seeing how it changes Cloud’s memories or perception. In a lot of cases, we also see reality againafter the interference is over, to further drive home that Cloud is seeing things the other characters are not.

Why is this important? Because assuming the ending doesn’t pull a (rather random) deviation from that set-up, the first thing we saw was Cloud managing to save Aerith before the camera zoomed in on the clean blade. Only then did Jenova’s interference start. Looking at it from how it worked for the rest of the game, Jenova was attempting to alter Cloud’s perception and see blood where there was none, rather than the opposite.

B) The general framing of the scene

Setting aside whether we see reality first and the lie second or the other way around purely from an “it’s been like this the rest of the game” assumption, there is another thing. Namely, Jenova’s interference was only ever present in regards to Cloud. He was the one whose memories were tampered with, he was the one who didn’t always see things as they actually were, he’s the one who can (and sometimes is) controlled by Jenova/Sephiroth. But in the ending, there’s one interesting detail that I think warrants consideration.

When the rest of the party is allowed to enter the City of the Ancients and come running, it is after the first bout of Jenova’s interference ends. After Aerith tells Cloud that “it’s okay” and he’s relieved because she actually looks fine after all.

The first shot we get of the two as the others arrive is this one.

We can argue until we’re all blue in the face if the dark spot under Aerith in this shot is blood or just a shadow, though I do agree it looks a whole lot like blood. Still, we can tell that that spot aside, there is no blood anywhere else. There are no dark spots on Aerith herself (on her hand), or on Masamune. And then an interesting thing happens as the camera swoops in on Tifa as if to tell us “this is a PoV change, we see what she’s seeing now”. Which makes sense. Throughout Rebirth, Tifa has been set up as the main person who can notice when Cloud is being weird, or when his memories are weird, which was also pretty much the case in the OG. She’s the one we, the players, are supposed to trust when Cloud is acting off or remembering things she thinks are odd. Unlike Cloud, she’s not affected by Jenova. She sees the truth.

Except when she doesn’t. The thing is, we get the camera swooping in on her to indicate the PoV change to her… and then the following shots are full of Jenova’s interference all over again, shifting between seeing blood and not seeing any. However, Tifa’s (and Barrets) reactions make it clear what it is they actually see: Aerith, dying or already dead.

Question: if Aerith dying is reality, why is there a Jenova static effect in what Tifa sees? Just to throw us off? To confuse us?

Maybe so, but honestly, it feels a little odd to throw it in if Jenova wasn’t actually manipulating someone’s perception. And those of us who played the OG know very well that Jenova’s ability to make people see something else than reality isn’t limited to those who have her biological material in them. Otherwise, she never could have fooled the Cetra.

And there is another thing: the last scene with Rufus and “Glenn”, who turns out to be nothing but a Shadow of Sephiroth.

Rufus has never been in contact with Jenova. He doesn’t have her biological material in him. But he has been made to see Glenn (and then briefly Sephiroth) in the place of a simple Shadow of Sephiroth (or Sephiroth Clone, as they were called in the OG localization). This feels like the game reminding us – or letting those who never played the OG know – that Jenova indeed isn’t limited to Cloud in fucking up in their perception.

But wait. There’s an issue here, isn’t there? After all, even after the fight and after Sephiroth is gone from the City of the Ancients, Cloud is still the only one who can see Aerith just fine. The others don’t see her at all and still think her dead. If it’s indeed their perception being messed with and not Cloud’s, why is it not lifting? Any other time Jenova tried fucking with Cloud, he saw the truth eventually. Well, let’s look a bit closer at what we, and the characters, know of Jenova’s abilities, shall we?

2) Jenova’s Abilities and Limitations

I’ll be pulling mostly from Rebirth here (since Sephiroth and the Cetra so kindly gave us so much Jenova lore), but also a little bit from the OG regarding details I believe to be important even if they have yet to come up properly in the Remake trilogy, as well as CC(R) as a source of additional proof where necessary.

Jenova’s abilities are, to be frank, a terrifying combo. To summarize, it can

- appear as someone else, usually taking the form of a deceased whom its current victim used to know

- edit someone’s immediate perception of the things around them in real time (which is probably how the implied shapeshifting actually works, but as far as I know there’s no hard confirmation on that; not that it really matters for this meta)

- copy someone’s memories (a form of mind reading, I guess)

- edit its own DNA and memories (or the memories of a host some of its biological material is stuck in)

- a form of telepathy where it can put images/thoughts in people’s heads (as evidenced by Sephiroth, Cloud, and also strongly implied through Angeal and possibly Genesis in CC(R))

- furthermore, these abilities aren’t restricted to Jenova as a “complex lifeform”, but can be used and called upon even when it it’s in scattered pieces as small singular cells.

So, in short, we’re talking about an intelligent life-form capable of mind-altering/affecting abilities with possibly full on shapeshifting to top it all off (not that Jenova needs it), and with every single piece of it capable of using those abilities on its own. Of note here is that the players know all this (and even then only those who played the OG; newcomers can certainly guess at some of those abilities because they’ve been shown in action, but they haven’t had them explained in detail). The characters, on the other hand? All they got is what Sephiroth told them of Jenova’s abilities on the ship to Costa del Sol.

“They say she’s a monster. That she can peer inside you - into the very depths of your soul. That she can become those you hate. Those you fear. Those you love. And they call her… Jenova.”

He tells them about the mind-reading. He tells them about the “shape-shifting” which we, the players, know could work in two ways. He certainly doesn’t mention the ability she has of putting thoughts in your head or visions in your mind, altering your perception of things, though. Which is why Cloud thinks these things happen to him because of Degradation instead. It’s the only explanation he (or anyone else in the party) have.

There are also some limitations to Jenova’s powers (thank God for that, right? LOL). For one thing, distance. Jenova doesn’t seem able to affect someone without being in their close vicinity or, alternatively, having someone with its biological material in the vicinity of the manipulated person. This, of course, doesn’t apply to someone who already has Jenova’s biological material inside them, because they’re as close to the source as they can get.

The second limitation is rather more interesting, but also requires a little more assumption and, like the shapeshifting, can go two ways.

Any time we see Sephiroth, it is quickly revealed that it’s actually a Shadow of Sephiroth instead whom Cloud and the party perceived as Sephiroth (or whom Rufus perceived as Glenn). This implies one of two things:

a) Jenova can’t make people hallucinate something “from thin air”. By that I mean, Jenova can’t create a hallucination of a whole-ass person acting all normal if there is nothing but air in reality. It needs a base to build off of. That’s why, in Rebirth, whenever Cloud sees Sephiroth, it’s in actuality a Black Robe. Or

b) Jenova could create a hallucination from thin air, but chooses not to because of a different limitation: it can trick the eyes and ears, but not the sense of touch.

If it’s the first one, then the Aerith Cloud sees cannot be a fake created by Jenova because Jenova wouldn’t be able to make Cloud hallucinate her. In which case, if she’s not real, then Cloud is hallucinating her all by herself. Which, sure, is possible, but it definitely creates very big narrative problems in that it indicates a mental break the likes of which Cloud didn’t have in the OG, and for good reason. While he has more then enough reasons to be messed up and traumatized, most of Cloud’s serious mental issues in the OG were all created by Jenova. His hallucinations, his fake personality, his uncertainty of whether or not he was ever a real person… all because of Jenova messing with his memories and Sephiroth exploiting that and manipulating him. Which means the source wasn’t Cloud’s own mind, but an eldritch abomination from space. And as such, the problem could largely be fixed by just “doing something to set him straight”, which in the OG was what the Lifestream Sequence accomplished.

If Cloud is now hallucinating Aerith without Jenova’s input because he can’t face her death, then that’s an entirely different ball game and I cannot see it being satisfactorily resolved without Cloud having to be benched and someone else taking over and finishing things. Which, granted, happens for a time in the OG as well while Cloud is mako poisoned in Mideel, but it’s not nearly for a long enough time for Cloud to recover from a mental break such a this. That would take years. And unless he passes the “main character and hero of the story” baton to someone else, it ain’t happening.

I don’t know about you, but that wouldn’t just be a letdown for me, it would be downright insulting and dismissive of mental illnesses in a way in which FFVII never was.

Okay, so let’s say Cloud hasn’t completely broken down mentally and hasn’t started hallucinating Aerith all by himself. Let’s also say that Jenova isn’t making him hallucinate her from thin air. So, she’s real. That still leaves us with one glaring problem.

Why can’t the others see her?

Well… there is one last thing Jenova can do that I haven’t mentioned yet. Something Remake has exploited and very vaguely teased.

Jenova can warp one’s perception so they don’t see or hear someone who is actually there.

This ability comes the most prominently to the front in the OG when the party visits the Northern Cave and shortly before Cloud gives Sephiroth the Black Materia again. During that scene, Tifa yells and yells at Cloud to not do it, but what she says is no longer in the typical speech bubble, but rather almost like a narrator voice over the screen. One of her questions at that point is “you can’t hear my voice?”

No. Cloud can’t. And in fact, none of the other characters in the scene act like they see or hear Tifa at all.

Rebirth hasn’t really touched on this ability yet. But Remake has alluded to it several times when Cloud saw Sephiroth (who was likely a Shadow of Sephiroth again), and then nothing and no one at all. In one scene, when Cloud, Barret and Tifa are on the way to Aerith’s house after the Platefall, we even get a direct comparison when Cloud sees Sephiroth, and then we get to see through Tifa that there is seemingly no one there.And then, there is the scene in the Drum, where Cloud is experiencing another Jenova episode and Tifa slowly approaches him. We see there is no one on the walkway up ahead. Then we get a close-up of Tifa and Cloud as she asks him if he’s okay before looking ahead again, and her eyes grow wide. Because suddenly, Sephiroth is there.

It’s subtle, but it is a hint at that particular part of Jenova’s perception-manipulating abilities, I believe.

It doesn’t help that in Rebirth’s final scene, Aerith doesn’t even really try to talk to anyone but Cloud. She doeslay a hand on Nanaki’s shoulder and he does acknowledge it, but is it a case of him sensing her spirit, or him feeling her physical touch but still being unable to see her? Both are equally possible, but I think you don’t need me to tell you which one I believe is happening.

But wait. I said myself that one of Jenova’s limits regarding mind manipulation seems to be distance. If so, how can the rest of the party still not see Aerith after Sephiroth and Jenova are gone?

Well, we’ve already established that Jenova can manipulate someone – anyone – and that she doesn’t need to be whole to do that. A fragment of her is enough. That’s why it can constantly play with Cloud’s mind whenever. Because he does have her cells (or Sephiroth’s cells) inside him. And here’s the thing: by the end of Rebirth, he’s, in my opinion, more than close enough to a Shadow of Sephiroth to be the “conduit” for Jenova to manipulate the others. He was basically completely taken over for most of the Temple of the Ancients, for one thing, something that was made painfully obvious when you still controlled Aerith rather than him when the group reunited (something that didn’t happen at any other point of any other character), and then when you played him going after Aerith and the Black Materia after the Temple’s collapsed. If you try to not go after her and pull the joystick back, Cloud starts shifting and contorting very much like a Shadow of Sephiroth that is being pulled towards a given destination. The only real difference between Cloud and them would be that he’s not as Degraded – not in body and not in mind – and so he isn’t fully lost or at the “I can only slowly shuffle forward” stage.Alternatively, of course, there can also be a Shadow of Sephiroth somewhere close by without the party knowing, but that demands a little more suspension of disbelief and, at least to me, feels like reaching.

3) A Different World

All right, so I think I’ve established why it’s possible for Aerith to still be alive. That leaves one last part of my claim still to be discussed: that we’re in a different world at the end of Rebirth than at its beginning.

Let’s go back to the framing of the scene again. If you look at the exact moment when Cloud breaks free of the Whispers and parries Sephiroth’s blade, we see a brief flash of a “rainbow” before Sephiroth is pushed back. From that point onwards, up until Cloud catches Aerith in his arms as she falls, the entire altar is circled not just by Sephiroth’s Black Whispers (which quickly leave), but also this rainbow glow.This glow is the effect Rebirth uses to show a creation of a different world. A different possibility. A fork in the timeline. We’ve seen it multiple times with Zack, as obvious as in this scene and far more subtle, whenever he made a choice. The most blatant example that comes to mind is the scene where he was picking the left or the right tunnels to go to either Hojo or Biggs.

There is one thing to note, though: whenever this effect made an appearance to indicate that “multiple possibilities have been created”, we didn’t immediately jump between them. We followed the first choice made and remained in the same world. When Zack chose to go to Hojo, we saw the possibility being created that he went to Biggs instead, but the next scene of him we got was still at the Shinra Building where he wanted to meet with Hojo. What’s more, we didn’t see multiple approaches of that (like Zack trying to go in through the front vs Zack trying to enter through the parking lot like the party did – and nobody can tell me there’s no way he didn’t at least think of the option). We see him facing a platoon at the main entrance. We see him confront them. And then we get a “fade-to-white” that… kinda seems to indicate the end of that particular story. Only then do we see the Pug-Stamp world where Zack went to Biggs, and only after that do we see the third option where he went to neither and visited the church to make up his mind instead.

What this means is that when Cloud saved Aerith, he created a fork in the road, a new world, and going by other obvious instances of this, there is little reason for us – or the story – to randomly jump off the road he just created to another alternative. So by pure logic, we should be in the world where Aerith survived.

4) The “problems” such a twist would create

Now, time to hit the most controversial issue. If Aerith actually survived like I believe, I can already imagine the havoc most of the fandom will raise. “But her death is iconic! It must happen! She can’t cast Holy without dying! She can’t save the Planet from the Lifestream if she’s not in it! She can’t stop Meteor!”

To those people I say: kindly shut up and listen for a spell.

Aerith’s death in the OG is indeed iconic… but most of the reason it hit so hard in the OG was because it was so unexpected. That’s a feeling that could never have been replicated in Rebirth, because everybody and their mother seems to know by now that Aerith died in the OG. Everyone was waiting for this moment to see how it would play out. Very few are the exceptions who don’t know. But as for everything else… I’m sorry to burst your nostalgic bubble, but it’s not true. Any of it.

Aerith did not need to die to cast Holy. Holy was already cast and Sephiroth could hold it back by sheer will alone. Aerith dying did not make Holy stronger or anything of the sort. It was not the price for casting Holy, either. If it was, Sephiroth wouldn’t have even needed to impale her.

Aerith also doesn’t need to die to command the Lifestream, something which we see far more reinforced in Rebirth than we did in the OG. She’s using the Lifestream just fine in the Temple to shape it as she needs it, after all. Sure, she first needs to learn how to do it, because she never had the chance to learn before, but she absolutely can do it without being dead. There is no reason to think she’ll need to die to use the Lifestream to stop meteor in this case. What she does need is to learn how to do it.

I hate to have to remind people of this, but in the OG, the whole “point” of Aerith’s death was that it was senseless. It had no narrative meaning. It was no noble sacrifice; it was not something that “needed to happen for the greater good”. It happened, yes, and the remaining characters grieved her, but had she survived, the story’s narrative would not have changed one iota. The emotional impact of her death would be gone because she wouldn’t be dead, sure, but outside of that emotional hit, her death did nothing to advance the story in terms of narrative. It gave the party an additional reason to want to stop Sephiroth, but it’s not like they needed another push, either. Most of the fandom seems to have convinced themselves that she needed to die, and I assume it was a form of coping with the unexpected loss given that she is a fictional character in a story that very typically would paint an MCD as something that was “necessary for the greater good”, but that is not the case here. And that was the whole point.

So, those worries people have about her casting Holy or stopping Meteor? Yup, still possible with her alive. Her survival does not actually doom the Planet.

5) The Narrative Purpose of Having Aerith Live

Finally, one last thing you might be wondering about: narratively speaking, what is the point of having Aerith survive, but have most of the party not be aware of it? Why would Jenova/Sephiroth want that? If Aerith’s death is one big mindfuck created by Jenova, how is Cloud of all people immune to it this time? And why does she stay alone at the City of the Ancients to "pray"?

Well, what Sephiroth wants is basically for Cloud to not trust his companions and vice versa. He wants him isolated and susceptible to his manipulations. He wants to have him as his puppet to use and torment. What can I say? The man is obsessed.

His first attempt at breaking Cloud was, as in the OG, by killing Aerith. When that failed, he tried to have him believe Aerith died anyway.

Except at the end of Rebirth, Cloud is very determined to not believe one word Sephiroth says. And this is important because as powerful as Jenova is, its power and influence can be overcome if one’s willpower, one’s sense of who they are, one’s heart (one’s kokoro, a word that’s often translated as “heart” from Japanese, but the concept of which encompasses all those other things as well) is strong enough. And Cloud does have the potential to be strong enough to overcome it. He does in the OG. It’s a big part of how he ultimately recovers his true self. The problem is, the way Rebirth portrays it at the end, Cloud is in this odd space where he’s on one hand supremely vulnerable to Sephiroth’s and Jenova’s manipulations, and on the other hand begins to tap into that true strength of his that allows him to overcome Jenova.

So what I think happened is that Jenova tried to make Cloud see Aerith as dead, but when she reached out and spoke to him, he broke free of that control and suppressed Jenova’s ability to twist his own perception of things, but not Jenova’s ability to affect others because he doesn’t even know about it. That’s why, for a short moment, we see things as they are again. We see Aerith being fine.

And then the others arrive and Jenova basically flips the coin and starts manipulating them. The end result of which will be the same… if not potentially worse, depending on how things go.

Think about it. Rebirth set Cloud up as the unreliable narrator even better and more poignantly than the OG did. Furthermore, after her first dip in the Lifestream and remembering the whole thing with climbing Mt Nibel as kids, but not experiencing a revisit of any other memories, Tifa has little reason to doubt her recollection of Nibelheim. Especially since Cloud’s recollection changed to partially fit hers once he remembered Zack. Tifa, and the rest of the party, are far more likely to believe their own eyes and Tifa’s version of the past should she speak up than Cloud’s at this point. None of them have any reason to believe they are suddenly the ones seeing things.

Cloud himself is also far more aware of how unreliable his memory is. So if confronted with something he and Tifa remember (or saw) differently, who is he more likely to believe?

This can all further play into Sephiroth’s attempt to convince him that he’s merely a puppet. That nothing he thinks or remembers or believes is real. And the thing is, Sephiroth (whom Cloud resists supremely now) doesn’t even have to do a single thing. The party will do it for him, because I can’t imagine them notaddressing the fact that they believe Aerith died, yet Cloud acts like nothing is wrong.

And who can ever correct them or anything? There’s only two things that could help: one, the Lifestream Sequence as per the OG so Cloud can piece himself together. Or, alternatively, the one person who can confirm that there is some truth to Cloud’s recollection of Nibelheim and that he was indeed there even if Tifa has no clue about it: Zack.

Of course, Zack is in a different world altogether, so him playing this kind of major role is up in the air and very dependent on the exact inner workings of the multiverse created here. I have plenty of thoughts on that, too, but that’s for another time.

Either way, this sets up Cloud to be isolated from the party all by his own and the party’s doing. And you know what this seems to fit? Cait Sith’s fortune from all the way back in chapter 8 of Rebirth.

Yes, yes that fortune.

The fortune that spoke of a “last minute twist” and how Cloud “would lose what he cherished most”.

Those who watched Advent Children know what it is that the real Cloud cherishes most: everything. “There is not a thing I don’t cherish!” And right now, even though Aerith survived, it does seem like he’s set up to lose it all unless something is done.

As for Aerith staying behind, consider this: unlike in the OG, we don't awaken in Gongaga a few days after everything at the Temple. Aerith hasn't been gone for at least a day. We don't have to waste time going after her by figuring out we have to go to Bone Village (factor in Tiny Bronco voyage time here), we don't have to lose time mining for a Lunar Harp. The party enters the Sleeping Forest at the same time as her, but then just "loses her in the fog". When Cloud wakes up, he sees the Whispers and guides them the right way.

Unlike in the OG, we don't get to the City of the Ancients at least one day after Aerith, if not more. We get there a couple hours after her at most, if even that. In fact, when Cloud approaches her, we hear her start praying. Unlike in the OG, there is every chance she didn't finish casting Holy - had barely even started - by the time Sephiroth interrupts and quite literally crashes the party.

Setting Holy aside (because Cloud could very well find some sort of excuse to stick around until she finished, especially given how the rest of the party were reluctant to leave because of grief and the fact that the Tiny Bronco needed fixing for flight), we could also assume she's staying behind to "pray" as in "to learn to control the Lifestream better" - something that's clearly established in the Temple of the Ancients that she needs guidance in, and gets it from the Lifestream itself. Finally, this Aerith has a working White Materia, which seems to have some connection with her future memories... if not downright with a "post-OG Aerith" who already exists in the Lifestream, just like we suspect there is a "post-OG/AC Sephiroth" who's pulling Cloud's strings.

Some explanations seem more farfetched than others, I'll give you that, but there can be reasons found for why she stays behind even if she isn't, in fact, dead.

And with that, I believe I said everything I had to say on this particular subject. I hope you enjoyed reading :)

#FF7 Rebirth #FF7 Rebirth Ending #FF7 Rebirth Spoilers #Ending Interpretation #Meta Analysis #Glon's meta wordvomit

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chiyoso · 9 months

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spoiler; hi3 herrscher of rebirth event disccusions (media included)

(opinions open, but please be kind, and do indulge me about your understandings as well <3)

⋅──────────────·•⊱༺ ♰ ༻⊰•·──────────────⋅

firstly,

(a1) from what ive taken inside my cogging brain in the event, seele is like... a variant of HoD? rebirth basically, technically she's still HoD yes? but... vita just said "nah death doesnt suit your cute ass" ... am i getting that right lmao

(a2) that, from my own understandings, a herrscher can be created at anytime with the right energy levels in any situation, right? (speculation based off on senti, prometheus, schrodinger, vita, and misteln)

(b1) ... with that in mind, the transformation of HoR is kinda baffling when we see seele suddenly gushed out from the pretty waters, is trauma the main play here during the making of a herrscher? emotional vulnerability? a wailing, cute red seele accepting something?

(b2) i havent gotten that far into the main plot of the story, but i assume friendship, trauma and accepting shit are one of many things involving a birth of a herrscher, a psychological, mental strength against the will perhaps?

besides all that, lets take a moment to appreciate vita's DESIGN BECAUSE DAMN. DAMN. MAKING ME INSPIRED FR and it was really damn nice to see bronya and mei interact with red seele in this way, wholesome moment nngh, misteln's outfit too, she's so fucking amazing (reminds me of kafka cough cough)

(c1) i also want to know (since im quite confused in this part) if the 6th divine key, abyss flower is in seele's literal possession, or is it in durandal's, schicksal's, anything/anyone really, i remember seele mentioning something about it, but my dumbass kept clicking accidentally until i couldnt go back to the chatlogs lmao

(c2) speaking of divine keys, does anyone have an idea/information on the whereabouts of the 2nd divine key? yes, the one that can... travel through... space.........or bubble verses? or just- traveling like the astral train in HSR, im not well versed in the specifics of divine keys atm, only briefly through wiki and such, SO PLEASE! inform me because i would love to dive into the rabbit hole of hi3 lore

once again, all discussions, opinions are welcomed, but please respect each other! that's all <3 - hiraeth

might make misteln my whole identity for a few days shes so hot hnng

the red seele trauma moment 🥹 take your meds sweetie.........

#honkai Impact #honkai impact 3rd #honkai impact welt yang #hi3 #herrscher #herrscher of rebirth #seele #seele vollerei #hi3 seele #hi3 seele vollerei #honkai impact seele #honkai impact seele vollerei

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wingedclouds · 1 month

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FF 7 Rebirth Theory

Major spoilers for the end of Rebirth, if you haven't played that far yet and want to avoid spoilers, don't read this.

I'd also like to ask people who reblog this to keep the tags spoiler free so no one gets accidentally spoiled.

This is just how I see things, it doesn't mean I think it's a fact, please take it with a grain of salt.

Before I can start the actual theory I need to lay the groundwork so bear with me for a little while.

"When the boundaries of fate are breached, new worlds are born."

That's what Sephiroth tells Cloud when they're viewing events from Remake as well as other worlds in Rebirth.

The boundaries of fate are everything related to how the OG timeline would play out. Aerith dies, Sephiroth gets the Black Materia and summons Meteor. You know the gist.

I strongly believe that Sephiroth came from the Post Advent Children timeline and that Aerith got memories from her future self bestowed upon her once future Aerith noticed that Sephiroth was up to something.

They're both already breaching the boundaries simply by existing like this and doing everything they can in getting the other to stop whatever they're doing.

We know the Whispers have been taking memories from Aerith whenever she touched them. I would wager the guess that they started with future events in order to keep fate in place.

We also know that Sephiroth wants to defy fate, preferably with Cloud at his side.

Sephiroth goes on to explain to Cloud that when worlds die, they return to the planet.

He clearly seems to have an interest in the Lifestream and I assume that is not because he wants to ride around the cosmos.

Sephiroth had the real Black Materia in his hands several times and probably still has it in his possession. [I have another theory lined up about the ending scene too that touches up on this]

Yet he didn't cast Meteor, which is something the OG Sephiroth would have done. So he clearly has a different plan in store this time around.

Now onto the real theory: Aerith's death scene has three outcomes.

When Cloud aims to prevent Sephiroth from stabbing Aerith as he comes down from above, a spark of light with rainbows can be seen. As we already know, this rainbow light thing indicates that something has happened in regards to fate.

Cloud has effectively created a new world where Aerith doesn't die. At least not in the way we would think she'd die.

Sephiroth knew this would happen because the man had been putting that inside Cloud's head since the end of Remake. Most likely because he actually wanted this to happen because it meant one more world that would eventually return to the planet.

The next scene is blood suddenly pooling on the ground and when Sephiroth pulls Masamune out of Aerith, you can once again see the rainbow light in the background.

So this makes outcome number two as well as another world for Sephiroth.

While this scene was confusing at first, what we see in the end is the back and forth switching between the two worlds.

Now comes the third outcome that might be a bit far fetched, especially because the rainbow light never left the scene.

Sephiroth kills Cloud and Aerith.

The only reason I can imagine him doing this is because it adds another world to the Lifestream.

After Sephiroth kills them the static sound can be heard and while I usually view that as an indicator that Cloud is hallucinating or remembering things wrong, I don't think it's the case in this scene.

Especially because the sound continues while it switches between the two worlds so I do think it's possible that Sephiroth did that for the sake of creating another world.

Because Aerith is dead so it adheres to the OG timeline. But Cloud isn't meant to die there, we don't know when and how Cloud dies but it certainly isn't while holding Aerith's dead body in his arms.

So it would once again breach the boundaries of fate and since Sephiroth knows this I honestly wouldn't put it past him to do it.

The only question I'm asking myself is: Why does Sephiroth do this?

I'm not even questioning why he tells Cloud that. It's just a little bit of bait dangling over Cloud's head. A vain hope that there is a way to save Aerith and that events can indeed be altered.

Which obviously plays right into Sephiroth's hands because he wants this to happen. He really is sneaky with his manipulation.

As for why Sephiroth is doing that world creating stuff? I have multiple theories but none are really fleshed out because I honestly feel like we don't know his motives.

He could be trying to not die again at Cloud's hands like he does in the OG. Or he wants to make the Lifestream strong again so when it erupts to stop Meteor, there's more that he can poison. Maybe he's feeling a bit funny and wants to mess around to see what happens.

I don't really see a motive behind his actions yet other that he probably wants things to play out differently.

#final fantasy vii rebirth spoilers #ff7 rebirth spoilers #rebirth spoilers

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cwarscars · 2 months

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spoiler warning for chapter 4 of rebirth - if you're after ch.5, you're good to go

a little headcanon & i still haven't played further than chapter 8 so i cant say if there's anything else alluding to this but off of the back of that ask / posting that gifset, i wanted to talk about heid's reasons for doing what he did and a little deeper look into things.

so, firstly - he did it because it's his job. if we're going to be cynical about this - that's why he did it. he's not only the director of security, but he's the right hand to the president. and the right hand to the president is tasked with protecting him at all costs. i've headcanoned before that heid was once essentially like secret service for president shinra. so his job would be taking bullets. personally, i am so happy that rebirth let it be him and not tseng ( im sorry tseng frends ) i just felt this being heidegger gives him an edge to his character that i have KNOWN is there but feel i've been fighting to represent since remake came out.

secondly - he sees rufus as an almost 'son' like figure / the son of his good friend. i can imagine shinra making heidegger vow to protect rufus at some point. be that when rufus was a child or older. heidegger takes vows very seriously. he is not the kind of person to swear by something and be talking shit. yes, he lies. yes, he spins propaganda. but if he swears - and i mean - swears to do something. he will do it. look at how entirely willing he is to jump in harms way. there is not a slither of hesitation. the man WILL save rufus regardless of cost.

thirdly - guilt. this is my little dash of spice into this headcanon because i can't help myself. obviously, i've always written heid as somewhat idolising and looking up to shinra and willing to lay his life on the line for him. well, where was heid when shinra died? who knows. but the fact is, he feels he failed him. his friend is dead and he honestly believes he COULD HAVE stopped it but didn't. now, if anything, that encourages him to protect rufus all the more. he knows rufus can hold his own but fuck he'll be damned if he fails his old friend once more.

forth - a little sprinkle of the self-serving goodness. a little wound to the back for rufus' trust? or even his admiration? well, that aint too bad owo. now, i do believe that rufus already knows heidegger's capabilities / strengths / weakness. and i don't believe rufus is dumb enough to decide 'oh yea, i trust him entirely now' but I DO THINK rufus would at least appreciate it. hell, maybe it's nostalgic for him? maybe heidegger looked out for him as a kid? maybe it'll make them closer? (please ffvii).

#ffvii rebirth spoilers #(headcanon)#as you can tell i am not over that scene :)#i also took screenies of soldiers talking about heid lol!

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sakurarisen · 3 months

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So just as a heads up! Please don't drop spoilers on me regarding Rebirth - I haven't preordered the game, but I'd like to play and form my own opinions when the game itself drops, just like I did with CCR. <3 I haven't even been following the trailers (THOUGH I NEED THAT LAST ONE, CISSNEI MY CHILD <3) because I dislike getting myself hyped about something I'm not going to be able to play right away, so I already know actually very little about Rebirth - And it'll probably stay that way until I play~!

I will say though, on behalf of @honorisen and myself, regarding our Remake verse/my blog's current primary 7 canon: Regardless of whats happens in Rebirth, we will be continuing to have Sunflower (ZackxSera) as our canon. Things will probably most likely be tweaked to take the new game's info into account, but as of right now, we've decided they will still be together and working together while caring for their sons, Shayan and Yuga. These tweaks will come only after we get a chance to both play the game, which may take a while due to Kasa's busy schedule and both of us having Genshin brainrot, but for the time being, this is what we've decided on going forward, for a lot of reasons.

Here's to hoping Rebirth is just as good as Remake! <3

~Pom

#Out Of Poms [OOC]#Howling Poms [PSA]#I AM eager for Rebirth but also wary <3 #I love Zack but there's changes in the Remake I'm not super fond of?#Like Zack being alive at all #But that's a personal thing and I'm not gonna get into that right now XD #But regarding Rebirth... Kasa and I have already talked about it and decided this is what we want to do #We'll adjust our verse to take things into account of course but nothing is going to change #regarding Sera being Zack's canon and vice versa - Or what they've gotten into #This is what we're comfortable with so we're gonna keep it that way <3 #This all posted and said with Kasa's permission of course <3

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lianlong · 1 year

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Ok, so based on everything I have learned up to this point, here is a small headcanon re: my previous posts and how I will write portray Dan Heng. Please be aware that this post contains story spoilers and leaks.

Dan Heng is a Vidyadhara. The Vidyadhara are a draconic and immortal race that has a continuous cycle of death and rebirth ( comparable to a phoenix. ) The Vidyadhara are also known as the descendants of Long, the Aeon of Permanence. While many Vidyadhara do display dragon-like traits, only a handful of them are actually capable of taking on the form of a dragon. This power is a rare inheritance passed down to those who can complete specific challenges and rites and is difficult to attain at all. Dan Heng is able to transform into a dragon. He showed promise in his youth and went through the trials in accordance to their culture. This form resembles an eastern dragon. Similar to the dragons in Chinese myth, he has an elemental affinity. In his case, he is attuned to the wind. This unique ability plays into why he eventually escaped to the Astral Express, nowadays describing it as both a blessing and a curse in equal parts. His full dragon form is currently restricted, but he has not lost the ability. His hybrid form can be described as his true form. While he has changed his appearance to blend in with humans, his actual appearance is more alike those of other Vidyadhara. This includes horns, slit pupils, sharp fangs, claws and a draconic tail. Most who meet him nowadays will be entirely unaware of his nature and will assume he is no more than human. Vidyadhara reincarnate by shedding every few centuries. While this process keeps them young, they also typically lose all their memories. Currently I'm still debating if Dan Heng shed during relevant story ( i. E. shortly after he fled ) or if he simply hasn't shedded in a relatively long time. Like most Vidyadhara and other long-lived species, he has his origins in the Xianzhou Alliance. He was born on the Xianzhou Yaoqing, symbolized by a moon. He eventually moved to the Xianzhou Luofu where he became a Cloud Knight for a time, learning his signature spearmanship from them.

#headcanon tbt.

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4ragon · 9 months

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I'd like to hear the opinions on obscure rpgs!

Okay so here's the thing

I really do think Tales of Legendia actually had a lot going for it, but there was also just so much they completely fucked up? Just like. Entirely fucked up. And I'm not just talking about the weird borderline incest stuff which yes I get it they're not actually siblings but you made this choice video game they didn't have to call each other siblings for the first twenty hours they really didn't please why the fuck did

Sorry I'm getting off track. Time to rant about a topic no one cares about.

Like. I still think it's worth playing for the novelty of it, but Tales games kind of stand on three main things: the characters, the story, and the worldbuilding. And I think these were all absolutely fucked by the world's WEIRDEST pacing issue.

(quick spoiler warning I guess, if anyone is worried about Legendia spoilers)

So like. This story is broken into 3 very distinct sections. And to be fair, plenty of other Tales games get this distinct 3 act structure. Vesperia does it, Vesperia has the clearest separation between it's three main acts. BUT Legendia's breaks go: 1) save Shirley from being kidnapped (which is also just so deeply boring fr fr), 2) stop Shirley from destroying the world with her mermaid powers, 3) OOPS WE FORGOT TO WRAP EVERYONE ELSE'S CHARACTER ARCS UP LET'S DO THAT REAL QUICK.

Like???? What the fuck????????

It's at least kind of like my gripes with the Persona social links where a lot of their best character building is not woven naturally into the story, but unlike Persona, this entire section feels like epilogue up until the very end when randomly you're stopping a god from destroying the world, which by the way has NOTHING to do with the rest of the plot like what the fuck?????

Why save all of the character building for AFTER the main plot???? Why not weave it in naturally? Like every other Tales game?? Hello??? Like, truly and sincerely, the weird 20 hour epilogue section is my favorite part of this game, because it's the first time I started actually caring about these characters.

The first twenty hours of the game end up feeling like an absolute slog. Nothing feels like it's happening, and they are not putting in the legwork to make the characters interesting, and the world feels empty, and the story kind of has fuck all to do with anyone at this point. Like yes, Shirley has been kidnapped, oh no, but I don't care about some war happening on the mainland that has fuckall to do with anyone or anything we ever see. At least Tales of Rebirth has other things happening when you're on your rescue mission. I don't know Shirley that well by this point, and everything I do know about Senel just serves to annoy me. Maybe some of it is his voice acting, I dunno.

OH also, quick detour, I hate the art direction, voice acting and gameplay of ToL. It came out after Symphonia but somehow all of these feel like a step backwards? The character models look janky as hell, you don't get costumes until ng+ and you can't even take those off, the voice acting is kind of mid, the gameplay decided to go back to 2D plains for fighting for some reason, the overworld walking feels SO UNBEARABLY SLOW. Like most of the time I'm not going to comment on gameplay since that's not what y'all are here for and I haven't actually played a few of these games, but man, come on ToL.

Just as a note: I think they could've made the setting interesting. I really do. Because conceptually, it is really fascinating. You're on a giant mystery ship perpetually sailing around the world, that has only recently begun getting settlers (which I guess ignore the weird colonialism to that plot). There are rumors there's a secret weapon on board, and the warring nations of the world want to steal it for their war that we the players never really get any info about? At all? And feel no investment in tbh.

In most Tales games the setting and the politics of the world your in are usually pretty important, and by the end of a lot of them you usually get a plane or something to travel the whole world, but you really don't get that in Legendia. Which is fine, but the world of Legendia is just so vastly empty, and also, kind of boring. Like, imagine if this landmass actually resembled a ship? Like there were distinct structures you could explore that just scream "we are in a unique setting" come on!!! But no, it's just land, and some caves, and some plains, and some mountains. Nothing feels like an overgrown ancient structure at all. And you never get to pilot that ship around the world. That would've been so cool.

Also, again, there's nothing there. I like the idea of a hub city in theory. You have the one town that keeps getting new residents as you get new party members. Other than that town and the port, there are some bandit camps and two secret cities. But neither of the cities are all that interesting, and you're only there for a short amount of time. You really could make that work, but 90% of the game is walking slowly from one empty place to another. I dunno, maybe it would've worked better if more things happened in the town? Or if exploring the wilderness felt more fun? Like they try to do that, but it really doesn't work with the way this game is now. I wonder if a remake could make that more fun, but I can't imagine them remaking this game.

There are parts of this game I like. Honestly, it's some of the best music in any RPG! It's so cool and jazzy. It sounds nothing like any other Tales game and that's so fun. I do like most of the characters well enough, and I actually got really invested in Jay and Will's stories. And, honestly, after that slog of an opening, once we get to the Shirley plot, I actually found it really interesting. Because it goes from weird outside politics I don't feel invested in to "Oh this girl we've grown to care about is now on the opposite side of a complicated power struggle" and that's really interesting! It is! That stuff is great! But whooooo boy.

Also uh. The incest stuff. Again. They're not actually siblings. There was no reason to make that a plot twist. Let Shirley and Chloe be lesbians. It's the correct choice.

#tales of #just my opinion #i promise i do actually kind of like this game

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shinrarisen · 2 months

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Just a quick note: This blog needs a massive cleaning up and bit or work put into rehauling things, but after talking it out with @honorisen, this is likely to happen after Rebirth's release! However, like I've mentioned on my other blog, please don't drop spoilers on either of us - We've both preordered the game, but as Kasa is super busy offline and I like to take games like this slowly, there's no way we're gonna get that far in it any too quick, and would like to navigate things for ourselves, on our own time. We already have a general idea on what we're going to be doing with our blogs come release, but we still want to play it ourselves first, which can take us a month or two to get our footing in enough to work things out blogwise.

I will say that as of right now, I can safely say this blog will not stay strictly for FF7. Kunsel (Who's been moved to this blog, hence the url swap some time ago between the two blogs) and Cissnei have had a Genshin Impact verse added as well as a fully original setting, and I do plan on growing these and doing more with them alongside the updates incoming to my primary 7 canon. I will also be keeping my blog's canon as is; I'm mainly Remake based and Kunsel and Cissnei are close to Sera and Zack and support them, and it's still going to stay that way. Further updates will come later on, after I've played Rebirth and have some time (and focus!) to work on things, both on my own and with Kasa. <3

Hope everyone enjoys Rebirth! <3

~Pom

#Out Of Poms [OOC]#Howling Poms [PSA]#I wasn't active here at the time so I never got around to announcing Kunsel moved here #And the url switch - It was mentioned on HIS blog before I did it #But not here #So that's also a thing! XD #BUT! I will say any and all spoilers dropped into my inbox for a full month after release will get deleted #I want to experience this game myself with Kasa - I don't want to speedrun it #PLUS she and I both have Genshin brainrot and have for over a year #That IS going to take priority because we do have GI blogs we're putting first still #And a GI verse we share #Which is why even though we're going to bring back out 7 muses we're still going to make them less strictly 7 #And more multiverse/multisetting etc #We've been talking about this a LOT over the last YEAR and a lot has come out of it I'm eager to share and jump into!#We just wanna get our hands on Rebirth first <3

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ratcandy · 3 years

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Subcon Forest Analysis

Hi everyone I'm here to spill my aggressive overflowing thoughts on Subcon Forest and what it represents because it's been driving me insane since I finished the Sleepy Subcon time rift. Okay let's go. Obvious spoilers for AHIT ahead so proceed with caution.

This is also very, very long.

Disclaimer/warning: I will be discussing abusive/unhealthy relationships in this analysis. I mean. Vanessa. Come on. Also, there is a section on the nooses, and that delves, of course, into mentions of suicide. It will be sectioned off and easily skipped, but if you'd rather be safe and skip the entire post, that's completely understandable! Please stay safe. <3

Alright. Main point to be had here:

Subcon Forest is a giant extended metaphor for Snatcher's mind and character.

You all get to now listen to me spout nonsense about metaphors and symbolism because I'm a sucker for analysis and I'm given an opportunity to go ham. So perish.

The Ice

Let's start with the most obvious and most glaring thing in Subcon. The ice. It's everywhere. Not just outside Vanessa's manor, either; no, it's throughout the village, too. Shows up in the well and in random locations sprinkled about. When it comes to literal plot, we know that ice is just what lingers after Vanessa's wintery curse on Subcon. But going deeper and analyzing the meaning behind it?

Well, let's look at this from the perspective I've suggested. Subcon Forest being an extended metaphor for Snatcher's mind and character. A symbol for Vanessa then litters his mind, enough where it's certainly noticeable at first but blends in more easily once more of Subcon is unlocked to Hat Kid. This is clearly meant to be his lingering trauma, whether or not he wants to acknowledge it. Which he doesn't, as he never mentions it directly in his forest (that I can recall). Her influence plagues him, as to be expected with the traumatic experiences he went through with her. Breaking the ice is something Hat Kid must do in order to fulfill the wishes of the Fire Spirits (another subject I'll get into shortly), which, if self-indulgently playing with the found family idea, could mean that Hat Kid is helping him heal; if indirectly. Even if fulfilling the Fire Spirits' wish to die is... counterproductive, in that measure, which I'm now getting ahead of myself so hold on a sec!!

Vanessa. Ice. Everywhere. Traces of it all over his forest. That's the effects of an abusive relationship! Especially in a worst-case scenario where... yknow! One party in the relationship dies! So of course ice would be everywhere.

In and of itself, ice is a common symbol in literature and other forms of media. In this case, it's presented as an antagonistic force; emphasis is placed upon freezing and the harm that comes with it. The cold is unwelcoming, threatening, merciless. Snow can act as an insulating force, at least, but ice cannot. It can only make things colder.

A slight stretch: Seeing as this game deals a lot with time shenaniganry, I'm not sure if it'd be too out of left field to connect "freezing" with the theme of time. Yknow. Frozen in time. Both parties here, Snatcher and Vanessa, would be in this frozen state. One largely repressing it and never fully moving on, and the other doomed to her isolation ever since the event in question. They never moved past that moment after the Prince and florist's interaction.

The Fire Spirits (& the Portraits)

I'll put a slight warning here for suicidal ideation, if only because... it's the Fire Spirits we're talking about. It's not as grossly in-detail as the noose discussion will be, though, so make of that what you will.

To me, the Fire Spirits are a very interesting case. After all, they're fire. They're a direct contrast to the ice, thus being the only thing we're shown that could potentially melt it. The Fire Spirits, in my opinion, represent hope or a strength to continue. A strength to move on after troubles of the past.

...And that hope wants to die.

The Fire Spirits wish to burn out, to leave this mortal coil and abandon the forest to the cold. They make no effort to melt the ice, they simply dance, blissfully ignorant towards their surroundings. This being a metaphor for Snatcher's own hope for moving on is made all the more obvious by the fact he wants them gone. The first contract is to kill the Fire Spirits, to kill the hope. Perhaps he believes that sort of thing to be fruitless or naïve, so it only clutters his mind or has him foolishly optimistic at points. So, get rid of it. And the hope is happy to oblige.

(That, or their willingness to leave the forest to its own suffering and not aid in the ice's thaw angers him. Besides the whole "bark bark growl I can't get to parts of my forest because of them!!" which... also could represent a naïve hope clouding his judgement, not allowing him to see a bigger picture. But hope can't all be lost if one wants to move forward...)

A little side-tangent now on the portraits! And it's another slight stretch but the idea is in my head and I can't let it go. Portraits are another common symbol, usually being a physical representation of a memory or idea. For our purposes, let's say they're memories. I know in canon they appear to just hold souls captive or something but for now we're just Ignoring That(tm). The Fire Spirits have to burn the portraits to disappear. See where I'm going with this, maybe?

Instead of handling bad memories (or perhaps memories of the past in general) in any healthy manner, Snatcher chooses to forget/repress them, which just allows his hope to progressively die out.

I'm really hoping this is making sense because it makes a lot of sense to me but I might be insane rn

The Fact that this is a Forest

Forest symbolism breakdown! What's a forest usually mean in literature? "Traditionally, the forest has come to represent being lost, exploration and potential danger as well as mystery and 'other worldliness'." Okay. Yeah. Fair enough. That certainly works with the whole aesthetic we've got going on. Wood usually is life, growth and strength. But the trees of subcon are all dead. So what about that? It stands for death, big whoop, very spooky, we know Snatcher's dead and so are the children, yadda yadda wowie wowie. But. :) The trees in Subcon look a lot like trees that were scorched in a forest fire. Don't believe me?

(You could also argue they're just regular marsh/swamp trees bUT SSHHSUUHSH HANG ON HEAR ME OUT LOOK LOOK,)

What I believe to have happened was a controlled fire to rid the forest of the majority of its ice and snow. Likely done by Snatcher. It leaves behind a very desolate, depressing, barren scene... but. What else do dead/burnt trees symbolize? Rebirth. After all, controlled fires happen to make way for new trees to take the place of old ones. Some trees only drop seeds in fires/hot temperatures, so new ones take root and begin anew. Weird. It's almost like... I dunno. Snatcher was given some sorta second chance, given he's not just a corpse in Vanessa's cellar. So were the subconites. Another life given then by Snatcher. All connected I tell ya!!

Generally, aside from that, forests have many connotations. Mystery, isolation, claustrophobia; a place to dwell on regrets, or the past; to worry over one's future; to seek escape from or escape inside of... hmgmrnmm!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- T / W -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The Nooses

The t/w is given at the top and another cut-off point will follow the bottom of this, for those that would like to skip. This will delve into talk of suicide and abusive tactics used by abusers. Please don't read if it will upset you or make you feel unsafe!!!

Personally, I cannot stand the nooses, but that's just due to my own triggers. Were there a way to hide those from the game or replace the damned talking ones with anything else. I would take it. In a heartbeat. But I can still appreciate the potential analysis to be had with them. So now i'm gonna talk about it despite how uncomfortable it will make me to do so. yEa

So, what about 'em? There are three types of nooses seen in Subcon. At least that I remember but I didn't really go looking for them. Empty ones, ones containing empty subconites, and the talking ones.

Nooses in general obviously can hint towards suicidal thoughts or behaviors of the characters that interact with them. If saying Subcon is Snatcher's mind, it could suggest that he suffered from some sort of suicidal thoughts in life (or currently, if second death is possible... or if he never truly died... or maybe he's trying to figure that out...which has given me... a separate idea...uh oh). But. And hear me out. Different perspective.

A talking noose. I hate them with a fiery passion that is unmatched. But think of the packed symbolism of a noose that talks. And think more about what it says. "I wouldn't mind being strapped around a cute neck like yours." "Be careful now, I don't want to see you meet a miserable end anywhere, but with me." Oddly, a lot of what the noose says seems almost... endearing? One could argue it's a way of luring someone to put it around their necks, which in and of itself is a whole lot to unpack when it comes to suicidal thoughts beckoning one forward; painting itself as something romantic, almost. But. Here's a wild idea, now. What if the nooses, at least the talking ones, are another symbol for Vanessa?

They're tinted blue, after all. While Vanessa's scheme is more red, one could argue two things: One, ice. Blue. Ice. yeah. Or two, the fact that Snatcher's scheme is more purple. Blue and red... make... purple. So, for all we know, Snatcher's current state was a compound effort between suicidal thoughts and Vanessa's treatment of him. Perhaps he even found a way to put himself out of his misery before freezing/starving to death. (I know he has dialogue that argues against that, but... are we certain Snatcher would be the kind to admit suicide over freezing to death?... I don't think so.)

At any rate, a common threat by those in "control" of an abusive relationship is that of killing themselves should the other person not do as they desire. It's a cruel form of emotional manipulation to get their way, worse off if the other party is an empathetic individual. As a person who has been the empathetic individual in relationships like this... I would know. I've been here, unfortunately So, it's not completely out of the question to say Vanessa could've used some tactic like that, even before the whole... cellar ordeal. Did she? I dunno. I'm tossing ideas around. But if she did, the threats of such would sit around in the Prince's mind easily. Even if she has a reputation of not going through with it. It doesn't matter. That shit sticks with you forever, that scare, the potential of it ever being true, is horrifying and it ruins you. I'm projecting, Squirtle.

Still. A noose cannot hang itself. It has to have a victim.

...yea.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- T / W PASSED -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Misc. Ideas

- The spiders: Aside from the usual things spiders can be chalked up to symbolizing - toxicity, alluring danger, just... general pain - I like the potential wordplay that can happen here. Yknow. A black widow. Say the Prince and Vanessa were married when one died. What would that leave Vanessa? A widow. ...She's red and black, too. Yknow. Like a black widow. HA wordplay is fun isn't it?

- Snatcher's tree: Love this place, love sitting in here. But not the point! The inside of Snatcher's tree is such a harsh juxtaposition to the rest of Subcon that it kinda throws ya off guard. After all, the dark, purples and blues then contrasted with the bright warm colors of the inside. Even the music switches over. The thorns outside aren't present indoors. Ohh yeah this is gonna be on the nose as hell but the Tree(tm) is 100% representing Snatcher's appearance/put-on personality vs. his truer nature. Spooky outside with thorns, foreboding, unwelcoming. Then the more comfortable interior. VULnerable. Have I even mentioned that the tree is HOLLOW I mean COME ON. The sturdiness of that tree? Nonexistent. He's not a sturdy guy at all no matter how he fronts

- Intrusions are unwelcome: Snatcher does not like the fact that Hat Kid sticks around in his forest. His personal space. His mind. In fact he tries desperately to get rid of her after their fight, not wanting her presence in his forest at all. He has no problem providing more contracts later on with the Death Wish thing, and he finds great entertainment in messing around with Hat Kid, so it's not just a weird sudden hatred he has for her; it's the fact that. After she's finished being useful, he no longer wants her around, lest she find some things she shouldn't find. Now he's just uncomfortable with her in his personal boundaries. Could just be a denial that she's helped him heal (breaking ice, stealing from Vanessa, being something interesting for his kids to interact with) or just not really wanting a child to get wrapped up in. All that. Most likely the former. Considering the amount of joke-hints he drops regarding his background during his Death Wish dialogue. I see you funny man, making jokes out of your trauma as a coping mechanism. Punts him

Annnd I think that's all I got, for now! I'll make an update post if I get any more sporadic ideas. If you read this whole thing, thank you!! and also!! Wow that was a lot!! Hell world. Please feel free to elaborate on any of my points or debate with me on em!! I'm always open to other ideas, just be aware that if I disagree I am not shy when it comes to debate hehehe, tho I won't be aggressive to any extent I prommy!!

Alrighty. goes to sleep goodnight

#clamtalk #VERY long ramble #a hat in time #snatcher #ahit snatcher #subcon forest #vanessa ahit #ahit #analysis #the prince ahit #goes crazy. goes insane #ask to tag #i'm frazzled I can't add more tags I'll do so later

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timelesslords · 3 years

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So Under Freezing Stars is finally done 😭I’m incredibly sad it's over but also so happy with the finished product and with the response it's gotten over the past few months <3

I thought it might be fun to compile some little details about the fic- easter eggs and callbacks to the original books, little thematic details and symbols I included, chapter parallels, stuff like that! Everything is below the cut to avoid spoilers, but hopefully y’all find it fun and it’s an interesting way to top everything off :’)

Symbolism/Theme

the first time Annabeth drinks nectar, she can’t put a taste to it. This is because she’s in a transitional period with her identity, where she hasn’t quite solidified a sense of home. When she wakes up after being given nectar for the second time, her mouth tastes like apples because her and Perseus had split one together back on the ship. It’s the first food they shared together after she starts associating him with the concept of home, so the nectar takes on that taste. also apples are a sacred fruit of aphrodite so, ya know ;)

Water plays a big role thematically. There’s the obvious connection to Perseus (whenever Annabeth is looking out into the sea during an unrelated conversation, it’s sort of supposed to indicate that he’s on her mind) but also the more traditional symbolic meanings of water— washing someone/something clean, renewal, rebirth, etc. all of which are themes of the book anyways so it worked out!! Chapters to watch for water symbolism would be 18 and 32 in particular but really anytime there’s an emphasis on the sea

the quote I chose for the epigraph (”Understand this if you understand nothing: it is a powerful thing to be seen”) is from Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi, one of my favorite books! In the context of Freshwater, this quote is when the main character (spoiler) meets someone from their culture who helps them realize they’re a god. It just felt like a particularly perfect way to start off the story, given how many parallels there are to that moment in Freshwater to the entirety UFS. Even without context it frames the story of one of self discovery, but particularly self discovery in tandem with another, which is exactly what I think UFS is about at its core. Freshwater is an incredible book that I owe so much to in terms of inspiring UFS thematically and I def recommend it, though please look up TWs for it beforehand bc it does contain a lot of triggering content.

another more obvious meta thing, the chapter titles switch from Latin to Greek after Annabeth realizes she’s Greek and not Roman

Chapter Parallels

ch20 is called divinity because Annabeth views the sex as akin to a religious awakening— sleeping with her lover is both an act of worship and a revelatory experience wherein she comes to terms with the godly side of her identity. But chapter 33 is called mortal because the thing that makes them special together isn’t necessarily their parentage or their godliness, it’s their humanity. Gods can’t bare their souls to one another because they don’t have one. But mortals— vulnerable and breakable as they are— have that advantage, and when they sleep together the second time Annabeth is fully cognizant and appreciative of that fact.

The drooling in sleep thing is obviously a callback to the OG books (it’s such an iconic first line I had to include it somehow lol) but it also has a thematic parallel (one that Annabeth actually points out within the narrative). That was one of the first moments she recognized he was human and not some unattainable figure, so it comes back to her later in ch33 when she's thinking about their mortality

In ch14, Piper offers to fix Annabeth’s hair as a peace offering. In ch33, Perseus untangles her hair for her because the idea of doing it herself is overwhelming for her. I just really like the idea of caring for someone else’s hair being an act of love towards that person :’)

Easter Eggs/OG Book Callbacks

Blackjack asking for fried dough at the end of chapter 4 is a reference to him always asking for donuts in the original books (yes I did google “did they have donuts in ancient rome” for that lol)

The way they fight the hellhound in ch6 (Percy distracting in the front and Annabeth sneaking around the back) is their go-to fighting strategy in the books, which Percy comments on in BOTL

Obviously Jason passing out every 30 seconds is a reference to Jason getting knocked out like 3x a book in HOO (#brason)

Fai turning into a lizard in the Athens chapter is a callback to Frank the Iguana from MOA

the masthead of the ship being a dragon is meant to be reminiscent of Festus

Other stuff!

Chapter 16 is named calm and chapter 17 is named storm bc 16 is the calm before the (literal) storm

Annabeth saying “is your head full of kelp” to percy in ch13 is the closest I could feasibly get to her calling him seaweed brain lol. I think in chapter 15 she also comments to herself that she feels like his brain is made of seaweed sometimes <3

When Annabeth decides to let Jason and Piper wake up on their own instead of waking them up herself in ch32, it’s sort of a callback to previous comments she’s made about Jason not being a morning person. She’s still scared that he’ll be mad at her, and she doesn’t want to exacerbate that by waking him up early because she knows he’s in a worse mood in the morning.

In the final conversation with Jason, Annabeth says “you’re always too hard on yourself” which is kind of a play on her last words to Luke in the original books (“you always pushed yourself too hard”). I don’t know why but I’ve always really liked that line, it feels very Annabeth, so I wanted to include it somehow. Jason isn’t dying but she does love him like a brother so that felt like a good place for it to go.

something to generally look out for is how reliable or not reliable Annabeth’s narration is. She’s not like a Holden Caufield where she straight up lies to the audience, but her thoughts and observations are not always the most true version of what’s going on. This is probably most obvious in the Luke conflict (particularly chapters 21 and 23) but also when she has to read other people’s emotions and make assumptions about what they’re thinking based on that. A lot of times she’s straight up wrong and just doesn’t realize it (this is particularly relevant in ch14 lol)

another general thing to look at is chapter titles, particularly in the second half of the book. A lot of times the title of the chapter is one of the main themes of the story and that chapter is either an important plot point for that theme or a resolution of it!

That’s all I can think of right now! I might update this later if I remember more but this is already stupidly long lol. I would apologize for turning my fic into an English assignment but if you made it this far you probably thought it was at least a little interesting, so 😂

thank you guys again for reading <3 love you all!

#UFS #percabeth #don't read this until you read the ending!#i just had to post it now so I could link it lol #last chapter is coming in 2 minutes!

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