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snowlithills · 7 months

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Theses on Monsters, China Mieville

The history of all hitherto-existing societies is the history of monsters. Homo sapiens is a bringer-forth of monsters as reason’s dream. They are not pathologies but symptoms, diagnoses, glories, games, and terrors.

To insist that an element of the impossible and fantastic is a sine qua non of monstrousness is not mere nerd hankering (though it is that too). Monsters must be creature forms and corpuscles of the unknowable, the bad numinous. A monster is somaticized sublime, delegate from a baleful pleroma. The telos of monstrous quiddity is godhead.

There is a countervailing tendency in the monstrous corpus. It is evident in Pokémon’s injunction to “catch ’em all,” in the Monster Manual’s exhaustive taxonomies, in Hollywood’s fetishized “Monster Shot.” A thing so evasive of categories provokes—and surrenders to—ravenous desire for specificity, for an itemization of its impossible body, for a genealogy, for an illustration. The telos of monstrous quiddity is specimen.

Ghosts are not monsters.

It is pointed out, regularly and endlessly, that the word “monster” shares roots with “monstrum,” “monstrare,” “monere“—”that which teaches,” “to show,” “to warn.” This is true but no longer of any help at all, if it ever was.

Epochs throw up the monsters they need. History can be written of monsters, and in them. We experience the conjunctions of certain werewolves and crisis-gnawed feudalism, of Cthulhu and rupturing modernity, of Frankenstein’s and Moreau’s made things and a variably troubled Enlightenment, of vampires and tediously everything, of zombies and mummies and aliens and golems/robots/clockwork constructs and their own anxieties. We pass also through the endless shifts of such monstrous germs and antigens into new wounds. All our moments are monstrous moments.

Monsters demand decoding, but to be worthy of their own monstrosity, they avoid final capitulation to that demand. Monsters mean something, and/but they mean everything, and/but they are themselves and irreducible. They are too concretely fanged, toothed, scaled, fire-breathing, on the one hand, and too doorlike, polysemic, fecund, rebuking of closure, on the other, merely to signify, let alone to signify one thing.

Any bugbear that can be completely parsed was never a monster, but some rubber-mask-wearing Scooby-Doo villain, a semiotic banality in fatuous disguise. It is a solution without a problem.

Our sympathy for the monster is notorious. We weep for King Kong and the Creature from the Black Lagoon, no matter what they’ve done. We root for Lucifer and ache for Grendel.

It is a trace of skepticism that the given order is a desideratum that lies behind our tears for its antagonists, our troubled empathy with the invader of Hrothgar’s hall.

Such sympathy for the monster is a known factor, a small problem, a minor complication for those who, in drab reaction, deploy an accusation of monstrousness against designated social enemies.

10.

When those same powers who enmonster their scapegoats reach a tipping point, a critical mass, of political ire, they abruptly and with bullying swagger enmonster themselves. The shock troops of reaction embrace their own supposed monstrousness. (From this investment emerged, for example, the Nazi Werwolf program.) Such are by far more dreadful than any monster because, their own aggrandizements notwithstanding, they are not monsters. They are more banal and more evil.

11.

The saw that We Have Seen the Real Monsters and They Are Us is neither revelation, nor clever, nor interesting, nor true. It is a betrayal of the monstrous, and of humanity.

#china mieville #theses on monsters #posting bc i couldnt see it anywhere and im on a real china mieville kick #love this little poem

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verycharismaticdragon · 9 months

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Okay, I promised a writeup of Luo Binghe voter fraud meme, and as Luo Binghe is currently in the finals of the poll this happened on, I figure now's a good time.

So! It all started when Luo Binghe, our beloved half-demon child, was submitted to @/hybrid-battle tournament - or rather, as it was called at the time, @half-being-battle. He won his first poll easily enough, but round 2 was a close battle where he and his opponent, Shantae from eponymous game, took the lead from one another a few times.

In the last ~12 hours, Binghe was losing slightly after a popular blog rb'd the poll with a call to vote for Shantae. However, SVSSS fandom caught this in time and passed the poll around some more. The poll ended with Luo Binghe winning with 51% of votes - or, as simple calculation will reveal, 14 votes lead.

We breathed out a collective sigh of relief, but too soon - as half a day later, someone sent this ask:

(x)

Initially the pollrunner wasn't intending to do anything about it, but then someone suggested a teamup option, and the poll for the option was made (x). It was rb'd by some SVSSS fans with the general sentiment of 'free our boy he did nothing wrong', but didn't gain real traction until:

@gaywarcriminals reblogged it with a small rant in Binghe's defense

@piosplayhouse rb'd said rant with addition of the image from vol.3 cover, of Shen Qingqiu holding Luo Binghe's hand, edited to look like SQQ is the one saying the text above.

This version of the post was circulated in fandom overnight, leading to 'Luo Binghe moves on alone' option winning by a large margin - and, ofc, to the birth of "Luo Binghe voter fraud" meme.

Though aside from this particular post being funny, there was another factor contributing to the meme catching on: how damn in-character it all was. The following sentiments were all repeated more than once in the post's notes:

Luo Binghe getting accused of crimes he didn't commit? Omg just like in canon!

Shen Yuan would absolutely buy bots to get his most beloved blorbo to win an internet poll.

It's just Luo Binghe's protagonist halo!

All of which made the situation fucking hilarious.

Then, the next day, tumblr user verycharismaticdragon (whoever they might be 😉) made some fanart about it, which possibly aided the spread of the meme too.

Also, SVSSS fandom surprised the mod with our chillness 😅

(x)

Since then, Binghe has been going strong in that poll - and now, he's in the finals! So make sure to vote for him; as we all know now, the real voter fraud is the friends we made along the way. And I do recommend checking Luo Binghe's tag on the poll for some fun propaganda we've been making, including a family tree by Pio and some more art by yours truly <3

But wait! There was also another layer to the voter fraud iceberg. The tl;dr:

At about the same time Luo Binghe vs Shantae ended, Hua Cheng was losing in round 1 of @/the-ghost-bracket, with something like 39% of votes to his name. In a desperate move, I linked his poll under my bingqiu voter fraud art, which gave him a boost to get close to a tie, but didnt flip the poll. The next day, I was explaining the LBH voter fraud meme to my friends, and mentioned Hua Cheng's poll too - which was when inspiration struck me, resulting in...

this post. [ID: art of Xie Lian with a wooden board which reads "Puqi shrine accepting donations in the form of votes for Hua Cheng in the ghost bracket", captioned "please help dianxia, he doesn't have the money for voter fraud"] Which gave the poll enough visibility for Hua Cheng to win with over 62% of votes in the end. (The link in the post is currently changed to round 2 poll, which HC was also initially losing. Srsly besties we gotta follow the tourneys to get our babygirls to win!)

So: LBH voter fraud meme had even helped little bro Huahua out.

And thats about it! Since then, the scum villain fandom has been joking about voter fraud on all of our polls 😂

(Aaaand the last reminder to vote Bingbing in the finals. His opponent has been gaining lately and I think we shouldn't leave it to the protagonist halo this time.)

#if i missed some important Moment lmk #luo binghe #svsss #scum villain's self saving system #scum villain's self-saving system

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rainerioun · 2 months

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𝖶𝖧𝖠𝖳 𝖲𝖧𝖮𝖴𝖫𝖣 𝖸𝖮𝖴 𝖥𝖮𝖢𝖴𝖲 𝖮𝖭 𝖳𝖧𝖨𝖲 𝖶𝖤𝖤𝖪? | 𝗉𝗂𝖼𝗄 𝖺 𝖼𝖺𝗋𝖽.

— Hi! This reading is pretty straightforward and simple, but I tried to spice it up with other elements. Wishing you all an amazing week!

HOW TO CHOOSE A PILE : The outcome may vary based on whether you receive clear messages visually or intuitively. If you resonate more with selecting a pile visually, trust that inclination. Personally, I believe the notion that 'looks can deceive,' so I prefer to take a deep breath and close my eyes, allowing the pile I'm meant to connect with to come to me. You might see the color of the pile, sense or hear a number, or simply feel its overall vibe.

Please don’t redistribute or edit my content.

MUST READ + MASTERLIST

PILE ONE

Main Focus. Phoenix : Freedom from Suffering and Past Karma. Reincarnation. Nightingale : Fearless Voice, Speech, Communication, or Song.

This week, prioritize expressing yourself openly and communicating clearly. Release worries from past experiences to embrace new ones. Whether through work, hobbies, casual conversations, or anything else, you can offer valuable contributions for personal growth and the benefit of others.

Additional Focus. Step Away from the Crowd. | It's Not an Emergency. Material and Spiritual Prosperity. | Choose Wisely. Teacher : Share Your Knowledge. Teacher — Light : Ability to communicate knowledge, experience, skill, or wisdom.

I was taken aback when I drew two teacher cards from different decks, but it really emphasizes what I mentioned earlier. Allow yourself to unconsciously or consciously guide others. This might involve sharing experiences openly, teaching a skill, or imparting wisdom. This will end up benefiting you in the long term. If you're in a work setting, this could manifest there. If not, it may reveal itself in another form.

If you're currently pondering over a decision or choice, it might resurface later in the week. [ If this doesn't resonate with you, this could also form suddenly and randomly. ] Take your time; there's no need to rush. Remember, it might not be as significant as it seems initially. Approach it with a clear mind and stability, allowing yourself to make a wise decision without being swayed by others or external factors.

If Wanted, Balance Your Root Chakra.

Affirmations: I am centered and grounded. I am safe and secure. I have all I need. I am where I'm meant to be.

Try Using/Wearing: Smokey Quartz, Red Jasper, Black Obsidian, Red Garnet.

Activities: Go outdoors. Walk barefoot. Dance. Meditate. Journal. Ensure you attend to your basic needs. Engage in grounding exercises, both mentally and physically. Physical activities, such as jogging or exercise. Declutter your space. Listen to music or sing.

PILE TWO

Main Focus. Oyster : Patient, Secret-Keeper, Hiding Inner Treasures. Unicorn : Reconnecting to Higher Wisdom or Divinity.

This week, consider starting a journey of deeper self-discovery, even if it's just taking small steps. Nothing happens overnight. Allow yourself to slow down and reflect, practicing patience with both life and yourself. If you're religious or spiritual, try deepening that connection this week; you might discover the answers you seek or a kickstart in the right direction.

Additional Focus. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff. | Rise and Shine. The Waiting Game. | Authority. Family : All in the Pride. Victim — Light : Prevents you from letting yourself be victimized, or victimizing others.

Taking it slow is crucial this week. Rushing through life isn't the way to go; instead, allow things to unfold naturally for now. Empower yourself to let this process happen without stressing over easily fixable or insignificant matters.

For some of you dealing with family or close ones, let things simmer for a bit before diving back in. If not, perhaps reach out and say hello!

If Wanted, Balance Your Third-Eye Chakra.

Affirmations: I trust my intuition. I accept things how they are. I am insightful. I see and think clearly. All I need is within me. I trust in my decisions.

Try Using/Wearing: Sodalite, Lapis Lazuli, Sapphire, Blue Aventurine, Amethyst.

Activities: Visualization. Do puzzles or other mentally stimulating tasks. Do what you simply feel called to do. Pay extra attention to your dreams, and write them down. Get creative. Limit screen time.

PILE THREE

Main Focus. Octopus : Reaching, Yearning, Lacking Boundaries and Direction. Hawk : Watchful, All-Seeing, Messenger of Divinity. Golden Egg : Message at the Center of the Heart, The Unstruck Sound.

Taking quiet time for yourself is important. Embrace the peace and comfort of what you already have. There's no need to desperately search or long for something at this moment. It might feel challenging without a clear direction, but if you've been seeking a sign, consider this it. Pushing and rushing will only lead to a shortage of these things. Allow yourself the time and space to form them naturally, whether you're actively involved or not.

This is just a gentle nudge for a few people: if you've been contemplating starting therapy or seeking help, please consider doing so. I'll leave it at that since it's a sensitive topic.

Additional Focus. Reclaim Your Art. | Celebrate You. Light. | Base Chakra. | Financial and Material Changes. Fullness : Give Thanks. | Conundrum : Up In The Air. Rescuer — Light : Provides strength and support to others in crisis. Acts out of love with no expectation of reward.

For those of you who engage in any form of creativity, no matter how small, consider spending some time alone with your craft this week. You might find it brings even more clarity than before. Embracing the unique aspects of yourself is always a beautiful and necessary thing. Remember, you are strong, and any challenges you face will eventually fade away as long as you continue to love and nurture yourself. Trust that things will work out; sometimes, you have to be your own savior for the right people or opportunities to come into your life.

If Wanted, Balance Your Heart Chakra.

—The Root/Base Chakra card appeared, but I sense that focusing on the heart is more necessary at the moment. You can explore the other later on. If you're still interested, you can find more about it in the lower half of the first pile. <3

Affirmations: Wherever I go, love is all around me. I love myself to the fullest. I am worthy of love. Love flows freely. I feel my heart's calling. I honor myself. I live in harmony. I forgive myself and others.

Try Using/Wearing: Rose Quartz, Aventurine, Jade, Pink or Green Tourmaline, Opal.

Activities: Pamper yourself. Give love and help to those in need. Volunteer. Go to a pet shop. Do things you loved as a child.

PILE FOUR

Main Focus. Panther : Annihilation of the Unnecessary, Purging. Camel : Resourceful, Independent, Knows One's Self.

This week, take a more action-oriented approach. Be bold and productive—it suits you. Try relying on yourself as you tackle tasks and goals. Let go of anything that no longer serves you, that includes toxic people.

Additional Focus. Turn Back. | Connect with Your Soul Family. Heart Chakra. | Rejoice in Celebration. Self-Confidence : Stand Your Ground. | Watcher: Be Your Own Witness. Fool — Light : Fearlessly revealing emotion. Helping people laugh at absurdity and hypocrisy.

You need to learn to be your own support. Celebrate your confidence and embrace yourself. Remember, it doesn't always have to be rigid and serious—you can express this through humor and laughter. You can be a strong figure while also being open about your emotions. Connect more with the people around you in this positive energy.

If Wanted, Balance Your Heart Chakra.

Try Using/Wearing: Rose Quartz, Aventurine, Jade, Pink or Green Tourmaline, Opal.

Activities: Pamper yourself. Give love and help to those in need. Volunteer. Go to a pet shop. Do things you loved as a child.

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leonaquitaine · 2 years

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GPose Guide: Dark-skinned characters

I got some questions about how to work with dark-skinned characters - and also heard some comments on how hard it is to gpose them. So here's a compilation of use cases, some techniques, and setups!

Posing in dark settings

This is where dark-skinned characters shine, pun intended. Point lights give a lot of flexibility, and character/environment lights are great tools to give volume and detach characters from the background.

In this example, 3-point sources are used to provide volume to the characters, without relying on character brightness at all. The Neneko Nikuman preset gives excellent brightness, contrast, and depth of field (DoF) options.

Posing in bright settings

Contrast is a powerful tool, and dark-skinned (and dark-clad) characters can use that to their great advantage.

In the following example, a hard white light is positioned to create a strong rim light for volume, with a support gold source for tone and a light purple point to bring up the character's face. The Neneko Cocktail preset gives rich metal tones and excellent contrast.

The second example is about color. The same preset (Neneko Cocktail) is used, with ADOF+BOKEH and ADOF+BLUR enabled to give a dreamy quality to the background. Light sources emulate the sky.

Colorful/Pastel clothing/scenario

You may have heard that dark-skinned characters don't go well with certain colors, like pink or white. That is not true: Dark skin palettes have as much width as pale ones, just in a different range - and light sources can bring them up.

The first example uses a very colorful background, with Neneko Lux driving the hue and brightness up. Instead of fighting it, we use the scenario colors to our advantage by projecting them around the character.

The second example is a portrait where we again use the scenario to provide hints about the light sources. Neneko Melonpan gives an excellent, smooth pastel treatment. Let's see the step-by-step from the original state to the final result.

The first light is placed to emulate a cyan reflection from the water. The second emulates the bluish reflection from the sky, and The third is pretty near and creates a sunny rim light.

With everything in place, we can enable the preset - and play around with DoF to decide how much we want to detach it from the scenario, taking away attention from the background and popping the character.

Posing together with fair-skinned characters

We can borrow some practices from real-life photography. The most important: position your light sources around the dark-skinned character. This will give you enough contrast to play with, and lessen the amount that reaches the other.

Composition (Extreme)

Compositions with lots of glow elements make it hard to pop the character features: since armor and weapons don't emit real light, everything needs to be compensated with the three-point lights, plus character and manual scene brightness.

In this case, the character is positioned in such a way as to hide frontal reflections while still bringing his expression out a bit with well-defined rim lights.

Comment: The default in-game lighting leaves much to be desired

This is certainly true to an extent. The in-game settings are apparently tuned towards a common denominator between wildly different form factors (i.e. PC, Playstation 3-5), so a muted palette is used.

This results in ashen colors and small gradient differences between dark tones in certain situations; keep that in mind if you're looking for locations. Again, lighting can be used to remediate - but not eliminate - these limitations.

Final Thoughts

This isn't, by any means, a comprehensive guide. Dark-skinned characters come in a glorious amount of shades and tones, so I tried to keep it simple and discuss some basic aspects.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask! It'll help others that may stumble over this thread.

And thank you for your patience!

#ffxiv #gpose #gposeguide #gposers #gshade #ffxiv guide #gpose guide

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arcadiabaytornado · 1 month

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Why do you think so many people hate Chloe when so many of other characters in the game are way worse than her? Is it purely cause she’s a teen girl or do you think they’re more to it?

I think there's two major factors as to why Chloe is such a controversial character. A: Misogyny. B: Chloe's flaws are very realistic, and media is inherently very personal.

As for the Chloe's flaws are realistic point: Sometimes I see people ask "Why do people hate characters that are bullies, but forgive and even love characters that are killers?" And I think the answer to that is pretty simple: "Most people have met a bully. Fewer people have met a killer." It's hard not to apply your lived experiences to fiction, and though most people like to think they engage with media through an unbiased lens, in reality, it's impossibly difficult to fully do so because of the way our brain's process information.

Chloe is realistic. She has the flaws of a real person. She's passive aggressive, she's outwardly aggressive, she's reckless to the point it effects the people around her, she's self-destructive in so many ways. You can know easily know a person who has Chloe's flaws...and I think that's why quite a few people who don't like her say "She reminds me of an ex friend/partner who wasn't good for me," because Chloe's flaws are common. You can see them in friends, family, past partners, neighbors, and if you see those realistic flaws in them, that will shape the way you view Chloe Price, and sometimes your lived experiences are going to led you to have a more negative view on characters who have traits that have caused you problems in the past.

More Undercut

As for the misogyny point: An unfortunate part of our society is that we are often taught to be more harsh on women then men. If a man has a bad temper and is blunt, then he's "assertive," and the world should walk on egg walks not to set him off. If a women, like Chloe, has a bad temper and is blunt, then she's a "bitch," who should have learned self-control a long time ago. Chloe was always going to be hated to a certain extent because she's a female character with enough flaws to fill a small dictionary, and, what's even worse in the eyes of the men who hate her, her flaws are improved by her love for a women...not by her love for a man. That's unforgivable to someone who views women only as a accessory who's not to be flawed in any way, shape, or form.

I think those are the two main reasons people dislike Chloe Price. One of those reasons is nuanced and understandable...and the other is dumb and soaked in years of bigotry.

#life is strange #lis #chloe price #asks

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f1crecs · 3 months

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Fic Rec List - Charles/Pierre AUs

if your fic is on this list and you don’t want it to be, please let us know and we will remove it immediately, no questions asked. we have contacted most of the authors on this list, but sometimes people fall through the gaps - just pop us a message🤍

have a pairing you want us to do next? please read the faqs and then head to the inbox.

don’t forget to give the authors featured on this list some love in the form of kudos, bookmarks, and comments

I'm a waking hell and the gods grow tired by @wolfiemcwolferson | M | 4k A Hunger Games AU wherein Charles and Pierre are both victors, doing their best to survive the glittering death trap of the Capitol and taking solace in each other for one singular night a year. Until everything changes one fatal Games. This fic truly captured the essence of the Hunger Games world, and tugged on every heartstring I have as a longtime fan of the series. The writing is so poignant, and I was moved almost to tears a couple of times, while also being kept on the edge of my seat. This was truly a stunning portrayal of love and the revolution it brings.

'“Charles,” he whispers, his voice raw from talking all night. “I love you.” Charles stumbles backwards. It’s the worst thing he’s ever said. It’s an admittance. It’s a confession to what Charles was worried about.'

tell me, baby by @ilspredestinato | M | 4.1k This is a softer sort of AU than some of the others on this list - Pierre and Charles are simply two normal people, not drivers, who meet by chance at a New Year's party and are instantly drawn to each other. Everything about this AU makes me feel warm and hopeful inside: Pierre and Charles' meeting is described with such loving detail, and just enough slight awkwardness to make it believable but still achingly sweet and heartwarming. The fic as a whole is exactly that: heartwarming and hopeful, and exactly the sort of thing with which to wrap up an old year and start the new.

“Stop,” Charles did his best to roll his eyes, even if the dimples next to the corners of his lips betrayed him. He let Pierre’s laugh die down before speaking, nudging at his legs back. “Say my name.” He didn’t have to ask twice, Pierre’s fingers reaching out to tug at the neckline of his jumper the same way Charles had done himself when they were standing against the railing, smile firmly in place. “Charles.” “See?” He raised one hand, wrapping it around Pierre’s wrist softly, keeping the touch there even when he felt like shaking. It wasn’t like he couldn’t blame it on the cold. “You have an accent, too. Way prettier.” Pierre was already shaking his head before he finished speaking, making a small noise of disagreement. “No,” he said, tugging at Charles’ jumper again. They were too close, Charles realised, speaking right up into the other’s space. “Say my name.” He didn’t really mind. “Pierre.” The way Pierre looked at him made Charles want to squirm, even if they weren’t doing anything more than talking. He went all in, was the thing, thoughts so clearly stroked in every inch of his face Charles found it hard not to believe them. “Beautiful.”

firebug by @grandprix-ao3 | T | 5.9k Charles is a popular Twitch streamer. His boyfriend Pierre exists to his audience mostly off screen or at least, his face is never in frame. One day Pierre presents Charles with a pair of pink cat ear headphones. Charles's audience becomes fascinated by the mysterious boyfriend. This is just a cute, sweet, angst-free, low stakes established relationship fic that is having a lot of fun with the adorableness factor of Charles in cat ears and a boyfriend who adores him.

'“Jeez, Charlito,” Pierre says, hyperbolic in exasperation. He raises his eyebrows in a jitter, flicking the corner of the box with enough edge to his nails to make it pop. “I just think you are cute when you purr during your streams.” It’s awful how deftly Charles feels the heat rise in his cheeks. He almost wants to flatten his palms against them to hide the awful shade of pink he knows must be there, perhaps as red as the oversized headphones he already owns and wears for his streams, definitely not courtesy of Pierre, or anyone but himself, for that matter. “I am not—” he starts, cutting himself off with teeth in the back of his bottom lip. ‘I am not purring, I am making engine sounds,’ is probably not going to do anything but make Pierre laugh at him more, so he quits while he’s ahead. “You are so annoying,” he says, instead, like that’s somehow a defense. “I hate you. I am not wearing these stupid headphones.”'

an autumnal affair by @hourcat | T | 11.4k Pierre Gasly is to wed Charles' cousin to save the Leclerc name from disrespute. They fall in love. Pierre in this fic is perfect as a pride and prejudice-ish gentleman, rakish and lovely, and the chemistry between him and Charles is instant and undeniable - when reading it feels inevitable that these two belong together. Of course everything it is not so easy, the author puts you through many twists and although this has a happy ending the heartache a long the way is exquisite.

Once upon a time—a lifetime ago, practically—Pierre had told him that he was a good man. But that cannot be true, because the idea of having to watch his love and his cousin have a life together makes him both angry and horribly, terribly, unforgivably jealous. Charles should not have done this in the first place. Pierre had come to marry Giada, had come to pledge his life to her, and Charles had intervened. He knows he has no right to be upset. But he is. He is, and Pierre will never love him the way he wants to again, and he will never recover from this hole that’s ripped right through his heart. It’s all very simple, really. Charles curls up tighter in his sheets. Pierre will never love him again. A fresh round of tears swallows him entirely. It will be a long rest of his life if he has to watch them together on the estate.

jump then fall into me by @your-littlesecret | M | 13.6k Charles finds a lost puppy, and takes it to a local animal shelter, where he meets a very qualified (and very handsome) man. This story is adorable! I was literally giggling, kicking my feet and rolling around while I read it. I love how clueless Charles is, and how Pierre is immediately so very fond of him. And the puppy is adorable - I love her name!

He brings everything upstairs and once he’s put everything on a place he thinks will be okay, he lays on the floor with his stomach down and stares at his new family member. “What should I call you, huh?” There’s no answer, of course, only a lick to his nose before she goes back to the very important task of chewing on a toy Charles just bought.

nsfw: Imzadi by @effervescentdragon | E | 31k Star Trek AU. Pierre and Charles meet as children, when Charles is among the few survivors of a genocide. Pierre's mother serves in Starfleet, which is dispatched for the rescue effort. It's the beginning of a love that lasts a lifetime. It's not necessary to be familiar with Star Trek to enjoy this but if you are, this fic hews closely and lovingly to not only Star Trek canon, but the entire philosophy of the franchise. It was like a long catch up with an old friend. If you don't know Trek, or don't know it well, the Piarles-ness of the Piarles is note perfect. They are truly soulmates in every universe and this fic not only captures that, it is soaking in it. Possible CW for dubcon (of the sex pollen variety - which only increases the Trek-ness of this fic, considering where sex pollen started. It's actually very enthusiastic on both sides). I also love how Akira manages to make Charles's part-Betazoid empathic ability absolutely no help at all when it comes to Pierre.

"Charles? You're here?" The uncertainty in his voice is the final straw that pushes Charles to move and fall onto Pierre. He is mindful of all the tubes and needles and Pierre’s broken arm, but he needs to touch Pierre, needs to feel him, to know that he’s really here, and alive. His uninjured hand comes up and he tangles it into Charles’ hair, and the gesture is so familiar, it makes Charles cry. Pierre holds onto him until Charles cries himself out. It's Pierre who is hurt, though, and Charles feels stupid and selfish for being the one falling apart when his best friend had almost died. He pushes away, wiping his face as he sits back and grabs at Pierre’s hand, needing to feel him physically, because he can’t feel Pierre’s emotions at all. It’s like there is a void where his feelings used to be, and Charles opens his mouth to ask about it when Pierre beats him to the punch.

nsfw: sometimes I feel like a hostage by @wolfiemcwolferson | E | 36.2k Charles is a prince of Monaco, feeling stifled under the weight of a duty that he never asked for. Pierre is his bodyguard. Look, I just REALLY like the bodyguard trope, ok? This is a gorgeous example. Charles is inexperienced, Pierre is kind and a great protector, the secondary pairings are great (I squealed when one appeared kind of by stealth) and this just scratched a very particular itch for me. Tiredtiredsharl writes these two so well, in any situation.

'Charles starts to feel awkward again, this is so far outside of anything he’s ever known and it’s hard not to feel self conscious as he closes the door to this too big room with the too big bed, unsure of what he’s even needing. Pierre had said intimate. They were going to be intimate. Pierre pulls his coat off, standing beside the little half dresser thing and places it neatly on top. He hadn’t pulled a hat or gloves or a scarf out to wear so he’s now in one of those much too large sweaters that swallow him whole. Oh. Charles can take it off him. “Come here, Charles.” Pierre says, leaning against the dresser. Charles takes the three steps towards him. “Should this be sexier?” He hates that he just asked that question. Pierre doesn’t laugh though. He takes one of Charles' hands and pulls the glove off starting with the fingertips and working it off gently before he says, “There are no rules here. Sex between people who care about each other should be however the two of them wish it to be and it is special because they are together." Pierre is working the other glove off Charles' hand now. It’s so tender that Charles can admit, “I feel very dumb right now.” Pierre snorts. “And I feel very scared. So, we are even.”'

nsfw: have you brought back the light? by @wolfiemcwolferson | E | 36.7k Pierre is a superhero and Charles is his non-superpower boyfriend. A villain targets Charles and he gets sucked in to the multiverse where he gets stuck with a Pierre that isn't his. This fic might be a superhero fic at first glance but what I love most about it is the exploration of grief and trauma and the ways they appear in both universe. The storytelling in this is divine - the way the details of the relationship between Charles and Pierre in both universes is slowly revealed while Charles tries not lose hope that he will get rescued makes an emotional rollercoaster of the best kind.

"You know you’re an idiot .” Charles bites. “You have everything and you -” he wraps his arms around himself. “He moved out because he has feelings for you and you just let him go.” Pierre’s face goes carefully blank. Like that blankness that he leans on when he’s trying not to react to Charles specifically . “No.” “Yes,” Charles bites, and because he suddenly feels like a little soft animal with his belly exposed so he hits back. “You have Esteban and Anthoine and Charles wants you and you could have everything - ” “Charles -” he steps towards him, hand outstretched, “what do you mean?” “That you have everything and you’re wasting it.” Charles says again, even though it’s not an explanation. He doesn’t care that he isn’t offering him an explanation. He’s just angry that Pierre is giving it all away without trying. He’s on the verge of tears again, yanked back to two hours earlier as he gazed at the steeple of the auction house and imagined what it must be like to live in a world like this - with that awful little voice in the back of his head that was saying it doesn’t matter how much you hate it, that’s your home and those are your people and you don’t actually hate it at all. Charles would give anything to go home. He would give anything to stand in this apartment and fight with his Pierre. He would give anything to go and sit on the memorial bench. He would give anything to go home'

nsfw: you are perfection, my only direction (it's fire on fire) by @singsweetmelodies | E | 40k Charles and Pierre are dragonriders, each aligned with a different house. They are required to marry one another to prevent a war. This story is a perfect storm of arranged marriage, marriage of convenience and idiots in love. With DRAGONS. I'm not sure I need to say much else, but if you like high fantasy, handsome men, slow burn and some hot sex well this might just be the fic for you.

'“Don’t give me that look,” Charles groans, and he manages to roll his eyes, knocking his fist against Pierre’s chest. “You’re you! Anyone would want to have sex with you, don’t be stupid. Besides, maybe now I can finally see if you’re actually telling the truth in all your smug little stories about your bedroom escapades.” For a single moment, Pierre’s expression looks frozen, like that breathless instant right before a glass tips over and smashes. Then, Pierre smiles, and when he speaks again, his voice sounds almost cracked. “Right,” he says quietly. “Of course.” Before Charles can ask him what’s wrong, his smile changes. Brightens, and smooths into something real, something a lot more like Pierre’s usual smirk. “Oh, Charlito,” he purrs, and Charles blanches. He knows that tone of voice. It’s Pierre’s flirting tone of voice, which he doesn’t save for Charles, very often, but when he does, it’s always to make Charles blush. Sure enough, Pierre says now, in a voice so layered with suggestiveness that it should be illegal, or a new form of magic all on its own – “You haven’t even heard the half of it. You will be a happy man, married to me.”'

A Nymph's Heart by @espithewarlock | T | 46k In a world where magic and fey creatures are real, Charles is a violinist and Pierre is a water nymph, but they still manage to find each other and fall in love. The worldbuilding in this fic is just brilliant: rich and vivid and so immersive, it's like you're living every step of the journey with Charles. I adored the development of the relationship between Charles and Pierre: how they go from cautious acquaintances to a special friendship to lovers in the first part, and how they prove their love and trust for each other in the second, and get to enjoy a well-deserved happy ending in the third. Music also plays an integral role in this fic, and as a musician myself, that touched my heart and moved me in such a way that I will always have a soft spot for this fic.

'Pierre stepped directly in front of Charles and raised one of the flowers, tucking it behind his ear. “A gift for a gift,” he murmured, “for playing a song at my request I gift you a flower grown from my magic.” “Thank you,” Charles said automatically. The nymph’s fingers were cool and gentle as they brushed the top of his ear and secured the stem of the flower in place. A part of him wanted to close his eyes at the sensation, but he also wanted to hold onto every moment he had to study the nymph up close.'

nsfw: chassis by @hourcat | E | 50k Charles, an art teacher, has a one night stand with Pierre, a mechanic he meets in a nightclub. And that would have been that, had not Charles's car died soon after. In desperation, he contacts Pierre. Pierre is devastatingly attractive in this, all confidence and winking flirtatiousness. Charles never stood a chance. This fic has a perfect rom com vibe, with angst, miscommunication, sassy comic relief Yuki, mutual pining, a happy ending, and some hot car sex.

Charles huffs. “Stop calling me that,” he grits, and Pierre laughs again—louder, which clearly is just pushing his passenger’s buttons even more. “Why do you call my car a girl?” Oh, this is going to make him squirm. Pierre shrugs, pointedly not looking at Charles as he pretends to ponder his answer for a moment. “Well, I work with cars, yes? I fix them, I make them run, I get them purring again.” The line of traffic in front of them slows up just enough for Pierre to make a point of turning to face Charles. “And if I am going to be so hands on, I should think it’s only right to treat them like a lady.” He winks. He turns back to the road. He barely swallows the laugh as Charles makes a choked sound at his not-so-subtle implication.

of mute swans and nests by steponthegaslys | ? | 82k Set at the Royal Ballet in London, Pierre is a talented and rising ballet dancer. The new arrival of another dancer, a generational talent, in the shape of Charles Leclerc brings along additional drama, and not just because of their building attraction. (N.B. This fic contains sensitive content - readers are advised to please mind the tags for this fic before reading). This fic is a fun take on the relationship between Pierre and Charles, told between rehearsals, dances, and revelations. The supporting characters (Alex, George, Max, Daniel) create a brilliant system around Pierre, add amazing humour and really help to tell the story too. Plus, Pierre and Charles as ballet dancers? What's not to love!

“You know,” said Pierre quietly, voice barely a whisper. “My friends don’t think you’re pretending. When you look at me on stage like you love me.”

#piarles #pairing:charles/pierre #driver:charles #driver:pierre #trope:au

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zenaidamacrouras1 · 1 year

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Writing Modern Steve Roger's Health Issues: A compendium

AKA How do Steve Rogers' MCU canon illnesses hold up in a modern setting?

I am writing something that is SO NICHE and so NERDY I feel absolutely, positively deviant about it. Who knew you could have this much fun while eating a burrito and sitting in the sun on your back porch?

OKAY! This one goes out to all of you writing modern AU's with a modern Steve Rogers. (There are literally dozens of us!). Let's go.

So, I find it somewhat problematic when people write disabled or otherwise medically complicated characters and are wishy-washy about the diagnosis they have. In real life, everyone I know with ongoing medical issues is a fucking expert on their exact shit. A great tumblr reference for disabled characters is Cripple Characters, but I also use reddit threads to read about people’s day to day experiences with different issues in their own words. If nothing else, just decide what your character has and take ten minutes and read through a basic website article about it.

So let's walk through what modern Steve's medical history and diagnoses might be. If you feel like I missed any details or got things wrong, happy to have comments to that end.

We'll start with the list of “ailments,” going with the MCU canon and combining the images from the museum exhibit and screen shots of Steve’s enlistment forms:

Asthma

Scoliosis

Fallen arches

Partial deafness

Scarlet Fever, Rheumatic Fever

Heart arrhythmia

High blood pressure

Palpitation or pounding in heart

Easy fatigability

Stomach ulcers

Pernicious anemia

Nervous trouble of any sort

Sinusitis

Chronic or frequent colds

Caveat: I am not a doctor, but I am a person who enjoys reading medical journal articles about illnesses I do and don’t have. The human body is a fascinating and terrible place to live. Talk to me about your medical complications - I will always find them interesting. I love small talk about Crohn’s disease and/or extremely graphic details about the time you had surgery because one of your wrist bones was the wrong length.

Sucks To Your Assmar: Asthma! How has asthma changed?

Kids who have their asthma well managed at a young age are going to have less scarring and lung damage (this is called airway remodeling). Thus a modern kid will likely have less severe asthma than a kid born in Steve’s time. Further, allergy medicines got way better from the 1990s, so kids with allergy induced asthma would have had fewer attacks. Fewer attacks as kids = less severe asthma as they age.

I would also note that asthma is highly connected to environmental issues. If Steve grew up in a house with cigarette smoke, cockroaches, rats, or mold present, as is fairly easy to imagine, especially without dehumidifiers in a swampy Brooklyn summer, those are environmental factors that would have made his asthma much worse.

They are also all factors that kids today certainly face, depending on how you write your modern Steve’s childhood. While people today certainly can have very severe asthma, it’s also entirely possible that modern Steve’s relationship to his asthma is pretty chill and easy to manage. (My partner has relatively severe asthma with a lot of environmental triggers; modern allergy medicine was a big game changer.)

Let’s talk about scoliosis ~~

There are a lot of variations to how scoliosis impacts people. I have very minor scoliosis and it's barely a thing in my life. I’m not trying to speak for everyone, but for what it’s worth, there are professional athletes with spinal fusion. I used Kyra Condie as my justification for writing climbing coach post-spinal fusion small Steve Rogers in one fic. My younger brother and best friend in high school both had spinal fusions.

In reality the athletic and physical abilities of people with spinal fusion vary pretty much exactly as much as people without spinal fusion, so you have a lot of leeway for how you decide to write a character with scoliosis. I recommend reddit threads to read about people talking about how their bodies felt before and after spinal fusion, or why they decided not to have the surgery, if you want to get a sense of how it might affect your character’s day to day life.

Wait, so how tall is modern small Steve Rogers?

You can see in this article that gains in height post scoliosis corrective surgery/spinal fusion varies, but the mean was 27 mm (1 inch) and the maximum was 66 mm (2.5 inches).

The more severe the curve in the spine, the more height gained with surgery.

We know Steve had scoliosis, we don’t know how severe it was (do we?). But if he was 5’4” without spinal fusion, and with all of his childhood fevers, and possible poor nutrition due to the Great Depression and untreated stomach ulcers, then it’s very reasonable that a modern Steve raised with proper nutrition and his gastrointestinal issues (see below!) properly treated and a spinal fusion could be easily 1-10 inches taller.

I think it’s great if you want to write modern Small Steve as 5’4” - but I tend to write him as 5’7” or so.

I think it is entirely likely that a modern Steve Rogers could end up being 6 feet tall given modern medical intervention and a healthy digestive system and adequate nutrition. As an example of how people with more or less the same genetics having different heights due to environmental factors, I know of one family of four brothers that immigrated from Italy in the 40s. Their height was 100% correlated to their age when they moved to the US/started having access to food: the oldest brother was around 5’4” and the youngest around 6 feet. The oldest was also a chain smoker and worked full time from around age 8, so you know, he was a fucking badass 5'4" Italian guy, if that's not clear.

What about fallen arches?

Fun story, but I have fallen arches/flat feet and had a lot of foot pain as a kid, but I thought it was normal. I wear custom orthotics and/or birkenstocks and do exercises to strengthen my feet muscles and it's fine now as long as I remember to do the things I just mentioned. My dad had to have multiple surgeries on his feet, so I think it helped that they caught it earlier in me.

Should I write modern non-serum Steve as deaf?

Maybe! I think it’s lovely when people write characters with hearing issues. There are great blogs that cover ways to do that well (a good link, another one, and another one and I think this one on hearing aids is particularly good if you are trying to bring in subtle day to day routine differences a character that wears hearing aids may have. Another great option is, again, reddit, especially for questions around how sexual intimacy might vary in small ways that can be nice to bring in. (I am working on a fic with a seeing character whose ex is blind and also read a lot of couples first hand experience with sexual intimacy around that dynamic on reddit).

But how likely is it that modern Steve would be deaf?

I think that it’s reasonably likely that Steve’s hearing issues were a result of Scarlet Fever, which is a bacterial infection that can result in rheumatic fever, an inflammatory condition that develops in more severe cases of scarlet fever.

Scarlet fever caused deafness - in fact, both Helen Keller and Thomas Edison had hearing loss due to scarlet fever infections. Further, sustained fevers of over 104 degrees can also cause hearing loss, so there is a reasonable chance that some other fever caused Steve’s hearing issues.

Today, the kind of hearing loss caused by fevers and infections can usually be surgically repaired or never occur because we have better antibiotics and better medicines to treat fevers. However, I have a friend who has partial hearing loss and lots of other life long nervous system and fatigue issues due to complications from childhood chicken pox in the 80s (this vaccine came around in 1995).

I don’t know if it’s canon or fanfiction, but I often see Steve as having one bad ear. For what it’s worth, hearing loss in one ear is much less common than hearing loss in both ears.

However, potential causes of hearing loss in one ear are infections that result in a high fever and some kind of head trauma, both of which are easy to imagine would have affected a Steve born in 1918, and while possible in a modern Steve, also easier to avoid.

Heart Stuff: Heart arrhythmia, High blood pressure, Palpitation of pounding in heart, Easy fatigability

The aforementioned fevers that can cause hearing loss can also cause heart issues. I think it’s reasonably likely that Steve’s heart issues were from his fevers as a young kid, but I often write him with a congenital heart defect, because why not?

These days, most of the time, such issues are detected at or before birth and fixed when the person is a baby, but there are plenty of heart issues that can require multiple heart surgeries at various points. Regardless, a modern Steve would most likely either have had access to corrective surgery or medication to manage these heart conditions. Which is not to say that he wouldn’t suffer mental and physical trauma from this medical complication.

There are plenty of professional athletes you can find who have all of the above heart issues. And plenty of people with heart issues who have no interest in being professional athletes, so like, follow your bliss.

Digestive System Stuff: Easy fatigability, Stomach ulcers, Pernicious anemia

I have easy fatigability under heart stuff too, because lots of shit can make you tired.

My personal head canon is that Steve Rogers has celiac disease and/or lactose intolerance, it would cause all of the above. Both can also lead to poor growth - in fact falling off growth charts is one of the most common symptoms of celiac disease in children.

While people have been aware of celiac disease since there were people, gluten wasn’t identified as the clear cause till the 50s.

I typically write modern Steve with some kind of food allergy, and I think that addresses quite a few of his canon medical complications.

Because so many causes of this category of symptoms are relatively easily solved with modern medical intervention/avoiding the problem, I would point folks towards Crohn’s disease if you are looking to write a modern character with medical issue that is more likely to be an ongoing source of similar medical complications today.

(Also, kids with Crohn’s are likely to have reduced height. I have a friend who has Crohn's whose 3 siblings are well over 6 feet and he is around 5'8" (so 4-6 inches aka 11+ cm shorter due to his severe childhood illness).)

Nervous trouble of any sort

Kids with medical complications and food allergies are much more likely to have anxiety. I’m so proud of all the kids making it through the day with anxiety. Luff you anxiety kids, I see you working twice as hard to be present as the non-anxious kids. Tough as hell. Give yourself a high five. I’m so damn proud of you.

Sinusitis and Frequent colds

I mean, god bless modern decongestants and allergy meds. Celiac disease and lactose intolerance can both cause sinus issues, so here is another one of Steve's ailments that can be "cured" through that diagnosis.

Other stuff

When you look at the above, you can see a lot of scenarios where modern era Steve, like many children/adults today, had multiple surgeries and serious and scary health complications as a child, but as an adult would appear as a relatively healthy able bodied person, with the possibility of even becoming a top athlete if he was so inclined. It’s also likely that some issues like chronic fatigue etc, might linger into adulthood as relatively invisible illnesses that nonetheless affect his everyday.

In some ways his character arc given the advances of modern medicine could mimic his arc due to the serum.

Being medically complicated as a kid sucks. Even if you have surgeries to treat and/or learn how to live with things like Crohn’s and celiac and reduce flare ups, lingering mental health trauma can have an impact.

Lastly and most importantly, I have a personal headcanon that young Steve Rogers of any era spent a lot of time sick in bed and staring into a mirror learning how to raise one eyebrow and perform other eyebrow gymnastics so he could more effectively sass his nurses.

IN CONCLUSION:

I think it's actually reasonable for an author to say, "My modern Steve never had any fevers, and got his severe lactose intolerance diagnosed as a baby, and had good nutrition, had medications/clean environment that prevented his asthma."

So this Steve is 6 feet tall and healthy as long as he doesn't eat dairy and takes his daily zyrtec (cetirizine - it's an allergy med). The only medical issue he has from canon left is scoliosis, flat feet, and an astigmatism.

You can also choose to write a Steve with more complex medical issues, and there are lots of things that can be good and interesting and value about that. I think the main thing is to pick a diagnosis and write it realistically, hopefully this helps some with that!

#stucky fanfiction #smol steve #writing disability #steve roger #pre serum steve rogers #modern steve rogers #honestly whats wrong with me #I don't even know but I feel like I'm dealing with my mental illnesses well enough and I had fun writing this #meta #headcanon #stony fanfiction

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fereldanwench · 3 months

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apropos of nothing and certainly not my tag rant from a few posts back

did you know that out of 150 popular video games released between 1985 and 2022, only 6% of them feature sole female protagonists?

did you know that prior to mass effect 3, female shepard was never used in any promotional material for the series?

(and there's no hard data available on this, but i very distinctly recall a lot of gamerbro outrage when me3 had an optional reversible cover so you could pick between male and fem shep on your personal game)

did you know that only 18% of players chose femshep in any shape or form (default or customized) during the original release?

(anecdotally, i know a few people who didn't even realize you could play a female at all in me1 bc of how the cc is setup)

did you know with the release of the legendary edition in 2021 the percentage of femshep players didn't even double (despite jennifer hale's seemingly enormous popularity amongst the broader playerbase over the past decade) and is reported at 32%?

did you know that dragon age inquisition has the same breakdown between male and female inquisitors (68% to 32% respectively)?

did you know during the playtests for assassin's creed odyssey, it was a 50/50 split between kassandra and alexios, and ubisoft suits actually thought when the game was released, kassandra would be more popular? and yet once again, about 70% of players chose the male protag

did you know evie and aya were both supposed to have a much larger roles in assassin's creed syndicate and origins but were forced into a smaller role bc the ubisoft marketing team didn't think the games would sell well with a female lead?

cdpr hasn't released data on male vs female v, probably because the game handles gender a little differently than just two strict options like many other rpgs, but it was revealed that panam was the most popular romance, sitting at about 68%, which means at least 68% of players chose the male v body. I'm sure some players did not make that choice as a cis male v, but i would also guess that those who didn't are a small minority of this demographic, and if you factor in kerry romancers, this split is probably very similar to other games in the genre

now i realize that a lot of the male v players who are in more transformative fandom spaces (like tumblr) are not the str8 gamer dudebros of reddit angry about pores on a female character's face and whatnot. i realize that a lot of you are also on the outskirts of the perceived norm and also feel under-represented by mainstream male protags and that's incredibly frustrating and alienating and i genuinely feel for you

but female protagonists and female gamers who want to play as female protagonists and who have a few niche spaces to celebrate female protags are not the reason for your lack of representation

and frankly you don't sound a whole lot different from the angry incel gamer boys when you say shit like "fem v gets too much attention"

so maybe try advocating for male protags who don't fit the generic boring gruff white guy mold without throwing women under the bus. we're should be allies in this fight, not rivals

#t: wench.txt #leaving reblogs on as long as ppl behave #but i will come down hard with the block button on bad faith replies to this

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dairyfreenugget · 2 months

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(Alt text + transcript under the cut)

Had this little doodle idea in mind for a while now, decides to use PV as a model so the differences between the two are easy to spot :] It's specifically for young born to wyrm parents that have already shed their large form, obviously the big wyrms look quite different

There are a lot of factors at play for if a wyrm bears live young vs eggs, like environment, their health and hormones.

ID start: Two doodles of the young Pure Vessel from Hollow Knight on a grey background, labelled "Live birth vs egg laying: differences of newborns in wyrms". The one labelled "Live birth 1st instar" is tiny and round, laying on its belly, with its eyes closed and round tiny horns. The text around it reads; "Much smaller", "round and underdeveloped horns", "Some fat reserves, but mostly relies on parents, will build up fat over the next few months", "Born blind, opens eyes within few days up to a week after birth". The one labelled "Hatchling 1st instar" is much, much bigger and resembles a typical vessel seen in-game, with a big fat tail, longer fur covering its neck and back and a small egg tooth on its nose. The text around it reads; "Sharp, fully developed horns", "egg tooth falls off in the first week of life", "Much bigger, can crawl and walk a few hours after hatching. Can run a few weeks after hatching.", "Excess fat stored in tail". Underneath them is a text that reads; "Live birth newborns are born much smaller and are much more heavily reliant on their parent(s), with adequate care they grow quickly over the next few months and resemble their hatchling counterparts by their 2nd or 3rd instar. Their size and the shape of their horns allows for safe and much easier passage through the birth canal. Hatchlings are born with fully developed horns and claws, they're much more self-reliant and able to protect themselves. Both newborns are born with full set of teeth.". End ID.

Transcript:

Live birth vs egg laying

differences of newborns in wyrms

Live birth 1st instar:

Much smaller

Round, underdeveloped horns

Some fat reserves, but mostly relies on parents, will build up fat over the next few months

Born blind, opens eyes within few days up to a week after birth

Hatchling 1st instar:

Much bigger, can crawl and walk a few hours after hatching.

Can run a few weeks after hatching.

Excess fat stored in tail

Sharp, fully developed horns

Egg tooth falls off in the first week of life

Live birth newborns are born much smaller and are much more heavily reliant on their parent(s), with adequate care they grow quickly over the next few months and resemble their hatchling counterparts by their 2nd or 3rd instar. Their size and the shape of their horns allows for safe and much easier passage through the birth canal. Hatchlings are born with fully developed horns and claws, they're much more self-reliant and able to protect themselves. Both newborns are born with full set of teeth.

#hollow knight #the hollow knight #thk #pure vessel #hk thk #hk fanart #hk art #hollow knight art #hollow knight fanart #spec bio #spooky arts #faaf au

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queen0fm0nsterz · 2 years

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I have been thinking about Six again.

I think we need to talk more about how much Six cares about Mono, not the other way around. It is undoubtable that Mono does care about her, but Six has a very reserved way of expressing her affection for him, which is why it mostly flies under the radar of most people imo.

The way she follows after him, steadily but surely, just as determined to remain by his side as he is, should not be ignored at all. Mono may grab her hand first, but even if he doesn't, everywhere he goes, she will follow. In the first half of the game, where Six doesn't nearly trust him as much as she does later on, Mono's small gesture of kindness during their first meeting is incredibly impactful to her.

When she was alone and afraid, scared for her life, Mono held his hand out for her to hold at her own pace. Though Six rejects him initially, she's quick to realize that two pairs of hands are better than one after all. You'd assume she only allied with him out of convenience, and while it was most definitely a factor, Mono's gentleness was what drew her to him initially.

From this point on, you can choose to hold her hand at any point in time, indicating that Mono is prone to randomly grab her hand to keep her close. As said, this is not necessary: Six will follow closely after regardless of wheter he does so or not. However, this gesture remained engrained in her mind, and this is proven later on.

After the Hunter ran after them for the first time, Six offers her hand to him.

Though she's not keen on physical contact, as she will never offer her hand again to him first, she is empathetic enough to understand that Mono is scared and needs comfort, so she does something she knows will make him feel safe.

Then of course, there is her playful answers to his calls; though she's not really a talkative one, she won't refuse a conversation if Mono speaks to her. Until you start noticing that whenever Mono grabs a a toy like he needs to do in the School or in the Hospital, Six also will run to grab one. If Mono throws it away, she also throws her own away.

Isn't imitation the biggest form of flattery?

Even later, when she gets the raincoat and is more confident and fast, Six still takes the time to wait for her best friend. From her behaviour towards him, it seems to me that she holds a silent, but considerable amount of admiration in his regard; sorta like a young kid who copies everything their older friend does - which is what would happen in this dynamic since Mono is (apparently) older than her.

I also think we as a fandom have been ignoring that she's been helping him deal with the TVs pretty much ever since they met. She had the chance to run away and leave Mono behind, but she never does. The only time she actually runs off is when Mono frees the Thin Man, and even then she waits until the last possible minute before sprinting away.

Her trust in Mono is unmatched. So is the affection she holds for him. It's shown in a different way, but it's there and it's very present. It makes sense that Mono, who has always been shunned and pushed away, would grab onto her (both physically and metaphorically) as much as he does.

... Which is what makes the ending hurt the most.

#little nightmares #little nightmares 2 #ln meta #six #ln six #mono #ln mono #little nightmares six #little nightmares mono #{IF I HAVE TO SUFFER SO DO YOU!!! IF I HAVE TO BE IN ATROCIOUS PAIN THINKING ABOUT THEM SO DO YOU!!!!!}

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prototypelq · 8 months

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So, me and the ever-wonderful Raven @whitebeakedraven have been discussing the twins (S)DT forms, and quite a number of details were noticed by us over the course of that conversation, plus some worrying headcanons were born! I felt the need to compose them into a tumblr post for mutuals, especially since I have not seen them be discussed by the fandom at large.

To start off on a high and very shaky note: I believe Vergil’s horns were broken!

The coolness factor and the amount of ‘exhaust pipe horns’ jokes kind of desensitized me a little, but if you look closer at the horns’ model - it is clear they suffered a lot of damage. The ‘exhaust pipe’ itself is my primary evidence for this - the horn structure around the power-flames looks sponge-y. That kind of bone structure is found in the innermost layers of the bone, right around the marrow. It is not built for sustaining pressure, but instead to support the living tissue of the bone and to allow for its growth.

It is not built to sustain pressure or forces of any kind, it should not be the outer layer of any bone. Yet, Vergil’s Final Form shows it clearly on display!

If we go back to the previous DT models we have of Vergil’s trigger - namely his triggers in DMC3 and DMC4 - we can see that his horns…have not changed since then. At all.

(the growth sizes are very approximate, but I think the pictures convey my meaning here)

Now look at how much Dante’s horn crown has changed from his original DT - that is a very, very sizeable growth spurt right there, his horn crown pretty much grew three or so times the size it was, plus he got the neck-/gill-guard second set of horns, same as Vergil. What I’m saying here is - it is mighty suspicious that Vergil’s horns remain unchanged since his teenagehood. Also, as Raven lovely pointed out - the damage done to horns is too symmetrical to be a natural occurrence or a simple mistake.

And where did Vergil spend his time in between his last appearance in DMC3 and his return in DMC5? In the hands of a professional demon torturer. I’ll just quote Raven here:

Horns seem to me like a point of pride for demons, which could be the reason Mundus targeted them and Vergil internalized that targeting. So his horns didn't develop much further except cracking open to show his power and having extra defenses in case they are targeted again.

Some other supporting evidence for this theory:

- uneven ‘cut’: the horns look curved a little, the inner layer having died off and unable to grow out, while the outer layer tried it’s best to grow out again after the damage was done, but with limited success

- the DMC5 DT Vergil concept art horns have a small inner part growing out - which I would interpret as the damage fully healing and the horns beginning to grow properly again. you can also see that the ‘powerline’ in the horns is straight, and not uneven as in SDT render in-game, plus they look more sleek and elegant.

- from the front the horn crown looks very, very rough. If we compare to Dante, his horns are long, smooth, and the ‘powerlines’* of the horns can only be found on the inner side and are glowing.

[* btw Dante having long thin appendages around his head that exert a lot of heat makes me think of long-eared animal adaptation to hot climates, which are used to let the animal cool down faster. in demonic biology terms, I imagine having a ‘powerline’ being rerouted around the head like that to the horn crown instead might allow twins to remain in SDT without constantly frying and regenerating their brains back]

Vergil’s horns from the front look to be cracking from the power that is fed into them, like they should be able to contain it but cannot and it is ‘leaking’ out of the front cracks and result in the ‘side flamethrowers’ he got instead.

I admit, this theory is very SSDP (Syndrome of Search for Deeper Meaning - СПГС, an extremely handy term in ru), and can be explained in two simple words - Stylistic Choice, plus, as Raven pointed out - any damage should have been healed during Vergil’s resurrection... However, I had fun figuring this out, and the details align way too neatly into a single picture for it to be simply coincidence in my opinion. An alternate explanation for this - or a counterargument, provided by the lovely Raven - would be that Vergil chose this current form, one way or the other. He did not evolve a huge horn crown ‘cause that’s an easy grab appendage, and instead he influenced them to be more practical with smaller horns, getting himself some sick flamethrowers as a bonus. The ‘exhaust pipe’ design being either an intentional or a more subconscious display of Vergil remembering the torture and reacting accordingly to protect his horns from further damage, by making them literally untouchable.

Another interesting part of Vergil’s SDT design is his tail and wings. I admit, I was quite salty that Vergil got four wings and a tail, while Dante only has wings, but we might have found an explanation for that.

First, let’s take a look at Vergil’s SDT back…. It’s a goddamn mess!

He has a full-range-of-motion shoulder girdle (1.) , plus, five additional limbs sprouting from his back (tail (2.) plus four wings (3.)). The tail making it all even worse, because it is placed between the upper wingset shoulder blades!

If you know anything even remotely about birds or flying, you know that the wings need a lot of space to rotate and function properly, and having a tail right in between them is not a good idea at all. This is a mess, but let’s start simple - wings.

Interesting bit about Vergil’s wings is that, aside from one extremely stupid flying freight lizard attack (seriously, what was Vergil thinking, making a big show and parading like he did, only to have an attack itself be telegraphed miles ahead and very easy to dodge?...makes you think...), Vergil does not fly. Actually, he doesn’t use his wings at all, except as a flourish/added hit at the end of some big combos, so only when he knows he is safe and ready to deliver maximum pain. You can argue he prefers instantly teleporting around as his main movement tech, but still, it’s weird that even his jump doesn’t have at least *some* wing movement involved - he doesn’t even instinctively try to slow his fall or anything with them!

(here is a screenshot of a fall part of jump animation - wings are kept low and close to the body, just as they are when Vergil is standing normally or attacking)

Another look at his back might provide the answer to that. Here we see that the bones connecting the wingset to the chest are protruding out of the body so much, they are, anatomically speaking, tapered on, and very poorly at that. If not for demonic resilience, those wings should have been torn off from the body by their own generated take-off force.

So, the twins' wings are not built very well, mayhaps this is why Vergil is so protective of them and doesn’t use them too much, except for situations when he is sure it’s safe.

His tail in that case, is a great addition to offer protection for his wings! The tail is long enough to be an effective counter from all sides (imagine if Vergil’s parry was not with the sheathed Yamato, but with his tail… that pointy end does not look friendly at all), and its placement between the wings now makes sense, because the tail is actually a guard for his back.

During my previous photomode experiments, I found out that Urizen’s multitude of eyes track the camera movement. Even in photomode Urizen does not feel safe enough to be still, apparently. Raven interpreted that as a clear manifestation of Vergil’s paranoia and trust issues, and I completely agree... The tail then, is another feature that reflects this. Also, y’know, Vergil did spent a few decades in hell, where he had a very bad, no good, absolutely horrible time… and I’ll just quote Raven here:

And I mean, what better way to enforce the fact that escape, that freedom, is impossible towards a prisoner, than by ripping their literal wings off…

The poor connection of the wings to the main body could in that case also be a reaction to this trauma. If someone gets to them, they're easily removed without too much further damage, so that they can start regenerating immediately. But before that, any attacker will have to get by the tail that’s got a sharp enough end to provide ample amounts of protection.

Another reason why the tail fits Vergil so nicely is because of the speed and balance it provides.

DMC5 introduced us to lovely lizard demons like Riots, Chaoses and Furies, all of which are known for having a tail. Interesting bit here is that the higher back attachment makes the tail act as a great balancing tool for bipedals. All of the lizors mentioned above sure do love their speedy attacks, so it makes sense they developed the tail to counteract their erratic and swift movements. And Vergil’s SDT seems to have adopted that feature too.

As for Dante, as much as I would have loved for him to get a tail as well, Raven pointed out another detail here. If Dante had any control whatsoever over the SDT evolution... he definitely wouldn’t want any more demonic features. The four-winged and big horned flying form is probably the inherited template from Sparda that neither Vergil nor Dante would have been able to stray away from too much, but the tail is clearly a Vergil-only development. Dante might have gone ‘minimalistic’ in that sense, since he has no additional features of his own (anatomically speaking... technically speaking you might count his Luce, Ombra and Demolition ranged magic moves as special features)

Now, since we’re already on the topic of Dante, we have found another interesting tidbit - his DT face evolution.

We know that in DMC3 Vergil helps his brother unlock his demonic heritage, finally giving Dante his Trigger. The detail that made me curious here is that the DMC3 face is very similar to the face the SDT form has - specifically the lack of human features and the demonic jaws. Let’s have a look here at the evolution of Dante’s DT faces over time (in more ways than one…):

In DMC3 his DT face is pretty much the template from which the SDT form will later evolve, since it lacks any human features that are present in other forms (save for SDT). This DT form is adaptable and changes depending on the Devil Arm Dante is using, showing that he clearly doesn’t have too much control over it yet. The most noticeable example would be the horns - they change form significantly... Also the horns Dante has sprouting here from the back of his head might be the neck-guard horns and the main crown he will fully develop later on. Unlike Dante, Vergil’s form seems much more stable in the sense that his horn shape changes as well, but not nearly as much, and nothing else is affected by the Devil Arms in his appearance.

DMC1, now THIS I almost overlooked, and I sure am glad that I didn’t. The DMC1 DT forms are also affected a lot by the Devil Arms Dante is using in the moment. The weapons seem to ‘overwrite’ Dante’s innate form a lot here, and without their induced features, his face in DT is actually…blank. There is just a blank head until the Devil Arms give him some additions… I have a feeling this might be connected to Dante’s twin-related trauma in the game, they have the same face, after all…

In contrast to everything that comes before, the DMC2 form is a mix of both Dante’s strive for humanity and his ever-growing powers, because his face in DT is - for the first time in the series - completely human. He can’t however, escape the transformation entirely unchanged, and the dark scales and skin color... they make him look a lot like Nelo, or at least to me it seems that way. This is also the game where the SDT makes its first appearance as a Majin form, which is a low-health DT transformation. The Majin form has all the classic features of an SDT - four wings, developed horn crown and even arm-blades like the ones SDT Vergil has. The Majin form is also my big evidence for the ‘SDT forms have a template twins were always supposed to evolve into’ argument.

DMC4 is the ‘mature’ phase where Dante’s DT finally stabilizes and stopped evolving (before SDT was thrown on the table). None of the Devil Arms alter his appearance anymore, the horn crown is finally developed properly, and his facial features are demonic, but the face as a whole still reads as human.

Additional stuff I have noticed but have nowhere else to place:

- Vergil had undergone extensive torture in his time as Mundus’ captive. His horns were broken, wings - ripped out, and if we keep going down that route the V-cut on the SDT chest bears quite a similarity to a badly done dissection scar.

- Alternatively, the V-shape could be seen as the V signature Vergil used to mark his things. In DMC5 he is pretty much picking up the torn and scattered pieces of himself, so that characteristic shape might also be him Reclaiming his name, as one well-known song might have said

- Meanwhile, Dante’s ‘chest rupture’ shape reminds me simultaneously of the numerous stab wounds Dante has been subjected over time, but also a literal bleeding heart pattern, speaking of the heartbreak physical, and the metaphorical one he suffered and never recovered from. This is made worse, if you remember that Dante got his SDT form before the final battle with Urizen in mission 17, so it is also a manifestation of his inner conflict and hurt at that moment in time and story, as he had yet to kill his brother. Again.

- to end on, at least somewhat positive note - the twins’ scales are iridescent!!! Some scales make this more apparent than others, but ultimately all scales have this quality and it brings me much joy)))

Aaaaand the final piece of wisdom I have for today. It is no secret that the DT wings mimic the series-standard leather coats the twins love so much, but I have not seen much of a reverse read on this connection - the twins loving their long leather coats because they mimic the feel of DT wings. The wings have an intricate swirl pattern on the inside and there is a lot of power going through them, so they should be warm, and the pose the twins normally have their wings around - the coats might give them a similar feeling. They are, obviously, leather, they should be good at reflecting warmth, the coats cover the same ‘forward hug’ area like the wings, they are heavy, and they whirl around the back and legs like the wind one would be feeling if they were to move.

This, just might damn be, why V(ergil) stuck to wearing that horrific goth clothing for the entirety of the almost two months he was alive (I say this because I don’t like that outfit, also because V is Vergil and I hope we can all agree Vergil himself would never wear that).He was alone on the street, had no power, no weapons, no money or anything on him and was painfully human, only to have a leather coat thrown his way in a merciful turn of fate. Vergil did not care how passable he looked at that moment, he stated that multiple times himself.What he cared about was the feeling of comfort the leather coat gave him. It reminded him of his better days, of days where his own wings were just one trigger away. And that might be why he didn’t change his clothing from literally the first stuff that was handed to him.

Sooo, that would be it for the post. This one was in the works for a while xD. Again, immense thanks to Raven for rambling about this with me, it was super fun and her contributions to that conversation have been ginormous. Thank you dear reader, for finishing this monster of a post too! Text your family you love them to avoid ending up as these losers here please.

p.s. the DT different forms over the series photos were taken from the dmc wiki, everything else was captured by me in-game

#prepare your tinfoil hats it's gonna be a longread #thank you tumblr for not crashing while posting this too #hellsite (affectionate)#dante sparda #vergil sparda #dmc #the sparda loser twins #devil may cry

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sprintingowl · 2 years

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Ryuutama

I guess I'm sort of doing a small series on TTRPGs that get slept on, so let's talk about Ryuutama.

Ryuutama is a pastoral fantasy TTRPG about travel.

You manage your water and food, try to stay out of bad weather, fight monsters sometimes, and solve little problems in the villages you come across.

The vibe, as communicated by the book's gorgeous art and layout, is cozy and pastoral. However, the game also comes with a built-in tone slider. By deciding on the type of dragon that the GM is, the group can play a gentler, or more dire and combat-driven game.

Yes. This is required. You have to decide what sort of dragon your GM is.

Somewhat cutting against the usual TTRPG expectations, the GM is also encouraged to cameo in the game---either by appearing in the background of a scene in their dragon form, or by actually intervening in the story.

Gameplay is super easy to learn, but has some real tactical depth. Most dice rolls and d + d, with the size of each die based off one of your attributes. Combat uses a simple grid with front and back rows, and you get small bonuses for incorporating the environment into your attacks. Magic is available to everyone, and the spell lists are small, concise, and extremely useable.

Character creation involves a fair bit of customization, but the centerpiece is your profession. This is a game where it's reasonable to play as a farmer or a merchant, and there are huge advantages for doing so. Every class has stuff they can do in combat, but some classes are better at carrying gear, others at managing food and water, others at handling different environments.

Managing how you travel is important, and your HP in combat is a factor of how well rested, watered, and fed you are.

The book comes with lots of GMing advice, plus a bestiary and sample adventure, and it's probably one of the easiest to read rpg books I've encountered.

If you like games like Banner Saga, the Atelier series, One Way Heroics, or Yamafuda! 2nd Station, or if you want to try something that's a little like DnD but cozier, more travel-focused, and gentle, I'd highly encourage a look at Ryuutama.

#rpg #indie ttrpg #ttrpg #ryuutama #also the setting's default goblins are cat goblins if that sways anyone

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ms-scarletwings · 6 months

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Aberrant Fish

The first hint many an angler will get of the dark, insidious secrets these waters hold,

and yet, they are the first thing to be accepted as only another flavor of mundane.

The game text calls them grotesque. The fishmonger calls them corrupted. You get to call them a bonus. Rather than fear and revile them, tradesmen will pay a shiny extra penny to add them into their stock. They are gestured to and spoken of, but never truly elaborated on by the townsfolk. They have probably been here long before most of them, and so will be here long after they are gone. They were certainly here before you. Maybe you don’t need their answers, and yet if you are like me, you still witlessly question and keep dredging for more.

Like many things pulled from those cursed depths, they whisper flecks of madness from an impossible voice. What messages do they carry, and what forces do they play vessel to? Are they the lingering embers from a long-extinguished calamity, or are they harbingers of the next one to come?

I believe we have already seen signs of fire with our own eyes- impossible, great beasts that prowl the four (now five) coasts, the dying cult, gibbering fog…. That damned book. These tortured creatures are but another form of the same smoke.

To the question of where they came from, if your fisherman pokes around enough and braves the darkness, he may have already found a response in one of the many obelisks scattered around the map. Specifically, I refer to this.

This would suggest the aberrants themselves are what leaked in through the cracks that the largest of all monsters wants to rend apart? Not entirely, but in part. For the researcher at the Stellar Basin came to her own conclusion I want to factor in.

Her words give credence to the possibility that it is actually those greater beasts themselves at the heart of the corruption. I think she was half onto something, because what if these twisted forms, both large and small, were blooms along the same set of festering roots?

The more dark stones you disturb in the frenzy of your own madness, the more you learn about the age before your arrival, about the islands, and especially about their current guardians. The Mindsuckers- carrion puppet masters given a home, the Basin creature- a spore that miraculously survived its dive to the abyss, and the Serpent- lifeless stone made animate and malicious, all had their creation remembered in great detail by the obelisks. Some hints point that their emergence was rather recent, relative to even more powerful beings, such as the leviathan.

Maybe there are even more unseen horrors far below, blessedly out of our reach, for now. My view is that the malformed beasts are the aimless children of that unfathomable thing which waits beyond the veil. With them came its influence, and its corruption, and from them it continues to spread to all life surrounding. The smaller rifts were always a transformative disease upon the harbor’s fish, but with the rise of the new monsters, the sickness runs farther and less avoidably than ever. Whether these aberrant spawn are a gift to the worthy, or another deceptive evil that leads to madness remains left to be seen.

I will be giving a spotlight to each of these fascinating specimens at the back of Dredge’s encyclopedia, including those found in the Pale Reach, for further comment and appreciation. Updating the list below as we go along!

[#79-84]

[#85-90]

[#91-96]

[#97-102]

[#103-108]

[#109-114]

[#115-120]

[#121-126]

[#127-132]

[#133-138]

[#139-144]

[#145-150]

[#163-168]

[#169-174]

[Bonus I. Night Angler]

[Bonus II. Serpent]

[Bonus III. Basin Creature]

[Bonus IV. Mindsuckers]

[Bonus V. Unseeing Mother]

[Bonus VI. “Narwhal”]

#dredge game #dredge #dredge analysis #aberrant fish #grotesque fish #dredge spoilers #scarlet talks about things

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too-antigonish · 16 hours

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How to Seduce Endeavour Morse: A Guide for the Perplexed

The ways are many and varied. Your chances of success are—unfortunately—highly dependent on factors outside of your control. You can, however, learn lessons from those who have tread this path before you.

1) The "I-Forgot-to-Tell-You-I’m-a-Killer" Approach

Comments: Used with surprising frequency given ultimately low success rate.

Rosalind Calloway (S1E0 Pilot): First, become a world-famous opera singer. Your artistry will convince him that life is worth living. When the time comes, gently but firmly rebuff his rather innocent advances. Be unmasked as murderess and crush his will to live via the revelation of your utter lack of humanity and subsequent suicide.

Susan Fallon (S1E0 Pilot): Be at Oxford. Have snobby parents and lots of snobby friends. Be his first great love and agree to marry him. Then abandon him very publicly and with maximum cruelty for your first great love. Many years later become murderess (although Lewis will never allow him to find that out). However, still successfully crush him to pieces again by committing suicide.

Isla Fairford (S6E3 Confection): Live in a charming small village with adorable son and amiable veterinarian father. Have an appealing origin story involving cruel abandonment that reminds him of his own life experiences. Go on intimate date where you seem to be everything he could hope for and then share a sweet but chaste kiss goodnight. Oops, murder someone…again…sort of. Suddenly transform into personification of vengeance.

2) The "It-Never-Hurts-to-Ask" Approach

Comments: Success rate zero, but very high entertainment value.

Pamela Walters (S1E1 Girl): Like it says on the tin: Just ask. She asks, “Will you take me to bed?” Sorry sweet girl. He won’t—but he will read you a very nice bedtime story

Kay Belborough (S3E1 Ride): Play flirty name games and ask him breathlessly if he’s falling in love with you. Share a romantic kiss under fairy lights at a party. Eventually tell him he can “have you.” He won’t—but by then he will have saved you from a suicide attempt so I think he’s done enough really…

Annette Richardson (S3E2 Arcadia): Request help with home security. Tell him you can’t possibly undress yourself. He won’t bite—but he will come maddeningly close to nibbling on your neck and you’ll refuse to believe that he won’t come calling, ”…when he’s ready.”

Bettina Pettybon (S4E2 Canticle): Just show up at his flat looking generally bedraggled. Tell him how your mother forced you to spill the beans and get him kicked off the case. Down some hard liquor. And then—tell him you love him. When he’s gobsmacked by your revelation, assume it’s because there’s “someone else” and not because he barely knows you.

3) The "Let’s-Just-Go-to-Bed" Approach

Comments: Has an impresseive 100% success rate but never ends well.

Alice Vexin (S1E3 Rocket): Secretly crush on him for years. Go on one quasi-date where you dissect his personality quirks in excruciating detail. Show up at his door when he’s emotionally vulnerable and then sleep with him. Promptly abandon him with maximum cruelty. Be sure to tell him, “It’s not me. It’s you,” in the form of, “You’re just not ready yet.”

Carol Thursday (S5E2 Cartouche): Be very attractive. Be suddenly, unexpectedly available. Be directly in his path. This means you can skip the date part (a drink will do). Go straight to sleeping with him. Then go straight to the realization that this might be…one of the most awkward situations you’ve ever gotten yourself into. Manage to handle it all with amazing sweetness and grace nonetheless.

Claudine (S5E3 Passenger): Be very attractive. Be suddenly, unexpectedly available. Be directly in his path. Bonus points if the woman he actually wants practically throws you into his arms. Go straight to sleeping with him. Tease him. Toy with him like a capricious child. Play games for your own amusement. Abandon him with maximum cruelty.

4) One-Off Approaches

Comments: Technically not actual attempts at seduction so...

School Girls (S2E2 Nocturne): Talk about how dreamy he is like we do on Tumblr. Given enough time, write “Love you” in eye liner on your eyelids as per: Indiana Jones movie. Blink very slowly during all interrogations.

Anna-Britt Clark (S4E2 Canticle): Be very attractive. Despise tan lines. Work on said tan next to swimming pool at rock-band-murder-mansion. Show him your (tan line free) naked torso. Find his very “English” discomfort perplexing but charming.

Eve Thorne (S5E1 Muse): You don’t actually *want* to seduce him. He’s a cop *and* a condescending prick. However, the seduction will happen anyway. You won’t sleep together. You won’t even touch. But the hate-flirting will be amazing.

5) The "Let's-Try-a-Normal-Relationship-Just-Once" Approach

Comments: She was too psychologically healthy for you. In the end it was for the best (...except for the murder and prison parts).

Monica Hicks (S2E3 Sway): Find yourself recruited for some light caregiving. Be absolutely charming. After tactless date mix-up and adorable mattress incident at department store, proceed to have actual healthy relationship. Hang out listening to music, discuss your future together, buy him a cute scarf. Then wake up one morning to find out he’s in prison—and about that scarf…

6) The "This-Doesn't-Happen-in-Real-Life" Approach

Comments: It was opera—and by opera rules he actually got off pretty easy.

Violetta Talenti** (S7E1: Oracle): Engineer improbable but spectacular first encounter—twice. Finagle one in Venice and one in Oxford. Overcome all of his valid moral objections and engage in a lengthy, passionate affair. When the moment of truth arrives, reject him with maximum possible cruelty. Die in his arms. Use your last words to ensure that he spends the rest of his life feeling conflicted and confused about the true nature of your feelings towards him.

**Also might fall into "I-Forgot-to-Tell-You-I’m-a-Killer" but we will never know for sure

7) The "We-Aren't-Explicitly-Saying-It-But-You-Know" Approach

Comments: Don't try this at home kids. It will end badly for you. Highly effective, however, when Morse and Thursday need to make up and be friends again.

Joss Bixby (S3E1 Ride): Be the UK Great Gatsby. Invite him to your over-the-top parties. Gracefully take it in stride and allow him to appear extra-clever when he points out that your latest art purchase is a forgery. Manage to be charming and self-deprecating while flirting outrageously with him. Offer him jobs. Give him cars. Have lots of emotionally charged moments (especially on dark docks) and say incredibly poetic things. Die tragically so he can mourn you forever but also use your passing as an excuse to reconnect with his former mentor.

Ludo Talenti (S7E1 Oracle): Be evil. Come up with an evil plan. Get your wife to seduce him. Then (ha, ha) you will also seduce him. You will both succeed beyond your wildest dreams. He will be the most thoroughly seduced man ever. However, once you have rejected him with maximum possible cruelty by pretending you actually care that he was sleeping with your wife, he will discover your secret life of crime and come after you. You will die (justifiably, not tragically), after killing your wife and your death will providing yet another opportunity for our hero to reconnect with his estranged mentor.

8) The "Be-the-One-That-Got-Away" Approach

Comments: Definitely the method of choice for Morse seduction. 100% effective. Hands-down winner!

Joan Thursday (S1E2 Fugue): Be very attractive, articulate, and idealistic. Be the daughter of his mentor/best friend/father figure/brother-in-arms. Have lots of incredibly charged emotional encounters but never say anything directly to him about your complicated feelings. Be together during highly significant moments in your lives, but don’t ever go on a real date (pedestrian!). Touch in a variety of meaningful and sometimes even affectionate ways, but never engage in anything blatent. A passionate kiss would be unthinkable. And never, ever sleep together! Still manage to abandon him with maximum cruelty. Still manage to be the love of his life. Well done you!

#itv endeavour #endeavour morse #shaun evans #half naked wednesday #aka the wednesday special #hnw #but with no actual nakedness #but with ways to possibly get him naked #eventually #i probably missed someone but oh well

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