#and the Knight is in the wrong but its kind of sad to see him being reduced down to his worst action | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

rayroseu · 7 months

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This line is making me sad akjdkakdks its making me imagine that once Malleus sees that his overblot causes pain rather than making the people of his life happy... he'll realize that "he is no good as a king at all since he harmed his people"😭😭

"Seeing you all worry helped me calm down..." ARGHH IT MAKES ME THINK OF THE SCENE WHERE HE SAW HOW ANGUISHED SILVER WAS ABOUT LILIA'S DEPARTURE... Like... I CANT??😭😭 HE'S SO CARING ABOUT THE HAPPINESS OF OTHERS BECAUSE THATS AN EMOTION HE RARELY FELT SO HE VIEWS IT AS THE MOST PRECIOUS FEELING ??

but sadness and partings and goodbyes..."harms happiness", thats why he just created a world where it never exists... He's not just doing it for his own desires KSJAKDJWKD plus if "all dreams come true" none of the previous overblots wouldve occured and they'll live a peaceful life... but living that way would stagnate their growth... they'll be living the same life repeatedly without any improvements towards themselves

that's why even if Malleus' overblot stems from a good intention, his vision is not applicable to a human life as we all require growing up, overcoming hardships, admitting our mistakes and developing out from that... Those painful feelings are what makes a human life more meaningful and allows a person to give themselves a genuine good life. 🥲🥲🥲

But Malleus who's still in the state of "learning to be human", he cannot naturally perceive that kind of moral.

I just hope that after Book 7 there's no narrative implication that Malleus' coping was flat out purely wrong lol Bcs as Yuu said, everyone wishes they won't lose anyone important to them either...

Going back to the fact that he feels responsible for the happiness of others... I think Malleus lives his life very literally...

I think it was Lilia who said this...(?) That Malleus' power (or the Draconia's power in general) gives happiness to the people of Briar Valley (as their power can protect the dark faes) 🥲✨

Maybe this is the reason why he's "so desperate" in keeping the happiness of others and also giving them blessings that'll surely make them happy...

Okay separate theory... Maybe I'm just overthinking lol But the occurence of "falling" in TWST is so fascinating to me since thats a heavy reference to "Alice Falling In Wonderland" yk

Book 6 we already had Idia falling to the Underworld because he wants to follow Ortho, There's this implication that Overblots "falling to a deep sleep/darkness" thats why all overblotees "wakes up after their own overblot... I wonder if Overblot Malleus will take a fall as well??? His overblot title is "The King of Abyss" but I doubt that the "timeless Sage Island" is the abyss yk? What if we actually learn about the origin of Overblots through Malleus Overblot?

Because in the trailer we can see him snapping out in awareness(waking up) before he's trapped in thorns in what seems to be an Abyss--- So maybe, we won't defeat Malleus Overblot bcs he'll wake up from it (presumeably once he realizes that his overblot caused Lilia and the others pain???) but him breaking his overblot wont be possible bcs the "darkness" will engulf him of smth

I'm thinking of this because the existence of Overblot is so weird. General Lilia should've recognized the blot when it was taking Silver because of his despair since before Leona's overblot, he knew the vibes of whats occuring yk and same thing with Malleus with how he knew that he's planning to overblot, plus he knows the existence of STYX whos focused on overblot too

But strangely, the mages of the past (Meleanor and Knight of Dawn even Lilia and Baul) dont seem to possess any magic limitations concerning blot accumulation, additionally they dont even have magestones (that they use to gauge their blot consumption like NRC pens). Which makes me think that "blot or overblot" was not a "trait" that existed naturally in mages???

Since TWST world's history is implied to be changed... I wonder if blot existence was something that "a being" made up/cursed upon all mages lol

Idk where Im going with this tbhhhh ajsjaj but I just think its suspicious that only human magicians is heavily concerned with blot accumulation... whereas Malleus and Lilia never worries about using magic too much...

So wild guess, maybe Maleficia (since shes the only powerful person here lol) cursed "magic in general" so humans will never be on par with fae's magical abilities no matter how hard they develop it

Ig its to never repeat the "occurence of another Knight of Dawn" who's magic is even stronger than faes since he has no limitation so she created blot to curse humans to limit their magic else they'll fall into "darkness" idk

#twst #notes #malleus draconia #lilia vanrouge #lian notes #disney twst #twst disney #twst theory #twst glorious masquerade #twistedwonderland #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland headcanons #twisted wonderland book 7 #twisted wonderland theory #BOY THIS GOT OUT OF HAND AJDHAJDJW

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everyones-least-favorite-bard · 8 months

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hey uh actually its time for me to vomit some thoughts on ghostbat

i really do love all the content out here for them in the vein of like divorced-core bitchy snarking and whatnot its funny its classic fandom behavior so its got that nostalgia factor its real fun to see but (non derogatory) but! i feel like thats such a watered down way of observing them. a reflection of a reflection of a reflection if u know what i mean

like obviously this isnt a new thing fandom is doing dynamics get dissolved into the simplest, most consumable caricatures of themselves possible all the time. its like a rite of passage at this point. but there are truly so many fascinating directions you could take ghostbat in particular and seeing it dissolved into just. gesturing at the above paragraph. that. is kind of sad.

i think (and this is just my observations from reading batman the knight and vol 3 of batman inc) one of the keys to their dynamic that really gets me is how modern-era (for lack of a better term) ghostmaker is consistently chasing bruce's shadow. i would say most of his actions can be described as being motivated by a desire to understand and be understood by batman.

like. hes living in batman's shadow not because batman's reputation precedes him or because batman is more capable than he is but because there is something fundamental in batman that ghostmaker believes he lacks. it's a key part of the infamous pseudo-break-up-in-the-rain in issue 105 of batman (2016) when bruce leaves khoa for gotham: bruce says, “you’re sick. there’s a part of you that’s broken and you’re angry that it’s not broken in me.” and khoa is reasonably incensed by this and takes a swing at him. they devolve into a fight that ends with the agreement we saw dick reference obliquely in issue 104.

of course, this assertion is categorically false—bruce himself points it out later in the 2021 batman annual. ghostmaker discusses his latest take-down of a major portion of his rogues gallery and how his successful defeat of all of them makes him a fundamentally better crime-fighter/vigilante than batman since he’s doing it without any of the personal vendettas and attachments bruce has.

but the key is that in his recounting of his battle he inadvertently reveals that he does in fact have a connection with each of them: madame midas and kid kawaii in particular. madame midas took down his fathers business when khoa was young and we see in his memory that this is something that deeply upset him and something he never forgot. in his actual take-down of her he brings it back up when he delivers the killing blow (batman annual 2021). with kid kawaii hes visibly upset by her physical appearance being that of a child and regularly does his best in their fights to take her down in a way that can hopefully allow whatever child-like portions of her remain to be saved (batman 108). i believe one of his battles with her actually contributed to her creators having to put an emotional inhibitor in her since some of what he'd said last time they fought got through to her (batman 107/108).

and bruce points this out!! he's somewhat subtle about it, of course, but he points out that no actually, khoa isn't free from this fundamentally very human part of him that wants to help people because it's good and that wants justice for wrongs slighted against him. still in the batman annual issue, he says, “you spent years focused on a single crime lord. that dedication isn’t about glory or efficacy. there’s a reason why this victory matters to you. a reason why you care.” and khoa (after a flashback) gives an embarrassingly flimsy defense in response to this but it’s still very, very clear that he does, in fact, suffer from the same bleeding-heart syndrome bruce does—if perhaps not as intensely.

obviously i have my gripes and whatnot with khoa being tagged as a psychopath since it seems kind of flimsy at best but i don't know enough about aspd-spectrum disorders to really pin it as definitively good or bad but still!! still!! he does have the personal stake in vigilantism that he condemns bruce for having (not even touching on the whole phantom one/clownhunter arc). at the end of the day ghostmaker believes hes missing this unnameable quality of empathy/desire for justice and he thinks that's what separates him from bruce and what makes them incompatible as partners (vigilante partners but also like. take that as you will): it is not.

the reason they cannot work together is because khoa believes he is missing this part of himself and as long as he continues to believe he's incapable of these things he's never going to measure up to his ideal of batman in any of the ways that matter.

on the batman end of things i feel like bruce is most characterized (at least in the batman the knight era of their relationship) by his desire to see khoa “fixed,” for lack of a better word. he initially takes khoa at face value for things, so when khoa gives his whole "i’m a vigilante for the art, the drama" speech he believes him.

it's actually a very sweet kind of naivete—like, of course, why wouldn't khoa know why he's doing this? bruce is very clear in his convictions regarding his motives for vigilantism and he and khoa are at the very least intellectually matched, so why wouldn't khoa be honest? why wouldnt he know the reason why he fights? if minhkhoa khan, the ghostmaker, says he fights crime because he believes in the aestheticism of a job well done, why wouldn’t bruce believe him?

so it becomes a point of contention between them for a very long time because bruce believes this kind of selfish method/motive and the incompatibility between them because of it will eclipse any relationship they have and, looking at the notorious issue 105 rain fight, it technically has. in their first mini-divorce arc in issue 6 of batman the knight in which they have a fistfight in the snow and khoa leaves bruce after beating the shit out of him he spends much of the fight talking, again, about the artistry of crime-fighting and how he enjoys the challenge of it more than the justice. when he wins the fight, he stands over bruce with a gun and contemplates shooting him (contemplates being used generously here: he stands over bruce visibly anguished before dropping the gun) and his excuse for not finishing bruce off is just that it would be, “too easy" (batman the knight issue 6). again: bruce has no reason to question this—even in a brutal physical altercation khoa continues touting his vaguely hedonistic motives behind joining bruce’s crusade. there is no reason why bruce shouldn’t believe him.

its only when he comes back in issue 8 and leaves with bruce towards the league of assassins that we see bruce kind of begin questioning how true khoa’s cited motivations are. obviously he's still pretty deeply embroiled in his Woe: I the Bat am Alone theatre kid bullshit—“this can’t last. and i think we both know it.”—so he spends most of their time together more observing the idea of khoa he has in mind and convincing himself that anything he sees outside of his established framework isn’t real, but we see when they escape ra's and blow up a major league of assassins headquarters that the illusion is starting to slip (batman the knight issue 9).

in their one-v-one combat for the position of demon’s heir (demon’s heart in bruce’s case) bruce’s monologue switches out of his doom-and-gloom khoa and i are incompatible talk into more of the space we see him in around the issue 105 break-up: during their fight bruce says, “there’s nothing to you! there’s nothing there! you know what’s in me?! everything!” which is a less accusatory version of the 105 quote but still in the same vein (batman the knight issue 10). so we see bruce has moved past taking khoa at face value regarding his joy in “the artistry of crime-fighting” but he still hasn’t quite shifted further into recognizing khoa’s other/true motives.

the rain break-up on bruce’s end, then, shows a further evolution of his interpretation of khoa’s behavior: he believes khoa’s desire to continue working with him is founded from a desire to keep bruce on his level—an action rooted in jealousy over something he will never be able to obtain. khoa believes this as well since, as stated before, he hits bruce in the face immediately after it’s pointed out. but even then he is still taking what khoa says at face value: he still believes khoa is only motivated by his thirst for a challenge and that khoa wants bruce by his side more so he isn’t alone in his empty hedonism than for actual wanting of bruce himself. this informs his reaction in issue 104 after he and robin chase a criminal to singapore: after his undisclosed argument with khoa he is visibly upset over the state of their relationship but believes it irreparable due to the differences in their morals.

i think from there though, bruce only begins picking out the gaps in the mess that is khoa (that we see anyway) when khoa’s telling him about his grand exploits after they meet up again. while their earlier conversations (ie; batman asking ghostmaker to stay in late issue 105) definitely reveal bruce’s newer perspective on khoa, it’s really only the batman annual 2021 conversation where we see bruce make the jump to further filling in what khoa is (very loudly) not saying. another tumblr post also mentioned the scene being the first recorded mention of bruce saying khoa’s name after the rain fight—which considering the last time we saw him say it was The Fucking Rain Break Up Again, sort of thematically implies he’s reached another level of understanding with khoa.

so i’d say on batman’s end he very badly wants to understand khoa, but he’s also only just starting to realize that he doesn’t have enough of the pieces.

this got away from me tbh but the point being: ghostbat has more nuance than a lot of incorrect-quote-y type content has room for.

#although ig that could be said about any fandom character dynamic tbh.#this isnt even touching on the batman inc stuff that went down #im waiting for it to finish before i go there but my god batmans not even really in the gd comic and theres STILL rampant ghostbat bullshit #also didnt hit the issue 103 (iirc?) bit with khoa sitting beside bruce while he meditates in the desert #another crazy insane moment between these fuckers #clutching my fucking head #ghostbat #dc comics #ghostmaker #minhkhoa khan #batman #bruce wayne #dc meta #bards dc thoughts #bard writes

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thedeathofduty · 2 years

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Talisman

Summary: King Viserys I dies, sending the royal family and your own life into disarray. When Aemond is sent on his way to Storm's End and your betrothal is called off, the Queen promises to do right by you as soon as she is able. That night, your fears, memories, and insecurities get the better of you.

Pairing: Aemond Targaryen x UnspecifiedHouse!F!Reader

Warning(s): Very, very brief mention of sex

A/N: Thank god that more talented people than I have already gifed every second we've gotten of Aemond otherwise I would've had to put a super pixelated screenshot down there instead. How do you guys make these? Here's part two!

Queen Alicent had insisted on speaking to you alone, without even your father or the Lord Hand as witnesses, which set your already frayed nerves to what felt like their very breaking point. Your hands were clasped tightly together in your lap and still, you could not stop their trembling. The two of you were sitting in her chambers and her handmaiden was pouring the two of you some tea before quietly leaving the room. You had known, of course, that something was wrong. Just a mere hour ago, your father had been all but dragged from his study and corralled into the throne room with all the rest of the High Lords and Ladies. No matter how desperately you cried out, none of the knights of the Kingsguard would tell you where they were taking him or what was happening.

And now here you were, sitting across from the Queen who regarded you with kind, sad eyes. She had never looked at you like this before. "Lady Y/N," she started before clearing her throat and glancing down at the small cup in front of you, "please, before we begin. It will help with your nerves." You nodded quickly, grasping the cup in your hand and hissing when some of the tea spilled on your fingers as you brought it up to your lips. "I tell you this now with the utmost confidence in your ability to be understanding... and patient." You looked at her over the rim of your cup. She pressed her lips together, refusing to meet your gaze for a moment before closing her eyes and sighing deeply. "The King is passed."

"Wh-what?" Your cup clattered against the table as you clumsily set it down.

"Please," she murmured and you held your tongue. "He named my son Aegon as his successor and, though my father believes in the inevitability of war, I do not. I am trying my best to tread a different path, to do what needs be done without bloodshed. There is no reason why thousands should die, why the Princess and her family should suffer, why the dragons should be turned loose. Do you understand?" You opened your mouth, but she continued. "There is a better way, Lady Y/N. I can see the path towards peace so clearly now. But..." She sighed, pushing her own cup aside and reaching across the table to grab your hands. "Even peace is not without sacrifice. Have you seen Aemond today at all?"

"No, Your Grace. I tried looking for him, I was hoping he could lend me some clarity, but I could not find him." You had even gathered your skirts and run to the training grounds where Ser Criston usually was, hoping maybe he could tell you where to find your betrothed, but the area was deserted. That was where a guard had found you and brought you before the Queen. "Do you know where he is?"

"I do, yes." She sighed again, her eyebrows drawn together, looking like each word was cutting her tongue on its way out of her mouth. "Lady Y/N, you must understand. I hold you in the highest regard. I cannot think of a young woman more suited for my son. You are dutiful and kind. I know he was quite taken with you, but whether there is to be war or not, we must strengthen our house. We must forge difficult alliances to persuade the Princess Rhaenyra to accept this new order. Gods, do I wish it could be different. Would that I or any of my children had been married for love and not politics." Your breath hitched.

Your betrothal to Aemond had been announced only a few short months ago, but he had caught your attention the moment you entered King's Landing a year ago. You remembered everything your Lady Mother had told you back when she was alive about how making a man fall in love with you was almost like casting a spell. 'You have to bewitch him, be the very air he breathes,' she'd told you one night shortly after you'd bled your first moon. Back then you were unsure of what she had meant, but you accepted the bottle of lavender oil and rose petals she had given you then. Years later when you would sit and pretend to read at the edge of the training grounds under the trees there, you still wore it on your neck. It made you feel womanly and powerful and more confident than you really were. Eventually, he noticed you, too.

Tears pricked at the corners of your eyes and you looked out the window, wishing a stiff breeze would pick you up and carry you home. Surely, she couldn't possibly mean...

"Aemond is to be betrothed to one of Borros Baratheon's girls." There it was. You tried to tug your hands away, but she only held them tighter and stroked the back of them with her thumbs. "But I swear to you, Lady Y/N, that you will not be cast aside. I know of the affection you both had for each other and I am sorry that it must be this way, but I promise that as soon as the Princess accepts our peace terms, I will personally secure a betrothal befitting a woman of your station and quality. I swear this to you." She squeezed your hands again and you swallowed the burning lump of coal in your throat. When the two of you locked eyes, you weren't ready to see that they were just as tearful as yours felt.

"What will happen to me?" Your voice trembled and broke at the edges, your mind racing with images of yourself next to or beneath some old, perverted Lord. You thought you would be one of the lucky girls. How stupid you felt. Fresh tears sprang into your eyes as one finally fell.

"Nothing, my dear girl. You and your father will both be safe and well taken care of here." The Queen reached up and gently brushed a stray lock of hair from your face, her eyes mirroring your own.

None of the people at court were even allowed to go to the Coronation. It was a pageant reserved only for the smallfolk, to make sure that they saw Aegon as their one, true King. You cared not for any of that nonsense, the politicking of it all, the "stinking, bloody outrage of it all", as your father had shouted at supper that night, slamming his fist on the table and forcing both your cups to spill. For once, you said nothing about his outburst, focusing instead on moving your food around on your plate until it was too cold to eat anymore.

"Queen Alicent told me she would find me another match."

"Another match," he scoffed, shaking his head, "What could be a better match than the Prince?"

What indeed.

You excused yourself early, leaving your father to puff and fume as uselessly as he wanted. He may complain within the confines of your four walls, but you knew he would never push for you and you could forgive him for that. He would never raise a hand to you and he loved you enough most days. On some of those days, you even felt sorry for him. He was all alone in the world, with only you for comfort and you were destined to leave him behind to start a family of your own someday.

As you lie in your bed that night, your eyes glued to the ceiling, you tried to quiet the drumming of your heart enough to find some semblance of rest. You had seen Aemond only last night and though you knew thinking of him was the last thing that would help calm you, you could do nothing to stop yourself. The apartments you shared with your father overlooked the gardens, a step up the ladder that Aemond had facilitated for you out of a desire to see you elevated to the status he'd said you deserved. Were you to lose even this now that you had lost him, too?

Aemond had arrived in a foul mood after the dinner with his family. Though it went against the rules of propriety, you knew your father was willing to bend or even break those rules for you, as he made clear when he allowed you to take Aemond's arm and lead him into your chambers. It had nothing to do with trust or faith and everything to do with status. Maybe some part of him even hoped the Prince had already deflowered you and you were with child so the Hightowers would have no choice but to go forward with the wedding. As you gently closed the door behind you, you felt... lucky, more than anything.

'What troubles you, My Prince?' You almost never called Aemond that anymore, except maybe in jest, but you had not seen him this cross in a while. He stood in front of your small fireplace with his back to you, his arms crossed over his chest and his head bowed. Every line in his body was taut as a bowstring and while you ached to reach out and smooth a comforting hand over his back, fear stayed your hand.

When he turned to you, there was a faint smile on his lips and he beckoned you over with a welcoming hand. 'I am not so troubled that you have to resort to naming me with titles, my love.' You sighed gratefully and leaned into him as his arm curled around you. The two of you stood there for a few moments and you finally rubbed your hand on his back like you had ached to just moments before. 'You see it, do you not? My nephews.'

You hummed, your mouth twisting in discomfort. 'Yes, they are...' You struggled to find the right way to phrase it. Imposters? Proof of the Princess Rhaenyra's indiscretions? Not of Velaryon blood? All true.

'Bastards.' He stepped away from you then, clenching his hands into fists. 'Unfit to rule over even a patch of rock in the Isle of Faces and yet one is to be King someday and the other Lord of the Tides.' One hand brushed against his eyepatch, his face souring. 'It is an absurdity. And I alone am regarded as the problem, for-for speaking the truth others so spinelessly ignore!'

'You know why, Aemond. Your father,' you paused and snorted, 'is hardly your father.'

'Even my mother stood against me tonight.' When he looked at you, you could see the sorrow in his shining blue eye and you could not stop yourself, you brought your hands up to caress his face, your fingers tracing his scar. You leaned up on your toes and drank his sadness from his lips as he gripped your waist so tightly, you thought he meant to breathe your soul in like it was a plume of smoke and vapor. 'Are you with me, my little talisman?' he'd asked as soon as he gave you a hair's breadth of space to answer him.

It almost hurt that he asked. Did he not know? But you understood how he liked to hear you swear your allegiance over and over again. 'I am with you, my love.'

To think that was only one night ago and now here you were, alone in your room with nothing but memories and your heart flying away to be claimed by some girl for the sake of a war that you had no personal stake in. Never had you thought you would be so lucky as to be allowed to marry for love, but for a moment it seemed that the Mother had smiled upon you with all her mercy and warmth, as your own mother no longer could, only for everything to be cruelly ripped away from you without even so much as a goodbye or an apology from the man who was to be your husband. You knew he loved you even if he never said those exact words aloud. It shined out of every inch of him like starlight. You had never needed to hear it until now.

Would he find the Baratheon girl he was to be promised to quite beautiful? Would she "bewitch" him too? Would she become his new talisman, the one thing he swore by for every scrap of fortune in his life? He used to tell you the gods had been kind enough to leave him with one eye so he could look at you. Would he tell her that?

You stomach turned as you imagine him and some other girl... together, in the way you had been craving from him for so long. You had never wanted anyone in such a way, had never even touched yourself until you met him. It was like he had lit a fire inside you and he was the only one who was meant to put it out. The gods are cruel.

You flipped over onto your stomach, listening to the wind blowing through the gardens outside your window. Though you longed for him, for his comforting words and loving embrace, even for his body in bed beside you, for once, just once, you also hoped that you would never have to see him again. The thought of seeing him like that, with a pretty little wife hanging off his arm, sent a wave of tears to your eyes. You were alone now. There was no need to hide from anyone and, even if your father was awake, he had never interrupted you when you were despondent like this before, not even after your mother's death. With the hope of lightening your heart's heavy burden, you unclenched and allowed yourself to sob into your pillow.

#mine #aemond targaryen #aemond targaryen x reader #hotd #aemond fic #this was actually supposed to be way longer but #i haven't written anything in a long time and i'm scared that if i try to bite off more than i can chew #we will all end up with nothing so here you go #bone apple teeth

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heavy-is-the-crown-if · 2 years

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The game will be rated 18+ for strong languages, heavy themes, and the possible presence of explicit sexual content.

Heavy is the crown...

That's the first thing Merlin said to you after you woke up in their tower (right after he told you that you were definitely not what he expected but that “we'd deal with it.” But how much weight can a bruised ego carry in the face of the survival of a Kingdom?)

For generations, your family has been in charge of protecting the Sword of Light, and like every 1st born of your generation, it's up to you to pass it on to its true owner.

And here you are, with Clarent, the twin blade of excalibur in your hands. And according to Merlin that's enough to send you on a quest.

You must at all costs reunite the knights of the round table, find Arthur and Morgana and save Camelot (you must also defeat Uther Pendragon, but we'll see about that later...)

Anyway, Merlin has assured you that they will accompany you. They're a powerful sorcerer, right? So what could go wrong?

Arthur Pendragon/Le Fay (The Young Dragon) He/Him

Everyone portrays the young king of Camelot as fair, loyal and kind, and while your family is no stranger to complimenting the young dragon, they know there is more to him than this bright side. Dark whispers also follow the discussion about the young king among your own. And if every coin has two sides, one can only wonder which one you will meet.