#by virtue of being mocked just like them lol | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

annymation · 4 months

Text

The Kingdom of Wishes- A “Wish” Rewrite

Chapter 5- When Blue Turns Green

Chapter 4

(This one has more of my commentaries than most because I was feeling chatty today, let me know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing)

“…Yes… I do have a wish”

Magnifico holds in a laugh, just a bit longer, gotta hold in the act just a bit longer.

Magnifico walks towards her slowly with that same gentle smile he had at the wish ceremony “I knew you had it in you, just needed a lil push, right?” the king extends his hands in front of her, the same way he always does when getting people’s wishes “May I?”

He asks, as if Asha had a choice.

Asha stares at his hands… It’s not like she can actually grant this wish she’s thinking about right now, so she might as well let the king do it for her.

(… Oh you’re waiting for me to say what’s the wish she’s thinking of? Lol this is the chapter opening, read more if you wanna know)

Asha closes her eyes.

Takes a deep breath.

She thinks about her wish.

And…

She forgets.

Magnifico is holding her wish.

Asha thought that after giving up her wish she’d feel a great sense of relief, like a weight being lifted from her shoulders. That’s at least what everyone in Rosas says it feels like…

She feels lied to, because there’s no sense of relief to be found at all.

She feels like she just forgot something really important, it’s not her interest in drawing though, it’s something else, but she can’t for the life of her remember what… She feels like part of her is missing.

While Asha is going through all that emotional turmoil, the villains are looking at her wish as if it’s the most adorable thing in the world.

“Now, was that so hard? All you had to do was think about it and *snaps his fingers* there’s your wish” He says while making the wish bubble levitate slightly above his hand

“Oh and what a beautiful wish it is, it really does suit you well, Asha” the queen complemented in a honeyed voice

“Th-thank you?” Asha doesn’t really know how to react to the complement, of course it suits her, it’s literally the most essential part of her…

Oh god, did I actually just give that to them?

“Could I… maybe take a look at it?” She says meekly raising her hand to reach out for the wish.

Magnifico swiftly moves the wish away from her and holds it above his head, like a bully keeping a toy away from a smaller kid.

“Ah ah ah noooooo peeking~” he singsongs in a mocking reprehending tone “You know the rules Asha, you’ll remember your wish only after I grant it for you” he explains like he’s talking to a toddler.

“I… I know but… Why’s that even a rule again?”

“Oooh you and your questions haha” he laughs while pinching her cheek and shaking her head “It’s more fun that way, sillyhead! So you’re surprised when it does come true!”

(I wanna murder this man I’m writing, I might actually just give Aster a gun idk)

Asha notices how the king is acting more… Mean than before, like yeah he has been kinda pushy and overly touchy with her, and disrespected her father’s beliefs earlier. But other than that he was being nice overall…

Now it just seems like he’s making fun of her and treating her like a child.

That’s because he has no reason to keep the mask on, he got what he wanted so why keep pretending he respects her at all, right?

Asha rubs her cheek that now feels sore because of the king’s grip, she was already feeling small in their presence before but now she feels like she’s the size of an insect.

“Patience is a virtue, my doll” the queen states serenely.

Magnifico glances at his wife with a little “Oh I see what you did there” smirk, referring to how she just called Asha a doll, get it? Cause he just turned her into a doll minutes ago with an illusion.

“Tell you what Asha, I was going to grant all of today’s wishes next week, buuuut because I like you soooooo much I shall grant them all… TONIGHT! So you’ll remember it by morning, how about that?” He exclaimed with his usual over the top energy.

In case y’all need a refresher, in my rewrite wishes are granted at night, while everyone sleeps, so when they wake up they can already tell their wish was granted.

Asha is feeling really lost, she doesn’t know what to say or what to do “Yeah that… that sounds great, can’t wait” she forces a clearly fake smile

“Oh I’m sure you can’t my dear, so how about you just take your leave now and go to sleep humm? The sooner you do the faster tomorrow will arrive!” The king says as he guides her to the exit of the treasure room

Asha’s eyes widened in confusion “Wh-what? But didn’t you say dinner was in an hour?”

The king had to hold in a laugh once again. The girl actually believed she’d be allowed to sit with them? How pathetically naive.

“I know Asha, but I just can’t help but notice how tired you are.” He says giving her a fake expression of pity

“Yes little one, you almost fell on the floor a minute ago had I not caught you” The queen adds “Clearly you need sleep, today was a big day for you, wasn’t it?”

“I’m not tired really I just-“

“I said” the king interrupts, his voice stern this time, as he makes direct eye contact with Asha and his blue eyes turn green for a second “You are tired, you should go home, now.”

Asha is frozen in place as she nods slowly “Okay.”

(If you’re wondering why he didn’t use this mild hypnotic ability earlier when they were trying to convince her to give her wish, it's simply because it had to be her choice to give it away, otherwise the magic doesn't work)

The king’s expression relaxes “That’s better…WELP!” He snaps his fingers and starts talking really fast “There! Now all the doors that lead to the exit are open! Thank you for coming sweetheart! Nighty night now! Sweet dreams! Buh-byeeeee!”

B L A M

The door slams on her face

Asha’s now outside the treasure room all alone

About 5 seconds pass

The door opens again

“Don’t forget your goat.”

Magnifico’s is holding a very happy Valentino by the colar of his little goat sweater

He drops Valentino on Asha’s arms and-

B L A M

The door closes again.

…

“Good night…”

She says quietly and starts walking down the stairs, making her way back to the exit.

As she walks we cut back to the couple real quick.

Magnifico has his ear glued to the door trying to hear Asha’s footsteps getting farther away. He has mischievous smile on his face.

Amaya is just standing there watching him do so, smiling just as wickedly as her husband.

“Is she gone yet?”

“Shh shhh wait” he signals to her with a finger on his lips

He no longer hear her steps, she’s far away enough.

Magnifico cannot hold it in anymore and starts letting out a wheezed laugh…That grows into a cackle… And then evolves into an outright deranged fit of uncontrollable laughter as he’s leaning on the door hugging his sides.

Amable is laughing along with him, letting a dark chuckle that grows into a maniacal giggling.

Their voices echo through the dark room.

(… I need you guys to understand these two are losing their minds because they successfully manipulated an 18 year old… Because they’re petty she raised her voice to them in public… These people are in their 50s… What I’m saying is the straights are not okay)

So we cut back to Asha who’s getting near the entrance of the castle, and just like how the king said, the door is open.

Her expression is a mix of lost, sadness, but most of all defeat.

Even though she understands she’ll get this wish granted tomorrow, it was still something that was taken away from her

She doesn’t feel like she’s whole anymore.

“Is this what people travel days on end to experience here in Rosas? Give away part of themselves… So they can have it be made a reality by someone they don’t even know?”

She hugs Valentino tightly, and he realizes something is wrong, so he begins licking Asha’s cheek.

She smiles a little bit with that “Thanks Val. I’ll be okay.”

She puts him on the floor to take some deep breaths before she leaves

She starts talking to Valentino (more so to herself, really)

“I mean, maybe I’m just being dramatic, like they said, I’ll get my wish granted tomorrow, right? Then I’ll feel normal…”

She's distracted talking to herself so she doesn’t notice…

That the door to the room where the queen left Bravo in earlier…

Is open.

“But then again… Those two are really not how I thought they’d be at all… I mean yeah, I knew Magnifico was a bit full of himself sometimes and the queen was… well, actually till today I’ve never seen her being nothing but sweet… They were just acting so strange ya know Val?… Valentino?”

“Maaa! Maaa!” Valentino starts bleating, but not to talk to Asha…

He’s talking to Bravo, who just so happens to not have had his dinner yet, and is preparing to pounce at the naive baby goat that just thinks he found a new friend.

“VALENTINO!!! NONONONOGETAWAYFROMHIM!!!” She runs as fast as she can and manages to catch her goat just a millisecond before Bravo made his move.

The lynx is now growling at her aggressively, she looks behind her and sees the door of the castle opened, she can make a run for it and someone outside might be able to help her, she can do it.

Buuuut Valentino is panicking, realizing the gravity of the situation and he kicks his legs to run away, making Asha accidentally drop him.

“NO NO VALENTINO COME BACK!”

He runs up the stairs and the lynx runs after him, Asha obviously follows them running like her life depends on it.

“BAD KITTY! THATS NOT YOUR FOOD THATS MY GOAT!!”

She runs and gets close enough to the wild cat to step in his short tail. He lets out a scream of pain and turns to her with blood thirty eyes

“… Uh That- That was an accident hehehe” she nervously says as the cat prepared to jump no her

She manages to dodge him and starts running up the stairs after Valentino, with the lynx just after them

She’s realizes they’re getting near the treasure room again

“KING MAGNIFICO! QUEEN AMABLE! HELP!! PLEASE!!!”

(GYYYYYAAAA GET YOUR FUC*** DOG BI**

It don’t bite

YES IT DO!!!)

Asha makes it to the treasure room but she has no time to close the door.

But as they run to the other side of the room Bravo steps on the shattered glass slipper Valentino dropped earlier and gets distracted.

(Haha you thought that was just a pointless reference, didn’t you?? BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY PLOT RELEVANT HAHAHA- the writer proceeds to lose her mind as this scene unfolds)

Asha sees this as an opportunity, as soon as she enters a different room she slams the door behind her shut.

She and Valentino are both exhausted, Valentino drops on the floor panting heavily.

“I… *puff* am never… *puff* letting you in this crazy place AGAIN” she says trying to catch her breath

She looks around the room they’re in now

It’s a corridor, with decorative black armors along the way, leading to a new flight of stairs

(I know that you knew what room I was referring to so no need for an image reference, but either way have Magnifico happily jumping on a poor armor’s head)

“… Whoever designed this castle REALLY liked stairs” she comments to herself

She takes Valentino into her arms again.

She can hear Bravo scratching the door behind them and growling angrily.

Asha looks to the stairs in front of her and sighs “Well… Guess we’re not getting out of here unless we ask them to control their crazy cat… Greeeeeeat” she pretty much groans, clearly not looking forward to talking to them again.

She and Valentino start making their way up these new stairs

(Take a shot every time I wrote stairs in these past few chapters)

The ambience is dark, a direct contrast to how it was when Asha first entered the castle. Before it was beautifully illuminated by the sunset lights coming out of the glass windows

And now it’s night time, and the castle is just faintly lit up by some candle lights hanging from the ceiling.

She sees a light coming from the end of the stairs… the light seems to irradiate a mix of blues and greens flashes

Asha then hears something coming from the room she’s approaching… laughter?

That must be their room

She thinks… and wonders what they’re laughing so much about.

Asha reaches the end of the stairs.

She’s now in front of the large door… it’s slightly open, just enough that she can peek through.

She was about to say something like “excuse me” or “sorry to bother you again, but your cat wants to kill me” but her mouth was closed shut when she heard

“OH that stubborn little BRAT got me a headache!” Magnifico complained loudly while massaging both sides of his temple with his fingers “I never had to use THAT much mind bending magic on anyone before” he says sounding a mix of frustrated and almost impressed

(He’s referring to that whole illusion sequence at the end of their villain duet last chapter)

Mind bending magic?…What’s he talking about?

Asha looks through the small opening in the door and sees the king and queen are standing in the middle of the wishes room

(Like how Asha and Magnifico are here in this concept art)

Asha is in awe with the sheer beauty of all of them in that majestic room. She understands how much each one of those bubbles represents the most beautiful part of so many people, and that alone fills her with joy.

“Aww my poor darling” the queen coos as she caresses her husband’s head “You deserve some much needed rest, say, how about I prepare a sleeping potion for you before we go to bed humm?” She suggests lovingly, but not like the fake loving voice she does all the time, this one felt absolutely genuine.

Asha remembers the tales that queen Amable used to be an amazing potion maker when she first arrived in Rosas… But that’s something no one really talks about anymore.

“Oh please do, my love.” Magnifico looks at his wife with a devoted passion, then turns his attention to the wishes above him with a malicious glee “But before that, let us see which lucky subjects get their wishes improved tonight” he lets out a dark chuckle

Improved? What's THAT supposed to mean??

Asha holds Valentino close to her and places her hand on his mouth so he won't make a sound

Asha watches as the king moves his arms bringing some wish bubbles down, they circle around him swiftly, forming patterns in the air.

(Ya know like how he did in the movie during the “At All Cost” sequence? That was neat, not gonna lie)

Paying more attention she notices something really odd.

Most of the wish bubbles aren’t blue… they’re green.

Asha has never seen green wish bubbles before, only blue ones… like her wish.

Speaking of which

“I thought we’d begin with our little star of tonight, I am oh so looking forward to coming up with something special for her” The queen says sinisterly while tapping her fingers on Asha’s wish bubble. Her voice makes Asha feel a chill run down her spine.

What on earth is going on?

Now she’s trying to hold her own breath so they won’t hear her.

“Ooh you know how I always leave the best for last, my sweet. Besides, there’s some wishes here that have been gathering dust for a while” Magnifico gazes upon the wishes floating around him like a predator watching his prey “And what kind of king would I be if I left our precious people waiting, right?” He adds with sarcasm.

Amaya just shrugs and goes to the table with potions and alchemy materials to start preparing a sleep potion for her beloved husband.

Magnifico makes the wishes spin around him faster and faster “Now lets see… Eeny, meeny, miny… YOU!” All of them suddenly stop moving, Magnifico is pointing at one specific blue orb, he signals with one finger for it to come to him.

As the orb lands on his hands it reveals a young woman flying in the sky, along with a flock of birds.

The king’s face is cruel, but his voice is saccharine sweet “Awww would you look at that my beldam, little Wendy wishes to fly like a bird.”

“Is that so? How lovely” The queen says while preparing her potion “And what shall you do about that? Oh wise and benevolent king” she speaks jokingly.

It’s like they do this pretty much every night, and they just never get tired of it.

“Hmmm… You mentioned last month you’d like to have a mockingbird as a pet, didn’t you?”

The queen gasps with one hand on her chest “Awwn you remember?” She says, already knowing where her husband is going with this, but playfully acting shocked.

“Now how could I ever forget a wish from the only person that matters in this kingdom?” The king says lovingly

Asha feels like she’s gonna pass out, he’s not actually going to do what she thinks he’s going to do… Is he?

“Well mi reina, your wish is my command” He says as he caresses the blue orb and starts mumbling some words in latin as his eyes start glowing green

“Mutatio animae, mutatio mentis, hoc votum fecisti, nunc meum est”

As he says the spell, the image of the young girl named Wendy looks at him terrified, as her arms turn into wings. The king caresses the orb a few more times and it slowly goes from blue… to green.

He removes his hands from the now green orb, revealing inside a little bird flying away scared, like it’s trying to get out.

… Asha holds in a gasp. She feels a single tear forming in the corner of her eye.

The king looks at the wish proudly, admiring his handy work “More of a Wendy Bird than a Mockingbird, but eh, it’ll do” He shrugs as he lets the bubble fly up to join the others “Tomorrow once she wakes up as a speechless helpless little bird, she’ll come flying begging for my help, and voila! You get your bird!” He says excitedly to his wife

“And what will you say if her family comes asking where she is?” The queen asks him, but not out of concern, more like she’s testing him to see if he’d know what would be the right thing to say

“… Not my problem?” He laughs at that

“Darliiiiing~ remember what we practiced”

“Hahah I know I know I’m jesting.” Magnifico says after laughing a bit more, but then his face instantly morphs to a sorrowful expression as he demonstrates what he’d actually say “Oh… I’m deeply sorry, but Wendy wished to be free from you, to live somewhere far far away… I’m sure she’s much happier wherever she is now” as he finishes the little act his face instantly goes back to an evil grin and gives her a bow like an actor.

“Hmmm not bad, you’re getting better” Amable complements softly

“Well, I do have the best teacher” He lifts his head and gazes upon her lovingly.

(This would be so sweet in any other context)

Asha feels like the world is crumbling down around her the more and more with each and every word that comes out of their mouths…

These people were more vicious than she could’ve ever comprehended… They tricked thousands of people… they tricked her.

“NOW!” Magnifico claps loudly, snapping Asha out of her thoughts “Let’s see who’s our next lucky subject~” he says in a singsong voice as the wishes once again start spinning around him, and once again he picks a random one

“A wish to write engaging stories about your culture?… Booooring!” Magnifico yells at the wish, the little man inside the orb holding a pen and paper gets frightened. “How am I supposed to make this fun for us?”

He ponders as he throws the orb to one hand to another several times, playing with it like it’s just a normal ball. The little man in the wish bubble is being thrown side to side like a rag doll.

“Just do the same you’ve done with the royal cooks, my love” Amaya suggests “Change the subject he’ll be writing about to something more interesting.” she says nonchalantly while grinding some herbs with a mortar and pestle for the sleeping potion.

(English is not my first language, so like, learning new words like “mortar and pestle” has been pretty cool :3)

The royal cooks?… Dahlia’s parents.

Asha thinks to herself in horror

“Oooh good idea my love!” Magnifico said excited as he turned his attention to the wish and once again recited the spell in Latin

“Mutatio animae, mutatio mentis, hoc votum fecisti, nunc meum est”

“Aaaaand there, why write about your lame ol’ culture when you can write about something much more important… like ME” the wish is now green and shows the man writing a book about Magnifico.

Asha connects the dots. That family recipe book Dahlia found, THIS is why her mom doesn’t care about it anymore, the king made her only interested in making meals that fit his liking.

(I do love when my set ups pay off)

“Ahem” the queen says with an eyebrow raised and a mischievous smile

“… I MEAN US! WRITE ABOUT US! Of course, I’m sorry my darling, hold on le-let me change it!” Asha sees an emotion that she hasn’t seen from the king ever before, he got nervous, but not in a scared or pretending to be nervous way, more like an “awkward teen trying to impress his crush but he gets flustered” kind of way.

“Heh heh I’m just teasing, dear.” The queen says giggling at her husband’s small panic attack “We both know the less this kingdom knows about my past the better, so really, you may have all the spotlight you want” she speaks sweetly.

The king sighs with relief and comments casually “Hehe indeed, it would cause quite a stir if the people found out their beloved queen was banished from her homeland for being a witch back in the day, now wouldn’t it?”

As soon as the king finishes that sentence a cloud of smoke pops out from one of Amaya’s flasks, making a loud noise.

“Your sleep potion is done… Also, you know I much prefer the term “alchemist”” she corrected him, sounding a bit more serious… like the word "witch" strikes a nerve with her.

“… My apologies my love, I forgot” he says genuinely

(… I might make a blog all about this, because there’s history here, let me know if you’re interested… anyway enough of them being a cute evil couple, Asha is SUFFERING)

Asha is not even that shocked with the reveal that the queen was a witch, that’s minor compared to everything else she has seen.

They tricked THOUSANDS of people for the past 25 years, and no one had a clue…

How many people had their dreams twisted beyond recognition? How many families had their culture erased from their minds after entering Rosas? And how many couldn’t even tell that they’ve been forced into a complacent life of loving nothing but these two monsters?

And… What would they do to her wish?

Asha will get that answer earlier than she thought, as she hears the king say:

“You know, we really should wrap this up, it’s getting late…” he says looking at the stars outside and then turning his attention to Asha’s wish that is floating around, he smiles maliciously “Let’s finish this with our sweet birthday girl’s wish, shall we?”

Asha feels her heart stop.

Magnifico makes the wish fly towards him

Amaya also walks to her husband to take a closer look at the wish.

As they take a look in her wish we see...

Asha happy with other people in Rosas.

That was her wish, to make other's happy, and to be accepted.

Magnifico looks quite disappointed but not surprised "A wish to “Make others happy”… Pffft pathetic." Magnifico rolls his eyes and sighs "She couldn’t even want something only for herself. Now how can I possibly turn this into something entertaining?"

Asha's eyes widen, that's it, that was her wish... She can't really feel a connection to it anymore... Why would she want to be accepted?

(Sooo yeah, just like how Simon’s personality changes because he doesn’t have his wish, a similar thing is gonna happen to Asha, but it’s not gonna be that noticeable)

"Hmmm I can think of a way" The queen says with a wicked gleam in her eyes as an idea forms in her head

"Do tell" he says already anxious to hear what his wife’s words of wisdom.

She walks a few steps away from her husband to start explaining her idea

"Riddle me this, darling... Who makes a kingdom happy?"

Magnifico... The damn king of this forsaken kingdom, struggles with that question for a bit

"Uuuuh... Shoot, I don't know. Uh florists? Backers?...Hair dressers?"

The queen gives him a one arched brow look.

"That’s kind of a vague question, don’t you think? Peasants get excited over the simplest of things" He shrugs

"Fair enough... Let me put this in a different way then... What do we want to make of this girl" She continues her train of thought walking around the room.

"To be honest? I considered just pushing her off the stairs handrails a couple of times today" He states like killing a random 18 year old is just a normal Thursday.

"Yes yes me too, but that's thinking too small, what she has shown today is that she has this almost unbending spirit, so much so she made you tire yourself using your powers... What we need is to put her under control, make sure that she NEVER inspires anyone else to be like her" She explains eloquently.

Asha does not like the sound of that at all.

"I like the sound of that. Buuut how can I do that with such a simple premise? "Make others happy"... Should I just make her WANT to conform to the norm?" He ponders

"That is, again, thinking too small, darling" she walks towards him slowly "Wanna know something I've always wanted?"

Magnifico was kinda taken aback by the sudden change in subject but ok "Well, just tell me and it shall be yours, my queen" he said with his voice dripping with passion

"... I always wanted a daughter"

...

wha-

"W H A T ? !"

Magnifico literally screamed with eyes wide like a bat blinded by the sun, his voice echoed through the room in a way that some of Amaya's potions even shook.

"WOMAN, SINCE WHEN??? I THOUGHT WE AGREED BABIES ARE THE MOST HEINOUS CURSE ONE CAN HAVE CASTED UPON THEM???? NOT TO MENTION I WANT NO HEIRS!!!"

He's not mad by the way, he couldn't get mad at her even if she stabbed him, he's just surprised, really. Because that's something he thought they both agreed on.

Amaya blinks a few times after that reaction, she may love this man more than anything in the world, but wow, his temper is something they really gotta work on.

She continues her train of thought like that didn't just happen.

"Yes... But Asha is not a baby, is she?"

... Oh... Oh no... Asha understood where the queen is going with this

The king did not tho

"... Ooooooh... Uuuuuh??" He stared at his wife, very confused "Not that I’m questioning you dear, but um... Are you suggesting we make THAT girl... A princess?"

(Hehehe subverting the disney princess trope, I love it)

"Precisely." The queen nodded pridefully, then she continued “You change her wish from “I wish to make others happy” to “I wish to be a princess”, it’s semantics since a princess does make the kingdom happy. Her personality will be rewritten to fit that wish, and she shall never question us again.” The queen speaks like she’s just talking about the weather.

The king is not fully convinced though "...Thats all fine and dandy but I thought we were gonna punish her, not give her a life of luxury”

"And who said anything about a life of luxury? You know the guest room on the west wing tower?"

"Yeeeeees?" Magnifico starts to understand his wife’s train of thought

"We lock her up in there." Amaya says it like it's simply the most natural course of action.

"Hmmm" He thinks for a moment with a hand in his chin, and by the looks of it he warms up to the idea "Yeah I can see the appeal now... It’s like throwing her in the dungeon, but in a socially acceptable way." he rationalizes with an evil smirk

"To the people it'll seem like this poor orphan girl just got the wish of a lifetime. While to her, well, she won't remember ever wanting anything else than to obey us... And as a bonus she can stay drawing in her room all day, just how she wanted." She has a wicked smile that grows more and more with every word.

"There's just one caveat to that though” He says with a worried expression “She'd be the heir" He almost whispers like the word frightens him.

The queen shrugs "And? We are too beloved for anyone to dare threaten our lives, and with my potions we can remain young for many MANY years to come" The queen says like that’s all obvious.

Magnifico still looks concerned. He really despises the possibility of anyone getting his crown.

Amaya notes his fear, and genuinely gives him some words of comfort... in their own way "Here's a thought, in the impossible scenario that we may have to come to terms with our own mortality... I'll give the girl my special tea, the same one I gave to your brother all those years ago, and she won't take what is ours. How does that sound?" She speaks calmly... How she's gonna straight up kill this girl if they so happen to become old or sick.

Magnifico's face softens at that, his wife always know the right things to say

"As always, the brightness of your mind outshines the sun, moon and stars, my love." He holds her face tenderly. "Very well then, if a little princess locked up in a tower is what my queen wants, then your wish is my command"

They exchange a kiss.

Magnifico turns his attention back to Asha's wish and mumbles the spell one more time

“Mutatio animae, mutatio mentis, hoc votum fecisti, nunc meum est”

And the blue bubble with Asha smiling among the citizens of Rosas... slowly turns green, and the image inside morphs into Asha smiling forcefully, while standing between the two royals.

... So umm yeah how's Asha feeling right now you may ask?

Yeah our girl is not fine, she's actually panicking. Tears running down her face while she hugs Valentino.

(It's like she's stuck in a story that the writer also can't wait to move along and get to the happy stuff... So let's move this along, shall we?)

Valentino obviously didn't understand anything that just transpired but he sees how sad Asha is, so he tries cheering her up.

"Maa-"

Asha covers his mouth instantly

But they heard it.

"What was that?" Queen Amable whispers.

The two royals start walking to the door.

Their steps are quick.

Asha doesn't think twice and slides down the stairs's handrail.

She’s terrified. If they find out she heard all that she’s as good as dead.

She makes it back to the corridor with the black armors.

Asha knows behind that door there's a savage wild cat... Which now feels less scary than the people coming from those stairs.

She gets an idea.

Asha opens the door quickly and when Bravo notices that it's finally open he runs inside to attac-

B L A M

Asha pushes one of the armors and it falls on the lynx, making a lot of noise.

"WHO'S THERE?!"

Magnifico’s enraged voice echos through the whole castle.

She hears their footsteps quickly approaching.

They have not seen her yet.

She runs as fast as she can to the exit without looking back.

Magnifico and Amaya get to the corridor and find quite the sight...

Their cat has his head stuck in the armor's helmet, he's struggling to get out like those cats you see on youtube that get their head stuck in a jar.

Bravo meows in his raspy voice panicking as he moves around.

"OOH my sweet precious babyyyy! How on earth did this happen??" Amaya rushes to his rescue like a worried mother.

"Bad kitty Bravo, you don't attack armors, just the people inside them" Magnifico says sternly.

Meanwhile our girl is BOOKING IT down those dang long stairs, jumping the steps and almost falling a couple of times.

She doesn’t know if they're actually right behind her or not.

But she’ll not look back to check.

She finally makes it out of the castle.

The wish ceremony celebration is close to ending but there's still a few people in the surroundings of the castle, talking to each other.

Asha just keeps running, she let's go of Valentino, she knows he can keep up with her

So she just keeps running.

Some people see her and try asking what’s wrong.

But she can’t stop.

She' can’t look back.

Tears run down her face.

And...

She’s stopped, by a large hand holding her arm.

Chapter 6

Final Thoughts

AFTER 3 CHAPTERS ASHA IS GETTING AWAY FROM THE STRAIGHT WHITE RICH PEOPLE!!! RUN GIRL RUNNNN

Don’t get me wrong, I LOOOOVE writing these two with a passion, but I wanna focus back on my girl Asha and couldn’t quite do that with those two stealing the spotlight… They gonna keep stealing the show every time they appear in the story tho but hey that’s kinda what it means to be a Disney villain.

With that said, I hope this helped make it pretty clear how Disney royally screwed up when they scrapped the villain couple concept. Like, it’s not just a “oooh that looks neat” thing, NO it’s more of a “THE WRITING POTENTIAL IS UNFATHOMABLE” thing.

Because I cannot stress this enough, we’ve been told through Disney’s WHOLE HISTORY how love is the strongest thing of all, and that’s true… But what happens when two immoral people love each other? WHAT HAPPENS??? Well I’m planning to show here what I think would happen, and it’s scary.

Also a recurring theme I was trying to make very clear in this chapter is how this couple comes from completely different worlds, Amaya was a peasant, Magnifico was born royalty, but they both learned from each other to make themselves more powerful… Actually, I think I might write a whole blog about their respective backstories, like yeah I wrote about them here but this was the early concept (not that it’s out dated, you can still read it if you haven’t yet) but after some further reflection I came up with even more details to flesh them out and make them feel like rounded characters, that although are irredeemable, have their own perspectives on the world that makes them see themselves in the right… Let’s just say they think the world wronged them so they can do the same to others, that’s all I’ll say for now.

Also OH MY GOSH, I did it, the animal sidekicks pretty much are the whole reason the plot is set into motion. I'm actually so happy.

When I first started to think on this scene (Last month) I thought about Asha just going back up the stairs to ask for her wish back because “oh she changed her mind”… which didn’t feel right, ya know? Like yeah it’s cool she’s so determined, but it felt off… And then the idea of the royal couple having a pet lynx showed up to save the day.

It’s kinda funny that none of this would’ve happened if Magnifico just teleported Asha outside after getting her wish… But he was feeling petty as usual so he decided to have her walk AAAAALL the way back… And he accidentally messed up the spell and instead of just opening the door to the exit with the snap of his fingers, he opened ALL the doors, letting Bravo get out. So my point is that Magnifico’s pettiness will bring his downfall, as it should be.

Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! And get hyped because STAR BOY IS COMING!!!

Thank You For Reading!

#disney wish #wish #wish 2023 #wish star #disney #wish asha #wish disney #wish movie #wish rewrite #king magnifico #queen amaya #magnifico x amaya #king magnifico wish #asha #wish reimagined #long post #kingdom of wishes

130 notes · View notes

olderthannetfic · 2 months

Note

You know what obnoxious thing I keep seeing in fandom I wish would stop? This absolute need some people seem to have for their ship to be Representation in some way. Shipping is just imagining scenarios between two characters! You don’t need it to be a Special reason or whatever? I have a ship that is popular and people make weird vague comments about how the fandom is racist because both of them are white and there are other ship options that have poc so the white ship being big is a reflection on how racist the fandom is but the thing is…

Look I’m going to be real with y’all the fandom is for the game Detroit: Become Human and let’s just say the two major black characters are basically stereotypes written by a neocon lib boomer in a story that itself is imho…let’s call it tone deaf and corny af rather than overtly racist but yeah. Black folks on twitter regularly mock this game for good reason. It is very much a boomer white man’s idea of the civil rights movement but with robots. The robots sing actual slave hymns. The main character is essentially a light-skinned Martin Luther King Jr (dubbed Markus Luthur King by blktwt lol) and the religious allegories of him as a savior figure are very on the nose. It is bad lol. It’s not that I wouldn’t want to explore the black characters but the fandom is full of young white people singing the praises of this writing while patting themselves on the back about it which is genuinely uncomfortable to be around. Just my 2 cents but the virtue signaling and insane policing around those two characters makes it unbearable to interact with their content it is deeply sanitized and you WILL get death threats if you attempt any nuance or are critical of the (kinda racist imo) way they were written in canon.

The worst part of this is that Markus has a popular ship with a character a lot of people read or interpret as a more soft or femme gay man and you know what zoomers hate? Femme gay men. So obviously this is made to be ‘problematic’ in some way because these people can’t just admit to being femmphobic/homophobic themselves.

Sometimes it’s easier to stick with the boring white characters in the background because they aren’t being closely guarded by stupid reactionary people who are used to flashing their favorite fictional poc characters as tokens of their own goodness and virtue.

The pinnacle of this game is that moment when the black lady lectures her son about why they need to run the robot underground railroad to Canada.

I watched some playthroughs. Unsurprisingly, I liked the buddy cops with the good development, not the cringey activism plot with too many foils and not enough development of any single relationship and not the the Women Care About Babies plot.

But if I were going to do something fannish with Markus, I'd write him having a fucked up relationship with his mentor's son post game—the surrogate son who thought the guy was great and the estranged son who knew he wasn't but who has also done a bunch of shitty stuff himself.

It's especially hilarious when tryhards think the problem is not enough people shipping Markus with North as if the slashers are going to be into 1. het and 2. yet another unnecessary traumatic sex stuff backstory for a lady.

Even worse, half the whining isn't even about that Nines fanon nonsense being more popular than Markus: it's about how Markus/Connor would be better than Hank/Connor because old people are ew.

Sorry, children, a lot of people are here to thirst for Clancy Brown and because they'll turn up for any Caves of Steel ripoff. Other Connor ships were never in the running.

55 notes · View notes

gaycrittercentral · 1 year

Note

Hopefully this will brain running and give you enough energy until the end of the shift

Instead of the seven sins for Max how about the seven heavenly virtues for Sam?

( optional what do you think they do if the seven sins of max meet the heavenly virtues of Sam )

Oh shit dude that’s SO GOOD FJKDLFJKSLJDSKFJS I gotta get out the laptop for this one >:D ok so the seven heavenly virtues (as defined by Wikipedia, anyhow) are sort of opposites of the seven deadly sins, or at least you can interpret them that way. In no particular order they are Kindness, Diligence, Patience, Temperance, Charity, Humility, and Chastity. And HOOOOOO BOY do I have ideas for them I been thinkin about this all night!!

This is gonna get long, obviously, so the rest is under the cut.

First off I just want to discuss how I interpret this concept in general, as well as some potential circumstances that could lead to it happening. As far as I see it, the seven deadly sins are really just normal behaviors taken to the extreme, which can be healthy in moderation; therefore, the heavenly virtues are the same thing but in the opposite direction. They’re values that are good and helpful until you start placing too much emphasis on them and overdoing it, and then they’re harmful to you. Separated from all other aspects of Sam’s personality, many of them are honestly pretty unhealthy despite being so-called virtues.

As for how they could’ve come into existence, either we’re looking at some kind of bizarre dark version of Hugh Bliss who wants to eat all the bad emotions people experience (lol wonder what he'd be like) or, as I feel is easier to implement, he decided to pluck out all Sam’s virtues so they could go spread his bliss in the world and what’s left of Sam won’t want to help Max defeat Bliss anymore. I’m gonna call the remaining part of him sinful Sam I guess \_:p_/ for that matter, let’s talk about him first!

Sinful Sam (or just sin Sam bc that sounds funny to me)

Without any of his usual kindness, patience and good humor, Sam is kind of like his noir self on steroids. At first Max is like “oh shit Sam with no limits!! Ooooooh this is gonna be fun!” but then sin Sam immediately starts insulting him and growling at him and demonstrating a total lack of care and concern and Max is like “oh. actually you suck like this let’s go get those stupid virtues >:/” Sin Sam is quick to anger, quick to violence, all too happy to steal things in plain view of people, pretty egotistical, impatient, and just plain rude. He’s like if you took all of Sam’s usual personality and then sucked the humor out of it so he really just means every awful thing he says. He might even get to curse for real ooooh but maybe Hugh Bliss bleeps all of it so every other sentence is just furious beeping and Max gasping in mock offense. He also has lost his affection for pretty much everyone and everything, including Max, so he’s annoyed with him the whole time they’re getting his virtues back. Although, since he’s basically every deadly sin at once, he did get to keep lust and he might flirt with Max just a little. Max is reeeeally hoping they get enough of a break at some point to have a really violent hate-fueled makeout sesh lmao (they probably won’t and he is going to be so heartbroken over it).

Now, as for the virtues themselves…

Temperance (liver)

Temperance is basically the concept of moderation and self-restraint, so if we’re doing comparisons to the sins, it’s probably closest to being the opposite of gluttony. I think he’s on board with the idea of reclaiming all Sam’s virtues from the get go, because what’s more moderate than reuniting all parts of your soul? But maybe you have to collect a few of the others before he’ll rejoin the party since sinful Sam is just so unpleasant. He doesn’t want to be the only one stuck with all those vices, y’know? He’s also probably the closest to Sam’s real personality, although a little bland and very indecisive. Since he agrees with the concept of putting them all back together, Max tries to recruit him to help, but he’s just like “Hmm. Well, part of me wants to help you…and part of me doesn’t. Let me think about it for a while…” and basically he never decides one way or another and keeps flinging Max away whenever he tries to brute force it. Maybe you just get him a coin to flip in the end and once it lands on heads he concedes and allows Max to take whatever part of Sam he’s got. Honestly I’m not sure what part that would be—maybe his liver lmao, since it’s responsible for alcohol management and all that. That’s kind of temperance, right?

Patience (tail)

Probably closest to the opposite of wrath? I feel like Patience is just meditating in a quiet room somewhere looking peaceful and cannot be moved or bothered in any way. Max can attack him and chew on him and insult him all he wants but nothing gets a proper response, even if you ask sinful Sam to yell at him or punch him (he yelps and shakes his hand out like “god DAMN that hurt >:’(”). The guy's as stoic as a stone. Maybe he gets Sam’s tail, which makes it a problem that he’s sitting cross-legged and can’t be persuaded to get up. All he says to Max is maddeningly calm stuff like “Not yet, Max,” or “All in good time, good buddy.” I think he’s the last one to be collected because he just waits until you have all the others and then gets up like “:) ok it’s time now.”

Charity (left ear)

Opposite of greed, obviously. Charity is HYSTERICAL to me oh my god ok here’s my concept for him; the minute he pops into existence, he hands Max a random item from Sam’s inventory delightedly and then runs off to give away every single item they’ve collected so far and even all their case memorabilia from the office. You find him by following the trail of people he’s ‘donated’ things to and reclaiming your items, until you finally track him down and Max asks for his ear back, to which he’s just like “oh sure! Here you go!” and pulls it right off his head, looking sort of surprised when he abruptly pops out of existence. Afterwards, sin Sam is like “Oh that’s good to have back I guess. I feel less stingy now…I’m still keeping this stuff, though.”

Diligence (right hand)

Diligence is sort of the opposite of sloth; it’s the concept of working hard, constantly. It’s like the main thing that led to capitalism lmao. I think he gets Sam’s right hand. He instantly takes off to go to work arresting as many criminals as possible, and by the time you track him down he claims to have taken all the muggers and whatnot in the area into custody and is just filling out a huge stack of paperwork for their arrests. To me he’s like if you took all the angst out of Noir Sam and left him as a workaholic shell of his former self jfkdljfhdfsd. He’s so focused on doing his job that Max just can’t get to him. He probably has to commit a crime to get Diligence's attention so he can fight him and get the hand back lmao. Once Sam gets him back he comments, “That’s funny. I suddenly feel like I have the will to power through that paperwork we’ve been putting off for three weeks.” And Max is just like “Oh, good! Somebody has to and it’s not gonna be me lmao”

Chastity (left hand)

Opposite of lust! I know it’d made sense to give him Sam’s heart, but instead I'm giving him Sam's left hand so we can make a joke about asking for his hand in marriage lmao. And I’m gonna be so honest right now, I love a shy Sam so I’m just dumping all of that onto him shkfljdlfshfs. He’s probably just sitting quietly and reading a book or something, and he hides behind it with a little squeak when he sees Max. He’s all blushy and shit lmaoooo, sinful Sam hates his ass. If Max tries to get near him to grab Sam's hand back he gets all flustered and insists they wait til marriage or something ridiculous (reminding him that they're already married does no good, he insists they have to do it again. ok gayass). Maybe they have to put on a quick wedding so he’ll let Max near him lmao. Maybe he’s hanging out at Sybil’s and they can recruit her to marry them since she’s queen of Canada and probably has that kind of power, right? When she says to kiss the groom, Chastity gives Max the lamest, most timid little cheek smooch ever (sinful Sam gags lol). Max takes the opportunity to shock him with a dip and a proper kiss before yanking his hand off lmao. Afterwards, Max goes, “Wait, are you gonna be a prude now? Did I just miss my window for crazy, kinky hate sex?” and sin Sam’s like “well…that does seem a bit much. Maybe something a little more vanilla?” “oh god DAMNIT”

Humility (right eye)

Opposite of pride, and honestly, kind of an embodiment of Sam’s lack of self worth. Pride is healthy until it turns into a braggy, ego kind of thing, and on the flip side, humility is helpful until it turns into negative self-talk, doubting yourself, and downplaying your own value. Max finds Humility locked in Bosco’s restrooms, having taken shelter there to read self-help books and try to ‘fix’ himself. When Max asks why he didn’t pick someplace less gross, he mumbles something like “It’s where somebody like me deserves to be.” Sinful Sam just shoots back, “Yeah, well, would you either get better already or find a gutter to wallow in instead? Some of us need to take a leak.” Max laughs instinctively and then scolds sin Sam when they hear Humility sniffle a little. You can try a couple different dialogue options to get him to come out of the bathroom, like an emotional appeal: “C’mon, Sam, you’re not all that bad! And honestly, I like when you are bad! I mean, this guy out here might be getting on my nerves but he’s also a real heartthrob.” Sin Sam eyes him and goes, “…Noted.” But Humility just insists that he’s imperfect and full of sin and needs to keep working on himself before he deserves to be around Max. You can also try the practical approach. “Seriously, though, ya can’t stay in there all day. I mean, what if I need to pee?” “You deserve a cleaner bathroom anyway :(“

Maybe you end up getting him back by just giving sinful Sam a bunch of cups of coffee until eventually he’s like “Ok that’s it, I’ve had it” and kicks down the bathroom door, throws Humility out, and props the door back up so he can piss lmao. Max wastes no time in cornering Humility, although he might take a second to be like “Sam, get this through your dense, bizarrely-shaped skull—I like you, and I think you’re a pretty good guy, and you don’t have to be perfect. That’ll probably be easier to believe once you get back with the more reasonable parts of you, but just trust me for now, ok?” Humility just kinda sniffles and goes “ok :’(“ and lets Max reunite him with the rest of himself. Sam comes back out of the bathroom with his other ear intact and goes “Yikes. I feel like I need a couple dozen therapy sessions.” “Yay! Attaboy, Sammy!”

And lastly, maaaaaybe my favorite—Kindness! (heart)

I guess kindness is kind of the opposite of envy?? Idk these comparisons get a little blurry after a while. Anyway, kindness and the ways in which it can be harmful is a topic near and dear to my soul because it’s something I struggle with a lot (along with every other people pleaser on the planet, I imagine). I feel obligated to try to be as friendly and helpful as I possibly can 24/7 and really guilty when I feel like I haven’t given my all, and obviously that’s not healthy. Sooo that’s the cliff notes for this poor boy lmao.

Max finds Kindness volunteering at a charity place or something, all cheerful and happy-go-lucky. The minute he sees Max he gasps delightedly and rushes over to greet him all excited, immediately swooping him up in a hug and licking his cheek. Max responds with the usual performative disgust and demands to be released, but instead of teasing him like Sam normally would, Kindness just goes “Ok! Sorry, buddy :)” and sets him back down. Weird, but whatever. Max tells him to hand over the heart, but Kindness insists that he can be much more helpful without all those other vices and virtues weighing him down, and he’s got a lot more good to do before he can rest. Asking sin Sam to restrain him doesn’t help because Kindness tries to hug anybody who gets near him and sin Sam is just like “oh HELL no I’m not touching that guy.” Through talking with him as he keeps handing out lunches or whatever, it becomes clear that Kindness has been helping everyone in sight with everything he can, giving away all his time and energy and completely neglecting himself; he gave his lunch away to someone who he thought needed it more and now he feels lightheaded, he’s been listening to people’s problems and probably taking on more stress than he’s really able to handle, and he’s so focused on making Max comfortable and taking care of him that he doesn’t argue when Max or sin Sam do anything that would normally bother him. Like Max could bite him and he’d be like “Ow! Oh, I’m sorry, do you need a chew toy, buddy? You can keep using my arm if you like!” even though he’s clearly in pain. Maybe sin Sam accuses him of being a masochist and he just chirps, “Oh, I’m not :)” which is honestly more worrisome because if you don’t like pain, why do you keep allowing people to hurt you?

Eventually Max gets fed up with him ignoring his own needs and hatches a plan, saying he needs help with something back at the office. Kindness comes along happily, obviously. Max tells him to sit on the couch and relax while he grabs some snacks and coffee. The whole time, he has to keep insisting that Kindness stay seated instead of jumping back up to help. Eventually he grabs Kindness by the shoulders to explain that having his partner as, essentially, a self-offered indentured servant is funny and all, but it’s making him uncomfortable. They work so well together because they’ve always been equal, and as high and mighty as Max likes to act sometimes, it feels bad to just keep taking everything from his best friend and to be unable to give anything back. In a dreadfully ironic twist, preventing Max (and others, by extension) from doing anything for him is sort of unkind in and of itself. “So just keep your ass seated and let me do what I need to do, okay? You’re stressing me out. Eat your donut and calm down already.” And Kindness, maybe a little starry-eyed, finally concedes and allows Max to grab a blanket and finish making them some coffee. Once that’s done they sit on the couch together under the blanket for a minute and watch some junk TV while they eat a much-needed snack (by the way, sin Sam has long since escaped this mushiness and is probably staring longingly at Flint Paper’s door or something. Ah, Flint Paper...). After a few minutes of that, Max ventures, “Sooo…can I get that heart now, or…?” “Aw, buddy. You know you already have it.” And with a final little side hug, which Max finally returns with only a little grumbling about how sappy it is, he poofs out of existence. Sin Sam pops back in after a second like “Max, I need to apologize. I feel like I yelled at you a lot today and I really don’t know where that came from. You ok, little pal?” “lol yeah it was funny” “oh! ok then. You gonna eat the rest of that donut?”

I don’t know if there’s a particular order they get taken care of in, besides Patience going last. I figure in the spirit of the games you could really get them in whatever order you like. And I don’t have colors for everybody yet, but I feel like Chastity matches well with a soft pastel pink and Kindness is kind of a warm dandelion yellow. As for interactions with Max’s vices, oof, I should probably make that a different post since this one got so long ^^; But hoooooo boy I’m def gonna write it up!! These things are super fun to think about and I feel honored to be the first person I’ve seen put out some thoughts about them. Thanks so much for the prompt dude!! And ummm if anybody would like to ask anything else about this funky little concept I would be all too happy to answer teehee

(Oh also I’m definitely gonna draw them! But that’s gonna take a second so I figured I’d just post this while I’ve got it and put up some sketches of ‘em later, especially since they don’t come across that well without color and that’s gonna take even longer. I’m SO excited though hfjkldshfkdlsjfhsk)

#also this really did give me the energy and excitement I needed for my shift and drive home so thank you so much!!#sam and max #sam and max freelance police #freelance husbands #my art #asks #seven heavenly virtues au #i guess teehee #like I said PLEASE feel free to ask more this is so fun hehehhhe

60 notes · View notes

papirouge · 3 months

Note

I've noticed something as a Christian in the US that I feel gets overlooked in the Faith outside of the Catholics and other non-Evangelical/Protestant groups. I'm relatively new so feel free to correct if I misunderstand. But I think that what the Catholics get right is helping their fellow man out and actually being there in the sense of helping people. Like, I noticed when I volunteer at local crisis pregnancy centers or participate in protests outside abortion clinics in my area that there's a lot of Catholics, and they're so warm and friendly and non-judgmental, you can tell they care. They're not heckling the girls going in or telling them they're going to Hell, they just give them love and support, and try to point out the pregnancy centers nearby. They seem to sympathize and work out of love, which is the most important theological virtue if I recall the Matthew Gospel correctly. Like Faith, Hope, and Love are the three I'm thinking of. Like, if you don't have Love you're not any better than a banging cymbal or something, I can't recall the direct quote. But in so many Evangelical congregations I've visited they're so insular or like "oh we love Jesus and our neighbor" but then are so cliquey it's just frustrating, like they're possessed not by the Holy Spirit. Like, we're here to love one another and to do God's work, why can't they get that right? Might be ranting, but any help enlightening the situation might be helpful, the Spirit seems to be pulling me toward Catholicism anyway, they actually seem to embody what Jesus taught compared to so many I've seen in the US. God Bless you and keep you friend.

Thank you 🩵

I've always said that Catholics were incredibility based when it came to social issues. Here in France a lot of catholic NGO give free food and shelter to homeless and asylum seekers. "Less judgmental" that's exactly it. They don't have the same heartless behavior as US Evangelicals who think their nationalism, "tradition" and xenophobia somehow equals Christianism.

When I was a kid had a very old catholic lady used to randomly come into my house and gave us food and clothes for my entire family - we an African immigrant family. It's only later/growing up that I realized how helpful she had been during a good chunk of my childhood. I'll never forget that. And by that I mean that regardless the stuff I say abt Catholics and their idolatrous worship and off base catechism, I still have carved in my heart a deep respect for them as a community and people. Humanly speaking I feel like I vibe more with Catholics lol (especially Catholic women)

I think that Catholic have the perk of having the pope representing them, so unllke protestant they don't feel the urge to seek for representation or validation from political parties or cultural entities. That being said, I always found funny how some Catholics seething against the pope and openly disrespected him. The spirit of rebellion of this generation is quite insane. Maybe it's me, but while I can imagine the apostles not understanding Jesus and maybe disagreeing with him in their inner self at times, I do not imagine them fool enough to openly mock and clown him like those so called modern Christians do. (this is how you blaspheme against the holy spirit btw).

But I personally wouldn't recommend you to enter any Christian sect, whether it's Catholic, protestant, Orthodoxy...Jesus came to establish THE Church, not churches. Division is from the devil, and the only division that comes from Christ is the one dividing the weat from the chaff (Matthew 3:12). There cannot be different truths cohabiting (within the weat)..and there's no truth in the chaff that ends up in the fire. Jesus is the way, THE Truth, and the Life. Not several truths.

Anon, I'm sure you get along non Christian as well, right? and we all know absolutely lovely non Christians who yet display more Christlike behavior than actual Christian. It still wouldn't come to your mind to stop being Christian just because "good people" happen to not being Christian.

I think the reasons so many Christian lose faith/their salvation is because they establish their faith based on what they see and how it makes them feel. Trust me, if I had to base my faith from what I see of it, I would've reverted after a few a few months of conversion. That's how BAD the Christian rep is right now. That's how ugly the world is and how wide satan's grip is onto this world.

I'm convinced that not even 10% of people claiming to be Christians actually have the holy spirit anyway. There are things that you cannot say, support or do while cohabiting with him. Never forget that the he left King Saul so much his sins became unbearable (which is something free gracers/one saved always saved can't explain - unless they want to admit the holy spirit has a better resistance to sin since Jesus crucifixion? 🤔). Have you even been around someone so energetically toxic you couldn't be around them? Well that's how the holy spirit feels with those people. They are insufferable. Rebellious, disrespectful (against the government, people, etc.), have no fruits...

Anyway, feel free to share you rant, anon, I love sharing inputs with like minded Christians. I recently volunteered at a Christian organization and I'm eager to talk about Jesus to people lol

#answered #Christian

2 notes · View notes

intheholler · 1 year

Note

Im really interested in Appalachia and I’m fairly new to the gothic Americana aesthetic, needless to say I love what you’re doing here, what draws you to this blog and what are your favorite sources for images?

hi! i'm really so glad you like the blog. thank you for the thoughtful question.

novella incoming…

well, i grew up poor in southern appalachia. for most of my life, i rejected myself because i was so busy rejecting a lot of what the region tried to force on me--racism, christ-centrism, and queerphobia, predominantly. i wanted so badly to prove to myself i wasn't like "them."

it traumatized me, so i worked hard to get rid of my accent even as a child; i forced myself to stop using all dialectal slang that would pin me as from the south. i didn't offer that information freely to people i met, and i didn't like to talk about home.

just by virtue of living there and being alive, it basically made me hate myself and feel ashamed of myself for absolutely no reason. it seeped in even though i grew up gay with a rather progressive, albeit religious, family and we never (consciously) subscribed to any of those teachings.

when i realized what i had let it do to me, i decided it didn't have to be this way. especially when there is so much charm in appalachia that often gets overlooked in favor of stereotypes, whether true or false.

and i realized that the hollers of appalachia have so much more to offer--beautiful art, a self-contained, community-driven culture, a linguistically interesting dialect and a unique way of life that shaped the good parts of me, too. i want to love those parts of the region and myself, because for better or for worse, it made me who i am.

so, for the past few years i've been embracing my dialect. i've been telling the story of blair mountain and loudly correcting people when they dole out stereotypical, harmful rhetoric. i've been, without shyness, sharing the folk music and art i grew up loving, and so on.

in so doing, i've also been unpacking that trauma, mostly as an ex-christian queer who is (now unashamedly) from the appalachian mountains.

i started this blog as another vehicle for that. the imagery i post helps me keep in touch with and remember those good parts that i want to embrace while processing what i want to get free of, intermixed with nostalgia.

as for sources, i spend a lot of time on various photo sites like flickr. i also like to read articles about appalachia, especially from an outsider's perspective as they explore the region and see that it has so much more to offer than what people mock us for, so i get images from those sometimes. like most curated blogs, i am also guilty of spending a lot of time on pinterest, too, lol. basically i just creep around the internet and source when and where i can.

anyway. thank you again for the thoughtful question and your interest in appalachia <3

#yall are really the best #appalachian culture #appalachia #appalachian #appalachian gothic #southern gothic #ex religious #ex christian #asks

43 notes · View notes

wambs · 1 year

Note

Bfmfjfnfj for REAL like. I think part of it is bc Shiv took a really huge blow with Logan's death so everyone's like how can Tom be an asshole now of all times. But here's the thing. Her dad dying doesn't erase the shit she put Tom through, which is more than just cheating on him (already horrible), and it irks me so much that they downplay Shiv's abuse towards him. Like yes he's an asshole and selfish, but you don't need to pretend like Shiv has done nothing wrong to justify your anger. Like. Shiv's abuse is so layered and constant especially during the first season, practically every scene between the two she's dismissive and mocking with him. And it's not like we're saying Tom isn't equally fucked up in how he behaves with her especially in how he's so pushy about getting her pregnant. And that's the thing, they're both horrible towards each other and we don't need to water these characters down to Victim Woman and Evil Man to enjoy them. Please stop!!!! Also I feel like people jump to Shiv's defense over made up arguments from made up people??? At least here on tumblr I've never seen the "tomgregs who hate Shiv" everyone's always whining about. At most I see posts saying she's not perfect and then people complaining about sexism in fandom LOL. Also also, last ep with the ear flick scene made a lot of people uncomfortable and rightfully so imo, it was meant to, but the virtue signaling is getting a bit too much gjmdjdk and equating an ear flick with domestic violence is a BIT fucked up in my opinion.

In any case I hope the writers aren't planning on escalating this and that it was meant to read as Tom just reacting to Shiv not backing off, bc if they take the Tom-Logan parallels to the extreme I might have to check out lol. I'm scared bc they have shown us Tom's violent side with Greg, and with the dynamics shifting... Idk.

This is going to get me cancelled for sure but fuck it, right?

I like Shiv, but only when she is without Tom? They are just fucking terrible with each other. Shiv uses her sexuality as a weapon, or perhaps a tool to hurt Tom. Perpetually. With cheating, with the open marriage, and trying tom to participate in it, etc., in early season one and late season three by hurting him during sex the first physically, the other mentally. I don’t think it as refreshing and ground-breaking or even entertaining as some fans, but hey, to each their own, tomgreg also has mental and physical abuse in there, to some extent.

I don’t want to defend Tom in anyway, because you are right, he is no saint, but we talk used (before season 4) talk about the pyramid of abuse in succ, where Logan’s abuse of his children was getting passed on to other people via his children, and just how fucked up that was, and how this needs to change, why are we suddenly so against Tom calling Shiv out on her insecurities and pointing out he has been hurt by Shiv? It’s true? Yes, she has just lost her father, but you are right, their issues started way before that.

To me, the ear flick was did not equal to domestic abuse but stayed on the same level of childishness as Shiv relentlessly trying to step on his shoes because she was feeling bad for herself. Tom deciding to take direct action against the source instead of this usual move of weathering through abuse and then taking it out on Greg in most insane ways imaginable is, at least to me, quite interesting. We don’t talk about it and what it might mean enough.

The fandom seeing any critique directed at a female character and saying it borders on fans being sexist is nothing new, but it is worrying here, where, textually, the point of this character is to be flawed and fucked up? We joke about them all being our poor little meow meows but surely critical thinking has not been lost along the way? The whole point of this show is to question how much of the kid’s actions can be blamed on Logan, and how much of it is the kid’s fault. If we decided everything is Logan’s fault, then the kids are nothing but his reflections, his agency in the world, with no autonomy, all of their actions can be traced back to Logan.

I am not sure I enjoy this season at all, which is super odd, because we are now halfway done? The writers did say we will get to find out if tomshiv were ever anything real in the second art of the season, which is good because my POV on this changes daily. Yeah, Tom used his relationship with Shiv to breeze through the ranks, but he also seemed genuinely in love and therefore hurt by Shiv’s actions too? Yes, Shiv has been historically abusive, cold, and dismissive, but she seems to care about Tom from time to time. But is it enough? Idk.

#thank you #anonymous #answered #i am not tagging it as anything else #if you read it and dont like it just block me please

13 notes · View notes

marley-manson · 2 years

Note

Marley, how would you have developed Trapper's personality post s3? What do you think would have been some of his flaws that might have come to light?

Thanks for asking, this was really fun to answer!

Well my favourite way of depicting flaws is as a two sides of the same coin sort of thing with virtues. That's one reason I interpret Trapper's temptation to kill the PoW as his protective urge rearing its head, because I like when virtues can get dark. So that's something I'd definitely want to explore.

Say, an episode where Trapper bonds with one of his patients who gets sent out to die unnecessarily as soon as he rejoins his unit, and ends up right back on his table again, except this time he doesn't make it. The commander visits a la Preventative Medicine, and Hawkeye and Trapper clash bc Trapper straight up wants to kill him. Maybe Hawkeye suggests taking out his appendix and therefore taking him off his command as a compromise lol, and you can see that he's kind of freaked out by how far Trapper will go.

Another, somewhat opposing way his protectiveness could be a flaw is if he thinks Hawkeye is going too far on one of his campaigns and takes it upon himself to shut it down to keep Hawkeye from getting court martialed, in a way that negatively affects Hawkeye. I def think this could be in character - Trapper was always pretty ride or die in the first three seasons, but he also had a vibe of navigating Hawkeye's urges with practicalities as well as looking out for Hawkeye (eg Adam's Ribs, Dr Pierce and Mr Hyde, House Arrest) and when the show takes a turn towards consequences being more of a thing I could see him being portrayed as more cautious while still being IC.

Like BJ's line between what he'll join Hawkeye on vs what he'll mock him for seems to be based on usefulness, as far as I can tell, rather than risk. He'll join him in Guerilla My Dreams but he'll mock him in Depressing News, eg. I could see Trapper having a line he'll draw when Hawkeye gets too reckless. Like maybe he'd be supportive in Depressing News but try to shut him down in Guerilla My Dreams, especially if the consequences of Hawkeye getting caught helping a North Korean prisoner escape were considered more realistically, as opposed to them just getting lectured lol.

I could also see the opposite being in character too of course - like he already happily took out an appendix with Hawkeye, plus he's done stupid shit himself like the aforementioned Radar's Report or trying to desert in Mail Call, so maybe he'd join him no matter how risky his plans are. But yk, it's a possible direction the show could've theoretically gone in. It wouldn't necessarily be contradictory either, just yk, a little hypocritical.

Though if you go with the ride or die vibe, that could also be a virtue taken so far it becomes a flaw at times. Maybe he should try to stop Hawkeye sometimes, but he doesn't, and one or the other nearly gets court martialed, but like, in a serious way lol. Or maybe they antagonize the wrong person and Hawkeye gets hurt. Maybe Trapper thinks that he should be the realistic, cautious one, but he fails to follow through because he enjoys Hawkeye's campaigns too much.

Like in the first three seasons I see him as finding Hawkeye pretty inspiring and admirable, because he's idealistic in a way Trapper isn't, which is partly why Trapper helps him on his campaigns and stuff. He helps inspire Trapper to try to make whatever differences he can.

But his cynicism could be a good flaw too, so conversely maybe as the war wears on and Hawkeye's campaigns usually end up going nowhere and his own little hope spots end sadly (eg Kim) he could fall into a more BJ-esque "what's the point, you can't change anything" role.

Or he could still support Hawkeye but in a going through the motions kind of way, where it's obvious he doesn't think it'll make a difference and he's just doing it as a distraction from the boredom and despair, and it causes a few arguments between them, with Hawkeye annoyed at his attitude. Yk, really explore Hawkeye's idealistic need to affect the world around him vs Trapper's more fatalistic attitude and how it could cause them to clash.

Also I feel like Mail Call would have to get a dramatic reprise with some actual build up and good writing behind it lol, so something with Trapper snapping and trying to desert and Hawkeye having to pull him back from the edge would be good. In general the fact that Mail Call was so sudden is like... idk, you have to downplay it a bit because it's not sustainable, but it does suggest that Trapper is hanging on by a thread at all times lol. So I mean, exploring that would be interesting. How close is Trapper to snapping and deserting at any given time? Is there an element of self-destructiveness to it? Is he at risk of walking into the minefield at some point? You could go some dark places with that.

Though incidentally I don't think Trapper knocking Hawkeye out of his way was a relevant character note (people compare it to the Period of Adjustment punch lol but it's really not comparable at all to me) and I don't think BJ-esque deep-seated rage is really his thing. Maybe it could've been if Wayne Rogers had stayed on and BJ had never appeared and they'd built on it more, but as-is I don't think he's the "taking my feelings out on other people" type. When he lashes out in Radar's Report and Mail Call he has different reasons for it, and Hawkeye is the main instigator against Frank, Trapper tends to just go along with it.

Like I think instead of repressed/sublimated rage which imo BJ and Hawkeye both have to an extent, Trapper maybe has repressed despair.

(Also, speaking of Trapper and despair, if Trapper got a dream in Dreams it would have to feature his kids playing hopscotch in a minefield or something, right? Combine his protectiveness, his helplessness, and his difficulty imagining an end to the war. Maybe it could shift to him operating on one of them with Potter handing him a scalpel to keep his sinister commander motif which I love.)

lol ANYWAY my answer's kind of all over the place, sorry, but yk, there are a lot of potential directions to go with Trapper's flaws imo. As far as what I'm into I could be down for any of this, but I really like the idea of a Hawk v Trap version of Preventative Medicine where Trapper wants to go too far for Hawkeye, Trapper supporting Hawkeye against his better judgement when the consequences could be bad for Hawkeye, and Trapper's fatalistic cynicism driving him to dark, self-destructive places occasionally.

#mash #marley on mash #trapper mash #i kept this answer to like stuff that could conceivably happen in canon rather than shippy stuff but yk there could be flaws there too #i feel like a lot of bj's flaws are things they could've explored with trapper if wayne rogers had stayed but if i'm going with what #i want to see then i'd prefer more of a contrast between trapper and bj

28 notes · View notes

yesimwriting · 3 years

Text

Falling Angels: chapter two

A/n took me longer to get around to writing part 2 than i thought!! i didn’t know there was an audience for this idea but im glad you guys liked it!!

Im adding a country to the grishaverse to make my story work,, def not a big deal i just needed a country in which i could control the history of without worrying about conflicting with cannon lol

Link to part one: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/yesimwriting/652318577650696192 (lmk if this works ive never linked something to a tumblr post lol)

Series Summary: Y/n is a rising star in the most famous circus in Ketterdam because of her ability to see the future. Unfortunately for her, Kaz Brekker knows more of her backstory than he should, and he’s willing to use that to his advantage. The one thing he’s not betting on? That he doesn’t know her entire story

Chapter summary: Y/n gets a visitor before getting tricked into the most dangerous show of her life.

Pairng: SOC x reader, Kaz Brekker x sunshine-y! Psychic! Reader

My father seemed to love me more after two glasses of something amber. It was after these two glasses that he would tell me realities his inebriated self believed I needed to internalize. He’d pat my head affectionately and smiled at me as he told me that the world was a bad place. Most of his lessons are lost in my mind, but the one I remember most clearly is that there’s no such thing as a kept secret. There’s always a leak or a flaw or a factor you could not account for. He told me that if I wanted to keep a secret, I would have to decide what I was willing to risk for it.

I know from Seria’s reaction to his presence that listening to Kaz is a risk, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take for my secret. “I don’t know what you think I am, but you’re mistaken.” It doesn’t really matter that he believes me. I have the paperwork I need to disprove him. “I have to get to my tent.”

“The princess gets her own tent?” His words are saturated by mock casualness but I can feel his pride on how he delivered that line.

My body is still tense from balancing over flames and his confidence only adds to my desire to unravel. I can’t get angry here. Not at him. Not with the way he grips that cane of his. “I don’t understand what--”

“You may be able to play pretend here where no one wants to look twice at you, but I know what you are.” His stiffness leaves my skin prickling. “I know who you are.”

I swallow back my panic. “Then who am I?”

“You’re that king’s bastard--the one with a high bounty on her head.” Don’t back down. Even the smallest crack will confirm his story. “As long as she’s returned alive.”

Thoughts of what my father would do to me if ever given the chance strike me with more anxiety than his presence does. “I’ve heard of the girl you’re talking about,” I admit, the lie leaving me as easily as the air leaves my lungs when I exhale. “But I’m not her.”

“You’re not from Ketterdam, if you were you would have known who I was after you friend referred to me as Dirtyhands.” I have no defense, but I never claimed to be from Ketterdam. “You make your business claiming to be a psychic.” I am a psychic, but now is not the time to make that argument. “Elkosa is a relatively small and self efficient port kingdom, the island is nothing more than a jagged coastline barely larger than Ketterdam, but I have connections in all places.” He knows someone from Elkosa? I have to fight the instinct to move all of my weight on the balls of my feet, prepared to run. “A captain of the royal fleet told me the story of the night the King’s bastard ran into the meeting room the night before ten ships were meant to sail to Ravka.”

He studies my reaction as I struggle to keep my expression blank. “None of that seems connected.”

“Patience is a virtue most Saints are familiar with.” I roll my eyes. “The bastard couldn’t have been more than nine at the time, but the guards did not want to let her in. The King told them to let her interrupt. The sailor noted this because he had never made an exception to his meeting before. The girl described a nightmare to her father, a nightmare of a storm and ten dead birds. The king did not comfort her, she finished her story by saying that he asked to know about all of her dreams. She went back upstairs and the King continued the meeting as normal but the next day the King cancelled the trip.”

I remember that night as the night I realized that if I’m not careful, I’ll feel what I see in my visions. It felt like I was drowning. I felt the death of each of those men and instead of comforting me, my father nodded once like I had offered him advice and sent me back to my room. “And?” My defense is weak, my mind too lost in the memories of drowning. “Many smaller countries are superstitious.”

“The next day the worst storm to have impacted that ocean occurred. For four nights and three days the storm continued.”

I press my nails into my palms. “You don’t believe that I am precognitive, so that sailor’s unverified story has nothing to do with me.”

“A princess that can see the future disappears at the same time a failing circus hires a girl who has no business in this city who claims to be able to see the future.” He adjusts his stance, taking pressure off the cane as if he’s preparing to need to use it for something else. “I am not fool enough to believe in coincidence.”

“And I am not fool enough to crack beneath the vague threats of a man. In my experience, men always threaten with a blade when really all they’re in possession of is a butter knife. Try to drag me from here kicking and screaming, find a way to incapacitate me and put me on a ship to Elkosa, but when the King sees that you brought him a stranger he will have your head.”

He blinks, expression hard as stone. I tense, preparing for a physical blow. “I didn’t expect you to be a half-decent liar, but I should have.” I bite my tongue to avoid resorting to something I can’t take back. Like begging. “Even if it’s in only half your blood.”

“I am not her.” My stubbornness burns more than the need to survive. I inhale, hoping to shake the grasp of the sensation but it only worsens. The pinch of dread in my chest is heavy and familiar. A vision.

No. Not now--not in front of him. I push against it even though I know that only makes it worse. Not now. Not now. I should be grounding myself but all I can think about is how stupid I am and how bad this situation is.

“I’m not an idiot, I know to be quiet. I see myself crouched somewhere dark.

“Being defensive doesn’t make you any more intelligent.” It takes me a minute to recognize Kaz in the darkness.

We’re somewhere small, our backs against the same wall but our shoulders do not touch. This vision is enshrouded by the feel of panic.

This other me grimaces, but her eyes lack anger, “Remind me why I agreed to help you again?”

“You never told me why,” he admits, “you can change your mind on participating and I can change my mind on whether or not you're more useful than your father’s money.”

Something loud crashes from behind the door we’re both staring at. “You’ll have no use for me or my father’s money if we die here.” I squeeze my hands together.

He hesitates, “My ghost will.”

The future-me almost smiles. “I wonder if I’ll be able to see ghost futures.” I hesitate, something strange behind my eyes. “I wonder if that can exist, if there’s a future beyond endings.”

Future-Kaz is silent for a long second. “There should be,” he says, “for someone like you, at least.”

I watch the way I take in his words. “You’d be there, too,” my voice is low, “your ghost at least.” I turn my head, staring at the door instead of him, “If you weren’t, I’d miss the brooding.”

The vision leaves me with sweaty palms and swirling thoughts. All of my visions do that. Not all of them make me feel so confused. Apparently, he needs help and I agree to do so. At one point we’ll be pushed into a life or death situation and I won’t loathe him.

I blink twice, forcing myself to hold onto the reality in front of me. I don’t have to agree--the future isn’t set in stone. For all I know tomorrow morning I’ll have a vision in which he kills me.

“Are you ignoring me?”

Shaking my head, I turn to face him. “You need help.” I don’t wait for his reaction. “You’re not here to return someone to the King of Elkosa, you’re here because you need someone that can see the future.”

“I--”

“It’s not that you won’t take me to Elkosa, it’s that you’d rather use my abilities for something.”

I’m confusing him again, but that’s okay. I’d rather deal with him confused than angry. “I need to know how a certain business deal of mine is going to be worth what it costs.”

He’s spent the entire time claiming he doesn’t believe in my power. Was that some kind of tactic? In the vision I saw, despite the panic surrounding the situation I didn’t feel panicked around him. The probability of that future occurring is probably low. I’ve been wrong before, the future changes too much for me to know everything.

“That’s not how readings work,” I admit, “I don’t have that much control on them. Most of them come to me randomly. The events I see always involve me or someone I care about to a certain capacity. I can give someone a general glimpse into their future but I can’t promise I’ll see what they want. Sometimes I can see the general vision by just focusing on their energy but usually I need some physical contact for it to work.” That seems like a fair explanation. “Oh--and not all of my predictions come true, most are blurry, few are solid--the future is always moving.”

Wait...the vision I saw where I was with Kaz wasn’t blurry. Those can be wrong, but it’s much rarer. Do I really agree to this?

“Then maybe I should make it involve you.” His aggression has me forcing myself to stand my ground. He can threaten me all he wants but that won’t change things. “Or take the money your father would give me and cut my losses.”

Every time I’ve purposefully destroyed a solid vision, something bad has happened. I’m genuinely considering it. “What do you need a psychic for, anyways?”

“To get through the Fold.”

Despite everything, I laugh. “I’ve never seen anyone get through the Fold, literally or in my visions.”

He’s unphased by my doubt. “It’s happened.”

I really don’t want to help him. “Well then good luck, I’m happy to part ways here.”

I manage one step forward before he moves his cane in front of my path. I’m getting tired of this. “You’re assisting me one way or the other, whether that aid will be financial or through your services is up to you.”

Anger pinches in my stomach the way it often does when I’m told what to do. The one thing centering me is the vision still reflecting in my thoughts. There’s no denying it--I had felt comfortable with him. There is a future in which I feel comfortable with him and I’m not sure I’ll be able to avoid it.

“I won’t get in trouble for you,” I tell him, “The Ringmaster holds onto those indentured to him, especially the commodities that bring him profit.”

There’s something stiff about his silence. I wonder if he’s always like this, pushing the weight of his presence onto those around him without saying a word. “When I have a goal, it is achieved. I’ll speak to him.”

I cannot imagine a conversation I want to be involved in less. The Ringmaster and this man that Seria had labeled ‘Dirtyhands’. “I just had a vision--I saw your entire conversation and it ends with you missing an arm.” His stoic expression does not shift. “Okay, I’m aware that it wasn’t the funniest joke, but throw me a bone--you threatened to kidnap me and sell me to my father in order to extort me and I’ve been nothing but polite to you.”

He’s quiet for a moment, something in his expression changing in a way I can’t read. “All you’ve done is lie since the moment you started to speak to me.”

The optimist in me would like to think that his annoyance counts for banter. I shrug, feeling a little lighter than I did a second ago. I’m certainly not comfortable but I’m starting to see how to put up with the tension without letting it strain me. “Well, polite for my standards.”

I let him brood. “You must have done well as a royal.”

My past cuts through the peace I managed to grab onto. It’s not his fault, he has no way of knowing what the castle was like for me. I open my mouth, but I don’t know what I’m going to say. “I had my moments,” I finally settle on, hoping the echo of pain isn’t visible behind my eyes.

I guess it doesn’t matter if he sees me bleed. He’s heartless, and I hate sympathy.

“Y/n,” Seria’s voice is genuine anger, “You’ve turned into an idiot--first the tightrope walk and now entertaining whatever deal he’s trying to coax from you.” I love Seria, she’s the reason I didn’t die in the street when I first arrived in Ketterdam, but she sees me as a mindless child. “Whatever he told you, whatever he promised you--it’s a lie.”

“He hasn’t promised me anything.” I need to calm her down. Once she’s calm, everything will be normal again. “And he knows.” I don’t have to turn to feel the way Seria gapes at me. “He knows who I am, so I have to do what he wants.”

“You never have to do anything a man is forcing onto you, y/n. We’ll find a way--”

“Seria, it’s fine,” I reach to touch her arm, “I’ll be fine, you can’t protect me from everything and you don’t have to.”

Kaz throws a pointed glare at the man who was with him earlier. When did the stranger get here? “Boss, she’s faster than she looked, but I have what we need to get the girl--”

“You’re late,” Kaz sighs, bored, “she’s agreed.”

Wait--what was he going to do if I didn’t agree? “Out of curiosity, what are you talking about?” The man blinks twice, squeezing a rag between his ring-clad fingers. “You were going to use chloroform to kidnap me, weren’t you?”

For some reason I don’t understand, the stranger gives me a look that’s a cross between sheepish and charming. “Nothing personal.”

“Or original.”

Seria pinches my arm. “Y/n,” she scolds, “your sense of humor is going to kill me one of these days.”

I cringe, pulling my arm away. “When I met you, you were pickpocketing in the pleasure district, please remember that.”

She rolls her eyes. “An attitude like that is going to leave you without a place to sleep at night.”

I take her comment for the empty threat it is. Every other day she’s threatening to kick me out of her private trailer so that I’m forced to fight for cots or speak to the Ringmaster about my lodging arrangements. He’d give me what I want, but speaking to him feels so slimy I’d sleep in the woods before trying it.

“Kaz.” I turn my head in time to see the girl that gave me the advice about the tightrope walker. “We need to go, he’s coming soon--you’ll do better to speak to him in the morning after she’s gone, that way he has nothing to hold over your head.”

“Once I’m gone?” The girl had called me a Saint. I can appeal to her. “I’m not--I’m not going anywhere, I said I’d help.”

Her eyes widen, sympathy reflected clearly in her dark irises. “There was never a version of this in which you ended up staying here.” I hear a hint of apology in her voice. “You won’t believe me, but I promise this will be better for you.” All of her pity is gone with those, replaced by something hard.

Seria responds for me, “I think you should go.”

“What?��

She almost smiles, but her eyes are painfully sad. “I never wanted you to be here forever. I don’t trust these people, but I trust their ability to get you out of here, even if only for a little while. Bad things are coming, and I think you’ll miss the worst of it if you go now.”

What she alludes to is a blade in my heart. “You want me to leave you here to deal with it?”

“Y/n, I’ve been hurt here more times than I can count--”

“No, I won’t leave y--”

Seria squeezes my shoulder, “It’s not forever.” When she wants something, it’s almost impossible to get around it. “Besides, if I need you, you’ll see it.”

My world feels to have lost the vibrance of color. I’ve left so much, but I let myself believe I wouldn’t leave her. I pull her into the hug. “The moment I see a vision of you in any type of danger, I’m coming back.” I hug her even tighter when she tries to pull away so that I can whisper something in her ear, “I’ll use this opportunity to leave the Ringmaster and then I’ll get you out, and together we’ll leave Ketterdam. We’ll find your child, like you always wanted to and they’ll know that they're lucky because they’re the only kid in the world to have you as a mother.”

She squeezes me so tightly I find it hard to take full breaths. “Two,” Seria whispers, “I have two children.”

My eyes burn as her words find their way into my heart. “I love you, Seria.”

“I love you too, my star,” she pulls away enough so that I can look her in the eye, “you don’t like being called a Saint, but I can’t think of anyone more deserving of the title.”

Tears prick my eyes as she releases me. “I’ll find you.”

“He’ll be coming soon,” the girl warns, “He spoke to an advisor about wanting to find you after the show.”

No doubt to praise the fire stunt he forced onto me. Bastard. I nod once but I don’t move. I can’t bring myself to leave Seria until the girl places a hand on my elbow.

Falling Angels Taglist: @glowstick-lesbian @cashlum @whatiswrongwithpeople @pass-me-jeez-it @thecraziestcrayon

83 notes · View notes

swan-of-sunrise · 3 years

Text

Specs and the Flyboy (Chapter Nineteen-Part Three)

Summary: (Y/N), Jack and their friends finally face off against Leviathan and the Secret Empire.

Pairing: Jack Thompson X Reader

Word Count: 4.1k

Warnings/Disclaimers: None

A/N: Ya girl wrote this while dealing with sleep deprivation, cramps and the after effects of the vaccine, so I hope it’s good ‘cause at this point I can’t even tell lol Thank you all so much for reading! I hope that you enjoy!

Chapter Nineteen (Part III) Leviathan’s Weapons Facility, Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Previous Chapter)

While the two of them were ushered down the staircase that led into the crate-filled warehouse by Michael and Dottie, (Y/N)’s mind raced as she struggled to think of a way out of their current conundrum. I’ve been in plenty of tough scrapes before but even I’ll admit that this one’s the toughest one yet, she thought to herself, her eyes rapidly scanning the large room; there were large, frost-covered windows towards the ceiling, several boarded-up skylights and the two metal doors she spotted were both guarded by Leviathan soldiers. By the time they reached the base of the stairs, (Y/N) had counted a total of twenty armed enemy operatives – seventeen Leviathan guards, Attwell, Underwood and Michael Carter – and from the brief glimpse she’d gotten of their friends hidden behind a stack of crates, it looked as though both Pinkerton and Sawyer were badly injured and the others were trying to bandage their blood-soaked wounds. So, we’re out-gunned and out-numbered, she concluded with a sinking feeling as she bit her lip in worry.

“So, Chief Thompson did survive his daring escape!” Attwell grinned, walking out into the empty space amidst the crates and standing before the two of them. “Truth be told, I was hoping that we’d meet again; I detest leaving loose ends, and killing the SSR’s golden boy once and for all would’ve been a genuine pleasure.”

Beside (Y/N), Jack’s shoulders tensed but he tilted his head to the side in mock contemplation. “What, you couldn’t do it without your Leviathan goons backing you up? What a real tough guy.”

Attwell’s fist quickly connected with Jack’s stomach and when he doubled over in pain, the man struck him across the face and sent him sprawling to the ground. “Stop it!” (Y/N) started towards her partner but the sudden feeling of a pistol barrel against the back of her neck stopped her cold; tearing her eyes away from Jack, she met Attwell’s gaze and struggled to keep her voice steady as she spoke, “He’s not the one who’s screwing up your deal with Leviathan, I am.”

“Of course, of course, the infamous codebreaker.” Attwell stepped closer but she held her ground, raising her chin in defiance and refusing to look away despite how uncomfortable his stare made her feel. After a tension-filled moment, his face broke out into a stomach-churning smirk. “It’s a shame that such promising talent’s being squandered by the SSR, by those who dismiss and condescend you at every turn. I was very much like you before joining Hydra; I was overshadowed at Cambridge by my perfect older brother and his two brilliant flatmates; while William, Michael and Adam flourished in their respective fields of study, I floundered and was subsequently expelled but as luck would have it, I was approached by Hydra and offered a chance to unlock my true potential; and here I stand before you, Agent (Y/L/N), to offer you that very-same chance. With the new Leviathan, your immeasurable skills would not only be recognized but they’d also be celebrated. You and Michael could work side-by-side in our efforts to break through as the world’s leading superpower and once we achieve our goal of fully weaponizing Zodiac, Agent (Y/L/N), you’ll have everything you’ve ever truly desired.”

Out of the corner of her eye, (Y/N) noticed Jack’s hand resting on his waist and while Attwell talked, her partner’s index finger had tapped away. It only took her seconds to realize he was sending out a message in Morse Code on the walkie-talkie still clipped onto his belt and once she did, she knew exactly what she needed to do.

“You know, it’s a good thing you’re decent at codebreaking, Specs, ‘cause you’d make a pretty shit spy. You fidget too much.”

If Jack can think up an off-the-cuff plan to get us out of this mess then I can buy us all a little time by being a good spy, she thought with resolve just as Attwell finished up his speech. Taking a page out of her partner’s book, (Y/N) raised an incredulous brow at the man as the corner of her mouth curled into a humorless smile. “There was a time when I would’ve given just about anything for people to recognize me and my skills, to appreciate just how hard I’ve worked to get where I am today. But then I grew up and realized that the only person whose appreciation I needed was my own. Mr. Attwell, I don’t need to be celebrated or appreciated by anyone, but especially not by a pathetic imitation of the Red Skull.”

The man’s expression instantly grew cold at the comparison. “Then it would seem that you’re of no use to us.” His gaze shifted to look at whoever was holding her at gunpoint and he nodded. “Shoot her, Michael.”

“Stop!” All of them looked over just as Peggy jumped out from behind their makeshift barricade with her rifle pointed directly at Attwell. “I’ll give you the key.”

“Peggy, no!” The barrel of the pistol pressed harder into (Y/N)’s neck and she winced in pain. However, her horror was quickly replaced with dawning comprehension when Peggy flashed her a pointed look before briefly glancing in Jack’s direction. She knows about whatever Jack’s planning, she silently realized, playing along with her old friend’s ruse by rearranging her features into a look of righteous indignation.

Moving to stand beside Attwell, Dottie raised the hand that wasn’t holding her rifle and gave the younger woman a small wave. “Hiya, Peggy. You know, you really should’ve listened to me back in New York; I told you there were currencies in the world stronger than money. I practically spelled all of this out for you! But the great Peggy Carter couldn’t figure it all out on her own, so she needed the help of…” Dottie turned to (Y/N) with a frown. “What’re those revolting nicknames you call each-? Oh, never mind, I don’t want to know.” Turning back to Peggy, the spy shrugged. “Well, I suppose not everyone’s perfect, are they?”

“No, they’re certainly not.” Attwell agreed, gesturing with his head for Peggy to lower her weapon and holding out his hand once she’d set it on the ground. “No tricks, Agent Carter. The key, and you and your friends are free to go; it appears that at least one of them is in need of medical attention, so I’d be quick about it if I were you.” When Peggy’s eyes flicked over to where Michael was standing behind (Y/N), Attwell chuckled darkly and shook his head. “No, I don’t think dear old Michael’s going anywhere but by all means, Agent, go ahead and ask him if you don’t believe me.”

For the first time since they were ushered into the warehouse, Peggy looked directly at her older brother. Her hardened expression slipped and for the briefest of moments, (Y/N) recognized the vulnerable young woman she’d known all those years ago at Bletchley Park who mourned her beloved brother’s death. While her lower lip trembled, Peggy finally addressed Michael. “Not too long ago, I had a dream about you and you told me that you’d be right alongside me if you could. I didn’t believe it was possible, even when (Y/N) and Jack told me it was, but now we have a second chance at being a family again. Michael, you can finally come home.” She blinked away her tears and gave him the ghost of an encouraging smile. “Please, Michael, come home with me.”

(Y/N) could feel the pressure on her neck ease up but just as she was beginning to think that Peggy had succeeded in getting through to him, Michael coolly replied, “This is my family, Agent, the only family I have in this world.”

Peggy’s face crumpled as Attwell laughed in amusement. “I told you so! Now, the key for your friends.”

God, I hope that whatever Jack’s planning happens sooner rather than later, (Y/N) silently prayed, sucking in a breath while the younger woman approached Attwell. Once Peggy reached into her pocket and withdrew the familiar Arena Club pin, the man looked over at Dottie and gave her a nod; the spy slung the strap of her rifle over her shoulder and made her way over to one of the many wooden crates near them, kicking the lid off of it and lifting a small metal box out of the loose excelsior. The box looked innocent enough but as Dottie walked it over to Attwell, (Y/N)’s blood ran cold and she knew that the moment Peggy handed over that key, Leviathan would possess one of the world’s deadliest weapons and they’ll have lost.

“Get up, Chief Thompson,” Michael barked and while Jack got to his feet, (Y/N) was roughly pushed towards him. “And you, stand over there with him.”

(Y/N) did as he said, standing beside Jack and keeping her eyes on the scene unfolding before them as she murmured, “You okay?”

“Yeah, you?”

“Peachy-keen.” She watched Dottie hand the metal box over to Attwell, her anxiety steadily building within her while he examined the box’s intricate lock. “Are you going to fill me in on the plan or what?”

The corner of Jack’s mouth curled upwards and he quietly replied, “Patience is a virtue, Specs, just be ready for it.”

“Be ready for wha-?”

Just then as Peggy’s hand stretched out to give Attwell the Arena Club pin, the warehouse wall opposite them exploded. Rubble and splintered pieces of crates flew through the air but before (Y/N) could fully react, gunfire broke out all around them. Amidst the chaos, Jack latched onto (Y/N)’s hand and ran, yanking her behind the nearest tower of crates as bullets whizzed past their heads; both of them crouched on the ground and peeked around the wooden crates, and her eyes widened in amazement at what she saw. The explosion that had knocked down part of the warehouse wall hadn’t been an explosion at all but rather one of the Howlies’ trucks and as (Y/N) watched, Daniel and Henry used the truck’s doors as barriers while they exchanged fire with the Leviathan guards. Moments later, she spotted Peggy dart out from one of the aisles to join her boyfriend behind the open truck door.

“Wa-Hoo!”

Dugan’s deafening war cry from across the warehouse was punctuated by a fresh barrage of gunfire, and (Y/N) couldn’t help but revel at the familiarity of it all; her eyes were suddenly drawn to two men sprinting down the aisle towards her and Jack, and it took her a tense moment to recognize them through all the chaos.

“There you guys are!” Howard exclaimed before ducking down beside them, followed closely by an anxious-looking Edwin Jarvis. Reaching into the satchel that was slung over his shoulders, the inventor withdrew two handguns and offered the weapons to them. “You know, you two’ve got a real habit of gettin’ into trouble…”

Jack rolled his eyes in exasperation. “Says the man who was mind-controlled into almost gassing all of New York last year.” Springing up, he fired off several shots before ducking back down. “How’re we looking, Jarvis?”

“Well, Chief Sousa’s dramatic entrance provided enough of a distraction for Mr. Fieldman to escort Mr. Pinkerton and Mr. Sawyer out the front; their wounds aren’t life-threatening, but Mr. Fieldman promised he’d help treat them once they reach the clearing.” The butler set another satchel on the ground in front of them. “And we’ve brought more guns and ammunition, as per your request.”

“You know, Thompson, you said in your message that you needed a big diversion, but that whole entrance was my idea; I actually took it from one of my studio’s newest scripts, where a gangster steals-”

“Of course, Mr. Stark, your genius knows no bounds.” Edwin hurriedly interrupted the inventor’s rambling, glancing over at (Y/N) with his brow furrowed in worry. “And have you broken Mr. Carter out of his brainwashing? Where is he?”

Looking around the edge of the crate, (Y/N)’s heart dropped when noticed that several important people were missing from the gunfight. “Where the hell did they go, Jack?”

Jack craned his neck to see what she was looking at and swore loudly. “Shit, I-wait, they’re on the stairs!” By the time (Y/N) spotted them, Attwell, Dottie and Michael had reached the top of the stairs and had disappeared around the corner. “Jarvis, stay here with Stark and cover us, then go help the others.” Edwin nodded and her partner turned towards her, his blue eyes scanning her face for any signs of trepidation as he asked, “Are you ready, Specs?”

“As I’ll ever be,” (Y/N) pulled an extra ammunition magazine out of the satchel and tucked it into her pocket before giving Jack a determined nod. “Let’s finish this once and for all, Flyboy.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Compared to the chaotic warehouse they’d come from, the rest of the facility was eerily silent and it wasn’t at-all difficult to follow the footsteps of the fleeing trio through the deserted hallways.

“You know that this is probably a trap, right?”

“Naturally.”

“Good. Just wanted to make sure that we’re both on the same page.”

Before (Y/N) could get another word in, a figure she soon recognized as Dottie dropped down from above them and began attacking; the spy kicked the guns out of their hands, ramming her knee into (Y/N)’s stomach and knocking the wind out of her before spinning and using her leg to slam Jack into the wall beside them. (Y/N) took advantage of Dottie’s momentary distraction and aimed a side-kick at her thigh, but the spy merely turned her sharp fall into a somersault; she stood and threw a punch that (Y/N) was quick to duck, and then she grabbed the spy’s extended arm with the intent of wrenching it behind her back. Dottie predicted the move, yanking her arm free only to wrap her hand around her throat and roughly shove her back against the wall.

The back of (Y/N)’s head erupted into a sharp pain while Dottie flashed her a condescending smile. “I already told you, you’re too easy! It’s almost pathetic to see you try so hard to be as good as Peggy.”

“Don’t need to be as good as Peggy,” (Y/N) choked out as the fingers around her throat tightened. “Just…just good enough to keep you distracted.”

Dottie frowned in confusion and that’s when Jack slammed the butt of his gun against the back of her head. The spy tumbled to the ground in an unconscious heap and (Y/N) doubled over, her hands firmly clutching her knees as she coughed and gasped for air. “(Y/N), you okay?” She nodded and allowed Jack to take hold of her shoulders, his soothing encouragements helping her finally regain her breath; once he was sure that she was fine, her partner handed over her dropped gun and rested his hand against the small of her back to urge her forward. “C’mon, let’s go…”

They left the motionless spy behind and continued down the hallway, turning the corner and finding themselves at the entrance of a dimly-lit boiler room. Beside (Y/N), Jack shuddered and she recalled the story he’d told her of the mission he and Peggy had conducted to investigate one of Leviathan’s training facilities; she nudged him with her elbow and gave him a brief smile, wishing that she could offer him more comfort but not wanting to distract them both from their mission. Jack nodded as if to say he was fine, but his shoulders remained tense while he silently gestured for her to go left into the room while he went right.

(Y/N) crept behind the various boilers and pipes, careful not to slip on the slick ground as she did. If I end up surviving all this, I think I’m going to sleep for a week straight, she thought to herself, her heart rate steadily increasing with each step she took. While she edged herself around another heavy piece of industrial furnacing, she found herself trying to think of how to break Michael out of his mind-control long enough to save him; Jack insisted that cognitive re-calibration was the only way but after being present for Peggy and Michael’s reunion, she wondered if reminding him of his past or even recent actions would also do the trick. But a sharp skid noise right behind her made her forget her train of thought and turn, dodging the knife just in time.

“You really should’ve taken my offer, Agent (Y/L/N),” Attwell spat out, slashing at her with the knife again and forcing her to stumble back into the center aisle of the boiler room; the blade sliced against her forearm and she stifled her cry of pain, dropping her gun and leaping out of the way as he aimed for her again. “Soon, you and your foolish friends will be dead and Leviathan will have more power than you could possibly imagine!”

“Don’t you ever get tired of hearing your own damn voice?” (Y/N) retorted, her hand shooting out and twisting the red-colored knob beside them; a pipe next to Attwell spewed out pressurized steam and he let out a shriek of pain as the steam enveloped the right side of his face. Not wanting to stick around, she turned and sprinted further into the vast room, a part of her hoping that she’d bought herself enough time to save Michael. Skidding around a corner, she was immediately met with the sight of Jack and Michael engaged in a vicious fight on the floor; her partner was trying to wrestle something out of the other man’s closed fist, but he was so preoccupied with his task that he didn’t see Michael’s other hand brush the handle of a nearby gun. (Y/N) kicked the gun away from him, pinning his shoulder to the ground with her knee and spoke the first thing that came to mind. “Visions, light, cheered, night, dream!”

As she finished reciting the five words he’d used to encode his final message to Peggy, something shifted in Michael’s dark eyes and his clenched fist relaxed, allowing Jack to snatch the Arena Club pin from him. Before any of them could say or do anything more, a fiery ache erupted along her shoulder blade and she cried out in pain as she pitched forward. “(Y/N)!” Jack looped his arms underneath hers and dragged her over to half-lean against a pipe; her vision was partially clouded by the pain, but she could still make out the bloody knife he’d just pulled out of her upper back and tossed onto the ground beside them. “No, no, don’t look at that, just keep your eyes on me!” He pressed his trembling hand tight against the wound and when she nearly whimpered, he held the side of her face with the other and frantically nodded, his blue eyes steadily filling with panic that he struggled to control. “I-I know it hurts, baby, but I have to keep pressure on it; it’s not very deep, but I can’t have you fainting right now so keep your eyes on me, c’mon-”

“How touching,” Both of them looked up to see Attwell and Michael standing before them, the former with a self-satisfied smirk on his half-seared face and the latter staring stonily down at them. “Let’s make a new deal, Chief Thompson: Give me the key, and I won’t let Agent (Y/L/N) slowly bleed out on the floor of this boiler room.”

“Bastard.” Jack spat back, but his hand left (Y/N)’s face long enough to retrieve the Arena Club pin from his pocket and throw it into Attwell’s waiting hand. “You better start lookin’ over your shoulder now, Attwell, ‘cause I won’t rest until I kill you myself.”

Attwell shrugged and ran his fingers over the pin, twisting it sharply to convert it into a key. “Such fiery attitude in the face of doom was precisely why I was looking forward to killing you. But then I realized, forcing a man like you to live with your mistakes is a far worse punishment than death; and to make this victory sweeter, I plan on unlocking Zodiac in front of you both, so you can see just how spectacularly you failed yourselves, your agency and your country.” He turned to Michael with his brow raised in expectation. “Are you ready to make history, old chap?”

Michael nodded. “Of course…” He reached into his pocket and pulled out the metal box containing Zodiac; (Y/N) tried getting up, unwilling to sit back and let Leviathan win, but Jack’s strong arms held her in place against him. When she met his gaze, he gave her a barely-discernible head shake and with her jaw clenched tight, she watched Attwell push the key into the lock and turn it clockwise; the lid popped open and the man breathed a sigh of relief, reaching into the slightly-smoking box and holding an electric-blue colored vial with strange etchings carved into the glass.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? So much potential for war and destruction, and it fits within the palm of my hand.” Attwell looked up at Michael and continued, “My brother never appreciated such things, you know. He never truly appreciated you, either; once you were found out to be a deep-cover spy for the SOE, I saw an opportunity to mold you into the person you were always meant to be. Do you remember the first thing I told you after you came out of Hydra’s operating room?”

Michael’s hardened expression faltered, almost as if he was struggling to control his actions, and in an instant, he drew his gun and shot Attwell directly in the chest. There were tears in his eyes as he finally replied, “‘Michael, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.’”

The box and the vial slipped out of the dying man’s hands and as he began to sway dangerously on his feet, (Y/N) lunged forward and caught both in her hands before they could hit the ground. While Attwell’s lifeless body collapsed to the ground in a heap, she and Jack hurriedly placed the deadly Zodiac back into the box and slammed the lid closed; she let out a shaky breath, unable to grasp everything that had just happened. Michael dropped to his knees, tossing his gun to the side and rubbing his head with one hand; still mindful of her now-oozing wound, Jack held her a little closer as they both warily watched the unsteady man turn away from Attwell’s body to look at them. “I-It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Agent (Y/L/N). I’m Michael Carter, SOE.”

A smile slowly stretched across (Y/N)’s face and a sense of relief was beginning to wash over her as a familiar voice called throughout the boiler room. “(Y/N)? Jack?”

“We’re back here, (Y/N) needs some medical attention but we’re okay!” Jack called back, meeting (Y/N)’s gaze and flashing her a lopsided grin. “You’re gonna be fine, Specs, you hear me?” With a relieved chuckle, Jack leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her sweat-covered brow before resting his cheek on the top of her head. “We’re all gonna be fine.”

“Hey!” The first person who rounded the corner was Daniel, whose gun was already at the ready when he pointed it at Michael. “Hey, get the hell away from them!”

Jack held out a placating hand to the chief. “Easy, Danny Boy, he’s good right now; he’s the one who killed Attwell.”

Lowering his gun, Daniel limped over to where they sat against the pipe and knelt down as best he could to examine her knife wound. “Looks like the knife missed everything important, thank goodness. What the hell happened down here?”

Jack detailed everything they’d dealt with after hurrying out of the warehouse as their friends joined them; Edwin began treating her various wounds with Henry’s assistance, Howard carefully stowed the box containing Zodiac and its key into a satchel and Dugan worked on locating a weak point in the wall to blow a quick exit for them. There was a flurry of voices and activity surrounding (Y/N), but all her attention was on Peggy and Michael; they were talking to each other in low tones, Michael looking heartbreakingly unsure and Peggy trying her hardest not to cry, until they both surged forward and hugged one another. For the second time that day, (Y/N) was reminded of Freddie but while she watched the Carter siblings finally reunite, she didn’t feel sadness or envy, but rather pride. She was proud of herself, for having helped stop Leviathan’s plans and for having made-do on her promise to reunite her oldest and dearest friend with her beloved brother. If anyone deserves a second chance at happiness it’s those two, she thought to herself, taking a deep breath and resting her head against Jack’s strong shoulder.

They did it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Only one more chapter left!! Like I said, idk how I feel about this chapter as a whole so I’m sorry if there’s mistakes/it’s bad, but next week’s is gonna be great! Thank you guys so much for reading! If you haven’t checked it out yet, I created a Spotify playlist for this series and it’s linked down below!

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/21pWY7OiMFj8LaYpxhtVtW

Chapter Twenty

“Specs and the Flyboy” Masterlist

Tagging: @nnon-it-up @fluffymadamina @remmyswritings @ourstarsailor @darkusangelus @josis-teacup @marvel-jackt-loki-buck @yeetyeetchickenmeat @sameoldbaby @theserenityspace @seeing-but-not-observing @supervoldejaygent @momc95 @brooke0297 @kinda-c0nfused @outoftheregular

#jack thompson x reader #agent carter #jack thompson #peggy carter #daniel sousa #howard stark #edwin jarvis #dum dum dugan #pinky pinkerton #happy sam sawyer #the howling commandos #michael carter #dottie underwood #marvel cinematic universe #strategic scientific reserve

106 notes · View notes

reddit-terf-cold-takes · 3 years

Text

Honestly, going with the most charitable interpretation of what a world post-gender abolition looks like from what I’ve read from “gender-critical” users, this is where I think trans people would place in it:

Wome would be liberated from the patriarchy. (This is at the top because this is where most gender critics here on Tumblr are going to stop - i know it’s an oversimplification, but much like gender critics claim they’re more concerned for “women’s safety”, I’m more concerned here with the safety and well-being of my fellow trans people.)

People would get to wear whatever we want - or whatever we don’t want - with zero or low judgment or threat of violence.

Bathrooms would be divided into Men’s rooms and Women’s rooms, and if you’re going into one you’d better have the right “natural” “parts” to be there. If not it’s to be assumed you either made a mistake or had nefarious intentions and would be dealt with accordingly.

Kids would be allowed to wear whatever they want, play with whatever they want, and not have gendered expectations and roles shoved onto them.

Hair on women, facial included, would not be an issue.

People will have zero problems using the pronouns and names assigned to them at birth, by virtue of the sex they were born as.

Media will not shove gender onto kids either.

This will get rid of gender dysphoria because…again, being charitable, kids raised without gendered expectations and roles won’t feel the need to be the other sex to “escape”, or “mix up” gender and sex.

On the rare case that gender dysphoria is biology-based, clearly therapy would be needed to help them “accept their birth sex.” And gender dysphoria would be treated like a “normal” mental illness, thought of like anorexia or other types of body dysmorphia, and not “catered to.”

So, to sum it up: Trans people wouldn’t exist because in the post-gender abolition Utopia, people would be perfectly happy with their birth sex, would just use the pronouns and name assigned to them at birth, if you were caught in the wrong bathroom you’d be assumed to be there by mistake or arrested if not, and gender dysphoria would be therapied out of them.

…so unpacking this:

Why would gendered bathrooms even be needed in a post-gendered world? Presumably one of the goals of women’s liberation and abolition of gender would be to eradicate, as much as possible, violence against women. If that was successfully done…why would there even be a fear of unisex bathrooms, if predatory behavior against women is no longer an issue?

I wore androgynous and “tomboyish” clothing before I transitioned. I wore a lot of whatever I wanted before I transitioned, mostly sweatpants, t-shirts, and sweaters. It didn’t lessen the feeling of “wrongness,” nor did that feeling improve until I fully embraced being trans and what that meant.

For the above, I imagine this is much, much harder for trans women - for all the talk of being free to wear whatever you like and that clothing shouldn’t be gendered, apparently the farthest a lot of gender critics are willing to go is “rockstar dandy David Bowie.” Women are allowed to be butch and masculine…but not too butch and masculine. (See: Every single TERF crying over a transmasculine person “ruining their body” girl shut up)

This goes towards policing how trans people clothe themselves too. For trans women, if you’re too feminine you’re “appropriating womanhood;” if you’re more butch you’re just a man claiming to be a female to get access to women’s spaces. For trans men, too masculine and you’re considered a traitor, “ugly” or lost dating material; if you’re not masculine enough you’re just pretending to be trans for clout, or brainwashed by the patriarchy. Non-binary people get mocked and dismissed no matter what the fuck they do. And this is even without the trauma that intersex people face from birth for having an abnormal body that doesn’t fit the sex binary, including non-consensual surgery done on them as a child and then covered up.

(As an aside - every single cis intersex woman I know on this platform? Has been “accused” of being trans. BY GENDER CRITICS. It’s sickening.)

Point being; for a group concerned about gender abolition, trans people have a very small gender expression allowance that is tolerated, at best.

We can’t win, to put it bluntly. Maybe our gender expression will be allowed in the post-gender abolition world that’s going to definitely come in…the next few hundred years. For realsies, pinkie promise uwu.

Gender identity is not simply cultural. There are trans people who have a biological basis for their dysphoria as well. Again, I can only speak for my own experiences, but - on a fundamental level, the fact that my body is built for being impregnated and giving birth is like something out of Alien, and the thought of my body being capable of doing that is something I reject on every single level of my body, even the levels I can’t even reach. And there are people around you who A) see this as good, and B) want to force you to carry that crotchburster until it’s ready to pop.

My body should not be capable of doing that. Period. The end. And any amount of “body acceptance uwu” therapy you try to put me through to “fix” it is going to look shady as fuck. Might as well bring a pro-lifer CPC counselor in at that point.

There’s a lot more I can touch on - the fact that woman’s liberation is often isolated from other forms of oppression and that this post-gender utopia will not have even a ghost’s chance of happening unless we are all liberated, the way that the “scientific” argument of “define woman lol” is metaphysical in nature rather than scientific, the fact that this world they want trans people to live in means us living as something we fundamentally are not -

But I’ll be blunt again.

In a post-gender world, trans people wouldn’t exist. And those that do would be relegated to the same dark shadow of shame that hangs over people with mental illnesses.

And honestly, that’s a terrifying thought.

(TERFs don’t bother interacting if your only comment is going to focus only first bullet point. As I said, this post is primarily concerned about what trans people’s place would be in a “post-gender world” and the place and safety of trans people in it. Don’t derail.)

#anti terf #anti gender critical #trans liberation now #transphobia tw #gender abolition #reproductive rights #mental illness

42 notes · View notes

emersonfreepress · 3 years

Note

okay so is there content that you had planned for the ROs and story in general but then scrapped cause there wasn’t a good place in the story to stick it in? and if so, can you share what it was? 👀 👀 👀

yes, definitely. *rubs hands together* oh man, you done asked THE question today xD I can't wait to get into this 😁

Academics. I almost decided to have classes and grades be a minor part of gameplay, but the more time I spent designing it the more I realized I wanted nothing to do with it 😂 I haven’t really enjoyed academic gameplay in other interactive fiction because I 1) hate having to choose between studying and interacting with awesome characters, 2) have terrible short term memory, and 3) hate school in general!! So instead I just opted to have the MC be really good at school, point blank period so I could focus on social drama and relationships instead! 😆

Physical skills. I spent literal months crafting the catering scene around setting up stats for stamina/endurance, dexterity, and strength instead of just magnetism, confidence, and persuasion. They had their own backstories with the MC’s parents being overly invested sports parents instead and I think the background choices were like... martial arts, gymnastics, and track? But yeah, I ended up scrapping it all because I was spending hours on research about those individual sports so I could integrate them into the MC’s narrative organically but like... when I tried to think of what use they would be in the actual story, I came up blank. Best decision yet, esp since it means a lot less coding!

Skin tone customization. For one, I noticed that a lot of my favorite IFs don’t offer that customization and it hasn’t impacted my experience at all. For two, I originally realized I might as well not implement it since I am striving real hard not to introduce any customization that won’t actually be mentioned in interesting or meaningful ways in-story. I don’t think it’s really all that common for real life friends (esp in high school?) to comment or compliment each other’s skin and like... when it comes from someone who doesn’t share a similar complexion or ethnic background, that type of commentary gets... d i c e y. So then I wanted to be sensitive to that but what’s the pay-off? An RO mentioning how they love your skin tone once? Awkward sentences with the MC referring to their own skin color? Idk, just wasn’t vibing with it. I’m open to revisiting it in beta or something but for now it’s scrapped.

Singing, Rapping, and Gaming as Hobbies/Talents. I feel bad about scrapping these, honestly 😂 They’re great and I really wanted to incorporate them but it just came down to already having a lot of stuff to code. Plus, I know I can write the Hobbies/Talents I stuck with far better. And for Book 2 purposes, as well!

Leo. as @sourandflightypeaches asked me about a long while ago, I had to scrap an entire RO 😢 His name is Leo, he was the nephew of wealthy west African diplomats residing in Emerson, and I love him dearly! His backstory was largely based on my mother’s childhood and the circumstances she lived through after immigrating to America. and... ok, i’m about to go on one hell of a tangent so buckle up and bear with me if you can 😅

my intention with this story, aside from writing things that I personally enjoy (graphic violence, spooky woods, social drama, romance, conspiracies 😚), is to explore greed, wealth, and how the ways people and families interact with those two things influence young people and who they grow up to be. here i go sounding pretentious af 😝 and here’s where I apply a cut for those who want to preserve a little mystery to the main characters!

With Gabe, we’ve got someone who grew up with very little stability or financial security but who has found unscrupulous methods to gain status and money, with both noble and selfish motivations.

Kile has some of that childhood experience in common with Gabe, having been in the foster care system since infancy, but they lucked out when they were adopted into massive wealth by a caring, loving couple—a couple that uses their wealth and privilege to be far more lenient and protective of Kile than is actually reasonable or responsible.

Jack comes from a prestigious wealthy family on his dad’s side who he loves dearly but there’s no getting around the fact that they love him back as much as they despise his working class mom.

Jessie is a spoiled sweet heiress (being the baby of her family and the only girl) and while she lives blissfully ignorant of the harmful source and impact of her father's income and career, she bears the weight of the expectation to fulfill very traditional gender roles, including her behavior and appearance, but also extending to her career and life plans.

Rain's wealth led to them growing up sheltered and isolated but also extremely accommodated, giving them maximum freedom and opportunity to discover and develop their personal talents and interests. However, they have almost no positive relationship with their parents who have essentially decided to give up on a kid that couldn't be exactly the accessory they tried to mold them to be—both in terms of their identity and personality.

Rupan/Rohan, at their very core, rejects everything about conformity, self-importance, and excessive luxury—which means they have never, ever truly fit in with their peers. Going full non-conformist, however, has resulted in them becoming alienated from much of their family, as well, despite them all loving each other very much. Their history with false friends and betrayals has led them to over-indulge in their vices and reckless behavior to compensate for that isolation. Sometimes, they just get in over their head and many times, they know better. Every time, it's just that the feeling of finally belonging is utterly intoxicating.

Vivian/Vincent has two extremely successful parents who didn't inherit but instead built up their wealth and they aspire to be just like them, to a degree that is well and truly unhealthy. Their mother specifically is an over-achiever and applies mountainous pressure for them to follow in her footsteps, especially academically. Vi is completely capable of achieving what their mom expects of them, but they were already an extremely sensitive perfectionist so this has made them intensely critical of themself. This is a large part of why they are such a rigid, no-nonsense person and that in turn has made them one of the most disliked people among their peers—which is a huge personal failure to them since their father is a very well-liked and socially successful person in town.

And the Emersons are peak privilege: inherent high social status, brains, looks, charisma, athleticism, and massive wealth. They could never have been anything less than extremely popular, just by virtue of their last name and the nature of the town's social dynamics and politics. And they do enjoy that privilege (esp Curt lol). However, it should go without saying that being so high profile, even (or maybe especially) just in the isolated scope of your hometown, isn't always a boon. Their family's and their own perceived failings are widely discussed and privately mocked and/or celebrated. Real friends are scarce while fake ones and snakes are plentiful. Plus their dad is a gigantic dickhead who sees his kids as extensions of his own status and reputation and not much else. Public shortcomings make for an unbearable time at home and the world outside the estate is at once overly accommodating, full of assumptions, and even subtly hostile at times—all unrelated to their own actions or character.

And with the MC, I think the narrative will make it clear there are several ways that story can go. You start off with irresponsible parents that have lost their wealth due to their own mismanagement and material ambitions—how that affects any individual MC should differ based on choices and consequences!

So why bring any of that up when I was supposed to be talking about my cut OC? 😂😂

Leo was going to be the unwelcome recent addition to his uncle’s household, the son of a brother his aunt hates for (petty af) Reasons, and she took that resentment out on him directly by restricting his access to nearly every aspect of the family's wealth. Especially material goods and living conditions. He was basically treated like the help, tasked with playing nanny for his many younger cousins and burdened with doing the homework and providing academic cover for his dumb as rocks cousin in the same grade as you all. To sum it up, he was basically a victim of trafficking at the hands of his own family with his uncle out of town enough to feign ignorance to how bad his wife was treating his nephew and his aunt going out of her way to keep him busy, at home, and isolated. This is sadly a super common form of trafficking in Francophone African cultures (although I don't think most people view it as trafficking. and I’m sure the same is true of other cultures but I don’t want to speak outside of my purview). And like I mentioned above, it’s how my own mom's (and idek how many cousins') child/teenhood went.

It’s a perspective on modern wealth, privilege and greed that I really, really wanted to tell. I am confident in saying it hasn't been explored in interactive fiction yet (though correct me—and direct me 👀—if I'm wrong) and out of all the wealth/greed explorations I came up with, it's the one I have the closest personal ties to and the strongest feelings about. The characters and plans I had for it were detailed and I'm proud of them but at the end of the day... I just couldn't find a place for Leo in the story at large.

Leo was, in fact, the last main character I came up with, when I had already designed and fleshed out the larger story and started crafting the timeline of major events. I think the worst thing I could have done for a story and perspective that I care about this much is shove it into a plot that didn't have room for it at the very base level, regardless of how well the character or his story is written. Shoe-horned characters always stick out. I didn’t want to disservice Leo by having him be the character that did nothing or could be removed from the main plot without affecting it at all, y’know? That’s so much worse than just forgoing the indulgence, imo :((

ugh.... Leooooo 😭 I'm so sorry bb, I failed youuu 😥

#lovely anon #answered #hotmess #ok I am truly so sorry for going on and on like this #writing #ch design #ty for this question it was really nice to revisit this stuff 😃#and a nice reminder to not look back lol #scrapped

41 notes · View notes

flameontheotherside · 3 years

Text

I don't follow any gurus or teachers.

This doesn't mean I can't be taught because when I do have questions, I DO my research and find answers from others with more experience. However I only take what makes sense to me and I move on. I don't spend too much time reading up on any particular person or engulf myself in their work or articles. Not anymore.

The one person I did follow a lot up to a point became a "Jesus freak". Which is totally okay. I have no problem with that. I consider myself sort of a Jesus freak too but not a fanatic or someone who would turn on their followers with insults like she did (Doreen Virtue).

I began distancing myself around 2013.

Just felt disconnected from her and stopped using her decks. But I also fell off the spiritual path too and only picked it up just before she left the new age in 2016 and I reached my peak in 2017. I still never bothered to pick another "guru".

The thought of being a follower never set well with me. I equate that to being a sheep or being unable to think for yourself. This doesn't mean I think you are this way. I think everyone is capable to think for themselves but someone who holds on to every word a teacher has isn't truly learning anything.

So I don't feel like being a teacher is for me.

Look at all the famous "teachers". They are given expectations. They are expected to be perfect. Its natural. We do this because when we find a guru, we hold them in high regard. Because people are imperfect, we get caught off guard when they change. distancing myself from gurus prevents me from getting upset or frustrated with them. I'm not perfect and I don't want to be thought of as such. I'm flawed, awkward, still learning and always learning. Stress, anxiety, trying to please everyone is not my jam.

If for some reason I'm helpful to people or I give good advice or even offer friendship, that's great. But I urge people who read my blog to think for themselves and take what resonates with them. Look at other related blogs, look at your own experiences, do what you think is right for you, and believe in whatever is right for you.

My teacher is God and ONLY God.

I personally feel followship of a guru is no different than worshiping a God. God is the Supreme teacher. No one can replace the teachings, wisdom, love and support of God and he will show up whenever he feels like it and he will speak in riddles or in ways that force you to think. To claim to be an expert in spiritual matters or have the desire to be an expert in areas not totally proven by science is kind of an oxymoron? This is just how I feel. Lol trying not to sound contradictory. 🤣

To desire to be an expert in spiritual matters, is a form of pride and spiritual egotism which is a sin as well as karmic sin, as per one of the deadly sins. It's counterproductive if you want to avoid sins as much as possible, isn't it? It's mocking God by feeling you can be like him or better when it's purely a form of ego and God will at some point remind you or put you in your place as if to say, "I am supreme, the alpha, the omega, the beginning and the end." He's put me in my place before.

😘💕 Have a wonderful weekend!

5 notes · View notes

pleasefeedthebirds · 4 years

Text

A Relatively Deep Dive Into My “Crème de la Crème” MCs - #2. Arminia Weschen

(“Crème de la Crème” is by @hpowellsmith. See my first post in this series here.)

Arminia “Ms. Weschen” Weschen

she/her/hers

Olive complexion and wavy brown hair

Favors conventionally feminine fashion

Domineering

Manipulative

Traditional → Progressive (*In the very end of the game)

Exceptional Poise and Intrigue

Commonplace Spirit, Wit, and Flair

LOADS more info and spoiler content under the cut!

Ooooo Mean Girl alert! After playing through the game twice as relatively well-meaning albeit inherently-morally-questionable-via-flimsy-upbringings-socialized-within-the-cushion-of-wealth characters, I had an absolute blast throwing high regard for redeeming qualities to the wind, and making a full-on self-centered and socially ruthless manipulator.

As the middle child in a sibling spread of five, Arminia felt overlooked for most of her young life, being the only one of her brood who wasn’t excellent at anything tangible. Her parents—busy-bodied magnates—would be exorbitantly rich if they weren’t such spendthrifts. I take them for bristling, insecure types who enable each other to the extreme, and who cater to their children's’ every material want, supposing that it makes up for being busy and distant. They believe in flagrant displays of luxury as proof of status, which is something that imprinted their kids thoroughly, Arminia included.

Making the executive decision that Arminia was “too good” for Holtsfield, they arranged her transference to Gallatin for her final year of college, hoping to expand her education in social graces before coaxing her into the business world, as they had her older brother and sister. Just before the term began, Arminia’s parents were exposed. They were both involved in an embezzlement scheme each (lol classic) and dropped swiftly and irreparably from their prior standing.

Arminia was already conditioned to view society as a tower, but when her parents fell, it suddenly became a matter of sink or swim, win or lose—and the stakes were higher than ever.

So, she takes Gallatin for her own personal jungle gym. She recognizes the system, and chooses to manipulate it as an aspiring expert of “the game.” Never being the type to talk seriously (not trusting anyone enough), she actually thinks that she’s the first of her circles to realize the hypocritical convolutions of high society and social graces. Instead of rebelling, she leans into it all the more, and clings to her realized understanding as an advantage.

Though working for her own benefit usually comes first (typically by emotionally strongarming kids into doing her bidding), Arminia is no stranger to putting others down for cruel amusement, and may step out of her way to do so, only partially in the spirit of preserving her alpha status. She’s a merciless strategist, because that’s what she thinks it means to thrive in the world today, and with quite the competitive streak, she’s determined to stay on top, no matter how lonely it turns out to be.

5’7”, with a soft, pear-shaped body. Her favorite vice is getting scandalous on the side, so she knows how to flaunt it, too.

Has very thick and dark eyebrows. She’s frequently enraged by their presence, and plucks them relentlessly. They always come back.

Is dexterous with makeup. Her lips are naturally thin, so she draws them out each morning, rouges her cheeks, and softens her face’s edges. On weekends, she dabbles in eyeliner.

Her eyes are a very light brown—nearly yellow at golden hour. For her spotty vision, she has prescribed reading glasses, but never wears them, because she doesn’t like integrating things into her aesthetic that are outside of her choice.

Freckled all over. Their allotment becomes more profuse the tanner she gets. She feigns indifference to them, but shifts between liking them (for distinguishing her) and hating them (for distinguishing her) depending on the day.

Suffers something of a protagonist’s condition, living in a self-made belief that everything she does matters beyond compare. She clings to this idea for the sake of feeling important, but generally fails to recognize that other people are every bit as complex as she is.

Has trouble handling her anger. She’s great at hiding it in the moment, but absolutely rampages when she’s alone.

A tragic kissass to all of her teachers. Mr. Griffith raises an eyebrow, but respects her social wit. I don’t think Mr. Blanchard knows what to do with that kind of deference, and so ignores it. Miss Dalca probably likes her moxie, but thinks she’d be better to use it for good, and has called her out on being unnecessarily pointed in class discussions (Arminia loves and hates this). Lady Renaldt likely sees her as adequate, if a bit too brusque toward her fellow students.

Virtue: 74%

Popularity: 87%

Coursework Grade: A

Exam Mark: C

Extracurricular: Gallatin Swans (offensive)

Entanglements: Platonically engaged to Gonzalez. Physically involved with Florin.

Her only real friend is Gonzalez, who she actually confides in. Not totally, though she gets as close as is doable for her. I think Gonzalez is the only one of her peers who genuinely falls for the faux-nice act, and Arminia takes pity. It’s not kind , but at the end of the day, Arminia still takes her for a total idiot. They get engaged for appearances.

Has a physical relationship with the Honourable Florin Kraemer. Florin seems to thrive on trouble, giving as much as receiving, and Arminia takes risks as her favorite vice. However, post-mine conflict, I imagine Arminia’s scarred into changing for the better, and would do her best to encourage Florin to do the same, at least be more conscious of their actions on other people and what their profligacy is capable of.

Cordial with Auguste, who respected her traditionally respectable appearances at Archambault events.

Cordial with Rosario. She and Arminia shot the shit a few times. The princess’s naïveté was easy for Arminia to work around, and say the right thing to. They wouldn’t easily become genuine friends.

So-so with Freddie, who stays out of Arminia’s way. Arminia likes that, so there’s no issue with them.

Treats Karson like a servant, and sees little issue with that.

Could have been friends with Max. I bet she intrigues him for her scandalous-by-moonlight ways, but her faux-pleasantries absolutely would turn him off.

A bully to Delacroix. Says mocking things to him and his interests in a tone that’s just sweet enough to fly below the radar. Gets a sense of her own social security out of doing so.

She and Blaise were utterly abhorrent to each other. Upon the latter’s first introduction as a thorn in her side, Arminia sniped right back at Blaise like a spitting cat for as long as Blaise was around. She gets a smug satisfaction upon her “resignation,” though she acts sad to avoid coming under fire. Later turns to a confused sense of guilt when she learns where Blaise has really been.

Some Choice Plot Pieces (cue spoilers):

Gathered evidence against Mr. Blanchard in compliance with Lady Renaldt.

Has a surprisingly great working relationship with Miss Benton.

Gathered information for Annick against Lady Renaldt (to avoid a smear on her own reputation).

Endgame (cue SUPER spoilers):

Almost ended up working with Lady Renaldt in the mine plot, hoping to turn the situation to her own gain. However, when Karson spilled that Gaspard Breiner died there, and when Lady Renaldt demanded she send Gonzalez, it was too much to comply with.

Sent Gonzalez to the mines (as part of her own plan), but got everyone out.

Barged right into the graduation ceremony.

Went on to study at Reissenger (I imagine on a lacrosse scholarship—fully just to be with Gonzalez).

Planned a trip with Florin over the summer, where I think she’ll get just a bit more worldly before her coming term at university.

#creme de la creme #arminia weschen #if ref #choice of games

12 notes · View notes

oddsocksandstuff · 3 years

Text

Art Promo and Liveblog for The Road Ahead by @demonologist-in-denim

Live blog under the cut (got a bit long!)

Together, driving the Impala down the road ahead, the last chorus of “Carry On” swallowed by the roar of Baby’s engine.

that's a satisfying notion

His face finally settles into a look of mock outrage when he realizes she’s teasing him.

ahahaha this is a very Claire n Dean moment

Dean driving late into the night, glancing over to see Sam fast asleep, forehead resting against the window.

SOFT

The room number being the number of episodes is *chefs kiss*

It is a plaid moose and squirrel motel room to the fullest extent of the imagination

perfect lol

You get a taste for something, or it gets a taste of you, and then enough is never enough, you know?”

that's a helluva line

I'm really enjoying how this is covering the big questions that canon often shied away from in the later years...

And now, it feels like every day is Tuesday.”

Sam blinks, hard. He looks around them for a moment, concerned

heheheh

Here, in this house,” he tells them, “was where I learned humanity, with all its virtues and faults, was something worth fighting for. You taught me that.”

😍😍 you know that's something I'd never put into words but you're right, Bobby's house was the setting for a lot of growth for Cas

Rebellion, it seems, comes naturally to me.”

YEAH IT DOES

listening to all the people calling out to each other through the dark.

got goosebumps at this line

since there doesn’t seem to be any potentially world ending scenario – ”

“Dude!” Sam’s face clearly says ‘why would you even say that?’

YEAH Dean that's just asking for trouble lol

“Wherever life takes us after this, she’ll carry us the rest of the way.”

lovely call back to, well, everything. I hope I haven't given too many spoilers! You can read the fic here

#spncoldesthits #spncoldesthitspromo

5 notes · View notes

vampirecatboy · 4 years

Note

ok I low key wanna request all the ocs you listed but I'll just keep it to 2 lol. Kira (ofc :3c) and Aja because i just love him lol

i mean you know i would absolutely, happily spend at least six hours doing everybody, but Kira and Aja are good choices lol

Full Name: Kira Mag Raith (fun fact for the people, Mag Raith is pronounced Mag Ray, yay Irish!)

Gender and Sexuality: cis man, he’s pansexual but skews toward men because i’m gay and can’t help it lol, he’s also polyamorous

Pronouns: he/him

Ethnicity/Species: clavat, so basically half-elf, and ethnicity does work a bit differently in our campaign, but he’s white-coded, and speaks with an Irish accent of varying strength (it’s stronger when he’s upset or with his family, good luck understanding him if he’s upset and with his family)

Birthplace and Birthdate: born in Cairn, tbh i haven’t really thought about his birthday, but i get strong earth sign vibes from him, maybe Virgo? so let’s say August 31, the liminal space of days like it seriously doesn’t feel like it should be real

Guilty Pleasures: napping in sunbeams, i was going to say jk but i actually love it, so he naps in sunbeams but is a bit embarrassed about it

Phobias: what’s that vegetable cats are afraid of? cucumbers? “they have dark energy, trust me”, or humiliation. cucumbers and humiliation

What They Would Be Famous For: alleged attempted murder on television, on a more serious note he’d probably prefer not to be super famous, like celebrity-style, he’d probably prefer to be a folk hero or urban legend or a cryptid lol

What They Would Get Arrested For: he has done nothing wrong, ever. idk maybe assault or public disturbance for fighting someone in public, maybe trespassing if he sleeps in the wrong shed or barn

OC You Ship Them With: bit of Justice, but mostly Rhys

OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Rhys again, but despite everything it’s not all that likely, Rhys is a jerk but he’s not a murderer

Favorite Movie/Book Genre: fantasy or adventure, but he’s not much of a reader

Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: deus ex machina, it’s the easy way out and he doesn’t like it

Talents and/or Powers: he’s spent a lot of time perfecting his bow skills, so he’s very good at hitting long-range targets, he’s also great at keeping secrets

Why Someone Might Love Them: first off, he’s small and adorable, but mostly he’s very considerate and trustworthy, and he’s a great listener. he’s really not going to be mean unless you’re mean first

Why Someone Might Hate Them: misinterpretation of his demeanor/behavior probably, or if someone decides he’s responsible for problems they caused Rhys

How They Change: please my sweet boy i’m begging you, open up to someone please, that’s what i’m hoping for at least, he needs to learn how to really trust others

Why You Love Them: he is..... my boy....., for real though, he’s genuinely so sweet and he cares about people a lot and even though Dmitri tries to possess him from time to time, i love that he’s basically nothing like him

time for spicy boy!

Full Name: Aja, i have not given him a last name. i have no excuse.

Gender and Sexuality: cis man, he thinks he’s straight but he’s so not, i haven’t given him a concrete label but queer is applicable

Pronouns: he/him

Ethnicity/Species: ifrit (the pathfinder version of a fire genasi), plus he’s a sorcerer with a draconic bloodline, so somebody at some point fucked a dragon and he’s got some of that

Birthplace and Birthdate: oof i can’t give a town name but he lived up in the mountains? he is, however, such an Aries, let’s say his birthday is April 4

Guilty Pleasures: mackin on Dmitri he reads erotica, i’m not gonna beat around the bush, he’s always seen seducing women, so obviously the dudes he hangs around expect stories of his conquests, unfortunately he has perpetually shitty luck with bedding women so he is a big ol virgin, but no way is he telling anyone that, basically he takes the scenes from the erotica he reads, modifies them a bit, and pretends they’re his experiences (it’s worked so far, luckily all those dudes he talks to really don’t do much or any reading)

Phobias: he doesn’t like being on boats in open water, he’s a fire elemental with a red draconic bloodline, on a base, instinctual level he does not feel safe when surrounded by water (he’s alright in the rain though)

What They Would Be Famous For: allegedly sleeping with several noblewomen, maybe a princess or two (someone mentioned a queen once and well, he’s not going to deny it)

What They Would Get Arrested For: arson. no story there he just. likes fire.

OC You Ship Them With: Dmitri, naturally

OC Most Likely To Murder Them: Dmitri, but it’s not personal, there are plenty of dudes who hear about him sleeping with their wives so like, any of number of them would have no problem hiring an assassin (or a bounty hunter with a penchant for killing his targets) to go after him

Favorite Movie/Book Genre: erotica and maybe a touch of romance, a guy can dream

Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: there are some romance/smut tropes he gets sick of, anything to do with virginity and purity and virtue and deflowering a maiden, both on a personal level and also on a “virginity is a social construct used almost exclusively on women to determine their worth” level. also some of those male writers really do not know how certain parts work. as soon as he sees the word “tight” he throws the book away

Talents and/or Powers: want something burned? toasted? roasted? singed? he’s got you covered. he’s a skilled, powerful sorcerer with a preference for fire magic. also he’s obviously a great liar and a hell of a charmer

Why Someone Might Love Them: despite his reputation as a philanderer, he’s a gentleman and he’s drowning in that respect women juice, he’s not pushy, if she’s not interested, he backs off, and i mean, 20 charisma score, he’d have to really flub for someone to not love him

Why Someone Might Hate Them: ah those husbands do not like some sexy fire boy comin in and boinking their wives, supposedly very well, also he’s very showy and that can get on people’s nerves

How They Change: he has a Gay Crisis and suddenly “oh, maybe.... men too?” and i mean, Dmitri does suss out his myriad of lies about sexual conquests, and he eventually does kind of open up about his insecurities because Dmitri just kinda listens and doesn’t criticize or mock him and really only adds things like “wow, that really sucks, i’m sorry dude.” and that’s all he really needs

Why You Love Them: he’s hot, he dresses slutty, he’s a master of charm, and yet..... 73 years old and he has not seen a naked woman in real life. also the blushing mechanic i gave him, where instead of blushing, his hair kinda flares up like a ghibli character but with fire..... too cute. also he’s smart. i’m pretty sure intelligence was his highest stat after charisma, at like 16, and i love that for him

ah thank you i always spend so much time on these and i love it lol

#astralwasteland #i closed the tab this was in like halfway through writing it and lost everything #that added a good chunk of time to composition lol #dnd tag

5 notes · View notes