#i think Mercy is the closest I come to having a main that's tough to criticize sharply
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Non-exhaustive list of games I’ve played trying to recover from The World Ends With You Obsession
((Play harvestella))
Rune Factory 5: I don’t love Rune factory 4 quite as much as okami or twewy, but it’s definitely one of the closest games, and I was over the moon when rf5 was announced. But running around the coziness of rf4s, it did seem unlikely that rf5 could equal that, and reviews panning its performance also put a damper on my expectations. I still found some enjoyment in rf5, but rf4 ran circles around it. Biggest offenses for me: talking to everyone in the village both takes longer (so many loading screens, being 3d is so not worth this) and less rewarding than rf4 (It felt like an entire year before villagers start recycling dialogue in rf4; it’s one of its greatest strengths. Rf5 characters are repeating themselves within a week.). Actually, that kinda encapsulates a lot of rf5′s problems, longer for less, with excessively long days and low drop rates. The post game dungeon was also far shorter than I was expecting and supremely disappointing. My biggest gripe, however, was locking the flower seller to close to the end of the game. The last character you unlock in rf4 upgrades spells, something totally optionally and easily (and frequently) ignored. But no flower seeds? abs - ol -ut -ly CRIMININAL. That means heavily gimped chemistry; and no non rng sources of wettable powder. I wanted to take my time with the game, do a bunch of farming and social elements, not just rush through main story. And like, I did, but it left me completely at the mercy of typhoons. Even dragging my feet as much as I did, I still beat the story before completing a single year, and that always rubbed me the wrong way. It was over 70 hrs so I can’t really complain it’s too short, but, blegh. Other minor annoyances: the festival music became intolerably grating after hearing it for the first 5 hours, cute sea horse bosses I so looked forward to taming are untameable, the travesty. I do really hope its just the kinks of coming back to the series after so long and working with 3d and future rf games are a step up.
Harvestella PLAY THIS GAME PLAY THIS GAME IT HAS UNICORN OF THE CRYPTIDS WHAT ELSE DO YOU NEED?!?! Ahem. I really had a tough time gauging this game. Saw in the nintendo direct, went sold, this looks awesome gimme. I didn’t play the demo, as I didn’t want to start playing and then have to wait a couple months to play the rest, but asked my sister her thoughts about it. She really wasn’t enthusiastic, but she’s less keen on rune factory than I am, it’s fine. Reviews came out and were thoroughly middling so mmm, maybe it’s not exactly awesome. But being better than rf5 - or even just as good - isn’t a high bar so I’m looking forward to it. I started playing it, and I have plenty of gripes - but I also really couldn’t stop playing. It’s certainly a different rhythm than rf, pretty much all interaction with villagers is exclusively done through quests and there’s not much point in talking to anyone outside of those. However, said quests are also pretty good, and you wouldn’t want to talk to everyone every day, you could spend all day running to various npcs and probably not reach all of them in one day. I do really miss rf’s skill and crafting system (harvestella has crafting but outside of accessory synthesis it has 0 customization) and monster catching. At first it was charming for the sos throwback ‘just buy (not) cows and (not) chickens, but I definitely miss having more things to look forward to. And once Harvestella’s quests are completed, there’s not much point in continuing to play. I didn’t much care about the lack of festivals when I started Harvestella, but now on the other side it’s what I think it needs most. Common complaints about harvestella are the lack of voice acting and extremely limited character creation options but really that’s not where I’d put extra resources too. Anyways, the music and world in this game are just breathtaking; I’ve been totally immersed since christmas. Totaku and unicorn’s designs are A++++. I was worried it would be a fairly short affair, and predictably I dragged my feet going through it, savoring every second of that world, but it turned out to be a much more substantial world than I expected. The ending stretch of the game continued to confound my gaugings, the story by turns being disappointing “I wish you thought through this more” and exciting, I downright wanted to dance in the actually-last dungeon. Game’s a total treasure, especially if you enjoy melancholy vibes.
Monster Hunter Stories 2 Did I play MHS 1? No. Have I played any MH? No. But I played the demo for this and rise. Rise was entertaining, but not enough to part with scarce cash for. I put close to ten hours on the demo for this game though, clearly they were doing something right. That ‘something’ is not the story, despite the title. Even trying my best to indulge it, there’s just no getting invested in ‘the power of kinship!’ they keep trying to push, and they really don’t do enough to develop a relationship with ratha. I suppose they did sidestep a couple eye-rolling cliches I was anticipating (others still abound though), and there is occasional charm. I understand the minimalist approach to music, but it really would’ve been nice to have some music for the however many, many, many hours spent hunting for rare eggs postgame. ‘I probably missed something by not playing pokemon’ is the sort of revelation this game brought me. Lackluster story and nonexistant bgm? Who cares, there’s cool monsters to find and battle and catch and customize, I was flat out addicted for a month. Sadly I tried the demo for the first game on the 3ds, and already having a familiarity with the mh bestiary did suck a lot of the novelty and joy from the experience. Um, pokemon recommendations that go hard on presentation and customization?
Radiant Historia Is there a better ds game than twewy? I’m honestly hard pressed to think of any genuine competitors, and consulting the internet this game came up a lot. Radiant Historia is really good. Of the games I’ve played since neo, it has the best cast. There was one chapter midgame that had me on the edge of my seat, and I was thinking, oh, if it just keeps escalating from here it really will be special!! but things kinda just evened out after that. I went back and forth on my feelings about the villain, at first being disappointed at the reveal but by the time the credits rolled I think it worked out pretty well. I played the 3ds remaster, the voice acting was excellent, and while I get why some preferred the old portraits, overall I think new ones are better - except for Eruca oh my god why did you do that to her character design?!?! Criminal! I did get kind of stuck, however, polishing everything off for the true ending. After spending hours without looking anything up online, I’m pretty loathe to give in and do it now. But replaying chapter after chapter looking for the needle in the haystack I’m missing has lost its luster. A hearty f u to aht’s dancing companion. Presumably with enough work I could give everyone a happy ending, so I’ll just presume a happier ending. One day maybe I’ll be more patient.
Ni no Kuni I said radiant historia had the better cast, but also, ester and oliver are my precious children. The single best thing about ni no kuni is the wizard’s companion. It’s beautiful and informative! I love how easy it is to keep track and find things in the game *cough cough cough*. It also scratches the cool monsters! itch. By far the worst thing about ni no kuni is that it had a stealth section. Why? Who thought that was a good idea? Who even thinks those are fun? banging my head against a wall. A slightly negative thing about it is that I really would prefer if it was just flat out turn based instead of realtime. Give me full control of my companions, please. I will say I, uh, wildly misjudged drippy. My deepest apologies.
Final Fantasy Type 0 I like ensemble casts, okay? At first my curiousity was such that I was just going to watch a playthrough, but it’s opening was strong enough that I actually wanted to play it myself. So I did. It has a strong beginning and a stronger ending. The middle, however, is a great big yawn. That last chapter though. If only the entire game was like that. Idk, this game has a lot of flaws but I like the underlying concepts. It probably says something that while I was willing to play many hours of radiant historia postgame, I just rushed online to find the type 0 lore and missing bits rather than slogging through any of it again. Though I do kinda want to bounce around some of its later dungeons... but I have to play through so much bleh to get anywhere.
Persona Strikers I haven’t actually finished the game yet - haven’t touched it since playing harvestella - and maybe wouldn’t even bother mentioning but I wanna complain. The stupid ferris wheel event, they were like ‘hey you can hang out with ryuji and yusuke’ and I was like, cool, not something so date coded yaaaay. Only for ryuji and morgana to bemoan ‘oh this could’ve been a romantic date wow lame’. It really soured me. At least yusuke tried to enjoy himself. It’s not a bad diversion otherwise, although the difficulty is a bit wonky. Some early game game bosses/events stumped me for hour(s), but after a bit more familiarity it evened out, only for me to gain such an overflow of healing/sp items nothing’s really a threat anymore.
Ori and the blind forest I still don’t know what a blind forest is :( Still really enjoyed this, although it’s also more difficult in the beginning than end type of game. Just the design and presentation of this is whole vibe, and one of these days I’ll play will o wisps... one of these days...
13 sentinels People seemed to think highly of this game, my curiosity was piqued, I started to watch a playthrough but really blanched at the one-by-one approach. Poking around I saw the game had a fair degree of flexibility in following the various stories, plus its own encyclopedia, and yeah this was a game where I needed to be in control. Besides, playthoughs are frequently watched at 1.5 or 2x speed and this was just too dense to really process like that. Props to them for making a game’s story really be better as a game. I was going to say ‘a vn you should play instead of just watch’ but the combat was waaay more fun than I anticipated and perfect palette cleanser/break from the story segments. Still, I did wind up feeling a bit cold on the story/characters. It’s impressive it manages so many elements in a cohesive manner, but that’s the best I can say. Mystery’s fun, but nothing never seen before. Characters range from ‘meh’ to ‘rather likeable’ but the game’s insistence everyone needs a love interest weighed it down. Megumi at least had interesting dynamics despite not really being a ‘likeable’ character and the end of her story is probably what I’ll remember the most. Nenji, Usami, and Keitarou were all pretty enjoyable though. I did appreciate how the game wound up dealing with its larger conflict and antagonistic forces. Something about how everyone gets a happy ending I found really refreshing.
There are others too but hmm I’ve slid into playing neo from the start for a third time. trying to do a run without eating and crying a little on the inside. Twewy tells me to expand my world and try different things but it hasn’t actually brought me relief. Woe is me. At least harvestella has delectable vibes.
#rune factory 5#harvestella#radiant historia#13 sentinels#final fantasy type 0#ori#ni no kuni#monster hunter stories 2#rambling rambles#play harvestella#recommend me a pokemon game#or try to sell me on a different game haha
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I just think you should be able to yell "what the fuck is wrong with you???" At main characters, in a genuine way, because they have a flaw a reasonable person could hold against them. As a treat!!
#i think Mercy is the closest I come to having a main that's tough to criticize sharply#she's got a martyr complex because she's still deeply fucked up from being the only survivor of her family's house bombing#and so she drives herself into the ground to somehow earn being alive#but that's a tough one to criticize even if it's wrong and someone needs to yell at her a little more
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Clandestine: Chapter Fourteen
We’re here. The final chapter. Y’all. I’m gonna cry.
@lumosinlove thanks for these characters!!
@donttouchmycarrots thanks for being my partner in crime during this whole mess of a story <3
And thank you, lovely readers!! For sticking with me for this crazy rollercoaster of a story, for encouraging me when I felt like quitting, and for always being so, so wonderful. I appreciate y’all more than I can say.
CW: prison, food, anxiety
Clandestine Masterlist
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The drive back was silent, punctuated sharply by the two empty seats in the van. It was something they should’ve seen coming, but yet were completely blindsided by. Sirius had been on their side for so long now, it seemed odd to picture him anywhere else. It was like he’d been there for years already, fitting in seamlessly and making friends fast, filling a gap that hadn’t been obvious before but felt like a chasm now. He belonged in Gryffindor with them. And Regulus, while more reserved and distant than his brother, didn’t seem to deserve the fate he’d found. The main motive that kickstarted this whole mission had been him – all for him – and he still couldn’t avoid being dragged down with the Snakes.
Remus was on the phone with a contact from the FBI – he had been since they’d taken Sirius away – trying his hardest to find any loopholes he could. He was… actually strangely calm. Methodically tackling one idea after the next, his analytic brain working overtime. Logan could understand, though. Being productive was helpful. It was when things settled down and got quiet, when all you could do was sit there and wait…
That was when things got tough.
His leg bounced up and down in anticipation the closer they got to the cabin, his one-track mind stuck on one thing and one thing only – getting a blond safe-cracker into his arms again. Not having Leo with them had been like missing a limb, making everything feel out of balance. And even thought he was safe, he was still too far away. Logan couldn’t stand it.
Finn reached over and placed a hand on Logan’s with a knowing smile. He was ready to be home, too.
Gravel crunching under their tires only fueled the eagerness. There were lights still on in the cabin, a warm, inviting pull. The front door was open before the cars had pulled to a complete stop, revealing Leo and Hope and Lyall. Julian was presumably asleep, given the hour. Logan’s seatbelt was thrown off and the door closest to him was yanked open, Finn hot on his heels.
Leo bounded down the steps of the porch and flung himself at the two of them, finding every inch of space between them and filling it, a soft sound escaping from his lips as he held on tight in a one-armed grip. Logan and Finn both stumbled back a few steps at the impact but quickly returned the embrace, Logan’s face buried in the junction between neck and shoulder and Finn’s forehead pressed against the blond’s. They seemed to take their next breaths in tandem, slow and steady, as they leaned into each other. Time slowed, everything in the periphery faded, and the world, previously off-kilter, evened out in equilibrium.
Finn suddenly realized he felt the coarse, scratchy texture of Leo’s sling pressed up against him and pulled back a little. “Careful, baby.”
That made Leo pull back. “Why?” He glanced over them nervously. “Are you hurt?”
Logan sighed long-sufferingly and cupped Leo’s face in his hands, looking him in the eyes with a fond expression that belied his exasperation. “No, but you are,” he moved his hands to smush Leo’s cheeks, causing Finn to laugh, “so take it easy.”
Leo smiled – a real one this time, not one of the fake ones he’d given them before they left – and relaxed. After a quick kiss from Logan he asked, “So it went well? Mission’s done?”
Logan and Finn both froze at that. Finn looked over to Remus, who was still on the phone (like he had been for the past hour at least) and frowned.
“Not quite.”
“We can talk inside,” Leo said, looking worried again. “there’s lots of food for y’all.”
He wasn’t wrong. Food covered pretty much every open surface of the countertops, ranging from pancakes to grilled cheese to the cinnamon swirl muffins Leo brought to their first briefing all those months ago. Finn smiled at the memories and instantly snagged one on their way to the kitchen table. His eyes landed on Talker, who was explaining something to Hope as she took a look at his leg. Nat, Kasey, and Alex were piled onto one couch, looking tired and each with a grilled cheese sandwich in hand. He could see Remus on the porch every once in a while when he passed by a window as he paced, phone pressed to his ear.
It didn’t bode well.
Logan sat down with a plate of pancakes drenched in syrup and started telling the story, voice a quiet murmur and only interrupted when he shoveled food into his mouth. Finn wondered how none of them had really seen this coming. In hindsight, it made sense that there would need to be a trial – after all, Sirius and his brother weren’t innocent. Finn wasn’t sure what happened next, though. Criminal trials and sentencing weren’t part of the job for them. He hoped they could get the brothers out of this mess, though. If anyone could find a way to do it, it would be Remus.
At least the Snakes were done for. The information on the flash drives was enough to lock them away for a very, very long time.
He took a bite of his muffin, no longer really hungry, and listened to Logan talk.
***
Remus sat down on the porch swing, tired and stressed and not at all ready to quit. He listened to Alice, his only contact in the FBI, rattle off some statistics that he couldn’t even begin to understand. And he wasn’t trying to be rude – that really wasn’t his intent – but he needed to act quickly about this. So he grimaced and cut her off. “Can we get them placed in another prison? Or even in solitary until we can figure something out? If the Snakes can get to them…”
Well. Remus didn’t think they’d show much mercy to the two people mainly responsible for putting them in jail.
Alice sighed, the sound of her rummaging around in her desk filtering through the phone. “We can try. Since they did help you guys, we should be able to swing it. If something jeopardizes their lives, it shouldn’t be too difficult.”
Remus’ heart twisted – a deep, chronic ache under his ribcage that refused to let up. “Do it fast. I’m going to start reaching out to lawyers.”
“Lupin, it’s four in the morning.”
“I know.” He ran a hand through his hair with a frustrated huff. “Thanks for all the help, Alice.”
He hung up, then braced his forearms on his knees, hands gripping his hair, and breathed.
If there was one thing Remus Lupin was good at, it was planning. It was his job, and a big part of the reason he’d switched from field work in the first place. He relied on structure to get through his days, needed the stability in order to function.
There was none of that.
This was being adrift at sea, constantly assaulted by the waves and the current without rescue in sight.
And Remus had no idea what to do.
His phone pinged, catching his attention. A text from Alice flashed across the screen.
I’ve got a friend who’s a lawyer, and she’s a damn good one. I know you’ll want to do your research on her yourself, but I can vouch for her too. Here’s her contact if you want to reach out.
The contact number and email were listed under the name Dorcas Meadowes.
***
Dorcas Meadowes was, to put it simply, awe-inspiring.
Black curls, a dark complexion, and a serious, no-funny-business expression on her face. Her office was neat and organized, a few pictures around the place of her and a blonde girl with a wide grin and freckles. There was a small pride flag on her desk. Without a word, she motioned for Remus to sit, cool and composed and ready to get to work.
That was all it took for Remus to instantly respect her.
“So I’ve heard some of the story from Alice, but I’ll need you to start at the very beginning. Don’t leave out any details, tell me everything.”
Remus did, settling into the chair and getting comfy. It was a long story, after all. When he was done he looked back up at Dorcas, whose face was expressionless except for a single, raised eyebrow.
“That’s…” she trailed off with a low whistle.
“Yeah.”
“Well, the good news is that, if we’ve got enough evidence to back your story up, we can reduce his sentence by a lot, maybe even get him released.”
Remus sagged back into the chair, relief taking over and wiping out the tension radiating through his muscles. “Great.”
He’d known, logically, that they’d be able to reduce his sentence. With all the work he put into taking the Snakes down, there was no way they’d give him a full sentence. But getting him out of there for good…
Remus had never wanted anything so much in his life.
Dorcas leaned forward, powering her laptop on. “We’ll go visit him in the next few days and tell him what’s going on, but first we need a plan. Here’s what I’m thinking…”
***
Sirius hated this.
He was bored, he was tired, and – more than anything – he was lonely.
In Gryffindor, he’d become so accustomed to always having at least someone with him at all times. It was usually Remus, but he’d also grown close to most of the team. And it was nice at the time – god, did he miss it. But it was painful now. He’d witnessed what his life could be like, happy and surrounded by friends and possibly in love, and now he was back to the way his life used to be. Alone and on the wrong side of the law.
He hadn’t seen Reg since they’d been escorted into isolation for their own safety. Which don’t get him wrong – he was grateful for it. Knowing Riddle, they wouldn’t have survived the night if they were all being held together. But it was too quiet now.
The door to his cell rattled and Sirius looked up sharply. A guard was standing there, unlocking his door and opening it.
“Come with me,” the guard said, sounding bored as he opened the door further and held out a pair of handcuffs. Sirius looked at him hesitantly, not moving an inch. The guard rolled his eyes. “You have visitors.”
Sirius perked up at that, the only thought running through his head being Remus. He knew him well enough to know that he wasn’t going to take this sitting down. He’d be fighting to get Sirius free, no doubt about it. He wasn’t sure who else would be visiting him, anyways – if someone was here, it was sure to be Remus.
So Sirius got up and held his wrists out to be cuffed, then watched as the officer pointed down the hall.
“This way.”
It took all the self-control Sirius had to not run, to slowly put one foot in front of the other until he finally reached his destination. The guard moved around him to open the door and then Sirius was moving again.
He spotted caramel curls as soon as the door opened to the visitation room and felt his shoulders sag with relief. “Remus.”
Worried brown eyes followed him as he crossed the room quickly to sit in front of him, separated by a thick wall of glass. The movies weren’t lying, apparently. But it was so good to see him that Sirius didn’t care.
Remus looked tired. Unfortunately, that didn’t surprise Sirius at all. He knew the tendency to overwork all too well at this point. More than anything, it made Sirius want to get out of there, to wrap him up in his arms and let him take a nap there, to make sure he was taking care of himself. He settled for giving him a stern look instead.
“You need to get some sleep.”
Sirius expected a sharp, witty retort. Some sass, a comeback of some kind. Instead, Remus did the unthinkable and just smiled. “I missed you.”
Sirius sighed, softening at the gentle admission. He’d missed Remus too, of course. More than he could really put into words, and it had barely been a day. The smell of his shampoo, the quiet, reassuring presence of him by Sirius’ side, those eyes that just seemed to see right through him and know even the things Sirius tried to keep hidden. He found he didn’t mind it too much - not when it was Remus.
“I missed you,” he echoed in agreement, refusing to look away until someone cleared their throat loudly. Sirius looked over to a woman sitting next to Remus, looking unimpressed. Sirius hadn’t even known she was there, as wrapped up in Remus as he was.
Remus, to Sirius’ endless delight, blushed. He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen Remus blush before. It was cuter than it had any right to be. “Um, Sirius this is Dorcas. She’ll be representing you in court.”
Right.
He had to go on trial.
Dorcas took over from there. “We think, with the evidence we have, that we can get the charges reduced, maybe dropped if we’re lucky. If you can think of any evidence we don’t know about, we can use that to strengthen your case, too.”
Sirius nodded, relieved. That sounded better than he thought he’d get, to be honest. “What about Reg?” he asked, looking between the two.
Dorcas was very hard to read, Sirius realized. And Remus looked confident… until he looked over at the lawyer. Then his expression flickered.
And Sirius’ heart sank.
“That’s a bit trickier,” Dorcas stated slowly, treading carefully. “The thing is, he never tried to get out. He stayed with the Snakes. And I know it’s not easy to get out of situations like that,” she rushed to continue when she saw the look on Sirius’ face, “but the fact still stands. And he didn’t do as much to help take the Snakes down, not like you did. We can probably reduce his sentence, but he’ll be in prison longer than you. I don’t think we can fix that.”
Sirius felt himself being torn in two different directions. He wanted to be free, to be able to live his life again. Maybe make a home in Gryffindor (or maybe move in permanently with a certain spy), get a job as a consultant. He’d make sure the poor houseplant in Remus’ apartment survived, the poor thing, and he’d keep Remus’ favorite tea stocked in the cupboard. He’d be able to relax for – well, the first time in a very long time.
But his brother.
He was the main reason Sirius got out in the first place. The reason he ended up in Gryffindor, this entire mission was for him. To get him out, to make sure he was safe.
What was the point, if he was stuck in jail while Sirius got to walk free?
He could practically hear his brother telling him how stupid he was being in that dry voice of his, but he pushed the thought away. He’d made up his mind, and it was practically impossible to sway him when that happened.
Sweet, caramel eyes might test him, though.
Sirius looked up at Remus guiltily, dreading the response he was going to get. But yet again, Remus took him by surprise and smiled sadly.
“I understand.”
Those words hit Sirius like a freight train. He sucked in a deep breath, eyes stinging and throat getting tight. “I’m sorry.”
Remus just shook his head. “Don’t be.”
Sirius loved him.
Remus glanced over at a confused Dorcas. “He can’t leave his brother. Whatever sentence Reg gets, Sirius wants to do the same.”
She was silent for a long time, looking back and forth between the two of them. Then she sighed, seeming resolute. “Well then we’d better get those charges as low as we can.”
***
Four Weeks Later
.
Leo found Remus in the courthouse hallway during the trial recess before they were supposed to reconvene for the sentencing, looking seconds away from pacing from one side of the building to the other. The past few weeks had been hard on all of them. Between coming to terms with everything that had happened in the recent months, to trying to figure out the evidence they needed to bring forward to try and get the charges dropped against both Sirius and Regulus, to the strange feeling in the Agency brought forth by Sirius’ absence, it had been weird for all of them. Remus had been hit the hardest by all of it, though – and understandably so. That didn’t make it any easier to watch, though.
He’d been running himself to the bone the past four weeks, going above and beyond to make sure everything was in order for the trial. He looked ready to drop, if Leo was being honest.
But he understood. If it were Logan or Finn in Sirius’ place… well. He’d already figured out just how far he’d go for them.
He put a hand on Remus’ arm, trying to be as calming as possible. “You’re going to be ok,” he said carefully, choosing his words meticulously. He didn’t want to be cold, but he didn’t want to get Remus’ hopes up only for them to be dashed.
Carmel eyes met his own, and Leo sighed at the stress he saw there. He looked tired – so tired.
“What do you need?” Leo asked quietly, hoping for some sort of guidance on how to help him, how to get that look off of his face.
Remus just laughed under his breath, a sad sound. “There’s a lot of things I need.” He shuffled on his feet, gathering his sleeves in his hands. “But a hug would be a good start.”
Not hesitating, Leo gathered him into a hug, the stretch pulling at the scar tissue in his shoulder that was finally free of a sling. Remus was tense and still for a while, then relaxed into it. Leo wished he could do more, wished he could make any sort of difference in this situation. But everything was so far out of their control now; the only thing left to do was wait.
“Whatever happens, we’re here for both of you. You’re not alone in this.”
Remus stepped away with a fake attempt at a smile. “Yeah.”
There was a visual cue that neither of them seemed to catch and people started filtering back into the courtroom, making Remus’ face grow paler and more pinched. Leo stuck by his side as they walked back inside, trying to ignore the soft sound Remus made when he saw Sirius again – all the way in the front, in a jumpsuit that looked too big for him, hair longer and eyes a little duller than they remembered, fidgeting with something in his cuffed hands. Regulus was next to him, head down and avoiding everyone’s eyes. Leo just stuck to Remus’ side as they squeezed into the row of chairs with the rest of the Agency, making sure Remus was right in the middle, surrounded by so many of the people who cared about him most. Finn and Logan sat down next to him with grim smiles.
Leo reached over to tangle his fingers with Finn’s, feeling him squeeze back gently. The bruises were completely gone from his face, and he was walking limp-free now. He dropped his head onto Logan’s shoulder, having to angle his shoulders down to rest somewhat comfortably against the shorter man.
Leo would never get over the height difference.
“I’m taking a nap when we get home. This is so stressful, oh my god.” Finn sighed, making Leo smile.
Home.
That was still somewhat new for the three of them. After a few days back in their separate apartments in Gryffindor, they’d realized how incredibly codependent they’d become during their mission. Leo would find himself staring up at the ceiling most nights, worrying about the other two, until he’d get a phone call from one of them and they’d end up driving to each other and collapsing in bed together, squished together just like those hotel rooms they’d shared. And it had gotten to the point where there wasn’t any point living in different apartments when they ended up together most nights anyways, so Leo and Logan had packed up their things and moved in with Finn. He had the largest bed, anyways.
So yeah. They lived together now. And Leo was ridiculously pleased about it.
They were taking that vacation in a few weeks, too – the one Finn had first brought up in the back of a getaway car, tears in his eyes and blood on his hands. Somewhere warm, just like he’d promised. He’d get to watch Logan tan and Finn turn red like a lobster, only to go straight back to pale. They’d get some time to relax and not stress about work – just themselves and the vast expanse of beach and water in front of them.
Leo couldn’t wait.
“We’ll take that nap together.” Logan answered Finn quietly, turning his head to meet Leo’s eyes as he pressed an affectionate kiss to Finn’s head. Leo smiled at him, the sense of one chapter ending and the next beginning washing over him.
Whatever came their way, they’d be ok. They’d proven that already.
The crowd hushed as the judge sat back down, face impassive.
“We have reviewed the evidence and testaments brought forward in defense of Sirius and Regulus Black.” He started, looking down at the two in question critically as everyone in the courtroom seemed to hold their breath.
“It still doesn’t change the fact that they committed crimes while with the organization,” the judge stated firmly, then continued, “Regulus and Sirius Black are hereby sentenced to one year in prison.”
The gavel slammed.
Remus sat there in quiet disbelief.
They’d done… everything. They’d worked so hard for the past month in attempts to let Sirius and Regulus’ sentences reduced – and that was technically a reduced sentence – but it was still more than any of them had been expecting.
A year.
They hadn’t done enough.
Remus almost missed all the movement around him, too busy staring at the back of the seat directly in his line of vision, but his gaze snapped up when an achingly familiar voice called his name.
Sirius slowed to a stop as he passed Remus on his way out, eyes wide and frantic. Desperate. It broke Remus’ heart, more than it already was. “Wait for me?” He asked intently, like his sole focus was on Remus and his answer. He shoved his open palms out, revealing what he’d been fidgeting with during the entire trial. Remus looked down to find an origami flower, conveying all of Sirius’ hopes for the future within the delicate folds.
Remus wished more than anything that he could reach for him; to pull him in tight, hold him close, and refuse to let the guards take him away. He also had the half-formed plans of a jail break already in mind, even though he knew Sirius would never agree to it. It was then that his eyes locked with the gray ones he’d come to know better than his own and he knew – he knew that he’d wait, however long it took.
Remus loved him.
It wasn’t a grand revelation, it wasn’t sudden. In all honesty Remus had probably felt that way for a long time now, the truth prodding at the back of his head, nagging at his subconscious. He loved Sirius, plain and simple. Simple except for the fact that one of them was going to jail for a year. And yet, no matter how complicated it got, no matter how much time went by, it was the easiest decision Remus had ever made.
Well. If love made people crazy, Remus was certifiably insane.
He smiled a little tearfully at Sirius and nodded fiercely, picking up the paper flower delicately.
“You know I will.”
#lumosinlove#sweater weather#coast to coast#coops#sirius black#remus lupin#o'knutzy#finn o'hara#logan tremblay#leo knut#clandestine#cw: food#cw: prison#cw: anxiety
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So, Return to Hell was an absolute rollercoaster of emotions and I couldn't have asked for a better ending to the season three dlc missions.
SPOILER WARNING BY THE WAY!
Holy shit was this season a wild ride and with an absolute banger of an ending all I can say is well done rebellion you pulled it out the bag and held it high, I was so happy with everything and just my god its really hard to put down everything I'm so enthralled I can barely think straight.
I remember when the trailer dropped and I was so overcome with both excitement and sadness at seeing what the dlc entailed, I was so happy to see schweiger alive but devastated to see what was happening to him and originally I thought we were going to sacrifice him to help Umbra which terrified me, thank fuck I was wrong I dont think I could handle hurting my boy.
The intro was excellent, it really felt like distressing and that this was truly a moment of despair the way bruno spoke of it was absolutely amazing and I couldn't wait to get stick in. And when it finally gave way to the gameplay the opening area was absolutely stunning!
The way it's so familiar yet so foreign, like I'd seen it before but it had been so twisted that it was unrecognisable, lava around every corner and debris floating as if frozen in time the ground and walls cracked and crumbling and the fiery hues made this a fantastic yet haunting sight I hadn't even begun playing and I already fell in love with it.
When I finally moved on and the Baron began his tirade about the state of hell and how it was shaped and molded to fit the subconscious mind of schweiger I was shocked and saddened, to think that this was schweiger's fractured mind was frightening, all his guilt, fear, anger, confusion, sadness became reality and hell took its horrifying form filled with endless undead. I also found it really cool to see events play out from schweiger's perspective, meat locker, hell base and terror lab all playing out in schweiger's memories allowing us a glimpse in to everything that happened to him. He was betrayed so many times, I don't blame him at all for turning on us in deeper than hell, the amount of cruelty he suffered would drive anyone insane.
Being captured and forced to research the occult without any understanding of why, being tricked in to activating the relic allowing hitler to activate plan Z, working your hardest to try and make the world right then have your team infiltrated by nazi bastards who push you in to a hell tower and forcefully tear you from this plane of existence and left to rot in hell. Just when you think you can finally escape you're confronted with the fact you can not leave, only your closest comrades can leaving you in hell against everyone's will, then a voice manipulates you in to believing you were betrayed by your friends you're lied to and tricked in to believing this voice is your only friend who makes you do horrific rituals.
I remember how horrific I felt hearing this and then when Umbra revealed that he did all of this so he could break schweiger's will so he could steal his body I was filled with rage. Rebellion were amazing at putting emotion in to this one I genuinely went through constant emotional shifts realising that everything we had done up to this point was planned by Umbra and that everything we had done was only to fuel his plans. It was never schweiger's fault it was umbras and that knocked me on my arse.
The gameplay was a lot of fun, one of the best parts was that absolutely everything was randomised! The main sections of the map where always switched around no matter how many times you play it at first I went meat locker, hell base then terror lab then my second time I went hell base, terror lab then meat locker! I was shocked when everything cane out of order but it fits so well with everything! Schweiger's mind is so badly fractured that when hell took form as schweiger's subconscious not even hell itself could keep things in order.
I genuinely adore how the old familiar faces of these maps are destroyed, twisted and corrupted they are what we have seen before but warped till they look like different maps entirely, with so much more to explore in some areas it really gives you a sense of walking through broken memories like piecing together a memory Efram barely has a grip on anymore.
I loved how enemies were randomised too, getting attacked by a screamer around the corner then next time you go there prepared for a screamer you get blown up by suiciders or slaughtered by skeletons or an elite or in my favourite case being attacked by zombie alpha squad members! When zombie me jumped out and attacked I was so confused I didnt have time to respond when zombie jun popped out and killed me it was fucking awesome!
All our favourite enemy variations are here too, vampire creepers, electric suiciders, armored commanders, skeletons etc which really made for a really tough but good fight, never knowing what variation was coming to get you made everything even more fun.
And with the spitters now having a variant that spat magma it made what was usually an annoying inconvenience an actual proper threat and I love that so fucking much, maybe the spitters aren't so horrible after all.
That's a lie I still fucking hate them but oh well!
Once we successfully complete all three areas we now return to the main area with a very pissed off Umbra and schweiger who although conscious is barely alive. As soon as we arrive back to were we began we are immediately attacked and dragged off to an unknown place that we only know as the void as coined by Umbra.
Let me tell you when I say the void is creepy I fucking mean it, the void is of course pitch black you cant see anything not even your flash light does anything to the surrounding darkness, all you see when you spawn is the pitch black and eframs body of a slab surrounded by candles with Umbra looking over us and you really get the the sense of "holy shit, this is it!"
I genuinely adored the design of the void, the fact you only ever see your surroundings when a split second of bright red lighting strikes and even then you only see the faint outline of distant places, walking through the endless river of blood that stops you to a near snail's pace while fending of oncoming dead is genuinely spectacular! Holy fuck did rebellion pull it out the bag this round!
Just when you think you're about to have to do something to the incapacitated schweiger, Edie finally fucking shows up and does something useful for once, breaking schweiger out of his trance and giving him enough power to fend for himself when she realises Umbra has no defences! Thank fuck because now we know how to finally end The Baron and let me tell you I couldn't be happier to get the chance at killing the bastard.
The fights were challenging and had me cornered a few times and I'll admit I died a couple times but it was absolutely worth it, there was so much going on but it wasnt overbearing, with how large the areas you had to fight the hordes in were it made the fucking insane amounts of zombies absolutely balanced, I never felt like it was impossible but never felt it was too easy either just the right balance of insanity. And to make it even better I get to listen to schweiger shit talk the Baron as we help Efram regain strength while weakening Umbra.
Listening to Umbra beg and plead for mercy was great, it really felt like we were overpowering hell itself, no matter what Umbra threw our way it did absolutely nothing and listening to schweiger come to terms with what he's done and immediately work towards redemption by putting down Umbra was heartwarming. We were the winners not Umbra.
Then finally we get to what I've been wanting to do since the beginning of the DLC, after two whole hours I finally got to put an end to the Baron, activating that ending cutscene was so satisfying and I got to put down my controller and watch.
I'll admit I was confused when Umbea sprung back to life and actually attacked, where hitler failed to stop us during hell machine Umbra full pounced, he was going to take us with him and for a second I absolutely believed we were going to die with him, the fuck tries ripping our soul out rendering us absolutely useless. Its schweiger that saves us, pulling us away from Umbra then eviscerating the fuck out of him with ease and with that The Baron himself is dead, finally the tyrant is dead and everything we had worked towards was finally put to rest.
Just before that scene ends, we see schweiger smile! He's actually happy for once, free from Umbras grip, he's faced his fears and insecurities and in the end was the one who saved us and destroyed The Baron. To see him smile was one of the greatest things ever and I'm so glad we finally got to see that.
In last few moments of the ending, we wake up on the side of a cliff with Dr schweiger by our side and as the camera zooms out we see nothing but an endless sea of lava and I'm left thinking.
What the fuck is Projekt Ragnarok?
#zombies#horror#rebellion#shooter#zombie army 4#zombie army 4 dead war#efram schweiger#photography#best game 2020#god i love this game#who allowed you to be that awesome#what an achievement#best dlc ever
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HS^2 bloggin’ Patreon Commentary Catchup 2020-03-29
I know I’ve been sitting on half-a-dozen asks, but I’m gonna sit on those a little longer because after I’m done catching up on ALL the commentary I’ve missed I’ll probably be a little exhausted.
First the commentary on Chapter 5: YOUR 3Y3S H4V3 B33N CLOS3D. I skimmed this before, just so I could leave a comment about what I’d been told about the suicide feeling / Jaspers funeral when she was “eight” being way too late on the timeline. They still haven’t made any corrections to that HS^2 page. Hm. Are they just feeling the general vibe and tags to help the fandom guide things? I’m wondering if anyone came to any of them specifically with that, since Patreon commentary doesn’t seem to cut it. (Which I might be grateful for, from another point of view, because why would they favor paid methods.)
Sketches and Commentary: Chapter 5, "YOUR 3Y3S H4V3 B33N CLOS3D"
Starting commentary on why they played with the medium by opting for a Longpage with that update. Unsurprising and understandable~
Ooh, they included the commission/sketch instructions for the image they asked from Xam.
I don't know what we did to deserve Xamag.
Yeah few people dispute Xamag’s awesomeness.~
Much of this conversation was written before they launched HS^2′s first chapter, huh?
With the "primary" version of its original protagonist dead in a wallet,
Did... did Terezi or someone else put John’s body in his wallet after he died? I forget. *checks back*
(Meat 35) That’s definitely a fair question. But I have one that’s much more important for her to answer. Terezi, are you seriously just going to leave the body here? “TEREZI: HUH?” Of course not. Terezi’s a practical girl, after all. She digs the wallet out of her blood-stained pants, and captchas the corpse. She holds it close to her heart, like a secret. Like John’s stupid last words: a confession whispered for her and no one else.And then she starts walking home.
(Meat 36) Terezi’s jaw tightens. She’s not ready to hear any words that remind her of those few hours with John. Her hand goes to her pocket, where she’s keeping the wallet. She traces the contours of it with her thumb and forces a smile.
[...] Here we both are. It’s a beautiful day. You’ve got your dead boyfriend in your wallet. And we’ve already managed to strike such a nice metatextual rapport. So hear me out. [...] I ease the throttle back a bit, just enough so that I’m not whispering directly into her ear when she slips the wallet out of her pocket. She clutches it so hard in her palm that she’s digging dents into the leather, and bites her lip.
God damnit, that was an important fucking thing for me to forget. I hope she preserved his corpse in a better way than just “wallet”. And why the FUCK did Dirk think it was so important to bring him???? That’s not good, is it.
Back to the commentary, going to how the Dirk crew’s conversations especially cover the meta question of why continue the story at all...
This is actually a similar question to one explored by a series that shares a lot of Homestuck's creative DNA, Steven Universe.
Oh god damnit, what timing, huh? And then they go on about what constitutes a happy ending and what’s supposed to happen after, how work might not be done, et cetera. Hopefully these authors take a page from how SU:F finished, because Steven Universe managed to pull it back to uplifting pretty well.
These are two dangerous women, confined together long enough to learn all of each others' weaknesses, and sharp-edged enough to exploit them.
True enough.
Dirk, unfortunately, cucks the audience from seeing the scene's "true resolution." What an asshole. I've never been madder at this guy than I am right now. I bet he didn't even provide a warranty.
Pff.
On to the next commentary:
Sketches and Commentary: Catnapped, Part Three
Catnapped is some of the most fun I’ve had while writing, because Jasprose is just so goddamn fun. Cats don’t plan, they live in the moment. She’s always existing in that moment of pushing a glass off the table.
We can all agree with that I think.
Plenty they talk about here, but I’ll just quote part of anything about characterization...
First, I actually really appreciate getting a lot at Jane's genuine sympathy for Dirk here. There was quite a bit of mutual fondness and care between the two of them – but, at the same time, they enabled each others' worst tendencies.
Hm!
Swifer remains the closest thing to a "straight man" this story has. (Not in the sexuality way. In the comedy way.)
Yep.
There was no universe where we left this story without Jasprose saying "owo what's this". You know it, I know it.
Jesus Christ, I didn’t catch that.
God, Problem Sleuth just has the worst commuting luck. He should put some of his rug money into a permanent locksmith. Checking back in with these scenes is always a delight. It probably took PS like two hundred off-screen panels to get to this point. Miserable.
Wait, that’s right, Catnapped 28 is shown before DDD 12, but AFTER Dad is shown marching up handcuffed in Catnapped 26. And yet in DDD 12, Dad and DD come fetch PS from out of his office, when the handcuffed thing hasn’t happened yet in DDD. You can’t DO that, authors! It only makes RELEASE ORDER sense, not any sort of OTHER sense? What about when people come to catch up or read this later! Come on, that’s sloppy. Unless they’re going to leave PS behind to stay trapped in his office MORE, which I wouldn’t put past them. (But, wouldn’t make sense since the bullethole from C28 is already there in DDD12.) Andrew knew more of how to be responsible telling an out-of-time-sync story, believe it or not.
Commentary ends with a few sketches, like Jasprose doing a The Mask impression, appropriately.
Sketches and Commentary: Chapter 6, "A Conversation Regarding Relevance"
Oh, it’s Jade time.
On alt!Callie’s starting Space rant:
I wanted to impress on everyone just how vast it is, and also to remind the audience that alt!callie has them at the same mercy that Dirk does. She can force us to listen to her pontificate endlessly if she so chooses. She’s slightly less insufferable than Dirk, if only perhaps because her text isn’t orange.
Yep, mostly.
So here she is. Jade. We find out that not only is she conscious inside her own head, she is also incredibly chatty. And not too thrilled with her current situation. I know most of the audience isn’t either, considering the fact that Jade having no agency has basically become a meme at this point.
NEVER. AGAIN. PLZ.
As Callie told us in the beginning of the chapter, it isn’t natural for people to behave like narrative devices. Even within her own thematic framework, Callie has a habit of defaulting to behaving like a person after all.
Even alt!Callie still became a story nerd, not just original Callie -- she just became a different, more insufferable type of story nerd.
Plenty more discussion I don’t need to touch on... keep in mind I’m omitting large parts of this in most cases, again, to respect the paywall.
A remark on Dave and Karkat being two emotionally-constipated early-twenties Bernie Bros, which... I mean. Fair.
She definitely does love them, and she wanted to be with them, but also...Jade has a lot of other prospects. She’s actually the one character who seems to be enjoying her time on Earth c. Hitting up interspecies raves and getting around. We just haven’t seen any of that because none of those other people she boned are main characters.
Maybe that’s why alt!Callie was so blind and dismissive of it? Offscreen experience being less in the Light, therefore less relevant to her, even though that’s the exact attitude she’s ostensibly at war with?
Anyway Jade’s consciousness is huge.
Yep.
It’s been a while since we’ve had any sort of serious meta talk about classpects. Mostly because there’s really no use for classpects outside of the game, unless, for instance, you go around referring to everyone as the Prince or the Witch because you are a dramatic alien in a hood. It does make sense that a Witch’s powers would be more useful than a Sylph’s to a Muse.
Aaaand that’s all the classpect mention we’re gonna get isn’t it? ;P
(Yes I know, the author told us to dial it back. They ARE going ahead and prepping to answer some outstanding questions, though.)
Honestly, the Jade Situation is a tough one. To be sure, she has been sacrificed to the plot again and again, something that probably began as a coincidence and then later grew into a theme. Space players are destined to be huge, cosmic forces in the universe. Big movers. [...] But usually when we hear the story of big, god-like beings, we don’t think about the personalities behind them. What was it like for god to create the universe? Was he lonely? Did he regret it? Did he wish he could live in it instead?
And Jade WAS too powerful not to sideline, by a certain point in the plot. And before that, maybe trapped in a bit of a character arc where she had to get over some notions to step into the action.
I actually think Jade could have been okay with this. With being A Force For The Narrative. [...] But then Callie makes it personal.
Agreed. If alt!Callie hadn’t been so shitty about it in general, they could have worked things out more meaningfully; but the immense resolve and effort it took to dominate Caliborn in her origin timeline has tainted her perception ALMOST as bad as Dirk’s. Much of HS^2 is probably going to involve her gradually learning how to get over that in the background, the balance she needs to take ala the Ultimate Riddle’s lesson.
(Tangentially... it was said that it would have been nearly impossible to make alt!Callie dominate, even across ALL timelines. What if alt!Callie had her timeline’s origin explained in HS^2 by a Third Scratch at this late date with the likes of Davebot running around to do it??? That would probably make me fucking mad.)
Back to the commentary.
Admittedly these last few chapters have definitely been “girls beating the crap out of each other” heavy, and I hope that’s okay.
PFFFFF
Callie and Jade aren’t really sure who makes a decision on what is considered “just” or “heroic”. Plot twist, it’s us. We do. But also the alpha timeline does.
Hmm.
More gorgeous Xam art. Initially we were going to make it more ambiguous whether or not she actually ate the peanut butter, but we decided to have it be a decisive moment of triumph.
Really? Well, you could have made it visually clearer that the candy dropped. A lot of people visually missed that. This is a consequence of the back-and-forth artist-isnt-the-author art-commissioning going on, in part... Andrew was MUCH better at conveying what he wanted to convey BETWEEN panels than this crew, like comic book panels and their composition together; you can see that when comparing Homestuck proper’s sprite animation to that of fan adventures that used sprites, for instance. These guys are at something of a disadvantage due to their disconnect.
Commentary on the Commentary
This commentary uses "she/her" to talk about the alternate Calliope possessing Jade, while the "other" Callie (remember them?) uses they/them. This other Calliope, presumably, has a much different relationship with her gender – and her brother – than the Callie we saw discussing the subject with Roxy and John. One of my favorite things about this update (I can say that, because I'm a second person who didn't write it) was that subtle hint about how different her Caliborn must have been to allow her to predominate in the first place. I'd be really interested in fan works exploring more about her (and his) past.
Hhhhmmmmmmm.
Not sure what else to say to that, but it does make me hmmm.
Sketches and Commentary: Diamonds, Dames, and Dads, Part 1
Probably not much plot-relevant here...
Oh pff.
They had full drawings of them going in for the kiss on standby. They couldn’t resist making them.
Real talk, I have been looking forward to writing this story the most out of any other part of HS^2. Finally I get to combine my passions. Cheesy noir bullshit and old men making eyes at each other.
Pfffffff. Yes.
...the next three or four pages of this writing go on to describe how sexy this is and these characters and setting are. I can’t fault a word of any of it.
The dream team is assembled. Nothing can possibly go wrong.
Wow, I caught up on all this commentary quick. See you next time.
#Homestuck#hs2#Homestuck Liveblog#upd8#Homestuck^2#bladekindeyewear#blastyoboots#Homestuck Commentary#spoiler#spoilers
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One-shot : Bad Guy
Pairing : Steve Rogers (NOMAD) x Fem Plus Size Reader
Warnings : Language ; DOM Steve ; SMUT -> 18+ !!!
Word Count : 2.2k
A/N : One-shot inspired by the song “Bad Guy” by Billie Eilish and cause I’m a slut for bearded Steve <3
Steve has been on the run for a while now. It felt bittersweet to abandon The Avengers behind, his way of lifestyle but he knew deep down he made the right choice. Sam and then Natasha followed his footsteps, having his back meaning he wasn't completely alone in the world. Even though, something was missing ; not only Bucky or Peggy but something more meaningful, a sense of danger he always thought was for the good cause. Now he wanted to face danger for thrive, not because it was the a certain way to accomplish good. Just feeling like he could do something bad, something out of his comfort zone. Refusing to sign the Sokovia Accords was the first drop of blood. Once he tasted "blood" he wanted more. The second step was to let his hair and beard grow ; an act of rebellion from the sweetheart looking face and the perfect persona people put on him since, well ever. He was feeling good, probably more than ever and was about to show it.
A new undercover mission was on the menu for the three former Avengers : infiltrate a famous and private nightclub, gather intel related to a growing terrorist agency and identify the hierarchy of the organization. The potential default? It wasn't just any club. Let's just say that it was the sort of club where latex, whips and orgies were the main course. The Chaud Club. Before, it would have been an obstacle to the famous Captain's moral but today, he was begging for it. The thrive at its essence. The sort of thrive that gets any teenager excited after a short eggplant & peach text.
[Verse 1]
White shirt now red, my bloody nose
Sleepin', you're on your tippy toes
Creepin' around like no one knows
Think you're so criminal
Bruises on both my knees for you
Don't say thank you or please
I do what I want when I'm wanting to
My soul? So cynical
[Chorus]
So you're a tough guy
Like it really rough guy
Just can't get enough guy
Chest always so puffed guy
I'm that bad type
Make your mama sad type
Make your girlfriend mad tight
Might seduce your dad type
I'm the bad guy
Duh
I'm the bad guy
Black pants, dark boots and a leather jacket were the only clothes Steve supported before making his way among the club's regulars. From the corner of his eye, he spotted Natasha in a vivid red leather dress at the bar, while Sam sat at the VIP section feeling like Poseidon surrounded by an ocean of mermaids who fought for his attention. The Moses arriving, the crowd dissipated slightly at every firm step of Steve's; admirative of his chiseled chest and the pure alpha vibe emanating from him or of pure fear, thrill? No one knew, maybe it was a little of both. Either way he was loving the feeling he provoked. A drink in hand, he scrutinized the crowd. His eyes locking with a potential member of the agency. He was about to close the distance when Natasha cut him through the comms exclaiming the man in question wasn't part of the terrorist organization.
Steve stood now in the middle of the room. Trying to blend in, he grabbed the first arm closest to him and let the woman in front of him wander her fingers on his chest, while grinding on his tight. He played the game. Lifting his head up, his gaze fixed on a gorgeous plus size woman, standing at the corner of the room. It occurred to him that she was out of place, not the same expression painted on her face as the others in the room. He noticed her eyes carefully travel the room, catching every single detail around her. Steve whispered to the comms to his partners, "We may have a third player in the game", before indicating them your position. At the end of his phrase he saw the woman already looking at him with a piercing gaze, a smirk at the corner of her lips.
You looked over the crowd attentively until your eyes landed on your target. His face was currently being eaten out by someone, their tongues intervened, battling for dominance. Who would have thought that one of the most Humanitarian organization member, militating for world peace would consecrate his free time to wild nights at the Chaud Club. Never judge a book by its cover, right. And there he was, a total sub in front of the latex wearing dominatrix, ready to make him comply. Not far from him, the VIP section. Who said Sam Wilson, said Steve Rogers and probably Natasha Romanoff. You quickly found her next to the bar, her disguise working for everyone else except you. You would recognize her anywhere and anyhow. Another swift on your right and there he was, Steve Grant Rogers, a finger pressed on the side of his ear. Before he had the chance to lift his head, you saw Wilson and Romanoff looking your way and knew they had an eye on your persona. "This should be fun", you thought.
Even with the club's neons, you still could distinguish the blue of his eyes once he looked at you. A staring contest took place between you. Neither one of you flinching, even though, the woman grinding on his leg was trying (in vain) to get his attention. A deep and dark chuckle escaped from you, the whole thing entertaining. You marched towards him and jerked the woman from him before capturing her lips in a bruising kiss. Shocked she didn't respond right away. You didn't care, the kiss wasn't for her anyway but for him. To get a reaction of him. You disengaged from her and looked at him ; his eyes dark screaming 'envy' and his teeth clenching on his inferior lip. Closing the gap, you grabbed the back of his neck in a strong grip and caught his inferior lip between your teeth, making him groan. Releasing his lip and neck, you took a step back and winked at him before taking the direction of the bathroom, knowing you had him under your fingers.
I like it when you take control
Even if you know that you don't
Own me, I'll let you play the role
I'll be your animal
My mommy likes to sing along with me
But she won't sing this song
If she reads all the lyrics
She'll pity the men I know
It didn't took long before he joined you in the bathroom ; locking the door behind his entry. You both stood there, contemplating each other. Your eyes wandering from the edge of his new hairstyle to the belt of his pants, while his eyes followed the curves of your thick and plum figure. "Are you gonna stand there the rest of the night?", you spoke up. His jaw clenched, the inner battle evident : Fight his instincts and be careful or let go. You chose for him, "You have 3 seconds to make a move." He stepped your way, his body an inch from you and whispered in a raspy voice, "I don't think you have a saying here." You chuckled but it was shut by his plump lips fiercely pressed on yours, his teeth biting yours in a carnal way. Even if you didn't want it, a moan escaped from you making him smile but vanished as fast as it came when you pushed him against the door. He hold you tightly against him, his grip shaping the form of the future bruise on your waist. His lips attacked your neck while you fumbled on his belt but he stopped you. "Nah-han. Strip", he breathed out. Raising an eyebrow you wondered if he really wanted to go that road. "I said STRIP", he exclaimed with a predatory voice. "There we go", you smiled brightly. "Finally you've come to your senses." His hand went to your throat and his teeth on your earlobe, biting it. "If I'll have to repeat again, you will regret it", he mumbled. "I guess I'll do", you replied more than happy to push his buttons.
He groaned and ripped your blouse in pieces before his hand went to your skirt. "No", you stopped him. "You don't want me to go home naked do you?", you smirked. Stepping back, your hands went to your skirt's zipping and turned around, providing him with the perfect view on your round ass. Sensually discarding your skirt, you faced him again and saw the tent in his trousers. You motioned him to come to you and he was in front of you in a second. His beard tickling your neck and collarbone heavenly while his teeth marked you. "You have no idea what you're doing to me", he told you through greeted teeth. You slid down on your knees and waited his command. "Show me", you said sensually. He discarded his pants and boxers down, his thick and veiny shaft in front of your lips. You couldn't help yourself and kissed the base slowly making him moan. Before he could come back to his senses, you wrapped your lips around the present that was his dick and sucked him. "Fuck", he groaned. His hand took hold of your head, stopping your movements to jerk his hips forward, sinfully fucking your face. You were at his mercy and you both loved it.
You pushed him further alternating between licks, kisses and sucking before he pulled you up strongly on your feet and planting his lips on yours in a heated kiss, tasting his pre-cum on your tongue. He lifted you up and dropped you on the counter, his mouth travelling down your body. "Let's see how sweet you really are." He latched on your soaking pussy and dove right in, sucking your clit in his mouth and filing you with two fingers. His moan vibrating down your private part was making you wetter and desperate for more. Your hands reached his hair and managed to pull him deeper but he stopped before you were reaching your climax. Grabbing your hands in his he said, "You don't get to touch me. Is it clear? And you only get to cum when you deserve" With your big mouth you counterattacked, "What are you gonna d-, Ahhhh", your voice cracked once he filled you up without warning. He started slowly but quickened his pace like an enraged animal. Moaning out loud, he pounded in you roughly like it was the last thing to do for survival. "Fuck me harder, please", you moaned. You felt him twitch inside you but knew he wouldn't come before you did. Reaching down, he flicked your bundle of nerves rapidly making you see stars, your orgasm exploding like TNT. He was still thrusting in you at a fast pace and your hands reached his cheeks. "Let go Steve, you can let go", you encouraged him. His eyes widened at the mention of his name before letting go and cumming at full force, renovating your walls with his white juice. Heavily panting, you dropped a chaste kiss on his lips, the evident contraste of that sweet gesture compared to the roughness of the sex you just had.
[Chorus]
So you're a tough guy
Like it really rough guy
Just can't get enough guy
Chest always so puffed guy
I'm that bad type
Make your mama sad type
Make your girlfriend mad tight
Might seduce your dad type
I'm the bad guy
Duh
You quickly put your clothes back on, feeling his presence doing the same behind you. "How do you know me?", he asked. You chuckled and walked at him, stopping inches from his lips. "You really think a beard and longer hair are gonna fool people? Either way I like it", you said before unlocking the door. "Will I see you again?", he asked almost desperately. You smirked and got out of the bathroom, joining the main room. He followed you and stopped in his tracks when you neared the exit. A scream was heard among the crowd and he his gaze landed on the fuss behind him. A corpse on the ground, the man militating for world peace. "What happened?", asked Steve through the comms. "The third player? The woman? She killed him", exclaimed Sam. "That's impossible she was with m-", Steve couldn't finish his sentence because he saw the same looking woman merge with you. 'Enhanced', he thought. He saw you smirk and wink at him before vanishing the place.
He didn't know how to feel. The undercover mission was a total failure and a man got killed but on the other hand, Steve never felt more alive. He didn't know what the future hold for him but there was one thing he knew : his path would cross yours again.
[Bridge]
I like when you get mad
I guess I'm pretty glad that you're alone
You said she's scared of me?
I mean, I don't see what she sees
But maybe it's 'cause I'm wearing your cologne
[Outro]
I'm a bad guy
I'm a bad guy
Bad guy, bad guy
I'm a bad
* gifs not mine, credit to owners*
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As promised, a part 2 to the request with the main Octopath travelers taking in an orphaned six year old (opposite gender to the traveler that adopts them, as requested) Enjoy!
-Therion-
Therion swears he only meant to take her to a better home. The town they found that sweet little girl in wasn’t the best, so he decided to take her somewhere she would actually be taken care of
But through that journey and her being stubbornly friendly towards Therion, oops, he got emotionally attached so now they’re keeping her
She was excited to be able to stay with Therion, because he’s really cool
He’s a bit of a tough love person and isn’t the best at displaying his emotions. He still watches over her, but was kind of closed off at the start
Which is a hilarious combo with her, because she’s as sweet and affectionate as they come. Therion was caught off guard for awhile, but he’s learned to just sigh gently and roll with it
So it isn’t uncommon to see them holding hands or her wrapping him up in a hug that he awkwardly returns with a pat on the back
If she ever wants to be carried, all she has to do is make grabby hands towards him and he’ll carry her so that one arm is acting as her chair, the other is around her back, and her head is resting on his shoulder
But don’t think he’s gone soft. If anyone seems the least bit threatening towards her, they will be getting a death glare as he conveniently decides to start twirling his dagger around his finger
He’s so proud when she makes her first sarcastic comments towards one of the party members probably Cyrus
And even more proud once she starts getting better with her dagger
The first time she called him dad he froze and was like ???? Even if he had been taking care of her as a parental figure for awhile, it was still weird to think of himself like that
-Ophilia Clement-
When she first met the little boy, she had only meant to help him with a little favor around town, but she soon came to be especially fond of him
So when she found out that he was an orphan, her heart simply couldn’t resist taking him in
Overall, she’s an absolute sweetheart. She’s always had a knack for kids, so she’s really good at making him behave
And he is such a little gentleman because he wants to make her proud
He toddles around behind her, holding on to the hem of her dress or cloak and helps her with whatever duties she has to do for the church. Even if he isn’t the most adept at times, Ophilia lets him try to help all he wants
And their combined cuteness is too much to ever get irritated with
He once took her staff and cloak to dress up like her
She lets him play with her hair all the time
She’s lowkey over protective of him. If anyone curses or makes a dirty joke of sorts, she’s immediately covering his ears and he’s just like ?????
And whenever he cries she’s fighting back tears too
Small squeal of happiness when he first referred to her as mommy, and she had the softest smile on her face
Ophilia is a bit of a pushover, which can lead to her maybe spoiling him a bit more than she should
(Edit, just some additional ideas): Lianna, obviously, is like an Aunt to him. She’s been sweet on him since the moment they met, and Ophilia loves seeing her two favorite people get along
It isn’t uncommon to see the three of them walking and holding hands, him in between them and using their arms to swing him up every few steps
When it’s just him and Ophilia though, she usually carries him. She sometimes carries him on her hip, but usually carries him so that her hands form a seat for him, his legs are wrapped around her waist, and his arms are looped around her neck
Also, just imagine them building snowmen together and Ophilia having to carry him home because he’s so tired uwu
-Alfyn Greengrass-
He loves kids so much, so it was impossible to turn down the sweet little girl the group met in one of the larger cities. She had had a cut on her knee, and Alfyn being the sweetheart he is, decided to bandage it for her. As he was doing so, he asked where her parents were so he could take her to them and she just said:
“Oh, they’re dead, mister.” :) You could hear his heart break
Taking her in was a purely impulsive decision, but has no regrets
Alfyn’s really good with kids since he works with them so much, so she would grow to love him like a father quickly
He tried to play it cool, but he nearly cried when she first called him papa
He makes sure she’s the healthiest little girl in Osterra one cough and Alfyn’s instantly all over her
I can specifically see him being the type to be super supportive of everything she does and always be so proud
He’s also pretty affectionate as long as she’s chill with it. I can specifically see him being the type that will scoop her into a hug, hold her up, and spin her around
There is a lot of random hugs, goodnight kisses, piggy back rides, and holding hands as he points out all the pretty plants and flower to her
Does he make her flower crowns? Yes, yes he does
Whenever they take naps (and there are a lot of naps) she usually falls asleep on him
Also, he has no mercy with tickles, absolutely none
As long as he’s working with safe ingredients, he lets her help him with simple potions by mixing everything together
He uses a lot of pet names on her too (think cute things like sunshine, honey, or sweetie)
-H’aanit-
She says she took the boy in because she had a sense of duty to a fellow orphan and believed that someone should take him in as their own, like with what happened to her But it’s really just because he’s small and feisty and too adorable for her to turn a blind eye upon
H’aanit tries to raise the young boy similar to how Z’aanta raised her since he’s the closest thing to a parent she’s ever had
H’aanit’s more than happy to teach him how to hunt as long as he’s safe
Even if he’s doing horrible, she’s always calm and supportive as she points out all the different animal tracks
If it makes him feel any better, she lets him hold her hand while they wander through the forests
I can specifically imagine H’aanit teaching him how to shoot with a bow and arrow. She’d crouch down next to him, making slight adjustments with his stance and telling him he’s doing well, even if he can’t pull the string all the way back or hit the target
H’aanit’s oblivious to how much he looks up to her, or how much he wants to impress her
If he starts getting tired, H’aanit is strong enough to easily pick him up and carry him the first time she carried him, she threw him over her shoulder and Alfyn/Ophilia had to explain that’s not how you should carry a kiddo
And obviously, he’s besties with Linde and it isn’t uncommon to see the two of them cuddled up and napping together H’aanit died internally the first time they did this
In general, she’s really chill with him and helps keep him calm
Don’t ever hurt her boy, anyone who does will be receiving the deadliest glare from both H’aanit and Linde. It’s not a pretty sight to say the least
#octopath traveler#octopath therion headcanons#Ophilia clement headcanons#Alfyn greengrass headcanons#octopath h'aanit headcanons#therion hcs#octopath ophilia hcs#octopath alfyn hcs#h'aanit hcs
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The Dragon Prince Theories regarding the Teaser Trailer
So I’m going to say this much, I am not going in order of trailer or teaser, rather it’s in the order I have the pictures of regarding what I saved, so please forgive if this seems confusing to you because the show is coming up fast and I wanted to talk about this as quickly as possible.
So we open the Teaser trailer with the Castle on the rocks in the sunset. Now normally this wouldn’t be a big deal but with the idea of a war brewing this is a very striking image. Typically in story telling Sunsets either indicate the fall of a life and a change, or in this case, possibly the indication that a war is coming thus the flames of destruction are upon the kingdom. It’s also interesting that the design of the castle hearkens to some Medieval landscapes, but the interior of the castle is very much in the style of King James the ruler of England just after Queen Elizabeth I.
King Harrow and his team of guards. This is clearly probably after the talk with Viren in his room. The color scheme shows that it’s late and we see that he’s dressed for battle. The sun is setting again, which could be either a clue that the sun is setting on his rule, or that he’s not long for this world, or the world is about to change, or more likely that he’s heading into a battle he may not win. His face says that he’s not happy about this, but he’s serious and is keeping that in mind. I should note that guards that are with the king are typically hand picked based on trust by the ruler that they are guarding. It all comes into political play and who has your back and won’t kill you and is tough enough to keep you safe.
Now this is an interesting shot. Soren’s role as a knight holding that blade is rather important. In “ye old’n days” roles that were given to people in the court and to knights were rather important to how they were stationed in society and who was closest to the king or queen. The ones that helped the ruler in the toilet and in his or her room were considered the closest and the one that had his or her ear the most.
Now with Soren here we have a knight that is holding the king’s blade, which is really an honor and something that indicates that Harrow has a lot of trust in Soren. Why is that? Well normally the blade of the king is held by someone that he or she wouldn’t fell would be a danger to them. In this case Harrow doesn’t think that Soren would back stab him, and probably this is the case, as Soren is holding the blade away from him in a resting position, and his hand is not near the hilt, showing that he trusts the king and that he respects his rule. This also means that Soren was at some point possibly squire to the King himself, which puts him in a rank position that other knights probably are jealous of.
Soren is bowing and humbling himself to the kin. Again this ties in with the above about showing a great amount of respect or faking it. One or the other in this case.
Alright a few things here that is important. Firstly Harrow is holding the blade in a resting way, showing that he’s not doing things for ceremony or show. This means that he’s going to put it away on his person and use it. Secondly the look he gives the sword shows that he’s thinking about what Callum asked him about earlier in the main trailer (because I’m sure this comes after that moment) and it’s clear that he’s taking note about the role the blade will play in the fighting. Thirdly and I think this is significant here, the X shaped mark on the hilt, where the guard meets the blade, that’s the mark of the royal family as Ezran has that on his belt and it’s in a lot of places in the castle. It’s also very very much like a Celtic knot, though I’m not sure of the meaning behind this one. I know various locked knots show a connection to wisdom and strength but in this case Not sure. Maybe like a version of the cycle of life with infinity mixed in there?
Edit: It’s Anglo-saxon runes. the X side mark means Day.
So we get a shot of Marcos being held by the throat by Rayla. I can only guess this is going on after he, or someone else, went and shot an arrow at the Moon Elves in the forest and she chased him down.
So she’s got him by the throat and he’s scared. My guess is she either knocked him out, or put him in the bag we see in her and Runaan’s fight later. Either way I suspect he’s the one that starts her off on her quest to go after the king.
We get a quick shot of Hooded Rayla. Showing that she’s trying to be intimidating at this moment and doing so rather well. I should note that unlike Runaan and a few of the others, she’s got no tattoos or paint on her, making me wonder if she can use any magic at all.
Her eyes look dead here, which again, I think has a point. I don’t think Marcos killed anyone that we’ve seen in the Moon Elves group but I don’t know. Thing is that she’s is well and truly angry about something personal at this point. This has to be early in the series even. We barely can see her markings around her eyes.
Okay so remember what I said about King James and decor. Well this is what I’m talking about here. The style is very much a cross between Elizabethan era design on the walls, having tighter windows, but they’re higher with more in line with renovations that show something along the style of King James when more luxury items were being put into the castles. As Callum is walking down the carpet we can see it’s matching the Kings color, meaning that this is the royal family’s banner colors probably. You also have the knot on the floor meaning that it’s probably Harrow’s family’s symbol. I also have to note that the windows have iron or lead lined X’s to give the touch of a later period in English history, since that wasn’t heavily used till after Elizabeth as far as I know. Though someone correct me if I’m wrong on that.
One other thing, the suits and the torches which are on the wall along with the flowers and such. This shows that the King does care about the upkeep of the castle and the flowers show he’s also a man that cares about beauty and nature.
Birds eye view here gives us more of a look of the open space windows showing a deal of light that is used because of the limited light from the lack of electricity. the hints here with the art work on the wall, show this is again past the point of tapestry being used and paintings are taking on a different role than just denoting the family. It’s now being used for beauty, talking pieces and probably used for entertainment, ie. having people discuss and debate about the work and the location it’s showing. Also the art on the tables does this as well.
First shot of Callum, it’s interesting that he shares the same green eyes as his stepfather. Also as most have noted, there’s a bit of Merlin in that outfit.
Rayla sneaking up behind him. There’s something interesting on the bracelets that she wears. Again it has a bit of a Celtic feel to it, which makes me think some of the influence in this story may come from the English, Scottish and Irish wars that happened before and During James rule and still have issues. What’s interesting here is that she’s sneaking around in broad daylight and following Callum, making me think that she was trying to get information out of him, maybe where his father is.
Okay this scene. This one is a biggy. So there’s a lot going on in this moment, and I have to point this out because man, in one shot we have a lot going on and a lot defining these two characters at the start of the series. So on Rayla’s side we have the clouds being calm, soft and round. Typically softer looking images are used visually as clues that the person in question is a novice, or someone that has yet to be in the center of real grim fighting. Also it shows that possibly she’s come to a realization and that she probably has to deal directly with him with her own new conviction. It’s interesting too that she’s angry and looking ready to fight and crouched down.
Runaan on the other side of things is far different. You have storm clouds with spikes and sharp angles. Typically this would mean that he’s a harder character, one that is also holding in a lot of anger and probably frustration at this point. We see him standing straight and tall, rigid almost, like he’s a wall she has to knock down to get past. He’s being stubborn, no mercy will come from him. But the thing is that while her clouds are calm, as if she’s made up her mind, there’s no doubt in her heart, no issue that she has to do this. Runaan’s clouds are all chaotic, which may indicate that he’s doubting his mission, that he’s confused or conflicted and probably hurt, thus the whole issue there.
It’s really a striking scene. And I’m probably wrong about part of it, but I tend to read into things.
Oh one other thing, there’s a bad near the wall, and I’m not sure what or who is in it.
Direct shot of Runaan’s face. Like I said above, calm on the inside but probably a tempest storm inside. Also there’s the fact that we again see more inspired Celtic imagery in the silver shoulder pads and the horns. Hern the hunter, one of the bigger gods in the lore of the Celts was a nature god that had horns, and the fact that we have the Moon elves have horns that are like wood, only adds on to that association, along with the green color. What’s also interesting is that he, unlike Rayla, has markings on his form, showing that he probably can use magic. There’s also the hair thing going on there that’s interesting.
Rayla got bit, probably by Bait, and it’s clear that she’s ready for a fight with him. She’s also showing her anger on her face, but the clouds are calmer and rounder in design. More than likely she’s fighting him to allow her and the others to get past so that they can go on their mission.
King Harrow and Pip, I think his name is Pip. This is after he got the sword from Soren. I live the fact that we see more red and gold banners on the wall, showing the indication that the colors are his and the Royal families. What’s also cool in this is that, Pip has this green color to his black, which is very different. Also Four poster bed with cloth cover means that they are not living in a climate that is constantly warm at night. Since the covers are designed to keep the heat in.
He speaks to his friend, who nuzzles him, “This may be the end.” To me this is not a happy sort of tone, it’s like he’s resigned that there’s a chance he may die in this fight, though he’s going to try not to. Or it could be that he knows they may lose and thus the end of the war in that they fail, or possibly that they win, but it doesn’t seem like he feels that way in the tone of voice.
Okay this part of the teaser is clearly tied into later with the Main trailer where Claudia is following them, and Callum winds up using the orb to do wind magic. My guess is that Ezran is talking to Claudia, or maybe some guards, and offers them a Jelly tart, trying to take attention off them. Or this is with either another elf or Rayla and he’s offering it to her.
Again there is that symbol like on his dad’s sword. I really think this is some sort of royal crest or marking. Though what it means, I don’t know yet. (See above about the X mark meaning Day in Anglo Saxon Runes)
Ezran probably talking to his dad, Viren, or Callum while holding Bait. I think this maybe outside, though this could be in the throne room. There’s a lot of light there and the carpet is clearly worn.
Rayla attacking the guards who are probably trying to defend Callum. What’s interesting in this shot is the speed that she moves and that this bearded guard is everywhere. Wonder if he’s a nod to any of the crew.
Okay so here’s the thing that I find really interesting here. Rayla flips over these guys, and forces them to turn to face her behind, meaning that she’s in front of Callum. So either she’s protecting Callum and these guys are working for Viren, since this is clearly daylight hours, or she’s going to deal with them first and then take Callum on, forcing him to flee into that study room we see in the main trailer.
So about this magic. Upon looking up a few things, the runes that Callum draws are similar, not the same but similar, to runes that are used by norse, and they mean different things. Clearly this is meant to look like the wind that is blowing a ship, or blowing in general. I do think that there’s some ties to various runes but not sure where or maybe calligraphy from japan or china in this case.
Okay so this is apparently an important location or episode because it’s used a lot. The wind magic is clearly blowing someone back. We can see blue purple crystals in the background, and bait is glowing to light things up. I don’t know where Rayla is, but at this point they have the egg, so I’m guessing this is against Claudia or a guard. Also you can see like a bunch of houses in the background that are made of stone, so...
Okay so I find this interesting. So Runaan has a bruise on his cheek. The reason I point this out and the one above it is that we can see a tracker or a warning thing, attached to a red string. We later see the Arrow become a bird of sorts with that tracker on it. But the reason I’m drawing attention here is that Runaan is clearly pissed off. He got beat, probably by Rayla and knocked out, as he has a possible black eye there too.
So the arrow that Runaan let’s fly, as you can see in his other images the arrow has that band with the metal medalion tied to it. It’s certainly a tracker. Once the arrow is loosed it starts to glow in the moonlight, meaning that the magic needs to be in the light of the moon here. As you can see it lets out smoke that takes the form of a bird and explodes into light.
Now about this bird we see flying. I’m still trying to figure if it’s following the trio or if it’s going to warn someone or something? I find it interesting that this is a means of either having communication or just straight up signal like flair.
So apparently this is probably connected to the whole attack on the dragon King. It’s an interesting thing that we see female warriors out front. What is interesting to me is the ruins the land that they’re on. We know that the King Dragon comes out of the volcano. So this is probably a flash back moment that Callum and Ezran may either be listening to or learning about from Harrow. I want to know exactly why the humans attacked the dragon and the details behind this. My guess Lord Viren or someone connected to him probably took the egg and that’s why this all started to happen in the first place.
The battle in the castle. What’s interesting here is that it’s all in the dark, and I have to wonder if the others can see or hear Callum i this moment. It’s clear he’s crawling on the ground. We can see Soren and Viren in the background, which means this is probably during and around the same time that Runaan eventually fights with Rayla. So maybe they’re trying to get something from that room we later see them in? Seems like the Elves broke in.
So Bait can glow and explode. It seems like this is not connected to the later moment with Rayla and Callum being caught in the flash. What’s interesting to me is that this is something Ezran knows about and probably uses often to get out of being in trouble when caught possibly taking Jelly Tarts. What’s also interesting about the color glow and the fact that Bait lights up like that sort of reminds me of a frog that was discovered last year to have illuminating properties in Argentina.
This happens under Uv light and moon light. IN both cases with Bait he lights up in dark places and where there’s some form of connection to the moon. IE Rayla, which is interesting. I wonder if he stores the power. Also if you notice it’s more of a prism effect.
So I’m not sure if this scene and the one above are linked, but it’s an interesting moment. Rayla is not ready for it, and neither is Callum, but Callum seems to have had it happen to him before because of his automatic reaction to closing his eyes. So my guess is that Bait has gone off on Callum before and he’s gotten used to deflecting it, unlike Rayla who seems caught up in the blast. Either she’s arguing with Callum, or this is later when the trio is doing something before they become friends.
So this is an interesting thing here. Claudia creates smoke wolves from a single candle, which very much reminds me of how Izumo Kamiki can summon her two twin foxes. The thing is I think she’s in the room where the Egg was, and that Callum is attacking these two wolves with wind. I have to wonder if she can call on other animals or if the Wolves are her only companions.
Regarding this battle. You see the clouds in the background, they are attacking one another the same way Rayla is attacking Runaan. The movement of the two characters are matched by the action in the sky and the dramatic use of the visuals compliment the color variation that show the differences in their attacks. You can see Runaan clearly has his blades in a connecting way. Because you can see his arm behind him free of a weapon.
So apparently their powers come from the moon and the glow of the moon transforms them into Drow like beings with their marks glowing. I wonder if it adds to their magic or just makes them stronger or harder to hit, or what? I have a feeling that, much like the Drow that exist in D&D the moon light may be used as a means of feeding lost energy or also empowering them in a way that can double their physical strength.
As for our Friend the dragon King. What I find interesting is that he has fur like feathers here. This is very different to the more traditional pure on lizard dragon we see in Western stories and has hints of eastern dragon here. I especially like the use of colors with white and the orange red of the volcano. What’s also interesting is the fact that he’s able to actually stand on the lava. Given he has electric attacks, it makes me wonder if the colors are connected to the various powers of the dragons.
So the next one that is coming out is on the other trailer, since this was getting too long.
#the dragon prince#netflix the dragon prince#tdp#callum#callum tdp#ezran#prince callum#prince ezran#ezran tdp#rayla#rayla tdp#runaan#runaan tdp#king harrow#harrow#harrow tdp#claudia#lady claudia#claudia tdp#lord viren#viren#viren tdp#sir soren#soren#soren tdp#the dragon prince teaser trailer#the dragon prince theories#the dragon prince theory#tdp theories#tdp theory
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Moments In History: An Unlikely Savior
Hildegarde marched ahead confidently. The mountain climb was tough, but she was now nearing the entrance of the cave.
“Remember the plan, knight,” Raimbald chided.
“I know,” the dragonslayer said, rolling her eyes, “You just worry about your part of the plan.”
The duo weren’t exactly the closest of friends, but they had managed thus far. They originally met when the wizard sent word that he was looking for a companion to take on a bounty with. It seemed going toe to toe with a dragon alone wasn’t a plan he was fond of. At least he wasn’t THAT arrogant.
Upon learning of Hildegarde’s knowledge of dragons, along with her track record, Raimbald agreed to take on the beast together, and split the bounty 50/50.
A dragon had been spotted flying to and from the mountain, to the north of the city. At the same time, several dragon attacks against caravans had been reported, the remains picked clean of valuables and covered in soot and ash.
It didn’t take a genius to see the correlation.
Not many people were willing to do anything about the dragon, and the city’s guard weren’t exactly ready to deal with such a fearsome beast. The mayor decided putting a large bounty on the dragon would attract heroes, genuine and would-be.
Hildegarde and Raimbald were both very powerful and accomplished. The dragonslayer had many artifacts that protected her from magic and breath attacks, and weapons tipped with Dragonsbane, a magic infusion that allowed weapons to easily slice through a mighty dragon’s near impenetrable scales.
The wizard had spent many years learning and practicing powerful magical spells. He knew how to ward against opposing magic, purge magic from himself and others, powerful offensive spells, and a single trump card he had the feeling he would end up needing to use...
The two approached the cave entrance. They looked at each other for a moment before nodding. The dragonslayer and wizard marched inside, confident, assertive and wary.
The dragonslayer constantly eyed the long, winding corridor for traps, but there were none. How odd. Did this dragon have no minions? Not even a few lowly kobolds?
The long march through the empty cave was tense. Hildegarde looked desperately for some branching path, dart traps, something, anything...but there was nothing.
This seemed familiar. It was almost like this lair was home to one of the benevolent dragons...but that couldn’t be right, could it?
Maybe this was all some big misunderstanding. Dragons do have a tendency to...overreact to minor slights. Perhaps we could try diplomacy...
As the duo reached what looked like the main room of the lair, they stepped forward, the wizard channeling energy into his fingertips as the dragonslayer gripped her greatsword tightly.
Upon entering the room, Hildegarde and Raimbald stumbled across a sight that at first confused them.
There were two...well...really three, dragons. Two adults and one...hatchling. The giant, broken egg made it quite apparent the baby was hours old at the oldest, maybe even minutes old. It had dull, purple scales and vibrant blue eyes. The newborn was backed into a corner, looking thoroughly threatened and frightened.
One of the adults was dead. It had the same scale color as the newborn. It was the newborn’s mother or father, surely. The other was a red dragon, facing the hatchling and creeping closer. The look on its face, Hildegarde recognized it...
The gleeful grin of a predator gazing at its helpless prey.
The newborn roared meekly at the behemoth licking its lips, gazing down at the cornered lamb.
Never in her life had Hildegarde felt anything but contempt for dragons. She’d conducted diplomacy with the more reasonable ones, but only out of pragmatism. They always thought themselves so high and mighty, other races lesser ants beneath them, lucky the dragons deemed them worthy of living.
Seeing this baby, terrified and helpless, in the same predicament the average human would find themselves in against a dragon...it triggered something inside of her. A base, primal instinct.
The need to protect.
She harshly elbowed the wizard as she stepped forward. Raimbald quickly began his part of the plan. He cast two spells. First, he cast Wraith, silencing him and his movements. Next he cast Shadowstep, the shadows in the cave distorting to cover him, making him a shadow of a figure as he ran ahead. Hildegarde whistled.
“Hey, boar-dung!”
The red dragon whirled around, snarling. The massive beast stepped forward, glaring at the woman with hatred.
“You DARE challenge me?!”
“You must not know of my track record. I’ve killed plenty of your wretched ilk.”
The dragonslayer remained stoic, coolly eying the snarling monster before her.
“Accursed dragonslayer! Your disgusting race will feed us, and the carrion beasts!”
Suddenly, the dragon roared. A pillar of molten hot flames blasted directly where Hildegarde was standing. The entire area was covered in flames for several, long moments, before the dragon finally stopped. The flames died and smoke lifted, revealing...
“WHAT?!”
Hildegarde remained standing, completely unharmed. It appeared she was wearing magical armor that protected her from the dragon’s breath. The steel suit of plate glowed brightly for a moment, before the magic faded. The dragonslayer gestured for the dragon to approach her.
“Come and get me.”
The dragon’s eyes twitched. “You...I will...”
“You scared?”
A mighty roar rocked the cave. “I WILL BURY YOU, MORTAL!”
Suddenly, a loud explosion rang out. Hildegarde smirked.
“Gotcha.”
A beam of pure magic blasted out from the darkness behind the dragon, slamming into the behemoth. The raw magic tore at the dragon’s body, causing it to roar in pain as it was knocked to the ground.
The dragonslayer wasted no time. She dropped her greatsword, taking her other weapon off her back.
The giant, heavy crossbow was almost in between a crossbow and a ballista. It was already loaded with a very, very large bolt. She quickly aimed and fired.
The bolt flew quickly, landing in the dragon’s neck. The beast let out another roar as the Dragonsbane ore punctured his defenses and stuck deep into his body.
Hildegarde quickly dropped the crossbow and picked up her greatsword, running towards the beast. Raimbald fired another beam of magic, once more injuring the beast. As he finally got to his feet, the dragon turned to face the dragonslayer, earning a cleaving strike across his face for his effort.
The dragon reeled back. He was lucky the greatsword hadn’t struck deeper, or...
He quickly rushed forward, slamming into the dragonslayer with a swing of his head. The woman was sent flying, slamming into the hard stone walls of the lair.
Hildegarde groaned. She was lucky to be alive at all, let alone feel anything.
The dragon approached, visage twisted into one of hatred. He was enraged to be humiliated by such small prey.
The dragonslayer reached for her sword, only to realize it wasn’t there. She had dropped it when she was sent flying.
Thinking quickly, she drew her dagger and threw it, the small, yet heavy weapon sticking itself in the beast’s snout. Another roar of pain made Hildegarde pleased. Even nearly disarmed, she could wound the mighty beasts.
“That is it.“
The dragon waved one of his front legs. Suddenly, Hildegarde felt herself restrained. She tugged her arms and legs, light blue rings of magic becoming visible as she realized the dragon had anchored her.
“Now, I’ve got you right where I want you...I shall make you suffer...in the end, you will beg for death.”
The woman felt a twinge of fear as the dragon approached her.
“Uhh...Raimbald? You there?”
Nothing.
“Oh, I KNOW you didn’t bail out on me!”
The dragon shot the woman a wicked, toothy grin.
“Ahh...excellent. You are all alone, and so very helpless...”
Hildegarde shivered. She wasn’t afraid to die, but to be tortured by this sadist...they were on the verge of victory! Why the hell would he back out now?
“Yes,” the dragon hissed, now upon the dragonslayer, “Feel the fear pulse through you. You know you are at my mercy...I may do whatever I wish with you, and there is nothing you can do to resist.” The dragon leaned in close, his face one of maniacal glee.
“Not even die.”
Hildegarde was bewildered. This beast was insane!
“Now...let us begin. Oh, you will be begging for death in moments. Let us see if you outlast the previous one.”
The beast’s rancid breath made the woman recoil as he breathed heavily into her face. Just what was he planning? What would this sadist do?
Suddenly, a small blur knocked into the dragon. As it hit the great beast, it rebounded back, landing on the floor.
The newborn.
It stood defensively, roaring its weak, pitiful roar at the elder.
The adult dragon turned around and grinned at the hatchling. “Ahh...this is why you attacked, is it not? You felt pity for this child?”
“No...” Hildegarde knew what was coming.
A sinister laugh made the woman tense up.
“You will watch, mortal, and see what happens to those who oppose me. To be so close to what you want to protect, unable to intervene.”
“Don’t...”
“Oh, it’s too late to beg, human. Witness this child’s final moments. Feel it embedded into your psyche, forever.”
The newborn let out a puff of magic breath, trying to intimidate the adult.
“Oh God...please...it’s just a baby...”
The dragon stepped toward the newborn, taking a moment to grin at Hildegarde.
“Witness your fate, foolish woman.”
Another bellowing roar made all three of them turn. Out of nowhere, another dragon flew in from the darkness.
The white scaled dragon knocked into the red dragon, both of them tumbling to the ground. The white dragon quickly tore into the red dragon with its claws, at the same time tearing into his neck with its jaws.
The red dragon fought back, but with the element of surprise on the white dragon’s side, he was already horrifically wounded. His mind was so taken aback that he lost focus on his spell, the restraints on Hildegarde vanishing. The dragonslayer didn’t miss a beat, quickly rushing to the nearest weapon.
The crossbow.
Quickly, she picked it up, and began loading another bolt. The white dragon continued tearing into the red dragon, but was suddenly knocked off of the beast with a powerful shove.
A loud click let Hildegarde know it was ready. She readied the crossbow, took aim...
The bolt flew forward, and as the dragon turned to face her...
The beast suddenly froze. The bolt landed right between his eyes.
The dragon collapsed, slamming into the stone floor, motionless. Blood stained the room, two dragon corpses now littering the lair.
It was finally over...or was it?
Hildegarde turned to face the white dragon, now completely unarmed.
“...who...the hell...are you?”
The dragon didn’t answer her. Not in any conventional sense, anyway. However, it did suddenly begin to shrink, becoming smaller, and smaller, morphing and changing, scales falling away, until...
“Raimbald?!”
Indeed, the wizard was doubled over, panting and heaving. Sweat dropped onto the floor of the cave as his gasps rang throughout the room.
“Okay...okay...I’m alright...God, that took a lot out of me.”
The dragonslayer just shook her head. “Where the hell did you go?! Did you see what he almost did?! And where the hell did you learn to turn into a dragon?!”
The wizard wiped the sweat from his forehead. “Of...of course I...saw...I...needed time to prepare the spell. Turning into a dragon...isn’t exactly simple...and...well...I know some people.”
Hildegarde sighed. “Good Lord. You could have told me.”
Raimbald shrugged. “All’s well that ends well, right? We’ll eat well for quite a while.”
“All’s well that ends well...” the dragonslayer turned back to the carnage. There it was.
The hatchling. The tiny dragon slowly moved forward, sitting down next to the fallen purple dragon, nudging it with its snout.
Raimbald looked at Hildegarde incredulously. “You’re not seriously considering...”
The dragonslayer slowly smiled. “Perhaps...I am.”
She marched forward, reaching the baby dragon and holding her hand out. It looked at her curiously before coming forward.
The woman slowly picked the reptile up, holding it in her arms. Even baby dragons were large, but fresh out of the egg, it could be held. The creature nuzzled into her arms, closing its eyes.
“Aww, look at it.”
The wizard shook his head. “A dragonslayer with a dragon. You’ll never hear the end of this, you know.”
Hildegarde shrugged, rubbing the top of the dragon’s head.
“At least it’ll get people talking. A dragon that fights dragons? Imagine the publicity.” She looked down at the sleeping newborn.
“Ah, only if you want, of course...whatever your path in life...as long as it’s a noble one.”
The end! This was a fun one to write. I hope you enjoyed the twists and turns this tale offered you!
Tag list: @thereisnothingwrongwithbeingmad, @lady-redshield-writes, @paper-shield-and-wooden-sword, @sheralynnramsey, @the-true-shadowmaster, @tawnywrites, @writer-on-time, @oceanwriter, @zwergis-spilledink, @fluffpiggy, @elliewritesfantasy, @homesteadhorner
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The Mandalorian’s Compelling Characters
There are quite a few compelling characters in the newest Star Wars instalment, but I have chosen two to really deep dive into, the Mandalorian and the Child!
The Mandalorian/Din Djarin:
The Mandalorian is the shows cool, flawed, gunslinger main character. He lives at a level in between hero from a Western movie and Samurai master, making him an iconically cool and interesting character. I selected him to talk about for these very reasons. He wears a complete set of armour and a helmet he never takes off because of his Creed (a type of religion). This is very compelling because it isn’t something that we see very often as an audience. Hollywood loves to use sex appeal to draw an audience in but when it comes to the good old Mandalorian, there isn’t any sex appeal. You can’t even see his hands! So that’s new and exciting! I also find him vastly more interesting than many other characters because of his role as a bounty hunter. When we first see him, he is a cold blood killer. He doesn’t particularly care what happens to his bounties and he will take down just about anyone that is in his way. What makes him so interesting though is his sudden conscience. The change he makes within himself in order to allow his rescue of the Child is such a 180 from how we originally view him, proving just how many sides there can be to one person.
The Mandalorian is mysterious. The name itself is the moniker that he goes by for most of the show but he does have a different name, a more human name. A name so sacred that only the closest people to him know it. But let’s chat more.
The Mandalorian/Mando:
The Mandalorian is a code name that signifies who he is and the Creed he follows. It sets him apart from the rest of the characters who go by their given names. This is name also strikes fear into those who hear it as it again sets him apart from everyone else. The Mandalorian's are an ancient race of warriors who have been notoriously ruthless and strong and so this name alone will strike fear into the heart of anyone smart enough to know better. Mando is a short form of this name and is used as a form of endearment by those who are close to him.
Din Djarin:
Din Djarin is the man underneath the mask. He is human. The name Din Djarin holds a particular religious weight as his creed forbids him from telling anyone. A mandalorian’s name is sacred and so when he does give it out, it is incredibly special. I think this aspect is so interesting. When you are introduced to a character whose face and name you do not know, it makes you ten times more likely to stick around. You just have to know more about this guy! It is a really interesting tactic that is being used by the writers to draw the audience in and include them in the deeper story line we are all craving.
As for the characters physical appearance, you can see it in the gifs above. We have previously talked about his armour which for some background knowledge is beskar, a sacred mandalorian metal that is used for their armour. Underneath all of that metal, he is a tall and muscular man in what we assume is probably his mid-thirties. Underneath the helmet, Din is a brunette with deep brown eyes. He also has a darker complexion. While writers and directors have noted that they tried their best to very clearly distinguish Mando from another character of mandalorian race that we have come to know, Boba Fett, it is clear that their armour shares a resemblance. This connection to an iconic character from the original trilogy brings forth a heavy nostalgia which may or may not have been an unintended consequence. As for Din’s personality, we don’t know a whole lot. Outwardly, he is a very reserved and quiet man and while he might portray himself as a killer, his true colours are revealed throughout the series. When he is with the Child, the Mandalorian lets out a more human version of himself because he does truly care about the Child. Even though Mando is a warrior and a bounty hunter, you know that he has a big heart. Another way we can see through the cracks in his armour and into his big heart is his inability to leave anyone stranded. We see this scenario many times throughout the series: Mando arrives at a planet in search of something, he encounters a group of people who need his help, he sends them away because he can barely keep himself and the child safe, never mind anyone else but then feels very guilty and agrees to help them, he then helps them but not without great strife, he is then rewarded with something he needed or did not need and then leaves the planet. Whether or not he needs or wants to, the Mandalorian always gets roped into helping somebody and their mother and despite his reluctance, always helps. This shows that underneath it all, he really is just a big softie. As for Mando’s core drives, it becomes very clear by the end of the season. His main drive is to stay true to his cree, which means never letting anyone see his face, among other things. But after that, his second drive is to get the Child back to his people. Din has a love for the Child and in the end, he wants to see the Child happy and back with his people, the Jedi.
As for character development, Din has quite a lot. In the pilot episode, Din is a really tough, no mercy bounty hunter who will take any bounty, no matter who or what it is. But when he takes the bounty on the Child, he realizes that he can no longer go on the way that he was. He makes a full 180 on his ruthless ways by stealing the Child away from the bad guys and running away with it in order to keep it safe. This characters development teachers us that even the meanest characters can change and sometimes they should! Who knows, it might just make the show better.
The Child:
The Child is by far the cutest main character. I mean, look at him! I chose to look at him as my secondary character because I find him fascinating. We are immediately drawn in by the Child because of his parallels to Yoda, a character who plays a very big role in the other Star Wars movies. This interest continues to peak when we learn that he is Jedi knight in the making and after spending so much time enjoying the stories of the Skywalker family and the Jedi that surround them, we are ten times more excited to see where the story goes. The Child also brings a really nice light to a pretty dark story. He is usually the cause of many of the funny moments and his light brings out something really interesting in Din Djarin.
The Child/Baby Yoda:
We’ve been calling this little green creature the Child because we have absolutely no idea what his real name is. Because of this, he is referred to by the characters as the Child and as Baby Yoda by the friends. Both of this names, like the moniker Mandalorian, describe the Child pretty well. He is both a child and a very small version of Yoda. The name the Child is more than just a descriptor for many Star Wars fans. “The Child” has been a name used by many in the past to refer to great Jedi such as Anakin Skywalker and Luke Skywalker. This name in itself alludes to the possibility of great power in the Child and all of the amazing things he could become.
As for his physical appearance, the Child is a little green alien of the same race as Yoda. Currently, Baby Yoda is 50 years old but for his species, he is a mere infant. Because of his age, the Child does not speak so we know very little about his thoughts and feelings. He does coo and cry which can portray some basic emotions, but not enough for us to know his innermost thoughts. Although we do not know much about him, we do know that he is an adventurous little bugger who is always getting into trouble! There is never a down moment for poor Mando when the Child is around as he is always getting into anything and everything that he can. This is a particularly memorable, and funny, trait because although the Child does not speak and we do not know his intentions, we can get the sense that he enjoys causing all sorts of problems. But although he is not vocal, it is very clear that he loves Din and his core motivation at the moment is to keep him safe. This is very clearly demonstrated through the Child’s use of the force which he has used on multiple occasions to get Mando out of some tough spots. He does this even though it mentally and physically drains him of a good chunk of his life force and leaves him without energy for many days afterwards. This is how Baby Yoda shows his love!
While we are enjoying lots of character development from many other characters, the Child has yet to make much distinguishable progress as he is still just a baby. So we will just have to wait and see what kind of development we get from him!
Overall, these characters are only the tip of the iceberg of interesting characters, so if you want to learn more you'll just have to check the series out!
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I'm down with Rey experiencing temptation and making tough choices, even wrong choices- and learning from them. As long as she doesn't choose the side of genocide and fascism and/or double down at every chance she gets to correct her path in order to continue to pursue power at great cost to others. Kylo being tempted by the Dark Side or "making tough choices" isn't why he's reviled in the way of villains. It's because he's a fucking villain. (Who mind rapes people.)
Exactly. We’ve SEEN Rey make tough choices already, and we’ve seen her tempted by the Dark side! But being tempted and choosing not to give in is what makes her Rey. It is the essential difference that is what Star Wars is ABOUT.
I feel like one of the big schisms in SW fannish interpretation comes down to whether you think Star Wars is “ultimately about” redemption or choice. I think it’s about choice. I might disagree with the idea that Vader was redeemed in the moments before his death – and that disagreement is shared by every character except Luke, js, which I think is canonical evidence supporting the idea that even in canon the idea of “redemption” is about interpretation – but he absolutely made a CHOICE in those moments, and that choice affected his destiny.
Choice is the through-line of all of the big narrative-changing/“galaxy-changing” storylines in SW. Luke chooses to return to Bespin rather than stay on Dagobah. Han chooses to return to the Battle of Yavin. Leia chooses to trust Lando to devise the plot to save Han. Ben Solo chose to turn his back on the ideals of the Light, and he chose to become Kylo Ren, and he chose every action he’s taken as Kylo Ren – including the massacre at Tuanul, the forced and painful penetrations of Poe and Rey, and the murder of Han Solo. Will he make different choices in TLJ? I mean, yeah, given that it’s a sequel and his storyline is ongoing. But if they want to make it believable that he’s choosing the side of the Light again, they’re going to have to work HARD. And I still will fight tooth-and-nail for Rey, Poe, Leia, Chewie, and Finn to have the dignity of being allowed NOT to forgive him.
We’ve seen Rey wrestle with choices, both before and after she was aware of the Force. Like, TFA wouldn’t even have happened if she had made the choice to put herself and her own well-being above BB-8 when Plutt offered her a month’s worth of food. Especially since we know in her backstory from BtA that she’s having a particularly lean time at the moment since the closest thing she’d ever had to a friend just swindled her out of 10,000 portions and fled Jakku, leaving Rey with no portions and out several weeks’ worth of salvage! It would have been SO much more beneficial to Rey, in the immediate moment, to trade in BB-8 and take the portions.
But the Light guided Rey. That’s one interpretation. Another is that Rey made the choice to trust her own skill – she’d find more salvage and be able to earn some portions, even if it took a while again – and have mercy on this little being that was left behind on Jakku. It was important to her to give someone else what she never got, and that was more core to who she was than the temptation to be selfish and have something come easy.
Now: I absolutely can see how that same reading of her personality could lead to the idea that she’ll have mercy for Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. If that’s how the filmmakers go with it, then it’s not out of the blue, or anything, and I can rationally understand the argument that it would be logical. I just think that it would be boring as fuck reductive storytelling to once again make the female lead character have to put herself aside for the benefit of the male villain, even at the expense of herself, and I think it would be… Frankly, I think that showing narrative empathy for the First Order, in the climate that we live in in 2017, is insulting and dangerous and would be an unforgivable, for me, choice for Lucasfilm as a company to make. Not that that means I don’t think they MIGHT, because like, lbr, Disney has always been antisemitic as fuck and racist as shit, but.
Here’s what I was thinking about last week: the entire neo-Nazi crowd at Charlottesville? They see themselves as Kylo Ren. They see themselves the way he sees himself, as the lone warrior strong enough to see through the lies of the Jedi and the New Republic, to turn his back on the teachings of Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, to find a wiser teacher in the deification of a long-dead fascist who sought to kill all of those who would challenge him. And they also see themselves as Kylo Ren, the white male major character who by Rights and Logic deserves to win in the end and get the girl and defeat his enemies and be proven to be the Most Human Of All and definitely, definitely get his due over anything that the Black or Latinx or Asian main characters could ever earn. If Star Wars’ Sequel Trilogy does give Kylo Ren forgiveness, redemption, a win over Finn or Poe or Rose, the trophy of having Rey love him? Lucasfilm and Disney are giving those neo-Nazis their stamp of approval. They’re saying, yeah, you’re right, we let Black and Latinx people and antifascism have one movie, but in the end, it’s all about you. You get to win, again. You are the chosen ones.
And I think that’s literally nauseating to consider.
And granted: TLJ was written and filmed before the election, but not before all of this shit was brewing. I absolutely don’t think that any media creator is BEHOLDEN to be morally and socially responsible, because media creators are human and as long as there are repugnant people, there will be repugnant ideals in media. But I do think that Star Wars, so far, as a franchise, has been clear that they don’t side with the Empire. I don’t think they’ll give the First Order any quarter of empathy or forgiveness or “redemption” that they didn’t give the Empire. But, I also think that there’s absolutely the chance that they’ll execute the story in a way where they try to make Kylo Ren some kind of outlier who can earn his way back into the Light. I don’t personally think he can; I think he’s too far gone. But I do, in a lot of ways, expect for them to try. Some of that, too, I think is because of the prominence of shitty-ass neo-Nazis in Star Wars’ viewing audience: either they’ll be trying to say, it’s not too late for you (sorry fuckos, it is) or they’ll be trying to say, just keep reaching out and maybe they’ll listen (they won’t; they’re fuckos). But, again, I think that execution would be irresponsible at best, actively harmful at worst.
I want Kylo Ren to go unredeemed because I’m absolutely sick of the coddling of men who make the active, agential choice to harm people and are told they can come back from that choice.
Kylo’s victims can’t come back from what he did to them. So neither should he.
Anyway, what was I talking about? Oh, right, Rey’s other moments of choice and Dark side temptation in TFA. There’s the obvious one, which I see most commonly as the one that Reylo shippers use as evidence that they’re connected more deeply than Heroine and Villain, which is the moment Rey chose not to kill him.
I feel like it shouldn’t NEED to be explained why the hero chooses not to kill, morally/ethically speaking?
But the other is one that I haven’t seen a lot of people talk about as being a moment of Dark side temptation, and that I think is up there with the BB-8 choice as being one that’s particularly interesting: her choice to flee on Takodana. First off, you wanna talk mirroring, that’s her mirroring moment with Finn. Both of them are trying to get away from Takodana, away from their destiny, away from the Force itself, even if they don’t necessarily know it yet.
Rey succumbs to the temptation, on Takodana. That’s her Moment of Refusal when it comes to her Hero’s Journey, and in Star Wars, that’s classically because of temptation by the Dark. If you want to look at it in terms of “the Force creates Rey’s destiny,” she has to succumb in that moment so that she’ll be taken to Starkiller Base and be able to witness the murder of Han, get the lightsaber in the snow, be able to open herself up to the Light to defeat Kylo Ren. But I think that reading of the choice strips Rey of her agency. (As does the whole “the Force is in charge of all choices” in general, but whatever.)
In choosing to flee, Rey CHOOSES the Dark. She chooses selfishness. She chooses her own needs above those of the Galaxy. She chooses, maybe, in that moment, Finn, running through the forest to try to find the ship he’s leaving on. She chooses fear. Fear, passion, selfishness, the self above others – it’s a classic, perfect Dark side choice. And again, BB-8 brings her back. She stops running to give BB-8 cover to make it back to Han and the Resistance. She is again brought back to the Light by BB-8, and her empathy for this little being who trusts her. The key to Rey’s moral compass is compassion. That is a Jedi belief, not one of the Dark. (And I think it’s interesting that two of the three major choices she makes wrt Dark temptation in TFA, she chooses the Light because of BB-8. BB-8 is shaped like a friend.)
So when it comes to TLJ? I absolutely expect to see Rey wrestle with the Dark side. Just like Luke did. Just like Leia does. But that doesn’t mean that I think Rey will choose it in a way that READS as Dark, per se – her flight on Takodana IS Dark, but doesn’t Read as Dark, yk? You wouldn’t look at it and think, “evil.” I don’t think that it serves Rey’s character to make her choose EVIL even if, and when, she chooses Dark. I don’t think she’ll be willing to give up her selfhood, and I really hope, more than anything else in TLJ, that the writing team gave her enough respect to allow her that continued selfhood. I absolutely expect for Rey to be tempted by selfishness; I think that as far as the Dark side goes, that’s kind of her achilles’ heel – Rey getting to have something and not wanting to give it up would be very in-character, IMO, and I totally expect to see that. I also expect for her to be tempted to give into her very real anger and confusion at the death of Han Solo and how she (selfishly!) wanted to keep him and be kept by him. Same with Finn; she wants to keep him, dammit, he came back for her and the First Order cannot have him back. I’m anticipating her being tempted by her hatred of Kylo Ren, too, and to be tempted by the Dark whispering that she should have killed him in the snow. I don’t think that Rey is the Perfect Encapsulation of the Light insofar as being only compassionate and selfless, because that wouldn’t allow her the breadth of agency and selfhood that she deserves. And that she’s already shown.
In a meaningful way, Rey has to be tempted by the Dark to NOT forgive Kylo Ren. Forgiving him would be being that Mary-Sue-perfect-Light that people accuse “antis” of seeing Rey as, because it would be putting him and his feelings and his needs above her own. I want Rey to be selfish as FUCK and say NO. He doesn’t get that Light and Good part of her. He doesn’t get her compassion. Rey owns herself. And she’s not giving that up.
Forgiving Kylo or Rey somehow putting Kylo Ren on a path to redemption would not show Rey’s compassion, it would be subsumption of her Self. It would say to the audience that he had a right to use her body, mind, and soul to gain his own personhood back, and that’s fucking disgusting.
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@sl-walker asked a question: 1, 11, 13!
@jamaskywalker asked a quesstion: 1, 17, 25, 29 and 30 for the identity asks?
@darthbiscuits asked a question: (sorry if it's weird to send this so late, I kept meaning to and not doing it) - for the numbered asks, 11, 13, 22, 25 & 26
Thanks <3 Doing everything in one batch because of overlaps!
1) if someone wanted to really understand you, what would they read, watch, and listen to?
Uh, a hard one. Tbh I don’t think a story that feels like me or whatever would ever get published because people would be too bored. I probably wouldn’t like it much either. The closest is probably Richard Ayoade’s film Submarine or the songs Ritual No. 1 and Derek Jarman’s Garden by Nicky Wire. Emmy the Great’s Paper Forest (In the Afterglow of Rapture). Also -- Ali Smith’s There but for the, because I often feel like just locking myself in a room and staying there. Revenge of the Sith, which is probably the film I related most to ever but that time’s over and I’m never letting it come back. Suede’s Picknick by the Motorway. When You Don’t See Me by the Sisters of Mercy. Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Of Walking Abortion by Manic Street Preachers, and also This Sullen Welsh Heart and Born A Girl.
In terms of things that massively influenced me that’s probably Yu-Gi-Oh! which I watched religiously for most of my early teenage years and that mix of ludicrousness and horror is still what I look for in stories I think. Also -- regrettably -- Die Zähne in der Hand by the world’s most pretentious band, Samsas Traum, my first ever real favourite song. It’s about punching someone to death, except that someone is yourself and/or the personification of your mental illness & I can kind of see why people were so afraid for me when I was thirteen lol. I can trace a truly ridiculous range of things from being vegetarian to liking the Sisters back to my first internet buddy sending me that song on ICQ. To be honest I think she never found out that I was really young then haha
Alternatively, the fanfic I’ve written. Mostly Unmasked, Riches and Wonders, Down in the Ground Where the Dead Men Go and Your Death is a Number because they dive into Issues but everything is rooted in my thought process so.
11) describe your ideal day.
I wake up, stay in bed and fall asleep again (falling asleep in the morning feels v nice). Some weird non-breakfast food and a lot of tea, and then I go exploring a city or cliffs or something and listen to music. It’s really sunny. In the evening I meet up with a friend and we talk about random stuff and politics and Star Wars. I don’t have to think about what I should be doing instead because I have no commitments or work that I’m putting off. I don’t feel terrified about what I should be doing. My brain is quiet.
13) inside or outdoors?
Inside most of the time. I really like it though when it’s summer and I have the time to just pick a direction and walk until the day’s over. In cities usually because you can’t get lost there and if you do just take the bus to the main station.
17) would you say your tumblr is a fair representation of the “real you”?
Not really. It’s not half as boring as I am. Although it’s probably a fair representation of my current interests, and the regrettable fact that I obsessively pick one thing and think of little else for months.
22) list the top five things you spend the most time doing, in order.
In ascending order of how many hours a day I spend doing them:
Thinking about things I want to be doing and not doing them.
Thinking about the things I should be doing, not doing them and worrying.
Playing Solitaire/Minesweeper/Sudoku instead, the filler paste of activities: addictive, not teaching you anything, and not that satisfying to be honest. But at least I’m doing something, which keeps the restlessness at bay. This sketch is so accurate. “Welcome to the afterlife. And here’s the final result of your life’s work: you managed to beat your computer at solitaire 7345 out of a possible 128312 times!”
Daydreaming, the less bad filler paste, because at least it occasionally results in writing fanfic.
Sleeping.
25) could you live as a hermit?
Unfortunately most likely not. I house-sat for when my parents were away for three weeks a few years ago and didn’t really leave the house at all and after a week I relistened to all podcasts I had ever heard because it was doing my head in, human interactions are incredibly stressful to me but I honestly couldn’t stay alive without them.
26) how would you describe your gender/sexuality?
Asexual, aromantic. Male, tough I’m currently swinging hard towards “Gender? No thanks” which idk whether that’s a defense mechanism for the fact that I decided years ago that everything was so much effort and it would just be incredible stress for nothing anyway if I went through with killing myself, so after the GP wasn’t helpful and I didn’t know what to do I put off transitioning until a nebulous time when I’d have more mental strength to invest in that. Or whether it’s anything genuine. Tbh I’m still not sure whether I want to even mention this on this blog because it’s not like it matters & Anton is the name I use when I think of myself, I’m least uncomfortable with he/him, but otoh it’s less bad than talking about this in meatspace and probably my obsession with body horror makes more sense now.
29) three songs that you connect with right now.
Niels Frevert – Ich möchte mich gern von mir trennen
Frank Turner – Get Better
Sneaker Pimps – Curl
30) pick one of your favorite quotes.
Where there’s nature, or where there is breathing, there are true moments of joy. You’ve just got to recognise them. And not take them for granted. And that’s what I try to do, have moments of elation in life, however small, five minutes a day, and be able to think “Yeah, that’ll do. That’ll do me, now”. Nicky Wire, Vox October 1996.
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Tales from Thursday RP
Continuing on with the Kill-Team’s second mission, we pick up where the story left off in Final Sanction, spoilers ahead.
The shape-shifting Callidus assassin, masquerading as a PDF officer, introduces herself as Syndalla, she explains she is a member of Inquisitor Kallistradi’s retinue, the Inquisitor who had requested Deathwatch aid in dealing with the genestealer infestation.
Kalistradi has not been heard from in over a week by this point, and in all likelihood is dead by now. Syndalla ‘recommends’ a few changes to their Kill-Team’s objectives.
Primary
- Find and kill the Broodlord.
- Send an Astropathic message of distress to the wider Imperium.
Secondary
- Rescue the Lord Governor, if he is deemed irremediably tainted, deliver the Emperor’s Mercy.
- Help the PDF recapture the city of Lordsholm.
With their new objectives detailed, the Kill-Team depart the relative safety of the chapel and venture deeper into the city. Strix scouts ahead, his ability to move silently and blend instantly into the surrounding terrain, proved to be immensely valuable.
Prioritising their targets, the Kill-Team head towards the main PDF barracks in an attempt to recapture it, and free up the PDF units - if any still live - to help retake the city.
Approaching the PDF barracks, the sound of light-artillery can be heard booming through the ruins of the district. Realising that if, any loyalists still live, their time was limited. Splitting up to assault the threat from different approaches, the Kill-Team move into the ruins of the PDF Administratum offices.
Thanks to Strix and his scouting, the Kill-Team know there are 3 light artillery batteries, and more than a hundred rebels currently assaulting the barracks defensive wall. Two of the artillery batteries are set up in a small commemorative park area, beneath a giant statue of the founding Rogue Trader. The third battery is in the shattered ruins of a squat rockcrete bunker guarding the main access roadway.
Strix and Ruman have the greatest mobility, and it is decided they are best placed to assault the bunker. The others will be forced to charge across the open ground to handle the other two batteries. Ipos, at least, will have some advantage thanks to his Ravenwing training, and Astartes Assault Bike.
Taking advantage of the noise from the batteries, Strix and Ruman launch themselves across the battlefield landing heavily on the ruined rockcrete bunker. From their vantage, they can see part of the bunker has been smashed, allowing the battery to jut out from within and fire on the PDF barracks. Although disastrous for the PDF, this crack gives the two Astartes the opportunity to rain fire and grenades down upon the rebels.
The other assault team breaks from cover, rushing across the open killing ground as fast as possible, reaching cover before the rebels manage to bring their weaponry to bear.
A Grenade explodes, and a stream of white hot fire jets downward, Strix and Ruman slaughtering a score of rebels with their surprise attack. On the opposite side, Ipos’ twin-linked bolters turn stone into dust, and men into bloody pulp.
Encircling the park, Sergeant Skold, and the Techmarine Guillermo Sanchev, begin picking apart the artillery crew. Leaping over the low-wall, they continue moving closer to the batteries, bolters firing as they go. Pulling the pin from a krak grenade, Sanchev skillfully drops it amidst the artillery batteries ammunition.
The explosion is felt long before any of them see it. Emperor be praised, their auto-senses kicking in as the brightness of the explosion threatens to blind them. Unfortunately, the explosion was far larger than Sanchev had anticipated. He manages to leap back, a fraction of a second before the explosion washes over him. Sergeant Skold is less lucky. Taking the full force of the exploding artillery shells in the chest, he is blasted backwards, only his superhuman physiology preventing him from being paste within the ceramite plates of his power armour. To make matters worse, the towering statue above them all groans, the stone base having been pulverised by the force of the explosion. With a yawning, roaring sound, the statue comes hurtling down, crushing Skold - and much of the roadway - beneath its impressive bulk.
Ipos, the closest to the explosion, survives relatively unscathed, although his Assault Bike has shrapnel embedded in it, the surface spattered with dirt and blood from the pulverised humans. Even the distant Librarian Ferox doesn’t escape the explosion entirely unscathed.
Once the dust and debris clears from the air, both the artillery batteries have been pulverised, along with the rebel gunners manning them. The one remaining battery continues to fire, in a desperate attempt to destroy the PDF, and defend their own position. Between Strix and Ruman however, there is little they can do, and it only takes a few seconds before the survivors flee from the bunker, only to be struck down by a blast of psychically charged lightning from Ferox.
With the battle over, Ipos tends to the wounded, ready to extract Skold’s geneseed. By the grace of the Emperor, it seems that Skold survived the explosion, and the statue landing on top of him. He has been pushed deeply into the earth, but between the remaining members of the Kill-Team, they manage to haul him out, allowing Ipos to tend to his wounds.
Rearmed and regrouped, the Kill-Team head into the barracks to meet the grateful PDF, who see the arrival of these angels of death as clear sign that the Emperor’s light shines down upon them once more.
Sergeant Skold, Skold the Undying as he now is named, begins organising the surviving PDF, gaining the use of several platoons for their mission here in Lordsholm. However, as he is talking to the assembled troops, something seems off, something he can’t quite put his finger on. Well aware of the gravity of the situation, and the threat that Tyranids pose, he orders Ipos to begin examining all the officers for signs of genestealer infection. Although a time-consuming process, it is one that is worth investing the effort into. Sure enough, one officer is infected, corrupted by the so-call ‘Genestealer’s Kiss’. He is quickly given the Emperor’s Mercy, preventing the further spread of the infection. With no other signs of infestation, the Kill-Team set off towards their second target, the House of Echoes and the Imperial Astropath within.
There’s a little more to this session as they get ready to deal with the Astropath, but only involves scaling walls and sneaking passed oblivious patrols, routine stuff for Astartes.
A tough fight, one that has forced the group to remember that Hordes do a lot of damage, even when armed with only las weaponry, after all, it is a whole lot of diddly.
The incident with the artillery ammunition, whilst hilarious to everyone but Skold, was a little bit of a cock-up on my part. Normally, I give players a second or two to think about the consequences of their actions, but it had been a long day, I was tired and I’d forgotten the stats of the weaponry, they were written down, just not floating around in my thoughts when he threw the grenade. Consequently, the Blast(20) weaponry exploded, and could have easily lead to a near TPK, or an actual one had the Assault Marines thrown krak grenades at their target.
On the plus side, Skold’s Power Armour history gives him a free Fate Point for every mission, so he’s not actually lost any resources at this point, having been forced to Burn a Fate Point to survive his horrific, explosive death.
There hasn’t been another session yet, the fortnightly schedule, and RL interference have pushed both Deathwatch and Vampire back a week or so, but there should be a Vampire session this Thursday - 18th May - providing all goes well.
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