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simonsrosebud · 3 years

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how many freshman are there in the kalton au ? can you introduce them all

YES OMG. there are 6. i love my bby freshmen they have my hearts i legit have their whole lives figured out.

first up is kenna pierce, striker from delaware. she’s 5’9, white, and has long wavy orange strawberry blonde hair. she’s studying addiction studies and attends AA meetings religiously after struggling with alcohol abuse throughout high school.

she was kicked out by her parents senior year, which was mainly her mother’s doing. her oldest brother of 2 takes her in to live with him after 3 months of rehab.

wymack visited her just after christmas and made a deal that if she could straighten out by may that he’d sign her. her father aides her in finding a good rehabilitation center. after seeing her play again in state championships he signs her.

NEXT, is jack young, kevin’s striker recruit from north carolina. 5’11 and white with dark brown hair. lowkey built like kevin… he’s studying social work and psychology. wymack recruited him over spring break.

when jack’s father left him and his 3 toddler siblings in high school, jack’s mother went into a depression after a few months. she lost her job as a result of stopping taking her medicine and not going to work anymore.

jack worked in between school and exy to help make ends meet when money got low, and after almost a year of taking care of his siblings nearly on his own he broke and talked to his school counselor. he had a panic attack trying to express that he was worried for his siblings and his mother.

child protective services interfered and even though jack wanted to stay with his mom to help her, he was placed in an emergency foster with his siblings. they lived with a foster family (a couple with a daughter in college) for a year before going back to their mother. jack’s relationship with his mother is never quite the same, but they try. his father kept in touch sporadically for a year after he left, then just barely. he keeps in touch with the foster family often as extended family, almost.

RICKY ROJAS! he’s my love ugh he’s so sweet. ricky is a 6’0 latino defensive dealer from south carolina. he studies secondary education and applied to PSU specifically for exy so that a sports scholarship could pay for college. not typical but he figured maybe he’d, unfortunately, fit wymack’s type. despite playing for the foxes for the free tuition, neil’s passion for the sport ultimately makes ricky fall in love with exy in a different way than he had before. he’d seen what it could do for people, what it meant to his teammates.

he’s got jet black hair and tattoos spread sporadically across his arms and his right leg below the knee. they started as a way to cover up self harm scars from early high school. he’s been clean as of his junior year.

ricky’s parents divorced sophomore year after a lot of emotional abuse and manipulation from his father to both him and his mother. he also took dangerous control of their finances- lots of gambling, very toxic. ricky and his mother both have restraining orders against him.

ricky started therapy the same year and his therapist suggested sports as an alternate way of feeling something, something else to put energy into and let off steam. his mom proposed exy for its fast and hard nature.

the tattoos came about when he caught himself slip and wanted to cover a particularly bad scar. his mom is a tattoo artist and thought maybe redirecting whatever pain he was feeling into something that wasn’t harmful- tattoos. once he got clean he continued because he wanted all his scars covered and just loved tattoos. his mom’s rule is that she won’t ask about the design (within reason) so long as he is honest about ever feeling the urge to harm.

EVA WHITMORE <3 physical therapy student and 5’6 goalie from michigan. they’re white with shoulder length brown hair. eva goes by they/them pronouns.

eva grew up playing ice hockey, but an accident during an unsupervised midnight sneak to the outside ice rink when they were 14 resulted in a lost finger. parents were not happy when they got that 1am call.

eva switched to exy after their parents refused to let them play hockey again. they still went to the rinks when they could drive and learned some spins and jumps.

eva developed an eating disorder sophomore year. it put them in the hospital junior year and they got the help they needed. they figured out their pronouns senior year, but still haven’t told their parents. they ultimately said yes to wymack’s offer because it was far from their family, the campus was pretty and they had a good pt program, and bc they learned to love exy enough. none of the foxes know they’re a damn good ice skater </3

CHARLIE MILASKY! my teddy bear. my boy is a 6’5 shaggy blonde florida man. he’s a backliner studying sports and adventure media, and strategic social media.

junior year he came home from school to find his drug addicted mother loading his belongings into his car and kicking him out to go live with her boyfriend. she’d always been absent so he didn’t even try with her. he stayed in the house until the landlord kicked him out, then slept in his car.

he mastered pick-pocketing & stealing as best he could, lived homeless in his car and squatting for a few months before his coach got suspicious and tried talking to him, but nothing came from it. eventually he got caught breaking into an abandoned house and was arrested. thankfully the cop had a kid on charlie’s team and recognized him.

charlie got put into foster care with a young 33 year old widow. his mother tried getting him back (poorly) but flopped. charlie got adopted a week before his 18th birthday about a year and a half later by his current foster mother. ugh my heart.

LAST but not least, miss gwen garber, picked by neil josten. gwen is studying civil engineering. she is black, and is the 5’7 20 year old freshman offensive dealer from texas.

spring of her junior year of high school, she and her parents got into a car accident resulting in her parents deaths. it left gwen hearing impaired, she has hearing aides but doesn’t wear them often. she learned sign language instead, in case she ever fully lost her hearing.

gwen went to live with her relatively young godfather and had to repeat junior year from falling behind. it put her 2 years older than her class since she already had to repeat 1st grade.

the accident left her with a lot of anger and guilt that she doesn’t know how to deal with, its why she throws it into exy.

wymack noticed her confusion on the court every once in a while due to her hearing and tells her to wear her hearing aides during practices and games for her own safety and success. he and neil recruited her after the foxes championship.

FUN FACTS: kenna was the first to break through to jack and they started dating after a few months. she stays out of drama and gets along with all the foxes, even the monsters to a point.

she “keeps” jack in a similar way renee keeps the upperclassmen. she doesn’t always feel comfy around the foxes when they’re getting hammered and often finds solidarity sitting next to a sober kevin. andrew respects her, mainly when she helps kevin when he relapses.

andrew calls ricky richard on purpose, it’s not even his full name. allison colors in his tattoos on the bus or planes to games. they get close but just friends. ricky getting along with neil was surprisingly a challenge at first bc to him exy was a way to go to college, neil got him to realize how much he wants exy to be part of his future.

eva is probably the funniest of them all. they and charlie get along the best.

charlie is a HIMBO to the max.

gwen is bisexual (the foxes don’t know but she’s not secretive about it, if asked she would tell). she and renee are suspiciously close and have many bets going on them.

gets easily annoyed when kevin or jack jabs at her with exy stuff. she taunts jack and aaron by turning her hearing aides down and pretending she can’t hear them at all. neil gets through bc she respects him the most and bc he gives her notes short and to the point, no smart mouth. she is intimidated by him at first bc he chose her.

gwen is the second one on the team to punch jack bc he took her hearing aides as a joke. she also doesn’t have her license yet after the accident, she prefers to walk places if she can. she runs with neil to the stadium.

#the cards we’re dealt #oc: dalton miller #sorry this got long #oops #kevin day #kenna pierce #ricky rojas #jack young #charlie milasky #gwen garber #eva whitmore #freshmen foxes #original characters

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jadespeedster17 · 3 years

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Legit the recent Tales of the SMP gave me Clue Vibes that I just had to write this out. You're welcome. So I decided to take the characters, give them backgrounds and motives for murder. Same campy fun that the Clue Movie has.

Sir Billium Blade the Third: A man of many words that include mostly making fun of commoners and poor people. Having come into his wealth when the Nether Portal closed for a while, his family used the gold they had to become rich rather quickly. He travels in his spare time, never staying in one place for a while. He's made enough enemies on his travels and possibly enough to kill to get rid of another.

His houses are filled with many objects he comes across in his travels, many of which some people love to get their hands on. Many that should belong in museums but sit ideal as objects of his wealth. it is also stated that there might be proof that he has ultra motives for his occasional get-together, covering up past murders in his home?

Traits include - Smart, Wealthy, and Charming. Cunning? Devious? and Silver-tongued?

Mister Boo (The Butler): This boy grew up only knowing servitude, his life was to the Blade Family. And still, yet he has to pay off his family's debt to the Blade Family for passage to this part of the world. Basically, an indentured servant. So long as he follows the rules, life isn't so hard, and Sir Billium rarely comes to this mansion. He's a man of few words if he is even allowed the speak. And has enough of a grudge to the Blade Family to kill for a taste of freedom. But, would he even have time to plan for murder with all the things that need to be done?

He knows this house like the back of his hand, all the passages, hidden rooms, and knows how to get from one end to the other without being seen. His main job is to make sure that the house is spotless and always ready for guests, along with serving Sir Billium.

Traits include - Quiet, Reserved, and Shy. Undetectable? Calculative? and Unforgiving?

Lord Sebastian Halo: To this man, fine wine is just one of many luxuries that only the rich can understand. Having gotten his wealth through means of deceit and trickery of those lesser than him, the Halo Family name is one that is both feared and praised. Having made the majority of the magical inventions still used to this day, Sebastian enjoys the high life of his family name through drinking and partying to his heart's content. However, he's also a man who knows all to well the people his family has stepped on to get where they are. And of the secrets that could kill to tear down his family's prestigious name.

The Halo Family is not a clean name, it's one bathed in the crushing of dreams and blood to get at its high standing. One being that Lord Halo, the founder of the family, made deals with darker beings to get the best deals. Also that he sacrificed people to this god for power as well. Proof of this is hard to come by, but it's very true. And one might also question the sanity of this family.

Traits include - Mysterious, Adventurous, and Witty. Ambitious? Delinquent? and Obsessive?

Oliver Arecaeshire Smichalist Cumbucket: Growing up in the land of Britain, a miserable island one might say if they don't live in it, Oliver has seen plenty going on in his small world. From wars, to family functions, and even betrayal. One might dare say he's well adverse in the arts of manipulation and conning. His family wealth comes from the Casino and the business *cough*Monopoly*Cough* they have on the gambling of people. He's lived long and seen many things come and go to have become jaded to life, but still eager to prove his families name to all, even if it is a silly name.

This family, though silly in name, has many secrets to hide. From bribes to the government to keep their hold on the gambling of people. To making sure alcohol was not outlawed so they could continue to drive up sales on the small island. Laugh if you will, but this family holds an iron grip on their area. Though not near as wealthy as the Blade Family, they are still high class. Oliver no doubt is aware of what might happen should his family's secrets get told. And it's has been thought he has killed once before.

Traits include - Discreet, Intrepid, and Eccentric. Liar? Paranoid? and Manipulative?

Lady Lyaria Chu: A beautiful and seductive women in her own prime, and heiress to the Chu name that hails from the west. She is well aware of her statue and well aware of how many suitors would fall at her feet for a taste of such wealth. It might seem odd that she has married three times and each of her husbands have mysteriously vanished. And that each of her husbands leaves everything of their name to her. Having no children, and being only in her late 20's Lady Lyaria has much to look forward to her in her youth and beyond. Her family name goes far back in the western area, having started as simple tailors that now make dresses for the wealthy everywhere.

Lady Lyaria had met Sir Billium when he visited her family's area and got to know him very well. Finding her seductive methods worked little on the cold man. But indeed they struck a chord with each other in their shrewd way of thinking about how the lower class is. It's a wonder to many about her ever-increasing wealth and expansion of her company could be due to the fact she murders her own husbands. But if word of that ever got out, she might have to silence a few people herself.

Traits include - Beautiful, Seductive, and Flirtatious. Ruthless? Greedy? and Narcissist?

James Napity: Coming from a lower wealthy family who only know of the Blade Family due to contracts with them through the Assassins Guild. James fought tooth and nail to make sure he and his family were safe from harm that could come to them. But in the end, it truly was all for not. Peasants revolted, and though James's family had done nothing to these wretched commoners they still sought to burn down his house. His family died as a result, and his wife blamed him for the fire, leaving him. His bitters grew to the lower class after that, the only kind-hearted man grew cold and hateful.

Before this though, he had met Billium as a childhood friend, though they rarely, if ever, got along. James found the other to be rather mean spirited and violent for his taste, but now he can see why. Though his family only has connections to the Assassins Guild as their dirty little secret, they haven't really used this since the time his great great great grandfather was head of the family. Since then, they sought better ways to grow their wealth and look where that got them.

Traits include - Calming, Perspective, and Philosophical. Wrathful? Jealous? and Cold-hearted?

Sir Karl Jacobs: What a strange man, no? His name hasn't ever been heard, yet this streamer is said to be rather wealthy. Not much is known about him which makes him even more enticing to the guests. He seems to just be here at this party for fun and nothing more, getting to know each of the guests. But isn't that just the thing? A strange man shows up from nowhere and seems to suddenly start murders at a party? Who's to say he's not here just to gain wealth through their deaths?

Karl is just a happy go lucky man and portrays as such. But have no idea how even he ended up here and just hoping to understand why he's here. Karl sets about to solve this murder while knowing he's a suspect himself.

Traits include - Funny, Happy-go-lucky, and sweet. Strange? Sly? and Thoughtful?

(Did include Drew as he’s pretty straight forward, unless you guys can think of something.)

#tales of the smp #the masquerade #dream smp #technoblade #sapnap #karl jacobs #niachu #badboyhalo #ranboo #clue au #Tales of the SMP AU #Dream SMP AU

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radramblog · 3 years

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Radiohead Retrospective Part 4: We’ve got heads on sticks

Your name is Thom Yorke. You’ve just released what is considered one of the best albums of the 90s, if not of all time, and you’ve achieved a level of fame that at least one band member considers akin to the Beatles. Through the release of OK Computer, you’ve proven that even if people are pretty much over Oasis at this point, British rock bands still rule the airwaves. You’re also stressed the fuck out over just about all of this, and having a very hard time accustoming to the life of a celebrity- let alone the usual mental health issues.

What will you do?

Apparently, the answer was to write the fourth album to be as far away from the previous few as possible, seeking influence from IDM groups like Aphex Twin, jazz stuff, and just some bizarro instruments and experimentation and leaving a lot of the “rock” stuff behind. The primary genre listed for Kid A is usually Electronica or Ambient, with various off-kilter rock subgenres lagging behind, crying “you’re still gonna do guitars and stuff, right?”

Well…not as much anymore. But this era of Radiohead, this career-suicidal swerve, still proved monumentally successful, and showed that the band still had it, and that sometimes artistic risks do pay dividends.

A side note: I usually link music videos for the tracks I discuss as part of each post, as you’ll have seen in previous parts of this series. Kid A, however, doesn’t have any singles, and it sure doesn’t have any music videos. So…maybe just listen yourself. I’m probably in over my head here anyway.

I think the first 5 notes of Everything In Its Right Place are some of the most iconic in all of music.

Some personal background- Kid A was the first Radiohead I ever listened to. A particular cool and good mate of mine was a fan in high school, but I’d never listened to them at all, and I trusted his opinion musically, so I went to buy one of their CDs the next time I was at the shop. And for whatever reason, the cheapest one was Kid A at 10 bucks, and I didn’t want to gamble more than that, so that’s the one I got.

So the opening notes of Everything In Its Right Place were the first Radiohead I ever heard. And considering how much I obsessed over this band, in high school and beyond, it’s no surprise that this song is one of my favourites.

Not only did this song introduce me to Radiohead, it was effectively a gateway track for electronic music in general. This was the early 10s, and the majority of what I knew as electronic stuff was the EDM that was drowning the airwaves at the time. I hated that stuff out of principle, because being a hipster like that was definitely a personality. I don’t think I would ever have gotten into Vaporwave, into IDM, or into any electronic music the way I eventually would were it not for Everything In Its Right Place.

Now that I’ve spent 250 words talking about myself and not the actual song, we should probably stop that. Everything In Its Right Place is defined by this steady build of layering vocals and effects onto the relatively calm synth line, distorted vocals and word salad lyrics and manipulated noises growing and getting more chaotic before it just stops- the vocals fade out, the effects drop, and you’re left with the synth line- except it’s been slowly changing itself the whole time, and you don’t realise because you’ve been distracted by everything else at the same time.

It’s worth noting (and I don’t know if this was the case with OK Computer, because I don’t have an original copy of that one) that this was an album without liner notes, without the lyrics in the cover booklet. But at least in this case, the lyrics don’t matter as much as the v i b e. At least, that’s what I think.

On the topic of unintelligible lyrics, Kid A has a title track! I believe literally two Radiohead albums do this, the other being The Bends (though Hail to the Thief and In Rainbows do appear as lyrics). The song itself is an ambient, quiet piece that feels something like a twisted nursery tune- incredibly affected vocals, a syncopated (?) percussion, and a synth (I think???) that…I don’t know how to describe it, but it feels nursery-rhyme-y. If you’ve heard this song a few times, or you know what to listen for, you can piece together the lyrics somewhat- and they are, frankly, kind of unsettling. What is standing in the shadows at the end of your bed, can it please leave? And imagery of the Pied Piper is always either extremely silly or extremely unnerving, with this clearly leaning towards the latter. There’s a lot going on here- especially for a track most probably wouldn’t listen to outside the context of the full album. I know I generally don’t- not the kind of thing I generally am in the mood for.

We’re at 850+ words, and we’re only up to The National Anthem? Fuuuuck. Well, anyone who wasn’t on board the IDM train can at least appreciate this one more, it’s got an actual bassline. A killer one, at that, that drives the whole track. Well, you know, that and the B R A S S. Seriously, it sounds like they invited a marching band to this bad boy. The combination ends up sounding mostly like controlled chaos, a jazz band traffic jam wound together by that B A S S. But the bass can’t hold it forever, and eventually that shit breaks free and just, it just honks all over the place.

I’m frustratingly running out of things to say about this song I really like, as opposed to the other songs I really liked. Unfortunately, ya boi forgot to take his neurotypicalification pills today, and so I’m getting very distracted. Hopefully, that slightly unhinged nature suits the album somewhat.

The next song, How To Disappear Completely, is a Big Mood with a fun story attached. The main lyrics- I’m not here, this isn’t happening- were allegedly something none other than Michael Stipe from R.E.M. told Thom to help him deal with that massive stage fright that came with Getting Big. Fun trivia aside, this song is gorgeous, luscious with massive strings, an acoustic bend, aethereal vocals, and a background drone running through the thing that makes sure your hair is always a little on end through the thing. It’s a song whose lyrics are an attempt to escape anxiety, whose instrumentation serves more to reinforce it- a calm, melodic piece that builds into nervous swells and threatening strings. A song about fighting your fear, and losing.

Fuck me it’s a bit depressing isn’t it. It’s potentially the most emotionally revealing song the album has- a lot of the lyricism on other tracks is more metaphorical, or subtle, but the meaning in How To Disappear Completely is evident even just from the title. You get lost in the strings and they go from calming, to imposing, to downright menacing (and then back again) in the song’s final minute.

Treefingers, on the other hand, has a lot less to say, and by that I mean it’s an instrumental. A very atmospheric, ambient one, and thereby one I don’t have a lot to say about. I’m not sure I’m particularly good at commenting on regular music, but this kinda thing is a whole different animal. I have no idea how to interact with discussing this. I like it? I will say, that one note right at the end, that echoes for a bit, the one piece of clarity in this muddled, reverbed sphere, feels especially poignant, for reasons I cannot describe.

We go from ambient instrumental to arguable the most rock-song-like track on this album, Optimistic, certified banger that it is. Some might argue that it doesn’t fit here, but like, did they even hear the lyrics? The bridge? It more that deserves its place on one of the best albums around. The little way the guitar scales up during the chorus is excellent, the proggy drums and riffs are glorious, it’s just a very good rock song.

Also this is the first song with the lyric “dinosaurs roaming the earth”, which, aside from being a bit of a non-sequitur, would return two albums later. And I’m really looking forward to that one.

In Limbo is a song I kind of always forget exists until I hear it again. It’s antimemetic, the way the song goes slipping from my mind until I hear those opening notes again. I’m going to be honest, it’s probably because it’s also the most mid song on the album. Far from bad, but it isn’t doing anything that How to Disappear Completely or Optimistic aren’t doing better. If I had to remove any track from this album, it might be this one?

Watch me get fucking lynched from the fandom for that one, if I ever post this to r/Radiohead or whatever. Which I might, though as much as I’d like more people to read my things I’m also extremely anxious about the potential response. Like the album I’m discussing today, I’m terrified of fame.

Incidentally, In Limbo is also the shortest track on the album (Treefingers beats it by 11 seconds), though this isn’t initially obvious online at least, because people keep messing with Motion Picture Soundtrack. But we’re not there yet, hang on.

We go from the forgettable (to me) In Limbo to the utterly mesmerizing Idioteque. Anxious but danceable, confusing but emotive, messy but tightly controlled. I love this fucking song to death. The reason I got the particular Radiohead poster that I did was because it has lyrics from this on it.

I’ve heard that lyrics for this album were largely pulled from a hat, and nowhere is that more clear than here (or maybe Everything In Its Right Place). Despite this, there’s a pretty clear theme in them, a continuation of some of the themes of this and the last albums. A condemnation of wealth and cowardice in the face of ecological disaster. In the form of an apocalypse disco.

What a lot of people don’t know about this track is that it actually samples an extremely old electronic music piece- one written in 1973, on a particularly old computer. The track, mild und leise, is a very interesting track considering its age- I’m reminded of Selected Ambient Works by Aphex Twin- not so much musically, but about how that reason was as influential as it was because it was the first time songs had sounded like that, because it was the first time songs could sound like that- I suppose it’s somewhat similar in that way, if older. These pieces and their composers inexorably linked by the allure of technology, and how that could be used to define new eras in music history- in Radiohead’s case, it certainly defined the next few albums in their lifespan.

Jesus mild und leise is long, it’s still going as I write this. I need to get back to Kid A, man!

Idioteque leads directly into Morning Bell, admittedly another less memorable song. Largely percussion lead, plenty of falsetto, and with a very unsubtle theme if you listen to the lyrics. I recall seeing someone saying that “cut the kids in half” was a really surprising and spooky line, and, yeah, sure, it sort of is, but it’s only particularly bad if you don’t pay attention for the rest of it. It’s about divorce, dude, it’s not subtle.

Or apparently not, according to one interview, but Thom said the interpretation isn’t invalid, so haha still winning baybeeeee.

I think the only part of this I really can’t do without is the outro, because the last minute and a half of this song is really cool. The mumbled lyrics go really well with the rising percussion and eerie effects that end the track.

Our final song is Motion Picture Soundtrack, or, Exit Music (for Walt Disney’s Depression Nap). This and Street Spirit I think are what really cement Radiohead’s reputation for brutal closers, both of them being tragic but hauntingly beautiful in different ways. In this case, it’s the instrumentation- glittering harps attempting the echo 50s Disney. There’s actually a version of this song from the OK Computer era with extremely different instrumentation, piano rather than organ, and no harps (and a third verse that is utterly brutal). Regardless, this is the song they chose to close the apocalypse that Kid A is on- the final lyric being “I will see you in the next life”, as the glittering echoes into the night. Poignant and tragic, but a little hopeful- the next life hopefully won’t have the struggles and pain of this one.

And then, of course, there’s the hidden track. Nicknamed Genchildren by some (that’s just the username of the dude who uploaded it to Napster back in the day), officially known as Untitled, and the true closer to the album. With Spotify slapping it right at the end of Motion Picture Soundtrack, it’s not clear the true nature of this song- it’s actually hidden on the original album, after several minutes of silence, just long enough that you’ve forgotten you left the player running (or you’re still crying from Motion Picture Soundtrack). I don’t think there’s a real word for what this sounds like other than heavenly, and incredibly brief piece I’ve heard compared to the pearly gates. After all, if we end on “I will see you in the next life”, then what can this be but that?

Thus closes Kid A, a gorgeous and powerful album, yet an insane swerve for any rock band to pull, not just Radiohead. A bold strategy, and yet it paid off for them- Kid A would not only be massively influential, it was also massively successful both critically and commercially- but not to the standard of OK Computer before it. But they obviously weren’t trying to do OK Computer part 2, just as that album was deliberately not The Bends part 2.

Kid A would pretty much get a Part 2, though, less than a year later. And it’s that album we’ll be discussing next week, obviously. Until then.

#ramble #music #radiohead #kid a #idm #idm has to be the most pretentious acronym on the planet

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yodawgiherd · 3 years

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The Preliminary Round

>>>Read on AO3<<<

Updating after such a long time feels kinda strange, but I did say that I want to continue, didn't I? Let's get to it then.

Eren did not spend many of his Friday evenings with a cheap beer in his hand in a packed stadium, staring at the metal cage in the middle. Then again, he never missed Mikasa’s fights, if he could help it, and today was one of the blessed days when he was free to enjoy it to the fullest. And it wasn’t a normal fight either, as the Colosseum tournament had officially begun.

It was immensely popular. With a big prize pool backed by several large sponsors, among other the company that Willy Tybur owned, every fighter wanted a piece of that pie. Because of the massive number of entries the organizers had to run preliminaries first. Meaning that fighters from same regions were pitted against each other, dueling for the opportunity to attend the finals in Vegas. The tournament was also special in the way that it had no restrictions. One didn’t have to be a pro to enter. There were no restrictions when it came to gender or weight, a thing that was not very balanced, but that’s how it was. There would be one winner, one champion of the Colosseum. No classes, no divisions. Which meant that Mikasa’s opponent today was a man, a high ranked MMA fighter, just like herself.

Mikasa had limited experience when it came to real fights with the opposite gender, apart from sparing with Levi or Eren, because the professional male fighters weren’t very keen to face off against her. Those who didn’t know her were afraid that she would get injured, those who knew her were afraid that she might injure them.

Taking a sip of that swill they called beer in here, Eren looked on as the fighters walked in the arena, being greeted by a roar of the crowd. The tournament officials were already there, pacing around with the Colosseum logo on the backs of their shirts. They were present just for a quick checkup of the fighters because while there were next to no rules, some still applied. The completely basic stuff, like no weapons or metal in the cage, no groin punches and so on. The raven-haired beauty he knew so well climbed into the cage first, warming up with air-punches. The man followed soon after, stretching. He was a beast, and seeing him now, locked in the cage with Mikasa, towering over her, it made Eren’s heart beat just a little bit faster with worry. But it was Mikasa, this was what she loved doing, and Eren would never even try to stop her from doing it. Taking a seat, he took another sip and did the only thing he could right now. He watched.

Almost all of the advantages were in her opponent’s court. As a male, his upper body was stronger by default, but that was far from all. Mikasa was tall, but he was taller than her and far heavier, his body was massively muscled as opposed to Mikasa’s leaner form. Worst of all, he was a pro, just like she was, meaning that he wouldn’t waste his strength or do mistakes one could try to abuse in an untrained fighter. Just from his stance, Mikasa could say that he was aware of his strength. Tight, with both hands raised to protect his head, he had a basic yet effective boxing one, and this guy was undoubtedly a heavyweight. Any straight punch from those fists would hurt like hell, possibly throwing her off her balance long enough for the guy to follow up with a K.O.

She knew herself, intimately, she knew her own strength. Mikasa had honed her body to its utmost limits and beyond, stretching both her physical ability and the control she had over it far beyond what normal people achieved. Yet to put it short, she was still incredibly outmatched. Even with all that training, this was a David versus Goliath match, and she was the David here. To make matters worse, she forgot her slingshot at home and had to take Goliath in close combat. With her fists. Oh yea.

Most fighters would get overwhelmed by these facts. To fight not only the physically stronger gender but also a specimen that was this far out of one’s weight class was insane, crazy, no one of their right mind would try that. Too bad Mikasa Ackerman was not most fighters. She could hardly hide her excited grin. This matchup was amazing, as she would have to push her limits to win, to overcome obstacles and climb that impossible mountain. Taking her stance, Mikasa readied herself as much as she could, already plotting a strategy inside her head. Strength was not the answer here, there was no way she would prevail in a contest of brute might. Mikasa was aware of her limits - she was strong, stronger than most people, but this man before her was not an ordinary human. Speed and technique, those were the paths she needed to take. Mikasa’s whole body was yearning for this, the sound of the crowd disappearing beneath the rush of blood in her ears, the icy calm that Levi taught her taking over. Yet there was still a sound that broke through, ringing inside her brain.

The bell.

Her opponent moved almost immediately, rushing over the distance between them and firing off a dangerous straight right-handed punch. Mikasa danced to the left, dodging, only to be met with an uppercut from his left hand. Instincts kicking in, she stepped closer, shortening the distance his fist traveled and thus greatly lowering the strength of the hit. It still forced a grunt from her when it connected with her midriff, clenching her abdominals against the pain. But there was a trade-off for this, as she was now right in his face with both of his hands occupied, meaning she could rain righteous punishment down on the heathen. Two quick jabs and a right hook made him stagger back in retreat. Mikasa might have been smaller and weaker than this beast, but she was still unnaturally strong when compared to normal human standards and when her fists found their mark, it hurt like a bitch. Pursuing her target, she landed another good straight punch before being forced to jump back from the defensive spinning back fist. That one would probably knock her out if he landed it.

Taking advantage of this tiny break this created between them, she sized up her opponent once more, seeing a new light of respect in his eyes. It's one thing to hear about a prodigy female fighter, its another to face her in the ring and feel just how good she was on his own skin. They circled each other again, slower now, trying to find gaps in the armor. Mikasa didn’t try to match his jabs, knowing that hers would not be useful even if they landed. She needed full punches, and for that, she needed to be closer. Kicks could also work, as her legs were definitely strong enough, but those required more wind-up and could be countered, so she would need a bigger opening to do one. Creating those and getting closer meant getting into his range, and if she would ever get grabbed, the match was over. Now if she could bait it….

It took the perfect footwork, step-in followed by almost immediate duck backwards, but she did it, made him reach out and grab the air where she was standing just a fraction of a second ago. Hands uselessly stretched forward, he couldn’t block the devastating kick Mikasa planted right into his ribs. Pursuing her advantage, she pressed on, feinting a straight punch that made him raise his hands, hoping to block her. But the real attack was the powerful overhead that Mikasa threw her whole body into, punching hard into her opponent’s upper thigh, completely running his balance. It wasn’t enough to plant him in the ground, as she hoped, but it gave her several good hits in before he recovered, wearing her opponent out. That combined with the way she dodged his counter hit, which was both exhausting and frustrating, finally started wearing her opponent’s patience thin. Here, in the heat of the duel, she made her mistake. Underestimating the speed at which he could move, despite all the muscles, she pushed for one more punch in a created opening, just one more than the safe number was, and got hard punished for it. Rushing forward, he shot one, two, three lightning-fast jabs, and even with Mikasa dodging them all he backed her into a corner. The straight punch was incredibly well-placed and with tremendous strength behind it, flying true. Mikasa blocked it, of course she did, but that almost didn’t matter. The force of it alone lifted her off her feet, throwing her back against the bars of the cage. Ears ringing, the air pushed out of her lungs, she gasped, trying to get her body back into control. It was only the years of training that saved her then, as she unconsciously ducked underneath the follow-up punch, dropping down on the ground and rolling away. Just in time too, as he viciously stomped the ground where she was, looking to finish the match as soon as possible.

Coming back to her feet, Mikasa shook her head, clearing the fog that shadowed her brain from that punch. A single hit and it was almost enough to end her, the man before her was truly a beast. Her constant attacks from before did bear fruit, however, as he was also breathing hard, his steps slower and favoring his left leg, the one she didn’t hit with that overhead just a short time ago. The cogs inside her brain were working hard, looking for a way to turn this into her advantage. He was tired, obviously, looking to end this as fast as he could, one last attack that would put her on the ground. Which meant, he was more open to some subtle manipulation. It was a gamble, of course, but Mikasa saw a chance and decided to seize it. Dropping her hands just a tiny bit, feinting a tired stumble, she opened herself up to an attack, presenting her opponent with an exquisite bait. And he took it.

Rush forward, hands ready to grab her, to put her in a hold she would never break free of. One last attack to end this whole bout, which would have worked if used on anyone else but Mikasa. He was fast, but she was faster. Like a blur, she dropped low, very low, sliding into her enemy and planting her feet firmly on the ground, wide apart. The move itself reached such a speed that the only part of her Eren’s eyes could track was the red streak in her hair. As expected, the massive man practically tripped over her, doubling over when her shoulder smacked into his lower abdomen, and for a fraction of a moment his upper body was practically resting on her back while continuing its original trajectory. Which was just the perfect time to strike. Like a steel coil, her body straightened, adding its strength to the considerable kinetic energy he generated while rushing forward, and with their power combined Mikasa practically smashed her opponent into the cage behind her, the steel creaking loudly when the massive mass crash-landed into it.

This perfectly executed strike that used his own strength and weight against him would be enough to knock out almost anyone, yet the man still stirred, trying to find his footing. Not like Mikasa would ever let him do that. Jumping her fallen target, she wrapped her legs around his neck, taking hold of one of his arms and leaning back, she put him into an improvised hold she designed herself, one that was a strange combination of an armbar and a choke. It was far from perfect and could only be done because her whole body was so strong, all her muscles worked in perfect unison to accomplish the task. He still fought back, the massive body beneath her bulging with all its strength when he tried to throw her off, but she held on like a vice. Increasing the pressure on his neck, squeezing hard, Mikasa knew that his air supply was decreasing, she had to hold on just a little longer, a second, then two, three.

The look on her face was one of perfect concentration, Eren saw, teeth clenched, eyes focused on her thrashing enemy, it was obvious she was giving this duel her all. And it was necessary, as the man kept fighting, trying, again and again, to get up, to throw off the snake that was choking him out. He punched her with his free hand, but it didn’t reach any vital parts and the pain was nothing. Finally, after what felt impossibly long considering that his breathing was restricted the whole time, he raised his hand not to hit her, but to tap the ground in the official gesture of surrender. It was over.

Eren didn’t even realize that he was standing the whole time, but his voice was one of the first that began cheering, screaming in wild abandon. Soon he was joined by many others, the arena celebrating Mikasa’s victory in the most primal way – chanting her name. The raven-haired fighter herself was lying down in the cage, chest heaving, spent and exhausted. It took her several tries to get up, but she managed in the end, raising her hands towards the crowd that was giving her the loud support. Even among all the people, her eyes found Eren’s and she gave him a slight wink. Her opponent also stood up, cracking his neck before approaching Mikasa from behind. For a terrible moment, Eren was scared that he was going to attack her, that he would not stand for the fact of being defeated by her, that she knocked him out of the tournament in the first round. One of his monstrous hands reached out and Eren’s heart practically stopped. But he did nothing of the sorts. Instead, he lightly tapped on Mikasa’s shoulder, getting her attention and then hunching down to say something to her. Understandably, with the distance and the screaming crowd, Eren had no idea what he said, but it made Mikasa’s eyes widen as she blinked a few times, shocked. Patiently, the man repeated the question, and this time got an answer, as Mikasa shook her head and said something back, making him grimace lightly. Not pushing the issue, the fighter nodded in respect before turning around and leaving the cage, letting the victor bask in the adoration of the masses. Hell, it was well deserved.

When she disappeared towards the backstage, Eren made his way down from the seating area, waiting for her to emerge. Levi was there too, he noticed, talking with the manager of the defeated fighter. Just as Eren drew closer, the two apparently came to some conclusion and shook hands, parting after. Maybe he could make some small talk with Mikasa’s brother then while waiting.

“Hey.”, he got Levi’s attention, “How did you like the match?”

The dark eyes, so similar to his fiancé’s swung to him. After a short while, Levi nodded in greeting.

“It was fine.”, he answered with the usual cool in his voice.

“Just fine? Come on, Mikasa was amazing.”

There was a short period of silence from the shorter man, before he, to Eren’s surprise, agreed.

“You are correct. She was exquisite.”

“Did you expect her to win like this?”, Eren went on.

“I’ll admit, I had my doubts.”, Levi’s eyes dropped back towards the cage, most likely replaying the fight in his head, “The man is high ranked in UFC, and the physical differences between him and Mikasa are…. staggering. Yet she pulled through.”

“It felt close though.”

“Surely was. If he got out of the choke at the end it would be over. Same for a good grab at any part of the match. Mikasa could never match him in grappling.”

“Do you think that he underestimated her because she is a girl?”

Levi shook his head resolutely.

“No, definitely not. His manager knew exactly what kind of threat Mikasa is so I can’t imagine he wouldn’t tell his fighter that.”

“A threat huh?”

The dark eyes were back, measuring him.

“A severe one.”

And there that dangerous individual was, walking out of the backstage. When she spotted them, a tired smile spread across her lips and she came closer, accepting the hug Eren immediately offered her. It was the doctor in him that spoke out first, still a little bit worried for her after such a beatdown.

“You okay?”, he whispered gently, hands doing small circles on her back.

She answered with a nod.

“I’m fine, but the adrenaline in me died down, so I’m super worn out.”, a giggle, “ I almost fell in the shower.”

He would probably keep holding her forever if Levi didn’t clear his throat next to them, almost decently, letting them know that there is another person in hearing distance. And of course, to prevent them from doing something disgusting like kissing. Bleh.

“Hey brat.”, he said, looking for the right words, “You…. Ehm... You did well.”

Mikasa blinked a few times, unsure if she wasn’t hearing things.

“Err… Thanks…”

Levi took the liberty of breaking the awkward silence that followed.

“Right then. Get rested, and we go back to training as usual. The preliminaries are far from over.”

And he was gone, ducking away into the crowd that still lingered in the arena.

“Did he just congratulate me?”, she asked, still a bit in shock.

“It’s not such a novelty anymore.”, Eren noted, “He’s growing soft in his old age.”

“Still feels nice to hear it.”

“Well, you deserve it for sure.”

Returning to the matter at hand, which was taking care of his exhausted warrior girlfriend, Eren went on.

“You want to go to eat somewhere or….”

There was a tiny scrunch of her nose, an easily missable thing, but Eren had a PhD. in the art of knowing the subtle Ackerman ticks.

“Or we could just order take-out…”

The scrunch was still there.

“Or I could cook something up when we get home?”

The scrunch was gone, replaced by a tiny smile.

“I’d like that.”

It became apparent just how exhaust she is when while walking to a car, Mikasa stumbled and Eren had to catch her, a thing that was incredibly rare for a person that could control her body in a way she did.

“Are you sure that you’re okay?”, he asked again, but she nodded vehemently.

“Yes, I’m fine. I just had to utilize literally every muscle of my body, so I’m getting some negative feedback there.”

Just to be sure, Eren kept a hand around her shoulders before they reached the car. Once they were seated, he turned the ignition on, heading home.

“That guy was a monster.”, he commented once they joined the highway.

“Can’t agree more.”, she nodded, slumping bonelessly in the shotgun seat, “I might have won, but I feel like a train had run over me.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get you home. Safe and sound.”

She made a satisfied noise at that, too tired to speak. But there was still one thing that kept bouncing around in Eren’s skull, so clearing his throat, he continued the conversation.

“What did he say to you?”

She looked up, eyebrow arched.

“Huh?”

“After the match, he said something to you. What was it?”

“Oh right.”, she smiled, leaning her head back into the soft hug of the passenger’s seat. “He congratulated me and wished me luck in the tournament. He was actually a really nice guy, I did not see it coming. Oh, and he also asked me out.”

Now it was Eren’s eyes that widened.

“He did what?”

“Asked me out on a date. He said that when he first heard around me, he had certain doubts, but now that we fought he regrets ever not believing the rumors. And would like to get to know me better.”

“And uuh..”, Eren had a bit of a hard time focusing on the road now, throwing a quick look sideways at her, “What did you say?”

Her smile was one of a satisfied cat.

“Is that jealousy I hear?”

“N-No…”

She laughed, filling the car with that pretty sound.

“Aw Eren, you don’t have to worry. I told him that I’m sort of engaged. Unfortunately.”

“Unfortunately?”

Mikasa grinned even wider, not continuing in that train of thought, her goal accomplished. It felt good to win a difficult fight. It felt good to poke fun at her fiancé. Damn, today was one fine day.

All this training. All those days and nights spent at the gym, pushing herself past her limits. All the things she lost just so she could pursue this dream of victory. And this is what she gets to fight. A damn roleplayer. She was glad that the tournament finally started, because hell, it was about time, but at least It could provide her with a challenge. Wasn’t it supposed to be the best of the best? Oh well, it was time to thin out the weeds first.

“Look,”, the man whispered under his breath, most likely trying to avoid the referee hearing, “you can give up if you want, they won’t hold it against ya.”

Annie didn’t respond, this guy wasn’t worth her breath. Her first round of preliminaries matched her up against an amateur wrestler, which meant that the guy was cocky as shit. That was just her luck, getting set with someone who will underestimate her because of what she was. Reiner got a good match, trading blows with a heavy-weight boxer until he got too tired and her gym buddy knocked him on his ass. Bert also had fun, going head to head with a judo grappler. But her? She got a stupid wrestler, all flashy with a short cape and a mask on his face. Costumes were allowed in the Colosseum, even encouraged, as long as they did not hide any weapons in them. They added to the hype of the matches, and that was what the whole tournament was about. But Annie wasn’t here to wear a costume, she was here to do one thing. Win.

Seeing that he was ignored, the wrestler shrugged and stepped back to his original position. Apparently, he was done showing mercy and Annie could not be more grateful. His voice was giving her headaches. Now that they were both ready, all that remained was the bell, which rung in.

3..2…1….

As soon as it rang, the guy moved in for a kill, his pride still hurting from that rude ignore Annie gave him. Reaching out, he tried to grab her and in a classic wrestling move and… She planted him into the ground in about two seconds, turning and walking away even before the referee called the match. This was boringly easy.

“Damn, you had it for him, huh?”, Reiner said as he joined her from the right, “Poor guy.”

“The training is paying off.”, Berthold added, closing in from the left, “I do hope that we won't meet in the next round.”

“If we do, you will at least be a challenge.”, Annie pointed out, getting a chuckle from both her sides.

“You don’t lack confidence, do you An?”

“Nope. I will win this thing and nobody will stop me. Not even you guys.”

Reiner exchanged a look with Bert. They both trained hard for this, but Annie was practically a religious zealot right now, all of her being was aimed at the single goal.

“Guess we’ll see about that.”

Annie nodded to that, once. In her mind, she was already preparing for the next fight, because there will be no rest until she is standing at the very top.

#eremika #fanfic #aot #snk

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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How Thor Changed the Marvel Cinematic Universe

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Marvel’s Thor, the first theatrical live-action film to feature the comic book giant’s version of the Norse God of Thunder, opened in theaters a decade ago, on May 6, 2011.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring a then little-known Chris Hemsworth in the title role, Thor was the fourth film in the still-nascent Marvel Cinematic Universe. It was also — as we look back at it now — a pivotal one in the development of the MCU.

“I’m very proud of my part of it,” Branagh told us a couple of years ago about his handling of Thor. “Which was providing a sort of backbone that they could comically riff off, but at least it originally contained some of the high stakes Nine Realms import that that larger mythology has to have as well.”

Thor took the franchise off the Earth for the first time and into the cosmic side of the Marvel mythology, introducing audiences to the Nine Realms, the kingdom of Asgard and other mind-bending concepts that comic fans had adored for years but which were a major risk to put in front of mainstream moviegoers.

Even the character of Thor — with his helmet and his hammer and his arch way of speaking — often seemed to skate perilously close to laughable in the pages of the comics themselves. But he was also a mainstay of the Marvel line and a charter member of the Avengers, the superhero team that Marvel based its entire initial run of films upon.

Marvel

Thor didn’t take the Rainbow Bridge to the screen

A Thor movie based on the Marvel Comics version of the character had, surprisingly, been bandied around for years even before there was a Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The God of Thunder debuted on the page in Journey into Mystery #83 (August 1962), created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby. A founding member of the Avengers, he joined Iron Man, the Hulk, Ant-Man, and the Wasp in the pages of The Avengers #1 (September 1963). In the ensuing decades, he has starred in multiple iterations of the Avengers comics, plus many ongoing and limited series of his own.

An animated version of the character debuted in 1966’s Marvel Super-Friends show, while the first live-action incarnation of Thor (played by Eric Kramer) showed up in the 1988 TV movie The Incredible Hulk Returns, a follow-up to the late 1970s series The Incredible Hulk.

While Thor continued to turn up in various animated Marvel properties, it was in 1991 that the first full-length, live-action Thor movie was proposed — by no less than Sam Raimi.

The director, who later went on to make the first three Spider-Man movies and who is now working in the MCU on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, revealed to the The Hollywood Reporter in the wake of Stan Lee’s passing that he pitched a Thor movie to the Marvel Universe co-creator over lunch.

“We worked together writing treatments and took it to Fox and pitched it,” Raimi recalled. “And they said, ‘Absolutely no. Comic books don’t make good movies.’ This was in 1991.”

The rights to Thor bounced around Hollywood for a few more years (at one point it was set up at Sony with David S. Goyer writing and possibly directing) until landing back at Marvel Studios, which had reinvented itself as an independently financed production company in 2005 with distribution through Paramount Pictures. The studio, run at the time by David Maisel with Kevin Feige as president of production, hired Mark Protosevich (I Am Legend and the unfilmed Batman Unchained) to write a script for Thor, with Matthew Vaughn (X-Men: First Class) coming aboard to direct in August 2007.

Marvel

Enter Tom Hiddleston as Loki…

No sooner did Matthew Vaughn sign up to direct Thor than he seemingly left just as quickly, although it was officially announced in May 2008 that he was departing. Creative and budget issues seemed to have sealed his exit. “Marvel loves the script,” he wrote in The Guardian in late 2007. “The only problem is that it has been costed at $300m and they ask how I am going to reduce it by $150m.”

Even though Thor had already been scheduled for a June 4, 2010 release date, Marvel still had to find a director. Talks were held with Guillermo del Toro, but he decided to direct The Hobbit instead (which he ended up leaving as well). At the end of its search, Marvel finally chose Kenneth Branagh, the Irish actor and director best known for his epic adaptations of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Henry V — which kind of provided an idea of the tone Marvel was looking for.

Branagh was finally signed in December 2008, telling MTV News, “It’s a chance to tell a big story on a big scale…It’s a human story right in the center of a big epic scenario.”

Once Branagh was signed, the movie’s release date was pushed back from June/July 2010 to May 6, 2011, providing plenty of time for the film’s extensive visual effects to be designed and created and for Branagh to find his cast — starting with the God of Thunder himself.

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The first person allegedly approached was Daniel Craig, who had just starred in his second James Bond film, Quantum of Solace. It was because of his commitments to the already massive 007 franchise that Craig turned down the hammer-wielding Asgardian, although it’s somehow hard to imagine the tough-as-nails Craig as the egotistical (at least at first), young Odinson.

A long list of young, relatively unknown actors tested for the part, including Chris Hemsworth (who was just making his brief but scene-stealing appearance as James Kirk’s father in J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek), his brother Liam, the equally obscure Tom Hiddleston, Kevin McKidd from Grey’s Anatomy, Alexander Skarsgard (Godzilla vs. Kong), Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy), Joel Kinnaman (The Suicide Squad), and others. But Chris Hemsworth ultimately won the day, with Hiddleston landing the consolation gift that would keep on giving, the role of Thor’s villainous adopted brother Loki.

“That was my starting point, was that you have a character with a predisposition toward mischief,” Hiddleston said about playing the trickster god, during a 2010 set visit attended by this reporter in Manhattan Beach, California. “An inclination toward chaos and a delight in imbalance, and you couple that with the fierce intelligence that he has, and a chess master’s ability to manipulate events three or four steps ahead of the game.”

Adding even more gravitas to the production was the signing of the legendary Anthony Hopkins to play Thor’s father, Odin, along with Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, Rene Russo as Thor’s mom Frigga, Colm Feore as Laufey, the king of the Frost Giants, Idris Elba as Heimdall, and others. Also signed: Samuel L. Jackson for his third appearance as Nick Fury (in an end credits bonus scene) and Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton/Hawkeye, marking the live-action debut of the bow-and-arrow-wielding Avenger.

Filming on Thor began in mid-January 2010 and wound down in early May, with shooting taking place at Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach, California (Marvel’s studio home in the MCU’s early years), Santa Fe, and other parts of New Mexico, and locations in northern California.

Colm Feore told The Deadbolt that the Shakespearean training which he, Branagh, and Hopkins all shared enabled them to quickly communicate with each other while shaping the characters and finding the right tone: “One of the things that was enormously helpful on Thor was that during the breaks, Tony, myself, and Ken would be talking in Shakespearean shorthand about what the characters were doing, what we thought they may be like, and how we could focus our attention more intelligently.”

During that same set visit to the Manhattan Beach set of Thor, Marvel president of production Kevin Feige told this reporter and others that the movie was going to feature more extensive post-production work than other Marvel films. “When you walk around Captain America or Iron Man, you can get it,” he explained. “With Thor, what you’re seeing is only 30% of what the movie will be. This is the big question mark and to me that makes it the most exciting. I like it when people don’t exactly know what we’re going to do.”

Reshoots were completed in late 2010, while The Avengers director Joss Whedon shot the end credits scene in which Nick Fury reveals the Infinity Stone known as the Tesseract to Dr. Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard).

Marvel

Marvel takes a big swing with Thor’s hammer

Introducing Thor and the Asgardians — who were essentially aliens, with technology so far ahead of our own that they seemed like gods to the ancient, more primitive people of Norway more than a millennium ago — was a major gamble for the MCU and its then-president of production (and now Chief Creative Officer) Kevin Feige.

Out of Marvel’s first three films, Iron Man and Iron Man 2 were massive, out-of-the-box hits, while The Incredible Hulk was a middling success at best. Yet all three films were Earthbound and dealt with plausible (as far as it went) science and technology. The science of Thor was — to borrow a phrase from the late science fiction titan Arthur C. Clarke — indistinguishable from magic.

“Asgardians are kind of ‘been there, done that’ when it comes to that kind of stuff,” said co-producer Craig Kyle to this reporter and others on the set visit. “For them to send you across the universe, it’s as easy as turning a key … Their technology is only as sophisticated as it needs to be to do extraordinary things.”

Making Thor, Odin and the other inhabitants of Asgard, Jotunheim and the rest of the Nine Realms into extra-terrestrial beings mistaken for gods by ancient humans took Thor away from sword-and-sorcery and fantasy and more overtly into the science fiction genre. But it also provided the film with a back story and mythology that was perhaps easier for modern movie fans to swallow — more Star Wars than the Völuspá.

“We just kept trying to humanize it all, and keep it very real,” Chris Hemsworth told Superhero Hype at the time about his approach to the title character. “Look into all the research about the comic books that we could, but also bring it back to ‘Who is this guy as a person, and what’s his relationship with people in the individual scenes?’ And working with someone like Kenneth Branagh, who has all those bases covered and has so many ideas, it was a hell of a time!”

In addition to taking the big creative risk of bringing Asgard and Thor to the screen, the movie took several other chances as well. Starting a tradition that Marvel would return to with films like Captain Marvel and Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor did not function as a traditional origin story. We meet Thor, Loki, Odin, and enter Asgard with only a brief introduction detailing the history of ill will and war between the Asgardians and the Frost Giants.

Thor’s journey in the film is not that of an ordinary character being bestowed with great powers and learning how to use them, the typical arc of a superhero film. He is fully formed here, if flawed, and as the film progresses he learns to be a better version of the immensely powerful being that he already is — with the help of the human beings that he meets during his fall to Earth.

When Thor — the likely successor to his father’s throne — reignites hostilities with the Frost Giants partially due to his own immaturity, Odin decrees him unworthy of wielding Mjolnir and banishes him, powerless, to Earth. That leaves the door open for the crafty Loki — who has discovered that he is not Asgardian after all, but the child of Frost Giants — to manipulate and scheme his way into power himself.

Marvel’s other big gamble was making Loki a much more fully developed antagonist than had been previously seen in many comic book movies. Skillfully portrayed by Hiddleston in a performance that made him an instant star, Loki is an empathetic, nuanced character whose longing for the love and attention of his adopted father — who lavishes more of both on Thor — leads him down a dark path and into a character arc that would take several years and movies to play out.

“I think Loki intuitively feels that he doesn’t belong there, he doesn’t belong with the family in Asgard and doesn’t belong in the pantheon of gods,” said Hiddleston at the time. “He’s confused about his place in the universe … We all reach a point in our lives where we think, ‘What the hell are we supposed to do with our life?’ Thor reaches that point in this film and Loki does as well, so yes, maybe if Odin had made him feel valued and respected and essential to Asgard, then it would have been okay.”

Marvel

Thor smashes all preconceptions

Thor had its world premiere in Sydney, Australia on April 17, 2011 and opened in that country — Hemsworth’s native land — four days later. It premiered in 56 more markets before finally opening in North America on May 6, 2011.

The film earned a 77% fresh rating and mixed reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising the performances by Hemsworth and Hiddleston, as well as the grandiose family drama on Asgard, but less impressed by Thor’s journey to Earth and the climactic battle there against the massive golem-like Destroyer sent by Loki to kill Thor.

More importantly for Marvel, the film connected with audiences despite the perception that Thor was largely unfamiliar or dated. Thor earned $181 million at the North American box office and a further $268 million abroad for a worldwide total of $449 million.

While that ranks it near the bottom of the 23 MCU movies released to date (along with Ant-Man and Captain America: The First Avenger), it was a far from shabby showing for the early MCU and proved Marvel’s calculation that it could expand Marvel’s footprint on film beyond already established characters like Spider-Man, the X-Men and the Hulk.

“I liked it when people said, ‘Iron Man’s the B-Team. You’re calling out the B-Team!’ We knew it wasn’t,” said Feige on set about using what were perceived as lower-tier Marvel heroes. “We knew it was going to be great. And that holds true for Thor … here’s another one that will redefine us and at least raise the bar of what a comic book movie is, for both people who’ve read comics and those who haven’t.”

Thor expanded the boundaries of the MCU into the realms of space, alternate dimensions and cosmic conflicts, while putting another key part in place for the impending arrival of the Avengers. And while 2013’s follow-up, Thor: The Dark World, was a misstep and considered one of Marvel’s few outright failures, the studio brilliantly reinvented the character in 2017 with Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok, moving him away from the initial Shakespearean grandiosity and into a more humorous space.

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That in turn allowed Thor and Hemsworth to have one of the most profound character arcs across the entire span of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. His story in those films, the box office clout of Ragnarok, and Hemsworth’s enthusiasm for the role led Marvel to commission 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder — marking the first time an MCU hero is venturing into a fourth solo movie.

Ten years later, while not a perfect film by any means, Thor is still an enjoyable, consciously weird Marvel epic that proved the God of Thunder could bring the lightning even to modern audiences. And while Thor has seemingly abandoned the throne of Asgard for now, his first film’s place in the MCU pantheon is secure.

The post How Thor Changed the Marvel Cinematic Universe appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2RWjeeA

#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

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thoughtfullyyoungduck · 4 years

Text

Broken arm

A/N: This was requested by anon, I hope you enjoy! please let me know what you think! Also this is like my worst fear, like that sounds dumb but breaking something sounds absolutely disgusting to me. In movies if they do like sound effects of bones breaking and I know it’s coming, I mute the sound.

summary: i was wondering if you could write a reddie x daughter where the losers club all go out and the daughter gets hurt (maybe breaks an arm) so they all freak out and take her to the hospital, and it’s just rlly cute at the end. i just feel like i could image richie and eddie just freaking out abt what to do and not actually doing anything so the rest of the losers have to step in

warnings: mentions of a broken arm and surgories (not graphic), mentions of throwing up (but also not graphic) and some curse words and your mom joke

At least once a month, all the losers have a reunion that usually either takes place in Ben and Bev’s lake house, or in their boat. The reason it does, is because Ben and Bev combined have enough money to restore any damages that may or may not occur during these times, more often than not Richie fault.

This time however, by some unlucky draw of the hat, everyone agrees to meet up in Richie and Eddie’s home, because their daughter Alexa isn’t feeling too great, and Richie not Eddie felt comfortable relocating with her for a few days.

She had nothing major, just a stomach bug that causes her to throw up from time to time, but Both Eddie and Richie were more than ready to postponed the losers’ meeting. Alexa insisted that all the plans continued on as normal despite her feeling unwell, since she loved spending time with her uncles and aunt any time she could, and when she showed signs of her health improving, nobody cancelled anything.

With the first knock on the door, Alexa jumps up, rushing to welcome whoever has made it to their house first, ignoring how her stomach was protesting the flash movement, and she’s greeted by the sight of her best-loved aunt, which happened to be Aunty Bev. Six months into the pregnancy made Bev look bloated and tired, but her eyes lit up as soon as Alexa opened the door, bending down as best as she could to hug her back twice as hard. She’s alone, Ben had had a meeting over in Portland, and agreed to meet Bev here.

‘How’s my favorite girl doing?’ Bev asks with a huge smile on her face, her hand resting on the top of her belly softly rubbing up and down.

‘I’m okay’, Alexa insists, even though her face still looks a little pale. Eddie, who had joined the two of them at the front door, rolled his eyes begrudgingly. Insisting that she’s fine even though she isn’t must be a trait she picked up from Richie.

Staying silent however, he brings Bev into an embrace, an; ‘hey Bev’ falling from his lips in the process.

‘Richie’s out back, come in, I’ll go get him.’ Before Eddie has the chance, the next guests arrive, in the form of Patty and Stan. Stan was holding a stuffed animal, a bunny in his hands, smirking as if he already knew that he was going to be the ‘chosen’ one today.

Eddie laughs out loud, watching as his daughter’s eyes grow bigger and wide, and she excitedly begins the bounce up and down, seemingly forgetting about the sickness for a little while. In his mind, Eddie is already praising Stan, for the few moments of rest this allows his daughter to have. Sleep is nothing something that has come in large doses to her in the last two days, every single waking minute of the day being consumed with sitting next to a toilet bowl, and brushing her teeth afterwards.

Eddie also praises Stan for basically knocking down the competition before the rest of them even have a chance.

At two years old, Alexa figured out how to play her family like the harp she later maintained she wanted to practice, giving up after only two lessons. She used to go around the room and beg her uncles and aunt to play a game with her, any kind, and when they relented, the first person who did would be her go to person for the rest of the evening.

Endearing everyone’s heart, but also resulting in a rivalry, where many presents were tossed around, and Alexa was in danger of becoming a bit spoiled. Now at twelve, she’s stopped crowning anyone as her winner, yet the losers still arranges bets on her, as if their daughter is something to bet on.

It’s all in good fun of course, and Richie himself joins in on the gamble from time to time, but for whatever reason he never guesses correctly, but Eddie has a burning suspicion it has something to do with manipulating Stan to lose. Not that his schemes work, Stan is much too smart for that.

In rapid succession, Ben follows Stan and Patty, and after him Mike emerges, and finally Bill and Audra appear from the end of the streets. A loud and ugly snort forces its way out of Eddie, when he sees the exact some bear clutched to Bill’s chests, the annoying, cocky smirk on his face he mirrored from Stan, the same one that vanishes as soon as he steps through the door, and lays his eyes upon Alexa, clasping Stan’s gift.

Richie, who had since joined the rest of the group, could not contain his laughter, finding in Bill the perfect victim to tease throughout the entire night.

Rice and chicken were on the menu tonight, a light meal that was decided in light of Alexa, but nobody complained. Despite popular belief, Richie was a very good cook, and when he prepared any meal, it was guaranteed that it would taste delicious.

Alexa ate a bit, more than she had eaten in the last few days, and Eddie sighed a breath of relief. Years of conditioning that any sickness was going to get him killed did not disappear off the bat, so he was immensely glad his daughter was starting to feel better, even if he knew her ailment was not that serious to begin with.

After dinner, the group resides to the living room, watching a movie that Alexa had her mind set on viewing, and secretive adult talk concealed in a child appropriate package so she wouldn’t notice, making a way across each other. A normal reunion like any other.

At nine pm, unsurprisingly, Alexa got up from her seat. ‘I’m going to bed dad,’ she explains, her hand stroking Bev’s baby bump one last time, and then waving at everyone. The spot next to Beverly, the one that Alexa had claimed, so she could discuss her new best friend as she lovingly called the new baby that was yet to be burn, remains achingly open. A weird feeling creeps up the back of Eddie’s neck, ridiculously.

The losers club just doesn’t seem complete without her, even if she has only been there for twelve years. Her bedtime was around eight, but when they go on a trip, she is allowed to stay up as long she want, the fact that she turns in for the night so early, is a testimony to how bad she suffers.

Richie started to make his way up from the sofa too, ready to tuck her in, as he did every night, but she shook her head. ‘I can go to bed alone, Pops, don’t worry.’

She gave him a kiss on his cheek, and then scampered off to the bathroom to get ready for bed. Bill chocked on his drink in laughter when he saw the fallen look on Richie’s face, disappointment coating his expressions in a grey attire.

When he dejectedly resumed his place next to Eddie, the latter patted him on the arm in sympathy. ‘It’s just because there are others here Rich. You know how ashamed she gets of you.’ The smirk cannot be contained when the words leave his mouth, even though he means nothing but lies with them.

‘And they say my jokes suck? Spaghetti, come up with new and innovated humor, like mine. Thank god she’s got some of my qualities-‘

‘she’s adopted.’

‘- don’t interrupt me Eds that’s just bad manners. I’m so sorry your mom was to busy teaching me the way around her body to teach you how to be polite but-‘

‘Beep beep asshole.’ A murmur of agreement rose up from the group, Richie flipping them the bird.

‘Whatever, you losers have no taste at all.’

Deciding to check up on her after about fifteen minutes, Eddie settles back in his seat, joining in on the conversation to his right, where Ben and Stan discuss the different plants they have in their garden, listing a bunch of flowers Eddie will never know the meaning off.

The movie clutters on in the background, almost like a lullaby, and Eddie yawns significantly. Richie’s hand presses in the small of his back, a grounding warm signal that he was safe, even though he doesn’t mean too, he zones out, not asleep, but also not as awake as he should be.

That happens to be a mistake when he hears something slam on the floor above them, the sound of the toilet being flushed a second after. He makes eye contact with Richie, both of them realizing that that is probably the result of Alexa throwing up again.

‘Dad, Pops’, and then a loud bang, proceeded by a few thuds that can be relocated to their stairs, and a pained yell.

Richie and Eddie scramble up faster than they have ever done before, even more hurried than when Pennywise was chasing them in Neibolt. Stan, Bill and Bev scurry alongside them, to the place of the accident, every single one of them in a panicked haze.

It only takes a second to get there, in their haste, and no other sounds emerge anymore, until They run into the hallway.

Alexa is spread out across the bottom of the stairs, her arm bend in a weird position, her legs propped up as she looks around the space dazedly, as if she’s not sure what just happened.

Her faces goes through a couple of emotions, intensifying when she takes a look at her arm, but not yet crying.

Eddie is the first to reach her, and when she sees him, her lips open slightly and a wail falls out. It proves to him that she is in real, and agonizing pain. Back when she learned how to ride her bike for the first time, she had fallen many times, as kids do, but if she cried, Eddie refused to indulge her. He wouldn’t let leave or abandon her, but he would tell her that everything was fine, and that it only stung a little, and there was no need to cry.

He mostly did this to stop himself from becoming like his mother, and to allow Alexa to discover her own boundaries and which one hurt enough to actually ask help for. He never shamed her for crying either, he just tried to teach her the difference between actual pain, and being shocked from a fall. Ever since, is she saw Eddie walk towards her, her tears stopped if it barely stung, or begin to cry if help was needed.

Now she sobs, heavy and with snot, hiccuping to catch her breaths. It only takes a look to tell Eddie everything he needs to know, she is suffering from an open fracture. The bone is not stuck outside the skin, but the bump is visible from the outside, in the same way that his bone was when he broke his arm.

All previous training flies out the window when it’s his daughter that is the one who is harmed, nothing of the medical terms he surrounded himself with in his childhood sticking, like liquid dropping from his head.

He stands there, blankly as he gazes upon his daughters still laying form, until he gets pushed back by Bill. Richie too stands frozen, trembling from head to toe, but Bev and Stan launch into action, dropping down next to Alexa, each on opposites sides.

‘What do we do, what do we do?’ Richie inquires frantically, pushing against Bills hands, to get to her, trusting Eddie for guidement. Eddie subconsciously reaches for his inhaler, and curses once he remembers that he threw his placebo away.

‘Fuck, fuck, Eddie should we snap the bone back in? It worked last time right?’ Richie reflects Eddie’s frantic, ignoring Bill’s pleas to calm down, the cries of Alexa deafening their ears, and making their heartstrings cave in.

‘What? What the fuck asshole no. That was a terrible thing to do, and you were lucky that my arm got back to normal, are you fucking kidding me you absolute moron?’

He doesn’t mean to snap at his husband the way he does, but the mantra of; this is your fault, she’s going to die, get her to a hospital now, more careful, you should force her to be more safe, in a voice that sounds an awful lot likes his mother hisses in his mind. The panic is very nearly all consuming.

‘What the fuck was I supposed to do then huh Eds? I was fucking twelve.’ Their panic-stricken words grow louder and louder, until even Alexa’s cries of agony sound quieter than theirs, they’re so consumed with worry, being oblivious to notice what Beverly and Stan are so desperately trying to convey.

‘I don’t know, not that. And you’re 43 years old, by now you should now better dickwad.’

‘Stop it’, Bill yells in the same determined leader voice that lured them into the house on Neibolt street, effectively silencing them and focusing their attention on him.

‘Your daughter needs you right now, so shut up, and do what we ask you too okay. Richie get her cloths, Eddie retrieve anything she has that helps calm her down. Alright? Okay go.’

Richie hurries to get the car as fast he can, but Eddie hesitates when he gapes at Alexa. He doesn’t want to leave her without her parents. ‘Hey’, Bill places on of his hands on Eddie shoulder, ‘we’ll take care of her for a minute okay?’

Her cries have turned into loud whimpers, her face hidden behind Stan’s body, which stops her from seeing Eddie anyway. Bev is calmly shushing her, on the phone with what must be the hospital, carefully checking her arm. Stan is trying to distract her, his cardigan being discarded towards Bev, who uses is to carefully cover the injured arm.

It looks painful, and Eddie can’t stand to think of her in pain, so he too complies with Bill’s demands, searching for the plush toy she got as a gift, and her soft blanket that she sleeps with during the winter.

When he comes back, he hears the blaring sirens of the ambulance stop outside their door, and his stomach falls when he realizes that a few hours ago, Alexa was standing in that exact spot, excited for the night.

Audra and Patty lead the paramedics into the home, apparently they had been waiting outside to help, Patty grabbing Eddie’s arm to steady herself, and maybe even Eddie, who is swaying dangerously from side to side.

He’s been through all of this before, in a way, but that seemed somehow less scary than it is now. Back then, Eddie had been glad none of his friends got hurt, so it didn’t matter that he did. Now, it’s different, but if he could somehow switch places with Alexa, he would do so in a heartbeat.

They insert an IV line and administer pain relief, Eddie assumes, since his ears seem like they’ve been stuffed full of cotton. He vaguely registers Richie’s hand in his own, all his attention pointed to watching Alexa’s face for any discomfort.

She’s placed upon a trauma board, Stan and Ben aiding to help her jolts as minimal as possible, before they carry her to the ambulance as fast as humanly possible. Eddie hopes to god, something he hasn’t believed in since he started dating Richie, that the medicine she has received knock her out, just so she’s painless the rest of the ride.

‘Dad, pops’, she wails, extending her uninjured arm to reach for the both of them. Next to him, Richie cries too.

Eddie speed walks to be by her side, grabbing her hand and pressing a kiss to it. ‘It’s okay, sweetheart, you’re going to be fine.’ He can’t help the way his voice cracks as he tries to keep his own tears at bay.

Richie also hast himself to get to her, brushing away her tears as best he can, but new ones continue to leave wet rivers on her cheeks.

After consideration, Eddie says to Richie; ‘You need to go with her,’ his words lacking any really conviction.

Richie gazes up to him in surprise. ‘Eddie?’

‘I can’t be in there, in a hospital or ambulance, but I would feel so much better if you were with her.’ The trauma lingers around Eddie like a bad stench, and he hates himself for the fact that he can’t be with his daughter. He knows Richie will keep her safe though, so if he were to go with her, maybe the grip guilt has on him will loosen.

Richie says nothing and stares for just a split second, before one of the EMT’s says they need to hurry. Then he nods, climbing on board with Alexa, but pressing his lips against Eddie’s quickly before his does.

He’s trying to convey Eddie into believing everything will be okay, but Richie isn’t sure if he believes it himself.

They have to leave then, and Eddie stares as the ambulance disappears into the distance. When he can’t see it no longer, he allows himself five seconds, and he uses those five seconds to cry upon Mike’s sturdy statues the waterfalls flowing from his eyes like they’re a rives. He can sense the others coming closer, each laying a hand on a part of his body, their silent way of telling him they’re here for them.

He feels bad for making Richie having to be the one to hold it all together, since he can’t break down in front of Alexa, but Eddie honestly didn’t have any resolution left to sit in an ambulance.

When his five seconds are up, he begs someone to drive him to the hospital, ignoring his next door neighbor who comes to check up on the commotion that was happening.

He ends up driving with Stan and Patty, in the middle backseat, where he can feel their worried gazes on him. In his mind, he is trying to recall any information about what he had to go through with his arm, but all he really remembers is that he had to have surgery.

As predicted, that is the first thing Richie tells Eddie when he finally gets to the emergency room, Richie waiting near the entrance, his hands trembling when he reaches forward to pull Eddie against him in a tight hug.

‘She needs to have surgery Eds, you have to come quick. They’re about to put her under.’ Richie informs him when he pulls back, this time reaching for his hands and pulling him in the direction of the room Alexa is in. Eddie wants to say something to his friends, but he’s already whisked away, and he just figures he’ll tell them later.

Upon entering the room, Eddie can smell the disinfected in the room, the whole room is drenched in it, but he refuses to let it deter him, so he pulls through, pulling a chair to the side of the hospital bed, resting his hand on Alexa’s shoulder. Richie goes for her hand on her good arm, his thumb sweeping the back of her hand back and forth.

‘hey, honey, how are you?’

Alexa lets her head fall sideways, her eyes dropped with exhaustion, she hasn’t received any anesthetic, so Eddie assumes that it’s the adrenaline that has worked off.

‘I’m scared dad,’ she tells him truthfully, squeezing Richie’s hand tight while not looking him in the eyes.

‘It’s okay to be scared baby,’ Eddie soothes her, pressing a soft kiss on her forehead. ‘I had to same thing happen to me when I was little.’

Her lips tug upwards in a faint smile. ‘I know, pops told me.’

‘It wasn’t that scary anymore. Not when getting into the hospital. I just fell right asleep, and when I woke up, the pain was dulled.’

‘I’m not in so much pain right now though, can I not avoid the surgery?’ Eddie’s heart breaks once again, and he wishes so bad he could heed his daughter from this, but it has to happen, there’s no other option.

‘That’s cause you’re on a lot op pain medication kiddo, but as soon as they’re worn off, you’ll feel it again.’ Richie heavily admits, the lines on his face have turned more prominent, the night taking ten years of their lives away from them.

‘Like I said, you’ll just go to sleep, and when you wake up, we’ll be here.’ Eddie tries to convince her one last time, and with a heaved sigh, she relents.

Just in time, for the nurse sticks her head through the door, her smile apologetic.

‘Alexa Tozier-Kaspbrak? I’m sorry, but we really have to get her upstairs now.

‘You’ll be fine bucko, We won’t be fare okay?’

‘And remember we love you okay?’

‘I know dad, Pops, I love you too.’

When they wheel Alexa away in her hospital bag, the other losers wave at her from behind the glass door, sticking their thumbs up in good luck, while Alexa waves at them as best she can.

‘She’ll be okay’, Richie insists as he pulls Eddie close to him by the waist, pressing his nose in his hair to comfort himself.

‘I really hope so Rich, I’m scared.’

‘Don’t be Eds, she’s your kid, she’s so strong, this is just a minor setback. I love okay, we’ll get through this together.’

‘I love you too.’

Later, when Alexa is back in her room, falling asleep on her own this time, and Eddie watches Richie’s lanky from twist in half to rest his head on the bed, the rest of his body in an uncomfortable hospital chair just to be close to their daughter, he thanks whoever is listening that he got this family; He would never trade them for anything in the world.

He’s mumbling to the both of them, a stupid story about Richie and his childhood, because Alexa had once told him she slept best with some background noise. Twirling the same piece of hair over and over again, he presses another kiss to her head, thankful that’s okay.

He nearly thinks of his mother, and how much he would have loved to see her face if she ever saw him like this. Gay, married, with a child and in a hospital. But then he banishes her to the back of his mind. She is not worth any ounce of his thoughts.

Alexa shifts in her sleep, relaxing into the movements, and Eddie can’t do anything but mumble out in pure adoration; ‘I promise, I’ll never be like my mom, I love you and your pops too much for that.’

#reddie #reddie fluff #reddie with daughter #eddie with daughter #Richie with daughter #richie x daughter #reddie x daughter #My writing #it chapter two imagine #the loser club imagines

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georgevilliers · 4 years

Photo

In-Depth Numerology Report for Bill Hader

Life Path = 2

Destiny/Expression = 3

Soul Urge/Heart Desire = 5

Personality = 7

Birth Date = 7

Second Period Cycle = 7

Second Pinnacle Cycle = 5

Challenge Numbers = 1, 1, 0, 1

Hidden Passion = 1

Karmic Lesson = 7

Balance Number = 7

Life Path 2: The Peace Maker

Life Path 2s have the soul of an artist. They are extremely sensitive, perceptive, and a bit shy. These qualities are both their strengths and weaknesses, for while they possess enormous sensitivity to their feelings and those of others, that same sensitivity can cause them to hold back and repress their considerable talents. They are also patient and cooperative. They work well with groups and somehow find a way of creating harmony among diverse opinions. They enjoy music and poetry and require a harmonious environment. They have an eye for beauty and a fine sense of balance and rhythm. They have healing capabilities, especially in such fields as massage, acupuncture, physical therapy, and counselling. However, their sensitivity can also be their downfall. Their extremely delicate ego bruises easily and they can make too much of someone else's thoughtless remarks or criticisms. Because they get hurt easily, they may tend to withhold their thoughts and contributions to the matter at hand. This can cause considerable resentment and anger. Too often, they run from confrontation to avoid a battle. They are a sensitive and passionate lover, their perceptiveness makes them aware of their partner's needs and desires, which they are able to fulfill with almost magical delicacy. However, when they feel they have been mistreated or jilted, they can react with devastating power, sometimes using personal criticisms vindictively. Their awareness, diplomatic skills, and organizational talents give them the ability to bring off difficult tasks. They willingly step out of the limelight to facilitate the success of their endeavour. In truth, they are often the power behind the throne. However, they do not always receive the credit they deserve for the fine work they do, or their role is underestimated and their accomplishments overlooked. They need security and comfort, quiet settings, and the company of loved ones. They are a perfectionist when it comes to their home and work environments. They are a fine companion and possess a good sense of humour. Friends seek them out for their calming and peaceful company. They are a safe haven to other sensitive people, who recognize their compassion and understanding. Once a 2 Life Path has found its niche in life, all the talents and intelligence for great success are there to be employed. They must seek out work that allows their sensitive nature to flourish - be the glue that binds others together.

Crystals: Howlite, Ruby Zoisite, Vesuvianite

Planet: The Moon

Zodiac: Virgo

Tarot: The High Priestess

Birth Date 7

Seeker of wisdom. They possess a highly-developed mind! They can and should specialize in one given field in order to make full use of their abilities and natural intellectual gifts. They tend to be analytical and rational in their approach to relationships. They should avoid taking anything at face value. Nor should they take excessive chances or gamble. They are not the type that should be given to reckless living. It tends to backfire quickly for them. They prefer to work alone and set their own pace. Their interest leans to the scientific, technical, and metaphysical. They are very sensitive and feel deeply, but don't share their feelings easily and do not communicate them well. They can be opinionated and stubborn. They can be highly critical and self-centered - traits that can lead to much unhappiness. They should make the most of their gifts of mind without losing their heart in the process, and share their emotions with those they trust.

Destiny/Expression 3

Tolerant, joyful, optimistic, inspiring, talented, jovial, youthful. They are optimistic, inspiring, outgoing, and expressive. People see them as cheerful, positive and charming; their personality has a certain bounce and verve that so powerfully affects others that they can inspire people without effort. Theirs is the number of self-expression - rich in imagination and spirit. But they have to be careful not to scatter their talents. Their bane is that they often lack discipline and order in their life. They must learn to concentrate and focus. These are the keys to their success. They have to limit their field of vision and the number of activities they engage in, and bundle their energies into a single thrust. They must focus their life; choose the area that they love the most, and commit. There, they will find success. And a great deal of happiness. They have to learn to accept the involvement of others in your life. They are not loners, nor are they particularly independent. They are social - they need an audience and the support of others to fully realize their abilities. On the down-side, they can be superficial, moody, and intolerant. They are emotional and sensitive, sometimes presuming criticism where none was intended. They can also be jealous and gossipy. Beware of becoming cynical and sarcastic. These traits can suppress their natural creativity.

Hearts Desire/Soul Urge 5

They have sharp minds and a natural ability with words. They are a born communicator, clear, fluent, and imaginative in every area that interests them - which are many! Their Heart's Desire makes them very well equipped for life. Change - the only constant in life - doesn't threaten them, as it does other people. They are highly resourceful. Generally, they can think clearly in a crisis; they have good mental and physical reflexes. Whenever they fall, they tend to land on their feet. They are highly enthusiastic. They get excited easily over a new idea or opportunity. Their nature is unconventional. They are a bit of a gambler, taking risks whenever they think the rewards are worth it. They are very socially oriented and rarely, if ever, dull or boring. They are, of course, drawn to those people who, like themselves, are original thinkers and have exciting personalities. They enjoy being involved in several projects at the same time. They need continual stimulation by the new and fascinating. They tend to discard boring pastimes quickly. Their love of freedom and change can have numerous consequences. They can be irresponsible, especially when it comes to finishing tasks. They have a hard time persevering at a given project and bringing it to completion. They must be careful that their love of sensory pleasure doesn't lead them to excessive indulgence in alcohol, food, sex, and even drugs. They are a bit of a hero and want to save the world. This causes them to make promises they often cannot keep. Deep down, they long to please everyone, an impossible goal. Many fives can be emotionally superficial. They feel love passionately, but fear making deep and lasting commitments. As a result, they resist the depths of emotional attachments and remain on the surface where it is safe. They will experience many changes and unusual events, but they learn best through experience.

Personality 7

They seem mysterious and different. People see them as serious and studious. They are highly independent and self- sufficient. They are not one to attract people on the basis of their warmth or compassion - though they may be loaded with both - but because of their obvious insight into life's mysteries. They are hard to get to know. They are often withdrawn. It is common for others to see their focus turn inside of themselves in the middle of a conversation. There have been periods in their life when they had little concern for their clothing or fashion, while at other times they are very aware of their clothing and use it to make a specific impression. They appear dignified no matter how they dress, but a well groomed Seven with a touch of dash definitely has an advantage. Their confidence increases when they know they are well dressed. They are an inspired speaker, but only when discussing subjects that really interest them. Otherwise, they are not one for chatter. Their love of knowledge and wisdom shows.

Hidden Passion 1

Their hidden passion is that they want to stand out! They have a great drive and desire to accomplish. They are highly competitive and want to be the best and the first in anything they do. Highly energetic, creative, capable of influencing and even dominating others. Can succumb to manipulation unless their ideals are high. May have struggled with a lack of confidence especially at a young age, but they have the strength to overcome this. They are survivors, warriors, leaders, and often times politicians or athletes.

Karmic Lesson 7

Learn not to take things at face value. A superficial understanding of important matters will prevent them from experiencing the satisfaction of their true potential.

Balance Number 7

They retreat into some safe haven within themselves and hope they will not have to deal with the issue at hand. Yet, the clarity and analytical abilities of their minds are sufficient to provide them with insight into the problem, and a clear path to its solution. They have to work at confronting themselves and the issues they face unemotionally and calmly. They can be engulfed in the emotional aspects of the issue.

Second Period Cycle 7

A 7 Period Cycle during the middle years of their life produces a period of intellectual depth and contemplation. It is a time to concentrate on the big questions of life. They are attracted to science, technology, philosophy, and/or metaphysics. This cycle requires that they focus their energies and thoughts. Regardless of the course they choose, they must immerse themselves and specialize to become an expert in their field. This is a period of inner development; meditation, contemplation, and self-reflection are their keys to enrichment and wisdom. Relationships seem burdensome at times due to their desire to spend time alone. There is also resistance to sharing their deeper feelings with others. Sharing their knowledge by teaching, counselling, or simply talking to others is beneficial.

Second Pinnacle Cycle 5

Their challenge is to prevent themselves from becoming a rolling stone. They need to ground themselves in a particular discipline, career, or relationship. This will not limit their freedoms so much as give them a base for operation. Otherwise, they may find themselves skipping from one meaningless job to the next, one superficial relationship after another. They can also fall victim to the abuse of food, alcohol, sex, or drugs. When a 5 Pinnacle shows up in a numerology reading, it is an indication there will be issues with abuse or loss of freedom. They may fear being anchored or tied down.

Challenges 1, 1, 0, 1

1: They must learn to be independent. They will be forced to stand up for themselves and their rights, and face situations in which they will have to choose between doing what is right, and doing something to please someone else. They will learn to be firm and trust their judgement, not to run with the crowd but be an individual. They will experience much trial and error, and can sometimes include bursts of anger, or suppressed anger and emotion until they are acting on their deepest instincts. They will learn their own set of values, and develop individual and original ideas.

0: Main Challenge - Numerology views this as a very undemanding challenge. Growth is able to take place without any serious obstacles. This doesn’t mean there won’t be any obstacles at all, but there is no overall theme, or consistent challenge. They must stay faithful and focused on their overall ideals.

#bill hader #celeb numerology #numerology #my posts #yo i did this literally months ago #and am now just posting it #thats quarantine baby!!!!!!!!

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nicklloydnow · 3 years

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"In 1910, the last year of his life and only a few years before World War I put an end to the long European peace, William James wrote a pamphlet for the Association for International Conciliation, one of the many pacifist groups whose prominence in that period convinced many people that war between nations, being so obviously irrational, was therefore impossible. James’s essay, titled “The Moral Equivalent of War,” is a work of supreme pathos and wisdom. James himself was a pacifist, a founding member of the Anti-Imperialist League, a group formed to protest America’s military interventions in Cuba, Haiti, and the Philippines, and one of the most humane and generous spirits America or any other nation has ever produced.

James understood perfectly the folly—the “monstrosity,” as he called it—of war, even in those comparatively innocent, pre-nuclear days. But he also acknowledged the place of the martial virtues in a healthy character. “We inherit the warlike type,” he pointed out, “and for most of the capacities of heroism that the human race is full of we have to thank [our bloody] history.” “The martial virtues,” he continued, “although originally gained by the race through war, are absolute and permanent human goods.... Militarism is the supreme theater of strenuousness, the great preserver of our ideals of hardihood; and human life with no use for strenuousness and hardihood would be contemptible.” “We pacifists,” he wrote with characteristic intellectual generosity, “ought to enter more deeply into the aesthetic and ethical point of view of our opponents.” To militarists, a world without war is “a sheep’s paradise,” flat and insipid. “No scorn, no hardness, no valor any more!” he imagines them saying indignantly. “Fie upon such a cattleyard of a planet!” This, remember, was the era of Teddy Roosevelt, preacher of the strenuous life and instigator of splendid little wars. James’s pacifism may be common sense to you and me, but when he wrote, the common sense of Americans was mostly on Roosevelt’s side.

How to nourish the martial virtues without war? James resolved this apparent dilemma with a suggestion many decades ahead of its time: universal national service, every youth to be conscripted for several years of hard and socially necessary physical work, with no exceptions and no class or educational discrimination. This army without weapons would be the moral equivalent of war, breeding, James argued, some of the virtues essential to democracy: “intrepidity, contempt of softness, surrender of private interest, obedience to command.” I am sure James would have agreed that these are not the only virtues essential to democracy—he himself, with his anti-imperialist activism, exemplified an equally essential skepticism and resistance to authority. But I wonder if our contemporaries, who mostly need no convincing about the necessity of skepticism and resistance to authority, would also agree with James about the importance of valor, strenuousness, and self-sacrifice.

James wrote in America before World War I, a situation of almost idyllic innocence compared with that of the next writer I want to cite, D. H. Lawrence. The Great War, as contemporaries called it, was a soul-shattering experience for English writers. The complacent stupidity with which Europe’s governing classes initiated, conducted, and concluded that war, the chauvinism and bloodlust with which ordinary people welcomed it, and above all, the mindless, mechanical grinding up of millions of lives by a war machine that seemed to go of itself—these things infuriated Lawrence almost to madness. Like many others, Lawrence saw the facelessness, the impersonality, the almost bureaucratic character of this mass violence as something new and horrifying in human history. But more than all others in the twentieth century, Lawrence was the champion of the body and the instincts against the abstract, impersonal forces of modernity. Like Nietzsche, he marshaled torrents of impassioned prose against the apparently inexorable encroachments of progress. Here is a passage from “Education of the People,” published posthumously in the two volumes of Phoenix.

We are all fighters. Let us fight. Has it come down to chasing a poor fox and kicking a leather ball? Heavens, what a spectacle we should be to the ancient Greek. Rouse the old male spirit again. The male is always a fighter. The human male is a superb and god-like fighter, unless he is contravened in his own nature. In fighting to the death, he has one great crisis of his being.

What is the fight? It is a primary, physical thing. It is not a horrible, obscene, abstract business, like our last war. It is not a ghastly and blasphemous translation of ideas into engines, and men into cannon-fodder. Away with such war. A million times away with such obscenity. Let the desire of it die out of mankind.... Let us beat our plowshares into swords, if we will. But let us blow all guns and explosives and poison-gases sky-high. Let us shoot every man who makes one more grain of gunpowder, with his own powder.

And then let us be soldiers, hand-to-hand soldiers. Lord, but it is a bitter thing to be born at the end of a rotten, idea-ridden machine civilization. Think what we’ve missed: the glorious bright passion of anger and pride, reckless and dauntless.

(...)

Modernity imperils another set of virtues, which are a little harder to characterize than the martial virtues, but are even more important. I don’t mean the bourgeois virtues, though there’s some overlap. I suppose I’d call them the yeoman virtues. I have in mind the qualities we associate with life in the early American republic—the positive qualities, of course, not the qualities that enabled slavery and genocide. In 1820, 80 percent of the American population was self-employed. Protestant Christianity, local self-government, and agrarian and artisanal producerism fostered a culture of self-control, self-reliance, integrity, diligence, and neighborliness—the American ethos that Tocqueville praised and that Lincoln argued was incompatible with large-scale slave-owning. Today that ethos survives only in political speeches and Hollywood movies. In a society based on precarious employment and feverish consumption, on debt, financial trickery, endless manipulation, and incessant distraction, such a sensibility seems archaic.

According to the late Christopher Lasch, the advent of mass production and the new relations of authority it introduced in every sphere of social life wrought a fateful change in the prevailing American character. Psychological maturation—as Lasch, relying on Freud, explicated it—depended crucially on face-to-face relations, on a rhythm and a scale that industrialism disrupted. The result was a weakened, malleable self, more easily regimented than its pre-industrial forebear, less able to withstand conformist pressures and bureaucratic manipulation—the antithesis of the rugged individualism that had undergirded the republican virtues.In an important recent book, The Age of Acquiescence, the historian Steve Fraser deploys a similar argument to explain why, in contrast with the first Gilded Age, when America was wracked by furious anti-capitalist resistance, popular response in our time to the depredations of capitalism has been so feeble. Here is Fraser’s thesis:

During the first Gilded Age the work ethic constituted the nuclear core of American cultural belief and practice. That era’s emphasis on capital accumulation presumed frugality, saving, and delayed gratification as well as disciplined, methodical labor. That ethos frowned on self-indulgence, was wary of debt, denounced wealth not transparently connected to useful, tangible outputs, and feared libidinal excess, whether that took the form of gambling, sumptuary displays, leisured indolence, or uninhibited sexuality.

How at odds that all is with the moral and psychic economy of our own second Gilded Age. An economy kept aloft by finance and mass consumption has for a long time rested on an ethos of immediate gratification, enjoyed a love affair with debt, speculation, and risk, erased the distinction between productive labor and pursuits once upon a time judged parasitic, and become endlessly inventive about ways to supercharge with libido even the homeliest of household wares.

Can these two diverging political economies—one resting on industry, the other on finance—and these two polarized sensibilities—one fearing God, the other living in an impromptu moment to moment—explain the Great Noise of the first Gilded Age and the Great Silence of the second? Is it possible that people still attached by custom and belief to ways of subsisting that had originated outside the orbit of capital accumulation were for that very reason both psychologically and politically more existentially desperate, more capable, and more audacious in envisioning a non-capitalist future than those who have come of age knowing nothing else?

If this argument is true—and I find it painfully plausible—where does that leave us? An individual’s or a society’s character cannot be willed into or out of existence. Lost virtues and solidarities cannot be regained overnight, or even, perhaps, in a generation. Even our ideologies of liberation may have to be rethought. A transvaluation of values may be in order: faster, easier, and more may have to give way to slower, harder, and less—not only for ecological reasons but also for reasons of mental and moral hygiene. And even if we decide, as a society, to spit out the poisoned apple of consumerism and technological addiction, is there a path back—or forward, for that matter? If individual self-sufficiency and local self-government are prerequisites for human flourishing, then maybe it is too late.

(...)

Do my apparently disparate-sounding worries have anything in common? Possibly this: they all result from one or another move on the part of the culture away from the immediate, the instinctual, the face-to-face. We are embodied beings, gradually adapted over millions of years to thrive on a certain scale, our metabolisms a delicate orchestration of innumerable biological and geophysical rhythms. The culture of modernity has thrust upon us, sometimes with traumatic abruptness, experiences, relationships, and powers for which we may not yet be ready—to which we may need more time to adapt.

But time is short. “All that is solid melts into air”—Marx meant the crust of tradition, dissolving in the acid bath of global capitalism. Now, however, the earth itself is melting. Marx’s great metaphor has acquired a terrifying second meaning."And so has Nietzsche’s. If we cannot slow down and grow cautiously, evenly, gradually into our new technological and political possibilities and responsibilities—even the potentially liberating ones—the last recognizably individual men and women may give place, before too many more generations, to the simultaneously sub- and super-human civilization of the hive."

#nietzsche #zarathustra #marx #modernity #virtues #values

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inspirationdivine · 4 years

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A Bad Hand || Lydia and Beatrice

Timing: Current Parties: @inspirationdivine @beatrice-blaze, and Kevin the stack of leprechauns Summary: Lydia and Beatrice play poker with cards and secrets. Alternatively, a graphical summary

Going back to the Stacked Deck had been strange for Bea the first time. The regulars had plenty of questions for her, ones she had no energy to answer. She shared a nod with Chuck as she slipped in, heading to a table in the corner after getting her drink. She tended to avoid this one, wary of the suspicious player that seemed to frequent it, not wanting to deal with any more leprechauns after her run-in with Kaden. Still, it helped her avoid the more curious people in the hall. Settling into a seat, she crossed her legs as she glanced around the table. The woman next to her was elegant, something Bea could appreciate in a Bend bar. Cutting a glance to the chair hosting the stack of leprechauns, she asked, amused, “Already on a roll, or am I in luck today?”

“Dealer’s just about to deal, we can make space for you yet,” Lydia replied with a smile, looking up at the woman. She’d seen her before, looking full of life and warmth before, but Lydia usually preferred to play with a more exclusive crowd. Downstairs, occasionally with kittens. That said, there was nothing quite like playing with poorly disguised leprechauns, her skin prickling from the close contact with them. This woman though? Apart from a turtleneck in summer, not much else to comment on her about. “Are you joining?”

Nervous ticks that Bea had kicked years ago were reemerging, fingers tapping against the glass base of her drink. She knew she was safe here, Chuck would never let something happen in the Deck. She had her knife on her, it’s holster pinching into her thigh as a reminder of the easy access she had to it. She was safe here. She curled her fingers into a fist, annoyed that she hadn’t caught the tick before it began. “I think I will. I’ve spent far too long away from the table.” Gambling with money was safe, at least, safer than the gambles she recently made. Arranging her chips, she smiled to the other woman, “I hope nothing too interesting happened when I was gone. Being out of the loop is no fun.”

A nervous player. Lydia didn’t much mind that at all, careful not to show that she’d seen the anxious finger tapping against the table. Then that same hand curled into a fist, an awareness of her nervous habit that held information in its own right. Someone was off their game. All that meant was better odds for Lydia. “Oh, how long? Well, allow me to do quick introductions. I’m Lydia, this is Killian, Jerome, Sarah, and… Robert, I believe?” Lydia said to the patently obvious three leprechauns in a trenchcoat, but that everyone else acknowledged as an individual. A chair was procured for the woman, and the dealer began setting out the cards.

“Oh, at least five weeks. I used to be in here almost every night.” Bea’s disappearance hadn’t been something that others had missed. When she first came back, Chuck had even asked where she had been. And so she had to tell the tale of being in Turkey with her mother and father. A fact that most people could see through if they looked hard enough. She smiled as she sat down in the newly arrived chair,”Lovely to meet everyone. I’m Beatrice, but Bea is fine.” She eyed ‘Robert’ for a moment, before looking back to Lydia. “I can swear I have seen you here before. I’m shocked we haven’t played at the same table before.” She took a sip of her drink before looking at her cards. A bad hand out of the gate. She tried not to think that that was a sign of how the evening was going to go.

”So we need to watch you then,” Lydia replied, with a wink. “Bea, it’s a pleasure. Although I reserve my right to change my mind on that depending on how the evening goes.” Lydia took her middling hand, let the corner of her mouth quirk in the slightest bit of disappointment, and looked back up to Bea. “ I think you’re right. I’m usually only here once a week. The others aren’t as chatty, but I like to throw them off their game by - raise - talking as we play. So, Bea, what did take you out of town for five weeks? Were you travelling for work?”

A soft chuckle left Bea,“For better or worse, yes, I suppose you do.” Before she had died, she had great control of her ticks, she knew how to read other people, and she was confident in her decisions. Now, she felt new to the table, rediscovering the way she had to play. Her smile only grew as Lydia continued to speak, she liked the way this woman held herself already. It was amusing. “A woman after my own heart. Silent tables are far too boring for me.” Temptation to tell the truth surged in her, but she stifled it. Telling loved ones was one thing. Strangers were a more dangerous game. She settled on a half-truth. “I did something for my sister and then ended up having to deal with the fallout.” She eyed the flop as it came out and weighed the risks of staying in. “Call.”

Lydia watched the turn being played, and watched two of the others around the table fold. There was a pair in her hand, but the cards on the table weren’t anything of use yet. “Call,” She responded. “Oh, I agree about silent tables. The evening’s as much for socialising as it is anything else. Isn’t that right, Keith?” Lydia turned her eyes to the leprechauns, the top of which grimaced and said something unintelligible, but the chips the second leprechaun on the table pushed forward was a raise by two hundred. Hm, now this would be a game. “I know what that’s like, siblings can be our greatest gifts and our greatest downfalls. I hope it is all resolved now.”

“If I wanted to sit in silence, I stay home or go to a library,” Bea chuckled. “It’s always fun here, rarely a dull night.” She had loved that before, it had always matched her energy after a show. Now she took comfort in the familiarity. Her eyes narrowed as the stack of fae raised. There was no need for her to stay in for that. She let out a soft laugh at greatest downfalls. “Only a few loose ends to tie up and then everything will be in great shape again. Hopefully, things stay quiet for a bit.” She folded, muttering to herself,“God knows that Luce and Nell need some peace.”

“Only disappointing ones,” Lydia chuckled, as the river were revealed and the last round of bets went in. Lydia had two midrange pairs, which was far from terrible, but she wanted to keep it safe for this first round, getting a feel for the other players before the stakes grew too much. Kevin the leprechaun took the round, and Lydia took the next round of cards as they were dealt. A much worse hand. This would be an early fold. “Well, I hope so for your sa-” Lydia caught Bea’s mumble, and her eyes widened. It was her turn to bet. “...Raise. Would that be Lucinda Vural, by any chance?” It couldn’t be. It wasn’t. Lydia was entirely wrong, she had to be.

Bea took a long drink before looking at her hand. Her lips curled for a quick second as she took in the good hand she had been given. She called after Lydia, looking over at the other woman with a raised eyebrow. So she knew Luce and from the reaction, it didn’t seem that they had a good time together. “Yes, it would be. She’s my younger sister. I’m guessing that you’ve met?” Without realizing it, Bea’s shoulders tensed, uncomfortable with the potential of someone who had issue with her sister next to her.

Lydia barely heard was the other two players said, and didn’t look down at the flop being played until the lowest leprechaun that was Kevin cleared its throat. Or possibly squawked. Nell Vural had been posting on social media. Luce had been talking to Lydia. A dead sister. Well, if two had been alive then.. “Oh, I think I fold for this round. The cards are not in my favour.” Foolish, she should have never raised to begin with. There was nothing good here for her. Especially when she played against a woman who for all intents and purposes should be dead. Had been dead for an extremely long time. Weeks, from what Lydia had understood from Luce. Vampires and Zombies both rose soon after their deaths, Lydia was so sure of it. “We have. Luce saved my life, not too long ago. I think it will be, oh, three months ago in August?”

Knowing who Bea’s sister was had obviously shaken Lydia. The witch just didn’t know why. It was interesting to say the least that Luce’s name had garnered such a reaction. She had known people that were intimidated by the middle sister, but she had never experienced something like this. Lydia had seemed like a woman who could keep her poker face on in most circumstances. Bea’s fingers tapped against the base of her drink as she considered Lydia. “It’s lucky that she was there to help you. August?” She turned toward Lydia then, voice lowered,“So you know then?”

“Well, I thought so. It appears your sister isn’t as truthful as I believed. My mistake,” Lydia said, slowly regaining something of a power face as they continued. The sight of Beatrice had short circuited her brain, but if Bea was alive then… She crunched her jaw together. Not only had she been used to torture someone, but the lying snake of a spellcaster had manipulated Lydia’s emotions to make her eager. It made Lydia’s stomach turn. Obviously, Luce had read online somewhere about Lydia’s own sister, and had made up a story to justify her actions to Lydia. Maybe she thought that by lying, Lydia would treat August worse than she might otherwise. Luce had been right, too. “Bea, I believe it’s your turn to bet.”

A soft chuckle left Bea,“She’s the most truthful out of all of us.” Nell and Bea had both lied to each other for years about what magic they had done. “I don’t know how you were involved, but thank you.” Luce wouldn’t have told just anyone about what happened, she knew her sister would never bring someone random in. She looked over to the table again,“Raise.” Throwing her chips in the pot, she turned once again to look at Lydia. Taking a finger, she pulled down the fabric of her turtleneck to show a bit of her scar. “Went through all of that and only got this scar to show for it.”

Folding early should have been a prime opportunity for Lydia to take advantage of being able to read the whole table and get a feeling for where everyone else was as, without worrying about anyone watching you too closely. To run the maths in her head over and over, and see how other people calculated their odds in return. Instead, she was only looking at Beatrice, like she was struggling to latch her thoughts onto one another. She’d helped with something, certainly, August had suffered as much mentally as physically in the 24 hours he’d been with her, but Lydia hadn’t asked and Luce hadn’t said. She was so flummoxed she missed the opportunity to promise bind Bea, which in turn had Kevin staring at her. The turn, and then the river was played. “I’m amazed you survived such an injury.”

As good as the hand was turning out for Bea, she struggled to focus on it. As they spoke longer, the witch found herself more confused than before. Her sisters had failed to mention everyone who was involved, but she had, at least, expected Lydia to know more than she seemed to. Her head tilted,“Is that what she told you? That I survived?” Logically, Bea knew that it was a bad idea to tell people about what happened, but the caution she once felt was slipping away. Lydia knew enough already, this wouldn’t be groundbreaking.

“No,” Lydia replied, as the round finished. “Quite the opposite. Must have been playing on some personal weaknesses. At least I know better now.” She pressed her lips into a thin smile as she watched the end of the betting round, itching to move past this now and play a real game. Luce must have googled her, found out about Lydia’s own sister, and turned it against her. That was the only explanation Lydia needed, and now she could focus entirely on the game.

A small smile broke over Bea’s face,“You’re wrong, then, to call my sister a liar.” Perhaps the younger Vurals had failed to tell Lydia that Bea would come crawling back from death. It would explain the confusion. It would be very jarring to be sat next to a woman who was meant to be rotting. “I didn’t survive.” Her voice was low, knowing that the others at the table shouldn’t be aware of the information she was giving Lydia. “Amazing what a good sacrifice can bring back.”

Lydia swallowed. Then she swallowed again. Her fight or flight reflex kicked in, filling her mouth with toxic saliva without her consent as her heart beat loud in her ears. She looked down at her cards, blinked hard, to push them into memory, but the king and queen of spades suddenly had a deathly pallor, red slits in their throats. Necromancy. One of the worst abominations humans had created. “I see. So it appears. How… fortunate for you.”

Finally, Bea turned away from Lydia, facing back to the rest of the table. She took a sip of her drink, frowning at the now empty martini glass. She’d need to order another. She glanced at her cards, another mediocre set. “My sisters are very loyal, I’m lucky to have people who would go to such lengths to learn my craft and help me return. It wasn’t easy for them.”

“Raise,” Lydia said, before watching the flop being laid. She had a good hand, it was just about playing it, as her stomach churned under Bea’s reveal after reveal. “It certainly was a fitting sacrifice,” she replied curtly. Had Lydia made August pliant to Luce so that she could drag his soul inside out? When Lydia had made him throw himself down the stairs over and over, she’d broken his psyche and his body, but she hadn’t fragmented his soul. Her father had told her about necromancy as a child, when he had gently teased the tangles from his hair. Magics that only came to humans, that demanded balance and suffering. To bring a soul back from heaven or hell, another must be destroyed, never to go anywhere ever again. To bring such suffering on anyone, even a murderous human like August, Lydia could hardly stomach it. One good game, and she was out of here, away from the walking and talking destruction of nature itself. It was wrong in a way nothing else could be. People warned of fae trickster magic, but Lydia could not promise bind without an inkling of consent. Her glamorous only affected herself. It did not pervert nature. “Raise to one thousand dollars.”

Bea hadn’t failed to notice how all the warmth that had once been in their conversation quickly drained away. It made sense that most people wouldn’t enjoy a conversation about necromancy. Still it was a shame, she had thought Lydia was fun company when she had first sat at the table. “I’m glad that you agree. After everything he did, it felt perfect to me.” It tied the loose ends of her death nicely. All that was left was Bea finding that hunter and taking his life too. She wanted to savor that alive and well. Her eyebrows raised as Lydia raised, quietly folding her own hand, not yet willing to follow a raise so steep. Even if it did seem like an odd move. “Confident?” She asked the other woman, though her tone laced the implication of doubt through the word.

Lydia didn’t reply to that. There was something to be said for people that just loved to keep talking about taboo subjects. Clearly, her cool comments hadn’t deterred Bea, so perhaps her silence would. Lydia certainly hoped so, she was intending to keep her dinner. “That’s for you to know, isn’t it?” Lydia asked with a wink, then looking to Kevin. All three leprechauns knew she couldn’t lie easily, but all fae were masters of bluffs and truth twisting. The third one gave her a rotten look from the bottom of the trenchcoat. “So Bea, apart from playing poker, what else have you been doing with your newfound freedom?” She asked, the question carrying an edge that had been absent early. Lydia tapped her index distractedly against the table.

Confidence was easy to find when Bea was focused on necromancy, it was something she knew intimately now. She knew it, in ways, better than she knew the woman she had become when she came back. Now that the conversation had slipped from that, it wasn’t as easy to find a way to answer Lydia. She hadn’t ever struggled to find warm words and hold a conversation before. “I’ve been finding a new main act for my theater. My absence was felt dearly there and I’ve been working double time to right it all.” John, her right hand man, had done wonderfully in holding Illusions up, but without her fire, they no longer had a headliner. “There’s new talent that needs a guiding hand. Otherwise, I’ve been happy to be with my loved ones again.”

Lydia heard the pause before the reply, as the comfort and confidence leached out of Bea. She tilted her head, watching the others fold out of the game. Just her and Kevin left, for the final bidding round. “Your theatre? That is charming. Call.” There it was again, throwing her off her game. Not like she could read Kevin’s facial expressions at all, either way, but she just wanted one decent round without necromancy talk ruining it. Or the walking abomination ruining her ignoring the necromancy. “I’m sure they appreciate your company completely. Was that a challenge, Kevin? Wonderful. Let’s see your cards.” The second Leprechaun revealed two tens, with a two pair hand total. Lydia had a full house, that she showed smugly. “Oh, thank goodness for one thing going well, then.” The next set of cards were laid out. “What kind of shows do you do at your theatre, Beatrice?”

Bea was going to make sure to question her sister about this woman. The witch didn’t necessarily feel unsafe, but there was no ease left now. Lydia had been a part of the process to come back, even if she hadn’t known it. Perhaps it hadn’t been a good idea to talk to Lydia about it, better to leave her in the dark. But then again, Bea had no room to regret what had already passed. “Good hand,” She commented lightly as she watched over the table. She hadn’t been positive that Lydia actually had such good cards. “We have fire dancers, escape artists, magicians. Those who have special talents and a knack for performance tend to find a home in my theater.”

“Ah, so like a circus,” Lydia replied with a smile, catching Bea’s meaning without a blink. “I would have to come see it some time. I do love watching the spectacular.” Feeling better with so many chips in her corner, she picked up her hand and tucked the ace of spades and three of hearts away into the back of her mind before watching the game begin anew. “So, Beatrice-” Lydia stopped, staring at Bea. Remembering what Felix had said about a lady friend. Except, of course, that it couldn’t be, right? The Bea in front of her wasn’t nearing a century in age, she wasn’t fae nor shifter, nor even a palatable form of undead. Felix wouldn’t- Felix wouldn’t have possibly gone for her. He had taste. He was as much fae as she was, as proud and clever and- Lydia swallowed. Beatrice wasn’t a common name, but it wasn’t impossible that there were a couple walking around White Crest. He wouldn’t have gone for a woman like this. Surely. “Felix. Doyle. Do you know him?”

As much as Bea wanted to tell her it was not a circus, she couldn’t. She had performers that called them a circus, even if we preferred the term theater. Usually, Bea would have offered a good seat to someone who wanted to come and view the show, but she found her quiet. She tilted her head at Lydia, what an odd and out of the blue question. “Felix Doyle happens to be my boyfriend. I take it that you know him. Are you friendly?” Felix knew so many people in this town, but still, it surprised her every time someone knew him and she didn’t know them as well.

“We’re good friends,” Lydia replied with a smile that made her feel almost as sick as actually speaking the lie. She looked back to the table, swallowing down the rising bile. This was so much worse than Deirdre. Lydia had only just found a dead lampade, made dead by a spellcaster. Somehow that bloody corpse turned her stomach less than the though of Felix with a human. Worse, with this human. Not undead like Morgan, but a monstrosity, not meant to exist at all. “I care about him deeply. More than I entirely know how to put in words.” Which made the thought of him sinking to such lows even worse. Beatrice was wrong, human hubris incarnate, how could he even consider it? He was a beautiful being, charismatic as hell, he could have had anyone he wanted, and instead he stooped to this. How could he ever denigrate himself like this and look in the mirror and call himself fae? It felt like a betrayal of her affections to the extreme, to even consider this. Lydia put her hands down on the table sharply, looking around at everyone with a practiced ease that made her skin burn. “My apologies, everyone, but I’m folding and I think I’m done for the evening. I’m not at my best, and that is not fair on any of you.” She stood up, picking up her neat stack of chips, and left without even trading them in.

More than I entirely know how to put in words. Those words would have warmed Bea if they came from anyone else. To know the man she loved was loved back by the people around him made Bea happy in most circumstances. He deserved all the love he could get. Still, this felt more than a little awkward. Had she just met one of Felix’s exes? Or someone who just didn’t want to see him with other people? She stared after Lydia for a moment, trying to understand what the hell had happened since she sat at this table. Shrugging, Bea decided to let her questions rest for now, she could ask them to the people who knew Lydia later. “Well, that’s unfortunate, she seems like she’s fun. Anyhow, I’ll raise.”

#wickedswriting #para #chatzy #beatrice

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theorynexus · 4 years

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Time to Continue with part 83!

Dave is correct. Such matters are never simple. The ways of the heart are extremely complex, and while it wants what it wants, whether it has the heart to actually go through with whatever that is is an entirely different matter altogether. But that, and the wonderful weird silliness aside, I believe Dave was suggesting that there was more to it insofar as there are other factors than just his own “gay awakening” involved with the current difficulties. We shall see just what they are, and how much they have to do with Jade... now.

100% on the money. I am not sure that technically qualifies as incestuous, though, my man. I am also not 100% sure that you are correct in this matter, other than the fact that it may make her rambunctious and more confident that she is playing a successful role as whatever strange matchmaking hate girlfriend she envisions herself as. (Not that I don’t think that humans could successfully play the part of a kismesis; rather, I am simply nooot sure Jade is actually doing well at it, or that she has quite the “stuff” for it, at this point. We’ll see.)

***laughs hysterically at this wonderful awkwardness***

That she has. And honestly, from a Trollish lens, it would seem that she’s had the “hots” for Karkat’s black concupiscent quadrant for quite some time, as well. (Man, that is sortof weird of her, to go out of her way to exclaim that to John... . Especially with the distance between her and accomplishing that goal. You’d think she’d at least want to get them to show some interest before doing that. Does seem very puppy-like of her, though. Hmm~)

Honestly, John is right in that thought. Mind you, trying might not be the worst idea in ideal circumstances (because at least he could say he tried, and it wasn’t working out for him; thus hopefully become able to get Jade not to push further, and salvage the friendships of everyone involved), but at this point, it’s honestly a great big gamble for Dave. He doesn’t have much romantic experience, and he’s not really sure 100% what he wants. Not only that, he clearly feels pressured and uncertain with regards to the matter, and that is not a good point to embark on any relationship. It leaves the door open for all kinds of potential abuse, because things aren’t starting out with firmly established boundaries and the necessary mutual respect for the desires of each person involved upon which all healthy romances are founded. If it were me, I would most certainly advise against Dave bending to the pressure from Jade like this. If she wanted to make a potential situation between the three of them work out, Jade needs to understand that patience will need to be involved. She’s immortal, Dave’s immortal, and while Karkat may not be, they do have quite a bit of time before they’ll have to worry about him aging too much to make it work, I’m sure. This is simply a horrible mistake from all parties involved, if it’s going to swing into effect as things are now. Of course, mistakes do not have to be totally damning, and learning from them is necessary for growth, so... we’ll see how things work out.

... I guess Megalodon MIGHT have technically been classified as a paleolithic megafauna, technically, though its existence mostly extended much further back. I do appreciate his continued enthusiasm about paleontology, though, and I understand that his metaphors can get convoluted and distracted, though. On that note?: Is that reference to the Meg supposed to be an association with Karkat’s mouth, and how his teeth are apparently quite disorganized, sometimes sticking out of said mouth when it’s supposed to be shut? I mean, that DOES give a bit of a shark-like image. To be fair, though: no. It was to eat whales, not other sharks. Big Game Hunter. (I really do appreciate the double meaning of his last line of the above quote. His uncertainty and circuitous path through the conversation really does show how anxious love can make a person, especially when things are rocky.)

I don’t necessarily think that that is correct--- that is to say, I am not sure that e actually was “leading her on” by dodging the issue for so long. This would require him to imply he did in fact have that same sort of desires as her, or at least that he was willing to reciprocate. Based on what we’ve seen, at the very least, I am not sure that he has actually done that. (Man, it must have been weird for Game Over Continuity!Dave to see Davepeta once they joined the fight--- to know on some level that he could sense something familiar, there, but to have no idea what the heck was going on with them~) That said... no. I’m not certain that even if he had been leading her on (that is to say, showing interest, but never committing), he would actually owe it to her unless he had been using that to exploit her in some way. Particularly, if this was done because he was uncertain if he’d be able to go through with anything, and then he then decided/will have decided to just tell her he’s not interested, I don’t think that this would be wrong at all. Certainly, she’d have good reason to be upset, but while she’d have lost a significant deal of time, at least he’d be being true to himself instead of potentially doing her, himself, and Karkat greater harm by forcing himself into something that has a good chance of failure+painful consequences. Sorry if this seems overly negative. It’s just... these are not the ideal circumstances, and honestly it’s sortof making me uncomfortable.

(H3H3H3~) Dangit, that “ghosted” business is sortof painful, given the natural association with John’s death in the Meat Epilogue. @w@ I am not 100% sure John’s mind is fully realizing the implied 3 person relationship that is being talked about as a potential possibility, by the way. With the way he’s talking, it makes it sound like he’s saying to use the coin to choose Karkat or Jade, rather than yea or nay to a situation with both of them. Particularly with the reference to his logic, and the “same chance” business. Either that, or John is sortof wishy-washy and weird, and is in fact not keeping a constant goal/argument/side as he proceeds in this conversation.

It’s beautiful to see Dave suddenly becoming confident, now that it’s in his wheelhouse. And sortof awkward and sad, seeing John flail about like this. But he’s always been that sort of silly jokester, so I will embrace this and accept it.

It’s funny how one can get these intuitions about things, yet be unable to properly explain them, at times. Of course, this rarely happens to me, because I’m a bit of a windbag (joke at Egbert’s expense), and am willing to look up words that may or may not fit in order to help me organize my thoughts, but it *is* certainly a phenomenon which I am familiar with. Particularly, in the context of attempting to make connections with others, by which they may or may not latch onto and be able to infer the true meaning you’re trying to get at.

... Yeah, that is definitely one of the things being a friend is all about. And sadly... I think Dave is right. He probably does need to talk to Dirk. Not that it is likely to do all that much good. Dirk’s not all that great, as far as Heart players go, and as a brother, he’s been remarkably distant with Dave, but... well, it somehow seems right, even if it’s something dreadful and somewhat repulsive. Given that Dave is having a hard time figuring this matter out, and he’s not able to properly latch on to John’s nonsense, this is probably the best option.

I mean, it got Caliborn out of a particularly nasty bind, one time. ;D

Yeah... I wouldn’t necessarily suggest that “cracked” will apply to all situations, but having someone who knows and understands you-- how vibrates on the same wave-length, you might say --is absolutely necessary for some issues.

This is incredibly silly. I don’t think that is appropriate on the part of the proprietor, all things considered. Moreover, it strikes me as curious insofar as I don’t think anyone ever came to try and help them order? I don’t know. Maybe I just don’t understand how the fanciest restaurants work. Or something might have happened while John was gone. Them noticing he was gone probably had something to do with it, but... still pretty ridiculous, regardless. I mean, who even kicks out a pair of gods? XD

(Super cute.)

How very true. Time is something difficult to properly hold onto even in the best of times. That one is unequipped to do something that might make a difference does not necessarily mean it’s your fault that bad things happened. For example: one should not blame terrified bystanders for not mobbing a lone gunman in a mass shooting and forcibly stopping them before anything can happen, or at least partway through. At times, life will present you with barriers of that sort that are almost impossible to overcome, and one has to think of what can be done for the future, rather than dwelling on the past. Of course, the cataclysm is in Dave’s future at this moment, and John could technically do a whole lot of other things to make events work out; yet as the narrative subtly suggests, while the possibility technically exists, it may not be something that is feasible--- for not only is Gamzee’s presence passively screwing with everything, now (and in particular, messing with characters’ abilities to make important choices well, probably), but there is the issue of the narrator potentially manipulating things, as well. If they are being subtle enough, rather than trying to force certain actions like Dirk did at certain points, it is difficult to oppose such a being’s control. Man, I wish I knew for certain who was doing said narration, right now.

#Homestuck Spoilers #Homestuck Epilogue #Homestuck Liveblog #Candy Epilogue #Dave Strider #Romance #Davekat #karkat vantas #Jade Harley #Healthy Relationships #Relationship Issues #Polygamy #Happiness #Tragedy #John Egbert #Gamzee Makara #Rage Aspect #Do:

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caustic-curses · 4 years

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HPHM Profile: Corbyn Reyes

Thanks to @hogwartsmysterystory for this new profile template!

IDENTITY

Name: Corbyn Samil Reyes

Gender: Cisgender Male

Age: 16

Birth Date: 11/15/1972

Species: Valravaan

Blood Status: Half-Blood

Sexuality: Asexual

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Ethnicity: Slavic

Nationality: Serbian

Residence: Bristol, UK

Myer Briggs Personality Type: ISTJ

THE MAGE

1st Wand: Pine | Dragon heartstring core | 12 ¾" in length | Rigid flexibility

The straight-grained pine wand always chooses an independent, individual master who may be perceived as a loner, intriguing and perhaps mysterious. Pine wands enjoy being used creatively, and unlike some others, will adapt without protest to new methods and spells. Many wandmakers insist that pine wands are able to detect and perform best for owners who are destined for long lives, and I can confirm this in as much as I have never personally known the master of a pine wand to die young. The pine wand is one of those that is most sensitive to non-verbal magic.

As a rule, dragon heartstrings produce wands with the most power, and which are capable of the most flamboyant spells. Dragon wands tend to learn more quickly than other types. While they can change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bond strongly with the current owner. The dragon wand tends to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it will not incline that way of its own accord. It is also the most prone of the three cores to accidents, being somewhat temperamental.

2nd Wand: Ebony| Dragon heartstring core.| 11 ¼ “| Unyielding

This jet-black wand wood has an impressive appearance and reputation, being highly suited to all manner of combative magic, and to Transfiguration. Ebony is happiest in the hand of those with the courage to be themselves. Frequently non-conformist, highly individual or comfortable with the status of outsider, ebony wand owners have been found both among the ranks of the Order of the Phoenix and among the Death Eaters. In my experience, the ebony wand’s perfect match is one who will hold fast to his or her beliefs, no matter what the external pressure, and will not be swayed lightly from their purpose.

Animagus: White Cat

Misc Magical Abilities: Parselmouth (currently unaware)

Boggart Form: Being in a hospital gown gaunt and ignored

Riddikulus Form: Dog in an outfit prancing around

Amortentia: The scent of patchouli, rose and teak wood tease the senses while the note of vanilla adds excitement (spicy, the thrill of late summer, mountain flowers)

Amortentia: the earthy scent of a meadow, lavender & coral rose, and the faded scent of butterbeer (Tulip)

Patronus: Cat

Patronus Memory: Camping late at night with Jakov and creating images from the stars

Mirror of Erised: Seeing his mother there, holding him close with a delighted smile of approval and acceptance.

Specialized/Favourite Spells: Caterwauling charm, Confundo, and Diffindo. His favorite is the disillusionment charm.

APPEARANCE

Faceclaim: Ivan Vuckovic

Game Appearance:

Height: 5’4

Weight: 135

Physique: Average

Eye Colour: dark forest green (D20 on the 1998 eye chart) Left eye is 3s lighter as he is becoming blind in that eye from a spell gone wrong

Hair Colour: deep brown with natural mahogany highlights (noticeable in direct sunlight) styled via French crop with a gradual fade.

Skin Tone: warm ivory

Inventory: He wears a dragon-shaped pendant and a dark brown wooden wrist cuff given to him by Jakov, his wand, and a pair of glasses

ALLEGIANCES

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

Affiliations/Organizations: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Professions: Aurologist and Herbalist

HOGWARTS INFORMATION

Class Proficiencies:

Astronomy: ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Charms: ★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

DADA: ★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Flying: ★★★★★★★★★☆

Herbology: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

History of Magic: ★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Potions: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Transfiguration: ★★★★★★★★☆☆

Electives:

Care Of Magical Creatures: ★★★★★★★★☆☆

Divination: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Quidditch: Chaser

Extra-Curricular: Gardening Club

Favorite Professors:

Professor McGonagall -She takes on the role of a mother figure in Corbyn’s eyes. She is stern but only out of a desire to see him succeed. Her admiration for his accomplishments is thus hard-won and genuine.

Professor Sprout - Her gentle nature and willingness to encourage his interest in herbology quickly made her one of his favorite teachers. She is patient and kind, he can always count on her class to be his favorite.

Least Favourite Professors:

Professor Snape - No matter what he does, it’s never good enough. No matter how hard he studies he continually feels inferior. He came to school hoping to escape that type of nonsense.

Professor Rakepick- She’s suspicious. Her methods of teaching don’t sit well with him and it seems as if there are more at stake than just a few house points.

RELATIONSHIPS

Brother: Jakov Callum Reyes | (21yo) 11/271967- Sagittarius

Seer although he never told his family (mother had suspicions)

Woodcarver-aspires to be a wand designer

Is aware that Corbyn is his half-brother

Biological Father: Haedon Knezevic | (35 yo) 4/17/1951 -Aries

Full-blooded Valravan -began life as a raven

Magic is gathered from outside sources rather than from within like wizards

He was locked away under the watchful eye of the Legacies which prevented him from being a part of Corbyn’s early childhood.

Father: Ezekial Reyes | (41yo) 5/9/1947 -Taurus

He married Lilith despite her indiscretions when in his late twenties.

Despite not being his true father, Ezekiel took on the role without question to become the parental figure Corbyn adores. As a role model, he endeavored to teach Corbyn virtues. He can only pray that they stuck with him at Hogwarts.

He was gone often and for long periods of time due to his work. This field of work has caused him to become sick but he keeps this as a secret.

Mother: Lilith Reyes | (38yo) 2/25/1948 - Pisces

Cheated on Ezekiel with Haedon becoming pregnant with Corbyn. He functions as a bitter reminder of everything she lost and of what she could have had.

Lilith is an Ilvermorny Alumni

When Jakov disappeared, Lilith’s smile went with him. A bit of her spirit broke and Corbyn was left with the aftermath of distance and anger.

Love Interest: Tulip Karasu

Best Friends: Barnaby Lee, Tulip Karasu & Chiara Loboscu

Rival: Merula Snyde & Diego Caplan

Enemy: Frith Fuilteach & Seth Drystan

Dormmates: Rowan Khanna & Laurent King

Pets: Midi- Tawny owl

Closest Canon Friends: Penny Haywood, Rowan Khanna, Barnaby Lee, Charlie Weasley

Closest MC Friends:

Laurent King (@slytherin-puffskein)

Dahlia Goldman (@a-bear-at-hogwarts)

Samuel Gabehart (@hphm-ravenclaw-writings)

BACKGROUND/HISTORY

While Ezekiel was away on business trips, Jakov often took over the role of parent. As an older sibling, he was expected to make Corbyn mind the rules while also helping his mother. The more often that this occurred, the more that Jakov began to resent his half-brother. The games they played became rougher and bordered on dangerous. Jakov was a teen pushed too early into adulthood and Corbyn was the scapegoat.

Despite this, Corbyn admired Jakov and looked up to him. To him, there were tense times but that did not diminish the genuine fun that they had. He loved Jakov as did their mother. So when news began to circulate about him opening the vaults, their mother was worried something might happen. This was proven correct when they received that fated letter. She was heartbroken. Jakov left and took her maternal love. Corbyn was left with bitterness, resentment, and emotional manipulation. It was here that he realized vulnerability is deadly.

The Reyes had only recently moved to Bristol, UK when they received the news. Corbyn was 9 years old when he realized his brother would not be coming home. Rumors regarding Jakov joining You-Know-Who or his possible death were hard to hear but he continued to defend his brother to the point of coming home bruised and bloodied.

It was debated but Corbyn was allowed to go to Hogwarts in 1984. It wasn’t because his mother was scared of losing him. It was because she was sure he was a squib because he had only a few magical mishaps. She did not want to be further embarrassed by him.

During the first few years at Hogwarts, he befriended several students who demonstrated that vulnerability can be okay and it is sometimes needed. Not only did he learn some interesting spells but he learned of secrets and rumors that caused him to seek out the truth and eventually befriend Chiara.

PERSONALITY

Loyal: This is to a certain extent. Even if you are friends, he might not be loyal until you’ve proven yourself to be worthy of that loyalty. Sure, it is a bit of a test but once that loyalty is won, it is golden.

Self-sufficient: Due to the nature of how he was raised, Corbyn learned early on that the one person he can rely on is himself. Thus, he has a hard time asking for help in any matter. He prefers to solve the problem himself rather than be indebted to anyone.

Clever: Witty. Sarcastic. Corbyn uses words to cut down others or to trick them for profit. He does this because it's one way to look out for himself. If he can trick you, he will continue to do so for as long as possible.

Vindictive: Being a jealous individual isn’t a good look but he hasn’t been able to change. When someone crosses him or especially someone he has befriended (see loyal), then he’s out to assure that this never happens again. He will find your weaknesses and force you to endure them.

Obstinate: While this can sometimes be seen as negative, he is stubborn in the sense that he knows what he stands for and what he wants out of life. He is headstrong so it makes convincing him otherwise to be a headache.

MISC

Likes: intense spices, herbology, pranking his friends, the idea of courting

Dislikes: bananas, excessively sweet things, The Black Lake, not knowing how to swim

Hobbies: working with magical creatures, cooking/grilling, gambling

#corbyn reyes #hphm profile #about my mc #about corbyn #corbyn reyes profile

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kathyprior4200 · 4 years

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Hazbin Hotel: Summary of the Future

If Hazbin Hotel had a happy ending and the series continued...here’s how I idealize it...

Not too long ago, the blonde, white-faced Princess Charlie decided to propose an idea that was downright ridiculous and outlandish to everyone else. She created the Happy Hotel as a place where sinners could learn how to be better people and hopefully, complete their own unique journeys toward redemption. Though Charlie was mocked and ridiculed, she wasn’t going to give up. A gray moth-like demon named Vaggie was her girlfriend and tough with a deadly spear. Angel Dust, a white porn-loving spider demon had been involved with drugs, turf wars, and was Hell’s number one porn star. Despite his sins, he had volunteered to help Charlie with her hotel and became her first client.

Alastor had arrived to the hotel as well, and offered to help Charlie run her hotel so he could be entertained for a while. He summoned other demons for assistance: a little hyperactive neat-freak cyclops named Niffty, and a grumpy gambling cat named Husk who always had a bottle of alcohol in his paws. Charlie was immediately enraptured with Alastor, even dancing and singing with him whenever the occasion arose. Vaggie, of course, was suspicious of him, even more so when he appeared to hinder Vaggie and Charlie’s relationship.

Charlie’s hope was that demons would be redeemed enough to be eligible to go to Heaven. This way, there would be less demons lost to the annual slaughter by the Archangels. Soon, she had hoped, there would only be happiness and a second chance given to everyone. In her own words and in her song, “Inside of every demon is a rainbow.” Lilith was often too busy with modeling and concerts to pay much attention to Charlie, but supported her the best she could. For obvious reasons, her father had disapproved of her idea. Having been banished from Heaven for rebelling against God, Lucifer gained his position by implementing fear and using his destructive powers. The Archangels spared the royal family in return for Lucifer letting them kill off the “common scum folk.” If demons were to leave, it could lead to a war between Heaven and Hell if the circumstances did not go well.

Indeed, things had gone from bad to worse. It started off with Alastor causing mischief barely noticed by anyone, save for Vaggie and Husk. He had changed the hotel name to the Hazbin Hotel. It was the little things he did: igniting a brawl here, encourage a bad rating there, all while keeping up appearances and encouraging the princess to work harder toward her goal.

It was speculated by many that Alastor actually wanted Charlie to succeed. The pretty blonde demon/angel hybrid had caught his eye when he first saw her on TV. Although he wasn’t interested in sex or romance, he did enjoy fun affectionate friendships…provided they benefited him and his goals. In fact, he was friends with many individuals, particularly Charlie, Rosie, Mimzy, Husk, and Niffty.

After many months of hard work, battles with evil overlords, parental brawls, and drama, many demons had been successfully rehabilitated, including Vaggie, Angel Dust and his twin sister, Molly. They had defeated/humiliated the maniac snake villain Sir Pentious, outsmarted the evil fish scientist Baxter, bested the evil Vs, (Valentino, Vox, and Velvet), along with saving themselves from more angels. Angel, Molly, Crymini, and Cherri Bomb had been active fighters when they weren’t hooked on meth or doing pole dancing for the lustful crowds. Husk slowly got out of his dark shell, made amends with his past and slowly started to warm up to everyone. Niffty got delusional in her fantasies of romance, men and power as she cooked, sewed, and cleaned. Whether she was redeemed and remained cute or turned psychotic…no one really knows. Charlie and the others were ready to reach the golden heavenly gates and change their afterlives…

Unfortunately, the angels in Heaven weren’t so keen to let any sinners enter Heaven so easily. They told Molly that she could enter as she wasn’t a demon, and Vaggie could enter if she took on penance and renounced her sins. Elite and entitled, the angels shooed Charlie, Niffty, Husk, Alastor, Angel and several others away, even sending some Archangels after them. Charlie and Lucifer blasted the angels back with their powers, saving the demon group and escaping back to Hell. But her actions caused inner mental concerns for her parents, God and the angels. God suspected that Charlie and Lucifer were trying to upstage Heaven’s duties and traditions. No matter what, Hell’s population would continue to grow, and surely the angels would be outnumbered if a war were to begin.

Charlie’s parents were not happy that Charlie had broken up with Seviathan Von Eldritch (like Leviathan the sea monster), Helsa’s brother and member of a wealthy rival family. She and Helsa were already fierce rivals, both families competing to be the most influential in Hell. In addition, they were getting tired of Charlie’s pursuit and wanted her to conform to Hell’s standards. Being a fearsome leader was, according to her father, Charlie’s destiny. After arguing with her parents and refusing to give up, Charlie had gone to Vaggie and Alastor for comfort. Vaggie comforted her and told her the harsh reality of the situation. Still, she refused to give up, despite feeling like a failure. Charlie decided to figure out a way to negotiate with her parents and the angels. Before she could proceed further however, Alastor comforted her with his velvety announcer voice and took her arm in arm for a walk.

The two of them sang, and danced, and even shared a kiss. Charlie felt like Alastor was redeeming himself and that things would be alright in the end.

It was at that optimal moment, that the predatory Radio Demon pounced upon his gullible prey.

Taken by surprise by surrounding voodoo spirits and black tentacles, Charlie fought back as much as she could. But a Creole lullaby sung by Alastor soon rendered her helpless. Charlie was kidnapped and briefly held hostage in Alastor’s lair. No rape or beating was involved, just a bunch of creepy touching and mind manipulating. He didn’t possess her but did manage to get her on his side when they were face to face with the king and queen. Alastor’s evil shadow held an angel’s spear to Charlie’s throat, a weapon capable of killing any demon. Alastor knew that his powers would not be enough against Lucifer. So he did the one thing to catch him off-guard: go for his child.

Alastor soon proposed a deal with Lucifer and Lilith: Charlie and her hotel would be spared…in exchange for the throne. Lucifer accepted…and soon found his dark powers depleted, traveling into Alastor’s microphone staff. He and the dark spirits were now free to take over Hell, cause chaos and feast on innocent demon bodies and souls.

It was at this moment that Alastor had a choice to make…one that could determine the fate of Hell itself. His mother was currently in Heaven, and he hadn’t seen her for decades. For a brief moment, Alastor saw Charlie and her friends struggling against the Exterminators…even Lucifer and Lilith were having a hard time. He could either give into his evil carnal desires; claiming Hell and its denizens as his own. Or he could step in, save Charlie and the others (while giving back Lucifer’s power and everyone’s free will.) He could free Husk and Niffty from their servitude to him, deeply apologize and help save the day.

If Alastor followed the good path, Charlie would be successful at last. A negotiation would be made: sinners could go to Heaven after proving themselves worthy in different ways. Some would go into rehabilitation at the hotel. Others would have to go through punishments in the other circles of Hell. Some would even be tested and “relive” their lives as humans in simulated scenarios of their former past. God also stated that all his subjects would have the choice to die a second time in the void…and that second death was still possible and unpredictable. Aside from God, and the long-living angels and deities, no one is truly immortal.

If Charlie’s plan succeeded, then the rewards would all be worth it.

Charlie and Vaggie would be happily married in Heaven, with their friends beside them in different forms as angels. Were they animal? Or human? Or a fusion of both? Vaggie transformed into a black-haired human women she had been before, save for her one eye and new black glistening moth wings from her back. Her human voice had returned to her and she discovered her human name: Vagatha. Husk remained a cat but with black angel wings instead of red wings with card suits on them. He found love in Heaven and discovered his human name: Hustle. If Niffty turned good, she, too would be happy and cheerful, resembling her human form more. If Baxter turned good, he would use his intelligence to make inventions and heal others with science. Alastor’s suit became light blue, white and brown, his human voice returned, and his head was now that of a red male deer. He and his dark-skinned mother embraced for a long time, bringing Charlie and the others to happy tears. Angel Dust discovered his true name; Anthony, and his face turned more human, though his hair was still white and he still had jumping/fighting abilities. He agreed to do porn/drugs outside of Heaven and only on occasion. Vaggie reunited with her family, while Angel, Molly and Aracknis spend time with their mother, Aranea (Latin for spider). (Their father Henroin was abusive).

Charlie served as a mediator between Heaven and Hell, she was half Angel and half Demon, after all. Her parents stayed and ruled Hell but the royal family could visit each other every other month. Vaggie advocated for women and Hispanic souls…and violent souls who had been wronged in life.

Angel Dust and his siblings were still very much troublemakers, but they started to mend old wounds from their times of being Italian mafia members and drug abusers. Both Husk and Angel were mentors for kids who came into Heaven, and also took care of pets and animals that died on Earth.

Alastor hosted new radio shows complete with dad jokes, New Orleans’ jazz and listings of Creole food recipes. (He still has to be reminded not to announce gruesome murders nor to perform any…he had to get used to not having dark powers anymore.) He ate pork and meat in replacement of demon/human flesh, for despite having the head and features of a deer, his new teeth were human and fairly sharp. In Heaven, his friendship with Charlie was finally genuine and they bonded deeper than ever before. Alastor not only became her close friend, but also her protector (along with Razzle and Dazzle) and even a loving father figure (Lucifer still doesn’t approve very much).

Yes, there were tons of bad people who still went to Hell, did bad things and lost their lives into the void. But for every bad action, there was a sliver of hope for good to prevail.

For their final act, everyone would join hands together, singing in harmony, Charlie leading the chorus with a song about making it to the end of the rainbow of happiness. So one could say they lived happily ever after…but with more chaos and unpredictability thrown in.

#hazbin hotel theory

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