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mostlysignssomeportents · 7 months

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Google’s enshittification memos

[Note, 9 October 2023: Google disputes the veracity of this claim, but has declined to provide the exhibits and testimony to support its claims. Read more about this here.]

When I think about how the old, good internet turned into the enshitternet, I imagine a series of small compromises, each seemingly reasonable at the time, each contributing to a cultural norm of making good things worse, and worse, and worse.

Think about Unity President Marc Whitten's nonpology for his company's disastrous rug-pull, in which they declared that everyone who had paid good money to use their tool to make a game would have to keep paying, every time someone downloaded that game:

The most fundamental thing that we’re trying to do is we’re building a sustainable business for Unity. And for us, that means that we do need to have a model that includes some sort of balancing change, including shared success.

https://www.wired.com/story/unity-walks-back-policies-lost-trust/

"Shared success" is code for, "If you use our tool to make money, we should make money too." This is bullshit. It's like saying, "We just want to find a way to share the success of the painters who use our brushes, so every time you sell a painting, we want to tax that sale." Or "Every time you sell a house, the company that made the hammer gets to wet its beak."

And note that they're not talking about shared risk here – no one at Unity is saying, "If you try to make a game with our tools and you lose a million bucks, we're on the hook for ten percent of your losses." This isn't partnership, it's extortion.

How did a company like Unity – which became a market leader by making a tool that understood the needs of game developers and filled them – turn into a protection racket? One bad decision at a time. One rationalization and then another. Slowly, and then all at once.

When I think about this enshittification curve, I often think of Google, a company that had its users' backs for years, which created a genuinely innovative search engine that worked so well it seemed like *magic, a company whose employees often had their pick of jobs, but chose the "don't be evil" gig because that mattered to them.

People make fun of that "don't be evil" motto, but if your key employees took the gig because they didn't want to be evil, and then you ask them to be evil, they might just quit. Hell, they might make a stink on the way out the door, too:

https://theintercept.com/2018/09/13/google-china-search-engine-employee-resigns/

Google is a company whose founders started out by publishing a scientific paper describing their search methodology, in which they said, "Oh, and by the way, ads will inevitably turn your search engine into a pile of shit, so we're gonna stay the fuck away from them":

http://infolab.stanford.edu/pub/papers/google.pdf

Those same founders retained a controlling interest in the company after it went IPO, explaining to investors that they were going to run the business without having their elbows jostled by shortsighted Wall Street assholes, so they could keep it from turning into a pile of shit:

https://abc.xyz/investor/founders-letters/ipo-letter/

And yet, it's turned into a pile of shit. Google search is so bad you might as well ask Jeeves. The company's big plan to fix it? Replace links to webpages with florid paragraphs of chatbot nonsense filled with a supremely confident lies:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/05/14/googles-ai-hype-circle/

How did the company get this bad? In part, this is the "curse of bigness." The company can't grow by attracting new users. When you have 90%+ of the market, there are no new customers to sign up. Hypothetically, they could grow by going into new lines of business, but Google is incapable of making a successful product in-house and also kills most of the products it buys from other, more innovative companies:

https://killedbygoogle.com/

Theoretically, the company could pursue new lines of business in-house, and indeed, the current leaders of companies like Amazon, Microsoft and Apple are all execs who figured out how to get the whole company to do something new, and were elevated to the CEO's office, making each one a billionaire and sealing their place in history.

It is for this very reason that any exec at a large firm who tries to make a business-wide improvement gets immediately and repeatedly knifed by all their colleagues, who correctly reason that if someone else becomes CEO, then they won't become CEO. Machiavelli was an optimist:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/07/28/microincentives-and-enshittification/

With no growth from new customers, and no growth from new businesses, "growth" has to come from squeezing workers (say, laying off 12,000 engineers after a stock buyback that would have paid their salaries for the next 27 years), or business customers (say, by colluding with Facebook to rig the ad market with the Jedi Blue conspiracy), or end-users.

Now, in theory, we might never know exactly what led to the enshittification of Google. In theory, all of compromises, debates and plots could be lost to history. But tech is not an oral culture, it's a written one, and techies write everything down and nothing is ever truly deleted.

Time and again, Big Tech tells on itself. Think of FTX's main conspirators all hanging out in a group chat called "Wirefraud." Amazon naming its program targeting weak, small publishers the "Gazelle Project" ("approach these small publishers the way a cheetah would pursue a sickly gazelle”). Amazon documenting the fact that users were unknowingly signing up for Prime and getting pissed; then figuring out how to reduce accidental signups, then deciding not to do it because it liked the money too much. Think of Zuck emailing his CFO in the middle of the night to defend his outsized offer to buy Instagram on the basis that users like Insta better and Facebook couldn't compete with them on quality.

It's like every Big Tech schemer has a folder on their desktop called "Mens Rea" filled with files like "Copy_of_Premeditated_Murder.docx":

https://doctorow.medium.com/big-tech-cant-stop-telling-on-itself-f7f0eb6d215a?sk=351f8a54ab8e02d7340620e5eec5024d

Right now, Google's on trial for its sins against antitrust law. It's a hard case to make. To secure a win, the prosecutors at the DoJ Antitrust Division are going to have to prove what was going on in Google execs' minds when the took the actions that led to the company's dominance. They're going to have to show that the company deliberately undertook to harm its users and customers.

Of course, it helps that Google put it all in writing.

Last week, there was a huge kerfuffile over the DoJ's practice of posting its exhibits from the trial to a website each night. This is a totally normal thing to do – a practice that dates back to the Microsoft antitrust trial. But Google pitched a tantrum over this and said that the docs the DoJ were posting would be turned into "clickbait." Which is another way of saying, "the public would find these documents very interesting, and they would be damning to us and our case":

https://www.bigtechontrial.com/p/secrecy-is-systemic

After initially deferring to Google, Judge Amit Mehta finally gave the Justice Department the greenlight to post the document. It's up. It's wild:

https://www.justice.gov/d9/2023-09/416692.pdf

The document is described as "notes for a course on communication" that Google VP for Finance Michael Roszak prepared. Roszak says he can't remember whether he ever gave the presentation, but insists that the remit for the course required him to tell students "things I didn't believe," and that's why the document is "full of hyperbole and exaggeration."

OK.

But here's what the document says: "search advertising is one of the world's greatest business models ever created…illicit businesses (cigarettes or drugs) could rival these economics…[W]e can mostly ignore the demand side…(users and queries) and only focus on the supply side of advertisers, ad formats and sales."

It goes on to say that this might be changing, and proposes a way to balance the interests of the search and ads teams, which are at odds, with search worrying that ads are pushing them to produce "unnatural search experiences to chase revenue."

"Unnatural search experiences to chase revenue" is a thinly veiled euphemism for the prophetic warnings in that 1998 Pagerank paper: "The goals of the advertising business model do not always correspond to providing quality search to users." Or, more plainly, "ads will turn our search engine into a pile of shit."

And, as Roszak writes, Google is "able to ignore one of the fundamental laws of economics…supply and demand." That is, the company has become so dominant and cemented its position so thoroughly as the default search engine across every platforms and system that even if it makes its search terrible to goose revenues, users won't leave. As Lily Tomlin put it on SNL: "We don't have to care, we're the phone company."

In the enshittification cycle, companies first lure in users with surpluses – like providing the best search results rather than the most profitable ones – with an eye to locking them in. In Google's case, that lock-in has multiple facets, but the big one is spending billions of dollars – enough to buy a whole Twitter, every single year – to be the default search everywhere.

Google doesn't buy its way to dominance because it has the very best search results and it wants to shield you from inferior competitors. The economically rational case for buying default position is that preventing competition is more profitable than succeeding by outperforming competitors. The best reason to buy the default everywhere is that it lets you lower quality without losing business. You can "ignore the demand side, and only focus on advertisers."

For a lot of people, the analysis stops here. "If you're not paying for the product, you're the product." Google locks in users and sells them to advertisers, who are their co-conspirators in a scheme to screw the rest of us.

But that's not right. For one thing, paying for a product doesn't mean you won't be the product. Apple charges a thousand bucks for an iPhone and then nonconsensually spies on every iOS user in order to target ads to them (and lies about it):

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/14/luxury-surveillance/#liar-liar

John Deere charges six figures for its tractors, then runs a grift that blocks farmers from fixing their own machines, and then uses their control over repair to silence farmers who complain about it:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/05/31/dealers-choice/#be-a-shame-if-something-were-to-happen-to-it

Fair treatment from a corporation isn't a loyalty program that you earn by through sufficient spending. Companies that can sell you out, will sell you out, and then cry victim, insisting that they were only doing their fiduciary duty for their sacred shareholders. Companies are disciplined by fear of competition, regulation or – in the case of tech platforms – customers seizing the means of computation and installing ad-blockers, alternative clients, multiprotocol readers, etc:

https://doctorow.medium.com/an-audacious-plan-to-halt-the-internets-enshittification-and-throw-it-into-reverse-3cc01e7e4604?sk=85b3f5f7d051804521c3411711f0b554

Which is where the next stage of enshittification comes in: when the platform withdraws the surplus it had allocated to lure in – and then lock in – business customers (like advertisers) and reallocate it to the platform's shareholders.

For Google, there are several rackets that let it screw over advertisers as well as searchers (the advertisers are paying for the product, and they're also the product). Some of those rackets are well-known, like Jedi Blue, the market-rigging conspiracy that Google and Facebook colluded on:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedi_Blue

But thanks to the antitrust trial, we're learning about more of these. Megan Gray – ex-FTC, ex-DuckDuckGo – was in the courtroom last week when evidence was presented on Google execs' panic over a decline in "ad generating searches" and the sleazy gimmick they came up with to address it: manipulating the "semantic matching" on user queries:

https://www.wired.com/story/google-antitrust-lawsuit-search-results/

When you send a query to Google, it expands that query with terms that are similar – for example, if you search on "Weds" it might also search for "Wednesday." In the slides shown in the Google trial, we learned about another kind of semantic matching that Google performed, this one intended to turn your search results into "a twisted shopping mall you can’t escape."

Here's how that worked: when you ran a query like "children's clothing," Google secretly appended the brand name of a kids' clothing manufacturer to the query. This, in turn, triggered a ton of ads – because rival brands will have bought ads against their competitors' name (like Pepsi buying ads that are shown over queries for Coke).

Here we see surpluses being taken away from both end-users and business customers – that is, searchers and advertisers. For searchers, it doesn't matter how much you refine your query, you're still going to get crummy search results because there's an unkillable, hidden search term stuck to your query, like a piece of shit that Google keeps sticking to the sole of your shoe.

But for advertisers, this is also a scam. They're paying to be matched to users who search on a brand name, and you didn't search on that brand name. It's especially bad for the company whose name has been appended to your search, because Google has a protection racket where the company that matches your search has to pay extra in order to show up overtop of rivals who are worse matches. Both the matching company and those rivals have given Google a credit-card that Google gets to bill every time a user searches on the company's name, and Google is just running fraudulent charges through those cards.

And, of course, Google put this in writing. I mean, of course they did. As we learned from the documentary The Incredibles, supervillains can't stop themselves from monologuing, and in big, sprawling monopolists, these monologues have to transmitted electronically – and often indelibly – to far-flung co-cabalists.

As Gray points out, this is an incredibly blunt enshittification technique: "it hadn’t even occurred to me that Google just flat out deletes queries and replaces them with ones that monetize better." We don't know how long Google did this for or how frequently this bait-and-switch was deployed.

But if this is a blunt way of Google smashing its fist down on the scales that balance search quality against ad revenues, there's plenty of subtler ways the company could sneak a thumb on there. A Google exec at the trial rhapsodized about his company's "contract with the user" to deliver an "honest results policy," but given how bad Google search is these days, we're left to either believe he's lying or that Google sucks at search.

The paper trail offers a tantalizing look at how a company went from doing something that was so good it felt like a magic trick to being "able to ignore one of the fundamental laws of economics…supply and demand," able to "ignore the demand side…(users and queries) and only focus on the supply side of advertisers."

What's more, this is a system where everyone loses (except for Google): this isn't a grift run by Google and advertisers on users – it's a grift Google runs on everyone.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/03/not-feeling-lucky/#fundamental-laws-of-economics

My next novel is The Lost Cause, a hopeful novel of the climate emergency. Amazon won't sell the audiobook, so I made my own and I'm pre-selling it on Kickstarter!

#pluralistic #enshittification #semantic matching #google #antitrust #trustbusting #transparency #fatfingers #serp #the algorithm #telling on yourself

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inhuman-obey-me · 10 months

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I wonder…… would it be actually possible for an angel and a demon to have offspring? And even then what it would be like? I don’t remember if there’s anything like that mentioned in the game, and considering they’re like, mortal enemies maybe in the bible lore I doubt that realistically there would be any answer apart from “no” but like……… imagine an angel/devil child in om and what it could mean for the three realms👀

Interesting question, since theoretically angel/demon physiology should be some kind of similar/compatible, but our answer is pretty definitively no, they could not have offspring together.

We have talked a bit previously about where we think angels and demons respectively come from in our Three Realms Headcanons post many moons ago, but here's a quick recap of the relevant parts:

All angels are created by their "Father" aka God; there is no concept of pregnancy or fertility amongst angels because God personally creates each of them.

Unlike angels, who are each created by God, some demons -- especially minor/lower ones -- are born through the manifestation of humans’ sins and negative energy.

Mid-tier and high level demons can be created through various means, including but not limited to sex. However, sex and pregnancy do not work the same way for demons as they do for humans. All demons involved have to consciously imbue themselves with magic that will make them fertile and guarantee conception; otherwise they are sterile by default.

This process also isn’t limited to a pair of male/female demons - multiple demons of whatever gender can contribute to the conception of a demon baby, and the child will take traits from every parent involved.

Other mid- and high-tier demon births can come from ceremonies, rituals, magic, etc.

We know that, canonically, the angels all call each other Brother and Sister, and all of them refer to God as Father as it is implied he is the one who created each of them. We also know that, as Simeon himself describes, "Lucifer and his brothers" were always a more close-knit group than how other angels interacted and they as a unit were their own separate thing. Additionally, it has been implied that angels do not necessarily get created as babies; although there are many "when you're older" comments made towards Luke, Asmodeus talks about the first Asmo Night being something like 1 week after his creation. Together, this all implies that none of them otherwise have "biological" families that that gave birth to them, and none of them can be parents either, as only God can create angels. Though to be clear, this isn't an "angels can't have sex" statement, only "angels can't have babies"!

Now, arguably since our headcanons for the demon side of births do include magical ceremonies and angels do have magic, there could perhaps be angel magic contributed into the birth of a demon. However, we also know that Mammon has suggested that angel blessings could kill a demon like him. Therefore, it would seem like rather than helping to create a new demon, it would hurt the potential demon baby or cancel out the demon magic in that process.

As for what a demon/angel child would mean for the OM world if one could be born, well, that's basically answered by MC's existence! Season 2 basically revolves all around the idea that MC has both angel magic from Lilith and demon magic from the pacts. And, well, Season 2 treats it as a deeply unstable combination that in fact threatens the safety of all three realms. So, maybe it's a good thing if there can't be any children born between angels and demons!

#once again us at every opportunity: god's an asshole #that three realms headcanons post is a primer for how we approach OM stuff haha #obey me #obey me!#obey me swd #obey me shall we date #omswd #obey me nightbringer #obey me worldbuilding #obey me celestial realm #obey me devildom #obey me headcanons #ask and ye shall be answered

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omo-queer · 5 months

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hey V, I don't want to be invasive so forgive me for asking. how are you edging/ruining/ theoretically able to cum, all without touching? asking as someone who has only ever been able to finish with a specific toy and no other method lol im curious and also a little jealous!

thanks for the ask! this isn't too invasive, so no need to worry!

it bears noting that i am able to get myself off pretty easily with my own hands but i also have a right hand like a vibrator (and that's not really an exaggeration... people have alleged my hands are magic. i blame rhythm games and a body that hasn't always been the most interested in going over the edge by hand.)

the key components (for me) to being able to go over the edge without any genital contact are audiovisual stimulation, pressure, and tension. here's a summary of what works for me on these:

audiovisual stimulation—this one's simple. my brain really enjoys seeing and hearing people being penetrated, especially if they're getting off, and i feel almost a sympathetic response. i think this is related to the way some people can get off just from topping someone with a strap, although the strap does absolutely give some pressure with each thrust so that might be considered an "easier" variant of what i'm talking about doing (easier in quotes bc none of this is particularly easy to do the first time.) normally i don't watch that much vanilla porn (or really too much video pornography at all if i'm honest) but the easiest source of this kind of stimulation for me is watching simple amateur videos of people riding dildos. sound really helps. them having a real orgasm really helps.

pressure—this one is a little trickier, but it's got a few contributors. the more i need to come, the more "pressure" there is in that sense. (thank you, denial kink.) the fuller my bladder is, the more pressure there is from that side. (thank you, piss kink.) if i'm wearing tight pants and/or underwear or i'm under a blanket that comes into contact with my genitals that's another way to make the barrier to entry easier, although to get a perfect ruin i make sure to remove anything that was in contact as i pass the point of no return. that said, clothes and a full bladder both make the process easier, but i can get over the edge without either.

tension—this is the most difficult one to get right, i think. what i do, as i get more aroused, is roughly equivalent to kegel exercises, although i also tense certain muscles in my abdomen that i don't believe are part of the pelvic floor. this should work somewhat with any type of anatomy (and i'm aware of people who have hands-free orgasms with the two most common genital configurations,) as most people have some partially or fully internal erogenous tissue full of nerve endings that, when pushed on from the inside, is sexually pleasurable. this won't feel anywhere near as intense as direct stimulation, and i find it takes a while (and particularly good audiovisual material) to even reach the point where it feels like i could go over the edge. it also bears noting that the first few times i did this, even though i have damn strong pelvic floor muscles, i still ended up sore the next day like i was working out. don't hurt yourself, but figure out what muscles you can tense and release over and over that your body feels some slight pressure from. sometimes i find little thrusting motions with my hips help, though i try not to use these in combination with a blanket or anything because i think that would count as humping.

so basically, you're trying to get your brain so worked up that the idea of real stimulation is enough to get it to go over the edge, and at the same time do everything you can to go over the edge without touching your genitals (or, if you're a weirdo purist like me about the idea, doing things you consider "cheating." for example i avoid grinding my thighs together, humping things, anything that gives direct stimulation to my genitals.) of course, every body is different—and considering that the most important of this is about tricking the brain, every brain is also different—and so your mileage may vary. there's (of course) nothing wrong with you if you can't get this to work, and the first couple times i tried for it i couldn't manage it myself.

for the easiest setup and again this isn't easy the first time you do it, find the audiovisual material that works best for you, bring yourself right up near the edge in the way you would normally masturbate but not to the point of no return, and remove stimulation. then try your hardest to come by flexing and tensing muscles. if you get too far from the edge, bring yourself back up and try again. if you have other parts of your body that are sensitive to touch, you can lean on that a little (e.g. neck, nipples, thighs but not too close to the genitals) you can put your hands to work on those, although in my experience none of those are fully necessary either.

feel free to ask any questions this raises! i'm amenable to DMs, or if you're asking from a blog you don't want known (or just don't like DMs) you can also pick an emoji to send anon asks with! i have a list of taken emoji in my pinned, so you can pick anything that isn't listed there. i would love to hear any experiences you have using this info, and would be glad to give more details if they would help.

#denial #i guess it's denial related #even though it's literally about how to come lmao

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lupuslikethewolf · 1 year

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marauders!au where the war never happened and they all got to go on and live happy lives :) its set years later, when Harry, Ron, Neville, Luna and Hermione are going into their first year.

I haven’t come up with an actual plot yet :/ but this is the setting, and they are all around their early-to-mid-thirties at this point. it's likely just domestic fluff and slice-of-life type shit, with Harry still getting into impossible amounts of fuckery whilst stressing at least 10 different adults (as he should tbh)

i can't decide whether this is set in the 90s or in the modern!era so i left it ambiguous

Barty Crouch Jr, now Professor Barty (just Barty, Crouch is my father), teaches DADA and his fiancé, Evan Rosier, is a Magizoologist who travels during the school year, comes back home for the holidays and weekends to spend with Barty, either on Hogwarts grounds or at their own home. Barty has a close friendship with McGonagall, who is Headmistress, and Poppy (who are married, but no one figured it out).

Dorcas and Marlene play International-Level Quidditch: Dorcas for England, and Marlene for Wales or Ireland (undecided). Everyone thinks they hate each other from the way they treat each other during games. They played for the Holyhead Harpies until they got recruited, and their wedding was basically the biggest, most dramatic and over-the-top graduation party Hogwarts had ever seen, hosted in the Potter Manor. everyone was hungover for days afterwards

Lily and Snape are best-friends-turned-rivals, who achieved a Mastery in Potions at the same time, and are both the youngest people to ever do so. Sev specialises in theoretical potions, and Lily specialises in experimental work, altering old potions and creating new ones. She commandeered the entire basement for her own potions lab, and Remus helps her research in his spare time.

Pandora started publishing with Xenophillius (the definition of gender-fuckery; no-one knows how they identify, not even Xeno), and they publish the most outlandish work they can, alongside Pandora’s books!! They also run Xeno's Quibbler and a couple other independent newspapers. They live out in the countryside w/ Luna. Barty & Evan are their only walking-distance neighbours, but they floo to their friends houses semi-regularly

MaryLily and StarChaser are co-parenting Harry, and being godparents/family friends of Draco, Blaise Zabini, Ron, Neville and Luna. When Harry is at pre-school, he makes friends with Hermione, and the four of them introduce Dr and Dr Granger to the magical world over the years, instead of the two month crash-course Hogwarts gives

Mary is an artist, and since she was raised half-blood, absolutely adores the technique and process of muggle painting, later enchanting it to move and learn and talk. She doesn't own anything that isn't stained with paint, bleach or hair dye. She is famous for her work, in Magical and Muggle circles, but is almost completely anonymous, and they only know what she looks like because of a group portrait she painted

Regulus is an independent researcher of old Pagan traditions and 'Muggle' magic, how different solstices and days (like All Hallows Eve) affect the Magical community, etc. He visits Barty at Hogwarts with Harry every few weeks, and later with Hermione as well, so they grew up learning about the secrets at Hogwarts, in the library, and with the teachers. Also friendly house rivalry, and the adults completely split on which houses they will go into at Hogwarts. Evan started a betting pool.

James and Sirius are the wizarding private investigators. They work everywhere, for everyone (no matter what. they don't need to charge more than what people can afford), and love it. James absolutely adores the 'Sherlock Holmes' vibes, but they are both Sherlock Holmes b/c they are simply too baddass not to be!

Remus opened a bookstore-cafe, and him and Sirius live in the flat above it. It’s really popular and became the place for students and young queer people. The bookstore stocks everything from really popular and really unknown books and authors of every genre. The regulars also notice all these really famous but really mysterious friends of Remus who come-and-go (artist!mary, author!pandora, athletes!dorlene, etc). And then, of course, is the “private” investigator boyfriend, who couldn’t be less subtle at anything if he tried.

Alice is still an Auror, and the Best of the Best, but she is so fucking fed up of the politics, DMLE, and Ministry in general. She is starting a revolution/reformation from the inside- and if that doesn’t work, quit her job and do the same thing from the outside! Frank ended up in law and becoming a Lawyer, and is glad he did, because it might be the only thing that will keep his partner out of jail if she decides to commit treason. They love Neville to bits, and would do anything for him!! They built a whole-ass greenhouse when he discovered his talent.

Peter Pettigrew works part-time with Remus at his place, but is currently training with Gringotts/other cursebreakers to become a professional cursebreaker! it is taking a long ass time with a lot of testing and work to put in, but Peter finds it interesting and it meant that he always has more stories to tell the kids when he sees them, which is a bonus because children are hard to entertain.

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mdhwrites · 8 months

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Amphibia's Ending is SOOOO Much Better Than People Made Me Believe

So I remember back in S2 when I watched "A Day at the Aquarium" expecting to be upset about the finale like a lot of the people I'd followed were when the finale came out. After all, with them being so close, why would they choose to leave? Could they really justify them just dropping the stones and moving on from these bonds they made?

And... That's what the story wants right then. But it was an assumption built off of false impressions that I want to talk about because the ending is REALLY smart in making its points. But to talk about an ending, I feel like I should bring up its beginning. This isn't always necessary but Amphibia actually includes what is effectively a primordial sin. A first failing that causes everything to happen.

A scared girl who is told that change is coming and that she must give up those she is closest to finds out that with some magic, she can make it all go away.

NEVER is this portrayed as having been the right thing to do. NEVER is the show about justifying Marcy's decision. Instead, the show's entire purpose... Is about letting go. It's about how the experiences we keep from others are more important than keeping those people beside us. Otherwise, controlling people, forcing them to be like you, the goals of Sasha and the Core, would be painted as correct. Chances to be together forever, doing whatever they want and never having to change.

So it ending with the trio having to say goodbye to the connections they've made is kind of the only way it COULD have ended. First is the fact that neither Sasha or Marcy would have accepted Anne dying at the start of the series. Anne would never have been willing to take such responsibility or sacrifice. She wouldn't have been willing to embrace such a painful change, just like how early on in the series she rejected the frogs and their culture outright.

And here is where we get my first misconception. I thought Anne was straight up given her second life for her deeds or because she made a deal that she'd be willing to be god if allowed to live her life. This is as much on me as anyone else but can we talk about the brilliance of Anne's resurrection? She's only saved to become a god. Theoretically, turning down the position is choosing to die again. It doubles down on how Anne has accepted change, no matter how dire. She even has good reason because like the Core said "Full of heart but dumb as rocks." She's made PLENTY of mistakes in this season, even as we've gotten to enjoy what a resplendent person she's grown up as. The fact that she's willing to admit that is beautiful, especially for any coming of age story.

And it's a good argument. One full of the sort of wisdom a god needs. So this bored cat of a god likes it. Likes it enough that without giving Anne a choice decides to let her get some more training before coming back to work for him. It's keeping in line with the explanation that he gave for the stones. He was CURIOUS about what mortals would do with ultimate power and was disappointed for TEN. THOUSAND. YEARS.

And here we get misconception two which I think is much more on the fandom. No one DECIDES to put the stones away. No one decides to cut off the worlds from each other. Hell, on the human side of things, one could argue that it's not closed, they just need a better power source since the music box just uses, well, music. No, the stones are gone because someone more powerful than them is tired of their trouble and removed them.

And so we're right back where we began. Having to be told to say goodbye and that you don't have the time to do it how you might. Yes, they technically have a choice to stay but let's actually talk about if any of them actually have a reason to want to be there.

ALL of the newts have only ever used Marcy (even when Yunan and Olivia save her, it's explicitly because of her mind, not because it's the right thing to do) and it took until she was STABBED for any of them to actually care about her with even basic humanity. This is not her world. And yes, her parents will force her to leave things behind but A: At least they were honest with her! And B:... Running from that choice hurt so many people before. Why would she choose that now? Why would she choose to suddenly claim to have learned nothing and considered herself right to have stranded them all there by stranding herself now?

Sasha may have made great connections but the point for her character is to give up control and prestige. She could live in this land as a hero and general, leading how things will be shaped, potentially in her image even... And it doesn't even cross her mind. She probably knows she has a lot to set right back on Earth. Besides, you know, there's just the basic fact that being literally the only human here would be a bit of an existential problem. It would still would also mean running away from finishing the work she needs to put in to become a better friend and mend the rifts between her, Anne and Marcy (I'll get to the ten year gap, bear with me).

And finally Anne. She has her parents to go back to. She does still prefer life on Earth, even if she came to love Amphibia. Hell, the fact that she does clearly prefer Earth, as showcased in S3A, actually makes her sacrifice MORE impactful because she's not doing this just because it's her home. She's doing it because she cares and because of the connections she's made.

But just like she was with the core, she is brave enough to say goodbye. Just because someone isn't right next to you doesn't mean they've left you. Honestly, in an age of constant communication, I love that. A reminder that you can take your time. You don't have to talk every day, do things together constantly, etc. like that just because you can. You are still your own person with your own life but you can carry the support and love those people gave/give you even when you're not face to face.

And so rather than run from change, they admit it's painful, they cry, they celebrate, they joke... And then they're gone. There is literally no better ending for this story than that.

It even follows through with the epilogue. Marcy, Anne and Sasha were codependent. S3 actually reinforces a lot that their negative traits are still there, or have new ones related to each other, even as they've grown. Anne still can't say no to people she cares about like with Sprig's Birthday and Give a Frog a Cookie. She still can't entirely trust that Sasha isn't self serving like in Sasha's Angels. She has scars that will take time to heal and change, just like she pointed out to Marcy in New Wartwood.

Sasha though has a whole NEW heap of issues though. She's gone from being controlling to subservient. Anne says jump, she'd say off what. She is terrified of making the same mistakes twice. She is constantly trying to seek forgiveness. That is NOT a healthy place to be as a person and it's almost entirely wrapped up around Anne. Them deciding they were okay with just staying in touch, rather than being on top of each other... is actually great.

Marcy doesn't have as much to say but she moved... And she figured out how to handle the human realm like she did Amphibia: Alone. Who she was and how to be herself rather than relying on Sasha and Anne or needing them.

But was ten years necessary? I mean... Kind of actually. If Anne STARTS the series turning thirteen, she still has this school year and 5 more to finish for primary school. Then since at least two of them sought degrees, you have four more years where Sasha and Anne might not have even been in the same state, let alone the same town, and Marcy MOVED. She literally couldn't come back unless the fates decreed until she was 18 and she might have chosen to persue an artistic degree so there's another 4 years for her.

Then one year after college to settle in, get the money for trips, etc. like that and... Yeah, ten years sounds about right because life's a bitch. Almost like that's one of the lessons of Amphibia. But as it also says: Those bad times don't need to be only bad. You never know what will come back to find you and be better than it ever was.

So yeah, I'm definitely not just in the camp that the Amphibia ending is good but that it almost couldn't be improved. Small things, mostly pacing wise, maybe but thematically and how it does those beats? Not really. Not when this is so focused on one goal.

And I'll take dedication to your concept over giving the audience a simple, happily ever after ANY day.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

#Amphibia #Amphibia Finale #sasha waybright #marcy wu #anne boonchuy

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talesfromthebacklog · 6 months

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Tales From The Backlog: FaeFarm

6/10

I’ve heard this game being quoted by a few folks as the cozy game of the season. While it is good; the game holds itself back from being truly great.

FaeFarm doesn’t have a ton of substance. It has an awesome aesthetic and solid gameplay, but it made a lot of choices that weakened it in comparison to its competitors. And while it has a strong aesthetic, I would dare say FaeFarm doesn’t have a strong identity.

The best way I’d pitch FaeFarm to other people is that FaeFarm is a strong introductory game that will easily get anyone acclimated to farming/life sims. It is not first on my recommendation list in general for most gamers though.

Let’s dig into why that is.

I want to first talk about what I think FaeFarm gets absolutely right. Tools and your weapon don’t take inventory slots. They get to exist in a separate pocket and switch out for you automatically. Brilliant. Loved this. I never knew how much I wanted a system like this. This should just be the standard from here on out. Period. Inventory management is a key part of the gameplay in these games but at the same time I feel like most people want stuff like their pickaxe always on hand.

Especially in a magic world. This isn’t Resident Evil, let me carry around essential tools.

This along with the infinite shed inventory that can be accessed by all of your work stations are so good. But It still draws the line where it can’t be accessed just anywhere and I like that.

The dungeon “elevator” chart that shows you what item that is on each floor you completed is also a great quality of life improvement. The rates they appear also appear on that chart which is another neat touch. It adds to the sense that you’ve completed an area.

Flower breeding is here too. It’s a simple mechanic, but I enjoy making fields of rainbow flowers. I always enjoy this mechanic when it’s present.

Then there’s the actual farming. Which you could theoretically skip altogether. The game offers several vegetables but things are in categories. So whether you have a potato or an onion the game simply classifies it as a root vegetable. Which ruins the point of the variety. And while FaeFarm has seasonal vegetables, most of the plants you have you can plant during any season. I can grow corn year round if I want to. (That is a complaint)

Don’t get it twisted, the farming is fun. It’s a lot less time/stamina consuming which makes it so you can run around doing your other activities. I like that the super moves cost mana rather than stamina so you can save it for other things. But the variety feels… shallow when they all end up being processed into the exact same things. You get the feeling that it didn’t matter what you picked or what season you picked it.

This isn’t just the farming, by the way. Fishing, catching critters, foraging. The only things that truly get differentiated is metals and gems. Which some people may like, but I don’t.

I feel like that’s the common theme with FaeFarm. It’s a shallow experience. Which isn’t meant to be a knock against it. But the game definitely comes across like it’s… structured for young children. And I acknowledge it is. That’s not a bad thing and not all games need to be deep, but this shallowness affects the core gameplay. It’s going to be the difference between the game being remembered or forgotten for its competitors. I’m cool with being wrong but I think FaeFarm is gonna disappear from gamer’s memories very quickly.

The shortcuts in FaeFarm (especially after you get your faerie wings) are a lot more satisfying than other games. Especially with the winged double jump. You can swim too! Moving feels good. I love that there are unlockable fast travel points.

Combat is fine. Animal care is standard fare. The dungeon crawling is solid. The enemies are standard fare. I really have nothing special to mention about these aspects. The story is standard fare. It’s cute. I like it. The drawn cutscenes are cute:

Coming back to those aesthetics, let’s talk about THAT: I’ve always had a soft spot for fem fantasy. Unicorns, mermaids, faeries, I unapologetically think it’s cool. That’s what attracted me to FaeFarm as a gamer.

But there’s a lot of small choices that make this aspect less fun. I thought there would be a large number of looks. There’s really not. Which is a shame because I think this aspect is actually really important to aesthetic games like this.

There is a surprising lack of options. From clothing, to dye, to the wings themselves. And these options expand over time but I can’t help but feel that some of these aspects, like dye, shouldn’t have been locked in the first place.

I get unlocking recipes and stuff. But it annoys me 100% of the time when a high aesthetic game makes dyes an absolute chore to get. Like let me live my life? And then the game doesn’t even let you pick the color of your starting outfit, so god forbid you want a hair color that doesn’t match.

It’s a nitpick but I stand by that nitpick. Games like Animal Crossing handle the dye situation a lot better. If you’re going to emphasize customization there should be some aspects that inherently make it more enjoyable. And they do emphasize it! You get rewarded for decorating by raising your stats. They leave little secret furniture recipes everywhere. They want that to be rewarding. But it’s not necessarily fun, it’s a means to an end. Let me have fun, because decorating currently is something only to boost my stats. And with a small furniture catalogue that would’ve gone a long way to making me want to actually decorate my house.

And then there’s the same face syndrome. Which is a shame because the body types and designs are largely really good. It feels wasted… and lazy.

Side note: I was thinking about what the models looked like. And the models from FaeFarm kinda look like the nicer Roblox characters folks like to make. Not saying that’s positive or negative. No complaint here.

The chibi sizes are a nice proportion. I don’t like the games (Harvest Moon does this frequently) where the game equates chibi characters to look like babies. I hate that. Especially with romancable characters. FaeFarm actually strikes this balance well.

Too bad the dialogue is… juvenile (It’s also super bland, but again you don’t play FaeFarm for the dialogue so I think that’s ignorable). FaeFarm isn’t meant to be deep. But it is hard to want to woo certain villagers when they act like actual children. And again… I acknowledge what FaeFarm’s target demographic is, but with romance NPCs it totally can turn me off to those sections of the game. It is what it is. I don’t care if it’s meant for children, I can still critique it.

Rune Factory does that shit too. Sometimes they even put in actual children which is a big ick. It genuinely can ruin the experience for me. Argyle suffers from that problem the most.

I dated this guy. Nhamashal. He was fine. I was either going to pick him or Pyria. I picked him because he matched my house better. Lol.

As far as I’m aware there is practically zero benefit to befriend or romance anyone. There is no functional benefit and the NPCs have near nothing interesting to say so there isn’t an emotional benefit either. (This is partially untrue. Friends will give you the same empty radiant quests over and over. But you would have made more money going and doing other things. So I consider them a waste of my time.)

FaeFarm’s residents don’t have enough identity or dialogue to care about whether you exist or not. I don’t even think my husband sleeps in the house. He just kinda mills around the farm now.

FaeFarm is a good game. But it isn’t first on the list of games I would be apt to recommend to other people. I’d suggest Rune Factory and Stardew Valley over Faefarm. But if you were looking for something new and you’ve already played those games, FaeFarm is perfect.

And… again Faefarm is a strong introductory game. It has a good, decently quick but in-depth, tutorial on how the world works. But that’s all I consider FaeFarm. It’s an introductory piece. I disagree with this being the cozy game of the season. I would say that’s too generous of a compliment. But it does get a lot right.

I would recommend FaeFarm over Story of Seasons and Harvest Moon. I get that some people like the slower pace but I just think games like FaeFarm, Rune Factory, and Stardew offer more complete experiences. “Harvest Moon” especially has really fallen off. I don’t touch those games anymore. I moved over with the real Harvest Moon to Story of Seasons.

#faefarm #fae farm #farming sim #gaming #Tales From The Backlog #TFTB #stardew #Stardew Valley #Harvest Moon #Rune Factory #Story of Seasons #Nintendo #Nintendo Switch #Faeries #Faerie #Fairy #Fae #cozy games #cozy gaming

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goawaypopup · 5 months

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Another Interlude

The Shadow Lord's genetic profile is a lot less clear-cut than your standard megavillain (who is probably half-demon, at the very most).

Digging through his past in Dorne and the late three bonus stories from Tales of Deltora, we have enough info on his family members to construct a gosh damn pedigree.

His mother, Alenan, was pure Fellan.

His father, Peregrine, is more complicated. His mother was Rosalyn, a pure human, but his father was an unnamed man who was implied to be some hybrid of... half-Fellan and pure Fellan.

The most likely scenario from that, I believe, is that he was simply 75% Fellan, but it's possible that one Fellan ancestor was farther up the tree than one generation, that he was the product of some more complex chain of half-Fellan breeding, or even that he was an even 50% and simply meant by "more Fellan" that he was cooler and could talk to trees better. So... anywhere between 50 and 99%.

Under the most conservative estimate, that would make Malverlain, the Shadow Lord, 5/8ths Fellan. Under the 75/25 theory, he would be a neat and tidy 11/16ths Fellan.

Ah, but we're committed to accuracy here, in this treatise on the genetic information of fictional wizards. Past one generation, you aren't always getting an even 50/50 of your ancestors. And the Fellan and humans are, in a sense, different species, what with the innate magic and the colour-changing skin. We want to nail this just right.

When two parents produce offspring, one can imagine the process as each owning 100 marbles, and each randomly taking 50 to place in the pile for the child. Sometimes pieces of the marbles break off and make new marbles with the other marble pieces, but we're going to ignore that and keep this metaphor salvageable.

The most likely outcome is for about 25 of the marbles to come from each grandparent, but since the marbles are being picked randomly, that doesn't have to be the case. It's incredibly, incredibly unlikely, but it's even theoretically possible for all 50 marbles to be the exact ones contributed by just one grandparent.

That means we can stretch the realm of probability for the Shadow Lord's exact mixture eeeven further!

On the maximum human side, where Peregrine somehow managed to carefully select out only human alleles to give this particular son, he could be down to 50% Fellan, an even hybrid.

For the other end, depending on precisely how much Fellan genetic material Peregrine received, the Shadow Lord could wind up as up to a whopping 100% Fellan.

There's really no reason for those probability freak events to have happened, but they do create a range within which any percentage is entirely possible.

All that being said, the most likely outcome still works out to - just about 2/3rds Fellan.

2/3rds, on a heredity check! No wonder he's so messed up.

As a bit of a bonus, the fact that we have info on everyone's hair colours means that we can make some rudimentary judgments about Fellans.

Peregrine's parents had black and Fellan red hair respectively, and his hair was black, so to our (simplified) understanding of hair colour heredity, he must be heterozygous, a carrier of the recessive red hair gene. Yet all three of the sons he produced with his red-haired wife also had red hair, something that should only happen 1 time in 8.

This is low enough to suggess that Fellan hair is not just red as a founder effect thing, but is actually some separate trait biologically distinct from human red hair, either genetic or magic-bullshit-induced.

#deltora quest #the three doors #roddacember #genetics

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theminecraftbee · 2 years

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sooo,,, I know you’ve mentioned some of this on other posts, but for magical girl scar au what’s the outsider pov like on all of this? Like does the everyday civilian treat attacks as terrifying or an inconvenience? Is scar the media’s favorite or a figure that people are wary about cause he ends up representing some of the other magical shenanigans?

OH YAY OKAY I GET TO TALK ABOUT THE CIVILIAN REACTION GO EVERYTHING OKAY

so in the beginning people are confused and terrified. like, the first true spirit attacks are like. a guy gets possessed, turns into a monster, starts destroying things, and the police can’t do anything, and it’s only stopped when this unknown magical figure shows up and hits it with their magical bow and it’s like. HUH. and it’s not a fever dream it keeps happening, too. and at first the mayor tries to get the national guard in on it but they can’t normally move in before the magical girl shows up and fixes the problem.

so like, early on it’s terrifying. the thing is though that this is a theoretical monster of the week show where these attacks are implied to be FREQUENT. so it slowly starts to turn into an inconvenience. it’s still frightening, mind you; everyone knows someone who’s been possessed, or at least someone who’s started having tiny magical abilities of their own and gets hurt, so the city just… adapts around it. property prices plummet lots of people move out but the people who stick around treat it like it’s just another Tuesday. the support group for people who have been possessed exists (actually probably more than one support group). it’s a little. get used to the constant low-key magical threat to your life or spend the rest of the foreseeable future panicking and well, by now we all know that eventually people just adapt and treat a thing as Normal even if they’re constantly low-key stressed and worried about it because humans can’t exist in a state of high alert forever it has to give eventually.

really REALLY outsiders, like, people who do come in from outside the city, often find it strange how normal the people in the epicenter treat the often terrifying and impossible magical attacks. but like… if they can’t treat it as normal, what do they even do? so they do. after a few weeks they probably start drilling for it in schools. response plans are made. individual families start coming up with ways to check in on each other. people adapt.

i think that warning systems are set up in the city. they aren’t as effective as, say, bdubs’s magical precognition or something, but they start to get pretty effective because people get pretty heavily drilled into their heads “if you see a monster call this number” and in the age of cell phones this reporting happens pretty dang fast. they repurpose tornado sirens I think, or maybe old air raid sirens or something, idk. by the end of the fic the city is VERY USED to being the epicenter of a magical calamity and like it SUCKS a lot of the time. as I said everyone knows SOMEONE who got traumatized by this whole mess, and normally if it’s not you it’s an immediate family member or friend. but also I think the city would take weird stupid pride in it. like yeah they have magical girls what does YOUR city have. a military that can’t do shit? that’s what they thought.

now, as for media opinions and civilian opinions on the magical girls themselves… mixed! i think most of the city itself ends up fond of team scar out of sheer virtue of “team scar are often the only guys who are effective at solving the problem”. however there are a lot of people who think these clearly untrained vigilantes clearly make matters worse and should work with the government directly. it doesn’t help that team scar and the military end up with an antagonistic relationship for shadow organization reasons, and there are Opinions on this. there are also people who note that team scar only started appearing when the attacks began and blame it on them; other people think this is absurd. every time team scar fucks up when trying to save people (and oh boy does that happen) there are people claiming they should stop, people defending them, LOTS of people talking about accountability (which ends up being a debate topic even with team scar because on the one hand they Can’t because shadow organization on the other hand stuff like the support group ends up making it clear to them that they DO fuck up and they probably SHOULD have some mechanism in place to hold them accountable for that just how do you do that when the obvious government option would end up involving basically selling you out to people who want to shut you in a lab and bring about their own magical ascensions or whatever like rock and a hard place here).

i think people from outside the city feel a LOT more willing to criticize how the local government handles team scar too like national news is a LOT more typically scathing than the local guys. this is mostly because of the difference actually getting rescued and/or being in the situation makes; the city is pretty protective of team scar from outsiders trying to get things from them, even at their most critical and antagonistic, because there’s a difference between THEM criticizing the local heroes and literally anyone else doing it. when push comes to shove I think team scar is much better liked than disliked locally and it’s a bit more ambiguous outside of that. like there are people who blame them but also they’ve seen a bit too much news footage of scar bleeding and injured trying to protect someone their neighbor knows to really hate him, you know?

however. grian. oh boy. since grian actively fights scar and even actively helps the monsters in the late game before his eventual redemption he’s even more deeply polarizing because he’s a VILLAIN but he does DRAMATIC SPEECHES and over time stories start to spread of him minimizing damage, actually, and preventing collateral even as he fights the local hero, and look I think he’d be largely hated and his eventual heel turn to join team scar would be the subject of HORRIBLE debate in basically every regard, but I think people would pick up on the fact he’s not entirely evil some too, which leads to even more nonsense.

this is a BIG ramble but as you can tell I have thoughts about this thank you so much for asking,

#answered #guessimherenow #magical girl scar

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balioc · 4 months

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I've been asked to provide brief commentary on some specific books from my 2023 reading list, so --

Achieving Our Country: Leftist Thought in Twentieth-Century America, Richard Rorty

I was not super impressed by this one. The core thesis -- the radical theory-driven left is not particularly helpful in terms of advancing concrete leftist political goals within the American system -- is, at this point, not news. (It wasn't even really news in 1998 when the book was published.) And everything surrounding that thesis...well, it is very serious about the idea that it is Good and Helpful to develop a nationalistic-but-leftist ideological consciousness, which should raise a lot of eyebrows no matter who you are.

This book was recommended by Matt Yglesias, and it reads very much like part of the ideological grounding of someone like Matt Yglesias. Which is not a compliment. I like Yglesias, but -- ideological grounding is not his strong suit.

The Tatami Galaxy, Tomihiko Morimi

It was...fine, I guess.

There are four stories, which are theoretically all alternate-universe versions of the same events. (Not a spoiler, that fact is revealed extremely quickly.) They're all very modern-Asian-style magical surrealism. The last story is substantially the longest and substantially the best; its vision of the titular "tatami galaxy," a Borges-style labyrinth made from endless iterations of your own college dorm room, is at the very least punchy and memorable. But there's not really enough there there, and the first three stories are a slog.

The Man Who Was Thursday, G. K. Chesterton

This is fucking amazing. Probably the best book I read all year, unless that goes to the Oscar Wilde.

It's witty throughout, although it's the wit of an old stodgy conservative British guy who sneers at a lot of things, so you have to be willing to live with that. But it's also...well, ballsy is the best word I have for it. Saying that it's a "twist book" fails to do it justice. There is a twist -- but the more-relevant thing is that it sneaks around behind you and kicks you in the back of the head in a way that is mostly not about the twist, but about a much-more-fundamentally-weird thing that Chesterton is doing. The book you are reading at the end is very much not the book you thought you were reading at the beginning.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin

Mnr mnr mnr mnr. My feelings here are complicated.

On the one hand: this is a book about a small number of people with incestuously-tangled lives who make art together and in reaction to each other, who are absolutely obsessed with the art that they're making. This is a theme that has a lot of resonance for me, and, like, it gets the feel of that thing largely right. There are also other, more-idiosyncratic reasons for this book to have resonance for me.

On the other hand: it's a character-driven litfic book, and I don't love any of the characters, or even particularly like them. They are the wrong flavor of nerd, with the wrong kinds of thoughts and emotional issues. Also, it is a book about making and selling video games that...reads like it was written by someone who doesn't quite understand how video games work or how the video game market works.

On the gripping hand: it does a very good job of portraying the aspect of life experience that is "as you get older, the intense dramas of your youth don't get forgotten, but the colors kind of fade and the feelings come to seem much less important with perspective."

In particular: Near the beginning, there is a side character who is portrayed as the Absolute Fucking Unforgivable Shitbag Monster of a contemporary story told using contemporary norms. He does the kind of things that are specifically tailored to make you think this guy deserves nothing but hate, forever. The characters, to the extent that they know about him and what he's done, by and large do feel that way. And then...well, it's not like there's ever a comeuppance or a redemption or anything like that. But at the end, the feeling is much more -- well, he's this guy we know, there's a lot of awkwardness related to past pain and past wrongdoing, but even so we're something sort of like old friends and really it's mostly just water under the bridge at this point.

Which is, complicatedly, interesting.

#media reviews

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eorziapple · 4 months

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Apple liked Zoissette, unfortunately.

Her conversation with Ement had gone well. He had some suggestions that were in her wheelhouse.

Stationary, reading material, inkwells and pens, reading material, something magically enchanted… a smile.

She paused on that thought. Ement was teasing her with that, to be sure, but hearing that Zoissette spoke about her and worried for her had set her heart pacing and her cheeks reddened almost instantly. She was sure he picked up on it, too.

She wasn’t sure what to do with that revelation. It made sense of course, looking back. How involved she was with Zoi’s recovery, to the point of experimenting her aether regulator on herself, leading to her own mess. Looking back she recognized that she lost focus in their conversations of late. Gods, she was staring at her a lot, too… did Zoi know?

In the end, there wasnt anything to do, she supposed. After what happened with Mathye she was sure Zoi did not wish for any confessions from coworkers. Not to mention the training, wouldnt be right to mess things up when Zoi would be helping her learn swordplay.

Besides… it was too selfish. Everyone was being so kind to her, chiefly Zoissette herself, checking up on her, she’d heard that much of her unconsciousness was overseen by the Elezen’s vigil, which was lovely to think about. To turn that kindness into awkwardness and discomfort… no, that wouldnt do. Besides, there was the gift to consider, and she had the perfect idea formulating in her mind.

She wasnt sure if it was possible, but that was the exciting part. And clearly, she needed a project to keep her from… distractions.

And so she got to work, first, a few tests of the theory, binding and aetherically charged word, technically the ink used to write the word to the quill. It was simple enough to pull off, not unlike charging a cartridge for a specific gunblade. It did nothing on its own other than ready two components for enchantments. That would be the tricky part.

Old Sharlayan was the best option for consultation concerning her theory. The practice used to conceal memories that was now public was where she got the idea, but rather than something as complex and a concept or idea, could it be used for objects with an aetheric link? That took some doing. Thankfully she had the Sons of Saint Coinach to turn to, colleagues that could sponsor her personal project, though it would prove immensely useful to all researchers should it prove successful. In this she managed to rope Linlia Lia and Fourtenbraugh, researchers and Nymean specialists who had read of a similar idea the scholors of yore employed.

The tests came in two parts of enchanted and aetherically linked objects. The first being and enchanted page within a tome, complex in that the magics needed to be individually linked from the first page to each subsequent page, a process taking the three of them the better part of a day and s half and two raids of the component shop for extra supplies.

The second was a little more complex. By charging a written word with aether on the enchanted page, and then binding that word together with a quill, and -then- using the quill to write on the subsequent pages, the initial aetheric charge woven into the initial word on the cover page would be linked to every word written.

The next step was to then write a second word on the enchanted cover page, and aetherically charging that word and again, the quill.

All of this work lead towards the application of Apple’s theory, if people could be made to forget a memory or a concept via enchantmemt, then, theoretically, an object could be made to forget a linked object.

And, with a bit of experimentation it was just so. By using the quill to draw out the aether signature of the first word written on the enchanted pages, all the words written on the subsequent pages of the tome would show clearly, and additional notes or words would be added with the same signature.

But if the quill drew on the aetheric properties of the second word written on the enchanted page, the subsequent pages in the tome would only show the ink used with the same signature of the second word. Which was nothing at the moment. A blank canvas to write on a new topic.

In this, one journal could become multiple journals. By creating a word on the first page, and creating a unique aetheric signature, one could use the quill to take that signature and write, only able to see ink sharing in that same signature

Completing the project took the better part of a week, but in the end she had what she deemed to be the perfect present she could think of for Zoissette. A modular journal for a multitude of topics in one bound book.

She was tempted to just leave the gift at her doorway, but the idea nagged at her. She wanted to give it to her personally, see her reaction. She wanted her to know how grateful she was, and how fond she was of her, just… maybe bot exactly -how- find she was.

And so, that is how she found herself in a lovely little green dress, nervously holding a wrapped package, waiting for its recipient to come down the main stairwell for the company holiday dinner.

Thankfully her nerves melted away as she excitedly explained the magically theory on her new invention.

Apple liked Zoissette… maybe not so unfortunately.

#apple silverberg #zoissette vauban #starlight celebration #ffxiv #summoner

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dadumtss · 1 year

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Slenderman Headcanons: Lairs

So I’m doing a little funny calling them lairs but It’s basically where each Slenderbeing would call their own ‘home’ in my AU. A place that they call their own that they let few venture into. Keep in mind in this AU cryptids currently rule the world and are out of hiding and even contributing to a human-like society.

Slenderman

He lives in The City now, the seat of power. He’s usually in his office close to The Capitol for work, often staying there for days at a time, but he doesn’t consider that his ‘home’.

He has a huge penthouse suite at one of the best hotels in the city, with the suite taking up the entire top floor. The hotel that holds it is under oath not to reveal where he lives and it’s protected by his own magic, with one simple precaution being that the elevator doesn’t even go to the penthouse suite. Why would it need to when he can teleport inside?

Any workers that need to get into his suite use the stairs which seem much more labyrinthine than the stairs to the other floors? Yet often they can’t remember even navigating them? Did they just appear in the room? Can’t be, right? They don’t feel like they just walked up that many stairs with so many supplies but maybe they just got into a rhythm? Yeah, that must be it.

Workers clean his room on a strict schedule and he must to notified of any deliveries before they’re brought up. They’re also on call for anything that he may need.

As for design, it’s surprisingly modern and minimalistic. He doesn’t care much for knick-knacks or home design so most everything has some kind of purpose beyond aesthetic. However, it’s not as white and bright as the traditional ‘modern’ look. Slender favors dark woods the most, but darker materials in general, like dark marbles or metals, also work.

He has tons of bookshelves filled to the brim with both reference materials for work as well as books for his own interests.

Lots of the rooms in the suite are unused. He rarely, if ever, invites people over and he has little use for anything except the master bedroom and bathroom as well as his study. Occasionally he’ll use the livingroom or use the dining table to spread out his papers if they can’t all hold on his desk.

It has a great view of the city and tons of windows.

Offenderman

The hardest slender brother to pin down. He’s almost always out and about on some kind of hedonistic adventure.

He theoretically has an office that his mail goes to but he’s almost never there.

He also has a few clubs and entertainment spots that he manages himself, with rooms or areas that only he can access and is always the best spot in the house. But those places aren’t really considered ‘home’ even though he’s more likely to be found there than his actual home.

His actual ‘home’ is a lavish apartment in The City’s Red Light District. It’s where he goes when he needs some down time.

It has very little in the way of magical protection since it doesn’t really hold much sentimental or important items and he’s there only marginally more than his office.

It’s built for lounging. Everything that can be is soft, luxurious and plush. There are pillows everywhere.

The décor is dark but vibrant. Blacks, yes, but also lots of rich reds or magenta and purples.

All of the few windows it has are covered in blackout curtains.

He occasionally brings people inside, but only his absolutely favorite people who he doesn’t mind spending a lot of down time with and aren’t trying to impress.

He gets someone to clean it for him, like, once a week but if he’s in there he can create a bit of a mess. He never really cleans up after himself so there are always items scattered around and chores to do.

Trenderman

His design business’s office takes up several (if not all) floors of one of the best designed skyscrapers in the city (he should know, he designed it himself).

While he has an office in the building as well as a suite on the top floor but his ‘lair’ is in the basement.

Out of all the brothers ‘lairs’ it’s one of the most magically protected.

You take the elevator to get down to it, which opens into long, bare walls of corridor. If you’re following Trender it’s a short hallway with a single door at the end. If you’re alone and don’t have permission to enter it’s a never ending maze of featureless corridor, save the occasional door to more corridor. It’s very backrooms-esque or like the employee hallways at a mall.

Very, very few people have seen what’s on the other side of the door and even fewer have come back out of it alive.

It’s his sewing room, where he does all of his personal projects.

The walls and floor are all rich, warm wood. The shelves and tables are simple and made of the same wood. However, in the center of the room there’s a large elaborate desk that’s carved from a slightly darker wood.

Everything looks like a cluttered mess. There are papers with designs and notes everywhere. Every surface is covered with cloth, needles, spools, sewing machines and all sorts of materials. Trender seems to know where everything is, however, and he tersely asks anyone who enters not to touch anything, which is hard since even the floor is cluttered.

There’s mannequins everywhere. They are extremely detailed and look hand-made with different body types and facial features though they all have the same dead-eyed stare. They’re all sporting amazing outfits.

The mannequins are draped in many fine white threads, some even suspended by the threads though they look too thin to be able to hold the weight they do. In fact, the white threads seem to be everywhere, draped delicately across the walls, from the ceiling and even on the tables and chairs.

You see, the fine white treads are actually severed pieces of his tendrils that he uses as thread in all his favorite projects. The mannequins are people he turned into dolls to dress up because of their unique looks.

This room means a lot to him as it’s where he does his best work.

Splendorman

Splendor didn’t deal with the changes brought about by The Revolution very well. Out of all his brothers he misses living out in the wilderness the most.

He’s the only brother that lives outside of The City which means he has the space for a house. He has to expend more energy than his brothers teleporting to The City when he’s needed but it’s a price he’s willing to pay.

The house is sprawling, with only one level. It has super high ceilings and large windows.

The décor is has lots of warm colors and is inviting and comfortable. He has all sorts of cute knick-knacks that he displays everywhere.

It always smells like baked goods inside.

His house isn’t what he would consider his ‘home’ though, but the house’s surroundings.

The house is located in a huge meadow, which is bordered on every side by forest.

There are colorful wildflowers everywhere in the meadow and the trees in the forest are spaced out enough that tons of sunlight gets through.

Everything is super colorful and lush.

He has magic keeping other cryptids out, thus allowing animals and the occasional human to wander through safely. Animals love the meadow and the forest and you’ll find many there.

The magic just causes cryptids to just loop around to wherever they came from once they enter the woods. Which is simple magic that doesn’t cause anyone any harm.

Splendor really just loves being out in nature and this space allows him to do that.

Father / Cabadath

While each brother has his own ‘home’ this is where all of them are most at ease and would truly call their home.

The Slender Mansion in The Slender Forest (though none of them call it that).

Cabadath built it through magic with his wife when she was alive, shortly before they had their first child.

It’s a large mansion, though only two stories high it sprawls for quite a ways. It’s mostly dark wood and stone with climbing ivy and moss covering it.

The interior is mostly wood and the décor is very dark academia. Cabadath appreciates the arts and actually decorates the walls of his home with art pieces and weaponry (which he also has an interest in).

The ceilings are high, higher than they look from the outside due to magic and the doorways are the same. It allows the family to ‘stretch out’ more than they usually do as the home can accommodate more extreme heights.

The bottom floor is just common areas while the top floor is just bedrooms. Each son has their own room that they can do whatever they want with.

Because the entire house is magic it doesn’t really make any sense. The layout on the inside doesn’t seem to match the outside and rooms can be added or removed or shift positions easily. However, only Cabadath has the power to make those changes.

All the chairs are super comfortable and there are window seatings that are great for lounging and reading.

The surrounding forest is basically a pocket dimension controlled entirely by Cabadath. It is connected to an actual forest on earth but things stop making sense the deeper and closer to the mansion you get.

Cabadath can tell where everyone is in his forest or in the mansion at any time.

The forest is an old growth forest. The trees are huge with twisting branches that cover the sky and leave everything dark. There’s often a mist hanging in the air. The forest is huge, with creeks and ponds large enough to swim in and all sorts of natural features. It seems to go on forever.

The forest is often very quiet, with the few animals that enter it even more on edge than usual.

The brothers convinced their father to install plumbing but he refuses to add electricity or anything digital to the house. He doesn’t want to have to control his effects on electronics in his own damn home. Therefore, everything is heated or lit with flames.

Willow

All she can afford is a small one-bedroom apartment for her and Junior in the cheapest part of the city.

She invites friends over all the time.

Hates that the living room is carpeted because of how hard it is to clean.

Off-white walls with off-white floors and only the essential furniture items which are all mis-matched.

She never learned much in the way of magic so it isn’t magically protected.

#slenderverse #slenderbeing #slenderman headcanons #slenderman ocs #slenderman oc #slenderbeings #slenderman #offenderman #trenderman #splendorman #creepypasta #creepypasta headcanon

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bug-the-chicken-nug · 1 year

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Bug's RWBY Worldbuilding Series 1

Hey, look, something nobody asked me to do! I'm about to start a multi-part post on my AU-but-theoretically-at-least-decently-applicable-to-canon idea of Aura/Semblances/Dust/Magic, in that order, in a system that should help unify and streamline them while still making there be an actual difference in what Magic is. I will also repeat myself sometimes in later posts, just so that each post can still be understood on its own without going to every link I'll add as I update this series The tag will be #Bug's RWBY Worldbuilding Series Without Further Ado, Part 1: Aura <- You are here. Part 1-B: Active Aura

Aura is a form of energy produced by all living things, and can diffuse into the atmosphere and surroundings as a wave/particle (it is both, much like photons). Passive Aura is the main thing produced, being akin to "infrared". The exact intensity and frequency of its production also directly coincides with an organism's physical and emotional state. So, when Grimm "sense" negative emotions, this is actually *what* they sense. The specific pattern of Aura produced by a person in distress. Active Aura would be "ultraviolet" in comparison, giving it new properties and abilities thanks to having much more energy to work with. (more on that later!) For now, we're focusing on the broader role and importance of Aura in Remnant, rather than the more specific combat-related things. That comes in my next installment. The Aura passively produced when you experience negative emotion is also what Grimm "eat", meaning that Grimm do not actually have any need to kill humans, however, the act of terrorizing and then killing humans allows them to become stronger at an accelerated rate. The traumatic death of a person produces massive blooms of the "negative" Aura they feed upon. Therefore, it unfortunately serves as their kind's most lucrative feeding strategy, even *with* the energy and risk that must first be invested into hunting and killing prey. Aura particles linger after they are produced, and reach a point where they "cool" (lose energy) to a sort of "ambient" energy level rather than losing all of it, leading to a "background" Aura field that surrounds and permeates the entirety of Remnant. However, the Aura does not simply diffuse itself calmly and evenly throughout Remnant, and then lie still and passive. Aura forms myriad invisible currents, vortices, jetstreams, and eddies throughout the world, much like air or water, although Aura also can and does phase through solid obstacles as it flows. In ways that are not yet well understood, this also has a profound impact on Remnant's ecosystem. Areas where Aura currents converge, or where dense currents flow, can often seem richer than others. This leads to phenomena such as how certain settlements can exist with little physical protection: For instance, by developing the means to discern areas that are within fast-flowing "rivers" of Aura, one can create settlements and trade routes in which negative emotion is typically "washed downstream" faster than it attracts Grimm. Even though Grimm can and do follow the Aura "upriver", especially if negativity gets truly out of hand, they will typically be distracted by the "runoff". Strong vortices and gyres of Aura can also accumulate a dense enough concentration of energy to allow for a very steady "low-level" activation of Dust deposits without any living creature's direct input, allowing for locations like Lake Matsu's floating islands to exist. Dust itself also attracts low-energy Aura, while higher-energy Aura becomes increasingly resistant to its pull. As such, it is not only affected by Aura currents, but the global actions of Dust across the world, all "pulling" unevenly on the background Aura field, contributes heavily to the formation and distribution of currents.

Such a phenomenon can be used as a simple and low-tech way to locate "rivers" as well: If a Dust crystal, especially one held at a considerable distance from anyone's person (such as up upon a flag or banner, for instance), begins to take on a slight glow by itself, and/or starts to weakly exhibit its inherent elemental property on its own, it's a clear sign that you are within a strong Aura current. More advanced applications allow for people to place specially-prepared Dust crystals in machinery and electronics and have the tiny, subtle fluctuations in the Dust's output be read carefully enough to be useful for myriad purposes, measuring and visualizing what might otherwise be almost entirely opaque to human senses. However, human activity and Dust industry can and does alter Aura currents, and sometimes disrupt even those currents which were thought to be too large and stable to *be* disruptable. This can be harmful, as was the case for the Great Vacuan Gyre, whose dissolution greatly worsened and accelerated the region's environmental degradation through an incredibly complex string of unforeseen chain reactions. Little could be done, as little was understood about just how important the invisible Aura currents can truly be to the environment. However, it can also be harnessed in intentional ways. Aura "dams" and Aura "diverters" can be built to increase security, although they do not outwardly look like the kinds of "dams" you may be used to at all, as Aura is not "dammed" by creating physical barriers. By extension, background Aura can also be used to generate power. This is almost always done by using Dust as the middleman, however, which also means the Dust will eventually be expended. Dust industries across Remnant are, of course, keenly against efforts to develop a way to harness atmospheric Aura without a Dust-based intermediate. Also, note that I haven't even gotten into explaining *active* Aura yet. That'll be next.

#rwby #rwby worldbuilding #Aura #rwde #i'm not being mean #i just don't want people thinking i'm posting this out of arrogance #Bug's RWBY Worldbuilding Series

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septembercfawkes · 2 years

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The 4 Basic Types of Character Arcs (with Examples & Variations)

A character arc is how a character grows or changes through a story. At the most basic level, there are four types of character arcs: change positively, change negatively, remain steadfast positively, or remain steadfast negatively. Any other character arc should be able to--theoretically--fit into one of these four types. This article will go through each, while also giving examples and variations, and talking about common misconceptions.

While I've discussed character arcs on my blog before, including breaking down these four types, I've been missing an article that focuses solely on them to refer readers and clients to, so . . . I figured it was time. 😊

When you understand the different character arcs, you'll be able to understand your protagonist better and write a stronger story for him or her. You'll also be able to write stronger antagonists and Influence Characters, as well as better side characters. Because character, plot, and theme all interconnect, you'll also be able to write better plots and themes, too.

What is a Character Arc, Really? And How Does it Work?

Earlier I defined character arc as "how the character grows or changes through a story." Well, I lied.

Okay, it's more of a half-truth. That's a simplified definition.

For one, it's really more accurate to say "because of the story." One of the important things to know is that, like theme, a character arc shouldn't be superimposed on a story. It comes out of the story.

The protagonist should have a want that manifests as a concrete goal (yes, even if he's not typically "goal-driven" at the beginning). As he pursues the goal, he encounters antagonistic forces, which creates conflict. This leads to a struggle. As the antagonistic force is creating more and more conflict, the protagonist struggles to rise to the occasion. (This is why it's so important to have a strong antagonistic force.) How the character responds to the struggle creates the character arc.

Usually, the plot should have stakes, costs, and crises powerful enough that they push the character to his or her limits--they push the character to change or grow (of course, there are a couple of rare exceptions). And how he does will put a value on a worldview or belief system.

Now, often in the writing community, the term "character arc" is used to refer to any kind of change or growth a character has. It's a term that gets used rather broadly. Maybe the character had to build up his muscles, so he could fight the villain. Or maybe she had to learn to stop stealing.

While I won't argue that these are, in some sense, certainly "character arcs," it's usually more effective in storytelling to zero in on a dominating, thematic arc. THE Character Arc, if you will.

THE Character Arc is something internal. It's the internal journey that typically comes because of the external journey.

It will represent a worldview or belief system, which ultimately the story will put some kind of value on.

For example . . .

In How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Grinch changes his worldview of Christmas when he realizes that Christmas doesn't come from a store. In Wonder Woman, Diana believes we should fight for the world we believe in and proves this true at the climax of the movie. In Star Wars: A New Hope, Luke comes to rely on faith (the force) instead of technology. In Harry Potter, Harry learns that love is the most powerful magic in the world. In 1984, Winston comes to embrace the seeming goodness of doublethink illustrated in the Party's slogan ("War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength").

Each of these arcs serves as THE Character Arc in that they imply, represent, or state outright a worldview or belief system.

This is thematic in that it also feeds into an argument about how we should live our lives. We should understand that Christmas is about more than materials, we should recognize that relying on faith is sometimes more effective, and we should be wary of the power of doublethink--both within ourselves and in societal powers.

These are arguments that are present from the beginning of the story to the end of the story, and they are represented by the protagonist's internal journey, because of the plot.

These are THE Character Arcs.

And usually the most important character arc will come from the protagonist. However, other key characters can (and will) arc as well. And while some in the writing community argue that not all protagonists arc, I think you will find that essentially every protagonist will fit into one of these four basic arcs. . . .

4 Kinds of Character Arcs

So, there are two ways internally your character can grow.

1. They can change their worldview or beliefs. 2. They can grow in the resolve of their worldview or beliefs (remain steadfast), becoming more of something.

Each of these can happen in one of two ways.

1. Positive (becoming someone better) 2. Negative (becoming someone worse)

While people have different approaches and breakdowns of character arcs, when boiled down to the most basic level, there are these four: change positively, change negatively, remain steadfast positively, remain steadfast negatively.

. . . Now, some in the writing community argue that there are really only three basic arcs: change positively, change negatively, and steadfast.

I feel that this is a limiting perspective. The reality is, a steadfast arc usually is positive or negative. I think we can all see the difference between Wonder Woman's arc and Cruella's arc. They are both steadfast, but they are clearly on different trajectories. Wonder Woman is becoming a hero, while Cruella is becoming a villain. But I'll talk about this more below.

The Change Arcs

A change-arc character will do a 180 flip (more or less) from the beginning of the story to the end of the story. This is a flip that embodies a belief system.

The Grinch starts off hating Christmas, but comes to love and embrace it once he fully understands it.

In Frozen, Elsa believes in isolating herself to keep loved ones safe, but comes to learn that being open to others produces the most authentic form of love there is (even if it means getting hurt sometimes).

Each of these characters does a direct flip in their belief systems.

Positive Change Arcs

In a positive change arc, the flip will lead the character to become a better, more whole person.

In such stories, the character will usually start out with an inaccurate worldview about life. This is sometimes called the "weakness," "flaw," "misbelief," or "lie" (depending on what approach you use)--but they are essentially different terms for the same concept.

Many times, this misbelief came from a traumatic past incident, called a "ghost" or a "wound." (You can learn more about ghosts and wounds in my article, "Giving Your Protagonist a Ghost.") Through

Because of the story, the protagonist comes to terms with this flaw or misbelief and must learn to let it go, or sacrifice it, to embrace a more accurate understanding of life. In short, they come to the truth.

For example, in How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the Jim Carrey version, the audience learns through a flashback that the reason the Grinch hates Christmas is because of a traumatic experience he had at a school Christmas party (his "ghost"). He comes to the (inaccurate) conclusion that Christmas is terrible because it's so materialistic--this is his "misbelief" or "lie." Through the plot, he comes to understand that Christmas isn't about stuff. It's about loved ones. He comes to the truth. And he flips his worldview positively.

In Into the Spider-verse, Miles's flaw is that he continually wants to quit when things get hard. He doesn't like expectations, so he quits. In order to defeat the antagonistic force, Miles must learn to overcome this flaw and develop perseverance. This leads him to become a better person.

Out of the arc types, the positive change arc is the most popular arc to write for protagonists. (More on that in a bit.)

Negative Change Arcs

In a negative change arc, the character will flip into a worse, or more misled, person.

This works as the opposite of the positive change arc.

The character often starts as a morally good individual, more or less. She may have wholesome, upright, or even accurate views of life or a promising trajectory. But when faced with the struggles of the plot, she responds by making the wrong choices (usually putting her own wants ahead of what is needed), and gains a weakness, flaw, misbelief, or lie.

The character is often given the opportunity to become someone better--to choose better--but ultimately uses her agency to embrace the "dark side" or an inaccurate worldview. The character is unwilling or unable to let go or sacrifice this flaw or misbelief, leading to a sort of damnation.

For example, in Death Note, Light starts out as a very intelligent high school student, with a bright future ahead of him. But his boredom leads him down a path of self-damnation as he uses a supernatural notebook to begin killing off criminals. Before long, he begins to envision himself as a god of a new world--where he decides who lives and dies. But on the journey, he soon finds himself killing innocents. In the end, his adversaries prove that ultimately, his methods and worldviews or wrong, or at least, inaccurate.

In 1984, Winston starts out wisely, though secretly, aware of the lies and deceptions of Big Brother and the Party. While he may not always be able to articulate it, he knows the truth. He knows reality isn't what the Party says it is. But when he is imprisoned, he is ultimately tortured until he embraces the lie. At the end, he personally uses doublethink, and becomes fully converted to the Party's slogan. He comes to love Big Brother.

1984 may have a bit of a variation in that Winston doesn't really have much of a choice, but at the most basic level, his is still a negative change arc.

The Steadfast Arcs

A steadfast arc is also known as a "flat arc" or even sometimes a "growth" arc. Instead of doing a direct flip, the steadfast character will be, more or less, the same at the beginning of the story and at the end of the story. Instead of flipping, they usually become more of something. Instead of changing, they grow in the resolve of their beliefs.

Some steadfast characters remain virtually the same, such as 007. But today, many steadfast characters (especially protagonists) will grow by degree. She or he will gain a deeper, more refined understanding or a greater ability or more experience.

This doesn't necessarily mean the steadfast character never wavers or never has doubts or never meanders a different direction during the story. He or she just doesn't do a direct flip.

Positive Steadfast Arcs

In a positive steadfast arc, the character will start out with an accurate worldview or belief. She may be, more or less, morally good, wholesome, or upright. However, this doesn't mean she doesn't have any personal shortcomings, tendencies, or struggles. What the beginning of this arc really means, is that she understands how reality or the world works, accurately. She understands the truth.

Through the story, her beliefs will be challenged and tested. Other forces may try to get her to adopt a different worldview or lifestyle, but ultimately at the end, she upholds her initial worldview and proves it true to those around her. She stays committed, steadfast, to who she was in the beginning.

In Wonder Woman, Diana begins the story with the worldview that we should fight for the world we believe in. Even though the atrocities of war test her belief, and Ares tempts her to embrace a new perspective (that we should allow humankind to suffer the world they deserve), she ultimately upholds her initial belief at the end, and proves it true to not only Ares, but others around her. While she struggles and wavers through the middle, at the end of the story, she holds the same beliefs she had at the beginning of the story.

In Arrival, Louise Banks, a linguist, believes that communication can be key to avoiding conflict. As the world tries to deal with the aliens that have landed on Earth, everyone around her seems to dismiss the value of communication, or at least misunderstand its significance. At the end, she saves the world from war through communication (thanks to her linguistic background) and changes those around her in the process. Internally, her beliefs at the beginning are the same at the end.

Worth noting is that often in stories that feature positive steadfast protagonists, the world or supporting characters will do a direct flip. Instead of the protagonist changing internally, he helps those around him change for the better.

Negative Steadfast Arcs

In a negative steadfast arc, the character will start out with an inaccurate worldview, weakness, flaw, misbelief, or lie, and refuse to let it go. In fact, it may be helpful to think of those in this arc as "stubborn" rather than "steadfast."

This is a character who probably should complete a positive change arc, if he is to become a better, more whole person, but instead, holds onto his inaccurate beliefs. Instead of coming to the truth, he holds fast to his initial ways.

The conflict will test the character's resolve to the inaccurate worldview, and he will cling to, or fully embrace it. Other characters may try to get the character to go another way, but this character is essentially on a "highway to hell."

At the end, his beliefs remain nearly the same, in a negative way.

In Cruella, Estella starts out the story vengeful and misbehaved. She may "try" to be "good," but inside, she wants to be bad. While her found family gives her the opportunity to work an honest job in the fashion industry, she embraces her cruel ways at the midpoint, becoming Cruella. Despite the voice of another character trying to get her to change, she continues her course, eventually becoming the villain we all love to hate.

In Les Mes, Javert believes in justice above all--and it must be upheld at all costs. Through the course of the story, Jean Valjean shows that mercy is more powerful at changing people than justice. When Jean Valjean shows mercy to Javert, by refusing to take his life, Javert cannot live with this truth, this reality. He is so committed to his initial worldview, that he takes his own life.

Positive vs. Negative Arcs: To put it simply, positive arcs illustrate the thematic truths we should adopt into our own lives--the truths that will allow us to become better people and create a better world, by having an accurate understanding of reality. Negative arcs illustrate what happens when we embrace inaccurate worldviews--when people believe in a nonreality. Positive arcs lead us toward becoming "whole" or "complete" individuals, while negative arcs lead us into a sort of damnation. Positive arcs show what we should do. Negative arcs show what we should not do.

Character Arc Variations

If your character doesn't seem to easily fit into any of these arcs, then he or she is probably a sort of variation . . .

The Disillusionment Arc

In a disillusionment arc, the character starts off with an inaccurate (and naive) worldview. Because of the conflicts in the story, he comes to the truth, which makes him sad, not happy.

Ultimately, the arc is about the truth--the accurate worldview or belief system--but sometimes what's true doesn't make us feel good inside. For example, I may discover tomorrow that my mother honestly hates me. It's a truth, but it doesn't make me feel good. It makes me feel bad.

The truth doesn't care about your feelings. It's true whether it makes you happy or sad or whether or not you like it.

In a disillusionment arc, the character realizes life is not as great as she thought. For example, she may come to learn that sometimes hard work isn't enough to get your dreams--there are things outside of your control, and that's the truth she realizes at the end.

In Hamilton, Hamilton eventually comes to the truth that he can't control his legacy, despite how much he tries. He has no control over who lives, who dies, or who tells his story.

Multiple people in the writing community categorize a disillusionment arc as a negative arc, because it doesn't leave you feeling good inside.

I personally categorize it as a positive change arc, because coming to the truth and understanding reality, is a positive thing and will get you further in becoming a better, more whole individual.

However you want to categorize it, just understand how it works.

Change Arc Variation

As stated above, often the change-arc character will do a big flip. She believes or embodies one worldview in the beginning, and then does a full flip into believing or embodying the opposite worldview. These two worldviews make up the thematic argument.

In some stories, it doesn't play out this way.

It's possible that the character doesn’t start the story with a worldview or opinion on the thematic argument (or central idea). They may not know the argument exists at the beginning of the story. Or, alternatively, they may know there is an argument, but they haven’t yet decided which side they believe in. In this sense, they start on “neutral.”

I actually feel like Luke Skywalker fits this variation. He's never even heard of the force, nor is he really aware that there is an argument as to whether we should rely on technology or faith. One may say he somehow represents the technology side, in that we see him in the beginning working with technology. But I feel like . . . he starts as a bit of a blank slate. Once the story gets going, we see he does have different feelings on this topic, and ultimately, changes his worldview to rely on faith (the force). So, I would still consider him a positive change character, even if he starts somewhat neutral.

Alternatively, in another story, we may show how people are arguing about whether to trust technology or faith in the beginning, with the protagonist aware of, but unsure of which worldview is accurate (the truth). In the end, he picks a side. Change.

Steadfast Arc Variation

The steadfast arc is often misunderstood in the writing community. The character holds the same beliefs at the beginning of the story and at the end of the story. But this doesn't mean she never struggles, questions, doubts, or wanders through the middle.

Some steadfast characters start and end with the same belief system, but will actually entertain an opposing belief system through the middle—usually the third quarter—of the story. This can sometimes be confusing when writers go to categorize their characters.

A good example of this happens in The Lion King. In the beginning, Simba believes in the Circle of Life--that there is a divine destiny and order in all living things. However, at the midpoint, Scar convinces him he killed his father, so he runs away, turning his back on his divine role. Under the influence of Timon and Pumba, he comes to act on the idea of "Hakuna Matata"--no worries = no divine order = no Circle of Life. Timon even openly says they have turned their backs on the world (read: on the Circle of Life). At the end of the middle, Simba must re-embrace his initial belief. He must come to the truth--he is the one true king, and must take his place in the Circle of Life.

(Check out "3 Categories of Steadfast, Flat-arc Characters" for more breakdowns of the steadfast arc.)

Multiple Character Arcs

It's possible for a character to have multiple character arcs, which can make them tricky to categorize. To make it even trickier, the arcs don't have to be the same type.

For example, Wonder Woman primarily has a positive steadfast arc, arguing we should fight for the world we believe in. But she also has a secondary change arc (a disillusionment arc) as she realizes humanity isn't black and white, it's gray.

Likewise, Simba has a steadfast arc in regards to the Circle of Life, but he has a positive change arc as well. He starts off irresponsible and must learn to take responsibility.

This also suggests there are multiple, prominent themes.

If you want to keep things simple, zero in on the arc that is most prominent for your character--this should also be an arc that is touched on at the climax (Wonder Woman ultimately defeats Ares by embracing her truth that we should fight for what we believe in, and Simba ultimately dethrones Scar because he stands by the Circle of Life).

With that said, you can totally flesh out each arc if you would like to.

Arc Confusion and Misconceptions

There are a few things you should be aware of when it comes to character arcs and the writing world.

Character Arc vs. Narrative Arc

Character arc entails all we've talked about in this post--the internal journey. However, you may have heard the term "narrative arc." A narrative arc is the path of the plot--the external journey. It's another way to refer to the story as a whole. Simba's character arc is about upholding the Circle of Life. The Lion King's narrative arc is everything that happens in the plot from Simba's birth to the birth of his cub. This is the whole story structure. In The Story Grid approach to writing, Shawn Coyne calls this the "Global Story." I've also seen this called a "plot arc."

Flat-arc Character vs. Flat Character

"Flat arc" is another term for a "steadfast arc." Some people confused the term "flat arc" with "flat character."

Flat-arc characters aren't necessarily flat characters. A "flat character" is a simple, two-dimensional character. Flat-arc characters can be just as round, or in some cases, even rounder, than some change-arc characters.

Often a change arc will help make a character feel rounder and more complex, but it's not the only way to make a character round and complex.

A flat-arc character can be a flat character, but it's not something that goes hand in hand.

To learn more, see "Flat Characters vs. Round Characters" and "Debunking 6 Myths about Steadfast, Flat-arc Characters."

"Flat-arc Characters are Bad" & "Every Protagonist Needs a Change Arc!"

I've seen some in the community express that writing a flat-arc/steadfast protagonist is bad, boring, or a mistake. This is far from the truth. Anyone think Wonder Woman, The Lion King, Princess Mononoke, Finding Neverland, Arrival, Cinderella, Legally Blonde are bad, boring, and mistakes?

The truth is, almost every story will feature a steadfast character, even if they aren't the protagonist. If it's not the protagonist, then usually it's someone the protagonist has an important relationship with.

I once even ran into an article that said it was bad to give even side characters steadfast arcs. Well, the reality is, it'd be almost impossible to give the whole character cast change arcs! We need flat arcs to produce great stories.

Along those lines, some insist that your protagonist must have a change arc! Spoiler: He doesn't have to.

Most protagonists are (positive) change-arc characters. They tend to be easier to write, and easier to write successfully. And truth be told, most writers are also taught to write (positive) change-arc protagonists. In fact, some approaches to storytelling will only guide you on how to write change-arc protagonists (which makes it difficult when you want to write a great steadfast protagonist). For example, the Hero's Journey often emphasizes a change arc. And Story Genius by Lisa Cron (fantastic book, by the way) is geared toward helping you write a change-arc protagonist. If you try to apply some of these principles to steadfast characters, you'll probably run into some problems.

To some, "character arc" = "positive change arc." It doesn't have to, but it's helpful to be aware of that mindset.

(If you need help writing a steadfast protagonist, I have several resources.)

Why Do Character Arcs Matter?

We've covered each basic type of character arc, as well as noted variations and misconceptions. Well, so what? Why does this matter?

I'll tell you. 😉

The character arc is the most important feature of your protagonist. Really? Really. It's easy to get hung up on all the superficial stuff--likes, dislikes, childhood memories, hair color and style, attire. But at the end of the day, the character arc is the most critical component of your character.

This is because it's influenced by the plot, and it influences the theme.

How the character responds to and addresses the conflict, leads to the character arc, and how the character arcs puts a value on a worldview or belief system, which informs the theme.

Of course, if you want to start a story with character, you need only choose an arc and select the sorts of conflicts that will lead to that arc. A change character must be pushed to change through the obstacles he faces. A steadfast character must have her resolve tested through the hardships she weathers.

Also, when you understand how your protagonist arcs, you can use that to help create other key characters in the story. Often if the protagonist is a positive type, the antagonist will be a negative type. And often if the protagonist is a change type, the Influence Character will be a steadfast type.

Finally, when you understand what arc your character has, you can use that information to enrich her inner journey--because you'll know where she's headed.

#writing tips #writing tips and tricks #writing help #nanowrimo #writeblr #Let's Write #fanfic #oc

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oof-ouch-yikes-stripes · 10 months

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Yknow, if I’m on Tumblr, I may as well use it to shout my many thoughts into the void. Today’s topic is Nesting Instinct, my theoretical submission for Halbarry Week 2023 (if I finish it) and companion piece for Bluer Skies, which is topgun but like. Whatever!! TG characters don’t even show up in this one, just get referenced a couple of times. I do what I want, and what I want is to turn my favorite characters into birds.

For context, this is a Wing AU where those with wings are called avians. 98% of characters in NI will be avians. All avians have inherent magic since avians are inherently magical creatures, but one avian from each flock got extra magic powers that helped that flock escape human persecution a few hundred years ago, and that magic is passed down from one Protector to another.

Alright, let’s bullet point.

- Fun fact!! It’s hard to write two pieces in one world for different audiences!! How much do I worldbuild if Bluer Skies contains all of my worldbuilding but is also miles away from being finished!! Does it even matter if I don’t anticipate that much audience overlap!! Or maybe I should anticipate audience overlap and I shouldn’t spoil things too much? Decisions decisions. It is fun for my POV characters to learn the same things in different ways though. This is definitely the Less Crucial piece to read though.

- Because of The Way Things Are For Hal (he got born into Hell for Avians ((Project Angel)) and as such didn’t get a real name, watched his best friend get nearly killed by and escape from Satan for Avian ((Morningstar)) and had no idea what happened to him afterwards, and then lived as Morningstar’s replacement pet for the next ten years), he is decidedly written as according to these circumstances, which some will see as OOC. To that I say, this is an AU. There is not a Character to be In.

- My darling dearest Barry, on the other hand, got stuck as Protector of one of the last terrestrially migratory flocks, with his special super speed magic, and has to deal with the challenges of being practically in charge of keeping his flock on the move and safe from the many, many things that would do them harm. This is especially hard when the main anti-wild avian force is on the verge of war with the wild avians.

- Circumstances cause them to meet!! Wild!!

- Hal is a violet-green swallow. They’re incredibly aerial and acrobatic birds, which fits with his prowess in the air. Their wings are also green. I considered making him a green heron, since his power set kinda matched with heron’s tool usage, but decided flying was more important to Hal’s character.

- Barry is an Allen’s Hummingbird. I was always going to make him a hummingbird, it was just fortuitous that I stumbled across one that is the Allen’s and is also reddish orange. I’m hilarious, I know. Hummingbird since, while they’re not the fastest in stoop or horizontal flight, they’ve got mad BPM and can be made Faster with Fast Magic.

- Wally’s a white throated needletail and Iris is a treeswift. Swifts, treeswifts, and hummingbirds are all in the same order, which I thought was appropriate, since none of them are directly related but they’re a family anyways. It’s not confirmed, but allegedly needletails have the fastest horizontal flight speed, so shoutout to Kid Flash for that one.

- On the other hand, swifts and swallows are not that related, but had a bit of a convergent evolution moment, and I Do Intend on using that to influence the dynamic between Wally and Hal.

- In case it wan’t clear, each day will be a chapter, so it’s so cool of you guys to pick prompts that work really well with the story I wanted to tell. Also shoutout to all of the DC vs Vampires quotes! Barry and Hal had like five pages together before The Inevitable, and they were five very gay pages.

- It was also very cool of DC to make Hal a pilot, which means that he fit into my preexisting au where pilots are avians when I got into DC after I got into Top Gun. He’s even got a call sign, which is extra convenient since avians born in Project Angel only get their canon call sign as a name since they’re seen as tools and less than human and all that.

- The thing is. Barry is a Fundamentally Nice person. That’s why Earth 2’s Johnny Quick is the furthest thing from a direct parallel you can get; Barry is not allowed to ever be evil. This is very good for Highball, who has never received a kindness ever.

- On the other hand, Nesting Instinct Highball is a survivor and trauma-hardened, which gives him the ability to be Not A Nice Person. Barry needs somebody like that to balance out his Niceness, lest he be overrun by the many strong personalities in his flock. Highball is also skilled and adaptable, and there’s something about a person who will do anything you say without complaint, probably.

- Anyways I have many more Thoughts but I don’t want to spoil any of the good bits. Hopefully I’ll finish it in time for the Week, and hopefully you’ll then read it. Maybe then I’ll even finish Bluer Skies so that everything in Nesting Instinct will get put into context. Wouldn’t that just be wild?

#halbarry week #halbarry week 2023 #im scared to tag this I don’t actually want people to perceive me on tumblr #however if you do happen to perceive me and do want to know more I will happily talk forever #nesting instinct #avian verse

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veiledfox · 6 months

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An Experiment Most Marvelous [ II ]

"Sixty feet, twenty meters. Lady Kyuushi has reached the depth necessary for her to suffer the effects of the Curse of the Abyss. According to the notes she shared with me from her prior experiments, she experiences the earlier effects of the Curse sooner and sooner with each layer. After her experience with the Fifth's Curse, she should be experiencing the dizziness and nausea of the First upon first beginning her ascent."

Hotaru spoke clear, precise, aloud. Keeping information clear and understandable for the Sovreign behind her. Monitoring the Kitsune's vitals every second, eyes darting from reading to reading quickly. Heart rate elevated a little higher than normal, cortisol still high, oxygen in her blood slowly draining. Everything was fine otherwise so far.

"It's admirable that Lady Kyuushi took such thorough notes of her experience with the Curse. No one would willingly put themselves through the pain it can cause just to understand how it effects them in our 'Realm' as you two call it." Bondrewd spoke up to comment in compliment.

"Lady Kyuushi also asked that you remain quiet. I need to focus and keep watch on her vitals." A slight hint of annoyance in the Doll's otherwise polite tone. Glancing to the distance between her and the Kitsune, seeing it start to be reduced. Immediately catching her heart rate and cortisol both rising further. "She's ascending."

"Fifty feet. Second Layer Curse." Another rise in her heartrate and cortisol. Nothing too alarming still, thankfully, but the more it climbed the closer it got to being dangerous. Even for a Kitsune, who could normally handle much more extreme vitals than Humans could. Hotaru's eyes were glued to the conjured display, keeping track of everything.

"Fourty feet, her ascent is slowing a little. Third Layer Curse." Looking over the readings, her cortisol had thankfully seemed to lower some, but her heartrate kept at the increased pace. Other readings showing hints of odd brain activity and... a hint of dopamine? Whatever was going on, she was growing curious. Though she kept her focus, and she could sense the Sovreign was getting more and more invested in what was happening too, hearing his boots shuffle a bit and a deep long hum.

"Thirty feet. Fourth Layer Curse... Hemoglobin starting to fall... she's bleeding somewhere. It's minor right now thankfully, and... fluctuating? Lady Kyuushi must be using active healing Magicks." The instant she said such a word, the Doll could hear Bondrewd perk up with interest.

"Magic?"

"Yes, Magic, it's a very natural thing in our Realm and Kitsune's generate large quantities of it. Their Magic also becomes stronger the more tails they have. Regenerative capabilities included in their natural repitoir, they reach their peak in such field throughout their seventh, eigth, and ninth tails. Lady Kyuushi, possessing eight of her nine, seems to be utilizing her healing to fend off the effects of the Curse as much as she can."

"Marvelous..."

"Twenty feet. Fifth Layer Curse. Sensory Deprivation should be kicking in about now according to known knowledge of the curse and her notes. Her ascent has slowed to a stop..." Heartrate rising, cortisol climbing again, brain firing off in panic and fear, adrenaline surging through her system. Hotaru could see it all, see how her body was working, fighting against the Curse to continue. "Slow ascent, oxygen starting to run low."

Worry was starting to truly take hold of the Doll seeing the state the Kitsune was in begin deteriorating so quickly. Shifting on her feet, starting to tap a foot on the ground below her, even raising a hand to gnaw at a knuckle a bit. She knew Kyuushi was capable, but this...? Even this was starting to look too dangerous for her.

"Ten feet." Glancing ever so quickly down to the water in front of her, catching sight of bubbles rising to the surface then returning immediately back to the vitals. "Sixth Layer Curse... theoretically..." Kyuushi's status just got worse and worse the more she watched on. Heart rate climbing dangerously high, oxygen and hemoglobin dropping, Kyuushi was somehow still ascending though.

At least, she was. A sudden spike in heartrate and surge in brain activity making the vitals display flash red. Hotaru, immediately, moves to the water's edge to look down into the waters. Bubbles, countless bubbles rising from the Kitsune who, from what it seemed, was within five feet of the surface.

Getting down onto the ground, Hotaru lays herself out flat on her front reaching a hand deep into the water, up to her shoulder, trying to reach for Kyuushi. Calling upon some of her own Magic to extend an ethereal grasp for the Kitsune, feeling around until suddenly he feels an arm. Quickly grabbing on, she uses all her strength to pull the Woman up and out of the water.

Once she had her out of the waters, though, the Kitsune's screaming became clear right away. Horrid, blood curdling, loud. Her body convulsing, twitching, twisting this way and that, Hotaru struggled to move her much further from the waters with it all. Though before the could start attempting to do anything to help her charge, blue flames would suddenly erupt around her, not mere ethereal fire, but true and proper flame.

A pyre, a pillar of blue raging fire, all from Kyuushi's body as it writhes and contorts. The Doll and the Lord of Dawn witness to the pillar climbing higher and higher, growing brighter and brighter, and the searing heat it was giving off. It would be difficult to see through the flames with how bright they were getting, but within was still Kyuushi.

The Kitsune, who's body was creaking, groaning, snapping. Her form starting to shift rapidly and uncontrollably. Her Human guise dropping and giving way to her true Humanoid figure, Kitsune and Oni features both clear as day. Her body shrinking down and changing to her true form. Figure shifting and bending to any and all states that it could possibly take between them.

Skin splitting and healing time and again, bones snaping and setting, hair and fur growing longer, falling out in patches, and regrowing. Limbs twisting in ways they shouldn't, fingers bending impossibly, blood that was being spilled burning away almost instantly upon leaving her body within the inferno. Nothing that was happening should've been possible. It was horrid to watch, but it was all that Hotaru could do, watch on as the Woman who had commissioned her creation broke over and over. As her body degraded, regenerated, and changed.

The Curse of the Sixth layer was anything but a joke, this was cruel, terrifying. She didn't even want to attempt imagining what this could do to a regular person from this Realm. Yet the Man standing just meters away had subjected people to this for his experiments? If not for her concern for Kyuushi, Hotaru felt as if she could tear the foul 'Scientist' limb from limb for what he had been doing.

Between the screams of excrutiating pain, the roaring blue pyre, and the disturbing cackling that had begun from the Sovreign of Dawn, she could hardly hear the high pitched whine starting and stopping from the vitals display. Once they had registered in her mind though, her attention was drawn to the readings. To a heartrate flatlining, spiking into such a rapid pace, evening out, and fluctuating wildly between the three states without any rhyme or reason. To brain activity that was flaring across every part of the mind and other readings registering as errors impossible to track.

She was dying, but at the same time she was fine? A disturbing limbo between life and death that was tearing her body appart while it fought to keep itself together at the same time. This level of healing Magicks though, it shouldn't be possible, not for a Kitsune with eight tails, or even a Kitsune with nine. Not from what Hotaru had researched of healing Magicks. Ancient or modern, it didn't matter which, nothing was as strong as this save for the most powerful artifacts in their World.

Whatever was keeping Kyuushi alive, it couldn't have been her own Magicks. Not at the rate this was going, there was no way she was conscious enough to control her Magick like this. She wanted to wonder what it was, what was keeping her from perishing, but right now all she could bring herself to care for was whether she would survive in the end.

All the while the Lord of Dawn seemed to be thriving as he watched this all unfold. His laughter never ending as he approaches the pillar of flame, arms outstretched as he seems to take in the raging heat it was putting out. "Marvelous! Truly marvelous!" He shouts over it all. "The Abyss demands it's sacrifice! Even from a being not of our world! Yet it can't seem to claim it's demanded life, the Abyss is being denied! What will relent first, I wonder?! The Abyss?! Or our dear Lady Kyuushi?!"

It was almost as if the White Whistle had given a command to the Abyss, as mere seconds would pass after he speaks before everything suddenly calms. The raging pyre becoming reduced from the inferno it had become to a mere enveloping flame as the Kitsune's body goes still. The wildly fluctuating readings on the conjured display stabilizing. Heartrate weak, brain activity low, but the Kitsune was alive.

Turning her attention back to the Woman herself, Hotaru hurries to her side. Carefully reaching toward the still flame-enveloped Mythos, the fires were still warm, but not painfully so anymore. Easing her hand into the flame... ethereal, safe to reach into and touch Kyuushi. Which she would, reaching for the Woman's shoulder to oh so gently turn her over.

Humanoid form again, as she had been when this experiment began. Though her inhuman features were present now, as her Human guise had been undone amid everything that was happening. Beyond checking the Woman's body for any remaining injuries, she would take in and make note of anything that had changed from before.

Looking carefully over her features, her Oni horns looked... longer? They had stood at the same height as her ears, an added six inches above the top of her head, originally. Now they appeared to be twice the length, and to curl further back over the head. Still a shallow curve, but certainly more noticeable now. The blue gradient of skin on her forehead having spread, now reaching down to her brows suggesting it was the entire top of her head now this coloration.

Carefully prying an eye lid open, her sclera were black now instead of white, bloodshot, pupils vacant in her unconscious state. Easing her jaw open, her teeth seemed fine, though her canines seemed sharper now. The Vestigial Oni fangs longer, more prominent, like a secondary set of canines. Continuing her examination of the Kitsune with the sides of her head, briefly feeling the back, then continuing along her neck toward her torso.

Noticing quickly all the fresh wounds healing over, dark marks across her body as the flesh recovers bit by bit. Pressing gently at various spots along her collar, chest, abdomen, and stomach. Her muscular structure seemed more... defined? She took only a quick glance to Kyuushi's arms, only needed a quick glance, to notice the blue gradient that had been crawling up her hands was now farther up her arms too. From what she could see through the sleeves of her shirt, it reached her elbows now.

Had the Curse... given her a 'blessing' instead? Did it utilize her Oni genetics to do so? Her claws were even longer now, larger and sharper too. Yet... if this was the 'blessing' she was given, why was it so different from what transformation Bondrewd had experienced? Why did it leave her so intact and relatively unchanged? Did her adaptation perhaps finally take hold amid everything?

Ever so carefully she would turn Kyuushi onto her side and rested against her knees briefly, moving a hand to retrieve her tails and pull them out from under her. First to count them, then to check their condition. Though right away she could feel that they were heavier, longer, and their core seemed thicker. Their fur longer too, a strange mix of soft and rough, denser for sure.

One, two, three from the central base.

Four, five, six from the right base.

Seven, eight, nine from the left base.

Nine tails. The experiment was an ordeal severe enough to grant the Kitsune her last tail. At only one year past her first century too. It made the Doll worry what the future may have in store for the Kitsune, for her to have her nine tails just past her first century. In what little record of Kitsune history still existed in their Realm, not one notable Kitsune had their full set of tails this soon, and most the population had simply just gained their tails over time, back when their population was more abundant.

It didn't seem Kyuushi was going to wake any time soon, however, nor did she expect that she would. Though with her condition having stabilized, and her healing Magicks clearly subconsciously working to repair whatever damage she was still suffering from, it would surely just take time. Time best spent in the Shrine Lands, instead of here in the cold dark depths of the Abyss under the Sovreign of Dawn's ever present gaze.

"Marvelous!" His damned voice rising again, hands clapping together in applause. His boots clacking against the stone as he makes approach. "The Abyss is defeated! Lady Kyuushi yet lives, and though minor... it does appear she has experienced some changes. I do wonder if she has received the Abyss' blessing in this endeavor. Though I suppose we won't be able to tell unless she awakens and returns to test the Curse again. I would most certainly enjoy being present for such experimentation, whenever it may occur."

Hotaru, hardly paying him any mind, had started to cautiously ease her arms under Kyuushi to get a proper hold and lift her. Carrying her sideways across both arms, held closely and securely to her so she could move back over to where the Kitsune's belongings had been set down. Easing down with her so that she could retrieve everything, setting it in the Woman's lap to be able to bring it with them as she stands again.

"I will be sure to inform her of your... disturbing interest in her suffering." She responds finally, malice on her tongue as she glares back at the White Whistle. "But in her current state, Lady Kyuushi needs rest and care. Good day, Lord of Dawn." Taking a step as a tear opens in reality, letting her step through and closing shut behind her. Leaving Bondrewd on his own, looking over the scorched space where Kyuushi had been while her body was ravaged by the Curse.

The Doll carefully stepping out under the Tori at the center of the lake onto the surface of the water below. Quickly starting to make way back to the homestead atop the white sands to the left. To return Kyuushi to her room, her bed, so that she may rest and be cared for as needed.

#The Kitsune {Kyuushi}#The Dolls {Hotaru and Hoshi}#Veiled Legends {Story}#Truths Among Myths {Headcanons}

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