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#the style is so much more important than the story kill me it was so good
rainiiis · 4 months
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I FINISHED FLOWERS OF BUFFOONERY!!!!! I HAD SO MUCH FUN!!!! i laughed so much man it was great!!!!!!!!!!! the little narrator comments were amazing!!!! the book is a mess but you still like reading it!!!!!!
came surprisingly close to the way i write things which was like. an out of body experience for sure lmao. but uh. yeah no I loved it it made no sense READ IT!!! ITS LIKE 100 PAGES OF CHAOS!!!!!!!!!!!
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ozzgin · 4 months
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Hi it’s me again 😁. I wanted to try to request something but it’s very specific so if you don’t like the idea or just don’t have the time you can just put it aside 😅.
It’s another female predator story but in this one reader is a preator that was born black with white markings which is seen as a bad omen ( i don’t think it’s real in the Yautja culture but let’s just role with it ). Reader was abandoned by her family and was found by a family of thanator ( you know those fierce alien panther from avatar ) so she was a savage and knew how to hunt without any tools from a young age. Her grandmother, a strong and important matriarch, found her and took her back to their planet. But reader doesn’t really have contact with her kind except for her grandmother and her thanators and she hunts alone a lot of dangerous enemies ( like xenoporph queens ).
I’m totally making the even up but let’s imagine it’s mating season and there is a huge a tournament to help yautjas find a good partner. Like wrestling, shooting or small combat matches… It’s time for the females to compete, reader is participating cause her grandma asked her ( she wants grandpups 😂 ) and is wrecking the events and catches the interest of many males. Especialy after the one on one fight where she would use a lot of her natural features and thanator fighting style ( we don’t really see them using there claws, feet or teeth a lot and it’s disapointing cause those are mass murder weapons). The males are enamoured and quickly process to begin the courting but reader doesn’t really know how to act with males and she never really paid it much attention before cause she’s usually hunting or founding and taking care of new alien pets companions. I bet the males are amazed with this unique and strong ( and kind of inexperienced 😏 ) female yautja.
Thanks for reading this ( long ass fuck to be honest 😂😅) resquest and i hope everything is alright for you, 😘 bye.
You'll have to excuse potentially wrong assumptions as I haven't watched Avatar and have no idea what it is about 🥲 buut otherwise I just detailed around your ideas, they’re pretty solid and I didn’t want to tamper with them more than necessary
Predator Headcanons: Predator Reader in Tournament
Featuring a Yautja female with an unusual background.
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Everything happened so suddenly. Your peaceful like among your family, uprooted within seconds. One particular day and out of nowhere, a bizarre vessel hovered over Pandora's forests, alerting everyone in its vicinity. The intruders that teleported down caused even greater confusion: they looked just like you. Yet you couldn't understand their odd clicks and guttural noises, nor did you trust the intricate holograms and machinery pointed in your direction.
After what felt like an eternity - and with the help of a translator - the uninvited guests announced their purpose: to retrieve you and bring you back to Yautja Prime. Nonsense, you thought at the time. There's no "back" when your home has always been on this Planet. Despite your protests, you'd quickly learned that your hunting expertise was no proper defense against their foreign technology and so you begrudgingly accepted the proposal.
The first few months were, plainly put, depressing. The matriarch - you'd soon learn she is your remaining family - insisted on keeping your integration a secret at first. Many factors were still unknown to them: would you be able to learn their language after so many years? What about defending yourself against other Predators? Yautja communities are ruthless and unforgiving, and the matriarch could not risk killing off her only successor.
Thankfully you proved yourself efficient enough with your skills. Growing up in the forest has honed your senses, perhaps to an even greater degree when compared to a Predator who relies on modern weaponry. Impressed with the outcome, your grandmother decides to register you for the Grand Tournament. What better way to reveal the return of her long-lost suckling? You don't know what it entails, but the time spent hunting xenomorphs has gotten quite monotonous. You'd take any challenge to entertain you.
The gate opens and you step inside the ring without hesitation. There's a moment of silence, followed by suspicious murmurs from a confused audience. Unbeknownst to you, the patterns you're donning are not only a rare occurrence among the Yautja species, but a bad omen as well. The males are studying your movements carefully. It's not just your appearance; Your fighting stance is unusual, resembling a wild animal. And, as the end of the match quickly follows with an effortless win on your side, they're certain of one thing: they've found their mate.
You raise your first victoriously and don't even notice the predatory stares. Nor do you comprehend the sudden gathering of males that has formed towards the exit, awaiting your return. What's the meaning of this? You glare at the matriarch, and she responds with a smirk. You'll figure it out soon enough.
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pendragonsclotpole · 4 months
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help, i just got slapped in the face with the existence of WILL. be still my beating heart as i write an essay on this man, will of ealdor
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firstly, i adore the silent and implicit trust hidden in the first joke that introduces will’s character. like merlin’s been aware his whole life that if his secret is ever found out, he will be hunted down and persecuted, but here comes will with a jab that they both inherently understand is a joke in the macabre style only true friends can lovingly master. the smile they share almost immediately gives me ned stark and robert baratheon meeting again in the courtyard of winterfell in season one of got. there’s also something so normal in their interaction that speaks of a familiarity borne from their equal status and years of friendship. i know merlin’s friends in camelot tend to skew to the non-royal/non-noble, but when you tally it up, those closest to merlin often hold some title that’s greater than merlin’s role as arthur’s servant. gwaine is a knight implied to be of noble blood; lancelot, percival, and elyan are also knighted and esteemed members of arthur’s court; gwen is the lady morgana’s maid and close companion long before she is ever queen; gaius is a physician and long time member of camelot’s court; morgana before her betrayal is literally uther’s ward. i feel like when placed among them all, merlin has a tendency to fade into the background offscreen. obviously the audience knows how important merlin is to the overall story given how much of the storyline focuses on him, and the characters regularly acknowledge merlin’s importance to them or arthur, but all of them still regard merlin as merlin the servant from camelot and few of them are privy to the plots we as the audience see firsthand. and even when they acknowledge him for his merits, his role as arthur’s close friend and confidante takes precedence. look at leon’s reaction in the later seasons when merlin is bewitched by morgana. merlin literally makes a comment about plotting to kill arthur and leon barely even blinks before quipping back, “driving you mad isn’t he?” or something along those lines. except for a few instances with even fewer characters, they never get a chance to know him as merlin the sorcerer from ealdor.
will does! and more than that, he got to know merlin as he is without arthur. we all hype up their status as magical soulmates but damn if i wasnt living for how jealous of arthur will seemed to be in this episode. call me crazy, but it makes me desperately headcanon a realistic past in ealdor for merlin, full of hardship and strife, but never without it’s moments of happiness. furthermore, will’s lone appearance in season one shines some real light on the unfairness of the fate that has been bestowed on meelin. the moment that will points out why he’s been so obstinate with arthur really strikes a deep chord. sure it could be just jealousy, but more compellingly, i choose to read it as a deep sense of care for merlin. everyone merlin has met within camelot, (or reunited with in the case of his own mother) has continually pushed him closer and closer to arthur. will presents a crucial exception. he knows exactly who merlin was before camelot, and who merlin is completely separate from arthur.
will is staunchly in merlin’s corner, and that position allows him to identify a key characteristic of merlin’s series’ long arc: his complete devotion to arthur. will even points it out himself: merlin could singlehandedly defend their home if he just used the full extent of his power. merlin doesn’t, and actively chooses not to because of his desire to stay close to arthur. it’s such a small moment, but i think it demonstrates how much of merlin’s decisions become motivated by his desire to stay close to arthur and to always put arthur first, even at a detrimental cost to himself. merlin understands and readily accepts arthur as his destiny, but this acceptance does not come about independently, instantly, or of merlin’s own volition. it does so eventually, but initially merlin sticks by arthur’s side because of the encouragement of everyone around him. “arthur needs you, merlin” or “arthur is your destiny, merlin” or “arthur is a good man, merlin. he has the potential to be a great king, he just needs the right people, merlin.” its codependent as hell.
sure, merlin originally does not tell arthur about his magic because they do not know each other and as far as merlin knows revealing his magic would lead to his death, but eventually the reasoning changes and becomes so focused on doing what’s best for arthur. merlin can’t tell arthur because then arthur would have to kill him and then who would look after arthur or ensure his fate? merlin can’t tell arthur because if arthur chooses to defy uther’s law, merlin is then forcing arthur to turn against his father and how could he look after arthur then? merlin can’t tell arthur because another betrayal from magic would ruin everything and truthfully, he wonders how would arthur react? merlin comes to fear what his magic might do to arthur and what it’s reveal might mean for his place in camelot more than the laws of camelot and their verdicts.
by this logic, merlin is a magical solar system orbiting entirely around the celestial body known as arthur pendragon. eventually merlin cared more about his relationship with arthur and what arthur thought about him than his own life. in retrospect, it’s so sad that will died so early on, because it strips merlin of a person solely in his corner. will’s death is the first in the series’ long pattern of loss that merlin endures and that eventually comes to define him because people either find out about his magic and their knowledge is directly tested against his loyalty to arthur, or he cannot allow them to know about his magic because it will unravel his relationship with arthur.
will, freya, balinor, morgana, mordred, arthur.
also the fact that will covered for merlin’s use of magic in his last moments just adds to the tragedy AND the growing pile of moments merlin could have told arthur about his magic but didnt. and also the fact that will literally died to save arthur. like tell me that just doesn’t prove my point. tell me. will never stood a chance. tell me every aspect of merlin’s life does not get consumed by arthur pendragon.
i’m all for merthur being soulmates, but god the original series is rife with the unbalanced mess of merlin being wholeheartedly aware of arthur’s great potential and destiny leading to some intense devotion and faith that yes, arthur earns and pays back in full measure but can never fully reciprocate because he just does not know anything. by the triple goddess, it can get so toxic. i wish will had lived if just for that. and like the jealousy arthur gets whenever merlin has other people. because i 100% live for possessive arthur and protective merlin dynamics.
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absolutebl · 6 months
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This Week in BL - Top 3 Are HEATING UP
Organized, in each category, by ones I'm enjoying most at the top.
Dec 2023 Wk 2
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Ongoing Series - Thai
Honestly, 3 are neck & necking for top position! They are all so good in different ways. But The Sign had me hooting with laughter this week, so it scooped #1.
The Sign (Sat YT) ep 4 of 10 - This show is literally everything (except straight) all at once. It's BL, queer, band of brothers, romcom, erotica, paranormal, fated mates, mystery, suspense, slasher, and horror. It’s the king of genre mash-up chaos. I have no idea what I’m watching but I’m ON this ride. Is it a roller coaster? Is it a haunted house? Is it a twirl & hurl? Is there candy floss? Am I even tall enough? Who tf cares. All through the second scene, I was laughing. It was legit funny. Billy has great comedic timing. Guess he’s not just a pretty face.
Everyone should be watching this. Sure, it's madness but there is genius in it.
Last Twilight (Fri YT) ep 6 of 12 -  Yech. August may be one of GMMTV’s least likable characters ever (and that is saying something). Meanwhile, MOAR language play! They spoiling me!
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Mhok letting Day go then walking away at the party hurt so bad.
Argh this show is great!
Ep 6 so that kiss was right on schedule. I’m looking forward to the boyfriend eps before doom & pain in the new year. Carry on GMMTV. 
Speaking of...
Cherry Magic (Sat YouTube) ep 2 of 12 - Oh they’re great. It’s great. It’s paced oddly, moving quickly through most of the key scenes of the original JBL in these first 2 eps. I think it’s intending to encompass more of the manga series than that one did. Which is good, cause that will get us all the way to The Library Kiss (TM). It's the best kiss in the manga. I also like the sides in this show (better than the JBL version). 
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My Dear Gangster Oppa (Thurs iQIYI) ep 8fin - What a lovely slightly unhinged little show. Tew, can we talk? Un-ironic suspenders, that takes courage. Also, the revolver was a crazy gun choice. 
Final thoughts:
This show is just as ridiculous as its title. About a gaymer who falls in love with one of his in-game teammates, who just happens to be a IRL gangster. A real gangster, the kind that actually kills people regularly. The lead pair is doing their best with a ridiculous story and shoddy script, but I enjoyed it. Although I was grateful it wasn’t very long, what we got was oddly satisfying if, frankly, a little bit silly. Recommended. 8/10 
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That said, what's important about this BL is not the show, but the production and style. Let me explain... no, too much, let me sum up.
This is a chimera BL. Regarding characters: it has Japan's style otaku + Korea's style gangster + Thailand's style friendship group. It used Thai talent + Korean money (Kakao) & IP (adapted from a manwha) but aired on a Chinese channel globally (iQIYI). I'm delighted by the eclectic insanity of this production and truly doubt that any other genre but BL could ever produce like this. It's like diplomat's BL and it's the great wonder of our age that it happened at all. This BL deserves its place in the history books on production alone, even if that place is only in the footnotes. A remarkable little monster.
For Him (Thurs iQIYI) ep 3 of 10 - The sides are… messy. Using the same actor for the old bf is… odd. But in the end, this show leaves me smiling. Which means, I like it despite myself. 
Bake Me Please (Mon Gaga) ep 4 of 6 - It's decent. It’s basically what I wanted Antique Bakery to be when I first watched that way back when (not to mention Bite Me). But there’s been so much BL since then that, for some reason, this is falling flat. I think it’s moving too fast for a Thai series. Although, say what you like, Ohm has to be one of the best soft kissers in the industry. He's just good at mouth tenderness.
Ugh, that doesn't sound right. But you know what I mean.
Twins the series (Fri GaGa) ep 7 of 10 - I love how First is so upset when Sprite starts chatting and being nice to Koh. Sprite is just a sweet easy-going likable boy. I enjoy Sprite as a main character, he’s a bubbly little communicator. And they had a cute kiss.  
Pit Babe (Fri iQIYI) ep 5 of 14 - Because there was more Alan and Jeff and they were more key to the plot I was more into this ep. I do compare it to green smoothie down the pants in the Trash Watch.
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Cooking Crush (Sun YT) ep 3 of 12 - Look OffGun are truly great. But I’m just not sure we need them in BL anymore. That said, it’s nice to see Off as "the one with the crush" for a change. Also, this show is only good when OffGun are on screen together, otherwise it kinda, well, sucks.
Night Dream (Sat YT) ep 1 of 6 - Cafe setting featuring a cook and a writer. *Seems awfully familiar.* Except these two are exes and this is a reunion romance. It’s stiff and very pulp but not bad (no crap sound effects) and I am a sucker for a reunion romance. That said, Rookie Thailand is not to be trusted, proceed with caution.
Absolute Zero (Weds iQIYI) ep 12fin - I'm grateful this is over. It was tense but for the wrong reasons - sadness and confusion. This final episode was fine, but that’s because it was mostly them being together + flashbacks. Plus all the familiar actor faces of the grown-up friends (hi, Karn my lovely, still stunning I see). But 2 of 12 episodes is not enough for the 10 of suffering and confusion that came before.
In conclusion:
A man is killed on his 10th anniversary resulting in a time paradox, for which the only solution is him never meeting his childhood sweetheart until later in life. Both lovers cycle back to the past at different ages, so that they each become their own 1st & 2nd great loves, but every time it ends in pain, until each also endures 10 years of separation. Finally it gets fixed, but leaves them with multiple memories of time's failures like temporal PTSD, and everyone around them has chronic deja vu. Me? I got both. This is one of those BLs that is high-quality with great acting but poor story. If you like your BL dwelling, maudlin, and tense due to angst and suffering, then you might enjoy this. But I just regret it, 6/10. Recommended only if you like confusing time travel emo pain.
In which case, just watch Tokyo in April is... instead. Give over Thailand, Japan does it better.
Middleman’s Love (Fri YT & iQIYI ep 6 of 8 - While our main couple isn’t working for me... the side couple isn’t working for me either. I really wanted to give LeoTai a chance, this is the 3rd show I’ve seen them in, and still nope. I like Jade a lot more when he’s sad. He’s a much more pleasant screen experience depressed. I would like him to stay hurt for a couple of eps, just so I can enjoy this show a tiny bit more. But then he just goes unhinged again. Argh. I just don’t like it. 
My Universe (Sun iQIYI) Pisces of Me ep 17 of 24 - Codependent boyfriends in middle school planning for high school dealing with stuff. Including other boys being into them. 
Playboyy (Thurs Gaga) 5 of 14 eps - Dear Playboyy, it's not you, it’s me… I hate you. You’re about as deep (and as palatable) as a shot glass of cum. While I'm sure you’re someone’s kink, you're my weakest link. Goodbye. DNF 
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Ongoing Series - Not Thai
VIP Only (Taiwan Fri Gaga) ep 5 of 10 - It’s cute but I don’t think BL in this short format is Taiwan’s strength these days. And this is quite slow and dull. Perhaps they should have whacked it down to 6 eps, not 10.
Sahara-sensei to Toki-kun (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 3 of 8 - This is one of those JBLs that I should like on paper but is failing me. The drag bit was ridiculous but handled gently. The kiss was… well… something wasn’t it? It’s all very odd. I like the photographer cutie character. 
It's Airing But...
The Whisperer (Sun ????) 10 eps - Thai horror BL that ALSO involves cheating (what joy is mine). I don't think even the perfect single dimple can motivate me to watch. Word is... it's terrible.
7 Days Before Valentine (Weds WeTV) 10 eps - Giving me Luminous Solution vibes. I'm waiting to binge if it's safe.
Beyond The Star (Weds iQIYI) 8 eps - House of Stars meets Boyband. I was NOT impressed with ep 1. Been told I shouldn't bother.
What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - I find this series more fun to binge, so I'm waiting until after it completes its run next week.
Dear Kitakyushu (Thai/Japan movie) in theaters in country only, I know nothing about distribution.
Behind the Shadows (Korea movie) this is a historical I was interested in, but I've been told they kill the gay so I'm OUT.
Next Week Looks Like This
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Still coming:
12/23 Dead Friend Forever (Thai horror) iQIYI
Original 2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED). With the end of the year upon us I'll do an "announced for 2023 but never happened list" soon.
THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS
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He so pretty.
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I forgot how likable TayNew are, and frankly I think New is a better version of this role for me, personally. I like him a lot. He's a conscientious sweetheart. And a good egg. (Cherry Magic)
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Ah the rooftop my old friend. (Last Twilight)
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I would like to point out that it's no accident the naga's sex dream happened in the shower, he's a water creature after all. (The Sign)
(Last week)
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dangermousie · 1 month
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Something that struck me extra on this LLTG rewatch - how subtle yet unmistakable the narrative is about the fact that being sheltered and spoiled as a woman is a recipe for disaster.
NN, ill-educated STEM feral child, gets how important marriage partner choice is more than all the rest of them, properly brought up in womanly virtues.
No, I don't mean she yearns for true love (she gets it, eventually, but that is not what she hopes or looks for) - but what she gets and a lot of the rest of the young women we see do not, is that you want a husband you can like and get along with, who can let you be yourself (and who is also acceptable socially because she's pragmatic.)
That is why her first choice, until it's OBE, is Yao - he's sweet and he's a friend and she knows she'd be the boss in that marriage. All the ladies in the capital swoon for Ling Buyi but she is never consciously swayed. She doesn't realize he likes her and she's not someone to build fantasies/pine for someone she can't have (in a way, knowing the man likes her is a necessary precondition for her to be even able to open her heart - she's spent too much of her childhood fruitlessly yearning for familial love to want to repeat that in her marriage.) Yao openly adores her so this allows her to consider him as a partner (that is why Scholar dude never had a chance btw, his courtship style is negging and NN is the last person that would work for.)
In fact, even after she knows Ling Buyi likes her, she is NOT excited to marry him because she doesn't want someone too high a status compared to her and someone as strong-willed as him because what she sees, and a lot of the rest of women looking for husbands in this story do not, that if there is a huge status disparity and a man is used to getting his own way, there is a risk of having yourself subsumed. A lot of the latter half is the two awkward, scarred by various trauma young people navigating boundaries of their relationship and what is OK for them and what is not (Ling Buyi IS used to barking orders, NN is overly defensive about even the slightest suggestions - they eventually meet in the middle and it's lovely but it's even more lovely that the drama shows it takes work and conversations and compromises.)
The thing that she gets, perhaps because she's a pragmatic survivor, is how the choice of a husband is the most important thing for a woman in that society. Her life fully depends on that, even more than of e.g., an Austen heroine, because in addition to those hurdles, this is a polygamous society (so how many other women brought in and how husband treats the legal wife versus concubines etc also is an issue) AND a society where if your husband goes down, you and your kids will be executed/enslaved along with him. We see how badly wrong marriages can go - Yao's eventual wife's first marriage is a great example, where she marries a man who abuses her and kills her family. Or even that one woman who marries a general who dotes on her and is a great husband, but commits treason and is executed (and she's only spared by the grace of the emperor.)
And the fact that all those women swoon for Ling Buyi and want to marry him SHOWS how the sheltered/spoiled thing has fucked them up. Remember princess whatever? She is dead set on marrying Ling Buyi and it's insane to me. Yes, he's good-looking and quasi-son of the emperor who dotes on him (since it's safe to do so, he's outside the dynastic fight) but that's great for about three minutes and boasting at parties. She is so sheltered from reality, she does not think what it would be like to be married to him. I don't mean his revenge quest since nobody knows. I mean if he was exactly who he appears with no other goals. Ling Buyi dislikes her and makes it known. He's rude to her (he's rude in general. Hell, he's rude to his parental family, openly! And emperor lets him get away with it), he clearly looks down on her and at a couple of points he genuinely threatens her and her family with murder. He's not charming or gentle or considerate. THIS IS NOT A MAN YOU WANT TO MARRY OMG!!! It has clearly not occurred to her to think past being carried into this house, envy of all her girlfriends - day in, day out with a rude, violent man who is the emperor's favorite (so you can't really seek help from your family if he doesn't treat you well), who dislikes you and who is entitled to take other wives.
Anyway, I love NN and her pragmatic mind and that she makes Ling Buyi EARN her consent and her loyalty and her love. (But then she is ride or die for him, isn't she?)
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loofiedee · 3 months
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I finished wano and was so angry about their design choices that it made me draw OP fanart for the first time in months.
Design notes under the cut!
I wanted Hiyori to look more like Oden, so i made her features longer and Actually gave her Oden's eyeshape since that is. you know. a plot point?
Also very obvious inspiration from Ukiyo-e style woodblock prints bc I think having her be Stunningly Gorgeous And Painting-Like by the beauty standards of the era would have been fun.
I really love her color palette and silhouette so I didn't actually change her design much beyond that.
Momo has his mother's eyes in the same way Hiyori has her father's. Slightly downturned and extremely sweet-looking. I think this reflects nicely the way they each parallel their parents in the story, and the way each parent was important to them.
I made momo a lot smaller. I wanted the visual contrast when compared to Oden. Oden was muscular because he was running around fighting wild boars, but he was also muscular as a representation of him being strong and a capable leader. Momo didn't grow and slowly build strength like his father. Momo is awkward, and lanky, and wearing clothes that are far too big for him because they were never meant to be his in the first place.
In addition, I wanted to soften and round out his features. I wanted him to look just slightly too-young, younger than his body is, because I want everyone who looks at him to have a haunting reminder of the fact that he is a child being forced to awkwardly pilot the body of a man because of the legacy people forced him to take on.
I DID really like his unkempt hair though. I think it was a really nice visual representation of how completely and utterly he does not have his shit together. It makes him look like he was living in a cave for a few years and just rolled out.
And Also Hiyori Should Have Been The Fucking Shogun. For The Record. And She Should Have Killed Orochi By Stabbing Him To Death With A Hair Pin While He Was Helpless Bc Of The Sea Prism Stone Nail. Anyway, Bye.
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vigilskeep · 8 months
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why the kirkwall chantry is dedicated to hessarian, and why that gives us more than just a cooler name for it with a sexy accusatory nickname for anders in there somewhere: an illustrated guide!
(wait, wait, please remind me who hessarian even is, i hear you ask. hessarian was the tevinter archon who ordered andraste’s execution on the pyre. but struck with guilt at the last minute, he mercifully (i GUESS) killed andraste with a sword rather than let her suffer in the fire. he converted to andrastianism a decade later and took the rest of the imperium with him. he’s really popular in tevinter because, you know, he kind of improves their whole role in the story, and the chantry there likes to think he’s the most important disciple. you may recognise him from being one of the spirits in the urn of sacred ashes gauntlet, from the lore behind the blade of mercy gift for fenris, and the ‘blades of hessarian’ group on the storm coast in inquisition.)
okay, let’s first get the basics down: why do i think the kirkwall chantry is dedicated to hessarian? merrill, our glamorous tour guide to andrastian nonsense, is going to show us why
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here’s merrill examing the architecture of the kirkwall chantry. and it’s covered in this guy!
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how do we know this guy is hessarian? let’s compare it to some other, canonical andrastion depictions of the latecomer disciple. hessarian is typically depicted with some type of crown or headwear to demonstrate his status in tevinter, robes to denote him as a mage, a long beard probably also symbolic of tevinter culture at the time, and, of course, his blade of mercy. we can see all of these on the figure repeatedly shown in and outside the kirkwall chantry, as well as a certain similarity in the face to the other depictions.
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here’s another variant of how the kirkwall chantry depicts the blade of mercy! these are Everywhere, including right over the doors.
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and here’s more variants of the same figure inside. he’s carrying some kind of incense burner instead of a sword here, but it’s clearly the same face with the same crown and that classic hessarian beard. note his position of power flanking the enormous andraste figure.
so... why does that matter? isn’t it just a repeated asset?
no, it’s CRAZY actually. and here’s a couple reasons why!
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(fascinated by genitivi’s word choice of glitzy mansions, btw.)
firstly, the kirkwall chantry’s dedication to hessarian’s figure is one of the biggest markers that it, along with the gallows and the darkspawn, is a legacy of tevinter. as i said, he’s the favourite there. kirkwall was once emerius under tevinter’s rule, and from the moment we see the weeping twins that welcome you into the city, we’re supposed to remember that the city of chains has not changed all that much. just as emerius’ prisons now incarcerate mages, its industry is now powered by refugees, and the worst parts of its lowtown hold elves probably just as they once did, its magisters’ estates continue to hold the most powerful voices in the city: in this case, that of the chantry and grand cleric elthina. the hessarian statues that demonstrate the chantry’s wealth and power are inarguably either tevinter made or at least made in their style, with such similarity to the statues of slaves that terrorise the gallows courtyard. hightown is no more free of that inheritance than the circle.
secondly, the focus on hessarian can’t be an accident in dragon age 2, a game obsessed with the mercy kill. “without an end, there can be no peace,” says flemeth. somebody has to kill wesley rather than watch him turn into a ghoul. anders has to kill karl. hawke possibly has to kill their other sibling if they catch the taint in the deep roads. varric can kill bartrand when he goes insane. killing the serial killer of elven children rather than letting his madness continue is one of the most universally approved decisions in the game. in her last words, leandra thanks you for ending the mage keeping her alive with twisted necromancy, even if, and especially because, it means the end of her suffering in death. merrill has to kill a possessed keeper marethari. many more can be killed for being “too dangerous” to live, like the blood mage idunna. orsino is slain by hawke after transforming into a monster he would never have wanted to be. there’s probably a dozen more examples i can think of. and of course, in one of the most game-defining decisions hawke has to make, there’s the option to kill anders after the destruction of the kirkwall chantry. merciful is not the word i would use for that, but it has certainly been framed that way. i suppose that’s the same as what i think of hessarian’s actions, isn’t it? (we’re focusing on the andrastian relevance here and not the godawful treatment of mentally ill people in this game, btw, although. yikes.)
“don’t compare yourself to andraste,” says sebastian to anders. he could try telling the game that. hawke gets cast into a lot of roles, but when anders believes they will kill him, he’s casting himself as the martyred andraste, dying to burn rebellion into the face of thedas, and hawke as his hessarian, quick with the merciful blade. i suppose it’s fitting that the kirkwall chantry should be consecrated in the image of its champion. and that the chantry covered in that image gets destroyed moments before hawke makes their choice, if they decide to make a different one. it’s also worth mentioning that meredith is a mimic of andraste, too, with her stolen crown, making anders and meredith obvious combatants for andraste’s legacy in the game. hawke doesn’t get much command of the narrative, but maybe they can at least dodge being anders’ hessarian, if they choose.
idk i think it’s really fucking cool and we should talk about it more, basically! there’s a lot of other angles to take. hessarian is such a fun lore figure to explore. for example, i didn’t even get into the prominence of an andrastian mage figure here, or that the blade of mercy is the symbol of the templar order and was invoked even earlier, in dao, as the “blade of mercy” by traumatised mages who desperately sought to be purified by the templars’ judgement.
also, i think ‘the chantry of hessarian’s mercy’ sounds good. maybe ‘the chantry of our lady’s spilled blood’? that could be sexy. whatever. i’m workshopping it
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myrmica · 3 months
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mer my dear mutual mer i would like to ask you how do i get into lifesteal
HELLO FARLANDS!! you've come to the right place. Step into my office.
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this is an interesting question with a variety of different answers. a lot of the time people seem to direct you towards videos rather than stream vods, which does makes sense, because they're more accessible and the barrier to entry is definitely less daunting.
but lifesteal videos aren't episodic, they're designed for a viewer to be able to jump in with little to no context at any moment. they throw a lot of information at you fast as hell, and events spanning hours and hours of footage are condensed down in ways where most of the meat gets cut off. i have a hard time absorbing information from or remembering what happens in lifesteal videos because of the editing styles... i don't claim that this isn't in large part a taste thing, but in videos you miss the complicated character moments, and the sense of pacing/chronology, and all of the things that happen that don't translate well to video logic. and you don't get to see (as much of) the dimension of things where the fact that everyone is trying to make videos can be character and story relevant information. all of these things are what make lifesteal season 4 my favorite minecraft roleplay ever in the world. i guess i would say that i do like lifesteal videos, but mostly in relation to the livestreams.
all of which means that while pretty much any lifesteal video ever produced can make for a perfectly serviceable starting point, it doesn't really get you any of the things about lifesteal --i-- care about. and you're asking ME. So.
what is the deal with lifesteal in general?
you probably know at least some of this already, but for the sake of the thing:
lifesteal is a server based around a mechanic where, upon killing someone, you gain one of the hearts off of their health bar up to a maximum of 20. if you lose all of your hearts you're banned, but this is temporary and players can be revived. it's also a server where you're free to steal and destroy builds to your heart's content, and people toy with breaking the rules they do have often. so it naturally follows that lifestealers are generally interested in pvp, and have a social system where the most important relationships are your teammates, who come before basically anything else. lifesteal IS roleplay but it isn't scripted, and what they mean by unscripted is that the outcomes of a conflict can't be predetermined, because that would defeat the point—if something goes wrong, it goes wrong. (and hopefully, it goes right for somebody else.)
why season 4?
short answer, because it's the one that has the guys i care about in the situations i care about. the long answer is at 9k words and not even close to done yet so you're gonna have to wait a bit on that one.
the medium answer: while you could go back and watch through season 3 in detail, or try to just start watching season 5 and keep up with stuff live as it happens, that's not what i did. i have it on good authority that the mer guide to lifesteal season 4 works, because i did that, and also because my friend whose initial reaction to lifesteal was "wow this subz guy is loud..." and then radio silence for months has since sat through 30 hours of princezam building stream of his own free will. see review below:
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lifesteal can be sort of an acquired taste. i think a lot of the time it either clicks for you or it doesn't, or you have to see the right thing and then suddenly the appeal starts making sense.
luckily, the aftermath of zam betraying mapicc & ro in season 4 tends to have this effect on people, and it's a good jumping in point! i didn't actually start watching season 4 chronologically, i started by bouncing around the last couple weeks of the season and quickly discovering that it was bonkers fucking crazy and i needed to know more about this "eclipse federation" thing... so i don't really think knowing how it ends makes it less fun to watch, and if you wanted to just poke around at random and see what's up i wouldn't stop you. i went back and sat through everything between that aforementioned betrayal and the end of season 4 chronologically after i already knew how things ended up and it's thoroughly enjoyable that way. maybe even better than the alternative, because you're less likely to get caught up in how frustrating some of it can be. but if you would rather know as little as possible going in you can definitely give it a shot, and i do think there are parts that are probably even more fun if you don't know what's coming.
how do i do that though?
and here is my gift to you. when i watched through season 4 all i had to go off of was the vod archive spreadsheet, which is great & wonderful & awesome & the best thing ever, but it does kinda just have you clicking links blindfolded if you don't already know what's going on.
so eventually i started keeping track of vods as i watched, in a google doc. it has clips and/or timestamps and summaries for basically every vod in the second half of season 4. it's a little embarrassing because it records a bunch of my initial reactions to stuff but c'est la vie. it's also 85 pages long (it was 105! i edited my notes down!), but again you can jump around to get a lay of the land if you want, and how much stuff you skip is completely at your own discretion. have at it.
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general-cyno · 6 months
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y'know, one zolu moment I don't talk about nearly as much as I should but that I love and find super interesting is the bar fight on jaya. and though I know there's mixed opinions on the latter, I also like the contrast between jaya AND whiskey peak.
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when it comes to whiskey peak... I'm somewhere in the middle. as a concept I find it interesting too, since it involves zoro doing things on his own for the sake of the crew for the first time (iirc) and luffy being faced with the possibility of zoro not acting as honorably as he believes or trusts zoro to be at that point. thing is, luffy is someone who places great value in the kindness he receives and returns it tenfold. it's something we see throughout the story and in jaya as well actually, with cricket and his crew! this is also what's attracted him to most of the straw hats (if not every) and his allies also. so in theory, I don't think luffy reacting negatively to zoro attacking the ppl who'd been kind to him and the crew for seemingly no reason is entirely out of character, especially after waking up so disorientedly, and at least not that early on in the manga. he emphasizes it too, when he shows up to fight zoro,
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the problem for me lies more on the actual execution of it rather than the idea as a whole. kinda goofy for luffy and zoro to drop lines like "now we'll find out who's superior" during it as if they'd had some sort of fighting style rivalry beforehand and it's kinda removed from the og point of the fight but they're dumb kids and the story can take some goofy turns at times so. shrugs.
I can't tell if whiskey peak was originally meant to have an impact or effect on their relationship afterwards (some opinions I've read insist oda was forced to include it) but if anything, it ended up demonstrating zoro and luffy are better off fighting together than against each other, even as they're going on about killing and beating the other up over a misunderstanding. it reminds me of one comment I read on a r/ddit post a while ago (about another topic though) that pointed out how in terms of fighting styles, zoro and luffy kind of complement and make up for each other's weaknesses, which is such a nice detail and layer to their relationship imo.
and assuming there was a genuine point to it all (it's more fun that way heh), I'd say that it really highlights the importance of moments like those in jaya and luffy choosing to trust zoro not to fight back against bellamy's crew.
as luffy has learned this far, zoro would never hurt anyone for no reason and if there's a "reason" it's usually, if not always, rooted in his wish and duty to keep everyone safe (in whiskey peak, the townsfolk were actually baroque works agents, bounty hunters, who had a tendency to trick pirates like them at the start of the grand line). plus, zoro may enjoy battle but he doesn't fight for revenge or feelings/motives of the sort, as he admits later in skypiea. he does, however, react when the people he cares about are in danger (*waves hand and points at anything involving luffy*), hurt (chopper in skypiea as an example, but there's plenty more) or he witnesses great injustice (like yasuie's execution in wano). he's also not the type to enjoy beating up someone weaker, much less for shits and giggles. he will even save enemies if luffy asks him to, as long as it doesn't pose a bigger or immediate (real) threat to the crew.
compare zoro saving smoker in alabasta vs him refusing to accept x drake as an ally at first due to his known status as a traitor in the wano arc, for example.
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and of course jaya isn't an exception. when bellamy attacks luffy, zoro responds as usual:
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luffy himself stands up ready to fight too, at first. but as nami brings up the sky island and everyone mocks them for it, then bellamy specifically takes it upon himself to ridicule them - insisting on how foolish it is for ppl to "waste time" chasing their dreams, especially pirates, luffy decides not to fight back and tells zoro to do the same.
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this is one of those instances in which the "lu" of zolu really shines through, if you ask me. zoro's got a handful of grand gestures toward luffy on his belt, but this is one in which luffy does the heavy lifting for me. this is acknowledgedment and an insane amount of trust, a moment in which luffy's relying on zoro to understand his motives and to push back his usual protectiveness when faced with an enemy displaying a lot of hostility. and zoro gets it, stays true to the trust luffy's placing on him. he doesn't fight back, not even as nami watches and wonders why.
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I sound like a broken record at this point, but OP's brought up in several and different circumstances the fact that luffy and zoro are actually pretty similar. they tend to behave the same way or echo each other's words even when they're apart, share similar views on death, on growing stronger for the sake of the ppl they care about, and more so when it comes to chasing and fighting for their dreams.
in the aftermath of the bar encounter, blackbeard tells nami that luffy and zoro actually won that fight. this includes a curious panel in which luffy reminisces both shanks and ace.
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it makes sense why luffy shared this particular moment with zoro, when you think about it. those two are dreamers through and through, and if there's characters who can understand the importance of not only chasing those dreams but also keeping a promise, it's them - whose dreams they initially shared with ppl they cherished as kids and made promises to. for luffy there's ace and sabo, and shanks. for zoro it was kuina, then as an adult there was luffy himself. in a lot of ways, the straw hat is to luffy what wado ichimonji is to zoro. during that fight, bellamy represented everything luffy and zoro stand against both as characters and thematically speaking. and that, along with everything luffy's learned/come to know so far about zoro, is what he relied on. it's so good.
later, there's this scene with zoro and the rest, where nami wonders why zoro didn't go with luffy to face bellamy again:
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(fun bit here is that zoro actually asked luffy before if he needed his help. it's a small panel but cute! he trusts that luffy can handle himself, as luffy told him he could, and knows there's no stopping him when he's made up his mind lol.)
whether zoro was referring to bellamy's strength or his lack of belief in/mockery of dreams, or both, it's clear he understood why luffy chose to do what he did and asked him to stay put back in the bar, and he could relate to luffy's motives as well. as I mentioned above, it makes sense why zoro in specific would, without luffy voicing them out loud.
the nicest part is how all of these moments are a product of the writing that's gone into luffy and zoro's relationship/dynamic. when luffy chooses to trust zoro with stuff like this, there's a chunk of context that precedes it (like whiskey peak). and when zoro decides to follow him, too, it's because his loyalty for and understanding of luffy has been continually built as the story progresses which is super compelling, and also wonderful to see.
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caffeinetheif · 1 year
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I'm back :3c
Angst idea - Mc struggling to feel like their own person after the whole reveal of them being Lilith's descendent. The slight slip ups from the brothers (minus Satan, obv he didn't really know her,) the small comparisons from the angels that might've known her that make it appear that mc is now a stand in for her or that their new-found worth/importance only comes from their relation to Lilith.
You know me so well. I love angst so much lol. GN!MC as always <33 Since this got so long, the entire fic is under the cut lol. Might continue in a part 2 if this gets enough attention. If you notice my bias for solomon, no you don't
Am I Even Me?
WC: 1.5K
No Romance, but it could be romantic/platonic between Solomon depending on interperitation
Warnings: SPOILERS FOR CHAPTER 16, existential crisis/MC knows that they aren't the original MC, some harm done to MC by Lucifer (nothing extreme, just bruising), CURSING, Escaping/running away, talks of murder/death, MC gets compared to Lilith
GN!MC
The brother’s behavior is different than it used to be. Verbal and physical mannerisms have changed, both subtly and not. 
At first, you didn’t notice it and thought that the brothers were just warming up to you even more. It was hard to notice at first, but the more it happened, the harder it was for you to ignore.
When receiving little trinkets and candies and treats from the brothers that you never knew existed became more frequent, you started to suspect something was up. For example, Beelzebub goes out of his way to make special snacks and treats just for you. Asmodeus has given you articles of clothing and accessories that are definitely not your style and it has gotten to the point where you need to store them in a box under your bed. Every time you look at them or any other gift the feeling of not being seen as your own person crawls up your neck.
However, Belphegor’s behavior is the most noticeable. You find him unpredictable, off kilter in a way. When you first met, he seemed lonely and in need of company. You were blindsided when the switch flipped and he started to rant about how much he despised humans like you. He killed you, then you came back, told the story your ancestor Lilith told you, and now everything seems hunky dory. Just like nothing happened. You never really felt safe alone with him since then, even with his new sweeter mannerisms. 
How many times have the brothers almost called you Lilith? The ‘L’ being slurred in before your name is getting annoying. Sometimes you hear Beel and Belphie whispering to each other about you reminding them of their younger sister. Mammon is the least guilty of it and Satan has never compared you to her. It’s hard to compare someone you know to the sister you have only heard of.
The angel Simeon isn’t without fault, either. When he said that you hold yourself similarly to Lilith has played on repeat ever since he mentioned it. It makes you feel like you aren’t your own person. You’re tired of it, but you have to endure.
But you can’t help but think. Are they seeing you as you, or as her?
When dinner time rolls around and you join the brothers at the table, you idly chat about classes with Satan and Mammon. The chatting continues as you and the brothers pass around the various dishes of food and take your servings before passing it on. 
Cutlery clinks against the plates and bowls once everyone begins to eat. It’s the peaceful type of quiet that doesn’t need to be filled with chatter. AS usual, the silence doesn’t last forever.
“Could you pass the gravy, Lilith?” Leviathan asks. 
He quickly realizes his slip up. Leviathan stammers as he corrects himself.
That was the stick that broke the camel’s back. Every other time the brother’s have caught themselves before her full name slipped out. It was never subtle, but they tried to stop themselves from saying her name. 
You have had enough, “Do you think I haven’t noticed?” 
Beelzebub is the one to reply, “What do you mean, MC?”
Your anger grows and you announce, “Do you think I haven’t noticed that you all have been giving me things I have never asked for or talked about? Foods that I have never heard of or sweets that don’t exist in the human realm? They were all for Lilith, weren’t they?”
It’s Asmodeus that speaks this time, “Oh, MC. We didn’t mean… You just-” 
“Just what? Just remind you of her? Even Simeon has mentioned her to me.”
Mammon looks like he wants to say something too, but stays silent.
Tears collect on your lashes, “Is that all I am? A replacement for your dead sister?”
Every single one of the brothers falls quiet as they are caught off guard by your outburst.
Frustrated with the silence, you demand, “Answer me! Am I a stand in for your fucking sister!”
Lucifer breaks the silence first by slamming his hands on the dining table, silverware and dishes clinking as a result. “MC, that’s enough!” 
“No! If anything, you’re one of the worst about it! Everyone has been ignoring the fact that Belphegor fucking killed me! That whole incident has been just swept under the rug! And on top of that, you all have slipped up and nearly called me her name except Satan.”
Beelzebub stands, about to defend his twin when Satan stops him with a hand on his shoulder.
You take a step towards Lucifer and continue, anger and confusion getting the better of you, “Am I even me? I saw my own dead body! I don’t even belong in this damn timeline! What if I wanted to stay in my timeline? What if the Belphegor in that one didn’t hate my guts and didn’t want me dead? I can’t remember my own life because I was forced to take the place of the MC your brother fucking killed!” 
“MC, I said enough!” Lucifer bellows and grabs your wrist.
You wince as his hand wraps around your arm. His grip is strong, much harder than necessary and you know it will bruise. You know how he can be when he’s angry, and the sudden reality of what he could do hits you. Anxiety pulls at your lungs. None of the brothers move, though they look like they want to interfere. 
“Oi, Lucifer. Let MC go!” Mammon demands, getting up from his seat and preparing to jump the table at the eldest.
The break in his concentration allows you to wrench your arm from Lucifer’s grip. You run. You recognize the voices of the brothers yelling out to you, but you pay them no mind. Your legs carry you out of the dining hall, up the stairs, and down the halls.
You slam your door and slide the lock in place. It wouldn’t hold against the brothers’ strength if they really wanted to get in, so you take time to shove your armoire in front of it. The piece of furniture is heavy and takes time to move. By the time you have it where you want it, your adrenaline has worn off and your arms are shaky.
With your DDD in hand, you call the only other human you know in the Devildom. It wouldn’t be long before one or more of the brothers would try to talk to you. Eventually, you would need to talk to them about it. Just not tonight.
As your DDD rings, you hastily pack clothes into a duffel bag. It’s difficult with one hand and a bruising wrist, but you manage. Just before the last ring, the other line is finally picked up.
“MC, why are you call-”
“Solomon,” you sniff, cursing yourself for still crying, “can I stay at Purgatory Hall tonight?” 
Despite his arrogant facade, you can hear concern creeping into his voice, “Is everything alright?”
“I… Yes? Just come get me. Please. And be quick. I don’t know how long my door will hold.”
“I’ll be there in a minute. Call me again if something happens.”
Solomon hangs up and you finish packing your essentials. You pace with your bag over your shoulder, thinking he will appear in your room any second. Your thoughts are interrupted by your DDD ringing once again. You pick up.
Solomon starts, “I’m under your window. I’m unable to teleport into your room. There is a strong protection ward over the dorms.”
You hang up and run to your window and unlock it. Opening the window, you spot the sorcerer down below. Solomon opens his arms and motions for you to toss your bag down. He catches the falling luggage with ease.
Solomon faintly mutters something and a thick plant sprout shoots up to your window and forms a little platform in front of you. His magic never ceases to amaze you as you climb out of the window and onto the little step. The sprout shrinks back into the earth, bringing you down with it. As soon as your feet touch the ground, Solomon’s hand grabs yours and he gives you a quick warning before the two of you are teleported to Purgatory Hall.
The two of you arrive just outside the front entrance to Purgatory Hall and Solomon leads you inside. He shows you to the common room and sets your bag down besides the couch.
“I’ll be right back,” Somon says, “I’m going to go start some tea. Please make yourself comfortable in the meantime.”
You nod and he leaves the room. You sit down and rub the dried tears off of your cheeks. Out of curiosity, you check your DDD to see several messages from Mammon. He’s always been the most protective. Emotionally drained, you power down your DDD to avoid any messages or incoming calls.
A few minutes pass and Solomon comes back with a tray of fresh sweets and tea. You’ll deal with the fall out tomorrow.
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tvlandofficiall · 4 months
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I'm glad you and a few other people posted and reblogged some good darkner meta that last few days. I just recently watched some newer smaller theory youtube vids out of content drought thirst and walked away with a vague annoyed feeling on account several of them just assumed the FFTA style "seal away the fake fantasy darkworlds" type ending as like, a known fact. I feel like taking the darkners seriously as People is a super niche thing stuck in this circle of like a few hundred tumblr fans.
thanks! i'm glad to hear that my posts have been spreading around – the subject of the darkners is a pretty important one both in the game and to me, so it's well worth talking about! it saddens me that a lot of people seem to work off the base assumption that they don't matter or that their personhood won't be discussed – and there are many reasons i contemplate when it comes to why that is (do players have a difficult time believing in and caring for a world that isn't like the one they live in? do players assume deltarune will end sadly because sad endings are seen as more serious? why are these strange assumptions taken as fact by so many players, seemingly for no reason?) ultimately, i think the answer is that many players simply work off of what they know about these types of characters and plots from other games and stories, unaware of the ethos behind undertale and deltarune that twists and subverts these archetypes.
i've discussed it before, but in video games and other forms of media alike, the idea of a disposable character will arise. the legend of zelda, for instance, usually doesn't prompt you to consider the societies and lives of the octorocks you slay. in games where characters can raise the undead to do your bidding, they don't have to ask the skeletons permission – the undead are just mindless drones to command. robots in sci-fi settings will sometimes act as simple assistants to the human characters. monster movies star protagonists that mow down evil hordes of mindless werewolves or zombies. and in many fantasy stories, there lies the assumption that everyone will return to the "real world" at the end – at the end of the wizard of oz, dorothy doesn't contemplate the existence of the scarecrow or the tin man beyond their resemblance to the people in her real life. at the end of alice in wonderland, alice doesn't consider the personhood of the mad hatter or the white rabbit for long either. they simply fade away, leaving dorothy and alice with only the lessons they've learned and none of their strange new friends.
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undertale zeroes in on this first example and twists it – what if the octorocks in zelda were more than just free EXP? what if the "monsters" in those classic rpg games were all just as much people as link and his friends?
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undertale asks you to consider this question throughout. is this frog-like monster more than an enemy? what about this vegetable-shaped guy? is it okay to kill a monster if you're not sure how to get past them – or are they person enough to you to be worth finding a way to spare? what if you meet a relentless killer like the head of the royal guard or the king of the monsters himself? what about a killer robot? what about the reanimated corpses of long-dead monsters? what about a soulless talking flower that, just like you, sees the world as a game to be played?
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time and time again, the answer is yes. all of these characters are people – and the more you get to know them, the more you learn that they're not just their archetype. monster doesn't automatically mean disposable.
deltarune, then, takes undertale's ethos and twists it again. now it knows that you likely have been primed to extend personhood towards the undertale characters. but what about the darkners – new characters playing on that same idea? deltarune takes the simple premise of undertale and digs even deeper into it – these darkners are objects. you can kill them without much consequence. and the very fate of the world itself says that they're only there to assist the lightners – to happily serve their purposes and be discarded. some of them even appear content with this role – ralsei sure seems to be (after all, what becomes of darkners that struggle for anything else?)
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can you still extend personhood to these people? or will you accept the fate that many other characters like the darkners face – the fate of a world erased, a fountain closed, a world returned to "normal" with the people you're already happy to consider people?
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many archetypical stories play this fate to its end – which is why i think a lot of players do, too. but if you look at the characters' stories – at our protagonist's distress at ralsei's role to be their comforting servant and at spamton's inability to break free from his as a spam email; at spamton's conflict with his own fate; at spades kings' anger towards the system; at lancer's worry over what he is to his friends; at ralsei's role as servant and guide and his keen awareness of his own inescapable fate; at anything that happens in the snowgrave route – you'll see anything but the archetypes. the darkness may be growing, and many may be scared of the dark – but many found monsters scary, too.
(also, if you're feeling like you're craving deltarune stuff, i'd suggest checking out the newsletters or replaying the game! i tend to do the latter a lot just because i feel i should refresh my memory on characterization quite often, and it's interesting to discover a little something new to think about each time.)
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straycalamities · 1 month
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so for some Reasons, the same reasons zombinoslayer is on indefinite hiatus, i have a question on like. Say there is a Truffula Flu-oriented plot, story. Y'know a narrative. Coming up, but the way it's being made is basically prose-based, how would you prefer to see that formatted onto a tumblr askblog/archive thing?
it does deal with two characters and two characters only (so far?)
rp-style is out of the question because of editing reblogs being killed
but...i have a few thoughts, but i'm not sure which one people would like to read and digest the most
for more clarity on what i mean with terms/styles: click under the readmore
when i say "prose-style" i mean it's written like a novel. it's 3rd-person limited and past tense.
The sun was baring down hard on Mikey's back as he trudged down the sidewalk. He drug his feet, pose hunched. Why did he have to run out of eggs on the hottest day of the year?
when i say "script-style" i mean that it's written how you would read the script for a show or a play. this is how i treated zombinoslayer's big scenes. it'd have progressive images for each action/dialogue, wherever i deemed an image needed/important
Mikey: [The sun is bright and harsh. He is walking down the sidewalk. He looks exhausted.] Why did I have to run out of eggs on the hottest day of the year?!
and when i say comic, well, that's obvious. i'd do my best to translate everything as well as i can into something that is heavily image and dialogue based that has comic frames and such.
pros and cons of all these being:
prose pros (lol): it keeps all of the character's inner feelings, struggles, and thoughts and even some motives out and easier to see, which with these scenes and with how these characters are, might be important or even very enlightening for people i also don't have to draw as much because i would only be illustrating significant parts and to make the posts look more appealing/interesting. thus updates would happen more frequently. easier to plug into a translator if english isn't your first language the images would be illustrations i'd actually put effort into since there would be so few of them
prose cons: it'll be a lot more reading overall less left to interpretation, i guess? less pretty pictures? it takes a lot more cerebral energy in some cases to take in prose and turn it around in your mind i just get that for some people, they don't like walls of text. like i, for one, have gotten very bad at reading so i get it
script pros: more pictures to look at then prose-style scenes move by more quickly and smoothly, everything focuses more on actions and interactions so maybe things are easier to digest than prose-style still translator-friendly updates still more frequent than comic-style, but less frequent than prose-style most likely full-color images. may or may not have a bg in every image (just think zombino-slayer style? but i might not render every time either like i did there because that was..phew..that took a lot out of me)
script cons: more images to draw for me the format might be wonky to some none of those inner thoughts/monologues, a lot of depth and inner feelings/struggles/references made in the characters heads are left out. it all focuses on the external with hints to the internal left to expression, body language, and dialogue and the reader's own bias/experience
comic pros: ALL THE PICTURES YOU COULD WANT! everything's images! if you're most comfy with reading comics or manga already, you'd dig this (obviously) the least reading and it's all together in one image (well multiple) very easy to soar through and take everything in since the focus is on images and dialogue Only (maybe narrative notes or thought boxes when really important) easiest to share i'd think? and easiest to get a feel for what's going on in a scene without having to study and/or think too hard about it
comic cons: oh my god all that drawing...updates would be slow as molasses tbqh.. unless i decided to do manga-style aka B&W or limited grayscale/monochrome. even then though again, everything internal would be left to the hints you'd get from the external i could give with imagery, panel-shape, dialogue, and such not translator-friendly (i know there's the google image translator, but i'd be handwriting the text (i just like how it looks best) and it's not always friendly to handwriting)
--
as far as specifics for each style, we'd work that out once one is picked
other notes: i do think i'm a pretty strong prose-writer, but i also think i'm a pretty strong comicsmith. so i don't think it's really up to what i'd, personally, be able to pull off best with the skills i own :3 (and i mean script-style is the most simple of the three. and i've already done it. it'd be almost identical to zombinoslayer. and it'd be most similar to Camp Entre's rp-style i think? even though Camp Entre was much more dialogue-based than anything else
i know i haven't uploaded too much of either, especially my writing, but trust...i'm pretty good at it. at least that's what people tell me.
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christiansorrell · 6 months
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TTRPG Read-Through: Liminal Horror
Here is a read-through I did last year (originally posted on Twitter) of one of the my current go-to game for modern horror: Liminal Horror by Goblin Archives! - Christian
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I cut my teeth learning to GM as a Keeper in Call of Cthulhu and I've really been jonesing for a game in this genre that's more in the style of rpg I enjoy these days. I'm hoping this will be it!
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Really excited about this. Shifting away from mental illness and trauma, both of which have their obvious problematic pitfalls, is something I could see really opening up what a character looks like and goes through after having things go wrong in interesting new ways.
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Big spread on Facilitator and Player Principles. I think this is all very solid advice as a one-time or just-before-play read, but it's definitely too much for quick reference. That said, I always love reminding folks that we "play to find out what happens."
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I may be off the mark but these two bullets make me think Goblin Archives is a Friends at the Table listener. Both of these make me immediately think of Austin's openings on there (which is a very good thing, for me).
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Very straightforward stats. I like the HP distinction here and how it seems to refill between events/encounters and when drained is when you see actual damage occur. More inventory structure than I expected (I like that tho!) Cool to see character AND party questions here.
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I really loved the Backgrounds and character options in The Bureau, a Control-inspired megadungeon-like module for this system I did a read-through of about a month or so ago. Excited to see more of that here. Also, I really need to play as a Very Online character.
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Nice open character creation. I enjoy these types of questions: why do you believe there's something weird going on? What ideology guides you? What are your connections in the world, important relationships, etc.? Those create way more juicy bits than stats alone can provide.
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I first encountered these kinds of character bonds in Fate years ago, but it's been a go-to house rule of mine during Session 0/1 for anything my group is planning to do longer than one-shot play for. Even in a single session, it can add a lot. Cool to see it here.
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It's a d20 roll-under system (no modifiers, yay). Adding fatigue to inventory slots is a great way to make a mechanic out of that. Also, associates were unexpected! Shows this game could be more than just 3-4 bumbling normies going into the unknown (which is what I envisioned).
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Combat is fairly straightforward (in a good way). No rolls to hit, it's just damage that is varied. Props to not using Advantage/Disadvantage as a game term like everyone else. Again, the Detachments make me think this game could have some wild situations come up!
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Open-ended spell casting here (reminds me most recently of Primal Quest). They come and go day to day which is interesting, potentially changing entirely. I like the failure being equal to the desired effect. Want to kill someone with a spell? Be prepared to die if things go bad.
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Okay, these relics are extremely cool. A blade that does MIND DAMAGE and requires recharging by feeding it memories? Good stuff.
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Fallout is really interesting. Take enough DMG to go through your HP and it ticks away your Strength until you die (or take crit DMG). Fallout is the same but wears at your Control. Gaining Fallout makes you odder/more open to the true nature of things, but makes you heartier.
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This is a good approach bc it means leaning into the things most games gate behind "sanity" here makes you more able to cope with the weird in the future. Feels like a path to more interesting stories (rather than the CoC-style "you are in a sanitarium now" character ending).
Remainder of the book is a small bestiary with monster creation guidelines, spark tables and a lean but comprehensive mystery creation guide along with a sample mystery. The loose framework, a steady clock ratcheting tension, and a focus on lots of clues feels like good guidance.
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Having a mystery take only 6 pages feels much more approachable than the very traditional heavy-prep and lots-of-writing mysteries of something like Call of Cthulhu or Delta Green. I homebrewed a lot of CoC, and the prep work there can be pretty huge. This feels nice tho.
Overall thoughts: the book is a very lean and focused take on creating horror that doesn't get bogged down in the other ttrpg pitfalls of the genre while also having nice mechanics for associates, large scale encounters, etc. so there's room for a lot of types of stories here.
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I'll definitely be trying to knock out a mystery for this as part of the jam. I've got a lot of weirdness to get out of my system and this seems like an easy, streamlined way to do it. Also, excited to play The Bureau and The Mall.
You can pick up the most recent addition of Liminal Horror in print via Space Penguin Ink. You can also find it on Itch. The rules and additional content also available entirely for free on Goblin Archives github.
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Also, I wrote an adventure for this system last year: Tunnels in White.
Old money siphoning new money from every corner of your city. An aging mansion, quiet and worn. An old corporation shifting its gaze from development to development, always hungry, always growing.
A warehouse bearing the name Singleton Solutions, small and unassuming in one of a hundred industrial parks like any other, takes in truckload after truckload but never sends anything out. It’s the same for the people. Sometimes, they arrive in towncars, other times in shuttle vans. None come out. Ever.
What you know is something strange is going on inside that warehouse and you are determined to discover what it is. What you cannot know is where and how far the mystery may take you.
You can grab a print or digital copy HERE. It's also available via Itch.
Lastly if you like seeing my thoughts on games and how I make stuff for them, here's my monthly newsletter (which now has a free TTRPG thing to take to your table each month): https://meatcastle.substack.com
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guzhufuren · 1 year
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Favourite VegasPete Fics pt.2 (pt.1) (in alphabetical order)
1. Black Velvet by @kerrikins https://archiveofourown.org/series/3158706
Vegas notices Pete watching him during the torture scene. Intrigued and more tempted than he expected to be, he stalks Pete and succeeds in taunting him into coming with Vegas so they can fuck.
It starts off as a cat and mouse game for sex, but when the two of them are finally forced to reckon with the fact that they're on opposite sides, they both find themselves more conflicted and drawn to each other than ever.
2. cause and effect by @sapphicblight https://archiveofourown.org/series/3234285
“Don’t you have better things to do with your time? Other virgins for example,” Pete asks him one time over a guerrilla warfare style lunch date. “Not until next semester,” Vegas laments. “I’ve already exhausted our current student body.” Pete doesn’t even know where to begin unpacking everything wrong with that statement.
Or: the college au in which Vegas is a manwhore with a weird innocence kink and Pete is an inexperienced painslut.
3. Drowning, and other Metaphors https://archiveofourown.org/works/44171761
Vegas has never experienced an afterglow that burns like an oil fire, a sudden and dangerous thing that he can’t quite remember how best to put out past the panic. It doesn’t help that Pete’s smile is like a torrent of cool water on his feverish skin, making the flames jump higher. It makes Vegas want to do something dangerous that he’s never really been good at before – it makes him want to take care of Pete. Problem is, he doesn’t really know how.
4. Holy Palmer's Kiss https://archiveofourown.org/works/41273907
"By the way," says Vegas in English. "Interesting scars you’ve got on your chest." Pete doesn’t tense – he doesn’t – but the leveled manner his gaze slides back up must be enough of a tell because Vegas… "What ? Don’t tell me you thought it wouldn’t come up."
The begining of episode 11 but Vegas zeroes in on Pete's top surgery scars instead of his hip tattoo.
5. i want to wear his initial on a chain round my neck by @dage-mingjue & @stratumgermanitivum https://archiveofourown.org/series/3352987
Pete picks up the chain leash and offers it to Vegas. “So, you never did tell me what you were getting this for.” Vegas takes the chain from Pete’s hands and fixes a dark and sultry look on him. “This? Oh, it’s for bad boys who misbehave.” And with that he gives one last smirk before walking out the front door, leaving Pete an absolute mess behind the counter. *** “Pete,” Porsche says, in a very slow voice, like Pete is a particularly small child. “He was hitting on you.” Pete blinks. “He what now?” — Or; Vegas adopts a puppy.
6. Sharing Different Heartbeats by @raelle-writing https://archiveofourown.org/works/40549581
Of course Vegas noticed Pete. But not with much weight. Sure, Pete was hot. But so were all of the rest of Kinn’s bodyguards. That wasn’t notable. It wasn’t worth more than a passing once-over, or an absent glance at the man’s ass in those suits they insisted on wearing. He had a nice ass, but it didn’t stick in Vegas’ mind. It was passing lust, nothing more. And he certainly wasn’t hotter than the other bodyguards– not Porsche, for example. The only thing notable about Pete was that he had a surprisingly soft, cute face, and a sunny, disarming smile. He looked far too soft for his job. But he was Tankhun’s head bodyguard, and one of the men that Kinn often tapped for important missions. Which meant that the cute, soft face was hiding real talent and skill. So yes, Vegas noticed Pete. But it didn’t mean anything.
OR: a retelling of the story from Vegas' POV, from first impressions until after the hospital.
7. The King Must Die https://archiveofourown.org/works/41144892
“It’s fine,” Macau assures Vegas, whose very soul feels plunged into turmoil. Tear-bright eyes, a faint handprint on his sheltered face, and Macau tries to comfort Vegas. “It’s fine, I promise.” Vegas would kill for his brother, indiscriminately. He’s just now realising quite what that means.
(The queer experience of having an ill-advised one night stand with your cousin's head bodyguard and then ending up in hiding with him while you plot to kill your father.)
8. The Last Thing Left to Break by @blackwatervial https://archiveofourown.org/works/41053809
Hatred ran deep between the Theerapanyakul and the Saengtham family. It was common knowledge that the two leaders, Khun Vegas and Khun Pete, despised each other and used every small excuse to initiate yet another bloody conflict. Only that no one was really aware what happened behind closed doors…
9. the mortifying ordeal of falling in love by @dage-mingjue https://archiveofourown.org/works/41659146
“If I had to rate you?” Pete pauses and tilts his head with a low hum, considering. “I dunno, a six out of ten? I thought you were a sadist, but you didn’t really give that impression. Are you actually kinky? That didn’t feel kinky. It didn’t do it for me.” Vegas looks like someone punched him. Hard. His cock is still out and his hair is rumpled and he looks devastatingly disheveled, like Pete was the one who just took Vegas apart and not the other way around. “I’d worry that it was just a fluke,” Pete continues, ignoring Vegas’s flabbergasted sputters, “but I also don’t think I’d give you a second time to prove me wrong.” Pete shrugs and fixes his shirt, petting back his hair. “Anyway, see you around.” — Or a fic in which Vegas fucks through all of Kinn’s bodyguards and lands on Pete, but Pete uno reverses it on Vegas leaving Vegas wanting so much more. Vegas gets humiliated and has to work for it.
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suchine-toki · 1 month
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Thoughts about Hijikata Toushirou
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I think one of the most intriguing aspects of Hijikata's character is his internal conflict between his responsibilities as the Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi and his personal desires. As the second-in-command, Hijikata is burdened with immense pressure to uphold the honor and integrity of the organization, often at the expense of his own happiness.
Initially, his deep sense of duty and loyalty to protect Edo is mainly associated with how he feels about Kondo, their dynamic being integral to the structure and dynamics of the Shinsengumi. They both possess a strong sense of responsibility and honor, and, despite their differing leadership styles and personalities, they share the common goal of keeping peace.
Eventually, this evolves into a drive of his own, something he wants to do for himself. He wants to protect Edo because all the people who are important to him live there. That is what leads him to challenge authority when he believes it’s necessary to achieve justice, despite being a stern and disciplined leader.
Yes, Edo is where the people important to him still live. One of the problems I’ve with the character is how he was written during the Mitsuba arc and, although he was portrayed as a great man who only wants the woman he loves to be happy, he assumed and made the decision for her about what he thought would make her happy, and even when she was dying he didn't visit her.
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Hijikata is a more traditional guy, and I wouldn't be surprised if Sorachi wanted him to represent the typical Japanese man. There’s a reason the title of the chapter in which Mitsuba dies is called “German Suplex Any Woman Who Asks, 'Which Is More Important, Me or Your Work?” (132 of the manga). But I still would’ve liked his more traditional views on gender, which are presented on more than one occasion, to be treated as something to overcome.
But that’s tied to another problem, which is that Hijikata barely has a relationship with the women throughout the series, or many other characters to be honest. Having so much screen time, his interactions with the rest of the cast are usually limited to the Shinsengumi and the Yorozuya, mostly Gintoki. He later has a rivalry with Isaburo that has more substance, but the character is killed relatively soon after.
Overall, Hijikata is a standout character in Gintama, thanks to his complex personality, love for mayonnaise, internal struggles, and dynamic relationships with some characters. Still, I think Sorachi limited his relationships too much. He introduced a love interest to the story and then killed her in the same arc (and never mentioned her again), he introduced a brother who’d already died, he makes him form a friendship with the hardboiled detective that is then forgotten, and so on.
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fcknstar · 1 year
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,, double life "
pairings : gf!ethanlandry x fem!reader ( elysia )
summary : what happens if he wants you safe?
content warnings : violence, stalker-like
**lowercase intended**
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it wasnt like ethan was insecure or anything. he just didnt like the way others would constantly go to you despite countless of threats. why would they go to you for help if they didnt like you. 
ethan juggled his double life, needing to be in places at once. over time, he felt the need to watch you get home safely before attacking anyone. of course it was difficult, having to end someones life and 'be' at econ the next second. but he manages. he doesnt know how you would react to him being ghostface, despite knowing your interest in serial killers. 
ethan and you were relatively close, ethan the quiet and shy kid who did nothing but mind his business. and you, an outgoing person who wanted one to feel like they didnt have to hide anything. that was what ethan hated about you, you were so friendly. too friendly for his liking. he didnt want to kill unnecessary of course, because quinn thought it was him being weak. 
ethan and you arranged a meet up to get lunch together like youd usually do, but it shocked him when you turned him down last minute, having styled his hair the way you liked it. 
" eth, im sorry but i gotta help out andy. he has this problem and needs me- you okay? " his once bright and doe eyes switched. it wasnt inviting to say the least. 
" yea go ahead. seems like that guy really needs you, so how bout you dont make him wait. " 
" sorry eth, ill make it up to you. " you tiptoed and presses your lips onto ethans cheeks. you are one to be very affectionate to others, which was another trait ethan hated. 
who, who in this campus or city have felt your lips? ethan wanted you to only kiss him, have your last breath with him. 
watching you walk away, he couldnt help but sulk. why did you sudden turn him down, and was andy that important that you had to leave ethan stranded. 
" told you she was a waste of time. its better if we just kill her off so you dont go crying to daddy about your sad love story. " quinn didnt look up from the book she was currently reading. she found it amusing, how one person, one girl can change a guy entirely. 
" lay a finger on her for a surprise, quinn. " ethan stopped his pacing, angry that quinn would even suggest such a thing. 
" oh i love surprises! " quinn cheered. 
ethan was in his shared dorm, viewing your instagram story that was filled with pictures of you smiling. you smiling with that bitch andy. of course he would get angry, the only guy you ever posted other than him was chad and your family. andy? andy. youve got to be kidding, ethan thought. 
he trusted you of course, but not andy. 
★ 
andy seemed more touchy with you, seeing you take a shot of alcohol before encouraging andy to take some. andy just shook his head and brushed your hair behind you ear. ethan saw something in andys eyes that you probably couldnt. after standing outside the bar, pretending to be waiting for someone, he saw you and andy getting ready to leave. as if on cue, he acted like he was passing by when he saw you two. 
" eth! what are you doing here? you look cute tonight- " 
" hey ethan. "
" i was just passing by. come elysia, ill get you to sam- " ethan was rudely interrupted by andy. 
" dont sweat it, i can bring her. " 
" i feel that it is safer if shes with me. " ethan snapped back. from afar, he sees quinn shaking her head disapprovingly. 
" come on man, i can- "
" andy, i wanna go with ethan. " sighing in defeat, he lets go of you. you lost your balance but ethan caught you. 
" whatever man. " 
" you alright? can you walk? " ethan layed his hands on your shoulders to examine you. 
" eth, you worry too much! can we go now, m very tired. " ethan nodded, watching how quinn is still standing, studying you and ethan. 
ethan doesnt have a choice but had to walk towards quinn as that it the direction of your dorm. 
" hey angel! " quinn said, walking up to you, eyes darting to ethans arm that was wrapped around your waist. smiling with a glint of mischief in her eyes, she started. 
" you shouldnt be out with random people. who knows what could have happened if they were the ghostface killer everyones talking about? " 
" quinn- " quinn shrugged, challenging ethan. 
" eths here, i trust that he can protect me. " halting at a traffic stop, quinn sighed, knowing that shits not true. 
" ely, you know better to trust anyone after what happened in woodsbro. plus, you know what they say, keep your enemies closer. " that made you turn to quinn, eyes squinting in disgust. it was as if ethan knew what you were going to say, so he spoke for the both of you. 
" its not nice to bring up someone's past quinn. " green light flashed quinns face, indicating that you were able to start walking as the vehicles stopped for you. 
" what, am i wrong? " ignoring quinn, ethan quickened his pace and wrapped his hand tighter around you. 
he knew quinn was driven by madness. having lost her brother that was killed by your best friend. since sam killed the person she cared about, quinn wanted sam to feel how it feels to lose hers ; tara and you. 
the next day, you thought about what quinn said. it made sense but you knew you could trust your friend group. quinn was probably just looking out for you, you thought. you and quinn had a good relationship, or so you thought. quinn would come to you for advices or even when she had to spill a gossip. 
screams filled the void as your eyes darted to quinns room. mindy stood up quickly, rebuilding her guard that she destroyed for the friend group. there was no way someone could have sneaked, the doors having about five locks and the apartment was on the third floor, with no fire escape. 
then there was silence. nobody dared to make a move and senses heightened. the door swung open, revealing ghost face throwing quinns body in front of you. everyone screamed, scrambling to find a zone where they felt safe in, but it was impossible when ghost face could easily find you. rushing to the bowl where held all keys, you realized it was empty, signaling that there was no way out. 
wanting to defend yourself, you ran to the kitchen where a frustrated sam threw the knife holder. it was empty. no knives whatsoever. fuck. sam ran towards you, not realizing that you were in her way. ghost face swung his knife missing sam by an inch. a wet sounds was heard when sam realized that the knife had cut your arm. 
screaming in pain, you ran after sam, trying to find somewhere safe to hide. ghostface - ethan - realizing that he had hurt you, felt worried, but had to throw that feeling aside as he had to at least kill someone. 
anika pushed the drawers in front of the door with the help of chad after getting stabbed by ghostface. sams newfound boyfriend, danny, pulled his ladder through his window and onto yours. 
" you gotta climb! sam, im here! just look at me, focus on me! " sam breathed, calming herself down. 
the pounds on the door got worst as ghostface tried to budge the door open. seeing that mindy was holding it back, you ran to her aid. 
" l, its not safe, just go! " 
" fuck you if you think imma leave you. " mindy smiled through pain and her suffering, her nightmares chasing after her.
" go mindy! " mindy shook her head, not wanting to leave you. 
" anika needs you, mindy! go! " mindy was feeling hopeless, she didnt want to leave her girlfriend and her best friend that she considered her sister. 
nodding, she ran to anika. 
" anika i need you to climb, okay? " mindy held anikas tear stained face who had fear in her eyes. death was just on the other side of the door, she knew she couldnt make it. 
" mindy you go first, please mindy. " she cried. 
not wanting to fight any further, mindy pressed her lips onto anikas, afraid that this might be the last considering her injuries she sustained. 
when it was anikas turn, she looked at you.
" elys, you should go- "
" anika! you go first please. i can hold this son of a bitch back. " you found a dumbbell, you thought that could be used as a weapon if ghostface attacks. ethan hated that you were selfless, risking your life for others when he should be the one risking his life for you. 
anika was barely in the middle of the ladder when ghostface managed to open the door. you were pushed forward by impact. adrenaline was pumping harder, so you lifted the dumbbell and aimed at ghostfaces mask. a groan could be heard from behind the mask. satisfied with such noise, you continued hitting ghostface in the face until anika was able to reach the other side safely. once ghostface was stunned, you ran to the window and began climbing it when your leg got pulled. 
your head landed with a thud and sam called out to you. 
ghostface then pushed the ladder off your windowsill and shut the window, leaving you trapped with him. 
all they could see from such a small view was ghostface lifting his knife, landing it right where they thought you were. there was a scream and they knew then and there you were gone. sam cried out, having to lose another loved one. ghostface stood up, head slightly tilted as he walked out of the room. 
★ 
" i had econ! " ethan defended himself. 
" i was in the studyhall with a thousand of students, you can ask them! " chad let go of ethans collar when chad sighed. 
" wheres ely? " eyes running through the group. " and quinn? "
" she- theyre dead. " chad knew about ethans jnterest in you and felt devastated for his friend. but it was for the better as he knew if ethan was there to witness your killing, he wouldnt be able to take it all in. 
" fuck.. no.. no. " ethan dropped to his knees as he couldn't believe what he heard. mindys guess of him being ghostface faltered. unless it was a pity act. and it was, because he knows that youre safe. 
★ 
waking up with a headache, you felt light weight. you jolted up think you were dead. 
" youre not dead you know? " it was ethan. he was sitting by the foot of the bed watching you with intense eyes. 
" where are we, eth? " glancing around the unfamiliar room. 
" how are you feeling, l? " ethan ignored your question, not bothering to answer. he doesnt know how to explain what happened. 
" eth, im being serious, where are we? " ethan wanted it to be just you and him. when you tried to move off the bed, a cold bar came in contact with your wrist. 
a cuff. 
" eth, whats going on? " no answer. 
" ethan? "
" ethan landry? " he saw how your eye brows creased, wanting an explanation. 
" i need you safe here, ive hurt you already and thats enough for me to keep you safe. youre safe with me. im all you need. " ethan was rambling. 
what? he hurt me? looking at your arm that was bandaged, you connected the dots. 
" you're not- " 
realization filled your eyes as it darted toward ethan. 
" what? are you scared of me now that im ghostface? are you going to run away when you know damn well i can protect you better than anyone can. " 
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