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aliceslantern · 4 years

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Beyond this Existence: New Life, short 16--Unlucky

Recovery is a tedious, nonlinear process. Demyx, Ienzo, and the others living in Radiant Garden's castle have to learn to come to terms with their pasts and their memories, learn to grow, and begin to understand what, exactly, it means to be human. While there is unexpected joy in this, there is also unexpected sorrow. A series of oneshots set after Beyond this Existence.

Current short: “Unlucky.” A routine case with a vengeful patient leaves Demyx with more than he bargained for.

Read it on FF.net/on AO3

---

It had been kind of a long day. Drizzly, but in a vague sort of way, as though the sky couldn’t make up its mind. Demyx only had one call left before shift change, and a last-minute one; a woman had badly cut her hand by the marketplace and needed help. It would be a quick fix, at least, before he could go home and collapse into bed.

The population around here was getting to be more dense, though it still paled in comparison to many of the cities he’d visited. A few people he’d healed greeted him. He still struggled to remember all their names.

The woman was waiting by her front door, her face ashen and drawn. She had a towel wrapped tightly around her hand, and it was soaked through in places. “Good, you’re here,” she said.

“Ouch, what’d you do?”

“Trying to do some slice and dice on some vegetables… and, well…” she shrugged. She was youngish, maybe thirty or so. Her apron had splotches of blood on it.

“It happens more than you think.” He smiled. “I can fix it. Why don’t you sit down?”

She sat on her stoop. He could barely see the inside of the small home, the onions and tomatoes sitting on a now-dirty cutting board. A bloody knife. A kettle had been put up, but was not yet boiling.

Demyx sat next to her. “How’s the pain?”

“It stings more than anything. The peppers, you know.” She bit her lip.

Before unwrapping it, he gave a quick scan of the wound, and cast a spell to coagulate the blood. He set the bloody towel aside. It was a clean cut, but one that probably would’ve had trouble healing on its own. He cleaned it quickly. She hadn’t even lost much blood, and it was shallow enough that it wouldn’t scar with a spell. He had it fixed in five minutes. The woman flexed her hand.

“You’re all set,” he said. “Just try to be careful next time, okay?”

“Oh, before you go. I was about to make some tea. Would you like some?”

Demyx hesitated. “That’s really nice of you, but I should let you get back to your dinner--”

“I insist.” She smiled widely, revealing straight, even teeth. “It’s the perfect kind of day for it.”

“Uh… sure. Thanks.”

She went back inside and came back a moment later with two mugs. “It’s a special blend. I made it myself.”

“Oh, are you a botanist?”

She laughed superficially. “You could say that.”

Demyx sipped at the tea. It was incredibly bitter, and he tried not to flinch. “The taste really is… unique.”

“Thanks. I thought so too.” She didn’t sip at her tea immediately.

“Are you new here? I haven’t seen you before.”

“I guess, in a sense. I just moved back in a few weeks ago. This was my sister’s house, but she… well.” The woman sighed. “She fell to darkness some years ago.”

“I’m really sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she said. “I’m getting along just fine on my own.”

He drank the tea probably too quickly, eager to get rid of the sour taste. “That’s good. I’ve noticed the people here are really friendly. You’re in good company.”

“I’m sure I am.” He wondered if he was imagining the dark undertone of her voice. She had been talking about her dead sister, after all. “We seem to be pretty welcoming to just about everyone.”

“Yeah… I really like it.” He tried to smile. “Thanks again for the refreshment. I’ll see you around.” Demyx realized he hadn’t even asked her name, but when he turned back to fix this, she had gone inside and shut the door. He brushed off the weirdness as a lack of social skills and started the long walk back.

It did seem much longer than usual. His calf muscles were getting tighter as he climbed the shallow incline, even though he usually took it a few times a day. Demyx attributed it to exhaustion, the weather. Once he was on the flat surface of the postern it didn’t fade, however, and in face the ache seemed to be creeping steadily upwards. He tried to think about what it might be. Potassium deficiency? Dehydration? He’d probably feel better with water and rest.

He kept making his way upstairs. The cramping was getting worse, more uncomfortable, almost painful now. Had he burnt out again? That had felt kind of similar. It would figure. Broken bones and pneumonia were high-cost heals, and he’d had a couple. He started to dig in his kit for an ether, found half of one, and had just brought the bottle to his mouth when a sharp pang in his chest made him double in two. The bottle fell to the ground and shattered, spilling the shiny green liquid all over the floor. “Shit.” He rubbed at the pain, trying to get it to ease enough to stand. A hot burning sensation replaced the pain, and his vision seemed to shimmer.

It wasn’t--no--

Demyx dug out his gummiphone and dialed Even.

His voice was sharp and snippy. “Boy, I’m in the middle of something. What do you want?”

“I think I’ve been poisoned.”

---

Demyx couldn’t make it as far as the lab. His muscles were too tight, and painful, and he sat propped against a wall waiting for help. He dug through his bag with shaking, achy fingers to see if he had any antidote, but he’d used his last on a kid who’d accidentally swallowed cleaning products. He had to wait and hope he could make it until help came.

At least it was fairly quick. “What on earth did you do to yourself?” Dilan asked sourly.

“Not me,” he hissed through his teeth. He could feel sweat coursing down his face.

“Can you walk at all?”

“Hurts too much.”

Dilan hefted him up like a baby. Being moved hurt worse than the stillness, and for a moment he thought he might faint. “You’re much lighter than you look.”

He tried to keep breathing. His head was swimming too much to try and figure out what had been done to him, and why. Even was smart. Even could handle it.

“So what is this? An accident? A cruel prank?”

“Don’t know.”

“We’re almost there.”

Time seemed to stretch, elongate…

“Demyx, try to stay awake.”

“Sorry.”

There were so many damn hallways in this place.

“Here. Set him over here.” Even’s voice, high and stressed.

“He’s been slipping in and out of consciousness.”

A sharp stab of cool fluid into his arm. Demyx’s eyes fluttered open. He could just barely feel the canvas of a cot under all the pain.

“There you are,” Even said. Another pinprick, this one in his hand. “How do you feel?”

“Hurts.”

“Where?”

“Everywhere.”

“I’m sorry, I’m hesitant to give you anything while we’re trying to get you to metabolize this nasty business. I’m going to take some blood, alright? Let’s see if I can’t figure out what this is. In the meantime, I'm just going to keep a steady antidote drip.”

“Okay.” The words would’ve meant more to him if he could focus. His muscles were stiff, tight, and burning. Demyx wasn’t sure to be glad or not he was conscious. He shivered, hard enough that Even had trouble getting blood. Even tucked a scratchy wool blanket around him.

"I should tell Ienzo."

"No," he hissed. "No, I'll do it after."

"You're very ill. You'll probably be very ill for the next few days."

The generic antidote was making him more lucid, but it also made him more aware of the pain, insidious and awful. "That bad?"

"I'm still doing research. But you're lucky you recognized it and got to me when you did."

Through a sort of haze Demyx watched Even at work at the nearby table, watching him pipette blood and examine it under a microscope.

Time was moving weirdly. It could've been ten minutes or two hours. The pain eased in the slightest. He was desperately tired, and desperately thirsty, despite the fluids he was taking. "Even?"

He looked up. "Yes?"

"Will I die if I go to sleep?"

He smiled sadly. "No, you're rebounding enough. Get some rest. You'll need it."

Demyx slipped in and out, never quite getting all the way asleep…

"It was quite alarming to see. I haven't yet gotten the story. I think you may be right, Dilan. Someone clearly has ire for us."

Demyx blinked. Something cold wormed under the skin of his hand. "What…"

Even patted his wrist. "A more specific antidote. Go back to sleep."

"What was it?"

Even frowned. He sat on an upturned crate next to the cot. "A type of neurotoxin that causes your cells to stop accepting water. Essentially, it would've been a very quick, very painful death from dehydration. Not to worry, I've made a serum which seems to be combatting it. Your vitals are already stabilizing."

Demyx considered the irony of this. "She must've known."

Even's eyebrows furrowed. "Who?'

"The person who did this." He tried to sit up, or at least prop himself up, but his muscles were horrifically sore. “About my old powers—”

"Don't move," Even said gently. "I figured you, of all people, would understand this part of palliative care."

The joke didn't phase him. "Why else would she use a poison to dry me out?"

"Who?"

"The woman, the one who--" Hot nausea brought tears to his eyes. "I'm going to throw up."

Dutifully, Even handed him a pail to be sick into. This dealt with, he tried to focus.

"She gave me tea. After I healed her. I thought the cut was too clean, that she acted weird--"

Even sighed. "You gave her the benefit of the doubt. As any competent physician would." He paused. "Do you remember where she lived? We should let the committee know. The last thing we need is another maniac on the loose."

Demyx swallowed the taste of bile. He told Even what he remembered, but this exhausted him into a stupor. Even gave him another dose of the real antidote. He drifted off and woke suddenly, disoriented, is his own bed. There was still an IV in his hand. His head was pounding in time with his heart, an insistent thud like a metronome, and his stomach was sour. The blackout curtains of the room had been drawn, leaving it blessedly dark and cool.

In the semidarkness, he did not quite realize that there were other people in the apartment with him. The lamp by the couch was on, and it was here Even and Ienzo sat, mumbling to one another too softly for him to make out. Demyx felt horrifically thirsty, and despite all the time that had passed and all the fluids he’d taken he still didn’t feel the need to use the bathroom. He wondered if the poison had done more damage to him than he’d thought, that it had fucked with his kidneys, and if he should say something.

One thing at a time. Worry about sitting up first.

A sharp, splitting pain in his ab muscles nearly made him gasp out loud, but he managed it at last, treading dizziness. His skin was tacky with dried sweat.

The muffled conversation abruptly stopped. Ienzo stood and all but ran over to him. “You scared a few years off my life. Easily,” he said. He pulled Demyx into a gentle embrace, and if he hadn’t been so dehydrated he probably would’ve cried. Demyx couldn’t help but lean into the comfort. Too soon, Ienzo broke away and touched his face. “How do you feel?”

“Oh, wonderful,” he said hoarsely. “I could run a marathon.”

A twitchy, anxious smile broke the tension in his brows. “Are you still symptomatic?”

“Well I feel like roadkill. Like a hangover times one thousand. But the worst of the pain seems to have stopped.”

“Good.”

Even gently steered Ienzo out of the way and took Demyx’s pulse. “Aerith appraised you when you were unconscious,” he told him. “You should be alright, more or less, so long as we keep your electrolytes up to snuff. The antidote seems to have worked before the poison caused lasting damage. I’ve made more, in case our little friend decides to strike again.”

“I’m still so thirsty.”

“I’m sure it must feel that way. You’re getting more than enough fluids.”

Ienzo turned towards the window, peeking through the curtain at the moonlit night. His arms were crossed and he clutched his elbow so tightly Demyx could see the knuckles were white. He wanted to console him, but considering his brain felt like it had been microwaved all he could focus on was how shitty he felt. “Can I change clothes?” Demyx asked Even. “Maybe take a bath? I feel gross.”

Even raised an eyebrow. “Do you feel up to it?” he asked. “You should really rest first.”

“I’ll feel better. There could still be vestiges of the poison in my sweat. Which I’m kind of covered in.”

“That’s a fair point. Ienzo?”

He jerked, as though startled.

Even squinted at him. “Could you help him? I’m sure he’d prefer you over me.”

“Yes. Of course,” he said stiffly.

Standing was treacherous, and he had to lean heavily against Ienzo. In the privacy of the bathroom he let Demyx undress, his back turned as if they didn’t see one another naked on a regular basis. Demyx hung the IV fluid on a rack normally devoted to towels and settled in the warm water. “Well, this is humiliating,” he said slowly.

Ienzo sat on the covered toilet. “I’m sure.”

“I feel like an invalid.”

“You’re very, very weak.” He sighed. “While you were resting, I studied that compound. Things could’ve been so much worse, Demyx.” His voice trembled in the slightest. “It could’ve caused irreparable, irreversible damage to your brain. You could’ve had memory loss, or been paralyzed-- why are you laughing?”

The deadly anger of his tone sobered what little humor Demyx had found. “I can deal with memory loss.”

Ienzo paled, his anger dissolving. “Yes… that was… tactless of me.” A pause. “You could’ve lost so much, aside from your life. Motor skills… the ability to speak…”

“Motor skills?” He looked at his wet palms, which trembled faintly. He hoped it was from anxiety and nothing deeper. Aerith would’ve said something, right? “You mean I couldn’t play Arpeggio?”

“Amongst other things.”

He’d been too sick to realize it. He could handle the thought of death, even being disabled, because there was nothing wrong with not being able to walk or talk. Whatever would have happened, he could handle and adjust. But losing Arpeggio? Again? He felt wetness in his eyes and tried to blink it back.

“This is probably traumatizing,” Ienzo said softly. He took Demyx’s hand.

“Probably? You think?”

“I hope this is an anomaly, a lone act of cruelty. The committee is opening an investigation. Once you’re well, they want to question you.” He slumped a bit, as though his body weighed too much. “I am… furious. Even if this is revenge against the apprentices, there was no reason for you to get caught in the crossfire.”

“Unless she knew about me being in the Organization.”

“That is… possible, yes. Even so. It would’ve made far more sense for her to target one of us.”

“I interact with people more. Maybe she was trying to send a message.” His stomach was feeling a little worse, and he settled more deeply into the tub.

“Perhaps,” he said. “I had hoped Dilan was wrong, about the townspeople harboring grudges against us. I was naive.”

“You were hopeful.”

Ienzo looked up. There were tears in his eyes.

“Maybe it’s got nothing to do with our pasts. Maybe she’s just crazy and wanted to hurt someone.”

“Maybe,” he said, though Demyx could tell he didn’t believe it. “Is it helping? The bath?”

“It feels good. I’m so sore.”

“You probably shouldn’t stay in too long. I’d feel much better if you were back in bed. I should probably change the sheets, in case you were right about it being in your sweat.” He stood. “I’ll do that now. If you need me, shout.”

Taking a bath wore him out. Once he had actually brushed his teeth and gotten dressed again, he fell asleep for an indeterminable length of time. When he woke up, he was still achy, still thirsty, but a little bit less so. He kept down tea and a bowl of rice, was able to get to the bathroom on his own. It was a small victory.

Aeleus visited him. After all this time they weren’t very close, but Demyx appreciated the gesture regardless. “I’ve made you some bone broth soup. It’ll help get your strength back.”

“Thanks. That’s really nice of you.”

He sat in the chair at the bedside. Ansem had taken Ienzo out for lunch, though he didn’t know that Demyx asked him to do this. Ienzo needed air, some time to decompress. “How do you feel?”

“Much better,” Demyx admitted. “I’m getting there. Slowly. I can’t wait to get this thing out of my hand.”

“You gave Ienzo quite a fright.”

“I think it hit him harder than it hit me, to be honest.” Demyx bit his lip. “To a degree I think he thinks it’s his fault. That the woman was really after one of you, that this was some sort of revenge. It’s probably triggering him. That’s why I wanted him to talk to Ansem.”

Aeleus nodded sagely. “You know him well.”

Demyx laughed a little. “Well--I hope so. He’s hard to figure out, but I’m getting better at it.”

“You’ve become very considerate. Compared to then.”

He scratched the back of his neck with his untethered hand. His hair was a mess, but he saw no point in making it look good today. “I’ve worked really hard on that. The way I… used to talk to the others, makes me… ugh, cringe.” He bit his lip. “You want to know something really horrible? When Demyx heard about you guys at CO getting killed, he was happy. As much as a Nobody could feel, anyway.”

Aeleus’s expression barely changed. “You had to develop a sense of empathy from scratch. I, too, hardened my heart. So to speak. It was the only way to get through.”

“I already asked Even and Dilan. But how did you end up with Ansem?”

Aeleus thought about this for a few minutes. “We can say it was… progress for progress’s sake,” he said slowly. “I was young, I was idealistic. I’d heard that Ansem was pushing the boundaries of what could be, and I… feeling somewhat stuck in a rut… craved that change.”

“Did you feel trapped in Radiant Garden?”

“I believe I did. To hear him speak of other worlds, of other cultures was… intoxicating. It changed absolutely everything. Now I try my best to not be jaded. This place… I hope to nurture it.”

Demyx understood. “I’d say you’re doing a pretty good job.”

---

He slept again, deeply, and woke up disoriented a little after noon. He felt weird, and it took him a minute to process that he only felt that way because he wasn’t thirsty. Demyx waited for Even’s confirmation, but getting rid of the IV made him feel a million times better. He was able to at least rest on the couch now instead of in bed.

Aerith came by with Leon. She confirmed that the poison was gone from his system, but that he should still rest for another few days, at least until the fatigue dissipated. She made them tea and, exam and pleasantries over, they set to business.

Demyx told Leon everything he remembered, every detail to how she looked and acted, to how the tea tasted, where she lived. He’d told Even all this in a sort of fugue state. Giving the report made him feel vaguely nauseous.

“We’ve investigated the leads,” Leon said. “It’s so weird. When Yuffie went to that home, there was nobody there. There was no sign it was even inhabited. We’ve asked around, and nobody’s seen this person in days. We’re thinking she came over with one of the last Traverse Town flights. Without a name, and without records… she’ll be hard to catch.”

Demyx bit his lip. “I don’t want anyone else getting hurt.”

Leon sighed. “Yeah, us too. And we’ve let everyone know--not that it was you, but that someone had been poisoned, and not to accept anything from strangers or what seems or tastes suspicious. The restaurant owners are all pissed at me, but I don’t do this to be liked.”

“Even has samples of my blood and the poison. If that helps.”

Aerith’s eyes brightened. “You know, it might,” she said. “Maybe if I can figure out where it came from, we can find out more about the person who did this.”

“I’d say you guys in particular need to be extra careful,” Leon said. “In case this was targeting you specifically.”

He squeezed his eyes shut. “Do you think it is? Has anyone ever, like, mentioned anything about us?”

Leon tapped his fingers against his notepad. “Not that I can recall. I sent Yuffie out to do some recon. She’s good with people. If there’s anything to be found, she’ll find it.”

“And at least we have and can make more of the antidote, should someone need it,” Aerith said. “It’s good you were able to recognize it for what it was.”

“I kind of have you to thank for that. That, and years of getting bitten by asshole Heartless.”

Leon smiled. “We’ll call you if we need more information. Though this brings up an important point. We need to know who lives here. What they’re doing here. Town is growing so fast. We’ve been so focused on the literal infrastructure that I nearly forgot there needs to be other infrastructure too.”

“Oh, bureaucracy.” He tried not to flinch.

“Sort of. We should start a basic census, at least.” He thought about this for a moment, tapping a pen against his chin. “Well, I hope you have a quick recovery.”

Aerith gave him a hug. “Be well.”

---

It took him about ten days before he was feeling normal. It definitely felt like he’d been really sick for a long time. He’d lost weight, and ended up having to buy a belt because nothing fit right anymore. He hoped to gain a few kilos and get back into shape. Demyx was sure if he tried to do magic right now it would wipe him out, or worse.

One of these days he and Ienzo took a walk into town to get some groceries. At first, a flutter of anxiety crept under his skin, because even though Leon said they kept his identity hidden in terms of the poisoning, he feared everyone would know. But they were treated more or less normally.

“I figured I’d use this time as an excuse to bake more,” Ienzo said. “If you need to gain weight, that’s a good way to do it.”

“I won’t say no.”

“I know you won’t. I do enjoy it.” He stood to Demyx’s left, so he has trouble reading Ienzo’s expression. He swore he heard some artificiality in it.

“Can you make macarons? The last time you did I swear I met god.”

“To be fair. We’d just smoked marijuana. That does affect taste. ...And any supposed divine revelation.”

“Even so.”

“That was a good night. We should do it again when you’re well.”

A blush crept into his cheeks. “Yes.” They hadn’t had sex in nearly two weeks; maybe if he wasn’t exhausted when they got home Ienzo might want to.

“Do you feel up to taking the long way home?”

“I think so. I’m not that tired yet.” The early morning air was fresh and cool, and he drank it in gratefully. Even with open windows, the air inside could only feel so clean. “I’ve missed being outside.”

“You’ve dealt with all this beautifully.”

“No point being weak and also miserable.”

“I suppose.”

Demyx looked back towards him. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Why is it you ask?”

“I wanted to make sure.”

He sighed. “Admittedly, it did dredge up some negative memories,” he said. “You and I… have a complicated history of collapsing on one another.”

“We have the combined constitution of a wet tissue.”

He chuckled. “As well as luck that is both terrible and great.” A pause. Demyx let him take his time. “I know it’s not my fault, but I do feel… guilty. If this is a targeted attack, who knows what else might happen should someone with a grudge seek revenge?”

“I really hope it isn’t that.”

“I do too--” Ienzo’s head snapped up. “What was that?”

“What was what?”

“I swear I saw someone--maybe I’m paranoid.”

“Might be a Heartless.”

“Are you strong enough to fight one?”

“Maybe a Shadow--probably not much more. Maybe we should turn back towards where there are more claymores.” A seed of dread started to grow in his stomach.

“Yes. I agree.”

They walked back along the blue stone that bordered the edge of town. Ienzo kept looking over his shoulder; Demyx couldn’t help but do the same. They heard rock scrabbling. “We’re definitely being followed by something,” Demyx said, as softly as he could.

“What should we do?”

“Try and act natural until we get somewhere safer.”

Ienzo squeezed his hand more tightly than he normally did. “I’ve got a pocket knife. But I don’t think that will be much use. And my magic is still very limited.”

“Well, we’ll see. Might want to dust off that strategizing part of your brain.”

There was a quiet thud behind them. Demyx turned, tense, ready to draw the Keyblade.

The figure wore a cloak. Not an Organization cloak, a regular, run-of-the-mill cloak. It was brown.

But Demyx, after years of recon, didn’t need to see a person’s face to recognize them. The height, shoulders, and general bearing were enough. He exhaled and put a hand on his hip. “What are you doing here?”

The figure, craving anonymity, said nothing.

Ienzo squinted, confused.

“You trying to finish the job, or what?” Demyx asked.

The figure flicked back their hood and scowled.

“For the record, poisoning a healer isn’t the best way to go. We tend to be pretty resilient. You should’ve just stabbed me.”

The woman’s face was flushed red with anger. “You weren’t supposed to survive.”

“Yeah, that’s how assassination works.”

Demyx turned back to Ienzo. He was frozen; he looked like he’d been struck. Demyx wondered briefly if he’d been hit by a Stop spell, but he was still blinking, and his hands were shaking. More obvious than anything, though, was the flicker of recognition in his eyes.

“Little Ienzo,” she said coolly. “Though--not so small now, are you?”

Demyx tried to think. “Who--” he began, but the woman cut him off.

“Go on, tell him,” she said.

He shuddered, then said, “One of the test subjects. One of the victims. She and her sister.”

“But she’s human,” Demyx said. The conversation he’d had with her previously clicked. “Or--”

“Not all of the people who were exploited fell to darkness. In the--the early days.” He steeled himself. “Regardless of how you feel. Take out your anger on me, not on those around me.”

“I think you were the most disturbing one,” the woman continued. “Of all the scientists. What did they do to you, to get you to act the way they did? And why are you reopening old wounds?”

“I want to help people heal from what I did. The darkness hurt me too.”

She took a step forward. Demyx tried to shove Ienzo behind him instinctively. “Not everybody wants to forgive and forget,” she said.

“More people do than don’t,” Demyx cut in. “And how is trying to kill us solving anything?”

To his surprise, he felt Ienzo taking shelter behind him; he was confused for just a second before he felt Ienzo pressing the gummiphone into his back.

The woman scowled. “He’s got you under his spell too, I see.”

Demyx rolled his eyes. “Honestly, if you want to manipulate me, you’re going to have to be a lot more clever than that.”

Ienzo pressed his palm once again against Demyx’s back. The message was clear; stall.

“What did you think any of this would achieve?” Demyx asked. His heart was hammering, but he tried to maintain a sculpted look of boredom. “So you kill me. What would your next move have been? Infiltrating the castle? Trying to off us one by one? And then what? Regardless, you’d get caught. We work with the committee. They’d notice if we were gone.”

She seemed thrown by this. Behind the bravado, he noticed something like pain.

He sighed. “Look. I get it. I do. I know how it feels to be violated, and then to be so angry, so desperate, so hurt you’ll do anything to make it better. But you don’t have to do it this way. If you want, we can… I can help you.”

She clenched her fists. “You’d help the person who tried to kill you?”

“Yeah. Honor code, right?” he held up his hand, and then wondered if this was overkill.

For a moment she said and did nothing, her expression blank. Her hands opened, relaxed. He breathed a small sigh of relief. Someone would be here soon.

With a flash, almost faster than he could really perceive, he saw the knife, but before he could duck or draw the Keyblade Ienzo threw him down and caught the knife right against his shoulder. In the space of about two seconds, Demyx smashed the hilt of the Keyblade against her temple, and she crumpled to the ground, unconscious. He turned back to Ienzo. “Why the fuck would you do that?” Demyx hissed. “Lay down.”

He was breathing heavily, a fine film of sweat all along his face. “Feels mostly like she hit bone,” Ienzo said through his teeth.

“That’s for me to decide.” He ripped off his sweatshirt and packed it around the wound.

“Don’t do magic. Help is coming.”

“Let me at least check to see if it hit an artery.” The bleeding wasn’t visibly too much, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. It could all be internal.

“You’ll hurt yourself--”

“Shut up. You just got fucking stabbed.” He tried to find the energy for a spell. It didn’t seem to want to come. He pulled hard, pulled deep within himself, and immediately felt his body start to protest. He gagged.

“Demyx--”

“No. I’ve got this.”

“Demyx, I’m fine. Really.”

He applied pressure to Ienzo’s wound. He texted Aerith, in case she wasn’t already on the way. “You still with me?”

“I don’t even feel dizzy.”

“Don’t lie.” Tears welled up in his eyes. “If you die I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“I’m not going to die.” The way he was breathing seemed to betray that. “I’m not finished with you yet.” His eyes rolled a little bit.

“Ienzo.”

“Still here.”

“Don’t shut your eyes.” He had to try again. Demyx pulled harder, tried to find the magic. Blackness swam over him for a minute.

He heard their footsteps before things could get bleaker. He wasn’t sure if it was from trying to use power, or from panic, but things seemed off, his ears ringing. Aerith crouched to heal the wound, Leon crouched to accost the woman. A small, dusty smelling hand patted his cheek. “Come on, kiddo,” said the voice. Yuffie’s face barely slid into focus.

“I’m five years older than you,” he mumbled, and fainted.

He came to about fifteen seconds later when she tipped an ether into his mouth. He drank it all down, flinching at the oily taste. He turned to Ienzo and Aerith--he was pale, his eyes closed--and a strangled sound caught in his throat.

“He’s alive,” Aerith assured him quickly. “He’s alive. He’s asleep. He’s going to be fine.”

“Oh fuck,” he said to the ground. “Fucking--”

“What a day, huh,” Yuffie said dryly.

---

“I do believe Aerith’s instructions were that both of us were to rest. I also believe I don’t need any more pillows. Nor do I need them fluffed.”

Demyx took a step back. Other than being a little pale, Ienzo seemed completely back to himself.

“You’re doing it again,” he said drolly, and took another drink of the blood replacement potion.

“Doing what?”

“Taking care of me instead of yourself. Come to bed. Lie with me.”

Demyx did so.

Ienzo slid his shirt down his shoulder. “See? I don’t even have a scar. So before you exert yourself wittering over me--”

“You took a fucking knife for me.”

He put a finger over his lips. “Which was a calculated risk I knew probably wouldn’t kill me. In the moment, I admit, I was more concerned about your wellbeing than mine--”

“Probably?”

“Demyx. Breathe.”

He tried to listen.

“I’ve seen too many people die this way.”

“I know. I know. I’m sorry.” Ienzo pulled him close.

He cried for a long time.

“I know you want to protect me,” Ienzo continued. “I think it would be easier, and more productive, if we agreed to protect each other instead. Can you agree to that?” He brushed a tear from Demyx’s eye.

“Yes.”

#beyond this existence #demyx #ienzo #zemyx #even #aerith #beyond this existence: new life #idk how this chapter turned out to be 5000 words

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hufflly-puffs · 5 years

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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Chapter 23: The Yule Ball

We learn that Hermione shrank her teeth with magic, something she had been thinking about for a while, but that her parents were against. Within the magical world it is probably a lot easier to change your appearance, but I think this would also put a lot more pressure on young witches to always look perfect. There is probably a huge market for all kind of potions and creams, not to forget spells. And we see in part the result of that with Eloise Midgen, who tried to spell away her acne and then her nose was off centre. It is also likely that eating disorders are quite common, because there are probably some potions to stay thin as well. And Hermione’s refusal to use such products (except for the Yule Ball) and her anger towards Ron (who thinks looks are more important than personality) is probably largely a response to her very superficial environment.

Pretty sure Harry got a new pair of socks every year from Dobby (is this mentioned in the books? I don’t remember, but you know it is true). And Harry kept them all, though he no longer wears them because it breaks his heart every time he sees them.

Talked about this before but Dobby made Harry socks because socks represent freedom to him (they are his favourite clothes). And next to his new master (Dumbledore) Harry is probably the most important person for Harry, and his loyalty to him isn’t part of a magical contract, Dobby is loyal to Harry because he choose to, because Harry after all gave him the freedom of choice. And in the end it is Dobby’s loyalty to Harry that will cause his death.

“Hermione chose to watch Harry and the Weasleys’ snowball fight rather than join in, and at five o’clock said she was going back upstairs to get ready for the ball. ‘What, you need three hours?’ said Ron […].” – Do you ever as a woman think about society pressuring you to look presentable and the hours you spent in doing so? It took me a long time (and I’m still in the process) to accept myself the way I am, and where I do things like putting make up on for myself rather than believing I’m not beautiful enough without it. And I’m not saying men don’t get judged for how they look, but in a really less significant way. So yeah, Ron wouldn’t know, but he is also not used to Hermione caring about her looks or spending a huge amount of time for it. (And she definitely needed that time for her hair)

I’m not really sure how to feel about Hermione’s transformation for the Yule Ball. It is a well used trope but one that I don’t particular like, because it puts too much value on how someone looks, and establishes the idea that for a woman in order to be seen she has to dress up. And I don’t think Hermione is to blame here or that we in general should judge woman who are interested in fashion and make up, but rather a society who has created an environment where a lot of women (myself included) feel it is necessary to look a certain way in order to get recognized. Hermione gives in to this pressure for one special evening (and again at Bill and Fleur’s wedding) because I think for once she wants to feel special and to have her moment, but overall it is not where her priorities are. It is a social comment in a way to say that she can absolutely pull off to look beautiful (in what society considers to be beautiful), but that she usually doesn’t bother to do so, because she thinks they are more important things and she rather wants to be recognized for her personality and her intelligence. Storywise I think this moment was needed to direct her relationship with Ron in a different direction. Ron needed to see her with someone else romantically interested in her, needed to see her all dressed up in order to realize that his feelings for her have changed. (The same way it needed Harry to see Ginny with someone else to realize he had a crush on her.) And it is interesting that Krum was interested in her before, that he simply liked Hermione the way she is, and I think she needed that in some way as well, that someone was romantically interested in her and valued her the way she is.

“‘Only this morning, for instance, I took a wrong turning on the way to the bathroom and found myself in a beautifully proportioned room I have never seen before, containing a really rather magnificent collection of chamberpots. When I went back to investigate more closely, I discovered that the room had vanished. But I must keep an eye out for it. Possibly it is only accessible at five thirty in the morning. Or it may only appear at the quarter moon – or when the seeker has an exceptionally full bladder.’” – This of course is the first time the Room of Requirements is mentioned, and Dumbledore even explains how it works – the room provides what you need. I think Dumbledore knew exactly what this room was and how it works and only mentioned it so Harry would know about it. Of course Harry being Harry he forget about it and needed Dobby to bring it to his attention again.

I love that image of both Harry and Ron ignoring their respective partners because they are both too busy moping about the girls they actually wanted to go with. Boys *sigh*

“‘Ron,’ said Harry quietly, ‘I haven’t got a problem with Hermione coming with Krum –’” – Harry reacts completely different than Ron regarding Hermione and Krum. And towards the series he continues to act different towards Hermione than Ron, especially when it comes to Hermione’s love life (and the other way around: see both Harry and Hermione’s reaction when Ron starts dating Lavender). I think that within the books it is hugely evident, starting with the previous chapter, that Ron and Hermione’s relationship is different than the one they each have with Harry. I know that there has been a huge shipping war between Ron/Hermione and Harry/Hermione shippers. But to me it was never about whether Hermione and Harry would have been the better match. Because nothing about the way Harry sees and reacts towards Hermione in the books was in any way romantic. Unlike Ron and his poorly hidden jealously. I never questioned if Hermione and Ron actually fit together, because the story clearly tells us that they are attracted to each other, and that is what is important. They fight a lot but they also deeply care about each other. And Ron has, especially in book 7, a beautiful story of personal growth, that is part of that love story. So at least for me, based on the books alone, I never saw any evidence for Harry/Hermione. But obviously if you ship them I’m the last to say anything against that.

That being said, I think it is different in the movies. Maybe because we can’t see Harry’s thoughts, but they had a couple of Harry/Hermione moments that could be very well romantically interpreted. They also of course had a lot of Ron/Hermione moments. But I think the movies didn’t really do Ron justice (and neither Ginny), so I get why people would have rather seen Harry and Hermione together.

It is revealed that Hagrid is a half-giant and implied that Madame Maxime is one as well. She of course denies that. What is interesting is both Harry and Ron’s reacting to it. Harry doesn’t care because he doesn’t really know anything about giants and their reputation. Ron on the other side is surprised and sees why Madame Maxime wouldn’t want anybody to know about her heritage. Ron thought that the reason why Hagrid was so big was because of spell going wrong or something like it. It is pretty much a “don’t ask, don’t tell”-situation. To someone like Harry or Hermione, who has been brought up outside the wizarding society, it is obvious that Hagrid is a half-giant. Ron however came up with a bunch of other explanations, ignoring the most obvious explanation. People see what they want to see.

There is a sadistic sort of irony that Barty Crouch Jun.’s plan, that would ultimately lead to Cedric’s death, was built on kindness? On Harry’s kindness to tell Cedric about the dragons and that he would return the favour, helping Harry to figure out the egg.

“Harry didn’t say anything. He liked being back on speaking terms with Ron too much to speak his mind right now – but he somehow thought that Hermione had got the point much better than Ron had.” – I was never in a situation where two of my friends became a couple, but it must be really hard, because it always feels like you have to pick a side, and I think at some point Harry was probably afraid to lose one of his friends in the progress of Hermione and Ron getting together, because what if they broke up? What if they made him choose a side? (Though honestly I think Harry would choose Ron over Hermione.)

#Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire #the yule ball #chapter notes #gof

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gigageekmag · 3 years

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Comic Book Review: Calico

CALICO ISSUE #1

Welcome back GiGa Community; as you all know, at fifteen years old, in 1992, I had an opportunity and pleasure of interning at Marvel Comics in Manhattan, New York; Spider-man office to be exact. It was during that year that I had delved into the comic book industry, soaking it all in, down to my very fabric of my soul. I loved all of the intellectual properties, their stories, and the craft; I knew I wanted Comics to be a part of my future life story. I was a fan of some characters, and ambivalent to others, but never the less, just like family I loved them all (Some more than others of course); the environment moved my soul. To this day, I still find being an artist to be one of my first loves, and comic books satisfied that yearning. The culmination of efforts between a writer, penciler, inker, letterer, colorist, and editor was to me, an amalgamation of geniuses at work. I love and respect the craft.

Sigma Comics

GiGa: GeekMagazine was contacted by Sigma Comics asking for an honest review of their newly released comic series, Calico. I was unsure of who this new IP was that was entering the competitive arena, so I did superficial research, watched an interview, and a review; it seemed to be worth the read. The first complimentary comic came and as busy as I am, I opened it and felt the cover art seemed acceptable for a comic book in 2021, but I didn’t have a peaceful undisturbed moment to read it, so I left it on my desk to be ready for the day I found a free opportunity to read it, then write a review. My family and I left the house for a few hours, and when I returned I went straight to my office and hadn’t realized the comic was no longer on my desk. A few seconds after I sat down, my daughter calls me, “Papi, look what Ivi did”!

Ivi Snow knew She really did it this time.

Ivi Snow is one of my two white German Shepherds, she is 1½ years old, so I am accustomed to finding “surprises” when we come back home; I thought it was poop again. A minute later my daughter comes to my office holding my complimentary issue of Calico in shreds. Needless to say I was peeved and Ivi knew it. Then I remembered what the premise of the comic was. “NYC HAS A NEW ANTI–HERO. Every day millions of animals are abused and killed. Animal rights groups and charities try to help, yet the savagery continues.” Sigma Comics appears to be committed to fighting animal abuse. I laughed at the irony of this moment and took a picture of her with the destroyed comic, apparently, she enjoyed the comic. I couldn’t read it, as a substantial part of the first few pages were now gone. With that above picture attached to an email to Sigma comics, I humbly apologized and requested another review copy, I was willing to pay for it at this point, but the great people at Sigma found humor in the event as well and sent me another. When the next copy arrived I kept it in my safe this time, and that night when I was done with work, I read it before I went to bed. I opened the cover and this time, I was able to really absorb the content. I applauded the first impression, it was transparent in showing their allegiance to the cause, “American Humane”, as a parent to two German Shepherds, I was sold.

The first page was gripping, showing an example of the atrocities committed upon animals and the visualization was almost too tough to bear, but I was roped in, I had to read on. We get our first glimpse into the soul of our Anti-Hero on page two, with tears running from angry eyes, the penciler, inker, and colorist nailed the conviction this character was driven by, and we’re then introduced to Calico “A one-man arsenal of destruction in constant pursuit of justice for the smallest and weakest among us…”

In his apartment he works his frustration on a double end bag, his thoughts speak poignant commentary as to the nature of life being nothing but conflict in every facet of existence and we see where his psychological state dwells; he’s scared and/or resentful of life and bitterly expresses this in his own twisted way. The Boxing Gym advertisement on page 5 could easily be dismissed as fictitious until a little research clarified that it is indeed a real business; as an ex-fighter boxer, martial artist, and ex-body guard myself, I respected that blurring between fantasy and reality as it was perfectly in line with the tale that I was uploading to my brain.

The writer then takes the reader on a journey through the life of Calico, recalling childhood memories of being bullied. This alludes to post traumatic damage; he hates bullies and had long since made the decision to suffer them no longer. We next accompany the protagonist from his apartment to a local boxing gym where he trains and prepares for an upcoming tournament, and while there, he loses himself in the art of combat. His thoughts become louder than spoken words; he’s a fighter with unfortunate luck, struggling skill, and lots of animosity. Here is where the reader learns this character has no reservation about the thought of condemning the abuser to death and that animals were his only friends since his youth.

Page 8 we’re given a full frontal nude of the hero in the shower after leaving the gym, even in the shower he’s consumed by antipathy as conveyed by more flashbacks of the same bully from his youth; he’s never recovered from those years. This memory was different, ironically, it was in this recollection where he was impressed by an alley-cat that scared off the bully and his dog, which serves as a perfect transition into revealing his super-hero outfit emblazoned with a black cat’s profile in front of what appears to be a moon. He also has a flying robotic AI assistant named Bumble that is a metallic sphere with one camera eye. Then, we’re back to his childhood memories, this time he evokes the very first time he inflicted pain by punching that bully in the face before fleeing the scene. Page 13 is where things escalate quickly, so I won’t spoil it for interested readers.

So here’s my honest review and rating:

Comic book Production: I feel the writing could have been more impacting and/or expansive; a name would have been nice to have, but it served its purpose; The art is what communicated the story the most. Lettering was great, the penciling and inking were acceptable as well, but gets a little hard to understand what’s happening during the murder scene.

The Character: His real name is never revealed, but from how Calico was insultingly called a “Dominican York” translated from Spanish, he is likely Latino. I think the character is less anti-hero and more of a deranged, sociopathic, villain with post-traumatic stress. He’s fed a list of targets by an unknown accomplice, he intends to kill, (and/or violate) which to me is the modus operandi of a serial killer. I couldn’t see the word “Hero” being applicable to this guy in anyway.

The full frontal nude, to me, was unnecessary, but being a student at the Art Institute of Atlanta I’ve drawn male nudes before, so I respect the art, 100%. That scene only became awkward after the second penis comment. Which helped me to get a better understanding of the mind of the protagonist as portrayed and communicated by the writer. I think the outfit really is too similar to Black Panther.

As per the multiple male phallus related comments and insults, along with, what I found to be excessive homo-erotic language, it seemed in my humble opinion, as if there’s other unresolved issues besides being bullied that Calico has never addressed. In one scene, I had to look at one scene under better light to understand that Calico actually violates or rapes his victim with a red hot pipe, all while making references to size; he says to his victim, “Relax! It’s only one-inch thick pipe. In penis size its only four-inch girth. You got this”. the last unnecessary thing I read that really nailed the coffin shut for me was the statement, “F*** em. Hard. in the @ss. With no vaseline”.

Concept: I personally, don’t think the character could have longevity, and if so possibly as a novelty act; appropriate for an 8-Issue Series. He possibly may develop a fan base, but with a very niche market. He is not a “Deadpool” type of anti-hero, I’d say this brooding character is damaged psychologically which easily could bleed over into villainy. I couldn’t see the Dark Knight tolerating this character, or working with him in any way, and would probably bring him to justice. In comparison to other anti-heroes, such as Hulk, Ghost Rider, Blade, or the Punisher, I’d say even Frank Castle wouldn’t see his motivations, means, or ends as acceptable. I see a more deviant sociopathic “Joker” kind of weirdness from Calico minus the smiles and laughing.

Conclusion: It’s a comic book, it fits the criteria. I wasn’t left feeling like I want to read more, but I am only one man, with one opinion worth 2 cents. I endeavor to say it could have been written for a broader appeal to a wider audience; for me, I feel the niche-aspect will leave some put off or uninterested. But somehow, I’m sure this will pull the targeted audience it was meant for. In the end, Sigma successfully this debut is a great accomplishment for the creators and production team and for that I salute and respect their creative vision, hard work, and love for the craft. I’d give it 3 out 5 Stars ★★★☆☆ ~Jack~

Image Sources: > https://sigmacomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/sigma-comics-large.jpg > https://prnewswire2-a.akamaihd.net/p/1893751/sp/189375100/thumbnail/entry_id/1_gapzb7c1/def_height/800/def_width/520/version/100011/type/1

Comic Book Review: Calico was originally published on GIGA: GeekMagazine

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artemis-entreri · 7 years

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All the numbers. ALL OF THE MEME NUMBERS.

[[ Finally answering an ancient Ask from an ancient meme I posted in an ancient time. XD Cut for the humongous length, which resulted from what are probably pointless exercises in analyzing fantasy accents and just overall spending too much time and thought on a fictional character. >_>

Warning: contains spoilers through to the end of the series. ]]

1. What position does your character sleep in? ( i.e; stomach, side, back, etc. ) Describe why they do this — optional.

I see Entreri as the type to sleep on his back, with his head oriented towards the door. If the furniture is arranged in such a way that this isn’t possible for him to do, I don’t think it out of the realm of possibility that he would rearrange things so that he could sleep in the configuration described above. I don’t think he’d be particularly comfortable sleeping fully on his side, with psychological rather than physical reasons, unless he had the wall to his back, otherwise he’d be too vulnerable to the unknown, which in someone as meticulously careful as he is, would be equated to unnecessary exposure to danger. Unless, of course, he’s sharing a room with Jarlaxle, in which case he’d probably be sleeping with his back turned towards his roommate most of the time. XD

Since the human body dictates that we can’t sleep comfortably in the same position all night, I’d imagine that, to appease his body’s demands, sometimes he would lay slightly facing the side away from wherever the door is. After so many years, Entreri would no longer do this consciously, but it’d be a force of habit that would’ve been self-conditioned.I don’t think that he’d ever sleep on his stomach, since this position puts him in the most vulnerable arrangement. Being face up allows him to have the greatest degree of awareness with all of his senses for what’s going on around him, and I think that a small part of him is in tune with all of those senses even while he slumbers. I don’t imagine that he’d find sleeping on his stomach very comfortable, again due to psychological reasons rather than physical, which are amplified by the traumas of his childhood that would probably add to those feelings of vulnerability and exposure. In the case of sharing a bed with someone, I see him as preferring to sleep on the outside if the bed is against a wall, or, barring that, on whichever side provides the best path to the most efficient means of egress, be that the door or a window.

2. Does your character have any noteworthy features? Freckles? Dimples? A scar somewhere unusual? etc.

Entreri would have no physical scars from early in his career. Any scar would indicate weakness or failing, and since so much of his absolute perfectionism centered around eliminating all traces of weakness, he’d see to that all of his wounds were healed perfectly. It would even make sense for him to have gotten older scars like ones from his childhood fixed, if for no other reason than to not provide any visual cues to others as to where he might be weakened. I think perhaps that during the pre-Sellswords era, Entreri would’ve found the sight of his scars intolerable, as they’d remind him of the times in which he wasn’t perfect, and while he’s extremely disciplined, he wasn’t self-punishing in the sense that he’d keep those scars to remind himself of his failings. He was more the type in which each lesson learned is burned into his memory, such that he doesn’t need or want reminders of them. Although we’re supposed to believe in the degree of impeccability of Entreri’s skill, it’s unrealistic that he’d never gotten scarred in his early life. He grew up in abject poverty, fought (probably literally at times) tooth and nail to survive, and spent more time fighting than resting. Magical healing of any sort, including potions, were not available to him during that period of his life, but since we know from the books that retroactively fixing scars is possible, it would fit his pre-Sellswords character to go out of his way to ensure that all of those physical reminders were wiped away.

Over time, I see Entreri’s dedication to this sort of superficiality wane, or at least become more selective. For starters, he’d also suffer far fewer scars, as his ability is honed, although that is offset somewhat by his tendency to get into more dangerous situations due to those sharper skills allowing him to do so. Nonetheless, his increasing jadedness and tiredness with living probably would make a few scars feel trivial by perspective. I think that he’d still seek erasure of the marks left behind by events such as Lolthite priestesses’ whips from his time in Menzoberranzan, as those would serve as reminders of a time that his free will was suppressed and his existence objectified. Along the same vein, during his four decades of enslavement by the Netherese, I could see Entreri falling back to old habits and avoiding getting scarred as often as possible during his missions, as that would be one of the few ways in which he could defy and resist the circumstances he found himself suffering. I don’t think Alegni paid enough attention to Entreri to pick up on something like this, and Entreri would’ve taken extra precautions that Alegni didn’t notice, because it wouldn’t have been beneath the tiefling warlord to further shame Entreri by making him bear the marks of his enslavement.

I do see Entreri keeping the scar that Jarlaxle inflicted upon him inside Crenshinibon via throwing dagger. Unlike most other instances, that injury was due to a conscious choice on his part, a gamble that was initially based on pragmatism but later led to the development of, at the very least, camaraderie if not trust and friendship. That choice took Entreri down a road that made Jarlaxle’s seeming abandonment and betrayal that much more hurtful, and Entreri’s bitterness was of the sort in which he blamed both Jarlaxle and himself. He can be pretty self-deprecating and that coupled with his cynicism leads me to believe that he’d keep the reminder to fuel his rage as well as not repeat the same mistake. It would certainly serve as a poignant reminder, given that the wound was unattended for a long time, agitated through fighting, horseback riding, and toiling under the hot desert sun. Perhaps some part of him couldn’t bring himself to fix that scar, for during the period spanning the end of Road of the Patriarch and his capture by the Netherese it would be a sharp reminder of why he cut ties with Jarlaxle, and after that, a focus for his anger, without which he would probably go mad from the impotent rage. While the events in Hero suggest that everything is hunky dory and Entreri magically overcomes FOUR DECADES of the most intolerable form of abuse to him in addition to all of his earlier traumas, I think it’s a lot more likely that he has a long way to go before considering erasing the scars he chooses to keep.

For something more frivolous, I headcanon that Entreri has Venusian dimples (those dimples on the lower back right above the pelvis). While Venusian dimples tend to be visible in men who are athletic, they are features that don’t necessarily occur in all of the physically fit. In our society at least (can’t say how prominent Venusian dimples are as a feature in FR folks), they’re rare and, for reasons unbeknownst to me, signifying that those who have them are blessed with good luck. It’s a twisted sort of irony that has me ascribing this feature to Entreri, because his life has been anything but blessed and lucky. Plus, they’re sexy as hell, so why not. XD

3. Does your character have an accent? What does it sound like?

I don’t believe that Entreri would normally have an accent, and even if he did early in life, he would have summarily trained himself out of it. This is again having to do with his need to remain inconspicuous. However, he should be able to speak with whichever accent he wants to speak with. Being a master of disguise, he should be able to imitate most if not all accents of Common, and even various ones of the drow language (i.e. High Drow and Deep Drow).I’ve also contemplated what exactly a Calishite accent would sound like, and I guess it’s fundamentally impossible given that there’s no reason for there to be a real world parallel for every accent in a fictional setting, or for Common to sound exactly like English for that matter. However, different products set within the Realms have had their different takes on it. The video game “Baldur’s Gate” has Calishite characters speaking with a Turkish accent, albeit inconsistently, namely that there are three characters in the game all of whom are Calishite, yet all speak with very different accents. Furthermore, as someone pointed out in the Beamdog forums, there’s no reason for the Calishite accent to be Turkish just because Calimshan is inspired partly by the Ottoman Empire, which no longer exists, not to mention that Calimshan is also inspired by Arabic cultures, so if we were to take a true inspiration from real life in that regard, the Calishite accent would be an amalgam of the Turkish and Middle Eastern accent, and what that would sound like, I couldn’t begin to imagine. A more recent spin on the Calishite accent is seen, or rather heard, in Sword Coast Legend’s Calishite paladin, Javen Tarmikos. His voice actor speaks with an affected British accent (listen to it here, starting at 0:24). I consulted with a friend living in Great Britain about the specific regional influence of Javen’s accent, and his feedback was that the voice actor was mimicking a foreign accent while attempting to speak British English. The friend’s opinion is that the accent that the voice actor was going for is Arabic, but he wasn’t sure if the voice actor was truly Arabic-British. Javen is voiced by John Hopkins, who is a native British English voice actor, so I think it’s safe to say that the Arabic British accent is faked. I don’t have a good impression of what the accents of the Calishite “Baldur’s Gate” characters are like, but I seem to recall that they are accents based on American English. Given that the “standard” accent for Common is Received Pronunciation. I feel that Javen’s accent is probably closer to what the Calishite accent for Common would be like, because of Calimshan’s relative position in Faerûn compared to both Turkey’s and the Middle East’s positions relative to Great Britain in our world (to say nothing about the American English spin on things). Detailed analysis would require more linguistics knowledge than I have, but I think it’s fair to simplify it to the fact that the amount that language articulation drifts tends to be directly proportional to distance from the “mother source”. Hence, an off-British accent for Calimshite Common makes more sense to me than a Turkish or Middle Eastern accent on American English.

4. Do they have any verbal tics? Do they have trouble pronouncing certain words or getting their thoughts across clearly?

Entreri wouldn’t have any verbal tics, nor would he have trouble pronouncing any words. To have either would qualify as a weakness for him, and he would therefore have conditioned himself to avoid mispronunciations and verbal failings. While I’m certainly not saying that correcting verbal tics is easy, far from it in fact, it is still the case that Entreri made himself into a superhuman specimen fairly early on in life, achieving a state of being that arguably no real world human can, so changing the way he speaks would be a comparatively simple matter and one that he would have to go through to make himself seem unassailable. It can be argued that Entreri would have trouble conveying his thoughts simply from the perspective of his not being well-versed in certain emotions, even after the “growth” and “development” he undergoes in the events leading up to and through Hero. However, he deals with all of that that by shutting out those emotions when they manifest, and, barring that, refusing to address or discuss them. While it’s totally reasonable that he has learned to love, that statement would be incomplete without the word “again” modifying it, as Entreri even states that he loved his mother before. Therefore, the “revelation” of him learning how to love isn’t as dramatic as the reader is led to believe. At one point, Entreri simply forbade himself from being accessible to love, or at the very least, from acknowledging the emotion. I don’t see him as suddenly becoming a touchy-feely font of emotional sharing. He’s still closer to being emotionally unavailable, given that severe trauma from his childhood, coupled by four decades of slavery, not to mention the shit that happens in between, would be combining with a more than merely unnaturally long life spent, by the way, more in unpleasant circumstances than otherwise to produce a master of cynicism and sarcastically stoic acceptance of the evils of person-kind. This doesn’t exactly describe a person who is an example of altruism and positive feelings. To force a character who has underwent all of those traumatic events to completely “transform” simply rings really untrue and unrealistic.

5. What are their chief tension areas?

It’d be rare for Entreri to have tension issues as he keeps his body in very good shape and is careful to perform proper maintenance exercises everyday. We see him feeling some cramps and sores from sleeping on the cold hard ground, but those seem to be more of passing inconveniences than anything lasting. However, a very physically fit person can’t do anything with the physiological pains caused by mental illness, and Entreri’s certainly got enough of those that he would be suffering at least the occasional pain in his chest and the corresponding spot in his upper-mid back.

6. If you were to pick one song — and only one song — to describe your character, what would it be and why?

“Boulevard of Broken Dreams” by Green Day. I might be able to come up with something better if I was more savvy about music, however with my limited knowledge, this song is the best one that I can think of that fits Entreri’s solitary character. There is also a hint of self-destructiveness/hopelessness in the song, despite what it says about hoping to find someone who would understand. The concept of broken dreams rings true to me about Entreri’s jaded perception of the world. While we’re supposed to believe that he’s completely found himself as well as peace by the end of Hero, that just doesn’t strike me as realistic at all. It feels like something written by someone with little to no knowledge about how people who struggle with mental illness actually work. Sure, Entreri might find good feelings from helping people, but it’s unlikely that he’d be doing it solely for the sake of positive feelings anytime soon, if ever. He’s got a lot of pent up and accrued anger against the world, for very justifiable reasons. Furthermore, although the message that Bob seems to push onto us regarding Entreri’s difficulty in looking into the mirror is due to some part of him being uneasy with killing all the people that he had, realistically speaking, Entreri’s self-loathing more likely comes from shitty circumstances that left him without much of a choice, of being a slave his whole life, both literally and figuratively. I don’t buy that Entreri has been accumulating guilt this whole time over every person he slays and every “wrong” deed he commits. In his world, the distinction between right and wrong was a luxury that he couldn’t afford, not with survival ruling supreme in his mind. Someone like that doesn’t need redemption, because they don’t view themselves as having ever fallen. What he needs is to recover from his severe traumas and PTSD, and that isn’t accomplished by singing a song about letting it go and helping random people that one encounters on the road, which is what Bob would lead us to believe with the way that things fell down the trope hole.

Realistically speaking, while not as embittered and stoic as he once was, Entreri’s still got a long way to go to recover, and his road is more akin to one walked by real people with real mental illnesses, whom question if their entire life is enough time for them to recover fully from that which was inflicted upon them and has afflicted them for so long. That road is one that is, ultimately, walked in solitude, because the people who can actually help and be able to relate are few and far in between (case in point: the author of this mess and the rabid legions that embrace the stereotype as perfect and logical). Furthermore, one needs to be willing to confront their condition in order to be able to improve upon it, and that is a decision that one can only make for oneself, regardless of the influences, both positive and negative, that weigh in upon that decision.

7. How does your character perceive themselves? Positive? Negative? Neutral?

While Entreri knows the extent of his martial prowess, overall he has a very negative perception of himself. He frequently berates himself for even the smallest mistakes, and reflects on his existence with a great amount of negativity. He’s canonically self-loathing and is often self-deprecating, so a negative perception of himself isn’t even just headcanon. At one point, his attitude shifts more towards neutral, but in the end it just plunges back down into self-loathing.

In Hero, in Drizzt’s final journal entry, he writes:

Which is a pretty big slap in the face, because of just how uncomfortably bad the characterization is of Entreri. In addition to the whole mental illness not working that way, which I’ve already expounded upon in the previous question, this is just yet another example of Drizzt making assertions about Entreri. One of the reasons that I dislike Drizzt as strongly as I do is how presumptuous he is, about Artemis, and about everyone else, asserting their worth in his melodramatic and sanctimonious journal entries relative to his own values, without so much a thought as to understanding the other individuals thoroughly, to try to put himself in their shoes and see from their perspective. Drizzt’s treatment of Entreri has always been reminiscent of that of an abusive member in any kind of relationship, namely, in that he asserts Entreri to be this or that, with little care as to why. This final journal entry made me really mad, because we’re supposed to take Drizzt as a reliable narrator, and many people do, but this is far from the case. I have, and still do, struggle with how things were left off in Hero, but I think that what I need to do is take the words quoted above as yet another example of Drizzt being an unreliable and biased narrator, and that he’s yet again ascribing his own beliefs to someone who’s very different from himself.

So, Artemis Entreri might be able to smile and look into a mirror, but not for the reasons that Drizzt, or Bob, thinks. I can’t see any other realistic way to assimilate it.

8. Are they a quick thinker or do they need time to sort through their thoughts?

He’s a bit of both. Entreri is an extremely quick thinker, and a large part of what makes him so deadly is his superb ability to improvise. He has shown on numerous occasions that he’s better at thinking on his feet than is Drizzt. He has on occasion even out-witted Jarlaxle. His dry sense of humor is also razor-sharp, allowing him to win verbal battles even while he is in physically disadvantageous positions. The thing with Entreri is that the closer to himself the topic becomes, the harder it is with which for him to cope. He survives because of his combat thinking acuity, but he doesn’t truly live because he can’t figure out matters of the heart. He gets better at this with time, but it’s a long journey for anyone to take, especially so for someone like him who’s more accustomed to dismissing his inner workings than listening to them. It certainly doesn’t help that the vast bulk of his relationships, the romantic ones especially, have little care for who he is but rather is built upon the women’s fascination with what he is.

9. Does your character dream or are their nights filled with an empty blackness? Describe a dream they’ve had or a night they couldn’t sleep and what they did to preoccupy their time.

I’d think that Entreri either does not dream or has foggy nightmares about his childhood and/or other unpleasant events that he’s had to endure. Although he would’ve found a certain degree of closure from killing his childhood molester and the power-abusing man who was most likely his biological father, acts of revenge do not erase past traumas, so Entreri’s boyhood vulnerability and shame would likely often visit his slumbering adult mind. No small part of the reason that Entreri worked to build himself up as much as he did is to make it so that he’s never anyone’s victim like that ever again, but that doesn’t stop what he’s striven to prevent from manifesting realistically in his nightmares. Prior to the Spellplague, in post-Sellswords era, I think that nightmares of the invalidating experience he underwent in Menzoberranzan would still haunt him to no small degree, despite his declaration of, “Artemis Entreri is dead” in his determination to divorce himself from his past.

While I believe that Jarlaxle’s ploy at the end of The Silent Blade rid Entreri of the sense of invalidation that Drizzt represented for him, as well as the torment brought by the lack of resolution from their perpetual stalemates, it would make sense for his experience in Menzoberranzan to have remained a cloud on his mind, as we can see from his severe rejection of the idea of escaping into the Underdark with Jarlaxle when Gareth’s army laid siege to Castle D'aerthe. I don’t think that he ever recovered from the Menzoberranzan experience, and it was only overshadowed by the more recent and longer lasting trauma in the form of over four decades of enslavement under Herzgo Alegni. Nonetheless, with unresolved circumstances, like the Menzoberranzan instance, they’ll come back to haunt the sufferer’s dreams, and compounding with later stresses would make for darker and more warped nightmares that would pull from all prior and subsequent traumas. His mind would subconsciously try to cope with this, and as a self-defense mechanism, make the nightmares vague, so he’d probably never quite be able to tell what’s going on in the nightmares. He’d likely wake up from them shaken, perturbed and reeling from the emotions and too-real sensations that they inflict within him. These sorts of nightmares would be more sensory than visual, for instance taking the forms of hazy flashes of defining elements like his rapist’s rotting yellow teeth and the overwhelmingly rancid breath saturated with the vapors of cheap alcohol. Perhaps these elements would be combined with his helpless body hovering high over a gaping rift of infinite darkness, reminiscent of the Clawrift that the Priestesses of Lolth suspended him over while having their way with him as an iblith sex toy. Then, add in the agony reverberating through every fiber of his musculature with the strike of Alegni’s tuning fork against Charon’s Claw.

Perhaps the most torturous of all might be found in his inability to resist and his impotent rage, that despite his fighting tooth and claw to see that such losses of dignity would never be visited upon him again. This would be confronting him with the fact that all of his efforts have been for naught, and that even despite them, there’s nothing he can do to protect himself. A sleep with empty blackness would be a blessing for him.

With his superhuman willpower and discipline, Entreri should be, for the most part, successful in suppressing these nightmares. However, even he would be prone to times of weakness, and these sorts of bad dreams will keep coming back, even as his life moves towards a better place. I don’t see him giving in to the effects of the worst of the nightmares. If he wakes up severely shaken, perhaps even scared, he’s too stubborn and prideful in his own way to acknowledge that something as intangible and pointless as a bad dream would have any effect on him. He’d force himself to go back to sleep, because not doing so would be surrendering to it and validating it, and even though dreams born of trauma would affect him, he would pretend that they do not.

Sleepless nights would be a different matter altogether for Entreri. How he would spend one such night would depend entirely on its specific circumstances, but he’d most likely be making good use of the time, be it honing one of his many skills or gathering information. I don’t see him engaging in any sort of pointless activity, he’s way too pragmatic to just be burning time for the sake of burning time, like getting senselessly drunk or sitting about drumming his fingers against the table. Perhaps he’d crouch on a rooftop overlooking a good chunk of his surroundings, achieving an almost elven reverie-like state as he allows the subtle currents of information to flow within him.

10. If they had a choice, would they prefer a subway or a bus for public transportation?

He’d prefer the subway, for it offers more shadows, less exposure and a greater sense of privacy even in the most crowded situations. It certainly doesn’t hurt that subways tend to be more efficient and predictable.

11. What do they think of creation? Do they believe in evolution or do they believe in God? What is their religion like?

Entreri doesn’t think much about creation or existential matters. He would not believe in the existence of any gods at all if the gods have not shown themselves to exist in his world. Although he is distasteful of the deities, Entreri isn’t self-delusional. He doesn’t deny the existence of the deities, however he doesn’t worship or follow any of them either. In fact, he scorns priests and other religiously devoted people.

The interesting thing is, in the Forgotten Realms, one doesn’t necessarily have to actively follow a deity to be championing them, and subsequently after death, have their souls collected by that patron deity. In his early career, Entreri’s deeds would have earned him the patronship of Bhaal, however his more recent actions fall more within the portfolio of Mask. Entreri wouldn’t take at all well to anyone telling him any of that, however, as his unwittingly acting as a particular god’s agenda would feel like to him a flagrant violation of his free will, plus he would be disgusted at how what he has done is not too far from what priests do. On the other hand, completely spurning all of the gods is also a very unwise approach to take, because an unclaimed soul ends up on the Wall of the Faithless, which is a really unpleasant (and eternal) fate. However, it’s likely that Entreri doesn’t even know about the existence of the Wall, but if he did, it probably wouldn’t affect how he feels about the gods. When he sees that his death is inevitable, I really see him destroying his own soul with his dagger so that, in his eyes, no one, be it overly and inappropriately ambitious mortals or fickle immortals and their machinations will ever have control over him after he has given up control of himself.

12. Describe 5 unusual characteristics your muse has.

Other than the five already discussed here,

1) Entreri would definitely have calluses on his palms from being an expert swordsman. Even though he wears leather gauntlets, he’d still have calluses between his thumbs and index finger from the hilts of the blades as well as over all the raised regions of his palms.

2) As per Night of the Hunter, Entreri keeps the nail on his left thumb long for the apparent purpose of using it as an impromptu substitute for when he does not have ready access to his thieves’ tools. Realistically speaking, it can’t be too long, or else it would hinder his swordplay. The task described in Night of the Hunter that takes advantage of his long thumbnail is not actually possible and demonstrates a poor understanding of lock mechanisms, so it doesn’t actually matter how long his nail is since what he does is inherently impossible. But, suspending disbelief, I just assume that it’s no more than extending a half inch beyond his thumb tip.

3) Unlike many rogues, thieves, assassins and other characters with evil dispositions, Entreri doesn’t enjoy killing. He also kills efficiently, granting his victims a swift and painless death. He doesn’t believe much in torture either, engaging in acts similar to torture only to send a message (i.e. chopping off Regis’ fingers to send to Drizzt) but not out of any desire for cruelty.

4) At the end of Hero, Entreri is around 159 years old, and this is a rough figure because his precise date of birth is unknown. He decided that he was fourteen in “The Third Level”, which takes place during 1341 DR, and the events of Hero transpire during 1486 DR. Needless to say, this is very very old for a human! However, Entreri isn’t a normal human due to his absorption of a Shade, but it’s unclear what exactly is responsible for his unnaturally long lifespan. Some believe that Charon’s Claw is the cause of it, while others believe that it’s the Shade properties. In terms of D&D game stats for Charon’s Claw, there isn’t anything about the item that would suggest prolongation of life, but then again, there isn’t anything in its stats either about how Alegni used it to raise Entreri back from the dead multiple times so that he could keep being his unwilling slave. The information given in Hero isn’t very helpful in this regard either, as the only thing that’s established is that with the advent of The Sundering, that the hold that Charon’s Claw has on Entreri is not what it used to be, however it’s even explicitly stated that it may never even have had an effect on his lifespan. On the other hand, Shades live hundreds to over a thousand years old, which could mean that some of this property transferred over to Entreri, but it’s really hard to say. That’s one of those things that makes him bendable to the author’s whim I suppose, but that’s irrelevant for the purpose of this question.

5) I guess this last thing isn’t that unusual, but Entreri’s pretty short for a human male by our standards. However, his height of 5'5" is only 2" shorter than the average height for a human male in the Forgotten Realms, which isn’t that weird in his world. 5'7" does seem to be on the short side for human males by our reckoning, however it’s a pretty accurate average height for the average medieval European man.13. Have they ever been so overwhelmed they had to stop and take a break from something?

Entreri’s method for dealing with stressful or overwhelming situations is to just push through them. Severe injuries and tangled webs of intrigue are best dealt with by being done with them. He doesn’t start things that he doesn’t finish, regardless of his mental condition. His physical condition may force him to step away from something, however he will invariably return to finish it sooner or later.

14. Are they a team player or do they prefer to be solo?

Entreri always prefers to work alone, but he does recognize the merits to having a team. Despite this, he would rather rely on his own exceptional abilities to make up for a disadvantage in numbers.

15. Can they multi-task or must they focus on one subject at a time?

Entreri is an expert multi-tasker.

16. What are their best school subjects? What are their worst? List five of each.

School is really a luxury in the Forgotten Realms setting. It’s established in canon that organized education, such as magic schools, are very expensive, and otherwise general education is imparted within the household or self-taught. Trade skills are gained by apprenticeships, and acolytes of various orders learn through their time in their respective orders. I think it’s safe to say that Entreri taught himself everything that he knows, by necessity, but if schooling had been available to him or some sort of apprenticeship opportunity, I see him as not being into either, due to his independence, distrust of others and a general preference for being alone.

If Entreri had gone to school, and assuming a subject list similar to that of our world but in the context of the realms, his best five would be bartering, tracking, appraising, riding and of course swordsmanship. His worst five would be languages, history and lore, astrology, religion and anything concerning the tedious details of etiquette. I can actually see him being good at home economics-type classes due to his attention to detail and perfectionism. He’d also likely make reasonably tasty food for himself since he wouldn’t suffer himself to eat his own bad cooking. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that he’d put in the effort for others. ;P

17. Is your character an introvert or an extrovert? How do they handle big crowds of people?

Entreri prefers to keep to himself as an introvert does, however he isn’t shy about talking to people or engaging in extended conversations with another (even if he would prefer not do so). He doesn’t like people in general, but he doesn’t go out of his way to avoid them if he doesn’t have to either. Rather than having to seek out solitude, his very presence ensures that he has a respectable amount of space to himself even in the most crowded establishments. He doesn’t have to worry about big crowds, it’s the big crowd of people that have to worry about him. I think that Entreri possesses the charisma and the lack of social anxiety that could make him an extrovert, but his misanthropy makes him behave like an introvert.

18. Are they a leader, do they prefer to follow, or would they rather just stay on the sidelines altogether?

I see it as being situational. Entreri prefers to do things his own way, oftentimes intentionally defying the details of specific instructions simply because he strongly dislikes being ordered about. He doesn’t particularly enjoy following another’s suggestions, however, as long as his independence is respected, he’ll tolerate being dragged around on various quests and/or adventures. I think that his leadership abilities would be respectable, as he has a tactical mind and a commanding presence, but he would shun the responsibilities and hassle that come from being in a leadership role.

19. If your character was suddenly challenged, would they rather run away or stay and fight?

It would depend on the circumstance. He’s more inclined to fight than to run away, however, he’s cautious and will not charge blindly into anything. Challenging him is not a good idea unless you’re prepared to die or are completely certain that you can kill him (which, well, no one really can, due to his own resourcefulness and the fact that Jarlaxle wishes for him to stay alive).

20. If your character was allowed to murder one person without any consequences, who would that person be and why?

I think that would most likely be Kimmuriel Oblodra. Honestly, I don’t see Entreri having any qualms about murdering any Menzoberranzanyr drow, Gromph included even though he’s no longer located in Menzoberranzan. If Entreri knew about Quenthel ordering Jarlaxle to not rescue him from enslavement under Alegni, it would be a difficult toss-up between Kimmuriel and Quenthel. Quenthel is tempting because as the Matron Mother of Menzoberranzan, it would be difficult to assassinate her without a great deal of complications, and Entreri might just be tempted into choosing her if he was offered the chance to kill her without consequence. On the other hand, his hatred of Kimmuriel runs deep, psionics are more of a threat against him than arcane magic, and if he knew about Kimmuriel’s involvement in altering Jarlaxle’s memory (which resulted in his continued enslavement), it wouldn’t matter to Entreri that Quenthel had ordered it, he would still want Kimmuriel dead. Furthermore, even though Kimmuriel “helped” Dahlia, it was at Jarlaxle’s request. As such, Entreri wouldn’t feel like he owed either Kimmuriel or Jarlaxle anything for the service, especially as he views it as part of Jarlaxle’s reparations to him for having ditched him with Alegni. There is little love lost between Kimmuriel and Entreri, and given the chance, Kimmuriel would off Entreri, and Entreri knows that.

If Tiago weren’t already dead, he’d be high up on the list too, especially if Entreri found out about how Tiago had raped Dahlia on numerous occasions while she was mentally impaired.

21. Your character has been granted 3 wishes; what would they wish for and why?

When I first did this meme, the canon point was Night of the Hunter, so the two of the three that I listed without explanation no longer apply. I was going to explain the “why” parts originally when I revisited this question, but since they’re, for the most part, outdated, I’m no longer going to do that. XD Instead, here are three new wishes and their reasoning:

1) “I wish to always have my own free will, that no other being shall have the means to dictate, control or otherwise affect without my consent what I do or not do with myself and my life.” – This is something Entreri has striven for throughout his entire life, and in no small amount due to how much it has eluded him. For most of the time, he isn’t even actively aware enough of it to be able to word such a wish, but after four decades of slavery, facing the possibility of Drizzt using Charon’s Claw to control him like Alegni had, and Charon’s Claw coming back after he thought it destroyed, I’d think that Entreri would have a much better sense of what he wants to avoid at all costs.

2) “I wish to be immune to the negative effects of all magics, be they divine, arcane, psionic, or otherwise.” – Go big or go home, right? :P I can’t see him wishing for total invulnerability however, I think that he derives a fair amount of pride from ability to take care of himself with his own skills, and should those skills fail him especially with the lack of interference from magical sources, he’d be ready to throw in the towel. That, and total invulnerability would be akin to a luxury, the kind that makes people grow complacent and thus degenerate. I doubt Entreri would believe in total invulnerability either, he’d see it as a temporary thing that’d lull him into a false sense of security until someone else found a way to get past it and get to him while he’s vulnerable.

3) This should really be #1, because the first thing he’d try is wishing for more wishes, but since the rule of these kinds of things is that there’s no wishing for more wishes, it is #3. :P But you know, I’m pretty stumped so far as coming up with a third is concerned. As of the end of Hero, he might consider wishing good fortune for his “friends” and former allies, but I can’t see him actually following through with that because it’s pretty lame, plus his lifelong thing has been to always be prepared and self-preservation. It just isn’t realistic that he would be so self-sacrificing as to give up something as powerful as a (mostly) limitless wish to aid others that aren’t even in immediate peril. I see him saving one last wish as a true last resort.

22. Does your character trust people right off the bat or does it take them some time to warm up to someone?

It’s nigh impossible to gain Entreri’s trust fully. Despite having been physically and emotionally intimate with Calihye and Dahlia, he did not trust either of them completely. I don’t believe that Calihye would’ve left him, as described in Hero, had he fully trusted her. While we’re supposed to believe that he and Dahlia share some sort of all-too-perfect profound bond, realistically speaking, I don’t think they would, and I don’t think Entreri’s dumb/naive enough to fully trust Dahlia either. He’s fully aware of her black widow tendencies, and it wasn’t all that long ago that he was worried about Dahlia forsaking him for her still-lingering feelings for Drizzt (and it was even more recently that Dahlia acted upon remaining feelings for Drizzt in having sex with Kimmuriel when he invoked a memory of Drizzt within her mind). It wouldn’t be at all unlikely for Dahlia to choose Effron over Entreri if it came down to making a choice between her son or her lover, plus it’s also in line with her nature to be fascinated by a newer/younger/more powerful/more “interesting” beau and ditch Entreri for that person (although finding such a paragon is difficult for me to imagine, Dahlia is still a flake).

All of this is not to say that Entreri isn’t capable of giving some measure of trust to others, as he has demonstrated that he mostly trusted Drizzt, Dwahvel and Jarlaxle while he traveled and worked with each of them. I question whether he fully trusted Drizzt or anyone, because realistically speaking, someone who has been betrayed as much as and to as large a degree as Entreri has won’t have the ability to trust fully, plus Drizzt was his arch-nemesis for a significant portion of his life. The shining paragon of Drizzt’s Gary Stu-ness means that we’re supposed to believe that he can convert anyone into his inner circle if he wants to do that (as can be seen with Yvonnel 2.0, the most powerful drow born into Menzoberranzan, and even Lolth herself to a degree), but I really roll my eyes at that and unless Salvatore does a massively better job of writing it, I just don’t find it believable. Trust is something that comes back with time, but despite Entreri’s unnaturally long life, he’s spent more time experiencing things that challenge trust than not, so I can’t see him recovering that ability anytime soon, maybe not ever if he’s never subject to the right kinds of circumstances.

23. Do they prefer romance or affection? What is the quickest way to your character’s heart?

Entreri tends to avoid both, but romance is probably the quickest way to his heart, simply because of his limited experiences with positive connections. While both affection and romance are complex, in some ways, romance can be more clear-cut and obvious. We see from the books that Entreri has a better understanding of the nature of his relationship with Calihye and Dahlia than the one he had with Dwahvel, for instance. This isn’t all too surprising, as someone who’s never had any friends has a hard time grasping friendship, but a romantic relationship, especially when it entails sexual activities, is easier to identify for someone who isn’t well-versed in either. However, more than anything, the quickest way to his heart is to genuinely love him, not as a master thief, assassin and fighter but as a man whose identity and worth even he himself isn’t entirely certain of, without designs to manipulate or to change him. On a related note, I question the longevity of his relationship with Dahlia because their bond was formed under duress, arguably impossible without the significant intervention of the aboleth that peeled open their minds and left their pasts naked for each other to see. This sort of dramatic intervention isn’t much different from the influence of Idalia’s Flute that made Entreri all wonkers and made feasible his relationship with Calihye, which was based on little more than her initial seduction of him. Without knowing Dahlia’s past, and with no way of knowing it had the aboleth not revealed it, other than physically attractive, he found her irritating and dishonorable. Furthermore, Dahlia’s reasons for “loving” Entreri aren’t really based in anything substantial. There’s the shared similarities in trauma that, again, was brought to light by a forceful and magical external influence, but other than that, it seemed more like an infatuation with his skills rather than who he is. We don’t see Dahlia responding to Entreri’s dry sense of humor, there is no chemistry and rapport between them personality-wise, plus Dahlia’s son and Entreri are going to butt heads so much that you sure as heck can bet that that’ll be a chief sort of tension between the forcibly happy couple. Where canon leaves us at the end of Hero is yet another one of the inconsistencies that mark Bob’s books, namely, what we are supposed to accept as the ideal relationship for Entreri is anything but that based on the preceding characterizations of him.

24. Does your character have any enemies? If so, who and why?

Entreri has few enemies, because most of them are already dead by his hand. He thinks that Herzgo Alegni is dead, however if he finds out that his former slaver is still alive, that would be one target he’d hit first. After that, those responsible for wrongs done unto him would be high on the list, but, as mentioned, most of them are dead or his issues with them are resolved by the end of Hero. While Tiago Baenre is dead, members of his troupe are still around, and Entreri wouldn’t mind seeing those killed off in repayment for their involvement in his and Dahlia’s suffering in Q'Xorlarrin. However, Entreri’s probably not on the minds of those drow, nor is it all that likely that Entreri would be thinking of them anytime soon following the events in Hero. Plus hunting them down would be difficult, as that would involve going to Menzoberranzan, which he will not do without very compelling reasons to do so.

I would count Kimmuriel as an enemy of Entreri. As mentioned earlier, the two share bad blood that runs back for more than a century, and if Entreri ever finds out that Kimmuriel’s adjustment of Jarlaxle’s memories is what caused Jarlaxle to believe that Entreri had betrayed him instead of the other way around, thus dooming Entreri to four decades of slavery, I’d hate to see what would go down between the two of them. Actually, to tell the truth, I wouldn’t mind seeing it. I’ve never liked Kimmuriel and it would be very satisfying to see Entreri kill him dead, both for the sake of Entreri and for myself. >_>

25. Do they have any weird bedroom habits? Any unusual kinks?

I see Entreri as being pretty straightedge when it comes to sex. He would prefer being the dominant party, however, I don’t see him as so insecure such that his physical position relative to his partner does not define dominance or submission to him. He seems to enjoy letting his partner lead, however he gets the final call on things that he will not tolerate. He does read as very heterosexual to me, but while I understand him to be very selectively so, I wouldn’t really call him ace or demi either because he does demonstrate sexual attraction independent of other kinds of attraction on a number of occasions.

On this subject, I do try very hard to adhere to canon, and my dedication to doing so has caused me no small amount of torment over the years (and especially now following Hero x_x), so my OTP being what it is could seem rather odd. I make allowances for this not frivolously because Jarlaxle is a special case, as in addition to being pansexual, we’re supposed to accept and believe that he’s so charismatic that he’s potentially attractive to everyone.

In any case, I could see Entreri being open to trying certain kinds of kinks and staying far away from others. I don’t want to get too graphic, but the types of kinks that he’d likely stay away from would be anything having to do with filth, as he’s lived in and around impoverished conditions enough that I just can’t see him ever being able to get enjoyment out of anything that reminds him of that aspect of his past. On the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised if Entreri possessed just a hint of sadism, enough to allow him to enjoy putting his precise control of sharp objects to use in intimate settings, especially since doing so puts him in a comfort zone built around something he’s very confident in. However, I don’t see him as being into that beyond the control and finesse elements of the tool being used. Due to his insecurities, Entreri would likely much more prefer to give than to receive, to the point of possibly being triggered when on the receiving end of certain kinky activities. For instance, although he could quite possibly enjoy bondage, especially if it means tying Jarlaxle up and (mostly not literally) kicking him around a bit, he would be thoroughly unamused and not turned on by being tied up. He might try it out of affection for his partner, but I see him as being very much not into being constrained even in a sexual sense. There’s a rough generalization for Dom/sub personalities that states that someone who is confident prefers to be in the submissive role because in consensual Dom/sub play, the sub has all the power. Like most generalizations however this one is flawed in the sense that it neglects to adapt to specific personalities. While Entreri is indeed confident and sure in many ways, he is more vulnerable than he is self-assured. Because of the insecurities and doubts that do plague Entreri, a role that one such as Jarlaxle, whom I use here because he’s a great example of a character who is cocksure through and through (no pun intended ;P), would find freedom and enjoyment in would instead fill Entreri with discomfort. That’s my take on the matter, in any case.

26. How does your character prepare for bed? Do they sleep at all or can they stay awake for days on end without trouble?

Under normal circumstances, Entreri meticulously ensures that his weapons and gear are in good condition before he rests. His weapons belt will always be within easy reach. He’d sleep either wearing trousers or in the nude depending on what he foresees as likely to disturb his rest. Theoretically speaking, I suppose he could sleep only in smallclothes, but for whatever reason, smallclothes aren’t mentioned in any of the Drizzt books, and the characters either sleep in trousers or in the nude. I suppose that Faerûnian smallclothes aren’t designed to be comfortably worn underneath skin-tight leather armor, hence why the sleeping in the nude after peeling off that external casing. However, everyday clothes probably allow for it, and fine enough clothes would be comfortable to sleep in. We see during “The Sellswords” that Entreri sleeps shirtless and presumably goes outside in the same pants that he slept in after throwing on a shirt (at least, we don’t see him change on screen after putting on the shirt that Jarlaxle tosses him).

Even when there are no outstanding threats, Entreri would most likely always go to bed prepared for any anticipated interruption that may find him. He can stay awake for days on end as long as it is necessary, however, as he is only (mostly) human, he can’t go on forever without sleep.

27. If your character had one thing to say to their parents before they died, what would it be?

To his mother, he would probably say something along the lines of, “I don’t blame you.” Given that it’s likely that he killed his father, well, the blade through the chest conveys his parting thoughts rather perfectly.

28. Are they afraid of death? Do they have any regrets?

Entreri doesn’t fear death, however he seems ambivalent about how he feels regarding it. There are many times in his life in which he wishes for it to find him, even actively seeking it in some instances. However, his sense of self-preservation is so ingrained that he instinctively fights when his life is threatened. He has no regrets of which he is aware.

29. Does your character get restless when things are too quiet or do they favour solitude and silence? Why?

Entreri enjoys his solitude and prefers silence to noisiness, however he does get restless living a peaceful and uneventful life. He has demonstrated a distaste for characters that talk too much, and especially if those characters spend a good portion of their garrulousness rhyming. ;P While in many circumstances Entreri doesn’t have much of a choice but to follow where adventure leads, in other situations, he could’ve elected to ditch the more dangerous road and lay low. For instance, pragmatically speaking, there wasn’t much point for him to stay with Jarlaxle after the events in Servant of the Shard. Furthermore, he didn’t have to go back to Calimport or any major city at the end of Road of the Patriarch, as he’d surely know that his chosen action would land him in the midst of all sorts of going-ons, and if he truly wished to be away from all of that, he could’ve just as easily settled in some small rural town. I also can’t see him settling down with Dahlia like Drizzt does with Catti-brie because, realistically speaking, he still has many unresolved issues and soul-searching to do, not to mention that Dahlia has her own baggage to deal with and is unlikely to be happy with a sedentary life.

From a very young age, Entreri has not lived a single day without being tested to his limits, and his obsession with being at the top of his craft is meaningless if he doesn’t have something to measure it up against. He is used to activity, so inaction makes him irritable. He may be less this way at the end of Hero, but pigeonholing him into a quiet happily ever after just isn’t a very likely conclusion. Perhaps he will reach the state that he’s supposed in at the current canonical point, but I see that as a temporary high at best, unless we accept that he’s just an oversimplified and inaccurately representative caricature of a real person instead of a believable character. Which, I suppose, according to canon, he sort of is. :\

30. Finally; if your character was forced to eat one thing for the rest of their life, what would they choose and why?

It doesn’t really matter to him, as he is so practical-minded that as long as it is something that can sustain his body in good condition, he’d eat whatever it is. Would he make a ton of snarky comments about it? You betcha! XD I suppose he wouldn’t want to subsist exclusively on some sort of foodstuff that originates from the Underdark, as he’d feel that it would sooner or later lead him to have more encounters with drow than is necessary, and to him, zero would be the amount of necessary encounters with them. XD

#Anonymous #ama #ooc #memes #Artemis Entreri #Entreri #headcanons #legend of drizzt #Forgotten Realms

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recentanimenews · 6 years

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Review: Fireworks

Fireworks, or the more verbosely titled Fireworks, Should We See It from the Side or the Bottom?, is a Studio SHAFT produced remake/animated adaptation of a 1993 Shunji Iwai film that began life as an individual episode of a television drama before receiving a theatrical release two years later in 1995. There’s a lot going on here, but to put it more simply: Fireworks is a romance story, refreshed for a modern audience, that is set in an idyllic summer and centers around teenagers interested in neither love nor fireworks ... or so it would seem.

Featuring two young screen actors as the principle voices and the ubiquitous Mamoru Miyano as the third vertex in the love triangle, Fireworks is a lean and breezy 90-minute trip into the classic Japanese TV drama conventions of festivals, summer school, and time travel. While placing the leads of Kamen Rider W and the live-action Chihayafuru films together may do very little for foreign audiences, especially when divorcing their voices from their likeness, it nevertheless feels like a pivotal production decision that occasionally gives the film some more “oomph” during crucial moments. At the very least, doing this gives the audience something extra instead of serviceable, perfunctory anime voice acting. Cynically, I’m led to believe this is more of a stunt to drum up easy publicity, but the actors are clearly comfortable with the material and do a fine job throughout.

Fireworks is anime, but it feels as if it would like to be something more. From my admittedly limited knowledge of Shunji Iwai’s filmography, Hitoshi Ohne’s screenplay often makes me recall much of Iwai’s own writing, whether it’s characters talking big circles around seemingly minor (but often major) issues or even smaller touches like friends messing around and getting on each other’s nerves. Honestly, the “Japanese TV drama” script is more of a sideways leap from “late night TV anime” and Fireworks’ identity gets further muddled by the hands involved in the direction. Akiyuki Shinbo is credited as general director, with Nobuyuki Takeuchi credited as co-director, meaning this is through and through a SHAFT joint. Prepare for odd angles, back-to-back close-ups of inanimate objects and architectural wonders, and a dreamy sequence set to a Seiko Matsuda cover.

The film is as polished and attractive as its cast. Character designs were handled by Akio Watanabe, who could not help but craft, to the point of distraction, a very Senjougahara-esque heroine. Admittedly, Fireworks’ Nazuna is distant with her classmates and quietly deals with an unhappy home situation, so the comparison is a fair one, but it often feels like evocations of other work is a running thread in Fireworks (whether it’s on purpose or not). Being acutely aware of every cut of animation in the Monogatari Series means being unable to take Nazuna as a unique character instead of a branch of Watanabe’s general body of work, especially when comparisons are drawn to a character as iconic as Senjougahara. Nazuna will sing, fall off of a tall structure, and strip to her underwear before the end and never once deviate from the path set by Nisioisin’s tsundere stapler fanatic. What’s unfair to Nazuna is that she’s only given the frame of an hour and a half to establish her own identity and that, more often than not, her moments of characterization come off as SHAFT and Watanabe retreading old material that worked once before. Of course, this all amounts to nothing if one hasn’t seen Bakemonogatari, and the unfortunate truth of the matter is that this might be the point all along.

As far as SHAFT works go, this is likely their most accessible “mainstream” work yet ... if we ignore the fact that SHAFT has been fairly mainstream for a while now. Still, Fireworks stands out to me in how conservative a work it is for a studio that only last year completed its ambitious Kizumonogatari trilogy — a set of films which took everyone’s ideas of “old SHAFT vs. new SHAFT” and smashed them to bits. This is a “safe” film, one you can show your parents or anime-adverse significant other. Fireworks is wholly sincere about the immortality of summer, adolescence, love, and every combination of the aforementioned terms. The film ends on a strong note, but there’s not much left to chew on when the product has been made so easy to swallow.

For all the star power attached to the project, I would expect more, but ultimately it’s not a film for animation nerds (lovely work here occasionally, though) or the passionate collective of SHAFT scholars. If we’re talking in lofty terms of “ambition” and “pushing the medium,” it’s none of these but should also not be dismissed as a flighty work-for-hire to keep the lights on. Fireworks is a middle-of-the-road film for a middle-of-the-road audience without an encyclopedic knowledge of the talent behind the work.

My own fondness of SHAFT aside, the irony is that my enjoyment of Fireworks is deeply affected by my appreciation of the Monogatari Series and that I can’t help but to come away from it with mixed feelings. The audience is much better served approaching it without familiarity with that monumental work (now approaching 10 years since its first television broadcast). I have personally spent a significant amount of time in my life attempting to convey why the Monogatari Series is such a critical work, but today it is a tedious conversation no one wants to hear from me. Finally, there’s a SHAFT film that packages all that I superficially like about Bakemonogatari for the your name. crowd. Still, perhaps, maybe you’re better off watching Bakemonogatari?

Fireworks originally appeared on Ani-Gamers on August 23, 2018 at 4:00 PM.

By: David Estrella

#Anime #News #Ani-Gamers

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torentialtribute · 5 years

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The secrets behind Mauricio Pochettino’s success

In Mauricio Pochettino & # 39; s first night in English football in January 2013, the [19599003] Everton staff looked suspiciously at their three colleagues in Southampton . No one really knew them: Jesus Perez, Miki D & # 39; Agostino, Toni Jimenez.

Among the Everton coaching staff working under David Moyes that night, all of whom were British, there was a clear Nigel Adkins, who were marginalized by globalization, but their coaching assistants who would languish.

The irony is now clear. Gareth Southgate and Steve Holland.

To understand how he has transformed Tottenham into a real Premier League superpower on a relatively poor budget – and thereby also helping the English team improve – we must first understand the man. Mauricio Pochettino has transformed Tottenham into a Premier League power and Harry Kane a superstar.

] Mauricio Pochettino has transformed Tottenham into a Premier League power and Harry Kane into a superstar "

Mauricio Pochettino has transformed Tottenham into a Premier League power and Harry Kane In a superstar

When he first caught English eyes, in 2002, Pochettino could no longer be removed from our game, in a superficial sense, with that long-haired mullet haircut that meant for a certain type of Argentinian center-half of that time.

He is a child of the Pampas, a farmer's son from Murphy, a remote and small settlement about 200 miles southwest of Rosario, set up by an Irish emigrant in the 19th century that day in 2002, when he was confronted with England in what had become one of the most hyped encounters of the World Cup Final – Japanese TV used images from the Falklands war to play the game to follow – he was very much the student of the Argentinian coach Marcelo Bielsa.

Of course it didn't end well, not even for Bielsa and Pochettino. When Michael Owen glanced past him in the box, Pochettino reached out and Owen fell. & # 39; It was definitely a dive, & # 39; Pochettino always says. & # 39; I never touched it! & # 39; Repeats confirm that there was hardly any contact. But David Beckham sent the penalty and Argentina went home shamelessly without even reaching the knockout phase.

Bielsa seems the obvious place to start analyzing this unlikely story of how an Argentinian farm boy ended up being one of the favorites of English football.

It was the current Leeds United manager who saw him sleeping in his bed for the first time at the age of 14. The extraordinary story, seemingly alarming in our age of children's awareness, but innocent in this context and culture, is now well told.

Bielsa, youth team coach at Newell & # 39; s Old Boys, and academy director, Jorge Griffa, would search the Pampa for talent. They actually visited nearby Santa Isabel for a coaching course when someone said Murphy was a decent player who was Newell's biggest rivals, Rosario Central. Bielsa had suggested returning to Rosario. After all, it was late and in the dark. Griffa insisted that they go to Murphy.

& # 39; We arrived at 2 am & # 39; in the morning at their home & # 39 ;, Griffa, 83, recalls when we met in his elegant apartment in the chic Recoleta district of Buenos Aires. Aires last year. & # 39; It was pretty extreme! I knocked on the windows, Mauricio & # 39; s mother answered me and she recognized me. We came in and I started talking about them soybeans and other crops that were not at all my interest.

<img id = "i-7b80776749131906" src = "https://ift.tt/2OzWGL7 -6830037-image-m-37_1553087990053.jpg "height =" 687 "width =" 470 "alt =" Pochettino was trained as a tough defender at Newell & # 39; s Old Boys "

<img id = "i-7b80776749131906" src = "https://ift.tt/2TXSNW1" height = "687" width = " 470 "alt =" Pochettino was schooled as a tough defender at Newell & # 39; s Old Boys "

He was taught by Marcelo Bielsa (center, with Argentina) during the 2002 World Cup)

Pochettino was trained Click to enlarge Click to enlarge Click to enlarge Click to enlarge Click to enlarge Click to enlarge to enlarge as a tough defender at Newell & # 39; s Old Boys (left) and taught do or Marcelo Bielsa (right, center)

<img id = "i-39892ac520b3bac1" src = "https://ift.tt/2W3ngi6 /03/20/13/11226808-6830037-image-a-22_1553087755040.jpg "height =" 668 "width =" 962 "alt =" Pochettino shows his uncompromising style and Sweden's Henrik Larsson clattered during their 2002 World Cup clash "

<img id =" i-39892ac520b3bac1 "src =" https://ift.tt/2TZO0nb .jpg "height =" 668 "width =" 962 "alt =" shows Pochettino his uncompromising style by clattering Sweden & Henrik Larsson in their 2002 World Cup clash "class

Finally they came to the point

Pochettino shows his uncompromising style by clattering Henrik Larsson in their 2002 World Cup clash of their visit to the night. Griffa confirms the famous story that they really asked the parents of Pochettino if they could see the sleeping 14-year-old Mauricio in his bedroom and indeed shouted: “What legs! The legs of a soccer player! & # 39; upon seeing him.

They were not wrong about the innate ability to play football. I have proven to be a very capable middle half. What you didn't know back then was what an effect Bielsa would have on world football and Pochettino on the English game. Argentina does not seem the obvious place to look for the start of an English football renaissance. But the revolution that had begun at Newell & # 39; s Old Boys would have a global impact.

Rosario is a pleasant city dominated by oil refining, petrochemistry, production, and the vast Parana River. It is also a city separated by football. Entire neighborhoods are painted in the red and black of Newell & # 39; s or the yellow and blue of rivals Rosario Central. Despite these obsessions, it was something of impoundment for a country dominated by Buenos Aires.

Ricky Villa, that icon of Tottenham and himself a farm boy from outside the urban elites, puts it this way: & # 39; Buenos Aires is the big football city and Rosario and Rosario are subordinate. & # 39;

Still, Newell & # 39; s started the will of River Plate and Boca Juniors in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and Argentinian football did make some note of it.

]

Under coach Jose Yudica, they won the league title in 1988 and reached the final of the Copa Libertadores, the South American equivalent of the Champions League. The following season, a young center half made his debut: that boy from back on the farm a few years earlier had turned out well. Besides him, D & # 39; Agostino would be his oldest friend. They had shared the rather primitive dormitory – it was freezing cold in winter, sultry in summer – where players from the youth team were sitting under the headstand of the club's stadium.

. Griffa has an almost mythical status in Argentinian football as the star maker, thanks to his work at Newell & # 39; s when he discovered Gerardo Martino, Gabriel Batistuta and Pochettino.

Later I spent Maxi Rodriguez, Walter Samuel and Gabriel Heinze and then, when I moved to Boca Juniors, Carlos Tevez. Jorge Valdano, winner of the 1986 World Cup, former trainer and technical director of Real Madrid, described Griffa as & # 39; one of the development gurus in Argentina & # 39 ;.

According to Valdano, the Newell team in which Pochettino was integrally placed in an & # 39; honorable atmosphere when it came to developing players & # 39 ;: like an Ajax from South America.

This is the environment that Pochettino has forged: tough, unadorned, based on hard work but also with regard to technology and tactical aptitude. It was a unique culture. Given the number of players who came to the first team through the academy, it was logical to promote the coach of the first team in the care of the first team. This is how Bielsa got its big breakthrough in 1990.

<img id = "i-c259d464f9382afb" src = "https://ift.tt/2OzWHPb image-a-17_1553087705707.jpg "height =" 598 "width =" 962 "alt ="

] Pochettino strongly believes in the power of English players and promotes them, such as Kieran Trippier (center) "class =" blkBorder img-share "/>

Pochettino is a strong proponent of the (19459011)

<img id = "i-7384da721640df79" src = "https://ift.tt/2TZ51Ob" height = " 634 "width =" 962 "alt =" He also trusts young players, such as Dele Alli, who learn early in his career that

<img id = "i-7384da721640df79" src = "https: // i .dailymail.co.uk / 1s / 2019/03/20/13 / 11226818-6830037-image-a-30_1553087817768.jpg "height =" 634 "width =" 962 "alt =" He also trusts young players such as He i s Alli, who learns early in his career if you are good enough you are old enough &

he also trusts young players such as Dele Alli, le Full name : Full name Maurice Roberto Pochettino Trossero

From : Murphy, Argentina

: Center-half

Clubs : Newell & # 39; s Old Boys (1989-94), Espanyol (1994-2001, 2004 (loan), 2004-06), PSG International : Argentina – 20 caps, 2 targets

International : Argentinian Premier Division x1, Copa del Rey x2

Teams successful : Espanyol (2009-12), Southampton (2013-14), Tottenham (2014-present)

-4-3 and a unique press style that will now be known to Tottenham fans Bielsa lei The team moved to a different national title and, in an unprecedented era for the club, two finals of the Copa Libertadores.

Griffa remembers: & # 39; When Bielsa took the first team job at Newell, I told you we had to buy two central defenders. I told him: "You have them at home – Fernando Gamboa and Pochettino".

& # 39; It was a team that left its mark on Newell's history, said Roberto Sensini, a former Pochettino teammate at Newell and with the national team. & # 39; Mauricio always spoke to his teammates with authority and in clear terms. Mauricio has learned from many coaches, but Bielsa was a man who left his mark on him, just like me.

Bielsa would reappear in Pochettino & # 39; s career, when I moved to Spain to play for Espanyol. In fact, his old coach reduced him to tears there after being accused of losing the drive he had as a young player at Newell and slipping into a comfort zone. & # 39; I've never felt so embarrassed & # 39 ;, Pochettino wrote in his book Brave New World. & # 39; Everything he said was right. I am blinded, trapped in my own world. & # 39;

Pochettino still quotes this period of his life and the belief that Yudica, Griffa and Bielsa have shown him as his inspiration to give young players a chance. Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Kieran Trippier, Danny Rose, Harry Winks, Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne, James Ward-Prowse are just some of the English players who have thrived under him. Unknowingly, they owe a huge debt to Griffa and Bielsa.

No big star was before Pochettino arrived. Lallana was probably the best established. You can't claim that their turnout amounts to Pochettino alone: MK Dons, Crystal Palace and Burnley were involved as well as Southampton and Tottenham. Perhaps some would have hit these heights regardless of

<img id = "i-1ce0c0bf8d29404f" src = "https://ift.tt/2NyDsEw /1s/2019/03/20/13/11227058-6830037-image-a-16_1553087702890.jpg "height =" 660 "width =" 962 "alt =" <img id = "i-1ce0c0bf8d29404f" src = "https: //i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03/20/13/11227058-6830037-image-a-16_1553087702890.jpg "height =" 660 "width =" 962 "alt =" <img id = " i-1ce0c0bf8d29404f "src =" https://ift.tt/2OsBzds "height =" 660 "width =" 962 "alt =" <img id = "i-1ce0c0bf8d29404f" src = "https://ift.tt/2OsBzds" height = "660" width = "962" alt = "<img id =" i-1ce0c0bf8d29404f "src =" https://ift.tt/2U1m6qC -image-a-16_1553087702890.jpg "height =" 660 "width =" 962 "alt =" He hacked his teeth at Espanyol, where he was here in 2010 against Real Madrid by Jose Mourinho fought "

against Madrid Real Madrid of Madrid Mourinho here in 2010

<img id =" i-ece6b5779c527f7 "src =" https: // i .dailymail.co.uk / 1s / 2019/03/20/13 / 11227708-6830037-image-a-6_1553087621455.jpg "height =" 764 "width =" 962 "alt =" A move to Southampton saw Pochettino succeed again , and he helped the will of Adam Lallana reach the following

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A move to Southampton saw Pochettino succeed again, and he helped the will of Adam Lallana again

However, in an era when the Premier League was young English talent seemed about it Pochettino was counterintuitive.

Eight months after his arrival speaking to him in this country in 2013, Pochettino told Sportsmail : & # 39; In terms of pure talent, English players have nothing to envy in their Brazilian, Argentinian or Spanish counterparts. It's all about working hard and trusting and believing in them … giving them the opportunity and supporting them;

& # 39; I have witnessed the transformation of Spanish football. & # 39; I have witnessed the transformation of Spanish football. I have seen that transformation over a period of more than 20 years, from the moment they knew nothing to gain when they started winning things. England is now also in a moment when all they have to do is believe. Really believe in their talent, their own inherent ability that is present in English footballers. "

To be honest, at that time it sounded like a rule to get favor with the locals.

Those close to Pochettino insist on being careful to incorporate the point about Bielsa & # 39; s influence into his presence, even though he has spoken of him as a & # 39; father figure & # 39; in public.

In private it is not clear that he wants to be fairly close to him and that he regards it as a cliché.It is a point that journalist Guillem Balague, who worked with him for a year at Brave New World, has made. & # 39; He has learned a lot from Newells Old Boys, from Bielsa, but he is not a Bielsa manager or coach at all.

Balague claims that, as the & Spygate & # 39; sage in Leeds made clear, Bielsa is much more obsessed with how his opponents play.

& # 39; What I learned from Bielsa is that you don't go to look at the passport if you give someone a chance & # 39 ;, said Balague. & # 39; If you can do the job, it doesn't matter if you are 17, 20 or 28. You have to be brave, you have to come on the field to be a leading player. You have to work very hard to repair the ball, but you get the ball back if it is different from Bielsa. & # 39;

<img id = "i-c18648bc67fc3cd0" src = "https://ift.tt/2U2ImAv 11227630-6830037-image-a-31_1553087824979.jpg "height =" 654 "width =" 962 "alt =" Pochettino played hard and his teams also have steel – even

<img id = "i- c18648bc67fc3cd0 "src =" https://ift.tt/2OzWJqh "height =" 654 "width =" 962 "alt = "Pochettino has played hard and his teams also have steel – even the gentle Kane can get aggressive, as shown here"

Pochettino has played hard and his teams also have steel – even the gentle Kane can become aggressive, as can be seen here

Leading actor is a word you hear again from Latin coaches, especially listening to Pochettino or Guardiola.

Ze call it a sign of pride, as if the team d that the game takes on, that possession dominates, has an almost moral right to win.

This is the clear influence of Bielsa on Pochettino and, indeed, English football. So when England took over Spain in Seville last year and delivered the first home defeat to their hosts in 15 years, it was the most & # 39; protagonist & # 39; England's performance since they defeated 4-1 Holland in 1996 under Terry Venables.

And there is no doubt that Southgate owes a debt to the current wave of Premier League coaches playing this way: Pochettino, Jurgen Klopp and Guardiola.

However, as Balague points out, there is a fundamental difference between going to the Pochettino team and to the Bielsa team when they have won the ball back. In part it is an element of directness. The Pochettino team plays the ball faster.

But it is also unlikely that Bielsa would like to win with 40 percent possession of the ball, the Tottenham beat Chelsea in November, one of their best performances of the season. Sensini, who played with Pochettino under Bielsa at Newell, says: & Spurs I see a very aggressive team, such as Bielsa, but Mauricio has his own details & he says. & # 39; Bielsa & # 39; s would be more rigid in tactics. & # 39;

One aspect of the Pochettino revolution that is often overlooked is the role of Jesus Perez. The quartet of Spanish-speaking coaches can often be seen together at Spurs & # 39; training ground sharing partner, the Argentine infusion drink that D & # 39; Agositino and Pochettino have introduced to English football culture.

He was an employee of Espanyol sports director Ramon Planes, not of Pochettino, and only joined to help with the youth and among 21 teams. And he would not have helped Pochettino if it had not been for a violation.

Pochettino had paid £ 7,000 of his own money to get some prototype software to help with race analysis: the most detailed statistics and video analysis, routine today but innovative 10 years ago and another feature of each Bielsa pupil. Pochettino had even paid for a young assistant coach to train in the software so that they could use it during a competition. The assistant paid him back by rolling to Barcelona when they offered to double his salary for the same work there.

The new under-23 helper, Perez, however, was the only other employee who could use the software.

He had worked in Gimnastic de Tarragon, Castellon, Real Murcia, Pontevedra, Rayo Vallencano and Almeria in various coaching roles, but he had just returned from a spell in Saudi Arabia with the national team and Al-Ittihad . Perez is football in every way: coach, analyst, fitness expert. But that last name was perhaps the most significant and possibly the secret behind Pochettino.

Pochettino leans heavily on his versatile number 2 on Tottenham, Jesus Perez, who is a fitness expert and so much more "

] <img id =" i-53506157d0d79c92 "src =" https://ift.tt/2U1m4Pw "height =" 1054 "width =" 962 "alt =" Pochettino leans heavily on his versatile number 2 of Tottenham, Jesus Perez, who is a fitness expert and much more "

Pochettino (19459010)

<img id =" i- 27daf181ea7c62c7 "src =" https://ift.tt/2OzWJXj "height =" 642 "width =" 962 "alt = "Miki D & # 39; Agostino (left) and He is a versatile non-expert at Tottenham, who is a fitness expert and much more

Toni Jimenez (right) are the other members of Pochettino & # 39; s inner circle of coaches at Spurs "

<img id =" i-27daf181ea7c62c7 "src =" https: // id ailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03/20/13/11226856-6830037-image-a-39_1553088019811.jpg "height =" 642 "width =" 962 "alt =" Miki D & # 39; Agostino (left) and Toni Jimenez (right) are the other members of the inner circle of coaches of Pochettino at Spurs "

Miki D & # 39; Agostino (left) and Toni Jimenez (right) are the other members of Pochettino & # 39; s inner circle of coaches at Spurs

He studied physiology at the university for five years. Even now it is still unusual for fitness experts to be the No. 2 at a club, although there should have been some clues from the past. Rafa Benitez and Jose Mourinho both studied sports sciences; both changed the dynamics of football in the last decade because they understood physiology well. Perez belongs in that bracket.

And Pochettino's teams are fitter than almost everyone. Lallana is still grinning about pre-season training in Southampton in the summer of 2013. Admittedly, Pochettino may have exaggerated that year: he let the team walk over glowing coals in one of those bonding exercises designed to show what can be achieved with willpower. So far that has not been repeated at Tottenham. But to play like Pochettino, you want you to be fitter than most. & # 39; He finishes the b ****** from them & # 39 ;, says a resident of Tottenham. His standards are simply higher and his methods seem better than those of his Premier League rivals.

Getting Luke Shaw into an obvious task at Southampton. Less noticeable was the task he had at Kane in Tottenham. Kane was not rated high. He was the striker who was only used in the Europa League, with Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado in front of him. Indeed, Kane did not start a Premier League match under Pochettino until November 9 that first season, against Stoke (and they lost 2-1). Something had changed by that time. Kane had gone to Pochettino to ask why he was alone on the couch. Pochettino did not answer correctly. & # 39; He said my body fat was high, I didn't try as hard as I could, and that was it! & # 39; Kane remembers.

Son Heung-min is another Tottenham player who has benefited from Pochettino & # 39; s hard love and guidance "

<img id =" i-eeefbdd24bef3688 "src =" https://ift.tt/2U55Hlm "height =" 641 "width =" 962 "alt = "Son Heung-min is another Tottenham player who has benefited from Pochettino's hard love and guidance"

Son Heung-min is another Tottenham player who has benefited from the hard love and guidance from Pochettino

Kane admits that his body fat was 18 percent when Pochettino took over at the club Meaning: too fat to be an elite striker And Kane & # 39; s conditioning and the care he now takes over – the second home within minutes of the training field, the personalized chef and, crucially, the input of Perez – would probably be a One of the key factors in his elevation to the world of elite players.

But Perez is much more than a fitness guru. In Brave New World, Pochettino explains how his assistant is crucial in his coaching and motivation role. & # 39; Around that time [March 2017] I had a difficult conversation with one of the key figures, whose name I will keep for myself. & # 39; [Pochettino has never confirmed this but the circumstances suggest it is Son Heung-min.] & # 39; It was our second in the two-year period. I let Jesus prepare the ground and they spent almost an hour talking.

& # 39; I came in to put the finishing touches, although Jesus kept coming back with sentences like: & # 39; You do this during training, this in games and these are the statistics. "I went down the contract route:" If you continue like this, we don't need you. "He ended up as a trigger in a video we showed him, which clearly shows that he reacted conservatively twice in the same game instead of doing what he should have done, namely, making progress, his decision affected him and the team. "Ah, yes, it's true, I made a mistake," was his reaction when he saw it.

The Pochettino manifesto is probably packed there as well as everywhere: its ability to work with individual players, often young ones, to lift them up, in Son & # 39; s case, from a good player to world class; the need to a protagonist not to be conservative, the tough love he is willing to show by threatening not to renew his contract, but also the importance from Perez.

It was also Perez who, together with the vro your from Pochettino, Karina, Pochettino persuaded to take a chance on Southampton. Pochettino jokes that his assistant had an established interest because he spoke English and Pochettino did not. That in itself is almost the impetus for failure.

Karina repaired him with a friend in Barcelona who taught English. & # 39; After my first lesson, I said, "It's impossible!" I would like to speak English. I said, "I'm going to stop." Fortunately I persisted. And, it turns out, I wouldn't need the Queen's English to have a huge impact on his adopted country.

<img id = "i-ae5c536637c5ad70" src = "https://ift.tt/2OzWKul -6830037-image-a-29_1553087809985.jpg "height =" 640 "width =" 962 "alt =" After joining Tottenham in 2014, Pochettino has established himself as one of the leading managers in world football Tottenham in 2014, Pochettino established himself as one of the leading managers in world football "

After joining Tottenham in 2014, Pochettino established himself as one of the leading managers in world football

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