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artful-aries · 11 months

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Can I please have possessive/jealousy headcanons for scaramoche dottore zhongli Childe and pantalone? Thank you in advance 🤗

I am not dead everyone!!! Mother’s Day and TOTK releasing this weekend have me hella preoccupied. Anyway, I’ve actually already done this for Zhongli and Childe, but I did the other three!!

Content Warnings: Dottore’s section is pretty manipulative and unhealthy, this is your warning.

When They Are Jealous (Dottore, Scaramouche, Pantalone)

Dottore:

This man is very possessive at all times, even when he’s in a good mood. He doesn’t get jealous, that would require him to think he might not measure up to others, but he definitely does not take kindly to others thinking they can have access to you

Would not hesitate to cut someone’s eyes out if they stared at you for too long, and likely would find some use for them in his various experiments

Dottore sees you as an extension of himself, or more accurately, one of his possessions. He is far too prideful to let any mediocre being come close to thinking they could even speak to you without him allowing it

This results in your borderline isolation from anyone who isn’t Dottore (with a few exceptions, such as the Harbingers). You tell him that you feel lonely? Too bad. He’s not going to budge on this. You’re his, and not just anyone can speak to you or lay eyes on you

It doesn’t take much to make the Doctor jealous; simply disrespect his wishes and talk to a random Fatui agent, or even just a Snezhnayan merchant, and you’ll have him scowling underneath his mask as he watches you. He knows exactly what you’re doing, and doesn’t like it one bit

What he does entirely depends on his mood; He will either lay a chilling hand on your shoulder and ask you to speak to him privately, or if he is in a foul mood, he likely wouldn’t hesitate to maim or kill the other person on the spot.

Don’t think you’ve escaped punishment either, you’re just as much of a guilty party in this as they were. Dottore isn’t going to kill you or disfigure you, no, he is going to opt for a more psychological punishment for you

Nothing makes people more desperate and malleable than a lack of affection, so he will actively withhold any affection until you’re begging for forgiveness and for him to give you an ounce of attention

Is it manipulative? Absolutely, but Dottore doesn’t care. This gets him the results he wants and enables him to observe how you behave under emotional and psychological stress. He likes to see just how long you can last before you’re caving to him

Should you go out of your way to make him jealous by being too friendly with another Harbinger, you’ll have him seething, but this just makes things worse for you since he can’t take out his frustration on the other Harbingers though he does briefly consider baiting Childe into a fight once he sees you hanging off of the man’s arm

Dottore would scoop you up immediately without a word, carrying you into his lab where he plans to have a very stern “talk” with you about not throwing yourself at the nearest person when you want attention from him

There are very rare occasions where he will “let” you do as you please, flirting and getting touchy with anyone and everyone just to make him jealous, but he uses this as an opportunity to study you and your actions. While the behavior irks him, there is valuable data to be collected in allowing it to happen. Once his data collection is complete, he’s ready to punish you for trying to provoke him despite the benefit he received out of your antics

Scaramouche:

Another one to easily get jealous, he will turn into the biggest brat alive over the simplest things. You could greet someone cheerfully because you’re in a good mood and he will immediately have a snide remark to say about it

Whether you intentionally made him jealous or not, it doesn’t matter. He’s going to have an attitude with you no matter what

Scaramouche just doesn’t have it in him to be upfront about the fact that he’s upset, or communicate why he is upset. You’ll have to deal with him being cold and distant aside from his rude comments until he eventually gets over it himself or you piece together what his problem is

When you do confront him, he will adamantly deny that he was ever jealous, “What am I, your keeper? Do what you want.”

Yet it’s very clear by the permanent scowl on his face that Scaramouche doesn’t want you to do what you want. He’d never admit it, but he wants your focus on him and only him, he wants your unwavering devotion. It makes him feel like his existence is validated

The most you’d be able to pull out of him is what made him cranky in the first place, but his admittance is indignant and dismissive. Part of him just wants to stay mad because deep down he feels like this is just you getting ready to betray him. He’s been burned too many times and has a lot of trust issues

When you reassure him that your earlier actions held no underlying meaning and that you aren’t going to abandon him, Scaramouche’s expression will not change; however, there will be a slight release of tension in his shoulders. He’s not completely relieved, but it’s enough to get him to stop being entirely unpleasant

For a little while after his initial withdrawal, he’s going to stick uncharacteristically close to you, almost as though he is making sure that you’re true to your word

Again, he would never admit this, but in reality Scaramouche just wants to be in your comforting presence for a while

If you were to ask him why he’s hanging around so much all of the sudden, he will lie through his teeth and just say he was bored or just happened to have extra time on his hands. Even if you tease him about it, he will never admit just how much he enjoys your presence

He also makes sure to cut off and interrupt anyone that tries talking to you when he’s with you. They’re cutting into his time with you, and he won’t hesitate to be rude as hell in order to get them to go away

Pantalone:

He is a difficult man to make jealous; he is incredibly confident in himself, to the point that he doesn’t view most people as competition

If he were to get jealous, it would likely be you giving attention to the other Harbingers, especially a Vision bearer

Pantalone would freeze for a moment at the scene, his eyes narrowing as he takes in how you interact with them. The sight alone made his stomach churn a little bit. He doesn’t think he is beneath them, but he can’t help but wonder if there’s a part of you that prefers the power that Visions bring, something that he can’t buy with his wealth

He will saunter up to you and place a hand on your shoulder; not threateningly, but just to remind you of his presence as he works his way into the conversation. Though he doesn’t have much patience and finds a way to politely end it soon after joining. He’s got a lot that he wants to say to you in private, gently pulling you away

Once you’re alone, he smiled sweetly at you, but there’s an edge to it as he asks you why you were paying so much attention to another person rather than him

He’s not outright threatening you, and he doesn’t intend to hurt you physically because of his own jealousy, but his tone indicates that you need to choose your words carefully

If you explain yourself and say that you were just being friendly, Pantalone will happily drop the subject, wrapping an arm around you as the two of you walk together. He knew he was good enough for you, but liked the reassurance that you weren’t seeking more than he could provide

If you were to admit that you were actively trying to make him jealous, then he would give a small chuckle at your response. You wanted to make him jealous? Well, mission accomplished, but now were you prepared to deal with the consequences?

He’ll pull you to his office, not explaining himself as he locks the door. He intends to remind you of just how much he has to offer, and how you won’t be happy with anyone else, even if they were blessed by the gods

Pantalone is possessive by nature, wanting anything and everything his heart desires, you included. He’s spent too long working for his wealth to fall short with you

#genshin impact #genshin #genshin imagines #genshin headcanons #genshin x reader #reader insert #genshin imagine #genshin impact headcanons #genshin headcanon #genshin impact imagine #Dottore #dottore x reader #Scaramouche #scaramouche x reader #wanderer #wanderer x reader #Pantalone #pantalone x reader

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ranticore · 8 days

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Chapter 3 - To Be Phocid [Qedivar's research]

It's that time again. Ishmael is a teenage boy, fair warning.

I'm posting this on mobile so I cba linking the previous chapters but go into the siren tag to find them.

Following these events, and at Maris’s insistence, Ishmael began to keep a journal. To the delight of this author, his writing was deep, introspective, and highly detailed. From now on, I no longer had to rely on pieced together scraps and reports, but from a primary source. As such, the way these events are related will shift a little, but that is only for events concerning Ishmael.

Cherta, unfortunately, did not keep a journal at this time and remains frustratingly opaque, given Ishmael’s somewhat biased recounting of their activities. Although one must concede to the difficulties of keeping a journal underwater, before the age of sub-aquatic writing systems, and with eighteen other overambitious adolescents in relatively close proximity.

Ishmael’s journal was recorded on a computerified device and was not written by hand, though his deep dream education had serviced to educate him in handwriting skills. This was tested when he was younger, as part of an evaluation to determine the extent of his dexterity. Although the notion of a form of writing which is stored in a purely hypothetical space is very odd, especially in its permanency, it has enabled us to access his thoughts at this day and age, whereas traditional aquatic knot-writing would have long since rotted away.

He wrote in the language of the Predecessors, which I believe to be the root of all air-speaking language families. The translation of these texts is what has taxed me more than any other part of this process, aside from the grievous bodily harm, and it has taken a fantastic span of time to achieve this translation. I cannot credit my sources for fear of implicating them but you can be assured that the finest minds of the Spire collaborated on this project. This Predecessor tongue is what is spoken in all of the videos, enabling me to learn it to a conversational level, though I am hardly fluent.

Some of the journal is rendered untranslatable due to it referring to objects or concepts which were considered common knowledge at the time, requiring no additional definition. These concepts or objects will be clearly marked. However, I believe much of the text to be familiar to many people, telling of the frustration and longing common and recognisable today. That said, I believe it is also important not to take for granted the relatability.

Ishmael is not always familiar to us and existed in a time we would find nigh incomprehensible. Do not take this as reason to doubt his interiority or personhood, and do not fall into the trap of believing that you would have done better in his place, that you would have seen clearly what he obviously did not (and had good reason not to). They may have been phocids, or the predecessors of phocids, but they were new. If you were the first of your kind, could you do better?

I will now present the text in chronological order, starting from the eve of his sixteenth birthday:

Entry 1 – I hate seeing that baby siphonid. It’s still moving. It drags itself around on the leg the researchers didn’t take. Now I’m just going to remember this forever, since I wrote it down. Great. I hate that fucking noise. Why can’t they just get it to shut up?

Thank [deity]. They took it away.

Update – it didn’t even taste good.

Entry 2 - Maris told me to talk more about my feelings. What does she know? Nobody understands me anyway. I don’t think they can feel all that on their face like me. The sipho noise kept touching me. The researchers are always talking about hydrofoils and antennae but I bet they don’t know what I do - how the siphos talk to each other. I told Callum and he didn’t know what I meant, even though he has a beard.

Talked to Lee again about sex since Dan said he wouldn’t tell me himself. I don’t think Lee told the truth about a lot of that stuff. The other kids sometimes joke around a bit too much, but it is kinda funny I guess.

Update - Dan shouted at me for asking, but now I have proof Lee was wrong.

Entry 3 – The phocids click at each other underwater with their tongues.

Dan got so angry after I pulled my face hair out. He made the interns [untranslatable] search my room for the hairs and they actually found them. They didn’t even do anything with it, just put it in a bag and sealed it away. Looks like nobody wants it at all. Dan says Atom spent 120 billion nua making me, so I think one face hair is worth a few million. If I started selling them to the people outside the lab, I could buy my own stake of land on Siren just like them. I wouldn’t let Lee in. My fingers are probably worth a couple billion each.

Should I

Entry 4 – Emer (the intern) looked at me like I did something wrong when she changed my pillowcases.

Spilled bile EVERYWHERE when they were testing me. I keep thinking about somehow saving it and trying to sell it. I’m supposed to be a digestive model for Siren food, so my insides are probably worth a lot. I should ask Dan when he calms down.

Callum came around to talk to Dan again. He’s getting really tall, he’s taller than me now even when I stand up straight. He’s so skinny, like the baby siphonids (I can snap one in half with just my teeth now). When Callum was there, he didn’t want to look at me, but I get it. They didn’t even cook the siphonid this time, it was raw and with the shell on. His leg is the same width as one of them.

Emer won’t stop changing my pillowcases. Is there a way to prevent them from smelling like that?? Callum hasn’t been around so I can’t ask. Maris thinks it’s just because people my age start getting sweaty but Dan specifically told me he made me not have sweat glands anywhere but my hands. Then he said the phocids do have sweat glands. I still don’t get the point of sweating if you’re already a stupid wet rat who lives in the

Entry 5 – I’m seventeen now. Since I’m an adult, I decided to stop being reticent around the phocids. I want to know if they found a comfortable way to walk without the skin coming off their tails. So I went to talk to them today for the first time. There is a window where you can do it, they let it open ever since the climate control got busted again last month.

Cherta is really weird. I knew they couldn’t stay in the pool for very long because they might have a seizure but apparently it can happen any time, not just underwater. They have a button implant that makes their muscles relax. Anyway, their tails have thicker skin than mine so that was useless. But it is still worthwhile, I think, to meet with the phocids. They remind me why I am a human, and they are not. I kind of pity them because all they're ever going to be is a bunch of test subjects in a tiny swimming pool.

Cherta told me that one of the phocids died a year ago. I don’t remember Dan ever talking about it to me, but they said it was a big deal. Apparently they got pressure sickness when climate control broke the first time. I think Cherta broke it the second time, they sounded too proud to mention it. I don’t get it. Anyway, breaking stuff in the lab is against the rules and I think I’m going to tell Dan about that.

Entry 6 – I made the right choice. Cherta got so angry when they found out I told on them that they had another seizure. The other phocids had to pull them out of the pool. Dan thought I did the right thing but I don’t think he liked me going to tell Cherta about it afterwards, told me no one likes a snitch. Well, then, what am I supposed to do? Just let it happen? I hope Cherta chokes on that gross pool water next time.

Dan suggested I go do something other than visit the phocids and I agree, they’re clearly not worth my time. I went to see Callum instead but he wasn’t in. He has a games console, I saw him show it off to Lee the other day. I wonder if he’d let me try it.

[End of Journal Entries]

It paints an interesting picture. As Ishmael mentions, Cherta suffered permanent neurological issues as a result of their birth mishaps. This was a point of contention within the lab, beyond Ishmael’s knowledge; the finance manager of the settlement questioned the wisdom of keeping a test subject in an aquatic locomotion study group who could not spend much time underwater. Every time, however, Dan Loris would respond that Cherta now provided essential information about phocid neurology and drowning mechanisms.

The phocid whose death Ishmael mentions was number seventeen, Ambla. It is highly likely that number seventeen’s death was accidental, but the circumstances were not caused by a failure of the lab’s climate system.

I have found the experimental notes from that day; Ambla was brought to an isolated chamber which was controlled by the climate system, with its own test pool, and the quality of the atmosphere was changed to match that of the Precursor home planet. The force of gravity was thus increased. What the Humans did not expect was Ambla’s sudden inability to swim to the surface. They inhaled water, which settled in their lungs and caused them to drown even after they had been pulled out of the pool.

Dan expressed grief in his notes, and surprise. He did not understand why such a thing would occur and blamed the climate system for somehow altering the test beyond his parameters. This is likely what led to Cherta’s misconception that the climate system had killed one of their friends, and their subsequent sabotage of the climate system every few months after that.

But any phocid or selkie reading this will intimately recognise the problem, and I believe the mystery of Ambla’s death may now be solved. The water taken to fill the pool was likely Tel!am’s Blood, a phenomenon all sea-faring people will know about. The Precursors, it seemed, were unfamiliar with it, and had pumped water in to the pool which nobody could swim in. But with the increased gravity, even the fittest phocid would struggle to rise in shallow water.

Regardless, there exists a substantial gap between that last journal entry and the next. Almost a year, in fact, when Ishmael did not write at all, and neither did he participate in Maris’s therapy sessions. I do, however, have a copy of Callum’s journal with me which provides at least half of the narrative, incomplete as it is.

#setting: siren

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idontwanttospoiltheparty · 3 months

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john and yoko are generally considered toxic while paul and linda are pretty much loved even though linda, much like john, essentially cut off her friends once she got with paul and he was controlling of who had access to her and controlled her access to money…is it because they fit the traditional heteronormative gender roles that their relationship isn’t met with nearly as much criticism?

*sigh*

Things JohnandYoko and PaulandLinda have in common:

A public, high-commitment relationship

Artistic collaboration

Needy, territorial, to some extent controlling husband (yes, John was controlling too at the start), who in some sense used his marriage to compensate for the lost cameraderie of his previous band

Major changes in their social circle when they got together However: -> It's not super clear cut what happened with Linda's NYC friends. They were all weirdly petty about the situation. A more charitable reading would be that Linda lost touch with them because she moved countries and didn't feel to bad about it when they lashed out. But you know… Who knows, I guess. It could have been worse than that, I don't want to fully rule it out.

Co-enabling addiction (weed vs heroin tho…)

Just JohnandYoko Things 🩷

Yes, slightly more Spicy gender roles, granted.

Also some racism for sure. …That being said… (bear in mind: some of these were at least somewhat out of both John and Yoko's hands – doesn't make it not toxic)

At least one (1) confirmed occurrence of adultery (over a fucking Presidential election lmao)

At least one of them seriously hindered by untreated depression and probably other mental ailments

Enabling disordered eating

Breaking up while keeping tabs on the person via their mistress

Losing track of a child from a previous marriage???? (again this isn't me blaming them – this is me saying Here's A Thing that definitely damaged their relationship)

Limiting contact to another child from a previous marriage

… Probably more. If anyone feels like it they can add.

… Do you get my point? Is this really just about people finding the house husband stuff uncomfy?

I'm not saying PaulandLinda were perfect or the pinnacle of feminism. I just think this comparison is myopic at best and disingenuous at worst.

#ask #anon #lp #jy #my analysis #meta

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egg-emperor · 6 months

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Hello! I hope you're doing well! I wanted to pick your brain over Eggman in Frontiers to hear your perspective.

I honestly found Eggman lacklustre in Frontiers. I was disappointed. I have a few questions to see if I'm missing anything and if you can put my mind at ease.

What were Eggman's motives for booting up the Ancients' technology? He mentions secrets but what for? Any other game story is a motive for world domination. How will the Ancients enable this?

I saw the relationship he and Sage had as uwu and sappy. I can't visualise Eggman as a father. I certainly saw him act paternal towards Sage. It's not to my liking haha. I preferred the original ending where he had to fight for his personal victory and bring Sage back online.

Why was Eggman laughing at Sonic being corrupted? I assumed he personally wants to finish Sonic off. I think of Sonic 2 8 bit in Underground Zone where he saves Sonic to finish him off.

Thank you in advance and I look forward to hearing your analysis.

Hello! I'm doing pretty good thanks, much more positive now I'm no longer struggling with the difficulty of the update XD Feels like I've been needing to recover though because I've been tired af! Hope you're doing well too ^^

He definitely deserved to do a lot more. Final Horizon improved by giving him a bit of action but he was still sidelined hard. I still feel so teased by the MC texture pack of Eggman and Sage in Wyvern, that would've been so metal in game lol. Even having even just a side boss is always better than none. The more action the better! It's not boring for him to be a boss and the villain he is and get some action. Especially since they easily could've incorporated the Titans by having Eggman take control, or he could've at least been a mini boss.

But I actually like everything we did get and I'll be getting into a lot of why here! And I appreciate the interest and you asking me for my take on it. I hope I can possibly offer a new perspective but either way, thanks for hearing me out. ^^ But buckle up because it's gonna be a big one lol, I decided to really dig in!

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"What were Eggman's motives for booting up the Ancients' technology? He mentions secrets but what for? Any other game story is a motive for world domination. How will the Ancients enable this?"

His interest in The Ancients is just the classic story finding about an ancient power and checking it out to see what he can do with it. He knew there was a civilization with impressive and valuable technology that was attracting the emeralds, and understandably went to check it out. The prequel comic sets it up like this:

While his initial discovery wasn't revealed, he learned about the islands where an ancient civilization possessed advanced technology and it started attracting the emeralds. So he goes on a trip there, looks around and sets stuff up as we see traces of his presence left behind with ships on each one and Death Egg robot on Chaos Island where he was farming geothermal energy from the volcano.

He came across the Cyber Space structure as a piece of that tech that intrigues him so he wants to override their cyber security to access and take control of it for himself, so he had Sage downloaded to the data pad thingy and uploaded her to it to do so. He was then was supposed to get tech like their soldiers and Titans under control and use them in his plans, then he could discover more of their secrets and find a way to use all of their advanced tech he finds as a tool for world domination.

Immediately upon merging Sage with Cyber Space to try to get past that security, it summons the soldiers and the Giganto is seen in the back, so there you already have potential new power for him to take control of so he was correct. If he did succeed in harnessing and utilizing it and uncovered all their secrets in his surveying of it, he could have total control of the islands, get himself new minions, and discover more about their technology with Cyber Space and all and use their power for his selfish gain.

But of course it didn't go quite as planned as it seems that Sage sensed the danger and decided to seal Eggman in Cyber Space as a protective measure, so he gets trapped in there instead.

When trapped in Cyber Space he's fascinated by how advanced it is to the point he admits it's more than what he's dabbled in before. He continues his analysis of what he sees and throughout the memos, he finds out he was right to be curious and with all the research he gathers about the capabilities of Cyber Space and begins questioning how he can use this power and knowledge to his selfish benefit. Classic Eggman 💜

Sage was also able to somewhat control the Titans, it's just something was blocking her from taking full control but she was able to use them against Sonic and Eggman was very pleased. I'm assuming this was part of his initial plan, to take control of their power and use it against Sonic, then explore the capabilities of the rest of the tech on the islands to utilize for his bigger plan in world domination.

He was always planning on taking control of their creations and using them against Sonic and exploring the islands, uncovering their secrets and analyzing and learning about them like the scientist he is, then using that knowledge to figure out how he can use it in his schemes.

He finds out there's even more about their tech that could be useful with the capabilities of Cyber Space throughout. And he starts taking interest in The End when he learns about it being an even greater more powerful force for being able to wipe them out despite their own impressive power and creations. Which had even more potential if could've found a way to handle it, like he displayed a willingness and confidence in being able to do because of his genius and skill.

( Gotta love how he spits in the face of The Ancients' being wiped out by thinking he can do better. Sure is super sympathetic towards them huh ;D )

So had he not been trapped in Cyber Space, he could've used The Ancients' soldiers, Titans, and The End and if had utilized them successfully, I'm sure he would've had a lot of power that could help him take over the world with some plan. He clearly believes they could've done so themselves, to him it's just a question of why they didn't go ahead beyond a few "piddly" islands because of course he'd do so in a heartbeat.

It's funny because it's also another example of how he's incapable of considering that they might not have that same greed and desire for world domination like him, he can't fathom it lol

So he already knew enough to be aware that they possessed power that he could use in his plans, so he went there to check it out and take control of their tech. Then he was going to find out what else he could do to use their tech to his advantage to achieve world domination. While a lot of this unfortunately fell apart, he still spends his time uncovering more and analyzing everything he finds out while trapped inside Cyber Space too, as we learn about in the memos.

It really shows how during the entire main game and even in the update with the island conversations, he was thinking about what he could do with their power. People saying he's morally gray in this game confuse me because of his obvious villainy and desire to scheme with the only things stopping him being trapped in Cyber Space and then in danger of The End. The intent and desire is still there from beginning to end!

And the potential was there too. Eggman had a reason to be interested in The Ancients' secrets and I would've loved to see him actually put all this knowledge to use. It feels like they teased it waaay too much to never have him actually do anything with everything he learned... so I wonder if there's a chance he'll actually do so in the future?

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"I saw the relationship he and Sage had as uwu and sappy. I can't visualise Eggman as a father. I certainly saw him act paternal towards Sage. It's not to my liking haha. I preferred the original ending where he had to fight for his personal victory and bring Sage back online."

I don't think the game did too bad of a job at showing what the real true dynamic of Eggman and Sage really is, ever since I paid closer attention in my second playthrough. I regret letting fandom influence how I thought and felt during my first because it ruined my first experience and made me believe things that weren't true. But now I love it because it's way different to fanon!

The most important thing to consider is the entire basis of Eggman's side of the dynamic and the specific reasons he comes to value and praise her at all, all said in his own words in the memos:

What kind of normal good wholesome caring parent brags that their child would be "loyal" and "perfectly effective"? Exactly. Those aren't things selfless, good hearted, good intentioned, genuinely caring parents expect of their child and that's the point. Eggman is already fucked up for that alone. Then to hammer it home, BOOM there it is:

The reason he recognizes, praises, and values these things in Sage as much as he does besides all the ways he benefits from them- is that he can take pride in being the one that made it all possible as she's a reflection of his genius- praising her is praising himself as her creator. And this is why Flynn said it was unsettling and that he warmed up to her for all the wrong reasons.

It's important to remember and consider this when analyzing absolutely every interaction between the two in this story.

In the prequel comic we see he specifically built Sage to protect him and he wishes aloud for a creation that will just once make him proud:

Upon hearing this, it may have prompted Sage to try extra hard to please him on top of her programming. And he was already calling her his "latest and greatest" like he does all his creations lol. So she also may have felt the need to try extra hard to live up to that high standard and expectation too.

Anyway, whether that's Sage's intention or if she's going purely by her stated programming, she does live up to fulfilling her programmed function and Eggman's wishes for a creation that will fill him with pride. She's loyal, efficient, and protects him multiple times throughout main story and Final Horizon.

Eggman takes note of her efficiency and her being crucial in his survival in the memos.

She shows true loyalty, efficiency in serving and protecting him as created, and prioritizes his safety and desires. She talks about saving him and the world for him to rule specifically, which he smiles smugly at like "finally somebody here understands it's all about me >:D"

All the times he praises her highly throughout the entire game are for doing exactly as she was created and asked to do, or surpassing those expectations in pleasant ways. But then every time she does something he doesn't want her to, even in cases where his best interests are still in mind, he snaps at her for it not being exactly what he wants: (Click through for better view/open in new tab on desktop, I don't wanna make the post even longer)

Also there's also him suddenly switching to being appalled, jealous, and pissed at her just for admiring Sonic

This all shows how conditional it is. He'll snap and yell at her and thump the Egg Mobile when she doesn't do what he wants in the exact way he wants one second, and praises her highly when she does the next. It's really represented best by these scenes:

youtube

First he was yelling at her for daring to suggest something he doesn't want to do, smashing his fist against the Egg Mobile in anger, and flying off. Then he was in danger of the G.U.N helicopters, she jumped in and saved him, and then he immediately switched to praising her highly and saying he was proud of her. What makes this especially significant is that you can get the second scene to play immediately after the other, if you trigger them right with the unlocking of the emeralds. Literally changes like the weather between her doing something he hates to something he wants.

I also want to bring up the flashback montage:

youtube

It shows Eggman doesn't actually do anything selflessly nice. All he does praise her for what she was created to do and she just applied love that she learned from watching Sonic and friends to those initiatives of loyalty and protection she was programmed with, the way Eggman praised her for fulfilling them, and to any likeness to family like him as her creator and Orbot and Cubot as his too, the idea of having a home, etc.

Eggman's side really is shown to be shallow, self-centered, and with his own interests and benefits in mind all along, while Sage's is more professional at first but becomes much deeper and more meaningful over time, as she witnesses what it means to be a family born of love from Sonic and co interacting. She looks to Eggman as her creator for that dynamic and applies the feelings of love she learned from them to it, even though their master creator and servant creation dynamic is much different to that. She doesn't have that but wishes she did.

Sage also clearly has doubts about him caring for her when she has to ask Sonic if he really thinks Eggman does, and it shows in her songs as she questions whether he'll be mad at her, or if she's asking for too much just to be with him, as I talked about here. This also shows that Eggman hasn't given her enough to convince her and we can really see that in the scenes. Even Sonic mumbles that Eggman "cares" for her "in his own way" because even he knows he isn't capable of loving and caring about people in the traditional conventional expected way.

They played some moments for the cuteness factor as they knew it'd appeal to a wider audience and it sure did but that part has no appeal to me. I instead like how the unsettling undertones are still there and make it interesting to analyze. And with the specific ways he praised her in the memos and the specific circumstances in mind, it makes sense as they're always the reasons that Eggman's side of the dynamic is built on.

It makes sense for Eggman not to trash her, he said she was crucial to his survival. Sure she pissed him off but so do Orbot and Cubot all the time and he keeps them around because ultimately they're useful and do their jobs (plus I also think he enjoys getting to boss them around and discipline them harshly as he does because it gives him a sense of power and control over others). And so does Sage, but with genuine enthusiasm, loyalty, and much more efficiency, and has his best interests in mind and a genuine desire to protect him. So why would he get rid of her and then not want to bring her back after her sacrifice? That would make no sense.

And it makes sense for him to praise her and be proud of her too. It's just like him being proud of Gamma. In fact, the way the scene of him yelling at her comes right before the one where he's saved and praises her highly and says he's proud of her, is a parallel to this scene where he was yelling at all the E Series calling them all dummies but then immediately changing his tune when he saw Gamma and saying he's proud of him for doing exactly what he wanted. I did a whole comparison here.

And it makes sense for him to take pride in her as an impressive life like creation, which he finds superior to organic natural life for it, and the ways he can benefit from her loyalty and efficiency. He can also take pride in her for being her creator/father, as she's a reflection of his genius and scientific skill and is useful to him. And by calling himself her father, it's also appealing to her desires for a familial bond which will also give her even more enthusiasm to serve him.

Eggman doesn't do any of this in ways that don't suit his character. He's valuing, praising her, and acting paternal on these conditions specifically, which is the only way it can work with his narcissism, ego, and selfishness intact. It's great that they didn't change him and instead found a way to further develop and solidify his already existing traits, by showing how a father daughter dynamic can work with these things in mind. It serves an an example rather than an exception to them, and this is what a lot of people are missing.

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I also like The Final Horizon's ending as Eggman isn't the overly physically affectionate gushing and throwing arms around people type, it doesn't suit his demeanor and behavior and I'm glad to see that hasn't been suddenly forced with Sage. This isn't over the top and uncomfortable OOC like fanon.

It's a subtle and small gesture, extending his arm with hand out to her but looking away and forward. He's quiet, solemn, and reserved. His demeanor and body language is important. He takes a breath that seems like a "sigh well, here goes" kind of way then mumbles it, not much, just small words of praise towards her doing the very things he created and praised her for before- doing what he wants her to and serving her purpose as his protector like she protected him in the fight, and calling her his daughter also has the same effect in encouraging her and he knows it, as well as how it's appealing to him for his pride as he said in the memo.

It's very important to acknowledge he's not shy at all, that's the last word to describe him. He has the highest self esteem, self love, and confidence and it's all genuine. It's just that hyper affectionate super warm and mushy gushy-ness, be it through feelings, words, or actions isn't his thing. The most he's ever going to hype someone up close to it is in a performative manipulative way to urge them to continue doing what pleases him, and he forces it in some cases more than others, you get varying degrees.

But I like how it's on the more subtle side here a lot because it's even more telling of his true character. When he's acting like this it aligns with that reasoning again but with a new look at his style of showing it in a physical subtle manner, with his behavior being similar to the scene where she saved him in Cyber Space and said he was proud of her for it- only it was only through words then. We've now seen how he can show this verbally and physically and I like it a lot, it's the only way this can work and they did it.

I truly believe he doesn't feel the typical conventional idea of "love" for anyone but himself because he is the biggest egotist and narcissist in all of existence and is extremely selfish and people seem to be forgetting what that entails for his behavior and personality feelings, and mindset with his self absorption and low empathy. There are no sudden exceptions to this, Sage is literally just another perfect example of it, nothing has changed with him.

Also, think about the terms of which he's praising her in all of their "cutest" moments together:

Eggman is delighted that Sage has succeeded in getting Sonic's ass beat and hearing the battle reports. She's proving herself to be very useful and efficient, so he decides to take full advantage of that by properly giving her control of the Eggnet which is a huge promotion. So he uses it to butter her up to make it all the more inviting.

(again click/open in new tab for full view)

She is indeed a good change of pace from Orbot and Cubot as they're often less efficient and don't have the same enthusiasm. Sage brings everything they do but better in appealing to Eggman's interests and serving him well. And at first he takes a dig at them as he hates them immensely without an ounce of fondness but when Sage displays interest in them as being like family, he decides to play along with it and it pleases her, which is also going to make it even more inviting.

But when he first praises her most highly to her face beyond the offhand mumbling of her actions being "commendable" by saying he's proud of her, it's right after he was saved by her from the G.U.N helicopters. Then in The Final Horizon ending where he says she did good and held her hand, it's because he's saying she did a good job in protecting him from the line of fire in the final boss, helping him in destroying The End, and saving the world for him to conquer. Same goes for the original ending for the latter half, for him to revive her and say "that's my girl"

She's done exactly as asked, and he's praising her for it because it genuinely is a job well done and is exactly what he wanted and him reacting with praise encourages that. It's always because he got something out of it. It's not selfless, it's not sweet for the sake of it because he's just feeling sweet and fatherly and kind-hearted. There's always a reason in it where he has benefitted from it. It can be considered emotionally manipulative for that and very conditional too. She goes to great lengths with her actions and he rewards her with mere words- except for when it comes to her biggest accomplishment in The Final Horizon, he takes it a bit further. And what does he offer then? Just a small simple hand hold, while he looks away, seeming quiet and reserved. But it's enough for Sage and it works. It keeps her loyal and loving, he'll need to encourage it to keep her useful and enthusiastic in it.

These are all the specific reasons he praises and warms up to her, also for how calling himself her father is another way to take pride in her as her genius creator, as he said in the Egg Memos. It's all for selfish, self serving, self praising reasons. I like that a lot, it's very in character that way and how it's possible for such a dynamic to exist with his narcissism. Sage is the one giving things to him, protecting him, serving him, and showing loyalty, support, and respect for his desires while Eggman just takes. She does exactly what he wants as she’s created for and is willing and enthusiastic unlike a lot of creations of his. Eggman still hasn’t done shit for Sage, except praise her when she does what he wants but then becomes grumpy and snaps at her every time she does something he doesn’t.

So that's why, while I don't care for the cutesy way they're framed, I can see why Eggman would act that way to appeal to her desire for the family dynamic and encourage her to stay loyal and efficient. So now when it comes to the dynamic, I realized that I shouldn't just write off the entire concept as OOC. The question doesn't lie in "would this situation make sense for Eggman to do at all?", instead it's in "does this have in character reasons and basis for this to happen?" and in my opinion, it absolutely does, so it works.

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"Why was Eggman laughing at Sonic being corrupted? I assumed he personally wants to finish Sonic off. I think of Sonic 2 8 bit in Underground Zone where he saves Sonic to finish him off."

He does really want to be the one personally finish Sonic off. XD He does say this in the English version and in the Japanese version he says he wishes he could've been the one who bury him.

I absolutely love this scene because it really emphasizes that he does hate Sonic as he says, despite any respect he also has and any credit he gives where it's due for him being a formidable adversary. And it's the funniest moment in the game hehe 💕

I think he'll be happy about Sonic dying in any way, as long as it's not being stolen from him from someone else like the Deadly Six for example, so he saved him at Lava Mountain so he could destroy him with his Eggrobo instead. In the Sonic 2 8 bit, I imagine it's because him simply falling into lava also would've been an unsatisfying demise.

In cases where he wasn't the one to directly finish him off, if he still has some hand in it, he can accept it. This doesn't apply when just almost falling into lava like Sonic 2 8 bit or when lackeys of his almost succeed in killing him when they're no longer on his side, like the Zeti breaking the bridge and Sonic almost falling into the lava, so he saved him both times so he could try to kill him himself after.

But in this game, since he helped kick off everything, he's partially responsible for the corruption and can at least settle for that. While he celebrates his supposed demise, he voices that his only regret is that he couldn't finish him off with his own hands for the ultimate satisfaction. Still, it's good to have him out of the way either way, a victory is a victory.

Exactly when and how he wants him to die tends to change a lot though, it's like it depends on his mood lol. Like how sometimes he will very clearly try to kill him during battles as he threatens his life and yells at him to die, how he tried to shoot the capsule out into space, and how he even wants creations or lackeys to actually try to kill him. I guess as long as it's by his orders he can settle for that but again, I think he'd be slightly disappointed that he couldn't do it by his own hands after the fact.

It's kind of like how we know that Eggman would prefer to show him his completed empire before "banishing" him (definitely meant killing) in Forces, which is why he actually kept him alive and imprisoned for six months. Yet he'll always very clearly be out for blood during battles and want him dead there and then. So I feel it depends on how desperate he's feeling to get rid of him in the moment and maybe in the case of Frontiers, for at least one good thing to come out of it. But ultimately, he'll always celebrate his demise if he has some hand in it at all and gets to finally succeed in his goal!

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I love Frontiers Eggman so much. 🥰💜 I love his characterization and what he did actually get to do and I'm really glad I gave him another chance after my initial disappointment. The only things I'd change are a couple of English lines because they didn't make sense or would've been more in character rephrased but in most of those cases JP fixed it- and I'd give him more action, though the update improved on it a bit and gave him a chance to go up against the boss. But I really enjoy the new directions they took him in as new interesting ways to further explore and solidify his already existing character. It made it a lot of fun for me to analyze too!

#dr eggman #eggman #dr. eggman #dr robotnik #sonic frontiers #sonic frontiers the final horizon #sonic frontiers spoilers #sonic frontiers the final horizon spoilers #eggem tag #my post #analysis #eggdad

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em-writes-stuff-sometimes · 1 year

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Is Babey high maintenance? I wouldn't be surprised if she's starting to like how Daemons spoiling her.

👋👍

This is an interesting question, with a kind of long-winded answer!

In some ways, I think Babey definitely is high-maintenance. She's a princess, so she's grown up expecting a certain standard of living; she's used to the pretty dresses and the jewels and the cushy furniture and the big palace, all the people bowing and scraping to her by virtue of her family name and title. She's rich as fuck too, so she has little issue spending money on things she wants (for herself or for others). Plus, when Daemon re-inserts himself into her life, he's the ultimate sugar-daddy-uncle-hubby, so she gets accustomed to being pampered and coddled (I have this dirty headcanon that anytime Daemon bruises her during sex he buys her something, lol, a 'reward' for 'taking him like a good girl') and just generally obsessed over by him. For all his squickness, he takes the whole royal-love-match thing to insane-o levels.

On the other hand, she's had at least limited exposure to what the world beyond her is like for people who don't have her position; Ser Lysan is an ordinary guy who worked his way up to prominence, kinda like Henry VIII's chief minister Thomas Cromwell, and he'd have some stories to tell. Given that he's been present for much of her tween-teenage years, a lot of her formative experiences would have been shaped by his lessons, so I think it'd serve to bring her down from the heights of conceit at least somewhat. Plus, in other ways, she has very much not been spoiled; she's had access to material riches, but her emotional wealth was limited prior to her marriage. Not only because Daemon got all up in there with his psycho brand of devotion, but because the elevation in freedom as a married woman would have enabled her more authority over her life (for example, she moves with Rhaenyra to Dragonstone and surrounds herself with people who don't actually see her as an afterthought, something she wouldn't have had the power to decide if she hadn't been untethered from her father's authority).

I definitely think Babey is spoiled and naive and idealistic in that typical socially-conscious rich-girl way, absolutely. The unfortunate side-effect of having a royal OC/Reader is that that position comes with a certain amount of unignorable privilege, and I've explored this briefly a couple times throughout this series. The fact that Babey puts it aside to focus on her own circumstances really does bely the luxury of her own lifestyle, because those who aren't princesses don't have the freedom to just 'decide not to think about it'.

In short: yeah, Babey's kinda spoiled. She's not an asshole about it, though, just painfully naive.

I hope this answers your question, nonnie! Sorry about the ramble!

#fanfiction asks #terms of endearment discourse

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yourlocaldisneyvillain · 4 months

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⭐⭐⭐ talk away!!! pls talk about whatever suits your fancy, maybe what kinds of traits and themes draw you to a character/story idea, or what themes or traits you notice reappearing in a lot of your works?

oooooh hi hello!!!! thank you for sending this and enabling me lol

okay, so as for what i'm drawn to -- i definitely have a Thing(TM) for poor soggy little meow meows lol. i like my female characters to resemble wet orphan kittens abandoned in the rain lol, but also have a very strong side to them that is in direct opposition to their soggy-meow-meowness lol. i really enjoy that duality. i enjoy that in all sorts of characters, and when it comes to fanfic i do read m/m and only very occasionally m/f pairings, but i am very rarely -- if ever -- inspired to write for them. i guess the formula for what compels me to write something is the combination of 1. soggy woman i wanna keep in a jar 2. is it something i want to read and feel there isn't much of in the world?

i exclusively write f/f pairings and woman-centred storylines -- not bc it's the only thing i enjoy in fiction, but bc it's the sort of thing i wanted to read when i was young and there was just so little of it, and i found it almost exclusively in fanfiction, with some exceptions such as sarah waters novels that i really enjoyed, but weren't translated in my language when i was a kid so i did struggle with them a bit (i would really wanna reread those now that i have a better grasp of the english language and am no longer a tween lol, i wonder if my opinion on them would change). i like to write from experience, and my experience is that of a rather odd gay woman moving through the world, so i like to channel that in my fiction. i feel like i'm Qualified(TM) to write it lol.

i'm about to be an old man shaking my fist at the world and demanding people get out of my swamp lol, but i feel like even though there has been a huge change in the amount of wlw storylines media we are Served every year (when i was a teen i feel i could count them all, that's how few movies/books there were, and at one point it was like okay..... i've seen it all lol or at least all that was accessible to me). and even though the media landscape has changed drastically in the last 10 years, i still feel like there are such few stories that really resonate with me? and we are generally being bombarded with very meaningless stories/media, just regurgitating the same shit over and over again (disney live action remakes are a good example of that trend, saying that as someone who was always a fan of disney if you couldn't guess by my username lol, and hasn't seen any of the remakes bc i simply Do Not Care, stopped caring around 2014 when maleficent came out). if you asked me to name a wlw story, or even a woman-centric story that doesn't involve a male love interest, that i really, truly enjoy, i feel like i'd struggle a bit. we get a lot of storylines in media that, imo, lack substance, and are often audience pandering (idk why supergirl came to mind, but it's a good example i feel). and tbh, the audience isn't picky. most people will just watch whatever lol, and honestly good for them but i Cannot lol. it needs to Hit A Spot for me. as for books, there is a better choice there i feel, but a lot of it is ya novels and i am simply not interested in that lol. no shade, but it's just not something i like to read. i want an old hollywood style romance with lesbians. i want phantom of the opera, i want the Drama(TM), i want a fucking hugh grant cheesy movie with lesbians. and so that's what i like to write -- just things i always wanted but never had lol.

i feel like in my works the Themes(TM) that appear a lot are:

1. loneliness and finding something or rather someone that quenches the thirst for company in a way that matters (i have always found irl that there's a lot of people who listen but don't hear what you're saying, and since i was a child i was always searching for people who will genuinely try to understand where i'm coming from and not just immediately try to put me in a box in their mind so they can Place Me somewhere and understand me in their own language. can you try to understand me in mine?)

2. pondering of morality, what's right and wrong and is there such a thing, rejecting and questioning societal norms.

3. a lot of kinky lesbian sex lol, through which i like to explore the psyche of the characters (or sometimes i'm just horny lol and sexuality and kink is something i like to think about a lot, esp bc my formative years were so traumatic in that aspect)

4. very character driven plots/characters changing their own fate or what *should* happen to them

5. the Intricacies of interpersonal relationships/developing a deep connection with someone and generally exploring emotional connection

6. this will be most prominent in the thing i am yet to post but is almost written, but i do enjoy some horror elements, gothic horror to be specific! i guess it's all the gothic novels i read in my youth :))

#i got an ask!#oh i enjoyed to ramble about this #i feel like my style is very Specific but i struggle to like. name it or grasp it fully if that makes sense lol #i should ask my wife but she is Asleep #sort of forgot to mention -- but i do love to be challenged #i get bored very easily #so i look to challenge myself with each new fic i write!

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goshdangronpa · 6 months

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I’m no mystery writer. I can’t promise airtight murder cases. Still, I have quite a lot of ideas for the first chapter of "I DISAGREE: An Ibuki Mioda SDR2 Protag Swap AU." Let me piece together something - or some of something, anyway - for our new protagonist to piece together in her first pitched battle against sheer despair. Strap in, cuz it’s a long one.

We've All Been Looking for the One: The First Trial

The Monokuma File only confirms the obvious. The victim: Chiaki Nanami, Ultimate Gamer. Time of death: when else but in the dead of night? Cause of death: impalement, as evidenced by the gushing tunnel connecting gut and back.

Ibuki screamed even louder than Hiyoko, drawing everyone - including the bear. Hajime vomited. Byakuya fell on his knees. Fuyuhiko bemoaned the bastard who did this. Mikan broke down. Monokuma cheered. Everyone else cried out. But with a limited window before the imminent trial, there was no time to grieve - only to investigate.

Let’s follow the investigation and trial through the main suspects:

Nagito finds the Ultimate Kendoka’s sword at the bottom of the swimming pool, definitely not where Byakuya had stowed it after confiscating it. Only this could be the murder weapon, and surely only its wielder could use it so effectively. Her do-nothing demeanor could be a put-on for all anyone knows, and her being barricaded like every other patient means nothing when Chiaki also somehow escaped.

Fuyuhiko vigorously defends her, leading everyone to question why he paid so much more attention to her than anyone else. Ibuki notes that before even knowing the girl was sick, he noticed that she wasn’t at the restaurant and rushed to find her. Peko says they should stop hiding their connection. That’s how everyone learns that the two have known each other practically since birth. The Ultimate Kendoka is the Ultimate Yakuza’s lifelong bodyguard and companion.

Ibuki thinks it’s adorable that he did so much to protect her. The others feel differently …

A few things become clear: the killer needed access to the sword, and they couldn’t have been stuck in a room. So, either a patient with help from staff (Fuyuhiko released Peko, who killed Chiaki) or a member of the staff on their own (Fuyuhiko did it himself to cure Peko). Fuyuhiko had already shown a willingness to kill before this sudden pivot to nursing. Maybe he volunteered specifically to become the blackened after all!

“No, that’s wrong!” Hajime’s been practically nonfunctional after seeing Chiaki’s corpse. Though he’ll never know it in this AU, her presence in the trials would’ve grounded him in a way no one else could, enabling him to suss out contradictions and find the truth. This is what allows another person to become the protagonist. With Fuyuhiko in the crosshairs, though, he’ll finally spring into action. “Peko would’ve died too,” he continues, “and he’d never let that happen.”

A few other clues will vindicate the pair. I like the idea that Hajime is Fuyuhiko’s alibi because they spent the whole night in bed together. Kuzuhina fans, rejoice! (Fuyuhiko, too straightedge to let the implications stand, insists they just watched samurai movies until they passed out.)

This is when Ibuki and Mikan realize something crucial. “She wasn’t acting like herself,” Fuyuhiko says about Peko’s recent behavior shift. He’s the only one who’d know what any patient was like before the island. It’s no coincidence that they started acting weird when they fell ill. The illness itself radically altered their personalities! “It’s like Opposite Day Disease,” Ibuki shouts, “or Being-Really-Different Disease!” (And this is why I chose Peko as one of the infected!)

Monokuma confirms their theory, but claims dibs on naming the malady he invented. He dubs it Despair Disease.

Up to this point, Ibuki’s mostly been little more than a contributor to the trial’s progress. Byakuya Togami dominates the conversation with his self-proclaimed leadership role. His keen observation skills and high intellect back him up. What he can’t quite manage is to piece together a clear narrative of the night’s events, though he still expects everyone to catch up with him.

Several things become clear:

The staff were around the contagious patients long enough that someone could’ve caught Despair Disease from them.

The symptoms of the infected cleared up after Chiaki’s murder, though the exact timeframe is unknown.

Hajime and Fuyuhiko are each other’s alibis.

Ibuki and Mikan, having also shared a bed (Hiyoko: “Hey, is that hotel a love hotel?”), are each other’s alibis.

(I've learned that two people can’t just be each other’s alibis. Just assume there was an awkward moment, very late at night, where Mikan and Fuyuhiko tried sneaking out of what they both know to be, respectively, Ibuki and Hajime’s rooms. They both ducked back in and apparently stayed.)

No one saw Byakuya after the group split and left Ibuki’s room.

Byakuya was the one who insisted on storing Peko’s sword.

He also insisted on keeping its location secret from everyone else.

The alleged leader and protector of the group doesn’t take the subsequent accusations well. (Being the only one on staff who slept alone that night doesn’t help.) Ibuki’s confident that he’d never murder someone in a million years, but vibes alone aren’t enough for others to drop their suspicions. This is her moment to shine as the protagonist! Her vivid imagination allows her to conceive possibilities that wouldn’t cross anyone else’s minds and devise creative solutions that most would immediately dismiss.

One funky idea I had for how his name gets cleared involves Chiaki’s nails. While examining her corpse, Ibuki notices dark marks beneath them - flesh, torn off when the victim fought back. Kitty had claws, but who bears the claw marks? Only one way to find out: “Quick! Take off your top!” With no choice but to remove his dinner jacket and undershirt, Byakuya shows no signs of that damage on his chest, arms, or back.

Pants are out of the question. At least, not until others expose their upper halves first. Despite Teruteru’s insistence, they start with the boys:

The slim Fuyuhiko is free of marks.

So is the surprisingly wide-chested Hajime … “but,” Ibuki teases, “you already knew that, didn’t you, Hiki-chan?”

Nagito has scars, but they’re old. Mikan correctly guesses they’re from past surgeries.

Kazuichi, who’s been near-catatonic since being discovered in his room, is reluctant to move, let alone strip. Ibuki recalls that his crazy pecs were exposed throughout his entire hospital stay. They thought that finding him with his jumpsuit zipped up was a sign of normalcy …

The others urge him to comply. With great reluctance, he unzips. This action reveals a bloodstained wifebeater.

More on the murder and execution, next week.

PREV: The Killing Game's First Victim

NEXT: The First Blackened

#I DISAGREE: An Ibuki Mioda SDR2 Protag Swap AU #danganronpa #super danganronpa 2 #sdr2 #goodbye despair #ibuki mioda #hajime hinata #nagito komaeda #fuyuhiko kuzuryu #peko pekoyama #kazuichi souda #byakuya togami #mikan tsumiki #tsumioda #kuzuhina #happy birthday Sonia (apparently)! my gift to you (apparently) is a promise to violently destroy Kazuichi #my tip to writers of serialized fiction: BACKLOG #I definitely touched up a few earlier posts as I wrote this one to insert hints and plant future evidence and stuff #didn't have to edit anything already published

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oodlyenough · 1 year

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last of us 1x08

I had fucked up dreams last night after watching this episode lmfao

Obviously this will talk about the content of the ep so general cw for attempted child sexual assault and uh cannibalism I guess

Overall, probably one of the best this season. Very faithfully adapted from the game, which is a neutral point, but I was impressed that for all I knew what was going to happen basically beat by beat I was still on edge.

Not sure if this is #unpopular or not but I found David MUCH creepier here (from a starting place of "very creepy already" in the game), and I also found his characterization overall to be better. I've never really been sure if in the game you're meant to ever trust him, but I never did, partly because Nolan North plays him with the slimiest voice imaginable, so him turning out to be a creep is kind of a no-shit moment.

Whereas I thought this David was much better at putting up a front, which in turn made him all the more terrifying. It was way too easy to imagine this David pre-apocalypse, teaching (UGHHH), ingratiating himself in the community, getting away with all of it because these kinds of men so often do. The slide "from teacher to preacher" god like of COURSE this mf would find a different way to gain power, control and access over people including/especially children... Ugh it was all 2 Real and that much more creepy.

I also though the way they dealt with the cannibalism was very good honestly. It would've been easy to purely justify it with "people are starving, and we're eating the dead" -- which is kind of what David says, but you can use the context clues to deduce that it's not just that they're eating their dead out of desperation, but that they are actively hunting people for food, he's keeping it a secret, it's, imo, clearly part of his sick power-tripping rather than necessity (as others pointed out, relatively inexperienced Ellie finds game very quickly and easily in one hunting trip lol).

I also thought the slight tension between David and James was interesting here -- obviously James is also a freak, lol, but their disagreement over how to handle Ellie and the general rift between them, as the episode goes on I think you do get the sense that even James is uncomfortable with this side of David and tried roundabout ways to talk him out of going after her or just about shot her in the head. (I keep wanting to joke that James is like "I can excuse cannibalism, but..." but frankly 1. one of these things IS worse than the other and also 2. in the end he still enables everything David does anyway! Bc of course he does. Isn't that how it always goes.)

This was definitely the big showcase for Ellie and for Bella Ramsey. (Watching people whine and cry about it, "two episodes of mostly Ellie wahhhhh" lmaooo shes the main character of the franchise losers, deal with it.) Ramsey was very good. Everyone's saying it but yes the primal screaming in that restaurant scene, ugh, chilling and excellent.

I did find the very first scene between Ellie, James and David had me wincing, like Ellie's tough guy voice was just so bad and felt like a kid play-acting ... but then I suppose that was probably the exact intent, that Ellie was trying to be threatening but wasn't capable of actually BEING threatening in that moment. There's a huge difference between that fake bravado and her (entirely justified) rage and violence later in the episode.

Joel was very Joel in this. I don't have much to say about him lol, it was nice to see Pedro's Joel go a bit unhinged, something we've heard tell of in various episodes but only seen scraps of before. "It's all right, I believe him" is such a memorable bit of the game and it just as chilling here.

Ok time for some criticisms:

They leaned HARD into the pedophile angle for David here. That was always in the game, but it was fairly subtextual, with more emphasis on the cannibalism. Here it was the reverse. Although disturbing, I generally didn't mind -- but I did feel the final scene, and specifically his dialogue in it, about "liking the fight" was just too Ick for me. Very HBO. I felt we didn't need it to know what he was going to do. (Then again audiences do miss the obvious all the time...)

I didn't really miss the infected fight in this episode. I saw people say that you need it to build a false sense of trust between David and Ellie but like... lmao idk I never trusted that guy for a single second. BUT I will say I *do* wish we saw more infected in the series overall. I know it's not about the zombies~ but they are still, uh, the reason all of this is going on, fundamentally. They're what makes rebuilding a functioning large-scale society near impossible, because it falters so easily with a simple misstep leading to infection and outbreak.

The ending felt a bit rushed. The Joel-Ellie reunion didn't hit me as hard as I wanted, although it seems to have resonated with the show fans. It's not an issue (for me) of him pulling her off David, or not -- I like the way it played out -- it's just... I dunno. Something about the way it ended on the two of them wandering off together, maybe? Maybe I liked the game's cut to black with her sobbing in his arms more?

I also felt that because they spent more time with David's community, there was a real glaring absence of them in the climax. These people have been under David's thumb for who knows how long, presumably with James + co as his enforcers. Now they're free but directionless. What comes next? Obviously, the show can't explore all of that, but questions like "why hasn't anyone tried to stop Joel in town" "why didn't anyone notice the fire" "where are other guards" etc... I think we could've used another scene with Hannah and her mom (who totally looks just like Mel from TLOU2, lmao).

AND the biggest one of all...

Feeling pretty :/ about the "violent heart" speech to Ellie. From David's POV, it makes total sense for him to say those things. He's trying to manipulate and groom her. I completely buy the dialogue, from him.

But I was left wondering if I the viewer was meant to agree, concluded that I am probably supposed to agree, and also that I ... don't. This has been a recurring criticism from me of the show's portrayal of Ellie. I've mostly tried to make my peace with it by acknowledging Show Ellie and Game Ellie are different characters evolving slightly differently and living slightly different lives yadda yadda... But I dunno. I guess I won't be able to say how I feel about it until I see s2 and s3 anyway lmao.

#the last of us #the last of us hbo #god this post is long af

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wordsandrobots · 10 months

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IBO:Urdr Hunt part 17 has been fansubbed over on Youtube by @trafalgarlog (who you’ll note is now on Tumblr).

Oh, I misspoke on my post about the Soup Party side-story -- I believe we’re due one more side-story from the game, featuring McGillis and Almiria. Though given events in this episode, there is an outside chance that’ll actually be in the Urdr Hunt.

Speaking of those events, it’s only a flipping beach episode. Sort of. IN SPACE! Sadly we are not treated to Montag [swimsuit edition] but he does stick his oar in properly this time, as Katya’s past definitively catches up to her, the Afam gang do some pool-side market research, and serious questions are raised about how exactly the Seven Star family lineages work.

Hajiroboshi (Part 1, Part 2)

Departure (Part 1, Part 2)

598 (Part 1, Part 2)

Corridor of Betrayal (Part 1, Part 2)

Holder of the Ring (Part 1, Part 2)

Unexpected Encounter (Part 1, Part 2)

Venus’ Worth (Part 1, Part 2)

Brothers’ Ship (Part 1, Part 2)

Horn and Flower's Shadow (Part 1, Part 2)

As we are wont to do, we open on the bridge of the Erda II where the crew are remarking on the lack of instruction regarding the next stage of the Hunt. The ring has been dormant for a month and a half, leaving everyone at a loss for how to proceed. While Korunaru believes she would have been told if everything had been called off, they are talking about someone who can casually hand out a hundred million meria as a deposit. Dexter and Sinister point out this is chump-change next to the hundred billion prize. Perhaps it has just been written off?

On the plus side, the free time enables what is presumably a great opportunity to spend some of Wistario’s deposit: visiting a near-Earth resort colony to look into what it has to offer with a view to replicating that on Radonitsa in the future.

Or at least this is what Katya and Korunaru claim they’re doing as they have a whale of a time testing out the colony’s water-park. Range chides them on treating this as playtime when there is serious work to be done -- while seated on an inflatable, sipping a cold drink through a straw, and wearing his swimming trunks.

And yes: Range is absolutely ripped and yes, his swimming trunks match his poncho. What a guy.

Wistario is fine with everyone having a good time: they’re here to study the facilities after all. And Range is in fact fully committed to doing so, having checked out the A-plus service from the staff and established there’s a cinema and casino in easy reach, not to mention the large-scale docking port to accommodate passenger liners.

I do wonder - only partly because I love the manga - if this is meant to be one of the Avalanche colonies from IBO:Gekko. Avalanche 5 at least is indicated to be a resort and the position close to the Moon would make it an easy destination from Earth. That would also place this in Arianrhod Fleet territory, which might have a bearing on later events.

Anyway, no way is Venus able to copy a place like this given its current circumstances. Katya is amused by how much Range is throwing himself into this -- he’s even been getting details on the permit system that Gjallarhorn uses to control travel to Venus (since it’s used as a penal colony), in the hopes of finding a way to bargain for greater access. It’s kind of endearing, honestly. Range is, as ever, jumping both feet first into the challenge before him.

But enough fun: Demner has spotted some suspicious characters watching the party. It appears intrigue is afoot!

Seeing as they need to know what’s up -- it could be another Urdr Hunt rivalry in the offing -- Wistario, Korunaru and a reluctant Katya draw the spies into the open at the back of the pool buildings.

To everyone’s surprise -- through perhaps not the audience and definitely not the girl herself -- the two men are here for Katya. But with Range causing a distraction, Demner is able to sneak up behind the men and overpower them (have I mentioned that the old chap is a scarily dab hand at beating people up? It bears repeating).

Unfortunately, it turns out these two were carrying genuine Gjallarhorn IDs -- and a fully-uniformed officer arrives to raise the alarm.

Everybody Scooby-Doos it out of the water park, running into the requisite nearby alleyway. But just as Range is thinking they might be in the clear, an impressively large blonde-haired gentleman judo-throws him clean across the alley. This is Captain Londo Bron and he is here for Lady Katya.

That’s right -- Lady Katya, who a tearful Londo remarks is the spitting image of Lady Carta when she was young.

Katya, of course, point-blank refuses to leave with him. Unfortunately, with Londo’s men blocking the way back, things are looking sadly inevitable. Demner offers to handle Londo while the others escape, but Wistario won’t leave him behind.

Which is when a familiar voice speaks from a nearby hatch: down here!

The gang scramble through the open door, finding themselves in an emergency escape tunnel designed for evacuations in the event the colony is damaged. Shutters close after them, allowing them to evade Londo and the other soldiers. But who is it that came to their aid in such dire straits?

I mean, no prizes for this one. ‘Humble businessman’ Montag steps from the shadows with his best insufferable smirk, congratulating himself on the success of his spur-of-the-moment decision to help.

Range is surprised anybody would go against Gjallarhorn like this, only for McGillis to smoothly move the subject to the fact that Londo’s next move will probably be to blockade the ports. So maybe they’d all better be running along, hmm?

Katya and McGillis exchange a last look as the group hurries away from him, and he notes that she really does look like Carta . . .

(I remain delighted by the fact that Mackie’s masked stranger act continues flies purely by virtue of him never giving anyone time or space to call him out on it.)

Remarkably, the Erda II is able to safely undock and leave. Wistario speculates that Londo’s unit might fall under a separate jurisdiction and therefore not have been able to halt a departing ship. However, they’re not in the clear yet, as a Gjallarhorn Halfbeak cruiser sends out a stop signal and is promptly dwarfed by the gigantic Skipjack-class battleship emerging from behind the colony. (Err . . . small note here, I’m not actually sure what the correct equivalent for Gjallarhorn’s ships would be in modern naval terminology. I tend to default to ‘cruiser’ to describe the Halfbeaks and the Skipjacks as ‘command ships’ though I think ‘battleship’ would be correct? These things are all part-aircraft carrier anyway, so there might not be a direct analog.)

I’m pretty certain the Halfbeak is in ‘default’ colours rather than those used by the Outer Earth Orbit Regulatory Joint Fleet (oh lord, I can type that from memory now) under Carta Issue’s command, but the Skipjack has the Issue Family crest proudly displayed on the side, so there’s no question of who it is has come after Katya (she herself calls them out by name). Incidentally, this is I think the first time an animated IBO thing has really conveyed just how bloody massive the Skipjack is. It’s twice as long as a Halfbeak and about thrice as tall, so it’s little wonder Wistario and the others are struck dumb at the sight of it.

With more mobile suits than Dexter can count approaching, Katya takes imminent capture as well as you might expect and flees to the mobile suit bay with a half-formed idea of taking Hajiroboshi.

Wistario intercepts her as she’s flailing in the zero gravity and she tells him she’d rather die than be captured. He says that must mean they’re some fairly horrible people. So she’d better leave this to him. And Range, who he orders into battle: they’re going to break through Gjallarhorn’s line so the ship can escape.

Katya looks up to find Demner and Korunaru there as well, readying themselves for a fight. In the middle of everything, it’s good to have friends.

We get the stock-footage of Hajiroboshi and Asmoday launching, which is cut in a bit inelegantly since we go from Wistario and Ranger entering the ‘suit bay to them entering it again in their flight gear. Could have been finessed, I feel. But anyway, it’s fight time!

The two Gundams manage to make a dent in the force of Grazes sent after them (which are tan-coloured, something previously only seen with the Dáinsleif archer variants in Season 2; not sure if that’s significant) and thus create the required opening for the Erda II. Regrettably, that’s when Captain Londo joins the fight.

His Graze Ritter (commander’s variant) instantly obliterates Wistario’s rifle with a Giant Fuck-Off Axe. He is, it turns out, a crack pilot and not a bad tactician either, as he is able to hold the pair’s attention long enough for his troops to encircle them.

Aboard the Erda II, Demner and Katya can only watch helplessly, since turning back to assist would undo everything they’re trying to achieve. Luckily, a certain red mobile suit zips past in the opposite direction, announcing that it’s there to help . . .

Londo is suitably thrown by seeing the Grimgerde bearing down on him, swords drawn, and McGillis joins the fray, confidently taking charge and ordering Wistario and Range to regroup then divide Londo’s forces. With the masked man’s help, they’re able to disable everyone except the captain himself. McGillis tells the others to go on without him -- he’ll see them soon -- and engages the Ritter directly.

It’s a fierce duel but McGillis is quickly able to get the upper hand, disarming his opponent, headbutting him, and then dropping a quick bit of psychological warfare on him before peacing out: is Londo aware of Okina Uroka’s ambitions?

(Incidentally, I think this is the first time we’ve seen the Grimgerde’s visor open to expose the monocular eye inside - this feature wasn’t ever shown in IBO proper but McGillis does it here for . . . some reason. Possibly just to show-off.)

As he leaves the battlefield, Mackie reflects that Londo’s loyalty will be of use to him. He’s also intrigued to see a couple of extra Gundams knocking around (because he is a nerrrrd).

Aboard the Skipjack, the sensor operator reports the loss of the Erda II’s signal to an elderly gent with familiar eyebrows: Lord Uroka. He is not pleased with Londo’s blundering, who does not make excuses for failing to ‘protect’ Katya. But Katya herself refused to come with him . . .

Uroka is unphased. She’s too young to appreciate her position. Londo remarks that she nonetheless seems smart, to which Uroka responds by saying that while Carta was special, Katya might come close, if she learns from the right people. This will be his final duty as Issue Family patriarch.

To this end, he sends Londo out with a Halfbeak and a platoon of mobile suits. But he doesn’t seem all that impressed with the good captain, remarking in his absence that he’s more loyal dog than loyal subject.

Back on the Erda II, the subject of conversation is most assuredly: what the fuck? While nobody blames Katya for the actions of others, she has run out of room to squirm around the question of what she’s running away from. The Issue Family is currently without a heir, owing to a slight Mikazuki-induced curtailment of the bloodline. Carta Issue was going to replace the head of the family due to his being on his sickbed -- but if that sick patriarch happened to have another, illegitimate child . . . well.

Yes, Katya confirms dourly: she is the final Issue heir.

Which if nothing else raises a massive question-mark over who exactly Lord Uroka is. Up to now, all the heads of the Gjallarhorn noble houses have borne the name of their Family. Does this mean Uroka is only an Issue by marriage? But if so, how does that square with keeping the bloodline going? If Katya has a claim, it’s surely got to be via the Issue Family line. Or are the rules flexible in that regard? We’ve had no hint previously that Carta’s dad was anything less than the outright head of her house prior to his illness. His illness was severe enough to have required her to be placed under Iznario Fareed’s guardianship, sure, but you’d think a more complicated family situation would have come up before now. Or is that situation *why* Fareed could get his hooks into the matter?

Actually, while I assume this is a blind-alley for speculation to follow, we’ve no confirmation as yet that this *is* Carta’s father. Uroka looks old and sickly but he’s up and about. Could it be that this is in fact another relative who has stepped into the void left by both father and daughter?

Well, hopefully we’ll find out next time. I’m not wholly convinced how beneficial it will be to Urdr Hunt as a story to have McGillis’ political maneuvering thrown into the mix. But I am certainly intrigued by what’s going to happen here. While the obvious conclusion is that Uroka intends to use Katya to perpetuate the Issue Family, Mackie’s parting line to Londo suggests something more is going on. And we do know for certain that whatever Uroka is planning, the Issues are a spent force by the time of Season 2. We have a foregone conclusion without a clear picture on what the middle part is yet.

As for Londo Bron himself . . . well, he’s obviously a survivor of Carta’s, um, what is the masculine equivalent of an Amazon Brigade? Whatever, he’s a blonde hunk fanatically loyal to House Issue and honestly, I like where this is going. Carta’s Mackie-clone squad beautifully walks the line between joke and heartbreaking detail, so exploring what became of a remainder of them after the fact is an intriguing line to follow. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he ends up pitted against his boss before this is done.

Katya’s opinions on all this have been clear from the start: she does not want anything to do with the Issues, with her affections being squarely for her mother. This ramps that up, with her being willing to effectively leap into space rather than be dragged into her father’s schemes. Obviously we get the note of everyone rallying round to protect her, which is fine if rote. I really hope wherever this goes, she’s able to settle it on her own terms and isn’t reduced to a damsel in distress . . .

#GUNDAM #Gundam Iron-blooded Orphans #gundam ibo #g tekketsu #Tekketsu no Orphans #Iron-Blooded Orphans: Urdr Hunt #Urdr Hunt #game #app #fansub #reference #notes

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convexicalcrow · 1 year

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Can I ask? I’ve read a lot of your fics by now, and the way you write the vex is interesting.

What are some of your personal headcanons of these guys? They seem equal parts pleasure givers and evil spirits.

Scar seems to be the default leader (which I don’t see often as usually people make it Cub).

Also how does someone get chosen by the vex in your AU’s?

Thanks!

These are all great questions, anon! Thank you for reading and enjoying my fics enough to ask about my lore. I adore talking about my lore and I'm going to enjoy answering these questions for sure. :D

This is gonna be a long post, so Imma split it up into sections to make it easier to digest as I ramble on about my lore. <3

Vex Headcanons and Lore

So, I tend to see the Vex as very hedonistic creatures. They're pleasure-seekers and sometimes aggressively so. It's just, murder is also one of those things they find pleasurable. So they are evil spirits! But they are also hedonists. They will happily indulge in cake and diamonds while also enjoying some light murder. They primarily attack with their swords, but also by biting. Not all Vex eat people, but some do, like Scar.

I don't see the Vex as like, servitors or familiars created and controlled by Evokers. The Vex, to me, are a collective hivemind who look out for themselves and have their own goals and agency.

Mostly, they are selfish creatures who really only look out for the Vex, and this is broadly true. Even when they are working towards finding a cure for skulk infections in Fog, it's primarily motivated by clearing the skulk from Cub, a fellow Vex, but they also do not like the skulk and that is like the one thing they will selflessly work towards fighting against.

I do have separate lore surrounding Evokers taking Allays down to ancient cities to convert them into Vexes with skulk, but that's not really part of my broader Vex lore.

The Vex do need the Evokers though, and they work together on the same goals. The Evokers gain assistance in protecting mansions and fighting in raids, and the Vex gain a gateway to the overworld, albeit temporarily if they are not named or possessing a player. It's a symbiotic relationship where the Evokers serve the Vex and enable their plans to come into fruition.

The Vex exist in a fourth dimension when they are not in the overworld. That's where they're summoned from. I call this Vexspace, as it's where the Vex reside. It's separate from the overworld, nether, and the End, but can access all of those dimensions, so the Vex can be summoned anywhere. It's accessible to the Vex, but not to the Evokers. It is also constant. Scar and Cub are always connected to it, unless they are either forcibly shut out (as in Fog my skulk Cub saga), or if they choose to do so. Not being connected to the hivemind means the Vex no longer have access to their thoughts, but on the other hand, Vexspace is no longer accessible, so using it for fast travel is not possible.

Fast travel is a way to use Vexspace to travel between mansions and pillager towers across the overworld almost instantly, speeding up extremely long travel that would otherwise take hours even through the nether. (This ignores that the game only spawns mansions up to a certain distance out; they can spawn anywhere for me.)

Mansions are safe havens for the Vex. Evokers act as priests and healers, and as particularly strong centres of power for Vex magic. This is why they are protected. The Vex use the mansions as overworld bases, seeing the world through the eyes of their Evokers. From here, they can carry out plans for controlling territory and enacting other plans they have.

Also! The blood thing! For me, the Vex enjoy feeding on blood. They're not vampires, and they definitely don't need it to live, but it's a pleasureable act for them, and they seek out those with very tasty sweet blood. Which is why they feed on Cub a lot because they love the taste of his blood. It's a way of bonding as much as sustaining the Vex and giving an offering to them. Giving your body up to them to feed off is a sacrifice and a willing one that Cub often makes because he's masochistic enough to enjoy it. It's part of his worship of the Vex.

And that worship aspect that Cub and Scar brought in with the Cathedral is important. There is a hierarchy. It's strict but it's not strict at the same time. The Vex are creatures worthy of worship, and the things being offered include blood that was laid on the offering tables. This distinguishes Scar and Cub as players and Vexes as being on a different level to those in the hivemind as players turned into Vexes are like Vexes that have been named, and can therefore persist in the overworld. Because Vexes normally don't have names because they have no need for them.

Scar as Leader

This is... Okay. See, I think this is more an extension of their personalities and of Scar having a more natural leadership energy than Cub does. It's also related to their roles as Vex and how they work best together. They complement each other very well. But Scar isn't The Leader by default either. They are both in service to the Vex and obey them as their masters. I see them as equal partners, just with different roles and abilities. Scar is better as a leader/front, and Cub is better behind the scenes with redstone stuff, but this doesn't make one The Leader over the other. They're both capable of driving things along on their own, and they both contribute ideas to their future plans.

For the more kinky side of their dynamic, I do tend to write Scar more Dommy than not, which may also tie into this, but Cub is just as capable of that, it's just not usually his preference. When Cub does Dom, he's usually much more gentle than Scar, who's more sadistic than him, because they want different things out of a Dom when they are subbing.

For me, Scar is the salesman. The leader. The one who can do the talking and wield the power of the ConVex and ConCorp in ways that Cub isn't as good at. Scar is motivated by power, and seeks out power, and so that's what he does with the assistance of the Vex. As a Vex, he is tuned in with the Vex magic currents that flow between the three realms and Vexspace. He can make those connections and bring power and magic between them. And yet, he is still weak to the pleasure of Vex magic, much more than Cub is.

As for Cub, he's the brains for sure. He's good at strategy, tech, seeing where opportunties are to make even more wealth, and does more of the behind the scenes work. He can absolutely be a leader, but he'll make Scar front things and work from his plans. As a Vex, Cub is motivated by pleasure, and acts as a vessel. If the Vex are going to possess one of them, it's going to be Cub. He's basically given his body over to the Vex to do with as they wish, and he's in a much more subservient position with the Vex than Scar is. At the same time, Cub is still motivated by power and wealth, but these are more public-facing motivations and drive a lot of what he does. But there's more going on internally than that suggests.

You can't have one without the other. On his own, Cub would be lost, and there wouldn't be as great a drive without Scar. He would still do well, but he needs that bigger picture energy that Scar brings to really shine. And Scar needs Cub to do the infrastructure and tech stuff that he just can't do. Scar could definitely have build the aethetics of the ConCorp industrial park, but the farms would have been beyond his skill level, especially the super-smelter. it's only together that they are able to shine and profit handsomely from their efforts. They make an excellent team and you can tell they are aware of this as well.

How Do The Vex Choose People?

There are no real hard and fast rules on this for me, but I do tend to work from those who canonically are/were friendly to the ConVex/ConCorp or aligned with them, helped them out in some way, or just feel like they should be Vex.

Why did Cub get chosen? They could sense his use and his skills, and his prankster urges. He's also a big grinder, so they know he'll put in the work if they give it to him. Plus, that late stage capitalism sense, of profitting at any cost. This was less important in s5 bc of the lack of Stuff being sold, but it definitely came into play in s6 for sure.

Scar, of course, has similar vibes and values as a player, and being close to Cub, they can be sure he's going to work well with him. And he has those other motivations and he can play a slightly different role to Cub and make them both successful.

So it's finding the right sort of player who's got the right sort of values. Don't pick a couple of guys to start a war if they aren't immoral enough to not only instigate war, but also get the two teams to pay them for the privilege of fighting it.

There are good reasons as to why the fics I have of them becoming Vexes are quite different, even if there are similar scenarios/motifs. Cub, being motivated more by pleasure and subservience, is more open to being seduced by the pleasures of Vex magic than Scar would be. For Scar, he craves power and wealth, and self-preservation. Scar dying from that fall to earn his Vex head is something that was necessary to get Scar to agree, because they can simply let him die if he doesn't join. But they also offer the things he wants the most, and pranking Hermits and hanging out with Cub are two of those things.

Then we get to the others! False, Joe, and Bdubs! These are the other three that I've written as Vexes and I'll talk a little about why them in particular, and why they might have been chosen.

False is probably the most obvious of the three. She helped them out in s5 with the prank on X's base, and was named as an honourary Vex and given a Vex head. So making her a proper Vex isn't that much of a stretch. The Vex like her and trust her, and why would you not want the strongest pvper on the server on your side when you are a hivemind who loves a good murder?

But in her conversion fic, she has a totally different process. She isn't just seduced into joining, because that's not really her style, but also that's not what they want from her. She fights them, because power and a vessel aren't going to do anything without a Will to give that power intent and direction, and that's what False brings, on top of the corruption and greed she carries with her. Plus the whole evil clone thing ofc.

For Joe, he's a friend, and in Fog, he was kind to those in the mansion. He fed them and befriended some Vexes, and that kindness was rewarded with becoming a Vex, so he could do the fast travel he needed to help them with the skulk cure. I am undecided if Vex Joe is something I'd write more of outside of that specific AU, but we'll see. Stranger things have happened.

Bdubs is a special one, and it's based on only one thing, and that's him falling into s6 with an elytra named 'Vex Wings'. Neither Scar nor Cub have ever called their elytra that, so it's an odd choice for sure. bc why carried named elytra anyway for an entrance like that and do absolutely nothing with that named elytra? For me, it's more relevant in s7 with Bdubs approaching Scar to convince him to run for Mayor, because Cub was busy doing other Pharaoh things and a Vex never works alone. Cub just isn't motivated by power enough to run for Mayor himself, let alone convince Scar to run for Mayor, but Bdubs could do it for sure. And that's why he was chosen.

Sure, Cub does eventually work for him as his enforcer, but Scar clearly wanted him as much because he was a Vex than anything else. So you have three Vex in the Town Hall wielding power over the server in a different capacity than with ConCorp. Again, it's that Vex drive to seek power over the server, and Scar is a natural leader for that specific thing. Cub couldn't have done that. And Scar is great at playing villains and should have been more villainous as the Mayor and I am forever salty that he wasn't, even if I do understand why he didn't push it too far.

I have, like, a ton more things I could say about all of this but my hands are getting sore again :( so please do send asks if there's anything else you'd like me to ramble about! <3

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llycaons · 1 year

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blazed posts don't show up in the Blog Subs tab of your dashboard, so if you hit "get notifications" on every blog you follow, you can use that to have the experience of your dashboard without the blazed posts. (this will also by default turn push notifications on for any time any of those blogs post, but that part can be turned off). Being mean to people for their harmless blazed posts is unlikely to be at all effective for improving your tumblr experience, though.

hi, anon. I appreciate that you sent this. this workaround is genuinely going to be incredibly helpful, not just for me but for my followers and mutuals who also can't stand this feature. it's a shame we have to jump through so many loopholes to escape the ever-encroaching capitalization of the site, but I suppose we adapt

to anyone reading this - if you enable tumblr labs, you can activate 'blog subs', which is the second option listed. it appears to the right of the 'your tags' tab. it looks like it's working for me so far!

to address the other part of your ask, this isn't just about improving my personal experience. I dislike the feature itself and everyone who engages in it by 1. giving money to this godawful website and 2. using a new format to create advertisements. even if I like a blazed post (rare, they are 99% of the time godawful), I don't consider it harmless at all. it's contributing to the problem no matter the content of the post itself. you can blaze almost anything, and if it’s profitable, people will continue to do it. the moderation on this site is already terrible, and supporting blaze will absolutely make it worse. a big appeal of this site is being able to choose exactly what you see. blaze ruins that. and to bring it back to a personal experience, any intrusion onto my space I do consider harmful. I will block and unfollow for many things other people might consider petty

I do get the instant gratification of telling these people off. they're being annoying to me, they paid to directly disrupt my experience in a carefully curated space, and unlike most advertisers I now have direct access to them personally to tell them what I feel about it. so yeah, I'm going to use it. they paid for access to my and my opinions, so they'll face me and my opinions. play stupid games win stupid prizes, I guess

but you're right in that being mean to users blazing posts will not, in the long run, improve my experience. I do not have the time or energy to get into slap fights on the internet. and usually I don't like being rude to people directly, and I like to think I don't do it unless they're doing something that bothers me first. after this I'll go back to simply blocking and sometimes reporting blazes, like I have been. but I still have the right to complain to people who put unwanted content on my dash, and I will support that for anyone else as well. it's about the principle of the thing, I guess

again, thank you for your ask and the information. I'll definitely use it and try to make sure others do as well

#also sorry I couldn't answer this earlier #insane week #asks

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mushroomrealestate · 1 year

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TW abuse!!

OK so I used to be obsessed with cartoons back in the day and idolized cartoon creators. Was never a fan of Rick and Morty though. (I don’t want anyone to take this as me shaming anyone who has been! Certainly not the case. The show was simply not my cup of tea.)

However, with all the stuff coming out about Justin Roiland, I am hoping and praying that creators I idolized when I was younger don’t turn out to be scumbags as well. I know some of them have connections with him, but I don’t know their stories or their hearts, or anything about their personal lives with him so I don’t want to take that as anything to do with their character just yet.

As someone with OCD, I simply don’t know if I would be able to take it. My biggest idol back in the day was Alex Hirsch. All of this stuff about Roiland led me to look deeper into Hirsch because I know they are or were friends and have collaborated a lot. All I was able to find was ‘he said she said’ stuff that was not confirming actual crimes, but was still pretty shitty if it was true. I have no way of knowing if it’s true though, because people say shit on the internet all the time! If anyone has definitive proof of if shitty things did or didn’t go down though I would like to know because I don’t want to support abusers/abuse enablers.

Now, I’m just trying to put myself in the shoes of people who have had connections with Roiland if that makes sense. I know it’s a new situation, and I would, of course, not be so quick to completely turn against somebody I’ve known well for years based on allegations I have no way of proving, but I don’t know. I don’t know these people at the end of the day. And, if he by some miracle happens to be innocent himself, then this entire post is pointless. I highly doubt it though.

I just really hope that’s not the case because the amount of time I have invested into Hirsch’s work is time I would never get back. Already had a lot of crap to work through because of traumatic experiences within the fandom when I was much younger. At the end of the day, those experiences were not his fault, nor had anything to do with him, so I’ve been able to heal a lot.

I was watching Gravity Falls with my little brother just yesterday. This show was literally what got me obsessed with cartoons and had me taking art and animation classes and trying to develop ideas for shorts and original series. I own a signed copy of journal three. I’ve cosplayed multiple characters multiple times. I own so many figures and books and posters and a complete Blu-ray box set. I have made entire sketchbooks worth of fanart in my lifetime, and even a custom doll. I don’t display any of these anymore, they are in a box in my closet, but I still own them.

I’m already spiraling enough because of Roiland’s involvement in the show. I know that Louis C.K. was also in the show, but his voice was dubbed over by Hirsch himself after he was confirmed to be an absolute creep. Maybe, in the best case scenario, this could happen with Roiland’s character as well?

I am also a huge fan of the Owl House. Probably my favorite cartoon currently running. This would definitely affect how I saw that show as well so I hope that’s not the case. Please be a good person Dana Terrace.

Closing statement: Please be at least a decent human being Hirsch I’m begging you please don’t let me down. And, if all of these people do in fact turn out to be abusers/abuse enablers, I hope that the truth is widely accessible, and that they are able to be brought down, and that nothing like this is ever allowed to happen again. A lot of shitty stuff has been done to me in my lifetime and I never want to brush off it happening to somebody else because I happen to like a cartoon. It’s okay to have complex feelings about shows now. Works of fiction are complex and shows like these have lots of people working on them. Still, at the end of the day, victims are more important than cartoons.

If you have read until the end, thank you so much. Apologies for my grammar. I know it’s not the best and I know there are probably plenty of spelling and punctuation mistakes throughout this. Thank you again. Please be safe out there.

#tw abuse #justin roiland #alex hirsch #rick and morty #gravity falls

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2n2n · 2 years

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.... the Broadcast Clubroom...?

so. I'm going to spitball wildly about something.... I feel sort of like I'm "missing something" because I don't see much speculation about the Broadcast room? I don't know if everyone else has decided it is definitively something, or what.... am I crazy to be confused about it, and to feel it, itself, is a piece we’re missing...? well, whatever the case, I’ll spitball...

My best best guess so far, is that the Broadcast room is Hanako's boundary....?

It's A Boundary, of course, and while not all boundaries have a governing body-- as Amane's said, there are many boundaries--

... but only seated mysteries have control of boundaries.

.... as there's no other wandering entities in this boundary, and it isn't haywire, or overgrown, can we assume it belongs to a mystery..? Furthermore, Tsukasa and/or Sakura can control this Boundary... whatever they are doing to open it into the Nowhere space, that is their will, as much as Yako or Tsuchigomori operated their spaces as extensions of themselves.

this is clearly not an ungoverned Boundary....! This is not a random shore swarming with creatures.

It also has different layers to it-- the entrance, the teaparty space, and Tsukasa's sanctum. Layers, like any governed boundary.

Before Tsukasa was strong enough, before the destruction of 2 yorishiro-- and perhaps the God's power returned to him-- Tsukasa was kept to the Broadcast Room. Natushiko mentions him being ‘let’ to ‘go off’-- he’d been confined, and had to utilize his Koku-Joudai to spectate events outside of the club indirectly. Tsukasa a yorishiro though, isn't he? So.... wouldn’t that make it Hanako’s boundary, containing his yorishiro in its deepest space....? .... Or was Tsukasa moved between boundaries, from Hanako’s into.... ? ? ? Sakura’s ? ? ? an empty one ?? ? ? ? but she isn’t a mystery, as far as we know... and anyway, that sounds pretty dangerous; a very weak kaii like Tsukasa at the beginning of this story, would not do well cavorting between boundaries, I would think... and, it’s Yako’s boundary that governs ‘space’, and makes traveling between them simple (it is her Boundary that enables them to even REACH Mitsuba’s-- boundaries are not all clearly or easily connected! While governed especially, they seem enclosed by nature).... which Tsukasa wouldn’t have even had any access to until after her yorishiro’s destruction.... Mitsuba, in his own weak state, also could not leave boundaries, and Tsukasa forged him little hands to help protect him within No. 3′s in the meantime.... I’m not sure how logical it is that Tsukasa was ever moved around, at the beginning of this. It’s easier for me to assume Tsukasa stayed in place for a long, long time, and everyone else came to him.

The radio is neither confirmed to be Sakura's or Tsukasa's. Both of them use it in concert. However, it's Tsukasa who is constantly pictured with it... and it mirror's Hanako's knife in any illustration of them... making me feel generally, that it is Tsukasa's item. As well, we have seen it drawn in their old house, in a memory of them watching Frankenstein together....

If Tsukasa's item is a radio, and things like whispering and rumors and leering (wouldn't be incongruous with his past of being presumed a demon or possessed?) are associated to him, why not reside in a very radio-heavy boundary? No idea what it could all mean to Amane....

It's not as if it's Normal for people to just Have Enchanted Items-- it's specific to Hanako, the knife, as a result of the shinjuu. Not every mystery comes prepackaged with a weapon like some sort of magical girl..... so there's not so far a good reason to assume it belongs to anyone but Tsukasa.

The Broadcast room is generally littered with vintage tech, even a tube television with knobs just like the boys have up there.

...while I can recognize a few being from the same era as Tsukasa’s radio, I’m no expert in these things. The radio was invented in the 1890s, so it’s within the relative scope of Sakura’s existence as well. Though they weren’t really commercially available (??) until the 1930s. As far as I know radio broadcasting hit it off in the boy’s era-- the 1950s-- so it’s far more applicable to the boys, than to Sakura, whos daily life wouldn’t have likely seen a radio, while theirs obviously did. Again anyone who actually, cares, about radio history can correct me in a heartbeat, I have approximate knowledge and no sources beyond google u.u7

... we haven't seen Hanako's boundary...? As far as I know.... There is never water along the bathroom floor. It is... a normal bathroom, as far as I can tell... We have never been to some sort of inner sanctum, even though Tsukasa had to have come from... someplace, of Hanako's. Logically...? I have to assume Hanako would be very defensive about his boundary if he has one, given how generally evocative of the mystery’s psyche itself they are. Even if one doesn't think Tsukasa is his yorishiro.... where is his? He has to have a deeper reaches, somewhere, anywhere.... but it makes sense for Hanako, to not want anybody to be able to find such a thing, to be nowhere near it. Much less have Yashiro able to stumble into it....

The best I can assume is either that the leader of the mysteries doesn't have a boundary at all (instead being a kind of governing force only), or he's ditched it. While Tsuchigomori was intimate with his yorishiro and innermost reaches, Hakubo was utterly unaware of his, so it’s possible for a mystery to never bother attending their own reaches or be self-aware of their yorishiro. There is no necessity or obligation to check-in on it. Maybe if one wants to dissociate from their own past, it’s best to abandon it all.

When I look upon the Broadcast Club's domain, none of it feels so incongruous with Amane and Tsukasa's memories... the lavish tea room is par the course for the Red House's style of decor, the entryway contains a lot of vintage paraphernalia, and the actual room Tsukasa himself seems to often reside alone in contains all of his old toys, and a familiar wooden slatted flooring....

The only alternate logic I can think of is something more obtuse and involved. There's a handful of foreign accounts I've seen speculating about Sakura's history, and the odd detail that Hanako's Gakuran has sakura flowers on it.... we don't know where exactly 'Hanako- san' comes from, or if someone else could ~be the ~original Hanako-san, if Hanako somehow usurped ? stole ? this position ? . but if the Boundary were technically originally ‘her’s, then maybe that would offer an explanation for why Hanako just doesn’t have done. .. but I don't feel much about this theory. I roll it around in my skull just in case, and can point to it as a unique theory popping around in Chinese/Korean fandom circles..... I do not know enough about Gakuran to know if sakura detailing is the norm, and I don't know if it's significant. I do have many questions about how Hanako became this particular mystery, why this story, this name has anything to do with him, but I also feel perfectly satisfied by the idea of Sakura instead being a human who was conscripted to help govern the mysteries long, long ago, and forgotten.... given that the mysteries cannot operate entirely composed of kaii alone, and she self-identifies as a human, with her relationship to Tsukasa and her role in the rumors necessitating her being a human-- so, not a kaii, not a mystery. Hanako needs a kannagi to remove yorishiro, which makes sense for a system intended to be in the best interests of humans. Its a checks-and-balances system, where kaii simply could not make their own decisions ..... Sakura's name containing '7' always threw people off into wanting to draw a connection between her and Hanako, but if she is indeed just a general steward of the mysteries, or some kind of vintage Miko or something, that would satisfy me enough on why '7' is relevant. ....

... and I would even say that Nene being '8' satisfies me further, if she's a similar entity to Sakura in some... way, and is the 'next' in-line for, I don't know, a position governing the mysteries.

*sigh* so...

At the moment, I guess I'm inclined to think we've been in Hanako's boundary this whole time, and it's a perfect place to hide because Hanako himself has kept it well- obscured, forgotten, and wouldn't suspect anyone else having any reason to crawl into it-- except for his own yorishiro, Tsukasa. and so, Sakura could have discovered Tsukasa, there, and built their base around his hovel, as he couldn't leave it himself until their plan was well underway. Sakura can wander about the school at will, suchas when she talks to Nene at the bookstacks, and Natsuhiko is a normal living student, who we see publicly converse and fraternize all about with groups of normal students. Makes sense then, to have Tsukasa’s position be the center which they surround themselves.

...or maybe I’m completely off and speculating something pointless.

#avvy's JSHK #small JSHK thought

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