#which makes for an interesting world state imo
Text
it’s kind of interesting looking back at my first ME playthrough compared to now. initially I liked g*arr*us and l*iar*a but now they’ve become my least favorite characters, and now the VS is my favorite followed by most of the humans and squadmates introduced the second game.
I think in the beginning I was really influenced by the popular fandom ideas but now after playing through the games a few times I’ve found myself not liking the “popular” characters and instead liking the ones people were more likely to shit on lol
and I feel like there’s a part of the fandom that’s just flat out weird when you don’t like the popular alien characters (and that same part seems to love putting down the human squadmates but I digress)
I love this game but sometimes the fandom just rubs me the wrong way and has some weird ideas about things but idk
#cleric speaks#putting in asterisks just in case#i think modding has also helped in influencing my opinion#since optional flirting at least makes interacting with liara only a little tolerable#but yeah I have thoughts about some characters#maybe one day i'll voice them#wrex and tali are the only alien squadmates in ME1 i actually like lol#my canon ME1 playthrough has me not recruiting garrus at all and saving liara last#which makes for an interesting world state imo#just some random thoughts that I've had lately#feel free to interact it's fine with me :)
5 notes
·
View notes
Text
QUARTER-FINALS MATCH 2
Elliott propaganda:
“Just look at him. Pure hunk energy.”
“I will punch anyone who dislikes him. He’s like a fire emblem character in the modern day. He’s so flamboyant and handsome, he can play the piano and he’s best friends with the old fishing man!”
“dramatic writer man with sexy hair”
"Since I like elliott. I will state some reasons why I like him
Imagine if Mr. Darcy didn’t insult your family first time you met him, that’s Elliott. The man who’s basically the hallmark romance love interest. He’s a writer who moves to the small town in the country side to find inspiration for his writing. Then he finds the farmer.
He has a crab living in his pocket
He can play the piano (hopefully it isn’t the river flows in you however)
His fans sometimes hc him as a merman and that’s just a major plus IMO
He genre of the book he writes is dependent on what genre you say you like.
He also sends letters to you if you marry him
Okay and also some things I dislike
His liked gifts, the easiest one is pomegranates, which cost like 6000g to grow a tree if you don’t pick the fruit cave. I AM NOT GETTING SQUID INK IN YEAR ONE FOR YOU.
he might be British /j
The fact he has no kitchen but still likes food like lobster, like he is just a mystery. Lives in a cabin, with no kitchen, no washroom (okay no character has a washroom), but still likes the most fancy food out there and has luscious hair worthy of a L’Oréal ad.
Gifting him on rainy days when you don’t have two hearts"
Asra propaganda:
“He GIVES AWAY HALF HIS HEART TO REVIVE YOU okay but like. He's the MCs roommate and they were together for a few years before the MC caught a plague and died and he obsesses over a way to bring them back before succeeding by making a deal with a god to trade half his heart for MC and betraying the emperor. And then when MC comes back but without any of their memories, he takes care of them and teaches them how to live all over again and he never asks for anything in return. On all the routes where you don't choose him he's really supportive and helps you out despite your history and overall he's just really nice and supportive of the MC and is their rock no matter what route you go down. Also he has a pet snake named Faust and I love her she's so <33
Idk I just appreciate him so much”
"He gave you half his HEART!! He would literally go to hell and back for you!! He wants to take you on adventures all around the world—doesn’t matter where, as long as he’s by your side!! AND he’s nonbinary!!!"
"He is so caring!! Anyone who says he is boring or his 'route' was boring is a LIAR or didn't really understand his character! He is such a sweet person
Asra propaganda on this poll doesn't even do him any justice!! He makes friends wherever he travels to , likes knitting for his familiar snake , is a sweetheart, WILL take care of you even in the lowest point of your life"
#sdv elliott#elliott stardew valley#Stardew Valley#asra alnazar#The Arcana#The Arcana Game#Quarter-Finals#MDDC 2
177 notes
·
View notes
Text
hng, i am so frustrated by this whole watcher tv situation. i've been chewing on it ever since i watched their announcement video yesterday + i've been looking around online at other fan reactions. i'm having a lot of thoughts so i guess i want to throw my two cents in + hope it'll make me feel better to talk about it a little.
i think we all agree that creators should be paid fairly for their work; however, not all work is created equal, right? if i commission an experienced (and thus high-demand) artist to do an oil painting of my cat, they might quote me $500+ to do that + it would be fair. if an artist with substantially less experience (and thus in lower demand) spends 30 seconds on a crayon rendition of my cat, should they also received $500+ for their work? i think most people would agree that would be ridiculous.
in some ways, this is what it feels like the watcher team is doing to us right now, imo. we know that shows like ghost files or puppet history are expensive to make because travel costs (in the case of ghost files) + production costs, but we can see the effort put into the work. we feel that what we give for the show, whether that's turning off ad blocker while watching or buying show merch or supporting via patreon, is going toward making the product that we are asking for. these shows are the oil painting in the metaphor.
i don't agree with how mean + rude some people are being about steven lim rn, but frankly, his shows are the 30 second crayon drawing of the watcher channel. anyone can look at the view count on their channel + see that his shows consistently have performed worse than shane + ryan's shows. additionally, we can see that he blows huge amounts of money on his shows ("$913 seafood tower", "$1027 fried chicken") that may leave a lot of viewers feeling as if they're aren't getting as much bang for their buck.
frankly, i think people are valid for being upset that they're expected to directly foot the bill for steven's "i fly all over the world + eat expensive food while you watch" project. while youtube has a shit ton of problems (like, say, not paying their creators enough), one of the cool things about it is that you can gauge directly the amount of the interest in a project (and how many resources you should dedicate to said project) by how many eyes are on it. unfortunately for him (i guess), steven's shows just don't garner enough attention to justify the expense of making them.
which is why i see this shift to watcher tv as such a problem. this feels very much like using shane + ryan's success on the channel to force fans to fuel steven's pursuit of his glory days on worth it. it feels even more strange when they say that they're making the switch because the company isn't currently sustainable, but steven has just hired his friends from buzzfeed + continues to push his series that just don't seem to be making back the cost of production.
to be totally fair, shane + ryan don't get out of this clean either. some of their shows don't deserve to be behind a paywall either. too many spirits is filmed in ryan's parent's backyard with content submitted by their viewers. are you scared is just ryan reading creepypastas/fan submitted content on a minimal set. survival mode is just them playing games like any other streamer or gaming youtuber does. i love all of these shows, but are they on par with puppet history or ghost files? absolutely not.
this is where i think the disconnect is coming from. they're taking everything including the lower production shows to a streaming service where you have to fund them directly (rather than indirectly through ad revenue). they're forcing funding into steven's projects despite them just not doing well enough to justify the cost. they're coming across as disingenuous with their reasoning because their stated reasons for doing this don't align with their actions rn.
i feel like it would've made so much more sense to crowdfund new seasons of shows (which gives them feedback from the fans about what they want too) or put higher cost shows like ghost files or puppet history on patreon or channel membership. i would gladly fund mystery files, weird wonderful world, ghost files, puppet history, etc. with my own money, but i'm one of the ones who isn't really interested in funding steven's quest to eat all of the gold-plated kobe beef when i'll never be able to afford to eat at a restaurant that even serves it.
#rachel says#watcher#shane madej#ryan bergara#steven lim#also it really bothered me that they dangled weird wonderful world over our heads to convince people to use the streaming service#it regularly got more views than all of steven's shows save dish granted#but they never picked it up again despite that#it just adds to the sense of betrayal that a lot of us are feeling rn i think
59 notes
·
View notes
Text
Sorry its so late buf i am in an Edling mood tonight and I will never stop thinking about the idea of how theyre the epitome of right person wrong time.
(obviously in a context of like fandom shenannigans where canon events arent 100% set in stone like edling arent canon but also idc !! they are to me! im ignoring it let me be insane) ANYWAY
Even if they wanted to be together post promised day Ling has all the responsibilities of Xing and his clan and Edward would never hold him back from that for a second. Im of the opinion that brotherhood Edward feels a lot of guilt for wanting love from the people around him particularly those he sees as good (winry, alphonse, etc) especially if hes done things hes perceived as hurting them (maes’ death, the transmutation, etc etc). Which is why I think Edward connects with Ling so well cayse he doesnt carry the weight of a lot if his past mistakes, and then when the stone happens its like goddamn it i roped this guy into my shit again. Like i dont know Edward doesnt really dedicate himself so fully to people outside of winry and ed a lot so its interesting like!!
He cares about a lot of people like the majority of the allied cast and we see him be openly affectionate towards Nina and Hughes pre their deaths but I think Ling is the only person hes ever decided to stick with WITHOUT alphonse? I may be wrong but the whole sure Ill stay with you and trust my brother and Winry to stay safe and follow you around the outskirts of the east for a week till the promised day to protect my new friend is so??? what?? huh???
But anyone my point is post promised day Edward cant really ever see a future with Ling because of all the responsibility Ling holds outside of him and its veyr tragic imo like especially because in a different scenario if Ling didnt have those responsibilities and Edward wasn’t so dedicated to the people around him to a fault of never thinking about his own desires I think they could have the possibility of a future.
Like I have read a lot of fanfiction abiut Ed traveling to Xing and living with him there but?? I realistically cant see him ever doing that just solely because Edward is not the type of person to settle down! like its my one and only criticism of the fma manga is that I cannot see Edward ever being satisfied with a simple life? Like even in Fma 03 which is my favourite interpretation of Edwards character once he gets stranded in our world he learns?? Rocket Science?? For the chance to get back to Amestris but he doesnt really seem to take that goal all that seriously especially considered Alfons ends up getting involved in a lot more aircraft projects than Edward like Edwsrd genuinely enjoys learning!!
Im pretty sure he was the one who dragged Alphonse into Hoenhiems office when they were kids after he left, probably to Al’s reluctance of if they were allowed in there, and started ripping through all of his old books just to learn. Edward never stops and it gets so bad that he never stops to even consider himself constantly worrying about getting his brother back or improving the states of others lives especially when! ya know! the whole country is at stake!!
So in a circumstance post promised day where Ed decides what he wants to do (my personal favourite interpretation is either an alchemical researcher outside of directly performing alchemy, ie revolutionizing the circle matrixes and discovering nee combinations or becoming a professor of some kind) I dont think he would give that up to settle again. And obviously Ling cant exactly up and leave being Emperor unless he decides he doesnt want to, im not the most knowledgable on Lings characterization so I wont speak there but!
They have so much fun together and compliment each other and genuinely care about each other so much but their happiness and fulfillment as people to themselves and others make it so its nearly impossible they would ever realistically end up together and its really doomed and tragic!! idk i think about it a lot.
#fma#edward elric#edling#fma thoughts#andrew be normal challenge it is NOT this deep this anime came out over a decade ago gay people arent real pre 2013 idk man im just insane#thought id share anyway please give me your thoughts fellow edling fans#specifically edling fans cause i dont wanna debate ship legitmacy#day speaks
55 notes
·
View notes
Text
a while ago i made a post about Mello and Near potentially having hooked up during the canon timeline, and @optimisticgardenhologram pointed out some very interesting details in canon that potentially suggest that they met up (i strongly encourage you to go look at the original post!! i'm just here to verify the observations, not take credit for them). so i looked into them and i can confirm, there is absolutely enough evidence to suggest that they saw each other outside of the chapter 77 reunion.
Observation #1
this one was from chapter 97. Near states that the Death Note is "an ordinary notebook, just like Mello said":
but Mello never says this at all. i went out of my way to note down the exact phrasing of every piece of information Mello gives Near in canon:
"The murder notebook. It's a Shinigami's notebook, and people who touch it are able to see the Shinigami." (chapter 77)
"The notebook I had belonged to a Shinigami named Sidoh, who dropped it in the human world. He had to come down to get it back. But another Shinigami had it before." (chapter 77)
"There is a fake rule hidden amongst the rules written in the notebook." (chapter 77)
"I actually had a bunch of guys test the notebook a number of ways, but nobody who wrote the names down died after thirteen days." (chapter 79)
nothing there states that the Death Note is an ordinary notebook, nor is it even remotely implied. there are three possible explanations i can think of for this. one, Mello and Near met up sometime between November 19th and January 7th. two, Mello mentioned it on the phone during the three days they spent interrogating Mogi. three, Mello told Halle and she relayed this information to Near. Gevanni does not seem to question it when Near mentions it, which suggests either it's one of the latter two options or the SPK is aware of the meeting(s) Near had with Mello. all very plausible.
Observation #2
Near tells Light after Takada is kidnapped that he has a way of getting in touch with Mello. this one i do remember so i didn't go looking for it, but it does potentially imply that they've been contacting each other. he does say "i can try to contact Mello", in which the use of "i" would suggest that he personally would be the one to reach out (as opposed to him using Lidner to contact Mello), but he IS talking to Light, so he could just be intentionally keeping things vague.
Observation #3
this one imo is the most damning. Near's puppet of Mello has a quilted vest:
but the vest he wears when he visits Near is different:
here is the quilted vest, for comparison:
technically Mello's jacket is covering most of the vest in his scenes with Near, so you could assume it actually was the quilted vest and wasn't textured for the sake of simplicity - but Near wouldn't have had a clear view of it then either, and presumably if this was the only outfit he ever saw of Mello's, then he would draw the jacket onto the puppet too.
i think it would be too much of a coincidence for him to guess that Mello owns this exact vest. it would also seem odd to me if Mello and Near somehow ended up discussing Mello's clothes during the Mogi interrogation, and Mello mentioned that he owns a quilted vest. the same is true of Near speaking to Lidner; she COULD theoretically have told Near about the vest, but it seems like a bizarre detail to mention, and a particularly bizarre thing for Near to add to the puppet if he's never personally seen it. so i definitely think it implies that they saw each other again.
the first time i can find the Mello puppet in the manga is in chapter 94, which takes place on December 25, but the rest of the puppets appear as early as chapter 85, which takes place on December 1st. so if the Mello puppet was made around the same time as the others, they would have had to meet up during the Mogi interrogation to make it work; otherwise it could have happened while they were in Japan.
as a bonus side note, i looked through the entire manga and i actually couldn't find the quilted vest at all outside of the official art - granted i only had a quick skim-through so i could've easily missed an appearance, but i went back and checked this iconic post and it does not appear there either. so perhaps this is a special occasion vest for him (the two special occasions being posing for the official art and meeting up with Near; the most important things a man could ever do in his life).
in conclusion, there is a strong case to be made for Mello and Near having met up at least once in canon, which allows for plenty of speculation regarding the events that transpired during that meeting. thank you so much @optimisticgardenhologram for bringing these up!! this was very insightful :-)
76 notes
·
View notes
Note
would kai have saved bonnie if damon left her ?
The simple answer imo is yes - the complicated answer would be his *reasons* for saving her.
I feel like if Kai saved Bonnie in 6x22, it would be VERY different from when he saved her in 6x13 on her bday. In 6x13, saving Bonnie was a huge sacrifice Kai made bc of his newfound guilt and other growing feelings about her. But if Kai saved her in 6x22, that man would do it out of SPITE lmfao. Like sure, maybe a *tiny* fragment of leftover post-merge Kai would save her bc he believed she deserved better, but at the mental state that he was in by 6x22, i think a larger part of him would actually be looking to save her out of this petty urge to make bonnie suffer, bc dying would be too easy for her according to his thought process 💀
In canon, remember how Kai got annoyed by damon seemingly deciding to let bonnie die and choosing elena over her super quickly? He complains, saying smthg like "This decision was supposed to torture him," bc he wanted damon to agonize over the bonnie vs elena choice for a long time. Similarly, i think bonnie dying just like that would eliminate a lot of the angst, pain and tension of the situation, so Kai would save her life *just* so bonnie and damon would be forced to live with the uncomfortable reality of damon choosing elena over her and deal with the emotional fallout of that instead of pretending they have the world's best friendship, as they'd been doing for all of S6 (bc Kai would enjoy watching that mess).
Ofc, that would probably result in Bonnie aiming a lot of her resentment towards Kai for forcing her to face those hard truths, but maybe, after an initial explosion (and a lil nudging from Kai), she might realize that targeting kai is just shooting the messenger rather than addressing the root problem (her toxic friends). If it hadn't been kai, then somebody else would've made bonnie see the truth but either way, that's something she needed to see.
Realistically, even after this realization, i don't think bonnie would've suddenly warmed up to kai, but i think it might've pushed her to ditch damon instead of sticking around Mystic Falls to help him all the time (which would've consequently made Kai suddenly lose interest in Mystic Falls too xD). If Damon then chose to seek her out to beg her (read: force her) to defeat the town's new villains-of-the-week, or if he found her w his humanity off and tried to kill her to get elena back, i think kai might've surprised them all by appearing out of nowhere to get damon off bonnie's case (bc kai being kai was prob keeping tabs on bonnie's whereabouts as soon as she skipped town).
And maybe Kai's sudden appearance would've led to a bonkai confrontation with Kai realizing he may have saved her out of spite in 6x22, but there is no explanation for why he saved her from damon this time besides.. *wanting* bonnie to get her life away from her friends. And maybe that would've also led him to unsubtly point out that an elena-free existence had actually made bonnie's life better, thanks to kai.
Bon would probably kick his ass halfway across the world after a comment like that but i think it would stick with her, making its way under her skin as it sinks in that the horrific thing Kai did really did end up working out for her in the long run. Bc as we know, even at his lowest, there was always some part of Kai that begrudgingly wanted bonnie's attention and validation and rly resented her friends getting that from her while walking all over her. It would take a long time, but slowly and surely, i think Bonnie's intuition would eventually pick up on that tiny part of Kai that saved her life to show her that she deserved better. It would be very uncomfortable for her to realize that Big Bad Kai could no longer be an easy scapegoat for all her problems, but that might be just what she needs to finally see Kai as a person, rather than a monster. And from there? Well, looots of opportunities and potential would open up from there 😏
#bonkai#bonnie bennett x kai parker#bonnie x kai#bonnie bennett#kai parker#anti damon#tvd#asks#mine#headcanon#bonkamily
60 notes
·
View notes
Note
I’m looking for someone who can crack Amy Dallon open for me, and lakesbian thought you might have ideas! Everything about her is so interesting: being a body manipulator who brands herself as a healer, being a kid with the weight of the world on her shoulders, being raised by a woman who resents her, falling in love with her sister because she’s never felt like she belonged to the family. But when I think about the mindrape and the fleshpuddle, I bounce right off. They’re so over-the-top evil actions that I can’t conceive of a theory of mind for a her. So…thoughts about Amy?
to start with thoughts: i like amy. i like her a lot even! probably top 5 characters in worm to me. i think she's probably one of the most homophobic characters ever written and i also think she's incredibly tragic and compelling
to begin with, the first bit of mind control was, for all intents and purposes, an accident. victoria hugs her, amy's overwhelmed, and in the heat of the moment essentially literalizes her desires by making victoria like her. she's instantly remorseful and offers to fix it, but victoria's horrified and runs away. there's a lot of discourse surrounding the degree to which it was or wasn't accidental, but to me, the fact that she Immediately regrets it and that the text describes it as a semi-conscious reaction puts it pretty thoroughly in the camp of 'didn't mean to do this'. imo, if you were to Remove powers from the situation, it would be the equivalent of amy going in for a kiss -- she's overwhelmed and her guard's down from how emotionally bruised and battered she is and she does something rash, only powers make everything worse and more extreme and it turns into that whole clusterfuck instead. so, like, is amy accidentally or mostly accidentally making victoria like her back okay? obviously not, but i do think its an understandable Mistake to make
with the second bout of mindcontrol, its obviously dicier. not accidental, to start with, but while fucked up and wrong, there Is a rationale. amy wants victoria to be okay. victoria might die or be permanently disfigured because of her injuries by crawler. victoria won't let amy heal her because of how disgusted and angry she is at amy. obviously its better that victoria's healed, so amy decides to do what's best for victoria against victoria's wishes. (worth noting that taking it upon yourself to Do What's Best for someone else against their express desire is exactly what victoria did when she hugged amy despite amy's warnings) so amy mind controls her again, harder this time, and convinces herself that she's going to fix victoria's body And Then turn off the love effect. it's fucked up, unjustifiable, and wrong, but i think you can See how amy comes to make that decision, through a combination of a genuine humanitarian argument (victoria needs to be healed or she might be disfigured forever) and self-delusion (i'll not only be able to do this in the state the city's in, but i'll fix victoria's mind when i'm done)
and then there's the time when she turns victoria into a car. years down the line metatextual information and ward confirm it to be an instance of literal, rather than metaphorical, rape on amy's part, but i don't think that was the intention in worm and it's not my preferred interpretation (i think it's an insane idea that wildbow, who with his own words said he wouldn't depict rape in worm more explicitly than what the implications of heartbreaker's power portray, would write it as rape and then spend an insane amount of screen time focusing on amy and her story after that point while continuing to portray her broadly sympathetically). whatever the case though, it's an instance of amy going through with a gross violation of victoria's mental and bodily autonomy. the facts of the in-universe power mechanics remain the same whichever the interpretation -- amy, frazzled and traumatized, couldn't fix victoria anymore, her power not making the correct adjustments to her form.
amy convinced herself that she would spend some time with victoria while she licked her wounds and then remove the mind control and let her go, but she couldn't even fix her back into her old shape. it is an evil act. it's fucked up. but it's not... out of nowhere, you know? it's a culmination of amy's obsession and self-delusion and the lingering mental health crisis that's been hovering over her all book finally coming to a head, making her fall down a rabbit hole of self-justification that says that it's alright that she does this and that because it means she can fix victoria only to end up being wholly unable to fix her At All, and in fact only making victoria Worse
so like. i think amy does fucked up things to varying degrees of culpability and "forgivability", but there's definitely Reasons for why she did them, even if they're fucked up or not very good
by the time we get to ward there's no qualia whatsoever though lol she's just an evil devilspawn
102 notes
·
View notes
Note
I think it'll be interesting when RWBYJ tells everyone about the ever after, specifically Oscar/Ozpin. I think that'll be a hell of a slap in the face to those two. Imo it's pretty clear that Oz doesn't like the Brothers (his lie for his curse literally puts them in the WORST light to anyone who hears it), but isn't exactly open about it nor does he think on it much. But hearing that the 'gods' are essentially just people who got kicked out of their home would make him. Well I hesitate to say that he'd flip the fuck out, but I definitely think he wouldn't be happy at ALL. I'm sure he'd be furious while simultaneously having an existential crisis.
Frankly, Oz is just. An interesting character when it comes to his thoughts on the Brothers. He went from more or less listening to Light without question (but immediately started questioning when Salem talked to him- "Unsure of where his loyalties still lay-" he trusts Salems words but is confused about his stance on Light, perhaps afraid of questioning him), to putting them in a bad light repeatedly and more or less giving up on his task (there's far far easier ways to unite the world i.e. war- why would he deliberately make it hard on himself? He's far from stupid. He still foes his best to foster peace because why wouldn't he?). And, now, he's actively fighting his curse, and is doing so the second he got an ounce of hope.
I think why he hasn't really thought of fighting the Gods is bc a) he's still scared of them (and it makes sense, I'd be scared too) and b) he never knew that they, well, were just people. I think he'd need some convincing, but I really think he'd be happy to try his hand at giving Light a piece of his mind lol. Something tells me Oz has millennia of bottled up anger- something will eventually be the straw that broke the camels back, as even the most resilient of people can break.
Though I think the biggest issue would be the idea of teaming up with Salem. He's bitter and terrified of her, and although we don't know exactly what's happened between them since their first fight (beyond Oz spending several lives as an alcoholic, then wandering Remnant being reminded of Salem (not necessarily bc he thought every Grimm attack was her, Grimm just remind him of her)), it's entirely possible Salem has also done... something to hurt him. No one's that bitter or terrified of someone for absolutely no reason, but whatever the reason is, that'll definitely be an obstacle between him being allied with her against the Gods. Plus she also, yknow, tortured him and allowed Hazel to torture him (which Oscar took most of it, but they're in the same body).
I think that interaction would be... interesting. Especially since I really don't think Oz even is 'Ozma' anymore. Ozma is the foundations yes, but the merge changes you fundamentally. He has changed his name every lifetime (if Oz doesn't accidentally answer to the name Oscar I'll eat my left shoe), but how much of him really is Ozma anymore? Ship of theseus and all that. If he, by all accounts, isn't 'Ozma' anymore and Salem isn't aware of this, I think it'd be an interesting revelation for her. There's similarities between Oz and how he used to be, but I feel like 'Ozma' is functionally a deadname for him (Oz trans/DID allegory? /j). Especially since I think Ozma is just- not who he is anymore. He's tried living up to the name, but he can't and he knows it (the words his illusion in v9 says speaks a lot to his mental state and his opinion of himself).
God speaking of his illusion on v9, I think it's incredibly clear that what each illusion says pertains to that character in some way. And it says so so much about Ozpin and how he sees himself. It's ironic how the God of Light, associated with creation, made him, yet he thinks that all he does is destroy. He's scarily good at splitting people apart just accidentally (i.e. v6, Summer basically throwing him under the bus thus STRQ broke apart and blamed him, etc) too. Yet Salem, immortal via Lights curse, made herself through Grimm and is very good at rallying people. Dunno, fun thought there (it's why swap aus are so damn tasty with these two).
Sorry for the long ask, I just wanted to ramble in your inbox for a bit. I have many thoughts about Oz.
not. to be snarky but
To live free or die, it’s all the same
The enemy was right, there’s no reclaiming
In waves of shame
We’re desperate to make amends
But through a simple soul we lie complacent
Love brings us dreams
But grief makes the heart burst at the seams
As light fills my eyes
I’ll picture me beside her
And pray that I’ll inspire
I promise I’ll be here until the end
I promise I’ll be here until…
Our story has been told
Til our bodies break down every door
Til we find what we’ve been looking for
terrified she’ll never forgive him and terrified of what will happen if she confronts the gods again, yes. but terrified of her?
the enemy was right. we’re desperate to make amends. grief makes the heart burst at the seams. i’ll picture me beside her. ozma isn’t terrified of salem; he is, explicitly, ashamed of himself and desperate to make amends and longing for her.
listen. you don’t have to go salem did dot dot dot something to hurt him. we KNOW exactly what she did; rejected the mandate, fought him, burned him alive. they blew up their home and killed their own kids. is this insufficiently traumatizing to explain him.
similarly i do not have to go ozma did dot dot dot something to salem: we know exactly what he did. we know why she’s furious and bitter and still hurting. it is not ambiguous.
he’s spent the intervening centuries hiding inside a narrative where salem is the Great Evil he must defeat because the guilt he feels for deceiving and manipulating her and the grief for everything he sacrificed is so unbearable that he can’t touch it except through layers and layers of distortion. but it’s bleeding through the cracks everywhere. the infinite man tried to be a hero and is a fool who may not be worthy of forgiveness, ozpin suggests. look far enough ahead from the ending of the girl in the tower, and you’ll find the hero who saved her turned out to be a villain.
he hates salem. (he deserves her hatred.) this is the wrenching internal war he fights with himself day after day and life after life; the only way he can live with himself enough to function is by hating her, but the hatred is a fiction, a lie, to protect him from his fear. the truth is that he neither hates her nor deserves her hatred.
i am being intentional about calling him ozma, by the way. i am also intentional about when i call him ozpin or oz. i do not think ozma is a deadname. i don’t think ozma is an ideal he is trying and failing to live up to. he doesn’t identify himself as ozpin; he says “the professor ozpin you all met was not my first form.” he dons these other identities as a mask—i am the combination of countless men who have spent their lives trying to protect the people of remnant—because he hates himself. ozma is who he’s running away from because he doesn’t think ozma has ever been enough.
that is why. salem distinguishes between ozpin and ozma the way that she does. and why she is able to differentiate between oscar and ozma even when oscar is mimicking ozpin, because ozpin is the latest in a long series of masks that ozma wears.
(ozpin is tippetarius enforcing his own exile, and thus he became the wizard. ozma is the true self imprisoned by the curse. he’s… named ozma for a reason.)
”what if you could be anyone?” <- the blacksmith does not ask ruby this question because ruby needs to stop being herself in order to be happy. she offers ruby a metaphorical representation of ozma’s curse—what if you could be anyone, slip into a like-minded soul and become that person—in order to guide ruby to the realization that only her true self is the right fit. this is what i like to call blunt force foreshadowing.
ozma is trying to be a thousand different heroes and salem has only ever wanted ozma. ozma then is not the same person as ozma now, but ozma is ozma is ozma. the ship of theseus is the ship of theseus, then as now. on those who enter the same rivers, ever different waters flow. read heraclitus.
the thing is. yeah. he’s going to snap like a brittle twig when he learns the truth about the gods… because he already knows salem is right, deep down. the enemy is right. it bleeds through even into the lost fable, which is narrated in his voice. jinn’s telling—his telling—obfuscates and twists away from salem’s interiority, her feelings, her motives except for the moment of her realization about the brothers: perhaps the gods were not as powerful as they seemed; she had lied to them, turned them against each other; they were fallible.
the enemy is right. he knows she’s right.
hearing what the kids learned in the ever after is going to shatter the cognitive dissonance preventing him from acting on that knowledge. it’s going to surface ‘until the end’ but now joined to the hope he has—since the end of v8—that he can make amends for his cowardice and lies.
ozma apologizing to the kids and asking for a second chance to earn their trust was, uh, a practice run for ozma apologizing to salem and asking for a second chance. the fallout of the lost fable (“there was so much you hadn’t told us! how could you think that was okay!” and “i gave my life to you because you gave me a place in this world; i thought i was finally doing some good!”) is a reflection of salem’s distress. the narrative is on her side. because. he lied to manipulate her and grievously betrayed her trust. in exactly the same way he did to the kids.
#like until the end is literally his pining love letter to salem. he wants to be on the same side again so badly#the only thing stopping him is he’s convinced himself it’s impossible because how could she ever forgive him. how could he ever be worthy#meanwhile she’s enraged because she would have given him anything else but what he asked her to do#and he burned it all to the ground and salted the earth rather than give her the one thing she asked in return#which was to not serve the god who tortured her for millions of years!#he was worth everything to her and to him she was worthless.#together in all things even this.
49 notes
·
View notes
Note
canon dabi is actually so much more unhinged (and more complex tbh) than fanon dabi. as someone who loves unhinged characters this is a positive for me. i've actually enjoyed his fanon portrayal a lot over the years and had trouble adjusting at first when more got revealed about him but now i appreciate both the canon and fanon versions. the way large parts of fandom react to his canon characterization just goes to show that they really cannot handle more than one type of abuse narrative or one type of abuse survivor. Some of the commentary is honestly offensive. Like there's no problem with still enjoying fanon dabi imo as long as you're not massively fucking disrespectful to his canon version (and the people who can relate to him). anyway i can always trust your blog to have the good takes
I genuinely feel canon dabi is more unhinged. Like he's more complex and interesting. But yeah this asks is perfect:
the way large parts of fandom react to his canon characterization just goes to show that they really cannot handle more than one type of abuse narrative or one type of abuse survivor.
This might be the biggest issue here. The story is very much about explaining there's no perfect victims. Our like one "perfect" victim is Eri, but other than that, Horikoshi makes sure to explain that this idea of victim as a virtue is both dehumanizing and harmful in letting people actually get out of victimhood. Because there's an instinct to make people who get harmed seem like they should be saints, and many worldwide religions and culture see suffering as virtue.
You see this in the manga and very much in fandom. It's why anyone saying Rei was culpable until she had to speak HERSELF in the manga, was silenced or told to stop any Endeavor apologia. You see this in the completely lack of nuance when it comes to Twice and Hawks - the unhinged Hawks fans will completely woobify and strip Keigo of agency and accountability, blaming Twice and saying he "needed" to die (which Horikoshi has had to a number of times say no to) but on the other hand you have hardcore villain stans who will completely play stupid when it comes to contemplate the enormity of the institutionalization and grooming Keigo has been subject to as a child born to fugitives, essential homeless, and then as a ward of the state/bought child soldier. Or ask people about Tomura.
There's no nuance, there's no desire to understand because even the idea of understanding, not excusing, but understanding is seen as apologetics or "supporting the other side". It fascinates me how much this is clear in both manga and the real world. Some of the biggest lessons in BNHA are clearly missed by its own fandom, and there's a lot of irony in that.
35 notes
·
View notes
Note
(Yeah I probably misread something)
There is something I am curious about that I wanted to share with you
If I remember correctly (please correct me if I am wrong here) in the answer yukari becomes more antagonistic towards Aigis because she’s heartbroken over makoto’s death because she lost the guy she loves
One thing I want to bring up is in the kotone route some of the ship tease scenes with yukari are replaced with akihiko and as we all know all yukari’s scenes with kotone are mostly platonic along with her feelings so I doubt if there was a kotone version of the answer yukari would take it as bad as she did(not saying she wouldn’t but not as hard is all I’m saying)
So if we had a kotone version of the answer who would take yukari’s place
(Personally I’m leaning towards akihiko)
Yukari is antagonistic in "The Answer" because she wants to bring Makoto back to life regardless of what it would mean. From what I can recall (and this might be a little off the mark), they'd have to redo the battle against Nyx to try and destroy it completely OR they'd have to remove Makoto from his service the Great Seal to protect all life from Nyx — thereby endangering the world. But Yukari's so desperate to see him again that she (along with Mitsuru - who sides with Yukari for reasons left unstated) winds up fighting new protag Aigis (and whoever is with her party by then).
It's not explicitly stated to be romantic, but her desperate desire to see him even if it undoes the entire point of his sacrifice (...that he didn't fuckin' know he was making, I should note) definitely comes off that way IMO — regardless of whether you choose to believe Makoto returned those affections. After all, Junpei even compares it to how he'd feel if he could go back and save Chidori (which is sure an interesting bit of dialogue given that her survival seems to be canon in P4A). I guess you could argue that it's at least up to interpretation whether Yukari's feelings were a romantic love or something just intensely platonic.
The easiest and most logical answer here is to just say "Yukari gets that role in any version of The Answer." So whether that makes her bisexually in love with Kotone or just very emotionally attached to Kotone as part of her found family, she should probably remain the person who fights against keeping them gone, because that's just her character and because it reduces the amount of work a dev team would undertake.
But let's say we want to do something more radical and ensure that the person who fights back is a potential love interest with a legit romantic hangup on the protagonist. When you look at Kotone's potential love interests — Ahihiko, Theodore, Ryoji, Aigis, and even fucking Ken — who among them seems most likely to be so messed up over a (theoretical) Kotone death that they'd be willing to undo the purpose of her sacrifice for the chance to see her once more?
There are really only two options, because (A) Aigis is the lead protagonist of 'The Answer' and pre-determined to take the side of maintaining his sacrifice. (B) The velvet room attendants are established to be on the side of maintaining the sacrificer... although we do learn in Persona 4 Arena that Elizabeth leaves the Velvet Room to go on a quest to destroy Nyx and thereby release Makoto from being stuck as the seal, returning him to life. Maybe Theo could do the same in the Kotoneverse? (C) Ryuji is off the table for obvious reasons related to his identity.
That leaves just Akihiko and Ken. Akihiko would be a really dramatic interesting route to go, and I think I'd honestly prefer it? Because to see someone with his level of determination get so undone would be REALLY intense. But... I also admit that Kotone's worst romance option is the one that makes the most sense.
Because like I said, jst because The Answer strongly supports the idea that Yukari loves Makoto doesn't mean it ALSO supports the idea that they were canonically together. I will never support the idea that Kotone had any canonical feelings towards Ken, but regardless of that, I still feel like Ken is the obvious pick to take up Yukari's role as the one who has trouble accepting that Kotone's truly gone. It's easy to imagine him as the character who is nursing an unrequited love that's THAT hardcore, leaving him to take up his weapon against the squad.
#persona 3 spoilers#asks#femc#kotone shiomi#makoto yuki#yukari takeba#persona 3#p3p#persona 3 fes#persona the answer#the answer#persona#persona series
20 notes
·
View notes
Text
Hm so as I’ve seen many people lump Sakura in with Naruto and Kakashi as ‘bootlickers who ignore all the state’s atrocities in favor of keeping that status quo’, so as both a radical and a Sakura fan I’d like to share why and how I think Sakura could be turned into a radical character.
This isn’t gonna go very deeply into her fighting abilities or any of that, it’s more an analysis of her personality and narrative role than anything.
So I think one of the main points that attracts me to Sakura taking a radical direction is, unlike Naruto and Kakashi, she’s so rarely allowed any agency outside of male character’s desires. Like there’s multiple points where Sakura is about to do something or go fight, especially during Pt 1, where she’s stopped by someone while Naruto, for example, isn’t given any of the same opposition. While her willingness to drop her plan as soon as an authority figure demands it are something I’m going to further address, the fact remains that more often than not Sakura is only allowed agency so much as it benefits the male characters (ex, yelling at Sasuke to spur him out of his fear to fight Orochimaru).
This lack of agency is continued on throughout Shippuden. While Sakura’s delegation to the sidelines isn’t as noticable (as it’s often just that she’s barely there at all or is visible but doesn’t contribute to the plot), Shippuden Sakura is again not allowed her own voice in the narrative. She’s never given vital pieces of information (ex, the truth about the Uchiha massacre) that would allow her to actually position herself within the story the way Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi are able to do so. We don’t really know what Sakura’s reaction to the truth of the world around her would be, unlike Sasuke (fight again the oppressive forces) or Naruto & Kakashi (favor the status quo), because she is never able to find said truth out.
What damns this even more for me is that there are instances of Sakura breaking out of the Shinobi conditioned mindset sometimes!! The clearest is during the Wave arc, where her sobbed uttering of the Shinobi code as she thinks Sasuke is dead is used outright to question the morality of the shinobi system (side note there’s a reason Wave is imo the best arc). Sure, you could chalk it up to her being a wimpy and emotional 12 year old, but her emotions are directly used here to point out the cruelty of the shinobi system. There’s a moment like this again at the end of her fight with Sasori as well, where Sakura demanding the value of life is met by Sasori asking her if “that’s what a shinobi should be saying”. Again, this is proven by Sakura’s hesitance to stab out Obito’s eye - Sakura’s value for life and compassion have, multiple times, been used to question her position in the shinobi system. But we never really get to see this come to fruition because Sakura is not given the agency nor the information to do so.
In fact, I think if given the information like the true cause of the Uchiha Massacre, Sakura would become radical fairly quickly. She’s very good at memorizing and researching huge amounts of information, she’s noted to be observant and good at noticing details, and she’s incredibly stubborn and wouldn’t be put off if the information was hard to find - the qualities that made her an excellent academic student and medic would make her very good and finding out what she needs to. Additionally, Sakura is shown to have very little loyalty to the state at all. She offers to choose her friend/romantic interest/cared person Sasuke over Konoha twice and seems to genuinely mean it, which shows me that the only real reasons she remains loyal to Konoha are a) many of her precious people (ie, Ino, Tsunade, Naruto, Kakashi) are in Konoha, b) she’s grown up there and it’s easiest, and c) she’s been given no real reason to question it. The violence she seems at least a bit uncomfortable with could be a reason, sure, but as far as Sakura’s seen almost everyone partakes in that, even the revolutionaries.
However, I think if given something that forces her to seriously reconsider her worldview of Konoha as, if not the good guys then a lesser evil to be loyal to, something that forces her to choose between her value for life and her care for her precious people and the state, I think she could very well be turned into a revolutionary. Sakura’s not against enacting violence, but she is shown to have a value for life that the shinobi system ordinarily discourages (one that I do believe she had even prior to her apprenticeship under Tsunade). Playing on this as the catalyst and using her academic skill could turn her into a radical character easily.
However, in order for that to happen, her arc would have to confront what I said I’d address earlier: Sakura’s adherence to authority regardless of her personal wishes and lack of faith in herself.
These, I think, play into each other. While there’s speculation about Sakura’s family and abuse, what we do know from canon is that Sakura was both a teacher’s pet and a bullying victim from a young age. Both of these reinforce this part of her personality; the bullying hurt her self esteem and her faith in herself (and if we go by the anime movies, her emotionally abusive parents sure weren’t helping in that regard either), and being a teacher’s pet allowed her to get the validation her broken self esteem craved so long as she did exactly as the authority figure told. I think for a lot of ‘gifted kids’, we either grow up strictly abiding by authority as it’s what got us positive reinforcement growing up, or we go in the complete opposite direction and trust no authority at all when it inevitably fails us.
Is it as exciting a backstory or reasoning for her personality as some of the other characters? No, but it’s what we have. Sakura is one of those kids, with an academic performance that got her validation as long as she was obedient, and her peers (and parents) hurting her self esteem so she couldn’t trust her own opinion anymore. I think this is why she’s so quick to back down whenever someone she sees as more qualified or in a higher position than her demands it. I don’t think this was ever actually addressed in the show or manga, tbh. I think this would be Sakura’s main barrier to radicalization; her arc would need to be her gaining confidence not just in her abilities, but in her own opinions and personality, and learning that authority figures are not to be trusted.
Anyway, I think Sakura is a very interesting character to take a radical route. You just need to understand her character and motivations.
#sakura naruto#sakura haruno#naruto meta#character analysis#meta#sakura meta#sakura haruno meta#naruto#naruto shippuden#naruto uzumaki#kakashi hatake#tsunade senju#Sasuke Uchiha
78 notes
·
View notes
Note
I think Yuri is still likeable for lot of fans but his story is still very lacking and the growing of his character didn’t shown as obvious much as other main character. And his angry behavior is easy to got hates and judges. Which is sad though because I believe when he’s getting softer and meet different people, we will see a different side of him. That’s why it’s very interesting to see his interaction to other character because most of the times we only see his comedy sides whenever he interact with the Forgers.
I’m do think for a request, I want to know some side story of Yuri and readers in daily life when they still in sss. I do like the details of the reader making brownies and Yuri enjoying it. I do think it will be cute if Yuri invited the reader to the flower store and met his mother grave and gave the brownie as a gratitude. ( or the brownies remind him of Yor or his mother cooking) As something that he wants to make a vow or a promised to taking care of his loved one. It’s will be heartwarming imo but if this is too out of your league ( and since we didn’t have much material of Briars past yet) then it’s okay if you could ignore my RQ.
I do read your updates btw I love it.
Fem! (Y/N) x Mean! Yuri Briar
This can be read with or without reading my Yuri Briar x Fem! Spy! Reader series: An Alliance (part 1)
Setting is BEFORE the reader rejoined WISE (so after she declared her resignation to Twilight).
(Y/N) as her own background in correlation to the Yuri Briar x Fem! Spy! Reader series for plot purposes!
Yuri is unnecessarily rude to (Y/N).
Baking is very important for (Y/N). You can take away many things in life; a person's home, their family, their friends, their confidence, their drive, but you can't take away tradition. Tradition is something that will always be passed down, from generation to generation, it can never truly die out, it will always remain in the world.
(Y/N) has certain values and traditions that cannot be swayed by anyone, not even the infamous Yuri Briar, a valued lieutenant in Ostania's State Security Service, can change that. Nobody can change (Y/N)'s love for cooking, for family, and for laughter.
The first time Yuri woke up without (Y/N) in his bed was a few months ago and he almost had a full blown meltdown. He quickly ran out of his bedroom, half-dressed with his arm stuck in his jacket, hopping on one foot as he tried to slide on his boots.
"Yuri?" a voice from the kitchen spoke, peeking their head out of the kitchen.
It's (Y/N)! Yuri smiled, glad she didn't escape. I didn't want to get fired by loosing her, or have to track her down and kill her in the streets at three a.m. when I could be sleeping.
"What are you doing?" Yuri hissed, holding his guard up high as he walked into the kitchen.
"Jesus, Yuri! You should've said something sooner! I would've stabbed you!" (Y/N) huffed.
Yuri's eyes traveled to her hands and his eyes widened.
"YOU WERE GONNA STAB ME?!" Yuri shouted.
"NO!" (Y/N) shouted back, placing the knife on the counter. "I thought you were an intruder! Like a Westalis spy finding out that I'm working with you or something like that!"
"Do you understand that if you stab someone in my apartment, I'll most likely be arrested too? I'm not helping you get away with murder." Yuri hissed.
"Boo-hoo." (Y/N) teased sarcastically, a frown on her face. "Just go back to bed."
"No! How do I know you're not planning on stabbing me while I sleep? Or trying to run away?" Yuri spoke, then paused as he smelt something drift in the air.
It was something sugary, something sweet, and something that smelt divine (not that Yuri would ever let her know).
"What are you doing? Are you trying to set ablaze the whole apartment complex?" Yuri questioned, moving past (Y/N) to the dessert in the oven as he crouched down, looking into the small window. "Was dinner not enough?" Yuri rudely sneered, causing (Y/N) to throw a wooden spoon at the back of his head. "HEY!"
"DON'T HEY ME! THE AUDACITY OF YOU!" she shouted, grabbing an oven mitt and throwing it at him.
At least that's softer... Yuri thought before sending (Y/N) a glare.
"I just wanted something sweet! You won't let me leave the apartment so I figured I'd make brownies since you have all the ingredients." (Y/N) sighed.
"Are they drugged? Are they laced with poison?" Yuri questioned, giving (Y/N) a suspecting glare.
"You're really insecure and sensitive, you know?" (Y/N) commented.
"I'M NOT!" Yuri shouted, his pride slightly ruined.
"You're also absolutely terrible with social cues! We have neighbors!" (Y/N) hissed.
"Like you weren't screaming a minute ago!" Yuri huffed.
"You called me fat!" (Y/N) claimed.
"Indirectly..." Yuri mumbled.
"It still held the same meaning!" (Y/N) spat out, before sighing, deciding not to entertain him any longer. "Whatever. Since you're up, be useful and do the dishes."
"You're the one baking at three A.M. You do it!" Yuri groaned.
"Yeah? Well, you're going to be eating some too!" (Y/N) replied, before allowing her composure to falter. "Please... do the dishes..?"
"Fine. What are you even doing up anyways?" Yuri sighed, walking to the sink.
The question made (Y/N) frown, a nasty glare shot Yuri's way.
"It doesn't matter why I'm up. It's not like you actually care anyways!" (Y/N) accused quit boldly (and rudely).
"You want me to be nice to you but you're so defensive." Yuri groaned, complaining as he rolled his eyes and turned on the sink faucet.
"I just couldn't sleep, alright? Just some nightmares..." (Y/N) mumbled.
I understand that... Yuri thought, his hardened angry red eyes softening to plush red, before he put the mask up once more. No! Don't get comfortable! She could be trying to use you for any information from the SSS! Or Yor!
"You still get nightmares? At your age?" Yuri smirked. "I thought Flower was supposed to protect you?"
"Ugh! See? You don't care!" (Y/N) huffed, crossing her arms as she adverted her eyes. "I don't know why I bother when I do!"
"No! I'm sorry, sorry!" Yuri spoke quickly, as if afraid she'll leave him. "I... understand. I woke up too because of a nightmare..." he admitted, swallowing his pride.
"What was it about?" (Y/N) questioned, scooting closer to Yuri as he started to wash her dirty cookware.
"You don't nee-" Yuri paused, remembering her words from just a few seconds ago. "Ah..." he grumbled, then took a breath. "I lost my parents too. My mother's affected me the most. Yor looks so much like her, you know..." Yuri took another breath. "Just miss 'em."
"I understand. My brothers were always at each others throats, including mine. We fought all the time. It's crazy that despite living in the exact same situation, we had completely different views on the world." (Y/N) smiled, reminiscing the past. "My younger brother was so brave and careless, he never let anyone boss him around, so he got in a lot of fights with my dad and authority. My youngest brother was cold one second, then lovey dovey the next. He had some learning problems, but he really just wanted someone to be proud of him..." (Y/N) paused, thinking of her next words.
"I had an older sister too, and an older brother. My older brother was really cold, very distant and all. He was kind of like you, believed everyone was out to get him; he wanted to be independent and be his own person." (Y/N) giggled as Yuri paused from washing the dishes to instead watching her smile. "And Yor? God, she reminds me so much of my older sister. My older sister was always looking out for us younger ones, and she was so kind too. I really miss my dad too, he really helped me with who I am today." (Y/N) paused, realizing she was rambling. "What about you, Yuri?" she questioned, turning her gaze to Yuri, surprised to see he was already looking at her.
"Oh! Uh..." Yuri gasped, adverting his eyes as he got back to washing the dishes. "I miss my mom... She would make me and Yor this southern stew and it tasted really good, unfortunately, I don't know how to make it." Yuri sighed.
"Does Yor know?" (Y/N) questioned.
"Well, she's trying to replicate it. I love Yor's cooking, but... her stew doesn't quite taste like our mom's." Yuri spoke, cracking a smile. "She's buried here in Ostania, in fact, I should go see her sometime. That'd be nice..." Yuri trailed off, getting lost in his own past before he remembered (Y/N) was present and redirected his attention back to her. "So... what about your mom? I just, never heard you mention her, at all."
"I don't know much about her." (Y/N) confessed. "She stayed in (birth country) when my dad moved to Westalis for his job. She cheated on my dad and left all of us."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Yuri spoke on reflex, but he couldn't help but feel a tinge of pity.
"Don't be. She never stuck to a mother role even when she was apart of my life. When she left, my dad and I had to start caring for our family. My older siblings weren't reliable with jobs; she had a neurological problem and my older brother was still defying against authority, teenage angst and all. I couldn't have my six and five-year-old brothers working with me, they were still exploring the world and worrying about what game to play next. I forced myself to grow up early since I knew my dad needed help, so I took up that job at the bakery. In fact, that's how I know this brownie recipe!" (Y/N) smiled.
"Huh..." Yuri muttered, thinking to himself.
Even before the war, (Y/N) still had a lot to deal with in her life. When was the last time she really had a break? Yuri thought to himself. Whatever. I shouldn't be caring about that! Everyone goes through some hardships secretly, she's no different!
"Hey, Yuri..." (Y/N) started, pausing to think.
I want to ask him about his dad, but he hasn't said anything about it (and unlike him, I understand my words can affect people)... (Y/N) thought to herself.
"Yeah?" Yuri hummed.
"...Uh, you think we can skip work Friday? We've just been working soooo much, it's getting boring." she questioned, immediately coming up with an excuse to replace her real question as she smiled stupidly.
"Don't be ridiculous." Yuri huffed. "We have a job together now, I'm not going to allow you to run back to WISE!"
"Hey! I told you in the contract that I'll work with you guys, sheesh! Besides, I was able to get a resignation message across to them." (Y/N) sighed.
"When? Where? With who? When was this?" Yuri questioned immediately, slamming his hands against the counter.
"Don't worry! Now back to the dishes with you!" (Y/N) huffed, changing the subject.
"Fine..." Yuri grumbled. "You know, what's with you doing all the cooking? You're aware I can help out too?" Yuri questioned.
You're raised by Yor, and I heard from Twilight that her cooking isn't quite edible... (Y/N) thought to herself, avoiding to give him that reasoning as he'd probably throw a knife at her for saying that.
"You can only take so many things from me, but you can't ever take away what I've learned from my da. Cooking reminds me of my home. Whenever me and my dad had the time, we'd make meals together for the family." (Y/N) explained. "I may have a bad memory, but the day I let go of my family's legacy is the day I die."
"You're so human that it's a little weird..." Yuri mumbled.
"That's because I am human!" (Y/N) exclaimed. "You act like I'm a monster or something." (Y/N) sighed, a little disheartened.
"Westalis sp-"
"Shut it!" (Y/N) growled, cutting Yuri off. "The rare occasion we actually have a decent conversation, you go ahead and ruin it!" she exclaimed, checking the brownies before grabbing a mitt, removing them from the oven and onto the counter with a towel under the pan, then turned the oven off. "I'm not in the mood for sweets anymore; I'm going to bed." (Y/N) huffed, walking out of the kitchen and turning the corner, disappearing from Yuri's sight.
Yuri stood in the kitchen alone, thinking of the events prior to her leaving.
Maybe I was a little mean... Yuri admitted to himself. It doesn't matter. It never said in the contract that I had to be nice to her.
It might've not said it in the contract, but Yuri's aware of what little human decency he has towards anyone but Yor, he's aware he's a little too harsh on the poor girl. He knows if he ever acted like how he treats (Y/N) to Yor, he'd cut his own tongue off (after telling Yor over and over about how sorry he is).
In truth, he really doesn't know how to act with someone who isn't his sister, much less a girl, much much less his once-enemy (since she does work with him now).
Yuri didn't have friends growing up, he was too focused on his studies so he can change the world into something better for Yor, so he's never really had the social interaction he should have. Even in school when he had to work with others in groups, he would take the task on by himself because he believed they'd get in his way.
Yuri also doesn't have much luck with girls too. Sure, he's attractive and it helps bring in potential suitors, but he's too obsessive over his sister which usually steers girls off (that, or he's convinced they're a spy [which is technically true in this case] trying to get information from him because why would someone say "hi" to him without wanting to betray their country? [Yuri really needs to get a grip]).
Yuri finished washing the dishes that (Y/N) requested from him and stared at the pan of brownies, deep in thought.
She did say they weren't poisoned... so... I guess I can try just one? Otherwise this'll all go to waste! Besides, she did say I was going to eat them too, so she had it in mind that we're sharing. Yuri thought, convincing himself of why he should give into the ex-spy's cooking.
He cut a brownie out of the pan and was surprised by the chocolatey delicacy. It had extra chocolate chips in it and it was a perfect mix of fudge and cake. He took another one to eat, then another, and another after that one. He was halfway through the pan before he realized and stopped himself, remembering her words.
("...Cooking reminds me of my home")
("I'm not in the mood for sweets anymore, I'm going to bed.")
She made these for herself, but she did have the intent of sharing them with him, so he supposes he can leave some for her.
He covered the leftover brownies with aluminum foil and placed the pan to the side, turning off the lights and walking back to his own room, already seeing (Y/N) in his bed and sleeping.
"Oi, wake up." Yuri spoke, shaking her shoulders.
She groaned and ignored him, causing him to get a little frustrated and shake her awake a bit harsher.
"Wake up!" Yuri hissed.
"What?" (Y/N) huffed, annoyed she got woken up. "You know how much sleep I need and today's our day off so I wanna sleep in!"
"I'm sorry..." Yuri muttered.
(Y/N) looked up at him, a little confused as she sat up from the bed.
"Sorry...? For what?" (Y/N) questioned.
"For being rude... and I guess for waking you up..." Yuri huffed.
"You guess...?" (Y/N) deadpanned.
"Don't expect so much from me!" Yuri exclaimed.
"Oh, don't worry, I'm not." (Y/N) smiled.
"HEY!" Yuri screamed. "You can never take anything seriously!" Yuri grumbled.
"I'm messing with you, Yuri. Hop in." (Y/N) giggled, grabbing his arm and pulling him under the covers with her.
"H-hey! Let go of me!" Yuri shouted, a dark blush on his face as he was shoved in her cleavage.
"To be honest. I've never heard someone apologize to me before—it's very gratifying." (Y/N) admitted.
"You're so full of yourself. AND LET GO OF ME!" Yuri screamed.
"You're such a tsundere..." (Y/N) sighed, obliging as she unwrapped her arms from him.
They got comfortable together in the sheets as Yuri closed his eyes, feeling himself slip off.
"Yuri, earlier you said I never take anything seriously." (Y/N) spoke up.
"And?" Yuri questioned, his eyes still closed.
"That's not true." (Y/N) confirmed.
"...And...?" he questioned.
"You should be less serious, have some fun. Trust me, it makes life a lot better." (Y/N) smiled. "They say laughter heals a broken heart, and judging by your personality, you could use a good laugh."
"Your face is enough for me." Yuri muttered.
"Aw th— hey!" (Y/N) exclaimed.
Yuri let out a small chuckle, one that brought a grin on (Y/N)'s face.
"See? Just like that? You should do it more often..." (Y/N) muttered, her voice a little softer and more sultry than usual.
"Shut up and go to bed..." Yuri huffed, ignoring the blush growing on his face. "Tomorrow, I'll take you somewhere."
"Ooo, like a date?" (Y/N) teased.
"NO! AND I SAID SHUT UP!" Yuri screamed.
.
.
It was (Y/N)'s turn to wake up alone, confused on the whereabouts of her fake husband.
"Yuri?" she called out, hopping out of bed and walking out of the bedroom.
"Kitchen!" Yuri answered.
(Y/N) walked into the kitchen and noticed the aluminum foil on the pan. She shot Yuri a curious glance who immediately avoided her eyes. She lifted the foil from the pan and saw half the pan gone, now understanding Yuri's guilty expression.
"Damn it! Should've done a larger dose..." (Y/N) muttered.
"W-what?" Yuri questioned.
I don't remember it tasting funny? Unless the divine taste was poison?! Yuri thought, alarms going off in his head.
"Kidding, kidding!" (Y/N) smiled, then loud out a laugh as she recovered the pan. "I saw an opportunity."
"Ha ha..." Yuri grumbled sarcastically.
"You like 'em?" (Y/N) questioned.
"...Yeah..." Yuri muttered, crossing his arms as his face heated up. "Hurry up and get dressed."
"Where exactly are we going?" (Y/N) questioned.
"You'll see." Yuri dragged on.
"Fine..." (Y/N) sighed.
(Y/N) walked to their shared bedroom, grabbing a pair of clothes and changing into them real quick as Yuri waited for her in the living room.
"Are we visiting Yor?" (Y/N) asked, fixing the sleeves on her shirt.
"Close." Yuri replied, causing a delightful smile on her face.
"We're visiting your mother!" (Y/N) beamed, then ran into the kitchen.
She grabbed the pan from the counter, returning to Yuri.
"What's that for?" Yuri questioned.
"It's normal to bring offerings to the dead, yeah?" (Y/N) smiled.
"I guess..." Yuri muttered, then grabbed (Y/N)'s arm. "Let's go."
"You can hold my hand instead of my arm, unless I'm courting you? That's cool too." (Y/N) teased.
"It's so you don't run away." Yuri reaffirmed quickly, quick to assure (Y/N) wouldn't get the wrong idea as he unlocked the front door and walked out with (Y/N), closing and locking the door behind him.
"We're supposed to be a couple, remember?" (Y/N) smiled, shaking Yuri's grip from her forearm and instead holding his hand.
"If that's the case, let me hold that." Yuri sighed, grabbing the pan from the hand that wasn't in (Y/N)'s grip.
"I'm glad to know chivalry isn't dead." (Y/N) teased.
"Don't start it." Yuri warned.
.
.
Yuri drove to a flower shop, making a quick stop and getting a bouquet of forget-me-nots, having them wrapped in a red ribbon. They re-entered the car as Yuri handed (Y/N) the bouquet, driving to a place unknown for (Y/N).
"It's really cute you got forget-me-nots." (Y/N) commented.
"They were my mother's favorite." Yuri replied, crouching down to the polished gravestone as he held out his hand, signaling for her to give him the flowers.
(Y/N) obliged immediately, handing him his flowers as she patiently waited for him to finish his internal conversation with his mother from beyond the grave. It must've been a good twenty minutes of watching Yuri silently mourn before he finally stood up from the dirt, clearing his throat.
"Ready?" Yuri questioned.
"Can I talk to her?" she questioned.
"Talk? I mean... I guess? She won't say much though." Yuri smiled.
"Starting to take to my humor. Huh, pretty boy?" (Y/N) laughed as Yuri shook his head, a blush on his face. "Wanna wait in the car? Or somewhere where you can see me? I wanna have a private conversation with her."
"I guess I can. No running off though." Yuri spoke sternly.
"Yes, sir." (Y/N) saluted playfully, smiling as Yuri walked back into his car, climbing in and shutting the door as he watched her through the window.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Briar. Would you look at that, we have the same title! Well... kind of. It's not official or anything." (Y/N) smiled, kneeling down to the dirt and talking as if she was really present. "I have a gift for you. They're brownies. Yuri ate some, but I hope you enjoy the rest." She spoke, placing the covered pan in front of the grave next to the flower bouquet. "My name is (Y/N) (L/N), my real name that is. In case you're wondering, I'm from Westalis. I do hope it doesn't bring any ill intent or memories to you, I'm not quite sure how you died, but I feel the war might be apart of it. Is that why Yuri dislikes Westalis so much...?" (Y/N) trailed off, before regaining her thoughts.
"You have two very beautiful kids, inside and out. Yuri is very entertaining, and Yor is very sweet. I may not be Yuri's official wife, but I really think I'll stick around for some time, or at least until Yuri gets sick of me, which is probably soon." (Y/N) chuckled. "I know we just met, and this is definitely out of the blue, but... I'm starting to warm up here in Ostania. I promise I'll look after Yuri for you. I can tell he's had it rough; I see myself in him, stubborn and determined."
"I'm not good with goodbyes, but I don't think that's necessary anyways. You're very important to Yuri, so you're important to me now; sorry, you can't change my mind on that part." (Y/N) smiled. "Yuri's waiting for me. He doesn't trust me at the moment, but I'm making progress. I'll make sure to visit you again, Mrs. Briar. We're in-laws now, so take care of yourself."
(Y/N) stood up from the dirt, swiping the dirt and grass off her feet as she bowed, showing her respects to Yuri's mother before running back and joining Yuri.
"You have a nice conversation?" Yuri questioned, starting up the car.
"She told me to tell you that I'm her favorite girl you've ever brought to meet her." (Y/N) joked.
"You're the first one." Yuri deadpanned.
"It's a joke." (Y/N) explained. "But, in actuality. I bet she was really lovely. I mean, she's a good listener, that's for sure."
"Whatever." Yuri smiled, resisting the urge to laugh. "Let's go home. Find a movie to watch or something. We still have the day off."
It's a learning process for the both of them, to learn how to share a space and cooperate with each other. (Y/N) was raised to deceive and kill, Yuri was raised to follow his heart's content (even if his life goal is a bit... peculiar). It's a lot of work to be around someone when you've been alone for most of your life.
(Y/N) didn't have a family to return to, a friend to tell secrets to and for them to stay alive long enough to keep, a crush to confess to. She had to become everything she wanted; her family, her home, her best friend, and her number one supporter. Yuri didn't have a mother or father to greet once he's come home from school. It also didn't help his sister was working a lot to help support him. He was never greeted home with a warm home cooked meal from mother and a football session afterwards. He didn't have time for things a normal boy would do; get into trouble with his friends, ask a girl out, or even play childish games such as "tag". Now that they have each other, they can be each other's friends, family, perhaps over time, even lovers. Even though they've both been hurt by their afflictions to either the West or East, they can still learn to care and love each other.
After all, as the saying goes, only time can heal a broken heart.
BONUS! (Daily life + headcannons!):
This is intended for the Yuri Briar x Fem! Spy! (Y/N) series and there are SPOILERS for the story down below! Click here to read the first chapter: Part 1.
(Y/N) and Yuri wake up at 5 A.M., a good ten minutes is spent of Yuri fighting (Y/N) out of bed.
It's become a habit for (Y/N) to make them both coffee while Yuri reads the daily newspaper.
Depending on how much work they had the previous day and how they feel, they either make breakfast together or go out to eat at a nearby breakfast club.
(Y/N) and Yuri either drive to work or take the bus, it really depends on how Yuri is feeling (did Yuri drink last night or no?)
Yuri refuses for (Y/N) to drive since he's convinced she'll try and drive them off a bridge.
Yuri once had to take (Y/N) to the clinic to get her flu shot and was awestruck at how scared she was of needles ([Y/N] cried before they even stuck a needle into her).
(Y/N) is afraid of needles because of how many she had to see during her time in the Westalis military. Needles usually didn't mean good things. Since there were many injuries in the war and not many supplies or technology, some nurses and doctors had to bullshit their way through things. She saw someone have a bad reaction to one of the needles and it traumatized her since then.
Yuri holds her hand when she gets shots (she almost broke his hand from holding it so tight, but Yuri sucked it up [despite having a terrible pain tolerance] and didn't let her see in case she got worried for him).
Flower ([Y/N]'s stuffed bunny) was retrieved in the rubble of (Y/N)'s childhood house by Hujo and given back to her at the military shelter. Flower was a toy her father had given her once and it's only the only physical thing she has of her childhood home.
(Y/N) has a short temper but tries her best to hide it (especially since she lives with Yuri now, everyday is a patience test).
(Y/N) sleep-talks (Yuri figured that out the hard way).
(Y/N) and Yuri once watched a horror movie together in a drive-in theater. That same night, (Y/N) muttered phrases the demons said in the movies, Yuri was convinced (Y/N) somehow got possessed and hit her awake with a pillow (he did not apologize after [Y/N] explained that she sleep-talks).
(Y/N) adores Anya and spoils her. (Y/N) doesn't believe she'll find real love in the future, so she doesn't believe she'll have kids (either she won't find someone, or she'll die from the SSS or WISE). Because of this, (Y/N) treats Anya like her own daughter and spoils her with peanuts (Anya likes [Y/N] more because of this).
Yuri once had a two-hour study session teaching (Y/N) and Anya basic algebra (the girls both ended up falling asleep as Yuri quietly muttered to himself about how hopeless they are).
When Yuri got shot during their mission saving one of the Eden Academy buses, (Y/N) refused to leave Yuri's side during the whole healing process.
When (Y/N) feels guilty of deceiving Yuri (go to part 8 to understand why), she cooks a lot for him. Her father once told her that food is a way to a man's heart and she fully believes that.
(Y/N) once ran into one of the WISE agents with Yuri in public, but the agent didn't know Yuri was apart of the SSS! The agent tried to talk to (Y/N) but got punched in the face by (Y/N) who claimed he was a pervert (it was that or being executed).
Yuri keeps a close eye on (Y/N) in public, not only so he can make sure he doesn't try and run away, but also so (Y/N) doesn't get injured since she's very clumsy (he lost count with how many times he watched her trip over air or walk straight into still poles). He walks on the side with traffic so she doesn't accidentally walk into ongoing traffic.
Yuri falls asleep really easy since he's tired from his job, but he'll secretly wait until (Y/N) sleeps so that he knows she's not getting up to any mischief (is what he says, in actuality, he enjoys spending his time with (Y/N).
The teddy bear (Y/N) gave Yuri in part 9 is now (Y/N)'s pillow (even though it was meant for Yuri). Yuri gets very jealous of it; he can deal with the small stuffed-rabbit, but the huge teddy bear taking up his bed is very annoying since (Y/N) will subconsciously hold it in her sleep instead of Yuri.
I hoped you enjoyed this fanfic and thank you for your requests and support! Feel free to ask for anything else or any other characters from my masterlist! This applies to everyone reading, follower or not!
#x y/n#x you#x reader#x yn#spy x family#yuri#yuri anime#yuri briar#yuri manga#yuri spy x family#sxf manga#sxf spoilers#sxf#yuri x reader#yuri briar x reader#stellar constellations#spy x family yuri#sxf yuri#sxf anime#x female y/n#x female reader#x fem!reader#yn
79 notes
·
View notes
Text
something I'm thinking about which isn't necessarily canon *per se* is the idea of magic actually being something living and finite - magic coming from a certain life energy, magic never truly lasting without continuous output of that energy, soul gems having finite resources, etc. Which is just a game mechanic to make sure things aren't OP but it is interesting this idea that nothing permanent can really be erected or done with magic - you can alter things as long as you have enough resources for the spell, but it'll turn back in time, you can push rocks in position with your magic by expending energy but you can't will the earth itself to take a new shape that'll last, and so on.
which has interesting canon implications if explored. the permanent alterations offered by daedra, the permanent enchantments of legendary daedric and aedric artefacts, in this sense this everlasting quality makes them divine. this puts lichdom also in context - a pursuit of a cursed immortality stays at its core, a permanent altered state of being. imo, then, the dwemer disappearance is interesting because it is a permanent change to the world - and perhaps this is a line I'd like to draw, that tonal architecture and nord shouting involve learning the language used to make the universe and re-writing it, while magic is playing with a cycle of energy in this self-contained little bubble that follows the rules of the cycle of life and the rules that Magnus laid out.
and imo that temporary, finite nature needn't be necessarily limiting and is one that stops the world being upended by one malignant sorcerer. and it could tie into some interesting philosophies about what it means to be alive, what life is for, and what magic's role is in cultural and spiritual practice.
146 notes
·
View notes
Text
I feel like as the resident dishonor/honor guy enjoyer I have to speak on honor as a construct and how it seems to operate in asoiaf in my eyes. I will be stating the obvious here imo but: violence IS inherent to it. Be it directly or through the enablement of it. “Honor”, as a feudalistic moral construct, revolves around the reinforcement of a status quo. It is a moral construct that is embedded into a feudalistic structure, one that is inherently violent. It can be deeply flawed and destructive as a result of deeply rooted systemic issues. Being “honorable” is very complicated because, again, it does not exist based on a very sensible moral framework. It ends up contradicting itself because the way society is structured in Westeros.
Almost nothing embodies this more clearly than the KG. They are supposed to be the paragons of honor: an unsoiled white cloak.
Vows are social contracts this society is built on. This is why Jaime is very restricted in a lot of ways in his world by his label. Breaking one of the most important contracts (one that happens to be key in reinforcing a feudalistic structure: it places the king’s will above every single other moral or ethical code) makes it so he is not believed or trusted and he is unable to operate properly within their society in a lot of circumstances, as we witness in his chapters. It is honorable to protect the weak and the innocent, but it is honorable to protect your king in all circumstances and reinforce a status quo. To obey your family and play your societal role. To obey laws, even if they are unjust. To keep your word, to be honest. Loyalty to a tyrant has to be inherently more honorable (especially in certain positions) to maintain this status quo, even though it contradicts other oaths and we know it is inherently immoral. Balancing values is the most interesting aspect of characters dealing with ‘honor’ and morality. Feudalism is what makes the honor system collapse. Honor itself can be a more vague concept, “the quality of knowing and doing what is morally right”, but the way it is defined and how it operates within this society is so fucked. The KG appear in the weirwood dream (mirroring the imagery of The Others, conflating the honorable white cloak with snow and cold and death.) “You swore to keep your king safe” “and the children as well.” Yeah, the innocent children of kingslanding as well, that would have burned to ash. It is honorable to save your king, to protect the weak, to save the children, to save the innocents of KG, to obey your father. He tells this to them in the dream, he explains his reasoning for killing Aerys, but they do not budge. That is what Jaime fears the most, the complete collapse of everything that holds meaning to him, heroism becoming undefinable with these conflicting moral codes, which is likely another huge part of him keeping it a secret. It is something he feels powerless against. The way things are prioritized is wrong. Morality becomes skewed. In Jaime’s mind the enemy and primary source of doom is this nonsensical moral construct that contradicts itself represented by institutions that make no sense. It is what makes his symbolic fire go out. His moral code conflicts with this society’s code of ethics, which eventually leads him to cynically accept amorality. It is disillusionment that tears the idea of heroism and being “honorable” apart and leads to moral nihilism.
Another aspect of the honor code and its violence is the fact that it places more value to individuals based on class. It is dependent on class and a flawed social structure. This is despite the fact that vows of knighthood call for the protection of those that are too weak to protect themselves: the underprivileged. Jaime keeps having this epiphany of an inherent equality in death that seems to contradict the way society is structured. Aerys’ life is worth inherently more according to the honor code than Rhaella’s, than the lives of thousands of innocents, than Jaime’s. Yet, a lowborn hand, no one, seems to die harder than Aerys does (and nobody cares). A crown is worth nothing when crows feast on victors and vanquished alike, and the rightful heir himself. We are all equal in death, so the text is indicating that something is not right here.
When it comes to characters and their relationship with honor the important through-line is examining whether they are being “honorable” in the abstract sense, if they base their actions around empathy and a sense of actual justice, or if they are abiding by made up flawed constructs. Being viewed as honorable by this society does not make you a good person. In fact, in order for you to abide by the honor code you would likely have to turn into an amoral individual. For example, if you try to keep the cloak pure white you will metaphorically soil it. Like every one of Aerys’s kingsguard did. To keep their oath to the king, they broke vows to protect innocents and protect women. They should lose their honor by a lot of definitions, but that would mean the status quo collapses. Jaime’s knighting for this reason is very much like a boy being sacrificed at an altar. It is not just about drawing a parallel between young girls and boys being sentenced to bloody doom by violent constructs created for their gender.
“Blood is the seal of our devotion.” He bleeds on his plain white tunic. It was never “pure white”, it was always all tainted in blood. It is inherently violent. You can argue that is when “the boy died.”
Very rigid and hypocritical honor codes built for feudalism lack nuance and lead to amorality. I think George aims to address, interrogate, deconstruct, and then reconstruct honor, as with most other key concepts present in fantasy. Honor can be redefined. Examples like “No chance, and no choice”, among many others, are at the root of that reconstruction. Even then, the reconstruction does not conflate it with pacifism necessarily. For example, Chelsted did the ‘honorable’ thing, in the abstract moral sense, of quitting his job and not supporting a tyrant anymore, but that act achieved nothing in preventing the wildfire plot. Same with essentially everyone important at court abandoning the situation that is Aerys, turning away from a gaping wound and not addressing it before it was too late. Jaime had to soil the ‘white cloak’ and disrupt the status quo and lose his “honor” within those terms by murdering his king and his pyromancers as a kingsguard and actually save half a million lives. It was not glorious, nor was it anything like the songs, and the city is still doomed because there is no way to get that festering corruption out of there at this point, metaphorical of the greater problem with KG, but it was heroism, a choice with meaning, and a form of triumph, even if the consequences break Jaime down the line. He gets no answer to the question of what it means to be a knight and a man of honor if society’s version of it is so skewed. Then, Jaime and the readers get an answer in the form of Brienne: “I dreamed of you.”
#anyways what is honor? a horse#valyrianscrolls#theres also the aspect that honor is kind of individualized#its ‘your’ honor etc#like i think there r nuances in whether its treated as something internal or external#and at the end of asos hope is rekindled in jaime#but he desperately blinds himself trying to make the contradictions compromise#thats y he is suddenly reconstructing his thoughts about the kg and escapes int delusion#bc he has too many things that he still wants like cersei like his family and loved ones like the possibility of making ppl view him#as something redeemable someone good#but feast concludes that that is not possible#so all there is left is a pivot and brienne’s light#and a confrontation w so many things that have been repressed in order to keep him from essentially killing himself tbh#and nothing encapsulates that dilemma bw honor vs ‘honor’ than jaimes punitive justice against outlaws and his vow to cat#thats y its so significant that he abandons it to go w brienne alone to save sansa instead of pursuing the blackfish#and how he doesnt torch the village or even break in even if they hold info re the brotherhood#and then the irony is that that key choice will lead him to them#and what happens there is gonna be so interesting
122 notes
·
View notes
Text
Something that's interesting about the way Steven keeps his space in comparison to Marc's...
Throughout the show we were given a lot of instances where Marc and Steven are extremely dichotomous. In the beginning, it felt like the purpose was to demonstrate juxtaposition between them, where they define each other by mutual exclusion. So why would it stop at levels of organization, right? I like to read it as going deeper than just 'one's more cleaner than the other'. Idk why but I do so here lol.
Your physcial environment subconsciously acts as a reflection of yourself.
Everything from the lighting, the colors, noises, the people occupying the space with you. Warmer lights induce relaxation, pleasant aromas promote peace of mind, good company encourages positive mindsets, etc. Because of this, clutter is a strong source of anxiety for people; essentially, if there's a mess outside, than the inside can't be much better.
One of the first things we see in the show is Steven's flat, and it's...cluttered. But he doesn't seem bothered by it. He doesn't make his bed, his clothes are laying about, there are a million books stacked on pretty much every flat surface, a shameless hobby that indicates where he goes to seek comfort. There's a wall of maps and postcards that spread all the way to the fishtank, depicting an obvious adoration for the world and travel, little windows into places he feels intrigued by. Instead of the state of his flat inflicting unease, it seems to instead be a source of solace.
Then we look at Marc's space in the storage locker. It's nearly empty, which is him detaching himself from tangible things to add separation from the life he's convinced himself he doesn't deserve, a life he's disgusted with living in most of the time. (And even though it's safe to say most of his belongings are likely still with Layla, having his current space nearly empty hints at the amount of time he spends fronting, which is significantly less than Steven). It's organized, perhaps reflecting childhood discipline as well as habits picked up from his time as a Marine. And it's completely enclosed and reflective, no windows to let in the outside world and external stimuli, with walls that provide nothing but his reflection to look at. It's not only representative of the physical solitude that he forces himself in but the mental. He gives himself nothing to distract from his intrinsic guilt and shame, nothing else to look at besides, most torturously, himself.
But WAIT. Marc and Steven shared a space before...
And it was Steven who liked to keep a tidy room, with Marc who was on the messier side. When little!Steven fronts in ep 5, he immediately begins to clean up little!Marc's mess.
But as they get older, this obviously switches, and we even get ep 6, where Marc lightly jabs at Steven's flat ("I can't believe you live in this frickin' mess"). This is a full circle moment, imo. As if Marc loses the freedom that comes with simply making messes, whereas Steven gains enough autonomy that allows a more lived-in space, something that finally belongs to him.
Marc distances himself from the prospect of settling down and indulging in life while Steven attempts to immerse himself in it. Marc isolates himself from attachments and Steven surrounds himself with small pieces of the world. Both of them yearn for connection but show and mask it in different ways.
That's why I think the way their spaces were portrayed goes deeper than just illustrating their differences. It shows that even though they are separate, their lives were bleeding into each other long before Wendy's Shiva, (I adore the concept of Marc sharing his toys with Steven)
(But there's also parts of Marc overlapping into Steven's life within the flat, like the postcards, the sand around his bed, the shape of the roof reminiscing a pyramid, the platform above his bed reminiscing a tomb, the additional fish, etc). It's acknowledging that it's a journey of acceptance, that as their time together progresses, it turns more into a glimpse at potential harmony and embracing those distinctions. It's not just, 'they contrast so strongly, how will they ever even get along?', but also 'oh, this is how they learn to coexist despite their differences'. And if when we get s2, Jake will have to be apart of that journey as well, like adding little parts of himself throughout Steven's flat and allowing himself that physical space of a home.
I also can't help but think of the day that Marc or Steven go down to the storage locker to turn in the key. How strongly it translates to Marc that he no longer needs to hide anymore, that he's not alone in this and that maybe one day he can leave around a bit of a mess too.
#moon knight#marc spector#steven grant#jake lockely#moon knight meta#mk meta#feel like this all goes w/o say but im gonna say it anyway#and it still feels convoluted but#im ngl my heart dropped the first time we saw the storage locker#like marc couldve gotten a really shitty apt but no#its STEVEN who deserves the cozy flat not him#and it was the best he could do given how quickly he uprooted his life with layla and everything#and soon jake will get to leave his messes around too and he'll get to have things of his own#he wont have to hide anymore just like marc
616 notes
·
View notes
Text
Did an update design for Tiara B. She's definitely a sporty & adventurous character but I wanted to avoid workout clothes like Tangle's, I so I went for a jumper and did a scrunchie instead of a bow since I think Fiona pretty much owns big yellow bows imo. I also kept the wand because I like it, and decided to make more of a backstory for the giant rock on it & give it a name and explain I guess what she would be doing.
I broke it down into 3 parts & put it under a cut
1 - Harmony Diamond- Treasure of the Boobowski royal family. Only the royal family are able to wield it and the power level varies depending on it’s users state of mind (ie - if depressed or low on energy it’s not as powerful as when they’re determined & confident) It’s main ability is it’s able to heal or restore what’s broken. Including healing the sick. In combat it can absorb & nullify attacks, basically it becomes an OP shield. It’s encased in a scepter that can also be used as a blunt weapon. (I also kind of want it to look like a gymnastics ribbon while in motion. Like a beam of light that whips around whenever the wand moves) Tiara, as the last remaining member of the Boobowski family, is the only one left to wield it.
As a child her father told her to keep its power a secret because he didn’t want others coming for her, despite her protests that it could really help people in need. Gazebo starts to consider finding a way to duplicate the diamond. The real one to keep and the duplicate to try and use more publicly & possibly distribute throughout the world if duplication is successful. In his experiments of trying to convert a chaos emerald into another harmony diamond, this causes an unforeseen reaction and Gazebo suddenly vanishes without any remains. The diamond and emerald are repelled to the opposite sides of the room. Tiara witnesses the incident in horror. She disposes of the emerald and starts carrying the Harmony Diamond and Gazebo’s notes with her at all times in her quest to find him and answers on what exactly happened.
Notes: -Based on the “rings of order” concept from Sonic Xtreme of being opposites of the chaos emeralds. Shiny rocks are just more interesting than rings.
also inspired by the Silver Crystal from Sailor Moon (which culturally are the opposite of Dragon Balls, the inspiration for Chaos Emeralds)
also also tying in some of the original game drafts where Gazebo was trying to make a cure for a disease that Sonic had to transport(?)
2- The Boobowski Royal family & the Castle of Light - located in a northern region (in between Holoska & Spagonia) the Boobowski family had been its ruler for centuries, but in recent history the kingdom’s population & general well being declined. The King at the time had been more frugal with the Diamond’s use and kept its powers secret, when the people revolted to form a democracy, the royal family was cast out and lived among its citizens. The castle became public property as well but it suffered heavy damage from the revolt.
Gazebo is from the 3rd generation after the revolt. Even with the political change the population still dwindled, almost as if it was cursed. The royal family’s history remained a faint memory, and he & Tiara lived in the mountains (like the Mobian Alps) mostly staying outside of the world of politics, Gazebo as a local doctor. Tiara is a “princess” in family heritage only. Gazebo sometimes wonders what it would be like to restore the Castle of Light to its former glory. This is also what motivates him to duplicate the Harmony Diamond, so that he can get a boost of power to heal the castle & the surrounding area. Tiara has no interest in politics or being a pampered princess, but she did enjoy working alongside her father with patients and helping people.
Notes: -Castle of Light has been documented as Sonic Extreme’s hubworld & where Tiara was from so I wanted to utilize it.
Wanted to make the history distinct enough from Satam’s Acorn Kingdom (since Tiara looking for her father is already pretty similar to Sally’s story) and have its conflicts come from internal struggles vs. outside forces like Eggman attacks or whatever the heck was happening in Soleanna.
3 - Tiara’s character- Since Gazebo’s disappearance Tiara has been traveling alone. In her home village she was always wandering off on her own so she’s used to being independent. She puts on a determined face & positive attitude through this whole ordeal but doesn’t let anyone get too close & won't ever admit to anyone that she’s felt lonely & scared. She’s pretty confident in her physical abilities so sometimes she can seem hot-headed, impatient or even arrogant on a bad day. She has short patience for people picking fights in particular (so like, Rough & Tumble she would absolutely yell at & fight them without hesitation)
At the end of the day she won't give up until she finds an answer as to what happened & where her dad went. She doesn’t mind if she has to sacrifice personal relationships for herself to get there. She’s put out missing persons reports in every town she’s visited. She usually stays in town for a week to a month, working odd jobs or helping citizens from badniks. She goes to the gym a lot (into gymnastics, aerobics, rock climbing) and likes following the local sports scene. Big jock energy.
#not sure if it's too much yellow. but I like it for now#tiara boobowski#tiara#sonic#my art#sonic xtreme
65 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
ater991
Bad Boy
iwousse
i w o u ss e
iforgotmyself
Never Have I Ever
sarcasticmirage
Maybe high? Maybe sad?
italiancore-blog
Andrea Nencioni - Italian Core Fashion