#[ tbH THEY BOTH OWN ME.

[soosoosoup]

Fluffy rearing

#trolls #dreamworks trolls #trolls poppy #trolls branch #broppy #trolls fanart #why are they rearing moths? #really wanted to put them in fuzzy outfits and couldnt help but think about fluffy moths #for poppy of course the rosy maple moth #for Branch the inspo was based off of the polyphemus moth but did my own spin on the design (haha at this point it's an entirely new kind) #just with the same size and caterpillar form #i took some liberties with both moth desgins tbh though haha #it was fun to design them #was very delighted to find out how the poly is one of the biggest while the rosy is the smallest (silk moth wise) #moths #please let me know if this needs any tw/cw for bugs #Im really sorry for such a long wait #it has been a very long week… #my art <3 #excuse the messiness

[stellanix]

(genshin impact spoilers incoming)

one aspect of furina's characterization that's pretty understated but that i really really really love is her intelligence and curiosity. usually in genshin, when a character's intelligence is an important trait of theirs, there are aspects of their design, writing, voice acting, etc, that very clearly tell you "hey this character is smart." albedo, for example, wears a labcoat, is always saying big sciency words in a calm, rational tone of voice, and other characters are always talking about how smart he is

but furina? nothing about her on the surface suggests that she's a "smart" character - quite the opposite, in fact. superficially, she's introduced as a bratty, conceited, overconfident person who actually has no idea what she's doing. we eventually learn in the archon quest that that was all an act, but even after she regains her freedom, nothing about her really seems archetypically intelligent, at least at face value

instead, furina's intelligence is always shown rather than told (the only exception being nahida's voiceline about her). she had an intelligence network across teyvat feeding her information, and we saw in the flashback how she directed researchers to study the prophecy and potential ways of stopping it. before things like lyney's trial or directing the two musketeers, she'd stay up all night planning and piecing things together all on her own. she loves learning new things, she has lines in the teapot about how, when she's interested in something, she wants to become the most knowledgeable person in the topic, and also how she'd like to disassemble the teapot itself to learn how it works, and she's quick to learn new skills (like surfing). and, of course, she's well read, and quite possibly teyvat's foremost expert on the performing arts

i like how furina sort of defies the concept of character archetypes. she's initially presented as an archetypical bratty, dramatic, spoiled popular girl, but that was a role she forced herself into because it's what people expected of her. but the real furina, while still retaining some of the flamboyance from her archon persona, doesn't really fit into a clear mold. she's smart without being a super-genius, and she's kind without being a soft-spoken doormat. it makes her feel multifaceted and real, and i really love that!

anyway, this is why it makes me mad whenever i see people calling furina stupid, cuz she's not!

#furina #genshin impact #don't mind me just rambling about my blorbo #tbh given her love of learning and how old she is i imagine furina could her own against zhongli in a quaint trivia contest #furina's true traits being shown rather than told is both great storytelling but also kinda frustrating because some people miss it #and end up mischaracterizing her as a result #but then again some people will also ignore character traits that are explicitly told so it's maybe not the writing that's at fault here

[turtleblogatlast]

Fun little silly thought I had about the Lair Games and specifically Leo deliberately losing is all the reasons he could have for doing so.

My favorite headcanon for his main motivation is that Splinter wasn’t proud of him anymore.

I imagine that, in the beginning, winning the Lair Games was Leo’s opportunity to shine. He wasn’t artistic or the baby of the family like Mikey, wasn’t a tech genius who created amazing inventions like Donnie, wasn’t the eldest who was insanely strong and dependable like Raph. So he had to shine somewhere else- anywhere else- and what better way to get attention than to be a winner? A champion?

And then he won too much. And it wasn’t special anymore. He got too big headed, too cocky, he knew this was his element and he ran with it.

Splinter’s words of congratulations slowly petered out. Suddenly, there was no real reason to win.

Winning feels empty when the only one cheering you on is yourself.

So- Leo schemed. And he’s a great schemer, fooling his whole family (and Donnie did deserve a win- people were way happier when he won.)

He even gave up his prized possession! His room!

Though he knows his brothers probably think it’s a bad prize. A terrible one, even.

Leo doesn’t sleep much as is, though. So Dad’s snores were more comforting than anything. It was reassuring to hear him so clearly alive and close by.

Even if the distance between them was larger than Leo’d like.

He’d just have to find something else, something more to show his dad that Leo was someone to trust, to be proud of, to love.

He gets his chance soon after, when he needs to pull off a plan against Big Mama at his dad’s side. Leo can only hope this victory is one that has a lasting effect when his father looks at him with pride once more.

Victory, for Leo, is a pretty loaded term.

#rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt leo #rottmnt headcanons #rise leo #everything Leos do almost always ties back to Splinter send tweet #anyway imo if I was Leo winning every lair game I would be bored as hell #and add on to my own dad joining in with my brothers on being disappointed when I do well? #yeeaaah id be my own biggest fan too #tbh Leo’s big brain plays both in Lair Games and Many Unhappy Returns are his real victories #I will say I was proud of Donnie for doing so well! #he deserves a win definitely #but looking at this from Leo’s perspective and realizing this is JUST before the ‘why don’t any of you trust me’ line hurts #wanna make this hurt more? #how about Leo purposefully wanting to lose…but he was a bit miffed that DONNIE out of anyone won #why? #because Leo makes jokes all the time but Splinter says DONNIE is the funny one #because althroughout Many Unhappy Returns Splinter says how he’d prefer if DONNIE were there instead of Leo #makes me wonder y’know? if there’s any scratchy feelings there #nothing that Leo has against Donnie so much as the assumption that Splinter would prefer him over Leo #which if I was Leo…I’d definitely think so even if Splinter absolutely loves his sons equally #just as Donnie probably assumes the opposite as well #splinter bro plz talk to your sons #but yeah victory for Leo imo is equivalent to acknowledgement #just *seeing* him #so he very easily gets wrapped up in the obsession for being the champion #*lou jitsu* always wins and Splinter wants them more like Lou Jitsu so LEO has to always win or… #or…

[robindaydream]

Pyromancers

#SLARPG #Super Lesbian Animal RPG #Small Saga #Claire Higsby #Siobhan Small Saga #art #been a minute since I've drawn a slarpg it's good to be back #MIGHT do more of these cause I think it's a fun #but Verm's and Gwen's outfits present certain... challenges #not to say that I think Allison would mind wielding a massive pocket knife wearing nothing but a cape #'but Robin Claire has all kinds of powerful magic would she really be impressed with a big lighter?' #look me in the eyes and tell me you think Claire wouldn't love a giant fire cannon #even if it's technology that's familiar to her even if her magic can do more it's FUN #tbh I think Claire and Siobhan would both prefer their own magic/technology but I think they'd have fun with the alternative #my secret agenda is to get people who've only played one of these games to also play the other #you will like it #Claire kept her own shoes cause I didn't really think I could get those on Siobhan

[seasideoranges]

y'all i gotta be honest for a sec, the "atla wouldnt change much if aang wasnt there, in fact it might be better" and "the atla finale wouldnt change much if aang wasnt there to fight ozai" debates is the funniest thing ive seen come out of this fandom

#'this show wouldnt change much if the main character wasnt there' hmm me thinks otherwise! #do people just. not realize that the gaangs arcs ESPECIALLY zukos and kataras would not have happened if aang was taken out of the picture? #ppl praise zukos redemption arc sm and rightfully so but aang is such a HUGE factor in zukos arc! #hell you could argue that it kickstarted because of aang #'if we knew each other back then do you think we could have been friends too?' the question that forever changed zukos life #without aang katara would still be stuck in the south pole with sokka and she wouldve never gotten the training she needed #toph wouldve never left if aang wasnt in the picture #hell you could argue the same with suki shed still be stuck on the island #tbh without aang theyd all be dead or at least in serious trouble by the end of the series #and the finale argument... cmon now #did people forget the scene of iroh explaining to zuko (AND THE AUDIENCE) that aang HAS to be the one to fight ozai #ONLY aang could defeat ozai #the strongest firebender in the series #without aang they all wouldve been cooked #by this point both zuko and sokka were seriously injured and katara and the rest were absolutely exhausted from fighting their own battles #ozai is only one guy yeah but again he is the strongest firebender in the whole series #even iroh was like 'nah theres no way in hell i could beat him' #ozai was in the air spinning around like a beyblade shooting fire from all parts of his body destroying everything in sight LMAOOO #delete later #probably

[crowsdove]

Imagine you and your f/o sharing a beverage with two straws (sweetheart sipping!)

(like in these pictures I mean. Could also be cute drawing references for you and your f/o maybe?)

*~•~°~*~+~*~°~•~*

> antis please dni <

*~•~°~*~+~*~°~•~*

#of course there are sillier variants too like one having too many straws or someone annoying you both by third wheeling with their own straw #but idk just picturing me and him in this scenario (especially the first or second pictures) is melting me ;_; #kinda want to draw it but i'm not super confident ehehe. anyways i hope you all think this is cute :} #proship selfship #proselfship #antis dni #antis please dni #proship please interact #self shipping #f/o imagines #imagine your f/o #{crowsdove original posts} #sorry if i'm the only one that finds this kinda thing adorable 😅 #i just think it would fix me tbh

[heich0e]

need to know who u voted for and what ur thoughts are on who among the seijoh 4 are the best in bed (i voted mattsun i am a issei pussy pounder back breaker truther)

here is my definitive thought process re: ranking (no one is allowed to boo me)

#4 oikawa: PROBABLY A VERY UNPOPULAR OPINION but i think he rests on his pretty boy laurels a bit! not saying that he's in ANY way a bad fuck but i simply do not think he outranks his competitors here. so hot it's almost kind of annoying when he takes his clothes off.

#3 makki: he's got the spirit!! into weird stuff but is also very eager to please. very average guy energy but in an endearing way. still a very good fuck and especially as a hookup because he makes u feel very comfortable.

#2 mattsun: listen. i wanted to put him first. i really did. this is where i quite literally agonized in my internal debate. in fact, i would argue that he IS the most sexually charismatic of the four—however i live and die on the hill that his dick is HUGE. to the point that. it is arguably too big. u cannot have a quickie with issei because u either need like an hour of foreplay or enough lube that u basically need to take a hazmat shower after you're done. this is the only reason i marked him down. champagne problems.

#1 iwa: i don't think this needs a lot of explaining. iwaizumi hajime loverboy and pussy pleaser extraordinaire u will ALWAYS be famous to me.

#liv got mail #tbh makki and oikawa are probably interchangeable for me #like i would say they both have their own talents and good points but that neither necessarily outranks the other #just depends on what u like personally #at the end of the day ALL SEIJOH 4 DICK IS GOOD DICK #and the best way to make sure ur needs are met is to fuck all of them <3 #alexa play 4play by tumblr user heich0e #hq hcs

[lokh]

its sooo fun how dungeons reveal the psyche of the dungeon lord like. thistles dungeon was so planned and meticulous but so full of ghosts and unravelling at the end. mithruns dungeon was apparently so convoluted and 'made out of jealousy, lies, anger and inferiority'. marcilles dungeon was like.... that lmao, everything being brought to the same level with no real regard for what that might do to the ecosystem, and laios' dungeon ultimately ends up spilling out onto the surface. becoming one with it you might say

anyways if you were a dungeon lord what would your dungeon look like

#your dungeonsona. if you will. ur dungeon lordsona? #dungeon meshi spoilers #dungeon.... does not look like a word to me anymore. #dungeon meshi #me realising i never answered my own question. in my dungeon i force u to make ur own dungeon #to be real though probably a lot of dead ends both ways #realising that there are probably desires antithetical to. having a dungeon #but also desires that if eaten first would drastically change someones outlook/goals #and maybe even dungeon...? #i suppose a demon might eat that last though. seemed the case with thistle #so probably a very inconsistent dungeon tbh but in an unfortunately (for me) predictable way #in the sense that some areas would be like. fleshed out and detailed and others are just not good.... #we cant all be thistle or laios!!!! #how quickly would someone be able to crack my dungeon?? another good question #i would be super mad if people solved it quickly #but im thinking harder about it and. that demon might starve to death dhfbbfbf #would not be an ideal target ....... #but playing in the space where somehow im convinced to become dungeon lord

[thyandrawrites]

It's all about Nagi living alone in a tiny one bedroom, one bathroom apartment with zero personality and Reo having a whole floor for himself but still living surrounded by tacky-expensive home decor with no apparent traces of his actual personality, either. It's all about how Nagi's parents haven't visited him in 2 years nor taken an interest in his life since, while Reo's are content to live floors apart from their teenage son, only taking an interest in what value he can bring to Mikage Corp but being otherwise uninvolved in / dismissive of his actual life. It's all about them being surrounded by people and still not knowing how to form a meaningful connection with another person before meeting each other. It's all about them being so starved for genuine human warmth to combat their bone-deep loneliness that they both treasure memories of tiny, inconsequential moments where they were spending time with their parents. Something something it's this line,

and how it describes them both despite being said about Reo. It's them being awkward 17-year-olds who had never before had an equal who would just respect them as they are and unconditionally look their way. In this essay I will-

#Blue lock #Blue lock spoilers #Mikage reo #Nagi seishirou #Bllk thoughts #This chapter was sooooo good #Gosh. Just as I was grumpy about epinagi getting boring without all the emotional deep dives that made it so interesting in the first place #They go and give us this bonus chapter. What a feast #I wish every month could be like this #This gave so much perspective to why they are the way they are #Most of it is not new information but I really loved all the foiling in this omake #Truly drives it home how both get their drive from their partnership bc they crave meaningful connections #Like. I had a whole post about how they're both each other first friend #And even then it couldn't have prepared me to the reveal of reo living in a whole ass empty skyscraper by himself #Did you also notice the distinct lack of soccer paraphernalia in his house or was that just me #Heck there isn't even a single soccer ball in sight... #And he calls Nagi's room void #Gosh they're both so fascinating #Of course they're bored out of their mind before meeting each other. Imagine being that understimulated and that lonely #I'm surprised they're this functional tbh. If anything they should be More mentally ill #I sure would lose it after a week at Reo's place #At least nagi owns mangas come on

[ganondoodle]

i have grown kinda tired of all the studio ghibli and totk comparisons bc i love most of miyazakis movies and its so annoyingly obvious that if totk actually took inspiration from them its all just the surface level aesthetic and none of the good story telling

#ganondoodles talks #zelda #totk #like yeah i see how ashitakas arm and how he got it hurt looks similar to how link “”“”“loses”“”“” his arm in totk #but ashitakas wound is a curse of hatred from a deity that protected their forest from humans destroying it to get to the iron in the earth #and the deity - whos a BOAR- got wounded so badly the pain and fear of death turned him into a demon of hatred #while the poeple wanting the iron are also just doing it for their own survival #like man i fukcing WISH totk had any of the storytelling that princess mononoke had #them seemingly jsut taking the aesthetic from it but none of the story is even more infuriating to me tbh #princess mononoke is one of my all time favorite movies #maybe thats another reason why im so disgruntled about totk #bc it reminds me of things i love -zelda and mononoke- and turning it both bad #before the game was out the comparisons from link to ashitaka was pretty much in every second theory video #abd even then i was skeptical bc i doubted they could make in any way a story as good as that #welp :)))) #anyway #old man yells at cloud lol #(this is not directed at anyone directly btw- i just keep running into even now and been feeling this way for a long time- )

[rexscanonwife]

This may not technically be self ship, but I wanted to post this here anyway! My amazing, wonderful partner @cherry-bomb-ships and I sometimes talk about silly 'AUs' of ourselves and one of my favorites that we have is us in the pokemon universe, where we get to fall in love with our pokemon being our wingmen (or is it flipperman in Piplup's case?)

Either way, happy valentines day my love! I hope we have many more to come 🥺💖🫶💖

#artfarts #not self ship #ruby! 🍒💣 #hehe im posting this before we go out for our valentines dinner!! #ofc i showed them before posting but i also wanted to show it off #cause drawing in the pokemon style was a bit of a challenge for me tbh 😂 #and im rly proud of how this turned out!! #also fun fact those are both outfits we own and wear frequently irl :3 #pokemon #valentine's day #piplup #happiny

[ash-and-starlight]

things i’m going crazay about today: the illustrations in the he who drowned the world illumicrate cover

(artist is glassbearer on ig)

#what’s sending me into hysterics is wANG??? ultimate twinkification 😭😭 #i only recognized from his trademark horrid lettuce gown & faggy peach signaling #the difference between how i imagine/draw him and this is so nebfjsjfkwrkjsj #like to me he’s a tired dude with permanent eye bags and a caffeine addiction that started at age 9 #he’s barely 30 and looks 50 bc every day he wakes up in a torture nexus of his own making #being a straight faggot is hard work but someone has to do it #and is the other guy the third prince??? would make sense tbh but shouldn’t he be in his late teens #ig performative masculinity also ages you #(if i’m wrong and that’s esen PUT SOME BEEF ON MY MAN) #k rant over pushing this aside to tunnelvision on ZHU AND OUYANG #WHY ARE THEY DRAWN LIKE THEY’RE IN THE COVER OF A CAMPY ROMANCE NOVEL I LOVE IT #OUYANG SLUTTED OUT WHILE SUFFERING OH HES GETTING THE 15th CENTURY ART SAINT TREATMENT. AS HE SHOULD #love the benis metaphor of it all too he’s on his knees holding zhu’s sword i know what you are #zhu baby u look gorjus no notes #slay #anyway both /pos and /neg this sure is making me feel shrimp emotions lmfao #the radiant emperor #send post

[mymarifae]

does anyone want to join me on the aventurine/argenti train. it's got all the perks of being as funny as any other argenti ship - especially given the random absurdity of their first meeting. what the hell was argenti doing in the depths of the nihility? who even knows anymore man. but like also i think it has the potential to be really sweet?

aventurine hasn't let anyone In since his sister died. he's long since forgotten how to Trust, and Love, and how to BE Loved. and this, combined with enormous amounts of survivor's guilt and trauma and being treated as an object, has really done a number on his self-esteem. he doesn't act like it (because he's learned that it's dangerous to be vulnerable; it's the one gamble he's not willing to take), but 2.1 gave us that glimpse into his inner dialogue and it is Bad in there

between his conversation with acheron, the note veritas left for him, and finding a sense of closure in the apparition of his younger self, he's on track to becoming better. we can see it in the way he pretty much immediately reaches out to the trailblazer to get some things off his chest once he gets his phone working again. and the way he's accepting what is basically a form of therapy from the doctors of chaos. but his self-hatred has been building up for years, and it's going to take a long time to unpack and unlearn all of that

so like, in comes argenti, right? he's a loud show-off, but he is SO earnest. he sees the beauty in everything and everyone. he's kind, and gentle, and so full of love. he also comes off as a bit... lonely to me? he's spent so much of his life chasing after idrila's shadow, and only catching a glimpse of them in his many near-death experiences (and isn't that something to think about...........). he's not like, secretly miserable or faking or anything - i think his exuberance is 1000% genuine. but humans are social creatures; everyone wants and requires at least some form of closeness and intimacy. to have a love to pursue in This realm... someone he can see and hold without needing to have one foot in an early grave . i think that would be good for him. that's all

anyway, it's clear that argenti was pretty enchanted by aventurine

like yeah that's kind of just how he talks normally but !?@,%&#& that's a lot of awfully romantic things to say about one specific person out of the several you apparently rescued (??????? god i love this guy he makes no sense. literally why are you even here bud). it seems that aventurine's more subdued state left an impression on him too, and well wouldn't it be pretty in character for him to start popping in randomly... as he does, because he can apparently just go wherever the fuck he wants. to check on this sad yet oh so beautiful peacock.. to try to bring a true smile to his face... to show him how kind and beautiful the universe can be......

i think aventurine might have a hard time laughing off offers of comfort and company and the beginnings of a courtship if it comes from someone like argenti. this man couldn't be disingenuous if he tried. he doesn't wear his heart on his sleeve as much as he rips it out of his chest to show you. it'll be a learning curve regardless - aventurine is too used to needing to constantly prove his worth to keep anyone around and to keep them from hurting him

but do you see it. do you see the vision. do you see how Sweet this could be. aventurine is about to receive more roses than he'll know what to do with

#i spent enough time on this that i think i can... #honkai star rail #argenti #aventurine #aventi... argenturinenope i hate this one actually #avegenti. dude i don't know don't ask me i'm just the messenger #like can i just say that what most ratiorine shippers are trying to squeeze out of that would be better found Here. #i don't mind the ship as much as i used to. veritas is kinder than i gave him credit for. i can even enjoy it if done right #but like #? veritas may be kinder than i originally thought but he's not that kind. #he's harsh truths and tough love. he started to soften after aventurine's unexpected death sentence and he has the potential to soften more #but guys i don't think a ratiorine relationship that takes place so soon after the events of penacony or god forbid BEFORE- #is going to go that smoothly #veritas has his head pretty deep in his own ass. it's going to take him a bit to get that out #he's more likely to hurt aventurine and send him right back into his defensive shell than he is to actually help him along his recovery #and/or aventurine is likely to dismiss any of his attempts to be more forthcoming with his feelings because of his perceived dislike for hi #and just how their working relationship always was Before #if you want to talk about that and the messy struggle to be better for each other after they stomp all over the other's heart #i'm all ears man. #but if you want something that's softer from start to finish and not so stressful... listen to me. argenti and aventurine is where that's a #i think both options are appealing tbh? in their own ways

[lovecoredeity]

fun scene idea that I’ll probably never get around to drawing: someone grabbing a wanted poster from a board or wall only to reveal a missing persons poster featuring the same person as on the wanted poster underneath it (also the reward for them as a wanted person is higher than the reward for returning them when they were missing)

#basically this is something fun I imagine for my oc cashmere #as of right now she’s simply missing (presumed to be kidnapped at least that’s what the family she is from told people) #as of rn in her story she isn’t wanted for anything but that can change I’ll probably have her (attempt to) commit treason against her #own family or something #I think it would be fun that her family is willing to spend less when she’s missing than when they’re mad at him and want him back to be #punished for angering them #I have attempted to draw this out before but was like #it would be better as like an animation tbh but #I can’t animate I’m not going to animate my tablet does not even have the storage for me to animate #maybe a quick animatic if anything but like #idk #it’s more of a fun idea than anything #I imagine what leads to cashmere committing treason is that upon being back in the hands of their family they begin to realize that they #can’t lie to theirself anymore their family is terrible and the reason they died in the first place and snaps #i feel like they found themselves in a situation where they attacked someone out of fear and rage and blah blah that is seen as treason #it would probably be his dad that gets attack im ngl conquest deserves it #or they accidentally hurt them out of fear #I am unsure #*shrug emoji* I’m just making up shit for cashmere as I see fit and per what I find most interesting and fun <3 #also cashmere is my only oc rn who would have both a missing and a wanted poster #sure most of my ocs would find themselves wanted for one reason or another or targeted by others #but some cashmere is useful as a tool to their family and having a runaway child is bad for their reputation they’d ofc want her back to #keep her quiet and keep people from finding out that she ran away #they also still think she’s sickly and wouldn’t want anyone to find out who she is that she’s sickly and for word to spread #basically they want cashmere back so their reputation isn’t damaged and so they can go back to using her as they please #I put a lot of suffering into this character #and I will continue to do so because as my favourite this is what happens #sorry I’m babbling

[hiraganasakura]

Hi so me being me I've decided to hyperanalyze the conversation Qrow and Raven had in Higanbana practically line by line bcus I have Many Thoughts and this is the best way I can think of to get them all out. If you can't tell I'm absolutely obsessed with these two. Btw.

Thanks to the RWBY wiki for providing transcripts for every episode, otherwise I definitely would have missed smth despite having just watched this scene recently lol

I put it under the read more for easier scrolling due to how long this post got!

I immediately noticed smth in the very first lines of the interaction:

Raven: "Hello, brother." Qrow: "...Raven."

You'll notice throughout the whole conversation that Raven never calls Qrow by his name, only condescendingly referring to him as "brother" this one time and never calling him anything else. Meanwhile, Qrow directly refers to Raven a total of three times throughout the conversation, and only one doesn't call Raven by her name (which we'll get to shortly)

On the other hand, Qrow doesn't bother with even so much as a greeting beyond simply stating Raven's name

It's different ways of communicating their distance. While Raven holds her relationship with Qrow over his head — never once, even outside of this scene, does she call him "brother" with affection iirc, only derision and condescension — Qrow doesn't seem to rly know how to greet her. He hesitates before saying her name and approaching her, as if trying to assess the situation before acting

Qrow: "So, what do you want?" Raven: "A girl can't just catch up with her family?" Qrow: "She can, but you're not. Now how 'bout we get on with it? Unless you plan on keeping these [drinks] comin'."

Again, Raven seems to bring up her familial ties with Qrow as a tactic to get him to do what she wants — in this case, stick around to talk to her despite him not seeming to rly want to. Frankly, it feels manipulative. We're gonna put a pin in this for now and come back to it in just a moment

Additionally, Qrow already knows that Raven's not just here for a friendly chat between two siblings, and sees right thru her facade that it is. Raven is here bcus she wants smth from him. But interestingly, it is Raven in V5 that says, in an almost frustrated/disappointed tone, "Family. Only coming around when they need something." There's another pin; keep both in mind

Raven: "Does she have it?" Qrow: "...Did you know Yang lost her arm?" Raven: "That's not—" Qrow: "Rhetorical question, I know you know. It's just obnoxious that you'd bring up family and then carry on like your own daughter doesn't exist." Raven: "I saved her." Qrow: "Once. Because that was your rule, right? Real 'Mom of the Year' material, sis."

Qrow dodges Raven's question about the Relic and instead brings up her hypocrisy in how she treats family. And it's a good point. Here she is lording her siblingship with Qrow over his head while simultaneously defending and upholding her rule that she is only obligated to help her own daughter a single time. Another pinpoint on our little conspiracy board

Also, here's the one time in this conversation Qrow refers to Raven as "sis". Like Raven's use of "brother", Qrow's use of "sis" is very pointed and with intent. But it's not to manipulate Raven, it's a snarky jab meant to rly hammer home Qrow's point

Raven: "I told you Beacon would fall, and it did. I told you Ozpin would fail, and he has. Now you tell me. Does. Salem. Have it?" Qrow: "I thought you weren't interested in all of that." Raven: "I just want to know what we are up against." Qrow: "And which 'we' are you referring to?"

A few things of note here. At some point in the past, Raven expressed an outright disinterest in Ozpin's inner circle, at least to Qrow. Qrow also feels excluded in the "we" Raven mentions being against Salem. To me, there seems to be a distinct possibility here that it wasn't that Raven felt personally disinterested in Ozpin's operations, but that she somehow felt excluded and feigned a lack of interest in order to protect herself. An idea that is further supported in my eyes by the following dialogue:

Qrow: "You should come back, Raven. The only way we'd beat her is by working together. All of us." Raven: "You're the one who left. The tribe raised us, and you turned your back on them." Qrow: "They were killers and thieves." Raven: "They were your family." Qrow: "You have a very skewed perception of that word."

And there it is. Raven's problem is laid out here for us, loud and clear: She feels like she was the one abandoned, not the one running away. She says it outright! "You're the one who left." To her, Qrow is the traitor, the one who left their family behind. If you ask Qrow (or, for that matter, Tai, Yang, and even Summer based on the scene in V9), it's the opposite

Bcus they have different definitions of family

Another thing to pin (I promise this will all become clear soon)

Raven: "I lead our people now. And as leader, I will do everything in my power to ensure our survival." Qrow: "I saw. The people of Shion saw, too." Raven: "The weak die. The strong live. Those are the rules." Qrow: "Well, you've certainly got someone strong on your side. I've seen the damage." Raven: "We couldn't have known the Grimm would set in as quickly as they did." Qrow: "I'm not talking about the Grimm. And I'm not talking about you, either."

Notice Raven's shift from "the tribe" to "our people". More of that guilt tripping!

Additionally, Raven is *obsessed* with rules. One save. The weak die, the strong live. Raven lives and breathes rules, even seemingly arbitrary ones. Guess what this is? Another pin!

Raven: "If you don't know where the Relic is, then we have nothing left to talk about." Qrow: "I don't know where the Spring Maiden is, either, but if you do, I need you to tell me." Raven: "And why would I do that?" Qrow: "Because without her, we're all going to die." Raven: "...And which 'we' are you referring to?"

Qrow's "either" here implies that he also doesn't know where the Crown of Choice is, which is... interesting. He's one of Ozpin's closest lieutenants, and is in the dark on where Beacon's Relic is? Wherever it is, it is such a closely kept secret that even Ozpin's best spy doesn't know where it is (maybe so that in the event Qrow gets captured by Salem he can't be forced into giving her the information?)

Meanwhile, Raven's "And why would I [tell you]?" implies that she does know who the Spring Maiden is (obviously. Raven's the Spring Maiden lol) but refuses to disclose to Qrow

A lantern sputters out after Qrow says "Without [Spring] we're all going to die." Now, I genuinely can't remember if this is headcanon or canon, but iirc Misfortune seems to act up when Qrow's upset. He's clearly tired of this little game of dancing around topics that Raven's been playing with him

And once again, Raven indicates a feeling of exclusion from Qrow's life in the iconic final line. She gets the final word in before leaving

We've finally reached the end of the conversation. Now what does all of this tell us?

And here is where all of those pins I wrote down are relevant. As I mentioned, the twins view family very differently

Qrow's view is pretty obvious: he views family as the ppl in his life who matter most to him. Unlike Raven, he does not view the tribe as family despite the fact that they raised him, disgustedly referring to them as "killers and thieves". It's implied that he was, in fact, neglected and/or likely abused by the Branwen tribe, saying in V6C4, "No one wanted me... I was cursed..." further explaining his distaste for them. Furthermore, despite not being related to Ruby by blood, they clearly consider one another family throughout the series, and he even seems closer to her than he seems to his niece who's actually blood related to him (I personally headcanon that he keeps more of a distance from Yang bcus she reminds him too much of Raven, who he feels abandoned and hurt by, but that's neither here nor there). Bloodlines and debts are secondary compared to loyalty, if they're considered at all. He is obviously furious that Raven only insists on saving Yang once and never directly interacting with her beyond that, despite Raven constantly guilting Qrow over abandoning his so-called "family" of the tribe. And yet. And yet. He still offers Raven a place back in his life, even if only to unite against Salem

Raven's view, to me, has been an enigma for a while. But after hyperanalyzing this conversation, after noting down all of those points of interest, I feel like I've finally cracked the code. Raven views family as an obligation, an exchange that always has an ulterior motive behind it. She seeks out Qrow only bcus she desires smth from him despite showing distaste when someone does the same to her; condescendingly calls Qrow "brother" more than his actual name and calls the tribe their "family" to try guilting him into doing what she wants; and feels fierce loyalty to the tribe but barely interacts with her daughter, only seeming to count one of the two as true family. She views the concept of family with cynicism and seems to feel an obligation to the tribe, as if she "owes" them for raising her

I think the two's perceptions of what defines family are all to do with the way the tribe treated both of them. This crosses a bit into headcanon territory, but as you can see by the above quotes and analysis, I rly don't think I'm just making it up entirely

As I already mentioned, I think it's implied that the Branwen tribe neglected/abused Qrow. In fact, we could probably blame their treatment of him for the deep self-loathing he has due to his "cursed" Semblance. But what about Raven?

Well, it's simple: I think she was abused, too, just in a different way. While Qrow was likely shown and told on a consistent basis that he was unwanted, unloved, undeserving of good things, Raven may have been shown and told she was wanted, loved, and deserving of good things... if she did what the tribe told her. If she repaid them for raising her and her brother, for being her "family". The way she uses her familial ties with Qrow as almost blackmail may be exactly the way the tribe treated her. Her obsession with following rules may stem from the fact that she had to follow the rules the tribe set for her in order to be accepted and deemed worth smth

As for her distance from Yang... honestly, I wonder if Raven is aware that Yang deserves better and keeps her distance as her way of doing that. When Summer confronts Raven in the V9 scene, Raven says, "...You're better at that life. Better than I was." She seems to have a fear and insecurity about being a good family member, a good mother, and maybe that's why she fled. Maybe she was scared of being like her abusers due to how she emulates them as a self-preservation tactic in so many other ways. Not entirely sure about this point tho

And I think too this is why the twins don't rly understand one another. They may have been unaware of the different ways in which the other was treated. Qrow, constantly unwanted and loathed, can't understand why Raven sticks around with the tribe; Raven, who obeyed the tribe and, in doing so, garnered enough of their favor to even eventually become leader, can't understand why Qrow can't just be "good", earn respect, and stay

This dissonance between the two experiences may also be completely intentional on the part of the tribe; abusers will often eliminate their targets' support systems in order to make them completely reliant on the abuser, so it's highly likely that the wedge was intentionally driven between the two siblings so that they could not find support in one another. This would also tie into why the twins seem to feel excluded from one another's lives and abandoned by one another: bcus they were made to feel that way by their common abusers, and did nothing to challenge these assumptions bcus they saw no reason to — and only seemed to keep proving one another right if they did

Which rly has some disturbing implications about how the Branwen tribe works. Like, do they just pick orphaned kids up off the street and abuse them into being perfect little bandits, molded to be of the greatest possible use and discarded if they're deemed worthless? Plus Qrow says his Semblance is how he got his name, which implies that the tribe also renames the kids they scoop up (possibly as a form of control or a way to make sure they can't be tracked down by any remaining family)? Plus there's the whole thing where Qrow and Raven were originally sent to Beacon to learn how to kill Huntsmen, which carries with it the implication that the Branwen tribe grooms literal orphan children into becoming stone-hearted murderers? What. The heck.

And if I'm right, if the Branwen tribe is that severely abusive, then like... wow, no wonder Qrow and Raven are Like That. They're both very deeply hurt people expressing it in different ways

I was considering adding their conversation at the Battle of Haven to this post, but I think that would be better as its own thing. Also I haven't gotten there on my rewatch yet so I may miss some details if I try to analyze it rn; it's better to wait overall methinks

But I have reached the point of my rewatch where we see Weiss and Whitley interact, and I think it would be very efficient to sum up what Qrow and Raven's relationship seems to be by using those siblings as a point of reference. Qrow = Weiss, actively trying to break free from and fight back against their abusers in different ways, while Raven = Whitley, continuing to do as their abusers want and have wanted as a method of self-preservation. Only, unlike Weiss and Whitley, Qrow and Raven have yet to come to a point where they can understand one another. I think that's a good way to briefly summarize the uh. Absolutely massive post this is.

In conclusion, I may have cracked the majority of the Branwen twins' pre-Beacon backstory purely by hyperanalyzing a single conversation. Oopsies

#original post #'hey hira why are you so obsessed with these two—' autism. i hope that answers your question! #ok but srsly. i've genuinely worked rly hard on this post for the past like. 3 days? #i didn't think it'd lead to me deducing all of this about the twins' pasts but here we are lol #this'll probably flop due to the length but like. i don't mind tbh! this is mostly to satisfy my own silly brain [affectionate] anyway #i'm genuinely looking forward to seeing them in v10 #since the storyboard for the scrapped v9 epilogue had raven in it #i hope they somehow reconcile and come to understand one another like weiss and whitley did #tho. i have a bad feeling that even if they do it will end in one (or both?) of them tragically dying before the other's eyes #but that's not rly relevant lol #anyhow i am not sry for inflicting you all with my branwen twin brainrot. it will happen again #i'm having sooo many thoughts on this rewatch and they just keep on coming #rwby #qrow branwen #raven branwen #branwen twins #rwby9 spoilers #i hope there's no glaring errors here. i read thru this post multiple times to be sure but it's so huge i may have missed smth irjnfbpbne

[jessicas-pi]

y'all got me all hyped to do more merfolk AU art so I finished the Love's Lights scene

#I GIVE YOU: MORE FUN MERFOLK AU FACTS THAT NOBODY ASKED FOR!!! #Ezra grew up on his own without the benefit of other merfolk to learn from and he's kinda out of touch with his merfolk instincts #so ezra THINKS he's bringing sabine to a pretty underwater light show that he thinks she'll think is cool #and telling himself ''i'm getting a good grade in platonic friendship; something that is both normal to want and possible to achieve!'' #...except his mer-instinct is actually prompting him to bring The Love Of His Life to the site of the Annual Merfolk Love Festival #and merfolk bioluminescent patterns reflect their mood and communicate with other merfolk #BUT Ezra can't really control his markings #so he's putting on an involuntary light show that translates to #''SABINE!! HI!! LOOK AT ME!! I'M GLOWING REALLY BRIGHT!! IS THAT IMPRESSIVE OR WHAT?? P.S. I'VE FALLEN IRREVOCABLY IN LOVE WITH YOU'' #also the pattern of Ezra's markings is inspired by Sabine's starbird! #mythical creatures au #jessica's art #sabezra #sabezra fanart #not 100% loving sabine's outfit in this tbh #I tried to do something simple that went with what the fic described her wearing but it turned out kinda boring... #and ezra's tail turned out weird too... sighhhh... #oh well ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ #OOH WAIT I THOUGHT OF ANOTHER FUN FACT #the shell necklace Sabine is wearing is one that Ezra gave to her when he was 15 #and for adult merfolk the gift of a handmade shell necklace is basically a marriage proposal #but he was a kid then so it's more equivalent to the time my best friend proposed to her crush with a ring pop