#I'm just pointing out how the similarities between them is something Luz seems to have noticed herself | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

kingarubin · 1 year

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I was thinking about Collector and remembered that episode from season one. It's similar but at the same quite different to what Collector is going through.

Both King and Collector just want to spend time playing with their best friend, but things seem to never go they way. They are trying to have fun and it doesn't work.

And even when they all are together they feel like they don't belong with the rest. The others seem to have so much fun together while they are being left out.

Also, in both cases a villain took notice of their insecurites and use them to manipulate them.

But despite all these similarities there are major differences between those situations. And the most important one is the motivation behind King and Collector's actions.

The problem that King was dealing with was that he wasn't anymore Luz's only friend on the Boiling Isles. At first it was just the three of them (with Eda being Luz's mentor, not equal) and now she was meeting more and more new people. King never had any close friends besides Luz so seeing her have less and less time for him was really difficult. King was scared of losing Luz to others.

King was jealous of Willow and Gus. That resulted in him wanting to separate them from Luz so that she could spend all her time with him. He wanted to have her all for himself.

That desire manifested in him being desparate to obtain friendship braceletes for them. He needed to have a proof that he is the most important person to Luz, that they really are best friends.

But in the end the end King learned that it's okay that Luz has other friends. This was represented in frienship braceletes spiliting into four parts. Because you don't have to have one friend, you can have three or more. They all can be friends with each other.

Meanwhile Collector's problem was that they never really had any friends. Archivists, Belos and even King just wanted to use them. Titans who were kind to him were gone. He never had a chance to learn how to play and be a good friend.

And from what we know it's safe to assume that their way of "playing" by turning people into puppets is something that they were taught by the Archivists.

Collector was jealous of Luz because she had exactly what they wanted. She came to the Boiling Isles and managed to gain trust and friendship of a lot of people. Collector had no idea how to do that.

And there was also her relationship with King. King was Collector's best friend, but Collector wasn't King's best friend. King didn't have any close friends before Luz came but Collector had no one (King at least had Eda). King was not only the most important person in their life, he was the only one they had. But Collector wasn't even close to being as important to King as he was to them.

But unlike King, Collector was never trying to keep King for himself. He doesn't even seem to be a person who would get jealous easily. They released Lilith from the spell and they didn't want to turn Eda into a puppet, instead wanting to convince her to join the game. He wasn't trying to separate King from the others. Because in the end they just wanted to be everyone's friend. They just didn't know how.

Both King and Collector know what it's like to feel unwanted and alone. They both know the feeling of wanting to spend time with a person that they consider to be their best friend, yet having trouble doing that. And they both know what it's like to feel unimportant to the person that is important to them. Although the circumstances and problems they were facing were quite different.

It turned out to be much bigger analysis that I expected, haha. At first I wanted to just point out similarities that I noticed (since King and Collector are very similar), but then I thought that if I'm comparing those episodes I can also take some time to look at the differences between them. So that would be it. Thank you for reading my thoughts!

#the collector toh #king toh #king clawthorne #platinum bones #the owl house #toh #analysis #toh analysis #essay #ramblings #its almost 3 am i should probably go to sleep

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pk2317 · 11 months

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On shipping "erasure" in fanwork

Might as well throw some of my thoughts together here, for easy reference later. For all 5 people who may read this. Right off the bat I'm going to admit that there will be a lot of caveats included, as opposed to absolute "truths". Also I'll be using the term "queer" to encompass LGBTQIA+, if that term is something that bothers you then just be aware of that. And “straight” (in quotes) generally refers to “straight-presenting”. I'll primarily be referencing The Owl House, just because it's a point of reference that I'm very familiar with the source material and the fandom.

I want to come out right from the beginning and state clearly that *ARTISTS HAVE THE RIGHT TO CREATE WHATEVER ARTWORK THEY WANT, AND INDIVIDUALS HAVE THE RIGHT TO CONSUME WHATEVER ARTWORK THEY WANT*. Fan art, fan fiction, whatever. This is NOT an attempt to police what others do or enjoy, or an invitation to harass anyone.

With that being said, when someone makes artwork, they make decisions on what to include, or not include, and it's not unreasonable to analyze these decisions and question why they were made. Especially when those decisions are counter to established "canon" aspects of the character(s).

Shipping is one of the biggest examples of this. When you boil it down, "shipping" is focusing two (or more) characters and their relationSHIP to each other. Generally, this is going to be a romantic (and/or physical) relationship, which may (or may not) be "canon". Shipping has always existed within fandom, and it's not an inherently bad thing. It's a form of character analysis - based on what we know about Character A and Character B, how might they interact in this specific situation, or what would it be like if they were attracted to each other?

In a largely heteronormative media landscape, this can (and often is) a vehicle to explore queer relationships that otherwise aren't (or at least aren't likely to be) depicted in the source material. But, as we (finally) start to get some explicitly, canonically queer characters, we start running into the issues of "erasure". This will *usually* come in the form of canonically lesbian characters being shipped with guys (for some reason, gay men being shipped with women doesn't seem to come up nearly as often - there's a whole tangent about sexism and misogyny there that I'm not even going into right now).

For a specific example, I'll go with Amity from TOH, who (not infrequently) gets shipped with Hunter. Now, I'm sure there are some people who are genuinely interested in this pairing, and their character arcs do have similarities that could provoke some interesting interactions. But - Amity is explicitly, canonically a lesbian, and (canonically) in a relationship with Luz (another woman). So, the majority of time when I see this pairing, the reasoning behind it usually boils down to one of three things:

Outright homophobia, to reject the canon, same-sex relationship between Luz and Amity (just because they don’t like seeing two women together)

Outright homophobia, to insist that Amity "should be with a man, instead"

Trolling, because it'll "trigger the snowflakes" (which is just homophobia with extra steps)

Of course, all of them will (conveniently) hide behind the excuse of it being "just an interesting pairing". (Some of the same issues arise with "Lunter" (Luz / Hunter), except that considering Luz is canonically bi, it actually is a more logical pairing. So that gets tied up in biphobia, which is {once again} an entirely separate tangent that I'm not addressing here.)

The other excuse that gets trotted out time and time again is "Everyone has always changed canonically straight characters into gay ones for shipping, and that isn't a problem, so why is this?" Which might sound "reasonable" on the surface, but is a near perfect example of a false equivalence for two reasons:

There are no "canonically straight" characters. I mean, *maybe*, but 99.99% of the time when a character has a canonically establish sexuality, it's not "straight". Just because someone may be visibly/textually attracted to just one or more people of the opposite sex, that doesn't in any way preclude them from being bisexual or pansexual. It's a very obvious display of heteronormativity to just assume everyone is straight by “default”, and no, it's not "just the same".

Even if it were, queer characters are *VASTLY* underrepresented in media. Yes, things are improving. Yes, we have more overtly, outwardly, explicitly, canonically queer characters (and relationships) being portrayed in all forms of media that we ever had historically, but it's still considerably outnumbered by "straight" (or at least straight-presenting) characters and relationships. When some shows (not all) have the "token gay character", that means that your average show is basically 0-1 queer characters. Not really great numbers. So let's say there's a show with 10 main characters, one of whom is queer and the rest are "straight". If we reimagine another one to be queer so we can ship them, there are still 80% "straight" characters on just this one show alone. Whereas if you reimagine the one queer character to be straight...it's not hard to see why a queer person might take offense at those decisions.

Let's take a look at The Owl House. This is one of the queerest shows targeted at a wide family audience. Most of the "main cast" (series regulars - I'll define this as being featured in the opening credits sequence) is queer in one form or another, either canonically or implied (in the show or by the crew). But let's take a look at the relationships of the characters. Among our main characters, there are three "canon" (explict or heavily implied) relationships:

Luz / Amity (queer F/F)

Eda / Raine (queer F/NB)

Hunter / Willow ("straight" M/F)

Yes, I know that neither character in the last one is straight, but their relationship is "straight", or straight-presenting. Still, 2/3 is good, right?

Now, let's extend it to all named characters that we see in a visible relationship, with a named partner, in the show:

Vee / Masha (queer F/NB)

Harvey / Gilbert Park (queer M/M)

Alador / Odalia Blight ("straight" M/F)

Dell / Gwendolyn Clawthorne ("straight" M/F)

Manny / Camila Noceda ("straight" M/F)

So, one of the queerest shows on television doesn't even break 50% of relationships being visibly queer. And this is the exception, not the rule, for visible representation. Most shows are vastly more skewed to straight, or straight-presenting, characters and relationships.

So, no, it's not "just the same". And that's why it's not at all unreasonable to see queer people be offended when, out of a plethora of "straight" characters and relationships to choose from, they feel the need to take one of the few visibly queer ones and make it "straight".

I do want to reiterate my first statement again, just to be extra clear. I do *NOT* believe in trying to police what people create, or consume. I will fervently defend artists to have that right, no matter how objectionable I may find their content (as long as it's appropriately tagged/categorized/labeled/etc.). Yes, this even applies to even more "problematic" ships (another tangent I won't go into here). I would like people to do some self-examination and make sure they are being honest with *why* they may be creating/consuming that content, and I absolutely expect it to be clearly labeled, but in no way am I going to try and prevent them from doing so on an individual level.

TL;DR - Make/consume whatever artwork you want, but be conscious of your motivations behind doing so, don't be surprised when it offends people, and don't try to rationalize it as being "the same" as putting "straight" characters into queer ships.

#shipping #erasure #analysis #the owl house #toh #lumity #raeda #huntlow #long post #sorry for the rant #seriously don’t harass artists #if you don’t want to see something then YOU block it #I’ll probably regret posting this #oh well #fanart #fanfic

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edoro · 2 years

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An idea for how they realize belos is Phillip (other then babybel deciding to screw around with them) is perhaps when he's sick with something like the common mold since it'll probably hit him harder than Luz, since he's in the body of a young child from the 1600s and while resting has the mask off (either taken or fell off while sleep), Luz or someone goes to wake him up and notices the lack of pointy ears and freaks out(which could get the job done of waking him up just in an extremely stressful way) and probably realizing how much this kid looks like Phillip, wanting to question him as soon as possible. So she'll probably create some theories about it (all but belos being a child of Phillip since that implies that Phillip had gotten someone to have kids with and she doubts it so hard).

Also the instant they take babyBel’s mask off or try to get his hair out of his face they’re going to realize he’s human which… he wants this? He thinks? He wants everyone to admire his cunning wiles. But under these circumstances his reaction to vulnerability is No Actually I Will Scream. Meanwhile everyone else is having a minor crisis.

(i have no idea if you are both the same anon but since it's basically the same concept i'm gonna toss you both together in this ask here. l-love connection?!)

anyway, yeah, i'm mulling this one over - i think they're gonna figure out he's human pretty much the first time the mask comes off, which, he's gonna have to take it off to eat, so that's going to happen pretty quickly.

at that point the question becomes "how quickly is Luz going to be able to put the pieces together and figure out that this weird little human moppet they pulled out of the Emperor's brain is in fact baby Philip Wittebane?"

(sidenote, also: at what point are they going to realize this isn't just a manifestation of an emotion but, in fact, the actual inner Belos? i'm sure that's also gonna happen relatively soon there, and it's going to be very interesting)

so - as far as Luz knows, there's only ever been one other human in the Boiling Isles. and she met Philip as an adult, so she knows that he's a white guy from the 1600s with brown hair and blue eyes, and here's this little white kid with brown hair and blue eyes who's dressed in very antique clothes (the fact that he doesn't talk might draw it out a bit, since she doesn't have an archaic accent/speech pattern to further drive the point home)

she might remember seeing some of those childhood portraits in the Emperor's mindscape, depending on how far they got, and it certainly seems like a different time. little motherfucker was churning butter in one of those. she might remember some of the ones where he was a bit older, and looked more like adult Philip, and have a realization there.

i don't know if she would jump immediately to "oh my god, Belos is Philip" - i think that the idea would probably occur to her, because she's only ever known of one other human and the general time period seems to fit and the kid looks like he could plausibly grow up into Philip, but i can imagine a similar sort of denial going on, and this time she doesn't have him forcing the issue to taunt her.

(let's see if i manage to remember this, but i'd like to go into my thoughts about why i think she was so upset to realize Belos is Philip - i've seen a lot of people suggesting reasons why, and other people feeling like it fell very flat, and i've definitely got my own personal take on it, but this post isn't really the place)

so she might be trying to find ways to believe that he isn't Philip, that maybe this is some other human who ended up in the Isles. after all, she's only heard of Philip, but travel between the realms is totally possible, and he can't be the only person who ever fell into a pool of Titan's Blood, right?

i wonder if she would outright ask him, and what he'd say. actually, you know what?

here's what i think. they're going to find out he's human within, probably, a few days at most if he's sneaky and secretive about eating and doesn't manage to lose the mask somehow. once they do, it's just a matter of time before Luz puts the pieces together that this human is probably the same other human she met.

(sidenote: what the fuck is up with Philip's timeline? no one has even brought up the fact that he's apparently four hundred fucking years old, but i'm starting to question if he actually is?

the BI era he ended up in was the Deadwardian, and in our world the Edwardian era was 1901-1910, and those were definitely not colonial fashions we saw on the BI residents; but we've also not gotten any indication that the Boiling Isles and the human realm are asynchronous with each other.

the BI calendar seems to be very different (forty days in a month?? how long is that week we've got left before the Day of Unity? Dana i have so many questions -) but we have no indication that one day on the Boiling Isles =/= one day in the human realm, which would have some disturbing fairy circle shit implications for Luz's time here if that was the case.

so when he and Caleb came through at Eclipse Lake, were they transported in time as well as space? Philip's diary entry in s2e12 suggests that he thinks it's the 1660s or 1670s back home, but that's just him figuring based on the passage of time and conversion between calendar systems - was he, unbeknownst to himself, already cut off from any hope of ever actually going back home? would that portal have spat him out into the early 1900s?

however, the sheer number of grimwalkers he's made and killed suggests that he has in fact been around for quite a long time - @samael-i-am has that post counting up the masks which suggests it's more like 20+, and someone else did the math and suggested that each one only lived somewhere into their teens or mid twenties at most if you account for seventeen grimwalkers (including Hunter) over 350ish years

but that also assumes that the grimwalkers are born as babies and grow and develop at a normal rate, which might not be the case - it could be that he can control what age they come out as, and makes them at whatever age he thinks is best for raising them to be loyal and devoted and also useful. can't pop one out fully grown and expect to mold its mind, gotta get in there when there's still some good neural plasticity and rewire that development!

but the sheer number of them still implies he's been at this for more than fifty years, unless most of them really didn't make it more than a couple of years.

anyway. anyway.)

so anyway - Luz tries to put this realization off. she doesn't want Belos to be Philip. she doesn't want to deal with that. but it's where her mind goes, because there are a lot of connections, and well - she asks him.

he can't talk, but he can draw and write (did actual Philip Wittebane at this age know how to read and write? no, probably not, or if he did then Caleb had only just started teaching him. but adult Belos does, so Babybel can, although he struggles a bit with the motor control and his spelling is... interesting to say the least) and he's pretty expressive with that when he wants to be, although getting him to actually directly respond to or acknowledge anyone is a crapshoot

so she asks him, works up to it maybe - "when and where were you born? where are you from? what's your name?" - and he does tell her

because the thing is, right, the thing is - he wants a human on his side. he wants to hear her say his name. he wants another human to know that he's here, know who he is, know what he's doing, support and agree with him, talk to him.

and this whole thing, where she thinks he's just a kid version of himself and doesn't know how much he does or doesn't remember of his adult self? this is perfect for manipulating her! he could not have engineered a better chance to get her on his side if he'd tried, actually! because she likes him as a kid. she's sympathetic to him. she thinks he's cute and she relates to him and she has this hope that maybe they can raise him to be better than adult Belos, that he can change, that this can be a re-do.

so how much more sympathetic is she going to be if he tells her, yes, he's Philip Wittebane - he's little baby Philip, and she's sure getting some glimpses of how he might have grown up, what it might have been like for him, how he was treated, and they aren't good glimpses, and she was already sympathetic to Philip - she thought he was hurting people because he was so desperate to get home, after all.

so Philip as a kid? not the adult man who manipulated and betrayed her and said it was fun, but just this angry, troubled, weird, difficult - the same way Luz, neurodivergent herself, has been difficult her whole life - kid who is also obviously traumatized and expects to be abused?

she doesn't stand a chance. she's going to see herself in him. she's going to imagine what it must feel like to be a little kid, trapped so far from home, away from his family and friends and everything familiar, disabled and traumatized and struggling to communicate with anyone around him or understand what's going on, and she's going to feel sorry for him.

and because the reveal comes to her in the form of this weird fucked up cute little kid who she relates to and likes, rather than in the form of Belos psychologically torturing Hunter in the process of revealing his evil plan and then 'killing' him and stalking her as he delivers a creep-ass villain monologue, she might start to think maybe she's wrong about Belos.

oh, not that he's fucked up and evil and needs to be stopped - but maybe he doesn't just want power. maybe he really does just want to go home. maybe he's just been lost and stuck here this whole time and his loneliness and desperation corrupted him. maybe he actually is still someone she can understand, even if she can't agree with him.

and maybe if someone steps in and helps this kid, who clearly needed it and didn't get it - maybe then he can be different.

#emperor belos #luz noceda #philip wittebane #babybel au #babybel in the physical realm what crimes will he commit #asks #toh spoilers

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asmodeus542 · 3 years

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Every week, The Owl House just completely blows my mind. You expect one thing and then it goes the other way.

So the Day of Unity is in fact uniting the realms. I wonder if this is Connecticut?

What are you, Belos!? Also you're an Uncle!?

Eda is such a mom. She's taking Luz to school and also helping out in the Palisman adoption day.

I was really looking forward to seeing what Amity's Palisman would be and was bummed when she wasn't here. I'm guessing mom didn't like her hair color. They're not gonna change it back right? Right!?

Seeing Luz panic about what her future holds is so relatable! We know she wants to go home to her mom, but what else does she want to do? On the Boiling Isles, she's a witch, her dream, in the human realm, she's just plain old Luz. Many, myself included, speculated that Luz would just stay on the Isles and travel back and forth to visit her mom if she has a portal. Now, I'm not sure what Luz will do.

Luz and Golden Guard's (Hunter) dynamic was great this episode! Last we saw them together, they were enemies, now they have this sibling like relationship between them as well as a mutual respect for the other. Every time Luz interacts with a character, she changes their lives. Mostly for the better, but a few for the worse. Hopefully we see Hunter as the former.

So Lilith wasn't the only one in the Emperor's Coven who thought that Hunter was a brat. Although while Lilith may have found him annoying, Kikimora hates him to the point of murder. For being close with Belos, for not being as powerful as he seems? Whatever the case, it was great seeing Kiki return and for her to actually do something villainous for a change. I really want to see her fight at full strength though.

He's just a sensitive nerd like the rest of us. The way this show writes its characters is fantastic. Apparently, whatever happened to Belos, was done so by wild magic. Now we know why he's so strict on the whole one magic rule. On the other hand, Hunter wants to learn more about wild magic in order to help his uncle. Every time he brings it up however, Belos reprimands him! I guess we know how he got that scar now. So when he finds himself getting excited about Wild Magic, he quickly stops and even pushes away relics related to it.

I find myself conflicted at the ending of the episode though. Throughout the episode, the cardinal wanders off, sneaks in Luz's bag, is always on her shoulder, frees her from her ropes and is always with her! I just expected it to bond with her. When Hunter got his staff back and was ready to attack Luz, I thought the cardinal might transform into a staff and we'd see Luz vs GG similar to the Eda vs Lilith fights in season 1. Plus, with it being a bird, it'd fit the whole birds associated with Clawthornes that Dana mentioned.

That being said, I also really love that Luz will make her own Palisman like Eda did! Luz is Eda's apprentice first, so Luz will earn her staff the same as Eda did, she mentioned it in the first season. But now that Luz is uncertain about her future, it'll be a while until she's ready to carve. I can't wait for the mother daughter bonding that those two will do when Luz does carve though. Wonder what it'll be.

Belittled and threatened for failing his mission. We must protect Hunter and his new Palisman! Since Belos has this omnipresence when it comes to his castle, he knows that Hunter has this now right? A question of loyalty will be asked when Hunter is ordered to give it up.

#the owl house #toh spoilers #the owl house spoilers #toh palisman #luz noceda #luz the human #eda the owl lady #eda clawthorne #toh #golden guard #emperor belos

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pizzaboat · 3 years

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After a particular bad storm, Luz and king decide to have a movie night..

It should be fun, but Luz just hopes the two adults joining them don't kill each other in the next 2 hours...

"No way, I'd rather clean Hooty than watch some goofy kids movie"

"But Edaaa!" The teen whined, "There's nothing else to watch, and the storm nocked out all the power!"

Sure the power was out. Courtesy of the terrible weather. The magical grid through out the building had been temporarily shut off for hooty's safety, and so most things in the house had stopped working. But that wasn't a good enough reason for Eda to sacrifice napping time.

Eda watched as the human brought the box containing some human *VHS tape* titled "The Lion king" up to display.

"Come on Its a classic," Luz pleaded, " and you agreed, after some persuasion-"

- Manipulation."

"-that you'd do something with me and King," Luz pointed, "And you said I could pick. I pick movie night."

"Hey, I say alot of things. Doesn't make 'em true." Eda said with a shrug, "And don't even try to give me any puppy dog eyes kid, I'm immune now."

Luz pouted, and Eda watched as an idea formed on the girls face. Never a good sign..

"Well," Luz said, "You think your tough, but it'd be a shame if anyone in town found out you secretly like hugs!"

"You wouldn't dare," Eda gasped, "They'd never believe you!"

"Oh really? Try me." Luz challenged.

Damn it. Blackmail. She really was her kid. Eda knew teaching her would come back to bite her in the ass.

"Fine," She sighed, "But if anyone starts singing, I'm out."

"That might be a problem.. since it's a musical,"

Titan damn it.

***

And that's how thirty minutes later everyone was gathered in the living room as Luz stuffed human candies into some contraption and King dragged an assortment of snacks to the sofa, throwing them on the coffee table.

Even Lilith had been dragged out of her cave for the night.

"I didn't know you were interested in this stuff," King said to her sister as she settled in the furthest side of the couch, away from everyone else.

"Of course I'm not," She told him, "This is the only room in the house with sufficient enough lighting to read my book."

"If you say so," He muttered.

Eda plopped down onto the couch, opposite to her;

"Yeah, Lily's a nerd," She yawned, pulling a blanket over her self and settling in, "She doesn't do fun. So don't expect her to thrive in social situations."

"I'm not a nerd!" The other woman glared, " I'm trying to research a cure. For our curses."

"Save it," Eda snorted, "I'm fine the way I am, no thanks to you."

"I split the curse, what more do you want?"

"for you to take some damn accountability."

"How can I do that if you don't let me!?"

"I don't care, figure it out!"

"OK!" Luz cut in with fake enthusiasm, "The movies starting! Who's excited!?"

Eda snapped her gaze to the teen. The two adults had missed the worried looks both Luz and King had been giving them as things had escalated.

Eda felt a wave of guilt, as Luz wormed her way into her side, deviding the two sisters in the hopes of preventing some all out fist fight, she guessed. Eda wrapped an arm around the girl hugging her back as the movie started and music played.

"Hey king, pass some snacks up," Luz whispered.

"Get your own, peasant," He whispered back.

***

Lilith had tried her best to focuse on words of the book infront of her in the flickering candle light, but her gaze always wandered back to the small box set on the coffee table infront of them.

The demon had been scolded multiple times by the other two, as he always managed to sit himself directly infront of the screen every five minutes, completely engrossed in its contents.

Lilith didn't do musicals. She hated them. Always had.

Edalyns loud complaints and groans of annoyance when the characters had broke into song, were more obnoxious than the movie its self.

That was new.. wasn't Edalyn big into musicals back when they both were in school?

The human had sung along to every word, boasting that she knew the lyrics to all the "Disney songs," What ever the hell a Disney was, Lilith didn't know. And she didn't want to find out.

Lilith had also noticed the wary glances the human sent her every now and then, as if she thought Lilith would pounce on them all. Lilith couldn't blame them for that one, so she did her best to keep her gaze anywhere else but the rest of the room, and focused back in on her book.

***

King could sympathise with the young creatures desire to become king and rule over all those bellow him. The young lion was the most relatable main character he'd ever seen. Much better than those characters from Luz's books.

Someone hungry for status much like himself. Though King was already a king. Feared by all.

He clapped when Simba scratched the hyenas face. These animals names were weird he decided though. Lions. Hyenas. Elephants. The movie had even featured those freaks, the giraffes.

He understood the feeling of helplessness when both Simba and his companions had been trapped In the elephants grave yard, only to be saved by Simba's father Mufasa.

He gasped when he discovered Scar's plan to usurp his brother. Maybe Luz had chosen a good movie after all...

***

The human whiped tears from her eyes, then continued to blubber. King wailed clutching his stuffed animal. Even Edalyn seemed somewhat moved, though she didn't show it much.

The father had died apparently. Betrayed by his brother. Lured into a trap by his trusted sibling. His son used against him as bait.

OK maybe that one hit close to home. Hadn't she lured her sister to a witches duel using their apprentice against them? Seeing the broken form of the betrayed, forced images of what could have happened into Lilith's mind, and she suppressed a shudder.

Edalyn petrified. Luz skewered.

It hit her just how close she had come to getting both her sister and her sister's apprentice killed.

Damn it. She'd lost her page.

***

These guys had the right idea, "Hakuna matata", no worries. If society decides your not worth it, why not atleast relax and try to have a good time with your friends. Screw it. Y'know?

Maybe that's what she would've thought even a month ago. But she wasn't so sure that was such a great message to send kids. Abandon responsibly. She knew predictably that the movie would correct this. She was proved right of course.

***

Luz's excitement bubbled towards the end. She'd seen the movie a thousand times when she was younger. But big confrontations were always exhilarating to watch.

Though less fun when your the one confronting things in real life, that's where the beauty of fiction comes in; She was in the mood to enjoy some nice old fashioned living through fictional characters. No danger. Just movies and her family. And Lilith. She wasn't sure why Lilith was In the owl house. Not because of the storm. Just in general.

Luz would have figured Lilith would have found somewhere to stay by now. But it might be difficult for her, what with the Emperors Coven declaring her a wanted criminal, while the rest of them had been pardoned. A selfish part of Luz wished she'd just leave anyway. Her skin always crawled when the woman was around.

Luz felt bad about this. But it didn't stop her from occasionally thinking it.

She caught a glimpse of the woman In question, when Scar had been left to be killed by the hyenas. Lilith look paler than what seemed possible with her already ivory complexion. Her gaze fixed on the old mini TV. Was she rooting for Scar or something?

Luz wouldn't be surprised.

***

The villian had recieved what he deserved. To be vanquished by his enimies.

Lilith felt sick thinking of the similarities between her and the character.

Jealousy. Ambition. Cunning. The will to do what ever it takes.

She knew they were different. But she couldn't help but wonder what could've happend if she were more like this "Scar" character.

Titan. She thought this was just a kid's movie.

***

The movie finished. Eda had fallen asleep towards the end only to be gently shaken awake by Luz after. The movie hadn't been bad. She'd even enjoyed it, Eda wouldn't admit that to anyone though. Not in a million years.

Luz said goodnight with a tight, crushing hug, then carried King to bed. The little guy must have conked out at some point into the film.

Movie night accomplished and no one had even died. A win if ever there was one.

They would clean up in the morning but for now sleep, she made her way to leave as well but was stopped by her sister.

"Edalyn, I think we should talk.."

#the owl house #luz noceda #eda clawthorne #edalyn clawthorne #lilith clawthorne #toh king #the owl house fanfic #idk what the point of this fic was..#toh luz #toh eda #toh lilith

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sepublic · 4 years

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Hey! Hope I'm not bothering you, but since you already did an excellent take of Luz meeting the Amphibia girls, I'd love to hear your thoughts on what would happen if Amity were to ever meet Sasha.

I’m honestly VERY flattered by this ask, this is such a fun one to me and admittedly I went overboard answering this… But I appreciate the compliment, it means a lot, and I myself love YOUR answers to asks regarding Amphibia!

Sasha and Amity are definitely interesting characters to me! I think one of the key differences between the two, when it comes to either the ‘real’ Amity, or the cold façade she puts up…

…It’s that she’s really not much for social interaction. I’m sure part of the reason is to keep up appearances of being an elitist Blight who has ‘high standards’ and whatnot regarding who she hangs out with, and her own trauma after the Willow incident definitely encourages Amity to not reach out in general, but. Even without her parents’ elitist abuse, she honestly gives me vibes of someone who’d prefer to mind their own business? That cold façade or not, she doesn’t really actively seek confrontation, and would rather mind her own business; Around Boscha and the others she’s clearly distant and tells them not to bully Willow because there’s no point.

And with Willow? The one time we DO see her bully Willow, it’s at least implied –through retroactive revelations- that Amity may have legit been trying to reconnect with her friend, and/or didn’t realize how condescending she was being; Or at least, she THOUGHT what she was saying would actually encourage Willow to be better. She’s definitely internalized a lot of toxicity from her parents and siblings.

Obviously Luz is helping with that, but in the end- Amity comes across as someone who would rather be left alone. If she feels like she’s being attacked or having her space invaded, she WILL retaliate… But again, she just wants to mind her own business and wishes for others to do the same. She only lets in a select few individuals who can really earn her trust, and that trust is something carefully earned and requires a lot of emotional navigation.

Sasha is different- She’s very much a social person! Whilst Amity will snap and get right to the point, that NO, she does not like you… And when Amity DOES have to hang around others, she puts in the bare minimum of interaction and is clearly cold and distant otherwise; Sasha seems to prefer diplomacy! It’s one of the first things we see about her character, in contrast to Grime… Even if she’s annoyed by someone, she’s learned that honey attracts flies, not vinegar! Sasha doesn’t resort to confrontation or putting her foot down, unless she feels like she’s been specifically ‘pushed’ to that point.

Not to mention, she very much seeks out people and friends! Sasha loves her social interaction, and while there’s some potential speculation on how her homelife may have contributed to this… This girl has to surround herself with other people to thrive, she gets energy from social interaction! She’s popular back at school, and captain of the cheerleading squad, which we know Sasha and Marcy aren’t members of- So that involves a close leadership and sway over a whole ‘nother group of classmates.

Obviously a part of her is intrigued on what she can get from others, as seen with the Toads… But in general, I think Sasha does enjoy the feeling of getting to know others, and being loved, or at least adored! When she’s unhappy with Maggie, she makes a point to be diplomatic about the situation… And when Maggie continues pushing her, Sasha gives her another chance, but also adds onto the pressure by threatening to not invite Maggie. So there’s this idea of surrounding herself with others to maintain a sense of control, a certain possessiveness to Sasha here.

Ultimately… I don’t think they’d really get along, alas! Even if it’s Amity as of now, or when we first see her, interacting with either Sasha pre or post-character development… These two likely wouldn’t get off to a good start! I see only Sasha making the first move; She’s a social butterfly and wants to get to know people, it’s good to make connections so you can utilize them! And this Amity Blight, she’s clearly talented and Top Student, she seems pretty cool! Sasha would likely offer herself up, maybe offer to buy lunch for her, hang out, etc.

But Amity? Amity’s used to people like Boscha. She’s going to see the similarities. And even if she doesn’t? Well, Amity comes across to me as the kind of person, who… When she’s approached by others, her mind immediately fires on all cylinders as she starts desperately trying to figure out what this person wants, why they’re here, what their goal is, etc.! She can’t really imagine people wanting to get to know her just because… Again, not only because her abuse conditioned Amity to see others –herself included- only in terms of what they can do for others, but also because I think she just doesn’t understand social cues all too well.

Amity would very much be on the defensive; She’d see Sasha coming in and reflexively put her walls up, become cold and put on a façade. She wouldn’t immediately snap at Sasha, but she’d definitely try to get the point across as subly as she can. The thing about Sasha to me is that she has both exterior and ulterior motives, simultaneously. When Sasha keeps pressing, Amity will likely reach a point where she just exhales, gets blunt, and asks Sasha what she wants and why she’s here, and to just ask or leave!

And, Sasha will be surprised! She’ll be taken aback, but I don’t think she’ll take it personally- She’ll forgive Amity for the bluntness and try to assume the best before all else. I can see Sasha perhaps saying a thing or two, joking around, and Amity interprets it literally, and gets the impression that Sasha is making fun of her… So Sasha tries to clarify that no, she isn’t making fun of her! She’s being honest, she DOES want to be friends! Maybe she’ll try to laugh it off, tell Amity to relax, but it’s just going to make Amity feel like she’s being patronized.

I think it’s worth noting that Sasha is friends with Marcy, and while Marcy definitely seems to have more connections with Anne than her… She’s still at least Sasha’s second-best friend, based on how much they hang around. Marcy is Autistic-coded, and to me and many others, Amity is ALSO Autistic-coded as well. If Sasha knows how to humor and handle Marcy’s infodumping and occasionally literal mind, then it’s possible she’d have the experience to navigate Amity.

Though, Amity is still a VERY different and closed-off person than Marcy. I think a lot of their interaction would be filled with Sasha trying to figure Amity out, see what makes her tick- And Amity is getting all the more uncomfortable and suspicious, because she does NOT like being open or read by others, especially by this girl who probably sees her more as a trophy to collect or whatever… Amity just wants to mind her own business!

And the thing about Sasha is- She’s also a troublemaker. A bit of a delinquent. She’s totally going to give Amity the same vibes as her older siblings, and that won’t be so great… Even if this is Amity as of the Season Finale, I think she’d still be wary, because she at least KNOWS Ed and Em, but she doesn’t know Sasha. Amity is still a person who’s very beholden to the rules, and unless Sasha specifically ‘proves’ herself to her, she’s going to look down on Sasha’s lack of reverence for school. In particular I think she’d react somewhat negatively to Sasha, should the girl casually dismiss Amity’s desire to study, over hanging out with her.

And naturally, Sasha is going to get frustrated, she’ll wonder what this Blight girls’ deal is- She’s trying SO hard to be nice and diplomatic, she really is trying to navigate Amity’s ‘eccentricities’! I think she’d sooner just give up and do her own thing, leave Amity be, as the two of them agree to just mind one another’s business and exist separately. I don’t think Sasha would feel the need to specifically step in, especially since Amity isn’t really a friend to begin with, and clearly just wants to be left alone. Sasha only seems to ‘step in’ when she feels she has a certain hold on others, and Amity is far too distant.

So, Sasha can read the room… She’d approach Amity, want to be friends. Amity gets suspicious and assumes the worst, and even if it’s not the worst she’s just not intrigued in general. Sasha is a troublemaker, and Amity’s trust requires a lot of emotional work and honesty that Sasha isn’t just used to- So Sasha reads the room and leaves, no other questions asked!

…Although, if Sasha WERE more interested… It’d be interesting if she learned what Amity’s situation is like, specifically with her strict parents. I can’t say much about Sasha’s own upbringing, but given her current scenario as of Toadcatcher and how she’s very much overthrowing the authorities to establish her own rule…

I think Sasha would try to pull something off similar to Anne (in a scenario where she REALLY wants to get close with Amity), and try to goad Amity into just ignoring her parents, and being her own person! And while her intentions are good and Amity being her own person is a net positive, I think she’d handle it about as constructively as Emira and Edric, and end up just making Amity feel pressured to get into trouble, be far too dismissive and condescending of Amity’s feelings, and cause the girl to feel like she’s being made fun of and all the stuff she looks up to is casually trashed!

And, Emira and Edric are her siblings. Unless the Blight Parents specifically ask Amity to hang out with Sasha, this girl isn’t going to have any of it; She’s going to snap, and she’ll tell Sasha to back off. And while Sasha might be taken aback and even get a little bit offended, again… She��d rather things go smoothly, and not create unnecessary conflict. I think she’d read the room, and then leave.

Worst-case scenario, she TRIES to ‘step in’ and exert her influence… But really, Sasha has none over Amity, whose family is considered superior even amongst other noble families, and also she has magic! The girl was the Grudgby Captain for a reason. Sasha is going to recognize the situation and see she’s not wanted, and it’s not worth it- No point getting riled up, this isn’t someone close to her like Anne or Marcy! So again- She leaves! Although…

This is Sasha prior to Reunion. But as of Toadcatcher, where she’s clearly becoming a lot more blunt about her feelings, a lot more physical and smashing her way through things? Still capable of manipulation, but also doubting her abilities… Amidst her own brief self-reflection over how she treated Anne? Then, depending on exactly what she’s aiming for here (and to be honest my read on Sasha as of Toadcatcher is a little blurry, I think the show is trying to be ambiguous as to her exact headspace given she’s still figuring things out herself)…

MAYBE Sasha tries to get her way by brute force, but again, I doubt it. Unless it’s something she REALLY specifically needs, I don’t see her picking a fight, because even if she’s getting physically blunt, she’s also being emotionally blunt as well. When it comes to emotions her tactic is to run away and close her eyes, look the other direction- So Sasha is going to deny that this bothers her.

She’s going to insist that Amity’s constant rejections aren’t getting to her. She’s just going to LEAVE, and let it be! It’s fine, what’re you talking about? And if this is engaging with Amity, as of her character development? Same thing, really… Amity may be a bit less cold and dismissive, a little less elitist- But she’s also learning to prioritize herself and to remove herself from situations she doesn’t like. She’s not going to be ready for Sasha anytime soon, probably not ever!

Worst-case scenario, Sasha gets a little TOO personal and straight-forward, trying to give advice to Amity on what’ll make her happy- And Amity will snap. Sasha might feel a bit offended, maybe begin to doubt herself and feel like her charisma and ‘touch’ has been waning… but ultimately she’s going to deny her feelings, shrug, and leave Amity be. Both girls will mutually agree to let the other exist in isolation from the other, maybe stepping in if the other is in trouble and somebody else isn’t already there to help.

…But for fun! Let’s talk about if they WERE friends, by some inexplicable, stroke of fate and circumstance!

Sasha is definitely going to be someone who’s VERY mindful of how Amity functions, what she likes, what bothers her, that sort of thing! She’ll know Amity’s schedule by heart, and she’ll focus on helping the girl calm down, or be less cold… She’d be a more diplomatic voice for Amity! She’d definitely handle most of Amity’s social interactions for her… In particular, I see Sasha acting as a ‘gatekeeper’, evaluating others who are trying to reach out to Amity, seeing if they’d bother her friend or not; And if so, telling them to get lost, but in a way that’s subtle and casual. But of course, if the person keeps pushing their luck… Well, this is Sasha’s close friend, so she’s going to feel insulted, and eventually she’ll reach a scary point.

In general, I would see Sasha as someone who can automatically read Amity, and tell whenever she’s in a situation she’s uncomfortable with… So she swoops in and takes Amity’s place, giving her an out and direction the attention to herself! She’s going to help defend Amity from anybody who annoys her, and she’ll do what she can to support the girl; She’ll probably held lead cheerleading rallies for a Grudgby game or two, although Amity would likely tell her to stop, that’s excessive, and you don’t need to do that! And Sasha says that’s silly, they’re friends after all!

I’m not sure if I can see a scenario where Sasha has control over Amity, though. Again, the Blights come across as more high-class and powerful than Sasha’s family, whatever they might be like. I think she’d be a bit like Boscha to Amity, except a lot more receptive to how this girl feels, telling her that she’s all that and has nothing to worry about; You ARE the Top Student for a reason, don’t let anybody else make you think otherwise! If your parents or siblings are mean to you, they just can’t appreciate you properly! And Amity’s going to appreciate that, but occasionally ask Sasha not to go that far- And Sasha understands, and lets it go!

As for Amity, I can see her occasionally flexing her power and position, in a scenario where Sasha encounters someone who isn’t impressed. During social events, she’ll quietly gravitate towards Sasha for comfort and reassurance, and Sasha will instantly recognize. I don’t see her helping Sasha cheat or anything, but Amity would definitely at least help her with homework and give pointers, though she wouldn’t outright do it for her, she’s still too beholden to the rules for that.

Anytime Amity DOES reciprocate or voluntarily show affection, it’s going to mean a lot to Sasha. I can definitely see Sasha beginning to have concerns over the abuse of Amity’s parents and how they’re indoctrinating her, and how she’d see the Emperor’s Coven as a bit toxic… But ultimately, I’m not sure if she’d be able to do much, there’s a LOT of factors to take into consideration here! I feel that should Sasha try to step in, she and Amity still wouldn’t be that close and Amity may rebuke her…

And because they ARE actual friends, it WILL hurt Sasha, and maybe she’ll take it personally and become a bit bitter. Maybe even entitled, because she’s worked so hard to make Amity happy and protect her, and this is how she gets treated!? I can see Sasha intiating some distance at first, and Amity gets hurt by that and immediately accepts this as her new scenario and doesn’t try going back to Sasha, not because she’s better, but because she’s already screwed up and why would Sasha want to go back to her?

But ultimately, Sasha’s going to come back because she craves social interaction, and in the end she DOES care. I can also imagine Amity and Sasha contributing some toxicity towards one another, as they never learn to actually confront these issues but just sweep them under the rug; Sasha might enable Amity’s tendency to snap and lash out, tell her she can do no wrong, while Amity would just enable and lowkey encourage Sasha’s controlling behavior over others- At the very least she won’t speak up against it.

They wouldn’t confront one another over their flaws, especially since they may not be self-aware enough to even notice them in the first place; And in Amity’s case, she might not want to jeopardize her relationship with Sasha, and it’d go against what her parents taught her anyway. She might be a little concerned, but ultimately, what does she know? Sasha seems way more confident, she likely understands herself better than Amity does.

Due to her lineage, I think Amity would retain the ‘power’ in the friendship, or at least not fall under Sasha’s possessive control… But Amity would still doubt herself in general and not be fully genuine. She’d see what Sasha does as typical things that loved ones do for one another because of her parents, even if Amity wouldn’t really flex this type of control over any of her friends to begin with!

She’s not going to participate, but she won’t speak out either, and that’s going to contribute to Sasha’s own assumption that she knows and does best. Really, I see these two not quite agreeing with how the other treats people, but otherwise not objecting either! If it were up to them, Sasha and Amity would do things their own way, but besides that there’s no point in jeopardizing their friendship over such a ‘minor’ issue.

Sasha would come across as the ‘reasonable’ friend, while Amity is more the cold and blunt one. Sometimes Sasha tells someone who bugged Amity to back off, other times she’ll reassure them, tell them that’s just how Amity is, and then invite them to be friends; While still keeping them from Amity of course!

Amity’s fine with this, she just wants to be left alone and doen’t control who Sasha is without her. The girls at least respect each other in that way. I can definitely see Sasha as someone who can reason with Amity and get her to lower her guard a bit, maybe even reconsider her stance on another person, but that’s about it. Sasha is very much the only person who can really ‘talk’ to Amity. Sometimes she’ll get her to cool down, other times she just steps aside and/or helps defend Amity. It really depends on the mood of the day, the person in question, etc.!

I don’t think Sasha would be able to fully understand Amity. I think she’d try to listen to Amity’s insecurities, try to give advice and understanding. But ultimately she’s someone with her own issues as well; She’s no Luz, who I think would just naturally get Amity to open up and make her a lot happier! And I can see Sasha maybe even scouting out Luz specifically for this purpose, because she seems like a cool and friendly person, and if she can make Amity happy and openly laugh, then she HAS to have her in the group!

And… those are more or less my thoughts on how Sasha and Amity would interact, within a few different contexts! I’m not exactly an expert on either character, all of this is speculation, and I confess I don’t know Sasha as well as others… Especially given her mindset in Toadcatcher, where it seems like she’s still figuring herself out! Also, I apologize for VERY much going overboard in answering this ask… I suppose I got excited, because this is a very fascinating concept to me, and I feel obligated to fully explore it in every way I can, in order to do it justice!

#the owl house #owl house #amphibia #the owl house amity #amity blight #amphibia sasha #sasha waybright #speculation #ask

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timelessbian · 4 years

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hi it me again. IVE SAW AOTW. Physically I'm like. Fine. Emotionally? I've been laying face down on the floor ever since. Also whY ARE YOU APOLOGISING FOR A RANT?? IT'S WHAT I WANTED >:3 God there's just. So much to say about this ep!! I don't even have the WORDS, words reduced to AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. So. Thoughts?

ADHFSJDFH hi again!! sorry that it’s taken me a while to respond; i’ve been really busy with moving and everything the past few days, but i really wanted to answer this before the finale bc i have Many Fears asngjsjdjbvhdsbfvhbsa

under a cut again bc this is rambling and probably incoherent, but let’s go!!

my first thought is that i LOVED the episode. from the animation to the storytelling to the voice acting that made me cry...this was an absolute highlight of an episode. they packed SO MUCH into like 20 minutes and i have so much love for everyone who works on this show i just can’t, it’s so good!!

also i feel like i conveyed this in my last rant, but i think lilith is such a well-written character, and not to be That Bitch, but the fact that the majority of the fandom really just full on lost their minds on her is literally kind of hilarious. like...i am a female villain stan first and a human second. i am simply vibing ashvhbdfhvbhdb.

i feel like a lot of people have said this better than i could at this point, but i think there’s be a redemption arc coming. most of eda and lilith’s interactions prior to 1x18 really played up the love that still exists beneath the tension. the sisters still clearly love each other, but obviously so much has happened between them that they could never have had any kind of true resolution without the secret of the curse coming out. lilith’s been carrying her guilt for years and at least with it out in the open, they can maybe start to reconcile. (obviously this would need to be a very long process, and even if lilith is working hard for it, eda (and luz!) aren’t under any obligation to forgive her for anything) (also full disclosure: i’m a lil bit biased on the sister thing bc my current original project has a sister set in a similar situation with similar vibes to lilith and eda (coincidentally, i swear!), and i know i’m writing them a fitting reconciliation, so i’m hoping the show will give me the same lol)

also, i know this is something i covered in my last rant, but there is clearly SO MUCH MORE to lilith’s story. she clearly feels guilty and genuinely seems to want to try to help eda, but i think she’s been so completely under the emperor’s thumb for so long that it’s going to take a major betrayal by him to get her to realize just how far she’s gone. again, this isn’t excusing anything she’s done, but i think that s2 could really delve into the relationship between the sisters more (which could play well with an arc in which amity has to reconcile with the reality of the emperor’s coven given that lilith is her mentor). what was the final straw that split the sisters? what was their relationship really like before the curse?? can we get lilith eventually coming around to be the cool goth aunt of the owl fam??? @ dana terrace i want answers!!!

as for my thoughts moving into the finale, i’m predicting that lilith is going to realize that the emperor has been lying to her the whole time, and that she’ll make some kind of big sacrifice so that eda and luz can escape, whether it’s her position or her magic (or her life, but i really don’t think they’re going to go that way) and she’s going to have to figure out who she is without the emperor controlling her. (okay, random thought that i literally JUST had typing this out: what if she loses her magic and has to start learning with glyphs like luz or something like that?? i have 0 evidence to support that, but it’s just a thought i guess)

also, i don’t really have thoughts about this stuff, but i’m a fan of the ‘lilith is also cursed’ theory, even if it’s just a side effect of casting such a powerful curse or something like that. i’m not into the idea of belos being their dad (i’m still lukewarm on him being related to luz though. if the whole ‘camilia is azura’ theory pans out, maybe he’s camilia’s father and luz’s grandfather or something? idk, but i’m interested in how it’ll play out! i don’t think belos will be dying in this ep, so i think there’ll be a lot to unpack there next season. also just everything related to the palismen, and in particular owlbert vs lilith’s raven. give me more palisman lore immediately!!

really the tl;dr of it all is that i know hating lilith is the popular opinion rn but ummm....evil raven lady go brrr you know? i am TERRIFIED for the finale, but i’m also so beyond excited for it because i know even if it makes me cry (again) it’ll be well worth it, and i hope that the hiatus before s2 isn’t too long because i don’t know what i’ll do with myself lmao. (i mean, i do have a half-finished angst fic that i’m holding to finish until after the ep just in case, but i’m just gonna be vibing until the new season ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

so yeah, those are my thoughts as they stand right now. thank you so much for indulging me!! my roommate whomst does not watch the show is probably sick of hearing about it by now, so i love having an outlet to scream lmao. i don’t know when you’re reading this, but as of writing this, it’s only about 2 hours until the finale drops online, so i am Afraid and i’ll probably be face down on the floor immediately after i finish it. feel free to come back and scream after the finale bc i’m already sure i’ll be screaming!! anyway, luv you anon, and i suppose i’ll see you on the other side sbhbvdbavjs <33

#i literally cannot believe i am this on edge for a finale like i have predictions but idk they could pull the rug out from under me #less than 2 hours i'm bracing myself lmao #anyway thank you for coming back anon ilysm and i'm always down to scream about toh let's go!!#toh #asks #anon

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