I constantly think of Lucerys gaslighting gatekeeping and girlbossing his way through the war as a hostage to the Greens and I think it is too beautiful
Like, Larys Strong keeps getting in the way? Lucerys will pretend to be scared of him, create some fake proof of something nefarious he’s done (let’s the honest, the man has probably done it at some point) to show to the Council, and tell Aemond he feels unsafe with him around and that he wants his head
I imagine it would go somewhat like this:
“It was Larys Strong,” his voice echoes in the silence of the court room. Then, whispers break out, louder and louder until everyone is yelling.
The man in question looks surprised. He obviously never thought Lucerys would use this opportunity like this.
That is his problem then, for not realizing the beast that lurks beneath his skin.
“And what do you have to say for yourself under this accusation, My Lord?” Alicent asks. Her face has gone ashen, and Lucerys wonders how does it feel to have such an important ally be alienated like this.
“It is no true, of course. The Prince is probably mixing up his memories. He was in a very traumatic situation at the time,” Larys replies smoothly. It will not save him, even if this time he is innocent.
“I don’t feel safe around him,” despite his steely expression, Lucerys wills tears to well in his eyes. He grabs Aemond’s arm. “I want his head, qȳbor.”
It is not a request. It is an order.
Aemond unsheathes his sword before anyone can say anything else.
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I think for all the discussions we have of "everyone hears the jokes and the piano; after that, they stop listening" surrounding Louis, we tend to still simplify his connection to the piano.
Yes, it's very cute that he sings Clementine a little song when they first meet, and it's very cute that he plays a little prank on her while "tuning" the piano. It's super cute that they carve their initials into the piano and Clementine carves a heart around them. It's mega cute that he names his song he wrote after her when she confesses her feelings. Louis playing Don't Be Afraid at the party is, in my opinion, one of the best moments in all of TFS.
But here's the thing: That piano is Louis' heart.
I don't mean to go all metaphorical on you, but I'm dead serious—the piano is Louis' heart, and when you think about his arc and his romance route with that in mind...?
That piano is his one comfort in a world where the dead walk. It's been with him from the beginning of the outbreak. We know from his backstory that Louis wanted to take singing lessons so he could be a real musician, and his father denying him of that was what set him off to be a "vindictive fuckhead." Louis never got those singing lessons, and it's a very real possibility that Louis taught himself how to play.
Sure, others could've taught him; we know Minerva was musically talented, perhaps she showed him a thing or two. But learning piano, or any instrument, is brutal even with professional guidance. It takes hours of practice until numbness wears fingertips raw; dedication to memorize every key and finger placement to make music pleasing to the ear; self-discipline to keep going through every fumble, every failure, every single cruel thought of self-doubt; intelligence and a creative ear to write his own songs.
And yet, it's severely under-appreciated by everyone. It's annoying. It's distracting. It's unimportant. It's an excuse for Louis to mess around and not do any real work. He doesn't have any actual talent. The music and the piano are brushed off, unheard.
Yet, Louis keeps playing. He keeps singing. He keeps making jokes.
Creating music, the one thing he wanted so badly as a kid that he destroyed his parents marriage, was possibly the greatest comfort he had... a welcome distraction to disassociate from the horror and death happening around him.
It's bittersweet, like a purpling bruise that you can't stop pressing on; it hurts, but there's something else below the pain. The piano is out of tune and it's something that brings him joy... but will always act as a constant reminder of who he was and what he did, why he's at Ericson to begin with.
We first meet him while he's playing; Louis' heart is exposed, but is it really? Is he playing to his true potential? Louis hides behind the mask of a charming, charismatic goof. It's what is expected of him, so he plays a silly song intended to poke and prod at Clementine, to gauge a reaction. That's something we see him do at multiple points in episode one. In fact, we can consider a majority of episode one to be like the song he's playing when we meet him; it's mostly cheery or fast-paced.
Louis is able to soothe AJ with his "alluring" music after the kid bit Ruby is an indication that the two of them will share a bond. Louis is a natural at communicating and bonding with the younger kids [another talent that's overlooked] so it's interesting that he praises AJ for being a natural at piano, as well.
But the song stutters just a bit when Louis and Clementine are in the woods together, though; "There's only one guarantee: this moment. That's the only you got, only thing any of us got. Might as well enjoy it." ...Only for Louis to compose himself and send her away.
It's only when Clementine has a gun in her face, held by Marlon, that the music isn't fun anymore; it's rainfall and thunder and the words "I thought you were more than that" sung through the wind in a melody only Louis can hear.
Then Marlon's dead. The song is over, and reality has arrived.
I've talked at length about Louis in ep2 and his vote in the past. It's one of the most compelling things about Louis' arc and romantic route. It's a tragic mistake driven by trauma and guilt. It's people simultaneously telling him to shut up and telling him to be angrier than he is. Telling him to stop burying his head in the sand when he's never been more aware of everything happening. It's AJ peering up at him with pleading eyes that Louis can't stand to look at. It's Clementine wrapping his heartstrings around her fingers and tugging just enough to hurt, but not break.
Louis missed Clementine. He says as much when Clementine admits she missed him first. I don't even know where to begin with that! I can think of no other way to describe it other than they are half agony, half hope over this... and if you get that reference, you get a gold star. I just- the ache, the tension, the conflicting feelings of finally having a quiet moment to talk but Louis not being ready yet.
Y'know how someone carved "you suck at playing" in the side of the piano? It's something you might not initially notice while playing the game, just as Louis' insecurities aren't apparent at first.. but they're carved in him; never fully healed, still scabbed and bleeding... Until Clementine offers him a bandage.
She won't clean the wound for him, but she'll be there. She'll help him figure out how to do it himself so he can heal. She'll listen to him, not belittle his feelings or pain. She'll make an effort to know his keys and notes and practice playing his song until she understands.
When Clementine chooses him to spend time with him, it's a mirror of their first time meeting... but this time, Louis plays something real: a song he wrote, one that I believe he crafted during the two week time skip... a song he wrote with Clementine on his mind, for better or worse.
If the piano is Louis' heart, he literally asks her to sit there and try to tune it, which ends up being a joke but I say she's already tuned your heart, my guy. It's there before them, changed in the warm candlelight. He plays for her and opens up about how no one actually listens, but Clementine did.
And remember, this is the night of the raid. They don't know it's coming, but they know it'll be soon. Louis understands that he could very well die, so what does he do? He carves his initial into the one thing he's always had, and he asks Clementine to do the same.
I'm sorry, how are we NOT more feral about this? Prior to this scene, the only thing we see carved into the piano, into Louis' heart, is an insult. This thing that Louis cares so deeply about, this instrument that's become so intertwined with who he is... he wants to leave his mark on it just in case he dies. A reminder that it was his and he belonged to it just as much. Something so important, and he asks Clementine to carve herself into his heart where no matter what, they will be immortalized together in this moment.
And when Clementine carves a heart around their initials? Yes, his reaction is very cute and that's great... but she's not ashamed of him, or her feelings for him. She wants everyone who looks upon his heart to know that. She tells him how she feels and Louis is so giddy, and warm, and he names the song after her and I am going to start biting anything that moves, I can't-
Oh, and let's discuss the party scene in episode three, shall we? Y'know, where the heart covered initials are on full display? Where Louis tells the story of why he was sent to Ericson to everyone?
Louis is so... vulnerable. Sincere. Ashamed of what he did. This is the exposed nerve, the one he was so afraid of showing Clementine but there it is... and she doesn't reject him. Sure, she can say it's fucked up if you choose to, but she doesn't break up with him over it.
Also the fact that everyone sitting around him finally listens when he's at his most unshielded only for Tenn to ask him to play Don't Be Afraid for them after...? How do you not see the connection? Are you trying to make me cry? In that moment, Louis' heart was heard and appreciated and beautiful and strong and-
Listen. I am fine. I'm so normal about this. And fine. I'm fine.
But I also have to add that during the walk in episode four, if you let Louis choose what to add to the imaginary house, he picks a brand new piano because he wants a new heart to reflect the confidence and growth Clementine helped him achieve and because he loves her and AJ so much that wants the new heart to not just be his but also theirs and I am so fine with this, okay.
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I envision p!noah being like little buddy from the splatoon series
Owen throws him at people and he will bite them until they shake him off or go unconscious whichever is first
Will also probably dig stuff out of the ground that he can just detect for whatever reason
Apologies, I got splatoon brainrot really hard and all I think of when I hear “little buddy” is that little bastard salmon
I really need to play Splatoon 3. I love that series but I just haven't had the time or energy to get into the newest game.
And you're spot on there about p!Noah being Owen's little buddy, especially post "reveal".
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In Greece, these two would make a killer duo for the wrestling challenge since Owen could and would just scoop up Noah and throw him at the opposing team, encouraging him to run wild. And, oh boy, can p!Noah go wild.
Now, both Courtney and Sierra are pretty overconfident in their assured win for this challenge, since Courtney assumes that Noah and Owen are both relatively harmless (since she didn't witness the bus scene) and Sierra's too hyped up on Defending Cody Juice to really care about who she's facing off against - her main priority here is taking our Courtney for disrespecting Cody. Which is their downfall, since when Noah's launched towards the pair like a missile by Owen, neither of them anticipate the sheer carnage he wreaks upon landing. The two of them come out of the challenge with cuts and bruises aplenty, scattered bite and scratch marks still bleeding sluggishly as they scamper out of the ring tailed by a manic bookworm hot on their heels.
Courtney especially never would've thought the little guy had it in him; the wildness of his eyes and the shine of blood against razor-sharp teeth really painted a picture of a feral beast, as opposed to the generally well-kept and mild cynic she'd come to know. She finds herself genuinely fearing for her wellbeing, at least for a moment.
Then, as the girls exit the ring, Noah stops suddenly. He comes to a standstill at the edge of the ring, centimetres away from disqualifying himself, and all signs of his unhinged mania vanish like smoke. Noah lifts himself from the near four-limbed scampering he'd been doing into his usual nonchalant crouch, brushing the dust from his vest, patting down his hair and (reluctantly) wiping the speckles of blood from his nails and teeth. Regaining his usual composure. Then he turns on his heels to saunter across the ring back over to Owen, who at this point is used to Noah's scarily quick code-switching and greets his carnage-wreaking little buddy with a smile, a thumbs up and a big ol' hug! They won the challenge, after all, that's means for celebration!
(When Gwen comes back from her challenge, she asks Courtney what savage animal she was attacked by - as both Courtney and Sierra look about as worse off as Duncan, who was mauled by a bear - and Courtney promptly answers that she doesn't want to talk about it.)
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I imagine Owen and Noah's dynamic post-London would essentially be the two of them acting like a dog owner and their overzealous puppy, but they switch roles so often the lines get super blurred. One moment Noah's trying to bribe Owen into taking the fall for him with the sweet treats from first class (it works every time), the next Owen's daring Noah to do something dumb and stupid and just dangerous enough to pique his thrill-seeking interest. They share a braincell and neither of them use it.
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