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writingattemptsxx · 6 months

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Basic line out on how characters interact with kid Yuu

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Just what the title says. How I think characters will interact with my kid Yuu in my Au. His name is Finn.

His family (Grim + Dads):

GRIM: He pretty much still thinks of Finn as a henchhuman, but still has a soft spot for them. He’s kinder and softer on Finn because he’s a kid than he is to normal Finn. Grim slightly views himself as an older brother-ish figure. He does NOT like how the staff don’t trust him with you and how vocal they are about “having” to give Finn to him.

CROWLEY: Crowley is uncomfortable around Finn at first. Kinda a “what am I gonna do with this thing?!” feeling. Eventually, he starts to genuinely care for Finn and thinks of him as his son. He’s kinda a weird parental figure and lets Finn get away with a lot but isn’t there for the reasonable bits of parenting. Finn think he’s a fun dad.

TRIEN: kinda strict to Finn. Not as strict as he is with his students, considering Finn is 5, but still strict. Trien is the one to start an educational plan for Finn, not knowing when or if they can go home. He’s not the only one to be on it now but is still the main one. Finn tends to go to him if he ever needs a quiet spot or rest, and Finn sometimes likes to listen to his lectures and draw/color scenes.

CREWEL: Crewel likes to get him clothes of different styles (from actual style-y clothes [a favorite to give and get Finn to wear] to actual kid clothes, like t-shirts and shorts. Crewel has taught Finn some very basics of alchemy and showed him some potions and stuff, allowing him to “help” add stuff from time to time. Crewel is kind of a middle ground between strict and soft. He’s not as strict as Trien, but he doesn’t Finn run rampant. If Finn comes to him during a lecture, he usually gives Finn crayons and paper and tells him to draw (trying to keep him away from the potions and dangerous stuff), and if all else fails his tablet with movies and headphones. (Finn does have a tablet from Crowley, it is one heavily monitored, and two rarely given because the teachers don’t want him to become dependent on tech).

VARGAS: Finn is a pretty high-energy kid, so he and Vargas get along quite well. Vargas LOVES allowing Finn to run around, and if Finn ever comes to him during his classes, he allows Finn to “participate” (copy what the “big kids” do with corrections from Vargas here and there) off to the side. He makes sure Finn always has time to run around every day, and if the other staff (dads) think Finn is too high energy for them right now, they tend to just shove him on Vargas. He tries to keep Crewel in check with the clothes, making sure Crewel gives him stuff he can actually move around in.

SAM: Sam adored Finn from the beginning, finding him adorable. Sam also has experience dealing with his imps (demon? things?), so he was the first to take on a parental role (followed closely by the teachers), which was almost instantly. He likes to spoil Finn with small things and candy from his shop. He is a bit on the softer side with Finn, having difficulty saying no, but will put his foot down.

Heartslabyul:

RIDDLE: Riddle kinda panics at the chaos and energy of a kid, much less a five-year-old. Riddle tries to enforce the rules, even some of the Queen of Hearts rules, but a five-year-old isn’t usually one to listen or remember. Finn is a good and kind kid, so they do try to listen, but if the rules get too boring or too much, Finn just gives up. Riddle has been close to using his unique magic on Finn multiple times, especially earlier on, but was able to calm down and spare Finn from his wrath. Though anyone else who egged Finn on or did whatever with him, wasn’t as lucky. He is protective of Finn, seeing him as a younger brother (like most of the student characters), but Finn can just be too much for him.

TREY: He’s used to the chaos of a kid, having multiple siblings, so is usually in charge of Finn whenever he visits Heartslabyul. Trey also tries his best to calm Riddle down from just panicking about Finn and his chaos. He also tries to teach Finn how to bake and cook. He does most of the dangerous things, and the cooking time usually doubles or more with Finn, but Trey finds it fun and likes seeing Finn’s excitement.

CATER: Absolutely loves taking photos with Finn and being around Finn (an extrovert and a hyper kid). Cater has gotten in trouble with the staff for posting a photo of Finn (their kid) on his Magicam without their permission, so he asks to post a photo every so often and is rarely given permission, so he usually bribes for it with other pictures (“These pictures are nowhere else, and it could go away, so you may never have the snapshot of this moment. All you have to do is allow me to post the other photo.”) Cater likes introducing Finn to new music and just kinda messing around to the music.

ACE: Loves to mess with Finn and the staff are not usually happy with him because of it. He’s kinder to kid Finn than to normal mc, but he’s still himself. The staff got EXTRA pissed when the fight with Grim happened at the beginning of the story because Finn was there and he was a kid. Ace tends to be the one to rile up Finn, and encourage his chaos. He also likes to show Finn some of his magic tricks, though, much to Finn’s annoyance, never teaches him anything.

DEUCE: Tries to be a good role model for Finn and usually fails. He also tries to control Ace, again, usually failing. Not much to say about Deuce, because his relationship doesn’t change too much from cannon mc, except he is kinder and more “role model-y” around a kid than a peer.

Savannaclaw:

LEONA: Doesn’t really like kids, so tries not to interact with Finn too much. Leona is kinder to kid Finn than you might expect since Finn doesn’t remind him of of his brother like Cheka does, but he still isn’t outright kind. When Finn visits Savannaclaw, Leona watches from a distance to make sure he’s ok, while he runs around, and that’s pretty much it. There are a few times when Finn gets tired after playing with the Savannaclaw students and has taken a nap with Leona. Leona doesn’t get angry at the naps with Finn and thinks he’s more tolerable when he’s asleep.

RUGGIE: Ruggie is used to dealing with kids due to his living situation. When Finn’s at Savannaclaw, Ruggie’s the most active in his time there, playing with him, following him around to protect him, etc. Ruggie also does take a babysitter fee when he is asked to babysit Finn, and Finn doesn’t just visit. Ruggie also takes pictures and tries to sell them to the teachers, and is pretty successful.

JACK: He is an older brother, so he knows how to deal with kids. Jack isn’t that different from cannon, except kinder, especially when they meet. Jack tries to help get out Finn’s energy whenever he’s dealing with him. Not much to say about Jack, he’s pretty similar to cannon.

Octavinelle:

AZUL: At first Azul was kinda of neutral on Finn, he cared for Finn and thought Finn could help him with his schemes, but at the same time he had no clue how to deal with kids. Eventually, he caught wind of the staff willing to pay money for a picture of Finn, and now Azul does whatever he can to keep Finn around him. During working hours for the lounge, Azul sits Finn at a table in the corner and tries to keep him busy coloring or something. When the lounge isn’t in business, Azul does a lot of things with Finn. He’ll sit him at a table to do crafts, learn something with him, or do anything that will make a good photo and make Finn happy. Azul does care for him as more than a money maker, but earning money while keeping Finn happy is a win-win for him.

JADE: Jade cares for Finn and keeps an eye on him while waiting tables or Azul is playing with him. Jade kind of treats him like a less mood-shift-y Floyd, kind of using fun things as a carrot on a stick, and has an easier time because Finn is pretty trusting and generally happy when doing something even remotely fun. Jade’s heart slightly melts with how Finn trusts him deeply despite his mysterious nature. Just generally the most responsible one in Octavinelle when it comes to watching Finn. Also when Azul plays with Finn, Jade is typically the one taking pictures.

FLOYD: When he’s in a good mood, he loves dealing with Finn. He messes around with Finn, plays outside with him, or just anything, and is the one in Octavinelle to keep the kid active. Floyd will sometimes just skip work to play with Finn. If Floyd is in a bad mood, he just wants to sulk alone, and the other two try to keep Floyd and Finn separate. Floyd won’t ever hurt Finn but might snap at him. Floyd’s bad mood has been cured by Finn inviting him to do whatever he is doing with Azul once or twice, but usually, Floyd and Finn don’t interact when Floyd’s upset.

Scarabia:

KALIM: Absolutely loves having Finn over. Kalim has many younger siblings, so he knows how to deal with kids, especially with the parties he throws constantly, Finn loves coming over and that makes Kalim, so, so happy. Kalim is just Kalim and not too different than his cannon self, except slightly more responsible about Finn, and I do mean slightly, it’s Kalim.

JAMIL: He cares for Finn, honestly he does, but he wants Finn to stay away. He already has to deal with Kalim, he can’t babysit another. If Finn is calm and he’s not dealing with Kalim at the moment, that’s when they bond the most. Jamil will let Finn “help” (he's a hyperactive kid, he’s not helping much), and while it is bonding, he only lets Finn help with small things and things that can quickly be remade or redone. Just… poor Jamil…

Pomefiore:

VIL: Not as strict on Finn as he is on his dormmates, but he’s still relatively strict. Makes sure that, at the very least, whenever Finn visits Pomefiore, he looks put together and not messy. Finn has an easier time following Pomefiore’s rules than the rules of Heartslabyul because they aren’t as crazy, but it still overwhelms the kid from time to time. Vil cares for him though can sometimes just feel done with Finn.

ROOK: Adores having Finn around and the “beauty” of a child’s spontaneity. Rook likes to walk around and explore with Finn. Rook also tries to teach about the natural world and likes to share how there’s beauty in everything, though Finn doesn’t understand. He tries to help Vil in enforcing the dorm rules but tries to explain why in a way a child may understand, though he sometimes ends up explaining based on beauty which doesn’t help.

EPEL: Epel kinda views Finn as a bit of a respite from the strict rules of Pomefiore. Due to growing up in a big and tight-knit community, he knows how to deal with kids, though can get a bit carried away in indulging chaos because he wants some himself. Epel is very much an affectionate older brother type to Finn. Also teaches a Finn about apples, farming them, and their benefits. (He’s an apple farmer through and through.)

Ignihyde:

IDIA: Poor Idia… He can not deal with a child. He panics. At first, he put as much distance as possible, but Ortho started to interact more and more with Finn, so Idia did too. Eventually, Finn showed interest in video games and board games, and Idia couldn’t help but show him. (Special interest: activated) He still panics if Finn is too hyperactive, but he’s more used to Finn as time goes on.

ORTHO: He’s not the youngest, finally! Ortho loves having a little brother figure. He loves hanging out with Finn and is super happy when he shows interest in tech or even just Ortho being a robot. Ortho’s not too different than cannon, super bubbly and kind, just more older brother-y.

Diasomnia:

MALLEUS: He’s still a dork, just like in cannon. He tries to be a role model and big brother but doesn’t know much of how. Loves that Finn takes an interest in dragons and fae, and loves that Finn isn’t scared of him. Finn has no concept of him being super strong or anything, he’s just a big brother with horns who’s a dragon, so Finn loves to be around him and trusts him wholeheartedly.

LILA: He’s a dad. He knows what to do with kids. He adores kids and taking care of them. Finn is no different. Whenever Finn’s around, he’s probably taking care of him in some way. Loves to teach about fae, their history, and their traditions. He also likes to use his magic to have fun with Finn. I don’t know what else to say other than he’s a dad.

SILVER: He’s pretty similar to cannon, just more big brother-y, especially since his dad is taking care of Finn. He also tries to watch over Lilia while he’s watching Finn to make sure he doesn’t do stuff like try and cook.

SEBEK: He’s Sebek. He doesn’t change much. He doesn’t even lighten up on a kid. Malleus, Lilia, and Silver have to intervene and tell him to shut up. He gets affection for Finn over time (he doesn’t really care much in the beginning), but he’s still Sebek.

Extras:

CHEKA: Cheka loves visiting Leona, so to see another kid delights him. Cheka and Finn tend to hand out whenever Cheka is visiting. Finn is slightly younger, so kinda looks up to the young lion. Leona watches over both of them when they play and is upset to deal with two kids now, but is happy they keep themselves busy.

CHENYA: Loves hanging with Finn. Chenya finds him fun. Chenya isn’t much of an older brother figure because he’s not there much, more like an older brother’s friend. Finn finds Chenya fun and loves his disappearing abilities. Pretty similar to cannon.

NEIGE: Vil does not want Finn to be around him, and the ones who lost the VDC (except Rook) are also upset over it, so except during the VDC, Finn and Niege don’t interact.

Though Neige likes Finn and Finn likes Niege.

RAMSHACKLE GHOSTS: Finn finds Ramshackle while exploring alone (he escaped Grim, who at the time was panicking to find Finn). The ghost came out to talk to Finn, and we’re kinder to kid Finn (like not threatening him as a “joke”). The kid likes to visit Ramshackle, though the staff try not to let him, due to it being an abandoned building. The ghosts are caring for Finn and like to have fun with him.

#kid Yuu #writing #twisted wonderland #child yuu #all twst characters #heartslabyul #savanaclaw #octovinelle #scarabia #pomefiore #ignihyde #diasomnia #twst staff #extra characters #line out #finished #twst finn

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joyfuladorable · 10 months

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Same anon that sent the au where everyone dies again. I also had an au where Peni is the one to see Miles but uh...I have no ideas for it other than her admitting to him that she's tired and proceeding to cry a bit.

Do with this what you will.

Ohhh, now this?? Ohooooo!!!

Gwen still doesn't have quite the trust with the Society to travel to Miles' universe so they send someone who is familiar enough with the place and has tech to properly monitor and hopefully deal with the Disturbance!!

But Peni's only human, and Miles was a kind and a good friend no matter how brief, and she's Gwen's friend too and of course would want to pass along messages for her! I think she'd try at first to match how bubbly she used to be, maybe not popping up in Miles' room but maybe accidentally crashing the rooftop party, lol?

Like an auntie would be like "Whose kid is this?" once things settle after Miles and his parents' "Talk" and Peni would happily say she's Miles' friend from school and was just in the area to say hi. And wow what a sweet kid (where are her parents though, lol) we need to feed her immediately and Miles would probably appreciate a friend right now!

I don't think Miles and Peni would have as deep a discussion as Gwen had with him. Miles would definitely unsubtly ask about her, and Peni would absolutely share and reveal stuff about Hobie and the Society and tease Miles a little bit about that. Miles would eventually ask about Exactly Why Peni is visiting, and Peni would Hate having to Lie.

Her smile would get more strained. Then Miles would Ask if she's Okay. And Peni would sigh and say, "I guess... I guess I'm just Tired..." Miles is an only child, but he’s dealt with younger cousins and neighbors to feel like an older sibling sometimes. He knows when a kid needs to be offered a hug. Peni accepts it eagerly, crying cuz of everything that’s happened to her and oh he doesn’t Know he Doesn’t KNOW what’s happening to Him. And she’s crying and ready to Confess the Truth. Cue (in)convenient alert from SP//dr that Something's Happened.

Peni leaves. Miles follows.

They see what happens to Spot. Peni tries to salvage the situation, and Jess sends her to Pavitr's universe with immediate backup from Gwen, who'd probably been getting sneaky updates from Peni during her visit. Movie would play the same at that point, but with Peni being more prominent.

A big difference would be during the Miguel encounter, after he reveals about the "necessity of Canon Events," Peni would get another moment to talk with Miles, talk about her own dad and what happened in her universe. And Miles would listen, he'd sympathize, empathize, but that's not gonna stop him. Peni would see it in his eyes, watch him break out of containment, and she Wouldn't join the Chase.

Ohhhh! She could have a scene with Margo and be there to Distract her while Miles boots up the Go Home Machine. Then, she'd share a look with Margo when the option comes to stop the machine, and they'd nod to each other and let Miles go. These two tech Spideys would watch as Gwen was Fired and decide that they needed to do more to Help.

Gwen doesn’t need to say anything to recruit them. They’re already ready and willing.

#spiderverse #atsv #atsv spoilers #across the spiderverse #across the spider verse spoilers #peni parker #I do love a good canon divergence!#food for all you Peni fans #especially you Anon!

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true--north · 11 months

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The truth of these hollow words, Helsa AU

This happened sometime in the interwar period.

The Aren family lives in a rich, beautiful country mansion. The younger sister Anna is cheerful, lighthearted and romantic, and the older sister Elsa is serious, cold, always with her books that are her entire life. Because only they are her window to the outside world. She has been ill since childhood, seriously ill and has isolated herself in the mansion, not wanting to ever come out into the light.

Anna tried to cheer her up by saying that even with the illness life could be so much more, that she deserves to have it; but Anna did not know what kind of pain and self-hatred her sister was hiding inside. Elsa thought she could not belong. Her answer to Anna's tries was always Close the door, Anna.

One day Elsa was reading a magazine and saw the dating ads section there. One ad attracted her, although it was silly and teasing; an ad from "the Cursed Prince", as his pseudonym said. She thought she was going crazy, but nevertheless she wrote him a letter full of irony and sarcastic questions and asked her maid Gerda to send it.

Thus began her correspondence with the Cursed Prince; whose real name was Hans, and who was the son of a once ancient aristocratic, but now ordinary family. They wrote to each other about books, about their siblings and parents, about nature and spiritualism. They were the same. Elsa poured out her whole soul to him in letters (except for the fact of her illness. She wanted her little world of letters to Hans to be a happy fairy tale.)

She lived for this illusion of love — yes, she fell in love with Hans by letters, despite all her usual mantras of conceal, don't feel, don't let it show.

Hans also fell in love with Elsa. He wrote to her that he had never met someone who could understand him the way she did. Who could be so close to his heart.

He asked for her photo card by sending his own.

Elsa decided on a reckless miserable step – she sent him in response a photo card of Anna in her best evening dress, having fun at a dance party with her friends. She sent it as her own. Hans replied that he was fascinated by her.

No one knew about their epistolary romance except Gerda.

Elsa kept sending him pictures of Anna, putting on the guise of her younger beautiful, healthy and kind sister.

Soon Hans started talking about meeting in the city. Scared, Elsa said she couldn't leave the house because she was taking care of her parents and sister. Sad that he could not see his beloved, Hans suggested that he come himself to the Arens'.

Frozen with fear, Elsa stopped writing to him, even though it was painful; she missed Hans, but it couldn't go on anymore.

But one day, on a serene summer evening, the car stopped in front of the gates of the Aren mansion. Hans and his driver Kristoff got out of it.

In the garden by the pond, they noticed Anna feeding ducklings. Hans, smiling, walked towards her.

"In real life you are even more charming than in the photo, Elsa. I'm sorry I came without warning, but I suffered so much when you stopped writing."

He kissed the hand of a confused Anna.

"I was afraid that something had happened. Is everything all right, Elsa? Please, say something."

Anna looked from Hans to Kristoff and giggled nervously.

"But I'm Anna, Elsa is my older sister. And I see you for the first time in my life. Who are you?"

Elsa watched this terrible scene from the window of her room. In desperation, she decided to run away from home so as not to see Hans, so as not to burn with shame and fear. Everything has gone too far, she was a fool, she can't be free.

Overcoming the pain, Elsa slipped through the back door out of the house — for the first time in for ever — and disappeared into the forest.

#helsa #elsa × hans #modern au #mine #i give this idea to the world

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evanox · 2 years

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Random griefers headcanons pt1/?

Lucan is a combination of the mom and dad friend of the group, because I love my Gentle Giants, but also he'd be more willing to indulge in chaotic shenanigans than a Mom FriendTM would. Have you seen how he handled Sage in ch10? Lucan is the well-known stray cat who knows these streets like the back of his paw, and Sage+Balsam are the rambunctious kittens he ended up adopting. He's good friends with all the orphans scattered across the city and knows them all by name. The bartenders tolerate the griefers' chaos only because of Lucan's friendliness and how he compensates them for any losses.

Elowen will swear up and down that he's always been a little shit and he's still a little shit and you shouldn't trust his calm demeanor because he's a menace. Sometimes it's hard for an older sister to accept that her younger siblings have mellowed out, and sometimes you realise there's still some truth to what she says—right when you see his shit-eating grin and the bared fang.

If someone is being mistreated or hurt, Lucan is the first to step up and defend them, get in a fight if he has to. Enjoys the occasional spar too. Otherwise, he rarely gets into bar fights and sits back to watch his griefers have their fun, but puts his foot down when it starts to get out of hand or involve people who definitely didn't ask for it.

Sage joined the griefers before Balsam did, and it took a while for him to bring it up because he'd really rather someone stay around Tulsi all the time and make sure she's safe. When Balsam did end up finding out, he joined the gang too and the pair took turns watching over Tulsi. She did have surface level knowledge about what they were up to, but they made sure to keep her as far away as possible from anything too shady.

Sage and Balsam are good at fishing, both with rods and with their bare hands (the latter is more Sage's thing)—it was their only source of food while sailing to Porrima after all. One time Balsam pushed Sage off the boat as a joke, and Sage turned his dangling leg into a crime scene. Balsam still has the claw marks as evidence.

Compared to Sage and Lucan, Balsam stands at a stout 5'8". He never minded though; how else are you supposed to utilize your horns in a fight if you're a head taller than all your opponents?

Lucan is rather good at dancing, he just doesn't do it often because people always found it odd watching a 6'6" beefcake be that flexible

Sage, Balsam, and Tulsi had a habit of stealing small, unattended carts and using them to zoom through the streets of Porrima, and the boys would take turns pushing the cart. The habit continued even as they grew up, though Tulsi joined less often when she got busy with her blacksmith apprenticeship. Now Lucan would be the one making them give the carts back to their owners, but only after letting the pair have their fun for a few rounds.

I like to think that on Althtal, eating with your hands instead of utensils is the norm (same way we eat our mansaf lol). Even after arriving to Porrima, that habit stuck with the trio. When the Starsworn gather for dinner time, Felix—still kind of a stuck up rich kid—would call Sage out for how gross/unsanitary that was, then profusely apologized when he learned it's a cultural thing. (Tbh I wouldn't put it past Escell to have grown with the same habit but then having abandoned it in the name of fitting with the nobility of Porrima.)

It's a miracle Sage hasn't dislocated either of his shoulders with how often Lucan and Balsam slap him on the back. Sage can't get Balsam back because he always his pointy horns at the ready, and somehow, the harder he tries to slap Lucan's back, the more Sage's own hand hurts.

#sage lesath #last legacy #fictif last legacy #fictif #last legacy sage #lucan de bhaldraithe #last legacy lucan #last legacy headcanons #tulsi ain #last legacy tulsi #felix iskandar escellun #last legacy felix #last legacy escell #elowen de bhaldraithe

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swampgallows · 2 years

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crispy golden notes

1. weirdly interjects mentions of people eating/drinking and a list of what is being served. multiple times it feels superfluous especially because what’s described is usually just water, cheese, and bread. it doesnt add anything to the scenes beyond reminding the audience that the characters are mortal and need to eat sometimes (which can be a valuable sentiment to read about in the right context, but in most scenes is depicted in an alien and detached way, as if the audience is also not tacitly aware of the characters’ need to breathe).

2. girl do you have to hit a wordcount or what. is this a legal deposition? why do so many conversations have such thoroughly notated exchanges. again, there are times where you want to draw out a conversation in its entirety but so many points have been rehashed again and again in this book that they dont need a full callback every three chapters. you vowed when your brother was born that you would protect him no matter what. we get it. you dont have to reflect on the moment of his “perfect birth” every time the two of you have an argument, unless it is to display how disturbing your obsession with your brother is. like really, it’s fucking creepy.

3. siblings are, and have always been, written in the creepiest way imaginable. the fact that this book is dedicated to the author’s siblings is shocking considering the way sibling interactions are written is idyllic to the point of being unnerving. like, the hallmark channel would tell her to pipe down a bit. i thought the “my little moon” exchanges in war crimes were bad; the whole fucking family is “lady sun” “lady moon” “little moon” and “LITTLE LORD SUN”. and then the constant referring to anduin as the “little lion” and “now not-so-little lion” genuinely feels like some kind of a complex. i am still making my way through so we’ll see how it turns out, but i doubt a book written for the warcraft franchise will touch on the apparent obsession sylvanas has toward her younger brother and how she is later projecting it on anduin. it’s so glaringly apparent as the story continues that it makes me uncomfortable, as i feel it was entirely unintentional on the author’s part. maybe it’s because im not a parent and grew up in an age range too close to my other siblings to feel that sense of overprotectiveness so i’m interpreting it wrong. but others ive talked to also agree the chemistry is stilted or bordering on possessive.

at one point in the book sylvanas explicitly compares her attraction to nathanos as superseding the intimacy she has with her brother (lirath, by name). considering that nathanos is her romantic interest, this is a beyond bizarre comparison to make. sometimes i will say that my own younger brother is my favorite man in the world, but he is not on a rubric of comparison to a romantic or sexual partner. maybe this was her backwards way of saying sylvanas was discovering her love for nathanos was “more than a friend” or “different from a brother”, but “...She needed nathanos. ugly, blunt, sarcastic nathanos, who somehow understood her better than anyone, even lirath” is a weirdly tinged way to put it. again this is a more doylist read of “golden wtf are you writing” than a watsonian interpretation because, as i said, i dont think it was executed well enough for this nigh inc*stuous attachment issue to be written deliberately.

4. dovetailing on point 3 a little bit, several different characters have displayed genuine anger over kids growing up. like seething over lirath becoming a man, or that any of the windrunner siblings are no longer children, or that anduin is the aforementioned “no longer little lion” or whatever. i can understand the melancholy of the linear passage of time, and wistfulness of how “they grow up so fast”, but there are some points where sylvanas’ parents and sylvanas herself express near malice over the kids getting older, that they are no longer “perfect newborns”, and that they are starting to make their own decisions and have their own feelings and opinions and expect to be treated as adults. it happened enough times to stand out to me as being weird. like, you’re elves. you’ve had literally hundreds of years to adjust. get a grip sylv

5. i know he means “richness” in terms of familial stability but anduin crying to sylvanas that he “never had those riches” is fucking hilarious. you are LITERALLY KING my dude!!! battle of the bluebloods up in this LMFAO the girls are fighting!!!!!!! it’s just so fucking funny hearing sylvanas and anduin tearfully bickering over who had slightly less privilege: sylvanas, born into nobility to a tight-knit loving family separated by war and her teenage hijinks before being tortured beyond all recognition into a banshee? or anduin, forced to grow up too soon with a murdered mother and an absent, then psychologically-compromised father, but is also literally king? of a kingdom? AND theyre both white?

6. hard to figure out who this book is for. warcraft is rated T for teen but there is such palpable discrepancy between the events occurring and the tonality of them that is simultaneously immature and morbid. things that are supposed to be heartwrenching are just goofy and things that are supposed to be lighthearted and humorous are tepid and banal, inauthentic as canned laughs and formulaic like an afterschool special. well, at least sylvanas holding lirath’s dead body (spoilers) was actually sad, unlike anduin wrynn holding his own after the downright comical war crimes AU battle. foreshadowing is rough but keeps within its expiration date. however one periodically remembers (and the book refreshes this factoid in a quite hilarious fashion) that the backdrop of these stories of childhood love and loss is the tartarus-like prison in a sanctum of eternal damnation which gives the whole thing a dissonant atmosphere. and not in a clever ka applegate “kids crave these stories, actually” way but in a grimdark comic book “too far down the rabbit hole” mcu type way. this elf is telling stories about getting kicked out of a fancy party to a prince chained up in hell to persuade him to join the devil and it’s not supposed to be even a little bit funny? im not convinced this entire book isnt a bit

more as i continue. maybe

(second part here)

#sylvanas book spoilers #sylvanas book #world of warcraft /#wow spoilers /#blathering

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idle-flower · 6 months

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Dear Yuletide Author - 2023

Thank you for your time and attention, and I hope your wishes are granted this holiday season!

Likes:

I prefer plot and angst and adventure to fluff, though a nice warm fluffy scene can make a good dessert at the end of the pain and suffering. I lean more to f/f and m/f than m/m. I enjoy forbidden relationships and the agony of trying to keep one's heart secret. I love exploring the 'what if' spinoffs of a small change in a canon. I swoon for lovers who take dramatic risks to protect their loved ones. I sometimes use my blorbos as chew toys.

I also enjoy detailed description of clothing/furniture/jewelry/pretty things in general. Not just heaping up brand names, but sensory detail. Tell me what I'm looking at!

Dislikes:

Please avoid sweeping tropey AUs like 'what if noir' or 'what if everyone was in high school'. No excited rambling about pregnancy or babies. (Older kids are okay.) While I am okay with pretty dark stuff, please don't gorily torture characters to death on screen. If people gotta die, limit the icky details! I am generally not keen on crossovers. I dislike PWP unless it is exceedingly hot smut (see below). Please don't do gender swaps or secret trans characters unless I specifically mention it as an option.

Smut:

I don't require it, but I do read a good bit of filthy porn.

Kinks I find interesting: mild bdsm, pain mixed with pleasure, dubcon, sibling or cousin incest, strap-ons (for f/f not for f/m), futanari and other magical appendages (also generally for f/f, unless we're in a setting where 'man turns out to have tentacles' actually makes sense), teasing, teenagers, drugs/magic with interesting effects, people making terrible decisions due to being emotionally overwrought or really really horny, trying to stay quiet and failing, desperate urgency, pushing people up against walls

PLEASE NO: rape or painful sex that one party is not enjoying at all, inserting anything edible (licking off boobs is okay), aggressive face-fucking, choking, degradation, scat/watersports, bukkake, parental incest, anyone younger than teen, anyone being called "baby girl", emphasis on 'virgin blood' (some writers make it a huge deal with tearing pain and fountains of blood, please don't).

NOTE FOR TREATS:

Absolutely fine with people getting inspired by my ideas and doing whatever! I don't know if we have to actively say this this year but yeah if you want to have a go, sure.

Poison Ivy (1992 film)

Sylvie Cooper, Ivy

I was struggling through the confusions of puberty, Ivy was hot, this film left an impression on me. In a way trying to build any sort of happy ending for Ivy feels out of place, but on the other hand there's a lot of loose ends left after the story.

Throughout the film, there's a lot the audience never knows about Ivy, including her legal name. Did Coop know it? (Maybe, probably.) Did her father? (Quite possibly not). How do they handle all the legal responsibilities of her death? Were Ivy's stories about the aunt she was staying with true? How do they break the news? How does her funeral go?

What do Sylvie and her father have to say to each other about Ivy after the truth comes out? Does he admit everything that he did? (The movie seems to let him off way too easily by implying things are all Ivy's fault, when he ABSOLUTELY knew how wrong his actions were) How does he handle the guilt? How do they rebuild their relationship? Or, speaking of guilt, Sylvie kind-of-sort-of was responsible for Ivy's death, even if it wasn't 100% intended and she was not quite in her right mind at the time. She did push Ivy. How does she handle THAT?

What is school like, afterwards? What rumors escape? How does Coop handle them? Does this attract new weird friends? Does she adopt any of Ivy's traits as her own?

Or - what if Ivy survives the fall? Seriously injured, possibly paralysed, but alive? How do they deal with her, once the truth comes out? Do they cover up her crimes? Do they keep her in their home? What happens to their relationships?

Did Ivy ever care about Sylvie? Did she legitimately want to be friends before she started trying to seize hold of the world and the wealth that Coop lived in?

Sylvie ends up kind of pushed out of a lot of the middle of the movie so the film can spend more time perving over Ivy. More about her character and her thoughts in general would be great. We know she can be a troublemaker and a fantasist - who else has she been telling lies to? Or is the whole movie itself a lie she's telling us? And if so, what is the story behind the story?

For AUs, what would have happened if Ivy had met Coop when they were several years younger, so she couldn't get her hooks into Darryl as easily? What if they met at summer camp and Ivy was just as messed-up and needy but the situations were different? What if the movie plot is actually a fantasy younger-Ivy spins about her future to her fascinated-and-appalled friend, who then has a chance to react to it? Or what if Ivy tried to replace Sylvie rather than her mother? Or what if it's Darryl that she wants to kill, as revenge against the men who've mistreated her in her life? Or if it's Sylvie she really wants to be with, and we get some twisted bad-girls scenario where BOTH parents are conveniently disposed of so the girls can live together forever, lying to each other and the world and refusing to acknowledge the truth of what they've done?

IF YOU WANT TO WRITE SMUT: I'm on board with Sylvie/Ivy sex, I don't want to have to see Ivy/Darryl in too much detail. Brief reference if necessary is okay but not a focus.

DNW: Sylvie to die, Ivy to end up with Darryl

Roseanne

Darlene Conner, David Healy, Molly Tilden

I got some lovely happy romance stories for my classic couple last year - this year I want to explore the possibilities of the love triangle.

Molly had the hots for David. David thought she was cute but was devoted to Darlene. Molly badly wanted Darlene's attention and friendship, which eventually turned into rivalry when Darlene constantly rejected her. Darlene felt threatened (but did check out Molly's chest, if just for comparison). That much is canon; it doesn't take a whole lot extra to give Molly a crush on Darlene as well and make the whole mess more complicated. Is Darlene's rejection of Molly's need for attention really so different from the way she treats David sometimes?

I generally prefer drama and angst and sticking to a fairly serious character exploration but with these three I'm also up for some Wacky and/or Sexy Shenanigans. Obviously it doesn't have to end with a happy poly trio, but I'd be tickled if it did (especially if it takes some serious work to get there. suffer first, then happiness!). Or you can whump people around a bit if it makes the angsty longing more intense. Bittersweet is fine.

Some idea seeds:

Playing With Matches, Molly kisses Darlene rather than David, Darlene panics because she doesn't want to be either a lesbian or a homophobe, David panics because he thinks this means Darlene will never really want him, Jackie overhears the wrong things and panics more, chaos ensues.

Molly runs away from home and strikes a deal to hide out in Darlene's college apartment because no one would think to look for her there. David finds out.

Molly hooks up with David after Darlene dumps him for Jimmy, everyone's bitter and angsting about what they don't have.

David and Darlene are happily married stable adults living in Chicago and publishing a comic together. They are reunited with Molly at a comics convention and she confesses that when they were teenagers she was into both of them.

All three live together and raise kids, the perils of poly parenting. Especially if the rest of the extended Conner clan keeps sticking their noses in to complain about this weird situation.

Gen ideas: the three of them at a thrift store comparing their various fashion tastes as they pick through old clothes, working on a school project and battling over its direction and political messaging, or maybe the three of them doing roleplaying together (either tabletop or LARP, the 90s is peak White Wolf era after all, imagine them in a vampire game)

IF YOU WANT TO WRITE SMUT: Any combination of the three, teens or adults, is fine! No extra characters in bed though please. I have a weakness for outwardly soft and submissive boys who are much more dominant in bed, particularly if he's teased to the breaking point before pouncing and going absolutely wild (to everyone's enjoyment).

DNW: Anything from the revival/TheConners continuity. Please try not to have characters commenting on David being "emasculated" or Darlene only liking him because he's "practically a girl", the gender policing really bothers me. Don't make Jimmy actually appear because I don't want to have to think too much about that actor. Please don't make David gay even if Darlene leaves him for Molly. Don't make anyone 100% Evil.

Kushiel's Legacy

Phedre's Younger Sibling

Ever since someone mentioned it I've been intrigued by the idea of what happened to Phedre's little sister or brother, the one her mother was pregnant with when Phedre was sold to the Night Court. We know her parents probably died during the Bitterest Winter, of fever or of war, because they never tried to meet with Phedre once she was famous. But her sibling might never have even known Phedre's name or that she even existed, so they might have lived past that point without ever having a reason to contact her. What sort of life did that second child, four years younger than Phedre, have?

Phedre's coloring and defiant nature might read quite differently on a beautiful young man, a clever one with a knack for getting into trouble. Did he grow up bouncing along on slightly more successful caravans, learning scraps of Skaldi and Caerdicci as they traveled? Did he develop the business sense his father lacked? Did he beg caravan guards to teach him swordplay? Did a young love of travel combined with his parents tendency to bad fortune lead to him signing on as a sailor while he was still basically a child?

A boy might also be less likely to hear even a whisper of rumor of the lost older daughter. A boy might have been embraced as Firstborn and Heir by his father and never doubt.

A second daughter, however, one with a passing resemblance to Phedre but without Kushiel's dart and its mixed blessings, her existence might be more complicated. Looking at her might be a constant reminder of the shame of what happened with their first daughter. She might qualify for the canon of one of the Houses, but her parents might have felt themselves unable to return to the city of Elua to trade her, for fear of incurring the wrath of Cereus House. Might they have sold her somewhere else, even on the open market as a slave, as Phedre feared her fate might have been if her parents had been desperate enough? Or perhaps she was less pretty, less useful, and found herself abandoned at a temple of Naamah or Elua by her family? (We meet a Liliane at the temple where Imriel grew up and Phedre notes that was her mother's name. She seems a little bit young to be Phedre's sister but it's not impossible, and there's certainly a story in what happened to her if she is.)

But if a sister grew up looking a great deal like Phedre but without that divine spark, might she have been seized by someone precisely because of that resemblance? Someone who longed for the heroine but could not afford or entice the Comtesse de Montreve, so instead acquired their own little discount version? Or someone with a grudge against Phedre that they dared not act on, so kept a girl to punish in her place, never knowing it was actually her sister?

Or perhaps Phedre's wayward parents settled down a bit and matured and lived a respectable middle-class life outside the City of Elua, and this younger sister or brother lived a very ordinary d'Angeline life, until the Bitterest Winter. If they were sixteen and suddenly orphaned by fever, what did they do then? Take up arms to fight the Skaldi invasion? Go in search of more distant relatives? Philippe Cantrel had at least a father and two older brothers - we can assume Grandfather died and the inheriting elder brothers didn't remember Phedre's name or weren't paying enough attention to know she existed. But the child might have returned to the city seeking these uncles out of desperation. Or they might have been killed or enslaved by the Skaldi. Or all sorts of things.

I guess what I'm looking for here is a viewpoint on events within Terre d'Ange from a character who isn't important, isn't divinely touched, doesn't know exactly what all the great houses are up to, and never has any idea how closely connected they are to great events. Some dramatic irony and angst welcome. Possibly they live a short, unremarkable life and die alone. Possibly they make something of themselves, but without ever becoming rich and famous and royally connected. Whoever they are, Phedre never knows.

IMPORTANT NOTE: I have not yet read Cassiel's Servant! I may or may not have gotten to it by Christmas, and I was not taking anything in that book into account when making this request, this is a repeat from years before. I have no idea if any further light is shone on the subject, and I will likely not recognise any character from that book. If you haven't read it either, great! If you have, don't lean on it.

IF YOU WANT TO WRITE SMUT: go for it, just see my general smut-DNWs at the top.

DNW: Accidental incest between Phedre and her sibling. The sibling turning out to be a secret behind-the-scenes savior who was responsible for some major event in the plot. Either sibling ever figuring out that they're related.

Picnic at Hanging Rock

Hester Appleyard, Sara Waybourne

Note: I have not read the book or seen the 1975 movie, I've only seen the miniseries. You can draw ideas from other versions if you want but you'll have to explain what you're talking about or I may not get the reference.

First off, TV Sara is the cutest thing and I want to protect her (and, well, THAT obviously didn't work out). Second, I feel like the relationship between Hester and Sara is interestingly ambiguous (what isn't, in this show?). Hester seems both antagonistic and friendly to Sara in different ways, and it seems clearly suggested that she's reminded of her own orphan past. She sometimes wants to bond with her and othertimes wants to furiously reject her. She fears that Sara knows far too much, and she's tempted to tell her more.

The circumstances of Sara's death are very unclear, though we see that Hester knows something and is covering it up. What happened between them on that final night? Did Hester push Sara out in a rage? Did they struggle, up in the tower on a windy night, and a careless shove let Sara fall? Did Hester try to save her? Did Sara leap from the tower in despair? Did Sara try to climb out to escape and fall? How did Hester find out that Sara was dead, and why did she choose to deal with it in the way she did (pretending Sara had left but not disposing of the body)? What was she thinking? Or did she truly convince herself Sara had just 'disappeared' like the other girls?

So things that I'd be particularly interested in, storywise:

A depiction of the details and the drama of that final, fatal night

Any scene in which they really open up to each other and share secrets we didn't see in the series (which might or might not end with Hester threatening Sara to shut her up)

AU in which Hester adopts Sara herself and trains her to follow in her footsteps? Possibly where she uses Sara as a bridge to marry Mr Cosgrove? (Dark and mysterious things should still happen, just DIFFERENT ones)

AU in which it's Hester who falls to her death after their last confrontation in the tower. Sara lives! But she might be suspected of murder, especially if for some reason Hester named her in the will and left her the school. What happens to the school and Sara now?

Angst and drama are likely. Killing either or both characters is fine. Depictions of self-harm and child abuse consistent with the series are fine, but tag it. No sexual abuse depictions please.

Smutwise: Not with each other! In keeping with the style of the show, some light sexual scenes might work well for filling in character info (what IS hester's sexuality anyway? If Sara Lives, how does she eventually move on from Miranda?) but this is not a kink request.

DNW: Hester/Sara slash. A super-happy fix-it fic. This is a dark canon, so I'm okay with the threat of someone being pruriently interested in Sara or young Hester, but I absolutely don't want anyone to do anything sexual to Sara while she's underage. It's okay to imply that young Hester might have been molested or prostituted but I don't want to see it happen in detail.

21 Jump Street - Series

Harry Ioki

I always felt like Harry was shortchanged on the show in terms of how much screentime and attention he got. Maybe just because I thought he was gorgeous and wanted so much more. Because they showed less of him, I have fewer strong hooks to build off of for requests. I don’t really know what I want, other than an Ioki adventure during the first four seasons of the show. Some mystery, some drama, a chance for him to look cool, an excuse to dress him up nice? (Can you find an excuse to make him solve a mystery while wearing a snazzy dinner jacket, or some sort of lovingly-detailed punk getup?)

Romance-wise, I don’t want him in a full relationship with any of the main cast but I wouldn’t mind him flirting with ANY of them. I’m cool with writing an OFC for him to romance during the story, but I would prefer a reset button on that for the ending. Maybe she dies, maybe she’s the bad guy and he has to arrest her, maybe she doesn’t like it when she finds out who he really is, maybe it was just a fling, whatever. A nice poignant note to wrap up on. Given the time period and his personality, I feel like if Harry were bi, he'd be keeping it quiet, and I don't want a story that's all about the struggles of being closeted in the 80s, so if you really want to give him a boyfriend, that shouldn't be the main focus. Romance isn’t necessary either, but it’s nice to have someone to admire the boy. Even if it’s just Tom and Doug complaining that he looks better in that outfit than they would. (Background Tom/Doug bromance is fine too.)

Angst and bittersweet endings are very acceptable and common for the canon. I'd prefer at least a tiny spark of hope (for him personally even if not for the characters of the week) rather than total despair.

Please do not reference anything having to do with the movies, not even as a joke.

I'd actually prefer to skip the smut on this one and keep it in tone with what you'd see on television.

DNW: Harry sleeping with anyone in the main cast. Any main character dying. Gross-out jokes or otherwise not taking the premise of the show seriously. AIDS storylines. Any reference to the movies.

#yuletide letter #yuletide 2023

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evakant · 3 years

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— WHY DO YOU THINK I RETURNED?

#theuntamededit #mdzsedit #cqledit #wei wuxian #jiang cheng #the untamed #mdzs #yunmeng shuangjie #twin prides #jiang cheng's line right before 'who doesn't want to go back' makes this parellel hurt even more tbh #wei wuxian speak up and jiang cheng pay closer attention challenge #wwx on the left is dead man walking (waiting for the body to catch up). wwx on the right is dead man walking (body got better)#i spent longer selecting the color for jiang cheng's text than actually coloring the gifs #ALSO when i say younger siblings are older siblings sometimes the scene on the right could be an example lmao #do NOT tag as ship!!! siblings tags only like i do :)#fdstuff #fragifs #rs: in our next lives #tv

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zhongli-topper · 3 years

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Hi could you do scenarios for Childe & Zhongli’s fem s/o who’s insecure of herself for being a virgin?

a/n: thanks for the request, nonny! i wasn’t sure if you wanted to include sex scenes in this one, but I hope you still like it 💖

pairings: reader/childe, reader/zhongli

When the two of you first decide to become intimate, you aren’t quite sure how to tell your boyfriend that you’ve never had sex with anyone.

◈ Childe is surprised. A girl as gorgeous as you has never been with someone? No, it’s not a problem, but anyone you’ve ever taken an interest in has absolutely missed out. Well, good for him, he’ll have you all to himself.

Even as he goes on in that vein, you can’t help but feel a little insecure about your lack of experience. Childe isn’t being pushy about having sex with you, but he’s enthusiastic about it, and you’re growing more than a little nervous.

You can’t help but compare the difference. He’s been with a few people, but you’re the first person he’s serious about. It’s part of the reason he’s careful to take things at your pace, because he absolutely doesn’t want to fuck it up with you.

Even at this point in your relationship, you know how physically affectionate he is, and now, how he’s praising you for something you haven’t even done yet. He’s very handsy, even when you make out, and even (sometimes especially) in public. He’s not afraid to let the world know that you belong to each other.

If you’re feeling a little down about it, he catches on pretty quickly. He’s used to taking care of his siblings, and he’s good at comforting you and reassuring you.

“…They’ll never know what they’re missing,” he says, a smirk on his lips, “’cause you’re all mine.”

He’s holding you on his lap and nuzzling into your neck, trailing kisses down your jaw. You’re flattered, but also nervous—with your lack of experience, you don’t have any point of reference. Would you even be able to satisfy him?

He notices you’ve gone quiet. “Babe?” he asks, squeezing you lightly around the waist. “Talk to me. Is it bothering you?”

“…What is?” you ask, unwilling to admit that you were afraid of disappointing him.

“That you’ve never slept with anyone.”

When you look away, that confirms his suspicion. He lifts his head from your neck and presses his lips to your forehead.

“Baby, you know that doesn’t matter to me,” he says. “I’m serious about you.”

“I know,” you say, chewing on your bottom lip, “but still. I’ve… never done it before. I don’t know if I could… please you.”

He frowns at your words before shaking his head and looking you in the eye. “I love you,” he says. “No matter how much experience you have. Fuck, it even makes me happy that you’re willing for your first time to be with me.” He kisses you on the cheek, close to your lips. “As long as it’s with you, I know I’ll have fun.” The cocky tone creeps back into his voice as he looks you up and down, the want clear in his eyes, causing you to blush.

“Childe…” you protest, close to laughing under his affectionate caresses, and he does laugh, pulling you closer to him in his arms.

“Whatever you want, babe, I want it too,” he says, and kisses you on the lips, softly and quickly enough to tease and make you chase after him when he pulls away. The smirk returns to his face when you follow, and he whispers,

“But I want you so damn bad. You know that, right? Whenever you want… I’d just love to see what you look like naked in my bed, and know that nobody else is ever gonna see you that way too.”

◈ Zhongli knows that his long, long lifespan is cause for many uncertainties when it comes to having a relationship with a mortal like yourself.

Zhongli has never given you cause to be insecure. He’s always been gentle and loving to you, always mindful of your boundaries.

Despite how long-lived he is, he has relatively little experience. He’s a man that believes sex is for people who love each other, and as such has never involved himself in casual dalliances. The last person he had been with is Guizhong, a long time ago.

However, you haven’t been like that with anyone. Maybe you were interested in some people before, but it had never progressed that far. Zhongli would be your first, and you were worried you wouldn’t measure up, especially to someone like the Geo Archon.

It takes a long time before he brings up the idea of being physically intimate in such a way. Zhongli is patient and likes to take things slow, especially in romance. If possible, he’d like to marry you first before you have sex—such an act is sacred to him, and the depth of your commitment is important to him.

When the time comes that the both of you decide to go all the way, you can’t help but feel less than confident. You weren’t his first, and how could you, an inexperienced mortal, possibly measure up to a god?

“…”

Zhongli could tell that something was troubling you as you clenched your hands in your lap, looking down at them instead of him, when the subject of sexual experience came up. He had told you about his previous wife, and when it was your turn, you admitted to him that you had never been with anyone in a quiet voice.

He is, admittedly, a little unsure himself. He knows you must be uncomfortable with the enormous difference of life experience between the both of you, and some small part of him feels a little ashamed, of being so much older than you, afraid that maybe you would rather be with someone more equal to you, a younger man less time-worn than he. However, it’s hard for him to admit, and despite his misgivings he loves you, no matter your relationship history (or lack thereof).

“My love,” he tells you, gently twining your fingers with his own, “if it makes you uncomfortable, we need not do it. I will never force you to do anything you dislike.”

His eyes and voice are warm as he holds your hands, trying to let you see his sincerity. You look up and shake your head slowly.

“No, I want to do it… I guess I’m just worried,” you say. “I’m only human. How could I…”

He lifts a hand to cup your face and meet your eyes with his. There’s a gentle smile on his lips, but something sad in his gaze, and you furrow your brow, trying to figure out what it is.

“Do not worry about that, darling,” he says. “You could never disappoint me. I only wish that I could be more suited for you.”

“What do you mean, Zhongli?” you ask, genuinely confused.

“I often wonder if you would rather have someone… younger than me. More like yourself, not...”

You almost laugh when he mentioned his age, but the doubt in his eyes is real. You shake your head, seeing that your beloved Zhongli was, in his own way, anxious about it. “I love you Zhongli. Whether you’re a man or a god doesn’t matter to me.”

He smiles at you, touching the hand on his cheek with his own. “And I feel the same for you, my love. So, do not be nervous.” He pulls your hand away from his face, only to kiss your knuckles lightly, a perfect gentleman. “Whenever you are ready, I will be happy to have you.”

#childe x reader #zhongli x reader #childe #zhongli #tartaglia #tartaglia x reader #genshin impact #genshin x reader #genshin impact x reader

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jjheejz · 3 years

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This is an ongoing update about the case from start to development. List of all related posts can be found on this blog's pinned post (link provided at bottom of each post as well).

Updates: Minor details

Originally posted on 17 August 2021

Debunking the Hand

Details everything so it's lengthy. TLDR, skip to starting paragraph first word that's in blue. Still, reading everything gives a broader picture.

Background

In 2019, ZZH went on an acting competition show called: Stand By Me《演员请就位》(link)The competition involves having actors to play certain roles in a short movie (about 30mins) directed by the panel judges cum esteemed Directors.

ZZH was chosen by Director Zhao Wei and he starred in the short movie: Brother《哥》(link) The genre (as provided in link) is tagged: Sibling, relationship, mental illness, brothers

1. [Left image] Look at the timeline the variety show was aired, and then the date the short movie was released, 7 December 2019, is the aired date of the Movie.

2. [Right image] The other main role of the movie: Wilson Wang/王森

The Original Gesture’s Meaning

(Direct links to watch the movie at end of post)

1. Hand raise meaning

Timestamp (from top to bottom, left to right) - 2:11, 01:37

2. “我等你呢” (I waited/wait for you)

Timestamp - 24:31

Original post of the image

The image originally used to refer the pose gesture was this, the part boxed in orange is Zhe Jiang Memorial Hall of Revolutionary Martyrs:

The original post where the image was from on weibo, both left and right are same pictures, different focus points:

Left image focus: Date of post, caption of post, comment on post, and each post picture given a number

Right image focus: The collage pattern

[Left image] Firstly, the date the movie aired was on 7 December 2019, ZZH posted the image 5 days later, on 15 December 2019.

[Left image] Secondly, the caption says "I waited/wait for you". (There is technically no past tense/present tense in Chinese) For international fans, you may compare the movie screenshot above, with the caption boxed in red, and the Chinese words ZZH posted + bottom part of the image: Wilson (王森), the actor who played the older brother in this movie. "我等你呢"

[Left image] Thirdly, the hand raise itself, is in reference to the movie, his older brother. Referencing from above, his older brother (in the movie), raises almost a straight vertical 180 - pic 9, while ZZH's circulated image is lower. Because he was, and could be metaphorically reaching for his brother's hand (see picture above).

[Left image - reference below] I just realised this myself. Lastly, Pattern A: look at the spread of the image in the post. There's a distinct pattern: 3 selfies in the middle (pics 4-6), pics 1 & 3 with his buddy + corresponding inverted triangle pic 8 (no duplicated background or pattern), pics 2, 7, 9 are half body shots, of which 2 out 3 was where the Memorial Hall was.

(duplicated image below for easier reference)

[Right image] Pattern B: The whole image itself looks like ZZH is sitting on the stairs, under a shelter. The center image is like the close up version of the 8th picture.

5-6 different locations, with the right lineage, to create a post with a bigger picture, no coincidence works this way.

Remember that ZZH is a very detailed actor, there is a reason why Ah-Xu was so well liked. That's why from this, it can further amplify he's very detail-oriented, see below for his line of thought in curation:

In that case, if it's planned, why the location then? (Please open up and zoom in to both right and left to see clearly)

Look at pic 2 again, the railings is horizontal, a perfect sense of link for 1 and 3, through his hand. Look at pic 7, there's also the railings, but he stands in the middle, creating a leeway for a 90°, look at pic 9, the angle is taken from a left to right perspective = he needs railings because it is flexible to take straight lines, with a person.

Being on weibo long, and having followed his account over the past 5 months, his curation of photo pattern is prevalent, it usually always has a message (which is why LLD have sweets each time they posted sth, both GJ and ZZH's spreads can create meanings).

What he needed was just the railings, but it happened to coincide with the Memorial Hall, so this could just be an unlucky coincidence that the photo was taken with resemblance of the Nazi hand, and with the Memorial Hall in the background.

Remember, also his Brother reference.

If there are still some, not convinced, allowing room for doubt of purpose, then let the Immoral Media/ Internet Water Army(link) prove to you:

Immoral Media/Internet Water Army's circulation

What the Immoral Media was spreading (just a collage of 6 top few posts that came out from the search results):

Note that none of it had the full spread like the above, no proper context at all.

This was what was in circulation, it was straight up just that one picture compared side by side to the Nazi gesture (ignore the Chinese). See how they conveniently narrowed the scope of issue and cause a fuss?

Conlusion

We have the Internet Water Army/immoral Media (link above) to thank for, for increasing the debunk percentage.

Bonus (not really, just the movie link)

(A warning/PG18: The opening of the scene is on a bed, ZZH is a part of it. But nevertheless it is a very heart-warming short movie, if you need to cry more - it can actually ironically help alleviate, give this a try, it also shows the spectrum of character ZZH can do and his acting skills)

For those who understands Chinese, Youku still has it here.

For those who do not understand Chinese, I’ve english subbed it here. (Please inform me if you have problems accessing it).

*Cultural language note: In English, Sis/Bro is a reference to both older and younger (depending the person), In Chinese, Ge Ge (Guh-Guh) is older brother, Di Di (younger brother), Jie Jie (older sister), Mei Mei (younger sister).

This addressing can be used for non-blood related but close people eg. an older but same position colleague, buddies. Sometimes surname is added, eg. surname of Zhou, “Zhou-Ge” (Older brother Zhou)

Usual usage is usually a single word eg. “Ge!” (older brother), “Di!” (younger brother), when saying in double eg. “Ge Ge”, it usually has a cute annotation

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mlm-mod-taka · 2 years

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Hello I can have Byakuya who meets the parents of his gn reader and is surprised at their similarity to the parents of the reader. Mom looks like Byakuya in appearance and behavior, and the reader is like his father, who is a very calm, gentle person.

YOU BOTH BEING LIKE YOUR PARENTS • byakuya x gn reader

i really do hope that i got this request right, please dm me if i misread anything! my exams and projects are finally done, which means that i will officially be posting more again! i hope this was worth the wait, thank you all for being so patient with me!

tws/cws: mentions of arguing, but in a playful context.

|| -> mod taka <3

he's heard stories of your mom, most probably. the man probably made the connection that he was similar to her when you told him more tales about her doing many things that seemed understandable or relatable in byakuya's eyes.

even if you didn't say anything about your mother to him, he would instantly make a connection that he looked like her. when you show him a photo of her, he instantly notices that he looks like her other child. you two could be mistaken for siblings if you had a stronger resemblance to her in appearance.

however, instead, you look exactly like your dad. thats the second thing he notices, an older version of you right at the side of your mother, holding you in his arms with a calm but happy smile on his face. he's sure that if you brought your dad in for fathers day, everyone else in the class would think he was your older brother instead.

it really did surprise you at first, but once you got used to it, you found the humor in it. your boyfriend looks and acts exactly like your mom, while you have been told by many other people that you are the splitting image of your father. what a small world, huh?

the only downside is that now you sometimes mistake byakuya for your mom. insert a flashback scene to that one night where you asked why your mom knew where byakuya lived, all while you were getting some milk at 4am and then it turned out to be your beloved boyfriend. you only really noticed the difference because he turned around and spoke to you.

its even more confusing and entertaining when he first met your parents. your dad accidentally hugged byakuya from behind multiple times because he couldn't tell the difference at first. it was really funny to see the puzzled look on his face when his "wife" sounded different while they were talking to him.

the dinner that you two had with your parents was also very amusing. your mom and byakuya switching rapidly between agreeing with each other and being on each others throats, only being held back by the urge to be polite since they were just meeting, while you and your dad sort of just sighed together? absolutely hilarious.

"history repeats itself." your father says this alot whenever his wife and your boyfriend were too distracted to be listening by arguing over topics. you realize that he's right, actually. you two being a couple that acts exactly like your parents? sounds like destiny really took their sweet time with your love life story.

by the time the dinner ends, your mom has a positive opinion on your partner. she admires him because he reminds her of a younger version of herself, and approves of his love for you. of course, no one will truly be good enough for her child, but if they can settle with someone like byakuya, then so can she.

your dad is always happy, and this includes your relationship with him. he thinks its sweet, seeing the modern equivalent of him and the woman of his dreams. it makes him feel weirdly nostalgic, as well as joyful. he'll never forget what his relationship with your mother was like at first, and he hopes that you will experience the same bubbly feeling.

everything ends in great terms! byakuya enjoys the company of your parents, your guardians approve of him being your s/o, so everything ends very nicely. you guys now regularly have a game night every week, in which you and your dad look in horror as byakuya and your mother get more and more competitive. its bizzare, but thats why you love it so much. you wouldn't have it any other way.

#📍 dismissal ∆#byakuya togami #byakuya #byakuya togami x reader #byakuya x reader #danganronpa x reader #danganronpa headcanons

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gb-patch · 3 years

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Ask Answers: June 6th, 2021

I’m back with more ask responses! You can also check our Frequently Asked Question sheet if there’s something you’re wondering that’s not answered here.

FAQ Also, if you prefer to just see the main posts without all the asks/reblogs, feel free to follow our side account instead: GB Patch Updates Blog

Thank you for the patience with these questions ♡

Hey in very beginning of step 3 in the scene where Mr.Holden had a thought dancing on the tip of his tongue but he kept it to himself after MC and Cove were being cute (idk if it makes a difference but this is when they're dating)... Can we know what he was thinking/ wanted to say? It's been bugging me lol

He would’ve gone into a “look how much you’ve grown”, “your dad is so proud of you”, “I’m so glad things worked out with the MC”, and etc spiel, haha. But he resisted the urge to fawn on his baby boy, at least for that scene.

If we planned to move away for college/future plans in step 3, is it implied that MC and Cove would have a long distance relationship for sure? Could MC have convinced Cove to come with them? How is the dynamic of their relationship going to be addressed in Step 4, if that makes sense?

Cove is willing to follow the MC where they went after everything is settled for them there, and if they’re sure they want him to come! You’ll get to decide how things shook out during those transitional years just by making choices about it during the opening prologue of Step 4.

Hi! First off, how does it feel to have created one of the best games when it comes to inclusion for lbtq+ peeps? I've never felt as validated with my identity and sexuality when playing a game and I'm seemingly not alone ♥ Second, and this might be a little too specific, but what kinds of drinks does Cove like as well as dislike? Thank you, you're the best ♥

Thank you for very much! It’s really nice to hear the game felt inclusive. Cove likes regular water and fruit juices/smoothies most! He dislikes coffee and cola, and he’s not super into most teas either.

Hi, may i ask what gb patch stands for? Specifically the gb part lol

It stands for my old, silly username I used in places like Neopets as a kid, aha. The company name wasn’t super thought out since it was originally just me making VNs as a hobby. Luckily, “GB Patch” kind of seems like it could mean something reasonable, so I didn’t have to rebrand when it did become a more serious, commercial group.

If we chose to not propose to cove in the step 3 dlc would he propose or would the mc propose in step 4 or the wedding dlc?

Yeah, you or Cove can propose in Step 4 if you’re not already engaged! The Wedding DLC takes place after the engagement so the proposal scenes aren’t there.

will you guys announce if the early access for the new game is out on patreon ?

When beta builds of Step 4 or whatever start coming out on the Patreon we will mention it here on social media too.

Heyy I just had a quick question about Baxter if that’s okay :)?

I saw in an ask+answer that it’s possible to casually date Baxter In step 3, but what leads up to that? I have the step 3 dlc and I’ve tried playing them In a different orders and ways but it doesn’t seem to get anywhere ^^;

The Step 3 DLC is Cove-based because he’s the default guy. There’s a separate Baxter romance DLC that’s not out yet. That’s where you can get him to date you. I’m sorry for the confusion!

Will we ever get any LI's or side characters with physical disabilities or deformities? I think your games would be a great place to have them in since they're always so accepting and safe!

Yeah, we do hope to have representation for that in future projects ^^. Thank you for the confidence in us.

Is it possible to get Cove to take the bed and MC to sleep on the floor?

Not in Step 3, I’m afraid.

So, I have played the prologue of Our Life countless times and I haven't gotten the [Your Life] achievement, why is that?

Steam sometimes isn’t connected properly when an achievement unlocks and so it remains locked on your account. If that happens, unfortunately getting the scene again won’t unlock it. The achievement becomes inaccessible because the game thinks you already have it. Playing with the same Steam account on a different device or fully deleting your game data (more than the only the save files) are the only work arounds we’ve found.

Since when you talk with Jeremy in step 3 it's mentioned he goes on dates with someone (which assume is JB because who else would take this boy on dates) that makes him happy, does that sort of make JB and Jeremy the canon relationship in the first game?

The default for XOXO Droplets is that JB casually goes on dates with each of the jerks! Shiloh would’ve been harsher if Jeremy was the only guy getting her attention, haha. But the player can change that default by dating just one person the whole game for their own story and who she ends up with for real has no default.

Hi, hello! Huge OL fan, thank you so much for the wholesome content, it was very much needed during these times. Managed to get several people to join team Cove, so that's very exciting, I always have people to fawn over him with. I have a little question and I'm sorry if it was asked before, but does it ever come up in the game what Cove has told his mom about us? (who knows, with so many options, one can miss it) Or, alternatively, will it come up in the Step 4 DLC?

Thank you very much for sharing the game with people <3. It’s really great to hear people are liking it. Right now that doesn’t come up in game. Kyra is willing to keep her mouth shut and Cove isn’t gonna have that conversation either. At least not when he’s younger, but yes, perhaps when he’s a fully grown big boy in Step 4 you can ask him about it.

I’ve been thinking about this ever since it has been confirmed that there would be two love interests for OL2, would there be the possibility of forming a polyamorous relationship with both love interests? I’m sorry if you answered this previously, I’m just curious.

We are considering it, but it’s not a guarantee yet. It’d be really great to have but it’d add so many extra alterations that’d need to made, aha.

Hello! You mentioned how Cove would be uncomfortable with kids at 23, but how old would he be when he’s comfortable with having/adopting kids? (Same goes for the other LI’s.) btw, love your game!!

He’d want to be at least 25, but even older would be good. Derek would want to have kids when he and his partner could reasonably support them, the age itself wouldn’t matter. If they were doing good at 22 and wanted kids, he’d be up for it. Or they could wait until their 30s or whatever. Baxter is also more of a “when it feels right” guy rather than having a specific age requirement. Cove is just especially wary of being a young parent because of his own parents. I’m happy you like the game!

does step 4 immediately play after you press "end summer" in step 3? or is there another button/transition (like the story text thingy) before the epilogue begins? what happens after the epilogue? roll credits? 😂

Step 4 will have transition section always and there will be an extra button, if you own the Derek or Baxter DLC. By default the Cove-based version of Step 4 just plays once Step 3 is over. However, having the other guys’ storylines will mean you get to pick which version of Step 4 plays; Cove Step 4 (the basic one), Derek Step 4, or Baxter Step 4.

Happy pride, thank you for all you do for us🥰

I have a quick question though, I recently got a MacBook after my old windows computer broke, and now steam says I cannot download it, but it has no issues with other games, what can I do to download it?? I’m sorry if my English is bad

Happy pride month! Unfortunately, Our Life isn’t available for Mac on Steam right now. To be an approval application Apple requires having special notarization and we as a small group haven’t gotten that. Itch doesn’t care and lets us release the game for Mac there anyway, Steam does care so we’re locked out of putting the Mac build up on their storefront. Feel free to email us and we can try to help the situation out further!

[email protected]

Hello! I was jus wondering if the Baxter and Derek DLCs are still happening? I haven’t heard anything about them on here or patreon in a while so I just wanted to make sure ^^

They’re still coming and we just released a new sprite sketch on the Patreon for the Derek DLC c:. But right now Step 4 is still much more of a priority. Once that’s closer to being done we’ll focus way more on sharing previews for the other guys.

is it possible to tell cove you love him (platonically) at step 3 fondness/selecting him as basically family? i just love the mc and liz sibling interactions and it got me wondering about it (especially if you've selected that option)

You and Cove can be as close as family, but there’s not a specific scene in Step 3 where you say “I love you” in a family context. But there’s always Step 4~

do you intend on ever adding a collectors mode to Our Life? Like a way to collect achievements and CGs for the gallery without it effecting any save files?

We weren’t considering it before. But if a lot of players would find that helpful, we could start thinking on that!

Sorry if it's a silly question haha, but (in crush/love) is Cove really aware of how cute and cuddly he seems to MC? If so, what does he think or do about it? Or does he just ignore it?

He isn’t particular aware. Cove never truly stops being surprised that the MC is interested in/attracted to him, haha.

Would you say that the alone ending of xoxo droplets is worth playing again to get?

Nope, haha. The goal is to make friends/get a boyfriend and so the alone ending is kind of the bad ending for the game. Though there is a consolation prize if you get it by accident.

Is there any possible situation which would ever prompt Pran to bake for his girlfriend? Like I know it's unlikely I mean even if JB broke her leg somehow I'm pretty sure he'd still be like "I considered baking you a cake and doing the frosting the way I think looks interesting but you don't deserve a cake, no one does." right but also ahhh it would be super nice if some day he just surprised her with baked goods one day out of nowhere. JB would be so shocked it would be cute. So is there any possible situation where that could/would be a thing that he would do?

He might bake out of spite, like if he felt he had to prove her wrong on something. Or if JB used some good reverse psychology on him. Or he might do it in a relatively nice way if he could make his GF so shocked by the kind gesture that his amusement with that overrode his insistence on not being sweet. Pran is very difficult in high school, aha.

Is the "one route (where) it can be seen that Everett will drop his seemingly eternal waging with Jeremy pretty easily and can start getting along without thinking much on it" the Lucas route? I'm curious!

Yep! Everett will side with Jeremy if it’s between him and Lucas.

Hi I hope you guys are having a great day :) I just had to ask how Cliff would feel about Cove's partner/fiancé Mc calling them dad whether it be accidental or otherwise and secondly I also wanted to ask how he would feel about being asked to be the one to give the mc away at their wedding.

He would be very touched and excited! I hope you have a good day too :D

Hello! I saw an ask relating to whether Cliff "moves on" after Cove's grown up and stuff (and he stays single), but what about Kyra? Will she be with anyone else or will she stay single?

She does start dating again, but she takes it slow.

Hi! I absolutely love the art for characters in OL and I wonder is this fine to draw my MC in same drawing style and upload online later? Is this something artists would be okay with? Thank you!

Yeah, you can certainly do that C:

Hey there!

I wonder if I'm just being stupid here.. Is Step 4 a DLC? And if so, where can I find it? I can't seem to find it on Steam :< Thank you!

Step 4 is a free epilogue! It’s not done yet, but once it is finished you’ll just update your game file and Step 4 will be there after Step 3 ends.

hi! are step 4 and the wedding dlc two different things?

They are. Step 4 is a free epilogue that’ll be a default part of the game once it’s done, the wedding DLC is an optional paid expansion that takes place after Step 4.

Why did Baxter not receive a step 2 sprite seeing how he shows up later

Sprites are time consuming to draw and take money out of the budget that could’ve gone to other things. His tiny appearance in Step 2 wasn’t worth all the effort to make a sprite, aha.

I just realized, what happens if if you get the patreon exclusive moment but at a later date, when you don't have the membership anymore, it's updated (like a bugs fix update for example)? Would you have to get the membership again?

You would have to get the membership again to redownload the build. But there’s very little chance there’s going to be an update once it’s been out for over a month. If a build gets released with errors, players catch/report them within the first few days. So by the time the first subscription period ends, any problems that were noticeable would already have been fixed. And we’re certainly not gonna be adding new content to it once it’s been released for a long time. There’s no need to worry about missing out on something worthwhile in the future if you cancel your membership. It’s being made with the idea in mind that many players are gonna be getting it and then going.

Hello! Wanted to ask about gaming choice in step 3? Once upon a playthorugh I got the option to buy Cove a bracelet for his graduation present. I played the same basic character again and that option wasn't there anymore. I'm not sure where I went wrong. My Cove wears a bracelet on each hand and my MC is into fashion and jewelry. Do I need to put an earring on him or? Sorry, love your game so much.

He also needs to have liked bracelets in Step 2 for that to be considered a good gift option for him. Sorry for the confusion! I’m happy you love the game :)

Is Step 4 being released at the same time as the Wedding DLC or will the first come before the latter? Thank you!

I’m not sure. Ideally they’ll come out at the same time, but the wedding DLC has a lot of art to get done and we may have to release it after Step 4.

Can mc still get confession from Cove at the end of step 3 even if mc casually dates Baxter in step 3? Such as in crush mode?

I don’t think so. Maybe that’ll change, but generally there’s differences to the Step 3 ending if you were dating Baxter and those differences likely will conflict with getting the Cove confession.

For the patreon moments/dlcs, will it be available for all tiers?

It’ll be available for tier 2 (Fans) and up!

#our life #xoxo droplets #gb patch #ask #gb patch games #Our Life Beginnings & Always

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lady-of-lyon · 3 years

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So, I made one post a while back about how awesomely feminist the show Wild Kratts was, with how its two main female characters were women of color in engineering and deserving roles of power, female villains who weren’t motivated by spite or quest for youth, etc, but today I wanted to talk about something slightly different, that I’ve wanted to cover for a while now, because I also think it’s very good - and that’s how the show portrays masculinity, in a way that’s really positive!

First, we have our two main characters, Chris and Martin Kratt. Keep in mind these two are basically self-inserts - and there are plenty of creators, especially males, who have used self-insert characters in really scummy ways - all I have to say is Powerpuff Girls reboot and you know exactly what I’m talking about. Even if they weren’t literal self-inserts, male characters, superheroes especially, oftentimes serve the male power fantasy, being just the strong, stoic, all-powerful person so many boys are told they’re supposed to be. I could get into a whole discussion about how the male power fantasy is present even when males are not (ever look through a fashion magazine and wonder why there are so few men? Sure, part of it is that the industry thrives off exploiting women’s insecurities, and men aren’t as concerned for their appearance, but another part of it is so that the guy, looking through it, can feel like he has no competition for these women - there’s a reason so many comedians have jokes about fashion magazines being their sexual awakening as kids. It’s really scummy) but that’s not what this is about. So, the bros had every opportunity to do just that - make themselves these traditional heroes who aren’t actually really good role models, like batman or what have you. It’s certainly not uncommon for celebrity cartoons to do stuff like that. But Martin and Chris chose a different approach. They’re pretty strong standouts for positive masculinity. They’re openly affectionate - both with eachother as brothers, and with their friends. They cry, sometimes over little things - most of the time when big superheroes cry, it’s ‘cause they lost the girl they loved or their mentor or something like that, only in the big, most agonizing moments do they shed a tear. But here, Chris or Martin will cry just because they’ve had a bad day, or because they’re overwhelmed and overjoyed that someone named a mantis after them! In a lot of shows or movies when a guy cries over something little, it’s usually played for laughs, or to emasculate him, but here it’s casual without being unreasonable or overdone. The brothers cry just ad much, maybe even more (haven’t gone back and counted or anything) as the girls do. Not to mention, it’s a very nice depiction of a loving, healthy sibling relationship. As the youngest sibling myself, it’s refreshing to see a pair who don’t abuse eachother with noogies or cruel and snarky remarks. When they do fight, it’s never a screaming match, and also because they had a conflict of interest or disagreed over a fact, not because, say, one of them stole the other’s shirt or is neglecting the other’s feelings. Kids, being very impressionable, get exposed to a lot of abusive sibling relationships played as normal in media, and start thinking this is how siblings are and should act. For instance, my sister (who is now my best friend and has gotten over all these bad habits over time) when she was younger watched a lot of Kim Possible, a show that is great, but has a bad family dynamic with Kim and her little siblings. The “tweebs” as she calls them are always irresponsible, destructive, and making Kim annoyed to no end. My older brother was one of the most polite, reserved, kind little kids, but she still treated him like he was a brat and a nuisance, because that’s what shows like Kim Possible taught her little brothers were. Additionally, I was always treated like a spoiled crybaby who just wanted attention and got away with everything - I was not any of those things, ever, but that’s what shows teach you little sisters are. Sure, Wild Kratts has a smidge of that, with Chris seemingly being the stereotype of the know-it-all little sibling, but instead of being constantly looked town upon for being too “perfect” like with Hailey Long in American Dragon, Martin often praises his brother for his abilities. Sure, Martin gets annoyed when Chris tries to correct him on things, like in the episode Wolf Hawks, but everyone else does too, so it feels more like a take-down of mansplaining than a sibling spat.

I talked too in the feminist post about how refreshing it is that Chris and Martin more or less willingly put themselves under the authority of Koki and Aviva, two women of color. I don’t think it’s possible to say any one character is the “leader,” they all work as a evenly balanced team, but it’s safe to say that Koki and Aviva make the more responsible decisions. The bros try to get out of their calls a few times, but the show plays it more like they’re being irresponsible, and less like they’re renegade cool dudes who don’t take nothing from nobody, especially not two girls. They are pretty much always punished via karma for their reckless choices, most especially in To Touch a Hummingbird, where their arrogant attitudes blow up in their faces rather spectacularly. We also never see the narrative most present in sitcoms, where the male leads mess up and go out of their way to cover it up and ultimately gets away with it - after all, you have to root for them, right, because sure they messed up and had no consequences, but aren’t they just so lovable? No, here Martin and Chris always have to fix their wrongdoing, and it’s always deserved when they get comeuppance. Another aspect of the show I like is that, many times, when the bros get captured or are in peril, they are saved by the women - and most refreshing of all, there’s never a moment of “wink wink nudge nudge wow I can’t believe I had to be rescued by a GIRL” or even “wow you saved me you’re pretty good honey guess I shouldn’t have underestimated you, you go girl!” No, when the girls save them, it’s just - you know, relief? Because they were saved? It’s never a scenario played as an exception, or any more dire than when the bros need to rescue eachother. The bros are genuinely happy to have them as teammates. The show even did the standard “boys vs girls” episode in the form of When Fish Fly - but instead of being actually girls vs. boys, it’s engineers vs. adventurers. There’s nothing really gendered about it - the girls happen to be engineers, and the boys happen to be adventurers. And the episode doesn’t end with the boys being “wow gosh darn I shouldn’t have doubted you girls are better at everything,” it’s a mutual agreement that both parties have hard jobs. Basically, the bros are very naturally respectful of women. That plays more into their feminist narrative too, but either way, it’s refreshing.

Then, we have Jimmy! Jimmy, the lovable gamerboy pizza man. At first glance Jimmy seems like the stereotypical cowardly, pathetic, emasculated loser. He’s frightened of most things, as of yet has no power suit, and he BAKES for crying out loud! But none of these things are framed as terribly bad traits. Sure, we laugh when he screams and runs from an animal, but though it happens over and over, the crew doesn’t get sick of it. They don’t berate him or belittle him because he’s so gosh darn cowardly. There’s a great scene in Rattlesnake Crystal where Jimmy has to deliver something to the bros alone, in the middle of a spooky desert. He is terrified the whole time, sprinting off after he delivers the goods. When Martin and Chris run into him, they don’t laugh at him for being spooked, they just greet and then bid fair well to their friend. To them, this is just Jimmy, and there’s nothing wrong with it. Jimmy isn’t coddled, but he is reassured many times that he’s a valuable member of the team. I love that little message, that you’re just as important of a person even if you can’t do as much or have greater limits. When his friends do try to get him over his fears, it’s not because they have to, that the day will somehow be ruined by Jimmy’s incompetence p, but because they’re his friends, and want him to experience fun and wonderful things that he would otherwise miss out on. But what Jimmy CAN do is just as important! Jimmy is a gamer, which in a lot of shows, is portrayed as a lazy, useless, mindless hobby. But here, because he plays video games, it makes him essential for piloting the ship and teleporting important items. There’s always the joke that video games improves your hand/eye coordination, but recent studies have shown it has much better effects. It can make you much better at keeping track of multiple moving objects and processing technical but variable information- two traits which, fittingly enough, are really really important for air traffic controllers and airplane pilots! He also demonstrates a lot more courage behind the wheel of the Tortuga, which makes sense - in an impersonal setting, he would have more sense of calm and control and courage, because it’s so similar to a video game world. It’s not all too different with how I feel more emboldened to pick fights with people on the internet, but get crazy anxious if a real person so much as looks at me. So Jimmy’s love of video games isn’t because he’s irresponsible, it has real benefits. A quick last point - Jimmy also eats a lot, but they thankfully don’t make him fat or greedy or anything like that. He never takes food from people, he actually bakes, and shares it with others! Having the baker be a boy is a lovely touch.

I might do another post about the toxic masculinity of the two villains, (or four villains, I guess, if I wanna discuss the minions) but I’ve got other work to do, and this post is long enough already, so I’ll get around to it later. I’ll sum it up with this - Wild Kratts is a show that teaches boys it’s not only ok to be kind, but essential. The brothers protect defenseless animals, advocate for things “icky” and “weird,” like bugs or snakes or worms - not because they’re boys, and boys like icky things, but because they genuinely see the beauty in all life, and are encouraging us to slow down and do the same. The Wild Kratts are heroes who save the world not by being the strongest or smartest or coolest, but by looking after those who are exploited and vulnerable, who are essential to the world, even if they can’t always do everything. In Wild Kratts the only weaknesses a man can have isn’t what he can’t do, but what he does do that he shouldn’t have. Sure, it’s a cute show about two funny guys who have cool powers, but it’s also a show about accountability, compassion, respect and trust. The show says “boys will be boys” in all the right ways - Martin is a lovable goof with a heart of gold, but he still has to get his act together when he messes up, and he’s still creative and smart and openly sensitive. Chris is a bit of a know-it-all show-off, but he can also mess up as much as his brother, and is still bold, brave, adventurous, and can put his money where his mouth is. Jimmy is a cowardly, napping, eating machine video-gamer, but he’s still a valued member of the team, has incredible skills and talents, and will always help his friends, even if he is really, really scared. It is so important to have role models like these, in a world dominated by unhealthy machismo. The Wild Kratts are heroes who save the world - both animated, and real.

All they need now is a canon queer character, and I’ll stan them forever! My money’s on Aviva!!

#wild kratts #chris kratt #martin kratt #long post #hottake #feminism #meninism #positive masculinity #toxic masculinity #jimmy z #wk jimmy #kratt brothers

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the-king-andthe-lionheart · 3 years

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A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Arya Stark and her Cinderella Motifs

In A Song of Ice and Fire, GRRM often uses fairy tale motifs to help tell a character’s story. Sometimes this motif spans all throughout the characters arc while other times it will only be used for one or two scenes, or anywhere in between. And often one character can have several fairy tale motifs at different times in their arcs or even running concurrently. For Arya, she has quite a few fairy tale motifs in her arc, but for now I’m going to focus on her Cinderella motifs that are mainly prevalent in A Clash of Kings but do show up at other times all throughout her arc as well. I’m going to focus primarily on Arya’s A Clash of Kings arc, but we will be stopping by A Storm of Swords and A Feast for Crows a few times too. And I am going to use several versions of the retellings of Cinderella, including the Disney version, but only the 1950 original and none of its sequels. I also want to note that not all the parallels are obvious due to things being more metaphorical or symbolic, while other times being whatever subversion that tickled GRRM’s fancy at the time.

There are many common aspects across the board when it comes to Cinderella retellings. Often it entails the heroine losing one or both of her parents, being oppressed by her abusive stepmother and stepsisters and being forced into menial, backbreaking labor that leaves the heroine dirty and often covered in ashes. It usually entails a magical guardian who helps the heroine, magical transformations, ballgowns and a ball where she falls in love with either a Prince or a King. An identifying item is also involved, usually a slipper made of gold or glass, where one of the pair is lost when the heroine is running from her beloved. And the Prince/King almost always searches the realm for the woman that identifying item belongs to, and when he finds the heroine they usually marry.

Written out like that it’s hard to believe that this is a motif used for Arya. After all she’s not in the position to be going to balls and she’s just a child so it seems unlikely at the time she’s at Harrenhal she’s going to fall in love. However, this motif appears all throughout her arc in various and creative and subversive and repetitive ways, and motifs don’t have to be all or none and they don’t have to be in the order the original stories were laid out. A lot of people also don’t like the idea that Arya has an actual Disney Princess motif in her story because she’s a “tomboy”, but the fact is that Arya is a Princess at the time she’s at Harrenhal, it’s even explicitly stated in Arya X ACOK, whether people acknowledge it or not, where a lot of these motifs take place. I know some people will be dismissive of this and think I’m reaching, but I hope upon reading this I’ll have convinced you of this motif being present. :)

Step-Mother and Step-Sisters

Some of the two most common features in any variant of Cinderella is the “Persecuted Heroine” and the “Female Persecutor”. Often this manifests as the wicked stepmother and the evil step-sisters, but in some versions a stepmother does not appear, and it’s the heroine’s older sisters who confine her to the kitchens instead. In the opera, La Cenerentola, Gioachino Rossini inverted the gender roles where the heroine Cenerentola is oppressed by her stepfather. And in some retellings at least one of the step siblings is somewhat kind to the heroine even. We symbolically see these archetypes many times in Arya’s narrative with various types of inversions.

When we enter ACOK, we find a dirty and disguised Arya traveling with Yoren and the Night’s Watch recruits, having just lost her father (a subversion of the prevalent theme of Cinderella losing her mother very young). She is also being bullied by two older boys, Lommy and Hot Pie:

At Winterfell they [Sansa and Jeyne] had called her “Arya Horseface” and she’d thought nothing could be worse, but that was before the orphan boy Lommy Greenhands had named her “Lumpyhead.” - Arya I ACOK

That wasn’t the hardest part at all; Lommy Greenhands and Hot Pie were the hardest part. - Arya I ACOK

“Look at that sword Lumpyhead’s got there,” Lommy said one morning […] “Where’s a gutter rat like Lumpyhead get him a sword?”

[. . .]

“Maybe he’s a little squire,” Hot Pie put in. […] “Some lordy lord’s little squire boy, that’s it.”

“He ain’t no squire, look at him. I bet that’s not even a real sword. I bet it’s just some play sword made of tin.”

Arya hated them making fun of Needle. “It’s castle-forged steel, you stupid,” she snapped, turning in the saddle to glare at them, “and you better shut your mouth.”

The orphan boys hooted. “Where’d you get a blade like that, Lumpyface?” Hot Pie wanted to know.

“Lumpyhead,” corrected Lommy. He prob’ly stole it.”

“I did not!” she shouted. Jon Snow had given her Needle. Maybe she had to let them call her Lumpyhead, but she wasn’t going to let them call Jon a thief.

“If he stole it, we could take it off him,” said Hot Pie. “It’s not his anyhow. I could use me a sword like that.”

Lommy egged him on. “Go on, take it off him, I dare you.”

Hot Pie kicked his donkey, riding closer. “Hey, Lumpyface, you gimme that sword.” […] “You don’t know how to use it.”

[. . .]

“Look at him,” brayed Lommy Greenhands. “I bet he’s going to cry now. You want to cry, Lumpyhead?” – Arya I ACOK

In the first two quotes we have Arya likening the behavior of Hot Pie and Lommy to that of Jeyne Poole and Sansa. In AGOT, Sansa and Jeyne took on the “evil step-sister” archetype (and before anybody attacks me, I don’t think these two are actually “evil”, just children who think it’s okay to bully someone who is different from them), but now we are shown that this archetype has temporarily shifted onto Lommy and Hot Pie, with some subversions. These two are now male and they aren’t related to Arya in any way. Some variants of the Cinderella story do portray male siblings mistreating the younger “Cinderella” sibling though. One of the stories in One Thousand and One Nights depict a story called “Judar and his Brethren”, in which the main character is poisoned by his biological brothers in the end, depicting a rare tragic ending for this retelling. However, these subversions are completely fine because either way, they took on the role of the “bully” to Arya’s Cinderella archetype currently in the narrative.

Furthermore, while Septa Mordane was the obvious “wicked stepmother” archetype to Arya’s Cinderella archetype in AGOT, I think arguably this has fallen to Cersei now (and the Lannister’s as a whole). Cersei may not be present, but she is the reason why Arya is in the situation she is in right now. After all, Cersei takes on the role of “Evil Queen” for Sansa and Jon (they both share Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs motifs) so I do think she is the metaphorical “wicked stepmother” in this equation regardless of the fact that Cersei isn’t anything remotely close to a stepmother to Arya in the narrative, but she fits the general archetype of “female persecutor” the most in the current situation. For the case about Septa Mordane being a “wicked stepmother” archetype, I want to point to Cenerentola by Basile, in which the “wicked stepmother” started out as being the heroine’s governess, and Septa’s are the closest substitute to a governess in the universe of ASOIAF.

This isn’t the end to these archetypes being in play. As the early chapters of ACOK go on we see the animosity between Lommy, Hot Pie, and Arya disappear to the point where they become allies and then friends. With this shift in dynamic we see the archetypes disappearing with some of these same characters taking on entirely new Cinderella archetypes, while the “wicked stepmother” and “evil step-sibling” archetypes move onto other characters as well.

At Harrenhal we are introduced to two wicked women who next take on the “evil step-sibling” archetype, Goodwife Harra and Goodwife Amabel. These two even comment on Arya’s feet:

When Arya's turn came round, Goodwife Amabel clucked in dismay at the sight of her feet, while Goodwife Harra felt the callus on her fingers that long hours of practice with Needle had earned her. "Got those churning butter, I'll wager," she said. "Some farmer's whelp, are you? Well, never you mind, girl, you have a chance to win a higher place in this world if you work hard. If you won't work hard, you'll be beaten. And what do they call you?"

Arya dared not say her true name, but Arry was no good either, it was a boy’s name and they could see she was no boy. “Weasel,” she said, naming the first girl she could think of. “Lommy called me Weasel.”

“I can see why,” sniffed Goodwife Amabel. “That hair is a fright and a nest for lice as well. We’ll have it off, and then you’re for the kitchens.”

“I’d sooner tend the horses.” Arya liked horses, and maybe if she was in the stables she’d be able to steal one and escape.

Goodwife Harra slapped her so hard that her swollen lip broke open all over again. “And keep that tongue to yourself or you’ll get worse. No one asked your views.”

The blood in her mouth had a salty metal tang to it. Arya dropped her gaze and said nothing. If I still had Needle, she wouldn’t dare hit me, she thought sullenly.

“Lord Tywin and his knights have grooms and squires to tend their horses, they don’t need the likes of you,” Goodwife Amabel said. “The kitchens are snug and clean, and there’s always a warm fire to sleep by and plenty to eat. You might have done well there, but I can see you’re not a clever girl. Harra, I believe we should give this one to Weese.”

“If you think so, Amabel.” They gave her a shift of grey roughspun wool and a pair of ill-fitting shoes and sent her off. – Arya VI ACOK

Later Goodwife Amabel even threatens to rape Arya:

Three Frey men-at-arms were using them that morning as Arya went to the well. She tried not to look, but she could hear the men laughing. The pail was very heavy once full. She was turning to bring it back to Kingspyre when Goodwife Amabel seized her arm. The water went sloshing over the side onto Amabel's legs. "You did that on purpose," the woman screeched.

"What do you want?" Arya squirmed in her grasp. Amabel had been half-crazed since they'd cut Harra's head off.

"See there?" Amabel pointed across the yard at Pia. "When this northman falls you'll be where she is."

"Let me go." She tried to wrench free, but Amabel only tightened her fingers.

"He will fall too, Harrenhal pulls them all down in the end. Lord Tywin's won now, he'll be marching back with all his power, and then it will be his turn to punish the disloyal. And don't think he won't know what you did!" The old woman laughed. "I may have a turn at you myself. Harra had an old broom, I'll save it for you. The handle's cracked and splintery—" - Arya X ACOK

Menial, Backbreaking Labor

When Arya is enslaved and forced into the oppressive walls of Harrenhal, she is forced to scrub floors and do other menial, backbreaking work from sunrise to sunset, just like Cinderella:

Weese used Arya to run messages, draw water, and fetch food, and sometimes to serve at table in the Barracks Hall above the armory, where the men-at-arms took their meals. But most of her work was cleaning. The ground floor of the Wailing Tower was given over to storerooms and granaries, and two floors above housed part of the garrison, but the upper stories had not been occupied for eighty years. Now Lord Tywin had commanded that they be made fit for habitation again. There were floors to be scrubbed, grime to be washed off windows, broken chairs and rotted beds to be carried off. The topmost story was infested with nests of the huge black bats that House Whent had used for its sigil, and there were rats in the cellars as well . . . and ghosts, some said, the spirits of Harren the Black and his sons. – Arya VII ACOK

She spent the rest of that day scrubbing steps inside the Wailing Tower. By evenfall her hands were raw and bleeding and her arms so sore they trembled when she lugged the pail back to the cellar. Too tired even for food, Arya begged Weese's pardons and crawled into her straw to sleep. – Arya VII ACOK

Magical Transformations and Mice

In Disney’s Cinderella, the fairy godmother transforms mice into different creatures. On the road to Harrenhal, Arya not only likens herself to a sheep, but a mouse and continues her time at Harrenhal referring to herself as a “mouse”. This is also a subversion, while Cinderella in the Disney incarnation befriends mice, in our story Arya becomes the meek mouse:

On the road Arya had felt like a sheep, but Harrenhal turned her into a mouse. She was grey as a mouse in her scratchy wool shift, and like a mouse she kept to the crannies and crevices and dark holes of the castle, scurrying out of the way of the mighty. – Arya VII ACOK

He does not know me, she thought. Arry was a fierce little boy with a sword, and I’m just a grey mouse girl with a pail. – Arya VII ACOK

She was very small and Harrenhal was very large, full of places where a mouse could hide. – Arya VII ACOK

Even Jaqen calls Arya a mouse:

She crept up quiet as a shadow, but he opened his eyes all the same. “She steals in on little mice feet, but a man hears,” he said. How could he hear me? She wondered, and it seemed as if he heard that as well. “The scuff of leather on stone sings loud as warhorns to a man with open ears. Clever girls go barefoot.” – Arya VIII ACOK

However, through Jaqen, Arya begins to feel more in control of her situation, stronger and is transformed, if only for a short time.

“…Some are saying it was Harren’s ghost flung him down.” He snorted to show what he thought of such notions.

It wasn’t Harren, Arya wanted to say, it was me. She has killed Chiswyck with a whisper, and she would kill two more before she was through. I’m the ghost in Harrenhal, she thought. And that night, there was one less name to hate. – Arya VII ACOK

I was a sheep, and then I was a mouse, I couldn’t do anything but hide. Arya chewed her lip and tried to think when her courage had come back. Jaqen made me brave again. He made me a ghost instead of a mouse. – Arya IX ACOK

Lucifer the Cat

In Disney’s Cinderella, Lucifer is Lady Tremaine’s cat who is described as being a sly, wicked, and manipulative mouse consumer. He spends the whole film trying to torment and catch the mice. I feel that Weese takes on aspects of this feline character, and I think this because of certain descriptors that are given to Weese to make him appear almost catlike:

“Weasel,” Weese purred, “next time I see that mouth droop open, I’ll pull out your tongue and feed it to my bitch.” – Arya VII ACOK

In his own small strutting way, Weese was nearly as scary as Ser Gregor. The Mountain swatted men like flies, but most of the time he did not even seem to know the fly was there. Weese always knew you were there, and what you were doing, and sometimes what you were thinking. He would hit at the slightest provocation, and he had a dog who was near as bad as he was, an ugly spotted bitch that smelled worse than any dog Arya had ever known. Once she saw him set the dog on a latrine boy who’d annoyed him. She tore a big chunk out of the boy’s calf while Weese laughed. – Arya VII ACOK

So here we have Weese purring, strutting, being compared to the Mountain who swats at peoples, and being watchful and observant, very much like a cat. And like in the movie, a dog attacks him. Now Weese didn’t fall from a tower window, but Chiswyck fell/was pushed. Considering these two are the two people Arya had Jaqen kill, I wouldn’t be surprised if they are meant to make up two halves of a whole in this regard. After all, they are both wicked creatures who prey upon the weak, just like Lucifer and they both got their just desserts for it.

Jaq the Mouse

In Disney’s Cinderella, Cinderella rescues mice from traps, as well as from Lucifer, and dresses and feeds them. They perform favors in return. At the beginning of the film, a mouse named Gus is trapped in a cage, and the leader of the mice finds him and retrieves Cinderella to free him. The leader of the mice is a mouse named Jaq, and he was also a mouse that was saved by Cinderella from a cage. This sounds awfully familiar…

Rushing through the barn doors was like running into a furnace. The air was swirling with smoke, the back wall a sheet of fire ground to roof. Their horses and donkeys were kicking and rearing and screaming. The poor animals, Arya thought. Then she saw the wagon, and the three men manacled to its bed. Biter was flinging himself against the chains, blood running down his arms from where the iron clasped his wrists. Rorge screamed curses, kicking at the wood. “Boy!” called Jaqen H’ghar. “Sweet boy!”

[. . .]

“Good boys, kind boys,” called Jaqen H’ghar, coughing.

“Get these fucking chains off!” Rorge screamed.

[. . .]

Going back into that barn was the hardest thing she ever did. Smoke was pouring out the open door like a writhing black snake, and she could hear the screams of the poor animals inside, donkeys and horses and men. She chewed her lip, and darted through the doors, crouched low where the smoke wasn’t quite so thick.

A donkey was caught in a ring of fire, shrieking in terror and pain. She could smell the stench of burning hair. The roof was gone up too, and things were falling down, pieces of flaming wood and bits of straw and hay. Arya put a hand over her mouth and nose. She couldn’t see the wagon for the smoke, but she could still hear Biter screaming. She crawled toward the sound.

And then a wheel was looming over her. The wagon jumped and moved a half foot when Biter threw himself against his chains again. Jaqen saw her, but it was too hard to breathe, let alone talk. She threw the axe into the wagon. Rorge caught it and lifted it over his head, rivers of sooty sweat pouring down his noseless face. Arya was running, coughing. She heard the steel crash through the old wood, and again, again. An instant later came a crack as loud as thunder, and the bottom of the wagon came ripping loose in an explosion of splinters. – Arya IV ACOK

So here we have Jaq who is leader of the mice, who also helps Cinderella by doing her favors. Then we have Jaqen H’ghar who is the leader of Rorge and Biter (this name seems even more fitting now) and who is performing favors for Arya, which leads me to Jaqen’s dual Cinderella archetype: Fairy Godmother.

Magical Helpers

Some versions of Magical Helpers come from fairy godmothers or talking animals or genies. In other versions this help comes to the heroine through her dead mother, often manifesting through animal aid. In One Thousand and One Nights, in the story of “Judar and his Brethren” Judar is our Cinderella figure, whose own brothers betray and poison him, but before that he was gifted a genie named Al-Ra’ad al-Kasif who granted Judar’s wishes. In the passage below Jaqen grants Arya three “wishes” which is typical for genies to grant in our popular consciousness:

She remembered that she hated him. “You scared me. You’re one of them now, I should have let you burn. What are you doing here? Go away or I’ll yell for Weese.”

“A man pays his debts. A man owes three.”

“Three?”

“The Red God has his due, sweet girl, and only death may pay for life. This girl took three that were his. This girl must give three in their places. Speak the names, and a man will do the rest.”

He wants to help me, Arya realized with a rush of hope that made her dizzy. “Take me to Riverrun, it’s not far, if we stole some horses we could—”

He laid a finger on her lips. “Three lives you shall have of me. No more, no less. Three and we are done. So a girl must ponder.” He kissed her hair softly. “But not too long.” – Arya VII ACOK

Later, we also see that “wishes” have consequences, which is also prevalent when genies are concerned. GRRM himself is a big fan of consequences and unintended side effects.

Jaqen is not Arya’s only form of Magical Help at Harrenhal however. Jaqen may take on the role of Fairy Godmother/Genie, but we also see Arya experiencing the help of not only an animal aid, but from a dead parent. For instance, the heroine in Aschenputtel, by the Brother’s Grimm, is given a hazel twig by her father that she plants over her mother’s grave. She waters it with tears and over the years it grows into a glowing hazel tree. The girl prays under it three times a day, chanting, and a bird emerges from it that grants her wishes. There are two instances of something similar happening in the books:

In the godswood she found her broomstick sword where she had left it, and carried it to the heart tree. There she knelt. Red leaves rustled. Red eyes peered inside her. The eyes of the gods. “Tell me what to do, you gods,” she prayed.

For a long moment there was no sound but the wind and the water and the creak of leaf and limb. And then, far far off, beyond the godswood and the haunted towers and the immense stone walls of Harrenhal, from somewhere out in the world, came the long lonely howl of a wolf. Gooseprickles rose on Arya’s skin, and for an instant she felt dizzy. Then, so faintly, it seemed as if she heard her father’s voice. “When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies, but the pack survives,” he said.

“But there is no pack,” she whispered to the weirwood. Bran and Rickon were dead, the Lannisters had Sansa, Jon had gone to the Wall. “I’m not even me now, I’m Nan.”

“You are Arya of Winterfell, daughter of the north. You told me you could be strong. You have the wolf blood in you.”

“The wolf blood.” Arya remembered now. “I’ll be as strong as Robb. I said I would.” She took a deep breath, then lifted the broomstick in both hands and brought it down across her knee. It broke with a loud crack, and she threw the pieces aside. I am a direwolf, and done with wooden teeth. – Arya X ACOK

Here we see an inversion. Arya’s mother isn’t dead at this time, but her father, Ned is. He is who we hear through the heart tree giving Arya this empowering “Mufasa” moment that gives way to Arya’s true transformation in this arc, she reclaims her identity. And as soon as Arya asks the old gods for aid, a wolf howls in the distance as if in answer. It’s not confirmed but I do truly believe that this howl came from Nymeria, by way of the Old Gods/Greenseers, who somehow helped strengthen their bond. It is after this moment that Arya starts having full on wolf dreams in earnest and it’s through her first wolf dream that we see that Nymeria may have become Arya’s animal aid:

Her dreams were red and savage. The Mummers were in them, four at least, a pale Lyseni and a dark brutal axeman from Ib, the scarred Dothraki horse lord called Iggo and a Dornishman whose name she never knew. On and on they came, riding through the rain in rusting mail and wet leather, swords and axe clanking against their saddles. They thought they were hunting her, she knew with all the strange sharp certainty of dreams, but they were wrong. She was hunting them.

She was no little girl in the dream; she was a wolf, huge and powerful, and when she emerged from beneath the trees in front of them and bared her teeth in a low rumbling growl, she could small the rank stench of fear from horse and man alike. The Lyseni’s mount reared and screamed in terror, and the others shouted at one another in mantalk, but before they could act the other wolves came hurtling from the darkness and the rain, a great pack of them, gaunt and wet and silent.

The fight was short but bloody. The hairy man went down as he unslung his axe, the dark one died stringing an arrow, and the pale man from Lys tried to bolt. Her brothers and sisters ran him down, turning him again and again, coming at him from all sides, snapping at the legs of his horse and tearing the throat from the rider when he came crashing to the earth. – Arya I ASOS

We see here that Nymeria and her pack protected Arya, Gendry, and Hot Pie against their pursuers after their escape from Harrenhal.

Here is another instance of Arya praying under the heart tree:

Arya went to her knees. She wasn’t sure how she should begin. She clasped her hands together. Help me, you old gods, she prayed silently. Help me get those men out of the dungeon so we can kill Ser Amory, and bring me home to Winterfell. Make me a water dancer and a wolf and not afraid again, ever.

Was that enough? Maybe she should pray aloud if she wanted the old gods to hear. Maybe she should pray longer. Sometimes her father had prayed a long time, she remembered. But the old gods had never helped him. Remembering that made her angry. “You should have saved him,” she scolded the tree. “He prayed to you all the time. I don’t care if you help me or not. I don’t think you could even if you wanted to.”

“Gods are not mocked, girl.”

The voice startled her. She leapt to her feet and drew her wooden sword. Jaqen H’ghar stood so still in the darkness that he seemed one of the trees. “A man comes to hear a name. One and two and then comes three. A man would have done.”

Arya lowered the splintery point toward the ground. “How did you know I was here?”

“A man sees. A mean hears. A man knows.”

She regarded him suspiciously. Had the gods sent him? “How’d you make the dog kill Weese? Did you call Rorge and Biter up from hell? Is Jaqen H’ghar your true name?

“Some men have many names. Weasel. Arry. Arya.”

She backed away from him, until she was pressed against the heart tree. “Did Gendry tell?”

“A man knows,” he said again. “My lady of Stark.”

Maybe the gods had sent him in answer to her prayers. – Arya IX ACOK

In Cenerentola, the heroine’s (Zezolla) father is given a date seedling by a fairy and he gives it to his daughter. Zezolla cultivates the tree in which a fairy lives. This fairy gives Zezolla magical aid. When Arya prayed beneath the heart tree in the above quote it almost seems like Jaqen appeared from the trees, leaving Arya to question if the old gods sent him.

And like in Aschenputtel and Disney’s Cinderella, Arya spends time at Harrenhal singing/chanting to herself as well:

Barefoot surefoot lightfoot, she sang under her breath. I am the ghost in Harrenhal. – Arya IX ACOK

This is very strange for a couple of reasons. When we first meet Arya she claims not to like songs and doesn’t sing. She continues this up until she goes to Braavos. There she discovers that she likes the bawdy songs when she is using the name, Cat of the Canals. The only exception to this is when Arya is at Harrenhal. Another reason this is odd is because of where Arya is at physically and mentally. So either Arya was always lying about not liking songs, or Arya singing here is supposed to tell us something.

And while this might not mean anything, I found it interesting that Arya spends a lot of her time in ACOK barefoot. Now Cinderella isn’t really said to be barefoot in the stories, but she did usually lose a shoe when running away from the Prince/King, hence making her barefoot. When Arya decides to escape Harrenhal, she does don a pair of shoes again and from then on out she mostly wears them. This also leads to a fun bit of subversion. In the originals tales it’s always the Prince/King saving Cinderella from further oppression. But in Arya X ACOK, not only did she (a princess) plan the escape, but she saves Gendry, a lost (albeit bastard) prince, along with Hot Pie, from further oppression (and torture and death) by their slavers in their prison camp. (Hot Pie definitely reminds me of Gus Gus as well by the way :D)

From Rags to Riches

In many versions of Cinderella, we also see the heroine become physically transformed. The heroine is usually dirty, covered in ashes, and wearing “rags” before they are made over. In the most popular version, Disney’s Cinderella, the Fairy Godmother magically turns her from dirty household servant to highborn lady, adorning her in a silver ballgown and glass slippers. In Ye Xian, magical fish bones, help the heroine dress appropriately for a local Festival, including a light, golden shoe. And in Aschenputtel, the doves that emerge from her hazel tree, that grant the heroine wishes, drop a gold and silver gown and silk shoes down to her to wear to the ball. Also, noticeably, this is the time the Prince/King notices Cinderella and finally “sees” her.

While we didn’t get anything like that in ACOK, we don’t have to look much farther than ASOS, when Arya goes to Acorn Hall and meets Lady Smallwood, who puts her in two different dresses:

And afterward, they insisted she dress herself in girl’s things, brown woolen stockings and a light linen shift, and over that a light green gown with acorns embroidered all over the bodice in brown thread, and more acorns bordering the hem. – Arya IV ASOS

It was even worse than before; Lady Smallwood insisted that Arya take another bath, and cut and comb her hair besides; the dress she put her in this time was sort of lilac-colored, and decorated with little baby pearls. The only good thing about it was that it was so delicate that no one could expect her to ride in it. – Arya IV ASOS

And while there is no ball, Arya and Gendry spend their time in the forge together. This is the very first time Gendry has seen Arya look like a proper lady. Cinderella and Arya are no longer dirty and in rags and they are now in gowns looking their place in society, despite Arya’s dress not being nearly as grand. However, it’s enough of a change for Gendry to finally realize just who Arya truly is when it comes to her place in the world. And judging by his behavior after this event, he also begins to acknowledge that if he continues to stay by her side he could potentially love her romantically in the future as well:

Gendry reached out with the tongs as if to pinch her face, but Arya swatted them away.

[. . .]

Gendry put the hammer down and looked at her. “You look different now. Like a proper little girl.”

“I look like an oak tree, with all these stupid acorns.”

“Nice, though. A nice oak tree.” He stepped closer, and sniffed at her. “You even smell nice for a change.” – Arya IV ASOS

Runaway Princess

Now we may not have had a ball, but while taking shelter in a stone stable with the Brotherhood Without Banners, Arya does run outside, trying to get away from everyone:

His words beat at her ears like the pounding of a drum, and suddenly it was more than Arya could stand. She wanted Riverrun, not Acorn Hall; she wanted her mother and her brother Robb, not Lady Smallwood or some uncle she never knew. Whirling, she broke for the door, and when Harwin tried to grab her arm she spun away from him quick as a snake.

Outside the stables the rain was still falling, and distant lightning flashed in the west. Arya ran as fast as she could. She did not know where she was going, only that she wanted to be alone, away from all the voices, away from their hollow words and broken promises. All I wanted was to go to Riverrun. It was her own fault, for taking Gendry and Hot Pie with her when she left Harrenhal. She would have been better alone. If she had been alone, the outlaws would never have caught her, and she’d be with Robb and her mother by now. They were never my pack. If they had been, they wouldn’t leave me. She splashed through a puddle of muddy water. Someone was shouting her name, Harwin probably, or Gendry, but the thunder drowned them out as it rolled across the hills half a heartbeat behind the lightning. The lightning lord, she thought angrily. Maybe he couldn’t die, but he could lie. – Arya VIII ASOS

Now it’s not explicitly clear that it was Gendry who ran after Arya, calling her name, but due to the possible symbolism in the scene, and also his behavior in AFFC, it makes me think it was him. But whether he was or not I believe just Arya believing it might be him makes this applicable enough as a loose parallel for the Prince chasing after Cinderella, only for Cinderella to disappear like in many of the Cinderella retellings.

Searching the Realm

At the end of ASOS in the epilogue we learn that Lady Stoneheart and the Brotherhood Without Banners, who Gendry is a part of is actively searching for Arya:

The outlaw gave him (Merrett Frey) an encouraging smile. “Well, as it happens, we’re looking for a dog that ran away.”

“A dog?” Merrett was lost. “What kind of dog?”

“He answers to the name Sandor Clegane […] Did you see him at the wedding, perchance?”

[. . .]

“He would have had a child with him,” said the singer. “A skinny girl, about ten. Or perhaps a boy the same age.”

“I don’t think so,” said Merrett. “Not that I knew.” – Epilogue ASOS

In many retellings of the Cinderella story, the Prince/King searches the realm looking for the heroine with an identifying item, and typically that item is a shoe of some sort. Once the shoe is placed on the heroine’s foot it symbolically means the heroine is reclaiming her identity. Arya, however, didn’t lose a shoe, and I’d argue that when Ned/the Old Gods/the Greenseers spoke to Arya through the heart tree, empowering Arya, that’s when Arya reclaimed her identity, at least for that time as Arya must reclaim her identity multiple times in her arc. I’d argue that Arya’s connection to the North and her family is her overall identifying item. But I fully believe Gendry himself might be another “identifying item,” along with him still taking on the archetypal role of “prince”.

Why do I say this? Because in AFFC Gendry is stationed at one of the last known places Arya was sighted at with the Hound, the Crossroads Inn, where he is blacksmithing while also helping to look after orphans. He was likely stationed there by Lady Stoneheart and the Brotherhood Without Banners because he knew Arya the best out of everyone (remember LSH would probably have a hard time recognizing Arya after two plus years and a resurrection). So if she returned, he would not only have a better chance at recognizing her, but also possibly a better chance at keeping her there compared to anyone else. If people are doubting that this is Gendry’s role, just remember that the BWB is actively looking for Arya, and also note Gendry’s personality shift post-ASOS. Gendry has always been rude and moody, but in AFFC it has been taken to the extreme. He is absolutely furious and instead of being just plain rude, he’s actually become mean and more violent. He also seems to have something against the Hound now, someone who he previously had nothing against during the Hound’s trial by combat earlier in ASOS:

…The boy came and stood beside her, his hammer in his hand.

Lightning cracked to the south as the riders swung down off their horses. For half a heartbeat darkness turned to day. An axe gleamed silvery blue, light shimmered off mail and plate, and beneath the dark hood of the lead rider Brienne glimpsed an iron snout and rows of steel teeth, snarling.

Gendry saw it too. “Him.”

“Not him. His helm.” Brienne tried to keep the fear from her voice, but her mouth was dry as dust. – Brienne VII AFFC

That “him” was very pointed and because of the symbolism in the scene surrounding that “him” and the overall change in Gendry’s behavior I definitely take it to mean Gendry does have a problem with the Hound now. So what changed? The Hound kidnapped Arya. I think it’s safe to say that Gendry is just as invested as the rest of the BWB, if not more so, to finding Arya again, hence making him the “prince” searching the realm for his lost Cinderella.

A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes

In Disney’s Cinderella, songs like “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo”, “So This Is Love”, “Cinderella”, “A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes”, “Oh, Sing Sweet Nightingale”, and “The Work Song” are included into the film. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen something like this in the previous retellings however. Like I mentioned earlier the Brother’s Grimm, Aschenputtel, features this as well to some extant. In Aschenputtel, the heroine would “sing a chant” to call upon the white doves that came from her glowing hazel tree. These birds would help her grant wishes and help her complete tasks, and it was most likely the inspiration for why birds were included in the Disney version, although birds have featured in more than just Aschenputtel. I mention this because GRRM wrote Arya a song in the novels:

“My featherbed is deep and soft,

and there I'll lay you down,

I'll dress you all in yellow silk,

and on your head a crown.

For you shall be my lady love,

and I shall be your lord.

I'll always keep you warm and safe,

and guard you with my sword.

“And how she smiled and how she laughed,

the maiden of the tree.

She spun away and said to him,

no featherbed for me.

I'll wear a gown of golden leaves,

and bind my hair with grass,

But you can be my forest love,

and me your forest lass.”

This is very clearly a love song also and we know it’s most likely about Arya and her foreshadowing a possible future relationship with Gendry. And it’s very clearly about them as Gendry is a bastard Baratheon “prince”, hence the mentions of “yellow silk” and a “crown”, and also because Arya quite literally is dressed as an oak tree at this time and almost a maiden and will be a maiden when they reunite later in the series. We also know the song is meant to foreshadow them because of the context. Tom O’Seven’s specifically winked at Arya as he sang this song, and after the song was sung Lady Smallwood, when taking Arya to get changed into a different dress, said to Arya, “I have no gowns of leaves,” which further tells the readers that this song is Arya’s song, her future love song.

A Mother’s Legacy

In the Magical Helpers section above I mentioned that a dead parent may be the one to help the heroine instead of the typical fairy godmother, by either sending an animal to aid the heroine and/or granting wishes, or by the heroine’s mother transforming into an animal. In some Greek versions, in “the Balkan-Slavonic tradition of the tale”, and in some Central Asian variants, the heroine’s mother comes back as a cow who is then killed by the heroine’s sisters. The heroine eventually gathers the bones and from her mother’s grave the heroine is gifted wonderful dresses. In other variants, the heroine’s dead mother comes back as a fish or a female dog. These animals represent the heroine’s mother’s legacy.

Jon chuckled. “Perhaps you should do the same thing, little sister. Wed Tully to Stark in your arms.”

“A wolf with a fish in its mouth?” It made her laugh. “That would look silly…” – Arya I AGOT

That night she went to sleep thinking of her mother, and wondering if she should kill the Hound in his sleep and rescue Lady Catelyn herself. When she closed her eyes she saw her mother’s face against the back of her eyelids. She’s so close I could almost smell her…

…and then she could smell her. The scent was faint beneath the other smells, beneath moss and mud and water, and the stench of rotting reeds and rotting men. She padded slowly through the soft ground to the river’s edge, lapped up a drink, then lifted her head to sniff. The sky was grey and thick with cloud, the river green and full of floating things. Dead men clogged the shallows, some still moving as the water pushed them, others washed up on the banks. Her brothers and sisters swarmed around them, tearing at the rich ripe flesh.

[. . .]

The scent was stronger now [. . .] Only the scent mattered. She sniffed the air again. There it was, and now she saw it too, something pale and white drifting down the river, turning where it brushed against a snag. The reeds bowed down before it.

She splashed noisily through the shallows and threw herself into the deeper water, her legs churning. The current was strong but she was stronger. She swam, following her nose. The river smells were rich and wet, but those were not the smells that pulled her. She paddled after the sharp red whisper of cold blood, the sweet cloying stench of death. She chased them as she had often chased a red deer through the trees, and in the end she ran them down, and her jaw closed around a pale white arm. She shook it to make it move, but there was only death and blood in her mouth. By now she was tiring, and it was all she could do to pull the body back to shore. As she dragged it up the muddy bank, one of her little brothers came prowling, his tongue lolling from his mouth. She had to snarl to drive him off, or else he would have fed. Only then did she stop to shake the water from her fur. The white thing lay facedown in the mud, her dead flesh wrinkled and pale, cold blood trickling from her throat. Rise, she thought. Rise and eat and run with us. – Arya XII ASOS

“So you sewed his head on Robb Stark’s neck after both o’ them were dead,” said yellow cloak.

“My [Merrett Frey] father did that [. . .] I only drank some wine…you have no witness.”

“As it happens, you’re wrong there.” The singer turned to the hooded woman. “Milady?”

The outlaws parted as she came forward, saying no word. When she lowered her hood, something tightened inside Merrett’s chest, and for a moment he could not breathe. No. No, I saw her die. She was dead for a day and night before they stripped her naked and threw her body in the river. Raymund opened her throat from ear to ear. She was dead.

Her cloak and collar hid the gash his brother’s blade had made, but her face was even worse than he remembered. The flesh had gone pudding soft in the water and turned the color of curdled milk. Half her hair was gone and the rest had turned as white and brittle as a crone’s. Beneath her ravaged scalp, her face was shredded skin and black blood where she had raked herself with her nails. But her eyes were the most terrible thing. Her eyes saw him, and they hated.

“She don’t speak,” said the big man in the yellow cloak. “You bloody bastards cut her throat too deep for that. But she remembers.” He turned to the dead woman and said, “What do you say, m’lady? Was he part of it?”

Lady Catelyn’s eyes never left him. She nodded. – Epilogue ASOS

In the Chinese retelling of Cinderella, Ye Xian, the heroine befriends a fish, which is the reincarnation of her deceased mother. In The Story of Tam and Cam, a Vietnamese version, the heroine Tam also had a fish which was killed by the stepmother and the half-sister, and its bones also give her clothes. And a typical scene in Kapmalaien tales is the mother becoming a fish, being eaten in fish form, the daughter burying her bones and a tree sprouting from her grave.

So not only is Lady Catelyn a symbolic fish, a daughter of House Tully, but she’s also been resurrected (reincarnated), and is looking specifically for our heroine, Arya, who I believe will be gifted several various things (both good and bad) by this incarnation of her mother, but we shall see if the parallel continues when TWOW and ADOS come out.

Conclusion

I really hope that after you read this monster you were as convinced as I am that Arya indeed has Cinderella motifs, and an extensive amount of them as well. Whatever it may mean I don’t rightly know, but what I do know is that at the end of the day, the many stories of Cinderella are an analogy. An analogy about someone “who unexpectedly achieves recognition or success after a period of obscurity and neglect”. Of someone whose attributes were unrecognized in their society, only for them to be recognized. And I don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty hand in hand with one of her other biggest fairy tale motifs as well that runs concurrently with the Cinderella motif, and that is the story of “The Ugly Duckling”, who after years of neglect, finds acceptance within society, as well as self-acceptance within themselves. :)

#arya stark #gendrya #asoiaf

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hageny · 3 years

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Succession Thoughts: Gerri x Roman

AN: The first point in this post was requested by @thinkingfixatingobsessing, so credit goes to her for the idea.

WARNING: Mentions of child sexual abuse in point one.

1. What In Here is Real?

A lot of fans tie Roman’s ‘dog cage’ experience to his adult need for degradation, and certainly there is a valid reason. The murky circumstances surrounding the incident(s) in his childhood--Roman remembering being forced; Connor and Kendall remembering him liking it; Connor remembering what their father said about “two fighting dogs” in relation to the incident--make it difficult to say how much of what Roman remembers is real and how much is his emotions skewing his memories. What is totally overlooked is the scene above, which takes place in Austerlitz. The family has just arrived at Connor’s ranch for the not-so-optional family therapy session when Roman says something very interesting to Connor, telling him that he plans to tell Alon Parfit, the group’s therapist, that Connor molested him as a child. Given Roman’s ‘dog cage’ revelation only one episode later, it struck me as very interesting that Roman makes a joke about what is for many a deep, childhood trauma. Now, I should clarify, I don’t believe Connor in any way abused Roman, and it seems fairly obvious Roman was just doing this for shock value, but there is a point to be made here. It seems pertinent to ponder whether Roman’s ‘dog cage’ experience could tie into a deeper, darker truth in his childhood. Maybe it’s possible that Roman actually did go into the cage willingly, and to some degree submitted--as much as someone who is emotionally/mentally abused as a child can--to his siblings’ game. All of them being children themselves, they wouldn’t have had the insight and maturity to understand his behavior was abnormal. What we do know of Roman’s experience is that it caused him to start wetting the bed, and he was eventually sent away to St. Andrews; again, he thinks this occurred against his will, Connor says he went willingly. What is interesting his Roman’s description of the effects of the ‘dog cage’ incident closely aligns with what may happen to a child who is molested. As Roman puts it, “Kendall locked me in a cage, I went weird, I started wetting the bed, and that’s why dad sent me away to St. Andrews.” Now, I should be clear, I am not a mental health professional of any sort, so all of what I say here is gleaned through years of reading about crime stories and second-hand research, but re-watching this scene caused me to remember that when Jon Benet Ramsey was murdered, many wondered--and still do--whether it was possible she was molested as a child due to her still wetting the bed at the age of six. From what we can gather, Roman would have been probably around the same age, if not older, when the alleged ‘dog cage’ incident occurred; his mentions of ‘going weird’ could be his best way to articulate what could have been a mental breakdown suffered during his childhood. His parents, having no clue what to do with him, would have naturally sent him to a rigorous, regimented school that, they believed, could have righted his ‘abnormal’ behavior. There are many signs children can possibly exhibit as a result of sexual abuse, but a few of them struck me because they describe even Roman’s adult behavior:

Regressive behaviors or resuming behaviors they had grown out of, such as thumb-sucking or bedwetting

Overly compliant behavior

Decrease in confidence or self-image

Change in mood or personality, such as increased aggression

We notice Roman’s lack of confidence constantly over the course of the series. In Sad Sack Wasp Trap, we see him studying his body carefully in the mirror, obviously displeased with what he sees, and then quickly buttoning up his shirt when Grace enters. As an adult there’s no question that he is--around his father, especially--overly compliant, going along with what Logan says and most of the time unwilling to buck him. While Roman is certainly not aggressive in the sense of being a danger to others, we do notice that his temperament borders on the aggressive quite a lot of the time, and he has a sadistic side, taking pleasure in tormenting others for his own amusement. We also know that the infamous Lester McClintock--Mo-Lester--was a friend of Logan’s; while it’s not stated that he abused any children, if he was a family friend, there is a possibility he was around Roman as a child. Connor, in Safe Room, does tell Willa that Logan wouldn’t let his kids get in the pool with Lester, so the possibility of his being a pedophile is there. Maybe the abuser was someone else. Maybe Roman wasn’t abused at all and I’m way off base. But I bring the point up for discussion only because as I pondered it, I myself began to wonder.

2. Patrick Bateman

SPOILER ALERT: The ending to the movie, American Psycho. is discussed below.

In I Went to Market, Shiv makes a quip when Roman tells her he has a hobby, saying to him, “Killing hobos isn’t a hobby.” Anyone old enough to remember--or old enough to have watched American Psycho or read the book--will remember that Patrick Bateman, the novel’s famous protagonist, descends slowly into violence as his disgust for society deepens, and begins literally killing homeless people on the streets of New York City, using homicide as an outlet for his uncontrollable rage. For the sake of convenience, I will discuss the movie a bit here, as I read the book years ago and do not remember much. The end of the movie is open to interpretation, leaving the audience to decide whether Bateman did actually kill anyone and it was cleaned up for him because he was wealthy, or whether he simply fever-dreamed the experiences. It’s interesting that the show draws a tie to Patrick Bateman and Roman, but having considered Bateman’s behavior there are some similarities. Roman, like Bateman, has a total disregard for the lower class, no more openly displayed than in the pilot episode where he tears up the check in front of the little boy at his family’s baseball game. He also, as noted in the previous point, has a temper, sometimes flying quickly off the handle when things don’t go his way. He is tightly wound, constantly agitated by the world around him, and driven by impulse. Where Bateman’s impulses lead him to murder, Roman’s take a different path, leading him to push the envelope of appropriate behavior for shock value, or drop and pick up girlfriends like objects. While Roman certainly would never kill anyone in a literal sense, he is not afraid to destroy those beneath him without a second thought, obliterating Vaulter simply because he wants to, manipulating the staff into admitting they want to unionize--which might’ve saved them--and then handing his information over to his father so as to leverage himself and his desire to shut Vaulter down over Kendall’s desire to keep it open. The point is is that the show, by drawing a link between these two characters, could perhaps be suggesting to the audience that Roman’s behavior, like Bateman’s, requires an understanding of nuance. Bret Easton Ellis, who wrote the novel, grew up in an environment similar to Roman’s, coming from a wealthy family, deriving much of his literary material from what he witnessed as a child and an adult. It could perhaps best be said that both characters are a study in how environments shape people: what they bring out in them, and what they create that, for better or worse, can be left to bubble just below the surface.

3. Only Good?

This point will be fairly brief, but I did find it pertinent to comment on how many people in the fandom--maybe younger people who don’t understand the show’s nuances--seem content to constantly cast Gerri as an artless bystander to the cruises situation when this is simply not the case. It could be that some don’t recall, but in the above scene from Pre-Nuptial, Shiv demands that ATN lay off Gil Eavis by blackmailing Gerri, telling her that if she doesn’t get her way that she will blow the lid on the scandal that centers around Lester McClintock. What’s most important is the fact that when Shiv mentions the “cruise division horror show”, Gerri never asks for clarification regarding Shiv’s point. This, obviously, is because Gerri doesn’t need it. While I am not suggesting Gerri knew all along about the scandal, her lack of need for Shiv to clarify what she means by “the cover-up” is an indicator that Gerri not only knew what was going on before the audience did, but perhaps also had a hand in hiding what was happening. There could be many reasons she did so, but I felt compelled to make this point because so often people believe Gerri was caught off-guard by what was occurring at Brightstar, when in fact our introduction to her in the show was intended to serve as an indicator of her character. The phrase, “stone-cold killer bitch”, used flirtatiously by Roman, was not only intended to amuse, but also to give insight into her character. In order to survive and thrive in Waystar, Gerri would have had to have been anything but an artless child, and her reputation as a ‘stone-cold killer’ is apt, as it describes the sort of character a person generally has to take on in order to climb the ranks of the corporate world. Gerri’s panic as the cruises situation unfolds is not due to the nature of the incidences (nor is Shiv’s for that matter)--it is due to the panic she feels at having to take the fall for what occurred. What actually happened, the facts of it, don’t really bother her. That’s what makes a killer.

#gerri/roman #gerri x roman #gerri kellman #roman roy #succession #succession hbo #hbo succession #succession thoughts

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