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kylo-renakin · 4 years

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Death in Star Wars, and How Ben Solo Was Shafted: A Mini Meta

Something has been bothering me about Ben’s death in The Rise of Skywalker. While I’m upset that he died, I echo the sentiments of other fans that just as offensive was the way that he died and how his death was treated in the context of the film. It bothered me because death has always been a part of Star Wars, but usually handled much better.

And so this meta was born.

I will be doing a brief analysis of significant character deaths from the Star Wars movies. I don’t want to touch on all of them because there are simply too many, so I’ll focus on the ones that were either major characters (i.e. trio billing or main villain) or narratively important (i.e. Shmi Skywalker).

This list will be approached chronologically within the Star Wars universe, beginning with:

Qui-Gon Jinn; portrayed by Liam Neeson

Personal feelings: I cried like a baby. Qui-gon holds a special place in my heart. His death was both epic and sombre. It hurt to watch other main cast celebrating their victory after defeating their respective challenges and then cut to Obi-wan cradling his master’s head in his lap, crying.

Mode of death: Killed by Darth Maul at the end of The Phantom Menace. His actual death takes a few minutes of screen time, an outburst/scream from another main character (Obi-wan). He has last words to say to the person he has the closest on screen relationship with.

Aftermath: Held by a visibly devastated Obi-wan while he died. Sombre funeral pyre. Death discussed on screen by the council and Obi-wan.

Narrative purpose: To enable Anakin’s training under Obi-wan, which is pivotal to the overall arc of this trilogy. To provide a tangible loss and character growth for Obi-wan, who failed to save his master from a Sith--later mirrored by Obi-wan’s inability to save Anakin from becoming a Sith in Episode III, thereby providing a narrative ‘tail-end’ to Obi-wan’s journey in the trilogy. To cement the master/apprentice relationship as loving, emotional, familial, which then adds narrative depth to the bond between Obi-wan and Anakin. To introduce a cohesive theme of death, failure, and loss at the hands of the dark side that would pervade this trilogy.

Overall response: This death is both emotional and narratively important. It’s given the weight and time it deserves to have an impact on the characters.

Shmi Skywalker; portrayed by Pernilla August

Personal feelings: Rough acting aside, watching a person die in their family member’s arms is always sad. It’s an extremely dark moment in a film that otherwise leans heavily into romance, action, and detective-mystery storytelling.

Mode of death: Tortured by Tusken Raiders. Died from her injuries. Again, her actual death takes a couple of minutes of screen time. She is able to say some last words to her son, the most important character relationship for this character.

Aftermath: Dies in the arms of her visibly devastated son. Anakin murders the Tuskens for revenge. On screen funeral where she is mourned and memorialized by her family/loved ones.

Narrative purpose: To drive Anakin further to the dark side by taking advantage of his love and compassion and turning this into anger and hate (revenge against the Tuskens). To plant the seeds of Anakin’s inability to save the ones he love. To emphasize his failure to keep his promise to return to his mother and free her. (Despite being freed off screen, she essentially died in captivity anyway, and Anakin was not the one to free her.) To further the cohesive themes of the trilogy: death, failure, loss, the power of the dark side.

Overall response: While not as moving for me personally as Qui-gon’s death, it has a very relevant thematic purpose and furthers the story. Shmi’s death is given adequate time on screen and we are able to observe the responses and aftermath of that loss.

Padme Amidala; portrayed by Natalie Portman

Personal feelings: We make jokes about how she lost the will to live, but her funeral was beautiful and Natalie’s delivery of the line “you’re going down a path I can’t follow” feels extremely important in this story.

Mode of death: Up for debate. She has lost the will to live after giving birth to Luke and Leia in the wake of Anakin’s fall to the dark side. Some have theorized that her life force was taken (or given?) to keep Anakin alive, but this is not made explicit in the movies. She dies beside Obi-wan Kenobi, and has the time to say last words--words of hope for Anakin’s eventual redemption. Her death itself takes several minutes and is followed up with screen time for a funeral where characters acknowledge her death.

Aftermath: The gorgeous and enormous funeral, mourned as a queen and a senator and a good woman. Anakin (as Darth Vader) mourns with a devastated and poorly acted “nooooo”.

Narrative purpose: To fulfill the themes of death, loss, and failure (Anakin’s failure to keep her alive) at the hands of the dark side. To provide a character loss that mimics the loss of democracy, freedom, and goodness that has fallen to Palpatine’s control. To provide a visual and narrative parallel between the death of Anakin (through the death of his love) and the birth of Darth Vader.

Overall response: While this death was definitely poorly handled it did have narrative significance and it was arguably necessitated by having to have this trilogy line up with the original trilogy. Her short funeral was one of my favorites in the series.

Obi-wan Kenobi; portrayed by Sir Alec Guinness/Ewan McGregor

Personal feelings: I feel weird having an opinion about this one because this movie was made well before I was born, and so I didn’t feel a real connection to/nostalgia from these characters the way I did with the prequels and sequels. Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan was a huge part of my childhood, so watching A New Hope in retrospect makes this death sad for me.

Mode of death: Killed by Darth Vader/becomes one with the Force. Essentially sacrifices himself so that Luke doesn’t try to come after him.

Aftermath: Luke shouts “no!”. In a later scene, Luke further acknowledges his death--”I only wish Ben were here”. Ben is later seen as a Force ghost in Episodes V and VI, continuing to acknowledge his character’s death and ongoing influence on, importance to, and relationship with Luke.

Narrative purpose: To provide growth for Luke’s character as he grapples with losing a mentor and surrogate father figure who was also the last person (he believed) who was a link to Luke’s (supposedly) dead hero father that Luke looked up to--and setting us up for this narrative complication in VI. To demonstrate that the Jedi/good guys of the film win through self-sacrifice and not through anger, hate, or fear, which is very thematically resonant in this trilogy.

Overall response: Narratively meaningful, and the character’s death is immediately recognized. We get to see the response of the characters who he has the closest relationships with.

Yoda; portrayed by Frank Oz

(I just love The Last Jedi, okay??)

Personal feelings: It was kind of sad, in the way any person dying of old age is. It did feel more overtly spiritual than Obi-wan’s death.

Mode of death: Dies of old age, in his own home, in his own bed, with Luke beside him. His death scene lasts a few minutes and he has some last words.

Aftermath: We see Yoda again as a force ghost, which we are expecting as an audience since his body fades like Obi-wan’s did. There is sufficient closure. Luke is present for Yoda’s death and, at this point in the films, is the only character relationship Yoda has left alive--therefore this is the most significant his death can be to someone. Luke doesn’t look overly upset but this is not painted to be a sad death, as death by old age is usually more a fact of life and a nice reprieve from untimely losses.

Narrative purpose: Honestly, it’s been a long time since I watched the original trilogy so I’m kind of stretching here. I’m going to borrow from The Last Jedi and say that Yoda’s death allows Luke to grow beyond his master and stand on his own two feet as a fully autonomous agent of goodness. He no longer has the crutch of wise older men to lean on and must make his decisions on his own. Yoda’s death frees Luke to be the master of his own destiny, now knowing the truth of his parentage and no longer being guided by others to do what they think is best (kill Vader).

Overall response: One of the less impactful deaths in the series, but I do appreciate how it adds to Luke’s growth as a character and transition into Jedi Master.

Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader; portrayed by James Earl Jones, Hayden Christensen, and Jake Lloyd

Personal feelings: This is the big one™ of the trilogy, and it shows. Watching Luke trying to literally drag his father to safety is raw and heartbreaking. Seeing him unmasked for his son is chilling. The funeral pyre is beautiful. This definitely made me feel the feelings.

Mode of death: Sacrificed himself to kill Palpatine. Death lasts several minutes. Dies in Luke’s arms and Luke cries as he dies.

Aftermath: Funeral pyre. Force ghost Anakin bringing peace to Luke and cementing his redemption.

Narrative purpose: Too much to list! Reinforcing that good guys sacrifice themselves to protect the people they love. Bringing balance to the Force by killing the Emperor (thanks JJ for messing that up by the way). Finding peace with Obi-wan as a force ghost. Showing that the belief that people can be saved from themselves is validated. I’m sure there’s plenty more besides but this one is so narratively rich that it would take forever to mine.

Overall response: Extreme narrative importance. Basically ties together six movies. Emotional, beautiful, resonant.

Han Solo; portrayed by Harrison Ford

Personal feelings: Ouch, ouch, ouch! This was... this was angsty. I love angsty. I cannot possibly find adequate words to describe how well done this scene and this death was. One of my top three moments of The Force Awakens.

Mode of death: Struck through the chest with a lightsaber by his son, Ben Solo (under the alias of Kylo Ren), after an attempt to save him from the dark side and bring him home. His body falls into the pit on Starkiller Base.

Aftermath: So. Much. Rey screams “no!” Finn is visibly upset, too. Chewie roars in agony and shoots Kylo Ren with his bowcaster. Leia can be seen feeling Han’s death and cannot find the strength to keep standing. Kylo/Ben looks immediately shaken by what he has done. Rey and Leia share a sad hug at the end of the film. In The Last Jedi, reactions continue. Luke is shaken by the revelation of Han’s death and spends a quiet moment in the Falcon mourning him. Kylo/Ben’s reaction continues to spiral. Snoke, in one of my favorite lines in the film, announces that “the deed split [his] spirit to the bone”. Rey grieves Han and accuses Ben of hating him. Luke warns Kylo that he will always be with him, “just like [his] father”. Han’s shadow is felt all over The Last Jedi without him being present. Even without the further reactions in The Rise of Skywalker (Rey saying Ben is haunted by him, the literal memory scene on the Death Star), the impacts of Han Solo’s death are the most significant in the entire franchise.

Narrative purpose: To advance both internal and external character conflicts. Kylo killing Han provides an external conflict between him and the heroes--particularly between him and Rey as Rey yearns for parents who love her and Ben (seemingly) rejects/kills his that do. It also provides a meaty internal conflict for Kylo Ren/Ben Solo, who is the most nuanced villain I have ever seen in film. While Han’s death doesn’t seem to serve a main theme in The Force Awakens (it is my perspective that JJ does not have cohesive overarching themes in his two entries in the saga), it does blend in pretty well with The Last Jedi’s preoccupation with killing the past. The thematic takeaway from The Last Jedi is that you can’t and shouldn’t kill the past, you should learn from it and move on--and Kylo killing Han neatly fits into this theme by showing that Kylo tried to kill his past by killing his father, and yet he was unable to move on because of it.

Overall response: Poignant. Purposeful. Well-crafted. The effects are long lasting and felt throughout the trilogy. This is not a meaningless death. Of the entire saga, this is the death that is given the most acknowledgement.

Supreme Leader Snoke; portrayed by Andy Serkis

Personal feelings: I was on the edge of my fucking seat. This is not emotionally resonant because we don’t care about Snoke but it was huge and shocking and had these enormous narrative implications moving forward.

Mode of death: Cut in half by Kylo Ren while he narrates his own death.

Aftermath: The Praetorian guards spring into action to avenge their master. In a later scene, we see Snoke’s severed legs topple to the floor. Hux is visibly shaken and angry. Kylo Ren acknowledges the death (by blaming it on Rey) and takes Snoke’s position as Supreme Leader (”the Supreme Leader is dead”, “long live the Supreme Leader”). I’m... going to ignore how The Rise of Skywalker handled Snoke. It was unnecessary to have Snoke clones from a storytelling perspective. It added nothing to the narrative, just used as a clumsy way to justify that Palpatine was really pulling the strings all along.

Narrative purpose: To deepen the perceived conflict within Kylo Ren and showing his unwillingness to kill Rey. This further complicates their relationship moving forward as we’ve established that the new head honcho powerful villain has no real desire to hurt the hero. The narrative implications of this moving forward were so rich. Pity JJ ignored them. Additionally: To show Kylo Ren symbolically surpassing Darth Vader. In Episode III Anakin claims he will overthrow the Emperor and rule the galaxy with Padme. He never achieves this. But Kylo Ren does (minus the Empress by his side). To deepen the theme of Kylo Ren trying to kill/bury the past in order to become stronger (and ultimately failing). To add Snoke to the list of characters in the movie who embody the theme of failure. To shake up an expected narrative trajectory and provide new pathways for future storytelling. (Again, JJ, looking at you.)

Overall response: Loved it. Loved it. Not as resonant as some of the other deaths but by far to me the most shocking.

Luke Skywalker; portrayed by Mark Hamill

Personal feelings: Okay, this is a big one. Here’s the thing. I did not grow up with the original trilogy. I never really cared for Luke (didn’t dislike him either, just ‘meh’). But this movie. This movie. I went on a journey with Luke. I saw him as fallible. As human. Making mistakes. Failing. Falling into depression. And overcoming it. I cried when Luke Skywalker died. I did not think that would happen. I did not think I would ever love Luke so much.

Mode of death: Force projects himself across the galaxy to face his nephew and save the Resistance; the effort kills him. Luke’s death takes a couple of minutes of screentime, and it is gorgeous. Hamill acts his ass off. The music, the visuals, everything combines to make this the most emotional death in Star Wars--a fitting end for its first hero.

Aftermath: Leia and Rey feel his death in the Force. They speak to each other quietly about it. They know it was peaceful. Luke, knowing he was going to die, came and saw his sister first and gave them beautiful closure and a message of hope. Just before Luke dies, he warns Kylo/Ben that he’ll always be with him. Just like his father. Luke fades into the Force and we know we will see him again as a force ghost (which we do, but JJ managed to trash even that). The boy on Canto Bight and his friends are inspired by the legend of Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. He ignites hope throughout the galaxy once more.

Narrative purpose: Multiple. As above, inspiring hope throughout the galaxy once more. To serve the theme of self-sacrifice. Achieving victory without violence (pacifistic). Preventing Kylo Ren from killing more people he cares about (Rey, Leia, Luke) and thereby protecting him, at least a little, from himself. Also serves a similar purpose to Yoda’s death--with both Luke and Snoke dying, Rey and Kylo Ren are without masters, the arbiters of their own destiny (thanks again JJ for fucking that up too).

Overall response: I can’t decide if this or Han Solo’s death is more emotionally impactful to me. They are both so, so moving, and so essential to the narrative.

Leia Organa; portrayed by Carrie Fisher

Personal feelings: This is hard. I don’t think her scenes in The Rise of Skywalker worked. They were cut from The Force Awakens for a reason--and then cobbled together like some kind of Frankenstein’s Monster for this movie. As much as I love Leia and Carrie, I couldn’t feel emotion for her death because it was so wooden and artificial.

Mode of death: Uses the last of her energy to reach her son (it is unclear exactly how she is reaching him. Force projection? Did she create the Han memory? Who knows.) Even with so little to work with, they still managed to focus on her death with her lying down, her hand falling to the side--trying to give this some weight.

Aftermath: Chewie mourns. Ben and Rey both feel her death and are clearly devastated. The Resistance gather around her body in mourning. Her body fades at the same time as Ben’s (wtf, JJ) and then we see her as a force ghost with Luke (but not Ben because fuck him apparently).

Narrative purpose: To bring her son back to the light, something that has been a central struggle of this trilogy. Sacrificing yourself to save that which you love.

Overall response: It has a purpose, but I can’t help but think it wouldn’t have gone this way if Carrie hadn’t died. It doesn’t seem as organic as the deaths of Han and Luke.

NB: I’m skipping Palpatine because his death was literally nothing else than “defeat the big bad”. It wasn’t even fulfilling a prophecy, it had no significant narrative weight for Rey, it was a nothing burger.

Ben Solo/Kylo Ren; portrayed by Adam Driver

Personal feelings: Twofold. In the cinema, I felt nothing. Nothing. I actually laughed in surprise. Like, “what was that”? The next day, at home, I cried. I don’t think I cried because he died. I was open to that possibility. I cried because I was so, so angry at how poorly his arc and death was handled. Like he was a footnote in his own fucking story. I think him living was a much more interesting story, narratively and thematically, but I wasn’t necessarily opposed to his death if it was done well. And it wasn’t.

Mode of death: Uses the last of his life energy to resurrect Rey. Falls over. (Plop, there he goes.) Fades into the force.

Aftermath: Like, none? Rey looks kind of surprised and blinks for a couple of seconds. No words are exchanged. He just tips over and dies. Cool.

Narrative purpose (or failure thereof): I am fucking reaching here because all of the previously established trajectories and themes are dashed by this ending. We could argue that this is a self-sacrifice to save what you love theme point. Which is fine, but like, no one mourns. He doesn’t become a Force Ghost. No one acknowledges his death. Ben fading into the Force is a metaphor for him fading from people’s minds. It’s like he doesn’t even exist in the context of the story anymore. Which is insanely baffling because all three of the original trilogy heroes sacrificed their lives, at least in part, to save Ben Solo. So that he could in turn save Rey? So he’s just another cog in the machine? This was always about Rey and never about the love Han and Leia had for their son, or that Luke had for his nephew? If you think about it, the only other ‘main’ characters to die during the course of their trilogy were Qui-gon and Padme. And both of those characters had funerals, and people mourning, and huge narrative implications. The death of Ben Solo reads like the death of a minor character. It serves one very narrow and already over-represented theme. The death of all of the rest of the Skywalkers had huge emotional ramifications for the other characters in the films. With Ben Solo, the Skywalker legacy fades as well, as if JJ is telling us that this saga was not about this family at all, but their whole story existed only for the point of saving Palpatine’s granddaughter. How fucked up is that?

Overall response: Narratively, this just doesn’t make sense. It’s lazy and not impactful. When a character dies in films, you want the audience to feel something, so you show other characters reacting to it. Are they sad? Then we should feel sad too! Are they elated? We should be celebrating! No one reacts to Ben’s death, so we’re not sure how we’re supposed to feel, either. The people who are devastated by this death are the ones who love the character itself and are upset that he got treated this way--the death itself was hollow and emotionless.

So, there you have it. Ben Solo was shafted. Death is extremely prevalent in these movies, and yet, being the only new Skywalker of the sequels and half the protagonist (thank you Rian), Ben Solo has arguably the least emotional or narratively impactful death in the franchise.

Rian Johnson would never do this to Ben Solo.

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livinglikearoyal · 4 years

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K-drama Recommendations (May 2020)

Here is part two of my Kdrama recommendations, since my first one had such a positive response and I had a couple people ask for more. All of the dramas on this list can be found on Netflix US as of posting. These are all dramas I have watched since my last post in November...I have described why ten of them are amazing and listed a handful of others that are worth a shot as well. (I watch too much Netflix...my goodness)

These aren’t in any order based on how much I liked them; they are ordered based on the order I watched them. The ones listed in the honorable mentions list are dramas that either had a somewhat similar storyline to one of the ten that are explained or I just couldn’t find the words to describe them! Obviously, everyone has different tastes and perspectives when it comes to dramas...this is just my take!

I am always looking for new dramas to watch! Send your suggestions and/or thoughts my way!

Suits (law, witty, drama)

Summary: Go Yeonwoo is a man wrapped up in some shady business, just trying to get by. When a deal goes bad, he finds himself seeking safety by blending in with the many applicants trying to join the top law firm in Korea, Kang & Ham. Although he isn’t a law student, his photographic memory and previous experience taking assessments for law students helps him impress the company’s ace: Attorney Choi. Go (illegally) becomes Choi’s apprentice and the series follows them as they figure out how they work together, how to save their company, and how to not get caught. Based on the American series of the same name.

Why I liked it: I watched the American version of Suits as soon as it came out and followed it for several seasons. This Korean version is much more my speed. The storyline is complicated enough to keep your attention but not so complicated to make you stop watching. They took the key components of the American series and made them better: more realistic, less focused on sex appeal and more on the storyline, and you could really connect with the characters. It really hits on the ideas of integrity, truth, and empathy.

The K2 (action, romantic, political)

Summary: Kim Jeha is on the run in France. While trying to elude his captors, he runs into a woman in a white dressing gown and she begs for his help because she is also on the run. He is hesitant but ends up helping her escape her captor’s hold in the subway. She runs but is captured again on the street and he doesn’t help her a second time. Flash forward several years: Jeha is now appointed as bodyguard for the wife of a presidential candidate (she is terrifyingly powerful) and he is assigned to watch over the candidate’s illegitimate daughter, Anna. Anna is the girl from the subway. The series follows Jeha as he seeks revenge for all of the false accusations that have marred his past while also protecting Anna from the political corruption and previous trauma she has encountered.

Why I liked it: This one took a second to get into. The way that the storyline is introduced is purposely chaotic. Once I got to the second or third episode, I really got into it. Each character is well developed: There were so many characters in this storyline and I empathized with most of them. Each character has their own motives and reasons behind their actions; they don’t do something just to fit their role as the “good guy” or “bad guy”. The dynamic between Jeha and Anna definitely had me yelling at my screen several times. The corruption and complications that come along with power is portrayed in such a powerful way. It is a show where you think you have it figured out but you don’t and as soon as you give up and stop trying to guess, something predictable happens. It keeps you on your feet while making you fall in love with its characters.

Inheritors (romantic, teenage angst, social issues)

Summary: Kim Tan is in California after essentially being kicked out of Korea by his family, especially his older brother. One day he sees Cha Eunsang arguing with her sister after Eunsang traveled to the U.S. to see her only to find out that her sister lied and she has been using all of the money that their mother has sent for things less legal than an education. Tan sees that Eunsang is alone so he offers for her to stay at his home mansion. His fiancee (arranged) shows up and is not pleased to see Eunsang in the house so she does all she can to kick her out. Eunsang eventually returns to Korea to be with her mother, who has now moved into a mansion as their housekeeper. Tan also returns to try to smooth over his relationship with his family and he has to return to his old high school, where he had previously set the standard for how privileged students rule the roost. His friend turned enemy is now the “alpha male”. The series follows Tan and Eunsang mostly; showing their varying perspectives on attending the same school but coming from completely different backgrounds and financial situations.. Even comparing Tan’s perspectives from his other “inheritor” peers or himself several years prior is really interesting. It also shows their very different relationships with their families

Why I liked it: This show started out soooo cheesy. I remember commenting to my friend that I was watching this with-- I felt like I was watching a crossover between “Saved by the Bell” and a daytime soap opera. The American characters at the beginning are so stereotypical it was funny to see. Once the storyline got past the first few episodes and they were back in Korea, it really increased in quality-- both visually and written. This is another one that really allows you to connect to so many of the characters. I was constantly wanting to jump through my screen and just give the characters a hug (social distancing may have contributed a little too…). By the end of it, you have nearly 10 or more characters that you are invested in and you really want to see them succeed. The ending can be a little frustrating if you are the type of person that wants everything (all the minor storylines) to be wrapped up in a little bow. The ending closes out the main storyline well but leaves the others very open ended. I will always be on the lookout for a sequel/spin off. Also, Eunsang is a girl that will tell it like it is...she doesn’t take BS from anyone...unless she wants to. She isn’t the stereotypical damsel in distress. Also...that “Love is the Moment” song will forever play in my head during ANY romantic scene in ANY show from now on.

My Secret Romance (romantic, work place drama, comedy)

Summary: Jin Wook is a rich man getting ready to inherit the family company. The only thing standing in his way is the fact that his father doesn’t want him to take over until he is married. And the fact that he doesn’t take proper care of himself nutritionally, causing him to pass out. The company has recently hired a brand new dietitian, Yoo Mi, and Jin Wook’s assistant assigns her with the task of providing three healthy meals for their very picky boss. Yoo Mi, being brand new, is learning to be the head of a very opinionated kitchen staff while struggling to make food that is worth eating. Once Jin Wook and Yoo Mi meet, they realize that this isn’t their first encounter. As the series progresses, the two work on figuring out how to work together after their first meeting, what they feel for each other (especially considering that Jin Wook is expected to marry another woman), and how to work through their interesting family dynamics.

Why I liked it: This is a show that really shows the effect of emotional baggage. Neither of the main characters have a “simple life” and it plays into their interactions daily. It is a cute show, an easy watch, nothing too complicated but definitely heartfelt. It is a good illustration of the different ways that people care for those around them too. There are definitely several complications that come along and they are realistic and well thought out.

Tomorrow, With You (time travel, emotional, romantic)

Summary: Yoo Sojoon is the CEO of a very successful real estate firm. He ends up saving photographer Song Marin from being hit in an intersection and begins to try to get to know her. Little does she know, that Sojoon has been able to time travel using the subway ever since he narrowly avoided being in a major accident in that same subway tunnel. Sojoon is interested in Song Marin because he wants to save her, being encouraged by his mentor, a man that is also able to time travel in the same way as Sojoon. Sojoon encounters the many issues that come along with time travel and does all that he can to avoid the heartbreak that he sees when he travels to the future.

Why I liked it: This one was interesting. All of the characters storylines are so tangled together and there are times when you can’t tell if we are seeing past Sojoon, present Sojoon, or future Sojoon. It feels like we are in that time travel web right along with them. It is definitely a heartfelt story that will have you in your feelings while making you think. Life is complicated, with and without time travel, and this shows that.

Itaewon Class (Social issues, workplace politics, vengeance, family)

Summary: Park Saeroyi is a teenager that gets kicked out of his new school after punching the school bully and refusing to apologize. His father has recently purchased a building and is working to make his own restaurant after being let go from his position (the bully’s dad was his boss). As Mr. Park was making a delivery, he is a victim of a hit and run and passes away. Saeroyi finds out that the bully was the one driving the other car and attacks him, landing Saeroyi in prison for several years. Upon release, Saeroyi sets out to begin his plan to take revenge on the bully and his family for all that they have done. Saeroyi’s goal: Become the #1 restaurant business, overthrowing that family’s company. The show follows Saeroyi as he puts his plan into action and tries to go from the bottom of the totem pole to the top.

Why I liked it: I loved this drama! I’m not sure whether it was the storyline, the diverse characters, or the main character himself. The irony of so many things had me falling in love with Saeroyi’s plan and Saeroyi’s character was so...wholesome. I definitely yelled at my screen several times, especially during the last handful of episodes. The characters (at least those that work closely with Saeroyi) are so easy to love. Even those that aren’t the easiest to love, you still root for them. Now, the bad guys are the bad guys and they stay bad but you can see their motivations...not always making the pill any easier to swallow. It is definitely a drama I would recommend to everyone, whether they like foreign dramas or not. The storyline is good, the acting is wonderful, and it tugs at your heartstrings.

My Holo Love (action, romance, emotional, sci-fi)

Summary: Soyeon has lived a very solitary life due the fact that she has a face blindness disorder where she can’t recognize the differences in individual’s faces. This all stems from a childhood trauma. By chance (or not), she ends up with a pair of high tech prototype glasses that allows her to interact with the AI program that is installed, named Holo. He is meant to be a sort of personal assistant and only the person wearing the glasses can see and hear him. Holo helps Soyeon throughout her daily life, explaining who people are as they walk up to Soyeon so she can identify them and taking on the role of love coach. They become quite attached to each other, emotionally. They both realize the limits though, considering one is a human and one is a hologram. Holo is the spitting image of his creator, Nan Do...a man that the world thinks is dead. He is not. There are many people looking for him and his glasses. This causes him to become well acquainted with Soyeon.

Why I liked it: This one is cute. It is relatively short too...only 12 or so episodes compared to other series that have 20+. It was really interesting to see Soyeon’s relationship with Holo vs. Nando, but a good sort of interesting. The pacing was good and I really became invested in these three main characters. The ending is bittersweet (leaning more toward the sweet side) and how they get there is complicated, sometimes messy, but very intriguing. Definitely a good show to watch if you are wanting to watch something a little out of the ordinary while also seeing most kdrama troupes represented.

Chocolate (medical, romantic, angst, tearjerker)

Summary: The show begins in a small restaurant on the pier of a tiny town. Lee Kang’s mother is the owner and he loves helping around the business and watching her make the meals. He sees a young girl outside that is alone and hungry. He puts his skills to use (mind you, he is young...like 10 years old), and makes a full spread for this girl. He promises to make her a chocolate dessert later on if she returns. He makes it, but she never comes back (it was out of her hands). Fast forward to when these kids are adults. Lee Kang was taken in by his father’s family (who disproved of his mother) and groomed to become the top neurosurgeon at the family’s hospital. The young girl, Moon Chayoung, is now a chef and dating Kang’s best friend. They encounter each other another time in Greece when Kang searches for her to come back to Korea to make a final meal for his best friend who has failing health. Kang and Chayoung end up in a car accident that changes both of their futures and makes everything even more complicated but also provides some reminders about what is really important.

Why I liked it: Good lord, did I cry with this one! Nearly every episode had me in tears: both happy and sad. It is so sweet and sad. Just...ahhh. It is bittersweet like dark chocolate. Even looking back at the episode summaries on Netflix has me feeling some kind of way. I texted my friend after nearly episode just to vent about why I was crying. These characters are so relatable and my heart broke for them so many times while also celebrating for them. The cast is amazing and the storyline really makes you think about what you have and how you should value those around you while you have them around. I will definitely rewatch this when I need to be lost in my emotions. This is a drama that I don’t know why more people aren’t talking about it. I absolutely loved it.

Crash Landing on You (realistic drama, romantic)

Summary: Yun Seri, a South Korean heiress, find herself stuck in a tree on the north side of the Korean DMZ after a paragliding incident and a freak tornado. Ri Jeong Hyeok finds her and hides her in his home, with the help of his troop of North Korean soldiers. He is not a fan of hers and is looking for ways to get her back to South Korea without raising suspicion. His fiance returns from being abroad after years and throws a wrench in the plan as he had been introducing Seri as his fiance to decrease the suspicion of the neighbors. Seri is getting used to life in North Korea. Several issues arise as they try to get Seri back to the south and these complications bring them even closer together.

Why I liked it: This one is sweet. Nothing too emotional or heart wrenching. It is interesting to see how they portray the differences between the two countries and how important our relationships with others are, no matter what the government is like. The storyline isn’t rushed or forced and I really appreciated that. It seemed like events unfolded naturally. The characters are loveable and you find yourself wanting to be a part of their “squad”. Some characters redeem themselves, others don’t. Some characters get the ending they deserve, others don’t. The ending isn’t exactly what the viewer (or at least what I) hoped for, but it is more of a realistic ending and I appreciate that.

Cinderella and the Four Knights (angst, romantic, dramedy)

Summary: Hawon is a high school student that is working multiple jobs. Her step-family is nasty toward her and her father is on the road most of the time. She shows her spunk when she speaks up against some men at a club that are jerks when she delivers food. Hyunmin is one of three heirs for his family’s business and fortune. He sees Hawon’s spunk and offers her a fair amount of money for her to play the role of his fiancee at his grandfather’s latest marriage ceremony. She doesn’t realize what she is in for. When she stands up for herself at the wedding, she grabs the grandfather’s attention. He ends up hiring her to live with his four grandsons to “whip them into shape” and gives her missions to complete, essentially trying to get the grandsons to interact with each other as they each live their own separate lives and don’t like each other. Hyunmin is the eldest cousin and is the “arrogant playboy”. Jiwoon is the middle cousin and is the most withdrawn; he was an orphan and was thrown into this affluent role overnight...leading him to portray himself as wild and rebellious. Seowoo is the youngest cousin and he is a popular singer and is a sweetheart. The fourth knight is the secretary of Chairman Kang, Lee Yoonsung, and he is the bodyguard for Hawon and the three cousins.

Why I liked it: This one is complicated in the best way possible. It definitely hits on many of the stereotypical Kdrama troupes. You fall in love with all of the the main characters, even the chairman (a role that typically is the bad guy). The relationships are complicated, the characters are lovable, and the main female character has a backbone. Throughout the show, I couldn’t decide which “knight” I wanted Hawon to end up with. The writers did a great job at portraying each of the characters in an equal but unique light to allow the viewers to see them for who they are. The storyline is complicated but simple at the same time. I will definitely rewatch “Cinderella and the Four Knights” again.

Honorable Mentions:

Cheese in the Trap

Man to Man

Because this is my First Love

The Lies Within

The Bride of Haebaek

The Legend of the Blue Sea

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anubislover · 4 years

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Welcome to the Heart Pirates, Nami-ya chapter 15: When Animals Attack

Oh my God, Nami thought as the snow leopard in front of her snarled menacingly. It was a beautiful animal, for sure, with thick, luxurious grey fur, bold black spots, and aurous gold eyes, but she’d be much more inclined to appreciate these features from afar. As it was, she sat frozen stiff only a few yards away from where it crouched, sharp teeth and claws bared, its low growl sending a shiver of fear down her spine.

Beside her, Bepo murmured, “Stay calm, Nami—snow leopards aren’t known to attack people. They’re honestly pretty non-confrontational. If we just back away slowly…”

The big cat growled and jerked forward slightly, making Bepo wince in spite of his assurances. However, the snow leopard didn’t pounce, instead meeting the Mink’s eyes and jerking its head over its shoulder.

Furry eyebrows furrowed as Bepo cautiously peered around the animal, only to rise in shock as he exclaimed, “His back leg’s caught in a snare! No wonder he’s so unhappy!” Rushing forward, he immediately began inspecting the trap. “The knot’s pulled too tight to untie like this. We’ll need to cut you loose.”

Nami stared, mouth agape as the leopard shuffled back a bit, revealing that there was indeed some kind of rope snare caught around its back left ankle, preventing it from moving more than a few feet. It looked like it had been trying to claw and chew its way through the heavy cord, but to no avail. In the light of the fading sun, she could even make out a few spots of blood against the silver fur where the rope must have chaffed and cut into the skin underneath. Nami would argue that, though unfortunate for the trapped animal, that was good news as it gave them a better opportunity to get away. To her surprise, however, the large feline seemed to calm down significantly at Bepo’s assessment, and she wondered if the Mink could talk to animals the way Chopper could.

Her question was answered as the leopard made a few chuffing meows and Bepo replied, “The rest of the crew’s searching for the others on the opposite side of the island. Crozier and Cousteau’s team never came back.”

The casual way Bepo spoke made Nami’s pounding heart subside slightly, though confusion was quickly replacing fear. What was a snow leopard even doing on a summer island? Who had set this trap? Why was it near Law’s ripped swimsuit? For the moment, she settled for asking, “Is this a friend of yours?”

To her surprise, before Bepo could respond the leopard slapped its paw over his mouth and gave a warning growl.

Pushing the massive paw aside, the Mink furrowed his brow in bemusement. “I know it’s embarrassing, but would you rather she keeps thinking you’re a wild animal?”

“Bepo, what are you talking about?” she asked, crossing her arms. She was sitting across from a potentially dangerous beast—being left out of the loop was not something she appreciated.

“This leopard—”

A loud hiss was let out between the feline’s fangs, cutting Bepo off. With a sigh the Mink amended, “He’s…well, he’s not a normal snow leopard, ok? We should free him.”

Though far from comfortable with that plan, Nami had the feeling that, friend or not, Bepo wouldn’t stand for leaving the poor animal there. “Fine, but how? My Clima-Tact’s not exactly designed for cutting, and I don’t think your claws will do much good. We need something with an edge.”

He glanced around, eyes lighting up when he caught sight of a sharp rock a few feet away on the beach. “This should do!” he called, jogging up to it. His happiness was short-lived, however, as there was the familiar sound of something crashing through the underbrush, and Bepo barely had time to brace himself before the wild boar from earlier charged out of the jungle.

I thought Jean Bart tossed that thing into next Tuesday?! Nami screamed internally as she scuttled back against one of the trees. The green-eyed pig must have lucked out with a soft landing, then tracked them down to seek revenge.

The Mink’s natural combat instincts allowed him to avoid getting a sharp tusk buried in his stomach. Instead, he managed to grab the beast by the snout and use its momentum to fling it onto its side, sending it skidding across the wet sand.

Acting fast before the boar could regain its footing, Bepo grabbed the sharp rock and tossed it to Nami. “Here! Cut him free while I handle this!”

“Are you crazy?!” she yelled, even as she caught the stone. The edge felt sharp enough to work as a makeshift knife, though she had no doubt it would take some time to work through the thick rope. That didn’t mean she was eager to start; friend of Bepo’s or not, she was naturally very leery of getting close to an apex predator without a protective Mink ready to step in.

Unfortunately, he had much more pressing matters to deal with at the boar climbed to its feet, kicking at the sand as it prepared to charge again. Bepo got into a kung-fu stance, staring down his opponent before he leapt forward, delivering a series of lightning-fast kicks to its side to drive it back away from the trapped leopard and trembling woman. “Nami, please, just do it before this pig’s friends show up!”

Nami glanced nervously at the snarling snow leopard who was jerking towards the fight, fruitlessly trying to yank itself out of the snare so it could join the fray. Every ounce of common sense screamed at her to keep the hell away from such an agitated beast, but then it turned to look at her, and its gold eyes could only be described as pleading.

Pleading and unnaturally intelligent and oddly familiar.

Bepo’s right; it’s not a normal snow leopard, she thought as she cautiously crawled over to its left leg, letting out the breath she didn’t realize she was holding when it stood still and didn’t so much as hiss at her. “Nice kitty. Good kitty. Promise you won’t bite me?” she whimpered as she placed the edge of the rock against one of the more worn parts of the rope.

To her surprise, it nodded solemnly before turning its attention back to the fight between the Mink and the boar, its shoulders tense as it forced itself to remain still while Nami sawed away at the coiled fibers. She could hear Bepo shouting “Why are you attacking us? Who are you?” and angry squeals in response from the boar.

“He’ll be ok,” she assured, though she felt she was saying it as much to herself as the ensnared leopard. “Bepo may look like a giant teddy bear, but he’s a strong fighter. He wouldn’t be a member of the Heart Pirates if he were a pushover. Heck, he can probably take care of that mean old boar all by himself!”

In response, the leopard let out what could only be described as an annoyed huff, but when she glanced up briefly Nami did note that its posture appeared slightly less anxious. It helped that she caught sight of Bepo grabbing the boar by the tusks again to fling it into a nearby palm tree, though she winced when the vibrations shook the trunk so hard a coconut came loose, the hard-shelled fruit landing squarely on the Mink’s head, dazing him while the boar recovered its breath.

Nami was about halfway through the rope by this point, but her confidence at freeing the snow leopard vanished as she heard a horrible shriek from above her. Looking up, she screamed as a massive, long-maned baboon glared down at her, its fleshy top lip flipping back over its nose to display fangs as large as the leopard’s. Without warning it dove from the tree branches, pouncing on top of the frightened navigator and knocking her backwards away from the snarling big cat who could do nothing but helplessly lash out with its claws, trying to catch either of them before they were out of its reach.

“Nami!” Bepo groaned, stumbling forward to aid his friend. Unfortunately, he was waylaid by a ram charging out of the jungle, its spiraled horns and thick skull bashing into the polar bear’s chest with an audible thunk.

She would have cried out in concern had she not been so distracted by the baboon’s vicious attempts to murder her. It wasn’t a large animal, maybe two feet tall, but it was forty pounds of pure aggression. Its grip on her thin wrists prevented her from reaching for her Clima-Tact or even using the stone in her hand as a weapon, and she was barely able to move her head in time to avoid getting her face bitten off.

Frustrated at her struggling, it released one of her arms to slap her hard across the face. The blow dazed Nami for a moment, and the baboon seemed to laugh, the shrieking sound like nails across a chalkboard. Its attention was briefly taken by the snarls of the leopard behind them. Glancing over its shoulder, the baboon chittered mockingly, again showing off its horrible fangs.

The distraction was enough time for Nami to recover her senses, though. Lacking options, she punched the baboon in the side of the face with her free hand, her fist making a satisfying smack against its cheek. Taking advantage of its stunned state, she managed to land a kick against the fleshy, heart-shaped bald patch on its chest, sending it stumbling backwards directly into the leopard’s clutches. The big cat didn’t waste any time as it sank its claws into the baboon’s back, dragging it closer so it could bury its teeth into its neck. Blood sprayed everywhere as the ape’s throat was ripped out with a harsh jerk.

Catching her breath, Nami searched for Bepo only to find him outnumbered two-to-one on the beach. The boar had managed to regain its footing while the ram continued to bash its skull into the Mink’s stomach, and it was only due to the boar’s injuries than he managed to dodge their combined attempt to batter him from both sides.

“I take it back—Bepo needs help!” she cried, pulling out her Clima-Tact and using the batons to send out a gust of wind towards the ram. However, she’d underestimated the power—the blast was more like a hurricane gale, encompassing both animals and Bepo and knocking them nearly a dozen feet into the ocean.

Ikkaku wasn’t kidding about the power boost, she thought, a sweatdrop cascading down the back of her head. We’ll have to modify that so I can aim better.

There was a muffled growl from beside her, and Nami turned to see the leopard glaring at her as its jaws continued to crush the twitching baboon’s throat. Their eyes met, and it jerked its head pointedly towards the frayed snare, its meaning clear; cut me free already!

This time, Nami didn’t even hesitate—with Bepo outnumbered and her weapon’s accuracy compromised, they needed to end this before more animals showed up. As fast as she could, she sawed through the tough rope, heart pounding as she heard frantic splashing while Bepo cried out. She dared not turn around for fear of losing focus, though, settling for mentally praying to every god she could think of that he was alright. Hell, she’d even pray to that bastard Enel if it could help her friend.

Luckily, the gods help those who help themselves, and at last the rope had frayed enough that, with a mighty lunge, the leopard was able to snap its tether and leap into the fray. Nami had to admit she was impressed with the jump—it practically soared forty feet to land squarely on the ram’s back, its claws and teeth sinking into fur and flesh and holding on tightly as it tried to buck the predator off. Meanwhile, with one less opponent, Bepo was able to turn his focus back onto the boar, nailing it with a flurry of kung-fu kicks and slashing its sides with his own long claws. At long last the boar collapsed under the strain of its own injuries, though its green eyes were full of hate even as the life faded from them.

His enemy vanquished, Bepo spun around, ready to help the snow leopard, only to find the ram had succumbed to the same fate as the baboon, its trachea ruthlessly but efficiently crushed.

When it was sure the ram was completely dead, the snow leopard released its neck, flexing its jaw and using the back of one wide, furry paw to wipe the blood away from its lips. Turning to face its ally, it nodded and let out a low chuffing noise.

“Thanks. You too,” Bepo panted, exhausted but clearly relieved as he collapsed onto the sand with a heavy thump.

The snow leopard gave two more chuffs and prowled towards the Mink, its expression stern and determined.

Fearing the worst, Nami stumbled to her feet and ran towards them, brandishing her staff. Her weapon might not have been as accurate as she liked, but she was perfectly willing to use its raw power to send the leopard flying to keep her friend from getting his throat ripped out. “Get away from him!” she shouted as threateningly as she could. The effect was ruined slightly by her knees knocking together, but to her relief, the large cat did stop in its tracks. Intelligent eyes peered at her, and the tip of its long tail twitched as it glanced between the frightened woman and the Mink.

“Nami, it’s ok!” Bepo assured her, sitting up with a groan. “He’s just worried about my injuries. He’s going to give me a quick examination.”

“Excuse me?” she stammered, mouth hanging open in befuddlement.

To her immense surprise, the snow leopard proceeded to do just that; it prodded Bepo’s ribs and skull with its paws, checked his pupils, and even pressed an ear to his chest to listen to his breathing.

“I don’t think anything’s broken,” the polar bear assured as he returned the favor by removing the remains of the snare from its foot. “My ribs are probably bruised, but aside from that I’m just a bit sore. All this fur and blubber’s good for something, I guess.”

The leopard meowed curtly, and Bepo hung his head. “Sorry.”

The whole thing was such a ridiculous, comical sight Nami could almost imagine the leopard in a doctor’s coat, conferring with Law over its prognosis. She supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised; her own doctor was a blue-nosed reindeer, after all. Perhaps it had eaten some kind of Devil Fruit like Chopper had? That might explain what Bepo had meant by it not being an ordinary leopard.

That didn’t explain anything about the other animals they’d encountered, though. “Ok, I’m no expert, but am I the only one who finds it odd that we were just attacked by a baboon, a wild boar, and a ram? None of these animals are native to the jungle. On top of that, they were clearly working together! What the hell is going on?”

Bepo glanced towards the leopard, who sighed and gave him a nod. “Um, well, it seems there’s a Devil Fruit user on the island.”

“You mean one that can control the animals?” That would make sense. It was possible the animals themselves had been cargo aboard the ship and had gotten loose when it crashed upon the reef. And while she wouldn’t have expected them to last very long on an island so different from their natural habitat, if there was a human who could control them, their chances of survival was much higher, especially if they could be convinced to work together to fend of predators like the snow leopard.

Her theory was disproven when Bepo shook his head. “No; according to Law, it’s more like he can turn people into animals.”

Brown eyes widened and then narrowed. “Law? Where is that jerk? He should have been helping us!”

Bepo shrank down a bit as the leopard sighed. “He was a little tied up…”

“So was the leopard, and that didn’t stop it from saving us both!”

The leopard let out what sounded like a husky, exasperated meow, and Bepo twiddled his claws. “Law says that he would appreciate it if you stopped referring to him as an ‘it’. Please.”

“WHAT?!”

The leopard growled and gave what could only be described as an annoyed scowl as his ears flattened against his head at her loud shriek.

“He’d…also appreciate if you would refrain from being so loud, since his hearing is a lot more sensitive now.”

Well, that sounded like Law. Or at least a polite interpretation of whatever rude thing the Law leopard had more likely said. “Well, you can tell him—”

Holding up his paws to calm her down, Bepo explained, “He can understand you just fine. It’s you understanding him that’s the problem. Sorry.”

Tempting as it was to make a comment about how Law’s biggest problem was actually listening to people, she forced herself to instead study him in his leopard form. Now that she knew who he really was, it was easy to see some vague similarities. The gold eyes were definitely the same. There were black rings of fur under them that bore a passing resemblance to his sleep-deprived bags. The spots and fur were certainly reminiscent of his fuzzy hat. Hidden in the thick fuzz of his ears, Nami could just make out a quartet of gold hoops. And upon noticing her scrutiny, his lips turned up into a smug expression so similar to his trademark smirk that she had no choice but to accept that this was most definitely Law in snow leopard form.

Of course, this brought up more than a few questions. Crouching down to his level, she asked, “So, someone with a Devil Fruit turned you into a big, fluffy kitty?”

He growled at the description but reluctantly nodded.

“Do you think he’s the one who set up that snare you got caught in?”

Another nod.

“Why were your swim trunks ripped to shreds?”

Despite lacking the ability to visibly blush, Law was definitely embarrassed as he glanced away and grumble-meowed something under his breath. Luckily, Bepo’s sharp hearing was able to catch the explanation. “He says, ‘I may have freaked out a little, and they were suddenly way too tight around my waist. Plus, there was no room for my tail’.”

To her credit, Nami at least tried not to laugh, though she failed miserably. As a child, she remembered her and Nojiko once trying to dress up a stray cat they’d found like a doll, and it had not been happy about it. Her active imagination was quickly filled with visions of a leopard flailing around trying to emancipate himself from a pair of yellow swim trunks. The fact that said leopard was really the normally cool and collected Surgeon of Death made the notion even funnier, and she outright cackled at Law’s unimpressed scowl.

“Why didn’t you just Shambles yourself out of them?” she giggled when she finally caught her breath. Her amusement was doused in cold water when she realized the obvious answer. It was the same reason he hadn’t been able to free himself of the snare around his ankle.

Law gave her a look that clearly said “you think I didn’t try that?” However, he humored her by lifting up his paw and letting out a raspy meow that Nami didn’t need Bepo to interpret to mean “Room.”

Nothing happened. No blue bubble, no body parts flying around, not even the sand beneath them stirred.

Law was a snow leopard with human intelligence, but no Ope Ope no Mi powers.

All three of them hung their heads in despair. “This was supposed to be a relaxing vacation,” Nami grumbled, sticking out her bottom lip in a miserable pout. “An uninhabited island where we could all sit back, enjoy the sun, have a little party, and for once not be attacked or drugged or threatened. Glad to see your little plan to give us some downtime has been such a success.”

Law rolled his eyes and yowled in what could only be a bitingly sarcastic manner.

Bepo’s ears drooped as he glanced between him and Nami. “Do I have to translate that?”

“Don’t bother—I can guess what it was,” she replied, glaring at Law. “And you’d better watch your mouth, mister; otherwise you’re going to find yourself the latest addition to the nearest zoo!”

“Nami!” the Mink gasped, utterly horrified. “You wouldn’t really, would you?!”

Cheeks reddening with guilt, she mumbled, “No.” Her comment had, admittedly, been a bit out of line. At this point, offering Law to a zoo was tantamount to turning him in to the Marines for the bounty or selling him at an auction house. At the very least, she could understand why Bepo would take offense. “Sorry. I guess I’m just a little frustrated. I thought we were finally getting a break, and now this happens…” she trailed off as another horrifying thought hit her. She turned to the cooling animal corpses that surrounded them. “Wait. Those animals—you don’t think they were…”

She breathed a little easier when both Bepo and Law shook their heads. “They weren’t our crew. The way they spoke was kind of weird, but they were definitely talking about us like we were enemies.”

Law made a few growling noises, which Bepo translated, “‘None of the Hearts would have ever talked about you the way that baboon did, much less hurt you’.”

Despite herself, Nami had to smile a bit at the statement. She had no idea what that horrible primate had said, but she completely believed Law that her new friends would never lay a hand on her. Though they were certainly more ruthless than the Straw Hats, they’d proven themselves to be more noble than most pirate crews, and unquestionably loyal to those they cared about.

Nami would never trade her nakama for them, of course, but it was nice knowing that her initial distrust of the Heart Pirates had been unfounded.

Speaking of, they still needed to be found. If there really was a Devil Fruit user running around who could turn people into animals, they were in real danger.

Bepo seemed to share her concern. Turning to his captain, he asked, “So, what should we do? Go back to the ship and try to contact the others, or search the jungle for them?”

The second option definitely didn’t appeal to Nami’s sense of self-preservation. “It’s dangerous enough to wander randomly through the jungle at night—it’s even worse when there are traps hidden everywhere.” Rubbing her chin, she turned to Law. “Can’t you, like, track down the person who did this to you?” she asked. “I’m sure leopards have a pretty good sense of smell—sniff him out!”

Law growled irritably, which Bepo translated, “‘That’s what I was trying to do before I got caught in that snare. Unfortunately, I’m a bit new to being a damn leopard—I could pick out what I assumed to be a human scent, but actually following it was trickier than it seems’.”

“Ah. Ok, good point. What about you, Bepo?”

“I’m a bit better at tracking, but with all the animal scents and dirt kicked up by the battle, I’m not hopeful. It’d be easier if I had something to get their scent off of.” Perking up, Bepo smacked a fist into his palm. “I know! Let’s go to the landing site! I might not be able to track whoever turned Law, but I could probably find one of the other groups!”

Another cutting growl, and Bepo hung his head, ashamed. “I’m sorry. You’re right; we all should have just gone looking for you.”

Though she could understand his deference to his captain, Nami bristled slightly at the way he immediately deflated at the obvious reprimand. “Seriously, Law? You’re the one who sulked away on his own!” she scolded, poking his nose petulantly. “None of this would have happened if you’d stayed at the party and had some fun like you were supposed to!”

Batting away her hand, Law’s long tail flicked irritably as he replied with a series of deep meows and chuffs.

“Ummm, he says, ‘My powers literally could have found everyone and gotten them off the island in seconds. Finding me would have been the best course of action’.”

“Except you can’t even use your powers right now, so it would have been pointless! Besides, your crew shouldn’t rely on you for everything; situations like these prove exactly why!”

Gold eyes narrowed, and the angry string of snarls Law let out made Bepo gasp. “Law, that’s mean!”

“What did he say, Bepo?” she snapped, stubbornly meeting Law’s glare head-on.

The bear slouched further into himself as he mumbled, “He said ‘It’s situations like these that prove why I can’t leave you all to your own devices! Why I have to plan things out, because if I leave it to the rest of you, everything will go straight to hell’.” His round black eyes glistened as his bottom lip quivered. “Are we really such a burden, Captain?” he whimpered, wringing his hands in shame.

To his credit, Law’s ears drooped and his shoulders slumped as he regarded his navigator with clear guilt. Nami hoped his quiet meows were in apology and not some kind of bullshit justification, as Bepo mumbled, “It’s ok, Law. I understand.”

With a huff, Nami climbed to her feet. “So, we’re going back to the landing site, right? It’s our best shot, and maybe one or two of the other groups have returned.” Turning on her heel, she began marching west-ward down the sandy beach. “Besides, if we’re dealing with a Devil Fruit user, I’d much rather stick close to the ocean until we have a better plan.”

After a few moments, she heard the tell-tale sound of shuffling footsteps behind her. She found it unusual that, Law at least, was opting to let her lead. Glancing over her shoulder, she confirmed that a polar bear and a snow leopard were indeed following her, and not some dangerous creep waiting to turn her into a wild animal.

It was weird, looking down at Law instead of up for once. What must it be like for him in such an alien body? She supposed she should cut him some slack—of course he was frustrated, being unable to properly communicate with anyone but Bepo, the loss of his powers, being caught in a trap, and suddenly having stronger senses but no clear understanding of how to use them. Add in the stress of an unknown enemy and the chance that his crew was in danger, and Nami supposed she’d be a bit snappish, too.

He seemed to be adapting well to his new form, though. Even over her shoulder, Nami could admire the way he prowled gracefully across the sand. His enormous feet didn’t seem to sink too deeply into the fine grains, either. She imagined the beach, while quite different from the artic climate snow leopards thrived in, shared enough similarity with freshly fallen snow that the snowshoe-like paws were able to move across it almost as easily. And though he lacked his human height, Law’s luminous golden eyes were surely more adept at seeing in the twilight hours that had fallen.

Wait. Low height, plus superior vision, plus walking behind a beautiful woman…

“Bepo?”

“Yeah, Nami?”

“Law’s staring at my ass, isn’t he?”

The Mink twiddled his claws while the leopard appeared unapologetic. “Ummm…he says he’s just trying to make the best out of a bad situation.”

Nami could have screamed in outrage, but for the sake of both the pirate-turned-leopard and the Mink navigator, she refrained. “Well, then he owes me a 50,000 belli sightseeing fee.”

Before long, they were back at the party site, though it was clear they weren’t the first people to stop by. However, given the state everything was in, it was doubtful it had been the crew. Much of the food was gone. Beach bags had been emptied, their contents strewn about as if the culprit had been looking for something. Many of the blankets and towels were conspicuously missing, too, but most surprisingly was the absence of the grill.

“Yeesh. I don’t think the boar and his friends did this,” Nami quipped, righting one of the lounge chairs.

“If this Devil Fruit user is a castaway, he was probably scavenging for supplies,” Bepo noted as he tossed a few extra pieces of wood onto the smoldering fire to give them some more light.

That made sense. While the party had been ransacked, there didn’t appear to be any undo damage done. No violent slashes across the beach umbrellas, no bloody animal remains, not even a threatening note. “Hey, Law, did you get a good look at the guy that turned you?”

Law grunted and chuffed as he inspected the area, sniffing around for his attacker’s scent. “‘He caught me from behind, so I only managed to catch a glimpse of him as he ran off. He looked like an older man. Messy gray hair. Tattered clothes. Skinny, probably from malnourishment’.”

“Huh. Weird.”

“What is, Nami?” Bepo asked as he inspected the sand for footprints. It seemed their mystery assailant was pretty good at covering his tracks, though, as there was very little to indicate exactly where he’d disappeared back into the forest.

She cocked her hip and rubbed her chin as she spoke. “Well, physically at least, he doesn’t sound particularly strong. So why would he turn Law into a potentially dangerous predator? I mean, even if he’d set up traps to keep him from giving chase, that’s a hell of a risk, right?” She turned to Law to gage his reaction, only to stare at the apex predator in disbelief.

“What the heck are you doing?”

Law seemed just as surprised as she was at the fact that his tail was in his mouth. He let out a muffled meow, which Bepo translated to “‘I don’t know. It just feels right’.”

Nami was torn between laughing and smacking her forehead. On one hand, he was utterly adorable. The infamous Surgeon of Death, one of the most feared upstart pirate rookies on the Grand Line, was sitting on all fours, the tip of his fluffy tail caught gently between his teeth as he looked up at her with utter seriousness. On the other hand, it made her wonder if, the longer he stayed in that form, the more leopard-like he’d become.

“Hey, Bepo, you said those animals that attacked us sounded weird, right?” she asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as she could, even as her heartrate sped up in concern.

“Yeah?”

“Weird how?”

The two artic mammals glanced at each other. “Well, I guess it was kind of…primitive, almost? There wasn’t a lot of proper grammar. It’s kind of like when someone’s speaking another language, but they aren’t fluent, you know? Or when you’re trying to say something, but you can’t remember the right words to get your meaning across.”

“And Law didn’t sound like this?”

“No, he’s been pretty articulate.”

“Well, that’s good to hear!” she said with forced cheer, plastering a smile across her face. Though she should be reassured that the mental degradation didn’t seem to be instantaneous, the fact was, it sounded like it was inevitable.

However, it seemed that even in leopard form, Law wasn’t easily fooled. “He wants to know what you’re thinking, Nami,” Bepo said, white brow furrowing in concern.

Quickly thinking up a lie, she said, “I’m just wondering where those other animals might have come from! I mean, it’s safe to assume they were human, right? So, if it was obvious they could understand you, why did they keep attacking instead of asking us for help?”

Though the Mink seemed to consider her question, Law looked up at her sternly and let out a deep growl, hackles raised.

Blinking in surprise, Bepo translated, “He’s saying ‘While that’s a good question, do you really think I’m that stupid? It’s clear they’ve been in animal form for a while and are probably slowly losing their human minds. I already came to the same conclusion—I just didn’t say anything because that’s my problem, not yours’.”

“Like hell it’s not our problem!” Nami argued, stomping her foot in frustration. “You crew needs a captain! Preferably one that doesn’t risk the chance of turning completely feral someday!”

“‘I didn’t want to bring it up for the same reason you didn’t; to avoid panicking anyone! And it won’t be a problem if we can just find this asshole and make him change me back’!”

“And how exactly do you intend to ‘make’ him turn you human again, Law? You don’t have your powers, so you can’t scare him with those. We can’t risk killing him; that might just leave you like this forever!”

His eyes were steady and uncompromising as Bepo answered for him, “‘Then we’ll just slap him in Seastone cuffs and dunk him into the ocean until he agrees to turn me back’.”

Cold dread spread through Nami’s chest like frost on a windowpane while acrid bile bubbled up in her throat. She’d seen more than a few men drowned as torture and punishment during her time with Arlong. It had been something he’d found particularly amusing, as it further highlighted the genetic inferiority of humans compared to Fishmen. It had been one of the many reasons that, when Zoro had leapt into the water back at Arlong Park, she’d jumped in to save him—she’d witnessed more than enough men die in that pool.

She knew Law wasn’t as monstrous as Arlong, but it frightened her to think that, when pushed to the edge, he was capable of even considering such things. Aside from turning Law into an animal and stealing some of their stuff, had this guy really done anything to warrant what was probably the most horrible thing a person could do to a Devil Fruit user?

Blunt nails dug into her palms as Nami’s hands tightened into fists. Her stance widened slightly, as if ready for a fight, as she stared the Dark Doctor down. “You’re not torturing anyone, Law. I don’t care if this guy turns out to be a total psychopath—I’m not going to stand by and watch you torture a frail old man.”

“‘Do you want me human again or not’?”

Of course she did, but her conscience wouldn’t allow her to go that far. Looking for reinforcements, Nami turned to Bepo. “You agree with me, don’t you? I mean, how can you repeat what he just said with a straight face?”

The Mink looked dejected. “I don’t like it either, but if we don’t have any other choice…I mean, we can’t just leave him like this!”

“Then we should try to strike a deal with him! Pay him off! Reason with him! But if you expect me to just stand by while you fucking torture another human being—”

A loud, pained yowl from Law cut off her argument as he jerked forward, his left hind leg kicking out wildly. Nami jumped back to avoid his erratic movements as he blindly tried to claw at his back leg.

“Law! Law, what’s going on? Are you hurt?” Bepo cried as he grabbed his flailing body, trying to hold him still so he could examine him. However, it was Nami who noticed the odd coil of yellow, red, and black stripes peeking out from beneath the monochrome sea of spotted fur. Gasping, she realized what was wrapped around Law’s back foot wasn’t the remains of the snare, but a snake, its head buried in the thick fur to get to the tender flesh below.

“Snake!” she shrieked, pointing at the colorful ring that flexed against the leopard’s leg.

Black eyes widened as Bepo found the culprit. Holding down his flailing captain with most of his body weight, he used his long claws to try and pry at the tightly coiled serpent, but it was so long and thin that it kept slipping through his fingers.

“I can’t find its head!” he cried, panicking.

Taking a massive, unbelievably stupid risk, Nami grabbed one of the discarded fish skewers and jammed the sharp tip into the snake’s flesh. That seemed to force it to finally let go as it hissed in fury and pain, its head turning to glare at Nami with eyes full of unbridled hatred. It let go of Law, but despite its wound it struck out at her, its mouth latching onto her boot.

Luckily, its fangs couldn’t seem to penetrate through the thick leather, though it was clearly determined to try and chew its way through. Acting fast, Nami kicked off the boot and used her Clima-Tact to blast both it and the snake out into the ocean, where they landed with a barely-audible plop.

The threat taken care of, Nami turned back to Bepo, who was cradling the panting, hissing Law, petting his fur and coaxing him to calm down.

“Is it gone?” the Mink whimpered nervously.

She crawled back over to the duo, taking in the way Law’s feline face was pinched in agony while his back foot continued to twitch. “Yeah, but I’m pretty sure it was another transformed human like the rest of them, so there could be more. How’s Law?”

Swallowing hard, Bepo took a deep breath before donning a serious expression. “Do you know much about snakes?”

“No—venomous ones aren’t all that common in the East Blue.”

“We don’t get many in the North, either, but Law taught us emergency procedures for treating snake bites before we entered the Grand Line just in case. At least, enough to get us to the infirmary so he could remove the venom himself.”

“Ok, then what do we do? Make a tourniquet? Elevate his leg?”

Bepo looked horrified at her suggestion. “What? No! That’ll just make things worse! What I need you to do is check the wound to see how big the fang marks are and if there’s any swelling or discoloration.”

“Ok, yeah, I can do that,” she mumbled, though she squeaked nervously when Law instinctively kicked out at her when she tried to prod the wound.

“Easy, Law,” she whispered soothingly, petting his thigh in hopes that it would help him relax. “It’s just me. Bepo and I are just trying to help you. Just hold still for me, ok?” Her gentle touch combined with her coaxing tone seemed to get through to him as he managed to relax just a little, and she took the opportunity to part the thick fur away from where she’d seen the snake sink its teeth in.

The snake had been small, but smart—its fangs might not have been able to piece through Nami’s boot, but it had gone for the area that the coarse snare had rubbed and chaffed. In the center of the red ring of raw, faintly bleeding skin were two tiny, barely visible puncture marks.

“I don’t see any swelling. Do you think it was venomous?” she asked Bepo nervously, taking in the gasping, agonized face of Law. Her heart felt like it was being squeezed in her chest as his eyes clenched, trying to block out the pain. There were a ton of deadly snakes out there—vipers, cobras, copperheads, mambas—and given how none of the wildlife had been native to the jungle island so far, or even acted like they should, she couldn’t narrow any of them down!

“Given how much pain he’s in, I’d say yes.” Carefully, Bepo gathered his captain in his arms like a baby, lifting him up and scurrying towards the boats as quickly as he dared. “We need to get him to the ship right away; I’ll take him to the infirmary while you hit the library.”

“Why the library?” Nami panted as she climbed in after them, starting up the motorboat’s engine.

“Because Law stands no chance at survival if you can’t identify that snake.”

XXX

“How’s he doing?” Nami asked as she skidded into the familiar, sterile room of the infirmary, carrying Dr. R. Monroe’s Encyclopedia of the World’s Known Snakes in her arms. It had been the largest book on snakes she could find in the zoology section, and she’d been relieved to find it included colored photographs of the specimens documented. Her knowledge of snakes was limited, but she knew there were some breeds, like the king cobra, that could kill a human in as little as fifteen minutes—she didn’t have the luxury of going through every written description while Law’s life surely ticked away.

On the stainless steel table the leopard captain lay, panting faintly but at least no longer writhing in pain. Whether that was because it had subsided or he was forcing himself to remain stoic so as to not worry the pair of navigators, Nami wasn’t certain, but she admittedly breathed a little easier seeing him so calm.

Upon finishing wrapping a clean, cloth bandage around the leg, Bepo answered, “Aside from the pain of the bite, there haven’t been any noticeable symptoms yet. Even the wound itself hasn’t been swelling, though I did shave the area and wrap a clean bandage around it to avoid any infections. Unfortunately, the only antivenom we have is for jellyfish and other toxic sea creatures.”

“What about the others? Any luck reaching anyone on the den den mushi?”

His shoulders sagged. “No one’s answered yet. It rang and it rang…”

Plopping herself into a chair, Nami forced herself to not imagine all the reasons why no one was picking up. “We’ll try again later. Someone’s bound to pick up eventually. Or maybe they’ll call us—animals or not, surely one of them can figure out a way to reach out to us.”

Though he still looked nervous, his fellow navigator’s sure tone seemed to help ease his own doubts. “You’re right. In the meantime, we should figure out exactly what kind of snake bit Law. That’s the more pressing issue.”

“At least I caught a good look at it,” Nami sighed, cracking open the hefty tome. While Bepo continued to busy himself by fussing over his injured captain, pressing for details on his condition, she flipped through the pages, scowling at every snake she passed for daring to not be the one she needed. A few chapters in, though, her heart soared—she’d found a snake with the same colored stripes.

“‘Milk snakes are constrictors, so they're non-venomous. Their temperament is non-aggressive, and do not pose any risk to humans. Milk snakes have small, hooked teeth, rather than fangs. Although a bite may hurt, getting bitten wouldn't cause any serious harm’,” she read aloud.

“Phew! Sounds like we got lucky!” Bepo said cheerfully, though Law appeared doubtful. As he stared her down critically, she began to understand his concern—could a non-venomous snake bite hurt that much? And then there was the fact that the snake had clearly been as intelligent as the others. Even if its human mind had degraded, there was no way a constrictor that size would try to attack a seventy-pound snow leopard.

None of it was adding up, and her misgivings pressed her to take another long look at the glossy picture. The snake looked…similar, but not exactly like the one she’d seen. The head was different, too—the one she’d seen had a completely black head and was a bit rounder in shape. Studying the text further, her hopeful heart dropped into her stomach. “‘Some milk snakes have a striking resemblance to the highly-venomous coral snakes, in Batesian mimicry, which likely scares away potential predators. Both milk snakes and coral snakes possess transverse bands of red, black, and yellow’.”

“…so, he could have been bitten by a coral snake?”

Dread creeping through her veins as she heard Bepo whimper, she turned the page to find a side-by-side comparison photo, and she knew she’d been foolish to get her hopes up. Unlike the milk snake, what she’d seen had displayed wide bands of red and black separated by smaller yellow ones. Flipping to the page indicated in the footnote, her fears were confirmed.

“He was definitely bitten by a coral snake,” she stated, throat tightening. “According to the book, ‘coral snake venom is a neurotoxin that causes rapid paralysis and respiratory failure. It's actually the second most-venomous snake, second only to the black mamba, but it is regarded as far less dangerous because its poison-delivery system is not very effective. They are exceptionally painful bites, but their fangs are small so they cannot penetrate things like leather, and sometimes even fail to puncture human skin’.”

Black claws clutched his snout nervously. “But…Law’s not human right now, and it went after his chaffed leg. How quickly does it affect snow leopards?”

Swallowing hard, she skimmed through the paragraphs of text, flipping through the pages in the vain hope for an answer. “…it doesn’t say. Damn it! Whoever turned someone into a venomous snake is getting a lightning bolt straight to the chest!”

“I can’t believe this is happening!” Bepo cried woefully. “We never had to worry about things like this in the North Blue! Back home it was mostly frostbite and hypothermia—snakes were the least of our problems! I don’t know what to do about something like this!” His eyes started to fill up with tears as he whimpered, “He’s like my brother—I can’t lose him like this.”

Before Nami could figure out a way to comfort the Mink, Law had already sat upright and flicked his long tail across his younger crewmate’s nose to get his attention. As Bepo looked at him in apprehension, he uttered a few reassuring chuffs, even patting his arm with a fluffy paw.

“You sure?” Bepo sniffed.

An affirmative grunt, followed by a few more chuffs and meows, brought a smile back to the Mink’s cute face. “You’re right. It’ll take a lot more than a little bite to kill you, Captain.” He turned back to Nami, confidence in his captain instantly drying his tears. “Leopard or not, Law should be alright while we develop an antivenom.”

Though she was loathed to rain on their parade, Nami was a realist at heart, and no amount of comforting words was going the change the fact that Law currently had venom from one of the world’s most dangerous snakes pumping through his veins. “But how? I blew the snake away! How are we supposed to develop an antidote if we don’t have a sample of its venom?”

Nodding assuredly to himself, Bepo replied, “Antivenom isn’t the actual venom of the snake; it’s made by injecting small doses into lab animals, whose white blood cells create antibodies. The blood is then taken from the animal and then purified.” The Mink’s face lit up. “Law’s an animal! We could take a sample of his blood and purify it to make the antivenom!”

“Do you know how?”

A dark cloud of gloom settled back over his head. “No. Law was usually the one to do it, since it was easy with his powers. Sorry.”

Nami wanted to scream. Once again, Law doing everything himself and making his crew rely too much on his powers was coming back to bite them in the ass. He was the guy with all the plans; shouldn’t he have made contingency plans for when he was out of action? Even if snake bites were unlikely, what about when he was injured, or sick? What, had he planned on pushing through a serious illness until he collapsed? Only the most stubborn, moronic, irresponsible…

Her mental tirade trailed off as she was forced to acknowledge that she wasn’t entirely much better; when she’d fallen ill on the way to Alabasta, no one else knew how to use a Log Pose, forcing them to sail blindly until they’d managed to stumble upon Drum Island. Hell, at the time, she’d been the only one with any medical knowledge to boot! How much of a hypocrite was she if she berated Law for something like this when she’d made the same stupid mistake?

She was shaken from her thoughts by Bepo nervously tapping on her shoulder. “Nami, I hate to ask, but Law wants to know; what are the exact symptoms he can expect?”

Swallowing down her frustration and fear, she located the pertinent information. “‘It takes hours for symptoms to take effect and there is no pain or swelling of the wound itself after the fact. Initial symptoms include slurred speech, double vision, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dizziness, and paralysis of the skeletal muscles. If it continues to go untreated, the lung muscles and heart muscles will become paralyzed, which leads to respiratory/cardiac arrest’.”

“That really doesn’t sound good.”

Law waved his paw in a gesture for Nami to bring the book over. Numbly she placed the tome in front of him, turning the page when she noticed that his snowshoe-like paw couldn’t quite manage the feat.

After a few more moments, Law let out a few matter-of-fact meows and chuffs.

“He says ‘So long as I don’t move too much and keep my heart rate down, I should be alright for up to thirteen hours before I start to suffer such effects. Six if I’m doing anything strenuous. We at least have time to come up with a plan’.”

Despite his reassurances, Nami couldn’t bring herself to get her hopes up again. “What plan, Law? We’re screwed! You’ve been bitten by one of the most venomous snakes in the world, you’re a leopard who can’t even use your powers to remove the venom or create an antidote, the crew’s still missing, there are dangerous people-turned-animals out there that want to kill us, and we don’t even know who turned you into a leopard in the first place!”

“He says, ‘Panicking isn’t going to do us any good. I have dozens of books on neurotoxins—surely one of them should have an antidote that can buy us some time. You’ll stay here and see if you can find one. Bepo and I will try to track down the man responsible for my transformation; if I can become human again, I’ll get my powers back, and the antivenom will be a moot point’.”

Jaw dropping as he realized what he’d just said, Bepo turned to yell at his captain, “You’re not going anywhere!”

“Damn right you’re not!” Nami snapped, slapping her palm flat across the metal table for emphasis. “You just said moving around would expediate the effects! Are you trying to kill yourself?!”

Ears flattening back against his head, Law let out a series of curt growls.

Instead of translating, Bepo replied, “First of all, you said so yourself that you don’t know how to properly track. Second of all, what if there are other snakes waiting to take a bite out of you? And third of all, I’m not going to let you run around in the jungle when you’re injured!”

A few more growls were cut off when Bepo stomped his foot stubbornly. “I’m not carrying you, either! We don’t know if there are any other enemy animals out there! You’ll be a sitting duck!”

Ears flattening back against his head, Law hissed in argument.

“Just because I have faith in you doesn’t mean I’m going to let you risk your own health like this! If anyone is staying here to do research, it’s you; you’ll have a better understanding of your medical books, anyway.”

Frustrated, Law pointed at the open book before wiggling his toes meaningfully.

“…ok, so maybe turning the pages will be a problem. Fine then; Nami will stay with you while I track the old man down.”

Gold eyes widened and then narrowed, and though Nami was firmly on Bepo’s side—and perhaps a little impressed that the meek bear was actually standing up to his captain—she couldn’t support this plan, either. “Even if you could sniff the guy out, it’s too dangerous for you to go alone,” she argued.

“Then what are we supposed to do, Nami? Sit around and wait for the guy to call us?”

Frowning sympathetically, she reached out and clasped one of his giant paws between her hands. “No, but we also can’t get into heated arguments—we need to keep Law’s heartrate down, remember.”

Eyes wide, Bepo watched Law’s broad chest heave as he tried to reign in his anger. Guilt immediately washed over the bear’s face as he realized he’d inadvertently helped speed up his best friend’s deadly condition. “I’m sorry,” he moaned, pulling away from Nami to wrap his big arms around Law, hugging him tightly. “I didn’t mean it! Please don’t die, Law!”

The pirate in question glowered over his shoulder for a moment before finally sighing in resignation, letting out a low grunt as he allowed the larger animal to cuddle him like a stuffed animal. After a few moments, though, he started panting again, and Law lifted his paws to push Bepo away.

“Are you ok? Am I hurting you?” the Mink asked anxiously, checking him for any obvious injuries.

A hint of a smile touched the leopard’s muzzle as he chuffed in response, and after a moment of stunned silence, Bepo let out a happy chuckle.

“What’s so funny?” Nami asked, glancing between the two friends. The argument was over, at least, though she wasn’t completely sure this was a time for laughter.

Scratching his cheek bashfully, Bepo replied, “Sorry. Law just asked me to remind him to install the library’s air conditioning throughout the rest of the ship—he now fully understands why I complain so much about the heat.”

Nami frowned sympathetically. Law really did look miserable in all that thick fur, and the climate control in the infirmary didn’t seem to be cooling him down quickly enough. She took out her Clima-Tact and turned it to the lowest setting, pleased when she was able to successfully produce a cool breeze to blow across him. He gave an audible sound of relief as he stuck his face right into the wind, eyes closed tightly as he basked in the invigorating cold.

“It’s not much,” she mumbled, more to herself than the injured cat before her, “but I can at least cool you down. I won’t even charge you.”

This sucks, she thought to herself. The crew’s missing, Law’s on a ticking clock, and the most I can do is act as an air conditioner. We should have headed straight to Atifakuto instead of taking this stupid vacation. We should have known that even an unpopulated island on the Grand Line was still too dangerous to relax on. I should have made Law stay at the party, or at least gone with him. I should have kept an eye out for strange animals instead of arguing with him on the beach. I should have—

Nami nearly fell backwards in her chair in shock when Law crawled forward and rubbed his head against her neck and cheek, letting out a low purr. “Wha—?”

Beside them, Bepo smiled and cooed at the cute display. “Law says ‘Studies have shown that a cat’s purr, when it reaches certain frequencies, can lower stress levels and reduce the risk of heart attacks’.”

“Do leopard purrs reach that?”

“He doesn’t know, but the look on your face says it couldn’t hurt.”

She sighed, though her hand unconsciously buried itself in the thick, soft fur around Law’s neck. “I was that obvious, huh?”

The Mink rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. “Just a little. We’re all scared, Nami, but we’ll figure something out. Law will come up with a brilliant plan eventually, and you Straw Hats always seem to pull off the impossible.”

The earnest show of faith in both his captain’s intelligence and her own crew’s uncanny luck finally brought a smile back to Nami’s face. It was like Bellemere always said; “if you can survive, happy times—lots of ‘em—will come your way.” Surely, they’d get through this, just like any other obstacle on the Grand Line. If nothing else, there was no point in getting caught up in a guilt spiral. She’d never been the sort of woman to accept blame for her own actions. Why should she beat herself up over circumstances out of her control?

Confidence returning and with Law still insistently butting his head against her, she gave in and started petting him, taking special care to scratch behind his large, fluffy ears. His purring grew louder as he leaned into her touch. Back on the beach she hadn’t been able to fully appreciate how luxuriously soft his fur was. Her fantasy of curling up on a cold winter’s night with Bepo and Chopper now included a very snuggly snow leopard sprawled across her lap.

“We’ll figure this out, ok Law?” she murmured into his fur. “Just trust us.”

At that moment, a purururu echoed throughout the infirmary, and three heads snapped in unison towards the den den mushi that was loudly ringing. Being the closest, Bepo scrambled to pick up the receiver, anxiously answering, “Hello? Crozier? Cousteau? Is that you?”

“Hello? What’s a Cousteau?” came a confused, scratchy voice on the other end. It was unfamiliar, but unquestionably that of an older man.

“Oh, sorry. He’s a diver.”

“Oh. Well, that’s not me.”

“Ok. Well, sorry to bother you.”

“It’s alright. Take care now.”

With that, Bepo hung up. It took him a moment to register the dropped jaws and exasperated stares his two companions were giving him. “What?”

“Bepo! That had to be the guy who did this!” Nami shouted, pointing at Law, whose tail was swishing back in forth in agitation as a paw tried to pinch the bridge of his nose to hold back his annoyance.

Black eyes widened as Bepo turned back around, speedily dialing the number for Crozier’s mini den den mushi.

“Hello?”

“Hi, it’s me again. You see, you’re calling from my shipmate’s phone, so I was wondering if you’d seen him? Or maybe the rest of my crew?”

“You mean those pirates? Yeah, I’ve seen them. Turned them all into animals, then locked them in cages!” he replied almost proudly.

“You did what? You jerk!” Bepo growled, glaring at the snail phone. “Why’d you kidnap my nakama?”

“They were trespassing on my island!”

“Oh, sorry,” he replied before remembering he was supposed to be angry. “Hey, what makes it your island, anyway? We found it months ago! Besides, that doesn’t mean you can just turn people into animals, you know!”

The snail glared back at the Mink stubbornly. “Well, I like animals much better than people. Especially when those people are pirates! I hate pirates the most!”

“Sorry.”

Sensing they were getting nowhere, Nami quickly shooed Bepo away from the den den mushi and said sweetly, “What a coincidence! So do I! They’re just the absolute worst, aren’t they?”

For a moment, the snail mimicked the look of surprise on the caller’s face before emphatically agreeing, “Just awful! They’re cruel and rude and just refuse to let me live in peace! I used to be a respected naturalist before they kidnapped me. Made me use my Iki Iki no Mi powers to turn people into animals for them!”

Oof, Nami thought with a wince. Sounds like this guy has a halfway-decent reason to hate pirates. Better stay on his good side. “Well, I’ll tell you what; how about I take these nasty pirates off your hands? If you hate them so much, wouldn’t it be better to turn them over to someone who could take them far away from your island?” The man sounded a little…odd, but despite calling them, he wasn’t laying down ransom demands or threats. Maybe he was a reasonable guy who’d settle for letting them go in return for being left in peace.

“Hmmm, maybe…” he mumbled, the snail flexing its jaw as he thought it over. “Wait. Can you swim, missy?”

“Yeah.”

“Can you sail one of those little boats I saw on the beach?

“Yeah.”

“Could you possibly get onto that wreck on the reef?”

“Yeah…”

“Then I’ll make you a deal—you get me a few things from that ship, and I’ll let the pirates go!” he said cheerfully.

Nami, Bepo, and Law all fell over in surprise. “What? I’m already doing you a favor by taking them off your hands!” she shouted into the receiver.

The snail’s expression turned unexpectedly sly. “Missy, you sound like a smart young lady. Surely you’re familiar with the concept of ‘supply and demand’?”

“Yes,” she ground out through her teeth. So much for this guy being friendly and reasonable.

“Well, I’ve got the supply, and you’ve got the demand. Therefore, if you want them back, you’ve gotta pay my price.”

“You’re not getting a single belli—”

“I don’t want money! Where the hell would I spend it? I’m just proposing a fair trade; the crew for some provisions from the shipwreck. I want a pair of thick, leather boots in a size ten. A thick coat for cold nights. Cooking utensils and pots and pans from the galley. Maybe a few books, too, if you can find any that haven’t been destroyed. If you can bring me all that, I’ll give you back your friends.”

Brow furrowing at the list of demands, Nami bit her lip. It wasn’t an unreasonable request. Hell, if anything it sounded like she was getting the better end of the deal, which naturally made her suspicious.

“Why do you need me to get these things for you? What’s your game?”

The snail shook its head, expression sincere. “No game, missy; I’m a Devil Fruit user, so trying to get out there myself would be suicide, even with a boat.” There was a tense pause before he added meekly, “Please? All I’m asking for are some basic supplies so I can live out the rest of my days in peace. I’m not looking to hurt anybody—my powers have done that enough over the years.”

Nami could hear the self-loathing in his voice and she felt suddenly sympathetic. This was definitely a man who’d been abused by his captors. “Look, I get being afraid of a bunch of pirates showing up, but your powers did hurt someone. The guy you turned into a snow leopard got bitten by a coral snake.”

The snail’s eyes widened in horror. “He did?!”

“Yeah.”

“Then even if you don’t want to help me, you need to get to that ship! The pirates who used me dealt in snake venom among other things, so the infirmary always carried a heavy supply of antivenom.”

“Really?!” Nami asked, flabbergasted. Out of the corner of her eye, Nami saw Law perk up, and Bepo had started quietly doing a little happy dance beside him at the good news.

“Really. Hell, that snake is why I want the boots—he can’t bite through leather.” After a moment, the man’s voice turned compassionate. “Ok, of course your first priority is going to be getting that antivenom. I’m still not letting your crew go without a trade, but I can wait until your friend is safe. You need to administer the antivenom over several hours to be effective, and it’s best to wait until paralysis has begun to set in to avoid a potential allergic reaction. How long has it been since he’s been bitten?”

“About an hour.”

“Alright. I can hold out until dawn, but no later. I’m on a bit of a ticking clock myself—that snake that bit you? He’s one of my old captors, along with the other aggressive animals on the island. Now that there’s a ship they can use to sail out of here, they’ll be more determined than ever to kill me.”

“Why?”

“So they can turn back into humans. Not that I’m sure that’ll work, but it’s a risk you can’t exactly take, is it, missy? Not if you want your own pirates back to normal.”

Nami bit her lip. Well, that was a bit of a problem. “How many of your old crew are out there? I was able to launch the snake into the ocean, and we killed a baboon, a boar, and a ram…”

“Unfortunately, there’s still a few more out there, then, and they’re even worse.”

She could have screamed. Just when it seemed like it was smooth sailing ahead, another storm had to form on the horizon. “If they were your captors, why didn’t you turn them into fuzzy bunnies or something?” she groused.

“Because while I can turn people into animals, I can’t always control what form they take—especially if they a strong will. Making them herbivores and snakes with small teeth was the best I could manage.”

Sighing, Nami ran a hand over her face. She needed to focus on the bright side—there was a supply of antivenom nearby, the Heart Pirates were alive, and their captor was willing to trade them for some pretty basic stuff.

She looked at the nearby desk clock. Low tide would be in a few hours—it would be safest to explore the wreck then. But how long would it take to get everything this weird old man was demanding? Could they risk multiple trips? Would he still be alive by the time they got back?

There were a lot of tricky variables to contend with, but it was still better than nothing.

Squaring her shoulders, Nami said resolutely into the receiver, “You’ve got a deal, then. Keep this den den mushi with you—I’ll call once we have your things. If your old captors attack, call us so we can come save your ass. Like you said, we can’t risk you dying.”

The snail gave a small, shaky smile. “Be careful, missy. That ship’s been out there for nearly two months; I’m not sure how safe it is now.”

Glancing over at Law on the examination table, she gave him a confident grin. “Don’t worry about me—I’m a Straw Hat. My nakama and I always seem to pull off the impossible.”

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musicallisto · 4 years

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Hello! If you’re still doing a ship thing could I get a request for maybe Choices and the MCU? I’m 5’8 feet of crackheaded energy (might be taller because I’ve met others who claim to be 5’8 and shorter than me) I love to write fantasy themed stuff, and I take pride in my creative drive. I’m kinda bitter at times. However I get super passionate about various things, especially when it comes to helping others. I love to cook and I adore animals. Musicals are my jam and the ocean is *chefs kiss*

I Ship You With...

Edward Mortemer (Distant Shores)

* I’ve played the very beginning of Distant Shores so I hope there aren’t any inconsistencies, bear with me please

You love to write fantasy stuff, Edward loves to read fantasy stuff. You’re a match made in heaven! No, but in all seriousness, you’ve seen Edward with a book or two in hand when the waters are calm and everyone is focused on their duties - and curiously, books are the most valuable loot he’ll take from an enemy ship when you’re raiding -, so you’re comfortable with sharing your writing with him. It’s actually pretty cute to see him all excited about the characters you imagine and the vivid settings you describe. He loves your fantasies, because they help him imagine wondrous worlds where he can whoever, and where strength and compassion triumph over injustice and greed - like he wishes it would work in real life.

You definitely bond over your love of the ocean. Watching the ebb and flow of the waves leaning on the railing is one of the most calming moments you can experience aboard the Poseidon’s Revenge, and Edward would certainly agree. Especially when you’re leaning against each other and sharing stories of your childhood, breathing in the salty air and letting the droplets splash on your face with innocent laughter. All the battles and journeys feel so far away.

As a leader and captain of a particularly motley crew, he knows how to handle and defuse different personalities, and it’s no surprise that he’s good at seeing right through you when you’re bitter or pissed off. He will usually talk you down or walk with you to the stern of the ship so you can take a breather and enjoy the vast ocean in the wake of the boat. You’re not the most extroverted soul, but Edward can have you talking about pretty much anything that’s troubling you, with his trustful gaze and calm manners. Most of the time, it’s a grudge against another crew member, in which cases he will listen to both sides and try to come to an agreement, because he cares about the unity of his crew. You appreciate his insight, but at times you don’t want to deal with anything, and just a pair of arms around you and the promise that everything will be okay, and that if you get tired of this life and want to come back to the mainland, he will follow you in an heartbeat.

And he means it, he truly does. He would hand the leadership to Charlie if you wanted him to leave with you. Your jokes, your carelessness, your scent of something fresh and magical, they have all already convinced him that he can make no wrong choice if it’s for you.

Peter Quill (Star-Lord)

Not gonna lie, the crackhead energy strongly directed me to him, but then when you mentioned that you’re very passionate as well as a musical fan, I could only think that you would be a great match for Peter’s upbeat, sassy and extra temper.

His sarcastic streak is no match for your own jokes. Sometimes you have full-on joke battles, supervised and refereed by the other Guardians, to find out who is the funniest. They can go on for hours because Peter is an idiot who never runs short on dumb jokes, and you get awfully competitive when it comes to him. You’re not about to lose to someone who can’t go two minutes without referencing the 80′s.

The real winner is actually never settled, because the Guardians get tired of your gimmicks and go to bed, leaving you still coming up with punchlines that quickly degenerate into somewhat of a rap battle until well into the night.

When you’re not bickering, though, you can be both found belting Broadway musical songs and tunes from the 80′s and 90′s. One might think that by constantly singing you could get eventually better at it, but nope, Peter still can’t hit the high notes, nor the low notes for that matter, and living with the both of you on board of a spaceship soon turns out to be a nightmare for the others. But they just take whatever plushy object is closest to them and bury their face in it, trying to muffle the sound. It’s no use telling you to stop, because you won’t, or will resume a few minutes later. Whatever, they guess... At least it keeps the morale up, even if it’s just for two members of the crew.

Peter has also a slightly more vulnerable and lowkey side of his personality, and a lot of love and emotions for the people he cares about: it’s evidenced by the nights he starts to think about his mother, his childhood, and you see a pang of sadness traverse his face. You know in those moments that the best you can do is hold him close and steady. Eventually, without even realizing it, you will start to sway slowly to a rhythm no one can hear, a rhythm beating in your pressed chests.

It’s still a little difficult to believe that you will be okay in the end, but with Peter, you dare to do so.

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diveronarpg · 4 years

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Congratulations, DAVE! You’ve been accepted for the role of EDMUND. Admin Rosey: There's something that makes Edmund such a powerful figure in his own right and Dave, I don't know how but you managed to capture it in the span of this one application. The prose, the voice, all of it was present from the plot points to the interview. His voice was so very poignant throughout the whole thing it made my heart ache a little. I am well and truly enthralled by the Edmund that you have presented to us and cannot wait to watch you dive deeper and show us what makes this boy who he is and how he'll give Verona a reckoning to be feared. Please read over the checklist and send in your blog within 24 hours.

WELCOME TO THE MOB.

OUT OF CHARACTER

Alias | Dave

Age | 23

Preferred Pronouns | He/him

Activity Level | On average a few hours every other / every third night. I have kids so it will likely be after I put them to bed.

Timezone | EST

How did you find the rp? | My sister Kat lead me in your direction

IN CHARACTER

Character | Edmund / Easton Craven

What drew you to this character? A man built from resentment, bones compressed from the ashes of an others mistakes, a cold structure of stone engraved with rage. Teeth that never unclench, a jaw so tight it threatens to break into fragments. Animosity is the dangerous life raft holding together a bitterly broken character, mania stemmed from a lifetime of repudiation. An obsession potent enough to cover years of aching ribs; the soft tissues under the bones filled with a fire harrowing enough to stifle hurt. He craves revenge as if a child reaching out to their mother. Comfort being found in the promise of reunification. If only he could reach, if only his stiff limbs would meet the soft, consoling ones that he felt reciprocating the assignation, he would feel peace. Delusion of contentment driving passionate precision, carefully planned collisions that cause wise, crooked smiles that meet the eyes of madness.

He knows the storm is raging. The thorns sprouting from his blooming roses; depriving the buds of the little sunlight they initially had. He’s feeling just as suffocated and trapped now. Everything around him is whirling in the chaos he created but he won’t let it break him. Even in the blinding darkness he makes himself big, thrashing about so that even those who can see clear as day stay far from his reach. He lives with the actions of a stubborn child; allowing the haze of red fury to cloud his mind as he surrenders his better judgment. Every time he drink the poison he loses another piece of himself to make room. The pressure builds inside of him like a volcano and when he erupts; his pride and joy are the only casualties. He’s sacrificed everything for his cause, his battle cry drowning out the grief but he’s no longer even sure what threat the enemy poses, forcing a blindness on him more dangerous than the dark.

Taking the risk, stepping up to the plate and taking his best shot. When pressed with his back against the wall, Blood betraying him or perhaps the other way around; what choice is one left with? Perhaps the anger lies only with himself but his innate strength fuels the fire of his inner flames and he utilizes them. He makes these flames dry his tears, forces them to dance beneath the spotline, start forest fires to the granite floors beneath his feet. He uses them as his shield and a deadly weapon all in one curve of his lip. He uses them to carve art onto every inch of the elegantly draped walls that enclosed him so that the world can see how wrongly it had mistaken him, all while making the error of not once giving him the satisfaction of knowing he wields with the strength of mind, unaware of the fear that would bestow his enemies. He fights for himself rather than the cause, drawing those who abandon him back to his wake so that opportunity can present itself in the cruelest twists of fate. He will win back his power, giving himself the choice to crush it to ash or feed it to his fire so that it grows in size. They will beg for remorse, what he will do with them he doesn’t know but someone will burn alive; of that he is sure.

Years of neglect and deprivation leave scars, deep gashes in ego and emotional stability. Easton is broken, deeply hurt by being denied by those who were meant to hold him close, being inevitably punished for the actions of others. To pretend he isn’t aching over his loss would be an injustice. Deeply buried insecurities burrow deep in his bones with the aching torment he shoved away. Still, anger is a much easier emotion to handle, it carries more dignity, a false sense of self control. There’s something there in that deeply rooted delusion of control, believing it so wholeheartedly that it becomes a reality, that I’m immensely drawn to. An emotional whirlwind with a powerful mind, twisting together in dangerous ways. I see so much potential for him developmentally, so many layers to explore. I really want to be able to flesh that out and bring him to life.

What is a future plot idea you have in mind for the character?

“Yet Edmund was beloved” - Villains amongst disastrous plot, all alike in wicked bitterness. Written to be disliked, to cause mouths to turn down with force, muscles to tense in distaste. A rarity amongst his breed, they found a moment of remorse. Weakness was found and admittance to their sinful deeds, an eager audience was forced to face questions of morality.

I think what makes Edmund throughout literature to stand out so strongly was his repentance. It was a rare quality among Shakespeare’s literature and it’s something I feel is important to keep intact to his plot. It made its audience question whether he was truly a cold, cruel man or if he it was driven by a misdirected desire to be accepted. It’s a theme I plan to show throughout the plot, but I would like a bigger when the time is right to showcase his humanity.

Double edged sword- Sly crooked smiles and sparkling eyes, they crave the game, the slipping of cards into a deck undetected, the chips inconspicuously gathering in front of patiently folded hands. Winning the game does not raise feelings of satisfaction, spirits don’t rise at the chips that twirl between his narrow fingers but at the bitter eyes that narrow in his direction as he does so. Pleasure found only in the woefulness of others, misery causing teeth to show greedily, sparkling eyes falling dark with revelation.

I was to do a lot of scheming with him, a lot. Carefully planned betrayals, shady business deals, cunningly undermining those around him. I want a few of these, and I expect nothing less than a few Enemies as a result.

Blood over blood - Empires built steadily over a name that cursed his existence, pressed him back into a crevasse, covered him thick in wool as if to conceal even the heart that beat within his chest. A name placed on his head as if it were to quench the thirst of question, to satisfy the growing hunger for bloodshed that was soon to breed within the expanding chest below. The indefensible half of the term son. Cast down upon with fury and iron fists by all but his counterpart. Antipathy baking in the fires that nestled between fragile ribs, desperately attempting to replace the warmth his brighter half consumed without question or consideration. Confliction of blood contemplated incautiously. Blood had betrayed him, or perhaps it was the other way around.

There is a lot to be said about Easton’s relationship with his brother. I feel there is true feelings buried deep under the poisonous vines he’s planted within himself. I think it is the single relationship that will reveal that rage is used to cover fear, fear that stems from loss and betrayal.

Are you comfortable with killing off your character? | Yes.

IN DEPTH

Please choose between the interview or the para sample (or both, if you like!)

In-Character Interview: The following questions must be answered in-character, and in para form (quotations, actions written out if applicable, etc). There is no minimum or maximum limit for your response - simply answer as you would if you were playing the character.

What is your favorite place in Verona? | “Places are places, are places.” Words fell from casually loose lips, flat muscles and eyes rested upon his face as he took in the response of his interviewer, gave himself a moment to enjoy their frustration, the needle of his words knitting the space between their brows together. A dilatory moment of this passed before his lips unsheathed far too-perfect teeth. “The twelfth night.” Amusement laced his words in a way that sounded like a chuckle, spread far across his face to meet his eyes like beams of sunlight, brightening the pale skin it touched. Eyes casually emigrated to the cuff of his sleeve, long narrow fingers fiddling to straighten the small metal clasp that held it in place. ‘Home’ felt like an obvious answer, one that comes from a place deep within one’s soul, one given from utter personage. It was a word used to describe a dwelling of comfort, safety. Ah, but no person or place provided such a vast sensation. All that resided there was a bitter taste that weighed him down as strongly as desire did. He found himself on those places, however pesky, simply prioritized. “I like art.“ He added, blue orbs flickering up from under thick dark brows. There was a great truth in this set of words and yet in the cruelest twist of fate and fallacy he continued with an almost crude sense of humor. "And other historical entertainments."

What has been your biggest mistake thus far? I "Ah, mistakes.” Air left eager lungs as if to sound off sighs of relief. As if voracious for the topic, his lungs pulled in another large breath. “I can attest to many, many mistakes.” It was a topic that engulfed his life, his very breaths taken in vain of the word. It echoed off the walls of his skull, pounding itself into the bone it reached, engraving the term ad nauseum so that he could never forget. “My greatest mistake is the sins of another. Unfortunately, all my own will seem pale in comparison. Boring really.” Far too warm hands folded over his knees, well-practiced politeness plastered across his features. “But I’m sure I’ll even the score eventually.”

What has been the most difficult task asked of you? I “Difficulty stems from incompetence.” Bold statements were made from confidence, a strong belief that burned in his chest. Neatly trimmed fingernails tapped the dark stained wood of the armchair he poised himself in, Hack stretched out against the opulently draped bolster. Many difficult tasks had been asked of him, several that flashed about his mind in a rapid myriad, pressed up against his smooth forehead so that the pressure built like cotton. Difficult not in question of morality but in the conflict of agenda. The undertakings themselves brought little burden to his mind but the consequences must always be taken under consideration. The butterfly effects that carried with each accord left the stains of spots on his own broken wings. None were to be taken unnecessarily. “I suspect you aren’t accusing me of that.”

What are your thoughts on the war between the Capulets and the Montagues? I “The war between the two?” Vibrant eyes narrowed with the flow of words from his parted lips. As if the question brought some offense, pierced through a more obvious concern, a more prominent affair. It was much easier separated into two parts of one whole, easier but untrue to the nature of this particular footing. To new eyes, the crimson stains would seem so easily poised from a clear separation, Capulet and Montague. Ah, but Easton’s eyes were nor new or untrained. They had seen the blood that pooled from open veins, the carnage and rot that baked in the warm midsummer sun. He tsked as if to scorn the ignorance of those who would ask such. You could not start a book from the middle, nor could you an end. Blight had long held the minds of those from each party. Betrayal bubbled and burst from within each seam, pressed at authority and delegation alike. “It’s easier to blame others for our actions, surely.” As if talking to a child he turned his lips down, the incomprehension something of an irritation, the need for explanation an inconvenience to his own time. “Do you not consider the wars amongst ourselves?”

In-Character Para Sample: Again, write as much or as little as you need to get your interpretation across.

(this is a kinda lot? and not something a situation i see happening incredibly often at all but I write it nonetheless so I included it)

A dream is defined as a succession of images, thoughts, or emotions passing through the mind during a state of unconsciousness. This was otherwise known as sleep. The term would never relate to himself, however, as sleep was a luxury only available to the poor, the deprived. The same word, conversely, is a wild or vain fantasy. This definition seemed more appropriate when associating the word, dream, to himself. Wild and vein, indeed. His egotistical nature seemed to be everywhere at once as he closed his eyelids. It burned there in the pictures that were painting themselves in his mind. And suddenly it was as if he were hearing his own thoughts. Thoughts, that seemed obscure and twisted to himself muffled by choking screams. Ah, but his mind was not absent at all. In fact, the image that was painting itself in his mind was both behind his eyelids and in front of them. It was as if his dreams poured out from his mind to spill on the floor. Or more suitably, nightmares.

Air flared his nostrils, filling his lungs with a sudden force so powerful it was audible as he opened his eyes, his rough thumb trailed the skin on the side of his mouth with anxiety as he turned. Deep-set eyes were thoughtful, dark brows pulled together in a pucker from a tilted head that stares down the man who was bleeding out on his new carpet. He looked as if he hadn’t noticed, not the man bleeding, not the ruined carpet. Easton knelt down beside him, his lips pressed together as he flicked his phone back on. “Have you seen this girl?”

His voice was too casual, too kind for the scene, too worried. Headlight with adrenaline, the preternatural display causing reality to feel more like a hallucination. The other didn’t look up, clearly too occupied with the blood that came up with every cough to entertain the deranged man leaning over him.

“She’s red hot I know.” He said in a breathy chuckle. The sound was innocent, lustful even as he shook his head in disbelief. “She’s slippery though. Always hard to find. Not mine either. Not really my type but-” Easton sighed, slight frustration lacing his tone as his eyes trailed away from the phone to stare at still choking interrogatee.

“You see that’s the thing. She’s been ignoring someone for the past 24 hours, it’s like she completely disappeared.” There in his iris’ you could find a new, growing intensity. It was slow at first, a sense of seriousness that within a matter of words became terrifying, unhinged in the deep pits of his pupils. “Here, take a look at her.” Easton shoved the phone further in the man’s face. The light from the screen reflecting off the red stream, almost close enough to engage in it. He knew very well it still wouldn’t be seen, that the blood pooling in this man’s eyes would have him seeing red, not quite in the way Easton was expecting to himself; certainly, there was more of a disadvantage in it. “She’s beautiful right?”

“Anyway,-” Easton’s tone dropped off again with a sigh, the phone going dark so that the men own eradicated state was staring back at him with a click. “She doesn’t report back last night. No text, no calls, nothing. So people start asking around, when’s the last time people heard from her. We don’t like the responses. You know, there’s something about the tone of a person’s voice.”

Easton stood, the now accumulating sweat from his palms being wiped on his dark crisp pants as he began to pace. “My imagination starts running wild. I start thinking of other guys I’ve seen her look at, other associations she’s hung out with, other friends of hers she doesn’t know we know about. You know, I started thinking about what I would do to someone if I found out that he paid her off. I would shackle the fucker up for a year and I would slowly and systematically torture him every morning and every night till he finally shut down. I mean I would burn off all his fucking skin is what I would do.” Something about the tone of his voice insinuated he was talking to a friend, a casual comfort emulating from him in waves that got cut off by sudden bursts of insanity.

“You know, these are the classifications of things I’m thinking about. I’m thinking about bad things.” Feet were trailing in small circles by this point, shiny shoes walking through pools of claret, dragging it with each pace. A heavy sign caused the motion to stop, silence falling in its place as crystal slowly rose to Easton’s lips, a thoughtful sip seeming to bring him back to his purpose.

“So, do you recognize her?” He waited a long moment. “Hm?”

“Yea.” The man responded in response in a choke. Easton quickly rushed to kneel by his side again. “You do?” He asked eagerly, his chest beginning to rise and fall with expectations.

“Uh, Yeah, I see her around sometimes. I mean, I don’t know her, but –” His eyes focused on almost anything but Easton’’s face but Easton kept moving his eyes into the line of sight.

“Hard to miss right?” Easton smiled almost confidently, proudly.

“Right.” The other coughed out again, his fluids seeming to stay inside him for once. The stench of iron and violence still fresh on his breath.

“It’s the little things that get you, the arguments. There had been this little spat about nothing – I don’t even remember what and then poof, she’s out the door, she’s gone. You know where she goes?” Easton didn’t give a moment to respond. “She goes to your side of town.”

“Really?”

Heartbeats were becoming more frequent, patience suddenly running low as if they were thin to begin with. The cause wasn’t a lack of control but a lack of interest. The cards were being dealt too slowly, passion only residing when there was something to be won. The room already smelled like victory and the fight he received in return was none. The anger now came from a place of disappointment. “Yea.”

Suddenly his voice was getting louder, quicker. The urgency became something of a result of annoyance twisting around his chest, crushing his ribs. Easton’s face flushed red, pressing closer to the others, enclosing some of the space between them with a furious gaze.

“She goes over to that shit hole. She sends a text that she found her friends and then that’s it, that’s the last time she’s heard from. And you know what? I know some of these ‘friends’ over there and you know what they tell me? They tell me she goes over around 1 AM and then doesn’t come back – So she comes in, but doesn’t come out. At least not through town.” He ran his tongue over his teeth as he caught his breath. His tone finding another spasm of normality. His finger lifted, head tilted to the side as brows furrowed once more. “You were down their last night, right?

Easton’s company simply nodded in reply, cringing at the pain that seemed to ache through his muscles at the action. Easton’s head nodded in return, lips tight as he took in the words. “Did you see anything?”

“Did I see anything?”

“Yea, did you see anything.”

“Did I see anything? I don’t see much of anything ever.“

Easton stared at him for a moment as if he were taking this in.

“Right, but you didn’t answer my question.”

Extras: If you have anything else you’d like to include (further headcanons, an inspo tag, a mock blog, etc), feel free to share it here! This is OPTIONAL.

I am pretty dyslexic so larger bodies of text tend to get grammar and spelling mistake. They are usually minor and people usually have no issue comprehending my work but if there ever is an issue I just ask that you let me know so I can fix it!

#accepted #accepted: edmund

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justforbooks · 5 years

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Homer, Iliad 18.468-607

In this passage, Homer describes the making of the shield of Achilles, and, in particular, an elaborate picture engraved by the god Hephaestus, depicting a wide range of human activities. At this point in the Iliad, Achilles has moved to a new level of rage: beyond the insult to his honor that originally motivated his withdrawal from the Greek effort, Achilles is now seething because his dearest companion, Patroclus, has been killed by Trojan Hector while fighting in Achilles' own armor. Achilles once again enters the war, clad in some new armor (including the shield) from Thetis, his divine mother, and Hephaestus, but he's burning with savage revenge, which drives him to some horrific actions. Homer's audience was supposed to remember the shield as they listened to the blood-soaked marauding of enraged Achilles in battle, and the stark contrast it presents to the warrior ethic typically celebrated in Greek culture.

Keep in mind as well the long oral tradition associated with the composition of Homeric epic: it's clear that material from the Late Bronze Age has been preserved in these poems and handed down to a later period of time.

Consider:

what kind of world is depicted on the shield? what basic features of human society are represented? what aspects does the poet emphasize?

what kind of conflict is shown on the shield? what impact does it have on human society?

(478) First of all he forged a shield that was huge and heavy,

elaborating it about, and threw around it a shining

triple rim that glittered, and the shield strap was cast of silver.

There were five folds composing the shield itself, and upon it

he elaborated many things in his skill and craftsmanship.

(483) He made the earth upon it, and the sky, and the sea's water,

and the tireless sun, and the moon waxing into her fullness,

and on it all the constellations that festoon the heavens,

the Pleiades and the Hyades and the strength of Orion

and the Bear, whom men give also the name of the Wagon,

who turns about in a fixed place and looks at Orion

and she alone is never plunged in the wash of the Ocean.

(490) On it he wrought in all their beauty two cities of mortal

men. And there were marriages in one, and festivals.

They were leading the brides along the city from their maiden chambers

under the flaring of torches, and the loud bride song was arising.

The young men followed the circles of the dance, and among them

the flutes and lyres kept up their clamour as in the meantime

the women standing each at the door of her court admired them.

The people were assembled in the market place, where a quarrel

had arisen, and two men were disputing over the blood price

for a man who had been killed. One man promised full restitution

in a public statement, but the other refused and would accept nothing.

Both then made for an arbitrator, to have a decision;

and people were speaking up on either side, to help both men.

But the heralds kept the people in hand, as meanwhile the elders

were in session on benches of polished stone in the sacred circle

and held in their hands the staves of the heralds who lift their voices.

The two men rushed before these, and took turns speaking their cases,

and between them lay on the ground two talents of gold, to be given

to that judge who in this case spoke the straightest opinion.

(509) But around the other city were lying two forces of armed men

shining in their war gear. For one side counsel was divided

whether to storm and sack, or share between both sides the property

and all the possessions the lovely citadel held hard within it.

But the city's people were not giving way, and armed for an ambush.

Their beloved wives and their little children stood on the rampart

to hold it, and with them the men with age upon them, but meanwhile

the others went out. And Ares led them, and Pallas Athene.

These were gold, both, and golden raiment upon them, and they were

beautiful and huge in their armour, being divinities,

and conspicuous from afar, but the people around them were smaller.

These, when they were come to the place that was set for their ambush,

in a river, where there was a watering place for all animals,

there they sat down in place shrouding themselves in the bright bronze.

But apart from these were sitting two men to watch for the rest of them

and waiting until they could see the sheep and the shambling cattle,

who appeared presently, and two herdsmen went along with them

playing happily on pipes, and took no thought of the treachery.

Those others saw them, and made a rush, and quickly thereafter

cut off on both sides the herds of cattle and the beautiful

flocks of shining sheep, and killed the shepherds upon them.

But the other army, as soon as they heard the uproar arising

from the cattle, as they sat in their councils, suddenly mounted

behind their light-foot horses, and went after, and soon overtook them.

These stood their ground and fought a battle by the banks of the river,

and they were making casts at each other with their spears bronze-headed;

and Hate was there with Confusion among them, and Death the destructive;

she was holding a live man with a new wound, and another

one unhurt, and dragged a dead man by the feet through the carnage.

The clothing upon her shoulders showed strong red with the men's blood.

All closed together like living men and fought with each other

and dragged away from each other the corpses of those who had fallen.

(541) He made upon it a soft field, the pride of the tilled land,

wide and triple-ploughed, with many ploughmen upon it

who wheeled their teams at the turn and drove them in either direction.

And as these making their turn would reach the end-strip of the field,

a man would come up to them at this point and hand them a flagon

of honey-sweet wine, and they would turn again to the furrows

in their haste to come again to the end-strip of the deep field.

The earth darkened behind them and looked like earth that has been ploughed

though it was gold. Such was the wonder of the shield's forging.

(550) He made on it the precinct of a king, where the labourers

were reaping, with the sharp reaping hooks in their hands. Of the cut swathes

some fell along the lines of reaping, one after another,

while the sheaf-binders caught up others and tied them with bind-ropes.

There were three sheaf-binders who stood by, and behind them

were children picking up the cut swathes, and filled their arms with them

and carried and gave them always; and by them the king in silence

and holding his staff stood near the line of the reapers, happily.

And apart and under a tree the heralds made a feast ready

and trimmed a great ox they had slaughtered. Meanwhile the women

scattered, for the workmen to eat, abundant white barley.

(561) He made on it a great vineyard heavy with clusters,

lovely and in gold, but the grapes upon it were darkened

and the vines themselves stood out through poles of silver. About them

he made a field-ditch of dark metal, and drove all around this

a fence of tin; and there was only one path to the vineyard,

and along it ran the grape-bearers for the vineyard's stripping.

Young girls and young men, in all their light-hearted innocence,

carried the kind, sweet fruit away in their woven baskets,

and in their midst a youth with a singing lyre played charmingly

upon it for them, and sang the beautiful song for Linos

in a light voice, and they followed him, and with singing and whistling

and light dance-steps of their feet kept time to the music.

(573) He made upon it a herd of horn-straight oxen. The cattle

were wrought of gold and of tin, and thronged in speed and with lowing

out of the dung of the farmyard to a pasturing place by a sounding

river, and beside the moving field of a reed bed.

The herdsmen were of gold who went along with the cattle,

four of them, and nine dogs shifting their feet followed them.

But among the foremost of the cattle two formidable lions

had caught hold of a bellowing bull, and he with loud lowings

was dragged away, as the dogs and the young men went in pursuit of him.

But the two lions, breaking open the hide of the great ox,

gulped the black blood and the inward guts, as meanwhile the herdsmen

were in the act of setting and urging the quick dogs on them.

But they, before they could get their teeth in, turned back from the lions,

but would come and take their stand very close, and bayed, and kept clear.

(587) And the renowned smith of the strong arms made on it a meadow

large and in a lovely valley for the glimmering sheepflocks,

with dwelling places upon it, and covered shelters, and sheepfolds.

(590) And the renowned smith of the strong arms made elaborate on it

a dancing floor, like that which once in the wide spaces of Knossos

Daidalos built for Ariadne of the lovely tresses.

And there were young men on it and young girls, sought for their beauty

with gifts of oxen, dancing, and holding hands at the wrist. These

wore, the maidens long light robes, but the men wore tunics

of finespun work and shining softly, touched with olive oil.

And the girls wore fair garlands on their heads, while the young men

carried golden knives that hung from sword-belts of silver.

At whiles on their understanding feet they would run very lightly,

as when a potter crouching makes trial of his wheel, holding

it close in his hands, to see if it will run smooth. At another

time they would form rows, and run, rows crossing each other.

And around the lovely chorus of dancers stood a great multitude

happily watching, while among the dancers two acrobats

led the measures of song and dance revolving among them.

(606) He made on it the great strength of the Ocean River

which ran around the uttermost rim of the shield's strong structure.

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at http://justforbooks.tumblr.com

#JUST FOR BOOKS

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martiniblves · 5 years

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mijoo and her iconic entrances DFKLSJGDF

yes, i really am recycling the intro some of you probably Just caught when you followed me DGSFLJLGSD

hey y’all, i’m kat, english student and an old hag :/ also slowly coming down from an anxiety moment, hence only deleting old shit now and potentially going rogue from my blog for the night after posting this ( aka, best if y'all send me your d*scord users bc it's much easier for me there ) sfdgjgfd i’m super excited for this group and can’t wait to read all about your muses ! and hoping you feel the same, i’ll get right to introducing avalon bay’s resident messy brat, dahlia !

[ lee mijoo ] dahlia kim, twenty-four, cis female, she/her, radio dj — a world-class traveler in the making, self-proclaimed “ reformed ” groupie, has been a tennant at avalon bay for two years, her cherry blaster obsession is the sweetest thing about her, she slept with an ex-best friend’s roommate and crush as revenge. [ kat, 22, nt, she/her ]

she often goes between dahlia and dia, first and foremost sdfglkj

came from a super small town in upstate new york where there wasn’t much to do or much to see, so growing up she had an adventurous streak that would run rampant when she was able to go off by herself, able to drive, and finally able to leave it behind

her family life was rather average, her parents scraped by financially but her and her two younger siblings never really went without — aside from a toy or two at christmas or a brand new car for their sixteenth birthdays sfgkljgdf

gets on fine with them, but her and her little/middle sister have had an on-and-off contentious relationship that, at the moment, is very much ON SDFGFG

small town life was.. okay overall, she was social Enough and polite but never really maintained any close relationships with her childhood pals once high school came and went, mostly bc the town was full of gossips so everyone thought poorly of each other and passed it onto their kids LSKFDGJGDFL

and yes, i’m kinda basing this off of the antics of adults from my hometown, what about it ??

she spent most of her formative years with her head in the clouds and music always around her or on her mind

so you bet she wound up taking guitar and piano lessons when she was a kid and well into her teens, and dare i say she was pretty good at it fsdglkjgdf

having that skill gave her the boost of confidence she needed from middle school onward, having been a tad reserved before then

idk what else to add bc i honestly can’t think of anything else about her past Before moving away. dull as hell probably, more than it’s already been said LKGSDF

upon moving to the city, she attended nyu just to keep her parents from completely losing their minds over her not.. wanting to go on a sure path, majoring in communications and spending much of her time as a dj for the campus radio station’s late night shows

soon began searching for dj gigs at major radio stations once she’d graduated and landed a spot as an intern to meet with artists the station wished to interview, etc, and even had an opportunity or two to interview them herself

through that job, she became more exposed to the groupie lifestyle and — having always been somewhat intrigued — soon became one ( of sorts )

sorry if you’re a fan of h*lsey bc this might come across as a dig, but this is where she becomes the chill version of groupie!h*lsey that h*lsey wishes she had been DFLSKJDGSFL

she liked the attention from drummers, singers and rappers alike — plus having sex with talented, rich people whenever they were in town didn’t hurt one bit — and she kept it all separate from her job, although it did help the station land more interviews, tickets for contests, etc

wasn’t big on hard drugs, but she never shied away from a bong being handed to her or a couple of xanax tablets, just so we’re clear here sdflkgjfdgk

however, the no-strings set-up quickly shifted for dahlia upon meeting a rising indie band’s lead singer

he was smooth as hell, which she already knew alongside his tendency to get bored easily with fangirls-turned-groupies like the rest of the musicians she’d met, so when she played along with his game, it didn’t take long for him to maintain an interest in her and for them to forge something of a friendship

she’d never admit it to anyone, but he was her first love as the initial sexual attraction very quickly became romantic after long conversations about music and aspirations, mundane happenings in their lives separate from their encounters and who should’ve won immunity on the recent ep of masterchef; dia knew he wouldn’t settle down now and she knew that while she was his number one at that point, she wasn’t the only one he had. a couple of months passed where it seemed like he was going only to her, that his interest rarely waned to the other girls that would swarm him, which led her to believe he was at least somewhat into her and to her confessing when they were both drunk one night — only to be shut down but not shut out

dejected and heartbroken, she still couldn’t quite distance herself from him like she knew she should and the front she put up — that she exaggerated her feelings and would get over it — made him none the wiser

however, he couldn’t get over the thought of his fwb still being in love with him and cut ties with her abruptly before his nth departure from nyc

it took her right out of her bubble, left a horrible taste in her mouth to even go back to being a groupie for others over how poorly it all went with him, so she abandoned the sexual aspect and potential intimacy of it — but not before taking herself completely out of that lifestyle for a few months to get over him

which.. lbr, she’s only 90% of the way there to this day sfdlkkdfsgl

upon going back, she showed up to shows and parties solely as a friend of the performer.... before that got old Quick and she realized how soul-sucking it was for her sexually frustrated And repressed ass KFSLJGS

though ask her pals and they’d think she’d given it up altogether, hence her supposedly being reformed

.. at least she isn’t indulging in drugs like she occasionally used to, so that counts for something lksdfjlgdf

as for her time in radio, she got promoted to a morning slot as a dj with a couple of co-hosts last year, though once an afternoon slot opened, she high-tailed it out of there

anything to get back to her chill, late night roots and this was the first step

lastly, she moved to avalon bay 2 years ago, after uni was done and she had to move out of the dorms. in that time, she’d become best friends with another girl and had a massive falling out bc the other was. well. changing for the worst sgfjgfd

she became selfish, judgmental, advantageous and disloyal, and soon dia had enough of her hypocritical and generally nasty antics ( and not without a brutal argument that left both of their egos bruised )

dahlia isn’t always one for petty revenge, but when the ex-bff’s roommate and crush — who dia had a slight interest in as well — bumped into her in the hallway of their dorm one night, she took her chance to knock the other down a peg by initiating a flirtatious conversation that quickly turned sexual

with her ex-bff being on the other side of the wall of said roommate’s room

safe to say that their ( final ) conversation in the morning was a fucking disaster SDFLGKJGFDK

it’s not something she’s entirely ashamed about, but dia doesn’t feel the need to disclose what happened

PERSONALITY AND OTHER SHIT

she loves her friends, would die for them, would kill for them. let’s get that straight first and foremost !

does that mean she’s the nicest or even the most tolerable person ?? fuck no SFGLJGKDF

i described her to one of my pals as a “ chaotic free-spirit with a mean streak when she doesn’t get her way, ” which. could also describe a couple of my bitchier muses tbh FLDKGJDS

but she’s stubborn, irritable and has a sense of high self-worth and self-preservation

she obviously has an attitude that can and will come out if you hurt her or someone she cares about/someone she thinks doesn’t deserve it

or if you think you’re a god or something

and it can get ugly.. as explained above dfskgdgkf

however, we love confident women on this blog and here you have one !

she’s chill for the most part, so you ( probably ) won’t have anything to worry about if you stay on her good side gfsdkljgfd

passionate af about radio and music as a career, wants to have a gig like zane lowe’s beats hosting job or even annie mac’s one day

although she also wishes to put out music of her own at least Once before she dies dfgsljdfgk

bit of a wild child, likes to party and just do her own thing — partially bc she’s scared of getting older and having to give that all up/being forced to act her age

doesn’t mean she doesn’t like her quiet nights in though !

closet romantic, just wants to be swept off of her feet..... but no one needs to know that, at least she doesn’t think so FSDJKGFD

won't let you see it anyways, at least unless she's Interested and knows you're not someone who's only useful for her in the short-term

also quietly doting, will never be the mom friend bc it’s too much responsibility and patience, but will always be a good shoulder to cry on who tells you your feelings are valid before she tells you to toughen the fuck up and amend a situation yourself, might even tell you how

some exceptions may apply FDLSJGSFLK

a bit vulgar at times, just warning you now fgldskf

wants to see the world and has travelled a little as it is bc of her connections. loves it

JFKDGS

has a pet succulent bc she Knows she can't look after the big fluffy dog of her dreams rn

named him bobby after one of the characters from the love island game DFLKGSJF

i honestly dk what else to add rn, plus i’m eager af to post this so we’ll end it here ! cute extras can always be posted later !

#╳┊: — yee yee ! •「 ooc ! 」#avalon.intro #we love copying and pasting on this blog SDGFJLSKD

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parabellum-rpg-archive · 5 years

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Congratulations, Joss! You’ve been accepted to play Amelina Martinez. Your request to change her FC to Emeraude Toubia has also been approved. Please make your page and send it in within 24 hours.

Admin note: I’m very excited for the future plotting! - Admin J

IC INFORMATION — CHARACTER DESIRED Amelina Martinez DESCRIBE THE CHARACTER IN YOUR OWN WORDS I think the word that stood out to me most in Amelina’s bio is 'obsessed’. Her obsession with avenging Luis and her obsession with bagging Morgan seem to stem from the same unexpressed need. She’s stuck always being that 14 year old girl, never able to move on from seeing her brother selling drugs and then later finding out he was dead. The two events are sort of locked into her head, and after that, she stopped growing up so much as simply getting older. Other people can move on from grief, but there’s this block there for her, and I think it’s surrounding the fact that they weren’t actually that close, that he’d already been to prison by the time she was starting high school, that it embarrassed her in front of her friends to see her brother like that. I think there was a ton of shame for her with this screw-up of a brother of hers, and not just a little anger. Why couldn’t he just get his shit together and get a real job and be a real man? Maybe she even said that to him, and then later, he was dead, and she never really got to know him, or take back her words, or realize she should have told her parents. That getting him sent back to prison on a parole violation, which her extremely Catholic and law-abiding family would’ve done, would’ve been better than dying on the street like a dog. I don’t think her parents ever got over his death either. Him going to prison was hard enough, but then their eldest son dying before he was 25 just broke them. So there’s this house with three broken people, and they all handle their grief differently. To me, Amelina is Inigo Montoya, preparing to take out the whole damn Costello gang. What’s ironic is that she hasn’t done the math on Luis getting shot and realized he was probably shot by a Sinclair. In another life, Ameline became a cop and worked a gang detail, maybe working undercover. In another life, she became a community organizer and worked at a youth centre helping to keep other kids from ending up like her brother. In another life, she got married too young to a boy a lot like Luis and got sucked into a shitty life because she felt like she deserved it, as some sort of punishment. In this world, she swore revenge. She became a spy from the beginning, learning about a world that she had no doorway into by sheer will. She spent 15 years figuring out how to get access to a gang, when she could’ve just joined up. But she isn’t interested in being her brother and owned by someone else. She wants to own them. Which leads me to her interest in Morgan. Now, Morgan has a lot of animal magnetism and is obviously gorgeous, but I don’t really think if he were just a man, Amelina would look twice. I don’t even think it’s the power and the privilege he has, though she probably thinks that’s what it is, that drives her to him. She tells herself she wants to be his wife, to supplant Penny, to satisfy him on some level that he no longer feels, but I think those are just surface thoughts. What Morgan actually is for her, is death. Her death drive is jacked all the way up, not to the point of suicide, but to the point where death seems like an acceptable outcome if the result is revenge. She’s had this need for so long, she can’t plan for the future anymore. She can’t have dreams, she can’t have plans, she only has this one thing, and Morgan will use her to get it, and he won’t care if he breaks her to do it, and she wants that so badly. Everyone else in her life looks at her and wants to protect her or love her or just views her as unimportant. Only Morgan looks at her and sees a weapon. And that’s what she’s turned herself into. She can run a half-marathon in an hour and forty five minutes, she’s learned Krav Maga, she has killer aim, and most of all, she can lie so well that even she believes it sometimes. All she needs is for someone to just pull the trigger and fire her at the enemy. What was she up to in those fifteen years? Can you get experience in revenge? She couldn’t exactly go out and find a swordmaster to train her or something. She got a series of jobs that she hated and never got a promotion because she couldn’t care less. She went to school but never finished that accounting degree, or information management diploma, or even that administrative assistant certificate, because the idea of being anything for the rest of her life seems impossible to imagine. She made friends she couldn’t hold onto, and had relationships she didn’t care about, and she just … absorbed information. She went to Costello clubs, she hung with Costello people, she learned about them, and by doing so, learned about the Sinclairs. It actually took her a while to realize the Sinclairs were useful, because at first she thought she could do it all on her own, like people in the movies. After years of collecting evidence, only to realize it was useless because no one was going to prosecute them, and punishment meant nothing to people who owned the system, she finally turned her attention to the Sinclairs, under the principle that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. WRITING SAMPLE Her target, Luca Costello, was drunk as shit and just turned 18. Spending money like it had an expiration date and begging girls to help him celebrate. She wondered if he even knew what his family did for a living. On the one hand, how could he not, when he was surrounded by it all the time? But on the other, how could he really understand what they did and still throw bills around like the world was a game and he’d already won? “Hi.” “Hey. You’re … pretty. You wanna get married?” This wasn’t what she’d imagined. Was it really this easy? “I wanna go back to your place. Take me home.” “Okay. Yeah, let’s do that, we can totally … I have coke at home. And like, every booze. All the booze. I’ll even order pizza if you want!” He smiled and touched her hair. She let him. It didn’t matter what he did. None of it mattered. It was all just research. *** He lay on the bed, passed out after she’d fed him three more drinks and listened to him tell her about some girl named Juliet and how she’d broken his heart again. He’d done a few lines of coke and that had pretty much made him tell her everything she could’ve ever wanted to know, and several things that she didn’t, about his life. It was kind of sad how little there was of it. His beloved twin sister, who sounded like a little bitch, his parents who were equal parts proud and disappointed in him, his friends who sounded like the worst sort of entitled pricks, his older siblings who seemed barely aware of him and who were embedded in the business enough to be soaked in blood. Climbing off him, her t-shirt left back in the living room, since breasts seemed to make men more chatty, and her pants by the side of the bed, to give him hope that they might actually fuck, she sat on the bed and just breathed. What the fuck did she do now? She’d thought this part would be the complicated part, that she’d have to jump through hoops, talk her way in, be so smooth that no one suspected anything. She hadn’t really let herself consider what happened next. Mostly all she could think about was the other Costellos. It was obvious Luca wasn’t really involved in the business, but they were. The oldest ones might even have been a part of the business when Luis was still alive. Had they put him on that street corner where he died? Was he just a scratched out line for them in some notebook somewhere? Did they even care? How could they not realize that their choices had left a fucking cemetary worth of bodies in their wake? Did they look in the mirror and see a monster? She was up and pacing and hadn’t even noticed. No one had ever taken anything from them. No one had ever made them face the cost of 'doing business’ before. They were all pampered, precious little vampires sucking the blood out of Chicago’s poor and desperate. She was back on the bed now, straddling him, staring down at his sleeping face that had never known real pain. What did he have to grieve? A girl who didn’t fall at his feet? He was a stupid little boy, a waste of education and opportunity. He’d had everything that she and Luis hadn’t, and he hadn’t become anything more than they had. It was hard to look at him. He was a boy, younger than Luis, his hair curling at the edges. He was a Costello, his very existence an insult to her own loss. She had a pillow in her hand and pressed it against his face. He didn’t even struggle. He could die like this, and maybe his family would think it was just some sort of freak accident. They would know just a fraction of what she felt, with their money insulating them from anything real. They’d know something, even if they didn’t even know her brother’s fucking name. He was moving a little under her, trying to push her off, when she heard a noise. A door opening. Was someone else home? Had someone come in and she hadn’t heard them? Was it the police? The rest of the Costellos? Did they somehow all know what she was doing? Lifting the pillow away, Lina froze and Luca took a breath. He coughed and his hand reflexively grabbed her bare thigh where it pressed against his. She was straddling Luca Costello’s thighs in a mismatched bra and panties, clutching her murder weapon to her chest like she was about to start a pillow fight. There was a man standing in the doorway looking at her. He didn’t look embarrassed, which was the part that confused her. They both looked at each other for a moment, and Lina needed to think of a lie. Nothing stuck in her head, everything was blank. She knew, on some level, she was panicking. She managed to choke out a gasp, and hopped off of Luca and onto the floor. Stumbling, the blood rushing away from her head where it had been pounding moments before, her feet numb from kneeling on them, she moved like a drunk co-ed. Yes, drunk. She was drunk. She was just another drunk girl, probably one of dozens that Luca brought home. “Oh my God, what’re you doing here?” Her voice was unsteady and breathy, but that was normal, right? Was anything normal? “My cousin texted me that he’d just proposed to his future wife. You two aren’t married, are you?” The question was so unexpected that Lina just automatically shook her head and held out her left hand, as if showing that she wasn’t wearing a wedding ring was the normal response in these situations. “Good. His mother would kill me if he got married the day he turned legal.” The man, Luca’s cousin, didn’t even seem to be really talking to her, he wasn’t even looking at her directly. “Could you … maybe put something on?” Snatching the sheet off the bed, Lina wrapped herself in it and sank to the floor, so much adrenaline in her system that she couldn’t breathe and could taste her own heartbeat. “I’m feeling … woozy. Can you find my shirt?” She just needed him to leave, to go away. He’d seen her face, but what were the odds he’d be able to ever recognize her again? If he would just leave, she could … Luca made a noise like a sad puppy on the bed and fell off of it onto the floor. He didn’t wake up, but was now curled up like a baby. Why had the cousin come home? Why was he here? What kind of fucked up family were they? “I don’t think I know you. What’s your name?” Oh fuck. He knew. He knew she wasn’t one of Luca’s friends, he knew something was up. Someone at the club had warned him, maybe? She didn’t know. But he didn’t know what she didn’t know, did he? She was just a dumb drunk girl. “I’m Lina. Luca told me he had coke. He asked me to marry him but I didn’t say yes … can you see my pants?” Why had she said her real name? She was a fucking idiot. Grabbing her pants, she went to stand up and fell into the bed, knocking herself into the arms of the cousin. She was pressed against his body, and he had a gun, it felt like a bad joke, is that a gun I feel or are you just happy to see me? Only it was a gun, it really was. And he was looking at her now, and she did the only thing she could think of. She passed out, dead dropping in his arms. He carried her. That was the crazy part. He carried her to the living room like something out of a romance movie, only it wasn’t romantic at all, and then just stared at her for a moment. Even with her eyes closed, she could tell somehow, that he was watching her. Trying not to shake, or even breathe too hard, she lay there and wondered if this was the part where he shot her. Was he going to press the muzzle to her head, or just pull the trigger? Would she hear it coming before she died? Christ, was this how it had felt to be Luis? She couldn’t even cry, weirdly calm, like there was a wall and all her fear was behind it, waiting to crash over her, but she couldn’t quite feel it yet. “Amelina Belinda Pilar Martinez. Where do you live?” Oh Christ, he knew she was awake, he was talking to her, oh God, she was going to die now. But then she realized what she was hearing. He was going through her wallet. The wallet that had been in the pants she was holding when she pretended to pass out. Oh fuck, this was even worse. He knew who she was. He knew her name. He had her goddamn driver’s license. “Mike, can you bring the car around? Yes, Luca’s. Just a girl. They’re both passed out, I don’t want her getting into more of his nose candy and OD'ing. Yeah, exactly. I’ll stay with him, make sure he doesn’t choke on his own vomit. Yes, well, it is his birthday. See you soon.” Lying there, a cold certainty hit her. She wasn’t prepared for this. She didn’t know what the fuck she was doing. She didn’t even know which fucking cousin this guy was. She’d made all these lists, all these observations, all these half-baked plans, but she hadn’t done anything about them. Here she was, lying on Luca Costello’s floor, and she had no idea what to do. What if anything had gone wrong before this? What if Luca had woken up while she’d been smothering him? Christ, what if Luca had been playing music and she hadn’t heard his cousin come in? She could just give up. Admit that it had all been stupid. Go back to her pointless life and just keep living, day in and day out, and eventually die, having accomplished nothing. Fuck that. She would just have to figure out how to be better. She would. And then next time, she’d know what to do. And she’d never feel like this again. EXTRAS She reads the tabloids religiously to keep up with the Costello siblings. Not necessarily a playlist, but pretty much the new album from Billie Eilish is Lina’s soundtrack right now, with a lot of Lana Del Rey thrown in and the Kill Bill soundtrack on top (just because she loves that movie and has seen it 10 times).

Her favourite book is the Count of Monte Cristo.

#accepted

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bibliomint · 5 years

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Character Analysis: Saburo Miki

I think the majority of the fandom either doesn’t appreciate him enough or wants his route. While I can’t give him enough justice to write a route myself, I can give my best attempt at a character analysis bc lets be real, his wiki page is, well, lacking at best

Obviously spoilers, but if you’ve come for an analysis of a character who’s barely in the game, you’ve probably played through at least two routes and know the gist of what’s happened.

We all know him as that one guy who was Tall and Abrasive and, if you’ve played through Souma’s route, Somewhat Cruel and Possibly Insane.

Yes, he’s brash, and abrasive, and speaks before he thinks. Yes, he’s clearly rough around the edges, he’s arrogant and blunt. But those are all surface observations. Those are things you pick up from other routes. They don’t give you every angle that makes him a well rounded character/antagonist.

Sure, the devs could have gone into more detail about his backstory. We all would have loved that. It would have made his ambitions more clear and his motivations easier to understand. But since they didn’t, we are left to sift through the few scenes he’s in to piece together his character. There really isn’t much, but what we do have is enough to get a good idea for his primary motivation and drive: his pride.

This is pretty clear from his surface-level personality. He’s arrogant, brash and rude and a tinge of cruel (see Kyoto Winds, Souma’s route, near the end when he’s smashing Souma’s face in the dirt.) He’s used to getting his way. He’s used to people following him, to people falling at his feet. It’s very clearly gone to his head. But that all comes crashing down when his brother is murdered. When people he thought were on his side turn out to be spies and backstabbers cough saito cough heisuke cough.

During the whole thing, after Itou dies, the best way to describe Miki is lost. His leader is gone and he doesn’t know what to do. Suddenly he’s in charge of himself. He has to think for himself. No longer is he directly following the Imperial-Nationalistic ideologies of his brother. He’s forced with a worldview check at the same time he loses his closest and possibly only family member. Itou had been the only person keeping a check on him, keeping him in line, that it’s no surprise he completely snaps. (see Kyoto Winds, chapter 3, when he’s first introduced.) He doesn’t know what to do with himself. His home is in the middle of a Civil War, his only family is gone, his friends have all betrayed him and are currently using him for selfish means, and he just doesn’t know what to do. He’s good at carrying out orders, not making them. Miki’s been roughly thrown into more chaos than any person should have to deal with at once.

Just because he’s a follower doesn’t mean he’s stupid. He’s just a slice and dice now, ask questions later kind of guy. He acts on impulse and figures he’ll deal with the repercussions later.

He was ready to manhandle Chizuru into the bathhouse, just to prove a point. That he could, that his suspicions were correct, that she really didn’t belong and stuck out like a sore thumb. When Souma arrives, he backs off some and goes to plan B. He almost prompts her to admit that she’s a girl. If Nomura hadn’t said something, she probably would have admitted to it and the entire route would have gone differently.

It’s no surprise that he becomes a Fury. He felt like he didn’t have a choice. Miki’s a follower, not a leader. He just doesn’t know how to lead. “Who am I kidding? I’m no leader.” He’s used to being the backup brawn for his thinker of a brother. He’s used to following orders and not thinking about it.

“They made a Fury out of me, something I never wanted.” He felt that his hand had been forced by his superiors. He doesn’t know how to say ”no” to people above him, because he’s never had to.

Having your closest friend and family member murdered in cold blood purely for a political move would make any sane person seek restitution. He wanted justice for what he rightly felt was a crime. Sure, maybe he thought that his brother had done some things that weren’t the purest, but he was still family. Itou was still the only thing he had in the world, and it had been cruelly ripped away from him.

It’s no surprise that Miki chases them throughout Souma’s whole route. He’s been so beaten down and betrayed, the only thing he can think of is to finish what remains the Shinsengumi, even if he isn’t angry at the surviving members. Revenge is the only thing that gets him out of bed. He’s very clearly depressed at the end of the story, saying things like, “What’s the point in life?” ”Fate is cruel...at some point, we are made to expect nothing. It’s hopeless.” and, “I’m nothing more than a monster. A wretched beast. A burden.” He doesn’t know what to do anymore, forced to wander the earth until he either finds someone else to follow, or burns his life out by using his Fury abilities, which is possibly the saddest ending out of them all.

But, as overwhelming are his negative characteristics are, he does have some positive things going for him. Chizuru makes a direct reference in chapter 4 of Kyoto Winds, commenting that even though they weren’t close, he seemed pretty responsible. It leads me to believe that, if his ideologies had been the same as the Shinsengumi, he would never have left, carrying out his duties until his final day. He was also very loyal, sticking with Itou even though it meant leaving a safe position with the Shinsengumi to a more questionable position, one that didn’t necessarily mean victory in the long run. Even after Itou dies and Miki’s thrown into chaos, he still tries to follow what he thinks is a wise move, running after Kodo and the Imperialists. It lands him in trouble, turning him into a Fury; not always what we think is right turns out to really be the wisest of moves. You can’t blame him for chasing after the only hope he had. Running for his allies only for them to dump him onto the street isn’t necessarily his fault. Could he have seen it coming? Probably, if he hadn’t been so blindsided by his desperation.

He has a little bit of Okita about him. He makes the comment “A job is a job. I don’t plan on making it personal.” Take that how you will. Maybe it’s a good thing, that he knows when and when not to get attached, or maybe it’s proof of something colder.

His “ability to let his mouth run loose” according to Itou also leads to moments where I think he has a decent sense of humor. The scene in Kyoto Winds where everyone is cleaning is an example. Takeda is whining about cleaning, and Miki is straight up savage with him, joining in on the teasing of the 5th Division Captain with Harada. He also exhibits good teamwork in that scene.

Something tells me if life had gone a little differently for him, if it had treated him a little kinder, he might have turned into an amazing person. But he got the shorter end of the stick, and has one of the most unfortunate and tragic endings of all the characters in the game. If he had had a route, I’m sure his character development would have been amazing to see, to watch him grow from someone so brash to someone softer, who knows how to treat people decently and to know how to forgive and let go.

#i just #feel passionately about my tol evil babe #what can i say #he deserves better #character analysis #saburo miki #miki #hakuouki #hakuoki

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soveryanon · 5 years

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Reviewing time for MAG128 /o/

- I!! Hate!! The!! Parallels!! In!! This!! Series!!

(MAG128) ARCHIVIST: Why are you here? BREEKON: Dunno. ‘t’s not right… on my own… not right… No point in doing it on my own. Don’t know what happens now…

[…] “I fed her to it. She took him from me. Made us a me, and she doesn’t get to die for that. […] I am without him, now. I. am. I can feel myself fading. Weak. No reason to move. Nothing to deliver. […] I have never known hate before. I have never known loss. But now, they are with me always, and I desire nothing but to share them with you.”

[…] ARCHIVIST: I, I saw that… thing’s mind, i–it’s lost on its own. No partner, no… purpose, I… I honestly think it just wanted to do another delivery.

The ~ surviving part of a half~ explaining how his whole existence is pointless and driveless now that his partner has been killed… sounded so, so much like Basira’s own situation regarding Daisy since:

(MAG112) DAISY: Elias is… keeping me busy. Hunting. Takes a while. [FALTERS] I’m used to working… with a partner. … It’s fine. BASIRA: Daisy… DAISY: It’s fine. BASIRA: Right. … But it’s not, though, is it?

(MAG117) BASIRA: […] But at least Daisy’s coming along. I mean… I know she’s… difficult. Everything they say about her, it’s true, it’s fair. But… she’s solid. She’s a fixed point. And if she’s there, I know exactly where I stand, exactly what I’m doing relative to her. She has no doubts. We go in, we plant bombs, we leave, we blow it all to hell. Or we die. I don’t think I’ll ever have clarity like that. Despite everything she’s done, she’s… she’s still the best partner I ever had.

1°) Basira and Breekon both are the remaining part of their own duo; the difference between monsterhood and humans being maybe… that Basira’s existence isn’t intrinsically tied to Daisy’s; that humans can feel loss and pain, but won’t get their literal raison d’être, sense of purpose and belonging shattered if they lose part or one aspect of them. In a way, that makes monsters’ existence more tragic, since they’re not even able to overcome, to thrive and to survive?

2°) I can’t help but wonder, flipping the situation: and if Daisy had been fed to the coffin first, and if Basira had stumbled upon Hope right after, would Basira have tried to hurt (one of) them the same way they had hurt her by taking Daisy’s life? (Would Jon have done it, too, if given the opportunity to hurt the ones who had hurt Tim and Sasha? He… actually did hurt Breekon here, and it is so, so easy, now, to perceive him as a Monster from the monsters’ point of view…)

3°) Jon’s summary of Breekon’s current state to Basira felt… quite cold compared to the statement itself, I felt? It wasn’t just “another delivery”: it was Breekon trying to viciously hurt what had hurt him. It was achieving a personal revenge before disappearing. I’m… a bit surprised that Jon went so clinical about it.

4°) But it could have also been a kind of protection, since… Yes, “Breekon” and “Hope” tortured and killed, delighting in others’ suffering and misery. And Breekon also confirmed something that we had seen through Jude’s erh, fascination with Agnes: that monsters and avatars are sentient. They have feelings. They are able to form attachments, to feel loss, to desire revenge. So… just because someone cares about a selected few, wouldn’t prevent them from hurting bystanders, innocent or people who just don’t personally matter to them. That’s not something especially encouraging when we have Jon in mind – he cares about the assistants and about Georgie, and he felt sad for the victims in previous statements, and I hope he will be able to remain this way, but… what will happen, what will be become when he “drowns”, indeed?

- I’m often struck with waves of awareness about how much I love this friggin’ series when listening to new episodes, and it happens in various ways – this time, my heart got full of love with the way Breekon’s statement definitely connected the dots between previous ones, through his point of view and in chronological order? And in the midst of it, we got a confirmation of what had actually happened in the second episode of the series!! How rad is this? How rad is it that, while the statements in themselves provide a story that works on its own since the beginning of the series, we’re able to revisit them with information that adds so much more meaning to things that were already there?

* Jon had wondered about “Breekon” and “Hope”’s alignment since they appeared to be involved with various powers, but seems they were indeed part of The Stranger in the end:

(MAG093) ARCHIVIST: But Breekon and Hope? Speaking Russian and helping transport a victim of… whatever dark power rules over disease and rot. And insects, maybe? I was just about convinced that they served the Stranger, and their speaking Russian might well support that if it ties them to the Circus, but… this is not the first time they’ve been delivering things that seem to be tied to other beings. Are they a neutral party, carting round whatever horror needs delivering, just a piece of otherworldly infrastructure? Or are they fully part of the Stranger, just serving as allies of convenience for other things that need to be moved?

(MAG128, “Breekon”) It wasn’t the plague they feared; it wasn’t the death that awaited in our wagon; it was us. Two strangers rolling towards them, unstoppable and uncertain, wearing faces they would only half-remember, bringing a fate they would beg their god to forget. They could not hate us anymore than they might have hated the rock that falls on them from a crumbling cliff. They did not know us. But they knew what we might do to them. What we might bring them. And we did. […] We always take what jobs are before us, deliver whatever will bring that fear and misery, but there is no joy in carrying Meat and shifting, writhing Spiral things.

They followed various phases of progress and technology: long-distance boat journeys as they served on the Robert Small during the 19th century, crossing paths with prisoners from Millbank sent to Australia (“Poor wretches who emerged from Millbank, with tales of Australia and its cruelty on their lips, bundled into the cramped and creaking ship that would drag them away from everything they loved – and towards everything they feared.”); trains, as they became conductors; cars, as they delivered items for auction houses at the beginning of the 20th century.

* Pre-MAG024, MAG044: during some time, including from 1948 to November 1952, they joined The Other Circus, feeling like they belonged:

(MAG024) ARCHIVIST: […] on page 43 of Gregory Petry’s Freaks and Followers: Circuses in the 1940s, I found a reproduction of an old black-and-white photograph. It shows a small group of carnival workers: a contortionist, a fire-eater, two strong-men, a ringmaster and an organist sitting behind a calliope. The photograph is labelled as being from 1948 and taken in Minsk, Russia.

(MAG044, Yuri Utkin) As I scrambled back, I felt a large hand on my shoulder, and looked up to see two huge men in overalls. They lifted me easily, so my feet hung almost two feet from the ground. They talked fast, crude Russian, and their words seemed to shift back and forth between them, telling me that behind the tent was off-limits […].

(MAG128, “Breekon”) Then were the good times, the Circus times. […] with the Circus we were amongst our own kind at last. […] We carried and lifted and helped the Circus move towards its next destination, the next, doomed town. Sometimes we joined the show, lifting weights and things that looked like animals. Sometimes we lifted members of the audience. Sometimes we even put them down again. […]

They didn’t like Nikola at first, but were impressed by her, though they eventually decided to leave when she “lost the ancient skin” – that one is, I think, a mystery? Gertrude stole the gorilla skin from the taxidermy shop but that happened June 23th 2013 and April 4th 2015, so it can’t be the same incident.

* For some time, they picked up hitchhikers (and starved them to death), though they missed having clear destinations and carrying spooky items bringing misery to people.

* MAG096: From 1993 to 1996, they slowly took over Alfred Breekon’s delivery company “Breekon & Hope”, stealing from him its name aaaand the infamous Cockney accent (MAG096: “[One] turned to his companion and opened his mouth. ‘Breekon at your service. Who might you be?’ Instead of the Russian accent I had expected, he spoke in a broad, cartoonish Cockney that I assumed must be a mocking impression of my own voice.”). They went back to doing deliveries or moving items for different entities (MAG093).

(MAG096, Alfred/Arthur Breekon) They wore featureless grey overalls, and even now I’m not sure I could easily describe what they look like, other than to say they seemed solid. Somehow heavier than the world around them. […] Strange folk began coming around asking for Breekon and Hope, and when I told them who I was, they just shook their heads, and I knew who they were after. They often brought crates or boxes with them and, once, a sack full of hair. […] For all that, they do seem to have friends, or at the very least, people who come to see them regularly. Most I don’t remember, the features difficult to put together from memory, but I know that more than once I’ve seen the pair of them talking to a figure at the other end of the depot. They always make sure these meetings are in shadow, and I can never get close enough to see exactly who they’re talking to, but I think they’re dressed like a circus ringmaster.

(MAG128, “Breekon”) Driving aimless, waiting for the call, sat badly with us. We were meant to know our destination. We were meant to have a cargo and an address. So it was we found a man named “Breekon”, and we took everything they were until there was nothing left but the sweet taste of a broken soul’s disquiet and confusion. We took the van and started to deliver once again.

* MAG002: In the 90s, they helped “John” carry an item from The Buried, when he was trying to test its powers – except it backfired badly, since the test subject he had picked turned out to be the Most Practical “Would Survive A Horror Movie” Statement-Giver Ever, and Joshua Gillespie managed to resist the coffin’s temptation for almost a year and a half. We already had a hint about “John” being from The Stranger in MAG002, because of how Joshua had trouble describing him:

(MAG002, Joshua Gillespie) I’ve tried to describe the man who now sat opposite me many times, but it’s difficult. He was short, very short, and felt like he had an odd density to him. His hair was brownish, I think, cut quite short, and he was clean shaven. His face and dress was utterly unremarkable, and the more I try to think of exactly what he looked like, the harder it is to picture him clearly. To be honest, though, I’m inclined to blame that on the drugs. […] John had to take a second to look me up and down, almost in disbelief, as I asked if they’d come to collect their coffin.

(MAG128, “Breekon”) And so we took the casket, a hungry thing of the Earth, a crushing, choking tomb that will not let you die because it is too much what it is for Death to find you there, within its mocking shape – buried alive. It was one like us that found it. A thing of shifting names and déjà-vu. A fool, that believed because it found a coffin in chains, it would be an easy thing to control, to bargain with. But there was no remorse when the test finally failed and it fed on the thing that considered itself the master.

Since Joshua had managed to not open the coffin, “John” was swallowed by it instead when they went to retrieve it.

* Breekon and Hope ended up stuck with the coffin and had to carry it around.

(MAG128, “Breekon”) But there was no mention of us in the deal. No thought towards what might happen should a victim pass the test. And what happened was… we were stuck with it. It was still our cargo. Nowhere to take it, no address or destination, so back in the van it went. A long time, we’ve carried it. Keeping it as close as it wants, not listening to it sing in the rain.

When Jon was sequestered by Nikola, she had made her distaste of the coffin clear, hinting that it wasn’t from The Stranger, while Breekon and Hope had said they couldn’t separate from it:

(MAG101) NIKOLA: Oh, don’t worry, it’s not for you. You won’t even need a coffin – we’re going to use every piece of you. ARCHIVIST: [MUFFLED EXCLAMATION] NIKOLA: Now could you two please move that thing somewhere far, far away? BREEKON: Not really. HOPE: Needs to be near us. NIKOLA: Well, just… just move yourselves away, and take it with you.

* MAG061: The coffin notably ate Daisy’s partner, Isaac Masters, on the 24th of July 2002 while they had stopped Breekon&Hope’s van (accompanied by a “Tom”) on the motorway for driving too slow.

* Overall: in MAG078 (2001, the Web table now binding the Not!Them), MAG024 (2004, the calliope), MAG020 (2009, Father Edwin Burroughs’s pale yellow stole), MAG054 (2013, stopped in front of the Taxidermy shop), possibly MAG083 (2013, taking the ringmaster “mannequin”), MAG035 (July 2016, bringing the Web table and the Web lighter to the Institute for Jon), MAG099 (May 2017, Jon was the (unwilling) package.), Breekon and Hope carried and moved things around, being mostly active for Stranger-related activities.

(MAG128, “Breekon”) Even when the mannequin that now called itself Orsinov came back to us, told us we could help the world Unknow and fear again the coming of Strangers, still we had to drag it with us: an unclaimed package.

* MAG119: during the Unknowing ritual, we heard Daisy as she snapped and tore Hope apart, Breekon then trapped her into the coffin.

(MAG128, “Breekon”) But I suppose it was worth it in the end. When that Hunter killed him, when she took her violence of mindless instinct and unleashed it on us… it was there. It was waiting. I fed her to it.

* MAG128: with Hope dead, Breekon realized he wasn’t tied to the coffin anymore and delivered the coffin to the Institute. Breekon fled, but will probably fade away soon.

- We got some additional information / some confirmation about Nikola’s creation, too:

(MAG097) ARCHIVIST: Who are you? NIKOLA: Well, my father called me Nikola, and then I killed him, so I thought I rather deserved to have his second name too. Which makes me Nikola Orsinov. Pleased to meet you at last. ARCHIVIST: You, um… You killed Gregor Orsinov? NIKOLA: Yep! He got really boring, and I’m a monster. I mean, what do you want me to do – not pull him apart? I did use all the bits.

(MAG102) ELIAS: […] There is also one, the “Danseuse Étoile”, that requires a costume of special power or distinction. Gertrude believed that Orsinov and his circus created a dancer specifically for this role. ARCHIVIST: I–I’ve met it. Calls itself Nikola.

(MAG119) ARCHIVIST: Yes… Yes, I s… I see the sad clown, b–bitter and hateful. I see him finding his way into a ci–circus where nobody knew him. I see him torn apart, becoming the mask, remade by a… a cruel ringmaster. Sometimes a doll, sometimes a mannequin, always hiding in somebody else’s skin. Somebody else’s name. NIKOLA: Not always, and it’s far too late for any of that. Nothing you see can help you.

(MAG128, Breekon) We didn’t like the puppet, when Orsinov began to carve it. It seemed wrong to us to try and bring one like us about; to create or remake it in such a solid, static shape. We were wrong, of course. When Orsinov carved into the thing that had once called itself Grimaldi, and fed the pieces they didn’t need to the shuddering organist, even we found ourselves impressed. And when the faceless puppet peeled its creator and moved itself with their tendon strings, he looked at me… and laughed… and laughed… We followed her a while, but she was unpredictable, while we are things of point and purpose. When she lost the ancient skin, we went our separate ways and found ourselves a lorry, long and dirty grey.

I had assumed that “Nikola” was the Hellish Lovechild of Gregor Orsinov (the ringmaster) and Nikolai Denikin (the organist), but it sounds like Denikin did Not Have A Great Time in that process after all, oopsie – we knew, according to Gertrude, that he had left the circus by the 70s (MAG044), so it might have been precisely because of what was done to him during Nikola’s creation. I wonder if he fathered his child before or after he was fed Grimaldi’s pieces, though? Because if so… is Leanne (statement-giver from MAG024), his granddaughter, kind of part-monster?

- With the chronology given through the courriers’ point of view, Breekon’s mention that he felt itself fading, and Jon’s following comment:

(MAG128) BASIRA: And there’s no chance more of the Circus survived the explosion? ARCHIVIST: I don’t think so. At, at least… Breekon didn’t think so.

… it sounds like Breekon’s statement served mostly to close The Stranger’s chapter. It feels… very weird, in a way. The Stranger had been the most prevalent of the entities since the beginning of the series: it opened it (MAG001), it was the invisible enemy through season 2, it was the shared target through season 3. It took Sasha. It took Tim. And now, the close future doesn’t sound much brighter: there are still books, monsters and avatars roaming out there, there is still the New Unidentified Menace, there is still the possibility of The Watcher’s Crown, there is still The Web weaving Her/its plans. The only satisfaction is that The Stranger’s ceremony won’t be a concern again for a few centuries, but there are still so many other threats to deal with…

- I’m also so fond of the way… things in Magnus tend to be hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time? That statement went full-on burlesque, twisting the deep-rooted complementarity and love into grotesque, and then bam, the conclusion just felt… sad? Tragic?

(MAG128, “Breekon”) They knew this and feared us in kind, and we drank it down, the taste of it sweeter than the food that now rotted on our plates or the drink that curdled in our cups. And we both tasted it together. When we left our destination, the mule whining at the new weight behind it, he would reach behind us and find a face, sagging, sloughing off its skull, and would pull it to him. He’d place it over the one he wore already, and he would laugh, and laugh, and laugh. Sometimes it fell off. Sometimes it stayed for weeks. I kept the face we chose, but I loved him for our levity, and the corpses piled ever higher. […] We knew she wouldn’t scream as she was hollowed out and drunk, but still he thought best to cover the sounds with a laugh. He was always our humour. […] And when the faceless puppet peeled its creator and moved itself with their tendon strings, he looked at me… and laughed… and laughed…

[…] She took him from me. Made us a me, and she doesn’t get to die for that. […] I am without him, now. I. am. I can feel myself fading. […] I have never known hate before. I have never known loss. But now, they are with me always, and I desire nothing but to share them with you.

ROMANCE!! IS!! NOT!! DEAD!!

- I’m very serious about how WOW did Breekon and Hope sound like soulmates, in a romantic or queerplatonic way. That “I remember our first automobile” too, felt like an old couple taking a look back on their whole life together. “Things” pretending to be “humans” and at the same time… demonstrating genuine emotions? And the whole use of pronouns! Breekon was avoiding them in his first sentences – sometimes avoiding to say I because he couldn’t say “we” anymore! Sentences being short and segmented, as if waiting for Hope to complete with the next part!

(MAG128) BREEKON: [HUFFS] Yeah. Just like when we… when I… fed the copper to the pit. […] In here. Realized that I’m not tied… to it anymore. Not on my own. Thought you could have it. Pay your respects, lik– […] Dunno. ‘t’s not right… on my own… not right… No point in doing it on my own. Don’t know what happens now… Thought I might kill you. Missed my chance. Thought I might just… deliver something. So here’s a coffin. [RATTLING SOUND] In case you want… to join your friend.

And in the statement, too: Hope was The “He” for Breekon, while humans tended to be “they”, even when identified as male/female (only exception being the old woman taken by The Web). Nikola was a “she”.

That’s… very fair, considering how Jon and others tend to use “it” for monsters: Jon began the episode by calling Breekon a “he”, and then switched after the statement (“I, I saw that… thing’s mind, i–it’s lost on its own. No partner, no… purpose, I… I honestly think it just wanted to do another delivery.” Rude, Jon, rude!!! Especially since the monsters just proved themselves to have feelings :w)

I never thought I would grow sad for effing Breekon and Hope, godsdamnit!

- Since MAG127 already mentioned Millbank and its possible ties to the Institute (through Jonah Magnus), and Breekon also consecutively mentioned both here, it sounds more and more likely that we’ll dig a bit into that part of history later:

(MAG128, “Breekon”) Poor wretches who emerged from Millbank, with tales of Australia and its cruelty on their lips, bundled into the cramped and creaking ship that would drag them away from everything they loved – and towards everything they feared. That was the first time we saw what would become this place, The Eye’s Pedestal. But we were drunk on the dawning horror of transportation and took no heed of it.

It’s… curious how Beholding has been grounded in the same place for so long? It seems to be the only entity to have become sedentary like this – Elias even mentioned that “Should I, or the Institute, be destroyed, you will all, unfortunately, follow suit.” (MAG092). That made it practical to feed The Eye (with people giving statements to an identified place), and now a danger since other entities know where The Eye’s people reside. Given how the place sounds so important, is The Watcher’s Crown supposed to take place right there? Though we don’t know how long the Usher Foundation in Washington DC and the Pu Songling Research Centre in Beijing have been around and whether they have the same status and history as the Magnus Institute (there wasn’t any mention of Archivists being tied to them, though; Xiaoling even explained how she had suggested someone from her centre for Elias…)

(I don’t know if the word “pedestal” was used on purpose here but… etymological root has to do with a foot. Elias had also said that “Basira is now tied to the Institute. All of you are. Like fingers on a hand. And I am the beating heart of it.” We’re completing the anatomy analogy?)

- Overall: HOLYYY MEEWWWWW, even though I’ve relistened to the episode multiple times by now, I just get chills every time when Jon… freezes the scene. The sound effects were so good, too!! Regular static, encasing that high-pitched buzz… and I loved the echo so much when Jon gave orders We’re so used to Jon getting slapped around that this sudden moment of control and authority was!!! The fact he sounded more offensive, aggressively protective!!

Even at the beginning of the episode, the fact that Jon was in charge of the situation was audible, since there were some shared elements with Nikola’s debut:

(MAG097) ARCHIVIST: [SHARP INTAKE OF BREATH FROM THE ARCHIVIST] NIKOLA: You don’t want to do thaaat~ [FOOTSTEPS] I mean, you can if you really want to, but you’re not going to like it. Sometimes not being able to see something is actually quite a good thing. […] Don’t turn on the light.

(MAG128) BREEKON: Don’t say a word. [SILENCE] BASIRA: [LONG EXHALE] [DOOR OPENS] BASIRA: Jon. Don’t turn on the light. Go get Melanie. Quickly. ARCHIVIST: It’s alright Basira, I know he’s here. BASIRA: So what are you doing? ARCHIVIST: I imagine he’s here to deliver something. Thought it might need signing for.

Light off, a Stranger who sneaked their way into Georgie’s house/the Archives. With Nikola, Jon was startled, stuttering, afraid, toyed with, dominated; with Breekon, Jon… managed. Stayed put. Snarked and used his powers. Stopped Basira and Breekon when they were on the verge of fighting. Neutralized Breekon.

(Though I think that Breekon might have punched/tackled Jon on the ground when he fled, and Jon collapsed right after reading the statement aloud so, eh, Order Is Restored in the world. Jon also still a punching bag.)

- Aaaaand in-universe, it was awful, thanks!!! So, Jon finally used compulsion again. He’d really held back until now, and mostly used it when Breekon was refusing to answer Basira’s own questions:

(MAG128) BASIRA: Is he here for revenge? ARCHIVIST: I don’t, I don’t know. Ask him. BASIRA: Like he’s going to answer me. ARCHIVIST: Fine. [INHALE] [STATIC–] Are you here for revenge? [/STATIC] […] BASIRA: What do you want? Why are you here? [SILENCE] ARCHIVIST: [SIGHS] [STATIC–] Why are you here? [/STATIC]

That was a lot of compulsion, but expected from an interrogation, and mostly to back Basira up. Jon also knew that Breekon was there – probably from another ~insight~. The new thing was how… Jon then proceeded to very naturally use a brand new power? Not 100% sure whether he was driven by a will to prevent harm to Basira (she was ready to fight Breekon) or by a desire to know Breekon’s story, or a mix of both, so intentions are not absolutely clear. The process, however, was worrisome in the mere concept of EXTRACTING a statement out of someone; the fact that Breekon clearly didn’t want it, told Jon to stop and was suffering from it… made it absolutely horrifying.

(MAG128) ARCHIVIST: Stop. [HIGH-PITCHED BUZZING SOUND OVER STATIC–] BREEKON: What’re you doing? BASIRA: … Jon…? What are you doing? BREEKON: What’re you– Stop it… Stop it! ARCHIVIST: [ECHOING] No. BREEKON: [STRUGGLING, BUZZING INCREASES] Enough! Stop… looking at me!

(And I’m not sure that Jon didn’t actually contribute in Breekon’s feeling that he was “fading”: Jon got to know the unknown. I doubt that it can do any good to an agent from The Stranger – it seems like hurting their nature.)

+ Bonus point for Jon possibly developing night vision, since the whole scene took place in the dark (Basira told him to not turn on the light, and we didn’t hear the clicking of any switch). Though Basira also managed, so maybe Jon didn’t need to see.

(He looked at Breekon, however: did it feel like the whole weight of Beholding, like Jon experienced in his nightmares?)

- Basira had just summarised Jon’s powers last episode (MAG127: “So. You can’t be killed by a collapsing building. Major injuries scar up fast. You can force the truth out of people and knowledge pops into your head whenever you need it.”) and we’re already adding one more to the list – and it turns out to be that Jon can extract the story of an unwilling person out of them. It might have been in order to protect Basira here, but it also feels like the slope from one thing to the next could be so, so slippery… (from there to using his powers against a monster that wasn’t directly harming them, because they need its information; to using his powers against… anyone, really, as long as it’s protecting the assistants, even against people who never wished harm to them). Just this would make it understandable that Basira refuses to trust Jon or to get too close to him, since he’s proving that he’s developing, and fast, and that she can’t know what he will (become able to) do.

… At the same time, Jon would definitely need anchors and moral compasses around. (Martin, while you’re busy and involved into Peter’s schemes, and maybe truly fighting an actual threat, Jon is turning into another one ;;)

- Added horrifying bonus: it… sounded a bit like the “statement never given” that Elias did to Daisy? There was static when he gave it:

(MAG082) ELIAS: Here’s what’s going to happen. I’m going to make a statement. Your statement. […] Statement of Alice Tonner, regarding the crimes and death of Calvin Benchley. Statement never given. […] Everyone calls me Daisy. I like that because it sounds so gentle, and I’m the only one left who knows about the scar on my back.

Jon’s and Elias’s powers had sounded very distinct until now, but some bits are making them sound more similar, this season? Thinking about MAG102 again, I remember the sudden burst of static just before Elias mentioned that Melanie was coming up with a knife: had he seen that, or had he known about it (like Jon’s insight, same burst of static), since I doubt that Melanie’s knife was in clear sight in the corridors leading to his office?

(It wasn’t the same thing as what Elias did to Melanie in MAG106 and Martin in MAG118, since Elias didn’t present those as statements and used the third person, and, overall, the whole concept of it felt different: it wasn’t about extracting their stories, but about carving information they didn’t yet know in their brains. Putting in knowledge that wasn’t there. Will Jon become able to do that too eventually/soon…?)

- MMMMMMMMMMM

(MAG127) ELIAS: Possibly. Then again: you are beset by enemies on all sides, Basira. And unless you expect Jon to record them into submission, it would seem you’re in rather dire need of another option.

DID YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT NEW POWER, YOU AWFUL MAN :| (Since Jon “extracted a statement out of them into submission” and it was recorded.)

It also sounds less and less likely that Elias’s reasons to not be face-to-face with Jon are truly about ~*Jon’s own good (according to Elias)*~, uh.

(MAG128) BASIRA: […] So you won’t see him, but you’re happy for him to hear our conversations. ELIAS: He can listen all he wants, but he’s at a very delicate stage right now, and I… fear my presence would be a… a distraction. I’ve made it clear my cooperation’s contingent on his not seeing me, and my terms have been accepted thus far.

YEAH L-O-L ELIAS. Are you actually fearing that not only Jon could compulse the heck out of you now, but also pull out your own fucking statement out of you without you having a say in that. Hilariously (/horrifyingly), is the fact that Elias was thrown in jail… actually protecting him from Jon?

(I’m not saying that Elias wouldn’t be into Jon forcefully extracting his statement out of him. He was really into getting compulsed, even while fighting off the effect of it. But it would mean that Jon forcing information out of him probably wouldn’t be serving his plans right now, which means… he indeed Has Plans and things he wants to hide.)

- At least, Jon’s new power sounds like it’s taking its toll on him, which I’m taking as a good thing (since it will force him to be cautious about that, the sheer immorality and violence and cruelty of the power in itself notwithstanding):

(MAG128) ARCHIVIST: Statement… ends. [RUFFLING OF CLOTHES ENDING WITH A THUD AS PROTAGONIST, WHO DEMONSTRATED A FAIRLY SURPRISING AMOUNT OF USEFULNESS THIS EPISODE, PROCEEDS TO SLIDE OFF CHAIR AND PASS THE FUCK OUT.]

I’ve laughed too many times on that stupid moment, I have no excuse for feeling like it’s Comedy Gold, but. But. Listen. It’s so… so Jon.

Another reason for Jon’s tiredness could also be due to the amount of statements he’s been handling lately. He has had periods like this: the end of season 2 was… pretty intense, only three weeks from MAG071 to MAG080. Right now, less than twenty days have passed from MAG121 (15th February 2018) to MAG128 (3rd March 2018). Assuming that MAG122 also took place on February 15th, 2018: MAG122: February 15th MAG123: February 17th (“Two days out of a coma, and I’m already tired.”) MAG124: February 24th (“It’s been a week and… Melanie’s attitude towards me hasn’t softened.”) MAG125: ? MAG126: ? MAG127: ? MAG128: 3rd March That means that since MAG124, Jon has been reading a statement about every other day (and at least once two days in a row). The current rhythm feels very close to the streak from MAG091 to MAG094, April 28th and 29th, which resulted in Jon giving up at the end of MAG094 and blaming it on the amount of statements (“Are you alright? You look like you’re about to keel over.” “Uh, no, I– I just… Ther– There’s been a lot of statements, in not a lot of time. I’m… I’m exhausted.”)

The average rhythm was around once a week usually, I don’t know if this means that Jon has been exhausting himself lately (to be fair, he doesn’t have a whole lot to do, since nobody wants to talk to him and he’s unable to do satisfying follow-ups) or that he feels withdrawal faster than before… and/or, in any case, if he’s just “obeying” the tape recorders when he sees one running.

- I feel Basira’s distrust very deeply, since… since Jon chose to write Breekon’s statement before recording it.

(MAG128) ARCHIVIST: It’s fine…! [/STATIC] Get me a pen… please. [CLICK.]

[…] ARCHIVIST: Basira, we, we can’t– BASIRA: Yeah, I can read.

It’s not a given at all. Why did Jon decide to write it down, when he probably could have just recorded it right away?

I’m obsessed with this but: I can’t help but think that it might be related to Jon’s dreams – did he assume that recording right away would have made it count as a live-statement and that he would be “given” another dream, Breekon’s?

Assuming that Jon still sleeps. But at least, we know he can pass out! And he still drinks. He had asked for water back in MAG122, and Basira brought him another glass in MAG128 according to the sound.

(MAG122) BASIRA: […] Anything else? ARCHIVIST: Water. Please. BASIRA: Sure thing. [OPENS DOOR] ARCHIVIST: … Oh, or a cup of t– BASIRA: [CLOSES DOOR]

(MAG128) BASIRA: Here. [GLASS CLINKING] ARCHIVIST: Thank you.

- Now that we’ve had confirmation that Daisy is actually alive, reminder that:

(MAG120) ELIAS: […] All through it, the shadow is above him; the shape that gazes down upon him, bloodshot and unblinking. The rain is still there, though it is empty; the long and desolate road, slick with the downpour, a police car’s lights flashing over the unmoving van. The doors are open and the two familiar statues stand either side of the well-worn wooden box. He looks around, his eyes scanning this forever road and the clouds of iron grey, looking for her – but she is not there. The Archivist expects, he hopes, to find the violence in her looking back at him, hungry for pursuit and murder. But the emptiness of the place is complete, the only sounds the gentle singing of the box, and the pounding, bitter rain. He knows the writing on the coffin has changed, though is still carved into the splintered wood: [STATIC INTENSIFIES] “I am for you.” He knows it is not addressed to him, but he reaches down and pulls the chains off all the same. It opens, and he walks slowly down the steps into the earth; but even as it closes above him, the great shadow still Sees him. There is nowhere in this universe that it would not blot out the sky.

We don’t know what is supposed to happen if a live statement giver dies. Daisy’s case, though, was already an oddity, since her dream was still there – without her. Breekon did imply that The Eye couldn’t access the coffin when mentioning “John”:

(MAG128, “Breekon”) It was one like us that found it. A thing of shifting names and déjà-vu. A fool, that believed because it found a coffin in chains, it would be an easy thing to control, to bargain with. But there was no remorse when the test finally failed and it fed on the thing that considered itself the master. No face to Change in the cold, dark earth, and no Eye to fool, where it is now.

So although The Eye is all-powerful in Jon’s dreams, the coffin seems to be out of its reach in our world. Is that an overall property from The Buried, or specific to the coffin? I wonder if Leitner’s pamphlet, A Disappearance, is actually a Buried book too? (My suspicion had been The Spiral until now.)

(MAG080) LEITNER: Hardly a book. Barely twelve pages. It is entitled A Disappearance. If read cover to cover it removes one from the world. I cannot say precisely what that means, only that the assistant I assigned to it, Jacob Feng, was never seen again. I have found, however, that reading only one or two words is sufficient to hide me from the prying eyes of your master. It allowed me to talk with Gertrude in relative safety, and occasionally come above ground for my own ends.

(We… don’t know the status of that one, by the way, since Leitner had it close with him when Elias butchered him. So Elias probably got his hands on it.)

Overall: Jon still hasn’t mentioned anything about his dreams so far, while telling Basira that she could trust him and sounding very transparent and honest… I’m still not sure if Basira is suspicious of Jon having an active part in the dreams she used to have before becoming an assistant (and that Daisy still had as of MAG112, since she wasn’t an assistant), but if she is: that’s another reason to be wary of Jon. She would know there is something else that he’s not telling her anything about. What do you know/remember about your dreams, Jon…

- YOU KNOW WHO CAN FIND PEOPLE/THINGS THAT ARE “CONCEALED” THOUGH? THINGS THAT THE EYE CAN’T REACH?

(MAG101) “MICHAEL”: The Eye watches, and the Stranger conceals, but me… I lie, Archivist. I am the throat of delusion incarnate. They can’t hide you from me.

Jon! Jon!!! Could “Helen” help to reach the inside of the coffin…? (Really not sure about it, since it was about The Stranger, not The Buried, but then… Breekon was able to tell that people didn’t die inside of the coffin. How could it know? There might be ways to know/feel what is alive down there…)

- Basira time because Holy Mew did I get feelings all over.

(MAG128) [CLICK–] [SILENCE] [MOVEMENT, CHAIR RATTLING] BREEKON: Don’t say a word. [SILENCE] BASIRA: [LONG EXHALE] [DOOR OPENS] BASIRA: Jon. Don’t turn on the light. Go get Melanie. Quickly.

BASIRA, gdi!!! The fact that she was still level-headed enough to give instructions right away while threatened!! (I wonder if she told Jon to get Melanie to protect her, or if she thought that Melanie could still… be well enough to act as their fighter again, even when not under The Slaughter’s influence and recovering?)

And SSSSSSSSHHHHH you felt the shift when Breekon alluded to Daisy; Jon needed to act with her like she had acted with Daisy in the past, that really meant that she was ready to snap hard.

(MAG092) DAISY: Bouchard. BASIRA: Easy.

(MAG128) BREEKON: Yeah. Just like when we… when I… fed the copper to the pit. BASIRA: [ANGRY INHALE] ARCHIVIST: Easy, Basira. BASIRA: [EXHALE]

(And towards the end, was ready to FIGHT BREEKON…….)

(MAG128) BREEKON: In here. [KNOCKS ON SOMETHING] Realized that I’m not tied… to it anymore. Not on my own. Thought you could have it. Pay your respects, lik– BASIRA: Daisy’s in there.

Her voice and my heart broke at the same time with her “Daisy’s in there” AOUCH AOUCH AOUCH…

I’m still so fond of the way Basira is able to assess things very quickly and efficiently… and for once, she tipped over and lost her cool. Breekon made her crack, and holy Arceus, the fact that it was about Daisy…………….. hhh.

- Given how Basira announced that she would leave right after Jon stated that the coffin was from The Buried…

(MAG127) ELIAS: I might have an idea, yes. BASIRA: And what does it cost? ELIAS: Just some of your time, Basira. Just your time. BASIRA: … [SIGHS] Okay. Let’s hear it. [CLICK.]

(MAG128) BASIRA: Where does the coffin lead? ARCHIVIST: … The Buried. BASIRA: Right. [SILENCE] [INHALES] Right. Keep it safe, I’ll be gone a few days. I have some leads I need to follow up. ARCHIVIST: Sorry…?! BASIRA: You heard me.

I’m suspecting that Elias might have told her something cryptic and Buried-related, and that Basira pieced it together at that moment? What Elias told her could have been totally unrelated but it feels like an odd coincidence (especially since Jon had just proven that he could use his powers to neutralize enemies after all) and… going back to MAG120:

(MAG120) ELIAS: Hello, inspector. Martin. I’m… sorry to hear about Tim. MARTIN: Don’t. ELIAS: And Daisy, I suppose. MARTIN: Don’t. you. dare.

It sounded, back then, like the usual joke of belatedly remembering Daisy’s existence. But it could have also been Elias knowing that she wasn’t dead like Tim.

- I’m worried about what Elias told her, though, and what Basira will have to do ;; Assuming it’s all to bring back Daisy: is she supposed to go fetch an item that could help? Or someone: a Buried avatar? A Vast avatar (as they’re opposed): Simon Fairchild, since Jon doesn’t want to meet him? (He’s probably deaaaad but ;; can’t help but think about Jan Kilbride? He “disappeared” after going back to Earth but we know that he was still around in February 2008, when he gave his statement (MAG106), and probably June 2008, where he was implied to be with Gertrude when she went to stop The Buried ritual in America (MAG097). Probably died countering the ritual, but if he survived… he has already fought against The Buried, had met Gertrude, had collaborated with her to stop an apocalypse. Could be an interesting option. Though, once again: is probably long dead.)

… or is Basira supposed to ultimately take Daisy’s place in the coffin…

And I’m so worried over the fact that it… doesn’t seem like she told Jon anything about her meeting with Elias? Though Elias had told her that he didn’t mind Jon hearing their conversations (so she’s not coerced into hiding information, it’s her own decision)? It’s also unclear if she’s given the tapes to Jon, but we’ll see if Jon mentions them while she’s away – or… not at all. Jon will complain about Elias if he’s hearing anything from him.

- ;; We got Basira’s own summary of the events following The Unknowing and… indeed, her point of view clears up a lot of why she’s been so cautious and distrusting. Her previous situation was strongly tied to Daisy’s, and based on the assumption that she could more or less trust the others (though she wasn’t very confident in Tim and Jon’s abilities to fight):

(MAG0117) BASIRA: […] I don't want to be here. But by the end, I didn’t want to be police either, so… guess I don’t really know what I do want, which… maybe that’s just as well. My options… they’ve gotten a lot narrower over the last year. I don’t know. I feel kind of bad. Everyone seems to be having a much worse time of it than me, and I was meant to be the hostage. It’s amazing, how much you can ignore when you keep your head in a book.

Basira had been involved in the Institute against her will (MAG092); it has never been a place she chose. But in order to get out of The Unknowing, she couldn’t rely on anyone. She managed on her own, and since then: Daisy was officially dead, Tim was dead, Jon was in a coma. The only remaining people were Melanie (who had been unstable since then, while infected) and Martin:

(MAG128) ARCHIVIST: […] You can trust me, Basira– BASIRA: Stop saying that. [SILENCE] Do you know how I survived the… The Unknowing? ARCHIVIST: I… No. No, I don’t. BASIRA: No powers, no… magic or… help. I was trapped in that place, and so I tried to figure it out. And I did. A little. So I kept doing it. I kept going through until I got out. I… reasoned my way out of that nightmare. ARCHIVIST: Good lord… BASIRA: Then everything ended, and Daisy was gone. And you were gone. And Tim. And then I got back to the Institute, and Martin sent me to meet the new boss. Then I stood alone in an empty office for more than one hour. I can trust me, Jon. That’s it. ARCHIVIST: [SIGHS]

It officially answers why Basira said that she had never met Peter Lukas in MGA123 (“Never seen him. As far as I can tell, Martin’s the only one who has.”) despite the fact that Peter had asked Martin to bring Melanie and Basira to his office in MAG120 (“Well, if you could send Melanie and Basira up to see me, I’d like to introduce myself.”). I get the impression that Martin’s behaviour really was what convinced her to not trust easily? She… hasn’t been mean towards him since the beginning of season 4, actually defended him, acknowledged that he has had a difficult situation, but at the same time… I wonder if she isn’t having the same suspicions as I am: that Martin and Peter are one and the same, or that Peter is rooted in Martin, without Martin being aware of it? And the conclusion would be that just because someone is genuine and wishes you no harm doesn’t mean that they can’t actually be a threat to you. Hence her wariness towards Jon, even though he insists that they’re on the same side.

(Ironically, it’s… a bit like Tim’s reasoning in season 3: when he got back on his feet and driven by his desire to avenge Danny’s death by destroying the Circus, he also began to avoid everyone since he couldn’t be sure that they weren’t something like the Not!Them or plainly didn’t know them, and he decided to only rely on himself. We know how that ended for Tim; that doesn’t bode well for Basira… ;;)

- Basira used to like Jon’s sense of humour and… it’s not the case anymore, uh.

(MAG088) BASIRA: I just, I mean he was good company. Y’know, when he wasn’t being a paranoia machine. He was funny, you know? MARTIN: What, Jon? BASIRA: Yeah. MARTIN: I don’t think I’ve ever heard him tell a joke. BASIRA: Maybe you weren’t listening.

(MAG123) ARCHIVIST: […] So: we’re under siege; Melanie is aggressively unstable; Martin is working very closely with The Lonely, who is, predictably enough, isolating him; and, oh, yes, Tim and Daisy are still dead. Which is at least easy to keep track of! BASIRA: That isn’t funny, Jon. ARCHIVIST: I know it’s not–! … Sorry. It’s just… it’s a lot.

(MAG128) BASIRA: And don’t open the coffin. ARCHIVIST: [HUMOROUS EXHALE] It is addressed to me! [SILENCE] … Yes, alright. … Alright.

I COULD JUST FEEL BASIRA’S GLARE IN THESE LAST SECONDS. Jon relenting and changing his tone was so beautiful.

Too bad for Jon he mentally scarred the only person who was still finding him entertaining:

(MAG128) BREEKON: … That’s ‘s name? Then sure. ‘t’s in there. Whatever’s left. Find out if you like. ARCHIVIST: Would you please drop that ridiculous voice?! BREEKON: [DIFFERENT ACCENT] Apologies. Is preferred like so? ARCHIVIST: Christ, that’s worse… BREEKON: [CHUCKLES] ARCHIVIST: [STATIC–] What is your real voice? [/STATIC] BREEKON: [CHUCKLES] Nikola said you were funny. Didn’t believe it.

Jon, why do you do this to the people who at least appreciated one (1) thing about you.

(I’m still rolling on the floor about how, while a MONSTER had SNUCK INSIDE the Archives, and was partially THREATENING THEM, and had proven in the past that it could WRECK YOU in a fight, and had even PUNCHED JON HIMSELF before throwing him in its van back in MAG099… Jon’s priorities involved getting irritated about its fake accent. Jon. Joooooooooon. You’re especially funny when you’re not even trying.)

- At the same time, Basira didn’t absolutely cut Jon out entirely. She’s still probing him with questions, still waiting for him to share his discoveries. She brought him water. And… the fact that she’s leaving the Institute for a while incidentally puts Melanie and the coffin in Jon’s care – that’s… actually… a form of trust, in a way? I wonder if she might be, despite it all, trying to test whether she can trust Jon on some matters.

(MAG128) BASIRA: You heard me. Don’t ask about [my leads], and don’t know about them either. ARCHIVIST: I can’t exactly control that! BASIRA: Learn. ARCHIVIST: … [SIGHS] I’ll do my best. […] BASIRA: I’ll try and be back in a week or two. Don’t think about me. ARCHIVIST: Right.

^Could be a way to check if Jon can prevent himself from spookily knowing or trying to investigate? Forcing himself to find a way to refrain it even if he has no idea about how at the moment? (Basira is absolutely the reverse of an enabler, which… makes sense, since she keeps finding new ways to get herself out. She managed to survive The Dark. She was the only one who managed to find her way out of The Unknowing, by herself. At the same time, what she told Jon is… easier said than done. But indeed: it’s that, or enabling and probably accelerating Jon’s downfall.)

(- At the same tiiiime, re:Martin, maybe it would be Very Too Much Hopeful, but. But.

(MAG128, “Breekon”) […] The Spider’s always an easy job – no fuss, no complication, everything planned and prepared. It knows too much to truly be a Stranger, but hides its knowing well enough to injure.

YES, it sounds awfully like The Web and what it’s probably doing right now with Jon/the Institute. But I also thought about Martin, here, and I can’t shake the idea now: it’s clear that Martin is wary of Peter and he explicitly said he didn’t like to be manipulated – he’s not oblivious to what Peter is doing, though… he’s also been opening himself a lot more than feels necessary (Peter knows how to push Martin’s buttons and to persuade him). But what if it’s actually more about Martin trying to manipulate him – Martin showing some parts of him only to get closer, pretending to be vulnerable, trying to establish how Peter operates and what his weaknesses are, for when Martin would have accumulated enough knowledge to take care of the new threat? I mean, Martin took down the previous Head of the Institute through dissimulating and deceiving. He’s done it before. He could do it again.) (/ realistically: yes, it’s me trying to still hold on to the possibility of Web!Martin, sssssh >> I… was so fond… of the aesthetic of Martin being in control, albeit awkwardly…)

- Breekon breached into the Institute and mentioned that he’s felt “loss” since Hope’s death. So. You can’t convince me that Peter Lukas, Agent Of The Lonely, didn’t know that he had entered the Institute. And yet, he didn’t help, didn’t do anything at all.

He had mentioned that Elias was “very protective of his people” (MAG100), which wasn’t super-reassuring regarding how Peter himself takes care of his people, even less for people that are not even his, but… we still don’t know why Elias chose him as an interim director (… if he indeed did), and after The Flesh attack and now Breekon, it seems less and less likely that it was to protect the Archives or Jon himself. So: why was he chosen? What is he supposed to do?

- It sounds like what Peter had hinted at the end of season 3 worked exactly how we could fear – “giving everyone some space”, from a Lonely agent, sounded… very bad and worrisome. And indeed, they drifted apart:

(MAG120) PETER: […] After that, I’ll put through a couple of weeks of paid leave for you all. I think giving everyone some space, to try and deal with the loss of… Tim and… Daisy, might do everyone some good.

Hey!! Peter and Elias, so far, totally succeeded in shattering the Archives team. They’re not even able to collaborate on a common project like they did in season 3 (trying to stop The Unknowing, getting Elias into jail). Martin has been persuaded that his “isolation” will help to fight the New Threat; Basira is adamantly choosing to not trust Jon; Melanie has been refusing to talk to Jon so far. Jon has been successfully isolated, too. Was it the point, or one of the points, of what Elias and Peter did overall…?

- Jon, please, don’t say anything ever unless you’re being pessimistic/negative, since:

(MAG123) ARCHIVIST: […] and, oh, yes, Tim and Daisy are still dead. Which is at least easy to keep track of!

Daisy is not dead anymore! You were wrong again and things did get more complicated! Rejoice!

… Although Daisy is probably having it worse than death and has been for the past seven months; it could be that they’ll manage to get her out of the coffin only to have to mercy-kill her shortly after. Or will she have to make the same kind of choice that Jon did in MAG121? Like Jon, she’s in a place The End can’t reach:

(MAG121) OLIVER: […] The thing is, Jon, right now, you have a choice. You’ve put it off for a long time; but it’s trapping you here. You’re not quite human enough to die, but – still too human to survive. You’re… balanced on an edge where The End can’t touch you – but you can’t escape him. I made a choice. We all made choices […].

I would really like to see Daisy back and functional; the fact that she was Basira’s anchor makes me fear that ahaha nop, would be too hopeful (and she snapped during The Unknowing...), but I loved the familiarity they shared with Basira… And I loved Daisy and Jon’s weird little friendship, gosh!!

(MAG096) ARCHIVIST: So, what? Now you sell dead animals? What is this place? SARAH: The Trophy Room. A taxidermist shop in Barnet – it says above the door. Surprised to meet an Archivist who can’t read. ARCHIVIST: No, I– DAISY: [LAUGHS] Nice! […] DAISY: Come on. Before the Met get here. ARCHIVIST: Whatever you say~ DAISY: And wipe that grin off your face.

- In the meantime: how much will it sting, for Jon, to… keep watch over the coffin, knowing that Daisy is inside and that they might ultimately find a way to save her… while Tim is dead-dead and won’t come back, and there is no hope of him coming back ever again. When one glimmer of hope happens, it’s often hard to refrain from thinking that others could follow suit.

- We’re now 1/5th into season 4! And even if Jon feels ~static~, we’ve technically learned quite a lot? In the six months following the Unknowing, not strictly chronologically: Elias stayed in prison; Peter Lukas “managed” the Institute without revealing himself to anyone except Martin, only sending emails and memos; some researchers disappeared after ignoring his orders; Martin’s mother died; Melanie’s frenzy worsened; Basira tried to keep things afloat; other Fears have been targeting the Institute to prevent The Eye from completing its ritual in this cycle; the Flesh attacked the Archives and was defeated thanks to Melanie; Melanie & Basira have begun to live in the Institute; Martin visited Jon in the hospital, begging him to wake up and help, and given the lack of answer, accepted to work with someone (most likely Peter) with the promise that the others would be “safe”, and has indeed been working with Peter Lukas since then, getting more and more estranged from Basira and Melanie.

Since MAG121: The Dreamer, Oliver, revealed that he had turned into an avatar of The End. Jon ~made his choice~ and woke up. Georgie decided to stop taking care of Jon. Jon said that he didn’t remember everything about the Unknowing, learned that Tim and (presumably) Daisy were dead. We learned that The Web might have intertwined itself with the Institute for (at least) the past years, or at least that Annabelle might have intentions regarding the Institute or Jon in particular. Jon has used many powers other than compulsion, at an alarming rate: Knowing things, being directed towards specific statements (and feeling the presence of written ones), forcefully extracting a statement from someone’s brain, being able to See an otherwise undetectable spooky item (Melanie’s bullet). Basira and Jon removed said bullet from Melanie’s leg; Jon got stabbed in the shoulder, healed quickly. Melanie’s anger was confirmed to have been at least partially supernatural and Slaughter-induced, though she is still currently deeply hurt by the whole ordeal. Jon and Martin briefly saw each other, with Martin intentionally avoiding contact: he indeed made a deal with Peter Lukas, they’re working on Adelard Dekker’s suspicions of a new Menace, which requires Martin getting more powerful (and balance “between the two”), hence his “isolation”. Martin has been taking care of the Institute’s admin tasks for Peter, who “can’t stand computers”. We learned what happened to Albrecht von Closen a few years after he had sent his letter to Jonah Magnus: Jonah stole the mausoleum books from Albrecht, who turned out to have had sons by the time he died (his body filled with eyes). Basira visited Elias in prison: Elias gave her a tape recorder that had appeared in his cell, for her to give to Jon, and explained that he doesn’t want Jon to see him. He tipped Basira off about another potential “defender” for the Archives. Breekon brought the coffin to the Institute, confirmed that Daisy is inside and not dead; Jon used a new power on him to prevent him and Basira from fighting, unrolling his backstory. Basira is leaving for (she thinks) about one or two weeks, to follow up on “some leads”, potentially Buried-related, and forbade Jon from trying to Know what she is doing.

Tl;dr It feels a bit like things are dragging on and that not a lot is happening since Jon is back to being sedentary (after moving, going out and travelling a lot in season 3), that we’re waiting together with Jon… but at the same time, the shrouds around some mysteries are becoming a bit clearer, and a lot of elements have felt like they’ve broken the new status quo already. We’re getting a few missing pieces and completing new parts of the puzzle, while we’re advancing towards… something. (It feels a bit to me like the slow initial ascend of a rollercoaster, too: and there is the dread that when things will pick up for real, the velocity and savageness will simply be mind-shattering…?)

- I have a few ideas about Jon’s options but no certainty nor ~insight~ about what he could choose to do right now, since Basira left? Will he wait? Will he keep pushing his powers, trying to get redirected towards a statement that could help them… with the whole situation, or for the coffin? Will he try to actively research on The Buried or The Hunt? Will he try to focus on something else to avoid accidentally prying into Basira’s business: trying to get Martin back, digging a bit more into the Institute’s foundation or Gertrude’s notes again?

Now that Basira has left, though, a discussion with Melanie… might be coming ;; I’m eager and anticipating Pain at the same time, though… She had been aware of a change in her when she was influenced by the bullet (MAG117: “Elias thinks he’s got this ingenious way to hurt people, but it’s just the same old bullshit in a creepy new package. … asshole… God! I just want to rip his…! [BREATHES] When did I… start to lose the parts of me that weren’t just anger…? … Hm.”), so I’m really curious to hear her again, now that she’s been presumably freed from it – with rightful resentment and distrust… but also a clearer mind.

(I wonder if we’ll hear about Georgie again through her ;;)

MAG129’s title has been given on Patreon: statement-wise, I’m suspecting a Buried one (though could also be The Lonely, or The Dark attacking the Archives, maybe). As for the second meaning, I’m flipping a table in fear that it could be about Jon’s metaphorical inner door already – but at the same time… it would feel very early for that. So, hum. Could be about Melanie’s impressions from when she was under the bullet’s influence? Could be about Jon getting emotionally overwhelmed by everything and having a breakdown, without any door opening? … Could be about Martin and Peter again.

#... it is Long.#(especially since my first constructive comment about the episode consisted in replaying on loop jon slipping off his chair)#the magnus archives #tma liveblog #mag128 #friendship ended with basira now breekon is the only one who still thinks i'm entertaining.#tma season 4 #tma spoilers/

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