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#i have concepts both shorter and longer than this
jj-one · 4 days
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HOW JUNGKOOK WOULD TREAT HIS BIMBO GF 🍥
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pairing: established relationship, bf!Jungkook x bimbo!fem!reader
genre/tags: smut, fluff, angst, dumbification, degradation, praise kink, breeding kink, piv, unprotected sex, an*l, oral (m receiving), t*tty f*cking, drooling, use of the word daddy (only once)
**old repost from my deleted blog (05/24/23)
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- Having a drop dead gorgeous girlfriend was a given for Jungkook, he loved the fact that y’all were both smoking hot and turn heads everywhere you go
- The stark contrast between your appearances drove him insane
- His aesthetic was more dark and mystique, is also heavily tattooed while you always wore pink and pastels, having bare skin
- Is so enamored with the idea of you being the total opposite of him, he always feels like he’s corrupting your sweet innocence
- Kinda treats you like you’re his eye candy anywhere he goes, has you wrapped up on his arm like it’s a leash
- He’s been debating getting an actual leash for you since you constantly trip and fall whenever you’re out with him
- You were just so ditzy and clumsy… it was your character flaw yet Jungkook saw it as an endearing quality
- Also loved that you were an airhead, clingy, and always wanting his attention ;( makes the joy of him coming home to you all the more thrilling <33
- Always buying you pink and girly thingsss
- Whenever he sees something hello kitty or barbie related he instantly thinks of you and buys it
- CONSTANTLY wants to spoil you, omg this man would spend every dime he could on you just to make you happy
- He looooves taking you out shopping because that’s your favorite activity !!
- He splurged on you the other day, buying you any color of that Dior lip oil that you were obsessed with, it was worth it since he’d be the one taking it off your lips afterwards
- Jungkook enjoys watching you try on skimpy outfits for him, the shorter the skirt the better— don’t get him started on the way your hardened nipples peek out the fabric of your shirts…
- Likes to play dress up with you like you’re his personal doll
- He’ll put you in a pink lace slip dress one night and the next he’ll have you wear white see-through lingerie for him; that is only when you two are in private of course
- Frequently teaches you new things so you keep up to date with current news and other events, he knows you aren’t the brightest but you have a heart of gold and do your best to comprehend everything he tells you !
- When watching movies you often pause to ask questions about the film because you don’t get it
- Jungkook made you watch ‘Inception’ with him one time and it absolutely rotted your brain
- He enjoys explaining the movie to you in a babying way, dumbing it down for you to understand it as your mind is blown away by all the knowledge he drops on you
- Laughs at your inability to comprehend the plot and pats your head while teasing you
- “Awww, you poor little thing…can’t even understand the simple concept of a movie.”
- It really really really turns him on when you wear high heels, the higher the heels the higher the tent in his pants grew
- You wore the sexiest 6-inch stripper heels for him and he fucked you out completely while you had them on, he thinks he might have a heel fetish or something
- Absolutely adores your bright & bubbly personality !! Will praise you any time he hears you say something smart
- “Did you know that Sloths can hold their breath longer than Dolphins???” You would ask him randomly.
- “No I didn’t, but thanks for the fun fact babe. You sound so cute when you talk about things you’ve discovered.”
- “It was on the back of my Snapple cap, how cool is that?! See look!!”
- He will never not be impressed by your lack of awareness, you lived in your own little bubble and he wanted to shield you from all harm and scary things
- Is sooo completely obsessed with your body
- Your bouncy tits, your curvaceous hips, and your cute plump butt was the perfect sight to send the blood rushing to his cock
- Loves. To. Fuck. You. So. Dumb.
- Uses your hole like it’s a fleshlight and loves cumming inside you repeatedly
- Dumping all his cum into your little bimbo cunt was the only thing he needed in his life
- Often catches you drooling at him, when you do this he scoops it up with his finger and puts it back in your mouth
- His favorite part of sex with you is seeing your fucked out face
- The stare you give him while you deepthroat his cock was enough to make him combust
- “Look so pretty with my cock stuffed in your mouth, such a pretty little slut for me..”
- The way he would degrade you but praise you in the same breath confused you in many ways yet you enjoyed every minute of it
- Your makeup would be all smeared, mascara would be runny, the Dior lip gloss he bought you fully transferred to his cock now
- Can never choose between if he likes doggystyle or cowgirl more since both positions he gets to look at your assets with a nice view
- Lots of titty fucking, loves having your big round tits around his cock, making a mess all over your chest once you milk him clean
- He owns all your holes, he likes to use your tight little ass from time to time
- After lubing it up nice and gently, he would go to town on your ass just pounding into your fuck hole viciously
- “What a fucking whore you are, gonna keep fucking your tiny hole until I pump every last bit of my seed in you.”
- Turns him on so fucking much when you start babbling and unable to speak proper sentences
- You’d whimper and hiccup with frustration from the way his cock made you feel
- His love language will always be making you feel so low. So small compared to him that you don’t even feel worthy of his presence at times
- “Can’t stop drooling all over yourself? Already too dumb and fucked out to continue, hmm?? Oh never mind, you’re already dumb…just shut up and take daddy’s cock like the good little slut you are, you were made for taking cock anyway.”
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valeskafics · 3 months
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"Heart Of Fire" - Aemond Targaryen x Red Priestess!Reader
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a/n: @dr3amfyres sent this idea in to me a few days ago and i haven't been able to get it off my mind. it's shorter than i wanted as i wanted to get it posted before new years, so i might revisit this concept for a longer fic later on - but, without further ado, my last fic of 2023 🩷
Summary: The historians had it wrong when they said it was a witch from the Riverlands who was the One Eyed Prince's lover. It was you - a priestess from Asshai who spoke of prophecies and destiny.
TW: profanity, innuendo, she/her pronouns, AFAB reader, p in v sex, idk breeding kink kinda??
Word Count: 1,015 words
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the House of The Dragon/Fire & Blood characters nor do I claim to own them. I do not own any of the images used nor do I claim to own them.
Comments, likes, and reblogs are never required but are immensely appreciated 🩷
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When the historians wrote of Prince Aemond’s lover, they erred in their description. You were not a Rivers, nor were you a witch. You had no connection to the Riverlands or Harrenhal, save for the visions which brought you there in the first place, bathed in flame. Aemond was quite surprised to see a Red Priestess when he arrived to take the cursed castle, his eye going wide when he saw you brought forth alongside the Strongs. He knew you were not one of them. He could tell by the smile gracing your crimson lips, and though he could not see the entirety of your face, hidden by your red hood, he knew you were beautiful.
He approached you after dispatching the last of House Strong, his gloved hand reaching out to tilt your chin up to face him. He was enchanted instantly, through no effort of your own, no bewitchment, no spell. He merely looked upon you and wished to have you for his own. His body ached for you, his heart called to you, feeling as if it was on fire whenever your gaze met his. Aemond declared that you were to be spared. That you were to be treated as an honored guest, the Lady of Asshai. He begged you to teach him about the ways of your god, having been quite curious about your religion well before meeting you. And of course, you taught him.
You taught him the legend of Azhor Ahai, and that it was the reason the Lord brought you to him. That you saw in the flames a vision of a child from his line, wielding Lightbringer, bringing an end to the Long Night. Aemond always knew that he was destined for something great. And to have the most beautiful woman he had ever met confirm it simply cemented the idea in his mind. The Prince That Was Promised would come from his line. Not his whore of a sister, not his drunken wastrel of a brother. His line. He always knew it was he who was best fit to rule, and your words merely confirmed his thoughts.
Your way of speaking was foreign, yet so easily understandable to him, every word falling from your lips intoxicating. The way you spoke to him, with both affection and respect, teaching him everything you knew of your faith… It was no wonder he fell in love with you. And yet, he was angered when you resisted his advances, proclaiming that you were sworn to serve R’hollor, that your loyalty to your god superseded all.
You spoke of the god with the Heart of Fire, but the only flaming heart Aemond cared for was the flame that burned within his own for you. Every sway of your hips, every brush of your shoulders against his, every glance he chanced at the fullness of your breasts beneath your robes. He knew that you were the one meant to bear his child. Honor be damned, this is for the good of the realm, is it not? His descendant, being the one to end the Long Night supersedes his betrothal to Lady Floris. It is you who he intends to take as his wife. The Red Priestess who stole his heart with the barest of glances. With only a crimson smile and some honeyed words in his ears.
When he fell from the sky, as Dark Sister pierced his flesh, his last thought was of you. Of your prophecy being wrong. He sired no children during his life, and now, the Long Night would claim the lives of the entire realm when it came to pass. He closed his remaining eye, falling into the cool waters of the Gods Eye lake, the Stranger’s cold embrace surrounding him.
Except it was not the Stranger whose embrace he woke in. It was yours. Your warm arms, as you spoke the words, asking the Lord of Light to bring him back to this world. He does not know how long you stood by his side, pleading with your god for his life, to bring him back to you. When his eye opens and he gasps for air, yours is the first face he sees, flooded with relief as you throw your arms around him, praising R’hollor for his mercy, for bringing the dragon prince back to the land of the living.
Aemond sits up, staring at you in wonder, his hand moving to cup your cheek. His thumb moves along your lower lip, tracing it as he commits every detail of your face to memory. He has been given a second chance at life, and this time, he refuses to die without letting it be known how he loves you. How he needs you and craves you with every fiber of his being. He crushes his lips to yours, reveling in the taste of red wine on your tongue, pulling you on top of him, his hands squeezing at every inch of flesh he is able to reach, ripping your dress from your body as he admires you.
And you make no movement to resist, straddling his waist, your bodies joining as one, his cock pushing inside you, bullying against your walls as you throw your head back, cupping your breasts with your hands as you bounce yourself up and down on him. He stares up at you, his sapphire gleaming in the candlelight surrounding the two of you, his remaining eye boring into you, as if staring into your very soul. Both of you can feel it, that this moment is destiny. Something bigger than yourselves, than the love you share.
Every thrust of his hips, every moan that falls from your lips brings you closer and closer to your peak until your body collapses against his, utterly spent as he spills himself deep inside you. He holds you close to him, kissing your temple, uttering tender words of love in your ear that no one could ever imagine him capable of.
Only you, the priestess who set his heart on fire.
His Red Lady.
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ghost-proofbaby · 1 year
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twenty four hours (modern!eddie munson x fem!reader)
HOUR TWELVE
in which you grapple with new emotions of nothing, eddie makes a few bad jokes, and honesty becomes an illusion again.
→ tropes: enemies to lovers, forced proximity, slow burn
→ warnings: strong language, smut, upside down does not exist, minors dni
→ wc: 3.8k+
→ a/n: half way point, folks! sorry this one is shorter. blame eddie?
masterlist.
spotify playlist.
◁ previous part, next part▷
12:00 ────────ㅇ───────── 24:00
JOHNNY BOY: No photo, no money, right? 
ARGYLE 😎: learn some patience broski 
JOHNNY BOY: It's been an hour and they aren’t answering. They haven’t said anything. I want my money. 
DINGUS: why the fuck are you guys blowing up the chat right now? someone better be dead. 
ARGYLE 😎: the lovers haven’t sent their hourly update. 
ARGYLE  😎: maybe they are dead. killed each other with passion. 
JOHNNY BOY: So what are we buying with that spare 1k, guys?
BIRDIE: oh fuck please tell me they aren’t dead
BIRDIE: did they seriously kill each other? do i need to facetime them? 
DINGUS: @BIRDIE honestly, for once, you have a good idea. facetime them. i would call but… something tells me i need to back off for a while. 
JOHNNY BOY: I take it you remembered that night at the bar? 
DINGUS: oh fuck off (yes. i did.)
BIRDIE: i’m facetiming them now.
DINGUS: great. i’m going back to bed. 
JOHNNY BOY: I think I’m going to buy a new camera with my cut of the money personally. 
HOUR TWELVE - 3:00 AM
One of you should have moved.
It could have been minutes, hours, decades later. The concept of time is completely lost on you as you focus on the weight of Eddie lying over you. He’s half draped across your back, bare chest sinking into your exposed skin, throwing the brunt of his weight in the sliver of cushion available to him beside you. His softening cock is still inside of you, the warmth of him is encasing you from the inside out. You match each deep inhale of his with your own, exhaling on the same silent beat. An unspoken moment of synchronicity, letting the weight of the decisions just made truly crawl beneath both of your skins. 
I hate you. 
Good, then this changes nothing.
You wondered if he tasted the sour of his lie in the heat of the moment. You wondered if it was just as metallic on his tongue as it had been on your own. 
One of you should have moved. But it takes the realization of your incapability to truly hate Eddie Munson as you should and the twitch of your body that follows to rouse Eddie. 
“Fuck,” he sighs out, finally pulling out, turning to fully fit his body onto the couch rather than on top of you. You dangle a leg and arm over the edge of the sofa, keeping your cheek pressed to rough fabric and your eyes turned from him as you bite your tongue. 
A million words you want to say in the clarity, all lost and slipping between your fingers with time. 
I lied. I don’t hate you. This meant everything. This changes everything. I don’t hate you. 
“Fuck is right,” you settle on murmuring instead. There’s nothing you can say now that can change what’s transpired. It’s over, it’s done with. Rather than staying stuck in the past still in your rearview mirror, you need to focus on the road laid out ahead of you two. 
The two of you lay like that for even longer than you had the previous position, shifting here and there until you both fit comfortably on the lumpy cushions. Side by side, almost spooning, but space left between you. You don’t think Eddie even realizes his hand is grazing soft circles over your thigh, moving on its own accord and sending shivers of comfort down your spine. 
Is the road ahead of you two even paved? 
“What now?” he suddenly asks, breaking the silence you two had been reveling in. You had been in your own head, and you wonder for a moment if he had been as well. You can’t find it in yourself to glance over your shoulder and look at him, to solve the mystery on your own, instead clinging to those grazes of his fingertips still skimming your thigh. 
With an exhausted sigh, you zero in your focus across the room, looking at the clock on the shelves, “I don’t know. It’s already three in the morning, so-”
“Oh, fuck.” 
“What?”
“It’s fucking three,” Eddie is shooting up from behind you quickly, “We never sent a fucking picture.” 
You understand his panic immediate, realization settling as he springs off of the couch, echoing his words with sincerity, “Oh, fuck.” 
In any other scenario, it would have been comical to see a nude Eddie panicked and rushing about his apartment living room. To see him disposing of the condom, to see him struggling to pull back on his sweats and t-shirt before he’s disappearing into his bathroom and emerging seconds later with a blushing face and a wet rag. 
He returns to you in an instant, murmuring the world’s softest apology before he swipes the cold cloth over your sore cunt, making you hiss out in surprise. 
“What the Hell-”
“I said I was sorry!” he defends, tossing the rag to the floor before he’s grabbing your clothes, his clothes technically, and handing them over to you, “Figured you’d want to be dressed before we send the photo.” 
“I-” you stare at the clothes with a contorted face, still trying to brush off the exhaustion that came with the sudden change in atmosphere. You hadn’t even gotten to maneuver the aftermath of it all, pilferage the rubble and bring up the possible path-not-yet-road that you two had to face going forward. 
What did this mean for you two now? What did this mean for the remaining twelve hours?
Nothing, you suppose. Maybe you don’t need to ask those questions, because Eddie already answered them for you. It changes nothing. 
“Thanks,” you numbly say and take the clothes from him. He grabs your phone off the floor as you shrug the clothing back on.
What the fuck were you expecting? 
It was a one time ordeal. It was just a quick fix to get it out of both your systems. Just because you were needy, because you were craving a conversation about it all, didn’t mean Eddie was. There was no difference here between what transpired between the two of you and some random hookup. No feelings, no strings attached. The only difference was the obligation to spend another twelve hours together, if your friends hadn’t already decided their altruistic grace periods had hit their limits. 
“Jesus Christ,” Eddie grumbles, looking over your plethora of notifications, “Fifty fucking texts. Seven missed calls. We’re fucked,” When you let out a sharp laugh, he looks up from the screen at you, furrowing his brows, “What’s so funny?”
“Can you imagine making it halfway only to fuck up because we were getting along too well?” you snort, unable to help yourself. Twelve hours. You two had managed what already felt impossible, only to screw it all up because you two couldn’t keep it in your pants. Maybe if you admitted that to your friends, they would let the bet continue. You can already imagine Robin’s yips of glee at the prospect. 
Eddie’s worrisome look begins to crack, the corners of his mouth twitching, “I… That would… suck.” 
His voice is wavering, barely able to keep it together and withhold his own amusement as you beckon for him to hand over the phone, both of you sitting back on the couch, thighs pressed together. 
“Suck is one way to put it,” you giggle, barely glancing at the missed notifications, “Seriously. We made it this far. And it’s not like we weren’t together… We were. A little too literally.” 
If this is the closest you two come to talking about it, you can handle that. 
Eddie finally barks out a laugh, “Yeah. Maybe we took the bet too literally.”
“Just a little bit,” you shimmy a shoulder against his, forcing all laughter and smiles and drowning out any worries that continued to persist in your chest. Now wasn’t the time. This was enough. You can handle it. 
Your phone lights up with a Facetime call, making both of you jump.
Robin.
“Oh, no,” you groan, eyes pinching shut. 
“It could be worse,” Eddie notes, leaning into your space. His side presses into yours and it makes you want to die, “At least it’s just Buckley.” 
You shake your head, ignoring the burn he ignites in you with every slight touch still, grumbling, “Right, it’s just Buckley.” 
The two of you had sex. It should be out of your system. There was no need to continue to feel goosebumps raise when his shoulder knocked yours, when his knee slotted up against yours. It has to be out of your system. 
You swipe your thumb to answer the call against your better judgment. 
“Oh my God, you two idiots are alive! I swear to God, we thought you two killed each other! I almost had to go across the hall and have Steve predial for the cops if you two didn’t answer, I-” 
Robin’s rambling begins without so much as a hello. She’s speaking a mile a minute, taking no breaks, no pauses, no breaths, as you stare blankly at the screen where she’s half hidden in the shadows of her dark room. 
“Jesus,” Eddie whispers, eyebrows raising. You watch him through the screen, afraid to turn your actual face towards him. You don’t trust yourself. It should be out of your system, but it isn’t. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone talk so fast-”
“Fuck off, Munson,” despite Eddie’s effort to keep his voice low, Robin picks up on his words mid-rant, “My point is, we were worried. Why didn’t you send your photo or answer any calls?”
“We forgot,” you supply lamely. You catch Eddie’s fight against a smirk as he coughs over the beginnings of a scoff, and immediately shoot your elbow that’s out of frame into his side. 
Robin narrows her eyes at the screen, “You just forgot? How? No offense, but I can’t see you two getting distracted, especially with each other. We’ve all been under the assumption you just… sit on opposite sides of the room, and pretend the other doesn’t exist.”
Eddie coughs again, followed by a grunt from another pierce of your elbow.
“Have you considered that we might have been sleeping?”
“You don’t look like you’ve been sleeping.”
“I’m so glad that you’re all-knowing, Buckley,” Eddie says as he composes himself, “Where would we be without a sleep expert?” 
You finally turn your head to glare at him face-to-face rather than through the screen, trying to warn him to back off. Robin could go hours in the ring with Eddie, and you weren’t exactly in the mood to listen to the two banter off each other. He meets your warning gaze with wide eyes, almost as innocent as a child caught in the act. You can’t even stay mad at him – the moment those autumn brown eyes meet yours, soft and gooey and terribly laced with tempting gold, you’ve melted for him. All your defenses fall. 
You need to talk about it. You need to know if he means it.
“What does that even mean?” You ask as you slowly turn your head away from Eddie, “What exactly are we supposed to look like after sleeping?”
“I don’t know. Messy hair, squinty eyes, maybe some dried drool and appearing more… more… caught off guard?” Robin rattles off her list as she stares at them through the screen, shifting around from where it looks like she’s laying in bed, “Actually, now that I’m saying all this outloud, maybe you guys were sleeping,” you and Eddie freeze up in sync. Technically, you two could pass off as the Facetime being a rude awakening in your mutual dishevelment – both your hair and Eddie’s was messy as could be, shirts looking to be twisted from putting them on so carelessly. Hell, at your own detrimental embarrassment, you bet Robin would spot dried drool on your face if she looked close enough. Just not for the reasons she would believe, “Shit, yeah, okay. I believe you guys. You were sleeping. Our bad.” 
Just as you sigh in relief, Eddie’s face blooms with a wicked grin. 
“That or we were fucking.” 
It comes to your attention now that it is very hard to decipher when Eddie is joking. You wonder just how many times you had misinterpreted his sarcasm, how many times he had said a blatant truth only for you to take it for a grain of salt. 
Most of all, you wonder if Robin catches your distress at him actually exposing you two. You don’t even have it in you to shove your elbow especially painfully into his side this time, completely dismayed and unsure of what to say. 
She doesn’t catch it. She only snorts, rolling her eyes, “Right. Of course – or that.” 
You’re still unable to respond as Eddie continues to grin, laughing along with Robin, including her in an inside joke she had no idea of her involvement in. She has no idea. 
Because you guys were fucking. You’d had sex with Eddie, let him use you and throw you around like a goddamn rag doll. And now, here he was, so casually joining around with your mutual friend about it as if it were some absurd dream. Some stupid joke, some unreasonable thought of something that could never possibly happen. 
“Okay, well I’ll let you guys go back to bed-”
“Or jumping each other’s bones,” Eddie interrupts Robin.
She makes an exaggerated gagging noise, though the corners of her mouth are pulled up in a smile, before continuing, “And I’ll let everyone know we probably won’t get an update for the next hour. Just… don’t kill each other, alright? Who knows, maybe you guys can even become friends?” 
You wait for Eddie to take the punch line of something along the lines of being friends with benefits, to make a spectacle yet again of what had just transpired to an unsuspecting Robin. 
It meant nothing to him. It was all a joke to him. 
“See ya, Robs,” you offer weakly, numbly, hardly able to raise a hand to wave her off. You know that to her, this is just a symptom of fatigue. The type of tired solved by crawling back into bed and sleeping it off. She’s not worried; she even grins wider as she says her final goodbyes to you and Eddie before the call ends. 
Eddie knows better than Robin. 
He waits a few seconds after the call has ended and his apartment has fallen silent again, watching your slow movements as you sit your phone down on the arm of the couch. 
You lied to yourself, clearly. This incessant ache in you, this question that has begun to run laps in your mind, will never be satiated or sedated through joking discussions of what happened. You can’t pretend like your hips won’t carry invisible scars for the rest of your days from where Eddie’s hands scorned you, you can’t forget how his lips fit against yours in a movement easier than breathing. Kissing him, holding him, filling him had been more effortless than filling your lungs with the air necessary for survival. And you hadn’t caught onto it in the moment, hadn’t recognized your mistake and stopped this train from running off its tracks quicker than you could handle. 
That’s all it was. A trainwreck. You and Eddie were a trainwreck, and the only casual so far it seemed was you. 
An explosion. A glass wall. A tormented ocean. Every single transaction between you and him ended with you wounded, never him. 
“Hey, are you okay?” he asks when you suddenly stand from the couch, not really sure of where you were going to go but no longer capable of just sitting and thinking, pondering, drowning. 
“Fine,” you curtly reply, deciding the kitchen might be a good place to start. Get a glass of water, gulp it down instead of false hope or fake niceties Eddie was probably going to shower you with now. 
Or maybe there would be no face niceties. Maybe he’d go back to being cruel, and in that, not realize he was being kind to you and your heart that had grown too heavy over the last twelve hours. 
“You don’t look fine,” he persists, and follows you. It nearly sparks irritation. But of all the emotions rushing through you right now, you don’t have the energy to spare for petty irritation. 
“Then stop looking,” you sigh as your eyes trace over his cabinets, trying to remember which one holds his glasses. He gets too close too fast, coming up behind you and opening one of the cabinets as if he was reading your mind. A collection of mugs, plastic cups, and crystal glasses alike line the shelves. You focus on them rather than him. 
“What’s wrong?” he insists, actually starting to get on your nerves now.
You didn’t want to tell him what’s wrong, because it was stupid. The most predictable cliche has come to fruition, and you only have yourself to blame. The anger he’s assuming is his fault is just misdirected. You just needed to get your emotions under control – if you could accomplish that, you could survive these last few hours. 
“It’s nothing,” you push back, finally looking at him. You worry for a second that you might be teary eyed, but you know better. Your corneas burn, everything aches, but your vision is clear as day. He’s clear as day, and it makes the ache all the more unbearable, “I’ll get over it.” 
You’re not supposed to want him this way. You’re supposed to hate him. 
He stiffens, “Get over what?” 
“It.” 
“I-” he stammers at your vague response, mouth pressing into a harsh line as his eyes narrow, “Jesus Christ, how are you still this fucking stubborn? After everything that’s happened tonight? After everything that happened in the last hour?” 
“I’m not stubb-” you fruitlessly try to correct, but he bulldozes on without listening.
“I thought after I had been balls deep in you, maybe we had made some progress – maybe we could be friends-” 
“Are you fucking joking?” you scoff, trying to properly process the sentence he’d just said and not get hung up on him using the phrase balls deep, “I- No, okay? Sex doesn’t mean friendship, Eddie. That’s not how this works.” 
“Then how does it work?” if you were stupid, you’d assume he was begging, “Please enlighten me. How do I get you to trust me?” 
“Why do you need my trust so badly?” you snark back. Misdirected anger, and he’d put himself directly in the line of fire, “Why do you want that of me so goddamn badly when it’s clear that after tonight, we’ll pretend all of this never existed?” 
He steps back as if you slapped him. As if he hadn’t been the one just making a mockery of whatever was happening between the two of you. 
“You said it yourself,” you continue to ramble, waving around a previously fisted hand, “It changes nothing. And it’s not your problem that I struggle with that. I’m not angry at you. I’m angry at myself – there’s a difference.” 
“It doesn’t feel like there’s a difference,” Eddie immediately snaps, “You’re mad because I said… I said that? Because I said your words back to you? Because if you can recall correctly, sweetheart, you’re the one that said it all means nothing first.”
The misdirected anger is starting to feel perfectly directly with each word that leaves his mouth, “Because you asked me if it all meant nothing first. They’re still your words, not mine!” 
“I only asked that because you’ve made it very clear that you enjoy hating me.” 
“You think I enjoy this?” your voice breaks with emotion, taking a step closer to him. Your toes brush his, “You think I enjoy all this fighting with you? You think I enjoy seeing you act like it’s painful to be in a room with me for more than a few seconds at a time?”
His hardening gaze, his hands twitching at his sides, the lilt of his mouth as the corner folds downward. Now that you’ve tasted him, you could never erase yourself of him. 
“You really want to know what I think?” he’s not screaming like he should be. The two of you should be shouting to the ceilings, screaming until the surrounding neighbors could hear you. You want to yell until your lungs give out and noise complaints have been filed, but he’s not having it. He’s quiet as he takes the next step closer. His head dips in closer to yours, lips nearing the shell of your ear, “Do you truly want to know what I think about all of this?”
“Yes,” you whimper out, the need for yelling being swallowed down for the time being, “That’s all I want.”
It’s true. You don’t know if he can see it, the crack in your composure as you admit it, but it’s the truth. You want to see inside his mind, watch the mechanics ticking in real time. You need to know his every single thought and feeling so badly, your hands shake. 
“I think,” his voice comes out as a husky whisper directly against your ear, chest just shy of brushing against yours, “you never really hated me, baby,” he pauses, and one of his hands come out to your hips, grabbing you and pulling you in closer to him, “I think, you just wanted me so badly, it made you into a dumb, angry slut.” 
“You’re cocky,” you shakily laugh. You need to stop this. You need to push him away, save yourself.
You lean into his touch and silent commands, pressing up into him. Going as far as to stand up on your tip-toes so that your nose brushes against his neck. 
“Am I?” he chuckles, and the sound shoots straight to your core. 
You need to push him away. You need to put distance. You need to remember this means nothing.
“You asked me what I thought, sweetheart,” he goes to pull away, and you follow, “And I’m nothing if not an honest man.”
It means nothing. You can deal with your own ramifications tomorrow. You can work through the catastrophe relief come tomorrow afternoon, nurse away the heartbreak and sore disappointment. 
You have him for one night. One night. To let him slip away from you is to waste it. 
“Honest?” you try to scoff, but it comes out a breath against his skin, both hands now wrapping around your waist as he turns the two of you and cages you against the counter, “You… You can’t even honestly tell me why you hate me. You have to use some bullshit excuse.” 
His hands rake down your sides before cupping beneath your thighs, lifting you to sit on the counter. He’s fucking smirking. Completely unaffected by your words. 
“Would you like me to be honest now, doll?” he rasps, leaning back to take you in, “Or would you rather me eat that poor pussy right here, right now, on this counter?” 
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indierpgnewsletter · 6 months
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What is XP for?
It feels like there’s been a recent spate of discussion in RPG circles about the role of incentives (usually just referring to experience points, or XP). While a lot of that discussion has been mean-spirited (with a lot of conflating preference for “the only correct way to do things”), I would like to contribute by try to describe the role of XP is in modern tabletop RPG design, using Blades in the Dark as an example. If you’re a designer or a player, hopefully this helps you think about the role of a mechanic like this.
1. XP paces out advancement
This is probably the number one reason that we have XP in games. Historically, in this hobby, games have offered players to way to advance their characters, letting them grow in a way that makes them more powerful or interesting. For example, in Blades in the Dark, by requiring 6-8 XP to upgrade your character, the game paces out the process of getting new abilities to around every 2-3 sessions or so. By tweaking the amount required, it could’ve made this process shorter or longer.
The primary critique of this use of XP comes from people who question whether advancement is necessary at all. These usually come from folks who are who are either perfectly happy with their character “improving” in non-mechanical ways (like buying a house in-game) or people who prefer changes rather than improvements (getting a cool scar rather than getting better at punching).
2. XP as recap procedure
As Judd Karlman mentions on his blog, having an end of session xp procedure is a way to give everyone an opportunity to “think back on when they were kicking ass or being cunning – remember it and celebrate it while ticking off a box”. The idea is that the end of session procedure becomes a kind of ritual to share your favourite highlights from the session, aiming to deliver a good note for the game to end on.
3. XP as incentive
Some games use XP to encourage players to do things that they might not ordinarily do. This is quite common in the kind of games that I play. For example, in Blades in the Dark, you get XP when your character is in desperate situations. The game is trying to encourage players to take risks as opposed to playing it safe (because they might be coming from games where taking risks was less fun).
These kinds of incentives are usually criticized for two main reasons. One, it is unnecessary, i.e., it encourages behavior that needs no encouragement. Two, it has a negative effect on freedom of roleplay by pointing at a “right way to play”.
Stepping back for a second, I think these are both good criticisms that can be more or less valid, depending on the specific game or style of play. In my experience, in general, they’re least valid when they are theoretical, armchair criticism and tend to be most valid when they come from direct play experience.
With Blades in the Dark specifically, I think XP for taking big risks does lead to players shifting gears and playing differently. Not by itself though! It works because it fits within a whole system meant for that kind of story. The XP is just a tiny little signal.
As for narrowing the realm of roleplay, I think this is broadly true of hyper-specific storygames. They are a kind of game that actively tries to provide constraints - but in the same way a writing prompt is a constraint. It’s hard to be creative without them! Some of these games - not all - tend to involve some amount of discovering who your character is, rather than coming in with a specific idea.
That said, it can be frustrating in Blades in the Dark to pick a playbook with a particular character concept in mind and find that you’re out-of-sync with the game’s XP triggers. This kind of misalignment can happen, for sure, and it is a limitation of Blade’s specific design. The solutions tend to be some form of hacking or just switching playbooks. But even with that frustration, I would hesitate to say it’s a problem with XP as a mechanic though.
Though XP doesn’t actually need much defending - like so much of game design convention, the main reason games will continue to include it is because games have always included it. Players have come to expect it! But at the same time, I think XP can always do more and be more (or less!) than it's currently doing. I’m excited for people to look at these functions of XP and innovate, keeping what excites them and finding ways of changing the rest.
(This was first posted on the Indie RPG Newsletter.)
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zoomzooml · 7 months
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Concept doodles of The Nine Realms dragons because I fell into spiral with those lmao. I have no idea what to do with Feather so I'm ruling her out for now lmao.
I feel that one of the main problems with D:TNR is that this original dragons are done in one style, dragons from previous series are done in another style and dragons from yet another (Bubblehorn is from some series for really young kids from what I know) are done in yet another style and the creators lump it all together.
And the fact that I'm not fond of The Nine Realms artstyle at all is a private opinion. Mine doesn't rally fit HTTYD universe either but I think it's not hard to translate these design so I hope it works anyway lol
Most important text from pics under the cut:
WU 'N' WEI
I feel like two heads don't work for that dragon but I tried to roll with that.
I give them spinosaurous-like snouts bcuz I wanted to keep it round but non-deformed lookin' (lmao).
Catfish-like whiskers on both jaws and in front of eyes.
Knee bends forwards now (why do they bend backwards in canon design??? I don't understand)
More Zippleback-like legs and body.
I hate their colors and tried to improve it but my brain can't do colors either ಥ_ಥ I feel like it all crashes together...
Personal note: I don't like designs of animals who have colors 50/50 at all but I want them to be recognizable. Color pattern like this feel super unnatural unless it's mutation. Like those birds or butterflies who are half male, half female. It's also my personal headcanon for these two lol
I don't like pattern of their wings bit idk what to give them. I just don't want wings to be solid but different than body color, it just looks kinda awkward??
PLOWHORN
In my opinion, because only her wings are covered in armor they look out of place. Rumblehorns' armor looked more conected to it, because head also looked hard/armored. So I tried to connect her armor to her body a bit more
Horn is no longer made of crystal.
She doesn't grow crystals. Crystals grow on her because of her natural habitat
I give her a bit smaller head
Details of her unique wings. They are still made of skin and bones but folds in more bug-like style
BUBBLEHORN
Bodytype similiar to Terrible Terrors, maybe a bit shorter.
Horns like those of Deadly Nadder.
Eyes like parrots'. Idk why lol
Spikes and scales on legs and tail similiar to those of Night Fury
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lulu2992 · 7 months
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From the Inquisitor to the Baptist: The Evolution of John Seed
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From the early stages of the development of a video game to the day it gets released, its gameplay, story, and characters usually go through many modifications. Far Cry 5 is no exception to this rule, and thanks to promotional images, trailers, interviews, official side material, and even deleted content still available in the game’s files, we can get a glimpse of what Hope County and its residents used to be like. John Seed, in particular, seems to have undergone quite a few alterations, both physical and moral.
In these posts, I will be listing and discussing all the changes I noticed in John and explaining why the man who used to be known as “The Inquisitor” isn’t identical to “The Baptist” we met in Far Cry 5.
All the sources and references indicated by the superscript numbers will be given in the last post.
Part 1: Physical appearance, clothes, and tattoos (concept art, promotional content, and side material)
What seems to be the earliest portrait of the Seed family is a piece of concept art that Lead Graphic Production Artist Nick Arnett shared on Instagram¹:
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As you can see, many things look different from what we are used to, from the Eden’s Gate cross (behind Joseph’s head) and logo (on the pulpit, with an eagle) to the Seed siblings’ outfits. The man on the right seems to be John, and he’s sporting a two-tone blue shirt that resembles the one he will end up wearing in the game, but he doesn’t have a vest. Instead of a belt, he has suspenders, and his pants and shoes look darker and more formal than his usual jeans and boots. He already has a beard and, while his hair is slicked back, as it is in the game, it’s a little longer. He doesn’t have any visible tattoos, but if you look closely, you’ll notice that he does have something on his hand: blood, running from his knuckles.
In May 2017, nine months before Far Cry 5 came out, the game was officially announced and a few promotional pictures were released, notably these two²:
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But before that, we can see what John looked like at an even earlier stage of the game’s development, during the making of those two aforementioned pictures, thanks to early sketches and visuals shared by AmCo Studio³ and Fire Without Smoke⁴:
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John’s iconic vest and sunglasses have appeared, and while his shirt became white, it’s now partially unbuttoned and the sleeves are rolled up, which is how he wears it in the game. As for his hair, it’s shorter than it was in the first family portrait and looks more similar to his final design. We still don’t see any tattoos on his arms, but he has a watch.
In the final version of what I would call the “Last-Supper-like” images, John looks even more like himself, but there are still a few differences:
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Although they are not strictly identical to the ones he has in the game, he’s wearing sunglasses with blue lenses on his head. His shirt became blue again, his vest is striped, and he now has his “EG” (Eden’s Gate) earring and belt buckle, grey jeans, and bunker key around his neck. He’s also wearing a coat, but while, at first glance, it looks like the one we all know, the pattern isn’t the same; instead of planes, there are “EG” symbols on it. The buttons, however, are already golden and decorated with scales.
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In the pictures, especially the first one, the siblings are associated with symbols: a crown for Joseph (on his jacket and napkin), a sword for Jacob (on his music box), a pair of scales for John (on his coat’s buttons and in the bread/cake), and intoxicating Bliss flowers for Faith, a reference to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: Conquest, War, Famine, and Death, respectively, who. In John’s case, the scales could also be a nod to the fact he’s a lawyer. Indeed, scales are commonly used to symbolize justice.
This time, he finally has tattoos, and while some of them are the ones he will have in Far Cry 5, others are different. He already has small symbols on his fingers: an eye, a tongue, a hand with a drop of blood on it, a heart, a foot, a keyhole, and waves. The meaning of these symbols used to be a mystery to me, but it turns out they were inspired by Bible verses, specifically Proverbs 6:16-19⁵:
There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
The flames on his right wrist will be in the game as well, but here, they are smaller. This tattoo seems to have been taken directly from this illustration:
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It’s from a French (Breton, to be precise) collection of “Taolennoù Ar Mission” (literally “mission paintings” in Breton) by François-Marie Balanant, who was a priest, and it depicts a human soul being afflicted by the seven deadly sins⁶. “Taolennoù” were created in Brittany in the sixteenth century by the Catholic clergy in an effort to make religion more accessible to the faithful, some of whom were illiterate, with the help of drawings.
This particular image can be found on the Wikipedia page dedicated to the seven deadly sins⁷, which seems to have been the primary source of information and inspiration for several of John’s tattoos.
Clearly, the angelic figure with the dove, on his right hand, also directly comes from the drawing (upper left corner). This tattoo will later be redesigned and decorate the inner face of his left forearm.
As explained on Wikipedia, there used to be eight mortal sins, and their Latin names were:
Gula (Gluttony)
Luxuria (Lust)
Avaritia (Greed)
Tristitia (Sorrow)
Ira (Wrath)
Acedia (Sloth)
Vanagloria (Vainglory)
Superbia (Pride)
Tristitia and Acedia would later be combined, as well as Vanagloria and Superbia.
In the two promotional pictures, John has seven of these sins (except Acedia) tattooed on his left hand, as he does in Far Cry 5.
John also has letters on his fingers, but while, in the game, they spell “E-D-E-N” and “G-A-T-E”, here, we see G, G, S, E, W, P, and L, most likely the first letter of each deadly sin in English.
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On his chest, instead of a scar and the mutilated word “SLOTH”, he has a tattoo. We see two crossed rifles, the number seven in tally marks (probably yet another reference to the deadly sins), what seems to be the words “Bros & Sis” above the design, and what probably is “Til Death” under it. It looks like an infantry tattoo, very similar to the example included below (center) by tattoo artist Garrett Tankersley, known as tat2garrett on Instagram⁸:
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Finally, in one of the images, John is holding a tattoo machine. In the other, he’s holding a revolver. In the game, however, this weapon is nowhere to be seen.
Even though he will never use it in Far Cry 5, John was represented by this gun again on one of the game’s old official websites⁹:
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At the time, as you can see, his title was also “The Inquisitor” instead of “The Baptist”.
On the PlayAsia blog, on a page dedicated to Far Cry 5, short information sheets about a few of the game’s characters were posted¹⁰. They look official, but since I have only ever seen them on this website, which was not created by Ubisoft, their origin and therefore the accuracy of the information they give are uncertain.
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While most of what the picture says is either true (blue eyes, brown hair) or plausible (his height), John mathematically can’t be only 32 years old because he was already working as a lawyer about ten years before the events of the game, which is set in 2018. According to my research, it takes 7 years after graduating high school to become a licensed lawyer in the United States. In 2008, John couldn’t be younger than 18+7=25 years old, so it’s impossible for him to have been born after 1983. He could have skipped grades, but since this is never mentioned anywhere, I assume he didn’t and that he’s in fact older than 32 in Far Cry 5.
It’s possible, however, that he really was supposed to be 32 years old when the picture was made but that his backstory (and consequently his age) was then modified.
In the novel Far Cry Absolution, a few details are given about John’s appearance. For example, on page 6:
He was ten years older than [Mary May] and near six foot with brown hair and a beard that covered the lower half of his face.
Mary May is 29 (almost 30) in the novel, which makes John approximately 39 or 40 years old in the book. This age is more plausible, I think.
Then, on page 31:
John Seed, the younger brother of The Father, slighter in build, but cut from the same cloth. Both bearded and tattooed, and both with those all-seeing eyes that seemed to search through the dark with a kind of nocturnal prowess.
This isn’t the only time in the novel that John’s gaze is described as intense. The word “predatory” is even used on page 145.
Interestingly, and despite the fact it’s absent from Far Cry 5, the gun seen in his hand in one of the promotional pictures is mentioned in Absolution as well. It’s described as “a large revolver” on page 31 and as a “big magnum revolver” on page 57. He also uses a rifle “with a wood stock and bolt-action lever” (page 48) at one point, but this weapon isn’t in the game either.
Overall, aside from this detail, his physical description in the book is rather consistent with what we see in the game. And in this official picture posted in January 2018 to promote the book¹¹, he apparently looks the same as he does in Far Cry 5.
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In the live-action short film Inside Eden’s Gate¹², Joseph is the only member of the Seed family who is played by the actor who also plays him in Far Cry 5, Greg Bryk. In the game, while John is played by Seamus Dever, in the movie, it’s another actor named Rob Evors who was cast in the role. His voice and face obviously don’t sound and look exactly like John’s, so these differences are not significant.
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His outfit, however, has gone through several changes. I don’t know if the design was deliberately altered or if the clothes Rob Evors has in the film simply are the closest real-life equivalent to the ones John is wearing in the promotional pictures that the movie’s costume designers could get their hands on. Like in the development sketches for the “Last-Supper-like” images, his shirt is light-colored (but still blue, apparently) and he’s wearing his sunglasses normally, not on his head. They don’t seem to have blue lenses, but again, maybe the team could only find “regular” sunglasses. He has his Eden’s Gage belt buckle and earring, but instead of being grey, his coat, vest, pants, and shoes are brown/beige. The coat is decorated with “EG” logos, exactly like the one John is wearing in the promotional pictures, but lighter in color.
As for his tattoos, they are identical to the “old” ones we’ve seen so far, but two more are visible: the pair of scales on the side of his thumb and the snake (from the Taolennoù Ar Mission again, but uncoiled), which represents Envy, around his left wrist. These two new tattoos will be part of John’s final design in the game.
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There’s another one between the snake and his watch, but it’s simply one of Rob Evors’¹³.
In the film, John’s tattoos were actually hand-painted¹⁴. Here’s a better look a them, from Makeup Artist Casey Lynn Stuckey’s Instagram account:
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His sleeves are never rolled up in Inside Eden’s Gate, but it’s most likely because that would have meant covering up the actor’s actual tattoos and possibly painting more, so I suppose they thought it was more convenient to just hide them.
The last notable change regarding John’s appearance in the short film is that, for the first and seemingly only time, he’s wearing a shoulder holster, but his gun is not the revolver we’ve seen for far. Instead, it looks like a semi-automatic pistol, maybe a 1911. Since, in Inside Eden’s Gate, Joseph also has this type of gun and not the revolver he carries in Far Cry 5 (albeit rarely, and he never uses it), it’s possible that, once again, the team couldn’t find the right weapons for the movie and used the available props.
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In the live-action TV spot “Anything Can Happen, Everything Will”¹⁵, John is this time played by model and actor Jon Oswald, who jokingly described the character as “the asshole in the Gucci trench coat” when he shared the video on his Instagram account¹⁶.
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John’s outfit looks identical to Rob Evors’ in Inside Eden’s Gate (except the shoes and the holster, it seems), so it’s likely that they just reused the same clothes. Like in the film, John’s sunglasses (which are not blue) aren’t on his head; he’s wearing them. His hair is a bit different, but it’s probably simply because Jon Oswald’s hairstyle looked close enough to John’s and they thought it didn’t need to be modified, so I don’t think this “change” is significant.
Thanks to the pictures that Mackenzie Lawrén Johnson (better known as Kenz Lawrén), who plays Faith Seed in the short film and the TV spot, posted on Instagram¹⁷, we can have a better look at him and his tattoos.
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They haven’t changed much compared to the previous ones, but we can now see a goat (a symbol for Lust, also directly from the Taolennoù Ar Mission) next to the snake on his left arm. In the game, the goat will disappear from his hand, be redesigned, and end up on his right forearm. We see two other tattoos in the picture, but they simply are Jon Oswald’s¹⁸.
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In the image below, drawn by Anthony Winn, who made storyboards for the TV spot¹⁹, the character on the far right (who is not Joseph), wearing a vest and sunglasses, and standing next to a woman who is probably Faith, appears to be an early version of John. This time, he’s holding a rifle, different from the one described in Absolution, and not a handgun. For once, his sister is armed as well.
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In The Book of Joseph²⁰, John, as a child, is described as “the best looking, the least odd” of the Seed brothers, which is why the narrator, Joseph himself, believes he was adopted first after they were sent to an orphanage. When they meet again as adults, Joseph says his younger brother is “strikingly handsome, elegant”, wears “tailored suits” and very expensive shoes, has gleaming hair, shiny teeth, and manicured hands. He also writes that, as John Duncan (the name of his adoptive parents), “physically, he was society’s very model of success”. Psychologically, however, it was another story… but this will be discussed later. Although the John Seed we meet in the game isn’t exactly the same person as John Duncan was anymore, he’s still “elegant” and seems to take care of his appearance. Joseph doesn’t mention tattoos, but it’s likely that John got them later, after the Project was created.
An official guide for Far Cry 5, by Prima Games, was released alongside it. In the book, which was written in 2017, we get to see what John looked like when the game was still in development.
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This design is very close to the final one, but for some reason, his sunglasses, bunker key, earring, and tattoos are all (temporarily) gone. However, the “SLOTH” scar has now appeared on his chest instead of the tattoo he previously had, even though it’s a bit closer to his collarbone than it will be in the game. His outfit and facial features look slightly different, but this is also true for many other characters in the guide.
On IGN’s YouTube channel, a video titled “Far Cry 5: Why John Seed Is Your Charmingly Deadly Enemy” was uploaded in February 2018²¹. In it, we get a glimpse of an early version of the “You have been Marked” TV broadcast²², and although the setting looks different, John’s appearance is very close to his final one.
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By the way, if you look at the noticeboard behind the TV, you’ll see that the Testicle Festival was supposed to take place in 2017 instead of 2018. When this early in-game footage was recorded, Far Cry 5 was probably still scheduled to come out in September 2017 (which is what the first rumors said and could also explain why all the calendars in the game suggest we are in September).
In the thumbnail of the YouTube video, John looks exactly like himself:
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He does too in the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” artwork²³, this promotional screenshot²⁴, and this poster²⁵:
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And in a trailer posted by Ubisoft three weeks before the release of Far Cry 5, a “character spotlight”²⁶, John has his final design as well. The only difference is that, although the game was about to come out, they still called him “The Inquisitor” instead of “The Baptist”.
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Then, on March 27, 2018, Far Cry 5 was released.
To be continued…
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burningupp · 1 year
Note
how about skz reaction or headcanon about you being pregnant
oooh okay, I do love when men are whipped for their pregnant partners i find it so cute :((
I'm gonna write this as a shorter headcanon paired with a tiny bit of dialogue for each, I hope that's okay <3
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pairing: afab!reader x skz (no pronouns - if i used any, lmk <3)
warnings: really fluffy, mentions of pregnancy (duh), mentions of body insecurity, mentions of anxiety about becoming a parent (jisung), mentions of food, joke about the word daddy (minho), lmk if there's anything else!
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Chan
I feel like he would be so extremely happy and proud all the time when you're pregnant. he'd just be like "we made that!! look at my partner, they're carrying our BABY!!" and lowkey everyone would be tired of him talking about you and showing pictures of ultrasounds, you and your belly bc mans shows everyone he talks to for more than 15 seconds. Real proud boi. also, 100% goes to birthing classes with you simply because he's more nervous for the birth than you are :((
"Y/n, have I ever told you how proud I am that you're carrying our baby?" he asks one night. You're half-laying on the couch, because honestly, that's one of the only comfortable positions you have left as your body grows.
You smile over at him, lightly rolling your eyes. He tells you every single day, but you can't say you don't appreciate it - kind of makes some of the pains and aches worth it. Well, more than having a baby already did.
"Yes, my love," you hum. At your answer, he cheeses harder than ever, his heart and chest so full at spending time with you and seeing the way your body changes to accommodate for the little one. He doesn't think he will ever be happier, except for the day that he finally gets to meet your little one.
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Minho
okay but this one would definitely be nagging you every single day to take your vitamins and eat enough to feed both you and the baby. he would be cooking every single day, just to make sure himself that the food is safe for you to eat :(( I genuinely think that while he may be a tsundere at times, this would really bring out his affectionate and responsible side in a whole new way. he would definitely whine every time you ask him to do something for you, but then turn around and do it with a smile after like 2 seconds. Whipped.
"Baby, did you take your vitamins today?" the love of your life asks over his shoulder while cooking lunch for the both of you.
"Yes, dad," you sigh dramatically, but you can't help the smile spreading across your features anyway. Instead of bothering him, though, it fills him with indescribable joy. He's going to be a dad, and soon. He can't wait.
"Yah, you eating the vitamins means that the little one will get them, and I'm their dad, so," he says back, squinting at you while he stirs the contents of the pan to make sure it doesn't stick.
He also wants you to have the vitamins, but you don't need to know that. It would ruin his image if you did, obviously. Although he thinks that if he thinks of the concept of being a dad again, he will explode.
"Mhm, well you could do with asking me less than five times before noon, daddy."
His heart damn near bursts, and he can no longer help but grin hugely at you and abandon the food on the stove in favor of kissing your forehead gingerly.
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Changbin
the biggest hype man ever. tells you you're beautiful every time he sees you and 100% means it. tries really hard to do research on ways he can help you, and asks his mom and dad questions all the time. buys baby clothes from the moment you tell him that you're pregnant, and buys matching clothes for all of you. hears that swimming can help with the back pain, so he starts taking you swimming every single week - and compliments your swim suit every single time bc it accentuates his favorite belly.
"Wow," you hear your partner breathe as you walk into the living room in your new maternity pants. "I really am the luckiest man alive."
You know he means it, but it doesn't stop you from blushing and looking away. Changbin isn't having it.
"Hey," he says, coming over to wrap his arms around you gently and press a tender kiss to your forehead. "I'm serious. You've never been more beautiful to me. You're incredible."
Your knees grow weak, because honestly, what are you supposed to do with that? You just cheese at him and kiss his cheek in return. "Thank you, baby."
"I mean it," he murmurs, his hand coming up between you to touch your stomach softly. His eyes are so filled with love you almost start crying. "I can't wait to see you be a mom."
"I can't wait to see you be a dad," you grin, and his eyes widen for a second.
"I'm gonna be a dad," he says incredulously, the biggest smile on his face. His eyes glitter with excitement, and you think you've never been more in love with him.
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Hyunjin
he's kinda scared, ngl. not to be a dad, that he's super excited for, but for you to give birth. he knows you're strong, but he doesn't know if he can handle seeing you in pain </3 definitely anxious all the time. you want to shower? not without him, you don't. wanna cook? don't you dare. reaching for something on a shelf? absolutely not. you're so annoyed but endeared bc he's so doting and cute :')
You know that Hyunjin doesn't like it when you change the sheets in the state you're in, but you couldn't help yourself. You changed them while he was at practice, and now he's huffing and scowling like you did something to offend him.
"Babe, I'm sorry," you plead, and due to the hormones, you feel tears build up before falling without your permission. At the sound of your sniffle, your partner immediately shoots up from the couch to come check on you.
"Hey, no, it's okay! I'm sorry, I shouldn't be treating you like this," he says sadly. You shake your head though.
"I know you just want to take care of me. It's okay. It's just the hormones," you pout. Hyunjin laughs.
"Okay. In the future, just wait for me, okay? I don't care if I'm tired; you're carrying a freaking baby, in comparison I'm better than ever, even after practice."
You nod, smiling at him and holding your tummy. He's going to make a fantastic dad.
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Jisung
a Babie. kinda scared, and this time bc he doesn't know if he's gonna be a good dad. he's still super excited, though! cannot believe the way your body is changing, and keeps touching your belly in awe. also super impressed by how you're handling it all and your knowledge of babies. literally perplexed as to where you learned it all. just like hyunjin, he's super protective. he doesn't know much about pregnancies, they kinda freak him out ngl, but he knows you shouldn't be overexerting yourself. always asks for advice and reassurance, even though you know he's gonna be a fantastic dad. you're just lowkey worried it's gonna leave you with two babies instead of one lmao
"Hey babe?"
It's 3am, but it's not like you could get comfortable enough to sleep anyway. Not being allowed to lay on your back is literally the worst. As soon as you even accidentally try, Jisung yells at you - lovingly, of course.
You give a hum and wait for him to continue.
"What if it doesn't like me?"
You almost laugh, but the genuine fear in his voice makes you pause. It breaks your heart that he's scared, but you understand him - becoming a parent is scary.
"First of all, call my baby an 'it' one more time and I'll punch you," you say softly, and it makes him snort. Success. "Second of all, there's no way they won't like you. Have you met you? You're amazing with kids. You'll be just fine."
"Thanks, love," he mutters, turning around in bed to look at you in the dark. An arm slides around your waist gently, his hand predictably landing on your tummy. "It can't be that bad - I mean, I have you. Super-mom," he says with the biggest grin you've ever seen. You snort.
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Felix
hyper, learning everything he can from whoever he can. bothers any staff members with families, asking about their kids and how to parent. literally won't stop touching you for even a second, cheesing 24/7 like a total dork bc he can't believe that the love of his life is gonna give him a baby :(( keeps an eye on you, but isn't overwhelmingly worried - he knows you're fine to do most things despite your huge belly. he mostly lets you judge what you can and can't do, and thanks you every time you tell him something is difficult for you bc he's adorable like that <3
You're cooking dinner in the kitchen, but to no one's surprise, you're not alone. Felix hasn't left your side since he got home and wrapped his arms around you, pressing a kiss to your temple with a huge smile that would put the actual sun to shame.
You're feeling a bit crabby; your back hasn't stopped hurting for the past week. Your bump is becoming a lot more prominent, and boy, are you feeling it. You stir the sauce again, and step away from the stove. Your hands are on your back before you can help it, and you're hissing out a breath through your teeth. Of course, Felix notices.
"You alright, darling?" he asks gently. He's by your side in less than a second, hand on the small of your back to give you some support; it may not be much, but he's trying his best.
"I'm okay," you breathe after a second, smiling at the father of your baby. "My back's still feeling rough, that's all."
"I'm sorry, baby," he pouts, rubbing your back where his hand is resting. "If you want, I can finish this up?"
You consider it for a moment, but ultimately decide that you want to finish. You shake your head, and while you know he's dying to give you a moment to rest, he just nods and kisses your forehead. He doesn't leave your side until you're safely sitting in your chair at the dining table, just in case, but he doesn't try to take over. You have a big dumb grin on your face for the rest of the night.
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Seungmin
he's not very outwardly expressive with other people, but it's always been different with you. it's not very overwhelming tho, he just doesn't always know how to express what he's feeling. that changes when you get pregnant, bc suddenly he can't help but constantly tell you how amazing you are. it's insane to him to see your body modify itself to fit your little one, and the thought of a mini you makes him absolutely die on the inside. definitely does as much as he can to make life easier for you, but in the subtlest of ways <3
"Seungmin?" you ask out loud as you pad down the hall to the spare bedroom - soon to become the nursery for your first child together. You smile at the sight of him carefully placing the throw pillows you just bought together on the small loveseat in the room.
"Oh, hey," he says, moving towards you when he sees you. He puts a piece of your hair behind your ear and smiles at you. "Did you see the sandwich I placed on the kitchen counter?"
Your heart is bursting with love (and hormones), so you can't help but well up a little bit. You duck your head to hide the unshed tears, removing any lingering evidence lest the man teases you to infinity.
"Baby," he grins in a teasing tone, eyes twinkling mischievously, "did I make you cry?"
The question is accompanied by a pretentious and over exaggerated pout, so you snort and smack him on the arm. He just giggles and goes to bring you to his chest gently, carefully maneuvering around your belly.
"I'm sorry, baby," he laughs.
"No you're not, you liar," you tease back, and when he laughs even more, you somehow don't mind anymore.
"No, I'm not. Now, let's go get you that sandwich, yeah? Or are you gonna waste all my hard work?"
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Jeongin
kinda scared, but somehow calmer than jisung. just like felix, he asks literally anyone he can think of for parenting advice. people get sick of him real quick lmao. really adamant that he do literally everything in the house, since you're "hard at work cooking up a life". gets a tiny copy of every single ultrasound and puts it in his wallet. buys stupid books like "astrophysics for babies" and thinks they will genuinely work </3
"Y/n, come look at this!"
You turn around in the aisle of the grocery store, going back around the corner of the shelf to stare at Jeongin. He's holding up a tiny onesie with a matching hat. You quickly realize it matches his sweater and hat pretty well, and you can't help but giggle at him.
"Baby," you start, but he's not listening.
"Now we just need to get you one, too, and we can all match! Actually, we should just throw everything out and-"
"Jeongin. Sweetheart. Love of my life. You-"
"You forgot father to your baby," he grumbles, which makes you laugh even harder.
"Yes, my sweetheart, the love of my life, and the father of my baby," you correct, and when he looks satisfied, you continue. "I'm only like, 3 months along - we don't need to buy clothing yet."
"But-"
"We also in fact did not need the bottle warmer, the book for teaching our child Chinese, or even the very expensive walker you bought." When he pouts again, you soften a little. "Look. One outfit, okay? But no more until I'm at least 6 months along, yes?"
He's not listening, but you don't care much when he presses an almost bruising kiss to your cheek in glee. You're definitely going to be losing a lot of arguments for the coming 20 years or so.
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a/n: that's it! i hope you enjoyed it <3 i'm sorry it took me a while, as i alluded to before, i have some pretty difficult uni courses rn but i am doing my best!
if you like my work, please let me know through a comment or a reblog! it gives me motivation to keep writing &lt;3
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pininghermit · 9 months
Note
Not a request but more so idea throwing for pondering fun. Imagine like human reader throughout Adrian’s lifespan dies over and over again, but with each new life they slowly shift into a more vampiric form. Time and time again, the two keep finding each other and with every death and life brought, the two could finally live out the rest of their life’s together for as long as they wish
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AN: Hmmm interesting. Here's a thought or two of mine (longer than I expected. Feel free to send more of these asks because I kinda like the concept of writing these quick pieces. Hopefully shorter for the future ones.). Also very much unedited but I am impulsive af so here we go.
Part 2
TW: Blood, death, gore, possessive Adrian...
Your first meeting with Adrian had been when you were on the brink of your death in that lifetime. Lying on the icy unforgiving ground your blood seeps through the snow covered earth. Painting everything red. It had been an unfortunate fate where you met the other half of your soul as you bled through you wounds.
And Adrian too realized that. He held onto you as warmth left your body. He could not let go for days and sat there talking to you. He spoke of himself, his life, his likes, his dislikes but none replied.
He never gets to find out your likes or dislikes, your name, your hobbies. The only memory of you that remains with him is your fading breath.
He mourns for a loss he could not fathom overcoming. It felt like a declaration of fate. Like another wound that would mar his heart and soul for eternity.
He wanders forests and dark woods yearning for any sign of relief. Looking for an end. It is then that he meets you again. Or rather you come falling in his arms.
Perched on a tree's sturdy branch you flinch at the barest crunch of the leaves under his feet. It is fall when Adrian meets you and the forest floor is full of decaying leaves.
Startled by the noise you lose balance and Adrian unknowingly catches you even before he, himself can gather what's happening.
Your arms wrap around him and your face buries in the crook of his neck. The warmth of your breath next to his heart brings Adrian back to life.
He does not need the alignment of stars or prophecies to know its you. The darker hue of your eyes or the longer length of your hair cannot stop Adrian from recognizing you. How can they when he's been looking for you all along? Nothing in the world could have hidden you from him.
World comes to life and Adrian sheds away the bleak cloak of mourning.
Dressed in thick leathers and armed with a formidable bow you turn out to be huntress in that lifetime.
Adrian builds a life with you. A small hut by the edge of the forest where you both speak your vows and exchange the plainest rings from the village smith.
A simple life full of joy, love and peace. Time spent full of smiles and embraces.
Adrian lets go of his castle, of all the riches to be with you. Living in the small hut Adrian assumes the role of gardening in the small plot of land by your house. He cooks, he mends, he does all waiting for you as you hunt.
It comes to an end abruptly. It happens on a normal afternoon when you leave for the hunt. Adrian kisses you goodbye as he prepares the kitchen for the evening but you do not return. Neither does Adrian once he leaves to look for you.
He does not find much of you other than a disfigured leg left in the quiet forest. The rest of you is gone with the pack of wolves that devoured you.
Adrian does not mourn. Rage fills him as he hunts your killers. He does not care for the laws of jungle that you believed in. He kills the entire pack with his bare hands.
It is the familiar despair that greets Adrian this time. It is rage. Had he not given up on the wealth you would not have to hunt. It was his fault for letting you venture into the forest alone. He should have been more careful.
So, Adrian gathers all his wealth and becomes the Lord Dracula as he awaits your return. He would not let harm come your way. Not even the barriers of age would dare to part you this time. Adrian would make sure of that. He would find a way.
He looks for you. He tries to follow the tug of his heart. He for you in the forests and valleys. But he does not find you there. Instead, he finds you in the plague ridden camps of the city.
Your face is covered by faded linen as your brows furrow in concentration while cleaning up a withering youth. Not even the thunder and unrelenting rain break your focus.
Adrian stands there, dressed in his finery. A stark contrast to your own simple dress. He does not move even when the rain completely soaks his velvet cloak.
That night Adrian steals you away from the god-forsaken camp. He does so, in the middle of the night when you fall asleep to the tiredness of the hectic day.
He takes you to his castle. Away from the wild and the world that seems to intent on your separation. He inches closer to bite the unmarred column of your neck. His fangs dripping with the venom that would bind you to him for eternity.
He holds you tight. Your limbs locked in his arms to avoid any movement. It would be painful but Adrian would make it quick. He smells the slight lingering fragrance of mint as he moves closer.
Closing his eyes Adrian feels his teeth sink into your skin. You struggle in his arms but Adrian holds tight. Your blood fills his mouth. It is sweeter than any nectar.
The Dhampir did not care for blood. Adrian did not need it to survive so, he had avoided suffering of others but your blood is unlike anything ever. All the suffering and pain from the ages leaves his body with your mere taste.
He is lost in the rich taste of your blood when he first feels it. A burning sensation. At first he dismisses as his own reaction to blood but it isn't him...
Adrian's eyes flinch open and what greets him is the decaying column of your neck. Your skin blackened and burned. Your eyes unfocused and your heart still.
He notices it then the slightly pointed tips of your ears. A half-elven healer.
Surrounded by riches and comforts found rare in world Adrian loses you for a third time.
He does not allow himself the comfort of grief. Not even a tear. Adrian condemns himself of a life where he forbids himself from even a dream of you.
Not even death or whatever end awaits him would be enough penance.
Wandering mountains, seas, ruins, Adrian exists. He would no longer allow himself the luxury of even looking for you. He would not allow the fates to align your path to his.
He never stays in a place longer than a day.
So, he does not resist when the blade of a sword nicks his neck as he walks the unlit roads of a remote village. He does not even flinch when his own blood flows onto the blade.
A small part of his being looks forward the pain that would ease the burden of his own exile.
Warm breeze of a summer's night flows through the valley that he finds himself in. The blade buries into his skin. His blood now blooming on the sleeves of his shirt.
And then it is gone. Adrian staggers at the loss of the weight of the blade on his shoulder. "Now that we've repaid past dues would you turn back and hug your lover who has traveled past decade looking for you," Adrian collapses on his knees as your voice fills the silent night.
He does not find the courage to turn back. Nor does he find the strength to run away as he should have done.
In this lifetime you meet him in the form of his regrets. As a reminder. You meet him as a reflection of himself. A Dhampir.
You hold him close as the night carries the scent of the coy blooms.
You come to him forever. For long enough for you to take away all the pain, the yearning, the self-hatred.
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verdantmeadows · 5 months
Text
Settling the (Non-existent) Debate—Gary Prince is Taller Than Marshall Lee!
In the new Adventure Time Series, Fionna and Cake, we are introduced to many new characters that come from the original Fionna and Cake series within Adventure Time. With that, we are introduced to both Gary Prince, the human version of Prince Gumball, and Marshall Lee, who shares his name pretty much exactly with Marshall Lee the Vampire King.
However, with them, they brought a new debate.
Who's taller?
At first, most viewers assumed it to be Gary.
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After all, you can see him here in episode 6, clearly above Marshall Lee in height. But wait! You might say. Marshall Lee is doing that weird little stance! It's making him shorter! Maybe he's slouching in all the times we see him close to Gary!
Perhaps you could argue that. However, we can even see Gary slouch right here.
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And he's still above Marshall Lee's height! Maybe Marshall Lee's legs are giving him a LOT of height.
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Although I somehow doubt that, if he is slouching here, which he was slightly before straightening his back, it's hard to imagine he'd manage to make up for the height difference between them by standing up even straighter.
Regardless, let's move onto their next episode, episode 7.
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This episode makes things...confusing, as well. Marshall Lee is visibly slouching here, which seems to be putting him at the same height as Gary.
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Standing up pretty straight here, they both seem to again be at the same height. But! Something important to notice. Gary's legs seem to be significantly longer than Marshall Lee's! They don't stop until much higher on his body.
Now, onto episode 9.
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What...what is happening here? Marshall Lee is clearly taller than Gary in this.
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Marshall Lee seems taller again here, but Gary is slouching a little...
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From this positioning, Gary seems to be taller...again...
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But then, towards the end of the episode, we get this!!! This shot of them gives us a LOT to go off of! Both of them are sitting at about the same position on the bed, but Gary's legs are hanging off a significant amount more. Even though Marshall Lee is shown slouching, Gary is a bit too, and, if he slouched more, he would almost definitely still be taller. This also makes it more obvious that his proportions are, overall, generally longer than Marshall Lee's. And, considering that Marshall Lee isn't wearing shoes, but Gary is, and they were out on their date earlier...we can infer that Marshall Lee being closer to Gary's height came from his shoes!
So! Who is taller?
Well, in all honestly, despite episode 6, I initially thought Marshall Lee was taller, due to their height on their date in episode 9. In fact, I believe on an earlier post about their height, I hesitantly proclaimed that Marshall Lee was taller than Gary.
Before I say more, I'd like to say that regardless of what's canon, any headcanons on their height are completely valid. Even if they conflict canon! I personally have many height-based headcanons in other series that conflict with canon. I just want this post to clear things up for their canon designs.
So far, we've had evidence for both sides of the debate, although it seems to be leaning in Gary's favor. And at the end of this post...I'd like to solidify that, with evidence that isn't shown on-screen!
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Gary's concept art!
Although this is clearly not what he looks like in show, and he definitely isn't this tall in show, thanks to the "conspicuously tall" note and his conceptual height next to Fionna, we can deduce that the most likely intention is for Gary to be tall. Not just taller than Marshall Lee, but generally speaking. His various positioning next to Marshall Lee solidify this, and any discrepancies can clearly be connected to the additional height of shoes (which we then see Marshall Lee shorter without). Gary's concept art is the icing on the cake, proving that he has always been and likely is still intended to be a tall character.
So, to conclude...
Gary Prince is taller! And tall in general! (Although if your headcanons are different, that's of course valid!)
Thank you for reading!
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kathaynesart · 8 months
Note
Hey!
I don’t know if you’ve ever answered and ask like this, but i was wondering how you stick with a comic series. How do you manifest plot and such and stick with it without later deciding it’s not good enough for your tastes and completely changing or dropping it as a whole?
Hoo boy, ok here's a bit of a longer one. NOTE this is just what works for me and is in NO WAY educational advice.
TLDR:
Practice
Flexibility
Loving the characters and core message
Getting over your own embarrassment and respecting your growth
Keeping it FUN
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If these points seem helpful, feel free to check under the cut.
PRACTICE:
I always hate this answer, but it really is true especially for work in a creative field. You ask how I manifest plot? I'm mostly just throwing ideas at a board and seeing what sticks. Then I take the things that stick and lay them out and find what's important or can support my core message. You will have to do this many many times with a long form story, in which case my brain is constantly buzzing with ideas and working at them like an ongoing puzzle. A lot of people use this method, but it's the experience of having done it many times that helps me know what's been overused, how to apply a fresh take, or what should be trimmed (even if I don't want to haha). The best way to practice I think is through personal experience and dissecting other stories to see what makes them work/not work for you as a viewer. As far as personal experience, I would recommend trying to make a story of your own but much shorter. See if you're able to finish it and once you do, come back to it with a critical (but kind) eye. Find where the moments of lull occurred in your creative process and see what you could have done to improve both the creative and viewing experience. Hindsight is a hell of a drug and pretty good at helping you see where you went wrong. If not, get a friend to help! After all is said and done, try fresh with a slightly longer story, rinse and repeat. Just know that the longer your story gets, the less you need to have the whole story figured out before you start creating. In fact I feel it’s better if you don’t necessarily know the whole plot when creating a long ongoing story, which leads me to my next point…
FLEXIBILITY:
When it comes to ongoing stories, it's practically a given that your tastes and writing style will change over time. You will begin to come up with even better ideas as you go, and if you work at it, sometimes you can find ways to infuse these new concepts into your story. Now mind you, when starting a story you should have a decent idea of the overarching plot and major points of conflict/success. However, I find it helps to be flexible with the sinew that connects them. As you move along with your story you may find themes and concepts growing within the plot and characters that you would want to lean into. Rather than forcing them down the path you had initially set, it can be a lot more fun to play in that space and see how you can improve things.
For example, in my latest post, the flashback shot of Leonardo and his brothers all resting together was an idea I came up with a few weeks ago to a plot point I had set back in January. Little things like that are the spice of life for a story and can come to you more easily the longer you work in that headspace. But what really helps me to keep coming back to that story has to come from a place of passion, especially with...
CHARACTERS AND CORE MESSAGE:
You need to make sure that when you sit down to create a story (especially a long one) that it has characters you love and a message you really want to tell, because these are themes and people you are going to be spending a LOT of time with. It's like... going on a trip. There are many people you could easily share a trip to the the mall with... but a six month trip across, Europe? You better make sure the person you're going with isn't someone you're going to want to strangle half way up the Eiffel Tower. People change... tastes change... YOU will change. So I find it's wiser to make sure that you stick to messages that hit you at your core that you already have tattooed on your heart and will not be changing any time soon. Some people use storytelling as a method of therapy, which can be great especially for short stories to get feelings and emotions out. But with a longer story, those strong feelings you have may drain and no longer be relevant by the time you're only half way through your story. I see this happen with a lot of stories that come from a place of "angst." Great for short form! Not so great when drawn out into an ongoing exhausting experience. That's not to say angst can't be done well (there's PLENTY of that in Replica), but it's not the underlying THEME of this story. Just a byproduct THAT what comes from surviving the apocalypse. So stick to those evergreen themes that you know are important to you whether you're fifteen or fifty and make sure you have characters who you WANT to see succeed and are rooting for, because it'll make you want to help them on their way all the more.
EMBARRASSMENT AND RESPECTING YOUR GROWTH:
Hoo boy. I think this is something every creative can relate to. Looking back on your old work can be a cringing experience. Having that work be the beginning part of a story you are STILL currently working on can be even worse! You may hate the way you used to write/draw or find certain elements that no longer jive with who you are now or represent you as a writer/artist. Heck there may be plot points that you wish you could change/cut because you have an even BETTER idea now. All of that can be really hard to stomach and can lead to a lot of unfinished works being abandoned. Now if the work truly does have that strong of a response, it very well may be best to cut your losses. But if you have taken the steps I mentioned above seriously, then there should be a lot to love about your story still. If so, then you have several options before you.
Try to work within the limitations of your early work to make it even better by finding ways of twisting the plot to match your new ideas (difficult but satisfying). Example: one time I had a comic where a side character had to suddenly be available for an extensive period of time... I realized this was shortsighted since I had setup how important he was within a company and there was a conflict of interest. My co-creator and I mulled over it for weeks then realized, that we could just have him get fired! Which was great because it formed more tension with the company (future antagonist) and freed up his time to be a more integral part of the story. So analyze your work and pinpoint those parts that you do not like and see if you can put your improved skills to work to make it even better.
If there's certain things that are unforgivable, then it is always within your power to go back and edit/redraw/change what happened before. I've seen it done before and it CAN work, but be careful because this is a rabbit hole you can fall down where you're just constantly editing the past rather than working on the future. I've seen many stories end simply because they get stuck in an editing loop. However, if the changes are small (but integral), it can help relieve some of the stress. Just be sure to communicate these changes to your followers to avoid confusion.
Redo. This is an extreme method, but I have seen stories be completely overhauled in this manner where the creator will take what they learned from the first iteration and make a new version of it from the ground up that is even better. However, this method is very time consuming and also a pothole that can lead to burnout. It's hard having to redo a story that you've already started telling. So if you really want to start fresh, make sure it's changed enough where you don't feel like you're just plotting over the same points you're already tired of.
Finally... be kind to yourself. Rather than being upset by looking at the early portion of your story, be proud in seeing how far you've come. One of my favorite things to do with webcomics, is to hop from the first page to the latest page and see how much they've improved. I'm sure for the creator it's a harsh experience, but as a VIEWER it's super exciting and makes me want to read even more to see that progression. Long form stories are cool because they are a living, breathing thing... a time capsule of its creator's prowess and a representation of how far they've come. Respect that. Respect yourself as a creator, and be happy to know how much you've improved.
FUN:
Ok, did you absorb all that? Get everything down? Cool, now I want you to take all that knowledge I just gave you and throw it out the window. Ok not literally. Like, keep it in your subconscious, but don't worry about it too much and remember that you're doing this for FUN. If you get too caught up in the idea of "practicing" and "due dates" it'll just burn you out. I actually hate the word "practice." It's like... the word "jogging." Most people don't jog for fun, you jog because it's good for you. But if that's the only reason it's not really great incentive. I wasn't drawing for months on end outside of work because whenever I did I saw it as "practice." So of course I'm not going to want to do it. You have to come at this with the intention of having a good time.
So instead of jogging... treat it like running around a theme park. I know it sounds silly but it does wonders for me. I've been having so much fun drawing Replica and other content for this fandom but at the end of the day, it's sneakily tacking onto my skill sets as practice. I'm not making money off of this.. but I'm learning and getting better and looking back at my old stuff I already know I've improved. It makes me want to keep going and see it to the end! Just make sure to not put too much pressure on yourself. Give yourself rests when needed and make sure to do other things in your life to balance out the workload. You'll be much happier for it.
Or at least that's what works for me. I hope some of this might work for you too. Thanks and good job if you've made it through my long-winded explanation. Gold stars all around.
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adobe-outdesign · 6 months
Note
Wait, you haven’t done a review of regular pikachu? Will you?
Have you reviewed raichu?
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(Ironically I have literally reviewed every part of the Pikachu line except for Pikachu itself. Review links: Pichu, Raichu, Alolan Raichu, Pichu and Pikachu forms)
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Pikachu is such an iconic design that it's actually hard to approach it from a normal standpoint, given how heavily ingrained it is in both Pokemon as a brand and modern culture. I'm more of a Raichu person myself, but Pikachu is obviously a pretty great 'mon on its own.
Originally, the creators actually intended Clefairy to be the mascot, but I think they made the right choice in going with Pikachu instead. What makes Pikachu work is that it has simple but very clear visuals—those red cheeks and black-tipped ears pop instantly, to the point where only its head can be used as an icon and it will be recognizable. Clefairy doesn't really have a single visual element like that. Pikachu also manages to be cute but not to the point wherein you can't see this thing battling, which is an important balance that i don't think Clefairy achieves as much.
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In terms of said visuals, the lightning-bolt tail helps communicate the typing immediately and is a fun twist on a squirrel's tail (and yes, Pikachu is partially based off a squirrel, as confirmed by its designer Atsuko Nishida.) Likewise, the red cheek pouches pop instantly and play off of the idea of rodents storing food in their cheeks by having it store electricity instead. The brown stripes on its back help to fill the space in the backsprite and keep it from being too plain, and the little :3 face is always a winner as well.
Obviously I wouldn't actually change anything about the design, but if I were to be hyper nitpicky the way I usually am, the brown gradient at the base of the tail might've made more sense as a black tip, to match the ears. (Ironically, apparently a lot of people actually do misremember it being like this, though I'm not one of them). You could even make the brown back stripes black for contrast. But yeah, overall, very effective design even if it wasn't the face of the franchise.
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And no Pikachu review would be complete without talking about the OG fat Pikachu design. Originally Pikachu was supposed to be more of a mochi pastry than a rodent, and some of that roundness was retained in Pikachu's early designs. Over the years, it was slimmed down to make it easier to animate. (It also had a white underbelly, though I actually like dropping this, as it gives more of a sense of progression to Raichu.)
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While I do love the original design, I do think slimming it down a bit doesn't hurt anything, and making the tail shorter and wider makes it stand out more. I think sometimes it can get too slim in modern media, but the official art shown above feels like a good weight.
Thankfully, we get to have our cake and eat it too, as Pikachu's g-max design is a throwback to the original sprite. This is both a clever concept and feels appropriate for the g-max theme of "thing, but really big". There are a few obvious changes—most notably the tail, which has been lengthened far beyond what it originally was and is now all-white with a yellow outline, to look more lightning-y. It also has an extra stripe and bigger cheeks to better balance the space.
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I'm not sure making the tail white adds all that much, but making it longer makes it so the g-max clouds can swirl around it like a storm, and I think that's pretty neat.
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So overall, iconic Pokemon that deserves its status as series mascot. Don't think I need to say any more.
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letsgetsinfulbaby · 8 months
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Gluttony!
Erios - I feel like Erios didn't really have anything "alien" going for them, their final designs feel very watered down compared to their original concept art. What I decided on for the first concept was to stick closely to the in-comic design but change the nose and go with the concept idea of shorter eyebrows and odd marking/ridges on their face. I tried to follow what would go along with their eye/nose ridge line, using yellow to compliment their green complexion and theme. Along with a center forehead marking reminiscent of the center nostril line in their concept, going with the idea of a possible leftover from evolution. I also wanted a more asymmetric shape/idea for them so I removed the little bit of hair on the side to make it a bit more flat. On the second concept, I went with the more alien idea of the third eye and strange nose ridges from the cannon version. I feel like these are a good middle of the concept and the current, I made an attempt as a third nostril and second mouth but I couldn't seem to make it work. I also elongated their neck.
Tylo - Tylo was a bit more difficult due to the fact that the only reference to a different design was a simple thumbnail sketch with them having four eyes and more bull-like horns. I went with that idea for the first designs but instead of four eyes, I kept the eyebrows from the original concept. Wanting a more cosmic alien than the regular human alien we see with some of the hosts, I gave her slightly shorter hands and fingers along with giving her four fingers and the center finger being larger and having a longer claw on it. I expanded on the ombre idea she has on her face and included it throughout her body like on her limbs, I also wanted to be reminiscent of the fur patterns cats can have. For her second design wanted a more dramatic look and combined the horns in the sketch and the horns she has now making it look almost like a crown of sorts or a sort of bug as her in cannon horns look reminiscent of some kind of beetle with the mushrooms looking like eyes. They both have a nose marking that I like to think would be inverted but the texture of the underside of mushrooms, the gills I think is what its called? I wanted the ears to look a little less like oddly pointed cones and look just a bit more interesting. I got the idea of making her hair look reminiscent of fungi called Lion's Mane Mushroom, something I think is fitting for a demon inspired by cats and snakes. I'm hoping we are given more of a reason as to why it is she has literally mushrooms growing on her head so that in future designs I may be able to better incorporate it into my redesigns.
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sonkitty · 25 days
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The Sideburns Scheme (Good Omens 2)
(Previous version: The Sideburns Scheme v1)
This post will likely be regularly updated as I process my thoughts.
Last Updated: 03/24/2024
This is short:
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This is long:
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There is more to to it than above, and we are going to work through that.
Crowley's sideburns change in length in season 2. I have worked out some of how and have some theory on why.
Space
The absolute most crucial thing to understand for my theory is space. Character presence, movement, and likely memory all impact the space, but the space decides the length based on those things. The space is practically a character reading the story with us and making decisions on what length to give Crowley in response.
If you walk way from my post with only one thing and one thing only, I want it to be this:
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The Bentley is Crowley's own former-demon space, and the driver's door to that space is its primary threshold.
Effect
When I refer to the effect, I will specifically mean the changing of the length.
But what is the effect from that?
Each type of length probably provides a benefit of some kind since Crowley takes actions to get them one way or the other. Grasping what that is, is difficult to say the least.
We'll see what each space tells us because the spaces have different readings on Crowley as it is. There are lengths between short and long after all. Short is going to be considered a human space and long enough will be considered a former-demon space, to simplify things as best I can. I won't say "long enough" every time, just "long" and sometimes I will refer to a "longest-length."
On its most basic level, short trends human, and long trends supernatural with that length increasing depending on the supernatural elements within the space.
Even though the length is what I focus on, the sideburns even change on how full of hair they are, and sometimes aren't even...well, even.
Earthly Objects
So far as my own theories go, Earthly Objects is a large, difficult, hidden game that has findable solvable puzzles in Good Omens 2. It is a layered type of game. The characters themselves are playing it, some with a higher awareness than others. An audience member can play it by trying to figure out how the game itself works. I've played it in my attempts at understanding the sideburns. It is amazingly and infuriatingly complex.
The Earthly Objects game is somehow related to this Sideburns Scheme, which is also like a game. Both deal with thresholds so encounter each other. Certain aspects of the Earthly Objects game hint at falsehoods in at least the tutorial sequence for the sideburns.
Even so, the message about how the sideburns worked is still true. This story is tricky like that.
As such, a lot of my analysis is still going to be on what is presented nonetheless. I'll note if and when I have a guess at its deceptive nature.
...
Another important component in my theorizing is that Good Omens 2 is especially interested in these three things: doors, windows, and pockets. We'll be seeing these things a lot within the spaces when studying the sideburns, especially once I get to making more in-depth posts.
Home Base Concept - The Bookshop
Aziraphale's bookshop is where a lot of the present day season 2 story takes place, and it is nearly a second home to Crowley. Aziraphale himself is an angel, or a former angel.
The bookshop's default reading on Crowley being with just Aziraphale—if later scenes in the story are any indication—is somewhere between short and long, a medium length that gets closer to proper human-space short when in a private room together.
That's a reading that recognizes Crowley as a supernatural entity but still giving something shorter than longer reading around other angels. Most likely, that's because Crowley and Aziraphale are supernatural friends whose relationship is very similar to human partners.
When other angels are around, the bookshop's reading on Crowley increases the length. It's most noticeable from Gabriel, but that's likely because Gabriel is the angel who is around for most of the story.
Muriel shows up later, and Muriel is an angel, yet the sideburns are short. What gives?
The bookshop takes Muriel literally when Muriel claims to be human. It probably helps that Aziraphale literally accepts this claim even if he is fully aware that Muriel is an angel. As such, the reading on Crowley is that being a former-demon who tends to be around humans and pretend to be human often enough, the sideburns should still be the proper length for this "human" encounter.
Later in the story, Muriel admits to not being human. Crowley acknowledges a full awareness that they are an angel. The next time they are in the bookshop together, both with other angels and alone, the bookshop then gives the longest type of sideburns to Crowley.
After that, the bookshop's not really going to tell us about other specific angels, such as Michael.
The main thing we're told is that other angels who are not Aziraphale are going to make that length longer, with at least Gabriel and Muriel being among those angels. And that lying by claiming to be "human" will make them shorter nonetheless.
So, what does longer mean among the other angels? My general guess based on character behavior and story events when it's on, is that it's also a mark of rank from Crowley's time as an angel before his fall. The reading comes from a latent memory within the angels themselves. The story has repeated implications he was a high rank, seeming to be most specific at "First-Order Archangel" among those implications.
Crowley seems to be in charge among angels. He becomes a decision-maker and ends up directing the action.
When he is with only himself and Gabriel, he is in charge.
When he is with only himself and Muriel, he is in charge.
When he is with only himself, Aziraphale, and Gabriel, Aziraphale might make suggestions but otherwise follows along with Crowley's direction of what to do.
When Crowley is in the bookshop scene with both the powers of Heaven and Hell, he is in charge right up until he says to Aziraphale, "You got this?" Before that, he is quick to deflect a war, and they basically just let him with him yelling, getting the cardboard box, and recovering Gabriel's memories.
There is a moment where it looks like Michael is taking charge by commanding mortals be turned into salt, but Crowley quickly steps in to volunteer to take care of it. Saraqael, who looked ready to do what Michael ordered, abides and lets Crowley escort the mortals out.
Do longest length sideburns do more than mark rank? I suspect they are related to memory, and they are always present during three access points of memory with Gabriel, who has amnesia. Each one is brief, and it's hard to say how much the information given is actually used. One access point is a mix of Gabriel's and God's voice, another is a mix of Gabriel's and someone else's voice who sounds like a woman, and a third access point is that Gabriel took his memory out of a matchbox, no, wait, he took it out first. In the first two access points, Gabriel's eyes turn purple, which seem to be a mark of rank on him as the Supreme Archangel.
Home Base Concept - The Bentley
Did you ever notice how abruptly the encounters with Shax and Beelzebub ended when Crowley was in or near his car? That was weird, right? Here is what I believe happened.
The Bentley has special rules as a space, and each of those encounters ended with Crowley kicking out the other demon, possibly on accident in two of those instances.
The threshold to the Bentley is mainly the driver's door, but the driver's seat acted as one when Crowley was summoned to Hell.
Of note, the sideburns are long in these instances though not at their longest length that happens in the bookshop. Based on Crowley himself, Shax, and Beelzebub, that altogether suggests a default demon reading from the car. It can change, but it has to be managed through Crowley in the season's ending.
Back to the topic of the encounters, let's move on.
Shax at the Door
Crowley placed himself on the threshold and possibly made Shax wait a full hour before answering his phone. When answering, some of his body is touching the roof of the car, which makes it so that he's not touching that door panel exclusively. Then he turns around when he would presumably not be touching his car but at least fully intending to touch it, which seems to suffice for the story. Shortly after, he is leaning against the roof again.
By taking this action, he is allowing Shax closer to the space around the car, so that she can talk to him.
For the shots we are allowed to see him from the front, he is touching the roof, door panel, and sometimes we see the window pane is included the lean as well.
Before he asks, "Is that all?", he stops touching those parts of the car entirely and cannot be seen touching any other part.
Shax disappears from the scene.
By removing the touch from the car, the home base kicked her out. The forced exit seems unintentional.
Summoned by Beelzebub to Hell
Beelzebub uses a fly already inside the car. Crowley did not invite Beelzebub in, but the fly is enough to get their metaphorical foot in the door.
After Beelzebub says, "Hello, Traitor," Crowley makes a hit against his driver's seat, then says, "Oh."
Beelzebub then does not fully manifest in corporal form into the car and summons Crowley into Hell.
Crowley very deliberately leans back and while we can't see his back constantly against the throne during the entire scene, it is implied, bare minimum, he is not leaning forward while on that throne for most of it. He's gathering intel despite his evident reluctance to be in Hell during the scene.
The throne he sits in represents his driver's seat. Even when Crowley seems to want to lean forward, he'll try to not lean too much or he will lean to the side. Until the end of the conversation, he only leans forward off the back of the seat when he asks something ("Is that a new face?" "How?"). As in, he is inviting that part of the conversation into his space. He'll lean most toward Beelzebub's throne, even making sure to place his hand on the seat. The seat is to Crowley's own left, which is akin to the passenger seat in his car.
Crowley never stands up from the throne and only leans too far forward possibly at the end and possibly on accident. Beelzebub's "So if you hear anything, you come to me first, yeah?" is good enough to end the conversation, and that was a conversation where they were not invited. Crowley himself has no further questions and no further interest in actually being in Hell. The intel gathering is done. As such, the space reads that business is done and sends him back to the car instantly, whether Crowley intended for that exact thing to happen or not.
Shax in the Car
Crowley allowed Shax in by not verbally denying her entry and looking at where she would manifest. He kicked her out by non-verbally revving up his car even more after doing it once and giving her a second look. The home base understood it was about to de-activate and kicked her out.
Activation Points for longer sideburns:
The proper border for short and long is hard to explain, but when I say "longer" below, I am looking for length beyond what you see before Crowley enters the coffee shop and walks across the street with Aziraphale when they leave. Both scenes show us multiple angles of his face for comparison to the rest of the season.
Activation Points for longer sideburns:
-The bookshop under the right conditions
-The Bentley under the right conditions
-The pub (dependent on its threshold)
-The music shop (dependent on its threshold)
-Hell (likely qualifying through the Bentley)
-Heaven (assumed, likely qualifying through the pub)
-The park (iffy, find out more here)
What are the right conditions for the bookshop to make Crowley's sideburns longer?
Longer seems to be a default reading actually. It's more like certain exceptions must not be met.
-No individual angel claiming to be human
AND
-Not in the private room with Aziraphale after encountering Gabriel
AND
-Not alone before an angel activates the effect.
The sideburns will be at their longest-length in any significant angel encounter that has an angel who is not Aziraphale and not pretending to be human. Those scenes are:
Scenes with only Crowley and Gabriel
Scenes with only Crowley, Gabriel, and Aziraphale
The overall general scene with angels, demons, and two humans, where Crowley is actively trying to undo a declaration of war.
The scene with Muriel after everyone else has left.
There's a small chance they lengthened slightly after first encountering Muriel, then going to talk to Aziraphale in the private room, but I can't really tell.
The sideburns are long during the ball, some parts being very hard to tell if they have reached their longest-length when there is a stronger focus on Gabriel's presence at the ball.
What are the right conditions for the Bentley to make Crowley's sideburns longer?
These conclusions are based on clues from the story itself:
-Staying parked for a long enough time with Crowley inside
-Approaching the car itself being isolated in a familiar area at night
-Standing at the threshold with utmost precision in the season's ending
The sideburns are at their longest length in the season's ending up to right before the credits start.
I currently think it is because of a combination of stillness, his left arm's exclusive touch on the threshold, and his right hand pocket touch.
Activation Points for shorter sideburns:
-Driving the Bentley for a long enough time after de-activating it as a home base.
-Exiting far enough away from the bookshop, assuming the bookshop already activated longer sideburns. This distance expands during the story, explained further below.
-Being present in human spaces. Thresholds can both force and counter this effect, dependent on their design.
-Entering a private room with Aziraphale within the bookshop shortened them from the bookshop's main first floor after encountering Gabriel.
Connecting the Two Home Bases
During the specific season 2 story, Crowley regularly parks his car across the street from the bookshop, usually by the coffee shop.
In episode 1, once Crowley reaches the middle of the street and starts to count to ten, the sideburns are a shorter length that better matches before he entered the bookshop.
In episode 2, we see Crowley with longer sideburns right before he crosses the threshold whereas episode 1 showed them still short. At some point he leaves and is seen with short sideburns again, across the street.
In episode 3, Crowley exits the bookshop to interact with Shax. He never crosses the street and remains mostly along the sidewalk. Still, it might be considered further in distance and longer for the sideburns than seen in episodes 1 and 2.
In episode 4, when Crowley exits the bookshop, his sideburns are again longer than the usual shortness around humans up to that point of the story. Episode 1 is structured to tell us that the sideburns get shorter from the bookshop threshold to the center of the street. Episode 4 shows us the sideburns did not get shorter from the bookshop threshold to the center of the street. They stayed longer.
Why?
Crowley and Aziraphale connected their home bases for when the Bentley is parked across the street, intentionally or not. I think it is intentional, but I have a very loose grasp on a possible reason.
So, how did they connect their home bases?
Aziraphale borrowed Crowley's car. Crowley borrowed Aziraphale's bookshop.
Put another way, Aziraphale inhabited Crowley's home base without Crowley for a certain amount of time and distance. Crowley inhabited Aziraphale's home base without Aziraphale for a certain amount of time and distance. Both time and distance contribute to changing the length from each of these homes.
Crowley and Aziraphale remotely contact each other once during this borrowing phase. Assuming this effect is memory-related, those spaces now share those memories.
When Crowley and Aziraphale take Crowley's plants, living things that inhabited one home base, then another, during this process, they are finalizing this connection.
The plants will now have memories of being in each space, and each space will now have memories of the plants inhabiting them.
I suspect these plants are a key part of the connection that is better covered in my Earthly Objects theorizing, specifically here:
The Pocket Chain Rainbow Connection Part 4 - The Door Trick and The Door Catch
Yes, despite Crowley's seeming reluctance and discomfort with loaning his car, I think forming this connection was intentional from both of them. I'll get into a specific part of how I interpret him agreeing to loan the car when time allows for covering the story scene-by-scene.
All the same, back to my main stuff. My theory is the home base border along the center of the street has disappeared. It might actually be more like a radius around the bookshop that has expanded, but that's the main place the border is understood to exist.
Onto my loose grasp of a possible reason.
This connection—this disappearance of that border—does not protect the rest of the street from the incoming demon invasion when it starts. The demons enter the area without invitation.
After Crowley enters the bookshop for the ball, as best I can tell, no humans are on the street. There is a bunch of fog, and it's dark, and there are demons. Eventually, there will be an angel there, but there are no humans.
Crowley escorts some humans to safety to exit the bookshop. However, when he dismisses them, we don't really see where they go. The story cuts away, and when we are back to Crowley's location, they are gone.
There are other times we've seen Crowley in or near his car with longer sideburns and no humans.
The basic idea is that the space surrounding Crowley's car, that we've been seeing, has split itself into two different spaces at once. One is the Earth where humans do what they do, as usual, but are now not disturbing Crowley while he is in his car. The other is the Earth where Crowley does what he does, not being disturbed by humans until the driving time deems otherwise. The "no humans" space is a supernatural-exclusive zone when it comes to angels, demons, and humans.
For whatever it's worth, the only living natural beings I can find in the area are plants, inside and out of the car, and that one fly before Beelzebub shows up inside the car (assuming that fly is indeed natural).
Instead of a person, such as Crowley, being two places at once, one place becomes two places at once. The car being Hell, and the pub being Heaven further support this idea. Each of those spaces are accessed when Crowley has the longer sideburns and in that zone to begin with.
The mechanics are confusing with the flies. I don't fully get it, but it probably relates to the car having thresholds in a wider supernatural space.
In the case of the ball, the split didn't just happen by accident or through time alone. Crowley's car is near the bookshop, but he wasn't in it. It wasn't in its usual isolated area. The window is open on the morning of the ball but closed when he talks to Nina, so we're never shown when it's being switched from open or closed.
There is a very specific point where things start to change, but before that, there are also some specific things that happen. Namely, during each ball invitation shown on camera, Crowley accompanies Aziraphale. He does not say anything during the actual inviting and makes various touches during each scene. These touches generally include earthly objects, self-clothing touches, self-skin-contact touches, and...pockets. Pockets are a big, little thing in GO2 that are beyond my ability to understand or explain.
I'm sorry. It sucks. It really, really sucks that I cannot do better. I've picked up enough to know they're important so am telling you at least that much. You definitely don't have to believe me because touches-or-not, there are still ball invitations, and things still change. Crowley gets his own special invitation that's to the bookshop instead of the meeting.
Once he accepts this invitation, he goes to the bookshop and approaches Gabriel in basically Demon Mode. I'll get into it more whenever I reach the scene itself. You can read what I initially wrote in my past post on the Sideburns: The Sideburns Scheme
Nonetheless, I think Crowley was drawing out his own demonic energy to start the split, a shift from one zone to the other.
The shift is not instant. It's happening while Crowley is out in the street to make sure Maggie and Nina are on their way. The street is growing increasingly foggy as it is getting darker. Fewer and fewer humans are around as time passes.
It doesn't really seem to be completed until Maggie is walking toward the bookshop with Nina not long before her as next-to-last. Maggie herself is a human, but she seems to be a special type of human not explained in the story as to how or why she is different. Nina could be too even if it's not as obvious. She is next-to-last.
If one excludes Maggie because she is human in some capacity, then it's probably done when Crowley himself enters the bookshop as a means to complete the matter, further confirmed with Shax arriving through the supernatural elevator in the pub instead of wherever the rest of the demons came from. The story referred to such a place as "stairs" when Shax was planning the invasion. An elevator is decidedly not stairs. It definitely raises questions about Shax with that kind of timing and wording.
Another thing about this special zone is that the Bentley is the only car around once the shift is done.
Speaking of the car, Crowley won't just drive away to re-merge these spaces. Not only that, he's not going back into that bookshop despite the indications in the dialogue he would.
Nope.
Instead, he goes to Heaven and spends time there until the war declaration goes off. Upon returning the following day, the merge has happened, either through the time itself or just the reset of the day. Sure, it could be the halo blowing up, but the people aren't shown as being in the street until Crowley himself is visibly there. It could be a combination of these factors too.
So, if Crowley and Aziraphale wanted to protect the street overall from the incoming invasion but somehow still needed this ball to happen with some humans, that's what they did to protect everyone as best they could.
It might even be a trial run for needing to protect Earth on a much bigger scale later.
Now, admittedly, he did seem alarmed by the demons arriving, but both he and Aziraphale have been acting in certain ways to throw off whoever or whatever is reading them throughout this story.
By making the border disappear—or expand—that meant that once Crowley entered the bookshop on the implied Thursday, his sideburns could not become their usual shortness around humans until after he had driven for enough time and far enough away from the bookshop. He did not take that action and receive that shortness until right before the ending credits.
I suspect the sideburns do more than all of that since they seem connected to memory in some way.
...
The Bigger Thresholds Trick
This part of The Sideburns Scheme is a significant crossover with The Earthly Objects Game as one of the Threshold Tricks Crowley does during Good Omens 2.
There are three special locations that have thresholds bigger than Crowley, but we'll talk about a certain two first.
Those locations are the pub and the music shop. They are human-specific spaces that make it quite difficult to develop theories like the one about the connection and the other about the existence of a supernatural zone. In these two places, Crowley's sideburns are longer.
During the story, both locations have one thing in common that seems to have nothing to do with Crowley. Both locations have an encounter with a human who remembers a meeting from some years ago and say as much to Aziraphale.
And then...there's Heaven. This time, there's no obvious way for a sideburn check. Instead, one is left to guess it's still relevant given the past two locations and noticing the threshold is bigger than Crowley.
I'll be covering these places more in-depth over time, hopefully, but you can again look to my previous post about the sideburns for reference: The Sideburns Scheme
The past post lacks many things about Heaven in particular, but the main one I want to note is Muriel's relevance. As far as my own theorizing is concerned now compared to then, Muriel is someone Crowley trusts deeply. You can find out more on that theory in these two links: Bookend Buddies - Crowley and Muriel (Part 2)
Before I move on from The Bigger Thresholds Trick, here is my understanding of how this part of Earthly Objects works. The sideburns being longer in the pub and music shop are a clue about this particular Threshold Trick.
A threshold being bigger than Crowley is not enough on its own to credit Crowley as having tricked that type of threshold.
Each one has a simple explanation but is done in a more complex way for an audience member playing to try and figure out in a puzzle.
My own conclusions are as follows:
In the pub, he "switched lanes".
In the music shop, he "never let go of the door".
I don't know the true simple explanation for Heaven though a good one would involve "misdirection", especially given the context of the entrance scene itself. I'm still not sure on that, and even if I'm on the right track, there should be some more words to the solution because that one word alone is a noun without a verb. It also might need to be more specifically referencing the "arrest". Still, "misdirection" feels worth mentioning. After all, maybe someone else can figure it out with that idea to work with.
...
The Season 2 Ending (The Door Trick)
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Just like with the bigger thresholds, this part of the Sideburns Scheme actually crosses over with the Earthly Objects game (Threshold Tricks)
I am cutting a lot of content on it in this newer post though, again, you can look to the older one for reference to find more: The Sideburns Scheme
At the end of season 2, Crowley is seen standing at the door to his car with longest-length sideburns.
For anyone trying to figure out how the sideburns work, that's noteworthy.
Despite how much we've seen Crowley, the car, and humans throughout the story, we've never seen them all combined into this particular context.
Other angels and demons are gone. Muriel is supposedly around but not on screen. Aziraphale and the Metatron have some distance between themselves and Crowley. Meanwhile, Crowley himself is surrounded by humans.
So, a question arises. Why are they this long in this setting?
Well, I already mentioned my answer before, but I'll repeat it and some more too. He's doing some specific things despite how simple it looks.
This character is precise in his choices, whatever this scheme really is.
He is standing incredibly still. He has his legs crossed. The scene is structured to alert us that even though we can't see his feet, they are not touching the edge of the sidewalk—a threshold. He has his right hand fingers in his pocket and his thumb outside the pocket. The camera work ensures we know that he is not touching the window frame despite the incoming angle where we, otherwise, could not know. His left arm is touching the door panel. The door panel is the threshold. It is not an earthly object. He is touching his own space in his own way while watching Aziraphale's departure.
There is a lot to be said for that pocket touch, which I hope to do eventually in other posts.
My own personal interpretation—not just from the games—but as someone having played them and who has her own thoughts on the story goes as follows:
Crowley is giving everything he has in himself to see Aziraphale off without truly giving his full self up in the process. Aziraphale is going to a place Crowley will not follow. Even so, the demon of the pair has put pieces in place to help Aziraphale from the distance they will have between each other in the foreseeable future. They both contributed to creating and maintaining a connection with each other during Good Omens 2. They both love Earth, and they are going to work to protect Earth in Good Omens 3.
These are generally the posts I have on The Door Trick itself, for now:
The Sideburns Scheme (skip ahead to The Season 2 Ending (The Door Trick)
The Door Trick Visual Representation (GIFs)
The Pocket Chain Rainbow Connection Part 4 - The Door Trick and The Door Catch
...
That's all I'll say for now since I have a lot of posts I want to make to cover parts of Good Omens 2 more in-depth.
Newer posts:
Episode 1: The Arrival
Post #0 (Before the Beginning)
Post #1 (meeting with Shax in St. James' Park)
Post #2 (meeting with Shax in the street)
Post #3 (phone call with Aziraphale in the Bentley)
Post #4 (The Perfect Entrance Trick)
Post #5 (revisiting park scene for zoom and blur weirdness)
Post #6 (being in the coffee shop)
Post #7 (crossing the street from the coffee shop to the bookshop)
Post #8 (finding out Gabriel is in the bookshop)
Post #9 (fragile existence)
Post #10 (storming out)
Post #11 (being summoned)
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Older posts:
Here are the ones from the last post until I can get newer ones added over time:
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If you read only one of the rest of the links below, this one is probably best:
Crowley S2 Hair Post #10 (angry lightning walk)
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More here if you really want to go deep into my findings, still being edited as I learn things:
Episode 1: The Arrival
Post #1 (meeting with Shax in St. James' Park)
Post #2 (meeting with Shax in the street)
Post #3 (phone call with Aziraphale in the Bentley)
Post #4 (entering the coffee shop)
Post #5 (revisiting park scene for zoom and blur weirdness)
Post #6 (being in the coffee shop)
Post #7 (crossing the street from the coffee shop to the bookshop)
Post #8 (finding out Gabriel is in the bookshop)
Post #9 (fragile existence)
Post #10 (angry lightning)
Post #11 (being summoned)
Post #12 (being in Hell)
Post #13 (before driving to the bookshop)
Post #14 (driving to the bookshop)
Post #15 (fixing coffee shop power)
Post #16 (hiding Gabriel)
Episode 2: The Clue
Post #17 (meeting with Shax in the car)
Post #18 (the pub)
Post #19 (crossing the street from the pub to the bookshop)
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This project is inspired by these posts:
Crowley’s Sideburns & what do they mean?
Ok, I love this theory that it could be some sort ...
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theemporium · 1 year
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not sure if this is considered a wee concept idea or not but have this thought that won’t leave my brain: steve or eddie or steddie using anal as ‘punishment’ (as if 😜) if you’ve been bratty or misbehaving they’ll tease you mercilessly until your dripping wet and then only fuck you in the ass all while mocking you “aww that pretty pussy feeling empty sweetheart?” you love every second of it 🥵
listen i have never written anal and idek if this is good but its unedited and kinda messy so enjoy!🤡
“Look at her, Harrington, poor thing is shaking like a leaf.” 
It wasn’t often that you liked to push them. You liked being their good girl, you liked the smiles they gave you and the whispered praises in between kisses. You liked it when they were proud of you. 
So you weren’t actually sure why today of all days you test their limits. 
You were snappier than usual, ready to pick an argument t any little, inconvenient matter. Your temper was shorter than normal, and truth be told, maybe you were just gouding for a fight. 
The boys didn’t mind at first. They were used to your moods, they thought you were just tired and you’d pick up throughout the day. 
But when your bratiness showed no signs of leaving, their patience was wearing thin and they knew only one way to shut you up. 
“Aw, baby,” Steve’s mocking voice sounded from behind you, feathered kisses placed along your back. “This is what you wanted, no?” 
“Please,” you gasped out, hands fisted into the sheets, your cheek pressed against the mattress. 
“Now she has manners,” Eddie mused, tilting his head as he glanced down at you, fingers gently pushing some hair away from your face. “‘S cute, baby, thinking that’s gonna change anything.” 
“Please,” you cried out, wet slick coating your inner thighs and running down your leg. 
You were soaking. Downright fucking wet. And they weren’t done yet. You knew they weren’t done and maybe that should have terrified you, maybe that should have made you feel a little guilty, but truthfully, it just excited you.
“So fucking tight,” Steve groaned, his head thrown back and his hair pushed out of his face as he squeezed your hips. You were clenching around his cock, warm and tight and fuck, Steve didn’t think he would last much longer but this was your punishment, not his. 
“Hear that, baby,” Eddie cooed as his fingers gripped your chin, lifting your head up enough so your gaze could find his. “Stevie likes that pretty little ass of yours.” 
“I–” you gasped a little when Steve gave a short, hard thrust. The words dying on your tongue and a hazy look in your eyes as you stared up at Eddie. Your hands darted out, gripping onto his tatted thighs and he swore you never looked so pretty. 
“Hm, want that mouth full too?” Eddie teased as his thumb brushed over your bottom lip, sliding past your lips and pressing against your tongue. His lips twitched upwards when your mouth closed around his thumb, sucking obediently without him even having to say a word. “Our girl is a little whore, huh?” 
You whined, the sound muffled by his thumb but Steve only chuckled behind you, his laugh a little breathless. 
“Oh she likes that,” Steve’s voice was gruff and low, his tone just a little mean and it made your whole body shudder. “She likes that a lot, Eds.” 
“Yeah?” Eddie lifted his head to look at Steve, the smirk on his lips was vindictive and it shouldn’t have been so attractive to you. “Needy thing just wants to be used, have all her holes filled.” 
“Maybe not all,” Steve murmured, fingers ghosting along your slit and they both laughed at the way your body squirmed at the feather-touch. 
“You’re ours tonight, doll,” Eddie’s eyes met your teary gaze, something mean and a little mischievous glimmering in those big brown eyes. “Our bratty little toy.” 
.
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albinocapybara · 8 days
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Finally after being stumped on a name for so long, the LeshyCat children concept is here, first, of course, some info on the parents :)
(Btw im not a native english speaker)
If you have any questions about them or my other headcanons feel free to ask too!
How they met: Due to his injuries making it extremely difficult for him to adjust to his new life in the cult (let alone how he would now have to learn how to live with a mortal body again) on his own, the Yellow Cat (who i will be referring to as "Amare" from now on) was assigned as his caretaker to help him deal with the necessities that came with being a mortal again (sleep, water, physical activities and so on) on top of the problems that came with his injury. While Leshy at first felt insulted by this treatment (the whole "i was a god i can do this without the help of some mortal yada yada" thing), he soon realized it was for the better (while also realizing his feelings for Amare :3).
Leshy: Freed from Purgatory in the cult around 100-ish years after his death and 15 years after Narinder was overthrown by The Lamb. All his high priests and his witness (Amdusias, Valefar, Barbatos and Agares) had passed away before his arrival, making the former and current gods of death the only "familiar" figures in the cult (they both changed so much after their last encounters), although he still avoided both of them most of the time (Narinder because of his conflicting thoughts about the older brother, and The Lamb somewhat out of anger at them but mostly fear due to how traumatic Purgatory was for him), but dont worry they eventually made amends along with the rest of the bishops :). Also became friends with bat follower but she isnt relevant for this post
Amare (the Yellow Cat): Rescued from being sacrificed to the dead bishop of chaos in Darkwood after followers of the Old Faith killed everyone else from his village, works as a farmer in the cult. He was the only follower (aside from the first five followers of the cult, who are kept alive and act as advisors and friends for The Lamb) that knew of Leshy's past as an bishop, and though he still held resentment for the former god, The Lamb's seeming disposition to forgive him made the cat consider doing the same for him, volunteering to be his caretaker. Once their relationship was made official, he was given a golden skull necklace to ensure the two could stay by each other's side for eternity.
Now for the children hehe
They are twins (as ive mentioned in my other posts), a daughter named Camellia (Amare chose the name) and a son named (drumroll please im so proud of this name) Havoc! (Name chosen by Leshy of course).
They both have green moss-like fur from Leshy, and the head shape of a cat from Amare, but other than that their bodies are very distinct due to inheriting different parts from their parents
Havoc: His limbs and tail, as well as his longer whiskers, are from Amare, giving him a silhouette very similar to a cat, aside from the antler-like branches he got from Leshy, he also has two sets of eyes like Leshy used to have once, ironically though, he has rather poor eyesight, needing glasses to see things that are a bit too far. Despite his name he is actually pretty calm and enjoys the peacefulness of the cult, though this doesnt mean he is opposed to some occasional mischief, specially with his sister. Wants to help with teaching when he becomes of age (also im thinking about the idea of having him figure himself out as transfem but thats for another time)
Camellia: her limbs and tail, being from Leshy, are quite a bit longer and thicker than her brother's, giving her a broader and taller silhouette, as well as making her quite a bit stronger physically, she also has only one set of eyes and shorter whiskers than her brother, as well as no branch antlers. Is a very active person, playing with other kids and sometimes helping adults with tasks that wouldnt risk injuring her (most of the time they dont let her though). Also loves doing pranks and other forms of tomfoolery around the cult along with her brother. She is also very protective of him, getting into multiple fights with kids (and a drunk adult one time) who pick on him (aka bullies). Wants to follow her parent's job of farming when she comes of age.
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dimorphodon-x · 3 months
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Heya! I have a couple questions about Oardivia.
1. Do Oardivians face functionism in some shape or form? Such as a mech with an Orca based alt-mode being denied to work in “higher classed fields”?
2. Are we allowed to make mentor ocs with charges? I know you mentioned a while back that there were less creations of charges but I’m not sure if we’re allowed to make ocs that are still being mentored.
3. How long are charges mentored? Are they mentored for two kilocycles like in IDW2, or is it a longer/shorter period of time?
4. Are Oardivians with bird based alt-mode able to travel down to lower levels? Mainly Epip and Meso? (I wouldn’t expect Bathys or Abysso.)
Sorry for all the questions but Oardivia is so interesting to me!! I’d really like to make an oc without doing anything disrespectful to your work.
1.
Oardivian functionalism is something I’ve thought about here and there, but not in depth yet. It would definitely be very different from traditional Cybertronian functionalism, there isn’t really a high/low caste alt mode like a microscope vs. tank. Appearance and origin is what often differentiate high class citizens from low class, high class being more fancy and delicate looking and low class being more plain and solid. Consider Royal Blue’s design (politician and Oardivia’s Leader raised in the rich city Meso) compared to Razorfin(ex-bodyguard from a not very impressive/rich background, raised in Abbyso). Both have whale altmodes, but are seen very differently due to their backgrounds and looks. Even if Razorfin was a well trusted guard with a friendly/selfless disposition, he was seen as lesser than other guards of more noble backgrounds, especially given that he was Royal Blue’s guard, which really didn’t help him. “A stain beside a pearl.”
Functionalism in Oardivia is still of course based on what each kind of altmode is capable of. For example, most race teams refused anyone that didn’t have a dolphin altmode. No sharks, no birds, no seals and certainly no whales.
It’s only relatively recently (within the last few centuries) that the first race team of whales was assembled, but even then, the only kind of whale that can join are fin whales.
This is only one of potentially many examples, but I may talk more about it if asked or if anyone wishes to share ideas and concepts on this topic. It’s not exactly a pleasant bit of lore, but still interesting to tackle and explore.
2.
Yes! Mentoring an Oardivian may take many many centuries. By this point charges that are still heavily dependent upon their mentors are very few. If you are still unsure, please feel free to contact me so that we can work things out for your ocs! :>
3.
Firstly, I wasn’t aware that it took 2 kilocycles (that’s 2000 years, yes?) for a cybertronian to be mentored! Nice to know!
The length of time one is under mentorship can vary a bit, but it can take a bit longer than than 2 kilocycles. Perhaps 3 or 4. Oardivians spend a lot of time learning and then perfecting various skills and abilities, and they can have many. Nearly half of most of your average Oardivian’s talents involve music, from various instruments to styles of singing. These things take a lot of time and effort to perfect.
4.
Those with flying bird altmodes don’t often travel below Meso, as they’re not as efficient swimmers as diving birds like penguins, who can travel down as deep as Abbyso if they so desire. Not many do desire to, so birds of any sort are pretty much never seen in Abbyso, while they’re a very rare sight in Bathys. Meso actually has a few residents with bird altmodes, such as Senator Crest Silver, though these individuals are rich high class mechs.
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