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fan-clan-fun · 4 months

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This isn't fan clan related, but I'm curious. If you were to take the four clans (excluding SkyClan) and make them more unique, how would you do it? What I mean is what physique would you give ThunderClan? What distinctive skill would you give RiverClan? Will you give WindClan special customs? What about ShadowClan?

Gosh this is gonna be a long one. It's entirely possible I have answered something like this in the past, and if I have, and this answer is changed from that... well people grow and change too. So let's see what my thoughts are on the clan today. First off, I would focus on what miniscule stuff we get in the books and expand on it. Thunderclan - A very martial society, your rank is earned primarily based on your physical abilities, fighting, hunting, etc. I imagine their ceremonies and expectations revolve around that. They are loud, proud, obnoxious in some ways. They are... almost like Americans with how patriotic they are. Only partially kidding. They are the ones most likely to uphold the strictest niceties of the code, or pretend to anyway. Culturally, they are very into the mythos of heros, telling grand stories of cats who came before, and their exploits, and they value their lineage greatly. Oh, this hero was my sire's great great grandfather, and he did this. It also shows up in their naming conventions, as many kits are named after past heros, or cats the parents respected or want their kits to be like. Aside from attitude, they have skills primarily geared towards their forest environment. They should be able to climb trees, navigate through dense underbrush, and fight off the more abundant predators. As a result, bigger, tougher cats have thrived, whereas the smaller slimmer body types are not considered as attractive and are not as well represented. Scars are considered the height of beauty, as they show off the strength and prowess of a cat. It means they fought something and survived. Windclan - With the introduction of the tunnelers in the special edition, I feel like there's an interesting dichotomy to be found in Windclan. Ultimately, as much as I like it, and even would like to explore it, I feel like there was good reasoning for the tunnelers to be done away with. That said, those skills could be repurposed. To me, what marks Windclan is its ability to be adaptable.

With all its open spaces, I think Windclan would be well served as a semi-nomadic group, that has one or two different camps that it moves between based on the weather and prey density. For the winter, I imagine they shelter in a system of caves, which are maintained and cared for by a small group of tunnelers. In summer, they have an above ground camp, set at a somewhat high point in the territory, where they wouldnt get flooded out during a storm. As a result, cats are taught a wide set of skills. The clan works together at every step of the way, and a take down larger and faster pray like rabbits as a result. Windclan cats are used to traveling long distances, and being friendly with outsiders for a variety of reasons, information on movements of other cats or groups of them and food sources for example. I see Windclan as having the biggest territory, but also the sparsest when it comes to prey and population. Windclan is a very collaborative clan, they sing and tell stories to pass the time as they travel, building on one another for fantastical tales that bring hope and excitement during the bleaker times. They revere the stars, and the wind, and use the sky as their guide to travel. Their spirituality is focused on Starclan as a group, rather than individuals. There are many intricate stories and rituals that the clan performs under the stars, each season and each moon. Names hold great meaning, but are also often ethereal and based on feeling, rather than any particular meaning.

Because of the need to be agile, and survive long distances of travel, sleeker, smaller cats have thrived in the clan, as they require less food and are quick on their paws. Windclan cats rarely meet an enemy head on or one on one, using their agility to ambush and confuse any source of danger. Shadowclan - An ever practical clan, I see Shadowclan as having the smallest and least desirable territory, meaning this clan does what must be done. They are willing to bend the code if they need, in order to get what they want. At the same time, they are fiercely loyal to friends and family. Not necessarily the clan as an image, but the ones they care about. If you are looking for innovation, clever resolutions to problems, and independence of thought, Shadowclan is where you will find it. They'll propose puzzles to solve around the fresh kill pile to keep their minds sharp. There's little fear in this clan, nor much room for being picky. If something is edible, you take it, you bring it back.

Shadowclan often find themselves being called sneaky or duplicitous because they are willing to compromise the code, or use others to get what is needed for the clan to thrive, but really, its about survival. No hard feelings. They've learned to hide, to watch, to learn, that ambush and guerilla tactics are far more effective, and less likely to lose a clan member, than head on confrontation. As such, dark pelts are preferred, but otherwise, if it helps you survive? Thats all that matters.

To some of the other clans they appear irreverent, but to Shadowclan, its just common sense. Starclan isnt alive right now, they are gone. Sure they might be able to help, but might not. Cant rely on them and wait for them to help. Its better to do it yourself. The same can be said for names. Prefixes arent given much value, based only on material things, but your suffix? Thats what defines you, as it shows the skills and challenges you went through to get your name. There's often a fierce competition amongst apprentices to not end up with the same suffix, to be the best in the group at certain things. Riverclan - Riverclan are the epitome of work smarter, not harder. They have the most prosperous territory of the four, with a mostly guaranteed food source throughout the majority of the year, aside from the coldest winter months when things freeze over. The clan makes it its business to know everything there is to know about water, how it flows and pools, how to swim, how to manipulate its direction for the clan's benefit. All kits are taught how to swim from as young as possible. It's said that Riverclan apprenticeships are the hardest of the clans, as apprentices are expected to learn a lot, and take on a lot of responsibility. But once you become a warrior, you are much more prepared and settled, confident in your abilities. And by being aware of their skills and limitations, it allows warriors to know what they have to do, and how long it takes, and allows them the time to relax after. Many warriors seem lazy or childish, because they are reliving the childhood they never had, now that they are old enough to do so. But having the most prosperous food source, also makes Riverclan targets. They have developed a reputation of silver tongues, but also of being pushovers. At the same time, while other clan war far more frequently, Riverclan find themselves the peace makers and neutral arbiters. They are generous with their food and their resources in times of need, leaving other clans often in debt to them.

The physical traits that make a Riverclan cat effective, are thick fur to protect the body from cold water, and an ability to store fat easily. When Riverclan cats do end up in a fight, they don't back down or hide, they take others on directly, their fur and extra padding a layer of protection.

Their worship of starclan is rather traditional, but also not fanatic. They invoke Starclan for blessings regarding the weather, ask them to intercede about rain and storms. There is a belief that Starclan, like the stars reflecting on water, are reflecting in the living cats. Some Riverclan cats even whisper about reincarnations, that just like water comes from the sky, and returns to it, so do cats and their spirits. This means that like Thunderclan, many cats are named for cats from before, or names that have to do with water in its many forms. Well, I said it was gonna be a long one, and boy howdy it is. I havent written on canon clans for a hot minute, but I could probably expand and think on this more, I might never stop if I started though. Maybe this will give others some inspiration!

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schafpudel · 4 months

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Epidemiology of the Raven's Blood

Part 0: Prologue

Realistically, the blood does things because it's convenient to the plot of the anime, and no deeper thought needs to be put in than that. However, while it does explain inconsistencies in its writing, it's boring and not fun to my pattern-seeking brain. I like to piece together coherent internal logic to stuff in fiction, even if I know the authors themselves didn't think that hard about it. It's fun to me!

At the same time, Princess Tutu's meta-fictional conceit does give us some wiggle room to borrow the Doylist understanding and smuggle it back into a Watsonian explanation. So...

In-universe, I think, the purpose of the Raven’s Blood can be understood as a plot device to easily convert a separate “character” and their body into a narrative extension of the Raven; that this is why Drosselmeyer would write it into the logic of his story. Bored of a character you introduced previously and want to heighten the stakes? They're a toadie of the Raven now. And when we go a level down in fictionality...

To the Raven, other living things exist to be exploited. The only use you can have, beyond being a meal, is being a pawn who can get it what it wants – and what it wants is to consume. Like some ancient castle-bound vampire or wicked dragon, its power and intelligence are ultimately in service of a simple predatory desire. If you are neither edible nor manipulable, you are simply a nuisance.

Diseases and parasites will manipulate pain and pleasure, fear and love, the body and the brain. But while a real disease or parasite’s goal in psychological and physiological manipulation is to reproduce, to turn the infected into a means by which to spread itself to new hosts... the Raven's curse is uninterested in this. What matters, to the Raven, is that the cursed becomes a minion and a pawn, who can bring its prey closer to its own mouth.

Part 1: Lay All Your Love On Me

Part 2: Serving Your Heart On A Platter

I’m sure you’ve heard of a sickness that feeds predators their prey. Toxoplasmosis, for example makes male rats as horny and lovesick over the smell of cat urine as they are at the scent of female rats, switching the pathways of fear and desire, to lure them into being devoured. The pathways between the two run parallel, you see. For the infected, every cat becomes a succubus, a siren, a beautiful creature calling its prey to their willing doom. And, if the parasite gets what it wants, this is how the rat dies.

Why am I talking about this? Because Mytho starts talking about feeding himself to birds literally the day that his symptoms start presenting, in episode 14.

It’s true he’s saying this while antagonizing Fakir, so one could also brush it off as him just Saying Shit to make his roommate as uncomfortable as possible. But also – we know what the Raven wants, in the end.

For most of season 2, however, Raven!Mytho doesn’t continue to talk about feeding himself to crows. He’s mostly focused on seducing sacrifices, manipulating public opinion, having meltdowns about not being loved enough, and being petty to Fakir and Kraehe. His sense of self-preservation (in as much as Mytho has ever had one, cough) seems genuinely intact for episodes 15 through 21. If Mytho is feeling weirdly giggly about getting eaten during that timespan, he’s doing an awfully good job of hiding it.

And then Mytho starts molting into a crow monster at the end of episode 21, and the rat toxoplasmosis symptoms kicks back in.

(We're not told what he's smiling about here in episode 22, but the next episode, episode 23, makes it obvious:)

This does seem likely to be a Mytho-specific symptom; Rue shows no sign of this. The Raven has been particularly invested in eating Mytho’s heart for a long time, after all; Mytho’s job as the Raven’s doordash delivery guy was always going to be temporary even if he hadn’t beeninterrupted every time. It’s entirely possible that other people could end up with this “symptom” too, but we never see it.

The fact that Raven!Mytho proceeds to acts so strangely cuddly after telling Kraehe she’s an ugly fuck (but also that he needs her love) feels somehow related to this enthusiasm for getting eaten by crows. His voice delivery in the Japanese audio for the heart/lips/blood line sounds… …I hate to say this.

It sounds like he thinks a crow girl ripping out his heart and touching it onto her mouth is really hot.

(Yea, of course she's shaped like an uggo human (and he's in the process of moulting into a majestic raven and he's sosososo excited for that) - but hey, she's technically a crow as far as he knows, and she has black feathers....)

(And while regular!Mytho seems negative to neutral about that in season 1, Raven!Mytho only ever complimented Kraehe for having crow-like qualities.)

Anyways! In Mytho's final state under the Raven's Blood, he immediately obeys the Raven's orders to be devoured, completely ignoring Rue and Tutu's pleas.

...You know, until the Fairytale Confession of Love, because this is a magical curse and it is a fairytale.

Part 3 and Part 4 are not ready yet but are in the works. See you soon.

#princess tutu

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bones-of-a-rabbit · 2 years

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long defeated sigh

okay. here it is. au #23847387834: the Mythological Beastie Rehab AU

(yeah this one is over explained i have a bunch of ideas for the story for this one sdjfh)

(BIG WARNING this is so long. it’s like 1000 words on its own. im so. so sorry

The Mytho Rehab AU: (Sun, Moon, Eclipse x reader)

In this au, all of the boys- and every animatronic from sb tho they may or may not be relevant- is a mythological creature of some kind! Eclipse is a BASILISK, massive and writing and very distrustful of humans. Sun is a HARPY, all feathers and fluff but strong and unused to humans and how easily they damage. Moon is a KELPIE, sulking and contemplative and clever, it’s impossible to tell when he’s being serious or mocking, or when he's telling the truth or fooling you with a lie.

The three end up at a Mythological Entities and Creatures Rehabilitation Center- where humans rescue mythos who have been injured or rendered unable to survive on their own, or whose homes and native habitats are becoming dangerous and unlivable, and take them to a large zoo/aquarium type facility with several different designated (massive, imagine ‘bigger on the inside’ type rooms) biomes in which they can recuperate and heal while feeling relatively ‘at home.’ In return, the humans ask that they be allowed to study and document the habits, lifestyles, and general experiences of these different, dangerous creatures- who mankind has cast in the light of being mere monsters, despite them being INTELLIGENT and CAPABLE OF REASONING.

Reader is a volunteer working at the rehab center- very new and sometimes referred to by the fellow staff as ‘freshmeat.’ (yes this is a slight foreshadowing and a bit cruel but reader thinks its just a silly nickname jsdfhk)

Eclipse is captured and brought to the center against his will- he is partly trapped and entangled in a long steel chain meant to be tethered to an anchor, and if left alone would eventually perish as the chains dug deeper and deeper and restricted him more. (He is captured before Sun and Moon are, since he threw himself between them and the approaching, seemingly threatening, humans, and attempted to ward the humans off long enough for them to escape. They DID escape, but only for a little while; maybe they LET themselves be caught in an attempt to see their brother again?) He fights fiercely against the humans, convinced they want him as some kind of trophy, but eventually falls sullen and silent, spending long periods of time simply laying half submerged, almost as though sleeping with his eyes open- but snarling and seething at anyone who comes close, choosing to stay mostly hidden in the lonely waters of his habitat.

Reader is, after being the intern-who-does-everyone-else’s-menial-tasks for a bit, assigned to Eclipse. Why? Well, he’s clearly very unhappy, which isn’t helping him to heal any faster, AND he refuses to let anyone close enough to even examine the gouges the chains are digging into him. So, your task: get him used to humans. Just hang out, attempt to feed him, just EXIST in the same space as him- sooner or later he’ll grow numb to your presence, and then they can try adding more people to the mix.

(What no one tells Reader is that they’ve tried this with four other humans so far. Three ended up in the hospital, one was forced to retire early due to the severity of their wounds.)

Slowly, Eclipse and Reader grow a bond- Reader is the first one to talk TO Eclipse instead of demanding him or instructing him to do things or treating him like a beast as low as a dog. And they bring things to show him- small things, like a MP3 player with a few of their favorite songs, a checkerboard they eventually get him to play, books and Kaleida scopes and whatever they can think of that he might be even SLIGHTLY interested in. They learn about things he likes and doesn’t like, and learns to tell when he wants to be talked to and played with and when he just wants the company. Some days he wants no one, and they respect that- respect him. Slowly, he opens up to them, even allows them to touch and pet him and sit on him and examine his wounds and scars.

Technically, Reader’s task is a total success! Unfortunately Eclipse has bonded with them and ONLY them and is very attached to them in particular. Everyone is very frustrated, so they get Reader to try and gather some information about him when they go to see him since he’s too irate and uncooperative for anyone else to do it. They do, but they always ask if he’s okay with it first.

(fun tidbit:) Sometimes he rests his enormous head in their lap and refuses to move even when they need to leave. He smacks his tail against the water when they give up and decide to stay a little longer- a happy gesture.

Later, when Sun and Moon are brought in, after some squabbling (they don’t really share a habitat with Eclipse, Sun belongs on high mountain slopes and Moon belongs in a foggy, gloomy swamp), they are put into the same habitat as Eclipse. Eclipse is overjoyed to see them and they swap their tales of whats happened since they last met- Eclipse, of course, absolutely gushes for hours about this wonderful HUMAN and how CUTE they are and so SMALL and AAA IT WOULD SO EASY TO JUST PICK THEM UP AND CARRY THEM AROUND FOREVER and they have this VOICE you just HAVE to hear it and when they’re really happy they make this LOVELY ADORABLE SOUND and they’re so nice and warm and safe, really you just HAVE to meet them, they’re so wonderful, there’s nothing like them, no human quite so incredible and kind and

(moon gets tired of it real fast. Sun is increasingly curious, and gets caught up in Eclipse’s excitement.)

Anyway eventually Sun and Moon (Sun very easily, Moon requires almost as much convincing as Eclipse and is verbally much more prickly and cold and unkind) warm up to Reader, then like absolutely fall for Reader like they PLUMMET into love with this big stupid barely-qualified-to-be-a-mythological-handler idiot. Everyone else at the center is like ,,??? Sh,, should we do something,,? I mean that one is obviously attempting the beginnings of a courtship ritual,, wait that one is too- oh my god they’re all trying to swoon them what do we do. Like this is really really good for our research but,

Anyway it’s cute but also potentially angsty thank u for ur time

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dr3amofagame · 7 months

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How about 4, 16, 29?

4. What's your favorite c!Dream scene?

Yeah I'm a filthy prison c!awesamdream lover so to literally no one's surprise I'm bringing up the post-Techno escape c!Sam and c!Dream stream in the prison. Look it's the literal only stream we ever got of the two of them in the prison with Sam as the Warden and Dream as the prisoner after they were teasing that shit for over half a year can you even blame me. It incited the worst round of c!Sam apologism known to man. I wrote a thread for six hours on twitter once going insane about it. It made cc!Sam all but expose Staged Finale in a QnA thread like the next day. Apparently they were gatekeeping secret prison warden roleplay the whole ass time and this like one 20 minute scene is all we ended up getting and it still bounces around my brain nonstop like a pinball. What more can you ask for

29. Which emotion do you think rules c!Dream the most?

Fear. By and large. He's so afraid that literally everything got twisted in on itself. Like, god.

L'manburg + the revolution starts w/ c!Dream reacting to c!Wilbur with a. Honestly. Pretty healthy level of apprehension for a guy literally threatening him and his home. This leads to the establishment of the mythos (with c!Dream-as-tyrant-monster-villain as one of its cornerstones) which leads to the slowly growing isolation from c!Dream towards his home and friends (stares directly at how c!Tommy described Exile and c!Dream saying he's scared to be alone. screams.) This is what gives us a c!Dream who has honestly had Quite A Damn Few changes of heart at the beginning of pogtopia pledging his allegiance to Wilbur after c!Schlatt quite evidently scares the shit out of him. Then Vassal happens, he's locked into Wilbur's narrative, he speedruns through ANOTHER bunch of changes of heart (and these two as a collective is what leads to his isolation by the time we get to november 16th onwards, such as when we get to dethronement and c!Quackity is commenting on how c!Dream doesn't have anyone, such as when we look at c!Wilbur confidently asserting that c!dream has nobody if not wilbur) and then the revive book deal just. Fucking shatters him.

He's scared of the supernatural that he doesn't understand and he's scared of the people that he DOES understand (and what he understands is simple: they want him six feet under) and he's grappling with the fact that the world is breaking around him and that he-is-the-villain-the-snake-pure-evil-and-he-has-always-been and every allyship he has is founded on transaction because what other leverage does he have if not what he can give and he puts himself in a fucking obsidian box because the world beyond it is too much of a threat to his life and the man he trusted to keep him safe hurts him and lets others hurt him in ways he couldn't have imagined. he's so fucking scared by the end of things that he can't leave the torture box that literally destroyed him.

c!Dream and it's not paranoia if They're Actually Out To Get You...put me down...god it's just fear all the way down All The Way Down and he was still trying to figure out how to Fix Death and Reset The World To Save It From Corruption because at the end of the day he was so damn scared of being alone. i frow up

#ask game #my asks !!#dreblr ask game #MY EEPY MY EEPY #it's allllllllll fear #push him a little bit and you get the guarded defensiveness. the reserved nature. the silence.#push him further and you get the lashing out. the snarling and making himself everything but an easy target.#push him beyond that and you get the fawning. the sirs and bowing and easy obedience. broke the will out of him. god.#HE IS SCARED !! HE HAS BEEN SO SCARED !!!!

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songsofadelaide · 8 months

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Meet me in the Afterglow

Five lifetimes where you and Aki Hayakawa almost kissed and one where you did.

[A Hayakawa Aki x Reader one-shot]

tags/cw: csm manga spoilers, 5+1 things, canon-compliant events, soulmates, family death, suicide ideation, major character death, alternate universes - bridgerton, the godfather, greek mythos, no use of yn wc: 4.8k

"before all this and everything else, before the apocalypse, I do so sincerely wish, though my words may not fit, to rest my head in your hair and kiss your lips." — Kiss, Indran Amirthanayagam

— Some lunatic. (1997)

No one in their right mind would pursue Devil Hunting as a serious career. Those entering the Public Safety Organization as Devil Hunters were either forced into it by their circumstances, seeking the thrill of the chase or just straight up mental— Just like you, some lunatic with a death wish you might just get sooner or later.

When Captain Kishibe told you he received direct orders from Miss Makima for your transfer to the reinforced Tokyo Special Division 4, the ordeal set your heart racing. When death first came for your family in the form of an attack by the Gun Devil, you soon expected to follow them out of sheer delusion and desperation.

The whole locking yourself in a spare coffin thing didn't work since you were eventually pried out of it by the Devil Hunters. People who encountered devil attacks and lived to see the day were a special kind, and some of them were disillusioned enough by the loss in their lives that they decided to heed the call of madness, heroic sentiment blocking any hope of common sense prevailing.

Public Safety preyed on that madness. You let them.

Here we are, another step closer.

"Gh! Watch it, Otome-san!"

Unfortunately, every step towards death had been thwarted by your senior colleague, Hayakawa Aki. Every mission you declared would be your last always concluded with you being saved by the man.

"Hayakawa-senpai! Y-Yoummfff—"

This one was no different.

Separated from the rest of the squad with no means to protect yourselves other than watching each other's backs, you figured now would have been the most perfect time to die. The devil you formed a contract with would revel in your death and perhaps make its home in your body, too. Then you'd be just like Power. Or Denji. Or just dead like you intended.

But how could you? Aki's hand was over your mouth and his figure was pressed against your own as you attempted to conceal your presence from a devil of still-unknown abilities.

Was it just you or the corridor you both slipped into was getting narrower and narrower? The taller man now had his knee between your legs, bracing himself on the wall that was seemingly collapsing in on you both. Your faces were only seconds apart from colliding.

Aki released his grip from your mouth, his palms moist with bits of your dribble.

"S-Senpai, this is obviously the work of a devil," you started. Space Devil, you thought to yourself. "Unlike you, I have no means to protect myself. I'm only going to drag you down. You should just leave me… I'll—"

A sharp tsk left Aki's lips. He now held you by the chin, blue eyes unclouded as he reasoned out with you. Surely he would have noticed by now that you were looking for a place to die, that you were looking to die, and you wanted every mission you undertook with him to be your last, but how could he bring himself to just leave you behind?

Not after having shared after-mission meals with you. Not after having spent afternoons basking in the sun and cigarette smoke and silly little hopes that both of you will live to see the end of the year and celebrate a new one. This here was a man who had lost nearly everything he held dear in his life. He wasn't losing anyone again, not if he can do anything about it.

He spoke the words as though breathing life back into your lungs with how close you now stood. "No, you damn lunatic. What makes you think I'm leaving without you?"

— Unbecoming of a Lord (Mayfair, London, 1813)

When your "papá" Kishibe told you he would let you off the hook for good if you were to attend even one ball for this season, you considered yourself sold to the idea of freedom. Evening balls and promenades weren't really your thing, but as a daughter of the esteemed Captain Kishibe, you were expected to leave your mark on high society and maybe earn a suitor or two.

You expected your "little sister" Power to enjoy such occasions, and even "younger brother" Denji, who despised dressing up because everything itched, still adhered to Kishibe's rule of presenting oneself to the high society at least once in their life. Tonight would be the first and last time you do so. If you had to put on your dress and stand in the corner all night for only the gods know how long, you didn't mind at all— so long as you never had to attend a single ball afterwards.

So the invitation to dance surely caught you off-guard, but maybe you should have expected it since you were one daughter of a Captain who also happened to be a popular relationship broker.

"May I have this dance?" Asked the taller man, his long dark hair neatly kept in a blue silk ribbon. As you searched for your father from across the room, you caught him nodding back at you, voicing his quiet approval as he took a sip of this evening's wine in his hand. The customary curtsy was granted to the man as you gave him your hand, which he brought to his lips reverently.

You were certain the whole ton had their eyes on you as you took the centre of the ballroom with one of your father's favoured subordinates, the young Lord Aki Hayakawa. He was a cool and aloof man, yet cutthroat in missions, as your "papá" mentioned before, but the pressures of high society had yet to leave traces on his finely chiselled face.

Aki has yet to speak a single word to you after asking for your hand to dance. His hand was warm even over the silk of your gloves, further proof that he was a living, breathing being and not some phantom that people made him out to be. The sound of the piano filled your ears as you were tenderly swept alongside his pace, your fingers gently clutching the shoulder of his cobalt blue coat.

"Diamond," he finally spoke, his voice deep and intimate. You could almost hear a laugh, too. "That is what they call the loveliest girl here, right?"

You paced yourself, counting in your head and mirroring his footwork so as to not miss a beat.

"I'm afraid to disappoint you, my lord, but I'm no diamond. I'm merely a girl," you gently shook your head. "The Queen must have named her diamond already."

It was Lady Makima, surely.

"Y…" You murmured, lips quivering as he drew you closer to his person. The way his breath ghosted over your lips was maddening. "You do know the way you hold me is unbecoming of a lord…"

The tender sound of the music filled your ears along with the rush of blood as you felt the pads of his warm fingers rest on your bare shoulder blade.

"My apologies if I offended your sensibilities. I am simply so enamoured by you now that I've met you," he chuckled. "Captain Kishibe said you despised these balls even though this is your first one."

"He… Papá is right about that," you fumbled for words even further. "Everything is just so… exhausting, to say the least."

"I can do you a favour if you would like. A way for you to no longer have to attend these gatherings," he replied, a glint of mischief playing in his piercing blue eyes that you suddenly couldn't look away from. "Receive me as a suitor."

What?

"S-Surely, you jest!" You unexpectedly laughed at his remark before eventually pursing your lips in embarrassment. "My apologies, my lord, I… I suppose you can visit me at our home. Papá and I would be happy to receive you."

"You would be doing me a tremendous favour as well, my lady," he said, a wave of relief washing over his face. "I, too, no longer wish to attend any of these… social gatherings in the near future."

"My apologies. I would just… like to know why someone with a face like yours no longer wishes to take part in any more of the Queen's balls."

"What is it about my face that you find so intriguing?"

"Because you are absolutely attractive," you replied.

"As are you," he said right back at you. "Now, unless you accept the assistance of a fellow homebody, I'm positively certain more dances will be asked of you once I let you go."

He was right about that, for not only women waiting for their turn with him, but men were gathering around you, too, just waiting for the opportunity to swipe you from the handsome young soldier's arms.

"I am glad to be of help then, my fellow homebody," you started, another small laugh cracked through your smile. "I am looking forward to making your acquaintance."

— You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To (New York, 1955)

In the war of the five families, little songbirds like you should have been happy in their gilded cages. This was a men's game, after all, and if someone like Sonny Corleone perished at the hands of his enemies, what more pretty women like you? Only collateral damage.

The eldest son of Don Vito was known for his impulsiveness, and he was surely warned that his hot-bloodedness would be the death of him one day. With the kingpin shot off the board, the tides of war shifted, and even the bedridden Corleone patriarch rose from his rest to call for an end to the ceaseless fighting disturbing the already fragile peace sustained only by a fraying thread in the underground.

With the death of Don Vito and the accession of his youngest son as the new Don of the Corleone Family, the tides of the underground have shifted once more, and you were determined to survive with all the fight you had in you.

Old man Tessio made sure you and the girls were all fed and educated in the ways of how his club was run, but they disappeared into Barzini hands one by one until only a handful of you were left. The Two Toms has been your home all your life, but now that it was unsafe, you had to find a way to get to the Corleone home base with this vital piece of information that unknowingly fell into your hands.

The Corleones were quiet men, but they took care of their assets.

When the opportunity to leave with a client presented itself, you acted as though it was just another evening out with a rich daddy who wanted some company. It didn't take long for the night stroll to go awry after the gentleman you left with was knocked unconscious as soon as you stepped outside the social club.

It wasn't a killing blow, but the faint scent of clean metal rose to your nose and it set the warning signals in your head alight. It was the stench of blood, something you were entirely familiar with given the connections looped around your pretty pinky finger.

You were quick enough to evade the pair of men in similar black coats, slinking into a dim alley before pulling in the first person to meet your gaze— a fine specimen with piercing blue eyes and dark hair that fell to his shoulders. It was another one of them suits, but now wasn't the time to be picky. He'll do.

You sighed and looked up at the tall stranger you dragged along with you, your cheeks heating up at the sight of his broad chest from his open cloak.

Now's not the time to get cold feet, you told yourself.

"Care to help a stranger?" You smiled at the dark-eyed man, who could only quirk an eyebrow at your inquiry. He found you reaching for his hands, gently placing one on your waist and another on your hot cheek.

"Wh-What are you—" His words were cut off when you raised a soft hand to his face and closed the distance between the two of you, pulling him down by his collar to a kiss.

…Except it wasn't a kiss, but more of a cry for assistance. You stood there cheek to cheek and found this man's warmth a surprisingly pleasant feeling. You felt this strong stranger lightly grip your waist and cheek as you collided, as if reciprocating your sudden display of bold affection. Neither of you was bothered when you heard the footsteps behind you, but it felt like your heart was about to climb out of your throat and make its own escape. "Hey, you!—"

The exclamation didn't even distract the pair. You coiled your arms around the handsome stranger's neck with a sultry little flourish, your scarlet fingernails gently digging into this man's coat. The softest of moans left your lips in another bid to throw off the men on your trail.

The soldato behind them was quick to turn his heel. "Nothin' to see here! Just some…"

As the gruff voices and the footsteps receded, you heard nothing else but the sound of your own pulse, the blood rushing in your ears as you evaded what was possibly an attempt on your life.

"I'm so sorry," you murmured, breath warm against the stranger's chest. He took a step back and allowed you your space, fishing out his favourite pack of cigars from his coat pocket.

"'S'all right, sweet thing. Must have been in a real pinch if you were willing to drag a bystander in your business," he stated, exhaling a cloud of thick white smoke. "Old man Pete said songbirds like you would sing to save herself, but it turns out you can be a hawk if you want."

Pete? "D-Do you know Signore Clemenza? I…"

"The name's Aki. I'm one of Clemenza's men," he offered his hand to you. "And don't worry. He already knows. Just needed another songbird as proof."

You took his hand and used it to anchor your shaking legs. He squeezed you strong enough for you to snap out of your fight-or-flight trance.

"Relax, pretty bird. You're safe," said Aki as he pulled you close to his person. It was only then you saw the little twinkle of sapphires on his ears. The sapphires that were his eyes. "We'll take care of you."

— Katabasis (Greek Mythos)

Pomegranates were the only fruit that was hardy enough to survive in the Underworld.

There was a certain beauty to the crimson fruit that reminded you of home, and all of the lush produce grown in the mortal realm— the verdant trees, overgrown leaves a thick canopy overhead, fragrant blossoms of every colour, and the sweetness of every other fruit that have touched your lips.

It's sweet, you thought to yourself as you pocketed something into your rose-coloured robes, concealing it from the prying eyes of the shades in the house.

The House of Hades, cradled deep within Tartarus, was not as cold as the hymns and stories said it would be. Olympus was plenty warm, made even more so with your mother's unrelenting and watchful gaze on you. You were both goddesses revered for bringing forth the mortal realm's abundant harvests, and the gods be damned if you chose a path different from hers.

For all of its cosiness and colour, Olympus was chaotic, and you didn't mind being spared from its chaos— and your mother's overbearing nature— by accepting an illicit deal with Hera herself. She sympathised with you, after all, and if the Fates wove anything different for her, she would have chosen the more quiet life.

Little did you know that the deal involved being the Queen of the Underworld.

And for all his supposed strictness and severity, the raven-haired and blue-eyed Hades was a good ruler— even more a good husband— and he was exceptionally kind to you. He remained aloof as he was when you first met in Olympus many moons ago, but you were certain he was only giving you all the space you needed to grow into your role as the queen of this realm.

He often bickered with Thanatos, who reaped souls with chainsaws and a surprising lack of empathy. The death god's penchant for following the trail of war troubled Hades, but the harbinger was only doing his job.

Hecate wasn't easy to deal with, either, as she would rather dwell in her blood magick and witchcraft than assist in managing the Underworld and all of its shades and denizens. Hades likened them to his many pet canines, not counting Cerberus.

But they adored you, their queen. Thanatos was amiable as Hecate was genial, and they orbited you as celestial bodies would surround a planet, always in a constant state of wondrous awe every time you called forth a plant to spring to life in the Underworld, only for it to wither after a few moments.

Upon your arrival in the Underworld, Hades gifted you the garden within the palace walls. He was rather embarrassed by its barrenness, but plants from the mortal realm hardly grew there, except for the pomegranate tree that had yet to bear fruit.

And after many moons of waiting, it fell, ripe and right into your hands.

Hades was simply pleased seeing you walking around the estate. He derived no pleasure from possibly scaring you with his presence, but when he saw you pick the fruit open, he knew his intervention was needed.

"Oh!" Came your startled expression as the taller figure seized your hand. "I-Is something the matter, my lord husband?"

His blue eyes scanned your face for a sign, any sign or hint of regret following your consumption of the sweet and tart seeds. "You ate it."

"I did," you replied with a nod. He released you from his tender grip, his large hand moving to gently cup your cheek. Your lips were still moist and balmy with traces of the fruit. Hades pressed himself to exercise control.

"Beautiful goddess, you do know this will tie you to me eternally," he said with the utmost tenderness, his words not at all coming out as easily as he thought. "Did… Did anyone make you—"

You knew that much, of course, as even Hera warned you of eternal captivity should you consume anything from the Underworld.

Aloof as he was, his eyes remained as kind as they were when you first met, his obvious adoration of you not at all lifting or changing even as you descended from the mortal realm to make this place your home. And why wouldn't you make this place your home? Why wouldn't you want to tie yourself to this place, to him, who respected you and your space even though you want him to just crash into you?

"What? Surely you jest," you smiled at him as you contentedly sank into his touch, opening your palm to offer him more of the already sticky pomegranate seeds. "I ate the fruit myself."

— Meet Me (1997)

Surviving the mass attack led by Santa Claus was the last straw for Kobeni.

In the aftermath of the onslaught, only a handful of the reinforced Special Division 4 remained alive, and with Kobeni's resignation came the final number of five: Aki, Denji, Power, Angel, and you. Captain Kishibe didn't count. You've seen the man fight and the slaughter didn't even faze him one bit. Only the gods know how long that man has lived. And he'll probably outlive us all, too.

When the captain presented you with the opportunity to leave the public sector and go private, you were on the fence, which was surprising since you joined the sector to follow your family in death.

"You… aren't looking to die like you were before, the first time we met. I can only assume you found something worth living for," he told you. "Aki and the others are on a break as well. Why not pay them a visit while you're thinking about things?"

And so you did. Despite missing an arm, Aki still managed to keep their place immaculately tidy. You could only assume that Denji and Power pitched in every now and then given their caretaker's circumstances.

"Oh, Aki-san!" You exclaimed as the door to the apartment unit opened. Your superior in his habitat had always been a sight to behold for you. You bought snacks and cans of random chilled drinks as a courtesy. "I just met with Captain Kishibe and Kobeni-chan earlier. Ah, but where are Denji-kun and Power-chan?"

"I asked them to buy us some ingredients for dinner as a breather of sorts," Aki stated as he led you to their shared living room. You trailed his steps and made yourself comfortable as you laid out the various knickknacks you brought with you. "How is Kobeni doing?"

"She's doing well, actually," you managed a smile. "She's been persuading me to resign from devil hunting, too, always saying she'll help me find a regular job if I'm in dire need of it."

You opened a can of black coffee for Aki. "Denji-kun and Power-chan like cola, don't they? I can put this in your fridge in the meantime."

"Thanks."

"Ooh," your eyes lit up as you opened the fridge. The young man couldn't help but chuckle in his seat. "Aki-san, are you perhaps about to make tonkatsu?"

"Yeah. You should stay for dinner while you're here," he replied as you sat down next to him once more. "I can't promise you a peaceful meal, though."

"If we're talking about vegetables, know that I'm happy to take them off their plates," you grinned at him. The way he smiled back at you filled your chest with the warmth you could only hope he felt as well. "Aki-san, I don't… think about dying as much anymore. I suppose I have you to thank for that."

"I'm glad to hear that."

"You…" you stammered before gathering your bearings and eventually facing him head-on. "Aki-san, I think you—"

"No," he cut you off, slowly shaking his head, the tension between you all the more palpable now that he's rested his forehead on your shoulder. With his hair undone, he smelt even more of cigarettes and strong black coffee, more redolent and intoxicating than the finest cup of espresso you could afford. "There's no leaving this profession for me. Not now."

Who am I kidding? You thought to yourself. Himeno-senpai couldn't… Whatever made me think that I could?

He raised his remaining hand to touch your face, his palm warm against your cheek. Or was it you who was warm? When he leaned down to wipe away the tear in the corner of your eye, it was only then you noticed that you were crying all along.

"Otome," he stated, voice low and gentle, soft and pleading. No. Any more would hurt. Any more would— "Outlive me and live the most beautiful life you can."

"I can do that now with whatever remaining time you have left, Aki-san," you spoke in tears, trying to hold back your sobs. You cried into the crook of his neck. "Let me take care of you!"

"Just knowing you want to keep on living makes me incredibly happy, Otome," Aki stated with a smile you couldn't see. He tried to soothe your sadness by running his hand over your head. Warm. "Stay for dinner, all right? Come as often as you can. Denji and Power will appreciate having you around, too. I'll bring you something when I get back from Hokkaido, so cheer up."

You nodded, or at least attempted to, as he gave you gentle pats on your back. Even though he was an image of coolness and calmness, Aki held so much warmth in his heart that it overflowed, saving you from the path of destruction you set on.

"Aki-san," you murmured against his broad shoulder. Aki-san, I wish I could have saved you, too. "I'd love some miso soup, too."

You felt his laugh reverberate in his chest. Warm, as though the overflow was trying to make itself known. "I'll prepare some later."

Aki never returned after he last met up with Makima. In the end, it was Denji who handed over the souvenir from Hokkaido that he brought home for you— a pair of carved wooden bears eating corn and salmon, living their most beautiful lives yet.

— +1, In The Afterglow (To the world where you are, 2023)

Only a small crack of sunlight managed to break through your curtains. The glass sliding door was slightly left open, allowing a gentle morning breeze to slip into your bedroom.

A groan escaped your lips as you reached for the other side of your bed and found it cold and empty. Why, oh, why did Aki have to be such a morning person?

It couldn't be helped. Even when you were younger, the Hayakawa family next door were known in the area as early risers. When you first moved into the neighbourhood when you were nine, the Hayakawas were the first ones to bring your family a housewarming gift.

But you liked Aki even more than the present his parents brought. That blue-eyed boy with the most precious smile. You liked him the moment you laid eyes on him.

And you still like him as much 20 years later. Middle school, high school, university and work never changed how you felt for Hayakawa Aki. Your mutual friends marvelled at your long-standing relationship, some of them joking that the young man was only tolerating you.

—"Ne, Aki-kun! Otome-chan must be a menace when it's just the two of you, huh? Don't you ever think of meeting other people?"—

And Taiyo nearly lost it when you almost broke up with his big brother, too.

—"Don't listen to onii-chan, Otome-nee! He's being an idiot right now!"—

But Aki liked you just as much as you did for as long as you did, too. And the jokes are on the people who tried to make your relationship a laughing matter.

—"Are you kidding? She may be a menace, but she's my menace. There's no way I'm letting her go."—

And Taiyo still stood as his big brother's best man on your wedding day even though he thought you two would break up a day before.

—"I've always been some kind of an idiot when it comes to you, Otome. Don't give me that look and come here. Yes, that's right. You're my idiot, too."—

"Akiii!" You whined into your pillow. "Why can't you just sleep in with me, even just a little?"

"Because my pretty wife said she liked having breakfast as soon as she wakes up," the brunette cut through your open internal monologue as he made his way back into your shared bedroom. "Good morning."

You raised your arms to a long stretch, hands reaching for your husband as he sat on the edge of your bed.

"Good morning, sunshine of my life," you beamed at him. The moment you coiled your arms around his neck and drew him close, he moved like clockwork, leaning down to press his lips on yours.

Warm, like always. He tasted of ash and his favourite black coffee. "Aki…"

You could tell he was holding back from the way his fists slightly shook on his lap. "All right, that's—"

"Nooo! Don't go yet," you sadly whimpered as he broke away from your hold. Your puppy eyes still worked wonders on him even after all these years. "I just feel like kissing you today. There's a part of me saying I've missed out on doing that a lot."

"What are you saying, you odd bird?" He chuckled, placing a large hand on your head. You gently curled his dark hair around your fingers, the silkiness of his mane refusing to follow your hold.

"What time will Denji and the others be arriving today?"

"Later in the afternoon."

"Then I have all morning to kiss you!"

"You have all the time in the world to kiss me," Aki stated with the same small smile you first fell in love with, a smile you felt like you've always been in love with, with lips you always felt like kissing, as though lifetimes have been stolen from you both. He leaned down to kiss you once more, softly, slowly, tenderly, kindly, taking all the time he wanted. "All the time in the world."

Author's notes: Hello! Before everything else, I just wanted to say thank you for picking up this fic. This fic remains one of my favourite works from this year. It was originally posted on AO3 in January and I am hoping it will receive just as much love here. ♡ — I use "Otome" as a placeholder for "Y/N" because I thought it looked much nicer in the stories I write. The term "Otome" is from otome games, or maiden games, and in this piece Otome would literally mean maiden, or Maiden-chan, which pretty much means Y/N. — Some lunatic takes place somewhere between Ep 12 and the following arc, Bomb Girl. Aki's resolution to not lose anyone any further was driven by his grief over Himeno's death. Y/N has worked with Captain Kishibe for as long as they can remember. — Unbecoming of a Lord alludes to Daphne and Simon's secret agreement in the first season of Bridgerton. (As a royalty buff, I highly recommend the show.) — You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To takes place shortly before the infamous Baptism of Fire scene from the first Godfather film. Aki was a replacement for the traitor Paulie. Soldato means soldier, but it also means a lower-level mafia member who hasn't made an impact in the family yet. — Katabasis (which roughly means descent to the Underworld) is probably one of my most favourite parts of the fic. It takes some elements from the Hades video game (The House of Hades, pomegranates as the only fruit able to grow in the Underworld, Persephone's annoyance at Olympus and its chaos and her deal with Zeus, but here, it's with Hera), and Lore Olympus (Persephone willingly coming to the Underworld and taking the fruit herself). — Meet Me takes place during the start of the Gun Devil arc. Aki's gift for y/n was kibori kuma, or kuma bori. Apparently, Hokkaido is known for its wooden bear carvings and I thought a pair of happy bears was both an appropriate and heartbreaking gift to receive lol. Pardon me while I continue hurting myself with such facts. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. I am already looking forward to CSM S2, even though we all know there's only heartache waiting for us lol. ~ SongsOfAdelaide ♡

✦ Original Tumblr post ✦ AO3 link ✦

#songsofadelaidewrites💛#chainsaw man #csm #csm aki #aki hayawaka #hayakawa aki #reader insert #aki x reader #hayakawa aki x reader #aki hayakawa x reader #5+1 things #soulmates #alternate universe #alternate timeline #bridgerton #the godfather #hades and persephone

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bestworstcase · 11 months

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Do you think the Ever After could act as a parallel to the Garden of Eden?

you know what. asking me this when my latest post leads with me identifying myself as an evangelical apostate and after i’ve been caterwauling again about how rwby isn’t a christian narrative is kind of a power move, ngl. all biblical quotations to follow are from the NASB 1995.

one sidebar i want to make before getting properly into the actual topic of the garden, because it’s something i’ve been mulling over, is the absence from rwby’s cosmological mythos of a primordial ocean. that’s an interesting omission because of how common a motif it is in real-world mythology, christianity included. (In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. […] Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. Gen. 1:1-2,6-7)

i’ve mentioned a handful of times before that rwby takes some noticeable cues from hellenistic philosophy and in particular heraclitus is pretty visible in the ever after—which is salient to the absence of a primordial ocean because the interior of the tree strikes me as a cosmic river flowing both from and around the everliving fire of the forge. see fragments B12, B30, B31, B36, B91, here is a general summary.

this has very little to do with the garden of eden question beyond the, like, broad comment that if analytical comparison between rwby and real world mythological and philosophical traditions is something that interests you generally, peruse what very little remains of heraclitus and also read plato’s timaeus and critias, because the influence is pretty strong.

anyway. back to genesis. the biblical story of creation goes like this:

on the first day, the deity speaks light into being, illuminating the formless waters of the void, and separates the night from the day.

on the second day, he creates a separation between the waters, above and below, and names the waters above the heavens.

on the third day, he parts the waters below and gathers them all into one place, drawing up the earth, which he calls the land and the sea. then he bids the land to become lush with vegetation.

on the fourth day, he creates the sun and the moon and all the stars to govern the passage of time, to mark the days and the seasons and the years, bringing order to the separation between night and day.

on the fifth day, he speaks into being all the creatures of the sea and the sky, the fish and the birds. (and this is no more arbitrary than the creation of the land together with vegetation; the air, remember, is the separation between the waters above and the waters below.)

on the sixth day, he creates all the animals that roam the land, and then he creates humankind in his own image, to “rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (1:26)

and on the seventh day, he rests, and sanctifies the day.

ok. so, i’m not going to get into the weeds of christian theology (<- apostate) so our engagement with genesis here is strictly as a literary text. with that in mind, there are two things i want to make note of:

first, that the biblical creation story is fundamentally about categorization: the deity creates things by naming them and the work of creation is made possible by the separation and definition of what had been a nameless and formless void. the deity first differentiates between day and night, water below and water above (separated by air), land from sea, and then systematically creates things to fill each new category. each day ends with the deity examining what he has made in order to determine that it’s good, and all the living creatures are instructed to “be fruitful and multiply,” in accordance with “their kind,” which is to say that all things are supposed to remain in their categories.

second, that the deity creates the celestial bodies to govern the heavens; he creates plants first, then animals, and to the animals he gives the plants; and lastly he creates man and woman in his own image to govern the whole of creation. the creation of the world itself is indistinguishable from the creation of a natural hierarchy: each new creation is given authority over what came before.

while there are some loose similarities here with how the ever after as it exists now came to be (in that one could make an argument for the separations of the primordial ocean as being akin to the clearing of the wilderness), the fundamental ideas articulated in genesis 1 and in rwby regarding the ever after are diametrically opposed: the notion of an inviolate natural order is, in rwby, textually rejected. balance “cannot be restored by force or calculation” because it “finds its own equilibrium”—and of course the whole point of ascension is that things do not need to remain as they are if they would rather be something else. a girl could become a cat, if she wanted to. the ever after is preoccupied not with designated purpose but chosen purpose, whereas the biblical creation myth is about the designation of purpose.

nevertheless there IS a clear parallel to draw here—between the biblical deity and the god of light. (this is where i stress, again, that i am not making a theological argument but a literary one.) consider the creation story of ‘the two brothers’ as it is told in the fairytale anthology:

first, the primordial dragon separates himself into light and dark.

second, the brothers create the heavens (celestial bodies) and the land.

third, they create animals (and grimm). it is at this point they begin to quarrel, because they cannot agree on whether dark’s contributions are good or bad.

fourth, they decide—to settle the argument—to create a new kind of being in their own image, capable of reason and will, which they agree will be given the freedom to “rule or ruin this world we have made for them.”

fifth, they fail catastrophically to leave well enough alone, fight about it, and go to sleep with the intention of judging humanity’s worth when they awake.

the similarity between this creation story and genesis 1 is much more pronounced, with the crucial difference being that the brothers, unlike the singular deity of the biblical story, cannot come to an agreement on what the natural order should be: every time one of them looks at what they’ve created and deems it good, the other disagrees and changes it.

revelations about their origin in V9 provided a great deal of context to their disagreement and vindicated me on the matter of dark not being the one who’s ultimately causing the problem; the details do not matter particularly to this discussion. the salient point is that light approaches the act of creation in the same manner as the biblical deity, but he exists in a cosmos to which that notion of inviolate, deliberate order is anathema. he is in the wrong story in a very literal sense.

now, insofar as the ever after might be intended as a kind of eden it would have to be for the brothers, yes? because they are the first emanations of the tree and the ever after is theirs to cultivate until their departure. and bearing in mind that at the heart of the narrative conflict is light being, in essence, the biblical deity transposed into a cosmos whose fundamental reality is diametrically opposed to the fundamental reality of biblical myth, there is an interesting angle to tease out here because:

Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” (Gen 2:15-17)

and

The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. (3:2-7a)

and

Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life. (3:22-24)

again, there are loose parallels one could draw here with the blacksmith’s tale of the brothers, but the ever after simply does not function the way eden does: no part of the ever after is forbidden to the brothers and their departure from the garden is a gift, rather than a punishment. but consider the beats of the fall of man in the context of how light sees himself.

the temptation of the forbidden fruit is the temptation of divine knowledge—of becoming knowledgeable, and thus becoming godlike. the deity curses adam and eve to punish their disobedience, but that is not why they are cast out: they are made to leave because they have become like gods, and the deity does not want them to eat of the fruit of the tree of life. the expulsion from eden is a precautionary measure to ensure that humans continue to be mortal now that they have the capacity to understand (and thus fear) death.

now lay that against light’s perspective of the events leading up to his and his brother’s departure from the garden: they grew curious. they wanted to do more. they made the cat in deepest secrecy, and learned that they could make things to do their jobs for them. they make the jabberwalker—but he turns out wrong. they have introduced death into this world. their eyes are opened—they become gods. jabber is their fruit of knowledge. light (like adam, like eve) reacts to his newfound understanding with fear and shame, and tries to erase jabber for the same reason adam and eve scramble to hide their nakedness.

but creating jabber was not a sin. that is the critical difference: the tree does not judge or condemn; jabber and the cat find their places in the ever after and the tree gives the brothers a door to other realms where they can blossom into their divinity. the fear and shame light feels is his own creation—a self-inflicted curse—one he passes down to all his creations in the form of death as ending instead of change. his exile from the garden demands that the permanence of death be codified as a natural law, for the same reason that adam and eve are sent away from eden clothed. who told you that you are naked? who told you that things can die?

nothing guards the ever after’s door. light could return whenever he wished; but he cannot return because his own shame and his fear of what he created forbid it. how this is carried to its conclusion remains to be seen—although it seems inevitable that light will ascend, because he desperately needs to for his own and for remnant’s sake—but i do think rwby is doing something really interesting here with light in relation to biblical creation and the fall of man.

to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge is to become like god; the last act of creation is human defiance and apotheosis, and the experience of apotheosis is the creation of shame. for light both the defiance and the shame are illusory but, to him, deeply and painfully real, and this shame is at the center of him. he is eve who became god and exiled himself from his own garden.

#light: i’m not like a regular god i’m a cool god i have catholic guilt.#dark: what is wrong with you

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t4twnyclaw · 10 days

Text

"Gods"

warrior cat redux/rewrite where one-eye, sol, starflower and moth flight/half-moon are gods. based heavily off of bonefall's tidbit with hollyleaf and sol's time-travel nonsense.

I like the idea of ancient cats being transformed becoming gods after death, essentially. Or even being ancient beings that just happen to possess a cat every few generations or so.

So here's what I'm thinking. before the mountain cats go to the forest, the forest cats already have an established religion of sorts, a polythesim religion. noticeable figures are;

The Wind/Storm/Sun God.

Masculine in nature, typically worshipped and acknowledged by the Gorge cats (Ancient Windclan.)

If he were to take a form it'd be a Lion, with a cloud mane.

His personality is often turbulent, and prayers are for soothing his rage.

The Rain/River/Lake Goddess.

Feminine in nature, and often depicted as hostile and revenge-based. a Ferocious goddess.

If she were to take a form it'd be Leopard, with a fish face and tail.

Typically prayed for, in droughts. She's also affiliated with medicine, healing and motherhood.

The Sky Deity.

A god specifically representing the soft pinks and blues of dawn and dusk, and mornings. The god is the child of the Sun God, and shares his rage and heat.

Relates to the passage of time, growth, and nobility. Also represents beauty.

Specifically, the Gorge and River cats also consider stars as part of the god. so this god would be the Sky/Star god.

The Night

Represents shadows and the unknown.

owls, corvids, beetles and spiders represent the Night. This particular god died out and no longer exists in modern clans.

The Lynx/Deer/Bear/Rabbit.

Represents the forest life, prey and general harmony and connection to the physical world. This God also doesn't exist in the modern clans.

However, the ANCIENT mountain cats have their one singular god, Half-Moon. Which is the ruler of ... the night. Their belief is that their dead all live on the moon, within the sky. Each star is a dead relative and Half-Moon is the cat that brings the dead up to her home, essentially a grim reaper sort. (Half-Moon was also a real cat that did perform the first funerary rite, which spiralled down to this god's eventual creation.) She is specifically affiliated with the Moon but when the Mountain cats join the Forest, the Forest cats are the ones to equate Half-Moon to a death deity.

ENOUGH YAPPING, Which god is what cat?

The Sun god Is One-Eye, like the bonefall rewrite. The Sun god Is One-Eye and One-Eye is the Sun god. One-Eye is a vessel and when the Sun god reveals himself to others he is in the form of One-Eye, they merge into one being after the physical death of One-Eye.

The Sky god is Star Flower, who is the biological daughter of One-Eye. Star Flower was a follower of the Sun God before the Sky god took her as a vessel. Same thing, once Star Flower died, she essentially became the Sky god.

The god, Night created Sol, an Eclipse god. And Harry (Sol, the cat.) was the first vessel that became a god. Before Harry/Sol the Eclipse god did not have a physical being, though it momentarily had a brush with MAPLESHADE. (Think 'boons' in Greek mythos.)

**The River Goddess also doesn't have a concrete vessel, though I like the idea of Mapleshade being the incarnation of her.**

Moth Flight is the most recent god, taking the form of the Nature god. Though a Nature god, Moth Flight is also a mix of sorts between the ancient Nature and Night god. Moths are nocturnal, yet nature-based. Moth Flight is the cat that 'creates' omens and prophecies, how they're delivered to the living is dubious. (Moth Flight could also just be a figurehead, a Joan of Ark if you will.)

AS OF MODERN CLAN LIFE.

These polythenic gods are often forgotten, One-Eye and Star Flower are just folklore, same with the Eclipse god. River goddess has transformed to just a Mapleshade figure, a sopping wet monster that drags cats to drown. Even Half-Moon has transformed into just 'Starclan' In fact, modern clan cats confuse Half-Moon with Moth Flight. Some cats still thank Starclan for their prey (remnants of the Nature God) and Windclanners still sing and yell to ward off storms (remnants of the Sun/Storm god.)

#warrior cats au #wc au #warrior cats redux #txt #UR OPINIONS. GIVE THEM #ref

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beautifulpersonpeach · 3 months

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What do you think are the chances SM will drop out of the big 4 eventually soon? All I hear about them recently is how the company CEOs are milking it for all they can without care, I know big ships sink longer but it can't last forever, and Kakao doesn't seem to do SM much good too. Both companies are quite a pair to be honest, lawsuits, investigations and all, Bang PD must be happy he left that disaster for Kakao to deal with 😁 I wonder how SM falling apart would influence the entertainment industry.

***

“eventually soon” feels like an oxymoron lol, but I’ll assume you mean anytime in the next 5 years.

So what are the chances SM drops out?

My gut feeling is 0%. (With a caveat in point 3). SM is still going to be a prominent company in this space for the next 5 years for three reasons.

1. K-pop stans. That company has lasted this long because it’s perfected the model of k-pop - gamifying music consumption - on the largest swarth of fans for the longest time, longer than any other k-pop company. In fact I’d say you’ve not really met a company stan until you’ve met an SM stan because those creatures are the blueprint. Like, I see the way they move, decades later, and feel some respect for Lee Sooman because he’s created a formidable army that’s kept his company rolling through cultism scandals, a government subpoena, an Interpol indictment, several lawsuits from idols under his management, and a HYBE takeover… for starters.

SM dominated 1st and 2nd gen k-pop (alongside YG and JYP for 2nd gen) and a lot of k-pop stans who got in back then were pre-teens and teens. K-pop dominated by SM wasn’t just a hobby for those people, it was their childhood. And they cherish it as such, which also means bias on SM generally skews the way you’d expect. Many 1st and 2nd gen k-pop stans are still very active, they’ve grown up now and are no longer the pre-teens lost in the lights learning about Girls Generation. No. Now, those stans are now the ‘tastemakers’ of k-pop spaces. Much of the mythos around the Big 3 is created and actively sustained by this group of k-pop stans. They are the people you’d typically see being k-pop ‘journalists’ today, they run the main podcasts on k-pop, they moderate the main k-pop forums both in Korea and internationally, and so on. They play a significant part in driving ‘consensus k-pop’ opinions (though ARMYs seem to also make sure they have a voice). K-pop stans will be the first people to tell you how much they “hate” SM for being so shitty in treating their idols, but the bias towards SM in k-pop spaces is implicit. And no, it’s not because of the ‘vocals’.

2. SM’s cost base is low: (I rambled a lot in the first point and now jet lag is kicking in so I’ll try to keep this point brief.) SM spends next to nothing on their staff and talent. Part of the reason HYBE and Kakao could acquire them relatively easily last year, was because that company has next to no cost base, compared to other Big 4 companies. Almost every costing ratio has SM at the bottom compared to peers (excluding legal fees and other non-operating costs); on Korean blinds their employees self-report being the lowest paid among the Big4; Black composers SM hires have reported to The Guardian that the company doesn’t pay them… My point being, even if half of SM’s idol roster stopped putting out music for 1 year, the company’s cost base is so low that they’d still be afloat. Aside from all the auxiliary businesses SM is involved in (they also own hotels in Korea and other businesses), the company is more nimble than it seems at first glance and just needs a bit more time to get stable again.

Which brings me to my 3rd point.

3. New Groups. By this time next year I expect at least one of three things to have happened to SM. I’ll list two. (1) There’s M&A with a Western music label, and (2) SM (as a standalone entity) are back at the topline ratios they were at in 2019. Scenario 2 is already feasible with SM’s Moon&Back partnership, the new girl group debuting in 2024/2025, and RIIZE maintaining their current momentum, even as NCT begins enlisting this year. Nothing revives a company like SM better than new blood, and after the last few years of stagnation, SM is likely to see significant growth from those projects.

I agree with you that nothing lasts forever, empires rise and fall and HYBE will too at some point. And so eventually, SM as we know it will cease to exist. But I’m not expecting it to be anytime soon, save the caveats in point 3.

#kpop #kpop industry #sm entertainment #big 4 #kpop fandoms #fandom behaviour #Lee Sooman

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denimbex1986 · 5 months

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'Who knew it would all come down to something as simple as a game of catch – with not one, but two Doctors – just moments after a not-to-be-forgotten homicidal dance montage to 'Spice Up Your Life'?

After three anniversary specials that placed us firmly and blissfully in the crosshairs of a nostalgia play, the moment we had all been waiting for, when David Tennant would sunbeam into Ncuti Gatwa, arrived. Albeit 20 minutes earlier than anticipated and bearing a new piece of Doctor Who lore which will irrevocably alter the show.

Instead of morphing into the Fifteenth Doctor, the Fourteenth essentially birthed him, atop a helipad with Neil Patrick Harris's devious Toymaker looking on with a smirk full of too many teeth. Here, Russell T Davies introduced the fresh concept of "bigeneration" into the Whoniverse.

Davies has already teased the ripple effects this will have on the show as a whole, explaining this moment has bigenerated the entire lineage, so every previous Doctor is now wandering out there somewhere in the time vortex.

"I think all of the Doctors came back to life with their individual TARDISs, the gift of the Toymaker, and they're all out there travelling round in what I'm calling a Doctorverse," he said in the episode's commentary. We'll pause here for a moment to try and process what that might mean.

Aside from the new mythos of the moment, once we could bathe in Tennant and Gatwa's magnetic chemistry, the bigeneration began to feel like a natural progression, gifting Davies the elbow room to usher in the Fifteenth Doctor with a fresh slate.

'The Day of the Doctor' told us that the Tenth was "the man who regrets", while Matt Smith's Eleventh Doctor was "the man who forgets" and even though we can see differences in Tennant's two Time Lord iterations, he was still just as introspective this time around.

Throughout the three 60th specials, we saw pained flickers of the Doctor agonising over his recent history, whether it be The Flux or the demise of a string of companions. But while Donna (Catherine Tate) tried to probe what had happened, the appearance of Mad Aunty Mel (Bonnie Langford) touched on how the Doctor's companions only ever see a brief sliver of the Time Lord's life and might then never be mentioned again.

If the three episodes, traversing from Earth to the edge of the universe and back, were all in search of closure, it seems the Fourteenth Doctor got that from a warm embrace with the Fifteenth Doctor. It was only his own self who could truly understand what it is to be the Doctor and to have lived his many, varied lives.

Like Buffy the Vampire Slayer's finale expansion of Slayerdom beyond the lonely life of the Chosen One, having another person to share that burden with transforms Fourteen into someone who can now have the one adventure he told Rose he would never be able to: live a life day after day, with the Noble-Temples.

The decision to bring Tennant back allowed a shift from a Doctor who said he didn't want to leave when he regenerated as the Tenth, to one who said it was time moments before he bigenerated. It was an opportunity to find closure for the man who has regrets and to tend to a number of the defining wounds of his recent life.

Beyond that, it seems a logical step to tie up the big, unwieldy storylines from previous seasons, to create a fresh slate for Gatwa to make his own mark unburdened by the trauma of the Doctor's recent past.

This is not to say that regenerating – or even bigenerating – is like downloading a new iOS system and jettisoning all that has gone before. But going by the episode labels on iPlayer, which has separated this new era out into its own bundle from 2023 onwards, Gatwa's Doctor is going to be a reset of sorts.

You might have now wrapped your head around that new lore, so we can start to hypothesise about how this major bisecting of the Time Lord timeline could result in some familiar faces strolling back onto our screens one day not too far from now.

But it also ushers in a new Doctor Who jumping-off point for Gatwa's Doctor, Ruby (Millie Gibson) and the brand spanking new accessible TARDIS.'

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mermaidsirennikita · 4 months

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Have you read Inmortals After Dark? I think you mentioned some of them, so, are they good? I want to give supernatural romance a try again,maybe with a ranking? But they are so many I don't want to waste your time lol the ones you liked the most maybe

I read brotherhood of the black dagger years ago and loved it

I have indeed read every single Immortals After Dark book, lol, including the novellas. They're my favorite paranormals I've read (thus far--there are definitely authors I need to get into).

Compared to Black Dagger Brotherhood, I think they stand on their own better in that there's not as much focus on bringing in other characters as the series goes on, etc. So while I am personally a stickler for reading basically.... any series in order, lol, I know tons of people who read IAD out of order and love them.

Some of my favorites include:

--The Warlord Wants Forever--This is the first installment, technically, and it's a novella, so it's really focused on introducing characters and a tight love story between Nikolai, an Estonian warlord turned vampire (the mythology behind this is so cool, by the way--there's a war for the vampire throne, and one of the contenders has a rep for going around battlegrounds and offering the best warlords a chance to become his vampire generals as they're dying; Nikolai and his brother Murdoch were turned this way) and Myst, a much older valkyrie with a reputation for seducing and killing vamps. In the IAD mythos, vampires are impotent after turning, UNTIL they meet their Brides. Then, they are... in a bad state.... until their Bride helps them out. Via touch. So Myst leaves Nikolai wanting. For FIVE YEARS. Before he finds her again. Has some dubcon, magical noncon in an "everyone is loving this but still legally it's dicey" kind of way.

--A Hunger Like No Other--The first full-length installment about a werewolf king who's been trapped in eternal flame in the CATACOMBS OF PARIS by vampires until he smells his mate above ground, chews off his own leg (it grows back) and finds her in a cafe and goes "YOU" before dragging her outta there. (And when she tries to run he's like "don't do it, my kind lOVES it when you run" which... chills.) And then oops, turns out she's half vampire! Bad times for Lachlain! I am OBSESSED with Kresley's werewolves. They literally worship the bonds of matehood and I love it when they have to grapple with "HER? REALLY? COME ON". Same dubcon/noncon stuff mentioned above.

--Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night--Another werewolf one, this one is about a werewolf who's on this hunt for a magical object in order to revive his dead mate, only to run afoul of a witch who's also looking for the object. And like? His Instinct tells him SHE's his mate??? ImPOSSIBLE!!! THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE!!! A big adventure book with a very growly guy and a witch capable of unlimited power who also was a cheerleader in college.

--Dark Needs at Night's Edge--Virgin vampire who's been literally insane ever since he was turned (because, unbeknownst to his brothers who turned him to save him from dying, he was a part of a vampire-killing cult lol) is locked up in a New Orleans mansion to detox and get back to reality. Except oops, there's a beautiful lady who only he can see, FLIRTING WITH HIM. She's the ghost of a burlesque/ballet dancer and she's AMAZING. But again, ghost. So how will it work???

--Kiss of a Demon King--Dethroned demon king is tricked and taken hostage by his fated mate, an evil sorceress who needs to give birth to his heir as a part of her brother's Wicked Schemes. Only, in order for it to be his actual heir, he has to marry her first. And he REFUSES because he is a noble and morally upright demon king. Until she very much unleashes his bad side. Dubcon, ultimate bratty heroine and a hero who is just living. on. the. edge. because of her.

--Pleasure of a Dark Prince--Werewolf prince meets his fated mate in a cool, calm, and collected valkyrie... but sucks for him, because she swore her chastity to her goddess centuries ago, and if she breaks her vow she'll lose her supernatural archery skills. And she super doesn't want to. So he chases her around the planet for a year before catching her, at which point she grudgingly allows him to tag along as she sets off to ritualistically murder a cannibalistic god. It's actually very romantic, very hot, and VERY funny though it does deal with a lot of trauma featuring SA in the past. If you like "The Mummy" this has THOSE vibes. It's amazing, and it has one of my favorite depictions of the werewolf devotion and the extent to which it reaches in this series.

--Lothaire--I mean, arguably the most famous of the books in the series? To me, it's probably one of the biggest paranormal romances... ever... in terms of its daring. The hero has been one of the Big Bads throughout the series, and he does not... stop being evil. And crazy. And evil and crazy! He's 3,000 years old and has been waiting to find his Bride (not because he's romantic but because he has a Revenge Plan Endgame and vampires in this series power up once they meet their Brides). Only to find out that she is in fact a backwoods human girl, which HORRIFIES him. Until he realizes that she's possessed by an evil goddess, so he's like "that must be it!!!" and when the heroine is accused of murder he lets her sit on death row for FIVE YEARS while he looks for a way to cast her soul out of her body so the goddess can take hold. Once he has to get her out, though... And once they end up spending a lot of time together... He realizes that as much as HE has an impossibly strong will, this little human psych major quite possibly has a STRONGER will. One of the best enemies to lovers books of all time, if you want to watch a horrible dude brought to his knees by a woman who just refuses to give him an inch, this is it. It is a little better imo if you've seen Lothaire in other books at least once before; he is in Hunger, Kiss of a Demon King, and Pleasures of a Dark Prince (lol in a big way--he's traveling by coffin in a cruise down the Amazon River like a freak) at min.

In terms of subsequent books after that, I like and love a lot of them, ESPECIALLY MacRieve, but I think MacRieve is one you should read after settling into the world, as it's VERY dark and pretty lore-heavy. I would also recommend Dreams of a Dark Warrior quite a bit, but I also think you should read that... only after you settle into the world. It's quite dark as well, and has a very challenging hero/heroine dynamic. It comes right before Lothaire, and if you've read other books before it, I'd actually read those two in order for some fun setup. Lothaire has a legitimate POV in Dreams, which doesn't happen often in the series. And it is... a good way to get to know him. He is bananas. His POV is always great. He wears a Panama hat while telling the hero to neg the heroine. I love him. Tbh, Pleasure of a Dark Prince, Dreams of a Dark Warrior, and Lothaire can really be read as a good little three-book sequence. Sweet Ruin is also amazing, but another I'd read after settling in a bit.

But to be real, I've never read an IAD book I don't at least LIKE. Even the weaker ones have aspects I enjoy a lot.

#romance novel blogging #book recs #romance novels #i'm on mission and this series is my book of mormon

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kmze · 2 months

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Finally decided to do a TVD rewatch now that the 'verse is complete. Since I know how everything ends I thought it would be interesting to see how I react with that knowledge. Curious if my feelings might change about characters, ships, storylines etc. (obviously I am fully aware there's going some bias).

Adding my thoughts after I complete the half-way mark of each season (there is simply too many episodes to do a recap of each one). I am talking to the void mostly here but feel free to leave comments, thoughts on my posts for those who still follow me or just find this post. However, I am not here to argue, I simply DO NOT CARE whatever you think is right totally, please leave me alone.

Recaps tagged with k rewatches tvd

S1 Episodes 1-11

I am loving the dark atmosphere of the first season, feeling so much nostalgia! Nice to go back in time to when vampires were scary on this show. That's not really criticism because every supernatural show goes through this. The big bad must always be upped as it goes on but it was nice when the stakes were lower and the mythos was being developed.

Damon makes me feel so uncomfortable so far... I know he was the 'villian' for most of the beginning of the season but his treatment of Vicki and Caroline is just so predatory and gross. Which brings me to...

WHY HAS NO ONE GIVEN CAROLINE A GOD DAMN VERVAIN NECKLACE ALREADY!!! Stefan and Elena both know Damon was using her (and they know damn well he hasn't stopped). Her Mom has the vervain to give her and just has not for no reason!! GET AWAY FROM HER ALREADY! I got so mad when Damon was compelling her AGAIN in the 10th episode. I'm so glad she outlives them all, justice for my baby!

I'm sorry but Stefan is so creepy and self-righteous in the beginning, I remembered this but did not remember how bad it was. Also he did not need to kill Vicki, that pissed me off. I don't think it did as much when I first watch this (mind you that was literally 14+ years ago) but just knowing how freely everyone neck-snaps around here it was bullshit. His one cool moment remains when he told Logan he can't walk in the sun. The manipulative way he used Elena’s adoption to get her to forgive him had me rolling my eyes (then of course she used it against Jenna to get out of trouble lol).

I can't remember who the other vampire is who turned Logan, I'm thinking its Pearl's henchman but yeah I don't remember that part. I also didn't remember the crystal so I like that some of this is like a 'mystery' again.

I did remember that I thought Tyler was such a dick in the first season and yeah confirmed. Though now I remembered his Dad was an abusive piece of shit. Still, fuck Tyler for now.

Alaric looks so different I don't hate him (yet).

I still hate Matt #bias

The progression of Bonnie realizing her powers has been well done, again nice to just see the simple magic again. (Stefan totally wanted to bang Sheila back in the day... maybe they did)

Jeremy just met Anna and I still love them, I wish they got more time. They were the only 'ship I like in this season when it first aired.

The Bonnie, Elena and Caroline friendship is nice but I am annoyed they haven't done more to protect Caro from Damon. Especially when she doesn't know what's going on and they do (though Bonnie only just got all the deets). This might be magnified by my love of Caroline I admit but I hate the prop-y way she's being used so far.

I kinda rolled my eyes at the whole Katherine/Damon/Stefan stuff before Elena knew they were vamps because OMG Stefan is 17(!!!) Does no one thinks it's weird he's like "it was a long time ago" A LONG TIME AGO LIKE WHEN YOU WERE 12?! They should have made him at least 20, just bothers me.

I liked that not every vampire had a daylight ring and it was more of a novelty. That is something that could have stuck more in the later seasons.

Lines that made me laugh:

Caroline: Yeah, Elena wasn't so lucky today. It's only because you missed summer camp. God, I don't know how you're ever going to learn the routines. (Bonnie offers to help her) I guess we can put her in the back. (all right in front of Elena lmao oh Caroline never change)

Caroline: So, Elena...how long do you think this fight with Stefan's gonna last? Is it...like a permanent thing? (eyes on the prize baby! lol)

Stefan: (imitating Damon) Now that the secret society of vampire haters is off our back, I can go back to my routine of how can I destroy Stefan’s life this week. (never gets old!)

Damon: *shoots Logan with wooden bullets* Payback's a bitch, isn't it? (all in the delivery here lmao kudos to Ian)

#tvd rewatch #tvd spoilers #S1 rewatch #1x1 - 1x11 #not gonna tag characters yet #I feel I'd just be setting myself up for discourse I don't want #maybe I will later we'll see how it goes #we'll also see how long I keep up with this lol #I had time this week not always the case #'twas fun so far!#k rewatches tvd

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skwigelfskwisgaar · 7 months

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I use Tarot as apart of my spiritual practice and for personal comfort :) i think the most brutal thing that's happened is like. actually speaking with dead relatives + deities coming through and this one time someone said i predicted a death but *i genuinely didnt*, you cant do that with tarot, but i got a card called "The Tower" in that reading that signifies something that's supposed to happen and feels traumatizing but you'll learn and grow from that experience and they informed me of what had happened in their life. everytime someone tells me im being spot on or the thing i predicted ACTUALLY happening is so so insane and fulfilling to me.

Do you have a favorite myth or God in Norse mythos?

!! I'd love to read your book, maybe you can read it to me sometime since I don't speak Swedish, unfortunately ^^' ATM I am reading through Odin: Ecstasy, Runes, and Norse Magic. It's in English but I'm trying to learn old Nordic pronunciations and words! I've also been looking into a few other resources my friends who are fellow Norse Pagans have sent me! I know Odin sees me as a newcomer that's still learning, so I'd love to take any information you might have if you're open to sharing it! ; w ;

OK Sorry this is like. so rambly ahaha. you're really easy to talk to!!

8 OF PENTACLES:

Pentacles is the earth suite, it brings forth light to matters within the more physical matters of the realm. You need to be grounded here. In order to make peace- you need to put in genuine hard work and effort- which can be hard. The shadows you face are big, and loom in over you and remaining calm in the face of that can prove to be a challenge, but it's not something you can't do! The guy here is at peace and diligent as he gets into the process of creating something great.

I think that this card gives you a good energy to begin the process of making that peace within yourself and is showcasing a good start to beginning that journey. Doing things that heal your inner child, like doing things you couldn't do or experience during that time- forgiving yourself for wrongdoings, accepting you can't change others, etc. Coming to terms with the cards you've been dealt in life and appreciating what's in front of you can help. Know you have the power within you to control yourself and make what you want to see, it's a matter of labor to build that reality up. Facing your demons is simply some work- which I'm sure you're used to since I know you're always working extra hard to pick up Toki's slack :3 (/joke /light hearted, he's a great guitarist!)

QUEEN OF WANDS; REVERSED

The Queen of Wands is a very determined, powerful lady who gets her shit done and is fiercely by your side! This energy is in it's reversal, meaning it's lessened or there's some sort of blockage here. You're *used* to this kind of energy from fans, and you're looking for something more genuine that's coming from yourself. This card is reminding you that it's in there, try to think of ways in which you genuinely feel validated through a less superficial lens. You might be able to find some peace within yourself through aiding other people, as well. There might be a lot of problems surrounding you and being able to be someone that can fix or ease it for those around you might help.

4 OF SWORDS; REVERSED

This card is usually about BIG NAPS, BABEY. You might be feeling isolated from others- I know sometimes people think you're a fertility God or something? You're on another level, and every now and then it's good to come down from that, and be by yourself for a little bit.

You might need some alone time to meditate and really get comfortable with yourself and the thoughts that come in through your head- whether they be positive, negative, anxiety inducing, or something stupid or ingenious.I think the energy here is reversed because it's something that's kind of hard for you at the moment? To just, sit with yourself. Sit with your thoughts, and either accept them or just give em a simple "huh that's weird." and move on if they're like, especially disturbing or something! thats where I think some of that work from the 8 of Pentacles comes into play- just accepting what comes into your mind during the silence of it all and going about your merry way after it.

anxiety can be something really hard to deal with, but the best course of action sometimes is to not act on anything in the moment and just breathe your way through it, and accept stuff for what they are and redirect yourself. Soul search so you can obtain some solid truths about yourself so you can know exactly who it is you are with certainty, (like. example! you're someone with a sarcastic set of humor.) and know how you'd react with certainty in any situations (hypothetical or otherwise) with confidence!

Push forward, no action is needed- you just need to take yourself to greater heights with this journey with some stillness and meditation.

OVERALL; I think yes- you are more than capable of finding peace with who you are and i think you'll get to that point! This just seems to be a description of how to get there as well as what might be in your way of that and how to get through it in order to obtain that peace. i hope this was ok! ;w; if you have any questions feel free to let me know!

ooc:

This was an amazing reading, and I took my time really reading through it. I will come back to this but this must be posted so that people can see how great and wonderful a job you did!

#skwisgaar rp blog #rp blog #skwigelf talks #asks #ooc:#tarot anon

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milkstoner · 1 year

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CONSIDER. Magical boy Silver and campy villain Malleus. Think of a situation that’s like, sailor moon meets princess tutu meets utena meets sleeping beauty.

I evoke princess tutu because tell me Silver is not literally Mytho.

Like. White-haired sword-wielding soft spoken princes (ok Silver isn’t confirmed but it’s canon in my heart) who appear to be apathetic. Heroes who sacrifice themselves for what they think is the greater good. They are the same image.

The setting would be a human city. Sort of modern times. Flip phone era. We communicate through emails. I want this to have a retro vibe, but not too much.

ANYWAY, Silver, sixteen, cursed to fall asleep at unexpected times. Lilia raises him. Silver is sweet and quiet, a bit of a dreamer, but doesn’t show it… he takes ballet classes… he has a charm despite how sleepy and lost he is and has quite a few friends, like Kalim💜💜💜 who is the PERFECT sidekick i mean come on.

Silver often naps in the woods behind his school… that’s where he finds the magical sword that gives him his cute little powers <3 he has an Arthur moment of course. His animal sidekicks are based off of the three fairies from the og sleeping beauty.

He uses his newfound power to defeat… GASP… the master of all evil, Malleus Draconia, a ruthless fae prince!!! Malleus is a campy, dramatic villain, think if Dio and Kars from Jojo’s had a beautiful, sultry lovechild. He serves Elvira with his big tits almost spilling out of his décolleté. Think James from Pokémon, with his shojo sparkles and roses. Every week it’s something new with him and he never learns his lesson; also, he shows up in a new sexy cunty outfit every week. Triggering thunderstorms and cutting off the electricity everywhere, threatening to flood the city before Silver intervenes; leaving poisoned roses in incongruous places, and when a passerby touches it, they are possessed by an evil spirit that Silver must defeat; attempting to drag mobs into an abyss with his will o’ the wisp; because we’re in a magical girl setting, a lot of it is just people being mind controlled. At the end of each arc, perhaps Silver can duel one of the six overblotters, à la Utena. It’s all very normal and expected of a shojo until it isn’t.

What Silver doesn’t know is the king of the abyss is madly in love with him, and each scheme is a plot to lure Silver into Malleus’ abode so he can seduce him. Every time they battle, of course, Malleus flirts with him, and when they get close, he takes some of his hair between his fingers. Get you a man who’s willing to bring chaos and destruction to a whole city because he wants to kiss you so bad. Malleus declares himself defeated on purpose so he won’t actually hurt Silver, who thinks he’s actually won…

Sebek is, too, a magical boy, albeit his role isn’t as important. He intervenes kind of like tuxedo mask; Silver falls asleep and Sebek shows up with his shield, blocking any hit Malleus directs at them. When Silver wakes up, Sebek scolds him and yells at him to hit Malleus with his sword. They defeat the evil prince together and they both eat dinner at Sebek’s house LOL

Don’t think I forgot about Lilia, who is revealed early on to be Malleus’ minion. He is a shapeshifting fae, meaning he can give himself round ears so he doesn’t raise suspicions. At night, he tells Malleus about Silver’s day and what he does at school dggjgdjyfdkywf

Lilia: he got an A on his science assignment.

Malleus: I see… what a smart boy. Very smart indeed… naturally, I wouldn’t want my meddling to have an impact on his grades.

The pre-final boss is Malleus finally losing it and appearing as a dragon kaiju, destroying buildings etc. Silver falls asleep in the middle of the battle and his dreams transport him to the classic dream-but-is-it-really-a-dream place where he finds Lilia who now has all of his fae attributes... cue a heart wrenching dialogue as Silver realizes his father betrayed him from the very start of his life.

Begins the arc where Silver wakes up to see the city has been partly destroyed and looks like runes covered in thorns and moss. How long has it been since he fell asleep? He doesn’t know. Most of the city’s inhabitants have fallen asleep. Even the fairy animal sidekicks are asleep. He must now find Malleus and end this once and for all.

As Silver explores the ruined city, sword in hand, he fights battles against like, sentient, beastly rose bushes (a nod to alice in wonderland and the pretty sentient flowers?), sentient gargoyles that fucking throw bricks at him LMFAOO… and other eldritch abominations. He gets a vision after each battle that tells him where to go. He finds a mysterious dark door in the woods behind his school and he falls into the abyss, where he finds Malleus on his throne.

Of course Malleus flirts while Silver is panicked and shaky and angry. He even pulls Silver into his arms and waltzes around his dark gloomy castle while Silver is fucking terrified. I hope Silver didn’t think he was the hero… because in Malleus’ eyes, he is the damsel in distress. He has Silver where he wants him, in his arms… he has no shame now, whispering the most sappy words of love into his ear, talking about marrying him oh my god. For once, Silver thinks he might actually be losing this one—he doesn’t even KNOW how to undo the curse. He realizes that every battle fought so far was just… Malleus using him like a pawn. The evil prince of the darkness is much too strong, way stronger than Silver thought… he can’t even resist Malleus’ lips on his oh my god. He falls asleep once again and Mal places Silver’s head on his lap, happy that he finally has his little prince all to himself.

I want to incorporate Silver’s true origins into this. I want the city Silver lives in to be directly on the land where the kingdom from sleeping beauty once was. I want Silver’s blood to be the only thing that survived from that once glorious kingdom… perhaps some of the pieces to the puzzle would show up in his dreams. Maybe on his way to Malleus during the pre-final boss arc, he would find #the ring… and maybe everything comes together as he sleeps on Malleus’ lap.

From there, I’m imagining three routes

1. Silver wakes up and, overcome with doom, having learned his father betrayed him, and that he’s powerless before the beast that is Malleus, he attempts to stab himself with his own sword. Panicked, Malleus uses his body to block the hit, because he doesn’t want Silver to die, of course (he’s dumb). They both end up getting stabbed and they die together as a skewer while the city outside continues to decay eternally.

2. Silver wakes up and is stuck in a beauty and the beast situation. He plots how he’ll defeat Malleus, this time using wits rather than force and magic, because those do not work on him. This doesn’t work; Silver slowly learns to fall in love. Malleus reveals himself to be very sweet, caring, and romantic, and Silver, fatigued dreamer that he is, falls for him. Silver also quickly learns that there is simply no way Malleus can be defeated. He has no weaknesses. So as he softens his heart, he comforts himself by reminding himself that at least, nobody is dead in the city, and that they will be spending eternity having the most pleasant of dreams. He’s being corrupted of course. He’s questioning his duty as a hero, why he did what he did, why he simply let fate guide him.

3. Silver wakes up and, in a fit of rage, finally brings himself to stab Malleus’ heart. The evil prince put his guard down because he thought he finally had Silver… big mistake. The abyss fades away and Malleus struggles to mutter an “I love you” before he dies. Silver is back in the forest with his normal clothes on. His sword is gone. It’s over. The city still retains some damage, but the thorns are gone and the people are waking up. Fin.

The aesthetic would be very art nouveau, methinks. Bright sun, curvaceous vines and thorns, roses and may lilies everywhere. It’s surreal. Bright colours inspired by the aesthetic of the og sleeping beauty. Silver’s magical boy costume is pink, but during his transformation sequence, it flashes both blue and pink. He has a frilly blouse with a corset. The tights are essential & evoke Phillip as well as Silver’s hobby (ballet). He also has high boots with like, a 2 inch heel. The frills on his blouse have roses embroidered… his corset has lace details. He has a golden tiara just like Aurora’s. So i guess from the waist up it’s giving Briar Rose’s peasant girl attire, and from the waist down it’s giving Phillip, but make it all very pink and frilly and magical girl-esque. The hilt of his sword has a lot of detail as well, very similar to Silver’s ring from book 7.

Sebek’s magical boy outfit is similar but a lot more inspired by Phillip. He’s sage green from head to toe. He has puffy sleeves and a cape. Let’s not forget the cunty corset… the details are the same, roses and intricate lace… his heels are one inch however. Let’s not get too crazy he’s tall enough. He has tights as well duh.

Okay that’s all i think lol I’ll add more stuff to this au if inspiration strikes.

#twisted wonderland #malleus draconia #twst #malleus twst #twst malleus #mallesil #twst silver #silver twst #sebek zigvolt #lilia vanrouge

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