#io has a hard enough time on her own

[blackbloodedisabel]

main characters for your mermaid thing?

>:) thank you (deranged cackling)

arguably some of the characters I've included here are not main main characters but they mean a lot to me and they have important roles in the story ok

I will include a character grid for everyone this is the format of the character grid:

'eyes' just means vibe, jewellery is the main component of their.. jewellery because everyone here has their own unique magic jewellery (part of the magic system/worldbuilding) except Calen who has a crown only because he's king.

Teagan is my lonely human skrunckly goober losing her grip on reality<3 15 years ago her older brother got dragged from a cliff into the sea by a big scary sea monster lizard, her parents blamed mermaids and have been going out monster hunting in their boat for weeks at a time. she went with them until she was old enough to stay at home and now she's going slightly insane from lack of human contact and thinks the wind and sea are old lovers/friends/rivals. she lives in a weird amalgamation of cornwall/north devon/mid-west wales and she's the most ridiculous author insert you've ever seen. she's very nice, sort of a peacemaker figure, she loves rock climbing and the sea and her hair is perpetually crusty with salt/sand. arguably the second main character and the secondary pov character.

Anemone is the shy princess who was the first picrew I made and she has been the main character and number one pov character ever since. she has the biggest character arc and she is SO precious to me. she's not very magically powerful and is horrifically insecure about it which is not helped by the fact that when she attended magic tutoring (because she’s a princess and her family has historically been very magically powerful) her best (only) friend was the most powerful witch for generations. then Ane left really abruptly and they didn't speak or see each other for close to 2 years. precious baby Ane has spent the last 2 years rotting in her room combing her hair and staring out of the window and the story starts when her brother the king forces her to leave and go on quests to help the people because she's the most useless parasitic royal ever and this is when she decides she needs her best friend's help with quests and thus the story starts. she is very shy and very much a pushover at the beginning but her arc is becoming a confident(ish) strong selfless leader <33 she is also so sapphic she rivals the og poet

Selma is that super powerful best friend!! she is arguably the most important character in terms of how she influences the people around her. she is also simultaneously a big weirdo and very cool!! she made her own magic jewellery and teaches at the magic tutoring system. her special interest is the ancient mega-powerful witch so she's obsessed with the magic jewellery/books the witch made and with the witch's descendant. she is very passionate and resilient (sometimes to her detriment) and defeats (almost) all her enemies with the sheer power of her lesbianism and homoerotic girlbestfriendships. she was very hard to name and only got her name when 'Selma' came to me in a dream (I had a different dream beforehand where the name Olympia came to me but I don't like that as much)

Iolanthe is the last living descendant of said ancient witch and Anemone’s thematic foil. this is because she has similarly mediocre magic when she should be very powerful. unfortunately she is in denial about this and still believes she has yet to earn her magic (magic in this world is both inherent from genetics/chance and earnt based on strength/resilience. Ane is very privileged and emotionally weak so she doesn't have strong magic, Selma is much more emotionally resilient so she does have strong magic etc etc). this means Io spends all her time in her workshop paid for by her richass family trying to make the perfect piece of magical jewellery which she can form a conduit bond with (you can magically bond with a piece of jewellery which will massively amplify your power if you earn it, usually done by making it (like Selma, who Io is very jealous of and inspired to make jewellery by), finding it or buying it with money you worked for). then near the end of part one the questing gang (Ane, Teagan, Selma, Mel, Enith and to an extent Isther) show her the jewellery they've collected which was all made by her ancient witch ancestor. she becomes convinced that she needs these specific pieces of jewellery to become powerful, but obviously they're bound to various members of the questing gang. everything spirals from there. she seems really dull and a bit entitled but on the inside she's making such leaps to conclusions that she is my secret favourite

Melyde is a street singer who, at the start of the story, earnt a conduit bond with a necklace made by the ancient witch (someone threw it at her when she was performing). previously she had no magic (quite rare to have NONE most people just have very weak) but after forming the bond she became about the second most powerful witch after Selma. unfortunately she had precisely zero control over it and accidentally lured half the city to watch her perform and give her money, so Selma and the gang (just Ane and Enith at that point) had to step in and get her to join the gang so Selma could teach her magic properly. you can tell Mel and Selma are in love because their colour schemes make up the lesbian flag. melyde's whole shtick is being very brave and stubborn and while she may be the most pointless character of the gang she means a lot to me

Enith (with a VOICED TH) is the gang's navigator and the first person Selma and Ane recruited to join them. she is from the deep ocean and has an unfashionable haircut because she's making a statement! and I love her. she spent her childhood mapping out the cave system behind her house and when she was older she moved to the capital city to run a tour guide and map making shop because she didn't want to work in her parents' glass making business. she's also got no magic of her own. she's very kind and friendly until her parents are killed at the end of part one (spoilers) after which she becomes angry impatient and withdrawn. I got her name by misspelling enid as enidd, which my brain read as enith because of welsh phonetics. love her!!

Isther (isster) has I think the most duality out of the characters. she fluctuates between poor little traumatised baby and lying vengeful murderous little shit. the gang found her when they accidentally got into the huge sealed-off cave where all the sea monsters were imprisoned after the big attacks 15 years ago and for some reason she was imprisoned there too?? how odd. they freed her and she joined the group. she's actually the witch who controls the sea monsters though she doesn't know that until the end of part 1 and she wasn't born murderous.. unfortunately still a liar and she does end up being (one of) the actual villains even if she was manipulated into it a bit. she could've been ok. she could've been ok!! Ane could've fixed her honestly there's something a little jackieshauna about them (pink and green, homoerotic friendship ended by violent betrayal)

Calen is Anemone’s older brother and the king. he's not a main character but I feel obligated to mention him. he has Issues about his mother. probably the closest to morally grey out of all the non-villain characters because he ends up using child soldiers because he can't beat an angsty 17 year old and her 5-6 uncreative sea monsters

that's them!! thank you for asking about my goobers

#🧜‍♀️🌪🌊 #tag changed

[astralartefact]

NieR Re[in]carnation The People and the World Transmigration and the End of Reincarnation

If Red is the color of ______ then why did I ____ the ending of NieR Re[d ]carnation?

Between YoRHa:Dark Apocalypse, some of the RoD stories and now this, a pattern has been established:

If I didn't really like the ending of a NieR story, chances are 100% that given a couple hours to days I will figure myself into "This is the best thing ever written, I committed blasphemy against the god king by ever doubting his vision."

Because to be open and honest about it, right after playing it the ending was kinda boring to me - because if you paid attention to the periphery and knew the deep lore you already expected 90% of the reveals, the only really new thing is the rundown on what happened to His, Her and N2.

Let me phrase it like this: the Time Loop Theory didn't really need confirmation up until now. It was a thing because it fits the themes, but acknowledging it wouldn't really add anything because the vague sense of inevitability already exists simply by alluding to it and the previous narratives all already had it built into them without it anyways - so I think the only reason they hard confirmed it now was because it literally added to the story. Him and Her being stuck in the time loop of humanity's failure is why they despaired.

So long story short, the stuff they 'confirmed' I didn't really need to be confirmed (cries in no y:da) and as fine as it was, not having an immediate "Oh Shit!" Moment made the chapter kind of boring. So while kind of neat it didn't really do anything for me.

But I also finished Reincarnation at 5AM. So I went to sleep and Io and behold, I awoke to a revelation by the god king:

This was amazing. This story logistically paid off on the entirety of the game's narratives in a single chapter all while talking about something new. What the fuck. Once again, this shouldn't work. How did they do that??? How is the writing in this game so tightly unified despite being literally fragmented into 20-ish individual stories??? This game has the most writers of all NieR games and yet every single story is pulling at the same rope??? Like, how???

To me NieR Reincarnation is about two things: Number 1 - Reincarnation is a Cage, all humans are born into some level of agency-less-ness and wouldn't you know it, they have no agency about that Number 2 - 'Humanity' is a more complex thing than just 'Being of the Human Species' (which is basically the NieR theme)

I think the Robots in the cast illustrate this the best: Dimos and Marie and Yurie and 10H (and Noelle and 063y and F66x) were made for a purpose, but they didn't choose their purpose, their creators did for very specific reasons. But against all odds they find themselves human and humans have wishes and dreams, even if it's just to fulfill their purpose, they seek out the agency to make those dreams come true and if they pray for their dreams to come true they will find a way.

By experiencing the pain and despair of solitude He became human, because He wanted, He wished to not experience it anymore. By experiencing the pain and despair of the machine lifeforms N2 became human in the same way and She became human by incorporating N2's experience of pain into Herself.

And as Humans they pray for a better future. And maybe they can't do it on their own, because they're human and humans fail and cry and shit and die. Maybe they desperately need the help of someone who can help, even if it's just a little girl who is selfless enough to offer them an encouraging hand despite all of the mistakes they made. But by praying for their dreams to come true, by not outright denying the possibility of a better future, simply by hoping this better future exists we can reach it, because we're human. We will find a way.

So even I, from one Prayer to another, want to Thank You for Praying. Please believe in the future you want to see, because otherwise it will not happen. And remember, all Prayers lead to the Cage.

Also Drakengard symbolism because GODDAMN IT, JUST MAKE ANOTHER DRAKENGARD GAME YOU-----

They called her the second girl, but she's at least the third!!! (i think four if you count crym?) (but i'm pretty sure only i do that so let's do three)

I'm fucking pissed. You dare to leave the Drakengard Shit, MY beloved Drakengard Shit, as subtext symbolism??? How dare you. How absolutely dare you. I hope you know I am praying for Drakengard 5 (not a mistake) Yoko Taro and as I have established in this post you yourself have said that prayers come true if you believe in them so go ahead. I'm waiting.

No Seed of Resurrection talk, No word on Mother, No Accord, just the girl with One's horns doing the Manah stuff I deserve, because I called it back when Replicant Remake came out.

No but really though, I wonder if there might be a reason that we got basically 0 answers to Drakengard stuff and only answers to the NieR side of things. Apparently - and I have no quote for this, I just read some chatter about it - Yoko Taro has said that the next NieR game is planned, but will only come after another game he's making... and well... if this final chapter has made anything clear by omission it's that Drakengard isn't NieR... Just saying...

Also, this still it wasn't a Y:DA reference after all... They didn't even slightly allude to it q_q #AnoggForReincarnation is truly over...

But let's talk about the color Red for a second, because I have a thought.

I'm not going into it too much, we all know Red is a pretty symbolically heavy color in general, but in NieR and honestly even more so in Drakengard especially - they literally just did stain a girl in white in blood again, that's the Drakengard thing - but...

Mama's Pod is also Red. She receives a Red Carnation, a common Japanese Mother's Day gift, from 10H which is the key to 10H unlocking the truth. Clearly Red isn't just Hatred... but I haven't thought enough about it to really tell you what that's about. I will have to think about that - and if I ever come to a conclusion on that front I will tell you all about it.

Anyways, that's it for now... I can confidently state that NieR Reincarnation is my favorite NieR game and honestly by a long shot. I don't give a shit that it's a Gacha, I can't do anything about that and Yoko Taro, Yuki Wada and the Rest of the Team did the absolute most with the hand they were dealt, because clearly someone up in Square Enix does not like what the silly mask man is doing and doesn't give him the budget and creative liberties he truly deserves.

Once again a sincere Thank you for Praying - please believe in the future you want to see, no matter how distant and unattainable it may seem. You will still have to look out for and grab the hand reaching out to actually reach it - but you will only see that hand if you're hoping for one to come your way in the first place.

Speaking of which, here is my Prayer for the day: #AnoggForWhateverComesAfterReincarnationBecauseIfThisWasReplicantEndingEPayoffThenY:DAPayoffHasToBeNext

#nier reincarnation #yoko taro #nier #I will miss doing these... #but thank you to all the people who read like and reblogged them <3 #Thank You for Praying #I'm slightly cringing typing it out because it feels like telling somebody to be religious #but read the post. i actually really like what reincarnation did with that. praying is just hoping for a better future #and you don't need god for that

[coldshrugs]

Because I want to ask and put stuff on tumblr 💕

What’s Estinien’s and Io’s favorite thing to do together in the modern AU? Does it change after they get together? How’s it different from canon?

AAAAAAAAAAAA THANK YOU FOR ASKING!!!!!!!!!!!! sorry i've slept on this for a few days. it's been a hectic week and i was spinning this in my mind to get through the horrors 💗

i feel like the simple answer is that they just like being together. almost every activity is better if they can do it together because they just like being around each other. there's a very distinct comfort they feel with each other that makes hard things easier, mundane things more fun, and unpleasant things worth it.

but that's not what's being asked!

io and estinien enjoy taking walks together, specifically the kind where they might get a little lost or turned around for an hour or two. a chance to ignore their phones and take in their surroundings, find a new favorite place to eat, a museum they haven't visited before, or somewhere far enough off the beaten path that they kinda feel like tourists exploring their own city. or doing this with a drive if they have enough free time. they talk a lot during these little adventures, covering surface-level topics and deeper, more emotional things too.

i think this extends to things like going grocery shopping together, or a late-night beer run too? idk, it's just nice to walk and talk together.

they love cooking at home together! they do it at least once a week. often they're making old favorites (i watched yellowstone recently and there was a scene of a character making his partner a breakfast his now-deceased mom made him and... it has taken over my brain), or one of them might suggest a new recipe and they'll experiment with it. io is very organized when working on a task, and her taste is a shade more refined. estinien has more practical kitchen skills (so handy with a knife, doesn't burn the rice), and his palette is extremely adventurous even if he's not naming individual ingredients.

they also really like learning from each other when they can? io teaches estinien more about music and plants (enough to help keep hers alive). estinien walks her through sports if she has questions while they're watching things together, and he helps her optimize workouts (that harp is heavy after all).

okay well, i've had a margarita and could ramble all night so bye! ty ily bye!

editing to add: they enjoy the same kinds of things in canon, with the addition of fighting together + trying to read together (io will often read faster than estinien and just. forget they're doing that and leave him in the dust. but he doesn't mind because they're usually cuddling and he like her reactions to the story).

none of this changes when they get together, the things they enjoy doing with each other are now usually done while holding hands :>

#asks #io/estinien #otwr au #long post #i guess

[plopspoodle]

10 Game Recommendations

Bonjour~ As someone who has a lot of free time, I like to populate that time with various activities: reading, crafts, watching TV, language learning (mainly Duolingo) and playing games. Whilst I mainly like mystery/puzzle games, there are other genres I get involved in so hopefully this list will be varied enough!

Nancy Drew Her Interactive

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Point and Click Mystery 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: Join teenage sleuth Nancy Drew in various mysteries by exploring various environments, finding clues and interviewing suspects. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series - my favourites are Ghost of Thornton Hall, Blackmoor Manor and Sea of Darkness 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Offline 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Varies on each game, most games you can choose "Junior" (easy) or "Senior" (hard) Detective, but it's common and acceptable to use online walkthroughs if you get stuck. There are also hint systems within the games. 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): PC, a couple are on the Wii, Mobile and DS but PC is a vastly superior experience. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 10/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: This is my favourite game series and a special interest of mine since I was 8. It has wonderful music, well thought out environments and an atmosphere that always gives me happiness. I own every game available on Steam and usually replay all of them every year!

League of Legends Riot Games

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: MOBA 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: It features a team-based competitive game mode based on strategy and outplaying opponents. Players work with their team to break the enemy Nexus before the enemy team breaks theirs. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series - League of Legends and Teamfight Tactics, Legends of Runeterra (Card game) Wild Rift. 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Both (predominantly online but there are AI modes, LOR has offline modes) 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Pretty hard, it takes people a while to get it properly and to be honest is quite hard to get into if you don't have anyone to learn with/help you learn. 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): PC, Mobile 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 7/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: I, like most people, have a difficult relationship with LOL. Whilst I generally enjoy the game, I like a lot of the skins and the music + Arcane are amazing, the game itself is quite hard (the only MOBA I have ever played) and the community is kinda awful. You are almost guaranteed to experience toxicity every single game, regardless of the mode, and even if you are in Blind mode (you must reach Level 10 for Draft where you choose your role and Level 30 for Ranked), and are clearly new, you will likely be with people who already play the game but are on new accounts (called Smurfs). You can mute people (best method is typing /mute all in the chat) but it's annoying when you have to deal with it rather than people just be civil. If you do get a team that are nice, then great! The game is fun! Unfortunately, I really do exercise caution with this game, as I have known absolutely no one who has played without quitting or taking breaks (including myself).

What Remains of Edith Finch Giant Sparrow

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Exploration Narrative (some describe it as a horror game with no jumpscares (bar 2)) 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: You play as Edith Finch revisiting her old family home - you explore the house and the surrounding area and read the old stories written by the elder of the family. You try to uncover the "family curse" before time runs out (figuratively, you can spend as long as you'd like on the game, there is no actual time limit). 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Single game (there is a parallel game if you want to continue the vibe) 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Offline 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Easy, no prior experience required 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): PS4, PS5, Switch, XBOX One, XBOX Series X + S, iOs, PC (what I played it on) 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 10/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: Whilst Nancy Drew is my favourite series, What Remains of Edith Finch (WREF) is hands down my favourite game of all time. It is, admittedly, very very depressing, and I think if you're not feeling too great mentally it isn't a good idea to play. I first played it at a time where I was doing okay, so now when I revisit it (regardless of mood) it brings comfort. Because of the previously reinforced comfort, if I'm not in a good mood and I play it, it makes me feel very creative. The way the game works honestly feels like therapy, how every story is different. I don't think I'll ever find another game like it, and that is why it is so precious to me.

Animal Crossing Nintendo

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Life/Social/Farming Sim 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: You play as a human visiting a land of talking animals! Help rejuvenate the community, make friends and have your dream house. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series, most recent is Animal Crossing: New Horizons (NH) 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Both, you primarily play offline but it has online features and you can play with up to 8 others in NH 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Easy, very chill 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): depends on the game but includes Gamecube, DS, 3DS, Wii, Nintendo Switch 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 9/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: Animal Crossing has been a consistent series throughout my life and is a very good comfort game. I've never tried Stardew Valley as I don't particularly like the farming elements of the game, so AC is better for my tastes. Whilst I do love the series, it isn't a 10 because I, and many people, find you can only play in motivation spikes. It generally means means you'll play for a month straight then take 6 months off. It's not exactly a problem, just means if you're looking for a consistent gaming experience, you may experience AC burnout!

The Room Fireproof Studios

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Mystery/Puzzle Solving 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: You find yourself in front of a box on a table. You must open it and discover the history of secrets inside. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series, most recent game is The Room VR: Dark Matter 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Offline 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Medium-Hard, has hint systems but can sometimes be very difficult and require looking at a walkthrough 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): iOS, Android, PC, Nintendo Switch 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 9/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: The Room, of which I first played the mobile versions, is one of the most beautiful mobile games I have ever seen. I don't know how Fireproof managed to make the graphics so amazing, but they did! I love puzzle games, and I wish I could actually have a box to solve puzzles from. That being said, the paranormal elements aren't something I'd like to have to experience in real life! Only isn't a 10 because I don't have VR headset so I can't play the latest game and that makes me sad.

Assassin's Creed Ubisoft

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Stealth Action Historical / Open World RPG 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: The fight between the Assassins and the Templars has spanned across history, and each game allows you to play as someone on either side in a period of historical significance. There is combat, stealth, economy and a whole lot more. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series, my favourites are AC2, AC4 and AC Syndicate (as I am from the UK) 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Both, primarily offline but online multiplayer is available in most games (if Ubisoft hasn't shut down the servers) 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Varied, they usually begin pretty easy but get harder as you go along, AC2 I found I could mash buttons and beat anyone :) 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): Pretty much every platform, I have played on XBOX 360, PC and Nintendo Switch 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 10/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: I love this series. I love history, first of all, so the prospect of getting to play in various time periods is incredibly appealing! I've given a 10/10 because, even though I don't think every game is a 10/10, the amount of fun I had in the 5 games I've completed is enough to pull up the ones I don't like. Because of the (expected) quality of each game, some aren't as great (e.g. Unity had one of the most infamous bad launches in gaming history and I still can't play it properly due to bugs and poor user interface) but some are amazing. I personally think AC2 is the best one to start with, but fair warning: you will fall in love with Ezio.

The Forest Endnight Games

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Survival Horror 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: In this first person game you, Eric Leblanc, must survive The Forest after having already survived a plane crash. Either plan an escape or go deeper into The Forest to find your son Timmy. The question is: how deep can you go? 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series (The Forest / Sons of The Forest) 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Both 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Medium-Hard 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): PS4, PC 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 9/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: If you play it right, The Forest is essentially horror, adult Minecraft. You can choose the difficulty but I still find it hard even on easy (I am not very good at games). Whilst I cannot give story spoilers, I was truly enamoured in the lore of the game (and now series) when I first found out about The Forest. But, importantly, it is scary. No matter how many people you play it with, it's still scary. I've only been able to play it with male friends, but they have never sounded less manly than when they've played this game. There is a sequel called Sons of The Forest (as seen in the gif below), but it is currently in testing so whilst I have access to it, I wouldn't consider it a full game yet and therefore I don't want to make any ill-made judgements. The Forest is honestly very beautiful and, if you're like me, you can always make it less scary by using console commands and making yourself invincible.

Do Not Feed the Monkeys Fictiorama Studios and Others

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Digital Voyeur Simulator (not in a NSFW way) 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: You essentially work as a spy with access to security cameras in various places, usually places of residence. You can report to your bosses through emails, you can simply watch, you can even interact with the people you see. But you probably shouldn't do that last part. Unless you want to. Or not. All you truly know is that repeated phrase: Do Not Feed The Monkeys. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Offline 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Easy-Medium 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): Nintendo Switch, Android, PS4, XBOX One, XBOX Series X & S, PC 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 8/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: I bought this game after having previously enjoyed Papers, Please (I may feature this game if I do a second part), and it is very fun if you like time management. Every single camera (or room) has a schedule, and in these schedules they will talk and give important information highlighted in yellow. It's a very fun game because you don't necessarily have to follow the rules you're given. Even though it's a management simulator, it also tests your morals (and you can see how good your morals are through a plant you get gifted). If you struggle with the main mode, Peeper Mode makes it significantly easier and the only drawback is you can't unlock achievements.

Journey Thatgamecompany

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Indie Adventure Game 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: The player plays as a robed person journeying towards a distant mountain through a sandy desert. The game has a multiplayer component, in which players can interact on their journey and assist each other. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Single Game 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Both 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Easy 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): PS3, PS4, iOS, PC 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 7/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: Journey is one of the most beautiful games I've ever played. Even if you have just a laptop, like me (at this moment in time), it still looks stunning. The multiplayer element is fascinating, as it's not entirely clear that you're playing with people. A lot of people aren't even sure if you always play with other people or if they are bots, but it doesn't really matter. You go on this Journey, and you're not alone. Now, you may be wondering, if it's so lovely, why is it only a 7/10? This is because, as much as I'd like to be one, I am not a cosy gamer. I like very stimulating games and Journey is lovely for if I want a calm gaming experience, but I rarely feel like that, so it just sits in my Steam library for months before I get the motivation again. It's by no means the fault of the game, just my own personal preference.

The Sims EA & Maxis

𓆩⚜𓆪 Genre: Life Simulator 𓆩❀𓆪 Gameplay description: The player creates virtual people called "Sims", places them in houses, and helps direct their moods and satisfy their desires. Players can either place their Sims in pre-constructed homes or build them themselves. 𓆩⚜𓆪 Single Game / Series? Series (most recent is The Sims 4) 𓆩❀𓆪 Online / Offline / Both? Technically both (usually offline but you can install mods to make it online) 𓆩⚜𓆪 Difficulty: Easy 𓆩❀𓆪 Platform(s): Basically everything 𓆩⚜𓆪 Personal Rating: 8/10 𓆩❀𓆪 Personal Notes: The Sims was probably one of the first games I ever played (bar a Garfield game I had on my DS). My cousin had the Sims 2 on DS, and I actually bought it recently to relive that time. I, unfortunately, did not realise how much she had already completed, so I lost the motivation for that one. However, I currently regularly play the Sims 4 on my laptop, and have quite a lot of mods and have all the packs (Anadius, IYKYK). I've remodelled my room recently, and the Sims meant I could plan it all out and I am very thankful for that. There are also so many options for building, customisation and traits. It is, however, not a 10, as the packs are way too expensive and morally I think it's kind of extortionate to make players pay hundreds of £/$ just to get a proper gaming experience. I have lots of mods to make it more fun and more full, but I don't feel I should have to do that. The only other game I've ever modded is Minecraft, and that's because I've been playing that since I was a child. The Sims is great, but it does get kinda boring at times.

And those are all the games I'm covering today! I may make another part in the future since there are obviously many many games in existence, so if there are any genres you would like covered, leave a comment~ <3

#wonyoungism #coquette #motivation #positivity #dark femininity #games #gaming #nancy drew #league of legends #lol #kda #k/da #k/da ahri #what remains of edith finch #animal crossing #the room #assassin's creed #the forest #do not feed the monkeys #journey #the sims

[divinelycrazy]

Finally, after many months, I present to you part 2 of;

Io, the cow who wasn't always a cow

Previous/next

Many horrible and grazing years later, Io is very much used to spending her life as a bovine. She isn't having fun, but it beats getting chased around by horny gods. Now you must be thinking dear reader that perhaps Io should escape and get some help, unfortunately for Io, Hera isn't stupid. Hera had tasked someone to guard Io 24/7, and that someone was the giant Argus.

Argus was a giant with a total of 100 eyes spread all over his body, which is...an image. Whenever he needed sleep, he would need to close only 50 of his eyes, leaving the other 50 wide open to watch over Io, which again is quite the image. No matter how hard she tried, Io would always get caught whenever she tried to escape.

One day, however, Io was grazing in a field bordering a river, a river that was the domain of her father. Io's father was a minor river deity, a god so unimportant in the Olympian hierarchy that I didn't even bother looking him up on Wikipedia. But still Io saw a chance, and took it.

Io grabbed a brach from a bush with her mouth and started using it to splash and disturb the water's surface. As she had hoped, her father emerged from the river.

Io's father: Sweet Cow, would you please stop disturbing the water. It's ruining my beauty sleep.

Quickly, Io used the brach to write her own name in the mud.

Io's father: Io, I haven't heard from her in years. Has something happened to her?

Hoping he'd understand the message, Io wrote the word 'me' in front of her name.

Io's father: wha-Io? Who did this to you? Why I shall punish the vile god who dare turn my beautiful daughter into a- ...it was Zeus, wasn't it?

I responded by shaking her head in a way that confirmed her father's guess.

Io's very annoyed father: gods dammit, i knew I should've should've taken Kronos's side. Sure he ate his kids, but at least he didn't fuck people's daughters before turning them into animals.

Io's father let out a sigh, clearly annoyed by the situation. To be honest, if there was one person who had the right to be annoyed, it was Io. She was the one who had to spend years as livestock.

Io's tired father: Okay, I'll go to Olympus to have a word with Zeus. Just try to hold on a little longer, dear.

Before Io could respond, she was yanked away from her father by Argus, heading towards a different field.

-----------------------------

*Olympus*

Io's very angry father: HAVE YOU GONE ABSOLUTELY MAD?!!!

Zeus, on the other end of a father's wrath for once: I didn't know what else to to, it's not like I expected Hera to think it was a gift.

Io's still angry father: Are you serious? Don't tell me you actually believe your wife was stupid enough that MY DAUGHTER was just a normal cow?

Defensive Zeus: Well, blame Aphrodite for making it be one of the best fucks I've had.

Aphrodite: Oh no, no, no, don't point your fingers at me, I had nothing to do with this. My granddaughter's domain is pleasure, not mine.

Zeus: Either way, in no way could I predict that this situation would happen.

Io's very annoyed, very angry father: I don't care what you can or can not predict. What I care about is you fixing what you've caused.

Defeated Zeus: Fine, but don't blame for what happens after.

And so Zeus called the only god he knew could complete this task, Hermes.

‐------------------------

Will Io taste freedom, will her father find rest once more, and will Zeus finally be able to keep it in his pants?

Find out next time on Dragon Ball-i mean Greek mythology.

~To be continued~

#greek mythology #the greek gods #ancient greek mythology #ancient greece #gods of olympus #zeus #aphrodite #the myth of Io #poor Io

[terrablerequests]

I'm not going to get any requests by just waiting around, so here's two random characters.

General day to day with:

Ying (paladins)

Another day another fight to protect the realm from the iron fist of the magistrate! . . . well at least when you two get sent to the actual fights that is.

-you start your day in one of the bases that the resistance has set up across the realm in the room you two share

-waking up early is an annoying but well needed ability for every member, especially for healers! Thankfully due to ying's skill in illusion magic you two get to stay In a bit longer (much to everyone's jealousy)

-the extra time in the morning is rarely spent sleeping, one of you typically wakes up from the other by them snuggling into the crook of the other one's neck to escape the sun's rays that slowly pours into the room. After that it's a comfortable silence shared between the two of you while holding eachother

-after the daily morning routines you get to have a bit more time together since the dining area is typically vacant due to the previously mentioned luxury.

-discussing what's on your to-do plates, recent news, and mostly gossip about your fellow team mates. ("that tiberious is such a dolt, I mean, how does he keep getting his head stuck in his own weapons?!")

-After that is when the day truly begins! Unfortunately the two of you don't see each other much on the days you don't get sent to battle. However you do see at least one of her illusions with you and the rest of the damagers/flanks/Frontliners!

-each one seems to have it's own personality, most of them being relatively kind to you. The ones that don't are either jealous or grossed out by your relationship with their caster. They might not be exactly like your partner but their company is always appreciated. (Unless if it's THAT one..)

-"soooooo have you, like, asked her yet? You two have been totally lovey dovey since like forever!" "Hey don't look at me like that, I'm just saying the obvious here! Cuz, like, if you need like a wingman I'm your- *CRASH* DROGOZ I SWEAR TO IO IF YOU JUST-"

-if you're also a healer then the two of you have a busy day ahead of yourselves! Even the extra hands from the illusions don't seem to be enough to handle the amount of patients that flow in during mid day.

-From the injuries from failed onslaughts and sieges, attacks from unexpected foes such as willo and kasumi, and the occasional misfire from allies. (Those turrets seem to have a mind of their own when that dwarf isn't around...) You two have your hands full, but it's still rewarding work!

-and during battle? About the same. Sure you two may be working in tandem but repelling enemy forces is hardly what you'd call romantic.

-its the time you two do get after being relieved of your duty for the evening or coming back from a skirmish that you two treasure. Whether it's spent with the company with your friends, relaxing after a hard day's work, or sharing a meal together.

-Much like the illusions,your co workers have their eyes on the two of you. Whether it's friendly encouragement or invasive questioning highly varies from each one.

-The day ends much like how it started, lying In bed holding one another and wondering what would happen by the end of this fight. Are we going to win? What's the plan if we don't? And what exactly are WE going to do when we're finally done fighting?

-"Hopefully we'll finally be free to live our lives and maybe we can finally..." something you two have said dozens of time before drifting into sleep, and something you'll hope be answered one of these days.

-overall your days aren't easy but they're rewarding, knowing that you're working towards something better.

Scout (tf2)

How you fell for this stick boy is beyond me, how you continue to fall is beyond those trenches soldier just dug.

-Another base but different rooms, but neither of you seem to notice since you both just collapse into either of your beds that seems the closest .

-waking up is always lively since you never know what each day's alarm clock could be! (Soldier's horn being blasted into your faces, the sound of another crime against humanity being committed by medic, or maybe even the agony of a distant French accent)

-you're sprawled out on top of eachother one way or another, expect slobber if his face ends up somewhere on you. Even more on your face if he misses the wake up smooch.

-strutting into the dining area is two bastards with the dumbest grins they can muster, ones that sear into spy's missing soul like a hot knife.

-fortunately the breakfast cook is either heavy/engineer/demo since you guys need to be alive before the action. Expect mind numbing conversation and affection between the two of you and whoever else is caught in the blast radius.

-Once the fighting begins is when you two shape up! Taking down sentry nests with scout on bonk and you on offense, you distracting the enemy sniper while he gets a taunt kill, and the two of you pummeling the enemy scout and (YOUR CLASS).

-For you two kicking ass is a love language of it's own, even when you two get crocketed and headshot for the millionth time.

-After the warfare the sudden awareness and intellect disappear along with your common sense. Expect shenanigans! Pranking the others, trying out the "borrowed" weapons with varying success, and whatever else you two decide to get up to.

-it's not always cartoon antics though, despite appearances he's got quite a lot to say about certain topics and he'd be glad to share the time to talk about whatever comes to your heads.

-The rest of the mercs seem to get along with you and your relationship with the resident bostinian. Demo, soldier, pyro, scout, and yourself are either a gaggle of maniacs on a quest for fun or a cloud of destruction on the move. Engineer, medic, and heavy are surprised but not alarmed. If anything they're relieved someone can match his energy, no more dealing with a bored scout yapping in their ears while they work! You're like the goat that keeps race horses calm.

-spy... felt many things. After first going through the nine stages of grief he felt pride and hope that his son is turning into someone respectable, with a partner comes responsibility! Maybe he'll get his act together unlike how he and scout's mother... oh nevermind he just smacked himself with his own bat, and you're laughing... God. He's conflicted to say the least, especially about the fact how he can't tell if scout made you more like him or vice versa.

-by day's end you two are back in bed but never in the same way. Either passing out almost immediately, continuing on about whatever interest the two of you share, or staying up because of all that bonk in your systems.

-overall it's your average days are filled to the brim with activity and you two wouldn't have it any other way, taking it on side by side and running headfirst into action!

#tf2 x reader #scout x reader #paladins x reader #ying x reader #first real post! #sorry if ying sounds a little meehh #i have plenty to go on for her but this prompt kinda limited me i guess #as for scout i really tried not to lean on him being a doofus too much #the last thing i wanna do is simplify a character down to like two personality traits #TF2_POST #PALA_POST

[theuntitledblog]

WWE Clash at the Castle (2022) - REVIEW

BUILD-UP

Clash at the Castle represents WWE's first stadium based event since SummerSlam (1992) and their first general PPV since One Night Only (1997) which I was lucky to be in attendance. I very nearly bought tickets for the event itself however there were a few factors that ultimately persuaded me to watch the event from the comfort of my own home. Clash at the Castle doesn't sound as tantalizing a prospect or carry the prestigious weight of a SummerSlam, but there's still nothing quite like a WWE Stadium event and then there's the card itself to consider.

THE CARD

The card isn't overly stacked with just seven matches but each of them has enough heat to keep the audience invested in their respective stories and stakes. There are a few notable admissions such as AJ Styles, Bobby Lashley, Karrion Kross (sort of), Kevin Owens, Ronda Rousey and even the newly crowned Women's Tag Team Champions. I personally feel that there was room for a couple more but on the flip side a few of them had the potential to be Match of the Night.

Roman Reigns vs Drew McIntyre has long been overdue since their Survivor Series 2020 encounter and should've been the main event at WrestleMania. Reigns/McIntyre is the centre piece of Clash at the Castle rightly so but there is definitely appetite for change and the timing feels right for McIntyre to be propelled back to the top.

Bayley, Io Sky and Dakota Kai have injected much needed momentum into the women's division but the pairing of Asuka and Alexa Bliss has never quite worked for me with Bliss in particular lacking direction with her character at the moment. WWE Creative have done a great job building the 6 person tag team matches while Seth Rollins vs. Matt Riddle has show stealer written all over it.

THE SHOW

The show itself was well paced and didn't feel too long with each match given the time to develop into something special. Not every match quite managed to be a five star classic but there were no duds either. The post-match segment following the Main Event with Tyson Fury felt very odd and I find it strange that the show didn't go off the air since there wasn't anything meaningful in that segment.

MATCH 1: Bianca Belair, Asuka & Alexa Bliss vs. Bayley, Io Sky & Dakota Kai

This was the right match to open the show with and it didn't disappoint. Coming off the back of a surprising defeat in the Women's Tag Title tournament, this is the perfect opportunity to propel this new trio who also receive a new name. The match itself was a good opener with a good showing from all participants. The heel Bayley at odds and trying to play down the pro-Bayley chants of the British crowd was amusing to see. The result for me was of no surprise and made sense in the grand scheme of things to give the returning and well balanced trio of Bayley, Sky and Kai some momentum. Sure it's another loss for Asuka & Bliss but Bianca Belair has been on fire this year and this result sets up the inevitable clash with Bayley down the road.

WINNERS - Bayley, Io Sky & Dakota Kai via pinfall

3/5

MATCH 2: Intercontinental Championship Match - Gunther (c) vs. Sheamus

This was a match I was anticipating as I felt could offer up something special and I was not proven wrong. I've been a fan of Gunther since his NXT UK Imperium days and I think WWE have done very well with him since his elevation to the main roster. This is the sort of match I was expecting and Sheamus was the perfect choice as both are well matched and their styles compatible. The match itself was physical and brutal; it told a great story, it didn't overstay its welcome and it had the right result. The crowd was rightfully behind this and gave Sheamus a deserved standing ovation. For me this stole the show.

WINNER - Gunther (c) via pinfall

4.5/5

MATCH 3: Smackdown Women's Championship Match - Liv Morgan (c) vs. Shayner Bazler

I feel a little bit sorry for Liv Morgan because as much as she is a tryer and a hard worker, she doesn't quite convince as women's champion as much as she does as underdog chaser. Shayner Bazler on the other hand has long been underserved on the main roster with a misjudged debut at Elimination Chamber that fizzled out after WrestleMania 36. That Bazler hasn't been elevated to a major star on the roster and hasn't had the big PPV matches with the likes of Rousey, Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks is criminal. Sadly this match won't do anything to improve that but it is one that makes Morgan look stronger and more convincing as champion. It's a decent enough match but the crowd never felt to be truly invested and the whole thing felt a little flat. That in itself is disappointing as both delivered enough to warrant more of a reaction.

WINNER - Liv Morgan (c) via pinfall

2.5

MATCH 4: Edge & Rey Mysterio (with Dominik Mysterio) vs. The Judgment Day (with Rhea Ripley)

This match might've generated more interest for me had the Judgment Day been booked as a greater threat. Going into this we have seen both Edge and the Mysterios pick up wins against the Judgement Day and even here they lose again. For a faction that had so much initial promise when Edge, Priest and Ripley were members, this feels like a missed opportunity although not on the same level as Retribution. The match itself here was good with all participants on fine form with enough thrills and moments to keep the audience fully invested. The twist of Dominik's turn against Edge and his father was perfectly timed and gave it a belated lift. But for me the result should've gone the other way.

WINNERS - Edge and Rey Mysterio via pinfall

3.5/5

MATCH 5: Seth 'Freaking' Rollins vs. Matt Riddle

This match had a long standing and excellent build up with a long personal rivalry involved. Featuring one of the best standing wrestlers of WWE in Seth Rollins against the up and coming Matt Riddle who has enjoyed a tremendous run with Randy Orton; this match perhaps more than all the others has Match of the Night written all over it. It didn't disappoint in the slightest with both competitors made to look strong and tell a story in the ring that was in tune with their long standing rivalry. Rollins' Elton John ring gear made me laugh out loud but after selflessly putting over Cody Rhodes 3 times in a row in 3 outstanding matches, Rollins deserved the win here. Both men came out looking great, it's position on the card felt more than justified and is definitely one of the best matches of the night.

WINNER - Seth 'Freaking' Rollins via pinfall

4/5

MAIN EVENT: Undisputed Universal Championship Match - Roman Reigns (c) vs. Drew McIntyre

This is the match the whole event was built around and it delivered everything a classic main event needed except one thing ... the right result. I'm not dissing Roman Reigns, I think his run since he debuted the Tribal Chief gimmick has been outstanding. He's delivered quality match after match and his 2 year reign is both credible and destined for legendary status. But if you're going to pass the torch to someone else then I can't think of anyone more deserving and an event more suitable to do so than for Drew McIntyre. The crowd would've loved it, the match deserved it, Tyson Fury's knock out of Austin Theory's cash in was genius so I cannot understand why you wouldn't drop at least one of the belts to McIntyre. The result unfortunately undermines the legacy of the event with a program that didn't offer up much in the way of truly great twists or surprises. Reigns is a great champion and McIntyre doesn't come off looking weak. But the result sadly makes Clash at the Castle feel like a filler event even if the matches in general were of general excellent quality.

WINNER - Roman Reigns (c) via pinfall.

4.5/5

#wweuniverse #wwe raw #wwe smackdown #wwe clash at the castle #clash at the castle #wwe uk #drew mcintyre #roman reigns #seth rollins #matt riddle #wwe edge #rey mysterio #dominik mysterio #the mysterios #judgment day #damian priest #finn bàlor #rhea ripley #liv morgan #shayna baszler #gunther #sheamus #bianca belair #asuka #alexa bliss #bayley #dakota kai #io sky #wwe ppv

[the-firebird69]

And these are candy cigarettes it's hard to find the ones that blow the puff of confectionery sugar and sometimes it can blow several and our son and daughter used to do it and we we saw Kathy and Ellie and bja doing it and not Mom and Dad but they were smoking real cigarettes elsewhere. And they would Puff it and laugh and puff when did they went through a pack of cigarettes without eating them and said we don't want to eat them we just want to poof on it.

It's not a great idea it is superb we won't look like us and we can get the boat out there ASAP and everybody wants it.

They both want the Lucky Brand and it's kind of like everybody might race that particular one really it's just a different colors on the boat and a different decal and you can order the different brands or you can get the standard ones and you can add decals yourself we're going to actually do this because they want the boat in there as like a separate manufacturer and we have a way of doing that you name it a different subsidiary and we're going to go ahead and do it and the Lucky Brand cigarette candy cigarette usually has a pair of dice and that's on the box and it's on the back and it has puzzles and people want the puzzles on board and you can photocopy him in do them as a fun thing to do on the boat and these are racers these are three seaters and they have races for three seaters believe it or not and they're really it's a small sport but the whole we have is it's the hull it's shaped for that kind of racing it's a little bit deeper of a v but it's it's necessary these days you have no flat water ever and more or less you have to do it in the harbor or a lake land waterway or estuary or a river Lincoln Shelby and the rivers and harbors around here full of crap and they're too dangerous other estates some of them don't have the crap anymore and it's perfectly safe you want to check for critters and some water bugs get kind of big and it's really disappointing so the race might be on pretty soon we got calls from 4:00 retailers who do outdoor stuff no we got calls from for boat companies and usually they have some sort of novelty it used to be like some sort of fast jet ski or a small speed boat type thing and they used to make those it's like an advertise and gimmick and these are real cigarettes and some of them and they're coming to kit and you can have a small cuddy cabin believe it or not you have in front of you this is 12 ft long about 7 ft that's 10 inches longer than our son's e-bike is tip to tip and a new one it's big enough for adults to sleep in and adults will be buying this they can fit in the seats if you're 5'10 or shorter and her son would fit because his legs are shorter than his torso. They have a dual inboard IO motor system the inboard motors are about 45 horsepower each they are both Coleman and they're outfitted for the ocean so they can go in any water and they are very fast they come out with almost 100 horsepower and most boats that size have 50 horsepower and go 60 miles an hour you have to put the speed kit in to go 120 mph but it will with three 100 lb persons with one 100-lb person it'll go 140 mph and they have those races too and you'll win every time boat is unstoppable and we do have a white hole cigarette and it's less money but the most people buy colors and boy do they look nice and our son will probably buy one. And that leads us to another discussion you want to take over a candy company because we want to make the candy actually edible so if any candy companies wish to sell we are looking for candy cigarette companies and if you make other candies that's fine we are looking to purchase even if they're defunct. Wonka candy company is not defunt however it is owned by Tommy f and he is way ahead of schedule and trying to get rid of everyone and need stuff and he has not slowed

Thor Freya

Olympus

We have had enough of him he is not a friend and he is an enemy and he needs to be stopped right now and we can see what he's doing we need teams in I need them in right now to help me same with this John remillard guy

Zues

I'm asking them to go in right now

Hera

We're sending them in and we have a lot and right now and we do see what you're saying we have to be a little ahead of it but we have it in a moment

Thor Freya

We are getting handle on it right now and we're sending more in very fast we have also approved this idea believe it or not they do put them in a whole bunch of boat stores we have about 50 large boat dealers that want them and they're all over the world they sell all sorts of different kinds of boats they heard it was a Coleman engine at different type of Hull and very fast and colorful and they're going to flip out when they see it's candy cigarettes and that we actually will be a sponsor me to get paid money to put their candy cigarettes on there

Olympus

[talenlee]

CoX: Z3-R0

Time to time, I write up an explication of characters I’ve played in RPGs or made for my own purpose.  This is an exercise in character building and creative writing.

Across the islands of the Etoile and the remnants of Praetoria, the mercenary known as ZERO has taken on mission after mission, supposedly for the highest bidder. Nobody knows who hires her, but everyone respects what she can do – and the outbreaks of monsters that she’s an expert in dealing with.

Zero’s definitely got that symbiote swag – rippling extensions of her flesh that let her shapeshift, create armour, heal rapidly, and attack from unforseen angles. She looks familiar? Maybe.

Praetoria’s darkest deeds are back with an old threat in a new time!

Serious. Reserved. Aloof, even, possibly even methodical to the point of frightening. Most people who work with Zero, across the Etoile and Praetorian reconstruction, don’t really know her as a personality, just as a efficient and functional mercenary. She shows up, she beats up Spiders, she beats up Family, she beats up Carnies, and then she goes, never bothering to make friends or contacts, for some reason.

Power-wise, she’s a very obvious kind of mutant monster type; she walks in a cloud of poison, her weapons are made out of carapaces of flesh and rippled coral on her skin. She hits things hard enough to throw them around, can shake the room by stomping on the ground. When she has to reach things that are a distance away, she either throws something or uses a tendril or long clawed arm to do it, snapping back to a normal shape once she’s done.

When it comes to her skillset, it seems that she isn’t really endowed with a lot of exploratory skills – not prone to bookkeeping or lockpicking or computer use. She has the personality of a thrown brick when she’s fighting and usually shows up to jobs with specialist. Sometimes she’ll even refer to them as ‘nerd’ to give them directions.

Her bio is, also, based on the box text for Metroid Fusion.

Mechanics

God, brutes are dumb. Just so good, all the tools in one spot. Anyway, yeah, uh, Zero’s build is disgusting. No purple IOs, one PVP IO, no Winter or Archetype IOs. I think if I bought all the pieces for this build the whole thing would come in under the amount of money she’d earn farming a character up to level 50.

She’s a Stone Melee/Bio Armour Brute. Bio Armour is probably the strongest armour set available if you’re looking for something to stick IOs on, because it provides so much general stuff that anything you add can push it across thresholds for survival. Like the difference between 44% and 45% defense may not seem like much but it is 100% of the potential incoming damage you can have a defense for.

Her build, in total, is looking at:

45% defence to Smashing, Lethal, Fire and Cold damage along with 42% defense to melee, which like, I wasn’t gunning for that, just got that for getting all the other stuff.

75% smashing/lethal resistance, which scales up when she has more targets in her area of effect

71% global recharge, without hasten which is important because stone melee hits like a train (which is to say, once every fifteen minutes)

The most ludicrous permanent buffs from Parasitic Aura, up 50% of the time

As an experience to play she’s incredible, because the worst thing I can say about her is there’s waiting time. She arrives, drops an AOE attack and then waits until everyone mills around her, builds up her fury bar, and then fires off the AOE attack again, because it’s not like anyone can kill her in that time. She also has Seismic Smash, a power I love because at high levels of fury, it can be a ‘delete this’ button for a bunch of enemy types.

History

Zero is a test character.

Specifically, when City of Heroes: Homecoming launched, one of the first things I did was to make some characters. Then I set myself rules. One rule was that, in order to stop my extremely stupid altitis from getting out of hand, I wouldn’t make any new characters until the last character I made was level 50, IO’d and at least Veteran Level 1. I wanted to learn new ways to sustain myself, since my old account on live was rich – not wealthy, I wasn’t Smurphy, but I had money enough to throw a few billion at things and a large body of level 50 characters.

Zero therefore, originally called ‘Project Zero’ was one of my earliest characters that persists. I made her to be something I thought would be very self-sustaining, had no real meaningful character history, and would just find what the game presented in its new form. At this point, one thing I keenly felt was a weakness of mine from that old period, which is what I keep mean is ‘Live,’ was how bad I was at making women characters, believing that fell to ‘women players.’ This is, yes, very dumb.

Another thing I knew I wasn’t great at was variety in costumes. I didn’t tend to make characters who had a lot of looks, they’d often have one and then do nothing with the other slots. Characters wouldn’t have a variety of looks, things that represented ‘this is how this character would think about how they want to dress.’ I resolved to fix that this time and part of how I fixed it was uhhh

By uh

Copying someone who has a lot of cool looks.

It hit upon the look for Zero of her Samus Aran lookalike, and then ran around trying out Homecoming, seeing if it was a ‘real’ game or not. And eventually, the time came to breathe life into her, and come up with an explanation for what she is and why she is. Why stone? Why bio armour? Why science, and not some other effect? I had these pieces, already set around me, and I had to come up with an explanation for it that held it together.

An explanation that also covered ‘wtf does she look like Samus Aran?’

And thus we come to the horror underneath Zero.

Z3-R0 is not just a way to spell the name ‘zero’. It’s a base-36 number, representing a range from 1263 to 972, a range that counts down 291 units of something. Whatever it is, that’s a pretty large number of them, and it’s the earliest piece of information Zero remembers putting together. It’s the digits on the containment chambers that broke and flowed together to make…

her.

If you’re paying attention to these OCs, you might remember Astray. He’s basically a ‘Spiderman Style Symbiote’ building on the idea of goopy monsters that bond to people to make them cool monster people with a bio-goopy shapeshift that highlights their personalities. I talked about them with Wild Hare, too, where I touched on the idea that there’s a conspiracy fighting to protect and care for the Symbiotes, many of which have been lost and scattered, attaching to hosts or lurking in wait around the ruins of Praetoria to glom onto a host.

A coagulation of these Symbiotes, symbiotes sticking to one another and enhancing one another, forming a fountain of terrible scientific failures into the form of a person, resulted in a person, standing out of the mess, calling itself Zero, as it taught itself to read, as it rapidly ingested information. I don’t know when Zero first encountered Super Metroid, but the X-Parasite and SA-X was the first time it considered an identity like that, the ability to become someone it chose to be, and it chose to be her.

It became she, and modelled herself on Samus Aran. A hunter, a hero, a guard, and a monster.

Zero is a monster girl. Under her skin, there’s layers of corded fluid flesh that don’t follow the rules of flesh and bones. There’s structure to her, to be what she wants to be, but there’s no reason it makes sense, no way it would have evolved. She is a terrible thing, a collection of predatory, flesh-eating inhuman sinew…

And she is striving to be a human. A good one, at that.

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#City of Heroes #My OCs #Games

[quilloftheclouds]

14 on the setting swap ask game for Phoenix pls!

[Send me a setting and I’ll describe my OCs’ reactions to it!]

I'm loving these because this is straight up the worst setting on the list for these characters and it's BRILLIANT.

14. A party hosted by the ultra rich, with elaborate costumes being a must and refreshments and food galore–but also social expectations.

Oooouch. Phoenix hates overly fancy things, especially things that are just like that to show off someone's money. This rich party is that exact thing, y'unno?

One, the clothes. Phoenix would be expected to wear either her uniform or something like a neutral coloured black tux or dress. She likes colour! She likes bright red everything. Comfy clothes, not something form-fitting. Even in a costume, it wouldn't match what she'd want.

Two, the formality expected of her? She doesn't like talking with those who look down on her for her speech alone, especially when they take pride in saying overly long words that really don't mean what they think they do. Especially when they brag about doing things (like hoarding money) that Phoenix knows derives others of resources they need, and Phoenix can't call them out for it.

She'd basically give everyone the silent treatment, maybe drink as much as she's allowed and stand in the corner glowering.

#phoenix #phoenix is the hater of the rich party trope #she does it because she's first mate of a military vessel #and io and her are expected to attend these sorts of things #but she does the bare minimum to not embarrass her captain #io has a hard enough time on her own #anchored souls #switch the setting

[infinitewarden]

Osiris & OCD

I’ve had this post on my mind for a while but I never got around to sitting down and writing it. So here we are.

Osiris has OCD.

Yes, you read that right. Osiris has OCD and I’ll be going into depth here why he can be read that way.

To start off I would like to clarify what, exactly, OCD is since there are many misconceptions about it perpetuated by pop culture. OCD is different for everyone who has it, at least the way the symptoms present themselves. It’s not entirely about “ew yuck I hate germs.”

OCD is a long-lasting disorder in which a person has uncontrollable, reoccurring thoughts (obsessions) and/or behaviors (compulsions) that they feel the urge to repeat over and over.

Obsessions are repeated thoughts, urges, or mental images that cause anxiety. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors  that a person with OCD feels the urge to do in response to an obsessive thought.

Not all rituals or habits are compulsions. Everyone double checks things sometimes. But a person with OCD generally:        

Can't control their thoughts or behaviors, even when those thoughts or behaviors are recognized as excessive

Spends at least 1 hour a day on these thoughts or behaviors

Doesn’t get pleasure when performing the behaviors or rituals, but may feel brief relief from the anxiety the thoughts cause

Experiences significant problems in their daily life due to these thoughts or behaviors.

Source.

Now, with this clarified I can go into detail about how these symptoms present themselves with Osiris. Let’s start with bringing up a couple of instances that stood out to me (as local OCD haver.)

Bodies in the rubble.

Evacuees from the Eastern breach caught in the blast.

Their deaths filled his mind through twenty gilded eyes, capturing the scene in its totality.

Osiris would scour the Northern front in golden Light.

He looked to the shattered wall. Through the gap, mind inutile, overshadowed by the eternal precipice. Crowded with menace. Eyes peering down, seeping over, hungry, waiting to flood this last hope with plunging depth. Even now, as Fallen lines break against the Light, others stand watching from deep starless hollows. If not this, another. The dam will fail, as all do in time.

The Pigeon and the Phoenix. 9: Thin

Osiris is absent; preoccupied with insatiable predilections that drive him to worry. 

The Pigeon and the Phoenix. 11: Breathe

His mind is still taxed from his last visit. He remembers—camouflaged against the rushing atmospheric bands of Jupiter—how he drifted alongside its evergreen moon. He remembers the deep wedge that sunk between the two bodies, dividing them.

The Pyramid before him, lascivious tendrils of wildfire hue flowed from it like a grasping hand across the Cradle. The image as clear as relived trauma. Io had been dwarfed against the black angular pit seated in its atmosphere. His eyes could not leave it then; even now, he feels himself falling into its gravity as they approach again.

“Have you sent it  to Saint yet?” Sagira flitters into view. She brings him back to the present, soaring across space. 

Immolant Pt. 1

Osiris tenses his jaw in forced silence. He twiddles with code. “I’m worried about what Vance found.”

Saint places a heavy hand on Osiris’s chest. “Let go of your obsession. Do not leave chasing phantoms again.”

“Phantoms… You think the Darkness is satisfied? This is just the first move. I need to know the next before it’s made.”

“If there is something you fear, let me help you. We face this together.”

Osiris’s mind drifts to the Dark anomalies. Saint doesn’t need another burden.

“The safest place for you is the Tower, Saint. Time... tends to renege on its gifts.” 

Immolant Pt. 1

So.

Obsessions: Upsetting focus about the dark future he tries to avoid, of the Vex, of the Darkness, and of death.

There is another instance in the Tomb Rider lore where he starts down an “OCD Spiral” of obsessions, starting off with his worry over Mercury. In which Saint promptly shuts him down by grounding (lifting him by the shoulders), and diverting attention (feeding him candy.)

Let’s look at his compulsions.

“He’s dead because of me. I’ve made every precaution. I’ve had my Echoes check against trillions of disaster scenarios.” He turned to look at the fluctuating glow of the exposed chronometric core. “Mercury is the only planet that will be affected. Because that’s where he died.” 

The Sundial.

Without thinking, Osiris pulled off his gloves. Freed of the metal gauntlets, his hands looked old. He wrung them together, his fingers worrying at the edges of his ragged nails. "If the Darkness is able to claim Mars… if they take Mercury—"

"Quiet your mouth," commanded Saint-14, and Osiris did.

Saint-14 stood and then moved toward Osiris in two enormous strides. He grasped the Warlock by his shoulders and lifted him to his feet. He took Osiris's hand in his own and wordlessly filled it with triangular orange candies.

Osiris obediently placed a few in his mouth and chewed silently.

Tomb Rider.

I see infinity.

An infinity of possible worlds, so perfectly simulated as to be indistinguishable from the experiences I once called "reality." I can touch them, taste them, pass lifetimes in them! They grow within this machine like fruit upon a tree—no, a forest of trees, its fractal expansion nigh unmeasurable.

I said that to Sagira and she replied, "Sounds like a challenge."

This Ghost of mine knows me too well.

It strikes me now that I could find in this Infinite Forest a reality in which Ikora accompanied me into its endless mysteries.

What an awful, destructive machine this is.

I must know everything about it.

Kairos Function (Chest)

Osiris nods, realizing he had no right to demand action. “I apologize. Thank you.” He motions toward the windows’ reinforced glass. “The Traveler’s reforging was  a sight to behold.” His words have a faint reverence to them.

Zavala turns away from the Traveler’s pale light, his face dimmed. “Indeed. I wish it was more than just that.”

“These events were beyond us all, Zavala. I should have seen it… I just want to correct my error.”

“I’ll help you where I can, Osiris. Remain in contact, and if it is dire, I will point every gun at whatever fiend you uncover.”

Immolant Pt. 1

Compulsions: Checking and double checking again and again, picking at his nails (picking is another common OCD Thing), learning everything he can about an Upsetting Thing, chasing “loose ends” to correct stuff he considers his fault.

Interestingly enough it seems that both Saint and Sagira are aware of his tendencies and respond to them by either physically grounding him or distracting him. ( “Saint places a heavy hand on Osiris’s chest.”  -  “Sagira flitters into view. She brings him back to the present, soaring across space.”  -   “He grasped the Warlock by his shoulders and lifted him to his feet. He took Osiris’s hand in his own and wordlessly filled it with triangular orange candies.” -  “Sagira darted down as if to dive bomb her chosen, but stopped just short and met him eye to eyes.” )

Let’s also not forget that Ikora, the Speaker, and Saint have described Osiris to be obsessive, and though Osiris denies this it’s hard not to see that he is. Thus… “Obsession” part of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

So there you have it. There’s quite a bit of lore that points towards or at least allows it to be read as him having OCD.

#osiris #theus.exe #lore.exe #i had more sources but i didn't want it to get too cluttered

[darealsaltysam]

what your paladins main says about you

a comprehensive essay by a paladins player of right around 4 years

this is like really long so i’ll make it under the cut so my followers don’t have to scroll through this if they don’t wanna

(for context i’m a current maeve main, i used to main skye and sha lin and played tyra a long while ago)

.

Androxus

it’s not a phase, mum

“i don’t care we don’t have healer, i’m really good at him i swear”

you ult every time it loads in and you die before the final shot

your favorite mode is siege because you can fly up and shoot the whole point on ult

you’re usually really stand-offish and don’t communicate much and/or a 13 year old boy with anger issues

.

Ash

you are level-headed but in a scary way

you will hold the point solo even if it costs you your streak

“get on the point” “guys get on the point” “attack the objective”

you’ll ult to save yourself 99% of the time

good leader

.

Atlas

you probably used to main lex or androxus before he came out

“he’s like a flank, but a tank, he’s great!”

you chase after solo kills instead of sticking to the point

healers hate you, flanks and damages fear you

your favorite mode is death match

.

Barik

you’re a former/current tf2 player looking for something fresh

you don’t like working too hard so you spam turrets on the point and hope for the best

“healer stick to me i’m boutta ult”

actually really nice between rounds

but you don’t communicate much mid-game and kind of do your thing

.

Bomb King

you’re a really old player. you have the beta makoa skin and you were there when lex was first released. veteran’s discount.

your favorite maps are the old ones and they barely show up any more

the team always underestimates you

“who plays bomb king in 2021 lol?”

you need a hug

.

Buck

“wait, he’s a flank? i thought he was a tank??”

you’re also a veteran in the game

you’re a dying breed. i like never see you. do you even exist?

you’ve been here since like the first day of the game

buck gets so many skins and you want all of them but the best you have is a random recolor

.

Cassie

sweetest person alive

“we can do it guys! let’s try to all rush the point this time!”

you are the bane of every flank

the opposing team hates you, your own team kind of doesn’t notice you’re there

*casually gets a pentakill*

.

Corvus

you know those weirdly political kids who like ww2 and know the details of every tank to ever exist? yeah that’s you

but like that’s corvus. as a character.

but no one ever plays him.

like i never even see him do you exist???

you are a cryptid.

.

Dredge

yo ho you’re a hoe

no seriously the other team views you and they FEAR you

“yeah i just got a penta kill” “YOU WHAT?” “eyes on the point mate don’t get distracted”

hella good at the game and hella casual about it

you like onslaught on the one sea map the most

.

Drogoz

another veteran, are we?

you’re either useless or can wipe out a whole team in seconds. there is no in-between.

you always have a really cool skin.

dovahkiin, dovahkiin...

“i don’t care about the point i gotta get them trips”

.

Evie

you bought her because you thought she was cute, admit it

*turns into ice right before dying* *turns into ice right before dying* *turns into ice right be

your personality type is identical to her. no question about that.

always buys faster reload and better speed

strangely good communication with the team

.

Fernando

gay gay homosexual gay

“he’s kinda hot if you look at him the right way”

fernando is the tank for gay people

you are gay people

i don’t have much more to say

.

Furia

mum energy. not as much as inara mains, but still, mum energy.

will protect every member of the team with your life, even the flanks

you’ve been maining her since she was first added

i bet you didn’t even know she’s canonically seris’ sister

“we’ve literally failed to capture the point the last 3 times we might as well give up and go to another game”

.

Grohk

“yeah i have a gremlincore tumblr blog, how could you tell?”

i honestly have no words

you’re kind of like a catboy but a racoon

do you even heal the team or do you just pretend

you were there when lex got announced and thought he was cringe, now everyone finally agrees with you

.

Grover

he was your first purchased character and he’s stuck around ever since

he’s the only healer you can play well

“i am groot lmao”

you would never say a word to your team

would give your life for the tank but that’s about it

.

Imani

daenerys targaryen on drugs

your favorite anime is my hero academia

your husbando is todoroki

you see where i am going with this

“team protect me i’m gonna ult” *dies 5 seconds into ult*

.

Inara

BIG MUM ENERGY

your team is your family. you will protect them with your life.

can only hold your own with a good healer so you have good teamwork going for you

*cutely places wall in front of your ult*

useless in tdm so you stick to onslaught, siege and koth

.

Io

are you a furry, furry, or a furry?

“victow! dont ult on my tweam pwease! uwu!”

you 100% find her attractive in some way shape or form

you are either a 30 year old redditor who enjoys loli content or a 16 year old teen who is playing a shooter for the first time

she’s kind of cute, i guess

.

Jenos

i can never tell if i’m going to absolutely destroy you or if you’re gonna kick my ass

*cutely holds you up so the whole team can shoot you to death*

kamehameha

you’re a healer??? i guess???

your character has such deep lore and i bet you don’t even know half of it

.

Khan

one day you were playing and your team desperately needed a tank. you picked the first one you saw. suddenly, you’re lian’s foot stool

despite 2 layers of heavy armor, you’d still let this man walk all over you

“this skin is really cool, wish it wasn’t behind a pay wall...”

YEET

you actually know the game’s lore, for some reason

.

Kinessa

i never trust people who are good at a sniper. if you’re bad that’s natural and you’re 99% of the population. if you’re good you are definitely up to something

you’d sell your sister for 5 pennies if you could

you’re missing from the team all game and somehow have the most kills

“we have a kinessa???”

you are an urban legend to your team

.

Koga

someone’s been watching naruto

you are so shit at the game. like i’m sorry. no one’s good at koga i’m so sorry

how do you have so many skins for one character???

you’re always missing from the point

healers hate you. so does the enemy kinessa.

.

Lex

quit the game /nm

“who mains lex in 2021??? lmao???”

wall hacks, aimbot, and it’s all legal for you as an ability. you are a hacker in a world of puny vanillas. you like it easy so you go for the easy min max character. have fun getting hated

you think he’s hot and press on his loading abilities just so he can scold you and you can hear him being mad at you

*bonk* go to horny jail

.

Lian

"she could step on me”

you used to main some sort of healer but switched over when you got sick of everyone being needy

you can hold a point all on your own for a really really long time but the moment your team gets there you start flunking

you wish you had more skins for her

you don’t

.

Maeve

so imagine this. it was like 2018 and you were just chilling playing the game. you kept getting killed by maeve. in every game. she was in every game you went to and she kept killing you over and over and over again. you got frustrated, snapped, and bought her to see if you could do the same to others. you are now the maeve in every game. the cycle repeats.

your whole team doubts you but then you casually get a quad kill and they just sort of look away

you die a total of two times each round and 99% of the time it’s because you go too fast and fall off the map

you repeat everything she says in her accent because you think it’s cute

“welcome to ze meant streets, kitten!” “can you shut the fuck up” “i hate to cut and run, he-he!”

.

Makoa

you have the plushie skin or the beta skin, otherwise you don’t main and only play casually stop lying to yourself

“attack turtle go brrr”

you’re really good if you get paired with a good healer

otherwise you’re useless

you wish you could get better teammates because you could really thrive with an organized group. but on paladins you won’t get that, i’m sorry-

.

Mal’Damba

i always forget this guy is even in the game

you’re definitely under 6 foot IRL

you have an older sibling you always fight with

you’d love to have a snake irl

you’re really chill outside of the game, but when playing you hella rage

.

Moji

you are so precious

but also such a little shit

you annoy me but i also want to give you a hug

“let’s go guys!! to the point!! wheee!!”

please never change but also get out of my sight

.

Octavia

you always main the new character until the new person drops

somehow always have enough credits to buy the new champion whenever they come out

you don’t like having a stable main cuz you get bored

you like hanging out at the training rage

hate siege and love team death match, you like your games quick

.

Pip

you are the worst and best thing to ever happen to this game

you only pick him to heal yourself and hardly ever heal your team

no one notices you there until you ult

then you get focused

honestly you just seem like you wanna do your thing and i can respect that

.

Raum

you probably go to therapy or desperately need it

“BIG MAN BIG. HE IS BIG. BRRRR”

you always love the demons in media

you like being in charge of the team and wreck the point any time you are there, you like fighting on your own but having a healer nearby is nice too

you probably have daddy issues

.

Ruckus

you think ruckus’ and bolt’s dynamic is cool and that’s one of the main reasons you started playing him

he’s the only tank you can play

you used to main either inara or ying at some point but chose violence instead

really short irl. you physically relate to ruckus and spiritually to bolt.

“funny goblin man :)”

.

Seris

certified girlboss

you can hold an objective all on your own or heal your whole team no problem. either way you are SLAYING

“alright. who’s ass am i kicking today?”

mum energy is inferior to inara but still kind of there

i’m like 50% sure you have a foot fetish

.

Sha Lin

*pointing and chanting* incel, incel, ince-

whether that’s about you or the character you can decide

you like minecraft bedwars on the side

“if i don’t get this headshot i am literally going to spontaneously combust”

really useful when there’s no other long distance people - otherwise a nuisance

.

Skye

AWOOGA *jaw drops to ground, eyes roll out of head* BOOBA BOOBA BOOBA

you bought her for the tiddies, didn’t you?

she’s actually really satisfying to play once you get the hang of her, but can be real tough on rough days

you need a break i think - maybe play some other game for a bit?

*casually gets team kill with ult*

.

Strix

you own at least one pretty knife

you played him when he was unlocked on rotation, fell in love, and spent a whole evening collecting credits to buy him fully

“haha bird man”

i’ve said what i said about snipers. if you’re actually good at him you are hiding a body somewhere. i fear you.

why does everyone ship him with viktor????

.

Talus

little furry child

he reminds me of tommyinnit because he is small and annoying

if you play him you are tall and intimidating 

i’m friends with a tall scary talus main

i can’t say bad things please spare me

.

Terminus

you always ult at the worst time and just get killed again 5 seconds after

“hey losers watch this” *goes on the point, dies, revives, kills one person and dies again*

you’re only a good tank if you cooperate

you don’t

on your own you’re a pretty good player

.

Tiberius

*sigh*

you think the cat is hot, don’t you?

“his accent is kinda cute tho hehe”

you saw that one ending scene in zootopia with the dancing tigers and it CHANGED you

you are probably a furry. if not your awakening is coming. be ready.

.

Torvald

you’ve been playing this game for too long

you’ve seen skins rise and fall. you’ve seen nerfs and buffs. you’ve seen reworks and remakes. you are ancient. older than the dragons and wiser than makoa. respect.

people see you on the opposing team and get really annoyed

“the point is really crowded, we can’t move in” “don’t worry guys, my ult is charged up”

you’re really good at all the characters but you like this guy a lot because you think he’s funky fresh

.

Tyra

you’re either new to the game or have been playing for too long

either way you can KICK ASS but you need to keep behind your team to do the most damage

flanks are the bane of you, especially the fast jumpy ones

you really want one of the cooler skins but you can only ever get the basic ones. such is the curse of maining one of the OG characters.

“bite me”

.

Viktor

you are level 100+ guaranteed, and everyone fears you

“oh shit they got a victor. flank focus him”

you probably play COD and CS:GO normally and wanted to go with something familiar and easy. your skill from the other more advanced games DWARFS everyone else

but why are you playing “guy with gun 132″ in a game with magical elves and fairies. like come on bro.

you don’t have any in-game friends because paladins is your guilty pleasure game you would never admit to

.

Vivian

“step on me” syndrome cranked up to 100%

this woman could spit on you and you’d still respect her more than your own mother. good for you

“i’m not a simp. i’m just tier 3 subbed to pokimane ironically”

you sweat the game hardcore. former victor main or he’s your secondary.

you’ve got her on level 50+ at least

.

Vora

like the maeve mains but somehow worse

bought her out of spite or played her while she was on rotation, now here you are grinding credits for her a day after she became unavailable

honestly you’re really good at the game i have nothing else to say

you enjoy the newer characters more than the OGs - you’re either a former vivian or lian main

you miss the play of the game feature in the game because you’d get all of them with this girl

.

Willo

you seem like the moji mains at first but show your true colors soon after

“fuck you” x50

you are a trash talker on max overdrive. you need to sit down, do some breathing exercises and have a drink.

you hate your own team more than the opposing guys

when you see a willow on the opposing team you make it your sole goal to eliminate her as many times as humanely possible

.

Yagorath

i bet you didn’t know she was canonically female until you read this

you don’t like sweating too much so you pick the tank that leaves you heavily relying on your healers and damages

you can hold a point really well so you like siege and onslaught

“are vora and yagorath connected in the lore somehow and do i really care?”

you have a friend who you always party up with to be your healer, otherwise you might switch to another character

.

Ying

“tanks love me, flanks hate me”

you are too powerful. literally. how are you so strong

you’ve mastered the most difficult healer in the game. the others are really easy for you to play but you have trouble with seris

motivate your team a lot but start shading and trash talking if they don’t cooperate

you’ll gladly play someone else for a long while and like taking breaks from her

.

Zhin

this is your first main after switching over from overwatch. we can smell it on you.

you’re really annoyed with his personality and voice lines but the character is too good to play for you to pass him up for that. you respond to his voice lines aloud very aggressively to let him know he’s an ass

“YES ZHIN HEALERS AREN’T USELESS YOU SELFISH PRICK”

you try your best but you’re not a great team player

infinite trips on a good day, die repeatedly without kills on a bad one and you switch over to vora or skye for a bit.

.

this took me hours to write out pls leave reblog and note thanks uwu

#paladins #paladins champions of the realm #paladins meme #paladins text post #maeve of blades #ying the blossom #skye twilight assassin #paladins viktor #paladins maeve #paladins ying #paladins skye #paladins octavia #paladins khan #paladins vora #paladins zhin #paladins vivian #paladins torvald #paladins makoa #paladins cassie #paladins inara #paladins evie #paladins seris #paladins furia #i tagged all the pretty girls #lets hope this gets around pog #pcotr

[not-a-coral-snake]

for @lamenweek Day 2 prompt: Folklore/Mythology

Canon au in which everything is the same, but Egeria is a dryad

Laurent panics when the edges of Damen’s wound begin to turn faintly green. Panics, and calls for Paschal, who comes in muttering about infection and carrying new bandages and alcohol for cleaning the wound and antiseptic salves for dressing it. Laurent scowls at the jars Paschal sets out: there is nothing among them he has not applied to Damen’s injury already. Damen, for his part, was still asleep when Laurent noticed the change. By the time Paschal arrives, he is half awake and protesting that he feels fine.

“Your wound is going green, Damen,” Laurent hisses. He is disinclined to take medical guidance from a man who claimed his injury was insignificant as he lay on the floor growing dizzy with blood loss.

“‘S normal,” Damen murmurs, and Laurent bites his lip over a reply he suspects would not have been stinging enough to cover his fear. If Damen is claiming green skin is normal, perhaps he is delirious with fever already. 

But he is not feverish, Paschal confirms, nor is his wound hot with infection. If anything, Paschal says, the inflammation is much reduced relative to the previous day. In all ways but one, it appears to be healing well. “Look closer, your highness,” he says, and Laurent sees that the wound is not the purulent green of infection, but a smooth, even color, almost like—

“Like new growth,” he says. Not new skin, but the color of new buds unfurling in springtime, or a stem growing closed around a cut. A plant’s new growth.

“It was like this when his back was healing, as well,” Paschal says, matter-of-fact, and Laurent remembers having been faintly surprised at how much more quickly the Akielon’s back had begun to heal, once he was out doing hard labor in the open air, than it had when he was resting on cushions in Arles. 

“You are. . . a dryad, then,” Laurent says, after Paschal has applied a fresh dressing and departed. The Akielon word is unfamiliar. The concept is unfamiliar as well. The wild folk of Vere are different than those of Akielos. “Or part dryad?”

“My mother was a dryad,” Damen says. “My father was human. It has little effect on me, save for. . . small things.”

“Small things,” Laurent scoffs. “You might have mentioned that you heal differently, at least.”

“I did say I was fine,” Damen says. He has, many times, and dryad-blood or no, Laurent still cannot believe him. Laurent frowns. 

“Truly I am,” Damen says, and slowly, carefully, he sits up and gathers Laurent in his arms. “I’ll tell you the whole of it later. Promise.”

*    *    *

“My mother loved gardens,” Damen says, walking hand in hand with Laurent through the grounds of the palace at Lentos. “She designed most of the gardens here. It was what first drew her to humans, actually—she was enchanted with the way humans tame a piece of nature, give it a form that adds a sense of human artistry to the art inherent in the plant.”

The words are familiar. Damen does not have so many stories of his mother that he does not know each one by heart. But Laurent is listening intently, so he continues. “She began by building gardens in the wild, in clearings in the woods. She had a gift for it, and very quickly all sorts of wealthy people were asking her to create gardens for them.

“It took her years to finalize her design for the gardens here. First, in deciding what story she wanted the gardens to tell, then deciding how best to use plants to tell it. She always said that the sky and the sea and the cliffs here were already perfect, so the gardens had to be as well. Once she had the design, though, the plants flourished and grew to maturity faster than anyone had imagined they could.”

“Was she already married to your father, then?” Laurent asks. 

“Not at the beginning, no. She was merely a skilled artisan he had hired. But he came to Lentos often in the summer, and she was always walking the grounds designing and supervising the project. And she didn’t care a whit about human titles, so she kept approaching him with questions. Questions led to brief conversations, which led to longer ones—”

“And they fell in love here,” Laurent says. 

“They did,” Damen agrees. “The kyroi weren’t especially happy about it—she had no title, no wealth, no political connections among the nobility—but my father argued that an alliance with the woodland people would be valuable. And they could see he would not be swayed on the matter. 

“At first, they weren’t sure if they’d be able to have children together at all. There aren’t very many half dryad people about, and it was years before my mother became pregnant. When she did, everyone was thrilled. But childbearing was hard on her. She had to return to her tree to recover. She said it would be years before she would be strong enough to take human form again.”

“How many years?”

“No one knows. It wasn’t in my father’s lifetime, and it may not be in mine.”

“That’s . . . lonely,” Laurent says. “To have your mother neither truly here nor truly gone.” 

“I wanted you to see her,” Damen says. “Her tree is here, at Lentos. It’s not like meeting her, exactly, but. . .” He trails off, and in the silence is a quiet awareness of aloneness. He and Laurent have found each other, and there is no family left for either of them to be introduced to. He will never bow before the king in Arles and ask permission to court Laurent, will never present Laurent to Theomedes in Ios. 

“I’d like that,” Laurent says, and so Damen leads him away from the carefully-designed perfection of the gardens up to a small grove of oaks overlooking the sea. 

“This is her,” he says, laying his hand on rough bark. He’s always felt that his mother’s tree has a distinct presence, an air of awareness, of realness that sets it apart from the ordinary oaks that surround it. But that might be just his mind seeing what it needs to see. “I’m not sure how much she can perceive, but, well. . . Mother, this is Laurent.” 

It’s a little shy, a little awkward. He comes here and speaks to his mother from time to time, but since early childhood has not felt comfortable doing so in front of someone else. But Laurent’s face does not change, shows neither amusement nor pity. Shifting his focus from Damen to Egeria, he bows. “I’ll take care of your son,” Laurent says. “I’ll protect his kingdom as if it were my own. I’ll give my life for his people.”

There is a rustling in the branches above, one that does not seem timed with the breeze, and Damen tells himself that the oaks that are not Egeria are remaining silent. Laurent says, “I won’t let him down. I promise you.” 

*    *    *

Months later, it is spring again, and they lie beneath ancient trees somewhere in the Akielon countryside. They had stayed up late, sitting around the fire with Guillaume and Alexon and the real Charls, talking about the past, talking about the future. Now that they have finally set up pallets and begun to try for sleep, midnight has come and gone and the stars wheeled towards dawn. 

It’s a mild night, but still the trees rustle overhead, almost loud enough to disrupt the nighttime quiet. Laurent isn’t asleep yet. Damen isn’t either. 

“I always forget how loud it can be, outside at night,” Laurent says. 

“The trees?” Damen says, and Laurent hums in agreement.

“When I was a child,” Damen says some time later, voice soft, “I used to wonder if they were talking to each other. If I would have been able to learn their language, had my mother been around to teach me.”

“Did you think about it often?” Laurent says. “Having your mother with you, I mean. And just—being different.”

Damen thinks of Laurent murmuring Kemptian words in his sleep, quietly observing Kemptian holidays in private where the Veretian court won’t see. “Not often,” he says, and it is truth, for all that it sits oddly with him now. “I tried not to. I had my family, my father, my brother—I didn’t want them to think they weren’t enough. And as I got older, well. . . dryads aren’t exactly known for their martial prowess. I was afraid people would think me passive, or a pacifist, or slow-reflexed. I threw myself into training all the more to prove them wrong.”

“I think I can imagine the feeling,” Laurent says, reaching for his hand.

Damen entwines Laurent’s fingers and his. “Now, though. . . lately, I’ve been coming to appreciate the value  of deliberation, of getting a broad perspective before acting. Treelike traits both. And I’m coming to realize that one of my best traits might be steadfastness.”

Laurent thinks of Damen, solid and reliable as an oak, thinks of how he always feels grounded in Damen’s arms. “I think I’m inclined to agree,” he says, and snuggles closer. 

#captive prince #Lamen Week #Lamen Week 2021 #my post

[buck-buck-boose]

I'll Love You 'Til I Die

Masterlist | Playlist

Summary: A Brooklyn schoolgirl fell in love with James Buchanan Barnes at the tender age of nine. With this love she made a vow, promising to love him until her very last breath.

Pairing: Bucky x OFC

Warnings: Language, mild descriptions of injuries

Word Count: 2.3k

Author's Note: My apologies, writer's block got the best of me.

Chapter Twenty-Two: The European Theater

June 11, 1943

Lottie’s heart was restless and mournful once more, with every beat she couldn’t help but notice the splinters and cracks that had webbed their way across its surface. Without her two best friends, she could never be completely whole. She put on a strong, clinical face, of course, but there were countless times that her emotional turmoil seemed as real as any wound she’d become accustomed to treating. Months had passed since Dr. Erskine’s assassination. It had been months since she’d been relieved of her duties on Project Rebirth. Months since she’d been torn away from Steve. One year, five months, and twenty-nine days since she’d stood on a train platform, watching as Bucky faded from view.

It had been a rather grim day when she’d received orders that she would be shipped out to London with the SSR. The morning after Dr. Erskine’s tragic death, she and her peers had been summoned to take blood samples from Steve; they were under the impression that it was for continued research purposes. The five of them had been exhausted, nearly asleep on their feet from staying awake all night. They’d tried to sleep at first, but all attempts were abandoned when all they could see was the lifeless body of their mentor every time they shut their eyes. They had held a silent vigil, nestled in their own beds with wide eyes, waiting anxiously for daybreak.

Once their duties had been completed, they followed Steve into the dimly lit central command room of the SSR. The room had been buzzing with energy, with agents milling about and Howard Stark in the midst of it all, tinkering away at some machine. Lottie had looked to Agent Carter, expecting new orders regarding blood sample analysis and re-developing the serum by studying Steve’s cellular structure; Colonel Phillips came along to crush her hopes of continued research.

“As of this morning, the SSR has been re-tasked,” Colonel Phillips began, his gaze firm on the nurses, “The president has ordered us to eliminate Hydra on the front lines. Project Rebirth had been officially shut down, and as employees of the Strategic Scientific Reserve, you ladies will be flying out on a new assignment with us.”

Nancy was the first to protest, “But sir, you said you wanted an army of Super Soldiers—”

Colonel Phillips held up a hand to silence her, “Ms. Powell, we are in the thick of a war, we don’t have the time or the money to redevelop a serum. You are all under contract with the SSR; these are your orders. We’re flying to London tonight.”

All that the nurses could do was look from each other to Agent Carter, who graced them with a small, sad smile. She’d just received the orders as well; it must have been somewhat of a surprise for her.

“What about Steve? He’ll be joining us, right?” Colonel Phillips stiffened slightly at her familiarity with the Super Soldier, most SSR agents accepted their strong bond, but Colonel Phillips never wavered in his beliefs regarding the relationships between soldiers and their nurses.

“Given that Rogers is our only Super Soldier, he is an extremely valuable asset, not one to be thrown willy-nilly into a war. He’ll be staying stateside while we handle the dirty work overseas. Senator Brandt has offered Rogers a promotion, which he's already accepted.”

Frustration bubbled in Lottie’s chest, “So we spent over a year slaving away in that lab and creating the perfect serum for your Super Soldier just for you to toss our hard work aside? He is perfectly capable of being on the front lines!”

The thought of Steve being sent into the belly of the beast that was Hydra had almost made Lottie sick, but the thought of her hard work going to waste agitated her to no end. Going to war was quite literally what he'd been made for, this was the goal from the get-go.

“Ms. Green, we know perfectly well what Rogers is capable of. He has exactly what it takes to carry out his mission here in the states flawlessly.” He dismissed them without waiting for a response, reminding them to “Be ready for takeoff at twenty-one hundred hours.”

The rest of that day had been a flurry of hurried goodbyes and the packing up of what little belongings they’d brought with them. Letting go of Steve was nearly impossible. They bade each other farewell on the runway, the airplane stood in front of them in all of its aluminum glory, moonbeams bouncing off of its surface.

“I can’t believe I’m doing this to you all over again.” Lottie’s gaze was sorrowful, focused on her sturdy black shoes. She couldn’t bring herself to look him in the eye; his eyes always bore through her with an intensity she couldn’t handle at the moment.

“Hey, at least I’ll actually know where you’re going this time,” Steve half-joked. He nudged her foot with his own to draw her attention upward. His face had grown serious, “While you’re over there, make sure you keep an eye out for Bucky, alright? I haven’t gotten any word on where he is, but he’s with the hundred and seventh.”

Lottie knit her brows together and memorized the number. One hundred and seventh. One hundred and seventh. She would have to fight tooth and nail, climb every mountain and ford every stream, just to find James Buchanan Barnes once more.

But at the moment, she had to fight tooth and nail to get this Italian to sit still so she could properly disinfect and stitch his shrapnel-inflicted wound.

Shortly after their arrival in London, the SSR had shipped out to a base in Tunisia from which they could aid in Allied campaigns along the southern coast of Italy; there were plans to capture Sicily, but first, the Allied powers needed to station themselves on surrounding islands. So, they found themselves on the minuscule island of Pantelleria.

Unfortunately, the surrender of the island to the Allied powers was only achieved through 19 days of aerial bombardment. Lottie, her peers, and a small band of fresh-faced nurses had been left to deal with the casualties.

The mousy-haired nurse stood before a bedridden, red-faced man, whose plump fingers were wrapped around his thigh in an attempt to compress his wound. Lottie was armed with her newly acquired Italian-to-English dictionary, penicillin, bandages, and all that was needed to stitch up his wounds. She flipped through the pages of the dictionary; her mouth set in a firm line.

“Bisogno,” she began, gesturing to his freely flowing wound, “Pulire e cucire. Io aiuto.”

Half a dozen other nurses had attempted the same thing, all had offered to treat him, but the man had treated them all with the same oafish aggression that he was showing her.

“A fanabla! Non ho bisogno del tuo aiuto.” He used his free hand to wave her off, spittle spewing from his lips due to his intensely glottal speech. The movement of his deep brown eyes, how they flickered to and fro, indicated his increasing agitation in such a high-stress environment. Lottie genuinely understood his hesitation to accept her help; he and his kinfolk had just spent the past nineteen days trying to survive a deluge of attacks from the Allied forces. Why should he accept help from the very people who nearly destroyed their island?

Lottie gritted her teeth and tightened her grip on her dictionary, “Prego, signore!” For once, she wished that Nancy would show up out of the blue to push her aside and take matters into her own hands, but there were far too many injuries for multiple nurses to work on the same patient at once.

“Lasciami in pace, cretina!” He growled, flinging his free hand out to knock her tray of supplies aside. Lottie stabilized the tray on his bedside table before any supplies could become contaminated, no way in hell was she going to spend another fifteen minutes re-sterilizing those damn syringes.

She’d about had it with the man. If she transferred him to another nurse, the SSR would surely doubt her abilities as a well-established nurse. Lottie would surely deal with more aggressive soldiers on the front lines. Forgoing any sort of decorum or professionalism, she pinned his free wrist down to the cot with her right hand, “Io aiuto. O tu morire.” The foreign words were awkward on her tongue and she didn’t sound nearly as assertive as she’d wished, but the Italian man finally gave in, grumbling what was probably an assortment of curses at her.

Lottie made quick work of removing the shrapnel that had embedded itself into the man’s skin in muscle. It was relatively easy, as she’d had enough practice that morning, dealing with what felt like dozens of injuries just like his. When the island had finally been surrendered, a bevy of nurses and medics had been flown in, Lottie and her peers included.

The Cadet Nurse Corps’ newly initiated training programs had been quite beneficial for such circumstances, but with such accelerate courses of study, many of the nurses were inexperienced and uncertain in their abilities. Thus, most of the morning was spent overseeing the work of the newer nurses; the advice was administered when needed and tasks were delegated to the older nurses when stitches were too tight and fingers too shaky.

The Italian man’s wound was just one of many, at this point. The only remarkable aspect of the interaction was his temperament. Sure, many other islanders had expressed distrust and dismay with the Allied forces, but they had at least been more eager to be treated for their injuries.

“Fatto presto, signore,” she murmured as she began the careful work of stitching his lacerations shut. Her Italian was dreadful, comprised entirely of juvenile phrases and briefly memorized words that could just barely communicate her intentions to her patients. She knew that she probably looked to be a bumbling idiot in their perspectives.

By the time she was finished, nearly every inch of her skin was damp with sweat— although the medic tent provided shade from the sun, its heat, combined with the body heat of so many civilians seemed to suffocate her. The air was thick, her curls clung to the nape of her neck, and her once crisp white dress had become damp and splotched with various hues of orange and blood, remnants of blood and dust.

The former nurses of Project Rebirth remained close, even after the termination of their research, they were often found huddled in one corner of the nurse’s tent, playing cards and smoking, or whispering gossip of their next assignment.

“How long do you think they’re gonna keep us here?” Mary glanced over the edge of her letter, looking to Gladys expectantly. Gladys was always in the know with these sorts of things, keeping quiet and listening in around the higher-ranking officers.

Gladys hummed in thought, rolling an unlit cigarette between her fingers, “From what I’ve heard, we might be heading toward mainland Italy soon. But I’m not sure.”

Lottie frowned, “But what about Operation Husky? I mean, we just bombed this damn place for a good base to capture Sicily.”

“Well, I’ve heard there’s a Hydra base on the mainland. These girls might stay behind for Operation Husky, but we’re better prepared for whatever Hydra has in store for us.”

Betty groaned, “I don’t care where they send us, so long as the soldiers aren’t great louts like these guys.” Lottie had to agree, the soldiers stationed with them in Tunisia and on Pantelleria had been rather uncouth. They drank far too heavily most nights, which typically resulted in uncomfortable interactions between the men and the nurses.

A voice piped up from the other end of the nurse’s tent, a girl of only around 19— her name might have been Nelly —smiled at them brightly over a newspaper, “Well wherever you go, I hope you get to see a USO show because I’d give anything to see Captain America!”

“Sorry, who?” The name was somewhat familiar to Lottie, but she and the other women had never shown particular interest in the USO. All that she knew was that their shows usually had chorus girls all dressed in short skirts and red lipstick, just what a soldier needed to see after what seemed like an eternity in hell.

Nelly ambled over and tossed her newspaper onto Betty’s bed, which the women usually crowded around. None of the women spoke as they took in the headline: “The Star-Spangled Man’s European Tour.”

“What the hell?” Betty broke the silence and held the newspaper up to the light, squinting at its front page. The mouths of the other four nurses were agape, they were at a loss for words as they processed the fact that the culmination of their hard work was being brandished as some sort of cheery mascot for the war effort.

Lottie felt a righteous anger building within her. It was one thing to separate her from one of her best friends for the sake of pursuing separate missions, but this? This was a joke. Laughable, really. She could only think of the late nights, the early mornings, every moment of their time at Camp Lehigh had been dedicated to perfecting the Super Soldier serum. Now that they had their Super Soldier, they decided to waste his talent and their hard work. It was a slap in the face, a punch to the gut. Lottie could only hope that Steve would be reassigned after his European tour; he was destined to be more than just a show pony, she was sure of it.

#40s!bucky x original female character #40s!bucky x ofc #40s!bucky #40s!bucky x reader #1940s bucky #bucky x reader #bucky barnes fic #bucky x ofc #bucky barnes imagine #bucky imagine #bucky fic #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky fanfic #james buchanan barnes #bucky barnes fanfiction

[vivithefolle]

Is there anyway you could share the entire livejournal essay about Hermione's reaction to Ron coming back in DH? The few paragraphs that you referred to in your recent answer sound extremely interesting.

[The “recent answer” that goes back to... last December. Oh my god I’m such an ass I left you hanging for so long I’m so sorry.]

Okay, okay, so here goes! KEEP IN MIND: I DIDN’T WRITE THIS. I FOUND THIS ON LIVEJOURNAL AND PICKED EVERYTHING THAT I LIKED ABOUT IT, AS WELL AS SOME COMMENTS THAT INTERESTED ME.

This “essay” was actually more of a “reading the books” thing with the person sharing their thoughts and ideas about it. The person was clearly a Snape fan, but they had sympathy for Ron too. I’ll try to formate it as accurately as I can remember it.

And now, here it is:

---

ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

[About Ron being made a prefect.] The essayist: It’s sad, but this probably is the first time Ron’s beaten Harry at something. And the last time.

A commenter: Ron's had a really difficult life, and this is the book that proved it for me. It made me a Ron fan. Just look at the interactions he has with Fred and George. This is commonplace. I know a lot of people don't like Ron, but just look at this book, this chapter especially. People have accused Ron of being lazy, unambitious, having no emotions, and being a big stupid boy. It's just not true. Look at how Fred and George needle him out of jealousy. Look at how they treat Percy. Imagine Ron having to grow up with two older brothers that will not hesitate to bother, torture and torment people that stand out or that get more attention than they do or that cross them. He saw it happening with Percy, so what's he going to learn? He'll learn to shut up unless he wants to have something happen to him. He'll learn that standing out positively is rewarded with cruelty. I can understand how Mrs. Weasley could not have fully protected him from those two. Not all the time, not while trying to also care for Ginny, keeping up with her other kids in school, and running the household. Worst of all, punishing F&G doesn't seem to do anything. Those two just don't care/they crave the attention, negative or positive. The best thing she could've done would be to give them no attention, but that's so against her nature that unfortunately she just fed the monsters. No emotions? Is it really difficult to understand that sensitivity wouldn't be encouraged in young Ron? He's got these two bullies that only want a reaction out of him. If he cries, it'll only encourage them. Any reaction is encouraging to them, but he has to go with anger. It's a survival thing- puff yourself up, make yourself look bigger than you are so the predator messes with you a little less. Look at the pride Ron's showing in his badge. The desire to do well is there. He likes the good feeling that comes with it, but he's been hard-wired since birth that it's better to be "middle of the pack". In later chapters, I know you'll have to point out the way the power makes Ron behave, so I just want to start on the defence now. It's all Ron knows. It's all he's been taught. It's a huge character flaw, but it's what makes him so human. Rowling did develop this in the book, but only accidentally. We're never going to get a good look at Ron's psychology except through these hints because it's, as usual, All About Harry. Ron's flawed, but I hope we remember that he has a reason why he's got those flaws. It doesn't excuse him, but it really explains him. So yeah... that's why I defend Ron.

...

“I’m not Percy,’ he finished defiantly.”

The essayist: Mmmm-hm. Ron feels nervous at the thought of his good fortune inspiring anger in someone and what's his first defence? "I'm not Percy"? Man, the evidence that the Twins' psychological torment has left lasting scars on Ron could not have been more obvious if he'd shielded himself and said "Please don't jinx me, Fred! ... I mean Harry. ... Shit, what'd I say?"

...

“Excellent,”  said  Ron,  with  a  kind  of  groan  of  longing,  and  he  seized the nearest plate of chops and began piling them onto his plate, watched wistfully by Nearly Headless Nick. “What  were  you  saying  before  the  Sorting?”  Hermione  asked  the  ghost. “About the hat giving warnings?” “Oh  yes,”  said  Nick,  who  seemed  glad  of  a  reason  to  turn  away  from  Ron,  who  was  now  eating  roast  potatoes  with  almost  indecent  enthusiasm.

The essayist: Ron’s not being very restrained with his eating, is he?

The commenter: I don't know if it's accidental or not, but this is one of those moments that I love, one of the tellings of Ron's home life via his behavior. In this scenario, he's totally a kitten who just got adopted to a house where he's the only cat. He's at a table with food, so his instinct is to eat as fast as he can or his siblings will yoink it. It doesn't help that there are many other people around, encouraging the "get the good stuff fast or you'll have to sate yourself on bread or whatever nobody wants". Ron is so much more human than Harry! How can Harry not be showing any signs of his "horrendous abuse" for eleven years? Well... I guess he sort of does when he buys all that stuff in his first year. And I guess Ron has to go back home every summer where it gets reinforced. But Harry goes back every summer, too... what the hell?

...

“What’s going on?” Ron  had  appeared  in  the  doorway.  His  wide  eyes  traveled  from  Harry,  who  was  kneeling  on  his  bed  with  his  wand  pointing  at  Seamus, to Seamus, who was standing there with his fists raised. “He’s having a go at my mother!” Seamus yelled. “What?” said Ron. “Harry wouldn’t do that — we met your mother, we liked her. . .” “That’s  before  she  started  believing  every  word  the  stinking  Daily  Prophet writes about me!” said Harry at the top of his voice. “Oh,”  said  Ron,  comprehension  dawning  across  his  freckled  face.  “Oh . . . right.” “You know what?” said Seamus heatedly, casting Harry a venomous look.  “He’s  right,  I  don’t  want  to  share  a  dormitory  with  him  anymore, he’s a madman.” “That’s out of order, Seamus,” said Ron, whose ears were starting to glow red, always a danger sign. “Out of order, am I?” shouted Seamus, who in contrast with Ron &#145;was  turning  paler.  “You  believe  all  the  rubbish  he’s  come  out  with  about You-Know-Who, do you, you reckon he’s telling the truth?” “Yeah, I do!” said Ron angrily. “Then you’re mad too,” said Seamus in disgust. “Yeah?  Well  unfortunately  for  you,  pal,  I’m  also  a  prefect!”  said  Ron,  jabbing  himself  in  the  chest  with  a  finger.  “So  unless  you  want  detention, watch your mouth!”

The essayist: Note how Ron’s first reaction is to side with Harry.

The commenter: Not surprising because of the best friends thing (some might argue) but I say it's not surprising considering how Hermione and Ron were treating Harry like a ticking time bomb. Survival!

...

“Hello, Harry!” It was Cho Chang and what was more, she was on her own again. This was most unusual: Cho was almost always surrounded by a gang of giggling girls; Harry remembered the agony of trying to get her by herself to ask her to the Yule Ball. “Hi,” said Harry, feeling his face grow hot. At least you’re not covered  in Stinksap this time, he told himself. Cho seemed to be thinking along the same lines. “You got that stuff off, then?” “Yeah,”  said  Harry,  trying  to  grin  as  though  the  memory  of  their  last meeting was funny as opposed to mortifying. “So did you . . . er . . . have a good summer?” The moment he had said this he wished he hadn’t: Cedric had been Cho’s boyfriend and the memory of his death must have affected her holiday  almost  as  badly  as  it  had  affected  Harry’s.  .  . Something  seemed  to  tauten  in  her  face,  but  she  said,  “Oh,  it  was  all  right,  you  know. . .” “Is  that  a  Tornados  badge?”  Ron  demanded  suddenly,  pointing  at  the front of Cho’s robes, to which a sky-blue badge emblazoned with a double gold T was pinned. “You don’t support them, do you?” “Yeah, I do,” said Cho. “Have  you  always  supported  them,  or  just  since  they  started  winning the league?” said Ron, in what Harry considered an unnecessarily accusatory tone of voice. “I’ve supported them since I was six,” said Cho coolly. “Anyway . . . see you, Harry.” She  walked  away.  Hermione  waited  until  Cho  was  halfway  across  the courtyard before rounding on Ron. “You are so tactless!”

The essayist: So Harry meets Cho, makes a complete faux pas and reminds her of her dead boyfriend. Ron quickly steers the conversation away onto something more happy, i.e., Quidditch, before Cho can get too upset. Nevertheless, Ron is apparently the insensitive jerk around here, not Harry.

[If this reminds you of something, then yes, I absolutely took what the essayist was saying and elaborated on it. I confess, I am a dirty thief.]

...

“Well, I suppose he could’ve played better,” Harry muttered, “but it was only the first training session, like you said. . .” Neither Harry nor Ron seemed to make much headway with their homework  that  night.  Harry  knew  Ron  was  too  preoccupied  with  how  badly  he  had  performed  at  Quidditch  practice  and  he  himself  was having difficulty in getting the chant of “Gryffindor are losers” out of his head. [...] And so they worked on while the sky outside the windows became steadily darker; slowly, the crowd in the common room began to thin again.   At   half-past   eleven,   Hermione   wandered   over   to   them,   yawning. “Nearly done?” “No,” said Ron shortly. “Jupiter’s  biggest  moon  is  Ganymede,  not  Callisto,”  she  said,  pointing over Ron’s shoulder at a line in his Astronomy essay, “and it’s Io that’s got the volcanos.” “Thanks,” snarled Ron, scratching out the offending sentences.

The essayist: So Ron’s getting basic facts wrong in his essays.

The commenter: This is going to look so contrived, but I genuinely believe it, and maybe after these reviews, your standards for contrived have dropped enough for me to pass the bar :3 But... he's not putting in any effort. His ego can't take another beating at the moment (even punching bags have limits). Imagine it- after the Quidditch humiliation with his friend the Star Athlete (when he really was trying) he tries to distract himself by doing school work 1. which he isn't very good at anyway, 2. with the Star Athlete of Academics/Slytherin Spectator Crowd best friend Hermione there 3. with Hermione there to set it right anyway (it sounds as if Hermione isn’t so much correcting their essays as writing them herself). If he tries his best at this and then fails at that, Ron probably would start to consider suicide. It's self-preservation at this point to put in zero effort. This kind of fail is literally "I'm not trying because I have given up."

...

She  wrenched  her  bag  open;  Harry  thought  she  was  about  to  put  her books away, but instead she pulled out two misshapen woolly objects,  placed  them  carefully  on  a  table  by  the  fireplace,  covered  them  with  a  few  screwed-up  bits  of  parchment  and  a  broken  quill,  and  stood back to admire the effect. “What  in  the  name  of  Merlin  are  you  doing?”  said  Ron,  watching  her as though fearful for her sanity. “They’re  hats  for  house-elves,”  she  said  briskly,  now  stuffing  her  books  back  into  her  bag.  “I  did  them  over  the  summer.  I’m  a  really  slow  knitter  without  magic,  but  now  I’m  back  at  school  I  should  be  able to make lots more.” “You’re leaving out hats for the house-elves?” said Ron slowly. “And you’re covering them up with rubbish first?” “Yes,” said Hermione defiantly, swinging her bag onto her back. “That’s not on,” said Ron angrily. “You’re trying to trick them into picking  up  the  hats.  You’re  setting  them  free  when  they  might  not  want to be free.” “Of  course  they  want  to  be  free!”  said  Hermione  at  once,  though  her face was turning pink. “Don’t you dare touch those hats, Ron!” She left. Ron waited until she had disappeared through the door to the girls’ dormitories, then cleared the rubbish off the woolly hats. They  should  at  least  see  what  they’re  picking  up,”  he  said  firmly.  “Anyway  .  .  .”  He  rolled  up  the  parchment  on  which  he  had  written  the title of Snape’s essay. “There’s no point trying to finish this now, I can’t  do  it  without  Hermione,  I  haven’t  got  a  clue  what  you’re  supposed to do with moonstones, have you?”

The essayist: This doesn’t seem like a particularly open-minded and enquiring position to take, although I suppose that Hermione’s open-mindedness has always been something of an informed attribute.

The commenter: This trope among fans has got me riled up beyond belief because they use the "Hermione's word is gospel" thing to make unfair assumptions about other characters: Ron's "emotional range of a teaspoon" thing comes to mind, and right after that, Lavender supposedly being silly about believing Trelawney about her dead pet (Hermione never considered that maybe the thing Lavender was dreading was bad news from home or bad news about her pet). Regarding house elves: This is one case where the fans ought to have seen that Hermione was being very thoughtless as far as strategy. Ron has lived all his life up until this point thinking that there was no problem with house elves and she literally expects to be able to just tell him "it's wrong" and he's supposed to change instantly? Talk about your cultural insensitivity. In this case, maybe Ron knows better than you do, Hermione? You didn't even know about house elves until you were at least twelve (but more likely, she didn't know until this year). She must understand the concept of "he doesn't know it's wrong". That was how she defended Crookshanks when he was chasing Scabbers. ... Hey, Hermione thinks Ron's smarter than her cat. That's something, I guess.

...

The commenter: Competition is seriously the worst thing in the world for Ron. He's got wa-a-ay too much baggage. Do well so they'll love you. Do well so they'll notice you. If they notice you, you'll get praised. And tormented by Fred and George. Then if you fuck up, you'll have let everyone down. My brothers never let anyone down. That's the standard. Oh God, I can't live up to that. Which do I want to chose- being ignored or scorned? I could do well. Then I'll be good enough to be called "just like them"! JFC, when's it ever going to be "Good like Ron"? Chess. Literally everyone else has one thing they shine in, even Neville with his Botany and Dean with his art (and... and I'm going to ignore the fact that Hermione and Luna are the only two I can think of with non-appearance based special stuff... someone please help me out? I guess Tonks' doesn't really count as a shallow one because it makes her a master of disguise...)

...

HALF-BLOOD PRINCE

...

Ron gagged on a large piece of kipper. Hermione spared him one look of disdain before turning back to Harry.

The essayist: “Hermione spared [Ron] one look of disdain before turning back to Harry” pretty much sums up her relationships within the trio. It’s no wonder Ron’s so insecure and keeps worrying that she really fancies Harry.

...

“And you’ve been through all that persecution from the Ministry when they were trying to make out you were unstable and a liar. You can still see the marks on the back of your hand where that evil woman made you write with your own blood, but you stuck to your story anyway...”  “You  can  still  see  where  those  brains  got  hold  of  me  in  the  Ministry,  look,”  said  Ron,  shaking  back his sleeves.  “And  it  doesn’t  hurt  that  you’ve  grown  about  a  foot  over  the  summer  either,”  Hermione  finished, ignoring Ron.  “I’m tall,” said Ron inconsequentially.

The essayist: Ron’s so adorably pathetic here, the way he’s obviously feeling inferior to Harry and being ignored by his so-called friends. *hugs Ron*

...

When they left the Gryffindor table five minutes later to head down to the Quidditch pitch, they passed  Lavender  Brown  and  Parvati  Patil.  Remembering  what  Hermione  had  said  about  the  Patil  twins’  parents  wanting  them  to  leave  Hogwarts,  Harry  was  unsurprised  to  see  that  the  two  best  friends were whispering together, looking distressed. What did surprise him was that when Ron drew level with them, Parvati suddenly nudged Lavender, who looked around and gave Ron a wide smile. Ron blinked at her, then returned the smile uncertainly. His walk instantly became something more like a strut. Harry resisted the temptation to laugh, remembering that Ron had refrained from doing so  after  Malfoy  had  broken  Harry’s  nose;  Hermione,  however,  looked  cold  and  distant  all  the  way  down  to  the  stadium  through  the  cool,  misty  drizzle,  and  departed  to  find  a  place  in  the  stands  without wishing Ron good luck. 

The essayist: Hermione keeps belittling Ron and doing him down, and reacts quite strongly when he even so much hints at losing interest in her and showing attention to another woman. Can we say “abusive relationship”, anybody?

...

“Harry! Ginny!” Hermione was hurrying toward them, very pink-faced and wearing a cloak, hat, and gloves. “I got back a couple of hours ago, I've just been down to visit Hagrid and Buck--I mean Witherwings,” she said breathlessly. “Did you have a good Christmas?” “Yeah,” said Ron at once, “pretty eventful, Rufus Scrim—” “I've got something for you, Harry,” said Hermione, neither looking at Ron nor giving any sign that she had heard him. “Oh, hang on--password. Abstinence.”

The essayist: Wow, Hermione’s just being so childish here, ignoring Ron when he’s talking directly to her. Incidentally, Ron’s speaking to her like a normal friend, it’s Hermione who’s doing the blanking. Still, I’m sure this argument is all Ron’s fault for daring to go out with another girl. Hermione is totally blameless.

[Just in case: the essayist is being sarcastic, they’re pointing out the double standard of the HP fandom blaming Hermione’s immature behaviour on Ron.]

...

DEATHLY HALLOWS

...

“I think you’re right,” she told him. “It’s just a morality tale, it’s obvious which gift is best, which one you’d choose—” The three of them spoke at the same time; Hermione said, “the Cloak,” Ron said, “the wand,” and Harry said, “the stone.” They looked at each other, half surprised, half amused. “You’re supposed to say the Cloak,” Ron told Hermione, “but you wouldn’t need to be invisible if you had the wand. An unbeatable wand, Hermione, come on!” “We’ve already got an Invisibility Cloak,” said Harry. “And it’s helped us rather a lot, in case you hadn’t noticed!” said Hermione. “Whereas the wand would be bound to attract trouble—” “Only if you shouted about it,” argued Ron. “Only if you were prat enough to go dancing around, waving it over your head, and singing, ‘I’ve got an unbeatable wand, come and have a go if you think you’re good enough.’ As long as you kept your trap shut—” “Yes, but could you keep your trap shut?” said Hermione, looking skeptical. “You know, the only true thing he said to us was that there have been stories about extra-powerful wands for hundreds of years.” “There have?” asked Harry. Hermione looked exasperated: the expression was so endearingly familiar that Harry and Ron grinned at each other.

The commenter (?): Actually, I thought that Ron was proving the errors in the story. Because he’s right. The eldest brother didn’t die because the Elder Wand had corrupted him (like the One Ring). He died because he was an idiot. He died because he randomly decided to start blabbing about his new toy.

“You talk about wands like they’ve got feelings,” said Harry, “like they canthink for themselves.” “The wand chooses the wizard,” said Ollivander. “That much has always been clear to those of us who have studied wandlore.” “A person can still use a wand that hasn’t chosen them, though?” asked Harry. “Oh yes, if you are any wizard at all you will be able to channel your magic through almost any instrument. The best results, however, must always come where there is the strongest affinity between wizard and wand. These connections are complex. An initial attraction, and then a mutual quest for experience, the wand learning from the wizard, the wizard from the wand.”

The essayist: Harry’s wand has to think for and protect him because he’s too stupid and incompetent to think for and protect himself! Ollivander’s the expert, and he just admitted it. He said any halfway decent wizard can perform magic with almost any wand. The reason Harry could only work with the holly wand is because of the phoenix feather core it shares with Voldemort’s wand. That is, it wasn’t Harry doing the magic with Harry’s wand! It was the Voldemort soul piece! Once Harry was forced to use wands that didn’t have that core, the soul piece couldn’t do the work for Harry any more. He was forced to rely on his own magical powers and competence, which are clearly minimal. This is proven by his inability to do effective magic with any other wand. It’s also proven by an incident from Philosopher’s Stone. Remember when Harry was being chased by bullies and inexplicably found himself on top of the shed roof? That was the soul piece allowing him to fly like Voldy. Lily could slow her descent from a height, as if she had an invisible parachute, but that is not the same as flying, and we have no evidence she could fly. Only Voldemort and Snape fly without assistance! The evidence is overwhelming that I am right. How many spells can Harry do effectively? Expelliarmus, Expecto Patronum, Protego--that’s it. Even as a young adult, he is incapable of doing the basic healing or cleaning spells a young child should have down pat before going to Hogwarts. Of course, we’re told the Patronus spell is difficult and advanced, but who told us that? Remus Lupin, friend of Harry’s father, sycophant, and notorious liar, particularly when it comes to flattering Harry. Recall Lupin also said Snape didn’t like James because Snape was envious of Potter Sr.’s Quidditch prowess, and we know that was a lie. Given this evidence, anything Lupin says that cannot be confirmed by an independent source, especially regarding the Potters, should be dismissed out of hand. True, Hermione has trouble with the Patronus spell, and she’s super-competent. Doesn’t that prove it’s a very difficult spell? Not at all. To take an example from a different field, Beethoven was a virtuoso organist, the greatest pianist of his day, one of the greatest pianists in history, and probably the greatest improvisational musician ever. But he was only a decent violinist. Everybody has areas of weakness, no matter how good they are overall. In addition, Hermione is very gullible where authority figures are concerned. If a teacher tells her, “The Patronus is a very difficult, advanced spell that many people can’t ever master,” she’ll believe that, which may create a self-fulfilling prophecy. A couple of years ago, another DTCL member and I facetiously suggested Harry was less intelligent than his wand. We didn’t know we were right. It rarely happens, but this is an occasion when I would have preferred to be wrong.

...

If only there was a way of getting a better wand... And desire for the Elder Wand, the Deathstick, unbeatable, invincible, swal-lowed him once more... They packed up the tent next morning and moved on through a dreary shower of rain. The downpour pursued them to the coast, where they pitched the tent that night, and persisted through the whole week, through sodden landscapes that Harry found bleak and depressing. He could think only of the Deathly Hallows. It was as though a flame had been lit inside him that nothing, not Hermione’s flat disbelief nor Ron’s persistent doubts, could extinguish. And yet the fiercer the longing for the Hallows burned inside him, the less joyful it made him. He blamed Ron and Hermione: Their determined indifference was as bad as the relentless rain for dampening his spirits, but neither could erode his certainty, which remained absolute. Harry’s belief in and longing for the Hallows consumed him so much that he felt isolated from the other two and their obsession with the Horcruxes. [...] As the weeks crept on, Harry could not help but notice, even through his new self-absorption, that Ron seemed to be taking charge. Perhaps because he was determined to make up for having walked out on them, perhaps because Harry’s descent into listlessness galvanized his dormant leadership qualities, Ron was the one now encouraging and exhorting the other two into action. [...] But not until March did luck favor Ron at last.

The essayist: MARCH! That’s right, ladies and gentlemen. The first fifteen pages of this chapter cover three months, and during that entire time, Harry Potter does nothing, nothing, but sit on his ass fantasizing about the Elder Wand and trying to connect with his Voldie-soul mate. Oh, wait. He also tries to open the snitch so he can get the stone out of it. (Nothing gay about that, either.) I wish he’d succeed in that, too. Maybe he’d swallow the stone, and it would end up in his scrotum. He sure needs something that works down there. Harry doesn’t have the right to bail out on his society like this. He can’t have it both ways. He can’t have the adulation that goes with being Mr. Boy-Who-Lived-Chosen-One-Wizarding-World-Savior and abdicate the responsibilities that go along with those titles and that adulation. Look at what happens in this chapter: Harry becomes obsessed with finding and uniting the Hallows, so much so that he withdraws from his friends, bails out on the job his idol Dumbledore gave him, and spends all his time brooding and trying to connect with the Dull Lord. In other words, he acts clinically depressed. Ron and Hermione were exposed to the same information Harry was, but they didn’t become obsessed/depressed. Ron was mildly interested in the Super-Wand, but not enough to distract him from the Horcrux hunt. Hermione dismissed the whole DH story as nonsense and continued following Dumbestbore’s orders. So why weren’t they tempted?

...

The essayist: Harry opens the locket using Parseltongue--interesting that this never occurred to him before now--and two ghostly figures emerge. They’re Voldie-versions of Harry and Hermione, and they articulate Ron’s worst fears: “Least loved, always, by the mother who craved a daughter...Least loved, now, by the girl who prefers your friend...Second best, always, eternally overshadowed...” I’ll say it again: When you’re right, you’re right. The evidence is overwhelming that Molly Weasley treated Ron the worst of all her children. And if Rowling doesn’t want us to ship HP/HG, she needs to quit throwing them together and making them leaders, with Ron either in the background or absent entirely. JKR obviously wants us to automatically dismiss certain statements just because they’re made by “bad guys” such as Voldemort and Rita Skeeter. There are two problems with this: (1) The “lies” make perfect sense, far more sense than what we’re supposed to believe. (2) Even pathological liars sometimes tell the truth, typically when it won’t hurt their own interests to do so. For those of us who live in what cartoonist Garry Trudeau calls “the reality-based community,” the evidence is what matters, not what we’re told by authority figures. Those of us in the higher stages of spiritual development are funny that way.

...

The essayist: Well, whose fault is that, Ms. Rowling? You’re the one who’s spent the last four books making Ron dumber and dumber, depriving him of any meaningful activity, while you shoved Harry and Hermione into increasingly dominant roles.

The commenter: Are we supposed to look down on Ron now so that we can condemn him for leaving Harry and Hermione? Because if so, then that’s just unfair. Every time Ron tries to come up with an idea, Hermione criticizes him or shoots him down. And the twins have done a fine job of intimidating Ron into remaining mediocre and modest so that he doesn’t remind them of Percy, so what is he supposed to do? How is he supposed to come up with ideas when he’s surrounded by people who basically tell him to shut up and sit down?

The essayist: Just then, Hermione comes out of the tent with cups of tea, with tears running down her face and looking terrified her “friend” is going to curse her with her own wand.

The commenter: So, Hermione will snarl at Ron all day long, but cower in fear when Harry gets mad. Is she projecting herself onto Harry and assuming that just because *she’s* quick to hex people who anger her (Ron, Marietta, etc.), Harry will do the same to her?

The essayist: The evidence is overwhelming that Molly Weasley treated Ron the worst of all her children.

The commenter: And blatantly showed favoritism to Harry while snarling at Ron in the same breath. Of course, Horcrux!Tom doesn’t bring that up, because JKR would have to admit that there might be something wrong with Molly favoring Harry the way she does. The essayist: Hermione acts so crazy Harry has to put a protection charm between her and Ron.

The commenter: Yeah…sorry, it’s not “slapstick” anymore when somebody actually has to stop her from hitting Ron. When Harry feels that the situation is dangerous enough that his intervention is necessary. That’s not funny. That’s a true-crime episode. What gets me is that Hermione's tantrum lasts for days. It goes on for several pages into the next chapter. She doesn't start acting normal again until she comes up with the idea of visiting Xeno Lovegood. The essayist: Hermione tells Ron she still hasn’t ruled out attacking him with birds again.

The commenter: *flatly* So, all of the fans who cooed about how “great” it was for Hermione to show “girl power” by sending Ron to the hospital wing in HBP or breezily dismissed the scene as just tired teenage melodrama? Can put a sock in it. Hermione has clearly learned nothing, JKR clearly feels that that scene was funny, and at no point are we supposed to think that Hermione is an abuser. Even though, if the genders were reversed, fans would be calling for Ron’s head on a platter if he dared lay a finger on Hermione. No. This isn’t funny. This isn’t charming. Hermione hurt Ron so badly in HBP that he had to go to the hospital wing. And she tried to repeat the damage she caused here. Is she going to attack him with birds again after they get married? Is she going to do it in front of their children? Will it be “cute” and “funny” then? No, if a man is an abusive monster for losing his temper and trying to hurt his girlfriend, then Hermione is an abusive monster for losing her temper and trying to hurt her boyfriend. Not only did Hermione land Ron in the infirmary with the first attack, but she wants to do it again at a time when they are on the run. She will NOT be able to take an injured Ron to Hogwarts infirmary, nor to St. Mungos. In other words - she intends for him to remain injured and stick with them while camping, or else he must apparate away while injured, risking another splinching so he could be healed.

...

The essayist: Ron and Harry go back to the tent, and Harry fades into the background so as not to interfere with the lovers’ reunion. That’s a mistake. After Harry wakes Hermione, she shows her delight at Ron’s return by--attacking him? She punches him over a dozen times while yelling at him and screaming for her wand from Harry. Remember last chapter, when I talked about how immature Hermione is? Here’s your proof.

[The essayist quotes an article that I haven’t been able to find, but paraphrased: it speaks of a father who came to pick up his 4 y/o daughter from daycare, a little later than usual, and the daughter reacted by punching and hitting her father, upset at his being late. Additional read:  “The parents must know that physical aggression is a common yet natural problem faced by toddlers.”]

The essayist: So there you have it: Hermione Granger, know-it-all supergirl, is so immature she acts like a preschool child when the boyfriend she’s been missing finally returns. I’m not suggesting she has a father-daughter relationship with Ron; this kind of anger is found in other relationships, too. What I am saying is that her way of expressing her anger is appropriate for a very young child. While adults may certainly feel this kind of anger and desire to hit when reunited with a loved one under similar circumstances, they don’t act it out. That restraint is what separates adults from children. Hermione acts so crazy Harry has to put a protection charm between her and Ron. I frankly found her behavior so out of control as to suggest mental instability. She engages in two full pages of histrionics before throwing herself into a chair, sitting so tensely I’m surprised the circulation isn’t cut off to her arms and legs. She remains in a bratty snit until the end of the chapter, which is another six pages.  Hermione is still pouting the next morning. I’m wondering if her real problem is not that Ron left, but that she didn’t. Is she angry at him because he had the guts to admit they were blowing it and take a time out, while she just kept trailing along after Harry like a lost house elf? I think she’s definitely mad because she’s always controlled Ron and their relationship. How dare he assert his independence of her! Who does he think he is? Her equal? In an AU, maybe. This is called the Potterverse after all, not the Ronverse.  Hermione’s having a bad month. First Ron runs out on them; then she saves Harry’s life, but he’s an ungrateful jerk about it; then Harry asserts his independence; then Ron comes back but doesn’t grovel sufficiently for her taste. All this mistreatment is going to give her the idea she’s just a normal character and not an Author’s Darling.   While Ron was gone, he was captured by bad guys called Snatchers, who are bounty hunters for Voldemort. In getting away, he got a spare wand, which he gives to Harry. Of course, it doesn’t work as well as Harry’s “real” wand, so Harry’s still in a snit about that, and with Hermione in a snit, too, they’re a cheerful bunch. Honestly, I don’t know why Ron puts up with these two. The Hs are so spoiled and self-centered, they deserve each other, but I don’t think this is what HP/HG shippers mean when they proclaim the two as an OTP. Sane, normal Ron doesn’t deserve either one of them. Run, Ron! Run while you still can!

...

The essayist: As an interesting aside, ròn is the Celtic word for seal. In Druid lore, seals represent love, longing, and dilemma. No more appropriate totem animal could be imagined for this boy whose sense of selfhood is undermined by his longing for love from a rejecting mother and inadequate father, and who, like the selchie wives of folklore, is faced with the impossible choice of being who he truly is and being rejected, or denying the best part of himself to gain love. Ron’s intelligence and independence threaten his insecure wife (and best friend), just as the selchie’s identity as a seal-woman threatens her human husband; Ron imprisons himself by hiding who he is so the Hs can feel smart and in charge, just as the selchie’s human husband imprisons his wife by hiding her sealskin in a trunk.

#vivi answers #ask #ron weasley #hermione granger #hermione critical #hermione granger critical #harry potter #harry potter series #harry potter critical

[official-weasley]

Niece Aoede - (The Irreplaceable Charlie Weasley AU)

Warnings: I can't think of anything really 🙈

Word count: 2,741

Characters: Charlie Weasley and my OC Nova from TICW which you can find here

Charlie

“Good morning.” I stretched in the doorway that leads to the kitchen.

“Good morning.” Olivia smiled at me. “Would you like some tea or coffee?”

“Tea's fine.” I rubbed my eyes and sat down.

“Are you okay?” She tilted her head, observing me.

“Fine. Just a bit nervous, that's all.” I scratched the back of my head.

“To take Aoede to meet your family?”

“Charlie?” She said softly after a moment of silence, me biting my lip.

“Yeah.” I confessed.

“Molly didn't mention anything to me, but did you two have a fallout?” She placed her hand on top of mine.

“No.” I shook my head. “It's nothing.” I tried convincing her with a smile but I know she knows me better than that.

“I know your mum can be a bit much.” She sighed.

“It's not...yeah.” I bowed my head. “It's just, I know she apologized and everything is fine now but I hated how she reacted when we told her that Nova is pregnant.” My brows came together, reminiscing on the moment.

“Ah, she told me about that, yes.” Olivia nodded her head.

“I am used to her not agreeing with my choices but you saw how happy we were when we told you and we wanted to share that joy with my family and she ruined everything. It might've not been planned but we wouldn't change anything in the world and you should see how nervous Nova was to tell my parents that we are entering a new chapter in our lives. She was supposed to burst from happiness not look green in the face because she knew how my mum will react and she didn't want to disappoint her.” I tried hard to keep myself calm but I just couldn't help it, she made me so mad that day.

“I hate that she can't understand that I am old enough to take care of myself and that I have my own family now. She treats me as if I am a first-year and I...” I took a deep breath. “I guess now that I'm older I am seeing her in a different light.”

“She is just worried for you and wants the best for you.” Olivia said calmly.

“Then why could you be happy for us and share such a sweet moment with us when we told you? Why could dad be happy and supportive? Why does she always have to...” I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. “You know, what? Forget I said anything.”

“Don't tell her this, but I think she should've reacted differently too. Want me to talk to her?”

“What good will that do? She will never change and never stop bossing us around. Do you know that she is the reason why I suggested to Nova that we stay with you and not at the Burrow? I knew that you will give us space and act normal and not lecture us every five minutes and tell Nova that she shouldn't sit that way while pregnant but find a different position or some nonsense like that.”

“You know she loves you and she just wants the best for you and I am not trying to defend her or be on her side. She just has her own way of showing those things and perhaps bossing you around and telling you what to do is the only way she knows and is not even aware that she is doing it. I know it's hard to understand but you and Nova are planning to have more children and getting along with your family is important for them.” She sighed. “I would know, both my and Roger's parents died before Nova was even born and I wish for nothing else than she could have grandparents in her life. Do stand up to her but don't cut her off completely.” She gave me a soft smile.

“Yeah, you're right.” I nodded. “Thank you for listening to me, Olivia.”

“Any time, Charlie. As much as Nova is a part of your family that much you are a part of hers.”

“Are the girls still sleeping?” Olivia asked as she put a cup of tea in front of me.

“No, Aoede woke up a while ago. I changed her and now Nova is breastfeeding her.” I took a sip of my tea.

“It makes me very happy that you help Nova so much. She even looks rested.” Olivia giggled.

“Well, she has been carrying her for 9 months and she had to give birth to her now it's my turn to have sleepless nights so Nova can get as much sleep as possible.” I smiled at her.

“Yeah, you'll have plenty of those, don't you worry.” Olivia laughed.

“I don't mind at all. I would never sleep again if it means my girls would be rested and well taken care of.”

“Olivia?” I waved a hand in front of her face when she didn't say nor blink for solid 30 seconds.

“Oh, I'm sorry for staring at you.” She put her hand in front of her mouth, embarrassed. “I just don't think I ever told you how lucky Nova is to have you.”

“Oh,” I felt the heat on my cheeks, “thank you.”

“I mean it, Charlie. Roger and I were hoping that our Nova would find someone that can truly understand her and bring the best out of her. You have done that and so much more and I know we don't talk often and you needed quite some time to loosen up around me,” she giggled, “but just know that I think you are perfect for my daughter.”

“Uh, I-”

“Good morning.” Nova's soft voice saved me from my awkward stuttering.

Olivia's compliment caught me completely off guard. Nova has always been closer to my mum than I was with hers. Mostly, because she hardly had the time to see us and we never really spent that much time on our own – Nova was always with us.

She was right when she said that I needed some time to relax around her. She never gave me any reason not to, I just found her intimidating and I wanted her to like me, especially when Nova and I started dating.

We got closer ever since we announced that we are going to have a baby and we spent some time alone together when Nova told Bill about her being pregnant. Now, that we have been living with her for the past 14 days because our house is under renovation, we have become really good friends and I finally feel like I am a part of Nova's family.

“How is my favorite girl?” Olivia turned her baby voice on.

“Are you talking to me or Aoede?” Nova giggled giving her the baby then she sat down next to me and kissed me.

“You want to eat something before we go?” I asked her.

“I think Molly will be delighted to give me something and if we go right now, we might catch Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny in their common room.” She smiled at me.

“Right, they won't all be there.” Olivia was still talking in her baby voice. “Who is the prettiest girl in the world?”

Nova and I giggled looking at her mum. She has that voice every time she is talking to our daughter and at this point, I am surprised that she can even switch back to her normal voice.

“I'll go upstairs and prepare everything then.” I started to get up.

“I already did that but I did forget the bag upstairs if you could...”

“I'm on it!” I stood up cutting Nova off.

The sooner we come to the Burrow the sooner we can come back here.

—

“Are you ready?” I whispered to Nova as we were standing in front of the door of my childhood home.

“Are you?” She whispered back, trying not to wake up the baby.

“I'll be fine as long as she doesn't say anything to you.” I kissed her.

“See, sweetheart, daddy is very overprotective so you should get used to that.” Nova giggled, kissing our daughter's nose.

We barely had the time to knock on the door when it swung open.

“You are finally here! What took you so long!” Mum's voice was nothing near a whisper.

I looked at Aoede who just moved in the blanket Nova had her wrapped in and continued sleeping.

“Oh, the baby is sleeping. I'm sorry.” Mum lowered her voice and moved so we could come inside.

“Hi, dad.” I waved at him as he stood up from the sofa.

“There he is! Welcome to fatherhood!” He pulled me into a hug and tapped me twice on the back.

“Thanks, dad.” I couldn't stop a smile from spreading all over my face.

I liked my new title a lot. I always wanted a family but it wasn't until our daughter was born that I realized just how strong my wish to be a dad was. I know I can't be the one talking, Aoede being born 14 days ago but so far I loved every second of it – even when Aoede was crying in the middle of the night, not willing to fall asleep.

“I am sorry that nobody else could come, dear.” Mum was next to hug me.

“Bill can't make it?” I tried hiding the disappointment in my voice.

“Sadly, he has been more than busy at work lately.” Mum genuinely looked like she felt sorry that he couldn't come.

“It's okay. We'll meet with him some other day.” I turned to the fireplace.

“What are you doing, Charles?” Mum rushed to my side.

“I sent Fred an owl to meet us through the fire. We have half an hour before the twins, Ron and Ginny continue with their classes.” I explained.

“Oh, don't be silly.” Mum swung her hand. “They'll have the time to meet the baby, properly. You can't do it over the fire.”

“When? In July? Don't be ridiculous.” I turned around to cast a spell on the fire.

“We wish you could all be here for this moment so we came up with a solution.” Nova who was sitting on the sofa, watching my dad holding Aoede, smiled.

“Dad, Nova, come here, so we can all be close to the fire.” I gestured for them to move.

“You can't bring the baby so close to the fire.” Mum protested, trying to stop my dad from sitting down in front of the fireplace.

“Molly, we trust Arthur that he will be careful.” Nova tried calming her down.

“Please stop telling us how to take care of our baby.” I sighed, trying to stay as calm as possible, repeating Olivia's words in my head.

“But...”

“Oh, where is the baby? Where is it?” George's voice interrupted my mum from making me mad.

“Does it have red hair?” Ginny exclaimed.

“Does it look like me?” Fred clapped his hands together.

“Does it have my eyes?” Ron blinked a few times.

“Mum, dad, Fred, George, Ron, Ginny meet your granddaughter and niece, Aoede Io.” Dad gently placed Aoede in my hands and I carefully sat down in front of the fire in the hopes that they will be able to see her.

“Oh, she is so cute!” Ginny put her hands over her mouth.

“She is so small!” Fred was the next to speak.

“She looks nothing like us, Fred.” George tried sounding disappointed.

“We...we have a granddaughter.”

The second mum heard me say it, her cheeks were soaked with tears and she forgot all about the dangers of fire and kneeled next to me to finally get a proper look of the little girl in my hands.

“Arthur,” she breathed, “look at her. She is perfect.” Mum sniffed.

“Who picked the name?” Ron asked.

“Charlie.” Nova smiled, leaning her chin on my shoulder, sitting behind me as the space in front of the fireplace was too small to accommodate everyone.

“She has a beautiful name.” Ginny's voice shook a little.

“I don't know if you can see her.” I frowned.

“We see her just fine. Thank you for doing this, Charlie.” George smiled.

“Of course! When you'll see her in the Summer she will be 5 months old.” Nova returned the smile.

“Will I be allowed to hold her?” Ginny asked.

“Of course, you will. All of you will.” I answered, giving Aoede an Eskimo kiss.

“So, who won the bet?” I smirked.

“Almost forgot about that!” Fred jumped on the spot.

“Pay up, George and Ron!” Ginny extended her hand as if waiting for them to give her the money.

“How many times do we have to tell you that Ginny is always right?” I giggled, watching George and Ron give Fred and Ginny the coins.

“Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to meet her, but we have to go!” Ginny nudged her brothers and stood up. “Nova, Charlie, congratulations!” She grinned at us before standing up.

“Yeah, congrats!” Ron followed her lead.

“Thank you for making us uncles!” The twins said in unison.

“I hope you know, we will spoil her rotten.” George chuckled and they broke off the connection.

“Her? I have a niece?” All four of us turned around, seeing Bill standing behind us.

“Bill, you came!” Nova got up at once and threw her arms around him.

“Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss seeing my niece for the first time for anything in this world.” He smiled and returned the hug.

“But you told mum that you can't make it.” I gave Aoede to mum who was eyeing her with sparks in her eyes and stood up.

“I wanted it to be a surprise.” He winked at me before pulling me into a hug.

“Can I hold her?” Bill asked hopefully, looking at the baby in mum's arms.

“Here you go, William. Be careful with the head.” Mum gave him Aoede and Bill made his way to the sofa.

“Bill, meet your niece, Aoede.” I sat down next to him.

“You got your wish with the name.” He smirked.

That day when Nova told Bill she was pregnant we went for a walk when they came back and he asked me about baby names and I was just too excited not to talk about them to him.

“She looks so much like you, Nova.” Bill whispered as Nova sat down next to him on his other side.

“Even though it's darker than yours.” Bill looked from his niece to me.

“Except the hair.” Dad giggled.

“I was hoping she would get Charlie's hair.” Nova gently ruffled Aoede's soft locks.

“He had the same color when he was born.” Mum said, sitting in her armchair, admiring the scene before her.

“Did you give her a middle name?” Bill asked his eyes on the baby.

“Io.” Nova answered.

“Aww, like you. That is precious.” Bill cooed.

“Do you think she'll have any freckles?” Bill asked after a moment of admiring his niece.

“We hope so.” Nova leaned on his shoulder.

“If you look closely, she has 3 on her nose.” I giggled.

“How was the delivery?” Dad was the first one to snap out of us all looking at our baby girl.

“It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.” Nova rubbed her chin.

“What's important is that it all went smoothly and that you're both okay.”

Just as my mum said that Aoede started crying.

“Oh, no. What did I do?” Bill started to panic.

“Nothing.” Nova giggled. “She's just hungry.” She gestured for Bill to give her the baby and she slowly made her way upstairs.

“Do you want me to come with you?” I started to get up.

“No, no. We'll be fine. Won't we?” She used the same baby voice on Aoede as her mum did.

“She looks fine and rested.” Mum turned to me the second they disappeared on the stairs.

“We are managing. Nova is feeding her when she's hungry and I take care of all the rest so that Nova can get her strength back.” I said nonchalantly.

“That's my son.” Dad winked at me.

“Congratulations, Charlie. She is just lovely.” Bill pulled me into another hug. “When are you having the next one?”

“Hey, slow down. Let this one grow a little.” I laughed, knowing full well he was only joking.

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