#protect trans people or die by my sword

[nellasbookplanet]

Book recs: Queer fantasy, part 1

A note: queer here does not necessarily mean “guarantee of an f/f or m/m ship with a happy ending”, but rather simply a significant presence of queerness. Some of the books feature no romance but has a same gender attracted/trans/a-spectrum lead, or features an m/f relationship with bisexual, trans or aro/ace characters, or simply features a world-building which is heavily queer inclusive in ways that don’t always compare to our own ideas of sexuality and gender. I have however disqualified works where the only queer presence is along the lines of “gay best friend” or a blink and you’ll miss it confirmation that never comes up again.

For queer sci-fi recs, click here! For a masterpost of book rec lists, click here! For more details on the books recommended here, continue under the readmore. Titles marked with * are my personal favorites!

The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez*

AKA the book the killed me. Two boys travel throughout their land with the body of a god as her horrible, horrible children try to hunt them down. It’s hard to explain more than that, but trust me when I say the narrative voice and literary techniques are incredibly unique in how they blend past and present, reality and story, lead and bystander. Truly an experience. Features an m/m romance.

The Unbroken (Magic of the Lost series) by C.L. Clark*

Tourraine, who was stolen as a child and trained as a soldier for the empire that conquered her home, is recruited by Luka, the future leader of the conquering country, to root out a rebellion. A game of twisted loyalties and attraction is soon to develop as the two must decide where their priorities lie: with each other, or with their respective countries and people.

Sing the Four Quarters (Quarters series) by Tanya Huff*

Though a royal by birth, princess Annice renounced her throne to become a bard, a musician who through training can Sing elemental spirits to do their bidding. Ten years later, she goes on the run for two counts of treason, first by imperiling the succession order by becoming pregnant, second by helping her ex, and the father of her child, escape the palace dungeons and a death sentence. Bisexual lead in an f/f relationship. When I first read this book I described it as, and I quote, 'a fucking delight', and I stand by that.

The Unspoken Name (The Serpent Gates duology) by C.L. Clark*

The sort of portal fantasy you get when all the worlds connected by portals are fantasy worlds, and none of them are ours. The portals themselves become simply a part of the worldbuilding that the characters use to travel between fascinating places, and it’s all really cool. It follows Csorwe (lesbian orc assassin whom I love), who grew up in a cult, indoctrinated as a child sacrifice to a god. But on the day she was meant to die, she instead chose to follow a powerful wizard and train to become his loyal servant and sword. Aside from being an excellent fantasy, it’s also a close look at the hard path of unlearning indoctrination and the search for love and validation where you’ll never find it, and learning to live for yourself. Multiple queer leads.

The Jasmine Throne (The Burning Kingdoms series) by Tasha Suri

A princess held captive by her own brother, who wants to see her dead, tries to trick a servant into helping her escape, but with undeniable attraction growing between them and the servant having her own goals of liberation things quickly get complicated, both between them and in the country at large as rebellion and dangerous magic brews. Sapphic romance.

The Priory of the Orange Tree (The Roots of Chaos duology) by Samantha Shannon

Queen Sabran's lineage has protected the country of Inys from dragons for a thousand years, but now the safety of their land is threatened as Sabran is yet to conceive and assassins are closing in. Lady-in-waiting Ead is secretly part of a society of hidden mages, and is using her position to protect her queen. Meanwhile, on the other side of the sea, dragonrider Tané is faced with an impossible choice. The fates of all three are intertwined as they attempt to stop the rise of a great dragon. 800+ page epic fantasy. Sapphic romance.

The Raven and the Reindeer by T. Kingfisher*

Young adult, fairy tale retelling of the Snow Queen. When Gerta's friend Kai is stolen away by the evil Snow Queen, Gerta must depart on a mission to save him. On the way, she encounters, among others, a talking raven and a pretty robber girl who become her allies. Sapphic romance.

The Rise of Kyoshi (Kyoshi duology) by F.C. Yee*

Young adult. Set in the Avatar universe, but aimed at an older audience than the animated series. Though she will one day be one of the most well-known avatars of the land, for now, young Kyoshi is but a humble girl who has yet to find out her true destiny as the bender of all four elements and keeper of balance of her world. When betrayal strikes and a dear friend is lost, Kyoshi goes on the run alongside fiesty firebender Rangi to find out the truth of her destiny and power. Sapphic romance.

Legends & Lattes (Legends & Lattes series) by Travis Baldree

Viv is tired of adventures and bloodshed - now she wants a peaceful life, and decides to go after it by opening a café. But going from warrior to small business owner is easier said than done, especially when Viv's old life comes knocking. Best described as a cozy fantasy, with a largely low-stakes but heartwarming plot and a sapphic romance.

Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee

Gyen Jebi is an artist, but making a living is difficult. When offered a job by the Ministry of Armor to paint the magical sigils that animate their automaton soldiers, they have little choice but to accept. But as Jebi sees the dark depths of the government, especially the shocking source of their magical paint, they must find a way to resist. Perhaps by freeing the Ministry's mighty automaton dragon... Nonbinary main character.

Crier's War by Nina Varela

Young adult. Who says sci-fi has monopoly on robots? In Crier’s War, artificially created automae have defeated and subjugated humans, who live as second class citizens. Young Ayla goes undercover as a servant, meaning to assassinate automae girl and Sovereign’s daughter Crier. This would be easier if the two weren’t quick to develop feelings for each other.

Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky trilogy) by Rebecca Roanhorse

In a pre-columbian inspired world, sea captain Xiala, gifted with an unusual connection to the sea, travels with a mysterious scarred and blind passenger toward a dangerous goal as prophecy heralds the return of a god. Features among others bisexual and nonbinary leads.

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin*

In a world regularly torn apart by natural disasters, a big one finally strikes and society as we know it falls, leaving people floundering to survive in a post apocalyptic world, its secrets and past to be slowly revealed. We follow a mother as she races through this world to find and save her daughter, stolen away by a father who just murdered their son after having discovered a terrible secret of their family. Does feature multiple queer characters and a main polyam relationship, but DO NOT read this expecting happy queer relationships as this series handles many dark subjects (you should still read it though, it's incredibly good).

In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan*

Young adult. Kids who can walk between our world and a magical one get recruited into a magical school that trains them to be either fighters or diplomats. Our lead decides that fighting is stupid and that he’s going to peacefully solve every conflict ever, all while being the most delightfully obnoxious little brat possible and getting involved in the most bisexual love triangle imaginable. Very good, funny, and heart-felt coming of age story.

Our Bloody Pearl D.N. Bryn

A siren who’s been held captive by a pirate is freed, but too injured to survive on their own as their tail has become paralyzed. Another pirate captain decides to help them out and has to work to win their trust. Fairly fluffy and light on world-building and plot (though there is a bit of a revenge story in there), with a focus on character and recovery. m/nb romance with an asexual love interest.

A Master of Djinn by P. Djélí Clark

Set in an alternate 1910’s steampunk Cairo, where djinn and other creatures live alongside humans. We get to follow an investigator as she races to catch a criminal using a powerful object to control djinn and stir unrest. Fantastically creative and fresh, and also features a buddy cop dynamic between two female leads as well as a sapphic romance.

Black Water Sister by Zen Cho*

As a toddler, Jessamyn Teoh left Malaysia. Now a young adult, she’s broke, closeted, and moving back. There she’s faced with the ghost of her estranged grandmother, Ah Ma, who was a medium and avatar of the deity the Black Water Sister in life. Now she demands Jess' help in exacting revenge against a gang boss that offended her god. Meanwhile, all Jess wants is to get her life back on track.

Heaven Official's Blessing (Heaven Official's Blessing series) by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

Once, Xie Lian was the beloved crown prince of a kingdom. Then he rose to godhood at a young age, and was expected to take a step back from his land and his people, but in his inability to do so ended up losing everything. Now, eight hundred years later, Xie Lian has ascended to godhood for a third time, forgotten by mortals and the laughing stock of Heaven. Trying to rebuild his reputation, Xie Lian sets off on a mission, and on it encounters an infamous demon king who inspires fear in all of heaven. M/M romance.

Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore*

Young Adult. Jane is invited by an old acquaintance to an extravagant gala in an island mansion, stranding her among the rich and glamorous. But being surrounded by rich people is the least of Jane’s problems: the mansion is housing secrets, some of them tied to Jane’s own family. The mansion offers her five choices, all of them leading her down different paths and different answers. Jane, Unlimited is a choose-your-own adventure story of sorts, featuring five different endings in five different genres, each more off the wall bonkers than the next. It also features a bisexual main character!

Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children series) by Seanan McGuire*

A tumblr favorite, the Wayward Children novellas feature a school open to children who have returned from adventures in other realms and now have trouble adapting back to regular life. Some installments are set in our world, others follow children as they have their otherworldly adventures. The main characters vary between books, but are generally pretty diverse with among others asexual, trans, intersexual and sapphic leads. Both funny and dark, it takes a closer look at the trauma many endure growing up different.

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern*

Surreal and fairy tale-esque, The Starless Sea is stories within a story, following graduate student Zachary as he finds a strange book which, in-between other tales, tells a story from his own childhood. Trying to find out how this came to be, Zachary gets involved with a pink-haired woman and a handsome man who are doing their utmost to protect a strange, otherworldly library available only through magical doors. It’s a book hard to put in words, but which I once described as “romantic without being a romance while stile having a love story at it’s core”, and which can be summed up only as “an Experience”. It’s also quite gay!

Not Even Bones by Rebecca Schaeffer*

Young adult. Nita isn’t a murderer - technically. She just dissects the bodies of supernatural beings her mother brings home and sells for parts on the black market. But when her mother brings home a still living victim, Nita has had enough and frees him. As it turns out, no good deed goes unpunished as Nita is betrayed, her own nature as a supernatural entity outed as she’s kidnapped and placed behind bars. Now she must find a way to escape before she's sold for parts. Features two aroace leads and a queerplatonic relationship, though it isn’t made textual until book 3 and briefly masquerades as a romance, which is pretty hilarious.

The Last Sun (The Tarot Sequence) by K.D. Edwards

Urban fantasy. Rune Saint John is the only survivor of the massacre against the Sun Court years prior. Now he’s been hired by Lady Judgement to find her missing son, Addam. Alongside his companion and bodyguard Brand, Rune goes on to question Addam's family and business contacts all over New Atlantis, island city and home of the Atlanteans after their original home was destroyed by ordinary humans. But the more he digs, the more Rune finds clues that Addam's absence is connected to Rune's own tragic past. M/M romance.

Gossamer Axe by Gael Baudino

Centuries ago in Ireland, Chairiste Ní Cummen was trained in the secrets of music and magic. But her pride was her downfall, trapping her and her lover in the land of the Sidh. Only Chairiste escaped, hoping to one day win her lover's freedom in musical battle with the fairy that holds her captive. Now she is Christa Cruitare, harp teacher in the modern world and all but resigned to her loss. Until she comes across a great new music: heavy metal. Taking one last chance to win her lover's freedom, Christa sets out to gather other skilled musicians and bring them with her in her final battle. Sapphic romance.

Bonus AKA I haven't read these yet but they seem really cool

Pantomime (Micah Grey trilogy) by Laura Lam

Young adult. On the surface, Gene's life is that of a noble debutante. In reality, she has secrets: she's both male and female, and has magical abilities that hasn’t been seen in an age. In the face of a betrayal from her parents, Gene runs away from home, dresses up as a boy, and joins a circus. Intersex main character.

Ghost Walk by Kay Solo

Maaya Sahni can see ghosts, and does her best to survive in her small isolated town by keeping her head down. But when an entire street full of people is spirited away by faceless specters that scares even ghosts, Maaya must find a way to stop the specters. Lesbian main character.

Swordspoint (Riverside series) by Ellen Kushner

In Riverside, duels are the way to settle disputes, and Richard St. Vier is the undisputed master of the sword - at least until a death is met not with awe but with outrage. M/M romance.

#nella talks books #I'm almost done with the fae rec list too! it should go up some time next week #after that maybe part 2 of queer sf

[s1lly-billy]

TAKE THE CODECICLE LORE FOOD TAKE IT

Today (Nov 2) we got another lore stream

And HAPPY FUCKING DIA DE LOS MUERTOS TO EVERYONE WHO CELEBRATES IT!!!!

ALRIGHT NOW TIME FOR BIG LORE

꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚

1. Juanaflippas reappearance.

The dead eggs came back just for today and we got lots of angst from ALL of the players

Lore wise, this was fucking big. It's now confirmed the "Juanaflippa" that has been hanging out with Charlie this entire time is indeed *not* our old Juanaflippa. This is confirmed because today, the juanaflippa that came back remembered everything.

Baby's first toy

The iron sword

The rap

The missclicks.

But none the less, she was extremely nice and loving to our codey Charlie. She was SUPER physically affectionate and hugged Charlie practically the entire time he was there. She was also super happy to see everyone! But nonetheless, there is some deep shit behind her appearance. She wants Charlie to get rid of the code all over him, wants him to heal, and still wants to hang out with him in the fucking rat king they made.

(ALSO FUCKING EPIC MENTION TO THE FACT SHE HAD A TRANS FLAG AND CHARLIE CHEERED??? THAT WAS WHOLESOME AS FUCK AS SOMEONE UNDER THE UMBRELLA.

꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚

2. "Juanaflippa" (aka Codeflippa)

An update on what we got from (real)Juanaflippa is that she's completely and utterly not Juanaflippa. She's not at all apart of her and she's not connected to her. But she does know how to immitate her (to a limit ex. The "accent")

I personally don't think Codeflippa has any real intent against Charlie. She genuinely seems to love hanging out with him and meeting new people. She's never tried to hurt Charlie, and I doubt the infection is intentional.

In past streams Charlie has brought up the code to flippa and she said she doesn't know what that is.

She's also expressed fear to her dad about the man. You know, the man with the glasses in the picture.

(I wonder when we get a update on that.)

If she is trying to hurt Charlie and/or infect him she's being put up to it.

(In my opinion)

Possibly by the federation, as they've stated she's a released experiment, or... A failed one.

I'll let you think on that.

ANYWAY

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3. Slimecicle lore affects (aka Codecicle)

Slimecicle is still under the illusion that "Juanaflippa" is normal and was brought back to life as a gift for his birthday. On a positive note, he's a lot happier knowing for once in his life his egg is here. And she doesn't seem to be leaving. She's happy with him and hes happy with her!

On a negative note.

The code from Juanaflippa has been affecting his body so much and he's just deterioting more and more into code.

And he seriously doesn't have alot of body left before it's taken over completely.

(Theory)

Now while I'm all for a full slimecicle code skin I'm pretty damn sure things are going to go South soon. This arc will be over. And Codeflippa as much as I love her... Shes going to die.

ANYWAY HAHA

•┈┈┈•┈┈┈•┈┈┈

4. Charlie lore but with Cellbit

(Slash lore 💀)

As many know Cellbit is going fucking crazy. He's sick and fucking TIRED of the federation. They're taking his kids and he wants them back. NOW. Cellbit may not like Codeflippa, but he's not above using someone who he believes is using his friend to his advantage. Thus, using Charlie and his absolute murderous will to tear anything apart living or dead for his daughter. Without hesitation.

"In a heartbeat."

Cellbits will to destroy the federation and get his eggs back and Charlies will to keep flippa with him, f0r3√3r. Make the perfect pair! They're going to commit attrocies together and no matter what they're going to protect their eggs at a moment's notice.

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Charlies still in a delusion. Not able to see the glitches falling off of everything he has the capacity to feel.

:]

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(Also side note I've been trying to split these up better and organize them so they're easier to read and understand for people who struggle with reading, collecting points easily, and multilinguals cause idk any other (qsmp) languages rn so I can't exactly translate these without Google lol sorry for the lil rant)

#qsmp #codecicle #q!slimecicle #qsmp slimecicle #qsmp charlie slimecicle #juanaflippa #codeflippa #charlie slimecicle #qsmp eggs #qsmp juanaflippa #qsmp event

[eyesxxyou]

Hobie brain rot like always from me🍄

Spiderpunk/hobiexDeadpool reader

Spiderpunk who frequently helps protect innocent protesters protesting their government as he is a main part of it. As spiderpunk contributes safety and fights for the same thing but the cops seemingly get too violent and deadpool reader comes in. Where Deadpool starts to fight with hobie, while also helping the protestors get to safety. While deadpool also protects spiderpunk since Deadpool has healing factors others don’t. Deadpool also has guns and swords and can help de-arm the police so they can’t harm people anymore! So the people who once thought Deadpool as a villain change their minds since they help fight for what’s right and always has! So Deadpool and spidey(hobie) start partnering up more! Along with other people (like even we could pull captain anarchy into this, who hobie and him are kinda like business partners. Like hobie, Deadpool, and more just protect the people of the city during protest. Also we love captain anarchy here and captain anarchy’s boyfriend!!!)

I’m sorry guys I will never forget about captain anarchy’s silly boyfriend. Also Deadpool could be any gender or it doesn’t have to be specific it could also be a silly trans reader. Or nonbinary it’s just cute to think about. Also while hobie and reader fight together, they get closer. Oh this could become horrible angst with hobie dying since Deadpool can’t really die. I hate my mind now… REVERSE, REVERSE TO FLUFF!!!

-🍄

You should write this

#{eye's inbox} #{👁️ inbox} #🍄 anon

[bijoumikhawal]

life times in enemy territory- a garak playlist

Commentary about why each song under the cut!

Better than me- the Brobecks Look at what you've done, now I'm a mess/Today I even thought I'd wear a dress/It's beautiful, so smart/And no good for me/At all

Commentary track: Garak at Ba’amaren. Surrounded mostly by upper class idiots strutting about and looking down on him even though they feel the need to steal the credit for his tactical knowledge, developing emotions for both people who are actually kind and the first man to ever beat him up.

Hallelujah- Leonard Cohen Your faith was strong but you needed proof/You saw her bathing on the roof/Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew her/She tied you to a kitchen chair/She broke your throne, and she cut your hair/And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Commentary track: more ASIT references- a poet overthrown by his love of a woman, who he explicitly connects to faith and religion? Fits the vibe pretty hard. A similar vibe is the Lesbian version of Maddy Groves I can't put on this playlist because it's only on bandcamp.

Brutus- the Buttress I always knew I could be the one/Though I feel the endless pain of being/And I am scorched by the sun/Of humble origins and born of the cursed sex/My name is Brutus, but the people will call me Rex

Commentary track: not on this playlist for the gendervibes, more for the utter jealousy and the fact that Garak would fume about a song related to Ceasar being associated with him.

Alligator Teeth- Mother Falcon Things are not like they seem/Things are not like they seem/Things are not like they seem/That’s what I’ve learned of dreams

Commentary track: a song about anxiety and hypervigilance. Not much else to it.

Explode- Patrick Stump They said that they found it in the basement/Enough to just blow that roof to the pavement/And he was the man for the job/A one-man bomb squad/A middle aged mess thinking

Commentary track: Garak whenever anyone goes "hey you, the former spy, we need you to do spy stuff".

Lovesong- Snake River Conspiracy However far away, I will always love you/However long I stay, I will always love you/Whatever words I say, I will always love you/I will always love you

Commentary track: a dark romance song about utter devotion regardless of what someone does to you. Describes far too many of Garak's relationships.

Live by the Sword- Dorian Electra It's cold like the ocean cold like the rain/Show your devotion, show me the pain/Show me the blood, show me you tried/Show me the tears coming down from your eyes

Commentary track: there's a video on YouTube analyzing the Flamboyant album through a trans lens, and this one is read as describing a threat- if you want to live like this (out and proud), you're gonna die like this. It also works as a parallelism between Garak's two fathers- Tolan, warning him to chose a life other than violence, and Tain, urging him to take power through violence.

Father- The Front Bottoms I have this dream that I am hitting my dad with a baseball bat/And he is screaming and crying for help/And maybe halfway through it has more to do with me killing him/Then it ever did protecting myself

Commentary track: Garak has daddy issues... bit of a Garak/Palandine vibe as well, and kind of a gender vibe.

Villainous Thing- Shayfer James Oh dear, let me see those smokey eyes/'Cause you're a villainous thing/And we can't have you living a lie/Oh dear, let's remove those pretty clothes/'Cause you're a villainous thing, oh/And I don't think anyone knows

Commentary track: Garak talking about someone else? Someone talking about Garak? Works either way

Our Word- 36 Questions And as I laid there helplessly/A million different thoughts came to me/I saw my parents hearing the news/"Your only daughter drowned today"/I thought about what they might say

Commentary track: a family that teaches their child to lie to the point where lying is the natural and expected reaction to any complicated emotion or situation.

Hatef--k- the Bravery And there will be no tenderness, no tenderness/There will be no tenderness, no tenderness/I will show no mercy for you/you had no mercy for me/The only thing that I ask, love me mercilessly

Commentary track: Garak's relationship to far too many people, but specifically Barkan. We know Barkan doesn't consider his enjoinment to actually prohibit him from sleeping with other people- he and Garak definitely had bad sex while they were at school together.

The Moss- Cosmo Sheldrake Well, legend has it when the sunbeams come/All the plants, they eat them with their leaves/Well, legend has it that the world spins 'round/On an axis of 23 degrees

Commentary track: this is almost entirely vibes based, at best I can say it's connecting to Garak's relationship with Tolan and Hebitian religion.

The Heroine- Unwoman I go through the motions again and again/But you are not here to see them/I go through the emotions again and again/And this time I actually feel them

Commentary track: Garak's feelings of abandonment on post canon Cardassia, if you buy that Julian wouldn't immediately start triaging people after the bombardment.

Dust and Ashes- Josh Groban How did I live?/I taste every wasted minute/Every time I turned away/From the things that might have healed me/How long have I been sleeping?

Commentary track: credit to @ofhouseadama on this one; I hadn't paid any mind to Great Comet in years, and she's right, it is a REALLY fitting post canon Garak song.

Honorable Madam- Daniel Kahn and Vanya Zhuk Honorable Madam/Queen of Separation/Many years we've been/The very closest of relations/I beg you, do not taunt me/Don't tear my words apart/If Death don't want me/How about your heart?/I beg you, do not taunt me/Don't tear my words apart/If Death don't want me/How about your heart?

Commentary track: it was very hard to chose a lyric selection. This song very much reminds me if my own fucked up relationship to the idea of homelands, borders, and "seperation". Interpret the "honorable madam" who is both "loving and oppressing" and its pretty decent song to describe Garak's relationship to Cardassia.

Circus- Lindsay Mendez Hello kind sir I'm so glad you never met me/You're my first one so forgive me if it's messy/Just to be fair/I admit that I'm scared/And sorry for what I must do

Commentary track: this one's creepy! And fucked up! Just like Garak's relationship to literally everything because of being raised with the expectation of being a spy, torturer, and assassin from a young age- especially if you think he honeypotted. Blending the lines of intimacy and violence.

Writer in the Dark- Lorde I am my mother's child, I'll love you 'til my breathing stops/I'll love you 'til you call the cops on me/But in our darkest hours, I stumbled on a secret power/I'll find a way to be without you, babe

Commentary track: Garak has mommy issues too, it's equality. Also a song about abandonment and learning to move on.

Adam Raised a Cain- Murder by Death (cover) In the darkness of your room/Your mother calls you by your true name/You remember the faces, the places, the names/You know it's never over it's relentless as the rain

Commentary track: the secrets and violence your parents teach you.

Compulsive Liar- Ezra Furman I've got one fatal flaw/I'm a compulsive liar/If I don't love you/I will tell you anything/And even if I love you/I'll always be conniving/I'll always be negotiating with the truth

Commentary track: lying, closets, and queer subtext! About the ways lying and confinement feel safer than the truth and freedom.

A body on the step- American Murder Song Was a mother, was a mother, burning someone's clothes/Was a mother, was a mother, burning someone's clothes/With rope in her apron and black for an eye/A body on the step and lies all about

Commentary Track: yet another song about a family that lies and ruins each others lives, but especially their children's. Also a really good song to write to.

#Cipher talk #Ds9 #elim garak #I couldn't sleep so I did this #Edosian melancholies

[strawberrycircuits]

I don’t know what tloz is but do you have any headcanons or ideas for it?

aHeLO this draft is so old but im insane in entirely new ways from when i was working on it so here u go ily for this mwah mwah

-prior to the events of skyward sword i think link and zelda almost definitely got into prank wars every now and then. zelda gets her loftwing to deliver glitter bombs to links bedroom and link puts water cups all over her dormroom floor so she cant get anywhere. gaepora hates this shit so fucking much not just as zeldas dad but as headmaster of their school

-beedle is immortal and has been since pre-skyward sword. read a thing that doesnt change with time right now or i blow up a building ok?

-twilight princess link absolutely has a southern accent? he grew up on a ranch come on

-oot link had a lil onesided crush on sheik specifically and said crush didnt carry over to zelda when he revealed himself

-also oot sheik/zelda is genderqueer. he uses both names, he/she pronouns, and i think her titles would be interchangeable too (prince/princess, king/queen, etc). also she didnt figure this out until AFTER link defeated ganondorf

-wind waker link said damn one time in front of aryll and it took him 40 rupees and him promising to catch seagulls with her to convince her not to tell their grandma

-also ww link would make your mom jokes bc hes. 12

-twilight princess link uuh kept the sharp teeth and the doglike behaviors . hes always bringin stuff to people he likes. he gets sneezy when he gets too excited. he fucking adores the fetch quests he gets from people in Ordon/Hyrule. etc etc

-fi watches the other links sleep. not just bc she has nothing else to do in the sword or because of general protectiveness, but because skyward sword link had those semi-prophetical nightmares so often she would always watch to make sure he would wake up before they got too bad. she doesnt wake them anymore, but, you know. old habits die hard.

-speaking of nightmares, i think skyward sword link probably got some reaaally weird dreams for a few months after being cursed. weird as in he was seeing vague snippets of the Links to follow.

-minish cap link would go and talk to zelda's statue when he felt especially hopeless or lonely during his quest

-botw link uses she/he/they pronouns and is bi and zelda uses they/she and is sapphic

-do neopronouns exist in hyrule. i dont know and i especially donot care anyways Purah uses she/xe

-skyward sword link is a. trans dude👍 when he came out groose redrew the picture of link he canonically tapes to his punching bag to look more masculine bc he didnt wanna be transphobic about it

-basically none of the reincarnations are allocishet i think

-as much as i love zelink i. i dont think theyd be together (or even interested) in every timeline. i think that theyre tragic friends in oot and besties in wind waker and essentially coworkers in tp. like i think that theres always this background noise of "i know you and i trust you" that lingers on long after the link and zelda in skyward sword, but thats abt it yaknow

-cherry? the little ancient sheikah robot in robbies house? yeah i dont have any headcanons for her i just love her a whole lot. bring her back in totk if shes not already in it nintendo puhleaseeeeee

i have. more. but i will spare u all from my brain worms...... for now

#literally this has been in here since? february maybe?? #i go insane arkbabrafbbarkbarkbarkarfarf

[precambrianhottopic]

TELLME ABOUY YOUR OCSSS PLEASE PELASE PLEASE

HI HELLO HEY THERE!!!! YOU DIDNT SPECIFY WHICH OC YOU WANTED TO HEAR ABOUT SO YOU GET TO HEAR ABOUT ALL OF THEM!!!! (not ALL of them but most of them- also im going to use a lot of terminology from my ocverse and explain none of it!! sorry!!)

two million words about my ocs under the cut

Era 1

Exikas Bloodreed (he/him)- a blood elf scholar and servant to two Tempulsars. He was the first to figure out that Thrae was doomed to destroy itself and died trying (and failing) to stop it. I like to call him Mister Hubris!!

Era 2

Evie (she/her)- Human paladin, I wrote her character because i thought the concept of a guy finding a legendary sword that no man could wield, being able to wield it, and just going "oh fuck i guess im trans now". She ends up sacrificing herself to save her valley from a blight.

Callister (he/him)- Fellow paladin and Evie's closest friend. He's like the fantasy version of that one dude who brings his guitar everywhere, if that guy had a huge sword.

Joseph Anderglow (he/him)- Noble heir turned gunslinging mercenary, left his wife to go on this adventure and also because he did not love her and still feels really guilty about it. Callister's future husband.

Era 3 (i have SO many characters for this era but youre only hearing about a few of them)

Gwynlais, The Frozen Prince (he/him)- first son of Kantomere ( and the only son of Gelfia, removed from the Draconic Homeland at an early age and grew up apart from his brothers. Arguably the rightful heir to the draconic throne. Really sweet, spent his life learning about the world.

Throxen, The Fern Prince (he/him)- the middle brother, son of Kantomere and Langalia, currently in line to inherit the throne. A fierce fighter and honorable dragon.

Elsewynd, Prince of Clouds (he/him)- the youngest of the three brothers and Grand Archivist of Drakenspiel. Awkward, flamboyant, and excitable.

Gelfia, The Starlit Despot (she/her)- Kantomere's former mate, a vicious and power-hungry dragon. She was banished for killing Hulamino's (Kantomere's brother) mate and son, and is currently at war with Drakenspiel because she wants Gwynlais to ascend to the throne.

Kantomere, King of Storms (he/him)- Draconic King. A strong, stoic, and fair leader, he still harbors guilt for what Gelfia did.

Era 4

Topher (they/them)- mostly-human, runs a small store in Star Creek during the summers and is one of the only humans allowed to stay there. Bitten by an angel last year, currently fighting off that infection. Anxious but friendly.

The Wizard (he/him)- half-woodfolk, protector of Star Creek and a powerful potionsmith. Created the magical protections surrounding Star Creek, removed its old, corrupt leader from power, and procMute. Aloof and eccentric. Topher's boyfriend.

Alice (she/it)- ex-journalist, fully converted angel. Got bitten by an angel while writing a piece on a nearby town overrun by an angelic infestation and REALLY leaned into the whole "Angel of Death" thing after the fact. Aggressive, violent, and fiercely protective.

Era 5 (this is my favorite era!! im telling you about all the characters i made up for it!! some of the descriptions are real short though)

Lucinder Aldebaran (she/her)- Shapeshifting Commander of DAWNBREAKER, a diplomat, former Creation Guardian, and master strategist. I wrote a whole thing about her a little while back and you can find that here.

Olivia Morcan (she/her)- Darksteel elf and leader of the Creation Guard. Tormented by all the people she let die and desperate to sacrifice herself. World's first childless female absentee father. Lucinder's former rival, they fuck sometimes. I love her so much.

Figus Summerpelt (he/they)- Woodfolk, Lucinder's childhood friend. Pretty much stays out of DAWNBREAKER and lives with his partner in a small cottage at the edge of The Hollow. Calm, wise historian.

Calyphonicus Blister (he/him)- Transgender. Half-Jackal. Doomed by the narrative. Flying too close to the sun. What CAN'T he do. Leader of project CATALYST, feels woefully unqualified for his job and is permanently and horribly overworked.

Thorn (they/them)- skeleton, DAWNBREAKER's airspace commander. Nonbinary because they've been dead for so long they forgot they had a gender. Watched their entire friend group become "boring" and is terrified of the same thing happening to them.

DAWNBREAKER's coolest undead (thorn's former friend group, I'm lumping them all together because I can) Xelia (she/her) vampire slut and professional Hot Woman, Hawk (he/him) chill stoner zombie dude, and Ambrosius West (he/she) angel from the moon and Hawk's boyfriend.

OKAY!! I THINK THAT'S ALL OF THEM!! I missed a few, but I don't have much characterization done for any of them so its fiiiine also i think ive maybe written enough about my ocs. for now.

#lmk if you want more in depth information on any of these guys!!! #or if you want me to talk about the lizardfolk era 3 story that i scrapped. theyre fun but i didnt mention them #thank you SO much for the ask wes im kissing you on the mouth /p #plush.txt #asks

[atlasphoebus]

Grave goods are items that are interned with the bodies of the dead and are an ancient burial practice that dates back to the late Paleolithic, over 100,000 years ago. This a ritualistic practice that has occurred across most cultures in some point in time, and only suffers changes in broader burial items and type of entombment, the essential core goods themselves are generally the same as well as the practice in itself. Grave goods always operate as a way for the dead to either be nourished, protected, or assisted in their journey to their form of afterlife, as well as honoured for their status that they had in life and to indicate their importance to future people coming across their graves. This would come in the ways of perishable goods, such as food, alcohol, makeup, or other natural materials that would degrade or decay over time, and objects such as jewellery, pottery, weapons, miniature statuettes of their slaves, or personal objects. There are three types of grave goods that seem to be the most common across these different times and practices, each with their own histories, functionalities, mythologies and applications.

The final typical grave good is the blade. Blades are commonly found as a grave good either to signify the individual as a warrior, a person with power and status, or for protection in the afterlife depending on the culture. Some blades would have been functional blades or been the person's own weapon, or they were decorative and ornamental, either owned by the person or ceremonial. Ornamental blades would be often carved or forged from precious stones or metals, sometimes even being engraved or decorated with imagery depicting a myth or event of the culture it belonged to. Examples of blades as grave goods date back to 5,000 years ago, such as the crystal dagger found in the tomb Montelirio tholos, southwestern Spain. A pair of twin daggers were found in the 3,300 year old tomb of Tutankhamun, now known to have blades made from a meteorite. In the Sutton Hoo Anglo-Saxon burial mound, dating back 2,400 years ago, an iron sword was found which is now kept in The British Museum.

The blade, in a similar way to the vessel, has a shape that references the human form. The word "vagina" directly translates from latin to mean sheath or scabbard, while the shape of blades and daggers is phallic in their nature. Blades are often seen to be symbols of aggression, of power, dominance, and killing. They are seen as quite the opposite of the vessel - something that is soft, a structure that holds quantities. We tend to separate these qualities, that we can only possess one or the other. And there is more to the blade than it's overt display, like the vessel it is also a facilitator in that it is a keeper of life and a bringer of death. It is strength, a willingness to fight, it is sacrifice, it takes skill to wield a blade with it's true intention. For transgender people, our existence is a fight, it is a battle. The qualities of the blade are the qualities that it takes to be alive in this world, with growing crime and policies against trans lives globally. But to live our true lives we must kill a part of ourselves that is the mask we live behind. The perceived self must die in order for us to live, but we fight for that life and we defend each other. The result of this research and these thoughts is a small singular blade I have sculpted in NSP clay that is quite different to the sketches I had initially drawn for it. While my sketches were more based off of ceremonial daggers made from stone dating over 6,000 years ago, as well as basic long swords, I ended up going for a more decorated hilt and triangular blade shape.

[jamgetsbred]

The King and The Bull

Got bored, wrote a kinky re-imagining of Theseus and The Minotaur. Comments are welcome but bear in mind I'm not going to edit this to hell since it's for fun! I write academic papers enough so my hee hee porn writing isn't going to be held up to the same scrutiny. Thanks!

SUMMARY: Theseus is a young prince of Athens tasked with the impossible: achieve immortality by writing himself into the stars through his heroic deeds to cement his name, the one thing he ever chose for himself, in song forever. His first task after establishing his connection to his father's bloodline?

Slay the Minotaur, a monster of Crete that devours fourteen young people every year.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Transphobia mention (very brief beginning confrontation, trans identity is a central theme of this story), Blood, Viscera (mentioned in Labyrinth fight), Physical harm, Death mention, lice (mentioned on the ship), rats (also on the ship), all sex is consensual

KINKS: Monster fucking, breeding kink, biting, blood, rough fucking, pregnancy risk, praise kink

Chapter II here

My son.

Theseus’s heart nearly stopped as he heard his mother call his name. 

“Theseus, my son, please.” 

His anger felt like Prometheus clawing his way through his chest with flaming hands. Every inhibition in his body burned in the face of his rage. He turned and met her tears with a smile that spread to his eyes. 

“Please? Please? You beg me now, of all times to grovel?” His laugh was the bark of a hound. Aethra recoiled as if he’d slapped her. 

“You will die, Theseus. You will die if you go to Crete, you foolish boy!” 

“Boy! Ha! I am only valuable to you in death. Yes, all of a sudden when my fate is assured you’re losing a son. Would you have begged Clymene not to go to Crete?” 

“And I’m sure you feel like a man in this moment. Abusing your mother! Taking my only child from me!” 

“Taking your child? I am a son of Poseidon born to a mortal woman. I am your only tie to Olympus personified. I am not taking your child; I am taking your pride.” Even Achilles, a man gifted with the speed of Hermes, could not have struck Theseus quicker. Aethra’s hand trembled as her son kept his eyes fixed on the pillar he now faced. His cheek felt like molten lead; the same melting rage set his jaw and raised his voice. The person that spoke was unfamiliar to both of them. 

“You,” He took a step forward. There was no need to touch her. “Are a wretched woman, who made my childhood a torturous existence. A half life. What did you raise me to be? Nothing more than a bride. You did not raise the son you claim to lose now, the son that marches to Crete, the son that will kill the Minotaur. Where will you be when my name is written into the heavens? You will be an afterthought. My glory will be my own. You, Aethra, will be forgotten to ash and dust.” 

Her hands and shoulders shook as she wept, her coughing and spluttering making her body double over. She grasped his hand, then his ankle as he tried to step away. 

“You will go to Crete.” 

“I will.” 

Theseus left the house with a sword and a scroll strapped to his belt. Bound for Athens, and a ship with black sails. 

Chapter I

Even with his father’s gifts Theseus couldn’t help but be faced with his many miseries. The chains clamped around his wrists and ankles dug weeping blisters into his skin. Blazing sun fried his nose, cheeks and scalp; his fiery hair didn’t offer much protection for the young hero. Worse still, even with his skin flaking off around him that didn’t compare much to the rats. Wretched vermin that fucked, ate, birthed and died all around the brig. For weeks he listened to this cacophony of sounds: rats, coughing, weeping. He was somewhat sure by day three he could hear his bones creak from the cold. 

By the second week he was caked in his own sweat and filth, gasping for any breath from the air holes he could find. His body felt like it was being pulled apart. The tunic he wore was certainly a mess; his breasts were raw from how little protection it offered from the splintering hack job of a floor. Yet he still grinned; because there were children here: sacrifices to the Minotaur as young as ten. Theseus braided hair, spun handmade tops, and taught them songs. Other older sacrifices like himself in their early 20’s joined him. The littlest one, Penelope, reached for his hair as he tried to pick the lice out of her scalp. 

“Are you going to save the Minotaur?”

He chuckled, smoothing her hair. “No, I’m going to save us. I have to kill the minotaur, Penelope.” 

Penelope’s face scrunched as he flicked a bug into the darkness. She huffed, crossing her arms. 

“What if he’s nice? His Papa put him in there. What if he didn’t hurt people? What if he’s just sad?” 

Theseus smiled around the hairpin between his lips. “The minotaur is a beast. Killing him will end his pain. I’m helping him by helping us.” 

It was quiet at first; but the prince of Athens could hear the waters slow and the ship's low, droning groans as it began to lose speed. He was the first person to shout “BRACE!” as the ship’s abrupt halt nearly sent them flying. Penelope clung to his neck while he grabbed onto Orion’s wrist to keep him from breaking his spine against the steel bars of their cell.

 Finally, the ship settled. 

Only one or two soldiers came to collect them. Two men that looked like prisoners in uniform spat at their feet, huffing as they opened the cell. 

“Rise, oh children of Athens. To your deaths you go. March, march.” Theseus carried the two youngest; poor Adrian couldn’t lift his head, and Priscilla barely opened her eyes. The guard didn’t bother to re-chain them, simply allowing them to shuffle along to the deck to meet their killers. 

Sure, maybe he hadn’t expected fanfare, but maybe..a little pomp for the sacrifices that fed their monster would’ve been appreciated. Instead, Theseus looked upon (really, squinted at; the sun cast everything in a white curtain) a silent crowd. Three figures stood on the dock awaiting them. King Minos he knew of from his father. A tyrant of a man who demanded an endless flow of Athenian blood in exchange for the single split skull of his son. He knew less of Ariadne or her sister. Of course he’d only been told by the sailors what most men would probably want to know: only tall tales of beautiful eyes and firm bosoms. One soldier was obsessed with Ariadne’s ankles, so much so that Theseus at one point wished he’d worn the longest dress possible himself. 

Minos was an ugly man. His smile as Theseus was pushed forward off of the gangplank was like an open suture.  

“Ah, the Prince of Athens. Welcome, Son of Aegus.” Son was spat at him like a gauntlet was thrown. All of Crete held its breath. 

Theseus simply grinned and bowed. “King Minos. Yes, a prince of Athens is no greater in value than her people.” 

“Yes. So it seems you aren’t of great value at all. Die well, Princeling.” Some of the peasants gasped, some of the men roared with laughter. Theseus’s smile remained plastered onto his face, painting himself with pleasantness. Most would look for his smile- but only one person in all of Crete followed his eyes.

Princess Ariadne’s gaze had been fixed on him since he exited the boat, but now he saw her plainly. She was delightfully pretty- the same way he’d been groomed to be when he was younger. Fit to fade into the decoration of a room. But Ariadne’s personality was easy to see for those who saw her earrings in the shape of stars, the pendant of Daedalus around her neck. Her dancing skirt. Her worn sandals. He searched for what he needed: the slight bump on her right finger. 

She can write. She can read. She probably learned under Daedalus, master of the labyrinth himself. Theseus tucked that into the back of his mind. Right now it was difficult to think as he made the long walk to the palace carrying two children with no sandals on hot stone. So instead his mind wandered to other things as buildings passed, and the people’s faces watching the death march blurred together. He thought of glory, of men- women- men? At his every beck and call. Crowds would roar his name, babies would bear the name he’d made for himself in attempts to capture his glory. His father Poseidon in the heavens would make him immortal among the stars. Only when he reached the palace did he stop to take in his surroundings; which were mainly white marble. Every so often he’d see columns with beautiful golden veins, but for the most part Minos kept a plain home. The real prize could be heard throughout the palace, and felt in his feet. At first Theseus thought it was the earth shaking; but then, Penelope whispered as she trembled.

“He’s screaming.”

“What?”

“Big bull man.”

Theseus listened closer now; she was right. Anguished moans echoed off of the walls. It felt like the sound crawled up his spine and over his skin. 

Horrid creature, he thought. Soon he and the other sacrifices were piled into their new accommodations: plush beds with high columns and pressed silk clothes prepared for them sitting on top of the covers. Combs were left in the bathroom along with fresh olive oil soap along with various beauty tools to scrub under nails and cut hair. 

“Do with this what you will. Enjoy.” The guard who had escorted them exited, leaving Theseus and the others to prepare themselves. By the time he’d scrubbed all of the dirt, sweat and grime out of his skin and fixed his hair up into something remotely respectable (he’d just snipped until it looked right) and pinned his tunic into place with his fibula the sun had descended to sit just above the horizon. Of course, he could also tell it was time for the feast by the way everyone had started to lift their nose to the smell of meat. But Theseus didn’t bother moving from where he sat on the edge of his bed. He stared at the blank wall across from him- imagining the minotaur. Half bull, half man; how could he kill the living personification of a god’s wrath? He couldn’t even kill the hatred that festered in his own heart. 

But emotion could not be killed. Flesh could. The minotaur was half man- and that was man enough. 

Now I just have to find a sword. 

He’d wished for a bow and arrow, but shooting into pitch black would be a waste. Moreover, he needed to know he hit his target if he could not rely on sight. Morbid as it was he needed to feel the flesh rend to steel; arrows would not be heard over a roaring monster. 

“Athenians, please join us at the feast in your honor.” A more polished guard stood in their doorway with a lumbering stature and broad chest. Theseus rose, being the first to follow. He needed to get the internal map of these halls in his head; look for landmarks. A chill came over him when he passed the third hallway with little to no adornment. 

He has purposefully left us with nothing to remember. 

Finally Theseus saw the gentle dancing of various lamps and was hit with a wall of smell; people chatted as many flitted about the banquet table to get their fill. Lords and their wives, Minos’s court, and very few wealthy peasants all took turns gawking at the new elephants in the room. They were all made to sit directly beside the King, who spread his arms wide in his chair carved with images of his monster. His son. 

“Welcome to Crete. Feast upon our good will to you; as you have provided for us your lives, we provide you with one last meal. Feast well. Drink well.” He raised a goblet, to which most of Theseus’s comrades answered except for the littler ones or those too bitter about their own destruction to look up from their untouched plates. Theseus himself did not toast, instead turning to Penelope, who fidgeted with her plate of beef. 

“Look at him, Penelope,” Theseus whispered, smirking. “He’s so prideful he needs a dinner throne.” 

“I bet he has a bathroom throne!” 

“Oh, I’m sure his chamber is gilded.” Across from him, Eleni snorted. She was his age and had shared the burden of taking care of the others on the ship. Even she couldn’t be bothered with Minos’s merriment- mocking him was much more fun. Her lip quirked just a bit. Enough for Theseus to catch it as he brought his cup of wine to his lips.

“Eleni, there’s a joke in you somewhere.” 

She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, red rising to her cheeks. “I don’t have one.”

“Of course you do. A prideful King sits in the most ornately carved wooden chair that he’s currently soaking with gravy. You could take up hours on the Agora with that material.” 

Just as she was about to speak, it was Orion who ceased his giggling fit to shout “MINOS SMELLS!” 

For a moment you could hear the sound of the distant wind. All of the previous faux pleasantness had been sucked out of the room like a vacuum; all eyes on Minos. That was, until Theseus’s laugh boomed like a lightning strike. He patted Orion on the head. Maybe it was the wine he’d been sipping that brought the humour back to his cheeks. Not a single Athenian eye was dry- of all the wit and cleverness their people were renowned for, Orion had killed a King where he sat by calling him stinky. 

“To the smelly King Minos, who demands more than he ever lost!” Theseus hollered, raising his cup. 

“To King Minos, tyrant and pissant!” 

Laughter now roared from every corner of the hall. Minos was floundering in a sea of insults, which as a host he was expected to take as good natured fun. But his cheeks were aflame, and it looked like he was ripping Theseus apart several times over in his minds eye. Gone was the awful smile that greeted them on the dock. 

Searching the room, Theseus caught Ariadne’s gaze with the ghost of his smirk still on his face. He winked at her before he stood. 

“I’m afraid I must rest. A long journey and a short feast makes for a pleasant sleep. Excuse me, gentlefolk, to my dreams.” He only broke contact with the Princess when he turned on his heel, moving now just assuredly enough that a guard did not try to escort him. A captain stepped forward as he crossed the threshold. 

“Sir,”

“I know the way. Thank you, Captain. I would like one last moment to myself before my demise, if you can find it agreeable.” 

He huffed. Theseus continued to walk and found that the man did not follow. Instead, as he rounded a few corners he heard lighter steps. If he hadn’t hunted in his youth as much as he had to he would not have heard them at all. 

“Prince of Athens.” 

Her voice was like a melody. So the Princess had followed him.

“Princess of Crete.” Theseus turned and bowed low; his nose almost kissing the marble beneath him. “I am Theseus, son-”

“Son of Aegus. Son of Poseidon. Your mother is Aethra. I know of you, Prince of Athens.” Ariadne’s gaze warmed the back of his neck and ears. “Rise. Really, I’d like to see you without wine on your upper lip.” 

Theseus rose, taking her hand in his. It was soft except for the callous on her middle finger where she placed a pen. “A pleasure, Princess.” He kissed the freckle on the top of her knuckle. 

“What I speak to you about it..Not all pleasurable, I’m afraid.”

“Oh?”

“You mean to kill my little brother.” 

A passerby would’ve thought Demeter had cursed the very hall they stood in. Suddenly the marble which had been a pleasant coolness on his burnt heels turned to ice. His skin prickled. No one had spoken of the minotaur as a person; only a beast. To kill someone’s little brother was different than slaughtering a wretch. In this case they were one in the same. 

“I..I do.” 

“You have no weapon.” The honey in her eyes had turned to a calculating blaze of fire. “And you did not come here to die. You came here for him.”

“I came here to stop the killings. Your brother’s life is not worth the hundreds of souls he will consume as he ages.” 

“Certainly not.” She looked at him from his toes to the crown of his head. “He is not a verse in your song. He is a living thing.” 

“I-”

“You will hear me. Princes are notoriously deaf to the pleas of women, but you will hear this, Theseus Aegemedes. If you want to kill my brother, you must first know his name. His name is Asterion. He is twenty years old, like you, and he loved to play when he was a child. He would pretend he was a hero, Heracles. He is now older, meaner, and blind in one eye after one of our soldiers struck him with a spear when he was still small.” 

“Why do you tell me this?” 

Ariadne bit her lip. From the way she flinched he could tell she’d drawn blood. Her nails dug into her palms. 

“Because…I love him.” 

“If you loved him, you would not have told me his weaknesses.” 

“I love you, too. Or maybe I love your courage. Glory didn’t bring you here, to Crete. To your death. You came with barely a plan, and your name.”

He laughed; it was honestly half of a sigh. “I’m afraid you’re mistaken, Princess. Glory did bring me here.”

“Then you are a dull witted man for an Athenian King.”

“Prince,” He corrected. “And yes. I...Have had to earn my name, in more ways than one. This would cement me as who I am. Theseus. It is all I want people to remember.” 

“And in all the ages of Greece, not a single Prince or King would want to be remembered for his kindness? Would you scorch all of Crete for your name too, or just those you find monstrous? Justifiable to kill?” She stepped forward, looking up at him. He could’ve sworn the lanterns burned brighter now. “Where does that stop, Theseus?”

“I-” 

“It doesn’t. Memory is a living thing. You would always need another monster. And eventually, it will become you.” Her shadow seemed like its own beast as it curled in the firelight. He felt like she could consume him whole. Her words alone flayed his flesh from his bones, down to his core. He hadn’t realized he was weeping until she brushed the tears away from his cheek, smoothing over his tan skin with her thumb. She found the scar on his lip and held her attention there. 

“You’re not a monster, Theseus. Has anyone told you that, in all of your labors? You were never different. You were never accepted, either. Just as you are.” His heart began to race. There was no way she could know- no- he’d kill her before she told anyone else. He could so easily grasp her throat and squeeze. Squeeze until she stopped, until all of this went away. 

“What do you know of me? What do you know of the things I’ve felt?” He could kill her. She would take his secret to her grave. 

“Because I was always a Princess. But only when I grew did they call me Ariadne.” The fire inside of him that threatened to consume them both in its wake died with her admission. She knew more of his experience than he ever thought. Gently, she kissed the scar on his lip. “I know you are good, Theseus. You’ve lost yourself in what it means to be a hero, what it means to be a man. Sometimes the most heroic thing a man can be is kind. You will go to the labyrinth.” She opened his tunic and he didn’t stop her. From under her skirts she produced a gladius and thread which she pressed against his chest. 

“You- you give me my life?”

“I give you your life. Because I know yours is worth the hundreds you will save; and my brother's life was over once he entered that wretched hole. He is more of a ghost than man. Save him, Prince of Athens, and you will make a fine King. Here is my gift to you; go tomorrow not a lamb, but a lion, Theseus of Athens.” 

He wished he could live in her arms forever as she kissed him once more. Theseus tried to remember the sweetness of her lips and the taste of fresh figs. Eventually they broke from each other, with Ariadne cradling his face in her hands with such tenderness you could’ve mistaken them for a couple. 

“Go, Theseus.” 

“I’ll come back for you.”

“I know.” And so the Prince of Athens turned from her, Ariadne, Princess of Crete, to walk to his chambers. He left her standing there in all of her radiance; from the beautiful plaits in her brown hair to the gold on her fingers. Because he would come back. She would wait for him. 

When Theseus eventually found his quarters, he slowly slid down the wall with the gladius and red thread in his hands. His lips pulled back against his teeth as he wept. 

Must a man be cruel? Does brutality make a King? Or can I be kind, but where has kindness gotten me among my fellow men? Mocked. Chided. He’d attempted to hug his father once and had been struck. Yet, his heart also tugged when he thought of how much better he could’ve grown up in a world that was gentler. How many times had he been harassed by men at the market growing up? Ariadne was right. He stared at himself in the reflection of his sword. Eventually he would run out of monsters; he would grow old and ornery. He would grow selfish and stupid and prideful. 

He did not know how to be a man without all of the machismo that came with it. But he could learn. He could try. 

Theseus had been lion and lamb both, in his lifetime. Now he wondered who sat in front of him; what sort of hero he could call himself. 

Only one way to find out. 

A final gift, this time from himself to Asterion. Theseus spent the rest of the night crafting a burial shroud. The least he could do was kill him with kindness. 

Chapter II

#tkatb1 #yeet sex happens later sorry lads

[eijispumpkin]

ash? for the character thing?

HELL YEAH HELL YEAH HELL YEAH

favorite thing about them

he's so gentle and loving. he has so many reasons to be jaded and selfish and bitter but he's not. he values innocence, he is so kind especially to kids, he wants to protect his loved ones and to fight for them rather than himself. he's my favorite archetype of character: the gentle badass. real "i do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. i love only that which they defend" energy.

least favorite thing about them

yoshida (and therefore a chunk of the fandom)'s insistence that actually he had to die to achieve peace because actually Fuck people with ptsd i guess

favorite line

it just... really encapsulates everything about him in a nutshell. all he ever wanted to be was griff's kid brother, just a normal person with a normal life. and so instead of being envious that eiji didn't suffer the same way he did, he just yearns and treasures that about eiji so much. love is stored in the ash lynx.

brOTP

ash & griff (crying screaming shouting wailing), ash & max, ash & nadia, ash & eiji's family

OTP

asheiji 😭🥰🥺💕✨😊🥰💖👌💕🥺😭🥰

nOTP

shorter/ash (but i already talked about that in my shorter post), ash/max (brb throwing up after even typing this), ash/literally any of his abusers, ash/blanca (throwing up again)

random headcanon

he uses dino's dirty money to pay for nadia wong's bottom surgery (yes nadia wong is a trans woman and i will not accept concrit on this thanks). at first she's like no ash i can't possibly accept this, but he gives her a very soft look and tilts his head a little and says "if you can't accept it for yourself, do it for me. there's nothing that'd make that old geezer madder than knowing i'm blowing his funds on making the people who loved me despite his best efforts happy. and i love the idea of making him spin in whatever shit grave he ended up in. if any. please, nadia? i don't want his money, and i want to give back to you for everything. it'd make me really happy if you'd accept it?" and she's just like. oh ash... because how can she say no to that?

unpopular opinion

he doesn't try to get eiji to leave him/try to leave eiji bc of ~abandonment issues~ lmfao he does it bc eiji got kidnapped and traumatized in a horrific way once already and he doesn't wanna see it happen again??? also i am literally begging yall to learn how to characterize him correctly bc i swear to god everyone either leans too hard into ~dark academia~ tropes/aesthetics (i.e. makes him just straight up ooc) or makes his literal only trait "having ptsd" and both of those takes fucking suck actually.

especially the "his only personality trait is having trauma" one, bc it invariably leads to demonization of ppl w trauma bc it DOES make a relationship read as v unhealthy if one person in it has literally no personality outside of being traumatized and sad all the time. but thats not ACCURATE or even realistic as a depiction of ppl w ptsd and it makes me want to tear my hair out!!! *stern parent voice* im gonna have to take ash lynx away if yall dont learn to behave

song i associate with them

"no rest" by dry the river !!!!

favorite picture of them

this one has been my icon on discord for like 2 or 3 years at this point. i love him

#was also tempted to put the one where he looks so dang tired like Let Him Sleep jkdsbfjksd #ash lynx #anon #answers

[magnhild]

the misconceptions and mis-framing of penny’s death

i hesitated to make this post here for a good while; partially because i didn’t want to right when people’s emotions were heightened from the finale, partially because i’m sure some people are going to argue with me here and i’m not looking for a debate- if you don’t agree, please just scroll past.

i’ve made a large number of posts of penny’s death on twitter before, but some were based on my own heightened emotions, and they were all scattered over the course of a couple of weeks, so i’m making this psot to kind of gather all of those thoughts together, the most important ones, at least.

a quick disclaimer before we start- don’t mistake this as all being ‘oh you must just not really care that much about penny’. it couldn’t be more untrue. penny is a comfort character of mine, and a kin to boot. her second death was also the only in the show to really impact me, seeing as i watched v1-3 within a couple of days and didn’t give myself enough time to get attatched to any characters (and i just didn’t personally care for clover all that much). so, please don’t assuming this is coming from a place of not caring- it’s coming from the opposite.

i’ve tried my very hardest to look at what people are saying when they call her death inherintly bad writing, and honestly, i can easily see the validity to some of their points. there were a lot of flaws in the scene. 

it felt very rushed and blown-over, but then again, the entire episode did, and i have to wonder if it was done on purpose to emulate the chaos of war- you usually don’t get time to process anything. i mean, in rwby’s case, cinder was winning a fight, half of the characters that would’ve moured her were in the void, and the other half was in another kingdom. that left jaune, who had to focus on fighting cinder. it’s the same as when ruby wasn’t given time to mourn yang.

it also was weird to kill her off two episodes and probably only, like, 10-15 in-show minutes, after she’d been saved from death by gaining a human body. i think it would’ve happened anyway, given the many death flags she had, but i’d have expected- and liked- for them to wait a little longer. it would’ve been nice to see her adjust to having a human body, that’s for sure.

and i can fully agree that framing suicide as a good thing is not...a good thing. but, that brings me to the first point when i say ‘misconception’. because, penny’s dead wasn’t suicide at all. and i have no idea why people would frame it that way it the first place.

first of all, if we’re going to start labelling sacrifices as suicides, we’re going to have to say the same about pyrrha, vernal, and probably yang even though she didn’t actually die (but she thought she would). but being killed in a battle while protecting people...is sacrifice. penny asking jaune to kill her quicker, so that she could make sure the powers went to winter, was sacrifice. it also meant that she didn’t have to die slowly and painfully instead. penny was not suicidal. she has never been suicidal. to be suicidal is to want to die. penny never wanted to die- she only ever believed that it was her only choice to save the people she cared about and the city she was assigned to protect. in penny’s situation, i imagine you’d have a hard time finding another way out of all the siuations she’s been in too. it honestly feels like people are only calling it suicide instead of sacrifice to frame the scene as worse than it was, and that rubs me the wrong way.

and now you’re probably wondering, ‘but blaire, if she’d let jaune save her, she wouldn’t have died’. except that everyone who thinks that is missing one critical factor- she would have died anyway.

cinder’s blow was a killing one. from the moment she struck, she was already starting to steal the maiden’s power. a little longer, and she probably would have. but the one thing a lot of people seem to miss is that, even though jaune was there, he would not have been able to save her. firstly, his aura would have been extremely low at that point, considering we see it shatter in this episode; he probably would not have had enough to fill another person. he maybe could’ve sealed the wound a little before his aura would have broken, and then cinder would’ve just kept going with no problem.

but, even if he somehow had been able to- his aura recharges pretty quickly, after all- another critical factor is that there literally wasn’t time. penny said so herself. as i mentioned earlier, cinder was winning the fight agaisnt weiss. and we’ve seen how long it takes for jaune to heal someone. with weiss, he was lucky; there were several other people there to protect him and weiss while he did his work. with penny, there was only weiss. the moment cinder saw jaune healing her, that would’ve been it. with both of them defenselss, she probably would have killed jaune on the spot, given that weiss never would have been able to stop her on her own, and continued to take penny’s power. jaune or not, penny would have died. because penny didn’t kill herself, jaune didn’t kill her, cinder killed her. this was a murder.

bu then, what was all that about penny finally making her own choice? was it not to die?

no. of course it wasn’t. how i ever believed that myself at one point baffles me, because the more i look back, the more it’s very obvious that it wasn’t the case. it’s almost funny, actually, because my current self would’ve called myself from two weeks ago stupid for believeing such a thing. 

as i mentioned, penny has never wanted to die. and, in this case, it wasn’t even that she felt she had to for the greator good; she was dying anyway. her choice had nothing to do with death. her choice was who to pass the winter maiden’s power onto. because, if jaune hadn’t used his sword and severe’d cinder’s connection, the power very likely would have gone to cinder instead. she’d have the relics and both the fall and winter powers, and she’d have been near-unstoppable otherwise. 

even the wiki editors somehow saw this more clearly than i did, but like i said, it’s actually pretty obvious. once you get the weird idea that penny was suicidal out of your head, it’s clear to see that the choice she was talking about was to choose winter. and it’s a damn good thing she did, because winter probably would have died otherwise, and the evacuees would’ve been left defensless agaisnt the grimm- penny wouldn’t have been able to save them, as we’ve established.

the last thing that everyone should consider is that we literally have no idea what could happen next. it’s hard to write this off as anything when we don’t know what effect it will have on the story and characters, or- though it’s a stretch- if penny will even stay dead. she is, after all, based off a character who dies and is ressurected on a frequent basis. it was the same case with pyrrha and clover’s deaths; both were dismissed as bad writing based purely on assumptions, only for the auidence to find out later that both deaths actually served pretty reasonable purposes; pyrrhas’s to set the stakes and give all of the character’s a reason to keep fighting, and clover’s to demonstrate how loyal-to-a-fault the aceops were, and that ironwood had no problem sacrificing his own men.

in the end, to call this a good writing choice is probably a stretch. but, it wasn’t a bad one either. there were just too many factors that weren’t considered, or were misunderstood, and the aformentioned rushed feeling of the episode probably did not help with picking all this out. these are realizations it took me days and even weeks to come to. what’s instead important is to look at the situation from as many different angles as possible, and to keep in mind that we can’t really say anything for certain about the consequences of the event. nuance is important! espeiclaly in media critisism!

i genuinely hoped this has opened people’s eyes, even if they already didn’t consider it bad writing. seeing crwby, and this show, undermined so drastically, has been pretty hard for me to see, especially when some people are using it to call crwby morally wrong. i’ve even seen people say it was transphobic, because penny was trans-coded, while totally dismissing may, a canonically trans character. and i know that crwby are getting death threats again, which is bitterly disappointing and enraging. stop. and stop enabling this behaviour. 

also, if you’ve read over all of this and still don’t personally like the decision, that’s fine and understandable. i can easily see why people still wouldn’t. but i think it’s important to remember that not liking a writing deicsion doesn’t necceserily make it a bad one. kind of like how me not liking any of star wars doesn’t make it a bad franchise.

thanks for reading, and please remember to just...be nice. and if you’re still mourning penny’s death, which is understandable, remember to look after your mental health! she would want you to!

#rwby #rwby essay #rwby analysis #rwby v8 #blaire rambles #my writing #penny polendina #rwby voume 8 #tw penny's death #tw character death #tw suicide

[terapsina]

So, my favorite books of 2020

To be clear, it's books I read this year not books that came out this year.

Let us begin.

1. A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine - The story follows Mahit Dzmare, an ambassador from a small mining Station that's been sent to the heart of Teixcalaanli Empire (which encompasses hundreds of thousands of planets) to replace her predecessor. And oh wow is the world building amazing in this book. And all she was sent to do is make sure that the Empire interferes as little as possible in her home, but of course stuff hits the fan the moment she gets there. And she has to somehow protect Station secrets, solve a murder, stop a civil war and like ten other things all at once and do it all alone even though that had NOT been the plan when she was chosen for this. And the book makes us both love and be repulsed by Teixcalaan all at once and it's beautiful. Also there's queer women main characters in a story centered around surviving space politics and do you KNOW how rarely I find that in a book?

2. Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - Lesbian Space Necromancers. And their buff lesbian knights in skull face-paint with SWORDS (who hate them, really, hate is totally the right word (this is only like 20% sarcasm, it's complicated)). I can't even describe this book, it's like a mishmash of every genre imaginable, it's both fantasy AND science fiction AND buddy cop comedy (where they hate each other) AND the princess and the loyal knight (who hate each other).

3. The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie - you know I didn't know how much I needed an omniscient rock as the main character from whose point of view to see the story, until I read this book. I have never been so invested in a literal rock (who is also a god). Basically book for people with soft spots for non-human characters with soft spots for humans. One such human being Eolo, who is unfortunately stuck in a story that was inspired by Hamlet (and is the bff of the Hamlet character, also he's trans, and awesome). I want to say more but everything else feels like a spoiler.

4. The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison - One of the most feel-good books I've ever read and I loved it so much. Main character is Maya and he's a half elven/half goblin prince that was never supposed to be emperor. And then his father and all his older brothers die in an accident and what do you know, he's emperor. And he's SUCH a fish out of water but he's also so KIND, and he inspires loyalty because he just. won't. change. that. And he keeps doing the right thing, the good thing instead of following in the expected footsteps of the emperors who came before. But he also grows so much, and learns to stand up for himself. And just, this book is like a warm hug okay? But like, with court politics.

5. Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett - I love this book. You know what one of my favorite genres is? Other than fantasy and science fiction? THIEVES PULLING THE IMPOSSIBLE JOB with a good smidgen of found family trope. This is one of those. Plus set in a fantasy setting with a FANTASTIC magical world building. The main character is Sancia Grado who is hired to pull a job, and then she finds out she might have not been given QUITE all the information. So she ends up needing to save... basically everyone. Also they might end up destroying capitalism, it's everything I've ever wanted. Plus gay girls having crushes.

---

P.S. Also with honorary mentions to some other books I loved just as much but I got tired of trying to describe but yeah seriously look those up too, they're awesome:

Network Effect by Martha Wells (more Murderbot and more ART and more robot friendship where both of them are assholes who love each other a lot), Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson, Provenance by Ann Leckie, the entire Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie (I might have read a lot of Ann Leckie this year), The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (basically Firefly but better, and gayer and with more aliens and less sexism), The Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (I can't believe it's over but I loved the end so much), The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo (short and sweet and sad and basically magic).

#a memory called empire #gideon the ninth #the goblin emperor #the raven tower #foundryside #book recs #books #book rec #terapsina rambles #alright so i edited the book covers to be smaller cuz i didn't realize how HUGE they were until i went on my laptop #sorry about that #terapsina's book rambles

[respect-the-fae]

Things that remind me of: Ares

Sorry it's been a few days, life has been kind of a bitch, but I'm back with a post for my patron, Ares! I love him so much! This is gonna be a long one, I'll warn you now.

Weaponry. All weaponry. Whether it be a sword, a bo staff, escrima sticks or even sharp words falling off a tongue and destroying what they are aimed at. All weapons of every nature are this and remind me of him.

Boxing. I box alot, it reminds me of him and helps me feel close to him. How warm I feel, the ache in my arms, the bruises that form across my hands, the sweat dripping down my forehead. It all feels like he's there guiding me, reminding me to keep my guard up, and to keep my thumb out of my fist so I don't shatter it.

Red candles.

Bloodied hands and bruises. The type you get when your sibling gets beat up by the bigger kids and you go to sort them out because as annoying as your little sibling is, no one (NO ONE) messes with them.

Pink gin. Trust me, pink gin might seem like a weird one, but I have seen my mate single handedly knock out 2 guys who were threatening a trans girl while on pink gin. Pink gin is the Elixir Of Protective Rage and no one can tell me otherwise. (Dw, the girl is safe and we walked her home. We got takeout on the way and i cried bc she gave me a chicken nugget. We're friends now.)

Hunger Games, Divergent, Maze Runner. All about destroying their awful governing systems and rising up. Very Ares.

Using dumbass as a term of affection. With the same amount of love that people usually use when calling someone sweetheart or darling.

BIG HERO 6.

The concept of egging someone's house.

Snakes.

Having long baths/showers to avoid dealing with your emotional issues. Idk, just screams him.

Loving your crush/lover/spouse so fucking much, genuinely wouldn't hesitate to kill for them if someone hurt them.

Courage, all types of courage. Speaking out about racism in a protest, leading a protest, telling your boss about the coworker that scares you and harassed you. Telling a teacher about your parents if they're abusive. Standing in front of a crowd and giving a speech. Attending rallies, going to Pride, telling your bigoted family to suck a dick when they're being rude about trans/coloured/gay people, posting that post you were debating to do or not, sending your script/novel/anthology/biography to your agent, selling your art. Loads more that my brain refuses to give me right now. They are all brave, courageous acts that Ares loves and is so proud of you for. He watches you swallow down the fear and he rewards you with that glow of good adrenaline afterwards. That's his way of sort of kissing you on the forehead and telling you he's proud.

Rescuing animals from shelters. Ares is definitely very passionate about Adopt Don't Shop.

The Enemies to Lovers trope in fanfic.

Comfort items. Items that make you feel put together and braver. Mine is my Angel (from Lilo and Stitch, the pink experiment, teddy bear I got to match the Stitch one my friend has), I barely ever let it go if I'm in the house.

Poppies.

Baseball bats. The game too, but mainly the bats.

Petty 'wars' with siblings or coworkers. Snatching lunches and snacks, leaving passive aggressive post it notes.

War. Conflict. Rage. Obviously. But also bravery. Courage. A thirst for justice.

Protection. Of all kinds.

Weighted blankets.

Podcasts. True crime, and fictional horror ones. The Magnus Archives reminds me of him, idk why. (FOR REAL THO, ITS SO FUCKING GOOD, GO LISTEN TO IT. I WOULD DIE FOR JON, ITS ON SPOTIFY.) (And YouTube too.)

Learning about your friend's special interests because they mentioned they don't feel able to talk about it for fear of annoying people. And damn if you're gonna let that happen, so you're up till 5am reading The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory so you can talk to them about it, and give them a safe space to info dump and share their thoughts and feelings.

Geese. Yes they are bastards. But they are feathery, beautiful bastards.

Saying "because fuck you, that's why."

The "WHAT THE FUCK IS UP KYLE" vine.

"Thanks for checking in, I'm still a piece of g a r b a g e."

Self esteem issues. Bad mental health. PTSD, anxiety, depression, BPD, eating disorders. They're all battles, and he is with you through all of them. By your side, holding your hand, rubbing your back. He feels your pain and he is helping you move past it. He is there to remind you that spite is a perfectly fucking good reason to get better, because people suck and you will show all the people who hurt you that you will not break. That you will get up, every single fucking time. And he is with you for every single step. If you believe nothing else, believe that Ares loves you.

Getting back up. Never backing down.

Teenage rebellion. Wild hair. Hair dye. Breaking into parks at night, exploring abandoned buildings.

Bumps in people's noses where it's been broken and not set properly.

Donald Duck. That duck is ready to fight all the time and I love him.

The movie 'Red'. Its so amazing. (Also watch that, it's on Netflix, at least on the UK one).

WWE.

That's it, my Ares one. I think I rambled a bit but I am very tired so forgive me. Lemme know what you think!!

I love Ares so much, I probably wouldn't have made it to this point if I didn't have him. He is my patron and he protected me when I felt alone.

Next I'm doing Aphrodite!

#hellenic gods #hellenic witch #greek gods #paganism #greek mythology #hellenic deities #hellenic devotion #ares god #ares deity #ares devotee #ares worship #cottage witch #witchcraft #grey witch #baby witch #death witch #fire witch #green witch #kitchen witch #storm witch #witch #apollon #apollo deity #ares and aphrodite #aphrodite #hellenic pantheon #hellenic polytheism #hellenic polytheistic #hellenic altar

[witchcraft-in-wonderland]

Virgil Angst Sh** (1)

Description: Alternative of the Strangers au where the necklaces are never uncovered and Virgil is stuck with Romulus

Warnings: Physical and Emotional Abuse, Toxic Relationship, Memory Wiping, Willingly Remaining in an Abusive Situation, Blood, Weaponry, Food Denial, Extreme Weight Loss, Starvation, Pregnancy (trans man)

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

Virgil hadnt the slightest clue how he'd managed to end up in this situation, only that he desperately wanted out.

His only shot had been destroyed in a carnival fire, the book that had revealed the truth was useless to him now.

But, at least Romulus seemed to be revelling in Virgil's discoveries.

And, of course, his true body.

Roman had long since fled, Virgil had managed to erase any and all memories of himself from the prince, and his own friends.

It was better this way, better if no one came looking for him.

Better if he remained trapped in the fortress he'd helped Romulus raise above the ground.

Better if he played a perfect little princess, faked his way out.

Embraced the destiny he'd once fought desperately to avoid.

He wondered, occasionally, if Viviana was watching him now.

He wondered how disappointed she was that he'd succumbed to the fate she worked so hard to avoid.

But something in his gut always told him, she hadnt ever really avoided it either.

"Princess, are you going to come in for dinner or not?" Virgil shuddered as Romulus' voice reached his ears.

"I'm not hungry," Virgil said, lying through his teeth.

He was, of course, starving.

But he wouldnt give Romulus the satisfaction of his company.

"Shame, well then go to your bed chambers and remain there until I have need of you again," Romulus continued.

Virgil complied, every step he took feeling like a drag.

He'd gone from one hundred and sixty two pounds to a mere eight seven in under a month.

He survived on sneaked snacks and water collected from a rain jar.

He knew it was no life to live, but he also knew that this wasnt life, this was hell. After all, what life didnt include Roman?

Roman

The name hung in his head on a daily basis.

The memory of those emerald eyes and that dashing smile and those soft curves and gentle touches that Virgil missed ever so dearly.

He always cried when he thought of Roman, which was to say, he never stopped crying.

"You never learn, do you?" Often, to Romulus' dismay and scorn.

"Your highness I-" but Virgil was to late, with a wince he felt his hair jerked back, his head along with it, exposing his neck.

A neck covered in bruises and bite marks and stains of blood.

Virgil had liked vampires, before he'd known that just about any undead regardless of its origins tended to have a taste for blood related sustenance.

"Did I ask you to talk?." Virgil whined, averting his eyes as he felt Romulus' breath down his neck.

"You'll look at me when I'm talking, princess." Romulus snarled, Virgil let out a yelp as yet another bite that well would have killed him at the size he was was brought down on his neck.

He fell to the floor like a rag doll when Romulus had released him, staring wide-eyed at his captor.

"Dont look at me like that." Virgil tried to calm his expression, but to no avail.

Romulus didnt like acting.

Weeks

No no no. . .

Years

Had gone by.

He'd had a daughter.

A daughter named Victoria, whom he would kill and die for.

Whom Romulus would not be permitted to touch, ever.

Life was better now, with the little one, her prescience gave Virgil meaning, gave him a routine of normalcy.

Who knew a simple knock on the door could shatter it in its entirety.

He knew the eyes almost as soon as he opened the door.

Emerald green, yes, but absolutely seething with a flame of fury and passion.

His knight had come for the captured princess.

But of course, Virgil had to play dumb, for all he knew, this was a trick.

"I assume you're here for Romulus yes?" Virgil asked, Victoria resting on his hip, chewing on a tiny clenched fist.

"Oh I'm here for Romulus alright. WHERE'S THE BASTARD THAT TORTURED AND DEFILED MY HUSBAND." It seemed, as Virgil quickly noted, that Roman had not realized there was a small child present.

"Princess could you quiet down? I'm trying to read and all your whining is frankly m-" Romulus froze as he reached the top of the stairs.

Roman had a sword drawn within seconds.

As, Virgil had suddenly realized, did each and every one of the people he believed he'd brainwashed.

He supposed they'd rediscovered a few things.

"How dare you call him royalty as he stands dressed in filth and blood. How dare you stand here and berate him as though he is a lowly gnat to brush away with little note. How dare you treat the father of the children that should have been mine as though he is barely worth your time." Virgil had never seen his husband speak with such anger in his voice, such protectiveness.

"A king doesnt concern himself with the matters of a consort,"

That had been the wrong move.

Virgil didnt see the rest, he was pulled back by Patton and Janus almost as soon as an opening was made available.

The necklaces were destroyed, and along with them any trace of Romulus, save, of course, for little Victoria.

"Virgil? Virgil oh my precious orchid what has he done to you? You look so frail my poor baby, if only I'd fought him off sooner I could have saved you," now Virgil was at home, buried under sheets with his head resting on Roman's chest, face tilted up towards his husband as he assessed Virgil's injuries. Victoria safely tucked between his arms.

"Ten years. . . Ten years I'd hoped you would remain forgetful, ignorant of my mere existence. . ." Virgil murmured, voice raspy and aching.

"I could never do such a thing my love, I'll never forget you, nor will I ever let you get away from me again, nor let harm come to you from now on," Roman whispered.

"You know that's impossible. . ." Virgil replied softly.

"Not if I have anything to say about it,"

#cori writes #strangers au #virgil angst #virgil angst fics #ts virgil #ts romulus #ts roman #pridexiety #prinxiety #romantic prinxiety #tw abuse #tw extreme weight loss #tw pregnancy #tw emotional abuse #tw violence #tw physical abuse #tw crying #tw blood #ask to tag #ask for taglist

[takerfoxx]

In response to JK Rowling and Joss Whedon, my (former) idols

I really didn’t want to have to do this.

So in addition to…=gestures vaguely=…all of that, the last few months have been kind of sucky when it comes to learning some really unpleasant things about artists that I looked up to, admired, and was in fact inspired by. I’ve already spoken about the Speaking Out movement revealing a lot of ugly behavior from various wrestlers, some of which I was big fans of, and then later we got Chris Jericho being a full-on MAGA. Yeah, that all sucked. But those were just performers whose work I enjoyed watching. The one that really hurt were writers who I deeply admired, whose stories I love, and who I was heavily influenced by.

The first, of course, was finding out that JK Rowling, the author of perhaps the single biggest YA fantasy series of all time Harry Potter, is a TERF. This really sucked for a number of reasons. Firstly, I really like Harry Potter! I mean, I’m not a super fan or anything. I came into it when things were kind of dying down, like the whole book series had already been released and there were only a few movies left, but I still really enjoyed it, have all the books and movies and a fair amount of merchandise swag, including a nifty wand I got at Universal Studios. Shit, I got two replicas of the Sword of Griffyindor, thanks to them screwing up my order in my favor and sending me a duplicate! They’re on my wall right across from me as I type this!

But in addition to writing a book series I really liked, JK Rowling was supposed to be one the good guys. She’s been vocally progressive, often openly comes down on British right-wing nonsense, has supported various persecuted minorities, and is on record as being one of the few self-made billionaires to actually stop being a billionaire for a time because she donated so much money to charity. And while we mock it now, her revealing Dumbledore as gay was a huge deal at the time. Plus, she cultivated this reputation as Auntie Jo, that cool, supportive aunt we all wanted.

But for a while her stock has been dropping. Her preference for confirming “representation” via tweets instead of explicitly putting it in the text of her stories has raised the question of queer-baiting, especially with a whole-ass movie with a young Dumbledore and Grindelwald to make their relationship explicit but failing to do so. The whole Nagini thing from the latest Fantastic Beasts movie was pretty gross. And re-examination of various problematic elements from the original novels has rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. Now, none of these really looked to be intentionally malicious, of course. Just about everyone’s early work will have problematic elements; that’s just how people work. And the later stuff smacked more of ignorance than anything. But after all this time, it’s like, c’mon. You should know better by now.

But the biggie came when her transphobic views finally came to light. Now, this one had been brewing for a while, due to some questionable likes and statements on her twitter. But then she decided to just go public and published what essentially amounts to a TERF manifesto, one with a very “love the sinner, hate the sin” condescending attitude and had a real persecution complex air to it.

Now, I’m not going to go into detail about what the manifesto was about, what the circumstances surrounding it were, or how wrong it was. It’s already been raked over the coals, dissected, answered, and debunked in detail by people far more qualified than me, so odds are, you’re already well aware of its contents and the subsequent rebuttals. But the gist of it comes down to her basically believing that transwomen are actually cis men claiming to be trans so as to infiltrate and invade female-only spaces.

Yeah.

Okay, that’s gross, but…why? Why is someone so noted for being progressive and wanting to foster an inclusive environment making this the hill of exclusion that she wants to die on?

Well, that’s where things get tricky. She mentions that prior to Harry Potter, her first marriage was highly physically and sexually abusive, and when she escaped from that, she had no place to go, leading her to be homeless for a time.

Oh.

Well, that makes sense. Someone goes through a highly traumatic experience with a member of the opposite sex, has no support structure when she escapes it, is left to fend for herself, only to suddenly get rocketed into fame, fortune, and influence, which in turn leads to a Never Again mentality. She was hurt, no one was there to help her, and now she’s afraid of men invading women-only spaces to victimize others like she was victimized. So…literally transphobic. Literally a Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminist.

Guys, this is so fucked up. Like, how do you even approach something like this? She’s a victim in every sense of the word, so of course she’s going to have physiological damage and a warped view of things. I mean, if I found out that a close friend of mine went through the same thing and had the same prejudices, I would be nothing but sympathetic! I mean, I’d still do what I can to convince her to overcome those prejudices, but I’d still show sympathy and support for what she went through.

Abuse warps people. There’s a reason why so many abusers are abuse survivors themselves. It makes you terrified of being hurt again and often causes people to adopt toxic behaviors, beliefs, and reactions to protect themselves. I’ve already talked about it at length while discussing She-Ra and its own handling of the cycle of abuse, which included franks discussions of Catra’s horrible behavior, why she was the way she was, while never losing sympathy for her and rooting for her to overcome it. So if JK Rowling is an abuse survivor, is it really right to come down on her for having warped views because of that abuse?

But that’s the problem. See, she isn’t your troubled friend that you’re trying to help. She isn’t your cousin Leslie who’s a really sweet person but unfortunately adopted some bad ideals due to trauma suffered. She JK freakin’ ROWLING, one of the most famous, wealthy, and influential women in the world. She has a platform of millions, if not billions, which means her voice lends credibility to her bigoted beliefs. Alt-righters and other TERFs have already swooped upon this for giving validation to their awful beliefs, which puts trans people even more at risk. And as horrible as Rowling’s experiences might have been, the trans community is often the victim of far worse, and they don’t have a mountain of money and an army of defenders to protect them like she does. I’ve said it time and time again: just because you’re a victim, that doesn’t give you the right to victimize others! And bringing things back to Catra, as much as I loved her redemption in the final season, she was still a TERRIBLE PERSON for a huge chunk of the show, one that needed to be stood up to and stopped.

So yeah. That’s the messiness that is JK Rowling.

Now, let’s talk about the one that really hurts. Let’s talk about Joss Whedon.

I’ve made no secret of what a huge Whedon fan I am. Unlike Rowling, I was a HUUUUUGE superfan. Seeing Serenity for the first time in theaters was akin to a religious awakening to me as a storyteller, making it one of my top three movies of all time. Firefly is my favorite show ever. And I adored Buffy, Angel, and Dollhouse as well. I love Cabin in the Woods and The Avengers. The very first fanfic I ever wrote was a Firefly fanfic that disappeared along with my old laptop. I know his style isn’t for everyone, but I cannot understate how much of a personal inspiration he is to me as a writer.

And like Rowling, Joss was supposed to be one of the good guys! Buffy was monumental in pushing the needle when it came to female empowerment. Will and Tara were groundbreaking as a gay couple. He’s been outspoken for years about his feminist views and beliefs and was seen as one of the most prominent and influential feminist voices in Hollywood!

And then things started to go bad.

One day he was on top of the world, the mastermind behind the first two Avenger movies. And the next, it seemed like he was in freefall. It’s hard to really pinpoint exactly when the change took place. Some would say him being brought in as a last-minute substitute for Zack Snyder to take over on Justice League after Snyder had to leave due to family tragedy, and the subsequent awful critical reception to that film tarnishing his image, even if those were very unique circumstances that couldn’t really be blamed on him. Others might point to Age of Ultron’s less than stellar reception, as well as criticism of some questionable jokes and certain creative decisions regarding the character of Black Widow, which then led to a more critical examination of how Whedon continues to write female characters, as while his work might have been revolutionary in the 90’s, his failure to evolve with the times had meant that many of his portrayals are now woefully outdated and problematic, with his vision for a Batgirl movie getting hit with a lot of backlash as a result.

Again, I’m not going to go into too much detail, as this is all public knowledge and can be easily looked up, but overall it seemed that Whedon entered into a period where he was getting criticized more than he was celebrated, and his image of a guaranteed hit maker was now in doubt.

But all of this wasn’t the big problem. All creators go through rises and slumps, and everyone hits points where they get hit with a barrage of criticism; that’s just part of being a public creative figure, especially a progressive one. And had nothing happened after, it would have probably faded, got forgotten, and Whedon would have moved onto the next project with no fuss.

But as it turned out, it wasn’t just a minor slump in his career. Instead, it was the priming of the pump.

In 2016, Whedon divorced his wife of sixteen years, Kai Cole, and in an open letter, Kai Cole accused him of being a serial cheater, who would have affairs with a great many women, from co-workers, to actresses, to friends, to even his fans. And in addition to raising questions of him possibly abusing his position as showrunner to elicit sex from those working on his projects, there also is the ugly question of how could someone who speaks so highly of women then go and backstab the person who was supposed to be the most important woman in his life, as well as lying to her and denying her the autonomy of deciding whether or not she even wanted to continue to have a relationship with him?

Furthermore, Whedon himself has not explicitly denied these accusations, and comments made by him seem only to confirm them.

Now if you’ll recall, I reacted publicly to this news, and despite my admiration of Whedon’s work, I came down on Kai Cole’s side, and stated that while things like marriage issues and infidelity were no one’s business but that of the couple’s, it did raise a lot of uncomfortable questions about how Whedon treated the women in his life and he really needed to get his shit in order.

But hey, a messy private life and a guy falling into temptation isn’t that big of a deal, right? Plenty of creators also go through multiple marriages and have problems staying faithful and still continue making great art. We’re all human, it’s a stressful job, and this shit just happens, right? Sure, it’s gross and a shitty thing to do, but ain’t no business of ours, right?

In late 2020, actor Ray Fisher, who played the role of Cyborg in Justice League, openly accused Joss Whedon of fostering a hostile work environment, claiming that the director’s behavior was abusive and unprofessional, and that Whedon in turn was protected by DC executives.

DC and Warner Bros. came down against Fisher, claiming they had done an internal investigation that turned up no evidence of wrongdoing (yeah, sure they did), and soon Fisher was out as Cyborg, apparently for rocking the boat.

But then Charisma Carpenter, noted for her important role as Cordelia Chase in both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, then spoke up, claiming to be inspired by Fisher in doing so. She described Whedon did indeed foster a hostile work environment on his projects, that his often acted in a toxic manner, from asking incredibly invasive and inappropriate questions regarding her pregnancy to insulting her on set. She said that she made excuses for him for years, but after undergoing a lot of therapy and reading what Ray Fisher had to say, she felt compelled to speak out.

And this just open the floodgates. Other actors and actresses also came forward, some with stories of their own, others to offer support. Even Buffy herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar, confirmed Carpenter’s stories and said that she no longer wanted to be associated with Whedon. Michelle Trachtenberg, who played the character of Dawn, stated that she also experienced toxic treatment from Whedon despite her being a minor at the time, and says that the set had a rule that Whedon wasn’t allowed to be alone with her again, which really raises some sickening questions of what happened the first time. Even male stars have spoken out, from words of support and apologies for not speaking up earlier from Anthony Stewart Head and David Boreanaz, to an earlier interview with James Marsters, in which he described being terrified of Whedon, mainly due to an instance when Whedon was frustrated with the popularity of Marsters’s character of Spike messing with his plans and physically and verbally taking it out on the actor. There have been many corroborating stories of Whedon being casually cruel on set, on seemingly taking delight in making his fellow show writers cry, and even the man himself admitting to enjoying fostering a hostile work environment during his director commentary of the Avengers. We’ve joked about Whedon’s supposed sadism for years, but that was in regards to how he treated the characters in his stories, not the people helping him make them!

So yeah. That’s the problem with Joss Whedon.

So, do I think that Joss Whedon is somehow some kind of sociopath who lied about his feminist principles and deliberately put on a progressive façade specifically to get into a position of power so he could torment people? No, of course not. I think he was sincere about his beliefs, and I do think he didn’t realize the wrongness of his behavior. But that’s kind of the problem. See, it’s one thing to have kind of a trollishness to your nature, a sort of sadistic side. No one can help that. But when someone with that quality gets put into a position of power in which they are protected by both the higher-ups and their legions of fans, they are allowed to mistreat and continue to mistreat people. And by never suffering any consequences, that sort of toxic behavior becomes internalized, becomes a habit, becomes their moda operandi. And when you’re constantly getting praised as a creative genius and a wonderful feminist voice, any self-criticism just gets wiped away, and you think yourself above reproach, leading to what Joss Whedon became and went on being.

And you know what scares me the most about this particular issue? It’s not that I am a fan of his stories. It’s that I can so easily see myself turning out the same way.

Look, I’ll be upfront about it: I’m kind of a sadist myself. You’ve seen it in my stories, you’ve seen me gloating after a particularly dark plot twist makes my readers freak out. That sort of stuff is fun to me. There’s a reason why I have a much easier time in the dark and violent scenes, because I’m channeling something ugly within me. We all have a dark side, and this is mine.

But UNLIKE Whedon, that doesn’t carry over to how I treat people in real life (unless Monopoly or Mario Party are involved, then it’s fair game). Maybe it’s because I wasn’t given the sort of power and praise he did so early, and I was always taught to be considerate of other people’s feelings, but if I ever find out that I hurt another person or went too fair, I feel TERRIBLE, and it just throws me off all day until I apologize. Even if I don’t notice right away that what I said or did wasn’t cool (autistic, remember?), when it’s pointed out to me and I have some time to think on it, yeah, the guilt is on and I make a point to apologize to whoever I’ve hurt. I’ve even made a point to apologize to members of my family for inconsiderate stuff I said years ago as a little punk kid because it wouldn’t stop bugging me.

So maybe Whedon got too big, too fast. Maybe putting people on these sorts of pedestals, especially progressive ones, is ultimately a bad thing.

So where does this leave us? How are we to treat JK Rowling and Joss Whedon, one who developed a lot of transphobia due to abuse suffered while the other became a toxic individual due to unchecked control and a lack of consequences? Can we still enjoy their stories despite them now being colored by their creators’ falls from grace? Can we separate the art from the artist, or do we have to do a clean split?

Honestly, I feel that has to come down to the individual. I can’t remove the influence Rowling and Whedon have had on me as a storyteller, and I still highly respect both of their talents despite taking major issue with their problems as people. And I’m not going go throw away all of my Harry Potter or Firefly stuff. Because that’s my stuff. It has value to me, it doesn’t represent the issues with their creators, and a lot of it was gifts from people who are dear to me. Though I do think it’ll be a long time before I return to either of their work, as I just don’t have the stomach for it now.

But I will be avoiding any projects they have in the future. I don’t want to put money in their pockets that might go on to support their toxic beliefs or behavior. And as for royalties for their past work that would also support the cast and crew of the Harry Potter films or those who worked on Whedon’s shows who do not deserve to lose money because we don’t want any of that money going to the creators? Er, that question is a little above my paygrade. I don’t know. You’ll have to all decide for yourselves. As for me, I still have a lot of thinking to do.

Regardless though, if I or anyone else is still able to enjoy their work, then it’s important to not divorce what these people said or did from the art they created, even if it makes enjoying that art less fun. It’s important to be critical about what we enjoy, to acknowledge the bad aspects along with the good, and open up discussion of those elements, because that’s what mature adults are supposed to do. 

And as for JK Rowling and Joss Whedon, whose stories I love, whose talent I admire, and whose past good work I’ll happily acknowledge, I do hope they both experience some sort of realization and enter into a period of self-examination that leads to them getting help for their issues, for Rowling to get help in coming to terms with her trauma and realizing that she’s wrong about the trans community and a full apology, and for Whedon to also come to terms with his toxic behavior and how he treats people, for him to make no excuse for what he did and sincerely apologize to those he hurt and work on bettering himself, as well as them both examining some of the more problematic tropes still present in their works. Because despite everything, I do feel that they can still be a creative force of good, and it would be a shame if they let themselves self-destruct.

But if not, then if it comes down to choosing between Rowling and the protecting the trans community, if it comes down between choosing between letting Whedon continue to make shows and protecting actors and writers from his abusive behavior, then I know who I’m siding with, and it ain’t the two individuals this whole essay is about. No story, no matter how good, no matter how creative, is worth letting sacrificing vulnerable people in order for it to be made.

#jk rowling #joss whedon #harry potter #Buffy The Vampire Slayer #angel #firefly #justice league #ray fisher #charisma carpenter #kai cole #transphobia tw #abuse tw #toxicity tw #TERF tw #rant #TERFs don't interact I do not want to talk to you #same for abuse apologists

[cartoonfantic8]

LGBTQ+ Percy Jackson Headcannons Part 2

ToA spoilers, Jason’s not dead!

Link to Part 1 - https://cartoonfantic8.tumblr.com/post/627758351057616896/lgbtq-percy-jackson-headcannons

How the fuck did I get so many likes!? Thank you to everyone who liked it or rebloggged. I want everyone to know that your are loved and accepted. Fuck what anyone tells you otherwise, they don’t know how you feel. Being anywhere on the gender spectrum, you are not “sick” or “ill”, that’s what you feel comfortable identifying as, then you are. You are loved and accepted.

- Percy’s a demiboy

- He uses they/he pronouns but mostly uses he.

- Sally is so supportive of him, and will easily switch pronouns. Paul is a little weary of it at first but after learning a lot more and slowly accepting it, he’s proud of Percy for expressing how he feels. Annabeth is also pretty supportive and loves him all the same. Everyone is camp loves him no matter what and accepts him.

- Their friends still love them. Once in a while Jason will slip up pronouns and being the extremely nice guy he is will apogizie so much thoughout the day. Like he will feel so bad all day, and Percy will be like “Dude it’s fine, you don’t do it on purpose”

- Nico never states he’s gay, he’ll just wait for someone to say something homophobic and be “Oh you think that about gay people, well bitch I’m gay”. Then he’ll make the person flustered and embarrassed and Nico will just walk away.

- Will loves him for it. He introduced Nico to She-Ra and at first Nico hated it but then he started to low-key like it. He heavily related to Catra, Nico and Will 1000% ship Catrdora. They also watched the Owl House and defently ship Lumity.

- Mr.D is fiercely protective of the trans campers. He dosen’t show it much but he will care about them so much. He will easily switch pronouns and call them by there preferred name, he’ll get them binders or make them feel more comfortable.

- Chrion is high-key one of the most accepting people ever. He will literally die his hair and tail rainbow, he wears rainbow clothes. He will literally organize small groups of demigods going to Pride togther, that way not many monsters attack and they can have more fun.

- Anyone with homophobic or transphobic parents, stay year-round.

- The rule used to be “two people of the opposite gender, can’t be alone in a cabin togther”, then Chiron changed it to “ two people can’t be alone in a cabin togther” to be more inclusive. Then some of the campers who are in a polyamous relationship are like “Ha we don’t have to follow the rule”. Chrion was like fuck it “anyone in a relationship can’t be alone in a cabin with there significant other/others.

- Conner has tried breaking this rule and sneaking into the Athena Cabin and has gotten caught several times by the harpies. Malcolm being the little smartass he is, stole Annabeth’s invisibility cap and successfully snuck into the Hermes cabin several times.

- Aries kids go to pride parades to support the LGBTQ campers and will curse out all the homophobes protesting.

- Hephuetus Cabin making weapons for the LGBTQ+ campers. Lesbians get swords, gays get glaudius, bisexual get battle axes, demisexuals get daggers, pansexuals get poleaxes, aro’s get longbows, non-binary’s get nunchucks, ace’s get maces, trans gets tridents, ect. (Pretty much that fanart but in the PJO world) They become honorary weapons and save them in case a homophobic and transphobic army comes to camp, they’ll be prepared.

- The Flower Crowns the Demeter Cabin made can never wither or die.

- During Pride Month, the Big House will put pride flags around the edge of the roof. The Iris cabin encourages all cabins so put some rainbow somewhere outside there cabin. Most people put flags but the one that takes the cake is the Hades Cabin. Apparently the night before June 1st, Nico di Angelo with the help of Will Solace painted the entire cabin rainbow. This kinda surprised everyone.

- Drew isn’t straight at all. She was really just a closeted lesbian who had so much internalized homophobia because she had a homophobic dad growing up and lived in a homophobic environment. After a while she slowly starts to accept that part of herself and comes out of the closet like literally.

- Drew waited one night after dinner to tell her Cabin, she went into the closet of the Aphrodite cabin, put on a lesbian flag as a cape and did her makeup the lesbian flag colors, and just came out of the closet. The campers were in shock but loved her all the same. Drew became so much more open and showed more of the real her.

- She ended up dating a water nymph and loves her so much. The nymph brought a more kinder side to her and Drew became so much kinder and everyone knew it was because of her girlfriend.

- Drew teaches trans girls how to do there makeup.

- Lavinia Asimov introduced her girlfriend Poison Oak to Pride. They went to the nearest parade by Camp Jupiter.

- Poison Oak is defiantly a cottage core lesbian, you can not change my mind. Lavinia just gives me the Lesbian Artist Vibe.

- Both of them are in the LGBTQ+ support group at Camp Jupiter with Hazel.

- Hazel and Lavinia went on a shopping trip to the nearest mall, they both got plain white Vans and decided to paint them. Lavinia painted them the lesbian flag colors, Hazel painted them the pansexual flag colors.

- In New Rome, they will have Pride Parades all June. They’ll schedule it and decorate the place rainbow. They’ll put a shop and put flags, pins and stuff like that. The LGBTQ+ campers in Camp Jupiter go.

- At the Waystation, Jo and Emmie decorate a lot. They will have Pride everywhere and support anyone. They practically adopted Leo, Calypso and Lit.

- Lit’s kinda confused but Jo and Emmie teach him. Emmie makes rainbow cookies and they all go to Pride.

- Artemis is pretty much all the hunters adoptive mom. She accepts if two hunters fall in love with each other and leave the hunt. She’s still on good terms with them.

Feel free to add more!

@yjbatfamandmarchingband

@kittyplayz1cantmsg4somereason

@just-a-local-enby

@mariesunflowerchild

@la-folle-a-l-orignal

@loverofmazeandthrones

@hazellpjo

@aurelle

@spazshipping

Dedicated for all the people who wanted part two!

#percy jackon and the olympians #heroes of olympus #trials of apollo #pjo #hoo #toa #percy jackson #annabeth chase #drew tanaka #sally jackson #jason grace #paul blofis #nico di angelo #will solace #hazel levesque #conner stoll #malcolm pace #lgbtpride #lgbtq #hunters of artemis #artemis #leo valdez #calypso #solangelo #percabeth #lavinia

[ahurumustdie]

woah you're writing a book? thats so cool!! if ur comfortable, whats it about? what are the characters like? im curious

‘if i’m comfortable’ dude i could talk about my book forever, i’m just gonna give you some dot points tho bc otherwise this’ll get too long

it’s called ‘Nobodies Hero’ and that’s because the story is written from the perspective of a side character who never wanted to be dragged on some quest

the basic gist of the plot: a rag-tag group of queer young-adults embark on a quest to stop the awakening of a dragon who’s been encased in lava for the past thousand years. ft gentle romance, trauma, and a severe lack of cishet people.

The Main Characters

Keika: he’s very... standoff-ish and snarky at first and even as you get to know him he mostly communicates through sarcasm and eye rolls. this is mostly bc he’s really bad at social interactions bc he kept to himself a lot as a kid (he was angry and hurting) and also because he struggles with being vulnerable around anyone other than his sister. he slowly comes out of his shell and becomes more emotionally developed as the story progresses. as he gets closer to his quest-mates, you begin to see that Keika’s very loyal and will do almost anything if it will benefit himself or his loved ones. he’s also a librarian and he’s v booksmart.

Ahuru: she’s pretty much the opposite of her brother, all bright smiles and easy attitude. she’s always willing to help people, sometimes at the risk of putting herself in danger (mentally or physically), this is mostly because she thinks that she needs to make everyone happy all the time so that they’ll keep her around. she inherited the town apothecary from her previous mentor and is now known as the best healer in their town (and their neighbouring town). she’s not actually in the story too much bc she stays in their home town but Keika talks about her a lot throughout their journey.

Cecily: she is a sorcerer who specialises in earth and plant based magic. she’s incredibly protective of the people she cares about and will always stand up for anyone who needs it. she can be really nosy because she wants to make sure everyone’s okay, but she knows where to draw the line and is mostly just a shoulder to cry on when needed. she’s also very outwardly affectionate, and mostly shows her love through gift giving (she makes her wife flower crowns that never die) or spending time together. when Atlas first meets her, she’s a street performer in the outskirts of the royal city as well as a postal worker. she’s got two older brothers (a seamster and a trans blacksmith) who helped raise her after their parents died of illness.

Ahria (my beloved): the warrior/weapon user/fighter of the group!! she was training to be a knight until she decided she didn’t really want to work for the government or anything like that bc they’ve got so many stupid rules that don’t really help anyone, so she dropped out in her late teens and started working as an apprentice blacksmith. she’s proficient in a lot of weapons because of this and she can f i x  t h e m. she’s very protective of people who can’t fend for themselves and has a zero-tolerance-policy for abusers (if she sees you raise a hand to anyone she’ll cut it off.) like Keika she seems a bit standoff-ish at first, but that because she’s suspicious of strangers. once she’s decided that you’re not a threat she begins to act a bit like a parent, constantly making sure you’re looking after yourself and staying out of trouble. she’s slow to trust but once she does she’d lay her life down for you and if you betray that trust... aaa. she’s also very tall and buff and has a big sword and she always wears a flower crown bc her wife makes them and she loves them and im in love with her.

Atlas: the resident sunshiney optimist and the leader of the group (aka the actual hero of the story.) he’s quick to make others feel safe and welcome in his company and his first response to a situation is to be kind. most people see this as naivety and weakness; but it’s mostly your fault if you end up with a fist to the face if you attempt to take advantage of his kindness. Atlas is not a soft person, he is just a nice one. his older sister is his hero and she always taught him about how mean people are often just hurting, and that sometimes offering a hand up is the quickest way to prevent them from kicking your legs out from underneath you. but she also always taught him to get up and hit back. he’s also a sorcerer like Cecily, but he kinda dabbles in all different kinds of magic so he’s kind of a jack-of-all-trades type. Atlas is still kinda murky for me because i’ve only recently begun to properly flesh out his character and his design but i’ve got some of the basics down (:

as a quick note: Keika, Ahuru and Ahria are based off of the maori people, Cecily is a black woman and Atlas is a mixed race man with vitiligo 

genuinely thank you so much for asking about this because,,, i love them and the story so much, i’ve been working on this for actual years (the story first came to life in 2016 and has gone through several dramatic make-overs since then) and Keika is actually my oldest OC!! and idk i just love talking about them and bringing their story to life as much as i can seeing as i still haven’t actually written it.

#asks #anonymous #nobodies hero #my writing