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fridaypls · 26 days

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Scars & Secrets; diving into this Astarion & Raphael interaction

A deep dive into bravery and resilience in the face of humiliation and manipulation.

Hopping right in with the first interaction of this scene; Astarion stopping Raphael from leaving to open a negotiation of his own.

Astarion: “Wait! Before you go, I have a proposal of my own.”

And the snide response from Raphael: ”A proposal? If you’re hoping to taste my blood, little sampling, think again. It burns hotter than Wyvern Whisky.”

First, Astarion's side:

I love the split-second emotions Larian feeds us in this game; this scene is no exception. Look at his face on those first couple frames as he says "Wait!"

It takes courage. For two hundred years under Cazador's compulsion, he had little choice other than to obey... to be passive. He's not being passive now; he's taking his courage in both hands and being proactive.

As we see Astarion start to wrestle with the meaning behind his scars in game, he's started his arc towards finding autonomy and his own identity. He's taking steps towards reclaiming his story - but he can't see the scars or read them. He needs help.

And he knows better than to ask Raphael outright for help. That is a dangerous proposition; he knows Raphael is every bit as dangerous as he is cunning—but he can be useful, if the game is played right. Our rogue is clever; he's meeting the cambion on his own playing field; bargaining.

"I have a proposal of my own.”

Look at the disdain and disgust on his face in the second two frames above as he speaks the words. He doesn't want to make a deal with the devil—but he recognizes that he has little choice.

Now look at how Raphael was leaning forward to listening while Astarion spoke, with the same seriousness an arrogant adult listens to a child. There are a few incredible layers in his response.

”A proposal? If you’re hoping to taste my blood, little sampling, think again. It burns hotter than Wyvern Whisky.”

Raphael’s response immediately asserts dominance. By deliberately and mockingly dismissing Astarion’s proposal as a potential ploy to taste his blood, Raphael positions himself as the one in control. He sets the power dynamic for the rest of the conversation with the ease of much, much practice.

With "little vampling" and "hotter than Wyvern Whisky" he simultaneously takes Astarion down two pegs ('you can't handle it, child') and himself up one, remind Astarion and the listening Tav of his own nature. He mocks and belittles Astarion while lightly lauding himself, all in a sentence.

And Astarion, understandably, does not enjoy that.

"This is serious business, devil!"

There is desperation and vulnerability for him in this entire conversation and they both know it. Despite that, he fires back with assertiveness, refusing to be dismissed or spoke down to.

"Little vampling" is met with "devil!" - a seemingly simple response that is a truly a beautiful parry. If Raphael's "hotter than Wyvern Whisky" jab about his blood being too hot for Astarion to handle was a reminder of his latent power, this is Astarion acknowledging that power head on - and refusing to back down.

He doesn't give Raphael a chance to bandy back, but launches into opening steps of the dance; what he needs out of this negotiation.

”My old- well, a long time ago, someone carved some runes into my back. I’d rather like to know what they say.”

His quest to translate the runes is a symbolic step of his broader journey to reclaim his life from Cazador; he stays true to that now by refusing to mention his abuser.

Raphael, of course, is eager in his own not-entirely-subtle to assure him that he already knows all about Cazador.

”It’s something of great importance to your master. But is it a love letter, a warning, or a deep of ownership? I can give you all the gory details.”

Raphael lives to tease and torment; he has absolutely no interest in negotiating cleanly here; knowledge is power and he has it all.

By dangling that lure, Raphael positions himself as the gatekeeper of truths Astarion desperately seeks, deliberately reinforcing the power imbalance between them.

”And I will - once the beast that lurks below is vanquished, and sent back to the Hells.”

The price for the knowledge Astarion seeks; the death of the Orthon.

Also, how many of you guys caught this;

One of many fourth-wall breaks in which Raphael glances at us. I like the ?theory? that original Raphael was supposed to have the hots for the player themselves, rather than their Tav. We're left with a handful of beautiful, deliberate glances like this one.

Hurt and powerless hate on Astarion's face. He's got no recourse other than to agree and it can't be a great feeling. Then, it gets worse...

Tav: "What are you talking about, Astarion? What scars?"

And Raphael is instantly delighted.

"You haven’t told them? And you’ve kept your clothes on this whole time? How unlike you… Why not let them see? Don’t be shy.”

Raphael's interactions with Astarion are not mere casual cruelty; they are calculated moves designed to exploit Astarion's vulnerabilities.

"You haven’t told them?" He's already demonstrated he knows about Cazador. With the new knowledge that Tav doesn't know about Astarion's past, he makes a two-fold attack.

"You’ve kept your clothes on this whole time? How unlike you..." He mocks Astarion's loss of autonomy and weaponizes his vulnerability with a comment designed to come across as slut shaming to Tav...

...but a reminder of his past humiliations to Astarion, one that deliberately insinuates that his struggle to maintain his privacy and dignity are futile, or out of character. It's a cruel and careful jab.

For Astarion, every moment he is allowed to decide for himself, to keep his clothes on or take them off, is a step away from his past and a step towards autonomy and recovery. Raphael deliberately belittles that, as he has belittled him this entire conversation.

"Why not let them see? Don’t be shy."

Raphael's flippant comment entirely dismisses the deep trauma carved into Astarion along with his scars—trauma that is both physical and emotional. The scars are physical markings that represent a bloody, dark history of abuse, subjugation, and exploitation... and Raphael knows that.

"Let them see?" implies a choice, but Astarion is given none. It's a specifically calculated reminder of his past, where his body was not his own. By exposing Astarion’s scars to his companions, Raphael not only forces him into a moment of vulnerability, but also subjects him to deliberate public humiliation. "Don’t be shy" is a taunt, a laughing mockery of the situation Raphael has orchestrated.

The movement itself is gentle, almost. Not a snap of fingers or casting of a spell... just an airy wafting of a hand. Astarion realizes what's happening quickly and recoils - he takes a step back and half turns as though he's considering running, then stops himself.

The abject sadness as he turns back, just the miserable 'why?' in his eyes as he turns back to confront his tormentor. He steps exactly back into where he was standing before - doesn't cover himself or cower, but stands tall and faces the humiliation Raphael is forcing on him with his head high and shoulders squared.

Watch his face change. He already knew Raphael was a devil and an untrustworthy bastard, but one he'd have to deal with to unlock the meaning behind his scars.

Now, he knows exactly what manner of person he's dealing with.

”Gods damn it.”

The slow glance over his shoulder at you/the camera is a stab in the heart. Tav's standing to the side of him, so this additional piece of artistry is just cinematic loveliness, a truly spectacular reveal.

But also symbolic. He turns from glaring at his tormentor to check Tav's reaction. The slow glance reads to me as a moment of profound vulnerability. After being forcibly exposed, both physically and emotionally, he's seeking connection—an understanding, or perhaps even solace in Tav's reaction.

Raphael doesn't give him even a moment.

”Don’t pout, spawn. Just destroy the beast and I’ll happily reveal your secrets instead of your skin.”

Every word is laced with manipulative intent; he belittles and exerts control, dangling the price in front of his face again. The directive "Don't pout" puts down Astarion's legitimate grievances of the moment, reducing his concerns and traumas to nothing more than childish sulking.

With "instead of your skin", Raphael (who has appeared several times at this point) reminds him that this sort of humiliation is on the table at any time. It serves as a pointed reminder of the control he holds over Astarion, as well as the potential for further humiliation in the future, a calculated move designed in a state of unease and subjugation.

Astarion, for his part, his exasperated and done.

”Yes, fine, we’ll kill this damn creature of yours.”

It’s a concession, but one that's loaded with frustration and a pragmatic recognition of the immediate need to comply with Raphael's demands to achieve his own ends.

Despite being spoken down to, belittled, intentionally reminded of his traumas, stripped naked, humilated and taunted, he faces his tormentor with head high still and shoulders squared.

He's used to a master that reveled in his humiliation and hurt; he's giving Raphael nothing.

Not content with this, Raphael moves to bring the interaction to a close, with a few last jabs.

”Then we have an understanding. I look forward to our next meeting. Scars often tell such wonderful stories - I think yours might be truly exquisite.”

Raphael sees Astarion’s scars not merely as physical remnants of past trauma but as narratives ripe for exploitation. By calling them “truly exquisite”, he intentionally objectifies Astarion's suffering, posing it as something to be utilized rather than empathized with.

His macabre fascination is not just creepy in its voyeuristic appreciation of another's trauma, but... deeply unsettling, intentionally so.

And then he's gone, until the next confrontation. But Astarion's confrontation with his own past isn't over.

Astarion turns to Tav with "Well. Now you know.”

Except... he doesn't actually turn to Tav. Can't seem to bring himself to turn all the way—he faced Raphael head on, but facing Tav? Whom he trusts and cares about? Look at how hard it is for him to drag his eyes to your/Tav's face—the way he checks your reaction before turning his face all the way towards you.

Even then, he starts turn away once more, to angle his nakedness away, but his eyes stay locked on your face. There's openness there; vulnerability heavily laden with resignation. His his carefully guarded secrets are now as exposed as he is.

Tav: "Gods… the carving must have been excruciating.”

The response is immediate and bluntly empathetic; it recognizes the severity of Astarion’s pain without needing a detailed explanation. Raphael belittled his trauma and reveled in his scars—Tav sees his suffering for what it is. It's a beautiful move to intentionally normalize emotional vulnerability between them.

"Cazador worked on it from dusk until dawn, all with an ancient blade he called his ‘needle’. Cutting and tearing, starting over it I screamed or winced too much."

Midway through, the genuine hurt we see in his face is replaced with a forced smile. A tiny, non-verbal declaration of resilience... but perhaps also a long-ingrained habit of trying to inject normalcy into any moment too weighty. In two hundred years under Cazador's thumb, he didn't pull a thousand marks by letting conversations get heavy.

But the smile can't hold. It simply hurts too much. It slips away and vulnerable hurt takes its place once more instead.

"An ancient blade he called his 'needle'" is such specific language... from the Astarion Origin play-through, we know he relives the carving in his memories, to the point of feeling the pain as though it's being carved again.

"Cutting and tearing, starting over it I screamed or winced too much" is something he remembers in excruciating, perfect detail.

”It was a rough night... But what’s done is done, so how about we stop discussing it and just kill this beast?”

The moment for emotional vulnerability is coming to a close for him; He's still standing there naked, the scars he has so carefully hidden on display and so much of his vigilantly guarded trauma poured out at your feet. He takes the moment to reclaim his agency, if only a little bit, by signaling that the conversation is over. It's time to go get the job done, instead.

The transition beautifully underscores a key aspect of his character and, I suspect, yours: the capacity to compartmentalize suffering in order to deal with the immediate demands of reality.

He's acknowledging the past, but not allowing it to wholly consume or immobilize him. And we're proud of him for that.

#and I'm proud of you ♡#scars tell the tales we dare not speak #beneath the bravado a vulnerable heart beats #the unseen scars carry the deepest stories #he silent strength of enduring spirits #the quiet courage of bearing one's past #scars as silent witnesses #bg3 astarion #astarion ancunin #astarion #baldurs gate astarion #gif analysis #bg3 gif analysis #thanks larian #raphael the cambion #raphael bg3 #raphael

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loving-jack-kelly · 2 months

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ideal javid dynamic is davey constantly quaking with barely constrained rage and jack quietly egging him on to see him let loose

#also jack false bravado covering constant anxiety #while davey appears nervous and or cautious but it's because he's trying so hard not to snap like a rubber band #newsies #javid #jack kelly #davey jacobs

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officialspec · 1 year

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Whos Vriska < being genuine

character from homestuck that is maybe one of the most polarizing characters Of All Time in terms of like. people either die on the hill of loving her or actively wish torturous death upon her and her apologists. she was so controversial in her heyday there was a dedicated word for discussing her various Crimes (vriscourse) and multiple forum threads that were locked down after escalating to threats of violence. she was even gay

#in terms of like. the type of character she is shes like #a vindictive bully who has actively killed hundreds and disabled 2 of her friends. her crimes are immense #shes also like. using a lot of bravado to convince herself shes okay with the hyperviolent society she lives in #i cant explain vriska in post tags just know shes fucked up and i love her #ask

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humming-fly · 1 month

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don’t wanna get too into it bc… nsfw but how does asexual greed work when he literally says that he wants sex and women? is he just not attracted to them in that way or–

well in terms of nitty-gritty homunculi biology they are quite literally an asexual species, like father reproduces via budding lol. And then given his physical embodiment of lust herself seemingly has no sex drive and is instead Way more interested in killing it's a pretty easy conclusion that as a species they just have no sexual interests because why would they (pretty sure father as the dwarf in the flask had some comments about finding human pairings distasteful, and given all his kids are just offshoots of his personality i can't see that shifting much haha (also more shitposty take but there's the much funnier observation that all of the homunculi come with their funny little onsies literally built-in to their regenerative code so there is an incredibly real chance they're all just ken dolls down there anyways))

as for why greed himself says stuff like wanting women and sex etc., i mean he also says he wants money and power and the finer things in life and then spends his time happily hanging out in a dingy dive bar with no real long-term goals besides 'hang out with my friends and investigate immortality which is definitely for me and not for anyone else that i'd be sad to see die no siree don't ask me why i'm doing this if i'm already virtually immortal'

so yeah it's a fun aspect of his character that greed says he tells the truth but he will also just sort of...lie about his own drives to himself and others all the time lol - i'd almost chalk it up to his love of performance but there's def also some intentional personal misdirection going on, which was very obvious as greedling when ling (correctly) calls him out on acting like all he wants is power when really the only thing he wants is to have friends

basically he says he wants money and power and women and sex because that's what common human desires are but then he makes absolutely 0 effort to follow through on any of those claims because deep down that isn't actually anything he's interested in

#greed: haha yeah I want money and sex and the finer things #also greed: what if I lived in a sewer #anyways i'm sure i've made these arguments more eloquently before but I can't be bothered to find those asks again right now haha #but yeah greed is a funny guy who is also a Fascinating character study when you remember he represents a driving part of what was the dwar #a lot of bravado hiding a genuine desire for human connection #reply #fma #meta #i suppose lol

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pineappleliar · 1 year

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How horrifying it is to realize that your love of someone is the only thing keeping them human, and that if you waver in that love even a little bit they will slowly and grotesquely turn back into a frog. And the futility of trying to keep loving them if only to keep someone from such a terrible fate, but the very attempts to force such a love weaken any bonds that once existed (not to mention he’s not helping things by putting all of the executive work of both the relationship and RUNNING A COUNTRY on your shoulders).

So perhaps, you decide, it’s better to leave and fall out of love entirely, and end their slow, torturous transformation, only to realize that that is also not a fate so freely given either. If you could just not love him, then some other girl, one with less weight on her shoulders, could fall for him instead. In all likelihood he’d be happier with someone less burdened by more ‘serious matters’ as you are. But that doesn’t work either, because you remember that part of him that made you fall in love in the first place, and so the trap is set. Not loved enough to remain human, not hated enough to restart the cycle. Just, half-formed, grotesque, not quite a husband not quite a frog. Fuck me.

#dimension 20 #I got FEELINGS #neverafter #trying to imagine wtf Gerald was like as a frog #to warrant those two getting together #could just be a teen romance thing #like things were great until they weren't #could also see him just having some confidence or bravado that was charming in a frog #but less in an entitled king

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raphaerolo · 18 days

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Art Wip Game

@artisticallyill you asked about the Battle Cody & Obi so here it is

This one is definitely a bad name. While technically accurate, it's not the defining thing about this. Battle Cody & Obi is the name of my drawing that is my Codywan FMAB AU. Truly the title says nothing, and idk what i was thinking when i named the drawing but it's my fmab au

Here's it is so far:

In this au, the jedi are the state alchemists, Obi-Wan is a general and a state alchemist and a highly revered one but I don't know what his alchemy specialization is yet. Cody is his right hand who watches his back and has several big guns and people are scared of him.

I imagine this drawing to be them fighting Maul, who would absolutely just set a bunch of things on fire, not even with alchemy but with straight up matches cuz he's petty like that and Cody and Obi-Wan are trapped by the fire and waiting to see where he strikes next.

When I was ideating this, I realized that their dynamic is already pretty similar to Mustang and Hawkeye, especially with the "we can't date cuz you're my superior officer/subordinate" and the "i will flirt with others as a tactical move but it's fake and the real adoration only comes out with you"

Find wip game post here

#tag game #my wips #obi wan kenobi #commander cody #codywan #codywan fmab au #i have so many thoughts #i also imagine that one scene where roys abouta smush envy and hawkeye stops him #cuz i want a falling obi beign held at gunpoint by his commander because cody will not let him fall #cody makes him a better jedi okay?#obiwan might start to fall and codys there #theyre a team and they work well together #cody the ever serious one and obi putting on some false bravado to go by unnoticed because people underestimate him #its perfect #i think about it all the time #obi wan loses his state alchemist watch all the freaking time #cody always has it #and he clips it to his person so it comes to a point where people think hes the state alchemist #and they dont know what theyre fighting for or who #fives is hughes too smart for his own good #there are a lot of high ranking separatists and sith but i havent assigned them to a deadly sin yet #something to think about when i go to sleep tonight #fanart #digital art #star wars #my art #my wip art #fmab au #star wars fanart #wip

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midoristeashop · 11 months

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Silly little life update but I graduated!

Consider this a continuation of alka’s fic “The Golden Light” where jack hic tooth and baby tooth attend Jamie’s graduation 🥹

I should be able to draw more stuff now but in the mean time byeee!!1!!1

#the golden light #hijack #jamie bennett #jackycup #otnwas #toothless’ roar sounds like thunder n lighting so he basically jump scares everyone at grad #our little brother is all grown up 🥹#why tf is there ice on the podium #I relate to Jamie on a spiritual level now I have to go to college EW #my grad was awesome tho I shimmied my way onto stage and grabbed my diploma with BRAVADO #life (ew)

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daiziesssart · 1 month

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maybe it’s bc it’s 4am and the sleep deprivation is melting my brain but i can’t stop thinking about the scene in OotP where harry uses the pensieve and sees james doodling lily’s initials on his exam papers.

i also love the quick detail that he hastily scribbled over it at the end of class, like he hadn’t even completely realized that he drew it in the moment. it’s just so endearing to imagine with what we know about james- that when lily was around, he was known to peacock and show off to try and impress her, but when presumably no one else is watching, he‘s really just a smitten 15 year old who is completely infatuated with his crush. like he’s literally just kicking his feet and giggling over her, he’s such a loser lmao

#i just love that scene #especially since one could see james’ display of arrogance and bravado and question the sincerity of his feelings for lily #but that scene shows us that he thinks about her even when he’s in class and absentminded #and the implication that he actually was a bit embarrassed once he realized he was sketching her initials and crossed it out #before anyone else could see #that kid was whiiiipped LMFAO #it’s just very sweet to me :-)

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windsweptinred · 1 year

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Dream offhandedly telling Hob that God and the Devil are real, sending him into a full on medieval religious crisis/relapse....

Dream attempting to remedy his faux pas, brings the Archangel Gabriel or bleedin Jesus Christ himself to talk to Hob... Most definitely making it worse! 😆

Jesus: Hello Robert, Dream asked me to come and talk to you about faith.

Hob: Hyperventilating in 14th century Catholicism

#dreamling #dream of the endless #hob gadling #the sandman #He's an ex medieavl peasant #He can throw as much agnostic bravado around as he wants #That kind of Catholicism is going to stick to his psyche like the remnents of a stubborn price label #Also Hob fanboying so hard over meeting an angel Dream refuses to talk to him for a week out of jealousy

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oathkeeper-of-tarth · 1 month

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No. Please. A century I have known naught but sorrow; rage. A century have I been Ketheric's captive. Release me. I beg you.

A bit that I find really heartbreaking happens if you try to leave the dialogue with Aylin in her Shadowfell prison, after you've convinced her you're not a Sharran. This is mere seconds after she was smirking at you with:

She sounds genuinely afraid that you, the only person in over a hundred years who isn't there to ritualistically kill her or torment her in some unthinkable way, are about to abandon her. In sheer contrast to all the brave posturing and proud defiance she was demonstrating not moments before, all the blustering and insisting that she, immortal, will simply outlast all of you, that this affects her not a bit and is in fact nothing in the grand scope of her life (which we later see is actually rather painfully untrue).

#we've had a hundred years hurt now it's time for TEN THOUSAND YEARS COMFORT FOR DAME AYLIN #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #dame aylin #bg3 spoilers #the notes say her “bravado melts for a moment” and that she really is desperate to get out of there and i just #the way her face softens and her eyes widen...#yeah #me making a resolution to be more active on tumblr in order to have a healthy outlet for all my fannish nonsense once again #(the font size is really tiny on so many of my screenshots it makes them look horrible when posted ugh)

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