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help-itrappedmyself · 2 months

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Summoning Game Show 3

Masterpost

I got so inspired and had so much fun writing for part 2 I just kept going. I have determined that this 'fic' should be about 7 parts long total. And here's Part 3, because I'm enjoying the nonsense of this so much.

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“Congratulations on successfully finishing the first challenge! You can make your way back to the main room to receive your clue.”

The screen changes once Nightwing is on the stage with them. It now shows what looks like a wheel of fortune puzzle. Three words, four letters, four letters, and seven letters.

“For your clue, you can choose a letter for the puzzle!” Danny explains. “Since there are four of you we will give you four letters automatically, and you each have the chance to earn an extra letter. For the freebies! E, the most common vowel in English.”

“Looks like no E’s in this puzzle.” Danny shrugs at the boys with a grin on his face. “For the next three letters, we have the three most common consonants: T, N, and S!”

“Three letters up, two N’s and one T.” Danny turns away from the screen to face Nightwing. “What letter would you like to choose?” Dick turns to look at Red and Jason “This portion is not collaborative.” Danny cuts in with a small frown, making everyone look back at him. “You earned the letter, you choose the letter. They only get to pick a letter after they’ve earned one.”

Nightwing grimaces slightly. “A?”

“A!” Danny turns back to the screen.

“One A!” Danny turns back. “The next challenge is a sword fight against Fright Knight! Who would like to sword fight?”

Damian very quickly raised his hand. Tim almost wanted to smack him, but as similar as a bo staff can be, and as much as he doesn’t want Damian in danger, Damian does have the most extensive sword training amongst them.

Danny takes Damian to pick out his sword. “I see that you have a sword already, but the fight is to first blood and you can’t harm Fright Knight with that sword, so that’s kind of unfair. We need to get you a weapon that will actually be able to hit your opponent.” They leave through a side door, but they leave it open so everyone can see all the weapon racks and Danny as he shows Damian around.

Tim leans towards Dick and Jason as Dick takes his seat in the middle chair. “Cool, so our weapons can’t actually hurt them, good to know. What exactly are we going to be asking the King at the end of this?”

“What do you mean?” Dick asks.

“I think he means that if we want to get back to our dimension we don’t want to piss off everyone here by wasting their time.” Jason spits out, sitting up and turning towards them. “They didn’t seem to take too kindly to that idea earlier.”

Dick winces and nods. “We could ask him to deal with the cult that brought us here.”

“What if he kills all of them?”

“Well, you clearly have an idea Red, why don’t you tell us instead of making us guess.” Jason complains.

“Diplomatic relations.” Red states. “New dimension, new culture. We’re here to learn, maybe we could ask to set up a meeting between the King and Batman, or the Justice League.”

“The whole point of this is to get a meeting, what do you think he’s going to do if we use this meeting to ask for a different meeting?”

“Jason has a point. Maybe we could just ask to set up a way to communicate between us?” Dick suggests.

“I have obtained a sufficient weapon.” Damian calls out as he and Danny approach. Danny comes up onto the stage, heading back to the podium, but Damian doesn’t waste his time going back up and instead waits by the short stairs for further instructions. He is holding a katana, similar to the one he is used to, but with a different grip and that is glowing.

“So, since you’re using a semi unfamiliar weapon, Fright Knight is not going to be allowed to use his Soul Shredder, just to make it fair. And just in case he draws first blood, we don’t want to accidentally send anybody to their nightmare dimension!” Danny chirps out cheerfully. “You will be fighting in here, just stay on the main floor and away from bystanders. Fight will immediately end at first blood, no maiming, no killing, no excessive force. No use of powers is permitted.”

Danny gestures to where Fright Knight is exiting the armory with a regular looking broadsword. “This is Fright Knight.” Fright Knight waves as he comes over, stopping next to Damian so they’re both standing beneath the stage.

“Are you both ready?” The two swordsmen take a few steps away from each other and take positions before nodding. “Begin!”

#batman #danny phantom #dc x dp #dp x dc #dc x dp crossover #fanfiction #my writing #summoning game show #king danny phantom #fright knight #damian wayne #robin #red hood #red robin #tim drake #jason todd #nightwin #dick grayson #batfamily

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utterlyotterlyx · 2 months

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A Fate Inked In Starlight

Eris x Fem!Reader x Azriel

Summary - After crashing into the Autumn Court with no idea who you are, where you are or how you got there, Eris takes it upon himself to hide you and care for you with the help of the Night Court. That is until souls from other walks of life infiltrate Prythian searching for you.

Warnings - mentions of blood, Eris being gentle 🥺, memory loss, kinda arsehole Rhys?x

Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five

Leaves of red and orange peered down at you inquisitively, and the earth was hard and slightly damp beneath you.

You hissed as you moved, a metallic sting coating the inside of your mouth. The world tilted, a dull thumping in your mind swelled behind your eyes and you pinched the bridge of your nose in attempt to centre yourself.

It hadn’t worked.

Looking about, you drank in where you had awoken, soil and an array of foliage welcomed your sight, dark bark held onto browning leaves, some of which floated around where you sat. Light birdsong and the faint chirp of crickets flittered around you with the occasional crunch of dry twigs that snapped under the weight of the mammals that trotted by, not heading much mind to you.

You were clad in some kind of black armour, a second skin that fit you perfectly as it curved around your breasts and hips, the material splitting open in the shape of lightening across your chest where yellow gems and light hummed. Jewelled metal talons were fitted to your fingertips, coated with dry blood that had worked itself into each crevasse it could. You were sure that whatever you looked like was not a pretty sight.

Something had kept you glued to your spot, swaying slightly from the brute force that had clearly been wrecked upon you. From what you had no idea.

From the distance, you heard the beating of hooves against the hard ground, growing louder with each passing moment before a brilliant white stag exploded into the clearing where you were. It was beautiful, those pools of emerald bore into you, there was terror laced behind them, and the stag readied his attack as he lowered his antlers toward you.

“I’m not going to harm you,” you told the creature with an extended hand, an extension of your surrender, “I promise.”

The stag surveyed you, noting the wild hair that had fallen from a once tightly strung braid, the blood that coated your neck and fingers, the bewilderment in your eyes. No, you certainly weren’t a threat.

“I’m not sure how I came to be here. I don’t know where I am,” you continued, as if the stag would be able to answer any of your questions.

The creature relaxed, taking a tentative step forward to sniff the outstretched talons fixed to your fingertips. He huffed and shook his head, one of his hooves tapping against the ground as another sound entered your earshot.

“Dogs,” you said softly, sadness laced in your rough voice that scratched at your throat. “Go. I’ll distract them,” you turned your hand, exposing your palm to him, he rested his snout in it gently, and only for a moment before he bounded away. Leaping over molehills whilst leaving you alone once more.

The barking drew closer and your breath caught in your throat at the obvious number of hounds that approached your position, perhaps mistaking your blood for that of the stags.

They hurtled into the clearing, the hedges and flowers parting for them as they surged through the air and landed in front of you, mouths pulled back and snarling teeth ready to tear you apart. You shuffled back as they circled you, snapping, slobber dripping from their canines causing your heart rate to beat in your ears. Hitting the trunk of a tree, you sighed, realising there were no weapons attached to the leather holsters at your thighs made your current predicament a lot more complicated.

You wouldn’t dream of harming an animal, at least, you thought so.

A flutter of your heart gave way to gentle excitement when you had seen the stag, and even the dogs despite them wanting to turn you into a meal.

A sharp whistle tore their attention from you, pulling them back to the source as he too entered the clearing. His head was tilted to the side and he examined you with a hand resting on the hilt of his sword, assessing if you were a threat or not. Red hair and amber eyes found you, and he approached, splitting his gaze between you and your laboured breathing to the scene around you both.

“Who are you?” His voice was rough but held a stoic calm, the deepness of his words made your hairs stand on edge.

A simple question. Your name. You opened your mouth but nothing came out, you stuttered, eyes wide as nothing came to mind, “I, I don’t know.”

You were the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Wide doe eyes staring at him in bewilderment, he knew your skin would be soft despite the mud and blood coating your surface. The sharp jaw and hallowed cheeks, full pouted lips and an elegantly pointed nose. Too beautiful for a human or fae.

The confusion etched into every inch of your features made the man relax a little, he knelt before you, his dogs happy with wagging tails brushing against his side, “Do you know where you came from?” By the looks of your armour, the blood coated talons, and the cuts dug into the side of your neck, it was clear to him that you weren’t from Prythian. You looked too advanced for his world.

You shook your head, muttering a faint and weak answer to him.

He hummed, reaching to tuck a strand of your dirty matted hair behind your pointed ear. Fae, he noted. Smiling when you didn’t flinch under his touch, he offered a hand to you, it was calloused and rough, but his pressure was gentle and guiding as he helped you from the ground.

“I’m Eris Vanserra, and you’re in the Autumn Court,” he looked down at you through thick lashes and offered a warm smile.

“Eris,” his name fell from your lips and he nodded in encouragement as you familiarised yourself with the sound of it. Yes, you definitely weren’t from his world, if you were, you’d surely cower from his name and the mention of where you were.

A pressure consumed your feet, and you found one of his hounds sat on them, staring up at you with its panting tongue flopping against the side of its jaw, its tail rustling the leaves beneath it as it wagged happily, “That’s enough, Duke,” Eris scolded the hound, rubbing between his ears in a bid to get him to move, “I’m sorry about him.”

“Don’t be. I don’t mind,” you smiled, and he noticed the warmth in your eyes, the molten gold and ocean blue that could have him entranced if he wasn’t careful. “I’m sorry about this,” you motioned the air, the current situation you found yourselves in, “I wish I knew what to say.”

“It’s fine,” he frowned slightly as he peered at the still open flesh on your neck that leaked with every heartbeat, “Let me help you with that.”

“I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

Eris smirked, “You’re not asking,” he shrugged as he heading back in the direction from whence he came, adjusting his brown jacket which lay over a cream open collared shirt. You weren’t sure how you didn’t notice it before, the well fit pants and shirt, the adornment of fine rings across his digits. Eris Vanserra was clearly someone of high standing, and you felt stupid for not knowing. The disappointment felt foreign to you.

The male looked back at you expectantly, his well kept fiery red hair tousling over his forehead, freckles visible as the sunlight hit his face. “Thank you,” you followed his steps, Duke trotting alongside you like a personal guard.

Once you had made it back to Fir Manor, Eris’ private residence that was home to him and his hounds alone, he insisted that you bathe, that it would be easier for the healer to assess the damage if she could tell what was or wasn’t your own blood.

You didn’t need telling twice, you thanked Eris for the spare clothes, a sheer deep red dress, before you slipped into the bathroom and peeled off your second skin, paying no mind to the marks that littered your forearms and torso, the marks that covered every inch of your body.

It seemed silly. To be so trusting of someone you’d just met. But something told you that Eris wasn’t a threat to you. Something had allowed you to feel safe with him.

You sighed as the hot water worked to relax your muscles, the rest of the world fading away into blissful nothingness.

Rhys was happy.

Finally happy.

A mate and a babe. A family. No danger for the first time in what felt like a millennia.

Rhys watched them, watched his Nyx swaddled into Feyre’s chest as she painted, humming some lullaby to the dozing babe. Light poured into the room from the domed glass and he let a content sigh pass through his lips from where he leaned against the doorframe. Relishing in the sight for a moment longer before retreating back to his office and closing the door with a soft click.

He wasn’t sure where the rest of them were, Mor would be returning from the human lands soon, Cassian and Azriel were surely training, Nesta was probably nose deep in another book in the library with Amren at her side, and Elain was tucked away with Lucien somewhere revelling in their newly accepted mating bond.

Everything was as it should be.

The papers on his desk were too chaotic for anyone else to understand but him, he knew where each treaty lay in the stack, where each letter from a concerned citizen sat, when Az’s countless reports waited for his eye.

Though, one thing caught his eye that definitely hadn’t been there before he’d gone to check on his mate and child. A folded up rip of parchment, singed at the edges with an aroma of wet grass gripping to it.

It reeked of Autumn, of Eris.

Rhys wasn’t worried that the heir had contacted him. They were planning for a better Autumn once Beron handed over his title, it wasn’t out of the ordinary to hear from the eldest Vanserra at all. Scanning the parchment, Rhys felt his interest grow in the words, the vague message that beckoned him to Fir Manor, telling him that someone had dropped into the forest who Rhys may be interested in meeting.

So, the High Lord of the Night Court stalked through the halls, parchment in hand as the clash of swords and jostling laughter flooded his senses. Then he saw them, his two brothers in their training leathers, wide smiles and bruises that would fade within the hour as they jabbed another with playful words.

“Ah, did you call on Rhys to come and save you, Az? How desperate,” Cassian glimmered, his wings rustling and body keeping guard against Azriel’s oncoming attack.

Rhys stepped between them, holding the parchment in the air between his fingers with a smirk on his lips as Azriel to it from him, scanning the words, “With no memory of where she came from?” Azriel questioned, his shadows curling over his shoulders as though they wished to see what held their masters attention whilst he handed the written words to Cassian who pouted about being left out.

“Do you remember the visitor we had not too long ago?”

Azriel smirked at the memory of the redhead scouring through the caves of Prythian, “Bryce?”

“Yes, Bryce.” Rhys sent a glare to Cassian, no doubt still unhappy at his mates willingness to aid the girl, “She too fell into our world out of nowhere, didn’t she?”

Cassian stopped the thought before it could be shared, “Yes, but Bryce knew who she was and why she came here. It seems this woman doesn’t share that similarity,” he turned the paper over in his hand, like some newfound information was going to be inscribed elsewhere.

From the brief information that Eris had sent to Rhys, the woman who had fell into the Autumn had no idea who she was or where she was let alone how she found herself bleeding in a different world from her own.

“Regardless,” Rhys’ eyes glowed at the hidden message Cassian had tried to convey, that maybe this woman had nothing to do with Bryce and whatever war she was fighting on her shores. Though Cassian did have to admit that it was a coincidence that another soul had floated through into their world. “It needs to be investigated. Azriel, you’ll come with me. Cassian, you’ll stay here.”

The pair knew better than to convince Rhys otherwise, Azriel especially knew better than to refuse and potentially put his home and people in danger.

Another invader had dove into his world, his home, and he’d be damned by the Mother if he let another one trick him again.

Authors Note

Hi my loves!

It’s been a while. I know I’m usually a Bridgerton girly but I’m kinda obsessed with everything SJM right now.

So, here we are. My first Maasverse fic 🤷‍♀️

I am wanting to write a series on this so let me know what you think! I’ve been out of the game for a bit 🤍

#azriel #rhysand #cassian #eris vanserra #eris acotar #eris x reader #acotar #acotar fanfiction #azriel x reader #azriel x you #feysand #acotar imagine #maasverse #mor acotar #amren acotar #crescent city #crescent city imagine #bryce quinlan

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she-tragedy · 6 months

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Kiriona being the emperor’s construct fucks me up so hard. literally cosmic parental horror. like they are so bad together. he made her and then he made her again. he brought her to the world twice, he gave her a name. she is his blood, flesh and bone to the fullest, he molded her. she is the extension of her father. John loves keeping people he loves close, loves making them his fingers, his gestures, making them indistinguishable from him. Kiriona isn’t whole, she is incomplete. a lonely soul torn apart, chewed and spitted out. she is a cavalier without a necromancer. her mother hated her, she was a weapon, a bomb to her. she is a construct of her father. he loves her by owning her, by fusing her to him. she wants to be loved, she would give anything for it (she has given everything away already).

#tlt #the locked tomb #nona the ninth #kiriona gaia #gideon nav #john gaius

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ishomieokay · 3 months

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Terms of Endearment in Spanish: A Guide for Fic Writers

I saw someone doing this for terms of enderment in Italian and wanted to share one of my own in Spanish.

If you want Pedro Pascal or I dunno, freakin' Pablo Escobar (yeah there are fics of him, apparently) to call you/your oc/another character a cute nickname, follow this guide!

Gender Neutral

Mi amor - my love

A bit overused tbh but you can never go wrong with the classics!

Amorcito - little love

Mi cielo - my heaven or my sky

Mi alma - my soul

I almost never see this one in fiction but it's soooo sweet. If your character comes from a barrio or is some type of lowbrow gangster/criminal you can also make him say mi arma. It iterally means my weapon but it's also mi alma mispronounced. I would kill to see this in a mafia love story tbh.

Mi bien - my good

I'm not sure how to explain this one but if someone calls you this they are basically saying that you are everything good in their life. It's very old-fashioned, though, so take that into account.

Corazón - heart

Female

Bella - beauty

Linda or bonita - pretty girl

Princesa - princess

Mi reina - my queen

Mami or mamita - mommy

I know that for English speakers this one is weird, but this is actually the most common term of endearment in Latin America. It's a flirtatious way to address a woman, similar to "baby" or "sweetheart".

Consider the character's country when using it! If they are from Spain, they are not likely to use this word. On the other hand, if they are from a Caribbean country the word won't necessarily have a flirtatious meaning to them. There mami is a form of endearment that can be used with girlfriends but also with any female friend or relative.

Mi vida - my life

This one is tecnically gender neutral, but it's mostly used to refer to women.

Male

Papi or papito - Daddy

Unlike it's English equivaleng, to call someone papi in Spanish is not inherently sexual. The same rules that apply to mami apply to papi. It's very common and in some Carribbean countries it can be used in a platonic way with friends and family. Even men may call each other this, although usually in a joking manner.

Mi rey - my king

Guapo - handsome

Mostly used in Spain.

Osito - pookie bear

Mi marido - my husband

This one's a tricky one. You never say it to the man's face. It's what you call him when you are talking about him to other people, even if you are not actually married. It's a way of saying that your relationship with him is serious and it usually has a very possesive connotation.

This is not an extensive list but I hope it helps! I may add other nicknames later.

#fanfiction #reader x character #self ship #x reader #reader insert #oc #hispanic characters #latino characters #writing #pedro pascal #miguel o'hara #narcos #la casa de papel

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naomihatake · 7 months

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A love so deep

Pairing: Roronoa Zoro x GN!reader

Synopsis: He loves you so deeply it defies the forces of nature.

Content warnings: weapons, loyalty, maybe it's fluff?

Word count: a few hundred words

A/N: Zoro brainrot hours. I'm around episode 330 of one piece so I don't know for sure if he ever harms any of his crewmates with his sword, so for now this is just a headcanon. Take it as you will, dear readers

Zoro Roronoa is loyal. He's confident, despite the monsters hunting him sometimes, screaming in his nightmares that he's not strong enough, that he has to get stronger and stronger and stronger in order to protect his friends, his lover. If he can't protect the ones he cares for at least through actions — because he's never been a professional at verbally expressing himself — then what the fuck is he even doing?

His will is stronger than steel. Maybe it's tied to his stubborn nature, to the fact that once he wants to do something, there's no way to stop him. His will is the highest and strongest mountain you'll ever lay eyes on and you're either able to accept it or not.

He wants to protect the ones he holds dear to his heart. Out loud there are rare times when he admits such things, but he's proved it countless times. He'll say things with a specific nuance and only his friends would know the deep meaning behind his words.

His will are his swords. His stubbornness runs through the hilts and rests in his scabbards, it makes his katana shine each time he draws them out. He's poured his everything into these swords, even the overwhelming and undeniable love he has for you. Weapons, objects he always used to kill, blades that sparkle with the remnants of blood.

However, not even once did his sword cut through a friend, through you. Even his very body would be manipulated by some supernatural force, the blades would only graze the skin, would mold into your skin and still not break through. There would be marks, it would be obvious something happened, but your blood will never get on his swords.

Especially if you trust him, his abilities and his katana. They're like an extension of his very being, of his own soul. Even the blades recognise you, your haki, your energy. Even their sharpness softens at the contact of your skin and stops, refusing to hurt you, someone he loves so deeply he doesn't know for sure what path he'll take if something happens to you.

And he'd be damned if you're harmed by him. He would rather die one thousand times and run with bare feet through hell than be the one to inflict pain on you.

And he trusts you just the same way he trusts his own will. Whatever weapon you weild, whatever power has been bestowed to you by a Devil Fruit — none of those matter. Deep down, he knows you're not capable of harming him or your friends.

Because, at some point, an enemy you're fighting against might laugh hysterically about how "You'll bend to my will, Pirate Hunter".

Both of you know that no matter what, none of your wapons will ever be drowned in the other's blood. His sword would stop at the contact with your skin and your bullet would ricochet against his bare chest.

A love so deep it defies the forces of nature. The string of trust is thick and stronger than steel, just like his will and your own.

This connection between him and you won't appear out of the blue, but it will certainly grow steadily and once it does, it's unbreakable.

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hyatoro · 11 months

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Augustine Carver

SecondMaleLead!Yandere

Appearance: 6’2”, Ashy blue hair, gray eyes, noble clothing, well dressed, buff. (Picrew image at bottom.)

Setting: Villainess Isekai/Reincarnation Genre style story.

Heads up, the reader made for Augustine is probably the most described one since it’s going to be transmigration. Meaning that the reader will be taking the role of the villainess from the original story. Like literally inhabiting her body. If you want more general reader inserts, you should check out Franklin Russell and Hwang Minsu. Kayden Nguyen also has a more general reader but his is a psychic!reader.

She won’t be described in extensive detail about her appearance or anything, other than that she’s the image of current trends and has a naturally ‘cold and vicious’ appearance, as is typical of the genre she comes from.

Augustine was part of a cliche romance story where he played the part of the other strong man in an unnecessary love triangle who the poor little saintess could rely on when the crown prince was off doing whatever. Sometimes he was doing royal duties so that the 2ndML had time to shine, to build up the readers’ affection for the 2ndML. Other times the crown prince was in conflict with the saintess for more story building and relationship growth.

Basically Augustine Carver’s existence was used as a tool for the growth of the main couple’s relationship.

He cared about her. Wanted her to be happy. Wanted to win her heart.

And they trampled on his feelings by discarding him for their happily ever after.

He even went to war for them. Not exclusively because of them, because he’s a reasonable dude who was doing his due diligence as a noble, but him going to war and fighting for the main couple’s ideals was played up a lot in the novel. And though he wasn’t owed affection simply for helping her, the way the main couple threw him away left a bitter taste on his tongue. The way they shoved him out of the way and belittled him so that he couldn’t rise to become a problem for them in the future instead of fairly compensating him for his efforts after the war was over? Disgusting.

Forced to clean up their mess and then get out of their faces, any amicable feelings he had for the couple, especially since he had grown up as close friends with the crown prince, are extinguished. He’s not stupid. He knew what they were doing, as much as they wanted to play dumb whenever he spoke with them in person.

Reader, feeling rage and contempt for this, gets fucking yoinked into the world of the story.

The reader’s soul merges with the Villainess’, making them one and the same with twice the memories. So you’ll see me switch between “you” and “the Villainess” a lot, depending on current and past actions.

Ages during the story and after story:

Saintess 19 > 22

Crown Prince 20 > 23

Augustine 21 > 24

Villainess 20 > 23

2nd Prince 16 > 19

Setting Details:

Magic is real but sparse. We’re talking 1 in 300,000 kind of thing. Mages are given a lot of prestige, and many get employed by the royal family. Magic powers can range from just being able to light the stove, to massive fire balls, to insane weapons of mass destruction shit. There’s also healing too.

The Saintess is a figure that’s meant to fight off the miasma. A holy and divine power. Actually not a unique role, which is discovered when you enter the story. The author made it out to seem like it was, but it turns out that it isn’t.

Background and relationships between characters:

Villainess was the original prospective fiance to the Crown Prince. As the only daughter around his age from a ducal family, it was essentially set in stone that she was going to become the future queen. With latent magical abilities, she kept them hidden, lest there be trouble because of power imbalances between the nobles. She was already going to become the queen, so for her to also be a powerful mage? Shit would’ve gone down. So she keeps it hidden throughout the novel, keeping her family safe from political strife. Though she didn’t care for the Crown Prince romantically, she still thought they were good close friends. Until the Crown Prince becomes smitten with the Saintess and disregards her presence entirely and humiliates her by doing so. Villainess retaliates accordingly, but in typical romance genre fashion, her legitimate critiques are interpreted as harassment.

In the original story she goes on to be like “Fine. If you’re going to keep believing that I’ve been harassing your precious flower then I might as well have done the things you’re accusing me of.” And she goes on to actually commit to the bit. The reason why she isn't killed or banished is because the Saintess’ role isn’t unique. There are others, Saints and Saintesses. Think of it more like an RPG class. They just weren’t covered in the story. So despite being special and key roles to dispelling the miasma, the Villainess’ bullying is the same as if she were harassing a lesser noble. Still bad, but not enough to warrant such harsh punishment. This is of course, if the story goes according to the novel.

Augustine is also a childhood friend of the Crown Prince, making them and the Villainess a trio from youth. He never really thought of her in any romantic way early on because she was going to become the Crown Prince’s fiance. He knew better than to fall for the future queen. That mentality stuck around, though he is still fond of her as they grow up and go through school, and through life. Though he falls for the charms of the Saintess, he’s still good friends with the Villainess. They have a lot of side conversations too. When he sees how the Crown Prince treats the Villainess after meeting the Saintess he confronts the man. Asks him why the hell he’s doing this to their close friend and his fiance. The Crown Prince then describes the Villainess as a villainess, basically believing all the rumors of how she had harassed people.

Augustine is skeptical, because while he is fond of the Saintess, he hasn’t fallen so blindly and has faith in his friend. He does clear up the misunderstanding between himself and the Villainess. But he isn’t surprised when she hits her breaking point and actually follows through with the bullying. It’s after she does this that he turns his back on her and falls into the Saintess’ faction. Something he regrets later on. Not because he supported her harsh actions, but because he knew she was coming from a place of hurt and as her friend he didn’t do more for her. Also has a sense of camaraderie cause they were both done dirty by the royal couple, though he knows that their feelings about it are different.

Also he’s the heir of the Count. Some time between the 3 years of the story he officially becomes the Count.

The Crown Prince is young and naive. He wanted to feel like a hero and worshiped, but the Villainess wasn’t raised to be anything like that. He does however feel like that with the Saintess, which is how everything spiraled so fast. The Saintess being his first love and his dream girl is what makes him into one of those people that prioritize their romantic relationships above all else.

The Saintess is a white lotus bitch. She appealed to the Crown Prince intentionally despite knowing of his official engagement to the Villainess. She isn’t a reincarnator or anything of the sort herself. She’s just like that. And because the Villainess can tell that her schemes aren’t elaborate, it’s just a greater insult to her that this clown is meant to become the queen all because the Crown Prince fell head over heels for her. The country is at stake bro.

There’s also the obligatory 2nd Prince that’s younger than everyone else, but will serve to become the Crown Prince’s replacement once you get your fucking hands on that idiot Crown Prince.

Generic background aside, the reader gets inserted at some point in the story as the Villainess.

Now, here’s where I have two separate routes for this. Mid or post story. Mid story allows for more interfering with the original story and changes the outcome greatly. Post story means angst and comfort and revenge. I like both so I’ll differentiate between the two depending on the post.

Mid-story:

Reader becomes the Villainess after the Crown Prince meets the Saintess and falls for her, your memories mashing together as one. Here, you can either ignore or do something about the Saintess, but regardless, your goal (both mid and post story) is to side with Augustine. The Villainess was never an awful person, pretty great actually, so it’s easy to maintain that reputation and steer things a different way. Those familiar with the genre have probably seen endings where the reader would manipulate the main couple into ruin, which is the most likely route I see both options going. It’s just that one is preventative and the other one is revenge.

The Villainess remained complacent in terms of reaching out for higher help in the original story because she didn’t want to cause trouble for her family. You as the reader do not care and utilize all the connections to yank those two off their high horse and drag them through the mud. The way you clear Augustine’s eyes is by showing him just how much of a rat the Saintess is in reality.

The Villainess wasn’t stupid. She just fell into that mindset of “if our years of friendship wasn’t enough to earn your trust, I’m not going to fucking bother.” Which isn’t entirely wrong, but you’re more vindictive so you’re willing to take those extra steps to drive shit home.

Being the villainess means you have “evil” magic, which is just dark magic. Dark as in darkness and shadow, not evil in nature. You practice and hone your skill and eventually get to a point where you can conjure shadow servants to do your bidding at night.

Augustine is curious as to why the Villainess has changed, but comes to understand what major event would’ve caused it, and that perhaps she was just lying low all her life (not really but that’s what he thinks). He’s not surprised that the future queen is cunning. He thinks it’s pretty hot, but again, she’s still engaged so he doesn’t really continue that line of thought.

When his eyes are opened to how badly the Saintess schemes he’s eventually disenchanted by her and joins you on the ‘what the fuck are those two on’ boat. Normally you two wouldn’t be allowed to spend so much time alone together since you were engaged, but because everyone knows the Crown Prince did it first, no one really says anything. Again, you’ve basically kept the Villainess’ reputation intact so if anything everyone is still on your side.

With everything in motion you start to enjoy your time with Augustine properly. He’s drawn in by you and finds that you are his respite from serving the Crown Prince. He’s charmed. But he grew up with such a strong mental boundary that he shouldn’t see you as anything romantic that he doesn’t know what to do with himself once the engagement gets annulled and the 2nd Prince becomes the Crown Prince. At first he thinks that the engagement between you and the royal family is still in place, only being transferred to the younger brother, but you make it clear that you’re not interested in marrying into the family that disgraced you, and no one can really argue with that. Which is good cause he might of started a coup, even though you were trying to avoid him going into battle.

So now you’re walking through the gardens the night that everything went down, and his mind is whirling because all the feelings he’d held back are now bursting to the surface but old habits die hard and he bites his tongue before he can say anything stupid.

It’s up to you to make the first move, and when you do he almost collapses out of relief.

“Oh thank the gods… I didn’t think- I just- Are you sure? Me? You know you’d be marrying down, right?”

“No no no. I’m not refusing. I just- You were always engaged to him so I never-”

“Yes, I care for you. I feel for you more than I’ve ever felt for anyone. I’d be more than happy to send a formal proposal to your family as soon as I get home tonight.”

War is also avoided in this version because it was initially instigated by the couple.

Post-Story:

War is not avoided in this version and he comes home scarred and bitter when he sees what’s there to welcome him back. The couple started to plan their grand wedding as soon as the end of the war was announced. Garish, gaudy, and downright tasteless considering that the efforts should be put into restoration and support for the people. When his so-called friends don’t even greet him all his fantasies of being welcomed back warmly go crashing out the window. He has to schedule an audience with them. Schedule.

And when he does he’s delegated a lot of the tasks that they should be doing to help the people while they make themselves busy planning their dream wedding that could probably feed multiple cities.

You as the reader drop into the Villainess’ body at this point. You find out that you’re in the outskirts of the kingdom, laying low and chilling. Ties are tense between her and her family, but they don’t hate her or anything. Just want her to stop causing trouble, which is frustrating considering she’d been doing that all these years until then.

Once you get settled and used to the new life, you find your way to Augustine, who is also on the outskirts of the kingdom helping the affected areas recover.

When you two meet again he doesn’t know how to react. He’s not hostile, but the way you casually waltzed back into his life leaves him a bit confused. You look at him and your gaze softens when you see how much he’d been through, reaching to hold his cheek and brushing your thumb across his scars. The ones on his face were minor and would likely heal to the point where they were unnoticeable, but looking down, seeing his sleeves rolled up, you could tell that there was more than what was shown.

He stiffens when you reach for him, but you’re a familiar face, and you were never really a threat to him, so he gives into his urge to relax into your touch. Deep down, even when he was at war, he missed the Villainess. His good friend.

Then you welcome him home, thanking him for his efforts in the war, and the man almost breaks down crying right then and there. His throat closes up as he nods, whispering a simple “I’m back,” and a “thank you.”

It’s at this moment that he mentally swears his allegiance to you. He already had time to reflect on how stupid everything was while he was off at war, the distance helping him take a step back and cringe on how ridiculous he was when he was fawning over the Saintess. The guilt and regret mix in with the comfort and familiarity you offer and he can’t find it in himself to deny your outstretched hand.

You help him with his work. When he tries to stop you, saying that noble ladies aren’t meant for this kind of stuff, you give him a deadpan look and he shuts up. You then explain to him how if he’s good enough for this kind of work then you are too.

You two spend the time talking and catching up on the time apart. You tell him about your time away from the capital. What you’ve been up to for the past 2 years. He tells you about what happened after you left, how shit went downhill and his time in the war.

Your reader’s brain knows what happened to him, but hearing him pour his heart out in person just strengthens your resolve to give the couple real hell. The Villainess’ harassment of the Saintess was child’s play compared to what you were going to do to them.

Similar to the mid-story route you hone your shadow magic and work behind the scenes extensively. You mend your relationship with your family, and even have some audiences with the king. The king still cared for you like his daughter because of how long the engagement was, and he was always understanding of the problem. It’s just that as the king he had to dole out a fitting punishment without any bias, which is why you were banned from entering the capital for years, until the duchy made an appeal for your audience with the king.

Lots of discussion and political intrigue that I’m too dumb to figure out happened.

The royal couple are on edge, seeing as how you found your way back to the capital and were talking to the king privately, making the two immature rats act out. They were right to be nervous however, as you scheme behind the scenes to rip away every single luxury the Crown Prince had due to popular demand from the people, infuriated with his conduct.

Augustine is by your side the entire time and was initially on the fence until he discovers that their idiotic plans to essentially lock him away in the outskirts because of the Crown Prince’s jealousy. Then he’s all aboard and adding to your resources.

The entire time he was appreciative of your efforts and liked spending time with you in between moments. When you brush your hand against his grabbing a pen, or place a hand on his back as you squeeze past him in an alley, his breath hitches and he has to do a mental reset as he reevaluates what he’s feeling.

Older him is actually more in denial of his own feelings because he wanted to kill off his romantic desires, but you poured oil on the flickering embers and now it’s a full-fledged flame that threatens to engulf him whole.

When you grabbed his hand and pulled him against you to hide in the shadow of night he had to stop breathing or else the scent of your perfume would drive him insane. The warmth of you pressed against his chest was enough to do it already, and he was barely clinging on by a thread.

It’s up to you whether you confess before everything is resolved or after. The entire time he’s going to be hopelessly pining and pathetically hiding his feelings until you make that step.

His claim on you is still like, ridiculously obvious to anyone with eyes. And those without honestly. He’s glued to your side and quick to asserting himself if literally any other suitors present themselves.

https://picrew.me/en/image_maker/32223

He doesn’t have the scars mid-story of course.

#sub yandere #sub!yandere #yandere x reader #yandere x you #yandere oc #SecondMaleLead!Yandere #Augustine Carver #dom!reader #dom reader #this one is LONG #villainess #villainess isekai oc #villainess isekai

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updownlately · 11 months

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i'm the definition of 'wreck' (if you look into my soul)

| leah williamson x reader | angst | 2.4k | inspo: time by nf / everywhere by niall horan | a/n: i tried to write angst, no idea how that went but here's what i got. technically since no names were named you can imagine any player from the arsenal wfc as 'her' but i wrote this with leah in mind bc well im a lw6 simp

~~~

It's been like this for weeks. This push and pull. The little things that work just a little harder each time to knock you over the edge. To be honest you don’t know how much of it you can take. And what’s worse is you know you’ve got nobody but yourself to blame.

It’s when she’s leaving your shared bed early in the mornings, long before either of you need to be up. It’s the way she’d retire to bed later than she probably should, long after you’ve headed up, risking less sleep just to avoid contact.

It shouldn’t be like this. Love shouldn’t be like this. It shouldn't be missed date nights, keys grabbed after every fight, doors slammed, sometimes more nights a week spent at hotels than your own bed. Yet, it’s all you’ve ever known and the only thing you carry in your heart. This sad, broken, pathetic attempt at love is really all you have to offer.

In all honesty, you were shit at this relationship thing, though no one could blame you. They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and yet you’ve begged and prayed that it would. And yeah you technically have control over your actions and should better yourself, but you’ve tried and failed over and over again. You’ve tried to improve, work on yourself, create a better version of you, but in the end, when everything’s burning and there’s napalm in the air and rubble all around you, all you’ll ever know is to grab your weapon, fire, and run.

It’s left you alone, failed relationship after failed relationship. You swear you’ve tried. Tried to work on communicating, on breathing deep breaths before your anger builds up, on talking about your fucking feelings. Regardless, it’s never enough for yourself. You run, you hide, you lock yourself away until there’s nothing to find.

So when weeks and months pass and you see her each day with the light finally returning to her eyes you can’t help but be glad that she got rid of you.

And when you feel so broken seeing her and her family after a game won at your home pitch, you quietly gather the shattered pieces of your heart and make your way toward the locker rooms with nobody but yourself to blame.

It's only as you pass the friends and family section that you can pick out her mother’s voice and your name being said in conversation, with a follow up question on how you’re doing, something you really don’t deserve after how you’ve treated her.

You’re very much aware that no matter how many times you fix your damaged heart and dull all the sharp edges, that you’ll still end up hurting those around you. So you speed up ever so slightly, shielding your already broken heart, cradling the pieces that had fallen ever so gently as they break further in your hands, careful not to cut anybody along the way. You swear you drop some pieces in your hurry, but with your rush you tell yourself you’d come back later to grab them (spoiler: you never do).

You end up showering and changing before anyone else has even made it back inside. Making a pit stop to confirm your departure and the following days’ schedules with your manager and coach, you check the time and head to your car.

It's late afternoon and while that helps expand your options for lunch, it also means you have one too many hours left in the day to survive before you can let yourself head to bed. Contemplating on how to spend the rest of your day, it’s your tiredness that makes the final decision.

You grab a quick lunch, choosing to not head home and instead to the gym for a workout. It may not be one of your wiser decisions to have an extensive training session today, but with the free time on your hand and the voices in your head, there’s really no better option.

Meeting up with your trainer, which by the way bless his heart for booking you at the last minute, you gather your gloves and handwrap and head towards the equipment. It’s as you run through your normal warm-up that you reflect on how pathetic your life’s become.

For the past three months, you’ve damn near ceased to exist. Yeah your body’s still here, you’re waking up in the mornings, attending practices, playing in games, all the good stuff really, but you know you’re not there. A feeling you’re all too familiar with. The lack of care of what happens to your body, the way your slide tackles and play gets just a tad bit more dangerous each game, the way you keep training, choosing to ignore the idea of a recovery period, the way your car’s more comforting to you than the apartment you own. You’ve been here before and it wasn’t a good place then and it sure as hell isn’t now, but it's all you know and the only thing that’s never really left, so you’ll cherish it for as long as you can. You know that if anything and everything leaves, as they always seem to do, you’ll still have your companion in the darkness.

The sane part of you realizes how far gone you are, it tries, tries so helplessly hard to pull you back, remind you that you can be okay, but this time? This time you’re sure you’ve given up on trying to remember that. So you’ll do what you know best. Let it consume you. Let it destroy you. Pick you apart piece by piece. Let you slowly forget the feel of a sunny day and a good practice with the team. Rid you of the joy that comes with the pretty sunsets London Colney sometimes has to offer. And this time you’ll let it all happen with open arms, truly, honestly, finally exhausted.

An hour later when your trainer’s calling it a day and forcing you to take a break, you listen, if only to spare yourself a lecture. You grab your stuff, shower, change, and head out. You’ve still got a couple hours left to kill, and with your training bag and boots still in your car, it’s not a difficult decision of where to go.

Opening your car door and entering, you can feel the day catch up to you, your body readily sinking into the driver's seat, almost protesting against your mind. You know you’ll be feeling these workouts tomorrow, but your mind’s not done racing yet.

Lacing your boots a short while later, back at the training grounds, you grab your spare ball and warm-up once again, going through the motions. With how many hours you’ve spent at the grounds alone, you’ve developed a pretty consistent solo training session. It's the peace of being alone, a football at your feet, and a near-perfect grassy pitch at your disposal that your mind slowly begins to slow, finally tiring.

You thought you got lucky, a finally tired mind and the hour changing to one acceptable enough for sleep, but then your phone rings, an all too familiar caller ID flashing the screen.

Eight pm after a match in the afternoon is an odd time for your coach to be calling you and with curiosity getting the best of you, you scramble to answer the phone. Running through the pleasantries, you gently prod the reason for his call.

The answer you get isn’t what you were expecting really, but then again, it was a miracle it had taken this long for it to be said.

“Your contract’s ending soon. wrapping up the third and headed into the final year. Any thoughts on your future?”

The tone in Jonas’ voice causes your heart to sink. This club had been home to you since you had left your own. Arsenal had accepted you with open arms from the start, being your saving grace when you had thought you were going to be subjected to living a broken life at a place that never felt like home. When they had renewed your initial two year contract into another four, you had been elated for your future. You had never felt more excited to be tied down to a place before. taking a silent deep breath, you push back the memories of that day and swallow your emotions effortlessly.

“Depends. What's my future at Arsenal looking like?”

“You tell me. You of all players know that chemistry in a team is what makes a team run, what makes a team successful.”

His response tells you everything you need to know. You know he wasn’t oblivious to what had happened. How your outgoing personality had slowly stopped being exactly that. The way that you had pulled away from your teammates, treating them like nothing more than colleagues rather than friends, treating your job as what it simply was, your job. But you never expected him to have let it impact your presence on the team. You knew what you were worth and what you brought to the table. You weren’t a goal scoring machine, or defensive unit, a tough protective wall. You were you. You played all your minutes like they were the last you’d ever play, heart left of the pitch (not that there was much left of it anyway). You were content with setting your teammates up, leading the league in assists. You were a decent tackler, winning more than two thirds of your face-offs on the regular. You knew your worth on the team, and your agent reminded you of it often enough too, mentioning the potential offers you could have from other clubs regardless of how many times you’d told him you didn’t plan to leave.

“Our on pitch chemistry hasn’t changed. My on pitch chemistry hasn’t changed. We’re still a unit on the field Jonas and you know it. You know I have the utmost respect for you and this club, don’t let me think any differently.”

“A handful of clubs have reached out. Their offers are tempting to say the least.”

As much as it hurt you to say the next few words, you knew that taking any other stance would leave you stuck, broken for the umpteenth time. “I trust you to make the best decision for the club. At the end of the day, I wish nothing but the best for Arsenal.”

The ‘with or without me’ goes unsaid but from the few years that you’ve worked with him, you knew for a fact that he had heard the unspoken words. As Jonas lets you know that while a decision had to be made, there wasn’t an immediate rush, you know for a fact that you’ll likely not be calling London home again. And when you both agree to reconnect a week from now, you’ve already accepted your fate.

It’s an unusually silent drive home for you. The brief break you had earlier from your mind is long gone as you make a mental note to get in touch with your agent first thing tomorrow morning.

The post goes up after your last match of the season. While Arsenal had qualified for the Champions League once again, the team had gotten knocked out in the semis for the tournament, ending their season a few days early. It’s between the break of club football and world cup prep that your departure is announced, with no real destination said. If you hadn’t known that London wasn’t home for you anymore, the lack of a response besides an occasional story about the post from a few of your teammates solidified it.

It's when Bayern upload their new signing post with you holding up your new jersey that the final nail in the coffin is hammered in. The way your move suddenly becomes real. The comments being said online. Speculation on why Arsenal decided to let you go despite your importance to their success. Why Bayern was who you chose. Why there was no lengthy farewell. The people were digging for any crumbs, any notions on why you may have left, but it was only you and your teammates that really knew, and you all chose to keep mum.

It’s with the acceptance that you’re leaving do you feel absolutely unwanted and lost. And while you’d felt lost in your life before, it had never been like this. Feeling lost was when you were younger and couldn’t find your mother while at the toy store and when you had gotten your first failing mark in school. Feeling lost was when you were asked to leave your childhood home after coming out, no idea where to go. It was when you still got night terrors from the fights that your parents used to have even when you thought you had healed. But being lost had never felt like this. It had never reminded you that you had lost the only good in your life. That the only family you had ever loved didn’t want you anymore. That you hurt all those around you, people you promised to protect and love. That you had a gaping hole in your chest from a gun that you had fired.

So as the weeks pass and the world cup comes and goes and you notice yourself slipping just a little more each day, you let it play out. You don’t know what your breaking point is but at this point you just don’t care enough to not find out, especially since you’ve got nobody to blame but yourself.

When you leave your bed early in the mornings, long before you need to be up just because sleep wasn’t coming to you and retire to bed later than you should just to avoid having to lay in a bed alone, you blame yourself. When you come home to an empty apartment in a new city, the loneliness amplified by the darkness you choose to adorn your apartment with, you have no one to turn to but yourself. And when you interact with your new teammates solely for work in fear of hurting them too, you remind yourself that you’re broken, only able to spread your misery rather than feel joy.

It never was supposed to be like this. Existing wasn’t supposed to be like this. But now it’s all you know and all you have. So when you wish you yourself could leave your body and soul behind, it wasn't hard to understand why she left you.

At the end of the day, when everything's done and gone, you at your core were a mess you didn't know how to control, a wreck of a soul, barely alive.

#woso imagine #woso x reader #leah williamson imagine #leah williamson x reader #woso fanfics #angst #arsenal wfc x reader #x reader #reader insert #my writing #fic #itdow #leah williamson

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major-wren · 7 months

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I love the "ARK siblings" concept and I love cute lighthearted fanart of them being siblings but I feel like a lot of people forget that they literally canonically share a soul and that her death is, in my opinion, I think supposed to represent a part of one's self dying and that they're supposed to be, symbolically, a lot more than siblings.

I always saw Shadow's story as a symbolic way to express the way your inner child and innocence is sacrificed in order to survive complex childhood trauma. Maria's color scheme and the way she's written is, I think, clear to all of us how she's meant to represent innocence and youth. I mean, she doesn't really function very well as a stand-alone character or realistic depiction of a child, shes always been more of an.. idea.

I'm not sure if it was purposeful, but the moon's "Maria" are craters that formed from the moon repeatedly taking the hits of asteroids at it's points of gravity. These points of gravity attract asteroids and draws then away from the Earth. The craters are mostly on the side of the moon we see, so the dark side of the moon, or "shadowed" side is better protected because of that. I feel like this is an extension of Shadow and Maria's symbolism. She took the bullet for him, protecting him, the same way Maria takes the comets, and the same way your brain will sacrifice your inner child (or freeze/rush your mental development) in order to survive intense childhood abuse. I know it all sounds extreme lmao but at the end of the day characters and storytelling are used to explore and express hard emotions and I don't think this randomly tragic character sprung out of nowhere for the Sonic games, which, before that point, always had very lighthearted positive characters (except for the echidna extinction in the game right before Shadow's). Having a character that was easy to approach, yet could represent scarier concepts as a child-friendly stand-in, felt like a very important tool to me growing up. I just hope that that writing can be appreciated in his character, with an understanding of how messy production can be and how a character can get pulled between many different people and ideas. I do think this symbolism was intentional to some degree, especially when it gets to the blatant soul-sharing and how characters insist that Shadow can't be a weapon because Maria's soul (his inner child and true morals despite the damage done to him) makes him "good hearted."

There's other things that uphold this symbolism of Maria dying as representing his inner child being killed, like the rushed/suspended mental development in the face of trauma being illustrated by the fact that Shadow was forced into a dormant cyro slumber right after Maria's death, symbolizing the way he had to basically skip childhood or hit pause on development until he could escape the people controlling him. Much like how victims will have to pause everything and go on autopilot with only a goal of survival until they can escape their situation; only after they feel safe can they begin growing as a person and find their identity. In the Japanese language, there are different types of pronouns people can refer to themselves with instead of just "I" or "myself." In the Japanese dub of SA2, Shadow's creator said in an interview that he had been very insistent on Shadow using the pronouns reserved for young boys, despite Shadow's menacing villain role in the game, because he felt it was important to show Shadow's purity and his lack of experience in life so far. That "live and learn" theme.

And then in his self titled game, Shadow is searching for a way to reconnect with his past and to find the truth about this Maria person he keeps seeing in flashbacks, but in the end he throws away her picture and accepts himself as he is now, forever changed and stained by his past, but more than just a product of his situation. He is "all of him," including the negative impact he never asked for, and including the parts of himself he lost, but also the parts of himself he chose to become. Your environment and childhood shapes you even if you didn't want it to, but that doesnt mean you cant have control in your identity and recover your inherent nature once you've escaped the negative influence (nature vs nurture theme). He will never be the person he used to be, or could have been, (represented by Maria as a pure and untouched youth), but he still has a say in what that grows into.

I just feel like a lot of Shadow's identity issues and inner conflict stem from this whole soul sharing situation with Maria and that his character ends up inevitably being misunderstood if you water them down to just siblings. Especially considering that it was never answered if Shadow actually even ever met Maria or if they're just memories planted by Gerald or caused by the shared soul. In Sonic Battle, it's also said in Gerald's diary that not only do Maria and Shadow share identical souls, but that Gerald literally modeled Shadow after Maria out of his love for her. I'm not sure to what degree or in what ways, but Shadow is supposed to share purposeful similarities with Maria, likely through the content of her character and her morals. That's what makes them so much deeper than just psuedo siblings, he's not only made for her, but designed after her too. It can't really be compared to, for example, Sonic and Tails.

I also think its what makes Shadow's character so substantial and meaningful. His self titled game's entire theme was purity, morals, what is good and bad. This question of purity and morality spreads into his appearances in other stories too- This question that, if you were badly hurt in your youth and shaped by evil- does that leave you impure? Stained? Destined to continue that cycle of harm and cruelty? I think these insecurities feel very real and relatable, and that it's even more realistic that despite these insecurities, that hurt and damage is actually what fuels him to protect others. Just as he said in Sonic Battle, "There's no need to repeat past tragedies! Nobody else ever needs to go through the things that I have!"

Statistically (despite media portrayal) abuse victims RARELY become abusers, because they understand the pain on a deeper level and can't bring themselves to force someone else into experiencing that same pain, knowing the permanent damage it causes. However, childhood abuse leaves people socially stunted and conditioned to harshness, which causes them to accidentally hurt others without meaning to. Or they end up hurting people out of desperation if they feel endangered (like Shadow's "means to an end" approach where he'll prioritize violence if it means reducing the end-impact). Also, they are more susceptible to being abused again after escaping the first abuser, because they are so susceptible to manipulation- Just like how whenever Shadow does switch sides, its usually because someone manipulated him into it or literally brainwashed him. I think Shadow conveys all of this so well, and that Maria's true role is an integral part of it all that can't be ignored or misunderstood, or else Shadow ends up reading as unnecessarily violent or overly obsessed with her when you interpret her as just a sister-figure that he knew for... who knows how few years.

I think this symbolism runs deep with his writing. Just like Maria's meant to be that inherent purity and inner child, I think the black arms DNA is that stain that abuse or trauma can leave on you, that causes you to act out or feel like you're always holding back and trying to keep control over some darker part of yourself that was left behind in the damage done. Especially since they literally have a mind link with Shadow. In the Sonic Universe comic, they succeed in brainwashing Shadow and turn him against his friends. These mind-links, soul-sharing, and brain-washing from both Gerald and the black arms... To disregard the fact that he's deeply connected to these people on a metaphysical, identity altering level is to water down his character and leave it feeling as though his motives are too weak to justify his harsh actions. I've seen people poke fun at his amnesia or insecurity in his identity, as though his confusion isn't justified, and I think it's because people don't realize he has these... literal fragments of other people inside of him, that that's pretty much what he's made of, kind of franken-steined together between a little girl's hopes and morals, an alien race's hivemind greed, a weapon-hungry government and a revenge maddened scientist's painful grief, and even the chaos emeralds which we all know are spiritually whacky and potentially connected to another alien race's memories and energies (the ancients from sonic frontiers). With all of that going on, plus some amnesia mixed in and his memories having been altered by Gerald- I mean.. you'd be searching for the "truth" of your identity too, who you really are. And of course, prone to frustration and aggression, or even a "wish-washy inconsistency." I think there's always a constant tug of war inside of him and that his whole development was a game of tug of war between Gerald, G.U.N and the black arms too. "Am I a cure, am I a death-bringer, am I earth's protector, am I it's destroyer," etc etc

Idk I just think a lot of problems people have with Shadow's writing stems from not realizing how deep things go and what they symbolize. Not to say that something like his boom characterization is of good quality or anything, but I think it's unfair to call him inconsistent when a confusion in his own identity and purpose/goals is kind of the point. And I think people not realizing Maria's deeper, physiological connection to him and influence might be part of the problem.

#major mumbles #shadow the hedgehog #ark siblings #maria robotnik #gerald robotnik #sonic the hedgehog #sth #shth #sonic adventure 2 #shadow the hedgehog headcanon #sonic headcanon #sonic analysis

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luna-rainbow · 5 months

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A conversation with @possibleplatypus made me remember a popular Japanese and Chinese trope of “sword spirits”. The belief that sometimes a weapon develops its own soul. There are various interpretations of this — sometimes that soul is born from the forging due to the dedication that’s poured into fashioning a weapon and at other times it’s the distillation of the wielder’s values because it has been the constant companion through every battle.

I think it started off as a narrative device. What is the sword if not an extension of the forger or the wielder? If it had a soul, would it rebel against its fate as a weapon, or would it loyally and mindlessly continue to carry out its purpose, if one could convince it that it is serving its master? And then the danmei world took the personification and ran with the titillating implications of a sword’s relationship with its scabbard 🫣

And that’s kinda what Bucky is, as a narrative device, to Steve? He is the personification of Steve’s weapon — the shield. Bucky is what the shield represents to Steve, the protector who is also capable of attacking, the trusty companion, the one and only. Bucky’s fate is forever intertwined with the fate of Steve’s shield — Steve first picks up the shield to rescue him, Bucky is thrown off the train but leaves the shield behind, Steve drops the shield to break Bucky out of mind control, Steve drops his shield to Tony and carries Bucky away to safety.

And in the seventy years that the shield laid frozen with its master, Bucky was like a lost spirit, forced to serve a master he didn’t know or love, and despite all the mind-wiping he’s still thinking of the person he owed his loyalty to.

#bucky barnes #steve rogers #stucky #stucky meta

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ozthedm · 5 months

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Vampire Ascendant Ramblings!

I love Baldur’s Gate 3. I love the vampire genre. I am particularly fascinated with the concept of the Vampire Ascendant for a number of reasons that mainly boil down to “what does it mean to be the Vampire Ascendant and what is the true cost of this power?”

This post is essentially a collection of my observations, thoughts, and headcanons regarding the ascension ritual. Think of this as fanfic inspiration material. Get ready folks, because we’re about to dip a toe into 5e lore and get existential.

What does the Rite of Profane Ascension actually do?

Raphael explains the ritual as thus:

“If he completes the rite, he will become a new kind of being - the Vampire Ascendant. All the strengths of his vampiric form will be amplified, and alongside them he will enjoy the luxuries of the living. The arousals and appetites of man will return to him, and unlike Astarion, he will have no need of a parasite to protect him from the sun. But the ritual has a price, as all worthwhile things do. Lord Cazador will need to sacrifice a number of souls including all of his vampiric spawn if he is to ascend… Your soul will set off a very wave of death, bringing Cazador his twisted life.”

TLDR: If Cazador offers up the souls of 7000 vampire spawn, then maybe he’ll feel less like shit.

Other specific perks include:

The hunger for blood that plagues all vampires will no longer affect him.

His heart will beat again (Could he even be considered undead at that point?)

He still gets to remain immortal in the sense that he will never age

He can choose to extend his protection from the sun to his spawn, but this protection can be revoked

He can be reflected in mirrors.

There are some details that remain unclear, so here’s where we step into headcanon territory:

Running water will no longer harm him

A normal wooden stake won’t be enough to paralyze him. You’d be better off with a magical weapon

Although he will still need an invitation to enter homes, His enhanced vampiric charm practically makes it a nonissue

And now a couple of notes on Mephistopheles and the contract itself:

“Devils bargain with mortals to upend the divine order. They stake claims on souls that would otherwise go to the gods or be cast adrift somewhere other than the Nine Hells. If you are already a creature of Law and Evil devoted to no other entity, your damned spirit is of meager value.”

- Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes

Mephistopheles is an arcane innovator. His realm, Cania, is essentially a giant laboratory where he conducts extensive experiments.

When it comes to souls, Mephistopheles prefers quality over quantity. He mostly acquires the souls of highly accomplished wizards and sages to help him with his research. To demand the souls of 7000 vampire spawn seems uncharacteristically beneath him (especially for the power he’s offering)

My thinking is that Mephistopheles is working on something that specifically requires vampiric energy and lots of it. The 7000 spawns are nothing more than fodder.

A devil’s deal never ends well. This is repeatedly stated throughout the game. Considering what we know of Mephistopheles and how little Cazador cares for his spawn, this whole contract sounds far too good to be true. So what’s the catch?

A few possible ideas as to the downsides:

Mephistopheles is always watching. After all, this is a completely new kind of being that warrants study.

The Ascendant’s hunger for blood is replaced with a different hunger. A hunger that is indescribable and insatiable. He will always yearn for more. More power, more control, more anything. He may even return to Mephistopheles in an attempt to fill the void.

The Ascendant’s own soul is included in the price, albeit differently. Where the other souls were simply consumed by the ritual, his will serve another purpose. (Not gonna lie, this one sent me on a whole existential journey trying to figure out what is means to have/lack a soul)

I might post more thoughts later, but this is enough for now

#baldurs gate 3 #bg3 fic #astarion #cazador szarr #fanfic ideas #headcanon #ascended astarion #vampire ascendant #vampires as existential horror #baldurs gate astarion #baldurs gate 3 spoilers #bg3 fanfiction #bg3 meta #dnd 5e #dungeons and dragons

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fire-fira · 7 months

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The way 03 Leo acts he seems more like a samurai then a ninja thoughts?

In the strict sense, I definitely agree with you.

Because in terms of his samurai-like qualities--

Honor and bushido are his thing, no question.

Along with that are his very strong morals, his sense of right and wrong.

And responsibility. Dear gods his sense of responsibility. (I can sympathize a bit with Raph at some points about how this Leo overdoes it and occasionally puts his family at risk because of it.) - Which is also reflected in his PTSD response in needing to be 'better'. - And general overall perfectionism, let's be real.

Did I mention honor? Because HONOR. This boy gives Zuko from ATLA a run for his money with how often he says the word.

Plus the narrative l o v e s tying his well-being and 'soul' to the state his swords are in; a thing which is way more 'samurai' or 'ronin' than 'ninja'.

On the other hand, he is ninja-like in that--

He tends to stick to the shadows.

He's much more comfortable going in on a mission the sneaky way rather than metaphorically (or literally) kicking down the front door.

He's not above using what he has at his disposal as a weapon, even though he's much more comfortable using his swords. (The time he yeeted the seat of a hovercraft at some triceratons comes to mind.)

He's also not above using his swords as a general use tool (like when he helped April peel that ridiculous number of apples out at the farmhouse) instead of having the samurai-like reverence of only really using his swords for combat.

And to touch on point 2 here again, if there's a way to successfully complete a mission without a head-on confrontation then he doesn't seem opposed to taking a sneakier way to get things done.

With all of that^^^^ I suspect Usagi regards him as strangely samurai/ronin-adjacent. Especially since, unlike most ninja Usagi is acquainted with, he very clearly isn't

an assassin

for hire

likely to stab someone in the back

likely to attack someone when they can't defend themself

likely to go back on his word

someone who can be paid off with enough compensation

someone who will act without necessarily caring about the impact of their actions.

All of that gives Leo (and his family by extension) a pass that Usagi likely wouldn't offer otherwise.

There's also a good chance that Usagi rationalizes it to himself with the excuse that since Leo and his family are from a different world with wildly different circumstances that what being a ninja 'means' in their world is likewise dramatically different from what it means in his world, and as such he can only fairly judge by what he knows of Leo and the others personally.

This might have become a bit of a tangent. lol Thank you for the ask though!

#TMNT #TMNT 2003 #Leonardo #Leo TMNT #Hamato Leonardo #Miyamoto Usagi #Leosagi #katanashipping

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thedarkdisgrace · 1 month

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The thread from twitter I did about my interpretations on Verlaine, rereading this some parts might sounds a little redundant but i think it gets the point across.

People have a lot of opinions on Verlaine but I think this one line in particular goes hard & does alot to explain his view of humanity as well as the conversation a the end of SB.

“Sometimes creating is far more sinister than killing.”

I think Verlaine views his creation as an ‘act of humanity’. But to normal people, an act of humanity means kindness, right? Showing compassion or empathy. But from Verlaine’s POV it is the *opposite* of that. Humanity is not kind nor compassionate. It’s dark, twisted, & selfish.

Humanity to Verlaine is *only* the darkest and worst parts of human nature because that’s all he ever knew. He was created with the sole purpose of being controlled & used to kill & destroy. That was his entire world until Rimbaud rescued him & gave him some control for the first time.

Verlaine despises how he was created, that he was created in the first place. In his mind, humans used their capacity to create to make something that only serves to destroy & also, cruelly, allowed that creation to suffer all alone. They let him suffer and never treated him as a human, just a tool. A weapon. So he came to resent humans & humanity itself.

To Verlaine, humanity represents everything sinister in the world. Not any of the good that, say, Chuuya sees. Rimbaud was an exception to this, however, & I believe it’s why Verlaine pushed Rimbaud away. Because his existence & treatment of Verlaine was challenging this world view. Then when Rimbaud sides against him when he wanted to take Chuuya to safety, that was the confirmation Verlaine needed that Rimbaud was just like the rest. Even if Verlaine knew deep down that wasn’t really true.

Humanity disgusts him because of the way he was created & his lack of real purpose. He couldn’t find a reason he *should* exist, given that the original purpose of his creation was sinister. Because of that I think he believes no good can come from humanity so he thinks of them as monsters.

It’s why he believes creating is more sinister than killing. Humanity created him out of selfishness & with no compassion what so ever. He resents his very existence & his loneliness. He believes someone would have to be sinister to create Verlaine as he is, completely alone, no real purpose, only to be used by others.

So he thinks of the people who made him (& by extension Chuuya) as the worst monsters, more monstrous than he could ever be. It’s this dark view of humanity that I believe leads to Verlaine to thinking of killing as a thrill to him & also a tool.

Nothing about humanity is salvageable to him, at least not until the end of SB. In his own words he’s “the soul of a man who couldn’t trust the world or its people like you do.” As he says to Chuuya at the end of the book when he comes to realize, through Chuuya, his view may be wrong/incomplete.

Verlaine was incapable of trusting that humans could be more, that they were more than their darkest parts. He wasn’t able to trust that darkness was only a singular part of humanity & that the good wasn’t only a mask they would hide their darkness with. Though some do hide behind masks of kindness, it’s not all of humanity. Genuine people do exist. Caring people do exist.

But to Verlaine, killing humans isn’t a monstrous act. It’s almost an act of mercy or even a punishment. But Verlaine is also just desperately lonely because of his loathing of humanity. How he separates himself from it. That’s why when he learns of Chuuya, someone that existed that he felt might share his pain & might actually understand his POV, all he wants to do is protect him. To bring him to his side so he doesn’t have to be so lonely anymore & he can still serve humanity the “justice” for lack of a better word he thinks they deserve through killing.

He wanted to protect Chuuya from humanity itself because to him, humanity is the villain. He believed everyone around Chuuya was only using him because to him that’s all humans do. Aside Rimbaud, who he ended up fighting, he never had anyone to show him other things humanity has to offer

To him all humans do is use & abused & are selfish & twisted. That’s why Verlaine doesn’t even think twice about killing the flags, for example. Surely they were just using Chuuya like everyone else. Humans are the monsters, not him & Chuuya, despite the purposes of their creation.

Now, in the end, Chuuya & Verlaine come to understand more of each others POVs. That’s why Verlaine taught Chuuya how to defeat him. Because even while Verlaine still doesn’t quite believe humanity has value, he sees Chuuya’s conviction in his belief that humanity *is*valuable. People can be worth it.

Chuuya knows humanity is more complex than Verlaine believes & despite the darkness that exists there *is* light too. Humans are more than their worst sides. Chuuya has always believed people were worth living for, that they were worth suffering for.

But he also knows he could have easily gone down the dark path Verlaine did. As Chuuya says “You rolled the dice and lost. It was a stroke of bad luck, and you rolled a one. But the pips came out different when I rolled. I was blessed with wonderful friends. That’s all.”

Verlaine, in the end, I believe, *wants* to believe in what Chuuya believes about the world. As Chuuya says to him:

“Besides, what you have isn’t just hatred. You don’t actually despise the world. That’s why you showed me that memory. You taught me how to defeat Guivre.”

Chuuya is his opposite essentially. Chuuya, even while suffering at the hand of the coldness and cruelty that humanity is capable of, can still see the good and light of human nature. Chuuya has always known there is more to humanity than cruelty & Verlaine never was able to see that before.

Chuuya contributes this essentially to always having friends, people he cared about around him. But Chuuya does *understand* why Verlaine is the way he is. Why Verlaine thinks the way he does & Chuuya, being who he is, essentially forgives him in the end. It’s why he’s able to have that “final” conversation with him.

Humanity, what it *means* to be human, is really the entire theme of Storm Bringer & everyone showcases us a different perspective of this. Chuuya, Adam & Verlaine (Dazai somewhat as well) as show us different aspects of humanity and ones struggles with it. Verlaine’s view is dark. It showcases the impact a *lack* of humanity being shown to others can have on us.

I am also not saying anything Verlaine did was alright or justifying what he did because of his broken view on life. What he tried to do by killing everyone Chuuya knew was wrong. But he *does care* about Chuuya. But he couldn’t express that in any healthy way. He didn’t know how, didn’t know it was wrong in the first place.

Anyway, this is just my interpretation of Verlaine as a character and everyone can have their own interpretations! These are just my thoughts. I hope they made sense, I’m not super sure I was able to articulate everything well. I think I I kinda rambled but oh well.

#bsd spoilers #bsd analysis #bsd stormbringer #paul verlaine #chuuya #bsd verlaine #chuuya nakahara #dazai #bsd #soukoku

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saltwatersweets · 2 months

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yknow, given the fact that it’s entirely possible wounds created by angelic weapons don’t fully heal (since vaggie’s eye never healed), and the fact that adam attacked alastor with an angelic weapon, and the fact i’ve seen a few fics in which alastor deals with chronic pain in his chest wound because of the injury, i’m surprised i’ve never seen anyone bring up an idea where adam’s axe landed just a foot or so above where it did in canon and ended up taking out alastor’s eyes, similar to how lute did with vaggie.

i’m not sure if i would be comfortable writing about this, given i am not physically disabled and i’m not sure if i could accurately portray blindness (especially with a character like alastor, who’s already so difficult to write), but i’d love to see this idea explored somehow. alastor is already someone who wants to be the most powerful (or at least in control) person in the room and so taking away his sight in a permanent way would definitely affect him badly. another reason i’m not sure i would want to write this out: the internalized ableism would be off the CHARTS. not to mention, a wound to the face isnt something he can hide like he could with a chest wound, so the other hotel inhabitants at least would see what happened as soon as they realised he was still alive after the extermination. he would not be happy about their endless concern one bit.

tl;dr: what if alastor was permanently blind after the extermination?

here are some ideas i have regarding this au (please let me know if any of them come off as insensitive):

alastor probably would try to use the recent lack of eyes to his advantage. after all, outside of one’s mouth, the eyes are typically the most expressive part about a person. even when he’s trying to conceal his emotions, you can tell what he’s feeling because of the expressions in his eyes. now, however, he’s even MORE difficult to read, which he likes to think gives him more control. the eyes are a window to the soul, they say? not anymore!

he looks rather similar to rosie now (based off how vaggie looked like when charlie first found her after she fell, with her eye socket just being dark and black)! once he’s accepted what happened to him, they’ll make an occasional joke about how now he looks more like a typical cannibal in hell, it just took him a century to catch up.

vaggie and him bond over losing one or more eyes because of adam (whether directly or indirectly). he hates the fact that he genuinely is more fond of her after this experience, because she never treats him like something about to break, for better or worse.

speaking of which, i feel the need to say that despite alastor likely viewing himself as weaker after the loss of his eyesight, he is not inherently weaker. it takes him a long time to know he is not ruined, he is just changed. doesn’t mean his musical mental breakdown in episode eight isn’t even worse than before now though. he hates that this has happened to him, that he has been permanently injured in this way, but he learns to live (or… exist? since he’s already dead) with it and accept his disability as a part of himself.

his staff (once repaired) and ears are incredibly helpful, especially since deer can hear extremely well. his shadow and microphone are also extensions of himself, so though he can’t see through them per se, they keep him from crashing into things when he’s in an unfamiliar area.

once mimzy gets over being “kicked out” of the hotel so to speak, they’ll still hang out and dance together! she doesn’t think of him as any lesser or any weaker after what happened, he’s still able to keep up with her on the dance floor even if it is a bit more difficult now.

the hotel inhabitants and some other people he regularly meets with will occasionally read his favourite books aloud to him (there were books in his room so i headcanon he likes to read in his free time). he never says it aloud, but he does genuinely appreciate this. he particularly enjoys it when niffty sits still long enough to read to him, especially if she’s reading out a cookbook and helping him make food. it is physically impossible for her to sound condescending to him.

on the other hand, charlie reading aloud is a mixed bag, because although she’ll always try to make it entraining for him (by being very animated in her voice acting), she’ll often interrupt herself to disavow the fictional violence. also, it is physically impossible for her to NOT sound condescending to him. he’s not a wayward sinner down on his luck for her to swoop in and save, after all! he doesn’t need her to try and “fix” him.

he has allowed angel to read to him a SINGULAR time, because while his voice acting is quite entertaining and he won’t complain about the violence (he has no room to talk, given the scripts he acts out), angel would rather die (again) than quit making sex jokes every two minutes. he could be reading a cookbook and sneak in a “that’s what she said” a good three times in a single page.

one of the first things charlie does upon seeing alastor is still alive after the extermination is ask lucifer to heal him, and lucifer has to tell her it’s not something that he can do. it’s actually something charlie initially responds with anger about, because at first she thinks he’s just refusing to heal alastor just because he doesn’t like him. it’s vaggie who steps in to calm her down, because she knows personally that angelic wounds can’t be fully healed. it’s been three years, she’s not expecting her eye back by now.

alternatively, it’s easy to imagine charlie still asking lucifer to TRY and heal him regardless, because maybe if they just try hard enough, they can do it! so lucifer tries. and it does not work. naturally, this only serves to make alastor more pissed off. he melts into his shadow and goes into his room, and doesn’t come back out until that night.

the next thing charlie does is spend no less than four hours looking up accommodations she can make to the hotel for someone with no sight. braille to all the rooms and other things that are labeled is among the first she gets lucifer to implement, as well as keeping nearly all of the floors loud tile instead of carpeted, so alastor can tell if someone else is in the room with him.

i swear i’m trying to think of something distinct for husk because his dynamic with alastor is so interesting to me, but i really can’t think of anything super specific. one thing that does stick out is that, like vaggie, he never regards alastor with pity, because he knows alastor better than most and knows he’s still extremely powerful. i’ve always thought alastor somewhat appreciates husk’s unflinching honesty (even though it’s a trait of his that undeniably pisses him off at times), and so he knows husk isn’t lying or acting when he still treats him the same way as before the extermination.

alastor will still make radio broadcasts, even if just for his own amusement. you don’t need to be able to see to be able to talk, after all! if anything, this experience only makes him hate television and modern day technology more. at least he revels in the knowledge that it is now impossible for vox to hypnotize him, if he ever dared to try.

he’ll make. so many eye puns. TOO MANY eye puns. you know that joke where people are like “we can’t ever let alastor know he’s asexual because if he does, the amount of ace jokes he’ll make will be through the roof”? yeah, it gets that bad.

i like the headcanon that alastor likes to draw on occasion (given the all but stated fact that he drew the hotel in the commercial in episode 1, as well as a few unnecessary but fun doodles outside of that), and he is initially saddened to realize that this is something he won’t be able to do anymore. however, niffty ALSO likes drawing, and she likes to rope him in to her drawings by force, giving him paper and crayons and always being completely honest if he ever asks what colour is in his hand. he’ll even occasionally let her move his hand to the right spot on his paper if he ever forgets where he drew the lines on his paper before. she likes to spend as long as she needs describing her drawings in vivid detail - she will talk to him about her gorey artwork, and no one will stop her!

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bhaalble · 9 months

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To balance out with a serious Astarion post. I definitely understand why hug is the popular option, both because its very sweet and because god knows the man could use some physical affirmation of a nonsexual nature. But I wanna talk about why I personally am more endeared by opening your mind to him using the shared connection.

Bodily autonomy is THE major theme of BG3. This is on its most literal level with the parasites, of course. All of our core companions are brought together by something being placed in our heads against our will. But every companion has some other variation on this theme. Karlach has her engine installed by her captor, an addition that literally deprives her of any kind touch. Wyll has his physical form altered by a pact who's conditions were intentionally obscured from him, and as a result fears he can't ever be accepted by the people he wants to protect.. Astarion's vampirism rather than being a source of constant power is a physical condition thats kept him chained body and soul to his abuser. Lae'zel unless you intervene will allow her body to be torn apart by her kin in pursuit of her queen and birthright. Shadowheart spends a large chunk of the game without access to extremely personal memories because her patron wills it. Gale may have taken the Netherese orb in out of hubris, but the needs of the device have made him totally dependent on others and eventually allows his former lover to turn him into a final devastating tool for her own ends.

The other major theme that comes up with pretty much every companion (except, so far as I know, Karlach) is secrets. All of them have something they're not telling you, whether because they're magically prevented from doing so (as with Wyll and Shadowheart) or to protect something about themselves they're afraid to have exposed (Gale, arguably Lae'zel, and ESPECIALLY Astarion). I'd argue this is an extension of the bodily autonomy theme. When you don't have control over what happens to your own person, you do your best to hold on tight to whatever agency you do have in an interpersonal dynamic. Information is power, and if you control it then it can't be used to hurt you, and others can't be hurt by it.

All this to say. By opening up about his history with sexual abuse and the fact that he might not want to have sex for the time being, Astarion is being incredibly vulnerable. He's being open about a specific kind of trauma, and more specifically is handing you information that you could EASILY weaponize against him. There are a million ways for that interaction to be fresh kinds of traumatic for him. And there's something to me about the player offering back a little of that power to him. You use the parasite, a shared trauma point between the two of you, to lay your mind and your feelings completely bare to him. He's given you hugely vulnerable information, and you respond in kind.

What touches me most about it, though, is how it ends. He extends a hand to you. Finally a touch he initiates. Completely chaste, almost platonic if you'd like. You've met vulnerability with vulnerability, and steadily, its allowed him to trust you with even more

#baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #astarion #ugh im disgustingly sincere what happened to me

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thecreaturecodex · 3 months

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Demon Lord, Aldinach

[Sponsored by @vonbaghager . While doing my research for this entry, I noticed something interesting. Aldinach and Areshkagal are enemies in Pathfinder. Aldinach is the name of an Egyptian demon, but looks like a Mesopotamian scorpion-man, whereas Areshkagal gets her name from the Sumerian Ereshkigal but looks like an Egyptian sphinx. Maybe that's why they hate each other.]

Demon Lord, Aldinach CR 28 CE Outsider (extraplanar)

This creature is a golden scorpion the size of a house, except that her head is that of a bald, fanged human woman. Her claws are enormous, made out of blood-red crystal. A mass of seething scorpions crawls along her back and sides.

Aldinach, She of Six Venoms, Lord of Scorpions CE female demon lord of sand, scorpions and thirst Domains Animal, Chaos, Evil, Sun Subdomains Demon, Feather, Fur, Light Favored Weapon kukri Unholy Symbol gold scorpion with sand dripping from its claws Worshipers girtabilus, chaotic phaerimm, torturers Minions fiendish earth elementals, giant scorpions For information on Aldinach’s obedience and boons, see the Book of the Damned

Aldinach is the demon lord of sand, scorpions and thirst. She rules the Sea of Whispering Sands, a layer of nearly infinite deserts she stole from her sister Areshkagal. and continues to defend it from Areshkagal’s servitors. Aldinach has the infinite patience of an ambush predator, and the persistence of the constant erosion created by a sandstorm. She believes that she will outlast the Faceless Sphinx and maintain her rule through sheer tenacity. That Areshkagal has yet to give up is a source of frustration, but not an insurmountable one, and the two demon lords continue to clash in proxy wars via their cults and servitors.

Aldinach usually opens any confrontation by summoning a supernaturally deadly sandstorm. Anyone who resists being immediately flensed is then met in direct combat. She of Six Venoms, as the title suggests, is a master of poisons. Her venom and any created by a spell she casts ignores almost all immunity to poison, and she can tailor the effects of her venom in order to ruin the bodies and minds of her enemies. The infinite swarm of scorpions clinging to her is an extension of her body, and quickly shred and envenom anyone who dares to strike her.

Aldinach’s worshipers tend to be as determined and patient as the Lord of Scorpions herself. The tortures of Aldinach include envenomation and thirst, neither of which are typically fast deaths, and cultists will repeatedly heal their victims and give them just enough water to live, extending the torment to weeks or months. One of Aldinach’s goals is the expansion of deserts, the better to create hard, dangerous environments to breed hard, dangerous souls. Some of her subtlest worshipers masquerade as aqueduct engineers or farming specialists, claiming to be able to eke more out of lean land but in reality spreading the desert.

Aldinach CR 28 XP 4,915,200 CE Colossal outsider (chaos, demon, evil, extraplanar) Init +11; Senses darkvision 60 ft., detect chaos, detect evil, Perception +45, tremorsense 120 ft., true seeing Aura unholy (DC 28)

Defense AC 46, touch 13, flat-footed 39 (-8 size, +7 Dex, +33 natural, +4 deflection) hp 676(33d10+495); regeneration 30 (deific or mythic) Fort +30, Ref +31, Will +31 DR 20/cold iron, epic, and good; Immune ability damage, ability drain, charm effects, compulsion effects, cold, death effects, electricity, energy drain, petrification, and poison; Resist acid 30, cold 30, fire 30; SR 39 Defensive Abilities Abyssal resurrection, freedom of movement, swarm skin

Offense Speed 80 ft., climb 40 ft., burrow 40 ft. Melee sting +42 (2d8+17 plus poison), 2 claws +42 (4d6+17/17-20 x3 plus grab) Space 30 ft.; Reach 30 ft. Special Attacks command vermin, constrict (claw, 4d6+25), crystalline claws, flensing storm, rend (2 claws, 4d6+25), she of six venoms, sneak attack +4d6, swift sting Spell-like Abilities CL 27th, concentration +37 Constant—detect chaos, detect evil, freedom of movement, speak with vermin, true seeing, unholy aura (self only) At will—air walk, blasphemy* (DC 27), cup of dust* (DC 23), cloudkill* (DC 25), greater dispel magic, greater teleport, overwhelming poison (DC 26), sunbeam* (DC 27), unhallow, unholy blight* (DC 24) 3/day—control weather*, empowered horrid wilting (DC 28), quickened sirocco (DC 26), summon demons and scorpions, sunburst (DC 28) 1/day—dominate monster (DC 29), power word kill*, sea of dust * Aldinach can use the mythic version of this spell in her domain

Statistics Str 45, Dex 24, Con 40, Int 28, Wis 29, Cha 31 Base Atk +33; CMB +58 (+62 grapple); CMD 68 (80 vs. trip) Feats Blind Fight, Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Empower SLA (horrid wilting), Exhausting Critical, Fatiguing Critical, Greater Vital Strike, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative, Improved Vital Strike, Lightning Reflexes, Nimble Moves, Power Attack, Quicken SLA (sirocco), Skill Focus (Stealth), Stand Still, Vital Strike Skills Bluff +46, Climb +58, Heal +42, Intimidate +46, Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering, religion) +42, Knowledge (geography, planes) +45, Perception +45, Sense Motive +45, Spellcraft +42, Stealth +41, Survival +45, Use Magic Device +43; Racial Modifiers +8 Stealth Languages Abyssal, Celestial, Draconic, Infernal, speak with vermin, telepathy 300 ft. SQ demon lord traits

Ecology Environment any deserts (The Abyss) Organization unique Treasure triple standard

Special Abilities Command Vermin (Su) Aldinach can command creatures of the vermin type to do her bidding as a move action, either via using his ability to speak with vermin or via telepathy. This affects vermin within 300 feet (Will DC 36 negates). This functions like mass suggestion, but can affect mindless creatures. Aldinach can suggest obviously harmful or suicidal acts (though non-mindless creatures gain a +10 bonus on their saving throws against these suggestions). The commanded course of activity can have a duration of up to 1 hour. If Aldinach issues a new command to a creature, the previous command is discarded. Once a creature succeeds at its save against this effect, it is immune to further commands from Aldinach for 24 hours. The save DC is Charisma-based. Crystalline Claws (Ex) Aldinach’s claw attacks threaten a critical hit on a roll of 19-20, and deals x3 damage on a successful critical hit. Flensing Storm (Su) As a standard action, Aldinach can conjure a supernatural sandstorm at a range of up to 300 feet. The storm fills a sphere in a 40 foot radius, blocking vision as a fog cloud, and dealing 10d6 points of slashing damage and 1d4 Constitution damage a round. A successful DC 36 Reflex save negates the Constitution damage and halves the slashing damage. As a move action, Aldinach can move the storm up to 60 feet. Aldinach can see through her own flensing storms without penalty. A flensing storm can only be dispersed with wind of hurricane force or stronger, and lasts for 2 minutes. Aldinach can use this ability at will, but can only have one flensing storm in existence at a time. The save DC is Charisma based. Poison (Ex) Sting or swarm skin—injury; save Fort DC 41; duration 1/round for 6 rounds; damage 2d4 Str, Dex, Int, Wis or Cha damage or 1d6 Con damage; cure 3 consecutive saves. The save DC is Constitution based. She of Six Venoms (Su) Aldinach can change what ability score her poison deals damage to as an immediate action. She can change the ability damage for her swarm skin ability separately. Any poison damage dealt by Aldinach ignores all poison immunity except from a mythic source. Speak with Vermin (Sp) This functions as speak with animals, except that Aldinach can communicate with creatures of the vermin type. Summon Demons and Scorpions (Sp) When Aldinach uses her summon demons ability, she may also summon giant scorpions of any size with the demonic vermin or half-fiend templates. Swarm Skin (Su) Any creature that touches Aldinach with a melee weapon, natural weapon, touch attack or unarmed strike must succeed a DC 33 Reflex save or take 5d6 points of slashing and piercing damage and be exposed to her poison. Manufactured weapons with the reach property do not endanger their wielder in this way. The save DC is Dexterity based. Swift Sting (Ex) Aldinach can make a single sting attack as a swift action. This is in addition to all of the attacks she makes as a full attack action.

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