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#yeah just wanted to explore their differences

rreids · 3 days

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LIAR • S. REID X READER

gn reader; fluff despite the title; unestablished relationship; kissing; a little banter; like ~1k

Rossi’s house was beautiful. Even having been over dozens of times, you find yourself drawn to explore and wander on the property to admire the architecture.

It’s also a good excuse for when you’re found out for having left the gathering, well over thirty minutes ago. You step out to be alone and catch a breath, and when Morgan or JJ finds you? Just one quick ‘oh, I just got distracted by this part of the stairs and its railings! I had been reading about the origins of this style and why it grew in popularity, do you want to hear? was enough to get a polite smile and your peace and quiet back.

Unfortunately, this tactic didn’t work on Spencer.

“What are you doing out in the garden?”

“Just looking at the roses!” You smile up at him sweetly, bat your lashes. “I heard there are new roses being bred to have more natural resistance to insects. You think I should talk to Rossi about it? He complains that his bushes get eaten.”

Spencer hums. “Where’d you hear that?”

“Just… um, just in an article. I forget where I read it.”

He levels you in his gaze. “You know, you’re an awful liar.”

“That’s not true,” you mumble, turning your chin down and to the side. “I’m great at lying.”

Spencer chuckles. “Really? And you’re proud of it?”

“Mhm. They call me the best liar in the West.”

“You live in Virginia.”

“And, somehow, I’m still the best in the West. So I’m really, really good.”

You can hear the smile in his voice. “Can I meet the people saying this? I doubt they’ve met many liars, if you’re their golden standard. Because, as a profiler, I think you’re an absolutely awful liar, __.” You pout and turn to meet his gaze again. “You’re an open book. Everything’s laid out on your face.”

You try to school your expression quickly but fail, smiling and laughing softly. “Nuh-uh.”

“Yeah,” his voice is softer now. You can’t put your finger on what’s so different, but it has you relaxing without meaning to. “You wear your heart on your sleeve.”

He takes a step closer — just one — but your breath hitches slightly. He’s close enough you can feel the warmth radiating off him, a nice contrast to the night air, and smell a mix of wine and his cologne.

“Maybe it’s just to me.” He sounds like he’s come to a revelation, in a way, features relaxing into the beginnings of a small smile.

“What?” you manage to ask, voice remarkably level for the way your heart is beginning to race as you study the shape of his jaw, the curve of his lips, the softness to his features among all the sharp angles and signs of age. As you look into his eyes, eyes that are clearly studying you, you see them somehow glow with a warmth and fondness that makes you ache.

“I think you’re only this open with me,” Spencer answers, voice softening impossibly more as his fingers wrap around your wrist. He can feel your pulse thrumming with your nerves and your hyperfocus on the way his thumb rubs your skin soothingly. “Why is that?”

“I’m open with everyone I care about.”

“Sure,” he agrees. “But I don’t think you’re like this with everyone.”

“Like what?”

“Vulnerable.” You don’t speak. You can barely even breathe. He’s so close to you. “I think,” his eyes drop briefly to your lips. “That you want me to understand your feelings. That’s why you wear your heart on your sleeve, don’t filter the truth of your opinions or thoughts from me.” Spencer’s head tilts down and to the right slightly. “You want me to see you.”

You nod. “Yeah.” It’s breathless, airy and a barely there whisper. “I do.”

Spencer kisses you.

Your fingers grab the sides of his jacket and pull him towards you with a weak tug. It’s everything you could have wanted, that you could dream of — that you have dreamt of, waking up hopelessly alone and frustrated when you realize none of the tenderness in his touch was real. It is like he sees you. Understands you.

His rhythm matches yours perfectly and smoothly, no awkward clashing of teeth or weird bumps of noses and foreheads. Just soft kisses that build and build, give and take in equal parts until both of you are breathless. He pulls back first, and your eyes flutter open to see red spots high on his cheekbones and a sparkle to his eyes.

“__,” Spencer whispers and you nod, hands still fisted in the fabric of his clothing. “Can I ask you a question?”

You tug him a little closer, smile as you say “you already did” before nodding.

“Am I right in thinking you would like this to happen more than once?”

You let out a sound that’s a mix of a scoff and a laugh. “No.” You can’t even believe your own lie, and he just grins. “Of course I do, Spencer. But you’ve got to at least take me out to dinner,”

He kisses your smile away and pulls back when he’s unable to tamper his own enough to kiss you properly. “Would you like to go to dinner?”

“You’re not full of carbonara?”

Spencer shakes his head. “I still have some room. I can manage some shitty fast food and fries over a milkshake. You know anyone who’d be interested?”

You smile. “Depends on the milkshake.”

“Chocolate, of course,” Spencer brushes hair off your temple.

You hum. “With whipped cream and you have a deal.”

Spencer smiles. “As long as the cherry on top is another kiss.”

It was. Along with another. And another. And a lipstick mark on his cheek that he told you he would get tattooed. Your horrified expression had made him laugh, and he told you he was a far better liar than you.

unfortunate but true: local girl has forgotten how to write and lost any semblance of a style she had going. i hate how this came out much like everything else i have written recently. big feeling of: i will never have a compelling way of writing that hooks the audience and feels natural everything is stilted and bad and not descriptive in the way i want.

#my works #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid fanfic #spencer reid x you #spencer reid fic #spencer reid #criminal minds #criminal minds fanfic #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid oneshot #spencer reid scenario #spencer reid fanfiction #criminal minds x reader #spencer reid fluff

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steifel · 2 days

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My random ass outsiders head canons

AN: some of these are backed up by canon but most of them are just vibes so enjoy. Also please excuse any spelling or grammar mistakes im really dislexic.

Johnny really struggles to read and write, He had a nurse write the letter for Ponyboy.

He also has always loved listening to Pony read to him no matter what it is

"Pony do you think you could finish reading me that book"...."my science textbook?"...."yeah that one!"

If soda was around today he would identify as pansexual but he never got to explore that since it was the 60s

Those 5 days in the church were the most peaceful sleeps of Johnnys life. He finally felt safe being so far from his parents, he also knows that Dally would never send him into danger

Darry hates it when Pony smokes weed (not that he loves when Pony smokes cigarettes but he's made his peace with it)

Johnny hates loud noises (he's not scared of them they just annoy the hell out of him)

Two bit actually really enjoys going to the movies with ponyboy

The reason Darry and Pony dont get along is because Darry sees so much of himself in Pony and doesn't want to see the same thing that happened to him happen to Pony (this one i believe with my whole heart)

The whole gang was different after they found Johnny beaten not just him

Pony is asexual... Chang my mind (without using other books by S. E. Henton)

Dally cares about Pony just as much as he cares about Johnny just in a different way

Sodapop was actually super excited when he found out Sandy was pregnant

He was gonna tell Pony about the baby first

Johnny is super strong for his size

Like he can lift almost as much as Soda and nobody has any clue how

Johnny loves the stars in the same way Pony loves sunsets

Sodapop named pony

he kept running around the house calling his new baby brother "Ponyboy" and eventually their parents started to like it

Sodapop is a VIOLENT sleeper

One night Ponyboy woke up with Soda completely turned around his head fully under the covers and his feet poking out at the head of the bed

When Pony was sick and calling for his dad Darry would hold him tighter and say "im here Ponyboy its alright im here"

Dally only cried twice in his life. Once when they found Johnny beaten, and again when Johnny died

#the outsiders #dally winston #dallas winston #ponyboy curtis #johnny cade #sodapop curtis #darry curtis #headcanon

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amerricanartwork · 2 days

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Scavengers!! Which one is your favorite?

But yeah, here's a collection of some (female) scav sketches from the past few days, partly as as general studies of scavenger anatomy (man, I love that Disney anthro anatomy for these things)! Figured I'd try my hand at drawing scavs since I've actually never drawn them seriously before, and practice making/compiling anatomical studies for fictional characters. Quick thanks to @everyscavever, whose posts I used as direct references on scav designs!

And here are some other notes and headcanons for this down below!

In addition to general anatomy, with these sketches I also tried to focus on exploring designs for female scavengers specifically, since the overall scav design always struck me as pretty masculine with the large chests and top-heavy rhythm, and because I haven't seen many more feminine looking scav characters. However, for verisimilitude's sake, a bit of a design challenge, and because I really like the general scav design, I still wanted to keep the overall anatomy/proportions the same and retain that mangy, feral, yet goofy appearance that I find iconic to scavengers!

Thus, I headcanon for females the limb proportions are the same, the horns are slightly smaller and less ornate on average, and the shoulders, though still wider than the hips, are less so compared to males. Otherwise, my depictions of female scavengers likely won't be that visually distinct from the males, besides the more visible eyelashes (which to me, is a design trait simple enough I think I can get away with it on almost any creature with eyes, especially with my relatively cartoony style).

I find the scavenger design pretty nice in this regard, since it's humanoid enough that I feel I can add a bit more human-like sexual dimorphism without it looking too uncanny or too different from the general species design. In contrast, slugcats are so simple and animal-like in their physiology that I feel the most I can do is just draw visible eyelashes when I want a feminine appearance, lest I risk overcomplicating the design or making something that doesn't look believable given the setting and canon slugcat designs. Of all the RW creatures, however, I actually think iterators would have the most human-like sexual dimorphism since they're very humanoid visually, but I headcanon it's for very different reasons that I'll explain later.

But anyway, that was a lot. I hope you like these scav sketches!

#art #artwork #sketch #sketches #digital #digital art #fanart #rain world #headcanons #rw headcanons #scavenger #rw scavenger #quetzalli draws #quetzalli headcanons #how many scavs is too many??

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wrathofrats · 2 days

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Wrath I will give you various shiny objects if you talk more about Mist just in general. Normal dick, tentacle dick, something different but just as inhuman. Mist being a mean dom, Mist begrudgingly letting someone take care of her, Mist having zero shame in doing what she wants where she wants and if someone sees they better join and let her use them or shut up and watch politely.

Just please talk about Mist more we don’t nearly talk enough about her as a fandom

Oh fuck yeah I love shiny objects

Also it’s tentacle day again bc hyp got accused of being too weird about aquatic creatures which really is not fair considering we all could be worse

But … tentacle dick mist ….

Especially mean tentacle dick mist?

Think it drives everyone insane. Trying to not fucking fall head over heels as to not stroke her ego but god it’s hard not to honestly. Think Ivy is the easiest, especially when there’s some shame involved. Gets him underneath her with her tentacle hovering right above his face, probably just dripping onto his skin. Ivys always looked better when he’s a mess.

He’s always been sweet and easy. Pliant, relaxes his jaw and throat so well for her to let it rest on his tongue. Saliva and slick drip from his mouth once mist starts rocking, fucking his pretty lips.

Think there’s something a little shameful in ivys mind about it, how gross and weird it is for the appendage so explore his mouth like it has a mind of its own, and god I’m sure mist just coos about how much her dick loves him

#heyyy #cw tentacles #so Ivy and mist #I have opinions and love them #ivy ghoul #mist ghoulette

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sharpth1ng · 10 hours

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Since the photo of the pope on Stu’s fridge has been discovered I’ve seen a lot of takes about how Stu would definitely have religious guilt and would have more issues with his feelings for Billy. I want to be clear I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that take, it’s definitely something to explore if it interests you but it also flattens the breadth of responses to a religious upbringing and religious trauma. There are so many ways a person might respond to that kind of experience and it doesn’t just stop with internalized guilt.

What about the people who just kind of never fall in line? They’re punished for it over and over but it doesn’t make the religion make sense to them. And maybe they learn over time hide their disbelief, they learn to be quiet at church and hide their same sex partners but the moment they’re 18 they are gone.

What about the people who believed when they were young and have had an experience to change that? Maybe they saw religion used to justify the mistreatment of a sibling or a friend, and they thought “if there is a god, they wouldn’t think this is right”.

What about the ones that swing hard in the opposite direction? The ones so angry with the beliefs instilled in them that they do almost anything they can to enrage their religious family? They may not even be doing this intentionally, but teenage rebellion is teenage rebellion, and if your family is catholic then Catholicism might be what you rebel against. What better way to rebel against the anti gay religion than to kiss another boy? Do you know how many queer pagans and Satanists I know who have a history of religious trauma?

Have you ever felt so mistreated by someone or something, so deeply wronged, that almost anything they disapprove of becomes enticing? I definitely have.

And here’s the thing with Stu, he might have a religious family but he sure does talk about sex a lot. Unabashedly too. He spends the night at his girlfriends house, and she confirms that they have sex. He fills his house with people, feeds them booze, and kills a bunch of them. This isn’t giving me the picture of a fearful catholic son.

Before I saw the pope picture I had already been writing Stu’s family as conservative and religious. He definitely grew up with the idea that sex is a sin and gay sex is even worse. But he’s not a guy that likes authority. He likes sensory pleasure and chaos, and at least some of that is a rejection of his upbringing. Dude watches slasher movies and raunchy comedies like clerks. He fucks and he talks openly about it. He gets drunk and he directs his best friend to go take his girlfriends virginity in his parents bed.

He’s rebelling.

To me? Yeah he might have been the kind of kid who had religious fears and guilts when he was younger. He’s definitely been baptized and his family probably still makes him go to church sometimes. But he’s not isolated. It’s the mid 90s and he has access to more media than kids did ever before. He’s had access to alternative view points, narratives that contradict the ones instilled in him when he was young.

And the 90s are a time characterized by a loud rejection of convention. Grunge rocker Kurt Cobain wears dresses, the riot grrl movement is in full swing, and people are getting really into modern forms of paganism. It’s popular to reject your parents beliefs.

There’s an interview with Neve Campbell where she talks about how she thinks Billy and Stu were partly motivated by the rage of being unable to be themselves in Woodsboro and I think that works really well here. What better what to say a fuck you to your religious parents than to have buttsex with a pretty dude and kill a bunch of people?

Again, this is just the way I see the character. There’s nothing wrong with different interpretations and fandom would be boring if we all saw these characters in the exact same way. But yeah just an alternative way to look at it.

#religious trauma #Stu Macher #scream 1996 #stuilly #billy x stu #Billy loomis x Stu Macher #character analysis #just sharp things

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roykentschesthair · 3 days

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I’m so obsessed with Roy and Jamie it can’t be healthy.

I need another season to properly explore their new coach and player dynamic.

Like, yeah, Roy was already coaching, even when they were on the team together he was at least trying to coach Jamie, but being head coach?

Completely different.

I just…I don’t even know what I want to see honestly, at this point I’d take thirty second TikTok videos of those two idiots sitting next to each other in silence.

I miss them

#roy kent #ted lasso #jamie tartt #royjamie #roy x jamie #tedlassoedit #they’re in love your honor #jamie x roy

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olderthannetfic · 2 days

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https://olderthannetfic.tumblr.com/post/752017478391037952/while-i-fucking-hate-dnis-im-pretty-sure-that#notes

yeah, i can agree that minors DNI could be for ass-covering if some minors lie about their age. I remember being really freaked out once years ago when i was doing some roleplaying in a group of characters from an anime (where we each had a particular character we played) and some of my RPs were sexually-explicit, and finding out a few weeks into this that someone playing a different character (who thankfully wasn't involved in the sex stuff, but was liking and commenting on those posts) was 13 and had lied to us about their age. Like I also used to be a teen and I get why some of them want to lie about their ages and think it's unfair that they aren't considered mature enough for that sort of thing, but a lot of why adults don't want to interact with minors doing that sort of thing is simply covering their own asses if it ever gets back to them. Making a big show about not wanting minors around can feel like an attempt to cover your ass, even knowing a lot of minors won't listen.

(Also, this is something that is hard to understand when you yourself are a teenager but.... some of it's also just that when you're in your 20s and 30s and so on, a 13-yro is just in such a different stage of life from you that you're not sure what you'd have much in common with to begin with - and that doesn't matter when it's just someone passively reading your blog, but matters to me when it comes to the kind of interaction involved with RPing or building a friendship or something like that. Also like I can both respect that teens are curious about and interested in sex and I think they should have access to things to explore their curiosity like I did, and also get the heebie jeebies about doing sexual roleplay with someone who I think of as a child. Like I couldn't care less if teens are reading my E-rated fanfics, it's the "active" part of roleplaying that squicks me out if you know what I mean)

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your-ne1ghbor · 3 days

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THE KINGDOM OF ROSES AND THORNS ANIMATIC (UPDATED)

I got the storyboard all done.

Plus the reason why I changed it was because legit the other one I kept on imagining different characters not the characters I wanted to use and I didn't like how anything was coming out.

But after I explored that universe for a week or so, I think that it is better for me to show off another star design that will show what is happening. Plus I imagined it a lot more than the other one. Don't worry, star boy gets injured more in this one than he did in the other one :3

So here it is, FW is in the video but Blood and Death Warning

Plus I get to show off the designs I recently made and enjoyed making

So anyways, ya'll probably confused, but I feel like only 3 or 2 maybe 1 stars can predict the future, only because they are old as fuck. So yeah, Maggy summoned a very ancient star by accident. Or that this song isn't really, cannon just that the event of a Star saying "you should change your viewpoint of your world before you damn youself" is going to stay cannon in the story.

One thing I really tried near the ending is that she gets very angry at him since he hurts a star, a young one at that and she is despratly trying to scare him into changing what he will become in a positive way, but it was prevented for a while, until the grief got too much for him and he became what was foretold. Or as I said, the future part just probs wont be cannon, but the fact that magnifico will go down a dark path after this and becomes the moster rawr rawr rawr

They are blue btw (kind of like the blue fairy, which is what they are largely based off from)

Anyways I got math first period tomorrow kill me bye bye

(also the other reblogs that @uva124 @signed-sapphire and @oh-shtars did was fucking adorable imma reblog my reactions to them after summer comes along)

If the future thing ends up being cannon in the story, I am just going to say that the limitations is that they can only see so far into what that can become. They can't see beyond that point, so that way it is mainly up to the person to prevent what will happen to them or not.

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botanybulbasaur · 3 days

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love through fiction

stuff below cut because its just stuff im writing while i cry

a quote i keep remembering over adnd over and over again is tahta stupid "the love was there and it changed everything. if you even care" quote because. i dont like change. i like having positive impacts on people but i dont like when i change or when they change. it feels like im losing something, an aspect i cant gain back, a feature that people mightve counted on me for. even worse sometimes, it can feel like im losing people.

so its easier to just ignore change. act like the love and the hate is the only thing that changes, not time. act like we, humans, control how long we have and how the world changes what we love.

but we don't, and we never will. the world will keep spinning and the people will keep changing against their will, against the beat of their hearts. but the fiction i keep reading

it keeps sayingt hat the love doesn't need to change anything. the love being there in the first place is a miracle, a gift, proof that we mean something and that our actions give us something. thte change was there and it made love if you even care.

'slay the princess' does a good job at taking just what i fear and placing it before me. how terrifying it is to be the one who changes, and how terrifying it is to see people change before you. but despite that everybody tried to work together. the love was there. the love was there and it told you to try and change something

then there's the love that transcends change. dragon maid be damned because kobayashi (human character) tells. uak. tells this teenage dragon character "i am. im lying to you. im trying to charm a chaos dragon with sweet lies" after the teenager tells her that she's just a human and she'll die and she's inferior and she's lying to her dragon girlfriend. i think its been a while my memory is shitty. and the girl didnt leave her side later on when she was in bed for a while. she knew that kobayashi was ignoring their differences, keeping it stacked away that theyd die at different times and i cant stop crying. the love was there and it told you that you dont have to change anything. the love was there and it told you that to be happy you have to ignore the change sometimes

amd TOHRU (kobayashi's gf) dont get me fucking started. her short monologue in the train ride back home about how kobayashi will die soon but shes just trying to enjoy what she has now. her conversation with her dad knowing she'd get hurt when kobayashi dies, following her near breakdown just thinking of kobayashi dying. the love was there and it told you to hold on and slow down, that the change is later, you don't have to be scared yet. it's okay, the love says, because it was there.

last but certainly not least dunmeshi. i know i usually bring up marcille here because i resonate with her but i want to bring up senshi and his backstory. like youre telling me he too feels guilty about his family (i know theyre not related to him shut the fuck up theyre family thats what family is) sacrificing for him but it gave him the inspiration and the courage to be who it was. the love was there and it changed me from the inside if you even care. the love was there and it changed me for the better. the love was there and it saved me

yeah im just crying now. the love was there. the love was there and it meant cooking and exploring and selling your desires to the nearest demon and it meant befriending people you'd outlive by a couple hundred years if you even care. the love was there and it made more love despite the change if you even care. the love was there the love was there im jfn,. :( THE LOVE WAS TEHRE. THE LOVE WAS THERE

the love was there and it made kobayashi risk her life for tohru. the love was there and it made laios, marcille and chilchuck risk their lives to kill the red dragon and get fain back. the love was there and it made toshiro wander deep without food to try and find someone who exhibited warmth. the love was there and it made laios and toshiro really become friends because the love was in us all all along wasn't it. the love wasn't because of change the change was love. what made us what changed us was love. what we all have that leads us forward, even in fiction. god i need a minute.

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wishitweresummer · 1 day

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Fall Off The Bone

Day 5 - Worst Spot

Word count: 1632

This is the part two to the first day!! I normally headcannon George’s underarms as his worst spot, but today we are exploring something different. Loving this week. 💜

Warning: Mouth tickles.

George’s skin still crawled with ghost tickles an entire day later. He hadn’t been tickled in so long and the feeling had been so startling.

But tonight, he would get his revenge. His big plan was to attack them separately, starting with Dream. George was well aware that Dream was stronger than him, so the plan was to strike while he was asleep. If he could just get him incapacitated before he woke up, George could do whatever he wanted.

~•~

Buying the handcuffs had been a little embarrassing, but he managed to get in and out of the store without being recognized. He hoped, at least.

George was careful to not jingle them as he creeped into Dream’s room. The younger was under the blankets and not moving. George was sure he was asleep, not having heard from him in hours.

He snuck closer and climbed up on the bed slowly. He moved the blanket down a little and grinned as he found one of Dream’s hands right away. He got the open metal cuff in position against Dream’s wrist.

The proud grin was quickly wiped from his face as Dream jerked awake, almost throwing George.

“What? Huh?”, Dream mumbled in confusion before pulling his hand away and snatching the handcuffs.

“Night!”, George squeaked out before going to jump off the bed. Before he could get away, Dream snatched him back and spun him around. In a flash, he was pinned under Dream’s larger body

“What are you up to?”, Dream asked slowly, voice hoarse with sleep.

“Nothing. Just saying good night.”.

“You came to wish me good night?”.

“Yeah.”.

“With these?”, Dream asked, holding up the handcuffs. George’s cheeks flushed with a dark blush.

“I don’t know...”, he murmured. The scene drew imagery of something much stranger than what he had actually been planning. “I was just going to tickle you.”, he admitted softly. A part of him felt like a creep. Luckily, Dream started to smile.

“Oh? You wanted revenge?”, he coo’ed in a baby voice. George’s flustered state only got worse.

“Shut up…”.

“Did me and Sapnap not tickle you enough? Huh?”, Dream kept on with the voice before leaning back and yelling, “Sapnap! Come here!!”.

“No!”, George gasped and tugged at the hold.

Dream smirked meanly as he arranged George easily. His wrists were pressed on either side of his head and Dream straddled his waist, immobilizing his lower half.

“We’re in my room!”, Dream shouted as he heard movement outside the room.

“Please stop!”, George whisper-shouted. Dream only laughed.

“You were going to handcuff me in my sleep!”.

“What?!”, Sapnap exclaimed and started laughing as soon as he entered the room.”Gogy! What were you doing!”. He flicked on the light to reveal the other two’s positions.

“Nothing! Go away!”, George kicked up in a panic underneath Dream. “Let me go!!”.

“No way! You little sneak.”, Dream shook his head and dropped one of his hands down to tickle into George’s stomach. The boy squealed and threw his head back against the blankets. Oh, he was fucked. Sapnap came closer and leaned over the bed to get a better look at the situation.

“Please, no!”, he burst out laughing and desperately shoved at Dream’s hand with his newly freed one. He twisted and squirmed as Dream easily ignored him and continued to tickle his stomach. “Sapnap! Help!”, he whined, feeling desperate.

“This little idiot was going to handcuff me while I was sleeping and try to tickle me! Can you believe that?!”.

“Georgie.”, Sapnap said, scandalized.

“I’m sorry!! Okay, I’m sorry!!”, he cried out before squealing against his will, Dream’s hand having creeped down to his hips. “Don’t tickle me!”. His laughter was frantic, sensing his doom.

“What! C’mon.”, Dream rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“Yeah, you kind of have it coming George.”.

~•~

Maybe George could count himself lucky they didn’t use his own handcuffs against him. But, the position he found himself in didn’t feel lucky at all.

Dream and Sapnap had worked out the day before that his worst spot was likely his ribcage, and they were right. So horribly right. They seemed to want to focus there.

George closed his eyes and thought back to a month earlier. Back to the last time the three of them had shared Dream’s bed. It had been his first day in the house and they had spent hours cuddled together talking about their futures. Dream’s bed was the only one big enough to hold all of them. He remembers laughing until his stomach hurt at one of the other two being an idiot. They had all been so delirious with glee at George’s arrival. He was so excited for his future filled with laughter and his friends and never being alone again.

When he had thought about his future being filled with laughter, he hadn’t thought about it like this.

“No! Please!!”, he begged through a flurry of panicked giggles. He was stretched out and more vulnerable than ever.

“It’s your ribs right? They’re the worst?”, Sapnap grinned at him. He got closer to George’s face, making him squeak.

“No! I hate you!”, he tried to buck, but Dream laid his much larger leg over his two.

Both of his arms were stretched above his head and held up by both Dream and Sapnap. They were laying on either side of him, keeping him down. The worst part was the pillow under his back. His upper body was curved up and terribly exposed for any tickling to come.

“I think they are!”, Dream sang, walking his fingers across George’s ribcage. He was stretched taut so the fingers teased right between the bones, making him whine and gasp.

“Dream!”, he cried. The boy smirked and turned his hand into a claw, jabbing his fingertips carefully between the ticklish ribs. George squealed loudly. He gasped for air, but could only let out a weak cry before bursting into laughter when Sapnap’s hand joined in on the tickles on the other side. He was beyond helpless to the feeling. It was precise and startling, the electric ticklish jolts shooting straight through him.

His chest heaved with the force of his breath and he tilted his head back, wailing with laughter.

“Aww…”, Sapnap cooed adoringly. There was something about the position he was in that made it hard for him to wheeze and gasp. The laughter just barreled out of him uninterrupted. “He’s so ticklish!”.

“He loves it!”, Dream laughed.

As much as George wanted to protest, he was unable to form any words. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. He felt his face get redder at his predicament.

The hands lifted away and he let out a small pathetic squeak. He gasped through his unstoppable giggles and squirmed roughly, but there was no going anywhere.

“Please…no more…”, he managed to get out. He was in despair at his situation, but he sounded giddy.

“We barely even tickled you.”, Sapnap laughed and tapped his fingers across George’s protruding ribs like a spider. He burst into high pitched laughter. The touch was teasy, but still unbearable.

“Let me go!”, he whined.

“You really brought this on yourself, George.”, Dream grinned. Then, he leaned down and nudged his chin against the sensitive ribs carefully. George squealed and kicked his legs up hard enough to move the ones trapping them to the bed.

“Quit!”, he cried. Dream laughed and started to tug his shirt up. “No! Guys, please!”.

Sapnap giggled as he helped Dream get George’s shirt pulled all the way up. The boy whined as the slightly colder air touched his upper body.

“I’ll do anything.”, he tried.

“So desperate.”, Sapnap smiled.

“Pathetic.”, Dream teased. “Anyway, I’m hungry.”.

“Yeah! I could go for a little midnight snack.”.

“Some juicy delicious ribs?”.

“Yes! Succulent ribs. Fall off the bone ribs.”, Sapnap giggled through his words.

“With extra tickle sauce.”, Dream pointed at him, excited to continue the bit.

“I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I ha-“, George was cut off when the two brought their teeth down against his ticklish ribcage. A scream tore out of his throat before he could even process what was happening. The nibbles were soft and careful, trailing his rib bones. Surely, George would explode. No matter how much he squirmed and kicked and twisted, he was kept stretched out for his tickles. The laughter that poured from his lips was desperate and helpless. The position was so devastating for the spot they wanted to torture. He had never felt anything so intense before. He screamed in protest, unable to find any words.

The two stopped when they realized how much George was losing his mind. They laughed as he gasped through a string of giggles that seemed to never stop.

“You’re such an idiot…”, Dream murmured fondly as George curled up in defense once he was released.

“Can’t believe he was going to handcuff you in your sleep!”, Sapnap sat up and stretched. “That’s a crime Gogy. Basically.”.

“Shut up…”, he whined and covered his face with one of his hands. He was a little shaky, barely recovering from his giggle attack.

“Oh, you’re fine.”, Sapnap smiled and shook his head in amusement.

~•~

In no time, George had fallen asleep cuddled between the warmth of his best friends. The excitement of the night crashed against him hard, dragging him down into a deep sleep. His skin tingled with every touch from the other two; still on high alert. But, it only brought sleepy smiles and sweet little giggles.

He was too cute to be mad at, really. He was completely tickled out; limp in Dream and Sapnap’s arms. It wasn’t long before they joined him in dreamland.

#lee!georgenotfound #lee!georgesummer #ler!sapnap #ler!dream #mcyt tickle #dream team tickle #dnn tickle #dsmp tickle #hi posting this a little early cuz I’m impatient today

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illegiblewords · 6 months

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SOME ILLEGIBLE RAMBLES AND REFLECTIONS: ON GALE AND MYSTRA

I've been on the fence about whether to make this analysis specifically, but after seeing a few other discussions floating around figure it's worth offering another viewpoint in case it resonates.

These analyses in particular are very subjective and offer an interpretive option more than anything. I might allude to discussions I've seen elsewhere that I have different views from, but different views don't automatically mean personal dislike for me. Life would be boring if we all thought the same way, you know? Anyway. Hugeass post ahead, proceed at your own risk lol.

One of the arguments I've seen cropping up recently is the idea that romance between gods and mortals is inherently unequal, abusive, and problematic. I am very much of the mind that Mystra abused Gale. The developers at Larian have stated that every companion in Baldur's Gate 3 is a victim of abuse in some capacity. Some of my favorite romances over the years have been between gods and mortals. Mystra/Gale is not one of those. I think blaming the divine/mortal dynamic for any abuse misses the point. Moreover, it absolves Mystra of a huge amount of personal responsibility in the abuse she committed. I think it makes the abuse focus on what she is rather than who she is, how she looks at others, and how she treats others. I reflected on the divine/mortal pairings I've enjoyed compared to the dynamic between Gale and Mystra. In every divine/mortal romance I've loved, the god found wonder and saw a kind of power they lack in their mortal partner. This power stems directly from their mortality. There are experiences and perspectives specific to being mortal that are invaluable. The god doesn't relate to those experiences and perspectives the same way. The god always needs not only humility but equal respect for their mortal partner in some capacity. Additionally, the god acknowledges that being divine does not equate to omniscience. This is not a god according to the monotheistic definition. It's closer to an immortal being who excels in a very specific area and has certain responsibilities weighing on them. The god sees the forest but may no longer see trees, while the mortal sees trees but may not see the forest. There is value in what is ephemeral and fragile, just as there is value in what is permanent. The god and mortal need to bring balance to one another in the sense that the god helps the mortal find comfort in a bigger picture while the mortal reminds the god what it feels like to be small, vulnerable, and intimately connected to the world/other lives. A healthy divine/mortal romance requires recognition of multiple forms of strength, intelligence, and value. That very, very much is not what Gale and Mystra had. Another layer to the 'divine/mortal romance is always problematic' argument ties to questions of power imbalance. I would argue that even among human beings--power imbalance always exists. Human beings are not identical or interchangeable with one another. One partner might be brilliant at math and runs finances where the other partner would be lost. The other partner might be brilliant at people and can navigate social situations the mathematician would feel helpless in. One partner may be physically larger or stronger than another. The other partner has the full weight of social/legal support in most conflicts. And this isn't touching on issues relating to mental health, physical health, economic stability, societal issues, etc. People are multifaceted. None of us excel at all things, find power in all things, or suffer all things. We each have our own pains and triumphs. We each have the ability to hurt each other if we want to. If we wanted to avoid any power imbalance in favor of 1:1 equality, the only answer we'd have would be to literally romance ourselves . And that's 1) narcissism 2) lonely 3) sad. Just ask Raphael.

But unhealthy power imbalances must exist, right? And there is a horrible power imbalance between Gale and Mystra. I would just argue it has more to do with them personally than because of Mystra being a goddess. I'd argue that we should be looking at Gale and Mystra not as mortal and god or man and woman, but as people above all else with their own experiences/motives driving choices throughout the relationship. Examine the ways they look at and treat each other versus themselves. If Mystra was the mortal and Gale was the god, if Mystra was a man and Gale was a woman, I would not change my stance regarding where abuse was committed. Imo people get too caught up trying to make sweeping generalizations instead of focusing on the individuals and how they specifically interact. This in-mind, what are some examples of unhealthy power imbalance as I define it?

A character is physically and/or mentally incapable of participating with proper awareness of the situation, as a partner with equal respect and sway within the relationship.

A character is dependent upon the prospective partner for survival and cannot refuse them without fear of retribution or withholding necessities to survival.

A character is being systematically isolated and made dependent on their partner for all socialization and self-worth.

And so on. Hopefully you get the gist. What I do want to draw attention to though is that these examples offer room to include a variety of circumstances or dynamics within their umbrella. Ex. An underage character with an adult would easily qualify for the first criteria, but an extremely, non-functioningly drunk character would also count. So lets have a look at Gale and Mystra's situation in particular again.

Gale has, by his own admission, been involved with the Weave for as long as he can remember. He sees Mystra as synonymous with the Weave, and with magic. These are things he explicitly states within the game. Gale also has notable reactions to say, saving Arabella from being killed over the idol of Silvanus or Mirkon from harpies. With Arabella especially, the idea of being treated as unforgivable or deserving death for a youthful mistake is something he talks about as if he has some experience with it. And while this is a video game with limited character models, I'm going to estimate that the tiefling kids are probably somewhere between nine and thirteen. We know Gale has been stuck largely alone in his tower with the orb for a year or so. The orb specifically is something that happened when he was an adult, but the way he talks about Arabella with implicit personal identification of facing older authority figures as a young person who didn't know better... I don't think this is the orb alone troubling him. Minsc also has a dialogue option where he talks about how in Rashemen, boys with an affinity for the Weave were hidden away and he suspects it was to keep them from being preyed on by Mystra. Not men, boys. I've seen people try to argue that Mystra would have been indisposed/dead and unable to take advantage of Gale when he was a kid due to the broader Forgotten Realms timeline. I'm inclined to say in this instance, with all evidence in the narrative pointing to a particular arc and theme for Gale and Mystra's relationship, it's more likely that the timeline was something Larian chose to fudge in the interest of storytelling opportunities. The alternative would be that none of those dialogue exchanges meant anything. The narrative is weakened if those moments are made meaningless, and the characters become flatter and less credible without them too. If it comes between trivia and the emotional core of a story, I'd argue the core wins. Gale claims to have slept with other people before Mystra, but that a romanced character is the first person he's slept with after her. I personally suspect it wasn't a lot of prior experience, and he was pretty young when his romance with Mystra began. Additionally, while it's pure conjecture on my part--given how Gale reacts to the tiefling kids it would make sense to me if Mystra started grooming him when he was between nine and thirteen years old. Other people have shared analysis pointing to evidence that Gale unknowingly dual-classed and was a storm sorcerer originally, but was told he was purely a wizard and then had all of his sorcerous abilities eaten by the orb without ever knowing they existed. I do think it makes sense for Mystra to influence Gale as a potentially very powerful sorcerer this way to 1) get him to self-limit through wizard spells so he's easier to predict and control 2) be completely dependent on and devoted to her, starting as early as possible. (For the curious, sorcerer Gale theory is here and here. Very well-done imo!) In any case, Mystra absolutely has personal motive to do what she did, that has nothing to do with Gale personally. That it turned into grooming for a sexual relationship isn't a huge leap in light of her apparent mindset either. But lets take a moment to review that.

This is a really good recap setting up Mystra's situation. Karsus too, by the by. This second video here helps explain Mystra's own situation. My understanding is like this:

Mystryl was the original goddess of magic. Mystryl was a born-goddess rather than an ascended mortal goddess, which is important to note because both exist in the Forgotten Realms. Mystryl was neutral alignment. The Weave, magic, and those casting magic all tied into her divine portfolio. Divine portfolios reflect deities' jurisdictions and callings, which empowers them through use in the world as well as mortal worship. With all this in-mind, naturally it benefited Mystryl to encourage experimentation, devotion, and arcane ambition. The more spellcasters pushed the limits of magic, the more powerful Mystryl became too. This was when the Empire of Netheril came about, with its floating cities and its magocracies. Worth noting, eleventh level spells were being used at this point in time. Cue a bunch of aberrations showing up, called phaerimm. Cosmic horror monstrosities that sort of looked like if you combined grubs and lampreys then made them way too big. On the one hand they were ridiculously powerful natural spellcasters themselves. On the other, they could straight up detect, deflect, and eat magic at will. Incidentally they were also extremely hostile to other life forms. So them existing at the same time as Netheril caused some massive problems. The wizard empire was at war, struggling, and panicking. Karsus was a prodigy and the one most people were turning to for protection at the time. Karsus decided the best way to solve the problem was to become a god himself using the first and only twelfth level spell (of his own design) then get rid of the phaerimm that way. The spell specifically required the caster to replace a god of their choice. Karsus, being a wizard, thought Mystryl was the strongest divine force of all time and chose her. The first video explained very well, but it basically sounds like as a born-goddess--maintaining the Weave was essentially an autonomic process for Mystryl. Basically required as much thought as beating your own heart. It wasn't like that for Karsus. Karsus might have been the best wizard in the sense that someone might be the best marathon runner of all time, but if you take that marathon runner and then tell them they have to pump their heart manually from now on they're not just going to lose any future races they attempt--they might just die on the spot. Which is kind of what happened to Karsus. Karsus became a god of ambition along with magic, then lost his divinity to become a Great Old One instead. These days he's a stone stained in the gore of his dead people who speaks in fountains of blood. (One of the reasons I'm not enabling Gale in his quest to become god of magic, by-the-by.) Mystryl died because of Karsus's spell. Mystryl probably hadn't considered mortals, let alone the wizards who gave her so much power as a goddess, a threat to her personally before. An incarnation of Mystra (not Gale's Mystra) was born from the ashes of Mystryl to become the new goddess of magic. One of the first things Mystra does after basically reincarnating from Mystryl is ban mortals from using magic at level ten or higher. Mystra is now aware that mortals can challenge the gods and straight up kill her personally. She still needs casters using magic at high level to empower herself as a goddess, but it's a double-edged sword that can absolutely kill her. And to make matters worse... this Mystra also gets killed later. The Mystra we have now was a mortal woman (Midnight) who kept Mystra's name to avoid confusing worshippers, who'd been chosen by Mystra previously and ascended into that role. Midnight-Mystra, from the sound of it, also got killed for a bit and had to get saved by Elminster.

Like I said before, I do think there were some timeline blips going on for Mystra with Baldur's Gate 3. As long as she's died and reincarnated twice, her psychological state is cemented. How long it took her to come back and whether there were even more deaths than that is less important. I'd argue the key ideas we're supposed to take away about Mystra from this are that she is a goddess who 1) at this point is an ascended mortal who may have certain inherited memories or experiences from born-deities 2) is hyper aware that mortals can kill her 3) has been killed and reborn multiple times, not just by mortals but the very wizards she draws power from.

This is absolutely a shitty situation. It makes sense Mystra has complexes around it. It makes sense Midnight-Mystra would feel especially afraid when it comes to wizards seeing as she herself is a former mortal, so her position likely feels even more tenuous. The way she interacts with wizards and relates to her own position as a goddess is not as someone secure in her own power, but someone who sees anyone coming close to her level as a direct threat to her life. She needs casters to be strong to fuel her portfolio, but if they're too strong they can challenge her. So she is using whatever tools at her disposal to keep them beneath her while maintaining her own strength. It's also worth remembering that Mystra has no pretense of being good-alignment. Her motive in confronting the Netherbrain wasn't to protect Toril from mindflayers, but to protect herself personally from the Crown of Karsus and protect the Weave from the Karsic Weave. If magic as a force is in danger (as per the Karsic Weave) she might try to do something, but what befalls mortals is irrelevant to her. I'd argue she's 1000% acting out of self-interest for Baldur's Gate 3. And again--it makes sense given her position. It makes sense given the track record for gods in the Forgotten Realms.

So, if we go with the in-game implications that Mystra is supposed to have been active across Gale's life and was active when Minsc was running around a century ago (referenced in his comments about Rashemen protecting boys from Mystra)... what kind of relationship has Mystra built with wizards in particular? This is heavy speculation here but I'm going off of Gale's experience, Elminster's behavior, a point of notable cattiness from Lorroakan, and Mystra's motives.

I think Mystra encourages wizards to compete for her favor, both through their arcane power and on a personal level. She encompasses their entire world and dictates everything they are capable of by holding the Weave in her portfolio. Casters are nothing without her. She is fickle in her attentions, moving between wizard paramours and chosen so they constantly feel the need to prove themselves worthy of her love. As their goddess, they have no room to question her or ask for loyalty born of personal affection. Mystra does not care. She is inherently more than they are and ever will be, and unless they have something to woo her through her portfolio specifically there is no reason for her to stick around. They're lucky she gives them the time of day. Even if she can't literally, physically, personally prevent a wizard from interacting with the Weave--she can seriously screw with them while they do. Mystra's first post-Mystryl act was to blanket-limit the spells wizards could perform, remember? And BG3 Mystra was able to pluck the orb from Gale's chest at any time, whenever she felt like it. She just didn't. Lifetimes of work, dedication, study, and innovation are not ultimately credited to the casters who built themselves through their art but to Mystra. Memorized spells, arcane gestures, the interaction of components. She can make all of that so much harder. And she takes credit for any advancement a wizard makes. Origin Gale has lines with Minthara where he struggles to see himself as capable of anything without Mystra's say-so and needs to be reminded that she can't claim everything he has ever done through magic, and she hasn't managed to stop him yet. The fact that Gale himself, as Mystra's former lover, doesn't believe this initially and needs someone who very much is not a wizard to remind him says a lot about the dynamic Mystra set up with him and (in all likelihood) other wizards. So how does all of this fit in with the grooming point? Well, magic users are going to be much easier to psychologically control if Mystra starts taking advantage of them when they're still children and don't know any better. She needs to feed off of their strength with no risk to herself, so she needs to make sure they are can't even fathom turning on her. Maximize the power difference, ingrain that shit early. And if it becomes a sexual relationship... Mystra can tell herself they're even less likely to consider turning on her because it's just one more way they depend on her for validation.

Mystra's own fear and trauma (like Cazador's) does not prevent her from becoming an abuser. And like Cazador, she's using it to fuel the abuse she commits herself.

Something else I want to highlight before I segue to focus on Gale further, is how wizards deal with each other and why policy differs toward wizards versus other casters.

Wizards are nerds with shared interests. They're fucking around to see what's possible with magic and seem genuinely excited when anyone innovates. Innovation is something they can learn from and incorporate it into their own art. But actual wizard friendships, at least in Baldur's Gate 3, seem to be rare. They undercut each other emotionally and often look for ways to elevate themselves above their peers. Gale's colleagues left him to twist alone in his tower for a year. Elminster prioritizes pleasing Mystra by passing on her message for Gale to kill himself, and defends her if the player condemns Mystra's behavior. He even gets angry for certain dialogue options.

(It bears saying, I think Elminster has been psychologically wrecked by Mystra too. He does seem to be trying in spite of that but guy's not well himself.)

Even if not all wizards look to become romantically entangled with Mystra, Mystra has definitely encouraged competition and mistrust between them. After all, if the wizards supported each other they might realize they're stronger than her and that she's been causing harm. Another potential death.

I suspect the reason Mystra focuses on wizards is because wizards are ordinary people who know they were born ordinary, and know how hard it was to build arcane power. They aren't as secure in themselves as sorcerers who use magic like a reflex. And warlocks manage to work around Mystra with patrons who aren't beholden to her. So best for Mystra to undermine, manipulate, or otherwise occupy sorcerers who are strong enough to pose threats and teach the wizards they'd be nothing without her.

... One of the other arguments I saw recently was that Gale was being disingenuous/lying to himself and the player when he claims he wanted to gift Mystra a part of herself back. That he only wants power for power's sake, is kind of a terrible person, and it would be boring if he was being genuine. I deeply disagree with this stance.

When it comes to motivation, I'd argue power is by nature a means to an end rather than the end itself. "If I'm powerful enough no one will be able to hurt me again," "If I'm powerful enough I can fix every terrible thing I feel the need to," "If I'm powerful enough I can push the boundaries of what is possible and find a sense of wonder at the results."

Power because power does not cut it as a motive. It's likewise with ambition. We're not 2-D mustache twirlers here.

Ambition includes experimenting with a project to see if you can pull off something new or particularly difficult. Finding joy in the process and challenge itself isn't evil. It isn't even unhealthy.

Competing with others isn't necessarily negative either, in the right context. Being an elite athlete at the Olympics for example, you're putting your own skills against those around you in the hopes of surpassing them. It doesn't mean you think poorly of your fellow competitors. If anything, one would hope you respect them deeply for the shared discipline and passion. (But you still want to win, course. ;P)

If you read my post about DnD's pantheon, it's pretty clear I'm not opposed to the idea of A. firing gods from positions they're neglecting or B. nominating others to oversee necessary-but-unused portfolios. There are established gods of the Forgotten Realms who need, urgently, to be sacked. Being born into divinity, set up through nepotism, or 'elected by seniority' is not enough to shield a deity from my judgment. Mystra is abusing her worshippers, and while her portfolio might be able to squeak by I'd argue she's been compromised and is committing unprofessional and detrimental behavior in her capacity as goddess of magic. ESPECIALLY knowing she's like this as an ascended mortal. Any other mortal would be well within moral bounds to replace her. She has no ethical high ground in that regard. Managing autonomic maintenance of the Weave is an issue, but if someone showed up to replace her with the argument that Mystra is unfit due to committing abuse... I don't think that person would be morally wrong. Ballsy as hell, but not wrong.

So what's going on with Gale?

Gale canonically, in dialogue, thinks he and the world might both be better off if he was dead. I'll go a step further and argue that before the game even starts Gale considers his personal self a net-negative. If he isn't offsetting that with magical skill, knowledge, achievements, material possessions, and overall usefulness--he doesn't think he has a reason to be alive. The universe is worse for his existing in it.

Gale brags because he's trying to show he has something of value to give other people when he sees nothing of value in himself. He's trying to prove he can be an asset so others will keep him around. He brags notably less as he gains a sense of self-worth, self-confidence, and general support as acts progress. The times he gets snippy with other casters are because if he isn't the only and most useful magic guy to get something done, Gale thinks he might as well be thrown away. He is replaceable. He's also terrified to admit anything about the orb in Act I because there is no way to see it as anything but a danger and a burden. When that's added to his depression, he's sure he'll get abandoned in the wilderness to explode by himself and it might even serve him right. No one will mourn him. They might even be glad to be rid of the burden he brought.

Gale wants others to like him, to see him as a good person, to see him as someone brave and smart and worthy of trust. He absolutely does not see himself that way. If he's trying to prove it to the party--he's trying to prove it to himself just as much. There's a line he can give with The Dark Urge where he comments that if people are being killed just for being annoying, he should be dead a thousand times over. If you get solid approval with him at the tiefling party, he'll admit he didn't have any friends before the game. And while I can only speak to a particular romantic route, in Act III he talks about having been told to his face at various points/in various ways that he's insufferable. He knows other people don't like him and don't believe in him. If bad things happen to him they probably think he deserves it. He might even think so too.

Gale doesn't see anything worthwhile in himself that isn't built through wizardry. It has to be because he was smart enough, worked hard enough, and showed enough character to earn his power. If it's sorcery (and this is only a standard he applies to himself) then all that effort he put in would become meaningless. He can't look at his personal self as having done anything deserving of value or respect if he's a sorcerer because magic was easier for him than other people. And if he can't provide any magic, knowledge, or resources at all then no one has reason to give him the time of day. People hate him. Mystra only paid attention for his abilities as a spellcaster. The mortal, personal aspects of him were things she put up with.

So forget power and ambition for just a moment. What does Gale as a person in that position, who feels that way about himself, actually want? I'd argue that he probably just wanted to know the person he loved most actually gave a shit about him as a person. That he wasn't disposable or only worth as much as his skills and material possessions. I'm pretty sure he'd have wanted that regardless of whether Mystra was a goddess. Mystra both being the kind of goddess she was and the kind of person she was kept telling him he should be satisfied, that he shouldn't want any more than she was giving him. He can't climb any higher than her. No one can give him more than her. She is divine, she is the world itself. Gale never felt loved in that relationship. Due to Mystra's abuse he got to a place where the idea of wanting to be loved back became sacrilegious. It meant there was something wrong with him, that he was arrogant and insatiable. How else could he feel utterly alone and unlovable with a goddess?

Gale desperately wanted to mean something to Mystra personally, so he tried to offer a gesture of love in her language. Something he thought would be valuable to her as an individual and something requiring a ton of arcane skill/strength to deliver. He wanted her to look at him like he was irreplaceable as a person. I genuinely don't think that's a power-hungry or ambitious thing to want.

Gale didn't understand the orb, and unfortunately for him he didn't understand Mystra either. She wasn't the wise and understanding goddess he thought she was. She never wanted an equal. She does not have it in her to love someone as such. The idea of equality, for Mystra, is something that must be crushed to preserve herself.

I figure that the Gale who ascends to godhood has accumulated a divine amount of stuff and power to compensate for his belief that lacking those things, he would be worthless. If Gale wasn't a wizard it might have been music, or writing, or fighting, or politics--any skill, influence, or resource could be used the same way. It’s not that ambition is inherently bad. It’s that for Gale, it’s unhealthy. The ambition isn’t for its own sake. He’s using it as a counterweight against his own sense of worthlessness. God Gale buries his problems instead of dealing with them. He will never know if a character who romances him only did so because they saw his potential and wanted to come along for the ride. He will never know if they'd have bothered to stick around if he was only Gale Dekarios, if he didn't have so much to offer them. He tells himself it's enough that they believed he could do it.

With the mortal Gale ending, we should note that Gale doesn’t need power to enjoy the study of magic if he’s healthy. His priority isn’t about pushing the limits of spells, making new ones, or making a name for himself. Given room to decide for himself, he just wants to uplift and share with others through teaching. His trends in approval and disapproval support this preference too.

For Gale, I really think ambition and power are crutches he uses to justify being alive because he doesn't see any other reason. Give him a reason and he genuinely doesn't need them. They're the means, not the end. He does not want power for the sake of power. Guy is sad and doesn't know how to live with himself. He's not a worse or less believable character with that being his motive. Stories are about people, and people don't move through the world with static 'flaws' and 'virtues' checklists that need to be balanced. There's nothing inherently deeper or more meaningful about villainous characters compared to heroic ones. People make choices and deal with situations according to their experiences moment to moment, trying to make sense of things as best they can throughout their lives. Gale fits perfectly within this. The other cast members do too.

And for the record, while I'd argue Karsus was far more ambitious in character than Gale--even for him, it wasn't just about power. The guy was trying to save his people. He fucked up in a horrible and traumatic way so he's a Netherese blood fountain now. (RIP Karsus but also someone please pact with him.)

And as one last, controversial section... what did Gale's experience with Mystra do to him when it comes to his relationship with sex?

From how Gale talks about and shows Weave-sex, I'd argue it's an extension of him feeling inadequate as a mortal. And knowing this is a controversial point + a lot of people have done and loved the Weave scene because it reflects Gale's love of magic, I offer this: Gale would not be less worthy of love if he didn't have magic. Gale does not know this about himself. He went from an archwizard with a tower and Mystra's chosen to a level one adventurer sleeping on the ground. His entire relationship with magic for much of the game is incredibly unhealthy because he sees the person left in its absence as worthless. For Gale to have a healthy arc, I'd argue he needs to learn how to look at himself as nothing but a man and know he's still precious and irreplaceable. He needs to learn that he doesn't need to prove he deserves to be alive. He isn't disappointing. He doesn't have to try to impress others all the time to have a place in their worlds. He doesn't need to bribe people with shiny things or unique abilities so they'll tolerate the rest. He can exist as no one and nothing but himself and be treasured just for that.

I think at some point Gale could potentially have sex in the Weave again as a repairing experience where he's confident that his physical body, his reactions, and his wants weren't anything to feel ashamed of. Reclaiming that from his experience with Mystra could be very powerful and sexy. But for the first time he has sex since Mystra, when he thinks he's going to need to kill himself any day now and has been struggling between terror and self-hatred, I personally think it's healthier for him to get the validation of being enough as just Gale. Not the Wizard of Waterdeep. His life isn't being advocated for because he's strong or unique in bed. Someone wants him alive as just a person.

And not for nothing... I'm saying this as a writer who can't not write. I've had to do my own share of reflection about how I look at myself if writing isn't the metric of my worth. I wouldn't think Gale needs to abandon all magic any more than I would need to abandon all writing. But it's really important to know we aren't empty trash without our callings, you know?

Before I end this post, I do want to invite readers to think back to those bullets I made before on unhealthy power imbalance.

A character is physically and/or mentally incapable of participating with proper awareness of the situation, as a partner with equal respect and sway within the relationship.

A character is dependent upon the prospective partner for survival and cannot refuse them without fear of retribution or withholding necessities to survival.

A character is being systematically isolated and made dependent on their partner for all socialization and self-worth.

If Mystra deliberately started grooming Gale from a young age, emphasized and exaggerated the power discrepancy rather than making any effort to close the gap, that's a pretty big deal. Gale definitely never had equal respect or sway in the relationship compared to her. She'd probably find the idea insulting in the face of her godhood. She didn't want a partner but a supplicant who obeyed her with no needs for himself. Mystra actively distorted Gale's sense of boundaries and magnified what she could take from him if he displeased her. His life's work, his ability to access parts of his own mind for spells, his means of functioning in the world, his ability to defend himself... but also? His health and survival, once the orb was brought into play. And socially, Gale was incredibly isolated. It sounds like he hasn't even seen his own mother in at least a year, which I have some thoughts on. He was friendless for a long time even as Mystra's chosen. And Mystra made sure other wizards knew when she abandoned him to the point that even Lorroakan was aware. Mystra's offense was something for others to look down on him for. And Gale struggles in-game with the idea that Mystra mistreated or neglected him--because how could a goddess, his goddess, do that? He's been gaslit so hard that he doesn't quite get a moment of fully realizing it wasn't his fault. In some dialogue options Mystra even tries to frame his trauma over her abuse, unaware even that he had the Karsic Weave inside him, as wallowing in self-pity.

Gale did make a mistake, but I'd argue it matters a lot that the mistake was innocent and that he's woefully misjudged Mystra's character. He's being told it couldn't have been innocent and he deserves to be punished for it. He largely believes that. Doesn't make it true.

#Gale Dekarios #Mystra #baldur's gate 3 #baldur's gate iii #bg3 #bgiii #warning to readers there are strong opinions in here that I am very aware not everyone will share #it's okay if you have a different take and I tried to be careful about how I phrased things #I also didn't scour for all of the direct quotes from the game this time and for that I plead laziness lol sorry #I can try if there are specific moments people want to pick over #but yeah this is in the spirit of reflecting and discussing a character I adore + find really interesting for Gale #along with a character I find really psychologically fascinating and subtle as a villainess for Mystra #people are going to read both differently in places and I genuinely am not looking to fight about that #Just explore how I'm reading things + why in a way where other people are welcome to join if they wanna #If I mixed any lore details from outside the game apologies!

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