#and I didn't say half what I have to say on either option XD | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

egg-emperor · 1 year

Note

What do you think Sage and Metal would do for Eggy on Father's Day?

I accidentally fell asleep before I could finish this on time on the day and then the next I was drunk and then the next I was exhausted again because there's been so much going on whoops shsbfksnfksng ^^; Apologies, here it finally is at last!

Metal and Sage are the most loyal and dedicated and enthusiastic about the day as a result, all thanks to Eggman's reprogramming for Metal to be stricter and make him especially devoted, out of both making it a highest priority, as well as being given the desire to seek his fatherly approval- as well as taking advantage of Sage's natural existing love for him and buttering her up and to keep her loyal and effective. So they're very willing to try their best to make it a good day for their father and hope to impress him.

They try to think of ways to reward him for being their brilliant creator and please him to keep receiving that conditional affection and praise. Unlike the badniks in the IDW Eggman's Birthday special, they know they shouldn't do big surprises that are too drastic that he wouldn't approve of them doing without his authorization, to show that they value and respect his orders. So they play it safe with their approach, which they also hope will impress him in itself as they know how important it is for them to do so.

They start with a simple surprise of ordering his cooking robots to make him breakfast in bed, as it'd be hard to get wrong or mess up, so long as they didn't try to cook it instead of the robots he made for the job. They get them to make all of his various favorite options at once as a glorious feast of a breakfast for this special occasion. Surprising him with good food an easy way to win his praise. He wakes up to them wishing him a happy father's day and the glorious sight and smell of the glorious meal puts a big smile on his face.

It's a good start with that and he eats happily and is very pleased and content. They also encourage him sleep in a bit more too because he deserves it and he can feel a bit sleepy after a big delicious breakfast after all so he lets this be one of the days where he gives in to that urge hehe. In that time, they make sure that no other robots get into any trouble or do anything that will disturb and awaken him so they don't sour that good mood for him. He wakes up again still feeling good and enthusiastic to start the day.

He spends the first half of the day lounging and relaxing as he also decides to take it as the opportunity to treat himself too. He takes some time to think about and reward himself for how brilliant and genius he is for creating for billions of robots and his AI that are smart and life-like and useful, with some seeing him as their father. Only it's much more impressive than your average father as he created them in a superior genius scientific way with robotics, code and electrons. He's very proud of himself for this accomplishment!

Every time he wants to get a drink or snacks, his next meal, or any other task done, Metal and Sage offer to do it for him, including things they're far from designed for specializing in, if he'll authorize it. They're clearly trying to compete very hard for his affection at every chance they get to the point of clashing times and he says "You're tripping over yourselves to get to me first, calm down or you'll end up making a mess or breaking something and get the opposite effect of what you're hoping for with all this" XD

They later surprise him with gifts like a shirt and mug that they were able not to fight over by having one gift each to give him that have things along the lines of "world's best evil villain dad" written on them and he's always happy to claim the title of the best of anything as he says he should, so he says "that's right!" and accepts them with pride. They wear their own shirts that either he's made for them to hype him up like the big egotist be is, or they've made to impress him, something like their "go dad" shirts in Murder of Sonic.

They also gift drawings but not toddler level scribbles to put in his fridge or something, even if they look like that it wouldn't be the purpose. But Sage's are the better ones while Metal's are scribbles because his killer claws aren't made for it! And what they actually depict are ways they'd like to pitch in with his next scheme/plan/attack. They know just what he wants and are sure to appeal to that as Sage's show how she'll help blow up more enemy forces and Metal's depict violence he's willing to commit for him.

So they go out and cause trouble together! They go on a rampage, attacking enemy bases and forces. Sage hacks into their systems to fuck with it, shut down defenses and blow it all up alongside Eggman, who has his missiles in his Egg Mobile and other robots forces. Metal grabs and tears apart soldiers that try to escape and Eggman also joins him to have fun bringing out his various guns in hand and blasting them. Crime, violence, explosions, and bloodshed are Eggman's desired form of family bonding lol 💜

That's the most enthusiasm, praise, and affection that they'll get from him in any situation as they're created to serve but nothing makes him happier than his diabolical schemes and he gets really excited to carry them out. It's the most joy they've ever seen from him and they're very happy to play a part in that by joining him. Metal even gets an "attaboy!" from Eggman when he watches him brutally rip apart his enemies and Sage gets a "that's my girl!" when she blows up their enemies like she did in Frontiers.

It's a great way for Sage and Metal to discover they have their own roles and parts to play in joining their father in his work and don't need to fight over it, though there's still some playful competition (that is still too serious on Metal's side because he's desperate to keep his place and purpose and need to their master in hopes that he doesn't toss him out for her lol) They enjoy seeing how happy he is and how much fun he has doing crazy evil shit with them and he likes seeing them work so hard for him like they always should.

And after they get back home he gets another celebratory meal and a cake that also says he's the best villain dad on it. It has cake toppers of the three of them but Eggman's is on a podium higher up as they acknowledge that he is above them and he's very pleased that they know their place and hopefully won't have to reprogram them to any time soon hehe. Something else he likes is how because neither of them can eat, Eggman gets the cake all to himself. One of the many perks of having robot/AI kids instead! >:) 😋🎂

Orbot and Cubot are not so enthusiastic about this day with their long history of being severely mistreated by him and not being reprogrammed to be more loyal and loving towards him, unlike how Metal was. Well, Orbot isn't because of how they're treated while Cubot isn't because he's jealous of Eggman giving them attention over him too lol. But they know how to put it on to keep Eggman pleased and fake smiles for photos Sage urges them to be a part of as they get an evil family photo of sorts taken together.

But with how successful Metal and Sage are in making him happy throughout the day, they start to worry he won't see any use in them anymore, throw them away and have them replace their spots. So they play it up even more by making him tea or getting him more cake and even though Eggman says he's already had enough, he of course accepts it as he never says no to cake, albeit confused about what's gotten into them. Much like the Sonic Channel comic when they try to avoid getting on his bad side XD

Eggman can tell what they're doing and says that they're trying so hard to please him now but this is what they should be doing for him all the time as if they're not always working their asses off for him lol. But he's very happy that it pushes all four of them to work especially hard for him and hopes that they'll keep it up if he shows his approval so they'll long for more of it. And he likes being appreciated and spoiled on this day as yet another chance to make another holiday all about him like he says all of them should be!

One thing that works the most on him from them is when they also give him some gifts but instead of them saying he's the "world's best villain dad" on them, they say he's "the world's worst dad." But he takes it as a compliment and embraces it with pride because he enjoys being labeled the worst too in this case as it's impressive that he both gets to be the best as a villain and the worst as the most evil! He's cheeky and smug about it to Orbot and Cubot, sticking his tongue out when Sage and Metal aren't looking ;P

#asks #dr. eggman #dr eggman #eggman #dr robotnik #eggdad #metal sonic #sage the ai #orbot and cubot #my post #headcanons #father's day #eggfam

26 notes · View notes

elvenbeard · 1 year

Text

Long long rambly headcanon post regarding my V and Kerry specifically, because I have feeeeeels XD On a meta level this time, bc some coincidences you just cannot plan out beforehand.

I know this all is gonna sound so fake, but I promise, it's not xD Also, it's maybe not as deep, but I want to write about all these things at some point in more detail too and not forget about them, so here they go for now!

I put several details into V's background way before meeting Kerry in game that ended up connecting to his life and questline in amazing ways. Mind you, I went into my first playthrough almost entirely blind. All I'd looked up at some point was the romanceable characters' names and who can romance them, because River was sending so many mixed signals xD.

Heck, I wasn't even too excited about Kerry XD I was hell-bent on River, bc V and he hit it off so well imo, and when I looked up that River is not available to romance for masc body/ masc voice V I was so disappointed xD Thinking "urgh fine, let's see how Kerry is like then, if he's the only MLM option". I was half-expecting though to probably finish the game without playing any of the romances - wouldn't have been the first time that happend to me in a game, sometimes my OC just doesn't click with any of the characters XD

During Johnny's first flashback it didn't even fully register with me that you're actually talking to *the* Kerry there, just his younger self. I'd basically forgotten about him again until the Voodoo Boys job. And overall, the little Johnny says about him didn't intrigue me (or V on that matter) that much, beyond an "okay, noted, it's complicated with you two". Overall I was basically expecting a less funny Johnny 2.0 with Kerry, personality-wise. I was still looking forward to meeting him, because he was taking his sweet time to show up XD But otherwise I had zero expectations.

Since I didn't know the lore or world of Cyberpunk that well either, a lot of stuff I made up for V's background along the way, and it led to so many amazing coincidences in the end...

Like, Vince his half-Japanese. That I settled on while messing in the CC, filling in some gaps as I got to know the world better. His father was a huge admirer of the Arasakas, Hanako in particular, gave his life for the corp, yadayada. He wanted his family and his kid to resemble the Arasakas' grandiosity in as many ways as possible, and so amongst other things V learned how to play the piano when he was a kid. He ended up hating it, stopped playing, because it was not something he wanted to do but was forced to do, more or less. Then, what's the first thing you see walking into Kerry's mansion the first time? Front and center, big piano. Admittedly, pianos show up here and there elsewhere, but somehow at Kerry's villa it felt the most out of place for me, just how V felt like out of place snooping around there. I'd like to think that Kerry inspired him to pick it up again at some point, on his own terms this time, playing what he wanted, not what others told him. Out of the other former Samurai members he also gets along best with Nancy, and they stay in regular contact after he helped her out with her request.

Another thing, I don't even remember where you can read about it in-game - in Kerry's database entry, or in a shard? - that kinda caught me a little off guard, a "what the heck" moment, was Kerry apparently doing yoga on his patio every morning. I think one of the first things I added to Vince's background for flavor was that he did yoga for a long time, picking it up some time after starting at Arasaka (recommendation by his life coach to cope with the stress) and eventually falling out of the habit after leaving the corp, because all his routines kind of went out the window for a while there. Here I'd also like to think Kerry makes him pick it up again, bc it's some additional time they can spend together in the mornings, especially important when the rest of the day they don't get to see each other anymore, until late at night maybe.

When V and Takemura talked about their childhoods during Gimme Danger, first thing I did afterwards was drive to Charter Hill and figure out where V might have grown up, which street and building he and his family could have lived in. The building I ended up settling on turned out to be one of the first you see when you step onto the rooftop lounge of the Dark Matter with Kerry. The thought of Kerry going there during important moments in his life, and the kid that would really change everything for the better for him a few years down the road living right across the street, neither of them aware of the other... I live for shit like that. So if anything, that one settled the deal for me for good XD Not to mention that Kerry was not what I had expected in the slightest, and I mean that in the best way possible.

The more I think about it, and as I'm replaying the game, I might notice or remember even more stuff or little coincidences. But yes... they were meant for each other, from the start, without me or either of them realizing it then, and I love it XD

#cyberpunk 2077 #kerry eurodyne x v #kerry eurodyne #corpo v #male v cyberpunk #cyberpunk 2077 spoilers #my headcanons #vincent ezaki #otp: to bad decisions

16 notes · View notes

queen-scribbles · 1 year

Note

......yep okay talk about Mason plz 😛

ALRIGHT THEN, YOU ASKED FOR THIS

Cut again bc spoilers and there will be lots of shouting bc Mason's route is amazing. I think--both friend and romance--he's my fave in book 3.(Nate's still winning overall romance, but Mason wins b3) Warning: this clocks in at about 2700 words, just so you know what you're getting into. It's longer than a lot of my fics. xD

This is gonna be Kasey specific, obviously, even if all the high notes I love in general. There's just some... flavor to it bc of the way she's engaging his romance. (also, this is pretty stream of consciousness, so I can't promise smooth transitions😅)

The way just your touch helps when he's getting overwhelmed in Addie's room feels like a good place to start- NO WAIT. If you try to bluff about not being worried over the bounty and he calls you on it and swears to have your back. Half of why Kasey kissed him so hard there is it's her go-to reaction when Mason incites strong emotion in her, even if desire/attraction isn't precisely the right match for the moment.

I know I already screamed a lot about the bakery scene when the demo came out, BUT I finally settled on which option Kasey would pick there. She's still oblivious/in denial, so there's no hurt to Mason's "She's only seeing me naked," comment, and no confusion either. Lil Miss Snark shot back with the one about him seeing HER naked (which ooooooboy did that pay dividends later :3) and then didn't get anything flirty/snarky/teasing back (poor Haley, watching this unfold) and that confused her. Snark and innuendo has been their Thing since day fucking one. So the weirdness of leaving it like that has her on edge and makes her snappish and downright vicious with Bobby("I'd say it's a pleasure but we both know I'd be lying" and kicked him out of the station, it was great)and she genuinely can't figure out why it's bothering her that Mason didn't play along.

And then we get him actually using her name when she shows up at the Warehouse soaking wet and covered in plaster mud. Felt a little like someone had punched her in the lungs, she had to fight the reflexive urge to call him 'sunshine' and make the weirdness go away. And then on top of that he actually apologized--for something that didn't seem like a big deal to her, at least on the surface, but the way her heart skips a beat, maybe it did matter--and Kasey manages to actually be sincere for five minutes to accept the apology with 0 snark and explain about needing a place to stay etc. Insert some flirting/innuendo/giving Nate a headache while handing out flyers and she feels like their equilibrium is back. They're okay, they're good, still casual, though ngl it does feel nice to hear him say her name every once in a while....

And then. AND THEN. The Trapper fight. And Sin. and OH MY GOD. Mason throws himself in front of Trapper to protect her, gets zapped instead of her and she is just. Terrified isn't a strong enough word. She doesn't realize it's anything more than panic/adrenaline in the moment, but it's a miracle she didn't leap on that Trapper like a feral wolf. Which is only compounded when Sin shows up and Mason is afraid for her. He tries to hide it when he tells her to run, but her main hobby is people watching so good luck with that, buddy.

And with the adrenaline of the whole encounter, she hasn't even really had time to full unwind and process it before Mason is staring down Adam on her behalf.

Not only that but he's insistent on backing her up. Same guy who, what, six months ago(less?) "found this all unnecessary" and barely wanted anything to do with her is now adamant about watching her back and keeping her safe and then waits up super late for her to get home(whole separate screaming session about him considering this home) and doesn't feel a need for innuendo with her when they talk.

"Thrown for a loop" is an understatement. Flabbergasted, maybe works. For Kasey, anyway. I was having a meltdown about him being vulnerable with her wrt what he remembers of his past, and the crystal(he didn't even want her to look at when they first met) and then just saying a genuine goodnight without trying to get in her pants or anything. AMAZING.

And then his mood starts off weird at combat training and he's gruff and irritated(and MASON WITH A BUN. MASON WITH A BUN) and he's being grumpy bc he can't figure out why the thought of Sin taking her away from him is so terrifying.

The patrol loop after the blood drive is just.. hoo boy. Kasey was bitten on the wrist by Murphy and there have been some Moments with those scars on Mason's route and I got another one to add to the list

just that he's so gentle. That would be sweet from any of them but from Mason it makes me scream internally even before we get to the emotional KO that is

I love sO MUCH when gruff/abrasive characters are gentle with the people they care about, and not only is that happening here, he still warns her that just bc Bravo won't hurt her, there's not many other supernaturals that will care so she still needs to be cautious. (It's just a bonus--for me--that he's clearly affected by the conversation even if he's not sure why :3) And also!!! Kasey-specific note here: Her trust is not easily given. It was a cautious thing even before Bobby fucked her over in college, but him using her friendship like that really made her kinda hold people at arm's length, so the fact she trust Mason(and the rest of Bravo) with her literal life and her scars and other vulnerabilities is really uhhhh saying something even if she's denying what that something is

I played around a bit with Kasey's reaction to the stack of missing persons posters, and even if it's not the one I kept, Mason's reaction if you call him crying straight up slayed me

Just that mix of gruff almost-annoyance and "you clearly need me, I'm already on my way". (the others ask if you want them to come, Mason's just "yeah, I'm coming to see you")The beat between saying he doesn't like talking on the phone but will make an exception for you. The return to flirting/innuendo once you seem to be getting back equilibrium.

As I've mentioned, Kasey has Verda knowing about the supernatural, and that dinner with him and Eric was all kinds of awkward(she went slinky for her outfit bc this is Kasey)

BUT I very much enjoy both Eric's 👀👀👀 when Kasey pulled an "Idk what you're talking about" and a)Verda getting Mason to acknowledge there's a "Something" with the two of them even if he doesn't know what it is and b) Mason calling him on his reaction to the supernatural making him a not so-great-friend. BUT THE REAL KICKER came after, when they were leaving, and this happened

Just. He's essentially holding her hand. And he doesn't think to let go. Mason, who hates and is extremely pained by physical contact(he flinches when Adam touches him in one of the bff/ro scenes) willing maintain contact for several seconds and only withdraws when she says something. (I stand by my expectation Mason's gonna figure out What They Are before Kasey does, lmao)

I absolutely loved the car sex scene(she's been teasing him with that long enough xD), especially bc Kasey 100% told him to apologize to her car, but the biggest takeaway for purposes of this is HE HESITATES. He hesitates to just look at her for an extra few moments before kissing her again. (and btw I ran with each taking initiative and HOLY HELL this will be one of the few times I go with letting Mason have initiative instead of Kasey. Whew.)

And we gotta talk about Mason not wanting more cigarettes when Felix offers to buy the bc that's... for something that might look like a little moment it's undeniably huge. The cigarettes have been his source of comfort, the way he makes it easier to Deal With Everything and he just casually turns down getting more of them. Bc he has her now(new addiction, indeed). For such a quiet thing, it shouts about the changing nature of their relationship and I loved it.

I--once again--played with reactions to arriving at the warehouse bc Kasey's still figuring out how she feels about that so she has some leeway, and I gotta say I love how Mason just bluntly calls you on your shit any time you try to lie about being fine when you aren't.

I will never be over him having the same calming effect on the detective as they do on him. 🥺🥺🥺Kasey has this whole snarky tough girl thing going and even when she tries to hide it, he sees through the bs and comforts her. He's blunt but gentle and it makes me scream...

..buuuuuut not as much as Mason's POV on the building cave-in. :3

No, no, I'm fine :)

ABSOLUTELY PEACHY :))))))) Totally not wrecked at all, not laying on the floor screaming internally or anything, why do you ask? I'm such a sucker for the whole "joking pet name accidentally becomes actual sincere term of endearment" (see: Taviloth and "city slicker") and this made me just a bit feral. ALSO the parallel to the house Mirrors scene in book 2 is killing me. The day Kasey calls him sunshine with affection rather than teasing I will throw myself into the sun, it will be too much. (Super easy to picture one of those gut-wrenching comics using "You Are My Sunshine" with them, btw)

And the aftermath made me lose my gd mind.

Kasey: *tries to snark as a way of covering how much today fucked her up*

Mason: *calls her on it while also being ready to help.* And he's volunteering to help(after sticking himself in a corner at the breakfast earlier in the story so he wouldn't get asked to contribute)

No innuendo, just support, my HEART. Kasey Irene, HOW are you still in denial, you're smarter than this. Though I suppose I can give you a pass this one time considering how much pain you're in.

He's so worried he's not even thinking, just wants to keep her safe, and I swear somehow every time he uses her name it both add three years to my life and take one away.

This mental image. I can't. I had to go take a walk before I could finish, bc the mental image of Mason standing fully clothed and soaking wet in the shower with her just to offer support is TOO MUCH. It's too much, I can't handle it. (Especially when you put it next to this or the "me being naked is more important to you, right?" comment from the bakery scene. She's naked, he's not, and he doesn't even seem to care. my fucking HEARTTTTTTT )

He's sitting with her. Just the fact that he's staying is *inarticulate yelling* enough, but he's in a chair. Not sitting on the bed, not laying with her, sitting in a chair to be with her and keep an eye on her but give her space. And that "You don't have to stand guard" //"I know, but I sure as hell want to." Mason is so gonna figure out he's in love with Kasey before vice versa.

And now we come to the totally-not-a-date scene, where Mason will ask, unprompted and genuinely curious, what you're thinking about and, this being Kasey, there's some sarcasm/teasing in the following conversation, but it's also so comfortable.

This is just banter. They're bantering and playing around and just comfortable with each other in a way beyond what's usually the case for people who're just seeing each other naked. :3

I do love the lingering obliviousness. Sure, Mason, it's that the crystal's not as full as you thought. Not that Kasey's presence/touch helped you recover faster or anything. Even though that's happened MULTIPLE TIMES. (Nate would be smirking so hard if he'd witnessed this interaction)

The whole scene with Roshaun(sidenote: RAT BABIES! <3) and how Mason reacts to even the suggestion of being sedated/vulnerable has me 200% sure I'm gonna want to kill some people when we learn his backstory. This is practically a full on panic attack, like, what level of hell did he go through that it incites this strong an instinctive reaction even when he can't remember the details?! (Unfortunately, since he's been a vampire ~100 years, there's decent odds the people responsible are already dead, unless they're also supernatural. But if they're still alive they WON'T BE after Kasey and Mallory get their hands on them)

The way Kasey's touch settles him(again), the way he deliberately takes her hand and doesn't let go, like she's a lifeline(she probably is) "I asked you to come because I wanted you here" alksdafbalfbjabslk

onefear.jpg There was a patreon short story that touched on that, too, and I really wanna go dig it up now >.> I smell plot threads. Angtsy, angsty plot threads.

Someday I'll make Kasey be more genuine(orrrr maybe it'll happen if I do a Janine/Mason run) in the convo when you get back to the warehouse, bc you know my girl went with the

even if it led to a moment of what could be taken as genuineness, even if she meant it more as flirting. "When it comes to you, you know I am." KASEY. GIRL. Yes, sure, that applies in a "kiss/sex me right now, you handsome bastard" sense, but also in the sense of her just always leaping at the chance to spend time with him, regardless of if it will involve sex or not.

And then you get an actual genuine smile out of him, and more gentleness, and she doesn't know how to deal.

And then we come to this

where Kasey kisses the vampire harder to not have to deal with the possibility this is almost definitely more than just seeing each other naked. "No, no, nothing more than just that he's hot and we enjoy having sex and he's a really good kisser. No deeper than that."

*clutches chest* SOFT MASON, GENTLE MASON, HEAD OVER HEELS IN LOVE AND DOESN'T REALIZE IT YET MASON

AND THE LEAD UP TO THE AUCTION JUST UGHGGHGHGH

Pardon me while I go lay down and just... melt into a puddle of emotion. The compliment that's not flirtatious. The confidence in her abilities. "YOU THINK I'D BE ABLE TO COPE WITHOUT YOU NOW?" ?!???!?!?!?!

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

SIR. I'm loving this progression from "it's just sex" to "idk what I'd do if I lost you", but my heart can't take it. You being so vulnerable--in front of so many people--is gonna be the death of me.

my heaaarttttttttttt. "Can I have tonight?" CAIT.EXE IS NOT RESPONDING And then--if you do the detailed scene with him taking initiative--it's slow and gentle and deliberate and he doesn't pull away when you wrap your arms around him, the significance of which will escape Kasey for a while. and there's a gentle lil neck kiss afterwards and they CUDDLE until she falls asleep

And then. THEN THEN THEN *pounds table repeatedly*

he FUCKING.

STAYS.

I am so beyond emotionally compromised by that I just *screams*

He stays and

and then when he leaves he tucks her back in and runs his finger down her cheek without even realizing what he's doing and SIR. HOW DARE.(If she'd been awake enough to know he did that, her denial would have several very large cracks in it istg.)

I have hit the image limit(RIP), so text! The bff convo with Adam is so good, and Mason doesn't deny that the way Kasey "has him" is different from the rest of UB, and isn't sure how she feels about that and calls himself "too much of a fucking coward" to find out and aaaahhhhh this would have been Kasey's "tu omnia" moment if she would just WAKE UP and OVERHEAR the conversation. Why do you have to sleep so soundly baby girl???

Wrapping up with the party. oooh boy. "I wouldn't survive thirty seconds in this circus without you." Kasey, he's definitely serious and not joking. Mason, babe, the "in this circus" was unnecessary bc you've mentioned needing her/not knowing what you'd do without her several time in general already. And he TAKES A FUCKING SHOT during NHIE on the "nhie fallen for a colleague". I think I rb'ed a post yesterday where someone in the notes said Felix must've been in the bathroom or something and missed that to not raise absolute HELL about the implications. LIKE. Silent but very very obvious admission this is Not Just Sex anymore, even if he doesn't know what it is, even if it's just a "something" it's THERE in his opinion. So yeah. 100/10 romance, I need more desperately, and will be sitting here vibrating until we get book 4 or at least teasers. xD

And here are several cookies (and cake!)for anyone who made it this far through my borderline-unhinged commentary 🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪🎂🎂🍰🍰🍰🎂

#queen rambles #SO MUCH RAMBLES #twc spoilers #kasey/mason #aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

12 notes · View notes

waitingforwinterwinds · 1 year

Text

ASOS; Steel and Snow: 09 BRAN I (pages 122-132)

Summer has some forest time, while Bran and Co. decide on what comes next for their small group.

Sometimes he could sense them, though, as if they were still with him, only hidden from his sight by a boulder or a stand of trees. He could not smell them, nor hear their howls by night, yet he felt their presence at his back... all but the sister they had lost. His tail dropped when he remembered her. Four now, not five. Four and one more, the white who has no voice. These woods belonged to them, the snowy slopes and stony hills, the great green pines and golden leaf oaks, the rushing streams and blue lakes fringed with fingers of white frost. But his sister had left the wilds, to walk the halls of man-rock where other hunters ruled, and once within those halls it was hard to find the path back out. The wolf prince remembered.

??? ... Oh!

oh.

He means the crypts*. They buried Lady in the crypts* where the interred are marked by statues of Starks and wolves.

*I've been reminded by a reliable source that she was buried in the Lichyard, which is outside the crypts, so Summer presumably just means Winterfell in general. The imagery of 'other hunters' and 'hard to find the path back out' just gave me strong Crypt vibes.

The north through Summer's POV sounds so pretty. And, it's interesting how Summer counts ghost, one of them but not one of them.

... Wolf Fight!

At Winterfell he wanted me to dream my wolf dreams, and now that I know how he's always calling me back.

Yeah, a fine case of "be careful what you wish for, Jojen." Although on the other hand, I do have to retract my previous statements that Bran seemed to be settling into his new reality and physical capabilities, this is avoidance, pure and simple.

"We have plowed this field before," his sister said.

Oh I like that. Subtle world building stuffs, alternate versions of basic phrases that make contextual sense.

"How, Jojen?" his sister asked. "How?" "Afoot," he answered. "A step at a time."

A good way to do things, a step at a time.

Unless it's a dire emergency, in which case it's best to apply the FEMA evacuation plan: Run Bitch, RUN!

"Hoooodor," said Hodor, swaying. "Hooooooodor, hoooooodor, hoDOR, hoDOR, hoDOR." Sometimes he liked to do this, just saying his name different ways, over and over and over. Other times, he would stay so quiet you forgot he was there.

"Mornin'! Nice day for fishing, ain't it? Huh-ha!"

Sorry, if that reference Is too niche. It's the only dialogue/speaking line for the NPC character Baelin from the Epic NPC Man series by youtubers Viva La Dirt League. The just over half hour movie Baelin's Route focuses on him having an adventure, and while they didn't give him any further dialogue options. The actor, Rowan, did an absolutely amazing job conveying what he wanted to say with just that line, augmented by tonal shifts, emphasis, and subtle body language. This scene just yeeted my brain XD In my defense, is it such a good movie.

"- How can I help you master a gift I do not understand? We remember the First men in the Neck, and the children of the forest who were their friends... but so much is forgotten, and so much we never knew."

It's a nice change, for Jojen to be like this, with so many other characters (not necessarily our POVs either, some of the 'NPCs') they don't admit that they don't know things, they bluster and fib and cover up, but Jojen's just "I don't got this, but I know who will."

It's also kind of sad "we've forgotten so much, and we didn't know all that much to begin with."

... MVP Meera! She gave Bran the assurance they'd follow him, support him, so he actually sat there and thought about their options, puzzled out the logistics of it.

And he did well to realise that his allies might all be dead (or compromised), though... should he know the bastard of Bolton is alive? And after him? I thought he only knew him as Reek?*

*Maester Luwin told him with one of his dying breaths. Like A Boss.

Kinda sad that Bran's decision was "I'm not getting any less cripple no matter what I do, might as well do the crow thing," but at least the choice is made and they can move towards a goal. that's important, having something to work on or towards, rather than wallowing in place.

#a storm of swords #steel and snow #a song of ice and fire #bran stark #a chapter a day reading #asos #asoiaf

8 notes · View notes

asoulofatlantis · 3 months

Text

Here we go again...

Sometimes you just need to take a break from the game to get things rolling again.

I would have prefered to do it Clouds was and just kick this man in the butt... but I feel like Aerith would not have agreed to that XD

Rushing through a game was never harder as in this one...

At least it was somewhat worth it... not that I plan on going back any time soon.

After this hassle, lets take a moment and enjoy the view...

There is a freaking bounty on us.

I am stuck in the fishing town for some reason... urg. Why must you make it so hard for me game? T.T

Oh look who I've found, now that talking to Barett finally moved to story forward... I think that in the original game, she was optional.

If anybody dares to hurt that Dolphin, I am going to kill that person. Very painfully.

Okay... the Monster hurt the Dolphin. Now I am going to kill the Monster. Cloud! Do your job!

I set the difficulty higher for training purposes but forgot to lower it after training was done ^^'

The difference a change in difficulty makes is simply amazing...

S-She is? Really? Why? We are a bunch of random losers ^^' I am serious. Speaking of our part of Avalanche, we haven't exactly done anything big - especially nothing GOOD. Even if you are a hater of Shinra, our little attack on Shirna was only to save Aerith to begin with and it was a huge mess, that would have killed Berette if it would not have been fore the Deus x machina Wispers ^^'

I can still not believe that this is the right answer... but almost all the walkthroughs say it is so... it must be true, right? Also... the question was if he can remember the first time they meet. "Nope" was obviously the wrong answer XD And "The Church" was also not right, because it was the second time they meet. So... yeah... I really had no other choice then tell her that she shoved a flower in his pretty face XD

I saw people complaining about this on YouTube, because in Remake, she didn't seem to mind at all that he gave the flower to another girl, even tho he was very much aware that in hindsight it wasn't a good idea when Aerith asked what he did with the flower. I think there are two reasons for this. First of all: It has been a few days since then and A LOT has happened in the meantime, so her feelings might have changed and developed a bit. At first she might have not minded it mush or enjoyed seeing him squirm at the question while she acted as if it was fine for her, but now... she realized that she has feelings for the guy and of course then it bothers her if he gave the flower that meant "lover reuinted" to Tifa, after she gave it to him. The second one, was an explanation I found on YouTube. It says that when she asked for the flower, she still had her memories from OG (that she likely got through the lifestream from OG-Aerith - if you think this is complicated, trust me, it will get worse later on) and knew she would die eventually, so understanding that falling for Cloud would only lead to pain for both of them, thus supporting Tifa, who had been there for Cloud after Aeriths death. Which is also why we got the "don't fall in love with me" situation in the Dream sequence - which contradicted itself with the touching of his face, BUT apparently that ALSO was OG-Aerith, so likely trying to keep Cloud from feeling too much pain when losing her, but also unable to stand the temptation of touching him again? (I am not even making this shit up by the way... they say it was confirmed in the Ultimania or something?) ANYWAY, Remake-Aerith lost those Memories when the Wispers took them from her and thus now, she doesn't know any reason why she shouldn't be pursuing a relationship with Cloud. Lost me here? Don't worry, I've already seen like 5 or so explanations of which Aeriths is which and where Zack came from and went to and what happened to Cloud when... you don't know that yet, so lets move on, but let me tell you half of the time, I have no idea whats happening here either XD

I actually love how he doesn't even try to save his ass anymore by making some excuses or says something stupid like he didn't care about the flower but just says "Noted." and accepts the lecture.

Das Smiley muss hellblau sein, um das volle Golden Date zu bekommen. We still have a long way to go guys...

Sorry Tifa... but I shouldn't talk with you. You know... keep your smiley dark, if you get me ^^' That aside... it was about time they talk about their argument. Its been some time since then. I mean... not really. Its a day or so. But still!

I am glad that you two are making up but... the thing is... you know... you were actually right... or at least not so far off with doubting him and you actually do know that.

I feel sorry for both of them. At first I wanted to just say "Poor boy" and say that he is trying so hard, even tho he does not actually care, but I also feel sorry for Tifa. She just wanted to have a nice little casual chat and he... didn't look like he is interested at all and now she knows he just listens because he doesn't want to hurt her - yes, that is good, because it means he cares, but its still not what she wanted.

#ff7r mona version

0 notes

pilferingapples · 5 years

Note

For the ask meme poetry smash for ship and Bahorel for character if they have not been asked?

Aaaah this one will definitely have to be under the cut XD

Bahorel!!

How I feel about this character:

TARGETED, ATTACKED, SINGLED OUT. :P

I love the way he’s introduced right up in the context of state violence and civil unrest and then his intro just saunters on cheerfully into Wacky Fun but then veers back into Social Uprisings-I have a Lot Of Feelings about that kind of Chaotic Joy combo and this post is already so long but AUGH, MY FEELINGS.

And aside from All My Emotions about him as a character in the story, he and Prouvaire were what really got me to look into French Romanticism in particular and now I’ve got a major Life Interest and all this metacanon overlaying the fictional character and the whole dang novel so it’s a whole This Character Changed My Life thing now?!?

Any/all the people I ship romantically with this character:

more Romantically than romantically, really, but you know it’s Prouvaire XD ..and also I’m open to being sold on about any pairing for him, really, depending on how it’s written-- he’s not a very picket-fence-domestic character to me so there’s no big contradiction there :P

(This also includes the Laughing Mistress- I like a lot of versions of her, but not every one, and she’s a character fans pretty much have to make their own, so! it’s not a thing I can say I *always* enjoy reading)

My favorite non-romantic relationship for this character:

his instant Avatars of Paris Unite!! bond with Gavroche, of course :D

My unpopular opinion about this character:

He’s not replaceable or graftable onto the other Amis in any way that works with any sort of detailed adaptation! He’s got a specific character and a specific role and it’s important, dang it, there’s a whole dialogue about the role of street violence in the ideal of the revolution in there and how it gets cyclical and put him in your adaptations and give him his scenes, you cowards **shakes fist**

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon:

Wow it’s great that after the uprising he took on Gavroche as his Apprentice Hellraiser and went on to long weird successful career as a civil activist /organizer, what a good story ;__;

Favorite friendship for this character:

Leaving aside the two people Already Named, I’ve got So Many Feelings and Ideas about his friendship with Enjolras? They’re so wildly different (and Bahorel knows it!) and so intense in ways that are actively contradictory but they obviously work well together and love each other and that is fascinating to me!

My crossover ship:

Well now that Fixa’s mentioned it I’m never going to be able to not think of him with Porthos, being Terrible Carousing Combat Nightmares together XD

002 Shipping Questions

Poetry Smash

When I started shipping them:

agh geez, I don’t even remember Not? When I first read the book, maybe?!? I know they’re in some of my very earliest fanart (and if anyone reblogs it I will DELETE IT oh gad the Shame but still...it’s a Record...) Even before I knew The Backstory, I recognized them as having , potentially, one of my Favorite Ship Dynamics, so I was sunk early on XDAnd then I found out about the Metacanon and My Life Was Changed Forever.

My thoughts:

I don’t see this pair as ever fitting into the “ settle down” pattern ever, at all. Not just in the sense that I don’t think they’re a Permanent Lifebonded Monogamy kind of pairing (though I very very much don’t; I can see them going through phases of being intensely Together and phases where they don’t see each other for weeks outside of gatherings with other friends and they’re always open to New/ Other Grand Romances, it’s all good, they Follow Their Passions) , but in the sense that I don’t think they’re a calming force on each other at all. There is no Reasonable One in this relationship--they run on a “ Yes, and” basis. Like:“ We should go to the top of Notre Dame in the night, so we can see the city under the stars.” “ Yes! And we can recite some of the grand combat from Hugo’s novel when we do!” “ Yes and! we should take a great banner proclaiming the endurance of the Republic and hang it for all to see!” “ Yes! and--”

At no point will either of them even consider saying “ wait, but--”, it’s just constant amplification until they wake up three days later going “what omnibus hit me and where did I get a llama” and that’s essential to how they Work as a pair, romantically or otherwise

What makes me happy about them:

Hijinks! Emotional soul-baring! Cheerful but serious fascinations with Death (the Ultimate Betrothal!) !

What makes me sad about them:

DO YOU REMEMBER OUR SWEET LIFE **sobs forever**(does this question even need to be answered in this fandom, really)

Things done in fanfic that annoys me:

Nuh-uh-uh, listen, SOME fancy people might be so very buried in fanfic for their pairing that they can be all picky, but me? this? there are like five people who write anything for it EVER and I Love Them For It, maybe we have some different interpretations! maybe they do settings or stories I wouldn’t write if I could write! But they’re singing a version of My Song even if it’s in a different key and I just vastly appreciate it *__*

Things I look for in fanfic:

...ex...istence... A Lot Of Feelings , displayed very openlyAlso both of them being coequal Partners in Havoc, action and emotion-wise , in their own way.

My wishlist:

i always love Magical Realism or Fantasy-tinted AUs with these two? And i love it when someone can write into their heads a bit and it feels Real And Right--that’s too subjective for me to name Specific Things but I know it when I see it and I am always Elated.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other:

Oh, I don’t think of them as “ ending up with” each other, or anyone? Neither of them is a very...Ending Up With kind of person. I never think of them as a permanent, exclusive kind of thing, and I have zero problem with people writing them having other lovers or even spouses; it’s easy for me to imagine them still wandering happily into and out of each others’ paths forever regardless of whatever else is going on.

...Anyone who’s gonna be with either of them long-term needs to be totally onboard with The Romanticist Soul, though,or their life will be hellllllll, gad, imagine trying to live with that kind of Energy when you don’t share it?!?

My happily ever after for them:

a young but thriving Republic , where there’s room for Weirdo Artists and their movements to develop without censors and arrests , and a large house somewhere in Paris with friends and people wanting to argue with them going in and out all the time. Everyone’s Fine and all the duels end in comedic misadventure, IT’S FINE EVERYONE IS FINE.

#...this took forever #and I didn't say half what I have to say on either option XD #but IT TOOK FOREVER #thank you for asking though <3 #answereds #Poetry Smash #firing the headcanons #aflamethatneverdies

14 notes · View notes

whitestaghere · 3 years

Text

Don't be late - Levi x reader

Hey!! So I had this in my drafts for a while and finally decided I'd continue with it.. Happy reading❤️

Warnings :- none xd.

Y/n's pov

Waking upto the sound of my alarm I groaned; mindlessly patting the air to turn it off. Stretching my arms and legs, with eyes half closed I looked back at my clock. Still trying to adjust to the lighting, my eyes widened when the display cleared up.

7.54 a.m

Screaming I jumped off my bed.

Now.. imagine a human, spinning like a hurricane and circling a room? Yeah that's an actual representation of what I looked right now.

Normally, I'd not wake up this late. But today.. today was different. Let's just say I had a long night talking with my best friend, which ended up with me sleeping in really late and well here I am now. Besides who could reject a call from their best friend am I right?

Dashing out of my house (reader locked the doors, yes she did) I shot down the streets. Thanking the heavens that I was able to run this fast; then again, that also had it's downsides. I managed to avoid running face first into a lamppost but in the midst of dodging that, I ran into something else.

Huh.. not that hard for a lamppost..

Stumbling backwards and losing my balance, I met with the cold ground. I groaned as I thought of how my day could get any worse.

"Tch. Watch we're your going," a male voice spoke.

Standing up slowly I dusted my clothes mumbling a string of apologies, "I'm sorry I was running late an-"

My breath hitched as I locked eyes with the man in front of me; steel gray orbs glaring daggers at me. He was clad in a black suit, jet black hair slightly toussled and he wore a crav- wait-

That's when I noticed how I was a few inches taller than him. It took every ounce of energy within me to hold back my laughter; no height idealogies but with that stoic expression and this height, he looked absolutely adorable.

I was broken out of my thoughts when he scoffed; I had been staring.

I shifted uncomfortably as he continued to keep his piercing gaze on me.

"Are you going to move?" voice laced with annoyance.

I raised an eyebrow at his words, what does he mean? He had all the time and space to-

"You're blocking the door," I turned around and realised that I was indeed blocking his way.

"S-sorry," I mumbled shuffling to the side.

His expression remained stoic as ever even as he got ready to walk away but he stopped abruptly. I watched as he bent down and picked something.

"You dropped this," he turned around holding out a book. I gasped recognising the cover, "oh my- thank you."

"Don't mention it brat," I reached out to take the book from him all the whole giving him a look of disbelief.

"Hey you can't call me that.. and yes I should mention it, because my friend would have thrown a tantrum had I lost her book," suddenly realisation struck me and my eyes nearly fell out their sockets.

WHAT WAS I DOING?! I was wasting time, that's what I was doing!!

So I ran, without a word I turned around and ran, leaving behind a very confused man.

Levi's pov

Next thing I know, she ran.

I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, but decided to brush it off; only then did I notice the book in my hands.

Tch that brat, how could she be so forgetful?

Sighing I contemplated going after her or hoping that I'd see her sometime later so I could return it. I went with the second seeing that she was already long gone.

*time skip brought to you by the fidget spinnerrrrr*

There I was in the local tea shop sipping on my usual cup of tea.

What I loved about this place was how calming it was, not too crowded, the fresh smell of tea and coffee filling the air, making me feel at ease, but not today. Today was different.

My gaze kept shifting between the book I was reading and the book that belonged to the girl from before.

I had gone with the second option of hoping I'd see her again or that I'd find any details in the book, but to my luck I found nothing of the sort.

How was I supposed to return this thing? I can't just leave it can I?

I sighed running a hand through my hair, "shit."

The sound of the little bell filled through the air signaling either someone's entrance or departure. Not wanting to look I kept my eyes locked on my book.

Suddenly there was a voice, an all too familiar one which broke me out of my own world. I glanced up from my book and caught sight of a very familiar face.

Hanje.

By her side stood two other girls, engaging in a conversation with her. The bell filled the air again, and in came a girl with (h/c) locks.

My eyes widened, was that her?

I hadn't seen her face yet but sure enough it had to be her, she had the same hair length and wore the same attire from before.

Once again I debated with myself, should I just go upto her and give her it? Maybe I should just wait till she sees me..

She turned around and sat a few tables away from me, still she hadn't noticed. Her two friends and Hanje had disappeared off to somewhere.

This is my chance

Y/n's pov

I couldn't help but sigh in frustration, how could I have been so forgetful? He literally held the book in front of me and I left without it.

My mind was mangled with the same image of him holding out the book to me repeating over and over. Then it stopped, it stopped right on his face and I felt the heat rush up to my cheeks.

What was I thinking? I mean he's a complete stranger, who also not to mention, called me a brat, I shouldn't be so flustered. As if on cue, the book came back into my mind and I rolled my eyes at my own forgetfulness.

It was right there.

I kept my gaze locked on the table, too stuck in my own self-pity to notice the person that stood right in front of me. Then there was a book pushed into my line of sight.

Great, now you're hallucinating y/n.

There was a clear of throat and I snapped my head up. Wait I wasn't imagining it-

For the second time that day, I locked eyes with him.

"You forgot this."

I stood up immediately causing the chair to scrape against the floor. The man visibly cringed at the sound and I began to stammer upon my words.

"Y-YOU! My b-book! How? How did you- no no wait- thank you so much!"

Placing the book on the table I turned to him and took his hands in mine, "you're a life saver I tell you!!"

He only stood there in shock; although I wasn't sure if I was seeing things, his cheeks were tinted a faint pink.

"Don't mention it," with that he returned to his stoic expression.

The air around us was beginning to get awkward with none of us moving or saying a word.

Finally deciding to break the silence I cleared my throat, "I-I'm y/n.. what's your name?"

"Levi."

I coughed awkwardly at his blunt reply, the sound of my heart thumping suddenly filling my ears.

"We're back! Y/n-" relief washed over me at the return of my friends but that relief disappeared just as fast as it came.

They stood there eyes wide and mouths agape.

I felt a tug at my hands and that's when I noticed how I still had Levi's hands intertwined with mine. Gasping I slipped my hands out of his and moved away slowly.

"Y/n? You didn't tell us you had a boyfriend.." I widened my eyes at this and waved my hands frantically in their awe struck faces, "what noo!! He-he's just-"

What was I supposed to call him? We just met, so I couldn't call him a friend. At my loss of words my friends smirked mischievously.

Then a loud voice boomed through the shop causing a few heads to turn in our direction, "LEVI?!!!! SHORTY IS THAT REALLY YOU?!"

Hanje knew him?

Levi scoffed at her in response.

"Oh my gosh! Well isn't this a big coincidence, are you really dating little y/n here? Why didn't you tell meeee?!" she poked Levi's cheeks repeatedly.

"Tch, keep it down four eyes and no, we're just friends," Levi grunted swatting her hands away. I choked on my own spit and glanced at him immediately.

He gave me a look and I instantly nodded my head in agreement, "yeah, we're friends.." I tried to bite back the smile that crawled up my face at his words.

My friends shrugged and made their way back to sit down. Meanwhile, Hanje nudged at me curious to know why I hadn't told her I knew Levi.

"Well you see-"

"We met today," Levi cut me off.

Hanje let out a hearty laugh and patted my back, "well isn't that nice! Now y/n, shorty here can be a little bit of a grumpy man sometimes so I must warn you, but overall he's an absolute bab-"

"Oi that's more than enough four eyes," Levi hissed and Hanje laughed in reply.

She moved her glasses to a side to wipe away her fake tears and continued, "but y/n here is an angel, so shorty you better not treat her wrong or I don't think I would even need to come when she unleashes her inner bea-"

"HANJE," I whined tugging at her arm in attempt to stop her. She grinned in response and pinched my cheeks, "well I'm going to go make our orders okay? I'll see you later Shorty!" with that she ran off to the counter.

"Thank you for that Levi," I smiled to which he only replied with a grunt.

"You thanked me enough for today brat."

I rolled my eyes at the nickname, "I told you not to call me that."

"Tch," with that he walked back to his table not sparing a second glance.

Levi's pov

Snap out of it Levi, you've done your job now read in peace.

I stared at my book finding myself reading the same sentence over and over. Glancing up from my book a little I'm met with the not so subtle looks of y/n's friends.

Why were they looking at me like that? I noticed how Hanje had a smug grin on her face and I rolled my eyes.

What was she smiling about?

My gaze shifted towards y/n who was listening intently to one of the girls. Suddenly the room felt too hot to my liking and I reached for my cravat, loosening it a bit. My breathing increased a little as her (e/c) eyes met mine.

She gave me a warm smile to which I felt my gaze automatically begin to soften.

What's wrong with me? Snap out of it Levi.

Soon enough I heard them get up.

Don't look.

But I couldn't help it.

Eyeing them as subtly as possible I realised they were going to leave as they picked their things up. I tore my gaze off and returned back to my book with a sigh.

Y/n's pov

"Say do you like Levi?"

I choked on nothing but air, "Hanje! What? Noo! I just met him and that would just be wierd-"

"Oh so you're saying you'd like him in time?"

"No wait what? I mean I-" I couldn't find the words to reply to her and seeing this she took the opportunity to give me a proud smile.

"Guys, we should leave.." Riley spoke up as she looked out the window.

"What why?" Hanje frowned.

"It's going to rain and it's a little bit of a walk back to y/n's place right?"

I hummed in agreement seeing as the sky was getting gloomy by the second. Everyone got up and gathered their things and headed for the door.

I stood up last and just as I was about to leave I heard a voice call out for me.

"Oi, are you really going to leave it again?" I saw Levi walking upto me.

"Huh? Leave what?"

He pointed at the table and I noticed a book on it, but not the same one. This one belonged to Hange.

"Oh that's Hanje's she must have forgotten it," I reached out for the book and simultaneously, he did the same.

I pulled my hand away as soon as it landed on his, but he swiftly took my hand in his. With the other he rummaged through his pocket and stuffed a piece of paper in my hand.

"What's this?"

"See for yourself."

I unfolded the paper slowly and when I did, I swear my heart skipped a beat. I tried my best to swallow the lump in my throat, and force some words out.

"W-what is this?"

"Tch. What do you think?"

"I-"

"You what?"

"I-yes.."

For the first time that day, I saw the corner of his lips curl into a small smile. It was a smile that lasted only for a few seconds alright, but it was enough to make my heart flutter.

"I'll see you later brat.." he walked past me towards the counter but not before calling out for me once more.

"Oh and y/n?" he looked at me over his shoulder.

"Hmm?"

"Don't be late," he said with a hint of playfulness in his voice.

I shook my head with a quiet laugh glancing down at the paper in my hands;

Tomorrow noon, here. For tea? - Levi

Hope you all enjoyed❤️ stay safe and keep smiling..

Ps :- I can't wait for Season 4 part 2!!! 😭❤️ So excited to see all of them again, though we really are in for a lot🥺💕

⚔️Shinzou wo sasageyo⚔️

85 notes · View notes

janiedean · 3 years

Note

oh i know c didn't believe it but i lowkey want her to see that he left her for brienne for the drama lol. but more than that i really do wanna see how the lsh showdown goes and how they proceed beyond that, if pod/hyle survive (i didnt think they would but pod survived the show so who knows). and then do they go back to riverrun, when and how do they meet up with sansa (i always thought LF would die in book 6 at the vale before sansa left for the north tbh but the show made me rethink and now im not sure?). anyway in that way they'd have to meet up towards the end of book 6 and that would probably also be the time arya's making her way back from braavos after taking needle back maybe? (i think i've read fanfics covering all this and they stumble upon arya somewhere along the way xD)

do they have oathsex in winds 👀 (there's definitely going to be lots of romanctic feelingssss) when and how soon xDDD do they head north now xD i have so many questionssss aaaaahhhhhh (although i'm honestly more forgiving of grrm these days, so i dont blame him at all esp given how i havent been productive AT ALL in the pandemic esp in the latter half and anyway his blog posts in the beginning of the year were so sad about so many of his friends passing away, it would take a toll on anyone :( )

(ngl grrm could release his notes in bullet points for the remaining books and say he's not writing anymore and i'd purchase that too :D i just wanna erase that fucked up excuse of a show from my brain esp the last 4 seasons)

I mean... I'll admit that seeing c. lose her shit realizing jaime left her for brienne would make my day but at this point I just... want team young griff to rhaenyra their way into KL and have her out of the way without jaime being involved so people stop harping they'll die together and honestly her dying without that acknowledgment would... kind of be poeticjusticeish and I honestly hope she sees melara laughing before she dies but fair enough I see your point uu

that said my money is on both pod and hyle surviving bc like... the batb will need hostages and if either were dead brienne would have let herself get hanged anyway so they need the leverage and at that point idt they're dead meat, pod because if he didn't die then then why would grrm do that and hyle bc I think jaime needs to get the jealous bust and no one else will tell him brienne was gonna die for him anyway so I'm of the idea that both live - for now anyway - and that the oathsex is happening in winds because the moment those two figure it out no way they can keep their respective clothes on

and then do they go back to riverrun, when and how do they meet up with sansa (i always thought LF would die in book 6 at the vale before sansa left for the north tbh but the show made me rethink and now im not sure?)

my theory for now is more like:

if sandor is at the quiet isle and they all collectively decide to look for sansa then they aren't going back to riverrun bc jaime would be defecting and he wouldn't go back for an army he didn't gaf about anyway also like... count that the blackfish is on the loose and jeynew is apparently in the wow prelude chapter or so grrm said so like whatever's up at riverrun is more with the remaining tullys + jeynew & the army having no commander imvho

also like.... the freys are obv set up to be northern conspiracy victims so that's probably gonna play out too and at this point I'm betting money brynden has a part in it because like as brienne is gonna off cat it's not gonna be stoneheart red-weddinging anyone also bc grrm doesn't thing personal revenge is a good thing

if I don't remember wrong brienne had come that close to figuring out the vale option so... if it's three of them at some point they'll manage that and then they go to the vale to get sansa and at that point they find her, swear fealty etc, lf gets moon-door-ed or smth and they grab the valean army to go to winterfell which was... what I think they stole in the show except it was never supposed to be just lf and sansa was never supposed to be in wf

and at that point they get there in time to help stannis take it bc like hell I think there's two sieges of winterfell in these books but if I was wrong and stannis failed then they'd be in time to help jon who at that point would have received robb's will

like I would like fandom (not talking to you ofc) in general to remember maege mormont and howland reed out of everyone have a fucking will signed by robb stark making jon legitimate which will conveniently be delivered after he dies and comes back to life so his vows don't hold him anymore

idk about arya's timing but could be doable

(also I should reread agot but I'm 99% sure at some point bran dreamed smth that was like... three people defending sansa from a mountain while she was trapped in a snow castle and while idk about frankengregor getting to the vale in timely fashion I always thought it was sandorjaimebrienne teaming up to do that but like I could remember wrong)

but I mean... more than all of that I'm eating my hat on the fact that brienne having jaime with her when she goes through his same ordeal ie having to kill your mad liege lady is going to be exactly what doesn't make her go in that path - bc at that point he did enough soul cleansing to know where he fucked up and he'll know she's better than succumbing to cynicism - and eventually gives her the force to deal with it and come out of it a better knight and stop giving a fuck about what others think of it and eventually at the end leads to her knighting and recognition that she is the best knighthood in westeros has to offer like that is happening regardless of anything else and I'm dying on that hill X°D and I'm saying it as someone who's written jaime knighting her since the year of the lord.... 2012 at least but I'm pretty sure that I put it in at least three fics and two of them were written before 2014 so when the show did it I just went like OH WELL AS THEY SHOULD so like it's bc I always thought he was going to do that T_T

#jaime x brienne #earningbournvilles #ask post #otp: i dreamed of you #otp: i only rescue maidens #only slightly less toxic than chernobyl's ruins #anti-cersei lannister #anti-cersei #anti-lannincest #anti-jaime x cersei

11 notes · View notes

yaboylevi · 4 years

Note

KS [1] Thanks for the swift reply! I'd like to go private but I don't have a tumblr account, honestly don't feel like doing one if you don't mind. If you don't feel like talking about snk anymore, I understand! If it only causes you bitterness, why bother? I still do it just because it doesn't and it's going to end soon anyway. Regarding your reply, yeah I too meant that the bird was Eren's conscience or connection to nature and not him literally, I just didn't have enough space XD [...]

Hiii...it’s been almost 3 weeks I am so sorry. But between real life being absolute torture, and finding respite in stuff different from snk, I completely forgot to come back to this. I really do not enjoy talking about snk, so I was really overwhelmed by your messages (that I didn’t even receive in full, and that’s one of the reasons why I’d prefer to move the conversation elsewhere - but I don't really wanna have conversations about snk atm anyway. ‘cause you see, I agree 100% with you, it sounds like I wrote these messages myself, but at the end of the day they just remind me of how much I’ve come to dislike the series...so, not really productive, or healthy for my mindset right now (i repeat, real life is just...trying to kill me apparently)).

Anyway, so I’ll just reply quickly to your messages, because you spent a lot of time typing them up, but yeah...this is not the best place or moment to have such long discussions about snk, I believe.

[2] I was wondering more on the implications to that, because thinking about it, I remembered many scenes in the anime's past seasons with birds flying, and it got me thinking if it really was all decided from the start? Maybe by some superior entity? I hope like you that little Ymir isn't just a plot device and has a role to play together with Zeke. I hope this isn't the last we see from Eren pov as well becuase those shots of little him saying 'this scenery' really worried me. [...]

I was thinking birds, besides a white one possibly meaning hope and a black one usually connected to death, are part of nature, just like all things connected through paths. Titans are connected to nature, there has been a lot of discussion about this in fandom for years, so yeah. Also, hope = freedom & life, death = despair. It all plays on the dichotomy that is Eren: he doesn’t want to kill but he doesn’t want to die either. I wonder if one of the morals of the story will be that death is just part of a natural cycle, hence you can be free in death too (but I hate this, because it’s really negative if applied to SnK).

Re-reading some stuff also made me hopeful about this not being the last of Eren’s pov, as far as explanations go. Like, there is clearly more (Liberio, for example, the WHT, etc). As for child!Eren, I think he is totally disconnected from reality, hence he doesn’t see what’s happening, and if he is, he’s also trying to convince himself that, like 19!Eren said in chapter 121, as a child he would take freedom away from people who tried to take his freedom away with little to no remorse - of course, it isn’t the case for adult!Eren, as we saw multiple times.

[3] I just hope we get to see more from him, like War Hammer titan and King Fritz memories, and there's more with Historia as well. I don't really care about shipping so I don't mind if we get EH or if Eren is the father, at least it would make sense for the pregnancy thing to be this dragged out. I just found the Armin/Annie conversation really baffling? What with the timing and the tone of the chapter? What was the point of that? To make us feel sad for Armin if Annie dies? [...]

I feel a couple, in particular a couple with Eren, would be too out of the blue and ruin Eren’s character (and the other party of the pair). Besides, romance has never been part of Eren’s character arc. If it’s just to follow the shonen manga’s trend of the protagonist ending up with [insert female character], then this will finally put snk in the trash bin for me.

I was watching a japanese youtuber’s analysis about the latest chapter and he said something very interesting about the Annie/Armin scene: just like we have child!Eren being happy vs adult!Eren despairing, their little talk repeated the same 2 povs: childhood vs adulthood. Armin’s ““declaration of love”” felt really childish and, as Annie rightfully pointed out, was that really the time for it? People are getting crushed and Armin thinks about such innocents stuff? You could say it’s the same dichotomy of hope - despair, beautiful - cruel, innocence - what Armin later admits: he is not innocent, he also killed people and children in cold blood, ever since the beginning of the story.

I personally don’t think either of them will die, but as the youtuber pointed out, usually these romantic overtones bring one of the pair to their death (I was pleased he brought up as an example yumihisu ahah), so I get why you might speculate as such.

[4] And Eren's pov got me really confused. I kind of understand what the author was going for and I agree with your analysys about his inner conflict and desperation but to me it came out of nowhere? Like you said, it doesn't really make sense for his character. This is what we get by having his thoughts hidden for so long though. At the start of the manga we got those moments where we could see he was somewhat twisted but then he grew out of it and was pretty normal, and now all of a sudden[..]

I think the inner conflict has been there, always throughout the story and in Eren as well, but for me, the problem lies elsewhere, in the sense that there is still no connection (or good enough transition) between “i don’t want to kill people but since i don't wanna die i guess i’ll kill them”. We’re talking about Eren, who wanted to die because people died because of him...who got so angry about being unjustly threatened with death, who stood up against bullies, against all sorts of injustice because he strongly believes in the intrinsic right of being free (WHICH IS THE RIGHT TO BE ALIVE). I get it that the other side wants them dead, but it still feels stupid that he would convince himself to kill the innocent majority, suddenly refusing half of what he has always believed in. If Isayama is going for “hey look, isn’t this tragic? What despair pushes people to do?” like UGH it’s just so annoying, because WE KNOW, snk is ALL about that, but what bothers me in this case, in particular, is, if Eren gets no redemption at all, then fuck off @ this story. See, I’m getting angry.

[5] he has like regressed to his childhood self? If he really hates doing all this, why does he do it? And I think you're right about Eren being demonized by the narrative: the writer made possible only 2 options and forced Eren to choose the rumbling and to him to be the psycho final villain, what with all those exaggerated expressions and shadows to draw him. If he was going with that from the start he should have done it constantly throughout the manga. And I won't even talk about [...]

And yes, the point is Eren changed throughout the story!!! For god’s sake!! Then all that progression was just so that Eren had a more nuanced view of the world so that he could suffer for this choice in particular? Wow, I didn’t know I was reading Tokyo Ghoul...... /s

[6] the predetermination stuff. Did Eren really surrender to the future he saw? Is he really just there in his titan sleeping and wallowing? LOL If Armin turns out to be the hero who can change the future... bleargh. I probably dislike the alliance as much as I do because the narrative is so biased in favour of them. I put my hope in Zeke for that! Please! Let him be the key if Eren is defeated! On the other hand I think it's not so obvious that he will lose as well. on that point, [...]

This is the last one I got, I’m sorry. Anyway, idk if it’s predetermined, or just like, the moment you think of something, the future changes. That would explain how Eren blames himself for this future: only because he dared think of this, then it happened. In any case, I doubt Armin ends up being the hero, I think it’ll be a group effort...remember Isayama was impressed by GotG’s ending....

Finally, Zeke, my lovely bitch, where are you??!?!?!?

He’s late to the party like a true queen.

#here you can see my descent into bitterness looooll so sorry #KS anon #snk spoilers #shingeki asks #Anonymous

3 notes · View notes

lizzybeth1986 · 6 years

Text

Quick Thoughts on TRR Book 3, Epilogue.

• So. This is going to be our last TRR chapter...for a while, unless they decide to do a spin-off of sorts. All the issues have been (somewhat) resolved, the MC and her friends + LI are triumphant, we've broken our beds on our wedding night, now it's time to explore the aftermath. (So sorry it took me this long, guys, I've spent a full week struggling to save whole paragraphs).

• Many thanks to @kennaxval and @boneandfur for all the screenshots and help on the Hana x MC and Maxwell x MC scenes! I used my own screenshots for Liam's playthrough, the above two + the "All the Stories Girl" YouTube channel for Hana's and Maxwell's, and the HIMEME YouTube channel for Drake's.

• So we start with waking up in our LI's arms, and it's all sweet and adorable and we're all basking in the afterglow of our first wedding night. But the LI has a surprise.

• The beach!!

• Since we'll be going on our honeymoon sometime later, the LI basically wants us to have a little fun and alone time on a private beach.

• All the LIs give us three choices of drinks (mimosas, infused water, tropical drink), and three choices of food (fruit-and-cheese-platter, french pastry and bread rolls).

• FINAL CHANCE TO SHARE AN INTIMATE MOMENT WITH THE LI!! For 15 diamonds!! That's quite a steal.

• Now...who am I to say no to a Sparkly Liam?? 😀

• So the pre-fucking activities are obviously different for each LI. It's meant to suit each of their personalities and while I loved the sex part...I really enjoyed this.

Liam takes his wife swimming (you can either splash him or take him underwater for a kiss) and then proceeds to write a love note for her in the sand. When she points out that it might get washed away in the sand, he states that the message will live on in the waves that will carry it. Gaww.

Hana's activity is SO HANA istg. Both she and the MC build a sand castle and you get a rare glimpse of "Hana-getting-carried-away-talking-about-things-she-loves" if you choose the fairytale option xD They build a castle and a moat, and it's pretty obvious that Hana loves her fairytales ("there's no such thing as too many castles") and that the activity is so representative of her wildly romantic spirit.

Maxwell agrees to get buried in the sand, and the MC can choose what form it should take (Valtoria's sigil, a sea monster or a lot of muscles). @boneandfur tells that if you choose the sea monster option you get the first mention of "unleash the kraken" if you are married to him (the first one was in the fling scene, which you obviously won't get if he's your fiancé). It's all sorts of adorable 😂

Drake has a swimming race with you, in a rather nice callback to his first beach scene (diamond-option) in Book 1 Chapter 10. Back then the race was between Drake and the MC, Hana acting as referee and producing a shell for her and a sand dollar for him later on as prizes. Here, the MC has the option of gifting Drake a beautiful conch shell, and Drake is the one who gives the MC a sand dollar.

• Guh. That's all I'll say about what follows. Guuuuuuh.

• I made Esther wear her hugeass hat just to see if she'd keep it on during sex. She didn't and now I'm very sad 😟

• It's now a few weeks later, and we're being called for a special secret ceremony that Liam has gotten planned, and that apparently only Madeleine knows (very very few) details of. You get to tell your friends (in your fiancé/e's presence if you're not married to Liam) how married life is going for you, and there's either some good natured teasing or "ugh, spare me the details" from them. Madeleine then enters, having found the perfect excuse to wear the white dress I pettily didn't allow her to wear to my wedding.

I bet my note said "pay diamonds or it's the LBD for you, bitch".

• I also love how Madeleine knows that asking Olivia not to bring daggers is a lost cause, so she might as well put a limit of the number of weapons she brings instead 😂😂

• Out of the four, two already decide on their outfits (Drake on his grey suit and Olivia on her Costume Gala Nevrakis gown), and two ask you for your opinion.

• For Hana, you can choose between the handmade cheongsam that is so precious and personal to her, and the godess-of-spring gown she wore for the Costume Gala. If you were married to her, or chose another dress for Hana to wear, the cheongsam would be perfect!! Imagine, when she finally receives honours for her contributions to her country, she will be wearing this lovely dress that has so much personal history for it and possibly may also be representing her roots as well. But I chose the spring gown, because the cheongsam she'd worn for my wedding. If I ever wind up replaying maybe I'll switch it all around a little.

• For Maxwell, you either choose between his smart black suit, or the squid suit. OF FUCKING COURSE I'm going to choose the latter. When he goes up to get his honour as Guardian, I want everyone to know that this Beaumont Boy is the Pride of His Home and His Family 😍 Same with why I'm happy that Olivia is wearing her Nevrakis gown because this event is further proof that she is redefining what it means to be a Nevrakis. (also if you choose his squid suit, he exclaims in squiggly letters about how the "cephalopod rises again". 10/10).

• For Drake, I like the full-circle enforced by the fact that this suit was what he wore on the night of Liam's Coronation. That night was the first time Drake didn't try to reject his feelings for the MC, didn't allow his guilt re: Liam to come between them, instead accepted that he felt that way and approached her (in his diamond scene). Given that this epilogue features a throwback to the Coronation...I like this extra touch.

• My corgi Joy DuPont of Valtoria/Cordonia gets his own suit too.

• Aaaaand now it's time for the finale gown!

Pretty faithful rendition of the gown on the cover, and I think it has elements of both sigils just to keep us covered either way. The gown is a rich wine/burgundy colour, gold swirls at the skirt and jewelled gold belt (phoenix sigil) white/silver-ish coloured elements on the neckline and cuffs (dove sigil). Madeleine tells us that the gown was made keeping our house colours in mind. The LI - if they're in the boutique - gets to gush, and Olivia is the only friend who gets to comment by default - very possibly because she shares a common house colour with the MC, and either woman will get to be his Consort. Alongside the Coronation Ball parallels, you can see parallels to the Costume Ball as well!

• If you're married to Liam, and therefore Queen of Cordonia, you get an extra (and free!) selection to make: your tiara! The book gives us four options:

I honestly don't know what they're supposed to symbolize really, and I don't think they would actually symbolize anything. They're just pretty headpieces meant for the country's new queen. But Ima list down what these tiaras remind me of!

Royal Rose. The "Romantic Love" pink ballgown option for the Homecoming Ball, which was Hana's choice of outfit back then and comes in her favourite colour, pink. It also reminds me of Liam, because in the beginning especially he was often associated with roses.

Gilded Grace. A gold tiara with gems embedded. The design is exquisite and intricate. Kinda reminds me of that nice gold watch Drake gifted us, but also the top half of it reminds me of the flare of a peacock's tail, so I'm also reminded of Maxwell 😄

Petal Perfect. I think it's called so because of the flower motif in the centre, surrounded by serrated edges which seem to me like leaves. I would definitely be reminded of Hana, who is associated with flowers in general!

Pearlescent. There is only one person I can think of who this tiara would remind me of: Liam! The pearl plays such a poignant part in their story if you chose that scene, because Liam found it at the Blue Grotto before he had ever met the MC, and showed it to her when their relationship was going through rough times in Capri. Back then, there was the option of rejecting it, keeping it or asking him to keep it safe until they were free to pursue their relationship.

• I had a headcanon that Esther asked Liam to keep the pearl, and that he had it placed in a tiara of hers to show her how far they had come together, and how much hope she had instilled in him. So OF COURSE I would choose the pearl tiara xD The writers seem to have forgotten about that Blue Grotto pearl, but I haven't!

•

Liam's outfit at this ceremony mirrors the MC's: burgundy with gold designs and leaf motifs. I see this as parallel to two events: the Costume Gala, where his "King Fabian" outfit matches both Olivia's and the MC's (that one mirrors Olivia's better though, because it's a bright red and not saffron-with-red-notes like the MC's avian gown). I also see this as parallel to the Beaumont Bash: where you can persuade Liam to show his support for you by wearing the Ramsford Duchy house colours of blue and white. Here, the ceremony itself seems centered largely around the MC - what with her being given the country's highest honour - so it could either be a show of unity (as a couple) or solidarity (as Liam showing his support to the MC). I also wonder if this is why Olivia is automatically given the red gown to wear, since they seem to be at least close to dating now if you're not married to Liam.

•

Interestingly the group receives honours based on their defining characteristics, which seemed to have helped in various ways in the fight against Anton. It's also a nice way to finally wrap up all their individual arcs, and validate them in the face of all the doubts they'd had about themselves throughout the series. Maxwell needs to see himself as good for being who he is, not have to transform into someone else altogether, to be seen as a person with something valuable to contribute. Hana still needs to navigate who she would like to be, and how she would like to live her life, and this title is an incredible step forward. Drake has had the most to prove in this book, making it clear that as a commoner he is important and that the nobility need to change their outlook towards commoners in general. Olivia is still redefining what it means to be a Nevrakis and to prove that her family name can be one that stands for loyalty and honour, not treachery.

• The Champion of the Realm title is given to the MC regardless. Even in a fail playthrough she gets it, and I think that's mostly on the basis of the very last scene, since Anton is vanquished by default. Does it ring false? Hell yeah it does. On one level that's the way the story goes, on another - it makes everything EVERY member of our core group says about her sound absolutely weird.

• Why does she get a higher honour above the others? You actually get the chance to ask Liam that. And he does respond - both in his speech during the ceremony, and later on.

Speech: He mentions her position as an outsider in this country and how she has embraced Cordonia as her home, but also speaks of having fought for Cordonia and unified it as a country. The second definitely seems to be the overriding theme when it comes to her: the ability to unite people to a cause.

Do I Deserve This? This is a question the MC has the option of asking Liam after the ceremony, and he stresses again on her working as a unifier. Her quality is not as much intelligence, or bravery, or strength - it's the ability to inspire people to reach their highest potential. He speaks of it as "You don't just make Cordonia better, you inspire us to become better ourselves". Which, if your MC is just all-round horrible to everyone and doesn't even have people come for her wedding, is a load of horseshit. Stop being nice to her Liam.

• Ana de Luca referring to our social season moniker in Book 1 (Mystery Woman/The American) was a nice touch.

• Liam also (finally!) addresses in public the vast imbalance between the nobility and the common populace, and how he would like to change that. I've seen complaints that he has basically "placed his buddies" in the Council, so he is essentially making the same mistake - but I can only see that argument as valid if a. those "buddies" weren't involved in the eventual takedown of Anton, and b. you ignore what he says about getting a roster of candidates ready for the council itself. It's still an ongoing process, so us jumping to criticize something that's just been announced is a little premature.

• Ana says we haven't ever had a council...which makes me question how much of Book 1 the writers have forgotten, honestly. Because...like...

Both screenshots are from the initial chapters of Book 1, mind you. They're possibly not the same as the Council Liam is planning on, but they're definitely there - just that they're invisible! Like the Cordonian populace for most of this series.

• Time for a Ball!!

• Since this is the epilogue, the Honour Ball (which is what I choose to call it rn) harks back both to Liam's Coronation Ball, and to the Masquerade Ball that introduced the MC to the nobility in the first place. The first half is a conversation between the MC, Olivia and Hana (parallel to our very first scene in Book 1, which is Hana congratulating the MC and Olivia maintaining that no matter how attractive she may seem to the Prince, she doesn't have what it takes to be chosen). Hana was sad about the prospect then, but happier for their friendship now. Olivia jealously dismissed the MC as not worthy of Liam then, but accepts that she is worthy of the honours bestowed on her now. Even the MC's responses now parallel the Coronation Ball: a gracious response, a threatening response, and a response that implies closeness ("I would rather date you"/"Just shut up and give me a hug").

• The second half of the Honour Ball scene is the LI dancing with the MC. At the Coronation Ball, this moment was our introduction to Liam, but now our respective LIs come forward for our first dance. In those playthroughs, Liam immediately asks Olivia to his first dance instead. The conversation then turns to their first Ball (Masquerade) and explores the LIs' initial thoughts on the MC.

Liam speaks about how there was a mixture of concern and love in his feelings for the MC. Hana speaks of how the MC transformed the way she looked at herself. Maxwell speaks of wanting the MC from the very beginning but withdrawing because he believed she was meant for Liam, not him. Drake speaks of how wrong he was in believing the MC didn't have what it took to survive, and how proud he is that she doesn't need a protector. All in all, toothachingly sweet 😊

• "I'm ready to do a lot more than dance". Esther is thirsty, from her first scene to her last 😂

• Alright so we now go a whole bunch of extra scenes meant to wrap up everyone's story, and I'll begin with the animals and Olivia before moving forward to the LIs.

Pets: Joy (the corgi) is found raiding the kitchens and making a mess, and in a very fun scene, the MC gets to set a few (very funny) ground rules. The first set deal with house behaviour, the second deal with their interactions with the non-royal LIs, and the last deal with some funny rules about the dog in Cordonia, including not getting involved with cults or overthrowing Liam. It ends with the caption "12/10 The Goodest Boy" (I'm inclined to agree 😄). There's a tiny scene involving Celestia (the horse), Hansel and Gretel (the red pandas), where the MC steals a moment and makes them lovely promises of pampering. All of these scenes are included if you buy all these pets - a little bit like that bonus scene involving Bubbles and the Mechawolf in TCaTF.

What I Think: These are not meant to be very deep - they're just fun, playful little bonus scenes meant to bring a smile to your face, and these scenes definitely succeed in that.

Olivia: This scene involves Olivia regaling Kiara and Penelope's families with the tale of Anton's defeat, and I believe it's the first time we see both families together (they've shared the same spaces but not exactly been shown talking to each other). The futures of all the three ladies are outlined: with Zeke disinheriting himself to become a vet, Kiara now gets to be next in line for running Castelsarreillan after Hakim, as well as the diplomatic liaison on the Royal Council. Penelope will now be a dog fashion designer with plenty support from Joelle, and possibly marrying Ezekiel. Olivia will be meeting Liam to discuss the dissolution of her marriage to Anton, and if you married someone else she will be doing it over dinner, which suggests the beginnings of a romantic relationship. She also plans to tour Lythikos in the aftermath of what Anton and Lucretia have done, and make sure that there are no more rules and stipulations from Lythikos that will pose a problem for Cordonia itself.

What I Think: I like how this wraps up several things at once and brings back that initial conflict of what Zeke's decision to be a vet (even though, frankly speaking, I kinda wish he didn't exist). The highlight was the sincerity and passion with which Olivia plans her next steps for her duchy and country. This scene neatly ties up all the women's stories with satisfying resolutions: the most satisfying of all being that Kiara is justly rewarded for all her hard work. I do take issue, however, with how the writers use Kiara to sugarcoat how terrible the MC and her friends were to her, in front of her mother Joelle. Then again it's not like the MC was particularly honest about her motives for talking to Kiara in Lythikos but...the last thing I want to see is Kiara giving credit where it is not due.

Drake: You begin by talking to several people: Gladys if you took her diamond scene and set her free, Mara, and Drake. Bastien is present, but he speaks more to Drake than to you. Gladys gives you an update on her life and thanks you for giving her a second chance. You get to either thank Mara for "risking her life" or tell her she sucks at her job. Drake talks to a number of people: Bastien, Neville and Rashad. Bastien reveals to Drake that his father was also once Guardian of the Realm (why was his family almost cast out so cruelly then, if what Jackson did was so phenomenal that he got this honour for it?) and would have been proud of Drake today. Neville apologizes to both Drake and the MC, and depending on the MC's response either walks away on good terms or acts like the spoilt brat that he is. Drake then reveals to the MC that she was his inspiration for taking up the Council Seat and that he wants to do more for the common people of Cordonia. Just seconds later, he gets his chance to make a change when Rashad comes forward with a proposal to use unused lands in the duchies to make public spaces for the people, a proposal Drake is only too happy to be involved in.

If you are married to Drake, there is acknowledgement all round of his new position, one extra dialogue from Neville if you respond positively to him, and it changes his dialogue with the MC just a wee bit.

What I Think: What makes Drake's scene so special is the fact that it, by far, most effectively shows the change in nobles' attitudes towards commoners. It is also symbolically important that it happens at the place where the MC sees the palace for the first time with both Maxwell and Drake, AND where Neville and Drake once duelled (and Neville acknowledges this). This is where Gladys - the representative commoner - chooses to thank us and assure us of her support. This is also where we have the chance to take our security detail to task if we so choose (we all thought she was going to be proven as shady and as a traitor...turns out she was just inefficient). The cherry on top is Rashad - the rebel heir - approaching Drake with something that will benefit both nobles and commoners. It kind of shows us the true triumph lies here, in giving to the common populace before unscrupulous elements can sway them. Could this have been done earlier? Of course! But I feel like narratively this is more effective.

Maxwell: For one, thank God Maxwell isn't a surgeon!! This scene includes BertVannah, Bartie and Maxwell, and delves into the upcoming wedding, Bertrand recognizing that he doesn't need to be as hard on himself and his brother as he was in the past, and Maxwell revealing that he's going to write a book about the MC's rags-to-royalty tale. Bertrand is now happy to be honest about the state of his financial affairs and his determination to keep Savannah and Bartie happy. He also gives Maxwell the chance to handle his own finances independently.

If you're married to Maxwell, you get to refer to Savannah as your sister-in-law, Maxwell speaks about your love "changing along the way" if you married someone besides Liam. In his playthrough he speaks of the book as their love story.

What I Think: Overall the Beaumont Brothers storyline got some amount of buildup but very little resolution. We don't know what pushed the House into financial ruin, we don't know the history behind them as we should considering we're an honorary family member, we're never told the secret things that Maxwell hinted at in the Shanghai Night Market group scene in Book 2. The book and its proceeds is said to be the key to restoring their House to its former glory financially, but that's just a very odd way of ending that arc. On one hand I'm glad there is a resolution, on the other it seems a little weak to me.

Hana: Hana is seated at a piano in front of her parents, Madeleine, and Madeleine's parents. Lorelai repeats the mistakes she'd made in Hana's childhood, trying to push Hana into parading her skills in front of guests. Hana refuses without much success, but Lorelai doesn't seem to be really listening to her. At this point, the MC gets to intervene and Xinghai agrees, leading Hana to open up about wanting to share her skills by choice rather than being forced to do so, and Lorelai apologizes...yet again. There is some talk about parenting from Adeleide and Godfrey who are watching this exchange, and we find out that Madeleine is now Royal Communications Director. Once the parents have left, Madeleine stays behind to apologize to Hana for the bullying she meted out to the latter during the Engagement Tour, and Hana tells her that Madeleine will have to earn her forgiveness. Madeleine then promises to ensure that no one harms Hana in court (hah). Once she leaves, Hana joyfully plays piano for the MC herself.

If you're married to Hana, the end of the scene has a few changes. Instead of jokily throwing pillows at each other, they jokily argue over who the best wife is instead (for each, it's the other). The tune Hana plays for the MC as her wife is different from what she plays as her friend. The friend version has her play the upbeat TRR theme tune, and the LI version has Hana play what the narrative calls a "slow, sultry tune"...which turns out to be the mournful TRR theme tune. What, is being married to Hana supposed to be an occasion for sadness now?? Because you're definitely succeeding in making it look like that.

What I Think: I guess I should be happy that Madeleine's behaviour was addressed at all, though it was clearly a rushed, last-minute job that happened because of some amount of arm-twisting. It's also nice that they bring us full-cirlce by referencing Hana's piano scene in Book 1, and showing that rebuilding her relationship with her parents (she shouldn't have to, but this is clearly the way the writers WANT to go) is going to be an agonizing, painful process. They show the parallels between Hana's upbringing and Madeleine's upbringing as well - it's not a parallel I'm happy seeing, but I was aware they were going to take that route way back in Book 2.

That said, there are things that won't let me enjoy the scene. One is that at this point, I'm not seeing Lorelai learning or growing enough. I know this might be an attempt to show that these things take time, but the Lorelai scenes are honestly getting repetitive and exhausting. And as someone who has been where Hana has been? Right down to family members who accept they need to be better but don't actually? I can tell you it's fucking exhausting to have to deal with that again and again and again. For Hana's sake at least I wish I could actually see her LEARN from what she's done and ACTIVELY DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

Now we go to my biggest problem with this scene. Madeleine.

It's good that she confesses to her motives and accepts Hana's decision. It's good that Hana gets to be firm about not forgiving her until SHE is comfortable doing so. It's good that Hana sees her own forgiveness as something that should be earned - not by a paltry two-minute apology but through genuine effort. But the problem for me lies in two areas:

1. Madeleine's Excuses: That's exactly what they are - excuses. Madeleine claims that she wanted to "break" Hana in an effort to get her to shed her "nice act". Which is bullshit. Even if Hana's kindness was an act...was she hurting anyone? Was her "act" actually causing harm? Madeleine's actions exceeding even Hana's perceived crime. What business was it of Madeleine's to rip this woman apart based on her own assumptions? And if she recognized that Hana was genuinely good, why was she okay with minimizing what she did to her? We can bring a thousand excuses about her sexuality and her upbringing and how hard all of this was - it doesn't make the gravity of what was done to Hana and the ridiculousness of Madeleine's claims any less.

2. The MC's Fake Self-Righteousness: This bit was perhaps the most jarring part of the entire exchange. By default, when Madeleine speaks about wanting to break Hana, the MC seems furious. But it's more than that. The MC sounds like she's hearing these words for the first time.

The only good thing about it is that Madeleine calls her out on it. But besides that, it just...makes all the MC's claims about being there for Hana and having Hana's back ring so false. One of my biggest problems with this whole series of events was how much the MC herself minimized and diluted what Hana went through at Madeleine's hands. How little she seemed to care about arming her friend with the entire, unvarnished truth. To have her act all protective in front of Hana now, to pretend like she'd never heard those poisonous words...that's just a whole other level of shady. It reflects even worse on the MC if they're married, because dafaq kind of wife are you if you couldn't arm your wife emotionally against this snake of a human being? That would be a major disservice to Hana-romancers who hated the way Madeleine treated her, and Hana stans in general because they weren't given a fair chance to properly protect and support Hana. Instead for the most part they'd be forced to choose the least worst options, rather than ones they were truly happy with. It sucks.

Liam: A short but significant scene. You find Liam in conversation with his stepmother Regina, and greet them. She is happy and proud of Liam and the MC, and everything they have achieved. She thanks you, and you can choose to either respond positively or maintain that she should have trusted you in the first place. Either way, she responds with grace, and then leaves. You speak about not having seen the throne room much, and Liam opens up to you about not being able to come here without being haunted by his memories of his father. He confesses to struggling with moving on from Constantine's death, understandably, and for the first time, feels safe enough emotionally to cry in the MC's presence.

If you're married to Liam, Regina speaks about how you two as a couple remind her of herself and Constantine, and expresses happiness in the changes you have brought about in Liam. Furthermore, the conversation about Constantine is extended to involve Liam and the MC's own plans for a family, and how they will strive not to repeat Constantine's mistakes. This is a fitting throwback especially to the date scene with Liam, where he speaks about how he wants a family where everyone is open to each other.

What I Think: I'd been silent for a long time about things in Liam's storyline that have disappointed me, mostly because I felt that given my LI was the central LI I fared better than most (and it's true - I did). But it doesn't change the fact that I am disappointed they didn't explore his potential. Neither his fiancée nor his friends nor his family paid enough attention to his own emotional state, and where the narrative could have had us tackle his demons they failed in creating opportunities for us to do so. A single tear slipping down his cheek is something, but to me it presents similar issues to Hana's last scene - that it is a rushed job of a journey that could have been resolved step by step, that could have been given some attention. I'm happy we got to see the statesman behind the lover, but doesn't mean it should be one or the other. There was enough room to balance out both and actually address his trauma and his health, yet it was ignored for the most part.

That said, this scene was poignant on its own, and I always love it when there are little moments of bonding between Liam and Regina, because I think that relationship itself is quite underrated.

• Now that we have finished checking up on everyone, we take one last look at the ballroom that held so many memories - sweet and horrific - for us, before Mara tells us it's time to get into the carriage for our honeymoon.

• We say goodbye to all our allies first (and get to hug Olivia if we want), and then to our friends who are waiting at the carriage. There's a lovely little group hug, and if you bought the horse she will be the one drawing the carriage. If you've bought the corgi, he also gives you a fond goodbye before you leave. As do the Cordonian citizens by default.

• The carriage scene is a beautiful private moment, because each LI gets to explore the moment they first met the MC, and how incredibly fortunate they are to have been on this journey together. All of them speak of the incredible odds they faced together, and how they will be willing to face them all over again if it meant a lifetime with the MC. It's a touching emotional moment, and all the four scenes have been written lovingly. The final lines of this book are the kind that stay with you, long after the book is finished:

LI: Is this moment everything you wanted it to be? (or some such variation, depending on your LI)

MC: No...it's better.

General Thoughts:

• Even if you choose every single wrong option possible, the story ends well for you. You don't get people to support you and very few people besides the ladies of the court and your immediate friends and LI's family make it to the wedding, but somehow they magically appear at the reception. Regardless of how badly you performed, your final actions fighting Anton earn you the Champion of the Realm title anyway, and in this case it's an unfair advantage to give. But the thing is this: every single LI in this group showers praises over you no matter what you do. That's the way this particular story goes, and it's written such that it won't go any other way no matter how much you try. The MC in a lot of cases is a reflection of the player, and at the end of the day I think they want the player to leave this story happy with their journey, even if it's too ridiculous to be true.

• This is a fitting end to the series overall: it allows us to explore everyone else's endings, has great parallels with the past, and allows us enough wiggle room to imagine our MC's future with their spouse. With regards to QTs, I still have Book 1 to complete, but I'd like to get some distance from the series itself first before I tackle it again.

Final Thoughts:

When I started this book last year, I got in completely expecting to be bored. Bored and totally not invested. I gave my MC the name I felt the least connected to (Alice Bennet), and barely gave much thought to which LI I would pick. However, something always brought me back, something always got me looking forward to the next chapter. Thus began my love affair with this book.

There are a lot of reasons why this book grew on people. The intrigue hidden behind this fairytale-like frame story. The little connections between this series and TCaTF, one of their most popular flagship books. The camaraderie between the members of the core group themselves. The way even the not-so-nice characters grew on you. The way each LI had something unique to bring to the table. Somehow...even the people who couldn't be bothered about the series could find something they would have even a passing interest in.

Do I miss this book? A little. This book got me back into writing essays - something I always loved doing - and fanfic. I got to learn so much, explore so much, and contribute so much thanks to my fondness for it, and for the fandom that seemed to love it as much as I did.

Am I sad it's gone? Well, in some ways yes. But I'd rather it did when it had to instead of being dragged along, and I would rather not see the writers destroy the characters they had zero interest in, further (I love this book - but I also love it enough that I will never forget to point out where it fucked up). I think it had a good run, lasting more than a year, and it ended well.

For better or for worse, I'm glad I got to be a part of this journey.

#the royal romance #long post #Liam x MC #king liam #hana x mc #hana lee #Maxwell x mc #Maxwell beaumont #drake x mc #drake walker #Olivia nevrakis #bertvannah #Bertrand Beaumont #Savannah walker #lady kiara #lady penelope #countess madeleine #trr quick thoughts #quick thoughts

71 notes · View notes

lizzybeth1986 · 6 years

Text

Quick Thoughts on Lazy Writing, aka "Look Look, We Got You An Asian Woman LI, Now Give Us A Medal Just For Making Her Exist".

• Yep. This is not going to be about Chapter 15. I don't think Chapter 15 is worth a fucking QT post. It does not deserve it, this book doesn't deserve it, this team does not deserve it, I'm not giving it one.

• This chapter is basically part-resolution-of-Hana's-arc and part-sex-scene-on-the-balcony. I'll probably write about the balcony scene when I resume writing essays. But as of now...I'm going to write about Hana. At least that way she'll get the focus that she deserves, and that PB is so unwilling to give her 😡 So if you think I've whined too much about Hana Lee, my dear readers, let me tell you this: you ain't seen nothing yet. Leave now while you can if Hana-rants aren't your thing.

• Basically - since I'm not going to do the usual chapter walkthrough this QT - I'll summarize what happens. Xinghai and Lorelai insist on taking away Hana's belongings despite protests from Hana and the MC. There is a diamond option to help her retrieve her black embroidered cheongsam, which is more precious to her than anything else because it holds memories of her grandmother. Afterwards you get ready for the lantern festival and spend majority of the chapter trying to get Hana's parents to give a positive statement, and eventually figure out that Rashad is the key to this. You convince him to accept Xinghai's proposal, Lorelai and Xinghai openly support you and make a half assed apology to Hana, everyone is happy and telling each other their wishes, and the diamond option to scandalize the entire country (...or not. You can go to the bedroom instead lol) with your LI pops up. It ends with Maxwell getting excited about hosting your bachelorette in Las Vegas (somehow I have a feeling the TRR writers never read RoE Book 2).

• Yep that's it. There really is nothing worth writing about in this chapter, because they didn't bother to nail the most important part of it: and that is Hana's story.

• That's all I'm going to talk about today. Hana.

• Hana. Hana. Hana Hana. Hana Hana Hana. HanaHanaHanaHanaHanaHana.

• Did I mention Hana?

• Title: Light the Night. Which is straightforward, it's a festival dedicated to lanterns and takes place around nighttime. Though IMO the title should really have been: The Number of Fucks Given About Hana Lee By Her Own Writers Is Equal To The Number of Times Anton Severus Makes An Appearance In This Chapter

•

...I just had to slip that in somewhere since there is no way I can ever make this statement unironically IRL 😢

•

This is the first of many statements Hana's parents make about her inability to survive on her own. She is a "delicate flower" that requires watchful care and tending, and the MC is the "weed", the kind that doesn't fit in - but also the kind that is tough and resilient and can survive all manners of things, that depends on itself. Lorelai's argument is that without them, or without a partner that meets their approval, Hana will have very few skills to take care of herself (whose fault is that, I wonder!)

This is something Hana is aware of, and has been highlighting on the few occasions that the people who right her remember that she is meant to be a well-rounded character (which isn't often). She has spoken about not knowing how to live without her parents (Book 2 Chapter 2), how she doesn't know if her skills will help her in the real world (Book 3 Chapter 5), how she isn't even aware who she is (Book 2 Chapter 9). Her character arc was meant to be about learning what her parents neglected to teach her in their mad rush to make her the perfect aristocratic wife, the perfect hostess. Except that, unfortunately, these narrative threads were picked up in fits and starts: implied at and alluded to but never satisfactorily explored.

I will come back to punch holes in Lorelai's arguments (echoed by Xinghai at the festival) later.

•

On the surface this looks like a nice story? It harks back to a dress we've seen before (the black-red-gold cheongsam she'd shown us in Shanghai, alongside a dress she'd made specially for us. She also wears it when she proposes to the MC in case she's the one you declare your love to), something we know she made and is important to her, and tells us more about her youth (the dress seems to have been made when she was "of age", since those measurements perfectly fit an adult Hana) and her family in China. But I have two major problems with this:

1. How many chapters has it been since this book started? 19 chapters in Book 1, another 19 in Book 2 and 15 at present. That makes it 53 whooping chapters.

FIFTY THREE CHAPTERS AND WE LEARN ABOUT HANA'S GRANDMOTHER, SOMEONE SHE WAS IMMENSELY CLOSE TO, ONLY NOW??? IT TAKES US FIFTY THREE FUCKING CHAPTERS FOR US TO GAIN ACCESS TO THIS PIECE OF PERSONAL HISTORY????

2. The second major problem lies in the scene itself. I'll get there.

• So I'll start first with the main components of this scene:

1. The MC and Hana choose an accomplice (Maxwell/Olivia).

2. The accomplice distracts Lorelai

3. Hana distracts an attendant while the MC grabs the dress, but not before almost getting caught by another attendant. They make a run for it and find themselves in a secret hideout.

4. Hana changes into her dress and is happy. If you're marrying her, this is where she and the MC kiss. But besides this there's very little distinction between how this scene plays out if you're her friend versus if you're her fiancée.

•

The Olivia option of the Lorelai-distracting-segment is perhaps my favourite moment in the scene and the only reason it could be even remotely worth playing. Not just for Olivia herself, but also as a reminder that while Hana and Olivia have made their peace with each other and know each others' strengths, they will never actually like each other...and that's okay. Olivia reverts to her bitchy Book 1 persona, hinting at Hana's failed engagement with Lord Peter and casting her in a less favourable light, and I especially love that Hana lets her emotions take over here. There's always been a palpable tension between the two (and often Olivia is the one more open about it, while Hana usually prefers to display diplomacy instead) and this is one of the few times Hana gets to be anything other than neutral or cheerful. She doesn't like what Olivia said, and she makes it clear at least to the MC.

•

Hana Lee, Queen of Awkward Flirting xD xD

• We take a turn that almost lands us in a room where Lorelai is still talking, narrowly escape the attendant chasing us to finally find ourselves in a secret passage with a hole in the wall, from where you could easy watch the sunset.

• Hana changes into her cheongsam.

Very pretty. Lots of flowers and butterflies form the patterning of this dress.

• Now this was the point where I thought we'd learn more about this dress. Or about her grandmother. Or about her life in Shanghai. SOMETHING.

• But no. We get a brief conversation about how hurt Hana is that her mother is intent on disowning her, and the MC convincing her she is stronger than she believes herself to be. Which is nice, but it sounds like a repeat of what's been said before.

• Do you remember that one diamond scene option in The Sophomore where the MC get to to grab Natasha's Loose Pins posters so she can't sabotage Kaitlyn's band? I liked it, it was funny and I liked the thrill of the chase in that scene. And that was exactly the focus of that scene: the chase. Kaitlyn had other scenes focusing on her equation with the band, her trust issues post Gutter Kittens and how she has learned from her mistakes since TF Book 3. It made sense to have a funny, silly scene that revolved not around Kaitlyn but around that chase instead.

Well, that's exactly the focus of this scene. The chase! The fact that time was running out! The wild rush to grab that cheongsam before Hana's mother could catch her! That's exactly all this scene was meant to be and that's exactly how it was written.

But there's a huge difference here. Hana is not Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn's arc about her sexuality and about her coming out was highlighted in detail. She was given subplots that made it clear how complicated a journey it was for her and she has a canon sexuality openly addressed in the books. Hell, TF Book 2 has her scream "I'M GAY" in a crowded bar to her childhood friend Arjun!

Kaitlyn is allowed to be a well-rounded, imperfect person, who trusts the wrong people and suffers the consequences in such a way that it reflects on her self-esteem in the next few books. She had plenty of scenes exploring all these aspects of her journey, so a funny, light scene like this one works in the larger context of Kaitlyn's story.

But this scene - for Hana - was supposed to be the culmination of her entire journey. You hear that? Her entire journey! It was supposed to be the point where she made it clear to both her parents that this was who she was and this was the life she preferred to live, take it or leave it. This scene was supposed to be a watershed moment for her, and this is what it comes to? A scene where Hana isn't even the focus? Where her story, her journey isn't even the focus??

• The grandmother story irks me to no end for another reason too. It was clearly not meant to be development for Hana. If it were, there would have been more in the diamond scene itself. They would have spent the secret hideout scene on a thorough exploration of Hana and her childhood, her growing up, what this woman was like. If it really were meant as development, we wouldn't be hearing about this grandmother now at the very end.

No. That little tidbit about Hana's grandmother was bait. It's fairly obvious that most of us who love her character are literally starved for information about her compared to, say, Drake and Liam (Maxwell isn't exactly treated all that well either). So they push in this little story so that her fans can buy this scene that isn't even worth two diamonds, forget fifteen.

• So now we've got Hana's cheongsam, that she can now wear to the lantern festival (for a girl who knows how to sew, and sew beautifully, Hana has remarkably few outfits of her own) it's time for us to get ready. In some glittery beaded blue number.

Is it just me or does the art team for TRR have a thing for armbands?

• So the main problem now is to reach out to, and convince, Hana's parents before they make their final statements to the press.

• Penelope and Kiara love the festival, Olivia and Madeleine don't altogether hate it. Yay?

• Kiara is the only one among the court ladies whose wishes we hear, which is a nice touch considering she's always been the one given the least attention in the books. The lantern rituals are apparently both about letting go of things that are holding you back in your life, and making wishes for the future. Kiara is letting go of her doubts and her fears for this tour, and wishing speed in her learning of Icelandic. Hakim uses his wish to speak about work, and he's not the only one. Rashad needs help with getting a deal finalized for the Sloan firm too!

• We now move to Xinghai and try to convince him, but it only leads to a realization that Hana's parents still want to secure a match for her with the two men she'd firmly stated she had no interest in. This is nothing new, but this argument of Xinghai - also something Lorelai stated earlier - is something I want to expand on:

1. I'm incredibly familiar with the first argument. I've had a largely restrictive childhood under a very traditional Indian family dynamic (your parents are close to God so obey them), and didn't have much opportunity to mingle outside my home. As I grew older my father began to get increasingly frustrated that I was "glued to your mother's dupatta" (scarf) and not independent enough. And he said this genuinely, unironically. It never occurred to either of my parents that they'd created an environment that made it hard for me to actually make my own decisions without feeling like I was doing something wrong.

Xinghai and Lorelai are right to some extent: I mean, Hana herself on certain occasions has questioned how useful her skills are in the real world, in a Cordonia that needs her to be decisive and firm. But that didn't happen in a vacuum, did it? Both of them leave out (or in fact, don't even recognize) a significant truth about Hana's lack of independence - they were, to a large extent, responsible for it. She is dependent because they brought her up that way. Because they never gave her space to work things out on her own and the one time she demanded that space, they viewed it as an insult rather than actually give her that chance. The moment you place that much pressure and those many restrictions on a child, you've lost the right to talk about her lack of independence as if it's something that is a part of her. It isn't. You put her in that position. Tbh, it irks me that Xinghai and Lorelai genuinely don't see the irony in their statements.

What Hana had was an immensely restrictive childhood, and perhaps if she didn't have the friend circle in Cordonia that she did, she would have struggled. Her kind of upbringing doesn't allow for real world skills (something Lorelai views as a negative when she says "people wouldn't have to be resilient if they stayed in their place to begin with") and she's never been allowed to view even her own personal feelings as a good thing! This goes beyond "taking responsibility for one's past and future". She's never been allowed a responsibility that doesn't involve her being forced into matches she has had zero interest in, and that seem to have higher benefits for her family than they do for her.

All in all, Hana's skills do not fully equip her for independent living, sure, but they both overlook their own role in her eventual inability to adjust if it comes to that.

2. What Xinghai says about trust going both ways. He misses the fact that she already did. She trusted them completely and did everything they told her to, often to her own detriment. The engagement to Lord Peter? That's the perfect example of this. It wasn't her fault that the match broke: she followed through with it no matter how uninterested she was in the man, to the point where when he asked her if she really loved him she couldn't open up and tell him how she really felt. Yet she was viewed as responsible for the breaking of that match - for doing everything she was expected to do - and left Shanghai viewing herself as a failure.

She's spent years trusting them, spent most of her young life perceiving their worldview as correct and wanting to do right by them! She's gone above and beyond when it comes to trusting and respecting her parents' judgement! Even at the cost of her own happiness! There is only so much any human being can take before they realize how messed up this manner of bringing a child up is.

But guess what. None of this is actually addressed properly in the book, because we never get a real insight into Hana's upbringing and the effect it has had on his with any kind of nuance.

• After Xinghai and Lorelai tell us that what they're planning for Hana is for her own good, and imply that either Neville (the man is still around, yes) or Rashad can prove to be advantageous for her and moreso for their family and business. Hana and the MC briefly agonize over this, and if the MC correctly names the firm that Rashad wants as a client (IDK what happens if she doesn't - TBH I was sleepwalking through this chapter and wasn't interested in seeing what the alternative was this time. Sorry guys) they work on convincing him to work with Xinghai in exchange for introducing him to a contact in this firm.

• The MC first gets to choose what she will let go of, then chooses what she wishes for. Once this is done, Hana's mother makes a statement in support of the MC, having spoken to Rashad and suddenly realizing that their daughter can thrive without their handholding. Emotional family reunion. Everyone is happy. Lorelai apologizes and Xinghai reveals his wish for Hana to be happy. The end.

• There you go guys. This is how it ends. That's the conclusion of Hana's entire character arc. The culmination of a journey that lasted three whole books involving Hana fighting to create an identity for herself...ends in her parents realizing she's useful on her own after all. After all this time, after so much conflict and stress and confusion...it all boils down to her parents still seeing her more as an asset than as a daughter.

Awesome message, TRR, awesome message. Now give me a moment while I vomit.

Allow me to elaborate. She is still worthy only if she facilitates Xinghai's deal with Rashad's firm, if they manage to gain an advantage even minus her alliance with a titled man. There is no real change. Not in Hana, not in her parents, not in their relationship. This conclusion is superficial and is a horrifically weak way to end Hana's overall arc.

• To sum up the rest of the chapter before I give you a broader insight into why this chapter pissed me off so much...there is an LI diamond scene and then Maxwell announces a bachelorette party in Vegas (why aren't they doing that in Cordonia? Cordonia clearly has a gambling hub and a pretty famous casino if one were to recall RoE).

• The LI diamond scenes are quite sweet - all the LIs get to speak about family and having children - and there is a lot of sweetness and tenderness in all of them from what I've seen of the screenshots. Had this chapter not ruined this book for me, I would probably appreciate it better? In any case, I might do a four-LI-breakdown-essay of this scene once I feel up to it. I'll be doing the same for the LI scenes at the Capitol, Lythikos and Valtoria. Eventually.

• The Hana-specific scenes in this book, however...I think I'll pass. We have had just three so far: Polo Playing at Portavira, Snow Angel Making at Lythikos and Hana's Cheongsam here at Valtoria. None of these scenes possess any depth or nuance, none of them say much about Hana that hasn't already been said, each of them are pale echoes of the scenes we have seen Liam and Drake getting. If you're going to give an LI three individual scenes in 15 chapters of a book, those scenes had better be excellent, detailed and nuanced in their characterization. If you're not ready to give us that...then what's the point, team TRR??? You could have either given us more scenes with tiny but substantial tidbits, or less scenes but with bigger opportunities to know her better. But something tells me that you don't care enough about this character or your LGBTQ audience enough to actually do the work.

• And this problem isn't restricted to Book 3 alone. Hana has been subject to lazy writing since Book 2. The groundwork laid for Hana in Book 1 was really good...but that's all it was: basic groundwork. No Hana stan should have to pat you in the back for laying a good foundation for that character, not when the other two established LIs had just as solid a foundation PLUS excellent buildup in subsequent books. And no Hana stan should have to thank you now for throwing only scraps their way.

• Hana's foundations in Book 1 lay in two areas: her sexuality and her complicated relationship with her family. Hers was the classic coming-out-of-the-closet story, and it was heavily implied that she was never really given the space to view herself as anything but "straight", that she'd been pressurized into pursuing men, that the experience of falling for the MC itself was immensely confusing for her (in her first confession scene, she couldn't even articulate her feelings - that was how confusing this experience was).

But her sexuality is hardly ever directly touched upon in the books beyond that (beyond a botched Facebook response from a Pixelberry employee who dubbed her as "bi if she is pursuing you and straight if she is pursuing the Prince" like WTF - and a post from one of the writers stating that the team sees her as "bisexual...but that is something she is still figuring out". However the books never really touches on this the way they did for Kaitlyn, and they really, really should have. They should have established her sexuality in no uncertain terms within canon).

However she identifies herself, Hana's struggles would still be important and valid, and she would still have major issues coming out to herself and her family. In this recent chapter, Lorelai's issues are aired as a class issue rather than on the level of sexuality, which is contradicted by the very fact that Hana was pushed to pursue men, make herself desirable to eligible men, assumed by her parents to only have an interest in men. Not only does canon tell us very little about her parents' views on her sexuality, they don't openly voice what she identifies as!

• Book 1, in fact, is the only book they seemed to have put in some effort, but as I have maintained earlier, I refuse to give them credit for that because what you give in the first book is the foundation of the character. It can only come to life if you build on that foundation in the next book, and the next. But Book 2? Lazy writing from the start. The revelation that Liam - not Madeleine - was responsible for Hana's return came from Drake's scene, not hers. In Italy when Liam and Drake had amazing character and background building scenes, Hana was stuck with scenes that were barely about her. At the beginning of the Paris chapters, she got one of the most lackluster scenes in the entire book (the fashion runway with Penelope). I suppose there must have been some backlash because they brought out two good scenes in the Paris section - the Patisserie scene and the Library scene, only to treat her later like a persona non grata in Shanghai. SHANGHAI. HANA'S OWN HOME.

• This point is incredibly important, because Shanghai was the only place that was home to an LI. The narrative at this place should have been centered around her. The stories and love legends should have been told by her. Her background should have been receiving focus like never before but it didn't. Shanghai only lasted two chapters (as opposed to Capri's 3 and Paris' 4) and neither of those chapters gave her enough focus besides the confrontation with Xinghai. The panda reserve scene revolved around Liam. The night market scene focused on the mending of Drake and Maxwell's relationship with Hana functioning as a mere mediator. Liam was the one who got to give us the lovely dragon koi legend, not Hana who actually lived in China. Hana's only diamond scene in Shanghai focused less on her and more on the trip to NY - and she didn't even appear in the first chapter in that city!! (the writers later came up with the excuse that Hana was emotionally drained after her confrontation with her parents...except that NOBODY in the story - not even the MC - gave a flying fuck about where or how she was or why she wasn't there).

• I bring up Book 2 mainly because it's important for us to understand that what the writers have been doing with Hana isn't just restricted to this book or this post hiatus period. It's been ongoing. She's been given lazy, half-baked writing for a majority of the series, and I cannot even count the "development" she got in Book 1 because those are only building blocks. If you don't develop a character beyond that, all that's really there is a hollow shell. Hana had the promise and the potential to be a truly well-developed character, and they made a shell out of her instead.

• And it's not like the TRR team is unable to write women. Case in point: Olivia Nevrakis. Olivia's character development has been consistent and well-written throughout the entire series. Not only are her background, motivations and emotional state constantly given attention, the narrative somehow ensures she gets good development even when the focus isn't on her.

For instance, Olivia takes a definite backseat in Book 2, and she's mostly relegated to either investigation work or slowly becoming part of the MC's inner circle. She doesn't have a presence in group scenes where Liam appears, and she doesn't have a single individual scene the way she did in Books 1 and 3. Still, she is given enough material to facilitate her growing relationship with the MC (if she so chooses) and the group. As Liam's alternate LI, parallels have been consistently drawn between her and the MC especially in Book 3. Her faith and belief in Liam is constantly highlighted as unwavering, and her trust in the MC takes a while but culminates eventually in Olivia sharing an important part of her family history with her first.

Olivia's growth from a wary cactus to someone who trusts you if you reach out to her enough, wouldn't have been half as convincing if she wasn't given that kind of development. But perhaps this is because Olivia - like Liam - is so involved in the larger plot of the books, whereas Hana exists mostly outside of the main plot.

• But you know WHO isn't exactly all that central to the main plot of the series but still gets great character development? DRAKE. It started slow, with Drake's first individual diamond scene coming in as late as Chapter 7 (which IMO makes sense, since they needed the MC to warm up to him first), but he was given a solid foundation in Book 1 that was built on in Book 2, and furnished with detailing in Book 3. His diamond scenes were mostly rich in character development and the book was consistent in their focus of him as well.

In Book 3, there is a marked difference between how he is written as an LI versus as a friend. While his overall arc was frustrating to some readers, it was built up pretty well and the conclusion to it (the duel) was written in such a way that it really felt like a vindication of sorts. The duel in fact had an added significance if the MC was his fiancée, because both are commoners who are being targeted by Neville for "rising above their station". There isn't a single scene of Drake's in Book 3 that doesn't explore his character in a detailed manner, or have two diametrically different scenes highlighting his LI/non-LI status.

How does the duel act as a game changer for Drake? He tells it to us himself: the duel was not just for his honour alone, but for every commoner a noble has slighted. For his family, for his sister, for his fiancée (if he is marrying the MC) or friend. It's poignant, dramatic, powerful as a culmination of Drake's journey. The conflict resolution of an arc should end with a bang, and Drake's really did.

• Hana on the other hand is a different story altogether. No matter what her relationship is with the MC in Book 3, she is mostly relegated to "best friend" status regardless. Her initial conflicts as a fiancée seemed to indicate she feared turning into her parents (Chapters 1 and 2) and it sounded really promising, but that characterization was dropped as soon as the Unity Tour kicked off. She is depicted worrying about how she will survive and contribute to Cordonia and whether her skills really equipped her for the outside world, but it is explored only in one character scene of hers, and very very superficially.

Unlike the duel scene for Drake, Hana's conflict-resolution scene this chapter falls flat and doesn't really mark much of a change. The only difference in her relationship with her parents' is that they see her as useful minus a man by her side now. Emphasis on useful. What kind of resolution is that? Does it have a great impact? Does it have any impact?

• Hana's treatment is marginally better only when you compare it to Maxwell's, who has had just one character scene so far, and who hasn't seen much significant development since the beginning of Book 3. Even though the team has mentioned that he was meant to be an LI from the beginning, the way he was written in the beginning and the way they write him now tells me otherwise.

But they don't have that excuse for Hana. Hana WAS a confirmed LI from the beginning. She WAS part of the original lineup. Which means they should have been working as hard on her as they did Liam and Drake. What excuse does the team have for not developing her properly??

• The problem here is clear: both Drake and Olivia are centered within the narratives that focus on their stories. When the focus comes to Paris in Book 2, or Lythikos in Book 3, they are front and center. Compared to that, how is Hana going to compete? At the points that the narrative should be focusing on her, she is given garbage in place of content and story. Even when the narrative is supposed to be about her relationship with her parents and her growth outside their influence, she is the least important person. She was the least important person in Shanghai, and she's now the least important person in this chapter that was supposed to showcase how far she has come from the nervous, underconfident girl we met in Book 1. It's even more infuriating when you take into account that she was meant to be the only female LI, that they

1. never planned to give people who wanted to romance a woman in TRR more than just this option, and

2. couldn't be bothered to follow through and do a decent job of the one option they had.

• I hate calling Hana a Mary Sue, because that wasn't at all what she originally was. She was indecisive, had low self esteem, didn't always enjoy the activities and skulls she was pressurized into learning. There was at least one occasion where she spoke of getting her way by failing...and now the same character is labelled a Mary Sue.

But you know what? There's a reason why she is addressed as such. A Mary Sue is a mark of lazy writing and poor characterization, used on characters that are made to appear perfect in lieu of real development. And while Hana started out a little flawed and confused and in need of guidance, she soon turned into this Ms Perfect who was talented in everything and received praises from everyone instead of an actual insight into her character.

• Hana is at a disadvantage on her own. She is the only LI among the four who was brought up elsewhere (in China), and who wasn't from familiar ground (America)/fictional places (Cordonia) for the writers. Her issues are very culture-specific, they rise out of a context. Not many people may relate to that straightaway so it is essential that her story is handled with a lot more care and nuance. She is a woman of colour who is in the closet, brought up (as is hinted) in a family that doesn't exactly view her sexuality as normal. This is how the Hana of Book 1 was written.

Then Book 2 happened, and the writers either realised they didn't know enough to write this story convincingly, or didn't care enough to do the research. I suspect it's a mix of both. Even so, they should have done some reading up, done some homework, tried to at least center this character around her own narrative. No one is asking for a thesis on society and norms in Shanghai - they're asking for some good background, some basic research, legends and stories that she must have grown up with, if that's what it takes to do justice to this character. If you're going to create a character so unfamiliar to this world and make her a love interest, you had better put in the work that story requires.

Otherwise stop. Stop branding yourself as LGBTQ friendly when most of your female LI fans have to make do with mere scraps, stop patting yourselves on the back for including women of colour in your books when you view them as nothing but tokens.

• I'm sure Liam and Drake sound more lucrative...popular...whatever...and that factors into the way they're being writen, but when the lone female LI consistently gets the short end of the stick, what do you expect? They write Hana (and many other female LIs) in such a way that they're almost set up to fail. At least a few players I have spoken to have highlighted how they went from liking Hana in Book 1 to hardly interested in her presence in Book 2. That change didn't occur out of nowhere: when the writers themselves don't write her with any amount of conviction, how do you expect the readers NOT to lose interest?

There have been a lot of improvements made in terms of readers' demands. Whether it involved the way LI scenes were written, or Liam's initial lack of romantic interactions in Book 3, or even how Kiara's PTSD was addressed. The one thing neglected every. single. time. was Hana. And I'm saying this because I've spoken and spoken and spoken about how little Hana is given and how much more she deserves, and things still haven't changed. I highly doubt they will at this point. It's too late now. Hana's arc is largely over, and her ending makes absolutely no sense when you compare it to the way her story was initially written. Had she had the kind of focus that, say, Drake has been having, we wouldn't have this rushed mess of a conclusion for her story.

• Tldr: Hana could reached her potential as a character. She could have been interesting, imperfect, inspiring. If her writers were actually bothered. But they aren't, so those of us who do love her are left wondering if we care about her more than the people who created her (yes we do). I'm tired, fam. I give up. I think I'm done with this book, and I don't think I can ever get back to loving it the way I used to.

#the royal romance #trr hana #hana x mc #hana lee #hana rant #trr quick thoughts #quick thoughts #i think i'm done with this book #long post

160 notes · View notes

lizzybeth1986 · 6 years

Text

Quick Thoughts on DD Book 1 Chapter 4

• Jesus, this book is expensive.

• Like I assumed Chapter 3's one accomplishment-one-or-two-LIs-or-a-family-member thing would be a one-off, just to introduce us into the system/ease us into the story, but no...they've (sort of) repeated it this chapter. I was hoping they would spread out the accomplishments at least, but perhaps they want us to have at least most of the accomplishments worked out before we leave for London.

• I really hope this doesn't become a regular thing because it will only cause players to lose interest in the books for lack of affordability, in the long run. As it is the book largely caters to a niche audience...alienating that audience by having them lose of on half the story won't bode well for the book.

• Title: Best Foot Forward. Man, this one is easy. Of course it refers to dancing. And quite a lot of dancing is done this chapter, that's for sure!

• Sooo...the Earl has decided to introduce us into society in Edgewater with a garden party. Lots of hobnobbing, some dancing, a few games and you meet at least one 'suitor'.

• Did You Know: According to writer and garderner Kim Wilson, who wrote a book titled In the Garden with Jane Austen, gardens were viewed as markers of social status. In an interview with The Scotsman, she says, "each family's garden reflected not only their needs but, if they had enough money, their social aspirations". The poor cottagers of the time were mostly concerned with growing food and having a place to keep their chickens whereas wealthier families would have had kitchen gardens, but also often extensive pleasure grounds, which were places to display their wealth and taste. (from an article about Jane Austen's love for gardens in The Scotsman).

• Last chapter had us learning (optionally) the art of the fan from our Lady Grandmother, so it makes sense that what happens in this chapter is this:

Lololol just kidding.

• So the chapter begins with the MC and Briar talking. Briar is excited about the fact that a Duke (who, she reminds us, is "one step below a Prince Regent"), and the MC can either choose to be excited or very confident. Interestingly, if you're excited, she reminds you to "not forget your roots", which I think is a recurring theme in this book. After all, that was the last thing the MC's mother told her on her deathbed.

• Dominique enters the room and both she and Briar present us with a pretty pink lace dress that is sure to improve both our social standing and catch everyone's eye at this introductory garden party.

• It looks quite pretty, actually. But that's because I love lace.

• We head downwards, finding Annabelle performing for herself in the foyer and having a thoroughly good time.

• I'm wondering if I should have a tally for the number of times she says "a thousand pardons" (and for the record, I think her way of saying "fiddlesticks" is adorable xD).

• Our third "accomplishment" (and our second paid one) is presented to us here: dancing. It's not like the MC doesn't know dancing - she does - it's that the country dances (this might be a reference to the English Country Dances that were popular among all classes) are different from the ones Annabelle has learned, and indeed the popular ones for the aristocracy that are coming in from other places, like France.

• Annabelle mentions a couple of dances that were popular for its time: the cotillion (originated from France), the Quadrille (also from France), and La Boulanger (also French). If we choose the shoes the Lady Grandmother got made for us, Annabelle wastes no time in teaching us the last one.

• Annabelle speaks to us about the Quadrille being new. She isn't lying. The Quadrille became fashionable in England around 1815.

• Again, the good thing about the accomplishment scenes is that they're meant only for learning the skill, and Annabelle can develop in her individual scenes independent of this. Though I'm not sure if cramming both her individual scenes and her accomplishment scenes in the same chapter, two chapters in a row is a very good idea.

• Another marker of how new the MC is, lies in her interaction with Mr Woods (who is perhaps the only member of the housing staff we see at the party. Briar disappears completely after she's done her work of getting the MC ready, and Luke doesn't appear either). Mr Woods is surprised the MC deigns to speak to him in public, and Henrietta uses her interaction with him to point out how little she fits in, what with talk of the MC's "roots".

• Lol the exchange with the Earl if you bought the scene with the Lady Grandmother is quite funny haha. He speaks about Dominique drilling him into learning the names of all the families and the MC - saucy little shit that she is 😄 - looks at her fan and says "oddly enough, I know exactly what you mean".

• Ernest Sincliare makes his appearance after two chapters, and there's some banter about compliments if you're wearing the pretty lace dress I think. She teases him about it and he retorts that since he passes compliments so rarely, you can be sure that when he does he means every word. I can see that logic in that, Sinclair, but must you look like a child who has accidentally sucked on a particularly sour lemon when you do? 😂

• Throughout the chapter, you get references to the Season in London, and each time the MC by default takes it for granted that she will not be going there. Sinclaire hosts parties in London, Annabelle Parsons will be going there for the Season. Up until the end of the chapter, the vibe given overall is that she won't be seeing the two for a while now that they will be leaving Edgewater, and she won't.

• Did You Know: The London Season was developed to coincide with the sitting of parliament. During the months when parliament was in session, members of both Houses needed to be in attendance in London and came to the capital bringing their families with them. The London season grew up in response to this influx of upper class people who needed to be entertained.

Amanda Foreman, in her biography on Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, stated: "the aristocratic "season" came into existence not only to further the marriage market but to entertain the upper classes while they carried out their political duties. The season followed the rhythm of Parliament: it began in late October with the opening of the new session, and ended in June with the summer recess.” of course, later on this period of time gradually began to shift.

There also seems to be something called the "little season", but that seems more a fixture of the Victorian age than the Regency one (as mentioned in the article on the London Season from the Regency History website).

• The Earl and Mr Sinclaire share a more than cordial relationship: the Earl treats him with considerable warmth and Sinclaire shows a genuine respect and regard for him. You have a choice of asking him whether it is the Earl - or you - he has respect for (and the second option leads to a romantic moment), but it is what he says about the Earl, and his later interaction with Duke Richards that intrigues me:

What happened to Ledford Park that the Sinclaires almost lost it? Why does his statement towards the Duke about Ledford sound so accusatory? Why is there such a strong undercurrent within the latter interaction? I want to know what the story behind Ledford Park is, and how the Earl helped save it.

• One of my favourite Sinclaire-related sequences is an additional scene featuring the fan, as taught to us by the Dowager Countess the previous chapter. I tried the last two with Florence, the MC who has no interest in Sinclaire:

(the first four screenshots are from the "friends" option, and the next four from the "go away u suck" option)

Meanwhile, Marianne just goes in for the kill, fam. Homegirl didn't learn all those thot moves from Grandma for nothing 😄

I do like that extra bit of sexual tension in this scene. I'm not very into Sinclaire yet, but I can see the appeal he'd have for someone who would want the Mr Darcy type of Regency male LI character. You also see a fair bit of it in the scene where the MC asks him if it is her he respects:

• Sinclaire, dude, what is it with you and Italics??

• We now interrupt our regular programme with a game of Skittles. I'm not sure how many of you assumed Regency-era aristocrats were going to start passing around fruit-flavoured candy but I sure did 😂

• So this is skittles, played with nine pins. Very much one of the precursors to present day bowling from what I've read. Playing this game, and beating a champion like Mr Sinclaire at it will not only allow you to spend time alone with him, but also increase your social standing.

• It's simple enough: hit the red pin in the centre, and if you want you can distract the hell out of Sinclaire after he's fired his first shot.

• Twice this chapter, you see our resident comic relief for the day: Miss Theresa Oh-My-Smelling-Salts Sutton, and Mr Edmund Do-I-Look-Like-I-Care Malcaster, and I've decided I like them both (I wanted to add screenshots, but tumblr mobile sucks and won't let me put up more than ten images 😒)

• So we meet the "handsome", "titled" eligible bachelor our Lady Grandmother wanted us so badly to marry and...

...um. lol. ok.

Handsome? Charming? When was the last time you looked in the mirror dude, 20 years ago?

• You have a choice of how to respond after Duke Richards insults Mr. Sinclaire. You can either choose the Manners option, or you can choose to outright sass the man. If you don't sass him? The Lady Grandmother will do it for you.

• With the Manners option we find out that the Duke is 51 years old.

• With the non-manners option we find out that the dude likes saucy little minxes.

• @ the last panel in Florence's playthrough, Grandma even you can't deal with this dude for two minutes without nodding off. Why are you dumping him on my head then? (don't tell me. I know the answer 😐). See, this is why Florence will eventually kiss her inheritance goodbye lol.

• Jesus can this man just...speak two words without touching me??

• FINALLY. Miss Parsons. We choose a hiding place to get away from the Duke and then she offers to show us a new part of the estate: the lakefront. The great thing about gardens, esp in the writing of the time, was that it provided privacy for people at the time and allowed them to interact in ways they couldn't in public.

• Did you know: Austen herself used gardens pretty extensively in her writing. Mr Knightley confesses his love to Emma close to a shrubbery. Elizabeth jokes to her aunt about deciding to marry Mr Darcy after seeing the grounds in Pemberley. Fanny Price of Mansfield Park remarks, “To sit in the shade on a fine day, and look upon verdure, is the most perfect refreshment.” Catherine Morland of Northanger Abbey falls in love with hyacinths, Marianne Dashwood of Sense and Sensibility has a passion for fallen leaves in an autumnal garden, while Anne Elliot of Persuasion is always inspired to think of poetry when enjoying the beauties of nature.

Susannah Fullerton in her essay "Jane Austen and her gardens" (for the website Garden Drum) says: "Many proposals [in Austen's novels] take place out of doors where lovers can find some privacy amongst the gravel walks and flower beds; garden improvements are planned by some of the characters; and her heroines all enjoy going into a garden to think".

• Makes sense then that one of the special scenes of this largely "forbidden" relationship (if you choose for that to happen) would take place in greenery, close to a lake. If you notice, it's quite in keeping with the times that most of the romantic moments this chapter happen either in an isolated section of the gardens or while dancing, both of which allow for some measure of interaction between people interested in each other.

• Miss Parsons, the legendary hero of a Duck Prophecy xD

• I love her in this scene. Sure she gets shy when she receives attention she's not used to from us, and she's kind and educative and sweet, but she's also boisterous and passionate and not afraid to pull punches when she needs to (case in point: the shade she immediately throws Henrietta's way regarding her "tutelage"). This scene has her stealing cake from the party to feed the ducks, getting exhilarated from the race and her new friendship with the MC, and feeling extremely confused by her feelings if you speak to her romantically.

• The first half of this scene is pure fun, but the second inevitably shows the two women experiencing a sense of loss that their connection will be cut short - whether they are friends or whether this is a budding romance.

• What I do love about both the romance scenes are the extra touches added to both in the coding. In the skittles scene with Ernest, Marianne is spoken of by default as brushing her hand against his before giving him the ball, whereas Florence simply passes it to him.

• Even with Annabelle, if you acquire romance points with her, the ending of that scene is written quite differently:

I absolutely love this part of the scene. And given that very often the female LI is treated like just the default best friend with some stray romance options attached, it really does feel good to have that sexual tension acknowledged.

• Florence, babe, what is it with you and Italics??

• TIME TO PUT ON OUR DANCING SHOES GUYS (if we bought them).

• So we're doing a dance called La Boulanger...which kinda looks like this:

You dance in a circle, then keep switching partners.

• Did You Know: that the Boulanger was one of the very few dances mentioned by name in Jane Austen's novels? (Pride and Prejudice Chapter 3. I think the reel is mentioned in another).

• I have two left feet unless someone is heavily choreographing a flash mob and spends ages teaching me the steps lol so this looks pretty complicated to me 😂

• You have an option of choosing between Mr Sinclaire, Miss Parsons and Duke Richards. The first two are the usual you'd expect from romantic dance scenes if you choose either of the first two, impressing them with your dance moves and then catching their eye when you're dancing with Edmund, your stepbrother. With Miss Parsons there is an additional show of boldness in that there is a danger of making their affections public.

• The Duke Richards option, which I managed to see thanks to @i-dream-so-i-write ...seems pretty okay actually. He doesn't seem as handsy and creepy as he does in our first meeting (there is a moment where his "hands skim your waist" though, and he tells us we've been apart too long [a couple seconds, tops]), but he's also still talking our ears off. If anyone is interested in seeing it, I can attach the screenshots!

• This man is so freaking extra I can't even.

• The chapter ends with the Earl announcing that he is changing his will, and that the MC is heiress to Edgewater Estate now, which makes it essential for her, then, to make her debut at the London Season, and begin searching for prospective bridegrooms.

• There is a catch though. You get the inheritance if you marry someone of suitable rank. In short...at this point in the story, Marianne is doing alright, but Florence is well and truly screwed until there is a twist somewhere (and surely there will be at some point). Sorry Florence.

• Henrietta has something up her sleeve, and Edmund, who was expecting to inherit, is sad and tells the MC so. You get a relationship point with him if you tell him you understand how it must feel, but he reiterates that you probably won't. We have time, we can still get this dude (and his palpitating fiancée) on our side. Maybe.

• Looks like we'll be starting our journey to London straightaway, and making our debut in London at Mr Sinclaire's party by Chapter 6. Alsooo from the spoilery chapter descriptions it looks like Mr. Marlcaster will try tripping us up at least once, or more than once. Also looks like we have two more skills on our accomplishment board to learn. So far we've gotten needlework, music and dancing - we now need to see what the other two are. I THINK one of them is painting.

General Thoughts:

• Good chapter. It's a little slow which is fine, because I think all the action will actually happen during the London Season instead. We meet only two suitors, one of whom we have already met in the first chapter.

• I feel like the extra scenes that we'll get with the unlocked accomplishments will include other styles of the same art. We initially learn the piano, but I feel like unlocking it will lead to extra scenes with other instruments, and unlocking the dancing shoes will show us extra scenes of Annabelle teaching us other dances (the waltzes, the reel, etc). I'm not entirely sure about this, it's just a theory I have. I mean, once we're in London we'll need to learn waltzes and the minuet and stuff.

• Luke doesn't make an appearance this chapter, but then again nor does Briar as soon as the MC gets ready. I think we'll see more of him now that we will be traveling to London.

• Donna Hatch's (who writes a ton of historical romances, esp Regency) essay on the London Season lists the months active in each year for it, and in 1816 it was from February to July. In the story it's now the beginning of April. Usually it's best to go at the very start if you're looking for marriage prospects, but given the MC's particular circumstances this time of the season isn't too bad either I'd reckon.

• Remember how I told you guys last chapter about the inclusion of Mary Brunton's Self Control? And how she criticizes the popular "rake" figure in Regency fiction? I'm not sure Duke Richards adheres completely to how rakes were depicted at the time, but he definitely does seem to be channeling Colonel Hargrave a little here.

• I wonder what the Duke seems to be hiding. Besides of course the truth of his equation with Sinclaire. Why is he so focused on this new woman? I think there might be more to this. I also can't wait to see the other suitors, like the viscount and Mr Chambers.

• I do like how we learn more about Sinclaire and Annabelle here. Annabelle largely has the role that Hana had in TRR, and there are some similarities - but she also has a lot more wiggle-room and seems to be bolder and a little more outgoing. She has grown up with the limitations placed on women at the time, but unlike Hana, hasn't faced as many restrictions in her upbringing.

• As I've mentioned before, I love Annabelle and I love that they're trying to do a better job of her. But I'm not entirely sure if cramming two separate scenes of hers in single chapters of an already expensive book is a wise choice, or if it will harm her development in the long run because people find it too expensive to spend on her. IMO the accomplishment scenes should be a little further spread out in the books.

• Now that the MC is going to be a future Countess, what is in store for her? In her rightful home Edgewater, she has a limited audience and not as much expectation to live up to...what will become of her now that she will be participating in the Season in London? Guess we'll find out today, or in the coming weeks xD

• Tagging: @boneandfur @liamraines @thespiritpanda @alanakusumastan @ernestsinclairs @mrsthomashunt @private-investigator-nazario @bcdollplace @queenodysseia @mcbangle

If you'd like to be tagged in one of the QTs, please let me know!

#desire and decorum #long post #ernest sinclaire #annabelle parsons #ernest x mc #annabelle x mc #dnd quick thoughts #quick thoughts #edgewater estate

37 notes · View notes