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salamoonder · 4 years

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Alright, so here’s the thing. At this point, I actually don’t care what Artagan has or hasn’t done and, morally, what that means. It’s irrelevant. Interesting, but irrelevant. What I want to talk about is what the Nein, excluding Jester, know about him, and what they do with this information, and how they cast judgment.

Here are things that the nein have actually seen: fleeting glimpses of a figure in a green cloak. one conversation with a giant archfey who has recruited jester’s help in planning a convention. further, fleeting glimpses. very very brief phrases.

Here are things that the nein have heard about him from jester: he’s pretty cool, you guys :) . he’s got a chaotic streak, like her. he helps her pull off pranks. he’s always shown up for her. he’s handsome. he taught her magic. he kept her company when her mom was busy. he is her first friend. he is her best friend. he is her oldest friend. she really loves him.

and yes, they know he misrepresented himself to jester for years. they know he sent them to an island where you lose your memory every night. they know that he is sketchy as fuck and they do not know if he means what he says. and that is reasonable and understandable and fair.

here is something that i don’t know if you guys know about abusers, regardless of if artagan is one or not. (and he’s not. i’m not even going to say i don’t think he is, he literally is not abusive. words mean something; stop throwing them around because you personally don’t like someone.) you cannot tell their victims that they are abusive or awful or manipulative or horrible, and expect that to help. that makes it worse. the same is true of cults. you cannot, and i mean CANNOT, make yourself hostile, because then the outside world is hostile, and the abuser is safe. the outside world is hostile, and the cult is safe. furthermore you’re reinforcing what every abuser and what every cult plants in their victim’s heads--i’m the only one who would put up with you. i’m the only one who really loves you. everyone else will be cruel to me, but i’m the only thing you have. even if the nein had reason to suspect that the traveler was straight up abusing jester instead of just weird and shady, that is not a good response.

no matter how bad artagan is or isn’t, fjord, caduceus, and beau are still being condescending. they are still failing to trust that jester knows what she’s talking about. they are still trying to coddle her, they are still treating her like a child, and i want to talk about that. i want y’all to see that they’re still treating her like she’s emotionally fragile. like individually, i want to talk about that, and also the fact that everyone seems to want to lump caleb into this. (and yasha?? yasha has barely said anything about him, y’all.)

i’m going to skim over caduceus a bit because i don’t think his is a jester-centric problem. he tends to just trust that he either has the correct answers to a situation, or that even if he doesn’t know what’s correct, he knows what isn’t. this arc has been very interesting, because it’s been a lot of “i’ll play along with this because it sounds intriguing, but i’m going to be very self righteous about it the whole time.” like. the “we’re good” when jester brought up transferring followers to melora is haunting me. why “we’re good”? i get cad’s philosophy that not everyone is going to flock to one god--that’s fine, that makes sense. but the implication of “we’re good” really makes it sound like “mmm no thanks, none of these people would end up in my cool and correct religion anyway.” because he doesn’t know! he doesn’t know if any of these people would actually be happier and better off with melora. or. maybe he does know, or has decided, that they wouldn’t be, because these are not the kind of people that he could see himself falling under the same moral umbrella as. (lmao love how i said i was going to skim. anyway. again, less a jester thing, more a “cad is smug about everything” thing tbh.)

let’s move to fjord. he is quite honestly making me almost more uncomfortable than beau, because he’s making statements that i don’t really actually believe. “we just don’t want you to get hurt” is all very well and good. coupling that with agreeing with beau that they shouldn’t leave jester alone with artagan? without telling jester? does not jive. (i’m still not over the ridiculous of that, by the way. yeah this dude--no, this ARCHFEY, who could snap you in half in a moment--has been alone with her regularly for the first 20ish years of her life but now, now he’s going to try and kill her, and you’re going to be the one to stop that.) fjord keeps saying things like this--that he trusts her--but he doesn’t actually act like it. at one point he even says “if jester has faith in the traveler, that’s good enough for me, i suppose.” but it’s not, and he doesn’t act like it is. you know who actually acts like that? caleb. caleb’s getting his own paragraph though this is getting long as fuck. but if fjord actually meant that? he would’ve told beau “listen i know this situation is sketchy and i don’t like him anymore than you do but because i trust jester i also trust that she knows what she’s doing here, and i’ll be there to back her up with whatever she needs/wants me to do”. but he did not say that or anything like that. instead he agreed with beau to essentially be bodyguarding jester--without consulting jester about it at all. he wouldn’t have told jester “he’s generally full of shit, right?” about the traveler. jester is continually telling the group over and over again that she knows what he’s like. she knows Exactly how he can be. and the sad thing is, if fjord actually believed that she knew what she was talking about when she said that and if he believed that he could actually talk to her frankly and not that her feelings had to be protected at all costs (my skin is still crawling at “we don’t wanna ruin jester’s special day”. it’s not a five year old’s birthday party), then he would have straight up told her. he would have said “hey we’re concerned enough that he’s going to hurt you that we don’t think you should be alone with him. can we help guard against that?”

and i’ll be honest, i’ve kind of been squicked out by all the romantic posts about fjord and jester because he’s spent the last few episodes genuinely treating her like a wonderful but vulnerable child who needs to be protected from the world. when he told beau "I'm probably the least clued in as to how jester feels” i was like YEAH NO SHIT. and i know he meant it in a romantic sense but i feel that it’s true in general. like i get that he’s scared to talk to her. that’s fine. he doesn’t have to talk to her about her feelings, romantic or otherwise. but if he’s acknowledging that he does not at all know how she feels then he has no right to behave as if he does know. and again i don’t mean this in a romantic sense. i mean it in a, he is making the assumption that she can’t handle reasoned criticism of the traveler to her face, kind of sense. he and beau both are opting for “random insults, threats, and judgments they have decided apply” over “genuinely this is why we are concerned”. there has been a lot of “you don’t need him” and “you are better off without him” and “you’re better than him” and “you have us why do you need that” and those are judgement statements that are essentially meaningless. all they do is further demonstrate to jester that they don’t actually understand why she’s upset or what she actually wants.

i think caleb, mr i-eat-encyclopedias-for-breakfast, likely just has a better intellectual understanding of the fae and that may be why he’s not as outwardly concerned as the rest, but he’s also actually decided to trust jester that she knows what she’s dealing with. she has demonstrated both verbally and with her actions that even if she may not have known about artagan initially, She Knows How This Works. and he trusts that. caleb truly went “alright, i trust that you know what you’re doing, where do you need me” and that was IT. i’m not saying that he’s not allowed to be suspicious or concerned or wary of the traveler: i just don’t think he is. and i hate that people keep lumping him in with the rest of the nein “treating jester like a child” because they think he’s predatory or something--especially as caleb and fjord are pretty much the same age--when he is literally the only FUCKING person consistently asking jester how she feels and then actually acting accordingly.

and the thing is, you don’t have to be caleb and largely unconcerned, it is actually possible for you to show concern and alarm and wariness for your friend’s best friend without condescending to them and veth has been doing that this whole damn time. we know how she feels about him; she decidedly does not like him. but she set that aside to really fully listen to jester and then tried to be helpful to her in deciding what to do next, without inserting her own opinion. veth is the only one acknowledging that, sure, this looks really bad and i don’t like that guy, but you know him best, jester, and you know yourself best and so it should be your choice what to do in this situation. she reminds jester--if he is really a friend to you, and he is doing things you don’t like, then you can talk to him about that and he should listen. i want to talk about how when jester suggested that artagan join the mighty nein, there were exactly three reactions. extremely lame excuses from everyone but caleb and veth, “maybe, like, an annex--” from caleb, because he knows what everyone else is gonna say, and “we don’t like your friend” from veth, literally the only person who has apparently decided that jester can hear that without dissolving into a puddle or something.

and i want to make it clear--i don’t hate the actors. and stories are supposed to make you upset and uncomfortable, to an extent. they’re supposed to make you think. you’re not supposed to be happy when darth vader blows up alderaan. you’re not supposed to be happy when edmund betrays his siblings to the white witch. these are all excellent, excellent character choices and i applaud the cast for making them. and i don’t hate fjorester. and like yeah there have been a lot of cute moments in the last few eps. and they are cute and their story is compelling and it’s interesting. but i wish people would stop acting like fjord’s attitude towards her is perfect and lovely and that he trusts her sooo much when he is going behind her back like this. i am...the biggest widomauk shipper. and i have to admit my heart does the swoopy thing every time i rewatch the forehead kiss. but that wasn’t great. it was overall really not a good read or handle of the situation. it was, there was an attempt. and i do think fjord is trying. and i think beau is trying too. and i think all of their attitudes however terrible just come from a place of loving her and wanting to protect her. but--and here i must point frantically back at artagan--loving someone does not mean that you’re not hurting them.

#artagan #the traveler #jester lavorre #fjord #beauregard lionett #caleb widogast #veth brenatto #the mighty nein #critical role #critical role spoilers #cr spoilers #thane watches critical role #long post

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stanknotstark · 3 years

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Astral Pt. 13 (Loki x Reader)

I’m introducing ANOTHER character :D Morgan is very interesting and her powers are like Kang’s I’m very curious as to who would win in a fight tbh i wish i could’ve written an action scene because she can mind control and OH the drama that I could have played with! You guys are lucky cuz i had something worse written >:D

You and Loki are eating breakfast together in silence. When you finish your plate Loki tells you to grab a book from his quarters, while he finishes, so he can help you research Asgard. Then meet him in the common area since no one is there right now.

Loki likes to teach you and watch your curiosity flare as you read up on Asgard, its customs, how healers work, how royalty works, instead of telling you. It’s the least he can do since you’ll never actually see Asgard in person. He’s a fantastic storyteller but you know he has a weakness, that weakness being that when you truly concentrate on something sometimes you stick your tongue out a bit and narrow your eyes. Other times you look at the book with guileless fascination. Plus, Loki knows there’s more satisfaction from learning on your own. He’s always there to answer your questions and debate with you though.

You walk back into the common area after grabbing the book, Loki looks at you, then a cloud of dark green appears between you both. Before you can react accordingly feminine arms are yanking you into the cloud of magic and you’re in someone’s arms definitely not at the tower anymore. You can only imagine what Loki is thinking. The last thing he probably saw was the book fall when you dropped it. Now he’s probably thinking the worst is going to happen, that you’re going to die, and honestly you don’t know what’s going on. For all you know you might actually be about to die.

You try to wave off the nausea and dizziness following the teleportation you endured and assess your surroundings but someone is roughly pulling you somewhere. Just as you get your wits back there is a tight rope constricting your hands behind your back and around your ankles. You’re shoved into a rocky wall, twisting, back first causing you to let out a breathless grunt and slide into a sitting position on the ground.

Looking up you see a beautiful woman. She stands tall, her chin out in confidence. Her pale, petite face is framed by pitch black hair, the long tendrils held in braids resting on her chest and trailing to her hips they’re so long. She wears a green and black corset that flows into thigh armor that is engraved. No not engraved, made of actual scales, you shiver at the thought of what could have scales that big, nothing from Earth that’s sure. To end her amazing outfit, her green with black lace boots are thigh highs. You can faintly smell leather and something sweet you’ve never smelled before. You’re pretty sure this woman could be a really good dominatrix if she wanted to.

“That was much easier than expected. If the Avengers are Earth’s best defenders I’m disappointed, to say the least.” The woman tells you looking at her nails in boredom. You pick out her British accent.

You realize you’re not in immediate danger and say, “While I don’t mind getting kidnapped by beautiful women I usually like to know their names first, maybe take me on a date before you bring me back to your place.”

The woman chuckles. “My name is Morgan Le Fay of Britain, the world’s strongest sorceress, Morgana. That is until you came along.”

You frown. “That’s a mouthful.”

Morgana shakes her head with a small smile. “Cute.”

“Look I’m not that powerful, I think you have the wrong person, most of the magic I use I can’t use for long because it gives me migraines.” You say while shifting around to get more comfortable.

You finally take in your surroundings. All you can assess is that you’re in a cave, no telling how far from New York City, home. You know Loki could track you down if you could astral project but you don’t trust Morgana enough to take your eyes off of her. Maybe Tony is tracking your cell phone which you feel sitting in your back pocket.

“Such a shame you’ll never discover your true potential. I’m here to kill you, child, but I had to get a taste of what runs through your blood before I do.” Morgana says kneeling in front of you.

Morgana brings a hand to your head and when she touches you she gasps and closes her eyes. You simply watch from under her hand as she shivers. When she pulls her hand away her eyes are bright with curiosity but far away in thought.

“Why would your mother want to kill someone so powerful, I would think having you on her side would be more preferable.” Morgana says under her breath. You only hear her because she’s so close to you.

“My mother sent you?” You say trying to stall now that you know her intentions.

Morgana hums.

“I know my mother doesn’t love me but I never thought she’d send a glorified assassin after me. I’m honored, honestly.” You say your fingers playing with the rope around your wrists seeing if you could escape somehow. “How does my mother know you anyways, she doesn’t have any powers why would she know a sorceress?”

Morgana frowns at you, “I like your humor in the face of death.” She quips with a hint of annoyance at your nonchalance of the situation, “When a celestial tells me to do something I tend to not question it.” You look at Morgana like she’s crazy then you watch as realization dawns on her face.

“My child...You truly do not know?”

You stop fiddling with the rope and look at Morgana with a raised eyebrow. “Know what? And I’m not a child.”

“Your true birth mother, celestial Madonna.” Morgana says ignoring your plea to be respected.

At this you freeze and lose all the breath in your lungs.

Thor was right, you’re adopted.

“It was prophesied that celestial Madonna would give birth to the most powerful being in the universe. Kang wanted to be father to such child and hunted her down. He impregnated her, held her captive until she birthed you. She fled when she had the chance but couldn’t take you with her.” Morgana explains while standing and pacing the cave’s floor. “Kang, who was being chased by the Avengers, planted you in an alternate universe and time. No one has known where you were until a few years ago when you used magic for the first time.” Morgana finishes, stopping and looking down at you.

She gives you a look of pity as you process everything. It all made sense now. Kang wants you to be his weapon of destruction. Why your parents have always hated you and treated you like shit.

“My mother wants me dead and sent you to do her dirty work...Meaning she’s alive somewhere?” You ask trying to not panic with the influx of information.

“She’s here on Earth until she knows you’re dead. Said you’re more of a liability than anything. I’m being paid handsomely for your head.” Morgana says. She then brings a hand up and flicks it. Dark green magic flows and through the smokey magic you see a quin jet then see flashes of Loki, Steve, Natasha, Tony, and Thor talking, concerned and frightened looks on their faces but hear nothing.

“Your friends are near.” Is all Morgana says like it’s an afterthought. She makes the magic disappear and looks at you with determination. “I have a proposition for you, child.”

You’re not really in the position to argue so you nod at her.

“Promise me you’ll hunt down Kang and right before you deliver the last strike on his miserable life you call on me and let me do it. While I love your mother dearly I have a penchant for revenge.”

“Fine.” You say. At this Morgana looks at you, sizing you up, but decides you’re harmless enough and makes the rope around your wrists and ankles disappear. When you stand she magics a gold ring with a square emerald on it and gives it to you.

“When the time comes throw this on the ground and stomp on it with your foot then stand back, I shall appear where the ring is.”

You nod and slip the ring onto your right ring finger finding that it fits perfectly.

“Do not use it for anything else, it is a one time use. If you use it for something trivial I will kill you without hesitation, our deal will be void.” Morgana says, she frowns and without asking places a hand on your head again. This time you feel her magic search your mind and gasp when she does something that makes you feel energetic and calm.

When Morgana pulls her hand away she explains, “Your powers were behind a barrier, I simply destroyed it. You should be able to wield magic without headaches now but you’re going to use your full power unless you learn how to tame it. Do not kill yourself or I’ll bring you back to life just to kill you again.”

You look at Morgana in disbelief and annoyance because she keeps threatening your life.

She gives you a sympathetic look. “I’m truly sorry such a fate has fallen on you, child.” And then she’s gone and you’re left in a dark cave.

You hadn’t even realized Morgana had used magic to light up the space you both inhabited until you’re left standing in pitch black. Without hesitation you light up both fists with fire and start to make your way out of the cave. You plan to contact Loki when you truly know where you are. However, when you reach the entrance you see the quin jet landing in an open field not that far from the cave’s entrance on the side of a mountain. The first person out of the ship is Loki and he is sprinting towards you, Thor not far behind with Steve and Nat pulling the flank.

When Loki reaches you you open your mouth to tell him you’re ok but he pulls you into his chest hard and squeezes you till you’re breathless. Then he holds you at arms length and looks over your face first, then body.

“Are you hurt, did she use any magic on you?” He asks urgently.

“I’m fine, Loki, we just talked, she’s not a danger to us.” You say with a small smile that you’re sure doesn’t reach your eyes because Loki doesn’t lose the concerned look on his face. He doesn’t push it either though. Thor stays suspiciously silent when he reaches you both. He touches you as if to check that you’re real but drops his hand and claps Loki on the back more for calming him instead of camaraderie.

You look at Steve and Nat with a small wave and embarrassed grimace when Loki, Thor, and you reach them as you all walk towards the quin jet. After you’ve told them multiple times that you’re fine they all relax a bit but not by much. You mostly feel embarrassed you were taken so easily. You didn’t even put up a fight.

You’re sitting in the quin jet quiet other than to answer their questions without going into details because you’re still trying to unravel what you’ve been told.

“Why did she take you?” Steve asks, standing in front of you, arms crossed, with Nat next to him while Loki sits at your side, holding your hand. You know he has questions because his fingers keep playing with the new ring on your hand and he gives you looks you can’t decipher. Thor is speaking with Tony in the cockpit so you’re free of their questions until later thankfully.

“She wants me to find Kang so she may kill him.” You say.

Thankfully Loki and Thor had told the group of superheroes who Kang was after the incident with the Growing Man. They told them what they knew of the man which honestly wasn’t much.

At your words you feel Loki stop playing with the ring. He understands its purpose now. He must have used his magic to look over the ring and see if it was a danger to anyone but especially you, sensing it had magic dwelling in it.

“That doesn’t explain why she took you specifically. She could have told all of us. She didn’t have to kidnap you.” Natasha says knowing you enough to know you’re hiding valuable information.

You frown and look at your feet. “I-”

You go quiet and everyone stays quiet too, you listen to the engine of the quin jet and Thor and Tony bickering in the background. You think about how Loki’s hand fits perfectly in yours and is soft but has rough patches of callouses from his use of daggers. You take a deep breath in through your nose, closing your eyes, and smell leather, sweat, and that smell the quin jet emits like a new car.

When you open your eyes you look up at Steve and Natasha and ask, “How did you find me?”

Natasha frowns at your very obvious deflection. Steve answers. “Tony tracked your cell phone but it’s thanks to Loki we found you so fast. He used his magic to track your magic or something.” Steve says uncrossing his arms and shrugging while glancing at Loki.

You look at Loki who raises a brow at you. “Our bond.” Is all he says at your inquisitive look. You nod in understanding.

“Where are we, exactly?” You ask them.

“The border of New York and Pennsylvania.” Steve says. That explains why they were able to reach you so quick. If Morgana teleported you so close that means your stalling is the only reason you’re alive. She planned to make you a quick death.

When Nat opens her mouth to ask you another question you shake your head at her. “I’m exhausted can I take a nap before I tell you everything?” You ask, realizing you’ve got at least 45 minutes of free time since the jet isn’t going full speed.

Nat looks a little apologetic and Steve nods and says, “We’re happy you’re ok.” and then they both make their way to the opposite side of the quin jet.

You and Loki settle into the quin jet’s seats as comfortably as you can. He stays suspiciously quiet about everything but brings an arm up and around your shoulders and lets you lay your head on his shoulder where it meets his neck. When you’re settled he keeps holding your hand but his free hand around your shoulder comes up to stroke your hair. It doesn’t take long to fall asleep.

Pt. 12.1/Pt. 13/?

Tage list: @justfangirlthingies @emelieh99 @high-functioning-lokipath @loveableasshole

#astral #astral pt.13 #loki x reader #loki #reader insert #my writing #loki odinson #sorry i debated writing a 12.1 and didn't know if i could add it without disrupting the flow of the story #there will be a 13.1 though!#anyways i wanted to answer the questions that have been thrown around recently #loki isn't freaking out #yet #he will in 13.1 #lol i wanted to save the angst #but he definitely freaked at your disappearance #no worries all shall be resolved #disregard the whole 12.1 not happening i decided last minute to write something up #i actually might not write a 13.1 and instead write the angsty fluff with pt 14 plot #cuz like if i write a 13.1 it'll skip over the plot where you answer their questions #then if i went back to it in 14 it would be confusing to say the least #so you'll get two parts in 14 :D #disregard the timing of everything when i wrote this i totally forgot about about time even existing so i gave lame excuses XDD

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ohifonlyx33 · 3 years

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OK I love the opening Malcolm in the Middle opening, even though that song is OBNOXIOUS. I mean tbh so is the original MITM song. But it’s also interesting how it shows that the POV switches to the twins grabbing the camera, as if they are taking over this world, writing their own narrative, independent of their mother, and refusing to be controlled.

First we hear, ”Don’t try to stop the chaos, don’t question what you’ve done!” Which is directly meant about Wanda as we see Wanda getting exposed/caught getting ready for the day (she is behind the door getting ready/setting the stage? but also she’s just trying to take care of herself),

Then Vision gets upset when he has the newspaper ripped out of his hand as the song sings “some days it’s all confusion, easy come, easy go. what if it’s all illusion?” getting mad. Obviously Vision is confused and upset because he isn’t being told the truth... he’s being denied information, and he wants to leave Westview to find answers, but it’s all an illusion and he can’t just leave because he’s dead.

And of course, you get Pietro zooming in and wrestling Tommy as the lines sing “Though there may be no way of knowing who’s coming by to play” which is just torture to me... I still can’t tell if he’s friend or foe... so that checks out. But he is grabbing the kids, which is lowkey Stranger Danger™

But let’s get to the part I really want to look at. Agnes.

Agnes is snooping around and literally being naughty with the lines “Let’s keep it going” which sounds a lot like Anges is a baddie trying to keep the charade going, right? but the next lines are “Let’s keep it going... Through each distorted day” which could be open for interpretation... because what is Agnes actually doing?

Agnes is digging around in the fridge in the intro 👀 while we start to consider in this episode that everyone on the outskirts of town is not doing very well, and very possibly even starving without the ability to feed themselves ❗❗ like the little boy on the island in the commercial ❗❗ they are unable to live on Wanda’s Magic Yogurt, even if that’s all she has keeping her empty shell alive at the moment. 👀❗❗ And later Agnes is driving to the outskirts of town??👀👀 Why now? We’ve never seen her try to escape before and by her own admission Wanda won’t allow it.

Is Agnes under Wanda’s control? Are we sure? Maybe Wanda “wrote” her as a neighborly friend and confidant who always has what they need... or maybe she’s (consiously or unconsciously) self-inserted cast herself in that role as a way of getting through and maybe helping... Of course she could also be planted there for nefarious reasons. But “naughty” could be a sign foreshadowing a bigger villain that Agnes is aligned with... OR it could be a term Wanda would use for people who stir up trouble in “Shangri-La”/Paradise. Remember, it was in fact, Wanda who pushed Agnes out of the kitchen and called her naughty when she didn’t comply right away.

So maybe Agnes actually is a good actor in this. Maybe she really is even a victim (of Ralph and/or Wanda, you decide). But maybe she also had magic before... which could mean that Wanda’s magic doesn’t affect her the same as everyone else which is why she seems out of it sometimes, but totally aware at other times.

And why was she on the edge of town? I’ve seen people say she set herself there for Vision to find so she could put on an act, and I can totally see that theory being true except for the fact that logistically she wouldn’t know that Vision would be there (unless she has inside knowledge). People are rightly suspicious of Agnes being able to snap out of it and interact with Vision, but I do think there are other reasons for her to be there. Agnes is a main supporting character so it makes sense that she’d be able to snap out of it long enough to talk to Vision. It’s even possible Wanda put her out there as a guard to keep her kids away from the boundary.

But I wonder... does she know about the people on the edge of town? When Wanda isn’t looking, the townsfolk seem to understand how bad it is... and now the kids are part of it. So could Agnes have come to bring them food, seen what Vision saw, and realized she needed to get out NOW... only for Wanda’s spell to kick in and overwrite her?

#wandavision #wandavision spoilers #wandavison spoilers #wandavision meta

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darkpoisonouslove · 3 years

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Winx Club Season 5 Thoughts Part 1

It’s been so hard for me to make myself start this season because I know it only goes downhill from here but here I am at last. I don’t remember anything from this season and am prepared to hate the transformations (Harmonix because it’s impractical and Sirenix because it’s ugly) so let’s do this.

- I already hate the hair and I haven’t made it past the intro yet. This is promising.

- This is off to a great start. I got the wrong episode. Not by my mistake, however. Now that I found the actual first one, let’s actually do this.

5x01:

- It’s weird to see magic so publicly on Earth. At least they’re having fun. Though, I have to say that I am not a fan of the idea of them having a band. And they have unfair advantage over every other Earth band because they can do their own advertizing without having to pay a cent and it will still be better than any other band can afford since it’s magic. They should have just dropped the band.

- I am gagging over the fact that they have Roxy praise Bloom for the help but not the other Winx girls. They were all there for her and fought to protect her and tried to teach her magic. And at one point she even said she wanted to be like Stella. But now she says that only Bloom is like a big sister. Obviously a plot device to bring in Daphne since she will be resurrected this season and they have to set it up. Especially after season 4 forgot all about her. I am still gagging, though.

- You know, I could have loved the whole ecological message but I am pretty sure they are going to fuck it up anyway. Or just not take it anywhere.

- Ugh, Helia’s hair is so ugly. But at least Sky’s is as well. But what is that box Sky has? Not another engagement ring, please, for the love of everything sacred!

- Ahh, pendant. Yeah, their relationship is going so well that they will need magic to keep it in tact. Though, good luck for both of them will be to just split up and find someone that is actually good for them. Also, why doesn’t Brandon know about that? He is literally the squire and best friend of the prince.

- Poor Layla. She must be missing Nabu like crazy. Please, let her have a season to mourn and don’t shove a new love interest in her face right away. It took her a season and a half to get the first one and he was killed. She needs some fucking time!

- Love that everyone agrees that Sky’s hair is terrible. Even Bloom’s “It looks... great” sounds like a lie.

- Why is Sky going back to Red Fountain? Didn’t he finish that? God, just let them move on already. Also, he is not A Crown Prince now. He was the Crown Prince ever since he was born. He was crowned as the king of Eraklyon. Man, are they retconning everything?

- If Bloom cared so much about what he had to say, she could have asked Musa to give them a sec. I like the little Flora and Sky interaction, though. If only it could have been on a topic different than Bloom. I wish the Specialists would interact with Winx other than their girlfriends more. It would sell the friend group vibe better.

- Aww, I wish Layla wouldn’t hide her pain over Nabu. She probably doesn’t want to affect the others with it and doesn’t want them fretting over her either but this is just so sad.

- Love how Bloom doesn’t even remember Tressa. For a moment there I thought that it was her getting crowned which would have been cooler but yeah. Also, Nereus and Tritannus are almost identical. What the hell makes Nereus hot and Tritannus not? I am so annoyed I started rhyming.

- I love the idea of underwater tech!

- Lmao, gotta love how the king has already picked a favorite. And it doesn’t seem to be a recent choice either. Idk about Tritannus yet, but I don’t like this guy. I am all for him being attacked. He even reacted like an absolute asshole. He reminds me of Erendor.

- Ah, of course. Trident. We couldn’t possibly have another weapon when it comes to merfolk.

- Tbh Tressa would be the best ruler. She seems to have learned her lesson and become braver. And if she’s protecting her brother and doing all the work anyway, why not just crown her?

- Didn’t Flora tell him to wait until he is alone with Bloom? Why did he think a good moment to give her the pendant would be when Layla is visibly worried about what is going on and everyone is there with them? I wish he’d drop it and it would break.

- How the fuck can Flora tell that there is oil spilling into the ocean? The ocean is Layla’s domain and Flora has never been shown to be able to communicate with marine plant life.

- I hate how they had to show that Timmy is obviously physically weaker than Sky. It would’ve made sense for him to had built some muscle at the very least after 4-5 years in Red Fountain.

- How the hell did Tecna delete the oil? You can’t just erase matter out of existence. There should be a rule against that.

- Yeah, I was just going to say that closing the pipes is not going to work if they don’t stop the flow of oil. The pipes might explode but it will keep spilling. Seriously, this is basic logic. Nice move. Now it will be harder to stop because the spill moved underwater.

- What happened to Layla’s wings? Is the oil sticking to them and hindering their movements? You’d think she could prevent that with magic.

- This is what happens when you carelessly put something so important in your pocket. You don’t even need to be running a rescue mission. There’s a high chance that you’re gonna lose it anyway. Also, love how Bloom just left the other guy to drown and no one else went after him either.

- Layla’s awesome. She even managed to pull that guy out even though she was struggling a lot with it. I hate the fact that they forgot she taught the others a spell to breathe underwater in season 3, though. They could have used it. But of course, that would have probably rendered Harmonix unnecessary.

- Wow, they renovated the whole platform to make it eco? Why don’t they just do that with all of the oil platforms on Earth then? It’s not like it took much effort. I want to add to this that if they’d just done that (which probably would have taken a couple of days), they could have easily defeated Tritannus later because his only source of pollution in the first half of the season has been Earth. Because there is ocean pollution only on Earth, you know. They could have used that to incorporate an ecological message, except that would have taken work on their part. And also, most of the toxic substances Tritannus consumed were spilled on purpose by the Trix. So there goes a great wasted opportunity for a thematic message.

5x02:

- Here are my bad bitches. What the hell are they doing underwater, though? It’s kinda cruel to put them in a prison that forces them to use magic if they want to survive it. What happens if they tire out? They could die,

- Aaaand for some reason Bloom is the vocalist of the band even though Musa is literally the fairy of music and the only one that was initially having a contract signed.

- I hope nobody is expecting any commentary from me on the musical performances because I am telling you from now that I will be skipping absolutely all of them.

- The selkies look ridiculous. I could appreciate the idea of having small beings being powerful guardians but they will certainly not serve any greater purpose than the pixies did so this is going to be annoying at best. Also, the selkie of Earth was still there even when the fairies weren’t, right? This somehow implies that magical beings couldn’t stop the disasters that mankind causes to Earth even though the previous season said that it was the disappearance of fairies that threw the Earth into chaos.

- Aww, look at Stella and Brandon! So good when there’s no stupid drama.

- People really went cleaning the beach not just willingly but enthusiastically? That sounds a little unbelievable. I mean, they were supposed to be at a concert and that was an abrupt change.

- Correction, I wish Sky hadn’t lost the pendant so that he could have given it to her and this would have been over. Now he is going to sulk about it for ages and he is probably going to fuck up in a self-fulfilled prophecy kinda manner and I am so not here for it. Just shut up about Bloom and Sky and focus on the action, please.

- Well, Icy is now canonically a monster fucker. Even though she thought Valtor was ugly as hell in season 3 when he turned into a demon. He was uglier than Tritanus in all fairness but still. This seems inconsistent. And I hate her voice. Not to mention that she is already acting OOC when she’s not thinking about getting out even but about fucking him. Come on!

- Is the whole turning into a monster thing some sort of reverse Beauty and the Beast? That could have been interesting... but, of course, this is Winx.

- Yep, the selkies are absolutely useless.

- If the Trix don’t have powers, then how are they breathing underwater? Also, how does toxic waste restore ice and storm powers (there is some connection to darkness at least)? And if they went that route, they could have made their powers have an element of toxicity to them to make it more interesting instead of just having a guy boost their powers yet again. Honestly, the only good thing that came out of this is that Darcy and Stormy seem to be thinking more independently now which would be necessary in order for the DramaTM between the Trix later (that is just about the only thing I remember from this season).

- I wish Darcy would have used her hypnotic powers more in the previous seasons. They are so cool and would be pretty hard to deal with once you’re hit. It could have made for more interesting fights.

- If Tritannus was good, he could actually help cleanse the oceans by sucking out all toxic waste. He likes being a monster anyway.

- Okay, but the Trix know Bloom is from Earth. They should have known it was Winx from the second they felt the fairy magic in the air. That took them long enough btw.

- Of course, the monsters can also go on land even though they are mer-creatures. Makes perfect sense.

- Love how Musa and Flora are using new spells yet they look and act exactly the same way like the old ones so it is just same shit, different story. The writers are so unoriginal.

- Layla is strong! And Winx seem to be a little too strong against the Trix. Although, Believix is supposed to be really powerful anyway.

- This could have been the perfect setup for an Icy x Bloom romance. Sky lost the pendant so his relationship with Bloom is doomed and he later lost his memory so why not just break them up. Diaspro can have him if she still wants him (I don’t know why she would but anyway) and Bloom can get with Icy after Icy realizes Tritannus is not the right one for her. Everyone wins, especially, us, the audience. And it could have been a good way to show that Diaspro has reformed and she and Sky could actually be an okay couple. Or better yet, she dumps him and gets together with Bloom and Icy.

- Layla just kicked Tritanus in the face. Boy, I stan! And the underwater battle with weapons instead of magic is super cool, I love it! Wish there’d been more of that but, of course, only Layla can pull that off and we can’t spend more than a minute focusing on anyone else other than Bloom. Why didn’t Tritannus recognize Layla, though? Or did he just not care?

- Icy crying out for help? By a man? So not here for this. It is ridiculously out of character. How is he so powerful? Once again the villain is so strong it is a wonder they ever got to live long enough to get to the finale let alone defeat him.

5x03:

- Well, Winx sure are at the top of the popularity wave again despite the last time we saw them at Alfea being very different. Also, why is it the beginning of another school year yet again? Honestly, I am so sick of all of this.

- Sky is seriously annoying me with that stupid pendant and he is also the one that is fucking up their relationship with his stupid behavior. He should just focus on being a good boyfriend and do the best he can. I get it that in a world of magic superstitions probably have more merit, but he still has control over his own life and the choices he makes. He can “save” their relationship despite the omen of doom.

- Ugh, don’t tell me there will be Helia and Flora drama in this season to compensate for the lack of such in the last? Why did he only introduce Flora as his friend and not as his girlfriend? And how is he so close with the princess of Linphea? Is he from Linphea as well?

- I agree with Stella. Just when we all thought they were done, they started making even more transformations.

- I don’t think we’ve seen Daphne be anything but calm but it’s understandable when she is talking about the thing that made her a disembodied spirit. Still it feels weird to see her not believe that Bloom can handle whatever comes her way. Especially after the defeat of the Ancestral Witches. I guess that is what bugs me in this scene.

- Wow, Darcy admitted that Winx are stronger than them and neither Icy, nor Stormy protested? It’s good that they’re self-aware. It just seems a little OOC. And another power up in two consecutive episodes? Seriously? Will they ever get anything done on their own again?

- At least Sky is asking for advice. I am surprised that they are letting him interact with Flora yet again but I actually kinda like it.

- Why are they all gasping in surprise. They have been to the archive already when Bloom stole the Codex in season 2. It is the same room; they have seen it. Get over it already.

(- *sigh* I just lost my thoughts on half the episode. This season is not agreeing with me.)

- Flora was acting weird while Crystal was helping Helia. It was kind of like she was mad it was Crystal who could save him and not her and that is weird for Flora. I think she would have just been grateful he was saved.

- I suffer when the books suffer... and they did suffer a lot in this episode. Also, how come Stormy is creating life again? This still doesn’t make sense to me but compared to other things, it is more minor.

- I love Darcy’s hypnotic powers and the fact that she was using them on Stella. I think I might be starting to seriously consider this ship (as opposed to just entertaining the possibility of a cool dynamic between them). I mean, Stella looked like she’s seen the hottest new fashion collection and I know it was the magic but still. I kinda want a Darcy who is on her own (without her sisters) and manipulating/spelling Stella into being with her so that she could make place for herself in the Solarian court. And then she falls in love, of course.

- Just please tell me Sky won’t be without his memories for the rest of the season because that will just be too annoying. If they are going for drama, it would be good to at least make it relevant instead of shoving it in there by the ton for the sake of it.

5x04:

- Since when is the whole school so invested in Bloom? They weren’t when she was actually there and even though Winx are kind of legends now, you can bet your ass that there were still fairies that don’t like them. Not to mention that they shouldn’t all know what the hell happened when no one was there to witness it. Why would they let the whole school know if Erendor doesn’t even know yet?

- You are seriously telling me that Stella hadn’t considered being a fashion designer before? Really????? She literally spent her summer after season 1 as an intern for a fashion magazine and has been designing clothes since about the same time. This is just too dumb for words.

- Love how adorably awkward Timmy is. And I love that Tecna doesn’t mind at all. They are just too cute together!

- Ooh, tension between the Trix. That is interesting. Or at least would have been if it were focused more on the power balance in their own dynamic rather than on hate vs love for Tritannus. Why does everything have to be about guys?

- At least Flora seems to like Crystal now which is cool. But I cannot express how annoyed I am by the fact that the whole thing with the pendant is preventing him from getting his memories back. And the stupid thing is that this actually has potential. Losing the pendant could be the peak of Sky’s guilt towards Bloom for all the pain he’s caused her (about Diaspro and not only) and that could be very interesting to explore but this show will never go that deep. It’ll just remain as wasted potential. Just like everything else is.

- Okay, why does no one ever start with amnesia patients by asking them how they would like to go about things, how they feel? Stuff like that.

- Tecna really turned into a robot. Again, no fucking magical system to explain how you can turn a human into a robot. Plus, this could be interesting as well and also really deep but, again, this is Winx. It is not going to be deep. Even though they could have done so much with that premise and given Tecna a really cool arc.

- Ah, yes, I forgot to mention this while I was on the previous episode. I am done with Neptune being so dismissive and even aggressive against his other son. Like, maybe if you had tried some parenting, none of this would have come to pass. Just a thought. I am not saying that parents can prevent any bad choices their kids make but I am saying that he doesn’t look like he tried too hard to be a good dad. Nereus only turned out okay because they are twins and one of them has to be good while the other is evil. I am glad at least someone is trying to reach Tritannus even if he is beyond saving.

- Oh, off, Tritanus is not messing around. You know what? I actually like that. It was about time they made the villains as ruthless as they are trying to make them out to be. Even if I feel bad for his family because they just wanted to help him.

- Why do the selkies talk in the third person? They just went from useless to majorly annoying.

- Why don’t they just go get Faragonda? She may at least know what they are dealing with and possibly clue them in on how to unspell Tecna. They don’t have to reinvent the wheel, just find someone who knows how it was made.

- Great, they just set fire to the archive and nobody bothered to put it out. And they also released the elements in there. The question remains - will the archive survive their search for the Sirenix book? (What the hell were those other books, though? I would like to know where they came from.)

- Okay, but wasn’t the book Tecna opened cursed? What happened to that? And why did the spell on her phone only activate after she opened the book? This doesn’t make sense.

5x05:

- I am very confused about the order of episodes. “The Lilo” should be before “The Power of Harmonix” because they are still using their Believix powers but it makes more sense for the Harmonix episode to be after “The Book of Sirenix”. Anyway, I am watching “The Lilo” because Wikipedia says it’s the fifth episode even though it looks more like filler that wasn’t even meant to be in the season.

- At least we get to see Flora do something this time. She is the most neglected and it’s good to see her use magic for something else other than growing ivy. Seriously, Flo, chill with the ivy.

- “When I think of you, Helia, I believe in myself.” Because she can’t believe in herself if she doesn’t have a boyfriend. The intro is so totally right! What a way to show girl power!

- Why is the animation overly flowy? Is it because it is closer to 3D in order to tie better with the actual 3D later on? It kinda pokes out your eyes sometimes. Or at least mine.

- Someone remembered that the Whisperian Crystals were a thing. I love how they just made them sort of like GPS for magical objects even though they were only supposed to track the Dragon Fire. Proof of that is the fact that they never used them to track the Ring of Solaria even though they wanted it as well. So this is just a cop out to give them a chance to find the Lilo.

- Of course, the Lilo is in the possession of Mitzi’s little sister. Why wouldn’t it be?

- Gotta love how even the writers realized that it was too convenient for everything to be in Gardenia so they started making up excuses for it.

- Wait, how does Mitzi know who the Trix are? Have they... They haven’t met, right? What the hell? Also, Icy was literally standing in front of Macy but she couldn’t just grab the plant herself and had to order Darcy and Stormy to do it? Lazy much?

- Darcy’s powers are going back to their peak this season and I am so here for it.

- Flora legit just hit Icy with her shield. That was a good move and a little more aggressive than I would have expected from Flora but I’m not complaining.

- Great way to almost hit Macy, Stella.

- There was zero point to this episode. I guess they just had to do something to get them to a total of 26 episodes. And putting it right before the episode in which they get Harmonix is just ridiculous because they just powered up their Believix... right before they’ll stop using it.

5x06:

- They can’t even open the Book of Sirenix? Huh, that’s... kinda interesting actually.

- Oh, come on! Just when Bloom was making progress, Crystal brings in Diaspro. You have to love how the writers are implying that Crystal is no good by having her being friends with Diaspro. I thought we were over the Crystal drama but it looks like there will be more. And why is Bloom not losing her mind? Diaspro literally mind controlled Sky! Goddammit, it’s in situations like this I wish I could trust Erendor to do the best for his son! If Bloom could trust he wouldn’t side with Diaspro, she could have called him to let him make sure Diaspro stays away from Sky.

- Oh, they can lose their powers if they fail the quest? I like that! Extra stakes besides the Tritannus situation. This feels more intense now and I am here for it.

- I like the implication that there are other great fairies in the Magic Dimension and it’s not just Winx. Less so fond of the fact that the other fairies seem to be underhanded but I’ll take what I can get.

- Awwwww! That scene with Stella, Tecna and Musa was so precious! I love Stella’s joking and the fact that Tecna is so upset about what happened but she still believes their reassurances! And Musa saying she might start talking about her mother... *sob* This is so precious! They are opening up to each other even more than they have already! And about the tough topics. Ah, my heart!

- Okay, I kinda like the solidarity between Bloom and Layla. Also, the fact that Flora finally figured out what they are doing. Though, that’s kinda weird to me. Flora has been more wary of the reckless plans but I don’t think she would put her powers above her friends and possibly Layla’s whole realm if not the whole universe.

- Really wish it would have been someone else that had saved the horse and not Bloom.

- “Shadow hand”? Man, I was right. Darcy’s powers are peaking! Also, whatever spell Icy used on Winx to make it harder for them to move was super cool as well. I like it.

- They have to complete the Quest in one lunar cycle? That’s 28 days... On Earth. Maybe they should have specified which moon. Since Solaria has 2 suns there are probably millions of moons out there. Okay, that isn’t working out and I wish they had been more specific with it. This episode had some cool stuff about the Magic Dimension already and they could have done more. Anyway, one lunar cycle sounds like a short time but since it’s Winx, it is probably a long time.

- Oh, they just all got Harmonix without doing anything in order to earn it. Greaaaaat. And I have to say that the Harmonix design is so impractical. Why so many veils? They’re just gonna boggle them down. Of course, nothing ever gets wet on shows but seriously? If you’re fighting with someone, they can grab you by the veils or the veils can tangle around you and become the reason for your demise. This is stupid.

- Okay, so Tecna was being really insecure but they left her behind in the search of the Gem of Self-confidence? Like, you just threw away a golden opportunity. I am into the idea that they are going in the Magical Reality Chamber to still be at the place of the action so to speak and be able to help the rest better, though.

- Love the idea of the boat that can go to any water body. I would like one. Less so enthused about the contradiction in this very episode. Stella was complaining about wearing heels when she could have just changed with magic. The proof is right there since she changed hers, Bloom’s and Layla’s whole outfits just about 10 minutes later. This is ridiculous.

- Not @ the way the writers already threw Roy in despite the fact that it has been just five episodes since the beginning of the season. Also not @ the way he seems to be the stereotypical “girls need my protection” guy. Wish Layla would just keep not liking him. But they are probably trying to emulate what happened with Nabu at first. Ugh, I hate this so much I can’t even tell you.

- Oh, come on! They’ll be bonding with the selkies now? Let me guess, that was only written so that the selkies can get their powers back through the bonds, So Tritannus will enter the Infinite Ocean with the stolen selkie powers and Winx will enter it with help from their bonded selkies. This is so transparent, I can’t even. Also, totally needed their selkies to be matching the color of their Harmonix. I mean, how else are you gonna tell that they’re their bonded selkies? Not like they have personalities or are relevant in any way. Also, can another fairy bond with a selkie that has been “taken”? Like, there is a pixie for every fairy but the selkies are much less so... what the hell? This doesn’t make any sense.

- I hate what they did with the challenge for self-confidence. They could have done so much better. But first, Bloom’s test is all about Sky (which is dumb as fuck because it literally tells you their relationship is the biggest source of insecurity in her life) and Stella’s is about her not having confidence in her fashion taste? Really? Layla’s was most cutting as always but they didn’t even try to make it hard. It was so obvious that Nabu was an illusion because he was being cruel to her and the real Nabu would never. They should have gone for something else that would have really made her struggle with figuring out it is not real. Plus, by figuring out it is not real, she didn’t exactly confront her issue with confidence. And Bloom and Stella couldn’t even break out of it on their own and needed her help. How is that successfully passing the test?!?!?!?! And I was just starting to think that this could be getting better. It was I who should have known better.

5x07:

- Aww, I love how dedicated Stella is to knowing stuff about Solaria. She is going to be a precious queen. Also, her guardian of Sirenix is so beautiful.

- Ugh, the Trix are pulled apart again. I hate it. Darcy and Stormy do have a point. I just wish Icy would keep her head in the game. Also, do they sleep out in the open? In a swamp or whatever the hell that is?

- Wow, Sky that has no memory treats Bloom better than Sky that has memory of her. Interesting. Like, if he can calm her worries about Diaspro so easily when he doesn’t even remember how much he loves her, why didn’t he do that in the previous seasons? Honestly.

- Roy is annoying me just by cheering for Winx. This is not going well.

- Oh, damn, Flora got turned into stone. What did Tritannus do to that jellyfish? Turn it into Medusa (lmao, fun fact - jellyfish is called medusa [more like meduza but still] in Bulgarian)? Seriously. And why is Flora the one saving the selkies when she is the only one that isn’t bonded to any?

- Since the Trix also didn’t put any work into earning their powers, it is only fair that Winx get a free upgrade as well. I am just glad that at least the Harmonix spells look differently even though they function in the same generic way.

- Hey, Sky is actually starting to remember? Good. I was prepared to suffer through this amnesia arc up until 5x13 at least but now I have timid hope that it will not last that long. I guess the writers haven’t heard of muscle memory, however.

- How did the Gem of Confidence turn Flora back into herself when the jellyfish that turned her into stone had nothing to do with it? It was Tritannus’ doing and not even intentional. It shouldn’t have had petrifying powers in the first place. None of this makes any sense. Not to mention that the Gem somehow multiplied to six gems. I mean, really? Would’ve been much better if they could only choose to complete one box aka everyone else would lose their powers but then through their shared goal (aka Faragonda telling them that they have to be of one mind and heart) they could have all gotten the Sirenix. Just no other powers. That would have been way more interesting (obviously Layla would be the one whose box they’d complete and I don’t believe the Dragon Fire can be extinguished anyway so Bloom could even have a loophole out of that). And besides, they don’t use the old transformations anyway.

5x08:

- Stella is rocking that outfit. But why streaks? Stella, no!

- Tecna and Timmy are absolutely adorable with their mega nerdiness. I love it.

- Jeez, really? Sky is a better dancer with amnesia than Brandon is? I mean, this could have been plausible if they hadn’t established already in the previous episode that his muscle memory has fucked off into oblivion as well. Otherwise, yes. As royalty, he is probably better at dancing. Even though battle requires a lot of coordination as well. But nice of Kiko to try to help.

- Come on, Stella, you’re being insensitive. You would be “moping” too if Brandon had died. Please, don’t try to set Layla up with guys. Just give her some time to grieve!

- I don’t know what Stella expected. Of course, Layla is going to get offended by that. She doesn’t want company, she wants Nabu back.

- Oh, come on! Musa really got mad at Riven just because he liked the music another girl was playing? What, is he supposed to only listen to her music now? She isn’t even the vocalist of their band.

- They only have 10 days left to complete the missions? When did they manage to waste so much time? Like, they legit got the first thing done in one day. Where did the other go?

- Tressa has had so much growth since season 3. I love her. Really wish they’d let her be queen. But wtf, why can the king know what all of his subjects are doing? That is so invasive. Also, Layla should not be in the range of his powers. Man, the writers are really pulling some bullshit here.

- You’d think the selkies will learn that they can’t stop Tritanus and will try to not get in his way so that he wouldn’t get to steal their powers. But nope, they are both useless and stupid.

- Okay, Stella did mess up and she should have known why what she did was a bad idea but Layla giving her the silent treatment is not going to help either. I hope that the fact that Musa is dealing with the loss of her mother can help the two of them patch things up as well. Maybe there will be a lesson in this for both of them.

- Now it makes sense why Musa turned into an ocean type of monster. And this is a good opportunity for Stella and Layla to find their balance again and help save Musa.

- Stella’s attacks are still hurting Musa. And wouldn’t it make more sense for Layla to use her powers to stop her? She could make a net with morphix that will be both more reliable and less harmful for Musa. Seriously, why do they always make the dumbest choices possible?

- You know what would have been more interesting? If the healing of the bond could only work one way and the selkie didn’t get her powers back. They could have brought in Galatea to also bond with her in order to restore her powers later on so that they could enter the Infinite Ocean. That would have been more creative. But nah.

- Stella’s sudden understanding of Layla really came out of nowhere. And it felt like Layla only forgave her because she didn’t want to fight with her anymore, not because she was truly okay with what Stella did. This could have been done so much better.

- These Sirenix quests are so convenient. They all have to do with places the girls know and clues they have history with. It would have been much harder if they had to go to planets they don’t know how to navigate and a better way to do more worldbuilding.

- Bloom really can’t take 10 days away from the Sky mess? They can literally lose their powers forever which could mean handing Tritannus victory but she is more concerned with Sky’s memory that can possibly only get better in the next ten days while she focuses on the mission? Oh, come on!

- They are really trying to push hard the idea that Bloom and Sky are destined to be together. Also, now that they found the shell, can Sky’s memory block disappear? It would make sense. Please, just end this already.

5x09:

- Really? Bloom is sensing that something is wrong with Daphne but Marion isn’t? This could have been a cool moment to bring in the fact that their parents are back. Especially since Bloom isn’t going to do shit about it. I mean, how dense is she that she didn’t recognize the clouds of pollution hanging around Daphne in her dream? Could have at least tried to contact Daphne to make sure she was okay. Especially since she knows that Daphne talks to her through her dreams and that has been A Thing since season 1. I just... cannot.

- I... don’t even know what to say about Stella here. On the one hand I understand her frustration as she feels like no one supports her passion for fashion but on the other hand... Stella, no! Brandon was right that she needs to consider other people’s feelings sometimes, though, I’d say none of Winx exhibited particularly high levels of empathy here except maybe Flora.

- Oh, Tecna. On the one hand I want to say that there shouldn’t be a reason to feel nervous face to face with Timmy when they get along so well, but on the other, we have all experienced what she’s talking about. Texting can be so much easier sometimes even if it can also be dangerous because it lacks the context of body language.

- Seriously? We’re gonna make it through all the girls’ planets. I said it before and I’ll say it again, but this Sirenix Quest sure is damn convenient. At least it is kinda ironic that the Gem of Empathy is on Zenith since they seem to rely on technology more.... Man, that could have been an awesome opportunity to make Zenith more three dimensional by explaining that they develop so much technology so that they could make the lives of everyone easier when they have digital assist aka their focus on technology is driven by empathy. But again, that is just too deep for this show.

- Oh, come on! Stella really turned into a three-year-old? Why the hell would there be an age-changer spell in the pin? This doesn’t make sense. And again, a fucking wasted opportunity. Stella was running low on empathy here so including her in the search for the Gem of Empathy would have provided way more character development than this shit right here. I would have sent Stella, Tecna and Musa to get the Gem and Bloom, Flora and Layla to go look for Daphne. Or better yet, Stella and Tecna for the Gem, Musa and Layla after Tritannus and Bloom and Flora to check on Daphne.

- Is Layla ever going to use her Harmonix powers? Seriously, she has transformed how many times now and I can’t remember her using any of her new magic.

- Why is Layla now smiling at Roy even though she never transitioned from “annoyed” to “friendly teasing”? I hate this so much.

- It must be weird for Brandon to see his girlfriend as a three-year-old while he is still twenty. Like, that will make for a fun conversation once the spell wears off.

- It is so goddamn obvious that Tritannus has been there! Like, did the clouds of pollution not tip you off?????? Honestly, why don’t any of them have normal rationalizing abilities? It is a simple deduction! You don’t need the selkies to tell you! Besides, didn’t they already say that he crossed over to Zenith? This is like looking between a needle and a single straw of hay and having to point out which is the needle and they are failing!

- Shoot, I thought “where the one looks over the many” was supposed to be something of a mathematical riddle or something that would have to make Tecna focus on the whole rather than the details. The throne thing? Just... meh.

- I would have preferred it if their test of empathy involved something that was already inside them and came from themselves rather than them being placed under a spell by the Gem. It could have brought out their most unempathetic thoughts but I still think there was a better way to do this, and a more emotional one.

- Seriously?????? I mean, FOR REAL?!?!?!?!?! THAT is what they had to do to get the gem???????????????????????????????????????????????????? They didn’t even resolve their issues!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How did they prove they were worthy of having it. God, I hate this.

- How did the age-changer spell had any bearing on the plot or the characters? It literally didn’t do anything for Stella or Flora, Musa and Brandon for that matter. They had so many amazing opportunities in this episode and they were all wasted. I just... *frustrated sigh*

5x10:

- Is it just me or is the idea to put the Christmas filler episode right a couple of days before the deadline for the Sirenix Quest the worst idea ever? Well, not the worst because this show is just full of bad ideas but still somewhere up there with the big guys.

- I was gonna get incredibly angry if they’d made Christmas be a thing in the Magic Dimension but they got at least that right. And that way it’s cute that Bloom gets to introduce her friends to a new holiday. They all got so excited about the presents! Adorable! The only thing that would have made this better was if she’d invited Marion and Oritel to Mike and Vanessa’s as well to celebrate together.

- I was ready to hate this episode but it has actually caught my attention. Love how the Trix decided the magic of Christmas is literal magic and they want to steal it from Bloom. This is actually exactly what a funny filler episode should be like.

- Aww, a surprise Musa and Riven moment. That was adorable.

- Am I the only one who is getting Yu Gi Oh vibes from this monster? Okay, four monsters (Why four? That is so random. Three would have made more sense.). They just remind me too much of Blue Eyes White Dragon.

- You know what would be really cool? If Stella made a cage with mirrors at key places to reflect the light beam she shoots at the creatures so that it would keep running through the cage to stop them from reforming.

- Oh, wow. Faragonda showed up. I never thought that would happen. Not that she’s been much use. Like, you fought the Ancestral Witches! Surely, there has to be something you can do! Not to mention that how the hell did the Trix get magic of the darkest order? That’s just bullshit.

- You know what? I would be more worried about the fact that they may not be able to break the spell before they run out of water and food and other essentials. Like, the Christmas thing is upsetting but not a priority right now,

- Okay, the Trix are inside the ice dome but the ice dragons aren’t? That seems like a hole in their plan.

- The others got the spirit but they a little confused. Bloom doesn’t just miss Christmas but spending it with her family and they can’t give her that. Though, none of them didn’t even try to teleport. Depending on the way you do it, maybe they could have gotten out.

- This episode is kinda all over the place but at least it has that cool vibe from season 1 when they got to actually just chill around the school and do some fun stuff. Actually put time in just being friends. Oh, and the friendship charm bracelets are really cute! I love them.

- You know they don’t have what to put in an episode when they give the full transformations twice. Nice job, there.

- Making a hole in the dome does not sound like the best course of action because Winx could have just gotten out of there and forced the Trix to chase them. But no one thought of that.

- I feel second hand embarrassment on Icy’s behalf. If she ever gets to learn that she misunderstood about the magic of Christmas, that is. The way things are going, Bloom is gonna blast them out of the dimension without ever revealing that this was all for nothing.

- Well, Bloom could have just used her Dragon Fire to destroy the ice dragons the moment they appeared and none of that would have happened but why the hell would she do that? I have to say that I would have preferred it if Winx and the Specialists had gone to Gardenia instead of having Gardenia go to Alfea. Like, I get it that they wanted to make Christmas touch the Magic Dimension as well but Alfea has never celebrated a Zenithian-specific holiday for example or a Solarian one. It just makes the whole Winx universe a little too focused on Bloom again.

5x11:

- Omg, I am feeling so bad for Daphne. Hasn’t she suffered enough? Though, I have to say that I am at least glad Icy came up with a decent plan for counteraction this time even if it is cruel. At least it makes sense!

- Why the hell is the wind-rider competition held in Alfea? It should have been in Red Fountain but I guess the animators couldn’t be bothered to pull out their old animation of it and remember how to draw it.

- Bloom giving Sky a pep talk was kinda cute. I get why he would be nervous and it was cool that she did her best to help him. And that moment with throwing some harmless magic his way to show him his own reflexes was actually smart and hella cute as well. I just wish they wouldn’t have gone for the “he is the best Specialist ever to live” thing again but I’ll take it as his friends telling a white lie to soothe his anxiety.

- So the Trix are just being bullies for no reason at all. Also, they already used that invisibility spell when they messed with Tecna’s phone. Or at least it looked the same.

- Poor Kiko. Getting accused for something he didn’t do and then also being attacked by clones. But was it that only he could see them? Because otherwise, it should have tipped Bloom off that something’s wrong.

- They don’t need to remind us every time that there is no time to waste for the Sirenix Quest. We get it. And even if I had the episodes spaced out by weeks, I doubt I would forget that they have a time limit considering that this is not plot heavy and they have mentioned it, like, a million times already.

- Oh, they’re going to Linphea next. Look, even Tecna noticed that all the parts of the Quest have been on their home planets.

- Wow, Flora, you think the flower might be on your planet? Damn, girl, you’re such a genius. No one would have ever guessed. They have an ocean of flowers and she is still not sure? W.O.W.

- Love how it took Faragonda and Saladin a solid minute to interfere. Not like they were in a war or anything and should be 100% prepped to deal with crises. Why would you think that? And Griselda (and the other Alfea teachers) didn’t even get to do anything. Not to mention that Mirta has been studying at Alfea for a forth year now and she didn’t even try to fire at the beasts... You know, what could be considered an instinctive reaction.

- “Only one more keeper...”? Yeah, because there are only six-seven planets in the whole universe! (Didn’t he already get the powers of the selkie of Earth as well as from everyone’s home planets except for Bloom’s? Who’s gonna restore the Earth selkie’s powers... Wait, is it going to be Roxy? And does that mean we’re finally going to Domino this season?)

- I was gonna ask whatever Roy was gonna do without Layla being there but he isn’t there either. So why was he there the other times if not to drive the boat? They gave him one job to justify his presence and then they took that away as well.

- Funny how it is always the selkies of the girls that have gone on the Quest that appear and not any of the others. One of them (I am not even gonna bother to learn their names) said she could sense the presence of her fairy but still. Though, with their powers restored, I guess they could do that.

- Do I remember wrong or are Flora and her selkie the only ones that actually hugged? Cause that was kinda cute.

- Okay, Sky’s plan was good but did Bloom really need him to pull her out of the way? I am pretty sure she could have done that on her own since it was obvious what the plan was.

- If I were Stella, I’d be worried that a plant might eat me too. Having courage doesn’t mean that you can’t be afraid. It means that you find it in yourself to go on despite the fear. So I’d say Stella is courageous enough.

- Okay, but this plant looks like it was touched by Tritannus’ pollution and so did all the rest of the places from the Quest (except for Melody). So that means that what is happening wouldn’t have happened if not for him aka they aren’t actually completing the Quest because they are fighting Tritannus’ influence on the environment, not performing the tasks from the Quest.

- Good! Tecna and Layla are actually being strategical about this even though all Bloom wants is to hang out with the boyfriend. I wouldn’t mind if she didn’t just get targeted. But why the hell would she care about her safety - or Sky’s for that matter - when they can go on a romantic walk instead?

- Really? They need a translator? Flora has communicated with plants numerous times before. She should be able to understand what the Flower of the Depths is saying to them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dear god, the writers are really trying to be as stupid as possible.

- Why didn’t Bloom try to transform before jumping against the Trix? Or at least shoot some magic at them? Once again, how are they still alive?

- Darcy’s powers are awesome and she’s using them well. I love how she pushed Musa in her own trap. But damn, it was harsh of Musa to try to cause the rocks to crush Darcy. I thought the Trix were supposed to be the cruel ones.

- Wow, I thought Icy would have at least a couple broken bones after Layla smashed her in the rock like that but nope. She’s fine.

- Okay, I actually think that Sky and Bloom are cute in this episode, what the hell? I like the fact that they decided to stop trying to get the past back to him. That may even actually help him remember when he’s not stressing and straining to do it. I thought that Bloom meant one of the memories she wants to keep was that of the shell they found, though. Wasn’t that soulmate special or something?

5x12:

- Icy is really not paying attention, huh? I mean, Tritannus saying that he would give her one more chance somehow didn’t sound too reassuring to me. He gave the Trix their powers so he could probably take them away any time he wants and then destroy them. Which sounded exactly like what he was planning to do before Icy convinced him to give her one more chance.

- Well, they noticed the pattern of the Quest running through all their home planets. They could have tried looking for the yellow reef on Domino before asking the guardian of the Sirenix box. Just to do something on their own, you know.

- Who let Bloom go in that dress? Didn’t Tecna say Stella was there as well? How could she let Bloom even put that thing on, let alone wear it to the Domino renewal celebration. Also, why the hell is that happening only now? It has been a season and a half since Domino was restored. I thought this would be the discussion of Tritannus.

- Love how they didn’t even redo the footage from SotLK and just slapped the different art style right in the middle of the one from season 5. Lazy as lazy gets.

- Um, wasn’t the plan to capture Bloom? And if they changed it to getting Marion and Oritel, why didn’t they try to do that when Bloom wasn’t there? They couldn’t get her but they will somehow get her parents who literally defeated the Ancestral Witches while Bloom and two or three of her friends plus Sky are also there? How does that make sense?

- Oh, come on! The dresses looked much better without the flowers. Also, you’re telling me that Stella made them fit the same theme as Bloom’s but she didn’t have anything to do with Bloom’s dress? This is just... ridiculous. Also, how do flowers relate to Domino? Sparks or even gems would have made better sense. A fire pattern even.

- Marion and Oritel are giving very different vibes from the ones in Magical Adventure and even SotLK (even though they had like five lines each in that one).

- Did Bloom suddenly forget that Sky does not remember how he saved the Sword? And she left him alone even though he doesn’t have his memories? Also, why do none of their parents know about that? And up until this point, there were always three of them going on the Quest. But now that Bloom is actually needed somewhere else she is going even though she could have left it to Stella, Layla and Flora? Come on!

- Didn’t the pendant sink in the ocean on Earth? Where are the selkies now? And how come Flora’s selkie decided that she will know who the pendant belongs to? You know, out of the infinite number of people in the whole universe. The fact that she just so happens to actually know is yet another too convenient convenience but still.

- The mimicry fish are adorable and I love them.

- Wait, can any selkie open any portal? I thought they could only open the portals that they were guarding. But then Winx shouldn’t have been able to pass from Domino back to wherever Tritannus attacked - Andros maybe?

- Love how Marion instantly jumped away when the Trix attacked despite how much her outfit must weigh. And you’re telling me that Oritel is the fighter between the two of them? Yeah, right. Just please, let her use her magic to stop the Trix. We know she has it! Don’t make her look helpless because she is far from it.

- Well, of course, even the oceans of Domino are the best and have the rarest fish even though it is the planet of the Dragon Fire and Andros is the center of all oceans. Makes perfect sense.

- Okay, Marion and Oritel are definitely giving waaaay different vibes from the ones in the movies but I have to say that I kinda like how fierce they are. Not @ Oritel’s “Still have it in you?” because duh, she obviously does and even more so than you do, Oritel, but other than that I love how smoothly they just switch from celebration to a fight that is potentially for their lives. Also, I like that Sky gets to fight with them... Or at least he was supposed to.

- Yes, the one time Bloom is there, the others are completely useless. Also, that thing is not a coral. Wasn’t the Gem supposed to be in the jaws of the coral, not whatever the hell this fish is. And how is it in its mouth? How does it not ingest it when it eats? This doesn’t make sense.

- Love whatever Marion did there with shooting magic out of her sword. However, I don’t like the fact that the writers have forgotten she has magic and is not defenseless without a sword. And how did that trick even work? She could have just turned around and seen that it wasn’t the real Oritel. Not to mention that if Oritel knows the Trix are descendants of the Ancestral Witches, Marion does too aka she should have known that one of them has illusion powers. Given the fact that they fought a whole war against Lysslis, I am pretty sure she has faced similar tricks before and should have known better.

- Please, tell me the creature was supposed to vanish and it wasn’t Bloom that vaporized it from inside. Also, I so totally knew the last gem would be green. It made perfect sense.

- At least they remembered that Oritel’s sword is supposed to be special because it has Dragon Fire in it.

- Bloom and Sky saving her parents “together” makes no sense because Sky doesn’t have magic. So it wasn’t him that helped her save them but the sword.

- Their declarations of love were kinda undermined by him remembering and in such stupid way. Like, all the progress he made in restoring their relationship and even remembering a little wouldn’t have mattered if he hadn’t gotten the pendant back. Aka his blockage wasn’t actually going away. It was still there which means that his emotions were not getting worked out.

- I know Marion and Oritel will not go help save Daphne even though that would be the only logical thing and I am so fucking mad about it, you don’t even know.

5x13:

- Oh, god! They changed even the intro and the 3D animation is as ugly as I remember it to be. Love how they also spoil the fact that the girls will get Sirenix in this episode. Not that the title of the episode doesn’t.

- I have beef with this recap. That fish that had the Gem of Courage was so totally not a shark. It just wasn’t. I’m no shark expert but that was definitely not a shark. It looks like some fish you can find in the depths (I don’t remember their name) but it sure as hell ain’t a fucking shark.

- What training? They need to go get Daphne! Also, they handled Believix just fine. If Alfea had given them proper education, they should be able to control any transformation. Like, those should operate according to some goddamn logic.

- If Daphne hadn’t already told him, then why did she do it now? Man, he should have just made her talk before he told the Trix to leave Domino. Now that they were no longer there, Daphne didn’t have any reason to talk. She must have known that Bloom would find their parents so Tritannus lost his leverage. This is so nonsensical.

- What the hell does it mean that they have to look inside themselves? How is that gonna lead them to lake Roccaluche? The only one connected to it is Bloom because Daphne is her sister. This is ridiculous.

- How big is that lake and why does it look exactly the same way that the sea does? There is a difference between sweet water bodies and salt water bodies and the life inside them, you know, writers.

- Why would there be a protection system to guard the source of a whole ass goddamn transformation? It makes much more sense that anyone could just walk in and destroy it in 0.3 seconds.

- They just had to say that they will keep exhibiting the three virtues the Gems represented in order to get the location of the source of Sirenix? Man, really? Ugh, that is just so... ridiculously frustrating.

- For people who can lose their magic the same day, they sure don’t seem to be worried. Lounging and all.

- They know Tritannus was there. Obviously that is the explanation as to why the selkies did not find them.

- Yes, they totally look like they’ve “got this”.

- I actually liked the fact that Bloom had to give up finding out where Daphne is in order to save the lake. Seeing all the panicked animals rush around really drives home what is going on because they will all die if the lake dries completely.

- Oh, I am totally going to cry over Daphne’s anguish here. This looks so brutal. But here’s a thought for you. The whole power of Sirenix was put under a curse, right? Then why didn’t the Trix get affected by it? And if the Sirenix power is removed from Daphne, shouldn’t the curse disappear as well?

- Love how they forgot about the part where Sirenix was cursed even before Tritannus messed with the source.

- I hate the Sirenix transformation. It is the ugliest one to me and why did they have to go and give them streaks? The 3D look was bad enough already. Only the Trix’ Sirenix design is worse than this. (No, actually whatever the hell is happening to the Trix in the end of season 7 is the worst design idea they have ever had but I haven’t watched that.)

- So they didn’t need the selkies to enter the Infinite Ocean? Then how come that is what Tritannus needed? What the hell is wrong with the logistics of this whole thing?

- Where did all these minions come from? Did whatever he did to the... stone? thingy poison the nearby water and turn all creatures into his minions? Didn’t that work only on merfolk? If so, the Infinite Ocean seems overpopulated.

- They totally could have had Marion and Oritel in this but once Tritannus took Daphne into the Infinite Ocean, they would have needed to let Winx handle the rescue mission because the two of them wouldn’t be able to enter the Infinite Ocean. And boom, problem solved. They don’t have to drag Oritel and Marion through every episode while they still could have shown that they cared. Idk what was so complicated about that.

Part 2 can be found here.

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bookofmirth · 3 years

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question about elain's powers🧚‍♀️

we know she's high fae, but does she have powers? bc she's not from any court (fae from summer have water power, from autum fire and so on). also, the cauldron thought she was lovely and gave her a gift, i'm assuming that's her being a seer, right? on top of that, in acowar she literally stepped out of a shadow when she stabbed hybern, was it hers? or did it come with Truth-teller as a plus? sarah never clarified this and i think she's saving it for elain's book.

some fans think she's a shadowsinger, others say she can grow things (like plants), but those are just speculations with little to no evidence.

it's very interesting to me bc the inner circle was always theorising about nesta's power bc she was unstable and they were sort of scared of what she could do. but they never mention elain's powers (besides her visions).

it's all so conveniently vague🤔🤔

i’m not sure if Elain has powers that we don’t know about, beyond the seer thing.

With Nesta it was death, and I’ve seen posts (sorry I’d link them if I remembered which) that suggest that Elain’s gift is life. Which, tbh, even those are... super vague? What does that even mean? And Mor’s gift is truth? I guess when the magic system is super messy, that’s what we get.

Feyre’s powers make sense because she was made by all the High Lords. Just little bits of them. Nesta’s ultimately didn’t matter because she didn’t want them and she gave them up when the time was right.

So Elain’s? I wonder if her powers will play a role in who she becomes, like Feyre’s did, or if her powers will help her become independent, or? Elain didn’t want powers, but I can see her valuing them more than Nesta did if they can help her help other people.

We don’t even really know what a shadowsinger is beyond Az = shadowsinger, so how can we say that’s what she will become? You’re right, it’s speculation.

That is an interesting point about Nesta, though - they all feared her unpredictability, whereas with Elain they just assume that whatever power she has, she’ll use with care. Their lack of attention to her powers is kinda infantilizing, but not surprising. I don’t think that, whatever her powers, they would necessarily lead to her becoming “evil”, at least not of her own will. I know there’s a lot of stuff going around about her turning evil, and I’m meh about that? Women getting pissed doesn’t make them evil? Women don’t have to rebel by turning into assholes? Elain can decide to go travel and save Vassa and all this other stuff without turning into the complete opposite of what she is now. She can exist as something other than a “nice” girl or a bitch.

I’m probably overthinking this lol

tl;dr - idk and it’s because the magic system doesn’t make sense.

#elain #acosf #acosf spoilers #spoilers #acotar #idk I still hate the magic system #it doesn't make sense #i'm just here for the ships lol #ask #anon

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advernia · 4 years

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What do you think would happen if Alice had fallen into Cradle with her child? I’m particularly curious about Sirius and Luka OwO

in general i’d say the presence of the mother-child combination in cradle would (rather, should) raise the tension higher because two people from the land of reason = two people who can repel magic, yeehaw. i think that gives the magic tower more incentive to be aggressive point blank bc 1) two magic repellers = greater chances of world domination plans being thwarted, 2) on the other hand they will make excellent test subjects, 3) them being blood-related + different ages (and possibly genders) opens more avenues for varied forms of experimentation, and 4) more ways to enter the land of reason, hella rad.

there’s probably more but morbid thoughts aside... here’s some general scenarios!

sirius:

he grew up having lotsa siblings + if you count the black army as the whole he’s raised a lot of brats lmao, so alice having a kid doesn’t faze him the slightest!

in the prologue where ray ends up catching alice, sirius ends up catching her kid instead. thinks the kid’s five years old or something. sirius is about to ask the child some basic questions, but the kid suddenly points to a running blanc so whoops. before the strange pair go rushing after blanc, kid says a thank you, mister! and that earns immediate brownie points because the! kid! called! me! mister! and sirius proceeds to make that veeeery clear to ray lol. maybe to fenrir and seth too, later.

so after all the prologue drama, alice & the kid formally introduce themselves as mother & child to the black army. there’s a few murmurs of reallys and awwws because tbh alice looked rather young to be a mother but oh well. it doesn’t change sirius’ welcoming and accommodating approach, though he keeps more tabs on the child because honestly...

a young child in the barracks... where there’s a stocked armory + shiny magic crystals... ridiculous brats - ehem, grown men prone to showing off + creating trouble... yeah. though it’s really not a hassle on sirius’ part to somewhat act like a babysitter, he gets to suffer being teased about nonsense like paternal instincts coming to life in full force lol!

though seriously speaking, he’s very careful not to ask / bring up the biggest subject of them all: alice’s husband (if there’s even one to speak of, ooh). on the kiddo’s side of course, it’s already hard enough that someone so young suddenly ends up in a strange place + gets their mother and themselves threatened by a whole goddamn army (sirius, to lancelot: i stg what are u doing???) + has to live out a whole month in a new environment all of a sudden, so he believes the least that he & the black army can do is keep the child comfortable enough so that the feeling of fear would be lessened, get a sense of comfort going on. sirius definitely can’t blame the kiddo if they start crying out for their father/home though - though he knows it’s not his fault + can’t do anything much, he’ll feel bad about the fact that he can’t do much for the child’s homesickness.

he’s not going to broach the topic on alice either - if alice wanted to talk, then he’d do his best to listen. if she didn’t then he wouldn’t dare ask, it’s a very personal topic after all. who was he to pry into her personal matters when she + her child would be leaving in a month???

so picture this: he did say he’ll help watching over the kid, but there’s not much to do bc her child is good enough. what a little angel, polite and curious and quiet. maybe a little too quiet, withdrawn??? hmmm. either way, the child didn’t seem too (pro)active. or was playful the term sirius was looking for?

like sure, there’s the loud laughs for stupid antics, answers when talked to, smiles and walks around the barracks on their own but... more often than not, the child keeps close to alice or is just around her general line of sight. separation anxiety, maybe??? that’s natural, so okay. or maybe it’s alice who’s always hovering around her child??? either way, there’s nothing odd about that, but upon longer observation...

the kid is just... really responsible / really loves their mom??? alice watering the plants??? quickly looks for another watering can / gets a bucket of water to refill the can with. general cleaning or laundry??? puts a hold on whatever they were doing, rolls up sleeves, gets ready to do some work. prep work for dinner??? peeling’s a bit wonky, but they’re doing their best while trying not to cut themselves...

this strikes off as a bit funny to sirius, because wow, they really are related. where alice is quick to offer her help on all sorts of tasks in the barracks, her child is just a step behind her, little hands willing to do some work. on some tasks, alice does tell her kid that she’ll be alright doing it on her own, but her kid insists doing it alongside her anyway. and that there, that’s a very alice thing to do, too. sirius - heck, maybe the black army would know that by now as well, lol, considering how alice flutters around the barracks looking for something to do if she’s not having some alone time + private time with her child.

though, as much as the help was appreciated... it doesn’t sit well with sirius that the mother & child are spending most of their hours working rather than enjoying themselves in cradle. he thinks it’s a shame, especially for the kid. back when sirius was younger, he would...... then he’d go to....... and then sometimes he’d.............

.... right. if the guests wouldn’t relax themselves, then sirius would take it upon himself to show them a good time. it doesn’t have to be through big events, it doesn’t have to be everyday, it doesn’t need to be through fancy or expensive gifts either...... if only just to see both of them smile more often, then it’s definitely worth the time thinking about.

more bonus points if he’d get to see alice’s kid start acting like... well, a child! while there’s nothing wrong with being responsible or wanting to help, a kid should definitely experience all sorts of things, explore what they can, and most of all, enjoy themselves.

that’s what it means to be young, and alice should do the same as well... being in cradle is their adventure, after all! they’re not completely unrelated to the war but..... if anything else, sirius wants to fulfill the black army’s promise of precting them until the full moon comes around, and when that day comes.... he hopes the two have made a ton of good memories of their stay in cradle.

......... funny that this guy’s thinking about how make the two relax when he can’t even stop and do that for himself lmaooooo

luka:

lol he starts off the same as he’s always been in most routes: shying away + nothing much to say to the parent/child combo now suddenly under their wing.

though, he does keep watch of their eating habits on the first days of their stay: alice eats anything + everything so that’s a relief, she’s adjusting. now if only he can say the same for her child....

imagine alice’s kid still being uncomfortable & cranky a few days in cradle + black army company, refuses to eat much even though his mom’s urging him to. breaks into a tantrum one day, saying that i wanna eat mama’s cooking instead! or something similar for everyone in the dining room to hear before storming out. ooh. there’s a brief silence - most stares land on luka, who isn’t really offended.

..... well, okay, so maybe it did sting a little bit. alice apologizes to luka before going away to calm her kid down. fenrir + ray tell him not to worry about it, seth + sirius muse about the kid feeling all homesick / sensitive. cue other soldiers saying something about puberty (whut lol). or y’know, kids being kids.

luka tries thinking about the kid’s situation for a bit. away from home, living in a whole new environment, surrounded by a whole lot of other people with attitudes and faces way different from those around at home... huh. that kinda sounds like himself in a way, except that the away from home bit on luka’s part was a voluntary choice.

having realized that, luka has a better guess of what the kid might be feeling. overwhelmed, definitely. from a very hostile welcome with handcuffs + the red army carrying the threat of death, suddenly being surrounded by the kindness of the black army is a total 360. must feel unreal, suspicious, even. the sight of real weapons around, the existence of magic and all that, unknowingly having a power so strong the whole country fears it. sounds like too much too process for a child.

..... alright, but looking at alice’s kid being unfriendly + clingy to alice 24/7 + being such a crybaby also reminds luka of... uh, himself, when he was younger. not to his own mother, but to... well, jonah, ugh. it’s not an easy pill to swallow (it takes grudging acceptance), but at least luka gets to know why he always felt some pang of irritation looking at the child.

so the next time the kid starts crying over something/causes trouble for alice, luka surprises everyone in the room by taking the initiative to scold the kid for acting so selfish. tough call, by the way - the child is wow, stubborn as hell + likes to keep the waterworks going while screaming; luka’s got a pretty good idea of what he wants to say but is having trouble getting it across properly and in a less menancing manner, so in short its a mess. witnesses ray blackwell + fenrir godspeed find the whole scene sorta funny though, much support lol.

alice wants to cut in, but sirius + seth tell her to leave it to luka, who seems to be winning since her kid’s running out of energy from crying & shouting at the same time. luka seems to be calming down too, because his tone + volume + facial expression is getting less stern. this seemed like a good time to mosey out of the scene so sirius ushers the audience to go away lmao, even the worried mother (who, decides to eavesdrop instead. no one has the heart to pull her away... so they hover around the doorway with her too.)

not arguing with luka anymore, the upset kid starts to babble of nightmares about the scary men in red with their sharp swords, not wanting to sleep because maybe when they close their eyes mama might suddenly be gone and they’re all alone, the scary feeling of losing mama to strangers, and the list goes on and on. its a collection of fears + worries of a child, and luka’s patient enough to listen. in fact, he smiles wryly when there’s mentions of monsters under the bed: it’s embarrasing, but luka used to cry over that too.

... seeing the kid bawl their eyes out like this, luka really is reminded of his younger self. the clinginess, sudden outbursts, the fear of maybe one day, they’ll be left behind and will be all alone. luka might be speculating the kid’s feelings, but more than anyone else, luka would be the closest one who could relate to what the kid was going through because.......... he acted that way towards jonah, back when they were younger.

he wonders if they’ve mentioned any of this to alice, even if just the smallest of their fears. he wonders how long they’ve been bothered over those fears, if they’ve been sleeping well at night. with all those questions in his mind, luka’s not so sure what to say; how to comfort the child.

he still tries though, even if his words come out a bit clumsy, even if the kid’s still sniffling all the way through the process. it’s a quiet moment, one that lasts till the child has cried themselves to sleep. they just stay that way for awhile, the kid resting their head on luka’s arm, until luka decides to carry the child back to their room........ alice must be worried.

..... she is, actually. when she and luka talk, she keeps quiet of her eavesdropping. luka doesn’t tell her everything either, because he believed that some of the things they talked about are better said by the kid themselves rather than him relaying the message to alice.

there’s nothing much to say after that, so luka goes on his way. alice says a very sincere thank you before he goes. she... has a lot of other things to say other than just that, but.... maybe another time. maybe when she’s plucked up the courage.

anyway, after all that alice’s kid seems to have gotten off their... spoiled phase, lol. still a little clingy to alice, but is getting less prickly + talking to others now. most notable development though, is if the child isn’t around their mother......... they could be seen hanging around luka.

.......... cue comments on how heartwarming it is to see a young child tottering around luka like a little duckling. luka does not appreciate the teasing. especially when it comes from seth + fenrir because why are their grins so big??????? but he doesn’t say anything against the kid following him around lol.

#askdfghjl #ikemen kakumei #ikemen revolution #sirius oswald #luka clemence #... honestly if alice had her child with her the first thing i thought was....#family apPROVAL FIRST IKEMANS no route progression for u if there's none lol #lmaooo earn them kid brownie points before getting to the final boss bruhs

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golbrocklovely · 4 years

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the chosen daughter // colby brock - chapter thirteen

A/N: this is probs one of the longest chapters i’ve ever written, which is also why it took me a while to write. anything with a lot of dialogue takes a bit for me to write out, so i want to say sorry about the wait. however, hopefully the length makes up for it. thank you to everyone that has sent me such positive reviews about my writing and this story. it means a lot to me. have a good one yall, and enjoy this next chapter :)

story description

taglist: @far-to-many-bands , @idfk-tbh-oops , @muted-mayham , @ughwhyislifesohard , @justtanerd , @ashyoungxblood , @cmburgos

trigger warning: cursing, angst

word count: 2848

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wiped the bar down, trying to busy myself. There hadn't been a new customer in over an hour, and Vampiro was closing soon, so most likely there wouldn't be anyone else.

"Why is it so slow tonight?" I noted, turning my head to Ronnie.

"Bloody is having ‘Blood Fest’: all drinks are half priced.” She responded.

I hummed. “See, why don't we do something like that?”

“Would you rather deal with tourists or our regulars?” Ronnie deadpanned.

I sighed. “Good point.”

I glanced down at the end of the bar. A man had been sitting there for hours, staring at his barely sipped drink. His dark haired covered his striking blue eyes. His leather jacket rested next to him on the bar. He breathed deeply, his eyes never leaving the stirring of his straw.

He looked sad, almost defeated.

I slowly made my way over, cleaning up things along the way. When I stood in front of him finally, his eyes stayed down.

"Excuse me, sir? Are you okay?" I asked softly.

He lifted his head, noticing me. I felt a chill run up my spine, his eyes piercing mine.

I cleared my throat. “You... look sad. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Do I not look okay?” His voice was deep, matching his dark expression.

“Well, you ordered that a couple hours ago and haven't drank any of it. You also haven't left your seat since you got here. Most people don't do that.” I explained, my hands resting on the bar.

“I could just be a loner.” He mentioned.

I shrugged. “That's true. But you just don't look... okay, with being alone. If that makes any sense.”

“I've been a loner for a long time. Longer than you have been alive.” His fangs glinted in the bar’s lighting.

He's a vampire... great.

I huffed, turning to leave. “Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you.”

“No, miss. It's... alright.” He stuck his hand out, trying to stop me. “I didn't mean to be so snippy with you. I haven't been in a good mood all day.”

I questioned, facing him again. “Why's that?”

“Do you really want to know?” He raised an eyebrow.

“I have nothing better to do. Lay it on me.” I admitted, half-smiling.

“I don't really know how to explain it. It's a complicated situation I'm in. But... have you ever wanted something so badly?” He confessed.

I agreed. “Yeah, of course.”

“And I'm not talking about something that's insanely hard to get, but something that's in front of you. You already feel like you have it, but you just need the confirmation that it's yours.” He confided, his hand wrapping around his drink.

I nodded my head, my thoughts drifting to Colby for a moment.

He continued. “You just want it. There's nothing else you have ever wanted more than this, but...”

“It's just out of reach. And every time you get closer to it, it gets farther away.” I finished, exhaling wistfully.

“Yeah...” He trailed off, looking down.

I chuckled. “It sucks.”

He smirked. “That it does.”

The man removed his straw, finally taking a swig of his drink. His shoulders relaxed for a moment, his gaze landing on me once more.

“You know... your eyes, they look so familiar to me.” He stared deeply.

“Oh really? Does that line work often for you? Is that how you get all the humans?” I joked, cleaning a glass.

“No. I don't need a pick-up line. If I wanted you, I'd already have you.” He remarked, sucking his teeth, “My powers can be very... persuasive.”

Suddenly, I felt the air shift around me, another shiver running up my back. I swallowed, my eyes falling away from his for the first time.

I hadn't even realized someone new came into the bar until I heard a voice next to us. "Brother, are you done antagonizing the bartender?"

I whipped my head to the stranger's voice. The man stood in the shadows of the bar light, making it hard to pick out his features. He stared at the man I was talking to.

The man stood up, rolling his eyes. "What makes you think I'm antagonizing her?"

"Because that's who you are." The stranger replied.

The man shook his head, downing the rest of his drink. He slid his jacket on, pulling out his wallet.

“Y-you already paid.” I stuttered.

“I know. This is for you, princess.” He placed a $100 bill down, “Thanks for the talk.”

He nodded his head at me and left quickly with the stranger.

I grabbed his glass, dumping it into the sink nearby. I slowly picked up his tip, staring at the purple line running through the bill.

Ronnie rushed up to me, gasping quietly. “Holy shit! You are splitting that with me.”

“70/30.” I offered.

“Good enough for me.” She snickered.

~ \/ \/ ~

"...And that's how I almost got arrested at a Queen concert." Tara concluded, smirking mischievously.

“Wow, that is so crazy that you got to see them live.” I commented.

Tara disclosed. “Every big band that has existed... I've been to their concerts.”

“Holy shit, that's awesome.” I marveled.

“You should have seen me at a One Direction concert a couple years ago.” Tara patted my shoulder.

Kat teased. “I'm surprised Harry doesn't have a restraining order against you.”

We burst into laughter, calming down a minute later. After the weird night I had yesterday, hanging out with Tara and Kat was a nice change of pace. I never really had girl friends like this.

Or really any friends for that matter.

“Oooh, Kat. Weren't you telling me you were working on a new spell the other day?” Tara pointed, changing the subject.

Kat nodded, looking down at the floor. “Yeah I was. It's nothing major, but it's kinda cool.”

“Show us then. Besides, any form of magic in general is so dope.” I spoke.

“Okay. I need to grab my plant from the kitchen.” Kat turned to me. “Jade, could you run into my room and grab my spell book. It's gonna be on my bed.”

“Sure thing.” I jumped up and walked over to Kat's room, stepping inside quickly.

I glanced at her bed, seeing an aged leather-bound book. I grabbed it softly by the tie holding it closed, turning to leave. The book suddenly dropped to the floor, the tie coming undone in my hand. I bent down, grasping the book. My eyes drifted to the bookcase that was in front of me. I gasped suddenly, dropping the book once more.

On a shelf was another leather-bound book. It’s title: Xiomara.

What the fuck…?

“Jade! Did you find it?” Kat called.

“Uh-uh yeah! Coming.” I stammered, grabbing the spell book hastily and running out of her room.

She knew about Xiomara before my dreams...

“What took you so long?” Kat inquired, looking up at me.

I sat down, handing the spell book to Kat. “Umm, nothing. I was just noticing all the books you have Kat. There's a lot.”

“Yeah, I got my own little library going on in my room.” Kat smiled.

“I can tell.” I retorted, biting my tongue.

Tara squinted her eyes at me, then turning to Kat. “Okay... so what's the spell you've been working on?”

“Let me show you.”

Kat placed the plant in front of her. It's brown color and wilted posture made it look even smaller in the large pot. Kat flipped opened her spell book to a bookmarked page. She glanced over it quickly, turning to the plant. Tara and I peeked at each other before staring back at Kat. She slowly raised her hand over the plant, mumbling a spell quietly to herself. A blueish light manifested from her hand, raining down on the plant. The brown melted away into a healthy green, the petals undecayed, a beautiful pink flower sprouted from the stem. More flowers began to blossom from the soil, growing as tall as the original plant.

“Holy shit Kat. That's amazing.” Tara whispered in awe.

Kat beamed. “Thank you. I've been working on this for a bit. It's nothing major but-”

I cut her off, studying the light from her hand. “Hell yes, it is! This is so cool.”

“Thanks.” Kat gazed at me sweetly.

Her eyes slowly drifted down towards my necklace; she became transfixed. Her hazel eyes grew more intense, the color illuminating from her hand changing from the bright blue to a deep crimson.

“Kat? You okay?” Tara puzzled.

She didn't budge, her eyes narrowing even more at my necklace. The plant burst into flames suddenly, Kat's eyes not faltering.

Tara and I gasped. “Kat, snap out of it!”

I covered my necklace with my hand, and her gaze finally broke. She ripped her hand away, noticing the fire underneath. Tara grabbed her water and dumped it on the plant, the fire burning out immediately. The only remnant left was the smoke and the sizzling of the petals.

“What the fuck was that?” Tara exclaimed quietly.

Kat sputtered. “I-I don't know.”

“Have you ever done that before?” I queried.

She shook her head. “No.”

“Why did you get like that? What were you staring at?” Tara speculated, sitting up.

“My nec-” I began.

Kat interrupted. “Nothing. I, uh, just got lost in thought for a moment. That's… another spell I've been trying to work on. I didn't think it would work.”

“Well, maybe next time, stick to bringing plants to life, not burning them.” Tara sassed, grabbing her bag.

“Yeah, I'll remember that.” Kat fretted, her eyes falling to the plant.

“How about to lighten the mood, I do some tarot card readings?” Tara grinned, pulling her deck out.

“Sure, as long as your cards don't catch on fire.” I taunted, shrugging.

“No guarantees. So, who wants to go first?” She dared.

“I will.” Kat answered, lifting her head.

“Okay, Kat. Shuffle the deck.” Tara stated.

Kat grabbed the cards from Tara's hands, shuffling them quickly. Tara's eyes landed on the deck, her purple aura appearing around the cards.

“Wait, how are you able to do a reading on Kat? She's a vampire.” I asked, confused.

“Well... I'm an elder. Most vampires don't know that I am, minus Kat and the rest of XPLR obviously.” Tara informed, glancing at me.

“When were you turned?” I questioned.

“In 1645.” She recalled.

My eyes widened. “Fuck. So that makes you…?”

“374. Plus the 19 years I lived before being turned. So I'm-” Tara started.

I interjected. “393 years old.”

She batted her eyelashes at me jokingly. “Don't I look so youthful?”

“Wait a minute, does that mean every elder can use their powers on vampires?” I suggested.

Tara revealed. “And humans. I don't usually use my powers on vamps, mostly because I don't want them to know I'm an elder.”

“Why is that?” I doubted.

“It's a long story. Trust me.” Tara scoffed.

“Okay, I'm done shuffling.” Kat chimed in, handing the deck to Tara.

“Perfect.” Tara pulled three cards off the top of the deck.

I addressed. “Wait, two of the cards are upside down.”

“That means I read the reversal of the card.” Tara described.

I blinked. “I'm gonna pretend I know what that means.”

“Every card has an upright and a reversal. The reversal, in real simple turns, is the opposite of the what the card means when it is in the upright position.” Tara clarified.

Kat requested. “What do they mean then?”

Tara pointed to the first card. “Well, your first card is 'the lovers', which as it says is about you and your boy toy Sam. Everything seems to be going okay for you...”

“But?” Kat guessed.

“But, there seems to be some jealousy or insecurities standing in your way. Why is that?” Tara accused, cocking her head to the side.

“How do you know that's true?” Kat hissed, crossing her arms.

“Because your next card, 'the queen of wands', is reversed. So, why are you jealous?” Tara repeated.

Kat exhaled. “I saw... on his phone, when he was showing me something, a girl’s name popping up.”

“Oh shit. Who?” I urged.

“Some girl named Maddie.” Kat pouted.

Tara closed her eyes abruptly, her aura appearing around her promptly. Kat and I stared at her; eyebrows raised.

“Maddie... is... his sister.” Tara deciphered.

I mumbled. “Sam has a sister?”

“Yes. Back home, in Kansas.” Tara claimed.

“How do you know this?” Kat puzzled.

Tara opened her eyes for a second, only to roll them at Kat. “The spirits. Duh.”

“Shut up.” Kat quipped.

“They tell me he misses her a lot. They had... really strict parents growing up. Sam wasn't even able to leave his house when vampires were announced to the world. But he saved up all of his money and when he left home, his family cut him off.” Tara expounded, her aura growing stronger.

“He's hasn't talked to them…” Kat uttered, staring off.

“Besides Maddie, no. They don't want to know how he's doing because he disobeyed them.” Tara ended, her aura disappearing and her eyes opening slowly.

“So, you were jealous of his sister?” I smirked at Kat.

“How was I supposed to know?! He hasn't told me that yet.” Kat shouted, grinning.

“Well, now you can go ask him, and stop being jealous of Maddie.” I giggled, lightly smacking her arm.

“That's not the only thing she's jealous of.” Tara declared.

“What?” Kat groaned.

She pointed to the final card. “Your last card is 'the seven of swords' reversed. I think there is something on your mind that you want to confess to. Something about one of us in this room...”

“Really? Do I have to?” Kat whined, her shoulders slumping.

Tara shook her head. “No, but it would be cathartic.”

Kat sighed deeply. “Fine then. I'm jealous... of you, Jade.”

“What? Why?” I blurted out.

“Sam talks about you a lot, and I know at one point I was concerned that you and him were...” Kat’s voice fell off.

“Together?! Oh my God, no.” I laughed.

Tara reasoned. “Yeah, I highly doubt Colby would like that.”

I objected. “Me and Colby aren't together.”

Kat broke in. “Nonetheless, I was jealous of Jade at first.”

“Sam sees her like a sister. He's projecting his feelings of missing his actual sister onto Jade because he feels protective of her.” Tara divulged.

“Did the spirits tell you that?” Kat jeered amusingly.

“No. But I am very good at context clues.” Tara sassed. “Let's read you, Jade.”

I reminded. “I don't think it's gonna work. The last time you tried to ask the spirits about me, you got no answer.”

“Good point,” Tara remembered. “Why don't I ask them about Colby and you then?”

I squeaked. “Me and Colby-”

She cut me short. “Aren't a thing, I know. But maybe we can see why that is the case? Or at least ask about your possible relationship?”

“Can you even do a reading for someone that isn't here?” I doubted.

Tara glared. “I'm almost 400 years old, I would hope so.”

She began to shuffle the deck, her aura appearing around the cards through her hands as she continued her motions. She closed her eyes tightly, quietly humming to herself. Finally, she stopped, pick the three cards off the top. “Okay, so your first card, ‘the magician’, is telling you to take a chance with Colby. It's showing there will be success in your love life right now, but you have to take the first step towards it.”

“That's fun.” Kat praised.

Tara flipped over the next card. “Ohh, this is a good one. So ‘the knight of cups’, when talking about your love life, means romance and flirtation. Meaning-”

Kat cooed. “You and Colby are gonna get together! Aww!”

I blushed, covering my face. “Oh my God, stop it you two.”

“She's right though. I see the two of you getting closer, finally opening up to each other in a romantic way. But make sure to take it slow and not fall headfirst into it.” Tara warned.

“Okay... what about my last card?” I sang.

Tara smiled, grabbing it and flipping it over. She dropped the card instantaneously, a small gasp leaving her lips.

“What? What is it?” I gazed down at the card.

“That's... not good.” She muttered.

“What? What's ‘the tower’ card mean?” Kat requested, picking it up.

“It means... breakup. But...” Tara hushed.

“But what?” I gulped.

“I'm not getting that reading. Well, I mean, not fully.” She explained.

“What are you saying?” Kat asked.

Tara trembled. “I feel like, what this card is telling me, is that you and Colby aren't really gonna break up, but something is gonna come between the two of you. Something... dark.”

“What does that mean?” I murmured cautiously.

“I don't know. But something is gonna come and ruin, possibly end, what you guys have.” Tara insisted. “But it feels deeper than just a break up. It feels like...”

“Like a what, Tara?” I barked.

She whimpered. “A death.”

<< CHAPTER 12 || CHAPTER 14 >>

#colby brock #colby brock x oc #colby brock fanfiction #colby brock fanfic #colby brock fic #colby brock vampire #vampire #the chosen daughter #colby brock angst #colby brock story #katrina stuart #tara yummy

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queenofwordsandnerds · 4 years

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AnS Characters as D&D Classes

Honestly this is kind of difficult because all the AnS characters are so beautifully complex and it's hard to fit them into one class, but I tried my best

Shirayuki - Cleric/Ranger

I think Shirayuki might be the most difficult to classify. When I think of her, the first word that comes to mind is healer. She's very focused on using her skills, knowledge and research to help people. In the AnS universe, she's not a fighter. Not physically, anyway, although the longer the manga goes on the more skilled she becomes with using words to cut and discover. But Shirayuki is primarily a healer, and the Cleric class is the closest I could get to that. In the D&D world, she might be more of a fighter and maybe(?) have a god she devotes herself to? (There aren't really any deities or religious systems in the AnS world that I know of).

This is the closest I could get, and maybe Shirayuki could multiclass into a Ranger or something, since she also has a strong connection to nature and could probably use that knowledge to survive out in the wild.

(Plus I just love the idea of Shirayuki with a bow. Very Yona-like.)

Zen - Paladin/Fighter

I feel like 3/5 of the Zen Squad will be either Paladins or Fighters, tbh. Zen, Kiki and Mitsuhide could all multiclass into one or the other. The lack of any deity or religion makes it difficult to classify the knight-figures as full Paladins, which is the closest I could think of to Zen's princely natures.

Fighters can easily be knights too, but they tend to focus more on the art of combat and physical prowess. Paladins have a stronger sense of justice, right and wrong, and a desire to uphold goodness, which I feel characterizes Zen very well. He's a prince, and his primary responsibility will always be to his kingdom. Zen has a strong sense of duty but also fairness and rightness, which is why I classed him primarily as a Paladin and not a Fighter.

I mean, "knight in shining armor" heLLO?

Obi - Rogue/Monk

HOOOOOOOO BOY. If you know me at all you know my obsession with the Obiyuki ship (I WILL GO DOWN TO HELL OR UP TO HEAVEN WITH THEM) and Obi as a character particularly.

Obi is obviously a Rogue. For so many reasons. I even rolled up an actual D&D character for a campaign based off of him. That's how much I love him. Obi in the D&D-verse would be amazing.

"A scoundrel who uses stealth and trickery to overcome obstacles and enemies" (DNDBeyond) if that doesn't SCREAM Obi, idk what does. Especially pre-Shirayuki Obi. Before he met the Zen Squad, Obi was the classic rogue. Master of a wide variety of skills, putting those skills to use in mostly illegal or at least illicit activities, prioritizing cunning over brute strength...yeah. I don't really need to go on.

After Obi joins the Squad and becomes an official knight, he's not really a stereotypical rogue anymore in that he has a family, a home, something to protect beyond his own self-interest. He becomes much nobler, more loyal, a true knight. He just happens to be a different sort of knight than most others, putting his skills and cunning to use in a different capacity.

I would also definitely multiclass Obi into Monk because of the martial arts. Obi has extraordinary control over his physical self and can use his body to devastating effect in several ways, which is very Monk-like (sword-flipping handstand AHEM). I debated making Monk primary, but I realized pretty quickly that Rogue fits Obi first way more. The biggest reason against putting Monk first is that Obi doesn't have much of a spiritual connection to his skills, nor did he come from a monastery/academy nor have traditional training. Definitely a Rogue first.

Mitsuhide and Kiki - Fighter/Paladin

Mitsuhide and Kiki's fighting styles are very similar, especially because of their occupation as Zen's aides and guards. "Well-rounded" specialists" is a good way to describe them. They are dedicated knights and skilled warriors for sure.

The only reason I wouldn't make them Paladin-Fighters like Zen is because they have different goals and duties. Their primary goals as Zen's knights is to protect him. They don't have the same responsibility of running a kingdom and navigating politics the way Zen does. Okay, maybe Kiki does somewhat as the heiress of Seiran, but still not in the same capacity as Zen. They have strong senses of justice, etc, but it's just not the same feeling as Zen. I think of Mitsuhide and Kiki as warriors first and diplomats/nobles second, which is why I'd make them Fighter-Paladins.

I'm not gonna go through the whole cast of characters of course, I mainly wanted to describe the Zen Squad. But I'll add a few more here:

Ryuu - Wizard

Ryuu is a NERD™. Yes he's a healer like Shirayuki, but he's always been more prone to scholarly pursuits, staying up until ungodly hours to research something highly specific. He also has a fantastic memory, and of course he's a pharmaceutical prodigy by age 12. The kid's a genius, and he would be very much at home in any library, researching plants, medicines, diseases and cures.

Ryuu is very much a Ravenclaw, and Wizard is the most Ravenclaw, nerdy class there is. Learning magic from books, scholarly knowledge of the arcane, that's what Ryuu would be doing.

I could multiclass him into either Cleric for the healing powers like Shirayuki, or Ranger for the nature connection and knowledge. I mostly see him as just a wizard though, probably specializing in compounds and minerals to create complex magical effects.

Izana - Paladin/Wizard

Our King Izana is hard to classify, man. He's such a complex character but we don't know all that much about how he thinks or works. He might be even harder for me to classify than Shirayuki.

I don't really see Izana fitting any of the D&D classes strongly. He's very much a skilled warrior for sure, like Zen, but he doesn't really fit the Paladin bill in the same way his younger brother does. He's much more mysterious. He's also very very smart, skilled in politics and diplomacy. He's good at manipulating people too and using any means necessary to protect what's close to him. Very much a Slytherin. There's not really any D&D class that deals with the political side of things a whole lot. Charisma and Intelligence yeah, but most of the classes are focused more on fighting style or something else like music/art (Bard).

If I had to choose, I'd probably go Paladin anyway, just because of Izana's relation to Zen and the Paladin's focus on Strength and Charisma. I'd make him an Int-heavy Paladin though, and multiclass him into Wizard because of the strong emphasis on Intelligence and Wisdom.

Izana's tricky man

Raji - Bard

This one's mostly just for fun

Solely because of his violin skills

Also Bards have a reputation for being horny af, and although I feel bad, I think of how he wanted to make Shirayuki his concubine at first just because of her beautiful hair

I know Raji has changed and I think he's a great character who obviously learned from his mistakes

But it's just funny

I love Raji and him being a stereotypical horny Bard who loves his friends is absolutely hilarious

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writing-fool · 4 years

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gryffindor!seungcheol

(This is a female version, because it includes Head Boy and Head Girl moments. If you wish for me to make a gender-neutral or male one, please don’t hesitate to ask)

Alright.

This pal, Seungcheolie, is a total Gryffindor

Like I’m talking, poster-child Gryffindor, courageous, extremely kind, a great leader figure. This boi is a Gryffindor seventh year AND Head Boy (because the teachers love him)

Friends with Jeonghan, the Slytherin prefect and ppl used to not understand why because Jeonghan’s a total pranker and Cheolie looks so straight-laced but oH BOI can this kid surprise people

Has snuck into the kitchen to steal biscuits, without consequences because hE’s HeAd bOY

Doesn’t cheat for any tests tho cuz he IS kinda straight-laced

Does everything for his 12 best friends (and kids because he’s SUCH A DAD), especially for Jeonghan because Han’s a lazy bum

Also the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain and Chaser, cuz he’s not necessarily fast on his broom (hence why he’s not a seeker) but his aim is great

Also practices a ton after class, because once Seungcheol wants something, he works so incredibly hard for it

His pep talks are so, so good

Younger Gryffindors (and kids from other Houses) look up to this guy because he honestly is one of the most reliable students ever and he’ll always solve the problem either with his own power, or with the help of his amazing friends

Once, when Chan was still a little first year, he was bullied by a first year Ravenclaw, and Coups sat the guy down, gave him a good scolding, and for the rest of the year, the dude was surprisingly nice to Chan (turns out, he was kinda jealous of Chan’s flying skills)

His grades are mehh, he passes with the help of Wonwoo and Joshua (and also Mingyu, who surprisingly has a knack for Potions) and usually gets an P if he does fail

He’s not dumb AT ALL, just can’t write long essays for the life of him and honestly doesn’t value grades all that much

He’s somehow very good at Care of Magical Creatures and was good Muggle Studies (a subject which he dropped because he’s a half-blood, and that just doesn’t make sense)

Seungcheol gets to know you in second year, because you’re his partner in Herbology

And while he is a decent student…well, he hasn’t got the patience to deal with,,plants for Merlin’s sake

You, a fellow young Gryffindor with whom Cheolie hasn’t spoken with yet because the gap between your teeth is really frickin adorable and omg you’re actually really good at Herbology and you’re cute but also girls wth

You’re well…a total wild card. Unpredictable, fiery and uncontrollable. But you’re surprisingly gentle when you have to be, so you and Seungcheol quickly become friends after that Herbology class.

Cheol tries out for the Quidditch team that same year, and he gets in immediately

You’re ‘recruited’ in third year when one of the previous Beaters graduates and well…let’s say the Cap back then saw your potential when you broke Anthony Wilson’s nose because he slapped your ass. Sorry not sorry.

Anyways, moving on,,,

You and Seungcheol are pretty close, like not best best friends (because jeez 12 ain’t enough?) but you speak every day and you lean on him a liiiiiiittle too closely whenever you two are in the common room at night

Because he can’t really sleep because of the stress he has sometimes, taking care of his kids and all (doting father y’all) and you join him sometimes

Over the years you’ve grown into a comfortable rhythm of lulling each other to sleep in comfortable silence in the common room

The first time you woke up in each other’s arms was….well…//blush//

Because he is your friend but he is also really handsome and his lips are so close and he’s cute when he’s sleeping no don’t touch his hair and oh dear why are you still lying in his arms get out get OUT

But you get used to the limbo of flirting and touching casually to the point where you instinctively cuddle up to him by the fireplace at night and he strokes your hair

You accidentally did it around his and your friends once because…he might’ve been the only one you pay attention to in the room ooOOH do you have a crush

So now the school ships it because Vernon, bless his heart, can’t keep his mouth shut

And you like him, you realise that in like, fifth year you smart cookie, awww but you don’t want to lose the comfort of having him around and hugging you like his

And Cheolie’s got a big, fat crush on you too

Because he’s been watching you on the sidelines, growing up into this really wonderful, sunny person with some baggage and way too much care for him and your other friends

It doesn’t help that you’re stunning, gorgeous and have you seen her on the Quidditch field when she swings the bat with so much precision and-

Jeonghan and Jihoon: choke him with a pillow because he’s a SAP but it’s kinda cute

So y’all start dating…eventually, somewhere in sixth year. Like, you guys are celebrating after finallyyyy winning a Quidditch match against Slytherin (suck that, Wen Junhui)

And you and Seungcheol end up drinking a liiiiiittle too much Firewhiskey

Not to the point of being drunk, but like, to the point where y’all just a lil too honest drink responsibly babies

It’s pretty spontaneous tbh, like you end up celebrating and hugging and next thing you know you’re sitting in a corner with him by the window

Sighing and leaning your head back to feel the cool touch of glass

“I like this,” you whisper.

“Mhhmm…I like you.”

Cue double, triple take because wHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?

And Coups is just like “No, I-I didn’t mean it?” but then suddenly you become visibly disappointed and he’s like OKAY MAYBE SHE LIKES ME OKAY WHAT

And you’re just kinda flipping your shit because you don’t know what he wants but you’re really close to confessing

You don’t notice you actually kinda start hyperventilating

Now Seungcheol is panicking too because he doesn’t know why you’re panicking and ohmygod what why hoooow

But he kinda is too tipsy to think so he just trusts his instincts and kisses you to calm you down

And you’re too surprised to kiss back and I’m sorry to say it,,,,but that was not the best first kiss

Like full-on smooch, smack, poof, grab the face kiss that lasts 1 second

But after the initial surprise you’re feeling a bit more bold and calm how do those emotions work together? Honey don’t ask

So you start kissing him whilst smiling into it, and this time, yess so nice

You guys kiss for another 2 minutes, at which point the crowd has turned their attention to OH MERLIN IS THAT CAPTAIN SEUNGCHEOL AND OUR BEATER?

You get shy and hide in his chest while he spins his back to the rest of the room, shielding you but also pressing you against the window

And you start giggling, because it’s kinda funny

He giggles with you because have you heard her giggle it’s adorable

You guys are unofficially dating after that evening, but Seungcheol asks you on a proper date to Hogsmeade two weeks later

Back to 7th year…you guys are Head Boy and Head Girl

Even though the other Houses are kinda salty that it’s two Gryffindors AGAIN, they have to admit you guys make a cute couple and really good Head Boy and Girl

So, y’know “Actually, good for them.” -random Ravenclaw, not pressured by Jeonghan to support y’all or anything. Nope.

Coups tends to ruffle your hair a lot, and backhugs as a surprise

“Cheol, my bird’s nest really doesn’t need to be made extra messy you idiiiiot!”

“I’m your idiot” winks

“Yes and that makes it worse.” So you pummel him with a pillow

Backhugs and cuddles are still your thing

The sofa by the fireplace in the Common Room is your Spot™, but at least now you don’t have to hide anymore

Younger kids walking past “Oh Merlin’s pants look at them they’re so cute…I want a romance like that.”

Older students just grill y’all like oooOOoOohHhhhh

“Watch it, or you’re gonna get detention” is usually Coups’ joking reaction

While you just go *middle fingers up* and cuddle deeper into his chest

You help him with Herbology, even now, and your rewards are kisses

Really, you two are role-models for everyone at school, both as people and as a happy love story.

One down, 12 to go…fuck why did I pick SVT to write for?

Hope it’s to everyone’s liking, please reblog, like, comment, follow, whatever if you enjoyed the weird headcanon. Jeonghan’s up next!

Yours,

-Rémy

#seventeen harry potter #Seventeen #seventeen scenarios #seventeen headcanon #scoups #seungcheol imagine #scoups headcanon #scoups au #hogwarts au #harry potter au #seventeen au #scoups harry potter #seungcheol harry potter #gryffindor #seventeen hogwarts #seventeen imagine

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poisonepel · 4 years

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a final pre-release analysis

khjhdjkgn so I got an ask about who I think lilia/silver/sebek are based off of, and I threw my dork glasses ON n accidentally wrote abt all the boys instead 🤡🤡🤡

There’s been talk about this ever since the first dorm came out, and I’ve read & posted theories throughout the months as well, but now that we’re in THE FINAL MONTH, here is my last compilation of thoughts regarding the relationship between the twst boys and their “counterparts.”

I didn’t want to clog that Diasomnia ask with all this extra dorm talk, but pls enjoy my twst essay here even though it’s just word vomit--

Since there is so much vagueness regarding who several of the characters are based off of, I’ve come to the conclusion that maybe they just don’t have direct counterparts.

I’ll probably be proven wrong, because we saw in the previews during the Abema TV livestream that the loading screens do reveal who each character corresponds to:

But since they haven’t confirmed much for the side characters officially yet, except for the fact that they’re based off the “villains’ world,” I’ve taken this as “the villains + their surroundings (which includes their supporting/foiling characters of course, but also just character dynamics in general).

In the case of Scarabia/Aladdin, we know Jafar as the royal vizier who is secretly plotting to overthrow the sultan. This makes perfect sense for Jamil. True, he’s not the dorm leader, but isn’t that the whole point of Jafar’s story? He’s going to overthrow the dorm leader.

So then, does that mean Kalim was inspired by the sultan? Even though technically he should be considered a villain too? I think, if at all, he’d be better described as “the sultan to Jamil’s Jafar” rather than just “the sultan” himself.

Kalim has quoted references from both the sultan and the genie so far, neither of which were antagonists in Aladdin. And personally, he emits Prince Ali vibes to me as well. All three of these characters acted as foils to Jafar.

But that doesn’t explain why someone hypothetically based off of “good” characters is attending a villains’ school. You’d think some villainous attributes would’ve shone through by now, but literally nothing we’ve seen of Kalim has looked “bad” in any way.

I think Kalim isn’t intentionally a villain. But as of now, his faults are most prominent in his relationship with Jamil. It’s canon that Jamil’s family has been bound to Kalim’s for a very long time, and Jamil basically grew up as Kalim’s servant. While this definitely reflects the sultan/vizier dynamic, it also reflects a genie/master relationship. Unlike Jafar, who was working for the sultan voluntarily (albeit with ulterior motives), Jamil doesn’t seem to have a choice in the matter. He just follows Kalim around, forced to do anything he asks.

I think, while Kalim might not have a direct counterpart, he represents several catalysts which influenced Jafar’s fate, and in Twst, his whole existence will undoubtedly influence the fate of Jamil in a similar fashion.

Pomefiore/Snow White is more or less obvious. Vil represents the Evil Queen, Rook represents her huntsman. But tbh, the original Disney huntsman wasn’t really that much of a villain himself. However his betrayal to the Queen was the reason she had to go out of her way to come kill Snow White herself, the reason she poisoned an apple, and ultimately, the reason she ended up getting killed by the dwarves. So the huntsman was definitely a driving force in the story, however minimal his betrayal felt at the time.

The other things commonly associated with the Queen are the magic mirror and the poisoned apple. We already know the mirror still exists and is now called the Mirror of Darkness, which leaves the poisoned apple.

I think it’d be really weird if Epel was deadass the apple itself. We can go into the etymology of his name - if “epel” hadn’t already sounded like a mispronunciation of “apple” enough, the Japanese spelling of his name エペル (eperu) has the same pronunciation as エッペル (epperu), which is used for localizing some European translations of the word into Japanese (such as Äppel in Swedish)

His last name Felmier is spelt フェルミエ (ferumie), which is the same way you’d localize the French word “fermier,” meaning “farmer.”

So tl;dr - Epel’s name means “Apple Farmer.”

I mean... somebody had to plant the tree that poisoned apple came from I guess lmaooo

In Epel’s quote, “Apples are awkward and hard to handle... Almost like...” this could imply that he’s had to handle apples for... non-typical reasons? I’m also interested in what the rest of that sentence is. Almost like... ‘they’re poisoned.’

Ignihyde is also difficult to pinpoint. If they hadn’t made it clear that this was the Hercules-based dorm, and if Idia didn’t have that vibrant blue fire hair, I never would’ve assume he’d be representing Hades. They seem like exact opposites; Hades hates the Underworld, Idea enjoys the darkness and gloom. Hades is explosive, Idea is very private and reserved.

The one thing they do have in common is that neither of them want to rule the Underworld—Idia doesn’t seem interested in interacting with his dorm/MC/helping people when needed. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t take care of his responsibilities; as he said in his admissions video, his schedule is very busy and he doesn’t have time to be idle. Hades is the same way; even though he hates it, he has an extremely strong work ethic.

I don’t think Ortho is based off of any particular existing character, but if Idia shares Hades’ trait in feeling like he’s surrounded by stupidity and no one does anything useful, maybe Ortho was built to relieve that and actually get things done. I also think he was built to take classes for Idia so that Idia doesn’t have to leave his room. And I’ve seen other theories suggest he might be Idia’s real brother, who passed away and was restored in the form of an android.

In Savanaclaw, Jack is the only one that messes everybody up. Leona clearly represents Scar, and Ruggie’s quote, ears, gluttonous personality, and last name all paint him as a hyena.

(His last name is Bucchi / ブッチ. The hyenas in The Lion King are all spotted hyenas, which is “buchi haiena” in JP.)

And then Jack’s over there being a wolf?? There are no wolves in the movie, but a wolf is a very common predator, and Savanaclaw students are said to share a common trait of being indomitable... in other words, like predators? In that case, a wolf living in this dorm makes sense. He may not have a direct Disney counterpart, but he’s not... out of place.

I talked about Diasomnia in this ask, and my conclusion was:

Malleus→Maleficent

Sebek→Crocodile goon

Lilia→???

Silver→?????

#twisted wonderland #twst analysis

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lostinthewinterwood · 3 years

Text

Worldbuilding Exchange 2021

Hey there friend!

Apparently you share some of my taste in obscure novels with gaps in their worldbuilding—impeccable, truly. I’ve got some expansion on all the tags I’ve requested below, though if you want to just get started feel free to ignore all that; some of them are distinctly longer than others, but don’t worry, just because I didn’t use as many words for any given prompt doesn’t mean I want it any less!

Anyway, thanks for writing for me! And if any of you lovely people are inclined towards treating, I will happily accept treats in any medium for any of the fandoms, including media I didn’t actually request there :D

General DNW

· non-con/dub-con;

· explicit sexual content;

· incest (incl. adoptive/chosen family);

· a/b/o;

· mpreg;

· non-canonical permanent major character death;

· complete downer endings;

· hurt no comfort;

· heavy angst;

· on-page deliberate self-harm*;

· on-page suicide;

· gore;

· graphic physical trauma;

· character bashing;

· cringe comedy;

· fic-as-writer-soapbox;

· setting AUs**;

· unrequested identity headcanons;

· romance as the main plot.

*I don’t include things like, say, punching a wall in a fit of emotion under this. However, something like cutting would not be appreciated.

**This doesn't mean that I'd expect you to hew very narrowly to what we know for sure in canon; after all, this exchange is for worldbuilding. However, for this exchange I'd prefer not to have anything that fundamentally alters the character of the world--eg elements like a/b/o, or things like a post-canon zombie apocalypse in a canon where that doesn't really fit in with the established tone/genre/world, that sort of thing.

General Likes

– I really like plotty fics

– A focus on family and/or friendship, especially characters realizing they’re not nearly as alone as they think they are, and just generally characters who like each other and enjoy spending time together

– Found family; families of choice

– Character studies

– Worldbuilding (obviously lol)

– Canon-divergence AUs and missing scenes; things set pre- or post-canon; wriggling into canon and poking at it to see what it spits back at you, if that description makes any sense at all.

- for a list of unconventional media/formats I’ve requested before, along with some commentary on them, please see my fic in a box letter.

Mother of Learning - nobody103 – in-universe meta

Any or No Characters (Mother of Learning)

Kirielle Kazinski (Mother of Learning)

Original Character(s) (Mother of Learning)

Original Eagle Shifter Character(s) (Mother of Learning)

Xvim Chao (Mother of Learning)

Zenomir Olgai (Mother of Learning)

fandom-specific dnw: romantic and/or sexual Zach/Zorian; physical parental abuse within the Kazinski family; significant exaggeration of canonical emotional neglect/abuse/general family dysfunction

WB: aranean languages (Mother of Learning)

So, we get at best a very vague description of the aranean language in canon; I’d love something that somehow expands on this! A brief grammar? Some other kind of profile? An attempt to turn their idea-morphemes into words, or outline what they are more explicitly? Up to you!

WB: Folklore and Literature (Mother of Learning)

Over the course of the story we learn plenty of things about the world and about their magic system; we learn a lot less about specific cultural things that aren’t directly relevant to the plot, and that includes folklore and literature—they have novels, we know that much, but that’s about it. So tell me more!

WB: how language and gesture and mana interact to form spells (Mother of Learning)

For all that the novel tells us about many different spells, we never really get to see the mechanics of spellcasting, or the underlying form of the mana—tell me how it works! And there’s also the fact that when you know the spell better you can cut parts out; how does that work in combination with all of this?

WB: Ikosian as spell language: how comprehension affects outcome (Mother of Learning)

Unless I’ve embarrassingly forgotten how canon actually goes, they use Ikosian (possibly a more specific dialect? I don’t remember, I’m sorry) for their incantations, but iirc they don’t speak that day to day, and even if they do not everyone does—so, you know, how does comprehension of the incantation affect the outcome of the spell?

WB: Oral Traditions (Mother of Learning)

If we don’t get much of literature, we get less of the oral traditions of… well, anywhere, tbh. So tell me more there! If you’re looking for something more specific, I’d love to hear about witch, Khusky, morlock, or shifter traditions, but really anything would be great.

WB: the development of unstructured magic and shaping exercises (Mother of Learning)

We know that way back in the past, human magic users were less adept with unstructured magic; now, if they want to be, they can be very good indeed with it. How did we get from Point A to Point B? How did that develop, who discovered all this?

WB: the Winter Mountains (Mother of Learning)

There’s very little to be heard about the Winter Mountains in canon; all we really know is that the eagle shifters flew off there, and the place is Very Dangerous. So… what are they like? How are the eagle shifters doing out there? What else lives there?

Mother of Learning - nobody103 – in-universe meta, fanart

Any or No Characters (Mother of Learning)

Kirielle Kazinski (Mother of Learning)

Original Character(s) (Mother of Learning)

Zenomir Olgai (Mother of Learning)

fandom-specific dnw: romantic and/or sexual Zach/Zorian; physical parental abuse within the Kazinski family; significant exaggeration of canonical emotional neglect/abuse/general family dysfunction

WB: Architecture (Mother of Learning)

We get a little bit of the architecture in Eldemar, mostly in Knyazov Dveri, but not too much of it; I’d like to see more of it, and from anywhere in their world really.

WB: Artistic Traditions (Mother of Learning)

If we only get a little bit of the architecture, we get less of the art—we know that they have carved doors and Kiri does pencil sketches, and realism is a style they have (or Zorian wouldn’t be thinking about how realistic her drawings were without any hint of that being unusual were she not nine) but what else can you tell me? What does their art look like; where do these traditions come from; is there some art that’s respectable and other art that isn’t?

WB: Clothing and Fashion (Mother of Learning)

Now. We get a bit of architecture, less of art, and approximately three lines in the whole 800k about clothing, and none of it very specific, so you’ve got pretty much total freedom here—show me what’s going on!

WB: how language and gesture and mana interact to form spells (Mother of Learning)

See above section—I just thought this would lend itself well to art as well as meta!

The Rhianna Chronicles - Dave Luckett – in-universe meta, fanfic

Antheus Northstar | Serenir (Rhianna Chronicles)

Any or No Characters (Rhianna Chronicles)

Arwenna Songsinger | Arwenna the Wise (Rhianna Chronicles)

Eriseth Arwensgrove (Rhianna Chronicles)

Original Character(s) (Rhianna Chronicles)

Original Male Eldra Character(s) (Rhianna Chronicles)

Rhianna Wildwood (Rhianna Chronicles)

Worldbuilding tags:

WB: academic magic and spellcasting techniques (Rhianna Chronicles)

We don’t see a whole lot of traditional spellcasting that actually works—mostly we see Rhianna’s attempts, which tend not to go all that well, lol. Other magic we see is primarily from people who know what they’re doing and aren’t explaining things in detail. Show me some that actually works! How is it different for schoolchildren and old archmages? What are the rules and mechanics—they don’t make sense to Rhianna, but clearly some things work and some things don’t, so there’s something going on there at least.

WB: Eldra magic (Rhianna Chronicles)

Since our main Eldra character is Eriseth, we don’t see much of their magic—tell me about it! How does it work? How do they channel it, what do they use it for?

WB: Eldra society (Rhianna Chronicles)

Again, we don’t see a lot of Eldra society—we see a few characters outside of their social group, and the one meeting thing, but not a whole lot of their day- to-day life. What’s it like? What’s the role of men in their society; we know they don’t do magic, so what do they do?

WB: Wild Talents and wild magic (Rhianna Chronicles)

To be fair, we do know a fair amount about how wild magic is worked from canon; I’m interested in going farther—go deeper into things! What can or can’t be done? Why are some people wild talents—how does this happen?

WB: Wizardly College (Rhianna Chronicles)

We only see Wizardly College through Rhianna’s eyes; she doesn’t get all that much of a look at it, either. So tell me more about it! What’s it like if you’re actually involved, not just a visitor?

The Farwalker's Quest - Joni Sensel – in-universe meta, fanfic

Any or No Characters (Farwalker's Quest)

Any Storian(s) (Farwalker's Quest)

Ariel Farwalker (Farwalker's Quest)

Ezekiel Stone-Singer (Farwalker's Quest)

Misha (Farwalker's Quest)

Original Character(s) (Farwalker's Quest)

Scarl Finder (Farwalker's Quest)

fandom-specific dnw: works that rely on knowledge of later books in order to make sense--i'm not gonna care all that much about spoilers? but i haven't read 'em, so.

WB: Essence and the Trades (Farwalker's Quest)

In some ways, Essence—or at least how it’s presented in relation to humans—seems kind of like an inborn specific magical talent, but in other ways it isn’t; Zeke’s tree talks to him, and then later the stones, but the tree talks to Ariel too, if only a little. Scarl was a Storian before he was a Finder; Ariel’s feet drag her where she needs to go, but she can also learn the basics of Finding and could have been a Healtouch if she’d not messed up the plants. So how closely are they tied together, Essence and the Trades? How much of an affinity do you need? How much can you make up for lack of affinity with desire and skill?

WB: Folklore and Fairytales (Farwalker's Quest)

We know a fair amount about the history of this world as people know it, but less about their folklore and fairytales—they have trees that talk and telling darts and Essence and ghosts, they definitely have folklore about those, or other things too. Do they tell children stories of what lies outside the village? Do they have spirits or Good People who may or may not actually exist? Who tells these stories—is this still a Storian’s job, or is it the purview of anyone who knows them? Did there used to be more, before the Forgetting?

WB: ghosts and how they work (Farwalker's Quest)

Misha’s dead, has clearly been dead for quite some time, and he can do a weird assortment of things—can other ghosts do them? He’s the only one we really see, so we don’t know if he’s special or not. And how common are ghosts anyway—how do they come to be? What’s up with them, overall?

WB: how Tree-Singer Abbey came to be (Farwalker's Quest)

Clearly, Tree-Singer Abbey is very old. If I had to guess, I would say it must have been made either before the Blind War or right after the sight came back—but most likely, given that it contains the Vault, it’s from before. But Essence, as far as the characters know, wasn’t discovered until afterwards; nor were the Trades. So who built this abbey, up there in the mountains, with all the trees? Why build it there in the way they did? Was it never widely known that it was also the Vault, or was that forgotten somewhere along the way?

WB: the nature of trees (Farwalker's Quest)

…so. What is up with the trees, anyway, and have they always been this way, or did the used to be normal trees? How sentient are they; how much can they move; what are they like, especially among each other? Zeke’s tree tries to catch him, so we know they can move on their own; is that typical? Can they do it whenever they want, or only under duress? Idk man, I just want to know more about the trees, y’know?

Star Split - Kathryn Lasky – in-universe meta, fanfic

Any or No Characters (Star Split)

Darci Murlowe (Star Split)

Lana | The Prima (Star Split)

Max Lasovetch (Star Split)

Original Character(s) (Star Split)

Original Umbula Character (Star Split)

Vivian (Star Split)

fandom-specific dnw--all of this is for the narrative level (not addressing it is fine; having characters who believe or do these things is fine): eugenics apologetics; segregation portrayed as good for society/the people living under it; infantilization of disabled characters; portrayal of low-prestige dialects as being "bad grammar" versions of higher-prestige dialects

fandom-specific note: the “setting AU” dnw is here amended to “surface-level setting AUs” and is expanded on as follows: This is a pretty loose dnw for this fandom, given that the canon leans very hard on the line between straight scifi and science fantasy; it acts like it's grounded future dystopia, speculative but not fantastic, but... well. Based on canon events, I can't fully consider it as such--so as long as you keep the surface elements more or less the same, no matter what the underlying justification for them is we'll be good. Is your explanation Aliens Did It? sweet, go for it. or anything else in that vein. this world is your oyster.

WB: "tears in the mind"/ancient word memories in masked chimeras (Star Split)

Okay. Okay. So. Most of this book’s worldbuilding is plausible, you know? If not real-world plausible, at least future scifi dystopia plausible, right? But. The word thing. There is no reasonable connection as far as I can see between the genetic condition of masked chimeras and having sudden, unexplained epiphanies about the meanings of words—since the relevant aspects of language are arbitrary, and Darci doesn’t have any particularly detailed knowledge of Modern English (being herself presumably a speaker of Future English, although I have to assume that Future English is surprisingly similar to Modern English given the time scale since the poetry fragments she’s reading don’t seem to have needed any translation for her to understand them, which would generally not be the case with Modern vs Old English—and that is the time scale we’re dealing with here—anyway, let’s move on), there’s no way for her to come up with this? So please, just, explain how all this works to me?

Really don’t feel you need to stay within the scifi world conventions here lol, especially since this element pretty much… doesn’t.

WB: disability in the Bio Union (Star Split)

We don’t see much of how disability works here—Darci doesn’t seem to consider herself disabled, and there’s no other character who could really be interpreted as such. Given how very eugenicist the Bio Union is, I have to wonder how they deal with disabilities they can’t engineer out of existence—tell me how it works!

WB: divergence/difference between Genhant and Original dialects and mannerisms (Star Split)

So we can see the effects of a long-term social separation here; the dialects used by Genhants and Originals seem fairly different. Darci observes that Originals’ grammar “might not be as good” but obviously that’s her perspective, being a kid who speaks the prestige dialect; the grammar within their dialect would be no better or worse than Genhant grammar in their speech. And the Original dialect seems to also include more specific nonverbal communication; if they’re talking less, but (presumably) communicating similar amounts, then they must either be able to convey more information in the same amount of time through their speech, or their dialect includes informal signed elements—Vivian doesn’t seem to parse it as such, but although Darci observes less dialogue from the Original kids, Vivian’s conversations with her uncle aren’t presented any differently than Darci’s conversations with other Genhants. A tragically unused opportunity, in my opinion.

Show me how these two dialects differ, in more specific ways, rather than just telling me they do! Tell me about potential miscommunications! Is there a lack of documentation of the Originals’ dialect due to its low status? How does this affect scholarship on it? Are the hand gestures elements of the language in some way, or are they nonlinguistic?

WB: growing up as a Laureate's umbula (Star Split)

So… how does this work? They try to replicate the childhood as closely as possible, but obviously it can’t be perfectly done. Do the kids grow up knowing they’re clones, that they’re meant to be Important Person The Second, Just The Same, or is that hidden from them? What happens if a Laureate’s umbula decides they don’t want to follow in their predecessor’s footsteps; what if they want to forge their own path in life? Is that allowed? No one forced the Laureate into being what they became, after all.

WB: growing up as an Original (Star Split)

Things that are not entirely clear in this book include the answer to the question of how much of the high degree of segregation we see is socially and economically enforced, and how much of it is legally enforced. This is interesting—clearly, the original divergence was economic, with the wealthy being able to afford genetic enhancements and the poor not being able to afford them; however, it strikes me as slightly unrealistic that there would be no Originals in Genhant schools or at non-scholarship Genhant summer camps, etc, if there was no segregation on a legal level. Of course it would be more difficult for Originals to become wealthy enough to afford these, but the fact that none of them seem to have reached that level is very revealing; that tells me there’s far less social mobility than we have in our modern society (which isn’t very mobile, much as we may like to think otherwise) or there’s legal discrimination and segregation keeping things this way or both.

…and with all that being said, I’d love to hear something about what it’s like to grow up in the underclass of this society. We see most things from Darci’s point of view, and she, being a thirteen-year-old who’s basically comfortable in her own life, doesn’t really see that much. What’s it like, being raised as an Original? What sort of expectations do Original parents and schools have for their children? What sorts of jobs do they typically do? Do they go to university? Can they go to university? Are there summer camps for them, or do they only get to do things like that on scholarships? What’s it like, being the Scholarship Kid due not only to your family’s finances but also your very genetics? How does that change your dynamic with your other Original friends, when you got a scholarship and they didn’t—what do they think about that? I’d assume they have less obsession with Genetic Predetermination, since they don’t get a map of their probable life at conception… how does that work, in this society that runs on genetic predetermination for so many things?

#exchange letters #worldbuilding exchange #requested: mother of learning #requested: the rhianna chronicles #requested: the farwalker's quest #requested: star split #requested: art #requested: fic

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