Tumgik
#he was getting from Fabian :( he just doesn’t have time
awellreadmannequin · 3 days
Text
Hmm, I think that some of my new followers might appreciate this passage I just wrote for my paper:
Ultimately, caring about culture means caring about the bodies which practice that culture. Failing to care about those bodies, letting them become “bare life” means failing to care about culture. Or rather, I should say failing to care about bodies is a failure to care well about culture. Museums have historically served to preserve culture without necessarily maintaining it. A museum is a dead thing, a place where the artifacts of culture put on static display to be silently observed. The only bodies that move in museums do not interact with the artifacts contained within in the same way that the bodies who produced them would. As Shimrit Lee puts in her book Decolonize Museums:
By displaying humans, animals, and objects alike in detailed, simulated environments, curators sought to capture particular cultures and time periods. This act of “viewing culture”—from world’s fairs to the museums of today—results in what Johannes Fabian called a “petrified relation,” whereby various non-European societies are perceived to be living in a different historical epoch. Today, these types of exhibitions continue to deny the possibility of shared humanity and connection between visitors and the people whose cultures are on display. (Lee 2022)
It is bodies in living relation to one another that make and practice culture. In museums, culture becomes disembodied and thereby disconnected the human experience of it. Instead, cultural artifacts become props in a curatorial narrative: “These objects, violently plundered from the colonies, were first “decontextualized,” or extracted from the context of their original use, and then “recontextualized” in the sense that they were inserted into new settings” (Lee 2022).
Like, imagine how insane I felt listening to Winter in Hieron while this is the sort of thing I’m studying, thinking about, and writing. Hieron is literally built on physical and metaphysical recontextualization! And beyond that, even the mortals who are unaware of the metaphysical nature of Hieron’s reality are constantly struggling over how culture should be contextualized. Mother Glory’s death hit me so hard precisely because it was a symbolic victory of Rosemerrow’s recontextualization of culture. In turn, Fero’s decision not to stay and help the gnolls is such a monumental failure to care about (I’m using that in a technical sense, dw about it, iykyk) their culture and their, er, humanity..? Gnollnity? Whatever, that which makes them subjects. And don’t even get me started on the orcs, who have so completely mastered recontextualizing culture that they it enables them to DO MAGIC. Like, pattern magic clearly depends on culture in order to give facets of the material world meaning (libraries, desks, broken mirrors, stolen fiddles, and so forth) but it doesn’t actually have any interest in that context beyond that. Lem is able to do pattern magic without really what the materials he’s using really are beyond their place in the pattern. You know, now that I’m thinking about it, I’m not even sure he knows what the deal with his fiddle even is? I might be wrong, but the point is that the fiddle seems to be more important for its place in the pattern than for the thing it actually is as defined by its history.
Ugh, this show is making me feel rabid and I gotta stop writing this post and get back to the actual paper I’m writing…
45 notes · View notes
skyshroom · 2 months
Text
‘When you think about me, why do you always bring up the ball?’ Fabian is not beating the gay allegations this episode unfortunately
267 notes · View notes
Text
just gonna go ahead and say this in advance—
if Riz does indeed come out in junior year, and he says, “I’m ace” or “I’m asexual” when referring specifically to his lack of romantic attraction, aromantic people are allowed to be upset about it.
#because yes of course some people irl say ace to mean both bc that’s how they personally identify#but in fictional media the distinction is necessary. especially with how few canonically aromantic characters even exist in ANY mainstream/#popular media.#I assure you I’m not invalidating anyone who is ace and they mean that to include lack of romantic attraction.#But to look at this from a MEDIA PERSPECTIVE its irresponsible to do this w/out clarification that they also know the word aromantic exists#because otherwise that’s just a conflation of asexual and aromantic without any nuance#and an erasure of aromantic people who are not asexual.#Plus—name a single fucking time a character in mainstream/popular media has said the word aromantic.#Because I can name several instances where they say asexual. But I can’t think of ONE where they say aro or aromantic.#(Maybe that Isaac kid does in season 2 of Heartstopper? But I haven’t seen it so I’m not 100% sure.)#anyways.#the way this fucking fandom—and ANY fandom with a canon aro character—discusses the aromantic spectrum#is blatantly just to remove their own personal guilt for shipping that character with other characters and erasing their orientation.#because yes aromanticism IS a spectrum!! But when people talk about fabriz and say ‘he can still be ace!’ (Which is aro erasure) or#‘he can still be aro!’ They never SHOW riz still being aro or having any kind of complex relationship with romance.#I’m angry and I’m allowed to be.#I get that a ship you liked may be hard to let go of or something#But I’d be much less mad if all the fabriz fans said ‘yeah I know Riz is aro in canon and he and Fabian would never get together.#I just like to imagine it sometimes in fiction/fanon!’ Then that would be a WHOLE different conversation#Because then they’d at least be acknowledging that riz doesn’t feel romance in canon. That fabriz is something that actively#Goes against the canon characterization of one of those characters—and that’s fine. Just fucking ACKNOWLEDGE IT.#But most of these people either WANT fabriz to be canon/believe it WILL BE canon#OR I guess feel uncomfortable confronting the fact that they ARE erasing riz’s aromanticism so they don’t even acknowledge it at all.#fhjy#fantasy high#d20#dimension 20#riz gukgak#aromantic riz gukgak#fhsy
22 notes · View notes
Text
My absolute favourite post fantasy high head canon I’ve got is that Riz joins the in universe FBI, just his dream of solving the worse of the worse every day, he’s a badass catching criminals and stopping crime, but the fucking realisation hits him that he has ONLY ever interacted with crazy ass fucking lunatics his entire life and now he’s gotta talk to Sheryl about her vet bill and act like he knows what normal people do on weekends, super tight lanced Riz on his BEST behaviour so his colleagues don’t think he’s the kinda guy who commuted a Lot of murders in high school, everyone in this pretty badass office thinking he’s some sweet geeky guy who’s probably never seen the outside of a text book before this job worried the last scene was a little graphic for him and he is just sweating in his little office cubicle hoping they don’t find out he has fully upper body tattoos he got whilst off his tits on snuff at a night club on a pirate island at 15 years old
9 notes · View notes
Text
I don’t know how I’ve just realized this but like we’ve had a lot of injustice this season considering the fact that the big mystery is surrounding a fallen goddess of justice
Like we got
Riz possibly not being able to get into college
Sklonda having her pension withheld for no reason
Fig getting dropped from her record label
Gorgug having to take three years of artificer at once because he’s too nice (eventually having to shed that part of himself at times to succeed)
Fabian finally getting to go home to his mom after not seeing her for months only for her to immediately leave him alone for months on end when he clearly doesn’t know how to fend for himself
Adaine not performing well in class because she can’t afford her class despite having saved the world and literally being the elven oracle
Kristen literally getting expelled for something that had been cleared up before despite literally earning and working her ass off for an A
The Ratgrinders being so much farther ahead in everything than the Bad Kids because they found a way to cheat the system despite the Bad Kids literally saving the world
Like this definitely has something to do with the bringing back of the corrupted goddess of justice right?
2K notes · View notes
moonsgemini · 5 months
Text
cinnamon girl - rafe cameron
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
summary: hating rafe cameron was easy to do when you were both teenagers, but after years a part and time spent thinking about one another one thing leads to another. Secret rendezvous between kook prince and kook princess ensue, finding any spare minute to be with each other without the judgey eyes of outer banks.
warnings: 18+, minors dni, fem reader, she/her, p in v, praise kink, semi public sex (a bunch of people are downstairs), fingering, oral f receiving, dirty talk, sneaking around, secret relationship, cussing, alcohol, enemies to lovers kinda
wc: 3.5k
an: another smutty smut. I have had this in my drafts for a bit & I just needed to finish it. It started out as being inspired by cinnamon girl by lana but I like don’t know what happened. also two posts in one day ???? who am I.
masterlist
Tumblr media
In high school when y/n read Romeo and Juliet she fell in love with the tragic romance. She was astounded that love could be so intense and passionate. So much so that they were sneaking around behind everyone’s backs and the miscommunication ultimately leading to their deaths.
When she was sixteen she met Rafe Cameron. When her father introduced her to the tall blonde she didn’t think he would eventually be her Romeo. Especially not since he didn’t even smile or show the slightest interest in her. Their fathers had recently worked on a business deal together and had got along so well they wanted their families to get together.
She knew who he was and what he was like. Rumors run rampant on the figure eight. He constantly had snarky comments and remarks to make at her. Whether it be about her outfit, her likes, and especially about the boys she dated. y/n would be talking to Sarah about the boy she just went on a date with and Rafe would butt in with his two cents. He was a year older than her and he always made sure to act like he knew better because he was older.
“Fabian? You do know he like has dated half the cheer and volleyball teams,” Rafe scoffed as he stood in front of her and Sarah who were sat on the pool chairs outside. He had overheard y/n talking about the new guy she was seeing and Rafe couldn’t believe who the guy was. He also couldn’t believe she was dating at all.
Y/n looked at him with a glare, “I don’t remember asking for your input.”
“You could really use it though. Seems like you’re pretty fucking clueless at the fact that you’re a lot better than that asshole,” He rolled his eyes annoyed at the fact she couldn’t see how this escapade will end in heart break. He was only looking out for her so he doesn’t understand why she was so annoyed.
She chuckled bitterly, “Yeah like you care, besides I can find out for myself Rafe. I don’t need you telling me what’s good for me or not.”
Rafe rolled his eye because to him he did know what was good for her and Fabian was not. “Well when he ends up hurting you I’ll be ready to tell you I told you so,” He smirked taking a sip of his beer and walking away.
Sarah scoffed muttering, “Hate him.”
Y/n sighed watching him walk away and talk to her dad, “Couldn’t agree with you more.”
The first few years she knew Rafe she hated him. As much as you could hate him. He had always been extremely handsome, something she definitely noticed, and as he got older he became even hotter. In front of her parents he was charming and they interpreted his cocky demeanor as confidence. Whenever she complained about the Cameron boy being a prick they said they liked that Rafe knew what he wanted and always went for it, something that y/n could learn from him.
After she went away to college these family dinners became much smaller with only the parents and younger siblings. The kids having grown up and gone their own ways. Rafe was always on the mainland taking care of his dad’s business. Sarah had gone off to college so it was practically an empty nest. Occasionally during holiday breaks Sarah and y/n would join them for game night or dinner but Rafe still wasn’t around much.
She couldn’t lie and say he didn’t swim in her thoughts every now and then. Okay maybe more often then she’d like. Especially when he’d post on instagram and his bright smile would infect her mind on the nights she couldn’t fall asleep. She wondered if he ever thought about her but she doubted it since they never liked each other.
Rafe thought about her every day. Whenever he’d see her dad he’d find a way to bring her into conversation. He knew she was coming back soon and he made a note in his calendar to free his schedule on family dinner day because he wanted to see her. He needed to see her. Even if she probably didn’t want to see him because he remembers her hatred for him when they were teenagers. It makes a smirk appear on his lips as he thought about y/n rolling her eyes and sending witty comebacks his way.
-
It was winter break of her junior year of college when she made if back to the outer banks.
Y/n was surprised to see him drinking a glass of scotch with her dad and Ward as she walked downstairs. Her family was hosting dinner that time. Her first thought when she spotted hime was person he was even more handsome. His boyish look almost completely gone now that he was a man. She noticed he had been working out because his chest and shoulders seemed broader. Could have even gotten taller?
“Hey there she is,” Ward said as she made it all the way down the steps.
She smiled politely and joked, “Here I am, hope you didn’t miss me too much.”
Rafe smirked taking a sip from his glass. After Ward asked her more questions about college and the internship she was starting on the mainland that following summer. She could feel Rafe’s eyes on her as she talked to his dad. Seeing him had felt different that time. There was something different in the air.
During dinner they both stole glances at each other. Sometimes when she’d catch him staring at her he wouldn’t look away. Locking his eyes with her smirking and sipping on his second glass of scotch. His long fingers wrapped around the glass grabbed her attention. She watched his adams apple bob as he swallowed. No guys she knew in college drank scotch, because none of them were men like him.
He couldn’t believe how much more beautiful she had gotten in the last three years. She was a woman now and she held herself with so much more confidence than when she was seventeen. Rafe liked that.
“Oh honey give Rafe a tour of the new wine cellar. It is so magnificent our architect is amazing, maybe you’ll like him for a new Cameron employee,” Y/n’s mom said to the young adults who had been eye fucking for the last forty minutes. Y/n’s mom had been feeling her second glass of wine now which led to her being all giddy and generous. It’s always what her mom did. So whenever they went to charity events her mom just needed a glass of wine to sign a check for $10,000.
She was also an avid wine collector so for the last year they had been building a wine cellar under the house. It turned out beautiful. All wood and the lighting was moody. There were racks of wines all around the room and a few in the middle creating ailse. There were also a few big wooden support beams.
“Sure mom. Follow me,” Y/n said nodding her head towards the back. He smirked standing up and following her a few paces behind so he could stare at her back side. She led him out to the side of the house where the entrance was. If her mom knew what she ultimately helped happen she’d kill the both of them. Mostly for committing such a sin next to her most prized possessions.
Ten minutes into the tour Rafe had y/n pinned against one of those wooden beams. Her legs wrapped around his waist with her hands in his hair tugging whenever he’d hit that spot she could never reach on her own. No college guy she had been with was ever able to hit that spot either. Their breaths mixed together as their faces were close together, y/n’s skirt bunched around her waist. One of his hands was under her shirt tweaking her nipple.
His dick inside of her smoothly sliding in and out as he fucked her. Rafe knew he would never forget this moment. Never forget just how wet she had been, all the noises she was making sounding heavenly.
The first time was erotic. Years of built up sexual tension was finally getting released and it felt so good. His hands, his lips, his body felt better than she could ever have imagined.
When they were done Rafe kissed her, lips slotting naturally with her like they always belonged there. She was worried it was a one time thing but he wasn’t acting like it. That bubble of anxiety in her chest popping as he continued to be sweet to her. He had slowly pulled out and set her down gently. Tugging her skirt back down and helping her step into her panties he had tugged off in a frenzy. He fixed himself as she fixed her hair and makeup.
“That’s not the last time that’s gonna happen,” He said breaking the silence, “I like you too much to let you go.”
-
Since the first night they hooked up they have been sneaking around behind their families backs seeing each other. Rafe flew and road tripped to her apartment more times that winter and spring than he can count. When she came back for the summer he was practically living at her house. He’d sneak in at night like they were teenagers and he’d sleep over or stay up talking with her until she fell asleep then he’d sneak out. Or sometimes (a lot of times) they’d be doing something else that involved rafe’s mouth on her.
When y/n got her internship he’d meet her for lunch. They’d hangout in secluded areas on the beach and whenever they wanted to have a nice date night they’d stay a few cities over for the weekend to be alone and be a couple in public. For her birthday Rafe took her to the Amalfi coast for a few days where they spent most of the time on a boat, in a pool, or in bed having amazing sex. Y/n told her parents she was going to the lake for the weekend where she’d barely have service. Somehow they believed it.
They kept it a secret not because their families would be upset. It’s the opposite actually, they’d be too excited. Then there would be all this pressure on their relationship. The mom’s and Ward would be urging Rafe to propose because their families merging would make them look incredibly good and powerful in the developing industry. They’d want a huge wedding with a bunch of people they don’t know. There’d start to be talk about grand babies. All of figure eight would be talking about the kook prince and princess dating and on their way to live off their trusts. It would just be too much.
It was the last dinner party of the summer and Y/n was giddy. She hadn’t seen Rafe in two weeks because he had gone away on a business trip with his dad and then she had gone on to see her grandparents in New York. It was the most time they had spent a part in the last four months.
Tonight would be the last night they see each other for another couple weeks while y/n moves into her senior year apartment and settles into school. Rafe knew how important school was to her so he wanted to give her space to settle which she was grateful for because pre law was not easy. It would also be too suspicious if he randomly showed up to help while her parents are there.
This was a big dinner party so it was perfect. Y/n’s parents were hosting so it was all perfect. Every big family on Figure Eight, even the ones who only summer there, was at her house. The house was filled with many distractions since her mother also loved collecting art. No one would see them sneak upstairs to her room, especially with all the wine that’s being consumed.
Rafe had been dreaming about touching her since he last saw her. Oh and when he saw her he didn’t even waste a moment. As soon as he saw an opportunity to drag her upstairs to her bedroom he did. It was when appetizers were brought out and everyone had gathered outside. Y/n smirked the whole time knowing he wanted her as bad as she wanted him. Her short dress definitely did the job it was supposed to when she spotted his hard on when he first grabbed her.
His eagerness showing when he practically slammed her against the inside of the bedroom door. His lips on hers with fervor. They moved expertly against each other. Immediately finding their rhythm, no matter how many times they have each other it’s never enough.
His hands sliding down her waist and slowly going under her sundress. That’s when he feels nothing. She wasn’t wearing any panties. He instantly got harder and groaned into her mouth.
“You’re so fucking sexy,” He mumbled as he began trailing kisses down her neck.
Her hands tugged at his hair, “I missed you Rafey,” she whined not even feeling the slightest bit embarrassed about her eagerness. She had missed him so much.
He began walking her towards the bed. His lips still latching onto any exposed skin on her chest. They kicked their shoes off in the process, Rafe undid a few more buttons of his shirt. His tanned broad chest making her breathing uneven. When her knees hit the end of the bed she sat back crawling backwards towards the pillows. He followed her his knees spreading her legs.
“I missed you baby,” He gently cupped her face and stroked her cheek softly, “I can’t wait to make you cum.”
The soft gesture with the dirty words made her cheeks feel hot. That devilish smirk appearing on Rafe’s face like he knew that would happen. And that’s because he did know. Rafe knew her body and he knows just what to do to make her squirm. He looked too hot for her to even care how dirty he sounded. Sometimes she’d shy away but other times it made her putty in his hands. Y/n reached forward kissing him not so gently. They’d have time for the lovey dovey stuff later.
He began kissing down her body. Her chin then her neck, paying attention to that spot that made her hips jerk up for relief. His hand were gliding up her legs pushing her dress up around her waist in the process.
Rafe kissed her shoulders as he pushed her straps down in a teasing manor. He kissed her collarbones then her chest. Finally moving to her stomach and her pelvic bone. Oh had he missed this. His hands moved to her knees spreading her legs wider.
Y/n’s hands were in his hair already tugging. Giving an even harder tug when he reach forward giving her a teasing lick. She had to cover her mouth with one hand to not be loud.
Rafe wanted to tease her but he just couldn’t resist. He dove right in. His tongue finding her clit immediately, moving his tongue in circles. He alternated between that and licking down her slit. Tongue teasing her entrance. It was all so euphoric.
Her back arched off her bed. Y/n tried her best to keep quiet but a few moans slipped out. She hoped the chatter and music playing downstairs was enough to cover her noises. Rafe hummed against her core making the feeling even more intense.
“Oh god Rafey,” She sighed dreamily, “I missed your mouth. Know just what to do.”
He lives for the praise. It boosted his ego and encouraged him to do better and outdo himself. Hearing her breathy wins and moans muffled by her own hand were making him impossibly hard.
As he sucked and licked her clit he reached around and abruptly slipped a finger into her wet center. Her thighs practically suffocating him as he moved in and out of her touching that perfect spot inside of her. He always made her cum and he always did it fast. Before she met Rafe she had only ever finished with her own hand or vibrator.
“I’m gonna cum!” She whisper shouted.
Rafe moaned, “Cum for me baby.”
It felt like electricity was going through her body as she came. His movements relentless until he knew she was satisfied. He began to slow down as she came down, leaving her with one final lick. He kissed the inside of her thighs softly before crawling up to her again. She pulled him forward needing his lips on hers. She moaned at her taste on his tongue.
“I need to be inside you,” Rafe groaned as he felt one of her hands reach down and palm him through his pants.
“Please fuck me,” She batted her eyelashes at him knowing it always got her what she wanted.
He groaned again before sitting back on his feet so he can unbutton the rest of his shirt. Y/n sat up pulling her dress all the way off. Rafe made quick work of his pants pulling them down his legs.
His member slapped against his stomach, her mouth watering at the sight. Rafe was created with care, everything about him was perfect to her. He grabbed his length pumping it a few times before he rubbed his tip through her folds. Spreading her wetness around, his eyes rolled back at the feeling.
“Oh please please put it in,” She whined, “I need you so bad Rafey.”
“Baby your wish is my command,” He smirked and thrusted into her slowly pushing in inch by inch.
“Yes yes yes yes,” She chanted in pure bliss. Y/n didn’t care how desperate she sounded.
Rafe sighed as he began moving slowly. She was so tight and warm, even better than he remembered. He knew he wasn’t going to last long but he would make sure she came again before he did at all. He hit that spot inside of her that made her eye’s roll back and toes curl.
“Taking me so good my love,” Rafe encouraged as he picked up speed.
He grabbed one of her boobs and brushed his thumb over her hardened nipple. He leaned down and placed the other one in his mouth sucking and licking gently. All of the stimulation had her body feeling like it was on fire. He released it with a pop and went back to capture her lips in his. Y/n’a hands gripped his hair and clawed his back
“I’m gonna cum babe,” She moaned, “Yes right there, oh oh god.”
“Yeah baby cum for me,” He sighed, “Fuck I’m gonna cum too.”
Her eyes rolled back at his words, “Please cum in me, fill me up please please,” she blubbered feeling overwhelmed by the orgasm that was about to take over her body. The sounds of his deck sliding in and out of her wet pussy made him reach the edge. Everything about her was so sexy from the noises she made to the way she looked sprawled out below him.
Her words made him pick up his pace pounding into her. He felt her clench around him knowing she was coming. She moaned and scratched his back as she came. Biting her lip to not let anymore loud noises slip out of her. He came inside of her with a groan. Rafe continued to pump in and out of her slowing down as he came down from his high.
He swore he could cum again just looking at her all fucked out. Her hair all over the place, lipstick smudged and probably all over his face.
After a few minutes of catching their breaths Rafe pulled out gently. A whine leaving her lips at the empty feeling. Rafe got up going to her bathroom to get a towel to clean her up. When he came back he dabbed her center cleaning up.
“I missed you so much Rafe,” Y/n said breaking the silence.
He leaned forward kissing her knee, “I missed you more my love.”
“You think anyone heard?”
He shrugged, “Don’t think so. If they did then oops.”
She laughed, “Don’t say that Rafe, then we will get caught.”
He smirked as he laid next to her again opening his arms as an invitation that she gladly took. Resting her head on his chest and he leg wrapped around his waist. One of his hands stroking her hair and the other rubbing up and down her body slowly feeling all her exposed skin.
“Lets lay a few minutes then get back to hearing my dad talk about business for hours,” Y/n said savoring the feeling of laying with him.
“I love you,” He kissed the crown of her head a few times.
She smiled, “I love you. Sneak over tonight?” She asked looking up at him hopefully.
“Read my mind,” He smirked.
1K notes · View notes
Text
Fantasy High: Junior Year predictions that aren’t as much based in things I think will logically happen, but ones that either should happen or would be very fun/funny
Loose Duke reminiscent perception checks from Lou, constantly looking for Chungledown Bim.
Related, the return of Chungledown Bim, but they successfully escape him yet again.
Either a wedding between Hallariel and Gilear, or them having a kid. I just think Fig and Fabian would make great older siblings but also that they’d have a real hard time handling it.
Garthy O’Brien is at Mordred and it’s immediately clear that there’s something poly happening between them and Jawbone and Sandra Lynn.
Riz has some serious beef with another young licensed PI. This beef is mostly shown through Riz hissing at someone on the street, and they don’t meet this other person until episode 15. They’re pretty normal and the beef does not make sense.
A reveal that Porter is not evil or plotting something but that he was a member of Sandra Lynn’s adventuring party that she got kicked out of. Bonus if he was a deciding vote or the one who pushed her to leave. This would be fun to justify Fig’s paranoia a bit, but her reasoning was completely wrong. The best way for this reveal to happen would be for him to apologize (sincerely) to Sandra Lynn.
Adaine actually tries to include Alewyn in a lot of things, and they actually learn some important lore from Alewyn and she doesn’t put it forward in a condescending way.
Gorgug rolls up to Riz’s office, drags him out, and they go throw rocks at the river (like Riz wanted in Boys’ Night).
Another crab party live stream. That’s actually how the season opens. Kristen is crowned Crab King.
Someone suggests they go to a Drisden party. The boys scream “no” at the proposal.
Kristen succeeds in her first ever divine intervention roll (#BeardsleyBlessed)
Aguefort says something to Gorgug in the first episode about how difficult he finds him.
Gorgug changes his subclass. We had a lot of subclass changes at the end of fhsy and I think him focusing on artificing a bit more may cause him to refocus and not be as lost in rage as berserker works. The I’m going into a worry helps me think this lol
they start at level 11, there were talks of them double leveling post nightmare king forest but that wasn’t what happened with the one shots (which logistically makes a lot of sense to me). I also just think Adaine should get 6th level spells.
And finally, Brennan homebrews the spell Ice Feast, but only Adaine can cast it.
969 notes · View notes
roll-for-gaslight · 15 days
Text
While I think Sklonda is right to be critical of the Bad Kids and specifically Kristen, I think that a lot of the reason she did so is that she was missing a lot of context the other parents were given. We see in Freshman Year that she’s often given the information about their quests from Riz, several hours after the fact, and he shares clues with her rather than personal things. He doesn’t think the personal bits are what she cares about because, for him, that’s not the problem being solved. He’s happy with his friends and she only really would hear if one of them caused a problem. Her apartment isn’t a hangout like Seacaster Manor, Mordred Manor, the Thistlespring Tree, or even Gilear’s season one apartment were. By the nature of her being a single working mother in a difficult financial situation, she often was left out of extracurricular activities.
For example, Mordred is obviously a place filled with a lot of activity, and plenty of kids to give updates on said activity if something slips through the cracks of someone’s retelling. If Adaine leaves out a personal moment because she’s focused on the case, Fig or Kristen or even Ragh could fill in that blank, plus the fact that the other BKs spend a lot of time there means that Sandralynn, Jawbone, and Lydia are usually getting every side of every story. The Thistlespring Tree is where the Bad Kids go not just because it’s a nice place to spend time, but because it’s often directly tied into a plot or subplot! The power source in season one, the satellite in season two, and Gorgug’s artificer journey + the whole Frosty Faire thing going on now! Besides that, the Thistlesprings have raised Gorgug in a way that encourages open channels of communication about his emotions above all else, so he tells them what’s going on! Fabian’s parents over at Seacaster Manor haven’t been involved so much this season, but Bill Seacaster saw their bond from the start and taught them how to take care of each other and fight as a group, and Gilear has always been heavily involved in their adventures because all of the BKs have been emotionally invested in him as well!
Aside from that, she’s missing the context of actually being able to attend their quests like some other parents/guardians were able to in Sophomore Year! Gilear and Cathilda and Sandralynn all know things like the fact that everyone was worried about Riz and called him their little angel when he was gone and that Kristen saved him almost at the expense of her own life in the Nightmare King’s forest. She never sees them together, the way they’ll risk everything for each other when the chips are down, the way they all show they care in little ways all the time ( like Fig giving him the card or Fabian’s gifts in Freshman Year). She doesn’t understand that while “the Ball” may have come from a bully on the first day of school, it turned into a term of endearment! She doesn’t see how hard they’ve been trying this year to pass their classes and such, not because it matters to them, but because they know it’s important to Riz. He never even explained the whole needing scholarships thing to them! He showed up with folders on the first day, stressed out of his mind about all of them passing together, and basically decided to get their shit together! Sure, it took Kristen and Fig a little while to do it, but that’s because they were struggling to build better habits!
I also understand how she could think Riz does all of the heavy lifting: when he presents the clues to her and he’s their lead investigator, do you think she assumed other people did the finding? Absolutely not! She doesn’t see the way they put things together by focusing on their individual strengths; she only sees Riz trying to put it all together and find the connections. Why would she know that a lot of the investigative work was done by Adaine and Kristen in sophomore year because so much of it had to do with religion? She wouldn’t!
All this to say: Sklonda is a good mom for checking in with Riz, but she also has a narrow view of things that no one else has. If she were to be exposed to the BKs more often and actually pay attention to how things work between them, I think she would be much more understanding.
365 notes · View notes
let-me-sleep-or-die · 30 days
Text
”yay Riz is so good at Stealth and IInvestigation!”
Riz can hide like no one else. He can basically become shadow the bitch can’t get lower than a 23 if he wants to disappear, he can. He doesn’t have to go away entirely, he can hide parts of himself away leaving the rest visible. He hides how stressed he is. He hides his fears, his sexuality, He hides how close he is to falling apart and almost (ALMOST) no one notices.
Riz is also naturally very good at finding g things. He can find people, find out secrets, he can figure out Mysteries a millennia old. He can knows how to find what people want hidden. Kristen’s not over Tracker, she’s not doing well, she’s worried about her god. He knows this and he’s trying to find a way to make it better, he’s running her campaign telling everyone he meets about ibis amazing friend Kristen who he knows is capable. Fig from taking no classes to three, she’s more stressed than she’s ever been, mostly because she’s actually trying for the first time so if she fails this time it might just mean she can’t do it. He knows that, he helps her with homework and lets her come with him to hunt down clues when they both need a distraction.
Gorgug is tearing himself apart, he’s trying to be two things and the world keeps telling him he’s not good enough for either. He’s doing four years of school in one term and the administration couldn’t care less. He is realizing his parents have parts of their lives he didn’t know about, His teacher doesn’t take him seriously and He’s still listening to his Girlfriends Exgirlfrinds playlist what, 6 months after they broke up? Riz knows this, he sees it. He helps Gorgug study, he makes sure he knows that Riz finds their friendship valuable, they have a joint birthday party, he takes his friend seriously.
Adaine is flat broke, she’s got a crappy job and an unfair schooling system. Her sister is only half taking care of herself, she can’t quite find the right answers. Riz sees it. He will always be there to help her research, always offer a second opinion. He knows how to make money stretch, he’s lived paycheck to paycheck. He can help her all she’s gotta do is ask.
Fabian is alone. He has his doors open all the time hoping someone will walk in and stay. He’s the captain of a team, Star of the school and subject to his fathers legacy. Riz has lived most of his life hoping to make a dad father proud, he knows the feeling. If the doors open, Riz will come, he will sit in a corner and work but he will be there. Any time Fabian feels like he may not be enough Riz is there to tell him he is the most amazing person he knows, and he means it.
Riz is watching is friends struggle, and streaching himself thin, taking on everything he can to maybe for just a second lessen their load. He can easily figure out when somethings wrong so when he does he puts his own life on the back burner. He’s mapped out every one of his friend’s academics. He’s managing a campaign, acting as a personal tutor, a member of every club in the school, a Star student and a damn good detective.
Hes burning himself alive and he’s so good at hiding, (almost) no one notices. If he takes on too much stress, it will literally kill him. I wonder if anyone would even know how much he was struggling.
“Oh Riz is really good at Deception and investigation, FUCK!”
200 notes · View notes
auteurdefeu · 4 months
Text
You are not prepared for me to get back on my bullshit of Fabian and Riz having the most complicated relationship ever, not because anything in particular is going wrong, but because Riz doesn’t know how to identify romance or how it makes him feel, but at the same time, the idea of having someone to hold him and checking in on him, willing to take care of him other than his mom would be nice. He doesn’t really know yet what he wants but he does know he doesn’t want sex, but wouldn’t that just be a disappointment to anyone else who might seek a relationship with him?
Cut to Fabian being ace-spec and unaware of it yet because he felt the expectation to get out and around following his fathers legacy, it was almost more of a social status thing he was looking for than the actual enjoyment of the act. He’s not sex-repulsed, but it’s almost more for his ego than actually getting anything out of it.
I could get more complex about it but I just want em to be cuddle buddies and affectionately bullying each other after Fabian has to literally drag Riz away from his office to make him sleep. They don’t know what they are to each other but they’re something special :(
194 notes · View notes
looseduke · 1 year
Text
okay insane thought about names and the feelings i have about them as a transgender blended family kid. it requires a leap of logic where the fantasy high parent couples remain dating and get married or otherwise legally bind themselves together but follow me on this for a moment. also i don’t know or care if this follows canon im just deciding it does
gilear took sandra lynn’s last name
could not afford to change it after the divorce
gilear is just one of those ppl who really likes having the same last name as his life partners, doesn’t have to be his name, he just thinks it’s nice
(sandra lynn liked her name and though she has Many Issues and might have changed her name in an attempt at normalcy gilear’s name was definitely something outlandishly stupid and he suggested it first anyway so it worked out)
do u see where im going with this
gilear seacaster.
fabian is furious but this ain’t about him
something so funny about taking your (way funnier if they don’t even get married) girlfriend’s dead husband’s last name
he keeps faeth as a middle name bc it’s still a connection to fig that he values and wants to keep
anyway. jawbone hears about all of this. absolutely loves it. thinks it’s awesome
jawbone o’shaughnessy-faeth!
yes with the apostrophe and the hyphen. yes every time.
he likes the connection to gilear and fig as much as he does the one to sandra lynn <3
when consulted fig was SUPER enthusiastic about another dad. gilear was like sigh. that might as well happen. im already being dunked upon by my mean stepson. go ahead.
okay the grand finale. the reason i even made this fucking post
adaine kills her dad, gets adopted, and starts to wonder if she should change her name
adaine makes amends with her sister, and starts to wonder if she should keep it
jawbone lets her know right away that he’ll support her decision no matter what, but it takes a long time for her to decide
it takes watching gilear and fabian bicker over their shared last name, watching fig get sappy over gilear holding onto the name faeth, watching fig and jawbone get sappy over THEIR shared last name, watching sandra lynn hide a smile whenever it comes up, watching, watching, watching
watching her sister learn and grow and love her unconditionally
she makes her decision, and when her dad brings her home from the fantasy dmv, there’s a new name on her ID
adaine abernant-o’shaughnessy-faeth. yes all three names. yes with the apostrophe. yes with the hyphens. every time
it’s for her dad, yes, for the man who gave her a home, who helped her find her strength, who is always her safe space, but it’s for more then that too
it’s for her sister, who for better or worse is in all of her earliest memories. who never underestimated her. who’s trying, every day
it’s for her sister, who called her awesome on the first day of school. who’s always there for her. who wears her heart on her sleeve and teaches adaine it’s okay to be emotional. who’s her best friend
it’s for the man who took her in when he had next to nothing to offer, who shared his extra garlic knots and vending machine snacks, who hosted his daughters strange friends night after night without question or complaint
and it’s for the elven woman sitting across from her at the dinner table, who understands her greatest fear better then anyone else and has built a life for herself despite her mistakes. who protected her on their quest. who opened her house for about 6 teenagers to live there permanently and anywhere between 3 and 10 more to hang out as much as they want
adaine abernant-o’shaughnessy-faeth, the people’s oracle <3
1K notes · View notes
greenhousethree · 7 months
Text
Good Enough
100-Word Drabbles for Arthur and Ginny Weasley
Tumblr media
Fifteen drabbles written for @thethreebroomsticksfic Weasley Week, Oct 16th: Arthur Weasley. Read below or on AO3.
i.
“You’re joking.”
Molly chews back her smile, shakes her head coyly. The house isn’t quiet, per say, but in a rare stroke of luck the twins and Ronnie’s naps have aligned.
And he’s wedged around the bathroom sink with his wife, giggling like children over a potion that’s just changed color.
“A girl…”
The day she’s born, Fabian is there. Peers over the bassinet for so long, Arthur wonders if he too is counting ten perfect pink toes.
“Shit,” he says to Arthur over a cigar that night, after talking war, “this world will never be good enough for her.”
ii.
It’s his turn tonight, when they hear little feet across the kitchen floor. He’s not surprised it’s her, face still blotchy, hair sticking up everywhere from this afternoon’s tantrum that left her knackered.
She whips around in the pantry doorway, eyes like saucers. “I’m hungry.”
After leftover stew from her yellow paisley bowl, he lays in bed with her. Grants her request for a story on the condition she doesn’t suck her thumb.
“Once upon a time, there was a witch named Ginny who lived in a deep, dark wood…”
“No, Daddy,” she whispers, eyes nearly closed. “I’m a dragon.”
iii.
Molly tells him she cried the whole way home from King’s Cross. By early afternoon, he can still tell— the aftershocks seem to surprise her, those gasping little breaths. 
“You know the best part of being the last one left,” he divulges over homemade strawberry ice cream that has yet to do the trick, “is that no one’s here to fight you for your pick of broomstick.”
The rest of her bowl melts on the porch swing. She’s out until it gets dark in the orchard, comes in for supper with leaves in her hair and the biggest jack-o-lantern grin. 
iv.
The day they bring her back home, he carries her trunk upstairs and sits beside her on the bed. Apologizes for ever blaming her, even for a second. 
She counters by saying something lifeless and self-loathing and broken. Eleven-year-old fingers pick at bruised nail beds— tiny, perfect hands. He still can’t fathom it.
That night, Molly brings her dinner and doesn’t come back down. When he heads up to bed, he sees they’ve clearly emptied all her shelves, stacked every novel and journal and textbook outside her door where they can’t hurt her. 
He’s never been angrier in his life.
v.
Since this morning, he’s meant to tell her he’s sorry— sorry they couldn’t offer her anything better on her birthday than this condemnable house-turned-war room. Sorry for the second-hand leather satchel wrapped in faded Christmas paper, even though she wanted a broom; sorry everyone’s thoughts are on tomorrow’s hearing.
After dinner he finally says it, out of Molly’s earshot. Sitting on the stairs leading from the kitchen, plates of fudgy cake in hand. 
“Don’t apologize.” She’s still smiling huge, bumps his shoulder. The Flatulence Fez the twins crowned her with slips down over one eye. “I really love the bag.”
vi.
It should’ve been the day that made them proudest as parents, marrying off their firstborn. It wasn’t. 
This morning, they boxed up centerpieces and charger plates in the shed, repaired all the furniture, met with the Order. His ears still ring. The house is eerie without those three. 
He finds them in her room. His wife is clutching their daughter as she sobs harder than he’s ever seen, inconsolable, wracking herself hoarse. He feels it like a sword to the chest.
In bed later, Molly shakes her head with that look he earns sometimes when he’s being thick. “She’s heartbroken.”
vii.
Friday before Easter, he changes from work robes into something Muggle and tweed and itchy. Platform 9¾ is packed with people avoiding eye contact, and the Express is late. It was late in December, too— arrived without Luna. He waits, terror tightening his throat.
He’s numb with relief when he sees her, one of the only kids lugging a trunk like he advised. She’s swimming in a jumper he’s sure is Ron’s, and that twinges a bit. There’s something different, he notices, walking to the entrance. Colder. Quiet. He doesn’t ask… can’t quite bear to.
Four days later, they flee.
viii.
She’s fighting him. Kicking, clawing.
He holds on with everything he has, arms clasped around her chest, and it’s like he can feel her breaking inside. But if he lets go, he’ll lose her, too. Like Fred. 
Like the body they’re all staring at, lifeless at Hagrid’s feet.
Weeks later, when the Boy Who Lived finds him in the shed one night, hedging, guiltier than anyone he’s ever seen, he already knows. For a moment he considers letting the kid squirm, like the father ought to do.
But then he remembers her first year, and wordlessly hands over a screwdriver. 
ix.
“One more,” she tells their waitress, pointing at a coaster she’s put in the middle. “For my sixth brother.”
The table falls quiet. But then George chuckles and they all take his cue, except Molly.
Snow collects on the windows as the bangers and pies and chips are served. She laments early-morning practices to them all, pretends she’s already bored of all the travel.
“Knock it off,” Charlie snickers, grinning. “Rookies can’t complain. We know you’re having a blast.”
At the end of the night she beats everyone to the bar, pays their tab. Arthur suspects it’s her whole paycheck.
x.
“I definitely saw you cry,” she accuses. She’s graceful even in smugness, grinning something wicked over her lipstick-stained champagne flute.
He pretends to grumble, but he knows she knows. “Hard not to, with the bloody groom getting all choked up.”
The band calls them up soon after, and he pulls her close. “It’s okay,” she murmurs as her face starts to blur again, inches away. “Just admit you’ve gone soft, Dad. I won’t tell.” He tugs on her hand to spin her, chuckling.
They cut cake, and Harry whispers something that makes her laugh, and she lights up the room.
xi.
Predictably, the stadium loses it when she flies out with a new surname on her kit. Ron rolls his eyes as she lands on the pitch with a bit of swagger.
She flies well today, but he reckons she could miss every shot and the commentators would still talk of nothing else. In the stands, Harry laughs when Arthur leans over to ask how it feels to play second fiddle. 
“I’ll never be good enough for her,” he snorts over the rim of his pint. “But I’m sure you knew that.”
She scores twelve goals, and the Harpies clinch playoffs.
xii.
“I’d kill for a drink about now,” she mutters, leaning against the railing. He knows better than to say she probably shouldn’t be out here, either— the venue’s porch, serving as refuge for men who normally never smoke.
He takes a long drag as they watch her boys toddle after their dad on the lawn. “Nearly there, sweetheart.” Treading lightly with his words, lest he incur any of what Muriel’s other well-intended mourners did with their attempts at small talk (“Like a fucking whale, thanks for asking”).
“Hey,” she smirks, “maybe you and Mum can buy a beach cottage now.”
xiii.
The mug Molly poured when they arrived is tepid now, sitting on the table. Shadows lengthen like ghosts beneath his daughter’s eyes; he suspects they’re five days old.
The kids are all asleep, Molly updates them.
Her jaw tightens. At her temple, he notices a couple of gray strands. “I can’t—” she whispers. Squeezes her eyes shut; nothing else comes out. “They need their dad. I’m not good enough on my own.”
“He’ll come home safe, darling. Always does.” And he makes her promise to never say that again. 
He takes both of her hands in his, and they’re cold.
xiv.
They’re celebrating Ted and Vic beneath a canopy of fairy lights. Bill’s weepy toast prompts Fleur to frisk his brothers till she finds George’s flask.
She never realizes Ginny’s stowing the bottle. 
His children outlast their kids and spouses. It’s one of those nights he can’t let himself miss, tired as he is. 
His daughter points a wobbly finger. “Lils has a boyfriend, by the way. Doesn’t think we know. Harry’s going spare.”
He chuckles. “Now he gets it. Imagine trying to justify hating the Chosen One.”
She laughs, nearly tips her chair. “You should tell him that. Might help.”
xv.
It comes in waves. Feels like a lifetime has passed since yesterday; another before that. Molly— bless her— tried to prepare him for it. Tried to comfort him. Imagine.
It feels too big now, their little house on the beach. Perfect for two lives, cavernous with just one. 
She finds him in the garden before sunset. Small, warm hands enclose his. 
“Look, Dad.” 
It’s a delicate, fluttering thing with blue wings, bobbing on the wind. Molly’s favorite. 
“She’s found us again.”
He smiles and tucks a silver lock behind her ear, meeting her gaze— precisely the same shade of brown.
183 notes · View notes
foreos · 3 days
Text
the bad kids rated by how much they would like sonic the hedgehog
a sequel to my hatchetfield version
- riz gukgak: 1/10 i don’t think riz even touches video games. i can’t imagine riz having any strong media interests because his life is so busy all the time so i doubt he would think about sonic the hedgehog at all. if he ever played a sonic game though i think he’d be like unnaturally good at it because he’s got great reaction times and it’s not hard for him to intuit what the best routes are. he’d probably only play in like a social situation though.
- kristen applebees: 10/10 kristen grew up playing sonic games with her brothers and she likes them. sonic is very very good for adhd brains and i think she likes running around really really fast. fucking AWFUL at the games though she has a dexterity score of four. she has never passed a quicktime prompt in her life but that does not stop her from booting up the games and playing the first three or so levels. doesn’t really engage with the media past the games but that’s just because if she had a comic book she’d lose it and while she watched some of the cartoons as a kid, it’s been a long time. probably hasn’t played in years.
- adaine abernant: 10/10 she did not know what sonic was until freshman year and at first she did not see the appeal. she’s never been allowed plain and stupid fun in her entire life and when confronted with it she’s just like…why? but i think as time passes i could actually see adaine really fucking enjoying it if she decided to suspend her disbelief and embrace it. i think in another timeline adaine is much geekier but much like the other bad kids she currently does not have time for that. there’s an alternate universe where adaine is a comic book nerd with sonic opinions but i don’t think any of us are ready for that. there’s probably other franchises she would possibly like better but i think she could get really into it.
- gorgug thistlespring: 0/10 video games frustrate him. his fingers are too big for the buttons and sonic moves way too fast. like kristen he cannot get past the first few levels and so he and sonic don’t really see eye to eye. he wouldn’t say he hates the guy or has anything against the franchise but he would probably rather do, like, anything else.
- fig faeth: 10000/10 i think fig would like it. while it does not match her aesthetic i think she definitely grew up with sonic games as a kid and is pretty good at them. definitely had to beat video game levels for gilear growing up. as i said earlier with kristen, sonic is very good for adhd brain and i think she likes to build as much speed as she can, plus sonic music is fucking dope and i think fig is a fan of stupid fun. sometimes fig finds herself wishing that he would go even faster, though.
- fabian seacaster: -100000/10 he’s scared of rodents and obsessed with being cool fabian does not like sonic. yes, i know sonic is not a rodent but like. fabian does not care that is a walking talking blue rat with one weird eyeball that has two pupils and he is wearing NO clothes. plus, sonic is considered deeply lame by the general public, especially high schoolers, so fabian would not be caught dead in even the same room where sonic-related activities are occurring. fabian goes out of his way to avoid any and all sonic media, which is a shame because when fabian was a kid bill seacaster impulsively bought Every Video Game so there’s probably a completed sonic collection somewhere in fabian’s house. like i think fabian owns sonic chronicles and tails’s sky patrol and sonic labyrinth and he has no idea. in another life fabian is a shadow fan.
BONUS:
- ragh barkrock: 1/10, like gorgug and riz he’s just not really a video game guy.
- ayda aguefort: 1000000000/10 she would fucking love it. she would love it so so so much. much like adaine i think ayda would be extremely geeky in another, less stressful life and i think if fig introduced her to it she would be all fucking in. comics tv shows video games, all of it. i think ayda would eat that shit up.
- cassandra: 10/10 blaze reminds her of kalina and she thinks it’s fun and i am desperate for cassandra to have fun.
- aelwyn: 0/10 absolutely not. she agrees with fabian that sonic is creepy and should wear clothes. she tries not to think about it, ever.
48 notes · View notes
jq37 · 3 months
Text
The Report Card – Fantasy High Junior Year Ep 2
Bad News Parade
Welcome back to the Night Yorb Fight y’all! Like a true finale, this is a monster sized fight split into two parts. When we last left off, Fig had just reached out to some strange power to keep the Hangvan from flipping as they inched closer to their fleeing foe. But the Night Yorb was also about to enter a portal and fulfill its win condition! Let’s go back to bullets for the second half of this fight:
Adaine uses Bigby’s Hand (flavored to look like Riz’s ringed Mage Hand) to grab the Night Yorb and halt its movement, making Gorgug’s job a lot easier and doing some damage as well. 
Gorgug (with help from Adaine’s SECOND nat 1 portent) reels in the Night Yorb so it’s on top of them, but not yet bloodied so the sigilists can’t quite trap it yet.
Kristed does a little extra damage with Toll The Dead, getting it right over the line to bloodied and then hits everyone except for Fig with a Mass Healing Word. 
Adaine goes down (despite the fact that she has Mirror Image up) and Fig once again keeps her from falling off the roof. Her Bigby’s Hand disappears but it's done its job. 
Brennan says that the Night Yorb is very close to the portal and they essentially have one turn to defeat it or it’ll escape. Crunch time!
Riz succeeds in hitting a rock with his grappling gun with the goal of tying it to the van and getting it to stop gunning it but does a subpar job at tying the other end to the Hangvan so the tether is weak. Fabian gives an overwrought goodbye to Ecaf before jumping out of the van to try and reinforce the tie and he GETS RUN OVER AGAIN with a Nat 1. He has a PLUS THIRTEEN to athletics and this has happened TWICE IN ONE FIGHT. Amazing. He takes 22 damage but the Hangman picks him up again. 
The Night Yorb does a windstorm attack that Riz avoids but everyone else takes damage from. Adaine is unconscious so she gets a death save fail automatically. Fig and Adaine are thrown from the top of the van (Gorgug stays up). Kristen loses Circle of Power and Bless. Ecaf shatters (though Fabian doesn’t see cause he’s outside). Boggy and Baby disappear. 
To make matters worse, the Yorbies chant the Night Yorb’s name and heal it to above bloodied again. 
Fabian goes down due to some Yorbie attacks but stays in the saddle of the Hangvan. 
Riz, because he can’t stop, tries to do a hard turn and fails, but manages to roll high enough to keep the van from flipping. BUT, Brenan says he can elect to fail if he wants so he does, reasoning that it might hurt the Night Yorb AND make it easier for sigilists to access the sigil on top of the van. And hey, the Night Yorb is gonna escape in one turn anyway. Might as well go for broke.
With the van flipped, Kristen takes enough damage to go down. Only Fig, Gorgug, and Riz are still up.
However, even with resistance, the Night Yorb takes enough damage that it is bloodied again!
Gorgug tries to do the sigil and fails. Fig tries next and gets a Nat 20 against the Night Yorb’s Nat 1! More importantly, her deception beats Gorgug’s insight so she’s able to do it subtly enough to make Gorgug think HE did it. (Riz sees what really happened but Fig swears him to secrecy) Truly the greatest wizard of our age. 
The Night Yorb is defeated and turns into a sick mural on the top of the Hangvan that glows in the dark (thanks production crew!) The sun has returned! Photosynthesis is back baby!
That feels like it should be the end of the fight, right? But no. What follows is a like 20 minute slog where Brennan makes them pick off the remaining Yorbies as they bake in the oppressive heat of the desert. They really want the Night Yorb to be a load bearing baddie whose minions disappear once he’s gone but nope. They have to do the tedious dirty work. They might not be able to fast forward through it, but I can:
Everyone down is brought back up. 
Gorgug rolls a Nat 20 investigation about Balthazar and so I guess his shadow or soul or whatever is in the van mural now too? Sure.
Cassandra has texted Fig “Is Kristen mad at me?” 20 times in a row. 
They try and get a Yorbie to just give up and they’ll get him a job at Basrar’s but even with a 38 persuasion he doesn’t take the deal and Fabian stabs him to death. Too bad dude. You coulda been the next Jawbone!
Cassandra asks Kristen how the battle went but Kristen ignores her. 
Two guys pop out of nowhere to continue fighting them and Murph loses his mind. This isn’t plot relevant but Murph broke down so hard I can’t not mention it. So tactical, so late. 
You really get the sense of exhaustion that all the kids feel in having to continue to fight long after their hearts are no longer in it (except for Riz, who’s having a blast). Everyone describes how they’re doing physically and it is NOT good. Fabian has full tire marks on him from being run over (TWICE). Once cleanup is over, they talk about what they would have done for the summer if they hadn’t been forced on this Night Yorb quest. Adaine wanted to get a job–now she’ll have no pocket money for the semester. Fabian was accepted to a great dance camp but obviously he couldn’t go. Gorgug wanted to work on the van. But Riz is excited that they got to spend the summer together. (Which, aww buddy).
The job is done but they now have 48 hours to book it back to Solace if they don’t wanna miss the first day. It’s a pretty frantic road trip experience, where someone has to be driving at all times and everyone is surviving on gas station snacks. 
They finally make it back to Elmville with only a couple of hours to spare and they’re met with memories from their first adventure ever. The place where they found the first palimpsest and the garage where they spied on Johnny Spells. Across from the garage is a diner and they decided to step in and get some real food, even though they’re so close to home. Daisy Cubby is their waitress and she greets them cheerily and congratulates them for completing their quest before bringing them all various dishes that feature ice cream and cottage cheese heavily. 
One detail I neglected to mention: after the fight, Fabian asked where Ecaf was and, to spare him the heartbreak of her shattering, they lied and said she was a turncoat the whole time. As they’re about to split up, Fabian, forlorn, asks if she said anything about him before she left and they all hype him up with, “You were too good for her bro,” nonsense in a coordinated friend lie that Fabian totally buys. He leaves the conversation VERY hyped and feeling himself like he wasn’t mooning over a MIRROR yesterday. 
(Also, plot twist, as soon as he’s gone, they realize that they can actually mend the mirror, which bring Ecaf back who absolutely didn’t actually betray them. They all agree that it’s better that Fabain ISN’T kissing a mirror though so they just stick her in Adaine’s jacket with the attitude of ‘Yikes! Hope that doesn’t bite us in the butt later!’ Then they all pinky promise to never tell Fabian.)
And now, let’s head into a beloved Fantasy High tradition: splitting up and seeing what’s going on at everyone’s individual houses! Fabian gets home first so let’s start with him.
Fabian
Fabian gets to Seacaster manor and finds that he’s made it home just in time to see off his mom and Gilear who are headed off on a month long vacation. Apparently, Gilear finally proposed and, in a twist a fortune (that’s so suspicious that we’re gonna talk about it later) he won a several months long cruise. They’re going to roll that into a longer vacation so Fabin is going to have the fun of the manor while they’re gone. Fabian, to his credit, is emotionally mature to say, “Good on you, Gilear” about the proposal instead of having a fit about being related to him, but, though he tries to hide it, it’s clear that he’s pretty bummed that he came all the way home just for a quick goodbye and an empty house. Not even his mom’s announcement that because he turned 18 on the road, some of his trust funds have become available to him making him even more flush with cash does anything to make him feel any better. 
HIlariel gives Fabian a business card in case he wants to talk to his trust fund manager. Then, she leaves in a flurry of cheek kisses and Fabian is left alone in his cavernous mansion. Brennan drives home the point by making him roll to find his fridge and some glasses so he can pour himself a glass of milk. 
Also, I said he was alone but, technically he’s not. In addition to the mound of regular presents left in his room, there’s also some pirates in some parallels who will sing Happy Birthday to him when he opens them. And they’re paid for for the whole year. There really is a subscription service for everything now, huh?
Riz
Next up is Riz who Gorgug drops off at Strongtower Luxury Apartments.Riz finds that his mom has fallen asleep reading legal books because she is NOT a cop anymore and Brennan REALLY needs you to know that. Riz sees that she has a yarn board going and when she wakes up (happy to see him of course) she tells him she’s been working on a case defending one of the organizers of the Frosty Fair Folk Festival (a kind of sylvan music festival) from embezzlement. 
But she wants to talk about him! She likes the new look and says it reminds her of his dad. And Riz is very excited to tell her about the end of the battle and the two guys who popped out (so tactical, so late). Unfortunately, Sklonda is forced to dip into uncomfortable family conversation mode. Even though she fought really hard, she’s not gonna be able to keep her police pension. That’s gonna make college or any other post-Aguefort plans tricky for Riz. He might have to beef up his applications with sports or extracurriculars or something.
Riz, ever the problem solver, tells Sklonda not to worry because, actually, he thrives under pressure. In fact, figuring this out isn’t even the hard part. The hard part is that he has to figure out which college ALL of his friends can get into because he has to look out for everybody and he and Adaine have great grades but everyone else, woof. Sklonda has the vibe of a parent whose kid is so sweet and so about to be hit by a dose of reality, but she encourages him to get ready because Junior Year is crunch time. It almost feels like that warning is for us too.  
Instead of going to bed, Riz starts working on his own yarn board: college admissions edition. 
Gorgug
After dropping off Riz, Gorgug makes it to the tree where his parents (whose new character card hilariously have they/them pronouns because they’re a matching set) greet him, congratulate him, and ask about the mission.
They’re so excited to have a new little (well, big) Artificer in the house (since he’s gonna officially start taking Artificer classes this semester in addition to Barb classes) and are very impressed with the solar lasso he made. They immediately know all the technical workings behind it and Gorgug, who has more practical skill and intuition than technical knowhow, self-deprecates that he just did his best. 
Like all the homecomings so far, there’s a tinge of sadness: apparently Zelda’s dad dropped by with a box of Gorgug’s stuff. Seems they’re not a thing anymore though she says hey and he says hey back so it’s cordial if awkward. But, let’s be real, they were super awkward when they were together too. 
There’s some other news. The Folk Festival that Riz’s mom mentioned is being held near Gorgug’s birthday and the Thistlesprings are hosting it at the tree. And also, some thick envelopes have come from school that they haven’t opened because they’ve been waiting for Gorgug to get home. Gorgug has had a long day though so they decide to open them together tomorrow. 
Adaine, Fig, and Kristen
The girls all live together at Mordred Manor so we’ll do them all together. When they get home, Sandra Lynn, Jawbone, Ragh, his mom Lydia, and Zayn are all there to greet the party with a hastily made birthday cake since they missed celebrating birthdays while on the road. The girls are emotional and grateful and so so tired so they decide the plan is cake and then bed because school is in like four hours. They’re told they can skip if they want and the idea is appealing to Fig and Kristen but not Adaine who actually likes the first day of school. So it’s probably not surprising when Jawbone pulls Fig and Kristen into a sidebar to say that they’re dangerously close to being expelled. Fig doesn’t go to any of her classes and Kristen straight up let her god DIE. The school doesn’t even know that she picked up a third god because she never registered Cass! 
Kristen says that she feels kinda unmoored and like she’s just jumping from life preserver to life preserver and Fig says that if she goes to any class more than twice she basically loses interest. Jawbone is super supportive and says that if school isn’t for them, they can totally just drop out, but that they need to figure out what it is they want. 
They ask if saving the world doesn’t count for a few class credits and Jawbone says that they could probably talk Aguefort into that but, continuing the parade of nasty surprises, Aguefort isn’t going to be their principal this year because he’s going on vacation with Ayda and won’t be back until the end of the school year. Specifically, they’re time traveling to the past and not only does Ayda hate that she has to go, she thinks it’s super dumb that they can’t just return to the moment they left. She’s right (even though Aguesfort insists it doesn't work that way--this is clearly beef Brennan personally has with time travel media). They’re specifically going to study the “time quangle”, a weird, magical, chronomancy phenomenon that makes time go screwy. Is this a simple hand wave for continuity blips between seasons or a stealth plot point that will help us later? Only time will tell!
Fig actually knew about this trip, but she thought she’d get back with enough time to say goodbye to Ayda at least–rest assured, they’re still together (which we already knew due to what I assume is Fig’s Armor of Agathys being flavored to Armor of Ayda and her activating it in the fight by saying ‘My Girlfriend says hello!”). And Ayda is as sweet as ever. Though she’s not in the episode proper, she left a message for Fig in the past that manifested as trilobite fossils in the present day manor’s lawn: Miss you. Love you. XOXO Ayda. Cute!
But the cuteness is followed by even MORE bad news! Adaine is still broke because her mom is technically still alive so she has no access to her inheritance. Fig’s in deep debt with her record label because she never delivered her second album and also she had to cancel her tour because of adventuring. She has a deadline to deliver the next album by the new year and she doesn’t have that much written. And on top of THAT, devils have been looking for her because, if you recall, she’s technically an archdevil which isn’t just a cool title. It’s a job with responsibilities she hasn’t been fulfilling. 
But everyone is exhausted. They can deal with everything in the morning. Kristen asks if she can do a career test with Jawbone the next day because she doesn’t really vibe with school but she doesn’t know what else to do and he of course agrees. 
Kristen then meets up with Ragh who just got back from helping Tracker with her whole missionary trip where she’s been rehabbing the moon goddess’s image to be less high elf haughty and more down to earth. He’s being potentially scouted by some bloodrush teams (go Ragh!). More big picture interesting though, he wants to know if Tracker can reach out to her. And here, we get confirmation of what, imo, has been pretty apparent since Kristen’s new character art dropped: Tracker and Kristen are broken up. Ragh has some insider info from traveling with her and is willing to share but Kristen is too overwhelmed to hear it right now. Here’s her plan: Tomorrow, she’ll take a career test with Jawbone and figure out her whole life, the day after that Ragh will tell her what he knows about Tracker, and THEN he can tell Tracker she can reach out. Ragh seems skeptical at the efficiency of that timetable, but he agrees. 
Adaine goes up to her room and finds it empty aside from Zayn who tells her that Aelwyn moved out over the summer. All traces of her sister aren’t gone however because the walls have been painted with beautiful abjurative runes and there’s a present and a note left for her. The present is lembas bread cake pops–a Falinel favorite–and a key to her new apartment in Clearbook (their old neighborhood). The note says that Adaine is welcome at her apartment at any time, provided she texts ahead, and that she should enjoy the nemesis ward, which is what the runes are.  Apparently, they’re a spell bad guys usually do to be like, “No one can touch my nemesis but me!” It doesn’t allow anyone to attack the person it’s cast on unless they first defeat the caster. In this case, the clear message is, “Even if I’m not there, no one can touch you without coming through me.” Aww! A long way from, “My bitch of a sister.” Adaine says Aelwyn always had a sense of humor before zonking out.
Fig goes to her bed and cuddles with the rock message from Ayda (ow) but she’s soon disturbed as her stomach once again gurgles painfully (double ow). She’s reminded of the strange magic she used during the fight and seeks out her mom for guidance. She tells Sandra Lynn that she’s worried she might have made a deal with a devil and asks if there’s a devil of acid reflux. Sandra Lynn is a little confused but then notices that Fig has spilled something on her shirt–cottage cheese from the diner. Fig remembers her very dairy heavy post-midnight meal and figures that’s why she feels sick. Her mom gives her a quick supportive pep talk about how she was also kind of a hellion as a teen and then Fig goes to bed…or she tries. As soon as she goes down the stairs, she steps directly into a bucket of cement (left there because of home renovations) and rips her fishnet stocking from Doreen! Bummer! And unlucky. So suspiciously unlucky that we’ll talk about it later. 
And we close off with Kristen who’s making a classic teen mistake: Checking an ex’s social media post-breakup. Tracker is, by all accounts, doing fantastic. Her latest post has 40k likes. She has double the followers from last time Kristen checked. Whoever is handling her socials is doing a GREAT job making her look cool as she does miracles and fights monsters. And, there’s even a picture of her with a beautiful elven maiden sitting on her lap while she speaks. Her movement, the Wolfsong revival, is the most exciting thing to happen to the stodgy elven city in ages.
Cassandra asks how their social media is doing and the answer is not great. The only followers are Craig (Cass’s one non-Kisten convert), a bot, and most but not all of the other Bad Kids (Fabian opted out). 
Cassandra tells Kristen that it’s OK and she understands that she’s been going through a lot–but as she says this she’s wincing and speaking in a very pained way. Cass suddenly gasps in pain and Kristen sees “a little ribbon of red and something sharp move through her body.” Kristen is concerned but even with a 28 Insight roll, all she gets is that “Something hurt her”. Ominous!
But the goddess doesn’t even mention it. “It's okay,” she says softly. “You know, I might only have... I might only have two followers, but it's better than Yes!, right?" She vanishes, and Kristen falls asleep. Personally, I think that would haunt me the rest of the night but I’ve never fought a Night Yorb and then had to drive for 48 straight hours so hey, what do I know?
Detention 
All of the Bad Kids (Minus Fabian) for Banishing Ecaf to Adaine’s Jacket and Lying to Fabian
Listen, just because they’re here, doesn’t mean I don’t get why they did it, lol. 
Honor Roll
Ayda for Sending Fig A Fossilized Love Letter
She may not be in the episode physically, but she’s MVP status while stuck on vacation with her dad. So sweet!
Random Thoughts
It is so funny how casual everyone in Elmville is about the sun having been fully gone for several months. Like, same shit as usual. But also this is the SECOND time that these SPECIFIC kids have messed w/ the sun so like, it really is business as usual. 
I skipped over this in the recap but Moggy the Doggy absolutely eviscerates one of the Yorbies while Adaine is down. Cute and vicious! Just like Adaine. 
One thing about Brennan is that he WILL mention unions at the drop of a hat. 
Ally’s “Hey Girlie” as Kristen tries to put the mirror in Adaine’s pocket and also get it out will haunt me forever. 
Fascinated about what airport security looks like in this world. Is a sword at your side just chill?
Is Cathilda in the manor with Fabian or is he fully alone? She never came up so I’m wondering if she’s been taken away as well. 
Everyone but Riz got a beloved NPCs taken away from easy access (Aelwyn is still pretty accessible to be fair, but across town is less accessible than in the bunk bed over you). Obviously, this fits the theme of this season and paves the way for introducing new NPCs. But of course because we’re here to go full Pepe Silvia, I have to at least wonder if it could possibly be part of an in-game plot to isolate the bad kids. My brain says that it’s not because these are all very normal reasons to have people leave your life (except maybe the cruise which is kinda wild). But anything’s possible and I’ve been wrong before. So just want that on the record. 
Ditto about the Time Quangle. It very easily could just be a way to smooth over the continuity of something that wasn’t supposed to be longer than one season initially. That’s what would make the most sense. However, I watched The Good Place like everyone else. I’ve missed clues because of assuming weirdness was just due to conventions of the genre. So I’ll be on Quangle-Watch as well. 
That Folk Festival came up twice–once with Sklonda and once with the Thistlesprings–so I’m curious to see where that goes. First eps usually set up a ton of the major conflicts for the season so anything mentioned twice is something to remember. 
Brennan also mentions the trust business card twice which makes me wonder if there’s something important there. Wouldn’t be the first time important banking was a theme in this show. 
OK, so Gilear and Fig switched luck for sure, right? When her mom said she spilled something on her shirt I immediately was like oh no. The Gilearification of Fig. That seems to be the effect but what would be the cause? Some kind of equivalent exchange for twisting fate? A demon who likes fucking with people? It would be one thing if she was just being Gilearified, but Gilear is getting lucky too. First the cruise then the 10% off the taxi to the airport? We don’t have a ton of dots to connect yet, but I’m watching this storyline with interest. Is this the storyline enticing enough for Emily to play Fig again? Also, assuming I’m right about what’s happening, I bet Fig is gonna be lowkey happy Ayda isn’t around to watch this happen.
Zelda/Gorgug break up. Well, at least Sam is happy wherever she is. This one wasn’t as obvious as the Kristen/Tracker breakup but I can’t say I’m shocked. In The Seven, Zelda gets her GED so it would make sense that they’d be wary to go long distance. (Of course, the timeline of that is wonky but, just gonna assume that’s being handwaved by the quangle for now). 
Lol at Fig throwing Kristen under the bus (“I feel like Kristen's in a lot worse shape than I am.”) during the talk with Jawbone. 
Also Fig saying she’s taken “two fistfuls” of Barbarian classes. Emily, the things that exit your mouth. Chef’s kiss. 
Aelwyn Abernant my beloved. OK, you know I have Aelwyn thoughts. Here they are in no particular order:
The Nemesis Ward is such a great detail. So sweet. So dramatic and performative. So Aelwyn. (And, mechanically, fantastic reason to see her again…)
Middle school teacher? She’s a middle school teacher? That’s insane on multiple levels. First of all, just on the face of it: Bitchiest person you know working with small children. Incredible. Did Jawbone just say, “Idk working at a school fixed my entire life so maybe try that?” Second of all, it’s crazy she has a job AT ALL. Did she even graduate high school? Also, I know she’s not mind broken anymore because she reset her brain but even vanilla Aelwyn needs SO MUCH therapy before she should be doing any job, let alone one with kids. And it’s only been like what? A couple of months? Does she have any teaching certifications? Does Elmville just like their school personnel rough around the edges? She’s like 19 and a war criminal. I know Antiope’s sister is a teacher there too and also pretty young but she’s not a *war criminal*. Is she nice to the kids? If so, is she nice-nice or mean-nice? What is the vibe? Brennan PLEASE let us see what Aelwyn in a classroom setting looks like I’m begging you.
Five cats? Aelwyn. Five of them? Are they all just regular ass rescue cats? Is one of them her familiar? Do you really want Adaine to text ahead because you might have guests or is it so you can Prestidigitation away the mess from your FIVE CATS. 
OK, Aelwyn thoughts over…for now.
I know that just because you have money it doesn’t mean all your friends’ money issues are suddenly your responsibility but it really seems to me like Fabian could solve a lot of problems for Riz and Adaine very casually. 
For a hot second, I was a little surprised that Gorgug had a toothbrush at Zelda’s house but then I remembered how laissez faire her parents are to the point of *wanting* her to do “rebellious” teen things. So that fully checks out lol. 
These players are more patient than me because you wouldn’t catch me opening letters later or asking about Tracker later. If you dangle info in front of me, I want it NOW, in-character exhaustion be damned. 
Speaking of Tracker: Wild speculation time. What if the reason Tracker wants to talk to Kristen isn’t about Kristen so much as is it about Cass? Because their goddesses are sisters, right? Maybe now that Galicaea has presumably mellowed a bit from having an influx of non-traditional high elf followers, she’s curious about what’s up with her baby sister. 
Love the “Happy birthday/Happy death day,” exchange between Adaine and Zayn. I really hope we get more of him this season!
Fig ripping that hairnet fishnet stocking that she’d had since like, episode 2 or 3 really feels like an indication of the, “Everything’s changing this season,” vibes Brennan is putting out. 
Brennan phrases the thing that hurt Cassandra as, “a little ribbon of red” which wouldn’t be notable except for the fact that the last time ribbons came up in this show is was because Kristen did something so iconically stupid and thoughtless that she almost died (Ribbon Dance as an attempt to fly, never forget). I wonder if this is another dumb bit to serious symbol situation, like with Riz and Baron. If you want to symbolize Kristen’s thoughtless actions having consequences that are harmful, that’s one way to do it. 
In the promo for next week, Kristen says that Cass is a “hard sell” because of her domains but I honestly thing a goddess of doubt and mystery would be really popular if marketed correctly (or like, literally at all). There are straight up evil gods with big followings. I think you could pretty easily drum up support for the mysterious Hot Topic goddess even if she’s not giving easy answers. And like, she’s so eager for one on one interactions. Like idk Kristen, I feel like this has less to do with Cass than you. 
I wanted to share this wild piece of information about Kipperlily Copperkettle who I am immediately obsessed with and am now more obsessed with now that I know this.
56 notes · View notes
brewstersbru · 10 days
Text
A little comfort continuation of my riz 💚character study (aftermath w/ jawbone to the rescue!! hes such a dad 🐺)
Riz meant to go back inside. He did. He was going to heave himself up and amble back in, wedging himself between Fabian and Fig (if they hadn’t already filled his space with their flailing limbs in the short time he’d been out).
He was going to do it. Just as soon as he swallowed the lump in his throat. Just as soon as he got a handle on things.
It can’t have been longer than twenty minutes after Pok hung up when the door behind him creaks open. Shit. He thought he had more time. Riz swallows and blinks frantically as if that will somehow cover the puffiness to his eyes, the tear tracks that- despite excessive scrubbing- won’t completely go away.
 “Riz.” It’s Jawbone. There’s relief in his voice, but something else too. A yawning kind of drowsiness. Riz takes a deep breath, ignoring the sinking ball of guilt in his gut.
“Hey, Jawbone, sorry. Did I wake you up?” He almost surprises himself with the calmness in his voice, but is glad of it, nonetheless. What an inconvenient time to find out he actually can lie convincingly.   
The door creaks again and there’s a sharp click in the silence of the night as Jawbone shuts the door behind him. There are a few moments of scuffling before a weight settles over Riz’s shoulders- warm, fluffy- and Jawbone sits next to him on the steps.
Riz looks down to find that he’s been wrapped in a blanket, one of the nice ones from the linen closet. Had Jawbone known he was out here? How much had he seen? Did he hear anything?
Riz pulls the blanket tighter against himself, suddenly aware of how cold he is.
“Thanks.” He mutters. Jawbone hums and turns to look at him.
“Course. Saw you shivering, didn’t want you to catch a cold or nothin’.” Maybe this is something to do with guidance counselors, or faculty at Auguefort in general, but Jawbone’s gaze is piercing. Riz feels at once flayed open and carefully examined.
He coughs, curling further into himself.
“I can go back in now. Was going to, in a second, but…” He can’t finish the thought, everything that comes to mind is either childish or worrying, neither of which he wants to be in front of Jawbone. He swallows thickly.
Jawbone leans into the railing behind him, getting comfortable. “There’s no rush, Riz. I mean, I do think you need to sleep at some point tonight, but that can wait a little. At least until your tail stops swishin’ like that.” Riz immediately tucks the thing under one of his legs, embarrassed at being betrayed by his own biology. His face burns.
“I’m fine. You’re right, I need to get some sleep before the exam tomorrow, or I’ll be totally useless to the party.” He doesn’t turn to look at Jawbone as he speaks, simply stares resolutely at some of the loose brick in front of him.
“Now I didn’t say that last part, kiddo. You need to sleep ‘cuz it looks like you haven’t gotten a proper eight hours in a while, and I can see it weighing on your shoulders with the rest of it.” Jawbone says, gently. Riz bristles, almost wants to hiss at him. What does he know about what Riz carries on his shoulders?
“I said I’m fine, Jawbone.” He grits, standing. “I should go.” Jawbone curses.
“Wait. Please.” Riz pauses, finally meeting his eyes. They’re as sharp as ever, but soft, too. If that makes any sense. Jawbone continues, “It kills me seein’ you like this kiddo. I feel like a broken record sayin’ this, but I really do mean it, I’m always here to talk if you need to. Or, even if you don’t want to talk I just- it just seems like you could use somebody, is all.”
Riz feels like he’s glitching. His mind is screaming at him to keep walking, to get back in the house, lay down, and close his eyes tight until the sleep takes. But he’s so warm. And he kind of wants to cry again and Jawbone would give him a hug, probably, if he asked for it. Right?
At war with himself, all he manages to do is freeze in his tracks and utter an intelligent, “Um.”
Jawbone smiles and pats the stone next to him.
“Come on. You don’t gotta say anything, but at least sit down. And- oh, here,” He reaches into one of his cardigan’s pockets and produces a small mini chocolate bar. “A little pick-me-up.”
Riz settles gingerly next to him, closer than before but not close enough to touch. He reaches over and takes the chocolate, movements slow as he raises his eyebrows.
Jawbone shrugs. “I always keep a few on me, just in case. Never know when you might need ‘em.”
Riz smiles, small and to himself, for the first time in what feels like hours. Jawbone grins back.
“There he is. If you want another, just ask, I should have one or two more on me.”
Then it’s silent for a good, long while. Riz stares into the pitch black that pushes up against the safe halo of light surrounding the house as he chews on silky chocolate. He can’t help but replay the conversation with his father over and over again in his mind. Jawbone’s head is tilted to the stars.
For all he knows- for all Riz ever knows- that could be the last conversation he is able to have with Pok until he dies again. The watch is what allows them to talk across planes and it, like everything else Riz is and owns, is breakable. It’s unlikely that the watch will break tomorrow (Riz is a ranged fighter, he never gets close if he can help it, nothing should get near enough to him to get to it…), but not impossible. Never impossible.
Something warm and wet drips down his chin and onto his fist, where its clenched around the blanket. Riz brings his other hand to swipe at his eyes. Fuck. He shouldn’t be crying like this. He thought he was cried-out.
Jawbone’s voice rings out from beside him, tender, “Kiddo.”
Riz shakes his head, curling further into the blanket as if the fabric might protect him from this mortifying situation.
“Sorry.” He mumbles. “I thought I was done with this part.”
It’s quiet for a moment.
“It’s okay to need to cry, Riz. Definitely nothing you need to apologize for.”
Riz shivers, somehow cold again, even with the blanket. He wants to burrow into Jawbone’s chest, to cling like he used to, to his mom before he grew out of it and became a man (he was so young, then; he should’ve given it more time, he could’ve given it more time). He doesn’t want to ask, though.
Doesn’t know if he can ask.
Jawbone looks down at him- shivering, hunched underneath a thin cotton blanket- and he must see something that Riz doesn’t mean to betray because his breath catches, and he does the asking for him.
“Can I hug ya, kid?”
Riz nods once, sharply, as soon as the words are in the air. Jawbone reaches out and gathers him up in his arms. Pressing him firmly, but gently, against his chest. Riz buries his face into his cardigan and allows himself a minute of foolishness.
He hiccups.
“I miss my dad, Jawbone. I wish he wasn’t dead.” His voice breaks on the last word, all he gets out is the ‘de’, and he leaves the rest to hang in the air with his sobs.
Jawbone’s hand comes up to rub lightly over his back. He doesn’t say anything, just allows Riz to cycle through his emotions.
“It’s not fair. It’s not fair that he’s gone and me and mom just have to deal with it.” Riz takes a deep breath and closes his eyes.
“Sometimes… I know it’s stupid and illogical, but sometimes I get mad at him. I get so furious with him. Because he’s not here. He didn’t do what he needed to do to be here for his son. And I know that’s wrong and he couldn’t help it and if he could choose to be here, he would, but it doesn’t stop the anger. I don’t like it. But I don’t know what to do with it because it’s not fixable. I can’t put it anywhere, so I just push it down and hope it goes away, eventually. It never goes away.”
Jawbone hums, and Riz can feel the vibration of it against his cheek. It reminds him of a cat purring, almost. If the cat smelled like dog.
“It’s okay to feel upset that your father was taken from you before you got the chance to know him. That’s not stupid or illogical. I’m sure he beats himself up about it just as much, if he’s anything like his son.”
Riz, despite himself, laughs.
“It’s nice getting to know him now.” He sniffs. “It’s just- I feel like I’m playing a game of catch-up every time we talk. Like I’m late to the race. Most kids know what their dads do for work before high school.”
“But it’s not a race, Riz.” Jawbone’s voice is low, but vehement. “No one is judging you for not knowing these things about your father, because you thought he was unreachable up until a year ago. The fact that you’re taking every opportunity to learn about him, that you spent so much time- even before you knew what he did for work- visiting his grave and updating him about your life, and still do, sometimes. It’s a testament to how much you love him. I think he knows that.”
The silence following those words stays for another minute or so before Riz huffs.
“But I don’t love him enough to bring him back, huh. There’s magic in any strong emotion, Kristin told me that, once. And I just started messing with magic stuff, but you would think that it wouldn’t be impossible. Not if the love was strong enough.”
Jawbone sighs, brings a hand to Riz’s hair and begins to card through it, almost absentmindedly. Riz freezes, then melts into it. It’s been so long since anybody played with his hair like this. His mom used to do it, when he was younger, but then the bills got higher, her shifts got longer. It fell to the bottom of the priorities list.
“You can’t do that to yourself, kid. You can’t. You think if Ms. Barkrock wanted it enough, was rageful enough, she coulda expelled the demon from her chest earlier?”
Riz shakes his head, slightly, afraid to dislodge jawbone’s hand. “Of course not. But that’s different-“
“Not really.” Jawbone cuts in, gently. “Point is, magic don’t work like that. Emotions are a factor, yes, but there’s so much else that goes into it. You love your dad so much, Riz, anyone can see that.”
Riz sniffles. “Thanks, Jawbone.”
Jawbone smiles where Riz can’t see, and ruffles his hair before allowing him to pull away.
“Anytime, kiddo.”
28 notes · View notes
Note
Do you have any hcs abt fig and riz as siblings?
oh how interesting
They fully forget that they’re kind of siblings most of the time. Riz has just been a him-and-his-mom team for so long and Fig is really focused on making sure Fabian knows they’re siblings that the fact that they’re in the same boat slips through the cracks a lot of the time.
Gorthalax takes them to an amusement park, as a “bonding experience”. It’s one of the best days any of them have. Fig insists they get really corny siblings themed t shirts from the gift shop. They take so many pictures and have so much fun, and it kind of shifts the way that they think about each other and spending time together as siblings.
They are, for the most part, relatively respected and popular at school. But that doesn’t stop the assholes. And one day, when Riz is getting bullied in the hall and absolutely can’t pull one of his weapons, Fig walks up, taps the guy on his shoulder, and then swings her bass at his shins. She follows this up with “leave my brother the fuck alone” and then brings Riz to Gilear’s office so they can report the guy. Riz is absolutely touched that she called him her brother in public, and makes sure to wear his theme park shirt to the next time he’s hanging out at Mordred on a weekend.
Riz does a lot of research into what it means to be an archdevil and what the expectations are in terms of responsibility for the leader of the bottomless pit (since Gorthalax probably doesn’t know). He then compiles the information into a digestible format and gifts it to Fig. She’s so grateful because it means she doesn’t have to look any of it up. She also shows this thanks by bringing him to hell as her litigator again, which he doesn’t love but he does appreciate.
55 notes · View notes