#he's so stoic

[emmafrostyyy]

y'all sleeping on Astarion/Lae'zel bc this moment is so...the way the flippant demeanor drops and he doesn't hesitate to call her out for sticking with her version of Cazador like their relationship is so underrated fr...

sitting down writing this bullshit like let me peel it like an onion a bit and elaborate why this pairing is fascinating to me

It's really interesting how during the most cathartic, life-altering moment in Astarion's questline, the reactions of the other companions are more about the moral wrongness/guilt of sacrificing innocent lives. Lae'zel doesn't do that and instead relates to his hurt.

She knows what's he's feeling, the lack of control, the unfairness of being powerless for too long. This is a woman who just found out her entire life purpose was built on lies, discarded and hunted by her own people after outliving her usefulness, and groomed to basically die for an insane power-hungry lich queen. She knows all too well that power isn't always real freedom. Her first instinct is to empathize with Astarion to steer him away from his hate and resentment.

Astarion/Lae'zel is so interesting to me because they're such a classic "can we make each other worse or make a better person out of the other?".

They both have genuine appreciation for violence and respect each other's ruthlessness. Astarion was used as a weapon of seduction while Lae'zel was of warfare. Sex with people is meaningless and not real intimacy for them, and while both have little understanding/experience of interpersonal relationships beyond the physical, they still feel and love very deeply. They have no frame of reference for things like friendship and warmth, but they badly want all of that and more, even if they don't know it yet.

In-game they can sleep with each other, which is basically the foundation of the normal Tav/Astarion romance. Lae'zel saw him during combat and got horny, who knows. Astarion who's used to luring people with his charms, takes up Lae'zel's blunt offer because she's a strong hardened warrior that can provide protection and be a worthy ally, and he doesn't know how to say no. Navigating the complications between one who wants to be seen beyond as a sex object, and one who comes from a totally alien culture with no concept of love/family/connections and only sex is honestly really compelling to me. It's a transactional, mutually beneficial thing with no emotional expectations. Once you get past the skeevy rockiness of their early relationship, I really like the idea of them slowly seeing something past the exterior and realizing they may have harshly misjudged the other, an unspoken friendship blooms, and in comes the realization that they are essentially loners longing for kindness and a comforting touch in the most desperate of situations.

Lae'zel is prideful, direct, has no sense of courtship talk, and doesn't hold back her thoughts the slightest--she's not sweet/agreeable and what you see is really what you get, which I imagine would be disarming for Astarion who's used to vacuous flattery and has difficulty trusting others. But she's also insanely protective, passionate, loyal, and an initiator-- every romance scene is triggered by her first and she's always showing effort towards her relationships, which would mesh well with Astarion who does need someone to nudge him.

She doesn't purposely suppress her feelings, she's just simply at loss at how to express them sometimes due to her wildly different upbringing. She stops the sparring match you agree to and an easy vulnerability slips instantly out of her: "I don't want to hurt you. I want to protect you, and for you to protect me." and "Thus far I've taunted you, devoured you, battled you. Now I want more than anything to soothe you." are romantic as fuck and Astarion of all people really needs to hear that tbh.

Astarion is also someone who struggles with reinforcing his boundaries, and a key theme in Lae'zel's romance is that she encourages and wants you to challenge her and learn to stand your ground. It's not gentlest method, but hey, relationships are about having to make an effort to learn each other's language.

I think he also would take pleasure "educating her on the matters of Fay-run" (I believe there's a whole banter with him teasing her and teaching her pet names) and would get a kick out of coaxing Lae'zel out of her shell with her shyness at showing public affection, and making her blush. Also it simply would be fucking funny to see Astarion who's used to easy seduction, trying to pass a persuasion check just to get a smooch and generally having to work to earn regular kisses from Lae'zel lmfaooo

Lae'zel also initially struggles to see her chains as chains. When she learns about Vlaakith's betrayal, she copes instantly through denial and shuts it down. Astarion is NOT having it and calls her out, he knows her well enough to recognize that she would value blunt honesty above all.

I imagine he also despises her lack of self-preservation, the way her entire identity is tied to duty and being in service of others, and doesn't understand her desire to still help/liberate the people that want her dead and are hunting her down. He wants to make this duty-bound soldier realize that looking out for herself, and putting herself first may not be the worst thing in the world.

They're so similar to each other but are also polar opposites in some ways that make a more equal, balanced romance I think. It's not a simple, one-sided, feel-good "she/he can fix her/him" fantasy because both of them have to earn each other's love, actually cut through the other's flaws, and actively motivate each other to be better versions of themselves.

They're not at all the other's ideal guiding hand. It's rough, jagged, and imperfect, but that's how healing goes. It's so far from being the healthiest relationship -- but even if their belief systems differ, their moral compass does often align. I imagine it's a slight relief for them to have a partner where there would be less shame and judgment when they expectedly, occasionally slip up and fall into their bad habits.

Also, man, the "You showed me the betweens and beyonds. Beyond war and peace, beyond passion and obsession, most importantly, you showed me freedom.", "First you were my wound, now you were my cure.", "But you saw something else in me - someone else I could be. Someone who could break the cycle of power and terror that started centuries ago.." lines really hit hard when applied to them.

Of course, they can also make each other worse, feed into the other's negative traits that will bring out the worst part of themselves. It's this duality of their pairing that is very interesting to explore, the way it can steer in either direction because it's an intense, fraught relationship at its core.

#when he gets called by omeluum “child of the dark” and her “child of the stars” like yeah..the squid man is being literal but he Gets It fr. #lae'zel #astarion #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 meta #astarion ancunin #astarion x lae'zel #lae'zel x astarion #the rarest of rarepairs they dont even got a ship name...this is so tragique we need to discuss the pathos and potential of this pairing #bg3 lae'zel #bg3 astarion #also im a sucker for stoic knight/court darling trope and whatever variations of it yeah #bloodbruise

[saitamasgreencactus]

that's the obvious trope I fell for, I'm so easy

#he's so full of love and ideas on the inside #but nope he'll mostly show his stoic arrogant facade #the sandman #sandman #sandman netflix #the sandman netflix #morpheus #netflix the sandman #netflix sandman #lord morpheus #dream #tom sturridge

[catmask]

would love to be a cool stoic guy. unfortunately i never shut up

#instead im dating a cool stoic guy #(read: has autism) #i think its funny when people think forrest looks initmidating without talking to him just because hes tall and built like a brick house #and looks blank faced hes just scaaaarreed #also he smiles so sweetly and handsomely if u can make him laugh (my only skill) #txt #scratchpost

[luckyjorabbit]

Hank hill and dale gribble comic 👍

#Smthn abt croc snapping and being crazy is so funny to me help haha #I laughed so much drawing his expressions here gahhhhh #Maybe cuz hes so stoic.... It makes it x10 more funny to see him explode idk #Love them boffff ♡ #One Piece #Dofuwani #Dofladile #sir crocodile #donquixote doflamingo #Shichibukai #Comic #Digital #More Ipad SHit I lowkey hate it but at least its gettin me to finish stuff HMPH!!!!!!! #Fanart #Edit; fixed crocs rings lmfao

[mroddmod]

little scrapped comic bc it felt a bit ooc to me in hindsight

#tbb #the bad batch #the bad batch season 2 #the bad batch season 3 #tbb tech #tbb omega #i was worried that this wouldn’t really come across as i intended #i’ve heard a lot of people complain about the characterization of tech in fanon #they make him a lot less capable than he is in canon just because he is the ‘nerd’ of the team #which i totally agree with #so i didn’t want it to seem like i was doing the same #i just think that tech would have a difficultly expressing some of his vulnerability around his brothers because they are so often stoic #(and frequently make fun of one another) #and omega might be the first person he feels comfortable in letting that side of him show #idk #just a sweet idea to me #anyway i decided i wasn’t going to finish this because of my fear of being misinterpreted but i did like how these sketches turned out #so here :) #a little treat #mods art #my art #mods draws #star wars #sw tbb #star wars the bad batch

[chipchopclipclop]

sorry for making your boyfriend a glass canon wizard who keeps standing in melee range astarion. im sure this helped you emotionally with that power trip you really wanted to go on

#chipchopdraws #baldurs gate 3 #bg3 #bg3 tav #astarion #have my stoic charms and tendency to blow myself up enraptured you. what about my lack of self regard. what abt the necromancy #realistically thinking about their dynamic is so. funny to me #sorry you picked him to seduce astarion hes really easy. in too many ways. #WORLD OF GAYS.PNG #blood #forgot that one

[bauhin]

the Liu siblings have no sense of social propriety because of pretty privilege

#liu mingyan #liu qingge #svsss #lqg #scum villian self saving system #think about it though. lqg doesn’t feel the need to act in a socially acceptable way because he has the raw power to dismiss that #lmy (though canonically she’s popular with her peers and isn’t a loner like her simp brother) doesn’t have to be prim and proper #bc she has a lot of soft power in her beauty and she could gut you #like a fish #yknow #so I’m assuming they weren’t raised to really give a shit about all that social propriety #lmy can be polite and stoic from her xianshu peak training. one on one with her brother she is unhinged

[zeroducks-2]

When I see Jason and Bruce acting like the stereotypical "prodigal son and gruff but loving father" (in canon!) my blood boils.

Jason died. Bruce did not avenge him, not even "playing by the rules", so not even by arresting the Joker. He didn't do JACK SHIT after his boy was murdered. And once Jason came back, Bruce slit his throat in order to save the life of the man who murdered him, and then left him to die in a burning building.

They should be unable to coexist in the same room let alone speak let alone have a "difficult but ultimately loving relationship". I hate you DC I HATE YOU I HATE YOU I HATE

#the enormous injustice of what happened to Jason is hard to even process #he's one of the most mistreated mainstream characters I've ever seen (as in mistreated by the writers and directors) #this boy died and his family didn't lift a finger and suddenly he comes back and everything is his fault #it's his fault for dying it's his fault for being traumatized it's his fault for suffering it's his fault for being angry it's HIS FAULT #while Bruce keeps being heroic and stoic and in the right even if he slits a boy's neck in order to save his murderer's life #because how dare Jason demand love and demand justice and demand his pain to be seen and heard and acknowledged #aaarghbgvnhgrghenvvfkj I know this is nothing new but I'm hella stressed so this is going to be my emotional outlet for today apparently #bruce wayne #jason todd #my meta

[lilac-loserr]

I think the reason lwj is so quiet around wwx is because he goes completely fucking stupid when wwx is around. Like full on no thoughts head empty (except for gay thoughts). He can’t open his mouth because he cannot predict what kind of garbled disaster of syllables will spill out if he does. Everything he says in canon has been rehearsed in his head and whispered under his breath fifteen times at minimum before he can even dare to try to say it, lest he accidentally looks into wei ying’s eyes at the wrong moment, causing him to forget everything he was just about to say and also how to walk in a straight line.

Just. Give me stupid lwj.

#don’t get me wrong I love me a good stoic lwj #and I’m not saying I think he’s outgoing or anything #I’m just saying he probably talks more when wwx isn’t around #because that’s the only time he trusts his own ability to speak #I mean we all know the books/show is from wwx’s perspective and wwx is an unreliable narrator #so he may not have made that observation about lwj #I’m on team stupid lwj #mdzs #mo dao zu shi #wei wuxian #lan wangji #wangxian

[columboscreens]

#columbo #season 4 #negative reaction #god peter falk was so good as columbo #perfect expression. his mouth is stoic but his eyes are cracking up #you know columbo told this story to every person he saw for the next 5 years

[wormspoodle]

03 sillies bc they are my favorites

#hc that 03 raph doesn’t mind mikey rambling to him but he also gets annoyed/ overstimulated easily so he can only handle so much #idk #also I just think 2012 leo would think 03 leo’s stoic leader vibe is very cool #2003 tmnt #tmnt 2003 #tmnt 2003 raph #tmnt 2003 mikey #tmnt 2003 leo #rottmnt mikey #tmnt 2012 leo

[bluegiragi]

Does ghost have trouble staying person shaped? From what you said about his gloves is it more of looking more clawed or does his hands and/or body just become more and more wispy/‘incoherent’ if that makes sense?

Sort of a mix of the two? You all haven’t really seen Ghost when he fully embraces his wraith side yet. But when it does happen, he becomes a lot less solid, less human looking. Its effect is limited to the ends of his limbs at the moment, which are kept in line with gloves and socks/boots. You can tell when he starts to lose control over himself when he starts getting wispy.

#feel free to look at past comics to see where he starts wisping it up #he’s stoic mostly so it’s nice to have ab external way to show how he really feels #askbox #anon

[fanfic-gremlin-ft-trauma]

something that a lot of people don’t seem to understand about Zuko is that:

the guy’s a huge fucking dork. he’s such a goof. a silly guy even.

like when I read fics and some of them characterise him as being all ‘oh I’m so shy abt my bf like I’m gonna be all stoic and tsundere blah blah blah.’ are u kidding? did we watch the same show? like if we’re talking abt Canon Content™️ then,,, look at how he was around Mai??? he was so loving and adoring and goofy and smiley???

like listen, if him and Sokka were to actually date, he’d be such a lil goof about him. giggling kicking his feet under the covers blushing even. cuz this dude runs on Self Hatred so he’d b like: ‘pretty boy??? paying attention to m e ???’ n then he’d go and smile to himself and continue to be in post bf brushed my hand afterglow for like the whole day

#zuko #zukka #atla #character rant #like r u guys kidding me he’s so dumb abt his love interests #(affectionate) #I’m not saying grump stoic Zuko doesn’t have a place bc of course he does #like #that’s 90% of his mood for the show #I’m just saying when it comes to people that he’s Got It Bad For #he’s so giddy abt them

[hime-bee]

Has this been done yet

#I just saw a fic on AO3 that reminded me of this tweet and i couldn't help myself #i was giggling the entire time i made this #Zayne is so funny i love how stoic he is while also still being a menace #love and deepspace #L&DS #meme #l&ds zayne

[dedlit]

#art #zosan #roronoa zoro #sanji #one piece #in their late 30s #perona would want zoro by her side on her big day #zoro actually took great care in preparing his speech but he’s a nervous wreck with a stoic face #sanji still gives him extra motivation 😂 #I love long hair Sanji … so precious 😭

[starflungwaddledee]

Oooo starstruck dee has little stars at the bottom of her feet! Are they just aesthetic or would they make imprints into the ground? (like pawprints)

exactly like that! though she's not the only one...

edit: might need to add some additional dialogue to this to make it more clear, but a clarification in the interim; he knows about his own footprints. he's just surprised to see something similar already there when he knows he's only just landed. he lifts his own shoe to confirm that they're not identical (and also to reveal this to the viewer). seems his stoicism beat off the clarity in this one, sorry 😭

#meta knight #starstruck dee #have had this one sitting around for *months* while i bit my nails on posting it #and then i thought maybe i *shouldn't* during the shipaganza bc it's not a direct prompt; though i do think you can read it that way #and for ~Reasons~ i needed to post this one sooner rather than later so i had to bite the bullet. #though meta knight has understandably been the second most prompted. they do indeed have the Funnest Possible Dynamic for it #stoic guy and the bug eyed little Creature he doesn't really trust as far as he could throw her (long long way) #so just to clarify this one is NOT for the shipaganza but you can read it that way if you want to #this is just a canon scene between them from her storyline. this is just something they canonically share. starry eyed idiots. #also fwiw i think i probably picked up the shoe-patterns for the knights from postitnotes7 #been a headcanon in the back of my mind for a long while but i'm pretty sure i osmosis'd it from their work #especially after drawing post's designs so much for the hnkss. i temporarily forgot how i used to draw their armour ngl #and also btw starstruck deetectives psspsps #i'm planning a much better post about this later (probably in march) but i'm going to start using this tag for Important Posts for y'all #🎀🔍 #<- for the starstruck deetectives when there's something significant in the post. #i worry about making it 'too easy' but also want stuff to be accessible. it's just for fun? the OC lore game! ARG but it's just my oc. #that would be fun right? maybe? is that too indulgent? i could probably pull it off if folks were actually interested enough to participate #anyway!! go to bed starflung #also if you read this far: anon is open again! still open for shipaganza prompts but i'm not gonna be finished them in february 😂