saddest, softest cryptid

Still thinking about how Muriel's route kicked off with Winter Soldier/Beauty and the Beast tropes, but then this huge beautiful wolf shows up to solve problems instead of creating them. I have never been so personally attacked or courted.

Thanks for giving me the pro-Spartacus sweet boy of my dreams.

I also super love that his tribe is depicted as bears AND eagles AND wolves on the tapestry. They depict themselves as a powerful, diverse group of predator species, yet their heritage is about planting, growing, herding, and protecting. Defending the land, leaving it better than they found it. This is so powerful, y’all. I really wish Muriel had some living relatives to lean on, but now he knows he is and was Loved and Cherished, that everything he values was shared and valued by his Family, and that he’s a miracle and a continuation of what all those haunting circles of stones represent.  I also love that he admits to still being confused about his feelings, because he so deeply internalized being a burden and how it shaped his lifelong identity and trauma, and that’s not going to go away overnight just because he learned his parents are heroes. That’s a LOT to sort through.  That’s when I really broke down. Muriel at their graves, confronting everything he thought he knew about himself. Going to pieces then apologizing for going to pieces. I’m having a Too Real Moment. 

Hyped for the impending Muriel chapter, and so excited for his growth as a character. Also, a recent interaction with a friend reminded me of the exquisite power of his choice to be peaceful. Choice being the key word. A person with no ability to be dangerous can be peaceful, but only because they are helpless to do otherwise. But a person who can be dangerous has the opportunity to either exploit that power and use it against others, or deliberately not use it, except in protection of others. Peacefulness is a choice. Muriel is one of the most physically capable and (potentially) magically powerful characters in the game, and his struggle with the ethical, moral way to use that strength is at the core of his story arc. That’s so fascinating to me, and I love that his instinct is always toward gentleness. 

MURIEL

Hyped for the impending Muriel chapter, and so excited for his growth as a character. Also, a recent interaction with a friend reminded me of the exquisite power of his choice to be peaceful. Choice being the key word. A person with no ability to be dangerous can be peaceful, but only because they are helpless to do otherwise. But a person who can be dangerous has the opportunity to either exploit that power and use it against others, or deliberately not use it, except in protection of others. Peacefulness is a choice. Muriel is one of the most physically capable and (potentially) magically powerful characters in the game, and his struggle with the ethical, moral way to use that strength is at the core of his story arc. That’s so fascinating to me, and I love that his instinct is always toward gentleness.