Shipper maniac

◽️Aro: Akrodamos, Aristandros or Arandros.

After some googling, Aristandros seems the most plausible? Meaning “Best man” or “Excellent Man”.

Aro’s era was Mycenaean Greece. Their script was Linear B, this offered the first written records of the Greek language and from what I’ve read Aro would be a shorten version of Aristandros.

◽️Caius: Kassondros, Gaius

So Caius is actually a Latin name (Gaius), it wouldn’t have existed in 1300 BC and certainly not in Mycenaean Greece. Caius probably would have changed his name. After some more googling, the authentic Mycenaean Greek name that could have at least evolved or be changed into Caius would be Kassandros.

◽️Marcus: Areimenes, Makhawon.

Again Marcus is from Latin origin 😭 If we take the Roman god of war, Mars, the equivalent in 1300bc Greece would be Ares. Following that, it could have been Areimenes. However if you want the same “Ma” sound then Makhawon is more fitting, derived from the word makhe meaning “battle”.

◽️Jane: Iohanna, Jehanne.

The name Jane didn’t exist until centuries after 800AD (when she was born). She was born to an Anglo-Saxon woman and Frankish soilder father. Iohanna would be rare in Anglo-Saxon England, but her father being Frankish could bring in some Latin names. This name would have evolved into Jane. Jehanne is the older French form of Iohannes. The name would have still been uncommon but with Frankish influence could be plausible? Only issue is most Jehannes are documented way later than 800 AD.

◽️Alec: Alexander/Alric.

OK HEAR ME OUT!! Alexander would have been rare for English commoners but with his father being a Frankish soilder, a more Roman sounding name like Alexander would have fit. Frankish empire obsessed with Roman heritage so it could have fit? But a more Saxon name would have been Alric, more acceptable for locality. Personally I like both, I suppose Alric would fit better historically.

Disclaimer❕I am in no way, shape or form a history expert, I just enjoy learning about history as a pastime, therefore created my following thoughts and analysis on the Volturi coven from twilight❕

Yes, he can read your mind so thoroughly you will not distinguish him from yourself. Yes, he can see your deepest thoughts, most personal memories and experience your life as if he himself has lived it. Yes, to be known like this is uncomfortable,

But it is not terrifying.

If his powers ended at "witnessing", he'd be no more useful than a skilled spy. If there was no danger, every vampire who had lost their memories after turning would be queuing at his door for a moment of his time. To enter their minds and open the locked doors for them would be no more than a short inconvenience, and a king who values their people would readily devote a few minutes of his evenings to the duty.

But there are no vampires at his door. And everyone with half a brain that finds themselves at the palace keeps their eyes to the floor, their words measured and pray the king takes no interest in them.

Because they know. They know, because they have seen.

There used to be a coven with a leader so unruly, so unpredictable, and so influential that the Volturi knew not how to address. A threat that was growing by the day, but one they could not execute without an uprising. And so the coven got an invite to the palace, a promised calm conversation, a modest feast and perhaps a treaty. The coven came, highly suspicious, armed and prepared to refuse every deal the Volturi offered. But the Volturi did not have to offer anything other than a handshake. The leader, prepared as ever but lacking in intel, reached forward to Aro's extended hand. There was nothing Aro could see in their mind that was an esteemed secret. And Aro shook his hand, no less and no more than perfectly timed, and when he let go the leader was no more. In his briefest exploration of the foreign mind he locked every door on every path he ran along on. He shut every window, drew very curtain, blew out each candle, and exited gracefully with none the wiser that their beloved leader had been entirely unmade.

So complete was his erasure that the Volturi did not need to execute a single vampire in that coven. They let them drink and feast as promised, and made them sign no treaty. But without a head, the snake can't but wither. Everyone who tried telling the leader who they used to be, what they were striving for and what has been done to them failed. In the place of the fiery rebel was now and forever a calm and rather hopeful vampire. Rootless and adrift and most importantly harmless. They lived for a long time. Joined another coven who had heard their past name, but did not know their face, who took them in as if they were merely a newborn robbed. They even promised their new member that one of the Volturi kings could help them remember.

When it's discussed, Desire always gets hatred as their opposing function... And it's just never sat right with me. I get it, the opposite of to Desire something can be distaste, unwanted vereses want. Thus hatred of a thing. But... Hatred is more then that, it's deeper than to not want. It's the all encompassing opposite of to Love. So either Desire does have dominion over all areas of the heart and is both Love and Desire....

"Love is stronger then desire."

But Desire shook their head. "They are the same thing."

The Sandman Book of Dreams

"For love is no part of the dreamworld. Love belongs to Desire, and Desire is always cruel."

The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House

But I don't think that's it. I think the answer may lay with Despair. The Twins are connected, one being split into two. Despair feeds Desire, Desire feeds Despair. Their functions intertwine in an inseparable way. The same should be true then of their reverse nature's. Hatred and Hope... Nice repeating Hs but there's no natural flow. I'd argue Desire's opposite is the lack of want, fulfillment. Essentially, to be at peace with what you have.

In Buddhist teachings by achieving a mental state where you can detach from all the passions, needs and wants of life, you free yourself and achieve a state of transcendent bliss and well-being. Aka... You shift from Desire, to Peace.

Now Hope and Peace, they go hand in hand. A natural flow from one to the other. With Hope comes Peace, with Peace comes Hope. They could be one golden, glowing, angelic being split down the middle.

So they're you have it, the Endless Twins...

Despair - Hope

Desire - Peace

Ps: I love the fandoms creation of Hope!Hob. But god do I love so much more the notion that Despair not only has the capacity within her to be Hope, but could one day reach a point where she could embody Hope of the Endless too.

“Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love. ”

"The three virtues (faith, hope, and love) represent the finest qualities of humanity. Through which, man can share in the nature of the divine. These three virtues allow true believers to merit eternal life."

Having another play with the virtures headcanon beacuse it keeps niggling away at the pack of my brain.

The show gives us two human characters who beautifully encompass Hope and Love...And strangely enough mirror their Endless partners beautifully. Obviously Hob is Hope to his core, so we have Dream and Hope. And throughout her entire arc Unity represents Love. Romantic love for Desire, maternal/familial love for her grandchildren. All perpetual and true. Thus Desire and Love.

But who would be the final pair of Faith and (....) be? My thoughts were Death/Johanna Constantine... Based on, 'Death is the ultimate test of Faith'. And boy does that lass face death. But I'm not 100%... 🤔

You are my sunshine,

My only sunshine.

You make me happy,

When skies are gray.

You’ll never know, dear,

How much I love you.

A Codywan and How to Train Your Dragon crossover that turned into a the Mandalorians factions are dragons AU, because I can never just do something simple and for the heck of it.

If you’re not interested the AU lore, leave now or suffer my rambling lol.

Basically, the idea is that Mandalorians started as a race that could shift into dragons. The Mand’alor line and those of most influence were notably ‘Fury’s (for example Mand’alor Tarre Viszla was a Nightfury and so is his generational line). But over time most Mandolorians who could shift were killed off or just lost the ability as more non-shifter Mandolorians married in. Eventually only a few of the Fury’s were around, and when Mandalore split most chose factions lead by the remaining Fury lines. AKA: the New Mandalorians/Lightfury’s, the Haat Mando'ade or True Mandalorians/Duskfury’s, and the Kyr’tsad or Death Watch/Nightfury’s.

Basically this also helps explain (in my head) why Mandalorians would follow Death Watch (terrorists) or the New Mandalorians (Intense Pacifist). It’s because they see those lines that can still shift as chosen leaders or a physical embodiment of the Ka’ra’s will.

How is Obi-Wan a shifter though? Well in this AU he’s the son of Tor Viszla. Long story short, early on when Obi-Wan was born he displayed being force sensitive, and Obi-WAN’s mom (Tor’s wife??? Idk it’s not important to the story) basically went ‘Aw hell naw’ and tried to drown Obi-Wan. Only to be stopped by a traveling Jedi who stole Obi-Wan and saved him. Totally unaware that this baby was Mandalorian, the son one of the biggest Mandalorian factions, AND also one of the last few existing Mandalorian dragon shifters. (Also Obi-Wan’s mom doesn’t want to admit that she lost Obi-Wan to a Jedi and just tells Tor that he was force sensitive and she succeeded in drowning him).

Maybe I’ll get into it later but basically Obi-Wan grows up as normal in the Temple, but obviously at some point he shifts and has the biggest panic of his life. But with help from friends (Quinlan, Garen, Siri, and Bant) he figures out shifting (enough to control it) and helps keep it a secret (Mandalorians and Jedi still don’t have best relations and Obi-Wan is paranoid about being kicked out of the Order anyways *cough cough Brandomeer cough cough Melinda/Daan*). To be clear, Obi-Wan isn’t like ashamed of what he is. He just doesn’t want the judgments of coming from CLEAR Mandalorian roots, and Death Watch at that. Plus he kinda just decides to not think about how he’s pretty much definitely related to well known terrorist Tar and Pre Viszla, because then he doesn’t have to address it. Besides he’s happy as a Jedi.

Anyways, NOW CODY-

So without getting to detailed (mission failed lol) all the clones ARE shifters (Duskfury’s just like Jango Fett), but they have it suppressed by the Kaminoans (probably part of their chips? I haven’t thought it fully out yet). BUT THINGS HAPPEN, probably Cody and Obi-Wan get stranded alone somewhere for a long time and Cody gets his chipped fucked up somehow, and now he’s shifting into a dragon???? And scaring the shit out of both him and Obi-Wan. But Obi-Wan exposes himself as a dragon shifter as well to comfort Cody and show that he will keep his secret. Plus he clearly understands him. (At this point they both are under the impression the clones aren’t shifters, and think Cody is just an outlier and “late bloomer” so to speak). Cue them learning how to be dragons together and be comfortable in their other form.

And eventually they get rescued and find out somehow all the clones are shifters, and therefore find the chips and discover Palpatine’s plan, SO THE GALAXY IS SAVED!

*a command batch that looks absolutely pissed, Wolffe is outright growling at them, Cody is making silent threats at them, Fox has the neutral face of barely controlled anger on and Bly and Ponds are polishing weapons for absolutely no reason at all*

Yessssss :D

---

"Now you listen to me Crowley, you are going to tell your car—"

"Our car."

Aziraphale stops. Blinks. Gives up on fighting with the door handle.

"What did you say?" he asks.

"It's our car," Crowley repeats, more of a mumble this time, looking away from Aziraphale. A raindrop runs down the window, and he follows it with his eyes until it pools at the bottom, joining the great conference of former raindrops gathering there. They're in for a night of it, by the looks of the sky. "You said that. You made that true. So you're as much at fault as I am for it locking us in."

"I don't see how this is my fault. You kidnapped—"

"Kidnapped? I rescued you. That's. That's what I do. That's what the almighty made me for, I think," he huffs, still not looking at Aziraphale.

@softest-punk ‘s amazing writing was the inspiration behind this, ( the text here is from the fic) !please go read their work it is divineee!

1) He holds the flaming sword correctly, with the dominant hand at the top, making sure not to “choke the thumb” in the grip (I’m using a gladius sword as reference here).

Image credit: AZTimT on BladeForums.

2) He seems perfectly comfortable holding it, despite it being on fire. He’s just walking around with it.

3) In the book, we have this line:

He’s referring to lighting the sword on fire, be he could also be referring to the knowledge of how to use the sword. 

4) Unlike War, Aziraphale does not do fancy tricks while holding the sword. There’s a certain level of discipline and respect he gives it. He sees it as a weapon, not a toy.

This is the most dramatic movement he does with it. Also, notice his stance: He places his feet shoulder-length apart. In a fighting stance.

Aziraphale doesn’t want to use a sword. He doesn’t want to fight in a war. But that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t know how to use a sword. How to hold it. How to stand while holding it. And the respect a weapon should be given.