The Dream Team

"quit your job"

"why"

"join our polycule"

Found the Cards

OKAY I WAS NOT EXPECTING PEOPLE TO LIKE MY RESPONSE TO THE REPOST AND I APPRECIATE IT A LOT 😭😭

Now onto what I want to say, it's about what I stated earlier. There is something I would like to address that I noticed a bit after spending some time in the greek mythology whirlpool of wonderful chaos. Although there really aren't that many, I still want to address how there are people out there who seem to get very confused about Odysseus's character and what's what, and then accidentally say things that never actually happened with his character and then it leaves everyone upset and embarrassed which sucks because it's not really anyone's fault, and not many people are actually explaining it all, so that's what I'm going to do here to hopefully save some people from having to go through everything. I hope this doesn't get buried in the Tumblr algorithm as I'm honestly not doing this for likes or praise or any of that, I really just want this to get out there and help others get a better grasp of it all so everyone can enjoy their greek mythology fun in peace and maybe even help others get into the fun as well! ^^

First off I have to state this:

The only canon Odysseus is in Homer's Odyssey and Homer's Iliad, he was the creator of the character and all the characters within both book series. If the one you are reading isn't authored by Homer then it is an iteration therefore it is not canon to the actual story.

Now with that being said, and before I go any further, this doesn't mean you shouldn't read the different iterations or modern takes on the character, I mean why else do you think aus and fanfiction are a thing as well? (And ones created for this story as well because this fanbase is LIVELY) That's basically exactly what this all is except it's about an ancient story. People create different versions, spread different information which is either not what happened in the canon story or completely taken out of context. And these things happen, it's a story all the way back in ancient times, games like telephone are bound to happen and that's okay, no one should be at eachother's throats about it as it's out of people's control and happens with many and I mean many modern shows and stories as well.

But what I do suggest is just applying basic principles to it like we do now, such as:

*If you read an iteration of the story and you mention something from it, make sure you state it's from an iteration so that way people won't get confused with the actual story

*You don't have to read all books of Homer's Odyssey and the Iliad, but when you hear something from it you should do a quick look up about it to make sure you have all the context and that it was from Homer's story and not an iteration.

*Don't assume anything and make a comment about it immediately. I am sure every single person here did the same about something regarding Homer's Odyssey and Iliad at some point, I can almost guarantee it. If not then great for them ^^. But the point is, if you jump to assumptions and misinterpret something then make a claim about it, unfortunately the results don't turn out in your favor. So it's best to do your own research on it first before taking what is said as fact.

Basically just do your own research first before jumping to any conclusions, besides learning more about something can you discover something you may really enjoy that you haven't thought about before! :D

Now, onto the real elephant in the room, which is Odysseus's character. And we are going to be talking about Odysseus's character in Homer's Odyssey and Homer's Iliad and hopefully this helps to clear some things up for those that both aren't looking to get into the whole story and for those who are, so here we go! ^^

"Odysseus cheated on his wife! He committed Adultery!" : This is the biggest one that I have heard, and it is in fact false. Odysseus is unfortunately a major victim of SA both from Circe and Calypso, and while Circe's was more subtle, Calypso's wasn't as she kept him there for seven years. Odysseus was one of the few men in greek mythology who was 100% loyal and faithful to his wife till the very end and beyond. He didn't want any other woman, he wanted Penelope. He fought for Penelope, he loved Penelope and no one else.

"Odysseus committed mass murder and killed a bunch of people!": If you are talking about what happened with the Trojan horse then yes, you are correct, however this is often taken out of context. The truth of the matter is that is just how war is. During the fight they already lost Achilles (basically their version of a superhero) in battle, and Odysseus being the advisor had to weigh out the options between the two which is either continue as is and risk losing more lives or create the horse and not risk as many lives. It was a desperation move, and all of it was thrown onto Odysseus to take charge, but the situation needed to be done or no one would make it back home alive.

"Didn't he literally throw and kill a baby? What's up with that?": Yes but again, taken out of context, Odysseus was given a vision that the baby would grow older and kill a bunch of innocent people, so he had to make the choice whether he should kill the baby or not. Zeus was standing there like "Yeet the baby, Odysseus, yeet the child." And Odysseus, not wanting anyone he cared for to die, killed the child. It was a tough choice that he was faced with, as it would be for anyone in his shoes.

"Wasn't he overconfident and got in trouble a lot? Didn't his pride cause him to reveal his name to the Cyclops? He really must not be a good person." : Yes for the first part but no for the second part, he was overconfident and that would sometimes get him into trouble, like with the Cyclops. He was young, bold, confident, and although said to be one of the wisest men there was (which is true) he too had to grow and mature out of his own hubris. He wasn't perfect, and neither are we, he made mistakes but nothing outlandish that made him bad, it just showed that he was human and had done his own mistakes in life, just like we have.

There are many other things as well, Odysseus killed one of the kings on the Trojan side of war and took his horses but he did that because he knew one of the only ways they could stand a chance in the war is getting those horses. Odysseus's friend Ajax the greater killed himself after Odysseus defeated him for the armor of Achilles, however what happened after that was none of Odysseus's fault, as Athena decided to be the one to drive Ajax the greater mad and it caused him to kill the sheep and then himself afterwards out of shame. Odysseus's even tried pleading for forgiveness from him in the underworld (even though none of it was his fault) but Ajax the greater refused to acknowledge him and walked off. Then you have Palamedes, in Homer's Odyssey he was sent to bring Odysseus to war, so he decided to put Odysseus's infant son in front of his plow which caused Odysseus to swerve out of the way, and Odysseus was then forced to go to war to protect his son which then later caused all of these things to happen throughout both stories. Odysseus didn't take that well and he cleverly placed a forged letter and gold in Palamedes tent and got him framed for treason, and Palamedes was stoned to death (and honestly he had that coming)

Now, does any of this mean I want you to go and do what Odysseus did? No, please for the love of god please don't. What all of this does mean though, is that Odysseus was not a bad person, but instead a good guy put in some of the worse positions and situations possible surrounded by people who spoke with their fists rather than their heart. In fact, despite his "I'm so balling right now" personality causing him to get into trouble, he was one of the kindest, wisest, loyal and empathetic people you could meet back then which was incredibly rare back in those times. He went to literal hell and back for 20 years just to get to his family again, he stuck by his men despite them screwing things up multiple times over, same situation was with Agamemnon and Achilles as well, so he kind up to a fault. He was kind respectful to his people, he didn't care what status you were or where you came from, you were treated with respect and kindness all the same, and that inspired one of his workers to be the same when he invited a certain beggar in his home, and that act of kindness spread through the heart of Ithaca as a whole, but when he left it was all gone. To have that much of an impact on people because of kindness just shows how good of a person he really was. And with happened to Ithaca when he left it, it also showed how much the world did not deserve that kindness, but it certainly needed it.

So in conclusion, yes Odysseus made mistakes, and he was by no means perfect, but he shouldn't be seen as perfect or expected to be perfect. He is a really good guy dealing with getting screwed over by literally everyone around him. He made mistakes, he broke down, he fell at times, but he got back up, never lost his kind heart or his true self, and in the end made it back to his family and got a happy ending. Odysseus was and always will be the embodiment of what it truly means to be a human being going throw the troubles of life, what if feels like to go through it and how it affects certain actions you take, and to stay true to your heart no matter what, and overall to never give up. And I hope those who are out there who hate his character due to misinformation are able to see his character for what he is rather than what others make him out to be.

WOW THAT WAS A LOT OF WORDS, I was not expecting to type that much but I really needed to get this out there. I hope all you greek geeks have a lovely day and night and I'll see you next time! ^^

I gotta take a nap after all of that ^^"

to kill a kingdom sketches

I decided to make a part two to this comic I made some while back.

Not sure if its cannon to Refinedtale, but it does use some of that timelines mechanics so I’m tagging it as such. Do not tag as ship btw.

The “burning bones” concept is one I have yet to draw a proper comic explanation for because I’m still planning it out. Hopefully this hurt/comfort comic is enough to compensate for what I will post next. (-公- ;)

when draco malfoy was born his mother made the smartest decision of her (and his) life

she sent him to live with her cousin

aka an au where sirius raises draco

NO JUST HEAR ME OUT OKAY

narcissa knew what lucius was like and refused to have her son raised to be like him so she went to the one person who got out

sirius black

(she would have went to her sister but she had a kid of her own)

and 20 year old sirius was fucking ecstatic because “oh cissy of COURSE i’ll take care of draco thank you for putting your everlasting trust in me”

and sirius always wanted a kid and draco was only a few days old but he was so tiny and remus looked like a dad when holding him and that was it, heart taken

and so, dad!sirius and baby!draco headcanons GO

sirius charmed dracos hair to be dark because “he’s a black goddamit why does he look like lucius so much”

sirius took draco over to the potters for play dates even though harry and draco didn’t get along that well

draco adored prongs and often clung to him whenever they were over

sirius dresses draco up in miniature versions of his outfits for the day, with a matching binkie and everything

sirius took draco for rides on his motorcycle even though remus, james, and lily said it was a bad idea

draco not being able to sleep unless sirius enchanted stars over his crib

draco not being able to sleep anywhere but sirius’ flat (no matter how much he like prongs, he did not stay overnight)

sirius letting draco play and pull on his hair, refusing to cut it because draco cried whenever he did as little as pulled it back into a bun

sirius playing queen records to get draco to calm down from fits

sirius and draco taking naps together instead of sirius getting work done

sirius taking draco to order meetings and everyone being shocked because “when did you have a child sirius?”

sirius accidentally leaving his wand somewhere draco could get it and coming back to find broken picture frames and floating balls

SIRIUS AND JAMES HAVING MINI QUIDDITCH MATCHES WITH HARRY AND DRACO

dracos first christmas, sirius cries and pretends he doesn’t

dracos first word is “pads” and sirius cried again

sirius always sends letters and pictures to narcissa and constantly tells draco stories about his mum

sirius knowing damn well draco would not be a gryffindor and still dressing him up in red and gold

sirius spoiling the hell out of draco, candy, toys, clothes, any and everything

sirius clapping and excitedly cheering when draco takes his first steps

sirius dramtically flooing to remus when draco’s first tooth starts coming in

dracos birthday is always over the top and has tons of balloons and cake and music playing the entire time

draco hating the snow as much as sirius hates the snow, so while james and harry play outside, they pair is snuggled on the couch by the fire

draco has a habit of chewing on his hands and sirius is the only one that can replace it with his binkie without him crying

draco is PICKY and gets that directly from sirius “i cant eat that it’s mushy” black

sirius turning into padfoot because draco absolutely adored dogs

sirius telling draco stories about dragons

SIRIUS CALLING DRACO “BABY DRAGON”

sirius getting a magical dragon tattoo and draco would spend hours looking at it fly on his arm

sirius taking draco to a muggle zoo and of course of all things draco is obsessed with the snakes

he also takes a keen liking to the birds

draco only likes eating fruits and will spit out any and all veggie food he gets

sirius gets an apron that says “paddy” on it and things it’s the most clever thing ever

draco really really likes muggle baby food, puffs, and so does sirius so an entire cabinet is filled with them

sirius goes crazy trying to baby proof the flat when draco starts walking and is beyond frustrated because “can you please not touch everything dragon?”

sirius buying one of those muggle swings and enchanting it to suit dracos mood and draco fucking loves that thing

when they go to restaurants sirius dips his finger in his drink or sauce so draco can have some

sirius wears the baby carrier ALL the time, you’ll never see him without it, even if draco isn’t in it

when draco starts teething, sirius freaks out because draco doesn’t usually cry and now he won’t stop crying and sirius calls lily for help

sirius takes to wearing one of dracos teething toys on a necklace so draco stops stuffing his shirt or his own fingers in his mouth

draco one time chewed on sirius’ wand and that was a disaster and remus decided he’d be in charge of keeping the wands while draco was in his moods

draco didn’t have a special blanket but he did have a special plush dog that sirius got him the day he turned 2 weeks old and draco never went anywhere without it

just. sirius raising draco and being a cute family that’s IT

pinterest showed me some screenshots of posts that gave me the concept for an au where both harry and ron are sorted slytherin & draco is just slightly less rude in the first book. i could go into why i think this makes a lot of sense for ron but i won't. i've affectionately dubbed them the platinum quartet in my head and they will not leave me the fuck alone

I can't believe that this shit has to be said in the year of 2023 but if you have nothing positive to say about any ship then stay the fuck out of their tag.

Beauty and the three Whining Little Bitches—