bit of a late arrival to this fandom, but better late than never, i suppose!
1. How did you hear about the books?
about a year ago, i was doing research on the zodiac for an urban fantasy project iโm working on, tales from omphalos, when i found the house ophiuchus info page on the zodiac website. unfortunately life got in the way and i forgot the series for a while, but a little while ago i remembered zodiacโs worldbuilding andย got sucked right back in!
2. What is your favorite moment from the series so far?
itโs hard to choose just one moment, but iโd have to say skarlet and rhoโs first meeting in black moon for how atypical it is. we know skarlet is the hypotenuse in rho and hysanโs love triangle, but she doesnโt act like the stereotypical petty Other Woman at all. sheโs charismatic, sheโs genuinely fun to be around, and she has sympathetic motives and ambitions. above all, sheโs actually super nice towards rho,ย and doesnโt let her feelings get in the way of their political collaboration. (and then thirteen rising assassinated her character. yes i am still bitter about it why do you ask)
3. Which House are you from?
house leo!
4. What do you like about your House?
artistry pride is something iโd really love to be a part of as an aspiring author, i have blaze and trax (both criminally underrated characters imo) as my housemates, and our zodai wield FLAMING SWORDS in battle. whatโs not to love?
5. If you had to change Houses, which House would you pick?
since leo really vibes with my passion for art, this is definitely a tricky question! probably either libra (police brutality is a thing of the past with bind, and their government seems like they have their act together), scorpio (muchย waterworld. much ambition. much cool tech. wow), or sagittarius (diversity, democracies where the voices of the young and non-complacent can be heard, and really vibrant cities are all things i appreciate)
6. Which system would you most like to visit?
capricorn, no question. the zodiax is THE single most location in the entire zodiac bar none to me - an ancient complex the size of a planet, its oldest curators having access to transportation systems most inhabitants donโt even know about? an archive of humanityโs collective knowledge, so massive it has hotels and restaurants within it because leaving to sleep or eat is just so impractical? LET ME TOUR IT. LET ME UNCOVER ITS MYSTERIES I KNOW THEY EXIST (i think history is rad okay)
7. If you got to choose, which Zodiac technology would you like to have?
probablyโฆthe tattoo? i donโt have anywhere enough knowledge about neuroscience/engineering to design my own, but assuming that i did, iโd love to design a tattoo that can interface with my brain and with digital art software, so that i can turn whatever ideas i have in my head into artwork!
8. Which character would you want as a best friend?
skarlet. sheโs six feet tall, buff as all hell, super attractive, prefers diplomacy to violence but still perfectly capable of kicking ass, and an outspoken risersโ rights activist. whatโs notย to love?
(though knowing the type of people i usually hang out with, iโd probably end up with like. twain or gyzer as my best friend. one can dream though)
9. Which sign would you like to date?
aries, because as previously stated skarlet is awesome. (a sentiment i will continue to reiterate) failing that, either libra for their sense of justice, scorpio for their ambition and passion, or aquarius for their innovative mindset.
10. Who do you hope Rhoย โends up with?โ (If anyone at all!)
firstly, thank you for acknowledging that rho might not be interested in romance after everything sheโs been through. (aromantic rho? arho?)
secondly: skarlet.
this might be a little controversial, but i feel like in some regards, rho has far more chemistry with skarlet than she has with hysan. (ms. russell. i am sorry but. i have. Issues. with โcentaur smileโ and the context surrounding it doesnโt make it any better) all of their interactions are marked by a noted admiration on rhoโs part, and itโs not just merely admiration of her frankly enviable body (thereโs more than enough of that, but it feels respectful somehow, thereโs no five-page purple prosey ramblings on how the sweat glints on skarโs brow as she lifts weights, unlike with some people - sorry, mathias), but admiration of skarโs personality.
her charisma. her ambitions. her drive to fight for people whoโve been beaten down for millennia, to give a voice to the voiceless. to use violence as a last resort, not a first strike.
even at their absolute worst in thirteen rising, even when theyโre butting heads, they donโt let it get in the way of doing what needs to be done. hell, skarlet even points out that she wouldnโt be giving rho such a hard time if she didnโt respect the hell out of rho, if she didnโt think she was tough enough to take it.ย thereโs a sort of unspoken bond between them, a slow orbit that theyโre both caught in. at the end of the series, they part way on relatively good terms, and with the hope that maybe, just maybe, that orbit might become something more than just professional acquaintance.
also their oppositional dichotomy of cardinal fire/water signs is an awesome aesthetic that i really wish was brought up more than it was in canon :(ย
11. If you could record a Snow Globe, what would you put in it?
only A snow globe? youโre not exactly giving me a lot of slack here
in all seriousness, if i had to choose one moment to record in a snow globe, probably the moment i first came up with the idea for the urban fantasy project i mentioned above, tales from omphalos. iโve never been devoted as much time to or invested as much energy in a project as i have with tfo, and iโd like to keep an easily accessible record of my original vision on hand.
and hey, if by some chance i manage to follow in rominaโs footsteps, get tales from omphalos professionally published, have it become a big success with a respectable fandom, iโd like to look back every once in a while, and remember how it all began.
12. If you had the chance to tell Rho anything, what advice/encouragement would you give her?
- lies, especially lies of omission, are necessary a lot of the time to get ahead in politics and life in general use that being ahead to help out the people and groups you care about
- donโt trust the immortal child-aristocrats or expect them to behave in a way that wonโt inevitably screw you over - if you mustย play nice with them, figure out how to decrease geminiโs horrific income inequality, and see what you can do about exporting cell rejuvenation therapy to the wider zodiac
- ferez is right, risers are the future and you need to acknowledge that going forward - skarlet is excellent at garnering support and bridging generational gaps, and while fernanda purecell is a bougie running dog, sheโs got her head screwed on the right way regarding politics and institutional riserphobia; together, the three of you should be able to make some headway towards making amends for past wrongs
- i donโt care if family heads have suffrage, matriarchal aristocracy (aristocratic matriarchy?) is NOT a democracy or a form of government that looks out for the rights of men/NB people/agender people/multigender people/intersex people/you get the idea
- romance is by no means an exclusively two-player game, and skarlet has said she would be open to an arrangement; however, if you MUST insist on ignoring that polyamory is a thing, go for the six-foot risersโ rights activist
- iโm sorry about all the bullshit with your mom. whatever the end result was, whatever her intentions, it does not excuseย the way she treated you and your dad and stanton. itโs okay to feel like shit because of what she did to you, and not being able to wall it off doesnโt make you weak or anything dumb like that - youโre already far stronger than she ever was. i know how much it sucks - i was in the same situation as you once - but believe me when i say that things do get better. youโre not alone here, rho.
- please you gotta fight the gender binary you live in the FUTURE you gotta do it you gotta-
BONUS QUESTION
13. How would you react if your friend became a Riser?
letย them know that I love and support them no matter what their house, that being the way that they are is totally valid, and that anyone who says otherwise will have to answer to my fist in their face. if theyโre unbalanced, make sure they have access to any resources they need (possibly including memory recap vlogs, definitely including medication and therapy to help out with any health issues they may develop).
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