Lil Rockstar! Poseidon headcanon (or I guess canon) that I just came up with:
Do you know that one print/sticker Neal gave away in the goodie bags last month (I think?) where Poseidon has a little horse plushie?
Look at him, he's so precious 😩
Well, since laylom is based mostly on Neal's designs and au, I like to imagine that Poseidon still has him (Mr. Horsey) and still brings him along on tour
Yes, he tries to hide him (he's tucked in the furthest corner of his bunk, covered by his pillow)
Yes, the reader has found him
Yes, his brothers tease him about it (Zeus)
And yes, he gets defensive about it. You shouldn't have asked him about it
And he does, on occasion, bring him with you all to whatever venue the band is playing at. He leaves him in your care, you're probably the only person he trusts with Mr. Horsey. Don't you dare lose him
Let's talk about Poseidon, sex and vulnerability 🤪🤙
Am I qualified to talk about this? No. But I'm delusional, and I think that's enough. I'm also running on 45 minutes of sleep, so that could be it
This is mostly based on my personal interpretation of Poseidon (specifically Epic Poseidon), which includes, of course, how I write him in laylom, Shackles (not out yet, but still), and hopefully more in the future
And just a heads up before you start reading: this is a mess of unorganized thoughts, and it contains discussion about sex (obviously)
Anyway, here’s me rambling about Poseidon for the two hours it took me to write this
I think I’ve mentioned a few times that I see Poseidon as someone who cares way too much about how others perceive him. He doesn’t want to be seen as weak or forgiving, I took this idea from lyrics like:
“I’ve got a reputation
I’ve got a name to uphold
So I can’t go letting you walk or else the world forgets I’m cold”
I can totally imagine these lyrics from Ruthlessness being used as a moment of reflection. Poseidon seeing himself in Odysseus:
“You are the worst kind of good ’cause you’re not even great”
“You are far too nice, mercy has a price”
“The line between naïveté and hopefulness is almost invisible
So close your heart, the world is dark and
Ruthlessness is mercy”
And then there’s the whole show of power that is Ruthlessness in its entirety. It feels like his way of saying “You hurt something that’s mine. You don’t get to do whatever you want with what belongs to me and leave unscathed. I’m a god. You have to respect me. You will respect me. Even if you have to die for it to sink in”
And don’t even get me started on the philosophy of “ruthlessness is mercy upon oneself”. I’m sure there’s more behind why he thinks that way, but it’s still related
Here’s an honorable mention. I’m not sure whether to count it since it’s from a cut song, but it amplifies everything I’ve said about him seeing himself as a parallel to Odysseus and his whole Ruthlessness philosophy. It’s from In Vain btw, an earlier version of Get In The Water:
“There’s an anger that festers
A pain that’s worse than death
Take a stranger, make him lesser
Strip away what he has left
That’s where I’m at
That’s who I’ve been
I don’t know who I’m meant to be
I was a ruthless god
But you took that away from me
What kind of man
Cannot avenge his crying son?
What kind of monster
Gets outsmarted and outrun?
What kind of god
Doesn’t get to end what he’s begun?”
Sure, you can attribute all this to pride, which I’m sure he has plenty of, but I think him being emotionally constipated and deeply insecure is more fun (at least for me)
Going back to Get In The Water (again, this is just my personal interpretation), it always bugged me how, right after Odysseus says it’s been ten years and asks why they can’t just go home, Poseidon responds with this almost miserable and pathetic “I can’t”
Up until that point, I saw Poseidon as stoic and heartless. I mean, he literally tells Odysseus he should’ve killed his son. He just felt like an obstacle placed in Odysseus’ way. But that moment? That line? That cracked the whole image (little did I know I had fallen for his trap... that’s awful, I’m sorry)
But if you read into it, I can totally see him wanting to go home. Wanting to let it all go. But… what would people say? What would mortals and gods say if he let go of the one mortal he’s been chasing for a decade? Mortals would stop respecting him. They’d stop fearing him. He wouldn’t be a god anymore, at least not in their eyes. And the other gods would just mock him, call him weak, call him unworthy
And maybe he already believes that about himself. Maybe he sees himself that way. So it’s not just about others’ opinions anymore, it’s about his own. About what giving up would make him. And so, no, he can’t
(I could literally write a whole essay analyzing Get In The Water and all the different ways I interpret it. Someone hold me back)
Anyway—Why does the title mention sex? That’s probably what most of you are here for anyway
So, I see Poseidon as deeply insecure (and terrified of getting hurt, but that’s a topic for later). He wears a mask, one that people fear, bow to, and serve. He doesn’t let anyone get close enough to see his “imperfections” or the parts of him he hides so carefully
And I never thought I’d type this, but I imagine sex is one of the only times he allows people to get just close enough, but not all the way in. It’s like a fix, but not really
I imagine him taking the upper hand, being the more dominant one in bed, and I’m not just saying that cause I think he’s hot lol. Even in intimacy, he keeps that mask on: the unrelenting and ruthless god of tides. He doesn’t let anyone see him vulnerable, emotionally or physically. It’s a way for him to reassure himself that he’s still in control. A way for the other person to see him the way he wants to be seen
But if someone ever breaks down all those never ending walls he’s built, I can see him slowly letting go. Letting his partner take the lead. Becoming more submissive as trust grows (he’s a switch at heart, trust)
Kinda reminds me of a cat. You know how they only sleep on their backs when they feel completely safe around you? That’s Poseidon
I also see it as a form of love language, if that makes sense. With all his insecurities, it’s pretty safe to assume he’s awful at communicating. So I can imagine him using sex as a way to express love. No words, just bodies moving in sync
And when he finally lets go and lets his partner take control, it’s his way of saying “I’m handing myself over to you. I’m giving you not just the power to control me physically, but the power to destroy me emotionally. I love you. I trust you not to hurt me. I trust you to take care of me. To be gentle with my broken pieces”
It’s also his way of shedding the persona he’s clung to for so long. Of finally being seen for who he really is. Showing the parts of himself he’s been dying to reveal, but was always too scared to
I could honestly go on and on about what emotional closeness means to him, how terrifying it would be for him to be vulnerable, and what he could lose… but my brain is fried right now, so this is what you’re getting
Did any of this make sense? Probably not
I went off topic a bunch, but hey that’s what rambling is, isn’t it?
Do you think Poseidon puts on a private show for reader once in awhile without Hades or Zeus noticing?
Ok, I originally interpreted this in two different ways, but in either scenario YES! He definitely does!
If we're talking about while they’re actually performing to a crowd, he’d definitely try to tease the reader, whether it’s through specific movements (Sabrina Carpenter came to mind "have you ever tried this one?" lol not saying he'd go that far, just a thought), a specific tone he sings with (ones he knows they like and would make them weak), subtle lyric changes, etc... all while looking them straight in the eye
I didn’t go too in depth with it in the og laylom, but it’s expanded quite a bit in the rewrite. They have this little "game" between each other where they try to make the other as flustered and worked up as possible
You guys even got to see a bit of it toward the end of the sneak peek
I don’t think it would change much between them pre relationship and after starting their relationship. He definitely starts doing it way more when they're in a properly established (👀) relationship. And I can’t even imagine when they come out to the masses, there’d be no need to be subtle anymore, and he’d go crazy lol
Now, when you said "private show" my mind went everywhere except singing lmao
I can definitely see him giving the reader a "private show" in two different ways:
a) Foreplay/incentive??? I can’t think of what to call it right now. I can see them in a hotel or something, reader sitting on the bed as he sings a provocative song while nearing them. His voice gets lower and lower as he approaches, then the singing dies on the reader’s lips. Add to that pinning the reader down or doing what he’s singing about (Steven’s songs come to mind 🤭)
b) Cute serenade. I’ve already talked about something like this. He definitely sings to the reader once in a while after they’re done doing the deed. Reader resting on his chest, feeling every vibration as his hand caresses their arm or scalp softly, helping them relax and drift off
I was trying to organize my rockstar Poseidon wips/ideas into an actual timeline so it would make sense and stuff (I also just like making timelines lol) and I think some of you will like to know there will be at least another 10 parts! A little ambitious? Probably
I think it's a good and a bad thing, good cause I'll keep you guys fed, but bad cause it'll probably take a while to complete at the pace I'm going (while also juggling Ambivalence and other unrelated oneshots I wanna get out)
It'll probably end up being more than 10 let's be honest
wait yes zeus being the one to spread the rumors is so funny 😭 maybe he hints at it during streams even but nobody gets what he's even saying both fans and the band members + mc!! he completely forgets he ran that blog once they're actually together but when they go public and all the blog posts resurface and someone also comes up with a theory it's zeus (cue the compilation of zeus talking about a "blog") everyone's all 🤨🧐
I feel like it’s also his own kinda fucked up way of supporting his brother?? I tried to make the point in laylom of Zeus actually being supportive of Poseidon and his feelings toward the mc, though his advice is not the best, so I can totally see him posting stuff like that or making shady comments, knowing that his brother is a control freak when it comes to what people say about him and the people around him, and that it’s eventually going to be seen. He probably wasn’t even expecting the "theory" to actually gain any traction (not that it was much, so no need to worry)
I can also totally see him completely forgetting about it lol. He probably posted it half asleep after having a petty fight with Poseidon. And when people start confronting him about the blog, he’s like “I did what?… Oooohhh yeahhh, that was me all along… I just wanted to see my brother happy 😔✋” He doesn’t actually remember, he just wants the credit
Add to that the fact that Zeus barely knows how to use his phone, so he probably forgot the password to the account or smth, so it just faded into obscurity in his mind
Also, regarding him hinting about it on streams, interviews, and the like, I can see him not only referencing "a blog", but also just making comments bashing Poseidon and his love life to hopefully wake him up. My man’s done, he wants it all to end, the tension’s killing him
Comments like:
"We think of ourselves as a big family. We like to get to know the crew. It helps us all be on the same page"
"Yeah, you sure got to know them…"
"What was your favorite part of this photoshoot?"
"Man… that’s actually a difficult question. There are so many moving parts, it’s hard to decide"
"Well, he sure likes when the camera’s on him. He loves looking at the photos when we’re done. It’s like the lens has a magnetic pull to him"
Each time he says the italicized words, he looks directly at the camera
Laylom was originally gonna be based on "Another Day" from Rent, but I ended up scrapping the idea, though I think you can still spot the inspiration in it (more in the rewrite than the og) and in future parts 👀
Also, the name Lay All Your Love On Me was chosen right before posting by literally hitting the shuffle button on my playlist, but I thought it fit soooo (yeah, I'm a very professional and responsible writer)
