#zenith xeep

[defoozor]

What a day to be evil, wear pink and smooch 💋

_____

They’re on their way to adopt Emily and shape her personality 💅

[missnight0wl]

I know I have a bit of a delay in my commentary of the main chapters, but let’s talk about that damn experiment from Y7Ch51 because… oh boy.

Ok, so let’s start from the meeting in the Courtyard when we have Merula come and say this:

But then, not even a minute later, we have this:

And I’m like… Excuse me? I don’t have to convince anyone about anything. You JUST said that Peregrine WANTS me there, so why the hell should I convince him about anything? You, on the other hand, OFFICIALLY JOINED R already, if I recall correctly. I assume what the writers actually meant is that we have to convince Perry and Verucca that the person we bring with us wants to join R (and that’s in fact what we do later), but it doesn’t change the fact that the wording Merula used simply doesn’t make sense – and it’s frustrating that nobody realised it while writing it.

I’d like to say that it’s also shameful that it went through beta readers, but let’s be real: HPHM has no beta readers.

Ok, but let’s move on.

So, I obviously chose Talbott because he’s the one I’d like to interact with the most, but also the one who objectively makes the most sense, in my opinion. I know that the game doesn’t address it, but Talbott’s parents were killed by Death Eaters and Perry is very concerned about Death Eaters. They officially have a common enemy. It’d understandable if Talbott got interested in R’s mission because of that. But that aside, I also want to address Corey here who said this:

And I have to ask: why we’re ignoring Corey’s fascination with Peregrine after their kidnapping? Don’t get me wrong, I do think it was very uncomfortable to witness and I wish it never happened, to begin with. But if it happened already… we could actually use it. Why Peregrine would be suspicious about Corey if Corey was absolutely charmed with him when they met for the first time?

But no! Ever since we left the Shrieking Shack, Corey is only like… the loudest voice against R. And that’s totally fair, considering that they were indeed kidnapped, but again – what was the point of making Corey gush over Peregrine??

And speaking of the Shrieking Shack…

Please, don’t.

Alright so! The absurdity of the whole situation escalated from this point so fast that I’m almost impressed. First of all, when I first saw how they surrounded Perry, I was actually hoping they would use it to tackle him. But no! Because it’d make too much sense, right? None of them thought of stunning Peregrine either. But you know who thought of it?

I seriously screamed when it happened because like… what the hell. Also, I’m sorry, but I’m gonna use it as proof that it was Peregrine controlling Ben back in Y4. You know why? Because outside of the class, we see Petrificus Totalus being used twice: by the Red Cloak and by Peregrine now. Nobody else remembers about this basic spell, even when it’d be EXTREMELY useful. Rakepick didn’t use it in the Portrait Vault, we didn’t use it on Rakepick either back then or before Rowan’s death. I swear, NOBODY ELSE IS CAPABLE OF USING THIS SPELL OUTSIDE OF THE CONTROLLED CONDITIONS. So, it had to be Perry, as simple as that.

Okay, so here’s another important question: who was supposed to be a test subject originally? Because let me remind you, Talbott technically wasn’t supposed to be there. And you know when Perry later says:

When I read it in the datamines, I was certain there are gonna be more people in this scene. But nope. So again, who they wanted to use?

There’s no way Peregrine would sacrifice himself because he quite clearly was expecting that the test subject will suffer during the experiment. Even if Verucca didn’t know it personally, she was probably expecting it, so she would agree to it either. Jacob couldn’t be the test subject if he’s the one using the Crown. So, it leaves us with MC and Merula. And I think that neither option is a perfect explanation.

While I don’t suspect Verucca cares about Merula, as I said, she was probably expecting that the experiment might be dangerous. And I assume that Verucca thinks Merula is more useful if she’s fine and… well, not harmed. So, I don’t think she’d agree to use Merula as a test subject.

Now, when it comes to MC, Peregrine technically said that MC is too valuable to use them as a test subject, but then again… If Perry wanted to use MC that way, it’d explain why he wanted them to be there, to begin with. Because other than that, it doesn’t really make sense. Again, Perry knew the experiment is supposed to end with the subject suffering, so he should also expect that after seeing that, MC wouldn’t want to help him with the Ministry. But… he supposedly needs MC to use the Crown on the Ministry, right? So… was it actually about using MC as a subject instead?

There’s also the third option, though: Merula was told to bring one of MC's friends with them. Now, to be clear, I don’t really think that’s what the writers intended. I suspect that they simply didn’t think it through at all. But that being said, I believe that the third option is the most reasonable interpretation or the way to fix their mistake.

Merula was the one who suggested bringing only one person – which on its own is a pretty damn stupid argument. Peregrine was actively trying to make MC’s friends like him when he met with them at the Three Broomsticks, and he was quite successful with half of them. He also seemed rather happy about it. So, if MC was like:

“Hey, Dad. It turns out that you really impressed my friends. I mentioned accidentally your experiment in front of some of them, and they were like: Wow, of course your dad would come up with such a cool idea. It’s so cool that he wants to fight corruption at the Ministry. He’s just…. SO COOL! And so they wanted to come with me.”

… Perry couldn’t even be suspicious. I mean, he could, but it’d be unreasonable because as I said, he was the one trying to make them like him. So, we really should’ve ignored Merula’s “advice” and simply taken more people. Maybe not all of them, but even three of them would make the whole situation better for us.

It wouldn’t even be the first time R made Merula do something that ended up hurting someone. Remember Ismelda and the Wampus Cat? And how Merula apparently had the courage back then to negotiate with her aunt?

You know... despite her fucking Unbreakable Vow?? It’s almost as if the writers came up with it only recently...

But anyway! Let’s move on!

You can’t enhance something that doesn’t exist, Perry. Don’t you know that?

…

WHO THE FUCK IS XENITH ZEEP?!?!

They did my girl so dirty and now they can’t even spell her name correctly?! 😭😭😭

Seriously, you could even check it on Google…

It’s like… It’s like every chapter nowadays is written by a totally new person each time and they have 10 min to learn what the whole story is about.

For fuck’s sake…

My brain was melting at that point already, but it was the sparkles that killed me. What the hell was that??

*sigh*

Stay tuned for the commentary on our heart-to-heart with Jacob!

[electricslytherindog]

I nevr laught that loud in this game

Bonus: Writers too, Chiara,

[redhairedgryffindor]

Quick, try asking me something, (Y/N)!

Ask about ‘R’

Ask about being an opera star

[missnight0wl]

Why the hell you’re telling him all of that?

IN ALL OF THESE ASSIGNMENTS, YOU’VE ENCOUNTERED R!

The whole action with the imposter at the Ministry which led to stealing a Portkey. The incident with Zenith Xeep, ending with her at Janus Thickey Ward. The laughing curse at St Mungo’s.

PEREGRINE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ALL OF THAT, AND HE CAN’T BLAME RAKEPICK THIS TIME. WHY YOU’RE NOT ASKING ABOUT ANY OF THAT? WHAT’S PEREGRINE’S EXPLANATION?!

Why the fuck are you laughing? This bloody Wampus Cat attacked Ismelda! (And Umbridge, but who cares.)

What about Merula’s crisis after the Wampus Cat incident? What about her: “I won’t put my friends in danger again”? Why we don’t talk about that?!

Oh, go fuck yourself.

Seriously, MC has to be mind-controlled. Nobody can be this stupid and naive...

And the writers couldn't have simply forgotten ALL of that! RIGHT?!

[missnight0wl]

Just for fun. How about a character tier of R and former R members?

Duncan Olivia Real!Jacob The fugly slut that's pretending to be our brother Shiratori Rakepick Burke Pettigrew Verruca Merula Peregrine

(do tell me if I forgot about someone)

This is mine. HBU?

I absolutely love that the top tier is just “Rakepick” 💖

Also, I couldn’t resist the urge to separate it into two lists as I didn’t know how to approach the “Pawn” tier. See, the thing is that I don’t think it’s necessarily connected to being powerful… Therefore, I decided on “How powerful they are?” and “How important they are for R?”.

Oh, and I added Zenith Xeep. I believe she was involved with R only for that one thing with the Memory Potion (and probably didn’t even know much about what’s going on), but still.

“How powerful they are?”

“How important they are for R?”

Some commentary under the cut.

I actually believe that Verucca is pretty damn powerful, and I do think that she's pretty much equal with Rakepick and Peregrine. I even wouldn't be surprised if Peregrine is above her not because he's more powerful, but because he is The Father of the siblings.

Reall!Jacob has to be pretty powerful as well, and I'm thinking here mostly about the scene where Rakepick told MC in the fourth year: "You remind me of myself. I have only said that to one person before...". That one person was probably Jacob (full analysis in this post). And come on, if Rakepick compares anyone to herself, they must be quite impressive.

I also put Shiratori higher in the ranking. Jam City did him pretty dirty later on, and currently, I don't think he's that powerful (even if he's apparently a powerful Legilimens). But I remembered when he escaped in Y6. Moody told us then that he defeated his best Aurors, so... I have to acknowledge that he was meant to be way more powerful.

I can agree on Olivia but I think that Duncan was pretty good, too. For example, Bilton told us that he used to reconstruct his products entirely. I mean, you need some decent level of magical prowess for that.

Surprisingly, I do believe that Fugly Slut is decently powerful, simply because I doubt that R would send someone weak for such an important mission. On top of that, I still think there's a small chance that he's actually Verucca, so...

As for Merula... I might not like her, and I do think that she's terribly written, but... she's not weak. It's mostly her personality that stops her from being really powerful.

Pettigrew is a disgusting human being, but again, he is pretty powerful. He did become an Animagus, he killed 12 Muggles with one non-verbal, he outsmarted the whole wizarding world, and he played a rather big part in bringing back Voldemort himself.

Burke... I mean, he can't be totally weak if he worked as a Healer for so many years, right? Also, he kind of kicked Moody's ass... But I don't know. I'd say he's alright overall, maybe just not very experienced in combat.

Finally, I'm afraid that she was rather weak even before her accident. I mean, she was an opera diva for her whole life. In the best-case scenario, she was extremely out of practice.

Now, I put Rakepick in the "Crucial for their existence" tier simply because of how obsessed R is with her. Like, it's still not known when they started sending her threats to stay away from the Cursed Vaults, the Red Cloak talked about her again. Seriously, it's not healthy.

*insert the image of Patty as Regina George with the caption: "Why are you so obsessed with me?"*

Real!Jacob and his importance are rather obvious.

Verucca mentioned once that they had high hopes for Shiratori because of his lineage, so I assume he had to be pretty important, even if he became redundant. Plus, we have his Legilimency. Silimar argument actually applies to Fugly Slut. I assume that he was chosen for this task for some reason. His skills, perhaps? I mean, I still think it'd make the most sense if he was a Metamorphmagus as the Polyjuice Potion can be pretty risky.

In the "Pawn" tier, I put basically anyone who might be useful somehow, but if something happens to them, it's not a big loss. They're not necessarily entirely equal, but... yeah.

Finally, we have Pettigrew because I still refuse to accept his existence in this story. I'd like to know what kind of drugs you have to take to decide it's a good idea.

[missnight0wl]

In the newest chapter, Chiara saying that she often forgets that MC is a legilimens is so meta because I forget about that constantly 😆

I can’t really relate personally, but I know that many people do – probably including the writers.

Also, sorry for off-topic, but can I just say that this whole scene was rather… weird? Like, the previous chapter ended with MC telling Corey that they’re a Legilimens, and they want to use it on Zenith.

But then, in this chapter, they act as if this idea just occurred to them?

Like… what? I dunno, I feel like, normally, it’d go more or less like this:

Chiara: MC! You said you have an idea to get information from Zenith?

MC: Yes, but I want to try talking to her first.

*they try and fail to talk to Zenith, just like it happened in the game*

MC: Just like I thought… Well then, I guess I have to use my Legilimency after all.

Chiara: “That’s right… You’re a Legilimes. Sometimes I forget.”

Is it just me or it’d sound way more natural than that weird performance done by MC with stomping and pouting? I swear, this kid gets more and more annoying with each chapter…

Also also, I’m still disgusted by how unprofessional St Mungo’s is and that MC is allowed anywhere close to Zenith. Seriously, I’m usually not morally bothered by the use of Legilimency, but that poor woman is traumatized enough already, and she shouldn’t be harassed like that while in a hospital.

[missnight0wl]

All right, here comes a rant post because I kind of hate the plotline with the Janus Thickey Ward.

First of all, this shouldn’t have even happened. Miriam Strout should’ve been informed that MC was involved in the case of Zenith Xeep as soon as it was decided that MC is gonna participate in this whole school project. You might say that it’d be random, but it wouldn’t. Why? Because Dumbledore, as a Headmaster, should’ve been informed about the program of the project, too.

St Mungo’s: All right, we’re gonna teach your students this, this, and this.

Dumbledore: Okay, but if you want to get them to the Janus Thickey Ward, just keep in mind that MC was involved in the case of Zenith Xeep.

Then secondly, this shouldn’t have happened either:

MC has nothing to say about whether or not they want to work with Zenith. Madam Strout should immediately assign them to a different patient. Why?  Because Zenith’s case is of psychological nature which requires objectivity – and MC is nowhere close to being objective here.

Psychologists shouldn’t work with patients they have a personal relationship with. It’s even perfectly acceptable to refuse to help a patient who reminds you of someone close because it could influence your professional judgement and therefore skills. Sure, MC is not even really a proper intern. However, their personal experience with Zenith was so emotional that their learning opportunity would become basically wasted. I’m seriously annoyed that Jam City ignored it because it's not even like it’s necessary for the plot to happen. Just make MC take care of someone else and talk to Zenith outside of their assignment.

Finally, did the writers even understand what the Janus Thickey Ward is? I mean, yeah, they put in the text that that’s where they “care for the long-term patients at St Mungo’s”… but I don’t think they registered what it means.

Why they are so excited? A lot of patients from this ward will never recover, so they’ll spend the rest of their lives at the hospital. It’s terrible, sad, depressing. Imagine that you go to the child oncology ward, and your like: “Oh, I love children! Did you see all the toys they have? And there was even a clown! It’s so fantastic!”. Like… no.

I assume that it was supposed to show that Chiara and Penny are academically excited, but… there really should be a distinction in situations like that. Especially since both girls are meant to be very empathetic. So, honestly, the fact that neither of them talks about the upsetting side of the whole experience is rather unnatural and almost unsettling.

Seriously, try better, Jam City – because it was bad.

Also, Miriam Strout is annoying. I hate her distorted mouth and her fucking “lambs”.