#✦ EMBODIMENT of hope. (ritsuka.)

[yoakenouta]

btw this is why ritsuka's a shiba inu

✦ ARTIST: 紙

[mako-neexu]

idk why but the Avenger class going "we will burn the whole world for you" for ritsuka is far more effective against my stupid little tortured heart than literally any other class saying it maybe bc they embody flames themselves as flames symbolize already hundreds of meanings, in particular, love and hate, passion and mercilessness, a blessing of warmth and a curse that could scorch, impossible existences that should not be summoned at all costs.

flames that would stop at nothing for the sake of their retribution. flames that love so fiercely the only way out of it is to stamp them down, kill them, slit their throats with a knife as they cup your cheek and whisper their love, and how proud they are, how regretful they are, how much they wish they could be with you and borrow just a little more time if only if only there is more time if only i was born in a way that would not harm you yet it is in this existence i am able to meet you and remember you, my light my fate my hope my star, fujimaru ritsuka

[castilium]

It hurt in a way words could not sufficiently articulate to hear and see Ritsuka so utterly defeated. Throughout their journey, she had been the one steadfast never to give up until the final breath were drawn. There was under Artemis' ray, beneath a sky of Kirschtaria's meteors, but even then, as breathless her belief their executions had come, there was fight which thrived.

Since colliding with that wall separating them from the Human Order... it was like hitting the Master's limit itself. For everything she had done and risked and surrendered, the world pushed her away. A world which never accepted her ever since she was dragged into Chaldea and away from the life before, a family left in the dark, since when it inflicted blow after blow leaving scars physical, emotional, mental, and even spiritual.

All of that... and it was still not enough, it intended more torture. Violet eyes rested in contemplation; what words best to utter could not unscramble themselves from their haphazard formulation. She could not understand the Beast's grief, no-one could really begin to — even after experiencing all Ritsuka herself had endured, the story continued onward and she reverted to far from an open book. That girl, so vibrant and hopeful, whose smile lit up the room... she died a long time ago, and what remained was now; experience inhabiting innocence's shell. The embodiment of forced maturity before its time, the burden of responsibility falling upon shoulders not meant to carry its immense weight. Ritsuka was an ordinary human, she'd never been trained, or even aware, in the world of magecraft — yet she became the sole granter of salvation.

In fleeting moments, Mashu reflected the kindness of Goetia's wrong. His was a world-view incompatible with Novum Chaldea's, but humanity retained its integrity. It was merciful, as had everything else, by comparison. Marisbury Animusphere's Grand Order was a frightful prospect — if the Lostbelts where humanity's last legs were collapsing under itself, in which the British Lostbelt was preferable... it had been an uncomfortable thing to contemplate when the Incineration were the benchmark, but each new facet brought into the light made all the more damning the course they were on. Goetia's plan was woven from grief, but Marisbury Animusphere's motivation remained yet unknown. And no matter what he might spout, it certainly wasn't in humanity's best interest. She could not comment on judgment of the former, but she could understand, in a sense.

"Pain changes people". Ritsuka knew better than anyone else. FingeHrs curled inward upon her thigh with eyes set firmly ahead. "Humanity couldn't veer off-track, so he tried to force us — knowing we were hurtling toward a dead-end. No, something far worse. In his mind, it was the lesser of two evils — and we pruned that as well. Every opportunity to stop this, we've squandered". The hollers of panicked staff echoed above the crackle of flame.

that always seemed to be what it came down to,didn't it? every single time, they learned the most important part far too late to do a damn thing about it. no matter how much they tried, the truth would always be revealed at the end. it was aggravating. no, it was infuriating. she understands that reasons existed for such secrecy and yet, more than anything, she no longer could bring herself to give a damn about those reasons. to hear why it was so vital to keep the truth dead and buried until any threat of it interfering had passed.

the cost, it seemed, resulted in the Human Order itself now rejecting even them.

Ritsuka has never tried to absolve herself of decisions made, of what had been done. she accepted it and the sins that came with it-- black and white didn't exist for her anymore when only a handful of survivors escaped that frozen base. good and evil ceased being clean-cut within the howling blizzards of Russia.

all she gives is a small sound of agreement, eyes shadowed by vibrant hair. " Olga Marie." the master corrects softly, eyes shadowed by messy bangs. " You heard Daybit. She was our Director. Not the Alien God." it takes more than Ritsuka thought to keep her voice from wavering. everyone had made it out of that Lostbelt alive. everyone except the one person they wanted to save. but if Ritsuka lets herself think anymore on that.....

"Hm. That doesn't mean how Goetia went about it would have been the best outcome. A life without pain and death and suffering....it would be along the same lines as what Marisbury is aiming for. Humanity was never meant to be like that." here, she makes no attempt to disguise the sudden edge to her voice. it is no secret, Ritsuka's current distaste for the one who insists going around with the Doctor's name. time, and knowledge, has not dulled her anger at him but she suspects it never will. perhaps that is for the better-- Ritsuka knows that if she ever spoke to him again, it would not fair well. in the end, it's better for everyone.

" It doesn't matter though. In the end, they were all just pawns for Marisbury in one way or another."

[fgodestinyawakenings]

Mash constantly butting in has probably made Ritsuka's life worse. The writers will never write this but Ritsuka most definitely would be better off if Mash didn't interrupt them every time they tried to speak. Also to answer your other comment the problem is the jp community (imo). While they did love lb6 they did not like how Mash was mia for virtually the entire timeline of lb6. They really like Mash as this embodiment of purity, etc and it's just weird why they love that Mash so much.

Yeah, I never understood why... But at least no war from what I see between her and Castoria. Except the other war of ship world war III of course

If they want to write pure, Percival is a good example on how to write one. Hers is just sickening diabetes and toxic positivity, where you are really not supposed to find fault with her. Even when she does something, it doesn't blow big because she's pure but...

I'm really still hoping we get less Mash screentime regardless how they feel. Because for fucking god sake, even a self-insert are still their own person with emotional and physical needs too!

[x0401x]

Screen+ Interview with Yano Shougo and Uchida Yuuma

“I was very, very happy to watch the continuation of ‘Given’ as a fan!”

Originally scheduled to come out in May, “Given the Movie” was finally released on August 22nd. Mafuyu, Ritsuka, Haruki and Akihiko can be seen on the big screen. The story of this work has its spotlight on Haruki and Akihiko, as well as on Akihiko and his roommate, Ugetsu. How will things go for Mafuyu and Ritsuka, who are in a band with Haruki and Akihiko? We have talked with the person in charge of Mafuyu’s voice, Yano Shougo, and the one in charge of Ritsuka’s, Uchida Yuuma, about the movie, which was a much awaited continuation of the TV series.

——“Given” was broadcasted back in 2019 as a TV anime. How were the reactions at the time?

Yano: I could feel that there were fans of the original work from all over the world. Fans from other countries said they liked my acting and my voice, which I was truly grateful for.

Uchida: When the casting was decided, I was told that the original work itself is very much loved, and when my participation was announced, many comments saying, “I’m looking forward to the broadcast” reached me. I keenly felt the high level of the expectations.

——During the time of the TV series, the fact that it was going to be “Noitamina’s first adaptation of a BL comic” became a hot topic. Did you have any particular feelings about this back when you were working on it?

Yano: I had next to no knowledge of Boys Love, so I tried reading the original work first of all, in order to see what kind of series it was. In doing so, I felt that the series really cherished a vibe that seemed to have been cut off from daily life. As I kept on reading, I found myself inserted into that world in a natural manner, as if I was actually there.

Uchida: I did not have much enthusiasm regarding the Boys Love part. If I had to say it, it was a series that depicted the machinations of people’s hearts in a sensible way, so I put an emphasis on pursuing this with care. What turns out to be the key point changes depending on each series, so I gave proper thought to what the most important part of this work was in that sense, and performed while hoping that I would be able to express it.

——What were your impressions when you heard that this work would be shown on the big screen?

Yano: I was overjoyed to be able to play Mafuyu again and very, very happy to watch the continuation of “Given” as a fan.

Uchida: During the phase of the TV anime series, I had heard that it would lead to a movie. That the things depicted in the original work were planned to be depicted in a movie too. For this part, I was always conscious on the inside that, on top of my performing for the TV anime, the story was going to be portrayed up to that far.

——What were you careful of and what did you keep in mind when playing Mafuyu and Ritsuka?

Yano: I was conscious of being a high school boy. Mafuyu has a complicated past where he lost someone who was important to him, so a gaping hole opened in his heart and he was in the dark, unable to take even one step forward. But when you see him talking to his friends and playing basket with a smile in his daily life at school, you find that he is a normal high schooler. As he absorbed himself completely in music, I thought he was a high school student living youth itself. 

Uchida: Ritsuka is not very good at expressing himself with anything other than a guitar, so I made sure to properly feel the difference in sense of closeness from when he talks to his bandmates and when he talks to Mafuyu. And also the sensation that “he’s in there”, as part of the series, so to say. There are quite a lot of scenes where the conversations overlap naturally. I aimed to carefully pursue the sensible aspects of those parts, as well as the mood of the exchanges and such.

——In this movie, there is a close-up on the romance between Haruki and Akihiko. From your point of view, how is the nature of their relationship?

Yano: Haruki-san is like a lubricating oil within the band, so I think there is a side of him that ends up pushing down his own feelings. Akihiko-san lives the way he wants to, so they mesh, but they are not in gear at all when it comes to their love lives, and I guess this comes with “understanding each other’s feelings” as adults. From the perspective of the viewers, I belive Haruki-san is in the most emotionally easy-to-relate position, but I think Akihiko-san’s existence only establishes itself because Haruki-san can strongly impact him. I think Akihiko-san is the only one for Haruki-san, and all the more, Haruki-san is the only one for Akihiko-san.

Uchida: They can rely on one another and probably respect each other in some aspects, but they are people who have a kindness that they do not put into words, as well as an unfairness that they purposefully do not speak about, so I have the impression that they “can’t say things straight”. They are still at an age where they just barely graduated from college, but they are grown-ups when compared to Ritsuka and Mafuyu, so looking from where I am now, I think this sense of distance in which they are unable to frankly express that they long for each other is “well, something that would happen”. As expected, we start worrying about all sorts of things as we get older.

——Please tell us the highlights of “Given the Movie”.

Yano: The presence of the person named Murata Ugetsu, whom Akihiko used to date and continues living with despite breaking up, is pretty big. He is a prodigy like Mafuyu and adores both music and Akihiko-san to death, but his music will be ruined if he keeps up like that, so he chooses to throw away Akihiko-san. Regardless, he is unable to throw him away, so they are stagnated in the same spot all along. I think that Ugetsu, who wants someone to understand his feelings and pain, is very similar to Mafuyu. There is a song that the band Given plays during the movie, and it is obvious that they want to deliver the song to somebody, but there is a part of it that I sang while putting my feelings towards Ugetsu in particular into it, so I think people can enjoy the movie even more by linking up with the song as they watch it.

Uchida: From the TV series, it carefully portrays the sense of distance between one person and another, as well as relationship values. Even if there is not that big a meaning in every single thing, there is nothing in vain, and the accumulation of this moves the hearts of those two. I think “Given” is a series that literally embodies the fact that the accumulation of small things transform into colossal feelings. If you watch from the TV series all the way to the movie, won’t you be able to enjoy it while sensing the developments of their feelings even better?

——Please give a message to the fans who have been waiting for the release all this time!

Yano: Thank you very much to everyone who eagerly waited for “Given the Movie”! The TV series was about a high school duo, but this tone is centered around the adult group that consists of Haruki, Akihiko and Ugetsu. I think the parts where they react to love will be, from start to finish, a time where your chests will tighten. I think there are aspects of it that anyone can feel a connection with, so please watch over them warmly.

Uchida: It would be great if everyone could watch the members of Given as they embrace all sorts of feelings and try to change little by little, as well as the beauty of their changing. There are also scenes in this work that cleanse your heart. By all means, go enjoy it in the big screen!

[pryotra]

I'd like to mention that Oberon-Vortigern is not the same Vortigern from the main timeline or Pan Human History as FGO would say. The only thing you can say that they have in common with each other is that both of them are the embodiment of their Britain's will that take monstrous forms relating to dragons but that's about it.

Also I feel I should clarify that Oberon-Vortigern wasn't pretending in the very beginning. When he was summoned into the lostbelt by the planet to enact his purpose and destroy Britain, his spirit origin was severely weakened and unstable. The Welsh fairies who found him genuinely believed him to be an incarnation of their fairy king Oberon and it's through their beliefs that the concept of "Oberon" merged with his identity of "Vortigern" and effectively overwrites his personality. So when he helps Ritsuka throughout the lostbelt, he really did mean it. It was not up until Barghest burned down the forest that the Welsh fairies lived in and killed them did Oberon-Vortigern began to recall his true identity and purpose. Yet he still does consider himself to be "Oberon" as well, which is why he is called "Oberon-Vortigern" instead of simply "Vortigern". He also does actually still care for the group and considers them as friends, it's just that it wasn't enough to stop him from going against them. He might have gone against Ritsuka in the end but the bond was very much real.

Sorry for this long text. I couldn't help but feel like everyone here seem to have the wrong impression of Oberon-Vortigern and I felt the need to clear this up a bit. I hope this is okay and I swear I didn't meant any disrespect here, I only wanted to clear up some misconceptions here.

It's fine. Nasu's lore can be a confusing mess. I'm actually fully aware of all of this. It's why I mentioned 'be revealed' in that comment, rather than 'reveal himself'. Merlin and Vortigern have a long history, and their close proximity would mess with things.

(I have so many issues with Nasu's reasoning here and his insistence on making Vortigern some sort of major threat when he never even canonically MET Arthur/Artoria, but whatever, I have a fun idea for him that I might showcase later)

[castilium]

Kama/Mara (III/L)

                                       Chaldea’s story was one of hope and love.

Ritsuka had always carried the mantle of hope. Roman had always embodied the notion of love itself. They had each paid a terrible price. It had been natural that the culmination of the Grand Order would see those two on the stage facing Goetia. Mashu had no regrets that she had expired too soon. Well... one. But she had said her goodbyes to Roman prior to their dispatch, even if meant for him to emerge the survivor. Ritsuka hadn’t. To encroach on that opportunity, it would be unjust. She had paid such a heavy toll up until that moment, and the price stacked higher each day since.

Ritsuka was hope, and the world had pushed all its dependence on her, demanded so much that a solitary human could never bear the brunt. Her bones snapped, her skin split and bled, her heart crushed, her mind breaking evermore. Roman was love, and that sentiment tortured him each and every single day for more than a decade. It encirlced him with the beastial gnawing fangs of fear, dread, despair, doubt, failure, their snarls which kept him up at night, and pushed him far further than a solitary human could bear.

In that time, Mashu had been neither.

Roman’s passing left her an inheritance — Mashu would become love.

The journey had been hers and Ritsuka’s from beginning to end, whatever that end may be. From the beginning, Roman had entrusted Chaldea’s Master with a flame, a tiny ember. A spark that grew and spread, so that by the time Romani Archaman left the stage, his successor could pick up where he left off. At the end of the journey, Ritsuka had already expressed her intent on doing the same.

               “And then, I’ll pass the baton to her because I know she’ll carry it to the end.”

For seven months, Mashu Kyrielite had lived without hope inside of her. The hardships of morality had tested her, and on too many occasion had she failed. It must have only brought pain and frustration to those who bore witness to her, not least the woman who entrusted her with that gift and the Beast whom had been the audience to her conviction.

Love and hope were much a coin each, warped into a curse when a flip landed them on tails.

        “What you reside in is none a human body, but that created by Beast’s Magic"/

    “Despite what you may think and what everything seems to suggest, you are not turning into Beast IV.”

She wasn’t a Beast, but she was love. The same kind of love that birthed such creature. She understood Goetia much more with time — that boundless love for humanity, that desire to protect and watch it flourish. She knew love hurt. She had seen it many times.

                    Through the Beasts. And on the other side of that lightning strike.

Tonelico loved. She loved so much that the Fae crafted a weapon out of it and tortured her all the same. They beat her love. They mangled her love. They burned her love. They pushed and pushed until her love grew cold as winter ice. And then the story was rewritten, painting her as the villain, like the Beasts.

She had spared Mashu the horrors through measures taken to see her survival through millennia. Much like how Pepe spared her, Ritsuka and Arturia those inflicted curses. How he urged Ritsuka to take Mashu and run, to leave him — one at death’s door — behind to perish, protect her as a Master would.

       That love, that endless love from avenues infinite. That was Roman. That was Mashu.

That love she had for her Master which tormented her like Roman and Tonelico before at the imagined vision of Fujimaru Ritsuka, humanity’s saviour, dead. The fruits of her labour toppled from the cold palm of her hand. The shadow of two years that would loom over her male twin from which he would never emerge. Humanity’s hope, leaving behind a gift for their successor. The last price they would be troubled to pay.

        Hope and love would converge in one entity: humanity’s testament, but not its saviour.      The story of hope and love was authored by hands of others, she was merely the storyteller.                  Romani Archaman. Fujimaru Ritsuka. Their story. Their story... concluded.

                                  Hope and love.                                   Hope and love.                                   Hope and love.

At a distance from the festival’s offerings, they had taken to the Sky-Strewn Isles, beneath the stars. Watching them, Mashu’s thoughts of the Time Temple came to ease her frayed nerves. At the culmination of a tremendous journey, there had been something wondrous in that final push — a magic in the air alight with the blessing of so many Servants converged into the same battlefield. On the other side of the seventh Lostbelt, she anticipated no such miracle. She could hardly imagine such a thrilling conclusion, something breath-taking that exceeded the trepidation of what failure would permit reality. She was not that pure girl who held her head high, even as the end of the world blazed above their heads.

“I thought about it a lot. Even when I died, Senpai kept going. It must have been tremendously painful — her body was at its limits, and she had dreaded seeing me go — but she kept going. She kept summoning Servants even though doing so put an enormous strain on herself, because she couldn’t afford to give up”.

                              You were dying even then, weren’t you, Senpai?                 You were dying when you limped back towards Chaldea all by yourself.

“The legend says you knew about your death the moment before you pulled the Sword of Selection, and yet you did it. You pulled it and sacrificed yourself for a cause far greater”.

“Yes.

Merlin enacted one final evaluation to test my resolution. I surrendered my humanity in that moment and accepted the end, whatever may come. Ritsuka did the same, but that is where the similarities end. Not a country, but the world was asked of her, and all while human. Whether she has written herself off as one too steeped in sin to be worth the title, the fact remains she is human”.

Among those lights, Saber had not been one to tread the Time Temple. Why King Arthur herself would not appear among humanity’s greatest army, to fight for its future... there had never been any reasonable explanation. The Lion King and her knights, the Round Table, they had been the representatives. The stoic manner in which she carried herself, it wasn’t unfamiliar to Chaldeans, but something had changed. She’d hardened herself to bear the weight of demands made upon Chaldea, the way Mashu had tried, the way Ritsuka had to.

“When she fought Goetia, I wonder how far off she was from now? When she was so worn down and her spirit alone kept her moving. What went through her mind. What burned brightest in her.

I began to think about if the ending that waits beyond the Lostbelts would demand the same, when she’s already falling apart. That maybe I could do it in her place, just one more time, and not leave everything to her like we have all this time. Maybe I could fight with rage in my eyes, teeth grit with fury, a dedication to fight the entire world for her, a resolution to have her last long enough to see even a second more, maybe even enough anger that I would think to burn the world that wasn’t worth it if it meant getting her back.

If it meant sharing her pain, her scars".

Saber’s eyes closed briefly. Familiar notions had driven her charge previously; that of phenomenal determination against all odds. “Mashu. I cannot begin to help Ritsuka, not if she won’t allow it. None of us can. It’s a fact that feasts without satisfaction. You and the Count are no doubt overcome by the same, yet he maintains his composure. As one inexperienced, you’ve heard numerous interpretations on the matter, each accompanied by beliefs. Nothing I can say will be new or comforting.

It is quiet infuriating... to suspect she will not survive and witness what was salvaged by her sacrifice. For there to be no apparent means to overturn that outcome, in spite of everything she has given. always". As a Servant, who could do naught for her Master. It had nothing to do with the echo of Arthur’s death; Ritsuka was human. Whether she had accepted that ending or not, she was hope. She was the brightest light in the world. Moreso than any Servant, any star. Without her, the whole world went dark. Without meaning. Like those brief lives they fought for — Mashu’s wish was not eternity for the brightest of Chaldea’s stars, but milliseconds more on that fleeting blink that was a human lifespan.

                                 Hope and love.                                  Hope and love.

“After all the pain she’s suffered, and all the deaths she’s witnessed... yet how she carried herself, then and now. I’ve disliked so much how weak I’ve been these past months. I haven’t held my ground and rebelled against how everything is so unfair. I folded in and my heart grew weak. If faced against something as powerful as Goetia’s Noble Phantasm, I wouldn’t hold up, and everything would have been for nothing. Everything she endured, but still stood up after. I thought about turning my heart to stone and try to close out the pain”.

Their eyes met. A silent acknowledgement. Saber didn’t reply.

“But I can’t. Doctor Roman gave me so much, and I have to carry it on in his stead. I don’t want to disappoint him

Senpai treats herself like a martyr the way you did, and I would gladly sacrifice myself again for her. But I can’t. I have to live because it’s what she wants. The way I want so much for her to. If it came down to a decision, we’d choose each other to carry on. I would give her love, she would give me hope. We’re as bad as each other, but that’s the price of Doctor Roman’s gift. I don’t regret carrying it for him, but I do feel unworthy. How I feel so unworthy of hers.

Some days, I feel as though the tenacity she always has, and just how brilliantly it shone for no-one to see, is enough to climb over the hurdle and cope with an ending she doesn’t get to see. I feel pride swell in my chest and feel inspired to do the same, and that would be the legacy of her memory I would carry. But they’re just temporary, like everything else”.

Momentary peace descended, the noise of skiers a distant hum. “I can’t make peace with it yet. When she came back from the Time Temple, I thought we’d lost her, and never wanted to feel that again. But now it’s every day, and nothing has happened. I can’t save her, like you couldn’t save Britain. Holding her final gift but unable to hold her hand scares me. But Doctor Roman was scared. Senpai is scared. And they did what they had to, they didn’t close in on themselves. I want to be strong again, so they can rest assured their mantles would be in safe hands, and they can watch without fear when I fight the way they did, beyond the border of human and wielding impossible”. They would speak pride of her no matter what, but she wanted to be the Mashu Kyrielite who could believe and feel the same. Their champion as they were hers and Chaldea’s.

                                Hope and love.

[teatitty]

*swings legs* u ever think about how ritsuka is kinda like our lostbelt king/ a reverse "lost belt king?" specifically, u ever think about how, in one form or another, that makes them "royalty" (even tho they don't see themself that way), and how regardless of that they are often seen as a pillar of persevering love and unwavering resilience, even in the face of the "unloveable" and the "unattainable?" I mean, that alone is really compelling on a symbolic level I think, but it just blows me away in the meantime that three of the most well-known mythical beings consistently associated with protecting "the crown" / "the moral" are dragons, unicorns, and firebirds/phoenixes. Like, shucks. All that in mind, right. All that in mind. And somehow, somehow, those three creatures just happen to line up with three of ritsuka's most prominent guardians/allies.

Enter Merovinci stage left, a trio with Merlin - a fiercely protective and deeply loyal, yet often reclusive, secretive, and highly-misunderstood cambion consistently compared to dragons (for good reason) and associated with them through mythology, Da Vinci - a genius and artistic marvel, a testament to the power of love and knowledge over hatred and ignorance, who embodies every bit of the wisdom, beauty, and miraculous magic of a unicorn, as well as their will to protect at all costs (and with perfect grace, just like her perfect smile) those they deem worthy, and Romani - a symbol of healing, altruistic sacrifice, and hope who for obvious reasons fits the "from the ashes" motif, and who on a more aesthetic level just happens to also be of a "fiery" color palette too boot (especially in the Lostbelt era w/ those eyes. smh grumpy man too pretty). I just think it's really neat how these three line up with the symbolism of each creature, and how they also line up so well with each other and the common goal to protect one incredibly brave young mage. Ritsuka, who despite facing horrors beyond what anyone should ever have to, and despite being charged with the "crown" of pan humanity's protector — a crown they never asked for, a crown that is so very heavy, so very bloodied, and will never be properly known to very timeline it shields — continues to try to do whats right for their people, and who continues to be kind to even their bitterest of foes. It's all very.... comment dit-on... Spectaculaire OwO

Anywho–! That concludes my literature rant for the evening. Thank you for listening, and for continuing to put out such lovely content for us all. Until next time! — ur friendly neighborhood romavinci {and merovinci because merlin loving hours are 25/8} nerd ᕙ(⁼̴̶̤̀ω⁼̴̶̤́ )ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧✿

I'm a little too tired to offer any real coherent thoughts on all of this (it's amazing meta btw love seeing yall so excited and pumped over this stuff) outside of the fact I am now thinking of a traditional fantasy AU where Ritsuka and Rikka are both "chosen heroes" who were separated at birth, and where Ritsuka's "guide" is Romani, Rikka has Leo and Merlin is their final "trial" they face when they reunite before taking on the big bad

[mightysteelix]

The Sin Of Gluttony

Because this, after all, is still a fic blog. Here's my newest story - and my longest so far. And it did not take as much time as I expected, being finished in two-three weeks. Written to fix the lack of Shirou/Dantes fics and the lack of male "Fate/" kink fics.

Rating: Mature Category: M/M Fandoms: Fate/Grand Order Relationship: Amakusa Shirou Tokisada | Ruler/Edmond Dantès | Avenger Characters: Amakusa Shirou Tokisada | Ruler and Edmond Dantès | Avenger Summary: Shirou Amakusa had been sneaking in Chaldea's kitchen to indulge his gluttony. Thus, Archer enlists one Avenger to help him.Weight-gain kink fic. Don't like, don't read.

WARNING FOR KINK CONTENTS UNDER THE CUT

Additional Tags: Weight Gain; Belly Kink; Rapid weight gain; Magically assisted weight gain; Main character is 18+; Force-Feeding; Teasing; Erections; Mildly Dubious Consent; Feeder Edmond Dantès; Feedee Amakusa Shirou

LAST WARNING FOR KINK

Amakusa Shirou sneaked into Chaldea’s kitchen. Coast - clear. 

The last master of humanity was snoring in their bed, lulled by Nursery Rhyme’s tales. The Servants had taken the opportunity to sleep - expect the most obsessed, who tried to barge in Ritsuka’s room. Even EMIYA, usually restless about his domain, had holed with the rest of his not-exactly family.

As expected. Amakusa planned every heist months in advance, manipulating Servants for the perfect night. As a saint - even if apocryphal - he should reject the pleasures of the flesh: forget the buttery cookies, the fluffy desserts, the sweets that melted in the mouth... Snapping from the trance, he caught himself drooling. His eyes sparkled with desire. He had to fight the sin that would lead him astray.

Yet he crossed the large dining area in a single leap and entered the kitchen. The enthralling taste of gluttony, as captivating as EMIYA’s food, lingered. His own desires were controlling him. For a third night, he would indulge his longing in secret, fill his craving stomach with the most masterful food the world could offer. He would stuff his stomach past the norms of sense, lose himself in the pleasure of food. Perhaps the Fiendish Bodhisattva had cursed him with the unquenchable hunger.

Amakusa licked his lips, imaging the feast tonight. “Or my sins crushed me and I am their slave.” He should have rejected it. Yet those greedy desires took over the priest, stealing any control. Against the craving, he had no power. Gulping down his dry throat, he opened the fridge slowly, as if performing a holy rite. Sweet, sweet aroma tickled his nose. His fingers shivered. The light blinded his eyes, used to the dim darkness. As he adjusted, the outlines of the dishes took a concrete form. A large tray of cookies sprinkled white with powdered sugar; a few batches of thick, sweet, and fluffy ice cream.

Above them stood the crown jewel of EMIYA’s cooking - a five-layered cake, patiently decorated. Sugar flowers colored the frosting, each one with crafted petals. Fine glaze ribbons circled each tier. The Archer must have put an entire day in his masterpiece.

And Amakusa would destroy it in sheer, unbridled gluttony - a grave, unforgivable sin. Once he was stuffed, unable to stomach another morsel and pinned in one place by the pain and the weight of the food, he would polish down the cake in the most wasteful, decadent show of greed. His heart beat faster in his chest.

“The feast has started,” Amakusa whispered and took the chosen dishes. The light thinned, before disappearing as he pushed the door closed. Alone in the dark, hidden from everyone’s stare, he snatched a cookie and pressed it between his teeth. They tore the sweet dough. The sugar melted over his tongue.

“EMIYA,” he moaned, “you have outdone yourself again.” After gulping the cookie, he took another. The sweetness excited his tongue. His greedy fingers reached for the next one and it disappeared as quickly. The risk of capture at any moment, red-handed at the crime scene; the off chance his plan could fail drove him to gulp faster. If he did not finish before the others woke up, he had lost.

The ritual ended as the last cookie traveled down in Amakusa’s belly. A whole tray and he was barely stuffed. He had laughed at the tales of Saber’s hunger yet now was outeating her. His fingers rubbed the small curve of his stomach, hidden under his baggy clothes. A solid beginning, yet so far from the gluttony he desired.

“What should I pick now?” he asked himself. The cookies - however heavenly - had dried his mouth further. Some ice cream would serve as a relief. Amakusa opened one tub, a fresh, chocolate wave of coldness pinching his cheeks. “It’s decided.” 

Standing like a hero against their sworn enemy, Amakusa held his sword - a spoon - and broke the dark brown, almost black, layer of syrup.

“Huh?” Shadows hissed out of the ice cream and twirled around his arm. The curse chilled his skin, leaving a deep chain mark. Amakusa tensed. He tried to free his hand, yet the darkness pulled him closer, even more chains shooting at him. One bound his free arm, another warped his legs painfully tight.

They held him above the ground, unable to move a single finger. Only his mouth remained free. Should he scream for help? No, his captor desired that - to break his pride by forcing an admission out of him. He would never allow himself to be caught.

“Do not hope you will escape!” Thundering, evil laugh boomed. Pale sparks flared around the core of the curse. The shadows grew like smoke. Two legs formed under the cloud, covered by a long, dark coat to the ankles. “For your sin has already claimed your very soul!” The Avenger - the Count of Monte Cristo - cackled. His eyes flared brightly like the flames of hell. “No salvation awaits you!”

“This noise for me? Ah, you flatter me, Avenger.” Amakusa smiled, far more sweetly than any pastry. “I doubt you will release me if I ask.” He closed his eyes and lowered his voice to a sly whisper. “Would at least tell me why you took your time to curse me?”

“Politeness will lead you nowhere! The Archer yearned for vengeance.” Edmond walked closer to Amakusa, leaving a trail of shadows behind himself. “His thirst summoned me. The perpetrator must suffer and regret his crimes.”

“Have you stolen Holmes’ job? He will hate it. Very well, you caught me. You can turn me to the Master.” The pleasant way out. The preferable one.

Edmond shook head, his long hair swaying. “No, mon ami. Our Master will forgive you. That would be justice - their justice, yet the Archer does not care about it. He wants retribution, he wants punishment.” The fire in his eyes died as he held Amakusa’s cheek. “You will bear the weight of your sins.”

Amakusa gulped - an exaggerated jest of fake fear. “Does he plan to hang me until my limbs become numb? He must have a strange taste.”

The Count’s manic laughter filled the kitchen, making the utensils on the wall shake. “No, he gave me full right over your punishment. If the greatest Avenger accepts it, it will satisfy his dark desire. No one is observing us, nor anyone will wake in the following hours. Until our time runs out, I will plunge you in my curse.” He took the spoonful of ice cream from Amakusa’s hand. “Enjoy your greed, sinner! Rejoice as you become the embodiment of your sin!”

The spoon aimed for Amakusa’s mouth. He shut his mouth and bent his head backward. Whatever the Count had prepared, he would not comply. Although empty curiosity (or greater hunger) gnawed on his thoughts, eating him alive, he resisted. One word and the Count would stab with the spoon.

“Too late!” The magical sparks lit the kitchen with their pale colours. “You should have fought your sin before eating the bait!” Another shadow - thin like a piece of cloth - forced Amakusa’s mouth ajar.

He struggled to close it. His jaws shivered, pulled back by the bindings.

"Now," the Count continued, “you can repent only through punishment!” As soon as Amakusa’s lips opened, he lunged the loaded spoon in his mouth.

The ice cream had already molten a little. Thick and syrupy, it chilled Amakusa’s tongue. Sweet chocolate excited his taste buds, before emptying in his throat and leaving him craving more. He licked his teeth - some of the treat had stuck there. “Do you plan to feed me the entire night?”

“The punishment must fit the sin! Tell me, priest, how else should I discipline you?” Edmond scooped more ice cream, before pushing it in Amakusa’s mouth. “Three nights I prepared the perfect curse for you.” The shadow loosened its hold. “A curse to please Archer’s and my lust!”

Amakusa had to stop. The Avenger’s plans could only end badly for him. If he clenched teeth again, he could fight the spoons: sweet, sticky, pleasuring… The lingering chocolate taste flared up in the pit of his stomach. He wanted - no; he needed the creamy, thick confection down his throat.

A priest should reject any temptation.

And yet once the ice cream touched Amakusa’s tongue, he gulped down desperately.

“That’s it!” More frantic than a Berserker, Edmond forced a spoonful after a spoonful in Amakusa’s mouth. “Fall in your sin! Embrace your desires and suffer!”

The priest obeyed like a trained pet. He could not reject the tingling pleasure of the sugar. Each gulp moistened his throat, making him shiver with delight before a stronger, fresher taste replaced it. Closing his eyes, he waited for the powerful, familiar fullness. Once hunger had left him, he would eat because he wanted to blow in size: bloated, overfed, huge, indulging. Most thoughts were pushed away, only one lingering. The Avenger must have realized Amakusa enjoyed his punishment.

“You are shaping up perfectly!” The chocolate taste died without a new hit to replace it. “Now everybody in Chaldea will realize your gluttony!” Edmond pressed hands over Amakusa’s belly. “Did you believe I will only feed you?” The black shadows let him on the kitchen counter. “No! You will suffer the results of your sin: your lustful, decadent greed!” Where Amakusa used to have solid abs, now there was a chubby, small belly.

Intriguing. Out of all possible torments: the hellish tower; the soul-sucking nightmares - the Count chose to feed him in person and curse him with fatness. Amakusa smiled like the sun. "You do not lose points for originality. But what are you going to do now?" He took a spoon and fed himself a large scoop of the cursed ice cream. His body tingled as the sweet taste washed over his tongue and he felt himself pluming the slightеst bit.

Edmond snorted. "I have already broken you? Pity. I expected you would rebel for longer. If you had tried to run, I would have had you tied and stuffed for the whole night."

"Not at all." Amakusa's warm eyes locked on the Count. "You have not broken me. I would have eaten the ice cream anyway." He cupped his chin - a little thicker than normal. "Cannot let my careful planning waste. Thank you for speeding the process and feeding me."

Sparks flew around the Count, making the kitchen glow. "Don't talk!" he ordered, tying Amakusa with the shadows once again. "I will fatten you up until you need to be rolled around Chaldea! How could you still eat despite the curse?"

So cute. The big bad Avenger was flustered and his it behind anger.

Amakusa scratched the flab lightly. Small ripples formed around, disappearing at the limits of his newly gained fat. It was a real, permanent part of him; a definite proof of his gluttony. "Be fast, please." He wanted to grow soft, enormous, fattened by his inevitable obsession. And he would make the Avenger admit he enjoyed the night as much. "Perhaps I should have tried to run. I'd rather not waste time on small talk when there is still food."

"I shall make you eat your words along with everything else!" Edmond flared as if burning alive. The shadows boiled and squirmed behind him. One coiled around Amakusa's legs and pinned them to the base of the counter. "Even if you enjoy it now, the night is still young. I have endless time to make it a worthy punishment!"

"Would you drop the pretences already?" Amakusa leaned forward and his shirt rode a little, showing a silver of tan skin. He held Edmond's palm in his hands. "If you admit we both seek pleasure, the night will be more enjoyable."

"What pretences?" The Count pulled his hand free. "I work in the name of vengeance! My only pleasure is the pain of my victims!" He draped over his prisoner and fed him so fast that Amakusa could not talk.

The overfilled spoon left his lips and came again, even more full, forcing him to gulp or drown in the ice cream. With each course, his belly expanded - even more extra weight piling on it, stretching his black shirt tighter and making it ride up higher. The speck of revealed skin grew as his little bit of flab engorged in a proper gut - and Amakusa would not stop.

Not that Edmond would let him. Frantic sparks shot around, giving short bursts of light - Amakusa bigger at every one. Laughing madly fast, he scooped through the tub and ensured that all of its contents ended in the priest's mouth. Any moment he expected to break Amakusa's bliss and make him beg for mercy.

But it did not happen. As Amakusa’s body widened, so did his grin. A decadent desire possessed him; he sucked the ice cream from the spoon before Edmond had finished putting it in his mouth. He poked his hands sideways in his stomach and shook it up and down, the vibrations jolting through his flab. The weight over his hands increased, and he put more force to jiggle his forming rolls. The next dose could not come fast enough. 

And even though the Avenger controlled Amakusa, he was fighting on the defensive, unable to find an excuse. Tied and speechless, the priest still rebelled against him. Not only rebelling, but he also held swath over Edmond’s actions. His joy would not end soon; the Count’s anger was burning up. And how could it stay, when Amakusa ate every fattening spoon and took the full bunt of the curse?

The Count dragged the spoon out of Amakusa’s mouth but did not fill it again with ice cream.

“What happened?” Amakusa asked, his nimble tongue licking the ice cream on his lips. “Has it run out? Too bad,” he laughed, his chubbier cheeks jiggling along. “I was just starting to enjoy it. Can we move to the cake now? A bit earlier than I expected, but if there’s no more ice cream left…”

“How?” Edmond broke the spoon in two as if it was a mere twig. “An Avenger - a Servant born of hatred - to bring pleasure? Impossible!” With a flick of his hands, he cleared his pale sparks, drowning the kitchen in total darkness. “I hoped to keep this as my finishing move, but your joy has continued for too long!”

He took the second tub - the first truly empty - and imbued it with his dark power. It glowed a sick green color as the ice cream boiled, bubbles forming and exploding with a strong ‘Pop!’. It melted, leaving a thick liquid full of sugary calories. As soon as the light died, he pressed the tub to Amakusa’s lips.

The viscous liquid slogged down the priest’s throat, and the empowered curse fattened him faster. Even in the darkness, he felt himself expanding, stretching the black shirt to sizes Amakusa never imagined it would reach. Each gigantic gulp sent shocks through his gut. It flopped, pulling the shirt higher. Now it covered only the topmost part of his belly - and soon would free it as the mass of lard did not stop growing.

His pants proved somewhat more resistant, digging deep in his gut. The waistband stretched to its limit, a mound of flesh falling over it. Amakusa tried to reach under it and unbutton his pants, but his chubby fingers could not budge the button. He would have to pop it with his growing gut. An even heavier gulp made his abdomen sag lower, resting on his tights.

Of course, the fattening had not spared them either. His legs filled the dark pants, pushing the material beyond its limit. He felt the brush of air on his bare skin, small holes having formed around the seams. The fabric pressed deep, but with each second the thread unraveled further.

His arms also expanded, losing any muscular definition. Even with the powers of a Servant, he moved them with more difficulty than before. The arm flab quivered with his movements, doubling the pleasure of exploring his flabby body.

And the cushion of his ass softened, taking more and more place over the counter. Amakusa sneaked his hand down his back, squeezing the thick globe of pure fat. His nails dug in the flesh and the ripples traveled to his knees, the flab a perfect conductor for them. Moving up, he groped his large love handles - they have united with the bulk of his gut, forming a flabby ring around him. 

How huge was he? He could see nothing, only feeling his belly bulge and his shirt rise and his pants tighten…  Once the lights came back, Amakusa expected incredible joy and disappointment. He would find how enormous he had become, yet it would never reach his imagination. If his lardy ass covered the counter, the floor would be the next challenge, then the rest of Chaldea…

After each gulp, he leaned back more and more, the sudden weight of his gut proving too much for a Servant’s body - or another effect of the curse? The more his belly surged out, the closer he came to lying down, pinned under the always growing weight of his own fat. Could he even stand up on his own once done? Or he would rely on the Count’s whims: seemingly unpredictable, but completely under Amakusa’s control and in an endless game of cat and mouse?

As Amakusa lay on his back, the warm fat insulating the cold counter, the last spurt of the ice cream fell in his throat and pushed out his flabby sphere of a gut.

“Perfect!” The Count dissolved the shadows and jabbed his fingers in Amakusa’s stomach, above his belly button. The vibrations shook his mass, reaching to his now-ample moobs. “With all this fat pressing you down, you must feel -“

“Perfect.” Amakusa cut in Edmond. He huffed as he sat up, mashing his bulbous gut and forcing more pressure on his soft ass. “Did you believe that you can make me regret it? Abandon my gluttony?” He laughed, feeling his chubby cheeks wobble. “Avenger, this time your plans failed.”

The Count clenched fists. A storm of sparks flared around him, throwing blinding light over the kitchen. Amakusa bowed head, avoiding the sudden brightness. He saw his rolls: wide and flabby, daring almost to touch the counter.

“I failed!” The Count stomped away, causing the kitchen to shake - Amakusa’s fat body included. “I had only to force you to regret your sin, make you detest your desires - to punish you in Archer’s name! And now the night has fallen to ruin.” His body vacuumed all the sparks but the palest light.

“It does not have to be,” Amakusa said. “We have not touched the cake. Your last chance to make me detest the curse. Will you take up to the challenge?”

“Yes,” Edmond muttered. “Yes!” he roared, clenching fists in a triumphant pose. “You, mon ami, will curse my name by the end of the night!” He burnt bright with sparks. The closer he walked to Amakusa, the more air around him heated. “I swear it! As the sun rises, you will curse the Count of Monte Cristo!”

“And I swear,” Amakusa replied in turn, “to make you admit that you have enjoyed the night.” It was a deal with a handsome devil; a bet he would win. He extended his pudgy hand to Edmond’s slender one.

Edmond fell in the trap; once their fingers pressed, Amakusa pulled him closer, making him fall in the mountain of his gut. The sudden movement made Amakusa’s whole body jiggle like a ball of squishy jelly. Trying to push himself up from the soft pile, Edmond only sent greater tremors through it. He spoke horrible curses, his fiery tongue licking Amakusa’s skin. The priest wanted only to keep him there forever, worshiping and feeding him.

Alas, the momentary happiness had to end. Using his shadows, the Count pulled himself free. “I have never thought a priest as you would fall to such nasty tricks.” He draped over Amakusa. His hands groped his flabby moobs for support. “You could have asked.”

“You would have refused,” Amakusa smiled without a trace of regret. “Or I have won?”

“Not even close. I am merely -“ he leaned even closer, above the priest’s lips, “- casting a bigger net.” Edmond massaged Amakusa’s moobs, his fingers squeezing the two sacks of flab. His knees gently kneaded the gigantic mass of his gut.

Amakusa’s pants tightened even more. His erect dick pressed in the flab of his tights, and each ripple of his belly sent a stronger joust of pleasure through it. “And how it helps you to give me more pleasure?”

Edmond’s heated breath touched the priest’s face. “I could chain you with the shadows and leave you here.” One of his hands slipped lower and stroke Amakusa’s dick slowly. “Begging on the verge of a release that is not coming.”

“Is this your rumored cruelty, Avenger?” Amakusa smiled and pulled Edmond in a tight hug. “Then I will reply in kind.” He dragged his flabby hands over the Count’s back, holding them over his tight, tiny ass. Edmond’s dick poked into Amakusa’s stomach. “Now we are even.”

“Do not overstep your bounds, Ruler.” Pressing hands on the counter, Edmond pushed himself up above Amakusa’s face, close, but out of reach.  “I might just decide to leave you packed in shadows as a present for the Archer.”

“Perhaps it is your fault. If someone was… I don’t know - feeding me too fast - I would have no time to play with you.” Amakusa trailed a finger over his fat, empty gut. “Bear the responsibility and keep engorging me. Ensure I grow constantly.”

“Your tendency for shameful moves should have made you a Caster. A warning to the people, who don’t expect sneaky priests.” Edmond jumped off the counter and turned his back to Amakusa. “No.” He snorted, shaking his head. “I knew your nature and still chose to fight against you.” The flame in his eyes glowed. “Enfer Château d’If!” His body tensed and in the next second, he had Amakusa gagged again, while he leaned over his mouth with a chunk of the cake. 

One shadow had coiled around Amakusa’s calves, squishing the fat on them, and slammed them to the base of the counter. A second bound his hands, forcing him to lie down on the table. 

Amakusa smirked and opened his lips. “I won,” he muttered before the Count pushed the pastry down his throat. He gulped the light, extra buttery dough, letting the curse do its job. His tights fattened around his hard dick, embracing it in hot flab. Almost cuming, Amakusa ground them together. The movement shook his stomach, its bottom roll falling onto the tip of his cock and pressing deeper.

The Count moved at a fiendish speed; before Amakusa could gulp, a new portion of the cake had filled his mouth. Using both hands, he tore from Archer’s masterpiece, all in the important goal of feeding his priest. Amakusa twitched, his erection throbbing. 

His moobs - two balls of fat that could rival Raikou’s - strained the black shirt which fought in vain to cover them. His sleeves fared even worse; bits of exposed skin oozed out of the large tears. The tight pants endured the longest, yet as Amakusa’s gut pushed out heavier, fatter, more decadent, the waistband groaned. After an especially heavy chunk, the layer of fat forced it stretch more. The fabric could not take it and with a loud sound tore all the way down to his crotch.

Amakusa moaned as he felt himself cum, soaking his tight underpants. The Count paid no notice, only using the opportunity to force even more food into his wide-opened mouth. The priest’s body heated even more as a haze of incredible pleasure clouded his thoughts. He ate on autopilot, not caring how big he would end - it would not be enough. Thus, they would repeat the night’s session later, when…

The sweet flow of the cake ended. “What happened?” he asked, licking his lips. “Have I eaten the entire cake?” Already? Even with Edmond’s Noble Phantasm increasing his speed, the doughy tower should have lasted longer. Amakusa wanted to check, but his fattened neck and the tight shadows restricted his movement.

“Not yet.” The Count gritted his teeth, turning his head away from Amakusa. The long shade of his collar hid his face. “But I lost my only advantage. You have won. I do not have to feed you further,” he said in a weak tone. Melting away, the shadows released their prisoner.

‘You have won.’ The hollow words did nothing to fill the void in Amakusa’s stomach. He lay unmoving, staring at the dark ceiling of the room while Edmond walked away. “Wait,” he said, just as the Count stood in the door, ready to leave him. “As long as there’s some cake left, you have chances. You can fatten me so much that I would regret it. So fat that I would depend on you for everything.”

Edmond leaned on the door. “And yet you would still like it. Tell me, priest, one reason not to leave.”

“You will never know. I might just realize I dislike my size once the cake is over. Would you risk missing the chance to taunt me over it and mock me? Would the Avenger miss his vengeance? Besides,” Amakusa whispered an octave lower, “I am sure you are as aroused as I was.”

“Even the goddess of pleasure cannot compete with you.” The Count turned, his coat fluttering behind him in an arc. “Very well, priest. You will entertain me for some more time.”

Tomorrow, Amakusa would deal with the questions, the stares, and the consequences. The Great Order, the King of Mages, even simply moving became a distant goal. Tonight he had a cake to finish and a Count to tease.

[gallowking]

(early valentine!) "Sanson, Sanson." Ritsuka holds out a box, filled with chocolate-truffles of various types. "Here, for being a treasured ally. I hope you enjoy them."

She had run up to him so fast that Sanson did not have time to react so quickly! The assassin nearly dropping the books on the floor before Ritsuka had stopped in front of him, holding out a box that held what smelled like some kind of unique and quality truffles. He himself was not big on chocolate at the moment, but truffles were literally the embodiment of gourmet. He would have to lose his head not to accept these! 

Reaching out, the man gently grasps the package. His eyes widen in disbelief, before looking at his Master. 

Those words were really kind. 

“I appreciate this, Master. This is very kind of you to give me. Perhaps... you would like to share these with me?” 

He would definitely remember this. White day, from what he had recalled, is an actual thing.

[somethinglessfighter]

One thing that always bothers me in fiction in a philosphical sense. Is the villain or villains redeemable?

I actually am very uncomfortable with the assertion as readers may have gathered that any antagonist is unredeemable. I don’t believe in irrredeemability, philosophically. Maybe this makes me a foolish naive sap, I don’t know. But I have always passionately believed that even the darkest souls can be saved and furthermore that they should be.

The question in Loveless arises with Ritsu and Seimei of course. Can they be redeemed? Or more to the point Rehablitated? Rehabilitation is not the same thing as Redemption although there is some overlap. Rehabilitation is of the mundane world and the practical business of preventing future dysfunction and suffering, redemption is more of a spiritual intangible thing and very much a matter of individual perception.

These two characters between othem are the ones responsible for damaging Soubi and turning ihim into what he became (and is slowly transcending thanks to Ritsuka and will overcome in the end of the story clearly). They are terrible people but are they really responsible completely for their actions? In the case of Ritsu I would say yes probably (but then again we don’t even know the full story with him yet)

The fact is I think it is those two characters who really embody the word ‘loveless

. (note that they have both seemingly rejected their fighters or so it seems)

I think there will be some kind of rehabilitation in the end. I’ve said before that Yun is a lot more merciful to her characters than most of us readers as a rule.)

Anyway the idea that there is no hope for lost souls and they can never be brought into the light is just really depressing for me. I like it as in Sailor Moon or Precure where enemies are purified or as in golden age Wonder Woman where enemies are healed through Amazon psychology. (One reason why WW never had a  rogues’ gallery as famous as Superman or Batman)

Anyway this is just a big philosophical difference with me and a lot of people I guess.

[yoakenouta]

can u tell im a sucker for dynamics that make ritsuka feel like a normal person

[mako-neexu]

it sickens me to the core that edmond dantes is not edmond dantes and he says that upright to your face and thats no lie. that is an identity belonging to a man in the past a man too innocent too hopeful already dead and long gone. the Avenger that exists now is an exerpt from the book. a former nameless vengeful spirit embodying curses and despair collected from the first tower. yet the throne has stuck with him a name that hardly fits his spirit origin a name of the man saved by love. but hes still damned he cant be saved. his soul is forever stuck in the chateau d'Ilf and there is no saving him now and its far too late... and yet he met that person amongst the woods and again at the trap meant for them. that person showed him their determination and fought back, ultimately showing him hope that left him breathless and giving him a kind of salvation by becoming their abbe faria in his last moments....this man is sickening. hes too selfless, he loves too much, he barely talks without sounding like a mad poet. and he acts first before informing anyone... he tells ritsuka to kill him once and for all with a feral smile and a cry of his soul. and once the star has dug their knife in his chest, the man who wore the mask of the villain begins to smile like a man who is at peace. at peace, at peace and yet and yet and yet!!!!!! his own heart still yearns to be with the light he saved! even as he pushed them forward towards tomorrow!!!the contradiction is so sickening i want him blasted to a thousand pieces!!! he is not edmond dantes yet in some way he was still saved!!!!!!!! he is the Count of Monte Cristo, revenge demon of Paris, yet the existence that stands here now serves like a priest! a king! an accomplice! a knight . a knight, a man weak before his one and only comfort, a man who can only kneel on one knee, hold that person's hand near his lips, and make a face as if the feelings he had for them weighed far heavily than what atlas carried on his shoulders. sickening so sickening

[wyrmmaster]

Lizard Elizardbeth Elizabeth Bathory (with some Carmilla too) for @xenodile

Elizabeth Bathory is, well, Elizabeth Bathory in child form. She has horns and a tail because of the Innocent Monster skill, public knowledge has her family associated with dragons, so a dragon she is. She also has Mad Enhancement, which technically makes her a rare dual-class servant, but it’s VERY low rank and it’s only real purpose to let you know she’s, well, absolutely fucking bonkers.

Just like the real Bathory, Elizabeth is mentally ill: truly narcissistic, and also a psychopath. She actually can’t understand the pain of others and generally, pre-character development, doesn’t have a moral compass outside of “I want to do this”. The real Bathory was a noblewoman who killed young women and bathed in her blood to keep herself looking young and beautiful, because she loved attention, and loves beautiful things. When she was outed as a serial killer, she was entirely unrepentant, because her serfs were her property, they exist for her amusement, etc.  Because of her vanity, they decided the best punishment was to lock her in house arrest, and ignore the shit out of her until she literally died of loneliness. Fate Bathory is that, and has those memories, but her psyche and body has regressed to a time before she was too far gone into crazy-town to learn that she was doing bad things.

Also because of her regressed mindset, she doesn’t entirely know how to process her fear of being ignored, so it gets projected into “I want to be a GLORIOUS IDOL!”. This leads to her general cutesy act, her NP taking the form of loudspeakers, her nicknaming the only ‘fan’ (in her mind, at least, they’re her fan, and not the only one) she has, Hakuno, as little piggy (male), or baby squirrel (female). Elizabeth wants attention, she wants adoration, and she wants it in incredible quantities.

So, obviously, when she was first summoned into the CCC moon cell timeline, and got freaking Lil’ Ronnie as a master, that wasn’t gonna fly. So she murdered poor Lil’ Ronnie, got approached by BB, and since BB is beautiful, hooked up with her immediately, and gets glued to Rin, who’s gonna be her master. This is.... Acceptable. And, also obviously, Elizabeth needs to beautiful herself, right? And there’s all the programs, programs being indistinguishable from humans laying around.... string ‘em up, drain and bathe in their blood.

While she’s with Rin, she encounters Hakuno, and Hakuno’s blank, lifeless stare of a particularly rare breed of cave moss starts working its magic, along with his servants’ comments. Eventually, she betrays Rin as well, and gets stuck with Shinji. She returns as an antagonist, and Shinji’s INCREDIBLE stupidity (fucking Shinji Tank) also helps Hakuno’s case.

After you fight said Shinji Tank, it’s revealed that she has a crush on Hakuno, and you enter her SG. SG being Secret Garden, the innermost part of a servant, where you essentially slap them with every flaw in their personality and mercilessly destroy them (this part isn’t a joke; it’s actually what happens).

Before that, however, you have a few interactions with her. Eat the dinner she makes, (almost die), shoot the shit, etc. It’s honestly a bit cute. Once the SG gets down to business though, that all goes up in smoke: she has her crimes laid out in front of her, and still has absolutely no understanding of wrongdoing. She’s irredeemable. She is forced into an endless Ice Maze, where she’ll be alone, for all eternity, and has a complete mental breakdown.

She shows up one more time however: when you enter your servant’s origin. She takes their place as your servant for the duration, and by the end of that is able to admit that she was at fault for her situation, so there’s still hope for her yet.

In Grand Order, the stable environment and all the kindness and attention she gets from servants during events is implied to completely rehabilitate her, or near it (see: her Halloween version). F/GO is arguably not canon on that point, however, because technically only the Singularities are canon, and Mashu is your only real servant.

In Extella, she carries over the knowledge from CCC that She Done Wrong. She has the misfortune of bringing that to a Tamamo in full relapse to Demon Courtesan Mode™, of all people, however, so it’s a crapshoot. She also brings her crush (and nickname) for her ‘fan’, Hakuno, who by the end of CCC sees her as a pretty adorable little scamp, but is pretty wary of her.

There isn’t much to expand upon here, if you’ve gone through Tamamo’s route it’s pretty heads up minus interpretation. Tamamo pushes her way too far, and Elizabeth eventually decides she’s done enough “atoning” and switches over to Velber’s employ with Archimedes’ meddling.

It’s worth noting, however, that she was this close to telling Tamamo and Hakuno about Archimedes, but was pushed too far away and Hakuno’s kindness wasn’t strong enough to pull her back. She keeps her crush on him, however, but she’s still a murderous narcissistic psychopath, and he’d be more a pet than anything else.

Essentially, CCC Elizabeth is a brat that eventually learns her lesson, tries to atone in Extella, but Velber happens. F/GO Elizabeth is that atoning Elizabeth in a proper environment for it, which also includes a Tamamo post character development.

Carmilla, on the other hand, is essentially a “what-if” Bathory, similar to Jeanne Alter Santa Lily eventually becoming just Jeanne Lily, because she embodies a childhood wish Jeanne had to see the ocean.

The “what-if” here being “what if we had Bathory in her full unrepentant, crazy glory?” She’s horrible, tortures people, murders young girls, and even traps Ritsuka in her Death Maze during one of her interludes. It is mentioned however, that she does have affection for them, in her own way, and will retaliate to anyone that harms them out of that affection. Though, she sees them more as a toy than anything else. There is a VERY slight hinting that she does harbor some guilt for her crimes, but it’s a stretch.

[yoakenouta]

sometimes i think about their friendship dynamic and i lose it a lil

✦ ORIGINAL ARTIST

[yoakenouta]

How do you need to be touched ?

FERVENTLY. You crave a hug that cracks your ribs. The feeling of your wandering soul being crushed back into the bones that can’t seem to hold it. You need a hand gripping yours so tightly you almost fear it. It may leave a bruise, a reminder that you are here and that you are not alone.

tagged. stole it! >:3 tagging. anyone that wants to do it!