#((Excuse me as I use this as a bit of a lore dump

[enchantrum]

Secrets of the Obscure is alright and all but am I the only one kinda miffed that they ripped off a lot of it from Dragon Age: Inquisition and didn't really add or change enough to be it's own unique thing?

even the rift hunting mechanic is Exactly The Same, because you Open the rift, then fight something then close it. the animation is almost 1-1 and even the eye in the rift looks like the Inquisition eye. if it wasn't for the fact that Even The Mechanic is the same I might not have noticed it so much, but the more I play the more blatant it feels

and then their wizard lore also just feels like how demons come out of the Fade in Dragon Age to possess mages. it's almost exact

disclaimer that I'm still enjoying it because it's fun and I like that we get to see Zojja again and have a better map for practicing skyscales for those who don't have one yet, but uh...this whole plot was stolen!

and yes I know there are certain fantasy tropes that re-occur in fantasy over and over, but this doesn't feel like that. it feels like the writers legit just snapped the base ideas from DAI and then barely added or changed anything to make it uniquely Guild Wars

imo it's definitely the weakest of all the packs

which is a shame because I LOVEDDDDD the intro. the whole sequence of having to defend yourself and run for your life was so ridiculously tense, I really felt like I was playing a horror game

but now I'm on Ep. 7 and all the potential feels wasted because I feel like I'm playing the underwritten fanfiction of another game that I already played 10 years ago and didn't like that much the first time

[starchanged]

@fightingstargirl gave a Palentines gift: She knows they don't enjoy the holiday much, but it doesn't stop her from visiting them. Holding up a bunch of matching Eevelution keychains, she gave Penny the Eevee one. She had the Espeon one and held it up to show them. "I got the team a matching set."

Penny had many excuses for why they didn't like Valentines or Palentines or any other name the holiday was given. It was just a consumerist holiday that exploited people's love for each other, couples' were more annoying then ever on that day, you shouldn't use one special day a year to show people you care about them, they had one reason after another after another. But none of them were the real reason the holiday left a bad taste in their mouth. None of them came close to the truth.

The truth was the holiday was a reminder of previous 'friends'. If they could be called that. Friends who called themselves such but didn't really act as such. Friends who on this day always had gifts for one another, loving kind words to tell each other, who were excited to see the others. But when it came to Penny it was like they didn't exist. 'Sorry, we forgot.', 'We didn't think you'd want to participate.', 'Maybe next year, kay?', 'If you let us look at your homework we'll share.' It was the same year after year until finally a day for love was tainted with resentment.

They didn't expect anything on this holiday now. They kind of wanted the day to go by like it was any other day actually. Though they knew it wouldn't not with all the decorations around town and everyone celebrated. It was impossible for the day to be a 'normal' day. But maybe if they kept locked in their dorm all day they could ignore it or seethe it all away.

The only thing that pulls them out of bed and away from the Veevee pile that's formed around them is a knock at their door. They approached the door calling out to know who was there. Only opening it upon hearing Eri's voice call back. "Oh hey, Eri. I was just ummm..."

Before they can make an excuse for their abscence on the day Eri gives them something. A small key chain with an Eevee charm dangling off it. They look bewildered by the gift looking from their hand to the matching Espeon key chain in Eri's hand. When Eri explains how she got the rest of the team a matching set Penny feels tears well up in their eyes. They remember always watching from the outside as their former 'friends' got one another matching gifts. Reminders that they were all friends and that Penny wasn't.

Penny wasn't one for hugging either. Eri knew this too. Yet Penny can't help themselves as they reach forward wrapping their arms around Eri in a tight hug. Both to say thank you as well as to hide their wet eyes and reddening cheeks. "Thanks Eri. Happy Valentines. I... I know it's sappy to say. But you guys... You guys really are my greatest treasure."

[xaviever]

pls write more nerd!xavier anything i needdd him

˖ 𑣲 another nerd!xavier thought dump …

cw. fluff + suggestive content. dryhumping.

nerd!xavier who spends his afternoons hidden away in your campus's library, boredly skimming through his sections of interest for something he hasn't read yet. he ends up sound asleep atop a generous stack of astronomy textbooks, not even having gotten past the table of contents of the very first one (he's read it front to back already).

nerd!xavier who has many cutesy little keychains and trinkets from his hobbies hanging off of his belongings. tiny figurines of some of his favorite characters on his bookbag, pins of emblems from his favorite vintage games, and your fave, a tiny star tassel on one of his zippers. ◡̈

nerd!xavier who finds you every time there's any kind of peer work in class, always first to murmur the question of whether or not you've got a partner. he wants to work with you on everything. small discussions, paper reviewing, group projects; he needs to hear all your perspectives, your unique ideas.

nerd!xavier who starts visiting campus events in his free time, just in case you're there. not usually his thing at all, and he makes a great effort to duck and dodge all his classmates he recognizes who have definitely asked him out to something like this before. he overheard you once talking to a friend about a club fair, spending an embarrassingly long time later trying to find one of his forgotten academic calendars to see when it was. he’s elated when you spot him, mumbling some lame excuse about just stopping by when you ask why he came.

nerd!xavier rambling about his favorite comic book series. you enabled him, asking him to teach you the lore knowing it spans over years, ridiculously long to recount. but oh, you are so persuasive, pretty, kind eyes looking up at him all sincere... and he's almost vibrating at the opportunity to infodump. his soft, collected tone rising just a bit as he begins, boyish from his excitement. just the cutest. you'd pinch his cheeks if you could, so enamored by his passion for his interests.

nerd!xavier struggling to continue when you somehow end up in his lap, arms draped around his neck, rocking back and forth against his growing erection. you lost the battle around ten minutes in, cause, wow, he’s really into this. he moans softly, jittery hands digging into the mattress below to conceal the lust clouding his thoughts shamefully fast. you push up his glasses with a knuckle, cupping his face with one hand to keep his doe eyes on you. you urge xavier to keep talking, it’s so interesting, wanna hear more, please. his brain short circuits.

nerd!xavier with a sleeper build. he doesn't work out and doesn't pay much attention to what he eats either... something something genetics something something metabolism — who cares? finally getting under all those baggy sweatshirts and hoodies is like a reward, his royally sculpted body heaving above you, moving you to and fro with ease, his only deterrent from using all his strength being his nerves.

nerd!xavier who forgets his glasses one day. an angry alarm is his rude awakening one morning, yelling at him as he rushes out of his dorm to his early lecture. he goes through the day squinting and sleepy, the sweetheart. you catch glimpse of him down the hall and wave, and as xavier would recognize you in any form, he has little (moderate) trouble making out your figure before you get closer. blush as red as roses adorns his cheeks when you invade his space, eagerly taking in all his features without the obstruction of his frames, though you note with a cute, little pout how you miss them. he makes sure not to forget again, for your sake...and his.

— authors note. first part! thank u anon for indulging me i literally only think abt him. these thoughts r much more scattered than the first one sorryyyy. dryhumping your nerdy bf while he yaps anyone... nerd!xavier full fic is calling to me...

[hey-bigday]

what's that? TGS gem au!

these are honestly a bit old by now (2 month-ish? oh geez) but they have never left my head. If you want to know more, there is a massive yap wall under this cut with some lore and design ideas

First, Jekyll and Hyde's gems!

My first instinct was giving them hearts for gems, since we only ever see one Spinel in Steven Universe.

But I ended up remembering this that I read in the wiki a long time ago, that Spinels would have differently shaped gems based on playing card suits. I was suddenly hit with the fact that we do see both Jekyll and Hyde referred to with card symbolism in Just a Song at Twilight! This was very good for me, because I don't know anything about cards at all.

Jekyll also had a lot more diamonds scattered around his design– both a nod to his gem and his 'rule-following' attitude. Hyde only has the bare minimum to signify his court.

Trying to make a Sapphire is hard, and clothes are even harder, but I ended up making the choice to give Lanyon longer hair. He secretly hates it and reforms with shorter hair the first chance that he gets, but for now he has to keep up appearances

Figuring out Everly was also pretty hard, but that's mostly because she doesn't have that many appearances in the comic. I hope I got her right, even though I'm not entirely sure about making her a quartz.

Now...

LORE DUMP TIME!!!

Red Spinel (aka Henry Jekyll) was originally meant to be Pink Diamond's playmate. However, not long after her (his) creation, it became clear she was an off-color. An imperfect gem had no business being so close to a diamond, but due to the rarity and high-cost of spinels she was spared and instead sent as a 'gift' to a successful commander, Star Garnet (aka Lanyon Sir.)

Star Garnet was well-known for shaping up off-color gems into perfect fits for their roles. While this mostly earns the reputation of a fearsome leader, Star Garnet isn't actually cruel to her gems, she simply organizes thought-out training regimens to fit every gem's disabilities. Still, this exact reputation is what led to her being gifted Red Spinel. While she did not have any use for a Spinel seeing as she is war commander, she couldn't exactly refuse a gift so important as a spinel from the diamonds.

One of Star Garnet's gems that stands out the most is certainly her sapphire. Sapphires are aristocratic gems of high-standing, and so, are not under control of gems such as garnets. This sapphire, of course, is a special case. Tall where a sapphire is small, rowdy where a sapphire is calm. Sapphire (Robert Lanyon) has struggled her whole life to have a fraction of the respect a gem of her standing is supposed to have before she simply gave up. If no one is going to take her seriously for her predictions, then she'll give them a real reason.

Disrespecting orders, messing around with 'lower' gems and being generally disrespectful are Sapphire's specialty. She began to take quite a liking to interacting with the other gems in the Station: soldier, technicians... They all looked at her with the adoration befitting for a sapphire, but an adoration she had never seen directed at her before. Interacting with 'lower' gems made her feel a type of control she simply never felt in her life, and it was easy to leave once they got to attached–, or stars forbid–, accidentally tried to fuse with her. The fusions never worked, seeing as only one side felt the connection, but it was enough to prove her influence and leave gems ashamed.

Of course, things started to change with Spinel's arrival.

Seeing as Garnet had no use for a playmate, Spinel mostly walked around their space station like a particularly unnerving jester before meeting Sapphire. The two quickly hit off as Sapphire used Spinel as an excuse to escape most of the time, and Garnet mostly approved in hopes that Spinel might to Sapphire some good. The two gems ended up bonding, finding secret rooms to scurry off to and share experiences.

Spinel wasn't what Sapphire thought a spinel would be like, and Sapphire wasn't what Spinel thought a sapphire would act like. They both talked about their experiences, with Spinel admitting she wasn't particularly good at making people smile or fond of playing, not to mention her extreme curiosity for the works of peridot's (who have grow a bit scared of the red gem that keeps staring at them intensely from the shadows).

Now, while Sapphire didn't know how a spinel was actually supposed to act like, it was clear Spinel did not emerge with any knowledge of etiquette (which Sapphire actually did, another reason for her insecurities. She did everything right, so why was she never enough?) so Sapphire took upon herself to teach what she knows to Spinel, who took to the lessons like a fish in water. That's how the "gentlegem" lessons started.

As their friendship grew, so did Spinel's charm and confidence. She was a natural at being charismatic and while she wasn't a natural playmate, she was very good at boosting gem's morale with speeches and words. This completely erased most of Spinel's past reputation as 'that-one-creepy-gem', except for the peridots who were still a bit... Wary. But that's fine.

While Sapphire was a bit bitter about this (because, really, why was Spinel better at this than her, the gem who was supposed to be born for this role?) she was still floored by a torrent of new feelings as the time passed by. It didn't take long for her to realize what these feelings were. This care, this adoration, it was what those gems she so toyed with in the past felt for her. Spinel completely took away her control and didn't even realize it, and now Sapphire had to live with the consequences. She was unquestionably in love.

Even with all of these confusing feelings and the growing pressure on Sapphire, they still met up in their secret spot every few rotations. It was in one of these meetings that Sapphire took one of those fancy gadgets of recorded music that higher gems had from Pink Diamond's balls. Spinel didn't know how to dance, but Sapphire teached her. They danced, they harmonized, they glowed. Fusion was inevitable, and it felt amazing, but upon realizing what was happening their fusion immediately broke under the torrent of their feelings. Sapphire was the first one to react, and she ran, leaving Spinel dazed and alone.

Spinel tried acting like nothing happened after, and maybe Sapphire would've done so too if it wasn't for what happened next. Star Garnet came with a brand new soldier, a rose quartz (Everly Solanki), specifically to keep Sapphire in line and finally make her do her job. When Sapphire went to talk to Spinel directly and say they couldn't keep up with their arrangement anymore, Spinel was the one to leave first this time, now leaving Sapphire dazed and alone.

While Sapphire's and Rose Quartz's relationship was rocky at first, they ended up growing as friends by the end, relating to each other's struggles and expectations. Meanwhile, Spinel fell to an uneasy depression, greatly worrying her friends. This was about the time Spinel truly let herself indulge in the alchemy and technology she always loved, hoping, praying that she could find a solution that would make her less of a broken gem, a disposable clown. Studying the properties of a gem's, well, gem– Spinel manipulated what is supposed to be a gem's very being, their coding, their brain and sense of self. The injection that she delivery directly to her gems was supposed to separate herself from all that made her defective, it created Hyde instead.

I have more plans for this au– like how Jekyll didn't actually create the society before making Hyde. Star Garnet and her fleet will eventually be put in the Earth's gem war which will result in a part of her gems to mysteriously rebel and steal a ship. These gems, (which included Spinel, Sapphire and Rose) would come to make the Society in the future! Spinel would end up naturally taking a leading role in their escape and he appointed their leader. The plan would be that they settled down in a distant part of Earth's moon and would only visit the planet many years after the war was over. These visits would end up with them learning about things like names and gender so you don't have to call characters by their gems all the time, those are their dead names now! (← silly)

Thank you for anyone who had the patience to read all of this, love you all 🫶

[tacharie]

chapter 17 notes (finally)

Episode 1

MY GYATALICIOUS GOAT BENKEI IS THERE!! My favorite staff me ever since he’s so whimsical and silliness. Also because he’s more obvious with the dark wick lore, JUST LIKE NOW. So, based on Benkei’s assumption that Elias and MC were friends AND that he was suprised to here that Elias is working, it almost confirms that Elias is supposed to be around MC’s age, aka, a student. HOWEVER, what bothers me is that BENKEI, AN EMPLOYEE, doesn’t even know that Elias is working. Shouldn’t they all know each other? This could mean that there’s some sort of class system on what information goes to which teacher. This would further prove my point since the cats tend to treat different staff differently. They treat the teachers like coworkers while employees such as Benkei as lower class, as shown by the cat literally scolding Benkei for almost slipping up to mc. A bit of a stretch, but I like it so. 

Episode 2

I don’t like the conversation going on between Moby and the Chancellor right now…Especially since they are so discreet about EVERYTHING they say, even in private. There’s a clear teamwork between Moby, Hyde, and the Chancellor right now, and honestly, it makes me a little less suspicious of other teachers such as Dante (My goat) and Nicolaus (URGH.) but I digress. First, I want to point out power dynamics between the chancellor and Moby. Obviously, employer and employee, but it’s more than that. What type of authority does Cornelius have over all these other beings other than the fact that he has a say whether to lock them up or not? Appearance wise, he doesn’t have anything to prevent a revolution of anomalies against him. So why does HE specifically have authority. Is it a power he yields? Connections? Money? Or is this a representative situation? He acts as a placeholder for the real power in this specific branch and then notifies the bigger power on a situation in order to get a decree? I’ve been wondering this since episode 1 and still, there’s no story YET that connects to Cornelius’ role in dark wick as a whole. Next, these lines specifically between Moby and Cornelius, before they realized MC walked in:

“It only happened because Professor Hyde didn’t explain things properly when he dumped THIS on me?” -Moby

“How could I be expected to know that he STILL had the intellect to OPEN THE GATE by himself?” -Moby 

“That blindfolded weirdo… always using those ‘BUSINESS TRIPS’ of his as an excuse to pile things on my plate” 

“IF a CERTAIN SOMEONE were to find out where HE(???) is , our whole PLAN WOULD FALL APART” -Cornelius

“You’d better make sure THAT FOX doesn’t ESCAPE AG-(AIN)” -Cornelius

ARE THEY HOLDING SOMEONE CAPTIVE BRO??? LIKE NOT AN ANOMALY BUT A PERSON?? Maybe it is an anomaly though idk. A fox?? Chat search up Japanese fox legends maybe that’ll help. Also… I suspect it’s a person because they say “intellect” to “open THE gate”. I know anomalies can be hella smart, but I just love how much darker it WOUKD be that they would brainwash someone to lose cognitive skills to keep them captive. Also, it’s not A gate, like a regular old gate and lock, but THE gate. What makes this gate special? Or Am I just dumb and they’re just mentioning the fox’s gate? And this isn’t something Moby was supposed to do, but Hyde. I hate this guy so much, and he’s on so many BUSINESS TRIPS. Is this why he needs Romeo wrapped around his finger and Sho too? YALL CANT FORGET SHO IS A PART OF THIS TOO. Finally, let’s look at what Cornelius said about someone finding HE. This one I was a little confused with because HE can be either Hyde, which means Cornelius needs Hyde’s business trips for his plan, or the fox, which means the fox is a big disruptive force against Cornelius. If it is the fox, why refer to it as HE?? HE would imply that, yeah, this thing is a person, or at least humanoid wouldn’t it? Now, CERTAIN SOMEONE. This concerns me. If HE is Hyde, this wouldn’t really make sense right? I would assume his business trips would be shady to anyone other than the staff, so maybe that rules him out. If HE is the fox, this makes more sense. Still, why a specific person? If they were exposed to said fox, what would happen? Perhaps memories coming back?? (Cough cough Jiro, Taiga, Dante). Sighs. Idk this is so vague to debunk (hehe get it)

“As contestants on a dating show!” I CALLED IT. IN MY LAST POST. OH MY DAYS LOW IT DONT CHAT WITH ME BRUV. Wait this is low-key awkward I was js joshing. URGH these text options are gonna be so corny aren’t they…

Episode 3

I guess it’s not surprising they have connections to the entertainment industry to get us in but like… why THESE GHOULS. CHANCELLOR SAID THAT THEY WERE “hand-picked” SO WHY THEM??? 

Ohhh wait?? The staff of the show hand-picked them? Huh. 

I mean, I knew MC was gonna be on the show but like. Nooooo… nooooooo :((((…. AND THEY’RE FIGHTING FOR HER. Aw hell nah. Cooked. Fried. I hate this already. AND IM STILL SO MAD THEY DIDN’T LET LUCA JOIN. LIKE, DONT THESE SHOWS ALWAYS HAVE ONE FOREIGNER. URGHHHH. 

I don’t like.. how Cornelius talks. LIKE I KNOW I KEEP SAYING THIS BUT.. he sounds old. Like really old. “Modern people continue to make troublesome and unnecessary things” … is this a Lillia situation? I’m be actually never thought of Cornelius as much until today tbh. 

DID HE JUST THREATEN US?? “You need information of anomalies to break your curse and you can only get that by working with the institute” AFTER MY HOMEGIRL LITERALLY TRIES TO TELL YALL THAT SHES SCARED OF DYING DUE TO HER CURSE. So proud of her for speaking her mind just hate these bitches for pushing it down like it’s nothing. I know what he means is different but there’s always an undertone when they speak “Can’t exactly find your cure without our help now can you? So, just listen to us and follow our lead” yikes.

Star festival? No SHUT THE HELL UP CORNIEUS IM TRYNA LEARN. I want to know if this is a “make a wish upon a star” situation, a gamble even. Moby says the curse could be ——- by the star festival? Does he mean “it can end by the star festival” or “you could use the star festival to end your curse”. Huh.

Episode 4

“You want to order a s-s-swimsuit” Please don’t be a pervert, I beg of you. 

Yk, now that I think about it, Benkei acts a LOT like Lyca, and I think that’s why I like them so much. What I mean by that is they both act like clueless little smurfs navigating through the human world and they’re still trying to learn and improve. That’s by thing though, Why does Benkei act like that? Is that why he’s a grocer and not a teacher? Is he an anomaly? Honestly, don’t care, he’s still my goat. 

Episode 5 

Ok so “KP” and the driver guy. First off, they have eyes so… maybe bad news there. Secondly, they’re so normal it makes me hurl. 

Sorry chat, I got so distracted by his beauty I forgot to pay attention to wording. ANYWAY WOOO!! First day already spending it with ACO let’s gooooo

Episode 6

WHAT IS THIS INTRO 😭😭😭… This reminds me of Single’s Inferno it’s NOT even funny.

Yo wait guys. Host is kind of a hottie too. He’s a hear me out though so. I HOPE HE DOESNT DIE :d

The freaking name of the person MC is choosing is blank. Please don’t tell me we choose. DAMN IT ALL KP. YOU HAD ONE JOB… NOOOOO GUYS I DONT WANNA DO THIS NOOOOOOO… I can’t wait to see how MC reacts to the guys that are coming since … I got spoiled … 😓

Episode 7

Guys what if I said I was in love with Aco. HE CALLED MC CUTE AYYYYY LOVE HIM ALREADY. 

STOOOPPPPOO WAIT I RECOGNIZE THAT GIGGLE!! IS THAT MY GLORIOUS GOAT RUI!!!

Episode 8

IT IS !!! OMGOMGOMGOMGOG HE LOOKS SO PRETTYLICIOUS IN THAT SUIT!! HIS HAIR IS DIFFERENT. Wait low-key… smash. HIS HAIR IS SO STYLISH. Chat, I can’t wait for his card to come. YOOO THERES THE CUT SCENES IN THE BOOTHS. Y’all, these guys are so good at acting. They’re cooking frl.

JIROOOOO!!! That random guy in the background of his close up was so funny 😭😭… ANYWAYS MMMM ATE THAT KING !! Wait I’m low-key concerned like what if he passes out. He’s HORRIBLE at acting, get this guy some smart glasses for the script. HE LITERALLY SAID “Line?” 

OH MY DAYS!! EVERYONE STAY CALM! ITS MY GOATIEST OF GOATS HARU!!! AHHHHHHHH HARU I’VE MISSED YOUUUU!!! His little side swept is so cute URGHHHH I WANNA BITE HIM. He looks so weird without Peekaboo tho :( HE MENTIONED HE WAS A SINGLE FATHER AHHHHH MY HEART

My poor homeboy Rui is saving EVERYBODY’S ASSES 😭😭…

Episode 9

Damn it. It’s that RAT. He’s good at playing along with Rui, I’ll give him that. I’m just l confused how Darkwick let them choose HIM or even give HIM as an option.

WAS HARU A DRUG USER??? NOOOOO NO STOP. I HOPE ITS JUST THE ACTING PART BUT WAIT WHAT IF HE WAS. Cause Jiro pulls out needles which I assume is his medicine for when he feels sick (thank goodness), but then Haru says “JUST TRUST ME- one day you’re gonna regret this. Stop while you can!” I know this was supposed to come off as funny, but the more we learn about Haru the sadder it gets :(. 

Ok, his hair is low-key iffy to me. It suits him (cause he’s hot) but idk… I like his old hair better. Who let my boy Jin on this show ? This guy is NOT acting… YOOOO HES A PIANIST!!! Awwww :(((…

WHO. IN THEIR RIGHT MIND. LET THIS LOSER ON THE SHOW. Ren legit walks like a scowl, don’t play 😭😭… OH MY DAYS AND HE CAN’T ACT. FIRST THING HE SAYS AS HE WALKS TO SEE US IS “Senpai…” SENPAI WHO??? WE’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO KNOW EACH OTHER BABESSS… 

“Pffft. What’s with those clothes? Aren’t you trying a little too hard?” I’m gonna beat your ass. That shit gave me so much second hand embarrassment I had to take a lap… This guy bro… 

MC DA GOAT PULLING THROUGH RAHHHH!! Stop blushing Ren, shes tryna save your stupid ass from failing more than you already have. IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN LUCAAAAA 😭😭

Episode 10

Watch Ren be a fan favorite 😔…

Haru x Rui are freindship goals I love them 😭!! Ok, I’m so glad Jiro mentioned his medicine thing, it SHOUKD be fine. LMFAOOOO HARU BEING HERE FOR A BONUS 😭😭 I LOVE JABBERWOCK !!

Ren being a surfer will never not be funny to me. But besides that, they changed the awards based on the ghouls they chose right? Jabberwock and Rui is a money bonus (I assume), Edward is js here, Jiro wants the anomaly… what would Jin want? He has money, hell, he’s the richest character. What does HE need? 

Episode 12

Good golly, sometimes I hate MC’s choice of words. GRRRR GRRRRRR… I HATE IT HERE. RELEASE ME. 

Ok so I think the choice thing between Jin and Rui wasn’t gonna change anything so YIPPEE :3!! THANKS FOR LEAVING JIN!!! 

Awwwww Rui and MC date is going cute so far! … is Haru drunk already?

Episode 13

Guys I <3 Haru… 

I HATE IT WHEN HE SAYS HE FORGETS TO EAT GET THIS MAN A CARETAKER PLEASEEEEE 😭😭

I verbally and physically sighed at the sight of Ed, damn it. Thank goodness gracious my goat Jiro was there!! He would protect me! EDWARD GET YOUR GRUBBY FAT FINGERS OFF OF ME. JIRO HELPPPP. Tf does he mean SHARE her? Aw hell nah. Jiro, the goat, reading his women literature to a tee, I love that little tall man.

Episode 14

… I guess if the arm thing was in the script then it’s ok… I GUESS.

Jin is smart low-key. Using his connections so he doesn’t have to be on the show AS much. Honestly, relatable, serving dihh! 

AWWWWWWWW!!! REN AND RITSU ARE ON A FIRST NAME BASIS!!! YAYYAYAYAYA REN X RITSU FANS RISEEE!! 

WHAT WAS THAT REACTION TO THE MARRIAGE QUESTION JIRO??? I HEARD A THUMP. NOOOOOO JIRO’S GONNA DIE AND ITS ALL OUR FAULT!!!! Wait, Ed’s response is kinda cute. AWWWW HE’S TALKING ABOUT OBSCUARY 😭😭 AHHHHHH LYCA I MISS YOUUUU.

Ren, please lock in BRUV. ACO. ACO IS A PUPPET!?! NOOOOO ACOOOOO 😭😭😭

Episode 15

Wait chat! CHAAAATT! Can I choose the ghost lady as my one true love? Hello sailor 👅👅!!! Anyways, so we need to keep shooting the stupid dating show in order to get out of this place? It cannot be that easy? THERE’S A FIELD??? Aw hell nah I quit. Lmao Ren focusing on login bonuses is so real …

Sincere love??? We’re cooked.

Episode 17-18 

So basically, yada yada yada something about a woman wanting to direct the show of Waves of Love but couldn’t cause she died so now she’s haunting the sets. But that still doesn’t explain why people are going missing. If it really was her ghost, wouldn’t she try helping the missing people so that they can continue shooting? Or is it that she’s taking them because we’re following a script and she wants SINCERE love and not bogus? If it is the first option, is this a clear protagonist (ghost lady) vs. antagonist (I assume man that appeared in Episode 1) situation? 

Also, the pearl in the first set went unscathed and just left EVEN THOUGH we saw a cutscene of a woman (I assume is the pearl fue to her swimsuit) getting “attacked” with a guy. Huh. 

“We’re cooked guys!” LMFAOOO

Episode 19

Look at my girl MC being sooooo studious and helpful in her own way :3!! Having to repeat a thought so that you believe isn’t reassuring in itself though 😭

NOOOOOOOOO. NO TRUE LOVE!!! THAT SHOULD BE ME, HOLDING YOUR HAND… MCCCCCC DONTTTT!!! 

First words Jin says to her is “Took you long enough”. Alright whatever it’s cool (FUCK you) TEE HEE TEE HEE WE BORROWED A DRYER FROM THE GOAT ACO :3!!! YAYAYYAY!! 

Ok so Jin’s artifacts time!!! 

“No. It won’t work if something anomolaus is affecting the space” (Jin)

“Darkwick did permit you to carry it, after all. Our special artifacts tend to be somewhat inconvenient” (Edward)

Yeah it sucks that it has that sort of limit, cause then it’s just useless isn’t it? Wouldn’t you want that artifact most in these types of situations? I agree with Edward (for once) because it does , I guess, SEEM like Darkwick just gives them “bonuses” or “tools” that barely serve them any purpose. Doesn’t allow for them to do too much I guess.

“Seems pretty likely  that the anomaly is the ghost of the original producer and the cause of all this” (Jiro)

“Gotcha. If attacking us physically would use up all her power or if it’s already getting chewed up maintaining that barrier, that’d make sense” (Haru)

“She may only be able to use her full power here, on this island of Love” (Edward) 

“Right, ghosts are way more stable if they use a place or object they’re attached to as a medium” (Rui) 

Ok so I agree… with most of this so far. It would make sense since the ghost’s motive is to continue filming Waves of Love, so I that’s why she’s staying. First problem I have with the conversation is why assume she would attack us physically? Because she’s a ghost? That wouldn’t go with her goal to film Waves to Love to begin with since she wants the group to keep filming. Secondly, I have a bit of a problem with what Edward and Rui said. First off, isn’t this a different island than where they were originally filming at? ( I swear I’m not crazy) That either means she wasn’t connected to the missing people at all and they discovered a new anomaly, or two, she’s not connected to the island, but rather, the crew. If it IS the original sight, then I guess what Rui and Edward says fits. 

I hate Edward. I HATE THIS OLD WRINKLY SMELLY BAG OF FLESH I HATE HIM I HATE HIMMMMM. WHY’D YOU HAVE TO MAKE IT AWKWARD???? THIS ISN’T NICE. “You and the man you choose can leave this island” URGHHHHH. I’m automatically picking Haru, the only one I’ll feel tbad for are my boys Jin, Jiro, and Rui… 

Episode 20

Well duh, I had to choose somebody. I was js gonna choose the worst contestant for shock value. Now what … 😔. I’m hoping you’re right Rui!! Trust there’s always another way!! See, we finally agree Ren! Irl, I probably wouldn’t date… NONE of these guys. Not that they’re not great, I js don’t like dating. Lmao “Really?” was probably just because he was curious I guess.

OK NEW TERMS: 

Neutral, Sympathizers, and Dissidents

Ed and Rui being neutral… doesn’t surprise me. They’re at a risk if they help either side. Well, in Ed’s case, it’s more entertaining to be a viewer than a participant. 

FROSTHEIM BEING SYMPATHIZERS, which I assume means on Darkwick’s side, IS NOT WHAT I HAD IN MIND.  It would make sense for the general students to be on darkwick’s side since most of them are rich. Not only that BUT THEY LED IT?? I doubt Yuri and Jin were a part of their group though, them being ghouls and all. Guess that’s another reason Yuri detests Frostheim. This just makes the relationship between Yuri and Jin sadder :(. 

Dissidents was Montkraken, which is one of the obvious ones. Yuri was probably a radical in Frostheim’s system and practically exiled. STOP THE ANGST I CAN IMAGINE BETWEEN YURI AND JIN YAYAYAY :D!!! 

“I’m a pacifist now, Jin” (Haru) Now? I mean, I assumed he was somewhat involved in the clash because of his arm… but still… Can anyone remind me if they ever said Jabberwock was a new dorm? If they didn’t mention it or they did say it, either way, we practically confirmed that Haru was from a different dorm from the last chapter, so it kinda has to be unless Towa was the only person in that dorm. Towa is… interesting. I want to believe he’s an anomaly and a ghoul, if that makes sense. Anyways, back to Haru. Haru is interesting as well. He has good ish relations with Romeo and Rui, which one is neutral… and the other? CHAT WAS IT CONFIRMED THAT ROMEO TRANSFERRED? Cause if he was in Frostheim first, then that would mean he was a sympathizer, which would explain most of his connections, especially with his trust towards Hyde. So would that mean Haru was also a sympathizer? Was he promised Jabberwock, and maybe, Towa’s freedom, cause Darkwick HAD to have offered at least several deals to get more people on their side. WAIT I FORGOT. HARU IS CLOSE FRIENDS WITH TAIGA TOO. SO ITS NOT JS ROMEO, ITS SINOSTRA. So that doesn’t necessarily mean that Haru is a sympathizer, but is more likely to be on the same sides as Sinostra was. I’ll check back in that. I’ll add on more of them later, but I want to move on. Sorry I went on a whole tangent based on one line whoops. 

Benkei it’s ok lovely you don’t gotta apologize for nothing !! :3 Yo sick (good way) he’s Buddhist that’s cool YAYAY WE GOT A BRACELET FROM HIM WAHOO!!! Ren is genuinely so easy to tease. At least we look good… in his standards. Look at Jiro being a big safety guard awww :3! Ok so not going outside can help tone down the curse!! Got it!! Such a lovely day to be a homebody! TF YOU MEAN “way too big a deal with this whole curse thing” (Ren) GANGALANG MC IS ABOUT TO TURN TO A FLOWER CANT YOU SEEEE??

Episode 21

Pls o now they’re playing paintball- how fun! I wanna play too though damn :(. 

First duo- Haru and Rui!! Yooo WAOT they might be goated. They have good communication, so they can coordinate well. 

Second duo- Ren and Jiro. UM WHAT. They’re both built guys, I’ll give em that. But that also makes them easy targets. There’s the lazy one and the one that gets sick easily. I highly doubt they’ll win but who knows!! Maybe Jiro will carry 🥰 or Ren pulls out his COD experience idk 

Third duo- Jin and Edward. Jin’s gonna be pissed tf off bro 😭. If he actually wants to try, that is. THEY’RE BOTH STRONG… BUT LAZY. Edward might pull out the “old frail man” card and Jin… is gonna be Jin. Maybe they’ll actually try for the script though… maybe.

… Please for the love of everything holy can Rui and Haru win. I DONT WANNA GO ON A DINNER DATE WITH ANY OTHER DUO PLEASEEEEE. I’ll miss Jiro, sure, but I don’t wanna talk to that loser boy next to him. 

LMFAOOOO EVERYONE NOT BEING IMPRESSED BY THE PRIZE. Honestly, real, it’s not even that good anyway since they already eat tg on set. 

AWWWWW MC PROTECTING RUI FOR HIS BATHING SUIT CHOICE. They’re so cute :3

Episode 22

Again, Ren talking about RITSU every time he gets. Yeahhhh they’re boy kissers.

Clearly using their stigmas and artifacts to win. Guys this cannot be real 💀… LMFAOOO REN BEING AN EASY TARGET. Ok guys … maybe let’s follow the script?? Please????? Yk the host is HEAVILY invested in this… despite just being a host. 

Ok now the good part- Jin and Edward’s convo

“Do you know where she met the Kyklos, little human prince?” (Edward)

“I expected nothing less. It must have taken some effort to acquire that information. But why on earth was THAT anomaly in Kirisagi station? How and when did Darkwick realize it was there and send a ghoul after it?” (Edward)

“ What are you IMPLYING” (Jin)

“I’m just entertaining a thought. Perhaps the reason they were pursuing the Kyklos was-“ (Edward)

Finally. FINALLY. SLIGHT TALK ABOUT THE FUCKASS KYKLOS!!! LETS GOOOO!! Ok so this … I guess can be taken into the context of the time loop theories that have been circulating the fandom. It would also explain why Taiga was on the mission, due to theories of his time loop sense or whatever. This could help end Edward’s sentence into something like “-to evade the beginning of the time loop again” Also, the fact that Jin knows brought 2 things in my mind. 1. Awww shucks he’s collecting information for us how sweet thanks twinenem!! 2. Nobody really knows… HOW we got cursed. Like they know the vague details about Kyklos but they don’t get specifics like where, which is implied to be exclusive information, according to Edward. Also, how does he know sm shit? Like I know I say he’s a loser and everything, but he’s really quite interesting. He might be “wise”, but that isn’t a vampire characteristic. Do I trust him? No, just a little more than others… OK NOW ABOUT KIRISAGI STATION. Why is THAT piece of information so exclusive that JIN, big bell baby himself, had to work for it? Edward mentions that “THAT anomaly” shouldn’t be there, meaning it’s an anomalous world, but not common for Kyklos? Does this signify anything about what Ed said on anomalies taking over and ruling over humans? I’m so confused 😭😭

Episode 24

Sighs. Edward and Jin. Dinner. Wooooo… LOOKING AT THE BRIGHT SIDE, MAYBE MORE LORE??? 

Ok ok more Rui and Edward content. And. Oh dear.

“I could turn to ash at any moment(cough)” (Edward)

“No need to worry. I’m saving my life force for you. I won’t give IT up so easily” (Edward) 

“This vessel isn’t worth it” (Rui)

What. The fuck. Are you talking about. VESSEL?? EDWARD’S USING A VESSEL??? Is that why he doesn’t immediately die after touching Rui, but just coughs up blood because it takes away some of his life force? I can’t use twilight vampire logic on this guy no more, HOW THE HELL DO YOU GET A VESSEL??? I DONT EVEN BELIEVE HES A VAMPIRE ANYMORE WHAT THE HELLY. Also, I think the “IT” that Edward is referring to isn’t just his life force, but implying his vessel. Yo. This is loco.

Episode 25

Awwww YAYAY!! Beach volleyball with Haru and Rui! I completely blew over his arm thing, is no one else confused why he still has it covered up? Like, WE (the audience) knows it’s because his arm is robotic, but THEY (the characters) don’t. Isn’t it weird to have one arm covered up? Ok so MIO. I need to remember where I see this guy’s name I swear. But basically, mentions of MIO and no longer HIM anymore so… I guess that’s good. Bad thing is, Haru doesn’t even know when he’s coming back, much less whether he’s coming back. But that’s the thing, coming back from where? 

Jiro being a cutie with his little crab friend and sand holes!! :3

NOOOOOOO NOOOOOOO BE LIKE ODYSEUS AND DONT GET IN THE WATER. (Epic hehe) PLEASEEEE MC!!! She got in the water. “Smell divine” Jump and drown. NOOOOO THE BRACELET. THATS SUPPOSED TO PROTECT US. FROM EVIL. URGHHHHH I HATE VAMPIRES I HATE THEM I HATE THEM. 

Stop the small “eh?” Before wave comes tumbling her down is so funny 😭.. YAYAYYAYA THANK YOU TWINENEM JIN!! 

Episode 26

Dinner… yayay … with Edward… yayaya, AND JIN YAYAYYA!! Edward being from Eastern Europe doesn’t surprise me at all, especially due to his name. What surprises me is that he was born near the sea. That’s cool… I guess. 

Jiro and Ren are actually such a cute duo… CHAT I LIKE THEM THEY’RE SO CUTE :((

Episode 27

Guys I’m serious, does Haru have a drug problem :(? He drinks severe amounts of alcohol and the mention of “quit while you can” with Jiro rubbed me the wrong way. 

Oh em gee I keep forgetting that these third years aren’t gonna interact with their dorms after this year 😭. Yeah Jabberwock is cooked. WAIT WHAT ABOUT LYCA IN OBSCUARY… 

OK SO… GHOST PERSON PROBABLY ISN’T PRODUCER. Kinda forgot that the ghosts are supposed to resemble the person that died whoops. I was captured by her beautifulness that I didn’t notice she had a wedding dress. 

There’s actually no way. Jin left his freaking dorm room to get away from his couple squabble with Tohma. Are you seriousness right now? WHEN HE LOOKS BACK TO TELL EDWARD TO SHUT UP, he looks so hurt.. chat I feel bad :(. 

Chat I don’t like the next episode’s name:

“There can only be three: Pearl makes a choice”

TF YOU MEAN ONLY THREE??? WHAT HAPPENS TO THE REST OF THEM??? Aw hell nah. Cooked? 

Episode 28

Oh ok nvm they just watch from the monitor room. That’s fine ig. WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY DIDN’T KNOW IT WAS A PART OF THE SCRIPT?? DID THEY SWITCH IT UP LAST MINUTE? Rui, Jiro, and Jin? Honestly, yeah,  that works. They had cute moments tg so the audience would like it. THANK GOODNESS IT WASNT EDWARD AND REN WAHOOOOO :3!! NOOOO HARU IM SORRY :(((!! Ohhh they changed their script. Lmao awww! 

Episode 29

I think they’re making Jiro read a script now 😭… The way his eyes shift to the side of the camera instead of just staring at it this time because his responses in the past were too honest makes me think his lines are just there 💀

Awww thanks twinenem Jin he’s the goat. Look at him, actually participating in the show!!! Rui’s so cute for doing that so that Jin could actually do smth AND THE BALLOONS :3!! Can someone please do a DJ Khaled Remix with Jiro, I beg!

WHY IS HE SICK AGAIN?!? WHAT HAPPENED TO POSITIVE RESULTS? Something about June 19th?

Episode 30

Huh. KP REALLY wants to keep the lady’s reputation and dream. A lil too much. KP what’s going on here lil boy.

Well. I guess Jiro REALLY doesn’t like June 19th. I guess they got the conflict they were looking for 💀…

HARU WHAT ARE YOU DOING. I CANT STOP CRINGING BRO SOMEONE STOP HIM PLEASE 😭😭… Nvm we can keep Haru here SOMEONE GET THE OLD MAN OUT OF HERE. PLEASEEEE!!! REN TOO?!? Awww wait they’re trying to help KP by making the show more conflicting awwww :3!

I’m gonna kms. When the host guy started panting, I was near my sister AND IT SOUNDED LIKE YAGAMI YATO SOUNDS NOOOOOOOO. Anyways where’d you run from my boy 😓… SURPRISE IMPRESSION?? I DONT WANT THEIR FOOD. The host isn’t smiling anymore, was this just to cover up what the other guys did orrrrr 😭

Episode 31

No wonder KP has eyes, it was too good to be true. Maya this Maya that WHAT IS GOING ONNNN KP??? 

MAYA WAS ENGAGED??? AND SHE WAS CHEATED ON?????? FOR HER BEST FRIEND???????? AW HELL NAH. IF I WAS KP I WOULDVE MURDERED THE BOTH OF EM. That’s so sad :(. Ok so … this was the original filming sight? Or just where she was planning on filming? Man whatever I give up. WHERE SHE GOT ENGAGED???? Aw hell nah I’d kms too.

Y’all we are ALL cooked, I don’t like none of y’all like that :(. 

Episode 32

I keep forgetting Haru has a lot of siblings :((. YALL THEY HAD LIVES BEFORE THIS!! SET THEM FREE!!! 

Is Edward ok, like genuinely? He ain’t gonna burn into ashes yet right? He’s still flirting so he’s fine … 💔

Awwwww wait I’m gonna cry. The ghouls mentioning families before Darkwick makes me so sad like, I want to see fanart of Ren helping his dad :(…

DO WE KNOW HIS SPECIAL ABILITY YET?? WE DO RIGHT?? I forgot what it was though damn… Raothtas CHAT PLEASE HELP ME WE HEARD HIM USE HIS POWER RIGHT??? Ok yes he did, I checked the wiki. The thing is, he only used it to help clean calamari’s ink faster or boil water faster, but we haven’t gotten it’s explaination? Efficiency?? If it is I wanna talk about the theory that their stigmas are connected to what they wished for. Did Ren wish for something to happen faster or to gain something with less work? 

WAS HE NEAR THE BEACHES?? Is that why he was so shocked to be casted a surfer? Is that why he LOOKS like a surfer?? ARE YOU A SURFER, REN??? Awww the calamari sound when they cooked the octopus scared him 😭😭 I MISS OUR OCTOPUS FRIEND!!! 

Episode 33

STOP THEY’RE GONNA READ IT TO US??? NOOO IM GONNA CRINGE SO BADDDDD 😭😭…

Ren’s speech is so him. Simple, to the point… tearing down the other guys for being weird so that checks out 

HARUUU HAI ML :3!!! He’s got the single dad thing going for him and it’s so cute to see :((. URGHHHH PEEKABOO AND HARU AND THE FAMILINESS OF THEM I CANT TAKE IT. 

JIRO HAIII TWINENEM!! That was horrible but ykw I fw it because it’s you. :3

URGH you. The RAT. EW DO NOT TOUCH MC’S LAP YOU FREAKKKK. On another note, I wanna go back to this line: “I can’t help but feel nostalgic when I’m with you…” he mentioned MC beong similar to a “her” before… wonder if that is connected 

RUIIII HAIIII  STINKABUTT!! HES SO CUTIELICOUS THANKS FOR BEING SM FUN ( and for dropping angsty lore)

JINN DA GOAT!!! HOW YOU DOIN!! Frl thought he wasn’t gonna show up. WHATTTTT!! “You’re mine. That’s all there is to it” Straight out of a shoujo 🥲!! 

Sighs. SIGHHHS. We don’t actually have to choose right?

Episode 34

I hate this already. I don’t wanna chooooose. There’s no script? You sure? YAYAYAYAY THE GHOST INTERRUPTED!! THANK TOU GHOST!!

Nevermind FUCK you. You just came to threaten me to choose. Damn, who’d I like the most. DEFINETLY not Edward… not Ren… I’m acting like this choice will matter but like IT DOES TO ME!! Umm I like Jiro’s random science facts… I like Haru’s silliness but I haven’t seen enough of him to truly like him. I like honest characters. :(… Sighs Jiro it is.. OH WAIT THERE’S A NO ONE OPTION!! YAYAY NEVERMIND! 

The choice didn’t even matter anyway bruh. MC didn’t even say it. Ohhhh so the thing Jin found was a ringgg. Que cool que cool… andddd hottie ghost is gone. I CANT HAVE NOTHING. That’s it?? Really?? 

Episode 35 

Awwww everyone checking in on their texts and the people back at Darkwick!! So cute!! 

Ok so searched up Okayama and honestly, a little more traditional than I thought it would be. Haru seems more of a city type, but hey, maybe he adapted to Tokyo. 

Ohhhhh I was overthinking the whole case. Man I’m a loser this is negative aura 😔… 

OH EM GEEZERS WHEEZERS GUYS ITS MY AWESOMEST GOAT BENKEI!!! HAIIII BENKEI!!! 

HOST… HOST GUY IS WITH DARKWICK??? WHATTTT??? Nah ganagalang, ts is too much.  BENKEI IS A PROFESSOR? Or was. STILL!!! Ohhhh he was a supervisor of Clementia… aka the dorm that got obliterated after the clash… Chat does this mean (or most likely mean) that BENKEI was a part of the sympathizer vs dissident squabble? Huh. Anyways wow thanks for reading :3!! Leave some thoughts, comments, criticisms idc. I love theories so let’s … DEBUNK (heh) this tg :3! TOODLES

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Zincchump Linkdump

I'm on a 20+ city book tour for my new novel PICKS AND SHOVELS. Catch me in DOYLESTOWN TODAY (Mar 1), and in BALTIMORE TOMORROW (Mar 2). More tour dates here. Mail-order signed copies from LA's Diesel Books.

I've got a really good excuse for finishing this week with a folder full of links that didn't make it into the newsletter – I'm on a crazy book tour and I've been in four cities this week alone. Time for another linkdump! Here's the previous 28 'dumps:

https://pluralistic.net/tag/linkdump/

I like to start these 'dumps off on an upbeat note, and this week, I've got something gratifyingly cool and wondrous. Stars Reach is a "living galaxy sandbox MMORPG" led by Raph Koster, the legendary designer of games like Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxy. It's kickstarting right now:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/starsreach/stars-reach

Here's the pitch:

Whether it’s water turning dirt to mud or forests growing back after a devastating fire, every action leaves a mark. This isn’t a static world built by developers – it’s a living, breathing galaxy shaped by you. Resculpt landscapes, build entire cities, and yeah, ruin more planets just like humanity ruined their original eight homeworlds. That’s okay – there are always more worlds in our endless galaxy.

I've seen demos of this coming together for years and it is mind-boggling. You can play it like a galactic trade-empire builder, a shoot 'em up, a first person shooter, a resource management game, a MUD, and more. There are thousands of procedurally generated planets with realistic geology, geography and ecosystems. It's like something out of a Neal Stephenson novel. They're mostly done and just raising money to finish and launch. I gave 'em $100. They're projecting delivery in January. I can't wait!

It's pretty wonderful to see accomplished creators like Koster, who have gone from strength to strength, making a series of ever-cooler things as technological advancements let him realize the vision he'd been chasing since the 8-bit days. It's quite a contrast with HP, a company that was once world-renowned for making the highest quality, most reliable instruments and machines, and is now synonymous with the scuzzy inkjet rip-off.

I love a good dig at HP. This week, The Register's Paul Kunert scored a direct hit with a short news squib about the executive compensation package announced for HP CEO Enrique Lores: "261,658 toner cartridges" (that is, $19.36m):

https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/26/hp_ceo_pay_for_2024/

I would like to live in a world in which all unreasonable expenses were denominated in HP printer cartridges (much as the BBC compares ever extremely large or massy thing to a London double-decker bus). Anything to make it easier to grasp the vast forces that shape our world and bring them into focus so we can understand them – and destroy or change them.

One economic school that does this extraordinarily well is "Capital as Power," which concerns itself with the "social power of capital" – that is, how capital shapes our behavior and outcomes. It's a complicated but extraordinarily clear and useful framework for making sense of the world. This week, Naked Capitalism published a long colloquoy on Capital as Power, featuring Michael Hudson (a great economist and historian of debt), political economist Tim Di Muzio, and two of CasP's top proponents, Jonathan Nitzan and Blair Fix (whose work I have featured in this newsletter many times). It's a long, fascinating discussion – just the thing to relax with over a weekend:

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2025/02/capital-as-power-in-the-21st-century-a-conversation.html

Capital as Power grapples with power, the force that neoclassical economists could never figure out how to fit into a neat mathematical model and thus decided to discard. Refusing to think about power gets you into all kinds of trouble, from deciding that markets for human kidneys are "voluntary" to the denaturing of political parties into institutionalist weaklings like the Democrats, who are completely overwhelmed by the power-focused MAGA GOP as it dismantles the nation.

Writing for The American Prospect, Nick Tagliaferro rounds up "Ten Democrats Who Need to Be Primaried":

https://prospect.org/politics/2025-02-27-these-ten-democrats-need-to-be-primaried/

For years, Tagliaferro was the loudest voice on the Primary School newsletter, which covered primary races. In this guillotine-inspiring listicle, he presents such swamp creatures as Levi Strauss failson Dan Goldman (NY-10), who spent $5m of his inherited wealth to win his seat, from which perch he has done everything he can to undermine his more militant anti-Trump colleagues in the House. More familiar names like Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05) – whom Tagliaferro calls "single most needlessly antagonistic centrist in Congress" – and the ardent homophobe Stephen Lynch (MA-08).

OK, I've got to get into my rental car now and make the 3h drive from State College, PA, where I just did a talk at Penn State, to Doylestown, PA, where I'm speaking this afternoon:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cory-doctorow-picks-and-shovels-a-martin-hench-novel-tickets-1146230880419

From there, I'm going to Baltimore (tomorrow):

https://redemmas.org/events/

and then I'll be in DC on Tuesday:

https://www.loyaltybookstores.com/picksnshovels

You can catch the whole tour schedule here:

http://martinhench.com

New dates that I'll be adding soon include Pittsburgh:

https://us.pycon.org/2025/about/keynote-speakers/#cory-doctorow

As well as Wellington and Auckland, NZ; and Manchester and London, UK.

Before I go, one last wonderful link to be getting on with. Framework – who make the repairable, modifiable laptop that I love more than any hardware I've ever owned – just announced a bunch of fantastic new machines, including a rugged new, 12" touchscreen laptop with a 180' hinge:

https://frame.work/laptop12

and a desktop PC (!) that has insanely high specs and a fully customizable chassis:

https://frame.work/fi/en/blog/introducing-the-framework-desktop

I spend so much time on the road, I have no conceivable use for a desktop PC, but man, this is tempting. What a sweet rig!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/03/01/menagerie/#stars-reach

[teecupangel]

Hiiii teecup!! How are you? Hope you're doing great, or ok at least :3c

Alrighty so I've been craving EziDes lately but I'm too busy to do anything and I have too many ideas so here it goes!

Childhood friends to lovers (god I'm such a massive sucker for this trope)

Now, I have a little bit of plot for this one, cuz this idea have been stuck in my head since 2023 🧍

Okok so it starts like usual. Desmond dies, isu bullshit, time travel, and he face plants right into Renaissance Italy. ALSO he got de-aged, maybe into his 6-7 year old self (I want them to meet pretty early in there lives :'3)

He wanders around for a while not really knowing what to do until a grumpy old lady sees him and how pathetic he looks and decides to hire him to work as her butler/caretaker (or something along those lines I don't really know at this point :'D)

And the lady's rich, not like filthy rich but rich enough. She's been living by herself for years and never got married or have any children (which I'm sure is frowned upon back then) and she's really grumpy, like 40 year old guy who just got home from a hard day of work kind of grumpy.

And most people find her very unpleasant and leaves her alone. So it was strange, downright disturbing to see a kid running around her estate doing chores and having conversations with her.

But anyways Desmond starts living with her, but he's plotting and scheming.... To save the Auditores and take care of the isu bs of course :D.

Desmond didnt plan on meeting with Ezio because he didn't want to mess up the timeline more than he already has...... and then Ezio come waltzing into life.

I don't have any clear idea of how the two would meet but it's I imagine it as extra cute :3c

Desmond is mature for his age..... A bit too mature and he's knows things that most children shouldn't,. All in all he's an odd kid.

Like mistress, like caretaker am I right ¯\_( ͡❛ ͜ʖ ͡❛)_/¯

Desmond cares about Ezio very much, everyone can see that, and he gets Ezio out of trouble. They're always together, rarely to be seen without the other.

On Desmond's busier days (when he have too many chores to go out) Ezio would come to the lady's estate to chat with him and even help him with some of his chores. He stays out of trouble when Desmond's not with him.... But sometimes he just can't help himself lol.

The lady and Desmond develop a parent child bond and judges people together.

And the rest is up to you because my brain is jelly. (You can name the lady. I don't have any ideas on it LMAO)

(You can also make her an important character or not, I just love her too much to cut her out of the plot)

(SHE ALSO HAD A GIRLFRIEND THAT SHE WANTED TO RUNAWAY WITH BUT SHE DIED AND NOW THAT'S WHY SHE'S GRUMPY ALL THE TIME. Do what you want with this info :3c)

(this turned from an EziDes ask to the lady lore dump, apologies)

I’m doing alright. It’s been a busier month than I expected hahahaha

So, for this one, I’m imagining Desmond’s mistress (as he likes to call her) / adoptive mother to be a collector of sort. Making her a collector of the art seems a bit too easy so we’ll pick something a bit eccentric.

She collects dolls.

Dolls aren’t all that popular during that time and, even when they were, the dolls that is more or less considered ‘acceptable’ are dolls describing the nativity and other religious centered dolls.

But she collects ‘strange’ dolls from foreign lands.

This gives us an excuse for Desmond to speak in other languages, sometimes talking on her behalf to foreign merchants who shows her dolls that she may purchase on a whim.

She knows how to speak some of the languages and it’s not like Desmond knows all the languages as well but she prefers to let Desmond do the talking with merchants she hasn’t dealt with before. (the whole “let’s see if they start talking shit about me because they think I don’t understand them” is a common setup between them)

She and Desmond also like to talk in foreign languages when they want to fuck with other people. They rarely badmouth anyone, talking about the most benign thing while their tone and body language can be misunderstood.

She also only speak in foreign languages when the Auditore boy visits. She calls him ‘Desmond’s boy toy’ or some other equivalent of that and Desmond can’t even tell her that he’s so wrong because then he’d have to explain why he knows that word in the first place.

Their home is filled with dolls of different origin and make. Some are even dolls so old Desmond feels like they should be in a museum in the future.

Ezio doesn’t really like entering their home because he feels like the dolls are watching his every move.

He’s pretty sure that the house is haunted.

Desmond doesn’t help the entire thing because, yeah, he also thinks the house is haunted.

To fuck with Ezio, he tells him that someone died in the house and she still haunts its hallways.

Desmond doesn’t know but someone did die in the house. The lady’s grandfather who used to make wooden dolls for her to play with. That’s where her fascination with dolls started.

She also commissions artists to make her dolls and no one knows where she got her money.

It became normal to see Ezio Auditore with the eccentric old lady’s ward(?)/adopted son(?)/secret grandchild(???) when he’s out for his chores. Ezio Auditore learning how to pick the best vegetables or meat was not something anyone had on their bingo card.

This is a super slow burn kind of deal for EziDes because Ezio started out as thinking of Desmond as his super smart and mature best friend while Desmond started out thinking of Ezio as someone he looks up to and wants to protect.

Really, the old lady is the one who clocked in that yeah, these two are gonna fall in love with one another because that was how her love life started.

Best friends to…

Well…

She just hoped his ending was a happy one.

(If you let me name her, Imma name her Renne and she'll spend most of her time teasing Desmond about his 'nonexistent' love life)

[scoobydoodean]

reading your metas and realizing that the reason i find sam so annoying is that hes both obsessed with being a grown up who can make his own choices and isnt a child, and absolutely committed to never taking responsibility for his choices when push comes to shove.

hes a grown up when it comes to making decisions but not when those decisions have consequences

And it's very much on purpose in the writing, is the thing. This exact dynamic is one of the only lines of dialogue between Michael and Lucifer in 5.22 that really reflects Sam and Dean's more current conflicts (Recall that the lore here is that Lucifer twisted the first human soul (Lilith) into demonhood to spite God):

MICHAEL/ADAM: Oh, you know why! I have no choice, after what you did. LUCIFER/SAM: What I did? What if it's not my fault? MICHAEL/ADAM: What is that supposed to mean? LUCIFER/SAM: Think about it. Dad made everything. Which means he made me who I am! God wanted the Devil.

"Because someone wanted me to be bad, I have no choice but to be bad." The things that happen to us give us context and create room for sympathy, but they don't make our choices everyone else's fault. (And yes—free will does exist to Chuck's great frustration, or he wouldn't have had a season long tantrum about Team Free Will not ever doing what he wanted).

What's more, in this same conversation where Lucifer excuses his own actions as outside of his control, he tells Michael to defy their father's desires—something he just finished saying wasn't possible. He just said that he had to be exactly who he was meant to be, but he doesn't apply this same logic to Michael's God-given role. He only twists the narrative of their lives when it's about him, to make himself sound uniquely powerless. He assigns Michael all the culpability and control over how this fight goes down when Lucifer actively worked to bring this moment where they battle to fruition as well (including by stocking a mass grave in 5.10). It's manipulative bullshit.

How does Michael respond to all of this a few moments later? Before anything, by expressing resetment for Lucifer's refusal to take responsibility for his own choices:

MICHAEL/ADAM: You know, you haven't changed a bit, little brother. Always blaming everybody but yourself.

We can also reflect on the last time Lucifer threw himself a pity party about how mean his family is—to justify digging a mass grave into which he had dumped hundreds of bodies for a ritual to raise Death. He said it wasn't his fault then either—that Michael made him do it by betraying him—by refusing to stand by his side supporting his every decision (which, while framed as somehow making him powerless, strongly suggest a desire to control others feelings and for everyone including his older brother to fall in line behind him and do his bidding without question). It's never his fault. It's always someone else's fault for being mean to him.

[le01zk00l]

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES 2012 ..BUT THEY GET TO BE ACTUAL TEENAGERS (let them be happy please..) PT 2 !!

LEO LORE !!!

-Leo was placed as the role model by master splinter since day one, tho his father never really meant any kind of harm to Leo, this costed him his stability WAY TOO MUCH, Leo is NOT a born leader..tho he was (unintentionally) tricked into believing that he is one. Any time he would fail to lead or help his brothers he’d be too hard on himself, asking why couldn’t he just be the perfect leader he was supposed to be! The one he always wanted to be..and ended up finding comfort in Tv shows and cartoons, which began his love for Space Heroes ^_^!

As time went on, Leo realized that trying to be something he wasn’t was really just taking a toll on him..to which he decided to split the leader title between his siblings, Leo would be the front man, and whenever he had no plans,one of his brothers would take on the leader title and get all of them out of a situation together..Nowadays Leo is still learning to be a good leader by himself , tho taking his time and actually enjoy what being a leader is.

LIKES !! : cartoons, old animes or indie films, traditional Japanese culture, SPACE HEROES, Space!, his brothers ^_^!

DISLIKES : having too many pressure on him, loud noises, spicy food..

FUN FACTS BOUT LEO !!!

Leo likes to use traditional Japanese clothing, mostly cuz he thinks it’s really cool, plus Splinter wears it too..so..yeah

Daddy’s boy, he can do no wrong in splinter’s eyes

Sweet tooth! He loves candy in general..

WOULD’VE been emo..If splinter allowed him to, tho splinter never let him and he grew out of it really quickly..

Drags Raph to see old animes with him

NERD ..like..”I’m gonna into dump you about my favorite show cuz you’re awesome!” Kind of nerd

Has begged Donnie to make him some space heroes related stuff..(Donnie has NOT done that)

Mostly listens to indie music, would like Alex G

“GUYS CAN WE PLEASE STOP STARING AT EACH OTHER AND DO SOMETHING WITH THE BROKEN VASE IN FRONT OF US…PLEASE? GUYS!!??”

Would totally write poems

They suck, but he tries..

Was pretty selfish for some time..due to his older brother status, but he turned out to be a really sweet lil guy

Undiagnosed neurodivergence probably

“What? No I don’t have any hyperfixations..I just really REALLY like space!”

Refuses to cut down his hair cuz it makes him look like a “Real Samurai” or something…?

Tried picking up an instrument cuz he wanted to have an excuse to talk to Raph more

In his mind “If my brother plays an instrument..and I try to play an instrument too..maybe we will have something in common and he will talk to me!”

That failed

The main reason He and Raph’s relationship is so rocky is because of stuff that happened between the ages of 6-13 yrs old..I will elaborate later on..probably 

Listens to vocaloid..his favorite is either MIKU or Gakupo (idk if that’s his name ..)

Really talented with his katanas! Tho he has tried using other weapons before

Likes pineapple on pizza ..

“ I love my brothers!..I might’ve been a bit of an idiot when we were younger…but I’m trying my best to be the best older brother ever now!..PLEASE BELIEVE ME PLEASE PLEASE PLEAS-“ (He has improved a LOT..he is getting that best big bro title!)

[comingdownwithme]

Hello!! You, your (amazing) artwork and your headcannons have single-handedly gotten me back into the Creepypasta fandom, I cannot describe the reaction I had to seeing your artwork but everything you draw just feels so good to look at? I’m not explaining this very well, but your art style is so pleasing to my eyes, there’s just something about the shading, the lines and the way you capture emotions/expressions it’s just; chef’s kiss (I had a question I promise lol)

What made you draw Toby and Jeff as a ship/what are some past/future headcannons that you have for them? Or just in general if you want to use this as an excuse to ramble about them go for it, anything you say about them I will listen!

Secondly, what is your general headcannon for the rest of the Creepypasta’s? Also it might be because I’ve been out of the loop for a few years but I didn’t really realise there were ex-proxies now, if it’s something you’ve come up with for your story that is insanely cool to read about (anything involving the like, political(?) state of the proxies is fascinating to me).

This has gone on longer than I thought it would, many apologies! I hope you’re having a good day!

I'm?? So honored that my art and headcanons have influenced you?? Skjdjd IM SO GLAD YOU LIKE MY ART AND MY CONTENT, REALLY MEANS A LOT TO ME AND ADDS A FEW MORE YEARS TO MY LIFE SPAN LMAO

As for what got me to drawing Ticcijeff, honestly? It started out as simply drawing the two characters I liked when I was a kid back at the archaic era of 2015 Youtube interacting, then it kinda... it snowballed from there– 😭

They both make me happy individually, so I figured bringing them both together would give me twice the serotonin (which did tbh) alongside the parallels of them both being reborn through fire, and my growing interest in these two were only enabled further by the few good Ticcijeff fanfics on AO3 lmao

As for headcanons? I'm just gonna,,, link some posts abt my dynamics for them and their lore and background so far because if I wrote all my thoughts abt them here we'd be here all day. (though there's absolutely more to come)

About their Childhood friendship

Another post about their childhood friendship! (Featuring the two's dynamic, Jeff's intrusive thoughts, and some additional background info on Jeff)

About Jeff and Toby meeting years later

What happened following the previous post

As for general headcanons for the creepypastas? Their world is a little bit more fucked than our own. Strict rules are set by authorities, there's a tight curfew in place for the safety of people, and death and missing persons cases have become common enough in recent times that it's become a morbid part of normal life.

Unbeknownst to the lay person though, the killers and criminals roaming the night aren't the worst one could encounter. There are incomprehensible- even malevolent horrors that defy the rules of the universe, that cross the boundaries of logic and reason, and even the dead won't stay dead for long in this world. In a twisted universe plagued by death and unknown creatures, even the scum of humanity have to carve a place out for themselves and survive.

Soooo uh, yeah, that's a gist of it lmao, but I'm gonna dump some specific headcanons too for the creeps, especially for each characters like I did here for the girls and here for Jack and Ben eventually!

Also, as someone who's been out of the loop for years (I just joined the fandom officially this year, the only social media site I had back in 2015 was YouTube 😭) I HAD??? NO IDEA EX PROXIES WERE A THING WHICH IS HELLA INTERESTING

I'm definitely gonna write down and flesh out the proxies and their relationship with the Slenderman, but thaaatssss for another time 👉👉

[nonsensisystem]

This ask grants you a permission for one (1) uninterrupted yap session.

Wise usage not recommended.

Okay listen I know this type of thing is usually used to encourage and celebrate infodumping. Normally I'm all for that, we're all for that, and Kokki could have any number of random things locked and loaded if we were feeling a little better but I need an excuse to just ennuipost about system stuff for a hot sec-

Like man I dunno it's like. My whole life I've kinda been on the backburner as a concept and that's fine, really. I've been in the background of our system from before we even really knew what we were doing was a system.

I didn't have an identity until Kokki made an OC to be his twin because he always felt like he needed one (and that was me in the background I'm pretty sure) and I took that, and even then I was kind of like... background noise as a concept because he didn't realize he was a system until way waaaay after that. That's fine. I kind of sat in my corner because I was kind of quietly the Depressed One, the Depression Holder if you will, and that's fine too.

Like I'm not bothered by any of that necessarily, it was a matter of circumstance that Kokki and everyone just kind of assumed he was the Original(tm) as one tends to think when first conceptualizing their own systemhood. He always missed me, though. Thought about me from time to time where I kept to myself in my room. Only just a few months ago did Kokki realize that I was like. Another host. Another "Original" even. Two sides of the same coin, a weird not-quite-twins-not-quiet-one-person kind of... I dunno, a subsystem maybe? We don't really care much to put a definitive label on it, it's whatever. Separate we're Kokki and Ouki, and together we're Kokichi Ouma. In any case I'm here now and I'm not... used to that...

I'm glad I'm here. I'm glad I'm included now. I have more of an identity now knowing who and what I am instead of pasting on the rough OC-ified estimate that Kokki came up with in high school.

That all isn't really the point though I don't really know why I dumped all of that. Overall context I guess? But suffice to say while I'm appreciative that I'm included now, I'm not used to being acknowledged as a host. For so long, that was Kokki's thing. He was the Main Guy, and I was just the part of him that was Depressed to hide away so he could be a little bit happier. I'm not used to being a person, much less a central person that the rest of our system revolves around like Kokki. And given all that, it begs the question:

Are the Inner System folk just Kokki's, or are they mine too?

Like, in the grand scheme of things it doesn't matter I guess. They all have just smoothly adopted me into the preexisting system. It's not an issue of belonging, I'm mostly wondering because like.

We got a new one in the Inner System recently, and I'm wondering if they came from me or Kokki or if it even works like that.

I've already been feeling crummy for the past... while. I don't wanna go into the details but it hasn't been great. Then this guy shows up and it's been weird. I've been feeling weirdly... soupy in a different way than our usual blending kind of soup. Like something has been taken but also amplified truly So Much and suffice to say I don't like it!

Nothing against the new guy but this sucks and I don't know how to like... handle it. I already feel so much and so deeply because I'm the Depressed One, I don't need more of this shit when we already have so much going on I'm tired I'm so so tired and I want it to stop (but also don't but that's forbidden lore that I don't wanna get into) because we have enough shit going on right now and I'd really appreciate it if I could catch a fucking break for once.

TLDR: Newly Dubbed Host (a formality at best) is dealing with baby's first split (maybe? unsure) and it's not fucking going well (god help me).

[tblsomedoodles]

Soo I may have had a few questions about the baby plant that Morgan and Venus use to grow their kids...

Mostly about how the plant works asside from blood amount.

Does it need two people or can one person use it?

If one person can use it are the kid(s) an phsyical exact clone or do they have some diffrences or something else?

Can more than two people use it?

Do the babys appear in a specific plant or is it based on something?

OOh thank you for giving me an excuse to go off about this silly little concept!

So

Baby-Plant Lore Dump! : )

To start off with, it was a bit of a lost technique before Morgan rediscovered it. The council a long time ago banned and hid it long ago b/c they caught someone trying to grow an army. Morgan found a book on it during their days interning at the council's archives, illegally coppied it, then forgot about it until they rediscovered the copy they made.

It's not a singular plant that grows babies, but a series of spells you put on a seed that essentially makes said plant grow babies instead of whatever it's supposed to be.

It can technically be any plant, but it will only grow the child to whatever size their fruit would normally grow to. Therefore plants with bigger fruits are best to make sure the baby is big enough. Morgan and Venus used a watermelon seed. (Morgan wanted to use a tomato but they couldn't find a type of tomato big enough that the two of them would be comfortable growing a baby to. Thus they went with watermelon.)

It then follows the plants original growing pattern until it is mature enough to start producing fruit. for a Watermelon, that's about 60 days. during that time it needs to be fed the parent(s) blood 3-4 times. (this wasn't in the book and thus Morgan and Venus fed it some every couple days.)

No it does not necessarily require 2 dna donors. THough if only 1 is used, the resulting child(ren) would be near identical clones. (there is a variation of the starter spell that would vary the dna more, but it causes them to be plant hybrids since its caused by taking the second source of dna from the plant itself.)

And technically, you can use as many dna donors as you like, but a child will only end up using 2 or 3 of them, though it will end up growing several children to use the rest. kind of like how kittens from the same litter can have different fathers, if more than 3 donors are used, the children born from that plant would have different parents. (idk if that makes sense.)

ANYWAYS!

Once the fruit/babies start growing, the plants own development slows down. instead of the 1 month that watermelons would normally take, the babies grow over the next 5 months

If you look very closely, you can see the infant inside, but from farther away, it just looks like a plain watermelon.

Once the babies are ready, ie they're starting to get too crowded in their fully grown fruit, the fruit slowly cracks open releasing them into the world.

They're a little slimy and covered in fruit innards, but a healthy baby none-the-less.

Fun fact! When these spells were first developed (a long, long, long time before Morgan found them) it was so yokai parents (specifically those of two or more species) would have a safer way of having their hybrid children. The plant mixes the donor dnas in a way that it stabilizes it (like makes sure the child wouldn't have any conflicting traits and the like). sometimes that means a child will be more genetically closer to one parent than the other (like how Tom is more like Morgan, while his sisters are more like Venus). But the plant insures the child has no genetic issues as a result of being a hybrid. It doesn't rule out illnesses or deformities, it just gives the parents the same chance at having a healthy baby as those not having a hybrid child. (i imagine there was a lot of health issues with hybrids in the past, before mystic medicine was able to catch up and help with that, so something like this would be revolutionary for that time.)

Thank you!!

[halfadoginatank]

Simon and his father take a trip to the Scottish highlands for the summer, he knows only one of them will leave.

Johnny is a boy obsessed with filming explosions from fireworks he's not supposed to have.

Los Vaqueros are a group of Mexican teens derailed from their field trip waiting for teachers that might not come back.

Huge lore and plot dump below.

Mild tw for Simons father

Simons father has always taken him on hunting trips, sometimes he hated them, some times he liked them. But he'd never taken him this far from manchester. There are weapons in the cabin they rent, his father is eerily sober, one of them is going to die out here. Simon can only hope that Tommy won't be next.

Johnny meets him when he strays too far from his father. Part of it on purpose, he would never be on equal footing, more so when his father had the rifle and not him. He's in the tree's, at first simon thinks its prey, but there's a camera lense staring right at his scope.

Los Vaqueros come later, the leader arguing with a girl with choppy hair, Valeria and Alejandro trade glares while Rodolfo tries to mediate. Their bus broke down, leaving them stuck in town desperately renting a cabin near but far from the one simon is in.

It's the most interesting thing thats happened to johnny, and in the makeshift bonfire Valeria corners him and Simon. Her gaze is snakelike and a ring clinks on the bottle she's holding

"You say that he's an asshole yes? Your padre. Mine was the same, en mi opinión? It is kill or be killed."

Valeria nods at Alejandro, she tells them of a faceless force where she's from. The person sponsoring the trip for them, 'good will'. The five of them band together, the rest of the Vaqueros utterly ignorant.

Simon will save his family, Alejandro will get them home, and johnny? He's going to make the best home video.

-

Yeah so thats the whole plot, originally it was just going to be ghoap but somehow the Vaqueros fell into place. It kind of made more sense to have Valeria give them the idea? She doesnt have a whole bunch of canon lore so I figured she'd have an in with the cartel via her father, who was awful. And when Valeria killed him the nameless helped her cover it up and she got her own little spot.

Alejandro broke off their relationship after that, it's why they're on bad terms. He formed the Vaqueros as a funny joke that he started to take seriously when kids around Las Almas genuinely needed help that wasnt someway connected to the cartel, adults had that with rudys mother, so Ale and his childhood friend Rudy decided to help people their age in a way that doesn't rely on adults too much.

Everyone here is about 16-18. Soap is 17, ghost is as well but a few months older. Rudy Alejandro and Valeria are 18. And the youngest cowboy is 16.

Im trying to fit Gaz and Alex in? Im thinking that they both live in Texas, Gazs parents had a falling out since mum was from Texas hes there. Their school is on the same trip in the same bus a sort of cross trip to help the shitty american public school get a better name, as well as the cartels big PR move with having a class from one of Las Almas' schools.

Johnny is a bit weird here, but his motivation is he's suffering from extreme middle kid issues. Loves his family but since he's almost invisible is able to just kinda run off as long as hes back home eventually. He has a camera he uses to film any of his mishaps with, its essentially just jackass. As well as a video diary. Dont be fooled, its also an excuse for me to write some of it in script like format.

Simon is almost exactly the same as he is in the 09 comics, obviously a bit different. But childhood is the same.

I wanted farah to be here so bad but her childhood is literally a warzone and theres no way I can get her and her brother in Scotland. Because im trying so hard to make this somewhat believable, like yes its is a summer mystery horror au. But god I just really need things to make a little sense otherwise I cant do it. Same with Price Nik and Laswell. Like I could group Laswell in with Alex and gaz, and maybe I could pair her with Valeria for funsies. However Nikolai is in russia so... oopsie, and price? Like... how do you turn price into a teenager, he'd be what 19 or 20? Theres no reason he'd be in school, I dont think he'd be held back.

Also you may wonder, why is graves not here? Uh.... because I dont care, he wouldn't have a place here. The antagonist is Simons father, and honestly man? I just dont care that much for his character.

Man theres... theres so much I have here dude, I want to throw roach in there, and I THINK I could squeeze him in as one of ghosts school mates but the point is the first act has Simon completely isolated.

Anyway thats it. Bye.

[amitiel-truth]

Trick the Devil (Part 2)

Where does the Jujutsu Society get their dough?

(Not proof read, too lazy, lore dump)

Part 1

"The Seven Sponsors, it's unknown if they're cursed users or not, but what's known is that they are one of the most prominent members in Society as a whole, a group of people who promised secrecy of the Jujutsu World and fund our conquest in vanquishing curses as long as we keep the World of the Non-Sorcerers safe as best as we could.

They used to go under one single surname, until the heir women of their clan broke off, and married off into prestigious families, the main 3 are the Daigo's, each perspective head handles Pharmaceuticals, Police, and Military.

the Sada's, their territory is Shinjuku, not only do they have control of the brothels, but they're a great source of information, especially when getting dirt on certain politicians.

the Yoshikawa's, they handle the Entertainment Industry, but there are rumors their control runs deeper than what they Televise.

the Yamazaki's, they handle businesses of excess, such as restaurants, shopping centers, and banks.

lastly, the Chiyoya's, their main focus are Integrated Resorts, a hotel with a casino, together with conventional facilities such as entertainment, shows, theme parks, luxury retail, and fine dining. they're the ones who give the biggest funds amongst the seven of them."

"So you three better be on your best behavior! Usually, they only invite the most prominent Sorcerers to their Yearly Appreciation Party, but this year they're expanding their invites, better look good while you're at it." Yaga explains to them after their suspension, Shoko was a bit peeved off for Gojo getting her smoke confiscated, but not a little bit of replacement cigs to satiate her anger.

Satoru yawns in exaggeration, sitting cross-legged on his chair, looking and sounding bored out of his mind "Why do we have to attend something so boring? I could be doing so many things than attending some stupid party..."

"Like getting into a date with Chiyoya" Satoru thinks to himself, letting out a small snicker.

"This year isn't just about the Appreciation Party, they're introducing their Heirs that will soon take over the old Sponsors." Yaga added.

"And one of them is the girl you fought, Gojo Satoru, so you better prepare an apology speech!"

For a moment, Satoru appears somewhat serious, but the moment he hears that Chiyoya will be there, a mischievous smirk spreads across his face. "Oh? is that so?"

"You should have said so from the start. the only parties I'm going to are the ones that she's in." He remarks with a hint of flirtatiousness in his tone, which got him a bit of discipline on the head after finally getting excused.

"Satoru, didn't I warn you not to fool around with that girl?" Suguru asked, as they began walking to their dorms to get ready.

Satoru rolls his eyes "Listen Suguru, if I see an opportunity to have fun, I'm going to take it. Besides, I can't really help myself when it comes to gorgeous women now, can I?" He smirks cheekily

"What do you see in her anyway? I get that she's pretty and all, but she doesn't seem like your type, tall and slim, she doesn't even have any curves to show off, not that's wrong or anything" Suguru tries his best to sway his best friend's attention from the Heiress, something about her doesn't sit right with him

Satou appears slightly annoyed at Suguru's comment "Damn it Suguru, not every girl has to have the exact same kind of figure for me to like them" Satoru crosses his arms, pouting

"Well, it's not just her beauty that catches my attention, despite not even being a Sorcerer, she's an incredible hand-to-hand fighter...it's quite attractive, honestly." Satoru admits, a small blush creeping onto his cheeks as he thinks about Chiyoya, making Suguru gasp in shock.

"Are you serious about this one, Satoru?" Suguru asked, watching his friend's reaction

Satoru's blush deepens slightly at Suguru's question. "I...might be. Usually, women bore me pretty quickly but...this one seem different somehow. I feel this weird, indescribable draw to her...it's hard to explain, but I've never felt this way about anyone else before" He confesses, a hint of vulnerability in his voice.

"Like a Non-Sorcerer equal?" Suguru points out, curious about his sudden interest

Satoru nods, looking thoughtful as he contemplates Suguru's question "Yeah...I guess you could say that, In a way, Chiyoya represents something refreshing and new for me, something that isn't directly connected to this whole cursed society. She feels like a breath of fresh air in a world that reeks of sorcery."

He pauses for a moment before continuing "She makes me feel...alive in a way that I've never felt before. It's exhilarating and terrifying, all at the same time."

Suguru looks at him in shock, raising an eyebrow "You saw a pretty girl with deep pockets who managed to hold you off for at least half an hour...and she got you this whipped? This is a moment in History."

Satoru scoffs, rolling his eyes "Oh please, 'whipped'? Let's be serious now, Suguru. I'm not some fool for just any pretty girl with money. Chiyoya is different, she has this...undeniable allure that I just can't seem to resist. It's not just her physical appearance or her wealth that draws me in, It's her entire presence. She's confident, strong-willed, and captivating, in a way that I can't help but feel completely drawn to."

"Yep, definitely whipped" Suguru confirms, continuing to walk to their dorm.

Satoru sighed heavily, but he couldn't help but chuckle at Suguru's teasing "Fine fine, you got me. I may be a little, teeny bit, slightly whipped for this girl. but can you blame me? She's unlike any woman I've ever met before. She's...intoxicating." Satoru mutters a small smile forms on his lips as he remembers how confident Chiyoya looked at him during their sparing match

"So much so that she managed to threaten you into pulling out your domain?" Suguru points out.

Satoru's expression softens slightly as he recalls the sparring match "It wasn't just the fact that she managed to corner me, It's her confidence, determination, and fearlessness. She was willing to face down the Strongest Sorcerer of the Modern Age without even as much as a cursed weapon. I have to admit, it was pretty damn impressive...and incredibly attractive."

Suguru's face looks judgemental "Whatever Mr. Whipped, just make sure to not cause a scene at the Party"

"Well this is quite a grand place" Shoko commented, looking around the place in a simple black cocktail dress.

"What did you expect? all of the Sponsors are gonna be here, of course, it's gonna be grand" Suguru replies to Shoko in a black suit, but Satoru only looks around blankly, already used to the Luxurious surroundings, he only had one thing in his mind.

" Ah, there's those finger foods, come on let's get some." Shoko points as they begin to walk towards the table, clearly this party is for an older audience.

"Hey, you think they'll let us drink alcohol here?" Suguru asked Shoko eyeing the waiter passing around the champagne but they all became background noises to Satoru, he only had one person in his mind as he tried to look for her.

until he found her.

the Heiress conversing with a group of people, 6 of them in fact, all varying in different personalities, refreshingly, Chiyoya wears a blue halter backless white beaded trumpet gown, showing off her slim and tall figure, her hair tied in a small bun.

Satoru's breath hitched as his eyes landed on Chiyoya, his heartbeat quickened slightly in his chest. She looks ethereal "Damn...she looks even prettier than before." He thinks to himself, watching her interact with the group.

As Chiyoya covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, another man suddenly walked up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and making Satoru clench his fist.

"Who does this jackass think he is? Touching her without her permission? It was clear that she was uncomfortable with the display" Satoru thought, instinctively sneering as he took a step to walk up to them.

"Oi, what do you think you're doing?" Suguru stops him with a hand on his shoulder, managing to snag a flute of champagne on the other.

Satoru turns to Suguru, a mixture of anger and disappointment evident on his face. "What does it look like I'm doing? That jackass has his hands all over her when she clearly doesn't want him to. I'm about to put him in his place" Satoru shrugs off his hand before trying once more to march up to Chiyoya.

"You can't just jump to conclusions, what if that's her date?" Suguru asked, as Chiyoya began conversing with the man, her smile spells indifference.

"That's her DATE!?" Satoru scoffed, irritation evident in his voice "She doesn't look very pleased to be in his presence, not to mention he's forcing himself onto her" Satoru pointed out before gasping, the man suddenly kissed her neck out of nowhere.

"He just suddenly kissed her neck! No one who has a date with her would do something so disrespectful!"

"Satoru, you're being dramatic, why are you even obsessing over her? you aren't even a thing." Suguru points out, unsure how to waver through his best friend's burst of emotions

Satoru takes a deep breath, trying to control his emotions as he looks at Chiyoya once more. "You're right, Suguru...I don't know why I'm feeling this way about her. she's just a girl I had one sparring match with... it's just...she gets under my skin like no one else does. there's something about her that I can't explain, that makes me want to protect her, care for her...even if she doesn't feel the same." Satoru frowns, looking at the floor in defeat

Suguru looks at him in worry, before sighing, "Satoru, just enjoy the party, okay? that's why we're invited here, remember?" Suguru says as the initial six people began walking away, but one stayed for a bit, a teenage boy wearing a black kimono. he whispers something into Chiyoya's ear while her date is conversing with someone else on his phone, the teen seems to have the same aura as Chiyoya, but more authoritative.

Satoru reluctantly agrees, forcing himself to focus on the party instead of his feelings for Chiyoya. "Yeah, you're right. We're here to enjoy ourselves, not get caught up in some girl's business. Let's just have fun tonight and forget about everything else." Satoru nodded, taking a glass of champagne from a passing waiter.

"Good, just have fun tonight." Suguru agrees, turning to look at Shoko who enjoys herself with champagne and finger food.

As the teen in the kimono finished whispering to Chiyoya, she nodded before pulling on her date's arm, a seductive smile on her lips, leading him outside the venue into the Hallway. Satoru knows it's not his business.

"Satoru?"

But he can't help himself.

Like a Sailor to a Siren, Satoru follows her giggles through the Hall, whispers play against his ear, as he continues following them, until he hears something odd.

was the gurgling?

The sound led him into a private room, where he saw Chiyoya's date slumped against the wall, his throat slit open, his blood pooling onto the floor.

"Oh...I've failed..." Gojo flinches as he quickly turns his head to where the voice is coming from, there he sees Chiyoya standing next to the body, a bloody knife in her hand, dripping onto the floor.

"Oh well, there's always next time." Chiyoya shrugs, unbothered by her actions.

Satoru's expression doesn't change as he witnesses a crime before him, he should either be horrified or disgusted, and threaten to report her to the authorities...yet he's completely unfazed by the gruesomeness of her actions. somehow his idea of her doesn't waver, it only gets more intense.

"Let me guess, that man wasn't really your date." Satoru asked, walking over the blood to get closer to Chiyoya, his eyes never leaving her.

"No, not really, but he proclaims he was cause he's a big shot son of a mining company, too bad his business is going under because Mr. Yamazaki bought them all out, now he clung onto me like a last resort, too bad he's one of the chosen uninvited guest." Chiyoya answers, cleaning her knife with a handkerchief.

Satoru raises an eyebrow, intrigued by Chiyoya's words, It seemed she had a specific target in mind, and he couldn't help but feel a strange sense of admiration for her quirks.

"Chosen, you say? Is that what that man in the black kimono whispered to you at the party?" He asked, leaning against the wall beside her.

Chiyoya looks at him, her smile never leaving her lips. "You mean one of the Heirs? Daigo-san?" Chiyoya asked, pocketing her knife back onto her blue clutch.

Satoru nods, his gaze never leaving hers. "Yes, him. I saw how he spoke to you, and then you suddenly pulled your so-called 'date' here. Seemed like you had a clear plan."

He leans closer to her, his voice lowering to barely a whisper. "You're quite intriguing, Chiyoya, a blossoming woman with a killer smile and a deadly charm, I can see why I'm so enchanted by you."

Chiyoya looks at him blankly, before scoffing. "You just saw me murder a man in cold blood, yet you're still enchanted by me? you sorcerers sure are strange."

Satoru chuckles, a small smirk playing on his lips. "What can I say? I've always enjoyed the darker things in life. and watching you work...It's an art form, really. There's a certain allure to your ruthlessness that speaks to the dangerous side of me."

He steps closer to her, his voice sultry and mesmerizing. "I have to admit, I find danger and chaos quite...enticing."

"And who's to say you're only saying that? what happens if you go behind my back and report me to the Police?" Chiyoya asked, tilting her head, clearly not drawn to Satoru's attraction, but she didn't seem worried if he did.

Satoru laughs heartily, finding her question amusing. "You really think I'd report you to the police? You truly underestimate me, Chiyoya. I have no interest in something as mundane as reporting you. Why would I snitch on a creature as magnificent as you?" Satoru asked, reaching out to trace her jawline, his touch should send shivers down her spine.

"Besides, I have much more interesting things in mind."

"And what would that be?" Chiyoya asked, her eyes unyielding, pink hues clashing with blue ones.

A mischievous glint sparks in his eyes as he leans in closer, his lips hovering millimeters away from hers. His voice drops to a seductive whisper.

"I have the sudden urge to test my limits and see just how far you're willing to go, Chiyoya. I want to push every boundary, explore every hidden desire you possess. And I'm eager to see how far this dangerous game of ours will take us, my dear. Are you ready to dance with the devil?" Satoru asked, his eyes widening in anticipation.

"Let's play a game, shall we?"

"Oh, What kind of game?" Chiyoya asked in interest but her pink hues show indifference, but he has her attention.

"A game of trust and thrill. We'll take turns daring each other to do things, starting with small, harmless challenges, but gradually getting more daring. We'll push each other's boundaries until we reach our limits."

He leans closer to her ear, his breath warm against it. "The first one to tap out losses."

as Satoru backed away, all he saw was that she was already looking at him, interested "What is the Prize and Punishment?"

Satoru's eyes gleam mischievously, excitement coursing through his veins. He hadn't expected her to agree so quickly, his touch feather-light, leaving a trail of tingles on her skin. "Let's make it interesting. The Prize for the winner will be anything they want, no strings attached. As for the punishment...let's say the rules of the game state the loser has to do whatever the winner demands, within reasonable bounds, of course."

"It sounds to me you have an agenda of bringing up this deal, Gojo-san...a dark desire." Chiyoya points out with a smile, her stare unwavering.

His eyes gleam almost sinisterly, a small smirk tugging at his lips. He fixes a stray hair to the back of her ear. "My darkest desires, you say? I have many, but let's list a few."

Satoru turns to look at her, sky-blue eyes full of hidden desires. "To taste your lips...to explore the depths of your mind...to push my limits and see just how far you'll let me go" he murmurs as he suddenly remembered that her 'date' kissed her neck, leaning in to place a kiss of his own over it, making his point.

Chiyoya looked at him blankly with a small smile on her lips, before a group suddenly flooded into the room. "Oh, the cleaners are here" Chiyoya backed away from Satoru, as one of them approached her.

"Mistress." cleaning her hand.

Satoru watches the interaction between Chiyoya and the cleaners, a hint of surprise in his eyes. He knew she was privileged, but this level of service seemed excessive even by his standards. His gaze lingers on her, taking in every graceful movement she makes, admiring her poise and control, realizing how meticulous she is, he would have thought these cleaners were also part of the venue's staff with their uniforms.

"You must go back to the party, now, Mistress, they are just about to be the Heirs of the Sponsors" The cleaner stated after cleaning her hand.

"Very well then, I'll leave everything to you" Chiyoya stated as she began to leave, as the cleaners began bagging the body.

"Gojo-san, do you plan to stand there for the whole party?" Satoru snaps out of his trance as Chiyoya addresses him, a small smile never leaving her lips.

"I was planning to admire the view just a bit longer. you look captivating as always, it's hard not to stare." He strides towards her, a confident smile on his face.

"I was just admiring your work here one last time before it gets cleaned up, but remind me to stay in your good graces with how capable you are."

"Dully noted." Chiyoya smiled as they began to walk through the halls back into the party.

As they began to walk back into the party, Satoru cast glanced at Chiyoya, studying her demeanor closely. He couldn't help but feel intrigued by her composure; her movements so fluid, her grace so captivating. It was almost as if she was completely unaffected by the events that just occurred only a moment ago.

His mind raced with questions but he knew better than to bring them up immediately. After all, he was the one who initiated this little endeavor of theirs, and he wasn't about to ruin the excitement so soon.

"You're quiet, that's very unlike you, why? Have I pushed you to the limit already, Gojo-san?" Chiyoya teases, her pink hues glancing up at him.

Satoru chuckles, and a low, velvety sound reverberates through the air. "Oh, my dear Chiyoya, If you think I've reached my limits already, you underestimate me. I was simply savoring the moment, observing the intricate web you weave with each step you take."

His gaze meets hers, a small smirk playing on his lips. " Besides, I couldn't help but be captivated by your beauty. Sometimes silence is the only appropriate response to admiring such an ethereal specimen"

"I bet you say that to every girl you come across, Gojo-san." Chiyoya points out with a teasing scoff.

Satoru let out a hearty laugh, his eyes gleaming with a mix of amusement and mild irritation, he had known that remark was coming. She was as sharp as a tack, and he loved it.

"Ah, you got me there, Chiyoya. You're not wrong to assume that I say that to anyone I find attractive. But there's something about you; your fierce independence, your unapologetic nature, and the way you refuse to be caged that draws me to you."

Chiyoya chuckles before walking up a bit further front, her hands behind her back as she leans forward "Why? Do you wanna tie me down, Gojo-san? Turn me into one of your pretty armrests?" Chiyoya asked, tilting her head.

Satoru's eyes, a sultry smile on his lips. The way she teased and toyed with him sent a shiver down his spine. He loved it. Her boldness, her wit, and her charm were all a dangerous addiction he didn't want to get rid of. He walked closer, closing the distance between them.

"Oh, Chiyoya, as tempting as that sound..." Satoru caresses her cheek.

"It would be a grave sin to reduce you into an accessory" Satoru stated, admiring her eyes.

"And why is that?" Chiyoya presses, wanting to hear his reasoning as he looks at her with admiration and desire.

"Because My dear, you're a force to be reckoned with. Your power, your confidence, your unapologetic nature..they're all qualities that I find incredibly attractive. I have no desire to chain you down or clip your wings. No..." He moved closer, pinning her onto a wall, his words filled with raw honesty.

"I want to watch you soar."

Chiyoya simply continues to look at him, her smile growing sinister under his gaze. "That's what you saw in me? We've barely met, and we've only interacted for half an hour at best, What if I'm not the kind of person you perceive me to be?"

He chuckles lowly, his eyes unwavering as he meets her gaze head-on "Oh, Chiyoya, the beauty in life is discovering the unexpected hidden layers, uncovering the unexpected truths hidden beneath the surface. You may not be exactly who I perceive you to be, and that's precisely what excites me. The thrill of discovering the true nature behind your mask, and understanding the depth of your character that's all part of the dance." He reaches out, brushing a stray strand of hair away from her face once more.

Chiyoya simply stares at him as he slowly leans towards her.

"I advise you not to fornicate in the halls, Chiyoya Satsujin, if you value our names." a voice interrupted them, it was the teen in the black kimono, upon closer look, he had long black hair tied into a high ponytail, golden eyes looking at them with authority.

"Ah! Daigo-san! Did you come out here just to get me? you shouldn't have!" Chiyoya gently pushed away Satoru as if they weren't doing anything wrong, smiling innocently.

Satoru raises an eyebrow at the newcomer, amused by the interruption. "Well, look who decided to join the party. Daigo, was it? Quite the entrance you made there. Am I interrupting something important, or just your attempt to ruin the fun?"

"Who is this?" Daigo asked, turning his gaze to Chiyoya.

"The Strongest Sorcerer of the Modern age, I met him at Jujutsu Tech, he's quite an interesting character." Chiyoya introduces, making Daigo look at him blankly.

Satoru's smirk widens as he meets Daigo's gaze, his eyes gleaming with a mix of confidence and mischief. "Interesting, huh? Well, I'll take that as a compliment. Gojo Satoru, the honored one, at your service." He gives a small bow, the motion filled with mockery.

one Daigo couldn't care for "For your information, you are interrupting something important, they're about to introduce us, Chiyoya." Daigo turns to Chiyoya, staring blankly at her.

"Huh? Why didn't you say so? Let's go! Let's go!" Chiyoya pulls on Daigo's wrist, leading him back into the party, seemingly forgetting Satoru.

"Satoru, where have you been!? you just upped and disappeared!" Suguru found Satoru walking back into the party, a bit peeved that he'd quickly forgotten.

"Nothing much, just getting to know people, look, it's starting" Satoru diverts his attention as the lights go down.

"May I have your attention, please?" Mr. Chiyoya spoke through the mic, his welcoming smile contrasting his daughter's.

"From the three Heads of the main clan, I introduce Daigo Kuragami, Daigo Tenpi, and Daigo Tsukikage."

Three teens stood under the spotlight, the first one with long black hair and golden eyes, wearing a black kimono with a blank face. Daigo Kuragami.

The next two look to be twins, a boy and a girl both wearing black and white suits that invert them, their short black hair is adorned with high lights, the boy has a green highlight on his bangs while the girl has red highlights with two streaks on the back of her hair, both stares at the crowd blankly with golden eyes. Daigo Tenpi (The Boy), Daigo Tsukikage(The Girl).

"From the Sada's, I introduce Sada Ragyo." A very beautiful girl, long brown hair adored her back with her bangs colored in pink, her seductive pink hues are very different from Chiyoya's very own, as she wore a black sleeves dress (Sada Ragyo)

"From the Yoshikawa's, I introduce Yoshikawa Mondo." A short brown haired boy with bright green eyes, he wore an extravagant suit that makes him almost out of place. (Yoshikawa Mondo)

"From the Yamazaki's I introduce Yamazaki Yamasaki." A giant, like a sumo wrestler, stands under the spotlight, wearing traditional clothes (Yamazaki Yamasaki)

"And From the Chiyoya's, my very own Heir, Chiyoya Satsujin." The blonde-haired girl stands under the spotlight, her charming smile displayed for all to see, as her pink hues stare blankly at them, her white and blue dress glittering under the light, giving her an ethereal flare

May they bring prosperity for both the Non-Sorcerers and Sorcerers world" Mr. Chiyoya introduces, as the Sorcerers invited to the event clapped their hands, the Heirs bowing in unison

"These Heirs wanted to give their Appreciation to you Sorcerers for protecting the world, so, they've prepared a little performance for all of you, may you enjoy this turn of events" As Mr. Chiyoya suddenly announced a Performance, the Heirs all got into positions, most of them walking up to an instrument, but Chiyoya walks up to the center of the stage, picking up a mic

Intrigued by the unexpected announcement, Satoru's interest is piqued. The prospect of a performance from the Heirs of the Seven Sponsors is a rare opportunity. As Chiyoya walked to the center, he couldn't help but feel a flicker of anticipation. He waits intently, curious to see what kind of performance Chiyoya will unveil.

A Piano and Violin began their intro before a strum sharp of a drum began, and an Organ resonated with the harmony

"Ah, si je pouvais vivre dans l'eau

Le monde serait-il plus beau

Nous pardonneras-tu, ô chère mère

L'eau dans son courant fait danser nos vies

Et la cité, elle nourrit

Ainsi que toi, mon doux amour"

Chiyoya began singing in French, setting a melancholic tone of the song.

As the instrumental break commenced, Satoru couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration for the talents of the Heirs. Each one of them added their own touch to the music, creating an eclectic mix of sounds that somehow blended together perfectly. The inclusion of the blow horn further enhanced the harmony, adding a unique and unexpected element to the performance. He couldn't help but feel immersed in the music, his gaze focused on the stage where Chiyoya stood, captivated by her mesmerizing presence.

"Non, le grand amour ne suffit pas

Seul un adieu fleurira

C'est notre histoire de vie, douce et amère

Moi, je suis et serai toujours là

À voir le monde et sa beauté

Et ça ne changera jamais, jamais"

As the performance reaches its final moments, Satoru's eyes widen in astonishment as Ragyo's voice joins in perfect harmony with Chiyoya's. Their combined talents create a symphony of sound that fills the room with a melancholic and bittersweet feeling. The dual voices blend perfectly together, adding depth and complexity to the performance. As the music comes to an end, Satoru can't help but feel a sense of awe and admiration for the incredible talents of the Heirs and their captivating display of artistry

All of the Heirs began to stand up and began walking up to Chiyoya, side by side, they held hands and bowed in respect to all of the Sorcerers in the room.

A round of applause erupts throughout the room, filling the air with a sense of appreciation and admiration for the Heir’s performance. Satoru, along with the other Sorcerers in attendance, cannot help but clap enthusiastically in recognition of the incredible talent on display. The Heir’s synchronized bow, a humble gesture of respect for the Sorcerers who were present, further adds to the overall atmosphere of mutual understanding and gratitude between the two worlds.

"May you all enjoy the rest of the Celebration" Mr. Chiyoya announces, as everyone dispersed, enjoying themselves in the event

"Wow, that was...wonderful." Suguru mutters, before turning his head to Satoru.

"Hey, how are you-Satoru, don't" Suguru stops him as he notices Satoru staring at Chiyoya, conversing with the rest of the Heirs.

"But Suguru!"

"No buts! we talked about this" Suguru looks at him sternly, as Satoru looks at him blankly, before smirking at him.

"Sorry Sugu, but I can't pass up this one." Satoru replies as he pulls a random girl from a crowd.

"Hey, my friend over here thinks you're hot." Satoru introduced before he began running off.

"Satoru!-"

"Wait, really?"

leaving him to deal with a girl of his own.

As Satoru made his way to Chiyoya, he overheard snippets of their conversation, snippets that piqued his curiosity even further. Determined to make his presence known, he approached the group, stopping nearby and clearing his throat to catch Chiyoya's attention

Chiyoya's head turns towards Gojo, before smiling at him

"Ah! Gojo-san, what a pleasant surprise, I was just talking about you" Chiyoya stated, an elegant smile on her lips

A small smirk tugged at the corner of Gojo's lips as he heard Chiyoya's words. He couldn't help but find the situation slightly humorous and interesting. Crossing his arms across his chest, he replied with his usual nonchalant tone

"Oh really, and what exactly were you saying about me?"

"That you were the one who saw me kill the uninvited guest" Chiyoya nonchalantly answers, shocking Satoru at how open she was to that subject

"So...you've gotten sloppy?" Daigo Kuragami asked, disappointment flashing through his golden eyes

"Aw, don't be like that, Daigo-san, how was I supposed to know he was gonna follow me?" Chiyoya asked, pouting

Despite the initial shock at Chiyoya's nonchalance, Satoru couldn't help but respect her honesty. He nodded in response to her statement and replied with a smirk

"Indeed, it seems like I did witness a very interesting moment. And I must say, your choice of "uninvited guest" was quite a bold one."

He couldn't quite gauge the dynamics in the group just yet, and Daigo's disappointment only added to his intrigue

Daigo looks at him blankly, before turning to Chiyoya

"Whatever happens, you take care of the fallout out" Daigo stated before standing up from the table, with the rest of the Heirs standing up, following him, before Sada Ragyo winked at Satoru, following behind the rest, leaving Chiyoya'

"So, did you enjoy the performance, Gojo-san? Chiyoya asked, tilting her head

Satoru regained his composure and responded with a teasing chuckle

"Oh, I must say, the performance was certainly entertaining. But I could hardly focus on anything besides you. Your talent and beauty on that stage were quite captivating, so myself."

"Really now?" Chiyoya asked, chuckling

"Alright, let's get into business, why did you seek me out, Gojo-san?" Chiyoya asked, getting straight to the point

Satoru, slightly taken aback by Chiyoya's straightforwardness, couldn't help but smirk. He always appreciated when someone got straight to the point

"Ah, always straight to the point, I see. Well, I must admit, I couldn't resist the opportunity to speak with you further. You have this mysterious aura that draws me in. And I couldn't deny the fact that I wanted to understand your clan, and by extension, you, better. Perhaps you could indulge my curiosity?"

"And how exactly will you quell that need?" Chiyoya asked once more, looking at him blankly with a smile on her lips.

Satoru took a moment to consider her response before responding, a slight smirk tugging at the corner of his lips

"I suppose that depends on how you would like to go about it. Perhaps a cup of tea or coffee. Or if you'd prefer something more adventurous, there's always the option of going on a midnight stroll through the gardens. You know, for a more intimate conversation. The choice is yours."

"Are you asking me on a date, Gojo-san?" Chiyoya asked, unphased at the thought

A small chuckle escaped Satoru's lips at Chiyoya's question. He couldn't help but admire her directness and confidence. "Why, yes, I suppose I am. So, what do you say? Shall we have a night out, explore the city together, and perhaps get to know each other on a more personal level?"

"That's too bad, I can't go tonight or tomorrow, I'm quite busy" Chiyoya turns down the offer, apologetically smiling at him.

Satoru felt a bit disappointed at Chiyoya's rejection, but he also couldn't help but find her busy schedule intriguing. It only added to the mystery surrounding her, and his curiosity grew even more

"Oh, that's a shame. Perhaps another time then. But tell me, Chiyoya-san, just how busy can someone be to turn down a date with the strongest sorcerer in the Jujutsu world?"

"Perhaps I'm turning you down to see if you'd pursue me" Chiyoya answers, a blank smile on her lips, her eyes challenging him.

A flicker of surprise crossed Satoru's features at Chiyoya's challenging response. He had not expected her to play such a bold move. But he was undeterred. Satoru chuckled lightly before responding, a mischievous glint in his eyes

"Oh, so you're testing my determination, are you? Well, I must say, I do love a challenge. You have my word, Chiyoya-san—I won't rest until I've proven myself worthy of your time. Consider me your persistent suitor from this moment on."

" 'Chiyoya-san'... that's new, usually you'd only call me Chiyoya" Chiyoya points out, smiling at him

Satoru couldn't help but chuckle at Chiyoya's observation. He hadn't realized that he had subconsciously added honorifics to her name. It slipped out so naturally. He shrugged, a playful grin on his lips

"Well, I guess it's just a testament to how much I respect and admire you. But I must admit, Chiyoya, it rolls off the tongue a lot better than 'Chiyoya-san.' Wouldn't you agree?"

"And Satsujin doesn't?" Chiyoya asked, referring to her given name, meaning murder

It made him curious as to why she's named that way

Satoru nodded in agreement, a smirk playing on his lips. He couldn't deny the fact that her given name, Satsujin, had a certain darkness to it. It intrigued him even more

"Oh, it does indeed. Satsujin is quite an interesting name. But, if you don't mind me asking, is there any particular reason behind it? The meaning seems a bit... ominous, don't you think?"

"It's not just me, my Father also has quite the name" Chiyoya answers, before her gaze turned to her Father, conversing with the current Sponsors

"Chiyoya Akui" Akui meaning Dark Intent

Satoru's curiosity grew even more at Chiyoya's words, and his gaze followed hers to her Father, Mr. Chiyoya. Her Father's name, Chiyoya Akui, held a certain mysterious weight to it as well.

"I see. It seems that the theme of names in your family is quite intriguing," Satoru mused, a small smirk on his lips. "Dark Intent, indeed. I wonder if there's something deeper behind the choice of those names."

"Back in the olden days of Japan, children at birth were given a temporary name to prevent dying, because it's believed that demons steal children with pretty names until they're given a permanent name at the age of 4" Chiyoya explained before turning to look at Satoru

"But to our case, it didn't matter what age, children of Chiyoya's were always taken the day after having their permanent name, a demon seemed to always watch us...lying in wait..." Chiyoya mutters, her eyes staring blankly at Satoru

"That's why we have quite the names from birth throughout our lives, the only hindrance it brings is it's quite hard to advertise to the masses with that kind of name" Chiyoya answers with a smile on her lips

Satoru listened intently to Chiyoya's words, a mix of intrigue and disbelief on his face. He had never heard of such a belief before, and it was hard to tell if she was joking or being serious. However, the gravity of her tone made him lean towards the latter

"That's quite a unique tradition and a rather dark one at that," Satoru responded, a slight shiver running down his spine. "And demons...is that another part of the tradition, or do you really believe in its authenticity?"

"It wouldn't hurt to follow such traditions, unless, you wish to see me die" Chiyoya teases, smiling blankly at him

Satoru raised an eyebrow at her response, slightly taken aback. He couldn't tell if she was being serious or just toying with him.

"Oh, so you'll die if I don't take this seriously, huh? That's a harsh consequence," He said with a hint of amusement. "I guess I have no choice but to take your traditions seriously if it means keeping you alive, Chiyoya."

"How so?" Chiyoya asked with a playful smile

Satoru returned her playful smile with one of his own. He couldn't deny the fact that he was enjoying her teasing. He leaned in slightly closer, a mischievous glint in his eyes

"Well, for starters, I guess I'd have to protect you from any demons lurking around, wouldn't I? Can't have anything happening to the beautiful heiress of the Chiyoya Clan," he said, his voice dripping with a flirtatious tone.

Chiyoya chuckles, shaking her head "If I were to have been given a normal name, what do you think my name would have been?" Chiyoya asked

Satoru hummed thoughtfully, his eyes roaming over Chiyoya's appearance as he considered the possibility. He couldn't help but imagine how different she would have been if she had a more normal name.

"Hmm, if you had a normal name, let's see...with your beauty and delicate features, I could see you having a name like Yua or perhaps Hibana," he suggested, his gaze locking with hers. "Though I must admit, there's something quite captivating about your given name, Satsujin."

"What appeal did you find from it?" Satoru took a moment to consider her question, his fingers gently tapping against his chin as his gaze drifted upward in thought.

"Well, the name Satsujin itself has a bit of darkness to it, and that definitely adds to its intrigue," he mused. "But it's not just about the name in itself, it's how you bear it. There's a sense of mystery and power in the way you wear the name Satsujin. It speaks... strength, resilience, and a hint of...danger."

"I didn't know these kinds of words would come from the Strongest Sorcerer" Chiyoya points out, smiling at him

Satoru chuckled at her remark, a playful smirk on his lips.

"Oh, I'm full of surprises, Chiyoya," he responded, his gaze never leaving her. "Being the strongest sorcerer doesn't mean I lack a bit of poetry in my heart. I appreciate beauty and intrigue, and you, my dear, have plenty of both."

Chiyoya looked at him blankly, sizing him up, making a decision in her head, before smiling "alright, you got my attention" Chiyoya reached over to her clutch, pulling out a calling card

"This is my personal phone number, be careful not to leak it, I'm free on Saturday, see you then" Chiyoya hands him over the business card.

Satoru's smile widened at her words and the gesture of the card. He accepted it with a nod and slipped it into his pocket.

"I'll be sure to keep it under wraps," he said, his eyes gleaming mischievously. "And rest assured, I'll keep our rendezvous on Saturday a closely guarded secret. Can't let anyone else claim the privilege of spending time with the captivating Chiyoya."

Chiyoya chuckles, standing up before flattening her dress "See you by then, Gojo-san, enjoy the rest of the party" Chiyoya said before turning to leave, walking up to her Father

Satoru watched as Chiyoya walked away, his gaze lingering on her figure until she reached her Father's side. Excitement coursed through his veins as he glanced down at the number scribbled on the business card.

"Chiyoya Satsujin," he muttered softly to himself, a small smile on his lips. "This is going to be an interesting weekend."

[leonenjoyer69]

Not sure if you have much left in you But- *Ramble Card* You will be bombarded at least one more time, By me. Today. Right now.

AFTER WEEKS THE RAMBLE GODS HAVE ALLOWED ME TO ANSWER THIS, SO I PRESENT A LORE DROP FOR WHOLE JEKYLL, MY LITTLE GUY HARRY, BC I'VE BEEN NEGLECTING HIM 💔💔 SO!!! LONG RAMBLE/INFO DUMP UNDER THE CUT >:3

OKAY SO, WHOLE JEKYLL, RIGHT? HARRY? MY LITTLE GUY? Basically a combined/whole (wow how well I named him) Jekyll (technincally he IS the original Jekyll, but yeah) with more steps and extra trauma 🥰 originally he was just gonna stay trapped in the mind and such, but hey, with everything going on in the comic rn I think he can totally break out, and the wonderful @lesbianturrets (ILY CHARLIE) keeps inadvertently giving me such great ideas! (Also I may have made art of Harry gaining control on a whim, ill share that once it's done >:3)

Yeah, he eventually gains control (sometime during chapter 15, probably after Jekyll recouncils with Frankenstein, bc that kinda breaks the mind Frankenstein-- just like what happened to Mind Lanyon-- and then a transformation happens where Harry, Among the Mindscape that's been collapsing for days, is finally able to get control.) Said transformation happens and from the mirror Jekyll tells Hyde to "give it a rest already because there's nothing that he can do" and then Hyde pops up in the mirror beside him and is basically like "mf that ain't me!!" (Man I really wanna draw this) Cue confusion and more chaos because then who is in control right now? Meanwhile, a body that looks MOSTLY like Jekyll is freaking tf out, mumbling in Scots and trying to get his bearings bc holy shit he's real again. Jekyll and Hyde both try to talk to this guy but he's completely ignoring them, and after a bit of trying to regain control, Jekyll and Hyde eventually dip into the Mindscape to discuss things and figure out who tf that is.

Meanwhile, now that Harry is in control, he's gotta deal with everything going on. Lanyon shows up and begins trying to get in, to which Harry pleads (with his scots accent, further concerning Lanyon) for him not to come in, and that everything's alright. Once Lanyon does get in, Harry has to use the excuse of a potion falling on him to explain his hair and eyes. Harry's forced to go out and deescalate and fix everything, jumpy and paranoid af. (Bonus points, after fixing everything and finally being able to "settle down" for the day he apologizes profusely to Lanyon about leaving him and shit.) Harry's main goal now is to keep control (he avoids sleeping as much as he can, though Lanyon certainly has something to say and do about that) and find a way to reverse the formula, which he'll probably try to get help with from Frankenstein.

Also!! While Harry's real and in control, he can still vaguely see the strings, but no one else can. They're basically an illusion, like the nightmare creatures (which he still has to deal with, though he's somewhat more used to them) and he can still feel them tug and such, but can resist the pulling. When Jekyll and/or Hyde fight really hard for control, Harry's heart also goes crazy, like Jekylls did during the exhibition. ADDITIONALLY, Harry is also VERY sensitive to physical sensations, since he's been trapped in the mind so long with most all feeling numbed, he's practically hypersensitive now. (Bonus points, he seeks out physical contact a lot from Lanyon, since it brings him an all-encompasing warmth and somewhat calms him, LET THEM BE HAPPY AND GAY!!)

In the Mindscape, Jekyll and Hyde probably find Harry's journal(s) and figure out that they're BOTH incomplete pieces, and that this "Harry" is their whole version. Like, you know how you can delete a path on a computer and it won't know how to get to that file any more, despite it still being there? And you have to physically tell it again where it is? Yeah, Well the path to Jekylls whole, completed state has been reestablished.

Anyways, they'll probably fight or talk for a while, wander around the Mindscape looking for ways to get out/gain control again (bonus points if they let the nightmares out again) (more bonus points if Jekyll finds his silly whiteboard again and starts doing his little thing, while Hyde groans and complains the whole time).

Eventually they do get back to the consciousness and are able to hang out in mirrors and such again. Harry actually talks to them this time bc he's alone, about what, you may ask? Idk lmao. Harry's already mostly fixed things for the day and is pouring over research books again, pages of messy writing already covering the table. Probably tells them that he intends on reversing the potion because he can't keep living trapped, split into two halves that won't stop fighting.

Anyways!!!! Thank you for the ramble card teehee, just took me literal weeks to think of something to ramble about 💀💀 BUT!! IF ANYONE WANTS TO ASK ANYTHING SPECIFIC ABOUT HARRY (OR ELIAS) PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE DON'T HESITATE, I LOVE MY BABIES AND I NEED TO STOP NEGLECTING THEM <333

[stellari-s]

30 day twst challenge: day 16

favorite book?

// main story spoilers, but tl;dr book 6

i think all the books have their charm (but personal ranking, without much explanation, is below the cut), but if i'm forced to pick one, i'd have to say book 6. there are many things i like about this book, such as:

idia and ortho are featured heavily! to start their relationship has been endearing to me but i do like how there's this theme of "rebirth" going on. from what i've seen in books 6, 7, it seems almost like it's idia's fate to lose ortho. first he lost the real ortho, then he lost the humanoid ortho (once), and then in the dream world in book 7, the fact he broke out of the dream, seemingly, speaks to the fact he lost ortho there as well.

parallelism is chef's kiss - i dunno if this is because this book plays into "rebirth," but i love how we sort of get like "leave it to your big bro" twice (said in different tones because of the context), and like how idia makes a comparison between like heaven and the underworld at first, and then later it changes to heaven and a local park. the distance is getting a little smaller, even in baby steps!

we get a whole lore dump on like blot and grim?? excuse me but like what is up with him??

the dynamic between the characters is actually really well done. we get to see a lot of sides we don't normally see from them, especially when they split into smaller teams. for example, we'll probably never get to see jamil and leona interact again after this book. but i'm surprised they managed to work as well as they did, and dare i say, i think jamil especially needed this sort of interaction to help him understand himself. we even see him in the end of book 6 finally bossing kalim around a bit out of something other than him or his family getting threatened (if kalim gets hurt). that probably never would have happened if not for leona and his "counseling session."

and it was just nice to get to know the pomefiore group more and see vil, rook, and epel all acting more like brothers than an overbearing coach, his right-hand man and an apple like the first halfish of book 5. plus riddle and azul's bickering was like peak frenemy content who work very well together. i know they did work together in the prologue a little bit to catch grim, but seeing them struggle through the towers together in book 6 allows us to see them in a whole new light, and we even see them be vulnerable with each other. while reading them i feel even more they are fit to duo together in their dorm uniform cards. they are more close than they normally let on, i think.

yeah, you get the gist, ahah. ☁️

my personal ranking (though i like every book too):

book 6: the watchman of the underworld

book 1: the rose-red tyrant

book 3: the merchant from the depths & book 7: the lord of malevolence (a tie, i think)

book 5: a beautiful tyrant

book 2: the usurper from the wilds

book 4: schemer of the scalding sands