#(because it has two heads that have different opinions but it's just the same spirit who's just a liiiitlle too indecisive)

[ndostairlyrium]

"No, Frank Albert, haunting furniture is out of fashion since 9:10, now we jumpscare and aim for the heart attacks. Yes, I know, floating dressers are cool, but we're on a schedule, Frank Albert, the IRS is onto us."

-

Ref

[ollieolliewrld]

Genshin Men in Relationships (SFW)

There are characters I left out lmk if anyone would like a version for them as well!

1.8k words

Alhaitham

♡Everything this man does is calculated

♡From the moment he saw you he knew he had to plan to win you over

♡Usually, his intellect is enough to impress but you were different 

♡You didn't see him as a brain you saw him as a person

♡Not only were his thoughts valued but his feelings mattered to you

♡Alhaitham had never been treated that way before and because of that he will make you the happiest person on the planet

♡He likes to share what he knows with you and likes to sit you down with a cup of tea as he goes over his findings and ideas

♡Absolutely loves to hear your thoughts and opinions 

♡A common date spot for you two is on a blanket in the forest 

♡He enjoys setting up picnics where you can enjoy nature and be alone 

♡He has never missed an important day and does a surprisingly good job at planning celebrations

♡For a man who comes across as cold and unfeeling, he takes a lot of time finding the things that you like and including them in all aspects of life 

Arataki Itto

♡This ball of energy naturally makes one of the best boyfriends

♡Everything he does is full of passion and care

♡He includes you in everything he does as he wants to 1) have you by his side at all times and 2) needs someone to wheel him back in when he starts getting out of hand

♡You are slightly more level-headed than he is so it works out 

♡He likes to compete with you turning mundane tasks into a race or seeing who can eat more in one sitting 

♡It's all for fun and no matter who wins or loses you both are in good spirits

♡Arataki Itto is a handsy lover who always wants to have some level of physical contact with you

♡He holds your hand, has you on his lap, piggyback rides, or will fall asleep on you

♡He absolutely adores you, seeing you is like watching a sunrise no matter what is going on seeing you brings a smile to his face 

♡Very playful and enjoys lovingly teasing you

♡Big on holding things above your head knowing that you cannot reach it

♡He never does anything maliciously, he just adores the look on your face when you’re slightly grumpy

Diluc

♡One of the most protective lovers available

♡He is not overbearing but he is not letting anyone lay a finger on you

♡Diluc is a little gruff but he cares about you very deeply 

♡Part of protecting you is spoiling you

♡Dates with him are dinners with the most beautiful scenery 

♡You will be presented with random gifts almost daily so prepare for that

♡Nothing is too good for you 

♡Big fan of walking with you around his property 

♡It allows for the enjoyment of nature while having absolute privacy with you

♡Diluc is the kind of lover to sit with you on a mountaintop while watching the sunset but the entire time his eyes never leave you

♡There is no view that can top your beauty he is sure of that and while those words may never leave his mouth you know this every time you catch him staring at you

♡You are the most important thing in the world to him. Each day he will do what needs to be done to keep you with him

Kaeya

♡The two of you share an enemies-to-lovers story as you could not stand each other when you first met 

♡This went on for a few weeks until Jean had enough of your fighting and forced you two to patrol the same very small area

♡When you two heard each other out you found that you both had a lot in common

♡Since then, Kaeya does not leave your side

♡He likes to constantly try to impress you

♡You could be together for years and he would still be the suave man who comes in to save the day

♡He is like Diluc in the sense that he is protective but he also gets slightly jealous

♡You have this way of drawing everyone’s attention without even realizing it

♡He loves you and cares for you deeply so he will get over his jealousy as he never wants you to feel like you are doing something wrong

♡You are his and he is the one you choose to be with every day, knowing that brings a smile to his face without fail

Neuvillette

♡Meeting you was the best day of Neuvillette’s life 

♡took him a while to warm up to you but he could not stay away

♡Seeing your smile took away the pain he has carried in his heart for so long

♡He is a serious man but caring 

♡He likes to keep his work and you completely separate, this being said he will always make time for you

♡Never will he forget a date with you, Neuvillette makes you his priority in life and treats you like royalty

♡Enjoys speaking with you he finds that the times when you two get lost in conversation are the times he feels the closest to you

♡While he is not big on PDA behind closed doors you are held in his arms 

♡He keeps you close to him as he has a fear that he will lose you one day so having his arms around you calms him 

♡Surprisingly he’s a nickname guy but not your typical nickname, he gives you one based on your name and personality 

♡It’s one way he shows his care for you, by calling you a name that comes from a place of love and meaning

Tartaglia

♡Being with him is always an adventure 

♡There is always something to do and somewhere to go

♡No matter what he’s up to you will be kept safe

♡Childe will never put you in harm's way but he does want to show you all aspects of life

♡He’s not supposed to tell you everything but he does, you are the love of his life he can’t keep secrets from you

♡You are treated to the best of everything with him

♡If there is anything you want he will get it for you no matter what it takes

♡Seeing you happy is the best gift he has ever received 

♡He would prefer to keep you out of business to an extent, you would be with him wherever he went but you are not getting anywhere near the action

♡If anything happened to you he would not know how to cope

♡Good thing for you Tartaglia has everything figured out and knows how to show his lover the world without letting them get hurt

♡Your life is filled with excitement and you don’t get a lot of time to be alone relaxing

♡He figures you two can get to that when you’re old 

Thoma

♡Mr. Perfect has been giving you the husband treatment since day one

♡He is so kind and caring to everyone that you didn’t realize he had feelings for you for a while

♡You two were close friends for some time before he made a move to outright tell you his feelings

♡Finding out you felt the same way was like a dream come true for him

♡Thoma was so happy to know that he finally had someone to stand beside him

♡The two of you work together making sure the other load is not too much for them

♡Doing this ensures that neither you nor Thoma burns out with all that you do

♡Date nights are big with him

♡Days are when the work gets done and when the sun sets that’s the time that is reserved for just you

♡He likes to cook with you and would be so happy to teach you

♡Enjoys packing you snacks each morning you thought it was a little childish at first to have a snack pack with you but with all the running around you do you have realized why he started doing it in the first place

♡Keeping you happy and healthy is what he prides himself on

Wriothesley

♡The most loyal lover 

♡From the day he met you, he has been determined to improve your life in any way he could

♡He takes his work seriously and it takes a toll on him so knowing that he has you to come home to pushes him through it

♡Wriothesley wants to keep you far away from his work as he will not risk anything ever happening to you

♡Yes he knows you are capable of handling yourself but why would he ever want you to have to struggle

♡He treasures the time he spends with you and does not care what the activity is as long as the two of you are together

♡He enjoys relaxing in the countryside lying in the grass with you just as much as he enjoys the rare opportunity of laying in bed and having a lazy morning with you

♡Big fan of making you breakfast 

♡He will wake you up when he is done with breakfast even if it is super early because he knows what the rest of his day is going to entail and he would like to start off with seeing your face and sharing a meal with you

♡Loves to be able to come home and find you sleeping in one of his shirts

♡He slides into bed so carefully next to you and wraps his arms around you 

♡You are his world and he will always nurture you 

Zhongli

♡Zhongli is enjoying the retired life to the max

♡Every day gets to be spent with you doing whatever you want to do

♡He has taken you all over for adventures, sightseeing, and relaxation

♡After being around for so long he knows what the best of everything is

♡Having you and being able to now share that knowledge with someone makes him finally feel complete

♡One of his favorite moments with you was when he took you to his favorite overlook in Liyue, there were flowers growing near where the two of you were sitting, and when you saw them you excitedly ran over to pick one and came back and placed the flower behind his ear

♡He has never experienced someone like you

♡So kind and caring that it was odd to him at first that you were so caring towards him without knowing who he was

♡That is his favorite thing about you, the way you treat people, the kindness you carry in your heart 

♡It is a rare quality and something that he now gets to enjoy having in his life

Author's note: Very excited to now have posts for the three main fandoms I will be writing for out! I'm always open to other fandoms and other characters from DMC, HSR, and Gneshin just shoot me a request <3<3

[hadesisqueer]

Honestly I have never fully agreed with the whole "Korra has the personality of a Firebender" because-- what exactly is the personality of a Firebender? She used Firebending a lot in the first books, I'll give you that, but it seemed more out of accessibility than anything; later she switches it for Air.

Fire is the element of power; Firebenders tend to be pretty determined people. Water is the element of change; Waterbenders tend to be very adaptable. Earth is the element of substance; Earthbenders usually are very resilient people. And Air is the element of freedom; Airbenders tend to be very free-spirited. There are stereotypes for benders (Firebenders are angry people and obsessed with honor, Earthbenders are usually pretty stubborn) that can be true with some people. But not always.

Now, here, look. These two are Airbenders.

Do they have the same personality?

Now, these two.

They're Earthbenders. Do they have the same personality?

What about these two Waterbenders?

Are they any similar?

Or maybe these two Firebender brothers?

What is the personality of a Firebender? Iroh's personality? Zuko's? Azula's, or Ozai's? Or Mako's?

Yes, Korra had affinity with firebending due to a couple of her personality traits that made her a very determined and fierce person. She also had an affinity with earthbending from a young age as well because she was a tough, stubborn and resilient person who stood her ground. However, she was also a very adaptable person who favored change, which is the main personality trait of what a Waterbender should be.

Personality traits aren't exclusive of one element. Kya is more spiritual and free-spirited than Tenzin and she's not an Airbender, but a Waterbender; stereotypically, Tenzin is kinda different than you'd expect an Airbender to be, actually, with him being more disciplined and serious. Bolin does not have the stereotypical Earthbender personality, either. And Mako doesn't have the stereotypical Firebender 'impulsive' personality either, he's more a 'cool under fire' person who usually stays level-headed in tough situations. Korra lacked spirituality and prefered to stand her ground or fight at first rather than avoiding conflict, which is why she had trouble with Airbending at first. But again, personality traits aren't exclusive of just one element nor does the element you bend really define and shape your personality; the way you are brought up, your environment and the people around you contribute more to that. Korra originally didn't have those traits due to the way she was raised, isolated from the world, groomed and pressured from a young age as the Avatar. Raise her differently, with a more normal, carefree childhood, and perhaps she wouldn't have struggled as much with airbending as she originally did.

In my opinion, the reason why people might think Korra has a full on 'Firebender personality' is because she has some common traits with a particular Firebender. The Firebender being Zuko. Both were originally hot headed, got angry easily at first, were fierce and impulsive. Korra also shared personality traits with Toph, too, being tough and stubborn —they were raised being isolated with no friends, too, which is a parallel between them. But like I said, personality traits can help with an element, but aren't exclusive of that element. Korra also had several things in common with Aang.

Personally, in my opinion, someone Korra has a lot in common with as well, maybe more than with Zuko or Toph-- is Katara, another Waterbender. They both are driven people with a lot of determination, righteous and passionate about what they believe in, and pretty adaptable as well. Korra seems to be more aggressive, and impulsive as well, but let's not act like Katara didn't have a temper, too, and like she wasn't impulsive and reckless as well sometimes (remember when she blew up a FN factory because Sokka said it without thinking of the consequences). They both could get very frustrated as well when they weren't immediately good at something they expected to be good at. There are many differences between them, yeah, due to the ways they were brought up —again, Korra was isolated from the world with no friends her age and pressured to be the Avatar and Katara was forced on a motherly role from a very young age after the loss of her actual mother. However, if they had been raised in more normal ways, I fully believe they'd be even more similar. Put Katara as the Avatar from a young age like Korra herself was and I think she could have been a very similar Avatar to Korra imo. But it also makes sense in some way they're similar considering Katara was Korra's waterbending master and likely one of her biggest role models growing up.

(Free my girls they both get so overhated for no reason too).

Anyway, to me there is really no such actual thing as having 'the personality of X bender', they're mostly stereotypes. There are personality traits that can be helpful to bend an element, but they're never exclusive to that element. Just because you're stubborn as hell doesn't mean you're an Earthbender, and Bolin himself doesn't really exhibit that trait. Just because you're a very fierce person, doesn't mean you're an Firebender. You can be a pretty spiritual person and not an Airbender. You can be a very adaptable guy, but a Firebender instead of a Waterbender. Aang was far from having the slightest stereotypical Firebender personality and he didn't struggle with firebending, but he had the determination needed to be a Firebender. He also had the same adaptability needed to be a Waterbender. Korra had some personality traits that made her have it easy with firebending. She also had personality traits that made it easy for her to waterbend and earthbend. Easy.

[randomshyperson]

A pinch of paprika | Wanda Maximoff Oneshots

Summary: The night when Vision cooks for Wanda end very differently than how it went because you show up to save the dinner (and the girl). | Writing Challenge

Warning: None, it’s pure fluff with teasing and bad jokes.| Words: 1.269k

General Masterlist | AO3 | Wattpad

-&-

“Wanda, no one dislikes you.”

She would have chuckled at the Synthesized's clumsy attempt to improve her mood - It was kind, after all. - But she didn't get the chance. Another figure was entering the kitchen at the same moment Vision made the comment, and your teasing expression drew a much more sincere smile from her.

"Oh, don't speak for me, Microwave." You told him, only to look at the witch standing at the stove the next moment. "I haven't decided my opinion on that cute little witch yet."

Wanda giggles shyly at the nickname, blushing at the greeting wink you throw her. She doesn't know exactly when you two fell into this playful and comfortable dynamic, she just knows it happened and that she wouldn't trade it for anything.

Or well, maybe she could add something more...

"Hello, Miss Rogers." Vision greets half-heartedly at the sudden arrival. "I did not realize that you were still in the Tower. I figured with the current status of the Accords, you would have joined your brother..."

You waved - cutting him off as if the Robot's questioning mattered little to you. It was true because Wanda had your complete attention. Or, rather, almost, because you seemed quite curious about the pot of food.

"What is this supposed to be?" You ask her with the same tone as before, but now, much closer, enough to press your arms together when you lean in to smell the contents of the pan. 

Wanda holds the spoon a little tighter. "Vision was making dinner."

You frown, looking at the robot in surprise. "I thought you couldn't eat, champ."

The machine clears its throat (Or mimics the motion, whichever way it operates). 

"I was intending to raise Mrs. Maximoff's spirits." He clarifies by exchanging a look between you and Wanda. "Given the current circumstances, a comfort food should bring, well, comfort."

"Got it." You murmur offering a forced smile to the Synthesized. Wanda has no idea of the jealousy that burns in your chest at having to witness Vision think about this before you can. Screw the Accords for keeping you busy often enough. 

The next moment, you taste the food, and your reaction is much more exaggerated than Wanda's, and maybe it's on purpose.

"Dude, whatever it is you tried to do here, it needs an intervention." You sneer and it's mean enough for Wanda to give you a gentle nudge for the robot's expression. You sigh begrudgingly. "Tell you what, Wanda and I will go get some ingredients at the market and you stay away from the stove-"

But just as you make mention of leaving the kitchen, Vision stands in your way. He exchanges a quick glance with Wanda to your confused chuckle.

"I'm afraid this isn't the best idea, Miss Rogers." He starts evidently uncomfortable with the whole thing. 

"Dude. what the...?"

"Vision." Interferes with the witch, stepping forward. " Aren't you letting us leave?"

The Synthesized, clearly embarrassed, tries to keep his gaze on you. "I'm very sorry, but those were Mr.Stark's orders. Y/N, you shouldn't even be in the tower, but now that you are, Tony fears that other incidents might happen... It's all to ensure safety-"

The shove throws Vision at least five steps away. He locks his jaw, but you glare at him angrily. 

"Get out of my way, Vision." You warn between teeth, raising a finger at the other. "Don't play Stark's butler on me. I'll have your ass unplugged."

With a gentle point toward the Stone on his head, you lower your hand. The Synthesized, though hesitating for a second, eventually steps forward.

"If you want to leave, you have every freedom to do so." He says seriously. "But Miss Maximoff-"

"Comes with me." You cut in, grabbing Wanda's hand with a tug. She gasps softly and holds your wrist with her free one, divided on not causing more trouble or just following you wherever you want. Your expression remains irritated toward the robot. "What kind of fucking attitude is that now, Vision? Betraying your own family and all that bull shit. I thought you cared about Wanda."

Vision's posture breaks, and it is evident that he would have blushed if he could. The Synthesized lowers his head in shame, and you sigh to calm yourself. When you speak again, it is much more tender than before.

"Me and Wanda just get something decent to eat. No trouble, no fuss." You say and move at a slow pace. Vision makes no mention of interfering now, and remains head down. "In the meantime, call Tony and tell him to stop being a dick."

Wanda bites back a laugh, gently pushing you out of the kitchen.

It shouldn't surprise her that you drive her into the garage, nor that you steal - borrow without asking - one of Stark's pickup trucks either. But still, seeing the set of backpacks inside, Wanda has to confirm:

"We're not going to the market, are we?"

You laugh. "Of course not, little witch." You assure her, stepping inside at the same time she does. The garage door opens, and you waste no time in taking the car out through the back of the Compound, the longer way but one that would arouse less suspicion. Splitting your gaze between the road and Wanda, you speak again: "I really thought there was something strange about this quarantine of yours, I had to check it out. Do you really think I was gonna let Tony Stark ground you? Even worse, with a guard dog at the door? Fuck them all. I'm taking you somewhere safe."

"B-but your brother..."

Your hand finds hers. "He will fight his own battles, as always." You retort gently, lacing your fingers over her thigh. "He's always done everything for Bucky, Wands. Nothing is going to change that. And I...I have someone like that now and I understand him. I finally do."

Wanda swallows dryly, shifting her gaze to your joined hands, her heart thumping in her chest. "This someone...you're talking about Natasha, right?"

You burst out laughing so loudly that you almost lose control of the car. Wanda would have slapped you if you weren't holding her hand. "Oh my god, I'm going all Thelma and Louise on you right now and you think I like Natasha? What the fuck..."

"Can you stop the car, please?" She cuts you off, and you grimace. 

"We should probably move further away before-"

"I'm going to kiss you, asshole, and I don't want you to crash"

"Oh. Oh... O- okay, sure." You mumble quickly, very flushed. You let go of Wanda's hand only to shift gears, and you've barely parked on the side of the road and she's grabbing the collar of your shirt. 

The first kiss you share on the highway exit under the starry New York sky tastes like chicken seasoning.

You and Wanda break into breathless laughter. 

"Vision really is a terrible cook." You comment, feeling your stomach fill with nervous butterflies at the way Wanda is staring at you.

She giggles at the comment, helping you wipe some of the smeared lipstick from your lips. "And I'm still starving, detka. Can we get something to eat on the way?"

"Anything for my little witch." You assure with a passionate smile, and Wanda kisses you again before letting you get back to driving.

Many hours later, when Clint finds you guys at one of Natasha’s safe houses, he would pretend not to notice the lipstick marks fading into the collar of your shirt, nor the matching purple marks on Wanda's neck.

[ananinidraws]

Everyone is talking about and posting bowuigi, a ship that I never really understood how I can combine them, but like Bowsario, it seems like I understand, like they are two enemies that fight for years and can have that potential of enemies to friends to lovers (if any fans of bowuigi read this, sorry I didn't mean to offend)

I'd like to start this post with the same heads up as anon, my apologies to bowigi fans, this is in no way targeted and just my opinions and views on these ships, you guys have fun with your ship ok?

With that out of the way, incoming rant

OH MY GOD ANON SAME. I do not get Bowigi at all, never did. Cuz to me, Weegee and Bowser do not have good chemistry. Now granted, i don't really go on that side of the fandom, so i do not know what the large consensus of their dynamic is like, but to me Luigi is a person who needs stability and a partner who uplifts him. It's why i like Luiasy and especially Luisley, cuz Daisy and Peasley praise him constantly and treat him like he's the most amazing thing in the world. I don't think Bowser would be a good match in that sense, man's really prideful and i don’t really see him being into romantic stuff like that (of mention, however, that he does these things towards Peach, i will not deny that. but when he does that to her it doesn’t feel as genuine, does that make sense? like he’s just shallowly trying to get her attention because he wants something in return, that being her affection but also her kingdom). Not to mention, just in general, i feel like Luigi’s constant emotional stage would be anxiety in that ship, and Bowser would get bored of it really quickly.

The biggest reason why i’m into Bowsario is because Mario matches Bowser’s fiery spirit so well. Bowser has a huge crush on Peach, but i do think that it doesn’t really go beyond that. And i find the prospect of the hatred slowly shifting into love to be SO interesting. Like he starts looking forward to Mario reaching their final battle at his castle. Without Mario, he has no purpose. And same with Mario, without Bowser his life would be so much more boring. Obviously he faces off against other foes, and he has fun on his adventures, he always has, but his boss battles against foes that are not Bowser have a different feeling. They’re not as fun, against Bowser he doesn’t fight with urgency, he fights for the love of fighting. It’s their little routine by now, their own dance, and it’s one both continue to repeat. Honestly one that they could just do, without needing to kidnap Peach and put the citizens in danger, but how would either just. Explain that? Deeply rooted and denied feelings that get confused for hatred, you know it~

This is also why Mario continues to invite Bowser to their sport and kart activities. Cuz it’s not as fun without that element of genuine competition the two have going on. Their dynamic is just so natural at this point for them, and it’s undeniably mutual. So when either of them has that “oh” moment it just throws everything for a loop and makes it all so much more interesting >:3

And when they do actually work through their feelings (which let’s be honest, it’s gonna take a LOOOOOONG time for either to even realize they’re there) their dynamic remains the same, but now they also sometimes sneak in make out sessions in their battles /j

Anyways, sorry this reply got so long anon, but. Unfortunately you and me are Bowsario fans that live in a Bowigi world because of that one scene in the Mario movie 😔 Despite the fact that, ya know, Bowsario has so much more content in game that everyone just ignores 737

[pickles4nickles]

Pickles Played Persona 5 Tactica and Has Some Words

I finally finished Tactica and its DLC sans some challenge stuff and I do wanna do some cleanup, but I thought I'd write a review for it.

It's long (like, 3k words long) and there's spoilers and overall... it's an Okay(tm) game, but... here, just lemme talk about it a bunch:

Alright, I'm not gonna mince words.

Persona 5 Tactica is not a game I can reccomend to anyone.

But is it a bad game?

Well, no.

But I have no idea who it's for.

Maybe it's for people who want more of the P5 characters? Not exactly? Both stories' focal points are on new characters and the Phantom Thieves just kinda happen to be there. There are some nice interactions, but this isn't a story about the PTs like Strikers.

Is it for people who like tactics but aren't really into P5? Well... it might be the other way around, actually? It's an okay tactics game with persona elements, but both parts of that are watered down when compared to base game persona and other tactics games like XCOM.

With that being said, lemme just ramble about what I thought about the story and gameplay.

THE STORY

The best way I can sum up my feelings about Tactica are "the story was told well, but I'm not sure if I liked it." This is a game that's less about the Phantom Thieves and more about Toshiro and Erina and focuses around the internal conflict of rebellion versus self-preservation.

Toshiro is probably why I'm neutral towards the game At Best. Erina grew on me but Toshiro...

Ehh.

At the beginning of the game, he's a big wimp and he's constantly telling the PTs and Erina that they have to be careful. From a theming standpoint, Toshiro's behavior makes perfect sense.

But from the petty bitch inside of me, this is infuriating because not only do YOU know that this is the Phantom Thieves that have taken down Shido (and also Yaldaboth), but TOSHIRO knows it as well and he's being Like This.

Like, he kinda sucks in the beginning and does so for the first two acts, understandably, but by the third act, when The Big Persona Moments happen, my opinion of him just kinda stayed the same. They swayed in a different direction, but... still on the negative side of the spectrum.

The reveal of Erina as Toshiro's Persona... makes sense. She's Toshiro's spirit(?) of rebellion and is based off of his classmate that once inspired him to stand up for himself and others.

Did I like this revelation?

Hell no, I was punching my thigh and screaming in voice call "No fucking way, Toshiro's so lame, though" as loud as I could without upsetting my parents in the other rooms.

From this point on, Toshiro now has the resolve to do what's right, even if it's scary... but he comes off as a little too strong in my opinion. I kinda have the same feelings about Zenkichi once he gets his persona in Strikers. In the beginning they feel like a new character meant to balance out the insanity that is how the metaverse is, but once they get their persona, they're full on inundated in the anime stand battles and they're a little too extra about it.

Having two full acts of "hey guys maybe we shouldn't help the hat people out of hat people slavery," pivoting into "WITNESS OUR POWER AS ONE" has the same vibes as a relative who's not really an asshole, but one that you've been trying to convince for years that economic inflation is the reason why our generation can't live comfortably, and once they finally understand, they come off a little bit too strong and righteous about it that you're not sure they're genuine or if this is a "he's a little confused, but he's got the spirit" situation.

And then god happens.

In persona games, I usually don't fully understand how or why the god-being is doing all of this, but I especially can't wrap my head around how they work in Tactica. It's mostly because Toshiro's metaverse is kind of a Silent Hill kinda deal where it's a mental torture labyrinth for him personally, as opposed to Mementos, which is naturally the collective unconscious, connecting everyone's minds and hearts together.

The jump from "I'm going to bully this one guy in particular" to "now EVERYONE will be as lame as Toshiro" is lost on me. Maybe politics?

It's... it's fine, there's no reason to lose sleep over it.

The ending of the story is nice and reasonable, though. It sorta redeems Toshiro for me. It's one thing to yell in your own metaverse hellscape how you're going to do the right thing, but once he's back in the real world, he actually stands up to his dad and fiancé and steps down from his political position to build it back up from scratch, but better.

And, yeah! I respect that.

That being said, though, the game isn't devoid of new Phantom Thief interactions. There's some good ones like Futaba "I don't kinkshame" Sakura, casually bi Joker as seen in that one "who would you marry" bit, and a guys only sidequest in which they think they're looking for Toshiro's porn stash (yeah, I know) (it's not). I wouldn't say it's crumbs, but you're not getting the whole loaf that you'd get from, say, Mementos Mission or Strikers.

The story also does this thing where the Phantom Thieves can relate with Toshiro's issues, but something about it feels... off.

Toshiro's in an arranged marriage with Marie for political reasons! Just like Haru! His fiancé sees him as a pushover! Kinda like Makoto! His mom died when he was young and he blames himself for it! Wow, Yusuke and DEFINITELY Futaba can relate to that!! Eri, the real person that Erina is based on, had to transfer schools because she was accused of a crime! Gee, that SURE sounds familiar-

Part of me thinks I'm being a little too unfair on the game for creating parallels like this because Strikers also kinda did this. But in Strikers, the PTs being able to connect with the jail rulers was integral to the plot. Here, it's just kind of a wink wink nudge nudge kinda thing.

And my knee-jerk reaction to that is a small "I get it, shut uuuup."

Again, and overall because I think that rounds out what I have to say about the story, P5 Tactica's main story isn't bad. It's told well, but I'm not necessarily the biggest fan of it.

GAMEPLAY

I've only played Strikers and I don't think I've played a true tactics game, so I don't know how much weight my opinions hold.

So um.

I dunno, the gameplay was fine.

The pacing is weird because it's kind of a visual novel first, and a tactics game in-between, but I got used to that after a bit.

It's a really simple tactics game and... yeah things don't get too complex outside of sometimes there are buttons that'll open doors or raise and lower platforms, sometimes height matters, but the mechanics don't get too crazy outside of certain boss battles.

The game revolves around downing enemies to get Once More's so you can either encase the enemy in a triangle formed by your units to initiate an All-out Attack or you can chain together Once More's to extend your unit's range and move them across the map. This mechanic took a bit for me to understand fully, but I never really got tired of doing it.

Boss battles were kind of hit or miss in this game. The fights with Toshiro's Dad and Salmael I enjoyed as they were kinda formatted as "here's a weird stage, go figure out what to do." However, Marie and *checks notes* "the scary Eri Natsuhara that Shadow Toshiro made" I didn't care for as much since they changed the game from "your decisions on where to move your units are key for this" to "you need to do exactly as we say." Which always kinda sucks, y'know?

Character selection is also kind of a weird thing in this, too. It doesn't seem like it matters who you take with you into missions, which... feels weird to me considering past Persona games. The elements have all been kinda smooshed down into less of a weakness thing, but just a special move that can hinder movement, do damage over time, or change enemy placement entirely, but which type of special you bring along doesn't seem to be as crucial as other Persona games. Each character has a slightly different attack, gun spread, and movement limit, but it wasn't anything drastic that I noticed apart from Haru (she is very slow but apparently hits like a truck) and possibly Morgana (his attack was very weak for me, but I'm not sure if that's because I didn't have him kitted out properly or that's intended).

I played the game almost entirely with Joker and Ann, while swapping between Erina and Ryuji for the last slot and I didn't run into any problems.

The last stretch of the game is... a strange one gameplay wise. Toshiro becomes a party member except... he's Different(tm). He doesn't get a skill tree, is a permanent fourth party member, and can initiate All-Out Attacks, but isn't a part of the triangle that forms it. He does have a gun, but it's in the form of a 0SP attack that Ernesto/Erina can use... that also happens to ignore walls entirely. And he also gets Almighty attacks, which kinda just do big number damage for way more SP.

It's hard to say if the game did a good job scaling the level difficulties to incorporate a fourth party member as staying on top of your persona fusing, weapons, and the skill tree can kind of make the game a breeze. I also played on the normal difficulty, so maybe in harder difficulties, Toshiro becomes more of a necessity than a party member that breaks the game.

My only big gripe with the game is just... the weirdness of the undo button. I don't know how it is in regular tactics games, but the undo in this game doesn't work on a "clear the last action this unit did" basis, but on a turn basis. If you happen to screw up on turn one, unit one, you have to back out COMPLETELY to the mission start screen, which is hella annoying especially if you're playing on the Switch because of the load times.

"But Pickles, what about the DLC? Surely you have just as many thoughts about it?"

Y'know?

I actually don't.

I liked Repaint Your Heart a lot. Again, it's less a story about the Royal Trio and more about Guernica, but it's closer to the traditional Persona 5 story format where they're changing someone's heart. This story also had much higher emotional... fidelity? I guess you could put it?

Guernica needed to remember her main inspirations for creating art - being abandoned and homeless and her big sister dying because of it and she embraces that anger against society into art that inspires hope in people less fortunate. While being groomed into a political pawn from basically birth and then, later in life, being thrown into your own mental hellscape sucks, in terms of emotional weight, Toshiro's story feels like a feather compared to Guernica's.

Also her design is just cool and the paint aesthetic is definitely more my speed.

In terms of Royal Trio content, I think this was the best case scenario we could expect from Atlus.

Emphasis on "from Atlus."

Yeah, we didn't get Black Mask Akechi, but there are MORE THAN ENOUGH moments where he lets the facade slip. His default spell is Megidola, but his skill tree lets him have both Light AND Dark spells. He'll cuss at you if you hit an enemy into him. I don't know what he's doing viscerally screaming half the time he summons Robin Hood.

Sumi. Is also there.

She is fine.

Guernica's connection to the thieves is also written in the same way as Toshiro is, in that it's a little shoehorned in and doesn't add to the story beyond that. After finding out that Luca is Guernica's sister that died, Sumi definitely feels motivated and inspired to help her out, but Akechi also being an abandoned child, scorned by society, and angry at the world because of it is never touched upon. This is probably for spoiler reasons, but... still.

Because this is a story that takes place during Sae's Palace in the main game, they all have to have amnesia about it in the end. Which, understandable, and at least no one in the trio had extensive character development but...

*clenches fist*

Man,

Having tackled this after the main game, I enjoyed the gameplay a lot! It's basically P5 Tactica but with Splatoon mixed in. When a unit is on a tile painted the opposite color for them, they can be instantly knocked down and combo'd on, which adds a whole extra layer of complexity to the game. I wish there were a few more levels to play, but the length of the DLC never overstays its welcome.

Hokay.

If you made it this far, congrats! You reached the end. And my tl;dr section.

I think that's just about it on what I cohesively have to say about P5 Tactica. This isn't a terrible game by any means, but I don't know if the audience it's intended for actually exists. It has a just okay story and just okay mechanics, but the DLC has a more than okay story and the core mechanics are given a fresh coat of paint (yeah, boo, I know) that makes the game more interesting. I would not go paying $80 USD to experience the DLC alone, though.

Thank you for reading my review if you made it all the way to the end! P5 stuff (well, mostly Akeshu) has been my muse these past few years and playing a game that was "just okay but why did they..." got into my brain real bad, so I wanted to write some stuff out.

I'll close this out with some bullet points of thoughts that I couldn't really cohesively fit into my review:

I really really liked how they got little costumes for the old timey Japan kingdom and I was hoping we'd get more of that and every kingdom was based on a new theme... but we only got three kingdoms and the last one before "Smithy's Forge from Super Mario RPG" was............ School.

SATANAEL'S BACK IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS (BUT ONLY POST-GAME)

Erina also being Ernesto thing is mostly weird to me because she's still her own entity but also not???? The possible genderfluid connotations are cool though.

There's a quest where Haru asks Yusuke how to be fast. Yusuke tells her she has to "Become a Black Hole." I do not know what this means.

After the quest, Haru says that even though the axe slows her down, she's very partial to it as her father didn't like her chopping wood as a kid, but she'd sneak out and do it anyway. She later found out that her dad knew she was doing this, but decided not to scold her for it. She took this as a sign of kindness from her father and that's why the axe is so special to her. I do not know what this means as Haru's father was a horrible capitalist who basically tried to marry her off in pursuit of power.

The weapon designs in this game are generally kind of silly, but I appreciate that they exist in the game. There's a chompy gun with teeth that Joker gets and I really like it :)

God the Lyn tracks from the DLC FUCK

...what

Futaba says "sus" at one point in the end

[newtthetranswriter]

Choso at Pride

Word Count: 1264

Paring: Choso x Transmasc! Reader

Summary: While at Pride, a karen tries to cause problems only to have her spirits crushed. Followed by some sweet cuddles after a long day

Warnings: Bigots being Bigots, the usual homophobic and transphobic reasons for being assholes, let me know if I missed anything

A/n: Just a little Choso pride fic. For the record I have never been to a Pride festival for many reasons though I’m hoping to go to one this year. Also I ship yuji and megumi, if you don't agree either deal with it or move on. Anyways enjoy and remember to hydrate or diedrate.

    Choso may have not been a person for long but he couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that there are people out there, who hate people for expressing themselves. When his partner told him about Pride and how it was a celebration for the people who were part of the LGBTQ+ community to show that they are happy to be who they are, he couldn’t help but want to join in on the fun. Afterall his partner was part of said community and after some self reflection he also decided he fell somewhere in the community. So the morning of the Local Pride festival, Choso helped Y/n get ready before heading to the park.

   “Choso, I’m so glad you wanted to come with me, It’s going to be so fun.” Y/n shouted as they got closer to the busy park full of so many different happy people.

   Choso smiled as he held their hand. “Of course, why wouldn’t I come celebrate the person who has helped me adapt to the world the most.” His smile was infectious as he pulled them in for a quick kiss.

   As they entered the park they were greeted by rows and rows of different vendors selling various pride themed items, most clearly hand made and perfect for the event. The two wandered the festival browsing the various booths, occasionally striking up conversation with those running them. Eventually they came to an area dedicated to some food trucks and decided it was a good time to take a break and get a snack.

   “You sit and take a breather, I’ll go get us something to eat okay?” Choso directed as they approached a small table near one of the many food trucks.

    Y/n nodded, accepting the offer to just sit for a minute. Walking and dancing around the park had started to cause some aches and pains so they were thankful. Fanning themself with their large Nonbinary flag fan, Y/n decided it was too hot to continue wearing their black ‘We are all human’ shirt opting instead to place it in their bag. With the dark shirt out of the way, their Binder which was colored to look like the trans flag was now on full display. 

    As Y/n waited for Choso to return with their lunch, they heard footsteps fast approaching from behind them. Expecting it to be a fellow Pride goer coming to strike up a conversation about their binder or something, Y/n turned to greet them. Unfortunately, it was not someone looking to be friends, instead it was very clearly one of the many protesters they had seen throughout the park.

   “How can you so disrespectfully damage the body god gave you? You’ll go to hell if you don’t change your ways and abandon such satanic practices.” The Karen said pointedly. Y/n just rolled their eyes, taking in the fact the woman was holding a sign spouting something about trans people indoctrinating children. “You are putting children at risk by supporting such dangerous things.” Y/n had fully turned away from the lady knowing that she just wanted a confrontation. “You turn away because you know I’m telling the truth. You turn your back on god.” At this point Y/n was ready to just get up and go find Choso. “Such a beautiful young lady like yourself should be at home taking care of children, not defiling your body and indulging in the lies of these groomers.”

   Y/n truly had wanted to ignore the woman’s nonsense but calling them a lady and then spouting the same ‘they’re all groomers’ bullshit, pissed Y/n off. “First off, I never asked for your opinion. Second, what do you get out of telling people their life is not something you approve of? How many people have you spouted the same nonsense at, have actually changed because you told them they were going to hell?” They asked, turning to the now bewildered woman. “Judging by the shock on your face, none. So, instead of being mad that I have people who love and support me for who I am, you go home and worry about how your kids never call.” With that Y/n grabbed their bag, getting up and searching for their brunette boyfriend.

   As they were looking for Choso, they heard a familiar voice. “Love, I thought you were going to wait at the table for me?” Choso asked, approaching them with a confused look on his face. “Did something happen?” He noticed the slightly irritated look on Y/n’s face.

  Y/n sighed as they accepted the plate of food Choso had offered them. “It’s nothing important, just your average transphobe telling me I’ll go to hell for ‘defiling’ the body god gave me.” They said as they took a bite of the food. “Don’t worry too much I put her in her place and then came to find you. Let’s walk around while we eat.” They suggested leading Choso away from the makeshift food court.

   Choso nodded, knowing that if the encounter had really upset Y/n they would have told him. So they continued through the area, occasionally stopping to buy little things that caught their eyes. After they finished their food they kept walking around enjoying the atmosphere. As the afternoon shifted to evening, the couple decided it was time to head out.

   Once they made it home and were laying on the couch reminiscing over the day, Choso brought up what had happened when they were separated. “Are you sure you’re okay? I know you said it was fine, I just want to make sure you are 100% okay.” His concern was clear as he looked down at where Y/n was resting on his chest.

   They lifted their head placing a quick kiss to his nose before responding. “I’m 100% sure that I’m fine. Had it been a problem I would have told you right away. Plus I think you should be more worried about how much money you spent on Pride merch.” They turned to look at the mini mountain of assorted items that made it look as if a Pride explosion happened on their coffee table.

   “Hey, I have to support the community and plus not all of these are for us. Some of those things are for Yuji.” He stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

   Y/n raised a brow at the half curse before questioning him. “Why? I thought he and Megumi were going to Pride themselves, couldn’t he have bought stuff then?” They asked, perplexed. 

   Choso chuckled. “Shortly before I ran into you with our food, Yuji called me. Apparently they were called for a last minute mission and couldn’t go. He asked me if I could grab them some stuff since they couldn’t go.” He explained.

   Placing another kiss on Choso's face, Y/n smiled. “Have I ever told you how much I love you?” They asked jokingly. Choso pretended to ponder the question, before shaking his head no going along with the joke. “Well, I love you so much. You are such a great brother and great sorcerer. And most importantly you are an amazing boyfriend.” They said finishing their sentence with a final kiss on the forehead.

   Choso smiled at them, placing a kiss on their lips. “And you are the most amazing partner I could ever ask for.” After sitting for a moment they both relaxed back into the couch both falling asleep in each other’s arms.

[saintsenara]

I am literally so stressed right now since school is starting up again. I was just scrolling through your posts and I absolutely adore your opinions and thoughts. If you’re still up to the ships asks, I have a few.

For some reason, I have been thinking about age-gap relationships that wouldn’t be quite possible…and added with my love of Severus Snape… 👀👀

Abraxas Malfoy/Severus Snape - I don’t know if you’ve done Lucius/Severus but I just took it a generation back.

Romulus Augustus Lestrange/Severus Snape - I remember you mentioning in Scylla and Charybdis that the two were kindred spirits (?) since they were both killed by Voldemort.

Bellatrix Lestrange/Severus Snape - maybe a bunch of sexual tension during missions? Bellatrix’s attitude toward Severus was mainly suspicion but I feel like she meant it in a ha-ha-I’m-jealous-you’re-the-favorite way, not in a oh-wait-he-actually-is-a-traitor way.

Marlene McKinnon/Severus Snape - I love your take that she was a seasoned veteran in the First Wizarding War. It never made sense to me that everyone in the First Order were all children. Majority, maybe. But all of them being Gryffindors and out-of-school never stuck to me.

Frank Longbottom/Severus Snape - I’ve read a few works for this and I like the few takes there are.

And I already know your thoughts on Lord Voldemort/Severus Snape (it’s a favorite).

I’ve also been thinking about time-travel fix-it’s in general too. How do you think Severus would react if he found himself in Tom Riddle’s era? There’s the take on him being older and aware and absolutely done with his life, and Lord Voldemort (few years out of school or maybe in his 30s to level the age in a way) whose intrigued by the sour man (and maybe gets impressed by his knowledge of the Dark Arts?). Then there’s also student Severus meeting student Tom and getting further radicalized by this young handsome man. There’s so many to explore but at this point, if I don’t get my head out of this rabbit hole, I may never be able to pass school. 😭😭

This turned out to be longer than expected, but I love reading your posts! It’s always so entertaining, especially with your interpretation of Severus Snape. I can rarely ever talk about Severus without being attacked by Marauders fans online.

thank you very much for the ask, pal! i hope this term goes well for you - and that your extremely chic recent interest in snape-related age gap relationships endures.

let's see what we have here...

abraxas malfoy/severus snape romulus lestrange/severus snape

i'm going to take these two together - since romulus is an original character who exists nowhere other than my own head - because they occupy essentially the same role in relation to snape.

i've written before about how i really like the idea of voldemort having three distinct impacts across three separate generations - the knights of walpurgis/the original death eaters, who know the proto-voldemort of the 1940s and 1950s, with his muggle name and his retail job; these men's sons, who know the unassailably powerful voldemort of the 1970s; and these men's sons, who know the paranoid and volatile voldemort of the 1990s.

so you have abraxas - lucius - draco in each of those categories [or, romulus - rodolphus - n/a...]

snape is - of course - part of lucius and rodolphus' generation, and the voldemort he encounters when he becomes a death eater is the unstoppable political force who appears to be made of pure magic - which, naturally, makes snapemort have a very different power dynamic to something like tombraxas.

but it's also clear that snape is someone voldemort takes an interest in because he recognises so much of his former self in him - the slightly feral vibes, the poverty, the disappointing muggle father, the feeling of being an outcast surrounded by posh kids and the desire to bend those same kids to your will.

this is the reason for voldemort arranging things in scylla and charybdis so that snape can lord it over mulciber and avery, and it's also the reason why he's so insistent that abraxas and romulus [and other senior death eaters he knew at school] are nice to him - he's basically enjoying reliving his youth by, once again, making his minions obey someone who is technically their social inferior.

snape lacks the teenage tom riddle's charm [and looks], of course, which means that there's far more condescension inherent in any relationship - platonic or otherwise - that either of these two would have with him than there was in their early relationship with voldemort.

but they also have a fondness for spindly lads with an obsession with magic and regional accents, which means that i'm sure that something can come out of the fireside chats voldemort's compelling them to have with snape while they're forced to host him in their houses...

bellatrix lestrange/severus snape

i am very, very fond of this as a pairing - and, indeed, have something in the works on the topic - and bellatrix's rampant jealousy of snape is exactly why.

one of my preferred ways of exploring snape's position within the death eaters is to think of him as voldemort's exception in terms of social class - that is, that he is the only marked death eater who doesn't come from an elite, quasi-aristocratic background; and that voldemort's supporters who are from lower social classes are kept, like fenrir greyback in the rank-and-file and not permitted to take the mark.

[this is why, in my writing, i always make the carrows a similar level of posh to the malfoys and lestranges - canonically they're rather one-note working-class stereotypes, but i don't think this makes sense given what we know about voldemort's structuring of his organisation during the first war. it's also why i think that peter pettigrew doesn't receive a dark mark until he returns to voldemort post-prisoner of azkaban.]

bellatrix - on the other hand - is voldemort's exception in terms of gender [and another thing i'm wedded to thinking is that alecto carrow also doesn't receive the dark mark until the second war.]

these means, of course, that both she and snape depend on voldemort's favour - especially in the first war, when he still trusts his death eaters sufficiently highly to delegate things to them - much more than the elite male death eaters do.

i think it's reasonable to assume, for example, that rodolphus may object to his wife behaving in a way which defies the gendered conventions elite pureblood women are clearly subject to - and that it's only voldemort's authority that prevents him voicing an objection publicly. or that lucius malfoy - like sirius - conceives of snape as his "lapdog", and it's only voldemort's authority which forces him to treat him as a peer.

which means, of course, that snape and bellatrix are in competition with each other for voldemort's attention in ways which the other death eaters never have to be - which explains their vibe in canon, in which bellatrix finds snape's elevation in voldemort's good books after she falls from grace after the cock-up in the department of mysteries so infuriating.

[it also gives a really interesting dimension to her being completely fucking right about snape's loyalties, but being in the wrong position in voldemort's eyes for her opinion to be trusted by him. you just know she was pissed when she got to the afterlife.]

and - from a shipping perspective - having to be constantly jealous of and obsessed with each other is a very effective way of lighting a spark...

marlene mckinnon/severus snape

i do always like snape with an older woman, because i think it fits his whole vibe, so he goes very nicely with my preferred vision of marlene as a fifty-year-old hard-nosed ministry bitch who fucking loathes mad-eye moody.

the meet-cute? well, spies have to have handlers, don't they? dumbledore passing over his new turncoat death eater to one of his senior lieutenants - particularly given the fact that she's unlikely to be thrilled about this - is something i can get on board with.

frank longbottom/severus snape

frank and alice are other ones i don't enjoy seeing written as part of the marauders' generation - for them to be well-established aurors by the time the lestranges attack them, i think it's reasonable to assume that they're around molly and arthur's age [that is, around ten years old than snape et al.]

so i think we're repeating the same scenario as above - frank needs to debrief the order's new spy. if you know what i mean...

time-travelling snape!

i think that the teenage tom riddle would fucking hate the teenage snape, to be honest. the teen snape we meet in canon is someone who really obviously refuses to play along with the social conventions which govern an institution as elite as hogwarts - and he clearly stands out more for his grubby, feral demeanour, his uncouth manners, his way of speaking, and his refusal to be deferential to his social superiors than he does for his name and blood-status.

[indeed, he's one of the only really visibly working-class students we ever meet in canon - to the extent that i am increasingly convinced that hogwarts is a selective school...]

the young voldemort, in contrast, happily plays along with these social conventions for his own ends - simpering through slug club meetings and sending slughorn pineapple and doing all he can to be viewed as a suitable candidate for head boy, in order both to provide a cover for his wrongdoing and as a way to soothe the chip on his shoulder by beating the posh at their own game.

he's going to think snape's as common as muck, and snape's going to think he's a pretentious cunt.

a post-1981 snape going back in time and finding himself entangled with the young-adult voldemort, in contrast, i think could be rather compelling. it's very interesting that the teenage voldemort's willingness to play-act a fondness for the class system doesn't extend to being prepared to grit his teeth and suffer through a ministry internship slughorn procures for him - and his decision to go off and work in a shop has a slightly bolshy "fuck you, sir" side to it we don't otherwise really see from him.

this voldemort would, i think, be slightly more open to snape's whole vibe, and they could get cracking on all the things which make snapemort a hot ship - the shared love of magical experimentation, the dubious morality, the fact that voldemort's clearly responsible for snape's aesthetic, and so on - several decades early.

one question, though, is whether snape would know who he was.

i go back and forth on how widely voldemort's birth name is known - and whether it's ever connected to him following his return to britain in the mid-1960s.

on the one hand, i think dumbledore's secrecy surrounding it is nonsensical - a substantial proportion of the death eaters were clearly at school with voldemort, and those who weren't are still usually related to these men in some way [i always think, for example, that it's much more plausible to assume that the diary horcrux was given to abraxas malfoy, and that lucius was well aware that his father and voldemort had been at school together] - but on the other, i do wonder whether snape, who comes into voldemort's orbit as - as i've said - an exception would be made privy to the information about voldemort's background which was probably an open secret among the elite male death eaters.

[which also provides an explanation for why bellatrix is so shocked to hear harry say voldemort's a half-blood in order of the phoenix, while lucius malfoy doesn't bat an eyelid.]

which is to say, i am much more taken by the idea of snape - destroyed with grief over lily's death - rocketing backwards three decades, landing in the knockturn alley of 1951, and having no idea until he's in far too deep who the softly-spoken shop-boy who offers him a cuppa will turn out to be...

[everythingseasoning]

AOT Scouts as your bf/gf pt. 1 (Requested)

NOTE: I’m redoing this post so that it’s better quality :) and adding in more characters for the head canons. Revised post will be out on ?Saturday? as a new post.

*Characters are 18+, content is SFW

Eren (the scout)

The early stage of your relationship with Eren: 

Somebody once said, “A cheetah doesn’t change its spots overnight.” Meaning that a person can’t so quickly change their nature.

The same goes for Eren Jaeger: No matter how many times you try to lecture him about his habit of impulsively risking his life during missions, he can’t help but accidentally come close to dying again on the very next mission. 

(Luckily, he has Mikasa to cover him, and Armin to form smart battle strategies that put him in less danger).

—It’s not that Eren doesn’t value your opinion, it’s just that he’s naturally a reckless spirit. Eren immediately does whatever his heart screams is the right thing to do. He doesn’t use his head, but he uses his entire steely will and incredible power, to save dying comrades and complete mission goals. 

In the heat of battle, Eren has to either abandon the idea of you, OR the idea of giving in to the titans, and let unjust deaths occur. He often chooses to abandon the former.. you…

... Still, everytime he returns from those missions (after a close brush with death), he hugs you guiltily, and you can just *tell* what he’s trying to communicate to you: I’m sorry. I love you. I had to do it. 

After just a year with you:

Eren has fallen deeply, deeply in love with you. (I mean, this dude falls fast, and hard, like a bowling ball crashing through an old wooden floor ok– he is DEVOTED to you, you can’t shake him off, he’s a barnacle—)

Once upon a time, Eren only had one goal that consumed his mind: kill all titans. Then he met you. Eren needs to kill all titans, and stay alive so he can spend time with you, being with you whenever and wherever you want to go. You’re the f*cking love of his life. 

So now he has two goals; Eren promised himself he’d do whatever he could to not only save fellow soldiers, but to also actively try to stay alive for you, for his future with you. This means that Eren absolutely cannot let himself die, that he must devise strategies in battle that allow him to keep himself alive while saving the most people… 

Eren literally took lessons from Armin on “Quick Thinking” (Lessons summarized: When confronted with a problem, look at the issue, and then at resources around you that you can use, and try to find a solution using those resources), and another lesson from Armin, on “Devising Quick Strategies in the Midst of Battle.” 

 …Though Eren would’ve let himself die a year ago if it meant he helped the Scouts— it’s a different story now. Eren can’t ever fully shake the hold you have on him— the love he has for you— the promise on his tongue that he swore to you in the middle of the night after you woke up screaming from a nightmare, sobbing because you “really saw him die.”

So Now, when Eren is out on missions, he is focused on the chaos and action happening around him at any moment— but in any second that he isn’t in imminent action, he sees your face in his mind. And he remembers all over again what he is fighting for: your safety. He unlocked a level of protective desire unlike anything seen before. 

Fluff fluff fluff:

1) You’re there, waiting at the gate everytime Eren returns from a mission. You literally have a f*cking meltdown when you spot him— the stress and fear melting your legs into jelly as you sink into the ground— and Eren has made it a point to get off his horse and run to catch you before you fall, wailing on the ground. 

2) Eren will hold you as you cry, kind of half teasing you like, “It’s like you’re the one who went out on the mission, not me.”

3) Sorry to say that you now have a name for yourself in town, too, and everybody knows you as “Eren’s sweet (crybaby) girlfriend” – Because of this you often get free snacks and gifts whenever you walk around the market whenever the scouts are out on mission—

4) When you and Eren arrive home, you’ll have stopped being uber emotional, but now it’s Eren’s turn to brood: he usually showers before sitting on the couch and staring at the table with dull, empty eyes, and you have to walk him through the trauma and loss he just endured… Because honestly, talking is a great medication… 

5) Eren will always feel better after talking with you. It’s like a rush of warmth flows from his heart, gushing throughout his body, and he grabs you, pulling you flush to his chest, eyes scrunched shut as he tells you how much you mean to him.

6) —He’s also secretly so relieved you aren’t in danger. He’s happy you aren’t a scout— because you keep him sane in this cruel world—

7) You will then show Eren the snacks you’ve accumulated while he was away that day, and he’ll just insist on f*cking feeding you like you’re a little bird or something. But he looks so happy so you just go with it.

At sundown, you two will take remaining snacks and a blanket, go to an open field, and eat together while watching the sunset. You two will usually talk about whatever hobby you’ve picked up, and Eren will build off your excitement and ideas; i.e. if you’re talking about a book you read on animal biology, you’ll be talking about how whales once had hip bones because they descended from a four-legged animal— and Eren will say, “Imagine riding a whale on the ocean!” “Eren we’d get salt water sprayed all over us, they have a blowhole!” “But just imagine it!” “...That’d be surreal.” And you two will giggle and feel such wonder about the world. He’s your best friend and lover, who makes life more exciting. 

Jean (the scout simp)

The early stage of your relationship with Jean:

Jean with a non scout lover… Ohhhh boy, hahaha: 

Jean had SUCH a mental crisis after he met you: he wondered if he should’ve chosen the Military Police instead of the Survey Corps, so that he had a better chance of staying alive, and living his days out with you. 

You assured him that you wouldn’t have dated him if he didn’t join the corps (LMAO). This did make Jean’s mental crisis stop, because damn he would rejoin the scouts if it meant you’d be his girlfriend. And, you told Jean that you admire his courage, and that you’re so proud of him for being brave, for not choosing to stay lax after seeing the evil nature of titans. You told Jean that he’s leader material, just like Marco said. 

When you’re comfortable in the relationship:

—On that Marco note, Jean is beyond relieved that you’re a normal citizen, and not a scout. He already lost the only person her ever considered a true friend. 

During missions, Jean gets courage to do terrifying things from knowing that you’re back at home, safe, waiting for him :’) oml..

He’s gotta make it back to you!

And Jean has such a soft spot for you, you who reminds him of Marco. He loves it when you praise him, and give him attention. He loves it when you make it clear that you love *him* — when you point out his strengths, etc. 

God— he loves you— you make him feel like he’s alive— He will smother you in kisses when you two are alone, if you even so much as smile at him.

AND OH. MY LORD…

Jean would also definitely tell ALL the scouts about you, “his girl.” 

For example, “Jaeger you better not f*ck this mission up— I can’t die, because I have to get back to my girl!” 

Another example, “Connie, one day, you’ll be as lucky as me, and have an amazing girlfriend who makes you so happy, who you love more than anything else.” 

And one more example, when Jean is drunk at a Survey Corps Celebration Dinner, “Did you guys know that my girl and I are going to get married?! I’m—I’m gonna marry that lady!” 

“Shut up Jean, you’ve only been dating her for six months!”

“I’m gonna marry her,” he says wistfully, a faraway look in his eyes, his face flushed deep pink.

Fluff fluff fluff:

1) When Jean gets back from missions, he is *exhausted.* He’s seen comrades die, and he’s so tired after having gone through terrifying events… When Jean sees your face though, he remembers why it’s all worth it: He’s helping the Survey Corps so that he can ensure (to the best of his abilities), that you have a life within the walls, safe, and sound. 

2) When he sees you, he just feels relief. He just feels like everything is right again. TT oh my lord I’m gonna cry writing this ANYWAY (I wanna be loved like that tho–)

3) Jean forcesX asks you to wear matching necklaces. Jean likes that you two look like a pair. 

Not fluff:

And Jean is a sucker for s*x — I am so sorry I had to say it— I *had* to (!not an exaggeration!). But this is supposed to be SFW— so that’s all ima say about this. (18+ people only: you check out my other posts for NSFW content though. Minors DNI with nsfw tho, you’re banished until you’re old enough, thems the rules, ily tho). 

Historia (the scout my wife) Author’s very important note: I would fight Ymir (and lose) to be Historia’s girlfriend ok– Also this one is sooo self indulgent but you can’t tell me it doesn’t work with her character—

Historia will fight for anybody and everybody who needs a savior. She’s been through sh*t, and she won’t settle for others to be abandoned like how she was. (She just like me fr, can we kiss now??).

ANYWAYS. (no but i have to tell y'all, I have a terrible savior complex OK BYE MOVING ON—)

Historia is dedicated to saving those that need saving. That also means that she’s determined to stay alive— she needs to be here on Earth so that she’s able to keep helping people who are in need. People in need, which includes you—

—Historia is no stranger to your sappy, long poems that describe in bewitching detail how much she lights up your life, and is your inspiration, 

and how she is your anchor in this insane world…

and how she is the definition of ‘beauty’ in life, etc, etc— 

You need her, and you’re her girlfriend, and Historia is glad she’s able to be something good for you. 

During missions, Historia is in her element: as she flies through the air, slashing titan necks, protecting Captain Levi’s squad, she is calm, knowing that she is aiding in the salvation of humanity. (Miss girl is driven by the urge to be helping people, it’s her stabilizer). 

Historia is also gaining courage from you, knowing that you are helping humanity in your own way at the very moment that she’s fighting titans: you’re encouraging kids to be model citizens with integrity in their hearts. She’s fighting for humanity’s survival, and you’re fighting for humanity’s spirit. 

Because she’s a scout, you worry for Historia’s safety, but you also know that she can handle herself. Still, she’s your girlfriend, and you worry, and fret, during every single minute that she’s away

— Usually you channel this energy through baking. You’ll make cherry pies, blueberry scones, butter cake, lemon cookies, chocolate mousse, candied ginger, and more, non-stop, whenever Historia is away. You *need* that distraction to function through your mind-numbing fear. 

But, unfailingly, Historia always returns home to you, and you two will GORGE on the delicious sweets you’ve made, starting from the very moment she first arrives back: When Historia comes back from a mission, upon seeing you she’ll hop off her horse with renewed energy, half walk-run to you like a haloed, stunning, adorable angel, and hug you tightly, before you shove a dessert in her mouth: the sweet, tangy flavor erupting on her tastebuds. After an intense, cruel, dirty mission, the sharp plunge of sugar is a reminder of the beautiful things in life: you. The both of you laugh before kissing each other deeply, tasting fruit on each other’s tongues (this is SFW, right??)

In your free time, you and Historia will sometimes do charity work together, including tilling the fields, milking cows, picking apples, doing donations, etc. Even hard work is fun when you’re doing it with somebody you enjoy talking to, especially if you both believe in the cause. On other occasions, the two of you will give yourselves time to *be people* — usually this means snuggling together on the couch, having deep talks, and just holding each other. 

Also, Historia loves *you*. She loves how kind you are, and how you work as a teacher at Trost Elementary. Historia feels a lot of her energy is fueled by the loop of goodness you two share and believe in (helping the world). 

Plus, Historia is endlessly grateful to have a warm, safe person to return to at the end of a long day. Everybody needs comfort. *Historia didn’t know how much support, relief, and happiness, a comfort person would bring, until she fell in love with you.* When she’s exhausted, she leans into your warmth like two birds ruffling feathers, and charges up on your summer glow. And when Historia sees your eyes sparkling, talking about whatever cool thing you noticed in the day, she feels *unbelievably warm* inside, just pure happiness. You also care for Historia, as she cares for you— tucking her in bed and humming as you hold her (as the big spoon), after a mission that went terribly. 

Please LIKE this if you enjoyed it!! (I spent a lot of time on this — no, really it do be taking hours)— your likes are encouragement to keep doing this :) 

Feel free to comment your feedback/thoughts (gimme ur comments, i wanna hear), and comment to be tagged in part 2, 3, etc! 

AND I’m adding in non-requested characters too, as a present for everybody! …Onwards: Pt. 2: Reiner, Levi, Armin (will be done and tumblr-published within probably 24 hours)

[harrarthellix]

Why I love Bg3's translation and its horny scenes

Haarlep's Scene.

First of all, the opening quote

"A thief in the night, greedy and here to take"

The first part is the exact translation (but with a diminutive, so it's more of "little thief" instead) but the second has nothing to do with the meaning. "Greedy and here to take" would be more of " Avaricioso y aquí para llevarse ", which is quite a more open sentence. The actual match in English would be more like:

"A little thief in the night, their ambition has reproach/rebuke/blame"

Huh, quite different, but not in a bad way, I actually love finding things like these. This sentence implies punishment ( ͡~ ͜ʖ ͡°)

------

"hmm... Raphael, all but spent himself to get that hammer. And you want to take it off him?"

Not really a dirty thing but the phrase "Se dejó la piel" means literally "Left his skin" which in my opinion is way more visceral than "Spent himself". Idk this is just taste because it's a set phrase, not literal. They could have gone with " lo dio todo" which is another set phrase for the same, but they picked the cooler option

------

"This is very naughty. Whatever are we to do?"

Okay, this one makes me laugh so hard. "Cochinada de las gordas" is a very non-elegant way to talk about stuff in general. Yes, it means the same but in a more colloquial tone. Has nothing bad, just shocked about the tone.

Also, the part about "de las gordas" implies a very big naughty thing.

------

" I'm Haarlep, Raphael's personal Incubus, glamoured and transfigured to look like him"

"This one is tricky. "Glamoured" itself does not exist in Spanish. You can use "Glamuroso", but it's an adjective, not a verb. The word "Encantado" is more similar to "Charmed". In dnd's translation "Encantar" is the translation used for "Charm".

This might mean the use of external magic to alter Haarlep's appearance. "Encantamiento" can be translated as "Spell". This word has more meanings depending on context but let's go to the next one.

------

cw: rape and abuse

"His violating stare sees more than all of you, sees: potential"

Okay, this one is hardcore shit. I'm not sure about the implications of the word "violating" in English but it's translated as "violadora" (adjective), wich literally means Rape as in sexual abuse.

I actually like a lot this translation because it could have been softened with "mirada intensa" (intense stare) but the point of this phrase is very much that Haarlep is already thinking about how it's going to use your body after this encounter. It's not trying to go around about what is happening and it's very on-brand with other bg3 moments. 10/10, would not change anything about this implication.

------

"Sometimes, when he is feeling more adventurous, Raphael asks me to change into the Archduchess Raphael"

Here is something weird. They translated "Adventurous" with "Audaz", which are different words, having a literal translation "Aventurado". "Audaz" is more like "Bold" or "Fearless" or even "Cunning".

But sounds nice I love the word "Audaz"

------

"Some last thought whispers in your skull, vacated by everything else but rapture"

Here we have two interesting things. First of all, the word "Whisper" is exchanged with "resuena". "Resuena" is a word used for a noise that repeats itself inside your head, but in poetry is used also for feelings that you can't get rid of. Super cute translation imo.

Second, the word "rapture" is replaced by "extasis". Hear me: In Spanish, you can use the same word when you are about to cum and to express that the power of god is inside you. And that is fucking magic. Yes, Rapture has another religious connotation but trust me when I say it's not the same thing. Rapture is more about leaving one's body in spirit, not about cum.

------

"Devote yourself to pleasure. Stay with me. This can be forever.

Another one with Religion stuff mixed in. "Consagrar y Devoto" are two distinc words in spanish. Devoto is about you being a believer, or giving yourself to a cause, but "Consagrar" its ritual. When something is "Consagrado" it means a priest has blessed it. it's the word used in catholicism to refer to the Transubstantiation (idk if it's written like this in eng). This implies here that sex is a ritual, in this case, to let Haarlep take your body.

Look, I love this shit, some religious kink swept in there

------

"You have laboured enough, pet"

Small thing, but instead of "Pet", Haarlep calls you "puppy" or "Doggy" In Spanish.

-----

AAANNNDDDD That's all I'm willing to do now. Enjoy this and remember to misuse this information.

[bleachbleachbleach]

8/12 - 8/18/2024

I wrote a version of Renji 11 what is at this point several years ago (RIP me), and have since just been throwing random stuff/required additions into that Note with no rhyme nor reason, so it took over two hours this week just to sort it all out. But! It is sorted!

Modern-era Renji 11 consists of 3 new scenes and 3 already-existing scenes. I wrote 1.5 of the new scenes. As far as how well I think this Chapter is going, I dunno. As a narrator, Renji’s kind of like, oh hey, here’s a thought I had. And here’s another one! Which feels legit but I’m not sure if it allows the reader to understand which pieces of information are actually important for following the narrative.

You know those reblog memes that like, ask people to identify hallmarks of your writing? The concept is fun, but it wouldn't work in practice because 0.02% of anyone who might see that post would have any familiarity with my writing. SO. I WILL SIMPLY TELL YOU. My hallmarks are that I love an interstice—love having things that should be on the cutting room floor not on the cutting room floor—but am also a firm believer in stories not needing to have every scene the characters experience to exist on the page. This combination means there’s a good chance that actually relevant, defining scenes simply do not exist and only the interstitial nonsense does. I think in certain stories this can be a real thing that works. I think it can also have the effect of nothing hanging together, making any sense, or meaning anything, without certain bits of key information/certain scenes that I simply did not include because they exist in my head and therefore exist everywhere right. I think that’s where this chapter is.

Maybe the remaining 1.5 new scenes will help ameliorate that, but I feel like that’s asking a lot of them. And then, theoretically, you’d think fixing the existing scenes would go more quickly than writing from scratch, but I don’t know that they will. Because the story leading up to this point has changed enough that the characters are in very different headspaces and perceptions of each other than they were when I first wrote those scenes. Well, that’s not true—Kensei and Renji are in a very different place with each other. Renji and Hitsugaya need to have the exact same conversation but, you know… better. And FRANKLY, I do not know whether entirely overhauling Kensei and Renji will be harder or easier than merely line-editing Hitsugaya and Renji. =_=;;

I’d really like to finish Renji 11 by the end of next week, and then take some time to finish out the revisions on Rukias 7 and 10, which are the most related to Renji 11. Then I’d like to go back to do final line edits on Chapters 4, 5, and 8 before heading into the big mess of revision that is Hisagi 9, because those revisions will be most related to Hitsugaya 12.

I’m not anticipating getting much done in September, because I have a major work deadline September 30th, and the rest of autumn will probably be kind of garbage, too, and I probably won't exist. But I would love to finish Part II (so, Chapters 12 and 13) by December. Well, speaking honestly, my original hope was that I would finish Part II by May, but here it is, August, and I am still working on Chapter 11. So: I would LOVE to finish Part II by December.

—

I did a low-res mockup of the fic banner several months ago (okay, this might have been last November). I pulled out some high-res assets to work with on Friday and played around with a new design I thought was fun, but it turns out design-wise the old mockup looks much more polished. Or it would, if I were using higher-quality materials. XD So I’ll probably go back to the old design. The only reason to continue with the new one is that it reflects the clusterfuck spirit of everything that happens in this fic, but I kind of like the way the old banner puts a pretty bow on the clusterfuck lurking beneath the surface. Maybe I’ll solicit opinions once I’ve made a more serious mockup of the first version.

[biblioflyer]

Rediscovering Discovery: just what was that show?

Once upon a time I set myself a task. A task that was actually kind of the original inspiration of this blog. Namely to rewatch and analyze Star Trek Picard in pursuit of an answer to the question: Did Picard turn the Federation into a Dystopia? A series of essays I intend to revisit now with the benefit of season three pointing the way to where the show was headed.

I didn't fully succeed at the rewatch. Its still a "bucket list" item but I got 6/10ths of the way through the first season and I felt comfortable saying "no." Its a darker show and one that emphasizes character arcs, character experiences, and the performance of emotion over the stoic, proceduralist, "competency porn" that marked the TNG era. There has definitely been a pulling back from some of the conceits of TNG: that 24th century humanity was radically altered in some core way, almost genetically from us (at the time) 20th century brutes, and that the Federation was almost supernaturally wise and virtuous.

Empirically speaking, both of these concepts were always memes. Oh to be sure, we were seeing a civilization that avowed a particular set of values that resonated very strongly with a particular sort of 1990s secular humanist and generally behaves relatively virtuously if your preferences are wired towards amiability over conflict. Yet it wasn't without its blindspots. My Roman Empire is that the Federation's superpower is not that it is perfectly just and wise at all times and places, its that it is a society whose acculturation process creates people who are somewhat less egotistical, more curious, and less impulsive under stress with the end result being that as a civilization, its superpower is responding to new information with openness and alacrity.

Thus, while there are judicious complaints about Picard: I am not a fan of using the Federation abdicating responsibility for a fellow sentient species, even one it has been hostile with for centuries, as a metaphor for disowning the victims of far flung conflicts and cataclysms in the real world. I'm okay with a flawed Federation that needs to confront its own failings, but this was pretty extreme. Well mostly extreme. There are at least two times Picard had to be talked into saving a prewarp civilization from certain doom because something something Prime Directive even though the Enterprise could do it with trivial effort and with minimal chance of overtly disrupting the society in question. Data's penpal and Worf's brother's preindustrial people.

Overall, I land that Picard doesn't alter the setting beyond recognition, beyond being a setting where justice ultimately prevails, or beyond being fairly labeled "Star Trek."

So what about Discovery?

Now that its over, its as good a time as any for a retrospective. My intent is to watch the first season over again, because its been a loooong time. I've always tried to watch the show in a charitable spirit, much as I have Picard. I try to be radically self aware in that I know my opinions are subjective, that my preferences are rooted in my own values and experiences, and that other people could read the same situation in different ways.

In addition, there are always at least two ways to analyze Star Trek. There's the literal way: which is what is happening and what that tells us about the people and the universe (sometimes called Watsonian) and the Doylist: the "meta" aspects. What is the show actually trying to do from a storytelling standpoint? What symbols is it invoking? What storytelling shorthands is it using? What messages or themes is it trying to convey and, if these really are the correct messages, how well is it actually selling those themes?

To be frank, I've often not been the biggest fan of Discovery from a technical standpoint. I've often felt that its internal logic is sloppy and that, like Picard, it frequently undercuts the messaging I believe it is trying to convey with that very same poor internal logic or by relying heavily on "telling" rather than "showing" us what to think.

Star Trek as a franchise loves to look straight at the camera and lecture us primitive 20th/21st century apes on our failures. Maybe its the nostalgia, but Discovery and Picard have generally both felt like they are less trusting of their audience to interpret the correct moral of the story. Of course I could be parroting a popular complaint about modern fiction that emphasizes "progressive" themes that is itself very likely a perpetual complaint about fiction that emphasizes "progressive" themes, and of course grandpa TOS was the victim of "OG cancel culture" in the form of various networks in various localities threatening to or even outright refusing to air the episode with the Kirk/Uhura kiss.

So in no particular order what I want to investigate is:

Is Discovery "pedantic"? Pedantic being highly subjective. One quirk about me is that it makes me irritable to feel like I'm being lectured on appropriate conduct and beliefs by someone who I share beliefs with, but is articulating those beliefs in a way that makes me feel pandered to (as in I'm not sure the source is as committed as I am) or feels superficial, flattening, or essentializing.

Is Discovery a deconstruction of Star Trek? As in it subverts core ideas in a way that would irk people who are committed to those themes. If so, which themes and is this a good thing or a bad thing?

Are the augmentations, contradictions, and retcons from "established canon" interesting and worthwhile story devices? I'm not anti-retcon and I'm not a canon purist, Star Trek by virtue of having many, many, many contributors is better interpreted as a mythology than a wholly coherent setting; but retcons can and should be judged on their merits.

Is Burnham a "Mary Sue?" This is an almost useless question because of its subjectivity. Its extra useless because in Star Trek, almost every Starfleet character is a polymath capable of inventing entire new fields of science on the spot out of rocks and vibes. There's also a layer of sexism and colorism to it. To the fullest extent possible, I want to frame this question in terms of what are the consequences to the story and worldbuilding from having a main character and less on whether or not that main character has merit.

To some extent this will also address whether Burnham's narrative arcs have robust narrative logic or if there are "too many cooks in the kitchen" resulting in a character who presents as incoherent from episode to episode and successful by fiat. This is definitely something that I think was smoothed over in seasons 4 and 5, starting with what I think was an intentional shift in her characterization as early as season 3.

Its possible my own preference for the more measured tone of network TV era Trek may lead me into the same minefields as the trolls in comment sections across the internet, but I'm hoping to keep my self awareness vivid.

My intent is to go for the full first season. I'm looking forward to it because my memories are extremely fuzzy and I authentically would be delighted to find delights that I had forgotten about.

[rearranged-fanfic]

New Chapter, Ah Yeah!

Excerpts below the cut

(Spoilers, duh)

Excerpt 1:

“What’s going on?”  Honestly, I’m not sure I want to know. Akemi smiles pleasantly.  “Settling a difference of opinion.” “On my front porch?” I inquire dryly. At that moment, Takuma’s eyes get wide and he points at me, excitement coloring his tone.  “Oh, you’re outside by yourself!  Heck yeah!” “My wardens decided to lessen my sentence a bit.” “’Bout time!” he crows, delighted.  “Thought you were gonna die of boredom if you stayed locked up much longer.” “Well, it was either that or killing them for entertainment.”  I shrug nonchalantly, like I hadn’t just inserted murderous intentions into a normal conversation.  I wait for them to take that as a joke and laugh, but they just kind of look at the ground awkwardly. …Okay?  They’re acting weird. “Don’t you attract Spirits, though?  Are you safe?” Akemi points out. And when I pull out the charm that Gojo gave me, Takuma elbows forward to take the glass bead in his palm.  His eyebrows scrunch up cutely and he leans in super close.  All Sorcerers apparently abhor personal space. Which is all well and good until Beans launches herself from my cleavage in a sneak attack, clasping onto the younger teen’s face with her wings.  Takuma lets out an undignified ‘eep’, scrambling backwards.  That’s what he gets for muscling his way into my bubble.  If only Beans could do that to Gojo—I’d have the ultimate protector, saving me form touchy-feely weirdos. He pulls the Shiki off, sucking in air and fanning himself like a dainty woman about to faint. Beans comes back to rest on the top of my head, planting herself on my crown and letting out a tiny, angry roar.  I reach up to stroke under her chin with my finger.  Good beans, I think affectionately.  Takuma finally collects himself, even as his sister has to hold her gut form laughing at his misfortune. “You have a charm like Ieiri,” the young Sorcerer notes.  I immediately note the lack of honorific, but don’t really think much of it.  Instead, it’s his words that get my attention. I peer down at the blue bead.  “She has one too, huh?”  I guess that makes sense; Gojo is all about fiercely guarding the two people he actually cares about in this world.  And now he’s offered the same protection to his precious little informant.  I should feel privileged, but him walking in on my masturbation session because of this little charm still lives in my head rent free. “It’s on her wrist,” he says, gesturing to his own. I think back and try to remember if I’d noticed a bracelet before, but I’m not really that observant.  At least I know to ask about it next time she pops up, I guess.  It’d be nice to know exactly what this charm can do, beside allow Gojo to be the world’s most efficient stalker-slash-cockblock. I shake my head to clear out the fuzz and offer my guests a little grin.  “So, what brings you guys here?” “Oh, Ma told us to come check—” Akemi throws her hand over her brother’s mouth, cutting him off.  “To check to see if you could help me with something!” she says a bit too excitedly. “What do you need help with?” I ask, distrust laced through my words. “I’m having trouble in English class, and I know that it’s your first language.  Do you think you can help me?” Uh huh.  Well, that’s not suspicious at all.  They’re clearly here to appease their mom.  And they’re fibbing about it. I cross my arms and raise a single eyebrow questioningly, doubt painted over my features.  Akemi holds up what looks to be a backpack, shaking it as though in offering.  Clever, bringing an item to use as an excuse.  The other young woman puts on her best puppy dog face, making her green eyes appear large and watery all while her lower lip quivers ever so slightly. I’m a sucker, I think with resignation as I step aside to welcome them in.

Excerpt 2:

I pinch off a section of cake, offering it to her as tribute.  The sweet treat is quickly gobbled up, and she sniffs at my fingers for more.  I roll my eyes at the gluttonous Shiki and give her another sizeable chunk.  This one, she eats a little slower.  And when she’s done, she gives me a friendly nip at the tip of my thumb and a sweet chirp.  Content with the cake for now, she curls up around my throat and prepares to sleep.  I note that she bites her own tail so that she doesn’t slip off backwards. I have a living necklace, I think.  When I pat her, she wriggles to get closer to me, letting out a contented sigh. Somebody’s affectionate today. Then again, she’s been clingy since this morning for whatever reason. Rolling my eyes at the silly creature, I peer down at my phone.  Time to see what’s up next on my adventure.  I scroll for a few minutes, listening to the whistling snores that my Shiki puts off like it’s the most soothing music known to man. A shadow falls over me, blocking the light, but I ignore it.  Until somebody clears their throat. “Excuse me, Miss.”  I think I’ve heard the voice before, but I’m not quite sure where.  Maybe he’s another friendly character from the manga? Then I roll my eyes at the thought.  Yeah, right.  What are the odds of meeting another manga character in a city as bis as Tokyo?   He’s probably just some dude that I’ve met in passing—maybe the clerk at the hotel I stayed at my first night here?

[yourbestpalpercy]

Iris’s opinions on the other cogs

Bored and was in class when I wrote this. Buckle up, I’m gonna try my best. As I don’t know a lot about the Cogs in ToonTown, I’ll most likely be going off of tiny headcanons and appearances. Warning, I’m mostly projecting.

Skelecogs: “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” Iris is terrified of them. Absolutely horrified by them. It’s not even funny how terrified of them she is. She’s just– she can’t look at them at all!

Goons: “...Awww, pubby thingy…” Iris learned the term ‘Pubby’ online and only knows it’s used to describe something cute.

Cold Caller: “What’re you? …A blueberry? Why are you such a deep blue…??” Iris doesn’t like them that much.

Telemarketer: “...Creepy…” Iris shies away every time she sees them.

Name Dropper: “WHY ARE YOUR LIPS SO DAMN BIG!?” Iris laughs every time she sees Name Dropper, she cannot contain her laughter.

Glad Handler: “...Stop smiling at me like that…” Iris also finds them to be creepy. She doesn’t like how they smile.

Mover & Shaker: “Deceitful guy…up to mischief that one is…” Iris mostly doesn’t trust them. It’s a light hearted distrust though.

Two-Face: Two Face scared Iris too. She hides every time they’re around. She’s not terrified of them though.

The Mingler: “...Are you Name Dropper’s cousin?” Iris thinks Mingler looks dumb too.

Mr. Hollywood: “...Stop smiling at me like that also,” Iris doesn’t trust Mr. Hollywood.

Vice President: “....where are your legs…??” Iris thinks Vice President looks silly and is more comfortable around him because of that.

Short Change: “...Did-...did you just get less blue??” Iris cannot tell the difference between Cold Caller and Short Change. She thinks they’re the exact same person.

Penny Pincher: “Oh lawd, it’s the blue man’s red cousin,” Iris is constantly sassy to Penny Pincher.

Tightwad: “You look about two seconds away from throwing a temper tantrum…” She puts in ear plugs.

Bean Counter: “Also a mischievous critter…” No one can tell if these are endearing terms.

Number Cruncher: “HE CONSUME!! MONCH!!” Iris teases them a lot.

Money Bags: “...where is your face….?? do i want to know???”

Loan Shark: “SHARK! SHARK! SHARK! SHARK! SHA-!” Iris loves sharks. She thinks Loan Shark is rude despite her love of sharks.

Robber Baron: “Is that a mustache or a nose…?” Iris can tell, she’s just mean to a good chunk of the Cogs. …It’s technically in her code.

CFO: “...Stupid looking little sh*t.” Iris says this with a big dopey smile on her face. It brings her genuine joy to insult this one.

Bottom Feeder: Iris has no opinions on this one. Genuinely has nothing to say.

Bloodsucker: Iris will not stop with the vampire references. She WILL NOT shut up about them

Double Talker: “OH GOSH NOT ANOTHER.” Iris hides when she sees this one too.

Ambulance Chaser: “Nurse hat but…” Iris doesn’t understand this one.

Back Stabber: “...Can you stab people with that pointy *ss head??” Iris makes dart board jokes around this one.

Spin Doctor: Iris has assumed SD likes spinning and will never stop spinning one when she sees them. It becomes straight up sadistic after a bit honestly.

Legal Eagle: “EAGLE! CAW! CAW! CAW!!” Iris just loves animals, okay?

Big Wig: “...Eh, I’ve seen bigger.”

Chief Justice: “whyyy are so many of you stuck in big chairs???”

Flunky: “You have a silly name and a silly face. You are a silly boyo.” Iris likes Flunky. I also like Flunky.

Pencil Pusher: “You and Back Stabber should be friends^^.”

Yesman: “Why. What is with the big grins??” Iris broke down upon seeing this one. She’s terrified of their grins.

Micromanager: “BIG LIP. BIG LIP. BIG LIPS-.”

Downsizer: “...What kind of schemes are you up to…?” Untrustworthy.

Head Hunter: “You need a head? Maybe that’s why you’re hunting for them!” Mean Spirited teasing.

Corporate Raider: She has no opinions on them.

Big Cheese: “No way! It’s the guy from Roblox!” This is actually how I discovered ToonTown in a way. No, no one knows what Iris is talking about what she says ‘Roblox’

CEO: “...Chair bound f*ck #3 I see?”

Manager Bots

Factory Foreman + Mint Supervisor + Head Attorney + Club President: Same reaction as Skelecogs.

Derrek Man: She thinks they look cool and she also thinks that they have a plane somewhere nearby

Land Acquisition Architect: She really, really likes how they look. She hasn’t really gotten to know them though.

Derrek Hand: “Are you a drill…? Can I use you as such…??” Derrek Hand’s appearance confuses her.

Director of Land Development: Same opinion as L.A.A, she likes how they look^^

Public Relations Representative: Felt like these ones needed a personal Iris reaction.

“OH GOSH HOW DID THEY GET CREEPIER!?”

Director of Public Affairs: “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-!” Yeah, Iris is horrified by D.o.P.A.

Now onto the guys I actually like

Duck Shuffler: “Oh my gosh!! He’s so silly!” They frequently share :Ps between each other. She really likes Duck Shuffler and thinks he’s silly. “How can you see? I..I can’t tell!” “I can’t believe they don’t give you your own building. You’re much better than those weird CEOs or…whatever they are. The chair bound ones!”

Deep Diver: “...I’ve never seen the ocean before, is it pretty?” Iris constantly pesters Deep Diver about the ocean. Whether she knows about it or not. “I like your colors!” “What kinds of fish are there?” “Have you seen any purple ones?”

Gatekeeper: Personal headcanon, she plays DnD. Iris has played DnD with her before. She really likes Gatekeeper and wishes she wasn’t a Cog because she likes them so much. “Awww! I love your feathers!” “Does it ever get tiring wearing that armor?” “Are you the armor or just wearing it??”

Mouthpiece: I personally heard that she’s like a grandma. Iris adores Mouthpiece and despises H. Lesser for not letting Iris be around Mouthpiece more often. “D-Do you knit? I-I’m very sorry for forgetting…” “I heard from the others that you’re a great cook! I wish I could have a cookie…” “Sorry, Harold never lets us hang out! Says that elders like you don’t understand electronics…”

Firestarter: Iris likes Firestarter a lot! She likes the warmth he brings and thinks his shyness is kinda funny. She also constantly asks him about the snow. “Is it fluffy?” “How cold is it?” “Can I touch it without getting hurt?” “Can you bring some back for me to touch?” And so on.

Treekiller: “....I hate you…” Is often all Iris says.

Bellringer: “If I ring your bell, will it hurt you?” Meeting Bellringer is actually how H. Lesser found out that Iris could “slightly” use the wires in the building to do her bidding…when she started rapidly shaking Bellringer, sadistically. (I’m saying it now, I like Bellringer.)

Featherbedder: “OWL. HOOO. HOOOOOO. Hoo!” Iris really, really loves animals.

Prethinker: As Iris has access to the internet, they often talk about obscure facts. “..Literally no one talks about Cookie Cutter Sharks. I heard the term a few days ago and searched it up. Their bites are horrifying and NO one cares!” “Ever heard of a Sea Butterfly? They’re just as beautiful as the above world butterflies!” “So…didja know that butterflies sometimes are attracted to dead bodies and some drink the tears of crocodiles? Sadistic little things…” “So Dolphins right!?” Harold unplugged her so no one could hear what Iris had previously told him about Dolphins. Coward.

Rainmaker/Misty: You have no idea how much Iris absolutely adores Misty. Another headcanon, she draws sometimes. Iris would adore to draw with her but H. Lesser doesn’t often invite Misty over. Iris would jump into electronics closer to Misty but there’s not a lot down at the docks…also she can’t leave the building. “I really wish we could draw more..I love drawing with you!” “You would never drag me down!” “You’re the coolest person ever!” “I love thunderstorms, did I ever tell you that?” “The lightning you make is so much prettier than natural lightning!” “I love the sound of thunder and rain on the windows!” Another Cog she wishes wasn’t a Cog because she’s programmed to have a disliking for Cogs (to make her seem more trustworthy towards the Toons).

Major Player: Iris likes to dance with him. He’s fun! She really likes him! She also asks what kinds of music he likes.

Witchhunter: Man I didn’t even know this was a character until now. I got nothing… Iris likes witches and doesn’t understand the point in having a witchhunter if witches don’t exist. Supposedly.

Multislacker: “BEAN!” No one knows where Iris learned the term ‘Bean’ but no one really minds. Iris would adore to hug Multislacker and he’s actually one of the reasons Iris craves a body so badly. To give hugs! Iris also likes his Goon pet.

Plutocraft: “No way, just like minecraft,” No one knows what Iris is talking about. No one. She likes how Plutocraft looks but admittedly, she constantly bullies him because of his height.

Iris doesn’t like the Satellite Investors. “THEY ALL LOOK LIKE THE SKELECOGS!! GET THEM AWAY!!”

Chip Revvington: Iris finds him boring. She also thinks he looks ridiculous when he’s staring directly at her. She also also teases him because his face is a chainsaw. Chip just…barely looks at her, turning a blind eye and ignoring her insults.

Pacesetter: Iris likes Pacesetter as much as H. Lesser doesn’t. Pacesetter often compliments how Iris looks, making sure that H. Lesser doesn’t take the compliments for himself. They both adore being petty against H. Lesser together.

Litigator: “ALLIG-...you’re mean actually…” Iris doesn’t like Liligator, seeing him as an angry, ticking time bomb. Liligator makes Iris anxious. “D-Don’t sue me please!” “I-I haven’t broken any laws, I-I swear!” “I can’t even go to court, I can’t leave the screen!!”

Stenographer: She scares Iris almost just as much as the Skelecogs do.

Case Manager: Iris likes his design much more than his personality.

Scapegoat: “GOAT! GOAT! GOAT! BAAAH! BAAAAAAAAAAH!!!” I think I’ve stressed it enough how much Iris loves animals.

AND THAT’S EVERYONE!!

Everyone I’m mentally ready to write about^^!

And no I’m not doing the same thing for joykill. Iris knew or at least met all of these Cogs. Joykill wasn’t around long enough to meet anyone

[stagkingswife]

Ooh, as someone who’s starting out just Doing Things™, backed up by only and exclusively the yeah, this feels nice gut feeling and the minimum of minimum correspondence research, I’m gonna go with the fool question:

the fool: whats a mistake you may have made when starting out or something you often see baby witches do that you wish they didnt/wasnt so common?

I know I’m being dumb and should absolutely be more research inclined, but everyone had something diferente to say and different rules and a lot of what I saw didn’t feel right.. So I’m just playing around with small harmless spells, seeing how things go and writing it down 😂 My head would start pounding every time I started doing heavy research and it would paralyzed me!

I'm going to answer your little block of sub-text first. You don't have to book research inclined if that's not what works for you. If trial and error experimentation works better for you then pursue that! I didn't read a "witchcraft" book until I had been practicing spiritwork for a good 5-ish years. Not everyone learns in the same way, and that's okay! But, if you expect to learn and grow from your experiments make sure you continue to keep good track of your efforts and your results. This is one of the things I wish more new practitioners would do. Actually practice. There has been so much drama, debate, and in my opinion fearmongering built up about what is "safe" to start with that I see newbies not actually starting to practice. They'll research for a year or two and be afraid to cast a spell or contact a spirit because they feel they haven't researched enough or researched the right things. I feel that's a failure on the community's part rather than on any of the newbies, but I would love to see more new practitioners actually trying to do things, and not just reading about it.

[sophieinwonderland]

Random but I find it funny how much sysmeds eat up the DSM-5 and... that's it. Not even the ICD or actually read the nuance of what MPD used to be. Or even think about other OSDD-1 subtypes. Etc. They always say pro-endos need reading skills because they didn't read it as super gatekeepy and then don't read anything else.

This is so true!

Also, I find it really funny that this ask came in just a few hours after I also got this one...

It's like you saw into my askbox! (You'll just have to take my word on the timestamp lining up. I started this draft Yesterday.)

Or maybe they're just that predictable!

Anyway, might as well use this to segue to making this a two-for-one special answer! (I also wrote this yesterday, before I grouped 8 asks together in one. Not as special anymore is it?)

The DSM actually does vaguely reference other forms of plurality in the form of culturally accepted possession states.

So it's directly acknowledged in the DSM that there are these non-pathological experiences with people experiencing other agents controlling their bodies. The existence of these possession states isn't up for debate in the medical field.

To be fair, this isn't explicitly referred to as plurality here nor is it using the same terms as DID (possession states vs identity states,) but the ICD-11 (as the first anon references) does make the connections brought up by the DSM more explicit.

In the ICD-11, it's stated that you can have multiple "distinct personality states" without the presence of DID.

As can be seen in the description of DID, the ICD-11 uses "personality states" synonymously with "dissociative identities."

The creators of the Theory of Structural Dissociation have also said the spirits spoken to by mediums, while different from DID, may be self-conscious "dissociative parts of the personality."

So while the DSM doesn't explicitly say possession states are plurality, these other sources point much more strongly in that direction, using the same language for both phenomena, whether that language is "personality states" in the ICD-11 or "dissociative parts" in the paper by the creators of the theory of structural dissociation.

Is this 100% positive proof?

Not yet. Actually proving there are multiple self-conscious agents inside someone's head can be difficult and expensive, if it's even possible at all. But this is where the science is currently pointing.

There's a reason that in all my time here, not a single anti-endo has ever been able to provide a single quote from any psychiatrist saying plurality can't exist without trauma or dissociative disorders, and opinions tend to range among DID specialists from neutral to positive.