#1.3.... i love the IDEAS in it but god is it awful looking at it any deeper than that

[gu6chan]

RIGHT branching off of this what i wanted to say about seere is that the staff hating him for being "a goody two-shoes" and not blending in with the rest of the cast is STUPID actually, Seere's placement as "the innocent child" and more importantly the cast's dynamics with him (Caim, Arioch, Leonard, etc.) is SO important in the respect it not only balances the tone of the game by keeping it from being laughably grimdark (which it already teeters on)

but it also serves to both balance the REST of the cast in turn by showing "hey!!!! They're MORE than just *insert problematic thing here*, they're people and human beings and they still have that deep down" like Caim's mercy towards him at the end of Seere's Prayer, Leonard finding the will to live through caring for Seere, and even Arioch's "maternal" affections trying to reach him through her broken mind, as fucked up as the pretext IS (Caim saving Seere for the sake of being able to slaughter more enemies, Leonard being around Seere despite KNOWING he's risking his limits doing so, Arioch,,, well, defining her protection as "wanting to eat him") it all leads back to a genuine human sense of care and protection for a young child you wouldn't otherwise get to see in this cast, and that's important!!! Not only in helping player motivation to be with this cast and see them through to their end, but also generally giving them more depth as characters and PEOPLE beyond just their defining traits

And on the other end of that, it goes without saying that Seere being an innocent, happy-go-lucky kid thinking he's on a ✨grand adventure✨ with his new buddies to save his sister also serves to ENHANCE the darkness of the world and cast by going "Sure, Caim and his crew ARE shown to be human beings still capable of feeling empathy, care, love, etc. but now that you see the stakes, you KNOW what kind of harm they're capable of and how twisted that really looks given that perspective next to an innocent 6 year old boy"

Because SURE, if Seere was an asshole in some capacity (taking his 1.3 self as an example) if something were to happen to him id imagine most players WOULD feel some level of shocked, sad, disgusted, or something among those lines, but when you look at the world someone like DOD1 Seere is in, in all his glee and little hero glory, the thought of something befalling him becomes much more real and potent. You become aware of not only how troubled the cast really is, but how dangerous a world like this is for innocents and THE FACT THEY THINK THAT TAKES AWAY FROM THE GAME?????? AND THEY STILL HATE SEERE FOR THAT?????

im going to commit a hate crime

TL;DR - The entire project dragonsphere staff is WRONG, seere is perfect for a game like Drakengard, and the fact they only saw him as necessary to "explain Manah's story" is MIND-BLOWING i hate it here

TL;DR TL;DR - the attempt to "fix" seeres characterisation in 1.3 by making him a jealous cocksuck entirely removed from the main cast who hates his sister and is gleefully celebrating his mother's death sucks ass and im hunting down everyone involved in that choice with a gun

TL;DR TL;DR TL;DR - actually, BOTH attempts in DOD3 and DOD1.3 to rewrite seere and manahs characters and take the impact of their story out of their hands is bullshit and BOY its a lot more impactful thinking they were literally just some average innocent kids thrown in the dirt and taken advantage of by gods that hate them instead of throwing in all this "they were SPECIAL and FATED TO" bullshit

thinking about what rubs me so wrong about the writing of furiae really felt like "woman who really only has control over her own mind and fantasies, hardly unable to do anything than what's expected as her both as a goddess and a woman" and how the way the staff viewed the writing of furiae as "woman who can't do anything"

I feel like Tadashi really summed it up good in this passage here

[starkeysgrl]

Lost in Translation- Part Three

Synopsis: Peter and you were inseparable since you were kids, until you started hating each other right before you two went to college, but now Peter needs your help to win a bet.

Prologue Part One Part Two

Word Count: 1.3 k

‘’Oh! This is y/n! Y/n, these are my… friends.’’ Peter gestures to the jerks that betted on you.

‘’So these are the ones that you are always talking about, Petey?’’ Peter looks at you, shocked, as you put on your best fake smile and the most annoying voice you could possibly think of. Let��s give these assholes a show.

‘’Awe, really Pete?’’ One of them playfully messes up his hair.

‘’Of course man, you guys are so kind and not manipulative at all!’’ Chad chuckles uncomfortably.

‘’So are you guys on a date?’’ Smooth.

‘’Yea we are, this is our second date, actually. Just can’t get enough of this cutie pie!’’ You squeeze Peter’s cheeks as hard as you can while smiling. That’s for the shit you pulled in the past two years, Peter.

‘’Aw aren’t you the sweetest?’’ Peter messes up your hair, knowing full well how much you hate when someone touches it. You shoot daggers at him almost immediately.

‘’That’s all very sweet, but I thought you hated each other. How did this happen?’’

‘’Aw haha that’s really all in the past! Well, Peter showed up at my dorm a few nights ago, and begged me for a chance, turns out all that hate was just him being frustrated for not having me. Isn’t that right, baby?’’ Peter forces a laugh while chugging down his beer before turning to you.

‘’Yea it is lovey, but you forgot to tell them about all the letters you sent me telling how desperately you were in love with me.’’ Oh that’s it.

‘’I felt bad, babe, after you called my mom crying, begging her for my new number.’’ Peter forces another laugh.

‘’Well, that’s how it happened boys.’’

‘’Cool. We’re gonna go now… Have fun on your date.’’ They finally leave you two alone.

‘’Ok, saying that I was begging for you was a little unnecessary, and then I called crying to your mom? They’re not gonna believe that.’’

‘’They already did, and you were the one who said I was desperately in love with you, sending you a bunch of letters like an obsessed stalker?’’

‘’You started!’’ You both look around, noticing that you were acting like kids.

‘’Oh shut up, mine is more believable.’’

‘’Really? Am I just a pathetic loser obsessed with you in this story?’’ You lower your head and look down while looking sideways. ‘’Don’t answer that.’’

‘’Relax man, they are too dumb to overanalyze everything we do with our lives.’’

‘’Hope you are right, we can’t lose all that money.‘’

‘’Yea, but what if we could get more money? Why stop at 1250 when we can make them give it to us a lot more?’’ Damn.

‘’And how would we do that?’’ Peter seems genuinely intrigued by your crazy idea.

‘’Like this.’’ You eat the rest of your fries, getting up. ‘’How could you say that Peter? I’m here, giving you all my love, and all you wanna know is if you are getting laid tonight? Fuck you.’’ Your dramatic exit got everyone’s attention at the restaurant, leaving a wide eyed Peter trying to explain to others that he didn’t say that, but he stops his rambling as soon as one of the guys pokes his shoulder.

‘’Are you good, man? You should’ve waited a little more before asking that.’’ Oh so that’s how you two are gonna get more money.

‘’Yea I’m good. It’s just- everything was going so well, you know? Thought it would happen tonight.’’ Peter fakes a deep sign. ‘’I know I can get her back, but I need more time, you know? And because of that I’d need more money, she has quite an expensive taste.

‘’I don’t know about that, I think we can give you like 500 more-’’

‘’Make it 600. And I’ll record her moans as proof.’’ God that’s pretty pathetic, but he does need this money, May could need it too.

‘’Woah alright, 600 more from each one of us.’’ MORE FROM EACH? HOLY SHIT. Alright, that wasn’t what he meant, but sure.

‘’Ok cool. Gonna try to reach her, bye.’’ Peter hands his tap to one of them and leaves. 2750 for each. Holy shit.

‘’So? Did it work?’’ Peter gets scared by hearing a voice near an alley, turns out it’s just you.

‘’Yea, you could say so.’’ Peter acts coyly.

‘’How much?’’

‘’2750.’’

‘’Alright, that’s like 270 more from what we had-’’

‘’Each. 2750 each.’’ You widen your eyes, and hug Peter, but realizing soon what you are doing, you stop. Peter wishes you didn't.

‘’OH MY GOD THIS IS HUGE!’’

‘’Yea I know, I promised them something as proof…’’

‘’Ew please tell me it’s not a used condom.’’

‘’What? NO! I said that I would record your moans. ‘’

‘’Ok not that bad, do you think we should keep extorting them?’’

‘’Well, they kinda deserve it.’’ Here’s your friendly neighborhood spider-man, everybody

‘’Yea they do, we should wait a while and increase more.’’

‘’Told them you had an expensive taste, that could work since your birthday is near.’’ Peter looks down, realizing what he said.

‘’You remember my birthday?’’ Oh shit.

‘’Yea of course, I really loved the cakes your mom used to make.’’

‘’Yea me too… So I have to go now-’’ You point to behind.

‘’Oh me too.. I have homework and… stuff.’’

‘’Alright, see you tomorrow.’’ Oh shit, you close your eyes thinking about what you said. At least you have the frat party as an excuse.

The next day

‘’I still can’t believe you’re fucking Peter. Didn’t you hate him?’’ Your friend says with a mouth full of donut.

‘’For the last time, we’re not fucking. And I still hate him. The only thing that’s happening is a deal between us.’’

‘’Let’s see how long that’s gonna last…’’

‘’Wtf do you mean by that?’’ Your friend giggles, after wiggling her eyebrows.

‘’NO’’ You stand up, repulsed by the idea of sleeping with Peter.

‘’Why not? C’mon you’re telling you don’t think he’s hot?’’ Your silence means that you agree with that, so she goes on. ‘’And I know for a fact he thinks you’re hot too.’

‘’Please, who doesn’t? And the fact that I think he’s not super hideus doesn’t mean we’re gonna fuck!! I still hate him, and all the things he said.’’ You sit back on your bed, having second thoughts about your little deal and what will happen to you two if you keep this up. Can’t be that bad, right? He still hates you as well, nothing changed. Just enemies splitting a ton of money by fake dating. God, that’s straight out of wattpad.

‘’Whatever you say, baby. I’m here to kick him really hard if he hurts you again.’’ You giggle and hug your friend.

‘’Thank you, but who knows, he might be the one getting hurt this time.’’

‘’Nice, heartbreaker vibes. But please, just be careful, ok?’’

‘’I will, I promise. The only shitty part is that I’m gonna have to fake date him.’’

‘’SHUT UP. Omg enemies to lovers, like Lizzie and Mr Darcy, BUT ALSO THE FAKE DATING TROPE?’’

‘’Hey!! Never insult Mr Darcy like that again.’’ You point your finger at your friend’s face.

‘’Shit sorry, my bad. Wanna go to a party today? One of the frats is having one later and-’’ You interrupt her.

‘’Yea I’m already going to that one… With Peter.’’ You mumble the last part, hoping your friend didn’t pick up on that.

‘’God, I’m so glad I’m gonna get to see that.’’ You hit your friend with the pillow in your bed.

Taglist: @kidney9-9 @selfcarecap @hollandlover19 @potayaa @wildxwidow @namoreno @badass-yn (couldn't tag you)

[sometimeswritingsometimesdying]

he who is showered in gold

alternate title: my love is like that you have of the world

A/N: @james-isnt-here sent me an ask with just logicality and stargazing and i was thinking about the (first) 1800s au and this happened. also: i really need a beta reader for these but its like 1:15 am again and i don’t really care at this point

taglist sorta: @pheonix-inside @unicornofdarknessstuff @soul-of-a-vixen @toiowo-v707 

warnings: mentions of insects, lots of cuddling and nothing else i think? this is really just fluff (let me know if i miss something tho)

wc: 1.3 k

summary: Patton loves Logan as Logan loves the world. And as Logan loves the stars.

ao3

Something is startling, mesmerizing, of stargazing with someone.

Perhaps it's the quiet, the silence that takes over the wonder-filled moment, or hours. Perhaps its the sounds of crickets, the quiet rustling of a bush, the soft breathing of the person next to you.

Perhaps its the person itself that makes the moment so magical.

Not that Logan believed in magic. Or at least before he met Patton, that was.

There was something that Logan couldn’t name about the freckled young (soon to be not-so-young) man. Trust him, he had tried many times to give it a name, to identify a reason for whatever it was that made Patton stand out against other people.

He’d spent days in his study, observing as Patton danced and sang around their estate instead of writing his scripts. Patton would catch him staring and laugh, and it sounded like bells. He’d smile and cock his head in a curious manner, the golden sunlight making him look angelic even when he was just standing there, and he’d tease him, granting a small smile to blossom on Logan’s face. He’d turn back to his scripts, but he wouldn't be able to concentrate.

That’s when he was truly more beautiful than on stage, where he was clad in makeup and carefully crafted vests. No, in the familiarity of his home, their home, he was simply himself. Him who was showered in gold.

And when soft summer breeze would wander into the room, he’d breath in the fresh air. It gave him a very specific feeling, one he only got from calm, still evenings with golden light and swell wind. And from kissing Patton.

Kissing him was a full-on experience, Logan could say. It was almost like a symphony, or like the perfect pacing of a good book. It made music surge in his heart and a steady beating in his blood increase.

And he loved it.

Often they’d head out on evening walks, just to bask in the fast disappearing sunlight. They’d follow the path down the river, or the one through the forest behind the estate, which extended on and on and on. They’d walk until the sun disappeared over the horizon, leaving them to find a nice clearing to sit down and marvel at the stars.

That evening happened to be one of these escapades.

They had been walking down the path down the forest, holding onto one another’s arm, with Logan occasionally pointing out different types of plants while Patton awed at the few animals they encountered. Soon enough, they came across a pretty big clearing with a star-filled sky over-head.

“Oh,” Patton said, a soft smile gracing his features. “It’s so beautiful.”

“You say that every time, dear.” They stopped walking and Patton giggled.

“It’s true every time, love.” They smiled at each other and ventured farther into the clearing. Eventually, they found a nice enough spot where Patton laid down a blanket he had brought, and they sat down, Patton leaning on Logan’s chest, eyes already fixed upwards.

Every few nights, when Logan knew that it would be clear enough to faintly see galaxies, he’d bring along his most prized astrology book to correctly identify the lesser-known stars, the ones he didn’t know by heart, the ones he still had to learn about. That night was, thankfully, one of these nights, so he took the book from under his arm and opened it.

The words were barely visible in the dim moonlight, but he had a considerable amount of experience with reading in the dark, so he found no problem with it.

He started reading aloud from the book, bringing Patton’s attention back to him.

“Castor and Pollux, most notably known as The Twins, is a constellation found in the northern hemisphere that can be observed in the warm months of the summer.” Patton leaned closer to have a better look at the book, his hair brushing Logan’s face and making a small smile appear on his face.

Before he met Patton, Logan was never known for being a man that was particularly prone to affection. Now, in the comfort of each other's touches, being it kisses, hugs, holding each other's hands or leaning into one another when they were arm to arm, it was routine. All in an effort to be closer to his lover.

He observed the map that was drawn on the book for a while before pointing up at the night sky, in the general direction that the constellation should be. Patton followed Logan gaze back to the stars. They reflected off his glasses, Logan noticed.

He noticed a lot about Patton, after all.

“Look, Patton,” he indicated a specific star. It looked the same as all the rest, yet different. Perhaps a different hue, a different size, but still a single shining dot light years away from them. “That’s Pollux,” He said, gesticulating to the object of his fascination.

Patton smiled softly, hearing the excitement in Logan’s voice. “One of the twins?”

Logan nodded and went on. “There’s a myth about the two, actually. Castor was a mortal, while Pollux was immortal. Knowing his brother would die one day, Pollux begged the gods to let the two live and die together.”

Patton reached over to Logan’s lap and intertwined his fingers with Logan’s, as his lover's arms came up around his waist.

“The gods granted him his wish, making him mortal just as Castor. The two lived and died by each other's side,” Logan played with Patton’s fingers, running his thumb over his palm. “The myth says they became stars, constellations, and they now cause havoc around the world, just as small kids do, creating storms over the seas and turning over sailor’s boats.”

As Logan’s gaze remained enthralled by the star-scattered dark sky, Patton’s gaze wandered over to him, and he observed the man he loved most in the world.

He was made of rigid and hard edges, with soft details here and there. Details no one else noticed, like the sweet note in his voice when he began singing along with Patton around their estate. Or the sparkle in his eyes when he had a new idea for a story, the angelic ringing of his laugh when Patton did a particularly humorous skit.

He loved it. He loved it all. And, most importantly, he loved Logan.

He loved Logan like the author loved the stars. He loved him like he loved sunsets. He loved him like he loved the theater and the cheers and the claps of the audience after a performance. He loved him like he loved singing. He loved him like the author loved every bit and piece of the universe. He loved him like how he loved finding meaning and wonder in every single thing, every ant, every blade of grass, every whip of the wind, every twinkle of the stars.

Patton loved Logan like he loved the world.

Patton took his hand out of Logan’s hold and gently slipped it onto Logan’s cheek, making the author turn to look at him. He ran his thumb over the soft skin, caressing and making Logan shiver.

“Hey,” he was whispering, and he didn’t know why. Perhaps it was because Logan had let his guard down, and he didn’t want to disrupt the moment.

Logan grinned, something that only happened when it was late at night and he was feeling particularly sappy. “Hey, dearest.” Patton smiled too.

They stayed like that for a while, only the sounds of crickets and the rustling of bushes to the breeze interrupting the silence.

They felt calm, both of them. As if they were at home, where they belonged.

Perhaps it was where they belonged. With each other, in each other’s arms, their breaths mingling, their minds enthralled by one another.

Patton leaned up, eventually, and gave him a peck on the cheek, making Logan blush crimson and making him laugh.

A soft breeze ran through his hair, and he felt a feeling dissipate into his heart. A feeling that was light and carefree and happy and that made him feel wonderful.

He loved Logan, he truly, truly did.

[why-this-kolaveri-machi]

i preserved in him what he needed to believe about you.

i wrote yesterday that this episode had a lot riding on it. for the most part, it delivered--mostly in anchoring both dick and slade’s arcs, expanding on the themes introduced in s2, and in firmly establishing jericho as My Favourite Forever And Ever. it was also very flawed, but in (mostly) interesting ways. let’s talk about it!

SPOILERS ahead.

1. jericho has my whole heart and then some. i think it would’ve been very easy to paint him with broad strokes--my fear was they would drag the innocence all the way to the edge of infantilisation, which, good god NO--but while he is enthusiastic and ready to believe the best of both his friends and family, there’s a sharpness to him, a kind of reckless guile, and quite a lot of unresolved and complicated feelings about father figures. 

1.25. he is obviously very proud of his father having served in the military--he’s even tangentially aware that he was experimented on, given his nonchalant attribution of his own powers to “drugs” that his father took while serving. (this awareness has to include the fact that his father definitely took a number of lives as a soldier.) even the awful assault that took away his voice and eventually his father from his life tracks with a single, knowable truth. knowing this helped him ground his own identity--the problem comes when he realises that what he’d used to build himself on was itself built on a lie. 

there is a tension, then, between his loyalty to these friends who used him but ultimately revealed the truth to him, and his desire to have that cornerstone of his life back. his compromise is to talk to his father, but only with dick’s permission; in it, he would know if his father was finally ready to be completely honest with him, and if there was more to dick’s friendship than merely using jericho to get to his father.

1.3. of course, it doesn’t exactly work that way: in the final fight at the church, there are two men who insist on their truth while pushing him to the side. in it, he sees one of them ruthlessly cut down the other, and he sees the other using his own body and life to protect him. jericho makes his choice in the end.

1.45. dick i think was absolutely right and justified in bringing jericho to a safe place where he can explore and learn to control his powers, even if dick was surprisingly blase about the potential ethical tangles of being able to possess other people’s bodies without them being aware of it. it was honestly a bit disturbing to see that hank was chosen to demonstrate jericho’s powers, given his history and the fact that he describes the experience as a “blackout”. i’m just going to assume that he would’ve come around to it eventually.

given the relative paucity of Big Bads and grand superhero battles, i’m kind of taken with the idea of the titans essentially being a support group for young troubled superheroes who need help and training and ways to ground themselves before heading back to their corners of the world. 

1.5. ultimately this episode once again drives home what should be the essential question in a show that revolves around a team of superhero sidekicks: are we destined to be what we were moulded to be? is the point of their existence to perpetuate what their mentors/fathers did? slade and jericho both struggle with this; so do dick and donna in this episode. so do rose, and jason, and rachel, and conner, and kory in the broader context of the series. the answers they find are complicated and at the cost of a great deal of pain, but the process is always interesting.

1.8. obviously jericho isn’t actually dead. i wonder what that initial dreamscape sequence was all about? is it some secret pocket dimension that jericho jumped into at the last minute when slade killed his body? is that where he’s been for the last five years?

2. dick grayson is lost. he is utterly buried under artifice and armour. i mentioned in a previous post (i think the one for 2.07) that he performs quite a bit of emotional labour for the team on top of being their leader in a tactical sense. here, he’s trying to hold it together for the team after a devastating death; he’s spearheading an effort for revenge he thought they all supported. he pulls on batman-goggles, trying to look at what he’s doing from a logical, emotionally-removed perspective, even while burying his bleeding heart as deep as he possibly can. no wonder he’s acting “like a ghost” and “burning at both ends”--it’s a terrible burden to bear. 

then the team turns around--once they’ve already gotten the info they needed, mind!--and tells him to cut jericho out of this operation; that it’s wrong and awful to have involved him at all. when he tries to do just that, he sees that he can actually help jericho as a friend and teammate, and at the urging of dawn, comes clean to him. meanwhile garth’s death and donna’s grief is still an unrelenting pressure on the back of his neck, driving him to find deathstroke at any cost--except when that cost is betraying jericho’s trust. ultimately slade nearly murdering donna is what breaks him--and he decides to follow jericho to slade anyway.

at every point he is so desperately trying to do good by everybody that he loses himself in the process. that his reward for this is being beaten up, a truckload of survivor’s guilt, and being abandoned by his closest friends is just so fucking awful. his friends are so used to his artifice and he is so used to absorbing all the blame that they think nothing of both praising him for being someone that saves people and believing he would sacrifice innocent lives for the sake of a mission in the same day.

(but this makes dick/kory so beautiful and refreshing--she has no time for his artifice and he doesn’t have to Be Someone around her. their relationship is defined by being undefined, and in that sense--at least for now--both of them find peace in the other.)

2.5. slade commenting coldly on dick’s fighting skills and the way he uses dick’s feelings for jericho to distract and defeat him makes me think that slade’s been playing this game with dick for far longer than he was aware: slade used both jericho and donna as bait to lure dick to that church, fought him in a cold, critical way undoubtedly reminiscent of a thousand sparring sessions with batman, and drove him utterly to the ground not just to prove a point to the titans and the superhero community at large but to jericho as well: this man is weak, manipulative, and ultimately a poor substitute for slade. 

2.75. who knows for how long dick wallowed in his failure, still seeing jericho take the blade that was meant for him, utterly alone? did he go back to the batcave, utterly defeated, and did he listen to bruce call him out on his mistakes? how much do you think he internalised all the terrible things he’d been told he was until he believed it all to be true? until he couldn’t live with himself and spiralled and spiralled until his self-hatred lead to outright self-destruction?

like--no wonder he completely fell apart in the present day when deathstroke showed up again. he’d just started to trust--he’d just started to build a family again. and here it is, a reminder of his biggest failure threatening to have him fail spectacularly once again. 

... this boy needs so much therapy. or at least a long nap and a series of hugs.

2.8. (that fight between him and slade tho... goddamn. even my shitty quality stream couldn’t take away from how thrilling it was to watch.)

3. dawn is... well. i know it’s been frustrating to follow dawn this season, as she’s been either non-existent or, uh, flat, but there was something interesting in the way her dynamic with dick moved and shifted in this episode. she thrills to ideals without considering the consequences of actually following those ideals. in the space of a few months, she can implore dick to act like batman, then tell him no, she was wrong to have asked him to do that, then say that she loved him for saving people and then barely days later abandon him for being a reckless sociopath who exploited innocent lives. in the present day, she can support hank in his retirement and rehabilitative process, yet still think it’s perfectly ok to go behind his back and continue being a vigilante. she supported protecting rose in the tower but still piled on dick for going off on his reckless suicide mission to try and save both jason and rose. she endorsed (and once praised) dick taking on troubled young superhero charges, yet turned around and berated him for daring to open up titans tower and “put them in the firing line”. 

i mean, for all that she takes the considerate, sensitive line in conversations, it’s almost always in contradiction to a position she’d taken earlier. it’s too consistent to be a coincidence, and i think it’s fascinating.

4. i didn’t realise amazons could be defeated and killed so easily?? who issued the contract to kill jillian in the first place and what was the “important work” they were doing in san francisco in the first place? a mystery within a mystery...

5. if this season were the draft of a story, i would go right in with a red pen and start moving around all the parts to make it flow better; excise entire passages and rewrite a few others. the pacing has been terrible, and this has meant that the younger titans--and the team we came to know and love through the first season--have gotten almost nothing to do, either plot-wise or emotionally. even if kory and gar and rachel become absolutely vital to the story in the last 4-5 episodes, it would still be a fairly significant failure, storytelling-wise.

that’s a pity because this show is packed with a stellar cast, always looks gorgeous, and is filled with genuinely insightful human relationships that are allowed to unfold in ways you just don’t see in other superhero media. just--*vibrates* a little more love and care from the people making and producing the show please!

[billysigudla]

Through God’s Strength! Philippians 4:12 When people have food, shelter, employment, and money, it’s easy to be content and happy. Isn’t it? Or, is it easy to be poor, hungry, unemployed and homeless? What would the apostle Paul’s answer to that question be? This is our last sermon from Philippians. We are looking again at the apostle Paul, in prison, in a really awful situation. Shackled to a Roman soldier, 24 hours a day, with no privacy, in a cold, dank, drafty stone cell. For the past eight weeks, we have considered Paul and his words to his friends from Philippi. He wrote this thank-you letter to the Philippians congregation, and it was one of the most joy-filled letters we have, included in the New Testament. Do you know how much it means for a friend to send a message, an email, a card or letter, especially when you are downhearted and close to giving up hope? That is what Paul’s former congregation in Philippi did. They showed “a love and concern that led them to help Paul. The most significant gifts often cost us very little—sometimes nothing, except a few moments to say a friendly word or the make a telephone call or send an email, the stamp to post a letter or a card. What matters is that someone has been remembered with affection and concern. Paul says he knows what it’s like to be poor, and he knows what it’s like to have abundance, in verse 12. I know there are many in the United States who may consider themselves to be poor, but I wonder whether you realize quite what Paul was talking about here. We could drill down to find out more about economic, educational and societal poverty worldwide. For example, according to the United Nations latest report on poverty in 2019, 23 percent of the world population – that’s 1.3 billion people – lived in abject poverty worldwide. Just to give you an idea of how little money we are talking about, that is living on approximately $1 a day, or less. Paul did not mean just economic poverty. He also was talking about poverty of spirit, poverty of emotional wherewithal, poverty of humility and ability to persevere. We all know something about that. Who has not felt the pinch of poverty of spirit in the past six month (at Brits Letlhabile) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFbKQLqD2Vo/?igshid=crjyw1ukgpcs

[black-lagoon-rokuro]

Less than human 7 part A

7 part A ----- Listen to this to make everything smoother. Repeat it if it ends before you reach the end. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xMaZalLP1uQ If the link doesn't work, search "lullaby" - Tale of Two Sisters. ------ Hospitals always scared me. Ever since I was a little kid. I never had a real reason other than the scary movies I'd watch. But I think everyone is afraid of them in some way. Although that fear doesn't always make sense. Now I believe I have a real reason. Everything was either white or blue. If it was my eyesight or the actual room, I couldn't tell. We were alone in the hospital room. This isn't what I imagined this would be like at all. Ai was breathing heavily while squeezing my hand. Nurses came in and out of the room. They got Ai in a hospital gown and gave her an epidural. I doubt it did much. "It hurts too bad." She was on the verge of tears. "It's okay. Calm down, it'll be over soon." "ITS BEEN GOING ON FOREVER!!!" A nurse came in and started asking questions. We never went to any checkups, so that's probably why. I always tried to convince her to go, but each time I did she would make it out like i was trying to make her get an abortion. The only way we knew it was a boy was because she talked to her friend that's in nursing. "Alright. Just relax. The doctor is on his way." All I could do was focus on the details of Ai's face. She was somehow red and pale at the same time. Sweat glossed her skin. Her brown hair was sticking to the sides of her face. God, she looks awful. I wanted to say something. Anything. But there wasn't anything that would make her feel better. Finally, the doctor came in and started working. It seemed like time could play tricks suddenly. Seconds stretched onto minutes. Minutes turned into half an hour. Slowly but surely, she was progressing. Everything was going by so slowly, I thought I'd die in that hospital room before he was born. Ai kept squeezing my hand to the point where I could barely feel it. "Almost there." She grabbed onto me as tightly as she could. One last scream, then... There he was. That's when I saw little Toshio for the first time. He was so small... He wasn't crying, moving, or even breathing. His face had a blue tint to it. My son looked like a doll. Immediately they took him out of the room to do some testing. All I could do was stare at the door they failed to shut behind them. Ai sat up and looked at me. We were completely alone. All the energy left with the baby. Empty. That's all I could feel. Emptiness. Even with Ai there. I felt lonely. "What does he look like?" She breathily said. I didn't know what to tell her. I shook my head, remembering the look on his face. "Rokuro?" "He's so small." I told her. She crossed her arms. "What's that supposed to mean? Of course he's small, he's a baby." "No. He's really small." She looked at me confused. "He wasn't moving a-and I don't think he's breathing." I said. Ai suddenly became alert. She was in so much shock that she said more than words ever could. Nothing. The doctor came in moments later. Before he could say anything, she asks "Is he dead?" He shakes his head. "No, but he's extremely underweight. Also his lungs aren't fully developed a-" "So he won't make it?" Ai asked rudely. "There is a probability." He said rather harshly. "He needs to stay here for at least a few days so we can figure out the complications." He tried to sound polite, but something told me he was tired and just wanted to go home. How could someone be like that? Especially at times like this. "You mean that my son is going to stay here while I go back home and pretend like nothing happened?!" I put my hand on her shoulder. She quickly brushed it off. "You don't have to go home. I'll leave you be." He left the room without another word. Only 2 days later, he came home. The doctor said we needed to be extremely careful with him. Ai was more upset than anything. She was upset about the fact she 'wasted time carrying him.' ...until she held him. She looked at him and all the guilt rose up to the surface. He only weighed 1.3 kilograms (3 pounds 4 ounces). He was so small. She held him closer to her body. Toshio was constantly crying. His voice was so fragile and weak that it sounded kind of like an old, worn out music box. I could barely hear him. I knew it was because of the meth. Surprisingly, they didn't seem to notice. Personally, I blame the doctor. He obviously just wanted to retire soon. He didn't care, he just wanted the money. And I'm sure that getting the police involved will make things complicated. We went home. Nothing felt the same. Little Toshio changed everything for us. In a good way, I think. Ai said that she was tired because of the epidural. Although that excuse didn't make much sense since that was days ago, I just let her sleep. It gave me time alone with my son. Days passed by. I constantly had to check on Toshio. When I was with him, I felt better. All that time getting beat on was worth it. Now I understood the little things my mom used to do. Like trying to get involved with everything I did in school and so on. Although that was years away, I knew I was going to be like that. Having to go to work for a few hours already made me feel guilty. Ai's sister came around a lot more. Apparently her and Ai weren't mad at each other anymore. Sadako mainly talked to me about things that didn't matter. For example, she got a lot of things in her mother's will but Ai got nothing. Ai didn't know about that. I wasn't going to bring it up. Sadako was very helpful towards us. Without her, I think Ai would've been hitting him by now. I didn't mind her. Sadako flirted with me on and off though... My only concern was if Ai would walk in and think something was going on. That didn't matter. I was going to leave her soon. Right? How do I start this? I should just go. Pack everything while she's sleeping and just go for it. She's not stupid. She would notice that then probably beat me. Ai hasn't been giving Toshio enough attention in my book. It's almost like her sister is the mother. All Ai does is usually done after Sadako brings it up. Ai was taking a shower now. That woman can take the longest showers known to mankind. I held Toshio, who was crying like always. Sadako was sitting on the arm of my chair, staring down at him. Toshio was settling down. He was tired. His aunt on the other hand was scaring me. Please don't touch me. What if Ai walked in the moment you tried something? She'd say I was trying to fuck you. "Um... Rokuro?" Sadako said my name like she was scared to say it. "Sorry if this is rude, but how did you get that around your neck?" She was referring to a mark left there by Ai. A huge ring around my neck to show her frustrations. I didn't know how to answer that. "I guess I wear my ties too tight." That was a stupid excuse. She looked at my wrists. "What about those?" Sadako actually looked concerned... I never had to make excuses like this before. No one ever asked. "I can't remember." She held onto my arm. I pulled back in a way that was firm but not rude. "I heard you were into music." Trying to get off the subject made me less nervous. But I could tell she was going to bring it up again. "Yeah." I answered somewhat shyly. It's been so long since anyone's asked me about myself. "Maybe you should sing to him. It might calm him down." She smiled sweetly. "Y-yeah. That's a good idea." I looked at Toshio. His eyes half way closed, his face red and his tiny hand wrapped around my finger. There's nothing I can think to sing. He looked so tired. Toshio okajima... He was still lightly crying, but it was so frail and weak. I held him closer. His skin was soft. I sang in one of the other languages I knew, Korean. Sadako smiled. "My child does not smile. My child does not come to me. My child cannot recognize. Someday I will meet you again in the next world, embracing you in my arms." He squeezes onto my finger as tight as he could. To me, that meant 'keep going'. "This song I sang to you, will you remember it? I will sing this song to you, can you please fall asleep?" I couldn't tell if he was sleeping or not. I had to remember the rest of the lyrics.. "My love does not dream. My love does not her close eyes. My love cannot find the way to me." Right as I sang that last lyric, Ai came in. How ironic. "You're a great singer." Sadako said. Before I could say thank you, Toshio started coughing. Ai hurriedly grabbed him from me. His face was completely red. He stopped after a moment. "I'll take him to bed." She said then did so. Sadako looked at me with an expression I couldn't read. It was a mix between concern and happiness. "So you know Korean?" She asks. "Only a little bit. I'm more fluent in English. Haha." Ai came back out and rolled her eyes. "Quit flirting." She said. I just lit a cigarette. I didn't care enough right now to worry about it too much. "I'm not." Sadako replied defensively. Ai sat down on the couch. She crossed her arms like she was debating rather or not to do something. "...so... You're parents now." Sadako says. "Yeah?" Ai wasn't looking at her sister. Instead she had her eyes locked on my throat. I couldn't tell if she felt guilty or if she wanted to choke me. "Do you really think that will work out?" Sadako had such a serious look on her face. Almost like she was getting ready to fight. (You can pause the song now.) "What's that supposed to mean?" Ai sat up defensively. Oh god. I got mentally prepared to stop them if they get in a fight again. "You think you can control yourself? You already hurt your son. Not to mention your boyfriend is over here with bruises all over his neck." Oh Jesus. Ai stood up. "How the hell did I hurt my son?" Her arms were still crossed. She didn't look very threatening in her robe though. "Are you kidding? He's half the weight he should be, his lungs are screwed up and you're not doing anything. The only time you try is when you hear me complain about you." Sadako grabbed Ai by her pink robe and stared her right in the face. "Don't you dare tell me you didn't do something while you were pregnant." Ai pushed her sister off. "Rokuro always tries to take him from me." She quickly stopped Ai from leaving the room. "He probably figured out that you won't do shit." "You don't know me, bitch." Sadako just smirked at this. "Oh really? I know that you beat up your boyfriend and you think it's smart to buy drugs when you have a baby. That's right, I found them." Ai took a step back. I knew the first punch was coming. "I feel sorry for Rokuro, he somehow fell in love with you. A lying, drug addicted whore." Ai punched her sister in the jaw. Sadako grabbed her hair. That's when I put out my cigarette. "Okay. I've had enough." They both just looked at me. "Yeah Ai needs to get better, but you both need to calm the fuck down." Rolling her eyes, Ai sat back down. "I bet Toshio woke up after all this." Sadako let go and went back to check on him. Ai stared at me with a tired look. Over the days, she's gotten bags under her eyes. She's gotten paler. I didn't notice until just this second. "Why are you such a man whore?" She asks. "I'm not." I answered confidently. "OH MY GOD!!" A scream came from the bedroom. A sudden wave of anxiety washed over me. Ai and I looked at eachother. Sadako came running in the room with Toshio in her hands. I can't ever forget what he looked like, even though I've tried so many times. Blue skin. Mouth slightly opened. Eyes closed. Not moving at all. "Ai, call the police!" I tried not to yell as I took him in my arms. Toshio... He's so small. I put my hand on his chest to check for a heartbeat. Nothing. Everything in my body was shocked. This isn't happening. It can't be. No. Please. Anything but this. I'd take any of Ai's insanity just to keep him here. Please. If there's a God out there, please don't take him from me. He's all I have to live for. Take me instead. Let him live. Please. As they pulled him into the ambulance truck, I remembered the rest of the lyrics to the song. "Someday I will meet you again in the next world, embracing you in my arms. Someday, when I meet you for the first time... With a weary smile, I will hold both of your hands." No... He can't just die like this. Please. Don't take him away from me. Anything but this.

[mahouproject-one]

Great Googly Moogly... What the /Fuck/ || Reiko || MM Trial 1.3 RE: Fight #2, Sollith, General Discussion

[CW; Mentions of Strangulation w/ Hands, Head Trauma, Injuries]

The detective’s head continued with the deep pounding in her skull as tensions continued to escalate. As more time went on, it was more and more obvious that she was becoming inattentive as more blood rushed to her head (as well as out of her body).

Though, the sight of her beloved partner being choked out by the local chaos demon definitely brought her some clarity in the ways of feeling pure rage. Her words come out with a clear, seething venom.

“G-Get your hands o-off of her you lonely, p-pathetic, waste of space.”

Did it matter Clove had started it? No. Was Reiko happy about that? Definitely not. She would have that talk later, when they didn’t have this stressful trial to go through. Had it not been for the fact that her taking a step towards the brawl to try and help Itona was thwarted by her leg and a sudden wave of dizziness - she would have gone right back into it.

Sweet heavens, what did she start?

Thankfully, her classmate is able to break them up (though, where the fuck was he when she was trying to leave that first fight?) and she shakily moves herself back to Deborah’s stand to make room for Clove.

The moment the journalist rejoins her, she grips the blonde’s arm a bit too tightly.

“… Don’t you do that again. Ever. God… W-We need'a brain between the two of us… d-don’t go gettin’ yours bashed in too.”

While stern, her expression softens as she examines the other girl’s injuries carefully before turning back to listen to the trial proceedings. She did acknowledge Kris’s hand on her shoulder by placing her’s over his. She was fine not having everyone agree with her scrambled-brained theories this time around, but she wouldn’t forget them. There was a lot of times that she made accusations, but stepped back on them and helped produce a mistrial.

For now though, she would find mild concern in the idea that Sollith presented - considering the implications it would have for a certain someone…

“… I-I… I can’t seem t’ find a reason t’ refute that - a-aside from it being outlandish. Again, I only knew about the cats, Shino’s s-spear, an’ some background stuffs from the labyrinths I survived. Though… I-I’m not at full brain capacity right now…”

She rests her head in her hand, taking a moment to suck in a breath.

“I feel that theory’d be openin’ a whole can o’ worms that may not even be true… U-Unless someone could call Mi-ke in here?”

With the angry outburst (primarily by Shinobu), the girl’s expression fell to something of mild annoyance. It was nowhere near the look she had insulting Takako. Reiko just looked tired.

“Yeah… listen. Shizuka’s done questionable, d-downright awful shit. I won’t deny that. But, he’s far f-from the only one in this class who’s caused death or acted as a criminal. You’re throwing out pretty strong words, despite dating a felony-level thief y'know.”

Reiko had… strangely grown an appreciation for Shinobu. She almost wanted to consider him a friend, which is why her tone came off without any real anger in it.

“Shizuka’s someone who, despite what’s he’s pulled, i-is probably the one person I-I can understand the best here." 

She spares a glance to her side to watch Kris’s expression before looking back to the Social Media Manager.

"He and I don’t always agree - w-we hardly do, t’ be honest - but h-he’s still someone I care about because of some… r-reasons we’ve both come to realize. Fair amount o-of people care about him, actually. Even c-criminals are allowed t’ be loved - even if the majority has rightful cause t’ hate ‘em.

I’m not sayin’ Kris Tenshi o-or anyone close t’ 'im can expect people t’ change their views, 'specially after this boneheaded move. But, I’ll remind you that Sollith asked him t’ do this. T-They wanted t’ have a trial and didn’t realize what else w-was happenin’… Personally, I-I don’t understand the desire t’ want t’ make yourself a "martyr” or somethin’ stupid like that. Being 'selfless’ won’t get you anythin’ 'side from pain and death… which is what they’re both receiving.“

The girl huffs, forcing herself to stand up as much as possible.

"Thinking on it, that’s probably the difference that separates the two of us.” Reiko lightly shakes her head. “'Nyways, it’s a-a worn subject now. W-We need t’ decide what we’re doin’ about this vote.”

[billysigudla]

Through God’s Strength! Philippians 4:12-20 (4:12-14) When people have food, shelter, employment, and money, it’s easy to be content and happy. Isn’t it? Or, is it easy to be poor, hungry, unemployed and homeless? What would the apostle Paul’s answer to that question be? This is our last sermon from Philippians. We are looking again at the apostle Paul, in prison, in a really awful situation. Shackled to a Roman soldier, 24 hours a day, with no privacy, in a cold, dank, drafty stone cell. For the past eight weeks, we have considered Paul and his words to his friends from Philippi. He wrote this thank-you letter to the Philippians congregation, and it was one of the most joy-filled letters we have, included in the New Testament. Do you know how much it means for a friend to send a message, an email, a card or letter, especially when you are downhearted and close to giving up hope? That is what Paul’s former congregation in Philippi did. They showed “a love and concern that led them to help Paul. The most significant gifts often cost us very little—sometimes nothing, except a few moments to say a friendly word or the make a telephone call or send an email, the stamp to post a letter or a card. What matters is that someone has been remembered with affection and concern.” Paul says he knows what it’s like to be poor, and he knows what it’s like to have abundance, in verse 12. I know there are many in the United States who may consider themselves to be poor, but I wonder whether you realize quite what Paul was talking about here. We could drill down to find out more about economic, educational and societal poverty worldwide. For example, according to the United Nations latest report on poverty in 2019, 23 percent of the world population – that’s 1.3 billion people – lived in abject poverty worldwide. Just to give you an idea of how little money we are talking about, that is living on approximately $1 a day, or less. Paul did not mean just economic poverty. He also was talking about poverty of spirit, poverty of emotional wherewithal, poverty of humility and ability to persevere. We all know something about that. Who has not felt the pinch of poverty of spirit in t (at Brits Letlhabile) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFaLWRjjTnW/?igshid=ojo7ls3hbj3l