#5d chess over here

[dipplinduo]

Sweet & Sour Dipplins "What If?"

huh so drayton was the one behind the outage??

:) yes

[furiosophie]

happy halloween 🎃💀🔪🧼

costumes are based on this twt thread

[eastern-lights]

I feel like Alfred and Uhtred's whole dynamic is that of a chessmaster getting totally stumped by his opponent's bold and unique strategy, because said opponent has never played chess before and just moves the pieces at random.

[ashtonisvibing]

jameson and his boyfriend (wilford) and his boyfriend (dark) and his boyfriend (anti)

[creamsiclesquid]

Tief Durge with the crown, he's maximum slutty evil and unapologetic about it.

I really like this design tho fr so i might polish it up and use it as an NPC somewhere

Uh version with bullied Raphael under the cut too

I simply thing that Raphael should be bullied

[twilit-tragedy]

And what’s funnier is that the prophecies DO come true. It’s just that characters made the wrong assumptions about them. A man wielding a spear leads the armies at Ragnarök and a bearded, bald man dies in Atreus’ arms. Brilliant.

“Fate only binds you if you let it”- no, but, actually. The characters kept saying it but only in hindsight do I realize how deep it goes. Truly the best way forward, even with some hint of the future, is to proceed as you would regardless. Make your own story and ignore if it matches the prophecies or it doesn’t. Or else you end consumed by thoughts of it (cough, Odin). And in the end it’ll come somewhat true without the details that YOU projected onto it.

[odin-suggestion]

I still think about that moment in the comics where Odin hired Black Panther to kill Loki. But then how Odin gets very upset if anything happens to Loki. If BP had done it, what do you think Odin would have done?

I think about this so much.

Like, here's the context: The War of the Realms is imminent and Odin is finally realizing that he picked the wrongest possible way to deal with it. Freyja called it, and Loki sided with her when she rebelled against Odin over it, and then he (apparently) defected to the enemy, then he (apparently) tried to kill Freyja and nearly succeeded. Odin is going through some shit and once again, much of it is Loki's fault. So it's not that shocking that he'd want something done about Loki, and let's be real: for Asgardians, killing them is just making them go somewhere. To a god, death is a prison sentence, and Loki is the gods' best escape artist.

And while Odin absolutely (even by his own admission), has his moments... he's not stupid.

In that comic, Odin goes to Black Panther and starts off by saying, "Let me tell you a story."

In this story, Odin says, "A long time ago, I, a young god, and your ancestor, the first Black Panther, fought a terrible creature together with some other heroes. When we had defeated it, the Black Panther called for mercy -- something was clearly wrong with this creature, and he wanted to help it. I disagreed: I thought we should kill it and nail its corpse to the moon as a warning to the rest of its kind."

And then Odin says, "I was wrong. The Black Panther was wiser than I was."

He uses this story to illustrate why he respects the Black Panther -- a fellow king, a powerful warrior, and a man of great wisdom. And then Odin says, "That creature we fought: its friends are coming to Earth to get revenge for what we did, and Loki is helping them.* I want you to kill him for the greater good."

*(Loki, for his part, is doing all of this because Malekith intends to use Earth as the battleground for the War of the Realms and the Avengers aren't Avengering hard enough. They need a bad guy to fight so they'll have an excuse to get the band back together.)

Odin says he can't do it because he's weak, he loves his son too much to kill him himself, even knowing the destruction he's about to cause. And it seems like it doesn't quite fit together, does it? Odin didn't go to one of the other heroes he fought alongside in that fight. He didn't ask the Ghost Rider, arbiter of cosmic justice. He didn't ask Earth's Sorcerer Supreme, who's recently had to deal with Loki's bullshit and is eager to kick his ass. He didn't ask the Phoenix, favorite of his old companions. He asked the Black Panther -- the only one to disagree with him. The one who wisely called for mercy and understanding.

And then I remember Young Avengers.

And I remember when the whole thing first starts, and Billy's in trouble and America swoops in to rescue him -- not from the terrible mage-eating monster he's just accidentally summoned, but from Loki. And when they finally get a moment to sit down to talk about it, she tells Billy:

"Don't trust Loki. He knew something was going to happen and he told me that to prevent it, I should kill you."

And Loki says, "Sometimes the only way to be the good guy is to play the bad guy everyone expects you to be. What would you have done if I'd told you Billy was in trouble?"

"Nothing," she admits.

A year after this conversation with Odin, T'Challa walks into Avengers tower with a file on everything Loki's been up to recently and says to the Avengers, "What have all of you heard about the War of the Realms?"

[daisydisciple]

People usually seem to mean something about service/giving when they talk about "the Christmas Spirit" but I think to me the primary characteristic feature of Christmas as a holiday is the spirit of anticipation.

That's like the whole point of the concept of advent, for one thing. In a way, we are honoring and embodying the anticipation of all who lived before Christ's coming and looked ahead to their redemption, "speaking of things to come as though they had already come," who looked forward with the eye of faith and prophecy. "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined" wrote Isaiah, centuries before Christ's birth. They borrowed joy from the future, and we, in turn, borrow joy and anticipation from the past.

Whatever time of year Jesus was actually born, I do appreciate the symbolism of celebrating his coming shortly after the winter solstice—the greatest darkness has passed, and more light is yet to come. (And my southern hemisphere friends can enjoy basking in the most light the year has to offer—fitting in its own way). We superimpose the overarching narrative of mankind's redemption onto the smaller repeating seasons of our present lives, interpreting the unknown to the familiar. We celebrate the gifts of Christ in our personal, mundane little lives—service, forgiveness, charity, community, reconciliation, love. We fill the darkness with light in His honor.

And celebrating the past joy and anticipation of Christ's historical coming, along with our present holiday joy and anticipation also leads us to look forward to the future joys that will be ours because of Him. Some of my favorite Christmas carols are the ones that emphasize this: Jesus was "born that man no more may die," "to raise the sons of earth," "to give them second birth." "In His name all oppression shall cease." It isn't just that he was born—everyone that ever lived was born. We are celebrating everything that did and does and will happen because of his life and atonement and death and resurrection, including the things that haven't even happened yet. The great story of mankind's liberation from death and reconciliation with God isn't even over yet.

And so just like those of old who looked forward to Christ's coming, we today are also in a state of anticipation: that He will come again, that all of God's promises will be fulfilled, that we will live again with God in a state of glory. And so we, too, borrow joy from the future. "We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ."

As Christians, it is our right and our duty to embrace every joy—that of the past, that of the present, and that of the future. And that's what Christmas is about to me, ultimately.

[moodyvamp]

high school acquaintance i'm discussing with on instagram would not survive three minutes here

[takeshitakyuuto]

Just saw two beloved mutuals post this so I don’t want to get too violent over it but I don’t care how big your graph is it’s not going to encompass my gender identity. Just call me a tranny and get on with your day

[daistea]

Since you take requests, would I be able to ask for something with Mithrun and Kabru with like a reader that's kind of dense with social cues/hints (especially if they're romantic)?

(I had people confess their love to me, and I still didn't get it till they put it in very clear terms)

(it's probably the 'tism, but I digress. )

I think it's potentially an absolutely hellerious dynamic since Kabru always plays 5D chess with every social interaction. As for Mithrun, I think it's funny to think how the other canaries would just be repeatedly hitting their head on the wall because their captain won't say it straight and they just don't g e t i t.

Ps: I absolutely love how in-depth all of your understanding of characters and their personalities are, and I just hxfhxdvgudts.

This blog just brings me so much joy

Yaaa!!

“Iᴛ’s ᴀ Dᴀᴛᴇ” Kᴀʙʀᴜ x Rᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ, Mɪᴛʜʀᴜɴ x Rᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

gn reader

5000 words ;P

Warning: reader is very oblivious. Like incomprehensibly oblivious (for the lolz)

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

♡ Kabru ♡

- Kabru has had little flings here and there throughout his life. He treated every partner with respect, of course, but Kabru wasn’t particularly looking for love. He doesn’t dislike the idea of love, it just hasn’t happened yet.

- So, when Kabru starts to genuinely fall in love with someone, it’s a new feeling. He’s observant enough to recognize what it is.

- Unfortunately, the person he’s falling in love with is you.

“He’s been unusually quiet lately,” Holm remarked. Who he was remarking that to remained to be seen. Mickbell didn’t care much. Kuro had other things to worry about. And Rin had already made the same observation three times earlier that day.

The first floor of the dungeon was always crowded, and Kabru’s ears were usually open for anything that could be of use. The leather armor merchant to his left had recently raised his prices. The cobbler to the right was in an argument with an older lady over the shape of a patch he’d made on her favorite boots. And Holm was concerned about Kabru’s recent lack of observations; as concerned as Holm could be.

“Is that really such a shock?” Kabru sent Holm a smile over his shoulder. “I’m not exactly a chatterbox.”

But he was aware of himself enough to know that his behavior lately had been odd. He was usually so good at hiding it, too, but the comfort of his friends seemed to lower his walls. Without realizing it, Kabru had spent their latest dungeon expedition sighing to himself, staring at walls, and missing the details of important things. On the third floor, they’d encountered thieves. His party always relied on him to clock the intentions of approaching adventurers— thieves tended to be overly familiar, friendly, and a bit too eager— but Kabru’s mind was elsewhere. The thieves attacked, and it had genuinely taken him by surprise. The fight wasn’t hard, but Kabru’s lack of preparation set off alarms in Rin and Holm’s heads.

“You’re not,” Rin agreed. Her brow furrowed and she got that cute little line on her forehead again. “However, you’ve really been out of it.”

“Have you been thinking about that person again?” Holm asked.

That person. That person? Kabru knew a lot of persons. The whole first level was filled to the brim with persons, half of them being his acquaintances. Kabru had zero desire to admit that he knew precisely who Holm was referring to, though, and decided to keep his gaze straight ahead as he weaved through the crowd.

When he didn’t respond, Mickbell laughed, “Yeah, he’s thinking of them alright.”

“Heat?” Kuro asked.

Mickbell scoffed from his place on Kuro’s shoulders, “Tall-men don’t go into heat! At least I don’t think so. But they catch feelings, like a cold. Kabru’s caught a cold.”

“Not sneezing,” Kuro mumbled.

“A feelings cold, I mean! The worst kind.”

That was one way to put it. Kabru couldn’t help but sigh as he led the party towards a quieter spot in the corner. Once they were out of the sea of people, he leaned against the stone wall and ran his fingers through his hair. “I don’t have feelings, I’m simply curious,” he said.

Curious. Right. Mickbell sent him a scrunched up, narrow-eyed look that was reminiscent of constipation. Yet, Rin interjected before the half-foot could say something heinous. “What’re you curious about, particularly?” She asked.

“Good question,” Kabru folded his arms over his chest and tilted his head in thought.

What was he curious about? You held so many secrets. You had this look in your eyes that drew him, a look that reminded him of a room in his mother’s house. She always told him to not go inside. Her rules only made him want to turn the knob even more. And when he finally did disobey her and go inside, all he saw were boxes full of ceramic unicorn miniatures. Still, the rush of satisfaction he’d felt at finally knowing what was in there couldn’t be matched. That’s what he wanted to do to you, open your door and take a peek.

Or, perhaps a ‘peek’ was an understatement. He wanted to meticulously inspect every inch of your mind with a microscope, to know the atoms unseen by the human eye, to be intimately acquainted with every molecule you possessed.

“He’s zoned out again,” Holm muttered, ripping Kabru out of his thoughts.

He looked up, eyes widening at the observation. Holm was right, he was zoned out again, staring at the dirt on the floor and contemplating you.

He forced a smile, “Don’t worry about me, really. I’m just preoccupied. It’s that person, I simply want to know their intentions.”

“Intentions for what?” Rin asked.

For everything. There was no simple answer.

“Oh hey,” Mickbell glanced over his shoulder. His voice was flat as he scanned the room, “There they are.”

Kabru followed Mickbell’s gaze, a straight line that led directly to you— all lines seemed to lead directly to you lately. His heart clenched in a way that was both unpleasant and addictive. Without realizing it, he pushed away from the wall and began striding toward where you stood.

“Wait,” Rin grabbed his arm as he passed. Kabru blinked, looking down at her and waiting for her to speak. She met his eyes and frowned, “I think you’re going to be disappointed. They’re not as mysterious as you think they are.”

Nonsense. You were incredibly mysterious. Kabru could tell you had secrets, layers. He dreamed of pulling them back one by one.

“They couldn’t disappoint me,” he sent Rin a smile that he hoped was reassuring— he knew it was, he’d practiced it in the mirror and on other people all the time.

“I think they will,” she argued.

“They won’t,” his smile faltered just the slightest. Rin didn’t usually get involved in Kabru’s… hobby. Did she know something he didn’t? He decided to not ask outright, accepting the challenge of figuring out the meaning behind her concern on his own.

Rin let go of his arm and Kabru was free to go. His mind switched elsewhere, onto you, and before he knew it he was already slipping through the crowd of bodies to reach you.

You were in front of the vegetable seller’s stand, inspecting a lumpy potato. Kabru knew the vegetable seller was cheating on his wife. Usually, he’d try to get more out of the man, digging deeper simply for the sake of knowing. Yet, you stood there, beautiful and mind-consuming. What did Rin mean by ‘I think you’re going to be disappointed’? Kabru was rarely disappointed with secrets.

“Hey,” he raised a hand as he neared. You looked up from the potato and returned his smile. There was that look in your eyes again, that closed door he desperately needed the key to.

He loved crowds. He loved the hundreds of voices. He loved listening to each one and assigning them meaning, picking apart their words, filing them away into neat little categories. Yet, the crowd might as well have disappeared. All he saw was you. All he wanted was you and your words and your thoughts and your fears and your goals and your likes and your dislikes and your intentions and your—

“Oh hey,” your voice cut through the wants like the slash of a sword, “Kapru.”

Kapru.

His brows furrowed and he plastered on a polite smile— also practiced in the mirror. “It’s Kabru.”

“Right, sorry,” you shrugged.

Were you playing with him? Were you sending your pawn out, a piece that you expected him to take for the sake of a larger, more powerful move? Was it bait?

“How are you?” He forced himself to ask, though he could hear the weakness in his voice. He desperately hoped you wouldn’t notice.

You only tilted your head in thought, “I’m fine. Just buying potatoes.”

“It’s been so long since we’ve seen each other,” Kabru said. It was a lie, you saw him last week. “My party and I are about to go back to the surface to restock. We could grab a drink if you wanted.”

“Why?” You asked.

Why? Why? Kabru couldn’t say why. He wouldn’t say why. ‘I want to take detailed notes on every word you say, every gesture, every breath’ wouldn’t be helpful to his cause in the least.

“Because we’re friends,” he slowly explained. Again, there was that hint of weakness lacing every syllable. He wanted to tear his voice box apart and reconstruct it in a way that wouldn’t falter every time he saw you.

But you didn’t seem to notice. “Alright,” you sent him a smile that made his heart clench.

Alright. Kabru’s smile relaxed, “Alright,” he echoed. “It’s a date.”

‘It’s a date’ was a common saying, of course. But it still held implications, it still held desires, it still signified something more— At least to him it did.

You remained unphased by it, though. Usually, when Kabru said that, there would be a laugh or blush or the widening of eyes. You gave him nothing of the sort. No flirtatious looks, no intention-laced smile, no flicker of recognition.

“See you then,” was all you said.

Rin was wrong. You couldn’t disappoint him. Opening your doors and peeking inside your mind would be so satisfying.

- You go on several dates with Kabru without realizing they’re dates.

- After one date when you make friends with the next table over and invite them to join your meal, introducing Kabru as ‘my friend’ and not ‘the man who is courting me’ or ‘my boyfriend’, he begins to wonder…

- Do you not realize that these are dates?

Kabru knew he had the tendency to stare, but he usually kept that urge locked away for the sake of masking. Always masking. Always aware of his surroundings and the people and the words and the looks.

He kept his staring urge hidden at first. Yet as time passed, as you went on more dates, he couldn’t help himself. He had to stare. He had to drink in every detail of your face, coveting it all as a desert wanderer would covet water.

And you didn’t seem to mind. You would give him this look sometimes, a look he couldn’t quite decipher. It was a mixture between affection and confusion and bashfulness. It was his favorite expression of yours and never failed to put butterflies in his stomach.

Kabru knew he was falling in love. He wasn’t opposed to the idea, but he’d never been truly in love before. At night when he forced himself into bed, he stared at the ceiling and mused on the future you had together. Neither of you had said anything to make the relationship official, but was that even needed? It was obvious that you were together— to him, at least.

Kabru held your hand as he led you through the crowded streets. Once you caught up to his side, he placed his palm on the small of your back. He wasn’t much for PDA, but it was a necessity when traversing the island together. He didn’t want to lose you in the crowd.

Once you were in a more quiet spot, he sent you a smile, “I have to ask, I’m too curious; What’s your favorite date that we’ve had together?”

You thought for a moment, “Hm… I would have to say last week. It was a Thursday. I like Thursdays anyway. I think it was the 7th? Yeah. June 7th, Thursday. That’s a good date, it’s a bit cool outside and all the flowers are blooming. But if I had to say which one was my favorite, I think it would be April 18th. I’m not sure that we spent that date together, though.”

…Okay.

Like the sunset rising over the mountains, it began to dawn on him.

Were you stupid?

No, you weren’t stupid. He had seen you in the dungeon before, how you fought and strategized and reacted. You couldn’t be stupid.

Then what? Were you playing hard to get? Were you teasing him? Was this a move on the board, your Knight piece pressing forward to continue the assault? Kabru needed to know.

He kept his hand on your back but his gaze straight ahead. “That’s nice,” he said. It wasn’t nice, actually. “What about when we hold hands? Do you enjoy that?”

You shrugged, “It helps us keep track of each other as we go through a crowd.”

“But I hold your hand even when we’re not around other people.”

The face you made betrayed your true thoughts. “Yeah, it seems like your hands are cold a lot. You really should start keeping gloves with you.”

“...Do you think I’m holding your hand because my fingers are cold?”

Another flash of confusion, another furrow of your brows. “Why else would you hold my hand?”

The sun rose completely over the mountains and the daytime, clear and bright, engulfed his world.

You had no clue.

- This stresses Kabru out immensely.

- He starts taking notes. He has a special little book just for you. A lot of the pages are filled with scribbles and question marks.

- He makes a plan on what to do. He’s going to up the ante, he’s going to make his feelings so clear that you can’t ignore them or be oblivious even if you tried.

- He starts getting more touchy. He kisses your forehead often. He kisses your knuckles. He’s around you all the time, every chance he gets. He tells you you’re beautiful. He says that he wants you to meet his mother. He talks about your future together.

- You say, “Oh, your mom? Cool. You think we’ll get along? I’m always up for making new friends.”

- “You want a future with me? Well, I’m free next Wednesday.”

“I like you,” Kabru was breathless and wide-eyed. His hair was a mess from how often he’d run his fingers through it. He was disheveled and hadn’t slept the entire night.

You glanced up from the book you were reading, “Oh? Cool, thanks.”

He sent you a look. “No, I mean I love you.”

“Yeah,” you flipped a page in the book, “love you too.”

“You do?” Hope bloomed and unfurled like a spring flower. Kabru felt his cheeks grow warm, a fire igniting within him.

“Yeah,” you said lightly, “I love all my friends, of course.”

That spring flower suddenly wilted. The fire was doused by a cold bucket of water in the form of your words. Kabru wanted to scream and bang his head against the wall.

“You don’t get it,” he hissed through clenched teeth, fingers tensing as he leaned forward, desperate. “I’m in love with you. This is really hard for me to say, but I think you need to hear it like this. I love you. I love you. I love you…” Somehow, his cheeks went even hotter. His adams apple bobbed as he swallowed his embarrassment, “I-I… Sorry. I just need you like I need oxygen. I…”

You snorted, “You don’t need me to breathe, I’m a person not an organ. You’re breathing right now just fine.”

He was not breathing just fine, but that was beside the point.

“Excuse me for a moment,” Kabru said. He could hear how strained his voice sounded.

You watched as he walked away, rounding a corner and disappearing from sight. Then he screamed. It sounded like he also kicked something, a crate or box maybe.

How odd.

- When it finally gets through your head, he’s actually a bit satisfied by your embarrassment at it all. Yes, please do acknowledge your obliviousness. Please do apologize for treating his love confession so casually. When you do so, he feels as if he could melt from the relief.

- He still wants to bang his head on the wall, though.

- And he’s spent a lot of nights screaming into his pillow.

- Kabru continues to play 5d chess with you, just simply out of habit, but you’re playing Hungry Hungry Hippos the entire time. He still finds himself trying to pick apart your actions and responses, but he’s learned how to take things at face value when it comes to you. It’s a difficult adjustment, but one he’s willing to make.

- He starts to learn, take more notes, observe your behavior. For dates, he lays it out carefully. You two are going to do this specific thing. Why? Because he would like to see you happy, and hold your hand, and kiss you. Why? Because he loves you. Now you get it.

- You’re fascinating actually. Genuinely, he starts to adore how your brain works. He wants to pick it apart and hold the pieces up to a magnifying glass.

♡ Mithrun ♡

- He does not care.

- Be as oblivious as you want, that’s not going to stop Mithrun.

- The Canaries, however, are going insane.

“How’s it going with them?” Pattadol asked. Her hands were folded in front of her in that polite way, the way that told Mithrun that his second in command had something on her mind. Pattadol thought she was subtle. She was not.

And he knew precisely who she was referring to. Might as well give her an answer that’ll satisfy her curiosity, lest she keep asking questions.

“Fine,” he answered, “just fine.”

Yet, Pattadol’s brow furrowed. Not a good sign.

“Just fine?” She asked. Her voice went up a pitch. “It’s just fine? Really?”

“Really.”

She unlaced her fingers and spread out her hands as if gesturing to something, but all that surrounded them was Mithrun’s under-decorated living quarters. There was really nothing to gesture at besides the wooden cabinets and the bed. Mithrun waited, aware that she was picking through her piles of thoughts— probably thoughts mixed with screams of frustration— to find the right words.

Finally, Pattadol forced a shaken smile, “It’s clear to anyone that knows you that you’re in love with them, Captain.”

That was what she decided to say? It was a bit blunt for Pattadol’s usual style. Mithrun only shrugged, “Yeah, you’re right. It’s pretty obvious.”

“So why haven’t they noticed yet?”

“Why do you care?”

“Because I want you to be happy for once!” Pattadol snapped, but she then took a deep breath, “Sorry, Captain, I didn’t mean to sound that way. This is hard for me, talking so openly about these things… But it’s so frustrating to watch.”

Mithrun could understand that. While he personally wasn’t frustrated by the circumstances, he knew that the Canaries couldn’t stand watching his interactions with you. It wasn’t a big deal in the long run, in his opinion. They’d get over it.

“Thank you,” he answered.

“Do you have any ideas on how we can do that?”

“Do what?”

Pattadol’s eye twitched ever so slightly. Her fingers tensed like claws, and Mithrun felt the corner of his lips turn up in a barely-there smirk. But genuinely, he wasn’t sure what she referred to. Did she mean the part about him being happy, or the part about you being oblivious? She should’ve been more clear.

“About…” she hesitated. Obviously she wasn’t sure what she meant either. She then nodded as if deciding, “About everything. About the obliviousness, your happiness, etcetera.”

He didn’t know what the etcetera referred to, but didn’t care to ask. “You don’t have to do anything,” Mithrun assured her as he leaned back in the chair and folded his arms. The wood creaked slightly from the movement. Everything on this boat creaked, as was the nature of boats, he guessed.

“I would like to do something,” Pattadol nodded, determined. “We all would.”

A shrug, “Alright. Then do something.”

- Pattadol, over-achiever and top student and certified Girl Who Cares Too Much, takes that as a challenge.

- Cithis only joins because she thinks it’ll be funny.

- Fleki also only joins because she thinks it’ll be funny.

- And Lycion also also joins because he thinks it’ll be funny (though he does care on some level. Not really about you, but about Mithrun. And it’s painful to watch.)

- Otta is forced to join.

- The attempts are weak at first, like dipping a toe into the water to see how cold it is. Mithrun only has so much patience for interference with his life, so they have to be smart and tread carefully.

- Pattadol gives Mithrun a hint. “There’s some pretty flowers growing beside the road over there. You should give one to them!”

- “What would they need a flower for?”

- Mithrun asks that on purpose. He knows precisely what he’s doing. Yes, people generally like receiving flowers, he knows that. But he also believes that flowers are useless gifts.

- “Then what present do you suggest?” Pattadol asks.

- Mithrun has an idea. He gets you soap. Everybody uses soap (hopefully) It’s a useful gift, and if he gives you the same kind he uses then he’ll get some weird sick flicker of pleasure from having his scent on you. (He wisely chooses to not say that part aloud.)

You held the little bar of soap in your hands as if it were an injured baby bird you found on the ground. Yet your feelings towards it were far from protective or empathetic. This soap said something. It had a mouth and it used it to scream.

You met Mithrun’s flat gaze, “Soap…”

He nodded, “Yeah. Soap. It’s a gift for you.”

For you?

Mithrun continued, “It’s the same kind I use. Smells the same.”

It felt as if you’d swallowed a handful of pebbles and they all had gotten stuck in your throat. “Do you… think I’m stinky?”

You cursed yourself for even asking that. What a useless question. Obviously, he thought you stank! He gave you soap! He was trying to tell you something, being subtle and polite for once! Usually Mithrun would just say it bluntly, but he’d been working on his desires lately. Perhaps he’d also decided to embrace societal expectations? You weren’t sure. But soap. Soap!

You didn’t notice how Mithrun tensed. You didn’t see him quickly blink several times and tilt his head. You didn’t see the slight widening of his good eye. “No, I—“

“I’ll go use this right now,” you interrupted, “I’ll go wash away my stench so you can finally stand to be near me.”

Despite the horror, you were a bit proud of yourself. You’d taken a hint, maybe you were getting less oblivious.

- In your defense, a bar of soap is a weird gift.

- Alright. Mithrun admits it, he needs help. He’s not so prideful anymore that he won’t admit that he doesn’t know what to do.

- Pattadol is really triumphant about that but does her best not to show it.

- Plan B: make it so obvious that you have no choice but to realize his feelings.

“This has to be the most physically uncomfortable I’ve felt in a very long time,” Mithrun said as he tugged at the ends of the fancy, over-decorated blouse the Canaries had put him in. “I honestly prefer Cithis’s frilly dresses.”

Which was saying something. Mithrun had a preference? That was a good sign.

“It makes you look handsome,” Pattadol said.

“The only thing it makes me is itchy,” he corrected.

The Canaries had somehow found a blouse— not a shirt or tunic, a blouse— that made Mithrun feel something other than indifference. He usually didn’t care about what he wore, as long as it was comfortable, but the clothes they’d stuffed him into were offensive to human-kind, like vegan bacon.

It had a big frill on the front and puffy sleeves. It was somehow both too flowy and too tight at the same time. The trousers weren’t much better, digging into his legs. And the shoes…

Mithrun didn’t want to talk about the shoes.

It was clear to him that Fleki and Cithis had only contributed to the outfit because they thought it would be amusing. Good for them, he supposed. Pattadol seemed to genuinely like it, Otta looked horrified, and Lycion was in some in between state where he wanted to show pity but couldn’t quite stifle his giggles.

“Remind me again what the point of this is?” Mithrun asked with a sigh.

“We got them to agree to a date!” Pattadol said, grinning, “I said outright ‘it’s a date’ so there would be no confusion. I made it clear that the date was with you. Now, if you show up looking like a million gold with a bouquet of flowers, they’ll get the hint.”

Mithrun did not want to do that.

Mithrun rarely wanted to do anything, but this just felt wrong. In his opinion, the relationship between you and him would develop naturally in a way that fit both of your personalities. He didn’t mind waiting for you to realize his intentions, he had time. As long as you didn’t fall in love with someone else, and didn’t stop him from staring at you or touching you, then he wasn’t in a rush.

But since the Canaries insisted, seeming to think that this was the right course of action, he would go along with it. Maybe it would be an utter disaster and Pattadol would realize that she knew very little about relationships— especially a relationship involving Mithrun. He was aware enough of himself to know that it wouldn’t be conventional.

With his hair pulled back into a tight ponytail and the ridiculous outfit on, Mithrun entered the restaurant Pattadol had chosen. He found you immediately. You sat in a chair with your elbow on the table and your ankles crossed, waiting.

Mithrun held a bouquet of pink roses as he approached. You lit up when you saw him, but your brows then furrowed.

“Where’s Pattadol?” You asked.

His stride faltered, “She isn’t coming.”

“Oh,” you shrugged, “well since she set this up I assumed she’d be here.”

Why would she be here? It was a date Pattadol had set up for you and Mithrun specifically.

You probably didn’t know it was a date, he realized. Pattadol thought she’d been clear by saying ‘it’s a date’ but failed to realize that that was just a common phrase among people and meant nothing to no one.

Calm, he slid into the seat across from you and watched as you raised a brow, “What’re you wearing?” You asked.

“My team picked it out for me.”

“You look like you’re part of an opera or a ballet, like you’re about to stand beneath a balcony and start spouting poetry to your lover.”

That was a good description, actually. Those were the words Mithrun had been looking for earlier when he saw himself in the mirror.

He nodded, “Yep.” Then, wordlessly, he held out the bouquet to you.

Your eyes widened, “For me?”

“I’m handing them to you, aren’t I?”

Gingerly, you took the flowers and held the stem of the wrapped bouquet with both hands as you inspected each petal.

A flicker of surprising satisfaction ran through his chest. You liked the flowers. It made sense, most people liked flowers, even if he didn’t see why.

You dipped your head down toward them presumably to smell them, but your lips then parted and you dug your teeth into the nearest rose.

Mithrun froze.

You chewed on the rose, your nose wrinkling in disgust. You gave the flower a good shot, a proper taste, but it didn’t take long until you grabbed a napkin and spit up the pink slobbery mess into it.

“Sorry,” you sent him an apologetic smile and tried to hand the bouquet back to him, “they don’t taste that good, and I don’t think I could season or cook them in a way that would help.”

Mithrun knew he was staring. He knew he was making a face, slightly tilting his head down, intensity in his eye. The kind of face someone made when they were internally screaming.

He was not internally screaming, but he was thinking— about you, how your brain worked. And how it was so damn charming for some reason and all he wanted to do was kiss you until he was all you could think about.

He wanted something. The feeling was sweet, a shot of adrenaline, one of Fleki’s drugs. Addictive. Like the slow drip of honey. He could survive off that want for ages.

Wordlessly, Mithrun threw the bouquet over his shoulder to get rid of it. Judging by the gasp that followed, it probably hit someone in the head.

Loving you was as natural to him as breathing.

- Mithrun decides to not let the Canaries interfere any longer. He was wrong earlier in thinking he needed their help. He doesn’t.

- Also, watching them go insane over your obliviousness and his lack of communication provides a good bit of entertainment.

- When he finally decides to give into that all-consuming, new, exciting desire and kiss you, your response is, “But I wasn’t casting a spell, no reason to try and stop me.”

- God, he adores you.

- He takes kisses whenever he wants them, with no care about what you think his intention is.

- After a certain kiss that involves tongue and teeth and fingers digging into your waist, you start to openly wonder… Are you in a relationship with Mithrun?

“Yes,” Mithrun didn’t even glance up at you, remaining unphased by your rather serious question, “We’re in a relationship.”

He continued to jot down notes about a monster he saw, as if he’d just casually answered a question about the weather. ‘Is it going to rain today?’ ‘Yeah looks like it.’

You gulped, “How long?”

“A year now,” he kept writing. Truthfully, he’d been expecting this. A flash of disappointment crossed his mind; there goes one of his hobbies, watching the Canaries have a crisis over his love life.

You buried your face in your hands. Mithrun stopped writing and patted your head as if comforting a dog.

- The Canaries are pleased that this is over. But actually, they’re going to have to watch you not realize it when you’re engaged to the Captain.

- At your wedding you’re in regular clothes. Someone asks why and you say “Mithrun told me we’re going to a wedding. He didn’t say it was ours.”

｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

[sad-stucky-shipper-107]

OK OK SO, long post but bear with me. This is such an important match.

Here we see what Kageyama's worst fear is. He gives his 101% BUT BUT only he did that in his previous team, he played so good that everyone else was getting left behind. And so no one trusted his tosses, He spiked the ball and no one was there to get it. he admits this is like the worst fucking thing in the world

We get a better look at the dymanics of the team. Look at how mean Tsukishima can be. Clearly it is hard enough for Kageyama to talk about it but Tsukki will dig and dig and dig until the other guy is bleeding.

Tanaka sees this is bad, so attempts to moderate but Daichi stops him, he knows that this is something the 1st years will have to work out by themselves (though I have no doubt he'll step in if things get too bad)

And they do! Kageyama is spilling his guts on that volleyball court and everyone is Holding Their Breath at whats gonna happen next

And what happens next is the absolute fucking miracle that is Hinata Shoyo. He so EASILY brushes away Kageyama's worries. He tells Kageyama that he has nothing to worry about (😭😭😭 oh god they're making me sob) He says it with SO MUCH CONFIDENCE THAT KAGEYAMA HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO BELIEVE HIM.

BECAUSE THAT;S WHAT HINATA SHOYO DOES. HE BELIEVES IN HIMSELF. AND HE BELIEVES IN YOU. AND HE BELIEVES IN YOU UNTIL YOU BOTH BELIEVE IN YOURSELVES AND EACH OTHER TO MAKE YOUR DREAM A REALITY.

HINATA SHOYO HAS DECLARED THAT THEY WILL BEAT TSUKISHIMA AND THAT KAGEYAMA WILL BECOME A SETTER SO THEY WILL.

AND AND.

HERE HINATA SHOWS HIS OWN INSECURITY. TELLS EVERYONE THAT EVERY CHANCE, EVERYBALL IS WORTH CHASING BECAUSE HE HASN'T HAD EVEN THAT. EVER. HE IS SHORT SO HE CANT AFFORED TO MISS EVEN A SINGLE TOSS.

AND THEN MF KAGEYAMA STEPS UP. HE DOES. HE 1) ACKNOWLEDGES HINATA AS A SPIKER AGAIN AND 2) TELLS HIM THAT HE HAS HINA'S BACK.

MORE TEAM DYNAMICS!!! SUGA TRIES TO PERSONALLY ENGAGE WITH KAGEYAMA (This is where I think the SugaMom and Dadchi dynamics come from, Daichi has a better over all commanding presence whereas Suga prefers bonding with them all one on one. Not to say they can't switch but we all have out strengths.)

Awww Kageyama finally complimenting hina and telling him he has so much potential, I love them to death

AND HERE WE HAVE A TRUE GLIMPSE OF THE GENIUS OF TOBIO. MY BOY HAS AN ACTION PLAN AND BY GOD HE IS GOING TO WIN THIS GAME WITH THE ABSOLUTE WEAPON THAT IS HINATA SHOYO.

BUT. BUT. FOR THAT HE NEEDS HINATA'S ABSOLUTE TRUST. WITH ANYONE ELSE THAT WOULD BE SUCH A BIG ASK BUT HINATA. MAN. HINATA DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO DO THINGS ANY OTHER WAY. ALL HE CAN DO IT TRUST IN KAGEYAMA. AND HE DOES. WITHOUT HESITATION.

KAGS IS LITERALLY PLAYING 5D CHESS ON THE COURT

AND HE SETS. AND HINATA SPIKES AND THEY FUCKING SCORE. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME THEY SCORE!!

THE FACT THAT HINATA'S EYES WERE CLOSED. THE FACT THAT HE HAD SUCH ABSOLUTE FAITH IN TOBIOS TOSS (The toss which no one even bothered picking up in the last match) THAT HE LITERALLY HAD BLIND FUCKING FAITH.

AND IT FUCKING PAYED OFF. SHOYO WAS RIGHT, WE'RE ALL IDIOTS AND BOTH SHOYO AND TOBIO ARE JUST THAT GREAT.

GOD I FUCKING LOVE THESE IDIOTS SO MUCH

[eldritch-spouse]

This ask bout to be WILD please forgive me if I make you uncomfortable

What flavor of cum have the concubi had before?

Have they ever taste something bitter (but a good kind of bitter) with a hint of sweetness and an aftertaste of saltiness? or idk if it was tangy it kinda tasted sweet but also saltish? too much, so what's their favorite flavor?

I love how I'm talking about cum as if it were ice cream

Concubi are hardwired to enjoy the taste of sexual fluids, be that a cumshot or the slick of a wet cunt, it always makes their brain spark with elation, because it's what sustains them and validates their purpose. Their sense of flavor is also different from ours. There comes a time (adulthood) where concubi stop relying on actual food to sustain themselves, and their tastebuds change, they no longer have that "favorite flavor" the same way others do.

This is like asking someone to go to the front of the class and tell everyone and little bit about themself. You're going to be stuck with a loading wheel on your head and, overall, think your answer could have been better.

Approach Santi about his favorite flavor of cum and he'll say "Salty!", then "No, tangy!" then "Wait... Runny and sweet!", opening and shutting his mouth while his last brain cell burns to a crisp nugget.

Approach Vesper and he'll start describing parameters of cum-flavor you're not even aware of. "The slick of an extremely devout woman in complete denial of her desire for the demonic.", "The cum of a man who has been troubled for so long that he forgot the simplest pleasures in life-", "The taste of a person who just discovered their biggest fetish and is indulging in it for the first time!". Vesper is playing 5D chess over here.

The rest will either fumble like Santi or tell you they like lots of it. Taste? No, quantity.

[mixelation]

thinking about tori's chunin exam (the second one) again

one thing i want to play with is tori just having a completely different mindset from everyone, especially when it comes to the point of tests. because her origin story is being a high-strung pre med student, she is acutely aware that tests frequently have more to do with how you understand the exam rather than the material. like yeah, you have to know your shit, but you're unlikely to get into the top percentile unless you ALSO understand the game.

and growing up in oto just reinforces this. you think orochimaru is testing you on the thing he asked you to do? no!! there's seven other secret tests baked into the thing! look underneath the underneath!!

so anyway, tori is very aware that she's being tested on her ninja skills, BUT ALSO on a bunch of other stuff. second round survival portion? you mean her being able to size up potential opponents and, if she plays her cards right, pick who gets into the tournament? why would she try to finish first.... she needs to stalk other contestants and see what they do.

the tournament part she's been explicitly told is for her to show off for Konoha. tori's normal style.... doesn't really loan itself to showing off. so she goes in with a premade plan for a Very Cool Looking Convoluted Jutsu, and now she's shopping for the perfect genin to unleash it on. she is going to pick off genin she DOESN'T think will work with her plan. so she's gone into multiple levels of Off The Rails here

shisui at team 2: they're testing your ability to function in an unknown environment. your goal should be to get to the finish line while minimizing damage

tori: yeah but, see, you can also PICK your opponents for the tournament

shisui: i guess that's technically true. you might be able to pick off a stronger opponent in a setting where you can work as a team, and that will benefit you in the tournament. but you should only attempt that if the opportunity arises and also points strongly in your favor

tori: i mean if you plan enough, you can make anything happen :)

shisui: but it shouldn't be a priority

tori: besides, you don't want to pick off the strongest possible opponents, because the point of the tournament isn't even to win. it's to show off. so you want to shop for genin whose fighting styles are impressive enough it looks good when you beat them, but that you can exploit and--

team 2: what

shisui: tori PLEASE stop giving advice. they are genin

anyway, tori can bias the tournament to a certain TYPE of genin (for her grand plan she wants kiri kids with swords, which is like half the entrants) but she can't seed the tournament. so she unleashes her Cool Convoluted Jutsu second round and then in the finals is like. whelp. i did with i came here to do.

finalist genin: your trick won't work twice!!

tori: cool

tori: (hits him directly in the head with a bamboo pole)

anyway the Mood of this whole arc is that tori is silently freaking out and high anxiety the entire time because she's been given like seventeen goals (win the tournament, but do it in a specific way, also don't melt people that's bad PR--)

but from the outside it DOES look like she just played the whole tournament like a mildly friendly supervillain

shisui, whose previous concept of "young genius" was just "beast modes the challenges," NOT "itachi playing 5D chess in his spare time for no reason": TORI WHAT ARE YOU DOING

kisame: lmao. you're in over your head with that one, kid

shisui: ???

[completeoveranalysis]

[5]

The wording here makes Yuuko's message a bit ambiguous. When she says they went into the Jam Jar so that “neither of them would vanish” I can’t tell if she means so THEY wouldn’t vanish, or if she means the two futures. Maybe it’s the latter? The more I read it the more it feels like the latter.

And when she moves on to the topic of herself the “And I as well” could mean Herself in terms of Not Vanishing, or that she is also doing something to prevent the Two Futures from vanishing. Probably the latter here as well? The more I read this as well it also seems like the latter.

So. They had Jam Jar time so that neither of the two futures would vanish, and Yuuko's Time moving again means she can also do something that will help with that. I think that's it?

Language is so weird.

Oh! But here we go!

Since the Yuuko’s time is moving, and because the barrier between life and death is still in place, she can finish her 5D chess move and send the Jam Jar Sakura and Syaoran into the World of Dreams. Which they APPARENTLY were not in already - CONFIRMED. That's good to know, since the last time we had a Jam Jar it kind of also WAS the world of dreams?

I constantly feel like I just need to reread everything all over again

HERE WE GO! 

JAM JAR: BROKEN!

MAGIC CIRCLE: GIANT

EVERYONE: SHOCKED

I am forcibly removed from the Jam Jar.

[oodlyenough]

apollo justice: ace attorney thoughts

over the weekend I finished playing AA4 so I wanted to try to put my thoughts in order. much to think about etc

spoilers for the whole game obv, but i haven't played AA5 or AA6 yet so any mention of those are speculation lol

I had heard some pretty mixed reactions to AA4 and I had a lot of reservations going in. It's also probably the AA game I've played that I've been the most spoiled for, which is a shame but probably an unavoidable consequence of waiting for the port while engaging with the fandom. I don't usually like being spoiled but I think knowing the broad strokes of what to expect actually helped here. I can imagine an AU where I blitzed through the first trilogy and onto 4 with no idea of what was coming and being... very upset and disappointed by the direction it took. Having several months to brace for things like Phoenix's disbarment, the 7 year gap, Trucy, etc definitely softened those blows and made me more amenable to them than I would've been otherwise.

Cases

For the most part I thought the puzzle solving was good and the pacing was solid. The puzzles were mostly challenging enough to be satisfying to solve but not so challenging as to be infuriating, and I don't think I needed a walkthrough at all. 4-1 is one of the best tutorial cases in the franchise so far (though I'd give the edge to 3-1) and 4-4 was a really cool finale. The middle two cases tbh I also found fairly charming, and there's usually a least one case in the middle that seems to drag forever, so that was a pleasant surprise. I played Investigations 1 right before this, and I thought both the puzzles and pacing in that game were frankly horrible, so AA4 won a lot of points just with that.

I did think Turnabout Corner and Serenade would be more relevant in the grand scheme of things. The half-spoilers I knew had me expecting a much bigger web of conspriacy than we ended up with -- I expected it to be more than coincidence that Phoenix got hit by a car, more than coincidence that the Borginian egg coccoons are related to poison etc ... like... I fully assumed this was going to tie into the atroquinine plot. But I guess not ... ? Lol

Characters

The new main cast are all very likable, despite my initial reluctance to have a new main cast to begin with. Klavier was an interesting change of pace as prosecutor, in that he wasn't particularly antagonistic outside of the court, nor was he particularly preoccupied with winning, but he was still fun and challenging enough to face off against. Trucy was fun and delightfully bonkers as all assistants should be. Apollo's longsuffering exasperation was hilarious. Ema is the BEST I loved having her as the detective I wish she was there all the time.

I loved Beanix, for the most part. I can see why he rubs some people the wrong way, and tbh I'm glad his last canon outing isn't ... this. But I didn't find him wildly out of character, or at least, when he was feeling "out of character" vs the trilogy it made sense given the intervening events. I also thought it was fun to see him from the outside and see what a galaxybrain 5d chess master he is. I do wish we'd gotten to see more genuine moments of him with Trucy.

Kristoph was fun as a villain, though I have to say fandom led me to believe he was much more of a mastermind puppeteer than he seemed to be in reality. I was expecting a whole decade worth of conspiracies! Instead he fucked up once and struggled to fix it for seven years, lol. I also found the Kristoph/Phoenix relationship a) very fascinating, b) not really what I'd been led to believe by fandom (shocker). I like the canon more though -- I like that instead of being a retread of the Dollie betrayal-from-someone-you-love it was two guys who hate each other being forced to play nice as part of their own schemes.

Criticism

I think it's fairly obvious AA4 was meant to be a soft reboot of the series, to pivot away from the trilogy cast and set up our new heroes in Apollo, Trucy, and I guess Klavier. I think this is probably the entire explanation behind Maya and Edgeworth (and others but lbr those are the big two)'s conspicuous absence... but that doesn't make their absence any less conspicuous. I can squint and forgive neither of them being there when Phoenix is accused of murder, even though I find that insane. I can squint around Maya maybe being off in Kurain during the Enigmar trial, even though I think they could've used a line of dialogue to explain it. But then we started playing past-Phoenix for huge portions of investigation and that started to fall apart for me. Sure, maybe he's pushing his friends away because he's depressed, or maybe he wants to keep Maya out of things because he thinks it's dangerous, or whatever -- you could at least throw in a line or two saying as much. Not mentioning them at all and setting AA4 so closely after AA3, where Phoenix fell through a bridge to save Maya and Edgeworth chartered a private jet, just feels ridiculous.

I also think, at the end of the day, the story here was focused on and pivoting around Phoenix. The core question of the game is "what the hell happened to/is up with Phoenix Wright?" I love Phoenix, so that alone isn't a negative -- except that I think it meant Apollo, Klavier and even Trucy felt underwritten. Trucy and Klavier have such personal stakes in the unfolding events with the Gramaryes and Kristoph, but we only spend a little time and hints on how that might influence Trucy, who mostly falls into the AA weird girl pattern of brushing off major trauma instantly. (Maya got this a lot too in the original trilogy.)

Klavier ... I like Klavier, but they did not do much with him. How did he feel about Kristoph going to jail? He doesn't seem to hold it against Apollo, which is uh, noble, but perhaps not believable. He says he values honesty and truth but do we know why?

Apollo, likable as he was, felt like a passenger in his "own" game, rather than a major character. He doesn't even solve much of the stuff happening in the big overarching mystery -- he is Phoenix's avatar in court, presenting evidence and clues Phoenix left for him. Unlike Trucy and Klavier, who I am pretty sure take a back seat from now on, I guess Apollo still has two more games to try and flesh himself out ... lol but I also know fan reception of those two is not great, so my expectations there are minimal.

Overall

A really solid game that I enjoyed playing, though I can see why it's controversial and not some people's favourite, if they really loved the trilogy. I think it's debatable whether this was the best/only way to continue the series after AA3. And I am excited to read and write a billion 7 year gap fics now.