#AMANE IS ALSO FASCINATING FOR DIFFERENT REASONS

[bl-bam-beyond]

KIMI TO NARA KOI WO SHITE MITE MO (2023, JAPAN)

Episode 5 - The Finale

Kaido Amane (OKURA TAKATO) moved to Enoshima to live with his grandmother. He knows who he is but he doesn't quite like himself.

He's open about his sexuality but past experiences has him guarded. Making light of sexuality.

He meets Ryuji, who is super kind almost to a fault but his attraction to Ryuji (HYUGA WATARU) is almost immediate.

They become friends with Ryuji serving as a way for Amane to let down his walls and be real even if only with Ryuji.

Amane falls hard with every intention to keep his growing feelings to himself, but suddenly he can't hold it in anymore and confesses. Then runs off leaving Ryuji all kinds of confused.

Not one to let sleeping dogs lie Ryuji requests alone time with Amane to discuss what Amane expects from his confession.

Summer break is upon them and a date is made to watch the fireworks but until then radio silence as Ryuji has responsibilities at home/restaurant. Amane tries to see Ryuji but when he does he leaves unseen as Ryuji is working hard.

For Ryuji's part he wants to see Amane but can't bring himself to contact him. Thoughts and confusion continue to plaque him.

The day comes. Amane and Ryuji are reunited for their long ago scheduled date (just a few weeks)

Amane heart beats fast and he mentions it to Ryuji (cue the blushing)

The date is a success. They talk. They kiss. They hold hands. Friends to Lovers.

Amane asks for the first kiss. Ryuji ask for the next kiss.

I will again compare this to OLD FASHION CUPCAKE. Yes, they are together but somehow I want more.

@pose4photoml @lutawolf

[2n2n]

ch 108

WEWWWWWW!!!!!!!! amazing times.

ghoul.... mmm... you look amazing honey

distractions

what is it with aida-sensei wwwww... if it's not Mokke running all around playing sillay little games in the BG it's a detail like this... well I love it very much

It's good to see Akane indict the Clockkeepers in some sense. The real threat indeed...

here we go AGAIN~

poor little songbird~~

it's the captive princesses ... Nene-chan.... I really adore you... you are pure of heart... you have to absorb and appreciate your scenery and role, don't you... it suits you. Unfortunately, even despite your intentions to do this secretly while he sleeps for some self-indulgent reason, I don't think Tsukasa can perceive your fetish, as he is too innocent. Now, you need to show it to Amane....

so kind of you to try to free you both at once, Nene-chan.... you really warmed up to him, didn't you?

N-Nene-chan animal theater.... I love when Aida-sensei does this so much!!!!!!

whore drawing...

but.. I really love to get to see a listless Tsukasa. I've been waiting forever... it's very cute that fatigue makes him depressive and unmotivated! I like that he's not trying at all and just laying down... Tsukasa strikes me as ah, not tolerant of bad stimuli...? the kind of boy who needs to keep his shirt untucked and his suspenders loose to the point of falling off... who can't tolerate a movie theater longterm. It's a charm point, part of this childishness... if he's bored, he just leaves ... if he's tired, he just lays down...

I'm so fascinated that his Tsueshiro are rendered inert, now. I couldn't imagine-- not when the general time power itself couldn't effect him like it did Amane... and, since Amane's Tsueshiro is operating perfectly normally, this means what happens to one doesn't touch the other...

Th-thank you for having beliefs like this, Nene-chan.... please, please think about how they are twins. It makes their minds special, doesn't it? Surely.

another instance to add to the list of 'Tsukasa having a surprising amount of faith in Nene-chan"! WELL-PLACED FAITH !!!! she's amazing isn't she....! this chapter....!

meanwhile.... a wrecking ball smashes into our minds...

what an incredibly intense bit of lore for the Yugi. I love how Tsukasa approaches 'facts'-- with a practical sense, without seeming morose or mired in what could seem a grim absolute. It's just like his delivery of, "Amane hates me" as his younger self.... Tsukasa doesn't lie to himself, doesn't pull away from what is true, but neither does he express resentment, or any expectation or wish for it to be any different. Amane is Amane. Tsukasa knows Amane. I really don't think Tsukasa imagines ... change ... in their dynamic, as much as Amane also struggles avidly with the idea of having anything 'new' as a ghost. I'm sure that is why Tsukasa is seemingly aiming for Amane to rip him asunder again....

He can't seem to be sad about what he doesn't have, because he just doesn't fathom having it in the first place. I... think that's, the purpose of, Nene-chan... to make Tsukasa consider what he doesn't have, or what could be had. Despite being the wish agent, I don't think Tsukasa wishes for much. I think Nene-chan does that for Amane too, of course... I think she's meant to give both the Yugi an impetus for seeing more. For wishing.

whatever part of Tsukasa may have mouthed Amane's name despite his own belief, he does seem to feel something profound....

you're acting tsun and fussy at a time like this.....

I hope Amane heard their entire exchange ... I imagine he would feel quite stubborn and fussy about what Tsukasa's so easily declared as a fact about him. I wonder how he feels about it.... "never come when called by you?"

I am sure every single second, feeling his weight accounted for and bared by Amane's body, is dreamlike. I doubt he can believe what he's feeling! For real.. Amane's arm! Carrying you! In equal measure to carrying Nene-chan!! THERE COULDN'T BE A BETTER MORE IDEAL PANEL FOR EXPRESSING AMANE'S LOVE FOR THE TWO--!!! these little GOONS!! also, this panel kind of gives you lewd thoughts

I'm sure.... if Amane showed up, Tsukasa expected Nene-chan to be plucked from his hands, and to continue to watch them pivot away to safety, while he falls down into the dark pit.. left to his own devices to figure out how to get out. He had to get out of Amane's boundary by himself, didn't he? and Tsukasa wouldn't be sad about it….! Really. It would be Amane being Amane, to him. He expects it, and it's fine. He loves Amane, anyway. He'd die for an Amane who he believes hates him. That's the kind of person Tsukasa is.

a moment to appreciate Tsukasa releasing his own hold on the edge of the cage, to catch Nene-chan...

A wonderful display. I don't think he thinks twice about it.... not a choice to plummet himself to oblivion, but an instinct. That's just like him, isn't it....?

I'll talk a little more about cages, crying for help, beseeching, at the end... because I have a few more thoughts about it!

ughhh save your princesses ♥♥♥♥ I can't believe you've threaded Tsukasa's bound arms around your neck.... ♥♥♥ God do I wish I could see it second by second....

you're making all my dreams come truuuueee Amaneeeeeehhhhh ♥♥♥♥ all three...!!! your two precious things....!!! ohhhhh our heroooo ♥♥♥♥ dashing in his cape.........

y-you remove Nene-chan's shackles but not Tsukasa's .......

if that is how you want me, master... wwwww

goobie woobie oobie baby Nene-chan in Hanako's arms. Hanako experiencing a new lolicon emotion. Ohhhhhhhhh sweet darling preciousness.... it's not so bad to experience a little bit of pain for such an incredible pleasure, right??

oh all this build up and sweating and shaking to say absolutely nothing in response is so incredibly Amane. She loves you just the way you are, thankfully.... we all do.....

I like DBS's TL of Tsu here better than the MangaUP actually AHAH... mangaUP did "good for you." which I think in ENGLISH carries a bitter connotation that I genuinely do not think Tsukasa has lol. He just talks in a naturally simple way lol.

god. Amane you'd love to get away with doing things with no commentary but unfortunately you have a funny little bug of a brother who is obsessed with you.... what an. amazing and perfect Yugi interaction. Amane obviously being pissy. extremely. Tsukasa keying into it. Amane lying blatantly but stubbornly doubling down anyway. Tsukasa continuing to ask like a little pest. Oouuuh. Boyce... brothers....

ohhh Tsu-chan... you can't... imagine.... the kinds of feelings... Amane has about that kiss... okay... he can't begin t o .. articulate ... any of it at all ... I'm sure he would honestly like it to be as simple as 'mad' ....

personally I enjoy that this makes it obvious it wasn't really Tsukasa's intention ... but I think it's cute to him Amane is still thinking about it despite all the circumstances and events lol.... I actually think Amane is being very charitable and maybe the best big brother he can manage to be here ............ I would give him a treat if I could ... not gonna yell at Tsukasa.... not gonna lash out rn.... contain it....

now I would like to say something funny lol. Tsukasa's line here is actually incredibly ambiguous:

he doesn't actually make reference to Nene-chan, it's like " Amane kiss also?" in that casually threadbare way JP can be ... it means the fujoshi are free to interpret "he's pointing to himself, is he referring to Amane kissing him?" playfully aahahahaa... I'm sad its hard to preserve that kind of ambiguous way of phrasing something!!! it's sad that kind of "wait what did he mean" funny discussion can't happen here, mangaUP also just had him directly refer to kissing Nene-chan.... I'm SUUUUURE it's 'meant that way' but, like, I love when coach lets the girlies play....!!!! they are loving this panel.... its way funnier vague .... Amane ? kiss ? too ? wwwww

AN AMAZING EVENT!!!!

LOVE to see Amane THROWING Nene-chan into Tsukasa's arms, Tsukasa dutifully catching her carefully, Amane trusting he will catch her...!!!! Well I have to say it... it's been funny watching the fandom predict a lot of animosity and hatred in all directions that just isn't there ahahaha. All these expectations for Amane to punch and maim Tsukasa in jealous rage, and instead, you have him relying on his brother to help protect her, and trying to graciously handle the situation. The Yugi... they always surprise you by how familiar they really are...

I'm in love with every time Amane seamlessly commands Tsukasa by saying his name... ♥♥♥ look at him, being such a useful otouto even though Amane hasn't granted him the use of his arms back, and the spell making him fatigued... ♥♥♥ even with a ball and chain on his ankle, Tsukasa can run for Nene-chan...!!

I don't have many profound feelings about Teru and Akane lol, they are just very funny to me-- ultimately neither's alliance is truly with one another, despite that I do believe Akane is one of the only people Teru is his true self around. A complicated closeness which is easily broken .... Akane would kill Teru for Aoi, Teru would kill Akane for his little siblings, these are things I think of as fact. It's such a tenuous bond and, they are mutually aware ... but kind of, struggle with betrayal and reliance and trust and dependence on one another's skills and support. I like how KILL TRAIN Teru is here lol. He's got plenty pent up concerning Akane ... unlike Kou, I think Teru is much more capable of "when push comes to shove..." and suspending empathy or compassion ... even if he could later hold remorse. Crazy Minamoto conditioning and such ...

Interested in the greater machinations and Akane's vagueries, but I don't have thoughts about them. Happy to wait for more (:

stupid ... uke .....

--pomf-- ooo get humped idiot

A FEW EXTRA THOUGHTS ...! pertaining to.... Tsukasa's ominous statement, that Amane would not come if he called... that he "never has before"

what a tantalizing thing to say. When, at what point in time? It conjures the image of a Tsukasa pleading for Amane-- something I'm sure many of us, can't even imagine. I haven't thought of a begging Tsukasa, wanting to be saved. He is so typically 'fine' where he is, even if that circumstance is unpleasant.... even at age 4. In a normal situation, it's hard to imagine Tsukasa calling for help from Amane ... and it's hard to imagine Amane, that sweet older brother, not simply sheltering him. He's sweet to Tsukasa, at 4. He's happy to read to him, and tries to put on a calm front for him while so ill, so as not to worry him. Amane cared about Tsukasa, of course! He's even charmed by the Tsukasa absorbed in katanuki for hours at 8. Wouldn't that Amane come running if called? .... but would that Tsukasa cry out for him .... ?

So.....

when, how? The only Tsukasa we've seen a glimpse of post-ghosting is the coffin boy, who appears quite inert and dead. He certainly can't call for Amane. The Tsukasa at the start of this series, struggled to even get used to moving at all. Is there a stage we don't know about?

How much could Tsukasa call him with no answer, until he ultimately concludes it simply will never be replied to? Why would he think that it is specifically himself Amane won't respond to? Only doing something once or twice, wouldn't create conviction like that. In order to say something like, "this person never ____", you would think there would be extraneous circumstances that proved ... beyond a shadow of doubt ... that it simply is the way things are. Tsukasa is so shocked to see Amane appear, and save him ... that belief has to be rooted in something Tsukasa took to heart.

Perhaps something happened when they were alive .... we really don't know what that final year was like.

Whatever the case... Amane does love Tsukasa-- unlike Tsukasa, we have the benefit of knowing this completely! In our hearts! There are circumstances where, because Amane loves you, and wants to protect you, he ignores your cries....

I wonder when, why, how... Amane wouldn't come when Tsukasa finally called. I wonder why Tsukasa would call for him ....

Honestly, if Amane didn't love Tsukasa, the possibilities wouldn't be so scary. They are much more haunting, knowing how much he loves his little brother. I can't wait to learn more about Amane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want to see the Tsukasa pleading for his brother!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wonder how hopeless we have had to get .... !

[amyyythestarry]

Thoughts On The New TBHK Chapter!

So.

The new chapter was a huge rollercoaster.

I’ve been happily stimming for hours and I will continue doing so.

It’s always so shocking when Tsukasa just appears out of nowhere. Like Nene and Hanako’s times have been stopped, they are frozen, don’t know what to do and are scared. Can’t breathe blink move twitch, nothing-

AND THEN BOOM, MAKE WAY FOR THE BEAUTIFUL BOY TSUKASA!!

He always appears when it’s Nene and Hanako too now, like that one scene where Hanako was comforting Nene about the near death thing ( I don’t feel like pulling up the chapter number or anything but hopefully you get what I’m talking about ).

Tsukasa is explaining the whole end for Kamome thing, like instead of ‘end of the world’ it’s only Kamome right now, since everyone is going to be stuck in time while the world moves on without them. Like with the red house, how its time is far different from the outside world. It has nothing to do with what is going on in the world, it’s just to itself.

Again, It still is kind of surprising to see Tsukasa so casual about this.

He keeps smiling, fiddling with the things that used to be in the clock, just explaining away without a care in the world.

He is the most idgaf person I’ve ever seen somehow.

He also doesn’t know what neither Hanako or Nene is thinking, he doesn’t know if they are going to save the day or not. Usually that is what they do, and Tsukasa sees that all the time as their ‘arch nemesis’. But right now, they are stuck and helpless.

He’s excited by the unpredictable-ness that’s going on. Tsukasa has done a lot of stuff on and off the camera, either impulsively or stuff that is totally in his control, or what he knows of. But that’s not the case here, because everything is going down, and the main protagonist don’t know how to go about it.

I love how Tsukasa is just admiring all of this. His brother and Nene frozen in time, admiring both of their expression, trying to guess what their thinking.

Sitting cross cross apple sauce in front of the main main protagonist. The hopeful one, the one that always finds a way around terrible outcomes, ever since the show began.

He wonders what she’s gonna do, since she has so much power over everything, can actually change the story and strategize and bend the story how she pleases.

( I think Tsukasa knows that somehow, someway, once Nene knows Sakura is up to no good she’s definitely going to find a way to twist Sakura’s plan around. Totally admirable personality. Tsukasa is intrigued. )

I wonder if he’s also thinking about what to do, what to do now that the main characters are stuck and helpless. What to do. Maybe he’s thinking if this is his chance to-

I feel like this wasn’t done for no reason. Like, not just to mess with Amane, since he can’t do anything about it. Maybe not to just see someone’s reaction.

I feel like he has planned this beforehand. Not the end of Kamaome thing, not Hanako and Nene being stuck so badly. The kiss.

I feel like he just popped up, saw that his brother and his brother’s assistant were totally frozen stiff, and was like “Oh, wait a second, this is totally a perfect time to do what I’ve always wanted!!”

Because one thing about Tsukasa is that he’s so into romance if you think about it.

He’s always gazing at people fall in love with others. The Kamome students, adults, everyone.

I feel that he is fascinated by it.

He’s always asking for a kiss from his assistant ( Seeing that Amane kissing his assistant all the time ). Always asking people if they are dating the other, like Nene with Hanako or Kou with Mitsuba and Nene.

Tsukasa probably always wonders about romance. Romantic stuff, ect.

He’s probably saw Amane always kissing, teasing, being romantic with his assistant, and thinks that he should also be that way with Sakura.

But seeing Sakura not wanting to be that way. Like, hmm, then who else to be romantic with??

He’s probably been planning this. This was something he’s been waiting for, his opportunity to be with Nene, kiss her like his brother does, and get all giddy about the fact that HE WAS ABLE TO DO IT!

HE WAS ABLE TO BE ROMANTIC!!!

YAY, HE DID IT. Applause, applause 👏🏽 👏🏽!

He was actually excited too 😭.

Pulls away from the kiss, takes a mili-second to process what he’s just done. AND GETS EXCITED!

Flapping his hands for a minute, “I KISSED HER, I KISSED HER OMMMGGGGGG-“

Totally how he was feeling.

Him, Tsukasa, reacting to his actions like this is totally rare. Has never seen this before.

Again, he does this a lot, he does a lot of things in his lifetime and after-lifetime.

We’ve never seen him get so excited about what he’s done though. He always expects it to go smoothly, always determined he can do something.

But get flustered my the fact that he actually was able to do it, do something he’s never been able to do before, happy stimming and everything reflecting on his actions like this??? This is new.

This was definitely planned.

It’s like when your friend wants to talk to their crush, wants to do something with someone they admire. Then preps for it like, forever, but never does it.

AND THEN FINALLY DOES IT.

And is extremely happy the they were so brave.

Applause for the braveness Tsukasa.

He’s never been romantic with anyone before, and when he finally does it, BUTTERFLIES AND SQUEALS! HORRAY FOR TSUKASA!!

So proud.

Also, he definitely wants Nene to be his assistant for something. This is probably the start of the Tsunene era. Like, Tsukasa will finally show he his and Amane’s past, and Nene will definitely try to do something.

She still had that rocket key too, from the early chapters where she walks in on Amane crying, he drops his keys, and she takes them.

I feel like Tsukasa is planning on Nene to do something about the key, he probably knows she had it. Because in the tea party arc, he totally just come out of nowhere, kidnaps her, has a nice little tea party and then sends her to another place. The everywhere and nowhere place.

I feel like he planned to sent her there to go to that door where she finds the key. He’s smart, he can actually do stuff and do it logically, do stuff smartly, have it planned out precisely.

Hanako is absolutely speechless. And his hakujoudais are worried.

He wasn’t even able to fully see what was going on! He just knows, somehow, Tsukasa’s face was close to Nene’s. Heard the “mwah” and was like WHATTTT??? WHAT IS GOING ON, I CAN’T SEE!!!????

He knew something was going on, he knew they were kissing, but he couldn’t see it! So sad.

His hakujoudai is also just as surprised. They circle around him, wondering if he’s ok.

It’s always funny to see his hakujoudai react to something. I feel like they are their own things, their own entity. They have feelings? They can react to things however they please.

Honestly I wish Tsukasa’s kokujoudai did that. I’ve never seen them react to anything! Not in their own way, not sweat, beam, anything!

I wish I could see that.

AKANE BRO 💀.

HE ALWAYS LOOKS SO FUNNY, SO REALISTIC!

He reacts to things so realistically, he’s so funny, the funniest character in TBHK!

“Hey, um, no.7 wtf is wrong with you?”

The blank face and everything, seeing one of the strongest supernatural he’s ever met cry, can’t move and utterly helpless.

Priceless reaction. Akane never fails to make me laugh.

But Hanako is also funny.

The way he’s just crying over something like this.

His brother kissed and stole his assistant, and he cries, not being able to do anything about it.

It’s funny because, it’s nothing terrible!

It’s not gruesome, like he’s seeing one of his friends getting ripped apart limb by limb. It’s nothing tragic, like Nene finally dying.

It’s Tsukasa stealing Nene away, claiming she’s his assistant now.

That’s what to cry about.

So sad.

And the fact that they are literally stuck in time and so will every other person in Kamome soon. And he’s left alone, lonely, without Nene. And Nene is with Tsukasa. Hanako must be thinking that he’s now lonely forever. Not Kou, Tsukasa, Nene, not even Mitsuba will be with him at the end of Kamome.

Hanako’s just shook, absolutely flabbergasted, bewildered. Nobody would have guessed his younger brother would be so romantic like that, and he is now. But it was so shocking!

So unpredictable!!

This scene will be the most surprising scene of all TBHK. To me at least.

I’ve never reacted to any other scene in TBHK the way I reacted to this.

Instead of trying to sue Aidalro just because a 13 year old boy had finally gotten a kiss. Aidalro needs more than a congrats. They should get the biggest hug ever.

This was so unpredictable and exhilarating. To me at least. And all the other Tsunene shippers. Let us be happy please 😭.

AND ALSO. Tsukasa mentions back in the day Amane used to try fixing the clock! And then explains that whoever gets the power of the clock, they can control the time in Kamome.

Was Amane trying to control the time, and why?

Bravo Aidalro!

[tolkiens-middleearth]

“What ship would bear me ever back across so wide a Sea?”

Why Galadriel can't just sail into the West

Galadriel's history is one of the most difficult of Tolkie's stories to figure out, because Tolkien experimented with a few different versions of her story later in his life. But I will appraoch this topic with the desire to see some overall working narrative and characterisation, and therefore only consider texts that work with the published canon.

Galadriel is a fascinating character – in the texts she is both a promintend figure and neglected at the same time. In Tolkien's world, she is both the most powerful Elf that we meet in The Lord of the Rings, and at the same time she is an outcast until, banned from sailing to Valinor when the Hobbits meet her.

Galadriel doen't get as much characterisation as someone like Frodo or Gandalf, yet we learn of a few defining traits that are central to her story in Middle-earth.

“Here I am mightier”

“I do not deny that my heart has greatly desired to ask what you offer. For many long years I had pondered what I might do, should the Great Ring come into my hands, and behold! it was brought within my grasp.”

Amibition is one of the these central traits, and it is mentioned in almost every text related to Galadriel's departure from Valinor. Galadriel wants to rule lands on her own and has desired the One Ring by her own admition. Whenever I think of Frodo offering her the One Ring I fall in love with this moment again because of how honest it is and how clear we can see Galadriel here.

She has been like that since she first left Valinor, and it is an integral part of her story that only ends at the end of the Third Age.

“After the overthrow of Morgoth at the end of the First Age a ban was set upon her return, and she had replied proudly that she had no wish to do so.”

Together with her ambition, pride is also essential to her character. Galadriel as one of the leaders of the rebellion against the Valar has to ask for pardon of the Valar, or at least accept it in order to be allowed back into Valinor.

That is consistant with what Finarfin did when he turned around, and it fits with the idea that the Noldor, manipulated by Melkor's lies, resented the sovereignty of Manwë in Valinor. The kingship of the Valar in Arda is another issue altogether, but nonetheless it exists and if Galadriel would want to return to the West, she Galadriel would have to accept a certain degree of "tutelage" by the Valar.

But it's not the only reason why Galadriel is held back by pride: she also resents that she may have to live on Tol Eressëa instead of Aman, since she originally lived there and Tol Eressëa “seemed only a ‘second best’”.

“But if of ships I now should sing, what ship would come to me, What ship would bear me ever back across so wide a Sea?”

All ambition and all pride did not change the fact that over time her desire to return increased and that she seemed to have regretted either leaving at all, or refusing the pardon when it was offered.

I can imagine that in the Second Age Celeborn and a new born Celebrían were also very good reasons not to sail West (since Celeborn did not wish to go), but at the end of the Third Age Valinor seems to be on Galadriel's mind a lot: in The Lord of the Rings she sings not one but two songs about it.

“Wise the Lady Galadriel may be”

“‘I pass the test,’ she said. ‘I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Galadriel.’”

Galadriel's ambition has lead her to a dangerous temptation, but throughout her history her wisdom has always proven stronger: while her cousins and brothers have built realms in Beleriand, Galadriel's focus has been on learning from Melian. In the Second Age, Annatar tries to manipulate Galadriel as well – and is rejected by her. But it's not hard to imagine that there was a huge temptation: if she had accepted, maybe the rule of Eregion would have fallen to her instead of Celebrimbor. In the Third Age, she gets as close as she'll ever be to the title of a queen when she and Celeborn become the Lord and Lady of Lothlórien. But even here, wisdom holds them back from calling themselves King and Queen of a mostly Sindarin and Nandorin population.

The end of the Third Age brings the final and the most important test: Galadriel's rejection of the One Ring is essential for the ban to be lifted. It is Galadriel realising that this kind of power that she desires would come at a price that she is not willing to pay. It must have lead to the consequent realisation that she could have had the power she desired and that she has rejected it – and that if she is not willing to do everything for her ambition she might as well let go of it altogether.

Giving up her ambition for power and her dreams of ruling realms then opens the door for her return into the West. It allows her to accept to "diminish" (she still has to work on her attitude) and to ask for and accept the pardon of the Valar.

This is the core of Galadriel's character journey. Sailing West is the fullfilment of a long held dream that Galadriel out of ambition and pride did not allow herself to have for a long time. Rejecting the temptation of power once and for all opened the doors for her to fullfil her long held desire to finally go home.

[ngmn2002]

Part 1

I love all that about him so much! He is so mysterious; I can't understand his way of thinking or how his mind works… This! is what makes him so interesting to me! I want to understand him more! I want to get him better! I want to know him fully! It makes me try and try and try again and again to understand him. I need to think and think and then to think some more about him! Such a nice feeling. I don't know how much the amount of satisfaction I will get when Tsu's backstory and his mastermind plan are finally revealed will be! I will be so happy!!

His interests are nice, him being passionate about the thing he is interested in… is really amazing. He is also creative! He is a clever and smart boy. ♡

Him being a yorishiro is also eye-catching. He is in such a position… he is there to keep the rules the seven mysteries are trying to protect on going… alongside the other 6 other yorishiros, but he is like: 'No. I don't like that way of making things go. I will change it.' He is amazing. ♡

I can't forget about this no matter what. He is really 'free-willed'. Again, admirable.

This dazzling confidence!!! Nothing stands in his way! Even the whole wide world can't stand in his way. He is a true force! Super cool, great, fascinating and perfect! ♡

Also, what is even more eye-catching… is his great strength. There is something huge about him being so powerful. We got some answers about that, but I need more. I want to know everything. Even as a yorishiro… he is unique and different. He is following his own rules, not caring if he was a part of a fixed system, he is fighting the laws of the world simply because he doesn't believe in them and sees that they are better off broken. And... he is so capable! I have so much faith in him! Go and change the unfair world, Tsuaksa! ♡

He is mature in his own way. And I love that. He should keep going his own way! He has such a wonderful personality! He is so well written. ♡ ♡ ♡

His backstory so far:

It's so…interesting, emotional, touching, and makes me want to understand him better. This caring sweet boy… this cute super caring little brother… this selfless little boy who was ready to throw everything behind just for the sake of the one he loves the most. He accepts everything that came out of such a decision with a proud smile on his face. He kept it and sticked to it no matter what. He is so loyal and really, really sticks to his beliefs and what he sees true and the right thing to do. He is like a hero to me! And I can't wait to see the rest of his backstory. It's going to make me cry a lot, but I'm ready for it. His story is so well written. ♡

And finally: His relationship with Amane:

What do I even say? Such an infinite love he has for him. I'm really proud of their relationship. It's so amazing and interesting to me. Him being the super caring, gentle little brother who was there to help and take care of his ill twin is so touching. Him bringing Amane gifts and flowers to ease his pain and make him feel better… is so heartwarming. His want to be there for his twin and help him the best way he can… to the point of him sacrificing himself happily for the sake of his twin to be healthy, grow up and achieve his dreams… what can I say here? The absolute perfection? A perfect little brother figure, indeed. ♡

And who knows what he is ready to do for Amane now!!

On the other hand, Amane is his twin, who was there for him, even when he was ill. He made sure to be there for Tsukasa the best way he could. He read him stories, spent time inside with him, pated his head and stroked his hair gently and caringly (my favorite Amane-Tsukasa gesture for some reason… it's so sweet, cute and soft), he even made sure to make Tsukasa feel better when he is down and to comfort him -squeezing his sweet little cheeks and face in the process- he was the first one to discover Tsukasa being gone on their birthday. He waited for him day and night to come back to him, he cherished him with all he has, he tried to keep him protected, he made him his moon, he loved more than anyone or anything else to the point he became his yorishro.

Both of them love one another so much. Their relationship is really great. No words can really describe how great or special it is.

****** In short: Tsukasa is special, unique, glorious, a one-of-a-kind glowing jewel, a great treasure, a beautiful shining moon. He is wonderful, perfect, charming, fascinating and all the other amazing things. He is a true grace and blessing.

And... even with me saying all that... Tsukasa deserves even more... Nothing can really describe how perfect he is.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

A side note... should we call it?

This is how I look like whenever Tsukasa is on screen:

//////////

Thank you so much for the awesome question, Sis! I had so much fun and 'dreamy' moments while answering it! ♡

Now, I want to reward you!

I will do the exact same thing you did to me! I ask you the same question you asked me, but about Amane. Take your time and I'm waiting for your sweet answer! ～

..................

[hanako-san]

So… I've been wondering about a question to ask you about your boy for so long. And I finally managed to get one! YAY! 😄

The qusetion is:

Let me know your "Top 5 favorit quotes of your boy until now." 🍀

Yay!! I'm so happy! I really like your question!! Thank you for it! 😆 I have one quote with a pilot. Hope that also matters😁

Ch.36

"just being shown that someone is thinking of him. I think that would make him happy"

I just love how he pretended to be goofy, but it shows that he took Kou's pain seriously.I really think about him a lot and he would be 100% very happy. I just know there was a smile on his face just because I'm thinking about him. It was such a small thing that would make my little boy happy.

2. Ch.20

"Death is the end. You become a spirit and wander the near shore ... but that's not continuation of life. Once you died,it's over. There nothing after that. You can't go anywhere from there. Doesn't how deep your regrets are,or how much you wish to things was different. If you couldn't do something in life... you can't do it after you're dead[...] You can't be so kind to the dead because we have no future"

I skipped what Amane said to Kou about Mitsuba. He was telling the truth here because he described his own pain in this way through the pain of Mitsuba, who also couldn't pursue his dream and also after death cannot do it. Mitsuba and Amane are similar in terms of grief and dreams, although the situation of their deaths is different. Amane perfectly described his own pain and Mitsuba's. No matter how much Amane regrets or how much he would like to do otherwise, there is no chance of it. Death is the end, not the beginning. This is so real. My boy just showed that he really regrets what he did. This is really something to read from his words. I want his happiness so much.Yes, I want him to be lucky. I love him so much and I know he is a good kid and he deserves the best and all that is good!

3.Ch.0.3(pilot chapter)

"You have to treat girls nicely"

He is my beloved gentleman!!🥰 He's so cute knowing he's knows to be good with girls . …..that's my boy😆

4.Ch. 14

"Sensei! The moon is already out! Have you ever wanted to go to the moon,sensei? Well... I have. The moon is so big and beautiful. Maybe that's why I just I feel like it's gotta be really great place"

I love so much how much and how much passion Amane has for space and the moon. He loves the cosmos so much, his passion is so fascinating and he believed that someday people would be able to fly to the moon and he was right, but he gave up his dreams and how much he loves the moon, the cosmos for the purpose of killing his brother. So sad … boy … my sweet boy was giving up his dreams for this one purpose for a reason. Give him luck AidaIro! He has suffered a lot already!

5.Ch.5

"the scary ones are muuuuuch more likely to make an impression, Am I right?"

Yes my Amane You;re totally right!!!! This is really true. Terrible things are more remembered than good ones … Amane here gives the same facts again!

This my top 5!

but I want tell you more!! I'm sorry I can't end up like this! Others quotes

6.Ch.39

"Give me a candy"

Well … give me a candy yeah !! haha !! I like it even though amane was sick here by the mokke, but it's so real. Candies are good!

7.Ch.2

"I am one of this school's seven mysteries. I can't let dangerous supernatural killers stay. I have no choice but to exterminate them. It my duty supervise all supernaturals in the school and maintain proper relationships between us and humans"

He keeps order, but he also has to fulfill wishes. He not only keeps the school paece, but he looks so badass and more cool here, and he really said in a really cool way.

Thank you for the ask! As usual, I'm out of control, but I can't help it. Hope you don't mind

[tolkien-feels]

Do you think Indis has some sort of very small bitter feeling towards Miriel, especially after she came back to life? The way Finwe treated two of his sons was indicative enough, but also he traded his place to dwell in the halls while he had a wife and kids and grandkids waiting outside for him, he gave that place to a woman who virtually had no one? Her son and grandsons won't be back for long long while, she didn't go to see her daughter in law and stayed with Varie anyway. Ofc I'm not saying this is the only perspective, but if you frame it like this, do you think Indis is at least a little hurt by it all?

And most importantly, do you think Indis ever went to see Miriel, or would it be painful/unnecessary for her?

You know, Indis is such a fascinating character, because I would argue she occupies the same sort of place that Elros does - they're vital to the world around them, but we know virtually nothing about who they are, and you can come to completely opposite conclusions about them without ever contradicting canon, because there is no canon that you can contradict!

I think your reading is definitely very plausible! This is an extremely complicated situation (made more complicated by how unprecedented it all is), and you could reasonably assume many, many different reactions because things are not at all clear-cut black and white.

This is compounded by how little we know about many of the other characters involved, as well as how little we know about Aman after the Flight of the Noldor. There are so many questions and so few answers, that I think you'd really have to put some effort to find characterization headcanons that can be conclusively proved to contradict canon in some way.

It may seem like I'm avoiding to answer your last question, but I'm very much not. The paragraphs above were a disclaimer to the following answer: I don't know.

I love Indis and have many headcanons about her, but they shift so much. For a character like Nerdanel, I have headcanons about her personality and storyline that I greatly favor and rarely stray from (I mean, I entertain other people's headcanons very readily, but I tend to stick to my favorite thoughts as if they were part of my personal frankencanon) - but for Indis, I can't ever seem to settle on anything. Because I don't feel like I have a firm grasp on what kind of personality I headcanon her having, I have a hard time deciding on what I headcanon her doing.

...this is an extremely unsatisfying reply, isn't it? I'll try to come up with some headcanons and get back to you soon to make up for that

[7ban-sama]

a declaration to "protect"

You know, whenever I go over the scene where the school mystery Shijima-san confronts the living Mei-chan... I'm really fascinated by the details of their conflict.

Shijima-san is a very downtrodden, jaded kaii. She never desired to be a school mystery, and she is trapped adhering to a rumor that she resents. She feels as though she has failed protecting her past self, by stoking the rumors of suicide, via the drawing she was born from. I think the details of this situation often confuse people, but I think what's important is that we have someone that feels as though they failed to protect someone precious to them.

Earlier, Nene says this...

and Shijima-san agrees, that they are talking about someone special. (For the record, the word in Japanese is 特別 "tokubetsu", a word that means 'special' in the sense of something extraordinary; particular.) So, we've established that this is someone important to Shijima-san. After all, she sees herself as created to protect the living Shijima Mei and carry out her wish, of being happy and fulfilled in art. Which, she clearly is not...

The downtrodden, bitter Shijima-san, can only reach one conclusion, of what she must do to right her wrongs.

It is to kill her past self. Her special person, the person that she believes that she has failed greatly, in some manner. Killing Mei-chan would kill herself as well, so it would effectively be... -! That's right, a shinjuu! A concept that Aidairo-sensei really loves to revisit in their work.

After all, this pose is... familiar, isn't it...?

... I don't think this is a coincidence. After all, Nene is reminded of Hanako's behavior towards her earlier, through Shijima-san's behavior. They are evoking one another, in that, they cannot imagine a better solution, and are trying to take fate into their hands, with what they see as "the only solution".

Nene is amazingly perceptive to see the overlap in their mindsets...

It's really percolating inside her, the conclusion she'll later make, with the help of Kou, about the nature of kaii, and how they're too defeatist about the future. They don't believe in their potential happiness. They are settling with whatever they can manage, out of a desperation to influence their fate somehow. Through whatever means they can conceptualize.

... but ah, you know... I think Hanako's past is going to be another case of showing us how kaii and humans are not so different, in reality. Whatever circumstances surround the living Amane — whether it be, a falling apart family, his relationship with Tsukasa becoming difficult, his future in science/astronomy collapsing in on itself — I feel... he was helpless, and lost his ability to be hopeful.

The moon widely symbolizes hope in this manga (along with representing our dear sweet Tsukasa...!) so, Amane giving away his lunar rock & his dream about going to the moon, is partially to do with this; being unable to perceive the future. Even the normal human boy Amane, is capable of giving up on the idea of his future, due to the oppressiveness of his circumstance.

This line even makes me think of living Amane, deflecting help from Tsuchigomori... maybe it seems strange to compare them — but I think there's this similar core of "You wouldn't understand." ... "My actions may not make sense to you, but I am doing what I have to." That is simply what they feel is true, and necessary. Maybe, from Amane's point of view, there was just no better option at hand. He was handling things, in his own way. And, that's why they ended... the way it did.

... while I do love the circumstances surrounding the Yugis double suicide, I also think it is the result of many unspoken feelings, and an inability to truly "confront" whatever was going on between them. It is a tragic ending even if it is romantic... They could not continue to live together happily, for some reason... and so, Hanako lives on, in miserable guilt and atonement over what happened.

but ah, I think it's why the most "ultimate" wish we are going to confront from Hanako is his desire to LIVE... A LIFE... WITH... YASHIRO...!!! Not brainwashing her into a false happiness, not nobly giving her up and letting her live on while her memory is wiped of him forever, but just BEING WITH HER...!!!! and working towards that-!!! However painful it may be-!!! God, I think it simply must have been too painful to come close to admitting any such thing, when alive with Tsukasa, for whatever reason...

We need other forces, such as the willful, pining Nene, to intervene...

It's just sooo essential that in Picture Perfect, Nene really starts to ask herself this. What... does Hanako wish for...? We'll only get it honestly laid out later, after all the pain of the Severance arc... the desire to be together... I think this is further than he ever got when alive, however... so, it's progress.

When alive, I think Amane was closer to the Shijima-san that just believes it would be better to kill Mei-chan, and end them both.

... maybe I sound crazy, but it's what I feel is true.

It's complicated of course, but I think it's all worth ruminating on. I think most of the relationships and arcs in this manga are really cohesive and strongly tie to our overarching themes about relationships between kaii/humans, repression and defeatism vs. hope and desire, etc...

[direct0rhutao]

yes you can 🥺 but yeah a very fun factor in milgram to me is seeing the murders that happened for similar reasons but still differ enough (mahiru and kazui both accidentally driving someone to suicide, fuuta and kotoko both following their own moral code) and see how people vote them differently skfnkcjfkd.... in general im quite fascinated by the way people decide to vote on milgram since there's so many different reasons people do so (sympathizing with the character, finding them hot (i am looking at mikoto trial 1 voters.), their own moral code... metavoting.) and sometimes this can absolutely ruin stuff like how amane, literally the cult child, was voted as guilty on trial one for metavoting and it just made things worse instead of making her "realize her views were bad" </3

also shidou...... he truly is a character. why do i lowkey sympathize with the organ harvester.......

oh dear. yeah. what does happen when they receive the final verdict and they’re voted innocent or guilty?

poor amane. forget innocent or guilty how do i vote for “call child protective services”

[sol-luminosus]

So, this idiot had also officially lost her old AO3 account (Under the name Haesal) so uhh, I gotta queue again for an invite.

I'll be posting stories here for a while 'cause I have no self control

Title: Creep

Fandom: Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun

Pairing: Tsunene/Tsukanene

Genre: Romance/Darkfic (err, still unsure with this one)

Rating: T

Chapters: 1 (One-shot)

Summary: You're so fucking special. I wish I was special.

Yugi Tsukasa was perplexed.

The unsettling, pseudo innocence his golden eyes carried were fixed straight from the corner of the hallway he'd chosen to shield his presence from.

Away from knowing souls—both from spiritually gifted humans and supernaturals.

It's not as if it was necessary for him to hide. He was after all, malignantly powerful. If anything the thought of cutting up and gutting anyone unfortunate enough to stumble upon what he was doing sent an uncontrollable rush of frenzy in his head, making his fingers twitch involuntarily and a wide, unhinged grin to split on his face.

Tsukasa's expression then suddenly lulls to a look of empty surprise, before adamantly shaking his head and settling for a Cheshire cat smile to break on his features.

'Can't be having those thoughts right now, Tsukasa. Amane might discover you.’

The very object of his concern was floating leisurely a few good feet away, hovering above a girl with silvery billows and a boy of dirty blonde hair.

That's right, there was entirely no need to conceal himself.

But he had to be careful. Oh so very careful in the surroundings of his territory; the one his precious older twin, The Honorable No. 7 had complete dominion over. Amane wouldn’t have batted an eyelash at sensing him being too close for comfort and would have whipped out that knife of his in an automatic effort to protect and defend.

That delightfully sharp knife.

The glint in Tsukasa’s tawny eyes darkened with incomprehensible glee.

Really, how could he forget?

Amane after all, looked the most beautiful and picturesque he's ever had when he was pushing that very knife down his throat and into the crevices of the bone connecting his neck and body.

The look of abysmal despair and frantic guilt scrunching up and contorting his features was a memory Tsukasa would forever want to be carved out in his head and embedded in his memories.

Indeed, his brother is truly fascinating and something he would make sure he owned even in death.

His stare then wanders and lands on the girl closely beside Amane. The very reason for his uncharacteristic spying had veered in his head as he watched her keenly, noting every emotion that took hold of her features from frustrated, to sad then annoyed, then to that of agitated frustration from what seemed to be a conversation between his brother and the other boy he couldn't care less for.

Yashiro Nene, a girl with a relationship to Amane mirroring that of his affiliation with Sakura.

For the longest time since being reunited with his dearest twin, Tsukasa had been thoroughly confused.

As if he had been presented and stuck with a puzzle with no means of solving in the form of a girl whose luminous, ruby eyes conveyed her feelings better than she would ever have put them into words.

He sure knew what was considered attractive in the opposite sex, that’s for certain. He’d seen them all from the magazines Amane had been keeping and was so frightened and embarrassed he'd found from underneath his beddings all those years ago. Sure, they had different definitions of 'pretty', but Tsukasa was every bit confident in what he fancies. Sakura for one, is a good testimony of that. Tall and slim with a perfectly dainty face and a regal demeanor to boot—she’d reminded him of the princesses in story books he'd always found so interesting and captivating since he was a small child.

That isn’t to say that Nene was an eyesore, however. His wide-eyed peering had shifted to intense study, zeroed in on the girl in his thoughts who seemed to have calmed down since what looked to be a friendly argument from her little group of 'friends', as they'd amusingly call it.

Her lengthy hair in a metallic color was eye-catching and fun to trace as the hue deepened to a shade that reminds him of waves frothing and foaming at the sea—something which would probably have been romantic if she was cursed to turn into a mermaid and not a fish, of all things. The small, rounded shape of her face that ended in a tiny edge of a tip for a chin was pleasant-looking in his opinion. And those irises; filled-in in the color he favored the most were always illuminated and twinkling in the frames of an eye shape which vaguely reminds of a little deer.

Cute and charming, but that was all there is to it.

Right beside those traits was pure, gullible vulnerability and a one track mind sort of thinking that he admitted, was fun to toy with but couldn’t have kept him entertained in the long run.

Compared to Sakura, who was every bit unperturbed and nearly unreadable that uncovering what's going in that head of hers was a barely tiresome and fun day-to-day activity, it had absolutely made no sense to him.

Even for someone like Amane who seemed to like playing nice with humans and supernaturals, the unexplainable attachment to the girl was a bit of a stretch.

Especially with those oddly shaped ankles.

They simply looked too much like the radishes in the soup their mama used to cook for supper and he sure wouldn’t want his radishes anywhere else other than in a bowl of food.

That was until he’d ventured in the Painted World, however. He'd seen it all unfold in his very eyes through the point of view of the audience. How she'd looked at his twin with emotions so strong and indescribable that he was certain, he just wouldn’t be able to decode even if he'd tried hard enough. Her heart had been out in the open—overflowing and seeping into the colors of the fabricated realm with a feeling he could’ve sworn was familiar to him, albeit vaguely and even sickeningly bitter in his tongue.

As the prettily, yellowed sheen of the false moon bathed the both of them, her naïve yet resolute declarations of going to the moon with Amane had his features set in a blank expression. The only thing that ran in his head, was how he couldn't seem to focus on anything else other than the person whom he'd previously only thought, was nothing more than a dying girl starved of the clichés of school romance and caught in between the affairs of supernaturals.

That very same girl was now right in front of him, situated in between his twin and another who seemed to adore her with fervor, as if her very spot in between them had been fixed and prearranged for her even before the three of them had ever met.

And it simply didn’t seem to sit well with Tsukasa.

It was then when his mood plunged to an inky state, that she'd suddenly smiled with that face glowing and radiating with the immaculate innocence of happiness overtaking and capturing her features.

His eyes had caught a rush of surprise for a split second, before a slow, vast smile that seemed to tremble as his lips curved had formed on his face along with a darkened look of pleasure eerily bouncing off from his irises.

‘Ah, I get it now.’

His questions and befuddlement have been cleared, only having nothing but maddening elation driving and making itself known in his senses.

She was exactly like what Amane used to be.

Young and defenseless; a dreamer filled with thousands and probably even millions of dazzling stars in the field of her eyes that if she put her mind to it, he was sure she could easily reach one by one with that undying determination reflected in her soul.

Something which he didn’t quite like.

A valuable innocence that Tsukasa wanted nothing more but to take.

He had to have her all for himself—keep her nice and away from anyone else's eyes. He'd have her all lovely and dolled-up with the help of Sakura's meticulous hands, dressing Nene in the finest layers of ribbon and lace adorned dresses.

Just so he could preserve her.

A desperation to hold on to that elusive innocence,

To keep it as perfectly tangible in his grasp for as long as it would let him

—in case he accidentally shatters her much like what he had done to Amane back then.

His eyes had been obscured by his choppy bangs as he angled his head slightly low in an effort to stifle with his palm, an uncontrollably giddy laughter verging to maniacal that had escaped his throat.

In that split second he’d lost control, he'd watched Amane's back stiffen and straighten at the sense of fear and inexplicable danger. Tsukasa could only stare on with newly-found, wicked interest, having the delighted grin stretching his lips fixed in place and never fading.

‘Oh, things could wait.’ He watches for a while as his twin cautiously pivots his head from side to side, having all hilarity and good cheer dissolved from his face as he attempts to confirm if the presence he'd felt had been correct.

“Tsk tsk, classic Amane. Finding treasures and never willing to share them with me.” Tsukasa mutters playfully in the wind before disappearing in the dark and retreating for the time being.

He steals one last glance over to his brother's assistant, the stroke of unconcealed apprehension then clouding the glimmer of those beautifully bloody orbs for eyes.

“But remember, dear Amane, I always get what’s mine.

Lego House: (Same verse/Hananene version)

[lucy-ghoul]

Mikasa Ackermann, Levi Ackermann, Amane Misa, Aeron Greyjoy for the charactet ask :3

SOMEONE HEARD MY PRAYERS AND NOW MY TIME HAS COME, tysm!!!!! <3

okay, let's start with levi (my beloved):

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them | actual love of my life (THEE little feral anime man after my heart)

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang (Dark, Tall and Snarky + piercing grey-blue eyes and chronic insomnia? clearly my type ❤)

hogwarts house: gryffindor (maybe....?) | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

ugh, the hp sorting house system is way too reductive. he has qualities of gryffindor, slytherin, and hufflepuff - brave, astute, loyal to a fault, etc. so it's a hard choice. but if i really have to choose, i'd go for gryffindor. i know that his Bad Boy facade shouts slytherin, but while he has larger goals (killing all the titans, then saving the world etc.), he's got no actual ambition for himself. hufflepuff would also be a good option.

daemon (from the his dark materials series): (because i've just decided that's just way more accurate than the hp method) some kind of big feline. maybe a panther - a black panther would be the ideal - aloof, predatory, dangerous, fiercely independent.

best quality: besides his obvious strenghts as a leader and warrior, the way he cares for his comrades-in-arms. it's very hard to gain his trust and respect, but once you have it, it's forever. he's pragmatic and ruthless, yes, but he also has a huge capacity for compassion and friendship. not that he would be effusive about his affections, of course.

worst quality: none, he's absolutely perfect ❤ jklsdfhjk jokes aside, he really struggles to open up (a serious understatement), idt he ever talked about his traumatic past with anyone. i mean, maybe he mentioned it to hange and erwin (erwin knew him when he was still an undergound thug, so...), but... he's not great with feelings. despite his apathetic, intimidating mask, he feels and cares deeply, but he has a long history with losing the people he loves, so he tries to not personally care about his squadmates, which can be both a strenght and a weakness. of course, he spectacularly fails at this.

ship them with: well, it's not a secret that i'm a huge rivamika fan, this ship is almost literally consuming my waking thoughts lmao. imo they're perfectly compatible: very similar personalities (stoic, the strongest warriors, absolutely terrifying on the battlefield but with a soft underbelly), very similar pasts/experiences, so many parallels that it's actually ridiculous, etc. i love how they're both each other's equals and likeness (yes, i took it from jane eyre. no, i don't regret anything lmao). a lot of tropes i love, too: Terrible First Impression (the Pride and Prejudice vibes are so strong with these two, you have no idea), Kindred Spirits/Mirror Images, Veteran/Young Prodigy, The Last of Their Kind, even Height Difference lmao. i could write a whole rivamika manifesto, but this is already too long. (maybe for some other time 👀) i would've loved for their dynamic to be more explored in canon but alas, isayama clearly didn't give a shit about the ackerman legacy, he just used it as a plot shortcut to give them conveniently unique powers, since they never really talked about it 🙄 (and before some troll comes into my askbox shouting "you iNcEsT fReAk!!!!1!!", they're only very distantly related. we know shit about the ackermans but we know for sure that they've got at least several generations between them. biologically their shared DNA is 0%, obviously they don't see each other as family, all the eldians have a dead ass common ancestor from 2000 years ago so they're all basically ⁓related anyway. if you really wanna scream about i.ncest, go watch got/dark/the borgias and shut the fuck up please. or alternatively go outside and touch some grass) sorry for the rant, uh. anyway, i can also see levi/erwin. idk if i'd ever care enough to read a fic about them (i'm usually a huge multishipper, but for some weird reason not when it comes to rivamika? same with braime and kastle tbh), but still, i can see it.

brotp them with: hange and erwin, obv. veteran trio >>> ema trio, sorry not sorry (at least h. and e. died before yams had the chance to ruin their character arcs)

needs to stay away from: ...uh, filth, i guess? lmao

misc. thoughts: besides the stupid teenage fangirl crush i have on him, i'm genuinely fascinated by the man himself. he's a huge mess of a contradictions, and yet somehow it works: he's violent and brash and kind of an asshole, but also has a strong moral code and integrity; he's obv very skilled at all the killing/torturing stuff and yet he has a huge respect for life; he's got a potty mouth to say the least, and yet some very aristocratic manners/tastes (the way he sits, his preference for tea and usually refined clothes); he comes from what's supposed to be an illustrous bloodline, he's methodical and very precise, and yet he was born and raised in the underground, he's been used to filth and blood and poverty since he was a child, kenny of all people was his father figure, and probably has known no other life than a perennial survival mode existence. he's "humanity's strongest soldier", but while well-built he's also small, the david to the titans' goliah, and probably not what people would assume a born warrior looks like. he's also one of the few characters who stayed true to himself and his original characterization until the end, bless you smol king ❤

(okay, this is getting long!)

mikasa:

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them (so much. she deserved better ❤️) | actual love of my life 

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! (stunning lady ❤) | 10/10 would bang

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

this is actually easy: mikasa belongs to hufflepuff and no, i won't take criticism (just joking lol). enough with this "hufflepuffs are fluffy puppies/Cinnamon Rolls <3" thing: mikasa values loyalty and duty more than anything else. she's also hardworking... and fierce, strong, lethal. yes, hufflepuff and lethal are not mutually exclusive concepts.

daemon: (finally the better option) a she-wolf, fiercely protective of her pack.

best quality: loyal, brave, incredibly strong (alongside her more fragile qualities). practical and level-headed on the battlefield, at least when eren is not included in the picture.

worst quality: struggles to let go of the past (understandable, considering her trauma). tunnel-vision when it comes to eren, obv. extreme levels of delusions ("if only i spoke openly about my romantic feelings for him - as if i didn't made them abundantly clear in ⁓6 years - he wouldn't kill 80% of humanity :(((" lmao okay. just. okay), but that's more on the writing. she's sadly more static than any other main character throughtout the whole series.

ship them with: see above :) but recently i've also started to be intrigued by mikasa/annie and mikasa/sasha. also, i'm sympathetic to jeankasa fans, though i don't actually care for the ship.

brotp them with: EMA trio, especially armin+mikasa. their friendship is so beautiful and special. also sasha.

needs to stay away from: ...... eren, at least romantically. again, that's more on the writing than anything else, but e.remika unfortunately encompasses many tropes i loathe with all the strength of my old shriveled heart: childhood friends-to lovers where the (male) childhood friend doesn't acknolewdge/is completely indifferent to the other (female) friend's romantic feelings, she hopelessly pines for him for years without anything more than a cold shoulder... until in the last chapter it's revealed that he loved her all along and doesn't "want other men to have her!!! :((" (then why did you have no reaction whatsoever to jean's years-long crush on her while she was jealous of any vaguely female-shaped human being you were friendly to, including hange? are you that dumb, man?); the female character's development and entire arc 100% revolves around the male protagonist - she has no goals, no dreams of her own except staying with him forever and ever; the romance is based on an idealized childhood dream, therefore reaffirming those childish illusions would make the character regress, not actually grow up (and nope, epilogue!jk doesn’t count; that also lacks build-up - i would’ve said the same about rm as well, so it’s not about shipping, guys, it really isn’t - and mikasa needed an inner change; getting married to another man but still praying to eren’s shrine is not substitute to actual development lol). post-time skip she's never really frustrated/angry with him, they never get a confrontation about him becoming a, y'know, mass-murderer of gigantic (pun intended) proportions; she puts him on a pedestal, and never stops idealizing him/never sees him for what he actually is (the narrative framing him as some kind of tragic martyr/saint eren from paradis with zero agency and basically... no clear motivation for the abovementioned mass murder, and not the actual complex tragic anti-hero/villain motivated by revenge and righteous fury he deserved to be, does not help). it lacks a good or even decent build-up - it's basically all tell and not show. now, if they'd actually been childhood friends to enemies to lovers/mutually co-dependent... it could have been interesting. sadly, it's not my cup of tea. of course this is just my personal preference, no hard feelings to the shippers.

misc. thoughts: enormous potential. she's been my fav female character since s1 - and ah, i miss s1!mikasa, when she had actually other stuff to do besides mothering eren. i love that she's the strongest warrior (second only to levi, obv), that her skills are never called into questions despite her gender, i love how she stands up for herself and the people she loves, that she may seem cold and stoic and yet has a such a huge heart, that she's not perfect but also sometimes awe-inspiring. sadly, she never really gets out of eren's shadow; what she lacks is an arc focused on herself. that's why imo getting deeper into the ackerman lore would've helped (also, you cannot make the main female character and the most popular male character descend from the same Unique Bloodline or whatever, and never really make them acknowledge it out loud; as a writer, you just can't lol). my spite is so strong that i'm currently writing a ridiculously pretentious fic that's 70% development for her character, to give her a voice, and 30% ackerthirsting. (yes, that's the fic i'm always vagueblogging about lmao, rip @ my brain). if any other rivamika fan is interested… mind you, it’s in italian tho, and idt i have the skills to translate into english.

misa:

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them | actual love of my life 

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

daemon: mmh, maybe some kind of butterfly? beautiful, colorful, and short-lived.

best quality: glorious fashion sense, more inventive and ingenious than fans actually give her credit for.

worst quality: shallow, impulsive, and obv her dependence on/obsession with light (which stems from trauma btw, but still… the very opposite of a relationship between equals).

ship them with: rem, kinda (monster/human ftw!). also weirdly enough mogi, a little bit? she deserves someone who actually respects her… though she’s far from being a perfect angel. she may actually be crazier than light on some aspects. but in this house we stan evil ladies anyway, so i have no problem with that <3

brotp them with: uh, idk, maybe matsuda?

needs to stay away from: obv light. also takada.

misc. thoughts: a tragic victim of sexist writing. she may be… unhinged to say the least, but she didn’t deserve the abuse she got from light (and from the fans). the female characters’ writing in dn is so bad that idk if it’s on purpose, to kinda mirror the reality of women in a patriarchal society (dependent on men, housewives whose life entirely revolves around their husband/boyfriend etc.), or just casual misogyny lol. it’s even more baffling since we don’t know the author’s gender (they may be a man, a woman, nb, anything really). i tend for the latter option tho.

aegon greyjoy (now, i wasn’t expecting him lol):

general opinion: fall in a hole and die | don’t like them | eh | they’re fine I guess | like them! | love them | actual love of my life 

hotness level: get away from me | meh | neutral | theoretically hot but not my type | pretty hot | gorgeous! | 10/10 would bang

hogwarts house: gryffindor | slytherin | ravenclaw | hufflepuff

i’m so sorry, i haven’t the slightest idea lmao. maybe gryffindor? mind you, it’s been a long time since i’ve re-read the books, so i don’t have many thoughts about him.

daemon: maybe it’s cliché, but some kind of fish/squid lmao

best quality: ugh, i really can’t remember much from his chapters :(( he’s not a coward, i guess? (lame answer, sorry!)

worst quality: definitely his religious fanaticism.

ship them with: no one.

brotp them with: uh… his family, ig? except euron.

needs to stay away from: obv euron. brr ://

misc. thoughts: i genuinely like the greyjoys chapters, though i vastly prefer the martells (with the exception of theon and asha, bcs i love them). yes, they’re deranged. yes, victarion is… well, victarion lol. but the drowned god religion is actually interesting, grrm knows how to write trauma - every time aeron mentions euron and that freaking door i’m like… :// - and the tragedy of it all… just great writing all around.

okay, that’s the end lmao. thank you so much, love!!! ❤❤

[2n2n]

lodurloft said: Also men’s hakama must be trousers, while Tsukasa’s is undivided for unknown reasons lol Smth between men’s and women’s hakama Amane likes strange things. Ah, maybe that’s why Tsukasa barely could walk firstly

read everything I say here in the meekest, mousiest little voice imaginable as I'm feeble and not an authority, and websites sortof contradict or refer to different eras and I can't sus out every reliable source </3:

Not the case as far as I know! Hakama being split-legged or open had to do with whether or not physical activity was expected of the wearer, mostly. Split hakama might be worn for horseback riding or some vocations, kendo, shootan arrows, way way back… but gosh take anything I say with a grain of salt too, as much as I try to read hither and yawn, hakama change so much over the years and I'm not sure what AidaIro were 'going for', or what's circumstantial ...

Actually so interesting but I've noticed that in very first fanart and MMD model after Tsukasa's debut (but before his reprise), people assumed his hakama was split and drew it as such, assuming that he was in the more physically useful kind … I think you see more split hakama in anime/manga not because of men, but because characters are typically sword fightan and arrow shootan and being active and wearing them in that manner. Tsukasa was seemingly 'a shounen villain' so I think people drew a natural conclusion. It's really fun and flirty that actually, Tsukasa's hakama is a formal sort, and has less of a sports vibe and more of an elegant occasion vibe. It's really fanciful ... and sortof funny that this guy dressed for, a wedding or something, shows up and floats all around.... I wonder if Iro intentionally played with expectations there?

Kikyo for instance wears a split hakama because she fires arrows and has a physically taxing lot in life...

but there are still some interesting gender differences with hakama with sortof might apply to Tsukasa, but I'm so hazy on this … I wish some genuine expert could weigh in lol … but it appears men's formal hakama traditionally are striped, while women's are solid colored? Men's hakama are also generally sashed lower on the body (at the hips) while women's sash at the waist, just below the chest.

Aida's gradually raised up Tsukasa's hakama irresistibly. Though I don't think this hakama raising is a diegetic detail (as in, I think in 'flashbacks' or 'redraws' we'll still see it high up, so it's not as if Tsukasa HIMSELF is CHOOSING to wear it higher, but that Aida eventually decided that a higher sash was appealing and suited him more, and is probably retroactively 'how he always wore it')...

though it's not exactly as high as most women's, nor as low as most men's, which I think is cute….

he cuts such a nice hourglass figure ♥ I sometimes see JP fans referring to 'Tsukasa's breasts' lol....

I'm assuming 'cuz the boys are from the 60s etc, that they're more around the time hakama weren't common wear in everyday occasions or work, but by the 70s were coming into a kind of fashion again for stuff like even school ceremonies like graduating … if it's Amane's choice, it's sooo fascinating ....

Anyway I do think Tsukasa has a girlish swag about him intentionally. While the hakama's skirt style isn't gendered, all the upskirt shots and billowing and twirling that gets drawn is wwwwww

coincidentally Amane's gakuran embellishes his shoulders, giving him a masculine silhouette. I think this is intentional lol.......... but maybe I'm crazy... idk .... its my blog......

[warrioreowynofrohan]

The Silmarillion as a TV/Netflix Series (Part 6)

This is by far the trickiest part, because I have no specific ideas for adapting the strategy and tactics of the War of Wrath. But there are a few big points to settle first. One of the major questions is whether the Valar themselves are going to be involved in the war.

If they are, it’s hard to imagine how the war could take 50 years.

If they aren’t, it’s hard to imagine how it could be won at all: the Vanyar-Noldor army of Valinorean elves is not especially larger than the original Noldorin forces in Middle-earth, and the remaining forces of the Sindar and Noldor of Middle-earth are so far depleted as to be neglibible. So, if it was virtually impossible for the Noldor to defeat Morgoth when they first arrived near the start of the First Age, or during the Long Peace, before he’d had the time to develop more and more dragons and other monsters within Angband, it’s hard to see why it would be possible for similarly-sized Elven armies to defeat him now. (Remember, the Valinorean Noldor are only 10% of the original group of Noldor.) Also, if the Valar aren’t involved, it’s hard to see how the war could be so cataclysmic as to literally destroy the landmass of Beleriand.

The Silmarillion states “The Host of the Valar were arrayed in forms young and fair and terrible, and the mountains rang beneath their feet.” I take this as meaning at least some of the Valar did go to war themselves; while it’s possible to read the phrase as referring to only Maiar, that seems like far from the most obvious reading. Manwë and Varda would not go (I think Tolkien said or implied this somewhere), but Tulkas and Oromë, whose purposes specifically include combat against evil things, certainly would. Ulmo, also, would undoubtedly be involved. And I think Aulë and Yavanna would as well, for love of the shapes and creatures of the world that Morgoth had destroyed and corrupted. I’m not as good as imagining Vana and Nessa in battle-shape, but it’s certainly possible. Of the Fëanturi, Lórien, Estë, and Nienna would come at some point, but in non-combat roles and to do what healing and cleansing of land and spirits as they could. And all these would be accompanied as well by large numbers of Maiar. (Including Melian! Likely including Curumo as well, he seems like the type of person who would want to be involved.)

If there’s a question as to why Eönwë would be commanding when Valar are there, I don’t see a contradiction. The general of an army is neither inherently the most powerful warrior nor the person of the highest social status. If he’s generalling, it’s because that’s the role he’s suited for.

The second major question lies in the basic contradiction between timelines indicating the War of Wrath took about 50 years, and the statement that the onslaught of the winged dragons lasted for “a day and night of doubt” and is one part of the battle noted where the Host of the Valar was on the defensive and retreating. Now, I have no military knowledge, but even to me it seems obvious that a war which lasts for fifty years and in which the largest setback for the victorious side lasts for one day make no freaking sense.

And on top of that, cinematically a fifty-year war would be very difficult to depict. So for the show, I think we’re better off having events proceed considerably more quickly than that.

As far as individual episodes go:

Episode 1: This episode is set-up. In Valinor, preparations for war, and the rising of the Star of Eärendil, seen in Middle-earth (including by Maedhros and Maglor, and Elrond and Elros). In Middle-earth, some scenes of Maedhros and Maglor raising the twins (I think it’s stated somewhere that they went far south, beyond the regions where Morgoth’s for es had a heavy presence). Some scenes on Balar dealing with the aftermath of the Fëanorian attack on Sirion. (What do they do with Fëanorians who surrendered afterwards? What do they do with Fëanorians who changed sides and fought on in their defence but who they still don’t trust?) The episode ends with arrival of the Host of the Valar.

Episodes 2 through 8 are the War itself, which, again, I have no idea how to construct. The Elves of Valinor are arriving by boat; and I expect that the Valar and Maiar would, for the most part, accomoany them. The landing would take place mainly all along the Falas, from Nevrast to the Mouths of Sirion, as well as farther north around the First of Drengist where Fëanor first landed.

Morgoth’s forces are spread throughout all of Beleriand, but vary in type. Hithlum stands out because it is not mainly inhabited by monsters, but by Men - the Easterlings and those among the Edain who are their thralls. I have an impression - partly from the Manwë’s reaction to the later Númenorean invasion, yielding authority to Eru even though the Valar certainly had the capacity to defeat Ar-Pharazon’s army - that the Valar and Maiar would be very uncomfortable about making war against Eruhini, even those who served Morgoth. So the portion of the invasion force at Drengist would be in large part the Edain, with some Elven and Maia support, and soon aided by uprisings among the Edain thralls. The role of Maiar or Valar here would largely be to keep the orcs and wolves and monsters of Morgoth at bay outside the mountains of Hithlum, but to leave the conflict against the Easterlings of Hithlum largely to the Edain and Eldar.

This would bring the northern portion of the army quite close to Angband, but they couldn’t attack from there - the Anfauglith would be packed with monsters and defenses, never mind the ever-present threat of Morgoth flooding the place with lava.

The greater part of the Valinorean forces would sweep east and north from the coast, facing substantial armies’ or Morgoth’s creatures (including cold-drakes, non-winged dragons, wolves, giant spiders, and really anything else horrifying you can think of; but the balrogs are being held in reserve by Morgoth for the defense of Angband). Various Maiar of Morgoth would be involved, including Sauron. One thing to note is that despite the presence of Valar, the Valar aren’t (aside from Tulkas and maybe Oromë) inherently suited to combat - that’s why Tulkas showed up in the first place. Even back in the Ages of the Stars, the Valar’s attack on Utumno was a hard fight - and that was when Morgith’s forces were far smaller than during the War of Wrath, though Morgith himself was personally more powerful then). So it’s not implausible for things to take some time and be challenging.

Episode 7 is the fight against the winged dragons and death on Ancalagon, and Episode 8 is the destruction of Angband and the casting of Morgoth into the Void.

Episode 9 includes Maedhros and Maglor’s demand for the Silmarils, Eönwë’s response, the brothers’ attempts to steal the jewel, and Maedhros’ death and Maglor’s departure from the known lands. This episode would also include scenes of the aftermath of Angband’s overthrow, the freeing of thralls and of captive spirits, in which the Fëanturi and their associated Maiar would have a large role (shout-out to @thearrogantemu’s latest fic!). At least a few of the Maiar who served Morgoth would genuinely surrender, which could be contrasted with Sauron considering surrender but ultimately choosing against it due to being unwilling to face consequences.

Episode 10 is the journey of (some of) the elves of Middle-earth to Valinor; the choice of others to stay (including Galadriel and Celebrimbor’s choices, and Galadriel’s last conversation with her father); and the promise of a new land for the Edain. It would also include the rebirth of Finrod in Valinor, giving hope that many of the audience’s favourite characters are not permanently dead, though it may be a long while before they return to life. I think having this at the very end is the best way to deal with elven rebirth without it feeling like a bit of a cop-out. If Finrod’s alive at the start of Season 6, you’re going to have pragmatically-minded viewers asking why the Valar don’t revive the Noldor as a whole and chuck ‘em at Morgoth - after all, if they die again, they can just come back again! Elven rebirth needs to be treated seriously, not as convenient respawning, so I think introducing it just as a possibility, for many years in the future, and at the end of the series, is the way to go.

This is also a great episode to show all the different reasons for different elves’ decisions on whether to return to Valinor. Returning out of weariness, or desire to see their families, or repentance, or simply having had enough of the endless wars and suffering of Middle-earth, or wanting to see the beauties of Valinor. Staying because they’re attached to Middle-earth; or want to make their own decisions outside the tutelage of the Valar; or are too ashamed to return and see the people they once knew; or, for some (especially Sindar) being unwilling to go to Aman if the Kinslayers can go there and be pardoned as well (“I’d rather live in the Anfauglith than have to share Valinor with them”); or still being curious about what the lands of Middle-earth beyond Beleriand are like; or wanting to know more of the Edain and Dwarves; or feeling a responsibility to aid and heal the world rather than leave it. I could even see a small handful of Vanyar or Valinorean Noldor choosing to stay for a while out of fascination with this world and its people, despite so much of what they had seen of it being horrible.

[luckycheesefoodie321]

So I just heard that there won’t be a fourth volume of Fruits Basket Another and I’m so bummed... (spoils)

I thought the third volume seemed a little rushed but thought things would smooth out with further volumes but I guess not... even like 2 more volumes to spread out Sawa’s development as a person so that the ending would make more sense... like her decision to move forward without forgetting her past self so that they could both find happiness... I wanted Sawa to grow up and finally leave that house and finally cut ties with her poisonous mother...

I adore that these Sohma kids are so happy and well-adjusted bc their parents finally created the families they always wanted and needed... and as a result, instead of being rescued and practically adopted by the glorious mother that is Tohru, they instead use the love they have been given to reach out to someone they can see is suffering... and adopt her too!!

ALSO I KINDA LOVE THAT SAWA IS PRETTY FRIENDLY WITH RIRIKO, HEAD OF THE SOHMA FAN CLUB... idk that was a fun development...

I’m glad that Hajime is practically smothered in love purely bc he’s he’s the eldest of Kyoru’s kids... but we never got to see his siblings!! I wanted to see more Kyoru babies!!! I wanted to see more big bro Hajime doting on Sawa and Mutsuki folding her in as one of his loved ones so that if anyone messes with Sawa (her mother included), we get to see him angry and protective like he is over Shiki... More of Sawa with her two friends hanging out and her finally enjoying having friends and occasionally Riku inserting himself/hanging out with Sawa in hopes of seeing Amane... and Sawa being less intimidated by him with every interaction... By way of her closeness with Shiki, she also sees Rio and Chizuru often, and learn Go from them...

I was ready to see Sawa and Shiki’s relationship develop as they both grew up... maybe for Shiki to ask Sawa to wait for him after she graduates bc of their age difference... honestly the outright shipping all the Sohmas were doing with them was so cute and I love that they’re probably each other’s first crush... but most of all they look to each other as the ones they can truly confide in and draw out from their shy/unconfident shells...

actually if there was going to be any cameo from an MC of Furuya, I’d kinda want it to be Akito... like Shiki invites Sawa over for the first time and it’s just Akito finally living her best life... and Shigure, twisted and conniving as he is, wisely keeping his mouth shut when he sees how timid Sawa is (for various reasons but including the fact she’s the daughter of the mother who sued their son - but like idk like Shiki they wouldn’t blame her)...

In any case I wish there was moreee... Fruits Basket was an emotional wringer and was heavy and fascinating and just a wonderfully woven story... but like Fruits Basket Another was so sweet and pure and I don’t mind that it’s a compact story, but it could’ve stood to have at least a couple more volumes >///<

[ngmn2002]

Ch 96: Random thoughts

To say the least, I'm so pleased with the new chapter. I was really in need for a light chapter. So, the chapter was really satisfying to see.

Welcome back. I missed seeing the three of them interact this way.

Hmm…. Kou seems to have a tendency toward tying others… (let's say supernaturals?) up…..? I wonder now… who is going to be next in line…… maybe Mitsuba 2.0? Whatever anyway. I don't really care that much about it.

Same old Hanako... same old Hanako. So lovely. "yes, I... will not." Great.

Hmm......

Kou and Nene's reaction is really sweet. Although... I'm not so sure about Hanako... I guess he will still be keeping things to himself.

Twins.

In comparison to what happened in the tea party and that you didn't say a thing about it, this is so much development, keep it up!

Lost in thought…. Although, in the hell of mirrors one… he looks like he's thinking more seriously…?

Well, I expected some other kind of reaction here. He doesn't seem surprised or anything. It feels normal to him? Maybe he had his suspicions before? Maybe he knows something? ............?

It also feels like: "yeah, that's something Tsuaksa would do." As if... Amane is not surprised to see Tsuaksa pulling such a thing. He is used.... to Tsuaksa... maybe.... being.... this way....? Idk.....

And.... Why would Tsuaksa want you to do that... is there a reason behind all that and you're aware of?

Spill the beans already, Amane. What are you hiding?

Anyway, ... maybe someday he will talk about him as a person... with Nene...? Hopefully...? Just as he promised her before...?

That's interesting. ♡

Maybe my favorite thing in the whole new chapter. Such a sweet look we have here, Amane. I really want to see where things will go with this.

And... even with you saying all that.....

Fascinating. ♡

(I guess that made you want to understand Tsuaksa even more and to get closer with one another, huh?)

You're moon is amazing, isn't he? He is worth some deep thinking to know about all his different sides. ～

Tsukasa's eyes...

It's nice to see the 3 of them working as a team and planning things up.

This! Is... so funny!

Why does Amane's face look like: "Oh, crap! I've been caught! He discovered the truth! I'm done for! I couldn't hide the truth well enough! I'm screwed!"

And… him not denying that… Is extra funny. Like… are you scared for real, Amane? I'm in suspicion here. Are you… or not???

Is there really a side you fear from your dear, lovely twin? ...........

I've always wondered about how Amane could have felt about Tsukasa's black eyes back when they were little. Did he fear them like their mother did?

Amazing. ～

It's great to see the 2 girls back to how they used to be. With alomst no secrets between them. At least on regard of Nene's interference with suprenaturals and all. Their friendship is really sweet to me.

The gang having fun after going through some wild things is really refreshing.

Such a wild ride these 2 have went through.

And... I kinda have hope for the twins to have a kind of happy ending after seeing this. A really nice feeling. I hope it will come true someday.

Well, I don't know how to feel here... I'm a little scared.

And as they say... what is you're running away from the most, comes running your way.

Hmm!!! A really nice chapter!!!

[sweetteaanddragons]

Implausible Character Interpretations: Nerdanel

I didn’t have a fun animal reference for this one.

More than any of the others, I want to emphasize with this one that this is NOT how I see Nerdanel. I’m playing with possibilities, not trying to make a serious case.

The basis for this one is the fact that given the choice (Nerdanel and Feanor’s separation, deciding whether to stay in Aman or go to fight Morgoth), Nerdanel and Feanor’s sons consistently choose their father over their mother. There’s any number of possible reasons for this - they might have seen Nerdanel leaving as a betrayal, they might have just though that their father needed them more than their mother did, they might have been making choices based on what was going on in their own lives and not really been choosing between their parents at all. The decision to cross the Sea in particular has a multitude of possible explanations - revenge, wanting to make sure Feanor didn’t get killed because of his grief, the desire to just follow someone who has a plan after their equivalent of the Sun goes out - parental bias doesn’t have to come into it at all. 

But it could. And I’ve seen Feanor portrayed as everything from “great Dad who made one really unfortunate mistake” to “who on earth thought it was a good idea to let this mad parent?” so it seemed only fair to let Nerdanel be the bad parent for once.

Sculpting a child was the most fascinating project she’d ever done. Blending her spirit with Feanaro’s was the breathtaking height of collaboration.

The tools were different, of course. She had no chisels here, no stone to chip away. Trying to encourage certain attributes was far more complicated than that.

She reminded herself of that frequently during the pregnancy. This was the first time she had done this, the prototype; she could not expect perfection from this any more than she had from her very first sculpture.

So it was vanity and she knew it that led her to lay claim to a name meaning well-formed on this very first try, but surely the result would live up to the expectation. She and Feanor both were well known for learning fast.

Then the baby came. 

“Maitimo,” she said stubbornly, though looking at the result, she suddenly wasn’t so sure. His appearance was fair enough and far from finished in any case, but the small spirit that was already trying to shape itself now that it was separate from her . . . she already had doubts about that.

She slumped against the pillows on the bed in disappointment, premature as she knew it was. This was only the first, and there was still so much time for his spirit to change. It was ridiculous to give up now.

Feanaro was beaming at the child like this was all he had hoped for, and Feanaro never settled in his work. If this was good enough for him, it ought to be good enough for her.

She couldn’t quite convince herself.

Feanaro looked up to share his joy and took in her expression. In an instant, the joy was overtaken by terror. 

“Are you alright? I’ll call for the healer to come back in - “

“I’m fine,” she assured him. “Just tired.”

Feanaro’s eyes remained dark with worry. Miriel’s decline, she remembered, had started with much the same complaint.

“Everyone’s tired after this,” she said firmly. “All the healers said so. Go on and show your father his first grandson.” 

She felt a frisson of nerves at that. She had never liked showing off any work that was less than her best.

But it made Feanaro stop worrying, and Finwe had always been very kind; she was sure he would not be overly harsh.

Maitimo grew into a lovely child, but her vague concern proved true. He was well spoken, he did well in his lessons, he was polite and obedient . . . but he would not choose a craft.

He worked happily under his father’s watchful eye in the forge and happily with her in her workshop. He would try anything someone was willing to teach, and he was competent enough in most of it, but there were none he chose as his own and none chosen for him by special genius.

“Look, Mama!” he said, holding up the figure he’d just finished molding from clay.

It was recognizable, at least. Unfortunately, it was recognizable as a smaller, rougher version of her own project. She sighed. “Don’t you think it’s time you started using your own ideas?”

“Oh.” He drooped. HIs lip started to wobble dangerously.

Fortunately, Feanaro chose that moment to walk in. “Lunch is ready,” he announced cheerfully. “What’ve you got there, Maitimo?”

Their son held his work up hesitantly. 

Feanaro picked it up carefully and examined it closely. “Wonderful!” he declared. “Your precision is coming along beautifully. It was inspired by your mother’s work, yes? You can’t go wrong with that. She’s the best in her field, you know.”

“It’s not very original,” Maitimo said cautiously. 

Feanaro waved this off. “And what of it? Copy the masters until you’re ready to branch out on your own.” He studied it a little further. “It really is quite good. May I keep this? Once it’s dried, of course.”

Maitimo brightened, all threat of tears gone. He nodded vigorously.

Feanaro beamed at him. “Excellent. Now for lunch!”

He was good with the child, she had to admit. He always knew just what to say to head any unpleasant moments off at the pass. Still, the larger issue could not be ignored.

“He still hasn’t shown any aptitude towards a particular craft,” she said as they climbed into bed. 

“He’s young yet,” Feanaro dismissed. He never had liked anyone pointing out flaws in his work.

“We were younger,” she pointed out. 

“Maybe a physical craft isn’t where his talents lie,” he suggested. “Have you seen him with his friends? He’s quite the little diplomat.” He smiled ruefully. “Far more than I ever was at any rate.”

Diplomacy was a good gift for a prince of the Eldar to have, she had to concede, but - “He still needs a physical craft.”

“Not everyone has to make things.”

Now she knew it was just his pride getting in the way. They were two of the greatest Noldor craftsmen in Aman. Of course their children had to be able to make things.

“Speaking of making things,” she said, “have you given any thought to us making another one?”

Feanaro brightened at the idea. “A brother for Maitimo! Or were you thinking a girl at this time?”

“No, a boy,” she agreed. Best to stick to that until they’d perfected it. Then they could move on to a girl.

Feanaro had been entirely correct in his choice of name for their second child, she decided almost immediately. Strong-voiced did not begin to cover it.

The third time he woke them in a night with that strong voice, she had to fight the urge to cover her ears. “I think we might have made a mistake.”

She wasn’t joking, but Feanaro still laughed.

Makalaure had a craft, at least. He was a peerless singer already, and his skill would only grow.

Unfortunately, part of the process of that growth involved rather a lot of very loud practice with a wide variety of instruments. 

“One hour,” she finally told him, temper not holding quite as well as she’d wished. “Just give us one hour of quiet.”

It was improvement, she told herself. And it was. Just still not quite perfection.

Tyelkormo was definitely quieter. 

Except for the shouting, of course. He had the temper of Feanaro after having been locked in a room with Indis and Fingolfin all day and none of the brilliance to make up for it. He squirmed all through lessons and took off at the first opportunity for the outdoors.

Like Maitimo, he refused to pick a proper craft.

“I’m going to be a hunter!” he said over supper. He demonstrated by bending back his fork to fling mashed potatoes directly at Maitimo’s head.

It was a dead hit. At least he hadn’t aimed at Makalaure; if it had escalated to a fight, the shouting would have shook the house. Maitimo just made a face and wiped his forehead clean.

“You’ve got the aim for it,” he said wryly.

“Though we still need to work on your timing,” Feanaro said. “Not to mention your choice of prey. Still, it’s an excellent ambition.”

“It’s not exactly a craft,” Nerdanel protested, but she didn’t put up much of a fight. Honestly, hunting was probably the best that Tyelkormo could do.

Carnistir was as studious as she could wish.

He also had an even quicker temper than Tyelkormo and a blotchy red face that was an embarrassment to her skill as an artist.

She went back to work as soon as she could after he was born. Feanaro was helping her with this project, a beautiful blend of steel and stone. It was coming along perfectly.

“This, we can do,” she said in frustration. “Why can’t the rest of it be as easy?”

Feanaro laid a hesitant hand on her arm. She leaned into him gratefully. 

“Children are more improvisational,” he said. “You never know quite how they’re going to turn out. We’ve been fortunate with ours. Don’t you think?”

He sounded uncertain with that question in a way he never had before. She was surprised. He’d seemed as delighted with Carnistir as with the others. 

Maybe that was the problem, she realized. They’d never talked over what they wanted in any more detail than boy or girl. They never entered into any other collaboration so haphazardly. They came in to this with conflicting ideas, and the blend didn’t always quite work.

Next time, she would fix that.

Feanaro was frustratingly difficult to pin down on what he wanted, so she decided the solution was to back off. She’d provide the minimum of input and allow Feanaro to craft what he would. Once she’d seen the result, she could make modifications to the next one from there.

The result was so like Feanaro that she called him Little Father. She was tentatively pleased with this one. A copy was not as good as an original, but it was another step towards progress at last. Atarinke was beautiful, brilliant, skilled in the forge, everything she’d wanted.

Or almost. Where Feanaro’s scope was endlessly broad, Atarinke’s was narrow. He preferred the forge above all else.

And he was . . . cold towards her sometimes, in a way she didn’t like. Her other children had embraced their mother-names with a strange eager hopefulness, but Atarinke barely responded to his. 

There was nothing wrong with him preferring Curufinwe. It certainly pleased Feanaro. 

She just wished her son didn’t make it seem quite so much like it was a rejection of her.

They said Miriel had poured herself so much into her son that it had killed her. Maybe that was the only way to get someone that shone as bright as Feanaro. 

“One more try,” she told Feanaro.

Things were . . . strange between them now. Feanaro was involved with those gems of his and wanted her to spend more time with the children since he was so busy. It wasn’t unreasonable, but he was never happy with her after she did as he asked; he frowned at her often afterward and seemed as if he would say something, but he never did.

Maitimo and Maglor helped, frequently volunteering to look after the younger ones, but there was something about the way they did it, the way they looked at her . . .

It was the gems, she thought in frustration. Things had only gotten so bad when Feanaro had gotten wrapped up in them.

But he would back away from the project for a new child, and she’d finally figured it out now.

She poured her spirit into making the new child, and Feanaro matched her drop for drop. 

She was exhausted afterwards, on the very edge of having given too much, but it would work this time. It had to.

She did not have the overwhelming flame she’d intended. She had twins.

For the first time in her creative history, she gave up.

“Ambarussa,” she said tiredly when asked for a name.

“For which one?” Feanaro asked.

“Either. Both. I don’t care.”

“They need their own names,” Feanaro insisted. 

“Then call one of them Umbarto. I don’t care.” Surely at least one of her children must be fated for something.

“Ambarto it is,” Feanaro said quietly. 

She doubted that either of them deserved to be called upwards-exalted, but she didn’t care enough to tell him he’d misheard.

Wood. Clay. Every kind of stone imaginable. With those, she could create. 

But with spirit?

The taste of failure was bitter on her lips.

(“He’s perfect,” Curufinwe told his wife as soon as the baby was born. “Absolutely perfect. He’s beautiful.”

She smiled up at him. “Of course he is.” 

She wasn’t sure why he slumped in what looked like relief.

She assumed at first that his efforts to look after little Tyelpe himself and with his brothers were an attempt to let her rest, for fear of recreating his grandmother’s tragedy. But - 

“I’m well now,” she told him. “Really.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” he told her in all sincerity. “If the healers have no objection to you taking up your weaving again, I certainly won’t argue.”

“Good,” she said. “But that wasn’t what I meant. I can help look after Tyelpe now.”

He actually looked startled.

“He’s my son too, you know,” she said in frustration. 

“Of course he is,” he said.

She wasn’t sure why he was so surprised that she wanted to look after her own son.

The surprise slowly faded, but some things never did. 

It wasn’t that he spoiled Tyelpe, not at all, he’d scold him when he had to, but he wouldn’t do it in front of her. She’d caught him switch gears mid-lecture to a gentle caution and a generous helping of praise when she walked in.

“I know you know that I’ve scolded him before,” she told him in bemusement. “I’m not going to suddenly turn into one of those horrible mothers who won’t admit their child’s done wrong and jump down the throats of anyone who tries to say otherwise.”

“He’s never done anything seriously wrong,” Curufinwe said instantly. “And he never makes the same mistakes twice.”

A slow realization dawned. “Curufinwe,” she said slowly. “You know I love Tyelpe, right?”

“Of course you love him.”

“And I won’t stop loving him just because he makes a mistake? I don’t need him to be perfect. I’m not sure I’d want him to be. You’re not going to talk me out of loving him if you say he should be more careful in the forge or that he didn’t learn a lesson as quickly as you’d hoped.”

“He’s always care- “ He caught himself. She had never seen him so uncertain.

She linked her fingers through his gently. “I love him,” she repeated. “Like I love you. Unconditionally. Genius, ordinary, or absolute fool. I love you both.” She hesitated. “I know your father must have had high expectations - “

He laughed. The sound was - not his usual laugh. “My father,” he said, “loved each one of us like we were his whole world.”)

(Maglor did his best to look after the twins, but he knew it could never be enough.

“I’m sure your father will come back for you soon,” he assured them. “We won’t keep you from him. You just have to stay with us until he comes.”

“Not Mama?” Elros asked, blinking away tears. They’d cried less and less as the weeks passed, but the nightmares still sometimes came.

Maglor bit back all the things that he and Maedhros had said to each other after that terrible scene, when Elwing had seen her sons in their bloodstained hands and thrown herself out the window with the work of their father’s hands rather than give in to save her sons.

She had been far too frightened to be thinking clearly, possibly even flashing back to Doriath. She had known their reputation and likely thought they would all die no matter what she did. She was not their mother; even if there had not been so many sins on their heads, it would not have been their place to judge.

“Of course your mother might come too,” he said.

He thought of the seagull flying away who had never once glanced back.

It was only his own biases, he knew, that made him so sure that Elros would never see her again.)