#At least the majority of her body isn't in frame.

[darkveracity]

How do you think each Tsukihime girl would feel about getting pregnant?

Ok so this is what we're doing now huh

Arcueid: Can Arc even get pregnant? I'm going to go with no but even if she can chances are she knows only the vaguest of details about it. Any Arcueid pregnancy adventure is going to involve an awful lot of explaining basic facts of human biology to her while she glosses over major details in favor of fixating on small points most other people don't consider important

Ciel: Ciel is going to cry from joy not so much because she got pregnant but because the fact that she can get pregnant now means she's truly free of her curse. Her body can once again change and grow and even bear children. The next time she sees Noel she goes on and on about how happy she is and how wonderful her life has become and inadvertently pisses Noel off so badly she ruins her entire week

Noel: Noel's first thought on learning she's become pregnant is to be happy at finally achieving a little slice of a normal life, her second thought is to call Ciel and try to rub it in her face as hard as possible, and somewhere distantly in third is the fact that she is in no way ready to become a mother and oh god this is going to fuck everything up

Satsuki: I think she's just normal about it actually. Satsuki's narrative position as a love interest is to be the normal classmate, the girl next door, an ordinary person drawn into this supernatural world by happenstance rather than someone steeped in it like the rest of the cast and this means her reaction to getting pregnant is just normal too

Akiha: Getting pregnant makes all of her self-loathing and belief that she's a monster crash down on her at once. Given the blood of demons that she carries, given what her family has done, is it really right to bring any more of them into the world? Should not the Tohnos simply end with her? Also more than anyone else she experiences pregnancy as total body horror - her frame simply isn't built for it and she finds it both painful and disgusting. Combined with the extreme hormonal fluctuations of pregnancy and their emotional effects I think she tries to kill herself at least once

Hisui: She's really quiet but from the way that she smiles you can tell that she's simply too happy to express herself well. Second most normal about it after Satsuki

Kohaku: She sits staring into space and dissociating out of her mind for six hours straight and then brews herself an abortion drug and quietly takes care of it without telling anyone

[smplykiel]

"Til' death do us apart" (part II of ymmtiam)

fem! reader x albedo | part one.

warnings: angst, hurt/no comfort, crying, heartbreak, mentions of blood, mentions of major character death, albedo being clueless, albedo regretting shiz

Albedo / 3rd Person POV:

It was as if nothing had happened at all. Life had returned to what it used to be, from waking up early to going to his lab to do some experiments. Everything… was normal.

Yet, there was something unsettling. A feeling that something was missing.

Maybe it's the morning coffee he had forgotten to drink, or the forgotten researches lying on his lab's floor. He doesn't know, he'll never know what exactly it is.

His fingertips work silently as he writes his monthly report, remembering to fulfill his tasks in the Favonius. His house is peaceful, with only the sounds of a pen constantly writing on paper. He can't help but experience that sensation once more, his brows furrowing as his thoughts begin to stray.

His eyes are abruptly drawn to something, and he swiftly turns his focus to it. It was a small picture frame, with a picture, a picture of? Wait, it's… His lover, Y/n. That's right… Y/n, where has she been?

Albedo swiftly connects the dots. His recent feelings have led him to the conclusion that his adored beloved suddenly vanished, or at least that's what he believes.

Unconsciously, he extends his fingers toward the frame, his thumb touching the slightly dusted photograph. His face cracks a little smile, as though the memory-inspiring image alone had already relaxed him.

Albedo sets the frame down before getting to his feet and choosing to take a breather from his relentless work. His thoughts turn to you once more. Where have you been? Have you left him? Did you betray his affection and abandon him? He wasn't going to lie; he yearned deeply for your presence. Perhaps he should go look for you.

As he moves toward the door, he hastily puts on a cozy cardigan. He wants to get a quick snack to munch on. Albedo quickly put on his shoes, double-checked his belongings and keys, and officially exited as he twisted the knob of his home's door shut.

The alchemist approaches Good Hunter and attentively reads the menu. He turns to tell Sara what he ordered when he notices a familiar pair of travelers out of the corner of his eye.

The floating companion waves her tiny arms, greeting, "Hey, Albedo!" In response, the chief alchemist gestures and says, "Hello."

His eyes light up as he has an idea as he takes his freshly prepared meal. He should ask Aether regarding your whereabouts. He must know where you are, right?

Albedo begins, drawing the blonde boy's attention. "Hey, Aether. Quick question," Albedo asks, his stomach churning with expectation and hope, "Mhm, what is it?" He replies, "Have you… seen Y/n? I haven't really seen her around."

Rather, his was welcomed with utter stillness. The two exchanged anxious glances as they became suddenly quiet. Did he say something wrong?

He repeats, lifting an eyebrow in suspicion, "Um… Have you seen Y/n?" Albedo can tell that the two have seen you by the way they reacted.

When Paimon exclaims, "Y/n… She's dead," it almost sounds as though she's straining to get those agonizing words out of her throat.

Wait, what? There's no way, right? You? Y/n? His lover? Dead? That can't be…

"Look, this isn't the time for jokes, Paimon. I haven't seen her around, and… I'm starting to miss her presence far too much," Albedo adds firmly, not pleased with Paimon's statements.

Albedo notices Aether's sympathetic gaze on him. There is no way… No, no. This is impossible! How—

A memory rushes across Albedo's head, a hazy conversation between you and him, seemingly arguing in his lab, but he can't recall much of it, it's been days after all.

But how could you be dead? Without him even noticing?

The Traveler says with regret, "I'm sorry, if only I'd come on time, then maybe I could've saved her… But it was too late, her body had already frozen to death at that time. Wait- I thought you knew?"

"N...No, nobody dared to tell me at all. Where?" he asks bluntly. "Huh? Where? Well, I found her at the bottom of the broken bridge in Dragonspine, the bridge near your lab. I think she fell down because the snow underneath her was covered in blood-" The alchemist vanished as Aether was about to finish his answer.

Paimon yells at him, but he's already off in the distance. "Hey- where are you going?"

Running made his feet hurt, and he was exhausted. As he gasps for air, frigid oxygen brutally hits his lungs. His palms are firmly placed on his knees as he makes an attempt to calm down.

Albedo had arrived at the broken bridge, the same one where you had allegedly fallen. His eyes immediately notice the obvious bloodied snow underneath as he peeks down at the bottom.

He suddenly stops breathing, his eyes growing wide with terror and horror to the point of tears. A part of him yearns to leap out with you, to join you, to see you once again.

As Albedo goes back down the cold mountain, a familiar voice reaches out to him once more. Aether runs up to him and yells, "Albedo!" while waving his hand in the air.

He collapses just as Aether appears in front of him, but the traveler manages to catch him in time. He watches him with sympathy as he begins to break down in his arms and sob uncontrollably. Albedo thinks to himself,

Our promise "Til' death do us apart" seems like a cruel joke now.

A/N: FINALLY i got to finish part 2!!! sorry for the long wait, school is being a jerk right now 😞 i didn't expect the first part to blow up so much, let alone make a part 2, but since you guys wanted it, here it is!!

T/L: @zoemaelol @pears-pears @averageallogene @angelofdarkness2 @hyper-gam3r @really-sara @viaaasdiary @haisuu @zeikanspel @evonne-luv @fatbootymuncher @abbreviationo @rivalriotrenegade (sorry for the people i can't tag T^T)

@.kiyukumaa on twt for the albedo fanart used in the header

©smplykiel 2023 on tumblr | do not repost, copy, translate, or modify any of my works on any platform.

[menticidemushroom]

Project Eden's Garden Theories + Minor Analysis 🍎

Not a specific death order theory, just an excuse to yap because I'm hyperfixating

This is very long and it probably doesn't make sense.

🐍 Damon Maitsu- Ultimate Debater

Obviously everybody has the mastermind theory. It's the garden of eden and Satan was the snake. I do agree with the Satan analogy, but more so as an "outer" symbolism as opposed to an "inner" symbolism. Let me explain that better. I think that Damon will come of as antagonistic to the group because he says the right things in the wrong way. Like how he was trying to help everyone by telling them not to trust each other, but he was a dick about. Damon will play the Devil in the perception of the cast, but I don't believe that he will be actually behind the Killing Game.

🐦‍⬛ Eva Tsunaka - Ultimate Liar

I understand the first culprit theory. Eva is a similar name to Eve, Eve is the first human to sin, Eva is the first cast member to kill. That makes sense, but I see her taking on a more Kirigiri kind of role. Smart girl sort of side protag actively tries to hunt down the mastermind. However, since she's the Ultimate Liar and the cast already seems distrustful of her, I could see Eva discovering the secret to the killing game or the true mastermind but no body believes her which either leads to Eva killing the mastermind, or the mastermind killing/framing her. (Like Junko trying to frame Kirigiri in chapter five.)

🦈 Desmond Hall - Ultimate Marksman

I don't have much for Desmond. I feel like he'll either be a victim or a survivor. I can't see him as a culprit. At least not intentionally. I could see him trying to protect someone and killing their attacker in the process on accident, but I lean more towards a victim for him.

🦢 Eloise Taulner - Ultimate Fencer

I see Eloise as a survivor, but I lean towards a culprit. It's not a strong theory, but I see them trying to flip the shrinking violet trope on its head. In the chapter one preview from the San Antonio game expo we see Wolfgang trying to "help" Eloise by offering to walk with her before they go exploring and she seems to get annoyed with him. I could see this being a way to show that Eloise isn't a fragile as she let's on.

🦩 Toshiko Kayura - Ultimate Matchmaker

I want to believe that since she's literally a baby that she won't die, but part of me believes that since she's so young she will die. My current theory is that she's either the chapter one or two victim. I could definitely see the team choosing to kill her off early as a sort of "shock value" for the cast. Because I'm sure seeing a child get murdered would be more psychologically damaging then seeing an adult die. I'll be honest my Toshiko theory is kind of weak.

🐻 Wenona - Ultimate Entrepreneur

I see Wenona as a kind of Celeste character. The whole "if you do not adapt, you will die" mindset. I could see her staying distant from the group the majority if the time. I think that she will be a culprit, chapter three specifically. In the chapter on trailer we see during her free time event that the bear symbolism they gave her represents strategy. I feel like she'll have a really complex murder plot since she's obviously smart. She's also a Native American woman in the field of business. That's obviously not something easy. I highly doubt that she would give it up so easily. Plus, she's a billionaire. As much as I love Wenona, she's evil.

🦉 Ulysses Wilhelm - Ultimate Historian

Let me start by saying tat he is my favorite. Unfortunately, that means he's going to die. He writes everything in his notebook, if that doesn't sound like a major point of discussion in a trial, I don't know what does. I could also see him surviving, but I lean more towards a victim for him. The only reason I seem him surviving is that there could be this big moment in the final trial where they have to connect several seemingly unrelated notes in his notebook to find the big mystery or whatever. Anyway, I love him and if he dies I will lose it.

🐊 Mark "Mayhem" Berskii - Ultimate Music Producer

I can see Mark as a victim or a culprit and both of them revolve around Jett. As we see in the prologue, Mark is a very shy and reserved person. Obviously this paints a target on his back and any character who has a close friendship is another death flag. I could see him being killed and Jett falling into despair, or killing somebody with Jett.

💄Diana Venicia - Ultimate Cosmetologist

Diana is a character who I feel very strongly about as a survivor. It's not a strong theory, but it's just what feels right. Most people take the chameleon symbolism to be negative, but I don't see it as good or bad. I think it just emphasize that Diana is your average sixteen year old girl blending in with the crowd. She'd not a threat, she isn't aggressive, she just a teenaged girl. She is kind, she is helpful, she loves makeup. She just wants to love her life. She's so plain that she'll blend in and she will live.

🐑 Wolfgang Akire - Ultimate Lawyer

Oh boy, here we go. This is the big one. I believe that Wolfgang will either be a victim or a survivor. He will be the antagonist, but he is not a villain. Like I said for Damn who says the right thing in the wrong ways, Wolfgang will say the wrong thing is the right ways. I truly believe that Wolfgang has good intentions, but he is so optimistic and passionate that he lets his savior complex to bring everybody into a more vulnerable state. Like Damon's snake symbolism alluding to him bring the "devil" to the group, Wolfgang's sheep symbolism shows him as the "angel" to the group. The lamb of God, the Messiah, the guardian angel. He wants to save everybody, but he can't because he doesn't accept the horrible truth of the group's situation. He wants to believe that he can bring them to salvation, but a man can never be a God. My other theory is that he will be a final chapter sacrifice. A death is necessary for the group to escape and he will accept his new role of Martyrdom. Letting him finally become the savior he wanted to for the entire game.

🦋 Kai Monteago - Ultimate Influencer

Butterflies represent change, the butterfly effect. Kai will be the first culprit and this will lead to more fear without the group causing more people to want to kill. The flap of his wings will cause the tornado of death that will plague the group for the rest of the game. Short theory, but I feel strongly about it.

🐺 Jett Dawson - Ultimate Drag Racer

As I stated with Mark's theory, I see Jett as a culprit. Either Mark will be a victim and Jett will fall into despair driving him to murder in a later chapter, or he will kill somebody to escape with Mark. The only way this would work is a motive we're the backend can bring one person with them to the outside or they find a way for Jett and Mark to both equally be held accountable as the culprit. Though I'm not sure how something lijrme that could happen since the only instance is in SDRA2 chapter three and the plan behind that was bizarre (in a good way) and I doubt they could replicate anything similar.

🦁 Ingrid Grimwall - Ultimate Blacksmith

Ingrid is the only character I can't really think of anything for. I just have a strong feeling that she won't survive. Sorry.

🐲 Jean Delamer - Ultimate Ship Captain

I can see Jean as a chapter five victim. Since we see in the chapter one demo that he takes the hope speech guy role, I can see him dying fairly late in the game either as an "easy target" or since he's getting in the way of more murders happening.

🕷 Cassidy Amber - Ultimate Pro Gamer

I see Cassidy as a survivor, but I don't have any evidence. I just can't think of a theory for her as a victim, or as a culprit. She could also be the true mastermind, which is a fairly popular theory. That makes some sense considering her spider symbolism and the whole "tangled in a web" metaphor.

Thanks for reading!

Feel free to tell me any other theories you have!

[ananke-xiii]

I like "My Bloody Valentine" just like any other SPN fan because, well, it's a cool episode, let's face it. What I like about it the most, however, might differ from the vast majority because I'm obsessed with the Cas/Jimmy/Sam/Lucifer parallels.

Cas/Jimmy and Sam fall prey to Famine because they're ambitious characters at their very core and ambition goes hand in hand with appetite, the main theme of the episode. Cas and Sam also have some issues when it comes to pride because they sometimes have an excess of it (hybris). Which, of course, since S4-5 are about Lucifer who "sinned" because of his pride, makes the two the most Lucifer-like characters (even more than Lucifer himself, at least the SPN version) of the series.

They're ambitious not just because they crave power for power's sake but because, secretly, they want to explore their limits, which means they want to go beyond their limits. Maybe there's also something to be said about wanting to prove their faith by accepting the unknown into their lives but I'll have to think about it.

Now, of course, things are different for the two of them because well, for instance, Sam is a human who thinks that his ambition is a sin he needs to get rid of. Also, appetites for humans are a hell of a problem. Hence, the imposed need of getting restrained, handcuffed, and eventually imprisoned.

Like Sam, Cas, too, tries to keep a rigid control over himself and his impulses. Like Sam (who has Bobby and Dean as his "wardens"), Cas, too, is actively controlled and monitored by Heaven. Unlike Sam, Cas doesn't need to get imprisoned because his own mind is a prison in almost the literal sense of the word because of Heaven's brainwashing and mind control. But in Cas' case things are a bit more complex because of Jimmy. "There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."

Apart from Heaven and from "himself", there's aslo Jimmy in Cas so this episode also shows one important thing: the body of the vessel, provided that the stimulus is impactful enough, can overcome the angel "inside". Not the mind, the body. The body which angels don't have.

And this is why Jimmy resurfaces in this episode to show that "the vessel" can gain momentary control... even by means of total loss of control. Which is, of course, not the same exact thing that happens to Sam (or there wouldn't be any "surprise" at all) with Lucifer but the principle remains the same, what changes is that it's not about gaining control back via kilos upon kilos of red meat or infinite gallons of demon blood but via the power of love, the memories of a lived life, the connections that are made along the way. The body remembers, in a way.

Also Jimmy, just like Sam, was a, very secretly, highly ambitious man. It's not a coincidence that both Jimmy and Sam will say "yes" to being possessed because, as much as the show frames it as bad (and, I mean, I can't say it isn't by the way they put it), what's more ambitious, aka what screams more "go beyond your limits", than taking your hands off the wheel? Cede control, merge with the Other, lose yourself completely. It's a seductive thought that also shows that one has faith in themselves (or one is proud enough) to think that they can go see what's beyond the fence, can actually go there. That they can make it.

And since SPN s4-5 are seasons of prophecies... who was the famous prophetess who was cursed by her own god because she didn't cede control, she didn't merge with and completely lose herself with him? Of course it's Cassandra. Which in SPN terms is Dean. Which also means, in this reading of mine, that the emptiness inside of Dean doesn't mean that he's "dead inside" but that he lacks ambition and pride. No, let's say it better: that he has a super strict control over his own ambition and his own pride, perhaps that he's actually scared of them because to have an ambition means to be willing to take risks, to fly without parachute thinking that the net will appear, if you will. Taking risks means playing with the gods, playing to be one with the gods and Sam and Cas are way more fascinated by this idea than Dean is. Or maybe they're just less dominated by fear because of their hybris.

What I'm trying to say is that yes, the episode is about sex and appetites but appetite pertains to ambition as well and to the charm and sexiness that radiate from power, control and the lack thereof.

[tharizdun-03]

i didn't know my major takeaway from this houseki no kuni rewatch would be how much it has to say about labor and how 'work' defines us.

it's surprisingly the most interesting thing about it (and there is A LOT that is interesting about the series). their society operates on a rigid hierarchy where a gem’s worth is measured solely by their utility.

roles are strictly defined: warriors patrol, craftsmen sew clothes, and outliers like cinnabar are exiled to solitary night shifts. this system reduces individuality to functional output, with personal connections as distractions. something that isn't useful.

because phos is the weakest gem (sort of), their attempts to conform—training as a warrior, seeking purpose in patrols—only highlight the system’s flaws. when phos fails in battle, their shame isn’t rooted in letting others down but in confirming their perceived uselessness.

a self-worth which stems from this system. and this culture affects even those who fit the mold. take the tailor gem, whose job is to design and maintain clothing. on paper, their role requires little creativity, yet they design extravagant sleepwear even when it's not necessary.

it's a creative act of defiance—even “successful” gems strain against the limits of their roles. work limits them all. it's work, not leisure. we don't see red beryl design her own clothes in her own time as a hobby, do we? (at least i don't think lol)

phos’ isolation deepens when their body changes, freeing them from hibernation but alienating them further. assigned to antarcticite for winter patrols, they’re initially dismissed as a burden. but then antarcticite’s shares their duties with phos.

but even there, the system warps this dynamic. their relationship is still framed through the language of labor. guilt is expressed through work, and care through task-sharing.

when antarcticite seeks comfort after failing phos, they turn to sensei, not their peers. sensei who they can hug and show affection for. bonds between gems, meanwhile, are mediated through duty: protecting someone becomes proof of worth, apologizing means vowing to work harder.

and phos misreads this, interpreting protection as pity rather than care. their self-worth is so tied to utility that they can’t recognize non-transactional support—even when antarcticite sacrifices themselves to save phos, it’s framed as duty, not friendship.

this culminates in phos’ realization that power alone can’t fix systemic brokenness. after gaining golden arms and newfound strength, they still fail to save antarcticite.

the system’s cruelty lies in its circular logic: gems like phos are told to change, but change either destroys them (losing limbs, memories, identity) or reinforces their alienation. labor here isn’t just work—it’s identity, currency, and prison.

those who don’t fit, like cinnabar or phos, are trapped between erasure and eroding themselves to belong. meanwhile, the 'model' gems endure their own quiet rebellions, stretching roles to include slivers of self.

productivity keeps the gems safe but it strips meaning from their lives. their world survives, but it doesn’t live—and phos, in seeking to matter, becomes both the system’s critic and its most broken product.

[bonzos-number-1-fan]

TMAGP 21 Thoughts: Y2K [Error]s

And we're back, again. Albeit I'm back quite late. This one was an interesting one to start act 3 with. On one hand it's a really good recap for what's lead up to this and a great foundation of what we can presume is to come. On the other hand it's an episode I think is deceptively devoid of new information. There is obviously new stuff to dig into here but in general I think it's not a lot of major stuff and mostly reinforcements of stuff we're already well aware of, or confirmation of stuff that I feel was about as good as confirmed anyway. With that said, this will be quite a read because what there is to dig into does go pretty deep.

Spoilers for episode 21 below the cut.

The conversation with Sam and Celia has a couple of interesting bits in it. Some of it's fairly obvious but there is at least one thing I've not really seen people talk about with it. So, Sam is flirting with the idea of of quitting, which is very Sam, and Celia pushes for him not to and tries to get him back "on track" in regards to the Institute, which is very Celia. Celia does care about her co-workers but obviously she's out for herself more than anyone else in the office. Her "complicated immigration status" is another is a long series of alternate-universe references. I think her comment about the OIAR's lax background checks is a more compelling detail there. Presumably there is a TMP version of Celia, who may or may not be called Celia. So you wouldn't necessarily expect there to be an issue there. "Celia" Ripley does likely exist and is likely British and would likely qualify for a position in the OIAR. Yet the way Celia frames it suggests she thought it would be an issue too. Either something that might come up after she got the job or something to be solved in order to get it. What I think is interesting about that is that it suggests to me that her identity isn't the problem but that they'd have some way to tell she's not from this universe.

That's all pretty normal stuff for this show though. The most interesting part of this is Celia's statement that she has to stay because he can't take Jack back to wherever she came from. I've seen a lot of musings on it but nothing that's gotten to what I feel is the heart of the problem there. Jack can't come with her because Jack is a baby and so can't understand and then engage with the mechanism she used. Which basically confirms that however she did it is much close to Darrien's meditation-induced-travel than, say, a portal to walk through. She doesn't rule out that she couldn't go back either so however it works it would have to be something Jack would have to participate in. Although there is the possibility that she's currently sharing her body with the actual TMP Celia and has merely brought her consciousness over and that Jack can't go because there is no body to return to. The problem with that though is the aforementioned background check. If she was physically living as TMP's Celia then there isn't really a concern there at all. Along with Lady M being about to smell that she's different it probably rules that out. Not a strong confirmation but certainly more pointing in the direction that Celia's body is hers which in turns makes the issue with Jack less likely to be that there is no Jack in Celia's home universe to body hop into.

Okay, so on to the incident proper. Honestly, not a huge amount to dig into this one IMO. Obviously a fair bit happened but it's mostly surface level. Which isn't a bad thing but for the sorts of things I tend to talk about it does limit what there is to say. I'd rather not recount things unless I have something to say about them beyond the text itself. There are still a few things to mention here all the same. Firstly, speaking of Darrien the Dr Welling that is mentioned in the episode is very likely the person who gave their name to Welling Mutare Materia where Darrien was incarcerated in episode 17.

Next up, while it's not talked about in explicit detail there is one thing that sums up the point of this ritual, the "Great Work". Anyone into alchemy will be well aware that this refers the creation of the Philosopher's Stone, the Magnum Opus. Immortality, turning lead to gold, spiritual enlightenment, all of the above. Ask 5 alchemists what it's about, get 6 answers. There are some pretty major implications to this that I've not really seen touched upon. Firstly, it's a near direct confirmation that the OIAR and the Magnus Institute are directly adversarial. If the Institute's goal is the completion of the Great Work then the OIAR's purpose is to prevent that and it's something they. mostly, openly broadcast. The symbol of the Magnum Opus is circle housed in a square, housed in a triangle, that is housed in another circle. That symbol is found in the OIAR's insignia but inverted. Which is about as blatant a statement of opposition as you can really get. In turn that also largely confirms that the OIAR are responsible, or at least wanted to, burn the Institute to the ground. The timing of this is very likely not a coincidence either. This letter is dated 04/01/1999, the dome they're referring to in it (the O2, formerly the Millennium Dome) was opened 31/12/1999, as you might expect. The Institute burned down just 7 days prior to that happening.

Secondly, knowing that the Great Work is pretty obviously the goal at this point recontextualises things like catalysts and agents. As well as the general purpose of the Institute as a whole here. The Great Work isn't generally seen as a bad thing in alchemy, like, it's the whole point of the art. It also doesn't seem like the Institute itself is necessarily perverting that idea either. The PoV character is certainly not happy with the idea that this ritual will harness fear and despair is too great of a quantity. So it doesn't seem out and out capital E Evil as a plan. At least as presented. However, there is

Next up, the Millennium Dome itself has a few interesting elements to talk about in this context. The most obvious one is the Millennium Experience which was a kind of its whole thing for its first year. This was an exhibition of all sorts of bits but of relevance is that the exhibition has split into three major themes; Who We Are, What We Do, and Where We Live. 3 is a fairly major number in alchemy thanks to the tria prima. They're divided further still and Who We Are splits into Body, Faith, Mind, and Self-Portrait. These have some loose alignment with the tria prima, the body, the soul, and the spirit. This is something other people have brought up though and it's not actually the thing I think is exciting about the Millennium Dome. Especially not in context to the episode. The dome is important as an architectural work first and foremost. Everyone should go have a look at it because its major feature is incredibly relevant to the Great Work, this episode's details, and the show's explicit references. The feature of the Millennium Dome are its twelve 100 meter support towers. IRL the 12 towers were chosen mostly because of the strong associations with time, both hours and months, but in this episode a lot of weight is given to the astrological and there are 12 signs in the zodiac. But 12 is also incredibly important for the Great Work too. Typically there are 4 stages that you must take to complete the magnum opus but these stages were expanded upon by various scholars. 12 is a number multiple sources land on. 12 is especially relevant for TMP because it's what's laid out in The Compound of Alchemy; or, the Twelve Gates leading to the Discovery of the Philosopher's Stone, written by George Ripley in 1471. Ripley is a very noted alchemist and importantly Celia is his namesake. It really just ticks a whole lots of boxes for "big important thing" in a show like this.

As a final note on the Great Work its presentation as a universal transmutation is quite a shift from more traditional interpretations. As mentioned it's a bit all over the place as for what it means but this incident seems to portray it as something akin to The Change in scale. Universal and far-reaching. It's hard to say too much more than that based on this episode alone but it's worth keeping an ear out for in the future. Even if this version of it is benevolent I can see why something of that scale got them firebombed.

Also, is it just me or does Chester sound much more roboty to start here than in other incidents?

After the incident it's Alice and Lena having a bit of a chat. Alice in this scene is a little peculiar to me, she's very quick to accept that Sam is correct about being lead to a conclusion by Freddy. Although I'm not sure how that reflects on her stance in the last episode. She was obviously trying to protect Sam but it didn't seem like she was lying about not believing his whole conspiracy there either. In this scene though she's pretty sold on the idea. Lena having a heart is nice to see too. I like that she's opening up a little more and is subverting some of the expectations of her assumed archetype.

Gwen and Ink5oul's section is pretty self-explanatory IMO. At least as far as those two characters go. Ink5oul's powers are progressing and she's now able to control mundane tattoos she had no part in producing but beyond that it's pretty expected stuff. Obviously the real standout here is [Error]. Firstly it's a confirmation that they're the one compelling people to spit out statements. Not that I think that confirmation is much of a reveal. There are a few bigger details to pick at here though. They've seemingly marked the whole gang for some reason. If the above is correct, and the OIAR is directly opposed to the Institute, it could just be revenge. Albeit that labours under the assumption [Error] has some sort of allegiance to the Institute. Which I think isn't entirely certain at this stage. The way the transcript describes them is also very perculiar.

A Figure emerges, shrouded in a cloak of whispers. … The Figure continues to emerge, a nightmarish specter of an older world, slowly enveloping Ink5oul’s brash bravado … The Figure breathes deeply, a strange and disconcerting sound, enveloped in pained whispers.

They're three details worth mentioning there. The first is their almost ephemeral description, they emerge and then continue to emerge. Which is a strange phrasing if they were just walking into the scene. The whispers I think are fairly obviously the statements they force on people, not much to say there. "Ink5oul’s brash bravado" speaks to what I was discussing in last episode's post. Ink5oul seems to be fairly inauthentic in a lot of their interactions and are putting on a persona to seem like they're more of a badass than they really are. Outside of that there is just this to mention.

The tape recorder bites Ink5oul before clicking off.

I've seen it brought up a lot and I get why, it is quite funny, but I think it's also speaking to a larger thing. [Error] appears to have much greater control of these than we might be familiar with. I'm not going to get into TMA spoilers but [Error] seems to be conjuring, and commanding, these things themselves which is a very different vibe. I think they might serve a similar purpose overall, the gathering of statements, but more purposeful and I could also see them being [Error]'s physical tether to the world. If they are as ephemeral as the transcript hints at the tape records might serve as their anchor. It's something they can move about but it might be their vulnerability.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Incident/CAT#R#DPHW Master Sheet and Terminology Sheet

DPHW Theory: 4254 seems about right but it's also such a weird one that it's hard to really quantify. It doesn't strike me as wrong in any way but the focus of the incident was not on the, well, incident. So it's hard to say.

CAT# Theory: CAT2 is a 2 and I don't have a huge amount to say on these as of yet.

R# Theory: BC seems right. It's what the last letter about spooky shit was rated and this seems to hit all the same notes I mentioned in the ep 19 post.

Header talk: Architecture (Landmark) -/- Corruption (Entropy) is another of those strange ones. Our third in a row. Which likely means they're here to stay, and while that's generally fine by me it does make me wonder what the diegetic reasoning is here. It's a pretty sudden shift to just do this now and it never come up before this. It's also not something mentioned as new either. Corruption (Entropy) is fairly interesting though. It makes sense for the incident but it feels like you could've just done "time" here for the same effect.

[descendantsramblings]

I have a request for Hades x Insecure!Prince Male reader cause i just know that Hades would fight that Depression like a King

I hope this is how you wanted this love, I did my best to make the insecurities an internalized thing based but if this isn’t want you wanted just let me know ❤️

Body Better

Hades x Prince! Reader

Pronouns Used: he/him/his

Title inspired by this song by Maisie Peters but this isn't a song fic

Summary: Being a prince in title alone, never set to take the throne can way on you. Goodness knows the pressure of perfection with no outcome has poisoned that Prince’s mind.

Warnings: talks of insecurity and major body image issues, Reader is Hans of the Southern Isles if you squint, Hades calls the reader "field mouse" in an adoring way

Word Count: 1.7K words

     What was that quote he heard once? The physics one, he believes -or some form of science at least. He could vaguely hear it in Merlin’s voice, “an object in motion will stay in motion, at a constant speed in a straight line, until acted on by another object.” It wasn’t meant to be relatable, he was sure of that. It wasn’t even a true quote, just a fact he’d learned for a class. And yet the prince couldn’t help but think about it as he stood in front of the golden framed full body mirror that sat in the corner of his room. Lost somewhere between staring at himself and yelling in his mind.His headphones tight on his head playing some sort of sad song that the boy thought was just so relatable. What force could wreck into the ever growing stress of having to be the perfect prince who would never take the throne other than jealousy? Not that his boyfriend had ever given him a true reason to be jealous. Hades despite his ever stoic expression when he was in public, was a good, caring boyfriend. He can admit that, it was obvious. 

    But there was something about Maleficent. About the way she’d grab his shoulder while talking to him, laughing as she rolls her eyes. It was just a casual touch, a simple platonic motion. It wasn’t even like touching her friends was out of the question, she’d been known to grab on Hook too, (Y/n) knew that. Of course he did, but that somehow didn’t make it any better. Not in the mindset he was in, if it was a better day it would. On a better day he wouldn’t have cared, Maleficent has even grabbed on him before. He shouldn’t be so upset over her. Here wrapped up in his mind though, he can’t seem to help himself as his hands trace over his skin. His arms could be better, that was something he was heavily aware of. Hades has nice arms, his could be more like that. Did he compare his arms to the prince’s own? Would he be willing to start working out with him?  And his legs weren’t that great, not like Morgie’s, even Maleficent had better ones. Morgie’s were lean, of course, but they were muscular, built from the way he jumped around and did flips. Constantly on the move. If Hades said no to working out with him maybe Morgie would start tumbling with him, that could be fun couldn’t it?  It wasn’t fair of him, he knew it wasn’t fair of him. Hades had never given him a direct reason to compare himself to the VKs none of them had, at least not purposely. But it was so hard not to. 

    No matter what they did, everyone at the school was aware that the VKs were attractive. That’s undoubtedly how they got away with things, and in an odd way they knew it too. No matter what they did, they were still the type to swoon over. The flirting that followed their nasty endeavors would still get you flustered even if they weren’t normally your type. Confidence leading to them being almost impossible to resist. It made it hard not to compare yourself to them, especially if you had to be around them as much as (Y/n) did. Hades loved having him around at the hideout, it was so easy for him to hold onto his boyfriend while talking to his friends. The other VKs didn’t mind it either, Hook and Morgie were actually pretty kind to him once he got through their walls. So he knew in some part of him, he was being ridiculous by letting his insecurity be set off by them. They were his friends in a way, weren’t they?  It would make more sense if it was being triggered by another prince. There were plenty of those to make him insecure, his seven brothers and his brother-in-law to be exact. Who needs other kids to make you insecure when you have so many family members who do it without trying? So many people whose existence alone was a major stressor in your way of life.

     He was a touch too busy looking in his mirror to notice the way his dorm’s door creaked open.  The reflective surface turned in a way that prevented him from being able to see the head of light blue hair that slinks into his room, eyes flickering around to find his boyfriend. Hades lets his eyes land on the boy, a frown stretching across his face as he watches the way that his prince grabs on his thighs. Glaring at his own reflection. What on earth could the prince be doing? Hades closes the door gently behind him, leaning against it as he watches his lover stare into his reflection. In a different context, maybe if he was learning a dance -as the boy tended to do- or if he was trying on outfits, Hades would find the display cute. The god not a stranger to watching the boy he loved prance around in a mirror, but something about this had a dark air hanging around it. (Y/n) was visibly upset, maybe not to everyone but he knew the boy too well. 

    The corners of his mouth were pointed ever so slightly down, bottom lip poking out further than it normally would. Hands wringing over each other when they aren’t shakily brushing over his skin. And (Y/n)’s eyelids were hanging lazily, exhaustion present in them in a way that makes him seem like he hadn’t slept properly in days despite the fact that his eyes were so bright and bubbly the day before. Hades knew something was wrong, slinking over to stand behind the anxious boy, hands sliding (Y/n)’s headphones off of his head. Earning himself a soft gasp and a wide eyed stare for his sneaky behavior.

    “What’s going on in that pretty little mind? Where are you?” (Y/n) looks at his boyfriend in the mirror, watching as Hades encircles his shoulders with his arms, pulling him back against his chest. His body was always so warm, he adored the feeling of his lover pressed against him and in any other moment that affection could melt away everything. But those arms, those perfect, well built arms, they were the only thing he could look at. Tracing the ripples of muscles and veins that stretched under his heated flesh. “(Y/n),” he coos, leaning down into the shell of the prince’s ear, “What’s wrong, field mouse?” He kisses it softly, humming as he lets a hand slide down the boy’s body. 

     He should be able to tell the boy he loves when something’s wrong right? That’s something that made relationships healthy, wasn’t it? And Hades was asking, that means he should be okay with whatever it was, shouldn’t he? But if he knew that his friends were the problem, would that upset him? Not only his friends but Hades himself. It had the risk of upsetting him, didn't it? Would (Y/n) be upset if Hades told him he’d been comparing his body to the Prince’s? Of course he would, his boyfriend was perfect. He was an amazing boyfriend and literally a god. He had looks that deserved to be worshiped, you’d have to be a fool to not realize that. 

    So he shakes his head, spinning around in Hades’ arms to force a smile up at him, placing a quick kiss on his lips. “Nothing my love, I’m okay. Just,” he pauses, brushing a hand over Hades’ cheek bone, “I’m just thinking.” A dark eyebrow raises, hand coming down to cup his cheek, “Don’t lie to me. What’s happening in there?” He sighs, leaning against the heated chest that stood firm in front of him. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll be okay.” Hades rolls his eyes, accepting that in the current state he was getting no where. Resulting in lifting his boyfriend off the floor, carrying him bridal style to his bed. Wrapping his partner into him, tucking his face into the Prince’s neck. “Tell me what’s got you so upset. You and I both know you can’t lift me so you’re stuck with me until you start talking. And as a god I don’t have the same needs as you, so, I’d recommend you start talking.” 

    (Y/n) huffs, crossing his arms across his chest as he refuses to look at his lover. “You’re being ridiculous, my love.” He lets out a sarcastic laugh, pressing soft kisses to the boy’s neck, “Yeah, I’m the one who’s being ridiculous? I’m not the one grabbing at my body in the mirror and refusing to talk about it. You obviously are going through something, stop trying to pretend you’re not upset.” A shaky breath comes out of his lips, looking down at the light blue hair resting near his head. “Would you maybe consider working out with me? Or if you don’t want to, do you think Morgie would consider it?”  He looks up, staring at the prince with his brows furrowed, “What? You hate working out, sweating makes you feel nasty and you hate being sore.” “Yeah well, I was thinking of trying something new. And your arms are so,” he traces the arm he can reach, lip between his teeth, “so hot. And Morgie has nice legs, he could definitely help me get better ones.” 

    In a swift movement, the god moves to hover over the prince. One hand resting on either side of his lover’s head as he stares down at him. “Is that what this is about? You don’t realize how gorgeous you are?” He could feel the heat rising to his face, reaching up to cover it with his hands. “No, let me see you.” Slowly he lowers them, looking up at his boyfriend with a lip between his teeth. “You are so genuinely gorgeous, field mouse. You have the best body I have ever seen because it is yours. I love you, if you want to work out for you, sure. But if it’s an attempt to make anyone else happy, there is no reason to do something you hate.” He smiles, searching for any sort of lie in the fiery man’s eyes. “You mean that?” Hades laughs, leaning down to place a chaste kiss on his lover’s lips, “Yes, I mean that.”

[snailsgoingdowntown]

You DO realize that Dion has a thing for his sister, right? Especially in one of the side stories... Not to mention he wouldn't act like that in the slightest.

I miss when you wrote for actual GOOD characters and not incestuous freaks.

Oh no. I'm writing for a FICTIONAL CHARACTER that I enjoy very much.

Oh no, I totally didn't take his character into consideration and will eventually SHOW why I characterized him like that in my FANFICTION.

Oh no, it's almost like he's starved for attention (granted he's not aware of that or at least not completely) and literally the only person who gives him any is Roxana. Her attention/feelings may be hatred at first, disgust and dispises him with her entire being but they understand each other the most in the Agriche family as stated in season 3 episode 3 of the novel. Not only that but it also states that they are horrible at understanding their own feelings which means he literally does not understand his want for any type of 'familial' affection. Not to mention Roxana herself would have commented on it if he WAS romantically into her or wanted to sleep with her like she did with Fontaine both in the novel and webtoon. It would have made her hate him more and probably never accept him, be it as a comrade or brother.

Not to mention, she also says this in season two, episode #24, "Fontaine is several degrees lower than you in many aspects, but I do wonder if it wouldn't have been easier for you had you simply lusted after me the way he does," and while she also says this, "I might even condescend to sparing you a tiny corner of my heart," it isn't or has to be romantic. Anon, have you ever had a family member you hate for whatever reason, that your heart will never accept them? Or rejected them for the rest of eternity because they wronged you so bad? Because I have and do as bad as it sounds.

The manhwa mistranslates that part of the conversation in chapter 29, "Then again if my body was the only thing you wanted from me like (Fontaine) does, maybe you wouldn't have to suffer as much." I'm not sure why Tapas or whoever is the translation team is for the manhwa decided to go with that. And I'll admit that their behavior towards each other is questionable at best. But they don't exactly have a good example of how normal, healthy siblings should interact - Roxana wanted a healthy-ish relationship with Jeremy to manipulate him and lowkey only saw him alone as a sibling for the majority of the novel without realizing it until later on in the novel after the time skip, assuming she doesn't see Dion as her brother in the side stories. I'm sure if things didn't go the way they did when they were kids, Roxana and Dion would have interacted in a somewhat similar way... Just less affectionate and definitely less healthy regardless due to how he was.

Spoiler utc for one of the side stories

If you're talking about the bad ending where Roxana doesn't choose Cassis and dies, then yea I can understand why you saw Dion promising to find her in every world and lifetime as romantic. But you know what else, anon? While we have bumps in the road I would do the same with my dad - NOT because I'm interested in him, fuck no, but because he's the only one I would want as my dad. I love him and while he's not the ideal father, he stayed when my mom left, he took care of me and supported me when she couldn't even be bothered to drive for less than an hour to visit me.

I have heard something about him losing his memories or something in the most recent side stories so idk if he acts differently towards her during that time frame. I don't even know if he actually lost his memories or not but I was also told he wanders around like the lonely lose he is (affectionate). I say this because I can't say anything about it but I was also told by @malleus-s-bestie under this post I made (im sorry for tagging you, I'll remove it if you want) that he wants his niece to like him and I'm like, 100% sure he wouldn't want that if he was in love with her. He would probably want to kill the kid or at least resent her. Probably the latter considering his character development. But again, I haven't read it since I can't find it nor Is it, to my knowledge, translated into English.

Not a self promotion just wanted to show what they said.

Again, IF he WAS romantically interested in her or wanted to sleep with her, Roxana, without a doubt, would have said something about it. She would have NEVER accepted him.

[yuripoll]

KNOCKOUTS: Qualia the Purple (2011 - 13)

Qualia the Purple is a three volume scifi series by Shirou Tsunashima based on light novels by Hisamitsu Ueo about a girl whose friend sees humans as robots.

Through the uncanny purple eyes of Yukari, all people appear to her as robots. Her talent is both a blessing and a curse. She is able to assist the police in sizing up threats, since her “skill” allows her to evaluate humans’ quirks and physical capabilities like cataloging the parts of a machine–yet her strange sight has cost her the friendship of her peers. She does have one friend in her corner: Hatou “Gaku” Manabu, a girl at school who cares deeply for Yukari. When Yukari is recruited into a secret organization, the real trouble begins. Gaku is thrust into a realm of mystery, quantum experimentation, and alternate universes, with only her wits–and her love for Yukari–to guide her along the way. - AniList

ENG published by Seven Seas; AFAIK no convenient site to read the JP.

CWs under the cut. General severity rating: mod to major.

suggestive scenes <- details are greyed out but there's an upskirt shot at one point; occasional mildly suggestive posing; some mild non-sexual nudity and flashes of non-explicit sex; occasional sexual reference.

violence <- i did try to list out every distinct type of violence but it got too big. tl;dr, never especially graphic or gory, but violence is very frequent. details are typically blacked out. includes dismemberment, decapitation, strangulation, and gun violence.

body horror <- primarily in relation to the above. beyond that, there's mainly just the conceptual body horror of an injured human getting fixed like a robot (which is a major plot point and also really cool).

major character death <- not elaborating too hard on this one <3 you'll know when you get there. there's a big tonal shift after this happens (again. you'll know when you get there).

minor character death <- a plane is blown up and multiple minor characters die, including children. technically temporary, and the incident itself isn't dwelled on.

inappropriate age gap <- ch12, a conversation is had with an alternate hatou who has fallen in love with alice, noted to be 13 at the time where hatou is 16. called out as creepy by our hatou within that conversation. ch15, we see part of another world where hatou pursued a relationship with alice, including briefly showing them nude in bed and kissing. i'd say it's framed mostly negatively; the relationship is described in narration as brainwashing.

domestic abuse? <- ch15, flash forward of a relationship implies some degree of emotional abuse.

child abuse <- inflicted by a mother. part of a character's backstory, physical briefly shown in ch14. ch15, a different mother is also shown physically abusing her child, justifying it against the other mother by saying its out of love. additional abusive practices in relation to human experimentation mentioned below.

bullying <- there's a bullying plot in early chapters which is largely just teasing and gets resolved quickly, but ch11 briefly shows a bullying situation that reaches into abusive territory. additional, less notable mentions of bullying dotted about after this point.

suicide <- shown in ch15 via walking into traffic.

kidnapping <- there's a kidnapping in ch6 & ch13, both are brief but grievous bodily harm is inflicted in both instances.

human experimentation <- of the unethical variety. conducted on children, and resulted in death on at least one occasion. the facility in question was abusive in additional ways, such as using solitary confinement, threats, and pain as punishment for non-compliance.

internalised homophobia <- hatou thinks of being attracted to other girls as deviancy.

bittersweet ending <- less bleak than the whole latter half of the manga, though.

[4aceclover]

Shadow house theory

Yay theory time

Anybody who's seen chapter 192 shadows house (Monster) know about this specific type of coffee a type that usually given to the children to help their shadows potential of fusion go up even higher so that way they can become adults the manga chapter itself kind of explains what it does

So I have a major question if this type of coffee changes a Shadow's body is it possible for Shirley to drink this stuff and gain her human form back

The reason why I believe this could happen is because this kind of coffee stimulates their body and it's made clear in the story and that if the shadow master/mistress drinks this coffee it stimulates their body it's supposed to increase the chance of fusion but we know for a fact that thanks to a certain pair that it can do a lot more than making the two fuse

Thanks to Louise knowing the truth about what living dolls are at this point combined with Emilico and Kate trying to break the brainwashing of the coffee the living dolls drink, plus a few other small details like Ricky and Lou's relationship before entering the house it helped Lou break her brainwashing completely, and try to save mistress Louise however we know for a fact that if the fusion isn't complete one of them will die and if it's incomplete in the middle of it both of them will die

For spoiler reasons I want to talk about the chapter frame by frame but won't, so I will say this. Because Louise realized what she truly was she took it in a negative light realizing that she's not who she wanted to be and can never be, (at least in her mind) it made her so upset that she viewed herself as nothing more than a monster (Hey look I call out to the chapter)

(My theory on Barbara also gives us some more details about how these kids mental and emotional states affect their expulsion, link to that theory at the bottom)

Well what we're seeing from Louise is her mental and emotional state dictating how this fusion appearance of hers is looking let me explain.

Because Louise now views herself in a much more negative light than she used to, combining that negativity with the coffee she drank, it didn't JUST stimulate her want to fuse with Lou, but instead stimulated her body to match with how she viewed herself. She no longer sees herself as the benevolent Shadow mistress that she used to be, now she views herself as a monster, somebody who's trying to harm Lou, somebody who's vain and believes she is something greater than what she really is. As she stated it in the manga chapter the world doesn't revolve around her, and while it is good that she finally learned that lesson it also left her with a massive transformation

Why am I bringing up all of this for… context of course

With all of that in mind let's bring up Shirley and her relationship with Rum once again (I love talking about these two so here it comes). Anybody who knows me or has just read the Manga itself knows what Shirley's soot power is: it's Transformation, this is how the manga explains it

And I stated before this coffee can stimulate their bodies into doing more than what they're capable of now. We've seen thanks to Louise that it can physically alter a shadows body into something greater than what we would have ever imagined because of something very important

What the shadow themselves want is how they view themselves

A few chapters before monster got published we got to see Lou and Louise's side of the story. While Kate and the others were trying to save them we got to see what happened to them while all of this was going on, and we saw that while Lou couldn't stop the brainwashing effects of the coffee, Louise was able to help her by using her power on her, she also used Benjamin's training in order to help her ignore the influence that Lou was trying to give her, and keep her from singing so that way they could delay their fusion process. Louise even said "that they were definitely not going to fuse" showing how she didn't want to fuse with Lou in the beginning because she cared about her by this point, at least thanks to the information Kate told her

However another key piece of information that's important about this is the fact that the shadows house knows that the living dolls have influence over their masters, which is why she had to prevent Lou from singing in the first place, because she knew the moment Lou started talking to her directly she could be influenced by her to fuse, and that is the reason for the box of fusion to make sure that the influence is so strong that they literally can't listen to anyone else but their doll to fuse with, and that's unfortunately what happened to Louise. She tried her hardest to fight it off but at the end of the day she was influenced by Lou because of a certain other person taking advantage of the situation Lewis. He's the power allowed him to manipulate what Lou was saying causing her to be influenced by it against her will

But what the chapter monster revealed is: what she wanted vs how she saw herself ended, which up prevailing against what Anthony and Lewis were trying to do to her, but it also shows that what she wants vs how she views herself are two completely different things now

In the past she viewed herself as the prettiest strongest shadowgirl in the house and all she wanted was to become an amazing adult

But now that she knows the truth she doesn't want to fuse with Lou to become an adult, but at the same time she realizes that she's not pretty like Lou because she does not own Lou's face. She might be strong but that's because of Lou. She's nothing like her living doll she views herself now as a monster.

With all of that into consideration could it be possible that if Shirley could start drinking that special Shadow coffee, could it slowly over time to hopefully gain her human form back

Think about it for a moment, we know for a fact that while she and Rum didn't talk to each other all that much in the beginning, we know what she wants she wants to be close to Rum, she wants to support her we see this in the manga itself, as the first thing she ever transforms into was Rummy, the little bow that both of them had on their fingers. She knows that that bow was important to Rum because she saw them use it to speak with her during the debut

How she views herself is a bit trickier, but we know for a fact that she already knows the truth, after all in chapter 95 where we learn how Rum's been doing reveals that, the chapter where Kate broke Emilico out of her brainwashing and told her the truth about where she came from, just so happened to be the exact same day that Shirley went to her room to try and get more information for Rum which, not only allowed her to learn the truth about Rum and Emilico but also herself, and it's even possible that Shirley was around during the master robe ark, because while we never see her in the chapter where it takes place in the manga or the anime itself, we do know that the anime is perfectly fine with going off script to make its own original content for this already amazing work, because the kidnapping Arc that Emilico and Kate went through was not a part of the manga (but that was the first time anime watchers got to see a morph that just so happened to have a cute little curl on the top of its head). It revealed the status of Shirley & Rum before the manga ever did, revealing that those two are okay but they're not in the same place as they used to be, so it also gives Credence to her lively and mischievous personality. She's somebody who's willing to fight for what she believes in and she cares a lot about Rum, and she's willing to do pretty much anything for her. Even going out of her way to dangerous situations together information for her and helping Emilio find out where the secret coffee was so that way they can swap the beans

With all of that in mind it's possible that Shirley & Rum could easily find a way to get back to that room a little bit at a time, and get small ounces of that coffee, because Shirley knows what that coffee can do to a Shadow's body, not only did she see it but that panel of Louise as a hulking monster yeah, not only is Lou trapped in her chest but Shirley is also trapped there too, because she put a listening device into Lou's ear so that way she could hear Ricky's voice, and break her out of the brainwashing. So she knows exactly what that coffee can do to a shadows body and she knows how to get in

If she finds a way to sneak into that room and get some of that coffee little by little they can slowly increase her body's stimulation, combine that with her soot power allowing her to transform into something by wearing the soot she admits, this could not only help her gain her human form back but also increase her soot volume, allowing her to keep her human form much longer or even permanently, but it would also help her get stronger and sneak around places that Rum can't get to because she's a veiled doll, like the normal living Doll rooms and even Kate's room allowing her to transform into other things and even gain the ability to copy other people's power (of course that's my personal theory)

Who knows one day she might go from the tiny adorable morph that we see her running around as back into the sassy mischievous young girl that we know she is maybe we can actually hear her speak more and it will be really cute to see her and rum doing this pose

I don't know just some room for thought what are you guys think of this theory

Here's my first Shadow house theory for context on Barbara

[misrepresentedmorallygrey]

And Round 1 is Done!

PROPAGANDA

"Picture this: the love of your life betrays you and causes your death, then you're brought back to life later against your will and your lover is with your reincarnation. Anyone would feel bitter! She tries her best to keep living her half life and helping people. She's hated just because she's not the main character and gets in the way of the show's OTP."

"Kikyo was such an interesting character. She was murdered by the villain, who tricked both her and her love interest into thinking the other had betrayed them, brought back to life against her will only to find that fifty years had passed, the world had moved on without her, her baby sister was now an old woman, and she'd been condemned to an awful half-life in an unfeeling clay body where she was stuck in her worst moments and basically a vengeful spirit, but she eventually managed to move past it, gave up her one chance at getting revenge on her murderer to save the life of a child, and achieved some measure of inner peace before she died for good. But, she also has the misfortune of being the first love of the male lead, so of course the only thing anyone seems to care about is how she supposedly did him dirty and wasn't good enough for him. The whole fandom is chock full of meta posts about how she didn't trust Inuyasha enough and should have known he'd NEVER betray her like that. Meanwhile, Inuyasha fell for it just as easily when the villain framed HER for attacking HIM, but nobody ever tries to claim that HE didn't trust HER enough. (For further context, when she thought he'd betrayed her, she retaliated by pinning him to a tree and putting him in an enchanted sleep. He retaliated by destroying her village.) In at least 90% of the fanfics that she appears in at all, she's either the Bad Girlfriend or the Evil Ex, who either previously or is currently abusing the hero, or cheating on him, or trying to coerce him into turning human, or dating him for years only to break up with him by telling him he disgusts her because of his demon blood (huh???), none of which she did in the actual canon, solely so the preferred love interest can swoop in and kiss it all better. People will claim they're just making valid criticisms of her actions (which, to be fair, aren't always great), or saying she didn't properly earn her redemption (which is actually pretty standard for a shounen series) because she didn't apologize enough, but them multiple male characters who did far worse than she did somehow miraculously managed to escape the constant criticisms that she's subjected to, this despite having a so-called redemption that's literally just "He stopped eating people because he wanted to get into the heroine's pants", and remain very popular characters both in their own right and as alternate ships for the female lead. The double standards are so glaringly obvious, yet people will bend over backwards and jump through mental hoops that would give a gold-medal Olympics gymnast pause to insist that they're being completely objective and fair and that this isn't just about trying to score points in a ship war or holding female characters to completely different standards from male characters."

Kairi Propaganda

"The Kingdom Hearts game series is about Mickey Mouse battling the forces of Darkness with an alliance of fashionable anime boys. Kairi is a major character, and one of the few female characters. She is part of a trio of childhood best friends, with the protagonist Sora and their other friend Riku (who had a villain arc and then a redemption arc). Though Kairi is constantly and clumsily sidelined by the canon narrative, she arguably has more backstory going on than any other major characters. She is a refugee from another planet. She implicitly lost her beloved grandma at five years old in the traumatic destruction of their hometown. She was kidnapped and experimented on by an evil wizard-scientist—she escaped thanks to having a magic charm that basically teleported her to her soulmate(s). Then she had to adjust to living on a new planet and being adopted by a new family. In the very first game, when she's 14, she turns out her pure heart is one of 7 in the entire universe to be free of Darkness—she shows a full emotional spectrum of fear, sadness, frustration, defeat, but she isn't vulnerable to corruption. In KH2, she becomes one of the Chosen Ones who wield a magical weapon called a Keyblade. She loves her friends very much, and she has the unique talent to instantly recognize them even when they've been transformed into monsters. She has saved them several times with nothing but the Power Of Love in her heart randomly manifesting in, like, telepathy and teleportation and resurrection—she doesn't even consciously know that she has powers, her love is just so great that it's accepted as a tangible force of nature. She is frustrated and ashamed by her role as a damsel in distress, and she wishes to be stronger and combat-capable so that she join her male friends on their adventures instead of waiting around where it's safe. Also she was kidnapped by an evil assassin clown who's ten years older than her, and then they became friends. NOT ONLY does the fandom plug its ears and claim there is nothing interesting about this character and no potential in her story—Kairi has been demonized by the fandom for about 20 years. Somehow Kairi is useless and boring while also being a Mary Sue at the same time. She was called a bitch and a slut and a whore. She was hated for wearing too much pink and wielding a girly weapon with a floral design. She was criticized as a slut for wearing a short skirt, and for THE PLAYER being able to manipulate the camera into a contrived angle to look up her skirt to see her panties in the first edition of KH2. You can find nearly 20-year-old fanfiction and fanart of her being twisted into an evil schemer driving her friends apart, and of her being gleefully brutalized and insulted. Haters STILL comb for every crumb to make elaborate anti-canon theories about why she's an agent of evil, even though canon has FIRMLY ESTABLISHED for TWENTY YEARS since the very beginning that she's THE ONE CHARACTER incapable of growing Darkness in her heart. The theory is that she exists only as a puppet sent by the main villain to sabotage her friends (the plot for two out of the four main female characters) for all ten years of their friendship. The theory is that she's been using her powers to force her friends to love her—and their Power Of Friendship that is the EMOTIONAL BACKBONE OF THE STORY, and THE MAJOR FORCE OF GOOD IN THEIR UNIVERSE, and THE MOST CONSISTENT MOTIVATION FOR THE HEROES is all Just Misdirection LOL building up to a shitty Plot Twist. The theory is that she's secretly a custom-manufactured Chirithy (a cute talking animal companion that serves and guides humans)—and not a human girl with her own natural feelings and aspirations. AND THEN after stripping her of every important trait and role, these fans claim they're making Kairi more important and interesting than she is in canon. I don't know what causes the fandom to so desperately hate a sweet 14-year-old girl who literally canonically never did anything wrong."

[annastrxng]

@audaciiae continued

What in the world just happened?

Edmund blinks, his brow furrowing as he stares down at the body of the man Anna just shot. She didn't need to do that. It would've been fine. Right? His head is spinning, going a million miles a minute, and it takes him a few moments to calm down, taking a deep breath and slowly nodding.

"I'm fine." He is no stranger to the horrors of this sort of thing. Even if he's never faced battle, he's seen enough of Simcoe and gone through his own hell to not be so shaken. "...Anna, why did you do that?"

____________________________________

Raucous is the sound that batters her eardrums. The gun wavers, suddenly heavy within usually steadied hands that had adopted a vehement tremor. There's a breath drawn in, a futile attempt to conceal the faintest inklings of satisfaction that came from pulling the trigger on a man as VILE as Easton. Doleful maple orbs, etched now with endless adrenaline flick over the fallen form slowly before turning back to Major Hewlett. The pistol is lowered begrudgingly despite the man being well and truly dead.

The relief caused by Edmund's declaration of safety allows her tense shoulders to sag a degree, though they are NEVER entirely free of being stiff these days (thanks to Dejong, Simcoe, Abe, Caleb, and Ben.)

"He--" Anna's powdery voice quavers. She swallows against the forceful rattling of the muscle trapped between her ribs. "He--- he was going to stab you in the back--" The brunette reveals. She turns away from Edmund to reveal the Corporal's knife. It was tucked well within his clenched hands.

"I-- I could not, for the life of me, allow that to happen. Y-you have protected me from Simcoe, and I would be remiss to not come to your assistance now." Of course, with Major Hewlett dead, it would leave her more prone to untoward advances. Advances she heavily declined.

Disbelief wars upon Strong's countenance. She pallors further upon making another striking realization. "I-- I had thought, quite clearly, that he was one of your men?" The statement is framed more like an inquiry. Turning back to Edmund, she inquires. "What cause could he have possibly had against you?" Bringing a quaking hand to her lip, she muses. "Do you suppose Simcoe had s---something to do with this?" It wasn't beyond him to poison the Major's men against him. He so avidly tried already during the Battle of Setauket. There had been much talk about Simcoe being bound and gagged.

A quick glance is cast about. "Now that he is gone, I-- I must do something wit-- with the body. At least before we are discovered--" She can not wallow in her own SHOCK. Killing a King's soldier was tantamount to treason. And despite Brewster's petulant (but very much appreciated) attitude, ""that treason isn't treason if done with good reason,"" this act could still see her HANGED.

[thoughts-of-bear-undercovers]

Idk I personally disliked it a whole lot. For me the general feel of the movie was "we have the rights to this big franchise and the kids these days like anime so now let's merge the two so we can make even more money". Like, at some point I was wondering if anyone in the making of this film even bothered to go deeper into the source material. Obviously there's spoilers in my review:

First thing I noticed was that they had spyglasses. Which didn't make sense and already killed part of the immersion for me. I mean, LOTR is based on a somewhat medieval Europe inspired world and a 17th century invention did not fit in that world. The whole point of "Legolas, what do your elf-eyes see?" is kind of that they did not have spyglasses (otherwise Aragorn would've had one as a pro ranger).

Second, there's some logical errors that just made the whole story crumble in my eyes.

How on earth did the Haradrim get into Rohan? Did they use submarines to swim up the Anduin in order not to be detected by the whole of fucking Gondor? Did they bribe Gondor to let them through? Did the whole ass oliphaunts-and-mercenaries-procession climb the White Mountains? Or did they put the oliphaunts on boats and drove up the Isen? How did they get into Rohan?? How?

I understand that this is how it's described in the appendix but if you're not super familiar with that (which I assume most of the audience isn't, including me even though I've read the books several times, which is more than what the average viewer has regarding lore knowledge) then that seems pretty unreasonable. Not talking about the "you don't want to marry me and your dad killed my dad in a fair fight after my dad provoked him which is totally unforgivable" motivation of the main character, which is kind of ridiculous.

Speaking of ridiculous: the siege tower of Wulf, a masterpiece in physics-defying engineering and a testament to the superhuman skill the people of Dunland and their mercenaries have. They built this thing in like a day? In the freezing winter? In a valley that does not have trees in it (at least not usually; looking at you Fangorn)?

What even is that???

Oh and another thing:

Girl who has lived her whole life in a grassland where the hill on which her house stands is like the highest mountain is suddenly a climbing expert and can do that without breaking a sweat and guess who she goes to see? the extra special white Eagle who she is friends with because she fed it one (1) time.

I mean I like having a female lead that doesn't concern herself with love and marriage and the likes but Hera was not really much more besides "strong badass woman". At least her body proportions were realistic, I'll give the movie that.

Another thing that bothered me is that they essentially recycled the great epic scenes of the original movies for the audience to go "ah, this, i recognise this" but by doing that removed the unique emotions that accompanied these scenes. Most memorable example for me was the war cry of the people of Rohan, where in the original films you have this 5 minute scene with epic music and Theoden riding along the line of his soldiers and leading them to their (most likely) death and in "War of the Rohirrim" it is reduced to this 10 second clip with less epic music and just general idk irrelevance. Same thing with the Watcher in the Water, that was randomly there too, no reason except for showing the audience something familiar without much effort.

Which reminds me of another weird design choice the movie made. The oliphaunt in that scene had slit-pupils? An elephant and generally animals of that size and build are not predators. The do not have slit pupils because they don't stalk their prey? whyyyy???

And last among the more major things that bothered me about this film (not last in what smaller things bothered me):

I do not understand much regarding Anime as a genre, I've never been very interested in it and won't likely be but even I noticed that sometimes the frame rate was just too low. Like sometimes the animation looked more like some cheap stop motion than a smoothly animated film. I noticed that the first time Hera saddled her horse, I think. My friend (who knows like every anime in the world [at least it feels like that]) said it was probably the detailed backgrounds that caused this, because they put more effort in them instead of drawing more frames for a scene but while i do appreaciate the backgrounds (the style was good imo) I do think for a franchise like Lord of the Rings you can expect both detailed backgrounds and smooth animation.

And my friend in question also disliked the anime even though she doesn't know much about LotR, she said by anime standards it was not very good either. I don't know enough about anime to question her judgement in that regard.

So anyway, that was my rent and I don't recommend wasting money on watching that in the cinema.

Some of the reviews for War of the Rohirrim, mentioning that "it doesn't justify its existence" makes me remember how absolutely soulless professional "critics" can be. It's a good movie, it respects the source material, it stands on its own. What more do you want?

Yeah we can point out the problems with the film, cause they do exist, but saying "This was only made to extend the IP" shows a lack of knowing what you're talking about, because there are so many other softball methods of doing that. Specifically choosing the story of Helm Hammerhand, expanding it in a way that does feel rather Tolkien-esque, and having it be an anime does not feel like a safe move, even if it is attached to one of the most recognizable fantasy franchises. If it was just an IP thing and nothing else, it would have been much safer.

Not to mention how a certain other Middle Earth adaptation has so thoroughly poisoned the well for adaptations. This movie is how interpretation and expansion of Tolkien's works, or any source material really, should be done.

As a fan of Tolkien, fantasy in general, and anime, I definitely recommend going to see War of the Rohirrim in theaters.

[boyakishan]

I have two brands of canon. Canon is canon, and canon is canon only within canon.

For example: Korra from the tv show saw wan's backstory. Her backstory.

We have no idea if what she saw was all that happened, what we saw of Wan could be entirely what happened. Or, we miss some context and what we saw was only what Korra saw.

Remember; the spirit world both mirrors the material and the spirits material.

It's implied that the material had more influence as they're less bound by precedent, but never confirmed.

Korra is shown to be. A very simple character, both character and person. We see this through the way she responds.

With minimal moral training, she's shown to be very confrontational, very punch problem away. It's implied through this early portrayal and future updates that she works more simply.

We only saw Wan do things, the conversations only helped to strengthen the problems, yes, it's a background episode. But, we only see a simple view. That implies to me, that it's what Korra sees. It's what she has to see.

I've seen a story where wan sees under Rava, people are safe, yet depressed. And under Vatu, everyone's in danger.

Wan is a more human centric person, so here's the main thesis with all this.

If what we see into the spirit world is influenced by what we need/want to see, who's to say that what's canon is only canon through the specific lens?

Like, in real ATLA/Korra canon, Rava is the representation of good. She is good.

But what does good mean exactly?

Sure, Vatu is evil, but it's clear that his evil isn't like how Set is in Egyptian myths.

Set in myths is the chaotic neutral party, he causes chaotic situations, but unlike. Idk, Apophis who's pure chaos. Set is a natural part of the world, for there to be order, there must be some chaos.

Apophis is pure chaos, so what if Vatu is that. Apophis, and because Wan came forward very early, y'know. Stopped a fight he didn't understand because it hurt others, well.

I read a story where Korea's origin was retold as Rava being more representative of order, boring stuff. Vatu meanwhile was more of chaos, evil, y'know?

Tldr;

If you don't like something, just think about it. What is it objectively, things we can't deny within the canon; eg.

Wan stepped between two powerful deity-like beings that heavily control his world's motion. Wan goes through a journey learning that with one of them, he can at least fix and ensure that the world will go as it's roughly supposed to. Wan merges with the being to seal the deal and gets reincarnated to keep the balance.

Now, what is the exact wording used? Eg;

Good.

What's good, within context, what's there that we can use to reframe the situation? What was said before that helps to frame the situation: eg what I mentioned before in finding out what kinda character Korra was that might influence the viewing.

What I have to guess, the author of the reframing Vatu and Rava did, was take the fact that Wan is more of a caring/generally caring for the majority/lesser. And then use that as a basis to show the spirits as less good and bad and more order versus chaos.

The canon isn't exactly disturbed with this interpretation style: if the body of the text/characters aren't being ignored (the author doesn't care about canon (neutral)) then it's technically canon that it could happen.

Writing is just the framework for actions:

Batman doesn't kill, but in a certain riddler story, Nigma just. Stops using riddles and starts being the actual psychopath. Batman tries all kinds of things, and ultimately. In this impossible situation, Batman kills.

Nigma keeps killing because Batman can't kill because what he wants, is for them (the Rogues) to get better. What Nigma wants, is to be recognised at the top, because he is. To do this, he keeps killing and causing irreversible damage. He doesn't want to change, and he keeps causing selfish and stupid deaths.

Batman killed, in this specific story. In this specific comic book.

[nathank77]

4/13/24

11:01 p.m

Another source of stress is my glasses, I mean I got the majority of my money back... I only paid 45$. I'm getting the Arons and the Axis frames. They'll fit but my focal point will be off....

I have the studios too, they fit but the focal point is off and now I truly feel like a nerd.. I feel like Millhouse from the simpsons with his red glasses except mine are blue....

Anyways going to lens crafters was a big waste of time. All I know is I'm not going back to any for at least a year and never to Waterbury.....

I have three options:

1) go to Eyewear places near me, look at frames and get the cost for lenses/frames. Maybe eventually bite the bullet but if I spend anywhere near 100$ I have to like the frames and I need some repair service provided.. cause I know once I wear a pair of glasses that fit, and everything is right, I won't wear any of the glasses I have as spares unless they are very dirty and I'm on the road or something...

2) Bring my Aron frames to different Eyewear places nearby and get a cost estimate for anti-reflective lenses in my script to see if they will replace the lenses.... the frames were free and out of all of my glasses despite the ugly silver geometric design on the arms, they are the best because my beaus are super glued, the Ray-Bans touch my cheeks, and I'm not paying for lenses for silver or blue glasses.......

3) Give the fuck up and have off focal points... I did that last year. And glasses were fun minus my head being squeezed in a vice... but I enjoyed buying glasses....

Also I may just stop wearing them. That dating site no glasses thing is becoming a reality very soon. I can find a body shot without my glasses that isn't age or weight catfishing. It'll be a few years old but I look the same.

I can get a few selfies without my glasses and bam.

I mean I was at the mall and with my glasses at the food court I couldn't see very far. I could see farther than without them on...

When I took them off I was kinda blind. Although with my glasses I kinda was too. Funny thing is I know Elise wasn't there but if she was sitting at a table I wouldn't have been able to make out her face even with my glasses on.... so yea

I mean I could stop worrying about glasses and wear what I have/get. Then I can fucking stop wearing them when I find a girl.

I stand by this sentiment. Most women do not find a guy with glasses attractive. Most women want the glasses off.. and they are this major source of stress, extremely expensive and I have to run all over town or at least call all around town to get prices to replace my lenses..

I mean I'm just sick of everything being overcomplicated...

I seriously need to subtract things from my list of things to do. I can't keep adding run to 4 stores to check out glasses, find out nothing is affordable. Call 7 places find out nothing it affordable and they won't do it.

Do this and find out that won't work. Do that and find out you wasted your time.

I need to eliminate some stuff off my list of things to do.

I mean glasses? Who needs them? Me yea but no one likes what they see anyways so why keep vigilantly working toward solving a problem that's causing problems??.....

I'll be single forever if women don't like guys with glasses.

I'm short and I'm bald. And I'm a nerd. I can eliminate the nerd status thing by losing the glasses.

I can eliminate the whole go here, and here, and call that place and that place, protection plans, this whole pain in the ass thing by just either accepting my focal point is fucked or only wearing them while I go driving.

Maybe I can even find a girl...

I can't avoid my medical stuff like the ultrasound or my fucking t shot. I can't ignore the dmv. I can't ignore cbd. I mean...

But glasses why am I trying so hard to see clearly? Girls Think I look like a nerd. And I mean i do. I'm millhouse with blue glasses instead of red and if I replace the lenses in the Arons frames I'm going to be paying anywhere from 80$-170$ for lenses for a frame with girly silver geometric designs on the arms that are wire frames and I don't even like wire frames but they are the best looking out of all of them!

[missjoolee]

@claire8216​ requested 82! This prompt had a small existential crisis from me that really doesn’t matter but you know! What’s life without a little crisis here and there? 😅 Unedited to keep it real (flashes fake gang signs to look cool)

Pick a number between 1-102 (7, 13, 17, 23, 31, 45, 82, 97) I am working on them slowly so please be patient!

---------------

Luke blinks slowly at the page, his grip on the pen loosening. God, what time is it? Maybe they should call it quits for the night. He looks around but they haven't had a chance to get a clock yet. Tapping his phone screen, nothing happens. Dead. Sighing, he recalls he hadn't charged it last night because the charger was at the bottom of one of his moving boxes.  Thankfully he'd spent the afternoon unpacking after he'd gotten off shift at the diner.

He gets up to plug the phone in and Julie only gives a tilt of her chin in acknowledgement that he's moved away, her pen still flying across the page.  Smiling, he leans against the wall to wait for the devise to power back on, taking in this gorgeous scene.

Last night the room had felt weird. The walls laid bare, boxes shoved into a precarious tower in the corner, the mattress directly on the floor. His mom wouldn't let him take the bed frame. Something about it once belonging to his great uncle. It was a lot of change and while he's definitely better about it than Alex, he wouldn't lie and say it was the best sleep of his life, finally out of his stifling childhood home. Even if the room still didn't feel like him yet, having gone through the majority of his boxes helped to at least breathe easier. But now, seeing Julie lying on his bed, lost in the words of a song he's sure will win them awards, he realizes how much she's becoming home to him. No matter where he finds himself, he will always be alright if she is right there with him. His eyes drift closed.

The tinny startup sound alerts him that his phone is turning on, the battery finally charged enough. Dragging his eyes open, he checks the time.

Shit! Fuck!

"Shit, Jules, we have to go!"

All tiredness leaves his body as he searches around for his car keys. He'd put them in his pocket yesterday when he gotten in from the last trip of bring things in. Yesterday's pants. Shit, shit how does he already have so many clothes piled on the floor? He scatters clothing around him in a flurry. Not finding them, he looks around trying to figure out where they might have gone. His eyes cross over Julie who hasn't moved, only paused her pen to look at him.

"Don't just sit there, it's after 3! Your dad is going to kill me!"

Ray is a very lenient man but even he has his limits. Luke is frantic as he starts rummaging through the open boxes.

"Luke."

"Where the fuck are my keys?!"

"Luke!"

Her soft hand slides up his cheek and pulls his face to look over at her. She's no longer on the bed, but she's also not rushing to gather her things so he can take her home. Why isn't she rushing?

Laughter dances in her eyes as she calmly says, "We don't have to leave. Did you forget I moved into the dorms last week?"

He blinks at her, still feeling in crisis mode as his brain slowly supplies him with the memories.

"Also, he would've killed me. I take responsibility for myself, thank you very much."

He snorts at that. She does take responsibility for herself. And Ray is notoriously bad at staying mad at her long enough to enforce a punishment.

His arms wind around her waist and pull her to his chest. She's still looking up at him with a soft smile, and he could drown in her eyes. He rests his forehead on top of hers and takes a deep breath, releasing it with a slow "fuuuuuuuuuuck", trying to slow his heartrate down. Her hands slide up his back before slipping into the ripped armholes of his shirt, pressing cold fingers against the skin of the small of his back.

Suddenly, he's aware of the fact that they are alone at his apartment. A fact that he'd been very aware of when he first opened the door to let her in earlier. He'd stared down at her with a goofy grin that she had reciprocated. No parents, no Aunts, no little brothers to interrupt them. No curfew. That's when Reggie's elbow had dug into his pec as he pushed Luke out of the way (read: into a wall) to hug Julie. There were, after all, still bandmates.

But no bandmates right now. And no place they need to be. His nose drifts down her temple as his hand drifts up to the nape of her neck, pulling her into a kiss.  Warmth spreads throughout his entire body, set aflame everywhere they touch. The kiss intensifies as she presses closer and his hands begin to wander.

She pulls away all too soon, her hand pushing lightly against his chest as he tries to follow. Breathing hard, he looks down into her eyes which are darker than they were before.

"I have class at 9am. We should probably go to sleep."

A groan leaves his body at the idea of stopping, but he knows school is important to Julie and it's her first week of classes.

"Okay, yeah. Let's go to bed."

A different type of thrill thrums through him. For the first time, Julie is going to sleep in his bed. She will be the first thing he sees in the morning when he opens his eyes. That's something he could get used to. He'd take Julie anyway he can. Tangling their fingers together he drags them back over to the bed. He goes to empty his pockets and he pulls out a car key.

"They were in today's pants??"

Julie snorts from where she is putting on a pair of his basketball shorts. "Did you forget you went to work today, too?" She shakes her head in amusement. Apparently he is more tired than he'd thought.

He lets out a small laugh as he shucks his pants and pulls his shirt over his head before climbing into the bed. (climbing down? it's so close to the floor!) She slides in next to him and he can't help but pull her close for another kiss. Now that he's laying down, exhaustion floods him. He pulls back and she's staring at him tenderly.

"Love  you."

"Love you too."

There's a soft smile before she is settling her head against his chest. He relaxes into his own pillow, sleep already trying to pull him under.

"Goodnight, Boss."