#BEFORE ANYONE SAYS hey why didn't you pirate it. it was a gift

[amnyatas]

Oh my gosh similar worms I also just recently played Disco Elysium! Sadly can’t replay right now because my ADHD ass can’t focus on a text based game anymore but it was fun!

I was such a pathetic little man, I definitely missed a lot of things, but on the bright side I didn’t take a single drug or alcohol the whole play through (love letting my man be clean)

What kind of stats did you give yourself at the start? I tried to make mine similar stats to what I think I’d have so I had basically no physical ability lol.

Also ngl i spent a lot of the game thinking Kim was actually my half brother because of whatever that beginning narration was that said that (most definitely metaphorically)

oh god i was a mess too.

was trying to play as i would answer, but then also trying to 'fix' harry, then my brain hit a limit and i was like 'ok but i really also wanna solve the main story'. took 3 days.

i went with the uhhh thinker archetype the first time, which was a mistake because oh encyclopedia gives me so much lore text...it was a little overwhelming! my brain can only process so much information in a day, i think, and dumping ALL that lore at once was. SO MUCH. but i cried when i got to the end and got stick bugged.

second run i tried going with balanced stats and that has NOT made anything easier LMAO. at least now i don't have to worry about story progress so much and can focus on all the stuff i couldn't comprehend the first time. am also trying to be goofier but i think it's a little more unhinged instead. the tie will NOT shut up.

i had enough of a gist of things going in; i had heard abt some of the thoughts, i was warned about The Chair and the scab leader's story about the tattoos. also had seen what harry's portrait looked like shaved and without The Expression and that it was implied that was the best path for him...the rest was kinda up in the air.

oh NO. yeah no i got that the second time, and i think my logic was 'yeah no i woulda heard about how weird that was instead of seeing ship art'. Kim's a real great character though, the lines between harry being his own character and a proxy for the player really make it heartwarming to see a character be so supporting. he's goofy under that cool exterior, too, which i adore.

like i'm not good at...expressing thoughts and feelings through words, but it's really a masterpiece. i hope the lawsuit goes well for the original devs, i hope they get this fascinating world they created back and allow us explore it more someday.

[awakendreamersworld]

Here's chapter 8! Revealed

Once Giulia and Maria were finished with deliveries, they started riding back down the hill back to their home just as the boys were coming back from fishing. "Whoa, that's a lot more fish than before!" Giulia said, "That's because a lot of fish start migrating." Luca said. Maria stared at the pile of fish, hungrily. "Uhh, you ok, Maria?" Alberto asked but she didn't respond and walked away into the house. Everyone joined inside taking the pile of fish so Massimo can cut them and Giulia can deliver. At night, Maria was up in the treehouse eating some raw fish she snuck out of the kitchen as Alberto was approaching from behind whispering "Silencio Bruno, Silencio Bruno!" and he took a deep breathe and tapped Maria's shoulder and she turned around.

"Uhh... Hey!" Alberto said nervously. "So... About earlier today... just wanted to point out that that was an accident...." "We don't experience your culture of 'love,' could you perhaps teach me?" Maria asked "Oh! Uhh... Sure?" Alberto said nervously "You did say you were an expert on humans." Maria said "I am! And I'm an expert on love! So I'll teach you." Said Alberto sitting next to Maria. "Giulia said that kissing meant you 'like' someone." Maria said facing towards Alberto "Yes, but there's a bit more to it than that." He said, "Like what?" Said Maria "Uhh, well, like, getting to know someone, someone that's like you! What you like, what your into, understands what you need." Alberto said "Like you?" Maria said, "What?" Said Alberto confused, "Yes, when we rode your Vespa up the hill and I spoke about my troubles, you understood what I needed, to be free, to live like you. And you and I both like flowers and we're both into exploring." Maria said.

"Yeah, I guess so!" Alberto said giggling out of excitement then he turned and saw Luca coming out of the window with a book, "Hey, Alberto! Wanna read this pirate book with us? It's amazing!" He said excitedly, Alberto sighed, "No thanks, Luca. You two have all the fun you want, I'm fine." He said turning away in a annoyed tone. "Ok!" Luca shrugged and went back inside to Giulia to continue with their fun. Maria noticed Alberto's facial expression changed, "Why are you mad?" She asked, "You know how you felt when you saw your friends' corpse? Yeah, that's how I feel sometimes, like, they just forgot about me..." Alberto said sadly, "I would never forget you, Alberto." Maria said putting her hand on his shoulder, Alberto smiled, "Thanks, Maria." He said putting his hand on top of hers.

Maria leaned closer and kissed Alberto on the lips like before and closed her eyes, Alberto deepened the kiss and closed his eyes too then pulled away when Massimo called him down to hunt for some more fish. "I'll be right back." Alberto said and jumped down from the tree exiting through the gate with Massimo waving goodbye to Maria who was waving back from the tree.

The next day, Maria was hovering over Alberto who was still sleeping. Then Giulia opened her window and played her trumpet noise again waking up Alberto who accidentally bonked his head against Maria's. "Ow, sorry Maria." Alberto said rubbing his from the pain, "Are you ok?" Maria asked, "Yeah, how hard is your head?" He asked "We are trained to be strong in every step. Muscles, instincts, knowledge-" She started "Yeah yeah, I get it." You won't really need to use those techniques now that your here." Alberto said standing up.

"Hey, c'mon! We have to get to work!" Giulia shouted, "Alright already, we're coming!" Alberto said and jumped down from the tree along with Maria as they both headed towards Massimo to the boat. While heading towards the boat, Alberto turned to see Luca get on a bike and ride with Giulia through the town to deliver some fish from yesterday, he turned back around and looked down angrily but sighed and hopped on the boat.

While out at sea, Maria jumped out of the boat into the water. "Where is she going?" Massimo asked, "Probably to catch some fish for us." Alberto said as they pulled the net into the water. Maria was swimming fast, going far away from the boat and searching around for anything to give to Alberto when she saw a big wrecked ship. Maria swam over to the giant wreckage and took a look inside to find some more fish inside and some skeletons from when the ship sank. She also found a chest with chains, she swam over to it and broke the chains with her bear claws and opened it to reveal jewelry and treasure, she took some of the jewelry breaking them and mitch matching them into necklaces for her and Alberto to wear.

Some fish got caught into the net as Massimo and Alberto started pulling the net up, "Thanks, Maria!" Alberto said shouting into the water, but there was no response, "Maria?" He said and then sighed "She must be at my island again, I'll go get her." Alberto said and dove into the water to find Maria swimming back to the boat, "Hey, where were you?" Alberto said swimming up to her, "Gathering the fish." Maria said hiding the gifts behind her back then grabbing her floating shorts and hopped onto the boat turning back into a human and putting her jean shorts back on and placing the necklaces in her pockets.

Once back on the boat, they started heading back to shore. Luca and Giulia were heading down the hill while Giulia was timing Luca's speed, "Woohoo! New record, Luca!" Giulia cheered, Luca giggled and hopped off the bike and placing it next to the door. Then they both started walking towards the dock where Alberto, Massimo and Maria were getting off the boat with another load of fish.

Massimo took the net full of fish and brought it inside to prepare for tomorrow, Alberto and Luca started heading back to the water. "Where are you going?" Maria asked, "Oh, I have lifeguarding, and Luca is helping." Alberto said "What is 'lifeguarding?'" Maria asked. "It's when you have to be on lookout to see if anyone's drowning to go save them or if there are sharks in the water. And its quite fun." Alberto said "Can I join you?" Maria asked, "You can, just don't get wet." Alberto said as they headed into the water and turned into their Sea Monster forms.

Maria sat on the edge watching them have fun and standing lookout for any sharks. After a few hours of everyone playing and enjoying the water, Maria took the time to continue with the necklaces, carving Alberto's name into one that had a small, thin gold chain with blue sapphires attached to it and some small seashells that spell out Alberto's name. "Hey, Maria." Alberto said swimming up to her, "What's that?" He asked "For you." Maria said holding out the gold and blue necklace to Alberto with his name carved into the seashells. "It's like a promise, as long as we wear these, we'll never forget each other." She said giving Alberto his and putting hers around her neck.

"Wow, thanks!" Alberto said putting on the necklace. Maria smiled, but then Ercole came up to ruin the fun. "Aww, how cute. Number one has a fidanzata!" He said laughing, Alberto groaned in annoyance "Ignore him, Maria." He said getting out of the water, "Oh, my apologies. I guess you two just need to cool off a bit." Ercole said pushing both of them into the water as they turned back into their original forms. Maria tried to swim back up to face Ercole but Alberto stopped her "Maria, swim away! Before he sees you!" "Sirens don't run away from a fight." Maria argued, "Maria, if he sees you your dead! Remember what he said earlier!? He sees you like this he's gonna try to hunt you down and hurt you, or worse!" Alberto said putting his hands on Maria's arms trying to get her away from Ercole.

"Alberto, stop! I'm stronger than him! I'll manage what he throws at me!" Maria said breaking free and getting into Alberto's face, "That didn't seem to work with your friend back there, did it?" Alberto snapped getting into Maria's face back "If he sees you your gonna end up like her!" Maria gasped and back away, "Who are you?" She said tearing up, "M-Maria, I didn't mean-" Alberto said swimming closer to her before she ripped her necklace off and started swimming away at a speed too fast for Alberto to catch up, "MARIA WAIT!" He said before stopping and seeing her fade away into the ocean.

Alberto jumped back up to the surface, "Eh? What was that!?" Ercole said seeing Maria swimming away and that she wasn't human either, nor a Sea Monster. Alberto went up to Ercole and punched him causing him to lose some teeth and a bloody nose. "Alberto!" Luca yelled and started getting out of the water, "What's going on?" Giulia said coming out to see what Alberto did. "Ercole, what did you do now?" Giulia sighed "YOU STAY AWAY FROM US AND LEAVE US ALONE!" Alberto yelled as Luca tried to hold him back, "Oho! We're ready for round two!" Ercole said putting his fists up. "Ok, that's enough. C'mon guys, let's go home." Giulia said as she and Luca drag Alberto back to home. "Yes, go on and run away!" Ercole said while turning away to face the direction Maria went and whispered to himself "I have a Siren to capture and a prize to win!" He whispered evilly.

"Alberto, what happened?" Luca asked, Alberto sighed "Nothing I just... I just want to be alone for a while." He said climbing the stairs and heading back to the tree sitting down while looking out the ocean thinking about Maria. Alberto sighed and realized how much he messed up, pulling out Maria's necklace and sighed again. Alberto layed down and whispered "I'm sorry, Maria." Then dozed off into sleep.

[misc-headcanons]

(As the three of them leave, Maple puts a finger to her lips and motions for the group to follow her. They make their way to a nearby forested area, and once they're out of earshot Maple breathes a sigh of relief before waving the fan to clear away the smoke around them.)

Maple: Okay. You can talk now that nobody's nearby.

Dochi: What WAS that?

Maple: A spell, obviously. One that made us invisible.

Ube: Man, you think fast. I was like, two seconds away from taking out my sword if that guy took another step towards us!

Vanilla: Fritter? Hey, you okay?

(Fritter clings to her and sniffles, crying while holding her tightly)

Fritter: That was the killer, 'Nilla! He was right THERE! If he'd seen us, he would've...

(The others immediately go to comfort him, putting a hand on him and making a big group hug)

Ube: Hey, it's okay! Look, we're all here and we're fine thanks to Maple. We're not gonna let you and Vanilla get hurt by any bad guys.

Fritter: What about you guys? I don't want you to get hurt, either!

Dochi: We'll be alright. Big brothers and sisters are tougher than most people. It's why we're...you know, BIG brothers and sisters. We're big and strong! (Flexes her arms)

Maple: And we're smart, too. Which is why we're not going to stand around here, in case some of the townspeople come near here. Look, there's an old pathway up that hill that looks like it hasn't been used in a while. Why don't we go up there and try to set up camp on the mountain?

Fritter: Um...okay. (sniffs and wipes his sleeve) That sounds like a good idea.

Vanilla: Ooh, I think I can see a roof up there. Maybe we can spend the night in there instead of sleeping outside.

Dochi: If the path looks like it hasn't been used in a while, then what's up there? If it's an abandoned house, then it'd be easier to stay there without anyone noticing us.

Maple: It might be abandoned for a reason...But it's the best option I can think of. Come on, let's start walking; the more distance we put between that murderer and us, the more comfortable I'll be.

(The five of them climb the winding path up the mountain, and are more quiet after their close encounter with the murderous ronin. Dochi, Maple, and Ube take turns carrying the younger two kids whenever they get tired, and after a while they arrive near the top of the mountain. The building Vanilla saw is now fully visible; it's the crumbling ruins of an old castle. Near where they're walking is a set of gravestones along the path leading to the castle's entrance.)

Fritter: Hey...Hey, hang on a second, we gotta stop walking.

Dochi: You need me to carry you again?

Fritter: No, we have to be good guests. If we're gonna stay at this house when we don't live there, we need to be nice about it.

(Maple seems to realize what Fritter's getting at and nods slightly. She sets Vanilla down and takes a few items out from the knapsack she's carrying, and motions for the others to do the same.)

Maple: For the spirits of the people who used to live here. Fritter's right, we need to leave them a gift as payment for staying in their home uninvited.

Dochi: Ohhh, right. Mom says that you should be kind to your host--even if it's a ghost host!

(The siblings each take out some spare food and place them near the four gravestones. Vanilla tugs on Maple's sleeve and points at her pipe.)

Vanilla: Can I do the flower spell? I wanna give the ghost hosts flowers as my present.

Maple: (smiles) Go ahead. You remember the words?

Vanilla: Yup!

(Vanilla takes the pipe and quietly murmurs to herself as she holds it out in front of the grave stones.)

I summon the boun-ti-ful jewels of spring, bloom here for me and make the earth sing.

(The marks on Vanilla's cheeks glow faintly as smoke billows from the pipe and settles on the ground, thickening and swirling until a handful of seedlings begin to sprout and grow at a rapid pace. After a few seconds, a cluster of flowers bloom and sway gently in the breeze. Maple takes the pipe back and pats Vanilla on the back.)

Maple: Great work, 'Nilla.

Ube: Hey...Maple, Mom's used magic to talk to ghosts before, right? Has she ever taught you to do it?

Maple: A little bit. I mean, she won't let me study necromancy until I'm older, though...I have taken a peek at some of her spellbooks on it. But speaking with spirits is something we've practiced together.

Ube: So could you speak to the people who lived in this castle? That way we can actually ask permission to spend the night.

Maple: Hmm...I guess I could try. I wonder if they could tell us more about Wano's history. It'd be a rare opportunity to learn about it. I mean, there aren't any books about Wano you can just pick up and read.

(She reads the names on each stone before taking the pipe out and blowing a swirling trail of smoke that circles around the graves.)

Echo of life, shadow of death. Kin'emon, Momonosuke, Raizo, Kanjuro...Let your echoes reach us, let your shadows appear to us.

(The smoke continues to circle around the graves, but nothing else happens.)

Fritter: Did you say it right?

Maple: I'm sure I did. Once you say the incantation, you should be able to sense a spirit and then it'll take shape. With the pipe, it should be easy for them take a form we can see with the smoke.

Vanilla: Maybe they don't like smoke. Should we try something else they can use as a shape, like the flowers?

Maple: I...I don't understand, I've done that spell perfectly before. Why isn't it...wait a minute. (She peers intently at the smoke circling around the grave, watching it slowly begin to fade and drift away) I...don't think anyone's been buried here.

Fritter: Maybe they're shy and don't want to talk to strangers?

Maple: No, that can't be it. Even if they didn't want to appear, I used enough power to summon them here. They would have started to take form before leaving if they didn't want to speak to us. I don't think there's anything here to be summoned.

Ube: Then why are there graves here?

Maple: That's a good question.

(As they stare at the graves in confusion, the sound of voices causes them to freeze up. The people approaching sound as if they're coming from the path the kids had taken from the bottom of the mountain by Okobore, and the siblings immediately see their clothes and recognize them as the adults from the town.)

Luffy: Why did you want to come with us to this castle, anyway?

Kiku: I'll explain once our allies have all arrived.

(The adults see the children near the graves, and both groups stare at each other in surprise for a moment. The one in the red robe looks even more familiar to the children, and they wonder if they'd seen him before they had ever come to Wano. The green-haired swordsman is the first to speak up.)

Zoro: Oh, it's those kids from earlier.

(When his gaze lands on Fritter, Ube and Dochi immediately raise their weapons while Maple takes her youngest brother's hand. Vanilla hides behind Maple and grabs Fritter's other hand.)

Ube: Stay back, murderer!

Dochi: Don't take another step towards my siblings, or I'll cut you in half, right along that scar on your chest!

Law: Murderer? I told all of you to keep a low profile!

Luffy: No, Zoro told me that was just a misunderstanding. He didn't kill anyone, he just slashed the guy who framed him and ran off!

Kiku: You really do have a talent for causing a ruckus...

(Vanilla steps out from behind Maple to get a better look at the man in red.)

Maple: 'Nilla! Get back behind me, we don't know who these people are.

Vanilla: But... (she peers at Luffy, and when she recognizes him she beams at him) That's not a stranger! That's Luffy, he's Papa's friend!

Ube: Wait, what? Oh. Ohhhhh, you're right! It is!

Dochi: Holy crap, it is!

Law: You know these kids, Luffy?

Maple: We haven't actually met, but we know OF him. (She relaxes a bit, but is still holding Fritter's hand as she walks up to Luffy and holds out her other hand in greeting) We're Katakuri's children. Um...we first saw you when you ruined Aunt Pudding's wedding and caused our Grandma to have a mental breakdown, but I doubt you noticed us during all of that.

Luffy: Ohhh! I didn't know Katakuri had kids. Huh, you even have his mouth marks. (He shakes Maple's hand.)

Dochi: Also, we don't blame you for all that either! I mean, we were mad at first. But then Papa told us you did it to save Sanji. So wait, are these guys part of your crew too? (She glances at Zoro, Law, and Kiku)

Ube: Oh, whoops. (He smiles sheepishly at Zoro) Sorry for threatening to kill you, mister. We thought you were a crazy killer or something, but if you're with Luffy then you can't be too bad.

Kiku: Wait, what are you all doing here in Wano? And why are you by yourselves?

Vanilla: Oh! Dochi and Ube stole mama's magic scissors and made a portal, 'cause they wanted to meet up with our aunties and uncles and grandma here. But then Maple saw us and tried to take them back, and then the portal ripped, and we all fell through it and now we're here!

Kiku: That...isn't what I expected.

Law: Wait, your grandmother...Big Mom's already in Wano?

Maple: That's--um, confidential. We can't reveal where our family is to another pirate crew. (She looks sternly at Vanilla, who pouts.)

Vanilla: Yeah, but they're friends with Luffy! And Luffy is Papa's friend, so we won't be called traitors if we tell them, right?

Law: We're ALLIES, not friends.

Vanilla: Huh? Aren't those the same thing?

Luffy: Yeah! We're friends, Law.

Law: I don't want to have this conversation again...So. You five are lost in Wano, and nobody in your family knows that you're here.

Dochi: Mama and Papa probably know by now. Papa's got really good Observation Haki, and Mama knows how to use magic, so they should've figured out we're gone and where we are. They'd probably want us to stick with Luffy, since he's Papa's friend; we dunno where our aunts and uncles are, so he's the only grown-up we know that we can trust here.

Ube: OH! Let's be allies! Me and Dochi can fight, Maple's the best of us at magic, 'Nilla is good with healing spells and knows some stuff about medicine, and...um, Fritter's a really good cook! I mean, he's 7, and he's really good for a 7 year old.

Luffy: Hmm...Alright!

Maple: This is NOT going to go over well if our family finds out. Look, if we're really going to be allies, we need you to keep this a secret from them. The only one who wouldn't call us traitors for this are Mama and Papa, and Big Mom would KILL us if she found out we were allies with you of all people. Um, no offense.

Luffy: No problem! I'm pretty good at keeping secrets.

Law: You're joking. Please tell me you're joking.

Kiku: I admit, I normally wouldn't approve of involving children in this. But...we can't just leave them on their own.

Ube: Plus, we wouldn't take no for an answer and we'd just follow you guys anyway. My mom says we're "tenacious to a fault."

Law: You'll fit right in with Luffy, then.

Luffy: Hey, since you guys got here before us, have you seen some of our other friends? A guy named Kin'emon, a kid named Momonosuke...

Maple: (frowns) Wait...you mean...them? (She points to the gravestones.)