#Because it's my focus and I get to make the rules

[tuulikki]

The funny thing about Jesus shipping is it literally drops us into about 2000 years of Biblical interpretation. Which disciple we pick is an exegesis/headcanon. And, in the most literal sense, it even depends on what texts we decide to count as canon.

Like, if we want to focus on John, we have to note that John is the only gospel that uses "beloved disciple" in the first place. So our source for John is... John.

And obviously "'The Gospel of X' says that X is the most important disciple" is the best fun you can have.

That's why I use "The Gospel of Judas" (c. 2nd-century CE) as my canon, even though it's Gnostic fuckery. tbh I think the "kiss" is the least compelling bit of J/J, because the anachronism of reading anything into that kiss makes it the weakest bullet point in the Jesus/Judas Shipper Manifesto. And the idea of Judas as a zealot is pretty indefensible unless we're just having fun (and we are).

Peter sources are all from the Synoptic Gospels (the oldest Gospels, in chronological order: Mark, Matthew, Luke). We can cherry pick gospels for shipping, but let's be real... Synoptics have Word of God energy lol. We kinda have to concede first place to Peter and then squabble (in good fun) about every other spot on the podium. Peter sure did deny Jesus three times but hey, he didn't betray him to his death.

(Long post, I decided to ramble. Just for my own amusement. Because this was my undergrad degree.)

Judas:

"The Gospel of Judas" is probably the ur-source for Jesus/Judas girlies and I just gotta infodump. Is it canonical to any Christian tradition? No, it’s docetist tomfoolery. But it's a really fun text to pull in because, as you'd expect from "The Gospel of Judas," Judas is Jesus' specialist little disciple:

(Jesus said to the disciples) “[Let] any one of you who is [strong enough] among human beings bring out the perfect human and stand before my face.” They all said, “We have the strength.” But their spirits did not dare to stand before [him], except for Judas Iscariot. He was able to stand before him, but he could not look him in the eyes, and he turned his face away.

You get Jesus selecting Judas as the only one who was worthy while also being enigmatic and fucking off when Judas asks questions:

Knowing that Judas was reflecting upon something that was exalted, Jesus said to him, “Step away from the others and I shall tell you the mysteries of the kingdom. It is possible for you to reach it, but you will grieve a great deal. For someone else will replace you, in order that the twelve [disciples] may again come to completion with their god.” Judas said to him, “When will you tell me these things, and [when] will the great day of light dawn for the generation?” But when he said this, Jesus left him.

You also get an enigmatic nickname and weird lovingly condescending divinity:

Judas said, “Master, as you have listened to all of them, now also listen to me. For I have seen a great vision.” When Jesus heard this, he laughed and said to him, “You thirteenth spirit, why do you try so hard? But speak up, and I shall bear with you.”

And we can’t emphasise enough that while Judas is special and the only one Jesus confides the truth in, Jesus tells him he’ll be reviled pretty much until the End Times. Poor little meow meow Judas:

When he heard this, Judas said to him, “What good is it that I have received it? For you have set me apart for that generation.” Jesus answered and said, “You will become the thirteenth, and you will be cursed by the other generations—and you will come to rule over them. In the last days they will curse your ascent to the holy [generation].”

And although The Last Temptation of Christ was written well before we found the Gospel of Judas, we get the same dynamic where Jesus and Judas both know beforehand that Judas will enable Jesus’ sacrifice, which has a tragic weird intimacy about it:

“But you will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me.”

This bit really almost reads like fanfic already:

“Look, you have been told everything. Lift up your eyes and look at the cloud and the light within it and the stars surrounding it. The star that leads the way is your star.”

Speaking of The Last Temptation of Christ, I personally find it to be a better, weirder J/J source than "Jesus Christ Superstar." Not least because it tries to reconcile the gospels the most of I've seen in any other piece of media. Side note: When I say "reconcile," I mean narratively dealing with contradictions. E.g., how Nativity plays put both magi (Matthew) and shepherds (Luke) in the same story.

And "The Last Temptation of Christ" film adaptation really brings in the unsettling chaotic energy that I think a story about an incarnate deity destined to die requires. Apart from "Goncharov," it's my favourite Scorsese:

John:

If we ditch the Synoptic gospels and focus on John, of course John will give us John as the "disciple whom Jesus loved," since John is the only gospel that uses that term. And John is the best-written gospel, hands-down, so it's just a winner of a text.

Though, just to clarify for anyone who might have misread what OP said: the word "philtatos" is not in the Bible. The closest concept is the "ho mathētēs hon ēgapā ho Iēsous"/"disciple whom Jesus loved" term that the John author invented to describe John. And since John is the last of the canonical Gospels, it would be absolutely bugfuck crazy Dan-Brownery to make historical claims. But I hope Jesus/John shippers are out there pulling in the Apocryphon of John just because the opening is pretty poignant. And obviously John 13:23 with John leaning on Jesus' chest is tremendously good.

Peter:

For Peter, I feel like having the Synoptics backing up your ship will always give the superior claim to, uh, your ship being canon. But the full bit of Matt 26:33-35 kinda ruins my fun:

Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” Truly I tell you, Jesus answered, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” But Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the other disciples said the same.

All the other disciples chiming in makes it less special. And the fact that he does disown Jesus is a bit... :(

I think my problem is that Peter gives me Kronk energy by running about hopping out of boats and swinging his sword about. It's giving "Peter, dumb as a rock". But I'd be lying if that didn't make for good material.

Tangentially: I'm also in the camp that The Secret Gospel of Mark was a forgery (it's too damn convenient to find an intensely controversial "gay gospel" and then whoops! we lose the gospel à la Joseph Smith's golden tablets) but I respect Morton Smith for giving us this:

“The youth, looking upon [Jesus], loved him and began to beseech him that he might be with him,” it read. “And after six days Jesus told him what to do and in the evening the youth comes to him, wearing a linen cloth over his naked body. And he remained with him that night, for Jesus taught him the mystery of the kingdom of God.”

If only he'd had access to AO3...

jesus/judas isn't even the best jesus yaoi. the betrayal kiss is a powerful symbol for sure and judas killing himself after jesus' crucifixion is of course hugely significant (see: jesus christ superstar). but in biblical canon there is literally a disciple described as jesus' most beloved. his favourite disciple. his philtatos, for the song of achilles girlies. he was the last disciple to die, he leans his head on jesus' shoulder at the last supper (and some scholars believe he was the only one jesus told of the nature of judas' betrayal). and lest we forget peter, who also betrayed/rejected jesus after swearing his eternal love for him, threatened to kill and die for him, was all like "i'll follow you anywhere" and "i'll be with you forever". straight up tried to walk on water for jesus. He was crazy. it was yaoi central in there

[felassan]

David Gaider on Morrigan, under a cut for length:

"Morrigan began, waaaay back, as a bit of Morgan le Fey (hence the Dark Ritual) mixed with Delirium from Sandman. The Delirium elements subsided into more of a weird cadence of speech as my idea of Morrigan solidified - more cynical, wanting to connect but unable to. Originally, we were looking for a Middle Eastern actress to play her, as Shoreh Aghdashloo was slated to play Flemeth and we wanted a similar sounding voice -- but it was a real struggle, and then Shoreh unfortunately had to drop out to do a movie. So suddenly we had nobody for either character! Then, one day, Caroline (our VO Director) comes in with a recording sent by a rep for Claudia Black - who hadn't done game VO back then but wanted to get into it. And it was Claudia doing a slow *beat poet* rendition of Baby Got Back. I kid you not. I was already a fan, so I lost my goddamn mind. (Yes, I still have the recording. No, you cannot have it.) Naturally, we jumped on that immediately. As I recall, this was met with resistance from higher up - they had this image of Morrigan as young, like 18 years old (no idea where this came from) and complained that Claudia sounded "too old". Them: "She sounds like she smokes three packs a day!" Me: "That's what I like about her!" Caroline and I were determined, so we pushed ahead. We had to agree to get Claudia to sound "younger", which I was dubious about. The first two sessions we asked her to pitch her voice up and it was AWFUL. Claudia had to focus on sounding "right" instead of acting. So Caroline and I did the sneaky thing, and on the third session we asked her to just... act. Use her natural voice. We loved her performance so much we had the feeling that the team would love it too and forget their nonsense. They did. My best memory of Claudia was when we first met. I'd been flown down to LA for the initial sessions to help the major DAO actors find the character "voice" and, boy, was I nervous. It didn't help that I was a huge fanboy of Claudia's and she was going to be the *first* of all the actors I'd talk to. Caroline gave me a list of rules for "how to talk to a celebrity" - top of the list: DO NOT COMPARE THEM TO OTHER ACTORS. So I meet Claudia, and I'm sweating. I think: I'll start from the beginning, right? "Well, when I started writing Morrigan, the voice in my head was Helena Bonham Carter..." Claudia gives me a look and tilts her head. "So what you're saying is... I'm a very cheap version of Helena Bonham Carter." I'm mortified. I melt. I gasp and stutter and she lets me implode for maybe 30 seconds before she throws her head back and LAUGHS. So wicked. I love her instantly and forever. For the next several days, whenever she's in the booth and I make a comment to Caroline - which she can't hear, because the booth is sound-proof - she'd say "Oh, does he want it more like Helena?" And I'd melt into the desk in renewed mortification and she'd LAUGH. This is Claudia in a nutshell. Morrigan became a real touchstone for me, the heart of DAO. Way beyond her initial inspirations. Some said "she's just an ice queen" like some I'd written (Viconia, Bastila, etc.) but such categories are very reductive, I find. She had a voice I could instantly slip into, every time, without fail. The problem, after DAO was said and done, was with how we were going to honour the Dark Ritual going forward... or, more to the point, how we *weren't* going to honour it. I wasn't willing to let her go, however, so I had to figure it out. BUT... that's a story for another day. CORRECTION: A friend reminds me that the beat poet recording Claudia did was "Smack That" and NOT "Baby Got Back", and now I need to go give it another listen just because I can."

[source thread]

David Gaider: "Actually, when Shoreh's movie wrapped she came back and asked if the role was still available - her grandkids were VERY excited for her to be in a game. It wasn't, but as I recall Caroline was all "well, we have this role in ANOTHER game we're making..." Hence why she ended up in ME2." [source]

David Gaider: "Tali's accent was purely created by the actress - which made it a bit of an Issue when the time came to have more Quarians in ME2. "Do we get the actors to all try and mimic... whatever she's doing?" I'm certain Caroline could write a book about how THAT all went down." [source]

User: "I also never knew that Delerium was part of the inspiration for her (atleast in the beginning)." David Gaider: "It'd be difficult to see that now. The very first drafts were a lot more eccentric - more like Flemeth, I'd say, but times ten. The feedback I got was that she's a bit too LALALULU and I had to agree (and my idea of her was changing anyhow). So that slowly got weeded out." [source]

User: "What had you seen Claudia in that made you such a big fan already? (was it pitch black?)" David Gaider: "Originally? Farscape. Then Pitch Black, yes. I tried watching Stargate just for her, but coming in so late I kinda bounced off it." [source]

User: "My only complaint is, and has always been, why is she the straight romance when everything about her screams lesbian?" David Gaider: "I would have written it, if it’d been allowed (remember this was VERY new back then), but after all was said and done I’m kind of glad I didn’t. The friendship path I wrote for Morrigan with a female Warden is perhaps my favourite but of writing I did from back then." [source]

User: "Morrigant to me was such a fantastic character because of the way she sounded! Her introduction in DAO is iconic to me "Well, Well, what have we here?"" David Gaider: "You have NO IDEA how many takes that took. 😳" [source]

User: "Claudia Black did an amazing job with every line in every game." David Gaider: "She absolutely did. It took some time for her to get her bearings, but by the end of our first few sessions I actually went back and re-wrote a bunch of lines to match Claudia's voice. She informed so much of who Morrigan became." [source]

User: "are YOU the reason we see so much morrigan after dao? (positively, she is one of my all time favourite characters)" David Gaider: "Yes and no. She was always considered, by both me and the team, to be a "face" of Dragon Age. I'd have put her in DA2 if there'd been room, but thankfully that limitation is what allowed Flemeth to grow into her own." [source]

User: "were Morrigan and Flemeth always supposed to be Chasind, and/or did the Chasind have any ties to northern Thedas in earlier drafts of the character? The Chasind are universally depicted with dark skin except for Morrigan and Flemeth." David Gaider: "I don't think we had a very clear idea of the Chasind in general back then - they kind of got abandoned as a concept once we cut the Human Barbarian origin for DAO, and were only picked up again later." [source]

[stilessflannel]

idk if you write for luke but imagine sneaking into mr ds office and getting comfy because you like the idea of getting caught 👀

this has been going around my head ever since i received it and i finally did something about it 😗 also i got asked for a percy jackson smut and to do whatever i want with it (yk who you are sweet anon) so does this count? muah xx

sneaking into mr d’s office with luke castellan was something you thought you’d never do. but your boyfriend had a tendency to ignore or try break unspoken rules, and that led to luke interrupting your cabin’s lava wall training, promising them their counsellor would be back soon as he dragged you away.

“are you out of your mind?” you hiss at him, checking behind you every five seconds, “we’re going to get caught by mr d or chiron!”

luke only offered the signature grin all hermes kids owned and continued until he had locked the door behind you. there wasn't much to take in - big wooden desk, a map of half-blood hill on a wall, a dusty bookshelf, and the faint smell of diet coke. while you were taking in your surroundings, luke gained a keen interest in the desk with locked drawers down each side. it only took a few seconds before he had them unlocked and he pulled up a bag full of drachmas.

normally you'd never go around to the other side of the desk to try pry a drawer open for yourself. the idea wouldn't even cross your mind to stuff as many bags of gold into your pockets as you possibly could; but it was mr d and drachmas he wouldn't be spending anytime soon seeing as he was confined to the camps boundaries, anyone would do the same.

once you were finished luke's arms wrap around your waist and hoist you onto the surface of the desk, as warm lips attack your neck and big hands work their way up and under your orange shirt. a sigh escapes your lips and your fingers wrap into his raven hair. "hey there"

"hey" he mumbles back, muffled against your neck as he presses a last kiss behind your ear and pressing his forehead against yours. "twenty minutes 'till lunch."

"yeah... wanna go back to mine?" you offer your cabin, playing with the beads on his camp necklace. an unsure hum from him makes you look up at him. you can see the lightbulb light up behind his blue irises. he picks you up so your legs wrap around his hips and sits back into the padded desk chair

"i think we'll be just fine here, yeah?" he said, pressing a kiss into the side of your mouth and working his way back down your neck to make the marks he left earlier brighter. you try your hardest to focus on luke and the heavenly way his mouth feels on your skin, but your mind kept jumping to mr d and chiron finding their two best counsellors in this state. the thought of either of them terrified you to your wits end, but also sent a surge of thrill through your veins.

luke brings you back by digging his teeth into your collarbone and eliciting a groan from you, effectively shutting off your care for who could catch you. you grab his jaw and force him to look at you and you fold - his lovesick face with pupils blown wide from lust makes you crash your lips against his. its messy and rough and perfect for you two as hands explore each others bodies. you pull away to tug your shirt off your head and he follows suit, then you're back on each other again.

the sound fills with small moans, sighs, and gasps from both of you. you're too far gone to hear the footsteps approach the door, too caught up in the feeling of grinding against luke and hearing his faint groans to notice the voices behind the door and the rattling of the handle being twisted. it isn't until the door squeaks on its hinges that you turn to look over your shoulder and see mr d, his face as red as the wine he invented.

you could argue the two weeks wash up duty was worth it.

taglist: @izzieluvsdelusion @azure-drag0ness @vivi-anasan @percyssunlithope @amandareids @raysmayhem-72 // join the taglist here

[weltraum-vaquero]

A pillar, familiar

Summary: Jayce returns.

Word count: 1k

Tags: SFW, hurt/comfort, angst, established relationship, Jayce being the world’s wettest dirtiest saddest guy, and being plagued by The Visions

Notes: Just a little drabble to tide over the fact that I desperately need to hold him but my brain refuses to write anything longer until I am provided context for what he’s been through.

Everything rings, frays around the edges. Fractals in his vision — a disconnect from his body, a forceful rebirth as different forms of him seem to conjoin themselves back into a disjointed, damaged whole. A whole that will not last, cannot last, damaged to its core, rusted in the cogs of its barely moving mechanism.

Jayce has learned far before however long he has spent out of this world that there is one thing to make his brain cooperate, and that still holds true. In spite of every other rule — of the universe, of himself — that has been shattered and cuts into his brain with the aftermath of his resurrection.

He needs a singular point of focus.

And Viktor, Viktor could, should be that. He needs to, he needs to, he needs to. He can’t fail, he won’t, but…

If the world has waited this long for him to be spit out unstrung and wrong, it can wait a moment longer. It can wait until he stumbles down dimly lit streets, it can wait until he trips over himself, heaving, nails digging into the wood of the still familiar door.

He pleads you haven’t changed — but does not expect it to be an answered prayer.

Jayce pounds his weary fist against the door, until it shakes so thoroughly the hinges protest.

The door opens and he is greeted with the curse of his own making pointed at him — all blue lenses raised, gem humming, barrel staring back.

“…Jayce?”

And then it’s your eyes that stare him down instead, and the buzzing, the fractals, the zaps — quiet. Oh, so quiet.

“Oh my god.”

He lets himself stumble into your arms, disgusting and filthy and weary to the marrow of his broken fucking bones.

“Jayce,” you choke out again, arms around his frame, pulling him close, squeezing him so tight it hurts good. A reminder of a constant, a pillar, familiar. You start to sob. He wonders if he’s still capable of reciprocating. His old self, the self you’d loved, would have been bawling. “Oh, Jayce,“ you croak, all of you shaking with the vehemence of your cries. “I thought you were… Jayce, where—? How?”

Familiar fingers thread through his hair the way they used to. Lips to his filthy cheek where they used to fit just right above the stubble of his five o’clock shadow, bottom lip now presses to his thick beard.

“I’m sorry.” Everything else is much too complicated, or too insignificant to put into words. “I-I’m so, so sorry.”

You pull him closer.

“It’s okay.” Your voice ripples down his spine in a soothing wave, every one of his aching muscles sags as if on command, and Jayce goes limp. His knee — the fucked up one — creaks, pops, gives. Forced into it just the way he had been after… after Salo, he kneels, and you kneel with him, brace his weight.

In the quiet of the night, you savor it, savor each other, for a long moment. Jayce swears he can hear the street lamps buzzing when your breath begins to settle, and something about it stings his brain like a needle.

You notice — you must have, because one hand comes up to cradle his face.

“Let’s get you inside,” you tell him, palm sliding from his middle to below his elbow, supporting him on his shaky way up. “I’ll run you a bath, I have some leftovers you’ll love, I still have your tea, Jayce, anything you want. Anything you need.”

And that sounds like everything he could ever want, or need.

But it’s not something he can afford.

“I want… to kiss you, please.” His voice finally comes out as broken as the rest of him feels when he pleads for it, man starved. Something in the edge of his vision pulses, darkens, he has to, he has to.

“Anything you need,” you echo your previous words, and he does need it. Both hands on his cheeks again, cradling him the way they used to when you would smile at him and call him puppy in the warmth of your kitchen on early mornings.

He puts his hands over your own and dreams of it as soft as his mind will let him.

“Come here, puppy.”

Jayce knows patience intimately. An ever present companion throughout his academic journey, as much of a partner as Viktor once was on his job.

And he kills it with the same heavy hands and heart that he will kill Viktor with.

His teeth hurt from how he hurls himself at you, into you, lips smashing like the crackle of lighting, he wants, he wants. He holds you like he wishes he could have before; before the voices and the visions and the pain and the aching fatigue, he kisses you like it’s air. Digs his tongue into your mouth to sample what is the first — and might be the last — taste in a long, awful time. You suck on his tongue and locks it up somewhere in the unfamiliar twists and turns of his altered mind and prays it’ll keep.

You’re the only one who’s waited.

“Come on in,” your voice is breathy when you pull away, the words hit his lips before they reach his ears. He envies how little you know. “It’s okay, it’s all gonna be okay.” Hands on the nape of his neck, he feels small. Not the puny kind, not like prey, but protected. “Oh, Jayce, I’ll take care of you.”

And Jayce Talis can still cry after all.

He clings to your shoulders, a crumbling, pathetic version of the man you once loved, and he sobs, makes an even more unloveable display of himself.

How he pities you for being still so eagerly up to the monstrous task.

“I c-can’t,” he sobs. “I can’t. I have… a promise to keep.”

[mantis-lizbian]

this is very much just a tangent springing off of your first paragraph - absolutely no disagreement with the actual points you're making here - but i gotta step in to give my obligatory defense of "3e D&D actually did monsters the best out of any TTRPG ever (30% joking)" because while yes it does drop things like reactions and morale that results in making it easier for the GM and players to view monsters as mere challenges to overcome for loot and XP, at the same time, it is one of the only (at least crunchy) systems i have ever come across that builds monsters with the exact same underlying rules as PCs.

while i'm not discounting that critical discussions of the treatment of "savage races" are pretty much as old as the hobby itself (if not older, when one digs into its origins in pulp fantasy novels), i do certainly get the impression that these discussions started to get mainstream during 3e, and i can't help but think that a contributing factor might have been the fact that the way the rules handle and interact with monsters (including hit dice, ability scores, skills and feats, and even class levels) are absolutely indistinguishable from how those things interact with PCs to the extent that, setting aside relative power level, a player is - as far as the mechanics, if not strictly speaking the rules, are concerned - just as capable of making a human character as they are an orc, ettercap, stone giant, dragon, or literal bear.

the fact that it is, again, 3e's focus on encounter balance that is the only meaningful thing that stands in the way of this at least makes it so that the players are more able to see NPCs and (at least intelligent) monsters as not being fundamentally different from their own characters. and by extension, it's possible that this made it easier to relate to those characters within the fiction, as well.

if i were to let myself get too absorbed in this theory, i'd also think this could be related to why, after going back to handling monsters fundamentally differently from PCs and doubling down on treating them as loot piñatas, 5e continued to treat gnolls and the like as demonic monsters, while Pathfinder was simply an extension of 3e and after putting out a variety of books over the course of its first edition that expanded on the cultures, ecology, and other mechanic-independent elements of various monsters and "savage races", its next edition wound up putting goblins among the core playable races, and they've worked diligently since release to double-down on fleshing out those races as actual inhabitants of the world with their own cultures and customs just as real and vibrant as those of elves and dwarves.

So there is a pretty clear shift in playstyle between TSR D&D and WotC D&D: for better and for worse, D&D 3e introduced the idea of encounter balance, de-emphasized mechanics that had previously encouraged the GM to think of the monsters as real living creatures (reaction rolls, morale, etc.), and it had the effect of making D&D a much more combat-focused game. D&D has always been a game that's opinionated about combat, it's basically the most expressive and detailed form of play regardless of edition, but combat in the TSR editions was not exactly zoomed in and tactical. The WotC editions purposefully made combat zoomed in, granular, and tactical.

And this has had an effect on playstyle: since combat is now the main form of player expression what players actually want is for their characters to get into combat. Because combat is the most fun part of the game. But the game has also changed from the largely amoral dungeon-crawling game into a game of fantasy heroics (even though a lot of the trappings of the amoral dungeon-crawling still remain, which contributes to the dissonance), so you can't just have the player characters going into combat for the sake of it. That would frame the player characters as kind of Fucked Up, and we can't have that in our supposedly heroic fantasy.

What you end up with is a variety of contrivances like "they're bandits," "they're cultists," or, my all-time favorite, "they attacked first" to make the action seem morally justifiable, even though gameplay is still motivated by a desire to fight. The monsters fight to the death and, importantly, can often not be reasoned and negotiated with, partly because combat is supposed to be the fun, engaging part everyone is here to do, but also because if they actually acted like reasonable people it could cause dissonance with the whole "the player characters are the goodest heroes."

As my friend @tenleaguesbeneath once called it: what is actually going on is that the player characters are hunting people and monsters who have been programmed to fight to the death and never negotiate for sport, while justifying it as self-defence.

It's a simple power fantasy, and I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Sometimes you want to play a morally uncomplicated game about killing guys with cool magic swords. But I think it's also fun to think about what the specific types of monsters players end up fighting reveals about Society the invisible, unexamined ideology lying under the surface that the designers of even modern D&D have failed to examine. And to me it often reads like a frontier justice fantasy. None of that is to detract from anyone's joy of the game, and for me it's just fun to think about and post about this stuff while Still Enjoying the Game, but if someone expressing that opinion makes you feel uncomfortable, why? That's pretty silly imo.

[revelboo]

Not a request but just to say thank you for all the work youve done for us!!! Your characterization’s are just top tier and I love how you build up the interactions and focus on the smaller things, really gives us a feel of everythingg

Please do take breaks though!! The rate which you write is crazy honestly😭😭😭

I can technically do these short form fics very quickly if I want to, but my day job is keeping me a bit busy right now.

Better Open The Door Pt 8

IDW Thundercracker x Reader

• Using a spare blanket to rub your hair dry, your mind keeps dredging up the memory of his lips pressing softly against your spine. He’d behaved himself after, but he’d spent more time watching your furtive attempts to wash without flashing him than even trying to wash himself. It’s just his weird fascinations with humans and you know it, but still. The feel of his lips on you had been warm, felt real even if it can’t possibly be. Groaning, you drape the blanket over your head and just hide. From him and from your own weird thoughts. From the fact that even though you should resent him, it’s hard to.

• Watching you from his desk as he fiddles with his data pad, he leans to try and tug the blanket off of you. “What are you doing?” You latch onto it, resisting and while he knows he could easily uncover you, he lets you have whatever this is. Privacy? You’re back in your coverings, so maybe you’re just tired? “I can dim the lights if you need to rest.” And there you are, peeking out at him.

• You want to ask. About his possessive words before and that touch, because you’re not sure he’s playing the same game anymore and you hate not understanding the rules. He’d taken you just to play pretend, playing house with you to satisfy some weird desire from watching too many movies. Right? Whatever that was in the wash racks hadn’t felt like playing, though. “What am I to you?”

• Don’t you already know? Reaching out to tip your chin up and smiling when you catch his servo, but don’t push him away, he studies your expression. “We’re friends, right?” He asks even though that’s not quite right at all. Wants to protect the peace you give him, your smiles and laughs that had come so easily before he’d taken you, but now they’re brittle. Unhappy with him for keeping you here. For not giving you a choice.

• “Yeah, friends,” you mutter, blowing out a breath. And as annoyed as you are with him, he’s just so genuinely invested in you, in worrying over you and trying to make you happy, that it’s hard to stay furious with him for kidnapping you. No matter what he insists, he will get bored with you. You’re not that interesting and he has to realize that. This can’t last, but it’s not like you can hate him. He’s still Thundercracker. Still painfully optimistic and hopeful, just wanting to be with you. Maybe lonely, too.

• “Best friends,” he insists, choosing to ignore it when you roll your eyes at him. “I downloaded some movies on my data pad.” Reaching for you, his servos stop shy of touching you. Giving you a choice. He misses your real smiles, wants to go back to when you trusted him. Because this uneasy tension hurts. It’s almost more lonely than he’d been before he found you. Your head tips to study his expression and he fully expects you to refuse, so when you wrap yourself in your blanket and place yourself in his servos, it means everything. He can’t tell you the truth, yet. Can’t explain why he took you, what’s coming. Because when he admits that his war is likely going to take everything from you, you really will hate him.

Previous

[fawnduu]

Any advice for people who want to make comics but have trouble with the scripting stage? I always try to write out scripts but get bored and abandon them 😭

My advice would be get a loose script and then just start thumbnailing!!! You don't need to have everything nailed down to its final version before starting because comics take a really long time to do and you will get new ideas and change characters as you create the story! You also dont need to make a 'Professional script' since the only person who realistically needs to make sense of it is you! (*unless you are doing a project for an anthology/online pub/ trad pub)

Some of my scripts are literally just in the notes app on my phone that I wrote when I had a brain blast at 3am. The grammer is bad and the writing isnt beautiful but it doesnt have to be because its just information to help you draw the scene.

I follow what I call a path of least resistance rule when I make comics. Basically, if I get bored of one part of the comic making process, I start working on the next step of whatever I have done so far.

A lot of the time this is during thumbnailing for me since it requires the most focus. I'm often dialing in dialogue lines when im thumbnailing and setting everything up so it takes a lot of brain power.

I tend to thumbnail 10-15 pages and then I get those pages done before I move on. Unless you are actively in a book deal in trad pub there is no reason you need to work like you are doing a trad pub book and thumbnail EVERYTHING before starting the next step. The team is you, so the pipeline doesnt need to be coordinated with an editor/letterer etc. I find for making comics the most important thing is keeping up your desire to make them in the first place. Reward yourself with your favorite part of the process after doing something that is hard! And above all else cater your stories to you!!!

Pick things you enjoy drawing and themes/tropes you like and make a story that is all your favorite things, be indulgent as fuck because it will make you LOVE your story/characters and you need to be your story's #1 fan!!!!!

[adipostsstuff]

My @milgram-valentines-exchange gift for @good-beans. Honestly I was worried about getting this finished on time but I actually got a couple of weeks to spare at the end of it. Once I got it to a fairly good standard I ended up putting it aside to focus on studies. While I'm not sure if it's as good as I want it to be, it's good enough. This is the first fanfic I finished and it's the first Milgram fic I've written (I have a Danganronpa fic I've uploaded but it's multi-chapter and really long, I need to get back onto that). Taking this from my notes app and reformatting it was hell, I hope I didn't miss anything. Hope you enjoy this and Happy Valentines Day! (Please ask me about the writing process please ask me about the writing process please ask me about-)

What a pain...

Yuno looks up from her navigation to check her surroundings. A client was going to take her to the bar in the Ritz-Carlton Tokyo and asked her to dress up for the day, so she is looking for a beauty parlour to help her get ready. It was a well paying client, so she couldn't refuse him, but it did bother her to have to mould herself into the desires of others. Whatever. She had chosen this work of her own accord, so she needs to just suck it up and do what she does best: lie and keep appearances.

Ah. This must be the place.

Yuno stands in front of parlour her phone sent her to. She pulls up the receipt from her booking and walks in.

"Excuse me," she says to the receptionist. "I have an appointment for 10:15."

"Alright. Can I have your name?"

"Kashiki Yuno."

The lady behind the desk checks some things on her computer before looking back up at her. "There you are. Would you like to come with me?" She takes her to one of the stations and settle her down. "Your stylist will be here shortly."

Yuno takes a minute to take in her surroundings. This place seems quite well run and professional, and the products high quality; not a bad deal for the cost.

"Ah, hello there. I haven't seen you before."

Yuno turns to her side to find the voice. Next to her, a woman with light brown hair and round face sat by the neighbouring station. She looked from be in her early twenties and she wore a warm smile that felt like the sun itself.

Yuno attempted to match her disposition with a smile of her own. "Yeah, this is my first time here. I'm Kashiki Yuno."

"Shiina Mahiru. Nice to meet you, Yuno-san. I come here all the time. Usually its just for advise from my beautician. She's like my closest friend right now. Today I'm going on a date, though, so I need to look my best. Even though my boyfriend never really pays attention to how hard I try for him. Hey, what are you here for?"

"I'm going to be going out to a fancy place tonight so I'm dressing up for the occasion." She leaves out a lot of details, having no interest in telling a stranger about her job. She didn't need anyone's judgement on it.

"Ooh, fancy. Is it for a date?"

"Hm? Something like that." Mahiru giggles in response.

"Found it! This one is sure to - ah! Were you two talking?" a woman on the other side of Mahiru, presumably her beautician, perks up.

"Ah, yes, we were just introducing ourselves. This is Yuno-san, it's her first time here," Mahiru answers. Yuno gives the woman an awkward wave. She sure loves talking, doesn't she?

"Hi. I'm Sayori, Mahiru-chan's beautician. Nice to meet you. Mahiru-chan, I found the thing. This one is sure to catch his eye," says Sayori, holding up a bottle of something Yuno can't identify.

"Ah, I wanna try," responds the brunette. Yuno turns back to her own desk, assuming the conversation to be over.

"Sorry for the wait. You must be Kashiki Yuno, correct?" A ginger woman in her early thirties walks to her side.

"Yes, that's me," Yuno replies.

"Oh, she's a good one. You're in amsafe hands with her," says Sayori.

"Thank you, Nanami-san. Ms. Kashiki, Is there a particular look you are going for?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe something a bit more refined?"

"Alright. First, I am going to wash your face and clean up your nails. Is that okay?"

"Sure. You would know best, after all.

"The woman, who Yuno assumes to be her stylist for the day, begins to apply a scrub to her face. It feels weird on her face, though her touch isn't too rough. She leaves it on and washes her hands before picking up a nail file and taking Yuno's hand in her own and getting to work on them.

"Hey, Yuno-san," Mahiru says, causing Yuno to face her slightly. "What do you normally like to do?"

"Oh, I like shopping and going out with my friends. I'm also part of the theatre club at school, so you could say that's also a hobby of mine."

"Theatre sounds pretty exciting. I've been to a few shows. It looks like a lot of fun."

"It is. At least I think so. Very different from watching." Yuno is pretty used to playing a part, but at least with theatre it was entirely for fun, with no one assuming anything about her based on her role.

"Ooh, maybe I should try it. There's a theatre group at my university. I'm in my final year at Aoyama Gakuin University studying literature. Me... I also enjoy shopping. I'm into fashion and astrology, and I like reading magazines and watching dramas. I mainly do running and film watching because those are my lover's hobbies."

"You just copy your lover's hobbies?"

"Oh yes. In order to have a good relationship with your partner, you must adapt to them. Relationships are about compromise."

"Yep, yep. As said in the Lain magazine, a good relationship relies on shared interests. It is important to take interest in the things your partner likes and abide by what they desire," says Sayori.

"Even so," says Yuno, "to change your lifestyle for their sake... you have to leave something for yourself, right?"

Mahiru says, "No need. I'm ready to give all of me for my lover, and I only ask for him to do the same. Say, have you ever been in love before?"

Yuno thinks. "There was this one boy I had a crush on in middle school, Haruto-kun. I wouldn't really say I was in love with him, though. So, no, I haven't been in love."

"A shame. Don't worry, Yuno-san, I'm sure it will happen to you eventually. Love is like a time bomb that will explode one day. You can't stop it from happening. And when it does, you will understand just how beautiful it is."

To Yuno, this all seems a bit idealised. She has been empty for so long she can't remember what it is like to form close bonds with people. Sure, she cares about her friends and family, but even they don't fully understand her, so she cannot truly feel close to them. For someone like her, does 'true love' really exist? "I hope so." Yuno trails off. "Say, Shiina-san -"

"Oh please, Mahiru is fine."

"Mahiru-san, then. What's your boyfriend like? You've been talking about him a lot."

She brightens up at this. "My boyfriend is a really kind person. He takes care of me really well. We get into arguments sometimes, but we always come out of it closer than before."

"Uh huh. What else can you tell me?"

"What else... Oh! Do you want to see a picture of him?"

Yuno didn’t miss how she dodged the question. "Sure." Mahiru pulls up her phone and opens up her photos, showing Yuno a selfie of her and her boyfriend smiling together. He looked somewhat plain, but still cute. They did look happy, so Yuno may be overthinking their relationship. It wasn't like it was any of her business anyways. "He looks alright."

"I know. But it's not just his looks that make me like him. He has a charming personality too."

"Haha, that's nice to hear."

"Miss Kashiki, can you lean forward?" her stylist asks, gesturing to the sink in front of her. She does so and her stylist washes her face before placing her back and wiping it with a small towel. She then picks up a foundation from a shelf. "This is the product I am going to use for your face," she says, applying it on. Yuno suspects this is a way of trying to advertise it to her. Once she is done she takes a contour pen and applies to to different pats of her face, blending them with a beauty blender. "This is how you look so far. How do you think?" The beautician turns her to the mirror. Her face looks natural, barely as if anything is there, but she still appears to be somewhat older and more mature.

"Looks good so far," she says.

"Alright." The lady picks up a book. "You said you wanted a refined look. Do you have an outfit prepared?"

"Hm, I think I do."

"OK. Describe it to me and I'll see if I can come up with something that matches." Yuno opens her mouth to reply, but at that moment a voice calls from behind her drawing her stylist's attention.

"Natsumi."

Yuno turns to see what she is looking at and finds a man with bright red hair wearing a union jack hoodie running up to them.

"Futa? What are you doing here?" the beautician, apparently named Natsumi, asks.

"Dad called. He wants to talk to you."

She sighs. "Now? I'm in the middle of an appointment."

"He says it's urgent."

"Fine. Hand it over," she groans, taking the phone from Futa's hand. "I'm sorry about this, ma'am. Stay here, Futa, I'll be back."

"I'm not staying in a beauty parlour. That's gross."

"Maybe you should. It might make you less misogynistic."

Futa stares at her in disgust as she walks away. Nearby, Mahiru's stylist whispers "I've never heard Kajiyama-senpai speak like that before."

"I'm not misogynistic. I just think girl talk is boring," Futa complains.

Yuno comments, "That sounds pretty misogynistic to me."

Futa glares at her. "And who are you?"

"Kashiki Yuno. Nice to meet you. You are..." Sayori called her stylist Kajiyama and, from them appearing to have the same father, they are probably siblings. "...Kajiyama Futa?"

He rolls his eyes. "Why are you acting do friendly with me? Its weird to talk that way to strangers, you know."

"All relationships start with strangers."

"What makes you think I want to be friends with you?"

"How rude," Sayori whispers.

"Just ignore him. He's being a jerk," says Mahiru. "By the way, didn't you say you were in school? Which year are you in?"

Relieved to change the subject, she replies, "In my final year."

"Oh, that means exams and applications and all of that. How's that coming along?" asks Sayori.

"It's a struggle, but I think I'm doing well. I go to cram school, so that should help."

"That's good to hear. What universities or courses are you thinking of applying to?" says Mahiru.

"I'm not sure. To be honest, I'm not if I even want to go to university."

"Oh, you absolutely should! It's a completely different experience from school. You get to meet so many new people and try new things in a new environment. You might even find your true love there. I believe it's worth it."

"It really isn't," chimes in Futa. "You barely learn anything and all the people there are so lame. There's no point, most degrees are useless anyways."

"Didn't you say you didn't want to be friends with us?" Mahiru retorts. Futa huffs, looking away.

"Why did you go then?" Yuno asks. Mahiru gives her a look but Yuno shrugs. I'm curious.

He sighs. "My dad made me. Said I would never get anywhere without one. Not that having one would get me anywhere. Besides, it was what everyone else was doing, and I didn't want to start working immediately or do a vocational course."

Yuno hums. "Honestly, the main reason why I'm not sure is because I don't know what I want to do with my future. I haven't thought that far ahead yet. I don't want to choose a path and end up regretting it."

"You're probably better off than me, in that case."

Mahiru says, "What I did is choose a subject I liked in school and look up universities that offered it. I knew I wanted to move to Tokyo because it's a busy city with lots of things to do..." she trails off. Did the city not live up to her expectations? She brightens back up. "So I looked into universities here that offered courses in literature, and I really liked Aoyama Gakuin's course because it's really varied. Of course, there's also admissions tests and tuition fees to think about: they weren't particularly a problem for me but I can imagine you different people have different needs. You just need to think about what's important to you."

"Nice going, Mahiru-chan," says Sayori. "Personally, I knew I wanted to be in the beauty industry, so I went to a junior college and took a course in it."

"That was really helpful. I might have a better idea now. To be honest, it's figuring out what I like that's the main issue. Most of my friends are going to different unis, so it's not like I can just follow them."

Mahiru says, "You are going to make new friends at uni anyway. What about theatre?"

"Well, I'm not sure if after 3 or 4 years I'll still like it, and I don't think I can change my course half way through. I'm really worried about not having good time. It may be a bit self-centered, but I hate things that are boring."

"That's understandable. If you really can't think of anything, why not take a gap year? You can try lots of different things in that time and decide what you enjoy the most that way."

"That's a good idea, actually. You're like a dependable older sister who sounds very wise."

Mahiru laughs. "Really? That makes me so happy. I'm an only child, but I've always wanted a younger sibling to fawn over. Maybe I'll have that chance when I have a child of my own."

"Hoping for the traditional lifestyle, are you?"

"Yep. Isn't that the ideal?"

"You know some people would call you old-fashioned for that?"

"Not a problem. It's my dream, after all."

"Well, I wouldn't put that much stock in it. I have a younger brother myself, and it's really not super exciting."

"Don't you get along with him?"

"I do, and I'm glad to have him, but he can be annoying at times. That's just how younger siblings are."

"More like older siblings," Futa mutters under his breath. Unfortunately for him, Yuno is close enough to hear.

"What was that?" she asks.

He begins, "My older sister loves to get on my nerves. Every chance she gets, she keeps interrupting me whenever I'm doing something and going on about how I should try harder in life and make real friends. When I was younger and she first started out on here, she would try to test her stuff on me. Do I look like I'd be into that girly shit?"

"Do you not like her very much?"

Futa pauses. "Somewhat. She did take care of me when I was younger, especially after mum left. It's just sometimes, she can get real grating. H-Hey, don't tell her I said any of that!" he nervously tacks on at the end.

Yuno giggles. "Don't worry. I won't. Say, did your parents get divorced as well? For me it was my father, instead."

"Really? Yeah, they did."

"Guess we are more similar than we thought."

"Don't even try that. We're nothing alike. Besides, you're probably more like my sister."

"Yeah, Yuno-san, don't insult yourself like that," Mahiru adds, which Futa tries to ignore. But Yuno could tell. While their outward appearances were very different, they had things in common. His apathetic attitude to life, his fickle and shallow relationships, all were things he shared with her. Yet in some ways they were different. He didn't hide the way he thought about things the way she did, yet he appeared to care more about what people think about him. In a way, they were like fire and ice.

"Sorry for the wait," Ms. Natsumi hurries to her side.

"My phone," says Futa, extending an arm.

"You're so addicted to that thing," she retorts, handing it back."I'm not addicted. It's the 21st century, everyone's on their phones these days. You're not in the 90s anymore."

"You say that as if I'm some old woman. You're only, what, 13 years younger than me."

"Exactly. Ancient. Besides, you flaunt that around all the time when it's convenient, so you have no right to get mad when I bring it up. Whatever, I'm getting out of this dumb place with all of it's dumb people." Futa turns away and walks out, not taking a second glance back.

Natsumi sighs. "That boy. I'm sorry if he disturbed you in any way. Anyway, where were we? Ah, yes, you were going to describe your preferred look. Would you please continue?" Yuno starts explaining what she's planning to wear. Mahiru watches her for a moment before turning back to her own stylist for her own job.

The rest of the session passes smoothly with little interruption, and by the end her stylist turns her to the mirror. "What do you think?"

Yuno watches herself in the mirror, hardly able to recognise herself. She has not changed much, but she gives off a subtly sophisticated aura. "It's perfect," she breathes.

"That's good. That would be time, so you are free to go. If you liked any of the products used today, you can purchase them at the counter. Have a nice day, I hope you come again."

"Thank you." She moves to leave, but gets stopped by Mahiru.

"Wow. You look great," she says.

"Thanks. You look really good too," Yuno says. And she did. She was given a more youthful appearance that really brought out her features in a very flattering manner.

"Thank you. I hope my boyfriend sees this as well."

"Did your session end just now as well?" asks Yuno, surprised she's still here. Mahiru was here before her, so surely her session would have ended earlier.

"Nope, ended a while back. I waited for you."

"Really? Why?"

"I wanted to talk to you again," she says, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Are you heading to your outing now?"

"I'm going home first to change. What about you? Are you going on your date?"

"Hehe, yep. Do you live nearby?"

"Uh huh. I'm assuming you do as well."

"Yes. Hey, do you want to exchange Lines?"

"Huh? Sure, why not?" Of all things to happen, Yuno didn't expect to make a new friend here. They exchange Line numbers and Mahiru promises to keep in touch with her before leaving. Yuno stands there for a second watching her go, before turning away herself. In a sense, Mahiru was different to Yuno as well, in a way that made her similar to Futa, though neither would admit to it. They were earnest, willing to be genuine with others and trust them with their hearts, while Yuno could only lie her way through life to be accepted. If Yuno was ice, Futa would be fire and Mahiru the sun.

She walks off; she needed to get back to work anyway. Whatever friendship Mahiru thinks will come out of this, it probably won't happen. By the end of the day, they'll forget about each other. Not like her compensated dating gives any warmth either, but it's not like she can quit it now. She goes home, gets ready, lies to her family about where she's going again and heads out to another lonely luxury date with a client who will refuse to see her as she is and spend the night with her to offer her temporary warmth that will fade just as quickly as it came, leaving her empty once again.

When she arrives home that night and is about to tuck into bed, she gets a message.

Hi Yuno. How was your day?

And, for a moment, she feels slightly warmer.

[ghousttm]

HI I DID A RANT ON THIS AND I'M SOOO HAPPY TO GUSH ABOUT THIS AGAIN

"just before Evbo's arrival and before the corruption of the Parkour Champion, most if not all of Parkour Civilization's culture is about progression and improving"

I also have this like interpretation of the culture of Parkour Civilization and how it changes depending on what 'Era' its in

Im making like 3 blogs dedicated to the topic, they're in my drafts but I'll summarize what I've thought so far in relation to what you talked about

(in readmore bc very big wall of text :p)

There's 3-4 Eras of Parkour Civilization. Pre-Corruption, The Era Of Stillness/Stagnation, and The Era Of Evbo

in Pre-Corruption, around the middle of it, a big part of park civ is all about progression and improvement

The ranks was made by the first Champion, the systems surrounding it were made by the Champions that followed

Parkour Civilization used to expand continously, new parkour tricks and new systems being made or discovered at least once a year

Back then, there wasn't as big of a 'rift' between the different ranks. Especially when improving started to become even bigger of a focus in the standards of society. Lotsa people used to rank up like once every other month. So its more like getting promoted in a workplace

Ranks were merely privileges and luxuries, but it never became part of anyone's identity. It was a badge to be proud of, yes, but its expected/common/idealized for one to still try to reach for more than settle

It wasn't until the Champion in season 1 that Parkour Civilization came to a full stop.

The Era of Stagnation/Stillness

New rules and systems were implemented to not only make ranking up impossible, but also completely removed and went against the highly respect concept of Progression

Just like how the Champion is settled on staying The Champion, he had to make sure everyone is under that belief too

Noobs aren't just ranked as a noob, they are a noob. Pros are are a pro, etc etc. The ranks started to also become one's genuine identity than just a rank of skill, more than ever in the history of Parkour Civilization. It convinces people to settle with the rank they are 'born' with, even if there's an option to rank up, it's always been secondary to surviving now.

Im willing to bet there used to be some kind of education system in Parkour Civilization that taught parkour and how to do it, maybe even Parkour Language, across all the levels

But that entire system was removed by the season 1 Champion because it absolutely helped people get better too good and also he doesn't want them to know what Parkour Civilization used to me and that most of it was discovered overtime by parkourers rather than having had always existed.

"Everything had always been this way" it encourages people to not change, not to get better, because nothing's ever changed! Even if its not true, they dont know its not.

uhhhh penis penis idk penis it took me 30 minutes to write all this for some reason

i forgot my point i juhst wanted to ramble

the other extra era i had was The Beginning Of Parkour Civilization, when Cookiegod created Parkour Civilization and worked with the first Champion to create the basis of the Civilization. But that's more around the territory of Parkour Religion than park civ history

I should dedicate some time to think of what Parkour Religion is like hmm hehe...

Hey thanks for doing that government analysis! Idk much abt government structure so writing around that was proving kinda difficult n your thing rlly helped

I do have a question though, if someone was planning on writing something that might poke some holes or point out flaws in the system, what do you think are some things that might be considered? And if those things were to be changed how do you think that might affect how the system works as a whole?

(ik for sure the way it works realistically doesnt particularly account for things outside of moving up, like disability, lack off skill or straight up disinterest. despite being a commune the general societal norm seems pretty individualistic, not to mention the dictator bordering on godlike despite their only requirement being "good at parkour" seems like itd be bound to cause problems; see: evil parkour champion and the glass legend, etc)

Thanks ^^

Hello tysm for the ask this message made my day! Id love to talk about this more!

My main gripe with the way Parkour Civilization government is structured is the rigid hierarchies, in a place where your skill level determines everything in life, you'd expect there be more room to grow and oppurtunities to ascend. Having the levels where everyone is surrounded by people of similar skill sets and pretty much never being able to experience what a higher skill set even looks like is just used to keep people in line with their groups and not know how to reach higher.

I think the overall idea of being divided based on merit is fine. it's the lack of intermingling or education about the other layers and how to get better that should be changed. I mean, as seen in the pro layer, people aimlessly build parkour courses to try and train for the master level, and they never quite get it.

The divided structure also easily makes room for classism, even if all layers were given the same food, materials, and housing, the fact the lower levels simply dont have access to basic knowledge about the extent of parkour (again, the thing their entire society is based off of) keeps them dumbed down, and hinders them from excelling, while the master level has access to the knowledge and practice of so much more parkour. The education difference makes an easy opening for classism and bullying to occur between layers ( which in Parkour Civilization, actually does happen as seen with how the pros treat the noobs, and how the masters even bully eachother based on how they parkour, which again is a sign of upbringing and education. )

[spoiledskullz]

is it really possible for a cowboy and a ghost hunter girl to be in a relationship

(Sad yeehaw)

(Terrified of ghosts yeehaw)

[paging-possum]

on some level I understand that welcome to hell is probably a little harder to sell than hazbin given the *gestures vaguely* entire main plotline of w2h THAT SAID im going to be mad about it forever. because one of them is actually funny and has good character design and compelling dynamics and a good plot and its not the one about the freaking hotel.

[griseldabanks]

for the ask game, would you do #23 for link and zelda?

Let Me Count the Ways ask game

Prompt: "I feel like we've met before…."

“You only want to go there because you think she'll be there.”

“I do not!” Link retorted, hanging his helmet on Epona's handlebars while holding his phone to his ear with the other hand. “I'm going to study for midterms, like I said. Not my fault you didn't want to come along.”

“And watch Malon making googly eyes at you the whole time? No thanks.”

Link paused halfway through slinging his backpack over his shoulder. “What? Malon?”

He could practically hear the rolled eyes across the phone line. “Oh brother. She's had her eye on you since orientation!”

“Really? How can you tell?”

“Because I have eyes in my head!”

Suddenly, Link spotted a familiar pink backpack weaving through the tables outside the coffee shop, heading towards the door. “Sorry, Navi, gotta go.”

“Hey! Listen to me—“

He hung up and darted over to the front door, managing to reach it just in time. He grabbed the door and pulled it open.

The girl who'd been reaching for it started at his sudden appearance, then let her extended hand fall back to her side. “Oh...thanks!”

She smiled up at him before stepping inside, and for one glorious moment, their eyes met. Link grinned stupidly, but she'd already passed him.

Heart pounding in his chest, Link followed her into Lon Lon Cafe. He stuffed his hands into the pocket of his green hoodie, trying to act casual as he stepped into line right behind her. He glanced up at the girl behind the cash register, and the pleasant giddiness in his chest deflated somewhat as he remembered what Navi had said. Sure enough, Malon spotted him and immediately shot him a grin, tucking a lock of red hair behind her ear. And she kept glancing at him as she listened to the next customer's order.

Link looked back at the girl in front of him instead. Zelda. So was so pretty, her blonde hair pulled back in a half-ponytail, golden earrings dangling from her ears and catching the light.... And there was an elegance to all of her movements, even simply in the way she pulled her wallet out of her purse. Like a princess...if princesses ever graced college-town coffee shops.

Suddenly, she looked over her shoulder and turned to face him. “Hey, do I know you?”

The bottom dropped out of Link's stomach. “What?”

Zelda cocked her head to one side. “I feel like we've met before....”

Link swallowed, mouth suddenly dry. “Uh...History 101. Professor Rauru.”

Zelda's face brightened with recognition, and somehow she looked even more beautiful that way. “That's it! So are you ready for—“

“Next!”

With a little start, Zelda quickly turned around and stepped up to the front of the line. While she was ordering her drink, Link couldn't help noticing that Malon wasn't smiling anymore, but answering Zelda tersely and stabbing at the register with more force than necessary.

When it was his turn to order, Link was a little nervous at how Malon would receive him, but to his relief, the second her eyes landed on him, a huge smile lit up her face again. He might have been imagining things, but he thought he detected a hint of sharpness in her gaze that wasn't there normally. “What can I get you?”

Link opened his mouth to reply, but she talked over him.

“Pumpkin spice latte, right? As usual?”

He'd actually been thinking of trying out something different this time, but she was already ringing him up, and he did like anything pumpkin spice-flavored, so he remained silent and just handed over a couple blue rupee notes.

Zelda was still waiting for her drink at the other end of the counter, and Link's heart skipped a beat when she glanced up from her phone as he strode over to her to wait as well. “So, what's your major?” she asked, her blue eyes bright and interested.

“Uh...undeclared, so far,” Link admitted, feeling his cheeks go warm. “I came in with an archery scholarship, but I don't know if that's what I want to go with....”

“Well, that's okay,” Zelda said. “You're a freshman, right? You've got plenty of time to figure it out.”

“Wait, are you not a freshman?”

Zelda giggled. “Oh—no, I'm a sophomore. I just didn't get around to history last year. I wanted to take harp lessons, and my schedule didn't work out.”

“So you're a music major?” Link brightened at that. Maybe he should've signed up for singing lessons or something after all.

“For now,” Zelda said with a thoughtful frown. “I love the harp, but I've been thinking about switching to political science instead. Do some real good in the world, you know?”

The more they talked, the more relaxed Link felt, just like he was talking to Navi or Saria—except that every time their eyes met, he felt a glorious swoop in his stomach. “Maybe your harp can usher in world peace,” he said with a grin.

As Zelda laughed, the barista slid their drinks across the counter towards them. “So do you play any instruments?”

“Oh, just the ocarina—“

They both reached for their drinks at the same time. Both froze, staring at the backs of their hands. Link's left, Zelda's right. Like a strangely geometric birthmark, against their pale skin was the clear outline of a triangle divided into four smaller triangles. On Link's hand, the smaller triangle on the bottom right was filled in; on Zelda's, it was the bottom left.

Link stared at their hands, the marks upon them perfect mirrors of each other. For his whole life, his soul mark had been there, as familiar a sight as the moles and freckles on his arms. He knew it was supposed to be a reflection of his soul, and the legends went that somewhere out there, his soulmate bore the mirror image of it. But who that person was, or if he'd ever meet them...that just wasn't something he bothered thinking about too much.

Just like anyone, there had certainly been times when he'd wondered who his soulmate was. Growing up, he'd compared soul marks with his friends—Saria had been extremely disappointed when she realized that the swirly mark on her shoulder was nothing like his soul mark. In idle moments, he would daydream about whether his soulmate would turn out to be someone he married, like his parents, or a really good friend, or maybe even one of his children someday.

But then life got busy, and there was no time to think about something so frivolous when school and archery club ate up so much of his time. If he ever met his soulmate, he would deal with it then.

Then was now.

Slowly, Link's eyes traveled up Zelda's arm to her eyes, which were open wide with shock. “Does this mean...?”

“You're...m-my....”

“Oh my!” Zelda's face instantly grew as red as a tomato, and she whirled away from him, covering her cheeks with her hands. Link's eyes were glued to the back of her right hand. The soul mark was unmistakable.

Without warning, Zelda began speed-walking back through the cafe, almost knocking into several people on her way out.

“Wait—Zelda!” Link grabbed both of their drinks and rushed after her, finally catching up to her where she had collapsed into a chair at one of the tables under an umbrella out front.

Hesitantly, Link set Zelda's drink down in front of her, then slipped his backpack off his shoulder and sank into the chair across the table. He looked over at her staring fixedly at the cast-iron tabletop as if she could melt it with a glance.

Just to have something to do, Link sipped his pumpkin spice latte, but it scalded his tongue, so he set it aside.

She was so pretty, even with the blush extending all the way down her neck. Actually, the blush made her look even prettier, the pink tinge of her skin setting off the pink shirt she wore.

She's my soulmate, he thought numbly. All I wanted was to talk to her, maybe ask her out eventually...and she's my soulmate. The most important person in my life.

“Um...sorry,” Zelda said with a shaky laugh, looking up at last and tucking a strand of golden hair behind her ear. “I didn't mean to run out, I just...that took me completely by surprise!”

“Yeah, uh...m-me too.”

They both realized at the same time that they were staring at each other's hands, and broke into nervous laughter.

“So, we're...soulmates.” Zelda let out a long breath. “No, saying it out loud didn't help. It still doesn't sound real.”

A sudden thought occurred to Link that made his heart sink. “Hey, um...just because of this,” he pointed at the back of his hand, “that doesn't mean we have to...I mean, it's just a legend. You don't have to feel, like, obligated to...to hang out with me or....”

To his relief, she smiled sweetly at him. “You're right. But...I'd still like to get to know you. If...you don't mind.”

“No, of course!” Link said, a little too quickly and too loudly. He cleared his throat, his cheeks burning again. “Can I buy you coffee or something sometime? I-I mean, I know we already got coffee, but....” Crap, he was making such a fool of himself....

But Zelda just giggled, hiding her smile behind the hand that bore the mirror image of his soul mark. “Yes, you can take me on a date sometime. But, um...what's your name, anyway?”

“Oh!” They'd been talking all this time, and he still hadn't introduced himself. “It's Link. Nice to meet you.”

Zelda cocked her head to one side. “Link...strange...it feels somehow familiar....”

Link realized he'd felt the same way, the first time he'd learned Zelda's name. He'd passed it off as merely thinking it was a pretty name, but...maybe it was a sign that their souls were bonded to each other.

Either way, as they sat at the coffee shop and continued to get to know each other, everything felt right with the world in a way it never had before.

[btwn2lungs]

anyone else who literally cannot stop thinking about episode 11???? just me? okay. i just feel like i have so many more questions than answers!

i pray that episode 12 gives some glimpse, some semblance of clarity, some (more) perspective of rei and kazuki’s relationship to e a c h o t h e r. like please im dumb, spell it out for me just a little bit more.

also sorry soon i want to talk about rei finally being selfish (giving into his desires instead of suppressing them/ignoring them) and wanting something so bad he’s willing to go against the organization for it, risk his life for it, ASK FOR HELP TO GET IT?????? and what “it” is has just as much to do with kazuki as it does miri, maybe even more!!!!! but we knew that already.

[sysig]

Still normal don’t even worry about it (Patreon)

[tashid4]

Bakugo would definitely wear the "I <3 my girlfriend" shirt.

He's the kind of boyfriend that hates everyone but you, you're his special little baby. He hates physical touch but he would hug you, hold you, kiss you, every change he gets.

He's really protective but not possessive. He doesn't tell you what you should wear or not. Fristly because he trust you, but also because he knows how to fight...

He would cook for you. The whole class probably have begged him to cook for them. And he probably said no everytime. But he would prepare breakfast for you, and give you a piece of every meal he cooks.

He buys you flowers. And no only basic roses. No the man has taste. He would buy the most beautiful flowers because anything's good enough for his baby.

His hero training and school are really important for him. He's always focus on what the teacher's saying but that doesn't prevent him from holding your hand under the desk.

It's no secret that Bakugo has anger issues. But he would never dare getting mad at you. Not once he has yelled at you.

He's the perfect boyfriend. I don't make the rules. <3

[the-bitter-ocean]

(FULL GAME SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT)

I am very normal about Euphrasie. I am. I very much am. I think everyone should listen to this really good ISAT fan song about Euphrasie that’s by evidentlyfresh. You can see how normal I am about her here and here and here but also in the long ass ramble below:

I think about Euphrasie a normal amount and I am very :/ when people say she “doesn’t have a character” because she does actually!!! She is kind and willing to do whatever she felt was right to protect her protege (mirabelle) and her country!! Even at the expense of herself!! She’s silly and lighthearted but also very brave!!

Euphrasie had no idea how the king would’ve reacted to her standing against him- putting the blessing to be immune to the time freezing curse on Mirabelle was extremely risky. The king could have easily killed or badly hurt Euphrasie for that instead of merely just freezing her.

I know we talk about how Mirabelle feels a lot of pressure to save everyone and wonders if she’s doing enough- lamenting that her mentor could’ve done it better..and the truth is Euphrasie is just as filled with guilt over what happens as mirabelle, if not more so!

Not only is she aware of the fact that she has no agency in the loops- she’s one of the few people in the game that knew about the favor trees and wish craft (granted she couldn’t remember how to properly do it) but the fact that she alone was able to figure it out despite all the information on it being locked away in a secret room in a language most people can’t speak and written in the language no one can read without getting a headache)

Even when she has little to no options she still did her best to protect the people she cared about. Also she’s just genuinely so forgiving?? And chipper?? Despite literally everything going wrong? Siffrin straight up yells at her and shoves her/ pushes her when he grew *huge*. She doesn’t hold it against him at all and just takes it in stride:

(shoutout script project for. script)

yall ever. think about this? yeah. yeeeah. ooohgh mdame head housemaiden you are so doomed. girl you are wrapped up in a fate you cannot possibly hope to defy. you are just a vessel for which a wish can be followed through on. you dont have a choice.