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blueikeproductions · 9 days ago

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So an unexpected lore drop for the Robots in Disguise 2015 cast cropped up.

The Transformers series has an RPG game, though I have no idea if many actually play of it or even know if it.

There’s three books so far.

The third one being the most recent, and a particular surprise that it’s heavily based on Beast Wars, Beast Machines and other series that have included beast characters like both RiDs.

One thing I find funny is the named Maximals are surprisingly small: Optimus Primal, Dinobot, Cheetor, Rattrap, Botanica, Silverbolt and BlackArachnia. The Predacons and Vehicons are much more robust, with Skold from IDW Beast Wars specifically mentioned as a Predacon. Maximal Nyx, as far as I can tell, isn’t mentioned, which is funny because she was treated as IDW BW’s mascot, but was pry the most forgettable character from it. Forgettable to the point she doesn’t appear to be acknowledged here.

What’s most surprising is Beast Machines in general being acknowledged since the struggles between the Maximals and Vehicons aren’t a popular idea to return to. Acknowledging a techno organic Cybertron is almost considered apocryphal to some, but with how increasingly Earth like Cybertron has become in modern stories, perhaps Hasbro is just more accepting of Cybertron’s inevitable evolution into a pseudo organic state.

The book starts out with Cheetor, post Beast Machines, speaking to a human colony on New Earth about the history of the Beast Wars he fought in and other Beast Wars he is aware of such as the events of RotB and RiD01.

Nightshade is listed as a lesser known beast Transformer, and going by the growing apathy towards EarthSpark and it continuing to be a rallying point in grifter spaces, I think that’s gonna remain that way unfortunately. Curiously, as Cheetor is the one that name drops Nightshade, I’m unsure if this is supposed to be the EarthSpark version, or retroactively this is a post BM Maximal version. Going by other chapters that seem to identify characters as belonging to G1/Beast Wars canon, it seems likely this Nightshade is a Maximal rather than a Terran.

Maximal and Predacon biology has never been definitively nailed down before, but this guidebook specifically declares that Maximals and Predacons evolved from Pretender technology and Micromaster technology, something ancillary media suggested before but never set it as hard fact.

The next story features Simacore as part of a Decepticon think tank led by Shockwave, as they discuss what seems to be the modern versions of “Beast Mode” technologies.

Of particular note is what the animal Decepticons in RiD15 are retroactively labeled as: Hybridizors. Hybridizors are apparently a breed of Transformer that has an animal like Robot Mode that converts into a Vehicle Mode. It seems this evokes Fuzors from Beast Wars: Maximals and Predacons who transform into hybrid mutant animals like Silverbolt’s wolf with eagle wings and claws.

Mechanimals are also referenced, a term that’s cropped up in ancillary media that refers to Cybertron’s native fauna: the difference is it now specifically refers to fauna and Transformers who convert from humanoid Robot Modes to robotic Beast Modes like the Dinobots.

With this in mind, we now have two distinct races that make up the RiD15 Decepticons:

Hybridizors: Guys like Steeljaw, Clampdown, Ped, Bisk, Quilfire, Underbite, Scatterspike, Groundpounder, Simacore, RageByte & Springload. While not specified, presumably this also includes Cyclone & Torpedo Mini-Cons.

Mechanimals: Guys like Scowl, Grimlock, Nightstrike, Chop Shop, Filch, Saberhorn, Glowstrike, Scorponok, Scuzzard, Shadow Raker & Zizza.

The crash of the Alchemore is also an event that occurred in this G1/Beast Wars version of events, further solidifying these characters into the general mythos as accounted by Thunderhowl, based on the Cyberverse version funny enough. Thunderhowl does retroactively fit nicely as an RiD15 character, but his defining role in CV is serving Onyx Prime and getting trapped in alien crystals until the end of the Great War. He’s frankly an odd pick as the narrator of the third part of the book, when he’s not a remarkable character and to better fit with the Beast Machines theme, he could’ve been BM Nightscream or TFP Predaking looking at old data trax about Cybertronian history. Just a thought.

What makes the Hybridizor idea most interesting is the writers of the RPG book consulted with RiD15 staff writers to have Steeljaw and company fit in the RPG gameplay. I’m personally excited, since RiD is my favorite series, and getting new lore related to it by the staff is so cool. My only complaint is I kinda wish they thought of this name back then, as it probably would’ve saved a lot of headaches as to what the RiD15 Decepticons are supposed to be. Despite the show making it clear all the animal dudes are naturally occurring species on Cybertron, a lot of fans tended to view them as augmented experiments of Shockwave’s, similar to the Insecticons and Predacons. This does include the Dinobots, but because RiD also states Dinobots are a common reoccurring mechanimal on Cybertron, with RiD Grimlock, Scowl, Velocirazor and Tricerashot examples of this, it makes FoC Grimlock’s Dinobots retroactively bizarre, as why would Shockwave rebuild Grimlock’s unit into Earth Dinosaurs, when Earth Dinosaurs exist on Cybertron anyway? Works if you squint, my actuator.

Still the specific mention of Beast Mode tech does lean pretty heavily into the fan theory Steeljaw and co could’ve been experiments of Shockwave’s, so it’s now officially plausible even though I’m not personally a fan of that idea. Not everything needs to be Shockwave’s fault, I think we learned that the hard way in IDW.

This retroactive labeling is also interesting as the animal Decepticons came about by Hasbro kinda stumbling on it. They didn’t have a clear idea on what RiD’s theme would be so in play testing, they found kids liked to have the Autobot toys fight monster Decepticon looking toys, so that became the defining characteristic.

If you were to go back and rework it to have these Decepticons be a new breed of savage beast and turbo revving machine, equipped with a gimmick like the Energon Ignitors from Bumblebee or the Activator Mini-Cons RiD did use, I think that might’ve helped smooth things over better.

#blueike productions #blueike #transformers #maccadam #transformers earthspark #transformers robots in disguise #transformers robots in disguise 2015 #transformers roleplay #transformers beast wars #beast machines #beast mode

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somethingpersonarelated · 11 months ago

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Akechi's taste in Literature

I've taken an interest in the books Akechi reads. Obviously from the first time you talk with him, you can already tell what he tends to: psychology, philosophy, and mythos. Also, I read at least a little bit from every text. One of my professors out there is proud of me. I hope. So: let's talk about it!

Ok, but why care? Quick Introduction

No particular reason. I simply want to tinker with his brain. I think it could give us insight on the character! And there's an easy way to dismiss this conversation: Akechi uses books as a way to appear intelligent. I don't think that's wrong per se, but he does express an interest in psychology and philosophy in his third semester Jazz Jin discussions. His thieves den conversations also point to interests in mythos. Use this as a "Annoying Person Bookshelf" if you'd like, I certainly will.

Aristole's De Anima (Mementos Mission - Chapter 3)

De Anima, or "On the Soul" [Leob Classical Library], is an examination of the soul and how it functions within the body. It's pretty dense but easily accessible. On page 15,

"There are times when men show all the symptoms of fear without any cause of fear being present. If this is the case, then clearly the affections of the soul are formulae expressed in matter."

Now, I'm not going to read every book, that would be a huge investment. And unfortunately I am still a university student, so I'll stick to the introduction/first chapters or so. But anyways, to the point of the quote, De Anima tends to get metaphysical. Theory time: Akechi has morbid fascinations with the soul. Not only because he well, kills people, but also messes with the restraints on their heart. I choose this quote because it's a good summary of the kind of body horror someone messing with you in the metaverse is like. It's fear and anger unchained, but it manifests in reality through subway accidents... for example.

Hegel's Dialectics (did Akechi misquote Hegel?) - Rank 1

Look, almost all of these texts are slogs to get through, so I wouldn't blame Akechi for not catching this. Or not reading the 2017 in-universe equivalent of cliffnotes. Note: Dialectics refers to the structure/strategy that Hegel uses, not a text itself. Looking at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy we see that Hegel never makes mention of the thesis, antithesis, and synthesis idea. Rather, thesis-antithesis-synthesis is a pattern in his arguments. These are also projected by people reading his text, so we can't fully be sure he's using this to formulate most of his arguments. So not only has Akechi forgotten synthesis, the "unification", but also the fact that Hegel doesn't talk about this. Did he read Hegel? Probably. Did he retain the information? Questionable. Do I blame the writers for making the mistake? mmmm. Maybe. If you're asking me to guess which book he read, I would estimate it was The Phenomenology of Spirit [Google Books]. And yes, I'm going to say it was just because of this quote on page 9 that just, screams Black Mask:

"The force of the mind is only as great as expression; its depth only as, as deep as its power to expand and lose itself when spending and giving out its substance."

Maurice Leblanc's Arsène Lupin vs Sherlock Holmes (Herlock Sholmes) (P5A)

This book I read because my curiosity definitely got the better of me. Since I've gotten into Persona 5 again, I've been DYING to read this one, but never got around to it. I think this one is also interesting to look at based on how it was represented in the anime, a crow escaping a bird cage. I can say that this doesn't happen in the book, but this is why I think Akechi is self inserting on Holmes/Sholmes here. Holmes is much freer as a person in this text than Akechi, but also in a deep rivalry with Lupin. Their banter is also pretty reminiscent of what they [Joker and Akechi] have, but... with older language. Longer quote, so here's an image in its place:

Edit/Correction: Edogawa Ranpo's Kogoro Akechi Series!

As pointed out by a couple people, we can't leave out this series. (credits to @heavy-metal-papillon) I don't know why my mind blanked and left this out. Because when I was doing research for this post someone had mentioned it. Just by name, it should be obvious why this is here! Here is a part of the preface that explains Kogoro Akechi, Arsene Lupin, and their presence in Edogawa's novels (written by Ho-Ling Wong):

Literature he makes references but doesn't mention (note: headcanon/my opinion)

John Stuart Mill's On Utilitarianism

Because Akechi knows how to flirt, he recommends philosophy to Joker. [Early Modern Texts] In my eyes he definitely doesn't agree with this philosophy (in fact some quotes are definitely more aligned with Maruki's philosophy). Page 8:

"That’s because the utilitarian standard is not •the agent’s own greatest happiness but •the greatest amount of happiness altogether; and even if it can be doubted whether a noble character is always happier because of its nobleness, such a character certainly makes other people happier, and the world in general gains immensely from its existence."

Yes, Akechi reads Freud. Freud's essays: Beyond the Pleasure Principle & The Ego Principle

In an offhanded comment about Personas in the Thieves Den to Ryuji, Akechi says:

I love you Akechi. I will not read Freud for you. My love has limits.

Carl Jung's Two Essays on Analytical Psychology

Okay I'm NOT reading this (a lie, i did. [Internet Archive]) but this was the foundational text on the Jungian Archetype of the Persona as well as addressing concepts such as "the will to power." Going to leave this quote from page 78 for you to munch on:

"Logically, the opposite of love is hate, and of Eros, Phobos (fear); but psychologically it is the will to power. Where love reigns, there is no will to power; and where the will to power is paramount, love is lacking. The one is but the shadow of the other..."

There's a couple things here that point to Akechi reading this, but ultimately I just headcanon that he wants to reason through why Personas exist.

Generally reads about the casts Personas!

Similarly to how Joker can read about the other PTs Personas, Akechi does as well. Well, if his morbid discussion about Captain Kidd in the Thieves Den is an indicator. Does this mean Akechi is familiar with the Carmen stage opera? I think so. Besides, it's also the smartest move. Akechi (head)canonically reads lovecraft.

Conclusion

Akechi really enjoys psychology and philosophy, and while some of it seems like he's doing it for attention/to appear smarter, he DOES continue to show interest in third-semester/thieves den. I still can't forgive him for reading Freud.

The List (of ones directly mentioned here)

De Anima, Aristotle

The Phenomenology of Spirit, Hegel

Arsène Lupin vs Sherlock Holmes, Leblanc

On Utilitarianism, John Stuart Mill

Beyond the Pleasure Principle & The Ego Principle, Freud

Two Essays, Carl Jung

The Fiend with Twenty Faces, Edogawa Ranpo

Other notes and headcanons I can't justify giving sections to:

he probably read that fuckass billiards book

definitely stuff on justice. i was just lazy. Some of these texts do cover these ideas, but definitely not all of them

he likes detective novels. he's probably read a fair share of sherlock holmes.

he probably reads adjacent literature to some of the philosophers mentioned (for example: Nietzsche to Jung, Plato to Aristotle)

#goro akechi #p5 meta #p5r #p5 #akechi goro #akechi #thinking emoji #making goro akechi's philosophies everyone's problem

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mystique-peach · 5 months ago

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☼

Title: Dog Days - Book of Mythos (Chapter 1) ☼

Description:

He meets her because the village he’s in has decided that he’s a “problem.” And. Well. To be fair to them, he is, in fact, a problem.

A story about the end of the world, but only kind of.

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Link to Ao3 Mirror

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The first time he meets her, he’s going by the name Asa.

He doesn’t keep a last name. Not a lot of people did, let alone critters like himself. But he does have a name, because it’s one of those things humans seem to concern themselves with, and he does like to try and exist alongside them when he can get away with it. He’s taken refuge in some dilapidated building at the corner of town, made with rough cut stone and rotting wood. It’s got ivy-creep across the outerwall and termite damage on the inner support, and lets in more sun then it keeps out. These types of buildings are a dime a dozen in this place, dotted between overgrown grassfields and forgotten mountain crevices. They’re useless to anyone with a brain, too unstable to feel safe, and too decayed to protect from anything more than a light rain. But he’d never claim to be either smart or concerned with his own safety, and so to him they offer easy shelter in the periods between travel.

He meets her because the village he’s in has decided that he’s a “problem.” And. Well. To be fair to them, he is, in fact, a problem.

Rather, by human terms, he’s a problem.

It had been the chickens, he thinks, that had gotten their attention. He’d killed two of them roughly a few days back, and he’s learned that they tend to notice their critters dying faster than they notice their crop gone. (As far as he’s concerned, if they didn’t want the little suckers killed, then they shouldn’t make it so easy to get into their enclosures. But that's neither here nor there, on the matter of them sending someone to kill him.)

But he’d been hungry when he’d gotten here, and a chicken feeds him longer than their berries would. So, he’s not surprised they send someone to come looking for him. He’s not even startled by her appearance in the hut. He hears her coming from the base of the path. She’s not being careful, but he also doesn’t think she’s trying to be. She walks with the sort of confidence that only comes from arrogant fools or tactless douchebags.

He’s small enough that he can duck up into the rafters. They’re thin planks of wood, one of which fell to the ground and broken through one of the old corner tables that had been left abandoned

She, on the other hand, is tall enough that she has to duck under the doorframe to get into the room. There’s a sword dangling loosely in her hand, something he personally thinks is hard not to notice with some amount of immediacy. Actually- There are three, if he’s counting right. One in hand, two strapped to her back. Though he can’t see any other weapons at a glance, he presumes, of course, that she probably has more. On the whole, he thinks it’s good to assume people willing to carry around three swords are willing to carry around three swords and a knife. It seemed a little excessive, if you asked him. Three swords and all that. Exactly what kind of threat did she think she was walking into?

The biggest one - that being, the one she’s currently holding, is so well-polished that it shines when the light hits it. It’s bent at an angle. He finds that odd. He can’t imagine what purpose the bend in it serves, but weapons had never exactly been his “Thing.” (Not that he had many “things” that humans would consider worthwhile knowledge to begin with.)

Besides the swords, she doesn’t look too out of the ordinary. Her hair is black. Long enough that even while thrown into a haphazard braid over her shoulder it sits well at her waist. The braid is struggling to hold. There are a few flyaway strands here and there, and a clump that's escaped the style and sticks to her forehead in the humidity. Her clothing is a bit threadbare, something that's both clearly had an attempt at maintenance, yet still inevitably wore down to time and travel. It’s an otherwise plain outfit (Something of which disappoints him a little. Asa had always figured that If you were going to go through all the effort of making and wearing clothing, it had best be something interesting to look at.) She’s wearing dark trousers (He knows that fabric too, wool) and a loose fitting green shirt, half haphazardly draped over her shoulder and fastened into place with a rough looking cloth belt. The look is boxy-like. It leaves one of her shoulders and part of her chest exposed, revealing some isometric looking tattoo (The specific details of which he is still too far away to appreciate) wrapping around her arm.

His tail flicks with interest. Now that was something you didn't see everyday.

Her gaze wanders around the shack, heavy and critical of her surroundings. After a moment of investigation (there was not, in fact, a lot to investigate. He’d made sure of that himself.) She crosses the room, picking up one of the old ceramic shards and turning it over in between her fingers. The small table it was once sitting on lays on its side, missing a leg and in the beginning stages of being reclaimed by nature.

“Hm,” She holds it up. Nervous about being seen, he flattens himself further back at the corner end of the beam. As if on cue, the moment he steps back, her gaze snaps up to where he’s sitting. Comparatively, however, she turns with no amount of urgency, dropping the shard back to the ground and dusting her hand off on her trouser.

“Oh,” She says, more to herself than him. She doesn’t sound surprised. She doesn’t sound like much of anything, “A fox…?” She says, under her breath, her brows furrowing. Yes, yes. He’s a very rare and beautiful creature. Pack it up, swordlady. She doesn’t do that. She tilts her head, presumably to try and get a better look at him. Her eyes wander down to his tails, as though instinctive, and he swears he sees the way she counts them in her eyes.

Momentarily, she’s silent. But then, she leans back on her heels, resting a hand on her face in some show of exhaustion. She rests it there momentarily, exhaling past her fingers, and then runs her hand up and into her hair.

“... Alright,” She says, eventually, pointing the length of her sword up toward him. It’s not exactly a threatening gesture, and the sword is just clunky enough to not pose much of a threat to him from the angle she sits at. Nevertheless, he stands in surprise, which he feels is reasonable. Given the sword pointed at him, “Let's get on with it, then. Say your piece.”

Inquisitively, he sits up. His ears perk as he does, “What?” He asks, acting more out of surprise than anything. He doesn’t think he’s hearing her right. He’s not the best at this language yet - He’s been in the area long enough to pick up on a lot of it, but some of it still hurts his head to sort through.

She gives a loose gesture with the weapon, something that looks almost impatient, given the rest of her posture, “You heard me. Say your piece.”

Oh. He had heard her correctly. He doesn’t like that.

Sitting back on his hunches, he looks down at her rather skeptically. Humans, as a whole, didn’t expect him to be able to speak to them. He could, of course. Most of them didn’t know that, but he could. Curious, he sits back down, and does so slowly. The kind of action that he fears reveals more than he means for it to, shows off his apprehension more than it should. His tails hang off the rafter, and he flicks them closer to himself as though for protection.

“Sorry,” He says, not politely. He paraphrases his thoughts like this, “Most people come into these kinda things lookin’ to kill. Didn’t exactly expect… Ah. Y’know.” He trails off. She takes it for what it is, tilting her head in the same, instinctive way another fox might when curious. It looks odd on a human. It does work to calm him somewhat.

“I do know,” She says, lazily shoveling the tip of her blade into the ground. Then, after a moment of consideration, decides to add, “I was sent in here to kill you.”

His tails betray him, flicking again with unease at the news. She doesn’t say anything. But she also doesn’t move to try and grab him or anything like that, and she doesn’t look like she’s priming to do so. Human’s have pretty obvious cues on those kinds of things.

“Well,” He echo’s back, breaking the silence. He tilts his head back at her. Had he taken the shape of a human, he’d’ve probably been laughing a little nervously right now. Fortunately, he had not, and so it’s just everything else about his posture that gives him away, “If I’m being honest with you, I don’t really want to die.”

“I don’t imagine you do, no,” She says, and rests the whole of her weight on her blade. It sinks further into the wood like it’s going through mud. Oof. Yeah that wouldn’t be a pretty way to go. Finally, as though a half assed attempt to soothe his nerves, “I don’t really want to kill today.”

“Oh,” He says, and it does not, in fact, work to soothe him. She does not look like someone who does not want to kill. Nevertheless, he says, “That’s good. For the preservation of my life n’all that. Not tryin’ to kill me does help with the whole, living thing.”

Her lip twitches up. Oh good. She has a sense of humor.

“They thought you were ….” She seems to need a moment to search for her own words. Though, like him, she seems to lose her train of thought, and eventually just ends the whole of it with a “... Well. They thought you were something else, is all. Not that I’m sure they’d be particularly fond of having pests running around,” Her expression doesn’t betray a lot. He doesn’t like that. He likes how expressive humans are, when they are.

“I’m not a pest,” He says, though he doesn’t take much offense to it. To show it, he stretches himself across the rafter, and with some amount of pride decides, “I am a problem, though.”

“... I see no difference,” She says.

Like her, he likes to think he has a sense of humor. “Most humans are problems,” he points out, with some amount of poignancy.

She makes another expression, thin lipped, and gives a shrug, “I see no difference,” She says again, tone falling to mild-mannered agreement. He does laugh this time, a high pitched yelp sound in this body. He stalks forward on the beam - Mindful of its age, and careful, and in deciding that she’s moved from the category of ‘threat’ to the category of ‘neutral party,’ decides to re-assess her.

Upon closer inspection, the sword in her hand has an engraving along the side. That doesn’t surprise him. Humans had a fondness for decorating their murder-tools in all sorts of interesting ways, and he’s inclined to believe it doesn’t serve much more of a purpose than looking nice. Her tattoos, which he’d at first taken to be strictly isometric in nature look more like are up close. There’s a sun on her shoulder, iconographic. The rays of it bleed from her shoulder, to her chest.

His ear twitches. A soldier, maybe…? It would make sense. Even little settlements like this generally had one or two of those sitting around, and the ones that made their skin all pretty-like were either criminals or warriors. She didn’t feel very criminal to him. Too… well. It was the way she was holding herself.

But something in his gut didn’t scream solder to him, either. The ones in this area wore more protective gear, and were awfully stupid too. Well. Most humans were pretty stupid, if you asked him, but the solders especially so.

His tails flick.

“You’re not from here,” She says, conversationally. She’s looking at him again, like she’s looking through him rather than at him, and it makes his fur stand on end. His ear twitches, uncomfortable. Still. He humors the question, because he hasn’t actually spoken to anyone in some time, let alone in this tongue, and it’s good to stay in practice with these things.

“Not really, no.”

“... Hm. Traveling then,” She shifts her gaze away, bringing her hand up to rest at her chin. It’s odd. He’s a good read of body language - better than humans were with one another, maybe. And something about her felt…. There was really no other way of saying it, but she felt fake. Like she was a statue forcing the little movements for his sake. It’s the kind of thing that feels obvious to him. Not that a person couldn’t move like that, but they generally didn’t. He didn’t know why, he wasn’t that kind of smart, but instinct and experience told him so, and he trusts that. He’s always trusted that.

Because of this, he’s unsure if she’s asking him, or simply saying it for the sake of doing so, he simplifies his situation down to a scant, “It’s complicated,” because it is complicated, and he doesn’t need or want her to know the details of those complications.

A small breeze flutters the reed-like grass growing at the end of the room. She gives him one of those inscrutable looks, the irritating kind that refuses to give more information then it takes. She sighs, propping her hands on her hips, and looks out the fragmented window. The one in the direction of the forest, that is, and tells him that, “... Well. Stay on the paths the humans have made. The forest gets dangerous around this time of year.”

He bites back pointing out that most old-growth forests are dangerous, a child would know that, he’s not stupid and doesn’t like being patronized. But then she’s looking back to him, kind of out of the corner of her eye, and it halts whatever thought he had.

Hm.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” He says, because he will. He might not listen, but he will keep it in mind.

Deciding that it’s been settled, she turns to leave. About half way across the room, where the charcoal remains of an old firepit she adds, “I would leave soon, if I were you. Or at least stop killing their livestock. A few people here have hounds, and the dogs aren’t as understanding as I am.”

Well. Fair was fair. He didn’t like dogs all that much. They were dumber then the humans. Curious, he leans forward and asks, almost conspiratorially, “.... the ducks?”

She stops. Looks over her shoulder at him, expression one heavy with bemusement, “What?”

“Can I at least have those?”

Then her shoulders fall, and as though strained, she says, “.... No,” and, as she begins walking again. She raises a hand at him and says, “Take the eggs next time.”

And then she walks away. He doesn't even get her name.

==> Next Chapter

#original character #original writing #DdBoM #Kitsune #Book of Mythos Chapters

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ultrameganicolaokay · 3 months ago

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Book of Cutter (one-shot) by James Tynion IV, Werther Dell’Edera and Miquel Muerto. Cover by Dan Mora. Variant cover by Dell’Edera. Out in December.

"As it crosses its 5th anniversary, the Slaughterverse unveils one of its darkest chapters yet in this oversized one-shot exploring a brand new facet to the mythos of monsters… and the ones who hunt them. Maxine Slaughter, a former pack hunter who renounced her White Mask to take up the Black for the Order of St. George, journeys to Europe to seek out House Cutter and their mysterious ways. The Eisner Award-winning team of iconic writer James Tynion IV, legendary artist Werther Dell'Edera, and acclaimed colorist Miquel Muerto close out 5 years of nightmares with this pivotal entry in the blockbuster horror saga."

#book of cutter #something is killing the children #siktc #order of st. george #maxine slaughter #boom studios #james tynion iv #werther dell'edera #miquel muerto #dan mora #variant cover #one-shot #horror #comics

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kamenstranger · 2 months ago

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A review(?) of Dandadan

Starting these reviews off is always the hardest part, but it often comes to me after some time filling out the rest of the article. Dandadan has been stubborn in that regard, so much so I've been trying to figure out where to start with this series since it first came out.

I began reading DDD before tankōbon's were being printed, hell before it even made it to NA digitally (There were translations in Europe which got them early iirc.) Then batches starting coming out, and I still have those original single chapters from Sept. 5 '21

I became captivated, but, like its namesake, describing why I enjoy DDD is daunting in how esoteric it all is.

The general plot is straightforward on its own: Momo Ayase, the granddaughter of a spirit medium, though circumstance meets with an occult obsessed otaku, Ken Takakura, and, yes, he's named after exactly who you think, which drives the Takakura obsessed Momo nuts. She calls him Okarun, which I will also be doing for the rest of this.

Okarun's big obsession is UFOs and aliens, which he believes in, but not ghosts. You see where this is going. Hi-jinks ensue, both go to hot spots for each others interest and what do you know, Momo gets abducted by Aliens and Okarun is possessed by a geriatric genital biting speed demon.

Feel free to re-read that last part a few times.

Suffice to say, Dandadan gets fucking nuts almost as soon as the first chapter, but we're not even close to how off the rails this series gets.

I'll save you the details of how they deal with the Turbo Granny, but I will say the mythos and rules surrounding the various spirits, urban legends, cryptids and aliens is handled with a shocking amount of intricate care. If you're like me, you grew up surrounded by a plethora of Unsolved Mysteries, caught UFO Files as it was airing, maybe you even had some of those Forbidden World books laying around from the 80s before getting into stuff like Yokai. Even though I don't really engage with that sorta thing outside Weird NJ nowadays (It stops being fun when people in public office are into conspiracies-- particularly of the nazi variety like lizard men and flat earth)

The narrative and aesthetic appeal of them has stuck with me.

Anyone that's read my Kamen Rider reviews would know how much of a sucker I am for that quintessential cryptid look, which Dandadan has plenty of along with just being absurdly unhinged and hilarious.

The first two volumes do a fantastic job setting up the limitations and powers of spirits in particular, eventually resulting in part of Turbo Granny's soul being trapped in a Meneki Neko and leaving her speed abilities with Okarun. Unfortunately, Okarun only got 1/3 of his bits back.

So now have two super powered protagonists touched by the supernatural and the unearthly on the search for…missing nuts. Or I guess testicles that look like magic golden orbs of power. That's seriously how we're kicking this off.

And yes, there is a basis for that in mythology called Kintama. If you're familiar with Gintama you probably knew that.

But beyond that basic set up… where the fuck do I even go from there? The series is far more than OTT action and good monster lore, but it's also hard to delve into the how and why of its overall qualities. Sure The supernatural and sci-fi bits are fantastic, and the comedy is wonderful, but it's a by product of the real core of Dandadan: the interpersonal relationships of the characters. Surprise.

Which yeah, if it wasn't clear from the get go, DDD has a romantic angle between Okarun and Momo.

Under the monsters, dick jokes, and the completely unhinged nature of everyone and everything is an oddly captivating and flat out adorable love story between our two leads, one that slowly unfolds but is challenged by the various shake ups from monsters, invaders and cast additions that occur to hinder that development; or in some cases push it further by bringing the two closer.

Okarun in particular very well might be one of my favorite interpretations of the Otaku with a heart of gold. He's a legitimately sweet person, cares for people, he trains his ass off to earn mastery over his powers to make things easier on Momo and to keep up with the ever increasing threats they face. In a sea of otaku power fantasy characters, it's nice to be reminded that characters with limitations and weaknesses to be overcome or dealt with are still showing up.

He's also just a total sweetheart to Momo.

And it's pretty clear even early on that the feeling is mutual. Momo is easily flustered whenever a cute girl gets a little too chummy with Okarun, or strings him along. She even retaliates in some cases.

Momo is also about as dorky as Okarun (As seen above) just in different ways, which makes the two complement one another while also contrasting in how much of a hot head Momo can be.

For a series that gets as bonkers as DDD, Momo's grade A shit talking "too stubborn to admit her feelings" gruff Gyaru personality helps ground the series with a rather realistic portrayal of a girl her age-- albeit one with psychic abilities and goes through some extreme struggles much later in the series.

In fact one of the more overlooked aspects whenever I read about Dandadan is how surprisingly dark the chapters start to get in the 80s onward. Because despite the major kick off involving Okarun having his balls stolen, the series is capable of being very sardonic.

For all the absurd fun like giant enemy crabs or the Flatwoods monster as a Sumowrestler, and even a daikaiju way later, you also have things like human sacrifices and tragic ghost stories which are treated with a heavy tone that is never undermined by that off-kilter comedy. You even see tones of that with Turbo Granny of all things, involving the trapped spirits of butchered girls.

Don't misunderstand, however, the series is first and foremost a romcom with horror elements, but sometimes the horror shines through in surprising ways. That nuance is also seen in the rest of the cast, which I've yet to talk about much because one of the biggest challenges of this whole thing is figuring out how.

Talking about Dandadan beyond the very bare basics of the opening chapters is difficult without spoiling something, it's part why I was hesitant to review it back when I first started reading, despite how enamored I was. For one thing, focusing on any one aspect would be a gross oversimplification, doing a disservice to how each angle of the series is handled. Conversely, delving into Dandadan as whole would mean recapping the story arcs and events because Dandadan has some of the most tightly woven threads I have seen in some time. I can barely graze the surface of why character dynamics work or are unique before inevitably getting into a full blown synopsis and spoiling character arcs and entire narrative structures, which is… frustrating, to say the least.

For example, I can't really give you a good look at Aira Shiratori without getting deep into how she's a schoolmate of Momo and Okarun, gets into a rivalry with Momo because Aira thinks she's a demon while viewing herself as "The special one"; a delusion made stronger when she gains her own demonic powers which is basically Sedusa. But over time she forms a bizarre friendship with the two over their trial and tribulations, while also dealing with the massive weight of guilt over cruel rumors she spread about Momo. But that really doesn't even begin to tell you how much of an absolute fucking perfect little bitch she is, and yet what an enjoyable dork she becomes. To do so would be to just tell you everything that happens in her story, which, while not complicated, is tied heavily into the narrative.

It's a similar scenario with Jin "JiJi" Enjoji, Momo's first crush, which you can imagine the upset that causes; one that's pretty goddamn funny because the dude, while handsome, athletically fit and arguably the strongest of the entire cast, has the personality of a goddamn muppet. So Okarun's getting all strung up on a guy even more goofy than him.

In a nice subversion, his relationship with Okarun develops into something surprisingly positive pretty quickly, if not without complications due to a fairly dark story with his character, which pushes Okarun even further in his training after Jin gets his own possession. And it also makes it all the more hilarious that the chipper muppet baby has a secondary Shadow the Hedgehog cracked to 11 persona that's a legit threat.

Then there's Kinta "Kinny" Sakata who is basically if Okarun was even more socially inept and a dipshit Gunpla addict who tried really hard to be a Jojo. His strengths is a vast knowledge of sci-fi tech and a chuuni like ability to imagine entire fantastical constructs; quite handy when mind reading alien nano machines enter the picture. It also helps break up the monotony of everyone else having or developing some sorta supernatural power.

And then we have Vamola, a character I literally cannot say a single thing about without giving away massive plot points. I can't even show a photo because her design itself contains spoilers. Just know that her story is when shit really hits the fan and will be a gut wrenching read while also having the most Battle Manga goodness.

What I can at least tell you is that for as much as Momo and Okarun are the main protagonists, Jin and Aira get damn good focus and are fully formed characters in their own right, they're not just a monkey-wrench thrown into the fray. I mean, they are also that, but they add to those elements while being more than a foil to our main heroes developing relationship, making the story much more varied and expansive than a supernatural will/won't they. Vamola especially in that area.

If there's one takeaway from this it's that Yukinobu Tatsu is capable of creating a great, varied cast full of humor and impeccable chemistry. (not to mention a lot of cheescake that shouldn't work as often as it does.) I'm constantly surprised with how masterful all the different pieces come together to create a compelling dynamic in this deranged Sci-Fi, Supernatural comedy mishmash. Hopefully I can convey a little bit of that Dada-esque appeal despite my spoiler aversion.

What's a lot easier for me to get across without spoilers, however, is the drop-dead gorgeous artwork. Good god is this series beautiful to look at.

Tatsu has a backround in, uh, backgrounds, and it shows on just about every page. Any one side panel has more detail than most double-page fight spreads in other books, and when they do a splash page it is breathtaking.

The fact this is a Weekly series is goddamn insane and… honestly kinda makes me a lowkey worried about their work ethic. But a lot of panels feature just the character on simple stark backgrounds (And some pages feel a little heavy on the reference material, if you get my meaning.) But even so, it's hardly a sacrifice for the impressive amount of work that goes into each chapter and how just about every other page has at least one impressive environment to gawk at.

Not only is the detail impeccable, but the layout, timing and expressions are goddamn phenomenal and a big part of making the series legitimately funny. That same talent translates seamlessly to high energy fights and impactful creepy moments.

This truly is one of the most compelling reasons to read the manga. At the time of this writing we're 5 episodes in the Science Saru anime and I want to make clear I'm enjoying it and do highly suggest watching it. I think their high octane stylistic approach is, in many ways, perfect for the series. There's clearly a lot of love put into translating page to screen best they can. Realistically, I know there's no way you could completely capture Tatsu's style 1:1, especially with what the industry is nowadays. The budget and man power it would take for that wouldn't be worth it.

But that sense of scope, scale, the depth, shading and a ton of small eccentricities is something unique to the manga and a big part of why it works. If you only know the anime then I think you're missing out. Plus you've got 8 volumes to read up on.

But also still watch the anime, I'd love a season 2. Hopefully with a bigger budget. Frankly, they're gonna need it.

That said, while I have praised and gassed up Dandadan, I should mention it has a number of trappings that by all means should not fly with me. As previously stated, there's a lot of cheesecake, and I like cheesecake, but it can bog down stories like this and they're a dime a dozen in the manga and anime world. At first glance DDD can look like that from the outside. There are so many instances of things that are annoying in other works, schlocky things (derogatory) that are sell themselves only on the limp-dicked exploitive elements like Fan service. Make no mistake, Dandadan is schlocky (complimentary) but it's also incredibly endearing not only outside those aspects, but in them. At least for the most part. I have to imagine it's aware of the more stupid indulgent elements but wisely plays them straight while at the same time employing a cleverness many other series fail to have.

For example, the characters are comically stripped very frequently, even (and usually) during otherwise semi-serious moments like battles (although not if the stakes are dire.)

But the cheescake is always balanced out by the other qualities. Hell, the cheesecake is often imbued a certain charm that is funny in itself or oddly sweet, which certainly becomes more true in the later chapters. Think more Cutie Honey and less Highschool of the Dead in terms of how it's handled.

A big hand in that is they're not afraid to get silly with all the characters, especially the girls, so it typically feels more tee-hee fun. They're almost if not equally goofy in their own ways and that does a lot in keeping it from being obnoxious. And ya know, they also have real developed personalities and relationships outside just having their clothes blasted off, which also happens to Okarun if that wasn't clear. Actually it's worse because he usually loses everything, and the same is also true for Jin.

It's so audacious in every aspect that I simply can't fault it. I mean, I also wouldn't fault anyone not gelling with it, but I just sorta expect it and roll with it for a series this absurd. I'm a critic, not a goddamn puritan. I know exactly what it is, and it's doing it far better than most. It is, at worst, background noise.

That's not to say the series handles all of its exploitative elements well. Rather infamously the first chapter has an almost not quite sexual assault for Momo. It's… not as bad as it sounds-- in part because it doesn't happen and also the situation is so absurd. Honestly I think there's been a bit much blown out of proportion with it. Still, the over the top nature of an Alien with a metal syringe dick getting his comeuppance by having it bitten off by a granny speed-demon can only mitigate the general grossness of the implication so much and I still wince at it. It's the only part of Dandadan that dips into a level a cheapness it otherwise sidesteps in most other endeavors. Thankfully, it happens early on, but it also isn't a great first impression, especially if you didn't have more chapters or episodes to view at the time, leaving you to wonder just what the hell kinda story this is.

It's worth noting some of the other early chapters have bumps here and there, but nothing quite on the level of chapter 1, and those parts are ironed out overtime to be a lot more palatable. Compare how chapter 3 handles T&A to chapter 26 and you'll know what I mean.

Aside from that, however, there is at least one semi major stigma I have against Dadadan's otherwise enjoyable self indulgent nature, which is that a lot of the monster designs are painfully derivative. And I mean DERIVATIVE. Just about every alien creature in this series is an Ultra Kaiju.

Oh Shin Godzilla in the case of Nessie.

And, look, I get homaging stuff you like. Dr. Slump has loads of references, Patlabor has references to Ultraseven, depending on which version of Urusei Yatsura you're looking at it's loaded with them, Project A-KO has them, Eva is a love letter to Jissouji Ultra (along with flat out copying a few fights from various 70s mecha anime) and even something like Bocchi The Rock is at least a quarter references. References are not the problem. Well, maybe a little, but I'm not gonna get Orson Wells on you here.

Regardless, its hard not to think that maybe they could've dialed it back a little bit.

The Z'gok in Gundam is based on Alien Zarabe but it's doesn't look like a knock-off version of it. But the Dover Demon in Dandadan looks like "original the character" Kanegon that turns into Baltan. Because it is.

Like come on, man. Even the Space Pirates in Metroid aren't this blatant.

Why this sticks out to much is because the art is so damn impressive but the design aspect is lacking in certain areas. I'm willing to give leeway for some designs if they're based on folklore elements like Ghosts, Yokai, and crypids. You want to make them recognizable, but can still work in cute references or original ideas without being as glaring as "we have Ultra Seijin at home." For what it's worth, I guess Dada knockoffs with Pegassa eyes are better than generic greys. But while it's cute at first, I felt it got irksome by the time I saw Shin Godzilla… and then Hipporit as a subterranean shows up. Then a tail-less xenomorph. And Alien Guts, and a Metal Gear, and Elecking, even an Alien Zarabe.

A lot of those do end up as cannon fodder so I can understand not wanting to put a lot of work into stuff that ends up being one offs. I can't deny the art looks incredible and hype as fuck. But man, it gets distracting sometimes, especially when Gomora shows up at one point with the body of Red King and later on they end up making that a major deity in an alien culture. It's not played as a joke at all. It is one of the most dead serious chapters… But it's still just an Ultra Kaiju. Sometimes I'm reading Dandadan and I'm having a great time and I'm getting all the referential designs, and I don't *hate* this, but in the back of my head all I can think of is that line in Akibaranger.

And on some level I do get how that borderline level of infringement adds to the absurdity, how the near mono focus of a singular love for Tsuburaya is charming. Hell, it's even refreshing in some ways considering how that hasn't really been a thing in Japan since the 80s. But it does still get a bit much from the sheer volume.

I think on some level Tatsu knows this because in the more recent chapters the Serpo Aliens are primarily depicted in their disguised forms and the fake Gomora gets a slight redesign in later appearances that's a lot more generic. I sort of get the impression things that were maybe meant to be one off gags ended up becoming reoccurring elements, but given the tone and humor of the series that's really hard to tell, for better or worse.

Although kudos to Science Saru saying fuck it and making the opening to the anime one big Ultraman reference. They know what they're doing.

All that said... I don't really know where to lead off from here. Dandadan is still ongoing, currently at about 170 chapters in Japan, while the anime is still currently airing the first season. So I can't really give a full review of either. Likewise, for all I know the series could go completely off the rails at some point-- in a bad way, I mean.

As it stands I'm still finding enjoyment out of this series and now seems good a time as any to suggest everyone check it out. There's multiple manga out, it's easily available digitally, there's the anime across multiple platforms in NA, we've got figuarts coming out. It's good to see.

I was long over due for look since first reading those Glitter screen-grabs some years back.

Funny enough, this late August I visited my Girlfriend in Illinois and got to see 8 volumes of Dandadan on the shelf in a comic shop, that was a nice surreal experience for something that wasn't even available digitally in NA when I first started reading it.

What I didn't realize at the time was when I took a photo of them on the shelf, it was September 5, three years to the day I got the first few chapters. So yeah, it was time for this to happen.

Given the on going status of DDD, I'll certainly be revisiting the series for a future look at and proper review. Until then, I encourage you to read the manga and see if you see what I see. It might not be some super deep narrative, but it is most certainly unique and well worth your time.

As always, thanks for reading.

#review #dandadan #manga #cryptid

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official212th · 4 months ago

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ok so i just finished this book the eighth arrow and god knows nobody reads any of my posts so im just gonna put some thoughts here.

first of all: this book is so so so good yet such a fucking trip to read because it is written by a priest. and 90% of the time its a great take on greek legends and mythos and also has some truly ridiculous homoerotic subtext. but then every couple chapters you get a remind that wow. this was written by a priest. spoiler warning but odysseus legit converts to christianity at the end which is actually hilarious. and ok, the priest who wrote it works at a catholic school that is actually in the same city as i am and i will say i appreciated how he very clearly planned to use this book in either theology or english classes, because it was absolutely 100% a metaphor for redemption in catholicism and the idea of mercy and forgiveness. guys i know what im talking about i also go to catholic school. but the way he frames it as a story that's ostensibly not about christianity, but he sneaks in a few metaphors and buzzwords (the disclaimer at the beginning, in which odysseus says he actually made the whole story up, talks about how he was "judged worthy" and "redeemed" and talks about God's grace and providence. which is pretty standard fare for your average high school theology class.) specific to christianity and even catholicism (some of the beliefs regarding redemption in here are pretty unique to catholicism and i don't think some protestants would like this book very much)

second of all did i mention the homoerotic subtext? because wow. honestly it wasn't even subtext it was just text. the whole book is about odysseus and diomedes and their journey through dante's inferno. but it starts off talking about how the two of them are "imprisoned in a single flame" for 3,000 years (ok buddy not sounding too straight to me) and they kind of have a friends to enemies to friends thing happen but like the whole reason they become enemies is odysseus doesn't realize or acknowledge diomedes' love for him??? (GAY)

im going to back myself up with sources. proteus (weird old guy that's there like half the time) says to odysseus "that man really loves you. He loves you more than he loves his own father. More than he's ever loved anyone, I suspect. And that is a sacred thing, a love like that" and does the priest writing it maybe mean it in the way that God loves us? maybe but thats not how i'm interpreting it! anyways i really liked how (spoiler warning again although if you're avoiding spoilers for this book idk how you got this far) odysseus and diomedes are bffs but also fight. like really bad. like almost-killed-each-other bad. and then they have a really nice moment in which diomedes almost dies and odysseus is like "wait i love u youre my family pls dont die" and then they team up and save the day. its so sick. i love gay people.

#the eighth arrow #odysseus #diomedes #greek mythology #i dont actually think this is mythology i think this is just lore lol whatevs

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my-great-big-book-of-fan-fiction · 7 months ago

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The Taming of Man: chapter Thirteen - Dragon Shifting!Katsuki Bakugou x F!reader

Hello Readers, miss me? Did ya? Well, I've got a chapter here just for you, yes you, and yes it took me over two weeks, let's not ask questions about it! Love you, please let me know your thoughts!

Words: 3,648

This is incredibly based on the song The Willow Maid by Erutan, I highly recommend giving it a listen for the best experience.

Warnings: Cursing, reader is She/Her and will be AFAB in later chapters, Katsuki is sexy, plot is plotting but it's subtle

Once upon a time there was a dragon, and he was very brave and strong. He fell in love with a beautiful maiden, and she was very honorable and fair. Together their love was great. it carried them to the underbelly of the big dragon in the sky, Where they ran their hands across the scales painted with clouds, And then, when they flew far enough, across the speckled scales of it's brother. They traveled around the world over and over, Scattering their children across the lands. children who were brave and strong, Honorable and fair. When they landed, some of their children traveled far and wide to greet them. Others stayed where they were, and made new families of their own. No matter where one is, They are a child of the dragon. They are your family, in one way or another, And should be treated as such. You must respect them, until they disrespect you. Honor their lives, as you honor your own.

Excerpt from The Taming of the Dragon King, Translated from Dråcc-lín

Wow, was Dragonborne folklore intricate! This was the thousandth story you've read today, and you still don't fully understand what the whole picture is. Earlier that morning, you had decided to do some research on Dragonborne culture and Forrmidūl history, but you had no idea what you were getting yourself into.

Even so, it was all so interesting. You found yourself falling down a rabbit hole of information, and so far you've come to learn a few general ideas ancient peoples in the area had.

Firstly, the sky was thought to be two dragons, biting each other's tails. The sun was the first dragon's eye, and the moon was the second dragon's. Next, the ancient Dragonborne people believed that they were the first society, and every other society and person came from them. Other societies seem to believe this too, based on letters you've read.

Royalty are direct descendants from the "Dragon King," and you honestly can't tell if the Dragon King is humanoid or truly a dragon. It seems the storytellers can't make their minds up, either.

It also seems people used to do dances to appease the mighty dragons, although now people do it to bond with their community and dragon companions.

You smile happily, closing the leather-bound book and standing from the crimson stained table you seated yourself at. As you walked to the bookshelf you retrieved it from, sliding the archival journal of translated folktales into it's slot, you thought about how proud of yourself you were. You had gone into this library fairly clueless about the mythos of Forrmidūl, and now you were going to walk out smarter. Sure, Katsuki taught you about stuff like political standing and the true history, but he never talked about the fun stuff, like this.

You felt a sort of independence, seeking this information out for yourself...which, admittedly, made you feel a little fake. Honestly, you didn't come here for your own knowledge, you came here because you wanted Katsuki to be impressed. You wanted his praise, and maybe you knew you weren't going to get it, but you didn't want to seem so completely helpless.

You woke up not back to back with Katsuki, like the night before, but in his gasp. The two of you had shifted over night, and the idea that he reached for you subconsciously made you feel so happy. As you were laying there, you had thought about how Forrmidūl was your new home now, and you'd have to learn the ways of the Dragonborne. About how Katsuki would have to put so much more work in to help you and teach you.

Long story short, you went into a bit of an anxious spiral, and right then you decided to find a library. When you went to get up, the sleeping Katsuki's grip seemed to tighten, but he relaxed a few moments after, and you got up with ease.

It didn't take you long to find someone to give you directions, the ever helpful Kirishima being gracious enough to lead you to the vast library at 4 in the morning (When does he sleep?), and even assist you in picking out some books.

It was a bit of a chore for you at first, settling in with stacks of books before you, and even though you enjoyed yourself and read more because you wanted to, it still felt disingenuous.

You sighed, shaking the doubt away and moving to sit back down at your table, a few more novels waiting for you, when something on the shelf caught your eye.

A light green and aged book, with floral decals on the spine painted in gold. You stared at it for a moment, your hand mindlessly reaching out to grab it. You stopped for a moment, pulling back a little.

Were you...nervous? You had no reason to be, it was just a book.

You gulped and sighed, chiding yourself for being so tense, before grabbing it and pulling it off the shelf. On the front there were no words, just more of those floral decals framing nothing but sage green.

you sat back down, the book placed in front of you, your fingerprints pressed into the light coating of dust. Slowly, you opened it up, the yellow pages slipping through your fingers as you flip to the first page. There, you finally found the title.

The Faerie Lands: A Collection of Stories and Tales

You sigh, rolling your eyes and shaking your head. Was this what you were so nervous about? Some book of tall tales about your kind? The scariest thing about this book was the likely racial undertones.

Still, it could be fun to read a bit about what old Dragonborne writers thought of Faeries and Gildflå, maybe see if Katsuki had some misinformation from books like these later.

You flipped to the first story, a tale about a girl dancing with faeries, going through a portal, eating faerie food, and getting trapped in the faerie world. The myth was accompanied by drawings, images of the mischievous fairies with cherub faces and butterfly wings and tiny bodies.

Some things it got right, like how all you needed for a portal was a ring of mushrooms and a little bit of harmony magic, and other things were completely wrong, like the idea that faeries had wings, especially wings like that.

You could summon the illusion of wings, sure, but even then it was easy to see they were fake, simply shimmer in the shape of wings.

You thumbed the corner of the page, an amused sniff leaving you as you turned to the next story. Once there was a young ma-

"How long've you been in here?"

You yelped at the sound of Katsuki's voice, turning to face him. He was standing behind you, wearing a bright red dress shirt and black slacks, accompanied by gold jewelry and that same animal tooth necklace. You've seen him wear this before, you liked it on him. It had an air of wealth to it, like a reminder that he was really the prince of a global powerhouse.

"Not long...I think. What time is it?" You sit up a little, closing the book before you. it was a little embarrassing to you, reading about your own people, especially when you were supposed to be reading about his people.

"6:30. Why're you in here, anyway?"

"To read." You give him a cheeky grin, and he rolls his eyes.

"No shit." He leans over you, one hand caging you in as it rests on the table's edge, the other grabbing a book from the stack you have. His face was right next to yours, his breath sending shivers up your spine as it fans across your ear.

He stays in this position to read the cover, letting out a scoff in laughter. "The complete history of Dragonborne culture - volume one?"

"It's not really all that complete..."

He turns to look at you, about to make some snide remark, when he notices how much you're blushing at the proximity. Do you blush like that often? If you did he would have noticed...right? It was cute. Really cute. He wanted you to do that more, all the time.

"Uh...w-why are you readin' about this boring crap? Don't I teach you enough?" he didn't sound mad, more confused than anything.

"No," you answered tauntingly, taking the book back and placing it atop the other one. "Is it so surprising I want to actually learn?"

"Whatever...do you really have to leave 'em all out, though?" He gestured to the two piles, one of read books, the other of unread.

"I've only finished a few," you grumble, reaching to grab at the ones you've read to put them away. He beat you to it, grabbing them all up in his hands. he shifted the stack to be in one hand, patting your head with the other. You blush again at the surprisingly sweet gesture, and he smiles, rolling his eyes as he goes to put the books away, leaving you to your reading for the moment as he scavenges for the correct shelves.

God, you were too pretty to be real.

He thought the same exact thing this morning, as he watched you breath. he couldn't help it, he barely got any sleep the night before. Sure, a few hours from how long of a day he had, but he was awake again by 3 and couldn't fall back asleep.

He had shifted to lay on his back, to stare at the ceiling as he tried to ease himself asleep again, when he felt your foot jab into his leg. He turned to glare at you, your back still to him, your gentle snoring leading him to believe it was an accident. You had mumbled incoherently, turning on your back and stretching your arms out.

A kick to the leg, he can handle. A smack in the face? Now you've reached the limits of his patience.

Unsure of what to do to remedy this, he just pushed your limbs back to your center. That did nothing of substance, as shown by how the process repeats itself moments later. finally, he grumbled a few swears and brought his arms around you, holding your arms to yourself by force.

He grinned in his victory, as if he beat you at your own game. When he looked down at your face, though...

that gorgeous sleeping face, lips parted as your breathed, lashes fluttering a little as his breath was able to fan across your face from how close the two of you were.

His grin faded, replaced by a look of awe as he began to mindlessly pet your hair. This is what he wanted for the rest of his life, for you to be in his arms and safe and comfortable. He did nothing but stare for the next hour, watching you with so much enamor you would think you were a goddess he worshipped.

When you stirred, twisting in his grasp so that you were spooning, he held his breath. Normally, he wouldn't be so nervous about something like this, but for some reason he felt a little embarrassment for admiring you so much.

He could hear your heartbeat speed up as you awoke, and he could see the way your eyes slowly opened to the dim room. For a few minutes you laid still, until with a determined huff you moved to get up. Out of instinct, he held you there, unwilling to lose your warmth, but then he realized that'd give away his consciousness, and so he released you.

He did nothing but listen to you walk out, gently shutting the door behind you, hearing as you found Kiri in the halls and asked for directions to the library.

He let out a sigh, staring at the ceiling and moving to lay atop where your body was, absorbing the heat. Today was the first official day you were here with him, as his girlfriend. His potential mate. He couldn't lose you again, he couldn't risk you seeing anyone as better than him, so he had to keep up the courting processes. He stupidly assumed that once you started dating, he could stop, but clearly that doesn't work. Besides, springtime was coming fast, and he couldn't let someone else snatch you up.

He spent that whole morning getting ready, bathing, working out to get a good sweat going (his pheromones are released from sweat glands), carefully picking his shiniest jewelry, wearing his good clothes. Sure, you didn't know when he tried all that stuff at the beginning, but you were with him now, so that meant it had to have worked on some level...especially since it made you blush like that.

When he returned to you, you had your nose back in one of those books, and your little focused face made his heart pound. Everything you did seemed to do that, more than usual, and he couldn't tell if it was because he just got you back, or because spring was well on it's way...probably both.

He took a seat in front of you, and when you looked up at him he cocked his head to the side. "What made you wake up so damn early?"

"Like I said, I wanted to read," you sighed, smiling.

"...but, why?"

You rolled your eyes, closing the book. "You ask too many questions." You stretch a little, before your stomach growls with impatience.

"When was the last time you ate," Katsuki asked, his tone accusatory, as he began to stack your books up, preparing to put those away too.

You grabbed up a few of the books yourself, it was probably time to call it a day.

"Uh, I think...well, last night, definitely," you answer, taking the books to the shelf adjacent. Katsuki grumbled and went to another shelf, setting all of the books he grabbed in their proper place. "No shit...we're getting breakfast," he ordered, causing you to nod in agreement despite the urge to argue.

You stretched upward, a book in your hand as you tried to slot it in on the top shelf. You were so close, just a little farther...

Katsuki came up behind you, taking the book and sliding it in with ease.

"Hey, I almost had it," you whine, turning around to frown at him for ruining your near victory...

and there he was.

Above you.

His arm still stretched up, his other hand, leaning on the shelf next to your waist as he looked up to the book he was placing. He was so close, his toned chest right in front of your face...it made you want to touch him, as if to see if all of that was real...

"No you didn't," he scoffed, his stretched arm relaxing to a lean against the bookshelf. He looked down at you, immediately taking in your red cheeks, your kissable lips parted, your eyes a little wide. He grinned, proud of himself for meriting such a reaction. "What," he asked tauntingly, his inflating ego leading him to bring his hand down to hold your chin.

"Nothing..." You murmured, blinking a couple times before shaking your head. what's gotten into you? Well, him soon, hopefully...you had to show he couldn't just make you swoon like that.

"Nothing? Doesn't look like nothing," he teased, gingerly bringing his hand to your waist.

You glance to his lips, curved into a cocky smirk, then back into his vermillion eyes. "If you want to kiss me just say that," you say pointedly, bringing your hands to those strong arms.

He stiffened a little, the wheels turning, before leaning in and kissing you. It was different than your other kisses, this time it was fueled by a carnal desire that was bubbling inside him, the action passionate and leaving you without room to breath.

His lips crashing into yours, teeth bumping against your mouth as a result of his hurried actions. He wasn't a bad kisser, he was admittedly good at most everything, but like a lot of what he did for the first time, his necking lacked refinement, simply a product of his spontaneity and raw amour.

To say it left you weak would be an understatement, and when he pulled away you were gripping him slightly tighter to steady yourself.

After taking a moment to appreciate your quivering, he stood straight, hesitantly letting you go. "Don't tell me what to do," he said curtly, playfully pinching your cheek. It took you way longer than it should to realize he was responding to your earlier statement.

He began to walk off, expecting you to follow, and like the lovesick fool you are, you did.

"You're too cocky for your own good," You accuse, taking his arm as you walked to god knows where.

"I'm not cocky, any idiot can do half the shit I do," he scoffed, stuffing his hands in his pockets, enjoying the delicate feeling of your hand on his forearm.

"You sayin' I'm easy," you ask tauntingly, giving him a sly smile.

"No," he yells anxiously, almost angrily, as if you just accused him of high treason. He looks over at your face, seeing how satisfied you were with his fear of insulting you, and narrows his eyes. "No, dumbass," he says again softly, like he was trying to show off how calm and cool he was being.

"I believe you," you reassure, patting his arm with a laugh.

"Shut up...when was the last time you bathed, anyway," he asks, trying to redirect the conversation. He had a point though, you definitely weren't your cleanest, having just changed your clothes and went to bed the night before, even after all the running you did in the forest.

"W- How was I supposed to, you never showed me any bath," you said quickly, blushing with embarrassment.

he rolled his eyes, pushing open a heavy-looking door. It lead to the kitchen, a big room with light filtering in through large holes in the ceiling, one over every heat surface, for ventilation. No one was there, surprisingly, and it made you a little uneasy. Not only were there always chefs in the kitchen back home, but if they ever weren't you wouldn't be allowed to go in there.

"Are we supposed to be in here," you ask, although Katsuki seemed a little preoccupied as he knelt down and pushed a large metal slab off of the floor. It wasn't particularly thick, but it was about the length and width of a normal door...probably because it was one. Beneath it was a set of stone stairs, leading down to what you could assume was the cellar.

"It's the kitchen," he huffed, annoyed at your question. "Now stay here, I'll be back," he ordered.

"wait, you're just gonna leave me here," you ask nervously. What if someone saw you? Would they even know who you were? Why you were there? Hell, you don't even know why you're there.

"You're such a fuckin' princess," he scoffs, standing up and facing you. He didn't know why you were complaining, so he assumed it was because you were having to stand there with nothing to do. He lifts you by the waist, sitting you on the counter with so much ease it was almost worrying. "Stay," he ordered.

"Uh- Wh- B-" You were at a loss for words, he was so arrogant to order you around like that! Because you had no words, though, you couldn't protest, and so he left you there.

5 minutes later, he returned, his nose and cheeks little red, chilled air following him. He had in his hands a steel container of thinly sliced and well seasoned meat, accompanied by some cheese. Without acknowledging you, he went into a cabinet, taking out some bread, grabbing a knife, and cutting off 4 slices.

"What're you doing," you finally ask, cocking your head. "What's it look like," he asks, setting the meat and cheese on the bread. He hands you the sandwich, before moving on to assemble his own.

"They let you do that," you ask, taking a bite. the meat was definitely goat, like the kind you had at the market, although it was seasoned much more modestly. The cheese, you had no idea, you were tempted to ask about it, before Katsuki answered you.

"Make a sandwich? I'm a grown man, I can make a fuckin' sandwich," he says, amused that you thought otherwise.

"Well yeah, but I mean...like, use the Kitchen's stuff," you say, taking another bite. It really was good.

He stops making his food, looking at you in disbelief. "What the hell else am I supposed to use? What, do they make your every meal back in faerie land," He asks, raising his brows as he gives you a mocking smirk.

You press your lips together in embarrassment, looking down at your sandwich.

"Really? You're kidding," he says, tilting his head, and nudging you to make you look at him.

"It's not my fault," you laugh, doing anything to avoid his gaze.

"You really are a spoiled princess," he scoffs, shaking his head and taking a bite of his now done sandwich, leaning back on the counter, right next to you.

"Hurry up and finish, I'll show you the bath when we're done...I'm guessing you'll need someone to wash you, too, since you apparently don't know how to do anything else," he teases, taking a bite so big he's practically eaten half his sandwich.

Oh, this asshole.

"Maybe I will, I should get one of the servants to-"

"Shut up, you're not funny," he cuts off, no longer liking this game.

"I'm hilarious."

"Hilariously stupid."

"I'm the best."

"...whatever."

You are the best, huh?

My writer block's rent was due, I could not sit down and write this. I love writing, I love this chapter, but the focus wasn't there...let me know you're thoughts, I love comments and respond to all of them!

@sky-angel101 @the-galaxy-fiend @chixkadee @ssplague @sappho-the-kitten-tamer @andysdrafts @daria-rona @tanjirofan63 @aizawaslut09 @tsukiiomii @me1297 @xxiamabookdragonxx

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