#Hawks would kill for her oop

[videcoeur]

“ let’s go for a walk. staying here is the worst thing we can do, right? “ to our local birbman

The sour taste won't leave his mouth. Hawks can click his tongue to the roof of his mouth as much as he wants; it doesn't change anything. This awful flavor of disappointment was there to stay.

Looking at the villain's body on the ground, he heard the voice in the back of his mind- too fast, too strong, not careful enough. The way the man's body is bent is clear, even to the passerby that's standing at the furthest observation point. The one on the ground will not be able to walk, most likely ever again.

Hawks made another careless mistake, one of many that will likely be covered up. He did his job without killing, but without maiming is another story. Some would say that he did it diligently, and the villain got what he deserved, a broken spine, but Hawks isn't satisfied.

All of these years of training, and he couldn't avoid permanent injury? Bullshit. It was entirely his fault. Even with the blunt of a feather, he could have angled it differently. Okay, the man moved last second, and it threw him off, but it was HIS job to calculate those probabilities.

What kind of hero disabled people permanently? Lame, untrustworthy heroes, that's who.

And then, a small, delicate hand grabbed a hold of his arm, and Hawks's gaze had to tear away his eyes from the unconscious, mangled body on the floor. When his eyes settled upon her, his heartbeat picked up a faster pace, and a soft smile graced his lips, if only for a second before his dark thoughts returned.

She was warm, kind, and that man tried to mug her. It wasn't even the worst of crimes. There were plenty of muggers around. Those were generally dealt with by the police. But Hawks had seen him grab her wrist from his aerial standpoint, and he panicked. All he could think about was, What if he hurt her? What if he stabbed her just to get her purse? What if she died because he wasn't fast enough to save her?

And then, before he could think about anything else, the blunt edge of a feather was slamming way too strongly against the non-powered-up civilian, leaving him with what might turn out to be a lifelong disability.

Some would say Hawks needed a crash course in anger management- but it wasn't anger that moved him. It was something far more twisted, something that would make a hero like him seem utterly pathetic and vulnerable if it was revealed.

FEAR.

"You're right. I'm sorry. Do you want me to bring you back home? You must be tired after all this."

He was the tired one, and he knew he had work to do. On himself.

[dolche-tejada]

You know, I think this ending would have been slightly less of a fucking disappointment if the heroes hadn't been so unfairly favored by Horikoshi compared to the villains. I mean, seriously

Deku destroys every bone in his body multiple times throughout the story and is warned that if he continues, he'll permanently lose the use of his limbs ? Everything's fine, his body's just got used to being reduced to a bloody pulp somehow so there's no consequences for him. In fact even when he literally loses his arms to Shigaraki, he gets them back two minutes later thanks to Eri because guess what ? Her horn still works even when cut off from her body. How convenient.

Gran Torino gets his ribcage obliterated by Shigaraki ? Don't worry guys, he'll survive that despite his old age and injuries, and this to have no particular role in the plot afterwards.

Bakugo dies heroically trying to buy time before Deku arrives ? Lmao, did you really believe it ?? No of course not, Edgeshot just uses his last-minute Deus Ex Machina to save his life at the cost of his own and- Oops nope he's fine too, my bad !

Hawks murders a criminal fleeing for his life in cold-blood ? The best Hori has to offer is him completely free and in charge of the HSPC.

And no, losing his quirk isn't a real consequence for him because not only it literally played a major part in saving the world with Vestige!Hawks raising an insurrection among AFO's quirks, but also because his quirk has always been the element through which people exploited him.

Endeavor abused his family for years and completely destroyed his eldest son ? No jail time and no media backlash for that, the only blame he received was due to the heroes' failure to stop the League during the Raid Arc.

And don't even get me started on this bs about facing hell or whatever for what he's done : He's literally free and wealthy ; he have Rei, Fuyumi, Shoto, his sidekicks and Hawks on his side ; and all the difficulties he's apparently going to suffer are off-screened.

Deku had to sacrifice OFA and his future hero career to save the world ? Guess what, Bakugo invested all his time and money to make him an Iron-Man suit and now he can still be a hero with everyone else.

There are plenty more examples of this but I think you get the idea. Now let's take a look at the villains' ending :

Toya is now a piece of charcoal kept artificially alive for the few years he has left, unable to move a finger, and whose few minutes a day during which he can stay awake will be spent talking to his father who abused him as a child.

Toga, a literal teenager, killed herself to save Ochako and because she knew it's still better than rotting at Tartarus her whole life.

And not only did she die but she did by bleding to death. Let me repeat for those who have trouble grasping what I've just said : In a manga where the heroes can survive having their heart blown to bits, being impaled Kakyoin-style or smashed against buildings like a fly on a windshield, one of the main antagonists died of a fucking hemorrhage…

As for Shigaraki, after learning that his very birth and all the tragedies of his life have been orchestrated by AFO, after all this development and narrative promises about him being saved in the end... Deku just kills him.

Because despite all his speeches about saving him, it seems like the best he could do was beating him both physically and mentally until he crumbles to dust…

Compress on his side is apparently locked up for life and kept alive by machines too.

A begging Kurogiri tried in a desperate attempt to save Shigaraki, only to be unceremoniously blown up by Bakugo and dying off-screen without anyone giving a shit, including Aizawa and Mic.

And Spinner will now spend the rest of his life struggling with the extra quirks inside him that affect his body and mind, while having to cope with the thought that his boyfriend best friend and companions have either died alone or are locked away for life in horrifying circumstances.

Clearly not the same as with the heroes...

Now don't get me wrong, even if they suffered just as much from the consequences of their actions or the plot as the League, this ending would still be a disaster in terms of writing but AT LEAST it wouldn't reek that much of hypocrisy.

[asterbats]

Ahhhh designs based off of this post. TLDR your typical HawkLeaf Three AU.

Design Notes under the cut

-Leafpool is a beanpole to me, tall and lithe. You poke her and she crumbles to dust. I also saw a design of her with three white paws on here that was captioned “Squirrelflight took one of her socks” and that’s adorable so I’m stealing it. Sad Girl i love her

-Hawkfrost was supposed to look like a cold brown but he just looks gray. Oops. Ah well. Tried to give him like mid twenties bad boy energy idk if it’s coming through. Love his stupid goatee. Here I imagine he has more depth and maybe was actually friends with Leafpaw before the daddy issues kicked in, idk.

-Lionblaze is huge and got his dad’s bulk, white marks, and stripes... and hair I guess. He’s kinda just the same because I always imagined he got everything from Leafpool in canon, just threw more Hawk in there.

-Hollyleaf probably shouldn’t be a black cat, idk cat genetics and tbh I don’t really care about that lol. But also.... I love black cats so I wanna keep her the same. My excuse is that she looks like great grandma Leopardfoot. Also she probably throws them all for a loop while trying to find their bio parents.

-Jayfeather obviously changed the most lol. I always thought Sasha was a siamese cat, but apparently she isn’t. I don’t care about canon though, so in this she is and Jay takes after her. Added the feathers as an homage, but I don’t think his prefix would be Jay- at all. Maybe another bird? Tempted to give him -frost as a suffix as well but uh, after seeing him try to kill her dad, I don’t think Leafpool would wanna name her son after Hawkfrost at all.

[nerdierholler]

4, 7 and 9 for the DA:V asks please :)

(I’m currently on my first DA:I playthrough, very excited about DA:V!!)

I hope you're enjoying your DAI run! Tell me about your Quizzie!

4. What does your worldstate look like going into DAV?

It seems like DAO and DA2 choices aren't going to be huge but I'll mention them.

DAO: Warden Ithlen Mahariel. Romances Alistair, sides with the mages in the tower, negotiates a truce with the werewolves, put Alistair on the thrown BUT then doesn't do the dark ritual so Alistair dies killing the archdemon and Anora now is Queen. Sadly this means no Morrigan in DAI :(

DA2: Female Hawke, she doesn't have a name. Rogue. Romances Fenris. Takes Bethany to the Deep Roads but not Anders so Bethany is dead. Oops. Eventually sides with the mages after trying to remain neutral most of the game. Isabella is still around, Varric is her bestie, she doesn't help Merrill with the eluvian, kills Anders because she feels like it's the best way to give him peace and be free of Justice.

DAI is hard because I have three Inquisitors that I'm really attached to. If I'm going purely canon compliant then I'll go with Enarin Lavellan. Rogue. Romances Iron Bull. I thought the Keep autofilled for DAI but apparently not so here is what I can remember. Friends with everyone, sided with Templars, Celene is on the throne, Wardens rebuild, Stroud is in the fade, Cassandra is Divine (?), dismantled the Inquisition.

7. Which character from the previous games or other media are you most hoping will make an appearance in DAV?

Like wow, so many! I would really like to see Dorian again especially with my Inquisitor that romanced him. Also would be happy to see Zevran again. I feel like a number of characters people want to meet again are dead or not available in my primary world state...

9. Which romance, if any, do you plan to pursue first?

Like I mentioned, I'm Emmrich curious. However, I started reading Tevinter Nights and now I'm interested in Lucanis too. Then again I really liked Harding in DAI. It's going to be a hard choice. Too many good options I suspect.

[lasandra]

31 Days of Dragon Age: Oct 01 - Introduce your Hero of Ferelden

(Technically a day late, oops!) Using these prompts. (I probably went overboard though, tbh.) Dragon Age: Origins was the game I got introduced to Dragon Age with back in 2010 when I was but 12 years old and so the HoF forever holds a special place in my heart. HoF is, in my opinion, the best example of being allowed to be who you want to be in the Dragon Age series with the most freedom of personality. HoF truly feels like YOUR character and I love that. Here are my favorite Heroes (because I CANNOT just tell you about 1) of Ferelden in no particular order: 1. Lyna Mahariel (Yes, I kept the default name, I liked it for her.)

Lyna is easily my most tragic character (and it was a total accident). Lyna has this habit of everyone she loves dying and leaving her alone. First it was her parents, then it was Tamlen (which really hit her hard as they were very much in love). She didn't even get time to properly mourn him before getting dragged (kicking and screaming) to Ostagar to join the Grey Wardens when she truly would have preferred to remain with her clan and die. She slowly began to recover and though she still mourned, she DID find herself slowly falling for Alistair... WHO she helped make king and then he ended their relationship. Obviously she was upset (as was I because this was the first time, I'd played a non-Cousland lol and I didn't know you could let him just stay with the wardens at the time). She was FURIOUS when Morrigan told her she needed to convince Alistair to sleep with her. Fastest nope ever, let me tell you. She went into the Battle of Denerim with every intention of striking the killing blow against the Archdemon but guess what? This was also my first time NOT doing the dark ritual and I took Alistair with me. He freaking stops her, tells her he loves her and goes and dies all heroically. (This was the first time this happened to me, and I definitely cried). Then comes Awakening and while everyone else makes it out, Anders and Justice appear to be dead. She mourns those sneaky little twits. Boy when she found out what happened... She was PISSED, let me tell you. And of course, later she finds out that her entire clan has been killed by Hawke and Co. Home girl cannot catch a break. She isolates herself now, never allowing herself to get too close to others, awaiting the day she can finally see her loved ones again. 2. Aurora Amell:

Aurora is probably closest to a canon warden that I have as I usually use her worldstate when I load into Dragon Age 2 and Inquisition because I just love the story implications. She was every bit a circle mage and never understood why anyone would ever want to leave (I think being trained by Irving made her that way), but still helped her friend Jowan when that was his wish. When it turned out he WAS in fact a blood mage she was horrified and never trusted him again. And yes. She liked Cullen. And apparently she just had a thing for Templars because she ended up with Alistair (she also had the sense to keep him in the wardens). Wynne was her most trusted confidante, with Leliana as a close second. She got along with everyone fairly well though. For her, the Dark Ritual was a painful and difficult choice, she didn't want to die, she didn't want Alistair to die, and Morrigan offered both of them a way out. She convinced Alistair and you know the rest. During Awakening, Anders didn't just up and disappear on her. She gave him permission. She had always only conscripted him to save his life and with the blight defeated, she didn't see a reason to force him to stay. She did NOT know about the Justice thing however, she'd have thumped him over the back of the head with her stave if she'd known about that. Also, she kept Sir Pounce-A-Lot when he left. Aurora eventually met Carver when he became a Grey Warden and through him she eventually met her favorite cousin, Amelia Hawke. Though Aurora is younger, she is very protective of her cousin, so much so that when she found out Anders had betrayed Amelia's trust and blown up the Chantry, Aurora may or may not have chased him around the room with fireballs until Alistair and Amelia physically restrained her... Aurora and Alistair have a daughter (because headcanons!) named Lydia who is actually going to be one of my Rooks (who I will tell you more about when it is time to introduce my Rooks in the prompts) 3. Elsa Cousland (No she was not named or designed after the Disney Character, I made her before Frozen was even a thing.)

Elsa is my "evil" character (or as close as I come to running evil characters). She is not cruel by any means, but she is rather power hungry and is very manipulative, buying affection, lying to make herself seem better than she is. She had always been an opportunist, looking to advance her and her family's station whenever possible. When Arl Howe killed nearly everyone in her family, she swore she'd have revenge, though that didn't mean she didn't deeply resent Duncan for coercing her into the Grey Wardens (that's how she felt about it). For the first time in her life, she felt resigned to her fate and she hated it, though she of course put on the facade of the selfless heroine. Morrigan was the only one she shared her true nature with, and they quickly became the best of friends. Alistair was strange to her, in more ways than one. Though she found him to be a bit of an idiot, she also recognized him as being genuinely kind, a trait she was not used to in those she knew. As much as she wanted to deny it, she did find herself falling in love with him, even before she found out he was Maric's son. When Arl Eamon suggested Alistair take the throne, she saw an opportunity to get what she had always wanted--the throne. So naturally during the Landsmeet she named Alistair king with her as his queen. She agreed to help Morrigan convince Alistair to do the dark ritual, as it seemed quite practical for her plans to become Queen. During Awakening she almost killed Nathaniel but thought it would be better revenge to have him become a Grey Warden instead. As for what she's been doing since, mostly she's been looking for a way for her and Alistair to have heirs. 4. Rita Brosca (Not to be confused with her sister Rica)

(And no, the background isn't bleeding through her face, I was trying a shading thing out on her and I didn't think to use a different color.)

Rita is the most reckless of my wardens never quite thinking before she acts, luckily she's pretty good at getting away with it (mostly). She thought Duncan was just the coolest dude ever even before he saved her life. When he died, she was almost as upset as Alistair, he was the first person to ever treat her like she was anything more than dirt. She and Morrigan bonded over their terrible mothers. Unlike my other previous Wardens, Rita didn't end up with Alistair. She found him to be more like a brother figure. Instead, she ended up with Zevran. Coming up from similar backgrounds, she could really relate to him and felt like she could be herself around him without judgement--heck if anything, approval! Leske's betrayal wasn't particularly surprising. She was really only surprised she couldn't talk him out of it. Idiot duster. During Awakening, when she found out about Oghren becoming a father, she really worked on encouraging him to get his crap together. To be more than some drunk loser to his child, so that his kid wouldn't end up resenting him like Rita resented her mother. Also she totally stole Anders idea of running away from the wardens. She ran off with Zevran and has been keeping quiet since. They even ended up having a daughter (who, yes is going to be another Rook of mine) named Wynnie (who is affectionately named after Wynne). 5. Ciara Surana:

Ciara is the sweetest of all of my wardens, always helping others and sparing her enemies when possible because she just saw the best in people. The Fifth Blight really didn't deserve her. She was fascinated by spirits and demons, always wanting to learn more about them. Solas really would have had a field day with her. She'd have pestered him non-stop with questions. To mine and everyone else's surprise, she did NOT end up with Alistair, rather with Zevran. Not that Alistair hadn't tried, Ciara was just too oblivious to notice Alistair's flirtations while Zevran made himself very clear. I like to think she had a positive influence on him. When Morrigan told her about the Dark Ritual, she felt very uncomfortable. She did tell Alistair about it but accepted his "no" without argument. Having made Alistair the king, she was determined to keep him alive and so she did not take him with her to fight the Archdemon, therefore it was her who dealt the final blow, sacrificing her life to save Ferelden and the rest of Thedas. I like to think her soul was not destroyed. That instead she was given a second chance at life as (you guessed it) another one of my Rooks, a mourn watcher Rook, to be specific. 6. Elena Tabris:

Last but not least, is Elena. Though she was considered quite the troublemaker in the Alienage, she was actually genuinely looking forward to getting married (and then the stupid shems just had to show up and completely wreck her wedding. Rude). She was grateful to Duncan for saving her when the guards came but was lowkey terrified of the man after watching Daveth and Jory die at the joining. She literally only drank the blood because she watched him kill Jory, before that, she'd been thinking about slinking off and running away. She used to be terrified of spirits and demons (so you know, the circle of Magi was fun for her) but Wynne's circumstance gave her a new perspective. They still give her the heebie-jeebies but she tries to keep an open mind (which is the only reason she was able to recruit Justice in Awakening. Him animating a corpse was deeply unsettling). Though she'd had a brief flirtation with Zevran (it never went anywhere beyond flirtation) she ultimately ended up with Alistair. When it came time for taking Alistair to see his sister, she let him give her money but I headcanon that she totally sneaked back in and stole it back for being such as massive b-- At the Landsmeet, she did not make Alistair king since he had always said he didn't want to be king. She didn't want to force him into anything that he didn't want. Elena had the hardest time with Morrigan's offer of the Dark Ritual, given her past. She also really loved Alistair and didn't want to risk him dying if she could prevent it, which is why she ultimately convinced him to do it. Eventually they had a daughter named Carwyn, who, would you believe it, is going to be another of my Rooks. But not just any Rook. My first Rook. I am very much looking forward to playing her on the 31st! That's it! That's all of the HoFs I want to share! I have played Origins NUMEROUS times and thus have many more, but it already took me all day to make all these portraits and quite frankly, I don't have the patience to do anymore. Thank you to anyone who was interested enough to read all this! You're a real trooper!

[bcdluckstumblcd]

some !! random Elsa and Jin stuff cause @variantia got me thinking

Not really relevant to anything but IN the event of a zombie apocalypse or something of the sort and IF he were to be in a situation where it was him and Elsa, he's obviously going to be super protective and careful and make sure she's rested and safe and gets her share of food first and he's absolutely jumping into danger for her and IF he gets bit or hurt on the way it's FINE, he's always been tough, he'll be okay. He won't tell her because he doesn't want to worry her if it's not that serious! But he's going to be a bit more distanced just in case.

Jin surviving and being saved by Elsa and knowing she's genuinely trying but WHEW yike seeing her be close and friendly and defense of Hawks!! Next time he saw her after that he'd just be so cold but like also !! He'd just blame himself more like Oops here he goes TRUSTING people again wtfff

Him in the rehabilitation au when Elsa gives him a job at her agency!!?? Oh he is employee of the MONTH, of the YEAR. He is on his BEST behavior!! He is volunteering for any assignments he's allowed to take and really does his best to be a type of hero HE needed and he absolutely expresses that to Elsa like, he def sits down and expresses how grateful he is to her and that he hopes he can be useful on her team and not a waste of an oppertunity (cause it's one of the first times besides the League when someone took a chance on him and trusted him

!! Villain Elsa's verse just Jin opening up to Elsa about losing HIS little sister hoping it'll be like a bonding thing like depending on how much he knows and how much Elsa tells him he'd be like "i get it, i lost family too and it felt like my fault because i couldn't do anything to save them." like he wasn't a child himself and he's showing Elsa so much kindness and care because he can tell she needs someone gentle and that loves and accepts her just like HE needed and honestly his favorite hang outs are when it's him and Elsa and Toga watching movies or something.

psssst Jin absolutely picking up/learning some Norwegian and asking her for help when he gets stuck on a word/phrase!!

Still thinking about the second one because she would have to work SO HARD to get on her get to even acknowledge her genuinely like whew that's on the brink of "eveyone treats me like a villain so much maybe I might as well play the part huh? Cause HAWKS REALLY?! Him being like yeah all heroes must be trash, of course you'd defend your own even though he admitted to trying to kill me and betrayed me and my family." Oh he'd be so heated and hurt

[psalacanthea]

Blog Nutritional Info

General Content Warning: 21+, marijuana, alcohol, sex (I never post sexually explicit writing without a cut to hide it), blood but not real gore, bones and monsters and bats. Spiders maybe rarely but my friend hates them so I avoid it. I'll talk about what I feel like, and post what I want to.

For Dragon Age Posting, see @thefailguard

Most of my writing is adult writing, for adults. Content warnings are provided in the fics. Don't feel obligated to stay following me just because you read, I post a lot of recipes and random-ass crap, and that's not for everyone.

Bluesky: psalacanthea

I do:

Have an open ask box policy. Its current state is:

every Sunday I do free three card spread tarot drawings through ask, public or private at our mutual discretion.

am currently accepting prompts or requests about OCs, but do not guarantee response

Allow DMs from people who I do not follow, as long as u aren't a dick.

I do not:

Write x Reader or in second person. Please do not send me those prompts, I understand that it's very popular but it's not for me.

Currently Writing:

Baldur's Gate 3- Tav x Astarion, Dark Urge x Gortash (and Dark Urge x Abdirak)

Dragon Age- DA:A- Cousland Warden x Nathaniel Howe, Hawke x Varric

In-Progress Fics:

Dissonance and Debauchery: The Drama of an Ill-Fated Bard

Follows the plot of the game Baldur's Gate 3. Tav (Zynatheri Rivati) x Astarion. Zyn is a surface-raised genderfluid Drow bard who habitually hides her own identity with magic. Her past is just as murky as her face, and she clings to her lies with a desperate grip. Much like her friendships, her lovers are all in passing and without an ounce of sentiment. Surely a self-centered, amoral vampire is using her just as much as she's using him, which means Astarion is safe. Right?

Status: On Hiatus

Vampires, Romance, and Other Dead Things

Modern AU of Baldur's Gate 3, vaguely follows Astarion's personal quest. Tav (Zyn) x Astarion. Astarion ends up attacked in the alley outside of Zyn's apartment and she drunkenly rescues him, battered, bloody, and bitten. Neither of them realize that staying the night in her apartment means he's condemning himself to an unlife sleeping on her couch. Zyn isn't thrilled about that, and neither is the vampire that turned Astarion.

Cazador wants his spawn back.

Status: On Hiatus

Belladonna- The Dark Urge

A series of one-shots detailing the past and game story of my Dark Urge. An impulse-riddled, violent murderer hell-bent on appearing untouchable and calm, she dwells within silent halls and is served by a cult of voiceless, cannibalistic maidens tended like flowers in a garden. Belladonna fights the power of her Father not to rebel, but to be capable of fulfilling his Will. For being the flesh of Bhaal is not only a privilege, but a struggle, the constant urge to kill, rend, destroy, and breed nearly antithetical to any real progress.

Orin, her sister, seems not to understand the price, and gleefully indulges all her urges. Enver Gortash, her would-be partner in more than one sense, is no better with his constant tests and suggestions towards rebellion. And then there is the Elder Brain, who whispers in her ear that glory in the end may be hers, so that all the world may see her as a pure, inviolate goddess in her own right.

But she knows that in the end, all things must end in death. Orin, Enver, even the Elder Brain will all die. For she is the Flesh of Bhaal, and although she fights against her Father's gifts, in the end it is all for Him.

Then she gets amnesia. Oops.

Status: Updates Randomly when she forcibly takes over my brain. Chronological status not guaranteed. Next might be a 4 chapter fic. In progress.

Dragon Age

Reforged in Dragon's Fire

Follows the story line of Dragon Age Awakening. After the death of the Archdemon, Phoebe Cousland has been transmuted from the bright, brilliant girl that Nathaniel Howe remembers into something bitter, cold, and hard. Although she's saved his life and made him a Warden, she cannot seem to stop herself from trying to place the crimes of his family upon his shoulders.

Since a young age, everyone knew she was meant to marry Nathaniel's brother Thomas. But the betrayal of war showed his true face, and all of her rage, confusion, and anger has finally found a target in his brother. Nathaniel, for his part, struggles with the revelation of his father's deeds, and the lies his family made him complicit in.

The ghosts of the past must be laid to rest before there is any hope of a future.

Status: On Hiatus Until December. Thanks for your patience! <3

A Sky of Shattered Stars

After five years of running from demons, aided by spirits and rebel gods, Hawke is finally free of the Fade. She's home, back with Varric, but when you're too afraid to sleep and your body has forgotten what reality feels like, recovery is hard. While Hawke fights with her own body and her fear that she'll never truly recover, Varric is dealing with demons of his own.

His unresolved grief haunts them, trapping her in the empty halls of the Viscount's mansion.

But there's a conspiracy in the streets of Kirkwall, whispers of the Viscount's misdeeds. They say he lies, that he uses the dead Champion's name to cover his own grasping for power-- laughable, Hawke knows, but infuriating. How dare they use her to hurt Varric?

Status: Updating, finishing the space between Inquisition and Veilguard

[bthump]

hello! what do you think Skull Knight meant when he said your wish may not be her wish referring to casca?

I think there's room for a few theories here, but my theory of choice is that Skull Knight is referring to Guts' wish to settle down and stop pursuing revenge through a relationship with Casca.

I think that's definitely one of Guts' motivations for taking her to Elfhelm, and it's something that's teased throughout the Millenium Falcon arc with shit like Guts, Casca and moonbaby looking like a family, eg.

I don't think Guts was consciously thinking he was going to give up on revenge entirely, but after NGriff ditched him and then when he heard he could bring Casca back I think his priorities shifted in a way, and he was at least subconsciously hoping that if he brought Casca back he would find a sense of fulfillment in a relationship with her, and be able to let his obsession with Griffith go, like he alludes to in chapter 345 with his internal "I've come this far by letting go of my obsession with Griffith," thought. And like Godo suggests when he tells Guts he should've immersed himself in sorrow with the remaining Hawks instead of running off to kill things.

But oops Casca doesn't want to fuck him, so that's a bust. Skull Knight's "You've come to the end of your journey. It is not always a happy thing," when Guts is on the cliff swinging his sword and being pissy about Casca's trauma could serve as a conclusion to his warning about Casca's wish not being Guts' wish, if we go with this reading.

Of course I'd argue that Guts distracting himself from Griffith with Casca was always a pipe dream doomed to fail regardless of Casca's trauma cockblocking him, especially considering his breakdown over his sword rather than her right now lol, but yeah I think this is one way of understanding that foreshadowing that fits with the overall story.

Other theories I've seen are that Casca won't want to pursue his wish of revenge with him (kinda moot now probably), or that Casca will join Griffith (not looking likely to me either). Prior to the recent development with her kidnapping I was hoping that it alluded to her using the behelit and going ham in her own wave of righteous violence, but lol that didn't work out. So yeah, my money's on it just being a reference to her being too traumatized to look at Guts.

Thanks for the ask!

[fluffykitteninabox]

¿What are your thoughts on Lady Nagant's return?

Hi cute question mark anon

Thank you for the ask have some sparkles ✨✨✨

You won't have to wait long this time

To be honest, I don't have many opinions on Lady Nagant because she appeared after I stopped reading the manga.

The things I know after the war arc/hospital chapters are mostly from spoilers. I only started trying to keep up with what's happening after chapter 350 came out, so everything between the war arc and that is kind of blurred together in my mind. (and even now, I mostly just see the leaks and only read the full chapter if I'm extremely interested in what's happening)

I really want to go back and read everything I missed to understand the details better because just seeing people talk about it on the internet isn't enough.

So my thoughts on her coming back now are basically just: please let her rest in a hospital bed, she's literally covered in bandages!!

I've rebloged some other people's opinions though that I thought were interesting.

This is my very basic understanding of the two main sides:

The government asked her to kill people -> she became their assassin -> she defected and got branded a villain -> Actually allies herself with a villain briefly -> Deku gave a cute little speech -> she changed sides again and is now helping the heroes -> government asks her to kill people again but this time it's to "redeem" herself

or

The government asked her to kill people -> she became their assassin -> she defected and got branded a villain -> Actually allies herself with a villain briefly -> Deku gave a cute little speech -> she changed sides again but she's only there to help Deku and not the heroes in general -> she isn't trying to kill Shigaraki/she didn't aim for any fatal spots

But I don't know enough details about her character arc to really say which one I agree with more right now.

The main difference is if Nagant was actually completely 100% convinced by Deku's speech or not, and what exactly that speech was about (which I haven't read oops!! 😂)

If Deku's speech is basically just "hero society good actually.", then I would probably also be mad if Nagant was convinced by that after hero society basically ruined her life.

If Deku's speech is more like: "yeah hero society bad, but hero ideal good and i want to try and fix the bad.", and Nagant decided she wanted to help him fix the bad then I think I would be ok with that.

The first option is bad writing (because of inconsistent character motivation and ignoring/retconing plot elements)

and the second option is mediocre writing (because of the unrealistic optimism of 'everything will be fixed by protagonist-kun so we should all agree with what he's saying and help him)

I think I'd prefer the second option but I'm going to wait until after I've seen all the details just to be sure. That's what I did with the Hawks Twice situation too. I literally bought the volume so I could read it and decide for my own. It's just easier for me to read from the physical book, which is one of the reasons I haven't done the same with the Nagant stuff yet. I check the couple of online shops in my country but I haven't seen any of the related volumes available. They don't restock often I guess.

The other reason is, I'm ashamed to admit, lack of interest 😔!!! (plz forgive me Nagant fans)

She's very pretty, I love her design, her quirk is cool, her backstory and what that implies for the world of MHA is extremely intresting...

but I haven't read the chapters so I'm not emotionally attached to her at the moment. I'm hoping seeing her in the anime this season will get me interested in her. I already really like the bits with her in the intro because the animation is top tier.

I'm thinking after season 6 is over I will go and actually read the manga as I said. Properly in order this time.

[kudosmyhero]

Birds of Prey (vol. 2) #2: Endrun, pt. 2 - The Rage of the White Canary

Read Date: January 09, 2023 Cover Date:August 2010 ● Writer: Gail Simone ● Penciler: Ed Benes ◦ Adriana Melo ● Inker: Ed Benes ◦ Mariah Benes ● Colorist: Nei Ruffino ● Letterer: Steve Wands ● Editor: Janelle Asselin ●

**HERE BE SPOILERS: Skip ahead to the fan art/podcast to avoid spoilers

Reactions As I Read: ● It's been a minute since I read issue 1. Argh, and there's no synopsis and I didn't take reaction notes back then. I'll just have to see if my memory gets jogged. ● (pg 2) I mean, these women all look great, but I can't help but think how unguarded their femoral arteries are considering their lives of fighting crime. Do you know how fast a person bleeds out from a wound to the femoral artery? Fast. ● Poor Penguin. I'm sure he'll be fine, though. ● this White Canary is cool as a cucumber

● Lethal hair accessories. Cool. ● Fishnets do look amazing, ngl. ● Oof, hopefully Dinah didn't lose any teeth there… ● Narrative: She's not Shiva. You never feel Shiva's emotions when she hits you. This lady seems to hate my guts. ~ curiouser and curiouser ● If looks could kill… ● Hawk and Dove are here along with Lady Blackhawk (I forgot she's from WWII and misplaced in time) ● Hawk didn't expect that… ● Hawk has a big handful of her hair, though. Is that why his name is Hank? Geddit? Hank … of hair… nevermind. Ahem. ● Meanwhile, Oracle hears a news bulletin about a Gregory Chasco dying of wounds apparently undetectable by medical science. ● Oops, the bulletin named "former Justice League member the Black Canary" is the cause of death. ● The Channel 8 chopper has eyes on Black Canary now ● Oracle yells in the intercom: "Black Canary! Quit fighting! Get out of there!" ● 12 squad cars and a police chopper are on the way. Oops. ● Before White Canary leaves, she says: "One of you will die every hour for the next six hours. You choose. Or I will." ● GCPD ain't playin'. ● Before they can decide on whether to be shot or to surrender, Penguin regains consciousness enough to tell the women weakly, "My place. Get us to my club. Safe there." ● Fight or flight? Canary chooses fight and unleashes her canary cry ● omg, Oswald has a facefull of Dove's tits and he's living for it 😂😂

● Oliver Queen was mayor of Star City? Huh. I'm not up-to-date on my Green Arrow lore. ● new person calling in to Oracle… Brian Durlan a.k.a. Savant a.k.a. Creote? ● the coloring of Oracle's eyes up close is gorgeous ● "Savant is dead, Oracle. He's dead." ● Oh, so this Creote is a different person. And he's blaming Savant's death on Oracle. ● Oh, fuuuu… I hope Barbara has a good therapist. ● Penguin needs a hospital ● "softly pillowy bosom" - hahah! ● the crew runs into a random tv set up in an alley, where another news bulletin has breaking news of Black Canary's true identity. Oh shit. ● is White Canary the child who was "abandoned"? That would explain some of the hatred… ● the girl's name is Sin and she was almost adopted by Black Canary ● Oracle: "I am the grid." Badass mode unlocked. I mean, she was always a badass. But now it's badderass. ● 👏👏👏👏

Synopsis: {none available… dammit}

(https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Birds_of_Prey_Vol_2_2)

Fan Art: Black Canary and Huntress by spidermanfan2099

Accompanying Podcast: ● Batgirl to Oracle - episode 09

[heiseidominantation]

Heisei Cataclysm "Mastermind Mastermind Mastermind" (Tachibana Fumi & Heiwa)

A mastermind… I don't particularly like such a noisy title. My name is KIKI.

—To put it simply, I'm the mastermind.

"Today, we're going to have a card competition!"

When I said so, the look on Tokido Haku's face was…

"Eh…?"

"Frozen" or "stunned" are too common words, but she had a very interesting expression.

"W-What do you mean?"

She had gotten a lot stronger. The silver-haired maiden. We first met a long time ago.

I wonder if it was when she was in junior high school that she first came to this world in her dream. She seemed to be a leader of some sort now. She's really grown up. Only in appearance, of course.

"You always get tired of seeing those two kill each other, don't you? So I thought it would be nice for a change of pace once in a while. I've given it a lot of thought, fufun!"

"Fufun, you say…"

Snap!

I snapped my fingers. The 〔Reverse World〕 became pitch black. The spotlight that was only on Haku and I, illuminated and revealed two other characters.

Tokido Rei. Tokido Sakuhi.

Rei, a boy, and Sakuhi, a girl with pigtails. Sakuhi embodied the spirit of Rei, who was originally a double personality. It's complicated, so you can think of them as twins. 

For a young boy and girl, their eyes were a little dead. I wish I could at least make their voices filled with childlike wonder.

"Rei! Sakuhi! Be sure to be determined to compete!"

"..."

But perhaps it's impossible, after all.

Snap!

Furthermore, with another snap of my finger, it turned into a tatami mat of foot-garif green, and a card was embodied between Rei and Sakuhi.

"A-Amazing…"

"Fufun, how do you like my strength?"

Then I suddenly realized...

"Oops, that's not good enough at this rate. I need to step up—"

Slap! Slap! Slap!

First, Mount Fuji. Second, a geisha. Third, sushi tempura.

These were embodied in Rei and Sakuhi's background. Now the background was perfect. However, Haku was dissatisfied.

"That's a mountain, two hawks, and three eggplants… right? It’s like the first thing you dream of on New Year's Day…"

"Shut up, shut up, nobody will marry you if you keep thinking about the details."

"Um, even if you say that…"

"Then, I'll make your head go bald."

"Eh!?"

"It's possible with my strength."

"Well, don't do that!"

I said in a jest, and Haku bowed. I flapped my dark wizard's robe.

"Welcome to the Card Games, Tokido Haku. The 〔Reverse World〕welcomes you!"

That's how our card competition started.

"Do— Don't get me wrong, it's not like I made this bento box for you or anything!"

"Wait, these are Tsundere cards!"

Haku was very surprised to hear the text on the card I read. 

"It's fine, isn't it? It's still a card competition so long as there's cards."

"T-That's true, but we have to protect PKO…"

"I think PKO is important, too, but what about TPO?"

"TKO?"

"Then, should we just stop playing cards and go back to killing each other?"

"Ugh, t-that's not what I meant, but…"

"Look, Haku."

It was a rare sight to see Rei and Sakuhi competing for cards. I wondered what it looked like in Haku's eyes, which had always only seen them kill each other. I read the next card with all my heart.

"Shu— Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

"Wow, it's ruined! Even though it was such an emotional and moving scene!"

"Ugh~!"

"Wow."

Haku groaned, "You're the worst!".

"Do— Don't get me wrong, it's not like I said that for your sake or anything, okay!?"

"No, no, no, there was already a similar line before! And furthermore, there's no such thing as "Do" on the cards in these games!!"

Maybe I pushed Haku too hard to be the straight man, but she was gasping for air.

Then…

"I took this one first!"

"Well, I was faster!"

Rei and Sakuhi started arguing over the "Do" card.

"Those two are working so hard to get the "Do" card… Wait, no no no, that's not right! Look, the both of you can't fight, okay?"

"..."

The two nodded silently, and returned quietly to cards again. As expected of an elder sister.

"But I wish it were like this every time…"

Haku squinted her eyes. Rei jumped at the cards with a big jump, and Sakuhi took away the cards around her with accurate movements.

"There's no hostility between them…"

The boy and girl were playing Tsundere cards with great effort.

"It's like they're good friends…"

Haku yawned loudly with a "Hwaah~".

"Rather, it's so comfortable that I'm bored."

So I gave a suggestion.

"Then, how about giving a prize to the winner since it's a great match?"

"Oh, that's a good idea! Yes, I agree! I super agree with you!!"

"Then why don't you work hard to win a prize every time you take one card?"

"Wow, that sounds great. I'm sure I'll like this!!"

"Well, then... every time Rei takes one card, he draws one person from the 〔Surface World〕. So every time Sakuhi takes one card, she draws one person from the 〔Reverse World〕.

"Eh…?"

"That's where you thin them out, Haku. Look, there are a lot of extra people you need, aren't there? To achieve peace. That's why you can make those people representative players in each world, and if you win, you can get rid of people in the other world. What do you think?"

"What do I think…? Of course I'm not okay with that! You can't do that!"

"Why?"

"That's obvious, isn't it!?"

Haku raised her voice and yelled.

"That's weird. You're the one who agreed to a prize for the competition. Are you going back on it now?"

"No! That's not the type of prize I agreed to!"

"Well, I don't mind. Because those kids aren't killing each other. But you don't want people to die… Ah. I see. I see, so that's it. It's okay, Haku. I'll exclude you and your precious friends. —That way, it's all right, isn't it?"

"W-Wrong! That's not the issue!"

Haku clenched her teeth.

"No? Hmm, then I don't mind excluding your brother from killing…"

"Eh, my little brother? You know my little brother!? Do you know where he is?"

"If it's the boy you've been looking for, he's right there."

"Where?"

"Look, Tokido Rei— The boy playing cards."

Haku stared at Rei with her eyes wide open.

"Y-You're kidding… right? T-This boy is…"

"Just kidd—ing, that was a lie!"

"Wha—!?"

"Because you're in a dream right now, Haku."

"Huh?"

"Tokido Rei and Tokido Sakuhi are part of your dreams. They're who you are."

"Y-You're… lying…"

Haku held her head in her hands.

"Of course it's a lie-pyon!"

"W-What's wrong with you!? What do you want!?"

"No matter what you ask what I want, this is Haku's dream world, so everything will be exactly as Haku wants…"

"I-I don't want this!"

"Well, that's, you know, depth psychology? It's no use what your latent thoughts are about… Ah, but no matter what you really want, I'm the only one who'll agree to it, Tokido Dropout-san."

"W-What are you? Who the hell are you!?"

—Yes. Indeed, I have never called myself KIKI to Haku.

However…

"Yes, I should have introduced myself first."

"What the hell is your identity!?"

When I took off my black robe, my hair, my eyes, my hands, and my feet were all blacked out. It was just darkness, just space, and it was just an empty world.

"I am the 〔Reverse World〕— So to speak."

"Eh, you're kidding… What do you mean by that!? You're… this world?"

Yes, I alone exist for the sake of a peaceful world.

This time, Haku's body became as thin as a vision and lost its color.

"W-What's going on? No, not yet, w-wait a minute!"

Oh no, time's up.

"Rei! Rei!!"

Ignoring Haku's shouting, I snapped my fingers again.

Snap!

"Oh…"

Haku nodded. I erased Haku's memories as usual. 

So as not to be found by the 〔Surface World〕.  So as not to be noticed by the 〔Surface World〕. But I want her to remember one thing.

"The shape of the world today is what the 〔Surface World〕 wants."

Yes, I alone exist for the sake of a peaceful world. 

And so, Haku's body and spirit disappeared from the 〔Reverse World〕. 

The Tokidos are essential. She opens the door of time and observes this world. Rei and Sakuhi are the Surface and Reverse. They represent the current state of the world. That's why they were built. By gathering negative emotions for Rei, we managed to satisfy the 〔Surface World〕 for the time being, but we're reaching our limit. I've been doing a lot of work to prevent the 〔Surface World〕 from resetting... but to avoid it, she needs to observe a new world.

"Hey, Haku…"

Rei, and Sakuhi,

—Before you break,

—Before you forget,

—Before you break down,

—Before you're swallowed,

—Before you get erased,

—Before you get worn out,

"Quickly, you need to realize the truth or you'll be punished. Fufun!"

A mastermind… I don't particularly like such a noisy title. My name is KIKI.

I am a crisis, a joy, a destruction, a demon, a strange, brilliant, beginning.

—But to put it simply, I'm the mastermind.

[waitingforwinterwinds]

Game of Thrones - 23 DAENERYS III (pages 219-229)

Dany remembers her difficulties acclimatizing to the Dothraki lifestyle, uses her newfound self-confidence to make good life choices (standing up to her brother) and bad life choices (not killing her husband and running away to live her best horse girl life). Also, her dragon eggs are weird.

-

"It's so green," she said. "Here and now," Ser Jorah agreed. "You ought to see it when it blooms, all dark red flowers from horizon to horizon, like a sea of blood. Come the dry season, and the world turns the color of old bronze. And this is only hranna, child. There are a hundred kinds of grass out there, grasses as yellow as lemon and as dark as indigo, blue grasses and orange grasses and grasses like rainbows. Down in the Shadow Lands beyond Assahi, they say there are oceans of ghost grass, taller than a man on horseback with stalks as pale as milkglass. It murders all other grass and glows in the dark with the spirits of the damned. The Dothraki claim that someday ghost grass will cover the entire world, and then all life will end."

First of all: hot damn that is so much cooler and more intense than the show made it out to be. Second of all: I may need to add "mentions of 'lemon'" to my drinking game.

Dany realized that she did not want to listen to any of her brother's complaints right now. The day was too perfect. The sky was a deep blue, and high above them a hunting hawk circled. The grasses swayed and sighed with each breath of the wind, the air was warm on her face, and Dany felt at peace. She would not let Viserys spoil it. ... The decent was steep and rocky, but Dany rode fearlessly, and the joy of the danger of it were a song in her heart. All her life Viserys had told her she was a princess, but not until she rode her silver had Daenerys Targaryen ever felt like one.

Sorry, hang on, I just need a second. I only finished rewatching Long Ballad a little while ago, this is giving my double the normal level of feels. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHhhhhhhhhhhhh, screw the plot, screw Viserys, screw the Iron Throne, Screw Drogo* (in the non-sexy way). I am once again cancelling canon and moving Dany to a nice AU, where she can live her best horse girl life, like she deserves.

Yet every night night, some time before dawn, Drogo would come into her tent and wake her in the dark, to ride her as relentlessly as he rode his stallion. He always took her from behind, Dothraki fashion, for which Dany was grateful; that way her lord husband could not see the tears that wet her face, and she could use the pillow to muffle her cries of pain.

*No longer conflicted by this pairing, wishing only for Drogo to be trampled to death by his own herd/khalasar. He is officially uninvited from the Dany lives her best life AUs. Sorry Ronan Dex Jason Mamoa, not even you can bias me now.

"The common people pray for rain, healthy children, and a summer that never ends," Ser Jorah told her. "It is no matter to them if the high lords play their game of thrones, so long as they are left in peace." He gave a shrug. "They never are."

Oop, he said the thing, roll credits. No, but seriously, he's so right.

Magic had died in the west when the Doom fell on Valyria and the Lands of the Long Summer, and neither spell-forged steel nor stormsingers nor dragons could hold it back, but Dany had always heard that the east was different. It was said that manticores prowled the islands of the Jade Sea, that basilisks infested the jungles of Yi Ti, that spellsingers, warlocks and aeromancers practiced their arts openly in Asshai, while shadowbinders and bloodmages worked terrible sorceries in the black of night. Why shouldn't there be dragons too?

On the one hand: That sounds hella cool, I hope we hear more about that later On the other hand: that sounds a little like GRRM started picking random words out of a hat and pasting them together. The way they all have different secondary words (singer, 'mancer, binder, mage) I don't know if they all indicate specific methodologies or non-compatible schools of magic, or if GRRM just thought "what sounds weird but cool enough to be vaguely foreign mystical wizards from fantasy land?"

"He told me the moon was an egg, Khaleesi," the Lysene girl said. "Once there were two moons in the sky, but one wandered too close to the sun and cracked from the heat. A thousand thousand dragons poured forth, and drank the fire of the sun. This is why dragons breathe flame. One day the other moon will kiss the sun too, and then it will crack and the dragons will return."

One: There are Ice Dragons north of the Shivering Sea, far larger than any fire dragon has ever been (allegedly), so... F to doubt.

Two: Someone hold my ginger beer while I grab my tinfoil. I am going to concoct a conspiracy theory so off the wall, and it is going to involve Fire Dragons as Aliens, a free roaming orbital breaking up in the atmosphere after circling the planet a few times, and the mysterious oily black stone that's used to make several creepy AF structures around the known world being the remains of the free roaming orbital's debris. Space Rock, but it's Cursed AF.

[harveylikestoart]

"If he does end up actively causing MK harm she is gonna physically fight him out of rage..." Does Qi Xiaotian ever tell Jade Face about this AU's version of the Macaque incident? Wukong's stalker actively trying to kill Jade's kit might be enough for her to go full fox and hunt Wukong down.

Wukong does end up training Xiaotian properly with the supervision of either PJF or one of her other trusted court members (they’re not like right in the same room usually tho) but in my AU Xiaotian isn’t as a goofball, he still loves having fun and chilling but he’s got an active job within a company brand that has a lot more daily stresses than delivery, so he has that level of self discipline in which he can handle more power

Sun Wukong still kinda like dulls it down but to two thirds instead of the halfway it was, so MK can like, heal faster than usual, he takes hits easier, his transformations/cloning comes easier (and with less hair being pulled blESS UP) and his true sight is more quick on the draw.

However PJF kinda begins to watch him more like a hawk, definitely encourages more free time strictly with Mei and Red Son, and is a bit more prying which kind of makes Xiaotian like “okay I feel like this is too much but I don’t wanna disappoint PJF or like make her mad or something! I can do this it’s fine!” And also with the confrontation PJF had with Wukong he’s taking it a bit more serious (not as much lol) and treats him like he would teach a child ig?

So when this new monkey just appears in the city (with less of a fight and more of a cool older person vibe) MK doesn’t really tell anyone abt it because “omg someone I can talk to who treats me like an adult AND can train me! Hell yeah!” but also Macaque slowly gets him to pull away from everyone else sorta *does that lil “kinda” hand gesture* they do actually have like a slight bonding moment because Xiaotian mentions his fear of abandonment and Macaque just goes “oh shit, I know EXACTLY what you mean.”

Ig it kinda goes the same after, Macaque uh, irl downloads (lol???) Xiaotian’s monkey power, Wukong comes in fighting, and then Xiaotians monkey power comes BACK yadda yadda, but there are some more nuances ig in Xiaotian feeling betrayed by an adult he thought he could trust who he OPENED up to, Red Son and Mei like actively go to meet him after Wukong patches him up (theres no like DBK and Lady Bone Demon thing yet so no citywide panic) and they’re there for him while he just breaks down ig.

When he goes back to PJF’s court she asks him if he’s good because he seems kinda down and immediately he decides not to tell her anything. He does NOT want to open up again just to have backlash, especially with someone he cares about like Jade Face. So he just says “it was hard yards you know? That weekend training was tough!” and they leave it at that, with PJF not knowing (until maybe much later) and MK not wanting to share how he feels anymore and slowly growing this emotional chasm between them.

Also Macaque kidnapped the court member who PJF sent to watch over Xiaotian (who also unfortunately agreed to go because it was on the way before they were to go on a trip to see their family friend in India oops.) and now they’re just stuck with this monkey who is having an inner dilemma about betraying a kid he was actually kind of sorta maybe bonding with. The court member is both scared and also pitying this dumbass.

[sulky-valkyrie]

Oops! I sent in a prompt again! What about shielding the other one with their body for Anders and Fenris or Nate or Hawke or you get the gist😉

not quite shielding, but I think it fits the spirit well enough

for @dadrunkwriting

~~~

“Well, if it isn’t the infamous apostate!”  Rylock sneered.

Aeden put an arm out to stop Nate from launching himself at her immediately.  “Really?  Didn’t know the Dalish were that well known.”  He jerked a thumb toward Velanna.

The former First rolled her eyes as Rylock deflated, apparently expecting a different reaction.  “If they kept tabs on us like they do on him -” she waved a hand at Anders “- they’d be dead.”

“Is that a threat, rabbit?”  Rylock asked, pulling out her sword.

“Oh, for Andraste’s hairy nipples - look, I’ll just, this isn’t worth it, okay?”  Anders snapped, stepping forward.  “I’m not going to -”

Now it was Nate’s turn to put an arm out, creating a rather absurd daisy-chain of arms pressed to chests: Aedan to Nate, Nate to Anders, and Anders’ to  . . . he glanced over to Velanna and smirked.  The other mage frowned.  “I will replace your blood with tree sap and fill your lungs with dirt if you grab my chest, shem.”

“See, he’s not worth your time, he said it himself.”  Rylock nodded with satisfaction, ignoring Velenna.  “Just give him over.”

The Commander tapped his longsword pensively for a few long moments.  “Not happening.”

“The Divine -”

“Is not privy to this little extra-judicial execution you’re trying to arrange, and I’m certain wouldn’t actually endorse interfering with the Grey Warden’s autonomy.”  Aeden unsheathed his sword, but didn’t point it at her.  Barely seemed to notice her.  “You know this sword was given to me by the King?”

“I - no?”  Rylock didn’t seem sure what to do with people who weren’t cowering in fear. 

“Did you know he taught me everything he learned before he left your order?”

Rylock frowned.  “What?”

“That’s right,” Aedan said conversationally.  “How to disrupt a spell, how to stop someone pulling on the Fade.  How to sense someone starting to.”  He tapped his nose.  “You know what he didn’t teach me?”

“My lord, I -”

“Oh, we’re back to honorifics already?”  Aedan smiled at Nate and patted his chest.  “I feel like she was threatening us just moments ago; was that my imagination?”

Nate snorted.  “No, Commander, she seems . . . fickle.”

“I’ll show you fickle,” Anders muttered.  Nate’s fingers twitched and flexed, like he wasn't sure if he should be grabbing for his bow, or . . . something else.  He still didn’t seem convinced of what he wanted from Anders, other than the occasional quickie, but he hadn’t ignored him if he said no, and he stayed to cuddle afterwards.  The mage wasn’t entirely sure what to make of him, but he was standing between him and a Templar, so he must care at least a little.

“He didn’t teach me to think I was better than a mage.  He didn’t teach me to think that just because I could silence one,  they would stay that way, or that they even should stay that way.  I think he was a far better teacher than you could even hope to be.”   Then Aedan Cousland, Warden Commander of Ferelden, lover of the Witch of the Wilds, lover of the King too (if rumors were to be believed) lopped Rylock’s head clean off.  “He taught me how to behead cleanly too; should’ve mentioned that a bit earlier, I suppose.”

The other Templars bolted for the door, but found themself stymied by a wall of thorny vines that sprang up in front of, around and under them.  “See, this is what I mean,” Aedan continued, still conversationally, as if he hadn’t just killed their commanding officer in front of them.  “You should’ve known she was about to cast that.  The best Templar you ever could’ve had slipped right through your fingers, didn’t he?”  He tutted as he wiped Rylock’s blood from his sword, then glanced at the two mages and the archer.  “Well?  Do I need to kill them too?”

Nate snapped an arrow through one of their eye slits as the other burned  to death in his own armor.  Anders looked around wonderingly, first at Velanna, then Aedan, then Nate.  “I - you killed them.  For me.”

The archer looked at him like he was an idiot.  Perhaps he was.  “Never liked Templars much.” 

[cartoonfuel]

Mind Games Chapter 13

Chapter 13: The Complete Set

See Chapter 1 for synopsis, warnings, rating, etc.

Chapter 14: Is Tartarus Hiring?

~~~~~

Holding in a scream, you dropped to your knees and stared at the purple nub that used to be your right hand, your gaze eventually shifting to focus on the lifeless body part in front of you. The rot had reached all the way to your bone marrow, though you wouldn’t have known without getting to see the inside of your arm.

In other words, no matter how delicately you treated it, your hand was going to come off whether you wanted it to or not.

Despite having lost part of a limb, you were in far less pain than you had initially imagined. Perhaps Shigaraki’s Decay severed the nerves in your wrist some time ago?

Angrily, you grabbed ahold of the hand and managed to stand up, carrying the grotesque thing under your arm. You stumbled back to where you’d last seen Tomura and Deku facing off, a scowl like no other on display for everyone to see. You arrived to see the One For All user on the attack, swinging his fists and kicking at Shigaraki repeatedly. It was a shock to see Tomura dodging most—if not all—of Midoriya’s attacks. Considering Deku’s speed, it was hard to picture Shigaraki being able to match it, yet here he was moving out of the way each and every time.

If I just wait for an opening…

Dammit, that was close.

Aya?

Holy shit, her hand is gone!

Distracted by your injury, a wide-eyed Deku glanced over at you, eyes aglow and tears beginning to form. Green lightning danced all around him.

Careful, Midoriya.

If I could just get…

Her hand?!

The Symbol of Peace’s blood…

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh.

I guess that’s my fault, huh?

This is my fault…

Oops.

I was too late to help her and now I’ve cost her a hand!

He seems distracted.

This might be my chance…

That would really be something!

After honing in on a certain set of thoughts, you immediately looked over to see Himiko Toga crawling towards All Might who was still unconscious. Geez, maybe you did hit him harder than you meant to…

In an instant, you rushed over to kick Toga’s injured leg, causing her to topple over onto her side and writhe in agony. “Don’t you dare touch him,” you hissed. You changed position to face Deku and Shigaraki, lifting your detached hand into the air and shouting, “Here!” You lobbed the hand to the villain, with both him and Midoriya watching in silence as it hit the ground with a thunk. “To add to your stupid collection, Shigaraki.”

To your surprise, he actually knelt down to grab the hand and hide it inside his coat. “Now I have the complete set,” he said with a grin. “Thank you.”

And thank you for this.

With that, Shigaraki lunged forward, his hand violently latching onto Midoriya’s face.

“Deku, you idiot!” you yelled in horror. “I was giving you an opening, not him!”

Instinctively, you charged forward with absolutely no plan of attack. Disrupting Decay and protecting Izuku was the only thing on your mind.

All of a sudden, a blur of red and gold whooshed by and lifted Midoriya into the sky.

Sorry I’m late.

I assume you have your quirk back?

“Hawks,” you mutter, momentarily forgetting the fact that Shigaraki was standing right in front of you. Your blood ran cold the moment you remembered.

He could’ve at least let me get away with killing dumb Midoriya.

I wonder, Aya.

What did Hawks tell you?

Are you confused?

Going to tattle on him?

We can’t have that.

“I won’t,” you replied, nervously backing away from Shigaraki whose thoughts were growing louder and louder. “Haven’t you figured it out already? I’m a neutral party!"

Which makes you utterly useless.

Goodbye.

Shigaraki leapt towards you, unveiling a sadistically feral expression that screamed bloodlust.

Before you knew it, you were lifted into the air as well, not by Hawks himself but by a few of his crimson feathers. The feathers dropped you off on top of the nearest two-story building alongside Midoriya, Todoroki and All Might.

Hawks hovered in front of the four of you, scratching the back of his neck. “I had to use so many feathers to lift you, All Might,” he smirked. “Even in your tiny form, you’re as heavy as an elephant. It’s okay though, I barely broke a sweat carrying all of you to safety.”

Looking at All Might, you sighed and admitted, “You have no idea how glad I am to see you. Awake, that is.”

“Yes, yes,” All Might nodded, his calm demeanor gradually evolving into one of pure rage. “Now, do you mind explaining WHY YOU HIT ME?!”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I didn’t want your mind getting hacked into and hitting you was the only thing I could think to do!”

“I’m going to need a little more information than that. Thanks to you, there’ll be a bump on the back of my head for weeks!”

Todoroki cleared his throat, “Aya’s quirk doesn’t work on anyone who’s unconscious, so I believe she had to knock you out in order to protect you.”

All Might relaxed his shoulders and exhaled. “Well in that case, thank you,” he chuckled, patting you on the back. “I don’t care to hear the details. Just know I appreciate you doing what you can to save people.”

“As touching as this is,” Hawks interrupted, “I’m going to fly back down and help. If you’re smart, you’ll stay here.”

Hawks took off, the four of you peering over the edge of the rooftop to watch the scene below you unfold. You quickly discovered both Shigaraki and Toga had been cornered by several Pro Heroes, including Endeavor, Midnight, Aizawa, Present Mic, Nezu and a few others. Doppelgänger was with them as well and notably trapped, gagged and blindfolded by Aizawa’s sturdy binding cloth.

You surveyed your surroundings atop the roof, quickly realizing someone was missing. “Wait a minute, where’s Bakugou?”

Todoroki’s heterochromatic eyes met yours. “He’s right here.”

“No he isn’t,” Midoriya cut in with a furrowed brow.

That’s when all four of you looked to the left in sync, locating Bakugou several meters away. “See ya, extras!” You watched as he fearlessly jumped off the building, plummeting to the ground and executing a perfect landing. “No way in hell am I not getting in on this!” Bakugou continued to roar as he ran away. “Shigaraki is going down and I’m gonna be the one to murder him!”

Dumbfounded, Todoroki blinked a couple times. “Oh.” Midoriya rolled his eyes and All Might facepalmed.

You turned towards Midoriya. “Deku, are you okay?”

“Oh please, I’m fine,” Midoriya replied to you. “You’re the one missing a hand!”

“It doesn’t even hurt, promise. Is what it is.”

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” All Might interjected.

Todoroki raised an eyebrow and locked eyes with Deku. “Midoriya, you should introduce Aya to Mei Hatsume.”

All Might unexpectedly shushed all of you, gesturing to the ground below. “Todoroki and Midoriya, be ready for anything. Aya, can you read their minds from up here?”

You concentrated for a moment. “Most of them.”

Bakugou joined Aizawa’s side, the home room teacher quickly frowning at him. They were too far away to hear but just within distance of your quirk’s range.

What the hell are you doing, Bakugou?

You’re not ready for this.

Don’t take this from me!

I need this more than you know.

Please.

Ah, who am I fooling?

Don’t die, kid.

Meanwhile, Shigaraki, Endeavor and Hawks were just below, close enough for the four of you to overhear all their exchanges loud and clear.

Despite being cornered, Shigaraki seemed completely calm. “Sorry everyone, but I don’t think I’ve leveled up enough to fight all of you yet,” he groaned. “Oh, and Doppelgänger? Say hello to All For One for me in Tartarus.”

Doppelgänger started thrashing and yelling, requiring Aizawa to tighten his binding cloth’s grip on him. Meanwhile, his mind was going rampant.

No!

I can’t go there!

Anywhere but there!

They’ll torture me!

By putting me in quirk-cancelling handcuffs or something!

And restraints!

I’ll never get to use my quirk again!

Please, allow me to use my quirk!

Just once!

One last time!

Tomura Shigaraki, you bastard!

You just used me!

Help!

I need it!

I need Doppelgänger!

I can’t go without it!

Don’t take it from me!

You can’t!

You can’t!

You can’t!

Untie me!

Let me take Decay!

I’ll show him!

Give it to me!

Just let me look at him!

Goddamnit!

You wanted it to stop, needed it to stop. His mind simply wouldn’t relax and it was driving you off the ends of the earth. He was unbelievably attached to his quirk, which made sense, but this was just too much.

Thankfully, Midnight interjected.

Quit your whining and go to sleep, honey.

The R-Rated Hero approached Doppelgänger with poise, confidence, a conceited smile on her face and hands on her hips. She blew a kiss at Doppelgänger, her infamous sleep-inducing aroma wafting into the air and surrounding him. His crying quickly subsided as he fell over, completely passing out.

“I think Doppelgänger might be addicted to his quirk,” you commented to Midoriya.

“How can you tell?” Izuku asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“I mean I just haven’t heard of someone being addicted to their quirk before.”

“Think about it, Deku. If quirks could be passed around and exchanged like drugs, this world would become a breeding ground for a new type of illegal market.”

"I guess you're right. It’s a good thing quirks are biological and not purely transactional."

Without warning, Shigaraki and Toga defied gravity, shooting into the sky and waving goodbye to the crowd below them.

Shigaraki, however, was focused intently on you, waving your hand around instead of his own.

See you at the next family reunion.

Your blood was boiling. "Bastard.”

Idiot.

Shouldn't I be the one calling you that?

The two villains then disappeared out of view entirely. Off in the distance, you noticed Twice, Mr. Compress and Spinner floating into the air as well, also disappearing in the distance not long after.

Endeavor was preparing to take flight and pursue the League of Villains, but an outstretched wing blocked his path before he could even activate Hellflame. “I’ve got this one, Number One,” Hawks said to him with a grin. "You weren't fast enough to catch Dabi earlier, so what makes you think you'd be fast enough to catch the entire League?"

“Punk,” Endeavor snarled, crossing his arms. “Fine, I’ll tend to the people down here.”

With that, Hawks took off into the sunrise, his wings noticeably smaller than usual.

That's when it clicked.

Hawks really was the League’s “getaway driver.”

You laughed quietly at the thought, unknowingly catching Midoriya’s attention. “When Hawks said it’d be like picking up kids from school, he wasn’t just kidding,” you chuckled to yourself. “He literally picked them up.”

“What was that?” Midoriya raised an eyebrow at you.

“Oh, nothing. Let's catch up with Bakugou."

Back on the ground, you, Midoriya, Todoroki and All Might wandered over to Endeavor and Bakugou, the two of them most likely arguing over nothing. "You could've at least let me go with Hawks to chase them down or something!" Bakugou roared. "I'm faster than him, dammit!"

"Pipe down, kid!" Endeavor roared right back.

"Like hell I will! We totally had them and you let them get away! You Pros are useless!"

In your opinion, Bakugou did have a point. Why do the Pros seem so lazy sometimes?

Endeavor pinched the bridge of his nose. "Please just let us handle this, Bakugou."

"That's exactly what I did and all of you wasted my damn time!" Bakugou screeched, quite literally sizzling. "Shigaraki was right in front of me!"

"You've got guts to argue with me, boy."

"I've got guts, balls and everything in between! You don't scare me and you never have! You just wait! I'm going to dethrone you!"

It was getting harder and harder to suppress your laughter.

Midoriya anxiously elbowed All Might. "Don't you think this is getting a little out of hand?"

All Might cleared his throat. "That's quite enough, Young Bakugou," he cut in, patting the spiky-haired teen on the back hard enough to slightly knock the wind out of him. "You did good.”

“You’ll get your chance, Kacchan,” Midoriya smiled at his classmate.

“Shut up, Deku, I didn’t ask!” Bakugou retorted, folding his arms and stomping his feet.

“You guys are giving me a headache,” Todoroki interrupted, rubbing his temples. “Can’t you just get along?”

“Sorry,” Midoriya mumbled, lowering his eyes.

“Yeah, whatever,” Bakugou grunted, shoving his hands in his costume’s pockets. “Hey, what the hell happened to Aya?”

He pointed at your arm and you shrugged. “What do you think?”

“Shigaraki, I presume.”

“Ding-ding-ding, we have a winner. My, aren’t you a smart one, Sludge Boy?"

“Knock it off, New Girl,” Bakugou snarled, investigating your arm. “I can’t say I’ve lost any limbs before, but that sucks. You get some help, ya hear me?”

“I’ll be fine. Thanks anyway.” To your right, you overheard Aizawa speaking with Principal Nezu and Present Mic. Blowing off Katsuki, you stepped away and decided to eavesdrop.

“This boy’s name is Ito Osamu,” Aizawa stated, handing Nezu what must’ve been Doppelgänger’s driver’s license.

“He appears to be in his early twenties,” Present Mic added as he held the snoring villain upright.

“See that he is brought in for questioning as well as taken to Tartarus for conspiring with the League of Villains,” Nezu demanded. “I have a feeling this is the one we’ve been searching for.”

~~~~~

Chapter 14: Is Tartarus Hiring?

[simply-yelly2]

@opal-tea and @justawfulxmenart

So this morning I was looking through folders for something else and I came across this picture that I did not finish. It was for a Kiesha'ra character and I decided to give it another go, and I just finished her a while ago.

This is my version of Sisal Cobriana, the older sister of Zane and Irene.

Call it silly, but Sisal is one of my favorite characters even though we do not ever see her in the books. The only time any of the characters talk about her is in regard to her death, which was very tragic. But surely there was more to this cobra princess than just the fact that she was killed by an enemy soldier when pregnant.

A shout out to my friend @greatmarta because I did borrow a design feature, the eyebrows. I thought it would look nice and she would also inherit the brows from her dad. But that aside, a big part of Sisal's design for me is her eyes. I wanted to give her a more reddish-gold color because the avians and cobra do share a common magical ancestor (Kiesha's magic was split and some were given to Alasdair). I feel like you might get "oops" every now and then and it might prove interesting to see how such a situation is handled. I imagine for some it does not end well, but others might get lucky. I do like the color, was inspired by saffron flower stems (what is used to get the dye for fabrics)...but I feel it looks too orange. I kind of wanted more of an illusion of sorts. Like in certain lighting, it seems like Sisal has golden eyes like a hawk.

"Avian Eyes" is a nickname used throughout Sisal's life, though never where the rest of her family can hear. Serpiente does love a good scandal, so many people wondered if the eldest daughter of Donovan and Charis was secretly sired by an Avian. This made Sisal rather self-conscious, even though she was surrounded by a loving family and supported by good friends.

Sisal wants nothing more than to have a loving mate and children of her own (though she knows there is a risk that the war will take them away much too soon) and engages in several relationships. None really last, namely because the partner can't quite get over the rumors. Sisal ends up pregnant but doesn't know who the father is. Yet she does not care, for she will raise the child on her own and has her family to help. What Sisal will not say aloud is that she wants this baby because (hopefully) they will come out a perfect cobra. Maybe that will finally convince the people that she is not a mongrel.

Unfortunately, Fate has different ideas. Anjay leaves to seek an alliance with the falcons, leaving his mother and siblings to handle the affairs back home. Zane and Gregory had both offered to go to the meeting with a trusted ally, but Sisal insisted that it would be safer if she went instead. Nobody would be mad enough to attack a pregnant woman and most shapeshifters knew the meaning of the Snakecharm worn around her neck.

The first part of the trip went well, but it was the return trip that would see a tragic end. A fight broke out and Sisal was badly wounded, having been stabbed in the stomach with a poisoned blade. Those helping her tried to save her, but when it was clear that she was beyond their means, they sought to save her child. The infant was cut from her mother's womb, but the poison and magic it contained had gotten to her first and the baby was born dead. Since Sisal had planned to name her daughter, Hai, it would later be used by her niece Oliza for her own daughter.