#I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT AOS THINKS A FAMILY IS LIKE

[dragon-kazansky]

Bridgerton shade of blue

Benedict Bridgerton x Female Reader

Benedict bumps into you, quite literally, at a ball while trying to escape his mother's attempts to find him a partner. You decide to humour him with a dance, not realising just how entwined you would become with him. It seems the universe will find every excuse to push you and Benedict together, no matter how much you fight it.

{Masterlist}

{Previous Chapter} - {Next Chapter}

Season one

Chapter Twelve - Beautiful day for a wedding

♡♡♡

The invitation arrived in your mail the very next day. You looked down at the writing of Violet Bridgerton on the letter. Daphne and Simon were to be married the very next day.

Your mother ushered you to the Modiste for a dress. You didn't have time for a new one, so she altered one you owned already. You bought a couple of new accessories and headed home.

You did not get to see the Bridgertons at all.

When you arrived at the church with your mother, you found yourself almost shocked at how few people were present, but you also supposed this was best.

On the duke's side were Lady Danbury and Will and his wife. On Daphne's was her family and you.

Benedict looked up just as you entered and smiled at you. He sat with Colin on a pew behind his mother. You smiled back and found your seat with Hyacinth and Gregory. Hyacinth made Gregory swap seats with her ao she could side beside you.

"Isn't this exciting?" She asks softly.

"Very," you smile.

"Daphne will look so beautiful in her dress," Hyacinth smiles.

"I'm certain of it."

You glance up to see Benedict still looking at you. When your eyes meet his, he turns away to talk to Colin again. You're confused by this strange little exchange, but don't dwell on it.

Violet spots you and waves at you with a smile. You return both gestures, and she turns back to Lady Danbury.

The duke stands quietly at the altar, awaiting his bride. As you look at him, you wonder what he must be thinking. From what you understand, this wasn't exactly ideal, but somehow you know, deep down in his heart, he loves Daphne.

He just needs to admit to himself.

His display to the queen, going by what Violet had said, was the most romantic declaration of love there could have ever been. You knew it had to have been true to some extent.

The sound of the door opening has everyone turning to look. You all rise when you see Anthony and the bride enter. You feel yourself gasp softly as you look at her.

Flawless.

Daphne looked beautiful. She was exactly what a bride should be on her special day. Anthony led her down the aisle. As she passed you, she gave you a small smile. She looked like she was putting on a brave face.

You smiled back and watched her pass.

Simon turns to look at his soon-to-wife. Even he couldn't deny how beautiful she is, surely.

Violet was trying so hard not to cry.

All of Daphne's family looked at her so proudly. This was the bottom she had been waiting for. The moment she would become a wife to the man she loved.

Though she had expected love to be true and pure like her parents had, for she knew the truth behind this wedding.

She practically forced Simon into it.

Anthony smiles at his sister and hands her over to Simon Bassett. The two stand beside each other while Anthony joins his mother at her pew.

You all sit.

The ceremony begins.

Hyacinth holds your hand as you watch the couple. You wonder what both of them are thinking.

They face each other. Simon holds out his hand. Daphne places her in it. He removes her long silk glove with ease. Her hand is now bare to him. He places the ring on her finger. Daphne remembers to breathe.

"I now pronounce you man and wife."

They're married.

♡♡♡

The ball after is full of life and cheer. Upbeat music plays on the violins. Though the wedding was an intimate affair, the ball was for all the ton.

Hyacinth and Gregory chase each other through the party while Daphne speaks to some of the guests.

Penelope tries to help Marina find someone other than Colin Bridgerton to marry. After all, Penelope had been in love with Colin for quite some time, though he was unlikely to view her the same way.

You laugh at something Anthony tells you on the other side of the room. Benedict comes over and looks between the two of you. "Is my brother that funny?"

"Quite, actually." You chuckle.

"At least one of us has charisma," Anthony says sipping his drink.

You laugh in the most unladylike manner and try to cover your mouth. Benedict looks at you in shock and in awe. Anthony smiles and shake his head.

"I never knew you could make such a sound," Benedict teases.

"Neither did I until now." You manage to control your laughter, ignoring anyone looking your way.

"A fascinating woman," he grins.

"I'm full of surprises. Even to myself," you smile.

Benedict looks at you curiously.

"Excuse me," Anthony says, nodding at you both and then taking his leave to catch up with someone.

You turn to Benedict only to catch him staring at someone.

"Benedict?"

"Excuse me..." He walks off but is soon cornered by the man he had seen. You sigh and decide to take a stroll of the room instead.

"A most enjoyable party," Henry Granville says to him.

"Indeed."

"Um, Bridgerton... Um... The other night..."

"What happened the other night?" Benedict asks, pretending he did not know. "I do not believe anything happened at all."

Henry chuckles softly. "Very well." A woman joins them, and Granville smiles. "Ah, dearest... I believe you know Mr. Bridgerton."

Benedict stares at the woman, recognising her from the other night. The pretty woman he enjoyed himself with.

"My wife, Mrs Lucy Granville."

Benedict chokes on his wine.

"It is a pleasure, Mr. Bridgerton." She smiles at him.

He just sips his wine and nods. "Mm."

You catch sight of Daphne staring at her husband, who stands across the room. You find this strange because you were made to believe that newly we'd couples rarely parted from each other on their wedding day. Yet, they were standing so far apart.

You were about to approach Daphne, but Anthony came up beside her. You decide to leave them both alone for now.

The conversation seems short, however, as you catch sight of Daphne fleeing the room moments later.

Violet goes after.

Wedding jitters, perhaps? Not that you would know. Would you ever know?

You find that you have circled the room completely and sigh. Benedict finds his way through the crowd and looks at you. "I apologise for that."

"Something urgent?"

"Well, not exactly. Just saw a face I knew."

"Wonderful. Where you know many faces, I know very few."

Benedict frowns. "Is something the matter?"

"Other than your family and Lady Danbury, I don't really know anyone else. Penelope seems lovely enough, but I do not know her all too well."

Benedict remains confused by you.

"Did something happen?" He asks.

"I have been all but abandoned."

"Nonsense."

You sigh. "Forgive me, I'm just tired. Weddings seem to go on for a while, don't they?"

"Can't say I've been to many."

"Do you think I'll get to experience this one day?" You ask, looking around. "Perhaps not as grand as this, but... you know."

Benedict now looks at you with slight surprise. "Of course, if that is what you want."

"I do want it." You confess quietly. "I'd like to be married one day. Not necessarily to a duke," you chuckle.

Benedict laughs, too.

"But I'd like to be a wife and a mother one day." You watch Hyacinth chase her brother around the guests.

Benedict keeps his gaze on you as he says, "one day it shall be yours."

You smile, keeping your eyes on the youngest two of the Bridgerton family.

Benedict does not drop his gaze from you.

♡♡♡

Violet insists you come them to bid Daphne goodbye as she leaves for her new home. You can only wonder how strange it must be for her to leave a place she calls home.

You stand at the back of the crowd as Daphne says goodbye to her siblings. She even hugs Eloise who looks a little reluctant for her sister to go.

Daphne then turns to you and pulls you into a hug. "Thank you," she whispers.

"What for?"

"Being there." She pulls away to look at you, placing her hands in yours softly.

You smile. "Any time. Write, won't you?"

"Of course. Regularly."

You both smile at each other, and Daphne turns around to climb into the carriage. Simon opens the door for her and climbs in after her. She looks out the window to look at her family and her, now, old home.

You wave along with the others, finding your arm looped with Anthony's as you watch the carriage disappear down the road. When it's gone from sight, Anthony escorts you back inside. Violet gushes about the entire day, and you smile as you go with her to fetch some tea.

With the guests gone, the family can relax. You had been invited to stay behind and keep them company for a while longer, and you agreed.

You sit with Violet and the family as tea is called. Anthony stays a while but then excuses himself. Violet makes a comment about him being unable to leave business even for one day.

A cup of tea is placed on the table beside you. You look up to see Benedict standing beside you with a smile.

You accept the cup and sip it. It's been made the way you like it. Benedict remembered something so mundane about you? Or was it perhaps just chance. You have taken tea with his mother before.

"My daughter, a duchess," Violet sighs happily.

"You must be very proud," you say, smiling.

"Immensly." She sips her tea.

"Daphne looked beautiful," Hyacinth says, smiling at you both from where she sits with Gregory.

"Yes," Violet smiles proudly.

You sip your tea and listen to small babble lf conversation about Daphne and where she will be living now, and what a duchess does. Hyacinth was full of questions.

Eloise slumped down in the seat beside you with a sigh.

"You alright?" You ask. She had a book held tightly to her chest.

"Just glad it's all over." She sighs again.

"Did you not enjoy seeing your sister marry?"

"It's not that. I'm very happy for Daphne and shall miss her tremendously. I'm just tired of all the fuss."

"Will it not be your turn next?" You ask.

"Please don't remind me," she screws her eyes shut and grimaces at the thought.

You chuckle softly and pat her arm gently. "You may change your mind."

"I cannot think of anything worse."

You say no more on the matter. After an hour passes, you take your leave. Your mother would be waiting at home for you. Violet calls for a carriage for you, one of their own. Benedict insists on seeing you out.

You walks down the front steps with him and approaches the carriage. The footman opens the door for you.

"Until next we meet," Benedict smiles at you.

You're about to enter the carriage when you stop and turn to him. "Where do you go at night?" You ask.

Benedict seems to freeze at your question. "Pardon?"

"At night, where do you go?"

His mouth hangs open as he tries to think about how to answer, but you keep talking before he can utter a single word.

"The other night when the duke and Lady Danbury came for dinner, you were not present. I asked Anthony about your whereabouts, but he confessed to not knowing. Not that I expect you all to know each others business all the time, but apparently, you have spent a couple nights away from home now. I am curious. Where do you go?"

Benedict really wasn't sure how to answer. Qould you think poorly of him if he told you the truth.

"Well I--"

"No, never mind. Do not tell me. It was rude of me to ask. I was just curious. Curiosity can be dangerous." You climb up into the carriage.

There's a moment of silence before the footman closes the door. Within seconds the carriage takes off towards your home.

Benedict is left standing there wishing he had said something, anything, to keep you longer.

He watches the carriage leave.

♡♡♡

@callmemana - @lilscast - @imgondeletedis - @benedictbridgertonss - @clownsdiehard - @wxnterwidow333

@sillynilly27 - @autumn-slaves - @ben-has-arrived - @ajdelilah - @aadu2173

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@ms-fandomgirl - @fablesrose - @anyaisinyourcloset - @meowzerzstuff - @orchiidflwer - @bespinnn - @crazymar15

@cosmixstar - @bree3parchen - @berrnuu - @luckily123345 - @charmainemaclendon

[agentoffangirling]

I believe the majority of us understand at this point that Thor's arc in Endgame was not handled well. And as a contrast to him, I would like to examine Mack's arc in "The Totally Excellent Adventures of Mack and the D"

Both Mack and Thor start in very similar places, the loss of a loved one. I wouldn't dare to compare their trauma, but they just managed to have a moment of peace after repeatedly shoving down their feelings to help with "the mission". Now, finally alone, they are able to confront them, and, well. Cope

And the way they both do it is undoubtedly unhealthy. Literally, because all they really do is sit around and drink beer, but also in terms of coping. I don't think I have to describe it too much, most AoS fans understand what I'm talking about

But the difference here is how they were treated. Thor's was written off completely as a joke, except for a few singular moments in which they treated it with a modicum of dignity. He's mocked by the characters, the camera angles, really only there to make the audience laugh. Mack was treated with respect. It's shown that his ways of coping are temporary and to his detriment, and we're able to see the toll his parents' death has on him. Again, I won't lecture, but "The Totally Excellent Adventures" portrays his depression much, MUCH better than Endgame Thor

Another difference is that Mack had someone by his side, Deke Shaw. They were never particularly close, but Deke understood what Mack was going through

And so he showed up for him, day after day. Left him groceries, notes, invites to come out. They were never returned, as Mack did his hardest to push him away, but that didn't matter to Deke. He still came by his doorstep because he cared about him. Because Mack was his friend. And hell would freeze over before he abandoned him

The Avengers didn't do anything like that. They were all well aware that Thor was in a bad place mentally after killing Thanos, yet they never visited him. Never came to New Asgard or sent a call asking how he was doing. The people that he fought with side-by-side for years, saw one another as "family"-- never bothered to see him

Nearly identical arcs treated entirely differently

[midnight-in-town]

Top 5 things I wish to see before Ao no Exorcist ends

(Follow up to this post)

For the record, I don't believe we are in the final arc of AnE yet.

5) For Rin to experiment or explore Gehenna and maybe meet Yuri's ghost (?) and for Takara Nemu to be revealed to be Armumahel's Nephilim

I talked about Rin going to Gehenna before and same for Nemu as a Nephilim.

Bonus point if Yukio is the one going to Gehenna instead of Rin, who wants to understand Satan's view, to parallel Rin going to the past instead of Yukio, who wanted to understand their origins so badly.

4) Shura, wielding Rin's sword, vs Arthur.

(Kind of similar to their fight during the first season's final, now that I think about it)

Arthur, as a Paladin "saved" by the Uzai family and as Lucifer's clone, is an unfortunate pawn to both the Uzai family and the Illuminati.

Whereas Shura, who recently escaped her family curse (so she can relate to Arthur's section 13 background), was never persuaded by Mephisto's bullshit as an exorcist, was Shiro's apprentice (the one clone who rebelled against Section 13 and the Order) and Rin's mentor.

Bonus points for a fight involving possessed!Arthur by Lucifer vs Shura entering a temporary contract with Mephisto (or one of his strong kins) to beat him (would echo nicely with the whole Lucifer vs Mephisto theme).

As for Shura using Rin's sword, it's simple : she's a Knight and yet her sword is almost out of massive attack possibilities, after she fought against the lust guy. So maybe she'll need to use a different sword, temporarily (and besides if Rin's ego is going to Gehenna, he'll need to leave his sword to someone he can trust).

3) Renzo rescued by Bon, Koneko and his brothers +/- Mamushi.

Because, between the Order and the Illuminati, Renzou will always choose the Myo Dha and, despite what he thinks, he's not Takezou's replacement to his family nor is he only a protector to Bon and Koneko.

Anyway, they all care so much about him, at some point he'll have to believe it, if they show him strongly enough.

I'm just not sure about Mamushi because, while I would love for her to be there and to confront Todo directly or through Homare, this might be a lot to make happen at the same time, narratively.

In any case, Juuzo is definitely worried about his brother (and not just about Bon & Koneko) in ch 152.

2) Amaimon + Shiemi vs the Uzai family from the Shemihaza faction

Because Amaimon is treated like a pawn by Mephisto & the Shemihaza faction, as much as Shiemi is a pawn to the Uzai family and the Order.

Also the whole Amaimon subservient to Shemihaza thing ? It's gotta go, it's too far in the past.

I say Shiemi is the Shemihaza who finally frees him, which would echo nicely with her gaining her own freedom for the first time after so many of her foremothers sacrificed their lives for the Order.

1) Yukio & Rin teaming up, similarly to the Yuri/Shiro incredible team during the Blue Night

I don't care if it's meant to be destroying Satan, the Illuminati or the Order (best choice would be all 3), but bonus points if Rin and Yukio also tell Mephisto & the Order to butt off, like Shiro did, when he took Yuri away.

Because, like father like sons and anyway, narratively speaking, Mephisto gotta stop using the twins as pawns after he doomed their dad.

[tavina-writes]

CQL and Genre Intertextuality

I'm being bashed over the head with the "nhs's fan in CQL is made of xuantie/dark iron" thing again and @poorlittleyaoyao please understand that I am thinking of this constantly since you made that post talking about it because I'm just.

holding my head in my hands bc ye gods the cql show writers were genre savvy in ways that are hilarious but also make me feel like I've been hit upside the head with a waffle iron.

For those of us who are no longer damaged by the post or hadn't seen it (I don't actually know where it's gone bc the search feature doesn't work on this webbed site):

Xuantie/Dark Iron is a Jin Yong created metal that famously was used for the blade of the Dragon Slaying Sabre in the third novel of the Condor Trilogy, 倚天屠龍記/The Heavenly Sword and Dragon Saber.

The Heaven Reliant Sword 倚天劍 was created from Yang Guo and Xiao Longnv's Gentleman and Lady swords, whilst the Dragon Slaying Saber 屠龍刀 was created from Grandmaster Dugu Seeking-a-Loss's Dark Iron Sword.

Can we please all take a moment to appreciate how NHS's fan not his saber, NHS, from The Family With The Sabers, gets to shout about how his fan is made of xuantie. The most famous for being the metal that made up The Dragon Slaying Saber. His fan. Not his saber. his fan. dark iron. Dragon Slaying Saber. This is so funny I'm about to mcfucking lose it yet again while typing this.

Going back to Grandmaster Dugu Seeking-A-Loss (who appears in both Return of the Condor Heroes and Xiao Ao Jianghu) and his giant pet condor (sadly, only a ROCH feature) who might've been his one true soulmate for a second, this situation from episode 7, when the Yunmeng Siblings are leaving the Cloud Recesses:

Now, the subtitles here really DO NOT do this line justice because when I first saw it it took me FLAT THE FUCK OUT and I had to lie on the floor laughing for like, 80 seconds before I got my breath back.

Okay, what this line ACTUALLY says is "I am Dugu Qiubai (Grandmaster Dugu Seeking-A-Loss), what's wrong with seeking a match?"

Now, to understand this, we come to this backstory on Dugu Qiubai in XAJH:

“Senior master Dugu Seeking-A-Loss, who created this set of sword techniques, had a name ‘Seeking-A-Loss.’ He had been seeking a loss all his life and still couldn’t get one. Once the sword techniques were executed, he would become unmatched anywhere in the world. Why would he have to defend? If anyone could have forced him to draw his sword back and defend himself, the respectful master would have burst with joy and be delighted beyond measure.” Feng Qingyang said. “Dugu Seeking-A-Loss, Dugu Seeking-A-Loss,” Linghu Chong muttered as he imagined how the senior master had wandered about the Martial World, unmatched anywhere, with only his sword, and couldn’t even find a single one who was capable of forcing him into a defending stance. That was truly admirable.

from Chapter Ten of XAJH: Sword Training.

"If anyone could force him to draw his sword back to defend himself, the grandmaster would have burst with joy and be delighted beyond measure" DO YOU SEE WHY JC STARTED CALLING WWX SHAMELESS NOW. they're JUNIORS. WWX is calling himself "the greatest man of all, who'd sought the feeling of losing just ONCE being forced to defend himself just ONCE in a LIFETIME" and saying "LWJ might be my equal. my soulmate. the loss I was seeking my whole life."

All 15 years of it I'm sure, WWX.

I'm not going to get into finding martial arts manuals or a respected grandmaster who taught you incredible things in a cave bc 1) LHC and Feng Qingyang up there are sitting together, in a cave and LHC is being taught incredible things and 2) Duan Yu from Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils once found the magic finger lasers of ultra laser in a cave. In front of the statue of a goddess. (don't talk about the dancing goddess statue now, Tav. We don't have time for that in this post.)

Not kidding the intertextuality of CQL and how much it plays with and against the tropes of its genre, especially other wuxia tv adaptations as well as wuxia novels is insane. There's other ones I'm missing for certain and these were just the most funny to me, personally, but! just! oh my god! insane! insane! SO funny, so clever in so many ways

[fakescenariosbeforesleepblog]

By fire and heart

Pt. 6

Daemma Targaryen. Second daughter of King Viserys and queen Aemma, you're the living portrait of your mother with the character of a true dragon, as a second daughter you don't have right to the throne but certainly, you will protect your sister's succession by heart. (You are one year younger than Rhaenyra.)

Warning: Credits of this images goes to whoever they belong to, I think it's to CCARMYY TikTok user! Grammatical and spelling errors, I used an online valyrian translator so if there're some errors I apologize and if you know about a good one please let me know, maybe this won't be good enough but In my head the story was a good one.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters nor do I claim to own them. I do not own any of the images used nor do I claim to own them.

Pt. 7 here

A funeral always brings bitter and uncomfortable moments and awake old memories, but is also a reunion where you can find friends, enemies, families and allies all mixed together, you can't expect everything to go well.

The uncomfortable moments start when Vaemond Velaryon gives a speech and sarcastically mentions our blood and how this one shouldn't be diluted, causing Daemon to laugh, everybody observed him but apparently not many could understand what Vaemond was trying to say, he was doing a reference about Rhaenyra's sons, or at least that's what you think he was talking about.

You warned your sister to be careful and keep her distance from your uncle, not because you want to keep them away from each other, it's because your enemies are observing all of you, expecting the next move.

You were walking around when you heard Aegon and Aemond's conversation.

- We don't have nothing in common.

- She's our sister.

- Then you marry her, Daemma is also our sister.

- I would do it if it was my duty. But it is you who will get married, not me.

- She's an idiot, Daemma was a better match for me.

- She is your future queen, forget about Daemma.

You casually passed in front of the young boys, Aegon couldn't ignore you, he walked right behind you, following you around.

- Ao sagon tolī hāeda naejot mōzugon bona olvie, lēkia. (You're too young to drink that much, brother.)

You say to Aegon while you observed happily to Rhaenyra's sons talking with Daemons daughters and with their grandparents, it's a good sign, even in dark moments you know you can count with all of them.

- I drink the exact amount, funerals are sad and a good wine is always good to help us to survive.

- I thought you were drinking with the excuse of your marriage. Congratulations by the way, I hope you and Helaena can be happy.

- Don't come up with those words, it feels like poison in my system.

- I'm not trying to make you feel in that way my boy, I'm merely accepting our destiny is not together my dear brother but you're still welcome to visit my chambers when you feel overwhelmed or alone. After all, we're friends, no?

He looks at you, you're smiling at him and the way you look at him just shows how much you adore him. You're such a liar. He doesn't say more but simply nods. You continued walking leaving him alone.

You can see your father finally talking to your uncle, you've been avoiding him since the incident with Rhaenyra. Considering the circumstances perhaps it is time to make peace with him but just when you're walking to them Daemon leaves your father's side and you catch your sister, she looks at your uncle in the same way she did a long time ago, now is not only a probable option, it's definitely, you have to make peace with him for the good of realm, for the good of your sister.

You saw Otto Hightower walking to your uncle, you walked fast to arrive before him.

- Uncle, I'm Sorry for your loss.

He observes you from head to toe and then looks at some other place.

- Daemma, Ziry emagon issare nykeā bōsa jēda (it has been a long time). Ao sagon nykeā ābra sir, ao jurnegon gevie (You're a woman now, you look beautiful).

- Perhaps I look like a woman but there's a lot of things I still have to learn about it. I owe you an apology.

- Don't. Ao istan nykeā riñnykeā, ao gōntan daor shifang. (You were a child, you didn't understand)

- Now I'm not a child and i think as an adult it is necessary to make peace with the past, after all, you were like a father to me and I've been missing you.

You looked at him with some tears in your eyes, you can't deny it, you missed him. While he gave you a little smile and nodded, accepting your apology.

-Moreover, issa mandia se nyke jāhor jorrāelagon... someone... kostōba rȳ īlva paktot. (my sister and I will need... someone... strong at our side).

In a flash of an eye, you were hugging him, you missed him, a lot, the man who raised you. He returned the hug quickly and whispered in your ear.

- Ao kostagon ūñagon va issa. (You can count on me)

Both agreed in silence and he walked away. You were observing him when your sister's voice made you gasp.

- Send the kids to bed, please Sister.

You jumped when you heard your siste, she walked on the way to the beach where you saw your Uncle going too, you got angry for a moment, why does she never listen? You're sure someone already saw where she was going you already can hear the whispers full of rumors, you did as she asked you to do.

You were looking for Rhaenyra but instead of her, you found Aegon, he was sitting at the stairs, clearly drunk.

- Aegon, stand up.

- I saw you, why do you look for him...

He murmured. You sighed, you had a lot for one day to now handle a drunk teenager, luckily, Otto Hightower appeared at your back, you heard his steps and simply observed him, he neglected with his head, he's as pissed as you.

You were leaving when you felt Aegon pulling up the skirt of your dress murmuring to not leave him, you decide to continue walking, leaving him with his grandfather. Suddenly Aemond's face appears in front of you, he's looking for Aegon.

- Brother.

He says while he looks at the two men behind you.

- Let's go Aemond, Aegon does not feel well.

You walked with him while the sad roaring of Vhagar echoes around the land, the big shape hidden in the clouds makes the day look even more dark and Aemond leaves your side to observe the dragon's shadow. You heard Otto yelling at Aegon.

- Get up and go to sleep!.

Moments later Laenor appears also a little drunk and sobbing, it's understandable from him but still it is not the proper thing to do.

For you that was enough, you needed to rest, you decided to go to your chambers and sleep. You were writing some letters to send to the north when you saw a giant dragon passing by, flying in front of your window, the wind made your candles turn off.

«I need lights please, Guida!» you asked one of your maidens, you weren't thinking about why or who could be flying on a dragon at these hours, you weren't prepared for another issue to end the day.

A quick knock on your door and your guard appearing without waiting for your response.

- My princess, something happened between your nephews and one of the queen's sons. Your presence is requested since we can't find your sister.

You didn't waste time and leave your bedroom. When you arrived the king and his wife were there, the children and some guards, everyone except for your sister, her husband and your uncle.

You quickly approached to Aemond but Alicent stopped you, silently pushing you away. So you went to your nephews and your uncle's daughters, checking if they were as hurt as Aemond while the King was demanding for answers.

- The prince was attacked by his own cousins.

- You swore to protect me and my family!

- I'm sorry, your grace but we never defeated a prince from another.

The news of Aemond's lost eye was echoing in the room when Alicent smacked Aegon's face. He quickly observes around looking for you, you've seen that face before, those sad eyes that beg for some help.

Corlys and Rhaenys arrived and Rhaenys went directly to the girls, right behind them was your sister who ran to the boys.

The scandal starts when all the children want to say their own version about what happened.

You only could hear Jace saying «He called us bastards».

The king demanded Aemond to say the truth while Alicent accused Lucerys of trying to kill her son, you started to feel fire going up to your head while Rhaenyra confessed the boys were called bastards and they were merely defending themselves.

Alicent's attitude makes your blood boil more every time she intervenes, you don't know how long you will control yourself. Your father simply wants the boys to apologize between them, but Alicent is not pleased.

- That is not enough, aemond has lost an eye (...)

- I can't return his eye (...) what do you want me to do?

- There's a debt that must be paid. I want an eye from her son.

You quickly placed yourself in front of Lucerys while Rhaenyra hugged him an Jacaerys.

Everybody exchanged concerned looks while the King was trying to calm his wife.

- If the king doesn't want to make Justice, the queen will. Ser Criston, bring me the eye of Lucerys Velaryon.

Ser Criston doubts for a second but you know the man would do it happily, you already have your own dagger in your belt. You will not let that man get close to the boy.

- Don't you dare Sir. Criston, or you will not live to see another day.

You simply say and the man looks again at the queen and king.

- I'll let him choose which one, a privilege my son didn't have.

Lucerys was afraid and Rhaenyra was telling him no one would do such a thing when you talked again.

- I'll give the eye the queen demands, I'll sacrifice myself, but she will have to come and take it by herself.

You look at Alicent, defiant, you show and offer her your dagger she observes you confused and angry, you know she will lose her patience soon and that appearance she shows to everyone about being devoted to her duty and always doing the right thing will fall at any second it is just necessary to push her a little bit more.

- Enough!

Your father demands and you stop, stepping back.

There are some exchanging words, between Alicent, Ser Criston and your father. Your father was declaring and warning no one was allowed to talk or doubt about the legitimacy of Rhaenyra's children, when Alicent took your father's dagger and ran to Rhaenyra who was already walking to leave the room.

You heard your father calling her and quickly put the boys behind you while Rhaenyra walked to Alicent. Her rage makes her hard to handle but your sister tries her best, Lucerys yells terrified and you hug him.

You saw Criston walking to the two women and before he could, your uncle appeared just in time to stop him.

Suddenly, your sister falls against Corlys, your father's dagger is on the floor while Alicent looks in horror at your sister's forearm.

Silence, just some baby steps can be heard in the room, Aemond walks in front of both women, looking at his mother.

- Don't feel sorry for me, it's a fair exchange, I've lost an eye but I've won a dragon.

Those words, mature enough for a child were the end of that bitter night, the claim of Vhagar was the drop that spilled the glass, that was the moment when silently everyone confirmed who they would support, Green or black.

For the greens it was a victory, Aemond brought the biggest dragon to their side, but the blacks haven't moved their piece yet.

The night vanished, and the sunlight was filling every room, you were at your sister's chamber helping her with the boys while her forearm wound was being cleaned. Laenor appeared, he clearly didn't have a clue about the night y'all had. Your sister asks all of you to leave the room and everyone disappears as fast as possible.

During the afternoon, your sister asked you to go with her and Daemon, she was going to propose something important.

«I can't confront the greens by myself» (...) «We're fire»

The next thing you knew, it was your uncle and your sister would get married, Laenor would fake his own death, a quick one with a few people, all that to escape and live the life he really wanted. Of course the entire kingdom would murmur and blame Rhaenyra for Laenor's death, but only some of you will know the truth, not the enemy, they will believe whatever they want and at the end they will just fear.

A not so secret wedding was celebrated, and the news of the warrior princess flying to the north gave something to talk about, something to worry about.

[aingeal98]

More aos rambles but I find it so interesting that Coulson, despite being the one May and Daisy look to as a man with a good heart when they themselves feel like monsters, is the one who would risk everything including other people to save them. Like if Daisy is in danger and the only option to save her is a plan where every other agent has a 95% chance of dying, he's doing it. And he's very openly hypocritical about it to the point that everyone else calls out his double standards. Mace saying "When it comes to May and Daisy you can't be objective." and Lincoln and May pointing out how he'd sacrifice every inhuman but never Daisy. Like he cares very deeply about Fitz and Simmons but he makes decisions that puts them at risks that I just can't see him doing if it was Daisy. And Coulson very rarely feels bad about it, he stands by his hypocrisy and desire to protect his daughter. Even when it comes to Daisy's own wishes, he cares too much to let her sacrifice herself.

Meanwhile May doesn't love Daisy any less, quite possibly even loves her more by the end of the series, but she also is just more... understanding and respectful of Daisy's autonomy and wishes. Like if Daisy were to die or sacrifice herself May would never recover, would be the last to leave the grave side. But at the same time she wouldn't risk every agent to save her, choosing instead to believe in Daisy's ability to beat the impossible like she's done time and time again. And I don't think she would have knocked Daisy out to drag her home when she was scared of ending the world. She would have stayed with her, and that would likely have been what twisted Daisy's arm to get her home. 'If you're going to be stupidly sacrificial and stay then so am I, because we're too alike. I know how you think and I know that's how to checkmate your self destructive impulses.'

I'm not saying one is morally better than the other, they're both just parents who love their kid and want to protect her. But Coulson, who's viewed by most people as essentially just some suit with a good heart, would order every man he commands to fight a suicide battle if it was the only way to keep Daisy alive. Meanwhile May would be first in line to fight that battle, and she would win! But she would never drag anyone else down. She's as practical and ruthless as Coulson, even more so sometimes. But having been the one to train Daisy, her protection comes in the form of unshakeable belief in the good Daisy is capable of, and a gentle but solid place to rest whenever things don't go as planned. If she thinks Daisy's making a mistake she'll say it to her face, but she's more... open, than Coulson is, to letting Daisy fumble around and find her own way. She'll still be there to beat up anyone that threatens her kid and offer wisdom in the aftermath, but it's less impulsive than Coulson.

Coulson idolizes Captain America as a hero for the same heroic traits he sees in May and Daisy. He believes that they are Special people, and they must go on even if he doesn't. But those very same traits that makes them so special in his eyes are what makes them feel like they have to be the one to jump on the grenade and protect their team, all while Coulson is trying to keep them as far away from the grenade as possible. And they both see a goodness in him and in each other that they don't believe they posses themselves. They're all somewhat correct and also all a little blinded by how much they love each other, but that's just how families are.

[alipeeps]

Episode 26

"We've caught the demon". Pretty fucking sure you haven't cos uhhh... she literally rocked up with an umbrella for Li Lun at the end of the last episode...

Mmm and if that *isn't* Ao Yin... is it another of Wen Zongyu's demon hybrids, that's been given the shapeshifting power?

(Ooooh and if that's the case, was that even Ao Yin that they went chasing after - that Chongwu camp pointed out? Or was it just their pet shapeshifter pretending to be her? And pointing her out was designed to make the gang chase off after her. Just another part of their plan to make sure Zhuo Yichen/Demon Hunting Bureau got villified/distrusted by the populace.

Called it.

Is she sitting up waiting for Zhuo Yichen to come home?

Oh give him a hug ffs, you both need it...

Meanwhile Zhao Yuanzhou is roaming the halls like a restless, lonely ghost...

Ugh the soft almost smile as he looks as Zhao Yuanzhou...

He wasn't prepared for that. And he also didn't want that - for Zhuo Yichen to have to have the experiences that would make him understand what it has been like for Zhao Yuanzhou.

Oh dang..

My fucking heart...

When the drama straight up goes "Found family? Hell yes. Explicitly yes. Yes."

But he still wants to die of course...

"Wo men yi qi"

Scuse me, officer? I need to report a crime? Yes, this show is trying to murder me.

Oh dang, Zhao Yuanzhou is now putting his coat round every member of his polycule, one by one...

Zhao Yuanzhou you are such a git. I love you.

Yeah he did... but you cut him off.

Shitttt this is too fucking tender. This is killing me.

OMG the camera acting as her POV and her glance drifting down to his neck...

I am dead. This is my ghost typing this.

Oooh I was literally just thinking last night.. they've fixed the baize token, surely they should make it a priority to restore the wilderness?

OMG it that Bai Jiu mama coming back to life?!!!

Holy shit after all the angst and pain of the previous episode, this one is like a fucking warm bath of emotion.

(Which almost certainly means the show is going to rip my heart out again VERY soon, right? Like they're doing this just to make it all the more painful when they reach into my chest and crush my very soul...)

Oh what the fuck?!!

Don't you fucking hurt my boy Ying Lei!! Don't you DARE!!

I thought you said it wasn't easy to break a mountain god's barrier, Ying Lei?!

Oooh was that Xiao Jiu's powder that slows down/weakens demons?

So he's bought the gang some extra time by slowing Li Lun down...

Well that certainly doesn't bode well...

Ooooh so if you had one wish Yichen, what would it be? Turn yourself human again... or save Zhao Yuanzhou....

Well shit.

(However, if there is no need to pursue them into the Bingyi Clan's forbidden area, then why the fuck did you rock up to pursue them in the first place, Li Lun?)

That sounds like a REALLY FUCKING BAD IDEA, Zhuo Yichen!!

You tell him, Wen Xiao! It's found FAMILY, Zhuo Yichen, not found I'mma-nobly-do-this-shit-all-on-my-own!

Well said Sijing.

Oh fuuuuuck. Zhao Yuanzhou. You're fucking killing me here!

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh

Oh god, and the way Wen Xiao immediately looks at Zhao Yuanzhuo with hope... like please, please say yes Zhao Yuanzhou, please say you'll live...

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCKKKK

He's spent so long seeking death... and he's willing to give that up.... because Zhuo Yuanzhou asked him to.

(Oh god, he's definitely going to die at the end, isn't he? It's going to destroy me)

Ha! Wen Xiao pulling rank on Zhuo Yichen! AND on Zhao Yuanzhou!

FUCK. FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK.

Oh fuck, is it Ying Long?!!

Oh fuck, one of them has to stay there?

Oh dang, it's asking him to sacrifice one of the team...

This is Zhuo Yichen you're dealing with here. If the choice is sacrifice one of his team or die himself (due to not fixing the Cloud Light Sword), then he'll choose to die himself. Every time.

Uhoh, it's trying to freeze all of you!

Ohhh the way he just so calmly and casually wraps his hand around Zhao Yuanzhou's hand to forestall his one word spell.

What do you think he's gonna do? He's gonna choose to sacrifice himself.

What the FUCK? He has pre-written goodbye letters to Wen Xiao?!!

This episode is destroying me. They are just constantly fucking verbalising their care and feelings for one another and... how... how am I supposed to just sit here and survive that?

Yesssss Zhao Yuanzhou....

But what's the point if they both die? Or is he trying to take Zhuo Yichen's place?

The fuuuuuuck what a visual!!

And after all that... they still don't even have the way to mend the sword? And who's gonna mend it anyway?!

Holy SHIT this episode was incredible and I am emotionally exhausted.

[ladystarksneedle]

A fool for you

Aemond x niece reader

Summary: A princess longs for more, mourning a loss through time

Word count: 980

Next>

Masterlist

“Final tribute, to the health of my nephews”

The words still ring in her ears as he storms out of the hall, leaving her behind yet again. She locks eyes with the woman in front, a flicker of understanding passing between them before she rushes to follow, her mother's pleas falling on deaf ears.

She doesn't call out to him as she sees him retreating into the depths of the Keep, knowing his uncanny awareness of her pursuit. As she rounds the corner trying to close the distance between them he whirls around trapping her against the wall nearby.

“What part of go to your chambers do you not understand” he growls shoving her further “Or do you wish to continue this ordeal further.”

“Keligon ziry” she pleads looking up at him. (stop it)

“Jikagon arlī. Gaoman daor jaelagon naejot ȳdragon naejot ao” he says releasing her with a frustrated grunt, lip quivering in anger. (go back, I do not wish to speak to you)

“You will not escape me qyybor, not like this,” she speaks, reaching for his arm as he moves away. “Not after what you've said tonight.”

“Do you wish to dispute the truth yet again” he laughs cruelly “It is plain for all to see.”

“Why didn't you include me in your toast then” she counters.

“Is that what bothers you? My exclusion of you in a jest” he smirks incredulously.

“Your dismissal of me, yes, continuing as if I don't exist.”

“Don't”

“Don't what” she exclaims, closing the distance between them “Why are you so intent on breaking whatever peace we may have between our families.”

“You are a fool to think there'll ever be anything but contempt between us”

“There was long ago,” she says, searching his eye for the memories that haunt her.

“What do you have to say for this” he grits, removing the eyepatch adorning his face.

She looks at the injured socket in pain, brilliant blue glinting in the dark.

“Iksan vaoreznuni” she says tears filling her eyes. (I am sorry)

“I do not want your pity” he spits, “The peace you pray for is long gone. There can be nothing that can bring it back.”

“I did not wish for this.”

“You did nothing to stop it either” he says scornfully.

“I was a child” she all but screams “We were children, I cared for you, I didn't know what to do.”

“You made your choice years ago, now you must live with it” he says dismissively, her name on his tongue cutting her just as deeply.

“Kostilus” she says pulling his face towards her “ You've known what is in my heart since we were young, I wish for you to see it still.”

“Ȳdra daor gaomagon bisa naejot aōla. Nothing good can come out of this” (don't do this to yourself)

“Are you concerned about the goodness in my actions now?”

“Someone must keep you in check,” he says reluctantly, leaning towards her.

“I've missed you” she whispers as he touches his forehead to hers, wrapping his arms around her waist. She feels him hum in response as he pulls her closer.

“I've heard you are to be betrothed” he whispers against her, stroking her head as he speaks.

“So are you, if the rumors are true. Another task you'd excel at” she says, voice tinged with jealousy. She feels him grin against her in pleasure as she scoffs in turn.

“Where are you to be sent?”

“Trying to extract more from me? I'm not as much of a fool as you think I am”

“Only in matters of the heart then” he says, pulling back to look at her.

She gulps in response as she looks at his face tinged with remorse and awe.

“I wish you'd feel the same”

“And it seems you've proven me wrong byka mittys” he chuckles. The name stings as she feels a tear slip past. (little fool)

“Must I say it now” he says, wiping it off swiftly.

She looks at him in earnest before burying her head in his chest, rumbling with laughter.

“They won't have meleqeldlie cakes there, it's too cold for anything good to thrive.”

She whips her head back in response, staring at him in confusion.

“Orange cakes” she whispers, realization dawning on her. “They think I-”

“Love lemon” he finishes. “A simple mistake yet it has caught on quite well, has it not”

“You remember”

“Well, a six year old girl clinging to my leg demanding I give up my share lest she stop crying isn't something you'd forget.”

“There are many six year olds running about now”

“None as troublesome as you” he smirks.

“I remember it differently. I didn't cry that much, merely asked for them”

“Demanded”

“Asked politely”

“There was nothing polite about your request”

“You admit it was a request then”

“A plea rather”

“I accept”

He hums in response as she chuckles happily “It is my first memory of us at that dreaded feast. I know there have been more but that has remained with me still, not because of those orange cakes and thank you for that” she laughs “But because you were the only one who was kind to me, who checked up on me when everyone left” she says tearfully “I am sorry”

The word hangs between them, as he gazes back at her “Consider it my tribute to you”

“Orange for every time you think of me?” she giggles wiping her eyes.

“Orange, for when you haunt me the most”

She clutches the scroll in her palms, pressing her nails deeper into her broken skin as she sits before the hearth. The tears on her cheeks glinting in the flames ahead as they dance mockingly in orange, a fitting tribute for her brother lost to the seas.

Taglist: @witheredoffherwitch @arcielee @chompchompluke @barbieaemond @watercolorskyy

[bingqian243]

Nezha y Li Jing

So, I read a Reddit post about Nezha's story and I started to think about how this makes sense to what the father-son relationship between Nezha and Li Jing is like in the LMK series.

I analyze this now because I almost never found a specific source for the story of our lotus prince without it being heavily censored to make it "act for the general public" (the Chinese writers of before did not mince their words when narrating) and I found this reddit post thanks to someone sharing it here was great.

But back to the matter. Nezha in his story is narrated as a temperamental child who caused problems without stopping, putting his family in constant danger. The clearest example was the incident of the Dragon Kings when they killed Ao Bing. This always led to his father, Li Jing, having to show his face since Nezha did not take the seriousness of his actions seriously. He only realizes that he took things too far because the Dragon Kings returned enraged to kill his family, standing in front and paying "an eye for an eye" to appease the anger of these guys.

There is a part of the story where Nezha asks his mother in a dream to build a shrine for him and she does it secretly from her husband, because he flatly refused for fear of offending those dragons again. But the secret doesn't last and the guy destroys it, causing Nezha to become blinded with rage and chase him down to end his life.

Yes, the boy wanted to finish off his father. Thanks to Buddha it did not happen because a monk and one of his older brothers stand in the way and the monk makes Nezha swear to be in harmony with his father.

Now with all that in context, we can understand why Li Jing is so harsh towards Nezha in the series. Imagine having dealt with a son who was this problematic and who also almost killed you, deep down you must still hold a grudge but above all, fear of this son. And her response is to be like that with him because she only sees that version of Nezha.

On the other hand we have this much more mature Nezha and we can see that he learned from his mistakes. But he also has a distance from his father and probably tries to prove himself better both in his position as a Celestial warrior, guardian of the Samadhi fire map and obeying as a son.

That also led me to think about his relationship with Wukong. I don't really understand how they got along during the monkey pilgrimage, but Nezha probably resents Wukong's attitude because it reminds him a little of his past, but it could also be jealousy of the monkey because he didn't have to completely change everything about him. how he had to do it. Wukong, even with everything against him, was able to maintain his essence, something that Nezha could not. So it may be projecting (this last one is just my ramblings, don't pay too much attention).

Anyway, it's good that Li Jing was able to put aside his pride when the world was falling apart and apparently he is already seeing his son in a better light (and as such his efforts) and not that demonic version that persecuted him in the past.

I will leave the link of the publication for those who are interested, I had to summarize only the important points but Nezha made many more disasters than the one with the dragons xD

https://www.reddit.com/r/Smite/comments/2an1c8/myth_mondays_with_capslockfury_nezha_is_actually/

That's all, goodbye. 🙏💖💖💖

[imminent-danger-came]

here you go www.reddit.com/r/MonkieKid/comments/1dnuekm/monkie_kid_villain_fates_massive_spoilers_for_all/

(link)

Honestly, I was only able to make it halfway through the first Macaque paragraph before having to stop. This person seems to have one: no concern for the time restraints placed on lmk, and two: no understanding of what the writers find important to focus on versus what they find important to focus on.

Like, complaining that we never went back to the Dragon Palace of the East is a ridiculous criticism to me (and that's as someone who is an Ao Guang fan). We saw that a large portion of the world was taken over by LBD, so it stands to reason the same thing happened to the East Palace, and everything ended up fine after LBD was stopped in 3x14. There were just other (arguably more important) uses of time.

And like, saying "Macaque doesn't try to make amends" is objectively wrong—he is literally a part of the final stand against LBD, putting everything (which for him is his 2nd chance at life) on the line to fight with MK and go along with his plan. That's the arc: Macaque goes from wanting to be "on the winning side" to letting MK "win" (and himself "lose" by proxy). It's the "win/lose" motif man. It was a change brought about from MK refusing to abandon Mei in 3x10—that moment completely upended Macaque's worldview and pulled him outside of his obsession with Wukong.

I kinda skimmed later parts of the rant, and claiming that everyone "immediately forgave" Macaque is also off to me. The way Macaque is treated is the same way the Demon Bull Family has been treated: as long as you're not continuing to cause problems (and sometimes even help solve problems), we don't have issues with you. The MK + the Gang doesn't have a need for "justice" or "retribution" or whatever, because they have more important uses of their time, like trying to live normal lives you know. That's where their goals are.

Though honestly, I loved how bitter MK was towards Macaque in s4 ("Stop! If you're just trying to mess with me" "Oh! Thanks Macaque! Congrats, you went to more effort than usual to make me feel like dirty dirt dirt. Good job, round of applause.") My take from s4 is that MK hadn't let his past with Macaque go. I think post s4-special, as MK is further entrenched in his "good guy" "bad guy" mentality and his need to make Wukong blameless, it wouldn't surprise me if that extends to Macaque, too. Acknowledging Macaque's past wrongs would also mean acknowledging Wukongs, and...well, MK isn't ready for that. Wukong is the legendary Monkey King, and now Macaque's redeemed himself! There are no more issues! (There are definitely issues)

Sooooooooooooooooo we'll just have to see!

[starsfic]

May I request Wukong looking at Mei and seeing echoes of his dear old friend Ao Lie and slowly realizing that she’s his reincarnation

Anon: "you think im calm but it's actually more like 'i dont give a fuck'"

At first, he assumed it was just because she was his granddaughter.

Ao Lie would sometimes joke about how the fang that stuck out when he smiled was an unfortunate family trait. The hair, soft and silky, was a better trait. Wukong, of course, would agree about the hair and disagree with the fang. It made Ao Lie look charming, and Wukong found himself struck in the heart with how adorable his smile was with that fang, unable to resist the urge to kiss his sworn brother.

Traits were passed down.

Her personality was what made him pause. It wasn't exactly like Ao Lie, it reminded him more of his sister. The same sister once threatened to skin him alive. She also gave the hilarious comment of "You think I'm calm but it's actually more like 'I don't give a fuck'" to a married woman panicking that her lipstick was smeared after kissing her lover.

Still, there was bits of Ao Lie there. She was kind and supportive, in a way that threatened to kill anyone who bothered the people they loved. (Ao Lie was quieter about that part.) She gave off an illusion of being an airhead who didn't quite understand what was going on, which was every enemy's mistake.

The realization hit him then. Sun Wukong was tempted to let the grief overtake him again, but he stopped.

Their time together was one of the favorite times in his long life.

He hoped that she had one of those relationships in her own life, one where she loved the other person so much, but still let go when it came time.

It was the least she deserved.

[beevean]

I'm here to vent to someone because I can't find nfcv-saltmine, but yeah why do some people have to be like this. They completely shit on the source material of the adaptation they watch.

Richter in Castlevania has plenty of depth, he literally had an identity crisis in SotN and acknowledged that he can't be trusted with the vampire killer anymore so he entrusted it to someone else. He showed massive amounts of maturity and humility but wasn't a push over

They deleted their blog. I know them, and they said they just didn't like being too negative and how people used their askbox as a way to bitch about fans. I understand, the fans should be left outside of the discussion.

Now, I have no intention of simply pointing at OP in the screenshot and going "lol look at this idiot". So, if you expect me to do so, I ask you to not share screenshots. But I understand your frustration, not just because "show great games poopoo" which is the bread and butter of r/castlevania, but because the dissonance at work here is fascinating. "I hate when people insult show Richter! They don't understand Richter as a character at all! They clearly didn't play the games! Which were so badly written and thankfully fixed by the show! Stupid purists!"

N!Richter is not Richter. The two have different themes. Richter struggled with the knowledge that, after killing Dracula at 18, his life became essentially meaningless, and because of this, Shaft was able to turn him into a puppet to resurrect Dracula, which filled him with so much shame that the Vampire Killer was passed onto another family for centuries. N!Richter is currently battling both with the grief for his mother and the fear that the Belmonts as a whole aren't needed anymore - and the Belmonts have no legacy in the show, let alone a Dracula-killing one, so there's no way they could properly recreate his corruption arc... which, in fact, is going to N!Maria, apparently. I am still baffled that game fans are still waiting for the show to suddenly snap back into game canon and give us a proper SoTN adaptation, or god forbid an AoS one. it reminds me so much of those poor saps who were sure that N!Hector would have become a gigachad in S4 so that they could finally get the long-awaited CoD adaptation. yeah, about that. I know it would be better if the two factions weren't so neatly separated and at war with each other, but as far as I'm concerned, the show itself decided to drift further and further away from the games to the point where now they just can't be the same story.

I have come to accept that many game fans, especially the older ones, simply don't care about their story. They enjoy the gameplay and think the Belmonts are cool, but reduce every game to "jumping on platforms and whipping candles and killing Dracula over and over". Only on Tumblr I've seen this intense dedication for nearly every character, even the most neglected ones: here people do like analyzing the writing and spreading the word that it's more complex than it lets on! But on the other side, as I keep saying, discussion about Nocturne in particular has been uniquely poisoned due to genuinely bigoted dudebros who don't even bother to hide that they hate N!Annette because she's black or N!Richter because "he's a pussy" (same with N!Hector, after all, who to this day is victim blamed for being stupid). So when this person snarks about the triggered purists, I know which type they're talking about.

Criticizing the shows is one thing, but when it comes to the fandoms, I admit I'm rather burned out. I see the same thing with Sonic, people endlessly shitting on the games because they like the comics or movies more for their "improvements", and it becomes a litany of "this adaptation i like is good because the source sucks lolololololol". What else can I say about it? There's no point in sharing screenshots to point at someone and laugh, unless there's a bigger argument to be made like I tried to make here. So I want to be clear on this. Don't use me as a megaphone just to bitch about specific people, please.

[daisyjonesgf]

i’ve been stuck in my thoughts for ages about this so hear me out.

So we know about reader seeing Conway’s family when she gets back from the games- the way they stare at her, their beautiful son’s killer. but image reader seeing her friends for the first time when she’s back. Becket, Tallulah, ect (sorry if any of this is spelt wrong it’s midnight and for some reason my hands won’t stop shaking😭)

I think it would be so bittersweet for all of her friends. The sweet girl everybody in District 4 likes, the sweet girl who helped all of her friends in their time of need even if it wasn’t reciprocated, the sweet girl who survived. Yet, the same sweet girl who survived is the same one who deceived and killed her best friend.

I have no clue what her friends would even say😭 It’s obvious that there would be some people who couldn’t see her the same way, but her own friends?

Like I always imagine Beckett and reader to have a really close relationship pre-reaping. Cause i totally feel that Beckett is that one friend who has no safety awareness and would do the stupidest shit, especially if it was to get a laugh out of reader. I just imagine him to be such a goofy guy and Tallulah would always be the one to insult him for it. I can just imagine them as a cute lil trio, but the question is, would that trio fade into a duo after reader comes back home?

ITS SO SAD TO THINK ABOUT BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY SHE HAS FINNICK BUT SHE NEEDS HER BEST FRIENDS TOO😭

I can just imagine Finnick’s heart breaking as he watches his sweet girl get socially isolated when she comes back, he’d watch her say that she deserves it and his heart would just shatter. Never in a million years would she deserve it, loosing all of her remaining friends because they can’t fathom what it’s like to be in the arena. They can’t sympathise or understand at all because they just don’t have the experience she has, so they have to resort to the knowledge that they already know. The knowledge that tells them that she’s a monster because she deceived her best friend and then killed him, even if it was for survival.

PLEASE IM BEHHINH ITS SO SAD

-🌺anon

so I believe that district 4 gets away with so much because they're so rich and the Capitol can funnel in so much propaganda, not as much as 1 & 2, but especially for the people who are more well off, the games are somewhat glorified. and I envision beckett and tallulah being victims of this to a certain extent. finnick presents himself as being fine, he parties, he acts like a normal rich young playboy, so it feeds into the narrative that all winning does is make you rich, powerful, but I don't think it serves as an incentive for either of them to volunteer because they aren't the type of people who long for more then the privileged lives they already have.

ao basically I don't necessarily think they isolate her, but I think she isolates herself because of her perception of the situation. she hates herself, thinks she deserves to suffer, that everyone should hate her the way she does, and so she convinces herself that everyone's putting on a facade because she has wealth now, not because they still care about her as a person. so she puts on a face at parties, but draws away otherwise. in the first year or so she probably only interacts, on a day to day basis, with finnick and just enough with her family to support them financially.

finnick tries to get her to spend time with mags, but for a while she won't, the first time she does she sits there in silence until she starts bawling. he doesn't like beckett much but he tries to help him open back up to her, and he does enjoy talullah's company, so he'd invite them over for dinner just try to mediate.

but once he's making dinner and tells her he's invited people over she's pissed and freaking out

"what do you mean? finnick, please, I can't act tonight, just me and you, please"

"you don't have to act, angel, you haven't talked to people in months. they're your friends and worried about you because they care."

"no they don't! how can anybody care about me after what they watched me do? look what I do to my friends."

"I care about you."

"tell them not to come."

"then you'll come to the market with me tomorrow."

"finnick-"

"you're gonna have to pick something because I'm not going to let you rot away anymore. I love you and I need you to take care of yourself, you need to talk to people."

"finn, I'm fine, I just need you."

and he wants to fold for his sweet girl so bad but he has to be strong because he has to get her on a path to healing, it was okay at first, but way too much time has passed and it can't become permanent. so he's clenching his jaw, rubbing his forehead, taking a deep breath, ignoring her pleading eyes.

"they're coming."

"I'll lock myself in the bathroom."

and then he's crying because he just wants to help his sweet girl and his heart aches. he doesn't want to be sobbing the way he is, but it's like he can't stop. it's overwhelmed his senses. and then she's flooded with guilt again and she's crying too.

"I'm sorry I'm so difficult, you deserve better."

and then his heart hurts more when he goes to hug her, to comfort her and she's stepping away because she refuses to accept said comfort. and there's a silence besides the simmering food and sniffling tears before he's able to compose himself enough.

"mags, the market, or dinner? you choose, but you have to choose now or they will come. "

they both know he's strong enough to stop her from running into the bathroom so there's another silence. before she's slowly, shamefully walking towards him, carefully grabbing his hand and tracing up his arm.

"you've already started dinner and it's too late to cancel."

she's muttering it looking at the floor and he can't help but suddenly feel so relieved and ecstatic, so hopeful

"really?"

his voice glimmering so slightly and she's nodding, continuing her patterns up his arm before he's hugging her with all of his warmth. and he's filled with excitement because she's taking a step, she's trying. and it's a rough night, but she tries. the conversation gets awkward and clunky, but she talks, and by the end of the night she's a little less sure her friends despise her.

it still takes nearly two years for her to just be friends again, but she makes small steps through the storm.

and also beckett and tallulah totally end up getting married years later and reader is a bridesmaid, so she does eventually once again become a pretty functioning member of society, up until the quarter quell.

[midnight-in-town]

Hey, what are your thoughts on the recent chapters of Ao No Exorcist?

Hey Anon ! Good ask, sorry I've been rather quiet about AnE lately !

To be quite honest, I never really care for the stereotypical Shonen battle type of arc, but more for its many outcomes. And since Kato-sensei is publishing slowly, I'm aware it could take some time to reach more interesting (to me) chapters.

But since you asked ;) I loved Lucy vs Iblis and it emphasized with yet another example that demons ought not to be considered too different from humans (in that example, because they share the concept of "dreams").

Afterwards, Egyn vs Beel taught us that the bonds between the Baals are more complex than the simple explanation provided by Mephisto a long time ago. It's not...

but rather

...

I'm just kidding.

Or am I ? :) But actually, since AnE is extremely family-oriented in its themes, I really found it cool to finally see it also applied to the Baals.

I mean, Lucifer and Mephisto can claim grand things like, "it's about siding with or against humanity", but in reality, all Baals' ego awakening meant they all refused to abandon their corporeal reality centuries ago, making them all more human in their reactions, feelings and dynamics.

It's why Iblis treated Egyn like a child, or why Beel was angry that Egyn would choose to hurt her rather than hurt Iblis...

and why Egyn collaborated with the Illuminati, because he felt sorry to witness the other Baals' powers destroying their corporeal vessels:

Mostly, Egyn vs Beel showed that long sibling rivalry can be solved (*winkwink* Rin & Yukio, Shima and his siblings) and also that this whole conflict (like every conflict) comes from different truths..

...bringing us back to Rin's ambivalence towards Satan.

As for the latest chapter, well, it kind of convinces me that the reason I don't really care for this typical battle arc is because I think it's a red herring by Kato-sensei. Or, to be more accurate, that it's definitely not what's really at stake here.

I mean, let's get this straight, Shiemi sacrificing herself and dying ? When we don't even know what's up between her and that creep Jeremiah ? No way.

In fact, Shiemi is likely to be the character with the biggest plot armor after Rin and Yukio and "losing to Amaimon" is definitely making me believe that this battle is not what we should focus on. Rather...

...alternate realities make for a better subject to ponder on. :))

After all, isn't it how this one big battle arc started ? With Satan's unleashed literal hell destabilizing Mephisto's powers ?

Space and time becoming unstable triggered a future that we witnessed, "two years later", with most people being dead, Paku being forced to work as an exorcist and Rin being the Demon King of the faction opposed to the Order.

Supposedly Mephisto fixed it before the battle began, but...

I'd never trust Mephisto "having some fun", like, ever :

Especially not after Beel explaining that this conflict between the True Cross Order and the Illuminati goes both ways,

And specifically not when I still have my doubt about Mephy being the big bad (and not Satan), as far as the Okumura twins are concerned.

In other words, with Amaimon saying that Shiemi beat him in a different reality so "it doesn't count", or Shiemi saying "there is no freedom" in this world, it makes me suspect that we should see further beyond the plain "one side fights another". Especially when, at its core, AnE illustrates that the more power one (person / being / organization) has, the more corrupted everything around them becomes (see the Baals, Satan and their many deteriorating vessels).

So, rather than trusting in Mephisto's fun, I'd rather trust in Rin, who's trying to get a better understanding of what Satan meant :

Because look, I may despise Satan since he's an abusive asshole, self-obsessed being who declared himself a God and who treated Yuri wrongly, but he wasn't necessarily wrong when he called out Mephisto's bullshit.

Truthfully, I think AnE is an excellent and quite unique Shonen series and Kato-sensei generally tends to subvert writing tropes [X][X], which is why I'm waiting for the reveal that this one generic battle unfolding chapters after chapters is not what matters.

Rather this battle being metaphorically won in as many alternate realities as possible is what matters, but it won't happen until powerful entities (like Mephisto, the Uzai family, Satan, Lucifer, Illuminati, the Order, etc), stop treating demons and humans like they're nothing but their pawns. Otherwise it's nothing but doom ahead.

TL;DR let's try to see beyond this Shonen battle, this isn't what Sensei depicts that matters, but addressing the circumstances and the guilty party that led to it, still lurking in the shadows.

Specifically about ch156, I don't think we should care that Shiemi "lost" to Amaimon or fell somewhere, but rather we should think that she won't win anything until she's confronted Jeremiah and the Uzai family who have been upholding a system in which she has no choice to make or freedom to have about her own future.

Somehow I hope my rambling makes sense ? Haha, but as always don't forget I can be absolutely wrong !

Have a good day Anon ! :))

[urmumsstuff]

Drabble

Reader hummed as she sat with Wukong both enjoying some rice they had managed to procure for the group.

"What makes someone human, or demon outside of species" She asked suddenly as she nudged some veggies about. "Because demons aren't a thing where I am from not in the sense of species."

There was a strange silence that engulfed the group as the mulled over the question

"I have a niece and nephew both are called demons, they aren't they are human but because of how my sister raises them they are terrors" She pushed the rice about "but then there are demons here that are genuine and good. But demons as far as I know are not supposed to be good so my question is. What is the difference between them?"

"The question you are asking has no simple answer" tang answered "you are asking what makes one who they are"

"I am, that's exactly what I am asking tang. Pigsy is a lecherous pig demon, don't lie you are," She gave him a harsh look that cut him off "who tricked a woman into marriage with him, meaning you are intelligent and manipulative and cunning. He's like that greasy dude no one likes down the hall."

Flower looked into the flames of the fire watching on how they danced with no form the same as the last.

"Sandy is a water demon who ate his previous incarnations, but shows strength and an emotional understanding when it comes to day to day life. So he's an overly ambitious and aggressive guy."

"Wukong is" She looked at the monkey "a king who cares for his people, has a sadistic streak a mile wide but will defend what's his no matter the cost. Even if it puts him under a mountain"

"I am a soul given a solid form meaning while still limited by my worlds standards I am both stronger and weaker like this. I get stuck at times because of it, but does that make me any less human because of it?" She asked "I can feel my body, hear the story's my family tells me, sometimes I swear I can make my fingers twitch."

"Ao le is a horse but his only real sin is eating a horse and being a bratty teen"

"And yet dispite this if one didn't know the lack of humanity there is one would think you just had an unfortunate luck of the draw when it came to deciples. So again what makes someone human? Or demon, both are in the cycle, both try and reach their ambitions, more and more the lines blurr. So I ask what is the difference?"

The human woman asked the group pointedly setting her food down.

[distressednoise]

First lines game

Rules: List the first lines of the last ten (10) stories you published. Look to see any patterns you notice youself and see if anyone else notices any. Then tag some friends. 

Thanks for the tag, @colleybri! I don't think I actually have 10 non-orphaned fics on AO3 because I wrote a tonne on LJ back in the 2000s, never moved it over and transitioned seamlessly to sending people snippets in the group chat and never finishing anything. HOWEVER here is what I haven't orphaned.

I came back just the same (Andor, Brassian)

When he was a boy, Brasso thought his mother knew everyone in the world. 

Back when I was 20 and wrote a lot of fic I had this very ingrained idea that your first line should automatically serve as your fic summary, like if you wouldn't use it as a summary it wasn't strong enough for a first line? Which is wrong but explains why I now work in marketing. Starting with a look into Brasso's family background actually represents ~growth here.

Turn you in and sit you down (Andor, Brassian)

Sometimes Cassian is amazed by the number of things he used to want.

This was the first fic I'd written in literal years and as this is very much the kind of first line/fic summary double dutch line 19 year old me always went for. Still young! Still got it!

A burglar's guide to the city (Guardian, Ye Zun/Zhao Yunlan)

It was the size of the place that made Ye Zun pause. 

This is a very stream of consciousness piece and I wanted to start off with something banal but definitely in the POV; also I am bad at tense slipping so I like a strong tense statement to refer back to when I inevitably confuse myself.

And the sky shrugged off her stars (Star Trek AOS, mostly gen?)

All McCoy knows is, it happened before Kehli.

To be honest I remember being quite proud of this when I wrote it in, uh, 2009, and I don't want to look back at it and find out if it's terrible so I'm just not. That is a sentence. It was the first one. Well done that sentence.

The Hamlet Effect (Hamlet/Torchwood crossover, major pairing bedhopping)

Everyone knew the rift took things. 

I...was not really in either of these fandoms properly when I was assigned this combo in a fic exchange and I think I managed to find a fun tone that fit them and allowed me to take the story in a circuitous route to my own thing and back to the themes of canon. For such a basic first sentence the fic does quickly get VERY squirrelly - I remember getting recs that were like "YOU WILL NOT UNDERSTAND THE FIRST THIRD, STAY WITH IT", and I like to think the simple opening paragraph helps a little.

Still the new world (Merlin, Merlin/Arthur)

The world is young, and Merlin within it, so when he sees the girl floating face-down in the canal he kicks off his shoes without thinking, shrugs off his jacket and leaps in, kicking through reeds and debris until his fingers close on the sodden fabric of her coat. 

When I wasn't writing first lines that predicted my future in marketing, I liked to do a very tonally serious first line leading into a very flippant joke. These days it's 100% pretentious run-on sentence but back in the day it was 50/50 pretentiousness/gags. Maybe Andor S2 will be a joyful romp and the ability to joke will return to me. Maybe?

The battle of Tulgey Wood (Merlin, gen)

“I’m not doing this anymore,” Merlin announced as he wrangled off his armour.

I have a very clear memory of writing this directly into the post box of my blog at the time, which means you can't read anything into it OR it's incredibly diagnostic, take your pic.

Tagging @programmedradly because I think two of these fandoms were actually their fault; @dixie12 @towez @nebulein and anyone else out there who hasn't done this already