#I also like how her determination that is usually a good trait

[randomnameless]

The more I think about it, the claim Edelgard wants to be a goddess/replace the goddess from Dimitri and Seteth makes more sense. Her believing only she can fix the world's problems, believing the world is too sinful because of "those eeevil lizard people", crushing anyone who dares oppose her and seeing human sacrifices as a means to an end/collateral damage. Heck you can see her war as a rapture and those who don't agree with her burn for a thousand years or in the case get killed/vanquished. And after her war if she wins, then she reforms a church under her name and in Nopes she does the exact the same thing after getting rid of the Slithers with Rhea. And considering how cultish her stans irl behave while trying to claim that they're "good people", yeah it all clicks.

The thing is,

The "Goddess" or at least what we know/heard of her didn't even act like Supreme Leader did.

Sure, sources on Sothis's time in Fodlan are biased, either we're told anything about her by Rhea, or by the Mole People.

But I agree, the game gives us some clues about what Supreme Leader wants to be, at least in Tru Piss. With her Manu support, she becomes the figure people look up to and aspire to be, the source of strength the Goddess and the CoS previously were. You also have the explore sections in the monastery, and how she's found where Rhea used to be when she was doing her archbishop things (the audience chambers iirc?), the CoS being "reformed under her supervision" and the final straw on the camel's back is her ending mural.

The rest is her messiah complex - partly fueled by Adrestian nationalism - and her stubborness, Supreme Leader will walk on her path and refuse to look back or even reconsider, no matter the obstacles standing before her, you are either on her side, or an obstacle needing to be removed.

As for the irl devoted fans, lol, I won't consider their behaviour in an analysis of the character, but if we are to talk about the BESF in Nopes, they are also sure they're doing a favor to the world/Fodlan while ignoring a good part of said Fodlan. Nopes!Ferdie comes to mind, with his nonsense about the Kingdom having more crusted generals, or the general fuckery that is the alliance with the Federation, or people being gung ho and looking forward to sack the monastery/cities/Faerghus to earn some fame.

[barcaatthemoon]

a thousand miles || kyra cooney-cross x reader ||

kyra comforts you when the distance begins to feel like too much.

your heart ached the longer you were left to sit and think about the fact that you were all alone. those feelings of sadness festered inside of you, like they had been since you left london. both you and kyra had gone there for arsenal, but they hadn't resigned you. viv had been lucky in going to manchester, but you found yourself stranded across the pond playing in the nwsl.

you had comfort in jen being there, but you missed kyra. she truly was your better half in your mind. the two of you were menaces to the rest of the team, but here in california, none of your old antics were half as fun. jen was worried about you, but nobody had the slightest clue about how to help you.

"kyra, baby, are you busy?" you don't think that you had ever heard yourself sound so small and timid before. it was pitch black outside, and kyra wouldn't have been able to see a thing if it wasn't for the little lamp on your bedside table. on the other side of the screen, you saw kyra at the arsenal facilities.

"(y/n), are you okay?" the usual jovial tone that you were used to with kyra was gone. all of that had been quickly replaced by concern as she took in the state of you. there was no doubt in your mind that you looked like a hopelessly sad version of yourself.

"i hate it over here. it's always nights like this that i feel the loneliest, and they keep happening. i miss you. i want to come back to be with you," you cried. kyra stood up and walked away, most likely for some real privacy. you could see a couple of girls in the background, a few of whom looked like they wanted to say hi but decided against it when they saw how kyra was moving to be alone with you.

"aw baby, i'm sorry. i know that it's hard, and i miss you too, but it'll be okay. just talk to me for a little, okay? i'll stay on the phone with you until you fall asleep," kyra said. you felt bad about pulling her away from whatever she was doing, but you also knew that kyra wouldn't let you go back to wallowing by yourself. if anything, she'd call jen to come and stay with you for a few days.

"we aren't really doing well as a team, which sucks. i miss playing with everybody back at arsenal. my teammates here are great, but it's not the same thing. last week, i had to leave dinner early because i was about to start crying. everything is different, and i'm so scared that i won't find somewhere to makes me happy like i was," you admitted. kyra wasn't sure how to help you, but she was determined to try. this was a good first step, everything needed to be out in the open.

kyra knew that you'd bottle it up otherwise. that had always been your worst trait. you let things sit and fester until you broke down completely. the weight of the world didn't have to rest on your shoulders, that was what kyra had taught you. both of you had matured so much being together, and a part of her was afraid that you'd regress on your own.

"i know that you don't want to feel like you're bothering anybody, but talk to me when you feel like this. talk to your teammates, form bonds like we did at arsenal. well, not like ours specifically, but like how we made friends with everybody else." kyra could feel herself start to ramble a little. she noticed you smile a little as you caught it as well. "is your light keeping you up?"

"kind of," you admitted. kyra didn't even have to tell you to turn it off and set your phone on your pillow next to your head. kyra could hear your breathing slow down a bit, but she knew that you weren't asleep yet. "can i tell you something kind of lame?"

"i don't think anything you say is lame."

"you're the only one who has me letting my walls down. i feel so safe when i'm with you, kyra. i wish that i would have just went down a league instead of moving all the way over here. there's too much distance between us, and i miss you so much that it hurts," you told her. kyra cleared her throat as she felt a lump begin to form. she didn't want you to leave, but she couldn't be the reason that you sacrificed your career.

"i think that you did the right thing leaving. it was good for you, and when we get to visit each other, everything will be that much more special," kyra reasoned. it was hard to find a reason not to be upset or resentful, and kyra was proud of herself for figuring it out. things would be easier, you just needed to trust the process to get there.

[physalian]

Yet another 5 Character Types The World Needs More Of

Continuing on the list of “tropes the world needs more of”

1. The optimist in denial

This is a character who probably didn’t have the best life growing up, so determined to look on the bright side to escape their objectively crap situation that they’re in denial, not just being annoyingly optimistic. They’re frustrating cases to all the people who care about them because they won’t admit anything is wrong, holding onto a life or reality that doesn’t exist, or perhaps never did, as it’s all they have left.

Example: Todoroki Fuyumi

2. The “peaceful” pacifist

As opposed to harmless, the distinction is important. Demons run when a good man goes to war. This is a character who took themselves off the game board because they know they’d win in a landslide. This is a warrior who left the battlefield because they are the weapon of mass destruction. This is also the character who is determined to be good, even if it gets them killed. I don’t care if there’s already plenty of them, this is good shit and I want more.

Example: Too many and yet not enough

3. The likable autistic

Neurodivergence in media is often the butt of the joke. You like these characters in spite of their “quirks” or you find them incredibly annoying because their “quirks” are their entire personality. Usual representations are arrogant and anti-social narcissists who lack compassion. Shockingly, autism is a spectrum, and a very far cry from sociopathy. No one trait should define an entire character, and that includes neurodivergence.

Nothing specific to do this time, more what not to do. Make them people first, yeah? A person with autism. Not autistic person. There’s a difference.

Example: Spencer Reid (Criminal Minds)

4. Husbands who love their wives

Wow this feels like a low bar. These men who adore their wives, who wouldn’t dare think the phrase “ball and chain”. If he likes his wife, he’s probably a good man altogether. I feel like media is stepping away from the misogynistic kinds of protagonists (assuming their wives weren’t fridged) but I’m talking men who are their wives fiercest defender (socially) and biggest cheerleader.

Example: Gomez Adams, Maes Hughes

5. Unmanicured Female Heroes and Love Interests

Slapping barbie dolls who look gorgeous and can do no wrong aren’t anyone’s favorite character. Let her hair be a little frizzy, let her not wear makeup, give her jeans and a t-shirt and flat. Let her be a little lazy and self-indulgent. A little cluttered and messy without joking about how she’s “letting herself go”.

Let her have some biases, some arbitrary hills to die on. Not every female character but usually characters like this are the jealous villains or the girl who gets dumped for someone prettier.

Example: Toph Beifong, Princess Fiona

—

Oh look I wrote some of these in ENNS haha what a coincidence

Check it out if you'd like~

[youremyheaven]

The Ugliness of Venus

every planet is associated with certain key themes but being under that planetary influence means to experience its very opposite. the extremes of anything is a meeting point for its opposite.

venus is the planet associated with love, beauty, harmony etc therefore it is unsurprising that venusian influence also subjects one to cruelty, ugliness, disharmony, violence and malevolence.

TW: this post will contain mentions of sexual harassment, rape, violence, murder, massacre, genocide, death, suicide among other things so please beware!!!

in my observations I have often found that Venusian natives are often cruel, callous, ugly (i mean this to refer to their actions/behaviour and not just unconventional appearance because "beauty" is a sum of appearance and traits- what we call Venusian refinement) hurtful, jealous and utterly lacking the charisma and hospitality for which Venus is known.

it is disturbing to think of how soooo many well known and notorious sex offenders have HEAVY Venusian influence in their charts. think of any celebrity who has had a sex scandal and they usually have Venusian placements. it's intriguing that no other planet shows up as much (in my personal observations).

Why is Venus so brutal, cruel and embracing of the darkness/ugliness of humanity?

All 3 Venus nakshatras, Bharani, Purvaphalguni & Purvashada are Ugra (meaning cruel or brutal, this is a 7 category classification in vedic astrology) nakshatras.

Ugra naks are known to be action-oriented go-getters and people who are very self-motivated and determined. Any quality can manifest in good or bad ways, so the shadow aspect of this determination and motivation is often ruthlessness, callousness, selfishness and arrogance.

This is also the reason why Venusian naks suffer. Venus seeks refinement, so an individual who does not filter out their own darkness but instead indulges in it, is inviting wrath. More than any other planet, Venus punishes its natives quite harshly and publicly. So many people who have been known to be horrible people, have been exposed, shamed and punished publicly have Venus influence.

Venus energy must be handled with care. Since Venus is love, it has a quality where it loves blindly, completely and without judgement but discretion and judgement are necessary in life. It is not good to be absolutely consumed by someone or something without considering the good and evil inherent in it. This makes Venus natives prone to evil simply because they don't see it as such. They think of it as the depths of their understanding of love, beauty and harmony. Beauty in its extreme however is grotesque, its ugliness, its frightening. Think of all those IG models who have the same face, there is a blandness to their cartoonish perfection to their proportions, it fails to evoke feeling, it fails to be memorable because true beauty is distinct and flawed, its intensity, depth and exaggerated proportions because Venus is not mild or lukewarm, it like to go overboard. Think of Angelina Jolie, her big forehead, large cheekbones, strong jaw, big protruding eyes, its a face that calls attention to itself, its not simple or readily accessible, its the opposite of the IG face where beauty is reduced to ordinary everyday blandness. True beauty is individuality.

Venusian natives are often preoccupied with good and evil, the holy and demonic, heaven and hell, this emanates from a deep understanding of contradictions and the need for their existence. Opposites are an illusion, everything is one. Goodness in its extreme is evil and the extremes of evil touches upon goodness.

So now I'll discuss certain specific examples:

Mao Zedong- Purvashada Rising

He was responsible for the deaths of close to 40 million people who died due to starvation, forced labour and others executed by the state due to their opposition of its policies.

Saddam Hussein- Bharani Sun, Venus in Revati (exalted)

Him and his party used violence, killing, torture, execution, arbitrary arrest, unlawful detention, enforced disappearance, and various forms of repression to control the population. Kurdish people were systematically persecuted and massacred using tear gas.

Hussein was publicly executed for committing crimes against humanity.

Hitler- Purvashada stellium (Moon, Jupiter and Ketu), Mercury and Venus in Bharani

I need not elaborate on who Hitler was and what he did bc we're all very familiar with him but yeah he was a Venusian. He died by suicide.

Stalin- Purvashada Mercury Amatyakaraka

I do not wish to elaborate on Soviet war crimes but Stalin had millions of people die, from starvation, torture, indentured labour etc

R Kelly- Purvashada Sun & Mercury

He is a pedophile and convicted sex offender

Marilyn Manson- Purvashada Sun

He's been accused of assault and rape on more than one occasion.

Idi Amin- Purvashada Sun

Idi Amin was popularly known as "The Butcher of Uganda." Amin overthrew an elected government in Uganda with a military coup, using lessons from the British colonial army. He declared himself president and ruled ruthlessly from 1971-1979. Once in power, Amin started mass executions of the Acholi and Lango tribes. In 1972 Amin forced 80,000 Asians to leave the country, which caused the economic collapse of the country since many were business owners. It’s estimated that through his rule, Amin killed at least 300,000 civilians.

Elon Musk- Purvaphalguni Moon

Sexual misconduct charges, labour law violations, treating his employees like trash and being an insufferable asshole on Twitter among other things. Nobody makes $100 billion without exploiting 100s of millions of people.

Jimmy Saville- Purvaphalguni Moon, Mars in Bharani amatyakaraka and Ketu in Purvashada

He was a pedophile who abused numerous children over the span of 50yrs

Peter Townshend- Purvaphalguni Jupiter & Rising, Ketu in Purvashada

He was found trying to access child porn sites

Chris Brown- Bharani Sun & Moon

He's abused several women, most famously, Rihanna

Here's some examples of people who have risen to prominence by playing ruthless people.

Kathy Bates- Mars in Purvaphalguni amatyakaraka

She is best remembered for playing the psychotic nurse in Misery

Anthony Hopkins- Purvashada Sun

He is best known for playing serial killer Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs

I know this is a very polarising topic and to any Venusians reading this, I sincerely do not wish to spread hate or cause harm, I am only trying to point out some of the things I have noticed. Does this mean every other Venusian you encounter is a serial killer in disguise? No Are all Venusians bad people? Also no. I thought it would be interesting to shed some light on the darker side of Venus which is seldom addressed if at all. Please do not take any of these observations too seriously and do not use astrology as a tool to propagate hatred towards yourself or others.

[takemebacktowheniwassane]

i've been seeing a lot of falsettos posts recently deconstructing the fandoms beliefs and firstly

holy fuck thank you, i try to steer clear of fandom (and fandom-izing thereof) drama but this is getting a lot more visible recently so here's some little tidbits for you

whizzer brown is not an unflawed character!

okay so i haven't seen enough dissecting this but!!! in the chess game!

the whole point of marvin using that game to determine the ending of their relationship is because he suspects whizzer is constantly deceiving him and wants to prove it.

whizzer LITERALLY proves him right!

he asks marvin to help him along (yes i know he says he doesn't want help, hear me out, it's a little more complex than that) and takes advantage of the fact that marvin is- like- infatuated with him.

he draws him into a sense of false security then starts throwing accusations at him ("since you need a man!" "what?" "who's 'brainy'," "or witty, move.") until hes able to win, which he does with ease because he's been using marvin having this idea that he isn't smart against him.

of course, marvin's side of this isn't the best either but honestly, for once the fandom should focus on a different character when they think 'insane asshole'. typically we should also probably change our perspectives a little to be more unbiased cuz fr guys, this is getting really.. annoying.

i understand he's the most visibly flawed but that doesn't excuse constantly picking the worst parts of this musical (without other context, btw) to use against him.

and this post certainly isn't here to excuse anyone either i've just got a lot of opinions that i wanted to share while falsettos is.. trending? right?

2. marvin's (headcanoned but still somewhat researched) autism

this one isn't brought up as much but when i do see it around, it's kind of a skewed viewpoint.

while rewatching bits of the proshot i realized a lot of different neurodivergent traits that he shows-

he's helpless during I Never Wanted to Love You and is childish and regressive when he's upset (not every autistic person is like this either, i know this is a bit of a touchy subject so i just wanted to add that).

usually when people depict it i see it either toned down or joked about which is fine when all in good fun, and when its done respectfully.

not here to attack anyone, just here to point it out and say that yes :) he most likely is neurodivergent, but despite that his actions aren't condoned. he's still kinda a dick who needs to get his shit together

3. ..the lesbians also have shit going on?

just putting this out there- I DON'T SEE ENOUGH FOR THE LESBIANS! OR TRINA!

the girls in this musical are like thoroughly neglected and i think that's kind of shitty just assuming the fact that william finn put them in to demonstrate how gender roles put people in degrading positions (and he even makes it more prevalent by showing marvin as something like a misogynistic character who forces whizzer into more feminine roles to show the audience what woman have to/had to go through in society).

anyways, the lesbians aren't just there guys. they have a plotline too. in Something Bad is Happening, you derive a lot from charlotte singing about the outbreak of HIV/AIDS and realize how she operates on a daily basis (she's passionate about her work and takes every bad day as a hit to her life and career, explaining in a way that as a black, jewish, lesbian, FEMALE doctor in this time, everything that goes wrong is immediately brought down on her so much more than it would as any straight white male pharmacist-).

cordelia on the other hand has to handle the fact that her girlfriend is so adamant about her work ethic that she can't actually be super present in their relationship at times like that.

but either way she still sticks by her and is constantly trying to be supportive and endearing despite feeling like she's not amounting to her gf who's basically a hero in her eyes.

i kinda just wanted to bring that up because they mean a lot to me and they don't get enough love from the fanbase, thank you for listening to my TED talk <3

[princessbrunette]

would you please write more for modern ani I love him sm

poorly edited ani with ugly tattoos and piercings but you get the gist ….. have some headcanons

minors + ageless blogs dni im so serious

♡ he’s always in your reach. whether he’s your best friends brother, the guy that works at the garage or tattoo shop, the guy in your lectures that shows up every few classes to sit at the back and chew on his pen whilst somehow knowing the answer to every question. he’s mysterious, but everywhere.

♡ you see more of his tongue that you thought you might. always peaking out to fiddle with the snakebite piercings below his rosy bottom lip when he’s concentrated, or bulging into his cheek when he lets out a sarcastic or pissed off chuckle when someone’s running their mouth. you overhear him speaking with a friend, instructing “just make your tongue flat if it’s too sensitive and more pointed if they need more pressure. i don’t fucking know, it’s not hard.” and you wonder if he’s talking about what you think he’s talking about.

♡ he takes interest in you because of your soft edges and kind eyes and well, the fact you’re his total opposite. he thinks it’s funny to sit on a plush pink duvet surrounded by ‘pointless’ throw cushions and decorative plushies and blankets whilst he’s dressed in all black with his chronic resting bitch face. okay, funny isn’t the word. he thinks it’s sexy.

♡ he’s a little mean but never cruel. grumpy would describe him more accurately. not a morning person, and shoots daggers at anyone who makes loud noises before 10AM. he’s teasing you and poking fun at you before he starts flirting with you properly because he just can’t help himself, bullying is how he flirts. but don’t get it twisted, once he’s in a relationship with you he is uncharacteristically the worlds biggest simp known to man.

♡ obsessive and possessive. you’re both aware it’s not his best trait, but you secretly like it and he knows that. his love language is essentially threatening to kill anyone who looks at you let alone lays eyes on you. if you’re ranting about your day and happened to tell him about someone giving you attitude, it would become very “you’re lucky i wasn’t there, would have beat the fuck out of him.” fast. will also shamelessly pull you closer to him when another guy looks at you, and side eye you with the worst attitude if you dare laugh a little harder than usual at a man’s jokes.

♡ always stuffing his dirty blonde curls under backwards caps, but let’s you take it off him so you can run your fingers through them at the end of the day. he’s a sucker for a head massage. will repay you by making you cum on his fingers.

♡ he’s the cool boyfriend. determined to win over your family even if his tattooed / pierced appearance is a concern. compliments your mothers cooking, talks about sports with your dad, bonds over video games with your little brother or buys your sister that thing she was talking about last time he saw her. even let’s your grandma pinch his cheeks and call him handsome (but if grandmas coming round, he wears long sleeves and takes out his piercings. anything for grandma.) if you don’t get on with your family, he becomes your family and practically kidnaps you into his own.

♡ wont let you pay for anything. respectfully, he does not care if paying is your love language— he was raised to pay for his girl and that’s what he’ll do, arguments be damned. he’ll take extra shifts to be able to spoil you, coming home with grease smeared on him from the garage, kissing your cheek before heading off to shower, transferring “a little something” to your bank account after you were rambling about that skims dress you wanted or whatever it was.

♡ constantly wearing sweatpants and looks damn good wearing them too. black sweatpants mostly, but he pulls out the grey ones when he’s trying extra hard to get laid that night. same goes for basketball shorts, walking around your apartment wearing them with no shirt on, no underwear beneath the shorts, thick and long length practically swinging around. he chuckles when you gasp and call him a slut.

♡ he plays basketball and soccer, always has. but his favourite pastime has got to be pool. he’s become a champion at his best friends pool table— bringing you round to showcase his effortless skill and teach you (mainly because he won’t pass up the opportunity to see you bent over a table and feel you up.)

♡ always needs your full attention when he speaks, so if your eyes drift off from him when he’s talking to you he won’t hesitate to gently grip your jaw and pull your face back to look at him. he’ll do it infront if anyone he doesn’t care, minus your parents of course.

♡ puts in the WORK during sex. he is competitive with himself, and a perfectionist — so he won’t be satisfied until he’s knows you inside out. this means he’s incredibly vocal, if he’s not asking you if you like what he’s doing (“that feel good, pretty? talk t’me i wanna hear you.”) he’s praising you for being responsive (“good girl, good fucking girl. i know baby, you like that shit huh.”)

♡ pussy eating king. will even wear the white tshirt with pink font spelling “PROUD MUNCH” across the chest when he goes out with you that you got him. thinks it’s funny yeah, but likes everyone to know you’re taken care of.

♡ listens to fuckboy music around the clock. when he picks you up in his car, best believe you can hear that brent faiyaz coming from a mile away. his taste is pretty broad though, he just loves the sexy r&b to be blasting when you’re being his pretty little passenger princess.

[the-smut-analyst]

Making Characters That Make Sense

Walk-through character template & "how to" guide for writing complex, original protagonists.

If you google "character templates for writing", you'll get a lot of very basic examples that read like a grocery list: eye colour, hair colour, skin colour, positive traits, negative traits, etc.

And sure, filling out this kind of template isn't completely useless - but it's also not particularly useful, either. Choosing whether your protagonist has blue eyes or green eyes isn't going to determine whether readers connect with them or not.

Instead, I prefer to use the below template:

There's some fairly left-of-centre categories here, so in this blog post I'll be creating a character from scratch to demonstrate what each section means and how to use the template effectively.

Primary Goal & Raison D'Être

Fantasy Romance is having a bit of a tournament-to-the-death moment right now, with Hunger Games-inspired stories like Fourth Wing, Throne of Glass, The Savior's Champion, and The Serpent and the Wings of Night in high demand - so that's what we're going to work with in today's blog post.

The story premise and primary goal of the protagonist are almost always interconnected. In this case, the story premise is a tournament to the death - and the character's main goal is to win that tournament, obviously.

But where there's room for some originality is in the raison d'être. This loosely translates to "reason for being" or "purpose". It's the why of it.

For example: what motivated this character to risk their life by entering such a tournament in the first place?

It is sometimes helpful to look at similar stories when thinking about this category. Not so you can copy their protagonist's motivations - but so you can do something different.

The whole selfless-self-sacrifice thing, for example - that's done. At least in relation to this particular sub-genre. We can do better for our hypothetical Maera Mystfang character.

Actually, let's really turn the trope on its head and make her raison d'être incredibly self-centred.

Already, this is character is shaping up to be something a little bit different within the niche of tournaments to the death. Which goes to show how putting a little bit of thought can go a long way, even with something as simple as identifying your character's initial purpose.

Primary Obstacle

Every protagonist needs a goal - and every goal needs an obstacle. This is what gives the story some tension and keeps readers turning the page.

An obvious choice of obstacle for this hypothetical character, since we're dealing with a fantasy romance, would be that Maera starts to develop feelings for one of her fellow competitors.

This concept has definitely been done, but that's okay. Not every section of this list has to break the mould. Tropes exist for a reason and it is totally okay to lean into them sometimes.

However, just for funsies, I'm going to try and put a slightly different spin on this one too.

Instead of the obvious "I love one of the people I'm meant to kill", let's make Maera's (previously dormant) conscience be the problem. Her reasons for entering the tournament may have been self-motivated, but as she gets to know her fellow competitors - admires some of them, even - she starts to second guess those reasons.

Core Traits

A lot of character templates will divide personality traits into positives and negatives - but I don't think this is particularly helpful. It is far too one dimensional - not to mention unrealistic. The key components of someone's personality aren't usually so black and white.

In fact, most core traits are both good and bad at the same time - it just depends on the context.

Instead of being wholly positive or negative, try to think of three core character traits that can serve as two sides of the same coin, with both positive and negative implications to each.

For Maera, I've given her these core traits:

Self-reliant;

Rebellious; and

Good-humoured.

Her self-reliance means that she is incredibly capable - but it's also the cause of her selfishness. She's always had to look after herself, so she expects others to do the same.

Her rebellious attitude means she isn't willing to accept the status quo. But at times she is also a rebel without a cause, causing trouble just for the fun of it.

Her good sense of humour means she is fun to be around, but she also tends to not take things as seriously as she should.

Thinking of core traits in this multi-faceted way not only adds realistic complexity, but it also sets you up well for showcasing character development and growth throughout the story.

Fatal Flaw & Character Arc / Growth

You've probably read negative reviews that throw around terms like "Mary Sue" or "Gary Stu". People tend to be over-zealous with these terms, especially for Mary Sue, but the gist of it is that the character in question is "too perfect".

They're the chosen one, they're good at everything, all the boys like them, etc.

Some characters can get away with this just fine. Look at Aragorn. He's the ultimate Gary Stu but I still swoon every time he opens those damn doors. You know the scene I'm talking about.

Ooft.

But for the most part, you want to incorporate a fatal flaw into your protagonists - because this is what gives them room to grow.

And, no. "I was born to be King but I don't wanna" does not count as a fatal flaw.

Instead, think bigger. Think worse. Think about where your character starts versus where you want them to end up. Think about how you want the events of the narrative to change their world view - or even their initial goal.

For Maera, her fatal flaw is pretty obvious, given her initial motivations for entering the tournament. Similarly, her growth/arc is linked to her primary obstacle, which is developing a conscious.

Her journey throughout this hypothetical story might be learning to appreciate how her past shaped her, while also acknowledging that there are things she can do to ensure others don't have to go through what she did. By being shown acts of kindness, she learns to appreciate their value.

First Impression

Now that we've covered all the "big picture" stuff, let's get into some of the smaller details that give your character some texture.

The first impression category is a hypothetical exercise where you image how your character might appear to a room full of strangers. In dual, multi, or omniscient POVs, you might even get the opportunity to include this impression somewhere in the story.

But even for first-person narratives, it is still worth thinking about, because it will help to inform how other characters interact and respond to your protagonist (at least at first).

For Maera, I've written this first impression as: a fun person to have a few drinks with - so long as you keep a close eye on your wallet.

From this description, we can guess that Maera probably likes to have a good time, but also comes across as untrustworthy. Whether that impression is deserved or not is up to you, as the author, to decide.

There's also a lot of deeper directions you can take this first impression category, too. Like if most people react to Maera this way, but one particular character doesn't, then your readers are going to sit up and pay extra attention during that interaction. Especially when that person reacting atypically is the future love interest.

Spirit Animal

Ah, this one is a fun one!

I always encourage my authors to assign a "spirit animal" to their characters - especially when they're doing multi-POV.

There are two main reasons for this:

It will allow you to assign some very distinct adjectives and verbs with that particular character; and

It is an opportunity to flesh out some additional character traits beyond the core traits.

For Maera, I've chosen "spider" because she is solitary by nature, opportunistic, and patient.

But, more than that, I also like the idea of Maera being the kind of person who knows how to watch and wait. While her first impression might be "here for the good times", her joking façade is actually a mask she wears while carefully observing others.

For example:

Her words were laced with venom. She crawled her way across the rooftop. At some point, weaving lies had become more of a past time that a necessity. Her thoughts were a tangled mess. She didn't bother to conceal her predatory gaze. Inch by cautious inch, she crept forward. Her sanity was already hanging by a thread. If there was one thing she knew how to do, it was spin a good story - truth be damned.

I've never outright compared Maera to a spider in these examples, nor have I made it blatantly obvious that that's what I'm doing. But by peppering these kinds or words throughout the story, I'll be able to subtly create a very distinct kind of impression for her character.

For comparison's sake, let's assign "cat" to the love interest. Examples of possible words to consider in this instance might be:

He clawed his way through the bushes. "What are you doing?" he hissed. The comment had some bite to it, that was for sure. He slunk away into the darkness. His still, unwavering focus was unnerving. He prowled towards her. In a few quick, agile steps, he'd made it across the parapet. He yawned and stretched out beside her.

Of course, not every single word you use in association with a character needs to be related to their spirit animal. But keeping a certain type of animal in mind - and finding opportunities to throw in some subtle messaging through language choice - can be beneficial on so many levels.

It helps to distinguish your characters from one another through the kind of language you use to describe them - but it's also just really, really fun way to add some bonus texture to your characters. Giving your readers some little easter eggs like this is never a bad thing.

Love Language

If you're unfamiliar with the concept of the five basic love languages, then here's a quick visual overview:

Love languages aren't a consideration that's specific to romance. They're important for friendships and familial relationships too.

Because thinking about what your protagonist values most in love is going to tell you a lot about who they are. Especially when you take the question deeper and think about why this is something they value.

For Maera, I've chosen "Acts of Service" because this ties in quite well to her character arc.

In terms of Maera's why, I could easily go with "because this was how she was shown love as a child" - and this is a good enough option most of the time. However, since her love language is very much tied into growing out of her fatal flaw, then I actually want to do the opposite.

Maera winds up valuing acts of service because this is something she craved - and wasn't given - as a child. She had to do things the hard way instead. Hence why she ends up appreciating the kindness of others so much. Such generosity is new to her - and precious.

Conflict Response

This is potentially one of the most overlooked character components. Conflict and tension is central to story telling, yet there is so little attention given to creating authentic, original responses to conflict.

The way I see it, there are three main considerations in regards to conflict response:

How your character reacts in the moment;

The unhealthy methods they use to deal with the aftermath; and

The healthy methods they use (or discover) to self-sooth.

When faced with conflict, Maera's immediate reaction is to antagonise. She doesn't like to back down and enjoys creating trouble.

However, in the aftermath, the conflict affects her more than she lets on. She stews on it - and her solution to that is to get drunk until she can forget about it completely.

But even though she sometimes forgets it, Maera has a more healthy coping mechanism at her disposal. When she is surrounded by nature - in the forest, by the sea, whatever - it calms her.

In addition to identifying your protagonist's various responses to conflict, it is also helpful to think about why. Again, this is a great opportunity to insert something unique into their character backstory.

With Maera, for example, let's think about why she finds nature so soothing. Perhaps, amidst a very bleak childhood, one of her fondest memories is of picking grapes in a vineyard.

Perhaps the elderly woman who owned the vineyard was very rude and abrupt - but also quite kind to Maera in her own way. Maybe she would sometimes stitch up Maera's clothes or feed Maera a hearty, meaty dinner - even though she didn't have to.

If you're struggling to think of a real, tangible, unique memory such as this - then it's always helpful to go back to the old classic of write what you know. Think of a real life moment or memory - something that's stuck with you, no matter how simple - then adapt it to your character.

To create this vineyard example, I simply drew on my experience of picking strawberries with my Nonna after school.

Mentor / Idol

I could write an entire thesis on mentors. Or, more specifically, the "death of the mentor" trope - both in its literal and metaphorical interpretations.

But, for the sake of brevity, let's save that sh*t for another time and focus on what's important for a basic (yet complex) character template. And that is:

The Formative Mentor (past); and

Transformative Mentor (present).

The formative mentor (or idol) is someone who influenced your character prior to the events of the novel. Sometimes they're a character the reader will meet, or other times, they're long gone before the novel even begins.

The transformative mentor is a much looser term. It doesn't necessarily have to be a traditional mentor character, but rather it is a character who heavily influences or changes your protagonist throughout the events of the novel.

For Maera, I want her earliest idol to be a random female sell-sword who she crossed paths with. Prior to meeting this sell-sword, Maera was living without hope for a future, surviving on scraps and petty crime.

But after seeing an independent and moderately wealthy sell-sword in her local tavern, Maera got a glimpse into the kind of life that might be possible if she learned to fight. With the right kind of skills, she might be able to earn some decent money for a change - and travel the world.

This is an example of how "mentors" don't always have to be a wise wizard who oversees your protagonist's training and education. Young minds are impressionable - and even distant figures can have a lasting impact.

Just look at all the women who cite Legally Blonde as the reason why they were drawn to law. Elle Woods wasn't even real - but for plenty of young girls, she made an impact.

Similarly, your protagonist's "present" mentor or idol doesn't necessarily have to be a wise wizard either. It can simply be someone who motivates them to change their world view or strive to be better.

In romance, it is more than acceptable to have the present mentor coincide with the love interest - especially in standalone enemies-to-lovers. I know this seems counter-intuitive, since the word "mentor" implies a power imbalance, but it makes more sense if you readjust your definition of mentor to be "inspires change".

However, for Maera, I kind of like the idea of pairing her up with a love interest who shares some of her flaws. I vibe with the idea of making him a bit self-interested too, although for different reasons.

So in her example, I've listed the present mentor as a selfless secondary character. The way I would envision this going is Maera and the love interest team up early on - but somewhere along the way a secondary character saves them both. They're both heavily influenced by this character before this character sacrifices themselves. The aftermath of this incident rattles both Maera and her love interest, and serves as the spark for growth.

I hope you found this template - and very long explanation - useful!

[ak1sang3l]

always - timeskip!oikawa x reader

chapter 1 - Reassurance

in which your anxious husband FaceTimes you from the Olympic village in need of some reassurance.

content warning: none lol

word count : 876

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

You had always known that volleyball was the most important thing in Oikawa Toru's life. It was a fact as irrefutable as the sun rising in the east. It wasn’t that he didn’t love you—he did, deeply—but volleyball was his first love, the passion that consumed him. And you were okay with that. You could live with being second to the sport because you knew how much it meant to him.

In your three years of marriage, you had also learned two other things about him: he was the most sensitive person you had ever met, and he wasn’t a genius. These traits, while endearing, also posed challenges. His sensitivity meant he felt everything deeply, from the victories that sent him soaring to the defeats that crushed his spirit. And while he wasn’t a genius, he was hardworking, determined to outplay those who were with sheer effort and willpower.

It was the night before the Olympic final, and Toru was going to face Japan. You were in Argentina, the time zone difference making it a late evening for you, but you had stayed awake, knowing that he would call. The reason you couldn’t be with him was bittersweet—you had just given birth to your first child, and although you wished you could be there in person, travelling with your newborn daughter Airi seemed impractical and exhausting, keeping you grounded in Argentina.

When your phone rang, you answered immediately, eager to hear his voice. Toru’s face appeared on the screen, and even through the small pixels, you could see the anxiety in his eyes.

“Hey,” he said, his voice softer than usual. “Are you busy? Is Airi asleep?”

“Never too busy for you. And I just put the little angel down for a nap,” you replied with a smile, trying to lighten the mood. “How are you holding up?”

“I’m... nervous,” he admitted, his eyes dropping to the floor. “I wish you both were here. I’ve been thinking about her a lot, you know? How much she’s grown already, and I’m missing it.”

“She misses you too,” you said gently, your heart aching at the thought of the distance between them. “But she’s so proud of her daddy, and so am I.”

He managed a weak smile, though the worry lines on his face didn’t ease. “I’m scared,” he admits hesitantly, his voice trembling slightly. “Facing Japan... it’s huge. What if I’m not good enough? They have Kageyama and Ushijima on their team. I’m... I’m not a genius nor am I an athletic monster like those two, you know that.” "I've worked so hard to get to this point in my career. Shit, I even gave up my Japanese citizenship for this. I need this win so much."

You leaned closer to the screen, as if you could reach through it to hold him. “Toru, you don’t need to be a genius to win. You’ve never been a genius, and that’s what makes you so special.”

He looked at you, confusion and doubt mingling in his eyes. “How does that make me special?”

“Because,” you began, “you’ve always had to fight harder, work more, push yourself beyond your limits. Geniuses might have talent, but you have something they don’t—determination. You’re not just playing on the same platform as them; you’ve built your own platform, brick by brick, with your hard work and resilience. You’ve always been able to do that.”

His eyes softened as he listened, his expression shifting from doubt to something more like hope. “But what if I fail?”

“Then you fail,” you said simply, “but it won’t be because you didn’t give it everything you have. I’ve seen you do incredible things, Toru. You’re capable of fighting against anyone, genius or not.”

He was silent for a moment, absorbing your words. “I just... I don’t want to let everyone down. My team, our fans... you. Our daughter.”

“You could never let us down,” you said firmly. “All I want is for you to play with your heart, the way you always do. Win or lose, we’ll both be proud of you. And you should be proud of yourself too, no matter what happens tomorrow.”

A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. “You always know what to say.”

“That’s because I know you,” you replied, smiling back. “And I believe in you. And so does Airi, even if she’s too little to say it.”

Toru took a deep breath, some of the tension leaving his shoulders. “Thank you,” he whispered. “I’ll do my best.”

“I know you will,” you said, your voice filled with love and confidence. “Now get some rest. You’ll need all your energy tomorrow.”

“I will. I love you,” he said softly, his eyes filled with warmth.

“I love you too,” you replied. “And so does your little girl.”

At the mention of her, Toru’s smile grew a little brighter, the thought of his daughter giving him strength. “Kiss her goodnight for me?”

“Always,” you promised.

With that, you ended the call, feeling a sense of calm wash over you. Toru was nervous, yes, but he was also strong. He wasn’t a genius, but he didn’t need to be. He had something far more important—heart.

And that, you knew, would carry him through.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

[rainbowchaox]

Qsmp! Chayanne Character Analysis and How it Relates to Pissa

Chayanne is a perfect hybrid of his dads. Yes, Missa hasn’t been as present as philza but this is a truth. In fact I believe Chayanne is one of the best examples of child getting personality traits from both parents. Even if one is absent whether it’s because of reaper duties or literally being kidnapped. Chayanne has traits both from his dads. Even if it’s more visible the traits he gained are from Philza.

Missa is a bleeding heart. I believe Chayanne gained his massive heart. But sharpened with determination and bravery. Not bleeding out like Missa. It’s not usually noticeable because Chayanne is similar to Philza. He shows not tells. But his heart is so kind. Especially for a child. He just wants to protect those he loves and cares for.

Philza like we discussed is a survivor. And utterly paranoid and stressed so much what could go wrong. This isn’t a bad thing as again and again this protected his family numerous times. Philza raised Chayanne to be responsible. To protect Tallulah because of her asthma. Chayanne accepts this responsibility. But he is still a child. He feels so guilty not being able to protect or in his mind not doing a good job. Philza is similar it’s why he represses his love for Missa. He needs to protect Missa as much he can.

Chayanne looks brave but honestly he is just a scared child under diamond armor. He so desperately wants everyone to be safe. Or happy. Or having fun. He can only do so much as a kid though. He loves philza. There’s no question about that. But there’s reasons why missa is his favorite. He’s addicted just like Philza to Missa gentleness. To Missa kindness. Missa makes Philza and Chayanne feel safe. Chayanne feels free to act like a spoiled kid for once when Missa is around.

Chayanne is scared. He like philza wants their family unit to be safe. But he is still a kid. He can only do so much. He loves philza. Philza is his dad. But there’s no question in my brain that he misses missa gentleness. In fact true enjoyers of death family know that Missa is chayanne favorite dad. He actually acts spoiled for once.

Philza needed to be stern with Chayanne. Philza wants his kids to survive. It’s an aspect of Philza that prepared them for how hard life on the island could be. And how dangerous it could get. Philza knows simple mistakes can be deadly and he needs Chayanne to understand that. He is stern because he loves his son so much. And Chayanne wants to make him proud. So he always listen to his dad. Being considered one of the most obedient eggs. Because Chayanne understands his dad point of view and wants to protect.

Chayanne is also very similar to Philza when it comes to his papa. He doesn’t care if Missa isn’t skilled or talented. He doesn’t care if Missa needs protecting. Chayanne doesn’t need Missa to be useful. He is just like Philza. He just wants Missa to be there. Thats enough.

Chayanne never stopped waiting for Missa to return. He missed him but never gave up on the idea of him coming back. And he’s so happy when he can see him. Chayanne is very protective of his dad’s marriage. Which makes sense as he was the first one that how to deal with how they act around each other. He supports them but think they are being dumb about it. He doesn’t see what is wrong with his dad’s clear love for each other. He is a child he doesn’t realize philza being open could lead to missa being in danger.

Chayanne fully believes that Philza and Missa are the best dads in the world. He always had an affectionate home life. Philza and Missa are always loyal and affectionate. And both love him so much. He is just happy his dads are his dads. He wouldn’t want anyone else.

Overall, Chayanne is clearly both missa and philza son. He carries aspects from both of them. And that’s really beautiful in my eyes. Chayanne has pieces of his dad’s habits and personality with in him. And he will make them both proud.

[darcytaylor]

Isn’t it career suicide when at the peak of his fame (because it is rare to be the lead of such a huge show), Luke is not taking full advantage of the exposure?

Choosing to not attend Wimbledon, meanwhile going to fashion week shows, paying to attend an influencer networking event, and bringing his gf along to all of these?

Rationally I don’t think it makes sense. And had Luke been a person as determined and career-focused as Nic or Johny B, you would have seen him fully capitalizing on his success by making appearances everywhere and leading new projects.

But if we look at things from the angle that Luke is very sensitive and anxious (we know he suffer from anxiety and finds life overwhelming due to his ADHD), then forget about making rational decisions, all of his choices regarding work and people to keep close in his personal life would be almost 100% dictated by his anxiety.

For example, he might choose to attend events with clearer structures, less pressure on meeting and talking to others, and more welcoming toward plus ones, so he can always have a comfort person there to support him. I don’t think this is what Wimbledon is about hence he wasn’t seen there.

His choices of people around him seem questionable, but when someone is vulnerable (coping with anxiety in this case), they might appreciate qualities that normal people overlook. Most of us have got the impression that his friends/gf seem off, but perhaps they are the most tolerant toward his anxious nature while others take him for granted.

Perhaps they give him the reassurance and acknowledgment that he craves without any expectations. And from personal experience, those who display certain negative traits (eg narcissism) do thrive on relationships with vulnerable people. There is a dynamics in which the narcissist gives the vulnerable what they don’t usually get from everyone else in exchange for company and loyalty, which I have seen repeatedly in real life.

We love Pen for her intelligence and girlboss power, which match up well with Nicola’s personality in real life. However, I don’t think we are prepared to accept, in place of the dorky cheeky Colin, someone like Luke who is an anxious laid back dude who is pretty much trying to lead a life as free of nerve-wracking moments as possible.

When Nic praises Luke for being kind, supportive, hard working and having no ego, I fully believe she is not lying. She could easily be describing an anxious person who is just nice and trying to do his job well. Nic does have this motherly and assuring nature which allows her to build this great friendship with Luke and they clearly bonded via going through the experience of stepping into the spotlight. Nic has done such an amazing job with handling press and public attention; I think Luke was grateful that she was there to take most of the pressure while he could just happily sit there agreeing and showing support. There is nothing wrong with this. I am sure Luke did the best of his ability.

Realistically, I don’t know how romantically compatible Nic and Luke are. I feel that Nic is good for Luke as a more experienced costar who guides and supports him, and a smart colleague who knows how to work with Luke’s strengths and weaknesses in order to make them both shine. If Luke had chosen Nic as a love interest I wonder if this might be too much for him to measure up. Luke probably wants a relationship as something to complement his life and helps him cope with his anxiety, meanwhile Nic is likely only dating casually on the side while focusing on her career.

Wow, this is a great analysis thank you for sharing!

I do think that Luke not capitalizing more on his career is odd, but I ultimately don't think that it is career suicide. I would also need to know where Luke wants his career to go, in order for me to come to a conclusion. It has been fascinating to look on the sidelines and wonder what he is doing or where he wants to go.

I think that comparing Luke with Nicola or Johnny can be a hinder to Luke, because they are a tough competition and they obviously know where they want to go. Nicola and Johnny are incredible at what they do on all fronts of their career, they are powerhouses and you can see that they know what they want and will go the extra mile to get it. Not many people are like this. I just hope that Luke can look in from the outside and get a better idea as to what he wants and how to get it.

(or maybe he already does know what he wants and it's not the Nicola or Johnny level of fame, so he is stepping back. Or maybe because of PR moves he fucked up and is not invited to things - although I don't think that is the case, but at the end of the day I have no idea)

As far as the friends that he keeps - I can take a glance at their online personas and gather information about them to come to a conclusion, but I also know that social media can be very misleading and will never tell you the whole story about people. It may be ignorant of me to judge them, but then I also know that they are the ones responsible for creating what they put out into the world.

Luke has been friends with them for a while now (especially Rory) and that alone can be very comforting. Just knowing that they know you on a personal level and you can be who you are regardless of anything. Especially if you have anxiety (I suffer from this as well), knowing that you don't have to mask or hide a version of yourself, lets the anxiety fade into the background a little.

Luke has also stated that he is a very empathetic person. Even if he sees friends/people in his life have questionable actions, an empathetic person will/can try to look past that. A narcissist would thrive on that and easily be able to take advantage.

I completely agree that Luke was grateful to have Nicola on his team. To have her by his side in all of the craziness that Bridgerton can bring. Nicola is smart and compassionate, she knows what she is doing.

As far as Luke and Nicola being compatible? I have no idea. Since we only see a very small part of who they actually are, I can't say what their dynamic would look like if they were a couple or if they would/could thrive together. I do think that they compliment each other professionally and that could be a good sign/starter for a romantic relationship.

[lifeandtimesoftrying]

The overlords’ persuasion, the Morningstar’s power, and what this means for Charlie

Hazbin Hotel's been rotating in my head since the finale and I have capital-t Thoughts about the worldbuilding (and its implications). So!

Hazbin Hotel’s power system is fundamentally divided into two parts: the overlords, whose abilities are fully tied to and determined by their connections with other denizens, and the Morningstars/other Hell-born aristocracy, whose abilities are innate and unchanging. I think this is why Lucifer is incredibly powerful while not really having power, the overlords seem to be running the show, and Charlie’s character has a lot left to come.

(This got pretty long and there are spoilers, so I’m putting it under a cut!)

Lucifer doesn’t have much authority—the meeting to decide the fate of hell is attended by only the overlords, other demons repeatedly dismiss Charlie (often even using her relationship with her dad to do so), and when we do finally meet the King of Hell himself, it’s when he’s engaged in a hobby which he clearly has a lot of free time for. When Charlie needs large numbers of allies, it’s Alastor and Rosie who coordinate to get them for her, and Alastor is terrified of Zestiel but told Lucifer “fuck you” to his face. Lucifer doesn’t have any control over his subjects.

However, he is still incredibly powerful. He and Charlie, whose powers presumably came from him, defeated Adam, and in the finale sequence he conjured the foundation for a whole hotel without any strain.

The overlords function in the exact opposite way: their powers are gained through their various relationships with other people, and can be influenced as such. Most obviously, Carmilla Carmine explicitly tells Vaggie that the best way to fight is for love, but Rosie is powerful because of the ways she can provide for people and gain their loyalty. Alastor’s known to have bought souls to do his bidding, and the Vees are all themed around ways to influence people (pornography, TV, and social media), and at least one of them also has contracts for souls.

“Hell’s Greatest Dad” illustrates both the overlords’ and the aristocracy’s perspectives. Regardless of how authentic Alastor is being in his claims in the song, it can be assumed that he’s doing everything he can to convince Charlie to work with him, and Lucifer is doing the same. However, their approaches are polar opposites.

Lucifer’s persuasion relies on his innate abilities: he calls himself “the big boss of Hell himself,” and says that he can help “with the punch of a pentagram / I wap-bam-boom, alakazam / Usually I charge a sacrificial lamb / But you get the family rate.” This emphasizes both his familial (and unchangeable) tie to Charlie and his inborn abilities, which come up again when he says “there’s no substitute for pure angelic power.”

The reasons that Alastor cites for why he should be chosen are all based in the actions that he’s done for Charlie, and the resulting relationship that they have because of those actions. He emphasizes his consistency (“who’s been here since day one”) and reliability (who’s been faithful as a nun), both of which are good traits for an overlord to have.

I think this contrast is why Mimzy has to show up when she does: there is no way to resolve the argument about whether to choose that which has been built or that which you were born with. And that’s because of Charlie. Charlie’s dad was never mortal, but her mom was. None of the overlords have been called immortal, but many of them are confirmed to have been mortal. A large part of Charlie’s arc in season 1 is her learning how to connect with the people around her and get them to believe in her. She is, in many ways, beginning to function like an overlord would. With one major difference.

We know that Husk used to be an overlord, most likely one of gambling. Gambling is really three things: chance, skill, and being able to read other people without them being able to read you. And from what we know of overlords, getting that status requires all of those traits. Chance and skill exist in any field, but the ability to see past other’s facades without revealing your own hand is incredibly important here, to the point where it’s Alastor’s whole shtick—a smile is a way of staying in control.

But where overlords try to read those around them while keeping their own feelings hidden, Charlie always has her heart on her sleeve. When she goes to cannibal town, Alastor’s advice that she always smile quickly stops working, and only after she’s processed her feelings about Vaggie by talking with Rosie is she able to convince people to follow her.

But this is still only half of what she’s potentially capable of. We haven’t seen her try to battle anyone on her own and win—the closest we got was Valentino, but she quickly backed down from that. Since a second season is scheduled, my bet is that it’ll follow her learning the extent of her innate powers, and how to pair them with her connections to others—after all, she is the only character with both mortal an immortal lineages.

[sonicasura]

More info on the Nobody Like You AU! I figured why not expand more about it! Now let's get started!

Edit: Someone actually made a fic of this on AO3. (They got my permission btw!)

Kafka's Kaiju form looks similar to canon but with the differences I mentioned in Always A Kaiju. His adult form is around 70 meters in size, he has large obsidian wings outlined by luminous green bone, a long tail ending with a scythe-like blade, long jagged dorsal plates that go down from his neck to tail, and completely green glowing eyes bearing X shaped pupils. A huge contrast compared to when he was a little kid.

Kid!Kafka basically looks like a chubby baby version of his canon kaiju form. The man was barely corgi sized at the start! He really began to grow once he started to reach adolescence. Traits such as his wings, tail blade, and unique pupils begin to crop up during his teenage years. (Yes he does take Soshiro for a flight a few times.)

Kafka knew his size would eventually become a problem. It's more difficult to sneak around and he couldn't sneak onto Hoshina Clan property anymore as he would be so easy to spot. He never thought about trying to become human until Kafka eavesdropped on an outdoor viewing of Ponyo.

Whenever he's in a slump, the Kaiju often sneak over to an outdoor movie theater and watch whatever they're playing. An argument for Soshiro was enough to warrant this. Kafka knew he could shift his body but it's an ability he never bothered to test.

Watching Ponyo gave him enough determination to try. He wanted to continue seeing Soshiro and his foster mother Sakuya. Thus Kafka got to work in figuring out how to become human. From experimenting with his shifting abilities to reading up on human anatomy.

Although one thing Kafka really needed to improve was human interaction. He has only spoken to two people and that's not enough to help him blend in. Thus the man often sought out people to talk to once he got used to moving around as a human.

Kafka's most important ally in this endeavor is Mina Ashiro. He had accidentally bumped into her during a walk. The kaiju in disguise noticed how lonely she seemed to be thus struck up a conversation. Mina would quickly become his best friend and gave Kafka some pretty solid advice on certain things.

This includes how to court Soshiro as he had no clue on 'dating'. It was a very pleasant surprise to learn his lover would be in the same Division as her. Mina was also Kafka's Maid of Honor for their wedding.

Now he hasn't told her what he really is. Kafka had learned how much Mina hated kaiju and was honestly scared that their friendship would end if she ever found out. He hated lying to her but knew nothing good would come out of telling the truth. Soshiro usually has to reassure Kafka about the topic. However this was a secret only his husband could tell and he wouldn't push him to make such a decision.

Kafka joins the Monster Sweepers for two different reasons. The first being it pays quite well as he does need money to spoil himself and his mate. His second reason is that it's a quick meal. Kafka often dug through the trash when he was younger because it's where a good chunk of a kaiju corpse goes after clean up.

The company wouldn't care much if portions mysteriously disappeared over time and he's least likely to get in trouble should he be caught by taking the job. Similar to Mina, he cherishes the bond he shares with the Monster Sweepers. Kafka's less scared of asking 'hypothetical' questions about his true form to them than her.

When they became adults, Soshiro did ask his lover just how big his kaiju form had gotten. Cue one impromptu (and concerning for the Hoshina) middle of nowhere country side trip. A thought proven right as he watched Kafka turn into a 70 m titan. The himbo obviously cracks a monster movie joke to ease the tension. Nothing like a laugh to help Soshiro deal with the fact he's in love with the next King of the Kaiju.

Hibino became a middle name for the couple once the two married. It was too important for Kafka to replace as it reminded him of his human foster mother's kindness. Even moreso because she perished during No.6's attack.

One of the few times Kafka ever went berserk against another Kaiju. He was lucky that he kept himself in check enough to stay at a human size and avoid detection. Soshiro took some months off to comfort his lover for his loss.

Kafka has met his lover's family when he got a good grasp of human interaction and his human form. Thus he avoided the whole approval process when Soshiro announced they were dating. One of the things Kafka took up to impress them was cooking.

He does experiment with different ingredients which includes kaiju meat but he reserved that bit to himself. Snacking on human food made the man quite the foodie. Plus he loves seeing Soshiro smile as he offers him a homemade Mont Blanc.

Kafka makes his appearance during the Tachikawa Invasion. Soshiro had invited him over for the party. Kafka stealthily dispatched some of the wyvern kaiju without being spotted but he had to transform to stop the bomb.

Everyone made assumptions about the Vice Captain's husband being replaced. That is until Soshiro raised his sword at them when some officers aimed their guns at Kafka. Only the Third Division knows the truth about the two lovers under Mina's orders. It's one of the few times that Soshiro was glad for his family's influence.

The Defense Force is eventually told once a case is built for Kafka. With how things are ramping up, it would be a matter of time anyway. Soshiro would rather strike first with his husband's approval than leave it up to fate.

@noodlesbf-blog @iceclew @omniithe-deer @renard-dartigue @drmarune @kafkahibinomybeloved @terra-sketches

[princeasimdiya12]

Return to Nyan Nyaight Love-A Happy Ending in Sight?

Before I begin my analysis for Episode 9's NNL segment, I would like to thank everyone who reblogged my previous post and left kind and wholesome compliments about my analysis. It really warms my heart that so many of you guys enjoyed my thoughts on these segments. Especially if they helped provide a clearer understanding of what thematic purpose they serve in the Bucchigiri series. I'm more than happy to help and I appreciate the compliments.

Secondly, I'd like to thank @saph-yells-into-the-void for providing a majority of screenshots for me to use. Even though you didn't mind not being credited, you still deserve it for these great screenshots!

So just as a quick recap, the NNL segments serve as a Greek Chorus as they parallel the main story of Bucchigiri by using the customer's relationship with Jasmine to symbolize various relations and plot events. This time, their relationship parallels the main relationship of the series: Arajin and Matakara.

Episode 9: A Heartfelt Reunion

The segment starts with the customer being nervous as usual about whether he should go in, only to hurry inside as to avoid being spotted by Arajin who's on his way to the bathhouse. The customer is greeted by the receptionist who is still uneasy with him avoiding Jasmine. And even the customer himself looks less indecisive and more somber when he's asking for Pu'er instead of Jasmine.

As I mentioned in the Episode 1 segment, the customer is meant to symbolize Arajin while the catboy receptionist represents the colorful delinquents that Arajin encounters. And even though the first episode had Jasmine stand in for Mahoro, this time she stands in for Matakara.

The receptionist describes Jasmine as being strong-willed, clingy, and too much at times. Many of which are traits that are associated with Matakara.

-While Episode 9 shows him slowly succumbing to Ichiya's twisted therapy sessions, it's worth noting that it's been several days since when he first merged with the Blue Genie til then. So it's worth noting that Matakara lasted a good while before succumbing to Ichiya's will. And even before that, it was his strong will that helped him become stronger and find a place among Minato Kai while also evading the shadows that constantly haunted him. His determination in becoming stronger helped him to evade those shadows; maybe not vanquish them but not to succumb to them either.

-The clingy and too much at times qualities seem to go hand in hand as most of Matakara's screentime has been spent trying to reconnect with Arajin while holding him on a pedestal. Even as Arajin kept pushing him away, Matakara still clinged on to his idealized version of his best friend. One who constantly inspired him to be a Honki person and do the impossible. The too much at times part also works since Mataraka just wouldn't stop gushing over Arajin to his other friends or tries to force Mahoro to talk with him about Arajin and his involvement in Siguma Squad. While is very much a sunshine puppy boy, he can be quite overbearing when it comes to his old friend.

As of the last episode, Arajin made his true feelings for Matakara painfully clear and how he wants to avoid him at all costs. Only now the rest of the cast have taken notice and how much it's effecting Matakara given his refusal to talk to his other friends Zabu and Sakigake mixed with him running away from home. It's become a serious problem and they're all worried about him.

Something peculiar about the receptionist's behavior, and the whole scene overall, is how it's played for dramedy.

The receptionist treats the customer abandoning Jasmine as something tragic and how badly it's effecting her. There's soft music at play as the receptionist speaks his heart out about the cat's distress and how only the customer can help her.

But at the same time, it's just so ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous! There's no reason that the receptionist should need to be so invested in the customer's preferences in cats. They haven't actually bonded with each other apart from letting the customer in so he can spend time with the cats and spend Lord knows how much money. This is his job so it shouldn't matter which cat some random, pathetic everyman chooses to play with since he's still getting paid rather handsomely at the end of the day.

But it does matter to him.

Maybe (as far as we know) the receptionist doesn't know the customer very well but he (supposedly) knows that Jasmine truly misses him and is miserable without him. The receptionist could try to make Jasmine feel better herself given that he sees her more often and knows more about her. But he knows that she holds the customer in his heart and implores him to go back to her.

And while the Minato Kai boys don't care much for Arajin or flat out tell Arajin to patch things up with Matakara, they do make it clear that their friend isn't doing so well after their falling out. He's in need of help and they unfortunately can't do anything about it given how they were brushed aside. And even Mahoro, who also happens to be a colorful character that Arajin met when he entered the Ichizu gang life, has also picked up on Mataraka's despair and wants him to feel better. She clearly doesn't care for Arajin but she knows how much he means to Matakara, someone who understands her when it comes to valuing an older brother figure. She even flat out orders Arajin to go see how he's doing.

Something to consider is that while the Minato Kai boys and Mahoro have their respective but serious scenes with Arajin, they still have their quirky (questionable in Mahoro's case) personalities at play. Such as Sakigake singing his heart out in the bathhouse with Arajin while in his birthday suit to Mahoro having a tea party with a blow up doll of her big brother before learning about Matakara's brother. They're still weird and silly but they show how much heart they have and how they can empathize with someone who's at their lowest. And while they might not be the best person to help out, they know that Arajin is the best person to help them out.

Just like how the customer is the best person to help out the upset cat. And what does he choose when he's asked a second time?

He loses his mopiness for just a moment, becomes slightly more confident and chooses his precious Jasmine. Much to the receptionist's jubilation.

I'm gonna be leaning on the optimistic side and say that this will foreshadow Arajin reconciling with Matakara.

As much as I find Arajin to be a detestable and disappointing human being, I will admit that he is capable of growth. Particularly with bonding with his old childhood friend.

Right after defeating Akutaro, we see Arajin help out a grievously wounded Matakara while mildly complaining about it. We see them being on speaking terms during the Pro Wrestling Episode and Arajin even took the time to teach him how to make gyoza. Not to mention that Arajin was also willing to stick around for Mitsukuni's Welcome Party. The guy is not a good person (ESPECIALLY towards women) but he is capable of becoming better. Maybe at a snail's pace, but it's possible.

And we see those glimpses of growth in Episode 9 with him secretly admitting that there was one person (Matakara) who actually would like his rock for a gift.

So I want to be an optimist and say that Arajin will be able to save Matakara from his despair and they'll reconcile. Maybe accepting that he took Matakra's feelings for granted and how he should have treated his former friend better. How he was acting like a dunderhead and how he doesn't expect to be forgiven after treating him like yesterday's trash. I don't know if the puppy boy will forgive and accept Arajin again so quickly after everything that's happened (it actually would make for an impressive writing choice if Matakara chose not to accept him right away but with their being hope that they'll be friends in the future) but their relationship status will be a hopeful one.

Random Thoughts

When the receptionist brought up how the customer has seen other cats, I had two thoughts in mind. The first is from the Group Date til now, the customer has seen other cats at NNL apart from Pu'er.

The second is that this could be an implied parallel to Ichiya. I don't have enough information since we don't know much about Honki People and the Pasts of the Two Genies, but it's possible that Ichiya has encountered other masters in the thousands of years from when he was human to the present. The other cats could have been masters that Ichiya encountered and tried to possess to take revenge against Senya. But as the receptionist claims, Jasmine kept waiting for the customer. In this case, Jasmine was Senya. Ichiya's oldest friend who still longs to see and reunite with him after so many years of separation and regret.

Another thing I want to bring up is how conclusive this segment feels. It feels like it was wrapping up the plotline between the customer and Jasmine. I find this odd since this happened in Episode 9 and we supposedly have three more episodes before Bucchigiri is officially over. Does that mean we won't get more NNL segments in the final 3? Or will we still get them but in different formats? Like an epilogue of the customer bonding with Jasmine (along with getting an official reveal of who she is) or maybe we get a new customer who's set up to meet another cat potentially foreshadowing a final plot point in the series.

And those would be my thoughts on this segment. No lie, I did not expect this to be this long. But given how conclusive this NNL segment was, I felt there was alot to say about this. And what did you guys think of this segment? As before, feel free to reblog this if you agree with what I wrote, disagree or have another interpretation for this scene. So if you think of something, please say that you know.

"Do you know? Do you know? Do you know what this means?"

[shivstar]

i just saw a random divorce jily rant that ends w snily and prongsfoot of yours in tags on a reblog and i feel like a stalker but uhhh please please i would like to hear sm sm sm more about that ill pay you

Hello Anon!!!

(A but of jily critical) (be cautious) (also a bit of lily abd james critical)

To be quite honest, I never prescribed to the 'madly in love jily' idea. Something about the couple didn't sit with me the right way. Especially as we are only told that jily were made for each other, what we saw was how much toxic they were for each other.

So, I am proper against the idea that they had a perfectly healthy marriage.

Add to that how Prongsfoot is practically canon. With Sirius's never ending love for James and James time and time again choosing Sirius.

I love the idea that in a world where voldy didn't exist, they would fight like those crazy couple fight we all secretly enjoy to watch and gossip over.

Just about doing everything to pull other's nerve short of actually killing them.

See, James is a free spirit, we know he loves to fool around and be praised for just plain existing.

Lily on the other hand is an uptight person.

So on paper they work. Opposite attract. Enemies to lovers sorta of way.

I even agree that james's determination equals Lily's stubbornness.

BUT. We know Lily is okay putting her head under the sand as long as she keeps on liking you. know this because apparently Snape has been going around calling slurs to every muggleborn except her. She never stopped him, never fought with him on it. Just this one time he calls her, she burst like a volcano on him. So, her righteousness is more of self-righteous ness and not a charity for all.

Applying this to jily relationship. In the beginning with teenage hormones and budding romance, she let's James's dark side slide over. But then as things progress to marriage, she begins seeing him without rose tinted glasses.

He is good but he is bad too.

What is even worse is that she can see james being his usual grey shade of person with everyone but her. Around her he tries to be this picture perfect human being.

That irks her even more. Making her realise that just like james is hiding his bad side from lily, Lily herself is hiding her bad traits from herself. James working like a mirror to her own personality. Where she is selfish and callous and mean.

Still she let's things slide, hides her dark side and let james do the same with her.

But then the breaking point is her meeting with snape. Snape who is still the same sourpuss human being who doesn't even try to convince people that he is a decent human being. He let's people think whatever they want to think about him.

When she reunites with her ex friend, she lets go of that part of herself where she always tries to be the sweet kind person. always on the show. Realising how much heavy it is to be in a relationship where she has the role of being james's moral police.

James on the other hand thought that this is what life is supposed to be. Get a job. Marry a nice girl, have kids and then keep on living.

Always a little jealous of Sirius who lives life like a nomad. Trying various careers but never settling for one. Trying dating but never long term. All around happy with how life is going.

Meanwhile for james realising that adulthood is not all that fun as he had thought as a kid. All the responsibilities and what not. Always a little scared of what next flaw of his lily will point out, silently demanding him to hide it from her.

The sense of loss of freedom and the taste of it whenever he is with Sirius.

...

This story can have so many permutations and combinations. I will list top 5 here,

James and lily keep on living their life as it is. Never daring to take leap of faith. Getting broken and hurting each other and their children but never letting go. Disabled in their belief that this is how life is supposed to be.

Lily realises it is time to move on but James doesn't want to. In the end james is left alone with his school days sweetheart dumping him out of nowhere. (Delusional James.)

Opposite for lily. Not understanding why james want to break their perfectly lovely marriage. (Delusional Lily)

James and lily talk. Have a easy divorce, become friends. Share with each other that they are in love with their respective bffs. Help each other get their men. Here things can go two ways-

A) Happily ever after with snily and Prongsfoot.

B) This one is my favorite because I love the idea of pampered and cherished kids lily and james having to live an adult life with endless grief.

Sirius and snape have begin tryst. And before they can tell Sirius and snape about their feelings, s and s tell them that they are dating. Later, snape and Sirius live happily ever after meanwhile lily and james are broken and lost forever.

I like this last ending the most despite being an avid fan of Prongsfoot because the devotion that Sirius has for james and snape has for lily, it is uncanny. They stopped living for themselves and begin living for the love of their lives.

And whatever james and lily try to do, I don't think they could ever be as obsessive and gone as Sirius and Snape are for them.

These boys had bad lives as children.so I like the idea of them getting a chance to move on, getting loved by an equally giving partner. Matching their own worship.

Canon Lily and james will, in my humble opinion, leave a lot to desired. Making Sirius and snape feel like a second choice. Always left doubting are they not enough.?

So yeah, Sirius and snape not even realising that the love they waited all the years for is now being offered to them when they got over it and begin channeling it to a different person. They simply begin healing each other from their respective unrequited love. In the process falling for each other... (I will pay to read this!!!)

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

Alright here's the sun and moon signs for the P5 characters whose birthdays I could find. (Moon signs sometimes transition on the same day, so I picked the one that seemed most likely in that instance.)

*Mandatory disclaimer that I am not an astrologer nor do I wish to be, as I am not a believer in this sort of thing. I'm doing this for fun and because the information is there. As you do.

Ryuji Sakamoto (July 3rd, 1999): Cancer Sun, Aquarius Moon

A desire for independence and new experiences offsets the usual cautiousness of Cancer. Restless and rebellious, they can be viewed as arrogant or impatient, but also generous and protective of the underdog.

This works pretty well, other than that this combination is supposed to be a lot more in their head "deep thinkers", of which Ryuji... definitely is not lol

Ann Takamaki (November 12th, 1999): Scorpio Sun, Sagittarius Moon

Compassionate and idealistic, they often serve as guiding lights to others. Very warmhearted, humanitarian and a romantic at heart, yet also aloof at times and strong-willed, as they are determined to create their own path in life.

Yeah, this suits Ann well.

Yusuke Kitagawa (January 28th, 2000): Aquarius Sun, Scorpio Moon

A powerful and magnetic personality with a blend of both intense passion and intellectual detachment. They study human nature, see hidden potentials, and have an intense sense of individualism. While they try to repress petty feelings, they can easily carry around immense resentment and contempt if left unchecked.

Holy shit. That's Yusuke almost to a tee.

Makoto Niijima (March 23rd, 1998): Taurus Sun, Capricorn Moon

Calm and sympathetic, but with a tough and determined inner core. Prone to worry and anxiety, they may hold themselves back for fear of damaging their future with risks. They are loyal and witty, and are often good at giving advice. Have a lot of repressed anger.

Yep, that sounds like Makoto. There's some more info on how they tend towards humour and have some talent in creative outlets, which isn't so much her, but that's only after they conquer their fears. Maybe Makoto will ease up more over time.

Futaba Sakura (February 19th, 2001): Pisces Sun, Capricorn Moon

A blend of opposite traits; both a romantic and a realist, both sympathetic and pragmatic. While they don't tend to love taking on a lot of responsibility, they have an ambitious side to them that loves a good challenge. They tend to show their compassion by taking more practical measures to help people out.

Not bad for Futaba, honestly.

Haru Okumura (December 5th, 1998): Sagittarius Sun, Cancer Moon

Calm and assured, Cancer's caution offsets the Sagittarius urge to jump into things. They are receptive, open-minded, sincere, and have a competent air about them. They are intuitive and usually very good at sensing whether a person is trustworthy or not.

I still don't know Haru as well as the other characters, but this seems decent enough from what I've seen of her!

Kasumi Yoshizawa (March 25th, 2001): Aries Sun, Pisces Moon

Creative and self-expressive, but prone to insecurity and uncertainty. Often project an image of being bold, adventurous and decisive but can be held back by inner passivity and sensitivity. Tend towards a rich fantasy life and are very artistic.

I think it checks out for Kasumi!

Goro Akechi (June 2nd, 1998): Gemini Sun, Virgo Moon

Self-expression is extremely important to them, in writing, speech, and debate. Charming, analytical, and communicative, they love having an audience for their ideas, but they are also high-strung, set impossible standards, and can become hypercritical the more discontent they are.

Hm. I think that's actually not bad from what I've seen of him so far.

Sadly, Morgana has no birthday listed and I don't think I can make a good guess for him either. However, I will make a guess for Joker's birthday as being P5's release date because... well, just look at this.

Ren Amamiya / Akira Kurusu (September 15th, 1999): Virgo Sun, Scorpio Moon

Outwardly reserved with a cool demeanor, but inwardly intensely emotional, they are highly driven by instinct and passion even as they are guided by rationality. Gentle, dedicated and soft-spoken but also persistent, innovative and tough. Highly secretive with their feelings. Very perceptive.

Uh. Yeah. That's him.

[3xen]

just for you; g. s genji is rushed to your operation room, believing it'll be dr. ziegler to operate on him.

n. wrote this on three hours of sleep w school tmr, and i actually liked it sm! idk yall, im getting back into my game plz bare w me.

c. first meeting, mentions of mercy (angela), lowk crack

“we have a patient in critical condition. he needs to be treated immediately.” god, angela where are you when i need you most? you double-take the patient in the gurney—genji shimada. his name had appeared more than once on your files. but never once was he sent to your aid. dr. ziegler was his primary doctor since she maintained most of his records and regular check-ups. 

the assistant rolled the gurney into the room. “please, notify dr. ziegler of mr. shimada’s status. im sure she’d want to know.” i inform, inspecting the patient with a cringe. his visor is damaged with a dent, wires sprouted from his shoulders, and his left lower limb seemed just too far out of place. 

“will do ma’am, ill be here if you need me.” the assistant left—leaving a tense silence in the air. 

“shimada, are you alright in there?” 

“im alright.” his words came out strained, almost as if he felt the physical pain being done to his body. you acknowledged that. as you moved to his side—determining how to treat the damages, he spoke in a soft voice. “is dr. ziegler unavailable?” and it made you wince. 

“she’s been transferred to overwatch headquarters in switzerland. i am so sorry.” he gave you a quiet hum—observing you through his visor. you looked attractive, beautiful, and it really intrigued him. you spoke in that angelic voice, had observant and quiet motions—he couldn’t wait to bury angela with queries. 

“your cooling system must have been tattered with. the wires don’t usually come out like this do they? reattaching your limb should be easy.. but, your wiring is jumbled—it’ll take a lot of time to install it properly,” in deep concentration, you furrow your brows, crossing your arms over your chest, and then sighed. “and, you must have suffered quite a blow to your face.” 

“ah, just a boulder. nothing special.” 

operations on flesh and bones were completely opposite of cybernetic and robotic parts. there was really no easy way to work around any mechanical part that ran on a code—not without guaranteeing its success.  

you stifled a quiet groan—turning away from your patient. you couldn’t admit to him you’ve never worked on a half-cyborg—actually, no one has in the nepal headquarters! 

“doctor?” 

“sorry, lets get to work right away.” 

you whisked tools in your hands from around the room—useless or not, you placed them on a moveable cart. “we’ll start on your leg, then work our way up.” 

as the operation began, you worked attentively. this must have been your most daring task yet. 

“doctor,” genji cooed once.

“ye-yes..”

genji cooed again—not being able to make out your coherent words. “doctor.” and it didn’t take long before you sprang up. 

“yes!”

“you are too focused. it makes me worry.” wasn’t that a good trait of a doctor? i pulled back, blinking twice at a loss.

“i suppose you are right..” you directed your eyes toward him. “ive never worked on a specimen like you.”  you unconsciously lowered your head.

“a cyborg?” you nod. 

“only dr. ziegler specializes in those preposterous things..” genji chuckled, causing you to perk up.

“you seem informed about it all.” 

“she only taught me a few things. ive also worked on cassidy’s cybernetic arm aswell. thats my only experience.” genji stared in awe—you picked up fairly quick.

when he arrived at nepal headquarters—wounded, he expected dr. ziegler. his visits with her were short—she was a busy woman, he knew. and when he found himself being in a room with someone other than her, he accepted his fate of chaos and disaster. 

“how long are you stationed here?” 

“about 2 months or so.. they want me back in zurich as soon as possible.” genji nodded in acknowledgment. really, he was intrigued.

© 3xen