#I do think it can be worked on and look ALOT better but the champion tunic on its own?

[thebleedingeffect]

You know, this might be a weird opinion but I'm not super attached to the champion tunic at all. I think Wild looks really reallyyyyy nice in blue but the design of the tunic itself just isn't it for me, put some belts on that beast

[ihaveforgortoomany]

For Peace of Mankind: analysis of the nature of Foundation and its similarities to Manus Vindicate

It doesn't take long for us to realise the morally grey nature of the Foundation and the scope of power it has. Arguably the aims of the Foundation place it no better than Manus Vindicate in their goals as the future and "peace" they champion is founded on ideas around limitation and control.

(This is an essay just exploring how the Foundation does have alot in common with the Manus)

The Foundation

Its interesting how early on the game establishes Vertin's independence to the actions of the Foundation, seeking out Regulus and attempting to help her against the wishes of the Foundation knowing that if Regulus had been dragged by Sonetto to be registered she would have likely been taken by the Storm.

Tbh we can be here all day listing the problems of the Foundation (experiments on children and the manipulation of a 12 year old, constant pressure on arcanists to register, everything about Laplace as an institution especially with the Mesmers, Zeno with Rayaskhi and why is Lilya already a functioning alcoholic at 14) but here I'm placing emphasis on the aim of the Foundation.

Sure they at least aim to stop the Storm (Marcus in Chapter 6 "at least the Foundation are trying to stop it but you're speeding it up") but in terms of relations between humans and arcanists, the goal seems less pure.

Chapter 6 establishes that humans do not benefit in anyway from the continuing Storm, the Foundation is an organisation primarily run by humans and yes there are both humans and arcanists in the Foundation that seek to work together to end the Storm - it seems more like returning to a previous status quo in 1999 than improving and moving forward to the future.

Thematically and narratively the Foundation is dogmatic, the "born to die martyrs" line doesn't paint a positive image of the Foundation. The institution of the SPDM seems to aim to control the future of arcanism in children, where censorship and suppression with knowledge is commonplace. The idea of the "rational" human and "emotional" arcanist is continuously hammered down by the Foundation and Laplace.

(Im not equipped at all to talk about mental health but it is questionable how the Foundation/ Laplace deal with it, Vertin's induce coma used as a political manoeuvre to isolate suitcase fam under the pretence of "extreme trauma" (yes there is an orchard of trauma but the timing is suspicious) and the whole story of Scot Mesmer in Three Doors)

The Manus

We already know there is a chess motif in the designs of the Foundation, the checkered designs on clothing and Constantine's need to one up a child in a game of chess.

The colours of both fractions are presented as opposing but more interesting is how the normal foot soldiers of both sides wear headgear that obscures the eyes (the Foundation staff headpiece thing and the Manus mask).

This can be interpreted as how neither fraction as a whole look to the future or moving forward but instead to a ideal period of time: the Manus the "garden that doesn't exist" and the Foundation "peace of mankind" or to whatever the status quo was in 1999. They are two sides of the same board.

Am I saying Vertin might break away from the Foundation eventually? No I don't think so, both are aligned in goals to stop the Storm. However thematically and narratively its fascinating how the Foundation has been set up as a complex institution we do not wholly trust but regardless root for in the game.

[livelovesimallways]

"Baby Johnson's Arrival"...Pt. 5

(previous)

20 Minutes Later......

"Deanna?..." *closes the door*

*sees who it is* "Oh hell no! I don't know why you're up here, but you can get out! Tell that mothafucker to give me my son and my phone, we're leaving! I'm getting a restraining order and filling for full custody. He'll be lucky if a judge allows supervised visitation."

"I know you're upset right now but just take a moment to think rationally."

"Rationally!??? Look at my face!!" *voice cracking* "This is more than one punch!...I'm done."

"Listen, he had no right to put his hands on you. Nothing in this world justifies that. But with that being said, it didn't come out of nowhere. You named his son after Sean, something he has to live with for the rest of his life. That was fucked up too."

"Well he should've handled that like a man, instead of using his fists! Of course I was wrong, but that doesn't mean I deserved this."

"I'm not saying you did, I just want you to see that there's cause and effect. Going to the courts over this one incident doesn't make sense. It wouldn't be a regular case. He's Michael fuckin Johnson!...The world famous, six time NBA champion, multi-billionaire! Do you realize the rippling damage that would cause? Think about Silas. Labeling his father as an abuser would mess up his future."

"Oh please, only Mike is going to suffer, and rightfully so."

"How can you be so sure? If this gets out, he'll be flooded with lawsuits from people looking for a payday. They'll say he's a monster and use your situation as ammunition. No one will care if they have any real claim, it'll be believable. His reputation will be finished, he'll have to resign from his companies, and he'll forever be blackballed. Silas is his son. No one will want to work with him or put him on a team because of the negative attention his father's name will bring. Sure he'll be rich, but will he be happy? All the comments, ridicule, comparisons...It will take a toll."

"Well, what do you suggest I do then!? I can't be here and I'm not leaving my baby. He's not going to give me custody without a fight. I won't win without telling my truth."

"I know. He's stubborn and not capable of seeing the bigger picture, but you are. You're Silas' mother and have been protecting him since you found out you were pregnant. Continue to do that by letting this go. Everything was fine before today. He knows he messed up and I promise you he won't do that again. Just take a breather, rest, and reset."

*shakes her head* "This is crazy..."

"I agree. It's alot, but you're doing the right thing. I'll go get you an ice pack and some Tylenol."

"...And Silas?"

"Hmm. Maybe I should bring him up after you get some rest. Babies can sense stress. You'll feel better afterwards and that will make all the difference."

A Little While Later.......

"Took you long enough, I was beginning to get worried. Ryan handled his part and got through to Sean's agent. Once he heard the words blackballed he had him make a post addressing the rumors." *rubs Silas' back* "So what happened with Deanna?"

"She's hurting but I think I got through to her. Right now she's resting."

"Good. Did you give her the pain medicine?

"Yes. I told her it was Tylenol like you asked." *with a slight attitude*

"I know you didn't want to do it but it had to be done. I can't trust that she won't change her mind, so it's just a little insurance. Technically Percs have Tylenol in them so you really didn't lie."

"So how exactly will that work in your favor?"

"It's simple. If she goes to the courts, I will have the judge order a hair sample drug test. They leave your system but stay in your hair for up to 90 days. My lawyers will paint a very different picture that you and Ryan will corroborate. I told her ass, I don't play about my kids. She's either gonna fall in line or lose him for good."

[tammyfeabakker]

Its Monday again. I had a great birthday weekend. We watched... pepsi,where's my jet?On Netflix I recommend it. Then we watched love on the spectrum and down for love. I wait months to watch the new seasons. My Chloe and Emily. My Chloe went back home. As much as I'm so happy to see her. I was so sad when she left. The loneliness. The tears. I don't cry much when I do. Its jus painful. I miss her so much. I have to tend to my merlin and peaches. I jus can't pick up and go anymore. They jus can't pick up and leave they have responsibilities. It takes months before I see her again. I crave championship. I tried online dating. But I don't think I want that kind of a relationship. I jus want my kids back. Its been years. I'm still not over it. Why do I have to be the one. That will never get over the empty nest syndrome. They say you get over it or you don't. I didn't probably never will. My Chloe is my soulmate. Soulmates come in many different ways animals kids mothers dads aunts uncles friends... not only man and woman relationships. But all kinds. Chloe was my champion from the time she was born. I loved her with everything I had. We went everywhere together up until she was 24. She never slept out. She was always home. I never never never had a problem with her. What a great kid. I feel like the universe tortures me. I have no idea what I did to deserve this continued pain. Of her growing up moving on. She jus moved to far. I don't know how to spend jus a day with her. Has to be days. Its so hard to let her go. I watch the Simmons3. Bout a mother lost her 3 kids in a drunk driver accident. I want to tell that woman. Not only does she help keep drunk drivers off the street. But she helps me feel better. Its sad I know. But the empty nest syndrome. You grieve like they are gone. You grieve... you jus don't cry you grieve. The first couple years I cried everywhere everyday. I tried to tell myself I still have my kids. They are alive and well doing what I instilled in them growing up. Independent women. My cats do every thing they can. We are here for you momma. Please don't cry. They take the pieces put me back together. They know when I'm sinking. They stick to me like glue. My job is starting to suck now too. We use to be able to take the hours...if we finished up early. But now that ended. I pile up my targets looks like I'm working 10 hours. Jus for my boss to come in say can you handle that? I say yes because I'm doing in it 4. Only to take work from me. Because she doesn't think I can handle it. But I'm not really working it. That fucking easter cart been out set up for months now. Don't adjust the time on it jus act like its not out. We have to make it up somehow. Considering the wear and tear on our cars and phones. But I still like my job. Gift card resets are coming up again. The managers love me because I jus throw them out. Everyone I work with is a joy. Molly is a joy. We try to get together so if I have a job. Thats insane I call Molly. 5 hours of awesome. We talk laugh. I keep telling her she's to good for this. She incredibly smart. The girl is gifted. She's jus this little thing talks me down when I start to loose it. The gift cards are a nightmare. I start my shit. She knows how to deal with me. We are soulmates. She sees the little things I see the big picture. We both suffer depression its like therapy to us. Start my day now. Thanks for listening. I tell ya one thing bout Tumblr. Even though we don't talk. No matter how far I go no matter how long im gone. You know who you are. You never leave me. Thanks for the devotion it truly means alot to me oxoxox.

[lesbiangummybearmafia]

Gilded Age, 02x06, Warning Shots. My thoughts...

Turner can go fuck herself! Seriously her revenge doesn't go the way she wants it to, so her next is to steal Bertha box at Met. By getting some getting some old money people to go to new opera house she has some cojones. Hoe I don't think so! I love that George set everything right again, don't mess with his wife! Good man! Can someone, but Bertha please expose Turner for who she really is, a two bit hoe lady's maid that tryed pathetically to get her bosses husband to sleep with her. She'll be dropped out of high society on her ear!

The word frenemies should of been invented to describe Bertha and Mrs. Astor's "friendship". I swear the moment Gladys said 'I thought you were friends' to Bertha, frenemies started flashing in my head in neon red lol.

Omg Marian, I felt so horrible for her put on spot like that in front of everyone. He didn't even court her or anything! Oscar at least kissed the girl he's trying to convince. He's gay for crying out loud, can't imagine kissing a woman high on list of things to do but he did damn it! Marian and Dashiell haven't even done that, let alone gone a true date or anything. I do like him, it just feels like he's jump the gun alot. It seems like he's looking more for a mother for his daughter than an actual wife. Which isn't cool dude! I do like how Marian got around saying yes, that was creative.

How cruel to do that to Aunt Ada and Luke. It's just evil! I just bust into tears. She finally finds her person only to have this happen. Aunt Ada has the purest of hearts she and Luke don't deserve this!! All I know is there better be a goddamn miracle happen and he lives!!! When Aunt Ada comes down stairs and Aunt Agnes is waiting for her just being her big sister. I couldn't take it, I started sobbing right along with Aunt Ada. Because not matter what Aunt Agnes said or does she loves her little sister.

I really don't like what their doing with Peggy and her boss! This week I'm liking she's all get away you're married. Just hope it stays that way. Because other wise it's just going to come off as badly for both characters. I really don't like her boss! Beyond he's already married! All I know is if I heard the line my wife doesn't understand me like you do. I might scream!

Ok I'm so confused what Oscar is up with the investment. I am glad he moved in direction that might lead to something more then friendship. I do like them together.

Can George please be a good man to his workers. He's such a good man in so many other respects. When he was in the head of labor union house it was easy to see he cared. Especially the fact that son worked at the plant or that the children didn't go school or have one to go to. He's not like the guy that works for him. George isn't a heartless, unfeeling, subhuman who would of gladly killed all those men and not even blinked an eye. So I'm hoping we'll see George do the right by working with the labor union to come with deal that works with for both sides. Also see build a school, George Russell is a fictional character after all why not make him like say Milton Hershey who really champion for his workers, build them homes, schools, a hospital and everything else in Hershey, Pennsylvania so they could work more easily at his plant. Because it's like we can him wanting do that. He stop those soldiers from shooting on the striking workers, where the other dude would of been happy with countless die and wouldn't of cared, he'd all been price of doing business he's just subhuman!

I think it so amazing what Jack did with clock! I definitely don't think he shouldn't give up. Love how everyone in the house expects one believe in him and gave him the money to go to patton office.

Can we take a minute to talk about Armstrong. They show us how horrible her mother is ok I can get that, but there are people with horrible parents that don't become that. I'm living proof of that! So what else is her deal!?! Because she's one dimensional at this point, even after them showing us her mother it's still impossible to have any empathy or simple care for her. She's just the most bitter, jaded, miserable character of the whole series. If anyone would be entitled to feel that way it would be Peggy's, her baby son died but she's nothing like that. So I hope they give us more on Armstrong character. Because I'm so tried of her being a buzz kill, shit Aunt Agnes isn't that bad!! When she said that stuff when Jack's patton get approved, truthfully I just really wanted to slap her. Because being cruel and horrible is a choice, it's abusive. It's not because of how she was raised with her mother if that was case she's be like to everyone. She's not, if she was like that with say Aunt Agnes her ass would of been fired by now. She's selective on who she's abusive too.

I'm over Mr. McAllister playing both side! I feel he needs to be loyal to one side now. I of course I want it to Bertha's. personally find Mrs. Astor too arrogant, overblown, way too many people been kissing her ass for so long that thinks she just be a bitch to everyone. Or that her personality because outside her daughter we haven't seen her be truly nice to anyway not ever Mr. McAllister. It's she walks in a room she just expects them all just to kiss her ass. Where Bertha generally nice to people, especially her staff. Which is one of things I do really love about her. I do wish be less shape with Gladys. She keep Gladys in a golden box than snap at her when she doesn't understand something. It's like Bertha you only have yourself to blame if Gladys doesn't understand these things. Chill woman! Gladys looked so hurt by Bertha words and tone. I understand that feeling very well. I would really love to see a scene where Gladys stands up to Bertha when she snaps at her and Bertha realize what she's doing. And they have a moment where Bertha said she's going to stop doing that. Because we have seen it in her Bertha way she does truly love both her children deeply.

I do have to say I want more Bertha in last two episodes she's been seriously lacking. Or at least it felt lacking to me. I know there are bunch of other story lines going on and need they need equal attention but I still want more Bertha!!

[ladyroza-18]

ARCANE S2, RENATA GLASC PREDICTION

(I am going to be honest this theory is mostly because i want to see my lady Renata in Arcane, she joined my absolute favourite Legue of legends characters that i am kinda obsessed with and can watch a entire series about so yeah full fan girl mode over here 😅)

So i had a idea on how Renata can fit into arcane and I mean why wouldn't she? She has a perfect lore , perfect design, a personality begging to be on screen, so .... a lot of people brought up the prediction that now with silco dead and savika probably stepping up to take he's place but not being able to fill the gap he left alot are speculating that savika might give up the position so what if she gives it to someone else maybe an old friend ? THAT'S RIGHT what if Renata was part of the old uprising that silco and vander led ?, Now my personal headcanon is that after Renata's parents were murdered she was very lost and had no idea what to do next she was a young woman who her family was suddenly taken from her along with her arm and she probably spent the first few days after that just searching for whatever to do next so with all that is left for her is her parents research and her name she wouldn't be thinking straight she would just be looking for a way to get revenge on piltover so she'd join the first people who are presenting the idea of a reblieon HECK maybe even Vander brought her out of the fire of her home i mean someone had to pull her out of there especially since she would definitely be mentally, physically, emotionally destroyed and young Vander and silco could use the fact that the undercity/zauns kindest doctors were unjustly murdered by enforcers as another factor to lead a revolution and as such Renata worked with young Vander,silco, savika in the beginning and maybe silco saw some of her parents research as a inspiration for shimmer since people want to tie Renata's chem tech to shimmer, however I think Renata after some time left the revelation because she didn't agree with silco and Vander plans and decided to run her own plan for revenge and progress the way i see it each have/ had their methods and philosophy on how to beat piltover

Vander 's was: use violence. until he adopted the kids

silco 's is : make them fear us so that they have to give us what We want

While Renata 's philosophy is : if you can't beat them join them until they trust you and you can plant a bomb in their house without them expecting it

And this disagreement with ideas is what led Renata to leave the rebellion years before it started and definitely years before the bridge riot in the beginning of the show so that she can start glasc industries and start out her own plan of revenge. And now with someone needing to pick up where silco left off what better way it is to earn piltover 's trust then to turn a once violent Empire built on chemical drags into a Lifestyle brand and a community service centres that also make products for the rich , that would be a opportunity presented on a silver platter for Renata and would still line up with her Lore if savika can't handle the power vaccum silco left and she would need someone else to be loyal to Renata would be the perfect fit for this since her methods of improving zaun does help it's people better and it will tie Vander/Warwick to another champion cool right?,

but hey that's just my thoughts and PREDICTION Bec i want to see Renata in the series so badly but I am not sure if she will or not so one can only dream and Fantasies

( P.s don't bring up the theory that savika and Renata are the same person THEY ARE NOT. The only thing they have in commen is having a prosthetic arm and they each lost their arms in different ways and their personalityies are different not to mention it will be considered a skin colour washing and we don't want that here )

[probably-haven]

How Visions Work(Theory)

genshin spoilers

there’s a lot of headcanons about the effect of visions on the body temperature of the characters with pyro or cryo visions but a lot of them stop there an i want to propose we take it one step further

so the general agreement is that pyro users run hot and cryo characters run cold but imma take a moment to talk about the science of that real quick.

if something feels warm, its because the object is expelling heat from itself to its outside environment(itself losing warmth) if something feels cold, its because it’s absorbing and taking the heat from the outside environment into itself(itself gaining warmth)

which actually matches up pretty well with how i believe their visions work which ill cover before getting into what i think that means

pyro visions work by absorbing the users body heat and before then expelling it into the environment when they wish to use it. When the vision reaches what is essentially its max storage capacity, it resumes working at normal, absorbing heat from the user until it’s used, but at this point it stabilizes, because the pyro energy built up within begins overflowing into the nearby environment, a majority of it returning to the user to keep their body temperature from getting too dangerously out of wack. But by passing through the vision, the body heat is converted into pyro energy and made more intense, so the surplus tends to linger around the user, hence the heat that can be felt when touching or around them. the user can then use their powers with either the pyro energy stored in the vision, or that which still lingers around them. 

cryo visions on the other hand work in a bit more of a complicated manor. like pyro visions and other visions, most of the energy that they get is from interaction with the user, in this instance, steadily taking heat from the environment that would have naturally have been observed by the vision had it been any other inanimate object and passing in through the vision and into the user, the process creating of the heat leaving the vision creating cryo energy, a sort of anti-heat vaccuum-like substance, which once it reaches it’s max, overflows in a way similar to the pyro vision, leaking into the nearby environment, helping to balance the user’s body temperature while the remainder lingers around them, absorbing heat from the environment. the user can then use the energy stored in the vision(less than pyro because more steps means less room) or that which still lingers around them (more because less room means more over flow), plus they need more surplus in order to balance cuz their temperature is more volatile

visions do however possess the ability to begin expelling energy early should the user’s body temperature become too dangerous, an ability that is missing from delusions of the corresponding element

-

this leads me to have a few headcanons that i really like because im obsessed with angst

1. contrary to what you might believe, after using a significant amount of their powers, Pyro users are are absolutely cold to the touch(cuz the lack of surplus energy leaves nothing to disguise or raise their low body temperature as the constantly absorbing heat to refuel) and Cryo users feel hot (the lack of surplus energy doing nothing to disguise or lower their high body temperature as the vision is constantly having to expel surrounding heat into the user in order to refuel cryo energy)

2. however during this state they are also the least likely to leave behind traces of elemental energy(like those that can be seen with elemental sight) 

3. this cycling of energy actually makes a vision behave more like a part of the user that also serves its own role in maintaining homeostasis (makes it so losing a vision is quite literally comparable to losing an organ)

4. until the vision has enough stored energy for surplus to linger, Cryo users are prone to over heating and Pyro users are prone to the opposite

5. this rapid and common changing of internal body temperature also tends to weaken their immune systems

6. the lingering surplus of energy is also more easy to manipulate than the stored energy, so while it lingers, it has a tendency to be easily influenced by the user’s emotions. 

7. yes this means accidentally freezing and setting things on fire during emotional extremes, or more subtle effects for those that are less extreme

8. in dragonspine, Cyro users are actually weaker but healthier. The lack of heat to cycle through their vision and body means less cryo energy is created, but less heat is there to build up in their bodies

9. Pyro users on the other hand- are in real big danger, unless they made sure to have large amounts of elemental energy before hand. They take longer at the torches they like because they need every bit of heat to raise their naturally low temperature and to make more pyro energy to both light the next torch, and to constantly have enough surplus that it doesn’t just steadily drain all the pyro they have. 

10. a lot of the pyro users are overly energetic and active and move around alot, which is known to raise body temperature, and whould help with this, then there’s hu tao who while energetic is not all that active, but i think her job of “guarding the border” makes her more tolerant of the low body temperature. similar to yanfei’s constitution as an adeptus. Bennet is energetic but doesn’t move around quite as much and all, but... his luck is bad enough that he just thinks everyone feels like/has to deal with that. and Diluc- we’ve all seen the fluffy jacket. Klee constantly setting grass on fire and otherwise being hyper. Amber, gliding champion of mondstad, “i feel like running” Amber. Yoimiya is pretty active and works around fire. I dont have Xinyan so i dont know for sure in her case but i assume it fits the bill. 

11. as for cryo characters- Qiqi is a zombie and Ganyu is half adeptus, different constitution. A lot of the characters are or try to be more calm and level headed, known for being kind of “slackers” to use kaeya’s words, though by this i mean they dont do excessive physical activity outside of training and that which is necessary. Diona is a bartender, often staying in one place, the opposite of pyro, keeping her body temperature down. Ayaka rarely leaves the kamisato estate. Chongyun is complicated- more on him later. Rosaria known for shirking her church duties and being basically lazy, the same as Kaeya. And Eula- i actually dont have an explanation- maybe just... the training to endure- like that one test where you have to walk through dragonspine all fancy without being thrown off. 

now as for Chongyun

him with his popsicles and yang energy, needing to maintain a cool body temperature at all times as a result of his constitution 

i mentioned a failsafe of visions, where should their users’ body temperature lean to dangerously to any one extreme, the vision will begin releasing the stored elemental energy early.

Chongyun’s however doesn’t store energy at all, instead immediately expelling all cryo energy it makes as soon as it forms so it can immediately absorb any dangerous body heat that Chongyun was exposed to in it’s making. This means that the surplus energy(the type more likely to be accidentally manipulated by emotions) around Chongyun is more than most other cryo users would have.

however, the balance is really fragile because his temperature is kept from getting out of hand almost entirely by his vision so external factors are extremely dangerous, as there is a still a cooldown between the transfer of heat the release of cryo energy- so unexpected sources of heat can cause a rapid rise in already fragile temperature that runs its course and wreaks havoc on the childe before the cryo energy is able to balance it out- and the problem is- with the surplus being easily manipulated by emotions, the sudden rise in temperature has a tendency to activate it, using it up and leaving him without a source of temperature regulation, which only worsens the problem. at which point the vision probably begins storing cryo energy until theres enough built up to reset his body temperature in one go- which usually ends with him passed out.

anyways i had a lot more planned to write but if i kept going i fear how long it’d get- i just think it has potential to evolve into a lot of cool things and theories for how the world works, and reflect the archons..... let me explain that-

so assuming anemo energy is created bey absorbing and then renewing the oxygen in the user’s blood, as opposed to dangerous body temperatures, it tends to have an anemic affect on their wielders, hence why all the anemo vision users have this tired air to them, Xiao’s... Xiao-ness- he just looks exhausted, Jean’s constant exhaustion that totally isnt made any better by her workload, Kazuha’s general calm relaxed disposition, and sucrose’s general demeanor- idk i just think anemo vision wielders give off anemic vibes, until they have enough surplus for the taken oxygen to replenish

except for venti- who doesn’t actually use a vision, who is literally a wind sprite, made of air- always running around and being all energetic- because he doesn’t face these problems- if anything he has extra energy and air to use. He’s basically the opposite. (windrise may have some weight in this-)

which means other archons may model this-

im not sure about geo but with electro

assuming that the constant transfer of electricity through the user’s body would eventually have a frying effect that shortens their lifespan over time(an idea largely inspired by Lisa’s voice line on visions and other theories on it) then Baal’s steady eternity serves as another opposite to this and yet pursuing eternity it becomes odd that she would give visions at all, so i feel archons must get some benefit from giving visions or she wouldn’t have done it-

but anyways imma stop now- hopefully someone found this interesting and runs with it, but if not it makes sense too

... actually geo might have something to do with an erosion-like metaphor, similar to what was brought up in the azdaha fight

still thinking about hydro tho, and im not even gonna bother with dendro

....

..... can you tell that I kin Sucrose and Albedo yet? It’s not even funny istg it’s becoming a problem .... actually scratch that i have a dark sense of humor, its kinda pretty funny

[heywardsarchive]

Home [Harry Potter]

Requests closed! Based on this request by nonnie : id like to request a harry x gryffindor reader. its the yule ball and harry wants to ask y/n. but the other boys are all over her and he barely gets a chance. so basically y/n is cho but she says yes XD

Summary: Harry recalls a time when he wanted to ask y/n to the ball but couldn't gather the courage to ask her out.

Pairing: dad!Harry Potter x female reader

A/n: I think this is my favourite Harry fic I've written! Im a sucker for dad!Harry, basically any Harry. I just love that man.

Warnings: none, just pure fluff

Word count: 1.9k words

Memories are in italics

******

It was bedtime on a snowy January night in the Potter household as Harry Potter tucked his oldest into bed. James, only eight years old, was an energetic young boy. He wasn't ready to sleep yet and he was determined to stay up. The only way he could do so was if his father told him a bedtime story.

"Daddy," he started pulling his dad's sleeve, "tell me a bedtime story."

Harry looked down at his son who was trying to look as innocent as possible. "James, it's time for bed."

"Please daddy!" He gave his best puppy dog expression, his eyes the same as the woman harry loved most, and Harry melted. Both mother and son knew how to use their eyes to their advantage.

"Alright fine, call Albus and Lily and I will tell you a bedtime story."

James excitedly jumped out of bed and brought his siblings into his bedroom.

"Alright kids, what bedtime story do you want to hear?" Harry sat down on the bed beside the three children. "Tell us about the first time you had a date with mummy!" Albus said and lily and James nodded in enthusiasm.

"Alright then. So the first time we went on a date was when we were in our fourth year in Hogwarts. Remember the time I told you about the wizard tournament I was in?..."

The triwizard tournament, a disaster for Harry. He had unwillingly got thrown into a game he wanted no part of. He managed to complete the first task but the hardest part was yet to start. He needed to find a date for the Yule ball. In his opinion fighting a dragon was easier than asking a girl out.

He knew who he wanted to take but he was yet to gather the guts to ask her. He saw her multiple times over the week but everytime there was a distraction. Whether it was her friends pulling her away or a teacher snapping at him to pay attention. Harry was unable to get to her.

Ron too was struggling, unable to find a date. "Mate, you fought a dragon if you can't get a date nobody can." He told him as they walked through the courtyard of Hogwarts. "Right now, I think I'd take the dragon." Harry sighed. Ron patted his back. Harry's eyes drifted toward the crowd of students, his gaze stopping on her. Y/n l/n, she was the nicest girl in Hogwarts and everyone was her friend. She and Harry were acquaintances, they weren't close per se. Harry had been crushing on her since the end of third year when she helped him in potions.

Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting on a table doing potions work while everyone around them were talking about their dates to the ball. A boy sitting to Harry's right was whispering to his friend. Harry tried not to listen but potions was boring and he heard y/n's name and his ears perked up.

"Have you heard? David Arden asked y/n to the ball. She turned him down , do you think I have a chance?" He asked hopefully. The boy beside him, the friend he was talking to, scoffed. "She turned down David Arden, he's literally every girl's crush. What makes you think you have a chance? Besides she's turned down all the 5 guys who asked her out this week."

Harry returned to his work. 5 guys asked her out and she turned all of them down? What chance do I have now. He thought to himself. "Ron, do you think y/n will go with me to the ball?" He shook his best friend's shoulder. "You're the boy who lived mate, she'd definitely agree."

"She's turned down 5 boys this week ron! What if she turns me down too." Harry sighed. "You will never know if you don't try." Ron shrugged.

Harry made up his mind he was going to ask her out that evening.

"Did you do it daddy? Did you ask her to the ball?" Little Lily asked excitedly. Albus shushed his sister. "Let daddy finish!" Harry chuckled and continued. "As I was saying..."

Harry kept avoiding the fact that he had to ask y/n to the ball. He made excuses to do it later but the more he delayed it the higher the chance of him not getting to go with her higher.

As he returned from the great hall after dinner, he ran into y/n. The person he wanted to speak to. "Im so sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." She apologized. "Don't worry about it, I wasn't looking either." Harry chuckled awkwardly.

"I'll be going then." She smiled, but hesitated a bit. "Hey Harry-" "y/n-" they started at the same time. They laughed. "You go first." She said.

"Uh sure, I uh wanted to ask you if you uh wanted to um gototheballwithme." He stuttered.

"Im sorry, what did you say?"

"Do you want to go to the ball with me?" He said, slowly this time.

"What did she say?? Did she say yes daddy? Did she??" Albus asked this time. "Ofcourse she said yes dummy, they're married!" James said to his brother.

Y/n bit back a smile. "Yes, I'd love to."

Harry felt a blush creep up his neck. "Uh great, that's amazing. Uh what did you want to ask me?"

"I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go with me but I guess you beat me to it." She smiled shyly. "I'll be going then, see you soon Harry." She kissed his cheek and walked to her common room.

Harry stood glued to the spot with his hand on his cheek a smile on his face. "You good mate?" Rons voice startled him, snapping him out of his trance. "Im brilliant, never better. I asked y/n to the ball and she said yes! Ron she said yes!" "Good job man, I knew you could do it!" Ron pat his best friend's back.

That night Harry fell asleep with a smile on his face.

"How was the ball dad? Did you have fun?" James asked curiously.

"Oh yes, we had the time of our life."

The day of the ball couldn't come faster. Harry's excitement was uncontrollable. He kept practicing his dance steps and talked to himself in the mirror causing Ron to shake his head and pass comments about Harry being 'whipped'. He didn't mind though, he was whipped.

Finally the day was here. Harry stood at the bottom of the staircase and waited for his date to arrive. He looked around the hall, it was decorated with Christmas decor, snow was charmed to fall, there were icicles on the ceiling and everyone was dressed up in beautiful attire.

As Harry was looking around, he felt a tap on his shoulder. "Hello Harry." It was y/n. She looked absolutely stunning in her dress. Harry forgot how to speak.

"Did you actually forgot how to speak daddy?" Giggled Lily. "It's a saying lils." James explained to his sister.

"You look beautiful." He finally got out. "Thankyou haz, you look dashing yourself." She poked his chest playfully. Harry blushed at the nickname.

"Potter! There you are. We are waiting for the champions. You dance first." Professor McGonagall said. "Wh-what?" Harry stuttered.

"Yes! Now go on we don't have all night." She hurried both the teens.

"I really can't dance, I'm going to make a fool of myself." Harry whispered to y/n. "It's alright, just follow my lead." Harry nodded in relief.

As the champions entered the hall, Harry's grip on y/n:s hand tightened. She squeezed back to comfort him. Everyone's eyes were on them and Harry was feeling self conscious. They stood on stage and Harry placed his hands on y/n's waist and she on his shoulders. "It'll be fine." She mouthed. Harry nodded. His hands were getting clammy and his mouth dried.

The music started playing and all the champions started to waltz to the sweet melody. Both if them swayed to the music and Harry spun her around. He was starting to enjoy it. At last the dance floor was open to all. The attention was off Harry and he felt much better.

Y/n pulled Harry's hands to a more open space on the dance floor and started dancing to the upbeat song. "Dance with me!" She laughed. Harry looked at her and smiled. They both danced badly at the songs, having the time of their life.

Soon they left the dance floor to go and have some refreshments. "You know, I thought you'd turn me down." Harry said sheepishly. "Why would you think that?" Y/n asked curiously. "Because I heard you turned down 5 boys in the same week and I thought you'd turn me down too." "I turned down the other boys because I wanted to go with you." She placed a hand on his cheek.

"I really like you y/n. Im glad we came together." Harry whispered, his face moving closer to hers, staring into her eyes. "I really like you too haz. Alot." She closed the gap between them.

It was blissful. Harry didn't feel the butterflies that others say happen on your first kiss, it felt like coming home, it felt right. It was perfect. When they pulled away Harry realised that he had found the one he wanted to be with forever.

"Would you like to be my girlfriend?" Harry asked her. "Definitely." Y/n said kissing him once again.

"Ewww." Gagged all the children when Harry mentioned that they kissed. "Daddy has the cooties." Albus said in disgust. "I think it's cute." James said proudly. Harry laughed and ruffled his hair.

"What's going on here?" Y/n entered the room. "Daddy was telling us about the Yule ball!" Lily exclaimed. "Was he now?" Y/n said smiling at her family. "It truly was a great experience. Maybe when you go to Hogwarts you'll have one too!"

"Alright it's time for bed now. Let's get you tucked in." Harry clapped his hands. James settled himself on the bed and Harry kissed his forehead and shit the door. He tucked Albus while y/n tucked lily.

Shutting the door, Harry pulled his wife toward him. "I love you. You've given me three lovely children and the best life I could ever imagine. You stood by md through everything. I don't deserve you." He kissed her forehead.

"Oh haz, you have gone through so much you deserve everything and more and you make me the happiest woman alive. I love you so much." She kissed his lips.

Just like the day of the yule ball, this kiss felt right. Harry was home and he never wanted to leave.

*****

[markitchi]

pile of headcanons

bunch of raihan/leon headcanon nonsense from my twit*r

theres alot under the cut, warning : its cheesy, also, i headcanon raihan calling leon "bubu"

Raihan is really good at baking and leon is great at cooking savory & spicy food, raihan likes spicy food and leon likes baked goods, they complete each other

Leon so thick and firm he'd be so good to hug and raihan took advantage of that, holding his bubu until leon complains or whine, yknow when ur pet looks so cute and u hug them, like that

leon contacts name on raihans phone is like "♥💖my bubu♥💕", but raihans contact name on leons phone is "Raihan" with capital R

raihan complained about it, showed leons contact name on his phone, leon is surprised bc he thought his contact name on raihans phone is just "Leon" or "Lee"

then leon changes rai's contact name too "🥰raihoney💖

leon doesnt look like the guy who'd be extra on hair and skin treatment, the reason his hair and skin (especially his hair) is unbearably soft and shiny is bc raihan kept reminding him to do so (and buying it)

sometimes leon act spoiled so raihan will do an entire haircare for him

yes raihan do it bc he loves leon unconditionally and he thinks leon deserves it

raihan has a dirty mouth and uses every swear word but for some reasons, around leon all he can say is "jerk" "ugly" and "dumb"

raihan does that bc all he remember when hes with leon is pet names and how-to-coo-and-woo-your-boyfriend

raihan being leons moral compass feels fitting, not bc leon is dumb but bc leon himself is swallowed by his own title and got the hero complex, making him selfless and have a hard time to say no

raihan is there to "what the fuck are you thinking, dont do that baby, you'll die"

but leon seems stubborn yes? he wont listen if people just say "no", he'd ask the reason why, and if the said person doesnt give a clear answer, he leaves but raihan always tries to explain him in full description, short & long lasting damage, consequence etc

so obviously leon listens, and as time goes by, raihan is.. his moral compass, in a way

raihan playfully growls while squeezing leons body parts but its definitely not so playful in leons mind

raihan always ask leon to wear his freshly-washed-hoodie at sunday so when he go to work at monday, his hoodie will smell like leon

raihans laugh is like "aha haha haha *low volume wheeze* phew heehee" and leon got a laugh that can trigger an earthquake

Raihan sneeze like a kitten while leon sneeze like a buldozer

Leon muffles his laugh by hugging raihan so it wont surprise anyone around them

leon demanding affection from raihan by giving him stupid empty threats

leon : Kiss me or ill

raihan : u will what

leon : i-i will shrink your hoodie and make it mine

raihan : no, now come here bubu

In reality, leon doesnt need to do "things" to get raihans attention, raihan told him he can just ask or "just sit on my lap or tug my shirt and ill cuddle and kiss you till the next day", but leons ego is too high for that so he does stupid shit instead

raihan is very loved by leons family bc surprisingly hes able to stop leon and hop from fighting

if u ask how, raihan simply pick up leon up and walk away

aihan is the only guy who leon will listen too and got called as the "champion tamer"

but all raihan do is just

raihan : bubu, no

leon : no..?

raihan : leon. no

leon : no...

then nag him softly while explaining the consequences, sometimes short and long term effect it depends on the situation

leon is stubborn, so it took sometime to convince him that his plan or an action he almost took to partake is very impulsive or doesnt give a good result

the thing is leon is not stupid, infact hes quite brilliant, therefore its hard to convince him if a person who tries to stop him doesnt have a similiar mind like he is, but thankfully theres raihan

for some reasons raihan is able to found leon in any occasion so the league staff ALWAYS calls him whenever leons gone

league staff : mr rai-

raihan : is it leon

league staff : yes

raihan : im on my way

leon likes to ask raihan for hairbands bc he kept losing them

raihan : bubu, isnt this your third time asking for them this week

leon : ....yes..?

raihan spoiling leon bc he feels he wants to make up for him, bc he wasnt available near leon when fought eternatus

leon follows raihan everywhere in the winter and kept pressing himself to him, whenever raihan question whats wrong leon just looked him in the eye and "im warming you up"

leon is small by raihans perspective but he hugs leon tight anyway

raihan is possessive of leon hes THAT hot, charismatic yet very adorable, leon is the one who keeps his chin up and soothe his fears, and hes the champion, everyone wants the champion, u think he'll let go that easily? no, never

and leon is probably possessive too, raihan is a hot nerd, affectionate and gentle, hes the one who push him to his best, the one who also stops him for doing too much, hes his source of comfort and he wont let go and wont let anyone take his raihan away from him for sure

10 years of friendship and healthy rivalry means 10 years of being on each others live, being one of the biggest contributor and supporter for the other, who pushes to the limit yet stopping when one is too close to the edge of the cliff

no matter if its platonic or romantic, they wont let anyone take their rival, friend and lover away that easy, you wont let anyone try to take away one of the important and huge part of your life

raihan big, so hes the big spoon, he loves cooing right at leons ears and kissing the back of his neck, shoulders and sometimes reaches forward to press a sloppy wet kiss to leons cheek

leon crying to raihan when he founds out raihan smokes when hes stressed out, and begging the other to stop and talk to him instead or cope with healthier way

raihan doesnt need an alarm clock to wake him up, leons just need to grin and say "good morning!" its so bright it WILL wake him up

raihan and leon lives together and since then the outfit leon has on his wardrobe is a collection of formal tailored outfits and his battle tower outift, some booty shorts and work out clothing, and obviously underwear and socks.the rest he just stole from raihan

especially t-shirts, hoodies, and jacket, raihan seeing him walking and opening his wardrobe after shower is such a common occurence that he doesnt even need to ask anymore

raihan looks like the type who carries lipbalm and hand cream in his hoodie pocket, he carries 2, 1 cocoa lipbalm for him and honey lipbalm for leon. whenever he met leon, he applies the lip balm on him, it becomes habit that leon even raise his chin up for raihan

leon can sleep alone fine, but when he woke up he felt groggy,but if he slept on top of raihan he'd woke up like he had a perfect 8 hours sleep even tho he slept for only 5 hours

raihan is a heavy sleeper but waking up with leon glued to his chest/back make his whole day better,especially when he woke up to leon peppering his face with kisses to wake him up

raihan being lowkey flustered and overwhelmed by leons beauty/cuteness/sexiness/everything while leon is being clingy and acting spoiled around him

leon cant be serious around raihan, when he saw the gym leader,he automatically let his guard down infront of him, changing from champion leon to leon from postwick, all giddy and happy

leon unzips his champion outfit and once raihan heard the zipping sound he zooms to leon to plant his face between leons chest

if leon wants attention from raihan he will do various things from holding his arm and press his head to raihans shoulders,sitting on his lap and loop his arm around raihans neck,hugging him from the front and put on a cute face

but if raihan wants attention he just, hug leon from behind,put his head on leons shoulder and doesnt let go until leon does SOMETHING

leon has been taking care of others for so long,so when raihan takes care of him ,its a new,yet quite familiar feeling.

its hard to accept since he felt bad about receiving the attention,but raihan kept doing it until leon tend to act spoiled around him

raihan always kiss leons forehead before he sleeps,when raihan is away, he has the urge to videocall raihan so he can coo him to sleep,but hes too embarrassed to do it

he thought abt that and raihan suddenly videocalling him,its noon on the region he visited, and hes like "heeeey, i just want to say good night to my beloved!! good night leon,sweet dreams,sorry bc i cant kiss your forehead but ill kiss u 10x more when im back"

leon was shocked and stared to his camera "lee? fuck,is the connection that bad-" and leon stuttered "n-no! i was surprised...thank you darling, have fun and stay safe okay?"

"of course! dont stay up thinking abt me for too long,i love you so much bubu,good night!

"..good afternoon raihoney,i love you too" leon stayed up for the next 20 minutes rolling around the bed screaming

raihan actually helps leon on taking care of his dragons, which made leons dragonmons actingspoiled around raihan,and sometimes leon thinks that his dragons loves raihan more than him

raihan plays with his dragonmon as if hes playing with a yamper,calling them "cute little babywubby" and playing with their hands,kissing their foreheads and lays with them on the floor,and of course leon joins in by laying on top or next to raihan

even leon have seen raihan carrying his dragapult like a baby with a baby axew hugging his legs, raihan is legit a dragon pokemon magnet

raihan has a habit of cooing or complimenting at leon even when hes doing the simplest thing ever and leon feels giddy like a 5 y.o everytime raihan does it

can u imagine how many pictures of leon raihan have on his phone,its probably more than 1000, he takes picture of leon as if hes a baby pokemon

leon comes to raihans place at 2 am without any warning,i mean raihan DID gave him a spare key so, raihans flat is HIS flat too,and there he goes,going to the bedroom and slip himself under the duvet,crawling to sleep closer to raihan

at first raihan is SO surprised that he jumped from the bed,but now he doesnt care anymore and just kiss leons head,mumbles "goo'nite bubh" and sleep again

leon does it so often that if hes gone from his apartment,people call raihan instead of him

raihan hugging leon from the back while leon is doing stuff in the kitchen while singing,and raihan is there like,peppering smooches and compliments while leon is STILL singing,and giggling bc raihan is smooching him

raihan is BAD at it but he sings along with leon in a joking manner and leon cant even sing anymore bc hes just wheezing while raihan is just "cmOn bAbeEEe SING AgAiiiNNnn"

[missroserose]

WIP snippet meme!

@redmyeyes tagged me to share a snippet of my WIP! (Luckily, she didn't specify which one.) I'm going to tag @paperbodiesamongthestars, @twobrokenwyngs, @sirsparklepants, @withoneheadlight, @trashcangimmick, @wendigosam, and @keziahrain—let's see what y'all are working on!

As for me, while I haven't actively worked on Act III of Waters for a while, it's been haunting my ruminations for some time now. So here's an early version of one of the early scenes. It's the week after Billy and Steve got together in secret, and things have been a little rocky between them—and then, of course, there's school...

---

Steve thinks about skipping the lunchroom, maybe going out to his car for a smoke—it’s been a while since he did, Nancy didn’t like it, but Nancy’s in the lunchroom and not out in his car, and frankly that seems like as good a reason as any. But Tommy’ll be there, and Eric, and the rest of the guys, and even if it is unseasonably warm there’s something of an unspoken rule that they all eat together in the lunchroom come December. So he shows up fashionably late, grabs a tray, takes his apportioned apple and slice of pizza and pint of chocolate milk—

A round of applause interrupts his good old fashioned pity party. Sends his attention towards the corner of the cafeteria where the guys from the basketball team are sitting—all clapping, whistling, giving those weird hooting gorilla grunts combined with a spun arm of approval.

All at Billy, standing in the doorway.

Billy’s staring, hostile, mean, but then Tommy runs up to him, slaps him on the back—“hell yeah, stud, like father like son“—and of course he misses the flash of anger this sends across Billy’s face. Steve crosses the room, careful to put a careless saunter in his step, and stands at the end of the table, watches as Billy takes the guys’ semi-sarcastic congratulations. Leans over, where Dan Miller’s sitting, stabbing at his rubbery pizza slice with a plastic spork. “What’s going on?”

“Something about his dad,” Miller responds. “It’s dumb but Tommy got it into his head that it’d be a funny joke.” He looks over at Steve, half surprised. “I would’ve thought you were in on it.”

“What, like Tommy can’t think up unfunny shit on his own?” Steve elbows Dan, gets a half-smiling chuckle in response, straightens. Returns his attention to the drama playing out at the head of the table, hears snatches of conversation. “Lydia Hayes—“ “God, I’ve had a crush on her since middle school—“ “those tits though—“ “shame her daughter didn't get those, huh?”—this last greeted with a round of knowing nods and chuckles.

“Hargrove, what the hell? You weren’t going to tell me it was your bachelorette party today?” Steve bumps his way in through the receiving line, gives Billy an elbow in the ribs.

“Ha ha. Save your congratulations for my asshole father. Apparently he banged some bitch's mom that these idiots have been drooling over for years.” Billy’s eyes slide over the rest of the team with unveiled contempt—most of them have gone back to eating at this point, the joke over.

“Not just some bitch. Lydia fucking Hayes, dude.” Tommy, never one to understand when a joke’s been stretched to its limit, claps Billy on the back. “Loud and proud enough that his wife went nuclear on the Hayes’ holiday decorations over the weekend.”

“It was a public service, really,” one of the guys cracks.

“Jesus, you hicks are hard up for entertainment,” Billy mutters, and stalks off to go grab a tray.

Steve nabs the seat next to Tommy, does his best to change the subject. Remembers his own words to Billy, earlier. “So, what’s your family doing for Christmas?”

“My family? Skiing again. Lame-o.” Tommy gives an exaggerated yawn, stretching one arm up as if flagging for the entertainment. “Luckily, I’ve talked my way out of it. Told the ‘rents I’ve got way too much homework over vacation. Wouldn’t want to risk my GPA, maybe get my college acceptance withdrawn.”

Steve flashes his best Risky Business smile. “So you’re throwing a party?”

“Fuck yeah I’m throwing a party. Friday night. You coming?”

Steve’s smile turns into a grin, all teeth. “I’ll bring the keg.”

“That’s King Steve.” Tommy punches him in the shoulder approvingly. “Wonder if we can set up two. Get you and Hargrove in direct competition—that’d be a hell of a draw. I bet we could sell tickets.”

“Psh, a kegstand’s no draw if you don’t have girls.” A thought occurs to him. “Can we get the girls to hold us up? Like wrestling champions. That would bring in the crowds.”

“What’re we bringing?” Billy’s returned, alotted pizza slice and milk carton and fruit cup all perched on his tray.

“Your A-game!” Tommy, never one to wait for an idea to finish baking, practically crows the words. “This Friday, man. Start-of-Christmas-vacation party! We’re gonna knock the socks off these hicks.”

Steve would swear he could see Billy’s eye twitch at Tommy’s easy appropriation of his personal vocabulary. “I’m not sure I’m really in the mood for partying, Hagan. Besides, didn’t Kristie just throw a kegger last week?”

Tommy scoffs. “Hardly. It was sad, man. There were, like, five people sitting around in ugly Christmas sweaters. Not even enough to play Spin the Bottle.” He shakes his head, expression as tragically pained as someone looking at those pictures of the starving children in Ethiopia. “You going to tell me we can’t do better than that? We’ve got the whole team!” His voice rises on the last note, as if he’s expecting the others to cheer, but he barely garners a couple of glances before the rest of the guys go back to their conversations. Steve can’t blame them—nobody cheers for Tommy other than Tommy.

“So what’re you gonna do if the team’s all who show?” Steve glances over at Billy’s sharp tone, realizes he’s got that look on his face—eyes narrowed, tension across his shoulders, and (Steve would bet) at least one fist balled up beneath the table. “Can’t play Spin the Bottle without girls.”

“Yes! Exactly what Steve here was saying.” Tommy nods, as if he’s some kind of expert on girls and their partygoing habits. “So we were thinking, new idea: two kegs, and we get four of the prettiest girls to assist. Double keg-stand!” He practically crows the words. “King versus king! The ultimate battle for keg supremacy!”

Steve has to give Tommy this much credit for cunning—in the mood for partying or no, there’s no way Billy can turn down an invitation like that. His face goes easy, lazy—the sort of half-smile where you’d never see the knife hidden beneath if you didn’t know to look for it. He turns it on Steve. “Wha’d’ya say, Harrington? Shall we settle the question once and for all?”

The knife is there, Steve knows—always is, with Billy. Even if Steve didn’t know him as well as he does, he’d guess—there’s something a little too clear about the sudden sparkle in Billy’s eyes, something aggressive about the way he suddenly focuses all of his attention on Steve. But frankly, Steve hasn’t gotten where he has by backing down from a challenge.

And it feels good to have Billy’s attention on him again.

“Only if you’re ready to bow before your king.” Steve keeps his voice mild, takes a sip of milk as easily as if it were a longneck. Watches Billy from the corner of his eye.

Billy’s eyes flash, and his voice raises just a hair—nothing obvious, but enough that the whole team’s attention is on them now. “All right. Let’s raise the stakes. Loser crowns the winner, and offers a forfeit.” He takes a sip of his own milk, considering. “We’ll need a crown.”

“And a robe,” Tommy says immediately. “I’m on it. We’re gonna determine this thing right.”

A satisfied nod, Billy turning his smile back on Steve, hitting him with the full wattage. “Don’t worry, Harrington. I’m a generous ruler. I’ll only have you streak around the block once.”

Steve laughs along with the rest of the team. It’s all in good fun, after all. Just guys being bros. “And here I was gonna say, I’ll only make you call me Daddy once.”

Against the backdrop of the team’s ooooos, Billy’s face loses its smile, eyes pale as they look at Steve. “I’m gonna fuckin’ take you apart, Harrington.” He downs the last of his milk, bares his teeth, traces of white still clinging to his gums. “And don’t you forget it.”

[stupidzeldaaus]

Okay- here we go-

The Steampunk Minish AU

I'll leave a whole bunch of explanations under the cut because it's a mess. There's a lot....

Okay getting the minish themselves out of the way first- these are just three of them.

So first off is the minish girl with a mini guardian sword. She's the reason it turned into spirit tracks brainrot so it was fitting to give her an outfit based off of the engineers outfit.

She has a grappling hook as well, which is mostly for scaling up tables, chairs, and bookshelves in the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab. And the guardian sword, due to being effective against guardians, is used to sever connections inside of them.

I had a sibling ask (around the vaatea au) if the minish used acorns as coffee cups so she has coffee in an acorn. She needs it.

Next is this guy. I honestly haven't put much thought into him except he's probably alot older than he looks. Also I think he'd vibe with Robbie in Akkala. Those goggles he has probably move like Robbies do as well.

He was also the one who made the little guardian sword.

Oh and his tail is under his clothes. It's probably so it doesn't get in the way.

Alright- my personal favorite and also the one that will probably out me on discord cause they're based off another OC I've already shown off and do not shut up about. Anyway, they're a ray of sunshine.

So they seem to carry a lot of tools on them, some of which can't be seen. They also have a lot of belts on their jacket, which, while it seems like just a fashion statement, I think they have a use. Most likely for holding more tools. The big pockets probably have tiny nuts bolts and screws. Also snacks. They gotta make sure their partner didn't just have coffee for breakfast.

So Purah. She's actually pretty important since, not only is she a scientist, she can see them all as well. I had a theory a while back that she turned into a child to study minish and then that was cut from the game. She can see them but, can't quite understand them at that point. Maybe she makes a translator or finds a jabber nut later.

The minish trying to explain something here might be the first based off of handedness but also might be the first ones mother. The first picture has her speaking minish while the bottom has her drawing out a wrench, glasses, and a sword. The sword might be in reference to the minish cap.

Yep. They still wear leaf cloaks. But they're more for camouflage now. Botw may not have cats that I know of but they do have birds that typically eat mice. And the manga did show that yep animals can see the minish pretty well actually.

Alright- the fun part! It's mostly going to be explanation since- guardians...

Robbie studied guardians mostly so its probably his research that gave the minish the knowledge on their inner workings.

So the first picture has who I think is a younger version of the second minish.

We saw where Link had trouble climbing up sheikah walls and the minish probably had the same problem.

Theres one scene from secret world of Arrietty where they use double sided tape for climbing, and i wanted to use that but I didn't think tape was a thing invented in the zelda universe. And (after an adult timeline and beyond quest) SURE ENOUGH- Spirit Tracks wellspring station. Also possibly Purah or Robbies labs. So... I guess that can be a thing...

Secondly is the guardian labeled dead. It's been taken down. One thing I should mention- I'd like to think that if the active guardian stalkers are closer to towns or roads used regularly there's probably more of a chance that they'd be immobilized.

Plus the thought of the scene from revenge of the sith, with the AT-AT, would probably be cool with a guardian.

The guardians probably would go even more haywire than they already were while trying to shut them down and it's probably better if there isn't a giant spider robot running into one of the stables.

Link ran into this guardian, and knows he didn't take it down. So who or what did...?

There's a third unfinished doodle that I couldn't bring myself to finish, mainly because i couldn't figure out anything about the inside of a guardian. What I know is that there are gears, shafts, springs, and cores. I wanted initially to let them meet the hylian champion but- this link is more of an adult and he probably can't see them.

Finally- I did say it devolved into spirit tracks.

The first picture is a book on New Hyrule, which is covering the Spirit Train, The Hero of Spirits, and Byrne apparently. This book might have been lost somewhere in Hyrule Castle, since I'd like to believe the royal family would keep track of all the legends and history of Hyrule.

Finally, the final picture.

So the minish girl (Okay they all really need names...) is trying to decide on how to power the train. Sheikah technology or Lokomo technology. Two very different technologies.

They are not the same. Not even remotely.

The train she's in the middle of sketching was from the ST concept art. Apparently the book she was reading didn't have much on steam power.

(But that doesn't mean it's the only book. If I had to guess there's most likely a few more books on the technology from new hyrule.)

I'd like to have eventually a train going from Akkala to Hatenos lab, and eventually go across all of Hyrule

Anyway thanks for reading through! I know it was a mess.

[electronicdelusionstarlight]

Boethia’s Bidding

Many people remember Mephala’s cut quest from Skyrim, about Baalgruf’s kids being corrupted by the Daedric Prince’s whispers and slaying their own father. It leads to a general worsening for the hold since Baalgruf’s brother is a far worse Jarl than him, even if he does instantly join the Imperials as soon as he gains power, and ends with you betraying one of the few Jarls who trusted in you from the very start in a far worse way than you would be able to do in Vanilla by siding with the Stormcloaks.

Everyone knows about that cut quest.

But how many people even ever heard about Boethia’s Bidding till this post came along?

Boethia’s Bidding is a cut continuation quest for the vanilla Boethia’s quest, Boethia’s Calling. After slaying her former champion and gaining the Ebony Mail, the prince will appear to you and ask you one final show of power and loyalty to them.

You will need to go to Solitude, and slay Jarl Elisif as she’s wrecked by Paranoia and fear at the plots happening all around her.

It’s a very stealth/speech oriented quest. Boethia’s machinations have left Elisif a nervous wreck, locked up in her room and armed in fear of potential assassin, unwilling to see anyone, the security in the palace tripled.

You will either sneak inside (in which case if they find you in a “forbidden” zone the guards will turn hostile) or you can talk your way inside to the steward, and convince to let you talk to her as her friend/thane, or even become her personal bodyguard, all the while being escorted by at least ONE guard.

It seems like an interesting, stealth/assassin oriented quest honestly, but I’m not here to talk about this.

So, you get inside Elisif Room, posing as her bodyguard, and she tells you this.

Image Description: Elisif Direct Quote from the cut quest: "I'm glad they finally believed me. About the assassin I mean. It's been so hard since my Torygg passed. No one takes me seriously. So how's this work exactly? Do you just kind of stand there on the look out? That's what Bolgeir does. Well, he sort of looms more than stands. Bolgeir's loyal, but even he doesn't do what I ask. Case in point, this whole assassin thing. Well at least I have you now. Look at me ramble... Well, I guess I'll go about my business sulking in here. You can stand over there in the corner watching for assassins."

No one fucking takes Elisif seriously. Ever. The steward will berate her suspicions when you ask him about assassins, and everyone will simply go “grief must have make her go mad, poor girl.”

Everyone underestimates her and shit, and you MIGHT think this quest is trying to remedy on that, especially since her worries are funded, instead it seems the only way you can end this quest is by killing Elisif.

After you do it, Boethia will appear and congratulate you for your doing, and... seemingly give you nothing but their respect. Erikur (The thieves guild plant) will become the new Jarl of Solitude, hence him having Jarl dialogues and the Jarl title in game (I always assumed he was supposed to be the Stormcloak Jarl, but this makes it even worse somehow).

The quest is unfinished so we don’t know what would Elisif’s death bring to the also unfinished Civil War questline.

We have to keep in mind a couple things tho, such as Boethia’s shrine being very close to Winshelm, and Stormcloak Alligned guards and soldiers commenting on how their cause seem to have been favoured by “Daedric Nobility” itself... when they are not calling Elisif a bitch rotting in oblivion that is.

Since we know for a fact from Elder Scrolls Legends lore that Boethia was directly supporting the Thalmor War Effort, it’s not difficult to say who actually asked the prince for Elisif’s death, or why would they decide to support the Stormcloaks in such a way. Erikur, the new Jarl who has close commercial ties with both the Dominion, the Empire, the Thieves Guild AND the Stormcloaks, is ALSO heavily implied to have had an hand in the assassination, without however tying it to the Dark Brotherhood for some reason.

We can also be glad they didn’t decide to add this quest to the game either. Elisif is already an INCREDIBLY wasted character in Vanilla, to waste and ruin her even more by simply fridging her out of nowhere and with no reward, only to then have her be cursed by her enemies as the man who plotted her murder seats on her throne all smug about it.

There is also another thing we need to keep in mind however, and that’s for the possibility that this, again, unfinished quest is missing other possible options. Boethia tells you a very specific line when you finish this quest after all:

Image Decription: “Remember always this: You need answer to no authority, neither mortal, nor divine... As you will it, so it shall be.”

The divine part is particularly important. Boethia is demanding for you to do their bidding (title drop), yet at the same time they claim everything should be done by your own free will. Maybe there IS a way to finish the quest without killing Elisif, to spite the Deadric prince by your own free will and not kill her.

Erikur is involved, so say there actually IS an assassin in the Blue Palace among the many, seemingly useless thanes and housecarls in Elisif court, among all her servants or guards? Maybe you have to beat them to the time to kill Elisif, or in turn you can also save her from them. You save Elisif, expose Erikur who is put in Jail/executed, his sister becomes the new Thieves Guild Plant for their missions, and Elisif now either trusts you alot and is willing to follow your advice and shit, or better yet has finally understood that she needs to be her own woman and shit, meaning that if this happens before season unending in season unending she will be far more assertive and will be far more proactive alongside Tullius, but in case of Stormcloak victories she will also die (In which case Erikur gets in power) as she attempts to assassinate Ulfric and probably dies in the process. (which you can stop or not, in which case the rebellion is in shambles even if Skyrim is indipendent now, and everything sucks even more than it would under Ulfric since the next in line for the throne is Galmar).

Either way after you find the second assassin and actually save Elisif (Maybe have hearts and apples involved for some nice Snow White symbolism? Important for later), either gaining her trust or making her a shrewder ruler as a result, maybe even both, Boethia will appear to you when you are finally alone.

They will congratulate you to have “outplotted” the lord of plots, much like Hircine congratulates you for hunting the hunters during his own quest, and for having followed your own free will, especially after having literally murdered a guy who had started doing the exact same thing (following his free will rather than Boethia’s orders), which would make you either incredibly stupid or incredibly far sighted, since now Elisif is on the path to become a ruler following the spirit of Boethia’s teaching, if indirectly, and you will be her trusted advisor, the only one who believed her when she realized there was a traitor in their midst, giving you (and Boethia as her champion) much power in turn.

Of course, this is me giving Todd way too much credit. The quest was probably as set up as it was in the scripts to the letter because Bethesda can’t stand the thought of a Girlboss winning, it was just never implemented, and all this new way to end it was never intended to exist, but you know, it’d be really nice if we did something with Elisif outside of the way she’s already treated in canon.

It’d be cliche in a way, and it’d be not as well written as I wished it was, but it would still be SOMETHING MORE than the way she’s treated in canon.

You know... Elisif the Fair... becoming Elisif the Girlboss. Under Boethia’s blessing. And with the Dragonborn kneeling at her side as her vizier and enforcer.

A Wicked Hunter befitting of the Fairest Queen of them all.

Wouldn’t that be rad?

[the-fiction-witch]

A Kid. P3

TV SHOW: THE QUEENS GAMBIT COUPLE: BENNY X READER RATING: ADORABLE

I sat a little nervous, in the dark apartment only the little lights on above us, my robe wrapped around me tightly to keep out the chill Y/n sat in the chair beside me her little dressing gown wrapped around her too, she looked nervous but I understood why. Arthur sat across from us staring at us, He wasn't happy, he wanted answers, and he was smart enough to get them.

He was watching our every move.

"Arthur-" She began

"Can I please... Just have some answers"

"Okay," I nodded

"what did you wanna know?" she asks

"How did you meet?" He asks

"Chess tournament" I smiled "Toronto Tournament wasn't it?"

"It was, I had been trying for a few years at that point to bridge the gap between the small regional tournaments onto the larger state tournaments and higher but I couldn't do it on my own, and... I don't know why but, Mr Watts saw something in me" she smiled

"I watched you play, and I saw you were smart. and you should have been doing better than you did. so I offered you a little help because I thought you had potential" I explained holding her hand "so I let you come here to new york with me and gave you some training"

"What happened?" He asks

"We stayed together, and got attached and... we got close" I smiled "Arthur your mother and I... were together for a while" I explained

"Is... is it true? what you said mummy?"

"Yes. I know for sure Arthur. I didn't want to tell you because I didn't know how you'd feel about having a father who wasn't in your world, How that would make you feel? or affect you so I just never mentioned it. and when you took an interest in chess I knew you'd probably meet each other and I wanted to leave it alone. You never knew about each other so I kept it that way" she explained

"You... you didn't know about me?" He asked

"No, She left me before she knew about you. and I had no idea you existed until we met" I explain "I didn't know what had happened to y/n, I didn't know where she went, I didn't know why she left me, I didn't know about you, I didn't know I had kids anywhere in the world, I didn't know I had ever.... had kids somewhere else in the world, It was something I never knew and never even thought about before." I explained "I never even thought I'd ever have kids,"

"Did you not want them?" he asked

"No I just... never thought any woman would love me enough to give me a kid" I answered and y/n smiled at me squeezing my hand a little

"I did," she smiled

"Then why did you go?" I asked her

"You went to France, which I knew about for the tournament there and I knew... Clio would be there and you'd said you'd have dinner with her which I knew and I understood" she explained "And then Next thing I knew you were calling me from Moscow in a hotel room, with Clio. and... you didn't tell me you were going, you didn't tell me when you were going, and I didn't know, you were taking her" she says almost in tears "Moscow was, Maybe once In a lifetime for you. And for me. And There was a very very good chance you could Have won I was thinking it was assumed you were going to and... when I found out that you wanted to go to this place, this tournament, this... Important moment. and I wasn't the one you wanted with you"

"Y/n, Of course I wanted you with me. I would have taken you to Moscow and back a thousand times, But you didn't have a passport, you had work, and I didn't wanna go to Russia by myself" I told her "When I came home and you were gone... I was heartbroken, I'd just lost the biggest tournament in my life and I came home and the love of my life was fucking gone!"

"Huuuu!" Arthur gasped

"Ohh Fff- Don't use that word, Arthur"

"what word?" He asks

"The fuck word"

"Benny!" she yelled

"I'm sorry y/n I can't censor myself." I sighed

"I... I was the love of your life?" she asks

"Of course you were," I told her "Well, you are. Still. When I saw you again I wanted it to be just like it used to be, I wanted it to be like, nothing had changed" I told her "and I'd like it to be that way, for all of us. All three of us, and I promise I'll do my best to make it up to both of you"

"You mean it?"

"Of course I do"

".... I'm not sure I believe you"

"You don't believe me? Then.... go check the secret spot" I told her giving her hand a little kiss she seemed confused but got up and went to the bedroom she returned a minute or so later with the little black box

"What is this?"

"That. Is what Clio helped me find while I was in France, And I was going to give it to you when I got back, so I'd make sure you were with me every time I had a trip" I explained to her "I didn't know you where pregnant, But... I would have been happy, excited, and I would have wanted to be there every step of the way. I'm sorry I wasn't, I should have gone after you when I found out you were gone. I'm sorry I didn't. and I'm sorry I wasn't around for you Arthur, But I wanna be."

Y/n opened the little box and started crying "why did you keep it?"

"... In case you ever came back" I shrug "I got lucky, You did." I smiled "The last few months since you've been back... I still mean it, and I still want you to be my wife If you'll have me" I told her

"Ohh Benny... I'd love too" she smiled hugging me tightly I held her as close as I could kissing away her little tears

"why are you crying?"

"Happy crying"

"Awww, Okay my little flower" I smiled giving her a kiss and putting the ring on her finger and it still fit her perfectly "And... Arthur. I am your dad, Biologically and Id want to be a part of your family and treat you like I should have"

"Daddy!" He smiled jumping off the chair and hugging me tightly I held him tightly too and y/'n came and gave us both a nice cuddle too

"Awww, family hug" I smiled giving them both a tight squeeze

"Lets get to bed, we have a busy day tomorrow" y/n smiled "Go on kiddo get back to bed" she smiled

"Okay, goodnight mummy" he smiled hugging her

"Goodnight Arthur" she smiled petting his hair

"Goodnight daddy" He smiled hugging me too

"Goodnight Kiddo, go on get to bed" I told him pushing him towards his airbed

"Come on then, Mummy and daddy need to get to bed too" she smiled holding my hand

"Alright, it's bedtime, we have things to do tomorrow," I told her giving her a kiss and heading to bed shutting the lights off.

I finished up my game getting up and taking my paperwork as the guy headed off back to whatever little hovel he climbed out of "Daddy!" A little voice yelled I turned and saw little Lillian running over in her little white dress

"whoa! Hello angel" I smiled picking her up and sitting her on my hip "Where have you been?" I asked her "Hu? you been watching daddy"

"I was watching Arthur" she giggled

"Alright, let's go see your brother then" I laughed carrying her with me over to where Arthur was sat playing against a young Russian boy, young but still far older than him I watched him often whispering little things to Lillian as she's still learning as egar as her brother was to play and he won, he shook the boy's hand and finished his paperwork before running over and hugging my leg "You did great kiddo, very good," I told him fixing his hair

"Are you proud of me?" he asks

"I'm always proud of you kiddo, win or lose I'm still proud of you," I told him "Where's your mum?"

"she had to go to the toilet," "Yeah well, she has to alot" I laughed

"I'm back" Y/n smiled as she came back so I put lillian down "You two go on, get yourselves some Cola" she smiled handing them each a couple of dollars from her purse so they took it and ran off "How'd he do?" she asks coming for a cuddle

"He won"

"How'd you do?" she asks taking my hand as we walked through the hotel

"I also won."

"Good, got to be careful you'll be playing each other soon"

"I hope not, He'll beat me he's much better than me nowadays"

"Ummm He is, Lillian is too" "Hey!"

"she is"

"I know she is. That's fine, If I am to be bested by anyone I'm happy it's my own children. so long as the champion is a watts, I don't care which one of us it is" I smiled giving her a kiss "Any of us" I smiled resting my hand on her tummy and just as I did I felt her stomach jolt and move "Uhhh did... did he just-" "He kicked. He's not done that before" she giggled

"Awww, that sweet, well Lillian never kicked all that much Clearly this one's a kicker"

"Ummm it's how I know it's a boy, Arthur kicked constantly"

"I just think boy"

"why?"

"I don't know, I have a feeling, I was right about lillian"

"True, come on lets go find them, we have more games to get done today" she giggled

[blueonwrestling]

Jon Moxley had a great interview with alot of detail about AEW dealing with covid, his wwe exit and a few other things, someone on reddit wrote a great write up of it, and heres a direct link to it just so i can give credit, but heres the lot of it.

Past few days have been hectic at the Moxley household, Renee has been doing a photoshoot for her cookbook, there's food all over in the house, Moxley doing 5-6 trips to the supermarket and messaging Renee "What is a shallot?"

First two months of 2020 has been insane in terms of travelling going from Sapporo, Memphis, Cleveland, Osaka & Texas

2020 before the pandemic was gonna be insane with Dynamite every Wednesday, going to Europe (Yes AEW/UK Tour), Japan, Indie Shows, opponents outside of AEW & bringing the belt everywhere

Originally his contract with WWE was suppose to end in September 2018 but WWE added more months due to his injury which coincidently 3 weeks before Double or Nothing that's literally in Las Vegas where he currently resides

Tony Khan & Cody came to his house laying out the details of AEW (TNT/Booking) and was onboard for the ride

Currently has no deal with Japan, he originally had a deal set in place from June till WrestleKingdom (Original Plan for WK beat up Juice, young boy from the New Japan Dojo, out comes Karl Anderson stun guns Moxley) & was for that specific run. The situation now is a verbal deal they know he can't work Wednesdays due to Dynamite but when he is available in terms of scheduling he'll be down to wrestle in Japan

Actually wanted to do some work for New Japan, Rocky Romero called him up and was onboard

As talks progressed with New Japan, Rocky suggested "how about G-1? that would be sick", initially wasn't gonna do it, as the conversation ended 10 minutes later was down to do it

Prior to G-1 he wasn't in the best shape after he left WWE (only been wrestling 6-man tag team matches or 4minute matches), knowing that he'll be wrestling 20-30mins matches in Japan he called Gil Guardado (Strength & Conditioning Coach from Xtreme Couture) in preparation for the G-1 tournament he was put on a full Pro-MMA Fight Camp schedule 5 days a week, sometimes twice a day which later become beneficial when he wrestled Tomohiro Ishii

Last few months of WWE when it was public knowledge he was gonna leave, he was waiting for something bad to happen like a burial but that never happened and WWE gave him a sending off

Was initially worried if fans were gonna cheer or boo because of being in WWE for a long time

Has so much gratitude for the people that chanted MOX on that night of Double or Nothing

New Japan's vignette of Moxley was a stunt double, name death-rider came from the jacket that was found from goodwill

Covid/Renee Situation - apparently someone from Orlando had Covid, everyone got tested, came back negative, She flew back home, after 5-6 days se wasn't feeling the very best, couldn't get out of bed, eventually got the test, had people come over to their house to get the test via Insurance (Ready Responders), already pulled out of Dynamite taping in advance if anything happens, 36 hours later about 11pm-12am as they were about to go to bed, they received an email (Mox was negative & Renee positive), during the quarantine Mox slept on the couch during the time while she recovered and was fine afterwards

Moxley: "They've got a kajilion dollars and they couldn't afford a couple of tests?"

Had to pull out from another taping (Fyter Fest) due to the positive result from Renee but Taz made him feel better with the Sloppy Shop Line

His AEW Champion run feels meaningful from breaking out of the prison to the winning the championship, His WWE Championship run felt like an 'Emergency Situation' (Roman Reigns Wellness Policy), they needed someone to carry the company during the summertime mainevent Sumo Hall & MSG but felt hollow

While WWE champion he didn't get a new T-Shirt, was talking to the merchandise people, they were re-making shirts with different colours, "Why isn't there any new T-shirts?" says Mox, merchandise people reply "Dude we've sent 25 different designs to Hunter and he just keeps rejecting them all", "I'm freaking WWE champion give me a fucking t-shirt!"

Still hates scripted promos (the one thing he hated during his time in WWE, having writers write stuff for him), a runsheet/format for AEW would be 'Jon Moxley Promo 2 Minutes' not 48 pages

Moxley: Nothing is gonna change until one person is gone (VKM), has watched some of WWE during the pandemic and is kind of relieved he isn't still there "could you have imagine if it would be any good?"

Moxley thinks the thunderdome looked like zoom call and reminded him something from a particular part from the book 'Fahrenheit 451'

Moxley "I want WWE to be awesome but when they suck it pisses me off, they're the number 1 brand of wrestling to watch, they represent the sport and when there product is embarrassing to watch it makes all wrestling look bad, driving away fans from the sport that could be WWE/AEW fans"

First three opponents were random Hager (done in two hours), Brodie came out of no-where (originally was to have an opponent for Double or Nothing - wasn't disclosed who) and Brian Cage

Meltzer/Moxley agreed that Stadium Stampede was awesome, super entertaining and fun during a time when people were feeling miserable in a pandemic this was need to cheer people up

Meltzer/Garret talk NXT unopposed show's ratings, why didn't the female demographic increase while the male demographic increased? Moxley replies two words Jungle Boy

Moxley asks for Dave's opinion with the current situation WWE's ratings going down "If things don't change (VKM/booking/stories) is it possible AEW could overtake WWE as the most watched show in five years?" Dave believes short term AEW could beat Smackdown's 18-49 demographics (but not viewers) if they moved to Friday and prove to be more valuable to FOX, If WWE continue to go down this same route, the numbers will decrease whilst AEW's will increase, WWE will have to make changes quicker inside of five years

[kevkesblog]

Translation: Julian Brandt Interview for “11 Freunde” (June 18, 2020)

Attention: long post! Julian talks about overblown salaries in football, why he even stays at two-star hotels, why he thinks football should not be dramaticly reformed and why you won’t see him in Gucci clothing & more.

Julian Brandt, what do you miss the most at the moment?

Ju:     Just going outside and sitting in a café with some friends. Enjoying a bit more freedom. But I think many people have the same wishes right now.

Yet, the break because of the Corona pandemic seem to have lifted you. You were involved in all four goals during the 4-0 win against Schalke.

Ju:     I would still have preferred it, without the break. I mean it’s like this: sometimes you need just a few days to arrive at a place, sometimes it takes months. Feeling well in a city, a club and with my teammates is important. I’m a football player that needs a comfortable environment.

How was it for you at BVB in the beginning?

Ju:     There were definitely no fireworks at the beginning. But honestly, I kind of expected to need more time. I think thats normal after five and a half years at Bayer Leverkusen. It was a great time there, but in the end it was a comfort zone for me. I switched to BVB because I wanted to do something new.

And because Marco Reus asked you.

Ju:     Many people were in favour of me going to Dortmund. Even my mother wore yellow pullovers astonishingly often, during the time before my transfer happend. And Marco asked me at the national team, that’s true. I felt honored, but I saw a chance playing for a team which plays competitively for the title until the end of the season and is represented in the Champions League regularly, those were the main reasons for my transfer.

What else is different in Dortmund than in Leverkusen?

Ju:     Dortmund is bigger in almost every regard. Even the stadium is enormous and it becomes even more imposing with people in it. Building such a stadium somewhere is one thing. Brining it to live however like in Dortmund – that’s an art in and of itself. You don’t get that very often in Europe. Leverkusen – and I have to be honest here – has never been on my radar for me as a boy. But it’s the perfect club if you want to develop as a young player. I already suspected this after I talked to Rudi Völler for the first time.

I was told, you said „Rudi Völler has honest eyes“ to your father afterwards.

Ju:     He has a sincere attitude. I would have believed everything he said. And his promises became reality. We were playing attractive and successful football. And you don’t get so much pressure as a young player from the outside. The media landscape for example is much smaller in Leverkusen than elsewhere.

Do you miss the fans in the stadium in Dortmund?

Ju:     I was never that guy who was aware of stuff that happend on the stands. But after the game against Inter Mailand, where we were behind 0-2 before the break and won 3-2 in the end – I recognized how important football is for the people here and how much they were willing to support us. It was so honest, authentic and direct. One of the best games thus far.

Before that Michael Rummenigge critized you as „C-youth player“. That was after the Inter game where you scored as well. Was that a key moment?

Ju:     Everybody can voice their opinions that’s totally fine for me. I’m not a person who jumps on it.  And I wasn’t really satisfied with my game as well. Perhaps the 2-1 win against Gladbach a few days before was a turning point. Not only, because I scored twice, but rather because I was able to play on the ten for the first time. After that my game became better.

You said in the beginning of your time at BVB „Peter Bosz liked the risk. We don’t really have that here in Dortmund“. Did the way you play now changed?

Ju:     We play nice football under Lucien Favre. He likes an offensive tactic. Adding that, we score alot of goals. But Peter Bosz was a special coach in that regard because we played a modern version of football with a high amount of ball possesion – often over 80 percent. And we not only wanted to keep the ball all the time, while playing until our opponent gets tired like it’s the case with tiki-taka football. We were always on the attack. At BVB we put more emphasis on the defensive at the beginning. It was a change for me, since I wanted to have the ball and not running behind him all the time.

Is football an elegant game?

Ju:     My room as child was full of „Bravo“-magazine posters with offensive players. Nedved, Robinho, Del Piero and the best among the best: Ronaldinho. I liked it whenever players carry their street football skills to the pitch. Whenever somebody is looking for something spectacular. I want to gamble and not just act in a rigid system.

Doesn’t modern tactics prevent something like this?

Ju:     You are basically being funneled at youth football academies with: receive the ball, passing, receiving, passing. There a strict requirements you have to follow. But I think good teams need self-confident players, saying „No, I won’t fit in, but I rather go into a one-on-one situation“. We have such guys in our national team. Leroy Sané or Timo Werner. Kai Havertz is a player who has a street football mentality too. Often it looks very easy, but it’s not. It just passed over into blood.

You are wearing the jersey number 10 at the national team. Like you also wore at Leverkusen. Does that do something with you?

Ju:     I feel lighter in some sense. Perhaps because I know that you have to earn the number ten. Not like in the past, but I do think it has a certain meaning yes.

We heard you don’t like to talk about your strengths. Why?

Ju:     I think, it looks like I’m a show off. I have enough self-confidence already.

Yet you do know that you can shoot really good. Who taught you?

Ju:     Many things happened because I just tried. I even knew as a ten-year old boy: if I want to become a great football player I have to be able to shoot well with both feet. So, for weeks I shoot with my left foot on our lawn. Shot, flank, pass. It helped a lot. I met Federico Palacios during my youth time in Wolfsburg. He taught me insane techniques. I had a phase were I was obsessively training my first contact: not trying to stop the ball between the lines, but rather take the ball without defender nor midfielder getting the ball instead.

What are your weaknesses?

Ju:     My headers. But I’m currently working on it and I often score. At least without opponent (laughs). Some people say I can work more on my defensive work. And yes, there is some truth to it, even after I already worked on it for quite some time. The thing is: I’m not an aggressive person, its not who I am. But of course, I understand whenever coaches say I need to have a certain minimum amount of aggressive behavior on the pitch.

Do you have a career plan?

Ju:     No, everything I do, I do spontaneously.

But everything you do looks so reasonable: youth football for your home club. Training at a football academy in Wolfsburg. Professional debut at Bayer Leverkusen, your transfer to BVB a year ago…

Ju:     Honestly: I could not have imagined going to VfL Wolfsburg as well at the beginning. Why should a boy do this, when he basically grew up just a 20 minute bike ride away from the Weser stadium in Bremen and was standing in the fan curve in his youth?

Because Werder [Bremen] overlooked you?

Ju:     That’s not true. I even got invited to a try-out training. But then I looked at some other academies. I wasn’t only looking at VfL Wolfsburg. For example I looked at FC St. Pauli as well. Yet, I had the best feeling with Wolfsburg.

Why?

Especially during the ages 15 to 18 a lot is happening: you grow, your muscle mass is increasing, you slowly get to play with the professionals. On the other hand, many doors are opening. Your friends go partying for example. I liked being on a football academy for two and a half years. You couldn’t leave the campus after 11 o’clock in the evening. Apart from that we were very successful and won the German a-youth championship. But I can still remember how perplexed my parents were at the breakfast table, back when I told them about my decision to join Wolfsburg.

You are being called the “Anti-Star” of the business quite often. Does that do something with you?

Ju:     Many people seem to think it’s probably because I have no tattoos and my father is my agent. But to be honest: there are some football player clichées I fit in. I like fast cars. I like playing playstation and I have 40 pairs of shoes in my closet. I just try not to pretend to be someone else. I wouldn’t look good in a Gucci-pullover.

Others like to call you “premature”. You were allowed to train with the professionals at the age of 15 in Wolfsburg. How did you do that?

Ju:     That was insane and unreal. I was riding my bike to the training ground one day and the assistant coach Bernd Hollerbach took me to his side and said: “Introduce yourself to the coach”. So, I went into his office. “Hello Mr. Magath, I’m Julian from the under-17 team.” Of course, I was suspecting he already knew me otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten an invitation. But he was just staring at the television. After a while – it felt like an eternity – he looked at me, didn’t say a word, total silence and then he turned away. And then I was sneaking out of the room.

Magath wanted to test you?

Ju:     I was unsettled a bit, but I wasn’t thinking about it anymore on the pitch. It doesn’t matter who is on your side, or whether your opponent is twenty years older than you and who your father is.

Did you nutmeg someone?

Ju:     I would have been beaten for that. On the other hand: the pain fades away, the nutmeg stays (laughs). I remember I unintentionally shoot a ball into Marvin Hitz’s face.

How many agents were lining up at your doorstep at the time?

Ju:     I stopped counting it after a while. I don’t think all agents are bad but I don’t need one at the moment. I have my father. He may not be Mino Raiola with thousands of contacts all over the world. But he doesn’t need them.

Nevertheless: this son-father-constellation also has it’s potential conflicts…

Ju:     Our family sticks together – we are very harmonic and strong. I can’t remember a time where we were had an argument. I lived together with my brother in Cologne. I also have a connection with my father because of football. He used to play for the first team at SC Borgfeld – which was also my first club. I still remember: we went into the clubhouse whenever the Champions League was on. It was the best day of the week.

Now it’s about big business. Do you know your own worth?

Ju:     It was downgraded since the outbreak of the pandemic. I read that on so some sites.

But it’s still 40 million euros. What does such a number do with you?

Ju:     I can handle that because I can manage those numbers quite well. There is a lot money floating around in football. And I know its not easy to comprehend it with normal standards anymore. We live in our own bubble in that regard. The salaries in football are in no relation to what normal people earn – even with football being the greatest sport on earth. But why is that the case? Because sponsors are flushing so unbelievable high amounts of money into football. I think it’s important not to make the sport a luxury item. It has to stay affordable. In the stadium as well as in front of the TV.

Explain to us: why does a professional football player negotiate whether he should get 10 or 11 million euros per year?

Ju:     It shows how greedy people can be sometimes. But that’s not football specific. It’s as unfair as the richest one percent of the world’s population owning more than half of the world’s wealth, right?

Could this crisis perhaps be a chance in order for football to calm down?

Ju:     Perhaps in the short term. For the next one or two years. If any. I can’t imagine a player like Mbappé being sold next year for 80 million euros. Someone will always pay those insane sums of money.

How do you ground yourself?

Ju:     Through my family and friends. Many are studying or doing an apprenticeship. It’s never about money when we talk, I just like having a great time with them. We don’t need a luxury vacation. But one time: we went to Mallorca for four or five days just as we qualified for the Champions League with Bayer Leverkusen. We stayed at a normal two-star-hotel, one room with a bed and a bathroom – that was it. We went to the beach and relaxed.

Has there never been a situation where a friend or family member had to take you back to the ground?

Ju:     No. I can’t remember that I ever reacted arrogant or snooty. Or a situation where I thought: “Wow. That’s not who you are”. I’m fully aware of my very privileged life. In short: my greatest worry is whether we will win or loose on the weekends. It’s important to be thankful and to remind yourself what you got every once in a while.

Why do you have to remind yourself stuff like that all the time?

Ju:     In order for it never to become normal. I know cheese costs about 69 cents at the grocery store and a different one costs 1,29 euros. But if a tool or device breaks down I sometimes just buy myself a new one. Whereas in the past I would have repaired it by myself.

But is football still the same game you fell in love with as a kid?

Ju:     Absolutely. The game itself hasn’t really changed much. Okay, we have the goal line technology – which I support. And we got the video assistant referee, were people can argue. I abstain in that question. Once in a while, new ideas are being floated: like reducing the playtime to 60 minutes, new tournaments, elite leagues – I think it’s all bullshit. Keep football like it is. The way we learned it. With all its faults and tricky aspects. Even if something goes wrong.

Like during the World Cup 2018. Did you know that you could be the first DFB-team leaving the tournament after the group stage?

Ju:     At some point he heard of it. It doesn’t really look good on your vita but it happened. Perhaps we needed this in order for something new to emerge. You have to remember: other great football nations also failed in similar ways. Italy, Spain or France all crashed out of the group stage after they won the World Cup.

Did the photo with Mesut Özil and Erdogan brought some unrest into the team?

Ju:     The fact that almost all reporting was revolving around that topic was irritating sometimes. Don’t get me wrong: I think its important for the media to cover political topics extensively and with background stories. But I remember after the game against Sweden – after we barely won because of Toni Kroos free kick: shortly after the game you get asked whether the poor performance during the first 75 minutes were due to the photo – and you thinking: why don’t we talk about the game? Mesut became the poster boy for the disappointing World Cup. That’s nonsense. We all played shitty.

During the Confed-Cup the year before, many young players were in the team. At the World Cup the established players came back. Did Löw put his trust into the wrong players in Russia?

Ju:     You can come to that conclusion afterwards, but you don’t know it in advance. I could fully understand Low though. He was loyal and in some cases he felt some gratitude. He couldn’t and he didn’t want to replace a World Cup winner from 2014 with a young player. The way we were defeated at the World Cup was not foreseeable. Because we also played great football between 2014 and 2018.

The team made it to the semifinals at the EURO 2016 and you became second with the Olympic football team in Rio.

Ju:     A great experience with a team that was just thrown together. A contribution of Horst Hrubesch.

What makes him special?

Ju:     He is just great, the guy! He’s from a different generation which you can tell with a lot of things around him. Once he wanted to show me how to shot from the side. I almost tore my muscle fiber doing it. But he manages it very well forming a team with young players. He’s a very free coach and very direct. He always called me lazy (laughs). And he has a very nice and dry sense of humor.

An example?

Ju:     Me and the Bender-twins were sitting together shortly before the semifinal against Nigeria. He came up and said: “Guys, losing today doesn’t make any sense anymore.” A funny sentence, but also true if you think about it.

Julian Brandt, you made over 200 Bundesliga games, played Champions League and participated in one World Cup. You just turned 24. Do you even still have time to suck it all in and enjoy it?

Ju:     Football is quick. I can still remember coming to Leverkusen – as if it was yesterday: my first game for the under 23 team against Essen. My Bundesliga debut against Schalke a week later. That was a little more than six years ago already. Crazy. Veteran players always say: “Enjoy it, because quickly your career will be over.” But how should you enjoy it? A game every four or five days. New photos, new events. You don’t have an awful lot of time to let everything sink in for a moment. I usually do that on new years eve. On a friend’s balcony. I even get sentimental then.

[inviouswriting]

Darkwardens au - Choices

Going full dark in this one. So warnings apply. There might be some death. Having an adult rating doesn’t always mean smut. :3

Credits to.

@maiden-born-in-snow​ for Shuri.

@meepsthemiqo​ for mentions of Meeps, Fae, and Fae’a. (just briefly)

Kivera is use to alot of things, she is able to read people better than themselves. This comes with the many years she spends as Purgatory’s caretaker. She never truly rules that realm, it can never be ruled by anyone. It is a world that is meant for people to understand their wrongs, their sins and work to absolving them. She adopted a thought process to not get into the affairs of humans at that point because she has seen the true depravity of humanity. She had felt it when she spent time in hell as a freshly fallen angel, she was like a scrap of meat to a pack of starved wild dogs.

She is use to being used by others for their merits. So when the Scion’s Thancred approached where she had been guarding Anubis. She knew they had some trick up their sleeve to try and ensure their victory.

All it did was infuriate her, she noticed new champions they rallied for their cause. For their “extermination,” Kivera scoffs at their approach. They were going to attempt to reason with her, get her to side with them. To betray someone she loves. She noticed a few missing in Y’shtola, Alisaie and Alphinaud. They took her warning to heart, wisely not stepping against her. They’ve seen the aftermath of her fighting with G’raha. they would be walking to their deaths if they approached her, like the ones in front of her now.

“Leave.” Kivera hisses, she did not want to entertain them with idle chatter. Nothing of her morals, she has heard that too many times. She knew the faces that would not approach her would be her successor in Kiya and her family, Alphinaud, and G’raha Tia. He learned the hard way not to anger her. 

“You are not even going to listen to reason?” Kivera feels her nerves stand on edge at Thancred speaking. He would be the one to act like he knew someone better. An orange eye glances his way, a warning to choose his words wisely.

“I already told you my stance. If you are here to kill her. Then my hand is forced. She is still in there.. give her more time. You did that for that kobold, and many others who had been tempered. Why not her?” Kivera notes them wandering closer, she kept her distance even using a miasma to warn them they were stepping too close. A burning clove scent in the air to ward off undesirable people. 

“This isn’t a tempering, it is a corruption. Like the lightwardens. There is no coming back from it once their very aether is tainted.” Kivera’s eyes narrow towards the gunbreaker.

“You do not see her daily. You fought hard to stabilize her before. Why not seek that again, figure that out. Or better yet, run away and let someone else do it for you. You are very good at that. That is the only reason that paladin with you is here for...” At her feet, Kivera hovers, she was ready for an attack. 

“Kivera, you can’t leave her like this. Isn’t it more torture for her to be locked away in an area? You did your best to contain her before the energy could spread. Yet I feel it from here, it is the same as a deeply rooted lightwarden. She’s too far gone. She would not want this.” Kivera turns her head towards them locking her eyes to Thancred’s. He tried this before with her, and she was firm the first time he tried to suggest what was better for Shuri like they were still lovers.

“I don’t want to hear that out of you. You have no idea what she wants. She wants to live, she wants to return to being a mother, she wants to see Estinien. She wants to break free of what holds her, but she is unable to. If it takes me removing her from this star and world altogether. I will make her a home in my world before I succumb her to your self righteous ways. Who do any of you think you are? When was it acceptable that you are the ones who decide who lives and who dies. Just because someone was tempered by a primal. You announce their demise, you rally people for it. You sent countless people to their deaths before the “right” ones showed promise. Yet when those ones too falter. Here you are ready to drop a guillotine on their necks. I said this before Thancred. You do not get to say what you feel is best for Shuri. You have no right for it, as someone who betrayed her trust a long time ago. Don’t think she hasn’t lamented to me her woes about it. You speak of knowing what is best for her, when you don’t have the first clue about her anymore. I will say this once more. Leave!”

“Damn it Kivera, you really will see this through then? I’ve seen the corruption first hand, in what it does to a mortal being. Remember Titania? How the pixies had to lock them away for the same reason, yet even they had to kill them for the greater good. It’s not about moral right, it is doing what needs to be done.” Thancred pushes it with the reaper, and as he steps forward a fire bolt is thrown at his feet to keep him back.

“Do not talk to me about what needs to be done. You and yours are the very reason I can never stand the self-righteous. Those who think they know the greater good. You tell yourselves that line to make it just. To remove any guilt that what you are doing is wrong. Like the many beast tribes you’ve had their guardian deities slain before their eyes. Visually destroying their hopes in front of them for the sake of “greater good.” Some of those tribes practice their prayer without the tempering. Yet if any of you spent time with those tribes. You would have learned a long time that the tempering does not happen without a reason. The call of a danger so much like what is happening now. We don’t know the cause of why Shuri tipped into darkness itself. If the sin eaters were a product of light, and their names of forgiven sins. Then the opposite here should be taken into account. Unless I am missing something. You were very much ready to end her life back before Emet. An acceptance then as the risk of a sin eater to ruin all of what you had achieved.” Kivera keeps her eyes on the group Thancred brought with him, a group of eight. Thinking that a full party of people would be enough to fight her.

Thancred realizes there is no way Kivera can be reasoned with, not when his own reason in this is questioned. The reaper notices his expression and folds her arms as she sheds the guise she had been in. The calm seeker of sun miqo’te for a form fitting of the nature they’re talking.

Her form shifting was as if breathing air to her, from dark wings, and clothing altering to allow her to move freely. She eyes them, sizing them up a party of eight people is nothing to her. She who has laid waste to worlds.

“This doesn’t have to end with your death Kivera.” Thancred hears her scoff again. The group that crosses the final threshold seals it for her. She would be taking lives today.

“Who says I am the one who will die here? Have you forgotten what I am? You better run away while YOU can. Unless you are wanting to sit back and watch the slaughter... How many more lives must stain your hands.. Just how many more must you lead along this path, dangling fame and money as a bargain for the lives you alter.” Kivera places her feet onto the ground and sweeps a foot across the earth to put a flaming barrier at the edges of the forest. 

“What made you have those opinions of us in the first place? I don’t see how your thoughts were just grown overnight because of Shuri.” Kivera’s attention on Thancred, he was delaying the fight, he must have felt that this is a losing battle from the start.

“Elidibus. You remember him.” Kivera entertains him further. She had summoned her scythe and stands on the arch of the blade. Here she looks her namesake. Angel of death, Thancred worries even more that the eight people were truly enough. How does one fight death herself.

“Aye, I do, what does he have to do with your thoughts.”

“More than you realize. Fae, Meeps, Fae’a. By your meddling with affairs that should have taken place. She lost someone she cared for greatly, loved deeply. Robbed a life of so much. I had to endure yelling on that behalf mind you. It made me think. That maybe you and the scions are not truly someone to lay your trusts in. Then you wanted to recruit Shuri out of her domestic life for the sake of another suicide mission. You want to pull Kiya out of the same. Lucky Aymeric has a brain and refused to allow that after she had hung her mantle up. Because they know the dangers, because they know “if they don’t, you will just make others do it.” Like now. What you promise them? Pretty coin? their names engraved in stone or books? Matters not to me. And to be fair. I’m done talking. Enough stalling.” Kivera summons a mirror behind Thancred and with a flit she moves in front of him swinging the blunt end of her weapon to throw him out of the area, out of the realm they’re in and back into Mor Dhona. Her successfully saying “get lost.” With evicting him out of the realm entirely.

Kivera’s attention now on the group of fighters.

“How sad that you are pulled into their cause. Just... more souls for the underworld.” Kivera sighs seeing the group ready themselves, unaware of what exactly they’re up against. She is just a stepping stone to them in their greater cause. But even stepping stones do not move from their spot.

The analytical side of her has already noticed their weak points, that the fighters who are not healers or meant to take alot of damage falling to their knees already. Her miasma had been working from the start as a slow poison to the unaware. How it leeches their life from them if she chooses to. With a well timed blast of fire from her, she catches the very area on fire ready to burn it to ashes under her word. Yet leaves the trees and foliage alone. Her mastery over her power to not harm what she does not want destroyed while sending enough fire onto the ones attacking her.

When she notices them withstanding her a bit longer, she moves them to a different plane of existence. Her wasteland in one of her realms. She shifts time and place with ease that they seemed to be at a loss of what to do.

Here she puts her scythe away in favor of something she hardly uses. A weapon similar to what the astrologions use. Kivera doesn’t need to think further of their endurance. She draws a card from the item, mocking the healer she had just slain. Tossing the card up as if to signify the loss of another soul letting it burn to ash as the very air around them bursts into flames.

“Forgive me Divinity.” Kivera murmurs under her breath, and without waiting further she cleaves half of the group down with most of her elemental magic. figuring out their weaknesses with flashes of each element. She knew how to deal with paladins, they were easy than most gave credit.

The fires dim down and spark into lightning, she throws streams of attacks till the last healer fell, singling them out before she started on the ranged and magical fighters.

She had summoned a different scythe and spends most of her time chasing down the mages. She petrifies the others and silences them. Witling down their defenses till she was certain they can’t recover.

She grants a reprieve once it was just her and the paladin. She leans on Antares then draws her weapon up underneath her to sit in the air as the energy swirls enough to make her ominous. The fighter left fumbling for something to revive a healer. A phoenix feather, Kivera sees it and snaps her fingers to burn it off.

“You want to watch that one die again? Accept the outcome. You’re not going to walk away from here alive.” Kivera brings her hands to her face and rests her head into her palms. She was biding her time, watching the knight falter from realizing he is the only one left. She changes domains again. Bringing them to a different one, one that overlooks a failing world. 

“Do you surrender? I’ll make it easier on you. Keep fighting and not even a Valkyrie will take your soul.” Kivera has no intentions of letting them walk freely. She wanted to send a message to Thancred after all. What better way for her than the bodies of those who he sent to kill her.

You know the answer to that, I can’t give up even if it is me alone. To the bitter end.”

“To the bitter end. I’ll commend you then.” Kivera starts after him, her weapon hooking with his, hers unfair in advantage of strength and power. A scythe is a versatile weapon with reach and heavier blade. Her hit alot harder than his, the curve of the blade digs in an arm at the seperation in his armor. Where she was aiming for. Her blade in his arm meant she could sever it.

The knight fends her off, and he is met with barrages of flames and lightning. Each stronger than the last throw. He noted her appearance change, not even the others have seen her true form, save for Shuri and her loved ones. strikes harder till she manages to remove the dominant arm. 

To Kivera, this was no one special to her, just another face they called upon. To her, the lives she just took were nothing but that. Her doing her role. 

“It’s over...” She says and without hesitation rends his head off letting it roll right off the edge of the platform. Kivera sends that through a portal to land timely in Thancred’s lap. Letting him see that she holds true to her word. That she will kill each and every champion he and the scion’s send after her and Shuri.

Kivera gathers each of the fallen, and sends them in a heap in front of Thancred.

“You sent them to their deaths. You bury them. You tell their families the suicide mission you sent them on.” Kivera’s words echo in his mind.

“Remember. That you had the choice to leave. I too had a choice to defend what is important to me. I will never lose another to a needless death. Send as many as you wish. I’ll cut them all down.”

Kivera ends it with returning back to her outpost to await the next group. She knows there will be more. It will never end unless she falls or they give up.