#I just keep imagining an additional season for animated

[cutekittenlady]

If I could inject Skyfire into the animated verse I'd make it so he and Starscream still have their shared history but it's a tad different.

Starscream starting off as some form of scientist, or researcher. A role he finds boring and is frustrated by what he perceives as a lack of respect. And Skyfire having been created/designed as a military machine (much like Omega Supreme in animated) and like Starscream he's dissatisfied with the role and dreams of being allowed to explore the stars and pursue knowledge.

This mutual dissatisfaction was the foundation of their friendship as they both felt forced into a life they didn't want and weren't "destined" for and ultimately resulted in them siding with the decepticons in order to get the lives they wanted.

Unfortunately they also shared a mutual jealousy. Skyfire being jealous that starscream had access to a wide range of knowledge, a privilege he didn't seem to appreciate. And of course Starscream was jealous of Skyfires power and the fear he could inspire in others (something Skyfires self conscious about) as well as what he perceived a skyfire wasting his potential. This would lead to a lot of built up tension between them as Skyfire would start to feel Starscream didn't take full advantage of the opportunities and choices he was given, things Skyfire would have killed to have. And of course Starscream began to perceive Skyfire as looking down on him.

Of course this friendship would eventually fall out somehow which I think would coincide with Skyfire leaving the Decepticons as he came to object to their methods and realizing that Megatron had no intention of actually giving him what he had likely been promised. That being a cybertron that would let him freely explore the universe and pursue his true passion of scientific research and development.

Now, an important aspect I'm not sure of is WHEN Skyfire betrays the decepticons and/or defects. As it would slightly alter the reasoning for why he doesnt seem to be around in series. Not by a lot but still.

Regardless of whether Skyfire openly defects, acts as a spy, leaks autobots into, etc. he winds up playing a role in winning the war and driving the decepticons from Cybertron.

Although he ultimately helped them win, I think tfa Skyfire would not stick with the autobots. Either because he winds up exiled like the rest of the decepticons (something I imaging happening if he didn't defect until the end of the war) or else he allowed himself to go into self-exile after having lost faith in Cybertron as a whole.

After all, he'd banked on the decepticons being a way to change cybertron into a more equal and free society, but they'd just turned out to be warmongering despots. And while the autobots likely do change a bit after the war, its not enough for Skyfire to gain any confidence in the government. Besides all that a requirement for his full amnesty could have been a required frame change, something skyfire rebelled against. Not because he loved having a war frame but because he viewed it as just another way the autobot government was exerting their power over his body and mind.

So Skyfire is either forced into exile or willing goes into it in order to preserve his own ideals. I imagine him finding old reports and journals and slowly teaching himself all the scientific knowledge and know how that he'd always wanted to learn and partaking in scientific experiments and explorations. All of which hes VERY satisfied to find that hes good at.

He tells himself that hes happy this way, but in reality he is crushingly lonely. He creates an assitant bot named Doc (stealing that from idw lol) and may even start keeping some organic lifeforms he finds around his lab as "pets" in order to have some form of company. Beyond the crushing loneliness though, hes also frustrated to find that despite pursuing the self education he'd always wanted hes dissatisfied as he has no one to share these discoveries with.

How exactly he comes into contact with our main cast I'm not sure. Maybe they crash land on the planet or asteroid or moon or whatever his lab is on, maybe the decepticons/autobots are both coming after him, etc.

Regardless of the exact circumstances, I really like to imagine that he develops a sorta odd friendship with Isaac Sumdac, who is someone of similar interests he can finally share his own knowledge and ideas with. Furthermore he'd probably have some VERY interesting interactions with the Jettwins (he isn't a huge fan of what was done to them, even if they seemingly enjoy the results, as it shows yet again how ready the government of cybertron is to control the forms of regular cybertronians to meet their own ends) and especially Omega Supreme who, much like Skyfire, was more or less created to be used in a war.

[lev1hei1chou]

Tantrums

Dad!Gojo x reader Genre: Fluff Synopsis: How can Gojo say no to his precious miracle? Masterlist

Gojo strolled through the grocery store aisles, his child happily seated in his arms, their eyes scanning the colorful array of goods. They had a strict agreement – no more toys. Their home was practically bursting at the seams with stuffed animals, action figures, and toy cars. Spoiling their child wasn't on the agenda.

But fate had a funny way of testing resolve.

"Look, Daddy! Look!" The child pointed excitedly at a shiny new toy display, their eyes widening with wonder.

Gojo's heart sank as he noticed the coveted toy, a miniature version of their favorite superhero. He braced himself for what was to come.

"No, sweetie, we talked about this," he said, trying to keep his voice firm yet gentle.

The child's enthusiasm quickly turned into a full-blown tantrum. They flopped onto the floor, kicking and screaming with all the dramatic flair of a seasoned performer.

"Please, Daddy, please!" they wailed, fat tears streaming down their cheeks.

Gojo glanced around, feeling the eyes of other shoppers on them. This was not how he envisioned their trip to the store.

"Okay, okay, shh," Gojo whispered, crouching down beside his child. "Let's make a deal. If you stop crying, I'll buy you something special."

The child's sobs subsided into sniffles as they looked up at him with hopeful eyes. "Really, Daddy?"

"Really," Gojo confirmed, offering a reassuring smile. "But you have to promise to behave, deal?"

"Deal!" the child agreed eagerly, wiping away their tears.

With a sigh, Gojo rose to his feet, maneuvering the cart towards the checkout counter. He could already imagine the look of disbelief on your face when they returned home with yet another addition to their toy collection.

As they waited in line, Gojo surreptitiously glanced around for the perfect distraction. Spotting the ice cream display nearby, a mischievous grin tugged at his lips. Ice cream before dinner? Why not? It's much better than a new toy.

"Hey, kiddo, how about we get some ice cream?" Gojo suggested, trying to sound casual.

The child's eyes lit up with delight. "Ice cream? Yay!"

Gojo quickly grabbed three cones, hoping the promise of sweet treats would keep the peace a little while longer.

With ice cream in hand, they made their way out of the store, the child happily slurping away at their treat. As they approached the car, Gojo leaned in close, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper.

"Now remember, no more tantrums, okay? You got your ice cream, so you gotta be good," Gojo said, wagging a finger playfully.

The child nodded eagerly, their cheeks smeared with chocolate and vanilla. "I promise, Daddy!"

As they drove home, Gojo couldn't help but chuckle at the absurdity of it all. Who would have thought that a simple trip to the grocery store would turn into a negotiation worthy of diplomatic peace talks?

Back at home, they were greeted by you, who raised an eyebrow at the sight of the ice cream cones.

"Ice cream before dinner?" you questioned, a hint of amusement in your voice.

Gojo shrugged, a sheepish grin spreading across his face. "Just a little treat for our little negotiator here." He raised a cone at your direction and beckoned you to take it as a 'consolation'.

The child beamed proudly, holding up their half-eaten cone as if it were a trophy of victory.

You chuckled, shaking your head in disbelief. "Well, I suppose one ice cream won't hurt. But what's this?" You gestured towards the toy tucked under Gojo's arm.

Gojo feigned innocence, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "Oh, just a little something I couldn't resist picking up."

All you could do was laugh. "You two are incorrigible."

[kuwdora]

Saturday Morning Vid Recs - FEELINGS & THAT DYNAMIC

Alright, here is yet another post for @poetikat of vids from days gone by and the recent past. I love and adore the vids. I think people should watch them for a much-needed boost to the heart and soul.

I’m calling this collection of recs FEELINGS & THAT DYNAMIC (capital letters!) because of how big and immersive the emotional experience is while watching them.

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I Gotta Feeling by CountessMary. The Muppets (The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper, Muppets Take Manhattan, and Muppets in Space). A throwback to the dance club party Club Vivid 2010. Tonight’s gonna be a good night!!!

Uptown Funk by @revolutionarygirlshati (Legend of Korra). An incredible addition to the uptown funk canon of vids!! Korra is so damn expressive!

C’mon by rhoboat. Inside Out (2015). C’mon, c’mon with everything falling down around me, I’d like to believe in all the possibilities. Perfect song and lyrics for this film. ❤️❤️❤️❤️ So many big feelings.

You Told the Drunks I Knew Karate by @settiai. Doctor Who. Amy/Rory. This is the first vid I think of when I think of this pairing, I can’t get enough of it!

For Your Entertainment by such_heights Legends of Tomorrow. Again there is something exquisite about using this song for this source. Legends of Tomorrow is so cracky and bizarre. This vid made in the earliest seasons of the show while it was airing and fucking nails it. The legends truly are here for our entertainment, bwah.

Groove is in the Heart by giandujakiss. Doctor Who/Torchwood up through 2007. This is an oldie for sure but it’s so firmly embedded in my brain that this song now exists because of this vid. The vibes of the song is really wonderful and fun. Nine and Ten, Rose and Martha and Jack Harkness and Torchwood and friends and lovers. I love how it transitions from Nine to Ten and Torchwood and back again to Doctor Who.

True Love by @findmeinthealps. Cobra Kai OT4!! This vid is such a treat because it is a tapestry of slash and Johnny and Daniel’s love for their partners throughout and and and. They all just fit together, okay. One big karate family. Each section of this vid is more delightful and full of LOVE than the next.

Take On Me Doctor Who by @trelkez. Doctor Who, classic and New Who through 2010. I heartily rec all of trelkez vids, and especially all the Doctor Who vids. Picking this one out for this list was a no brainer. There’s just something wonderful about A-Ha being used for the partnership and adventure in this show. The part at 2:01 always makes me grin because trelkez has a great sense of musicality and humor.

Garden of Your Mind by @sandalwoodbox. Critical Role, Dungeons and Dragons. This is about storytelling and imagination. AND it utilizes a really cool remix of Mr. Roger’s voice. It’s so beautiful and I cry lots about it because I’m a sap and it’s really that powerful.

Life Less Ordinary by di_br / @why-the-face. Doctor Who. Nine/Rose. Di’s vids were my go-to when I started vidding back in 2007 and I was obsessed with all her Doctor Who vids. It turns out I still am obsessed. This vid makes my heart so warm and fuzzy and I absolutely have to rec this one after all these years because the Nine/Rose feelings are off the chart and span space and time.

I Do Adore by @kiki-miserychic. Adventure Time. Princess Bubblegum/Marceline. This is another oldie, and also for a show I've never seen but always been a fandom-in-law. This vid is so, so so sweet and sapphic and shows me exactly why Bubbline was so beloved.

Carries On by @monkeyswithjetpacks. Jim Henson and The Muppets. This vid brings the big cry about, too. It’s a wonderful tribute to Jim Henson and his work. I really love the music choice here which is The Magnetic Zeroes and there’s such a wide array of different sources from behind the scenes and the muppet shows. It is so beautiful.

Previous Saturday Morning Vid Recs:

Video Games

Women!

Space and Robots

Animals

Follow the tags to keep up with recs this fall:

#saturday morning vid recs

#kuwdora vid recs

#kuwdora recs

A guide I wrote for commenting on fanvids:

How to Leave Feedback on Fanvids

[11queensupreme11]

I think that regardless of the divorce between Hades and Persephone the seasons will continue to happen, if we think about the myth we will remember that the reason why Persephone was permanently trapped in the underworld was because before returning to her mother she ate some seeds of pomegranate, so following this reasoning we can think that their marriage was just a formality to preserve Persephone's honor since she was kidnapped and probably abused by Hades (we know that at that time if a woman was abused she should marry the abuser to preserve her and her family’s honor)

We know that some curses cannot be broken even by the gods (Beelzebub as an example) so we just need to think that the curse present in pomegranates (it is in all underworld foods) are so strong that even the gods who eat them are forced to be trapped in the underworld without being able to free herself, so Persephone would still be forced to spend 6 months in the underworld but now she is no longer forced to be imprisoned in the Palace of Hades and is free from the obligations of a wife

As the curse still forces her to spend part of the year there, the seasons continue as her mother is still unhappy with the situation but now the seasons (mainly autumn and winter) are much milder as Demeter is happy with her divorce. daughter, the seasons being milder (autumn and winter) and stronger (spring and summer) is not necessarily good since climate change can accidentally destroy the existing ecosystem, it would practically be divine global warming melting the ice areas, leaving deserts and hot areas in hellish temperatures, plants and food would ONLY be able to grow in spring since this would be the only climate that would not have an excessive change, which although it doesn't seem like it is very bad since planting only in one area for just a long period of time without giving the soil time to rest will deplete all nutrients from the soil leaving it infertile

Due to the changes, it would be impossible to plant food in other seasons as fruits and vegetables would not be able to adapt to climate changes and it would be unnecessary to resort to the use of pesticides and other artificial cultivation techniques to keep the few harvests alive, this would affect the quality of the crop. food would decline and would cause prices to increase since with the drop in food production it would not be able to match the great demand of the population and this would cause an increase in world hunger and food insecurity for the poorest people since we know that when there is a large demand for a limited quantity of a product the price of that product will naturally rise

The problem will be so big that it will probably also affect animals, wild animals will have difficulty adapting to climate change (probably these animals died from heat and cold as their bodies were not adapted, in fact now that I think about the high temperatures can lead to natural fires that would devastate entire forests) and many will die due to lack of food (without plants, herbivores will not be able to feed themselves and without herbivores, predators will not be able to feed themselves and this will probably collapse many ecosystems), the Livestock industries will also be affected as they, in addition to having difficulty feeding animals, will have to worry about them dying due to the climate (many industries will probably go bankrupt) with the drop in production products such as meat of any kind will probably rise in price which will undermine people's purchasing power, which will generate even greater food insecurity

In short, everyone on earth will suffer because Percy indirectly destroyed a harmonious ecosystem thousands of years old because she is so hot and charismatic, I can't imagine the look on her face knowing that humans are dying as collateral damage of her being in an ALMOST relationship romantic relationship between her and the yanderes, not to mention the damage that Poseidon can do with the tides, Beelzebub with diseases and violence and Apollo with literal Global warming, our girl is indirectly leading humans to extinction just by exist

BRO???? 💀💀💀

i have to ask, but are you an environmentalist major or something related to that????

cuz i remember you (or at least i think it was you) sending a previous long ask about the consequences of poseidon making it dangerous for humans to be in the sea, you were talking about pearls, medicine, sea food, etc and it was sooooo well-written and detailed omg 😂

but everything you wrote is EXACTLY why i'm making it so all four seasons still exist 💀 talking about the aftermath with the ecosystem is just give me psychic damage cuz i'll feel like i'm back in my bio class again 🫠

[jrob64]

Pet for Rent, Chapter 2/4 (The Idea)

A CS Modern AU Story

Thanks for joining me for chapter 2! Writing this story has been a bit therapeutic for me after losing my Zeke, and adopting Winston has been, too. I hope you'll stay with me for the rest of the story.

Shout out to @kmomof4 who sent Winston the ducky toy he has in the picture. His Aunt Krystal spoiled him with a welcome package the week we got him!

Thanks so much to @hookedmom. I'm lucky to have the best and most patient beta!

SUMMARY: Emma Swan tries to cheer up her heartbroken son by 'renting' a dog from the local animal shelter. When she attempts to do it a second time, she makes a mistake, and realizes the dog has been rented by someone else the same day - a very handsome man named Killian Jones.

CHAPTER SUMMARY: Emma, Henry, Killian and Norman/Winston spend more time together. When Henry continues feeling sad about having to leave the dog at the animal shelter, Killian proposes an idea that might solve the problem.

RATING: M (for smut in the last chapter, which can easily be skipped if that's not your thing)

WORDS: 6821

ALSO POSTED TO Ao3 and FFN

Story begins under the cut

Emma didn’t think it was possible for four hours with a stranger to pass so quickly. Sooner than she expected, Killian was looking at his phone and announcing that it was time to return Norman to the shelter. It may have been her imagination, but it sounded like there was a note of wistfulness in his voice.

Henry took control of the dog on the walk back, giving the adults an opportunity to resume the conversation that had been ongoing throughout most of their time together. Emma watched her son handling Norman as he wandered from one side of the path to the other to explore in the tall grass and she commented, “Henry is gonna sleep good tonight.”

“I don’t doubt that. He told me he had his last game of the season this morning.”

“That, in addition to playing fetch and ‘keep away’ with Norman, and all of the running around he did with you, will have him zonking out early.” They walked on a few paces, before she added, “I want to thank you, Killian, for spending so much time with him. Since he doesn’t have a father, he doesn’t get a lot of one-on-one time with a man, so I really appreciate it.”

“It was my pleasure. He’s a good listener and a fast learner.”

“Yeah, I kinda wish he had more games left, so he could apply what you taught him. I’m afraid he’ll forget it by next season. You’re wonderful at teaching, and very patient.”

“Thank you, Emma. I truly did enjoy it.”

“The youth league is always begging for people to coach. Maybe you could do that next year.”

Killian looked thoughtful. “Perhaps I could, if I’m still here.”

“Any idea where would you go if you decide to leave?”

“Not really, but it wouldn’t be terribly far away. I want to stay close to Liam.”

When the shelter came into sight, Henry turned around and dragged Norman back to Emma and Killian. “I had fun today. Can we do this again?”

“I’ll have to check our schedule to see when we’ll have another chance to rent Norman,” Emma answered.

Henry shook his head. “No, I mean with Norman and Killian.”

“Oh, uh,” Emma stammered, glancing at Killian, who was scratching behind his ear. “I don’t know about that, kid. This was just an accident and Killian was nice enough to make the best of the situation.”

“But Mom, he had fun, too, didn’t you, Killian?”

“What did I tell you about putting him on the spot?”

“Sorry, Killian,” Henry apologized. “But it did seem like you were having fun.”

Killian reached forward to ruffle the boy’s hair. “It’s quite alright, lad, and you’re right - I had a very good time with you and your mother today. And Winston, of course.”

“You mean Norman,” Emma remarked.

“He still seems more like a Winston to me. Don’t you see the resemblance between him and England’s former Prime Minister?”

Emma took in the dog’s jutting lower jaw, drooping jowls and prominent forehead, and had to admit he did share some physical traits with Winston Churchill. “Yeah, now that you mention it, I do see it.”

“Anyway, at the risk of being too forward, it would be nice to have another day with you and your boy, if you’re amenable to that, Swan.”

Emma thought for a moment, then said, “Henry, why don’t you take Norman to the end of the path and give us a minute, okay?”

He started to protest, but seemed to think better of it. “Come on, Norman. Mom doesn’t want me to hear what she’s gonna say.”

Emma watched him go, her mouth agape over his comment. She heard Killian chuckle and turned to look at him.

“He’s quite a bright young man,” he laughed.

“Yeah, he’s getting too smart for his own good,” she agreed. “But he’s still a little boy and I’m a protective mom. I don’t want to promise him something that’s not going to happen, so if you’re not serious about doing this again…”

“I assure you, Emma,” he interrupted. “I wouldn’t dream of letting him down. If you’re willing to give me your contact information, I’ll send you some options and we can figure out a day that works.”

She eyed him critically for a few seconds, seeing nothing but sincerity in his expression. “I know Henry would really like that.”

“Only Henry?” he asked, quirking a brow.

She couldn’t help but smile. “I have to admit, I had a really good time today, too. So, um, to answer your question, I am, how did you say it, amenable to doing it again.”

His grin made her heart do a pleasant little flip. She made sure Henry and Norman were okay while waiting for Killian to pull out his phone and start a new contact. Once he did, he handed it to her so she could add her information.

After handing it back, they began walking again. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him checking the phone screen. “It’s not a fake number, by the way,” she said.

“That’s good to know,” he returned with a smirk, while typing out a text to her so she would have his info. “Is that something you’ve done before?”

“Maybe,” she replied cryptically.

“In that case, I feel honored that you gave me the real thing.”

She giggled in response, giving him a slight nudge with her elbow as they reached the end of the path.

“What did you say, Mom?” Henry asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

“Killian and I are going to look at our schedules to find a day that works.”

“Yay!” Henry shouted. “How about next Saturday?”

“Calm down, kid. I told you we’re going to figure it out.”

They arrived at the shelter and Killian opened the door and held it for them. David was sitting at a desk behind the counter, tapping away at the computer keyboard. He looked up with a broad smile when they entered. “How did it go?”

“Good,” Emma replied. “Thank you for allowing us to borrow Norman for the day.”

David looked between the two adults standing before him, obviously wanting more details. “Did you…all of you…get along okay?”

“Yes we did, Dave,” Killian said smugly.

There were several seconds when all they could hear was the barking of some of the dogs in the back. Finally, David sighed. “Alright, I guess I’ll just take Norman back to his cage, then.”

“Oh, uh,” Emma said, giving Killian a wink, “one of us will be in touch to schedule another day for us…all of us…to rent Norman again.”

David’s grin told them he knew exactly what that meant.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

“I hear you met my future brother-in-law,” Belle said. It was Monday, and Emma had stopped at the library to return a couple of books and choose some more before her shift at the sheriff’s station.

“News travels fast.”

“Killian always eats lunch with us after church. He told us about the mix-up at the animal shelter and said he had a great time with you and Henry.”

“He seems like a nice guy,” Emma said, moving to a shelf and studying the books more closely than necessary.

“He thinks very highly of you, too.”

Emma shot her a brief glance. “Oh, yeah? What did he say?”

“Well,” Belle began, clearly struggling to be non-chalant, “he said you were very easy to talk to and he enjoyed your sense of humor. He also said he had fun helping Henry with his soccer skills.”

“He was really good with Henry and I, um, I liked talking to him, too. He’s supposed to contact me to figure out another time to rent Norman together. Henry asked if we could.”

“I don’t suppose you protested too much, did you?”

Emma chose a book off of the shelf and studiously perused the summary on the back. “You know I want my kid to be happy.”

Belle crossed the space between them and laid her hand over the book, garnering Emma’s full attention. “To the best of my knowledge, you’ve never once introduced your son to a man you may be interested in dating in all the years I’ve known you.”

“Wait a second…first of all, I didn’t introduce him to Henry - we met accidentally, and secondly, who says I’m interested in dating him? We’re simply planning to rent Norman together again. It’s really not a big deal, Belle.”

“If you say so, but I have to tell you that I’ve never seen Killian so animated while talking about someone. You certainly made an impression on him.”

“I’m sure I did. Dressed in old sweatpants and a hoodie, no makeup, hair a complete disaster - I was a mess.”

“He didn’t mention that. He just talked about how he enjoyed the time he spent with you and how much he’s looking forward to seeing you again.”

Emma could feel her face heating and knew she must be as red as the leather jacket she was wearing. She wasn’t ready to admit that she was just as eager to see him again, too.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

That evening, Emma had just finished checking over Henry’s homework and shooed him off to the shower, when her phone dinged with an incoming text. Picking it up from the kitchen counter, she couldn’t help the smile that crossed her face upon seeing Killian’s name.

K: I’m hoping this message reaches Emma Swan. If I’ve reached someone else, you can blame it on her. It was followed by a smirking emoji.

She shook her head at his ridiculousness, and decided to play along.

E: I’m afraid you’ve been misled. This Emma Swan must be a horrible person. She added a winking emoji.

It took a few seconds for the three bubbles to pop up, then she laughed out loud when she read his reply.

  K: Oh, she is a terrible, awful person to give me a fake number.

E: She’s probably not used to giving out her number to random men who just happened to rent the same dog she did.

K: That seems to be a plausible excuse. Perhaps I should forgive her.

E: Oh, you most definitely should.

K: Very well. If I’m ever fortunate enough to see her again, I shall grant her my forgiveness.

E: That’s very gentlemanly of you.

K: I’m always a gentleman.

Emma heard the clothes hamper lid slam in the bathroom, signifying that Henry was finished with his shower.

E: I need to get Henry into bed. I’ll be back in twenty minutes or so, depending on how resistant he decides to be tonight.

K: Tell him I said goodnight.

E: That will probably get him all excited and it may be longer than twenty minutes.

K: I’m willing to wait.

Emma left her phone on the sofa and went to Henry’s bedroom, where he was getting settled under the covers. Sitting on the edge of his bed, she brushed his damp bangs away from his forehead.

“Did you brush your teeth?”

“You ask me that every night.”

“Yes, and half the time you’ve neglected to do it.”

“I just have to brush them again in the morning.”

Emma raised an eyebrow at him. “Did you, or didn’t you?”

He sighed dramatically. “I did. Wanna smell my breath to make sure?”

“Not particularly. I believe you. Ready to say your prayers?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. Name three things of thanks,” she said, initiating their nightly tradition.

Henry tapped his chin in thought. “I scored two goals at recess.”

“That’s cool.”

“Yeah, I used what Killian taught me. Oh! That’s my second thing - meeting Killian.”

“Actually, he texted me while you were in the shower.”

“He did? Did he say when we can rent Norman together again?”

“We haven't had a chance to discuss it yet. He did say to tell you goodnight.”

“Tell him I said goodnight to him, too.”

“I will. What’s your third thing?”

“Umm…we changed seats in class and now I’m sitting beside Avery.”

“Just make sure the two of you don’t get into trouble for talking too much.”

“We won’t.”

“Good. Now, what three things do you want to ask of God?”

“To help me do good on my math test tomorrow, to send me another dog, and to let us see Killian again soon.”

They both folded their hands and closed their eyes while Henry said his prayers. When he finished, Emma read him a chapter of Fantastic Mr. Fox, kissed him goodnight and left his room, turning off the light on her way out.

Picking her phone up from her couch, she scrolled through the text conversation with Killian, smiling at the light banter they shared.

E: I’m back.

When a response didn’t come through for a couple of minutes, she went to her bedroom to change into her pajamas. Then she brushed her teeth, washed her face, and applied moisturizer.

When she went back into the living room, she saw a new message on her phone.

K: Is it okay if I call you? I’m not fond of texting.

She noticed that the time stamp was right after she put her phone down, over ten minutes ago. Instead of answering, she brought up his contact and hit the call button.

“Hello, Swan.”

“Hey, sorry if I kept you waiting.”

“I was hoping I didn’t upset you by asking to call.”

“No, nothing like that. I just decided to do my nighttime routine,” Emma explained. “Henry said to tell you goodnight, by the way. I always ask him to tell me three things he’s thankful for from his day, and you were involved in two of them.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. He scored two goals playing soccer today at recess, because of what you taught him, and he was thankful for meeting you. That’s the third night in a row he’s said that one.”

“That’s very kind of him to say.”

“Well, you made quite an impression on him and he’s eager to see you again. Speaking of which, what does your schedule look like for the next few weeks?”

“It’s wide open, actually. Do Saturdays work best for you?”

“Yeah, because Henry is in school during the week and I work until five every day. I also work one Saturday a month. This coming Saturday is the one I work this month.”

“How about the following week?”

She switched him to speaker and pulled up her calendar app. “That looks good. Henry gets a haircut that morning at nine, but we could meet after that. The weather is going to start getting too cold if we wait much longer.”

“Liam has been telling me to be prepared for a cold winter. He says Maine is quite a bit colder than England during the winter months,” he stated. “Shall we make plans for that day, then?”

“Sounds good to me. Want to meet at the shelter at ten-thirty?”

“Actually,” Killian began, then paused for a few moments before clearing his throat and continuing. “I was wondering if you would agree to me picking up the two of you to go to the shelter together.”

Emma bit her lip, considering his offer. Her gut instinct was to decline because it would seem too much like a date, but her practical side said it was logical for them to make the twenty minute drive together.

She knew he was waiting for her answer and was probably having second thoughts about asking, since she was taking so long. “Um, sure, that would be fine,” she finally said. “I’ll text my address to you.”

“Okay, good. Shall we say ten o’clock? Will that give you enough time for Henry’s haircut?”

“Yeah. It only takes about twenty minutes, if that long. His barber is Jefferson and he’s pretty fast.”

“Liam recommended him and I had an appointment there a couple of weeks ago. He is fast, if a little…quirky.”

“Oh, you mean because he wears the top hat? I guess he’s trying to live up to the name of his shop.”

“Just naming his shop the Mad Hatter of Hair makes him sound a bit eccentric.”

Emma laughed. “He’s harmless, though. His daughter Grace is in Henry’s class and she’s very sweet. Jefferson is raising her by himself. His wife passed away before Grace started kindergarten.”

“How sad. Now I feel bad for judging him.”

“I wouldn’t say you were judging him, just making an accurate observation. I knew him before his wife died and he was every bit as quirky as he is now.”

They continued talking for another twenty minutes. Just like the day they met, the conversation didn’t lag at all as they transitioned easily from one subject to another. Before they ended the call, Killian asked if it would be alright to call her again later in the week and she agreed without hesitation.

Lying in bed that night, Emma smiled dreamily as she replayed their conversation in her mind. She may be venturing into self-imposed forbidden territory ever since Henry’s father abandoned her, but Killian Jones intrigued her and she couldn’t find it within herself to care.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

Killian called Emma four more times over the next two weeks. Their conversations lasted longer each time, until they spent over an hour talking and laughing on Thursday, before their scheduled outing.

He suggested that they take Norman back to Storybrooke’s nature preserve after picking him up, which she thought was a great idea. She mentioned that she and Henry spent quite a bit of time there during the summer, hiking the trails and wading in the creek. Despite intending to visit, Killian hadn’t been able to get there yet and was happy to know his first time would be with Emma, Henry and Norman.

Saturday morning found him taking more time than usual to get ready. He chided himself for being a bit vain, but wanted to make the extra effort for the lovely lady Swan. If things went well, he was planning to ask her out on a proper date.

He had confided his intention to Belle, hoping she would give him advice about where to take Emma, should she agree. Not only did his future sister-in-law present him with recommendations, she also mentioned that she would be happy to watch Henry, and was sure Liam would, too.

Once Killian was satisfied with his appearance, he tried to occupy himself until it was time to drive to Emma and Henry’s house. After going online and paying some bills, washing the few dishes in the sink and sorting his laundry, he still had about twenty minutes left.

His heart sank when he heard the notification for an incoming text, thinking it might be Emma cancelling their plans. He was relieved, then a little apprehensive to see it was from his brother. Belle promised she wouldn’t say anything to Liam about his plans to ask Emma on a date, but they were an engaged couple and couples weren’t supposed to keep secrets from each other. Unfortunately, his former girlfriend hadn’t abided by that rule, since she kept one whopper of a secret from him.

L: Any plans for this afternoon, little brother?

Killian dropped his head back with a sigh. Not only did Liam insist on calling him that irritating moniker, now he had to explain that he did indeed have plans. He was sure he would have to answer questions about what they were and with whom, since he rarely did anything on the weekends.

K: Actually, I do.

L: Oh, really? What are you doing?

K: I’m renting Winston from the shelter again.

L: Great! Belle is working today. Would you mind if I came over to see the little guy?

Killian’s thumbs hovered over his screen, trying to decide how to tell his brother no without sounding rude. Even though Liam was acquainted with Emma, he tended to be over protective, and Killian didn’t want him giving her the third degree or making her feel uncomfortable. Plus, he selfishly wanted to spend time alone with her and Henry.

Glancing at the clock, he saw it was almost time for him to leave. Quickly, he typed a message he was hoping would appease Liam.

K: Sorry, not this time. Emma, Henry and I made plans to spend another day together with him.

As he pulled on his jacket, he heard another notification. Closing his eyes momentarily, he opened them to read Liam’s message, then released a relieved breath.

L: I hope the four of you have a good time, so I can see that look of happiness on your face again.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

“Henry, Killian’s here!” Emma announced, dropping the curtain after seeing his car pull up to the curb.

“Coming!” she heard him yell in response.

She quickly ducked into the bathroom and inspected her appearance in the mirror one more time. She hoped to make a better impression on Killian by applying light makeup and pulling her hair back into a neat ponytail. Her outfit was simple - jeans, sneakers, her favorite light blue blouse, and red leather jacket.

The doorbell rang as she re-entered the living room, but before she could get to the door, Henry sped past her to pull it open. “Hey, Killian!” he said excitedly.

“Hello, lad,” Killian answered, then shifted his eyes from Henry to Emma. She saw him swallow before giving her one of his winning smiles. “Good morning, Emma.”

“Hi, Killian. You’re right on time.”

“Not being prompt is bad form, Swan.” Looking at Henry again, he stated, “Your haircut makes you look a bit older.”

Henry reached up to run both hands along the sides of his head. “Do you really think so?”

“Aye, at least a year or two.”

“Please don’t say that,” Emma said, handing Henry his jacket. “He’s growing up way too fast as it is.”

During the drive to the shelter, Henry talked about one thing after another. Emma wondered if Killian would tire of her son’s constant chatter, but his questions at regular intervals proved he was fully engaged in what Henry had to say.

Meanwhile, she spent the time admiring the man beside her. He was dressed in dark, stonewashed jeans, an army green button-down shirt, and the same black leather jacket he wore the first time they met. His scruff was neatly trimmed and his dark hair artfully combed. His rich laugh at some of Henry’s comments was a sound she was sure she would never get tired of hearing.

When they entered the shelter, David gave them a smug smile that Emma tried to ignore. She knew he was probably patting himself on the back for his matchmaking, but she really didn’t mind, because meeting Killian was, so far, a positive experience.

Norman was extremely excited to see them again, and after everyone got into the car, they were on their way back to Storybrooke. Henry was preoccupied with Norman in the back seat, so the adults finally had a chance to chat with each other. Their conversation was as free-flowing as it had been every other time they spoke in the past two weeks. Emma had never met anyone so easy to talk to, and wondered if it was because their backgrounds were so similar.

During their earlier phone conversations, she learned his father had abandoned his family when Killian and Liam were little, leaving their mother to raise them alone. She shared how she was abandoned at a fire station baby box when she was less than a week old, and had never been adopted. They both had been in situations where they were deceived and misled by the person they loved. Emma came to realize that being able to empathize with someone else made it easier to connect with them, just as she had with Killian.

The crisp autumn weather was perfect for hiking at the nature preserve. They explored all of the available paths and walked along the shores of the creek. The water was too chilly for wading, but Norman enjoyed splashing in now and then when he spotted a particularly intriguing leaf, bug or stick.

After hiking for a couple of hours, they took a break to drink Gatorade and snack on protein bars, thoughtfully packed by Killian. He also had treats for Norman, which Henry used to try and teach the dog again how to sit on command.

They stayed until the last possible minute before getting into the car for the drive back to the shelter. No one spoke for several miles, until Henry finally said, “I really wish we didn’t have to take Norman back there. He’s always so sad. Why can’t we just adopt him, Mom?”

Emma glanced over at Killian, who met her eyes for a second before directing his back to the road. “I wish we could, but it wouldn’t really be fair to Norman. We’re both gone all day and he would have to be penned up that whole time.”

“But he loves us and we love him!” Henry exclaimed. “Ernie didn’t have to be penned up and he was fine during the day.”

Emma turned to look at her son. “I know, kid, but it was easy with Ernie. He was with us for several years and was older. Norman is young and full of energy, so he’s going to need a lot more attention and training. I wouldn’t trust him being in the house all day by himself.”

Henry heaved a huge sigh. “Okay.”

They were all silent for the rest of the drive. Emma saw Killian look at her out of the corner of his eye once in a while, but they didn’t carry on a conversation. She spent the time thinking about the practicality of adopting Norman, but knew she would have to stick to her guns, because it just wouldn’t be fair to the rambunctious dog to be cooped up all day.

When they reached the shelter and exited the car, Killian slowed Emma down by placing a hand on her arm, while Henry entered the building with Norman. “Emma, I’ve been giving it some thought and I have an idea, if you’re open to it.”

She shrugged slightly. “Sure, let’s hear it.”

“Perhaps, if you adopted Win-, er, Norman, I could keep him during the day while you’re at work and school. I could pick him up in the morning before you leave and drop him off after you get home.”

“Sort of like shared custody or dog sitting?” she asked, turning to face him.

He chuckled. “Aye, something like that, I suppose.”

“I don’t know, Killian. That seems like a pretty big commitment between people who barely know each other. You’re not even sure you’re going to stay in Storybrooke.”

He scratched behind his ear. “If I move, it won’t be for a while, since I signed a six month lease on my apartment. That would give us time to train the dog. I know we’ve just met, but I…I’ve enjoyed getting to know you and your boy. I’m hoping this is just the beginning of our friendship.”

Emma stuck her hands in the back pocket of her jeans and rocked back on her heels. “I hope so, too, but I’m still not sure about the arrangement you’re suggesting.”

“I completely understand,” he said, then paused before asking, “Are you counting it out altogether, or will you consider it?”

She pulled her lip between her teeth in thought for a few seconds. “I’ll consider it,” she finally answered.

He gave her a small smile, then moved to open the door for her.

They went inside to see Henry sitting cross-legged on the floor with Norman, the dog’s head resting on his leg. David was listening to the boy give him a detailed description of their day at the nature preserve and looked up to give them a big grin. “Sounds like you had quite the adventure today.”

“Aye, we all had quite a workout,” Killian responded. “It’s quite a lovely place.”

“Yeah, we’re lucky to have it in Storybrooke,” David said. “Mary Margaret takes her class there on a field trip every year.”

Henry’s head whipped around. “Mrs. Nolan didn’t take our class!”

“It’s early in the school year,” Emma said. “I’m sure she’ll take you sometime.”

“They usually go in the spring,” David explained, as he walked around the end of the counter. “Are you ready for me to take Norman?”

“No,” Henry said, his voice muffled as he buried his face in the dog’s neck.

The three adults exchanged understanding looks. They gave the boy a couple more minutes, before Emma picked up the end of the leash and put her hand on Henry’s head. “It’s time to say goodbye to him, kid.”

Henry drew back to look at Norman. “Goodbye, boy. I’m gonna miss you.” He kissed the dog on top of the head and rubbed his ears.

Emma reached down to pet the dog, then handed the leash to David. Killian stood beside her to pat Norman, too, telling him to be a good boy.

David bid them all goodbye, then headed to the back with the dog reluctantly following him. Henry looked up at Emma from where he still sat on the floor. “Mom…”

“Henry, don’t say it. I already told you why it’s not a good idea to adopt him right now.”

“Right now? Does that mean we can adopt him later?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Emma replied, giving him her patented ‘don’t push it’ look. “Let’s go, kid.”

With a long-suffering sigh, Henry pushed himself to his feet and followed her out the door Killian was holding open. Once they were in the car and on their way to Storybrooke, Killian asked, “Would you, um, would the two of you like to get a late lunch at Granny’s, when we get back?”

“What do you think, Henry?” Emma threw over her shoulder.

He turned from where he had been glumly staring out the window. “Can I get a cheeseburger and fries?”

“Sure.”

“And a chocolate milkshake?” When his mom didn’t answer immediately, he added, “Please? It’ll make me less sad about Norman.”

Killian chuckled lowly as Emma rolled her eyes, muttering, “I’m raising a con artist.”

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

Killian mentally kicked himself the whole way back into town. What was he thinking, asking Emma to agree to what was basically a long term commitment? He probably ruined his chance for asking her out on a date, too. He was sure she would think he was coming on too strong, if he did.

At least she agreed to have lunch with him. Hopefully, she would also allow him to continue calling her. Those phone calls and the texts they shared were always the highlight of his week.

As much as he enjoyed his time with Emma, having Henry with them made it even better. Killian hadn’t had a lot of interaction with children, but it was easy being around Emma’s son. He was bright, articulate and funny - very much like his mother. He was also respectful and well-mannered.

On the day they met, Emma confided to him that she was afraid she was making a lot of mistakes as a single mom, who never had a mother of her own to set an example, but he strongly disagreed. She wasn’t perfect - no parent was, but Henry seemed to be well-adjusted and confident, so she was obviously doing many things right.

Killian saw how much Henry loved the dog and wished he could help make the boy’s desire to adopt him come true, which is why he made the offer. He had come to love the furry little rascal, too, and would seriously consider adopting Norman himself. He just didn’t know if he could take the dog with him if he decided to move away from Storybrooke.

He pulled up in front of Granny’s, cut the engine, unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door, as he heard Emma and Henry do the same. Typical of a young boy, Henry took off running and was already skipping up the steps to the front door by the time Killian reached Emma’s side.

“He’s pretty excited,” Emma explained. “Eating out is kind of a treat because we don’t do it very often.”

“I hope I wasn’t out of line for asking,” Killian said.

“No, not at all. It really perked him up.”

Killian halted at the bottom of the steps, causing Emma to stop and look at him. “I also hope I didn’t upset you by making the offer to watch Norman.”

“You didn’t,” she assured him. “I’m definitely going to think about it. I really miss having a dog around, too. I just have to weigh all the pros and cons.”

He smiled and nodded his understanding, then bounded up the steps to open the door. Henry was at the counter talking animatedly to Ruby, who looked up and gaped at Emma in surprise.

“Hey, girl! I didn’t realize you knew the very handsome new guy in town!”

Killian could feel his ears turning red, when Emma glanced at him before replying. “Hi, Ruby. Actually, we met by accident a couple of weeks ago.”

“By accident, huh? Did you hit him with your car or something?”

“Nothing like that. We were both renting the same dog at the animal shelter.”

“Was seeing him today another accident?”

Emma put her hands on her hips. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no. It was planned this time.”

Killian wasn’t sure he had ever seen such a wide grin on the waitress’s face. They all gave Ruby their drink order, then Emma ushered Henry to a booth and Killian slid in across from them.

“Are you getting lasagna?” she asked.

“I think I’m going to try the grilled cheese and onion rings. Someone recommended them to me,” he smirked.

“Very intelligent person,” Emma grinned.

“Aye, that she is.”

Ruby arrived at their table with their drinks and Henry’s milkshake. She gave Emma and Killian another broad smile when she took down their identical orders. “His and hers grilled cheeses, huh? Maybe there’s some truth to the saying that couples begin to eat alike.”

Emma sighed and rolled her eyes. “I think the saying is that couples start to look alike, and we aren’t a couple. We’re just friends.”

“I see,” Ruby said, glancing at Henry, who was busy spooning the thick milkshake into his mouth. “Well, they do say there are benefits to being friends.” She gave them an exaggerated wink, then turned and made her way to the kitchen.

“Ruby isn’t exactly the epitome of subtlety,” Emma said, a blush filling her cheeks with color.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

“It was nice of Killian to take us to Granny’s today,” Henry said, as he was climbing into bed that night.

“Yes, it was. I was very proud of you for remembering to thank him without needing a reminder.”

“Thanks for letting me get a milkshake, even if it didn’t make me stop feeling sad about not being able to adopt Norman.”

Emma tucked the covers around his shoulders. “I know, but try not to think about it.”

“I can’t,” Henry pouted. “He’s probably crying himself to sleep tonight.”

“I think he’s probably going to sleep remembering all of the fun we had today.”

Henry stubbornly shook his head. “Nuh-uh. He’s wondering why we didn’t bring him home with us.”

“Henry,” Emma sighed, “I know you’re sad, but we just can’t…”

“I know,” he interrupted, “you keep saying it wouldn’t be fair for him to be alone all day, but he’s already alone at the shelter all day, except for Mr. Nolan, and at night, there’s nobody there at all.”

“There’s other dogs and cats…”

“That’s not the same. They’re all in cages by themselves. If we adopted him, he could sleep on my bed, like Ernie did.”

Knowing she was going around in circles with him, Emma reached over and picked up the book from his nightstand. “How about if you say your prayers after I read to you tonight?”

Heaving a dramatic sigh, he said, “Fine, but it’s not gonna make me forget about Norman.”

After reading to him for fifteen minutes, hearing his prayers - which mentioned Norman and Killian several times - and kissing him goodnight, she left his room. Heading into her own bedroom, she went through her nightly routine automatically, lost in thought.

Once she was in her pajamas, free of make-up and teeth brushed, she peeked in on her son to find him sound asleep. She made sure the front door was deadbolted, turned off the lights in the kitchen and living room and went back into her room. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she stared at the phone in her hand, mind racing.

Finally, she pulled up Killian’s contact and hit the call button.

She was almost ready to hang up after it rang four times, not wanting it to go to voicemail, when he answered. “Hello, Swan. I wasn’t expecting to talk to you again so soon.”

“I hope I’m not calling too late.”

“Not at all. What’s on your mind?”

“Henry was still upset about Norman before he went to sleep. I feel like I’m being selfish by not allowing him to get a dog.”

“Why do you feel that way?”

“Because one of my excuses is that a dog is a lot of work and would need training, which it would. I’m making it seem like all the work would fall on me. Now, I know Henry is only eight, but I think he’s pretty responsible for his age.”

“From what I’ve seen, I would agree with that,” Killian cut in.

“Thank you. Anyway, I think he would be able to help train and take care of the dog, so that excuse is out the window. The other big concern I had is that the dog would have to be home by himself all day, which brings me to the reason I’m calling. I’ve been seriously considering your offer, if it’s still on the table.”

“It is.”

“Are you sure that’s not asking too much of you? I mean, you’re home during the day, but you’re working. How would you be able to take care of him?”

“I’ve had him here with me a few times already and he makes himself right at home. He’s housebroken and doesn’t demand too much attention. If he starts getting restless, I take him outside and play with him for a while. That works with my schedule because I have to take breaks now and then, when I’ve been staring at the computer screen for too long.”

She blew out a long breath. “What if it turns out to be too big of a commitment? We’ve spent some time together and have done a lot of talking to get to know each other, but we’re still basically strangers.”

“Well actually…” Killian began, then paused for several moments before continuing, “I was hoping to have an opportunity to ask you something today, but the right moment never presented itself.”

Emma’s heart began to beat faster in anticipation of what she suspected he might ask. “What did you want to ask?”

“Would you, um…would you consider going out with me?”

Standing up to pace back and forth between her bed and dresser, she chewed her lip in contemplation. She could literally count how many dates she’d had since Henry’s birth on one hand. She only went on those dates to appease Ruby, who was convinced Emma’s Mr. Right was out there somewhere, but she hadn’t been attracted to any of the men.

She couldn’t say the same about Killian. From the time she laid eyes on him, she felt an attraction that only got stronger the more she got to know him. He seemed to be the total package - kind, intelligent, considerate, and insanely hot.

“What happens if we adopt Norman, then go out with each other and realize we’re not compatible?”

“If you adopt him, I would keep my commitment to help take care of him, even if we decide dating doesn’t work for us. You have my word, Emma.”

She came to a halt at the end of her bed and turned to face the mirror above her dresser. For eight years, Henry had been her number one priority and always would be, but maybe it was time for her to do something for herself. Could that something be going out with Killian Jones?

She was so deep in thought, she didn’t realize how long she had been standing there considering her answer. When Killian finally spoke, his quiet voice startled her. “What do you say, Swan?”

“Yes, Killian. I will go out with you.”

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

NEW TAG LIST:

@qualitycoffeethings @grimmswan @cs-rylie @wyntereyez @kmomof4 @hookedmom @ultraluckycatnd @paradiselady19 @xarandomdreamx @motherkatereloyshipper @lfh1226-linda @pawshapedheart @vampcoffeegyrl23 @tiganasummertree @bluewildcatfanatic @eleveneitherway @elfiola @kday426 @julieenchanted-swans @gingerchangeling @andiirivera @djlbg @jonesfandomfanatic @snowbellewells @anmylica @booksteaandtoomuchtv @cocohook38 @ilovemesomekillianjones@zaharadessert @lyssapup27 @undercaffinatednightmare @winterbaby89 @jennjenn615 @xsajx @jackieorioncat @teamhook @soniccat @jarienn972 @softkilly @kymbersmith-90 @apiratewhopines

[grailfinders]

Grailfinders Viewers' Choice: Beast IV L

if anything's getting my icon blurred out, it's this one. anyways!

it's that time of the month once again, and this time I feel like an absolute beast. well, to be more accurate, y'all felt like getting an absolute beast. a beast (fgo definition) that summons beasts (D&D definition). I'm sure this won't be confusing at all.

as usual I highly doubt this build is even remotely balanced for actual PvE play, but beasts are supposed to be world ending threats, so that shouldn't be a surprise.

the build itself will be under the cut, because hoo boy there's a lot to go over.

first up, beast IV can show up in her standard Koyanskaya form, which is the one primarily used when outside her lair. this is effectively a suped-up version of Koyanskaya of Dark, with access to unlimited weaponry and NFF-brand grenades, all of which work like standard "weapons of <x> slaying" do in D&D- they deal extra damage to humanoids, and can knock humanoids prone.

the big addition here aside from standard high-level-boss resistances is her Add to the Collection ability, where once per day she can try to forcibly plane shift a non-humanoid creature into a demiplane of her creation, basically putting them in suspended animation. this will be important for later.

form two is effectively Koyanskaya's big shadowy fox form. I didn't make any hard and fast rules about how these forms connect to one another, but I would probably say her masked form can turn into this combat form once a day, probably for a couple minutes at a time.

the gimmick for this fight is her Seasonal Cycle, which both reduces the number of legendary actions she gets to actually attack people each round, but also gives her buffs. I tried to keep this close to her lostbelt-based buffs in her final fight, but I also changed the names to be less FGO-centric if you want to use this build in a game. there's not a ton to say about this one that isn't regurgitating the seasonal cycle, it's just Masked Form with a bigger focus on kicking humanoid ass.

The big nipply form shown in the build picture has a lot of text, but I'll do what I can to break it down. This is Beast IV's final form, and it's the one that sets up the Tunguska Sanctuary in the first place, so there's a lot going on. Once again her humanoid-slaying effect grows larger, but she can only take this form in her lair, plus her speed is cranked wayyy down at this point. I just. cannot imagine that thing moving any faster than a crawl. if you need something done fast, that's what your lackeys are for.

speaking of lackeys, let's Reveal the Collection. this is a ten-minute ritual, which upon completion can summon copies of creatures that were stored by the Masked Form. The higher the CR of the creatures being made, the less you can make at a time, and the shorter your range is. there's also a lesser version of this you can do as a legendary action, and it's restricted to one creature at a time, of up to CR 10.

but of course, you need a place to put all those creatures! that's why she's got Regional Effects too! it's a whole lot of text, but it basically boils down to making a life zone and a death zone around her lair. half of your collection will tend towards the life zone, and half towards the other. in the life zone, the area is choked by plants, slowing down all humanoids in the area, and also healing effects targeting non-humanoids are more powerful. the death zone has extreme heat, and humanoids have disadvantage on saves against it. also, all summoned creatures in this region have double their normal perception distance when it comes to perceiving humanoids.

-------------

So overall, this build isn't a world-ending threat like Tiamat, or an orbital laser like Goetia, but she's not supposed to be a full-grown beast yet, so I'd cut her some slack. plus, if your party includes non-humanoid players you can make a dozen clones of them to fight the party which sounds like a really fun time. that being said, I do pity any DM who as to keep track of her seasonal buffs in a fight.

[shesailsships]

Okay, so I know it's about to be that time of month, so I'm extra deep in my feels, but I am sitting over here just sobbing because my old neighbor passed away last week and now his house and all of his land that he has poured his blood, sweat, and tears into over the last fifty years is being sold and will more than likely be cleared and turned into soulless track housing.

I live in suburbia, but the kind of suburbia that if you drive fifteen more minutes down the road, people own horses and keep farms. My neighbor, let's affectionately call him Old Man Jenkins, had moved into our neighborhood before it was a neighborhood, fifty years ago, with his new wife. They had the house built on a couple acres and honestly I didn't even know the house and their land was there until Old Man Jenkins introduced himself to us a couple of years ago, during the pandemic. Old Man Jenkin's land is truly like a secret garden. You go past all these houses built in the 90's and then you hit this dead end dirt road, and at the end of it is the hidden away treasure that is Old Man Jenkin's land. Was.

Old Man Jenkins loved his land. He built the most lovely garden you can ever imagine on it. It's kind of like walking through a dream, walking through his peaceful garden. Paths wind through old trees with branches that create canopies overhead, which the sunlight dapples through. There are happy birds flitting everywhere. Rabbits hopping by. Cute deer. Old Man Jenkins planted almost everything, and was especially proud of his giant rohododendren plants. You see, he was apart of the rohododendren society, and he had access to one-of-a-kind rohododendren species. He had over twenty planted of every color, and because they are so old, each plant is more like a tree. Each year he invited us to tour his rohododendren plants while they were in bloom and it was always amazing to see them. It's just so wonderful to share in something someone is so passionate about, and they are truly stunning plants with so much history. I am crying while writing this, knowing they will all be bulldozed. It just absolutely breaks my heart.

In addition to his very special rohododendrens, Old Man Jenkins also planted a variety of apple trees, bushes and bushes of blueberry plants, rare heirloom species of blackberries, and raspberries. Each year he would share his harvest with us and let me tell you what a special gift that is. I can't describe to you the peace you feel stepping on to Old Man Jenkin's land. There is something so calming about nature. It feels like a hug.

I was there this morning with my mom. The house is empty. Old Man Jenkins is in heaven and his late wife was put in assisted living- but still, walking the grounds, the garden is busy with activity. It's peak summer. Everything is so lush and green, full and vibrant. The little animal visitors were busy enjoying the sanctuary away from the asphalt just down the road. My mom and I were there to not let Old Man Jenkin's harvest go to waste. It's raspberry picking season. His beautiful and mature raspberry plants are bursting with ripe berries, just sitting there. I'm sure the birds have had a nice feast, but we wanted to share in them too.

Walking through Old Man Jenkin's garden this morning, the gentle summer sun coming through trees, the tall green grass brushing up against my legs, listening to the birdsong, I was so moved. The fact that soon it will all be gone, and that in the future nobody will know that it ever existed, devastates me. I don't know if the blueberries will make it to harvest, but the bushes are loaded. I don't know if the apple trees will make it to harvest, but they are proudly growing a full crop.

I am just so distraught. To see that that someone can put so many years of hard work and love into something, only to have it all erased, like it never happened- my heart aches. Old Man Jenkins told us a special story about a certain tree planted in his yard. As a present, on his honeymoon, fifty years ago, he and his wife went to the Redwood Forest and purchased a giant redwood sapling, and brought it with them when they bought their land. They planted the sapling, which is now a beautiful, giant tree. I am sick thinking this tree will be cleared along with everything else when the sale of the land goes through. I have never wished to have money more in my life. If I were rich I would spend whatever it took to buy out the land from whoever has purchased and preserve everything Old Man Jenkins worked so hard to achieve. I would turn it into a botanical garden that everyone could visit and enjoy.

Okay, I have to stop here, as I am crying so much it's hard to see my screen. I guess I am posting this so that I can share that this garden existed, and that even when it's gone, I will always remember it <3

[transdimensional-void]

"ascendance of a bookworm" anime, episode 1, scene 1

now that the english translation of the aoab light novel has reached part 5 volume 7, i want to write down some of my thoughts about the anime's decision to make the very first scene of the entire show the memory viewing scene. it's a significant departure from all other versions of the series (web novel, light novel, and manga), yet i believe it was a genius exploitation of its medium that turns potential weaknesses into strengths and allows fans both old and new a fresh perspective on the material.

first, since the anime premiered several years after the ending of the web novel, many of its viewers were always going to be those who had already finished the story. by opening with a scene halfway through part 2 of the series, the anime reassures longtime fans that the characters and scenes they most love are on the way. for those whose favorite character is ferdinand or who are very invested in his dynamic with myne, it gives them a taste of what they love to keep them hooked until he shows up in the story proper.

on the other hand, the anime will also always be some people's first introduction to the series. for those who have no idea what they're getting themselves into, that tiny peek into what's to come in part 2 is a big flashing sign notifying them that this shumilhole goes far, far deeper than the beginning of part 1 might lead us to believe. (of course, a not insignificant number of anime-only viewers seem to ignore this warning and convince themselves that myne's life in the lower city will be the centerpiece of the entire series).

there is also the consideration that, because the first and second cours of the anime were made simultaneously without any assurance that additional seasons would be ordered, placing the memory viewing scene at the beginning of the first cour and the end of the second cour turned it into a beautiful bookend that leaves the viewer with a feeling of a journey completed. it also serves as a framing device, allowing us to imagine that we are not merely listening to myne recount her experiences but that we are re-viewing her life so far alongside ferdinand.

however, where i think this decision reaches the level of genius is the way it places the anime in conversation with the written series. for those approaching the anime after reading the wn or ln--whether you were a reader first or you are returning to the anime after reading--it's a reflection of something the reader knows, but perhaps hasn't yet considered: the scene in which ferdinand views myne's memory is one of the most pivotal--if not the most pivotal--scenes in the entire series.

once you read part 5 volume 7 (or the corresponding chapters of the webnovel), it is suddenly made clear that without that scene, pretty much none of the rest of the story happens. that one scene changes not only the course of myne's life but the course of the entire story. and, of course, once you read all the way to the end of the webnovel (or the upcoming part 5 volume 12), yet another layer of significance to that scene is uncovered. looking back on that scene from the end of the webnovel, it becomes clear that it is a nexus of multiple plot lines.

by placing that scene front and center in the anime, its creators are not merely acknowledging the centrality of it to the entire plot. they are also asking viewers to reframe their own understanding of that scene, to evaluate the place they give it in their own interpretation of the series. "look, this scene is important," they tell us. "pay attention to what's happening here." it allows the reader a fresh perspective, both on the scene itself and on the series as a whole.

but that's just my take. what do you all think?

(nb: i've done my best to make this as non-spoilery as possible, so i encourage those who wish to discuss spoilers for the things i've mentioned to do so in replies rather than in tags. for those avoiding spoilers, beware!)

[plus-size-reader]

The Perfect Christmas Card

Christmas 2022

Bucky Barnes x Plus size!reader

Word Count: 2560 words

Warnings: None

Summary: Bucky gets a dog, as suggested by his therapist, but the reader finds the new addition to their family useful for another, very seasonal reason

I wrote this wearing matching Christmas pj’s with Cooper

—————————————————————————————————

The idea of getting Bucky an emotional support dog wasn’t a new one.

It had come up from time to time, and when it did, you talked about it frequently. The hope was that it may help with his nightmares and the PTSD years of war and abuse had left him with.

Still, he wasn’t ever sold on it in the past.

He was worried it would be bad for the animal, stressful or something. It wasn’t until he started seeing Doctor Raynor that it became more of an order than a suggestion and he couldn’t refuse anymore.

She really thought it would help, and after all the other things he’d tried, it was worth a shot.

Bucky had changed over all these years, and now that the two of you were trying to really get into normal life, whatever that was, maybe it was time to get a dog.

That was what people did and even on days when he didn’t feel like it, you and Bucky were just people at the end of the day.

Personally, you were fully on board.

For one thing, Bucky was your favorite person. You adored him and after everything that he’d had to endure in his life, you wanted nothing more than for him to be content.

His happiness was always at the front of your mind and if a dog could make those bad days even a little better, you would never stand in the way of that.

Not to mention that you were just a sucker for dogs.

There was just something about them that made you feel more secure and comfortable the moment you were within arms reach and the idea that you would soon have one in your own home was exciting.

Far more exciting than perhaps it should have been.

Bucky met a few dogs in preparation for this endeavor, to both figure out what it was he wanted from an emotional support pet and how the general population of dogs felt about him.

Some of the interactions were iffy, while most of them were positive but not entirely groundbreaking.

It just didn’t seem as if any of the pups you’d met so far were clicking with Bucky in the way he wished they would, but that all came to a screeching halt as soon as he met one particular pooch neither of you could have anticipated.

Saint.

Named for a dog he’d had as a child in 1925, the moment Bucky met the retired police dog, it was as if the whole concept made sense to him finally.

The dog he’d picked was on the older side and seemed to have quite a bit of his own history, which spoke to Bucky for obvious reasons.

For once, even if it wasn’t perfectly symmetrical, he felt as if there was a soul around who got him in the way that no one else possibly could and that was nice.

Of course, it took them time to get used to one another, but once they bonded, you could tell that they would be that way for life. In general, that was the nature of dogs but even you had to admit that Saint was special.

He had made an impact on Bucky in a way that you’d never imagined and you couldn’t have been happier.

It was perfect.

Before long, Bucky was taking advantage of that comfort you’d often found in the company of pets and it was only natural that as his partner, you did the same.

In the time since Saint had been living with you, you had gotten pretty close to him.

Of course, you didn’t do a ton of spoiling him as you did with your childhood pets, but that was more because of what he was.

Saint had job to do. He was there to keep Bucky relaxed and help alert you to when he was having an especially rough time.

It didn’t always seem appropriate to take up all his time with toys and the like, because he needed to be available whenever Buck needed him. Though, neither male seemed entirely opposed to making some time for fun and games.

In some way, Saint seemed to understand just how important to Bucky you were, and he acted like it.

In addition to spending virtually all of his time glued to Bucky’s side, he loved cuddling on the couch, sleeping in your shared bed, and had even recently developed a love for fetch.

Neither Saint nor Bucky was prepared for how truly far he could throw a tennis ball with his vibranium arm.

They had completely warmed up to one another, and it was clear that even though he hadn’t been with you very long, Saint was part of your little family.

You loved to provide for that family.

So, it was only right that when you went to the grocery store on the hunt for candles and throw blankets, that wasn’t all you would be leaving with.

Especially not after what you just found.

Somehow, in the midst of your shopping, you had ended up in front of a rack of sweaters and jackets, each with intricate and unique patterns stitched in.

They looked cozy, and you were sure they were, but what really stopped you in your tracks was what was hidden past the racks, a little deeper into the aisle.

So hidden in fact that if you hadn’t stopped to check, you may have missed it.

Among the holiday selection were sweaters, much like the ones you’d already seen, in an entire section dedicated to pets, along with a few hangers for infants and toddlers.

Which could only mean one thing.

You had recently fallen in love with the idea of holiday greeting cards. You had never had an opportunity to send them out before this year, due to the whole not having a home address thing that came with your previous lifestyle.

Bucky had been on the run, but now that he’d been pardoned, you had a chance to do a lot of things you’d not been able to.

Normal things.

Festive things.

Every year growing up, your mother had perfectly designed what she wanted your family Christmas card to look like, and after you’d all been dressed up and posed just so, she’d send them out to everyone you knew.

…and that wasn’t all.

She also collected the cards she got in return, checking the mail every day from December 1st right up to the 24th, like clockwork. She was so proud of them, plastering them on the kitchen cabinets for all to see.

It had always seemed so trivial as a kid but now, it was all you wanted for your own tiny family, and you were finally getting the opportunity.

You could do it all.

The posed pictures wherein little families all dressed up in matching outfits take cute pictures to share with family and friends, except instead of those people, it’s you and Bucky with Saint in the middle of it all.

It was perfect.

The only problem with this plan and the rack of patterned cable knit begging you to follow through with it was that it required getting both the grumpy old men you lived with to do it with you.

A family Christmas card would be nothing without your family, after all.

It might not be that hard of a sell.

To be fair, you were currently in the thralls of winter, and buying sweaters wasn’t completely crazy. Winter required a certain kind of dress and you needed to have things for it, it was cold outside.

You were all going to be bundling up anyway.

It just seemed like you could bundle up in matching sweaters and it wouldn’t be any different.

Not that Bucky was sure to see it that way.

When the two of you started talking about getting a dog, it brought up a lot of memories for him, fond memories from his childhood which seemed like a lifetime ago now.

Namely, it brought up memories of his past pets, including the kitten his mother had gotten in 1929, the year he turned 12.

She had called it Buttons, and when winter rolled around in Brooklyn, had gone out and bought him a pair of booties. It helped to keep his little feet warm, Bucky was sure, but that didn’t stop him from constantly teasing her about it.

You could only imagine how he’d feel about you trying to dress Saint up in a sweater similarly to how you would one of those little purse dogs.

Though, it would seem that apparently, the threat of your lover’s playful ridicule wasn’t enough to stop you as you picked out a sweater for you, him, and the German Shepherd who now shared your home.

In a matter of seconds, all three sweaters were pilled into your cart along with four or five different pine and forest scented candles, Bucky’s favorite, and three new plush throw blankets.

It was quite the haul, and you were proud of it.

All you had to do now was get home to your boys and hope for the best.

~

The house was quiet when you got back.

The only sounds at all were ones you’d grown used to in the short time that you and Bucky had been staying in this place; the soft snores of sleeping boys and the television droning on in the background, just loud enough to be heard without being disruptive.

Bucky liked to listen to it, white noise that was perfect for naps.

It was something you often teased him about, because it was a habit your partner shared with your late grandfather.

He was a veteran too, and often told you stories about how domestic life was always too quiet somehow. It often seemed like even something as mundane as the evening news was enough to break up the silence.

For Bucky too.

You rounded the corner into the living room, following the sounds until you saw him, head thrown back gingerly against the couch, his best friend curled up beside him.

They’d been sleeping, but at the sound of your voice, both of their heads raised slightly, with Bucky cracking an eye open and Saint’s ears perking up at your footsteps and the rustling backs you had in hand.

“Hey, there you are”

When you had gone out earlier, you had promised to be back soon but that was a number of hours ago now. He was starting to worry you got lost.

It wasn’t until Bucky actually got a good look at you that he realized what you’d actually gotten into.

“What did you do?” his tone changed as soon as he saw you, sitting up on the couch and reaching over to finally turn off the tv, his attention entirely on you.

There was nothing that should have tipped him off, other than the look on your face, but he could just tell.

Bucky could always tell.

The two of you had spent a lot of time together, and in all that time, he had gotten to know you pretty well.

One thing he knew for sure was that that look you were wearing now was your guilty face.

You did something.

He just didn’t know what it was.

“What are you talking about? I didn’t do anything” you sighed, getting just a little defensive, not because he was accusing you of something but because he was right.

Somehow, as if your skin was made of glass, he saw right through you. You didn’t know how he did it, but he knew, each and every time.

There was no way he could see the sweaters in the bags you were holding, and you hadn’t mentioned it yet but it seemed like the cat was out of the bag.

Somehow.

“Yeah right, what did you find?” Bucky laughed, a deep sort of belly laugh that could only come from him. He had no idea what you’d gotten into today, but it was something, that twinkle in your eyes gave you away.

Thankfully though, you didn’t make him wait too long to let him in on your little secret.

You knew that it would be better to just rip the bandage off as quickly as possible and if Bucky wanted to make fun, he could do it.

It wouldn’t change your mind now anyway.

“So, I found a couple of sweaters today and I thought maybe you’d like them” you prefaced, casually pulling the first sweater from the bag, and holding it up for him to see.

It was yours, the one you’d deemed to be the best icebreaker.

If you bought one for yourself, there would be less argument, or so you hoped.

You weren’t even sure what it was you were worried about. Never in all the time that you’d known Bucky had he made you second guess a decision or feel stupid about something you were passionate about.

He supported you, and loved you.

It just felt silly to ask for this, of all things, after everything you two had been through together in the past.

“Very cute Doll, you need some more cozy stuff” he hummed, clearly not putting the pieces together yet.

It wasn’t until the second sweater came out of the bag that Bucky paused, not saying anything at first. He thought he knew where this was going, but based on this entire production, you needed to get it out yourself.

“Funny thing about that. You do too” you hummed, your facial expression betraying your cheery tone.

It was awkward between you for a second as you flattened his sweater against the coffee table, followed shortly by the sweater you’d bought for Saint, fished out of the bag in quick succession.

By that point, Bucky understood, looking between your face and the sweaters in front of him.

It would have been impossible to avoid putting all the pieces together.

However, once he’d figured it out, he smiled.

It was kind of strange, of course, but not in a bad way. If nothing else, he found it endearing that you’d gone through the trouble to find a bunch of matching sweaters for the three of you.

“You’re lucky you’re cute” he grinned finally, deciding that the smile on your face was worth how goofy this whole thing was. He never would have picked them out himself but that didn’t mean they weren’t cute.

Besides, there were very few things he wouldn’t do for you. Apparently, that included wearing wool now.

“You like them?” you grinned, your heart fluttering as surely as it always did around Bucky. You had no doubt, this entire time, that Bucky would agree to your little plan. What you didn’t expect was his enthusiasm.

It was tempered, bathed in his love for you in the aftermath of his nap, but it was enthusiasm nonetheless.

“Yeah, I think he’ll like it. Won’t you bud?” Bucky whispered, the last part coming out as more of a coo between him and the dog.

The best of friends as always.

All you had to do now was find a photographer, and you’d finally have the perfect family Christmas card your mother had always dreamed of.

It may even make it on the fridge.

[highfantasy-soul]

NATLA Episode 6 - Masks (5/5)

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

An explanation of what I'm doing here and my history with ATLA.

Of course, full spoilers ahead.

<previous/next>

After Zuko's painful flashback, we get the animated series' convo between Aang and Zuko from the Blue Spirit episode - I like closing with this bit as it has built naturally from the conversation earlier. Instead of Aang just randomly telling Zuko he thinks they could have been friends out of the blue, he's built a connection with Zuko - they've humanized themselves to each other, so the comment about friendship actually makes sense.

I think the live-action did a really good job taking great concepts from the animated series and fleshing them out to make them more organic rather than a blunt 'here's the lesson, kids' thesis statement that comes out of the blue and you just need to take on faith because it's a kid's show and you just accept the leap of logic for the sake of the story (Katara claiming she's Aang's 'family' in episode 3 of the animated series vs her telling him that at the end of the live-action season after they've, you know, actually built a familial foundation with each other).

And just like the animated series, Zuko can't take the compassion, the kindness, the nudging toward a softer future, and just blasts with his firebending, pushing Aang away. He knows it won't really hurt Aang, it's not actually a strike to incapacitate, it's a blow to ward off any sign of weakness or 'humanity'.

The follow-up flashback with Ozai talking to Zuko as he's 'recovering' was such a good addition. Ozai GENUINELY believes he's doing a good thing for his son. He GENUINELY thinks he's helping. Again, I love the complexity they're giving Ozai and Zuko's relationship where there actually IS a chance that Zuko could get in his father's good graces - honestly, that makes his turn to join Team Avatar that much more impactful. It's not a 'well I was never going to get the approval from my father anyways' decision, it truly was a 'I could have had it all, but it wasn't right'.

To me, that's what made the OG redemption arc so good: Zuko DID choose to 'get everything he ever wanted' and turned away after he was secure in that - but there was still that little lingering knowledge that Ozai really never would actually accept him - it was all a ploy. The live-action strengthened that thread with making it so that Ozai really could accept him - it's a real thing Zuko would be giving up rather than a shallow imitation of 'acceptance' the animation gave Ozai and Zuko.

Ozai insisting that Zuko needs to be able to give up the weak in order to preserve the strong is such an interesting beat to keep hammering home with Ozai and his world view. He's obsessed with his own version of 'strength' and I honestly think there's a lot of trauma for him around that idea. When Zuko argues that the weak can become strong, I think that it actually shakes Ozai, that's why he lashes out in anger at that comment - just like Zuko does when Aang tells him that he can be better than what the fire nation is right now. Ozai mentions Zuko's mom and I think it terrifies him, the idea that the 'weak' can become strong - I think Ozai has been taught that either you're strong or you're weak, it's innate and unchangeable. He can't imagine he's created a weak child, so Zuko MUST be naturally strong, he's just been too sheltered so it hasn't been able to come out yet.

The idea that what Ozai thought was fundamental could actually change I think shifts Ozai's entire world view. If he accepts that, then it would mean all his 'sacrificing of the weak' would have been incorrect even by his own logic - and I think it could tie back to Ursa, his wife, as well. I hope we get more on her and Ozai's actual dynamic in season 2 as it was something I felt was lacking from the OG show. Ozai, I believe is struggling as to where, actually, to place Ursa on his 'weak' or 'strong' hierarchy and it's destabilizing to him. He has to keep up the idea that the strong are strong the weak are weak and it's just the natural order of the world that the fire nation is on top - because it means they're inherently strong and that cannot change.

AAAHHHHHHH the 41st reveal!!!!!!!!! Just, the genius of that move - the layers, the angst, the connection Zuko and the crew now naturally have - it's just so good. Zuko is surrounded by evidence reminding him of the biggest failure in his father's eyes - the reason he was punished right before him. Of course he's going to harbor resentment, then extra anger when they don't treat him with respect due to his resenting them. Of course he's going to have so many conflicting feelings about being surrounded by the people whose lives he saved - at the cost of his home, his dignity, and his father's love.

He didn't intentionally set out to sacrifice all that to save their lives, but his actions led to that outcome anyways and I think that's such an interesting take to have on a 'sacrifice to save lives' story. Zuko was just doing what he thought was right. He was trying to save people, and he took his actions not having a clue what it would cost him. It's not a cut and dry - I saw something bad happening and willingly took the consequence to save them, it's much more complex than that - a complex story where the one who unwittingly gave the sacrifice learns that it truly was a sacrifice and not a punishment. Someone who was forced into a 'hero' position who has to grow and change in order to fit into that hero mold their actions have already put them in. It's just a really fascinating angle to show a heroic act.

I've seen some issues about the 41st being Zuko's assigned crew, so I wanted to address that: I assumed that all Fire Nation military was the navy. They're an island nation and every single Fire Nation military group we see are on or from ships - and we see presumably the same soldiers operating the ship as we do on the war rhinos when they come ashore. So I didn't think it was odd at all that the battalion that was about to be sacrificed in a land assault was also the one running the ship. I also don't think it 'cheapens' Zuko's sacrifice or makes it so that it was a…idk, story choice that said 'see, it's justified what all happened'. Definitely didn't see Ozai's convo with Zuko after being burned as the writers saying 'see, all this is justified and we should see good logic in Ozai's choice here' - it was very clearly still framed as bad? Yeah, Ozai thinks he's doing the right thing, but like, media literacy y'all.

Ugh, Lieutenant Jee and the rest of the crew showing Zuko the respect a crown prince would usually get right after one of Zuko's greatest 'failures' of a mission. Zuko is confused at Aang's compassion toward him, angry that he's poking holes in his world view, and crawling back on board after having lost the Avatar once again - and being greeted with love and care and respect. "Our prince has returned" - It's not the home Zuko thinks he needs to return to, but it IS the home he and the crew have made for themselves over the past 3 years. It's a place he's being welcomed back to while he's still thinking the goal is to get back to the fire nation. Such a good message that unfortunately, Zuko doesn't see quite yet, but each little step in the right direction counts.

Again, linking the ending monologue back to EVERY character in the show - this time the narrative having drawn so many parallels to how Zuko retains his mask and then showing how his father reacts the same way - showing that Ozai is wearing a mask too, just one that's been welded onto him through many more years. This was truly Zuko's episode - and it's his mask that needs to slip the most - or rather, for him to realize that the Blue Spirit that saved Aang and connected with him wasn't the mask at all, but rather what could be his true face.

I really, really liked the alterations from the animated series they did in this episode. Yes, having Zuko fight his father in the Agni Kai was a HUGE change, having his father be more than a cold and distant disapproving figure was VERY different, but I think this is what the showrunners meant when they said they were taking a more 'mature' and 'GOT' tone with this adaptation: they were adding depth and nuance to the 'villains' and making them more grounded in reality than the heightened villainy of the animated series. Older kids (and adults) can handle seeing a villain have complex interactions - they can understand that even though Ozai BELIEVES he's doing the right thing by Zuko, that he ISN'T ACTUALLY (ok, some of us can see that, others seem to think the show was saying Ozai is good, actually but that's an issue with them and their media literacy, not with the writing of the show that expects the audience to have critical thinking skills).

Anyways, it was a fantastic episode and has provided much content for my essay about live-action Ozai that I'm writing.

[heromaker-if]

Just one more game related ask... the characters playing stardew valley :3

Hello anon! Thank you for the ask! Another great game to this modern AU addition 🥰🐔🧑‍🌾

MC would mostly depend on what type of MC you have but the one thing I will reinforce is that the farm would be ORDERLY. Each section of the farm carefully organised for each function - not to mention very pretty 😊

Hero's farm would be non-existent. Like, they'd spend most of their time mining, doing adventurer's guild objectives, and helping villagers (if your Hero is nicer). I can see them just running around the game, neglecting the farm and just doing the bare minimum to unlock the mine LMAO

Frey would be a mixture of taking care of the farm and befriending villagers. I can see them forgetting about the farm in general because they want to find gifts and unlock heart events for the villagers. If MC were playing the game with them, I can also see them giving lots of attention to the MC. If not, their favourite character would be Krobus.

Pachypoda would do very well in this game (pachypoda is actually so multi-talented, they learn things so quickly). Their farm would be flourishing, and I can imagine that they know the best way to be efficient with their products. They would especially like taking care of the animals, so I see a lot of time invested on that. I think they'd find the monsters and creatures hilariously gross. I can see them being a Penny-romancer too (ME TOO TO BE FAIR)

Astro/a would be TERRIBLE AT THIS GAME!! They'd grow bored of it too. They'd do their best, keeping up with the farm and fishing and mining, and other things, but I think they'd get annoyed very quickly because things are simply not working out. They're character would pass out so many times due to low health or past curfew, to a point they'd get frustrated. I also think they'd have a weird feud with Alex and maybe Haley too.

Secret LI1 would have to be forced to sit down and play this game. Most of the time they'd be still, not sure what to do, but after learning the mechanics, they get addicted to fishing. Just fishing. Nothing else. They'd be good at it though! Regarding villagers... they'd probably not care for anyone, but I can see them softening with Jas.

Secret LI2 would LOVE this game! They'd have a lot of hours in it too, farming, fishing, mining, and just general gameplay. They'd focus a lot on upgrading their farm and buying the best seeds for the right seasons (even buying them before the season!). They'd definitely get addicted to the game LOL I also think they'd grow quite fond of Robin and her entire family.

[paulagnewart]

RIP Pauline Newstone

10th December marked 25 years since the Beast Wars episode Other Visits: Part 2 aired on Australian TV. Taking a moment to reflect, I vividly remember watching it (along with much of that season) on a small wall-mounted TV in a dimly-lit hospital waiting room. Hardly my idea of a grand way to spend multiple afternoons, but the prospect of more checkups and needles paled compared to the swelling dread of how, as the credits rolled, I might never see my favourite character again.

When Candice Santora announced three days later that Airazor's voice actor Pauline Newstone had passed away, that all-too familiar dread seeped its way back.

Beast Wars was far from my first foray into the world of those warrior Robots in Disguise, but certainly played an integral part of my life during the latter half of the 90's. Its writing and expansion of the Transformers history was captivating, its animation at the time second-to-none, and its voice acting nothing short of immaculate. Vancouver's finest breathed life into what could've easily been written off as another 20 minute toy commercial, but it excelled. They made the characters memorable, raw with wild, well-rounded emotions and truly raised the bar for future actors.

From the moment she burst onto the scene, I adored Airazor. Smart, sassy, more than strong enough to fight tooth and claw in battle, refused to put up with Rattrap's antics, and mistress in the art of dry wit. A welcome addition to the Maximal cast with a plethora of potential to grow. Granted the good times weren't to last; she was swiftly demoted to cannon fodder and later the role of "Mrs. Tigatron", but I was happy just to have her around. Whenever roleplaying our favourite scenes or making new adventures at school, Airazor was always my first choice. The original (and Transmetal figure a cherished Easter gift the following year) continued to have imaginative adventures after the show ran its course. For a time, something as trivial as a cartoon alien robot bird meant the world to me.

And it all came down to how awesome Ms. Newstone performed her.

It's a feeling the Aussie public clearly shared, as her video pack became one of the top 10 selling boys' toys of Christmas '98 (or maybe it's because the VHS repaint was, and remains to this day, the only version of her basic-class toy to see release here. But I digress). Yet Beast Wars proved a tip of the iceberg for Ms. Newstone's career. She lent her voice to shows including G.I. Joe, Mummies Alive!, Inuyasha, Monster Rancher, X-Men Evolution, Ninjago, and I certainly can't go without mentioning her portrayal of big baddie Frieza during Ocean Group's tenure on Dragon Ball Z (The infamous "Caressing the Balls" meme? That was her. Iconic).

Ms. Newstone was one of those voice actors I always hoped to meet someday. No means an easy feat, as she preferred to keep away from the spotlight in a fashion not dissimilar to the late Christine Cavanaugh. It would've been nice, but I understood and respected her desire for privacy, and commend the extra effort Pete and the other organizers went to adhering her "no photos" request at BotCon 2006.

Learning of her passing, let alone nobody reporting it until fellow actor Garry Chalk saw her name over six months later at the annual UBCP/ACTRA Awards, is a sad reminder how none of us are getting any younger, and each day those little things which used to give us joy slip further into the abyss of time. Cherish those memories and the ones you love, while always leaving room to create more tomorrow. Fiction generally doesn't last forever, but I like to think her memory and legacy both as a voice actor and person will for many out there.

The above image was taken back in 2011 while in Lithgow, but never made public until now. Far from my best work (assuming anything I do can be considered good to begin with :P ), but a decent day. History repeats itself, as that particular Airazor figure went on to appear in many more photos, accompanied me to multiple BotCons, a college graduation party (!), and most recently appeared on the official Oliver Brown social media page for their Rise of the Beasts promotion.

RIP Pauline Newstone. May many glasses be raised in your honour. You came, you stooped, and you sure as hell conquered.

[chidoroki]

182 Days of TPN - Day 55

Chapter 55: “B06-32, Part 5” 

We see in the previous chapter’s extra page that it was Ray’s idea to tie Yuugo up and I can only imagine he’s had many fantasies of doing the same to Isabella to keep her confined from interfering with any kind of escape plan Ray came up with. How else would he be so successful at keeping Yuugo down if he didn’t already know the exact method to go about it? Just a silly headcanon of mine, of course.

Emma’s internal clock doesn’t care if y’all just enduring a long, exhausting couple days out in the wild, you’re still gonna wake up at six in the morning. I love Yvette’s little note and how excited Chris is though. We see him wake everyone up on different occasions in both medias too so it’s cute he shares that early bird energy with Emma. Manga always tries to hide Ray’s sleeping face, but at least we get a little peak in s2ep4.

Dominic and Rossi literally shaking with excitement over the chance to actually have a decent bath is so precious. It’s simple moments like this that make me love these kids so much.

Why does Nat always have some of the best comments? And how massive is this tub? No way in hell would I share a bath with that many people.

No worries Rossi, I was crying at this point during the anime too.. just for completely different reasons..

Look at how pleased they are when they overhear how their family’s so happy and proud they all escaped and worked so hard to get here. Ray especially. Surely he knows by now that escaping with everyone and not just the other oldest kids was well worth it.

The change of clothes and how the kids finally getting some freedom in choosing what they wanna wear! I’ll still never understand the reason why the second season decided to keep them all in the GF uniforms for all of ep3 and a majority of ep4. The way they had Emma out hunting in a skirt wasn’t practical in the slightest nor did it fit her character at all. Tag explains the frustration better than I ever could.

Chef Ray back at it again with yet another incredible meal for everyone.

Rossi really does have some of the best faces, but someone needs to save this lad from being squished. Anime didn’t quite nail his expression but at least it had the other kids like Chris, Alicia and Mark react to Don’s outburst too.

I gotta stop picking on Nat's low enthusiasm because odds are I’d probably react the same way to a lot of things in this world. Also love the small detail of the additional bandage on Emma’s face from where Yuugo’s bullet grazed her cheek.

I know Chris and Jemima are often seen as Ray’s closest younger siblings, but I wanna add Mark to that list. That boy certainly loves our chef’s cooking. And I’m so happy we get to see Emma with her sleeves rolled up like they were in some of the really early chapters. How she wears the necklace is super cute too.

At least the anime allowed us to hear what our favorite piano man sounds like.

They give themselves a brief moment to think about their dearest friend and then it’s right back to business. I love them. And Ray saying that they “can still see Phil and the other kids” is like a gentle reminder to them both that Norman is no longer with them. Or so they were led to believe.

Favorite panel/moment:

It may just be a daydream but it’s a damn adorable one and it makes me wanna cry!

[whenimgoodandready]

There are an infinite number of universes. One where we’re all animals, one where we’re all the opposite sex and another where we’re all probably rocks with googly eyes glued onto us! Despite the differences the one thing that stays consistent is the formulaic structure of the world. This is what we call the “multiverse” and sometimes, one universe can overlap with another and that’ll cause a glitch in the matrix. How do we fix this? Let’s jump in and find out:

Miraculous World

*Paris:Shadybug and Claw Noir-Formerly called “Into the Re-verse”, this special takes place in “Paris, France”😉. More importantly, after the events of “Destruction” (love the continuity there, keep it up, don’t disappoint us) where Monarch, in his desperate attempt to escape, forced Cat Noir to cataclysm his arm. Adrien was shoken up by it as he could’ve killed someone, Marinette was feeling unsure of her situation with failing to save the Kwami’s and Gabe was lamenting about how to deal with his life now having a short time limit which would eventually lead to him making drastic measures as we saw in Season 5. It gets more complicated when Ayla suddenly transforms into Ubiquity, a kamikotized superhero who can open portals to multiple universes through her cape, and meets Betterfly (the English Dub of Hesperia) who saves Marinette from Shadybug and Claw Noir who are after his miraculous! Now, Betterfly teams up with Ladybug and Cat Noir while Shady and Claw team up with Monarch! Don! Don! Don!

Pros:

The Reverse Alignment-Everything is backwards! Our heroes in here are the dastardly duo with a cold and vicious emo aesthetic (as such, I will refer to Shadybugs alter ego as “Emonette” and Claw Noirs as “Emodrien”) and the villain is the humble hero who’s all big smiles and righteousness using the Butterfly Miraculous for good intentions like its supposed. Wow! (AU Gabe/Betterfly even got his own theme song opening before the Miraculous World openings!! XD). Although, it’s not all backwards (see Con below), AU Alya, Nino and Max (was that Max on a computer screen digitized or a robot version of him swapped with AU Markov? Idk?) are still the good natured people we know, they’re just aiding Betterfly (as this universes Resistance) since he’s the good guy in that world. Despite being the hopeful hero, AU Gabe is still unfortunately a neglectful parent to Emodrien, but that’s only cuz it’s how Marinette/Ladybug has to reluctantly make weird excuses and run off to save the world disappointing their loved ones. Classic superhero angst. The “love square” for Emonette/Shadybug and Emodrien/Claw Noir is vastly different from our OG love square. They can’t stand each other, but reluctantly work together! In this case, Emonette/Emodrien is a reverse Adrienette (on his side), Shadyclaw is a mutual hate (he calls her cockroach), Emonette/Claw Noir would be an open unrequited crush on Claws side and Shadrien would be a mutual hate too. So, is this a “hate square” now? Judging by what we heard from Shadybug (see Con below), we could guess how the AU love square isn’t the same or as reversed as much as we thought it was. Wish we could’ve gotten to see the rest of the cast reversed. I had a little theory on that https://www.tumblr.com/whenimgoodandready/730004586659725312/miraculous-paristales-of-shadybug-and-claw-noir but due to the limited time we had and the plot to get through, we the fandom can only imagine. Oh well! That’s the fun part!😁.

New Transformations-In addition to seeing Alya become Ubiquity, she was dressed all in purple with a galactic theme and her cape being the highlight of the look that had the most effect what with the portal traveling, our heroes got kamikotized (the good counterpart to akumatized) to become other hero types like how Cat Noir became Celesticat and Ladybug became Ladybiquity! Celesticat was like this all white archangel type that saved Betterfly and Ladybug with his flight. Before Ladybiquity, Ladybug became Ladyfly (with AU Gabe’s miraculous) and looked amazing as a red/purple glossy ladybug with wings! Ladybiquity was the best as she had long purple pigtails and glowing white spots that made her travel through multiple dimensions. Betterfly also became Guardian Angel with Ladybugs highly elaborate plan to help stop Monarch from attacking them. He was another all white angelic type, but mostly covered in feathers. He looked alright.

More Universes-In addition to the good guys are evil and vice versa, we got other universes of The Quantic Universe such as:The Scarabella and Kitty Noir Universe, The PV Universe (😁), The Comic Book Universe (Lol! That was funny!) and the Mister Bug and Ladynoir Universe! Although brief, it was all fun to see (wish we got more though). Lol! Monarch thought if he couldn’t get his universes heroes miraculouses, he’ll try others (w/ the clock ticking for him, I don’t blame him. The man is f*cking desperate!), but even in those universes, Ladybiquity (and Ubiquity Noir in the last universe) stopped him. It just goes to show that no matter what universe Monarch goes to, he’ll never win! Ha! Ha! :P……..(remembers the Season 5 ending of the show) OH F*CK!😠

Cons:

The Supreme-WHO THE F*CK IS THAT!? THERE’S NO “SUPREME” IN OUR UNIVERSE!? WHERE DID THEY COME FROM!? WHO IS IT!? WHAT IS IT!? AN EVIL VERSION OF MASTER FU!? WTF!? It was like this “invisible force thingy” that controlled everything the miraculouses did! From giving Shady and Claw unlimited use of their powers (and being more effective in a destructive sense. Claw was immune to Cats cataclysm!😱) to silencing the Kwami’s mouths shut! THEY EVEN CONTROL THE USE OF COMBINING THE LADYBUG AND BLACK CAT MIRACULOUSES! DON! DON DON! Yea! Like that! The Supreme just didn’t want someone to be more powerful than them (Emonette/Shadybug tried to use the two Miraculouses to have Marinettes life). The Supreme was even slowly killing the two of ‘em too just to drain them of their energy. Whoever this “Supreme” is, they’re an all mighty evil being that’s power hungry and doesn’t like competition. Saaaay! Was that the “strange glowing blue light” we saw at the end of Season 5 that scared the sh*t outta Lila/Cerise/Iris? Hmmmmm.

Identical Chloe-It seems as though even in an alternate universe ((mumbles under breath) and maybe even in the others we briefly saw), Chloe is STILL a mega b*tch! (Astruc must really hate this girl!😖). Is AU Chloe worse in this universe!? Is she emo too!? IS THERE NO UNIVERSE WHERE SHE’S A F*CKING DECENT PERSON!? (neighs like a horse) Guess we had to have some reason for Emonette to turn evil!? It wasn’t just AU Chloe though, other things pushed Emonette to her limit that made her cross over to the dark side and AU Chloe was just one of ‘em. As explained by Emonette, those other things that turned her were a lack of encouraging friends, a non loving and caring mother and being painfully single. Yeah, that oughta do it too! It’s why she wanted to use her combined miraculous with Claws to switch lives with Marinette and finally be happy. Poor girl 😢

So this was our “Spider-verse” esque special and how canonly that universe works. We’ve had our own versions (see my link above) where maybe Shadybug and Claw Noir would be a villainous flirty couple (like how I wanted), or that the love square would be reversed from our own, but this is what we got, Emodrien/Claw Noir only loving Emonette (probably cuz he found someone with the same sense of style/culture whom he can relate his pain to) and Emonette/Shadybug loving nobody! (the reason Emonette never fell for Emodrien is because she assumed he was exactly like AU Chloe and Emodrien was too shy to even talk to her!). From the intell we got, we can piece together why this is the way it is:Both of ‘em suffered terribly from their experiences (Emonette from AU Chloe’s bullying and etc. (see Con above) and Emodrien from losing his mother) just like their good counterparts, but they didn’t have supportive friends (or a loving parent/wise guardian Master Fu) to help them cope and move on and because of that, they became miserable, lonely, insecure, broken and hopeless and thus got influenced by The Supreme when they sensed the teens negative energy to become ruthless villains that lash out at the city and each other. Marinette/Ladyfly had to talk some sense into Shady by telling her to never give up hope and be a better person. As for Gabe/Betterfly, my theory was correct that like OG Adrien, he learned to move on and continue to be happy and try to be a good parent to Emodrien, but Emodrien, like OG Gabe/Monarch, did not. Glad I guessed that!👍. It took Adrien/Cat Noir to encourage him to move on and be happy by making friends like “their” mother wanted. The universe they came from was ruled tyrannically by The Supreme who hoarded all the miraculouses that no one knew the existence of and AU Gabe was at first siding with The Supreme and given the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculouses (you get where this is goin’) and so then he became the first superhero to fight against them (and prove that a better life is possible) and Shadybug and Claw Noir whom The Supreme recruited to capture him and get back the Butterfly Miraculous. Everyone is running scared af (did you see how scared AU Nino was!?) over there where it got so bad that the AU Resistance was formed to help Betterfly. Seriously though, who the f*ck is this Supreme!? Why do they have all the miraculouses!? Where’s Master Fu in that universe!? Or the guardians!? Why are they so damn powerful!? Can anyone tell me that!? Are we gonna get more info on this or are we just supposed to theorize again? Huh!? Fortunately, Shadybug and Claw Noir were redeemed (now called (AU) Ladybug and Paw Noir and maybe starting a romantic relationship😏) and are now gonna help Betterfly save their universe from The Supreme. Good luck with that! That sh*ts gonna be tough to beat! My apologies on this review taking forever cuz life got in the way (and I was lazy), but I’m relieved I finally got it done and will see you all for the London special and Season 6 (with its new animation) later this year!

[strawsoldier]

Spring 2024 Anime-Round Up

I tend to do this Round-ups before the next season starts but thanks to my vacation it was delayed until now. I still haven't caught up on all my spring shows, but I did watch and finish the shows that are going to be written up here.

Anime of the Season: Sound! Euphonium 3

Best Opening: The Parade of Battlers (Black Butler: Public School Arc )

Best Ending: Twinkling Ash (Delicious in Dungeon)

Drops: Wind Breaker, Unnamed Memory, Blue Archive: The Animation

Plan to Watch at a later date: Girl's Band Cry

Completed:

Delicious in Dungeon - (9/10)

Imagine being a popular, well-written, and beloved manga and getting an anime adaption this good. Most of the time, the anime gods are cruel, but sometimes they can be merciful. Soooo looking forward to S2

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Hashira Training Arc - (6/10)

Not sure how much milk the cash cow has left, but you can be sure the good farmers at Ufotable are going to keep squeezing that teet. I find it incredibly ironic that one of the complaints about DS when the manga was still ongoing is that the story progressed way too fast and now people are complaining the anime is too slow. At the very least, the switch to movie format should help the pacing issues...I hope.

Kaiju No. 8 - (8/10 (kek))

Real shit. (Kikoru spinoff when?)

Konosuba! 3 - (8/10)

Don't really have much to write tbh. It's still funny. Sucks the character designs are not as expressive as they were in the first two seasons, but we're here for the cast and they are still as good as ever.

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 Part 2 -(6/10)

Didn't I say I was going to drop this series? Must've forgot. Anyway, watching this for Norn, would shot up to being the best character in this show, was worth it. Still don't care for much of everything else. Rudeus still sucks.

GO! GO! Loser Ranger! - (6/10)

The Boys- I mean. Loser Ranger is a show with a good concept and plot and some of the best direction I've seen in an action show. Unfortunately, it's boggled down by the fact that most, if not all. the characters in this show are not endearing or just flat out suck. I don't know if I'll bother with S2 but this was fun despite my lack of investment.

Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night - (7.5/10)

I don't think this was as good as everyone was praising throughout it's run, but it's a very strong story nonetheless. The themes that it tackled hit a little too close to home and the drama felt very genuine. Kiui was my favorite.

Laid-Back Camp Season 3 - (7/10)

Peak comfy is back!! This time with a new studio and much more RL backgrounds. Both of which I did not like lol. Granted, eight-bit at the moment is very stretched thin giving how many shows their are working on. Maybe in the future more staff can jump on future installments of Yuru Camp and make it better than what we got. Please add Aya to the main cast

Sound! Euphonium 3 - (9/10)

Kyoani is back and stronger than ever as they bring Kumiko's high school journey to a close. The drama this season was some of the best Eupho has produced and the new characters were fantastic additions to the cast. I am sad we didn't get as many performances but the one we got in the finale more than made up for that, and even made me cry a bit. This series is so important to me and I'm glad it got to reach it's conclusion at the level. Well done Kitauji!

The iDOLM@STER: Shiny Colors - (4/10)

Remember when I said how cruel the anime gods can be?

Black Butler: Public School Arc - (6.5/10)

Never saw this show ever coming back. And with a fancy Ishihama OP to boot. Hopefully a sign that more is to come.

[adarkrainbow]

Some references of Zenescope’s Grimm Fairy Tales

Still in preparation for the “spooky season”, I wanted to make a brief post about the “Grimm fairy tales” comic book serie(s) by Zenescope. It is a comic book franchise that keeps popping back up when you search or go around looking for fairytale-based fantasy. And... I expressed my opinion before, but I’ll still repeat it here.

The “Grimm Fairy Tales” comic started out as an actual decent and interesting piece. It was a horror anthology about twist-retelling of fairy tales that had parallels with various real-life situations and problems. Imagine Once Upon a Time season 1 - but with more nudity and more gore. If you passed by the vulgar appeal of “boobs and gore”, typical of Zenescope’s product, the series was actually quite interesting and I personally was into it. But then, it became a full fantasy story - and it was the blended, most generic and boring fantasy story I ever saw, which to add offense to the crime, didn’t even reuse fairytale logic or tropes and just did random generic “fantasy things”! And then, as the series went on, it became some sort of generic X-Men/super-hero school/Harry Potter rip-off dealing with the teenage descendants of fantasy heroes going into some sort of instituton... Blerg. 

I gave up. After the failure of the main series, there is a series of spin-offs and side-series which vary wildly in quality - some being very entertaining and interesting despite the typical Zenescope flaws (I did fall in love with the Wonderland spin-off... at least at first), others being just... not good ; and some starting out as great and devolving into some sort of stuff you can’t really describe, a generic shapeless mess. 

Overall I do not advice this franchise. Half of it is bad, every great idea ends up becoming boring, and it clearly shows a lack of understanding and interest in the original material it takes inspiration from - it just twists it for shock value, and mostly uses Disney as a reference. There are good things - but you need to be ready to dig into the filth and to be very concentrated to find them. I mostly would advise people to stick to the very first issues of the very first series 

Anyway - while I re-read the series from the beginning, and before I completely gave up, I still took note of all the fairytales the comic used, reused or made references to. I also threw in some additional cultural references (because the franchise is all about parodying and twisting existing stuff) - so I’ll still throw the list, in case some people are interested.

I) The fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm

Little Red Riding Hood ; Cinderella ; Hansel and Gretel ; Rumplestilskin ; Sleeping Beauty ; The Robber Bridegromm ; The Frog King ; The Pied Piper of Hamelin (not a fairytale but still) ; The Juniper Tree ; Rapunzel ; Snow White ; Snow White and Rose Red ; The Devil’s Brother ; Godfather Death ; The Boy who did not know what fear was ; The Glass Coffin (which is NOT Snow-White, but a different story)  ; The Three Snake Leaves ; The Seven Ravens ; The Lord’s Animals and the Devil’s ; The Girl Without Hands ; The Elves and the Shoemaker.

II) Other fairytales

French fairytales: Bluebeard, Beauty and the Beast, Puss in Boots, The Yellow Dwarf (it is vaguely retold in the issue “The Fairy and the Dwarf”), Diamonds and Toads

English fairytales: Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Jack and the Beanstalk, The Three Little Pigs, The Gingerbread Man ; Jack the Giant Killer

Fairytales of Northern Europe: The Three Billy Goats Gruff, The Snow Queen, The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, the Seal’s Skin, The Princess and the Pea

Fairytales from the East: Vasilissa the Beautiful (Russian), The Golden Stag (Romanian) ; The Grateful Beasts (Hungarian) ; The Death of Koschei the Deathless (Russian)

The One Thousand and One Nights: Sinbad the sailor ; Aladdin

III) Fables

The Boy who Cried Wolf ; The Lion and the Mouse ; The Scorpion and the Frog ; The Goose and the Golden Egg.

IV) Nursery rhymes

Little Miss Muffet ; Three Blind Mice ; Jack and Jill ; The Old Woman in a Shoe ; Peter Pumpkin Eater ; Little Boy Blue ; Mary Mary Quite Contrary ; Humpty Dumpty ; Little Bo Peep ; Jack be Nimble ; Rock-a-bye Baby ; The Riddle Song (actually a folk-song, but I’ll place it here)

V) Other pieces of fantasy fiction

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice ; Rip van Winkle ; Pinocchio ; The Portrait of Dorian Grey ; The Last Unicorn ; The Monkey’s Paw ; The Nutcracker ; Dracula ; Twilight ; Tolkienesque’s fantasy (The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings) ; Alice in Wonderland + Alice through the looking-glass ; The Wizard of Oz (and the Oz book series) ; Peter Pan ; the works of H.P. Lovecraft ; The Divine Comedy of Dante (more precisely the Inferno part) ; The Jungle Book ; The Legend of Sleepy Hollow ; The Chronicles of Narnia ; Ovid’s Metamorphosis ; The Invisible Man ; Paradise Lost ; Stephen King’s The Stand ; Bradbury’s Something Wicked this Way Comes ; Beowulf ; The Sword in the Stone (T.H. White’s novel)

VI) Other myths and legends

The legend of king Midas ; the figure of Mother Earth and the Greek goddess Gaia ; the Arthurian myth ; the legends of Robin Hood ; the figure of Jack Frost ; the figure of the Tooth Fairy ; the legend of Jack O’Lantern ; the myth of the Wild Hunt ; the figure of the leprechaun and of saint Patrick ; the legend of Bloody Bones

VII) A whole bunch of Christmas references

A Christmas Carol ; It’s a Wonderful Life ; Santa Claus is Coming to town ; the Krampus legend ; Do you hear what I hear? ; Frosty the Snowman ; I’ll be home for Christmas ; Twelve days of Christmas ; Have yourself a merry little Christmas ; White Christmas ; the Elf on the Shelf ; T’was the night before Christmas ; the legends of the Nisse, the Yulecat, and Gryla.

VIII) The mythical sword series

Excalibur (from the tales of King Arthur) ; Ame-no-murakumo-no-Tsurugi/Kusanagi no Tsurugi (from Japanese mythology) ; Mistilteinn (from Norse sagas) ; Chrysaor (the sword of Artegall in The Faerie Queene)

IX) Urban legends

“Men can lick too” ; the kidney thieves ; Bloody Mary ; the killer in the backseat ; the clown statue ; Hanako-san ; The Island of Dolls (not a urban legend, an actual place surrounded by its ghost legends - The Island of Dead Dolls in Mexico)

X) Some movies

Legend ; Labyrinth ; Twilight (though based on a series of novels) ; Hitchock’s Rope ; Leprechaun (the horror movie) ; The Howling

XI) Some pieces of non-fantasy fiction

The Grapes of Wrath ; The Fault in Our Stars ; Pollyanna ; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ; Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass ; Kenneth Patchen’s Come my child ; Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations ; No Country for Old Men

XII) Ghost stories of New Orleans:

The ghosts of Le Petit Theatre ; the Lalaurie Mansion ; the ghost stories of the Blacksmith Shop Bar.

XIII) Other general influences

The Bible ; the comic book “Fables” ; the “Tales from the Crypt” series ; the Twilight Zone