#I'm only reblogging it from you because you happened to bring up his grammar

[undead-moth]

#THANK YOU#I HAVE BEEN SAYING THAT SINCE I FUCKING READ IT#THERE ARE GRAMMATICAL ERRORS A FUCKING FIFTH GRADER WOULD CATCH#GOD FFS#ESPECIALLY FOR SOMEONE WHOSE WELL READ LIKE MANGIONE#his ass did NOT write that

Re: your tags,

I've been dying to really break this down:

“To the Feds (1) (6), I'll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our country. To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly (3) that I wasn't (6, From this point on, they cease to use contractions) working with anyone. This was fairly (3) trivial (4): some elementary social engineering, basic CAD, a lot of patience. The spiral notebook, if present (2), has some straggling (2) notes and To Do lists that illuminate (2) the gist of it (1). My tech is pretty locked down (1)(3) because I work in engineering so probably not much info there (1). I do apologize (2) for any strife of traumas (4)(6) but it had to be done. Frankly (3), these parasites simply had it coming (1)(3). A reminder: the US has the #1 most expensive healthcare system in the world, yet we rank roughly #42 in life expectancy. United is the [indecipherable] largest company in the US by market cap, behind only Apple, Google, Walmart. It has grown and grown, but as (5) our life expectancy? No the reality is, these [indecipherable] have simply (3) gotten too powerful, and they continue to abuse our country for immense profit because the American public has allwed (5) them to get away with it. Obviously (3) the problem is more complex, but I do not have space (1), and frankly (3) I do not pretend to be the most qualified person to lay out (1) the full argument. But many have illuminated (2) the corruption and greed (e.g.:(6) Rosenthal, Moore), decades ago and the problems simply (3) remain. It is not an issue of awareness at this point, but clearly (3) power games at play (1). Evidently (3) I am the first to face it with such brutal honesty.”

(While there are many strange components of this manifesto that are reasonable to question, such as what I listed in the op, for this I'm going to focus exclusively on the writing and not the content.)

1 and 2. The blending of conversational language with uncommon elevated, formal or academic language (some of which is usually reserved for creative writing).

Throughout the manifesto, the writer blends conversational language with extremely uncommon formal or elevated language. If the manifesto had been exclusively conversational, I would have thought this was a strange choice, but it wouldn't have raised any red flags. If it had all been written in academic language - which is scarce in this - I would have thought that made sense given Luigi has a master's degree, and in a STEM field no less. It would be a strange choice for a manifesto, but only because people who write manifestos aren't typically engineers, and it seems possible to me that a manifesto written by an academic might sound more academic than the typical manifesto. If the entire piece had been written in elevated and formal language, I would have thought that was bizarre - but its consistency would have simply made me come to the conclusion that this must just be how Luigi is.

But it's not consistently any of these styles of writing. Granted, academics in real life might blend conversational and elevated or academic language together due to the fact that both kinds of language are understandable and relevant to them - but writing in that style, on the other hand, is unusual. By the time you're a master's student you've become accustomed to modifying your writing accordingly. You keep your homework or scholarly writing academic, your college and job applications formal, and your tweets conversational. The only exception would be if it was for some reason unavoidable, or if you knew whoever was going to read that writing would be familiar with and okay with every style.

Whoever wrote this didn't choose to write this way for this reason. This strange blend of overly formal language like "I do apologize" (what century are we in?) and extremely conversational language like "pretty locked down" and "to lay out" comes off as someone who is trying really hard to sound educated but is either incapable of elevating all of their writing in a typical way or doesn't have the ability to recognize conversational language. Especially when extremely uncommon words like "illuminate" (an elevated word that may give the impression of intelligence or education, but when used figuratively like this would only ever be used in creative writing. The same is true with "straggling.") are used twice in one manifesto that's less than a page long, right beside extremely recent colloquial phrases like, "I do not have the space," it suggests the writer is trying to write outside of their league. In fact, "illuminate" is so out of place here and would be so out of place even in academic writing, that my immediate assumption was that whoever wrote this was using thesaurus.com or Grammarly to find replacements for words the writer didn't think were elevated enough.

Even though the writer is making efforts to sound educated, it’s obvious this isn't a person who has ever combed through their paper for unacademic writing. This isn't a person who has ever had to code-switch for their profession. This isn't a person who is used to using elevated, formal or academic language. This is a person who thinks the way beginner writers in academia do - they often think to add elevated elements to the writing, but it doesn't even occur to them to remove unelevated elements from the writing - the latter of which is arguably more important in academic, professional or otherwise formal writing.

3. Extraneous Adverbs

This is one of the most well-known tell-tale signs of a writer who is new to academic, professional or formal writing. Rookie writers use these extraneous adverbs as a crutch. Though they add virtually nothing to the content of the writing, they create the allusion of elevated language. Every single extraneous adverb in blue above means essentially the same thing (which, within the context each is used, is: nothing, lol), and if removed, wouldn't change the meaning of the content. The use of the word "pretty" is colloquial - I could possibly see someone choosing to purposefully use "pretty" in this way regardless of the nature of the writing (academic, professional, creative, etc.). "Obviously" and "Evidently" are also more justifiable. They come closer to adding meaning that wouldn't otherwise be present. "Obviously" comes with such emphasis I can see it being appropriate to use in a manifesto. If only these extraneous adverbs had been included, I probably wouldn't have thought anything of it.

But when they're included right beside "plainly," "fairly," "simply," "frankly," and "clearly" - all of which mean essentially the same thing, all of which add nothing - they once again give the impression of someone trying to sound educated, much the way Freshman students in their first ever English comp. course do. It's especially egregious to me that "frankly" and "simply" were each used twice, in a manifesto less than a page long. Luigi attended the University of Pennsylvania - that is an Ivy League school. I find it extremely hard to believe that Luigi's professors would not have beaten this habit out of him well before he ever attended grad school. Of course, this isn't an academic paper. If Luigi had written this, he could have chosen not to follow that writing expectation - but if it was something you were already accustomed to avoiding, why would you suddenly decide to add it again?

4. Nonsensical Use of a Word

(To me, these errors are the greatest indicator that this couldn't have possibly been written by someone with a master's degree.)

It appears whoever wrote this thought the word "trivial" meant something other than what it means. I think the word the writer was looking for was "brief." The obvious, much more common and equally appropriate word would be "short." "Trivial" does not make sense. That is not how that word is used. It's not just a strange use or uncommon use of the word - it is an inappropriate use of the word. When I read it, I again got the impression the writer was possibly using thesaurus.com or Grammarly and one of the two suggested "trivial" could replace the word "short." Both thesauraus.com and Grammarly lead writers astray in this way - they find words that are adjacent in meaning but aren't actually appropriate substitutes for one another. It seems plausible to me that "trivial," meaning "simple," is a word in close enough proximity to "short" (things that are short are often simple) that thesaurus.com or Grammarly recommended it as a replacement and the writer was unable to recognize it wasn’t a good recommendation. Or it could also be that the writer closely associates "trivial," meaning "simple," with shortness, and didn't realize that they aren't actually related. Either way, it's a nonsensical use of the word "trivial."

EDIT: I misread the sentence that used “trivial” and based my analysis on my misreading. The use of “trivial” does actually make sense.

The other example of a nonsensical use of a word is "strife." The word "strife" here is being used like a container for another noun, which would require it be followed by the word "of." There are many words in English that can be used in this way - "The book of Mormon," "The school of rock," "The house of cards," etc. When a noun is used in this way and followed by "of" it is indicating that whatever noun follows the "of" is something being contained within the initial noun. The word "strife" is not a noun that can be used in this way. Once again, it is not just a strange or uncommon use of the word - it is an inappropriate use of the word. In the former example ("Trivial") the implication is that the writer doesn't know what that word means, but in this example, the implication is not that they don't know what the word means, but that they don't understand how nouns can and can't be used grammatically in the English language. I want to be clear that I'm not knit-picking a dialect here. This isn't like trying to tell someone that their AAVE is "improper" because it has different grammatical constructions than "standard" English. I'm also not just knit-picking unusual linguistic expression. This isn't like Yoda talk in which someone is speaking in a weird but nevertheless coherent way. This isn't inappropriate because it's "improper" according to "standard" English language rules - it's inappropriate because it has the potential to impede meaning, which defeats the very purpose of writing. What the fuck are you saying? I know it is one small segment of the manifesto, but it is quite literally nonsense.

When I see nonsensical usage like this, and in a manifesto where obvious efforts to sound educated and intellectual were made, I can only assume that the highest level of the writer's education is high school. There is no way someone with a master's degree wrote this. Someone with a master's degree likely wouldn't make these this mistakes, especially not the second one, which is so bizarre because it's not an example of something missing or mixed-up, which are the types of errors I would expect to happen from time to time even for a grad student - but an example of something being added. It can't be explained by the writer forgetting to include something or getting something confused with something else - it can only be explained by a genuine incomprehension of the grammar.

5. Typo (Except it's not because the manifesto was handwritten???)

This is a manifesto. It's not only the writer's message to the world, but it's likely the last message they'll ever get to send the world, and they would know this. This is the writer's one shot, right? Given how perfect the literal shots were in this assassination - why wouldn't a manifesto written by an educated engineer be the same? Or at least much closer to perfect than this? This manifesto is less than a page and there are two "typos". I can't stress enough how impressively bad that is. Whoever wrote this didn't spare this manifesto a second glance. Didn't even skim over it after writing it and it is less than a page. For reference, in academic writing, you would probably be expected to have two typos total in ten or more pages. Two typos in less than a page is beyond egregious.

It is also just fucking weird that something that was supposedly handwritten has two mistakes in it that are basically only ever typos? When typing, it's common to mistype "has" as "as" or miss a letter in a word like "allowed." But errors of this particular nature aren't common in handwritten writing? In fact, they're extremely rare? What...? What happened there?

6. Missing and/or Improper Punctuation or Grammar Errors (that I personally feel don't have any plausible deniability - there are technically many improper uses of punctuation and grammatical errors in this, but they are either so commonly used as to not be worth pointing out or generally accepted as correct even though they technically aren't. I'm not focusing on those because it seems plausible to me even a grad student could make those errors accidentally or even with purpose.)

Capitalizing "Feds" is probably excusable. I unthinkingly capitalize significant, but not technically proper nouns all the time. But it's only done to "Feds," and so I almost wonder if the writer legitimately believed they needed to capitalize it.

Choosing to use the contractions "I'll" and "wasn't" before ceasing their use for the rest of the manifesto is not technically "improper" but it's fucking weird. Generally, a writer, especially an experienced academic or professional writer, would be consistent except in situations when a contraction isn't appropriate to use, or when only a contraction is appropriate to use (such as in a sentence that ends with "it is." You would never end a sentence with "it's."). There are also places in this manifesto where it was very strange not to use a contraction because the words being used in that context are generally almost always made into a contraction. "It is not an issue of -" in particular, really stands out to me. What I find telling about this is that writers new to academic writing often make the incorrect assumption that it's unacademic to use contractions. Students will sometimes avoid using contractions in an effort to make their writing - once again - sound more elevated than it actually is. This thinking bleeds into other contexts too - newbie poets sometimes refuse to use contractions, for example. If Luigi had actually written this, I would expect him to have used contractions throughout, because someone with a master's would have long ago learned that there isn't ever any reason to avoid contractions in virtually any kind of writing outside of for stylistic reasons. If the entire manifesto had avoided contractions altogether, I may have considered that for whatever reason, Luigi just doesn't like using contractions. But whoever wrote this fucked up when they kept "I'll" and "wasn't" in the first two sentences and avoided contractions from then on. Even if the contractions were interspersed, I would have considered that it might be as simple as personal style or writing on autopilot. But whoever wrote this tried and probably thought they eliminated all of the contractions, and probably did so under the incorrect assumption that avoiding contractions would make their writing sound more elevated, and therefore more educated, but because they personally only have a high school diploma at best, they had no way of knowing they were getting it backwards.

The word "trauma" is pluralized in this manifesto. The word "trauma" is ordinarily an uncountable noun, as in, no matter how much "trauma" there is, it is all still just "trauma." However, it's similar to "water" and "fish" in that there are specific instances in which the uncountable noun becomes countable. Generally, no matter how much water you have, it is water - unless you are talking about different regions of water, then it would be appropriate to say "waters." Likewise, no matter how many fish you have, they are all still fish - until you're discussing multiple distinct species of fish, then it's appropriate to say "fishes." "Trauma" is a word that also operates like this. So it technically can be pluralized - but the thing is, it's a word that would likely only ever be pluralized in academic writing or scholarly literature. The word "traumas" is specialized, field-specific, and few people outside of people actually studying or researching trauma would have reason to say "traumas." Regardless, this is not an instance in which "traumas" is appropriate to say, and once again, this is a mistake that is not the result of missing something or confusing something - it was something that was added. This demonstrates a genuine incomprehension. In this case, I'm guessing it was pluralized not because whoever wrote this usually pluralizes trauma, but because in this sentence, "trauma" is the thing being contained (inappropriately, nonsensically) within "strife" and while the person writing this doesn't comprehend this grammar fully, they comprehend it enough to know that the noun being contained is often plural, and they kind of just instinctually added it. It's not uncommon for inexperienced writers who are also fluent English speakers to have a familiarity with some English grammar, but due to not being taught it in the overt, purposeful way English learners are taught it, nevertheless aren't really sure how or why or when to apply that English grammar. The result of this is that they sometimes apply that English grammar needlessly based on a gut feeling, not genuine understanding of the need for its use.

Lastly - and this is what stood out to me the most after the nonsensical use of "strife" - whoever wrote this has placed a colon after "e.g." The abbreviation "e.g." is used frequently in academic writing of all kinds, including STEM. Depending on the context, it is appropriate to precede or follow or both precede and follow "e.g." with a comma, but never a colon. A master's student would know this. An engineer would know this. Anyone who has ever had to do any academic writing or professional research would know this. I think whoever wrote this thought "e.g." is followed by a comma - because whoever wrote this is not someone who has ever had to type and turn in something with "e.g." written in it.

Whoever wrote this manifesto was, over and over, making every effort to elevate their writing and make themselves sound educated and intelligent - all while making tell-tale mistakes that expose them as someone who maybe has a high school diploma. Because they aren't an experienced writer, they didn't have any way of recognizing these mistakes, much less realizing how thoroughly these mistakes expose their inexperience. Even if they had sat down and made thorough revisions, they would have only been able to make the writing marginally better, because they would not have the literacy necessary to notice the weaknesses in their writing. I know a manifesto is not academic in nature. I'm aware that somebody with the writing skills of an educated engineer could choose not to elevate their manifesto to something more academic, professional, or formal. My argument here isn't "This doesn't resemble an academic paper so there's no way an academic wrote it." My argument is that even when an academic chooses to write something that isn't academic in nature, this is not what it would sound like. If Luigi had written this with the intention of being conversational, this is not what it would sound like. This manifesto makes mistakes that aren't appropriate in any kind of writing, and includes stylistic elements that are extremely common, textbook signs that the person who wrote it was trying to make their writing sound more elevated than it is, and by extension, make themselves sound more educated than they are. They were trying to make this manifesto academic, or at least elevated, knowing Luigi has a master's degree and that if Luigi wrote a manifesto it would sound like it was written by someone with a master's degree - but the writer failed because they definitely don't have a master's degree. There is zero doubt in my mind that a cop wrote this.

The one piece of evidence I’m 100% sure was planted is that manifesto. Like even setting aside that manifestos are generally released before the crime, generally addressing the people they’re meant to threaten or enlighten and not cops, and generally you know, widely distributed online and not just carried around physically in case of an arrest that we have reason to believe was unwanted and unsuccessfully but intentionally avoided - there is just no fucking way you’re going to convince me that someone with a master’s degree wrote that lmao. Whoever wrote that manifesto would struggle to pass an undergraduate English gen. ed. course.

[ladylamrian]

✨️ Kit meets Rook ✨️

Female Main Character: Alexis Clarissa Fontaine (Nightbound) & Astrid (Blades of Light and Shadow)

Characters: Nik Ryder, Mal Volari, Tyril Starfury, Imtura, Nia Ellarious, Vera Reimonenq, Katherine, Cal Lowell, Threep, ...

Pairings: F!MC×NikRyder & F!MC×MalVolari

Summary: Astrid accidentally opened the wrong portal.

Word Count: 3.2K words

Rating: Teen (Magic, Adventure, Friendship, Fluff)

Warnings: none, just a small fighting scene

-> My complete Masterlist here <-

Taglist: @infactnoimmasitinthemiddle ; @peonierose ; @secretaryunpaid ; @jdstar88 ; @blackcatkita ; @lilyoffandoms ; @liviusofpella ; @mxdanni ; @mariemarieohcontrary ; @tessa-liam ; @choicesficwriterscreations ; @hopelessromantic1352 ; @rosepetals1 ; @stars-are-within-me ; @dutifullynuttywitch ; @thosehallowedhalls ; @artbyalz ; @choicesficwriterscreations

Some parts grammar checked by @lilyoffandoms

Comments via Reblog wholeheartly welcome

Author's note: The tiny story takes place after Nightbound and Blades of Light & Shadow Book 1. Special thanks to @chanceisagoodboy for the inspiration and idea ✨️

New Orleans always looked beautiful at night. Shops, restaurants, bars and dance pools were gleaming with bright colors and lights. But in the middle of an abandoned alley, near the street, where no one else was there, something mysterious happened. Air was filled with magic. The weather changed within seconds. The clear night sky turned into a thundery scene as rain fell down the earth and thunderbolts flashed above. But there was something else, something strange and unusual. A mysterious vortex appeared which tossed six strange figures outside. And then... it closed. The six beings remained.

"Ouch, what an uncomfortable landing!!", a lady in a gown commented as she was lying with her companions on the ground. She focused her lavender-colored eyes on her surroundings and wondered where they got.

"Well done, kit. Now care to explain where you transported us, because this doesn't look like Whitetower.", a young man with brown, shoulder-length locks and a light beard spoke. He discovered his two daggers, Stabby & Stabby Junior lying in front of him as he crashed on the ground, so he quickly picked his loyal weapons up and stashed them back inside.

"A powerful and wise never like me doesn't deserve to be lying on the dirty floor and get treated like this.", Threep, the bat-winged cat hissed. As the cat saw how everyone finally stood up from the ground, he fluttered its wings and landed on Astrid's shoulder. His cat eyes fixed on her, waiting for an answer.

"I'm so sorry for the hard landing, Threep. I didn't know it would be like this."

"Hmmph."

"Threep, will you please forgive your Astrid?"

"I suppose a snack wouldn't hurt to make it up for you, dear realmwalker.", he meowed and played around with her blonde braids like a playful kitten which made her giggle.

"Sure, Threep. But first, we have to figure out where we landed. This world looks so weird.", Astrid's blue eyes scanned the surroundings in the dark with the help of her night-vision ability.

All around them were humans. No elf and no orc. They were all dressed in a diffrent style which neither Astrid nor her friends understood. Not only this, strange machinery drove by in which humans were sitting, but there were no horses that pulled them. They moved on their own. Colorful lights are everywhere on the street. Was it magic?

"What strange world is that? Where did you bring us, Astrid?", Tyril asked.

"I don't know, but looks all so new and interesting which got me curious... Let's explore and begin a new adventure!!", she announced with confidence.

"Astrid, I don't know. It could be dangerous. We don't know anything."

"Come on, priestess. Be a little more active and open to the world. We pirates explore new places and find treasures.", Imtura agreed with Astrid.

"Imtura's right! Who knows what shiny treasures and gold we'll find."

"Can't you just NOT think about gold for once, treasure hunter. I have to agree with Nia. It could be dangerous. We don't know anything."

"Three against two, elf boy."

"Excuse me, I would like to be included with my opinion top. I'm with Nia and Tyril, because I want to go home. My warm food is waiting for me.", the nesper licked his palm with attitude.

"So it's three against three. We have a tie. This means we'll explore a little and then we'll go back home. Do you all agree with me?"

"Yes Astrid, that's fair! I just hope you know how to open the right portal which leads us back home.", Nia Ellarious, the priestess agreed, along with everyone else.

"Honestly, I'm still learning my powers. I seriously didn't thought this would happen, but I promise that I'll do better. We'll find a way to get back home!!", Astrid, the realwalker assured her friends.

The group of friends walked through the bustling streets of the unknown place and every time surprised as they made a new discovery. There were small, shining figures in green and red which signaled the humans when to cross the streets and when to stop. These secured the safety of both, the walking humans and the ones who were sitting in these strange, horse-less machineries. Was this magic?

"Hey, why are some humans looking at us like this and then laughing? Are they making fun of us? Maybe because we're dressed differently or...?", Nia asked with concern.

"Yeah, it's like they never saw an orc!"

"Or a noble elf like me. I feel that we're being watched and I do not like this, my dear friends. I told you before too, that it could be dangerous here.", Tyril agreed with Imtura.

Not far from them, a group of youngsters were enjoying themselves. One even held a small, metallic device that flashed like lightning. Out of curiosity, Mal moved closer to the group to take a closer while remaining hidden in the shadows. It turned out that the group of young people now could see a picture of them in that pose when that mysterious device flashed at them. It's like watching a portrait of them that just got painted by the flashing light.

"How can they still be here standing in front of me and also being captured in that small device at the same time?", Mal thought and immediately left, because he didn't want to accidentally get captured in an item.

He quickly joined his friends in a more quiet place, but was shocked as he saw them facing a very familiar figure.

"Well, well, well, who do we have here? How interesting! Humans, along with an elf and an orc. These two might fit well into my collection", the mysterious woman in black smirked. Behind her were standing tough, muscular men who looked dangerous.

"Uhh, who are you? What collection?"

"Oh, dear. You don't know me? Everyone knows who I am. Would your elf friend and orc friend be interested in joining my secret fighting ring under Club Persephone? Elf versus Orc. That would create a huge audience and a lot of money.", she answered Astrid's questions while pressing her face with her gloved hand as she moved closer towards her.

"Hey!!! Let Astrid go!!!", Mal shouted at the woman. He grabbed Astrid's arm and pulled her protectively closer to him till their bodies pressed each other.

"Mal, I'm fine. Don't worry, I can handle it.", she showed strength, but also gratitude towards her caring lover. They glanced at each other with full affection and love until their attention turned towards their friends and the mysterious woman.

"Oh, so you're a couple? You two remind me of that annoying hunter and his fairy girlfriend. You disgust me."

"Leave us alone, thief master.", Mal warned her which made her even more angry while the friends were surprised.

"Mal, you know that woman?", Imtura asked.

"Thief master??? You dared to call me, a thief?!! I am the Lady Smoke!!! The most powerful woman and most dangerous murder mob boss of New Orleans??!", she unleashed her anger, and finally removed her glove, revealing her palm which showed black, poisonous veins. The whole crew was shocked at the discovery. While the lady in black moved her hand towards Astrid and Mal, her muscular men grabbed the rest of them.

"Let go!!! Don't hurt my friends.", Nia shouted.

"I'll show you the strength of an orc, you rats.", the orc hissed.

"Threep, is that woman corrupted or why does she have these black veins?", Tyril asked while fighting one of the goons.

"No, it's something else.", he meowed as he tried to free Nia, the priestess. The nesper began attacking the enemies with his sharp claws.

The whole situation turned into a fighting scene. Mal tried to protect Astrid, and she tried to protect him, as they switched back and forth. Trying to protect each other.

"Astrid, I'll handle.", he grabbed his two daggers and got into a fighting position.

"Mal, I can do it. Let me use my powers."

"But..."

"Ssshhhh, I'll be safe. Don't worry, love."

"But I'll..."

BANG

Before Mal could say more, a bright light appeared out of nowhere which illuminated their whole surroundings. It took everyone a little time to adjust. They shielded their eyes from the light which was so bright. When the light faded, they slowly opened their eyes. There was a mysterious young man in a leather coat facing them, holding a crossbow in his hands. It was the holy light arrow he just shot, which caused the bright light. The arrow landed on the ground near Lady Smoke and her goons as a warning and not to injure them.

"Let them go, Smoke!", he warned her.

"And if I don't?"

"Don't make a fuzz of this, Tonya. Just let them go and everyone will be happy."

"Mind your own business, nighthunter."

"Heyyy!!! Nobody speaks to my partner like this!!", a silvery-black-haired woman appeared next to the mysterious man.

Nik smirked as she called him her partner and wrapped his free arm around her waist.

"My rook."

"Oh, so the couple is here together now. Solo suited you better, Nik Ryder", Tonya mocked.

"Shut up, Smoke!! And let these innocent people go."

While Tonya was focused on Nik and his girlfriend, Astrid used her skills to free her friends. Time for the Seduction Skill!! She swayed her hips and leaned closer towards a man who held one of her friends captured. Mal was surprised at her sudden move.

"Hello, strong man.", she winked at one of them.

"Me?"

"Yes, you. You're very strong and look at your muscles.", she traced a finger on the stranger's arm who suddenly felt attracted to her. The rest of them wanted that too now.

Mal definitely didn't like it even though, she used her seduction skills several times and it helped. But this time was different. They were nasty men who could hurt her and were now hungrily staring at her. Mal had to do something.

"Hey Astrid, you haven't seen my muscles yet. Let me use them to smash those bastards.", Mal got jealous. Astrid's eyes were still on the men.

"Oh yes, Mal is right. You guys have muscles, but use them for what??!! To serve an unthankful woman. I definitely would value your hard work and loyalty. All of you.", the braided blonde played with her lashes which made the men loosen their grips.

And with that, Tyril, Imtura, Threep and Nia managed to free themselves and began fighting. Even Astrid now used her combat skill and threw a few punches at the men, while Tyril, Imtura and Mal used their weapons. Threep supported the priestess to defend everyone.

"How dare you treat a legendary and wise nesper like that??", he hissed and used his cat claws to hurt the enemies.

"Watch out!!!", the silvery-haired girl shouted and blasted a flame of light towards a goon who was about to hit Astrid from behind. The bad guy couldn't harm her now, fell backward, and then fainted.

"Thanks!!", Astrid shouted towards her and continued her battle.

Tonya Reimonenq noticed that her men couldn't win, especially against a strong orc like Imtura. So she demanded her men to retreat, getting back to her Club.

"I'll be back. You haven't heard the last from me, Ryder.", she swore revenge, quickly stepped inside her limousine and commanded her driver to escape.

"Phewww, she and her men are gone.", Nia got relieved when Lady Smoke and her goons were finally gone.

"I knew it!! An unknown world could be dangerous."

"I know, Tyril. You were right, but I'm glad we got rid of them. And these two helped us.", Astrid turned her attention towards the couple in front of them. The two stepped closer to the group.

"Damn, didn't know you guys would handle it on your own. I'm impressed. At least some people don't need to be protected which makes my work easier. And you did a great job too, rook.", Nik praised everyone.

"Awwww, thanks.", she got delighted, stood on her toes and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. Then she stepped closer to the group to introduce herself and Nik. They shook each other's hands.

"Nice to meet you, Alex. I'm Astrid. These are my friends, Imtura, Nia, Tyril, Mal and Threep."

"Awwww, Threep is soooo cute!!!! Eeeeeeekkk...", she admired the little, winged cat and wanted to cuddle it.

"Pardon me, but I need my personal space. No cuddles when I'm hungry, milady."

"You can talk??!!"

"Of course. I'm a very wise nesper who has to confess my hunger and speaks wise words."

"Awwww, poor kitty. You must be so hungry. Let's get you some food, huh? Garrus's bar isn't far away, he'll serve you food and I'll feed you as much as you want.", Alex picked Threep up from the ground and held it like a baby in her arms, gazing sweetfully at him.

This time the nesper didn't complain because he was ready to get treated like he always wanted to.

"What's a bar?", one of the friends asked.

"Uhhh, it's where you drink? You guys never went to a bar? My friend, Garrus serves non-alcoholic drinks too if you want.", Nik informed.

"Ooooh, so it's a tavern. Then let's go!! I could use some refreshment.", Mal immediately agreed.

"Threep, meet Tinkerbell. Tinkerbell, meet Threep.", Alex tried to introduce Threep and her pet with each other.

"Is that a kricken? But what is it doing here?", Nia asked and petted the pet.

"A kricken? It's a perrikin."

"Oh, I see. In our realm it's called a kricken."

"Oh, so you're from another realm?", Alex asked with curiousity.

Nik, Alex and Astrid's crew were now sitting in Garrus's bar, called The Graveyard Shift along with some more friends. Each of them was getting along with another very well and was having a great time.

"So you're a nighthunter who hunts evil creatures and beings at night?", Mal was talking with Nik.

"Not only do I hunt. I make sure that both sides of the world, the World of Day and World of Night are save and secure against the evil. So yes, I'm a professional nighthunter. And you are...?"

"A thief. A professional thief.", Mal grinned, raising his arm to show Nik what he was holding.

"Hey, is that... My wallet?!! How the hell did you...??"

"Don't forget to look after yourself too while protecting the world, nighthunter.", Mal mischievously smiled and returned Nik's belongings back to him.

"Hmm... I like you already, thief. You're not bad actually. I'm impressed by your skills... And I like your shiny daggers."

"Thanks, Nik. My daggers are my tiny babies. But you're very skilled too."

Not far away, Katherine and Imtura were laughing together.

"Woah, really?!!! Could you teach me how to throw axes? It could come in handy for me while hunting."

"Now that's what I call a strong woman!! You may not be an orc or strong like me, but you have the spirit. I'll definitely teach you that, Katherine."

"Thanks, new bestie.", Katherine high-fived with Imtura.

Nia Ellarious and Vera Reimonenq enjoyed each other's presence while having conversations and drinking warm lemon tea together. Both admired each other's outfits and figured that they had a few things in common.

"So that dangerous woman we met before was your mother?"

"Yes, but I'm not like her. Don't worry."

"Oh, I'm not afraid of you. I can sense that you're a sweet and pure person. Besides, I also had the similar experience. I looked up to the Light court, but they were not like I expected them to be. I may belong to them as a priestess, but I can still be different and choose the path I want to. The path of harmony.", she explained to Vera and both sweetly smiled at each other with affection.

"Wait, you're her child?? That means she can't be the person I thought she was. She looks exactly like the thiefmaster.", Mal passed by as he overheard Nia and Vera after finishing his conversation with Nik.

"The thiefmaster?", Nia asked him.

"Oh, never mind. Forget it, priestess.", Mal tried to avoid the topic and decided to look for Astrid.

"Is that a fae??", Tyril got shocked as he saw Garrus passing by with a tray of drinks. The fae was too busy with work and serving customers to notice Tyril, the elf. Then Cal answered him.

"Yes, that's Garrus. He's a fae. And the silvery-haired girl you met earlier, she's a half-fae. Are you a fae too?"

"A half-fae, how rare and astonishing!! And no, I'm no fae. I may have pointy ears too, but they are longer. I'm an elf. Tyril, House of Starfury."

"Oh, a noble?"

"It's complicated. My sister takes care of House Starfury now. I don't feel like I belong with the rest of the noble elves."

"Hey, I know what you mean. I also feel like I don't belong to my pack anymore. I'm a werewolf, but I'm not like them. An outsider. I'm different, but I feel proud of it. By the way, my name is Cal. Cal Lowell.", he extended his hand forward and Tyril accepted to shake it.

"A pleasure to meet you, Cal."

Later, Mal finally found Astrid in the corner of the room who was talking with the silvery-black haired woman from before.

"Hey, kit."

"Hey, rook."

Nik and Mal greeted their own girlfriends at the same time when they appeared. Both were surprised. They stared at each other open-mouthed for a while before turning their attention back to their partners. Alex and Astrid began to giggle.

"So Nik calls you rook, Alex?"

"Yup, and you're Mal's kit. Am I right, Astrid? Guess our boys have a few things in common just like the two of us.", she continued laughing with Astrid at the boys.

"Oh Alex, as much as I enjoyed tonight with you and your friends, it's getting late. We must return, but I will never forget tonight. You're my new friend in this weird, but modern world."

"I will miss you too, Astrid. I hope you will visit us again. Threep is so adorable. And next time when you come, you should definitely teach me your seduction skill."

"Oh nooo!!! For god's sake, please don't!!! Enough people are hitting on her already, I don't want her to get started too or get in trouble.", Nik begged the girls who giggled again.

"Awww, Nik. You're my everything. But I could use the seduction skill to convince you whenever we both disagree with each other."

"Oh, so that's your evil plan? How cruel of you, my rook?", he raised his eyebrow, then chuckled.

Then Astrid spoke, promising to teach Alex the seduction skill if she would teach her some magic. Afterall the flame of light which the nighthunter's girlfriend used against Lady Smoke's goons was impressive and could be useful. Maybe Alex could also convince her friendly stepmother, Lady Thalissa to teach both of them. For example, how to open the correct portal.

And with that, it was time for Imtura, Nia, Tyril, Mal, Threep and Astrid to go back to their realm. Back home. This time Astrid opened the right portal. And if not, then they would have landed on their next adventure.

[terra-fatalis]

Reblogging because fundamentally I agree on everything but one point. Adding the "read more" line because I ended up writing more than I expected, it's late at night and probably it's filled with grammar mistakes and inconsistencies.

First of all I'm loving this article, it's really well written and I agree with its content.

The only point I disagree is the firm idea that Aerith will undoubtly die OR her presence will ruin other characters' arcs.

I'd say you're right if we could reasonably assume that from now on things will be going exactly like in the OG and that Aerith's survival is just the faint illusion of some fans. But after all the changes set in the first part of the Remake I don't see how things could be faithful to the OG anymore.

I think Aerith has a big chance to survive. The first part hinted her death way too often to just end up in the Forgotten City and let her die the way she did in the OG. Like "do you remember the tons of times Cloud foreshadowed her death and Aerith seemed to hope she could change her future? Well, it was useless she died anyway". Oh thank you Square Enix.

I don't want to degress too much on plot speculations and stay close to the shipping subject, but can we still assume this is just a Remake of the story as we know it? Maybe yes, probably no. If we defeated the "Whispers" I guess everything can happen from now on. As far as we know this could turn out to be a sequel, or even an illusion.

Aerith's survival is irreconcilable with the events of the original story just like Zack's survival but...actually he survived anyway.

The point is that whatever happens, wherever this Remake will bring us, her survival won't affect the romantic endgame. I am a CT. And not because I prefer Tifa over Aerith, but because I think that reading this story under the perspective of "Cloud will always love Aerith" is both inconsistent and turns Cloud into one of the worst jerks in the world. For a tons of reasons that CAs usually conveneintly ignore.

The big problem of this story is that SE never fully closed Aerith's character arc for what concerns the romantic aspect. In the OG she had strong feelings for Cloud, then there was the date (yes I think her date is the canon one), Cait Sith's prediction and...? She died and the romance died with her, and Cloud never talked about her until the end of the game. She saved everyone from the Lifestream, but what about her and her feelings? When we discovered the truth about Zack there was not a single word that closed their story. Zack said one line about Aerith and it is even not much of a great line. I get why Maiden was created, even if I'm convinced it's not a canon entry.

That's what caused the LTD not the fact that CT wasn't obvious. People who really like Aerith can't accept her being left alone in the Lifestream with Cloud and Tifa living happily ever after. They can't accept Cloud's feelings faded away when he regained his true personality, at the point that most of them refuse that Cloud had ever had a fake personality in the first place.

Crisis Core somehow tried to fix this flaw of the OG but the damage was already done and I lost count of how many times I argued with people who rabidly try to diminish the importance of Zerith. There's no other entry in the compilation where romance is more blatantly obvious than CC but this still happens too often: People trying to disminish the canonicity of CC in favour of Maiden. People saying Zack and Aerith weren't in a relationship. People saying Cloud didn't love Tifa at the time of Nibelheim incident. People saying Zack was in a relationship with Cissnei. People saying Cloud was always himself and trying to minimize his brain damage and the link with Zack. People claiming that Zack in AC was just a product of Cloud's imagination.

I could spend the whole day adding examples. All this to proof that even if Cloud lives with Tifa and raises children with her for at least 4 years (Case of Denzel is set after DoC) they live as totally strangers, because he'll pine for Aerith forever, throwing away all the themes of AC. It's so ridiculous that's incredible that someone could really believe it. But actually A LOT of people are convinced about this, sometimes it feels like most of the fandom thinks so.

SE knows it, they are aware of how many fans want a happy ending for her. Like you said, for many fans she IS the greatest, bestest and most importantest, and she can't be dismissed once again in the Forgotten City just to show up to save the day when Meteor is about to distroy the world. The devs have to give an answer to the expectations between Cloud and Aerith that they set 24 years ago. And they could do it by letting her survive.

The king of CA claims has always been: "IF Aerith survived she'd have been the love interest" followed by "she would heal Cloud in the Lifestream" and "She'd have the Highwind scene". They're debunkable under many perspectives but - at least when I tried to - it never worked. Withthe Remake the devs could let her survive and show that her life doesn't affect the bond between real-Cloud and Tifa. She can't steal moments that belong to other characters. She wouldn't even want to do it. The Lifestream scene will always be Tifa's scene, no matter how much some fans would like to see it played by the mage instead of the monk.

The devs already started to show this. Remake Aerith knows something about the future, and her flirtious attitude toward Cloud is different than in the OG. All their original flirting scenes were removed, most of the new flirting scenes heavily refer to Crisis Core (when they're not a copy&paste), reducing to a minimum the genuine bonding moments between them. Hell, of all the themes her resolution scene could revolve around, the core of it is the famous "You can't fall il love with me. It's not real." No matter how much some people try to distort this sentence to turn it in a love confession. It isn't. It doesn't matter how much people try to read Hollow as a CA love song, it starts when the camera focuses on Zack and Aerith. The devs are softly giving to fans the answer about the LTD in a way that her presence won't affect the outcome.

So I really hope she could survive. For one because I'm selfish, I like her and I don't want to cry her death in 4K. Then because if she dies again at the Forgotten City, the "IF" statements will be brought up again and again and again. Even if the devs would show Cloud and Tifa getting married, someone will always claim that deep in his heart he loves Aerith and Tifa is a rebound, and I don't really feel like keep debating again about who Cloud Strife loves over the next 25 years.

Dead or friendzoned, choose one: The Aerith uncertainty principle.

This article argues that while it might be possible for Aerith to be a love interest in FFVII:R, or that she might survive in FFVII:R, that these things can't both happen. disclaimer: I don't believe either will be happen. ______________________________________________________ Imagine this, the year is 2040, you're playing FFVIII:Remake. Rinoa is doomed out in space, just when she thinks she's about to die, she looks up and sees Squall coming towards her, in a move of unprecedented daring he had jumped out of the Ragnarok to go save her. Your eyes start tearing up as the last recollections of your childhood flood back into your mind and out your eyes. And then, suddenly, from the side of the screen.....Seifer comes floating into frame. Oh yeah, you had almost forgotten, Seifer didn't become evil during the remake timeline.

Afterwards, in the cockpit, Seifer hugs Squall and Rinoa as eyes on me starts playing. How big of an unwelcome intruder would Seifer be in that situation? How much of an insult would this be to one of Rinoa and Squalls most iconic moments? Clearly this would never happen, but why not? If Seifer hadn't turned evil, surely he'd have wanted to save Rinoa as well. Logically it makes sense for him to be there, and yet I think everyone would understand why Seifer isn't welcome there. So why on earth, when discussing final fantasy VII, do I honestly hear people say that if Aerith had lived, she'd have saved Cloud in the lifestream sequence and what's more, actually advocate for this to happen? People need to realize that even if you think Aerith is just the bestest, brightest, most importantest character in the universe, other characters still exist, and people love those other characters. And some of those people work at Square Enix, and they sure as hell won't elevate one character to the detriment of all others. Tifa and Cloud have moments together, important moments, iconic moments. There is Tifa choosing to stay behind and take care of Cloud in Mideel, there is the lifestream, there is the highwind. These are all beloved, iconic moments that fans are clamoring to see, and in each and every one of them Aerith is as unwelcome as Seifer is during "eyes on me", or Rikku during "Suteki da ne". Aerith is an ancient, the entire plot revolves around her, everyone loves her, she has magical powers and is the only person who can save the world! Imagine someone whose already that important, and then forcing her into moments belonging to other characters, there is no quicker way to aggravate a fanbase, or make a character distinctly unlikable. So Aerith, fundamentally, cannot be in those scenes, because those moments belong to other characters. But if Aerith is alive, and a supposed love interest, can she really be left out of those scenarios? Imagine Cloud is in a coma, imagine Tifa staying with him to take care of him while Aerith goes to save the planet. Imagine Tifa going into Clouds sub-conscious and pulling him out, then imagine Cloud and Tifa spending the night before the battle together, cementing their importance to each other, while Aerith goes to spend the night at Elmyra. Then, afterwards, the party defeats Sephiroth and Cloud rejects Tifa in favor of Aerith..... Cementing him as the biggest asshole ever, and Aerith as the most undeserving Mary Sue winner of a love triangle of all time.

Do you see any way of doing that that would not be a gigantic slap in the face to the character of Tifa? Who cared for Cloud while in a coma, who journeyed through his sub-conscious with him and spent her last night on this earth together with him? Fundamentally, the only way Aerith can survive, is if she takes a back in other story-arcs. People have tried to invent nonsensical ways in which Aerith could save Cloud from the lifestream, or suggest alternate routes where you still have the standard "Tifa route", but can also choose the "Aerith route". And all these ideas conveniently ignore the same basic thing. Aerith isn't the center of the universe. Every scene, every moment, every piece of importance you give to her, causes her to cast a larger shadow on the rest of the cast. People want her to be the love interest because they look at her importance to the plot, to her powers as an ancient. They look at how much of a main character she is and their first reaction is somehow "lets give her more". But her importance is exactly why this can never happen, because in order for her to take up the roles played by other characters, those characters need to take up the roles she leaves behind. And Tifa cannot do that. No matter how alive Aerith is, no matter how in love Aerith and Cloud are, Tifa will never be able to summon holy, she will never be able to save the planet by talking to the essence of life. Tifa can never fill Aeriths role, which is why Aerith can never fill hers. Because both matter, and if the thing that makes one special is taken from her, and given to the other, then you've insulted your characters, your fanbase, and your legacy by making one character the sad shadow of who they were, a pathetic ant compared to 'the Mary goddessue'. Aerith cannot do everything. Which means that if you love Aerith, you have 2 choices. You can either have Aerith be a genuine potential love interest, and have that plot point die with her. Or you can have her survive, and sit by as she takes a backseat to other characters, or you can have neither, but you can't have both. Or, you can do the worst of all worlds and argue that the entire story will change to fit this new harlequin romance novel you've invented and antagonize all your fans by removing all those iconic scenes altogether.....yeah, I don't see that happening.