#I'm probably missing a lot of potential scenarios here

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

THE HUNDRED LINE: LAST DEFENSE ACADEMY - Journal #12: Route 4 - "TRUE" ROUTE DAY 33-58 [MASSIVE SPOILERS]

//After I finished the Conspiracy Route of the game, I kept playing down the supposed "main" route of the game, without hitting any endings in particular.

//I do feel like I am just on the verge of one, so I will most likely cover that ending in my next journal. However, for this one specifically, I will be going back to the old format for these, covering it day by day, and breaking down my thoughts and feelings on each event that happens.

//Because trust me, there is...A...LOT!

//We get some CRITICAL revelations and new information in SPADES in this segment, and covering this many days, when I would normally do around 10, means this post has the potential to be quite long, so I'm going to try and abridge my experience and break it down as plainly as possible in the points where I need to.

//...Strap in I guess, and as per usual...

DO NOT READ THE REST OF THIS POST IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED/SEEN THE HUNDRED LINE: LAST DEFENSE ACADEMY. I WILL BE TALKING ABOUT VERY SPECIFIC PLOT POINTS AND MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE GAME.

//So let's get into it...

DAY 33:

//So to recap where we last left off, we completed the Conspiracy Route, which kicks off with a critical decision that is made in this battle.

//After the UFB defeats V'ehxness, she employs a gambit that involves kidnapping Kurara and Gaku, so she may absorb them to heal herself and replenish her Hemoanima. In the timeline that I played through previously, the path diverged after I saved Kurara, and left Gaku to die.

//However, in order to stick to the true beaten path, we need to save Gaku. So with a heavy heart, I went back to Day 33 afterwards, and decided to let Gaku get absorbed by V'ehxness.

//Well...I say "heavy heart." But I mostly mean that I'll miss Kurara. I certainly won't miss the Conspiracy Route.

//One thing that did annoy me here is that even though I've already done this fight in full, and despite how there's a critical decision at the end if it, this is the only time the game hasn't given me the prompt to skip the fight.

//Granted, it's probably BECAUSE of the decision at the end, but again, this is easily fixed if you just have a WAVE skip feature. Get on that, TooKyo.

//Anyway, Kurara gets absorbed, and I hate V'ehxness with a burning passion.

//Seriously, the more I see of V'ehxness, the more I dislike her. Not because I think she's a poorly written villain or anything. In fact, I quite like the idea of there being a character in one of these games who is just pure evil. But this narrative structure is a bit of a double-edged sword to be honest.

//On the one hand, this portrayal of a supremely strong and unyielding force of evil serves to further themes of war, loss, and the high price of resistance. It presents a more realistically tragic picture of struggle, challenging the conventional heroic fantasy of effortless victory.

//Because let's be real. The idea of the heroes ALWAYS coming out on top against their enemies in a game that is about the horrors of war is VERY unrealistic. The fact that only a few characters died in the original timeline, and most of them were offscreen, was in line with the idea of a video game. But this part of the story now feels like it could be happening in a real life scenario, where we are forced to watch our friends die as we slowly sink deeper into pain, knowing we can't fucking beat this threat.

//However, this approach, for me at least, becomes very narratively unsatisfying from how often it happens. Having a villain like V'ehxness runs the risk of making the game seem pointless when she consistently invalidates the effort by taking back control, reviving herself, or invalidating hard-won victories.

//If every strategic success is undone, and each emotional investment leads only to greater loss, the game can veer into narrative stagnation, where progress is illusory. Which undermines not only the tension, but...you know...the whole CONCEPT of the game?

//If the result is always the same—V'ehxness wins and someone dies—then the stakes lose their significance.

//But...hey, that's something I'm gonna have to get used to. I just hate her and needed to rant.

//You know, the funny thing is, at this point I was wondering if Takumi maybe had the power to jump back in time again, even if he didn't retain his memories. It doesn't make any sense to me that he could only do something like that once when he didn't lose the UFB's power.

//It didn't make an awful lot of sense to me that he didn't try for a better ending, but I guess that's player choice at the end of the day, since most of these endings are kind of independent of each other regardless.

//I bring this up because I recently watched a horror movie called Happy Death Day for the first time, and it reminded me of that.

//For those who don't know, Happy Death Day is a black comedy slasher film that is, in short, Scream meets Groundhog Day.

//The story follows Tree Gelbman (Yes, her name is Tree; it's short for Theresa), a college student who is murdered on her birthday, only to wake up and relive the same day over and over again. Each time she is killed, the loop resets, and she retains her memories, allowing her to gradually uncover clues about her killer's identity, so she uses each iteration to not only survive but also to become a better person, confronting her own past and relationships.

//Which felt like a really uncanny movie to watch, since I imagine Takumi doing the same thing with his timelines, going back to rectify his mistakes.

DAY 34:

//Like at the beginning of the Conspiracy route, Day 34 starts off with Sirei giving everyone the super energy drink.

//Bro is built different, lol.

//Anyway, this scene doesn't change too much from how it was in the previous route, except for two major differences.

//One: Gaku is here instead of Kurara, for obvious reasons.

//And Two: Nozomi is not present, also for obvious reasons.

DAY 35:

//Oh, so THAT'S where this sprite comes from!

//I remember seeing it in the demo files, and was thinking "How is Kako gonna secretly turn out to be some sort of horndog." And then the kinky group sex line from the demo didn't really reassure me on that.

//But no, she's not horny, she's just drunk.

//It is funny seeing the Tsukumo twins looking all high and dumb next to each other.

//Not much to report on, only that the gang have apparently been drinking all night, and I get Free Time again...Not that I can SPEND it on anything.

//Honestly, I was running a bit low on materials after all the upgrades and gifts and shit I was doing, but because everyone is drinking their depression away, and Nozomi is too caught up over Kurara's death, Hiruko and Eva are the only two who can come with me on expeditions, and that's not really worth the trouble in my opinion.

//The problem is there is very little else I can do in this Free Time because of that. Getting the resources I need to upgrade my kit, tools, and bonds using gifts isn't possible when basically everyone in my team is indisposed.

//So my only choice is to either sleep through the day, or do the VR missions, so I did the latter.

DAY 36:

//This whole next segment of the story gave me some tense feelings.

//For starters, Hiruko’s behavior is starting to mirror Takumi’s from earlier, right after he was knocked out by Sirei. She’s now putting total, unquestioning trust in Sirei, almost like she’s been rewired to follow him blindly.

//When Takumi finally brings up the secret she once uncovered about the war (the one she tried to reveal in the original timeline before Eito killed her) she doesn't seem to have any idea what he's talking about.

Which strongly suggests that, just like with Takumi, Sirei may have tampered with her memories too.

//I really hope this doesn't mean we need to go to ANOTHER route to find out what she was talking about.

//The silver lining is that Hiruko herself seems to sense something is off. There’s a flicker of awareness in her that gives hope.

//I can't help but laugh about how I immediately found Sirei endearing, but now that he's getting the chance to actually, you know, be a character, I REALLY don't like him. I'll talk more about this near the conclusion of this post, but this isn't the first sign of bullshittery we get from him.

//But while that confrontation brews in the background, we’ve got another urgent matter: cheering up Nozomi. She’s been through a lot lately, and Takumi’s determined to do something meaningful for her.

//The plan is to build her a telescope, so Takumi and Eva gear up for another crucial expedition, this time to gather the rare materials needed for it.

//Unfortunately, the rest of the team is still recovering or otherwise unavailable, leaving only Eva and Hiruko able to accompany him, like I said before.

DAY 37:

//Fortunately, this issue does get resolved the next day, as everyone manages to recover from their slumps, except Nozomi, which I guess is to be expected.

//Am I the only one who noticed that Nozomi is unavailable more than any other character in this game is on frequent occassion? There's always some sort of reason in each timeline that prevents you from hanging out with her or taking her out on expeditions.

//Anyway, Takumi gives her the telescope, and the two stargaze. Leading to a very soft moment between the two.

//I love these moments with these two. They're easily my two favourite characters in this game, and their interactions are so familiar and wholesome, and it's always the best part of whatever bad situation we end up in.

//For some reason, I feel more connected to them than I have any of Kodaka's protagonist pairs. And yes, I do mean Naegiri, Hinananami, and the Training Trio.

//I love those characters and their dynamics, don't get it twisted. But these two together are just the best and most wholesome.

//Maybe it's because Takumi and Nozomi are more Uchikoshi-coded though, like Junpei and Akane from 999.

//Anyway, the good times can't last because, as expected, Nozomi suddenly starts experiencing rejection symptoms again.

//Obviously, everyone knows about Nozomi's unique circumstances here, so Takumi goes to explain the problem to everyone, and that they need to raid an enemy base and have Nozomi absorb a Commander's hemoanima to cure her.

//This leads to honestly a pretty badass and just generally satisfying moment.

//Sirei refuses to allow Takumi to raid the base, because they need all hands on deck, and he can't afford to split the group. And of course, since Sirei has kind of bugged Takumi to make him subservient, Takumi begins to (be forced to) see the reason in Sirei's words. And the little shit clearly knows he's in control.

//At least he does for a moment.

//Takumi's love for his childhood friend finally overpowers the hold Sirei has on him, and if Sirei refuses to let him go, he will go by himself.

//Unfortunately for Sirei, the others don't accept this. Moko, Takemaru, and Yugamu agree to join him on the strike force, and Sirei is given no choice but to acquiesce.

DAY 40:

//Jumping ahead a little bit, because I don't have anything critical to report, but as we've done in previous timelines, we get to the Invader base, and fight.

//However, one thing that IS different this time is I actually had Nozomi use her healing ability on herself. As you know, in these rejection symptom fights, Nozomi starts the fight with two thirds of her health, and is chronically slowed. But I never used her own healing ability on herself to see if that cures it.

//Turns out it does, so why the fuck are we even bothering?

//Okay, I kid. I know that Nozomi is using the Hemoanima to heal herself, which would probably make the symptoms worse in canon. I just think it's funny that this illness can be resolved with the push of a button.

//Anyway, like in the other timelines where I did this fight, the Commander we battle against is Quenzelle, the Commander who flies in the air and drops eggs.

//Although, one thing I couldn't help but notice is Quenzelle doesn't really drop eggs in any of the fights against him other than his initial one. I wonder why they gave him that power, only for him to never use it.

//Overall though, we have a fairly easy fight.

//But it ends interestingly, with Quenzelle saying similar things to Eva and Addamaque. He implies that humans were the ones who attacked the Invaders first, which we do get more information on later, but more on that in a bit.

DAY 41:

//If we got back to the school to find the Invaders attack, I would have pissed my own ass. Fortunately, we're in the clear.

//Everyone heads off to get some rest, but Takumi and Nozomi hold back.

//We get yet another touching scene where these two lovebirds open up to each other, and it ends with, surprisingly, Takumi telling Nozomi about everything that happened between them.

//INCLUDING how Nozomi is supposedly his childhood friend Karua, after having her memories of their life being taken from her...supposedly.

//Like I said, I love these moments between these two...And this one is my favourite so far. Takumi finally seems to realize how much this whole thing is weighing on him, now that he's finally being open and honest about it. How much he misses Karua, and his home, and his normal life, and how he chose to put the burden of saving his friends on himself, while blaming himself for every point he failed.

//And Nozomi understanding this, even without the context is just... *chef's kiss.*

//What makes it even better is that the English Dub makes it so powerful. Jay Rincon and Leader Looi do an amazing job selling the pain and recognition feeling between these two characters.

//Unfortunately, this wholesome and heartwarming moment is ended on a low note.

//Nozomi talks more about her backstory in corrolation to Karua, after Takumi notes that the scar is the deciding factor as to what helped him recognize her in the end. But Nozomi claims that her mother also died in the car accident.

//This is a completely different story than she told before, where she explained her mother committed suicide after her research was halted.

//This is a pretty big deal, beacuse avenging her mother was the whole reason Nozomi is even here. So what gives?

DAY 42:

//Takumi suspects Sirei might have fiddled with Nozomi's memory too, which is not impossible. And the idea is reinforced when the guy starts being a gaslighting little shit when Takumi confronts him about it.

//Sirei instead implies that when Takumi jumped back in time, he actually jumped into a different universe where things were a bit different. Considering how varied some of these timelines are, I don't think this is necessarily wrong, but that...

//...combined with that fact that THIS happens makes me think he's just fucking around.

//I got genuine trauma from this, because I saw this kind of scene essentially non-stop in the Conspiracy route.

DAY 43:

//I genuinely take back everything good I said about Sirei by this point.

//The guy is gaslighting the hell out of me, and is lobotomizing not only Takumi, but everyone else, because he's so insecure, and feels so powerless to control the members of the SDU.

//It makes me wonder why he even bothered trying to ease us into fighting in the first place if he could just tinker with our memories and make us into entirely different people who become subservient with him.

//What's upsetting most is as the commanding officer, Sirei is responsible for helping humanity win this war, yet it feels like every time we've fucked up in the past, it is always his fault.

//The entire casual route was his fault, for instance. And it's only because of his shitty commandeering of the situations that we lost Kyoshika and Kurara in meaningless sacrifices.

//And the whole thing becomes even more uncomfortable and disgusting over the ensuing days.

DAY 44:

//Honestly speaking, had I not developed such an intense hatred for Sirei's actions over these past few days, I think I might have been able to stomach Day 44 to 46...But as it happens, this part of the game ended up being incredibly controversial, and I think I'm starting to understand why people were complaining about it.

//Effectively, what starts this off is Kako makes Eva eat something strange, and for a brief moment, it actually seemed to snap her out of the brainwashing Sirei inflicted on her.

//She starts screaming something about her sister, and it looks like she's about to relapse fully, when Sirei strides in and takes her out, as he does OFTEN in this second scenario.

//Which you hate to see. Especially given how much I've already grown to like Eva.

//This kickstarts a three-day sequence where Takumi is roped by Sirei and Nigou into re-brainwashing Eva to make her compliant again.

//Honestly, this whole situation is emotionally exhausting. I wish the game gave us a choice to let us say no to the idea of brainwashing her, but instead, it feels like we’re being railroaded into complicity.

//I mean get it. Takumi’s probably still under Sirei’s lingering influence, and maybe that’s part of the point. But it doesn’t make it any easier to stomach.

//At the very least, Takumi’s discomfort is obvious. He’s not okay with what’s happening, even if he can’t fully resist it yet. That small resistance in him is all we have to hold onto.

//And then it got…deeply uncomfortable. Because it's another roullette wheel game where you spin it, and whichever it lands on will be her new personality, until we get her back to "normal."

//The first time I did it, it landed on "Decadent." And...

//It got this...

//How the FUCK does "Decadent," mean HORNY!?

//Yeah, not gonna lie, I'm USED to Kodaka and Uchikoshi doing shit like this, but even for me, this was unsetelling and distressing.

//Anyway, it's a failure, so we try again tomorrow.

//On a brighter note, Nozomi reached Bond Rank 2 today. She’s still an absolute ray of sunshine, and honestly, we desperately needed that right now.

DAY 45:

//Despite all the shit that happens here, Day 45 actually starts off well.

//Gaku tried to recreate Kurara’s curry, and everyone eats it for breakfast that morning.

//Gaku doesn't get a lot of good moments after the initial time we see him step up to fight, and then I guess when he holds the festival to cheer Kako up and make up for making her upset.

//I don't hate Gaku, because he has his moments like this, and I like that he's still carrying the weight of being the one who survived when Kurara didn’t. Kind of shows that despite how much they hated each other, he does miss her.

//I was also a LITTLE happier, because when we brainwashed Eva again, THIS TIME the wheel landed on "violent." Which led to another one of these super angry breakdowns like the one in the Casual Route.

//Unfortunately, it doesn't last, but I WAS kind of hoping she'd break out and go on a rampage.

DAY 46:

//My heart bleeds for Shouma in moments like this.

//Throughout this arc, he's clearly been devastated by what Eva’s going through. You can tell he genuinely cares about her, and he just doesn’t know how to help. Watching someone you love fall apart while you’re powerless to stop it is like torture, I can imagine.

//The good news is we finally managed to "cure" her this time. She seems stable, at least for now. But even that is bittersweet, since, as Takumi says, this isn't really who she is.

//Nigou’s reaction is…a bit off-putting. He’s way too cheerful about Eva returning to her submissive state. I get that he’s relieved she’s not being harmed anymore, but his tone felt tone-deaf.

//She is still brainwashed, after all. But hey, I am also glad that we're not gonna kill or torture her any more.

DAY 47:

//Aw shit...Here we go again...!

//Yeah, I'm never gonna be a fan of THIS fight. Who knows how many more fucking times I'm gonna have to sit through it.

//This time around, we get to see Nigou in his human form during the hallucination. Which, in theory, should be fairly standard, but the moment he shows up, everyone in the dream starts threatening him on sight, which I think is really funny. Poor guy can’t catch a break, even in people’s dreams.

//Wow not even a reference, just straight up name-dropping the character.

//Also, Eva is here too, and in the dream sequence, she basically confirms that she is an alien. Though in the sequence the Artificial Satellite is her spaceship, so I'm not sure if that's meant to suggest something.

//The way this event pans out this time around is similar, but still different. So, apparently, due to her cryptoglobin being boosted, Turamtammi's power is now strong enough to the point where normal human ears cannot pick up the frequency of her music, which is why we all got corrupted anyway...

//Kiiiiiinda weird that this is only happening in this route and not any of the others where I've fought her?

//But just like last time, the UFB is able to resist the effects, and goes to save Takumi. Though we actually experience the game from his perspective for a little bit.

//I genuinely feel for UFB. The little guy just wants to be included.

//Well, THAT'S a hell of a statement.

//We end up in a huge battle again. Same setup as last time: facing off against Turamtammi and Nyewgank. But this time, I stuck around for the whole thing instead of fast-forwarding through it.

//But then…EITO shows up.

After we take down Nyewgank, Eito suddenly jumps in, siding with the Invaders, and of course, it's playing his wack-ass boss theme again.

//The more important thing though is, like before, Eito has unlocked the truth behind the war, or at least parts of it. And as he has a tendency to do, he's yapping during his boss fight.

//I was actually getting hyped for a proper showdown with him. Thought we’d get some intense back-and-forth…but nope. I obliterated him in a single hit. So so much for dramatic tension.

//After the fight, in typical Eito fashion, he pulls a wild move and absorbs both Turamtammi and Nyewgank before we can.

//Eito starts unraveling the whole mystery too. Not only does he essentially confirm that Sirei has been messing with the group's memories, he even makes a case that there’s no guarantee that the people we think we’re protecting are even on the Artificial Satellite anymore.

//He also explains that the reason he's siding with the Invaders is because his final plan is to absorb our Cryptoglobin, then allow himself to be consumed by V’ehxness to reach some twisted form of transcendence, and make her all-powerful so she'll kill us all.

//Not sure why he wouldn't try to do it the other way around honestly; let V'ehxness absorb the power then take it from her so that he can be the one to kill off humanity. But Eito is as Eito does I guess?

DAY 48:

//Seeing as UFB managed to save the group the previous day, Takumi goes to talk to Sirei again about letting him get on the squad. This time, we will get through to him.

//...Or not.

//FUCKING TRY HARDER TAKUMI! MY GOD!

//Takumi doesn't even have the excuse of being subservient to Sirei anymore! He's kind of moved past that, so now he's just pussying out!

//Speaking of which, luckily, the gang are starting to catch on to Sirei's antics. Obviously, no one is willing to accept this kind of idea coming from Eito of all people, but Tsubasa and Takemaru present physical proof that something fucky is happening.

//Takemaru keeps a journal/diary, and in it, he notes that he went to talk to Eva about something, which he has no memory of doing. He most likely heard something critical from her, and Sirei ended up erasing it from his mind.

//When the trio go to ask UFB about it, Takumi is so eager to get to the bottom of this, he almost lets himself get eaten by the Undying Flames in order to get his attention.

//Side note, the English Dub lines don't match with the English text. Not a big deal, but it's weird that this is the only time in the game so far that this has happened.

//Unfortunately, UFB doesn't have any idea about the process. But even though we don't get definitive answers about the memory tampering, the group agrees to discuss amongst themselves about letting UFB join the team.

DAY 49:

//Leading on from that, the group all gather in the cafeteria, and it's time to do something that we haven't done for a while now. The negotiation minigame.

//On Sirei of all people.

//There is actually some funny dialogue exchanges in this scene. Namely:

Gaku: H-Hey, if you guys shut me down like that, it makes me sound like a dick... Takumi (internally): You are kind of a dick.

Kako: Maybe if we figure out his weakness, we can negotiate.

Ima: What an annoying little mini game. I want no part of it. Gaku: We can just make Takumi do it. He's team leader. Takumi: I was already planning on it...But the least you could do is not say it like that...

//The interesting thing is throughout the day, we actually get multiple different gift ideas for Sirei, though I don't imagine any of them really work.

//The three gifts are a gun, a bottle of wine, and a globe. I gave him the wine bottle, and while it seemed like he was taking the bait, he ended up smashing it.

//As if he couldn't get any more annoying.

DAY 50:

//So, you might not remember, but in the original timeline, when we got to Day 50, Sirei suggested that he had a gift prepared for the rest of the group in the cafeteria. But obviously, because Sirei was dead by that point, we never got to see it.

//Now though, we do. But it turns out it was just a couple of dingy little badges.

//Classic bait-and-switch for these types of games.

//HOWEVER, the cafeteria meeting does yield interesting results.

//Largely the reason why Sirei refuses to let the UFB be part of the team is because in his eyes, he is not a living being, and doesn't deserve to be treated as such. He exists purely to be a weapon, and has no human rights.

//However, Nigou reveals that despite Sirei's words, the opposite is very much true. Because part of his duty has been to protect the UFB, and because they've spent so much time together, Sirei has so much familiarity with the child that he's come to view him as a sort of son, and cares about him more than he lets on.

//The reason he is so obstinate about this is because, as an AI, he doesn't want his own feelings to sabotage the mission.

//Nigou helps Takumi create a photo album made of memory banks shared between him and Sirei, and Takumi gifts it to the Commanding Officer, finally initiating the minigame.

//And...to be honest, I get that this is supposed to be a serious, passionate moment of depth for Sirei or whatever, but honestly, it just came across as really silly to me.

//The good news is that Sirei becomes willing to compromise, and asks Takumi to make a deal.

//To be honest, it's not a very good deal, but Takumi is willing to bend to it if it gives UFB the chance he needs to achieve his desire to have friends and classmates. Effectively, he says that if Takumi and the others agree to stop poking into the matter about their missing or manipulated memories, he'll try to pull some strings to make it happen.

//Takumi does tell Sirei to stop doing the memory manipulation though. Whether or not he will comply with that counteroffer remains to be seen.

DAY 52:

//The UFB arrives at Takumi's room and uses the door like a normal person, which somehow scares Takumi way more than the way he usually appears, which I think is funny.

//Anyway, Takumi takes the boy to the cafeteria to finally meet everyone properly, and they begin to introduce themselves.

//I don't remember if this was brought up before, because I genuinely don't remember, but apparently, when the Undying Flames boy fires off the final attack, his body will be burnt up by his own Undying Flames, and he will die.

//Granted, he DID die in other timelines. Like, I remember him doing so in the Retsnom Route when we used his final attack on V'ehxness. But I thought that was just him overusing his power and his avatar disappearing. The final attack does still kind of happen.

//Which is sad, and unfortunate that it took until Day 50 to finally turn Sirei's thinking about it around. Because now we only have 48 days or so to get to know this dude and become friends with him.

//We get another choice here, for Takumi to make a judgement call. Letting the boy join the team or not.

//Now, this is a weird choice considering the efforts we went through to actually get him to this point where he's meeting the others, and it feels too cold to turn him down. So I ultimately decided to let him on the squad.

//I guess the whole reason why is because if the boy joins the group, chances are our fights will get longer and harder, because we won't be as prepared defensively. Keeping him where he is means we'll be safer and more secure, but like...I couldn't do him like that.

//What's even better news is that now we're at this point, UFB finally gets a name, meaning I don't have to call him ghost boy or UFB anymore. And that name is...

//Honestly speaking, I expected the boys name to be Hie or Hono or something like that, since it's Japanese for fire or flame. But I did a google search, and this does kind of make sense.

//Shion in Japanese is spelled 志音, made from the kanji for "will/purpose" (志) and "sound" (音)

//So effectively, it's eluding to the fact that he is humanity's voice incarnate, since he's the reason we're going to win this war against the Invaders.

//Things seem to be looking up...but even with Shion on the squad now, things don't end to brightly.

//Takemaru doesn't take kindly to the deal Takumi made with Sirei. Obviously, Takumi doesn't like it too much either, but he only went with it because he had Shion's best interests in mind.

//Meaning Takemaru is most likely going to take matters into his own hands.

DAY 53:

//As was sort of to be expected, Takemaru didn't show up for the morning meeting, but neither did Gaku. Meaning the two of them were likely plotting something.

//That aside, Shion is now available during Free Time events. He can't be given gifts, and he's not in the report card, but he does have his own bonding events that can be unlocked through talking to him.

DAY 54:

//This kind of just continues on from the effects of the previous two days. Only that Yugamu starts acting a little bit sus now.

//This isn't part of the plot, but I spent some time with Kako today in the library, and there was a kind of sad event, which is pretty rare. In short, she was talking about ghosts, and said she wanted to see her parents again as ghosts.

//Speaking of Kako and her brother, she and Ima believe that Gaku is acting really on edge, even for him, and they believe that someone is goading him into believing what Eito said about everyone's families not being safe on the Artificial Satellite.

//Strange though, since there doesn't appear to be anyone outwardly having a reason to do so.

//And they really want to emphasize this because they play the same flashback sequence twice in quick succession? Like...yeah, game, I get it!

//Takumi, you've had HALF A WEEK to take the initiative! Just fucking do it! Stop stalling!

DAY 56:

//This day was quite possibly the most tense in the story so far.

//In the morning, Gaku somehow hijacks the school announcement system, and tells everyone he's going to force Sirei to contact the Artificial Satellite, no matter what it takes, and tells everyone to head to the Gym if they want answers.

//Everyone rushes over, but it doesn't go down well. Sirei is nowhere to be seen, and for some reason, without ANY proof, OR indication, Gaku, Takemaru, and Moko blame Takumi for siding with Sirei, and fucking ATTACK HIM and the others.

//This time though, it's not shitty writing that's to blame for the characters acting up for no reason. But we do get a cool sequence here before the fight, where we get a transformation sequence from GAKU'S perspective, IMMEDIATELY followed up by the same sequence from Takumi and his group.

//I wasn't expecting Gaku of all characters to have his own version of the cutscene. Eito and Nozomi did make sense, at least.

//Anyway, we get a fight here. It's not too difficult, especially because Moko, Gaku, and Takemaru ain't got nothing on Takumi's team which is himself, Nozomi, Hiruko, Tsubasa, and Shouma. With just three of them, they're very easily beatable.

//I like the idea of Takumi using his super powered Azure Blitz on them to get them to shut up though.

//ANYway, after being defeated, Takemaru and the others calm down, and the truth comes to light. As it so happens, Yugamu was taking advantage of their already tense feelings, then used drugged snacks to strengthen those feelings until they were sent spiralling into a pit of fear and doubt, which led to them attacking the others.

//All of this was to create the perfect distraction to allow Yugamu to capture Sirei and get answers out of him. And he's able to do so by performing surgery on himself and removing the bomb from inside his chest.

//The reason he did this is because Yugamu himself is concerned about Eito's words, and doesn't think it's wise to outright dismiss them. Especially since Sirei has been especially shady.

//He goes on to explain that he had a "loved one" back on the Artificial Satellite. Someone that he promised he would kill one day when not tied down by his family's work. And if there's any indication that that person may not still be alive, then he wants answers, if nothing else.

//Nigou and the others manage to persuade Yugamu to release Sirei by explaining that, even if Sirei wanted to contact the Artificial Satellite, the classified nature of his mission prevents him from doing so easily.

//Though Takumi eventually convinces Yugamu to let Sirei go, the assassin still demands answers. Sirei finally complies and reveals the truth.

//He explains that his entire existence is dedicated to fulfilling his mission. To do that, he needs not only the intelligence to follow his programming but also the flexibility to adapt to unexpected situations.

//As he puts it, his consciousness is shaped by "the will of humanity."

//To make the best possible decisions for the human race, Sirei has been programmed with simulations of humanity’s collective thought patterns. Every time he faces a choice, he runs these simulations to reach an unbiased outcome. In other words, he arrives at decisions by effectively running a virtual majority vote based on all of humanity’s perspectives.

//Since the mission is critical to humanity's future, it's only logical that it reflects the will of the species as a whole. And because the mission is classified, and he doesn’t have the luxury of asking each person individually, he relies on these internal simulations to determine the consensus.

//This process can take time, which is why he sometimes vanishes for long stretches. Additionally, to keep the mission free from individual bias, Sirei is unable to follow orders from any single person.

//Which is really interesting and also...

A LOAD OF CRAP!

//I'm sorry, I GET that humanity are not ever presented as being a righteous species in this story. But you CANNOT convince me that all of the terrible shit Sirei did is based around what the majority of the human race would do!

//If this is consistent throughout the different timelines, my suspension of disbelief will not account for an entire race of people thinking it's okay to:

Brainwash people, and in one outcome, to the point where one becomes disillusioned with reality.

Not allow ANY sort of contact with the characters and their homes.

Commit war crimes on these level (largely with Eva)

KIDNAP a bunch of LITERAL CHILDREN!

Make said children FIGHT in a WAR!

//And SO much more!

//What makes it even more stupid is quite LITERALLY in the same breath, Sirei and Nigou admit that the mission is confidential, and only a select few people on the Satellite know about it.

//THEN THAT'S JUST NOT FAIR!

//I GUARANTEE you that if humankind knew about what was going on, the results would be VERY different!

//OF COURSE humanity aren't allowing contact with the Artificial Satellite. Humanity don't even know we're FUCKING DOWN HERE!

//It's honestly infuriating that people can look at this and NOT see a very blatant problem with this system. It's not only nonsensical, but it's egrigiously self-destructive!

//Of course, I don't blame Takumi and the others for leaving things at that, because...how the fuck do you even RESPOND to something like that?

DAY 57:

//Alright then. THIS is the point where things start to get kinda nutty, so prepare yourselves.

//The next enemy attack happens today, and the Invaders are once again joined by Eito, but this time, the fight is a little bit different.

//But if there's one thing that's the same, it's that it's yet another Eito fight where the guy just does not stop talking throughout the whole thing. And this time, it's a back-and-forth with Sirei.

//Side note, just in case I forget to bring it up later, this is another part of the game where Sirei really kind of got on my nerves, because he doesn't justify himself AT ALL during this back and forth. Eito plants the ideas of doubt into everyone's heads about what he really found out about the war, and goes into detail explaining when and how he discovered it, even if he doesn't drop the whole truth immediately.

//And Sirei only responds by saying effectively "He's lying, shut up, fight."

//Does he WANT me to be on his side or not?

//Also, Eito does tell all the revelations he discovered during the fight, but it's hard to keep track of them all. He does give on major hint, where he mentions that Earth died a long time ago, and there's more to World Death than we know.

//The more important thing here is that this is a fight against Zen'ta, the commander who can copy people's appearance, and who did so to Moko in the original timeline. This time, however, she seems to do it for Eito, suggesting that the real Eito Aotsuki was killed and replaced with her.

//This is not the case. Eito is still in this fight; he's simply hidden among a mess of clones.

//In order to defeat them all swiftly, we use the same ability that was used previously at the end of the Retsnom Route with Shion putting all his power into a final explosion to take the enemies down.

//Which...is confusing.

//I know that Shion is effectively on the team now, but if I rememeber correctly, didn't using this attack kill him in that timeline? That, coupled with how this fight ends, should really have been the end of the guy.

//Speaking of flames and Ultimate Moves though, I've noticed that almost every time I've fought Eito after the initial final boss of Route 0, I've always unintentionally finished him off using Takumi's Azure Blitz.

//I think I'm gonna try and keep that trend going ;)

//But after Eito and Zen'ta are defeated, the final scene of this day is RIPE with plot twists.

//Firstly, much like he did to Turamtammi and Nyewgank, Eito absorbs Zen'ta before any of us have a chance to, but then V'ehxness shows up to absorb him, just like he planned for. But BEFORE he has a chance to, he tries to drop lore on the war, only for Sirei to suddenly dash down into the field, because he's desperate to cockblock the group from any of the answers.

//But in doing so, he almost gets taken out by Zen'ta, still holding together a form of Eito. But before Sirei can get merced, Nigou jumps in the way of the attack, and dies in his place.

//Which after everything I've had to suffer through with Nigou, the only thing that makes me sad is that Eva was made to watch a character who, in a odd and sketchy kind of way, did try to keep her safe.

//Like I said, after that, Eito absorbs Zen'ta, which heals all his injuries and fatigue, and then V'ehxness appears to absorb him. V'ehxness manages to get MOST of Eito's power, but before she can get all of it, Shion dive-bombs into the battlefield to rescue him.

//As a side twist, it's revealed in this moment that Eva is actually V'ehxness's sister.

//She really IS Mukuro, huh? Secret 16th party member, sister's with the megalomaniacal main villain, is originally an enemy to the party, etc. The list kinda just goes on.

//And as she...seems to have a habit of doing to be honest, V'ehxness decides to leave her final attack for later, so she can once again spend some time recovering from her injuries, and also to give Shion a chance to recover from his.

//This day ends with another choice, with Eito now at our mercy and somewhat crippled by V'ehxness - to either kill him or spare him, much like the first choice that was made after Takumi jumped back in time.

//As you can imagine, there is no way I am killing this fuck, no matter how much he might deserve it. Takumi justifies the reason being he doesn't want to kill another human being, but I personally just want to hear him finish what he was saying.

//And I don't give a damn what Sirei says. He can't be trusted any more than Eito can.

DAY 58:

//Everyone gathers in the courtyard the next morning to hear what Eito has to say, with Eva carrying around the destroyed carcass of Nigou, which makes me a little sad tbh.

//As expected, Sirei does basically EVERYTHING he possibly can to stop Eito from talking, endlessly nattering on about how everything Eito says is a lie, and when Eito finally starts dropping the truths, he even clams up and refuses to affirm what he says, which isn't earning him any brownie points.

//But thankfully, Shion interjects and blackmails Sirei at the right moment, saying he'll have the SDU members break into the defense room and kill him if he doesn't answer their questions, so Sirei is given no choice but to bend, leading to him and Eito finally dropping the big reveal...

//At least...the first one, because there seems to be even more to the story that I don't know yet.

//Mad respect for Shion though. I feel like ever since he's been getting more screen time, he's really become a great character.

//The major plot twist in this game centers around a single, crucial detail that was deliberately kept from the characters for these 158 days. When this truth is finally revealed, it completely reshapes our understanding of the story.

//That key detail...is that we are NOT on Planet Earth.

//Throughout the game, everyone believes the Tokyo Residential Complex is an underground shelter on Earth, built to shield the last remnants of humanity from the apocalyptic event known as World Death. Shion was supposedly sent to Earth to eliminate the Invaders—monsters thought to be Earth's final threat to humanity—while the rest of the Special Defense Unit protected him at the Last Defense Academy until the weapon could be deployed. Meanwhile, the remainder of the human population supposedly escaped the planet and relocated to an Artificial Satellite to avoid the fallout.

//But the reality is far more complex. While World Death DID trigger the war, Earth itself was destroyed long ago, ompletely devoid of life, and likely no longer even exists. The damage was catastrophic, far worse than the devastation seen outside the fire barrier.

//In fact, Sire's EXACT words are that Earth was "on the verge of exploding."

//In truth, humanity had spent generations constructing the Artificial Satellite as a means of leaving Earth entirely. THAT part, at least, remains true, but not in the way that everyone expected.

//The Exodus Project, which everyone believed was an evacuation plan to survive the war, was actually a mission to abandon the real Earth and find a new world for what was left of humanity. As it turns out, the Tokyo Residential Complex where the SDU lived has always been located on the Artificial Satellite. Meaning this is where we ACTUALLY were at the beginning of the game.

//During the Satellite’s construction, humanity also searched for a suitable replacement for Earth, and they eventually discovered one.

//This new planet, known as KXK-787, or as Eito and the Invaders refer to it...Futurum.

//Which is...a little on the nose, but hey, I'm not complaining.

//The planet is strikingly similar to Earth. It's in a life-supporting zone, covered mostly in water, and has all the right conditions for human habitation.

//That’s where we are now. Not Earth. Futurum.

//One of the main reasons so little is known about Earth within the Tokyo Residential Complex is because humanity left it behind centuries, possibly even millennia ago; long before Takumi and his friends were ever born. Sirei explains that the SDU weren’t told the truth because it was considered too abstract and disconnected from their reality, which would only confuse or destabilize them.

//Which I'm gonna have to call bullshit on, even if I do kind of get it? If you ask me, Hemoanima, Shion, the Invaders, World Death, and almost everything else that came before this is far more complicated and otherworldly than even space travel. At least sci-fi is a genre that's been confirmed to exist in this world. And yet those concepts are the one's that Sirei spends the least amount of time explaining, because understanding it any more than we do would be "pointless."

//As I've said before, there was also an underlying desire among some humans to bury the past and avoid facing the guilt of destroying their home world, but more critically, after humanity's departure from Earth, internal divisions began to form.

//Some factions believed humanity should return and face the consequences rather than flee. This ideological clash nearly led to civil war, prompting leaders to restrict access to knowledge about Earth and the Artificial Satellite. As a result, most civilians were left in the dark.

//I really appreciate this twist because we’ve already seen evidence of it! This idea is pretty much what the Conspiracy Route revolves around, with the Anti-Exodus faction and Gotou. It’s satisfying that the primary route reveals this later, giving us new insight and a clearer explanation for earlier events.

//Still, despite all the time, effort, and sacrifice poured into the Exodus Project and the journey to Futurum, humanity made a critical error: Futurum, while eerily similar to Earth, was already inhabited by an intelligent species. One with its own society, history, and belief systems.

//That species is V'ehxness and what we’ve come to know as the School Invaders. In actuality, they're their own species of intelligent lifeforms called "futurans." Not creations of World Death AT ALL.

//Initially, humans tried to communicate and negotiate with the futurans, but remember, the only reason Takumi and the others can even understand them now is because of the Hemoanima, which allows for some level of translation. Without that bridge, misunderstandings led to conflict, which escalated into full-scale war.

//The real challenge for humanity was that, while they held the technological edge, the futurans possessed a unique biological advantage. Occasionally, individuals were born with a rare type of blood that granted them immense power in combat, so overwhelming that even humanity’s most advanced weapons were rendered useless against them.

//You've probably already guessed it, but that special power is Hemoanima, or Cryptoglobin, which the Enemy Commander's have. That's why they're heralded as heroes in their culture.

//The Commanders; V'ehxness, Eva, and the others; are seen as divine champions by the futurans, chosen by the god they worship. Humanity’s advanced weaponry was completely ineffective against them, and for generations, people struggled to overcome these powerful defenders. No matter how much effort was put in, humans simply couldn’t overpower them or claim the planet.

//V’ehxness, while undoubtedly driven by her own dark motives and goals, stands apart from the rest of the Commanders. The others aren’t malicious; they’re simply defending their homeland, fighting for survival against what they perceive as an alien invasion...just as the SDU believed they were doing all along.

//The ruins outside the school aren’t the result of World Death. They were once vibrant cities filled with ordinary futurans. It was the battles fought when futurans were forced to protect themselves from human aggression that reduced them to rubble and forced evacuations.

//In summary, from the very beginning, humans and the members of the SDU are the REAL invaders. Humanity struck first, making the futurans view the SDU as extraterrestrial enemies bent on wiping them out and taking their world.

//And the SDU does NOT handle this revelation well.

//To his credit, Sirei doesn’t try to justify or deny humanity’s actions. He admits it’s a war of conquest, plain and simple, but insists it’s a war born out of necessity.

//The Artificial Satellite was never meant to be a permanent solution. Its systems are deteriorating, and its limited resources are running out. Over the years, the population has dwindled drastically, and humanity is quite literally running out of time.

//Sirei explains that he kept the truth from the SDU because the vast majority of people aboard the Artificial Satellite have no idea a war is even taking place, let alone that the SDU has been deployed on a mission to secure a future for the species. Only high-ranking officials in the government and military know.

//Because of fucking course they do.

//Life on the satellite is already confined and grim, so adding the burden of war would have pushed the population over the edge. The only public clue that anything is wrong is the emergency alert system in the TRC that warns of attacks.

//Then there’s the truth behind Last Defense Academy.

//The school is actually a disguised spacecraft, deployed from the satellite and doubling as a planet-killing weapon. Takumi and the others were placed aboard and sent to Futurum alongside Shion. When they landed, Shion ignited the Undying Flames around the building to shield it as he charged up the energy needed to activate the weapon.

//The reason it looks like a school is because Shion always wanted to attend one, and to live like a normal kid. And since he’s the cornerstone of humanity’s potential victory, they granted him that symbolic wish.

//It also helped that only young people around Shion’s age were physically compatible with Cryptoglobin transfusion, so the school concept made practical sense, too.

//On the topic of Hemoanima/Cryptoglobin, it originally came from Futurum. Only those with this unique blood could harm others who carried it. Desperate to turn the tide, humanity began experimenting with the substance until they were handed an opportunity they couldn’t ignore.

//A child was born on Futurum with unimaginable power. So much so that the futurans believed he was a divine figure, calling him "The Second Coming." In a horrific act of desperation, humanity kidnapped the boy.

//That child…was Shion.

//And this is arguably the darkest twist of all. Shion is a native futuran, abducted and used as a weapon to annihilate his own people and destroy the very planet he was born on. Also, his presence allowed human scientists to make rapid progress in Cryptoglobin research, ultimately enabling Takumi and the others to receive successful transfusions.

//Which brings us to the present: the SDU has landed on Futurum, accompanied by the kidnapped "Second Coming," with the express purpose of wiping out the native population and taking their world for themselves.

//Tragically, this war has raged for almost as long as it took for humanity to even discover Futurum. At this point, diplomacy is impossible. The SDU has already killed multiple revered Commanders, and absorbed their powers, meaning the damage is done.

//There’s no turning back now, for either race.

//This is an interesting thing Sirei says here that I want to draw attention to, since he uses it to kind of justify the case he makes for not only fighting a war of aggression against this innocent alien species, but also for lying to the SDU's members.

//He follows this up by adding that "righteousness belongs to the winner."

//Which is sad...and also kind of true.

//There's an old saying that "History is Written by Victors." It doesn't necessarily mean the same, but it's put in a similar context.

//I have admittedly mixed feelings on this justification, because while I do somewhat agree with it, I feel the need to point out that when you look at the humans and the futurans, the humans are shown to be FAR FAAAAR more destructive!

//Humanity's invasion of Futurum isn’t driven by malice, but by necessity. And yet, this desperation doesn’t absolve them, only deepening the tragedy. So far, humanity has:

Rendered their own home planet uninhabitable, then abandoned it.

Suppressed historical information about Earth and the Artificial Satellite to avoid accountability.

Initiated a war against Futurum; a habitable alien planet already home to an intelligent, INNOCENT species.

Destroyed most of said planet's surface over generations, rendering many innocent futurans homeless or dead.

Abducted a futuran child prophesied as The Second Coming, to use him as a living weapon.

Forced said child to power a world-ending weapon aimed at his own people and home planet.

Used said child's blood to develop a bioweapon program that empowered young people to kill the native population.

Sent them into battle as legitimate child soldiers without fully disclosing the ethical implications or reality of their mission.

Killed and absorbed the powers of revered futuran Commanders who were defending their home, effectively dismantling the spiritual and physical protectors of the planet.

//Meanwhile, the futurans:

Lived on the planet peacefully long before humanity’s arrival.

Were attacked for the legit only reason that the humans, while willing to go through the effort of spending generations building an escape ship, then another few generations fighting a war against them, were not willing to go through the basic effort of learning their language.

Defended their people and planet from invasion.

Revered their defenders as sacred, not militaristic like the humans did the SDU.

Were made to be the aggressors, even though they were the one's defending their home the whole time.

//if you think about it, the only one of the futurans that is in any way evil is V'ehxness. But that's because she has her own will to power that exists independent of the war she's fighting. She herself just wants to kill Shion and take his power.

//Even then, she too is just defending her home planet from humans.

//Also, the idea of their being no good and bad in this war isn't really real, because if you look at things from an outward perspective...The quote should really be "There is no good in war." Period.

//Legitimately, the only people who are innocent in this war are the SDU, and the other Commanders. The face of each side of this conflict are varying degrees of malicious and evil.

//The leader of the futurans, V’ehxness, is revered by her people as a divine protector, but beneath that venerated image lies a deeply corrupted figure. She’s responsible for murdering her own people, has abused her authority, and (as revealed in the current route that I am currently on) has committed heinous acts of child abuse and SO much more. Her crimes extend to attempted familicide, and perhaps most damning of all, betrayal of the very religion that her society is built on. Driven by a god complex, she sees herself not just as a savior, but as a divine being above reproach, violating the faith she once symbolized.

//On the human side, Sirei, the orchestrator of the entire SDU operation and the public face of the human campaign, represents a colder kind of villainy. While he claims to act in the name of survival, he is the architect of a war of conquest against a largely innocent species, and his list of atrocities includes manipulation and brainwashing, child exploitation, unethical scientific experimentation, and psychological torment of a futuran woman, Eva, as well as the rest of his own team, especially Shion. Yes, Sirei sees Shion as a sort of son since he's raised him for most of his life, but Shion is still being used as a living weapon. For Sirei, no act is too extreme if it serves the mission, but his "pragmatism" has long since crossed moral boundaries.

//And the threat doesn't stop with just these two figureheads. Eito, a third-party actor, is arguably even more dangerous. Unlike V’ehxness, who believes she is protecting her people, or Sirei, who believes he’s securing humanity’s future, Eito fights for no one but himself. His desire to exterminate humanity isn’t rooted in justice or defense; it’s driven by a pure lust for power and destruction. He’s already committed multiple atrocities of his own and represents a wildcard force of chaos that stands to push an already tragic war into absolute annihilation.

//I would even extend this implication to the other third parties we've met so far in the other routes; Retsnom and Gotou.

//I'll give Retsnom a bit of credit, since it is effectively just a wild animal at the end of the day, which kind of mirrors Darumi's own apathy for it's own existence, but this doesn't take away from the fact that it either kills or absorbs everyone in three of it's route's four endings.

//And then Gotou...Gotou is just a fucking asshole.

//In the end, while the war began as a desperate struggle for survival or a fight to protect one’s homeland, it's clear that those in power on both sides have become monsters in their own right, and innocent people with GOOD moral compasses don't get caught up in it.

//Anyway, I ranted about this long enough, but the conversation ends with Eito saying that what he said before about our loved ones not being on the Satellite was mostly just a bluff. He himself doesn't know for sure, but mentions that he thought it might be due to Sirei's memory tampering...

//...which unfortunately causes Eva to momentarily regress and murder Sirei again.

//As much as I have grown to dislike Sirei's means that definitely don't justify his ends, having him around, especially now that he's being forefront about everything and explaining his motives in full; seeing him just suddenly die was shocking and upsetting.

Conclusion:

//I wanted to stop it here, because frankly, I originally planned on having this lead on to the next few days up to Day 60. But I've decided to hold off until next time.

//Simply because the stuff that happens in the subsequent next part of the story ties pretty heavily with the next ending I got.

//And if you have any understanding of this game at all, you'll probably know which ending I got next.

//I don't really have anything left to say that I didn't already say to be honest. Just that the twists and turns in this story are getting hella intense, and slight spoiler alert, we're apparently not done yet.

//Before this, the one thing I failed to mention in my main recount is that after Eva kills Sirei, Shouma starts having a moment. He starts to struggle on the verge of remembering more about the group's time at Kamukura Hospital, and that's what's going to lead into I think the second half of this giant twist.

//And my beating heart can only imagine what that might be.

-Mod

[joels-shitty-puns]

The Key To Your Heart - Track 10

Pairing: Pedro Pascal x Musician!Reader

Series Summary: After writing your feelings for Pedro into a song, it gains a lot more popularity than expected. Ultimately it brings both criticism and support, with new possibilities around the corner.

Series Warnings: 18+ only (MDNI). Alluding to sexual scenarios. Kissing. Panic/Anxiety Attack. Fat shaming, name calling. Mentions of food, weight loss, weight gain, dieting, weighing, potential eating disorder, food guilt. Potential for puns/dad jokes (name of my blog, and the fic) should give that away. This is my first fic which should be its own warning, lol. Also some cursing. Mentions of masturbation (f). Sadness, reader is pretty depressed. Poor body image. Rude people. Bullying-ish and just lack of support? Anxiety. Age gap! Reader is in her mid 20's, Pedro is current age (48).

Other stuff: Reader is plus sized. AFAB. Inexperienced. Also has a dog, but you can pretend it is another creature probably. Further, in case it isn't clear, italics almost always are the reader's inner thoughts!

Word Count: 6.6k

Series List: Here!

Miss Track 9? Here!

Hi!!!! Once again I want to apologize for taking so long with this. I can't seem to ever stay awake to do anything. That being said, here it is! This is the last main chapter of our little lovebirds. There will be at least one, likely two bonus tracks coming soon though :) Also there's a smidge of Spanish in here from Pedro, but the translation is included in the end of the sentence. I took some Spanish classes back in the day but I don't speak it and had to use Google translate. So if it ISN'T right and you do speak Spanish, please let me know lol. Anyway, I hope you enjoy these little cuties on their first date. There's a lot, a lot, a lot of kissing in here (sorry...) and overall they're just grossly in love lol. Please let me know what you think, and if you've seriously read this far, I LOVE YOU! This is my first series, and honestly my first fic other than the one I wrote in my diary lmao. Like the reader, I am incredibly inexperienced so writing a relationship has been a bit of a challenge and half the time I don't believe the actual words I'm writing. But I really only started writing it as a way to write down my daydreams :) So to have support means the world to me, and hearing people comment/DM me saying how much they relate has meant so much and makes me feel a lot less alone, because ultimately, it doesn't matter how fictional it is, most of reader's feelings are my own. To anyone else in the same boat, I get you! Hang in there. I think there's a Pedro out there for us all. Someday. Anywho, pardon my ramble. Thank you for reading, I hope you like it. ❤

The next morning, you woke up and stretched your limbs, rolling over in your comfortable bed as the sunshine poured in through the window. At the shuffling of your body, Skipper groaned, wiggling a little in bed, nearly shoving you off the edge. You reached for your phone, blinking through your sleep a couple times before seeing a text from Pedro. “Good morning beautiful! I can't wait for our date today. I was thinking maybe we could start around 2:30 and spend the day together, if you'd like. But if that's too much, we can just make it a dinner date. Up to you which you would prefer. I understand either way. Love you ❤️”

He wants to spend the whole day with me!? And he sent me a good morning text and called me beautiful? Then signed it with a heart and love you?!!!! How did I get this man?

Your grin eclipsed your face, making you squint. If Mr. Grumpybutt weren't sharing the bed with you, you'd probably squeal and kick your feet. Tapping your phone screen, you typed out a reply. “Morning handsome ❤️ I would love nothing more than to spend the day with you. I love you too!” You sent the message before crawling out of bed gently, receiving a dirty look from Skip. 

“Alright Grump. Go back to bed. Geez,” you laughed. If looks could kill, you thought. He turned back on his side, letting out a grumble and sigh, resulting in a laugh from you. Acts like he pays rent and works 40 hours a week…

You took a relaxing shower, making sure to be all nice and fresh for your date with the man of your dreams. While brushing your teeth, you noticed he had replied. “Great, I can't wait. I'll be at your place at 2:30. :)”

“Can't wait to see you. What do you have planned? I'm wondering how to dress.”

“Wear whatever you feel good in, baby. I'm sure you'll look amazing. Probably something casual you can walk around comfortably in for the day. Maybe something a little dressier for the evening, but you don't need to carry it around. We will make a stop at your place before and you can change”

Wow he really has this planned out.

“What have you got planned, P? This sounds elaborate. You know you don't need to put in all that effort, I'm already yours ❤️”

“You deserve the world, my love.”

Dressed in a pair of leggings and a light sweater, you felt reasonably cute while still being comfortable for whatever activity Pedro had in mind. Plus, with the crisp November air, you would be nice and warm. You were just finishing tying your sneakers when your doorbell rang. 

You opened the door to find your handsome boyfriend standing on your step, a bouquet of red roses in his hand. “Mi amor,” he handed you the roses, kissing your cheek and hand. “Thank you Pedro,” your cheeks heated. “Come in,” you pulled his hand across the doorway towards the living room. Skipper pushed past you to investigate, causing Pedro to drop your hand.

“Well there he is! That handsome boy!” Skipper’s tail wagged and his butt wiggled as Pedro crouched to give ear scratches. “Oh, I love you too,” Pedro answered when Skip kissed his face frantically. A fit of giggles erupted from Pedro, making your heart swell with joy. He has the cutest laugh, and the fact that your dog is causing it was surreal. 

“You're just a beautiful boy! Aren't you?! Hermoso, igual que tu mamá,” he held Skipper’s face, kissing his nose. (Beautiful, just like your mama)

Your chest was filled with butterflies. Holy shit, he's charming. “Thank you, Pedro,” you said in a whisper, not even sure if he would hear. Turning his head from your dog, Pedro looked up at you, giving you a gentle smile; but the eye contact was quickly torn away when Skipper pressed a needy paw to Pedro's chest. Both of you now giggling, Pedro continued to pet Skipper, stopping to give him a hug and some more nose kisses.

“Alright. I gotta ask…” you prompted, causing Pedro to turn his head towards you again. “Are you just dating me to hang out with my dog?” You smirked.

Pedro turned back to Skipper, speaking in a low voice. “She's catching on to us buddy. We've been made.” You burst out laughing, Skipper looking over at you as if his plan really had been foiled.

Pedro gave a final pat on Skipper’s head before standing and walking over to you. “Nonsense,” he pecked a kiss to your lips. “I do love that sweet boy of yours,” he replied before turning his face to whisper in your ear. “But I'm absolutely enamored with you, Mamacita.” The hair on your neck stood as a chill rushed down your spine. You bit your lower lip, and he stared back into your eyes, leaning in for a passionate kiss. 

“You look beautiful,” he tucked your hair behind your ear.

“You look rather handsome, yourself,” you replied. His hair was brushed back and to the side, his curls neatly swept and threatening to break free around his face. You wondered whether he asked for help to make his hair look extra nice for your date or if he styled it himself.

Running your fingertips over his patched salt and pepper beard, your hands found the small heart shaped patches near his chin. You brushed your thumb over his jaw before leaning in to press a kiss on the bare skin, causing his eyes to close as he let out a sigh. The whiskers tickled your cheeks as you continued kissing up his jawline, back across his cheek, and on his nose before pulling away to look into his eyes.

He opted to not wear glasses today, allowing you a closer look into his deep brown eyes which were softening under your gaze. “You ready to go, baby?” He asked you, his hand on your hip as he rubbed circles with his thumb.

“Absolutely,” you smiled. He wore a pair of dark jeans, tennis shoes, and a white button up shirt with the sleeves rolled to his forearm. He looked absolutely… incredible.

While you were grabbing your bag, he grabbed Skipper's leash. “Is Skipper coming too?” You asked, confused.

Skipper was twirling now, impatient to go somewhere.

“Sure is! Couldn't leave him out. But don't worry, you and I will have the night to ourselves,” he winked.

You looked downward, feeling shy and flushed. “Okay,” you giggled, clipping Skip to his leash and heading for the door.

“Do you want to take my car? You'll get dog hair and slobber in yours,” you offer.

“I don't mind! I love dogs,” Pedro replied, opening the door for Skipper to climb in the back seat. After closing the door, he opened the passenger door for you. Such a gentleman, you thought with a sigh, getting in and thanking him. 

As the car sped along, you looked over at your boyfriend driving the car. Boyfriend! That'll never get old… you thought to yourself. The air conditioning blew the few loose strands of hair on the top of his head, and his left hand gripped the wheel, making the veins on his hand prominent. With his right hand, he reached over, holding your left in his, resting on top of your thigh. 

He really did look beautiful. You couldn't help but stare at him as he expertly drove the car, hand flexing as he turned the wheel. His mouth pursed and he licked his lips, his tongue slowly jutting out to wet them. 

Damn, I want those lips on mine. That tongue in my mouth, you thought, feeling rather warm, despite the air conditioning swirling around the car.

“So where are we spending the day?” You asked, trying to quiet the flames of attraction licking at your pulse.

“It's a surprise! But we're almost there,” he answered, rubbing his thumb over the top of your hand.

Pedro looked in the side mirror and laughed. “Babe, look at Skipper.”

You looked to see him with his head out the window, ears and lips blown back with the wind, his tongue lolled out to the side and blowing with the speed of the vehicle.

You both chuckled before you warned him, “your car is going to be covered in slobbers, Pedro!” He gave another quick look to Skipper before replying. “That's okay. It'll help me remember this day until I wash it again,” he looked over at you and smiled. It felt so natural. So… domestic, the two of you sitting in the car, going on a date, him holding your hand while driving, and the two of you laughing at your dog in the back seat. It was just perfect. Everything you dreamed.

He wasn't joking when he said you were almost there. It was only about five more minutes until the car pulled into the parking lot of the dog-friendly beach. 

Stepping out of the vehicle, you took a deep breath, inhaling the familiar smell of salty sea air and hearing the chatter of gulls. The breeze blew your hair gently, but the day was relatively warm for November.

After the three of you exited the car, Pedro opened the trunk, pulling out a large picnic basket and tote bag. “You really came prepared, didn't you? Pedro, this is really special. Thank you.” Your eyes felt teary and the smile you held was genuine. Nobody has ever put this much effort into anything for you. Other than him.

“You don't need to thank me. I want you to be happy and I want the three of us to have a nice day,” he added, pecking your lips.

“Wait.. Pedro,” you frowned. “It looks kind of crowded. Should I be nervous about paparazzi or anything?” Your stomach bubbled with nervous energy.

“Don't worry, sweetheart. Celebs come here all the time. I've come here before. If they do, they might take pictures, but usually it's pretty low-key here. Try not to worry too much. I want you to have a nice time,” he squeezed your hand affectionately.

“Okay. I trust you,” you smiled at him as the three of you walked towards the sand, finding a nice place to picnic. Pedro unpacked, laying down a large blanket before setting up the spread of sandwiches, veggies, and fruit. He offered you a cold drink from the basket and the two of you sat, using a metal stake to secure Skipper’s leash near your blanket. He flopped onto his side, content to be sunbathing with some of his favorite people.

The lunch consisted of peaceful conversations and laughter, learning more about each other despite having talked for several months now. It seemed you could never run out of conversation topics. But even in the quiet moments, it wasn't uncomfortable. It felt relaxing. You were both content being able to sit together in silence and just enjoy each other's company.

After your meal, you packed up the basket and headed for the car again to put the things away, opting for a walk unburdened by carrying items across the sand. Neither of you brought a swimsuit today, but despite the California sun, it was still November, and the Pacific ocean was never really warm, even in the middle of summer. That didn't seem to bother Skipper very much though. As the two of you walked hand in hand near the water, barefoot in the wet sand, he ran laps around Pedro holding him on the leash, occasionally splashing through the shallow water before joining close by his family again.

He would definitely need a bath later, but you didn't mind. He was happy splashing around, having a great day. You were happy walking with the man of your dreams, fingers intertwined together. Everything felt right. You weren't even nervous, despite the way Pedro looked like the most handsome man you've ever seen, or the fact that he was famous, and that you occasionally received stares from other beach goers. Instead of the usual first-date nerves people get, you just felt love.

“So,” he started excitedly, “Obviously I have most of this date planned, but I also wanted to check in with you and see if you had anything particular in mind that you wanted to do together.”

You thought for a second, letting a memory burn into your thoughts. “Well,” you began, "I don't want to sound like a total creepy fan or anything...” you added, cautiously. You kinda were, with all the photos of him you had saved on your phone (prior to deleting them before your first meeting in person). But that's not important right now, and he probably doesn't need to know that. Maybe it can be a funny story later.

Pedro laughed, that cute little wheezy laugh he does with his giant smile that makes your stomach do somersaults. Those same somersaults you've been getting since you first saw that smile on the screen and knew you were absolutely screwed until you got over this crush. Or, unexpectedly, when you walked hand-in-hand with him, like you were now.

“But…?” he pondered, looking down at you sideways, with a playful smirk and those big brown eyes that could make you lose your mind. They absolutely glittered in the sunlight right now, reflecting all the joy and love he felt for you.

“Okay maybe I'm a little creepy…” you nudged him with your side, still gripping his hand in yours as the two of you walked peacefully. The beach was crowded, but you and him, and Skipper, were the only ones here as far as either of you were concerned. There could be a loud scream and it wouldn't compare to the squealing in your mind. A firework show would simply feel like a projection of your sparks. A tornado couldn't sweep you off your feet as well as he could. 

“Is this where you tell me you've been watching me sleep through my window for the past three years or something?” He raised an eyebrow, playful smile still on his face as he licked his lips.

“What?” You squeaked, laughing. “No. I mean… I did have some pictures saved of you, and have maybe read a fictional story or two about you and your characters…” or a few thousand, you thought.

You cringed. Why the fuck did I say that out loud?!

Your cheeks felt hot and you diverted your eyes away from the man beside you, a nervous grimace painted across your mouth. He barked out a laugh, pulling you into his side for a hug. “Baby, you're cute. I don't mind that you used to read those. I don't even mind if you still do. No different than a book, right? Maybe it'll give us some fun date ideas.” He rested his head on top of yours innocently.

Oh, if only he knew the things you read.

“Right. Fun date ideas,” you smirked to yourself. He pulled away to look at you, eyebrow raising playfully.

“Sweetheart,” he interrogated in the same tone you use when Skipper steals a sock from the laundry, “what kind of stories are you reading about me and my characters, huh?” He lifted your chin to meet his eyes. You'd feel nervous from his tone if he didn't flash a smug, knowing grin at you.

“Oh, you know…” you shrugged. “Just the typical romance stuff,” you turned, facing him and resting your hand on his chest, tracing a circle over his heart with your finger. You felt his pulse pick up under your touch, and saw his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed.

“What kind of thoughts are going through that pretty head of yours?” He asked, raising his brow while you continued tracing little hearts into his shirt with your index finger.

“Wouldn't you like to know?” You winked before removing your hand from his chest. Starting to walk away, you continued your earlier statement. “Anyway, as I was saying-”

“Oh, no you don’t,” he interrupted, laughing. “Don't think you're getting out of this conversation that easy,” he gently pulled your forearm, stopping your movement and sending you twirling into his arms once again.

“Maybe someday I'll tell you,” you giggled, booping his nose. 

“Someday? Why not tell me now?” He ran his thumb over your lip, eyes drifting down quickly before returning to your eyes.

“I'll show you the fanfics I read about you when I know you're stuck with me and you aren't going to run for the hills,” you laughed nervously, only partially joking.

His playful demeanor vanished before your eyes, turning into a look of… concern? Oh no. This is it. Where he realizes what a mistake he made. Where he says he doesn't want to be together. Where he breaks my heart.

He gently held your arm, rubbing soft strokes. “Honey. What are you talking about?” His soft brown eyes searched your face. You gulped, not wanting to make eye contact, but he again pulled your chin up, forcing you to look at him. “I…” you floundered for the words. “I don't want to scare you away.”

“Why would I be scared away?” he asked in almost a whisper, concern and sadness lacing his features.

“Because I just had this huge, huge crush on you. So, I read fanfics and I saved all your photos and I watched all your movies. I spent more time on social media looking for updates on you. Just so I could see you, or imagine what being with you would feel like. Like a total crazy person. An absolute psycho creeper.”

“Baby…” he brushed his thumb over your cheek. “You aren't any of those things. I actually think that’s kind of sweet. Although, it makes me a little sad thinking about the pain you must have felt, having these strong feelings and not having found each other yet.” He brushed your hair out of your face, settling his other hand on your waist before continuing.

“Feelings make us feel a little crazy sometimes, and although I never read fanfiction about you, or had any pictures to save, I would be lying if I said I didn't take a screenshot of us that first night you showed me your face.” He rubbed his neck bashfully.

Fanfic about me? What? If that even exists, I gotta see what people are saying…

“You did?” His admission surprised you, to say the least. He sighed before answering. “Yes. I had - have,” he corrected himself, “a pretty big crush on you too, baby. But I felt like I was betraying you in a way, taking a picture of you during our video chat. I just wanted to remember your face if I never saw it again,” he sighed.

“I fell in love with you the first time I heard your song... I heard you sing about your feelings and daydreams. So… you admitting about fanfiction and pictures isn't all that surprising.” You lowered your eyes in embarrassment.

“Hey, look at me.” He stroked your cheek. You looked up and he continued. “I took that picture because I had already fallen so head-over-heels for you that the first time I saw your face, I stopped breathing. Although I knew I wouldn't be able to get the image of you out of my mind, I couldn't risk forgetting the most beautiful woman I've ever seen in my life.”

You dropped your gaze again, cheeks feeling a permanent state of warmth and butterflies dancing from your stomach to your chest. “You don't honestly mean that, Pedro.” You sighed. “I appreciate it, but there's no way. I really don't know what you could ever see in someone like me,” you whispered, barely audible. If you weren't standing so close, he would've missed it.

Instead of responding, he dropped his arms from your body. At the loss of contact, your heart sank. But when you lifted your head to meet his eyes, he was fishing around his pocket for his phone. Calling an Uber to leave? Your self-doubt pestered.

A few taps to his screen later and he held up his phone. There you were, sitting at your table in your favorite dress, with your favorite food and flowers on the table. You had the biggest smile on your face and in the bottom corner, you could see Pedro looking handsome as always, and absolutely smitten with you, the largest grin painted across his features.

At the sight of the image, your heart warmed. “See what you mean to me?” He asked, putting his phone back into his pocket. You nodded, wrapping your arms around his neck. “I love you,” you choked out, leaning forward to mold your lips to his. They fit together perfectly. Like they were made for each other. He pressed back before opening his mouth ever so slightly to lick at your lips. Matching his movements, your tongues met, dancing a waltz in exploration as he pulled you forward by your lower back, seeming as if trying to get as close as possible somehow.

As the two of you paused for air, he ran his hand further down your back, just barely grazing the dip of your spine where your torso meets your butt. He gave you a look, almost to determine your reaction, asking permission to let his hand continue. When you didn't back away, going as far as pulling him closer around his neck and leaning in for another kiss, he pressed his lips against yours in return and let his hands wander a little further down. When his hand wrapped around the cheek of your ass, you squeaked. This is new… and I like it, you thought. His whole hand fit across your cheek. His huge hands. You whimpered as he gave a squeeze, like he was claiming you as his own.

“I love you too.” He finally responded, pulling out of the kiss to search your eyes. “So tell me… what was this activity you wanted to add to our date? The one you fear makes you sound like a creepy fan?” He let out a small laugh, brushing your nose with his.

“This,” you replied, pressing another kiss.

“Kissing?” He asked, rubbing his thumb over your waist and resting his forehead to yours. “I think we've already been doing that, if I'm not mistaken.” He pecked your lips with his.

“Yes,” you kissed. “Well,” kiss. “Actually,” you pulled away enough to explain. “I read this interview you gave a few years ago about your ideal first date?”

“Yeah?”

“You said something about ‘a date that doesn't feel like a date. And

hopefully by the end, or throughout, very

good kissing.” You said, slightly cautious at your memorization, a bit nervous at the implication of what you're saying.

“Oh, is that what you want?” He flashed his eyes up to look at you, giving a devilish smirk. 

“Well, as someone who hadn't been kissed yet when I read it, I sorta lost my mind over it,” you laughed. “Obviously we've kissed before, but if it were up to me your lips would never leave mine,” you pressed your lips to his again.

“I think we should be able to make that happen,” he leaned in, brushing his nose against yours before pulling you in for another kiss. “Mmmm” you sighed, pulling away from his lips. “Never gets old.” You held his hand in yours, the two of you walking again down the beach.

“So I was thinking,” he began, “since you said you deleted all your photos, and I only have the one, maybe we could make some new photos… together,” the corner of his mouth turned up into a crooked smile. You grinned and nodded excitedly. “Please!”

Pulling out his phone, the two of you took several photos together. Some just smiling, some with Skipper, and your personal favorites, the ones with him kissing you. This will make for a perfect lockscreen, you imagined.

As you approached the edge of a rocky cliffside at the end of the beach, a sea lion barked in the distance. Skipper perked up, tilting his head and letting his ears twitch before returning a “boof.” The two of you laughed, ushering your dog away from making any wild ocean friends, and headed towards the boardwalk.

After grabbing an ice cream at a candy shop, you were so deep in conversation and laughter that you didn't notice the girl off to the side looking nervous. Slowly she walked over. Skipper put up his guard, but as she approached, she gave a kind wave. “Hi… I'm sorry to bother you. I'm a big fan of you both.”

“Us… both?!” You responded, surprised. Pedro shook his head with a laugh before thanking the fan.

“Of course! Your music is amazing! I listen to it on my way home from work everyday. I relate to so many of your songs.”

“Wow, thank you so much. I never expected to be recognized. You're so kind,” you replied honestly.

She asked for a photo with you both, and after obliging, she mentioned before leaving, “by the way, I was following all the news that went down. I just want to say I think it's cute how you guys got together and you make a really cute couple. Okay bye! Thank you again!!” And with that, she scurried away, leaving you to look at Pedro in surprise. “Wow” you replied with a laugh. “I can't believe I'm getting recognized,” you spoke quietly.

“How do you feel about it?” Pedro asked cautiously.

“I feel… okay, so far. This was a nice interaction, and even though people keep looking at us… being able to be out in public with you, to show my face, kiss you, hug you, hold your hand,” you gave his hand a squeeze, “it makes it all worth it.”

“I couldn't agree more,” he looked into your eyes, giving a soft smile. You matched his expression before his face slowly faded into concern. “Do you think work will go okay for you? Now that it's out there?”

You took a deep breath, walking a few more steps with him down the boardwalk before replying. “I don't know. I guess so. Or… I hope so at least. I've had a few of my friends and coworkers message me kind words of encouragement. So at least I'll have some people on my side, even if anyone else has something to say. But really, they shouldn't. They already know me. They knew I liked you,” you leaned into him. “So they should be happy for me if anything. And if not, then… well, they didn't deserve to be my friend anyway,” you shrugged. “But I think I might take some time off to figure out everything, career wise,” you added. Still leaning into his side, Pedro unlatched his fingers from yours, opting to reach his arm around you, giving your shoulder a squeeze and rubbing soft circles into your upper arm.

“Baby,” Pedro began, his voice vibrating through your body as he leaned his head on yours, “I’m so proud of you. Have I told you how strong I think you are?” Your cheeks warmed and you grinned. “Thank you Pedro,” you wrapped your arms around his waist to hug him. “But I don't think I'm that strong. I struggle to open pickle jars just like the rest of us,” you joked.

Pedro gave a quiet snort. “You know what I mean, honey,” he laughed. “I don't mean physical strength. Though I'm sure you could hold your own in an arm wrestle, I mean your ability to handle all of this thrown at you so quickly. Your ability to adapt and stay cheerful about everything. You just keep continuing to amaze me,” he pulled his head away from yours to meet your gaze. He smiled softly and you thanked him.

“I don't feel very strong,” you mumbled, breaking away from his stare. “You are, though. You're strong, smart, beautiful. Talented. Passionate,” he kissed your lips.

“Pedro, I love you, but you always seem to use all these words I don't feel. You see me as someone completely different than the way I've always seen myself. I want to believe you, but-” you sighed. “No one else has ever shown any indication that those are true,” you pouted, trying not to tear up.

“Hey, hey, whoa. Stop,” he halted your movements, pulling your chin up to his face. “Maybe they didn't see you, but I do. I feel all those things about you, and I'll spend every single day trying to prove it. I told myself I wouldn't get involved in romance a long time ago. But you changed all that.”

His chocolate brown eyes felt like they looked directly into your soul as he attempted to unravel your self-doubt. With a deep breath, you calmed enough to reply. “I love you, and I feel all those things for you as well. I'm glad you opened yourself up to love again.” You pressed a kiss to his lips. “I'm glad I met you” you sucked his lip. “I'm glad you're mine.” You kissed him again, deepening it, letting your tongue press gently to his and tangling together in passion before pulling away. 

Skipper had completely rolled into his side in wait for you both, between the conversation and the kissing. When the two of you broke away with matching grins, you looked over to see the sun had sunk down to the border between sky and ocean. In its wake was a bright orange sky, with pink, purple, and yellow streaks mixed in, as if a painter had gotten a bit too carried away with the paints. It was blindingly beautiful. 

Drawn to it like moths, the three of you walked towards the shoreline once again. You started to sit, but Pedro pulled you into his chest and fished for his phone. 

You gave him a confused look before he kissed you deeply and held out his arm. Unlatching his lips from yours with a pop, he held up his phone to you with a smile. In front of the vibrant ocean sunset, the silhouette of a couple shared a loving kiss. For once, it was you in this couple photo. You and the man you love.

You walked a little farther down the sand before sitting down just above the line of wet sand to admire the sunset. Pedro sat behind you, his legs on either side of you while you lay back into his chest. As you leaned into him, he hugged around your body, molding himself to you and tracing light circles into the skin on your arms, making the hairs stand on end and a shiver to run down your spine. 

Skipper flopped down nearby, clearly sleepy after a long walk and plenty of new smells. You ran a gentle hand down his back until you heard soft snores, then let him sleep, leaning your head on Pedro’s arm around your shoulder. “This sunset is beautiful,” you sighed, watching as the sun descended further below the ocean. It looked as if it was sinking deep below the surface, offering its light to the deep sea anglerfish miles below.

“It is amazing,” Pedro agreed, staring at you. “But my view is even better,” he added, and you could feel his eyes on the side of your face as he kissed your shoulder. You looked over at him, meeting his eyes, now sparkling with the orange of the sky. “Mine too,” you whispered, tilting your head to press another kiss to his lips.

When the sun went down completely, you headed to the car and Pedro drove back to your place so you could get ready for dinner. 

Pedro sat on the couch patiently, stroking the fur on Skip’s back while he snoozed, his head in Pedro's lap. In your bedroom, you searched for the perfect outfit to wear, finally deciding on a nice dress and sweater.

Hopefully the restaurant isn't too cold, you thought.

Walking out of the bedroom, you joined your boys in the living room, only to be greeted by Pedro’s jaw hitting the floor. “Te ves tan hermosa mi amor,” he stuttered in Spanish, flipping languages so easily when he was overcome with emotion. (You look so gorgeous my love.)

He gently stood, sliding out from below your dog, before walking over to you. His eyes scanned your body from head to toe and back up again, making you feel nervous. “You… you look… wow.” He rubbed his hand over his chin, his thumb grazing his lip. His pupils grew, making his eyes ever-so-slightly darker. You shivered under his gaze.

At your shiver, his demeanor shifted. “Shit, are you cold? Baby, you look incredible, but if you're cold -” 

“I'm not cold, Pedro,” you interrupted.

“Are you sure? I saw you shiver.” He stepped towards you, touching your arm. A buzz crept under your skin like a live wire. “It wasn't from the cold…” you replied.

“It wasn't from-?” He paused, the realization hitting him as he understood your shiver wasn't from cold but frankly.. the opposite. “Oh,” he hummed, settling his hand on your hip and stepping closer.

Another chill.

“Feeling excited for our date, huh?” His voice caressed into your ear as he kissed his way down your neck, pausing to take gentle nibbles on the skin of your collarbone, neck, and chin, before pulling you in by your waist to press a deep kiss to your mouth, his tongue finding yours. 

This was starting to feel natural, kissing. And you two were getting good at it together. Knowing just the way his tongue moved, finding just the spot to make you whine. You even managed to find a spot of him that made a groan slip from his lips nearly every time. Kissing him was addicting, and you had no intention of kicking the habit.

He pulled away, pulling your lip with his teeth as you let out a slight hiss. “I'd love to do this all night, but I promised you dinner, my love,” he kissed your cheek, his beard scratching your face just right. You sighed, agreeing to dinner and taking a minute step back. It felt much warmer in the room than before, and you could tell he felt the same. As your eyes drifted across his body, he nervously rubbed the back of his neck, clearing his throat. Slowly sweeping his eyes down his body, it was evident you both wanted something beyond dinner.

But the gentleman he is, Pedro stepped forward again, taking your hand and leading you toward the door. 

Pulling up to the curb, Pedro opened your door for you before handing his keys to the valet. Linking his arm with yours, the two of you walked into an elegant Italian restaurant. He gave the waitress his name, and she led you back to a secluded room where a single booth sat.

The room was dimly lit, illuminated by candles and twinkling fairy lights. They lined the ceiling, mimicking the starry sky, were it not for the smog of the city. You two walked toward the only booth, settled against the nook of a window, draped with a soft, thin white curtain covering the view from outside. Only the reflection of street lights peered through the thin drapery.

Sliding into the booth, Pedro sat next to you, close enough to touch, yet due to the curve of the corner booth, you were able to converse without craning your neck awkwardly. At the center of the table was a single red rose in a vase, sat next to the glow of a candle. The table itself was rounded and draped with an elegant dark red tablecloth.

Grabbing the triangular folded napkin off your plate, you folded it across your lap, Pedro doing the same. He reached over to you, taking your hand in his. He rolled his hand over the top of yours, linking his fingers between your own and giving a gentle squeeze while offering a soft smile. 

You looked into his eyes, searching for the words he might be thinking. In his eyes you only found love and appreciation, pure happiness oozing from his features. When the waitress came back, she set a basket of bread with butter on the table and took your orders. 

The night went smoothly, chatter filling the empty spaces while you enjoyed your meals. “Pedro, I know this is technically our first date, but I gotta say, I think I consider our video chat for my album as the first date. It was the first time I felt like I might actually have a shot with you. You put so much effort into that night and it was the nicest thing anyone had ever done for me. I didn't know I could fall for you any harder than I was, but you proved me wrong. And even though we didn't say it was a date, and I didn't have much experience before you, it felt more like a date than anything I had ever felt before. You're a real romantic, P.” 

He smiled and pressed a gentle kiss to your lips. “That felt like the first date to me too. I knew for sure that I loved you that night.” Your cheeks heated, and you leaned your head on his shoulder. 

It was only when the bill arrived that you broke apart. Though you offered to pay, at least for your meal, Pedro wouldn't stand for that. After all, he told you, this date was his idea. So instead, you thanked him and left the restaurant the same way you entered, arms linked.

As Pedro pulled up outside of your home, you let out a sigh. It was already after 9 PM. You had spent nearly eight hours together and yet you dreaded the moment you'd be saying goodbye. It was almost that time already, yet it felt like only five minutes had passed.

Though the walk from Pedro’s car to your front door was rather short, you both managed to prolong it, walking as slow as possible. Clearly he wasn't ready for it to end either. Two love sick fools, just wanting to spend every moment together.

Teetering on the edge of goodbyes, you awkwardly stood by your door. There were no nerves at a first kiss, fortunately. There had been plenty of kisses shared today, and yesterday, and the day prior. In fact, if it weren't for breathing, eating, and other bodily functions, you'd be fine having your lips glued to his indefinitely.

So with that in mind, and the burning desire to spend more time together, as he said goodbye, placing a kiss to your lips and beginning to walk away, you grabbed his arm. “Wait,” you plead.

Pedro turned, looking at you as if you had something to say, or you had forgotten a sweater in the car. But instead, with your heart pounding in your ears, you quietly asked, “would you like to come in? I’m not quite ready to say goodbye.”

The question could be taken with so many potential implications, or none at all. All you knew for sure was that you wanted to spend more time with him. What happened next could be decided in the moment.

His eyes flashed surprise for a moment. He looked at you, trying to read your face for any details in your question, then stared at your front door before turning back to you and finally answering.

“I would love to,” he smiled.

And so the two of you walked through the threshold of your front door, buzzing with new possibilities just inside. But no matter how the rest of the evening takes place, you were in love, and for once, you were loved back.

The end! Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for the bonus tracks, and once again I'd love to hear what you think! Reblogs are appreciated as well :)

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[divineerdrick]

Homestuck: Beyond Canon Up8 for July 25 (?) 2024

Well that was fast!

I have to admit I started seeing spoilers to this alerting me it was up first, but I was one of the people that got bit by the bug where it wasn't updating. But I switched browsers and it seems to be working now.

Though we don't have a time update, this is obviously wearing on Vriska. I wonder just how long she's been doing this for.

"i, wANT,,,, tO PLAY A GAME"

We could argue Vriska was already doing that. In fact from the way the proceedings have been described that's exactly what she's been doing. But of course, we know what game Tavros wants to play.

Wait . . . does Vriska not even know that much about Tavros? Like, I knew given the chance he'd want to play fiduspawn. Does she really understand him that poorly? Wow.

Huh! It looks like they actually FLARPed. I would have thought for sure Tavros would have wanted to play fiduspawn instead. Maybe he was worried Vriska would rag on him for it? He also could have chosen FLARP because he knows Vriska likes it.

Oh wow! Is she going to realize it? Winning was never the point! Tavros had fun this time! It's obvious that she was so worried about beating him and the "session" making her do everything again, that she pulled her punches enough for him to enjoy himself. He got to actually enjoy the game he was so excited about!

And can I say, it's always nice to see Tavros happy.

By accident, Vriska ran the game in a way they could both enjoy. They could both have fun! Will she realize that's why things are going well though?

She's not grasping it. As Sally "thewertsearch" realized in her ongoing liveblog, winning is life or death to Vriska. It's impossible to be fine with losing, let alone happy about it. That's been beaten into her so badly, is she even capable of realizing there's another way?

"That is quite possi8ly the gayest thing I have ever heard someone say, Nitram." Wow! Is she using gay as a slur? Been hanging around Dave too long!

Yep! We can blame Dave for that one!

Hah! You catch on fast, Nitram! And just like that, Tavros has turned it against her.

Yeah, she's not getting it. Yes, Alternia is stacked hard against Tavros. And he can't seem to do anything about it. And nothing Vriska did ever helped him. And if it weren't for SGRUB, he'd probably be dead. So what? He's just supposed to mope and be angry and miserable all the time? He's not allowed to find joy or pleasure in things? And as we saw, he does feel down and depressed a lot. But that doesn't mean he's always going to be that way, especially if he just did something he enjoys doing.

Wow! There's a deep cut. That was like all of one panel where it showed Tavros struggling with getting into his recuperacoon and mentioned how he always had trouble sleeping. I don't think it ever got brought up again before now.

Yeah, this Tavros may be pretty accurate, but he's apparently still a construct. Of what, I'm still not sure. But again, the machine holding The Plot Point was created by Caliope and Roxy. I mentioned how strong that could be previously. So Tavros can tell Vriska the point, and still be unaware of what any of it means.

"I think if a certain uppity human was here, she'd call it 'projecting.'"

She did spend a lot of time around Rose. Man. There's some real potential for verbal sparring that we missed with the Retcon's time skip.

The Rufioh comparison is actually pretty apt. The "Tavros" Vriska is expecting or demands doesn't exist. She's never thought of him as anything but another goal, another game to win.

Man, that probably would have helped Tavros quite a bit to know she's always been a mess. Vriska has never had the positive self image she projects. It would have likely been quite a relief for him to understand just how fake her bravado often was.

I think Vriska might be starting to realize Tavros is right. Not only is he right, but what he's suggesting might actually be what this "scenario" demands of her.

And now Tavros is ribbing her about playing a blue blood. I've always guessed that Vriska bought into the hemospectrum more than she let on. If only because so much of her world view was shaped by Alternia's demands.

Vriska's turning this around again. Potentially quite viciously. But Tavros isn't rejecting it completely either.

Bam! There it is! Now I'd note I still don't think she's fully listening to him, but she actually did try this time. And yeah, her realization is true. But then Alternia is a crazy place.

Fucking Aradiabot jumpscare!

That legitimately threw me! I was not expecting that! Also, more God Tier art! Look how absolutely menacing and ominous she is!

Well Vriska should know this place well, but she's probably more surprised than I am.

"m0re accurately this is the b0ss fight t0 drive the p0int home"

And she's one hell of a boss!

Vriska really did get everything she wanted when Aradia killed her, or at least what she thought she wanted.

This feels familiar of some other, Homestuck adjacent media.

"y0ure n0t here t0 be redeemed vriska y0ure here to gr0w up"

That's a double slap to the face! Also appropriate and needed.

Everything has to have a purpose, a justification. Every tool has a use and every person a role. Vriska cannot conceive of a world where anyone is enough. And because of that, she can't conceive of a world where she is enough. She has to be saving everyone's butts, even if they hate her for it, because that's why she's here. If she's not doing that, then there's no reason for anyone to care about her.

Somewhat reminiscent of a certain Narrator and his goals . . .

"light players define themselves by their direct acti0ns and understanding"

Yes! More information on aspects! Someone knows there's still a bunch of us lore and theory nerds around!

Fucking. God. TIER!

And now we're in the Quest Cocoon, sans a traumatized Tavros.

We never really got much of seeing Team Charge together and happy. I absolutely love it.

Hah! Look at that fucking echeladder! "DANTE 8ASCO'S INFERNO" XD

And that's the end of that part of the VN!

That was so fucking good! I'm so excited and spun up now! And I have to go to bed! Settlers of Kalguur starts tomorrow and I still haven't settled on a build!

But who cares! I'm loving this so much! I hope you're all enjoying this too!

[magnusmodig]

╰┈➤ 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑/𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐋 .

Hello! :D Thanks for your interest in Thor and me! This is a quick guide and permanent starter call for anyone interested in fleshing out dynamics with Thor. I'm a RPer that thrives off of communication with my potential and current partners! Talking about character dynamics, sharing headcanons and meta, and otherwise chatting with partners makes a huge difference ! But I get that starting any of it can be a little difficult for plenty of reasons. Consider this a shortcut! By liking this post, you are giving me indicative permission to: - write / tag you in (the occasional) random starters - send you asks (ic or ooc) unprompted by memes - swap discords ! (and otherwise send tumblr IMS) - send you ideas for scenarios and dynamics with your muse(s) ! You also have my full permission to do the same for me! :)

Below the cut you will find:

some generic starter/beginner plot scenarios

a list of topics and/or points of interest specific to thor

and more importantly: a dynamics call!

If you have one or multiple muses and are interested in a specific dynamic, please IM me here or on discord! I would love to develop it with you! Otherwise, feel free to use anything and everything mentioned here as a basis for starting things up with me!

𝐒𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐎𝐒 .

A short list of more generic scenarios you will most likely find Thor in one way or another. If it seems vague: that's because Thor is very specifically a character who does not seek out interaction unless there is definitive purpose behind it. So, it can be a bit difficult to start things off with his POV. That said: all scenarios listed are inevitable with Thor and WILL occur at least once. I tried to tailor them specifically towards starting a relationship dynamic or for when you're low on ideas for starters!

➤ Talk to me about anything on my 𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐠! ➤ Your muse (or an NPC) is in danger and Thor rushes in lends a hand to save them! ➤ Thor is already in the midst of, or aftermath of, your classic superhero scenario. (Think: toppling building, stopping (or investigating) a theft or missing persons, explosions, some baddie trying to take over the world again storm on a boat, earthquakes, tsunamis, etc.) ➤ Thor was invited to a party and/or team meeting and is either the life of the party (probably there's alcohol involved), OR he's lingering on the sidelines, observing everyone's good time from afar. ➤ Your muse finds Thor watching a sunrise, or otherwise appreciating nature. (ALT: he could be hanging out with animals again. He especially loves goats, horses and snakes.) ➤ Your muse may not have expected to find Thor in a library... but there he sure is, book in hand and everything. Try asking him what he's reading about! (ALT: could be looking into a magical artifact or spell.) ➤ Thor is your local cryptid and he will lug random things around (like entire trees), or get hit by a vans. (He won't be fazed... though he will be a bit irate that someone hit him with their van.) He could also just not understand basic human things. ...Or plebeian stuff, for that matter. Dude's a prince.

𝐏𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐓 .

A list of things your muse can bring up with Thor that he will be happy to talk about! (Or rather: he will responsive towards these topics. Whether or not Thor decides to divulge and/or continue the topic is its own story entirely.)

➤ Asgard and the Nine Realms Ask Thor about his home planet and the Nine Realms! He can tell you anything and everything there is to know about its culture, ideologies, traditions, places, history, etc. ➤ Philosophical Discussions Let. Thor. Wax. Poetics. ...That is all. He can be very profound a lot of the time, but if you're talking philosophically with Thor, he is far more likely to let his masks slip and let you in on how he's feeling and what he's thinking about. ➤ Loki Yes. He gets his own section (LMAO). Thor will most likely default to talking very highly about his brother, in no small part because Loki is his favorite. IF your character is close enough to Thor, he might insinuate towards the strain between the two brothers... but he might also just flat out mention it off-handedly like it's NBD your brother killed you once... And then tried again! It just happens! ➤ Themes of Family and Friendship Thor loves hearing about people's families and friends. He will speak VERY HIGHLY about all of his personal allies. (See below in particular.) ➤ The Warriors Three and Lady Sif Thor could talk about his personal squadron for DAYS. He never gets tired of heaping praise upon them for their interests and deeds. These are Thor's closest friends and he is very fond of them. ➤ The Avengers / Earth Thor may not be the closest with the Avengers but he thinks highly of them! Depending on which Avenger you ask him about, he will have different things to say. Mostly, he'll probably end up mentioning Steve or Tony. ➤ Jane and other humans of Thor's interest. Thor has plenty of human friends! And he remembers fine details about every single one of them. Of course, Thor has the most to say about Jane Foster, his human beau. ➤ Astronomy, spacetime, weather, electro magnetics and other sciences Thor is incredibly intelligent and well-versed in a lot of topics. As a member of a highly advanced alien society, he would have a lot of fun talking about astrology, quantum mechanics, and sciences. Of course, he has personal experience with weather, electricity and magnetics, so he'd be more likely to spout random fun-facts about those topics if they come up. (And also spaceships. He loves spaceships.) ➤ Architecture, agriculture, languages, and anything culturally anthropological. Thor is a cultural anthropologist through and through. He THRIVES off of learning about and learning to understand all cultures, with a specific interest in architecture, agriculture, and languages. Teach him something about your culture and he will gobble it up! And maybe he'll teach you a bit about the universe and Asgard while he's at it.

𝐃𝐘𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐂𝐒 .

The real meat and potatoes ! Be sure to leave a ❤︎ on this post and message me with the dynamics you're most interested in developing with Thor! Of course, you aren't limited to just one, and dynamics can shift and change over time. This is just letting me know what you'd like to see out of chatting OOC! :)

➤ 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐫𝐬 .

This particular branch is mostly meant to pair with one of the other dynamics, as this fits generally in an "acquaintances" category. Your muse and Thor go out on adventures together. Thor gets to cut loose and be a bit of a rebel, wreaking some havoc and getting under his dad's skin (when he's alive) whenever he can. Maybe you're with him in space already, or he takes you TO space. Regardless of the setting and time placement, your muse is one that Thor would be happy to hang out with and share a couple of stories 'round the table.

➤ 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 - 𝐢𝐧 - 𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐬 .

Your muse and Thor fight side by side, sharing battles, and stories of glorious victories and honorable tales across the realm... or all nine! This branch, like the one above, is typically meant to pair with any of the below branches, but it can also stand alone if you would like it to! Your muse could be under Thor's reign or branch of command, or a part of the Avengers or so on and so forth! At the end of the day, your muse and Thor are battle buddies, but it may take work and deliberate time spent together to really bond with Thor, sweet as he is to be around.

➤ 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧��𝐬 .

Thor is friendly, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he has a lot of friends. If your muse is someone Thor would go out of his way to check in on, they're probably pretty dang close! You're typically a good friend of Thor's once he is willing and able to give (or make) you gifts and act in service of your muse's interests, needs or wants. Because he will. Just because he can. He may buy you drinks, help you out of difficult situations, ...probably tease you from time to time. Thor is comfortable with you. Enough so, at least, to give your muse the feeling that he most definitely trusts you. And he does! ...As much as he is able to. (Which, FYI: is the absolute bare minimum. ) With Thor it takes a great deal of time and energy to pull off a REAL friendship without him somehow managing to slip the rug from under your muse about trust. By then, it turns out that this whole time, he's not actually been confiding in you at all. (Sorry Age of Ultron Steve...) Thor does not talk about himself as much as he thinks he does, or that other people think he does. It could be interesting to explore how that makes or breaks their bond!

➤ 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝/𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 - 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 .

Thor is royalty first and foremost , so having close allies/friends that Thor definitively trusts is incredibly important to him! These kinds of dynamics make your muse one of Thor's rare go-to people. And this can manifest in plenty of ways! If your muse can fight, he will go to your muse to be his backup on the battlefield (or otherwise not try to dissuade you if your muse volunteers.) Is your muse intelligent? Good with strategies? Maybe they're great with political/diplomatic endeavors? Awesome. Thor is going to use your muse's ear as a bounce board while he whittles away at a royal headache of a task. (hah.) When Thor names you his herald, then it is very likely that he sees you as One of His Own. He will do anything for you. Especially in return for helping him with his ... everything as a leader. (Your muse is also absolutely free to risk hearth, health and safety to keep Thor safe at all costs. In fact, I wholly encourage it. :) Thor can't stand any second of it and would rather die than be "more important" than anyone else, but I say thee YAY for "King and His Knight(s)" dynamics. I am SHAKING you.) On the more down-low, slice of life side of things: maybe your muse just happens to become one of the even rarer few whom Thor feels genuinely safe with. Enough so to come to your side when he's uncomfortable, stressed out, or otherwise not feeling in the best of heart and mind. True friends of Thor may manage to needle at Thor enough to get him to actually talk about himself on a personal level. His thoughts and feelings. His experiences and how how those experiences effected him. I absolutely adore this trope.

➤ 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝/𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 .

(PLEASE NOTE: this is specific to indies!! Sorry Aevum fam.) Thor is a great many things and of those great many things, he is a romantic. That said: it can be extraordinarily difficult to get Thor to open up to you, even if you're his lover! So don't expect that once a relationship happens, there's nothing more to gain from the ship dynamic. ;) Thor can do flings, forbidden romance, doomed romance, exes, unhealthy/toxic pairings, you name it. I personally am at my best writing slow-burn, pining romances, especially when Thor gets to know someone deeply before and/or during courtship, so my preferences will largely lean towards developing and exploring how and why the ship works well together. Thor works best with people who challenge him to become his best self. Anyone who can stand up to his temper, whittle away at his walls, be invested of his heritage and birthright, and who allow him to share in their world in turn are the best matches for him! That said, given past family dynamics, and borderline ridiculous amount of baggage otherwise (as well as being royalty), Thor has developed a staunch penchant for never ever sharing how he feels. (At least, not when it matters. Not when it is personal.) So, bear in mind that your muse may struggle to get Thor to open up to him, no matter how close they seem to be.

➤ 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝/𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐬 .

Putting these in the same category for no other reason than... it is really difficult to get on Thor's bad side. (Or rather: it is post!2011.) Perhaps your muse has a friendly rivalry with Thor, vying for his attention and getting irritated when he grants you absolutely none of it. Or, perhaps your muse is his genuine rival, and the two of them compete with one another to see who is truly mighty. Alternatively, your muse could be established (or graduate into being) a true ENEMY of Thor, either personally, or just broadly against his allies and/or the Nine Realms. Your muse wants to best the Mighty Thor, and Thor would love nothing more than to bring the hammer of justice down upon you. In the worst case scenario, he will show your muse no mercy, and hunt you down until the deed is done. That said: if you'd like your muse to go from an enemy to an ally, don't fret! Thor is an absolute sucker for second chances, diplomatic outcomes and chasing down the good in people. If he senses (or sees proof of) a glimmer of anything more than evil in your muse's heart, he will carve out the space to pursue it, irregardless of your muse's chagrin.

[bestworstcase]

I was reading your wonderful RWBY posts and I just had a random thought: The relics attract the grimm but why? What would the grimm even do if they get the relics? Salem doesn't control every single grimm ever all over the world (even if, I think, the popular fanon interpretation is that the grimm go for the relics for Salem)

So in a hypothetical scenario of a relic "falling into" the hands of grimm, what would happen? Are the grimm attracted to the relics like they're attracted to humans? For food/Aura? Or are they attracted to the relics for a different reason? The relics potentially being a sounds of "food" for Grimm just feels interesting to me, related to Aura and Souls in some way or something. Also if the Grimm aren't attracted to the relics like they are attracted to humans/Aura, what sort of reason do they have for the relic attraction?

Of course the theory that the relic or the relic spirits are the current form of the God of Darkness after he ascended makes it so that the Grimm seem to recognize and feel that the relics have their creator's power in it, but I'm really curious about what sorts of scenarios you could come up with on this because my brain is fixated on this right now and I wonder what the Grimm would actually DO with a relic or multiple relics?

we-ell we’ve actually seen a relic fall into the hands of some grimm, albeit quite briefly. at brunswick farm, ruby startles and drops the lamp because she sees the flash of an apathy’s eyes looking up from the bottom of the well, right, and then a minute or two later the girls all jump down and there’s no grimm and no lamp.

blake suggests that the "current" may have carried the lamp away, but that obviously isn’t the case (the water is less than ankle deep and the lamp, made of metal and glass, doesn’t float; she’s just under the apathy influence which is, i imagine, degrading her ability to think clearly).

what actually happened is the apathy grabbed the lamp and BOOKED IT to rejoin the rest of its pack around the corner, and then they put the lamp down in the muck where its glow would be just visible to the humans in the main thoroughfare, and waited there.

<- the apathy, uh, used it as bait.

here’s two other facts that i chew on a lot with regard to the relics and the possibility of darkness having ascended a la the dragon divided and what the apathy do:

grimm cannot be held in captivity, because if they don’t break free, they die.

when bartleby separated two apathy from the pack and lured them into the waterway, the rest of the pack followed and crawled into the waterway to find their missing packmates rather than attack the farmers.

(the pack then also spent the night in the waterway, which contrasts their apparent behavior in the present—we see them trying to get up into the house through the wine cellar—so it seems to me that the pack just wasn’t hunting at the time it went into the waterway. otherwise they would have found their missing packmates and crawled right back out to eat the farmers in their sleep. but the waterway probably seemed pretty comfy and safe to them before they got bricked up inside of it? nice place to make a nest.)

anyways if the spirits in the relics were once the god of darkness… and the spirits are, as the chains and shackles imply, imprisoned inside the relics… and grimm die in captivity… and the grimm are also, as the apathy pack’s behavior demonstrates, intelligent social creatures who will actively follow and try to rescue captured individuals… well!

whatever the apathy intended to do with the lamp got interrupted by the girls dropping into the waterway, but their use of it as bait demonstrates intelligence—recognition that the lamp is desirable to the humans, forethought to use it as a lure—so if i’m on target with regard to what/who the spirits are (which, ozpin: "i think it has something to do with their origin, but i’m not entirely sure" <- i am of the opinion that this is a true statement and also hilarious foreshadowing), then.

prying the relics apart in an attempt to free the spirits trapped inside would be my guess. it tracks with both the behavior we see from the apathy pack and with grimm being destructive in nature and the true purpose of destruction as a catalyst for change/growth – and a grimm that doesn’t die in captivity is a grimm which destroyed its cage, yeah?

if the spirits aren’t what darkness became… i would bet anything the attraction is emotional. because the spirits inside are human in nature—they have feelings, and neither jinn nor ambrosius seem best pleased to by the rules that bind them. so it’s like. extremely possible that to a grimm, the relics are literally just searing beacons of misery and that’s what’s getting their attention. like grimm puzzle feeders

[the--highlanders]

whenever I think about zoe being aspec it's always like. obviously to an aspec viewer there's a lot about her that's relatable, especially in the wheel in space, where she relates to other people so differently and experiences relationships in a way which she knows is non-normative, but which she can't 'fix' and doesn't altogether hate - she just hates the way she's perceived. and over the course of her travels she doesn't change herself, just becomes more comfortable with relating to others as she is, and that lets her open up more. I'm preaching to the choir here ik ik you get it.

but from an in-universe perspective the way she relates to people is explicitly down to her training, rather than (exclusively) anything about zoe herself:

which obviously doesn't negate the way she comes across to the audience! but it /does/ make things interesting in-universe, because presumably the emotions she's been encouraged to neglect include anything approaching sexual/romantic attraction. she's probably been trained out of questioning that side of herself along with everything else.

so if you want to explore aspec zoe I just feel like that potentially leaves you with a scenario where she starts travelling with the tardis, starts working through all the parts of her humanity she's been missing out on, starts trying to figure out what attraction means for her, and there's just. nothing. which would throw her for a loop, right!! she's trying to reclaim all the parts of her that have been neglected, and she's still left with a gaping hole where other people have /something/. is this something she'll never fully develop, like gemma told her, or is this just an innate part of her? so she ends up coming around to the desperation to feel something and the difficulty of identifying an absence of feeling, and ultimately to having to learn to embrace it not because of her upbringing but in spite of it.

[niuttuc]

any thoughts on Shilgengar, Sire of Famine?

I'm leaning heavily into Angels with some Aristocrats to go along with the sacrificing.

Alright a free sac outlet in the command zone is sure useful, let's see what we have in the colors, I'll mostly focus on some angels that are easy to miss but might help with the aristocrats plan to overlap the themes.

Seraph of the Scales has killer art and subpar mechanics, but an angel aristocraty deck is pretty much the perfect home for it. It's an ok angel, and three bodies in one for the aristocrats part of the strategy. Angel of invention brings the tokens on ETB, but is in a similar camp otherwise of providing three bodies on an angel.

Requiem angel is... Less than efficient. Six mana is a lot, but the fact you get Spirits even when (non-Spirit) tokens die makes it quite effective when you get down to aristocrats stuff. This is one that's probably better to reanimate than hardcast, sadly when Shilgengar reanimates with finality counters, those creatures will go straight to exile and not die to trigger the Requiem Angel when they next get sacrificed.

I'm a champion of this card in general as the third or fourth best ramp option in white, but it slots naturally here. Is it gonna live the dream often to remove a finality counter from something and that turning out relevant in the long run? Unlikely. But the dream is there, and the fail case is a two drop that ramps you a nonbasic or guarantees a land drop, and is a creature to sac later on. The deck probably could use a creature-based ramp package anyway, with Knight of the White Orchid, Sand Scout and similar to have stuff to do on the curve before the angels. This guy slots in nicely in that package with potential synergy with the deck.

For similar reason that I say the finality counter thing is an unlikely dream for this card, I would recommend AGAINST playing other single-counter removing cards. Hex Parasite, Power Conduit... They appear on the EDHREC page for Shilgengar but they're only good in the unlikely scenario that you do the thing, bring back your entire graveyard, then have several turns when you somehow don't win but don't get your board removed either to start removing finality counters, THEN get your board removed by a destroy effect, THEN can activate Shilgengar AGAIN to bring everything back. This is VERY unlikely and unlike Scholar (or something like Nesting Grounds that just chills in the manabase), these don't provide enough normal play value to justify their spot. Stuff like Eerie Interlude or Lae'zel's acrobatics will be much better at removing finality counters from your entire board if you want to do that while also doubling as protection spells against board wipes.

In somewhat parallel to Requiem Angel, its etb counterpart. Coming in with two bodies by itself, it'll keep making tokens to fuel the engine. Since it doesn't say "one or more", it'll also create as many tokens as you have creatures when you activate Shilgengar to bring back everything. Tokens ready to be sacced and without finality counters. And at base it's a better serra angel that might even draw a couple cards from the mercenaries buffing it.

This one might not be a great fit for the deck, but I'll mention it because I like playing with it. Reshaping a combat step as a surprise is a really good effect that can save your life, and Shilgengar's reanimation is at instant speed so it could also be a source of surprise blood for that. However, whether to play this is mostly reliant on if you can leave up five mana often in your angels deck that likely wants to slam down haymakers. If you have enough stuff you might want to hold at instant speed, either to threaten a Shilgengar activation or an utter end, Windshaper Planetar MAY have a home, otherwise it'll likely disappoint.

Some non-Angel graveyard-filling creatures. Stitcher's Supplier is likely the best of these to consider because it's a 1-drop, so it doesn't take a slot on the curve you could use an angel in, one of the most efficient cards to do the job. Barrowgoyf is a really really good card in general, and body launderer is often pretty slow but can do a good job.

If your deck is aristocrat-y enough, even with Shilgengar in the command zone, you might want some backup sac outlets in case he gets removed, because he'll be a prime target for anything and everything. You wouldn't need as many as most aristocrats decks, because much of the time you can use Shilgengar. But having a couple can't hurt! Of these, Lazotep Quarry can probably slot easily in the manabase but will be very slow at saccing stuff. Altar of Dementia allows you to fill the graveyard and dodges creature wipes. Woe Strider can come back from your graveyard by itself if it gets milled or destroyed. Carrion Feeder/Viscera Seer is gonna slot it nice and low on your mana curve. Warren Soultrader will give you the MOST out of every sacrifice, doubly so if you have some artifact stuff incidentally to take advantage of Shilgengar's blood tokens. The last three are creatures that will get brought back by Shilgengar too, which can be important to keep in mind. Ultimately, it's your call which, if any, of these to include. It will depend on the rest of the deck if you feel you need the backup, if the Aristocrats part of the deck is necessary for it to do things or just an aside.

[fadingangelwisp]

Fluffy daytime thoughts: as we're nearing a big number, I'd like to know which thoughts are your personal favourites ♡

here you go :3 ♡♡♡

#4 - noah comfortttt 🥺🥺🥺🥺

#5 - noah being nervous this time. awww :((((

#15 - my brain short-circuited when i read this. that's probably one of the cutest things i've ever read. noah licking dessert off of reader's chin??? AND THEN KISSING HER???? AGHHHHHHHHHHHHH 😭😭😭😭😭😭

#17 - i loved this one so so much. noah being sweet and considerate 🥺 also flustered noah near the end aww 🥺😭

#18 - this was so sweeet. btw i haven't stopped thinking about that little plot that i came up with based on this and #17. i'm just a very slow writer lmao.

#23 - aghhhhhhh noah comfort 🥺🥺🥺🥺

#26 - i relate to this one and it's soooo lovely. getting to go on a long drive with noah and going to your favorite take out place?? sounds like heaven 🥺♡

#35 - awhhhhh longhair noah being a sweetiepie??? omg 🥺🥺🥺😭😭😭

#37 - lmaooo reader, i feel you. noah does have really really beautiful hands 🫠♡

#40 - i loveee the idea of laying my head in noah's lap ♡♡♡

#44 - i relate to this one. i love noah noticing that something is off and then reader hugging him intensely aww :(((

#45 - i relate to this one and i love noah comfort 🥺🥺♡

#46 - i related to this one so much 🥲 and i loved noah comforting reader ♡♡♡

#48 - i love i love i love. lovers supporting each other through stressful times? yes please 🥺🥺😭😭😭♡

#52 - i love the idea of being able to just sit in comfortable silence with someone 🥺

#55 - i loved this one so much. i sometimes come back to it and think of scenarios like it because sometimes life is just a lot and i wish i had someone like Noah in this thought. i do have online friends, but i wish i had them in my offline life too 😔♡

#58 - oh my goddddddd this was so fucking cuteeeeeeee. snuggling into a hoodie with someone i love sounds so amazing 😭😭😭😭😭

#60 - this one was so lovely and peaceful. i love the idea of sitting outside with noah at night. ♡

#62 - i've never really been one to collect signed things, but oh my god, if someone went through the effort of getting a signed CD for me as a gift, that would be so sweet 😭😭

#63 - i love protective noah so muchhh 🥺🥺🥺

#66 - this thought was juicy. it really got my brain cooking. the angst was perfection in this one aghhhh 🥲😭♡♡♡

#68 - ajgjvdkehdifkfudiedhdikdhchcieiehdju him pulling you against him and rubbing up and down your side to generate body heat??? aghhh 🥺😭😭😭😭

#69 - i love that noah knows you're anxious about something and comforts you. then you getting to tell him and him listening. that's sweet. 🥺😭

#71 - i love love LOVE the idea of tracing noah's tattoos and then that moment after where reader can't look at him cause his eyes are too prettyyyy??? oh my GODDD AGHHH 🥺🥺😭😭😭

#78 - this was so cuteeee. i love love love things like this. where there's someone cooking and their partner comes up behind them and is affectionate. also the way he's hugging reader so intensely, like he's missed her all day or the day was stressful and he just wants to relax and find comfort in his lover.

#79 - the affection in this was so sweeeeet. the forehead kiss 🥺 noah's head in your lap 🥺 him kissing your palm 🥺 AGHHH 😭

#86 - i have someone in my life who shouts like that and so i relate heavily to this one (except the middle finger part, though. i'd NEVER have the courage to give her the middle finger 😭) and it's sweet how noah gets the snack for reader and validates her feelings. ♡🥺

#81 + #83 + #89 - i loved the plot of these so badly and i keep thinking about it. very interesting concept. ♡

#92 - that's such an interesting premise. i love love love the angst potential of this. ;-;

#93 - i relate to that. Something happening and keeping it to myself. There's been moments in my life like that where something happens and I wish I had someone like Noah here to comfort me. 🥲😔

#96 - feels very bestfriend!Noah coded. also i feel bad for reader 😔 it's sweet how Noah puts on reader's movie after that 🥺

thank you so much for sending these thoughts. i appreciate it so much. it's been so lovely. i always love seeing a new thought from you. ♡♡

now, i have a some questions for you :)) ♡

would you ever reveal your identity? i'm so curious about who you are. you don't have to, though. ♡

would you ever want to post writing off anon? Some of these could make really cool fics. ♡

are you okay with me writing stuff inspired by some of these?

[atopvisenyashill]

i love to push it as late as possible in the timeline when i fantasize about aus bc a) i like all the characters i want them there and b) i want to make it difficult, i want to make it spicy.

anyways how do you avoid the dance? angel scenarios aka “we kicked the dragon killing, era ending war down the road a generation, yay us” worlds:

orys baratheon that shit - do we need me to call otto a dumb bitch once again for thinking anyone wins in a dragon vs dragon fight? no but i'm gonna do it anyway because there's a really easy solution here that he could have gone for and that is just offer rhaenyra the stepstones. make dragonstone a paramount seat, make an offer to all the houses in the crownlands that they can stay vassals of the crown directly or become vassals of Rhaenyra and Dragonstone, and make a real effort to include the stepstones (maybe even parts of the disputed territories) as part of the seven kingdoms by protecting the shipping lanes, raising castles and settling families, tempting young bold knights with the promise of their own seat and land, and let Rhaenyra and her line continue to call themselves "Prince/Princess of Dragonstone" the way the Dornish do. if you're not offering something substantial here with an assurance that jace gets dragonstone and luke gets driftmark (and probably a few other matches) than you are half assing this coup and guaranteeing a war that no one can win!!!!!! you dumb bitch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

jace & helaena marriage. i just think this shows a willingness by both sides to give up the fight for real, if they can agree to this.

great council called - DONT crown anyone, just call a great council, make sure there’s planning involved so that most of the lord’s agree to it already and are prepared for it before viserys kicks it so it forces the other side’s hand.

rhaenyra has a daughter first - i simply think that if viserys really does double down on absolute primogeniture, people are going to Have Some Thing To Say and it would force a conversation on how the iron throne succession works beyond “according to how i’m feeling.” this one really has the potential to go belly UP though so u win some u lose here.

technically, if viserys never remarries, it means either everyone has to become okay with Daemon (not happening, he may be popular with some people in KL and Driftmark but it seems in my eyes a lot of the pushback to Rhaenyra is pushback to Daemon) or they simply have to be okay with Jacaerys (even then, if we can change stuff enough so that Criston doesn't murder a teenager at a party, I think Laenor winds up mostly fine and Jacaerys may even be his blood).

i might be missing an obvious one here besides "gc gives the throne to rhaenys and laenor" but i think these are the only way they avoid mass slaughter.

*naomi campbell voice* these people are so fucking stupid.

[charbon-et-eau]

I recently discovered your account through Pixvi. I'm afraid to ask this question, but here goes. I hope not taken the wrong way. I genuinely like your ship art. I gotta wonder how old Brendan is, like, based on your headcanon wise? Forgive me. It's dumb to ask. (If that's the case, I tend to do the same with another Pokemon ship.) If you don't feel comfortable saying it, I completely understand. If you don't want to respond on post, I completely understand; I simply can on DM. Post a chocolate cake picture to let me know.

I've actually already answered this here. I like to hc him as an older teen. I try to reflect that in my art, but I tend to draw Brendan really cute, which probably makes him look younger to most people.

This should go without saying, but I am very much against adults trying to date 16 year olds in real life. However, in fiction, it's fair game. If fictional age gaps involving a teenager make you uncomfortable, that's valid. You're welcome to ignore my headcanons or unfollow/block me.

I just think it's an interesting dynamic to explore in fiction. And I'm actually feeling a bit chatty rn, so for anyone who's interested, I'm gonna expand a little bit on why I find this dynamic interesting under the cut.

For starters, I was a teenager once, and I definitely fantasized about how cool it would be to date someone older. Surely I wasn't the only teenager with fantasies like that, right? Of course, even as a teenager, I knew not to try to make that fantasy a reality.

I was a pretty smart and mature kid, but maybe a little too much. I matured way faster than I probably should have, and as a result, I was always very careful and never took any risks or did any of the stupid things that people usually associate with teens. I was safe (aka boring). I think sometimes I feel like I missed out on the true teenage experience by being too safe. And while that's probably for the best, it's nice to be able to still explore those scenarios through fiction by putting Brendan (or any other fictional character) in Situations.

The other main reason I like making Brendan a teen and sticking him in a relationship with an older man is because it kinda just makes sense given the setting of the source material. In the Pokemon world, it's perfectly normal for kids and teens to leave home and go on potentially dangerous adventures across the region. They can also become gym leaders and champions. I think it makes sense to imagine that kids in the Pokemon world are treated with a lot more respect and agency than in our reality. So it makes sense that the general population in the Pokemon world wouldn't really see any issues with young trainers getting into relationships with older ones. If these young trainers can command a team of up to six incredibly powerful magical creatures in battle, then why would it be weird for them to make out with an older cooltrainer behind the pokemart?

Whether or not this is a good or a bad thing is debatable. My point is that it's interesting to think about what the societal norms surrounding relationships with age gaps would look like in this setting. Also, I think it's funny to imagine Brendan's mom internally cheering "FUCK YEAH!" when she finds out that Brendan is dating the richest man in Hoenn instead of some loser collector or hex maniac that he found on a random route.

I could probably ramble about this more, but I think I've run out of steam for now. Anon, I'm so sorry for rambling, you didn't ask for any of this lol. But thank you for the ask!

[achickennamedcheese]

What they could've done with Lunar's story

Alright, so, this is what I'm gonna call the "Zak and Human" Method, because the storyline for my OC Zak mostly fits here.

Zak works for a galactical government called "The Base of Dimensions" or BOD. Humans aren't supposed to have magic, and when they do it's an anomaly, so Zak's job is to investigate the anomaly and make sure that the magical human is not a threat. This is because the most dangerous galactical and universal threats began from small, unchecked anomalies like magic humans.

Why couldn't they do the same thing for Lunar???

Okay, so Lunar suddenly has powers, wouldn't be weird right? On Earth, even animatronics can cast spells and have magic, such as Moon or Eclipse. But what makes Lunar an anomaly is the fact that his powers don't abide by the same magic system of his original planet. His powers are a different thing entirely, and that is an anomaly, an anomaly that could turn into a threat if left unchecked.

And so Gemini, the "Zak" of this scenario, is sent to handle Lunar by a higher power or a higher government. If Lunar can prove he can handle his powers, then he won't be seen as a threat and all will be well. If Lunar can't, then he will be killed off. It seems harsh, but this is all to prevent a small problem from becoming a big issue. All of this is explained to Lunar by Gemini, because honestly it's stupid to hide it and why would they have any reason to.

All seems to go well, Gemini trains Lunar and Lunar seems to be getting a handle on everything, including a potential relationship with Gemini! But then Lunar does something he shouldn't have, he kills Eclipse.

By killing Eclipse, Lunar has proved to the higher powers that Lunar has the potential to become a threat. At least, a threat to his planet, at most, a threat to his galaxy, and that's what causes Gemini to be so mad at Lunar. Gemini really does care for Lunar, and seeing them mess up like this and put themselves in jeopardy upset them a lot because now Lunar would be on the extermination list. And now Gemini has to plead for Lunar's case, for the higher powers to give Lunar a second chance. And with that, Gemini is gone.

I feel like this would've justified Gemini's anger, along with the reason why Gemini came in the first place. The reason as to why Gemini even bothered to train Lunar is so vague that I don't think the writers even knew. So many say that Lunar didn't deserve to be yelled at and Eclipse deserved to die again, and when you see what played out I can understand that! When you actually look at it, Lunar's weather powers are probably pretty petty compared to the other things that exist in this Universe, so why??? Why would the astral bodies give a shit???

In this little version, Gemini tells Lunar why they're here, what they want to do, and why they're gonna help Lunar. This tells both Lunar and the audience what the stakes are and why Lunar has to do this training thing. And when Eclipse ends up dying and Gemini gets pissed, at least fans who watch can understand why Gemini is mad. Whether or not Eclipse deserved dying, Lunar just put himself on the extermination list and now Gemini has to find a way to get Lunar out of it.

It's such a simple storyline and maybe this is what the writers were going for! But if it is, they didn't convey it well.

I know that LAES and SAMS aren't supposed to be a marvel of writing, but if you're gonna have characters and story lines you could at LEAST make them make sense.

People are probably gonna be mad at me for this or point out things in episodes that point to this little story change not making sense, and okay, I get it, it's not like I watched ALL of the LAES or SAMS episodes so I understand if I missed some things. But seriously I feel like this is a simple fix, especially when you have a world as loose as the Security Breach Show universe. For fucks sake, Monty and Puppet are thinking of switching Cringe Foxy and Normal Foxy???

[jedinightsister]

hey can i ask: do river and sid get together in the slow horses books later? i miss them so much!

Okay, I finally listened to "Standing by the Wall", so I can provide my spoiler-filled answers below. ~

The short answer is yes, they do. And if you want to get Sid River content, you may well just pick up book 7, "Slough House". Granted, you'll end up missing out a lot of nuance and Mick Herron loves killing off his characters so it might get jarring to see unfamiliar faces if you just immediately jump to that book, but I think it can work just fine if you want canon Sid River content. There is a lot in that book.

Then if you want a sort of cherry on top, you can read "Standing by the Wall" as well. It's just a short story, so easy read, and Sid isn't exactly in the book, but we get a perspective from River's inner dialogue about them being together.

The long answer is...well, let me give a bit of my perspective toward them as a ship in the show and in the books.

-

I saw season one first, got obsessed, which is why I ended up binge reading through the book series. Season 1 is probably the season that was most closely adapted as the book (Slow Horses). Seasons 2-3 had bigger changes, but managed to still capture the feelings that I got from the books.

A huge part of what made Season 1 enjoyable is the interaction between Jack's River and Olivia's Sid. I always love in dynamics when the woman is a bit sassy straightforward and the guy just kinda accepts his loser status lol 😆 so yeah, their banter was very delightful.

That said, I don't think I necessarily ship them?? I mean, I certainly don't mind it. I totally see the potential. But I'd say a huge part of the ship's appeal is Jack and Olivia. They truly took on those characters and transformed them, gave them such chemistry. I really don't think I felt such chemistry when I read book 1. Herron definitely implied certain attractions there, but it fell flat for me.

Set aside the rather lack of chemistry in book 1 though, we get way more in book 7. Now, whether Herron's writing of romantic implications has improved, or I was heavily influenced by the charisma of the actors' portrayal, I'm not entirely sure. Most likely it is a combination of both. I have a vague but effective imagination, and I absolutely enjoyed reading their scenes with Jack and Olivia in mind. In fact, I wish the show will be renewed until this book at the very least, just so we can get that onscreen.

And then there's the short story, dealing with the aftermath of book 7. Bit spoilery territory here, but I assume you don't mind lol but fair warning to those who do and decided to read this anyway. 🤷‍♀️

In book 7, it was River's turn to have his near death experience. And the short story basically has a recovering River and thinking about how much Sid's presence in his life has helped him profoundly. There's even a very notable word choice of him thinking of 'coming home to Sid.'

She is his comfort person, and he is hers. I highly recommend book 7 just to see the depth of that comfort and trust, especially the one Sid had for River.

So chemistry aside, their bond feels heavily founded on shared trauma. I kind of wish they didn't get together yet and tried to sort themselves out first, but at the same time, I kinda like that they support each other. I'm just scared it will turn unhealthy for the both of them, and that is very likely given how Mick treats his characters hahaha 🥲. It's going to backfire on them some way or another.

-

In conclusion to this nonsense rambling, while I don't ship them fully, I see their potential and enjoy their interactions a lot. The show has done massive heavy lifting for me by putting the actors in my imagination while I read through the book scenarios of their interactions. I very much look forward to the next Slough House books so we can get a much better picture of them (or who knows, maybe Mick will time skip and they're not together anymore oof 💀). I also badly hope they will manage to get elements of Sid River in the show. They've already made changes that work better in show format, and getting Olivia back would only do the show much better. Whether that's feasible or not tho, I got no idea lol, but we can hope and dream. 😌

I hope my short and long responses were well worth the wait 😆🙈 thanks anon, keep slow horsing yeehaw! 🤠🐌🐎

[joels-shitty-puns]

The Key To Your Heart - Track 9

Pairing: Pedro Pascal x Musician!Reader

Series Summary: After writing your feelings for Pedro into a song, it gains a lot more popularity than expected. Ultimately it brings both criticism and support, with new possibilities around the corner.

Series Warnings: 18+ only (MDNI). Panic/Anxiety attack. Alluding to sexual scenarios. Kissing. Fat shaming, name calling. Mentions of food, weight loss, weight gain, dieting, weighing, potential eating disorder, food guilt. Potential for puns/dad jokes (name of my blog, and the fic) should give that away. This is my first fic which should be its own warning, lol. Also some cursing. Mentions of masturbation (f) maybe more smut later idk. Sadness, reader is pretty depressed. Poor body image. Rude people. Bullying-ish and just lack of support? Anxiety. Age gap! Reader is in her mid 20's, Pedro is current age (48).

Other stuff: Reader is plus sized. AFAB. Inexperienced. Also has a dog, but you can pretend it is another creature probably. Further, in case it isn't clear, italics almost always are the reader's inner thoughts!

Word Count: 2.7K

Series List: Here!

Miss Chapter 8? Here!

Hi everyone!! I really don't feel great about this chapter, I'm sorry if it sucks. I kinda just want to get it out there though because I don't see my brain thinking up anything better. A lot of writer's block surrounding this scene. Anywho, hopefully next chapter will be better, but I still hope you like it. Although we allude to a little bit of sexual situations now that they are together, I likely will avoid explicit smut being that Pedro is a real human and I am a guilty, guilty human for writing any smut at all. I don't want to offend Pedro (not that he'd ever see it anyway, I am delusional), but I also know people find real person fiction uncomfy as a whole. That being said, I think this story may be coming to a close pretty soon. I plan to have maybe one more full storyline chapter, and at least one little side bonus chapter :) Please let me know what you think in the comments, or DM me if you wanna chat! I love hearing all your thoughts. Thank you for reading and hanging in here with me.

Before the screen even had a chance to load, you canceled the request. Nervously looking at Pedro, he held your hand under the table. “What is it?” he asked gently.

“I just realized,” you replied. “What if they ask about us? About those pictures? What should I say?”

Pedro answered with a gentle stroke of his thumb on your cheek. “Whatever you feel comfortable with. I'm sure I'll be fine with whatever you say, baby. I know your privacy is important to you, and I trust you. I'm all in with you.”

“Okay.” You took a deep breath and once again began the stream.

“Live in 3…”

“2…”

“1…”

The fans began to file in, and before you knew it, you had thousands of viewers. Opting to start with your screen covered, you wanted to give an intro first before the big reveal. 

It wasn't long before the comments flowed across the screen. 

You took a deep breath, squeezing Pedro’s hand, and jumping in. “Hi everyone! It's me… a lot has been happening lately and I decided it might be time to show a little more of myself.”

-“First!”

-“Did she mean to start a live video ??"

-"Hiii! I'm a big fan"

-“Is she there??”

-“Do you guys see anything?”

“So… Here's me.” You turned on your camera, waving at the screen, your stomach twisting in deeper knots.

-“No fucking way.”

-“!?!!!!!”

-“SCREAMING”

“Hi… Some of you might know me, some might be surprised. But this is me. This is the girl behind the music.”

The comments flooded in, entirely too fast for you to read.

“I want to thank all of you for being fans and listening to my songs. It really means a lot and I hope you liked the album. Your support blows me away, especially with what little information about myself I've given.”

More comments.

“Well, I uh… guess I should read some of these comments and answer some questions. I'm sure there’s a lot you all are wondering about,” you stated nervously, starting to read.

-“Why did you hide your identity?”

“Why did I hide my identity… I hid my identity mostly based on poor self image. I never expected my music to gain popularity, never expected celebrities to know it. Never expected any of it, and it certainly brought its share of criticism. I was scared to be in the spotlight and I didn't feel like I looked good enough to be someone famous. You know? I'm not skinny, I have flaws, and that doesn't always sit well with the Internet. I guess I was mainly scared of how I would be perceived. I'm just a normal girl who had her whole life flipped upside down when I wrote my feelings down,” you laughed anxiously.

Choosing to ignore the storm brewing in the comments below, you addressed the earlier comment. “Thank you for your kind words. I'm glad I can make you feel more accepted by seeing more plus-sized people in the entertainment business. Everyone should feel seen and have a place at the table, no matter what you look like, or who you are.”

-“I think it's nice to have more celebrities that look kinda like me.”

-“You're so humble!!”

-“You should've stayed hidden lmao”

-“Shut up, asshole. Why are you here if you're going to be rude?”

-“I'm sure you're a real supermodel behind that keyboard bravery.. smh”

You weren't expecting someone to actually feel like you were representing them and making them feel seen. You didn't think you had enough of an impact for that. You certainly weren't treated that way when you weren't famous. Nobody really even noticed you before.

You could feel Pedro’s eyes on your face, his thumb swirling circles and hearts over the space of skin on the top of your hand, below your thumb. The place where his bullseye resides on his own. Does he trace that tattoo when he's nervous, the same way he is with me? Perhaps his tracing of your hand is calming himself as much as it is for you.

Desperately, you wanted to look over at him and be comforted by his deep brown eyes, but doing so would cause people to wonder who you made eye contact with and smiled at. So instead, you gave a gentle squeeze and a smile towards the screen, hoping he would understand. 

-“Hi, I'm a big fan of yours. Can I ask… is what you said on your album true? You've never been kissed before? I haven't either and I was starting to feel like I'm just a freak.”

“Oh, honey, you aren't a freak. Everyone has things happen at different times in their life. But yes, everything I wrote in my album at the time I wrote it was true. And don't worry, I have felt the same way. Seeing others be kissed, falling in love… having the things I wasn't, it really hurts. But it'll be okay.. nothing is wrong with you. You're deserving of love.”

You hoped they wouldn't pick up on your usage of past-tense wording. Pedro, still holding your hand, rubbed his other hand over your arm gently.

-“Wait… at the time you wrote it? What about now?”

The comments were going wild.

Welp…

Your hands shook, and you used your opposite hand to place on top of Pedro’s that gripped yours. He squeezed gently, feeling the nervous tremors pass through your body, continuing to rub gentle strokes over your arm with his opposite hand.

“Uhm…” your cheeks heated and your stomach sank.

“I've changed a lot since this album was first written. Experienced new things. But I'm still the same person.”

Shit.

-“Who did you kiss?! Is it the guy in your song?”

-“Will you tell us who the song is about?”

-“Wait a second… you're that girl aren't you!?!!!! The one in the pictures with Pedro Pascal!!!!”

-“OMG IT IS”

-“!!!!!!!”

-“IS HE THE GUY!?!”

-“ARE YOU DATING!?!”

The nervous tremors continued, now threatening to cause your teeth to chatter. A full panic attack was brewing. Pedro squeezed your hand again, touching your knee and trying to do his best to ground you without speaking up on your live video. Skipper could feel the waves of anxiousness pooling off of you as well and crawled forward to settle his body across your feet. You took a few calming breaths, but when you went to speak, your voice still betrayed you.

“I..” your voice cracked, shakiness evident as you could feel tears starting to edge their way towards your vision.

I can't do this. I can't do this. I need to shut it off.

You shut your eyes, taking deep breaths, trying to ease your nausea and stress. 

Keeping your eyes closed, you spoke. “Yes.”

You took another deep breath. “Yes it was me, yes the song was about him. Yes.”

You opened your eyes to read the comments, tears pooling down your cheeks as you couldn't hold back your emotion anymore.

This is so embarrassing. The first time I show my face I'm crying and having an anxiety attack in front of the whole world.

You swallowed, choking back the full sobs that your body wanted to let loose. Wiping your face with the back of your hand, you began to read the comments, expecting laughter, criticism, and bullying. Instead, you were met with kindness.

Coming back to your senses, you gave a shaky smile. “Thank you guys. I'm sorry for my emotions.” You sniffled. Pedro was still rubbing your hands and arms, comforting you, having never stopped. His eyes still bore into the side of your head, and you knew he was struggling to not speak up or grab you fully. 

-“Oh my God, are you okay?”

-“I didn't mean to make you cry I'm so sorry”

-“You and Pedro make a cute couple”

-“Oh no, please don't cry”

-“Idk if you guys are dating but you seem cute”

-“I'm so glad you guys are spending time together when he's the guy in your song”

-“It'll be okay, please don't be upset”

-“You're amazing, we love you”

“Yes, Pedro and I have been spending a lot of time talking after he publicly commented on my song a few months ago. The party was the first time we met in person and we're still figuring things out,” you let go of your worries and broke eye contact with the camera, looking to your side to meet Pedro’s gaze. “But… we're happy.” You smiled at him. He smiled back gently, squeezing your hand, worry and sadness plaguing his face over your well-being. Breaking eye contact, you looked back at the screen.

You giggled before answering “well, I think that's all we have time for today. Thank you all for joining me!” You silently clicked off the stream, closing the browser, turning off the computer, and turning to Pedro. He grabbed your other hand in his, now holding both. “Are you okay?” He asked, concern etched in his face.

-“AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!”

-“IS HE THERE WITH YOU!?!”

-“whaaaaat”

-“SCREAMING”

-“Shut. Up. This is insane.”

-“YOU GUYS ARE SO CUTE I CAN'T TAKE IT”

“I think so,” you nodded.

“Seeing you panic and not being able to do anything without potentially making it worse… It killed me. I'm so sorry. I just wanted to pull you into my arms and end that video myself. I hated seeing you so upset.” He stared down at your intertwined hands, rubbing his thumb over them again. 

“I appreciate you being here for me,” you let go of his hand to stroke his cheek. “I couldn't have done that without you.” You met his eyes, leaning forward to rest against his forehead. He let out a shaky breath. “I love you. I'm so proud of you.”

“I love you too,” you replied with a smile. “Let's move to the couch, huh?” You asked, pulling him up from the chair. He stood, just as your phone rang, a call from Rose. You quickly answered.

“I saw the live stream. You did wonderful! Don't worry about any of the negative comments you saw or any stories that come out of this. I'll handle it all.”

“Thanks, Rose.”

“Anytime. Take care.” She hung up.

You updated Pedro as the two of you walked towards the couch. “Do you want breakfast?” He asked.

“Maybe in a minute. Can I just hold onto you for a few minutes?”

“I would love nothing more.”

He sat on the couch, you sitting next to him, before he gave you a look. “What?” you laughed. He patted his leg.

“Let me hold you.”

“I'm too heavy for that Pedro, don't be ridiculous,” you shook your head.

“You're the one being ridiculous.” He reached over, pulling you into his lap. “I'm too heavy! You're going to hurt yourself,” you whined.

“You're not too heavy. You're the perfect size, baby. Come here,” he pulled you forward, your body sliding down his thighs as he wrapped his arms around you. You straddled his lap, knees on either side of his hips while he rubbed your back gently. You placed your arms around him, nuzzling into his neck and closing your eyes. You both sighed, and he grabbed a blanket next to him to pull over your bodies. “I could stay like this for hours, wrapped in your arms” you sighed comfortably. 

“Why don't you?” He turned his head to kiss your lips. You lifted your face up, taking your head off his shoulder to kiss him deeper. The kisses were lazy and comfortable, holding each other and enjoying the warmth of being in each other's arms.

Finally the two of you broke the kiss, settling back on his shoulder, him tilting his head to lean against yours. His hands sprawled over your back, pulling you forward a bit to adjust in his lap. You let out a soft whimper at the contact, fully aware of the location your bodies connected at the moment. “Feel how much you mean to me?” He asked, his breath ghosting your ear as he pulled your hips forward again. You whined. “Yes..” you answered breathlessly. The temptation to keep doing that was overwhelming. But he once again wrapped his arms around you, rubbing your back as the two of you comfortably dozed off, finally relaxed after so much stress of the morning.

Hours later, you stirred, feeling Pedro still underneath you. At the feel of you moving, he stretched a bit before settling with his arms around you again. “Morning, baby” he hummed. “Guess we fell asleep,” you smiled.

“Some of the best sleep I've had in a while, here with you.”

“Same here.” You blinked your eyes open, kissing him on the lips with a peck. “What time is it?”

He turned his head to look at the clock on your TV. “5 o’clock” he laughed. “Guess we both needed some rest.” 

“Mmmm, I guess so,” you hummed, settling into him more.

“Good thing I brought nonperishables. Are you hungry?”

You pondered. “Yeah, I am,” you looked into his deep brown eyes. “Breakfast for dinner?” You smiled at him.

“Sounds perfect.” He pecked your lips before you slid off his lap, the two of you standing to stretch. It wasn't long that you two stood apart before you leapt forward again to give him a hug. He laughed, hugging you back. “I'll never get tired of being in your arms,” you smiled into his chest, breathing in his scent.

“I'll never get tired of holding you in mine,” he pulled his face back to look at you.

“Now let's eat! I'm starved,” you scampered towards the kitchen, him giving a gentle pat to your butt before hugging you from behind as you grabbed the breakfast foods. You giggled, setting food on plates as he kissed your neck, still wrapped around you from behind. “I'm starving too,” he replied back to your earlier statement with a growl, biting your ear.

“Pedro!” You giggled, smacking his arm gently. He chuckled, pulling away and grabbing his plate as you both headed to the table.

The two of you ate, filling the space with light conversation, both of you occasionally sneaking Skipper some bites under the table. He could get used to having two humans spoiling him.

The chatter came to a natural pause, eating in silence and smiling at each other across the table. Pedro stopped eating, wiping his hands and continuing to stare at you. You laughed, asking him what was up. Suddenly, he looked nervous.

“I, uh…” he rubbed his neck. “I was going to wait until after we had at least a first date to say this, but…” he trailed off, and your mind spiraled. Is he breaking up with me? Is he not interested anymore? What's wrong?

“I was wondering if… you'd be my girlfriend? Exclusively?” His cheeks flushed.

You stammered, dropping your fork on the plate. “You… you want… me to be your girlfriend?” You smiled.

He nodded. “If… you'll have me.”

“You want to be my boyfriend?” He nodded again, looking down at the table.

“Yes. Yes, are you kidding? Please! I'd love nothing more.” You grinned, jumping out of your chair to move to him.

He stood, pulling you into a hug. “Really?” He smiled at you.

“Really,” you nodded. “Now kiss me,” you held his face.

“Gladly,” he pulled you closer, kissing you deeply, his tongue asking for entrance to your mouth. You squealed, surprised, but letting him in. You'd never experienced this sensation before. But it was… incredible.

He licked your lips, the two of you exploring the inside of each other's mouths, tongues dancing together. The kiss was heated and deeper than ever before, both of you finally pulling away for air, him coming back in to peck your lips a few times, sucking your lip between his own. You sighed shakily. “Wow.”

“I love kissing you,” he smiled against your lips.

“I love kissing you. You're a good kisser,” you smiled back.

“So are you,” he smirked. “My beautiful girlfriend.” He gave a kiss. “How about that date tomorrow?” He pulled away to look at you, letting his hand rub across your lower back, just above your butt.

“I'd love to,” you stroked his face. “My handsome boyfriend.” You wrapped your arms around him again, blissfully.

“Tomorrow,” you two sighed in unison.

@pedrotonin @starcrossed02 @lightupsketchersperson @cartoon-garbage04 @tyferbebe @maryfanson @gwendibley84 @faithfullyyours2000 @brilliantopposite187 @hc-geralt-23 @jenniferpendragon @winchestergypsy90 @red-red-rogue @theendwhereibegin @lottieellz101 @oliversaurus @kyga01 @milly-louise @titabel @taz-97 @stefanibear003 @marantha @fandomoniumflurry @ilovemybrown-eyedbabygirl @leiadjarin @hmneighbors

Thank you for reading!!! Let me know what you think ❤️

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[aita-blorbos]

AITA for trying to get my girlfriend back?

Hi, uh, first time trying to post here, sorry if anything is bad....

I (21f) broke up with my girlfriend R (21f) about... Um... A year ago? I think... And, we... We didnt really break up on the best of terms, she... She sort of took all her stuff and left? I still dont really understand why. I miss her so much, despite pretending I don't, and I wanted to tell her... That I miss her, but me and my roomates (21 demiboy and 22m) moved to a cheaper place soon after...

Sorry, I should get back to the main story... You probably dont want a lot of backstory... Recently, I saw R back in town. I'd spent the last year trying to... To move on from her, but as soon as I saw her... I guess I fell for her again. It's stupid, I know, but still...

I'm really good at chemistry, so when I saw R, I thought... Maybe I can invent a love potion, or something... So when the opportunity arose to create a biological method of making her love me again, I obviously took it! I just want her to feel the same way about me again...

I guess I lost track of the experiment, because a few days later I discovered it potentially had affected R's sister, who's now in hospital... I tried to explain myself, that it probably isn't my fault! But R just lost it again... It's R's new friend, I'm sure of it. They're corrupting her into hating me.

That's offtopic, sorry... My question is, am I the asshole in this scenario? I... Really don't think I am, but I guess... If I am, I will apologise to R. Again, I don't think I am, but... Still...

[fereldanwench]

so since i had the tower ending available to me, i figured i'd run through it

disorganized, spoilery thoughts under the cut

so a few world-state items of note:

valerie had no romance (ofc)

valerie did the parade and saved goro (ofc)

valerie never met kerry

valerie didn't help judy with the clouds stuff so judy was also not a friend to call

valerie did have panam and river available as friends

valerie and johnny were very much not friends

i had only seen the ending with a friendship johnny, so getting to experience the rival dialogue was actually really cool. i did record the whole thing so i'll probably upload some clips from that and muse on it properly, but yeah, i love it when valerie and johnny fight. i loved being able to have her call him a narcissist 10/10. and i like that i could play her as still somewhat sympathetic to his situation

i love 2079 reed. his tie and office bod are precious <333

since valerie had no romance, i did get to hear goro during her in-and-out-of-consciousness scenes, which i absolutely loved

i knew about river and panam's phone calls/msgs and neither one of them are actually that close to valerie so the emotional impact there for me was minimal

much like with the devil ending, though, i wish goro was at least listed in her phone, even if it went to a disconnected number in 2079. valerie did tell him she was going to go with hanako prior to this, so having some kind of 'hey, are we doing this thing' msgs from him in 2077 would have been cool.

and like there seems to be some recognition from the devs that players who didn't get attached to any of the romances or had any other friends likely had some degree of fondness towards goro--hence using his voice in the coma. so once again, it just feels like there's missing content from him, basically. not even asking for romantic stuff here either--just more platonic interactions would have been very much appreciated!!!!

vik's situation depresses the hell out of me, even moreso than v's, although i did love getting to spend more time with him and see a different side to him just for characterization purposes. i loved the employee eval on his computer that said he talks to patients too much, because MUSE FUEL MUSE FUEL MUSE FUEL

(i'm actually in the process of working on some story sets for the events that happen directly after the heist, and vik gossiping to goro has been on my mind since the 'vik likes to talk' line v can deliver so this just compounded that)

connecting with misty briefly does kind of heal the soul a little at least

seeing valerie un-chromed and with a shaved head was pretty jarring, although not as much as seeing her in those clothes lmao. like wtf did the fia do with the clothes she arrived in??? even if she wasn't in top form, she would still make an effort to look somewhat nice going to see an old friend but i mean, i get it, at this point my vision of valerie is so beyond the possibilities of the game's potential characterizations for v

i also have a glitch in my game in which she's constantly holding a pistol during some cutscenes lmao so uh having randos try to beat her up while she's visibly armed was odd

the devil ending is still valerie's canon so this was just a curiosity playthrough, but i am somewhat intrigued by the possibility of another AU/alternate timeline for her and goro playing off these events.

the obvious scenario would be valerie becoming a fixer and goro becoming her bodyguard after they work out their shit since goro is clearly unhappy in 2079 lmao, but this ending plays on the convenient-lack-of-communication tropes that i fucking hate in stories (like really, the FIA couldn't find a way to get in touch with v's friends and let them know what's going on? i don't buy it) so it'd require a lot of rework for me.

and i really can't see valerie willingly going with the FIA, particularly after she told goro she was gonna go with arasaka, so i think a lot of that would have to change too

but idk, it's not a priority. i like having the AU stuff to tinker with when i need a break from their canon, which i currently do not. maybe it'll be like the nomad AU and suddenly hit me out of nowhere :3

but yeah im glad i experienced it for myself since there can be so many little personalized variations, but i also feel kinda out of sorts because it just felt really OOC for valerie and there were some major downers there, lmao. i feel like i need a bit of a palette cleanser

OH and i liked rogue taking nibbles, that was a pleasant surprise

[tellmegoodbye]

What would 911: Sunshine* look like?

*Texas = the Lonestar state, Florida = the Sunshine state

LEMON!! This is my dream!!!

And yes 911: Sunshine is absolutely what I would call it!

Okay so first of all, location! I think the city a spinoff would most likely take place in is Miami, but in order for me to really personalize this (it's my dream, I do what I want) I'm going to switch things up and have this take place in my city: Tampa!

This location is interesting for many reasons, but mostly because of its layout and it being on the bay. The city itself is probably where most of the show would take place in terms of emergencies, but there's a lot going on here for a city on the smaller side! Of course, there will also be opportunities to see the rest of the bay area. (Tampa is the city, Tampa Bay is the region)

Here are some potential locations/ideas for emergencies

Skyway Bridge. Visually, it's just stunning, and yes many people are scared to drive on it. It collasped once over 40 years ago and it has safety mechanisms to prevent such an event from happening again, but I'm sure a 911 spinoff would get creative and find another way to make something go wrong.

The airport. Like 3x08 except worse because I have a chaos brain.

The arena where the Tampa Bay Lightning play.

Busch Gardens (a theme park)

Pick a beach. Any beach.

Literally tons of forest area where there could be a wildfire. Also tons of natural springs and rivers where you could have accidents.

Toursists. There is never a shortage of snowbirds being idiots in these parts.

Ybor City. There's a LOT of history here. It's also just a really cool place to explore. They have parades here (I've been in a few of them!) so maybe something goes wrong there.

Alligators. 🐊

Now lets talk major disaster arcs. 911 OG has earthquakes and tsunamis, Lone Star has ice storms and tornadoes, and 911: Sunshine would have a massive hurricane arc.

We kind of have an interesting history with hurricanes in Tampa Bay, at least in my lifetime, where every time we're about to get hit it shifts last minute and everyone who evacuated inland ended up being directly in its path. This happened with Charley in 2004, and Ian in 2022. Both made landfall in the exact same spot after shifting away from the bay area, which is kind of eerie.

I'd say a disaster arc like this would have one finally directly hitting the bay, and it would be a lot like the tsunami in 911. Very angsty, similar scenarios where peolpe go missing, and potential for the kind of water rescues Marjan was talking about doing back in Miami.

One little fun fact before I go. This doesn't apply to the city of Tampa, but I absolutely had to share this. If you venture out into the rest of the county like where I live, the firetrucks and ambulances are a lovely highlighter yellow! Or is it green? I've never been able to tell.

Don't ask me why. I have no idea. 😂