#I'm soft for bros just making a sacrifice for the other ;_;

[multicolour-ink]

On your Cursed AU, where would you put the emotional angst level on a scale of 1 to 10?

Cursed Immortal AU

You mean on a sadness scale?

Well...the way I like to think of it is this: If there is a genuine tragedy at the end where neither or only one of the bros makes it out ok, and they have to live with the trauma and the loss of the other for the rest of their lives - that is considered a solid 10 for me ;_;

And not something I can bear putting myself through - whether as a creator or as the audience.

However, if there is an ending that is still thriving on angst (like if they make it out together but there is a consequence) then I still consider it technically happy/bittersweet because in that scenario there is hope.

Case in point: In regards to the AU, Luigi is turned into a Cursed Immortal against his will, and they fail to find a cure. And Mario makes a life changing choice to stay with him.

By all accounts, yes this is sad. The bros have their mortal existence - their freedom - stripped away from them. However, whereas one had it taken by force, the other gives his up just to be with his brother. It's bittersweet because there is still a chance a cure can still be found (I never said there was no cure at all 👀) and most important of all, Mario is the one making the choice willingly. Luigi doesn't want Mario to sacrifice himself for him, but he knows there's no point arguing. They both know that neither would dare leave the other to suffer alone. Even if they stay Cursed Immortals forever. Even if they have inevitably left friends and family behind, they know that they can still get by with each other. That's all that matters in order to make them bear this new existence.

So with that said, I give the angst level for this AU a 7.

[rowretro]

𝐋𝐄𝐎

✧Warnings: kissing, mafia hoon, blood, suggestive, dead body, detailed murder

✧Synopsis: Sunghoon is a very innocent man, a beautiful, sexy wife, 3 kids, a 12 year old girl and a 4 year old boy. He's a perfect family man who owned a homely café. He's just an ordinary person.... until one of the most feared mafia men paid a visit after a dreadful incident.

✧✭☆✧✭☆✧✭☆✧✭☆✭✧☆✭✧☆✭✧☆✭✧

"Honey, I'm sorry I have to overwork a few late hours at the office... I missed work so many times so I have a lot to do, I'll come home tomorrow..." Y/n said, from the airport as Sunghoon sighed. He had a small pout on his face as he looked at Ryuu "Sweetheart, must you work so late?" he asked as y/n smiled at him "I missed a lot of time, so many clothes to design for the new set, im sorry, I'll see you, I love you" she said as she hung up. Sunghoon stared at his home as he stared back at Ryuu, lying on his front on the soft blanket laid out on the floor "You aren't suspicious of me too are you?" Sunghoon asked as Ryuu squished his cheeks. "Of couwse not daddy!" he said as Sunghoon tilted his head "Why son?" "because youw my daddy!" he exclaimed as Sunghoon lifted him in the air, turned over and palced him on his chest.

Y/n didn't want to have her suspicions about him, she loves him, she always has, that sweet little nerd who hesitated to ask her out, Sunghoon. She trusts him, the man she trusted enough to have a baby with, to marry, trust with her deepest darkest secrets. She's just doing this as a formality is all... Just so everyone else knows, Well specifically the law. She made her way to board the flight back to Busan, where the orphanage he grew up in was. All the while, Officer Lee was sitting before a prisoner, who was caught in the big drug deal that was brought out by the Park Mafia. Hence he will know what happened to Leo.

"Listen Choi Yeonjun is it?...I hear you have your death sentence in about 3 weeks, I can bring up a petition, I have the power to cancel that out... You just need to do one thing.... Tell me the truth of what happened to Park Daeheon's son... LEO Park..." Heeseung tempted in a serious manner as the male before him started drumming on the table, glancing up at him "I've raised Leo for Daehoon, and I'm bound to die either way.... I'll tell you only because Im going to die anyway.... Park Daehoon treasured his only son.... but he treasured his mafia more, a mafia he'd do sacrifices for, in order to make sure his business runs successfully, the sacrifices started with animals, then eventually humans...." He started.

.FLASHBACK.

"Where the fucks' Leo? is he out messing about?! our drugs have been stopped by the police Goddamit what's going on?!" Daeheon complained over the call to his brother Park Jeonghan. "He's on it now, just trust him, ill be there in a minute." He replied simply hanging up. The man got in his car nodding at the driver. All the while, the police were yelling at the gang, having seized their vehicle. "Who's that smoking?! move out the way you fuckers, officer go drag the smoker here." the head officer said.

However, the armed gangsters moved out the way, and there, lying on his back, leg crossed over the other, a very fine man, smoking, his silver hair recognizable anywhere. "L-Leo? this is your truck?! fuck- let the vehicles go bro! sorry sir... we were told to seize them, so we assumed some other gang was using your route!" The officer excused, bowing nonstop as Leo smoked, sitting up. He was about to go for his usual violent mannerisms, and beat the shit out of those fuckers, but something caught his eye. A pink bow, a very long one... no two long ones, braided into the girl's black hair.

"Don't let it happen again." He coldly spat as he got up walking away. Leo hid by a tree as he stared at the girl, she looked as if she was in here teenage years, just about his age specifically, like 18? He never really paid attention to girls, or anything really, his whole childhood he just did what his father told him... as a child him and his uncle Yeonjun would visit the orphanage every now and then. Leo thought high school was useless for him, he was already smart, he studied so much in his free time, but when he saw his angel enter a high school, he regretted his decision of not going.

Since that day Leo had kept his eye on her, he secretly found out everything about her, he wanted to change for her, he even started wearing glasses, and suits, he found out her name's y/n.... y/n such a beautiful name, especially to put Park next to that name. She's everything he could ask for, he sworn to himself he'll always take care of her.... but he'll have to change for that. "Dad. I want out." he said as the man frowned "out on what" "this gang- mafia- drug business.... what we're doing is wrong, and I don't want to be a part of this." He said as the man glared at him.

He took note of his son's sudden random changes, every time he smiles, whenever he leaves the house at a specific time. Daeheon has been tailing his son. who led him straight to his next sacrifice. Y/n. In order for his mafia business to go without any issues, he needs his rock. Leo. Therefore the distraction needs to go... "WHAT THE FUCK?!" Leo yelled, as he knelt before the unconscious y/n. "Sorry son.... sacrifices must be made." Daehoon said as he tried to drag y/n's unconscious body away.

Yet Leo didn't let him. He beat the fuck out of him no matter what, then a suddenly he had a big blow to his head... he turned around to see his uncle Jeonghan. "if we don't have you you think this whole thing will crumble?!" he asked darkly as he glanced up at his injured brother, Daeheon. "You'd kill your own flesh and blood for this?!.... well fuck. you." Leo coughed up some blood as he threw a lit matchstick at the warehouse filled with drugs, With a gunshot, he laid unconsious in Yeonjun's arms...

.END FLASHBACK.

"So.... is Leo dead?" he asked as Yeonjun looked at him silently "I saw with my two eyes officer, my lil boy, he tried save the one thing that made him human, and he died..... he died in my very arms, and his so called farther was the man who fucking.... sorry...." Yeonjun apologized after lashing out. "It's ok.... and this woman... any chance she's still alive?... if so what's her name?" Lee Heeseung asked "We never knew who she was... she died in the fire, she must've been an orphan too".

Y/n had no memory of anything that happened that night, she had lost her memory of that night and the 3 months before that, hence she never cared for the random nightmares she had. She came home, happy that she knows her dear Sunghoon is not Leo. She came home to find Sunghoon sitting on the floor by the window, Ryuu asleep on their shared bed. "He slept in our room? sorry I took so long babe, how have the kids been?" She asked as Sunghoon glared up at her slapping the letter, that proved his documents are true, on the floor "This came in the post for you..." he simply said as Y/n 's blood ran cold.

"I didn't care when Officer Lee asked, it faintly hurt when Cherry argued with me but you?! my own wife?!.... how could you peacefully sleep with me thinking I was another man huh?!!!" he yelled, crying as Y/n kneeled before him. "Goddamit why would you have that suspicion?! I fucking love you like crazy is that not enough?! we have to kids together we're fucking married!" he added as she sniffled. "Dad?.... are you crying?" Ryuu asked as Hoon wiped his tears away. "Don't worry sweetheart, daddy had a nightmare... I'll take care of him hmm?..." Y/n said as Ryuu snuggled his stuffed toy falling asleep.

"Sunghoon... I believe you, I'd never suspect you, I just had to gather evidence for officer Lee without hurting you... but me even doing so is hurting you... I know words can't fix what I did so..." She leant in, kissing him passionately, as he held onto her waist. His love, his y/n his vulnerable little sweetheart, oh how she falls for his tricks. Of course Park Sunghoon is Leo, but to believe Leo is dead, Sunghoon should exist in the same timeline as Leo... He had made many mistakes in his past, but was willing to change for his sweet girl... his darling y/n.

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[aechii]

₍⁠₍ GOOD LUCK CHARM ₎⁠₎

{read part 2}

PAiRiNG ?! childhoodfriend!kylian x black!femreader

GENRE ?! romance , angst if you have 30/30 vision

SYNOPSiS ?! based on the prompt "you still wear that little bracelet i made you?" "it's like my good luck charm.." by @novelbear because i need fuel rn haha 😞

A/N ?! i was listening to infrunami by steve lacy while writing this, if it's too fluffy im sorry blame him. i think i need to stop writing in 2nd person pov cos it's NOT IT. so yh, this isn't good BUT i feed my consumers so yuuuuurp, HERE YOU GO 💀

~°~

if someone had told 8 year old you that your friendship with kylian, in all its deep-rootedness and proclamations of 'forever's, would meet its demise just short of your 17th birthday, you would've cackled like the wicked witch of the west herself, bearing your gapped teeth in complete humour.

your bond was imperishable, derived from unyielding interlocked hands and taut, warm hugs that you longed to ever drown into. everybody knew, if kylian was there, you would be stood right beside him as if you were his right hand man- no, but you were.

his second mother, you were called; as sweet as he was, he was hardheaded and stubborn, and there was never a week that didn't go by where you weren't, even as young as you were, chastising him for having an unrelenting mouth or fisted hands. it was his nature, no matter how much you told him to stop and he vowed that he would, but it made him, kylian, so really and truly, there was nothing that could be done.

as you both matured, entered highschool with newfound tribulations that you swore you would conquer together, you began to realise that maybe, he had priorities that, inevitably, meant that your time together was diminishing. it was glaringly palpable, to him, to you, and everyone that was on the outside looking in.

but you could see just how much he tried balancing the two. football and you, occupied so much space in his life that dropping one would leave a gaping intrusion, begging to be whole again. so, after evening training, you two found yourselves basking in the soft buzz of the 20th hour within the confinement of your room, music droning in the back with a gentle hum. it was times like this that made you appreciate kylian; just a growing boy from bondy, fighting to make a name for himself in something he loved so much, yet still had time for you. his other half, as he called you. it made your heart swell everytime.

"kylian, i swear, if you've taken the last é-"

he was quick to defend himself, "look! i took e not é." he showed you the small bead and you hummed in approval. he rolled his eyes, "always quick to accuse me of shit."

you gasped, taking a pillow and throwing it his head. he screeched, quick to rip it off him.

"no swearing, you know that! my mum's gonna hear you."

he looked down, noticing that his efforts had been chewed and spat right back out, "[y/n], you ruined my bracelet!"

you shrugged, continuing yours, "sorry, not sorry."

his glare was evident in your peripheral and you tried to hold back your laugh.

"if this is so funny to you," he threw the empty threaded strand unto the carpet, "i'm not doing it anymore."

he knew he had gotten to you as he noticed your eyes widen, stopping the task at hand.

"bro! i'm not gonna have one then, that's not fair!"

he snickered, "should've thought about that first." his arms were crossed, smirking.

you debated whether or not to stop and leave you both bracelet-less, or sacrifice your dignity and apologise. in the end, the latter ruled the verdict; this was something cute that you both hadn't done in a while, and this ocassional get together was supposed to be fruitful.

"fine, i'm sorry."

he grinned, picking up the string once again to begin his, "there you go, wasn't that hard, was it?"

you gave him a look, muttering his words as you mimicked him before saying, "just continue the damn thing."

2 hours later and you were sure enough to say that your fingers were absolutely aching, kylian vocalising his pain. god, were his whines so irritating.

"kylian, please just give me your wrist," you sighed. he shuffled closer to you, arm stretched out. you tied yours securely, making sure to keep the word you had put facing down. you both agreed to make it a suprise.

with his tightly tied to your skin, in which he later had to loosen due to your discomfort, you counted down before sliding them against your wrists to see.

"chef? that's cute," you beamed. it didn't matter that you were younger than him, you were always telling him what to do, and he had always jokingly called you 'boss'.

he smiled back at you, but then it fell as he looked at his, "[y/n]?"

you struggled to hold back your giggles, "what? you don't like it?"

he looked at you from the corner of his eyes, "petit frèrot? really? out of everything you could've used, you used that?"

laughing, you gripped his wrist, turning it to look at it yourself, "it suits you, kylian!"

"i'm not shorter than you anymore," he whined. it was a memory he hated being brought to light; you always had an inch or two on him up until you both hit 14, and somehow, you remained stunted yet he had grown to be a whole head taller than you.

"it's for... memory's sake, ky."

"i don't want to wear it."

you frowned, "don't be stupid, kylian. you're never taking it off."

his tone is indignant, "don't be too sure about that."

+_-

it may be fraying and fuzzed at the edges. it may be fading, colours that were once bright and vivid now ghosted and phantom, but you swore that if it was ever cut off, it would be the end of you too.

yes, you both no longer talked. it was an occurence so vigorously impactful that even your parents had ceased contact because if their kids didn't talk, why should they?

you knew that with the life that kylian had planned for himself, as much you both ignored it, there was no space in it for you. he had to travel to play in clubs that didn't reside within the borders of paris, or even france. your academics strangled you with deadlines and projects that had you begin to fade into the distance of kylian's mind, so he couldn't take the full blame for it. you were the reason why too, and you wished you had fought harder to sustain such a friendship.

no hard feelings were established, you presumed. the drift was gradual and something that couldn't be helped. you knew kylian wouldn't hate you, and he knew you wouldn't either.

you kept your tabs on him, however. he didn't know where you were anymore, hell if you were even alive, but with a name as big as messi's and ronaldo's, you would've been living under rocks if you didn't know how he was fending.

once every few months, you search him up. you would see he was doing well, and you would smile, pained with nostalgia, fiddle with the aging bracelet that seemed to burn its imprint into your skin, and close the google tab. it wouldn't leave your mind for the next few weeks, but you didn't mind. as long as you knew he was okay, then you were too.

+_-

football, as much as it was your ex best friend's, wasn't your forte. you didn't know a single team to name, or a player that wasn't the two infamous rivals, so finding yourself, clad in the white jersey of real madrid was completely unusual nature.

"it'll be fun, [y/n]," your friend had urged. it wasn't the first time kalani had begged you to watch a game of her favourite team, but this time, you decided to give in to her pleas and see for yourself.

"sure," you stated dismissively. you needed these 3 hours to pass as quick as they could, essays weren't going to write themselves.

the stadium atmosphere was suffocating, to be entirely honest. it was filled to the absolute brim with the blue and white opposing colours, to which you had no idea which team the blue was supposed to represent. you were only here for support, not the experience.

you could see the players training and preparing themselves on the pitch, seriousness punctured with banter and playful chasing. it reminded you of kylian again. you smiled at that thought.

then, as if time itself were a blur, kick off had started and instantaneously both team were hungry for the ball. you were, of course, rooting for madrid, and everytime the ball was in their possession, couldn't fight down the urge to scream with passion. it was like football had ignited something deep and buried within you, and it took you back to the days were you were screaming for kylian to score until your voice grew hoarse and dessicated.

+_-

you didn't even support the damned team yet you were completely drunk off victory. won with 2 goals to your name and the smile that had found its way unto your and kalani's faces hadn't left.

in a haze of excitement and thrill, she had left you to go to the toilet. you had no idea where you were, and you thought the safest place to go was back to the entrance.

"fucking hell."

the stadium was bigger than you thought, and with your short memory span, you had found yourself lost. how you couldn't even get the exit was beyond you.

in the distance you heard a cluster of voices, and your brain immediately thought to go in that direction, where there was people, there was help. your steps were hurried, you're sure you looked absolutely frightened out of your mind, and you quickly take the sharp left, colliding into a body.

"oh shit- i'm so sorry," you hurried out apologies. the person in front of you was quick to stop you, "no, no, you're good."

you stilled. age did absolutely nothing to the distinct accent of his. and it's then you drank in the sight of him fully.

"kylian?"

his face morphed into one of familiarity and utter shock, then his eyes widened.

"no way- [y/n]?"

you airily chuckled, still stupified, "in the flesh, ky."

his arms were quick to take you in them, embrace muscled and strong. your arms wrapped around his neck as you swayed from side to side.

a cough from beside you dragged you both back down from your reverie.

"kylian? who's this?" their voice was playful and the man rolled his eyes, grinning widely.

"achraf, this is [y/n], my best friend from early-"

"until you ditched me."

"i did not," he defended.

achraf chuckled, "won't be surprised if he did."

you laughed wholeheartedly, kylian groaning at his two best friends tag teaming against him.

"you two literally just met," his gaze was on you, fully coming to terms with the fact that you were standing right in front of him. no longer 16, but now 8 years later, unrecognisable but in the best way possible.

"how did you get here?" achraf asked, and you grinned sheepishly.

"got lost. i came here with my friend to watch real madrid and she ditched me to go to take a shit or something, i have no idea."

kylian huffed at you revelation, "siding with the enemy, i see. i thought you were my supporter."

you tried not to react to his words, but the growing seansation of butterflies made you feel nauseous.

"suck it up, ky. don't be a sore loser," you jeered, punching him softly in his arm.

he raised and eyebrow, "i guess i'll leave you here."

achraf was quick to deflect it, however, "no you're not. you're going to help this young lady and see her out, kylian," he tutted, "be a gentleman."

you smirked at your best friend, "listen to him, ky. he has wisdom to share."

he kissed his teeth, turning around to walk away. you grabbed his wrist to stop him, "okay, okay, i'm sorry!"

you laugh, squeezing his flesh as you felt something thin line his skin. you looked down and the sight of your sentiment, its state just like yours, left you breathless.

"you still wear that little bracelet i made you?" you couldn't stop smiling.

he looked at you, straight in your eyes as if his following words weren't enough. he needed you to feel the genuineness of it all.

"i could never take it off. it's like my good luck charm."

chef- boss

petit frèrot- little bro

[shinakazami1]

Timothy breakdown pwease 🙏

HI KRO HI HI I JUMP OFC ONE TIMOTHY BUD FOR U

How I feel about this character

BRO. One of my favs. The fact he was the first character I played as for Borderlands games was a great choice.

I adore this guy. He's funny, anxious, a bit of an asshole. He had to learn to play Jack but he absolutely sucks at it but I think it works since nobody knows jack well, only his image. LIKE it's hilarious we play as doppelganger and everybody knows in the game we are one instead of him. Like BRO you LITERALLY HAVE ONE SINGLE JOB AND U SUCK AT IT! and then you learn he's great with guns. And you learn that doppelganger is just there to kill. Esp since in bl2 the doppelganger there also sucked ass (I loved the guy a lot. I wish we could have met one more for comparisment).

It's interesting how he sucks so bad at his job and not only that, he presents himself. He's not into doing additional work. He gets grumpy and childish sometimes with wanting to back off or run. But in the end, he continues and keeps on going.

And God. The one soldier that asks you for mercy and you can keep him alive.

'I'm not you, Jack.'

Then, in the bl3 dlc, he had to kill doppelganger and hides away to survive. And somehow?? Still made friends???? That he abandoned cus he felt ashamed prob and just. God. I love this guy a lot. Top 3 for me Fr Fr

All the people I ship romantically with this character

(ATP i should prob change the romantic thing jshshshs)

Moxxi and Timothy are similar to how I see Sasha and Rhys. Not something that would work out but, they can grow with one another.

I also think him and Rhys could be an interesting thing. They both are asshole with some softness inside and mutual trauma. They bit lost a lot due to Jack.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Give me some of that Loader Bot Timothy action. They would understand each other. I also think his relationship with Jack is very nuanced. Jack is his boss but Timothy from the first moment he gets to finally meet him talks back. He states his opinions clearly. And Jack respects the man's work enough not to jump to kill him. There is a lot to explore about how they influenced each other.

My unpopular opinion about this character

THIS MAN IS SEEN OFTEN AS LITTLE SOFT MEOW MEOW. And like he can be but PLEASE please guys. Play pre-sequel. Idk if the mischsracterisation is still a big issue and hope not but dear lort.

This man like most characters in the series IS AN ASSHOLE. He talks back, he kills for a living, and he can get nervous around folks but he also lies, just does his job and gets around. And I love him for it! You go girl <3 and as I asked you for the comparison - while he hides himself away and holds a lot of anger for misjust he had to suffer he still can get so shy around Moxxi. It doesn't make him weak, it doesn't make him a soft character. It's a part of him and i love it. The fact this man cuts his hand off to save the place too. He's used to making sacrifices. One way or another.

AND SECONDLY. I discussed it with @kitkat578 and I took their headcanon that Timothy, in fact wasn't marked under the mask, since you can't see the mark in the crack. I feel he was only told that happened, to resent Lilith. And that headcanon changed something in me.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

Meet. With. Rhys. Please.

And don't change to Jack. Stay your own. Be free

[poulpemou]

Happy Valentine's Day! It's the perfect day to proselytise aroace Kiran from Fire Emblem Heroes!

As the "protagonist" of a gacha game, AKA a soft harem game, it only makes sense for the self-insert character to be aroace! Got folks of all genders throwing themselves at you for no understandable reason? Got people taking your lack of interest as a personal challenge? Why, that sounds like the perfect setting for a character to realise and/or profess their aroace-ness!

Here are some satisfied testimonies from our existing representatives!

"Wow I had no idea Fjorm felt this way? Why? Since when? I thought she and Laegjarn were dating?"

"Uhhhhh Gunnthrá said what?????????"

"Do people know I have a job and responsibilities? I have a lot going on, I don't have time for this kind of stuff, do people realize we're at war like 24/7 and I'm literally the only person keeping this place from falling apart and—"

"How come it's always the girls confessing their love to me but not the guys? I mean I'm not into dudes but that doesn't mean I can't be. Actually, who says I'm not? Oriented aroaces exist and—"

"Hey Alfonse. Bro. Are we or aren't we partners. Are we or aren't we the perfect unit if we could be combined into one. Have you ever heard of Steven Universe by the way? Or of this thing called QPR?"

"How come Plumeria is always shit-talking me about lewdness when I literally didn't do anything? Like ok yeah I poked her, but I literally poke everyone? Also what's up with my dreams? Has she heard of this thing called intrusive sexuality that literally doesn't mean anything—"

"Hey, so, I don't know how to say this, Seiðr, but I don't want a baby and I also don't want to be a deadbeat parent, and also Gullveig and Kvasir keep saying things about feelings but I have no idea where that's coming from. Don't even get me started on Heiðr."

"Why are girls weird around me? Am I actually just a cat and never noticed? Is that why they keep petting me and cooing at me? I was just a cat this whole time and no one had the heart to tell me I'm not human?"

"You love me? Aw, thanks, I love you too! I love all of my friends!"

"What is love? Baby don't hurt me. Oh wait this song doesn't exist in Askr..."

"What do you mean they think I'm flirting!!!!!!!! What the heck is a flirting!!!!!! I'm literally just being a good friend what!!!!!!!!"

"I love Day of Devotion! It's a day where you're devoted to your loved ones! Yeah of course all my friends are my loved ones, what do you mean?"

"So when two people like each other very much, they perform this ceremony called ally-supporting, and for some reason people blush when they reach A-tier. I think it's because it's a very important milestone that happens to take place in what looks like a church, and they're afraid to look like they don't belong in a church. Something about Askran churches must seem very intimidating."

"Oh wow you have feelings for me for real? I thought people were just saying that for the bit."

"Oh wow you have feelings for me for real? Can you describe what what's like? I've never understood it and people take it really badly when I ask."

"So back in my world, we have this event called Asexuality Awareness Week taking place during the Harvest Festival, and this other event called Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week that takes place a week after the Day of Devotion."

"Hey does garlic bread exist here? Anyone got any cake?"

"I don't know any of these people. They keep wanting to talk to me and be friends. Well ok. I don't get it but I guess it's my job to ensure troupe morale. I thought that would be Sharena's job but I haven't seen her in forever. Sacrifices for the cause, I guess."

"What do you mean they think I'm flirting!!!!!!!! What the heck is a flirting!!!!!! I'm literally just being polite what!!!!!!!!"

Join today and headcanon your summoner as aroace! Add a layer of complexity to a silent character and off-the-rails writing! You may be entitled to emotional compensation!

[rosegoldenatlas]

I know its been years since Steven universe ended but I would just like to say that Lars is my favorite character hands down. Here are my reasons:

-Lars was a bad person and he Developed as a character. He got so much character development from seasons 1 to 5.

-He was a coward. It sounds stupid to love a character for that but having a character who's a coward next to all of the brave main characters is like putting a normal person in the Olympics. It feels real and he has real reasons to be afraid.

-He has some serious self esteem issues. I'm sorry but I have a soft spot for characters with low self esteem. He mentioned multiple times that he shouldn't be trusted to help people and he even has heavily implied that he believes that he didn't deserve to be revived. Like bro.

-He's just a lonely lil guy. Sure he's the reason he's lonely but he's trying.

-I have a soft spot for characters that put up walls okay?

-The entirety of the season five episode 'the off colors' the whole episode. He finally stops running away and instead fights to protect people. He offers to try to get home by himself and let everyone else portal home without him. He sacrifices himself so others can be happy and safe. He finally finds his people or gems in this case.

-And Oh My Goodness his off screen development. He becomes a badass motherfucker. He steals the sun incinerator from emerald and sneaks past dozens of gems and he's confident in himself and his choices now!!! Look at him!! Captain of the Off Colors!

-And he's still a real person after all of this he still is a person. Of course he's jealous of Sadie, Of course he wishes it was him back at home. Its selfish and its mean but its real. And he moves past it. He steps up and moves past it, not fully but he tries and he is real.

-When he comes home it's awkward. Why wouldn't it be? He comes back to earth and he talks to Sadie and he's a better person now. They joke and he supports her and he doesn't fight with her. He doesn't blame her anymore.

-HE OPENS UP A BAKERY DID I NOT MENTION I LOVE THAT HE BAKES??? ITS SO CUTE. HE'S JUST A LIL BAKER GUY WHO MAKES SPACETRIES.

-Sadie and him talk and they're friends! :]]]

-Lars is happy for Sadie for getting someone healthy for her! Yesss.

[misc-obeyme]

i need more sibling angst w all the seven bros. i keep getting those siblings/brothers slideshows on tiktok and it’s killing! me! ☹️☹️☹️

especially between mammon and lucifer,,,,,,their relationship is actually sad. the game kinda plays it off as a joke and makes mannon the comic relief by spiting him as a fool 24/7, which i get. like ok. it’s an otome game first and foremost. they’re not gonna go super hard with lore and interpersonal relationships. but if you take a step back and see it beyond that, there’s much to dissect AND digest. lucifer plays this stereotypical authoritative role and mammon is the opposite. i know lucifer means well and he truly loves his family, but he has a heavy hand. the trauma of losing lilith? he can’t fathom losing another, so he’s sworn that he’d protect the rest even if it meant despising his own father. mammon feels the same way, but he copes differently.

i feel like both the two eldest are just trying to keep things together. where lucifer is so scared he doesn’t realize he sometimes hurts his brothers, mammon picks up all the pieces and holds it together. they mean a lot….😢

here’s some songs i think would fit:

“shame” by mitski (also “real men”)

“neptune” by sleeping at last

“kyoto” by phoebe bridgers (her song “i know the end” is also very good)

“not strong enough” by boygenius

also i would recommend fiona apple in general! one of my fav artists 😋

Okay, anon, I had to go on TikTok to look up those slideshow videos 'cause I haven't seen them (I rarely use TikTok and when I do it's all cake decorating videos because I have a problem). So I was seeing a bunch where it's a picture of the siblings as kids and then switches to one of them all grown up?? Can you imagine something like that with our bros??

But you happened to touch upon a subject here that I have opinions about. You're right. It's an otome game and the point is for the MC to be able to have all these hot guys fall for them. I get that. But it means that I'm never sure what they're going to sacrifice in the name of silly otome vibes.

The Mammon/Lucifer dynamic is a perfect example.

In fact, I would argue that just by himself, the "Lucifer as authority figure" concept is a disservice to his character. It sets him apart from all of his brothers in a way that makes it so they don't get to fully flesh out his relationships with any of them. He's too strict, too overbearing, and too often puts himself apart from the rest. It's annoying because all of the brothers indicate that they love Lucifer. They love him and that's why they followed him to the Devildom to begin with. Satan loves him, too, albeit with far more complexity attached. But Lucifer can only express his love for them through strictness. He's trying to ensure he never loses them and I get that, but he also never allows himself to be soft with them. We only get very rare glimpses of that. Lately in NB I feel like they tried to help with that, as evidenced by the way the first season ended. But generally speaking, they too often play to his role as authority figure, in my opinion. And yet he's the star of the show. The way he's always last like they think MC is going to choose him over the rest every time. The way we get more insight into his history, the way he has a far more involved and complicated character, where other brothers are just regulated to very simple personalities. I don't get why they do that, personally.

As for Mammon specifically, that whole thing confuses me still. I went through a hardcore Mammon phase where he was actually next to Barbatos in my ranking (this was before I figured out how much I love Solomon lol). And I really had an issue with Lucifer constantly punishing Mammon all the time for things that seemed relatively minor. If we consider that it's actually Lucifer's fear that is the motivation behind his tendency to be strict, though, it changes the meaning. Mammon gets punished the most because he's the one Lucifer cares about the most. But that doesn't make it okay in my mind. If anything, that's just even more fucked up. But the annoying thing about all of this is it's only our fan interpretation. It is far more likely that the only reason Mammon is the one who gets strung up all the time and so on is because it's funny. Or it's supposed to be. I'm pretty sure they just wrote it that way to be a joke, not because they're making some grand statement about Lucifer's relationship with Mammon and how he deals with the trauma he's endured.

Mammon is often depicted as kinda silly and moronic, but that's also a disservice to his character the way Lucifer being the strict one is to his. Because you're completely right. Lucifer doesn't realize he hurts his brothers and Mammon is the one keeping things together. It always struck me as far more likely that Mammon is playing a role for his younger brothers' benefit. We get enough flashes of insight from Mammon that indicate he understands things far more than he lets on. He deliberately acts out to draw Lucifer's attention because Lucifer's fear of losing his brothers makes him too harsh on them. And if Mammon is always Lucifer's top priority, then he's more likely to leave the younger ones alone. This is also fucked up. And again, this is all just outside interpretation because I don't think any of that is something they meant to imply with their Lucifer-always-punishing-Mammon joke. That's just how it comes across.

The problem with these jokes is that if you take them in any kind of serious context, you get analysis similar to the unfortunate three paragraphs I just made you suffer through. Because these jokes, if looked into more deeply, imply all of the complicated stuff I talked about. But I don't think they meant to imply any of that, which is why it's kind of fucked up when you look too closely at it.

That's how a lot of it goes with this particular game and that's why I always have such a hard time trying to figure out what's going on. Because they definitely have all this lighthearted nonsense sitting right beside some actual deep character development. So what are we supposed to take seriously and what's meant to be just silly stuff? (Another example is my issue with the reason behind Barbatos being angry with Solomon all this time - I took the joke as something serious lol.)

I apologize for the length of this response, but it's just something that I have a lot of thoughts about! I have a tendency to come at everything from a storytelling perspective where I want everything to have a reason and to make sense. But I think some of the stuff in this game really isn't meant to have a deeper meaning, so I'm just creating extra analysis where there is none. I've had to kind of balance my expectations and even then I end up with moments like the Barbatos reveal where I get annoyed lol. But that's on me, I really should know better by now.

Anyway! Thank you for the song recs, I'll have to listen to them all! I loooove "Not Strong Enough" by boygenius, I've been listening to that song a lot lately! So I'm sure I'll enjoy the others you've recommended as well!

And again I'm sorry about how long this response ended up being! I never realize I have so much to say until I've written four or five paragraphs and then I'm like ohh oops.

[son-soup]

!! SPOILERS FOR THE RISE! TMNT MOVIE !!

Now I've already said that the scene of Leo's sacrifice in the movie was one that I'll never get over, mainly due to the emotions that all the characters exhibited throughout the scene, However, there were so many other parts to this scene that I think made it that much more imactful.

I'll be talking about the music this time around. Something you should know about me is that I'm a huge nerd when it comes to music and how it can be used to altar or affect someones emotions, how the musical makeup has been done in movies to provoke feelings that correspond to certain parts of it (ironic, since I refuse to take music theory lmao).

In the sacrifice scene of the movie, the music is constantly changing whether it be through motifs, beat and tempo, reprises etc. Going in chronological order, When the scene starts out (when Casey find the key), the sound starts out slightly somber, but with a lighter melody, and their truly isn't any percussion. It makes viewers feel hopeful, This key is what we see the group needs to succeed; once they have the key, they can bring the Kraang back to the prison dimension, everyone is safe and they've won. However, as the scene continues, we learn that Leo has made a decision that while is surprising for us viewers, but also heartbreaking, he tell Casey that once he enters the prison dimension with the Kraang, he needs to pull the key and close the gate, regardless of if he makes it out in time or not (clearly something that he himself did not plan on happening). the light somber sound that once filled the audience with hope becomes darker, more serious and still.. higher pitches aren't as soft and sweet, but now become more mellow. Its a shift that is a bit hard to here, but its there, and suddendly the weight of his words set in: Leo's not making it out of this. But even with this deeper and slower somber tone, the base instruments and percussionary sounds begin to pick up pace in the undertones (more so as it pans to shots of his family hearing what he's saying and what he's planning). You can hear heavier instruments on the downbeats, and how they get louder (or crescendo) with each one. The feeling is more intense, its almost as if its telling us to prepare for something (leos sacrifice *cough cough). the buildup continues as Leo continues to tell Casey why this is the only way that they can win; how they've tried everything they could, but inevitably this is the only thing that they can do, that he can do to keep everyone safe. And it just keeps building and building, vocals that were once whispers added for emphasis get louder and larger, as Raph looks to his other siblings, and the gate of the prison dimension, and begs Leo not to go through with this plan Leo please don't do this, he pleads. Then, it goes almost dead silent as Leo responds: "you're one to talk big bro, hero moves are totally your thing". And for them to go from this big and powerful and near suspenseful sound, to the softest one we hear in the scene was literal genius. Its almost like a sense of incompleteness. Its holding us on the edge of our chairs. We can feel something is gonna happen next, we know something is gonna happen next, something big and greatly altering in the movie. But this silence forces you to think about everything that has happened in the past, and everything that will happen. Because this, is truly the final battle. This is the make it or break it moment of the movie. The all or nothing, winner gets everything, loser watches evrything they've wanted get grasped away. The fate of the entire world resting in the balance of the victor.

I'm unfortunately going to have to cut this short for now, but once again , I will make another post talking about this, because I really enjoy the concept. I apologize in advance for any typos (if there are any, please feel free to let me know).

[chromotps]

Fem!CoraLaw (+ ZoSan, AceLu) HCs bc I love women. (I, too, am a woman). But also, these can be applied to them as men too. (I will be using She/Her pronouns for everyone btw)

- Short-haired, shoulder length and long-haired Cora are all compelling to me. I can't choose which I like more (you can tell I spend too much time on the "create your character" stages in games). Choosing is an obstacle itself in my life /j. One thing for sure tho, it is VERY fluffy, silky, and poofy (obviously). Law likes to run her fingers through it every chance she gets. Cora bends down eveytime she completes a task that Law has given her so Law can pet her head. It's more for Law's enjoyment than Cora's.

- Cora and Sanji uses a very specific brand of makeup. Its high demand and usually out of stock before it even gets displayed for sale. The price is quite high, but Law will be more than willing to use her own money to help Cora buy them. Sanji uses her own money of course, you expect Zoro to buy them? She has a debt higher than Luffy's bounty with Nami /j. But Zoro's willing to sacrifice money for her booze to help Sanji buy the makeup.

- Big gf means big boobies— Law likes to lay her head on Cora's chest after a tiring and stressful day. Sometimes she'll even knead Cora's boobs, cuz it is soft and bouncy (giggles). Zoro, even as a man, has bigger boobs than any of the crew's women 😭 I find it funny af. Sanji is jealous but she loves to bury her face in them so ig that compensates it xD. Zoro and Luffy don't wear bras. (Come on, they're pirates. They can wear whatever they want and if others have a problem with it then what are they gonna do about it? Tell them? Luffy: What's a bra? Zoro: Why are you looking at them in the first place? Oi, my eyes are up here!).

- Fem Cora and Sanji would be perfect as models bro (or maybe I'm just based. I see a tall, blonde and gorgeous person and I'd be convinced they do modeling. And also, maybe I'm based bc fanarts of Fem!Cora and Fem!Sanji are so sexy). They don't do modeling ofc, but their bounty posters are the people's Magazine. Hehehe women who smoke in pictures *sighs dreamily*

- They all look good in dresses. Sanji with a blazer dress, Luffy in an empire waist dress, Zoro in a wrap, Cora in a camisole dress, Law in a fit and flare, and Ace in a backless dress. But only Sanji, Cora and Law are willing to wear heels. Don't worry, Cora doesn't stab herself in the eye with her heels. At least, not yet xD. Flip-flop wearing mf (Luffy), barefooted gorilla (Zoro), and a boots person (Ace) [said affectionately].

- Law likes cute animal stuff. Everytime the crew docks on an island Cora will always come back with something cute for Law. Like, a cat keychain, a bear plushie, bunny themed band-aids, capybara pins and so on. So imagine this, Cora with a cute hairclip of a cute animal. Law really likes them (both Cora and the hairclip).

- Sometimes Cora has a hard time finding a bra her size, and its not even about her boobs, its about how her torso is a bit too wide. So most of her clothes have paddings on them (Law is delighted about this, since if she takes off Cora's top, she'll immediately be greeted by her boobs, no bra on sight lmao).

- NICKNAMES!!!! These are so cute. Ace calls Luffy "Loaf" cuz its food and Luffy likes food and Ace likes Luffy. Law calls Cora "Rosi/Rosy" when she's feeling affectionate (and also when she dominates Cora- ehem). Zoro and Sanji... you know how they are- lmao. They give each other new nicknames every few weeks.

That's all for now! Have a great day!

-S

[ringing a dinner bell] fashionable coralaw fans, come get your food!!!! it's time to eat!!

heheheh Cora's fluffy hair is one of my fav things about his design... it would be so cute to play around with styling it if it were longer, or if fem!Cora was just more inclined to accessorize it. :3c makes sense to me that Law would be a big fan too

Oh to lay my head on Cora's chest, just once......... The jealousy I have for Law and Sanji in this scenario...................... Also lmaoooo I see the no bra thing now and then in fem!character designs and it throws me off. I guess it make sense when they give the character a smaller chest, but it would just be painful for like, fem!Zoro. get those puppies some support so they're not flying around during fights!

(I'm bringing in too much realism, sorry 😂 )

backless dress Ace backless dress Ace BACKLESS DRESS ACE UHHHHHHHHH I need a minute. Brain coming back online.

awww I like the idea of Law keeping that appreciation for cute things kind of secret, but ofc Cora knows... Her indulging it would be so cute!!! and I continue to be endlessly jealous of Law... And also Cora... Haha, speaking of nicknames, I saw a fic where Cora kind of plays with the opposite idea and uses "Dr. Law" to be playful. Could be cute in this case, too c:

[anxietywriter]

Weak Knees

Love seeing these tropes because it screams, lovesick, weak in the knees, feelings realization, and angst potential we just love it.

I think I've said it before I'll say it again the fucking anime thing with the hand and the wall and the caging them/blocking them in with their body??? Essentially like protecting them or blocking them from sight.

Anything to do with one of them falling/getting injured and the other wrapping themselves around them to keep them safe. Just- the angst potential and the sacrifice SWOONERS.

When one of them starts the beginning of a song/duet and the other person happens to know and jumps right on in and like musical moment, they just fucking stare at each other and ahhh

When a confession happens and the horribly anxious/insecure one just breaks down from surprise, happiness, and disbelief. The sobbing and clutching at their loved one, realizing it's *real*, this is all real and- it's the way they are being loved and finally feeling as if it's actually possible for it to work. all the doubt and worries and anticipation, it all flows out.

A casual game/movie night where they're just talking and reminiscing and one of them just goes, "I actually used to really like you way back when" and the other is just like "what??? And you never told me??" And- okay on one hand it could be fluffy like "bro let's just fucking date??? I like you, you like me, we're both hot, why not??" BUT LIKE ALSO- "Yeah totally. But y'know things happen I guess. And you and your partner are like absolutely perfect for each other" and they're just hiding how they were kind of hurt and jealous. But like also needing to let it go because- they shouldn't have to be second fiddle.

Surprise surprise I love pillowtalk. Especially when a pairing panics during pillowtalk because it was supposed to be casual, but oh no they caught feelings and are going to get their hearts shattered. But I love the way the soft tenderness clashes with that desperation to cling to every moment. The jagged hurt at the thought that they're just another notch on the bedpost. Like, you feel me? The way they're trying to hide their hurt and still love in the moment, greedily soaking in all the affection before their partner becomes aware enough to kick them out.

OKAY BUT WHEN THEY'RE SO TOUCH STARVED THEY LITERALLY CANNOT PROCESS ANY AFFECTION?? LIKE- FLUSHED. All. The. Time. Absolutely beet red and shy and bashful. Loves every second. Will sigh everytime they have to let go of their partner's hand. Hide behind their hands when given compliments. Kissing practically makes them pass out.

nicknames. Copious amounts of ridiculous but endearing nicknames. Their partner's gender doesn't even come to mind for them. IT'S ALL ABOUT THE VIBES. Just sentences that naturally form into "hello pretty, how's your day?" or "you wanna go to the store with me love?" or "angel, can you grab the tongs for me?" LIKE- and they're all for the same person I'm so soft. (More sweet lil nickname suggestions bc I'm literally obsessed: sunshine, sweetheart, darling, honey, my life/soul)

[goron-king-darunia]

Annon-Guy: What's your opinion on Richter X Aqua?

I think with how sparse the game canon material is, there really isn't much to go on for Richter X Aqua. If anything he treats her as a friend or a pawn. I think Sonic and Amy have more chemistry and that was also largely a one-sided relationship for most of the Sonic Canon. The Onshuu no Richter manga tries to push the Richter X Aqua stuff HARD. And by hard I mean they push it more than any other relationship that wasn't Emil/Marta, which they pushed very hard.

Richter is a lot softer with Aqua in the manga than he ever seems in game. The game gives me the impression that he just accepts and tolerates her doting but we never see him reciprocate and even when Aqua basically puts her life on the line to buy him more time during the endgame. But in the manga he gives her this super soft smile and Aster teases him about how Aqua calls him handsome. I'm sure the text intends us to read this as budding romance for Richter x Aqua, but to me and my smooth brain that got sandpapered down by the canon where RICHTER LITERALLY PLANS TO DOOM THE WORLD FOR HIS DEAD "FRIEND" ASTER which has ZERO heterosexual explanation to me (I have friends I would kill and die for but I honestly can't think of anyone but my partner where I would think "Yeah, a world without them isn't worth living in, might as well nuke the planet.") So, TL;DR, I think there's potential there. Unlike Marta, Aqua mostly just flatters and helps Richter. We never really see her doing anything Richter seems uncomfortable with. If there were better writers or more time spent on that in the manga, I could see Richter x Aqua being a substantial relationship. I've played with some shipping ideas with the two of them, though I must say I don't treat Richter X Aqua with the same seriousness as Richter X Emil or Richter X Aster. But as far as the game goes there's no substance there, so I don't buy into their relationship being intentional in the game. I buy it as a one-sided relationship at most. The manga, as hard as it tries, can't make me see their relationship as anything more than a guy with a kind heart being nice to an underdog centurion who's trying her best. The most I would ever concede there is that there's POTENTIAL there for something to happen, but not a genuine romance yet. Honestly, the only evidence we really have is that he gives Aqua the softest smile in the manga. Which I suppose is meant to be interpreted with romantic intent. But honestly all I see is "Aww, Richter's a softie" and not "Aww, Richter's in love with her."

This reads to me more as a guy trying to reassure his clumsy female friend than it does "man trying to flirt with cute girl." He seems flustered when she calls him handsome, but not in an "Aw shucks" way but more in an "Oh, great, now she's in love with me" way. The little heart bounces off his head and everything. If anything, this page taught me more about the potential of POLWIGLES to find Richter handsome than it taught me about Richter and Aqua's potential for a relationship. Hell, Aster's even blushing a bit as he's teasing Richter. I 100% this is meant to be interpreted as "bro teases his bro about an embarrassing moment" but like... After a game where the major inciting factor was "Scrungly little kind-hearted pipsqueak gets unjustly murdered which causes his big buff friend to literally fight a minor god and sacrifice the future of the world for even a tiny chance at revenge and a glimmer of hope that was almost certainly a lie about possibly getting the scrungly pipsqueak back" I'm WAY more inclined to read that tiny blush as Aster teasing Richter AND thinking to himself "Aqua is correct, he is handsome!" TL;DR again: basically I enjoy playing with the Richter X Aqua idea, but neither the game canon or the manga canon gave the relationship ANYTHING solid to base this off of other than, like, Richter not snapping at Aqua for constantly flirting and Richter smiling softly, like, once. I enjoy a bit of Richter X Aqua if I'm the one making it up with a decent foundation. But most of that foundation is honestly me writing Aqua to being his friend first and proving that she has Richter's best interests in mind even when it's clear he's in love with someone else like Aster or Emil and THEN having them grow close as friends to the point where Richter starts feeling affection in return. Even so, I tend to enjoy the Richter/Aqua friendship dynamic MUCH MORE than I enjoy Richter x Aqua romantic potential. Her ability to transform does have a lot of potential for romance and kink fic, but honestly, I love Aqua best when she's Richter's BFF. Like, Aqua wingmanning for Richter as Richter tries to flirt with Emil sounds so much better (and works so much better with the game canon) than anything Aqua could offer herself. Like, imagine Aqua transforming into Emil so Richter can practice his pickup lines on her before trying them on Emil. Imagine Aqua as Richter's best man at the wedding. Imagine Aqua as the friend that walks Richter home after a night out drinking and not taking advantage of him or expecting anything. That's all solid stuff I would 100% buy as canon AND that would serve as a way better foundation for a real relationship later if you want to imagine romance than just "He saved my life once and it cost him his best friend so now I constantly flirt with him because his smile is handsome and I know he's available now."

I guess I just find friendship sexy. Let them be friends first. I want these two on a corner eating ice cream and quietly judging other peoples' tastes in clothing like sassy gal pals first. If the friendship doesn't at least get to that point I literally cannot envision romance there, no matter how much the manga seems to want me to. I want Aqua to make Richter laugh first. I want him to sit down and let her practice make up on him so she can figure out what humans and half elves find attractive. I want Aqua and Richter in the kitchen together absolutely wrecking everything as they try to follow a basic recipe because neither of them have experience. I want them to ease into things. I want them playing truth or dare at 3 AM because Aqua just heard about slumber parties and Richter has never had one because his childhood was fucking stolen by prejudice and horrid laws about half-elf "forced labor." I want Richter actually hanging out with her and not just calling her up when he needs an extra pair of hands. I want a drunken 4 AM where Aqua has to say "No, you're not having any more liquor tonight." Instead of caving like she always does and letting Richter drink himself to sleep. I want the 5 AM confession where Richter's half asleep so Aqua's sure it doesn't mean anything when Richter sobs out that she's always been so kind and he doesn't deserve her love. I need this shit to take 10,000 words at least. You feel me?

I have nothing against it the way I have some major concerns over Emil and Marta. But there just isn't enough there. Honestly I see more potential with Richter and Colette and they only had, like, 1 interaction, off screen. But in that interaction, despite Richter literally actually wanting her either dead or incapacitated so he can take her Cruxis Crystal, he shows kindness to her and to the homeowner whose house he inadvertently "decorated" with Colette's outline when she fell through their wall by PAYING FOR THE DAMAGE HIMSELF. And then he didn't even keep fighting with Colette. He let her go and warned her that he would come after her again. Richter doesn't show that much concern for even Aqua. So, like... Either Richter shows love in a very gruff way or Aqua's just not on the top of the list of people he has compassion for which would not be a great way to start a relationship...

TL;DR for the last time: I do occasionally ship Richter X Aqua, but I’m particular about it. I don’t see enough evidence for it to base any of my shipping off the game or the manga, so most of the feelings I have about the ship are feelings specifically about the sort of relationship I made up for them in my head so it’s based almost 100% on stuff I made up for me. I don’t think the romance potential for them is portrayed well in any of the media they’re in at all (Is Aqua even in Rays? Rays full on confirms that Aster is Richter’s most important person, not her, right? She doesn’t even show up in Rays, does she?) so while I do like the potential they could have, there’s nothing in any of the source material that makes me think that.

[themajesticjunkyard]

Okay, I thought this was him talking about Nintendo films like Super Mario Bros (2023) and the coming Legend Of Zelda Film, but now realise he's talking about the need for a developing narrative being as important as the gameplay. I'm of two minds.

In one respect, he is absolutely correct; the need for spectacle being at the forefront and not thinking about how to make the game fun and how to evolve form that does diminish a lot of games and overcomplicates things; as he said, things are getting more expensive and thus, less consumer friendly. Sometimes, I actually appreciate Nintendo not being so update in terms of hardware with their consoles, as I'm a firm believer that limitations breeds innovations. However, to use an example from Nakey Jakey, while gameplay is the most important aspect when developing a game, and is the beating heart, it doesn't mean that that I cannot enjoy the other limbs of the game. Story is important. I'm not saying that Super Mario needs a dark and gritty storyline to keep up with the times, but their callousness towards story, narratives and plot does seem to limit them and not in a good way.

Some of my favourite games, Breath Of The Wild and Tears Of The Kingdom, I adore not JUST for the gameplay and world design, but the storyline they wrote. Zelda's story arc in the first game about duty and themes of sacrifice in the second game are so subtle but so powerful. You can see this in the Pikmin series; the gameplay and concept are so unique and fun but the story from game to game is so... confusing. Particularly in Pikmin 4, where it acts like a soft reboot, recreating Pikmin 2 storyline but not with Olimar and Louie.

I honestly believe that Nintendo's sole focus on gameplay is a hinderance; the game scape is ever evolving and games are not just a game, much like how Films aren't just moving pictures or songs aren't just colourful sounds. Maybe I'm overthinking that, and I'm not dissuading that notion. You don't have to sacrifice one aspect in favour of another. Gameplay and Story CAN compliment each other. They can elevate each other.

"We’ve forgotten we’re supposed to be making games, not movies. As a result, game development is turning into a circus, costs are skyrocketing, users get bored faster than ever and the development of truly new games – new ways of having fun – has all but stopped." Hiroshi Yamauchi

[nerinefy]

. . . HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE YOUR IDEAL GUY? ; FT. THE OLDER BROS.

- FIC INTRO - PART I [YOU'RE HERE] - PART II

— summary: with MC's noticeable influence on RAD's student body, the newspaper club had to get a scoop on what the infamous human had to say about a few things, although one question definitely caught them off guard. let's just say a lot of hidden feelings were revealed afterwards!

— details: pronouns: you/yours | headcanon | crack + fluff | obey me! swd

— tagged list: @my-perfect-machine , @aijlin , & @pleasureoftheclouds

— author's note: guess who got a deadly fever the other day and can't move even a muscle? but seriously i'm very sorry for the late update :') i didn't expect it either.

LUCIFER !

He was in his office working on a few tasks Diavolo had given him that day when he suddenly heard a low buzz from his phone. Not caring much about it, he continued his work, that is when notifications kept popping that it became too much of a distraction. Reaching out to grab the phone, deciding to keep it on silent, he then saw what the fuss was all about.

- Asmodeus: "Hey guys, I think you really need to see this"! (insert pic.)

- Leviathan: "Huh? Oh, they interviewed (Y/N)? What about it?"

- Satan: "It seems that there's one interesting question to be seen below."

"How would you define your ideal guy?"

- "Well, it's hard to make words for it but to keep it simple, he's hardworking and caring. Quite stoic at first but he's a soft and sweet person."

Out of all the things he could see that day, not saying he's complaining, quite the opposite actually. For a while, he thought he might be assuming things too hard. It's all too hard for the old man, why can't you just say it in person, not that he needed any clarifications of course! (No, he does need clarifications, please give this lad answers.)

Bonus! Might invite you for dinner (or to his room lol) that evening— expectedly the only way he can think of to get things straight with you.

MAMMON !

He had just finished a modeling shift and was scrolling through Devilgram when he saw the post. Reading through it, there's one question that certainly caught his eye.

"How would you define your ideal guy?"

- "As weird as this may sound, he's somewhat of a slow person, yet in a fun and chaotic way, it's his charm. He's a kind and sensitive man and is always willing to sacrifice for the sake of others."

It takes him a very long while to process it so it's likely that he'll suddenly squeal like a high school girl while he's in bed (Surprisingly that's how my brain works too.)

Will reread that specific text over and over again, and will automatically assume— not saying that he's wrong.

You should just expect a giddy Mammon to meet you just right after you open your bedroom door the next morning. You can see with just the first glance that this man barely got any sleep, but who cares, he's only happy to know that that's how you see him.

LEVIATHAN !

Just to let you know, even if he sees it, he will never have in mind that you're talking about him— even in any universe out there I assure you. He sees himself in not the best light, so it takes more than that for him to get the message.

Will most likely see it on Devilgram too, as he only scrolls there to see if there are any updates about the new game he's been playing, and he so happens to stumble upon the post.

"How would you define your ideal guy?"

- "Well he's generally shy and a bit out there at the same time, but I love his passion for the things he enjoys and find it quite cute too."

The only question is, when does it click on him? Well, let's just say it's not only him who saw the post and he was definitely getting teased for it that night.

- Belphegor: "It's all to obvious, I can't believe you didn't notice."

- Asmodeus: "Oh (Y/N), I never knew you were that bold to say that, how very passionate of you!"

Cue two goofballs who are too much of a shy blushing mess to even say something. He's not that stupid to not get that. I'm sorry, but he's for sure going to hide from you for a bit after this, there's just too much to take in!

[♡︎] — WILL BE SPLIT INTO THREE PARTS BECAUSE I'M LAZY <3

©nerinefy don't plagiarize, repost, or translate. | reblogs are appreciated!

[obeythedemons]

What The Lesser Demons Say About Him [Obey Me! Headcanons]

Obey Me! Masterlist

Lucifer

"Overachiever that tries to act scary, but I've seen the sticker. Ya know, the one with him on a unicorn?"

"Usually too busy dealing with his brothers and Diavolo to notice anything anyone else does. We're more scared of Barbatos than him."

"He likes to say he's a sadist, but ever since MC showed up he's gotten real soft. Like, have you seen the way he looks at them? The Avatar of Pride would do anything for them - and I thought it was bad with Diavolo!"

Mammon

"Super easy to make money off of him if you're just a bit lucky and he's desperate enough."

"The only one of the brothers that I'm not afraid of snapping at any given moment and kill me. Kinda cool. I like getting his magazines."

"He has actually been working??? And Lucifer isn't even making him. He said something about MC. Did they use their pact? It doesn't seem like it, because he said something about buying them something as a surprise."

Leviathan

"Have you seen his sewing skills? I'm so jealous. I wish I could make something like that. I tried asking if he'd make me something, but he thought I was making fun of him."

"Way fun playing games with him. He carries all of us, especially with his tactics. Dude needs to go pro."

"He showed up to class? I was like, who the Devildom is this guy? But then I realized it was him. He sat next to MC and would only talk to them. He kept stuttering and was a blushing mess. I ship it."

Satan

"He knows everyone, every place, and everything. If you have a question he'll know the answer. But you gotta ask him when he's in the right mood, 'cause if he's bored he'll give you the wrong information."

"When I see him and Belphie together I sort of just linger to see what they're going to do to Lucifer. Mind you, I keep a safe distance. Not going to be collateral when Lucifer purposely gives them the reaction they want. I don't think they realize he just humors them to grow closer to them."

"He is so cute with MC. I'll see him giving them his jacket sweater thing, reading to them, or teasing them. He's usually really sweet with them, but sometimes he just tries to make them flustered."

Asmodeus

"He's so beautiful it hurts. Like, what is his skin routine? He told me what it was, but I think he lied because it didn't work. Is he just naturally that beautiful?"

"He thinks his best trait is how beautiful he is, but he does make a lot of sacrifices for those he cares about. Like, I overheard he gave up his spot at a spa for Diavolo. Hello??? He also gives out compliments to everyone and they're genuine. He makes you feel special. That's his best trait."

"The way he flirts with MC is so much different than how he did with everyone else. Like, I swear I'm not crazy. Also, his flirting with everyone has died down since MC came along. They might be the first one he's ever really loved."

Beelzebub

"Dude's the best player on our team. He works out all the time, like bro, let us have a chance! It's crazy how strong he is. He could take a day off, but he's got a pretty solid routine."

"I like to just watch him eat. Where does it go? Why did he eat his plate and part of the table? I stay a distance, he'll try to take a bite out of you if you're not careful."

"So like, he takes care of Belphegor, but he really takes care of MC. He even shares some of his food with them. What??? He gets a small smile when he sees them eat. I feel like I'm tripping every time it happens. And then he just hugs them. It looks so warm and nice."

Belphegor

"How are his grades so good when he sleeps through class? How!? I study my ass off and he is barely awake during exams. I know he didn't study! Makes me so mad!"

"We all made up conspiracy theories for why he suddenly went missing. Some of us said that MC was actually him. Others said that Lucifer locked him away in an attic. Both are stupid, but it was fun. Then he showed back up."

"The look he has when he wakes up after sleeping on MC's lap is something else. He has this smile and then he'll nuzzle his face into them while wrapping his arms around them. It's so cute I think I'll die every time."

Diavolo

"If I say something bad about him Barbatos or Lucifer will kill me. Not that I really have anything bad to say about him, he's just intimidating, you know? I mean, he's the next king! I'm always scared I will say something wrong."

"He's a secret genius. He acts happy-go-lucky, but everything is so calculated. Master manipulator is what he is. And he does it without lying! Like, his father was never that good. Makes me wonder if he had something to do with him going to sleep."

"The way he brightens up whenever he sees MC would make you think that Devildom got a sun. Like, his smile is usually just a plain smile, but this is something else. He is always wanting to walk around with their arms linked or holding hands with them. I'm just waiting for him to propose to them under the guise of it being for diplomatic reasons to bring the realms together, but the guy's just smitten."

Barbatos

"He has a secret torture room, I hear something like drums?? But I also hear screaming. I swear it's Diavolo's enemies. I didn't even know Diavolo really had enemies."

"Uh... one time I saw a rat running down RAD'd halls and then I saw Barbatos. I've never seen anyone look so scared in my life. I never would have thought that he would be scared of something like that."

"I'm so confused. One moment I'll see him with Lord Diavolo, but then I'll walk down the hall and see him with MC! I'm pretty sure he's doing something with his powers so that he's able to spend time with them. And it's weird, I've never seen him as relaxed as he is with MC."

Simeon

"He is actually more terrifying than any demon I've ever met. Have you seen him angry before? I swear, he should be the Avatar of Wrath, not Satan."

"It's cute how he takes care of Luke. Though, there's something sad about him. I wonder if it's because misses being in the Celestial Realm with the brothers or if he's thinking he might fall."

"He's so innocent with MC that it's almost scandalous. Like, he acts like holding their hand is such a big deal. Is he actually that innocent or does MC just have such a huge effect on him?"

Luke

"We do joke about him being a dog, but that's only because he doesn't realize exactly how powerful he is. He's still just a kid! He might actually end up being more powerful than Michael or Lucifer when he's grown up."

"His sweets are so good. He claims he doesn't like demons, but that's started to stop and he'll share what he baked with us. He's a good kid."

"MC adopted him, I don't know if they meant to, but they did. It's so funny how he tries to protect them, but he's just their little brother."

Solomon

"I want to form a pact with him just to see why so many of us have, but he's picky and only wants a pact with Lucifer. Not gonna happen."

"He confused me. Is he messing with everyone with his cooking or does he genuinely enjoy his food? And how do you make a mistake that makes you immortal?! What kind of mistake did he make!? Was it his cooking?! It's always a mistake when he cooks."

"He's always casting little charms on MC to make sure they're safe or will have a little bit of good luck. I always see him glance at MC during class just so he can watch their reactions. Even though he's lived forever, he always acts like everything with MC is something brand new."

[greenandbluebubblegum]

Hello Darling! Kinnporsche anon here 💜 have a good week!!

I just finished episode 11,omg it was so good 😭!! Like how can surpass themselves each times??

First, I'm going to start with the most painful one. KimChay. WHY KIM!! like I don't understand?? 😭 Why did he do that?? Making Chay cried, nope sorry Kim but I kinda want to hit you. Like how could you do that??? He is going to believe Kim only did that to find information on Porsche, like that he just used him. He didn't deserve this kind of heartbreak. I really hope, when Kim come back on his knees begging for Chay to give him a second chance (you know when he is going to see Chay being a sweetheart with his family, probably listening to Chay love song that he did for school), bc let be honest it's going to happen at some point, I want Chay to just be as means as Kim. I want Chay to makes him work for him!! (let's be real, it's not going to happen, Chay is too much of a sweetheart). I cried at the scene omg 😭

I really love Tankhun introduce himself to Chay, it was so sweet omg. It's good to see Khun being back in his true self, with his eccentric clothes and self. Even though, I reall enjoyed his king mafia self, I love this version of him!! He is going to adopt Chay, and makes him confortable in their home ! The mafia stuff is going to be too much for Chay, I think. Tankhun had been there, he knows what Chay is going through. I think he is going to protect him from all of this (like he did with his little brothers). Tankhun really loved his brothers, it was so sweet to see omg. I want to see all three interact with each other (but not now Kim, I am still mad at you). I need to see Chay and Tankhun together!!

Now Chay and Porsche my babies 😭 they live each other so much, it's just so cute to see 😭 Chay being worries for his big bro and Porsche reassures him omg 😭 Like Porsche did, Chay make a sacrifice by accepting living with the majors family. They are each other priorities. Now, they are living together, I want more scene with each other!!! I want Chay to go to Porsche to get some comfort (and if Porsche goes beat up Kim, I would not be mad) (bonus point if Tankhun goes with him).

Now my babies Kinnporsche. They are so in love, and so soft, and I'm so happy they get to be happy!! The first scene in bed, all soft and cuddly, Porsche telling Pete deserve some vacation!! That what bestie does for each other. All the lighting scream soft in this scene!! Then the scene when they announce their relationship omg!! Kinn call a urgent meeting for this!! He was ready to let go of Porsche bc he knew it was hurting Chay!!! He was, again, ready to sacrifice his happiness just to keep Porsche and his loved one safe!!! This man is in love!!!!! Tankhun rection omg !! He was so happy for his brother omg, and Kinn being all embarrassed by his brother, but at the same time he was happy omg!!! Then when Porsche came in, and Khorn being like '' do you love my son? '' with Chan next to him with his gvn. Pure comedy. Khorn mark some point with what he did (I will come back to that later). He accept Porsche and Chay in his home just to make Kinn (and Tankhun) happy 😭 really the major family has my heart. Honorable mention to Arm and Pol spying on the meeting and commenting it. They are like us.

I think the comment of love being obstacles to Porsche doing well his job ad protecting Kinn is 👀 I do think we are going to have a scene where Porsche protect Kinn bc he loves him and doesn't want to loose him (proving that love isn't in fact an obstacles)

Then, the scene when Porsche dry Kinn hair, sorry but if someone look at me the way Kinn look at Porsche, I would d!e on the spot. He look so soft??? What I found interesting in this scene is that he mentionned his mom? It's the first time he did it. Like why now, when you know, the parent are in the center of everything?? What if we learn more about her? What if she is the one who cause the car accident?👀

Then Tay and Time are back!! Tay I miss you please never leave. The way Kinn hold on into Porsche in front of his friends. He is never going to let him go. It's so sweet. The bar scene with Yok!! My queens!!!! Kinn was being so shy admit his love in front of her, that was so cute!! Their while interaction was so cute!!! Yok deserves the world!!! The way Kinn asked his friend advice for Porsche birthday omg. Then the helicopter Date omg. Really once again big shout out to Apo and Mile, they succeed make everyone understand what emotions and feeling their character feels without saying a world!!! Really this whole episode was just them being cute and soft and in love. It's so nice to see them happy and in love really. I don't think we will have heavy angst stuff from them like they are so in love?????

The best for last. VEGASPETE!!!! OMG it was better than I except!! Like the evolution of their relationship when you compare the first scene of the episode to the last one! It's just brillant. The way we saw Vegas evolve? Brillant too. We really want to a Vegas who enjoyed torture Pete for his own satisfaction, then a Vegas who release his frustration, his anger (his sadness??) on Pete to a Vegas who worries about Pete and Take care of him?? This man is going to be worse then Kinn. Kan doesn't deserve to have Vegas and Macau as son, I really hope he d!e with a lot of suffering. Pete, on the other hand, deserve the world. He really empathize with the man who torture him?? He is full of love omg. Like he could have not say a word about his own trauma, he could have let Vegas in his own shit after all. But no, he still take the time to talk to him, to tell him that he is not the problem, that it's his father the problems! This was a turning point in their relationship. Vegas has a realization about his father bc of this conversation , and that is going to help him a lot (I thing he is going to stop following his father orders to try and make him happy). But also, Vegas has someone who is nice to him, who understands him and what he went through, Pete is probably the first person who tell him that he doesn't have to compete with Kinn, that being just him, not comparing to Kinn, is good enough. Like I cried at this scene, bc for the first time in Vegas life someone is seeing him for what he is (not counting Macau here, even though he loves his brother I don't think he saw all the pain of his brother. Vegas play this role of the big strong man). Sorry but Vegas little smile at the end is so telling!!! They are both going to get vulnerable with each other next episode, I feel it in my bones I cannot wait!!!

Now with what the (not so) shocking news we learn in the last scene, I'm so excited for what come next omg!! We are going to finally find out what happen, why Khorn is so mysterious and sus about his relationship with Porsche!!

I do think that Khorn is not the bad guys here, j think it's Kan. The main difference between t them, is that Khorn is ready to do everything to protect, and to make happy the person he loved. Sure he seems cold and sus, but we never saw him mean toward to person he love. He accept his sons the way they are and never makes them feels less. He respect who Tankhun is, and didn't disowned him for his PTSD. He still loved Kinn for being gay. He accept his relationship with man, and let them lived in his house (same with Kinn's friend), he accept Kim not working in the mafia and being a singer. He wants his sons happiness, he accepts what their happiness are. He even accept Porsche and Chay to live in his home even though he knows it's coming to bite him the on ass. He is, somewhat, responsible for their parents death. He is going to have to take responsibility for it, assume it. He knows that. He knows it's going to cost him a lot. But he still do it bc he want to make his son happy. He never make Kinn worthless bc he makes mistake, bc he doesn't do his job right. On the other hand Kan is the opposite. He beat his sons, he make them feel worthless, like it' s their fault if they failed. He doesn't accept the way his sons are. He doesn't love them. What I really want to happen, is when we have the big fight between the major and minor family, at the end, Kan to be alone and Khorn to be with his loved one. Nobody is going to stick with Kan, Macau is going to leave and Vegas too. I want Vegas to betray his father. Like at the end, when Kan ask Vegas to do something, he just say no. That he will no longer do this stuff but he doesn't care about his approval and love anymore. It would be so good that Vegas protect Pete from his father, and tell him to not touch the man he love 😍

... Well that was long 😭😭 sorry for the fault but I'm too tired to correct it

And don't worry about the Sticker thing, it was a joke. I know you were not trying to make fun of me!! 🥰 OK, I will listen to these!!

Oh you came in Liège?? This is where I live!! The coincidence really!! Did you enjoy it?? What did you there?? 🥰

I will be waiting for your respond!! See you soon 💜

Hi darling!!! how are you? sorry for being so late but here we go!!!! 🎉🎉

Every week I say the same but really how do they do it??? every episode is better and better !!! I'm so in love with this series!! 😍

So okay!! KIMCHAY! Kim 🔪🔪🔪 you hurt my baby!!! how dare you??? it was so painful to see that! Little Chay was heartbroken!! I cried a little!! (Barcode did such a good job!! I felt the pain) My theory is that Kim did that to protect Chay because I think he had feelings for him but still painful to witness!! Kim is cancelled this week lol I read some people saying Kim maybe thinks Chay is his half-brother or something like that but I don't think so!! I really think it's the 'I'm going to sacrifice my happiness because I want you safe' thing for Kim!! when you see Kim's expressions you can see he is also in pain!! like it was hard for him!! But I really expect Chay put it difficult for his forgiveness haha Kim needs to suffer the same pain 🤭

The scene between Porsche and Chay was so cute!!! I understand why Chay was mad at the end Porsche is his only family! he was afraid to lose his brother!! but the way they handle that was adorable!! I really hope we would have more interactions between them!! Also, imagine Porsche discovering why Chay is so sad!! he will kill Kim!!! lmao, I'd love to see that!! or Tankhun, because I feel he already adopted Chay as his little brother too so it will be interesting to see Tankhun protecting Chay from his own brother hahaha I can imagine Khun being like 'why did you hurt my baby brother, Kim? and Kim being like 'I'm your baby brother !! 🤨 ' so funny!!

Now, KINNPORSCHE being so in love!! like gross!! get a room hahaha no but really I love them so much!! my babies 🥰️🥰️ deserve everything!! Kinn was so shy when he told his family about Porsche and his feelings!! that was so cute + Tankhun reaction was the best!!! hahaha, I love it!! and then we have Porsche being nervous because he didn't know what to expect but in the end everything was fine!! He is a new member of the major family!! and Chay of course!! but also feel Khorn knows things so that's why he accepted Porsche so easily!! suspicious!!

OMG, the hair drying scene was perfect!! The way they look at each other, they are so delicate and soft!! they are so in love!!! 💞 how Porsche wants to take care of Kinn and how Kinn wants to be taken care of!! <3 my heart can't take it!! the little smiles between these two and the little touches <3 <3 it was a perfect scene!! one of my faves but I'm with you about the mother!! why now?? 👀 what are we going to discover next episode!!!

The bed scene was so adorable!! Kinn is so gone for Porsche hahaha it's endearing!! and Porsche pouting hahaha because he was shy in front of Kinn's friends!! so cute!!! and the bar scene!! Yok, queen!!! when she asked Kinn if he loves her son lmao love it!! all that was super cute!!

Finally, the helicopter scene was so beautiful!! they never left other hands!! literally so so precious to see!! also, rip the pilot haha he has to listen to all the nasty things they did hahaha he being like 'I don't get enough money for this' lol I really want happy like this forever but I don't think that would happen because I remember in the trailer we have a scene when Porsche says to Kinn that he is in his side!! in what it looks like a bar or something like that so I feel we will have some angst soon! NOOOOOOOOO 😭 but also we still have the pool scene so 😏😏😏

Ok, now the moment is here!! VEGASPETE!!! OMG!!! wow, I was shaking!! It was so good!!! The way Vegas started with so much hate at the beginning of the episode and how we see all his evolution!! AMAZING!! the way he enjoyed the torture without any remorse and then at the end he started to care about Pete! I would love to have a series only about these two! I feel we would have so much exploration of all the emotions and their evolution! Pete is really an angel at this point!! He cares about the feelings of the person who is hurting him!! Like how?? we don't deserve him!! My sweet sunshine!! He cares about people, he knows that people aren't only black and white and sometimes their acts have something bigger behind them!! he's so smart!! I love how in this episode we know more about Vegas, real Vegas not the facade he puts himself in order to be the heir of the second family, the son his father would like to have but a glimpse of his real self! he only wants his father's approval, that's why he always trying to be better than Kinn but what he doesn't know is if his father won't ever be satisfied with him so it's a circle of pain and hatred! That's why is so important when Pete said to Vegas that his father is an ass. The way he explained to him that his father hates himself and that's why he can't love anyone!! It was a revealing part because nobody has told him that before! Vegas really thinks he isn't enough, that's why he is always competing with his cousin! he thinks that way he will have the respect he craves from his father but we all know Kan doesn't care, he doesn't care about his children, they are tools only. It's such an interesting relationship because it has so many layers!! So now Vegas has someone that in a way cares about him. Pete is a stranger in his circle, I feel the only person who does that is Macau but Vegas thinks that's normal because they are brothers and as you said Vegas plays the big brother card so it's different, he has never been so exposed to any other person, so having someone from outside asking for him is weird, he is confused because no one has done that before, Pete is gonna break all his walls and the moment he'll do that it will be over for Vegas. As you said he is going to be worse than Kinn lol his love for Pete is going to be more intense because he has never had anything like this probably he only has sex and relationships with ulterior motives (Tawan I see you) so Pete is gonna be the first one that he would open his heart too !! I really can't wait for more of these two I'm literally obsessed with them!!

Now the end of the episode, Kim discovers his father has something to do with Porsche and Chay's parent's death 'pretends to be shocked meme lol finally Kimlock Holmes did his job hahaha I really can't wait to see what would happen with this! Maybe it was a rival organization who did it!! I don't know!! so many possibilities!! really can't wait for Saturday!!!!

Omg really?? what a coincidence!! I was in Liège because my sister was doing her Erasmus there so I visited her a few times!! I really like it!! She showed me some things like the big stairs!! the cathedral, the opera part!! and of course Le Carré lmao I want to visit again!! I really like your country!! <3

So that's all I think! it was kind of long !! Oh yes please let me know if you listen to the songs!! See you soon!! Have a great week!! 💜💜 Mua mua

[razberryyum]

TGCF donghua Episode 5 Thoughts (SPOILERS!)

Welp this is definitely my favorite episode of the donghua thus far. Holy crap where to even begin??? I rewatched it five times already to make sure I caught every little detail, but I'm sure I still missed something.

Ok first of all, couples fixing each other's hair is a super big soft spot for me, I love seeing that! I think it's so freaking adorable and sweet and domestic. Hell, this whole episode was so freaking adorable and sweet and domestic! It was so difficult deciding which moments were my favorite since I loved so many of them!

But before I get to any of that, I have to say, I am officially in love with this man.

Gawds that look literally made my knees weak. Like, I kinda already loved him the first moment we saw him in the first episode (I mean, is it supposed to be a big secret who he is? Putting aside I already know from just being in the MXTX fandom, I think the donghua's been pretty blatant about his dual identity. Maybe it was easier to hide in the novel). I knew it wouldn't take much for me to love San Lang, I do have eyes after all, but the more time we spend with him the more I am just UTTERLY in love with him. I love his smiling eyes, his sexy aura, his personality, but I especially love the way he looks at Dianxia.

I literally just love watching him watching Xie Lian. I can totally feel his love and devotion. It's like I can't take my eyes off of him because his love for Dianxia is like a magnet drawing me in.

Likewise, I also love the way Dianxia can't seem to keep his eyes off of San Lang either.

And I really appreciate how the donghua plays it off as Xie Lian trying to figure him out, trying to determine if he's the Ghost King. I'm sure he sincerely is doing that but it's also obvious he is just fascinated by this man as well. And we know he thinks he's good looking thanks to his fortune telling attempt.

I just about freaked out when this happened cuz I couldn't believe it. Look I know bros can share a bed and there's nothing untoward about it...

...especially when they keep a respective distance apart. But there was just such a heavy air of sexual tension leading up to it that there was almost no way not to overreact to them sharing a bed straw mat. I mean, after all just a few moments ago, THIS happened.

What was THAT all about?? 😂 What did Xie Lian think San Lang was going to do?? Am I wrong to think naughty thoughts?? I can only work with what they give me.

But given what little I know about their history, I'm puzzled by why San Lang seems almost sad at times when I would expect him to be nothing less than ecstatic. For example, when Xie Lian offered to share his bed with him, I thought San Lang would be overjoyed, but instead as can be seen above, he looked sad. Someone had explained that he was sad over the state of Dianxia's living conditions, which I can understand, but then felt like he should still be a little happy about sleeping next to the one he loves.

Then there was also this curious moment before that:

One would think he'd be totally excited about having physical contact with with Dianxia, but he broke off the contact almost immediately and seemed distraught over it. UNLESS, I was supposed to read that as San Lang forcing himself to break contact in order to control his desire for Xie Lian? That just that little physical connection was already too much and he felt overwhelmed? Hence the trembling lips?

I think I'll go with the second option instead. Hotter that way. And if I'm way off base either way, don't bother to correct me. After all, half the fun in watching without reading the book yet is finding out the answers on my own and seeing how wrong or right my guesses and interpretations are.

Such as, Hua Cheng's eye. San Lang mentioned he guaged it out himself... I'm guessing it had something to do with him failing Dianxia in the past so he plucked out his own eye out of anger? Or was it a sacrifice on behalf of Xie Lian?

And then his ashes...I can't wait to find out if he already gave them to Xie Lian in the past without him knowing it, maybe Dianxia unknowingly even has them on his body now in some portable form, or he will be giving them to him in the near future.

Another thing I'm dying to find out about their relationship is how come Xie Lian has no memory of Hua Cheng or San Lang. Seems like there's some memory loss overall on XL's part based on some of the other gods' reaction to him. I mean, I guess HC could have been just a devotee from afar, but that would be, what, 800 years worth of one-sided love? Damn. Or is that actually the beauty and mystic of HuaLian's love?

His words melted me. I am already a puddle of goo over HuaLian and I barely know anything about them. I hope I'll survive the emotional impact once I truly learn the entirety of their history.

Also can't wait to find out more about his curse mark. Based on San Lang's reaction, I can only guess it had to do with him or he is just upset he couldn't stop it from happening.

Again, please do NOT tell me. I really look forward to finding out on my own...either through the donghua when they get to it or by reading the book when I finally get my shit together. I need to earn my worthiness of being able to worship at Dianxia's altar.