#LIKE HE'S. god he has the patience for so much. and its a very different sort of vibe if you're like. a charming asshole

[dangoulains-devotion]

yuffie has many interesting elements to her but people refuse to move past "i find energetic kids annoying" and it makes me sad

[kismate]

came to the conclusion that kismet can only work so well with people who are assholes before reaching his own personal limit

[pedge-page]

Wait ok hear me out. Bored preggo wife starts reading smut and finds she really enjoys a breeding kink/men getting real nasty and aggressively talking about breeding their woman. So she asks Joel to try it and when he does, she’s like grossed out “uhh… nevermind” and he’s so fuckin frustrated and blue balled 😂

Joel Dealing with Preggo Wife: Role Play Me Not

Notes: Thank you for your patience with these requests lately, this one was from March and I've been thinking about it ever since!

warnings: almost smut, lots of dirty talk and degrading language, and usual shennanigans with these two

18+ ONLY

- - - -

It’s pretty late, Joel’s body is wracked, and nothing feels better than the foam mattress bed he’s curled up on. You had a pretty good day, judging by your happy soft hums and scrolling aimlessly on your phone. Hopefully whatever nonsense thing you’re gonna purchase with his card and surprise his doorstep tomorrow morning won’t be too harrowing, but for now, he’ll live with it if it means some rest.

But your incessant giggles, matched with the way you’re shrinking under your brightly lit phone reading something so furiously just begs Joel to ask:

“What are you doin’?”

“Nothin!” You quip quickly, rotating best you can so he can’t see the obvious thing you’re hiding on your phone.

“Okay.” He tosses the cover over his shoulder and presses his head back into the pillow again to close his eyes.

Obviously not the answer you wanted, so you loudly snort with your fake ass ‘Tee Hee!’ again because this motherfucker better take the god damn hint.

He sighs. “What.”

“Hmm? Nothin!”

Joel squeezes his eyes shut, gritting his teeth. You can’t see his face from your side, but even if you could, he doesn’t think it would deter you.

You clear your throat before uttering your loudest and most obnoxious giggle.

“JUST—!” Tossing the covers down and rolling to his back, he remembers to take a breath, channeling his calm bear voice. “—just show me already. Please.” He’s exhausted, rubbing his face with both hands before holding out one palm behind him for you to place your phone.

You excitedly shove it in his grasp, and Joel rolls over to see. His eyes take a moment to adjust to the brightness, so he collects his reading-glasses from the tableside and props them upon his nose.

Its quiet for a solid minute, and your heart is racing as he stare at his broad back, the fabric of his shirt all stretched tight to accentuate that massive man of man that is your manly man—

He rolls back over with a questionable uncertainty, fear and paralysis mixed with concern and shock.

You’re giddily nodding your head, lips tucked under your teeth from the excitement. “Can we do that?”

He opens his mouth but no words come out. He doesn’t even know where to begin. 

“This is—uh. you like…this?”

“Well I don’t know, but I wanna give it a try…”

He scratches his skull with two fingers, hoping it’ll dig deep enough to itch the bad feeling he has in his brain. “I don’t know, baby, It’s a bit … much.” 

“But you call me your pretty slutty wife sometimes! It’s not much different!”

He glances back at the vivid words on the screen. It is VERY much different than that. But you put on your famous puppy pout, with those big round gleaming eyes, trembling fishy lips staring up at him, topping it off by squishing your tits together so they’re bursting out of the nightgown and smashing into his chest.

That’ll do it.

He shrugs, chucking his bifocals behind him with renewed energy arousing his body, especially down south. He gets to his knees, pulling your cover off from your lap and tracing his big hands over the soft expanse of your thigh like a new toy. you bite your lips, shouldering off your spaghetti straps so your tits are close to being popped out. He rolls the soft fabric of your gown up your growing belly and presses his lips against the swell. “Shit, that’s what I like to see. Gonna be a little fuck toy whore for Daddy to play with?”

“Ah…time out.” You hold your hands in a T formation. He stops rubbing and looks down towards your face. 

“Uh—yes?”

“I don’t like whore.”

“Ah okay—Daddy’s fuck toy?”

“Ok that’s—mmm.”

“What? No good?”

“It’s just ok. We’ll work on that. You can keep going.”

He shakes his head a little but resumes his gentle ghost of his fingers and lips, cascading lower until the scratchy prickle of his beard is at your naval. “Bred ya nice n’ good huh? Little breedin’ stock just f’me—“

“Oh hold on.”

“What.”

“Breeding ‘stock’? What am I, chicken soup?” You chuckle.

He purses his lips. “I don’t know, it was in the damn fic you made me read!”

“Okay okay, sheesh!” You toss your hands up.

“Can I please keep goin now?”

You nod, and he commences lower. 

“Body was made for breeding. Now spread those petals—“

“Oh what I’m a flower now?”

“Damnit, Baby! Am I doin this or not??” He curses. 

You go quiet and nod again, shrinking in against the headboard.

“Just about had it with ya whinin’, baby. I should tie you up like the naughty cow you are—“

“Farm metaphor again?”

“N BREED YOU—“ he seethes, gripping your thighs and hitching them around his hips so you can feel his bulge press into your core. “Breed you over and over again, like the dumb little cum dump you deserve—“

“Ugh hold up this position isn’t comfortable I need ta—“ you wiggle out of his grasp and begin trying to alleviate the pressure your baby is putting on your spine. Joel all but abandons holding your legs as he sits on his knees in front of you with his thumb and finger pressed tightly into his eye sockets. 

You wiggle and roll, unable to find a good position to sink yourself comfortably. The bed shifts with each turn, and Joel is damn near done role playing with you and about to just fuck you with your face down in the mattress whether you wanted to or not when—

“Okie! I’m ready Daddio!” You announce. 

You’re in the exact same position.

“Are we good to continue?” He asks slowly, his frustration being held at bay along with his hard cock that’s begging for some action finally.

You nod. 

He finally tugs his dick out and positions it at your entrance, spitting onto your slit. “Now shut up, take this fucking cock, and let me fuck my seed into you cuz that’s all ya good for—“

“Ya know what.” You wave your hand over this whole scene. “I’m done. This is … no. Nevermind, I’m done with this. M’ready for bed now.”

You slap his cock away like it’s a needy hand and roll to your side, slinking the cover over your shoulder again and turning off your light with a little grin. 

Joel just falls back on his haunches, his cheeks puffed red, balls swollen blue, fully awake all over, with a grumpy cat-worthy scowl etched into his face staring down at you.

- - - -

Taglist:

@harriedandharassed @lola8888673 @its-nebuleuse @zliteraturehoe @merz-8 @joeldjarin @pascalscoffin @pedroshotwifey @ghostslillady @innerpersonunknown @missladym1981 @mrsoharaxx @survivingandenduring @milla-frenchy @cockykookiee @fairytale07 @daddy-din @pedropascalsbbg @spookyxsam @somehopeatlast @millercontracting @pedrostories @mishala005 @theoraekenslover @animez96 @not-a-unique-snowflake-blog @puduvallee @cassiecasluciluce @loohoop @himboelover @callsignwidow

[rafayelsbelovedbride]

Society resting on the misery of the unfortunate.

Since the themes of sacrificing a certain someone for the greater good is the main focus for the stories of the LIs, I can’t help but to analyze their reactions as the ones who walk away from Omelas.

For Xavier, it is very obvious. The moment he found out the truth, he walked away. He walked away from Philos, but also from the MC too. No matter how much he’s trying to find a solution, he still left her behind, although to save her. Maybe, that was not the plan, maybe he underestimated the time he would need, or maybe overestimated other people’s patience. Of course, there were unforeseen circumstances too. Xavier only tried to abandon the land that put him and her into this position, he tried to find a new place and elope too, but he still ended up abandoning her too. Queen MC is still not safe, she feels abandoned, she feels left alone, and she still has no idea what is going to happen to her. In Xavier’s case, he walked away from Philos, but his actions have not solved any of the problems. It’s been hundreds of years since he was gone, but Philos is still there, thriving. And MC is still the child in the basement.

For Rafayel, his circumstances are pretty similar to Xavier's. While Lemuria and Earth are described as two different worlds, they still share the same planet. So, what if the reason for Earth’s long existence was due to Lemurians constantly feeding the Earth’s core with sacrifices. Sea gods are described as the beings that keep the flames of Lemuria alight. And when one sea god dies, it has to be replaced with a new one to keep the Lemuria in its place. But, I find it hard to believe this is the entire truth. The sea gods are not really described as actual gods, but more like sacrifices. Rafayel was a child that was found next to the flames with its power within himself. But, was he the sea god, or was he declared as the sea god? Rafayel is raised as the sea god by the elders (whom he doesn’t really like), his aunt, and his teacher. But I struggle to find the proof that he is not being manipulated, especially by the elders. And I wonder, were there other ‘most devoted followers’ that had to give their heart to the sea god. Did the previous sea god, which was a whale, receive a human’s heart too? Or is Rafayel being considered as the last sea god because finally the Lemurians found a permanent solution to their problems about the earth’s core. And that is the same solution as the one that the king of Philos showed Xavier. Either Rafayel takes her heart and becomes the perfect sacrifice with the aether core now in his heart as the sea god, or they put MC into the abyss without her memories to die and reincarnate over and over again.

But Rafayel believes that he is the sea god. He believes in the stories that was maybe just made up by the elders. He thinks he needs his most devoted follower’s heart and not the aether core. He thinks he has to be the god that can protect the Lemuria and be trusted by the Lemurians. But he fails. He fails the duty that was the only reason for his existence. This is where Xavier’s and Rafayel’s stories differ. Xavier sees this duty as something that was pushed into his way without his consent, and Rafayel sees it as the reason for his existence. And that’s why Xavier is more resentful towards Philos, but Rafayel has this resentment towards MC. Rafayel is the sea god, he should not be swayed by some mortal. He should not be manipulated, he should prioritize his responsibilities towards Lemuria, and Lemuria only. But he fails. Every single time. And he feels guilty. Guilty because he is witnessing all of his kind, all those innocent Lemurians being massacred by the humans because he chose a human over Lemuria’s existence, because he lied.

But Rafayel’s choice does not only affect the Lemuria. The disappearance of the Lemurians only accelerates the death of the planet, not just Lemuria but as a whole. Maybe Lemurians, with their little, immortalized Cardiac Microvascular Endothelial Cells, (LCMECs) were keeping the earth’s core intact every time they died. And that’s why sending people to Philos’s core worked, because humans found immortality through these same cells that they were researching. Maybe that’s what ‘returning into the sea when they die’ was supposed to represent. Maybe the Seamoon Ceremony was about this. Maybe the Lemurians, the elders wanted to transfer this responsibility that Lemurians had shouldered for centuries without humans knowing to a human. A human that can die a thousand deaths, and die a thousand deaths again.

But Rafayel ruined it. Now; the Earth died, Rafayel died, Lemurians died, and Philos is repeating the same mistakes again. Rafayel chose to walk away from Lemuria with MC by his side, but this decision only killed him along with everyone while MC was still bound by this fate.

And in Sylus’s case, the way he keeps emphasizing they are the same, true kindred spirits, somehow suggests that he is also the same child in misery in the basement alongside MC. We’re still waiting for his myths, so it may be a little early to talk about his version of the story, but I’m going to do it anyway.  Maybe before people discovered MC’s existence, or maybe even before she came into existence, there was Sylus, with the weight of the world on his shoulders. Maybe in another world, he died a thousand deaths, and died a thousand more all over again. But unlike MC, he remembers everything. He remembers all his life, all his loss and all of the people who made him into this monster. So, he is not the perfect sacrifice. A perfect sacrifice should not resent, a perfect sacrifice should not turn into a monster, a perfect sacrifice should give up their life with a smile, and a perfect sacrifice should be the perfect victim. A perfect sacrifice should not remember the atrocities that were committed against her. So, maybe just when Sylus thought he freed himself from this fate, he saw that he was only replaced. They now have the perfect sacrifice in the palm of their blood-soaked hands.

Now, how can he walk away from the little soul that was sentenced to become the same monster he became? He can’t, and he won’t. He would rather chase the MC to the end of the world, only to remind her what these people put her through. If MC cannot be angry, he will be in her stead. If MC cannot resent, he will resent. If MC has no reason to fight, he will give it to her. If MC cannot own her memories, he will keep all of them safe in his head. He will always be there to remind her, she can escape her fate. So maybe now, Sylus too became the perfect sacrifice, as he willingly embraces this fate and he willingly takes her place. And maybe he hopes that one day after he is reborn again, he will find MC when she remembers, when the cycle is broken. But he is always left disappointed. She does not remember, so she must have died again, she must have been sacrificed again without him being able to prevent. He is angry, because no matter how many times he takes her place, she is still not safe. He is angry because he cannot escape this destiny.

And then we have Zayne. The one who sees MC’s destiny, the one who sees the never-ending cycle. The Master of Fate who can control how long a human is allowed to live. And maybe, also the one who can end it all. I wonder why MC was considered as a variable who will be resented by people even though she has no intention to harm. Because we see that this was true, she was resented by Lemurians, and maybe also by the people of Philos. Every time she refuses to die, she will harm people. Maybe that’s why the old man asked Master of Fate to get rid of the variable, so that the cycle wouldn’t even start. But Zayne defied fate, he gave MC an even longer life instead. And he was punished for it.

Master of Fate was given a solution; if the child in the basement never exists, then this ethical dilemma would also cease to exist with it. But of course, he could not accept this solution. He could not let MC die. Maybe he made this choice because he was sure he could protect MC from all the consequences of this decision. But, he loses his memories. With the punishment he receives, Astra locks his memories. He can only remember MC when it is already too late. He is destined to either helplessly watch MC die or die before he can help her. Zayne is the one who made MC the perfect sacrifice, and he is the one who is destined to live with this regret.

[synnthamonsugar]

Still thinking about this post and continuing to be frustrated about Elsie, and how poorly developed her relationship with Eris and Drifter is, and how underutilized their friendship is in general.

Thinking about the intersections of their lives. Elsie knows Eris and Drifter, even if they don't know her. Elsie has faced off against Eris at her worst, and now stands at her side at her best. Elsie has found Drifter dead as he desperately and selfishly tried to survive, and now he's alive, more sure of himself, more willing to look out for his friends.

And Eris and Drifter don't know Elsie at first, but they must trust her for their collective survival — for humanity, the Traveler and the Light, if they are to use Darkness against Darkness.

Thinking about the parallels of their stories. Elsie, who like Eris trapped in the Pit, has pressed on day after day, held onto hope against better reason, who finally finds a way out, traumatized, changed, but wiser. Elsie, who like Drifter, has lived by different names and identities, has endured betrayal, and withstood apocalypse.

Thinking about these three as the three who transcended their design, as foretold by The Nine. The hourglass counting down with infinite patience, the forgotten blade sharpened anew, and the dredgen. Their meeting is not just happenstance, but fate.

How satisfying it would have been for them to find in each other what they lost or never had. For Elsie, friends to walk at her side as she escapes the cycle and faces an unknown future. For Eris, a fireteam; not a replacement for her lost comrades, but a chance to make new ones. And Drifter gets a crew he will neither be betrayed by nor forced to betray — learning the real meaning of trust.

I think a catastrophic disservice has been done to all three by focusing on Eris' and Drifter's relationship, all but cutting Elsie out of the picture. It would have been so much more powerful to have Eris send a radio message to Elsie and Drifter talking about how their friendship helped her aspire to more than survival. Imagine if all three continued their studies of the Pyramid and its technology together, continuing the arc first started in Beyond Light. (This one is shockingly egregious for being set on Europa and hand-waving Elsie away to focus on Eris and Drifter — as the fandom does.) What if Elsie and Drifter had visited Eris together in Season of the Witch, what if Elsie had told Eris that she trusted her despite the terror she felt at Eris picking up the mantle of hive god as she had in all her dark futures, instead of getting into fights with Ikora over it?

These are relatively small tweaks to the narrative that would have kept Elsie relevant beyond her role as emotional support sister to Ana, would have added depth to all three, and truly established them as a "Dark" mirror to the Vanguard. I'm heartened that all three were together at the final battle, but it sucks that we got zero development of their relationship between their fight with House Salvation in BL, and the very end of TFS.

Just!! What they could have been. What the writers and fandom could have made of them. Man.

[sxftkxssxs]

I love your writing when it comes to the arcana! We’ve seen the main 6 with a winged mc- but what about the courtiers? (Idk how specific we can get with the asks so you can ignore this next part) and if winged mc would occasionally make bird noises- like squawking or chirping depending.

you can absolutely get specific! I love hearing everyone's ideas and how they expand on the original!! I'm very glad you like my writing!

Courtiers with a Winged!MC

Volta

Resident Sweetheart thinks your wings are absolutely gorgeous!

She'd love to look closer one of these days but hey-! Was that food she saw over there?

Volta admires from afar for the most part, if you can get her curiosity to get the better of her for a moment she'll willingly investigate with your permission!

She doesn't have the patience to run her hands through your feathers though, you might wanna find someone else for that job.

If you give her one of your feathers she's immediately tearing up, promising to keep it safe for you.

She probably ends up wearing it somewhere or hiding it in a spot she specifically picked out for it.

She doesn't mind if you chirp or squawk! She might think there's a lose bird and get excited at first but she gets used to it.

Valerius

Oh, is he enamored.

He LOVES your wings. He thinks that they're the epitome of beauty.

If you have feathers and allow him to run his fingers through them he'll be completely at peace. Can you blame him? Pretty and soft things are too good to pass up.

Gods forbid if you actually give him a feather to keep. He'll accessorize the hell out of that! Wearing it in his hair, a necklace, you name it.

If your wings are more leathery he still thinks they're beautiful! He'd still be content to brush his fingers on them every once in a while.

Purely my self indulgence coming through but I believe he'd love to help you care for your wings. He might be more into it than you.

Valerius has the best products, ushering you to the baths as soon as they arrive. In his mind, helping you with your wings in the baths is like helping someone wash their hair. Its intimate and peaceful. He might tear up the first time.

Valerius actually loves the occasional chirp, but do not squawk near him. He can try to be nice all he wants but that noise hurts his ears and is quite unpleasant to say the least.

Vlastomil

He thinks they're beautiful! Even though they represent almost the exact opposite of his gorgeous worms..

With Vlastomil he's much more content to admire with more distance than the others. Though if you insist he might think about a more close up investigation.

He'll help you with your wings if you ask him to, thought he's not as knowledgeable as Valerius so you might have to consult him beforehand.

Vulgora

They think it is absolutely BADASS!

Vulgora thinks leather wings are cooler, even if there isn't a huge difference in how they work. They'd still love them if you had feathered wings.

If you can actually fly with your wings they'll get even more excited. They'll suggest "dodging practice" and for your safety say no.

They'd be perplexed if you wanted them to brush through your feathers or just simply feel your wings. Gentle touch is absolutely foreign with Vulgora. They'll have to ease into it honestly.

Vlademar

They have questions, which is the only warning you'll get.

How do they bend? Are they identical to bird wings? Can you actually fly with them? How easily do they break?

At first you'll likely have to deal with them somewhat gently bending your wings, feeling around them, and if you have them, even occasionally leaving with some of your feathers.

When they do take some feathers they put them in a jar, yes, they have a jar. But hey! At least its your own jar?

Eventually they'll get bored of fully examining you...that is until you start chirping or squawking. That gets them interested all over again.

They aren't bothered, quite the opposite. They want to know if the noises are natural and if so, why? It'll be a long few nights for you I fear..

[heal-the-ashes]

i'm thinking about pl and—like always—i get emotional after anything regarding this series. these stories. the ebb and flow of cherished laughs and pained expressions, the give and take of funny dialogues and heartbreaking reveals. when the end credits songs just wash over the entire experience with additional thoughts (usually angst-y in my case). when you've realized the story you just witnessed and the story that you felt apart of will stay with you for times that seem ephemerally immemorial...

[Slight Miracle Mask and Unwound Future Spoilers near the end]

these games don't show happiness and sadness. they don't show the positives and negatives of how a scene should flow. they don't just have dialogue and action and tone and intonations. 

they have perseverance amidst tragedy, the rose within the thorn, the sun within the bleak clouds. they show that everyone in this series is human. they somehow made me feel—and not in some type of pity way—for those npcs who were stuck on what i thought was the easiest puzzle in the world. there was no humiliation, no real sense of judgement. there was respect and patience and... and there was disappointment, only in one's self. there was no invalidity of emotions. yes, there were invalid actions, but i don't have a single memory of anyone saying another character was stupid for feeling a certain way. there was passive acceptance all around and across the series, there was no stuck-up sounding laughter; no one (to my memory) ever called another stupid for messing up.

and hershel layton is one of the most human characters i have ever seen. 

i saw a fanart that consisted of hershel in different stages of life. it made me emotional, because: 

in each stage of his life that was depicted there… it wasn't growing up. it wasn't milestones of age, it wasn't certain accomplishments in his character. it showed each time he has lost someone. and god does it break my heart to see and realize that he. is still. here. the amount of pain PL characters have gone through just breaks my heart.

and i am so glad and so honestly inspired to know that. and i feel so awful for thinking my problems are bad when i look at the greatest person to ever exist in media ever, who was shaped by traumas far beyond my own. and that is not an understatement: i genuinely believe professor hershel layton is my favorite character in any media. because he and his games tell you that there is more to life than pain. and it is a lesson that i am so glad that i can finally see someone else tell.

miracle mask and unwound future are two of my favorite games because they're the games that tell the audience that he is human. it reveals how he despises—he loathes, he hates—… not emotions. no, not sadness, not regret, not remorse, not disappointment, not pain. no, none of that. 

he hates certain parts of himself. he hates how he dealt with grief. he hates it when he's shown with "proof" that he's gone and done the very thing he swore not to ever do. he doesn't even hate anyone else even though he has so much right to. he should've cussed out bronev off screen. he should've yelled at bill hawks. he shouldn't of saved clive but god what did he do. he saved clive. he saved randall. 

oh, how love is a weapon. this is it. this is one of the greatest examples of how love is a weapon in storytelling. it's not even platonic love between the characters, its the love the audience has for the characters. stories like these twist this and they do it well. but, anyway—

when i was younger, i thought hershel layton was foolish. i thought he was stupid. i used to think: "what is he doing? someone hurts him, why doesn't he want to hurt them back? what's wrong with him that he doesn't want revenge?"

i couldn't of been more... wrong about how he sees the world.

no, he's the one of the greatest persons i've ever seen in media. i've learned so much from him and the PL series as a whole. i've learned something from each and every character. [what i learned from bronev and bill hawks is just to not be them.] 

layton is the kindest person i've seen. there is no earned malice anywhere near him. he doesn't purposefully aggravate others. he isn't mean, he's not one you'd call angry. he's patient and understanding, and he was made from pain. 

if every person was at least a little bit like him, i think the world would be a better place. a place where no one has to be made from pain.

[rwbyrg]

Another thing I had noticed was the way Ruby interreacts with everyone vs. how she interacts with Oscar. Like her mannerisms seem to change a bit when she speaks or is near him or she treats him differently from the others. Because personally I've never seen her act very nervous around the others when she met them versus how she met Oscar, and she still does it to this day. What do you think?

I am soooooo late to answering these asks and this got sooooo long aha. Thank you for your patience. 🙇‍♀️

I have noticed that Ruby acts markedly different around Oscar than the others! And in my opinion, it is done with a great deal of intention. The thing with RG is that a lot of what makes the ship so strong is how subtle its writing is. So much of it is paralleled themes and a lot of it relies on an absence of something that is usually present. Often treating the absence itself as a presence of something to be paid attention to.

When we first meet Ruby in V1, she says she gets along better with weapons than she does with people. (Lol isn't it funny that Oscar's name means "God's Spear" haha. surely that has no correlation whatsoever... anyway).

When Ruby meets Weiss, she gets screamed at and makes a dust bomb explode in the courtyard, but by V2 so many of their conflicts are resolved and they've become rivals/besties/team partners.

When Ruby meets Blake, she's got her foot in her mouth and is super awkward... until there's an opportunity to connect with her about stories and fairytales. Then we see Ruby's earnest side come out and the anxiety in her pretty much disappears.

When Ruby meets Jaune, it's remarkably not awkward. Their shared social awkwardness and feelings of not belonging at Beacon cancel each other out and they're able to have a fairly normal conversation.

Very quickly through the early volumes, Ruby gets comfortable. As a leader, as part of her team, as a welcome part of their social circle. She's young, still optimistic and full of hope. She hasn't been given too much trauma or cause to question herself by that point. She has her moments, sure, but like a lot of kids that don't fit in much and aren't super social, she's actually really good at it once she's given the chance.

But when Ruby meets Oscar - while she has experienced some of the Horrors™ that have chipped away at her self confidence - she's not too different than usual. Not at first, anyway.

He comments on her eyes and she responds naturally by asking him who he is, she's able to be candid with her response when she's told he's carrying Oz around, and yeah she giggles a bit when they're all playing the 'getting to know you game', but she also smiles at him. Earnest, trying to make him feel at ease cause this situation is kind of weird for all of them. When they spar later, she's being a goofy kid. Sticking her tongue out at him, laughing while they throw and dodge punches, running to help him when he collapses, grabbing his wrist with very little hesitation to tug him towards the rest of the group. It's all fairly normal...

...and then the Dojo Scene happens.

With the Dojo Scene, the narrative tone of their relationship is both established and changed. Ruby comes down the stairs and she's open, at first. But as they talk a bit more, her body language becomes more and more closed off the closer she gets to him. Clasping her hands in front of her when she asks a question about his past, then hugging herself as she dares to step a little closer to him, as if putting up some kind of protective barrier.

She tries complimenting his efforts, laughing a bit to hide her nervousness, is fairly candid, and makes a bit of a joke. But the joke reveals a wound of hers that hasn't healed yet and opens the conversation up to vulnerability. A vulnerability that Oscar points out immediately. One she has not spoken to anyone else about up until that point.

"How do you handle all of this?"

Ruby pauses. She's not used to talking to people about her problems. At first, I don't think she's even thinking about herself when he asks. She nudges him to clarify what he means and he opens up about his own fears, which prompts her routine song and dance that she gives to everyone. Uplifting words, holding onto hope, keep moving forward, just don't let the things that haunt you catch up and you'll be fine.

And Oscar doesn't accept it. He isn't moved by it. He's not comforted. He rejects it, questions it, and completely lashes out. Is actually angry that she's telling him to "just press on" in spite of those fears. Is angry on her behalf that she's not being honest about her own feelings.

And Ruby cracks. She actually opens up and talks to Oscar about all the grief she keeps buried down and doesn't burden anyone with. She might have argued to herself that it was the only way to make Oscar feel better, but it's uncharacteristic for her. She doesn't usually have to go that deep to cheer other people up. When she tells him about her losses and motivations, Oscar joins her in that open doorway, in shared vulnerability... and the moment she sees an opportunity to retreat, she takes it. Not used to this closeness in the slightest.

From then on out they're still friends, clearly. Their bond strengthened, if anything... but Ruby does not know how to handle him when he has such a skill for seeing through her in ways no one else ever seems to catch onto. She's able to push it away a bit when he's pre-occupied with something else. When he's worried about the merge or his mistakes in Atlas, or they're in a group conversation, she's able to act with some sense of normalcy... but when they're alone that awkwardness comes creeping back.

When WBY confront Ruby about her decision to keep the truth from Ironwood, Yang specifically asks how Oscar feels about it, and we see Ruby falter. This is a direct parallel to Bumbleby circa V8 when Yang is the one worrying about Blake thinking less of her for her own decision. We've seen Ruby disagree with people before and remain confident in her choice... but she questions herself here because of how much she values Oscar's opinion. And their disagreement colours more of her interactions with him throughout V7.

When they're all practicing in the academy training rooms, Oscar comments on her semblance. Asking if she's always been able to do that, which is something he wouldn't ask if he didn't pay close enough attention to be able to notice such differences. She's laughing awkwardly, scratching the back of her head.

And the fumble, when they finally come back together with renewed trust - that I already dove into a bit over in this post - she's still doing it!!

She is so excited to talk to him again, to not be at odds, that she almost runs directly into his back and is all flailing arms, and awkward giggles as she tries to tell him she agrees with him. When they finally establish that they're on the same page, she's hugging herself tight, rubbing her arm, looking away from him in her nervousness. Even when she walks away she's hugging herself again. Meanwhile, Oscar is all open body language, hand on hip, hand extended to her, active listening and receptive to what she has to say.

Interesting that this conversation's themes around choosing truth over fear calls back to the Dojo Scene so well, innit? 🤔

The last example I want to give isn't about Ruby. It's about Oscar. Throughout the show, he's always been a bit skittish, jumpy, and expressive with things like loud noises and - quite noticeably - touch. Oscar's been tackled to the ground by Nora in multiple hugs, tackled by the whole team in V6 after he went missing, scooped up by Jaune after he was kidnapped, and in all of those instances there has been a noticeable physical discomfort from him. Often a flinch or a wince beforehand, only relaxing into it after the surprise of the impact is over with.

But Ruby has put her hand on Oscar's shoulder multiple times (outside the Dojo Scene) without eliciting that response from him. One of those touches made him blush, if anything. And when Oscar returns from Salem's prison, beaten and covered in bruises. Ruby is running to hug him and not only does he not flinch, he smiles with open arms, completely ready for and accepting of it. And then the narrative robbed him of the chance 😭

Ruby, despite her usual confidence, resolve, and unwillingness to talk about her issues, becomes nervous, awkward, and self conscious around Oscar. The absence of her usual demeanor becomes the presence of how much she values what Oscar thinks of her and how vulnerable he's able to make her feel. (Which, for a character as emotionally guarded as Ruby, is a good thing).

Similarly, Oscar's established pattern of resisting physical touch - even when he's injured and probably sporting a few broken ribs - is absent with Ruby. It becomes a presence instead of his comfort, trust, and (desire for) closeness to her.

While these examples aren't exhaustive, generally speaking, the absences of their usual behaviours around one another become the presence of something unique to their relationship and often serve to highlight their attachments to each other. Be it how they interact with each other directly... or how they act when they're apart. But that, my friends, is an entirely different post and I have rambled long enough for today.

[tsutsumi-kurose]

Thoughts on chapter 120? Like Kou just died, Amane has been dead, who knows what will happen next

You know what I’m curious about

What Kou said about the house

That whoever is in it becomes servant to its whims

Who else do we know is part of the house

Tsukasa.

He’s dead now, but even before he was dead, he was part of it so that begs the question….

How in control is Tsukasa? If he is at all?

hiii thank you sm for the ask!! (and thank you for your patience!! life's been a little wild this week!)

heads up this post is. pretty long lol chapter 120 was such a trip!!

to address the biggest event first: I thought the tragedy was really beautifully done!! teru absolutely unraveling and giving up all pretense in a way we have never seen before… SO good, I’ve loved watching this arc tear him apart—he’s such a guarded and constructed character, I’ve loved the angst of seeing the neat threads of him pulled apart to reveal what’s inside (that feels mean but I promise it’s a compliment about how he’s written lol I just really love angst)

I think I have a lot of the same questions as you!! as for what happens next, they’ve resolved to turn back the clock, but they still haven’t figured out what changed. times running out!! how will they find out?

well, there is one way they know to get answers in this world (:

such a helpful little guy in every reality huh!! my favorite little lore keeper <333

I love the change of tsukasa-kun not granting any old wish but specifically only granting information. knowledge has been a really interesting theme this arc... I have especially loved how a lot of this arc hinges on how much our characters don't know---especially teru, as he typically is one of the more knowledgeable characters throughout the series. (sorry i'm really delighting in his pain in the post lmao it's just that it's fascinating to see characters get the floor swept out from under them, seeing what breaks them, etc).

this difference in the timeline really highlights sources of knowledge/knowledge systems... which is think also relates to the clock keepers... knowing what they wanted to change and how to change it but no one else knows... the minamoto family having information or not having it and withholding it and from who... teru feeling powerless in this timeline bc he doesn't have knowledge and power to have the sort of control he normally has over supernatural situations... knowledge as power/power belonging to those with knowledge/knowledge as something owned and dispensed by those with power... really interesting themes this arc!!

in terms of figuring out how to get back before time runs out, i wonder if teru could stand to get information through this tsukasa-kun if it was for kou? does he have the skill and power to go against this iteration of the well god and get answers his own way? how will he cope with his loss of control now that it's caused him the greatest loss he could suffer? i honestly can't say i have any predictions there, but i'm very excited to find out!!

thinking about knowledge/lore keepers also makes me think about natsuhiko and sakura… telling kou how a human can become a supernatural, telling yashiro about tsukasa being hanako’s yorishiro and about her lifespan… thinking about knowledge as a theme this arc really makes me wonder where they are and what they know

but to stay on track with the ask lol: wrt what the clock keepers changed, I’m even more convinced after the 120 color spread that it has to do with amane changing the past 1968, though I have no idea what he changed or why. but i am thinking a lot about this interaction in 111:

hanako is still very much holding his knife up to kako---protecting tsukasa!!!---after kako says to dispose of tsukasa!! meanwhile, kako's eye seems to say halt---there seems to be something additional/different happening there. the circular lens framing of that panel of tsukasa also suggests that's from the pov of kako's eye specifically. when akane asks "is that all you wanted to say?" do we really know what it is that kako said? hanako's wide eyed "huh?" seems like it's a totally different reaction than the face he makes right above while wielding his knife, but we don't really see anything new between these panels, besides them looking intently at each other. does kako have some sort of way to control people into changing the past, I wonder? can he see someone's past, but only with enough information, maybe? did something happen to amane the first time he messed with the big clock back in 1968 that kako can sense here? at this stage, all this analysis has given me is more questions lol

to respond to your final question: tsukasa!!! tsukasa and how much autonomy he has!! perhaps my favorite tbhk mystery to ponder <3

i am a long time believer that tsukasa is tsukasa... and upon first reading, this arc strengthened that belief. but i gotta admit, the more i think about it, the more i realize there are definitely some arguments to be made about the status of our regularly scheduled tsukasa! i think the main things this arc has given us to consider regarding this mystery are: 1) the possessions feel very different here than the possessions in the original timeline; and 2) we start to see the god have more of a personality in this arc.

please join me on my thought spiral lol

the first difference we see this arc is that tsukasa-kun seems so not in control as compared to original timeline tsukasa, which makes him seem more possessed. most prominently in this arc, I think tsukasa-kun’s little moment of calling out for amane while wandering around the school portrayed him as much less in control than the tsukasa we know.

and 120 certainly seems to have confirmed that in the new timeline, possession is largely in the well god's hands, and something that the possessed person has no control over; amane seems to be violently possessed, then seems to forget anything ever happened once he's not being actively possessed.

to get back to the question of agency: the change in amane's demeanor and who's in control has been shown very starkly through the color of his eyes this arc. the changes are incredibly abrupt.

in contrast, original timeline tsukasa's eyes slide easily between black and gold---he carries on conversations, making one consistent point as his eyes change back and forth.

this would seeeeem to suggest original tsukasa has more control than this amane, and is therefore more himself

but kou's eyes weren't black either when he led nene to adult amane... why does kou's possession slide in and out, whereas amane's is so stark? and what does this mean for our original tsukasa, who seems so seamless?

though kou’s is still different from original tsukasa’s possession, as kou very visibly broke out of it because he heard nene calling for help? (maybe there's something to be said there about love and familiarity and its power, even if temporary.) kou’s possession felt somewhere between the abruptness of amane’s possession and the seamlessness of original tsukasa’s eyes shifting.

which… could suggest either that original tsukasa has agency, since he doesn’t seem to ever be fighting against possession or snapping out of anything. but, to argue the other point, it could also mean he’s so wholly controlled that he can’t fight against it or snap out of it. (which I don’t necessarily believe, for reasons I’ll get to in a bit!!)

the extent of the god's control this arc is also really interesting to think about considering possessed amane just... watches kou whisk nene away

this panel is so haunting. who's in there? is it the well god? it would seem so, as there are no bags under amane's eyes when he comes back to himself. so then is this the well god's expression? doesn't it look... tired? it just watches them run off. maybe because it knows it still has control over kou. but that doesn't explain the fatigued expression. it's so hard to read!! somewhat sad, somewhat... curious, maybe?

which raises questions about the well god having more personality this arc. I could be forgetting smth, but i don’t think we’ve seen it say too much before this other than the deals it made with original tsukasa, but it gets to express itself a bit more this chapter!! and i think there are a lot of similarities to tsukasa that may raise concerns about the agency of original tsukasa… but i think there are differences as well!!

the laughter in response to distress and the fact that the god asks a lot of questions do admittedly feel pretty similar to tsukasa:

i have considered that the god acting independently in a way that original tsukasa acts could indicate that tsukasa's personality is the god's, but if you consider the timeline, i think it's actually the other way around!

in this timeline, it seems like tsukasa still sacrificed himself for amane, which would mean that the god still learned its speech patterns by copying tsukasa when he started talking to it under the house, which confuses their similarities right off the bat! the well god is made of tsukasa, the well god learned to articulate itself through tsukasa.

we see tsukasa acting this way in the red house, before going back, when he has the god in his chest but can have a conversation with it. this behavior is also in line with tsukasa saying "yay!" and smiling brightly when amane says he loves him, even though we know tsukasa still thought amane hated him, despite him saying he loved him.

i also think there are differences in personality between original tsukasa and the god we see here!

their philosophies and goals seem different to me. “this is happiness” and “join the land of the gods” feels very different from “I like the look on people’s faces when they stop holding back” and “if something as simple as [humans and supernaturals mixing] is enough to break the world, it should be broken”… the god seems to exert authority over a taking or transfer, with a definitive ddestination and answer, whereas tsukasa's beliefs seem more in line with a smashing of any such boundaries or authority. wondering what would happen if the clock were to be “blown to smithereens” is very tsukasa, whereas things seem to have an order in this red house ritual… there's just something very one track and surreptitious about the way the well god seems to be operating here that feels at odds with tsukasa's beliefs and methods to me.

there’s also something to be said about tsukasa’s investment in emotional honesty vs a god that takes over people and decides what their emotions are for them. "this is happiness" and "are you happy to see me?" feel very opposed to each other!! tsukasa just seems so much more genuine in the questions he asks. what about what nene wants? so? how are you feeling? are you... happy to see me? do you think amane's gonna come? do you love your mommy, kou? more than nene chan? amane, do you… love me? so many questions!! they just seem so much more open-ended and prompt so much more than the god saying "this is happiness" and deciding that for everyone.

and asking questions is a habit tsukasa had before leaving the red house, even before sacrificing himself: he asks the god if it wants rice then asks if it wants a frog; he asks amane what wish he wants granted; he wonders how amane will kill him! he's always been really curious, and we see that in original tsukasa as well: he wonders what the inside of the supernatrual fish looks like, he wonders what it would be like to make an artificial human, he wants to know if akane has gears inside him too... an endless well (pardon the pun) of curiosity!!

the god, on the other hand, seems at this point to just want to pull people into the well, and has not shown any visible interest thus far in who those people are or any details about them, or any interest in life beyond the well. it makes a blanket statement about everyone wanting happiness and decides what that means. not very curious!!

tsukasa is also very willing to answer questions, without a price! which is different from the god taking people in exchange for answers! tsukasa very openly answers kou's question about his wish in 77-78 without asking for anything in return. tsukasa also stays where amane wants him in 111 despite definitely being able to overpower him, and (in my personal reading) does his best to hear amane out about why he's stopping him. tsukasa seems much more willing to communicate and converse that this god possessing people and telling them what happiness is and leveraging information.

something i'm also having half formed thoughts about is the fact that tsukasa couldn’t grant ghost mitsuba’s wish until it was less vague, whereas the entity seems to be deciding the meaning of the vague wish for happiness. also who even wished for that. they couldn’t have all wished for that. well god, who are you talking to?? who all wished to be happy and when?? what are you referring to?? cite your sources?? (also raises the question: what conversations has this god heard and how?? but that's a little off topic rn lol)

so, i think tsukasa is much more open and doesn't seem to want authority in the way the god appears to. sure, he definitely has a bit of a streak with giving orders---to sakura, and mitsuba, and nene, to name a few---but i think he's much more receptive to freedom and the breaking of rules, whereas the god seems to have one idea of what is good and isn't interested in any outside input, nor in sharing its ideas or doing anything in conversation. he also seems to be genuinely trying to grant sakura's wish as far as i can tell!! whereas nothing has suggested the god is taking other people's wants and wishes into consideration, at least not in any genuine sort of way.

so while tsukasa and the god definitely have some similarities, i think they have enough differences to suggest they each have their own minds and personalities and agency. i'm still of the belief that original tsukasa is tsukasa!

to dig a little deeper into the what has been revealed about the well god this chapter: while i think the well god is authoritative and acts in its own self interest, i kinda can't help but feel a little sympathy for it... the way it watches kou carry nene off, the way tsukasa-kun makes deal in exchange for people spending time with him, the way the people the red house takes never leave---the god doesn't seem to do anything with them, it just seems to keep them there. doesn't this all make the well god seem lonely?

i've said before that i think original tsukasa's shifting eye colors seem to indicate more emotional and mental shifts than possession/control shifts, which could raise interesting questions about the emotional core of this god...

this may also be a piece in the puzzle explaining what made original tsukasa so special: why he was the only one who got out of the kannagi cavern, why he had the autonomy to tell the god he was going back home without asking permission… he's god's favorite!! lol and i've always wondered why!! (i mean he's my favorite too so i get it---but lore reasons lol). could tsukasa be special to the god because tsukasa chose to be with the god?

one last thought i have right now is that I also think original tsukasa’s emotional investment in hanako and nene hints at him being himself, bc I don’t see why the god would be so invested in those two specifically? if original tsukasa is wholly possessed, what reason does the god have to shower amane in so much love every time he sees him? that feels different than a learned speech pattern, and even if the god has tsukasa's memories, it doesn't seem in line with what we see of the god here to jump at amane and hug him whenever he sees him--actions like that feel very singularly motivated by tsukasa's feelings. there is, of course, the possibility that if the god took over tsukasa, he was affected by his feelings, but at that point, isn't the god more tsukasa than tsukasa is the god? if the god is possessing tsukasa but has been made to have tsukasa's personality and act on tsukasa's feelings...isn't tsukasa arguably the one in control? where does the difference lie? what tips the scales?

maybe the biggest question re: tsukasa's agency will be... how much of tsukasa is the god, and how much of the god is tsukasa? though at this point, i do still personally view it as a partnership.

anyway, i leave you with my favorite panel, which haunts me in new and exciting ways every time i think about this:

[emberunderscore]

FableSMP MTG AU

its master list time baybee i gotta have organization for these typsa shittt. anyway we're saying player characters are planeswalkers and im telling you how i think they got they sparks and what mana they'd use (+some gods at the end)

my source is the magic the gathering wiki and this is the page im using for the colours (and some stuff sherb said bc. they know more than me)

Icarus

Spark: Probably got theirs the first time they should've died (alternatively quixis is weird with the rest of the multiverse and the bleeding eye is their spark awakening) Mana: Black (/Red) Specifically Icarus without their bleeding eye, black mana stands for self concern and ambition as well as death. I think Icarus would be really drawn to necromancy, because of Haley stuff but also because something about dying multiple times making you drawn to having control over death itself. I think Fable's Icarus is black aligned but i don't think i can say they're not a little red at least

Rae

Spark: Rae's maybe was awoken sometime while living with fable since that was a traumatic time for him, that or he probably witnessed his brother die and both brothers got sparks at the same time? (something something soul bond idk). Mana: Blue/White Ok so. Rae is blue coded as a character. hes just blue. and blue mana is like curiosity and science which is very rae coded. but also consider white mana, which is organization and can be used for healing and protection and i think if Rae could choose he'd pick that to help people.

Athena

Spark: Athena's honestly could've awoken during ominous bane (looking at the training ep specifically) and i think they either wouldn't have used it at all or they'd have accidentally just fucked off (thinking about icarus having the ability to follow them at that point thinking about corrupt icarus having the power to track them through planes). Mana: Red So, fire and destruction. Duh. but red's big thing is like emotion which i think is very fitting

Arisanna

Spark: Ari's defo awoke when the aether fell . imagine panic of her waking up in the overworld but she's in a whole ass different world. Mana: Blue (/Black) I think blue mana cause of all the time in the aether and thats like . literally the dimension of knowledge. i think she might be pretty curious yknow. also black mana for vexed ari bc self serving nature of it

Fenris

Spark: There could probably be a lot, either sometime when he was a child or maybe when Vikesh died? Mana: Red/White (/Green) He's got that emotion and drive in them, seeking peace and to protect, green for his drive for his family

Centross

Spark: errm maybe when his cult leader parents tried to sacrifice him to that goddess. just a suggestion tho Mana: Oh boy. Oh centross could go so many ways. This man has so much character development and his ideals change so much so in chronilogical order: Black (S1, making a deal for power, "power through oppotunity" is black's mantra), White/Red (Violet Reaper moment, white is structure and red is emotion), Red (Redemtion Arc), and back to White (up to the end, into godhood, still structure and order, but for a better cause now)

Ocie

Spark: Probably when she lost her partners in the resets Mana: Red/Green Red is like emotion and impulsiveness and maybe its just every adhd coded character is red mana coded but if that is the case then so be it. Yeah ironically i think ocie is very red coded (ironic cause fire), and green is there for family

Momboo

Spark: Maybe around the first time she made herself forget Mana: Green Its like plants, get it? Also very like family and patience

Jamie/Bruin

Spark: When they were locked in the basement, spark awakens and they escape Mana: Green Again, plants and family

Easton

Spark: I don't know a lot about easton's lore . but i remember reading what i think was a canon fic about their dead bio parents?? I might be making this up/it might've been fanfic. I don't remember. Anyway if it is canon probably something like that Mana: Black/Green Member of nature fam being not green? not possible, they got that vibe you know

Ulysses

Spark: Oh fuck im not fully caught up on my ulysses lore chat im not gonna lie to you . i dont know his full backstory im so sorry. anway id probably say his spark ignited when he got mauled by leviathan Mana: Blue (/Green) Scientist man, also waber. He seekin that knowledge for sure. Green for the family aspect, he cares so much about percy

Ven

Spark: Maybe when his fiance died? Or when his memories got yoinked Mana: Green, some aspect of Black, Blue Cares a lot about Feng, family aspect, some aspect of self serving nature, seeking the knowledge of his own memories among other things im sure

Major Gods

okay so the major gods COULD be planeswalkers but they also dont really have like . time for the sparks to awaken . consider, they've always been able to just do that. k with that we're just doing mana for the major gods

Fable: Black/White So black is very self serving and "power through oppotunity" and Fable's whole thing is trying to gain power and white is very organization and "peace through structure" and from the magic wiki it says White's ultimate goal is peace—a world where there is no unnecessary suffering; a world where life is as good as it can be for each individual and if eliminating suffering isn't one of Fable's biggest goals we might be watching different shows

Enderian: Blue/Black Something something goddess of the Mind something something seeking knowledge. Yeah she's gotta be blue. and also again, self serving nature (maybe she could be green, maybe towards the end of her life she changed just enough)

Alerion: Blue/Green/White Blue again being knowledge and Alerion's realm being a whole ass library of knowledge, green for the family aspect and the compliance with nature and white for order and peace (notably not at the expence of the natural cycle of life)

Netherum: Red/Green So I'd say the green aspects came after Soul, thinking about Netherum being the only Red aligned major god (though their probably could be some arguments towards Fable for that too). Red is volatile and emotion and firey passion all the things I think scream Netherum and Green of course is family which I think Soul helped him learn to appreciate, I also think he has an appreciation for the nature of the Nether and how that all works especially with him being a hybrid of all their people they can relate at least a little to most of them

[differentcoloredcontacts]

What I think class 1b were like as toddlers because I cant stop thinking about it <3

Awase - definitely got in trouble a lot for welding shit together, he would welding his toys together to make these big as sculptures to give to his dad and it would be so cute but such a pain in the ass at the same time. He tries to be helpful with his quirk though <3 one time he was holding the light for his dad (universal experience) and welded the light to his forehead only to blind his dad when they looked at eachother.

Sen - he was a good kid for the most part but I think he would test peoples patience and pick fights with litterally everyone. Like some kid down the street looked at him wrong so now hes chasing him down the street screaming with a handfull of water balloons. Has 100% threatened to drill people with his quirk <3 took pictures of anything and everything with his moms phone.

Kamakiri - spent 100% of his time outside catching bugs or frogs or something. His mom would constantly get onto him for bringing bugs and shit into the house so he would go outside with a little grass hopper in his hands and sulk on the porch </3

Kuroiro - he would mostly keep to himself and just draw or play alone simply because he preferred it that way but the one game he always loved playing with others was hide and seek, only because he was a GOD at that game. 100% made a babysitter almost cry before because they thought he ran away or something when he was just hiding in the shadows (quite litterally)

Kendo - pure angel. Nice to everyone and everything and helped with anything she could help with <3 she seems like the type of kid that would hold your hand or something if you were sad or do something for you that makes her happy and omg I love her sm <3

Kodai - quiet kid. She did 100% use her quirk oh her toys though. Like she would take a small dino figure and size it up to take up her entire room to be more accurate to the game shes playing. Mostly kept to herself and was akward around others but definitely liked helping <3

Komori - problem child. She grew mushrooms everywhere and would pretend to make mushroom soup with the mushrooms she grew <3 definitely had to go to the hospital before because 'pretty mushrooms cant be poisonous' (the pretty mushroom was in fact poisonous)

Ibara - had one of those pocket bibles that she carried with her all the time. Stereotypical christian kid <3 not much I can say tbh exsept I feel like her vine hair would get caught on stuff a lot

Shishida - such a big kid for his age but shy asf. Hid behind his moms leg when he met new people. People constantly thought he was a short teen for how hairy he is when hes like 5. Idk why but he gives me 'doesent like loud noises' vibes. Asked his mom for shades to look cool and they stayed with him ever since

Shoda - shy kid that hides behind his moms leg 2.0. Idk why but I feel like he was a leash kid. Not because he was a problem child but because he would just wander off and no one would notice. Almost got cps called on him mom like 12 times for child neglect because he just walks away lmao

Pony - she the kid that walks up to strangers at pools and stuff and says shit like "my mommy says that her sister is a narcissistic bitch that deserves to rot in hell, watch me do this, its really cool!" Then she just jumps in the pool while whoever shes talking too goes through the 5 stages of grief.

Tsubaraba - problem child. Definitely was one of those kids that made up jokes that dont make sense (He thinks theyre funny plz laugh) also a very talkative kid. Not in the pony way but he would walk up to you and tell you everything he knows about dinos <3 ran out of breath quickly when he was a kid (cuz his quirk) so he had a little inhaler on him all the time

Tetsutetsu - outgoing popular kid that everyone likes. Everyone wants him on their dodge ball team <3. Knew different cuss words but not what they ment so he would say shit like 'son of a fuck you bitchin butt fart' or shit like that. Almost bit his tongue off before because he was talking while eating. (I wanna say he learned his lesson but he did it again a week later.)

Tokage - really liked legos as a kid. Her entire bedroom was just legos and her pet lizard named after some character from a movie she liked or smthn. She would confidently shout the wrong awnser in class (thinking shes right) and get hella confused when the teacher says shes wrong. Pony type talkative <3

Manga - his parents fridge never had enough room for his drawings. The only trouble he would cause is drawing on the walls or his bed sheet and stuff like that. He was pretty good at controlling his quirk but he was still really careful to not say certain things that would lead to house fires or his family being crushed lmao

Honenuki - adorable kid. He would constantly go up to strangers and compliment them <3 he would steal his dads ties and stuff and walk around with them on to feel like an adult and it was always so cute. Definitely the type of kid thay would take his moms phone to take pictures of random flowers and shit.

Bondo - taller and bigger than the rest of the kids his age. He preferred playing with bugs and other small animals than the other kids. One day he came home from school and his mom saw that he had a rabbit? For some reason? Next thing ya know they have a pet rabbit called carrot stick and it was his best friend <3

Monoma - he was cannonly teased and made fun of a lot as a kid for his quirk so I think he had some hannah montana type double life. Like at school he was being bullied and kept to himself and just kinda sit there and take it but at home he would be talking about how he rulled the school and was treated like a king there because of how awesome he is </3

Reiko - watched a lot of horror movies as a kid. Like her babysitter would be like 'you cant watch that its too scary' but then the babysitter is the one that ends up scared while reiko is drawing a little doodle of whatever movie monster is in front of her <3

Rin - angel child. Definitely shy but will talk your ear off if you ask him about dragons <3 his mom has the entire 'how to train your dragon' movie franchise memorized because of how often rin would watch it. He would pick flowers (or weeds that look like flowers) on his way home from school and give them to his family.

They were all so sweet im gonna cry </3

[tacticalhimbo]

PALE STATIC EXCHANGE... 2! Posting this a bit early, but I'm very excited to have been able to dip my toes into @palestaticexchange this time around! It's very cool to see how alive the Disco Elysium fandom is.

That said, this piece is for @glitch-critter , who asked for "stuff relating to HDB's experience/psyche, especially with regards to electrochemistry/addiction".

WORDS: 2.3K

I really liked the prompts provided, and I thought it would be cool to kind of explore how relapse and recovery can manifest in forms different than the baseline addiction. As such, it would seem Harry has found himself over-correcting himself in regard to his work...

I hope you do enjoy it <3

Also, let me know if you’d like a more permanent copy of this, too! I’m always happy to provide a PDF version of the writings I do :3

Coastal winds were much tamer as they rolled through the densely packed buildings of Central Jamrock, only just able to sustain themselves as they lapped around the perimeter of Precinct 41. Harry wouldn't be here, if not for Kim. It was he who'd defended him to Vicquemare. He who'd attested to the idea that Harry could get better, with a little guidance and a lot of patience. He who'd truly believed in him, despite everything they faced. Creeping along his senses was the smell of blood shed by belief and held together by vengeance. Remnants of a decades' long war, and its lasting effects on the human psyche—both those that were in tact, and those that were already fragmented—as the world evolved around them. The stillness of the air was dry, just as was the mouth of the disco detective who'd found himself falling into familiar habit. Eat, sleep, work, party—

[LOGIC] No, not anymore. You've given that up now.

[VOLITION] You are a changed man. Or so you would like to have others believe.

Harry is a changed man, or so he would like others to believe. He would like to believe it.

Yet the familiar dryness that consumed Harry did not feel changed. Nor did the aching that settled into his musculature, drawing the thickened fibers back like that of a bowstring, arming them—arming him—to snap at a moment's notice. His stomach felt a familiar sickness. One that had consumed him during the infancy stages of the Martinaise investigation. A horrific hangover, but this one was different. It was dry. He was dry. And that irritated him. Thick brows knitted as his psyche wandered to the idea, briefly leaning into the comforting embrace of familiarity of outrage. It was easier, after all, to be mad at the circumstance than to navigate it. But… It didn't feel right. No, he wasn't angry about it. Perhaps a part of him was. But Harry? Him? He was uncertain. Afraid. Every time he wet his lips in consideration, he knew he would not be able to stop himself. Not when—

[ELECTROCHEMISTRY] It's a miracle you even lasted this long. It's like something has snapped in you—a nerve ending. You've lost yourself, Harry. Truly, lost yourself. And god knows how long it will take you to come back this time.

The subtle emphasis makes his skin crawl as his head shakes, hands pausing to linger under the chilled water pouring forth into the sink basin. He sighed, looking to the dingy mirror before him.

Through the speckles of old debris and matted dust, and past the droplets of dew that form with the arterial spray of the sink's faucet (a sign that the mechanism, much like the rest of the restroom, is in need of repair; it has been for as long as one can remember), the visage that greets Harry is… healthier. It invokes a sense of pride not too dissimilar to when he'd first whispered his name—the one he had chosen, not the one he was given—and truly seen himself for the first time. Like the waves, it swelled briefly before crashing down. Fell upon the invariable signs of his past habits. Like looking through the bottom of a liquor-filled glass, it was hazy; a deluge of desperation and need encapsulated by bloatedness and swollenness. Sat neatly among the discolored planes. Pallid skin darkened and reddened as the blood vessels beneath the skin remained agape, prepared for consumption.

[ENCYCLOPEDIA] Telangiectasia. Small blood vessels sat near the skin's surface. It is natural for them to sit so high, but normally they remain unseen until there is an increase in blood flow.

[INLAND EMPIRE] Recall how one's features become rosy when hearts begin to flutter, or how the sun's warmth seems to sit upon the apples of one's cheeks like a comforting blanket.

[DRAMA] There is an art to this.

[LOGIC] There is not. This is a different sort of happenstance. The events that have led to your flushed appearance are not a simple point of life, nor something to be proud of.

But it is, a simple point of life. Accentuation of Harry's simple existence. It is not something he can change, especially as that nausea begins to grow in his gut. His mouth feels full of cotton; his body so writhe with tension that he begins to tremble and grow dizzy. His nose feels like a small balloon in the middle of his face. His tongue feels swollen and snail-like, floundering about amidst tainted teeth as trembling hands cusp beneath the faucet and draw splashes of water toward his lips.

[ELECTROCHEMISTRY] Drink, but it will not replace what you need. No, this is nothing, brother. The best cure for a disease like this is indulgence. Morphine, cigarettes, rum… You need them again. You will not survive without them. This? This is—

[COMPOSURE] Embarrassing.

[AUTHORITY] Weak. How do you expect anybody to take you seriously? Nobody would listen to someone so pathetic.

The taunts were met with the sound of the door slamming; a minute signal in the grand scheme of things. It went unnoticed by those in the wing's hallway. To them, it was business as usual. If not Harry, then Satellite-Officer Vicquemare. If not Vicquemare, then Captain Pryce.

[RHETORIC] The police aren't there to mess up; the police are there to preserve the mess.

[ENCYCLOPEDIA] Says the professor of Ecole Normale de Revachol. Someone has been reading in his spare time.

[LOGIC] Or simply observing with a clear mind.

[ESPIRIT DE CORPS] This is a dangerous line of thinking to be falling down. Your past airing of grievances with the RCM has earned you several stern talkings to. In his office, Captain Pryce grimaces at the clutched papers in his aging hands.

[RHETORIC] It was addiction that saved you. Easier to blame the abstract than to examine the system.

A shiver. Harry wasn't the only one struggling. He knew that, even before his days of total sobriety. This sort of culture was normalized; expected of its officers. Many of his habits he fell into through the hands of his coworkers, even if they were not his introduction to the idea. Of course, things were different now. After his outburst, and the disaster in Martinaise, the RCM began cracking down on the use of substances among its officers. Many, like Harry, suddenly found themselves thrust into the true responsibility of duty. Conscious and aware to the severity of their workloads. Many quit. Many more fell into old habits and were systemically demoted until the work no longer supported their needs. And those, like Harry, leaned into the work. Buried themselves in mountains of paperwork chasing that adrenaline-fueled high by doing something—anything—to feel alive.

Yet they never did. Harry never did.

Time blurred past and he was, effectively, the same old corpse he always was. A puppet of the RCM's agenda. The failed Dick Mullen. The swaying body strung from the rafters, dancing along to the fluttering shimmer of the disco ball.

Then, there is nothing. Only warm, primordial blackness. An inordinate amount of time passes, not even measurable by the distant, rhythmic technological beeps.

[PERCEPTION] Hospital monitors? No. Alarms. An alarm.

[LOGIC] It must be morning. We should get up.

[VOLITION] We shouldn't. We can't. It's much too difficult.

The soft rustling of sheets.

[PAIN THRESHOLD] Easy…

Muscles ache and the silence is inevitably broken by a low groan. Sunlight filters in through dusted curtains, particles coming to fill the air as a heavy hand finds itself upon the alarm clock beside him. Equally heavy feet find the floor, though remain unable to hold the body above them. In a quick sequence, Harry finds himself on the floor, slumped and slouched in an all too familiar position. The aches stop, albeit briefly. Like a fly to the ointment, his conscience sticks to it. Chases it as the limbed and headed machine of pain and undignified suffering awakens itself once more. He is on his feet again, cotton cloth sliding across the floor as his body wills itself to the bathroom.

A mirror hangs above a bent, not broken, sink. Languid hands find themselves upon the faucet, though are gentler in the way they manipulate it. Hot water sprays from the stem and steam covers the mirror. Harry cannot see himself, just the outline of a man.

[CONCEPTUALIZATION] There is an irony in seeing the image. It was not always like this.

[VOLITION] Those days are long gone, now.

Cloth falls from the man's frame, though it remains obscured by the apparatus before him. He slowly reaches his hand toward the surface of the mirror…

[INLAND EMPIRE] You're certain you wish to do this? You may not like what you see there.

[HARRY] I don't care.

A deft motion. The condensation on the reflective surface gives under the palm that wipes it, leaving in its path a clear view to the tired visage that stares back. To the naked, pallid flesh that rolls from a slumped frame. Hair highlights various pathways, traveling down between taped and tucked mounds and rolling along the rumbling stomach, and continuing through the fog and beyond the sink's barrier. It traverses the adhesive edges of Harry's binding (he's still thankful he has learned this alternative; not only does it keep his natural form, but it allows him to wear his shirts open with pride) and over his shoulders. Down thick arms to the bruised knuckles that hold the porcelain lip of the sink. It flutters out, then reappears upon his rounded jaw, mutton chops growing thickened around his lips. He's due for a shave, but a part of him enjoys this rugged look. It's… different. He's different.

He's happy.

[COMPOSURE] You're exhausted.

[SAVOIR FAIRE] You've dropped the toothbrush. Again. Your hands feel foreign to your own body.

His eyes follow dirt-stained grout lines down to the floor, only to find that sad little toothbrush dried beside the trash bin. He's exhausted. Creaking and groaning, Harry bends to discard the brush; opts to simply swish some mouthwash and try not to think of the burning sensation that draws his nose to scrunch and his eyes to water. He does it twice. Perhaps to mask the fact he has not properly brushed and will have to save that act for after his shift. Perhaps because he feels he deserves the ache; it invigorates him. Begins to bring him back to life and pull him from the vice grip weariness holds on him.

But it isn't enough.

Not as he washes himself in the shower, nearly tripping over the tub's lip as he climbs out afterward. Nor as he finds himself slumped against the wardrobe door, idly flipping through his clothing options and looking for his RCM jacket.

[PERCEPTION] It… should be here. Why isn't it here? Don't tell me we've lost it again.

[LOGIC] Nonsense. We brought it home. It is here, just not put away.

It's not enough as he waits for the toast to pop from its apparatus, where the sudden click and ding nearly makes him crawl out of his skin. Coffee spills on his shirt, bringing him back to the wardrobe once more, digging around for a new shirt and tie. Back to the kitchen. New coffee in his cup. Butter and jam on cooling bread. Crumbs dust his facial hair, only unsettled from their rest when he reaches to scratch a persistent itch. It is then when the realization clicks.

He's exhausted. He is unmoving. Those early morning aches have not been shaken, and have in fact only worsened with his moving through the morning routine. His mind has been quieter; nearly absent. He can barely recall what he's done and what he hasn't, with the only clues being the visible changes in his appearance that signify—at the very least—that he's done the basics and cleaned himself. But that's just it. If he can't even recall this, how in the world could he find himself responsible for the safety of others. How could he find himself amidst the greater world around him, with dozens of eyes on him—some pleading, some scrutinizing?

He'd done it before, under worse circumstances… but he wasn't that kind of animal anymore. He didn't want to be that kind of animal anymore.

Which is why, with a swaying physique and a hoarseness in his voice, he found himself on the phone with whichever unfortunate soul would find themselves on the other end of the line. Unfortunate, not for taking in his call-in, but for having to present it to Vicquemare and Pryce.

[ESPIRIT DE CORPS] Early morning ire. Slender knuckles knock on the door to ask permission to enter; it is granted. From his throne, Pryce sneers at the individual before him. His brow twitches, his posture stiffens.

[CAPTAIN PRYCE] What the hell do you mean he called out?

[ESPIRIT DE CORPS] A pregnant pause. The avoidance of eye contact.

[UNKNOWN] He just did… Said something about feeling under the weather.

[ESPIRIT DE CORPS] The response was faint. Nearly whispered as the other end of the reigning duo entered with a stack of papers.

[JEAN VICQUEMARE] Who called out?

[CAPTAIN PRYCE] Your star pupil.

[ESPIRIT DE CORPS] Jean's posture slackens and he sneers. It's evident the sarcastic jab was more than enough to clue him in. Yet there is a subtleness in his eyes that almost suggests concern. He sets the papers on Pryce's desk then walks out without another word.

Shoulders slump and a ragged sigh escapes as Harry undoes his tie and discards it, absentmindedly tossing it to the coffee table. His shirt follows as he sinks into the comfortable contour of the couch. Tired eyes slip shut, coaxing the surrounding musculature to relax and begin a rippling effect. He melts, and for once he can feel the day passing.

And for once, he does not care. He deserves this rest, and nothing can convince him otherwise.

[sunwarmed-ash]

Thank You For Your Patience!! (Sinful Sunday Post)

As a thank you for being patient and sweet while I sorted my life out, I'm gonna post 4 lil Sinful Sunday snippets today! These will NOT be posted to ao3 until their debut! Get em while they're hot

Part 2: Love bites but so do I- Jacob x Bella x Edward

Chapter 6 Preview: 👀

For about one week, everything between the three of them is great. Like literally everything. Now that their rivalry has fizzled out, school, life, all ran smoother. The sex wasn’t half bad either. Even if it was limited to times when they could stay at Edward’s. 

In addition, the newest civility between the two boys helps get Charlie off their backs faster than anyone expected. He still hovered the usual parental amount, made sure both boys left right at curfew, and implemented a ‘under no circumstances were they allowed in Bella’s room,’ rule but overall the newest ‘alliance’ had vanished a lot of uncomfortable anxieties for all parties. 

Bella can't even begin to explain how much better it’s been making her feel. 

She’s on her way to get lunch with Jake when Charlie catches her attention.

“So, how long were you gonna wait until you told me you were dating both of them?”

Bella isn't sure if her face blushes, or loses its color when she turns to face her father. Her voice doesn't do her any favors either, cracking as she stuttered out an unconvincing, 

“Wh-what?”

“Come on Bells,” he rolls his eyes playfully, “I'm old but I’m not an idiot.”

“No, of course you're not,” she agrees, trying to decide just how honest she should be.

“So? How long?”

“Honestly, I- didn't know if it was going to work out myself.” It certainly wasn’t an option they would have even considered three years ago. 

“Has it,” Charlie presses and she can tell its intentions are genuine.

“So far, surprisingly well, yeah.”

“And they’re, you know, good to you?”

“Yeah dad,” She smiles, subconsciously reaching for the bracelet on her wrist. “They really are.”

“You told your mom yet?”

“God no,” Bella laughs, shaking her head. 

“Yeah,” Charlie smirks over the lip of his mug, “probably a good call.”

It’s quiet the way it’s always quiet right before Charlie is about to launch into an uncomfortable lecture. Bella internally braces herself. 

“Okay I feel like we really should have The Talk now.”

“NOPE,” She says, fighting the urge to cover her ears and run out of the room. “No, trust me, we really, really don’t need to!”

“I know Billy would probably be happy as a clam to be a grandfather but I tell ya Bella, I’m not ready-”

“GOT IT! THANK YOU CHARLIE, Bella shouts, her hands planted firmly over her ears now. “I’M LEAVING! NOW!” 

---

They are back over at Edward’s house. The Cullen’s are out again on a hunt. All minus Edward who went yesterday so he could be available for Date Night tonight. They are supposed to go see the new Leo Dicaprio movie. She’s more than a little excited for it.

At least she was, until they opened the door to a very anxious looking Jacob Black. 

“Hey, are you alright,” Bella asks first. 

Jacob fights with everything in him not to scoff angrily at her. He’s practically vibrating out of his skin he’s so worked up. He pushes aggressively past their bodies into the house and towards the ktichen. He’s fucking starving. Which is frustrating because he just ate twenty minutes ago. He shouldn’t be hungry again. 

“Why do you smell different?”

Edward is the first to notice the change in atmosphere. Which he should have guessed. Enhanced senses and whatever. He should feel relieved he noticed, but compouding with the hunger pains, unusual body aches, and fever he’s fighting, he’s not in the mood. He continues his trajectory toward the fridge. Pointedly trying not to accidentally think the answer. 

“Oh…” Edward exhales.

Well, guess he fucked that. Jake slams the door of Edward’s empty fridge hard. 

“Why do you even have a fridge!” 

“Hey! Jacob,” Bella scolds, though her face screams worry.  

“If you need help-” Edward starts to offer. Jake cuts him off. 

“Get the fuck out of my head!”  

“It doesn't work like that, and you know it,” Edward points out. 

“Guys,” Bella sighs. 

“Doesn't mean you get free reign to act on information that wasn't consciously given!” 

“GUYS!”

“But, I don’t understand,” Edward continued anyway, “I thought- Bella said you turned down the chance to be Alpha?”

“Yeah, well, evidently, my body didn't get the memo…” Jacob snarls.  

“Do you have someone to help you take care of it,” Edward asks. 

“What do you think?”

“Will someone PLEASE tell me what the hell is going on,” Bella demands.

“It's- complicated,” Edward answers for Jacob. The werewolf sends him a scathing look for his trouble.  

“And personal and none of your fucking business!”

“Jacob,” Bella pleads. 

“Sam? Leah? Emily,” Edward offers, pushing past the man’s attitude for the true issue at hand. 

“Yeah right,” Jacob scoffs hatefully. “They can't stand to be in the same room with me!”

“Little judgemental of them isn't it? Doesn’t it happen to them too?”

“Doesn’t what happen,” Bella asks again but the boys continue to ignore her. 

“Not- because of that. Because of…us,” Jacob finally admits, motioning between the three of them. 

Edward’s eyebrows scrunch together in confusion. 

“But I thought Sam said-”

“Guess he changed his mind.”

Edward’s teeth clench hard and Bella’s worry only compounds until she bursts. 

“Okay, is ANYONE going to fill me in now? I’d REALLY appreciate it!”

“Our families,” Edward sighs before a deprecating laugh bursts through his mask of real pain. “don’t approve of our relationship.”

“Oh. Well,” Bella says gently, moving closer to Jake to intertwine their fingers, “we didn't really think they would, right? I mean, Charlie was honestly a huge surprise.” 

Jake laughs, but its as bitter as Edward’s just a moment ago. 

“Enough that I’m unwelcome back on the reservation.” 

“WHAT? Jake, I-” Bella starts to apologize but Edward is pivoting past one trauma to continue the line of questioning from before. 

“What happens to you, if you don't get what you need?”

“...I don't know,” Jake admits, hands starting to tremble, “No one will tell me anything about it!”

“Hey, we're here,” Bella offers, pushing into Jake’s chest for a hug. 

“No,” he shouts before jumping away. “I-I have to go. I can't-, I don't know what’s going to happen to me. What I'm going to turn into. I can't hurt you. Either of you.” 

“You won’t hurt me,” Edward reassures.

“You don't know that!”

Edward shrugs. 

“On your best days you can’t outfight me.”

Jacob scoffs irritably. 

“I knew coming here was a mistake.”

“Jake, please,” Bella begs, her own tears lining her eyes because she doesn’t understand what's going on, why he's pushing her away. Them away. “Let us help you!” 

“You can’t,” Jake dismisses dejectedly, “Not with this.”

ao3 kofi insta

Read the other 3 here!

[sea-salted-wolverine]

The House of Usher and the cardinal virtues

I thought to myself it's no good to whine about slotting characters into boring reductive categories without a good rebutal, so here's a dose of slightly more interesting archetypes.

Prospero reflects the cardinal virtue of Diligence and its mirror the sin of Sloth ("But he has an orgy so it has to be lust," by god you're so boring) He is the only Usher who tries to make anything of value. When Camille goes on her little spiel about how Ushers don't make stuff, she's not wrong. Perry got pretty ruthlessly shot down when he was presenting his ideas for trying to make value and start a night club chain, rather than just taking credit for someone else's work like all of his siblings and his dad. But he was at least trying. His drive to prove himself and gain respect is how he gets himself into the whole mess. However, it is the act of not doing his due diligence that kills him.

Camille has an interesting one because while breaking into a lab facility to expose mistreatment of animals would seem like the cardinal virtue of kindness, she's only there to get one over on her sister. The inverse of Kindness is Envy, and for as important as her role is as the family spin doctor, Camille is valued the least. Everyone suspects Perry when they hear about an informant, but that's because he's an idiot baby. Victurine is useful with her heart mesh implant, Napoleon took the role of the "chill fun sibling", and the other two are original Ushers, so Camille is left as the unfavored child.

Napoleon tried to buy his way out of his problem with Charity. He could have come home with a different cat entirely and told his boyfriend he was looking in shelters for Pluto and accidentally fell in love. Name it Mars, let the boyfriend chalk it up to a weird grief response. Bummer Pluto never came home. Verna would have had him trip over the thing on the stairs in the middle of the night and that would have been that. Instead, everything was transactional as he maximized what he could get out of his relationships for the least amount of effort. The boyfriend can live with him, the boyfriends cat can move in too, but as soon as that becomes even the slightest bit more effort (like when boyfriend wants to meet the family, or curb the drug use, or the cat brings home a dead thing) Napoleon wants it gone from his life.

Victurine likewise could have had a painless clean death had she mustered up the Humility to say that the device didn't work. Her demise, unlike her younger siblings, was a compilation of smaller shitty decisions and white lies. She could even recognize that each choice was morally wrong, but it was little choices that were easier to brush off. A dead monkey, a foraged signature, a rightfully concerned patient reassured with platitudes. Even before she was scrubbing blood off the floor to Bonnie Tyler, her inability to admit her choices were flawed was getting her in trouble.

Tamralane with her perfectly manicured curated life, is the one to take Temperance to its furthest extreme. I think it was Atwood who wrote about women and the internal voyeur to preform for, but I'm not going to Google it for a post about horror characters losing their minds and dying horribly. She lives under a personal panopticon of her own expectations and can never allow herself to experience her own life lest she fall short. Her wealth rather than mitigating this exacerbates the issue, giving her access to any and every distance she could possibly want. Death by mirrors isn't so much her going insane as it is the culmination of the life shes built for herself.

(Plus, I know her lonely evening was meant to be ~spooky~ but babe, that is literally just ADHD. Can't remember where you put the thing? Can't remember doing the thing? CAN'T SLEEP?! DOES EVERYONE HATE YOU AND THINK YOU'RE AN INSANE BITCH FOR PERFECTLY VALID REASONS?! Looks like Adderall for you).

Fraudrick. You dickwad. No Patience to allow your very injured and traumatized wife explain herself. The inverse of Patience is Wrath. Demonstrated that one in spades. I'm on Verna's side on this one. Pliers, really?

(His wife's name is fucking Mori. As in momento mori.)

Which leaves Madeline and Rodrick. What's a Gothic horror story without some really fucking weird and unsettling sibling dynamic? Dull, that's what. Anyway, never letting anything touch them or impede them in their lust for power and wealth offers a strange sort of Chastity. There's no love, not for the kids or Annabelle Lee that could touch them, no moral they wouldn't overturn, no value they wouldn't abandon. Madeline values her freedom above all else but she spent her life bound to her brother. They wouldn't even spare each other in ruthless pursuit of just a little more power.

So yeah, bummer for August Dupain that he wound up against the most supernaturally fucked up family that ever lived.

[finnegansundaysociety]

I love your concepts for Penrose and Terminal!! Do they have full refs yet other than the description in the orginal text post? And if you don’t mind could you tell a couple facts about them /nf (I’m literally so obsessed with their concepts already and I saw the post like ten minutes ago so sorry if I spam liked a bit😭😭)

OH MY GOD TY IM GLAD YOU LIKE THEM

unfortunately all i have is this really scuffed sketch of terminal in the way of visual references. i can give super in depth text descriptions if that'd be helpful? the self loathing really gets in the way of me doing art SOB

as far as facts go, i have been rotating these goobers in brain for well over a month SO HERE WE GO

both terminal and penrose have the ability to hop dimensions. terminal does so by navigating his directory of timelines, selecting the one he wants to go to, and running the "teleport" method. penrose uses inert ink to build bridges in the void that can traverse timelines.

terminal's SOUL is protected by the white hole its inside, and so it can't be reached by blue magic, can't be taken from his body, and can't be pierced by penrose's fountain pen

as a whole, terminal is immune to penrose's black hole due to his body being made entirely of garbage code. if penrose cuts off an arm for example, it glitches out into nothingness rather than turn into usable ink

terminal hates when things are illogical, as fallacious reasoning can cause exceptions and infinite loops in his code. he will often get stuck ruminating, where his eyes will turn black and you see a bunch of white text running by. he has an automatic function to reboot his system if a loop continues for 5 minutes

terminal also has a button on the back of his neck that causes a force restart if held for ten seconds.

different colors of SOUL INK give penrose different emotions while they're burning. his least favorite type is KINDNESS, because it makes him feel remorse for the people he kills and the timelines he destroys.

when penrose has absorbed a lot of PATIENCE, he tends to be very aloof and almost toys with his prey. he'll often put his fountain pen away for most of the fight and use swords, just for the thrill of the fight. but as soon as he gets bored penny appears again

penrose has figured out a method of storing SOUL INK in vials, similar to ink sans. however, the vials are incredibly small as storing large amounts of SOUL INK in one container often causes it to explode and the ink to become useless

penrose's vials are more like sauce packets of soul juice

because the vials are so small, penrose will keep an extensive stock of them in his coat. he'll open his coat and it looks like shelves TwT

the only timeline penrose will never touch is UnderShonen, because he knows terminal watches it.

i have so much more but i will save it for future lore posts ^^ and i will prolly repost some of these facts in their own lore posts

[saiakv]

Cont from x. / @distortedkilling

In the very distant past, the onmyoji can faintly recall a time when curses had been a topic of ever expanding interest. Those days were part of a different world, at a time when their understanding of life was so frugal; for they were still tiny, as a snake after its first few sheds. And their first incarnations had palmed at the concept in an exploratory fashion as instinctively as the newborn cradles its own limbs. On one part of the scale, a cursed spirit was much more potent than mundane creatures to explore — and yet they were so limited in every other way. So they would invest in prying, prodding, stretching them thin as a thread and weaving them anew until one day, they had exhausted every plausible outcome.

Curses were just a byproduct, in the end.

And yet Kenjaku noticed the skin they wore reflexively shiver with this one's manifestation. That hunch prompts them to move aside; but it is a step that was never taken. To the onlooker, it happens within seconds; a bundle of hair and flesh taking form out of the nothingness and then the hungry palm reaches out to steal life from god's grip. A sudden lunge forth has the disheveled spirit close the distance between them. And for once, Mahito's touch connects.

The robes scrunch around his fingers, giving shape to Geto's form. Unmoving, the sorcerer lets him feel hard skin under the fabrics, lets him relish in that glimmer of hope ; he touched him! A resounding silence falls heavy over the scene. The seconds afforded to broaden this poor creature's understanding of the situation ( Kenjaku considers it generous on his part ) stretch between them in what feels like an eternal staredown; tranquility swimming in that amethyst gaze and Mahito staring back like a rabid animal thrashing itself against the cage.

And then— a palm rakes through unruly tufts of grey-white and settles on the spirit's head — in the same way one might pat their dog. As if pulled up by invisible threads, the corners of his lips curl, until they pull back to reveal the wolf's teeth. Kenjaku's smile is as carefree as always.

❝ What's the problem, Mahito? You can't possibly be that upset over something you had foreseen. ❞ The tender touch is a stark juxtaposition to the gravity holding Mahito down like an invisible anchor around the neck. If he wanted to be honest, the sorcerer had not predicted this reaction. Every curse in the user's arsenal is perfectly subdued and non-violent towards its captor. And albeit that smidgen of surprise was perfectly concealed under mock affection, Kenjaku was intrigued.

❝ I have removed your autonomy when it comes to transfiguring others by curbing your cursed energy to about ten percent of the output you reached after fighting Yuji Itadori. ❞ The explanation is almost blatantly dry. His gaze lingers on the curse's face for a moment longer, wondering if Mahito would keep testing his patience. ❝ You can still alter the shape of your soul, though. ❞ Subtly, his fingers curl around a strand of hair, knowing the curse can do naught but stay prostrated and at most resist the pull when he gently urges him to turn aside and witness the lock on that box.

❝ Turn yourself into a key for me. ❞