#LIKE IN MY MIND WE DAMN WELL *SEE* HIS DEFECTION

[voltronisanobsession]

So you like my ideas, huh? Well, I hope I can continue to create some good ones for you! I shall try my best 🫡

Oh! I do have one request in mind, how about Percy being paired with reader who’s the child of Athena? Yes, yes, I know an amazing half-blood known as Annabeth exists but I had something in mind.

We all know how children of Athena are seen as wise, intellectual, clever, and combative people but what if the reader was different than that? There’s several types of intelligence after all, so what if they specialized in emotional intelligence and craft?

I can see them being insecure of their “abilities” since they know their siblings can do better, and even fear that Athena herself is disappointed in them, but, while Percy thought it was strange at first, he soon found himself enjoying those traits.

I mean, with their emotional intelligence, the reader knows when he’s upset no matter how hard he tries to hide it, and they tend to give him gifts like Melinoe!reader. They’re probably usually architectural models, weavings, mini sculptures of what he enjoys… You know all that good stuff. They probably gifted him something as something to remember them by when he went on a quest… but I’ll leave that up to you.

Combat practice to bond/as dates 👀?

Also, I’m not sure if you saw, but I like long headcanons so stop apologizing and keep it up!/lh

Poor all of your thoughts into it if you have to or want, I like it!

Percy with a Child of Athena!Reader

I literally LOVE these detailed asks UGGHHH!! I love the idea of instead having a different form of intelligence as a child of athena like damn😍 I'm getting used to brain dumping on these, its a work in progress🙈

Sorry for answering so late😭

Lowkey this reader sticks out like a sore thumb amongst their siblings😭

I like to think that most Athena kids are usually on the more serious sides, so it surprises a lot of campers outside of the Athena cabin to see Reader extremely expressive!

While the other Athena children spend their time devising tactical plans for big camp games, reader is just on the side doodling architectural designs and whatnot

They aren’t as involved in what their siblings do because it doesn’t interest them much

Like whenever they try and ask for readers opinions and start using big ass words, they just smile and nod cuz they had no idea what the others were saying

Athena's children are extremely intelligent so its difficult for reader to be on the same wave length as their siblings

It lowkey makes them feel like an outcast in their cabin because they cant really connect with their siblings like they do with each other while they talk about subjects beyond reader’s comprehension

Constantly being surrounded by books, scrolls and maps full of knowledge, reader often beats themselves over not being able to comprehend and show interest in wanting to learn about these types of things

They’re led to believing that they are a defect amongst their mothers children (crying)

They are always surrounded by reminders of their own inabilities to match their sibling’s intelligence which is why they spend little time in the Athena cabin, and even littler time with their siblings

Readers only saving grace is that they are always in tune with peoples emotions and feelings, no matter how well or little they know the people around them

Whether its feelings of anxiousness, sadness, quiet anger, or happiness, reader always seems to know how a person is feeling!

The first time Percy meets reader is when he spots them at the crafting hut

Being one of his first activities in the beginning of the day, he notices how reader is always there before anyone else

Percy probably thought you were apart of the Hephaestus cabin or something like that with how many times he’s seen you sculpting and carving away at a new project every other day

So he’s surprised when you reveal that you’re actually a child of Athena

He would definitely notice how you distance yourself from your siblings, especially during breakfast, lunch and dinner

He’s good friends with Annabeth so he sees the differences between you, her and your siblings

While she and her siblings are more closed off and have their noses stuck up a new book everyday, your always seen drawing or weaving a new tapestry for your cabin

You show your emotions more openly compared to their more dismissive nature as well!

He definitely sees you as the 'social butterfly' of the Athena cabin

The more time he spends with reader though, he notices just how in tune they are with his feelings

He could give the smallest, most insignificant indication that he's had a bad day and you'd be able to read him like an open book

It's easy talking to you about his conflicting emotions, your patience and thoughtful expression gives him more confidence to just let everything out

I think he would definitely fall for how empathetic you are in many situations

You've made many friends with campers from different cabins because of this quality trait! Always learning and understanding a situation/conflict that arises, you're always able to resolve the problems that makes it fair for all parties involved

Despite this, Percy is confused and a bit surprised to find out that you're actually insecure about this dominating trait of yours

"What?! It's literally the best thing about you though!"

"I know but its just! My siblings aren't the way I am. They're able to actually use their skills for something. All I can do is listen to people and make friends. That's nothing special. I'm useless."

It PAINS him to hear you say that because its obvious you don't understand the importance of being as emotionally intelligent as you are

He makes it his mission to show you just how many people you've helped, to show you that you have a reason to be proud of what you're able to do!

You slowly open yourself more after hearing all his reassurance, from him and other people around camp

It's definitely a positive change as you have a pep to your step now. You engage with you siblings more now that you have a confidence in your own abilities.

You make him many sculptures as thank you gifts! Even when he says that you don't need to, you cant help admit that enjoy giving him these gifts with a nervous smile

You've made him a mini version Riptide and even have given him a small owl pendant

You were hesitant to give him the pendant because it seemed more intimate compared to your other gifts, but he happily accepted it with a soft smile

AND WHEN HE PUT THE PENDANT ON IN FRONT OF YOU YOUR HEART NEARLY LEPT OUT OF YOUR CHEST I CCANNTTT

I think reader would be pretty aware of Percy's feelings for them which makes them feel fuzzy

So imagine how you feel when Percy pulls up to you one late afternoon after not seeing him for the entire day to give you a small pendant of his own

The sculpting of the trident is definitely more crude and less detailed compared to the one you gave him, something Percy abashedly admits but you wave him off

"It's beautiful, thank you Percy."

"No problem, now we're matching!"

You're aware of your own feelings for him as you are aware of his feelings for you, so it doesn't take long for a confession to happen

I mean matching pendants? come on bro its so painfully obvious to everyone

Percy falls for who reader is, not because their a child of Athena

He doesn't care that you're different from your siblings because he understands everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses

You still represent Athena with pride and he'll happily support you till the end

PERCY IS SUCH A GREEN FLAG IN GENERAL I LOVE WRITING FOR HIM💔💔

[fenharel-is-so-swell]

I’m very sleepy so there are probably mistakes and redundancies galore below buuuuut read on for a rant about how weirdly Trick Weekes treats Qunari characters/culture.

I said this in a comment elsewhere buuuut I just realized that Trick Weekes does something VERY odd with the Qunari they write. As a black woman it does not sit right with me.

The Qunari, racially, are the group most evocative of people of color in western society Irl. They are treated as savages, visually very different (scary by Thedas’ standards), often hypersexualized, and generally perceived as hyper aggressive.

With that in mind I’d like to dig into Taash and Iron Bull a bit.

Iron Bull and Taash have narratively similar character arcs — raised under the teachings of the Qun, enter an identity crisis, do they conform or deconstruct?

Iron Bull is a Ben Hasserath that is surprisingly cooperative and ‘worldly’, compared to all other Qunari we’ve interacted with in games past. He’s got a lovely little band of misfits, is well spoken, and generally open minded/kind. As we get to know him we come to discover that all his charming qualities are exactly what make him ill suited for Qunari society—everything GOOD about him is other. UNLESS you enter a romance with him, in which case the ‘fun’ hold overs from a sex-as-a-biological-imperative society are BDSM. So, compared to the other available romances he’s quite lewd. His character development stalls a bit if you romance him UNTIL you get to the Bulls Chargers portion of his mission where it is either—sacrifice everyone and remain with the culture and world you truly do care about, or do the ‘right thing’ and cast off everything you know to save your found family. The narrative treats the latter as the ‘right choice’ in Trespasser when a non-Tal Vashoth Bull turns on the inquisitor regardless of relationship. Affirming to the player that all those who follow the Qun are mindless dogmatic murderers without real empathy or attachments. (Obviously there is more along the way with guilt and loss of identity, but I’m painting the broad strokes)

In a vacuum, this feels…fine. It could just be a story about a guy in a culture. A tale of deconstruction. It feels uncomfortable considering the cultural allegories that are easy to make with the Qun—it feels non western religiously. An amalgamation of maligned cultures BUT it’s easy to feel like maybe we’re reading too deeply.

Then enters Taash and the Qunari we see in Veilguard.

I have not seen what happens with Taash and their choice to “be more Rivaini or more Qunari” (I’m a biracial black woman and that makes my skin fucking crawl) but the implication is damning when looking at it next to Iron Bull’s story. (I’m also still playing VG so take this with a grain of salt. Taash has also been the most overtly sexual character the earliest in the game, I haven’t gotten more than a hint from any other character (save for Davrin, but it was a subtle flirt) but Taash? They’ve sniffed my neck, growled, and asked if I wanted to fuck them. So, once again, hypersexualizing the Qunari companion.

The Qunari in Veilguard are beyond flattened and instead split into two groups—the civilized, understanding, assimilated Qunari & the near mindless, violent, occupying, murdering defected Antaam.

The Qunari NPCs I’ve over heard in game have all been quick to yell “I’m just Antivan!” Or “I’m not Antaam” or the below grossssssssss dialogue (paraphrased from a convo I head at the LOF base)

“So, you’re Qunari”

“No, I don’t follow the Qun.”

“But you have the horns”

“I was born in X city. Qunari means ‘people under the Qun’ and I wasn’t raised with that”

“Oh then, if you’re not Qunari what do I call you?”

“How about X name”

…IM SORRY WHAT?!?!?! This gives entirely “I don’t see color” and is INSANE to put in a game in 2024. We are familiar with Tal Vashoth, we’ve been able to play as Tal Vashoth Qunari (racially) characters in two games. Hell, we have a similar allegory for it in real life with Jewish folks!! There is a distinct difference between being ethnically Jewish (I.e ashkenazi, etc pls correct my terminology) and religiously Jewish but erasing either is fucking gross????

Just like yeah, I’m [my name] but I’m also visibly fucking black and pretending I’m not does nothing but provide more room for the marginalization I experience to go completely unchecked because “I’m just [name]”

The handling is especially upsetting because I was REALLY hoping we’d get a slice of normal life in this game in a perfectly average Qunari settlement/encampment or something so we could see some of this culture outside of their violent defectors and “one of the good ones” Tal Vashoth.

[ritzcuit]

it's no secret that i am a massive fan of spirit of justice, except more specifically, i am a massive fan of datz are'bal, and More specifically, i'm a fan of datz's relationship with dhurke, which i widely have to extrapolate from context clues bc this game hates me. so i often reread the transcripts, of 6-3 and 6-5, to reflect upon the nature of datz are'bal.

well... the way he talks abt dhurke drives me crazy mostly. and i wanted to compile all the freak moments where he yaps about dhurke and the kids. Plus some random extra bits... think of it like a dhurkedatz manifesto, if you want

screenshots using the ace attorney wikia transcript. soj spoilers ahead. Obviously

we have to start midway through the third case, 'cause up until this point datz had brain damage. anyway "brother in arms" gay. "just like you!" gay. Ok not that gay. but it demonstrates datz's entire purpose for being in this game, "im going to tell you about dhurke sahdmadhi in great detail"

oh god It's starting. this is from inspecting the board of photos in the defiant dragons' office.. sorry i forgot datz's other purpose for being in this game, "i'm going to tell you about dhurke sahdmadhi's kids in great detail." i cant. hes so. endlknfgdf

just all this yapping for no reason. it's like a guy showing you photos of his kids in his wallet. Yeah he went to school to study revolution^_^ being close enough to that family to know how much yuty looked up to dhurke is so... to know yuty's motivations... why do you know all this, datz?! do you think he would help yuty study for law school 🥺well dhurke definitely did too, but like...what if both of them helped 🥺

"dhurke's been beside himself" as if datz didn't just wistfully reminisce about how yuty used to be the pride of the dragons. you are NOT an impartial party my man! "we all thought! we were sure...!" it makes me wonder how many other rebels would know that dhurke was torn up over losing his son like this. he puts on a strong face, right, like everyone in ace attorney... but datz is at least close enough to see him struggling with it. like come awn

just more yapping. mind you, datz is currently pretending to be abandoning the revolution right now (though you probably can interact with this afterwards, when he gives up on that). but still. pov you went to a defector to get info on the defiant dragons, but all he's doing is talking about their leader's sons for no damn reason

BC IT'S THE LIKE. EAGERNESS. THAT GETS ME. he knew those kids and by god he is going to tell you about them 😭

inspecting the old sign........... it brings to mind a datz who used to hang around in dhurke's old office with him, like maya does phoenix, just being in his business for no good reason. young 20 somethings with the whole world open to them. "this place has seen better days" and i know damn well datz was seeing them too! Gay

talking to datz directly, this is under "dhurke the attorney" and the fanboying Begins in earnest. again, theoretically, he is pretending to defect from the dragons right now. it's like he was fucking vibrating waiting for phoenix to ask him about his best friend. "he was a force to be reckoned with! he was a juggernaut, as mighty as a dragon!" YOU! ARE! GAY! just geeking out over how cool dhurke was for NO REASON

STOP

Like i cannot express how much of a fucking geek he sounds like right here. "oh i'm defecting from the dragons cus dhurke is a traitorous snake. Anyway he's SO FUCKING COOL :)" he literally sounds awestruck. He would never surrender... sparkling eyes... EW

while breaking datz's psyche locks. gay

i dont even have anything to say. "that look in your eyes... it's just like dhurke's" Yeah i bet you pay attention to what dhurke's eye looks like you little freak. i bet dhurke said something rly cool in court one time and you fell in love with him then and there. Ewwwww Throws hammers. also i just like these lines it's very badass of him. datz said ok ill die for the dragons idgaf and phoenix said IGAF VERY MUCH PERSONALLY I LOVE NOT DYING

pff

later on, after all topics were cleared, datz exposition dumps some more. nothing actually that interesting but "dhurke was framed, i'm telling ya!" is sooo cute to me. it makes me wonder how many rebels do still think dhurke's guilty, but are critical of the ga'ranian regime for other reasons. probably a lot, right? thinking about datz defending dhurke's innocence to other dragons, but then dhurke's like... datz it's fine if they think i'm guilty, so long as they still agree with our cause. it isn't about me it's about the greater good of khura'in. and datz is like. OK BUT THEY'RE STILL WRONG THOUGH 😭😭

"it's like dhurke used to say" fanboy. there's no other words for it

"fangs of the defiant dragons" is an interesting thing. datz calls himself that thrice (once during the trial after he regains his memory and once later on in 6-5). i don't know what it means. LOL i even made my friend who knows japanese hunt down the original line to try and understand it, and we got nothing bc it's basically identical. it gives off the impression that He's Him, tm, he's The Guy, who does shit.. which isn't actually very dhurkedatz, but it's dhurkedatz to me. so much of dhurke IS the revolution, and the dragons. their entire relationship is through the revolution and the dragons. so it stands to reason that if datz is important to the dragons, then he's important to...?well you know

like the defiant dragon bites down and doesnt let go. it needs fangs to bite, of course.......oh the crucial datz...crying

that's basically it for 6-3, except the very end-

aw. theyre hanging out :)

cutting to 6-5 because 6-4 has nothing for us. i have dreams that 6-4 actually has datz in it somewhere and i just never checked, because there's something wrong with me

datz isn't here yet.. this is from inspecting charley, obvs. who's "we" though. you know who we is? it's datz. now. to me. it's dhurke and datz. they lost aj and then yuty ok let them have their cactus. This could also just be a lie ENDFKLNGDF But its too easy to imagine datz getting a cactus and being like "it's like aj! 'cause of it's spines!" and dhurke is Just enough of a sad lonely old man to keep it around. until it like dies i guess rip apollo

talking to dhurke under "request" gives us this. My Compatriot. god made them compatriots bc they would be unstoppable as canon lovers. my compatriot. i should smack u. THATS UR FANGS IDIOT -_- Anyway it's clear from how much datz yaps abt him, but it's nice to have confirmation that apollo remembers him too :) running around him... maybe its "running around with him"? i wouldnt know. but still...so cute..what if i cried rightnow

a whole bunch of nothing bc they're keen on hiding him from me. this is ages later while inspecting the suitcase in archie buff's house. dhurke...thats ur knucklehead...

apollo remembering enough about datz to make fun of him *wiping tear from eye*im so happy *sniffling*

talking to paul atishon, who does not matter. dhurke... hes your buffoon....

but don't worry. he's here. it's datz. everyone get excited. it's time for The Scene, of which i have actual screenshots

this is my "intellectual attraction" this is my "unnecessary feelings" my "her respect as a coworker wasn't all i wanted" orhowever that shit goes. Dhurke! You're a sight for sore eyes! it's so nothing compared to those other three, but i can't help it. I love it so much.....

i love datz being such a freak who can't calm down for 5 minutes. i love dhurke being so understated here. its so funny. he said girl calm down it's just me 😭 and datz's stupid big ass smile once he realizes it's oomf.. i knew you'd come save me!

it's worth noting that in jp, according to my friend who knows these sorts of things, "you're a sight for sore eyes" is just "My partner!" with partner being aibou, which is also used for phoenix/edgeworth, klavier/daryan, and asougi/ryuunosuke. It's too much...datz likes him so bad. get a ROOM!

theyre both so weird

if you present the founder's orb transfer agreement, you get this exchange. please...the banter. i wish we got 50000p more pages of this.

Anyway um it turns out i hit image limit ...smiles cheekily...i could replace the sight for sore eyes pics with one screenshot, but i wont, bc its that important To Me. well. ill continue this in a part 2 because there is still plenty more to be seen

[bvckbiter]

“Leave me behind.” – ethabaster (romantic) angst

for the request game

Alabaster stares at his boyfriend. “I’m sorry?”

“You heard me.” Ethan turns over in his bunk to face the wall, away from Alabaster. “If you really plan to defect, you better fucking leave me behind.”

“Why?”

“I’m in this for better or for worse, Bas. There’s no world where I take the easy way out.”

“The easy way—” Alabaster swallows hard as heat rises to his face. He’ll be damned if he cries in front of Ethan, even if the tears were of anger. “Ethan, if this goes on, nine-tenths of our army will be decimated by the time we win.”

“That’s the price of war.”

“Three of my siblings died today!”

“Not in vain. We rescued the Clazmonian Sow from the Hunt.”

“And that’s what they’re worth?” Alabaster’s voice crack. “A flying pig? Makes me wonder what you’d trade me in for.“

A sigh. Ethan sits up.

“Come here.” Ethan draws him in. A sob rips a path out of Alabaster’s chest as he buries his face into his boyfriend’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

A few seconds is all he lets himself indulge in before Alabaster pulls away, furiously scrubbing at his eyes. "if you're really sorry, then come with us," he says heavily. "I'll lose my mind if I see any more of my siblings die. Or you."

"I can't." A strong hand tucks errant strands of hair behind his ear, rueful and loving. "Three of your siblings might've died today, General, but do you know how many other demigods have died since I joined the Army?"

Alabaster sniffles. Maybe thirty-two, thirty-three. He'd lost exact count at twenty. Keeping demigods alive as the Army moved around the North American continent without the magical protections that Camp Half-Blood offered had been incredibly difficult; not all newcomers adapted well, especially the younger ones.

He's so tired.

"We have a cause, and we have a responsibility to the corpses we stand on," continues Ethan. His hand slips down Alabaster's face, tracing his jaw before nudging the younger boy to look at him. "I can't let their deaths be in vain, even if you're willing to turn tail because some of them hit closer to home than you were prepared for."

"Do you always have to be so pragmatic?" Alabaster heaves.

"I'm not saying that I relish their deaths. There's a reason why I remember the number, and every single one of their names and faces." A trembling smile spreads on Ethan's lips. "But it's nothing that I don't expect of myself, too."

With the tidal wave of grief and the combined six hours of sleep he'd managed over the past three days, every remaining neuron in Alabaster's brain is struggling to keep firing. Too many emotions and arguments and apologies fighting its way out of his body.

It's infinitely easier to sink back into Ethan's embrace.

"I hate you," Alabaster mumbles.

"You like that I give zero fucks about openly disagreeing with you. I mean, you said so yourself when you very dramatically made your feelings for me known." Soft snickers escape them both, before Ethan's tone turns somber again. "Changed your mind?"

Their foreheads touching and fatigued breaths mingling, Alabaster traces the eyepatch strings along Ethan's temple.

"A good general doesn't leave his men behind, I guess," Alabaster answers, hoping and holding his mother's words to his aching heart as a balm.

We will be victorious, Alabaster. I'm sure of it.

---

"Child," his mother warns, Greek fire-green eyes flaring in alarm as Alabaster's discordant laughs echo around them.

"Mother," he says hysterically. "Even if I leave him here, I can't let his death be in vain."

"Think about the siblings you have left under your care."

"Ethan would've wanted this." His fist curls iron-tight around his sword, the handle of it now bound to his hand by the frayed eyepatch he'd pried off Ethan's broken body. "We regroup."

***

thanks for this req! it was extremely yummy to write 😋

this is based off an idea i had of ethan and al having kind of opposite trajectories wrt their loyalties to kronos. ethan is under no illusion that hes being a hero and this will be a bloodless fight, only turned by the excessiveness and aimlessness of kronos' violence; meanwhile al genuinely wants to be the good guy and struggles with making sacrifices even if it's for what he perceives as a good cause - right up until he's lost too much and he gets hits with the worst case of sunken cost fallacy known to man

ethan is a tad manipulative here, which is something i don't think i see that often in fanworks, but i just think that with al being Delusional™️, ethan is also kind of the og Delusional™️ even if it's to a lesser degree, so it's fun to kind of sprinkle in how one influenced the other... al had to learn his shit somewhere.

casualty numbers completely made up on the fly. im not here for statistics-scaling

[abductedhiko]

Lies

Starting off the first day of the month of love with an angsty break up one shot

Enjoy

The sun shone throw the large windows in the stone corridor as Sirius practically skipped down the long hallway. He was going to meet Remus, a thought that made his stomach squirm with anticipation a little bit. He could hardly keep the smile from his lips.

His face lit up as Remus came to view at the end of the hallway. He leaned heavily on his cane, but he still brought up his hand to wave him over with a pained smile.

“Hey, you!” Sirius said fondly, pressing a kiss to the other’s lip and placing a hand on his scarred cheek. Remus laid his hand on his.

There was a sad little crook in his eyebrow, Sirius noticed as he backed away from the kiss, keeping his hand on his cheek. Remus was not smiling either, in fact he looked troubled. Pained.

“Hey, hey, what’s with the sad face?” Sirius asked gently. He tried to lift his hand to smooth out Remus’ forehead, but Remus’ hand kept his pinned.

Remus swallowed nervously. “We should stop seeing eachother.”

Alarm bells blared in Sirius’ mind.

He backed defensively in shock, ripping his hand away from his lover’s face.

“Remus, what brought this on?”

Remus lifted his hand to gesture to himself. “You know why. You know what I am. Look at me Sirius.”

“You know that I never cared for-“ He couldn’t bring himself to say it, the words felt dirty and wrong in his mouth. “Your- your condition.”

Remus took in a deep breath. “Yes, but I care.”

“That’s ridiculous” Sirius spat.

“Oh is it!?” Remus shouted, the pain from the moon made him feel very much like a time bomb on the verge of exploding. And now, his short fuse was reaching its limit. “Must I spell it out for you Sirius?!” He gestured to his cane. “I’m a freak! I’m a defect, a fucking monster!”

“No-“

“Don’t you try to deny it because you know it’s true.”

“But-“

“My mind is made up.” Remus turned away hotly, unable to face Sirius knowing that miserable, angry, dejected look on his face was caused by him. “Please…just go.”

Just then, Sirius angrily stormed up to the man he loved. He yanked him by the collar down to his level, despite being much shorter. Simmering hurt and anger bubbled within Sirius, his skin itched with sadness and with every word from Remus’ mouth his heart cracked more and more to the point it was unbearable.

“That’s not something you decide alone!” Sirius snarled, his blood hot and pumping in his ears. “Listen, Moony, don’t do this to me. I won’t be able to forgive you.”

“Siriu-“

“No, no you listen to me now. It’s my turn. You listen to me now Remus John Lupin!” He snapped, he didn’t even care about the look of hurt that flashed within Remus’ eyes. “I don’t care what you say you are. You could look like a bumbling troll, but I love you. I love you so much Remus, nothing is going to change that. Don’t leave me, please.”

His voice grew softer, pleading, as if coaxing a frightened kitten from under a bed. Sirius tried to press a gentle kiss to Remus’ lips, and Remus froze.

He had Sirius-fucking Black begging him. In fact, begging for him to stay. He tried for so long to let him just have this. Let him love a boy and have that boy love him back, but he can’t. he just can’t! Years of self-hate compressed deep inside him swirled around deep in his belly, and the guilt took over.

Remus forced himself to roughly push Sirius away, and the other boy sputtered in confusion.

“I never loved you Sirius.” Remus lied. Part of himself protested but he just knew it had to be done. No matter how painful it was, he knew they couldn’t be together.

Sirius’ face twisted in hurt and anger. “Don’t you dare say that! Don’t you dare say you didn’t love me.” He yelled. “Because you know damn well you did. We were amazing together. So fucking perfect. So what’s this about? Huh?!? What is with the stupid fucking self deprecation that makes you want to burst this beautiful bubble we have?”

“You’re wrong, Black.” Remus spat his last name like an insult, and he tried to ignore the little twang of guilt in his gut at the way Sirius flinched. “We aren’t perfect, maybe you think so, but I don’t. I never did, even from the beginning, when I was taken in by you and James and Peter as the local charity case. The thuggish orphan boy who needed a place to ‘belong’.”

Sirius was deathly quiet then, a dangerous edge in his voice. “Remus, why can’t you let yourself be happy for once in your life?”

Remus’ neck tightened at the question. He straightened ever so slightly, despite his back’s protest of pain.

“If you leave right now, you’ll break my heart. And I don’t know if you’ll be able to put it back together.” Sirius warned.

Remus took a deep, steadying breath, before turning his body to the side. “Good bye, Sirius.”

And he limped away, his grip on his cane so tight his knuckles turned white, leaving Sirius to grapple with the aftereffects of a broken heart.

(Psst! Hey!! Feel free to support my ao3, where I write more fics about my favorite ships! You can find it in my bio :))

[case-of-traxits]

50 Random Character Asks:

Tseng, 1 - 50

You know you had this coming.

50 Random Character Asks: Tseng Edition

I can't even pretend to be surprised here, can I? Well, I got your second ask with your choices as well, so they're in here. 💖

50 questions. Whew. I'll give you guys a sampler on the first one, but the rest are going to be under a cut. This took me SO LONG to do. I've literally been working on it since the 17th! All together, there's 4934 words in this bad boy, excluding the questions.

So uh. Enjoy nearly 5k of meta about Tseng. XD

That said, please keep in mind that all of my answers are specific to how I personally write Tseng. I'm not going to necessarily distinguish every piece of canon from headcanon.

[For this ask game!] || [Still accepting]

1. Canon I outright reject

That Tseng knew Zack was being kept in Nibelheim. For me, it just doesn't work with the rest of Tseng's arc regarding Zack and Aerith and him keeping all of those letters. So. No. Technically, in BC, Tseng is aware that Zack and Cloud are both alive and badly injured, and Hojo orders for him to "prepare the mansion," but never actually says what he's going to be doing there. Tseng sends the Player Turk to clear it out, and then Veld shows up and sends all of the Turks to work on handling the townspeople and everything instead of the mansion. So it's entirely possible that Tseng never knew, according to BC, that Zack and Cloud were placed in those tubes in the basement.

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

Tseng is absolutely capable of slapping Aerith.  I realize that they took that out of the Remake, but I just feel like it's critical for his character for you to know that he is absolutely capable of that level of violence, even against someone he cares about.

3. Obscure headcanon

Tseng is the third (and youngest) son of Kisaragi Godo's older brother, who was emperor during the Wutaian War.  He was brought up in one of the Leviathan Temples to keep him as an effective (and safe) spare to the throne before he defected to Shinra. His forehead marking is a holdover from his time in the Temple, and he'll never admit to a single soul that sometimes, he feels the guiding hand of destiny (or fate or whatever you want to call it) in his life.

4. Favorite line

"It must have been a real thrill for you… Did you enjoy it?" I think this is everyone's favorite canon line.  With the possible exception of the "Mr. President," line from the Remake. That one's pretty damn good, but it requires actual explanation, doesn't it? XD I will say, he also has the canon line of, "I put everyone else at risk because I feared feeling guilty," in BC.  Which is... telling.

5. Best personality trait

Tseng's loyalty is easily his best personality trait, in my opinion.  We see a lot of it in BC, with his dedication to trying to help and save both Veld and the department, as well as in CC, with his devotion to getting those letters to Zack.

6. Worst personality trait

Tseng's devotion to doing things "correctly" is definitely his worst personality trait.  I am firmly of the opinion that this is the thing that's held him back on just killing the President and installing Rufus early. I mean, I have no doubt that there is technically more to it, including the fact that we have no idea what kind of succession clause might have been put in place for Rufus to inherit.

7. Age/height/weight headcanon

Age // Born in 1975, so he is 8 years older than Rufus and Reno, 2 years older than Sephiroth, and 3 years younger than Reeve. Height // I usually go with 5'8", but I'm a little flexible on this. I'll go up to 5'10".  He cannot, however, be taller than Rufus for me. Weight // Eh, I don't really do weight HCs.

8. Unpopular opinion about them

Hm... Do I have an unpopular opinion about Tseng..?  I don't know that I interact with enough Tseng fans to know.  Maybe my insistence on him being fairly easy-going when he isn't at work?  I see Tseng as the sort who can go with the flow to some extent, mostly because I don't think he'd work as well with Reno if he wasn't.

9. Scene that first made me love (or hate) the character

Oh man, honestly?  This might be my unpopular opinion, but his "death" scene in the OG.  With Sephiroth.  And no, not just because of my ship goggles. But there's just so much implied trust there, at a point where Tseng probably shouldn't trust Sephiroth.  He just... He talks to Sephiroth like he's still sane, and Sephiroth cuts him down during it, and then he still drags himself back through the entire Temple of the Ancients to get to the entrance so that he can let AVALANCHE in.

10. Best moment on screen (or in the book)

 See above.  I just... I love that scene.  It's easily his best scene.

11. Faceclaim for the role

Satoh Takeru.

12. Crack headcanon

So, I don't think I have a straight "crack" headcanon for Tseng.  I do have some crack-treated-seriously headcanons, including that he doesn't heal well magically (explaining why he spends so much more time in bandages and recovery than basically everyone else), and that if he's not friends with Reeve or in a romantic relationship with a partner who insists otherwise, he would live entirely on takeout. Tseng does not cook, in my opinion.  He's perfectly capable, but why?  He's spent years curating an extensive collection of takeout menus he considers acceptable food, and he eats exclusively from restaurants that have passed his very exacting standards. Ooh! And this: Tseng drives a small black sportscar at possibly dangerous speeds in Midgar.  It also has no plates, but there's not a cop in Midgar stupid enough to try to ticket it.

13. Dumbest thing they’ve ever done

Possibly trusting Sephiroth when he ran into him at the Temple of the Ancients, but honestly, there was probably no way he was walking out of that anyway, right?  So excluding that... Probably, the actual 'dumbest' thing he canonically does is in BC, when he chooses to rescue a single lone reactor guard instead of destroying a ship full of weapons that Shinra can't afford to let get out.  That's definitely treated as his dumbest choice by the canon.

14. Most heroic moment

When he literally, while dying, drags himself through the Temple to make sure Aerith gets the keystone.

15. Worst thing they’ve ever done

I mean. He canonically murders people for his paycheck.  So probably that? Unless you're more offended by the 'abandoning his country' backstory, of course.

16. Deepest darkest secret they won’t even admit to themselves

He will always wonder if he could have made a difference for Wutai if he'd fought for them instead of going to Midgar. Not that he regrets leaving.  He is fairly sure that he was always meant to be at Rufus' side.  But there's always that small, lingering thought.

17. Quotes, songs, poems, etc. that I associate with them

I actually have an old fanmix that more or less I still use. That said, you can also add "Secret (Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists Theme)," covered by Denmark + Winter.

18. What they’d go to see a therapist about

I am going to read this is what he should see a therapist about because I'm pretty sure if he had to go see one, he would spend the entire session silent, watching the therapist and making them horribly uncomfortable. (Unless it's Angel, but she's one of @ladykf-writes' OCs that I gleefully borrow whenever I can.  She's a counselor specifically for Turks, and Tseng knows better than to try to argue with her.) Honestly though.  If Tseng were up to date on mental health, I think he'd need to see a therapist about his inability to be settled with anything less than perfection from himself.  And, you know, probably talk to them about the killing people thing.

19. Vices/bad habits

Tseng smokes.  It wasn't a habit he was in before Midgar, but while he was being 'debriefed,' he discovered that asking for a cigarette meant he got to go outside and see the sky and breathe the (admittedly not great) air.  However, due to him not healing super well magically and needing to actually recover naturally, he did eventually notice a cough and slight shortness of breath that he couldn't shake. So he tries not to smoke as much anymore.  Still, he does keep a pack of his clove cigarettes on him at all times.

20. Scars

Oh plenty. All the Turks have them, and Tseng has a few more than most given his difficulties in healing.

21. Drink of choice (not just alcoholic)

Alcoholic // Junami sake, served warm.  He has a few brands that he likes, most of which need to be imported from Wutai. Non-alcoholic // Caramel Macchiato with extra caramel and extra whip.  Not that he'd let anyone catch him ordering it.  He has a single barista that he goes to in the coffee shop in the Tower (her name is Peony), and she knows better than to call his order out.  Tseng's sweet tooth is something he keeps very much under wraps.

22. Best physical feature

I mean. How do you pick? He's gorgeous. Maybe his hair, but I have a weakness for beautiful hair.

23. If they were a scented candle, what would they smell like?

Vetiver. But that's probably just because I HC his cologne as having notes of vetiver in it.

24. Most annoying habit

According to Reeve, it's Tseng's uncanny way of reading you.  There's nothing more frustrating to him than Tseng's little, "And is that all?" sort of question because he knows that Tseng means, 'I know there's something else and here's your opportunity to tell me what it is before I go digging.'

25. 3 things they’d want to take with them if they were dropped off in the middle of nowhere

Assuming he is not allowed to bring his phone, and assuming that a backpack full of his usual supplies (he has one in his apartment, one in his car, and one in his office; he finds it unlikely he'd be caught somewhere without it) doesn't count as a single item, and assuming that he's not stripped of his usual clothes/gear when he's dropped off... 1 // A survival radio with a rechargeable battery. 2 // A waterproof map. 3 // A first aid kit. Really, he'd probably be fine even if dropped off with absolutely nothing, but trust me, he would not be happy about it.

26. What they would do if stuck in an elevator with [Lazard]

At first, there would be a long stretch of silence as they both studied the number display and then the elevator panel itself.  Lazard would be the first one to move, leaning forward to punch a few of the buttons, but once it was clear that the elevator was not moving, Tseng would sigh and tip his head back and study the ceiling. He's cataloging everything he needs to do, wondering briefly what he can hand off, what he could text some of the others about to ensure it's done in time.  Then he looks over at Lazard, who is sighing and pushing his hand through his hair. There's another few moments of silence before Lazard pushes the emergency call button, and after they're both reassured by the voice on the other end that maintenance is aware of the issue and working to restore functionality, Tseng slides down to sit.  Lazard looks over at him, then sighs and takes that as an invitation to do the same. "Do you think it's inappropriate to text Reeve?" And Tseng looks up at Lazard, a small, knowing smile on his lips.  "That depends," he murmurs.  "Do you actually want to get to that meeting?" Lazard chuckles, reaching up to rub the bridge of his nose slightly, and he looks back down at his phone.  After a moment, he lays it face down on his leg and tips his head back against the glass wall of the elevator, and he looks out over the city on display behind Tseng. Tseng notices he doesn't start texting. The silence is comfortable.  Companionable.  Neither of them have any stake in impressing one another, and there's no need to fill the silence with talking only for the sake of talking. Tseng supposes that they're lucky that it isn't winter.  Else they would have to sit much, much closer. A glance over at Lazard, who has taken off his glasses briefly to rub one of his eyes, and a little smile touches Tseng's lips. Not, he decides after a minute, that it would be a bad thing, necessarily.

27. Their guilty pleasure

Tseng loves sweets.  Basically all kinds, but he does have a particular weakness for good chocolate and good caramel.  His secret indulgence that he'll never admit to anyone who knows him is that sometimes, during the winter, he'll order a large hot chocolate with extra whipped cream and get a caramel drizzle on it from the coffee shop in the Tower. But only if his usual barista (Peony) is working.  Since she already knows his coffee order is something equally ridiculously sweet, he finds that to be less humiliating than adding someone else in on the loop.

28. How they feel about [Reeve]

Complicated.  On the one hand, Tseng and Reeve are always, always good friends when I write.  One of Tseng's first long, solo missions with the Turks (and I really should rewrite that fic with my current Tseng's backstory and clean up the prose a little) was to function as Reeve's escort on a reactor tour.  That's a minimum of two weeks if they're taking advantage of helicopters periodically, more often three full weeks of travel when Reeve drives the whole thing.  And of course, the driving is definitely Reeve's preference.  Reactor tours are practically the only vacation he takes. But there's no way you don't spend three weeks on a cross-planet roadtrip and don't end up very close to the person you spent all that time with in the car (unless, of course, it's terrible and you just want to murder them).  But at the same time, there are secrets between them that they both know they can't know about one another.  Reeve can't know all the gory details about Tseng's life as a Turk, and Tseng can't know about Reeve's... let's call it his uncanny knack with the reactors. Now, do I ship them? Honestly, yes, sometimes.  I mean, I usually pair off Tseng with Sephiroth and Reeve with either Lazard (if I want canon to happen for something later) or Genesis (if I'm wanting a fix-it), but I can absolutely ship Tseng with Reeve.  Honestly though, that's kind of an unfair question.  I can ship Tseng and Reeve with nearly anyone.

29. Eating habits

 If it weren't for Reeve's insistence on a weekly meal with him and Reeve's occasional order of groceries simply arriving at Tseng's apartment unannounced (he only really sends dry goods these days; produce and dairy get delivered by Reeve himself when Tseng invites him over), Tseng would live exclusively on takeout. Expensive takeout. But takeout nonetheless.

30. Sleeping habits

Tseng slept in a Midgardian style bed for about a week while he was in debriefing after he defected, but eventually, he took all of his blankets and everything and just started sleeping on the floor instead. Now, in his apartment in Upper Eight in the middle of Little Wutai, he's found someone who can make him a gloriously oversized futon, and his one "concession" to the Midgardian way of doing things is that he no longer puts his futon up every morning.  He has four futons to rotate between, with a veritable army of sheets and blankets for them that he's gotten as what he suspects is something akin to 'tribute' from some of the Little Wutai locals. He's done his best to make it clear that he's to be treated as anyone else in the community, but he's hardly going to refuse these things. Tseng sleeps lightly, waking up at basically any sort of unexpected sound, but he has the enviable ability to drift right back off.

31. If the had a tumblr what would it look like?

Honestly? It would be all precisely curated images/gifs of nature. Probably of waterfalls and rivers and creeks. But it would be immaculate. Perfectly tagged and maintained.

32. Something guaranteed to make them smile/laugh

I don't know that it is guaranteed, but Reno's antics often get a smile or a chuckle out of Tseng; particularly so when someone is underestimating Reno in some way.  He has a tendency to find amusement in watching someone walk right into something they should have seen coming. That said, both Reeve and Rufus are also able to routinely get a smile out of him; Reeve because he's just so warm that Tseng can't help but to smile back and Rufus because, well, to be perfectly frank, he's a sassy little shit sometimes and Tseng loves that about him. (For the record, Aerith also often fits in that "sassy little shit" box, but Tseng does his best not to let her see him smile, or else she'll take it as encouragement.) If we're talking about something other than people though, the sort of thing that will routinely get a smile out of Tseng is people watching.  He likes sitting on a bench in the Tower or in Midgar in general and just... watching people go by. It helps him feel grounded in the world.

33. Something guaranteed to make them cry

I don't know that anything specific is guaranteed to make him cry.  He's very much a 'buckle down and take care of things,' sort of guy instead of the emotional reaction sort of guy. That said, he doesn't handle it well after Nibelheim.  Even if he's not in a relationship with Sephiroth, the whole mess of 'handling' the survivors and realizing just how far the President will go to keep himself in power and the uncertainty of what's going on with Veld and with AVALANCHE and just... It's isn't pretty.

34. How they react when they are feeling [excited]

Tseng has, as a general rule, muted outward emotional tells for anything he's feeling.  It was trained into him when he was at the Temple, both as a potential heir to the throne as well as because he was being trained to be a priest.  That said, when he's genuinely excited about something and not just 'looking forward' to it, someone who knows him can tell. He's distracted from other things.  And sometimes, if you're talking to him and he's excited about something, he might ask you to repeat yourself. Not like, "Oh, I didn't hear you, what?" But you'll get a lot more of those little noncommittal "Mm?" sounds out of him. Unless you're talking about the thing he's excited about.  In that case, you'll have his complete attention, and his usually small, amused smiles (the smug ones; you know the ones) are a bit bigger, more genuine and, dare I say it, softer.

35. Their idea of a perfect day

Tseng's idea of a perfect day... well, to some extent, that varies based on where we are in the timeline and if he's in a romantic relationship, but in general, his idea of the perfect day is as follows: Nothing disastrous happens. Barring that, he'll settle for: Anything disastrous that did happen was handled.  Appropriately. In all seriousness, Tseng is very much the sort who focuses on living each day as though he won't have another, and he doesn't let himself indulge much in idle fantasies. He's much more interested in perfect moments.  A good morning run with someone he likes.  An effective training session with one of the other Turks.  Watching someone grasp something that he's been teaching them.  An evening walk with someone he loves.  Sharing a ridiculously rich chocolate cake with them afterwards.  That sort of thing.

36. Their favorite season

Tseng's favorite season in Midgar is fall, when there's a near constant wind coming off the mountains.  It can be difficult to track the seasons in Midgar, since there's not much by way of greenery, but fall means a cool wind that helps disperse some of the excess heat that comes off the Plate under his feet. Back in Wutai, his favorite season was summer.  He liked watching the fireflies in the dusk at the Temple, and no small part of him misses that.

37. What they really think about themselves

Deep down, no matter what else, Tseng knows that he is an oathbreaker.  He can justify it to himself or dress it up all he wants, but he knows that his father, that his brothers, that his country counted on him, and he walked away.  He abandoned everything he'd ever known and walked into the camp of the enemy and swore to help them instead. It's part of why his loyalty is so fiercely held now, and part of why he's so careful to be as pristine and perfect at what he does as is possible. He knows what his family— had they survived the war— would have said.  Once an oathbreaker, always an oathbreaker, and now, he's tied to the oaths he has made in a way that he wouldn't be if he hadn't defected, because he's terrified that they would be right. That puts him in the position of conflicting loyalties, and why he is so careful not to make promises once he's in Midgar.  His first loyalty is to Rufus now, his second to the rest of the Turks, and if there's anything that keeps him awake at night, it's how he's supposed to juggle the additional loyalties that he's found himself collecting (Aerith, Reeve, Zack, Sephiroth, Veld, Reno, etc.).

38. Favorite holiday

Valentine's Day.  Or, to be more exact, the day after.  When Tseng can get a box of very nice chocolates for extremely cheap. XD No, in all seriousness, Tseng quite likes the Midgar celebration of the dead, All Hallow's Eve, with the fixation on costumes and frightening people.  He finds it fascinating for a culture that spends so much of its time not talking about the dead.

39. Favorite game

Tseng likes card games.  He's good at them for the most part, and in fact, when he first defected and arrived in the SOLDIER camp, he realized very quickly that his traditional Wutaian garb was only going to keep him Othered.  So he learned to play poker from watching several hands, and he won himself gil and spare clothing alike off those SOLDIERs who heard his— at the time— thick accent and thought he'd be an easy mark. He still has a soft spot for poker.

40. Favorite book

Have two of Tseng's favorites.  Both titles have been translated from the original Wutaian for your convenience, but Tseng only has the Wutaian copies in his home. "When the Sun Rises in the West," by Yurieva Aiko.  This is a collection of poetry made from the letters recovered from the belongings of Wutaian soldiers after the war. "The Sleeve Cost Me Nothing Compared to You," by Sato Ivan.  This is a collection of short stories and poetry about love and the fleeting nature of romance.

41. If they could have lunch with anyone in the world (living or dead, from any fictional universe or the real world), who would it be?

Before he defects // Tseng would like to have lunch with one of the previous emperors at this point, just to try to get some perspective on what's happening with his country.  Particularly, he desperately wishes he had someone to ask for advice from.  He's torn on what he sees going on, and he wonders what's wrong with him that he seems to be the only one who sees that there's no possible way for them to win this engagement with Shinra. After he defects // During his time in Shinra, given the option to have lunch with literally anyone, Tseng would like one more lunch with someone he loves.  He's very much of the opinion that the best thing to do is to savor every moment you get with someone, no matter how mundane or fleeting. Post-canon // He would like one more lunch with Aerith and Zack.  Just to see them again, and to convince himself to let their ghosts go.

42. 3 comfort items

1 // Tseng has kept, over the years, exactly one kimono from his time in Wutai, and while he never wears it anymore, sometimes, when he's feeling nostalgic, he'll go and run his hands over the silk. 2 // After he completed his training to be accepted into the Turks, before he left the Academy in Junon to go back to Midgar full time, the Acting Director of Operations in The Junon Branch of the Administrative Research, Anya (also one of @ladykf-writes' OCs), gave him an inlaid bone and black alloy knife with a blade cleaning kit.  This is the knife that Tseng wears strapped to his left thigh (the left pocket is cut open in every pair of his pants so that he can reach it). 3 // When Rufus was fifteen, he gifted Tseng a solid black watch with no markers on it besides a pair of mythril white hands and a single mythril accent on the face that marked the twelve.  Rufus never intended for Tseng to keep it as a staple, but while Rufus has gifted him other watches since then, this is the one that Tseng wears as his every day watch.

43. 3 favorite foods and 3 they despise

Favorite Food 1 // Sushi from a tiny hole-in-the-wall place in Little Wutai.  And when he says hole-in-the-wall, he means this woman literally just sells bentos out of her kitchen. Favorite Food 2 // Fiola's in Upper Six is one of his favorites.  They have excellent Mideelan pasta and even better bread.  The bread is, in fact, good enough that while Tseng usually doesn't eat bread with his meals, he'll make an exception for Fiola's. Favorite Food 3 // There is a tiny bakery in Upper Three that sells the absolute best chocolate cake that Tseng has ever had.   Despised Food 1 // The "sushi" for sale in the Midgar cafeteria.  One of them had mayonnaise in it. Despised Food 2 // Pork rinds, a surprisingly popular snack in Midgar.  Tseng suspects it's a holdover from when the area was much more farming-oriented.  As it stands, every sector, Above and Below, has their own 'special' flavoring for them, and Tseng has yet to find anything redeeming about them. Despised Food 3 // Tseng doesn't despise bread exactly, but he fails to find it enjoyable to eat most of the time.  He'd prefer his carbs come in sugar, pasta, or rice, given the choice.

44. Their happiest memory

Tseng has a couple. The first one is of one of the last times he saw his mother. He was about eleven, and he was brought to her rooms so that she could see him.  They spent the evening reading poetry and him showing off his sword forms and her telling him how proud of him she was.  He helped her brush out her hair and braid it for bed, and then she returned the favor and kissed his forehead and sent him on back to his own rooms.  He has a small jade comb that he found in a secondhand shop in Little Wutai that makes him think of her. His second happiest memory is nearly always with Reeve, of their drive around the planet on that first reactor tour.  It was the first time Tseng traveled that he could just enjoy the process, and he has fond memories of the times they rolled the windows down and Tseng could let his hand hang out of the car and just... feel the breeze.  Reeve had been content to talk about nothing or put on an audiobook— and those had been something delightful to learn about, something that Tseng had immediately invested in because that was a great way to listen to the language— and let them just ride.

45. Their favorite celebrity

Tseng is embarrassed to admit it, but when he first arrived in Midgar and Junon, his Standard was not nearly as good as he'd thought it was.  The tutors he'd had in Wutai hadn't been native speakers, after all, and while he'd learned very well from them, there was no way he'd be mistaken for a natural speaker.  So he'd immediately immersed himself, watching the news and reading everything he could get his hands on, and eventually, he'd discovered what were called 'soaps.' He never really followed a lot of the plot lines— he felt sometimes like they had put several novels in a blender and poured the resulting concoction on the screen— but he did eventually decide there was one actress, Gabrielle Cooper, that he enjoyed watching. She had one of the most neutral accents he'd ever heard, and he followed her from show to show faithfully. Even long after he'd stopped watching soaps to help with his Standard, long after he'd more or less shed his own accent completely, he would catch himself picking up a magazine or a tabloid if she was featured on the cover.

46. The person they most admire

For a long, long time, it was Veld.  And then everything with Felicia happened.  And it isn't that he no longer admires Veld, but he certainly seems more human now.  What Tseng admires most about Veld now isn't the seemingly perfect Turk persona that he presents, but his dedication to what he thinks is right. Post-canon, the person he probably actually admires most is Rufus.  Rufus Shinra, who was brought up to rule the world and has been barred from the throne.  Rufus Shinra, who should have had everything and instead has had to cobble something together from the ruins left behind. In that vein, Reeve is an extremely close second. Reeve was never intended to be the one in charge, and Tseng knows that Reeve would like nothing more than to hand it all off to someone else and go back to designing houses and buildings and parks. But there's literally no one else to hand it off to. So he trudges on, running the now-largest military force in the world, making decisions that shape the entire world with almost no oversight.

47. Their dream job

If Tseng wasn't a Turk and hadn't been brought up in the Temple and was just an average Midgar citizen?  He'd be a restaurant critic.  He'd write the most detailed and possibly scathing reviews possible, and restaurants would fear him.

48. Scariest moment of their life

A few months before he defected, during a ritual for Leviathan at the Temple, Tseng nearly drowned.  This was one of his big catalyst moments for abandoning Wutai, as he realized in that moment that no matter what anyone told him about how important he was, they all saw him as expendable. After Advent Children, the scariest moment in Tseng's life was watching Rufus jump from that building.

49. Favorite toy as a child

Tseng was given a wooden training sword very young that he absolutely used to menace every Temple Guardian he ran across until he was big enough for proper training, and he cherished it right up until he left the temple.  He didn't take it with him, but he made sure to polish it and leave it in a respectful place when he left. He is sure that it was broken and/or burned upon discovery that he had chosen to side with Shinra.

50. A memory they’ve blocked out

I don't know that Tseng has very many memories that he's blocked out.  Tseng is very unflinching when it comes to facing who he is and what he's done and what's been done to him.  He believes in facing things head-on and in dealing with the consequences that brings.

Congratulations on making it all the way down here, omg. IT WAS SO LONG!!

All of the love. 💖

[asordinaryppl]

A3! Main Story: Part 4 - Act 15: PAINFUL RE:BAKE - Episode 21: Sugarless Boy

Keiku: ?

Keiku: I’m kinda busy, as you can see. Long story.

Vulgar young man A: Hel…

Vulgar young man B: P-Please… stop…

Omi: I can’t overlook such a one-sided fight.

Keiku: …

Vulgar young man A:  –gh.

[Running]

Keiku: Ah, they ran away.

Keiku: Wanna fight in their stead, Onii-san? TYSM in advance.

Omi: I’m not looking for a fight. There’s just something I want to ask you.

Omi: You’re the one who’s been going around calling himself “Nachi of Wolf”, aren’t you? Why do such a thing?

Keiku: This was his turf a while back, wasn’t it? I saw it on the internet, so I made it my username.

Omi: … I’m the former boss of “Wolf”.

Omi: Nachi was my best friend. He’s gone now. Don’t use his name so lightly.

Keiku: Huh–

Keiku: … Damn. He’s dead?

Keiku: … Using a dead guy’s name should be fine, tho? Might just be a coincidence anyways.

Omi: There are people who will be sad and hurt to see their loved ones’ names be used so lightly. Myself included.

Keiku: … That so?

Omi: Why are you doing this?

Keiku: Communication.

Omi: What?

Keiku: Ain’t this what we call diversity in communication? I mean, saying somethin’ hurts is easy to understand… yeah?

Keiku: My understanding of my own emotions and others’ is sorta vague.

Keiku: It’s all a fog in my head, and I don’t get much about myself or others.

Keiku: But, y’know, when I hit and get hit, I feel the pain, and my mind becomes clear. That’s easy to understand.

Keiku: That’s why, you can hit me too, Onii-san. I’ll hit back tho.

Omi: I don’t do this kind of communication anymore.

Omi: … It’s true that the Wolves resorted to violence in the past.

Omi: But it was never to hurt someone else. It was always only to protect ourselves.

Keiku: ‘s that sophistry?

Omi: Well, I can’t say it’s always the right thing to do. But I do know that doing things that only hurt others is pointless.

Omi: You should find a different method of communication. There has to be something other than violence.

Keiku: For example?

Omi: Getting to know each other, for example.

Keiku: Huuh, let’s get ta know each other, then…

Keiku: This mark on my face’s been here since I was born…

Keiku: Like I said before, I’ve never been in tune with either mine or other people’s emotions. Even my parents were creeped out ‘cause they couldn’t tell what I was thinkin’.

Keiku: And ‘cause they were such perfectionists, this mark made me defective in their eyes, and they couldn’t even look me in the eye.

Keiku: They got drunk once ‘n told me I look like a half-baked cake. Apparently some part of me’s sorta undercooked.

Keiku: I didn’t really get what those people were thinking, but…

Keiku: I did get that my family’s not the perfect shit you see in manga and anime.

Keiku: But it ain’t like I was abused or neglected. They sent me to a regular ol’ high school, and gave me more pocket money than most people get.

Keiku: They’d buy me anythin’ if I said I wanted it.

Keiku: That’s why, I can’t tell what they’re thinking. I don’t really know what I think of them, either.

Keiku: Not just them, but everyone around me. That’s why I want my communication to be easy to understand, at least.

Keiku: I’d say that’s pretty much the only thing that gives me a reason to live.

Keiku: Are ya gonna take it away from me, Onii-san? This lil' something that gives me a reason to live.

Omi: … It may make you feel better for a moment, but nothing comes out of violence. Nothing is born out of it.

Omi: If you don’t find a different reason or way to live, you’ll keep this emptiness with you forever.

Keiku: Can ya guarantee I’ll find it?

Keiku: Maybe that worked out for you, Onii-san. But it sounds too much like survival bias to me.

Omi: ——

Omi: (I discovered theater under the pretense that I did that for Nachi. And I ended up finding a reason to live and a place to belong.)

Omi: (But all that happened because I got lucky. I can’t guarantee the same will happen if this boy takes up acting.)

Omi: (But still, maybe I should show him what gave me a place to belong and a new meaning in life–)

Keiku: …

Omi: ?

Keiku: … Siiike, I’m just fuckin’ with ya.

[Keiku hits Omi]

Omi: –gh

Keiku: C’mon–

[Omi blocks Keiku’s attack]

Omi: Stop!

Keiku: You can block that? That’s a former boss for ya.

[Keiku grabs Omi]

Omi: —Ugh.

Keiku: In the end, I’ve got no idea what the difference is between the violence you guys were doin’ and what I’m doin’, y’know.

Keiku: Ain’t this what we call meddling hypocrisy? Nothing ya say resonates with me, I don’t understand.

Keiku: This is my failure of a life, IG? Gotta take the L sometimes, or something.

Keiku: There’s no way I’ll ever understand ya, so don’t come near me again.

[Keiku pushes Omi away]

Omi: ——

Omi: (Failure... of a life?)

Keiku: TY for the fight.

Omi: Wait– what’s your name?

Keiku: Keiku Karashina. What a half-baked name. Bet it tastes bad. (1)

previous episode | masterpost | next episode

NOTES:

(1) keiku here is making a joke based on how parts of his name sound like food, namely karashi and cake

[lijau]

jjk ending rambling (with spoilers ofc) below :'D

Kinda word vomit everywhere lol

I liked the ending! Granted it's not as drawn out or thorough as most of us probably wanted it but that wouldn't be in character for gege lmao

With his writing he's really good at foreshadowing and red herrings. He'll only give us the bare minimum to understand a character or concept and not expound on that which I personally don't mind. i.e. mahito's questioning of is the soul the body or the body the soul? And Kenjaku's response after Geto's body briefly goes against him.

ALSO. Sukuna's ending was actually so well written? His parallel to Gojo as the strongest and choosing to go north vs gojo's south. Then we see the person important to Sukuna (Uraume) and how they chose to become someone new (thanks to yuji's chat w him). Similarly Gojo and company choosing to go south, returning to who they once were because THAT WAS THEIR BLUE SPRING AND WHEN THEY WERE THEIR HAPPIEST.

Jjk truly is a story about love. While it's more evident in volume 0, we can still see it throughout the main series and with Sukuna.

It's that whole conversation about satisfaction and love. To sukuna and gojo the ones who taught them about love and the people they loved were Yuji and Uraume (sukuna) and Geto (gojo duh). Then we see them understand satisfaction and what that means as the strongest.

Sukuna's "nothing will satisfy me" mindset finally shifting to the person who has been there and who he has protected. Then ultimately choosing to go north with them, leaving that past behind.

Gojo's "if you were there, then maybe I'd be satisfied". That's why he chose to go south. To go back to who he once was, the strongest together with his best friend. Geto ultimately did the same. He could've chosen to go north maybe to live a different life not so haunted by the politics of jujutsu society, but he also chose to go south.

I think this is what all the gojo dick riders forget; Gojo's dream was to teach the next gen what it means to be strong and to continue without having to rely on the strongest. Bc look what happened to him and geto. Burdened with being the strongest, having to protect with all of jujutsu society's eyes on you. Geto defected to kill the weak so there would be no need for the strongest. Gojo went to teaching to show the new gen true strength within themselves and protecting their comrades (the very thing he couldn't do).

And Gojo accomplished that dream! Yuji, Yuta, Maki, even Hakari, amazingly strong in their own right and they were strong enough to protect the people around them.

Then we got the direct comparison of sukuna's finger at the end to the first chapter. Unprotected, harmless, showing that the strongest curse is indeed love.

I definitely need to reread the series but the ending was fitting. There's enough unexplored story to get a spin-off series or even a part 2 but I think this was a satisfying ending. For a series that wasn't even supposed to happen, I think gege did a p damn good job.

This has 0 cohesion but I just needed to get everything out lol.

Oh actually my one gripe is Geto's body still being out and about 😭 great that takaba and kenjaku got their comedy duo thing going BUT LET MY BOY'S BODY REST GOD DAMN. But I kinda like how it parallels with the image of stsg in their suits. If the soul is the body and vice versa, then it's like Geto is showing that he still desires that partnership and closeness that he and Gojo had.

OKAY NOW IM DONE LMAO

Pls share ur thots too if you'd like :))

[lunarsilkscreen]

Autism and The "Happy" Mask salesman

This has nothing to do with Nintendo or any of its mascots. The "Happy" mask salesman is just an apt graphical representation of this topic of today's "discussion".

Why have we seen a surge in Autistics in recent years? What causes Autism? Is Autism a mental disorder or is it a physical malady that makes interest the brain's processing power?

This is a difficult subject to broach. Because *this* kind of topic always has the potential of creating a "discovered genetic bias."

We must keep reminding ourselves that there is no such thing.

The way that I approach this topic is "How do I teach this person the thing I'm trying to talk with them about?"

Most approach it with a [Can't do] attitude!

THE STUDENT JUST WONT LEARN! THEY MUST BE A DEFECTIVE STUDENT!

Meanwhile the defect the Teacher is trying to diagnose is present in the teacher themselves...

This why we need to keep reminding ourselves.

I do not speak for [All] cases. I believe I can explain away [Most] cases though. Because I have an extensive resume of coaching the most Autistic of Student Apes in the Most Difficult of Choreography.

God damn I love my job.

Take a flock of sheep. One of them has Black Wool. What does this look like to the herd? And to the Black Sheep?

Well. Everybody knows the Black Sheep and the Black Sheep knows everybody! The Black Sheep must be able to read minds because they keep finding all the secrets that the other white sheep keep complaining about.

How come everybody knows the Black Sheep, but they don't know me? Even the Black Sheep can't know everybody? Right? They keep forgetting everybody's names after-all...

From the outside of the Black Sheep in normal [White Sheep] culture; the Black Sheep looks different, not physically, but also mentally. Because they are treated differently.

No wants to be Treated like the Black Sheep because everybody hates the black sheep, and everybody wants to be the Black Sheep because they can get away with saying anything!

From outside of Sheep Culture... Let's say... A Shepard's perspective; the Black Sheep looks like a leader, cleaning up everybody's messes, greasing everybody's wheels; holy shit, this Black Sheep has too much power! We might need to take em out for suspected terrorist plots against the Herder's guild!

But to the colorblind Sheep Dog; they're the same color. They're all the Flock. So when tasked with taking out a "Threat" the Sheep Dog has no idea what the Herdsman is even talking about.

So now the Sheep Dog looks insubordinate.

And then it does become a conspiracy.

"We the White Sheep must protect all Sheep, even and especially the most vulnerable sheep. Sheep Dog; this is the one your Master seeks, please do not eat him."

"Fear not Sheep, for I am colorblind, and Could not tell one Spartacus from the other. My sacred duty is to find lost sheep, not eat them."

And now the Herdman are suspicious... Why is it the Black Sheep has disappeared, and the most valuable of Black Wool is gone. And why is always one sheep sheared *before* shearing day?

The black sheep is trying to hide! But that won't work because we see your plot now Black Sheep!

And then some of the White sheep start sheering their wool before shearing day. Because it's the "Cool" thing to do.

And they scatter their wool to the wind, and they put on sexy bathing suits and say;

What are you gonna do predators? Eat us?

And the herdsmen fed up with this carefully consider their options. Sell the flock for a single payday; Sell the Flock for their Meat for the same Price; or bend to the Demand of the Black Sheep so that they may have the opportunity to sell their wool at equitable prices again.

Instead; the Herdsmen turn to the sheepdog and say "Fix this or we replace you".

And the Sheepdog, with his very meal ticket threatened thinks "Where will I get food next? Not from the Sheep who will not trust me to protect them. Not from you who no longer trust me.

So where should I get my meal ticket from?"

Well... Bacon fries up nicely in the summer heat...

[aza-trash-can]

Headcanons for a new brother ( or any of them your most excited for :D)

Okay okay, I'll do A New Brother, although these really fit for any of the cadet Rex fics I have (which are many). And keep in mind, these are sad, cause this is me we're talking about

The first batch of CTs are 5 months younger than the first batch of CCs. Why? Idk, Kaminoans thought they would respect those older than them more easily? I really don't know, I just like it.

This means Rex (67) is 5 months younger than Cody (and the rest of his new batch). He doesn't really show it, but he is mad that he's younger. He'll have to work even harder.

Mandalorian trainers intially threw what 67 calls "a massive temper tantrum" over aesthetic mutants (blond hair, blue eyes, other various mutations like that) in the alpha and null arc batches being marked for decomissioning right off the bat. Because of this, aesthetic mutants are no longer immediately killed, but the Kaminoans did decide to put a permanent mark on their records (essentially one major 'defect') so they would be one step closer to decomissioning.

67 started picking at his hair when he was little because the Kaminoans were quite obvious about their thoughts on difference in their products, and 67 picked up on that very quickly. He does this a lot when nervous, scared, frustrated, etc. He does eventually grow out of it, with the help of Cody, but it takes a decently long time.

To stray away from the sad, in my headcanons, Cody is not in the same batch as any of the other CCs we meet in TCW. He's just vibing with his batch of unknown commanders, and soon 67, having a pretty chill time.

67, if not keeping his face completely controlled, is nearly always pouting about something. As soon as he joins Cody's batch, it's 99% Cody shenanigans that he's pouting at. He's not impressed.

Cody has always been bending the rules to his favour from the moment he could read and understand rules. The king of loopholes. He uses this a ton to his advantage and to slip out of trouble. This is mainly what 67 is pouting at.

On a more worldbuilding note, Kaminoans train the CT class, Mandalorians train CC, alpha, null, and commandos. Kaminoans tend to be (though this is not concrete) more strict than the Mandalorian trainers and more willing to see a defect and get rid of it. The clones don't know this until the war starts.

On extremely rare occasions, CT units will be moved up to CC batches if they show exemplary talent and skill. Often this is because a Mandalorian trainer will see them and request them. If a Kaminoan is opting for this... well, it's not for kind reasons.

Back to the boys, 67 was the unspoken 'leader' of his CT batch. Since he always strove for perfection, the others knew to follow his lead to do well, and would always listen to him.

67 is the only mutant of his CT batch. Just, some genetic bs, and poof, blond. His batch didn't really care, and neither did many of the other batches they worked with.

67, by virtue of being younger and being newly moved into Cody's batch, still has long fluffy hair like we see Boba with in AoTC. This is purely because I think it's adorable (and Cody thinks so too).

Okay, that's a lot. But I wanted to end this on a happy/cute note because god damn I am horrible to this man. I tried to keep major plot points of this fic and future ones out of the list because as much as I love to talk, I'm not about to go and spoil my own works.

This was so so so fun, and I'm so happy to share this!

[impishtubist]

Enjoy an essay on the subject of why Remus and Sirius suspected each other. I think that it was Order missions that Remus was off doing (although presumably not the werewolf missions like he does in the second war since I have to imagine at least one person would say that him going in twice is a bad idea) that made Sirius distrust him. I also think this influenced James and Lily, for them to go along with the Switch idea. Because no matter what we all choose to interpret as why James and Lily also didn’t tell Remus of the switch, we can’t deny that with their son’s life on the line, they kept him out of the loop which I feel is particularly damning regarding how much they themselves trusted Remus. One of Remus’s flaws is the inability to not listen to Dumbledore (he’s similar to Hagrid in that regard, both of them feel like there’s this debt they can never repay—allowing Remus to attend Hogwarts and letting Hagrid be groundskeeper after Myrtle died—and they are utterly loyal to him as a result), so of Dumbledore told him the mission had to be absolutely secret, well, nobody will ever be told what Remus is doing. I think he’d have tried to lie, but his friends knew him a bit too well for that and knew he was lying and couldn’t think of a single reason for him to not tell them what he’s actually doing unless it was for Voldemort.

Now, my personal interpretation for why Remus (and likely others, for everyone Sirius knew to accept Sirius as the traitor) distrusted Sirius was the result of two things: Sirius’s family and Sirius being viciously protective and ruthless when it came to the Potters’ safety. It’s apparently common knowledge his younger brother was a Death Eater, for both Sirius and Remus to “know” he was killed for trying to defect and we know per Avery and Mulciber what the school aged Death Eaters (something which I think included a big chunk of Sirius’s relatives and childhood friends) liked to do, meaning everyone saw how people raised like Sirius tended to turn out and there was a little corner of Remus’s mind wondering just how Sirius turned out so different (here, we see Sirius’s own reluctance to talk about his family—shown in the way he only mentions Bellatrix when Harry sees her name on the tapestry and that whole scene—damn him, as Remus didn’t know a lot about his childhood. I think the only person who could breach those walls Sirius had was James, so James knew the nitty gritty details of Sirius’s life while nobody else really did), and then, started wondering if he really was different at all. Now, we move onto reason two (and this is something that I think plays a role in everyone saying “of course, Sirius Black is absolutely capable of blowing an entire street up and killing 13 people), and that is that Sirius is willing to do whatever he feels necessary to ensure the Potters survive. I think he used darker magic than the rest of the Order, having been taught it young and feeling the rest of the Order is hobbling itself by refusing to do anything toeing the line (and Voldemort was winning the war by this point so Sirius wouldn’t be wrong if he felt this way), because dammit, Sirius is going to make sure James and Lily and Harry make it out alive (and I adore the idea of him using the spells his family taught him to protect rather than simply harm). I also think there were multiple efforts to recruit Sirius. I think he basically told them all to go fuck themselves, but some people did notice the Death Eaters approaching him to talk. I lost my train of thought however, so we’re leaving it off here.

Essay time on Imp's blog!

Yeah, it makes way more sense that Remus was off doing missions and being super secretive about it, and that's why Sirius suspected him. It's not about him being a werewolf at all.

[wormbloggign]

His bare chest was muscular, waxed hairless, the belt and leggings of his costume slung low enough that I could see the lines of his lower stomach that pointed to his… yeah.  It was admittedly distracting.  It was meant to be distracting.

what the fucj is going on with the las vegas capes...

“And it’s required. Vegas is one of the worst cities for sheer number of villains,” Rime said. Her entire demeanor was rigid, which maybe fit in a way with her ice powers. “Vegas employs a group of unsponsored thinkers and tinkers to monitor the venues, much like the PRT does with the economy, ensuring that everything is above-board

why is everyone in worm so okay with surveillance states? is america just like this?

sorry to say, taylor, but cops and robbers is probably more of a justification that implicitly justified your place in a system than an actual analysis on how society works

“Well, I didn’t expect you’d let me go. Do what you have to. I made a deal with the devil, you caught me, for better or worse,” Pretender said. In a quieter voice, he said, “About time I pay the price.”

(cauldron mention lets gooo)

shes quipping! im so proud of her

“Sniper rifle,” I said, in the same instant the thought came together. “Wha?” Leister asked, incoherent and confused. Prefab’s head snapped my way.  “You sure?” “I’d point,” I said, “But he’d notice.  Our masks and helmets cover our faces, or I’d be worried about lip-reading.”

she's simply on top of her game. intel master.

they are still living things taylor...

“Maybe ‘tenacious’ is the word you want,” Vantage offered.  “There aren’t a lot of people who get knocked out and still manage to win a fight.” “Are you all this pedantic?”  I asked. Vantage only laughed, though I saw Rime glancing at me, and she didn’t look pleased. “Alexandria was always hard on us,” Arbiter said.  Her voice had a strange tone to it, oddly melodic, “Getting us to focus on grades, extracurricular stuff, on top of what we did as a part of the team.”

subtle reminder for taylor that she killed their boss. they possibly blame her for the situation on the strip getting worse

“Weaver did what had to be done,” Rime said. “Not pretty, not kind, but sometimes you have to use a knife to cut out a cancer.”

they think of her as a knife... interesting...

from the b names that come to mind, i am worried, from the powers they have, im confused (i dont know any that are grey and spinning..)

? whos this.

We made our way out of the craft. Odd as it was, I felt a mixture of relief and… an emotion I couldn’t place, at the realization that I didn’t have to fight to convince my teammates that we had to help other people.

thats... yeah :)

“You were there for the Leviathan fight,” I spoke to Bambina.

aah. yeah okay, that tracks

yeah that tracks, of course the villains have some kind of popularity contest

damn, maybe taylor should defect too, i think she'd do great as a villain

[zennertumbles]

I think a lot of people didn't like these endings because of other reasons though, also.

I personally found a lot of SU to be pretty toothless, often, in how it grappled with the turnaround of its villains. My memory of it is so-so by now but I often remember feeling plainly unconvinced that the characters in question should have changed their minds in the circumstances presented to them, or that their journey of atonement also felt lackluster.

As for Aang and Ozai, I have definitely seen people argue, "no we should kill Hitler! Don't pretend we shouldn't kill globe conquering egomaniacs!" But I have also seen stronger points that the story places Aang in an INCREDIBLY difficult moral dilemma and rather than letting us see his choice in it, or how he plans to do what his heart tells him regardless of what problems that could still cause... he gets saved from that by deus ex dragon turtle. Now, I for one am fine with the ending of ATLA, it's already a show all about watching these kiddos navigate tough choices and the nuanced situations that war can breed, but I think that's a valid criticism.

3rd run Star Wars movies, same shit. Defected Storm trooper Finn? That's a great character concept, love to see it, they didn't give the dude nearly enough screen time. Would have loved to see more baggage of his but he cool. Kylo however? Sloppy redemption. He's on team Blowing Up Planets but we're just not gonna talk about that. F minus all the way down, movie was too damn soft on him.

I would also point to how Fullmetal Alchemist (original story) handled Scar. He's a very fascinating and complex character, who is confronted with his own actions (which come from a compelling place and are in large part carried out against war criminals, many of whom are also trying to fix their shit) and the writing really gives all of this stuff room to simmer. Scar has to choose his battles and give up his principled stance in pressured, heated moments, it feels believable. His course of action at the end of the story also feels believable, as well as how it is offered to him.

I get how chucking a villain off a cliff can be a lazy way of trying to address what harms have been done without digging into the difficult questions posed by keeping these characters around, but some of the stories that save their baddies feel just as messy and even more unsatisfying. Also I think the chucking off a cliff thing is its own interesting convo because it often feels like the direct result of a choice those characters are making, like reaching the end of a crooked course of action and insisting upon it with full ignorance to the wall they're about to run headlong into.

Sometimes I think about how and why some people had such a *bad* reaction to the end of Steven Universe, specifically in regards to the Diamonds living.

Even though they no longer are causing harm to others and are able to actually undo some of their previous harm by living, some folks reacted as though this ending was somehow morally suspect. Morally bankrupt, even.

And I think it might be because so many of us were raised on a very specific kind of kids media trope:

They all fall to their deaths.

Disney loves chucking their bad guys off cliffs. And it makes sense- in a moral framework where villains *must* be punished (regardless of whether their death will actually prevent further harm or not), but killing of any kind is morally bad for the hero, the narrative must find a way to kill the villain without the protagonists doing a murder.

It's a moral assumption that a person can *deserve* to die, that it is cosmically just for them to die, that them dying is evidence that the story itself is morally good and correct. Scar *deserves* to die, but it would be bad for Simba to kill him. So....cliff. (edit: yes, cliff then hyenas. But cliff first. Lol.)

Steven Universe, whatever else it's faults, took a step back and said "but if killing people is bad, then people dying is bad", and instead of dropping White Diamond off a cliff, asked "what would actual *restorative*, not punitive, justice look like? What would actual reparations mean here? If the goal is to heal, not just to punish, how do we handle those who have done harm?" And then did that.

Which I think is interesting, and that there was pushback against it is interesting.

It also reminds me of the folks who get very weird about Aang not killing Ozai at the end of Avatar. And like, Ozai still gets chucked in prison, so it doesn't even push back on our cultural ideas of punitive justice *that much.* and still, I've seen people get real mad that the child monk who is the last survivor of a genocide that wiped out his entire pacifist culture didn't do a murder.

[galacticnova3]

woah! youre in hell! i can help with that

how would reloh react to meeting another dark matter? not gooby, one of the regular not defective ones

I'm so sorry for humping to conclusions anon, in my defense the preview looked like exactly the kind of opener I've seen before getting slapped with the most rancid concoctions of words the Kirby fandom has to offer.

Anyways, Reloh would be... Pretty mixed. He'd probably sense them before seeing them, and that comes with the caveat of "If I know they're here then they must know that I'm here too." Which isn't really the greatest thing in the world from his perspective.

More than anything, he'd be hesitant. Kinda in the same way someone might be hesitant to reconnect with someone they recognize at the store who they spent time with growing up but ultimately drifted apart from due to one of them moving and now you know that you are not the same person they knew all those years ago, and you don't know if they're the same person you knew, and the choice is between going your separate ways again without acknowledging it or confronting what life has done to the two of you.

Even if he reconnected with them there's that lingering weight that comes with knowing and being known by someone else in such a way that makes privacy little more than a courtesy you can pretend to be giving them when both of you know that when you're in the same area your thoughts are linked whether you want them to be or not. Sure, he can just not think about anything that might cause conflict, but consciously choosing not to think about it is effectively still thinking about it. It’s a liability; just because you can keep your own secrets doesn’t mean someone else would also keep them.

Then there’s the question of whether they were loyal or not. Odds are they weren’t just because those closest to Zero mostly died with them, but there’s always the chance that they’d still try to enforce their progenitor’s influence in spite of their death. Thinking maybe they’ll reincarnate a second time, that maybe their kind will bounce back and resume their campaign of taking control of the world— something that doesn’t allow room for dissenters. While most folks need specific weapons with powerful magic to truly kill Dark Matters*, they can kill each other more or less normally. (*Dark Nebula was built different and also worse, the Triple Star wasn’t designed to deal with them and is just overkill, hence why DN can be defeated without them. Miracle Matter was already unstable to begin with, being similar to Dark Nebula in their vulnerability even if they were also significantly more powerful overall.)

At the same time, there’s that desire for connection with his kind. Both in instinctually in the “we are one monolith formed of many parts” way, but also due to recognizing that nobody else in the world is going to understand what it’s like to be a Dark Matter better than another Dark Matter. There are some experiences that just can’t be accurately described through words in a way that will allow someone else to understand in any meaningful capacity. There’s also a lingering thought in his mind that he might be able to help others adjust to just. Living life. He went through learning experiences that left him scarred and regretful just as much as they left him educated and prepared; he’s in a unique position to pass on what he knows. Make a change in the world that doesn’t stem from someone else’s wants.

With all of that in mind, he’d react very casually on the outside and be more like shit shit shit fuck damn fuck what am I supposed to do here this is awkward as hell damnit I never thought this was gonna happen I hate family reunions what if they find out I know what sex or a bong is internally. Which probably wouldn’t make things go particularly well but maybe the resulting shared confusion would make them both want to end the interaction faster.

[despair-to-future-arcs]

Anything else you remembered?

I'm... really sorry that happen to you, Akane - I know that you really had no one else to turn to, it's probably why you all became Ultimate Despair.

Yeah... we had no other option, we only had ourselves and our class rep was dead, Junko was the only person that we could turn to.

But I'm gonna clarify one thing; we didn't call ourselves Ultimate Despair.

Right, I remember seeing Kazuichi's therapy session and he mention the same thing, then I guess you call Future Foundation 'World Ender' in return then?

Well yeah, no ones likes being insulted so Junko came up with a name too - it happen after I kill my family...

...

...

...

Date: August 1st, 2013

*Ryo had found herself on the floor, holding her stomach as looking at Akane*

Ak-Akane, please stop doing this, this... this isn't like you...!

Then maybe you shouldn't have treated us like damn slaves, now it's time to end you once and for all!

*After that with a step of a foot...*

*SPLASH!*

*Akane killed both her mother and the baby she was carrying, she was free...finally free...*

*Akane look around and saw the bodies of her siblings all killed and smashed, this was for the best - now that her siblings are dead; they won't suffer any sins she's committed* Well... seems that's it, now we can go...

*pulls up camera* Yo Junko, I got my family killed as requested - do you want anything else?

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

Wow look at that, seems you done well Akane - good job, at least now they won't suffer anymore.

But sadly it seems there are others that want to deny our cause...

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

The hell do you mean, what happen?

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

Well see this...

JUNKO: This here is Future Foundation, an organization that has started up after the school fell, pretty much they are remaining Ultimates that were able to escape and survive.

And you want to know what us, these morons are gonna start planning to re-open the school again!

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

WHAT?! WH-WHY THE HELL WOULD THEY RE-OPEN THAT DAMN PLACE, HOW DARE THEY!

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

Exactly and seems they are viewing us as 'Ultimate Despair' can you believe that?

But don't worry, I have a plan in mind and I plan to announce to everyone that sided with me very soon, so you and Nekomaru should watch then, alright? See ya!

*CLICK!*

*Akane walk out as she closes the camera* Seems Junko is gonna announce something.

Good, are you ready to go?

Yeah, let's go Nekomaru!

*The rush off together*

'Me and Nekomaru had worked together; we always did everything together but his heart defect got worse and I started to forget to feed myself...'

[cursesavior]

Suguru scoffs a bit at her reaction to his unusual way of speaking about non-sorcerers - "We practically live in a zoo, you know. This entire world is overrun with animals." They're everywhere, cursed energy flowing uncontrolled until it creates monsters - monkeys make the damn mess and they're meant to throw away their lives cleaning up after them? What a joke. He could rant about it all day - and he has, on certain occasions - but he won't bore her with that yet. Jumping straight into his deranged rambling would drive her away at this point.

For a moment he watches the black smoke that flows from her hair - her appearance always made her stand out quite a bit amongst their peers. It's truly unique, something special - and something that guaranteed she'd never fit in with monkeys. Even if they couldn't see the plumes of cursed energy that radiate from her, surely they could see that something was different. Surely they could sense their insignificance in her presence, the weak sensing the power of the strong, knowing they could be crushed underfoot, trampled like the insignificant weeds they are. Or maybe his thoughts are getting away from him again and going to that murderous, vengeful place they always tend to go. That's probably it.

He has the audacity to laugh when she questions his motives, something genuine but with a slight edge of mania to it, just of a hint of the madness that's twisted his mind. "Please. What kind of monk would I be if I made you pay for your life? That's not what I have in mind." He waves his hand dismissively, like it's oh so ridiculous. "Forcing someone to work with you just breeds resentment. Someone who doesn't want to be here certainly won't be loyal, and that's the last thing I need, truly. So no, it's not like I'm going to force you to do my dirty work or anything silly like that. I guess you could say I just wanted to get on your good side - because what I'm looking for is strong allies."

There's his chance. Now he can finally go into his spiel. It doesn't feel right to deliver his monologue while sitting down, though, so he brings himself to his feet in one smooth motion and making a grand gesture with open arms. He wasn't always quite this animated, but again, showmanship. "You see, I defected from Jujutsu Tech with a goal. A dream, even: to create a world in which sorcerers can live freely. But isn't that impossible? How can sorcerers live in peace when there are curses rampaging about, preying on the weak? Ha!" Another short laugh, tilting his head back dramatically. "You know how curses are the result of all the cursed energy of humanity building up over time? Because sorcerers can control our cursed energy, we don't leave those same traces of cursed energy everywhere we go... Meaning curses are the sole fault of filthy monkeys who can't control themselves. So of course, in order to create a perfect world, I first have to take care of the pest problem."

His voice calms near the end, back to cold and logical, but still with that seething hatred hidden somewhere in his tone. He settles down, bringing himself back to the floor to be on the same level as his guest. "As you can imagine, that's a dream that takes a lot of work to achieve. Sure, I might be able to do it on my own, but the time it would take to gather enough curses to do so... Well, there's no point in making sorcerers suffer any longer than they need to." He shrugs, as if this were the most casual and mundane topic of conversation. It is for him at this point, he feels like he's explained this a hundred other times. "Like I said, I'm not going to force you to join my side. Beliefs like mine aren't something you can force people to accept. But I figured I'd take my chance and see if you'd hear me out - you'd be of great help, you know." He smiles - he's sure that she'll just think he's crazy, unhinged, a madman for suggesting something so drastic... But hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained. It's not like she's the self-righteous type that would kill him for his intentions. She doesn't seem that way, at least, especially not after he saved her life. "Think about it, the kind of life you could have - that's all I ask."

AT FIRST, PERSEPHONE WONDERS IF THEY MISHEARD HIM. a side effect of the blood loss, or perhaps simply a mistake in auditory processing. but what other word could she have misheard as monkeys? geto glides across the room and sits facing the futon where she lay, red-spotted bandages wrapped tightly around her abdomen where the bite wound sinks deep into her side. persephone doesn't make to shoot upright as their instincts tell them to; they don't cut and run, barrel past the owners of the voices that drift through the closed doorway. they push themself up on one prosthetic arm, the whir and click of the carbon-fiber machinery audible in the silence of the room, the slow pulse of cursed energy lighting up the seams between metal plates in brilliant blue.

thankfully, geto absolves her of her confusion when he continues speaking. so he was saying monkeys — and it doesn't exactly take a rocket scientist to figure out who he speaks of. not when she takes into account what he told her in the alleyway. the reverence with which he spoke of strong sorcerers, the casual objectification in his tone now. his cultists, then: in particular, those who he does not consider strong. those who are expendable, a resource, a commodity. in a way, it reminds her of the way her boss views the majority of the unseen. they aren't nearly this direct about it, but she's been able to surmise over time that they do not consider most people's lives valuable.

when it comes down to it, a religious cult and a crime syndicate aren't all that different. faith is as much a currency as money.

interesting... so the monk getup is a means to an end. working her brain has always been a method of relaxation for persephone: solving puzzles, taking herself through a complicated problem, creating a detailed plan. geto is such a puzzling fucking individual that paradoxically, decoding his strangeness puts her more at ease. a fraction of the tension melts from her frame, pulls away, dissipates into the air with the smoke wisping around her.

at the mention of tea, they shake their head in silent refusal. he may have brought her out of harm's way, but that doesn't make him trustworthy enough to accept food or drink. ❝monkeys, huh. i don't suppose you broke into the fucking zoo. ❞ a pause; absentmindedly, they gather the endless ocean of inky hair over their shoulder, letting the ends pool in their lap. they watch, for a moment, the curls of black smoke that plume up from its ends and rise in front of her in otherworldly coils before dissolving into space as if they were never there.

a side effect of her parents' dark deal with a curse before the twins' birth. persephone's hair is straight from the world of curses, lightweight and cool to the touch; within its deepest pockets of darkness, if the light around you is low enough, you may catch the faint glimmer of stars. her brother got demonic eyes. seph has always thought she got the better end of the stick on that front — at the cost of holding both twins' cursed energy within her body, enhanced by the curse-fragment in her soul, enhanced by the rage, enhanced by an innate technique that may one day kill her. orion got off lucky. the sorcerer world is a goddamn trash fire.

hostility edges into her voice again, dark eyes taken over by the caution of a cornered predator. ❝ okay — cut the shit, geto. what do you want from me? people don't pull acts of kindness without an ulterior motive. just lay out the debt so i can settle it and get out of your damn hair. ❞