#Maria x ange

[problematic-yuri-poll]

Problematic Femslash Ship Tournament - Losers' Round 3

Mahiro Oyama x Mihari Oyama (Onii-chan wa Oshimai!) VS. Ange Ushiromiya x Maria Ushiromiya (Umineko When They Cry)

Winner is up against Mafuyu x Her Mom.

Info and propaganda under cut! This will not be spoiler-free.

Problematic elements for Mahiro x Mihari:

incest, age gap in both directions

Problematic elements for Ange x Maria:

Incest [cousin x cousin], [double] age gap (ange is younger than maria, but the older ange travels back from the future)

--

Propaganda for Mahiro x Mihari:

mahiro and mihari start off as siblings with some distance between them due to mahiro's self-isolation and inferiority complex. mihari, a teenage science genius, develops a drug to forcefem and age regress her "big brother" mahiro and uses it on "him" without consent, and as it turns out she seems a lot happier as a girl and closer to mihari! and yes, this is a "double age gap" seeing as mahiro is both younger and older than mihari. fun! trans your sister today it's never too late

Propaganda for Ange x Maria:

Ange and Maria are super adorable together, Ange is only able to cope with her bullying and lack of friends at school through Maria and her magic and her life is dull and meaningless without Maria. Also they are cute together

[ushiromiyacestcentral]

Happy pride month! Celebrating Mariange/Marige! The Incestuous lesbians! ( with the siscon flag)

[craniumflight]

Klay, when Fidel thought she was in love with him: He's presumptuous! It is because he believes he's so handsome! 🤬🙄🤢

Klay, when Fidel asked why his face can't be trusted: He is a hottie. 🙄😒🫣🤭

Klay, when Fidel confessed, proposed and got jealous because of her: can't believe my beauty captured Fidel. I am so beautiful. 😤👈

[thepersonnamedsam]

please imessages part 5 i love it😁😁

imessage pt.5

pairing: genz!driver x charles, lando, danny, fernando, sebastian, lewis, alex, carlos, max

summary: our beloved genz!driver tried out a tiktok trend on the drivers

warnings: mentions of pregnancy

note: i finally did a pt. 5, yay me

masterlist / taglist

°°°

taglist: @ironmaiden1313 , @topguncultleader , @biglittlesecret, @gulabjamooon , @lovelyy-moonlight , @peachyplumsss , @mistrose23 , @copper-boom , @love4lando , @champomiel , @serenityleah , @iloveyou3000morgan , @angelwithoutmywings , @elleeeee21 , @youkissedareaderinthedark , @mikauraur , @thybulleric , @lpab , @fdl305 , @mellowarcadefun , @teti-menchon0604 , @vildetry06 , @bibissparkles , @aurora-maria , @lunnnix , @sya-skies , @Buckywifeyy , @dakotali , @rechtrecht , @noncannonships , @1eclerc16 , @pitlanebabe , @sopheeg , @avengersheart , @thatsadsmallchild , @peachiicherries , @idkiwantchocolatee , @callsign-scully , @mehrmonga , @badbatch-simp24 , @lissyontour , @din0nugs , @elliegrey2803 , @gay-for-victoria-de-angelis

[knaveumineko]

Umineko Episode 3 Blog: Glass Slippers

When I watch Rosa abuse a kid, I call her a monster. When I watch Eva abuse a kid, I just think she's iconic.

Episode 3 spent a long time exploring the lore behind witches. The whole ceremony offered me even more of that peak Eva content, and the question of what exactly a witch is on a mundane level is interesting to me.

Being a witch is obviously a pretty childish endeavour, in the sense that becoming an adult means accepting things as they are and not believing in miracles, which is why Eva and EVA are different people in the magic narrative, with only one of them ascending, but witches also have that self-centeredness that comes with immaturity. Every witch we've ever met seems hyperfocused on some obsession of theirs, with no regard for others nor interest in mortal affairs. Most of the witches we've seen were literal children.

Umineko has enjoyed exploring the gap between the mature front the siblings put on for the kids and the weakness that's really inside them. Eva's endless taunting of Natsuhi is on some level the same impulse that had her killing spiders as a child, and the same impulse that has EVA killing over and over. The traits that make for a good witch are the same ones that make for a good culprit, it seems. Is there some insight I could get by applying this to the Sayo theory? If nothing else, she outwardly appears to have held on to her superstitions for quite a long time, and she's stagnated in her role as a servant for years after most people leave. Does she just have no interest in the outside world?

There's a neat callback in Ange's big scene, where her fellow classmates scapegoat her for anything that goes wrong the same way the servants do with Beatrice (is that even true, actually? It would be pretty messed up if Kumasawa is just going around spreading ghost stories about the dead kid she helped raise.)

For Ange and Eva, being a witch is at least partially something extrinsic. It's more about the way other people perceive you. If we put it together, being a witch is being a hated scapegoat, isolated from your peers, failing to mature as a result, and becoming consumed by spite, self-interest, and your niche fixations. It's pretty worrying that Maria wants to be one. Seems like she's already most of the way there, albeit less deliberately cruel and more oblivious to the feelings of others.

It was pretty rude of Ryukishi to write Umineko in Japanese just to stop me from solving the epitaph. Eva had to use an atlas, so there's some kind of place name involved, and there's something about reading a word with a different number of characters to how you normally would. The "gouge the X and kill" being a clue involving removing certain characters from a string of text was kind of clever. Didn't I say something back in Episode 1 about how the murders seem like someone is trying to retrofit them to the riddle without always understanding what those parts of the poem was supposed to be about? I'm probably not going to think about it much. The atlas thing made me think maybe we're doing a twist where we have to read Kanji as if it was Hanzi or vice versa, or maybe taking the Kanji in a place name and looking at one of its alternative meanings, but that's more just me applying the one thing that I know about Kanji than an actual theory. Hopefully the game just tells me the answer at some point.

Besides the direct clues as to the solution to the epitaph, it doesn't escape my attention that Eva only solved the epitaph because she got hints from Kyrie and Rosa. Even with the hint, she beat Rosa by only a few minutes. We know gold was taken to the chapel in Episode 2, but not why. Did Rosa figure out the epitaph in that timeline, and use the gold to lure people to the chapel to get them killed? Seems like she would have gotten a witch in that case, so maybe she was just in the know on the real culprits' plans, rather than doing it herself. Seeing Kyrie make progress so fast makes me think the theory about her and Rudolph starting the killings off in Episode 1 could be plausible. I just like seeing more of Battler's parents in general. Unfortunately they keep having to die because Kyrie is too competent. Maybe next episode she'll be an accomplice instead so we'll get to see her gaslighting Battler.

I'd like to wrap this episode up fast so I can keep reading, so I'll talk a bit about the murder mysteries here. It's clear that there was to be a killer separate from Eva, since people die in contexts where Eva wouldn't or couldn't kill them.

Sayo had to be a bit clever about carrying out the murders this time. Since the servants who would usually help her out all got selected for the initial 6 sacrifices and she was up against all the siblings working together, she had to operate indirectly. That's why she went out of her way to underline the importance of the epitaph in her letters this time: it was absolutely vital that at least one person solves the epitaph and finds the gold, so that Sayo can play on their greed to get them to carry out the murders on their own.

At least one of Shannon or Kanon faked their deaths, with Nanjo providing fake autopsies as usual. This is sufficient to explain the loop of 6 closed rooms. Everyone else was killed by Eva as Battler described, except for George and Nanjo (and maybe Jessica, since we didn't see how she died). George was killed because he snuck out to check on the bodies in the mansion and discovered that one of them was faked (probably Shannon). Nanjo being killed by Sayo explains how Eva, Battler and Jessica didn't kill him.

The obvious objection to this is EVA's red truths, which seem to paradoxically state that Nanjo was killed by no-one, since everyone still alive was innocent. However, this trick was already used in Episode 2, when Kanon-but-not-Kanon killed a bunch of people and then vanished. My speculation was that Beatrice is being creative with her definition of "dead" in her red truths. My guess is that Kanon "died" in Episode 2 in the sense that he abandoned his identity as Kanon. I think the same thing has happened in Episode 3, which is how Kanon or Shannon can kill Nanjo despite being "dead".

After seeing the depths they'd stoop to in Episode 3, I'm thinking Eva and Hideyoshi were probably accomplices in Episode 1. The only testimony backing up that they left the conference early that night is Genji, who was definitely in on it. They can fake Shannon's death since she's in an out of the way spot and only Hideyoshi and Kanon can vouch for the state of the corpse, which explains why she's alive at the end. They holed themselves up in their room because they were planning on meeting with Sayo, so the mystery of why they let the killer in is solved.

Eva is a terrible liar. Why did she even do the receipt thing? It literally makes no sense unless she already knows murders are happening. She just can't help but lord any advantage she has over others, no matter how suspicious it makes her look. That's why we love her.

Anyway, that's going to be it for 3. I've heard Episode 4 is really slow, but I'm intrigued by Ange's deal. Her misfortune is amusing in a way, and I'm really curious about how she's going to tie into the plot when she's so far in the future.

[izunias-meme-hole]

Ranking The Ushiromiya's Based On How Good At Among Us They Would Be

Kinzo: 0/10 - My guy would at least do his tasks, but he's always voted out first based on vibes and how he is.

Krauss: 0/10 - Ass as an imposter, and as a cremate he's always the first to die.

Natsuhi: 7/10 - Very good crewmate, always reports bodies if she sees one, but her imposter is flawed because her lying could easily get torn apart by a gut feeling.

Jessica: 8/10 - She'll keep her guard up at all times as a crewmate, won't hesitate to vote someone out based on a feeling, but her imposter is slightly better than her mothers.

Eva: 9/10 - Effective crewmate, always convincing even if she is condescending, and her imposter is almost perfect.

Hideyoshi: 5/10 - Just minding his business as a crewmate and then his neck gets snapped. His imposter on the other hand gets kicked out immediately after he kills someone, not because he's a bad liar, but because someone always sees his ass in the act.

George: -100/10 - Touched Among Us once, broke his computer in a fit of rage, has sworn himself off from playing it again.

Rudolf: 8/10 - Much like Eva, he's an effective crewmate and his imposter is also almost perfect. Though unlike Eva, he reeks of too much snake oil to be trusted so he gets ejected half the time, even if he isn't the imposter.

Kyrie: 10/10 - It doesn't matter how many red flags she'd give off, you'd never see her coming.

Battler: 10/10 - Actually a pretty competent crewmate who survives off pure luck sometimes and hates suspecting someone he knows. Though if he has to play the imposter, he'll play the imposter.

Ange: 8/10 - An amazing crewmate, will say "If I die, the imposter is X", and her imposter is good.

Rosa: 5/10 - Would try to play like Eva and somehow fail in one way or another.

Maria: 5/10 - Good crewmate, but her imposter is found out immediately. She also promotes trolling and second impostering to someone in particular.

Lion: 9/10 - Helpful crewmate, and she carried elements of that in her imposter. She can also lie pretty well, but ultimately her imposter needs some work.

Beatrice: 100/10 - If you've finished Umineko, you know that Beatrice would be the ultimate imposter.

[kairiscorner]

more miles x filo reader plz hshsjsjdns but this time can it be that they are not dating yet and hes still crushing 💗

YES, I AM ON IT !!

miles morales x filipino reader

i'd like to think miles would've fallen for you the minute he saw you, actually. like, his heart would beat just a little faster when he saw you, but he brushed it off as excitement to meet a new friend or see a new face at his school.

he was drawn to your beauty, your noticeable features as someone of filipino descent. you could say you rizzed him up by just being who you are, you super magandang individual o(*￣▽￣*)o

when he met you, he instantly found himself drawn to you and your little traits and habits. how you might point with your lips, say, "ah, ano..." when you start a conversation, how you use the "mano po" culture towards his parents (THEY FUCKING LOVE YOU FOR THAT) and just every little thing about you, be it related to your heritage or culture or just anything about you, he fell--and he fell hard.

HE WENT THROUGH A RABBIT HOLE ON WIKIPEDIA ABOUT FILIPINO HISTORY

he stumbled across this song, and he vibed to it (he felt a little sad, maybe a little strange after learning the meaning of the lyrics, it was a feeling he couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it danced on the tip of his tongue when he thought of you, iykyk what i mean)

he'd try to impress you by speaking to you in tagalog after hearing you speak it sometimes, but he used the mas malalim na tagalog and ended up confusing you 😭😭😭

"ang iyong kagandahan ay ubod ng... how do you say that word? wait, wait, uh... " (looks through the script he made to rizz you up, MOST OF IT IS IN INCORRECT TAGALOG TBH 😭😭😭)

he loves going over to your house whenever he can, he feels nice and at home with you, what more at your place where he feels so safe and comfortable?

i also like to think you two would walk outside together, play outdoors a lot, maybe visit a sari-sari store together or a store run by a local filipino nearby and show him some local filipino snacks and drinks you loved :>

HE LOVES PIATTOS

you loved feeding him piattos, like omg. and he jokingly bites your fingers when you do it, and he loves when you scream at him with a wide smile, "ANUBA" when he playfully bites your fingers as you feed him, he chuckles a lot about it and points out how someone's gotta watch their fingers when they eat this.

you two would definitely share a straw from those soft drinks in a plastic bag, LIKEEE one bag, one straw, two of you 🫶🫶🫶

HE GOT ADDICTED TO POTCHI ONCE !!!!!

"oh yo it's kirby" him at the potchi mascot

he also jokes about how you look exactly like the potchi mascot when you're blushing and pouting, AND IT MAKES YOU EVEN MORE FLUSTERED MAN

I FEEL LIKE IF YOU TWO WATCHED MARIA CLARA AT IBARRA, HE'D TAKE NOTES BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH RIZZ IBARRA HAS, ESPECIALLY IF YOU like me SIMPED FOR THE MAN

he'd also learn dancing with you if you were into it, even if you meant it as a platonic gesture, he'd savor every moment of it :>> AND IF YOU TWO DANCED THE EL BIMBO (iykyk) HE'D BE CHUCKLING AND GIGGLING AT HOW SILLY YOU TWO WOULD SHAKE Y'ALL'S HIPS AND YOU BOTH WOULD JUST ERUPT IN PEALS OF LAUGHTER AT HOW FUNNY YOU TWO LOOK WHEN DANCING IT

but deep inside, he'd already be falling deeper and deeper in love with you, wishing every day could just be like this. he wants to come over to your place all the time and just spend the day doing everything you wanna do or just nothing at all.

he loves the way your hair falls when you turn you head to look at him, he loves your sass and quips, he loves how you never take anyone's bullshit and he... he loves dancing with you. he loves holding you close and watching as the music takes you away into a freeing feeling, a feeling that only you two are in the world right now.

a/n: he listens to "ang huling el bimbo" on the way home.

tags !! @thecoolerdor @q2ie @binibinileonara

[just-antithings]

When Umineko fandom complains about Maria ushiromiya x ange ushiromiya for incest or at least being pseudo incest when Umineko itself is full of incest incest adjacent relationships some slurs and forced/arranged marriage

every damn time

[solanumofthestars]

Coffee Under the Snow, pt. 1

[TLOU fanfic] [for @bluestar22x with much love]

Pairing: Joel x OFC!Character

Rating: M

Tags: romance, humor, AU, comfort/hurt, angst, sex, nsfw situations, some violence and swearing

Length: 12,000 words (oops), broken up into two parts for convenience.

More details under the cut: spoilers for the first and second games, naturally.

Setting: Jackson, AU where Joel didn't die, and he and Ellie made up a lot sooner. Extra liberties have been made with portraying Jackson and its people, mostly inspired by what was seen in the second game, but some details may clash/diverge from the source material.

Author's note: @bluestar22x I have owed you a fic for ages. I hope you enjoy this at least half as much as I enjoyed writing it. You're a great writer and know that I take plenty of inspiration from you and your writing.

As usual, apologies for any errors.

COFFEE UPON THE SNOW (Part 1)

Coldness is welcome when you can meet it with warmth. It was why many of the residents of Jackson enjoyed the Winters more than the Summers or Springs. The small town thrived in cold weather, and even though the snow storms could sometimes be harsh, they were preferred to the sweltering heat that could come with summer, or the unpredictable changes that Spring would bring.

The winter had been a particularly gentle one. It was the kind of winter that froze the air and let snow gently fall from the sky, but barred anything harsher from happening, letting everything settle in a quiet, comfortable stillness. It made for a wonderful Christmas; that morning, there was a happy celebration with good food in the early morning for all the residents, followed by a Secret Santa. Once everyone had a gift, they all scattered off to their own homes to spend time with family and friends.

Joel and Ellie decided to go to Tommy and Maria’s.

Hell, Joel was happy he had someone to spend the time with; the last two Christmases had been dreary, and he found the holidays difficult. But now, he was here with Ellie and Maria exchanging gifts, while Tommy prepared them some drink.

Ellie had just unwrapped her gift, smiling, gleefully thanking him for the painted wooden carving of Shimmer. 

Naturally, she had something for him as well. “For you!” She exclaimed, handing him a small wrapped present. 

“Now what would this be?” Joel asked, inspecting the present curiously. The box was no bigger than the palm of his hand, and made a curious rattle when he shook it. “Now you didn't get me a car there, did ya?” he joked, and Ellie shook her head. She was sitting on the floor, resting against the front of the couch, right next to where Maria was sitting.  

Joel opened the box- it was a guitar pick. “Thank you Ellie, I-” he paused. The pick wasn't made out of wood or metal or even plastic. It was ivory. And it was glazed, and had a small company inscription on it. “Ellie, where'd you find this?” he asked, concerned. 

She shrugged nonchalantly. “On my patrols, we went into an old house and found that there.” There was a slight tremble in her voice as she quickly rattled off her explanation. 

She knew he didn't like her going on patrols. She was too young, too inexperienced, and while she could shoot like no one's business, he wasn't about to let her risk her life for a gift. 

His eyes shifted to the side. Maria was looking at him disapprovingly, ever so slightly shaking her head. He looked back at Ellie; her eyes were wide, and her smile was warm but stiff.

There was no need to cause an argument, not today. “I will use this every time I play. Merry Christmas, baby girl,” Joel said, pulling Ellie up into his lap and hugging her tightly. She awkwardly draped over him, reciprocating the embrace to the best of her ability from her awkward position. Her arms draped around his shoulders, and she dug her fingers into his shoulders and rocked back and forth, whispering out a Merry Christmas.

This was the first Christmas that had them on truly good terms.  Ellie’s anger was justified, and perhaps expected (she was a smart girl- he knew she’d find out eventually), but it soured things between them so heavily that Joel didn't know if they would ever come back to each other. The thought haunted him for a good few long months, alleviated by the fact that no  matter what, he knew the alternative to his decision was worse- Ellie being dead. That was something he could never, ever, alone to happen.

Eventually they made up, and he hoped (and even, maybe, prayed) that things would never change. Unfortunately a lot of that was up to him.

“Joel, I was careful, I promise,” Ellie said, untangling herself from him. Goodness she got tall. “'m going with experienced people, and my skills are put to good use. I don't do anything dangerous, I swear.” She held up her hands in defense, as if she wished to telekinetically placate him.

Well, how could he deny her anything? “I know, I know, but never stop being careful, you hear me?” Joel stood up, and gave her a pat on the shoulder. “I just care about you kiddo.” 

“You have to let her be,” Maria chimed in. “And she's not a kid anymore.”

“I'm really not,” Ellie laughed.

Not to him she wasn't.

The snow kept falling as they sat, near the fireplace, playing cards, talking, and drinking the tea and alcohol Tommy had brought.

Outside was a picturesque sight: Jackson was being coated in a thick, white blanket, creating a cozy atmosphere. However, better yet, the snow would act as a natural deterrent. It slowed down the infected, causing them to either huddle in shelters and forgo advancement, or to hibernate. Of course, this was not true for every infected, and indeed, their patrols had sometimes turned dangerous when an unexpected horde spilled over from inside a building.

“I think they're somewhere else,” Tommy said. “If we went down to Florida, or California, I imagine there are massive hordes everywhere.”

“Do you think that's where they're migrating, to the warmer climates?” Ellie asked.

“Who knows-” Maria coughed, making a face at her cup. The moonshine hadn't been the best this season. She cleared her throat and continued. “Diane and her posse came across some traders who were down South a few months ago, and said that from their point of view, it was a helluva lot emptier than up here.”

“What, for real? She never told me!” Ellie exclaimed. “And I asked her.”

“Ah she probably doesn't want to tell you horror stories,” Joel said with a slight smile. 

“Horror stories?” Now Ellie was listening. 

“It's not much, but when we were chatting she mentioned she and her group saw military groups corralling the infected like cattle, straight into the ocean.” 

“With what?” Tommy's brows were furrowed. 

“Apparently nets, each end attached to a big truck.” 

A small chorus of scoffs erupted, and soon they were all debating the usefulness of such strategies. Humans really could get used to anything, and the outbreak and infected proved that. As disastrous and horrific as those fateful events were all those years ago, they now were a part of reality, and were talked about casually. It was pointless to not acknowledge it, so why bother?

The topic was still unpleasant though, and they naturally pivoted to something else- Ellie's friends. 

“You will come for breakfast though, won't you?” Joel asked. Ellie was in the doorway, putting her shoes on. 

“Like a late breakfast.” She threw her coat on. “It's rare we get a full day to just hang and do nothing, you know?” Ellie said. 

Joel nodded. “Wish I could have gotten you all a video game to play. I'll find a working console one day, you'll see.” 

“Next Christmas,” Ellie said. Joel's breath caught in his throat, and he fought a tear or two. A man like him didn't deserve anything, not even company, not after what he had done. And yet here she was, promising to be with him next year. 

“Alright then,” Joel finally choked out, and gave her a nod. He didn't want to keep her. But Ellie, keen as she was, hugged him again, thanking him for his gift. “Get some sleep, you look tired,” she said. 

He really wasn't, but he promised her he would. Now that she was taller, it was easier to hug her, but much more difficult to pick her up. Something for something. 

Once Ellie was out the door, Joel let out a shaky sigh, a sigh that contained his all his happiness, concerns and anxieties bundled up together. He ran his hand down his face, stopping to stroke his graying beard. No need to get all emotional, not on Christmas.. He turned around and started heading towards the kitchen- he could help Maria with something- but there was a knock on the door.

“Watcha forget- oh.” Joel swung the door open, only to be met with none other than Diane. 

“I figured you would be here,” she said. “I hope I'm not interrupting, but I just noticed Ellie leaving….” she trailed off. A gust of wind caught her thick brown hair, billowing it about her face and mixing with the falling snow. She hurriedly gathered the strands out of her eyes, perhaps slightly embarrassed. 

“No I, well, we just finished and are cleaning up. Do you need help with something? Is the shed holding?” Joel asked. He took pride in his work, but there was only so much he could do with a lack of good varnish and awkwardly cut lumber. 

“No no, it is, that's not why I came - here you go.” She thrust out her hand, holding a wrapped gift. “I know we had our Secret Santa this morning, but you know, I wanted to give you something extra. And it's kind of awkward to do it in front of other people.”

Joel accepted the present, noting that it was weighty, and seemed to have a grainy texture. Perhaps some kind of tea? “Diane, first off, come inside out of the cold, and second, you really didn't need to, I-”

She held up her hand. “Joel, come on. You do more than most around here, and you deserve something extra.”

He smiled awkwardly. “If you insist.” He moved out of the doorway to let her in, but Diane shook her head and patted her holster. 

“I volunteered to do a small patrol in the area. You know, just for our peace of mind. I'm heading out right now,” she said. 

“You all be careful there, it's not like you have good visibility. You know, maybe I should tag-”

Diane laughed. “Joel, rest.” She began to walk away. “You get inside and enjoy that gift. Oh and also you got a couple more people looking for you, just so you know. They also want to give you something.”

He watched as she walked away, her hips slightly swaying. 

“Why are people bothering me with gifts?” he mumbled to himself, walking back inside and shutting the door behind him. All he ever did was help folks out, and build things so he wouldn't have to think about Sarah, or Ellie, or how miserable he sometimes felt. Even so, he was grateful, and it was nice to see that his self-imposed therapy was of some benefit to others. 

He looked around. It seemed that neither Tommy or Maria had heard the interaction. In fact, they didn't seem to be in the kitchen anymore. He'd find them in a moment, as curiosity was getting the better of him. Diane's patrols took her to unusual places, so he was guessing that this was some kind of drink that had been well-preserved. Hell, he once got his hands on an instant sweet tea that he and Ellie drank through embarrassingly fast.

However, it was neither of those things. As Joel pulled back the brown wrapping, his expression instantly dropped as he breathed out a ‘what the hell’. Staring at him was the logo of the green mermaid, smiling at him with her knowing expression.

Joel brought the packet to his nose and inhaled. The aroma was still there. How, he did not know. He willed himself to calm down and read the actual label. It was indeed a Starbucks instant coffee, some kind of Italian Roast. If his memory was correct, it wasn't a retail product; the coffee lacked its fanciful tin packaging, and the plain silver bag simply had the logo, company name, and a brief description of the coffee. This meant Diane must have found it in the back of some storage room, somehow untouched and unspoiled for decades. 

His attention was diverted when he heard a series of creaks come from above him, right where the bedroom was. There was a pause, and then the creaks started up again.

He should head out. 

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Joel woke up early, despite having gone to sleep a mere few hours before. The coffee was on his nightstand, unopened- the mermaid was still looking at him.

He had to head out to Tommy's for breakfast, but before he could go, he faced a dilemma. Should he open the coffee and drink it, or should he take it back to Diane and protest that it was far too valuable to just be gifted?

Granted, he had gained some favor with the residents of Jackson, all because he was trying to do decent by them. When he walked back to his house in the snowy night, a couple other people stopped him, gifting him a variety of things that he hadn't even opened yet. And when he got to his front door, there were a couple more presents on his porch.

Apart from all the odd jobs he took up, he also put in a lot of effort into helping fix the town up. Jackson had a couple of good contractors, but none of them knew wood as well as he did. He had quickly taken upon himself to teach them, and assist in fixing some places that were truly worse for wear. That, combined with his relative fearlessness when patrolling, willingness to help with anything, and friendliness towards kids made him apparently a likable person. 

Screw it. That coffee deserved to be drunk. He'd somehow repay Diane later. 

The water could not heat up quick enough, and after what felt like an hour, he slowly poured the hot water over two teaspoons of coffee. The smell hit his nose with a force, and he bowed over the chipped mug, delighting in the aroma.

He patiently waited, and then took a sip, and then another. It tasted like heaven. There was an ever so slight hint of staleness, but anything negative that could be said was overcrowded by the bitter, tangy taste of the coffee. Joel was sure he'd start crying. 

The drink was gone in seconds, and he fought to not make another cup. Instead, he decided it was best he'd shower and then head off for breakfast. And after that, he had to stop by Diane's, and politely ask her what in the hell was she thinking. 

Still, he wasn't giving it back. Hell, he’d build her ten more sheds if he had to.

The snow had stopped falling, and the air was crisp and fresh. Silence reigned, everyone no doubt sleeping off all their partying and hangovers. He kicked up a little bit of snow as he trudged toward Tommy's, stopping in his tracks when he realized he'd be far too early. Normally, Maria would be up, but after what he heard last night, the thought of accidentally intruding filled him with mild terror.

A detour was necessary. Perhaps there would be something interesting to report at the front gate, and if there wasn't he could go check on the horses. 

Joel whistled, and gave a short wave. “Hi there Pete. Gwen. Merry Christmas.” The two shivering figures at the top of the gate waved back at him. “Take it that your being cold means you didn't do any running around.”

“Which is both good and bad,” Gwen said. She and her husband had volunteered to take the first holiday night shift, something that many of the residents were grateful for. No one liked being stuck outside in winter.

“So nothing then?” Joel asked.

Pete shook his head. “We heard strange grunting slash screaming noises, but we figured it was a moose or something. Nothin’ appeared after that.”

Huh. As news went it was fairly unremarkable, but Joel still decided to take a mental note of the piece of information. 

Bidding the couple farewell, he marched off to the stables, his boots kicking up the above ankle-height snow. The horses looked happy- not that they ever weren't. Those animals meant everything to the town, and it was always an awful day when one of them died. There was even a small memorial outside the stable dedicated to the horses that lost their lives either helping their owners flee from infected, or from succumbing to illnesses or injuries.

“There, there,” he cooed at Shimmer. She was a fine horse, reliable and calm. Joel ran his fingers through her soft mane, and she snorted in return. 

“I adore that horse, she's such a good girl,” a voice called out behind him. It was Diane. 

“Woman, I have to talk to you,” Joel announced, bypassing any pleasantries, much to Diane's amusement. 

“You want to give me the coffee back?” she guessed, almost laughing by now. She was holding her thick corduroy jacket shut, as if it weren't doing a good enough job of keeping the cold out.  

“No, it's too late for that,” Joel admitted somewhat sheepishly.  “Still, ah…” he trailed off, and he threw up his hands. “That's far too valuable to be just giving around like that. Unless-” he took a step closer and furrowed his eyebrows. He could now feel her warm breath against his cheeks. “-you want something in return.”

Diane let out an exasperated sigh. “Joel, I don't want anything. You've done so much already.”

“All I did was build you a shed. And a bench.”

She wouldn't accept his protests. “You also stayed with my nephew for two days while I was out patrolling, and you shot an infected just as he was closing in on me.”

“Well the kid didn't want to be alone, and I happened to be on bed rest anyway, and that infected was a mile away, no doubt the rest of the party would have shot it full of holes before it got any closer.” Joel rattled off his excuses rapidly. Nothing he was doing was unusual, he was just doing his part for the town.

“Don't pretend like you don't remember Shawn's name Joel.” She shook her head. “He visits you every other week so you can teach him woodworking.”

“I do that for anyone who….” The conversation was starting to feel stale, and dumb. And he was sounding ungrateful. “Sorry, I just, I don't get presents very often. This is still a bit new to me. You usually don't get anything selflessly, you know?”

She hemmed and hawed. “In the past, sure. But Jackson is a nice place, and people here actually like each other.” The smile she gave him was reassuring and kind.

Joel coughed awkwardly, and his eyes shifted to one of the horses staring at him. That was Barnaby, a horse that Tommy said existed ‘in a perpetual state of annoyance’. Well, it certainly seemed annoyed at something, but at what, he had no idea.

Barnaby neighed, and Diane giggled. “He wants to be let out.” She approached the horse, patting it on its side. It still did not break its stare.

“I better go.” Joel waved towards the entrance. “Family will be waiting for me. And I think Barnaby here wants to eat me.”

“He better not,” Diane said, giving the horse another pat. This time it acknowledged her, turning to nudge at her shoulder. “See you around Joel.”

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

“I am just saying Tommy, that's a far too generous of a gift to be giving to someone willy nilly.”

“And I am saying Joel, you underestimate how much some people like you.” Tommy shot him a knowing look, but Joel pretended to ignore it.

He could hear Ellie chattering away enthusiastically, telling Maria all about her evening with her friends. At least she was finding herself in Jackson quite nicely. Then again, she was much younger than he was, and dare he say, more friendly.

Tommy got his attention again. “Joel, you quit trying to act like you don't know what I'm trying to imply.”

“Isn't it always like that? Couples insistin'-” he let the word hang. “-insistin’ that the single one gets together with someone, anyone.”

Tommy threw up his hands in frustration. “Not anyone, Diane-”

“Is too young, and she probably just likes me as a friend.”

Tommy furrowed his brow. “She's not that young.”

“Well then how old is she?” Joel asked. “I figured mid 30’s, right?”

“I guess you'd have to ask,” Tommy said nonchalantly, as if that question alone wouldn't get his head bitten off.

“I am not crazy, Tommy, and also-”

“Hey Joel, I have a question!” It was Ellie, who had come in happily, putting a plate full of honey bread down in front of him. Joel locked his eyes with the bright brown wonder immediately, knowing that once the butter came out, he'd clear that plate in approximately five minutes.

“I'm listening,” he said, his eyes still on the steaming bread.

“So I told Jesse about the uh, console things, and he said that he heard that a day away there was a place that might have them.”

Joel's concentration snapped back into reality. “What do you mean might? I think it would have been looted, Ellie.” Tommy was acknowledging that beside him, nodding along. 

Ellie sat down on the nearby armchair, crossing her legs on the cushion and resting her chin on her hands. “See but…..there's a lot of suspected infected underground, so…”

“Oh well then that's out of the question,” Joel said, sharply. 

“It would be, but what if you stick to the roofs and don't fall down-”

“Ellie, no.” This time it was Tommy that softly protested, something Joel was grateful for. “Far too dangerous, and not worth it.”

Ellie let out a frustrated sigh. “Alright but can you at least talk to Diane?”

After a moment, Joel realized Ellie was asking him. “Why, why would I talk to her?”

“Cause she has been in that area, and she knows places. And you know her pretty well, right? You've patrolled together.”

Joel didn't catch the sly look Ellie shot Tommy. 

“W-well, yeah,” Joel stammered out, “I suppose I can ask her, but I don't promise anything.”

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

It was New Year's, and once again, everyone was dead asleep in the early morning hours. But not Joel. He stared at his cup of coffee, waiting for it to cool down to a tolerable temperature. He had first told himself that he would have only one cup every two weeks, but so far he'd had five in the space of a week. 

He wrapped a blanket around himself, unwilling to go looking for a sweater, and quietly walked up to his woodworking room, mug still in hand. Ellie was fast asleep in the living room, having half-drunkenly walked through the front door before crashing on the sofa in front of the fireplace.

Well at least she was having fun. Here he barely had a drink with Tommy and Maria before deciding he wanted to go to bed.

The room was shrouded in darkness. Joel threw the curtains open, but was disappointed to see that it did little to light up the room. Despite it being already dawn, the sun could barely break through the endlessly falling snow.

Well, the lamp on the desk should do. It gave enough light to work without it being too glaring. With a grunt, Joel picked up his latest project- a dollhouse. Or specifically, the rafters for a dollhouse. A couple just had two twin girls, and they commissioned a big dollhouse from him. Joel knew it was about to be one of his best projects yet; the house would have four stories, would be on hinges so it could be opened and closed, and would even have a miniature playground set. It went without saying that it would be fully furnished. The only thing that would be perhaps unusual is that there wouldn't be any dolls per se, but characters from Peter Rabbit. The rabbits wouldn't be a bigger problem, but he hoped he'd manage to carve a decent frog.

Joel blinked once, then twice. His eyes didn't want to focus at first. There was no doubt that soon he'd have to get some reading glasses, as much as he didn't want to. He never imagined he'd live past fifty much less thrive at this age. He liked to think that there was no point in dwelling on the past, but with the past being what it was, it was a miracle he somewhat managed to let a part of it go, even if more than anything it was for Ellie and Tommy's sake. 

Then again, he was haunted. The ghost was now smaller, less aggressive, and wasn't ordering him to kill himself or kill others without hesitation. Yet while the need for exuberant violence was partially gone, his restlessness was not. The ghost demanded he do something, threatening it would come back tenfold if he did not busy himself with whatever it deemed worthwhile. It was yet another reason why whatever he could do for the residents of Jackson, he did, his safety coming at a second or third place. 

Diane thought he had readily put himself in harm's way to save her; the reality was that he simply still didn't care about himself. Especially now that Ellie was alright, and would be taken care of. Granted, he had no idea what the future would bring. But if something cataclysmic would happen yet again, he hoped he'd be long dead before he had to see of any of that.

His chaotic thoughts went back to Diane. Right. He still hadn’t asked her about the alleged secret game console location. Hell, he had barely talked to her. Maybe he should. Maybe today-

Whistles and bells blasted through the quiet winter air, furiously assaulting his ears. Fuck, was all Joel breathed before rushing out the door. His jacket and gun somehow made their way into his hands just as he got to the front door.

“Joel wait!” Ellie called out, her hangover having seemingly disappeared.

“Stay here, do not move, I will see what's happening!”

“But-”

Joel threw the door open and ran as fast as he could, joining the groups of people coming from other houses. 

“Hell of a fucking way to start New Years!” Tommy yelled over the chaos. He gestured Joel to come up to the top of the gate, but before he could even get there, he could already hear what the problem was. 

“Hordes!” Someone yelled, and they were right. A big ass horde of infected was heading their way, one of the biggest they've had yet. 

“Why the fuck are they coming?” Joel yelled.

“I'm gonna assume they're starving, and we just may be the freshest meat in the area!” Tommy shouted back.

“God fucking damn it.” The expletive was more out of frustration than fear. The town was prepared, but it would be a long ass-day, and maybe even night, and there was a chance they might lose someone. To add to the mess, evacuation plans would have to be put into place, and all this shit in near-dark, with limited visibility, and with snow still piling up. At least it was slowing the infected down somewhat.

Better fucking get to it then.

Joel jumped down and joined the group of people spreading off to the corners of Jackson. Everyone had their assignments, everyone knew where to go.

The problem was that some didn't want to.

“Joel, Joel, why aren't we going to the front-” Ellie appeared out of nowhere, dressed, and still surprisingly not hungover. Youth was a miraculous thing.

“Because, Ellie,” Joel shouted, “We gotta check the back and the outer walls and why the hell aren't you going underground?” He and a handful of now-armed residents were running, and Ellie was somehow keeping up with them.

“Joel you know I am a good shot and that even if you send me to the bunkers with the rest of the kids and all the old people, I'll still come back. So either I'm with you, or-”

“Fine!” He gave in, knowing full well that if Ellie wasn't with him, she'd go off with Jesse or Dina, and god help those kids but he was concerned about their survival instincts sometimes. “Same as always, stay on me, do not leave my side!”

“Yeah yeah!” 

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

The danger was over in the afternoon, but the threat was still present. The infected bodies surrounded Jackson- the horde had spread out all around the walls, unable to break them down, but nonetheless relentlessly pounding against them, screeching and screaming until they were shot down. That was easy, but they had wasted ammo, time, and resources on the whole ordeal. And now they had to clean it up.

“We have to figure out if there are any more headed this way,” Joel said to no one in particular. He, along with a good number of Jackson residents were in the main square, huddled around a huge bonfire. It was already dark, and the mere thought of having to traipse through the snow and clean up all the blood and guts and drag the bodies away to burn was exhausting.

“We do, we do…..” Someone next to him mumbled. It was Casey, one of the school teachers. “I can start by volunteering.”

That caused a ripple effect, and soon, there were two dozen residents ready to take care of the infected. Joel of course volunteered, but was fairly quickly turned down. “You're obviously tired, go take a nap. I know you got up early.” Ellie was tugging on his jacket sleeve and pulling him towards the house.

“Everyone's tired Ellie-”

“Yeah but you're more tired, and you’re old.” She grinned, ignoring Joel’s scowl. “Besides, you're probably going to go patrol, aren't you?”

That was true- he was. “Alright, I'll go get a game plan together with Tommy and the others, you be careful out there.” He knew that out of everyone, Ellie was probably the safest.

A nap seemed inviting, but as he walked to his house, he couldn't help but wonder if he shouldn't go see Tommy right away; after the last infected was shot, his brother had sequestered himself in his house with a whole bunch of residents, no doubt asking for advice on what to do.

His hunch to go see him was right; there was a heated discussion going on that could be heard from outside the door. Knocking would be pointless, so he helped himself inside, only to be met with a small crowd of people spilling out of the living room and into the kitchen, hallway, and even stairs.

Overlapping voices could be heard, each offering arguments, counterarguments, and even advice. Joel caught Tommy hunched over the living room table- he looked exhausted, as did Maria. 

“We don't know if there are more-”

“No fucking way there's more we shot down hundreds over the past months-”

“Yeah but apparently these fuckers can migrate so-”

“We may have just been in their way.”

The voice that uttered the last sentence was calm and much more quiet, but everyone stopped to listen. It was one of the microbiologists, an older woman, Noel, who had been with the community for a good while. “I think they were headed to lower ground looking for warmth.”

It was impressive that Noel's team had managed to come to certain conclusions regarding the infected, conclusions which they all knew may mean life and death. One thing the scientists recently discovered was that some infected displayed attraction to warmth, any kind of warmth. That was worrisome, putting it mildly.

“Please don't tell me they could sense us,” Tommy groaned.

“There's no way to tell, but if it was warmth, I don't think they would come in such large numbers from so far.” She took off her glasses and tried to wipe the smudges off them, to no avail.

“You will have some samples to look at,” Joel said, nodding at Noel, and she gave him a slight smile. After they got on better terms, one of Ellie's demands was that he would not give up on finding a cure, and that demand stretched to Tommy once he was looped in. That included setting up a proper science division, dedicated to studying the infected. Not only that, they made sure the small team of three got samples, equipment, and information. One day, they'd also let them know that Ellie was immune- but not yet.

After some more heated discussion, everyone filtered out of Tommy's house. They finally came to an agreement: they’d stick to a basic recon mission, and then work from there. As usual, Joel volunteered, and Tommy, asshole he was, insisted that Diane go as well.

“The hell you doing?” Joel asked once he was alone with his brother. 

“Organizing a good team to go with you?” Tommy asked, his tone unusually high. 

“Tommy….” 

“What?”

“This ain't a social trip.”

“Well I don't know how else to get you to hang around a woman interested in you,” Tommy said. He pointed at him. “I know you didn’t talk to her yet.”

“I….” Joel sighed. He didn't have the strength to argue. Nor did he necessarily want to. “It's just that she's younger than me, by a good decade or more.”

“And I have never heard a man complain about that before,” Maria said, appearing with what was undoubtedly a bottle of moonshine. She offered Joel a drink, but he declined. Tommy took it instead. 

“I mean listen,” Tommy said, after taking a sip. “I won't insist, you don't have to go-”

“No, I'll go.” Joel inhaled sharply. “I’ll go.”

[awrestlinggirlwholoves80sbands]

Halloween Headcanons 2023: Mutant!Maneskin Au: Victoria De Angelis as Rogue

A/N: This is heavly inspired by the X-men saga with some of my original twists, so it will both be very similar but also different from the Marvel version. Click here to check out the other mooboards: Damiano, Ethan, Thomas.

 -Victoria is born in Denmark from an Italian dad and a Danish mom, who is unfortunately sick and dies when Vic is 15, leaving her the number of an Italian friend of hers to call  in case of emergency. 

- A couple of weeks later, while she is kissing her current boyfriend, she feels electricity running through her, an insatiable hunger takes over while the boy becomes paler and paler, eventually dropping to the floor dead.

- Scared to death, she starts running towards her house and doesn't think twice about calling her mom's friend and packing her bags, because it was a matter of time before they would start to target her family. She doesn’t know her but she trusted her mother and she knows she has to leave the country.

-" I'll come pick you up at the Fiumicino airport, okay? My name is Maria."

- Once landed in Italy, Victoria discovers that Maria also had a power, controlling the light, and a son named Damiano who also seems to not be like others.

- The woman explains to her that those powers are a genetic mutation, there is nothing wrong with it and that she works in a special school for people like her, where she would learn to control and use her power.

- "You don't have to be afraid to be a freak, we all are at that school." Damiano says during her first day of school. "I still don't know what's your power." She asked. "You'll see."

-Victoria can absorb energies, memories, knowledge, talents, personality, and physical abilities through physical contact of her skin with the skin of the other person.-

-In the case of a mutant she can also absorb their powers until she interrupts the contact. It’s not clear if she can permanently absorb the power by killing the other mutant. 

- Slowly the school becomes her second home, while her friendship with Damiano gets tighter. He would always look after her while she would help him with school and learning English better, they even share a love for music and want to start a band in the future. Maria even gifts her a bass for her birthday.

- She also gets to know Ethan and Thomas, Damiano’s other friends, even if they don’t spend much time with her. The three of them seem to have a secret but Vic isn’t interested in finding it out.

- She has to wear gloves but quickly finds them incredibly fashionable, she starts to sew them and match her outfits which makes her quite the talk of the school. All the girls start to be less intimidated by her and she becomes the official makeup artist of the school, making few girls fall for her.

- Slowly a dark patch of hair starts to grow over her blonde one, dye doesn’t seem able to cover it so eventually Vic just accepts it as a new part of her.

- She gains the nickname “Kiss of death” due to her powers, however it is incredibly useful whenever someone tries to approach her against her will, even if Damiano’s burning gaze is usually enough to keep any unwanted person at bay.

- Sometimes Victoria almost forgets how dangerous she can be until someone didn't show interest in her or tried to gently touch her, in that case the sadness would come back. In moments like this she starts to miss her mother and the rest of her family even more, finding herself to wish to never have received those powers during her weakest moments.

-Beside gloves she also starts to train to channel her power to absorb a specific amount of energy, even if the downside is that the other’s personality or memories will linger in her for a while. 

- Damiano is in charge of training her during the holidays to make her ready to join her first mission, however they end up waiting for someone in front of a garage.

-" What's going on, Dam?" " I think we are ready to tell you our secret." “ Who’s we and what secret?” “ You already know them but you don’t know that we want to form a band and you’ll be our bassist.”

- That was the day Victoria, Damiano, Thomas and Ethan played for the first time together.

[problematic-yuri-poll]

Problematic Femslash Ship Tournament - Round 1

Shion Sonozaki x Mion Sonozaki (Higurashi When They Cry Franchise) VS. Ange Ushiromiya x Maria Ushiromiya (Umineko When They Cry)

Info and propaganda under cut! This will not be spoiler-free.

Problematic elements for Shion x Mion:

Incest [twincest], torture

Problematic elements for Ange x Maria:

Incest [cousin x cousin], [double] age gap (ange is younger than maria, but the older ange travels back from the future)

--

Propaganda for Shion x Mion:

You have to love twin sisters that switch places and also try to kill each other and have built up resentment towards the system they're in

Propaganda for Ange x Maria:

Ange and Maria are super adorable together, Ange is only able to cope with her bullying and lack of friends at school through Maria and her magic and her life is dull and meaningless without Maria. Also they are cute together.

[ushiromiyacestcentral]

I am normal about mariange Also me:

[despair-edits]

Can we get an inbox check?

hello! here's a comprehensive list of all the requests we currently have in our inbox, sorted by which mod has claimed them! (under the cut because it's a bit long)

note: there's a pluralkit template for the joker currently in the queue, hence why it isn't here. also, mod korekiyo and mod chiaki don't have any claimed requests at the moment, so they aren't here for that reason.

- Mod Peko

MOD MONACA

Could I request pastel yanderecore Yoisaki Kanade (project sekai) icons? Could I also have headers with a Yandere Kanade and her transmasc darling Mafuyu with a darker color scheme?

MOD NAGITO

May I request pronoun suggestions for a Peridot (Steven Universe) with technology and gardening themes? Thank you! :3 💚

May I have a moodboard for a Mettaton EX who may potentially be a fictive? Themes of wanting to rebuild oneself, top/plastic surgery, feeling uncomfortable in one's body, and the general vibe of Jinkx Monsoon's cover of Creep? Much love 💖💖💖

could I request a pluralkit template themed around space and music, if possible?

MOD PEKO

Would it be possible to get some lovecore themed icons of Iris Wilson from The Great Ace Attorney?

Can I have a Junko stimboard with fashion stims /nf

UNCLAIMED (doesn't necessairly mean that they'll get done slower)

Can I have a Rika furude ( higuraahi) x Maria ushiromiya ( Umineko) Moodboard with themes of comfort hood Maria’s plushie Sakutarou cake shrines embracing each other and deep intimacy because both of them are stuck in a loop?

Can I have a Gou/Sotsu arc Satoko Hojo ( Higurashi) x Ange ushiromiya moodboard ( Umineko) with themes of letters traps playing along with pranks childhood romance being a carrie-esque prom Queen complete with murder and being mutual yanderes for each other?

Can I have an Marige ( Maria x ange both from Umineko) Moodboard with an theme of Hope and optimism for one’s future?

Could I possibly request some glitchcore icons of Zero from the Megaman series?

hi hi we'd love a doodle of Zero from Drakengard 3 and W from Arknights doing... something gay xD zero tends to be a bit of a tsundere and I love annoying her /affectionate -W

A hero name for Jordan Li (Gen V) themed around shapeshifting, super strength, heightened agility, and maybe tie in the energy blasts, but most the syrength and shifting.

could i get some ishimondo lockscreens??? for iphone 11. thank u!!! so happy to see a dr themed edit blog!

Hello, may I have a Mikan x Ryota lovecore moodboard with pinks, purples, oranges, and themes of anime, sanrio, healing trauma, halloween, cats, rabbits and candy if it's okay

if yours isn't here, feel free to request again!

[tournament-of-x]

The Tournament of X

Contestants Index: M

Mad Jim Jaspers

Madelyne Pryor

Maggie Braddock

Maggott

Magik

Magma

Magneto

Malice

Manifold

Manuel de la Rocha

Maria Callasantos

Marie-Ange Colbert

Marinette

Marius St. Croix

Mark Sheppard

Marrow

Martha Johannson

Marvel Girl

Mary Walker

Masque

Mastermind

Maverick

Melody Guthrie

Melter

Megan Gwynn

Meggan Braddock

Mentallo

Mercury

Mesmero

Micromax

Mikhail Rasputin

Mimic

Mirage

Mister Sinister

Moira MacTaggert

Molly Hayes

Monarch

Mondo

Monet St. Croix

Morgan Red

Morph (Benjamin Deeds)

Morph (Kevin Sidney)

Mortimer Toynbee

Mr. Immortal

Mr. M

Multiple Man

Mystique

[smilingoctopus]

Umineko Chapter 6 Thoughts

Okay so I've started writing this before the tea parties but will have completed them before I post this, spoilers ahead!

Okay, so I think that reveal at the end of there being less that 17 humans fits with my theory about furniture not counting towards the limit of the number of humans. This is also reflected in the not having a full human soul mentioned by the two demons of love in the duels. Though it also means reducing the number of potential person X's we can add, though I believe there to be only 1, Beatrice the human.

Though I think more significantly this is also possibly hinting that some of the people we see may not exist in a manner similar to Kinzo. I'm not quite sure how this works as we've seen everyone interacting with each other to my knowledge, so I don't think this will work quite in the same manner as Kinzo. It's either one that is shared upon by all present, or one the others willingly participate in for the sake of another member of the family.

My immediate thought for potential candidates here would be Maria, or one of Kanon and Shannon. I could see them maintaining the illusion of someone's lost child or sibling. That said if that were the case I feel like Battler would have caught on earlier than he did if that were the case as he would presumably be aware that one of the people wasn't really there.

So that leads back to the furniture not being or at least not being counted as human. This could be delusion similar to the battles with the seven sisters of purgatory etc. or it could simply be both Battler and Beatrice now consider Kanon, Shannon, and Genji as not human. I'm not sure which of these two are correct, it's possible also that Kanon, Shannon, and Genji are more conceptual. We have had multiple times now the story of a servant falling down the stairs near the portrait and being injured. They're then mentioned kind of vaguely as to what happens to them after this. I suspect it may be that it was Shannon that fell, and potentially died. Then for the sake of Kanon the illusion of Shannon being well is maintained? I'm not wholly convinced but the story feels relevant to some clue.

I feel like we may see the number of humans on the island drop slightly further if the furniture doesn't count. Though if they do I'd expect for it to stay the same and we'll see someone be revealed to not exist on Rokkenjima. That should give us a hint as to which of these two might be correct, though it may easily be some other thing, like two illusory people and one person X.

I also realised with Ange's reappearance and the mention of Battler's birth previously I might not have actually written my theory on this. I believe that Battler may be Kyrie's legitimate son, swapped for the still birth that his mother had. Battler has the same hair colour as Ange and there are mentions of them getting on well as a family. I'm not sure how this ties in though, but this again, if correct feels like a piece of the puzzle.

Also with the Chiester sisters, I suspect I was wrong previously as the descriptions of the newer ones during the wedding scene all fit descriptions of guns. This might be that the number designation of them refers to the numbers at the end of a gun name. I believe there is a Chesterfield 410 rifle, matching 410, though my gun knowledge is limited and I don't want to spend too long on this theory, I suspect the others line up with other guns. I suspect, as we've got four shown Chiester sisters (one appears dead however), that may mean these are the guns from Kinzo's collection, meaning some of the murders were with guns. While it technically would fit with some of the half destroyed faces, it feels odd that it would always be half a face destroyed. They wouldn't account for the necks sliced open though, or Erika's beheadings.

Then we have Featherine appearing as part of the storytelling. She shares an appearance with Eua, and given what we know of Eua from Higurashi, and what Bernkastel has said about her, I'm expecting significantly more cruelty than we've seen so far. It sounds like the next game is the same gameboard but with Bernkastel running it for Featherine, so I guess we'll see.

I can say I am hoping that was the last we see of Erika (seems to be supported by reading her executed state summary), the other witches are cruel, but that appears to be as a result of their own previous pain and millennia for that cruelty to be fostered in. Erika was cruel as a human being, we do see some of her painful memories, and I do pity her for that, but her cruelty seemed disproportionate. In particular the scene with Maria where she showed quite a bit of cruelty towards her, unnecessarily destroying illusions not exactly relevant to the game. Her catchphrase was also kind of annoying but did get across her personality so I can let that go.

What else do we have going on this time, ah yes the reborn Beatrice. Now I'm not entirely certain on this, but it feels like either the younger sister Beatrice is a separate incarnation with separate goals to the first one we meet, or we have either some embellished storytelling or potentially some form of time loop. If we assume they are the same Beatrice, that means at some point she travels back to wait for Battler's arrival on Rokkenjima for game 1. We'd then need to question how or why she might do that, I feel the how is quite easy, we know of two beings with similar power, Featherine/Eua and Hanyuu. How Beatrice might have them do this I don't know, similarly the why I can only hazard a guess at something happening to Battler and she goes back to begin anew, possibly trying to hint at something he can use to break the loop? That might work for a finale, as it is and from Ange's perspective it sounds like only Eva leaves the island, so it seems like some drastic change is needed to change that.

We do get a scene with Battler's description of the kind of relationship he'd like, is it possible that this was heard by some young servant who decided to become Beatrice? Maybe the servant that had a fall, they don't seem to be present so it might be a possibility. It has been explained that the culprit seemed to know their way around the place, so maybe this makes sense for a human Beatrice's origins?

The spirit mirror also appears to hold some significance, it's appeared a few times as a way to ward Beatrice off. While I'd initially written it off as embellishment, as those using it seem to have always died anyway. It appears to be mentioned in the tips section, so it is likely relevant, though that may be relating to the cleaning of the mirror or the ceremony held with the Nijima Fishery Cooperative.

I've also got a few random semi-baseless theories, they're a bit nascent and lacking detail so I'm just going to list them for my own fun later on in seeing how far off I was.

I think we might actually have half the number of people here, a one winged eagle wouldn't fly very far so maybe each person has their own illusion containing their other wing. That of course would only be relevant for those with the crest on their clothing.

The seven stakes of purgatory are likely initially kept in Kinzo's room as occult artifacts. This makes me think the culprit is either someone with access to that room, or early on makes their way into that room through some method.

Eva's survival (presumably alone in the second case) twice indicates something is happening on Rokkenjima that always ends with a similar result. This probably means that, similar to Higurashi, it is the result of someone's strong will. Now I'm unsure if that's the strong pull of greed with the gold being found and a different culprit each time, or if we've been shown clues leading to different culprits when we actually have the same each time. I'm not necessarily convinced that this is Eva committing these crimes each time.

I'm still very sold on Maria being the key piece other than Battler here, mostly off the crown decoration, but also we've been shown a significant amount of Maria's backstory through Ange. We've not had similar amounts for any of the other characters. Now I don't think Maria could commit all of these murders so I think we've got another culprit to find, it's fairly easy to suspect a human Beatrice, which would also fit with Maria receiving things from her. I think this only holds with the furniture not counting as human, however I still don't have anything to reconcile this with the end of Chapter 4, where Battler is alone, and Beatrice is about to kill him. This makes me go back to Beatrice being some form of concept, though we don't have the definition of alone, I assume it includes excluding other people from the island.

Well I guess more will be shown in the next chapter, hopefully we'll get things starting to fall into place and see what if any of this was close to the truth.

[saturnehq]

@/astarvingartist ⁱˢ ᵗʸᵖⁱⁿᵍ··· ꒱ ⇢ mwf? x

jennie kim, hirai momo, ange jose, manon bannerman, cydney christine, glowprincess, lalatheislandgal, monet mcmichael, bella hadid, cierra ramirez, lena helena busch, zahara davis, lizeth selene, michelle domingos, fiona barron, park chaeyoung, iffat.marah, eyesrodgers, vinetrria, softest.hard, madisonmbt, lalisa manoban, matcha_cha, bbyambi, dasilvadakid, bella hadid tarayummy, ashley moore, kiana lede, lame.cobain, naressa valdez, spanishcvndy, emely.almonte, maria beltre, zion moreno, amanda diaz, queenpokoo, juliananalu!