#SAIL executive development

[townpostin]

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[otaku553]

What did you think of Sabo when you first saw him (both as a kid and as an adult)? I knew of aces existence before watching one piece and it was inconceivable to me that Luffy had a brother, so I was actually reluctant to believe that he also had a noble looking blond brother too lmao, I was in shock

This got long again so thoughts in the read more!

Ok so honestly!!! I didn’t know what to think of him at first! I thought it was very expected and slightly cliche at first to have him be a runaway noble because it was rather obvious just by the way he dressed! It wasn’t particularly compelling to me beyond a general feeling of found family. I didn’t really see a problem with him at that point, I just figured he’d be written off or dead because he’d never appeared up until that point

I think the flashback arc was very excellently executed though and I really did find sabo endearing by the end of it! It makes a lot of sense that sabo would have had to act as a voice of reason to Ace’s much more aggressive behavior. I also think that I didn’t like him at first because it felt like he’d run from a place of privilege because of selfish and self-serving reasons, without truly knowing why he hated nobles beyond the fact that they were using him. But he developed fascinatingly into someone who was actually well aware of the atrocities they committed and had a strong sense of moral justice despite whatever conditioning he must have received as a child, and that stuck with me a lot

I didn’t expect him to pop back up again but I will admit I got really excited! Especially because they kept teasing the revolutionary army as a key player before his appearance and having him meant a much more concrete tie to them. I also think it’s rather thematically appropriate to give him Ace’s fruit, especially in the context given afterwards. Sabo is such a fascinating character because his entire life has been ‘too little too late’. He couldn’t stop the gray terminal fire, he couldn’t set sail and become a pirate on his own, he couldn’t save ace, so what can he do besides making sure that ace is remembered, making sure that despite his past he is doing his best to undo the damage that nobles have done?

Sabo is such a great case study of guilt, in a way that is very different from ace. He fits into the three brothers perfectly precisely because of how he is born to a legacy he does not desire and what he decides to do with it.

[subbyp]

I have this idea for an AU wherein Sanji’s physical Germa modifications kick in during his time starving on the rock, and when he’s like 14 Judge finds out and decides to take him back by force, because if the physical modifications took then surely the mental ones will too and if not there’s always psychological conditioning like what he did to Reiju, right? So Germa rocks up to the Baratie, burns it to the waterline, slaughters the crew (almost) to a man, and drags Sanji back. they don’t realize that Zeff survives, and they probably wouldn’t care if they did. (more fool them)

the mental modifications never kick in, but Sanji learns to act like they do, developing this false persona as a vicious shallow hedonist. he also leans hardcore on his growing resemblance to Sora to get Judge to indulge his whims (no, there’s nothing actually sexual about it, but it is deeply uncomfortable and it’s supposed to be). this is because he’s waiting for a very specific kind of opportunity…..

five years later, the Straw Hat Pirates are in Loguetown, getting ready to scale Reverse Mountain when Luffy fucks up the storefront of a shabby little seafood shack off the main square where Roger was once executed and is enlisted into chore boy duty. he gets to talking about dreams and piracy and sailing with the owner.

“do you have any dreams?” he says, failing to mop the floor.

“I used to have a few,” says the owner.

“not anymore?” says Luffy.

“none of your business,” says the owner.

“you should be my cook!” says Luffy.

“not a chance in hell,” says the owner.

then the shit goes down that leads to Luffy being put up on the block and almost executed. when the Straw Hats flee to the Merry they find the owner standing there waiting for them with a book under his arm.

he explains that he can’t be their cook—he’s too old and too broken, he’s had enough of the Grand Line, and besides staying in Loguetown is the best shot he has at achieving his dream (“I knew you had a dream!” yells Luffy. everyone ignores this), but he’s got a cookbook and nutrition guide he’s been working on and the Straw Hats can have the first draft so they don’t totally die of scurvy and shit if they swear to do him one favor—to, if they ever, out there on the sea, meet a nineteen-year-old kid called Sanji, tell him that Red-Leg Zeff is alive.

“yeah! of course!” says Luffy. “if you tell me what your dream is.”

“to see him walk free,” says Zeff.

—

Zeff’s cookbook keeps the Straw Hats properly nourished. but they barely make it to Sabaody in canon, and here they have one less combatant, so Kuma decides to split the team at Thriller Bark, and instead of sending Zoro to Kuraigana, he sends his unconscious just-bore-Luffy’s-pain ass right onto the Germa 66 flagship.

Judge wants to vivisect Zoro to figure out how a regular human non-DF-user could be so freakshow strong and then turn his head in for the bounty, but Sanji recognizes him as one of the Straw Hats (and thus, one of the liberators of Alabasta) and improvs on the spot that he wants him as a swordsmanship coach (“after all, sir, you want me to improve my swordsmanship”) and, he heavily implies, bed-warmer. thus Zoro wakes up in a Germa 66 infirmary, wounds bandaged, swords gone, and explosive collar on his neck, as the third-born Prince of Germa demands to be allowed to see his new toy alone. (“yes, I’ll be careful with him. I don’t want to break him when I’ve just got him!”)

zoro, having deduced what sanji is alluding to, is about ready to kill him with his bare hands on the spot, but as soon as they’re alone in the room together sanji starts immediately and profusely apologizing for being such a creep. he says he’s not into men (“especially not unwilling ones”) but it was the only way he could think of to get them even occasional privacy, and btw he is probably going to have to claim that he’s doing some unsavory stuff or else Judge might possibly have Zoro killed, but he’ll never lay a hand on Zoro without his consent besides what is strictly necessary to fake it around the Vinsmokes—

at this point Zoro starts to wonder what the hell he’s going on about. Sanji explains the whole thing and says that he’s planning on somehow getting Zoro back to the Straw Hats as soon as he can, and in the meantime he’ll make sure Zoro gets food and medical care and that nobody sells off his swords or anything, but he needs Zoro to do something for him in return:

“I’m going to feed you every bit of knowledge I have about Germa 66, and when you leave here, you need to give that information to someone who can destroy us until not even memories remain.”

[pauking5]

Addicting Taste ~ Chapter 1 ~

Ongoing Series

Synopsis: Enishi Yukishiro was on a mission to execute his piece de la resistance. A plan to avenge his beloved sister. Until you showed up, rattling open the icy closed gates of his heart. Will you be a part of his downfall or will you try to save him?

Pairing: Enishi Yukishiro x fem reader oc

Genre: strangers to lovers, sunshine and grumpy, slow burn, a lot of fluff, occasional smut, angst by the bucket

Words: 6.7k +

A/N: I couldn’t hold back anymore and had to make a fic for Enishi. It won’t exactly follow the Rurouni Kenshin timeline for now but it will later develop into it. This is the first chapter in the series with more chapters coming. It is a reader insert as I couldn’t help but indulge myself in it completely. Powered by Mackenyu’s outstanding portrayal of Enishi’s character in Rurouni Kenshin: The Final, I hereby present you a story ripped from the figments of my mind. I hope you’ll love their story as much as I do. Enjoy lovelies, Paula.

Also thank you @eureka-its-zico for supporting me with this and getting me writing again 🫶

Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Bonus Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11

“Just how stupid are you?”

A loud smack echoed in the room upon connecting with his cheek, heavy rugged palm twisting his face to the side. He clicked his jaw menacingly, facing forward once more with another devilish smirk.

“You thought you could just get away with it?”

Another heavy punch collided with his face, this one making him drop to his knees. He might have been kneeling, completely at the mercy of someone with much more power in command, but this show of authority trying to assert him into submission did absolutely nothing for him.

Lest the displeasure of being Shanghai's commander in chief's unexpected catch of the night. Maybe even the catch of his whole career.

“You’re a fool.”

Heard that one before, he prepared to spit out like burning acid crawled out of his throat.

Just as the rims of his mouth opened to let the words out, he got cut off by an uppercut digging hard under his chin, throwing his body backwards. He tasted iron on his lips. The force of the blow made blood pool in his mouth surprisingly. He didn't think the old man capable of this much damage but as it turns out he had a thing for facial damage. A pleasure Enishi wanted so badly to return.

Spitting it out through clenched teeth at the side, staining the limestone carpet with crimson splotches to redecorate the man's office with a little color. He would've added other shades of red to the whole carpet, rounding it up on each and every shimmering golden seam until everyone in the room contributed. If only his hands were not bound behind his back, constricting most of his movement.

The man standing tall before him left his face full of cuts and bruises. But that was the least of Enishi’s worries right now.

Many months were spent tracking down the biggest shipment of weapons set to leave Shanghai for Kanagawa. Tonight, Enishi’s men were supposed to rob the storage by the docks completely dry before the ship set sail in the morning with empty cargo. But it turned out to be a harder task than it was intended to be.

He couldn't tell where it all went wrong.

Was it just bad luck? That would've been a first under the remarkable security he had around the area.

Was it a tip-off from the inside? Highly unlikely. If that was the case, he would've smelled the motherfucker who chirped before they even thought it possible to cross him.

Whatever it was, changed the course of the whole plan, rendering it nothing short of a total fail.

That fail was also what led to his current position - with his hands tied roughly behind his back, bloody with his patience running thinner with each breath, lying on the floor of the most secure precinct in Shanghai.

A few hours ago

“These dumplings are amazing,” you sighed happily, munching on three baozi dumplings at once.

The lady vendor grimaced at you. Well, less at you and more at your clear lack of manners since you were practically inhaling the soft dough before it even landed in the palm of your hands like a famished grizzly bear.

Leftover crumbs decorated the edges of your lips as you chomped down on the dumplings. You forgot all about etiquette when the food literally melted in your mouth. Heaven was definitely found in food and not in the afterlife and these little desserts were the very proof of it. Your stomach also agreed with that claim every time your mouth touched dumplings in any shape, form or filling.

Who could resist those plump, freshly made babies?

Not me. Ya'll stay safe though.

A little boy walked by with his mother when he caught sight of the dumpling cart. He ran to the cart gluing his face to the glass to watch the lady work the next batch. His breaths fogged up the glass as he gaped at the steaming dumplings in awe and adoration. But when he turned his head and saw the way you were devouring the small pastry like a goblin from the woods his face turned to pure disgust.

What do you want child, you muttered, cheeks filled with the new cherry filling you were trying out. He said nothing, continuing to stare you down as if you had some unresolved business with him.

You were getting annoyed by his staring, so you shot the little boy a slightly threatening look in hopes he would turn back to watch the magic dough rather than try to make enemies with you. Instead he started crying, running off in the direction he came from. You watched until he got tinier and tinier, disappearing somewhere in the depths of the street.

His mother watched the whole exchange from behind you. Upon meeting her burning gaze, she regarded you with a condescending look then followed after her child.

You turned back to your dumplings, chewing slowly in guilt. It wasn't your fault children had the temperament of the unpredictable weather forecast. The vendor lady did not seem to share your opinion, pinning you with an icy authoritative glare typical of her generation. The one that usually scared off the youngsters.

“Can you leave before you scare all my clients away?” she said, irritated with the fact that you’ve been hogging her cart for the past half an hour and you didn't look like you would be leaving anytime soon.

“Listen lady, I am your only client. Plus, I could buy your whole cart if I wanted to. Just let me enjoy these,” you said with your mouth full, reaching for another bag of dumplings on sale. She smacked your hand away, looking down at the bags you were already holding safely on your chest.

“I’ll be the one leaving then," she hissed as she started to put away the steaming buns away and gathered all her tools, folding the cart faster than you could catch up to her. "You might spoil my dough from raising if I stay here any longer,”

“Wait! You can’t just leave -"

By the time you yelled after trying to stop her from leaving with the heaven-sent goodies, she was already gone. Old ladies really are a different breed these days, you thought. Cooking, knitting and chit-chatting were activities that seemingly didn't provide them with enough soul sucking out of people to their heart's content.

Anywho, there went your only meal for the day. At least it was a nice filling one to last you some time and kick in some energy your body desperately needed. You looked down at your stomach with a sigh, patting in a comforting manner before you turned to go on your own way.

The crisp air of mid-October made its presence felt as an icy gust blew against the sleeves of your cotton dress making the material flutter and fill you up with cold air. Your attire was nothing short of inappropriate for the lingering cold season, but the leather bits, like the corset laced up over your chest or the pants under it, kept a fraction of warmth with you.

The chilly weather made it harder to do any jobs, take out hitlist services not requested as much in this period of time. Rage requests usually came with the hot scorching summer rather than the fall of the first autumnal fog. That meant you never knew where your next meal would be coming from most of the time, so you powered through with anything you could find. Though your money was slowly running on empty, you always made sure to keep some aside for your delicacy cravings.

Only mad people walked the streets of Shanghai, the city of all things food confectionery, without indulging in at least one treat from the vendors. Broke or not, you emptied your pockets here on good measure.

There was a downside to all good things in life.

The once bustling street, buzzing with chatter and sizzling pans where savory and sweet scents danced in the air, turned awfully quiet with nightfall. It was the norm in this part of the city. Vendors were quickly packed away and activity was slowly coming to a halt in the wake of the coming night. Any normal person in these parts would know that being on the streets when the last flicker of daylight disappears wasn’t safe in the slightest.

Who would want to be out in the dark with the Shanghai mafia having a full blown war with the commander in chief on the streets until the early hours of dawn? Definitely no one in all faculties of the mind or at least some.

Clutching the rest of your dumplings closer, you made your way down the narrow pathways circling the outskirts of the city. As you padded the cobblestone road, windows hatched closed, doors shut and all light dimmed to ward off danger. The people of Shanghai lived in fear of this war every night. You did too. But at least you had weapons and could defend yourself in case of anything.

The place you resided in for the time being was just a hop down from the city docks. It was a modest room at the top of an abandoned jewelry shop, furnished with a desk, a small wardrobe, and a corner to store the little belongings you carried around. It was not the comfiest nor the safest place in the world, but it provided a space to roll your futon for the night and that was as good as anything.

The bags in your hands shuffled with each step you took. You cast a look at the buns, the delicious smell still wafting up to your nose even as they were covered and tucked inside the paper. On impulse, you bought a bunch of different flavors with all kinds of fillings you haven’t tried before. Just thinking of taste testing all of them made your mouth water and your step quicken with happy strides.

Whilst getting lost in your pastry daydreams, you were shaken back to earth by persistent yelling. As you were making your way further down to the docks, more agitated shouting ensued and the quick pace of your walk slowed down. You were far away from the entrance, unable to really see anything, but the growing commotion piqued your curiosity.

It wouldn’t hurt to take a closer look, right? It's in the way anyway, you shrugged.

Inching closer to the side of the docks entrance, you hid behind an abandoned fishing boat perched up on empty fishing crates. They might've been rusty from being left outside for god knows how long but they still smelled like few days old catch that went off. Ignoring the horrendous smell and tucking your petite form well enough so you wouldn’t be spotted, you looked over the edge of the boat to see what was going on.

Moving your eyes around you counted about twenty masked men, all dressed in black with swords attached to the hip. Mercenaries. You didn't need to see more than the blades and their eyes to be able to tell they were possibly wanted people.

Most of them were frantically rushing in and out of the biggest storage on the other side, holding cases filled with… guns?

As more of them came out you realized it wasn’t just guns - there was long and short range artillery, fuses, even more blades and all kinds of artisanal bombs. It looked like the place to be for pyromaniacs and sadists. Depending on which category took your fancy, there was something for every sin you wanted to commit, from arson all the way to testing out painful killing methods.

Whatever these guys were planning was nothing short of mass destruction.

“We’ve secured all the weapons, Master,” a shushed voice spoke in Japanese from your right. He came closer, standing right in front of the boat you were using as a hiding spot.

He looked about half a person in height. If a wild gust of wind blew his way he would most likely topple over and become dust. Besides that, what caught your attention was the unsure nature of his Japanese accent. He definitely wasn't Japanese but whoever he talked to just now was because they replied in a grave pronounced tone, one hundred percent of Edo origin.

“Good work,” said a deeper voice from the left as he approached too. The way he spoke those simple words was enough to make tremors run down your spine in sheer thrill.

Weird, you shook them off trying to get a better view of the owner of the voice. A curly, tangled mop of white hair entered your vision. The roots were darker than the silvery ends shimmering in the pale blue moonlight.

Damn, this guy was long overdue for a haircut. And a hair dye session. Who was this gramps?

Trailing your eyes further down you took in his sturdy physique that was outlined through the clothes he was wearing. Wait. This is no gramps body. You could tell he was trained in some kind of martial arts. No one just walked around with heaps of muscles like those. You could easily draw a map of the world between those wide shoulders if you focused hard enough on just what lay beneath those tight, crunched up cotton creases- Snap out of it, Miyu.

The loud crash of crates rattling to the floor brought you back to reality. You weren't supposed to be there, eavesdropping and peeking like a spy when these people could probably cut you to pieces in one breath.

I need to get out of here ASAP.

You couldn’t risk getting caught and brought in by the commander in chief. If he wasn’t alerted yet he sure got wind of things by now. That man definitely has mutant senses. You didn't need to get caught by this mafia either because from the looks of it they definitely were part of one.

The last thing you needed was them catching wind of your location. You've spent so long staying under the radar and now was not the time to advertise your whereabouts like you were the main specialty on sale in the morning newspaper.

I am void. I don’t care. I haven’t seen anything.

I am not getting involved with this.

Repeating that mantra several times in your head in order to calm down, you had to figure out a way to sneak out as smoothly as possible without alerting anybody. Not even a fly and especially not the strong muscular white mop of hair who hasn’t moved at all from his spot right in front of you. He was probably one of those people gifted with extended field of vision that could see the world in one side to side look like a bird, so any move or choked breath of yours would fall on his alarm sensors instantly.

After a quick scan of your surroundings, you came to two viable options that would help you avoid getting skewered: going left, straight through the docks and to your hideout located just on the other side; or going right, having to circle around the whole city to get back.

It wasn’t hard to figure out which one was safer. You’d rather go around the whole city as many times as you needed if it meant staying away from whatever they had planned. You just had to wait for the right time to make your way out.

Any minute now...

The two continued supervising the undercover operation, not once moving away. Not even one accidental turn of their heads somewhere else.

More like any day...

If you didn't know any better, you'd think they picked up on your scent and were just waiting for you to breathe through the wrong nostril before they jumped you. The singular possibility of that drenched your spine with cold drops of nervous sweat. You've done the stake out thing a million times before, but this one was somehow so different - gut twisting in churns and knots like you took a hit of deja vu different. Like disaster waited patiently at those rusty gates to catch and cradle you sweet like a lover from the very moment your eyes first laid on the docks tonight.

After an agonizing long while, the two men blocking your view finally moved, heading towards the rest of their squad on the other side of the docks. That was your chance. All you had to do was get set, lift your ass from the floor and sprint the hell out of there before someone caught you and made you fish food.

If only things would play out like that but they rarely do for normal people.

Raising to half your height, trying to keep cover behind the boat, you turned to the right. In your rush to escape, you missed a teeny tiny key detail that was in your way to freedom - a dark brown fishing cord extending from the boat to the other pile of empty crates behind you.

You didn't see it in the darkened confined space around you and if you did, you took notice of it too late, barely making it two steps before your leg tangled in it and you were falling face first to the hard concrete floor, taking the crates behind with you. Disaster caught up to you, smiling sickly at your futile attempt to escape so easily.

The steaming buns you tried so hard to keep close spilled all over the ground in the process. That was the least of your worries. What should've worried you was that you just made the loudest sounds known to man that were probably heard under the sea. The clangs from the metal cages rattling on top of each other before crashing to the ground with a thud, rolling into other piles like rumbling waves of a raging sea, echoing deafeningly in your ears.

Once they stopped, the loud screeching of the crates was replaced by the loud beating of your heart with the realization that your body was halfway exposed to the other side of the docks. In full view for anyone to snap your details. The danger alarm rang multiple times in your head but your body just refused to move.

There was nowhere for you to run without getting caught now.

I’m. so. fucked.

“What was that?” growled one of the masked goons on the other side.

Mophead stopped in his tracks, muscles in his back contracting with impending doom. He turned around swiftly, faster than a wild feline, locking eyes on you. Lifting your own gaze from your uncomfortable spot on the floor, you connected it with his. You choked on a breath caught halfway in your throat before it could reach your lungs.

Dark black eyes akin to predators that lurk in the dead of night pierced yours. They screamed murder. The ‘chop you apart for funsies’ kind of murder, in a silent, more maniacal and lethal manner than serial killers normally sported.

But something about those eyes caught you off guard. He was just a few feet away. Close enough to reach for you and squeeze the life out of you. Close enough to catch the blue hue outlining his pupils. Something about those eyes, though eerie and downright terrifying, awaking every urge to take off to safety, was so oddly familiar that it froze you in place.

Where have I seen these eyes before?

He seemed to be stuck in his own reverie, fixed on your own for a good while. A tilt of his head could only signal his confusion to your presence. Or was it recognition? It could be both.

You don’t even know how long you were both stuck soul searching each other until the roaring sound of gunfire descended down on the docks.

Breaking your staring contest apart, you frantically craned your head behind trying to locate where the firing came from. Then it dawned on you.

The commander in chief is here. Knowing him, he was just waiting for his cue to shine like the superstar pawn of the government he is.

Mophead set off in your direction, most likely to grab you, but he only managed to take a step before bullets lined up a few feet in front of him. With a low grunt, he spared you one last deadly stare marking you as a new enemy to his possibly extended list before retreating back to his gang.

The bullets flew closer and closer to your spot and the intense smell of gun powder filled your nostrils. This was your cue to exit stage. In any direction at this point.

You got to your feet in seconds, saving what was left of your steamed dumplings and made a run for it. A few bullets narrowly grazed the low ends of your dress but you quickly made it to the safety of a dark alleyway close by.

Checking on your precious dumplings in the crumpled paper bags, you saw most of them were unharmed and let out a breath of relief. Then you cursed yourself for leaving your weapons on your neatly folded futon the one time you could actually make use of them.

The blaring gunshots halted all of a sudden. The docks were quiet again. Way too quiet. Strange. Did they run out of ammo this fast? I thought the police got endless resources in that field. Nevermind that, the mob had thousands of them at hand, itching for a little assembling and bullets. A showdown between a gang and the authorities couldn't have just ended this fast. Something felt off.

You made sure the shadow of the brick wall covered you whole before peering over to the docks from the corner of the alley. Assessing the situation, you noticed that half of mophead’s party was shot down by the commander’s force. Blood was everywhere, splattered on the cement from the entrance as far as you could see. Possibly all the way to the other end of the pier. Big and burly bodies that were swarming the warehouse and executing orders just moments ago, now laid lifeless next to and on top of some of the crates filled with weapons. Some of them managed to flee the scene when the firing started, abandoning ship cowardly. The rest of them that were still alive and kicking were captured and put in restraints to be taken into custody, together with their leader who must have been a ticking bomb of rage on the inside by now.

The more you looked at it, you didn't take him for someone that would get caught so easily. He gave the impression of the superior kind of thug. The type that calculates and plans until all doubts, variables and collaterals were executed off the table.

Something didn't add up.

What is really peculiar was that this part of the harbor was not even on the open side, clearly to make the storing of arm supplies as reclusive as possible. But anyone who wanted a hit and run, quick and fast, could flee the scene absolutely undetected under the safety of nightfall. The only way you could get caught was if someone chirped like a hummingbird, loud and close to the commander's ear. You nearly giggled at the possibility until you took another look down at the pier and all amusement in you dissipated.

Maybe it was the smug look on the commander’s face as his men rounded up the thugs. Or the way most of his force came out from what looked like stationed places at the other end of the docks entrance. Even the sure nods the officers shared as they shoved the last of the goons to their knees behind their leader.

It almost seemed like they knew mophead and his crew were going to be here tonight, set on stealing the armament.

No way.

Was this a set up?

Back at the precinct

Enishi was fuming.

Things went sideways too quickly for his liking tonight. The only feasible explanation was that someone talked and he was going to make sure they weren’t seeing the light of day under his watch. Once he made it out of the shithole he was currently held in that was. Which seemed to be somewhere in the far future.

The old man ceased his relentless show of authority punches, changing the plate for questioning, trying to intimidate Enishi. Too bad. Having the man breathe opium smoke in his face did not phase him at all.

“I’m going to ask again," sneered the commander, puffing up his chest with another intake of the drug. "Why were you stealing weapons?”

His patience was running thin, beyond irritation, showing in the way the veins on his neck strained. But he could press on as much as he wanted. Enishi wasn’t going to give him shit.

“Either you talk or your good for nothing squad will suffer in your place.”

He really thought he did something with that line. Those men were disposable. The real ones waited back at the base. He wasn't mad to deploy them for a mission that was supposed to be easy. But this was probably the last time he employed outside resources for a mission.

“I don’t give two flying fucks about them,” spat Enishi. He hoped some of the drops of blood flew to land on the commander's face.

That geature only earned him another punch, this time deep to the stomach. The guards who were holding him let him drop to the floor, more blood dripping on the side of his mouth.

The commander handed his pipe to one of the officers, discarding his coat on a chair before letting his fingers work to roll the sleeves of his shirt up. He moved around his golden desk furniture with the grace of an old dragon, aware of the ways of the world. That was what he wanted his assailants to believe. Truth be told, he was nothing but a puppet for the higher ups.

“I guess I’ll have to beat it out of you then,” said the commander, cracking his knuckles.

Bracing for the commander’s punishment, his thoughts wandered somewhere else. Not to the mission. Not to the missing weapons. Not to his men. But to the girl who was there tonight, hiding behind the boat.

He wasn’t stupid. He sensed someone was eavesdropping from somewhere. It just wasn't in his benefit to do something about it when they weren't showing up to lay claim to the weapons or to stop him from taking them.

But you weren’t supposed to be there. You were a variable in his plan that he couldn’t have predicted. A wildcard? A hidden weapon he could've used? He didn't know. Where a handful of questions swarmed around in his head, three of them stood out the most, distracting him from the incoming hit to his side.

Why were you there tonight?

Who were you working for?

And where have I seen you before?

Ten armed guards at the front of the building. Another two securing the entrance from the inside. Five more moving around the halls. None on the top floor.

Bingo.

Sliding open the glass window on the roof of the precinct, you snuck in quietly. You landed down swiftly, arching your heels like a cat to keep you steady. Stealth mode switched on in your head as you carefully inspected your surroundings.

The top floor is clear.

Tightening the grip on your twin Remingtons, you straightened and advanced to the walls on your right, opposite to the railing on the other side overlooking the secured entrance. No one seemed to be on this level at all.

As you rounded the corners, you spotted a staircase going down to what looked like a meeting hall.

Angry shouting and what resembled the sound of slapping got louder the more steps you descended. Someone was either receiving a beating or they were just into kinky shit.

You were on the last three steps when a guard's boots fell in step close by. Aligning yourself with the wall, you became one with the shadows. You held your breath, keeping your heartbeat under control as well as any other signs that could get you spotted. On the inhale, he walked by. On the exhale, he continued on his path. As he got further away, you tilted your head towards the glass ceiling and released the breath you were holding.

This was a terrible idea.

What were you even doing here in the first place? This was not your fight.

But your conscience convinced you that you were somehow responsible for the unsuccessful outcome of mophead’s mission. Call it remorseful helping.

You weren’t supposed to be there tonight. It was just incidental. Your stupid craving for dumplings made you come out of your extremely comfortable refuge and one thing led to another and you found yourself in the middle of the crossfire. The very thing you hoped to avoid at all costs.

Without thinking too much of your bad choices for the day, you geared up to save mophead. You didn’t know why you were going this far for someone you didn’t know. But you felt needed for once in a while and like you finally had a job to do. That and the fact that the betrayal under his command hit a little too close to home.

There was something else that bothered you about your encounter with him. The moment he locked eyes with you was branded into your head like a burn wound. Your brain replayed it over and over again for no specific reason until it drove you crazy.

Those eyes bugged you to the world’s end. There was something so addicting and familiar to them. But you couldn’t recall where you’ve seen them before no matter how hard you tried.

You needed to find out who this man is. So, like any normal person looking for answers, you went to ask him. Well, you will ask him. As soon as you busted him out of the most secure precinct in Shanghai.

In the meeting hall

“This would be so much easier if you just talked,” yelled the commander in chief.

“How about… fuck you. Good talk,” said Enishi with a sick grin.

“You son of a—,” the commander was cut off by the sound of shots being fired outside the meeting hall. Grunting and yelling ensued for a good minute until everything turned quiet. Everyone’s ears perked up listening for what could follow.

A powerful kick thundered against the golden door to the hall, making it come off its hinges and cave in on itself. The bolts creaked, splintering on the sides and the door fell with a loud thud. You stepped over it, the click of your heeled boots bouncing off the echo in the room.

All eyes were trained on you.

“Who’s ready to have some fun?” you chirped, enthusiastically twirling the guns in your hands. They landed perfectly in your hold and you cocked them right at the men in the middle of the room.

“Who are you?,” asked the commander in chief.

“Let’s just say I’m someone you don’t want to mess with,” you said confidently.

“You’re just a stupid girl if you think you can just come in here —“

“This stupid girl just took out most of your guards on duty. It will be her utmost pleasure to take you out too,” you said with a smirk.

Enishi was watching the exchange, his head swimming with confusion for the second time tonight.

Just who exactly were you? And why were you crossing paths again? Also, were you insane to just waltz in the commander in chief's lair like that?

You first show up as a hindrance to his plan and now you’re here to probably mess up more than you already have. He was also kind of blaming you for the situation he was in at the moment. You weren't of any help in his eyes.

At least you proved useful in distracting the guards and the commander so he could work on getting his hands free of the rope tugging at his wrists. Okay, maybe you were useful.

Looking over at mophead, you noticed he freed himself. You haven’t worked in a team in so long so you threw him a look asking for guidance on what to do now. What he saw however, was more of a weird face that kind of creeped him out, but he quickly caught onto what you meant.

He wasn’t sure whether to trust you. But he didn’t have the luxury to audition for partners right now. So, sending a silent nod your way, you let the fun begin.

Mophead lunged for the commander in chief while you preoccupied yourself with the five guards in the room. You easily took out the first one by the couch at the side. Pointing your gun to the next one, you pulled the trigger but nothing happened. You tried the other gun receiving the same vacant response. You were left without bullets having emptied most of them on the guards outside.

Strapping the guns back to your belt, you took a fighting stance and beckoned the officers to you.

Hand to hand combat it is.

The closest guard lunged at you and your fist connected with his nose. A loud crack echoed upon contact, blood seeping through his hands as he cradled his nose.

“You bitch—,” you cut him off by hooking your leg to the back of his neck, dragging him to the floor.

“Did your mother not teach you how to speak to a lady?”

He got back up and got ready to throw another snarky remark but you wasted no time in shutting him up with a nearby chair. The wood broke to pieces as it made contact with him, knocking him out cold. Once he fell to the floor, you directed your attention at the other three guards that started circling you from different sides. Showtime.

You let them come at you. The taller one came first, swinging a baton at your head. Ducking successfully to avoid having your head turned into a baseball, you went for a roundhouse kick to his head. He got projected to the other side from the force you put into the move.

The last two attacked you at the same time. One of them had a knife that managed to get a few cuts through the sleeves of your dress as he kept swinging at you recklessly. He wasn't even looking where he sent his blade. He probably just hoped they got you. If this was the training they got the armed forces were doomed.

You huffed disappointedly as you lifted a slashed piece to check the damage. “I just got this one."

Getting annoyed with his incessant flailing about, you caught his hand just as a slightly smaller in stature officer came from behind you. Kicking back your right leg into the stomach of the one behind, you got a chance to take the knife, throwing it away and out of his reach. You turned and elbowed the knife wielder in the stomach, directing another knee at his ribcage letting him fall flat to the floor.

One more to go.

Standing face to face with your last enemy, you spared mophead a quick look. He was struggling with the commander as he pushed him face down on the big wooden desk. He quickly turned the power around and got him into a deadly chokehold instead.

You didn’t even notice his outerwear was discarded and he was left only in a tank top. His huge biceps flexed dangerously as he tightened his hold on the commander’s neck, pushing into him with all his strength. Sweat was piling like rain drops down his arms and you found yourself drooling. Maybe you digged the whole white mop of hair look.

You were snapped out of your fantasies by the small garden goblin running towards you with a spiked staff. Where the fuck did he get that from?

Do these guys not have one normal weapon on them? Where do they get all this ridiculous stuff from?

You dodged his attacks and his futile attempts at trying to spear you like Dracula, until he got tired and his swings turned sloppy. Finding an opening way too easily, you caught the end of the staff with your right hand and turned your left into an uppercut diving it under his chin. The impact of your hit had him landing in a star shape on the floor. His eyes rolled around unable to focus like birds chirped around his head.

Just as you were finished with him, mophead finally squeezed the living daylights out of the commander and let him fall splat to the floor. He wasn't dead. Just out of service for the day.

Sensing the ruckus in the hall, the rest of the guards from outside started piling up into the hall. You both walked towards each other until you were back to back. In other circumstances you would’ve loved the way your heavy breaths mingled and the way your shoulders shyly grazed each other. But now was not the time to crush on your new partner.

“Any chance you have a plan to get us out of here?” asked mophead. Guards surrounded you from all sides, covering all exit points. The only way to escape was to fight your way out.

“I’m guessing breaking some more necks wouldn’t hurt,” you replied hastily.

“You take the ones on the right. I take the ones on the left,” he directed.

With another nod, you both got into position and waited as the guards descended upon you.

A storm of fists came your way. You tried blocking them as much as you could but five to one was too much to handle without a weapon. Mophead noticed your struggle and tried to get rid of the three baton swingers in front of him. With a low sweep kick to their ankles they all fell over at once, hitting each other with the bats they were holding.

You were holding onto three bats with all your might, pushing your arm muscles to greater strength than they were capable of. Two guards sneaked behind you, ready to deliver a dangerous blow. Enishi intercepted them before they could carry out their plan, catching their arms mid swing and twisting their arms to inhuman angles.

“Don’t you know it’s bad manners to hit a lady, especially from behind?” he said, towering over them, pushing them to their knees as they writhed in pain.

You finally managed to throw the three men backwards, taking to delivering a kick to each of them. By the time you were done with them you were breathing heavily. You were a good fighter, but your stamina was always holding you back. Mophead seemed to be more trained in that field though as you saw him cutting through the lines of guards with ease, taking down two or three at the time. And he was injured.

Five more guards circled both of you.

“Give me a hand,” you said as you ran towards mophead.

He sensed your idea right away. Latching your hand with his, you created enough momentum for him to pull you around in a circle to kick down all of the guards. Once you got both feet back on the ground looking for your next victims, you noticed the secure hand sitting idly on your waist.

Looking up at him, you saw he’s about a head taller than you. He was scanning the room too. Feeling you tense in his hold, he quickly dropped his hand from your waist and trained his gaze on the broken down door.

“We have to go before more of them come.”

“What about your crew? Are you just going to leave them here?”

“They can get out just fine by themselves,” he growled, annoyed and pissed enough to think of those fuckers too.

And with that he grabbed your hand and you made a run for it, stepping over the bodies of the commander's regiment, falling out into the precinct.

Next

Thank you for reading! Comments, notes and reblogs are always welcome :)

[one-idea]

Kuina, Zoro and the lookalike

Master post

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

You know what I’m not done talking about it.

Here’s another idea from my reverse strawhats/parallel dimension strawhats

So this is in the east blue. We’re going to loguetown.

So this is really weird to Ace. Being in the town his father was born, raised, and was executed in. Like what a mess of emotions for the dude.

(The crew won’t know about the Gol D. Roger connection until water 7 when Tom tells them stories about Gol D. Roger)

But that’s not who we are focusing on today.

Yes Kaya gets a weapon in Loguetown.

Yes Reiju gets in a cook off.

But again we’re not taking about them.

We are talking about Kuina and Zoro. Or Kuina and the face stealer that looks like Zoro.

I was thinking about it and it would be weird to have Tashigi in this as her whole thing is she looks like Kuina. And the whole thing doesn’t land if Kuina is alive. So switch it to a person who looks like Zoro.

(I found out that Kuina and Tashigi were both named after flightless birds and wanted to keep the name similars going. I looked up the meaning of Zoro and it was sky/moon soooooooo)

Kuina goes off on her own. Maybe looking for supplies to take care of Wado Ichimonji (I don’t think Kuina develops a three sword style. I think she’s still fighting with just the one) and while she’s at the sword store a young man walks in.

He can’t be older the 16. He has striking green hair, an athletic build and a cocky walk. He struts in asking about a sword. The owner of the store seems exasperated as the boy goes through swords quickly. The boy makes a joke about being too strong for regular blades.

His eye catch’s Wado and his interest is peaked.

When he goes to talk to the girl holding the sword she looks like she’s seen a ghost.

Kuina can’t wrap her head around what she’s seeing. The boy looks exactly like Zoro! But that can’t be. Zoro was dead. She was at his funeral. She had mourned him. How dare this stranger walk in wearing his face, having his attitude, this was a mockery of her best friend!

She leaves as quickly as possible but not before learning the man’s name is Tsukin. Even their names share meaning! (Zoro’s meaning sky/moon and Tsukin meaning moon)

Later on after getting her reckless captain out of trouble and running for their lives back to the Merry, Tsukin is there blocking their path. Because of course the lookalike is a marine. And of course he loves fighting.

She stops to duel him while Ace and Reiju race ahead. She beats him with ease. But as he lays there on the ground with both of his swords knocked out of his hands he starts to argue with her about how she needs to do the honor of killing him. And it’s so familiar. He never once questions her strength because she a girl, she was his equal from the moment he realized she knew how to wield her blade.

And it’s so achingly familiar.

She leaves after yelling at him to stop pretending to be Zoro. (A very confusing day for both of them to be honest)

Sailing away she’s quite upset. Ace is to, he just about died on the same scaffolding his father did. That’s when Reiju brings out the barrel for them all to announce their dreams before the grandline.

[stephensmithuk]

The Sign of Four: The Baker Street Irregulars

I'm rather behind with these and will be for a while.

London had many, many wharfs; the number topped out at around 1,700.

London would have had a huge number of boats and ships of varying types plying the Thames at this point, moving cargo and people back and forth - it could be quicker than going by horse depending on the traffic. Today, the number is far smaller, mostly consisting of tourist vessels, the Thames Clipper passenger services that are part of the TfL network and tenders carrying rubbish.

Coke is a hard, grey fuel created by heating coal or oil in the absence of oxygen. It produces much less smoke than regular coal, allow most homes and other operations didn't use it at this point. Hence the yellow fog...

It takes quite a while to warm up a steam boiler; you're generally looking at two to three hours for a steam locomotive before it can be used.

A wherry is a small boat with a sail and oars used for transporting people on rivers like the Thames. The long bow makes it easier for passengers to get on and off on a shoreline without getting their shoes wet.

Millbank Penitentiary was a prison that had formerly held those due to be transported to Australia and then became a local prison, followed by a military one. It had ceased to hold prisoners in 1886, closed entirely in 1890 and was mostly demolished soon after that. Many of its red bricks were reused for housing as the Millbank Estate and the Tate Britain is also on the site.

"A tanner" is six pence, or half a shilling. "Three bob and a tanner" means 3 shillings and six pence, which is what Wiggins paid for the bus tickets.

Not sure about the whole sandal thing, but the Special Operations Executive, themselves known as the "Baker Street Irregulars" due to their HQ's location, developed special overshoes in the shape of bare feet to deceive the Japanese into thinking they were barefooted locals when leaving footprints.

Bushmen is an older and still sometimes used term for the San people of southern Africa, one of the oldest hunter-gatherer peoples on the planet. Much of the rest of the stuff about height seems a lot of racist rubbish.

[mariacallous]

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu made headlines in April after coasting to a second term in office by nearly 12 percentage points. Imamoglu, who has served at the city’s helm since 2019, is seen as a major political threat to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP). The latest win in Istanbul cemented Imamoglu’s continued popularity among the Turkish public.

But Imamoglu is only the most prominent face of a broader opposition, led by the Republican People’s Party (CHP). In March’s municipal elections, the CHP secured its most crushing victory over the AKP in decades. Possibly more notable than Imamoglu’s reelection was the newly elected class of women executives of provinces and districts across the country.

One of these women—Sinem Dedetas—may hold the keys to the future of Turkey’s opposition. Imamoglu is currently battling slander charges in the country’s high court, in addition to a slew of other cases that could eventually ban him from politics, even as he is the favorite to run for the CHP in Turkey’s 2028 presidential election. No matter how those fortunes play out, Dedetas promises to be central to the party’s strategy in a post-Erdogan Turkey.

Istanbul is the only city in the world to straddle two continents. Uskudar, a seaside constituency on the Anatolian side, lacks many of the bars and clubs across the water in the European districts. Instead, the conservative area is known for its historical mosques. It is also one of Istanbul’s key transportation hubs, home to a confluence of ferries, rail, metro, and bus lines. Millions of people from all over the city—and world—pass through Uskudar every day.

In April’s elections, Dedetas, a 43-year-old engineer, made history as the first woman to ever win the Uskudar municipality mayorship, a position similar to that of a New York borough president. She also flipped the district from the AKP to CHP rule.

Dedetas moved to Uskudar from her native Eskisehir, a city in northwest Turkey, for college in 1999. After receiving bachelor’s and master’s degrees in naval engineering from Istanbul Technical University, she got her first job in the district as an engineer. In 2014, she went on to work as a marine engineer at the Halic Shipyards, the oldest continuously operating dockyard in the world. Over the centuries, the facility has produced vessels from sail boats to steamships and submarines to electrical passenger taxis.

Dedetas’s career has featured many firsts. In 2014, she became the first chairwoman of the Turkish Chamber of Naval Engineers. While she was in that position, Istanbul’s AKP mayor tried to privatize the public harbor and turn it into a terminal full of restaurants and shops. Dedetas protested the project and was barred by the government from entering the shipyard.

She continued to oppose the new real estate development, concerned that the city’s ferries—an indelible part of Istanbul’s social history, skyline, and soundscape—would grind to a halt without the vital maintenance work done at the docks. “We fought to keep [it] from being lost,” Dedetas later said after her success in blocking the project.

Then Imamoglu became mayor of the city, bringing Istanbul back under CHP rule. “The privatization processes of the shipyard were being carried out,” Dedetas told Turkish media. “If [the mayorship] had not changed hands in the 2019 elections, there would be no shipyard left.”

One of the new mayor’s first orders of business was to appoint Dedetas as manager of Istanbul’s maritime public transportation system; she was the first woman in the role. Over the last quarter century, the city’s water transport fell into disarray as Istanbul’s population swelled and moved further inland, contributing to congestion and gridlock on road and rail. Yet municipal-run ferries predate the first Bosporus bridge and remain one of the city’s fastest options to cross continents.

Dedetas proved herself to be a masterful administrator, overhauling the entire water transit system. She opened 11 new ferry lines and launched a 24-hour weekend ferry that connected the European and Asian sides of the city. She also doubled the patronage of public water transport, in part by restoring the iconic white and orange vapur ferry ships. And she launched an electric sea taxi service, providing a personal, environmentally friendly option to traverse the Bosporus Strait and the Marmara Sea.

Through the effective management of maritime transportation, Dedetas gained national attention. She set her eyes on her home district, Uskudar—the Istanbul neighborhood with the longest Bosporus shoreline—ahead of the 2024 municipal elections. “Uskudar is the first gate for people who arrive from Anatolia, and for Istanbul, it is the gate to the rest of the country,” said Onur Cingil, an Uskudar native and CHP member.

The borough had been an AKP stronghold for as long as Cingil and most others could remember. It is even home to Erdogan’s private villa. Cingil said he saw local government officials claim eminent domain and exaggerate concerns about earthquake vulnerability to demolish buildings and hand over lucrative sites to construction companies, religious associations, and other party loyalists. “This happened … to my own student dormitory, and many other places,” Cingil said.

Cingil was one of the many CHP candidates vying to be the nominee for Uskudar’s mayorship in March’s elections, but the CHP leadership eventually selected Dedetas to run due to her reputation for being a technocratic consensus builder.

“Normally, I wouldn’t expect such a profile to be nominated for Uskudar,” said Burak Bilgehan Ozpek, a professor of political science at TOBB University of Economics and Technology. He described Dedetas’s young, professional, and secular profile as going against the grain in the district. The CHP typically nominated old-school, male party insiders for such roles, Ozpek said, adding with a laugh that they always lost the race. “This was a radical change,” he added.

Dedetas took a pro-people approach to her campaign against the AKP incumbent Hilmi Turkmen, who had been a mainstay in Uskudar’s politics for decades. She canvassed the district neighborhood by neighborhood, underlining her accomplishments governing the city’s maritime transit system, which has a budget the same size as Uskudar’s.

Dedetas vowed to redress the AKP’s neglect of women’s issues on both the district and federal levels. She promised to prioritize women’s employment and noted that, during her time helming Istanbul’s maritime transit system, she nearly tripled the number of women working there. She also proposed the creation of a free HPV vaccine program to protect against some forms of cervical cancer. (The cost of the vaccine has become nearly equivalent to Turkey’s monthly minimum wage.)

The candidate pledged to create child nurseries in every neighborhood in Uskudar. “This will enable women to work,” especially residents with low incomes, said Rumeysa Camdereli, an activist and member of Havle Women’s Association, the first Muslim feminist organization in Turkey.

Dedetas promised to expand welfare initiatives, and called for additional municipally subsidized cafeterias in Uskudar. Imamoglu created these during his first term for residents to get a healthy meal for just over a dollar, and his AKP competitor Murat Kurum mocked them on the campaign trail. “We are tired and bored of the rhetoric that tries to deceive the people by … giving half a tea glass of water or milk as if it is a service,” said Kurum. He also made fun of Imamoglu’s background as a kofte vendor.

Kurum’s gaffe turned off blue collar voters. Istanbul’s public eateries fill up every day for lunch and are vital in a country enduring a cost-of-living crisis amid annual inflation of nearly 70 percent.

“Local elections are less ideological and always more focused on services,” said Emine Ucak, the program director for social policy at the Reform Institute, an Istanbul-based policy center, who researches women in Turkish politics. “Women always think about their children, and they had stopped seeing a future for them.”

The campaign also focused on securing areas most vulnerable to earthquakes, a national concern after the devastating February 2023 earthquakes in Turkey’s southeast. Many locals fear that the slate block flats populating the hills above Uskudar’s wharf are in imminent danger in case of an earthquake. In response to their concerns, Dedetas is establishing a natural disaster directorate to help the district become prepared for earthquakes and other catastrophes.

On election night, Dedetas triumphed, beating Turkmen by more than seven percentage points. In doing so, she tore apart the long-held myth that Uskudar was an AKP stronghold.

“It’s a district with a lot of conservative families,” said Asli Aydintasbas, a visiting fellow at Brookings Institution. “For an uncovered woman to win is a real testament to her political appeal.” Unlike past CHP candidates, Dedetas shied away from the hardline, sometimes alienating secularism her party is known for. Pragmatism and empathy won the day.

Dedetas was not the only victorious woman on election day. Altogether, voters tripled the number of women mayors across Turkey. While only four female mayors had been elected in the previous municipal elections in 2019, 11 provinces and 64 municipalities are now governed by women, the vast majority of them representing opposition parties. Together, they won, on average, 53 percent of votes.

Female political representation is a welcome change after what many in the country see as backsliding on women’s rights under Erdogan. In 2021, Turkey exited the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty to combat gender-based violence that was drafted in the city a decade earlier. The Turkish president had urged women to have at least three children, claiming that those who reject motherhood are “deficient” and “incomplete.”

Although Turkey has a highly centralized political system, mayors remain key to managing districts and municipalities. They are where citizens first access the country’s welfare systems, and where businesses are registered, among other duties.

Following March’s elections, Dedetas and other mayors in the Turkish opposition now have their best chance in decades to govern with less interference from Ankara. She has wasted no time in initiating programs that address locals’ needs, such as grocery subsidies of up to $150 for retired residents. The district also plans to provide elderly residents free shuttle services to food markets. (Pensioners, who compose more than 10 percent of Turkey’s national population, receive roughly $293 per month from the state, an impossible wage to live on in Istanbul.)

Uskudar’s new mayor is also working to counteract the AKP’s neoliberal strategies, which many accuse of benefiting political patrons through shady backroom dealings all while poverty has deepened. To help promote transparency, Dedetas has begun to broadcast all municipal council meetings live online.

Figen Kucuksezer, an optometrist and Uskudar resident, is very excited by these changes. They’ve already helped preserve Uskudar’s Validebag Grove, one of the last wild green spaces in Istanbul. The area, which Kucuksezer volunteers to protect, is home to 400-year-old trees and migratory birds.

“The former mayor always wanted to make changes to the grove,” she said, referring to the AKP’s plans to develop the area by adding parking lots and food stalls and removing some native flora. But Kucuksezer and other local activists filed a lawsuit and have fought for years for Validebag to be left alone. “We had to block the Caterpillar [equipment] from entering in,” she said.

Since being elected, Dedetas has promised to protect it as a green space for all residents. In May, the local court annulled the previous government’s construction plan. “It is a breath of fresh air,” Kucuksezer added.

There is a saying in Turkish politics that whoever wins Istanbul will one day win Turkey. It was the case for Erdogan, who previously served as mayor of Istanbul before leading the country for the past two decades.

After years in the political wilderness, the CHP is now trying to repeat its success in the next national election, which should be the first without Erdogan in nearly 30 years. The challenge for Dedetas is to help Imamoglu triumph so that she can be his successor in Istanbul as he runs for the presidency.

So far, her stances have mirrored those of Imamoglu; Dedetas regularly highlights their work together on social media. But she has also bolstered her own profile by engaging in key culture war debates—including by opposing controversial legislation that will kill beloved stray dogs on the streets to rooting for the women’s national volleyball team at the Paris 2024 Olympics, a squad that has been vilified by the conservative right. Imamoglu’s and Dedetas’s fortunes are now intertwined.

“And this is just the start of her office,” said Cingil, Dedetas’s one-time party rival. “There are already rumors that she will be the next candidate for Istanbul mayor.” That would be another first.

[scotianostra]

29th July 1548 saw the French fleet sail from Dumbarton, taking the infant Queen Mary to the safety of France.

I reckon there is enough written on her life that I could probably find a something to write almost every day about Mary Queen of Scots, I certainly know one of my sources often has information on her life to that extent, some are trivial, concerning affairs of state, others like this give more detail. The dates vary somewhat on this one, some give the date as August, however I am covering myself and posting today.

When Mary left for Scotland, she travelled with the children of Scotland’s nobility, including the ‘Four Maries,’ the women who would stay with her throughout her later imprisonment and execution. With her are her guardians, the Lords Erskine and Livingston, her nurse Jean Sinclair, her governess Lady Fleming, the four Maries, Ladies Fleming, Seton, Livingston and Beaton, three of her half-brothers and other children of the Scottish nobility.

Mary Seton was the only one to die unmarried and lived on until 1615, praying for Mary’s soul and giving alms in her memory. The group arrived in France in August 1548.

Mary was given a royal welcome in France by King Henry II. He ordered that she would have precedence over his own daughters as she was sovereign of an independent country and also because she was to wed his heir, the Dauphin. The king also became very fond of the child, saying, ‘The little Queen of Scots is the most perfect child I have ever seen.’ While in France, Mary’s maternal grandmother, Antoinette de Guise, wrote to her daughter in Scotland that Mary was ‘very pretty, graceful and self-assured.’

Mary was 5 when she first met the four-year-old Dauphin, her betrothed husband. According to most contemporaries, they were close and affectionate with one another even as children. They traveled from one royal palace to another – Fountaineblea to Meudon, or to Chambord or Saint-Germain. They were always attended to by a retinue of servants and, even then, Mary had developed a fondness for animals, especially dogs, which was to continue throughout her life.

Mary was also educated in the traditional manner of French princesses; she spoke French and learned Latin, Italian, Spanish and a little Greek. She learned to dance, sing, play the lute as well as converse on religious matters. Her religious tutor was the prior of Inchmahome, a Scottish priest. When she was seven, her mother came to France to visit her; when Mary of Guise returned to Scotland, neither realized that they would never see each other again.

The first pic is of Dumbarton Castle, the next is a depiction of Queen Mary and the four Scottish Marys in a palatial garden in France.

[thepenultimateword]

Hello!! Can I request a captive x captor prompt list? I don't know if that's something up your alley, but your prompt lists have a wide variety and have helped me get out of some sticky spots (that I wrote myself into lol). If not, that's totally fine too. I appreciate your work ❤

Sure thing! Imma do my best to make them non-toxic/non-Stockholm syndrome-y because that’s more comfy for me. But thank yooou! I’m so glad that my prompts have been able to help you at all! Sometimes I wonder, so that’s really nice to know!

A pirate crew captures a selkie and intends to sell it at a dark enchanted market of different creatures and rarities. However, the more one of the pirates spends time guarding their captive, the more they dread pawning them off to the highest bidder. But how can they commit mutiny against their crew and captain, the only family they know? Especially for a creature that most definitely hates them. 2. When a human steps into a faerie circle, the fae in question is ecstatic. Their fellow fae friend has a birthday coming up and a taste for unique items and eccentricities. Actual conscious animals are hard to come by, but a human transformed into an animal? Much easier. And how is Other Fae to know the difference?

3. After trying their food by chance, a royal forces a local cook into their employ as their personal chef. Though the royal spoils them with nice quarters, unlimited ingredients, and a ridiculously high wage, the chef cannot forgive them for taking away their freedom. Meanwhile, the royal, whose love language is food, falls deeper in love with each meal.

4. Pirates are to be hanged. That is the law. However, when a recently arrested pirate is up for execution, the city's lord visits them with a bargain: their life for their service as a guard. The lord's child has recently bought a ship and is insistent on sailing around the world, oblivious of their own inexperience and naivety. And everyone knows there's no one more sea-smart than a pirate. However, their child, having no idea of the deal, begins catching feelings for their gruff crew member who always seems to be there for them.

5. Dragons have taken humans captive since the days of knights and princesses. It is no different for the modern-day city dragons, though the reason has become foggier over the centuries. Is it for hoarding? For food? Love? All the dragon knows is their instincts screamed at them to take this person, so they did. Except now they're riddled with guilt. On the other hand, they picked on of the only humans who would be ok with this development. A dragon scientist/expert who is over the moon to study a member of the rare species up close.

6. Human pests are always breaking into the giant's home, stealing their supplies, wealth, and anything else they can get their tiny grubby hands on. They decide to put up traps, but when they actually succeed in catching one of the thieves, they're not sure what to do with them. They don't want to kill them, but they certainly can't let them go either.

7. A monster hunter is taken captive by one of the very monsters they once caught and sold. The monster escaped a couple years ago, but not without serious scars, both emotional and physical. They intend to make the monster hunter share their pain, but the hunter is so much more ragged and tired then they remember. It seems they’ve become broken and scarred all on their own.

8. Knowing that planet earth is about to be destroyed, a group of aliens breaks protocol and abducts a few hundred humans in order to preserve the race. However, the humans, whether uninformed or wracked with grief are none too happy about this development. The ship’s captain tries to keep them isolated to one area of the ship, believing it will be easier to them adjust to one factor at a time, but one of the humans is always escaping, and searching the captain out. The captain is still only semi-fluent in human, but their addresses usually involve a lot of shrieking and spitting.

9. Vampires are merciless, bloodthirsty monsters; the vampire Hunter knows this from much experience. So why are they having such a hard time finishing this one? Pretty hair and a sunshiny attitude are not reason enough!

10. The detective is the only thing standing in the way of the criminal’s success and freedom. They should take this chance, catching the detective helpless and off guard, to get rid of them permanently. But…the detective has also been the only constant in their life for years. They’ve dedicated so much time to impressing and thwarting them and the detective so much time to chasing them. Maybe they shouldn’t rush it and keep hold of them a little longer.

11. A royal is almost assassinated and the hitman is put in the dungeons. The royal insists on talking to their would-be-killer themselves and what starts as an interrogation transforms into a daily storytelling session, with the royal hounding the assassin for information about the outside world. As the assassin’s execution date looming, the trapped royal’s desire to leave grows. If anyone could take them away from this place, it would be assassin, but can that trust them not to finish the job they were hired for?

12. After kidnapping Sidekick multiple times as leverage, it is Villain’s turn to be a hostage. In all their captures, Sidekick discovered a familial connection between Villain and Supervillain, and with Supervillain on the verge of mass destruction, Sidekick is going to exploit it. Surrender or Villain will be killed. Except Sidekick has no experience with hostages and is relying on all of Villain’s advice on how to keep them secure. At first it’s manipulation, but after a while…Villain doesn’t really want to leave anymore.

[butterfrogmantis]

ARRRRRR YA READY KIDS?

Well, it happened. I got attached to the pirate crew and then other people got attached to the pirate crew and now we have a small crew! (with more potentials from other people I just had to put a cap on it yesterday)

Captain Bluebeard (Born: Blueblood Smurf) was the son of wealthy noblesmurfs who were murdered by pirates. As an adolescent he joins a sailing crew which is then plundered by pirates, and he’s given the option to die or join their side. He switches for fear of his life and spends years at sea as a pirate, until his ship is captured by Navy Smurfs. Blueblood narrowly escapes his execution and goes on to continue a life of piracy, having gotten a taste for it. He serves as the first mate aboard the ship that murdered his parents until overthrowing the captain, which is where he earns his title (and by now in his 400’s, his impressive beard, which becomes his new name and symbol).

Bluebeard starts a new crew under the name of “The Devil’s Sarsaparilla”

Bluebeard is … powerful man. Ruthless and merciless to his enemies and fiercely protective of his crew, essentially. He’s no stranger to high sea battles or negotiations or the ‘persuasion’ of Navy secrets via unscrupulous methods but he’s also a surprisingly fair boss and the crew, in return, are loyal to him which is how he maintains such a strong position.

Cutthroat was a pirate aboard the first ship Bluebeard was part of, but he’d traded ships before it was captured. Bluebeard knows him to be a cunning Smurf and good fighter and invited him on, and Cutthroat is honoured at the chance to be his first mate and lord his positon of authority over the rest of the crew (something Cutthroat loves to gloat about). An arguably even more bloodthirsty man than even the captain, Cutthroat has no patience for the shenanigans of the crewmen and delights in reporting Scallywag’s antics to Bluebeard so he may ‘deliver suitable punishment’.

Another weird thing to note about Cutthroat is that his stance on relationships often times comes across as extremely ‘holier than thou’ and very much into ‘marriage before anything’ and can be borderline homophobic, despite the fact he’s so clearly in love with Bluebeard in some other sense of the word. (This is the character that’s lowkey just a mockery of a certain someone’s stuff to make Cutthroat seem nonsensical to the other character’s and even more ruthless and also his descendant Brainy is gay so ya boo sucks to him). Note this ONLY applies to Cutthroat, Bluebeard himself doesn’t really care what his crew are into as long as they’re good pirates and whilst I can’t speak for other people’s ocs Swashbuckler is … well idk but he’s straightn’t so he takes extra delight in helping Scallywag hide a lobster in Cutthroat’s pillow.

Cookie … really should not be on a pirate ship? Note it’s possible she has a nature name but the crew call her Cookie after her speciality biscuits. She’s a sweetheart and despite the plundering’s of her crewmate remains as such. There’s rumours she’s the aunt of one of the men who was just like ‘yeah ik we’re pirates but she’ll turn the nasty slop we’ve been eating into a 5 star meal’ so Bluebeard was just like ‘eh’ and Cookie became the ship’s mom. That’s not to say she doesn’t have her own secrets …

@chaoticsimp15's bean Herbalist! A transmasc pioneer of natural medicines and a worthy adversary to the ship where cuts and stab wounds are plentiful. Herbalist lost an arm to amputation following a poisoning and despite run ins with other dangerous plants like the kind that almost took his eye, has developed an interest in them and his knowledge of healing herbs makes him a well-respected member aboard the ship, who even Cutthroat has to give some level of respect after having his life saved a couple times.

@coconuttyglittersmurf 's bean Anne! (Queen Anne's Lace) Dreamt of a life of piracy and ran away to join a crew. Bluebeard may have been dubious about her apparent naivety at first but Anne shows good prowess with a sword, dedication and loyalty, all things Bluebeard needs and he’s an equal opportunity employer (diversity win, the murderous pirate is a feminist) and I think perhaps Cookie would become fond of her :)

@schtroumpfalunettes’s bean Rosemary! Became friends with Anne (Anne Bonny and Mary Read parallel) and joins as another buccaneer. Highly enthusiastic, cuts down enemies with glee. I see a scene of Bluebeard standing there in the back watching her go ham on a rival pirate boat and being like ‘dang glad she be me crew’

@a-doodling-tanuki 's bean! Scallywag :) As described by them, Scally was picked up from a pirate wreckage where they thought he was a smurfling and would make a good cabin boy, only to realise he was in fact an adult of diminutive stature, so Scally became a steward instead (general cleaning and maintenance of the ship, often works under Cookie as a sous chef) Best friend and fellow fun-haver with Swashbuckler, often scolded and told off by Cutthroat and Bluebeard and forced to mop the decks as punishment.

The man of the hour; Swashbuckler (cheering noises). Swashbuckler had been a cabin boy and sailor on merchant ships as a child, but after the death of his father he turned to piracy in order to steal medications for his younger sister who suffered with a weakened immune system. Swashbuckler loved the freedom and loot piracy brought and less so the plunder and murder – he was a good hearted Smurf and a lover of jokes, but he was also an excellent swordsman and a fierce opponent in a duel. It was perhaps his youthful ego and lack of experience that ultimately cost him.

Skelly’s sister! I’ve decided not to name her since that’s kind of a key part of the lore of Skelly not remembering, F. But since Skelly remembers seeing her in his dreams & she’s Tuffy’s direct ancestor, I can * certainly * design her >:)

+ Uncensored death art

Bluebeard, Cutthroat, Cookie, Swashbuckler and his sister are mine

Other oc's are tagged above!

Franchise and descendants (c) The Smurfs

[milesonthenet]

Kingdom Hearts: A bizarre Disney experiment that took off.

Welcome to the House of Milesverse, and today we will be discussing a truly bizarre series. I promise that I'll try to keep it Simple & Clean when it comes to discussing it. Today's topic is Kingdom Hearts, the iconic Disney-Final Fantasy crossover that you've probably heard of.

This is in late honor of the franchise, in fact. March 28th celebrates the 22nd Anniversary of the first Kingdom Hearts game. That is 22 years since Kingdom Hearts' inception.

What IS Kingdom Hearts?

The Process:

Years ago, the early seeds of Kingdom Hearts were laid in a game idea. Square Enix (Square at the time) wanted to make a 3D game similar to Mario 64. However, they could not figure out an idea on who would represent the series. They believed that only characters from Disney could potentially rival Mario in popularity.

That led to a chance encounter between former game producer Shinji Hashimoto and a Disney Executive. Square as it turned out, operated in the same japanese office building as Disney did. From there, Hashimoto pitched the idea to Disney directly, and it was smooth sailings from then on.

Development soon began in 2000 with character designer Tetsuya Nomura providing the 'look' of many characters in the game. Initially, Disney wanted Donald Duck to be the main protagonist for the game. Square on the other hand argued for Mickey Mouse to be playable.

Instead, a compromise was made, and an original character was created. Sora is the main protagonist of the Kingdom Hearts series and wielder of the keyblade. He's recognizable to many people who aren't as familiar with the games.

A fun fact about Kingdom Hearts is its use of Final Fantasy characters. These characters were quite a shocker expected back then. In fact, their appearance was deliberately kept a secret to entice fans.

Success & More:

The first game, Kingdom Hearts 1, was released in 2002. It was a commercial success, and it quickly paved the way for a sequel. As of 2022, the game has sold well over 36 million copies worldwide.

Tetsuya Nomura himself was unsure if there would be room for a sequel. He still snuck in a secret trailer scene in the game for fans. Soon enough, plans for a sequel were made after Kingdom Hearts 1, and other games quickly followed. Chain of Memories, for example, was released in 2003, and directly follows the story from the first game.

Since then, Kingdom Hearts is up to its 13th installment. It has spawned a massive following worldwide. The series just perfectly captures the Disney magic that many people had in their childhood. More than that, it also offers something fun for the Final Fantasy fans.

In 2021, Sora would finally join Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as its last DLC fighter. In addition, it was revealed that Sora is the most highly requested fighter to ever appear in the Smash Bros series. It's quite a testament to his character, and how popular he is.

In 2022, Kingdom Hearts IV was announced for the next generation of consoles. It is a sequel to Kingdom Hearts 3, which acted as an ending to numerous old storylines. Kingdom Hearts IV sets the stage for a new story, pitting Sora and his friends against the 'Lost Masters'.

Voice Actors who have worked on Kingdom Hearts:

Kingdom Hearts has boasted many actors over its installments. You would be surprised to see who's been in the series.

The main character Sora is voiced by Haley Joel Osment. Osment played in the Sixth Sense as Cole Sear, a psychic child. You'd know him from the iconic film line, "I see dead people".

The main antagonist Xehanort is voiced by at least three actors.

Leonard Nimoy (Spock from Star Trek)

Rutger Hauer (Roy Batty from Blade Runner)

Christopher Lloyd (Doctor Brown from Back To The Future)

Opposite of Xehanort is Eraqus, who is played by Mark Hamill. He's Luke Skywalker and the iconic voice of The Joker in numerous Batman media. Nimoy and Hamill in a way also represents the Star Trek Vs. Star Wars debate that's pervaded fandoms for so long.

The character Roxas is Sora's 'nobody', essentially his other half. He and Ventus, the character he's modeled after, share the same voice. They are both voiced by Jesse McCartney, a famed popstar in the 2000s. Jesse McCartney would also do the voice for Robin in Young Justice, and later, as Nightwing.

Ansem the Wise, later known as DiZ, is another supporting character in the franchise. Christopher Lee is well-known as Dracula, Saruman, and Count Dooku. After his unfortunate passing, Lee was replaced by Corey Burton.

Hayden Panettiere was the initial voice for Sora's close friend, Kairi. She played Kirby Reed in both Scream 4 and Scream 6. She also played Juliette Barnes in Nashville, and Claire Bennet in Heroes.

Hayden would later be replaced by Alyson Stoner in future installments. Alyson Stoner played Caitlyn in Camp Rock and it's sequel. She was also Isabella Garcia in the popular Disney series, Phineas and Ferb.

The main antagonist of the first game was Ansem, Xehanort's Heartless. Ansem was at first voiced by Billy Zane for the first game. Billy Zane was also the main antagonist of Titanic, aka Caledon Hockley.

In later games, Zane would be replaced by Richard Epcar. Richard Epcar is notable as the voice of Raiden from Mortal Kombat, and Daisuke Jigen from Lupin the 3rd. He's also the voice of Joseph Joestar's older self in later seasons.

All of this is further compounded by the Disney worlds. Kingdom Hearts gets numerous old actors back to reprise their roles. For example, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy all retain their current voice actors.

Overall, Kingdom Hearts has a well-crafted cast of voice actors. Numerous notable names have come to play characters in the series. I think that on its own is another impressive fact to add to the series.

The Story (And why it's not as confusing as you think):

What makes it so confusing?

Kingdom Hearts is renowned across online fandom platforms for its plotline. Almost anything about it is guaranteed to create confusion in fans. It's hard enough having to keep up with how many people are just different iterations of other characters. Fans have coined the phrase "Everyone is Sora/Xehanort." for a reason.

In reality, the story itself is not 'confusing' at first glance. It all relies on making sure you play the games in order. Kingdom Hearts' greatest flaw is when people overthink it to the extreme.

There are a lot of people who would prefer to skip to the most recent game. However, that creates its own net of issues. When you don't play the games in order, you end up confused by certain plot elements.

To fully comprehend the bigger picture, you need to accept a few things about the series as well. For example, keyblades are inherently magical weapons. They possess a degree of sentience and can open or lock any door. Only someone strong of heart can wield a keyblade.

Overall, Kingdom Hearts is not a confusing series to get into. It's just a lot to look at. This leads to the games overwhelming people who try to take in every single detail.

Why it works:

The love for Kingdom Hearts is phenomenal. After its release, it quickly gained praise as a best-selling hit under Disney. Much of this praise is given to the story, and characters. Even more praise is added to its scene-stealing music.

Its blending of Disney and RPG tones is also enjoyed by the audience. This is something that you would not expect to work, but it does. Kingdom Hearts itself is a perfect balance of Square Enix's usual flavor, combined with the childhood Disney magic that you are familiar with.

Kingdom Hearts' accuracy toward Disney also works when looking at the films. Fan-Favorite locations in the game are pulled from Disney's various films. They are almost perfectly replicated in Kingdom Hearts' own animation. It is a testament and love letter to the franchise's cartoonish roots.

Kingdom Hearts is something that at first glance, you think would not work. It's effectively a bizarre fusion between two things that have nothing in common. However, the developers behind the scenes do their part in making sure that the game balances it. Everything has a purpose, and nothing feels out of place.

Conclusion:

Kingdom Hearts is an interesting topic to bring up in terms of video games. It's attracted a lot of confusion and shock from newcomers. However, I believe that this zaniness does its part. It is meant to be shocking, and as a series, it does that well.

There's something fun about how the series presents itself. Kingdom Hearts does not take itself seriously. Yet, there's no harm coming from that effect. This only accentuates its deep connections to the Disney franchise.

I think Kingdom Hearts is a fun series that has a lot of heart. I wanted to play the games myself as a kid after seeing how cool they were. I finally had the chance to buy them last year. It was perfect being able to relish every moment in playing them. I would recommend you pick up the game yourself.

What's NEXT?

Remember when I said that I was doing a review of Transformers: Earthspark? I still am. I pushed it back in favor of other topics, but it is still happening.

We'll also talk about X-Men '97 and discuss some other things. Moon Girl season 2 will also be another topic sometime this year. I hope you really enjoyed this one, by the way. If you have any questions or suggestions, please send them my way.

[bella-goths-wife]

What's better than 1 poly line?

2 poly lines

However tell us more about the oc I'm intrigued

Alexander Johnson ‘Johnny’ Ward

Birthday: 9th of September 1590

Diet: mixture of human blood and animal blood

Early life:

Johnny was born to a prominent household in 1590. His father was a well known lord and his mother was rumoured to be related to distant European royalty.

Johnny was born the oldest of three children with two younger sisters and was going to be the heir of the estate and title after of his parents demise.

That was until his father was accused of treason to the crown and was summoned to be executed. The guards who were to watch the family on they’re trip to the castle from their home mentally tortured them and brutalised his sisters and mother.

When the family arrived to the castle, his father was falsely proven guilty and was hung, drawn and quartered.

His mother and sisters were thrown in cells and then hung with the youngest only being thirteen. Johnny was spared because of his fighting abilities and his hunting skills.

Johnny was then forced to join the kings guard and relinquish any titles and property to the crown while also taking a vow of chastity.

Johnny was outraged but out of fear he fought for the king and was always seen “as sneaky as a shadow” because of his ability to sneak away into the dark and surprise his opponent.

Johnny met a mysterious friend of the crown after the princess had grown attached to him and threw a hissy fit to her father to have him assigned to her. While he was protecting the princess during a ball he met a French vampire

The vampire took interest in Johnnys ability to track so he then offered to turn him and have him join the vampires coven. Johnny hesitated but accepted and became a vampire.

He developed a strong power and the French vampire arranged for a boat for the two of them to sail to Spain. As a final act of revenge, Johnny seduced the kings daughter and squandered her virginity before hanging the sheets out on her balcony which ruined her reputation. He then killed the kings only son making him have no male heirs.

With the murder of the kings son and the princess being seen as damaged goods, the kings line ended and a cousin took the crown after his death. This act was revenge for Johnnys family’s death and his sisters assault.

After Johnny was satisfied with his revenge he joined his creator in Spain and stayed with his coven for many decades until the volturi called them forth and accused them of antagonistic behaviour towards other covens, which was true.

The rest of the covens fate was sealed when it was found that the leader had impregnated a human woman. The woman and the other coven members were put to death but Johnny escaped after betraying his coven and swearing loyalty to the volturi over his coven and told the volturi of his covens cruel acts towards a smaller clan to provide evidence for their trail.

The volturi offered up Jane as a mate as reward but James refused and decided to stay alone as a rogue

To provide for himself he would complete small tasks or spy for the volturi and they would pay him for his work.

He would often remember a time he walked through the volturi’s halls to find Caius walking and talking with you which unnerved him considering Caius was seen as a king of cruelty and to see him acting so gently with you sparked curiosity.

This curiosity only grew when he was assigned to spy on the cullens, specifically you. He found you interesting but only saw this as a job

Not for long…….

Names:

The shadow- marcus

Alexander- Caius

Johnny- most known by

Outsider- alec

Savage-Jane

Brute- aro

Kidnapper- cullens

John- reader

Alex- reader

Predator- rosalie

Pervert- edward

Rogue- Carlisle

Bastard- esme

Freak- emmet and Jasper

Baby- reader

Power- darkness manipulation

Johnny can control the dark and bend it to his will. One of his many abilities is to manipulate shadows of his opponents to attack and block them. He can also manipulate the dark to act as a cloak of invisibility for him and masks his presence from others.

He can bring shadows of animals and have them attack others with realistic animalistic ability’s (example- bear would have same bite strength of actual bear) this also means he can slightly alter sizes of shadows and make the animal shadows larger.

Drawbacks-

Shadow ability only works if a shadow is prominent so it won’t work in complete darkness

Darkness ability to cloak him doesn’t work during the day because of the brightness

He can only manipulate a certain shadow for half an hour or less before he starts to lose it

Afflictions

Loyal to:

The volturi

Reader (in future)

Family members

Lord Eric ward- father (hung, drawn and quartered)

Lady Elisa ward- mother (hung to death)

Lady Annabelle- sister (hung to death)

Lady grace- sister (hung to death)

Lestat Mortimer- creator (killed by voturi)

Physically description:

Eyes: red ( vampire) green (human)

Hair: curly blonde hair

Height: 6’2

Build: muscular

Hope this tells you all you need to know :)

Love ya ❤️

[lovelyladyabsinthewrites]

From the Ashes story plotline pt 2/2

since i don't know if or when i'll get back to this story, someone did ask if i could give the basic plot of it so here's the second part

pt1

what a surprise to get back from the sky to find rhaegar targaryen standing in the manor's courtyard. you don't quite believe it when you land. you think it's even a mirage or the permanent fog creating an odd affect. but it's your silver prince. your husband. your rhaegar. you can't imagine the how different you look to him. no longer that fearful little girl. he's not the same either. a huge ugly scar running vertically across his otherwise beautiful face. the two of you just stand there staring at the other. you're uncertain. will he be disappointed? he makes the first move and walks up to you. further rendering you speechless when he drops to his knees and you see the tears in his eyes.

cue me taking a line from httyd2 "You're as beautiful as the day i lost you" you don't have time to remember how he'd felt about lyanna or the pain he caused you. you allow your heart to do the thinking and collapse into him. i had a sweet smutty idea for reunion sex 😅

barristan and ashara dayne find prince visarys and baby dany. along with ser willem darry all travel to sunspear

reader's group and rhaegar's leave asshai. latilth is still fairly young and can't fly for long periods like kushul can so they have to stop. . . you guessed it, yi ti. when cersei's prince hears of azor ahai reborn in the city with not one dragon now, but two, hieu is eager to invite prince rhaegar targaryen and azor ahai reborn to his palace. cersei's practically salivating. this was it, she'd be able to get to reader and finish her off. her and dritan plan to lure you away and kill you during the party. while at the party, a majority of the darkin and rhaegar's men remain to keep guard over the dragons. reader, rhaegar, rhiannon, inniros, griff and loviisa go to the party. she immediately spots cersei when reader is introduced to prince hieu and his imperial harem. at some point reader does pull away from the party when she tries to follow cersei. she's trapped in a room by cersei and dritan whom she is equally shocked to see there. he has a jagged scar "courtesy of your brother". reader and dritan sword fight. he's strong but he can't fend off the flames that melt his skin. when he's caught off guard that's when lightbringer skewers right through dritan. this is the first time reader has killed anyone with her own weapon. she's distracted by this and doesn't notice cersei come up behind her with a stiletto dagger thoroughly coated with poison. she gets one slice in before inniros' shadow stops her. rhaegar and the others barge into the room. cersei is taken prisoner. she has one more trick up her sleeve and it's for rhaegar. honestly i didn't work out the detail of how cersei would get close enough to poison rhaegar, but she manages to do it and kills him 🙃

once back in volantis and everyone reunited, a funeral pyre is built for rhaegar. a trial is held against cersei in the temple. tywin refused to save cersei from the fate of reader's execution blade. reader turns out to be pregnant. discovers this before setting sail for westeros. utterly devastated the entire voyage but rhiannon, jaime, inniros and tyrion are there to support reader through such troubled waters. also a new plan of attack is developed when they get to storm's end and call upon rhaegar's banner. robert baratheon encourages reader to take the iron throne since she carries rhaegar's heir. bunch of arguments that reader shouldn't join the rest of the men in battle since she was pregnant. she refuses to stand by. reader has two dragons after all. ashara and barristan show up at storm's end before they were scheduled to set out to king's landing via black water bay. little viserys and dany with them. lyanna watches over them (she's due to give birth to who will be jon baratheon). kushul easily takes out aerys' fleet and archers with his flames. Latilth, with reader atop, smashes through the great hall of the red keep. jaime, ned and robert lead an army on foot that had fiery hands, darkin, dornish, northerners, etc to take the city. reader slays aerys and becomes queen of the seven kingdoms.

several months later, reader gives birth to triplets: Vaegon, Rhaenyra and Maelor.

now what happens with the long night? that was supposed to be in the third book of the series i was planning (paradise of light and shadow) but honestly can't imagine that i'll get to it now 😅😂

anyway yeah, that's what i had planned for 'from the ashes'. i got burned out from even writing out the bare bones. this fic could have gone up to 100 chapters easily.

one day i may return to it. but for now this is the best i can give you 🙃

if you have any other qustions about it or want me to elaborate on certain parts, let me know 😊

[kittyball23]

Okay guys, listen up!

Got some insight to the Annecy Film Festival and some of the news it revealed! The info I found was from a posting on the YouTube channel "jstar" (if you're on Tumblr, I'd love to know 😀) from a screenshot presumably found from somewhere on social media ( A friend I speak to on Wattpad brought this channel and its postings to my attention). Here's what exactly was said:

"To be factual: after the furious madness of the second Trolls, whose psychedelic energy had something orgasmic about it, exit hard rock and welcome to the glorious era of boy bands. A retrospective choice (still) logical given the astounding popularity of Kpop today. He's Justin Timberlake's character, Branche, who was actually in a boy band with his brothers when he was little (watch out for the puns in the movie on Nsync, One Direction and the like) before being cowardly abandoned, becoming th grumpy, melancholy troll he is today. The goal of the film will be to reassemble the band to save one of them, captured by idols without talents who sniff him to become good singers. By breaking a crystal that imprisons him with the power of perfect harmony."

So I guess the brothers have to sing the 'Family Harmony' (which sounds like a special song of some sort) to save Floyd who is trapped in a crystal that Velvet and Veneer placed him in after they smell him to obtain his talent?

Um... what? XD

So I guess it kinda makes sense in a way - Bergens ate Trolls to obtain their happiness, so perhaps sniffling them means that they can get their singing abilities?? Perhaps that's why they have to keep him - maybe inhaling his talent is only temporary? Maybe each time they do it continues to turn his hair the white that we saw in the first poster? And what's the deal with the Family Harmony? How will that play out? Are their voices going to combine like a magical force and break the crystal Floyd’s trapped in? If this is all true, I've certainly got a lot of questions lol

Other postings that were made on social media stated that the first 20 MINUTES of the movie were shown.

Here is a posting regarding Broppy:

"Branch definitely has a bigger emotional hurdle to jump through in this movie and Poppy really helps him with that, kind of like in the first movie, but it's a much different issue, even though Poppy feels like it's the same kind of situation to solve."

I had a feeling that this movie would remind me of the first :) This next one is about my boyz:

"We explore the world of boy bands in the world of 90s music! We celebrate them, but with a certain irony, having a little fun with them. They are more expressive and maybe they also have problems on their side. It was fun exploring these different personalities, feeling a likeness and family connection to them. But also for each of the four brothers to find their own personality, their own voice and their own part of the family."

This last quoting is about the music:

"The composer remains Ted Shapiro and we are working with a great musical team at the moment. Justin is still the executive producer of the original music and was involved in its development early on. There are five original songs that he spearheads, as well as more jukebox songs, classic and familiar happy tunes and he calls on other producers he wants to work with to create the best song for this moment in the film."

Still don't have word on the original songs, but we do know from previous info that some of the involved songs are We Are Family, Staying Alive, Everybody (Backstreet's Back), The Hustle, You Got the Right Stuff, Sailing, Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This, and I Want You Back. I also have my own ideas for what songs I think could work for the movie, but I'll save it for another post :)

[lyerra]

ROOM OF SWORDS SPOILERS

just me ranting about webtoon's comment section because I want to exteriorize some stuff

The whole Roseberry situation is so so weird to me. Tbh when I started room of swords I didn't care much about the ships, I was there for the plot, but when strawbarrow was revealed to have been canon all along I was so happy for them

However a lot of people were displeased because they thought Gyrus would end up with Tori.

I think one of the comment sections that struck me the most was right as the episode ended with Tori kissing "Gyrus" (who was actually Kodya in Gyrus' body pretending to be him) and someone commented "imagine possessing your boyfriend's body only for some girl to kiss him" which was a pretty funny comment

some people responded however that if anything Kodya was Gyrus' ex because he had been in a relationship with BB!Gyrus but New Gyrus didn't know him the same way. Which WOULD have been a good argument to make if Gyrus hadn't been making puppy eyes at Kodya since S1...

tbh it's fine not to see it, I didn't see it either at first, but to say that Gyrus was CLEARLY attracted to Tori???????? when he never showed any sign of liking her as more than a friend?

I've read RoS many, many times both before and after it ended (been reading it from 2019 oh god it's been so long???) and all through S1 there are these small, small hints that Gyrus has a small crush on Kodya EVEN THOUGH he doesn't remember him. They were always meant to be together.

Tori does develop some feelings towards him, granted (we do learn that it's because he looks like her beloved but that's later, people couldn't have known back then), but that doesn't make Gyrus entitled to return them.

People shipping Roseberry shouldn't make the authors entitled to change THE ENTIRE PLOT simply because some people aren't happy with their story choices.

At that point there's been many hints that New Gyrus and Kodya are still attracted to one another and I'm just sad and confused that those people were in so much denial.

On the brighter side, the next episode really starts with Tori telling "Gyrus" that she knows he loves Kodya because she's seen him LITERALLY PINING SINCE DAY ONE. AND THAT SHES A LESBIAN.

case closed, right? Kodya and Gyrus are canon and still very much in love, and Tori herself is in love with another, yet unnamed woman.

well lo and behold: s2 finale's comment section!

we finally see Kodya and Gyrus sharing their first kiss onscreen, so someone in the comment section said something like "THEY FINALLY KISSED AAAAA OUR SHIP IS SAILING" which was also my reaction and a legit reaction to it??

and since there was A LOT of dislikes (over 1,6k I believe) the op edited to say something about homophobes and the backlash was even greater

and in the answers there was actually quite a lot of people being salty because their own ship didn't sail and

I mean idk

maybe I can't understand because my ship sailed and not theirs but what the hell

first of all homophobes exist. the authors commented that they had lost about 20% of their audience when they revealed that Gyrus and Kodya were canon, and they received a lot of hate online for it.

second of all as I said it's not about ships it's about the plot. strawbarrow was always endgame and the whole story, including the romance between Kodya and Gyrus and the important role it played on the story, been planned since over a year before RoS was published. this is not your story, if you're not happy about it go read or write some fix it fanfics (it's not so bad once you get used to it). but in terms of writing strawbarrow was so well executed, I feel like being mad just because of a ship is really disrespecting the authors' intentions.

third of all, it had been made painfully clear since A LONG TIME AGO that they wouldn't end up together. clinging onto that hope was really unnecessary. they shouldn't be mad anymore, it had been over for a while now and they should have made their peace. people complaining by the time of s2 finale were really just delusional.

fourth of all, the dislikes may not all be from homophobes but if they aren't then they're from jerks. it's not because you're unhappy that things didn't go your way that you have to hate on other people because they got what they wanted and not you. that's just being mean smh,, let people enjoy the things they like in peace

[percys-lemons]

HELLO CAN U PLEASE TELL ME A BIT MORE ABT THE DIFFERENT PLANETS' CIVILIZATIONS AND RULERS I WANNA KNOW NOW

I DIDNT SEE THIS OMG

the most developed i have is saturn. i don’t know a lot about earth history so bear with me but i kind of based it off of the tudors, for the longest time it was a monarchy ruling saturn, up til queen liza II, she was awesome, and was seemingly the only sane one in the family at the time, who would have her marry her uncle.

she grew very ill and knew that when she died the throne would go to her nasty little brother who would for sure mess up.

so on her deathbed she was as tradition granted one final decree that would pass after her death, so she decided that her dear friend the duchess be given rule over the planet, and as they had no choice she and her line became the rulers (this was highly irregular and i’m not sure it makes sense but i’ve decided everyone else in her family and the royal courts was too stupid to think of a way to avoid this so yeah)

so that brings us to present day when the duke rules the planet. he is very good friends with the general on neptune (they fought together when they were young in the wars on neptune) neptune is mainly uninhabited except for military bases and prisons.

the war happened when folks from mars wanted to build a city but the army on saturn wanted a place to train and test weapons and saturn has the superior firepower so saturn won.

there has been tension since then between the solid planets of mars and venus (venus has very few people living on it due to harsh conditions and is largely unexplored so far)

Mars is generally the base, where the Alliance of Uzark is based (Uzark was the first martian to perform the calculations necessary, and then sail all the way to saturn solo and make the first contact with the colony on saturn without being executed)

earth has remained largely the same, with primitive life forms and a severely deteriorating planet growing hotter and hotter. the council on mars generally had a grudge against earth at the way the population treats their home, and avoided making contact, but focusing on finding ways to safely settle on venus and jupiter, jupiter especially as its the largest planet and the storm has been growing much larger over the years, and it has many moons with different properties, some with conditions safe for life

the planets without a surface were settled on by way of building colossal pillars up from the core that hold the cities up in artificial atmospheres. this was done by the strange beings that seemed to have evolved naturally on saturn before deserting the city and leaving the galaxy (or so they think) for unknown reasons

a lot of this is very unfinished but i’ve thought about it a lot. now much of it is physically impossible and/or scientifically preposterous and to that i say: nuh uh. it’s my fantasy story and if it gets hugely popular someday i’ll let the nerds find an explanation for it and if not i’ll leave it as is cause its fun to make up things 👍