#Thena too

[softquietsteadylove]

Thenamesh au.

Gil and Ikaris are in a trainingsmatch. Ikaris wants Gil to use his full power but he refuses, too kind to use it against his eternal fam. So Ikaris decides to be provocative but Gil is unfazed till he starts saying hurtful things about Thena and their dynamic. He goes on and on til Gil looses his patient and starts using his full power while he is extremely angry. He even uses his power on his feets to increase his speed. Ikaris realizes after a few dangerous strong punches that he doesn’t have a chance against him but Gil is in his rage mode and won’t stop even if the others are shouting at him. and before it escalate to a life and death situation Thena is interfering.

"Come on, Gil!" Ikaris taunted, flying around the stadium. "At least give me a challenge!"

But Gil waved his hand through the air, dismissing Ikaris and his attempts to rile him up. "Will you take it easy, man? This is just a training match."

Thena was always telling Gil to be careful of Ikaris' pride. It was both his greatest weakness and his greatest motivator. She said she often found herself fighting Ikaris' pride more than the Soaring Eternal himself.

"Ah, scared you can't take me?" Ikaris chuckled at his brother's laziness as they circled each other. "Is your full power not as strong as we think it is?"

"You don't wanna see my full power, man," Gil continued to dismiss him, which he could see was starting to get to him.

"Five minutes," Ikaris tipped his chin at him.

"No."

Ikaris frowned, his jovial mood vanished. "You can't even do me the honour of an even match?"

"Guess not," Gil shrugged. His eyes drifted to the exit behind Ikaris, "we done here?"

But the Soldier Eternal had seen the slip up, and his opportunity was seized. "Oh, I see."

"What?" Gil frowned. He didn't like the tone in Ikaris' voice.

"Girlfriend waitin' for ye, Gil?" Ikaris asked with an entirely new sense of mockery to him. His eyes lit up at the opportunity to rattle his foe's cage a bit. "Got a hot date after this?"

"Watch it," Gil advised his brother. There were certain things that were over the line--off limits, in a way. And it was pretty understood - if unspoken - that the women in their lives fell into that category.

"Look, whatever floats your boat," Ikaris held up his hands in a play at civility.

"Ikaris," Gilgamesh glared, his fists starting to glow while still gripping his arms folded around himself.

"Is it an opposites attract thing?" Ikaris tilted his head at him in just the most demeaning way possible. "You're the soft to her sharp?"

Gil unfolded his arms, his fists glowing gold, "second warning."

"Ooh, I got 'im mad," Ikaris landed, standing in front of Gil with a borderline manic grin. "Maybe I should see if she's up for joining us? If you don't mind sharing her, that is."

"Last chance," Gil bit out, his feet impacting the ground as his energy built around him. "You say one more thing about her-"

"Relax Gil, she's all yours," Ikaris chuckled, drawing up his fists as he did. "Silent and bitchy isn't really my type."

Gil shot forward, propelled by his Cosmic Energy. Ikaris took to the air, but he couldn't fly fast enough. Gil caught his ankle, slamming him down into the ground so hard the floor cracked under him.

Ikaris grunted and gasped as the air was forced out of his lungs from the impact. He tried to pick himself up, but Gil was on top of him in a second, slamming a foot down into the chest plate of his armour--the only thing keeping him from getting his actual chest caved in.

Gilgamesh gripped the collar of Ikaris' armour, spinning and throwing him into the far wall. The room rattled in his wake. "Don't ever!"

Ikaris couldn't hear him. He couldn't hear anything past the rush of his own blood in his ears.

Gil landed punch after punch, twisting Ikaris' head this way and that. "Don't ever talk about her like that!"

Ikaris tried to charge his eyes, but Gil was coming at him too fast to get them powered up. One of them was almost swollen shut anyway. One of his ears was bleeding and his jaw was close to being dislocated.

Gil raised his fist, layering his energy upon itself until it felt heavy for even him. It would be enough to shatter every bone in Ikaris' body, maybe even plow right through their flawless armour.

Ikaris just looked at him, not one to back down from a fight, let alone one he started, "do it."

"Don't."

It wasn't a plea, so much as a lazy scolding. A slim hand came up and caught Gil's arm before he could land a punch that even Ajak would struggle to heal. He recognised the touch, and his Energy fizzled into the air around them.

"Thena," Gil blinked, his chest heaving with breath as his adrenaline and rage drained out of him. She lowered his fist back to his side slowly.

She looked as if she had interrupted a petty squabble, and not two Eternals out to kill each other. "I've never seen you rise to taunts before, Gilgamesh."

He sighed, looking back at the Soldier Eternal. He didn't exactly feel bad for the damage he'd done. Ikaris deserved it, as far as he was concerned. But he let Thena pull him away to follow her out. "I guess he got in my head."

"Hm," the Warrior Eternal offered neutrally, her hand travelling down his arm until she could take his hand in hers. The last of the tension in him drained out, as if she could take it from him and absorb it for herself.

"Sorry," Gil murmured, not that either of them were entirely sure for what he was apologising. He was walking beside and yet also following her, "he just...the things he says-"

"I am well acquainted with Ikaris' methods in the heat of battle," which was to say that he would say and do anything to rile up his opponents. There was no line Ikaris would not cross.

Gil nodded, offering a deprecating little smile, "I'm sure he never gets to you like this."

Her hand gave his a faint squeeze, and then she wasn't leading them anymore. She came to a stop beside him in the narrow hallway. "I wouldn't say that."

Gil was sure she was just saying that. He had never seen her get ruffled by Ikaris' dogging. He smiled, though, "thanks for tagging me out, anyway."

Finally, Thena smiled at him. "You did say you would be making honey buns, today."

Gil grinned before bursting into a laugh that made him feel infinitely lighter. "Oh, so that's what brought you?--just the promise of sweets?"

"Of course not, Gilgamesh," she admonished him with a smile of her own, "what kind of partner would I be if that were my only reason?"

[wyrmswears]

re: AA/GT crossover post, some thoughts about the crossover:

- Athena would totally be able to tell if someone or something was possessed with her mood matrix

- (free space) Maya & Pearl channeling ghosts, Phoenix possibly dying and being saved

- Camila & Athena have had similar headphones :-)

- Larry Butz sees Banana Man's drip and copies his outfit

- Green Detective is Payne's more successful younger brother

- Gumshoe & Jowd get drinks together often. Mistaken for each other on occasion due to their fashion sense

(sorry I've been a long time fan of both so these were just sitting in my brain bahahaha)

GHOST TRICK SPOILERS

block the tag 'ghost trick spoilers'

1. SHE WOULD! i imagine she would be able to hear some underlying fear or confusion from the person being possessed that doesnt match the ghost's emotions.

2. i think phoenix is genuinely incapable of dying with his current track record. on the topic of spirit channeling though, i think sissel is the kind of guy to be sceptical of it until he sees it, despite all the supernatural aspects of his life.

3 & 4. im going to have to draw some outfit swaps arent i (another anon also asked for outfit swaps so... i suppose ill do a compilation)

5. this is such a niche headcanon i am now adopting it

6. im sure gumshoe and jowd would get along very well!! both have some very exciting stories to share over drinks..

[sunshinethena]

NORMAL TELLING BABY LINK “its gonna be alright”

I KNOW YOU KNOW WHAT YOU WERE DOING WILL

[eternalowl]

Thena, texting the group chat: Gil gave me a son. Say hi

Gilgamesh: :D

Kingo: WHAT

Gilgamesh: Yes

Kingo: WHEN DID YOU TWO-

Thena:

[blazefirefox]

i finally caved and made an Ena OC-

Well, here's my lil' diva ThEna! (pronounced like 'Athena' but w/ out the a)

The reason I made that poll for color schemes was because I couldn't decided if I wanted ThEna to be pink/indigo or pink/seafoam, but I think the second option works better. She's seen in the Dream BBQ setting, and knows that version of Ena very well (they're buddies, gal pals if you will).

Time to go a little more in depth about her sides:

ThEna's greenish side is her "left brain-esque" photographer persona, or her day job as she puts it. They have a more outwardly aloof and doesn't give a crap attitude, and can be a bit hard to talk to (especially bc they has a bit of an ego). All of this said, she does take her job as a journalist very seriously and is determined to find "the truth", whatever that means. Her "black & white" form (for lack of a better word) for this side is triggered when she gets stressed about not knowing everything about something, and in this form, she gets super analytical, and can stay in this state for days trying to find a solution to her problem, often neglecting her health and surroundings. they literally just turn into this:

ThEna's voice headcannon for this side is Michael Kovach.

On the other hand, ThEna's pink side is her "right brain" vocalist side, and although she loves photography, singing is definitely her more preferred hobby. Her night job, as she loving puts it, is singing at a large scale karaoke bar, and yes, she is very sleep deprived. They're very well-liked in their workplace, the bar itself being one of the only places where being an Ena isn't an immediate social death sentence. Their ego from their photographer persona can be seen in this side as Vocalist ThEna can be an absolute diva. This side is more likely to get blackout drunk, mostly because of her love of gin, which her friends are only slightly worried about. Her black and white form is triggered when she gets very passionate, or when she has a sudden outburst of any emotion (it actually mostly triggers when she sings a really high note), and will become extremely hyperfocused on what she was talking about/doing (also her diva-ness will rise by 75%). Her voice headcannon for this side is Eva Noblezada.

Some extra notes:

the strap on Photographer's design is supposed to be a camera strap, i was just to lazy to draw the camera

Meanwhile Vocalist has one of those microphone headpieces that i just realized now is stupid bc i already have her holding a microphone but i think it looks nice so whatever

I already mentioned it a few times, but her sides are based more on right brain and left brain rather than emotions (ignore that they're on the the wrong sides)

Her geometric hand is more of a mix of classic Ena & Dream BBQ Ena's hand, while it is 'clawed', they're more dull

The stripes on her right arm and left leg glow in the dark

ThEna has 4 co-singers/friends (which i'll design eventually) that she hangs out with the most, and they're also some of the only ones who can handle being around her photographer persona

Since they have a day job that is often mentally exhausting and an all-night job that can be physically draining, their sleep schedule is absolutely horrendous

Of course she does have some self-confidence issues, which she tries to hide with her outward ego and diva persona, but she can't help but slip up sometimes

the weirdest think about them is that their 2 sides actually get along; they don't normally have a default side, but ThEna is more commonly seen as their photographer side during the day and a vocalist at night

They met Dream BBQ Ena when they were taking some photos of some of the wildlife(?) and was so hyperfocused that they didn't notice Ena coming up to them to try and talk and they were freaked tf out. After some banter, they became 'acquainted', but got closer as time went on

ThEna sometimes invites Ena to the karaoke bar, just to hang out. Ena actually likes these visits bc the bar is pretty Ena-friendly and is one of the places where she isn't judged for literally existing

here's another silly drawing i did of ThEna

The dialogue for Photographer is picked from Jax from The Amazing Digital Circus and the dialogue for Vocalist is from one of Eva's vlogs (i think)

Before I go, I just wanted to say that one of the big inspirations for me actually making her is @bashzzey's amazing Ena OCs and art, and I just wanted to shout her out, so if y'all haven't seen her art, uh go check it out :]

ok bye now-

[osaemu]

HANNAH UR BANNERS / HEADERS ALWAYS SLAY HOW DO U MAKE THEM

THENAAAA 😽😽 i always start by searching google for "templates" (like netflix/youtube) and then i recreate them on canva !

[pcktknife]

athena wears too many damn accessories

[bloodorangesunrise]

One of my favourite genres of youtube content is seeing grown ass adults indulging in childlike joy and whimsy for something simple and fun. Cynicism has poisoned internet culture a lot I think and seeing people just being nice and silly and enjoying stupid little childish things makes me feel happy.

[attorneys-against-court-violence]

Thinking back, it's wild how many roles Athena played in Dual Destinies/AA5. She was, over the course of a single game;

The Lawyer (Cases 5-1 and 5-3)

The Weird Girl (Every other case)

The Defendant (Case 5-5)

The DL-6 Trauma Baby (Her backstory and Case 5-5)

The one trying to save the DL-6 Trauma Baby (the whole reason she's a lawyer and not an artist- sorry, a psychologist)

(the DL-6 Trauma Baby is the character that's been massively affected or deceived about the big past case of the story, eg Edgeworth for DL-6 and Ema for SL-9, who's trauma is resolved along with the case)

I'm not sure whether to call this a testament to her range as a character or an inditement of AA5s scattered writing, though that judgement will come to pass when I review it in detail. Girl's been kept busy is what I'm saying.

[crazypantsjewels]

I got Thena first and luckily enough I got Gilgamesh too!

[sensitively-taken]

i forgot ab the short content pandemic over here and i’m currently struggling to find a single riize fanfic 😭

[softquietsteadylove]

Helloo, how are you?

So its halloween and i have a little request for something scary. Maybe the eternals somehow end up in this very old and problaby haunted house, and then the ghost in said house take a liking for Thena, so they start to hide her and make the others see her when she is not there. And poor Gil is more scared that he would like.

(Also thank you for answering to my asks🩷😭)

"This place really is massive," Gil commented mildly as he moved the flashlight around the walls. It was just the sound of their steps and their breathing. The halls of this old asylum were oppressively quiet.

"It's easily the largest space we've ever been in," Thena agreed as she too moved moved her light to examine their surroundings. "Its a good thing the others agreed to come with us to man the equipment."

Their friends were being good sports about it, whether or not they were present as true believers or because if half of their group was already in, they might as well all come.

"I hope they don't hate me for dragging them out here all Halloween night," he gulped as they turned a corner down - what a surprise - another pitch black hallway.

Thena scoffed at the idea, though, allowing him to walk even closer to her, all but clinging to her arm. "Please, all they would be doing is loitering at Phastos' anyway. He and Ben would be watching something, Makkari and Druig would be pretending not to make out in the corner and Ikaris would be trying - and failing - to hold Sersi's hand during the whole movie."

Gil snickered beside her. Thena's observations could seem cutting at times, but they were never all that inaccurate. And they could be pretty funny, in that way. "I'm sure he'd get there eventually."

"I have yet to see it," she drawled about their mutual friend, more frenemy when it came to her and Ikaris in particular. "Speaking of, when did they last check in?"

Gil pulled pulled out his walkie-talkie. "Ground floor, do you copy?"

"Ugh, Gil--aye, we're still 'ere. You don't have to go all air traffic control for it."

Well, if he was going to be such a stick in the mud. Gil huffed, "roger that, Party-Pooper."

"Oi!"

Thena took his hand and pulled the walkie closer to her. "Sersi, tell us if he holds onto you too tight and we'll switch floors."

"Watch it!"

The constant radio static of the channel clicked again and Sersi laughed. "He's really quite all right, you two. Anything up there?"

"Nothing, so far," Thena sighed before remembering to add, "over and out."

Gil smiled as he put the walkie back in his pocket. Thena probably thought it was silly too, but she would never actually say anything. It was one of the many ways in which she indulged him on these ghost hunts. "Hey."

She looked at him, wondering what had caught his attention. Once she saw him wiggling his hand at her, her smiled turned a little bit shy as she slipped her hand into his. "Do you think they'll know what to look for?"

"I told them about what all the equipment does, they should be able to tell if they get any activity," Gil murmured as they turned down a hall into a more residential looking area. "Whoa, this looks like an actual house."

"This must have been an area for those in a palliative sort of care, like a true hospice," she muttered, pressing closer to him. It was still old floors and concrete walls, but there were now rooms with more than nothing, some even still had an old metal bed frame in them. There was a dresser or two, even a mirror.

Gil winced as their flashlights both hit it head on. He lowered his, but he blinked and rubbed his eyes after the fact. "Can't believe something like that is still standing in a place like this in one piece."

Thena had no comment on it, apparently.

"Kinda freaky, right?" he sighed as he rubbed at his eyes again before shaking it off. "Thena?"

He looked around.

"Thena?" he called out with a little more urgency. He moved the flashlight around, plenty of the room doors were open, but he would have heard her. He would have felt her, wouldn't he? "Thena?!"

He rushed to check each of the rooms, forgetting how creepy everything was. His stomping feet were echoing all over the place, but that didn't matter. "Thena, where are you?!"

All that came back was his own voice bouncing around. He was starting to panic.

"Thena, please, answer me!" he panted, even moving the creaky, old doors to make sure she wasn't hiding somewhere. How could she have just vanished into this air?

He shouldn't have let go of her hand.

"Thena, please!" he shouted, retracing their steps, shining his flashlight down every hall he passed. He knew most of them led to dead ends. Where could she have gone? His hand pulled out the walkie-talkie again, fumbling with it a little. "G-Guys?!"

"Gil, what's wrong?"

"Th-Thena!" he gulped, knowing they needed more information than that. "She was right next to me and-and now-"

"Whoa, Gil, slow down. Nothing's happened to Thena, I'm sure she just went to look at something that caught her eye," Sersi attempted to diffuse his worry.

"Why the hell weren't you keeping an eye on her?" Ikaris snapped at him in sharp contrast.

"Oi," Druig chimed in on his set. "You all need to calm down, I just saw 'er."

"What?" Gil frowned. Druig and Makkari were on the second level, although most of it was sectioned off thanks to a fire from the last century. He rushed to the stairs, "you're sure?"

"Yeah, I saw her walk clear through that light grid you put up, actually," Druig narrated. He paused and then continued, "Kari saw'er goin' down the far stairwell."

"You mean the one to your left?" Gil asked, rushing down the main stairs so quickly he almost tripped at the very bottom. But he took off, full on sprinting.

"Yeah?"

Based on where they had set up, there was no way Thena could be on the stairwell to their left, because it led to absolutely nowhere, just a collapsed hallway downstairs and a boarded up room at the top. Whatever they had seen wasn't Thena.

"Keep your nightvision cam on, okay? And you two stay there--and stay close together!"

"Gil, man, you okay?" Ikaris asked a little more sympathetically, obviously hearing the urgency in his voice over the loud and static-y walkies. "Like Sersi said, I'm sure Thena's just fine."

"I'm on my way to you, just sit tight," Gil huffed. His chest felt tight, like it was on fire. He looked around, only now on the second floor. This place was such a massive hell hole, who knew what kind of malevolent spirits were in here. "Guys?!"

"Hold yer bloody horses, man, hell," Druig flashed his light at him from within the main hallway of the floor. As soon as Gil rounded the corner, though, Druig was already on his feet. Despite his words, his face was dead serious, "she really not with you?"

Gil gulped. Tears sprang to his eyes, although he knew this wasn't the time. He shook his head, trying to catch his breath. The light grid they had set up to pick up any kind of movement was still shining into the closed off areas ahead.

He jumped, but Makkari rubbed his back with a reassuring smile. Druig shone the light a little closer to them to illuminate her words. This place is like a maze, I'm sure she's looking for you too.

That was actually what worried him. He had screamed for her, at the very top of his lungs. And not only had he not heard anything back, but apparently none of their friends had heard him either, which seemed impossible.

And if he couldn't hear Thena, then how would he know if she needed his help?

"Where did you see her?" he asked, shining his own light closer to his face for Kari to read his lips.

She pointed. I swear I saw her walk through the grid. I thought she saw something in the window.

Thena would never walk through the light grid herself; it would compromise any evidence they got of a spectral figure. Still, Gil moved closer to it. He shone the flashlight into the corridor, through the propped open door. It was hard to tell with the light in the window reflection, but he was pretty sure it was just a boarded up, empty room through there.

Druig took the liberty of packing up the light grid and putting it back in his bag. "Take a look."

Gil slid closer to the darkened hallway. Despite never having been on one of these hunts before, all their friends were far less scared than he was. Maybe because they definitely didn't believe in ghosts. His heart hammered as he entered the suffocating dark of the hallway. He pressed his flashlight to the window of the door that was boarded closed. If something jumped up at him he might have a heart attack.

It was just a closed up room, full of evidence of fire damage. He angled the light around as best he could without giving himself nothing but reflection to look at. He jumped as some kind of movement caught his eye. He tried to follow it but it was gone as soon as he saw it. But he knew it moved towards the other door to the room.

And it looked blonde.

Druig and Makkari made room for him as he started running towards the main stairs again. "Come on!"

"If she's messin' with us she's makin' us go through a hell of a workout," Druig felt the need to chime in, following him down the stairs.

But Gil knew that wasn't the case. Maybe - maybe - she might mess with Ikaris a little, possibly Druig, all in good fun. But she would never make him worry about her like this, she just wouldn't. She would never scare him like this, not when it was always her calming him down on these hunts.

It really was like a labyrinth in this place. Gil leapt down the last two stairs and whipped open the doors to the main floor. "Did you see her?!"

Ikaris and Sersi both jumped off the bench of the entrance hallway. They looked at each other and then at him. They still had most of the equipment set up around them, and a floodlight pointed at the ceiling for a little more illumination of the area.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Ikaris growled at him for storming in the way he did. "Didn't you see her on your level?"

Druig shrugged, "thought we did."

But Gil rushed past all of them, taking a right and pulling open the doors. This place was so massive, it was hard to keep track. But if the figure he had seen in the other room had been Thena, or worse, something else, it would have ended up in here. "Thena!"

Still, nothing but his own voice. It didn't echo like it did upstairs, though. He moved his flashlight around, seeing all the junk that was pushed into this empty but undamaged area of the building. He moved more slowly.

His heart was still hammering, but he made himself take each next step. He couldn't stop until Thena's hand was in his again. "Thena, are you in here?"

He could have sworn a voice whispered back to him. It would have been great potential evidence if he had any equipment or was recording anything. But for now, he took the potential whisper of 'she's mine' and scowled. "No, she's not."

Whatever whispered at him didn't have another reply to that.

Gil slid around a corner constructed of old office furniture, flashing his light in every nook and cranny. "She's my girlfriend! Whatever you are, find someone on your own plain of existence!"

Something rattled in a far corner. He really was going to have a heart attack in here. But he gulped, re-grasping his flashlight in his sweaty palm. No ghost was getting his precious Thena--not tonight.

He moved closer to the rattling. It was a doorknob turning. Okay, so he might die in here tonight. He hoped his friends would escape, at least. But if he did die, then maybe he could be with Thena. If she had died alone in here, he would never forgive himself.

There was a door, and the doorknob was turning.

Gil let out a breath and steeled his resolve again. He could do this. He would do this! He could do anything if it was for Thena. Thena, he repeated to himself as he reached for the doorknob, Thena, Thena, Thena.

As soon as he touched the doorknob, it was no longer locked, and flew open. Thena tumbled into the room, straight into his chest as he caught her. Both of their flashlights fell and rattled on the ground as they held onto each other.

"Gil!" Thena gasped into his shirt, burying her face in it as soon as she knew it was him. "I-I-I didn't--I-I thought-!"

"It's okay, it's okay," he gulped, holding her as tight as he could without hurting her. It was really Thena in his arms, small and warm, blonde hair under his chin. His tears came again, and he didn't force them away, "you're really here."

Thena held onto him just as tightly, clawing at the back of his shirt so she could hold fistfuls of it. "I-I turned around and you were gone--just gone! And I tried shouting for you but I couldn't hear anything around me but silence. And then I thought I saw this--th-this thing-!"

"It's okay, I'm here," he whispered. He couldn't process any of what she was saying right now. All he could think about was the comfort of having his Thena in his arms again.

Slowly, they released one another. Thena sniffled, laughing as she put her hands on his cheeks. "I'm supposed to be the one here for you."

He laughed as well, just as watery and tearful. He put his hands on her cheeks as well, "I can be here for you, just this once."

She leaned into him again as he kissed her.

"You two okay?!"

Thena pulled back and picked her flashlight up first. She shone it around the room, "where are we?"

Gil frowned as she handed him his flashlight as well. "We're on the ground floor, in that side room we checked out first thing tonight."

"The ground floor?" she repeated, looking completely baffled. "We were on the third floor. I-I felt something pull me and I thought it was you, then I was in this completely other room. I was trying to find my way back to you in the hall."

Nice try, ghost creep; Gil took her hand, weaving their fingers together. He could carry his flashlight in his mouth if he had to.

"Gil," Thena continued to frown as he guided them back towards the entrance, "I didn't go down any stairs. We can't possibly be downstairs again."

"It's okay, Thena," he reassured her blindly. It didn't matter. None of it mattered, now that his fear was lifting. He waved as a flashlight circled from where the door was. "I got her!"

Collective sighs of relief were had. Ikaris was the first to bark at them, "what the hell, Thena?! You nearly scared the big guy half to death--that's not funny!"

"Shush," Sersi soothed the beast beside her, as she always did. "We're just glad you're both okay."

Druig and Makkari gave them both more curious looks, "where the hell were did you go?"

"I-" Thena looked at each of them, seeming completely stunned. "I don't know."

"Doesn't matter," Gil spoke up, more sure of this now than he had been about anything all night. "We're getting out of here--now."

He pushed through them, pulling Thena to the door to the outside, hand in hand. He could hear their friends packing up all the equipment behind them.

"Yappin' orders at us now, is he?" he could hear Ikaris gripe behind them.

"Stop it, they've been through enough." How did Sersi put up with him?

Finally outside, Gil took a deep breath. He put his hands on Thena's cheek again, urging her to do the same. She did, but she looked up at him. "Really Gil, I thought I was making my way back to you. I didn't even see any stairs, there's no way I could have-"

"We'll figure it out later," he resolved. They could do that in a safe place, where there was overhead lighting, and a warm mug of her favourite tea. Maybe he'd even have a blanket around her shoulders and massage her feet. "All that matters is you're safe."

Thena's face shifted to something like guilt. She looked down at their joined hands. "I thought I saw you."

"What?"

"What lured me away," she admitted quietly, and maybe with the first bit of true fear he had heard her voice all night. "I thought I saw you in one of those other rooms. That was what made me follow...whatever it was in there."

It had lured him the same way. But, again, that could wait until they were in a brightly lit space with firmly locked doors.

Gil kissed her forehead and pulled her into his arms. "I found you again, so it doesn't really matter."

"Hm," she sighed, nuzzling her face into his chest again. "I knew I'd find you, I guess you finding me is okay, too."

Ah, his invincible Thena. She was the truly unshaken of the two of them. But he had to admit, he was assured by tonight that he had what it took to square up if he really needed to. If it was for the woman he loved, at least.

[parasitoidism]

fuck u guys for making me think that persona 1 was going to be some unbearable obtuse jrpg slog like it is kind of obtuse I already missed out on some stuff by not realizing you had to do some things at the very beginning of the game but its literally a jrpg like its just a jrpg on the ps1 from 1999 this is jsut how they are. its fine. its literally fine

[sunshinethena]

they could never make me hate you lestat de lioncourt

[prommytheus]

these jeans are too short my hands are cold and my hair is wet fuck the world

[wyrmswears]

i love how the parallels between athena and phoenix. drives me wild every time. she really is his mentee.

for one, becoming a defence attorney to save your childhood friend. classic. second of all, both are not open people!! they hold their cards close to their chest: for phoenix, this post explains it really well - but to put it simply he doesn't discuss how he knows edgeworth, edgeworth's 'suicide', or his connection to iris until those cards are forced onto the table. similarly, athena is evasive about her past: see this post for her which although about her trauma as a whole, briefly covers her tendencies to shut others out. thirdly, as i have already stated today, athena is slightly morally grey. i think, of course it can be accounted to simon, but also as she met phoenix in his disbarment era (morally grey phoenix at his peak), i like to think she picked up some of it from him. and finally, of course, they're both involved in the rise of the dark age of law.